Health Magazine's top 10 healthiest fast-food breakfasts

Health asked a team of experts to choose and rank what they thought represented the best mix of complex carbohydrates, protein, and healthy fats in fast food breakfasts.  Here they are in order:

1 - spinach florentine breakfast wrap (Cosi)

2 - Protein Artisan Snack Plate ( Starbucks)

3 - Berry Topper Ideal Meal (Jamba Juice)

4 - Apple cinnamon Oatmeal (AuBonPain)

5 - Scambled egg whites, chicken sausage, and fruit (Denny's)

6 - Fruit & Maple Oatmeal (McDonald's)

7 - Simple & Fit veggie Omelette (IHOP)

8 - Western Egg White & Cheese Muffin Melt (Subway)

9 - Egg White Turkey Sausage Wake up Wrap (Dunkin' Donuts)

10 -  Breakfast Power Sandwich (Panera Bread)

I thought the breakfast power sandwich would have ranked higher.

More information click here.

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Uncomfortable Nights

Buy this pad from REI.

So we slept in a campervan for a while, and let me tell you, they say that the best way to get to know someone is to take a long car ride with them. How about a three week long one, is that long enough? Well, yes, yes it is.

But that is not what I am going to talk about. What I was going to say is that the campervan is also a little bit cramped. I mean, if you slide the bed out, you can’t get to anything underneath (there is storage there) and if one person is putting on their shoes, the other has to step aside. It’s not all bad, but it is a little tricky to manage at times.

The other thing that is a little hard is the sleeping situation. And when I say HARD, I mean hard both literally and figuratively. The bed is not very wide, and for a person who sleeps on their stomach with their leg thrown out to the side (me) it is not enough room for that. So you have to lay pretty much straight, if on your stomach. Or you can lay on your side. However, like I said before, it is hard. The bed is made of wood with a small pad over it. So you end up laying on one side until your hip is numb and your back hurts and your hands are asleep (yes, this happens to me a lot) and then you roll over until it happens on the other side.
However, the good news is: this is NOT the most uncomfortable place I have slept in the last year.

The worst was the tent.

The good thing is, we traded it with these nice people for a used Lonely Planet Europe (about a 30 dollar value new, so maybe 15 dollars used). The bad news is, and it’s not the tent’s fault (or S&Rs!), the ground is hard and it’s cold and my sleeping bag, which is supposed to be good down to 40 degrees, isn’t.
We went through a few stages of uncomfortable tent camping.

(1) THE WORST: No padding/mattress. Rocks beneath me. Can’t curl up in my too small sleeping bag. The wind was blowing hard. It was about 33 degrees outside.

(2) RUNNER UP: Bought an air mattress. Did NOT buy an air pump. Tried to blow up mattress with lungs. Did not work. Slept on little air. Every time one person moves, the other gets rolled off the mattress.

(3) THIRD WORST: Bought an air pump. Blew up mattress. Heavy wind and rain at beach turns tent into a swimming pool. (we slept in the car that night)

(4) BEST: Blew up mattress. Bought an extra blanket. Finally got a good(ish) night’s sleep. Still worse than the campervan.

I have decided that the main problem, since normally I don’t mind camping, is the gear. You HAVE to have good gear. Buy a sleeping pad (I have one at home). Thermarest makes a good one. Spend the money to buy a GOOD sleeping bag, down to 15 degrees (F). It is worth it. Buy a WATERPROOF (3 season) tent (I also have one of these at home). I guess what you could probably add to me is: AND BRING IT WITH YOU. But carrying all that stuff around for 6 months is not always feasible. But you will be more comfortable!

So, where is the most uncomfortable place YOU have slept? Do you like camping? Have you ever slept in your car?

U is for Uncomfortable.

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World War 2 - ON FACEBOOK!!!

 Yes, this is quite a global phenomenon. Its basically a picture that describes the events of WW2 but in a funny way. I hope you enjoy it while I go get some rest for the night.
P.S.- You might want to click and zoom in on it :)

World War 2 on Facebook- Epic

I myself like the Germany part the most.
Its so hilarious.
People should make more of these, thats
what I think.

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History - Unheard of

First off, sincere apologies for the whole delay after the new year, I had completely forgotten about this blog until a colleague of mine reminded me of it.

