Cotton Tote and Women's Plus-Size Jackets | MyBargainBuddy.com ...

December 15, 2012

Cotton Tote and Women's Plus-Size Jackets

Today: $1.99 & $2.99 + Free S/H

Was: $29.99 & $39.99

Coupon: WW71939 (Free S/H on any order)

Expires: Unknown
SHOP NOW

DESCRIPTION:

Reversible organic cotton tote measures 17?x 12.5?x 7? and is just $1.99! Choice of 2 jackets in sizes 1X-4X are only $2.99 each!

Sign up for my email newsletter to get deals like this delivered to your inbox!

Source: http://www.mybargainbuddy.com/cotton-tote-and-womens-plus-size-jackets

Nathan Adrian London 2012 Synchronized Swimming London 2012 hurdles Taylor Kinney Beach Volleyball Olympics 2012 Jessica Ennis Oscar Pistorius

Business Improvement Team expands, adds services

Believing there is more to be gained together than alone a small group of business consultants formed the Business Improvement Team.

The West Bloomfield-based consortium of consulting firms specializes in helping businesses grow and become more streamlined. It has grown to the point now where they don't just share resources to maximize marketing but also do some joint projects and have come up with combined services, such as business x-ray which takes a comprehensive look at companies.

The Business Improvement Team is a group of local consulting firms consisting of 10 companies. Its membership includes Absolute Engineering & Consulting, Clear Vision Strategy, Expense Reduction Analysts, Fletcher Business Solutions, Franklin CIO Services, Taligence ? HR, Tobias Vandeputte & Skulsky CPAs and Virtual Interactive Agency.

"The companies that are involved are strong companies that have ben involved in consulting for a long time," says Spencer Silk, partner with Business Improvement Team.

The consortium started with four firms in 2009 and recently added two more to its roster. The two new members include Glass Retirement Strategies and Hennessey Capital.

Source: Spencer Silk, partner with Business Improvement Team
Writer: Jon Zemke

Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.

Source: http://www.metromodemedia.com/innovationnews/businessimprovementteam0281.aspx

jonestown carlos zambrano john dillinger clemson pellet gun clay aiken zambrano

Save the roll for January

Getting hot in the final 4 regular-season games doesn't necessarily mean playoff success

Ezra Shaw / Getty Images

Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos have won eight straight games.

ANALYSIS

By Scott Kacsmar

updated 4:16 p.m. ET Dec. 13, 2012

?You want to be playing your best football in December.?

Every NFL fan has heard this clich?. A simple Google search finds it from Atlanta Falcons? center Todd McClure after his team?s latest loss in Carolina. Apparently coach Mike Smith has told his team this before.

Maybe that's why the Falcons are 0-3 in the playoffs under Smith. They expect their best a month too soon.

The New York Giants are poster boys for the getting-hot-late strategy with their two championships (2007 and 2011). Exactly how hot they got late in the season can be revisionist history, as there was a bad home loss to the Washington Redskins in December both times.

There is something to be said for peaking too soon. Fourteen of the last 15 NFL teams with the best regular-season record have failed to win the Super Bowl. Only the 2003 New England Patriots did. This is a problem we are also seeing in the NHL, NBA and MLB with "regular season champions."

But focusing on football, we have seen the hot team do well in recent years, and not just the Giants. The 2010 Green Bay Packers didn't clinch a playoff berth until the last day of the regular season before making their run, while a team like the 2005 Pittsburgh Steelers created the formula for going on a Super Bowl run as the No. 6 seed.

Consider this fact: out of 46 Super Bowl champions, only two of them ended the regular season with a losing streak. The 1967 Green Bay Packers lost their last two games, and the 2009 New Orleans Saints went 0-3 after starting the year 13-0.

Both came out in their first playoff game and won by at least 21 points. So much for not having that precious momentum.

Once again it is that time of year where teams are starting to talk playoffs and playing their best. Let?s see if we can quantify just how important it is to be playing well late in the season, especially in terms of equating to playoff success.?

Results of the study say ?
While it's nice for 3-9 teams to win their last four games, they don't make the playoffs. So, we will only look at the teams who made the playoffs from 2002 to 2011, the era in which we have had eight division winners and the current playoff format.

