Sotheby’s (BID) is back and the sales are as hot as ever. The auction house, a viable predictor of major market turns, is officially telling us its back to pre-Lehman levels.

Many million dollar pieces are even fetching bids twice the amount predicted, as wealthy buyers appear more than ready to spend again.

The newest branch to take the lead is in Hong Kong, where a rare blue diamond from the De Beers Millennium collection was just purchased for over $6 million and just today an imperial white jade deal from the 18th century went home with an Asian buyer for $12.29 million – breaking the world record for both white jade and imperial seal sales.

There’s no doubt about the Chinese auction market taking a strong lead, but New York, Paris and Geneva aren’t doing too poorly either.

In recognition of Sotheby’s new spurt of success we’ve brought you a gallery of the most expensive stunning pieces ever sold by the famous house from around the world, and the million dollar stunner that are hitting the auction block in the upcoming days.

Take a look and place your bids >

Brilliant-cut rare blue diamond – Geneva – $ 2.3 Million

Predicted Price: $800,000 – 2,000,000

Sold For: $ 2.3 Million

Auctioned on: November 17, 2009

A brilliant-cut is the most difficult to obtain from a rough diamond and the one that causes the most weight loss of the stone. Still, it looks like the choice paid off with a $2,373,152 auction sale price for this 3.17 carat platinum-mounted ring.  The huge price tag also has a lot to do with how seldom blue diamonds are found in nature, and how rarely they appear at auction.

Imperial Jade seal – Hong Kong – $12.3 Million

Predicted Sale Price: $4,000,000 – 6,400,000

Sold For: $12.3 Million

Auctioned on: April 8, 2010

One of the most expensive things every auctioned at the Hong Kong Sotheby’s branch. According to Sotheby’s, the seal, which stands 1 3/4 in., is “made of a circular white jade that has a russet skin. The face of the seal is deeply carved with the four characters tai shang huang di “Treasure of the Emperor Emeritus.” The seal was made in 1796. 

Martin Kippenberger painting – Amsterdam – $ 1.4 million

Predicted Sale Price:  $270,000 – 400,000

Sold For: $ 1.4 Million

Auctioned on: March 8, 2010

Dinosaurierei (Dinosaur Egg) is a 94 1/2 by 78 3/4 in. oil on canvas painted in 1996 by the German artist Martin Kippenberger (1953 – 1997) before his sudden death at the age of 44.

This painting belongs to the iconic “Egg” series – a signature motif for Kippenberger, of which he said, “Justice hasn’t been done to the egg, justice hasn’t been done to fried egg, Warhol’s already had the banana. An egg is white and flat, how can that turn into a coloured picture?”

Sketchbook of a British settler – Melbourne – $830K

Predicted Sale Price:$373,000 – 560,000

Sold For:  $830K

Sale date: May 5, 2009

A sketchbook of 30 folios containing 26 watercolors, two wash drawings, and six pencil sketches, together with a separate ink drawing by another hand and two handwritten sheets. The book is ascribed to Edward Close, a British settler (1790-1866), soldier, engineer, magistrate, Legislative Councillor, and settler. 

Sotheby’s called it, “one of the most beautiful, charming and significant artifacts of early Australian colonial culture (…) its component watercolours constitute a notable part of the rich visual culture of the Macquarie era (1809-1821)”.

De Beers rare blue diamond – Hong Kong – $6.4 Million

Predicted Sale Price: $4,640,000 – 6,000,000

Sold For: $ 6.4 Million

Auctioned on: April 7, 2010 

A piece from the De Beers Millennium collection that pushed New York City from it’s second place spot of diamond auctioneer, with Hong Kong now taking its place. The rare blue 5.16 carat diamond, all natural and distinguished by flawless internal quality, was purchased by Moussaieff Jewellers Ltd.’s founder Alisa Moussaieff, who beat out  Asian rivals for the gem.

The De Beers Millennium Collection, which had its debut in 2000, is made up of 12 rare gems that took decades to assemble.

 

Kadinsky painting – New York – $10.6 Million

Predicted Sale Price:$6,000,000 – 8,000,000

Sold For: $ 10.6 Million

Auctioned On:  November 4, 2009

A 1932 Kadinsky oil painting from a private collection. The  39 5/8 by 47 3/8 in. canvas, titled Krass und Mild (Dramatic and Mild), is signed and dated. According to Sotheby’s, “Kandinsky believed that particular arrangements of shapes triggered an “inner resonance” or “spiritual vibration,” and could elicit from a viewer a powerful emotional response. Jagged solid forms, arcs, grids, triangles and circles, whether overlapping or adjacent, were strictly non-representational and created only to celebrate the beauty of form for form’s sake.”

Van Dyck oil painting – New York -$ 7.2 Million

Predicted Sale Price: $5,000,000 – 7,000,000

Sold For: $ 7.2 Million

Auctioned On: January 28, 2010

A 18 1/4 by 25 1/2 in. oil by Sir Anthony Van Dyck (1599 – 1641) – Two Studies of a Bearded Man – raised millions for the auction house at the start of 2010. In this study, Van Dyck paints the same man from two different positions, one with a looming glare towards the viewer and one in bust-length. It was painted by the young artists when he was still training with Rubens in his studio, already recognized by Rubens (who kept a large numbers of Van Dyck’ studies which were found saved in his studio after his death) as a master. 

