Severe Weather Advisory In Effect For NYC

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><img alt="2013_01_winterwarningsnow.jpg" src="http://gothamist.com/attachments/jen/2013_01_winterwarningsnow.jpg" /><br /><i style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #666666; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Photograph of Mayor Bloomberg briefing reporters at a Department of Sanitation facility on the West Side of Manhattan by <a href="https://twitter.com/NYCSanitation/status/299612998148947968/" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; color: #666666; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank" title="Opens in a new window">DSNY</a></i><br />From:http://gothamist.com<br /><br /><br /><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">With the Nemo Blizzard Warning <a href="http://gothamist.com/2013/02/07/what_time_is_it_going_to_start_snow.php" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; color: #666666; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">beginning at 6 a.m.</a> on Friday, preceded by cellphone carriers sending out<a href="http://gothamist.com/2013/02/07/emergency_alert_about_snow_blizzard.php" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; color: #666666; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">emergency alerts to customers in New York</a>, New York city and state officials really are battening down the hatches <a href="http://gothamist.com/2013/02/07/major_winter_storm_expected_tomorro.php" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; color: #666666; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">for the coming snow</a>. Mayor Bloomberg issued a "Severe Weather Advisory" earlier tonight: "At the direction of the Mayor, the public is hereby advised that significant snowfall has been forecast starting tomorrow afternoon through Saturday morning. The public is urged to avoid all unnecessary driving during the duration of the storm and, until further directed, to use public transportation wherever possible." (Public transportation has<a href="http://gothamist.com/2013/02/07/heres_how_the_mta_will_stare_this_b.php#photo-1" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; color: #666666; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">snow-fighting machinery at the ready</a>!)</div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">Bloomberg also said, "As New Yorkers are making their commuting plans for tomorrow, they should be aware that driving conditions will be difficult. If you must drive, use extreme caution." His advisory continues:</div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><blockquote style="background-repeat: no-repeat repeat; border-left-style: solid; border-width: 0px 0px 0px 1px; margin: 0px 0px 20px 30px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 10px; quotes: ''; vertical-align: baseline;">The MTA has advised of potential service disruptions, and information about any service changes to public transportation is available on the MTA website at http://www.mta.info/.<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" /><br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />Any vehicle found to be blocking roadways or impeding the ability to plow streets shall be subject to towing at the owner’s expense.<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" /><br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />Alternate side parking is suspended citywide through Sunday. Due to anticipated high winds the Staten Island Ferry will be operating on a modified schedule beginning tomorrow afternoon.<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" /><br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />The Emergency Management, Fire, Police, Sanitation, and Transportation Commissioners will be taking all appropriate and necessary steps to preserve public safety and to render all required and available assistance to protect the security, well-being and health of the residents of the City.<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" /><br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />City government and public schools are open tomorrow. Afterschool programs are subject to cancellation.<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" /><br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />Due to potential power outages and transportation difficulties, New Yorkers are advised to stock up on potential supplies, including medicine.</blockquote>Earlier, the Mayor's office Tweeted, "We're ready for #Nemo: we have 250,000+ tons of salt on hand, 350 salt spreaders & plows ready to be put on 1,800 Sanitation trucks."<div style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">Governor Cuomo is also activating the NY State Emergency Operations Center Friday at noon to monitor the storm and response efforts. He said, "I urge New Yorkers to closely watch local news reports for weather updates and adjust their travel plans accordingly, including avoiding non-essential travel during and directly after the storm since roads will be icy with blizzard conditions in some places."</div><div style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">Here's the Governor's press release:</div><blockquote style="background-repeat: no-repeat repeat; border-left-style: solid; border-width: 0px 0px 0px 1px; margin: 0px 0px 20px 30px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 10px; quotes: ''; vertical-align: baseline;">Beginning Friday morning and lasting through Saturday afternoon, significant snow and wind are forecasted to affect the metro-New York City and Long Island areas, as well the Hudson Valley. New Yorkers could see potentially significant and prolonged transportation disruptions, power outages and other impacts. The greatest concern for the Long Island area is the possibility for high winds. Gusts of up to 50 mph are expected, which could cause downed power lines, power outages, downed trees, beach erosion, battering waves, and coastal flooding. Minor widespread coastal flooding with local, moderate coastal flooding is also expected.<div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin-top: 0.75em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin-top: 0.75em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">Representatives from state agencies will be present at the State EOC to coordinate storm response efforts, including Office of Emergency Management, Department of Environmental Conservation, Office of Fire Prevention and Control, Office of General Services, Department of Health, Division of Military and Naval Affairs, Public Service Commission, National Grid, Division of State Police, Thruway Authority, Department of Transportation and the American Red Cross.</div><div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin-top: 0.75em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">New York City, and Nassau and Suffolk counties report that they will activate their respective Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs) on Friday; counties in the Hudson Valley, Catskill, Capital District, and Northern New York regions continue to monitor the storm.</div><div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin-top: 0.75em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">The Governor advises drivers to take extra caution and only travel when necessary during the storm. Some of the most important tips for safe winter driving include:<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Never follow a snowplow too closely or attempt to pass one. Remember that the highway ahead of the plow is usually snow-covered; <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Adjust speed for road conditions and maintain a safe distance from other vehicles; <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Schedule extra time for winter travel and be patient during ice and snow removal operations; <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Assume that bridge surfaces are slippery, as they freeze more quickly than road surfaces; <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Watch for black ice, which can be difficult to see but makes conditions slippery when pavement temperatures are below freezing; <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Have a cell phone handy, if possible, but do not text while driving; distracted driving is illegal and becomes even more dangerous during storm events; <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Never venture from your vehicle if snowbound; <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Equip your car with emergency supplies including sand, shovel, flares, booster cables, rope, ice scraper, portable radio, flashlight, blankets and extra warm clothes; <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Inform a responsible person of your destination, intended route, and estimated time of arrival; and <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Keep calm and do not panic in case of a vehicle breakdown, accident, or if you become snowbound.</div><div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin-top: 0.75em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">The State has taken the following steps to ensure readiness:</div><div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin-top: 0.75em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Power:</strong><br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· National Grid: The Governor’s office has been communicating to National Grid that they need to be ready with advance preparations and response plans. Earlier today National Grid announced that it is taking a series of advance steps to prepare for an incoming storm and the outages it may cause on Long Island, including securing hundreds of extra work crews, adding Call Center personnel and arranging schedules to allow extended coverage, and preparing all restoration equipment and inventories and pre-stocking strategic locations across the Island with wires, transformers, and additional restoration equipment. <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Public Service Commission: PSC Chairman Garry Brown has contacted the CEOs of all the major utilities to confirm storm preparation efforts. National Grid's gas operations (Long Island and New York City) are preparing for potential coastal impacts.<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· The New York Power Authority: NYPA’s statewide generation and transmission facilities are fully prepared for the forecast winter storm. All the required resources, including personnel, equipment and vehicles, have been put in place and are available to be called upon. NYPA will coordinate with state and local emergency management agencies, as necessary. Specific preparatory actions at the various NYPA facilities include:<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o Extra personnel on shift during the storm<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o Snow removal equipment fueled up, tested and ready to be utilized<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o Emergency generators fueled and ready<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o Supplies of diesel fuel and gasoline available at sites<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o NYPA line crews are prepared for dispatch</div><div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin-top: 0.75em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Thruway Authority:</strong><br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· All equipment has been prepared for the storm including: 197 seven-ton snow plows, 142 medium-duty snow plows, 53 front end loaders, three large truck mounted snow blowers and one large front end loader mounted snow blower <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· 105,989 tons of salt on hand <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Approximately 600 maintenance staff dedicated to snow and ice operations <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· All 21 Highway Maintenance Sections will be fully staffed around the clock for the duration of the storm <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· The Authority will be providing staff to support the activation of the State Office of Emergency Management <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Thruway’s Emergency Operations Center is scheduled to be activated jointly with State Police Troop T on Friday afternoon <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Thruway’s Statewide Operations Center will have additional staff to handle increased call volume typical of significant weather events <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Troop T operated ATVs and snowmobiles are prepped <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Troop T will be adding additional patrols during the storm <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Due to colder temperatures and sufficient residual salt on the pavement from recent storms widespread pavement pretreatment is not required in upstate New York. Further south where temperatures are expected to be warmer, approximately 40 miles of critical ramps along with the Tappan Zee Bridge will be pre-treated.</div><div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin-top: 0.75em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">State Bridge Authority</strong><br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· The Bridge Authority has the Bear Mountain, Newford Beacon, Mid-Hudson, Kingston-Rhinecliff, and Rip Van Winkle bridges staffed 24-7 until the storm is over.<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· They expect the bridges to be fully functional throughout the storm, weather permitting.<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· The Bridge Authority has staged 14 large plow vehicles, 16 small plow vehicles, and other loaders and vehicles necessary to maintain continuous operations.</div><div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin-top: 0.75em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Metropolitan Transportation Authority</strong><br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· MTA New York City Transit's Department of Subways is mobilizing its fleet of snow and ice-busting equipment designed to keep outdoor tracks and the third rail clear of snow and ice during harsh winter weather. The fleet includes super-powered snow throwers, 10 jet-powered snow-blowers, and five specially-built de-icing cars, all designed to keep service moving. Diesel fleet trains are also being made available to clear snow from the right of way—while not carrying passengers. Forecasts of accumulating snow may also require NYC Transit to shift the storage locations of subway cars indoors. The outdoor steps at subway stations will shoveled and salted along with the platforms on the outdoor segments of lines.<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· The Department of Buses has and is deploying its own fleet of snow fighting equipment, including 28 salt-spreading trucks equipped with plows assigned to each depot to maintain the flow of buses. They work in cooperation with the Department of Sanitation to keep bus routes clear and passable. Buses will be equipped when necessary with weather-appropriate tire chains.<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Metro-North Railroad and Long Island Rail Road will deploy fleets of snow and ice-busting equipment to keep outdoor tracks, third rails and catenary wires clear of snow and ice during harsh winter weather. Track switches will be treated with antifreeze and switch heaters will be turned on to keep switches moving freely so trains can continue to be routed from one track to another. Outdoor steps at all commuter rail stations will be pretreated to prevent snow and ice build-up and shoveled as necessary. More than 3,000 staff will be on call, ready to operate equipment from snow blowers and chainsaws to heavy trucks and front-end loaders. Equipment includes jet engines mounted on rail cars to blow snow from tracks at high speeds. <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· MTA Bridges & Tunnels is fitting plows onto regular maintenance trucks and salt domes are being filled with tons of deicer. The fleet also includes 45 trucks that have special ground temperature sensors, which provide information about roadway conditions on entrance and exit ramps and other areas that are not covered by embedded roadway sensors. Above-ground atmospheric sensors are also used to help gather real-time information on wind velocity, wind direction, humidity and precipitation via wireless communication. In addition, the scheduled weekend-long closure at the Queens Midtown Tunnel for post-Sandy construction work has been cancelled due to the impending storm.<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />In addition, Bridges and Tunnels has on hand:<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o Nearly 7,500 tons of deicer on hand;<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o Fleet of 98 snow and ice-fighting vehicles;<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o Fleet comprised of vehicles that do double-duty, serving as regular maintenance trucks during normal weather and snow plows and conveyors when in snow fighting mode;<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o Some 45 vehicles equipped with ground temperature sensors that tell personnel if the roadway is in danger of freezing. The operator then spreads additional deicer where it is needed and;<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o MTA crossings also have imbedded roadway sensors and above-ground atmospheric sensors that deliver real-time information on wind velocity, wind direction, humidity and precipitation. These sensors record data used to determine if speed restrictions are necessary to keep the nearly 800,000 vehicles that use the MTA’s 7 bridges and 2 tunnels daily. <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o Some 175 additional staff on duty throughout the storm.</div><div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin-top: 0.75em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Port Authority</strong><br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· The Port Authority is putting steps in place in preparation for the first major winter snowstorm of the year. The agency is deploying extra personnel at its facilities and assembling snow equipment in advance of the wintry conditions expected to hit the region on Friday and into Saturday morning.<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· The Port Authority will deploy additional staff at its airports, seaports, tunnels, bridges PATH system and bus terminals. Key personnel are already on notice to work overnight to monitor conditions at each of the agency’s facilities. <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Preparations for the approaching storm include fueling all vehicles, ensuring fully stocked salt supplies, and having snowplows, shovels and other snow equipment at the ready. The Port Authority’s winter weather arsenal includes:<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o More than 200 snow and ice equipment at its airports, including melters that can liquefy up to 500 tons of snow an hour and plows that can clear snow at 40 mph;<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o Approximately 60 pieces of snow equipment at the bridges and tunnels, including 28 trucks equipped with plows and spreaders at the George Washington Bridge, the world’s busiest vehicular crossing; <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o More than 2,000 tons of salt and more than 1,500 tons of sand for airport roads and parking lots, plus more than 2,000 tons of salt for the bridges and tunnels, specifically 500 tons of salt at the George Washington Bridge and 200 tons at the Holland Tunnel;<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o Approximately 300,000 gallons of liquid anti-icer chemicals at the airports, which prevent snow and ice from bonding to runways and taxiways, plus approximately 1,700 tons of solid de-icers, which break up snow and ice already on the ground;<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o Plow-equipped trains, liquid snow-melting agent trains and a “jet engine” plow to remove snow from tracks, and snow blowers. Plows and spreaders to clear station entrances, roads that serve PATH’s 13 stations, and various support facilities; and<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />o Approximately 1,000 staff members and contractors with years of specialized training and professional experience in handling severe winter weather at transportation facilities.<br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· The Port Authority urges travelers to check with their carriers before going to the airport or bus terminals to confirm departure times. The agency also may impose speed restrictions on its crossings if weather conditions warrant.</div><div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin-top: 0.75em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 15px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Department of Transportation:</strong><br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· NYSDOT has more than 1,270 plow trucks and 1,582 drivers standing by to pre-treat roadways with salt brine in advance of the storm and clear snow and ice once precipitation begins. <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· NYSDOT also has 366,500 tons of road salt on hand. <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· Travelers are encouraged to check conditions before venturing out by accessing NYSDOT’s free 511NY traffic and travel information system, which provides real-time travel information, by calling 511 or visiting www.511NY.org. The website features a winter travel advisory system, with real-time travel reports and a color-coded map indicating which state roads are snow covered, ice covered, wet, dry, or closed to help drivers determine if travel is advisable. The system provides real-time snow and ice conditions for interstates and other heavily traveled roads, as reported by snowplow operators.</div><div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin-top: 0.75em; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 10px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">State Police</strong><br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· The New York State Police have a full complement of troopers and supervisors assigned to all shifts in preparation of a winter storm approaching the region. Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Unit and Traffic Incident Management team members will be used to supplement normal patrol coverage. <br style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" />· State Police are working closely and coordinating with local County Emergency Operations Centers across the state as needed and are prepared for the potential increase in service calls for evacuations and medical emergencies.</div></blockquote><br /></div>