Since there's nothing magical about December versus a game played on Jan. 1, let?s break the season down into the final quarter (games 13-16).

Here's how the 120 playoff teams since 2002 have done in the last four games of the regular season, and how it has translated into their postseason success.

Playoff teams' record last 4 regular-season games (2002-2011) Games 13-16 Teams Playoffs Super Bowls won One and done 4-0 23 22-21 (.512) 2 (8.7%) 9 (39.1%) 3-1 53 47-49 (.490) 4 (7.6%) 26 (49.1%) 2-2 31 31-28 (.525) 3 (9.7%) 15 (48.4%) 1-3 13 10-12 (.455) 1 (7.7%) 5 (38.4%)

No one finished 0-4, but teams finishing 4-0 on their way to the playoffs have won 51.2 percent of their playoff games. That is not quite as good as teams finishing 2-2, as they have won 52.5 percent of their playoff games, including three Super Bowls. That 2-2 finish has produced the highest rate of championship teams (9.7 percent).

A lot of the numbers are close, which supports the conclusion that it really is not overly important to have a strong finish in the regular season.

What about winning big or resting starters?
But records can be deceiving, especially over a small sample size such as a few games.

For the 1-3 teams that went 10-12 in the playoffs, a better field-goal placehold (Tony Romo in Seattle) and a last-second field goal (Doug Brien for the Jets in Pittsburgh in a 2004 AFC divisional game), and those teams are instead 12-10 (.545). Surprisingly those teams have only gone one and done 38.4 percent of the time, which is the lowest percentage.

To make matters worse, some teams like to rest their starters in the final week or two, practically playing it like a preseason game and compromising the stats. The Colts were notorious for this under Tony Dungy and Bill Polian, often resting Peyton Manning and key starters. The irony is some of their best runs, including their Super Bowl XLI win, came in years where they had to fight down to the wire in the fourth quarter of Week 17.

This rest strategy also goes against the clich?s of ?momentum? and playing your best heading into the playoffs.

But instead of focusing on the records, how about looking at how dominant a team is on the scoreboard? Let?s look at the scoring differential over the last four weeks.

Scoring differential last 4 regular season games (2002-2011) Games 13-16 Teams Playoffs Super Bowls won One and done +50-95 PTS 26 32-24 (.571) 2 (7.7%) 7 (26.9%) +28-49 PTS 28 25-26 (.490) 2 (7.1%) 11 (39.3%) +0-27 PTS 33 28-29 (.491) 4 (12.1%) 20 (60.6%) Negative 33 25-31 (.446) 2 (6.1%) 17 (51.5%)

Now we see more separation at the top with the teams who had an average scoring margin of more than 12.5 points pre game (+50 scoring differential) winning 57.1 percent of their playoff games, and only going one and done 26.9 percent of the time.

What?s surprising is the third row (+0-27 PTS) going one game under .500 in the playoffs just like the teams who averaged more than a touchdown per game in scoring margin, and the fact that they went one and done 60.6 percent of the time.

As you might have expected, the teams with a negative scoring differential only won 44.6 percent of their playoff games. But we did see the 2006 Colts and 2009 Saints win the Super Bowl, though the Saints were another product of playoff rest. After starting 13-0, they actually finished 0-3, which no other Super Bowl winner has ever done.

Here are the top 10 scoring differential finishes by a playoff team since 2002.

Top 10 scoring differential by playoff team, 2002-11 (games 13-16) Team Year Record Points for Points against Points diff. Result New England 2010 4-0 139 44 95 Lost AFC-D Green Bay 2003 4-0 144 52 92 Lost NFC-D New Orleans 2011 4-0 154 70 84 Lost NFC-D Pittsburgh 2005 4-0 115 33 82 Won Super Bowl San Diego 2007 4-0 127 51 76 Lost AFC-C San Diego 2008 4-0 149 73 76 Lost AFC-D Baltimore 2009 3-1 120 46 74 Lost AFC-D Indianapolis 2008 4-0 120 48 72 Lost AFC-WC NY Jets 2009 3-1 99 28 71 Lost AFC-C Green Bay 2009 3-1 138 68 70 Lost NFC-WC

No playoff team was hotter than the 2010 Patriots, outscoring their opponents 139-44 (+95) to finish what was actually an eight-game winning streak to end the regular season. But that team did greatly disappoint in the playoffs, going one and done with a stunning loss to the Jets, just a little over a month after destroying New York 45-3.