Picasso painting – Paris – $1.5 Million

Predicted Sale Price: $335,000 – 470, 000

Sold For: $1.5 Million

Auctioned On: March 24, 2010

Picasso’s (1881 – 1973) Portrait of a Woman was done by the artist in gauche, wash and ink in June of 1945. The subject is Françoise Gilot, a young painter Picasso had met a couple of years earlier. Of Françoise, Picasso’s friend, Brassaï said in 1964, “all youth – 17 or 18 years old – passionate for paining, impatient to show her talents (…) I was stunned by the vitality of this young woman, her tenacity to triumph over obstacles.” Apparently, Picasso and the million dollar bidders were too.

Ming Dynasty flask – Paris – $2.2 Million

Predicted Sale Price: $308,000 – 460,000

Sold For: $2.2 Million

Auctioned On: June 11, 2009

A Ming Dynasty Yongle Period (1403 – 1424) flask with flowers of the four seasons was another top Hong Kong seller. All 17 inches of it.
 

Imperial pearl court necklace – Hong Kong – $ 8.7 Million

Predicted Sale Price: $1,031,000 – 1,547,000

Sold For: $8.7 million

Auctioned on: April 8, 2010

This 18th century Qing Dynasty necklace is made of 108 flawless Eastern pearls – one of the most precious materials used exclusively for the royal family. There are only five of these in China, all located in the Palace Museum in Beijing. 

Upcoming Auction – Flawless pink diamond – New York

Predicted Sale Price: $2,500,000 – 3,500,000

Up For Auction On: April 20, 2010

According to Sotheby’s, this is a “cut-cornered rectangular modified brilliant-cut diamond of fancy intense pinkish orange color weighing 7.67 carats, framed and flanked by round diamonds, mounted in platinum and 18 karat pink gold.” It’s an internally flawless stone of natural color.

Upcoming Auction – Persian decorative box – London

Predicted Sale Price: $768,000 – $1,076,000

Up For Auction On: Apr 14, 2010

This decorative 6.8 in. by 3.5 in. storage box with a single ruby will probably fetch well over one million dollars. As Sotheby’s says, this piece, “highlights the exceptionally refined masterpieces produced by Persian goldsmiths working for the Ottoman court at the beginning of the sixteenth century. Its  ornamentation is unmatched in elegance and skill.”

Upcoming Auction – Diamond Pendant Earrings – New York

Predicted Sale Price – $600,000 – 800,000

At Auction On:  April 20, 2010

J and H colored diamonds clips from the private collection of Patricia Kluge. The pendants are set at the top and bottom with pear-shaped diamonds weighing 13.16, 11.83, 9.33 and 8.74 carats.

Upcoming Auction – Persian Vase – London

Predicted Sale Price: $460,000 – 770,000

At Auction On: April 14, 2010

Ten figures are set against a a ground of scrolling foliage in shallow relief on this Persian monochrome vase from the Parish-Watson Collection. This piece has been featured in the most prestigious exhibitions since the 1930s and is now up for grabs.

 

Upcoming Auction – Autographed telegram by Abraham Lincoln – New York

Predicted Sale Price: $ 500,000 – 700,000

Up For Auction On: April 14, 2010

This signed telegram was sent by Lincoln from Washington on May, 25 1862, to Major General George B. McClellan. It gives “one of the sharpest orders issued by the most militarily involved of all presidents: ‘you must either attack Richmond, or give up the job and come to the defense of Washington’,” said Sotheby’s.

Upcoming Auction – Bronze 18th century table – Paris

Predicted Sale Price: $471,000 – 606,000

Up For Auction On: April 2010

This end of the 18th century Russian-made bronze, marble, and gold table is attributed to Andre Voronikhine (1759-1814). It stands 28 1/3 in., is 28 1/3 in. in diameter and is up for auction from a private collection. The top mosaic is made from exceptionally rare Russian minerals, with the piece being most likely commissioned for the Stroganoff palace in Saint-Petersburg.

Upcoming Auction – Yellow diamond necklace – New York

Predicted Sale Price: $2,000,000 – 3,000,000

Up For Auction On: April  2010

This necklace from naturally-colored, internally flawless brilliant-cut diamonds weighs a total of 100.17 carats and is mounted in 18 karat gold. It came from a private collection, where will it go next? 

Upcoming Auction – John Frederick Lewis oil painting – New York

Predicted Sale Price: $1,000,000 – 1,500,000

Up For Auction On: April 2010

An oil on panel painting by the British Lewis (1805-1876) depicts an encampment in the desert of Mount Sinail and is signed and dated 1862. The piece was commissioned by the fourth Marquess of Londonderry, with a request of Lewis that, “According to our convention in conversation, I hope you will accept a commission to paint a picture for me of ourselves, a party (…) the price 200 guineas. . . . You must take your own time etc. but I am sure you will agree with me that the sooner the work is accomplished the better for all of us.” 