NYC Severe Weather Advisory In Effect For NYC

Photograph of Mayor Bloomberg briefing reporters at a Department of Sanitation facility on the West Side of Manhattan by  DSNY From:http://g...

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6 ways hiring managers are spotting résumé lies

<b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;"><span id="cbArticle_lblByLine">Mary Lorenz, CareerBuilder Writer</span></b><br /><b style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;"><span><br /></span></b><br /><div class="ArticleHeadline" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; margin-top: -30px; text-align: left;"><div class="cbmsnArticleImage" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" src="http://emj.cbdr.com/artieimages/1b/ar5f062763cs7tw93l1b.gif?time=5/8/2012%203:32:14%20pm" /></div></div><div class="ArticleContent" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;">Thirty-eight percent of employees have embellished their job responsibilities at some point, and 18 percent have lied about their skills, according to a CareerBuilder survey<b>.</b> Other common lies surrounded information about employment start and end dates, academic degrees, previous employers and job titles.</div><div class="ArticleContent" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;"><br /><br />Here are six ways employers might be evaluating your résumé in today's <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/digital/" style="color: #666666; font-family: Arial; text-decoration: none;">digital</a> world. These are not only good reminders that you shouldn't lie, but they'll also help you avoid mistakes that might make <a href="http://www.careerbuilder.com/jobs/keyword/hiring+manager/" style="color: #666666; font-family: Arial; text-decoration: none;">hiring managers</a> question your honesty.<br /><br /><b>1. They're performing a standard </b><b>background check</b><b>.</b> Employers check on things such as work history, residences, dates of employment, etc. Managers look for discrepancies between what the candidate submitted and what the reports reveal.<br /><br /><b>2.</b> <b>They're checking for red flags.</b> Unexplained gaps in employment, a reluctance to explain the reason for leaving and unusual periods of self-employment can be a tip-off to false employment history. Since even references can be fake, employers might check the websites of previous employers and use the phone numbers found online for employment verification.<br /><br /><b>3. They're using social networking sites</b>. Social networking profiles contain public information that may help employers verify certain information such as a candidate's work history or education credentials. Both job seekers and employers should be aware of <a href="http://www.startribune.com/business/83725197.html?elr=KArksi8cyaiUncacyi8cyaiUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUU" style="color: #666666; font-family: Arial; text-decoration: none;">the possible legal ramifications of using social media to screen applicants</a>.<br /><br /><b>4. They're testing your skills.</b> Knowing that employers use keyword searching to find and qualify their résumés, applicants may include keywords for all skills required for the job -- regardless of whether they have them or not. To confirm any embellishment, employers might ask specific technical questions about the candidate's stated skills or test the candidate's computer skills.<br /><br /><b>5. They're willing to hear an explanation.</b> Mistakes and misunderstandings do happen. If managers find a discrepancy, they might give the candidate an opportunity to explain. If this happens, have a good explanation for the error.<br /><br /><b>6. They're following their intuition. </b>When it comes to the difficult task of hiring a new employee, employers have to trust their intuition and experience. If something doesn't seem right, they'll probably follow up on it.<br /><i>Mary Lorenz writes for </i><a href="http://thehiringsite.careerbuilder.com/" style="color: #666666; font-family: Arial; text-decoration: none;"><i>The Hiring Site</i></a><i>, CareerBuilder's community for hiring professionals and other curious-minded individuals to discuss the attraction, engagement and retention of their #1 asset -- their people.</i></div>