Still, the numbers would suggest you may want to keep an eye on the scoring differential more than the record down the stretch to forecast a team?s playoff results.

Finally, here is a list of the Super Bowl winners since 2002 and how they performed in the last quarter of the regular season in terms of scoring differential, total yards margin, and turnover differential.

Super Bowl winners (games 13-16) Team Year Record Point Diff. Yards Margin Turnover Diff. Tampa Bay 2002 3-1 32 328 4 New England 2003 4-0 62 51 10 New England 2004 3-1 36 144 2 Pittsburgh 2005 4-0 82 479 2 Indianapolis 2006 2-2 -7 18 -1 NY Giants 2007 2-2 5 75 -3 Pittsburgh 2008 3-1 25 353 0 New Orleans 2009 1-3 -20 -284 -4 Green Bay 2010 2-2 27 278 2 NY Giants 2011 3-1 22 228 3 Average 27-13 26.4 167.0 1.50

What does it mean this year?
Sometimes we get too caught up with games late in the season being overly important. Some team is going to lose one of these crucial matchups, and that is going to knock them out of the playoffs.

Meanwhile, that team likely blew a game in September that had they won that day, then it never would have come down to that Week 16 game on the road. The season is not long enough at 16 games to blow off the start of it. Those games are very important too.

Should the New England Patriots get a first-round bye and hold home-field advantage over the Denver Broncos, then you can look at that head-to-head win Oct. 7 in Week 5 as the deciding factor.

That?s part of the beauty of a NFL season. So many little, seemingly insignificant events throughout the season change the entire course of the playoffs and future of the league. It is the butterfly effect at work.

While the playoff races this year may not be high on parity, it does not appear teams will be able to rest much down the stretch as they battle for first-round byes. That?s always good, as we get to see better games in Week 17, rather than stat-deflating scrimmages that can let a team sneak into the playoffs, or keep another out.

Be careful in going with the hot team. This year?s Patriots may end up posting similar numbers to their 2010 finish, but look what that got them in the postseason: a home loss to a team with Mark Sanchez at quarterback.

While it may feel nice to take a winning streak into the postseason, all that matters is how you execute that day. With the one-and-done format, literally anything can happen, and that is why the playoffs are so exciting.

December football? It?s just not that much different from September.

Scott Kacsmar (@CaptainComeback) writes for Cold, Hard Football Facts, Bleacher Report, Colts Authority, and contributes data to Pro-Football-Reference.com and NFL Network.

advertisement

More news

Save the roll for January

??Kacsmar: History shows getting hot in the final four regular-season games doesn't necessarily mean playoff success.

Jessica Rinaldi / Reuters

Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/50187214/ns/sports-nfl/

joan crawford joan crawford john goodman kendall marshall whitney houston news sylvia plath whitney houston

bpb Review: Pali Bhavan - BPBWeekend

Perhaps the most seductive thing about Pali Bhavan, Bandra?s new Indian restaurant from the guys behind Pali Village Cafe, is its set of sepia strangers ? a prince of some sort towering over his kill; two women who could be Frida Kahlo?s Indian cousins; a royal family portrait; a class at Motilal Engineering College. They live in withered sky blue frames, under multiple suns dimmed by crystal casings, in the company of taxidermy trophies.

It is by this wall of a pretty past gone by, put together painstakingly by co-owner Mishali, that we had our dinner on opening night with a friend who?s moving to Hyderabad. The space, formerly occupied by Boat Club, has been transformed beyond recognition into a split level bar and restaurant that retains Pali Village Caf? elements ? green flooring, tin roof, dim lights ? but with traditional Indian treats like ornate doors and grills, chandeliers, brocade chairs and lots and lots of vintage photographs. We?re not big fans of the exposed pipes and colourful lunch dabbas, though.