Upcoming Auction – Courbet oil painting – New York

Predicted Sale Price: $700,000 – 900,000

Up For Auction On: Apr 2010

The Sleeping Woman by Gustav Courbet (1819 – 1877) is up for auction from a private collection. The 25 5/8 by 31 7/8 in. oil on canvas was a product of Courbet’s speedy attempt to finish in time for the March deadline of the May 1864 Salon. His first two hopeful submissions were damaged in his studio, this one, which he excitedly described as, “two nude women, life size and painted in a manner that you have never seen me do.”, made it in time.

Upcoming Auction – Diamond, ruby, and gold anklet – New York

Predicted Sale Price:$460,000 – 770,000

Up For Auction On: April 2010

This diamond and ruby-set gold anklet was made for the 19th century Maharaja of Morvi and is dated 1897. It consists of 18 gold-wrapped twirling links. Worn by noblemen on their right foot, these anklets were presented at court as a symbol of honor and status. 

Now Take A Look At The Expensive Toys of The World’s Wealthiest…

The 20 Most Awesome One-Of-A-Kind Billionaire Toys >>

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Noted criminal defense lawyer and civil rights advocate Norm Pattis weighs in on the brouhaha on his blog today.

He thinks Capitol police were wrong to reverse an earlier decision granting Tea Party activists the right to fly the flag above the Capitol.

“Symbols are part and parcel of political speech,” Pattis write. “A group that wants to shake its fist in the very face of a government it believes to be losing touch with the people it represents should be free to fly the flag. But in this case, new tyrants say no.”

Read the entire post here.

Posted by John Byrne at 12:42 p.m.; last updated at 12:52 p.m.

Gov. Pat Quinn today named an unsuccessful Democratic congressional candidate to lead the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services.

State Rep. Julie Hamos of Wilmette succeeds Barry Maram, who resigned this month after seven years in the post. Maram, a holdover from ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s administration, will help in the transition.

In February, Hamos lost the 10th Congressional District Democratic primary to Dan Seals of Wilmette. That’s a nationally-watched, open-seat congressional contest for the post now held by U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk, a Republican who’s running for U.S. Senate.

Hamos pledged to make Illinois a nationwide health care leader by bringing people from around the state to the table to listen to how to best implement national health care reforms locally.



"We need to really hear the disparate voices," Hamos said at a luncheon with Quinn to announce her appointment at the East Bank Club.

Hamos, who has served in the Illinois House since 1999, is known for working on mass transit issues, including the small sales tax increase approved in early 2008 to keep the CTA, Metra and Pace afloat.

Maram’s tenure was marked by controversy. Under Blagojevich, the state expanded health care coverage for the poor and middle-income families even as the state budget crisis worsened and there wasn’t money to pay for it.

Blagojevich was impeached in January 2009, and one of the charges against him was that he disregarded authority, procedure and the separation of powers by unilaterally expanding a state health care program. After lawmakers rejected his plans, Blagojevich pushed state agencies under his control to offer health insurance to more citizens even though the funding was not there.

Hamos’ departure from the House means Democrats will have to pick a replacement. Hamos ran for Congress instead of seeking re-election. Winning the 18th District Democratic primary was Robyn Gabel, the 20-year executive director of the Illinois Maternal and Child Health Coalition. Democrats could select Gabel to replace Hamos.

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The third most frequent email request I receive from readers is advice for how to date younger women. (The second most common email request is of the type “Hey I was a beta with this girl I like. What could I have done better?”. The first is “Meet me this Thursday.”) I’ve written a few times about tactics for picking up younger women and the proper attitude to have with them, but those posts are buried in the archives, so consider this a refresher.

• Game will obliterate a 5-15 year age gap.

If your game is tight and you’re confident around a girl, you won’t normally have to deal with her objecting to the age gap. Girls simply don’t think logically like that, particularly the younger ones. But occasionally a girl will broach the subject early on, and this will happen particularly if she is not accustomed to dating older men. There are a variety of techniques for handling what I call “teaser objections”. That is, objections which are solicited not to cut off a potential relationship, but to test you for your ability to be comfortable around her, and to thus assuage her concerns being around you.

• Reframe the age gap

If a girl is interested, expect her to ask about your age. She will ask no matter how old you are. As a Jedi of the female condition, you will have answers ready for any objection. It’s best to turn it around on her so that it is you who is qualifying her. You can see examples of qualification lines in action in this post, which can also be delivered as negs. A common thread to reframing the age gap is to insinuate that the girl isn’t mature/sophisticated/worldly enough for you. You can even throw in a line about how older women seem smarter, and most of the younger women you have dated liked to talk about fluffy TV shows. Remember: Gina tingles are birthed in the defensive crouch position. *Squirt!* Always be on the offense.

Another solid technique is to anticipate her objection. Before she asks your age, set the tone by implying early on that she may not have the self-assurance to be in your company. This should be structured as an early stage qualification routine, which I wrote about here. Most girls will bite on this.

• Imply preselection by younger women

Sometimes a girl will ask “So do you usually date younger women?” Be careful, as the answer you think is a winner, is not. You will be tempted to tell her that you always date younger women. But she’s just as likely to interpret that as meaning you are an incorrigible skirt chaser of college coeds. It also sounds try-hard. On the other hand, you certainly don’t want to say she’s your first younger woman. That would raise a red flag as well. Your best answer, as is typical in matters of seduction, should be ambiguous and evasive.