6 ways hiring managers are spotting résumé lies

Mary Lorenz, CareerBuilder Writer Thirty-eight percent of employees have embellished their job responsibilities at some point, and 18 percen...

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Dorner manhunt: Deputies investigating reported sighting in San Diego

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><img alt="PHOTOS: Manhunt for ex-LAPD officer" src="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/.a/6a00d8341c630a53ef017c36b10c0d970b-640wi" /><br />From:http://latimesblogs.latimes.com<br /><br /><br /><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; padding: 0px;">San Diego sheriff's deputies continued to search near a Lakeside area home early Friday after a reported sighting of fugitive ex-police officer Christopher Dorner, and are now investigating whether the call was a hoax.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; padding: 0px;">A cell phone call about 10:20 p.m. Thursday prompted deputies to respond to a home near the Barona Indian Reservation, said sheriff's Lt. Jason Rothlein. Authorities were still at the scene about 3:30 a.m. Friday.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; padding: 0px;">The caller initially reported a suspicious person, Rothlein said, but later changed and embellished the story, claiming there were gang members in the area, then saying the suspicious person was the caller's brother. The caller then said the suspicious person was a man wanted for murder, was someone on the news, and finally claimed the reported person was Dorner.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; padding: 0px;">Authorities have found no sign of the wanted man, Rothlein said.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; padding: 0px;">"The deputies that are on scene have no indication Dorner was, is or has even been at that residence," Rothlein said.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; padding: 0px;">Still, deputies will continue to search the area "out of due diligence," he said.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; padding: 0px;">"There's a particular sensitivity here. Obviously it's not something we can go and overlook," Rothlein said. "Having a waste of resources over a hoax — if that is in fact what this is — is a horrible waste of our time."</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; padding: 0px;">Dorner, 33, is wanted in connection with a double homicide in Irvine on Sunday and the shooting of three police officers, one fatally, in Riverside County on Thursday. Authorities described him as "armed and extremely dangerous," and alerts about him were issued across the state and in Nevada as federal, state and local authorities intensified their search.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; padding: 0px;">Authorities said they found a rambling manifesto published on what they believe is Dorner's Facebook page that threatened "unconventional and asymmetrical warfare" against police and named at least 40 officers and others.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; padding: 0px;">Authorities spent much of Thursday scouring Big Bear after Dorner's pickup was found burning on a forest road. About 125 officers followed fresh tracks leading from the vehicle and conducted door-to-door searches in the mountain community, but lost Dorner's trail.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; padding: 0px;">Dorner was also traced to the San Diego area in recent days. Authorities believe he is connected to anattempted boat theft at the Southwestern Yacht Club in Point Loma early Thursday morning, when he allegedly held an 81-year-old boat owner at gunpoint, tied him up and tried to steal the boat to flee to Mexico.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; padding: 0px;">When that attempt was thwarted by mechanical difficulties, he apparently drove north to Riverside County, where the police officers were attacked.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; padding: 0px;">At about 2 a.m. Thursday, a citizen reported finding property belonging to Dorner on a street near Lindbergh Field, not far from the scene of the attempted boat theft. The property included a briefcase and Dorner's LAPD badge.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-top: 10px; padding: 0px;">Navy officials also confirmed that Dorner had checked into the motel at Naval Base Point Loma on Tuesday, using military identification. He did not check out, but Lt. Joseph Ramos said Dorner had not been seen in the area later Thursday despite reports that he was still at the motel.</div></div>

investigating La Times Dorner manhunt: Deputies investigating reported sighting in San Diego

From:http://latimesblogs.latimes.com San Diego sheriff's deputies continued to search near a Lakeside area home early Friday after a rep...

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Ambler parents take part in national hearing on school closures

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">By Eric Devlin</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><a href="mailto:edevlin@montgomerynews.com" style="background-color: white; color: #004fa3; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">edevlin@montgomerynews.com</a><br /><br /><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">The U.S. Secretary of Education held a national community hearing in Washington, D.C., to discuss a rising number of school closings across the country in low-income areas that contain a higher population of minority groups.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">Elizabeth Wahl-Kunzier and Amy Joyce, representing Mattison Avenue Elementary School and the Ambler community, attended the event.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">An anonymous source recently filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education regarding the Wissahickon School Board’s recent decision to close Mattison Avenue, citing the decision as discriminatory against the Hispanic population in Ambler. The complaint said the district discriminated against the Hispanic community because it failed to provide effective methods of communication to Hispanic parents at the school who are limited in English proficiency. The district denied such allegations.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">Wahl-Kunzier and Joyce attended the hearing and testified before Education Secretary Arne Duncan on behalf of their community after they were invited by a group known as Journey for Justice. Wahl-Kunzier said she and Joyce had worked all of last summer looking for ways to try to save Mattison Avenue and, through various connections, came in contact with Daniel DelPielago of the group known as Empower D.C., who invited them to attend the hearing with the rest of the members of Journey for Justice from across the country. She said it felt inappropriate to ask a number of people to come with them considering many of the members of Journey for Justice had been planning the trek to D.C. for months and they were asked to attend very late in the game.</span><br /><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">Approximately 500 students, parents and community representatives representing 18 cities across the country gathered at the Department of Education building in Washington to testify and hope to see some type of intervention at the federal level.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">Wahl-Kunzier and Joyce said they spoke with Assistant Secretary (Acting) Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Office of Civil Rights Seth Galanter, who gave them the contact information for director of the OCR Philadelphia Office, Wendella Fox. They were told she would look into the Ambler situation. They said they were told the DOE would continue to investigate the situation with the Wissahickon School District and ultimately it has final say on all school closures. They were further told the DOE “could provide a remedy to the situation [in Ambler],” but were not given specifics as to what that remedy might be. The DOE also did not provide a timeline as to when the investigation would end and when any potential help may take place.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">Regarding the Wissahickon complaint, Wahl-Kunzier and Joyce said they were hopeful to find a solution considering the information they received at the hearing.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">After the nearly two-hour hearing ended, they joined the crowd and marched to the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial where a candlelight vigil was held.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">Cities all across the country, including Philadelphia, Chicago, New York, Newark, Detroit and Oakland, have filed complaints with the U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights citing the closing of schools and the criteria and methods for administering those actions as discriminatory toward low-income, minority communities.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">Facing 37 school closures throughout the city, the Philadelphia City Council voted 14-2 in favor of a nonbinding resolution put forward by the Philadelphia Coalition Advocating for Public Schools, calling for a one-year moratorium on school closings </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">Wahl-Kunzier said she wondered “whether [Wissahickon] will stand by their children. They really do need to help beyond just parent volunteers. They do need help [with the minority population].” She said the district “can’t cut kids off because their parents don’t speak English.”</span><br /><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">Wahl-Kunzier said she was amazed as she listened to the complaints from the hundreds of different people in attendance for the hearing, because they were “the exact same thing, word for word,” as to what the defenders of Mattison Avenue had been arguing. Many of the schools were also very similar to Mattison Avenue, she said, noting they were small community-based schools and by closing these schools it was “like taking a second home from [those students].”</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">Wahl-Kunzier said they were given contact information of a number of different groups fighting to keep their schools open across the country.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.600000381469727px;">“This is a microcosm of a national issue,” she said.</span><br /></div>

school closings Ambler parents take part in national hearing on school closures

By Eric Devlin edevlin@montgomerynews.com The U.S. Secretary of Education held a national community hearing in Washington, D.C., to discuss ...