By the Pav-er Vested in Me

You get a free puri and a vial of spicy pani on the side, as you browse the menu that doesn?t overwhelm, is slightly pricey (average vegetarian main is Rs 350 and non-vegetarian is Rs 550) and borrows heavily from Maharashtrian cuisine. There?s bar snacks like vada pav, kanda bhajia and aaloo tikki; kebabs; the usual butter chicken-kali dal mains, but also a few dishes from other Indian states; and inventive dessert.

We started with a plate of mini vada pavs, achari paneer and on owner Mishali and Suren?s recommendations (they know this Scouter, so the review could not be conducted anonymously), the galouti kebab, along with a tasty whisky sour and low-on-vodka grape cocktail. During our wait we realised that depending on what side you?re facing and the song playing, Pali Bhavan gives out different vibes? it went from Havana to a speakeasy during the British era to a fancy party in Rajasthan during the course of one meal.

Soon after ordering our starters arrived, a plate of mini vada pavs dusted with red chutney, delicious but the price tag might make it feel like a silly order. If you?re a meat eater, you really must get the galouti kebabs, whose only fault is evoking that clich? we so hate to use ? melt in your mouth. Also a good order, prawns made with thecha (a spicy Maharashtrian pickle) and if someone at your table has pedestrian taste buds (dump them!), then the tangy and super soft achari paneer.

Vanglee!

But the mains are what we were really looking forward to: bharleli vangi (stuffed eggplant) and Alleppey fish curry with Malabari parathas. The latter, our favourite dish of the night, seemed to have taken its ingredients from the sea and colours from the sun - a bowl of pretty orange-pink textured curry with raw mango and coconut. Although, the Malabari parathas could have been flakier. Our vegetarian dining companion couldn?t stop raving about the tangy peanut-y vangi ? vanglee! she called it ? but thought the portion belonged to the appetiser rather than the main course section.

You can finish your meal at Pali Bhavan in many different ways ? mishti doi, rabdi, angoori ras malai, payasam. We got the paan kulfi, a tiny plate of three paans stuffed with kulfi. This is a refreshing pick if you?re too full from the previous courses, but if you need a big bowl of sweet, this will probably not leave you satiated.

And so our night ended with a well-fed companion and a farewell joined by many sepia strangers, who we might soon be able to call friends.

Getting there: Pali Bhavan, 10 Adarsh Nagar, next to Costa Coffee, Pali Naka, Bandra (W), call 26519400, approximately Rs 4,000 for a meal for two with one drink each.

bpb pays for its own meals.

Source: http://bpbweekend.com/food-and-drink/bpb-review-pali-bhavan

bulls heat goldman sachs brandon carr knicks coach encyclopedia britannica pi white lion

Otter wants health insurance market state-run - Spokesman.com ...

'); $("#content-tool-box-"+tool_name).jqm({trigger:this,overlay:20}); } }); });

?

At a?glance

How they?work

Health insurance exchanges, under the national health care reform law, provide an online marketplace where consumers can shop for the plans, rates and features they want, and also access government subsidies if they qualify for?them.

BOISE ? Idaho will opt for a state-based health insurance exchange, Gov. Butch Otter said Tuesday, although legislators still need to weigh in on that proposal when they convene in?January.

Idaho lawmakers last year opted to do nothing on an exchange, gambling unsuccessfully that the U.S. Supreme Court would overturn the national health insurance?law.

?This is not a battle of my choosing, but no one has fought harder against the mandates and overreaching federal authority of the Affordable Care Act,? said Otter, a Republican who long has opposed the reform law and joined a multistate lawsuit to try to stop it. The governor said the presidential election was at least in part a referendum on the enactment of what he called?Obamacare.

?There will be a health insurance exchange in Idaho. The only question is who will build it,? Otter?said.

He added, ?Our options have come down to this: Do nothing and be at the federal government?s mercy in how that exchange is designed and run, or take a seat at the table and play the cards we?ve been?dealt.?

Health insurance exchanges, under the national health care reform law, will provide an online marketplace where consumers can shop for the plans, rates and features they want, and also access government subsidies if they qualify for them. States have the option of setting up their own exchanges, partnering with the federal government, or doing nothing and allowing the federal government to operate their state?exchanges.