“I’ve dated women of many different ages, younger and older. I don’t limit myself based on an arbitrary number. The connection is what’s most important to me.”

She will be left defenseless to the above line.

• Heed the numbers

Older men (where we define “older” as +10 years) will have to be aware that their pool of available younger prospects will be smaller. One, there are fewer single women after a certain age. (Though this is changing. Thank you feminism!) Two, there will be a percentage of women for whom dating older men is impossible to conceive. However, a countervailing force that works in favor of older men is the fact that there is a significant minority of women who *actively* seek to date older men.

The numbers generally break down like this:

40% of young women won’t date older men.
40% of young women *prefer* dating older men.
20% of young women are neutral about dating older men.

As an older man, you will learn to quickly ascertain which of the younger women you approach are most amenable to dating you. One way to look at it is that the older man has an extra filter to apply to his dealings with women that younger men, for the most part, don’t have to worry about.

• Heed the Top Two Rules

It is more important than ever that the older man refrain from showing even a hint of neediness or insecurity about the age gap. Younger women will be on extra high alert for signs of clinginess from older men, because after a certain age women will expect you to have your alpha shit together. Younger men can’t afford neediness either, but they have a little more wiggle room than older men.

Whatever you do, don’t make a big deal out of the age gap. Act as if it’s perfectly normal that you and her find each other attractive. Doubt is not only the mind killer; it’s also the wet pussy killer.

• Feminine girls tend to be into older men; masculine girls tend to prefer younger men

I’ll toss this one to the evo psychs. It’s true; the pretty, soft, feminine women like dating older men, while the skanky, hard-bodied, manjawed sluts and cougars-in-training get their rocks off bed hopping with younger men. There is a certain beautiful symmetry to this emergent natural order — the older men get the exquisite pleasure of sex and love with younger women while the younger men cut their teeth on older women willing to show them the ropes.

• Broken families are the older seducer’s best friend

The stereotype is true: Girls from broken families love dating older men. Maybe it’s separation anxiety, a latent daddy complex, or a strong desire for a reliable provider instead of a cad. Whatever it is, the daughters of divorce are easier pickings for the older man. If you hear a girl say she hasn’t seen her father in twenty years since mommy kicked him out, you are permitted to do a fist pump when she’s not looking. Again, thank you feminism!

Oh, and this is also true for women raised by much older fathers.

• Dress young

A lot of raging feminists will complain “Men should learn to act and dress their age!” Nevermind what older, bitter, expired women say. When you dress young, you appeal to younger women. But keep two caveats in mind.

One, be in shape. Youthful clothing only fits properly on slim bodies. I like the Hank Moody look — a pared down artsy style of tight black tee under a fitted hipster jacket, coupled with distressed dark jeans and either super swank shoes or scenester sneakers. I top it off with some mild peacocking, like a ring, leather bracelet, sunglasses, and fedora. But a fat guy would look ridiculous in a similar get-up.

Two, women in their late 20s and 30s will appreciate an older man in a sharp suit. If you are at a charity event where a lot of professional women who normally don’t frequent clubs will be in attendance, you will get more attention attired in a suit and projecting an air of authority and sophistication. As with all things fashion, context is king.

Note that youthful clothing is not necessarily synonymous with “trendy fads”. You can dress youthfully without following the latest youth trends. Try to hit the sweet spot where you look young but you don’t look overtly fashion-forward.

• Drop the bumpngrind dance club scene

Unless you are an incredible dancer, don’t bother bump and grinding out there on the dance floor with the rest of the drunk rabble rousers. You’ll feel stupid, and you’ll look stupid too. This doesn’t mean your dancing career is over. Older men can shine in structured dance scenes like salsa or tango. In fact, I have witnessed many an older man swoop younger women using tango game alone.

• Avoid age-restrictive scenes

Don’t take a younger woman out on dates to venues or events that have mostly younger men *or* older men in attendance. At the predominantly young man event, you will stick out like a sore thumb. This will make her self-conscious. At the predominantly older man event, she will stick out like a sore thumb, also making her self-conscious. The last thing you want to do is tempt a younger woman to believe you and her are culturally incompatible. So focus on taking her to mixed-age scenes that you both enjoy. Or skipping the scenes altogether and heading straight for the bedroom.

• Get up to speed on the latest in music and art

No brainer. Younger women want an emotional connection with you just as much as older women do. The easiest way to connect is through shared hobbies and interests. If she spits out the name of a band she loves, it helps if you know what she’s talking about.

• Baldness is bad

50% of men by age 50 have noticeable balding. Either shave it all off, or, if it hasn’t progressed too far, do what a lot of women do when their appearance suffers a hit and “get a little work done”. The worst thing is the monk’s ring. Avoid at all costs.

• Lie

If you know up front that the girl is going to be a short term fling, and she is more than 10-15 years younger than you, it’s sometimes easier to take the path of least resistance and lie. She’ll thank you later after the earth-shattering orgasm. A sneaky way to lie by omission instead of commission is to play the guessing game with her:

GIRL: How old are you?
YOU: Guess.
GIRL: 29?
YOU: Wow, you’re good at this! [Note that you didn’t specify if she guessed correctly.]