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Powerball Jackpot Winner In Virginia To Claim $217 Million Prize

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><img alt="Powerball Jackpot" src="http://i.huffpost.com/gen/979578/thumbs/r-POWERBALL-JACKPOT-large570.jpg?6" /><br />From: http://www.huffingtonpost.com<br /><br /><br /><div style="background-color: white; border: none; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px;">The winner of Wednesday's <a href="http://www.abc27.com/story/21033835/record-cash-5-prize-split-powerball-winner-sold-in-va" style="border: none; color: #2b0073; cursor: pointer; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_hplink">Powerball jackpot</a> <a href="http://www.wric.com/story/21019675/217-million-powerball-ticket-sold-in-richmond-area" style="border: none; color: #2b0073; cursor: pointer; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_hplink">won $217 million</a>, according to ABC local affiliate WRIC.</div><div style="background-color: white; border: none; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px;">The sole <a href="http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20130207_Powerball_ticket_wins__217_million.html" style="border: none; color: #2b0073; cursor: pointer; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_hplink">ticket that hit</a> <a href="http://www.wric.com/story/21019675/217-million-powerball-ticket-sold-in-richmond-area" style="border: none; color: #2b0073; cursor: pointer; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_hplink">the Powerball jackpot</a>, matching all six numbers, was sold in Richmond, Va., NBC's WWBT in Richmond reports.</div><div style="background-color: white; border: none; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px;">The <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/06/powerball-numbers-february-6-2013_n_2633804.html" style="border: none; color: #2b0073; cursor: pointer; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_hplink">winning numbers in the Feb. 6 drawing</a> of the multi-state lottery were 5, 27, 36, 38, 41 and the red Powerball number was 12.</div><div style="background-color: white; border: none; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px;">Wednesday's Powerball jackpot is the biggest single prize won since a <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/07/arizona-powerball-winner-2012_n_2259696.html" style="border: none; color: #2b0073; cursor: pointer; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_hplink">record-breaking $588 million</a> award was split between two tickets in November 2012.</div><div style="background-color: white; border: none; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px;">The next Powerball drawing will be on Saturday, Feb. 9, for $40 million. Powerball is played in 42 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.</div><br /><br /></div>

powerball Powerball Jackpot Winner In Virginia To Claim $217 Million Prize

From: http://www.huffingtonpost.com The winner of Wednesday's  Powerball jackpot   won $217 million , according to ABC local affiliate W...

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Light snow through noon, heavier snow arrives after 2 PM

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><img src="http://www.boston.com/news/weather/weather_wisdom/Blizzard%20warning%20tonight.png" /><br />From: http://www.boston.com<br /><span id="byline" style="background-color: white; color: #464646; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; line-height: 31px;">Posted by David Epstein</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px;">  </span><span id="dateline" style="background-color: white; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px;">February 8, 2013 10:40 AM</span><br /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">I feel like it's been weeks since we first predicted this storm, but in reality it has only been a few days. Now it is time to finish preparing for the storm and get ready to be inside for the day tomorrow. I think we have grown very averse to being inconvenienced because the reality is that there will only be about 24 hours when you can't get around. Power is the big concern for most of us, and if it does go out, hopefully it will return fairly quickly. </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">There has </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">been so much warning with this storm that I imagine most of the area will be unusually today. I also suspect that since the storm is occurring overnight tonight and Saturday that crews will be able to clean up easier than if it was a mid-week storm.. If you have last minute things you do want to get done try to be home by 3 PM this afternoon. </span><em style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">As usual I will be updating the forecast on on Twitter </em><em style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"> at<a href="http://twitter.com/growingwisdom" style="color: #45569c; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">@growingwisdom</a> please follow me there.</em><br /><br /><div style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">Now the waiting begins. Blizzard warnings, high wind warnings, coastal flood warnings, the table has been set for a historic storm for much of central and southern New England. Snow flurries have started in some places along the coast, but will only accumulate a few inches by 4PM. From about 9 PM tonight through mid-morning Saturday, our storm will be at its most intense. After that snow will continue much of Saturday afternoon, but I only expect an additional few inches during that time.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">High tide occurs around 9 PM tonight and again approximately 10 AM Saturday. Each of those tides has the potential for coastal flooding. Right now, we are not looking at major coastal damage, but the situation will need to be monitored closely. There are two maps below to help you see which part of the coastline is most vulnerable.<br /><a href="http://www.boston.com/news/weather/weather_wisdom/High%20Tide%20Friday%20Evening.png" style="color: #45569c; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;"><img alt="High Tide Friday Evening.png" class="mt-image-left" height="233" src="http://www.boston.com/news/weather/weather_wisdom/assets_c/2013/02/High%20Tide%20Friday%20Evening-thumb-300x233-94417.png" style="border: 1px solid rgb(153, 153, 153); float: left; margin: 0px 20px 20px 0px;" width="300" /></a><a href="http://www.boston.com/news/weather/weather_wisdom/High%20Tide%20Saturday%20Evening.png" style="color: #45569c; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;"><img alt="High Tide Saturday Evening.png" class="mt-image-left" height="236" src="http://www.boston.com/news/weather/weather_wisdom/assets_c/2013/02/High%20Tide%20Saturday%20Evening-thumb-300x236-94419.png" style="border: 1px solid rgb(153, 153, 153); float: left; margin: 0px 20px 20px 0px;" width="300" /></a><br /><strong>How much snow?</strong><br />Below is my map of snowfall accumulations. This is my thinking: We are going to get more than a foot of snow. I feel very confident about that part of the forecast. I even think that many areas will exceed 18 inches of snow. There will be bulls eye of accumulation that reaches 24 to perhaps 32 inches of snow from this storm. The favorite place for that spot is about 20 miles southwest of Boston.<a href="http://www.boston.com/news/weather/weather_wisdom/snow%20fall%20prediction%20Friday.png" style="color: #45569c; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;"><img alt="snow fall prediction Friday.png" class="mt-image-left" height="213" src="http://www.boston.com/news/weather/weather_wisdom/assets_c/2013/02/snow%20fall%20prediction%20Friday-thumb-300x213-94433.png" style="border: 1px solid rgb(153, 153, 153); float: left; margin: 0px 20px 20px 0px;" width="300" /></a>However, until the storm is underway, we won't know for sure if or where that will materialize. If you start experiencing thunder and lightning tonight, you can bet you will end up as one of the town on the higher end of snow totals.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><strong>Power</strong><br />One of the biggest issues from any large storm is the loss of power. While I can't say what will happen to you and your home, most of us should keep our power through the storm. That doesn't mean that the number of people who do lose power might not reach 10, 20 or 50 or 100 thousand for a while, but I don't expect this to be a storm which causes extensive power issues such as those during the October storm of 2010. There are several reason for my thinking. First, we have had some major wind storms the past 18 months and these storms have culled the "tree herd" of the weakest specimens. This means fewer trees remain to fall on power lines. Second, the snow will not be a heavy wet type that weighs down utilities. Finally, utility companies have put in place new plans because of other issue that should help restore power faster. That said, I recommend keeping your home a few degrees warmer tonight before you go to bed in case you do lose power. That way your house will take a bit longer to cool off if you have no heat.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><strong>The storm </strong><br />Right now there are two storms that are moving towards New England. These storms will eventually merge and form one big area of low pressure just off our south coast. <a href="http://www.boston.com/news/weather/weather_wisdom/merging%20storms.png" style="color: #45569c; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;"><img alt="merging storms.png" class="mt-image-left" height="279" src="http://www.boston.com/news/weather/weather_wisdom/assets_c/2013/02/merging%20storms-thumb-233x279-94423.png" style="border: 1px solid rgb(153, 153, 153); float: left; margin: 0px 20px 20px 0px;" width="233" /></a>This is a classic set-up for a major snowstorm in all of New England. This is not unprecedented by any means and actually there are many text books that explore the formation of these types of coastal storms.<br /><strong>Saturday night</strong><br />As the storm passes it will be time to clean up. The reality is that even if we break the all-time record for snow in Boston, most of us will still have just a lot of shoveling to do. Sunday will be a clean-up day and Monday folks will return to work and recount their weekend stuck inside during the blizzard. If we do indeed end up with 2 or more feet of snow in places, some schools might be closed Monday while sidewalks are cleared. More on that after the storm.<br /><strong>Gardening this week</strong><br />This week I wanted to share a video that shows a very unique water garden. This particular water garden contains many different varieties of fish. While you might not have the space for something this elaborate, you can mimic some of the elements on a smaller scale.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;"><br /></div></div><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/jPesZG5UP-Q?feature=player_embedded" width="640"></iframe></div>

weather Light snow through noon, heavier snow arrives after 2 PM

From: http://www.boston.com Posted by David Epstein    February 8, 2013 10:40 AM I feel like it's been weeks since we first predicted th...