Anyways, at School, often a times I get frustrated. Not because of some lousy test (that does occasionally happen) or a rude teacher or anything but because of this ; Ignorance. I see a guy from class and I asked him whether he had ever heard of the Ottoman Empire before. He replied no. I then asked him if he had known anything about the Safavids, he replied no. I asked him what did he know ? He replied," Bahrain was once British!".

Smart man...

But really, I must say that it is either that this person genuinely does not know about them (this proved false after I've 'questioned' other students) or is messing with me. I was in total shock. At school, we're taught of the Royal Family of Britain, the House of Windsor, the House of Tudors and all that. We've been taught about Union Jack and of Winston Churchill, of Bonny Prince Charles and the New Model Army. But never had I seen nor experienced a lecture about the history of the Middle East. Nothing about Arabia, nothing about the Mongols ever invading the Middle East (in fact, my teacher denied it!) nor anything about the Ottomans! (Refer to the previous paragraph)

How can we really have a generation that had forgotten its heritage ? I'm not saying I'm against them learning about the Brits, but really, Regional History first!

Oh God, I'm not going to tell you guys the story of the time when someone asked me what was the significance of the Nile.

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You Learn Something New Every Day

 There is always something new to learn. Yesterday I learned two new things. I was reading an old Singer Sewing Manual circa. 1954 (with marvelous illustrations!) and came across this tip for turning corners. I have never heard of this before! And I have read my share of sewing books, old and new. I love when I find a new tip. I did try it out, works really nice!

The other thing I learned, is southeast Wisconsin is at the same latitude as southern Spain. But because Europe is a smaller land mass, they have a more temperate clime then here. Interesting.

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Port Lockroy is a beautiful natural harbour on Goudier Island

Like many sites currently occupied in Antarctica, it was used by the whaling industry after its discovery in 1903.

A British base was established in 1944 (British base "A") and it is now designated a "historic site" under the Antarctic Treaty. Since 1996, the base has been opened during the summer months by British Antarctic Survey under the guidance of the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust (UKAHT). It is possible to look around the renovated buildings and museum and get a flavour of what life used to be like in Antarctica on a base in the 1950's.

There is even a gift shop and Post Office where cards and letters can be franked before being placed on the next available ship for transport to their destination via Britain. Port Lockroy is currently the most visited site in Antarctica with about 6000 tourists each summer. Post office diary

An environmental monitoring programme was established when the base began being manned in 1996 to to investigate potential visitor disturbance to the rookery of gentoo penguins nearby. It appears that so far, the large numbers of visitors have had no discernable impact on penguin breeding success, which is more closely linked to local environmental conditions, such as snow cover or the availability of krill.

There are also relics from the whaling days at Port Lockroy such as a massive fin whale skeleton. The fin whale is the second largest whale (after the blue whale). Each year the skeleton is reassembled after the weather blows it apart all winter. This particular whale has even been shown to have had arthritis because some of its bones show deterioration in the same way that arthritic human bones do.

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9- 25 MAYIS 2011 KPSS BAŞVURULARI BAŞLADI

Kamu Personeli Seçme Sınavı (KPSS) öğretmenlik ve A grubu kadrolar içinbaşvurular bugün başladı.

KPSS lisans düzeyinde, sadece A grubu ve öğretmenlik kadroları için il merkezleriyle Lefkoşa’da, 9 Temmuz Cumartesi sabah ve öğleden sonra, 10 Temmuz Pazar sabah ve öğleden sonra olmak üzere dört oturumda yapılacak.

2011-KPSS’ye başvuru işlemleri, 9-25 Mayıs tarihleri arasında yapılacak. Başvuruları yürütecek başvuru merkezleri ÖSYM’nin "http://www.osym.gov.tr" internet adresinde yayımlanacak.

Sınava katılmak isteyen adaylar, kılavuzla aday bilgi formuna, başvuru süresi içinde "http://www.osym.gov.tr" internet adresinden ulaşabilecek.

Kılavuz dağıtımı ve satışı yapılmayacak.

2011-KPSS sonuçları B grubu kadrolar için kullanılmayacak. Bu nedenle 2011-KPSS’ye sadece A grubu ve öğretmenlik kadrolarına atanmak isteyen lisans mezunlarıyla bir lisans programından mezun olabilecek durumdaki adaylar girecek.