• Date foreign girls

Another true stereotype: Foreign girls love dating older men. Bonus: They aren’t fat!

• Target single moms

In some parts of the country you will find a lot of young single moms. If you know you have no interest in a long term arrangement, you can do very well targeting single moms under the age of 30, because single moms are more desperate to be loved by high value men. Let’s face it, most alpha males will not commit to a single mom, or fall in love with them. Why take on another man’s responsibility, either directly or indirectly? And kids are romance killers, snuffing out spontaneity like a load of wet diapers air-dropped on a brush fire. Plus, there’s that whole distended vagina thing. A buddy of mine once remarked that banging a chick who had had three kids was like riding the log flume wearing a suit made out of eels. However, if you want to experience the thrill of no-strings-attached sex with a much younger woman, you have really good odds with single moms.

• Grace under pressure

Older men have it in spades. Or are supposed to. Don’t let anything rattle you. Explosions of testosterone-y hurt and insecurity are the domain of younger men.

• Emphasize a powerful emotional connection

Older men are also supposed to be less awestruck by women’s beauty. One way to communicate this pleasant indifference to her youthful beauty is to discuss her finer qualities, like her surprising intelligence for someone with so little real world experience. Act as if her body is almost invisible to you. Until you get to the bedroom.

• Be the wise man

Older men are wise men. What was the point of all those years if you haven’t converted them to wisdom? Younger women want to experience your wisdom, but there is a wrong way and a right way to demonstrate your superiority over her. Don’t make a show of being a wise person. Don’t finger wag like a supercilious father. Instead, allow your wisdom to percolate naturally, showing itself only when the moment calls for it. Don’t draw attention to it. She will appreciate it even if she doesn’t say so.

Filed under: Biomechanics is God, Game

I always wanted to know how a rocket engine looked right from below, peeking into its nozzles. So I got a high definition NASA photography of Discovery approaching the ISS, and passed it through Photoshop. Here’s the result. More »

This abstract shows that exposing one serving (84 g) of post-harvest, white button mushrooms to UVB rays for 5 minutes resulted in their having 86.9 µg (3,476 IU) vitamin D2, which is well above the recommended daily intake.

So if you see mushrooms in the store labeled as having 100% of the Daily Value or RDA for vitamin D, it’s probably true.

El coche es uno de los lugares preferidos por casi todo el mundo para escuchar música y quizás el único lugar en donde escuchamos la radio, hábitos que han llegado a convertirse en todo un hobby y en una cada más creciente industria de personalización. Renault ha querido que el Twingo nos muestre su faceta musical y para ello, nada mejor que asociarse con Sony para dar vida a un modelo casi enteramente dedicado a la música: el Twingo Walkman Limited Edition.

Como es de esperarse, el equipamiento principal de este Twingo es un reproductor Sony MEX BT3800, que reproduce CD, archivos MP3, WMA y AAC, además de contar con entradas auxiliares y conexión USB. Por si fuera poco, también permite reproducir música desde móviles, mediante conexión Bluetooth. Además, Renault regalará a los compradores del Twingo Walkman un reproductor portátil de audio y video de la marca Sony.

Remitiéndonos al coche propiamente dicho, este Twingo se diferenciará de los demás con un nuevo diseño de parachoques delantero y enmascaramiento de los faros delanteros, junto con la correspondiente leyenda Walkman Limited Edition. Además formarán parte del equipo de serie las luces antiniebla, control de clima, levanta cristales eléctricos y desempañador de retrovisores laterales.

El nuevo Twingo Walkman saldrá a la venta en Francia, a un precio de 10.850 Euros, para ser lanzado posteriormente en Portugal, Bélgica y Luxemburgo. La producción del modelo será limitada a 2.500 coches.

Fuente | Renault Media

As we discussed in last month’s position primer, there’s not exactly a shortage of elite young prospects at catcher right now. Three of Baseball America’s top 10 minor leaguers are catchers, and so is the presumptive No. 1 pick in the 2010 MLB Draft.

For near-term fantasy purposes, Cleveland’s Carlos Santana(notes) could very well be the most interesting backstop who hasn’t yet arrived in the big leagues. The switch-hitter made his Triple-A debut with the Columbus Clippers on Thursday, and it went better than anyone could have reasonably expected. Santana was 4-for-5 with two homers, one double and four RBIs. His team absolutely destroyed Indianapolis, 17-4. And it happened to be Santana’s 24th birthday. 

So that’s a pretty good day. If you’ll check the box score from Thursday’s massacre, you’ll notice that Columbus’ opening day lineup also featured Russell Branyan(notes) (3-for-3, double, RBI) and a collection of names that have haunted AL/NL-only rosters in recent seasons (Crowe, Duncan, Buscher, Bixler, Carrasco). If you’re involved in an International League fantasy setup, let’s hope you drafted a Clipper-heavy roster. (Also worth noting: Pedro Alvarez(notes), the No. 2 overall pick in the 2008 draft, homered for Indy. He’s a good bet to finish the season in Pittsburgh). 