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What Are Words For?

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Cheers Bitches!!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin-mOvDzcX_2rXUWTpWrLjZnPI-D9FVrqi-sY_OW8kiR-Ki7kFKCaUeAotwiRvBCYSs69zZbJ4B9dVU1wVxiEQckQ3la3LNUA4NEvJ94teJIUxfVi7AjZzqOiclAoH08jcZtQh6rj65Sw/s1600/Dale+Bozzio+Hot+Missing+Persons.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin-mOvDzcX_2rXUWTpWrLjZnPI-D9FVrqi-sY_OW8kiR-Ki7kFKCaUeAotwiRvBCYSs69zZbJ4B9dVU1wVxiEQckQ3la3LNUA4NEvJ94teJIUxfVi7AjZzqOiclAoH08jcZtQh6rj65Sw/s400/Dale+Bozzio+Hot+Missing+Persons.jpg" width="400" /></a>Y’know?  Yesterday during the celebration of my 48th birthday, I learned a number of things.<br /><br />First off, I learned that I am old. Secondly, I learned that I, in spite of myself, have a lot of friends, and tertiarily, I learned that 19 year old chicks don’t dig 48 year old men.<br /><br />Ha…Kidding…I really don’t have a lot of friends, but anyhoo…<br /><br />Being the international internet radio star that I am, several thousand people wished me a Happy Birthday on my Facebook page yesterday.<br /><br />To the eighty percent of my Facebook friends that I don’t actually know, I gave a “like.”  To the twenty percent of my friends that I actually do know, I left a comment.<br /><br />But…Here’s the thing penultimate (yeah, I love that word, so?) thing that happened yesterday.  I didn’t just grow older yesterday; I grew wiser, and more importantly, more humble.<br /><br />Aside from the public displays of Facebook affection yesterday, which are great mind you, and I truly loved them, I had several phone calls and private messages that were a bit more profound.<br /><br />My 18 year old son gave me a dose of his brillant sarcasm that sounded word for word like something I would have said if I was in position.<br /><br />My brother Marty called me from his Austin, TX., hotel room  at 7 AM and wished me a Happy Birthday and he said, <i>“It is always good to talk to you.”</i><br /><br />For thirty minutes, I talked to my brother Vince who is experiencing a world of difficulties.  In spite of his difficulties, we laughed all the while, because as he says, <i>“You can cry, or you can laugh;  And either way, it’s nice to laugh and talk to you, my brutha.”</i><br /><br />I sent Schmoop an e-mail asking if I could have our last frozen pizza for lunch.  She didn’t answer, she ignored it.  She later claimed that it was a Yahoo mail problem.  I claimed shenanigans…Turned out…It <i>was</i> a Yahoo problem.  And we laughed.<br /><br />Yesterday, I chatted on Facebook with a woman with whom I went to school, and I told her that she and I should have gotten married back in the day, but the timing never worked out.<br /><br />Oddly enough IWS readers, are you sitting down?  She agreed, and the conversation continued over a variety of other topics.<br /><br />A couple of years ago, I was told by a woman that that I am “iconic”, and like it or not,<i> “your words matter to people.”</i><br /><br />Two years ago, I shrugged that comment off and filed it under, comments from crazy people.  You see…<br /><br />While I have always considered myself to be a good writer and when I put my mind to it and work at it, a damn good writer, I have never considered myself to be a person of any influence whatsoever.<br /><br />And while Schmoop may say something to the effect that I am chronically charming and for whatever reason, people like to listen to me, I have always thought…Yeah…so?<br /><br />But…Yesterday, I became the recipient of an attitudinal shift.<br /><br />In addition to the aforementioned examples of people who hang on my words, I received a birthday wish that stated I was Bagwine, Ohio’s best in comic relief.  Ha…I never realized that the woman who sent that even read my FB comments, IWS posts, or my smart ass remarks. <br /><br />Here’s the thing…In this nanosecond by nanosecond world of texts, Tweets, e-mails, and blog posts, I am going to pay closer attention to what I am “putting out there.”<br /><br />Not because I care, but evidently some people do, and well, that’s really not all that bad, it’s a compliment, and I don’t want to betray that good will.<br /><br />Cheers!!<br /><br />Matt-Man<br /><a href="mailto:mattmaniws@ymail.com">mattmaniws@ymail.com</a><br /><a href="https://twitter.com/MattMan_IWS" target="_blank">@MattMan_IWS</a></div>

What Are Words For?

Cheers Bitches!! Y’know?  Yesterday during the celebration of my 48th birthday, I learned a number of things. First off, I learned that I am...

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Cases Database | Unlock the value of medical case reports

<base href="data:"><div style="color: black; text-align: left; "><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; color: rgb(25, 25, 25); font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 16px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><font class="Apple-style-span" face="'Helvetica Neue'">Documenting a patient's case history to inform physicians how the patient has been evaluated and the subsequent progression of his or her disease is arguably the oldest method of communicating medical evidence. And in the 21st century case reports play an equally important role.</font></div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="'Helvetica Neue'"><br style="color: rgb(25, 25, 25); font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 16px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "></font><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; color: rgb(25, 25, 25); font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 16px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><font class="Apple-style-span" face="'Helvetica Neue'">Since the launch of <a href="http://www.jmedicalcasereports.com/authors/instructions" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; color: rgb(79, 132, 189); text-decoration: underline; "><span style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; ">Journal of Medical Case Reports</span></a> in 2007 and the more recent introduction of case reports to the broad-scope journal <a href="http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmcresnotes/authors/instructions" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; color: rgb(79, 132, 189); text-decoration: underline; "><span style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; ">BMC Research Notes</span></a>, <a href="http://www.biomedcentral.com/" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; color: rgb(79, 132, 189); text-decoration: underline; ">BioMed Central</a> has acknowledged the value of case reports to the scientific record.  To strengthen this commitment we have developed a valuable new resource – Cases Database, a continuously-updated, freely-accessible database of thousands of medical case reports from multiple publishers, including Springer, BMJ and PubMed Central.<br> </font></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; color: rgb(25, 25, 25); font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 16px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><font class="Apple-style-span" face="'Helvetica Neue'">By aggregating case reports and facilitating comparison, Cases Database provides clinicians, researchers, regulators and patients a simple resource to explore content, and identify emerging trends.</font></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent; color: rgb(25, 25, 25); font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 16px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><font class="Apple-style-span" face="'Helvetica Neue'"><br></font></div></div><a href="http://www.casesdatabase.com/"><font class="Apple-style-span" face="'Helvetica Neue'">http://www.casesdatabase.com/</font></a><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px; color: black; text-align: left; "><br class="webkit-block-placeholder"></div>

Cases Database | Unlock the value of medical case reports

Documenting a patient's case history to inform physicians how the patient has been evaluated and the subsequent progression of his or he...