Otter?s decision follows the overwhelming recommendation of a working group he appointed to study the issue for months. State Sen. John Goedde, R-Coeur d?Alene, who served on the working group, said he thinks Otter did the right?thing.

?I don?t think that we have any choice ? we?re going to establish a state-based exchange, or we are going to get the federal exchange by default,? Goedde?said.

Goedde, a longtime insurance broker, said Idaho?s health insurance premiums are among the lowest in the nation, in part because Idaho has so few state mandates on what insurance plans must offer. If the state were lumped in with other states in a federal exchange, ?There?s no question in my mind ? it?s going to drive the cost of insurance?up.?

Some Idaho lawmakers have been outspoken in opposition to doing anything required by the Affordable Care Act. Ideological groups like the Idaho Freedom Foundation have been lobbying hard against a state-based exchange, even as Idaho business groups and insurers pushed for it. The IFF?s executive director, Wayne Hoffman, issued a statement promising to fight against it in the upcoming legislative?session.

State Rep. Vito Barbieri, R-Dalton Gardens, continues to oppose a state exchange. ?My inclination is to resist,? he said. ?The bottom line is if the federal government is going to control it, they should run it.?? I?m absolutely convinced that my constituents do not want?it.?

But the Idaho Legislature has lots of new faces this year, with record turnover in the November election. And the author of last year?s failed exchange legislation, Rep. Fred Wood, R-Burley, a physician, last week was named the new chairman of the House Health and Welfare Committee, which previously had been chaired by a fervent exchange?opponent.

Otter remained critical of the national health care reform law, which he maintains won?t lower health care costs. ?But it is an unfortunate and unwelcome reality, and it would be irresponsible of me to simply abandon the field to federal bureaucrats,? he?said.

Otter?s state insurance director, Bill Deal, warned that letting the federal government operate the exchange would mean Idaho would lose the ability to regulate its health insurance?market.

Otter?s working group called for a privately operated, state-based exchange, and that?s what Otter plans to propose to lawmakers in January. His press secretary, Jon Hanian, said, ?We will have details about it in the State of the State,? the message the governor delivers to a joint session of the Legislature on its opening day, Jan.?7.

Source: http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2012/dec/12/otter-wants-health-insurance-market-state-run/

media matters hana taylor momsen xbox live update joan rivers gary carter dies oolong tea

CSN: Who's Brady's competition for NFL MVP?

December 11, 2012, 10:30 pm

We're going into Week 15 of the NFL season, and three players have risen to the top of the NFL MVP debate: Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, and Adrian Peterson.

Brady's season speaks for itself. He's led the Patriots to a 10-3 record, thrown 28 touchdowns and 3,833 yards, and only turned the ball over four times this year.

Peyton Manning is the feel-good story of the year. After undergoing serious neck surgery that could have ended his career, he was released by the Colts and signed by the Broncos. Since then, how does 30 touchdowns, 3,812 passing yards, and 10 interceptions sound? Not too shabby.

And then there's Adrian Peterson, on pace to have perhaps the best year for a running back in the history of the NFL. Peterson has 1,600 yards rushing and ten touchdowns, not to mention 18 rushed of 20-plus yards.

Gary Tangauy, Dan Shaughnessy, and Bob Ryan give their take on the MVP.

Who is YOUR choice?

Tags: New England Patriots

Source: http://www.csnne.com/12/11/12/Bradys-competition-for-MVP/nbcsportspatriots.html?blockID=812797&feedID=10426

Beady Eye david bowie Eric Idle rory mcilroy Fatboy Slim Rio de Janeiro Shark Week

This Is Very Effective In Treating Back Pain - Lying DC\'s Health Blog

It can be quite frustrating to live with chronic back pain and it can truly prevent you from enjoying activities that you would love to participate in. I have found that by using a Massage Chair, I can get a lot of relief from my pain. I love the way that it completely relaxes my muscles and eases the pain as well. I look forward to using this device because I always know that it is going to make me feel much better.

No Comments

No comments yet.

Comments RSS

Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.

Source: http://www.lydc.org/health-and-fitness/this-is-very-effective-in-treating-back-pain/

megamillions ncaa basketball tournament 2012 megamillions winning numbers lotto winner michael oher jerry lee lewis cesar chavez