As for Santana, it would hardly be a surprise to see him make the jump to the majors relatively soon, prior to the All-Star break. He isn’t blocked by anyone too intimidating; Lou Marson(notes) and Mike Redmond(notes) are a combined 0-for-11 for Cleveland thus far. Santana needs to simply continue hitting as he always has — 44 total homers over two seasons, .431 OBP in ’08, .413 in ’09 — while demonstrating that he’s recovered from off-season hand surgery. He’s of course already owned in competitive dynasty leagues and AL-only formats. When he arrives in Cleveland, he’ll be a recommended mixed league add, too. 

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Photo via AP Images

First American Corelogic released their first distressed sales report yesterday morning: Distressed Sales Again on the Rise, Reaching 29% in January

First American CoreLogic today released its first monthly report on distressed sales activity. The report below indicates that distressed home sales – such as short sales and real estate owned (REO) sales – accounted for 29 percent of all sales in the U.S. in January: the highest level since April 2009. The peak occurred in January 2009 when distressed sales accounted for 32 percent of all sales transactions (Figure 1). After the peak in early 2009, the distressed sale share fell to 23 percent in July, before rising again in late 2009 and continuing into 2010.

Here are a couple of graphs from the report:

Click on graph for larger image in new window.

Credit: First American Corelogic.

This graph shows the total percent of distressed sales broken down by REO and Short Sales. Notice that the percent short sales has increased significantly over the last year – that trend will probably continue.

The second graph shows the breakdown by certain metropolitan areas.

Among the largest 25 markets, Riverside, CA, had the largest percentage of distressed sales in January (62 percent), followed closely by Las Vegas (59 percent) and Sacramento (58 percent) (Figure 2). The top REO market was Detroit where the REO share was 48 percent, followed closely by Riverside (47 percent) and Las Vegas (45 percent). San Diego’s short sale share was 19 percent in January, making it the highest ranked short sale market, followed by Sacramento (18 percent) and Oakland (16 percent). Although the top 10 markets for foreclosures are all located in Florida, only two Florida markets, Orlando and Cape Coral, made the top 10 distressed sale list. The most likely reason: Florida is a judicial state where foreclosures process through the courts and take quite a bit longer than in California, Arizona or Nevada, where non‐judicial foreclosures are the norm.

I’ve been following the Sacramento market as an example of a distressed market – and the Sacramento Association of REALTORS® reported that almost 69% of sales were distressed in January, with 24% short sales, and 45% REOs. The FACL data shows about 58% as distressed. The difference is probably in the methodology.

The exact numbers probably aren’t as important as the trend – and this will be an interesting trend to follow in 2010.

 

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This post is reprinted from Calculated Risk, a leading finance and economics site.

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Are all Teabaggers racists? Of course not. Are some? Undoubtedly.

Now that the obvious is out of the way, there seems to be an awful lot of Teabaggers who have serious issues with race.

“The tea party is not just about politics and size of government. The data suggests it may also be about race,”said Christopher Parker, a UW assistant professor of political science who directed the survey.

It found that those who are racially resentful, who believe the U.S. government has done too much to support blacks, are 36 percent more likely to support the tea party than those who are not.

Indeed, strong support for the tea party movement results in a 45 percent decline in support for health care reform compared with those who oppose the tea party. “While it’s clear that the tea party in one sense is about limited government, it’s also clear from the data that people who want limited government don’t want certain services for certain kinds of people. Those services include health care,”Parker said.

Not surprising.

As noted previously, the Teabaggers want government services, as long as they benefit them. It’s not about the size of government — it’s about being pissed  that “those people” are taking their money away from them.

Lee Atwater knew what he was talking about.

(h/t AZ Matt)

 

Filed under: Aftermarket, Car Buying, Coupe, Performance, Auctions, Acura, Lamborghini, Design/Style

Full Disclosure: We have loved the Acura NSX since long before we were all smelling like teen spirit. The car will always hold a special place in our hearts, so the car you see above is particularly blasphemous in our eyes. Someone, at some point in history, looked at their reliable, capable near-supercar from Honda and thought, “You know what this needs? A little more Lamborghini Diablo.”

That person, then, evidently commenced to slather the lightweight Japanese hellion in enough fiberglass to convince your average passer-by that the car actually hails from Italy. As far as body kits go, this one is the real deal. The builder even went so far as to badge the brake calipers with Lamborghini script and plop a faux twelve-cylinder intake on top of the Japanese V6, even though it doesn’t appear to be bolted to anything.

Is it bad? Well, outwardly at least, it appears far more convincing than one might reasonably expect. But would we have been less insulted if were a Pontiac Fiero under that orange skin? Undoubtedly – but the builder at least gets points for creativity, as this is evidently a one-of-one proposition. If you dig it, you can find this creation on eBay Motors with a Buy-It-Now price of $49,000 in Branson, Missouri. The seller is willing to entertain offers. Thanks for the tip, Jesse!

[Source: eBay Motors]

eBay Find of the Day: Italianate 1991 Acura NSX originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 09 Apr 2010 12:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Como andan mis lectores? Espero que la vida les sonría… les cuento que me encuentro limpiando la parrilla, la casa y dejar todo a punto para poder festejar mi día.. el día del kinesiologo. Pero este día no quiero que venga en vano para ninguno de nosotros; que nos enseñe a cada día ser mejores, actualizarnos permanentemente con las nuevas tecnologías en tratamientos; y por sobre todas las cosas saber que dejamos todo de nosotros en cada paciente; porque esa es la única retribución personal que no tiene efecto cuántico de suma y resta, sino meramente moral.