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Effective Addiction Treatment - NYTimes.com

<base href="data:"><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px; color: black; text-align: left; "><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">Countless people addicted to drugs, alcohol or both have managed to get clean and stay clean with the help of organizations like Alcoholics Anonymous or the thousands of residential and outpatient clinics devoted to treating addiction.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">But if you have failed one or more times to achieve lasting sobriety after rehab, perhaps after spending tens of thousands of dollars, you're not alone. And chances are, it's not your fault.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">Of the 23.5 million teenagers and adults addicted to alcohol or drugs, only about 1 in 10 gets treatment, which too often fails to keep them drug-free. Many of these programs fail to use proven methods to deal with the factors that underlie addiction and set off relapse.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">According to recent examinations of treatment programs, most are rooted in outdated methods rather than newer approaches shown in scientific studies to be more effective in helping people achieve and maintain addiction-free lives. People typically do more research when shopping for a new car than when seeking treatment for addiction.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">A <a href="http://www.casacolumbia.org/templates/NewsRoom.aspx?articleid=678&zoneid=51" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102); text-decoration: none; ">groundbreaking report published last year by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse</a> at Columbia University concluded that "the vast majority of people in need of addiction treatment do not receive anything that approximates evidence-based care." The report added, "Only a small fraction of individuals receive interventions or treatment consistent with scientific knowledge about what works."</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">The Columbia report found that most addiction treatment providers are not medical professionals and are not equipped with the knowledge, skills or credentials needed to provide the full range of evidence-based services, including medication and psychosocial therapy. The authors suggested that such insufficient care could be considered "a form of <a href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/health/diseasesconditionsandhealthtopics/malpractice/index.html?inline=nyt-classifier" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102); text-decoration: none; ">medical malpractice</a>."</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">The failings of many treatment programs - and the comprehensive therapies that have been scientifically validated but remain vastly underused - are described in an eye-opening new book, "<a href="http://annemfletcher.com/books.php?id=8" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102); text-decoration: none; ">Inside Rehab</a>," by Anne M. Fletcher, a science writer whose previous books include the highly acclaimed "Sober for Good."</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">"There are exceptions, but of the many thousands of treatment programs out there, most use exactly the same kind of treatment you would have received in 1950, not modern scientific approaches," A. Thomas McLellan, co-founder of the Treatment Research Institute in Philadelphia, told Ms. Fletcher.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">Ms. Fletcher's book, replete with the experiences of treated addicts, offers myriad suggestions to help patients find addiction treatments with the highest probability of success.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">Often, Ms. Fletcher found, low-cost, publicly funded clinics have better-qualified therapists and better outcomes than the high-end residential centers typically used by celebrities like Britney Spears and Lindsay Lohan. Indeed, their revolving-door experiences with treatment helped prompt Ms. Fletcher's exhaustive exploration in the first place.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">In an interview, Ms. Fletcher said she wanted to inform consumers "about science-based practices that should form the basis of addiction treatment" and explode some of the myths surrounding it.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">One such myth is the belief that most addicts need to go to a rehab center.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">"The truth is that most people recover (1) completely on their own, (2) by attending self-help groups, and/or (3) by seeing a counselor or therapist individually," she wrote.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">Contrary to the 30-day stint typical of inpatient rehab, "people with serious <a href="http://health.nytimes.com/health/guides/specialtopic/drug-abuse/overview.html?inline=nyt-classifier" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102); text-decoration: none; ">substance abuse</a> disorders commonly require care for months or even years," she wrote. "The short-term fix mentality partially explains why so many people go back to their old habits."</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">Dr. Mark Willenbring, a former director of treatment and recovery research at the National Institute for Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, said in an interview, "You don't treat a chronic illness for four weeks and then send the patient to a support group. People with a chronic form of addiction need multimodal treatment that is individualized and offered continuously or intermittently for as long as they need it."</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">Dr. Willenbring now practices in St. Paul, where he is creating a <a href="http://www.alltyr.com/" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102); text-decoration: none; ">clinic called Alltyr</a> "to serve as a model to demonstrate what comprehensive 21st century treatment should look like."</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">"While some people are helped by one intensive round of treatment, the majority of addicts continue to need services," Dr. Willenbring said. He cited the case of a 43-year-old woman "who has been in and out of rehab 42 times" because she never got the full range of medical and support services she needed.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">Dr. Willenbring is especially distressed about patients who are treated for opioid addiction, then relapse in part because they are not given maintenance therapy with the drug Suboxone.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">"We have some pretty good drugs to help people with addiction problems, but doctors don't know how to use them," he said. "The 12-step community doesn't want to use relapse-prevention medication because they view it as a crutch."</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">Before committing to a treatment program, Ms. Fletcher urges prospective clients or their families to do their homework. The first step, she said, is to get an independent assessment of the need for treatment, as well as the kind of treatment needed, by an expert who is not affiliated with the program you are considering.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">Check on the credentials of the program's personnel, who should have "at least a master's degree," Ms. Fletcher said. If the therapist is a physician, he or she should be certified by the American Board of Addiction Medicine.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">Does the facility's approach to treatment fit with your beliefs and values? If a 12-step program like A.A. is not right for you, don't choose it just because it's the best known approach.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">Meet with the therapist who will treat you and ask what your treatment plan will be. "It should be more than movies, lectures or three-hour classes three times a week," Ms. Fletcher said. "You should be treated by a licensed addiction counselor who will see you one-on-one. Treatment should be individualized. One size does not fit all."</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">Find out if you will receive therapy for any underlying condition, like depression, or a social problem that could sabotage recovery. The National Institute on Drug Abuse states in its <a href="http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/principles-drug-addiction-treatment" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102); text-decoration: none; ">Principles of Drug Addiction Treatment</a>, "To be effective, treatment must address the individual's drug abuse and any associated medical, psychological, social, vocational, and legal problems."</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">Look for programs using research-validated techniques, like cognitive behavioral therapy, which helps addicts recognize what prompts them to use drugs or alcohol, and learn to redirect their thoughts and reactions away from the abused substance.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); position: static; z-index: auto; ">Other validated treatment methods include Community Reinforcement and Family Training, or Craft, an approach developed by Robert J. Meyers and described in his book, "Get Your Loved One Sober," with co-author Brenda L. Wolfe. It helps addicts adopt a lifestyle more rewarding than one filled with drugs and alcohol.</div></div><a href="http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/04/effective-addiction-treatment/?src=me&ref=general&pagewanted=print">http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/04/effective-addiction-treatment/?src=me&ref=general&pagewanted=print</a><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px; color: black; text-align: left; "><br class="webkit-block-placeholder"></div>

Effective Addiction Treatment - NYTimes.com

Countless people addicted to drugs, alcohol or both have managed to get clean and stay clean with the help of organizations like Alcoholics ...

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Don't just be right... do right

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://instagr.am/p/TDeTcqNRwW/" target="_blank" style="clear: left; float: left; "><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="500" id="blogsy-1360323751765.0344" src="http://distilleryimage10.s3.amazonaws.com/60fa45c242bc11e28ed022000a1fbc58_7.jpg" width="500"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We know every basketball player will miss some shots... so why do we expect others to be right all the time. And when they are wrong, how do we act?</td></tr></tbody></table> <blockquote><p> "You welcome the one who joyfully does what is right." Isaiah 64:5a</p></blockquote> <p>Do you ever read something and the unique combination of words just opens your mind to a truth?</p> <p>This morning the words describing a person who "JOYFULLY does what is RIGHT" lept off the page and furrowed my brow.</p> <p><strong>Do you know people are who are doing the right thing but with totally the WRONG attitude.</strong></p> <p>They stomp their foot and say, "Well this is the right thing and I'm going to do it if it just kills me" and then proceed to be so cranky and fussy that everyone knows they are doing the RIGHT thing and perhaps it is the RIGHT thing but they do it with such a WRONG attitude that you can't stomach being around the person?</p> <p><strong>Inside comes out more than you think.</strong></p> <p>As teachers, we are surrounded with doing the right thing for kids all the time. I can put on my happy face and serve my students with joy but if inside, I'm seething and angry and fussy and cranky, it does come out. It comes out when they're looking and I'm not. It comes out when they ask me a question.</p> <p><strong>But what about those WRONG decisions that vex me?</strong></p> <p>There are things that happen that are WRONG and decisions that are made that are WRONG. But that is the thing, we humans make wrong decisions and have the right to do so. Your administration, I promise you, will make some whoppers of wrong decisions and so will you. And if you don't cut your admin slack when they mess up, you're going to be eating a very unpleasant dinner when your whopper is served up steaming hot - because eventually, if you live long enough, you will screw up too.</p> <p><strong>But to joyfully do the right thing?</strong></p> <p>But this word - JOYFULLY do what is right. Does it stick in your craw like it does for me? I just can't quite swallow that task to joyfully do what is right. Because I get angry sometimes. Some things aren't fair, aren't right, and stink to high heaven like the pile of organic fertilizer that gets the buzzards circling in my hometown. It might be the right thing for me to do to just suck it up and let the bad decision be made, but to be joyful about it? To joyfully do the right thing?</p> <p>I don't have an answer for you today or quite honestly, one for me. I only accept these words as a true challenge to my soul and behavior. </p> <p><strong>If I do the RIGHT thing in a WRONG way does that make me less effective? Does it make me WRONG too?</strong></p> <p>You see them coming. The freight train. Filled with holy indignation, they are doing the right thing - don't get in their way -- they are RIGHT and they are coming THROUGH - through YOU if they have to.They are so right that you'd better not open your mouth or they will just cut your head off with a ginsu sharp word and keep on charging as the books on the bookshelves rattle and the stapler on your desk moves with the vibrating sound of the t-rex going by. They are RIGHT. Holy indignant -but right and everyone knows they are right. But God forbid, don't get stuck in a room with them. The poisonous dart of the vindictively right person will knock your attitude out faster than getting hit with a sleep inducing tribal blow gun from 10 feet. </p> <p>Some of the most harmful things in a school are the right person who chooses not to forgive and goes about letting everyone know it in the WRONG way. How many times do you have to rub our faces in it? -- A person screwed up. Now that's a new one, like this person hasn't screwed up before and won't again. And you really have to remind me years later about that screw up? Do you want others to keep such records on you?</p> <p>We can't minimize trying to do the right thing. <strong>But when people care more about being right than doing right, you've got a problem. </strong></p> <p>Ultimately, there is only one person in my school I have any control over at all... ME. And I can strive for and seek to "joyfully do what is right." </p> <p>Lest you think this is just to teachers... if you have teenagers or tots, this applies to you. If you're RIGHT as a parent but you go about dealing with it in the WRONG way - you might as well have been wrong in the eyes of your child who sees everything and sees every attitude.</p> <p>Don't just be right - do right. And do right joyfully. A lofty goal, but one worth pursing.</p> <p> </p><div style="text-align: right; font-size: small; clear: both;" id="blogsy_footer"><a href="http://blogsyapp.com" target="_blank"><img alt="Written by Vicki Davis, author - Flattening Classrooms, Engaging Minds - Posted with Blogsy from my iPad" height="20" src="http://blogsyapp.com/images/blogsy_footer_icon.png" style="vertical-align: middle; margin-right: 5px;" width="20" />Written by Vicki Davis, author - Flattening Classrooms, Engaging Minds - Posted with Blogsy from my iPad</a></div>