Adayların A grubu kadroları için kamu kurum ve kuruluşlarına ve öğretmen kadroları için Milli Eğitim Bakanlığına başvurdukları tarihte mezun durumda olmaları şartı aranıyor.

Adaylardan başvuru sırasında 3 TL başvuru hizmet ücreti ve 2 TL şifre edinme ücreti alınacak. Sadece Cumartesi sabah oturumuna katılacak adaylar 35 TL, Cumartesi sabah ve diğer üç oturumdan herhangi birine katılacak adaylar 55 TL, Cumartesi sabah ve diğer üç oturumdan herhangi ikisine katılacak adaylar 75 TL, tüm oturumlara katılacak adaylar da 95 TL sınav ücreti ödeyecek.

Tüm adayların 9 Temmuz Cumartesi yapılacak Genel Kültür ve Genel Yetenek testlerini içeren sabah oturumuna katılmaları gerekiyor. Öğretmen kadroları için başvurmak isteyen adaylar, cumartesi sabah oturumunun yanı sıra öğleden sonraki Eğitim Bilimleri testini içeren öğleden sonra oturumuna katılacaklar.

A grubu kadrolar, başbakanlık, bakanlıklar, bakanlıkların müsteşarlık, başkanlık ve bağımsız genel müdürlük düzeyindeki bağlı ve ilgili kuruluşlarıyla bağlı ortaklıklarındaki özel yarışma sınavına tabi tutulmak suretiyle girilen ve belirli bir yetişme programı sonrası yeterlik sınavına tabi tutulan mesleklere ilişkin kadro ve görevlerle il özel idareleri ve belediyelerin teftiş
kurullarından oluşuyor.

2011-KPSS sonuçları A grubu ve öğretmen kadroları için sınav tarihinden itibaren iki yıl geçerli olacak.

2011-KPSS kılavuzunda başvurma, sınav, eğerlendirme ve yerleştirme ile ilgili ayrıntılı bilgiler yer alacak. Sınava başvuracak adayların bu kılavuzu dikkatle incelemeleri gerekiyor.

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Monday Escapes: Bucket List

The May issue of the online magazine Matchbook Magazine listed their 50 international travel destinations that you just must-see:

Image via Matchbook Magazine

I counted that I've been to 31 of the 50.  I'm over halfway done but still have quite a ways to go.  Do you agree with the list?  Have any favorites that you've visited?

Click here to read the rest of the magazine.

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Great conductors of the 20TH century EMI VOL.37 - Reiner

CD1 [79:53]

Beethoven: 'Coriolan' Overture May 1959
Brahms: Piano Concerto No.2 (with Emil Gilels) February 1958
Mozart: Symphony No.36 'Linz' April 1954
Orchestra Hall, Chicago
Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Mendelssohn: Scherzo ('A Midsummer Night's Dream')
Academy of Music, Philadelphia, June 1951
The Robin Hood Dell Orchestra (Philadelphia Orchestra)

CD2 [78:39]

Brahms: Tragic Overture December 1957
Wagner: Siegfried's Rhine Journey ('Götterdämmerung') April 1959
Bartók: Swineherd's Dance (from Hungarian Sketches) December 1958
Orchestra Hall, Chicago
Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Richard Strauss: Till Eulenspiegel
Carnegie Hall, New York, September 1950
RCA Victor Symphony Orchestra

Ravel: Le Tombeau de Couperin
Carnegie Hall, January 1952
NBC Symphony Orchestra

Falla: El amor brujo (with Carol Brice)
Syria Mosque, Pittsburgh, February 1946
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra


THE BIOGRAPHY - FRITZ REINER (1888 -1963)
One of the legendary podium giants of the 20th century, the Hungarian-American conductor Fritz Reiner was born in Budapest in 1888 and studied at the Franz Liszt Academy, where Bartók was one of his teachers. In 1914 he was appointed principal conductor of the Dresden Opera, where he worked with Richard Strauss, of whose music he would become a supreme interpreter. In 1922 he succeeded Eugène Ysaÿe as conductor of the Symphony Orchestra in Cincinnati, from where, in 1931, he went to the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia (where one of his conducting students was the young Leonard Bernstein). From 1938 to 1948, Reiner was music director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and in 1953 he succeeded Rafael Kubelik in Chicago, where, over the next ten years, he made a series of recordings with the orchestra that have remained benchmarks to this day. He died in New York in 1963, aged 74.
THE RECORDINGS
Reiner became an American citizen in 1928, during his period as conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony. After his period on the faculty of the Curtis Institute, he moved in 1938 to Pittsburgh, rebuilding the orchestra into a first-rate ensemble, as can be heard here in a new transfer from the original metal parts of the 1946 recording of Falla's El amor brujo. After Pittsburgh, Reiner was active particularly as a guest conductor with orchestras in Philadelphia and New York and at the Metropolitan Opera. These years are represented in this compilation by recordings, new to CD, of Mendelssohn, Richard Strauss and Ravel. But the period for which Reiner will be particularly remembered is the ten years he spent as music director of the Chicago Symphony, heard here in rare recordings of the core repertoire (Beethoven, Brahms, Mozart and Wagner) in which Reiner excelled, and of Béla Bartók, the conductor's former teacher and a composer whose work he championed (not least by making the first commercial recording of Bartók's Concerto for Orchestra).

 
http://www.fileserve.com/file/k6MyJJt
http://www.fileserve.com/file/ue27jhJ
http://www.fileserve.com/file/Y59xkmA
http://www.fileserve.com/file/cGBAA29


http://www.filesonic.com/file/913111974/Great Conductors of the 20th Century Vol 37- Fritz Reiner_.part1.rar
http://www.filesonic.com/file/913112024/Great Conductors of the 20th Century Vol 37- Fritz Reiner_.part2.rar
http://www.filesonic.com/file/913118084/Great Conductors of the 20th Century Vol 37- Fritz Reiner_.part3.rar
http://www.filesonic.com/file/913118194/Great Conductors of the 20th Century Vol 37- Fritz Reiner_.part4.rar

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To My Mother

Today I was born. Okay, that's not the complete truth. Actually, I WAS born on Mother's Day. However, Mom's Day changes every year; it is the second Sunday of May, and therefore each year is different. Well this year, it is NOT my birthday. However, the day I was born WAS on Mother's Day. That year. I don't need to tell you WHICH year that was. However, here is a picture of me and my Mom. Happy Mom's Day Moogle!

In New Orleans on a Bright Day

But. This year is not the day I was born. This year Mother's Day is the day I arrive. Back home. I fly into the LA airport on the 7th at 8 pm and then fly to Sacramento and arrive at 12:20 AM. I will have arrived home. Happy Mother's Day Mom.

Note: I am writing this in advance, because once I arrive I will be tired and sore and grumpy and I will meet up with friends and not have time to get online.

Of course, now that my vacation is over, it is time to get back to work. First off: a little fun. I meet up with my friend and her family (my second parents) for Mother's Day brunch. I will be wearing my scrubby backpacker's clothing, because that is all that I own. It will probably smell a little (or a lot). But it won't matter, because these people are my family.

Next, I will go and visit with my brother, who will hopefully serve me dinner and beers as I lounge on the couch watching his Tivo (catching up with Top Chef). Then we will FINALLY go to a Giants game (I have REALLY missed the Giants) with my friend Jack from work. We used to get free tickets from our company, back in the day when we worked together (2002) and we used to always have A BLAST. It will be great to reminisce with him and watch the game, drink a few overpriced beers, have a gross (yummy!) nacho and enjoy the game.

After that, I meet up with my grandma and together we will drive up to my parents' house, which is about a 4 hour drive from San Francisco. I can't wait to go home. The area where my parents live is beautiful and it is going to just be starting summer and it is going to be great! Everything green and flowing water and blue sky. Yum.

After that, the to do list begins. Sorry, that should be The To Do List. It's THAT important. Not only is it my To Do List, which I have mentioned before, and is forever getting longer and longer, but my Dad has one for me as well, which will also be long. However, with him helping me with mine and me helping him with his, we are a force to be reckoned with.

So, getting home is a blessing. It will be great to see friends and family. But it is also a "curse". I have so much to get done (including getting a job) and so will be very busy (and maybe even a tad stressed) over the next few weeks.

To top it off, maybe you haven't heard about this, but Mr. Lovely lives Back East and I live in California. So we will each go back to our own (parent's) homes for now. But who knows what will happen later. But this is another story all together.

Another A-Z. T is for To. You can see more here.

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