Les deseo a todos el 13 de abril, muy feliz día del kinesiologo. Queria hacer solo una pequeña mención asi que relajense… ya no voy a hablar más de esto jaja. Paso a desarrollar un tema que en nuestra vida profesional y mas para los que se dediquen a Respiratorio nos tocará abordar muy seguido, esto son los pacientes que se someten a cirugías mayores tales como cardiacas, abdominales superiores y torácicas.

Función Pulmonar Postoperatoria

El patrón típico respiratorio de un paciente postoperado presenta un bajo volumen corriente, la frecuencia esta aumentada y las respiraciones profundas estan ausentes. Los cambios de la función pulmonar se caracterizan por un patrón restrictivo, con una reducción severa tanto de la capacidad vital como de la capacidad respiratoria.

La disminución de la Capacidad Residual Funcional es importante, ya que la presión pleural supera a la presión atmosférica en regiones pulmonares dependientes, provocando un estrechamiento o un cierre en las vías respiratorias de pequeño calibre. Por ende, se reduce la ventilación en regiones pulmonares y existe un aumento del desajuste ventilación perfusión.

Todos estos parámetros suele ser máximo las primeras 48 horas después de la operación y en la mayoría de casos no llega a ser clinicamente significativo. Los volumenes se recuperan lentamente los siguientes días pero no llegan a parámetros que tenia nuestro paciente en su etapa preoperatoria.

Casi siempre se le realiza una historia clínica detallada a pacientes que van a ser sometidos a cirugía mayor; la cual contiene antecedentes tabáquicos, síntomas respiratorios, medicación asociada y tolerancia al ejercicio entre otros items. También se realiza una minuciosa exploración física.

La información que se le brinda al paciente consiste en un breve resumen de los efectos que ejerce la cirugía sobre la función pulmonar y dar confianza sobre cuales y como va a ser la incisión, los drenajes, el góteo y los tubos. Se resalta la importancia de una movilización precoz y de la eliminación del exceso de secreciones bronquiales. Se enseña a los pacientes como deben soplar y toser mientras sujetan la incisión  y sin que falten ejercicios de respiración localizados. Se le informa cuando y como va a poder sentarse en una silla y caminar hasta el baño.

Los beneficios de esto es técnicamente subjetivo, e incluso hoy en día se agregan varias pautas que manifiesten ser útiles y esenciales para el paciente. Todo depende mucho del tipo de cirugía que sea sometida nuestro paciente.

Fisioterapia Postoperatoria

Los objetivos principales son:

• Expansión de vías aéreas de pequeño calibre y alveolos colapsados
• Mantener ventilación adecuada
• Eliminar secreciones bronquiales evitando infecciones futuras
• Movilizaciones generales en pacientes de edad avanzada o con discapacidades
• Movilidad de extremidades superiores
• Oxigenoterapia
• Alivio adecuado del dolor
• Humidificación del gas inspirado

La zona de incisión es la que nos va a dar una precisión de cuan probable es que nuestro paciente tenga complicaciones, siendo la tóracica y abdominal superior las de mayor riesgo. Estos riesgos pueden aumentar en los siguientes parámetros:

• Hábito de fumar
• Malnutrición
• Obesidad
• Edad avanzada
• Enfermedad Pulmonar o Musculoesquelética previa
• Ansiedad, depresión o poca motivación

Como complemento tenemos que empezar a utilizar ejercicios respiratorios constantes sin fatigar, siendo respiraciones profundas con o sin ayuda. Para que ésto tenga mayor beneficio hay que posicionarlo a nuestro paciente en una posición adecuada para el paso de aire, tal es el caso de decúbito sentado. Animarlo premanentemente para alcanzar esa posición es un logro avanzado.

Para la eliminación de secreciones tener mucho cuidado en la zona especifica de la incisión en el caso de utilizar  maniobras duras, prestar atención a las quejas de nuestro paciente.

Para cerrar puedo decir que sin duda alguna tanto la fisioterapia pre como postoperatoria son de vital importancia. La preoperatoria porque esencialmente identificamos complicaciones que a futuro pueden llegar a producir riesgos impensados, y la postoperatoria demuestra que tan importante es el papel o rol del kinesiologo para evitar ciertas infecciones y complicaciones que se pueden presentar, y reescribe en nuestro paciente nuestra mayor habilidad: LA REEDUCACIÓN.

Comic convention wooed: The Times blog Money & Company reports on efforts to bring the popular comic book convention Comic-Con to Los Angeles:

"Since organizers of Comic-Con said they have outgrown the San Diego Convention Center — the festival’s home since the 1970s — L.A. and the city of Anaheim have launched campaigns to lure the celebration of comic books and pop culture."

Customer unleashes pit bull on cable technician: The Eastsider LA is reporting on a Time Warner Cable customer who unleashed his put bull on a technician sent to disconnect him:

After confronting the technician, the angry cable customer fetched his pit bull and sent the dog charging at the cable installer, who fled to the roof of his van parked in the 500 block of North Heliotrope Avenue, reports Lt. Wes Buhrmester with the Rampart Division.