Inspiration Teaching Don't just be right... do right

We know every basketball player will miss some shots... so why do we expect others to be right all the time. And when they are wrong, how do...

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navy and orange library

I'm working with a dear friend on a living room refresh. She recently switched her dining room and living room and wants to make the new living room a cozy spot for reading, iPad watching and the occasional violin practice. (iPad for her and violin for the kids). I need to show you her dining room by the way - so good.<br /><br />What I love best about working with her is that I just plant the seed and girlfriend runs with it.  And since she is a mucho talented graphic designer, she always adds some killer flair along the way. Flair on your Chochkies uniform might be a thumbs down, but flair in your design is always a good thing. Flair is what takes a room from just pretty to pretty awesome.<br /><br />She is also good to indulge me in my color addiction and I try to limit myself to two colors in an effort not to drive her off a cliff. Is that teamwork or what?<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhauA1Khz_BdKDVmkBNAPQYG9KYdVBP4W-RmmU6WdQYzcOo_Ie4YfhFMtXCcZ2Fokm9GNJUI_F4sJgnW_udsO673wJbdoFMCXoz7ImmaLW06_tuxmoDzB4BvuD0mtDY3LT-_z2U5Xr5HF-P/s1600/LittleBlackDoorBeccaLR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="544" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhauA1Khz_BdKDVmkBNAPQYG9KYdVBP4W-RmmU6WdQYzcOo_Ie4YfhFMtXCcZ2Fokm9GNJUI_F4sJgnW_udsO673wJbdoFMCXoz7ImmaLW06_tuxmoDzB4BvuD0mtDY3LT-_z2U5Xr5HF-P/s640/LittleBlackDoorBeccaLR.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Plan is set and in motion. Furniture has been delivered, bookshelves arrive next week and the grasscloth is in the corner ready to go up. Now all we need is some multi-day childcare so we can <strike>drink some wine</strike> get to work. Of course I'll be sure to share some pictures when it is ready for its closeup.<br /><br />Got a space that you want to refresh? I can help. Email me at news-these-days@gmail.com.<br /><br /><br />Sharing on <a href="http://designyourdwelling.blogspot.com/2013/02/mood-board-link-party-nursery-design.html" target="_blank">Design Your Dwelling</a>.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQglC3IQuTRjE7YFcwY6ZCxa3AxFPr1WFMYnybqLp9P-Jr9vC8LNwjP-q0vIvCtI3hmy9aJ3r2_lpnO_YcyImI12n7u2Vr_VWIW9Bo6we0ls1o_QbuuXV0QZBj6A6vknTG3pIpA7BXSJmT/s1600/-1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQglC3IQuTRjE7YFcwY6ZCxa3AxFPr1WFMYnybqLp9P-Jr9vC8LNwjP-q0vIvCtI3hmy9aJ3r2_lpnO_YcyImI12n7u2Vr_VWIW9Bo6we0ls1o_QbuuXV0QZBj6A6vknTG3pIpA7BXSJmT/s200/-1.jpeg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://designyourdwelling.blogspot.com/2013/02/mood-board-link-party-nursery-design.html" target="_blank">Design Your Dwelling</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br />

navy and orange library

I'm working with a dear friend on a living room refresh. She recently switched her dining room and living room and wants to make the new...

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Christopher Dorner Writings: The Scariest Parts Of The Alleged Cop Killer's 'Manifesto' (PHOTOS)

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="background-color: white; border: none; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px;">From: http://www.huffingtonpost.com</div><div style="background-color: white; border: none; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px;">Christopher Dorner, the former cop who <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/07/christopher-dorner-manhunt-los-angeles_n_2638023.html" style="border: none; color: #058b7b; cursor: pointer; list-style: none; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_hplink">allegedly killed three people</a>, posted a six-page manifesto to Facebook threatening "unconventional and asymmetrical warfare to those in LAPD uniform."</div><div style="background-color: white; border: none; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px;">Dorner, 33, writes that racism, cover-ups and corruption within the Los Angeles Police Department led to his firing from the department in 2008.</div><div style="background-color: white; border: none; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px;">He claims that LAPD racism towards officers and Angelenos alike is worse than the "Rodney King days" and says that LA police officers celebrate dead bodies on crime scenes as a bonus to their paycheck.</div><div style="background-color: white; border: none; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px;">The former officer delivers a chilling message to the children of the officers he is targeting and instructs journalists on how to handle the story.</div><div style="background-color: white; border: none; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; border: none; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px;"><img height="282" src="http://i.huffpost.com/gadgets/slideshows/279483/slide_279483_2076556_free.jpg?1360279076000" width="400" /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://htmlimg4.scribdassets.com/5nb902cge824c5s6/images/1-be1b1a1c11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://htmlimg4.scribdassets.com/5nb902cge824c5s6/images/1-be1b1a1c11.jpg" width="221" /></a></div><div style="background-color: white; border: none; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; border: none; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, Century, Times, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px; list-style: none; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 0px;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><script src="http://pshared.5min.com/Scripts/PlayerSeed.js?sid=281&width=560&height=345&playList=517666730" type="text/javascript"></script> </div></div>

Christopher Dorner Christopher Dorner Writings: The Scariest Parts Of The Alleged Cop Killer's 'Manifesto' (PHOTOS)

From: http://www.huffingtonpost.com Christopher Dorner, the former cop who  allegedly killed three people , posted a six-page manifesto to F...

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Depression and the Limits of Psychiatry - NYTimes.com