Street shrine grows in Brentwood: Tabloid baby is reporting on a growing street memorial for a 13-year-old girl who was killed in February crossing Sunset Boulevard in Brentwood (via LAist):

More than a month later, the memorial to Julia has become a living shrine, with flowers arrangements replaced by a tended nursery of live potted flowers, new teddy bears, candles, messages and signs arranged, and visitors in the small triangle at that dangerous corner into the dark hours of the night.

— Anthony Pesce

Have some news for Linking L.A.? Contact Times reporter Anthony Pesce.

Illustration: An image from L.A.’s Comic-Con Facebook page. Credit: Doug Davis

This morning, Justice John Paul Stevens announced that he will be retiring from the Supreme Court at the end of the current term. He sent a simple letter, with today’s date, to President Obama:

My dear Mr. President:

Having concluded that it would be in the best interests of the Court to have my successor appointed and confirmed well in advance of the commencement of the Court’s next Term, I shall retire from regular active service as an Associate Justice, under the provisions of 28 U.S.C. § 371(b), effective the next day after the Court rises for the summer recess this year.

Most respectfully yours,

Justice Stevens

Justice Stevens has served on the court since 1975, through four decades, 7 Presidents, and countless changes in the American social and political landscape. In this time, he has had a major impact on federal jurisprudence, crafting thoughtful opinions and guiding the Court’s liberal voting bloc. His wisdom, temperament, and leadership will certainly be missed.

Said Senator Patrick Leahy, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary committee,

“Justice Stevens’ unique and enduring perspective is irreplaceable; his stalwart adherence to the rule of law is unparalleled. The federal judiciary, and indeed the entire nation, will miss his principled jurisprudence. While it is with a heavy heart, I wish him the best in his retirement.”

We look forward learning whom President Obama will nominate to fill the vacant seat. A seat on the Supreme Court gives its occupant nearly unparalleled influence over every aspect of American life. And as a lifetime appointee, a Justice’s power lasts throughout his or her potentially decades-long term, and beyond. For both of those reasons, every American has a responsibility to let their Senators know how they feel about the nominee. We at the RAC are also excited to learn about the nominee and help the Senate fulfill its Constitutional and historic role of “advise and consent.”

We took a look at the Timebits time tracking app a few months ago, and found that the program wasn’t quite up to snuff for folks serious about the detailed tracking and analysis of their time. Since then, other options have began to appear in the time tracking space, and TimeTracker Full ($9.99 in the App Catalog) does an excellent job of tracking your time and logging your data, all while automatically starting tasks by WiFi SSID or GPS location.

Freelancers: be excited.

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The show just went up–you can stream the audio here and download to iTunes here. I have to say, I think this is the best episode of Point of Inquiry that I’ve hosted yet. But judge for yourself; here’s the write up:
For two decades now, we’ve failed to seriously address climate change. So the planet just keeps warming—and it could get very bad. Picture major droughts, calving of gigantic ice sheets, increasingly dramatic sea level rise, and much more.
Against this backdrop, the idea of a technological fix to solve the problem—like seeding the stratosphere with reflective sulfur particles, so as to reduce sunlight—starts to sound pretty attractive. Interest in so-called “geoengineering” is growing, and so is media attention to the idea. There are even conspiracy theorists who think a secret government plan to geoengineer the planet is already afoot.
Leading scientists, meanwhile, have begun to seriously study our geoengineering options—not necessarily because they want to, but because they fear there may be no other choice.
This week’s Point of Inquiry guest, Eli Kintisch, has followed these scientists’ endeavors—and their ethical quandaries—like perhaps no other journalist. He has broken stories about Bill Gates’ funding of geoengineering research, DARPA’s exploration of the idea, and …

(This guest post comes courtesy of the author’s blog)

The country’s debt plunged this week and credit protection costs widened substantially amid continued market worries about the state of its budget deficit, the deposit situation at its banks, and its ability to price debt in the market (both peaked early Thurs morning). 

Yields on 10yr Greek debt spiked from ~6.5% last Fri all the way to ~7.35% on Thurs before pulling back (they were being quoted at ~7.1% as of mid-day today).  CDS had widened all the way out to ~475bp early Thurs on 5yr protection (vs. 344bp last Fri) before tightening back to ~433bp as of mid-day on Fri. 

Reports started to surface late on Thurs/early on Fri that the meaningful weakness in Greek debt this week will prompt the joint EU-IMF rescue framework to be activated as early as this weekend. 

Reuters reported that Eurozone finance ministers and senior central bankers have reached an agreement on terms of a possible rescue package for Greece (according to Reuters, Greece will be charged the SDR rate +300bp w/an extra 50bp service charge on debt). 

Bloomberg said the ECB will be holding a governing teleconference Fri evening to discuss the latest on Greece (the ECB held a regularly scheduled meeting on Thurs and Trichet didn’t offer too much incremental on Greece other than to reiterate that he didn’t think the country would default on its debt). 

A separate DJ article said deposit levels at Greek banks have started to stabilize. 

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The big daddy of the Zune HD family is now available for order. Aside from the increased capacity, it’s the same as the older Zune HDs, coming in 7 snazzy colors. It’ll set you back $350. [Zune Originals] More »