<base href="data:"><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px; color: black; text-align: left; "><div id="opinionator" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><div align="left"><div class="entry-content"><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; ">I've recently been following the controversies about revisions to the psychiatric definition of depression.  I've also been teaching a graduate seminar on Michel Foucault, beginning with a reading of his "History of Madness."   This massive volume tries to discover the origins of modern psychiatric practice and raises questions about its meaning and validity.  The debate over depression is an excellent test case for Foucault's critique.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; ">At the center of that critique is Foucault's claim that modern psychiatry, while purporting to be grounded in scientific truths, is primarily a system of moral judgments. "What we call psychiatric practice," he says, "is a certain moral tactic . . . covered over by the myths of positivism."  Indeed, what psychiatry presents as the "liberation of the mad" (from mental illness) is in fact a "gigantic moral imprisonment."</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; ">Foucault may well be letting his rhetoric outstrip the truth, but his essential point requires serious consideration.  Psychiatric practice does seem to be based on implicit moral assumptions in addition to explicit empirical considerations, and efforts to treat mental illness can be society's way of controlling what it views as immoral (or otherwise undesirable) behavior. Not long ago, homosexuals and women who rejected their stereotypical roles were judged "mentally ill," and there's no guarantee that even today psychiatry is free of similarly dubious judgments.   Much later, in a more subdued tone, Foucault said that the point of his social critiques was "not that everything is bad but that everything is dangerous."  We can best take his critique of psychiatry in this moderated sense.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; ">Current psychiatric practice is guided by the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders" (DSM).   Its <a href="http://newoldage.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/24/grief-over-new-depression-diagnosis/" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102); text-decoration: none; ">new 5^th edition</a> makes controversial revisions in the definition of depression, eliminating a long-standing "bereavement exception" in the guidelines for diagnosing a "major depressive disorder."   People grieving after the deaths of loved ones may exhibit the same sorts of symptoms (sadness, sleeplessness and loss of interest in daily activities among them) that characterize major depression.  For many years, the DSM specified that, since grieving is a <em>normal</em>response to bereavement, such symptoms are not an adequate basis for diagnosing major depression.  The new edition removes this exemption.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; ">Disputes over the bereavement exemption center on the significance of "normal."   Although the term sometimes signifies merely what is usual or average, in discussions of mental illness it most often has normative force.  Proponents of the exemption need not claim that depressive symptoms are usual in the bereaved, merely that they are appropriate (fitting).</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; ">Opponents of the exemption have appealed to empirical studies that compare cases of normal bereavement to cases of major depression.  They offer evidence that normal bereavement and major depression can present substantially the same symptoms, and conclude that there is no basis for treating them differently. But this logic is faulty.  Even if the symptoms are exactly the same, proponents of the exemption can still argue that they are appropriate for someone mourning a loved one but not otherwise.  The suffering may be the same, but suffering from the death of a loved one may still have a value that suffering from other causes does not. No amount of empirical information about the nature and degree of suffering can, by itself, tell us whether someone ought to endure it.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; ">Foucault is, then, right: psychiatric practice makes essential use of moral (and other evaluative) judgments.  Why is this dangerous?  Because, first of all, psychiatrists as such have no special knowledge about how people should live.  They can, from their clinical experience, give us crucial information about the likely psychological consequences of living in various ways (for sexual pleasure, for one's children, for a political cause).  But they have no special insight into what sorts of consequences make for a good human life.  It is, therefore, dangerous to make them privileged judges of what syndromes should be labeled "mental illnesses."</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; ">This is especially so because, like most professionals, psychiatrists are more than ready to think that just about everyone needs their services.  (As the psychologist Abraham Maslow said, "If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail").   Another factor is the pressure the pharmaceutical industry puts on psychiatrists to expand the use of psychotropic drugs. The result has been the often criticized "medicalization" of what had previously been accepted as normal behavior-for example, shyness, little boys unable to sit still in school, and milder forms of anxiety.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; ">Of course, for a good number of mental conditions there is almost universal agreement that they are humanly devastating and should receive psychiatric treatment.   For these, psychiatrists are good guides to the best methods of diagnosis and treatment.  But when there is significant ethical disagreement about treating a given condition, psychiatrists, who are trained as physicians, may often have a purely medical viewpoint that is not especially suited to judging moral issues.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; ">For cases like the bereavement exclusion, the DSM should give equal weight to the judgments of those who understand the medical view but who also have a broader perspective.  For example, humanistic psychology (in the tradition of Maslow, Carl Rogers, and Rollo May) would view bereavement not so much a set of symptoms as a way of living in the world, with its meaning varying for different personalities and social contexts.  Specialists in medical ethics would complement the heavily empirical focus of psychiatry with the explicitly normative concerns of rigorously developed ethical systems such as utilitarianism, Kantianism and virtue ethics.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; ">Another important part of the mix should come from a new but rapidly developing field, <a href="http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/psychiatry/" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102); text-decoration: none; ">philosophy of psychiatry</a>, which analyzes the concepts and methodologies of psychiatric practice.  Philosophers of psychiatry have raised fundamental objections to the DSM's assumption that a diagnosis can be made solely from clinical descriptions of symptoms, with little or no attention to the underlying causes of the symptoms.  Given these objections, dropping the bereavement exception-a rare appeal to the cause of symptoms-is especially problematic.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; ">Finally, we should include those who have experienced severe bereavement, as well as relatives and friends who have lived with their pain.  In particular, those who suffer (or have suffered) from bereavement offer an essential first-person perspective.  As Foucault might have said, the psyche is too important to be left to the psychiatrists.</div><div style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: medium; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.7em; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 1.375em; "><em>Gary Gutting is a professor of philosophy at the University of Notre Dame, and an editor of <a href="http://ndpr.nd.edu/about/" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102); text-decoration: none; ">Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews</a>. He is the author, most recently, of "Thinking the Impossible: French Philosophy since 1960," and writes regularly for The Stone. He was recently interviewed in <a href="http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/what-philosophers-know/" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 102); text-decoration: none; ">3am magazine</a>.</em></div></div></div></div></div><a href="http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/06/the-limits-of-psychiatry/?pagewanted=print">http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/06/the-limits-of-psychiatry/?pagewanted=print</a><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px; color: black; text-align: left; "><br class="webkit-block-placeholder"></div>

Depression and the Limits of Psychiatry - NYTimes.com

I've recently been following the controversies about revisions to the psychiatric definition of depression.  I've also been teaching...

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28 in 28 #7: Qualities of Duration

<i>February is Book Month on A Daily Dose of Architecture. The "<a href="http://archidose.blogspot.com/search/label/28%20in%2028">28 in 28</a>" series features a different book every day of the month.</i><br /><br /><a href="http://www.artbook.com/9788862082310.html"><b><i>Qualities of Duration: The Architecture of Phillip Smith and Douglas Thompson</i></b></a> by Alastair Gordon<br />Damiani/Gordon De Vries Studio, 2012<br />Hardcover, 221 pages<br /><br /><img alt="28-28_smith-thompson.jpg" src="http://www.archidose.org/Blog/28-28_smith-thompson.jpg" title="Book cover" /><br /><br />Ever since taking Martin Filler's question "Is the architect's monograph our latest endangered species?" <a href="http://archidose.blogspot.com/2011/03/oeuvre-kaput.html">seriously</a>, I've paid attention to the non formulaic tendencies of monographs, be it their format, layout, or other means of conveying to readers what buildings they have worked on and realized. This monograph on New York's <a href="http://smithandthompsonarchitects.com/">Smith and Thompson Architects</a> is notable for the way it tells the story of the duo's architecture as just that, a story. While Alastair Gordon's writing does describe the various projects that Phillip Smith and Douglas Thompson have worked on since the 1970s, he does it with a narrative flow that is often missing from monographs.<br /><br />Rather than positioning projects one after the other, as is the norm, the projects fit into six overlapping chronological chapters. Within each chapter the projects fall into place like episodes within their lives. This emphasis on experience and personal narrative is intentional and appropriate for two architects "whose work stands out as an oasis of calm in an age of hyper speed and information overload." Their buildings and interiors refuse to be defined by any sort of style or -ism. They respect the past, even as they embrace the modern language of architecture.<br /><br />The building gracing the cover, a gallery, office space, and residence located at the corner of 10th Avenue and West 23rd Street, is easily their most well-known work, especially since the opening of the High Line about a decade after the building's completion. Inspired by the Noguchi Museum in Long Island City, a vernacular residence in Cairo, and the Manhattan grid, the architects crafted a cubic composition that balances indoor and outdoor spaces. I've always appreciated the thoughtfully designed courtyard; the way it screens the intersection, invites the adjacent sycamore tree, and gives the glass-walled interiors some privacy. It's a delightful space that is born from the conditions of the city but creates an oasis within it. Or as Gordon puts it, "The city is still out there, rude and clamorous, but it seems distant and remote."<br /><br /><b>US: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/8862082312/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=8862082312&linkCode=as2&tag=aweeklydoseof-20" target="_blank"><img alt="Buy from Amazon.com" border="0" src="http://www.archidose.org/books/buy-from-tan.gif" /></a> CA: <a href="http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/8862082312/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=8862082312&linkCode=as2&tag=aweeklydoseof-20" target="_blank"><img alt="Buy from Amazon.ca" border="0" height="28" src="http://www.archidose.org/books/buy-from-tan-ca.gif" width="90" /></a> UK: <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/8862082312/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=8862082312&linkCode=as2&tag=aweeklydoseof-20" target="_blank"><img alt="Buy from Amazon.co.uk" border="0" height="28" src="http://www.archidose.org/books/buy-from-tan-uk.gif" width="90" /></a></b>

28 in 28 #7: Qualities of Duration

February is Book Month on A Daily Dose of Architecture. The " 28 in 28 " series features a different book every day of the month. ...

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