graupel

Sturdevant's in Bellevue. They are used to athletic styles used in ski boots. Great plact for bootfitting. I guess there are ones that actual MD doctors do too, though I can 't say in what way they might differ from the athletic variety. The doctor style I refer to is like the shaped piece of plastic you slide into your shoes. The athletic styles have some choices, often with cork towards the higher end in price.

Here is a thought. No tax cut without proof of voting. The republicans probably wouldn't approve it though, they don't want folks to vote unless they read what they should be voting for in the church newsletter.

The republicans won't stop the divisiveness since that is the key to their power. They find enough hot buttons and then use that to keep certain factions on their side. Unfortunately the people that they are able to attract with this method are more than willing to ignore the other baggage that republicans bring along with them. Going and attacking Iraq is tilting at windmills in response to the "war on terror". If you don't address the enemy, you don't address the problem. In the case of Iraq, if you have increased recruiting with terrorist organizations, you haven't gained anything.

No, If McCain knows what is good for him, he will just stay in his existing office so he doesn't have to be construed as "one of them". That makes for a more powerful candidate if folks get tired of the Bush program by that time (and the odds are high that will be the case with no progress on the National Debt and other major issues).

WTF? How the hell is opposing development going to result in restricted access for climbers?

That is why I turned around my absentee ballot as soon as I got it. If I got hit by a bus, at least my vote got into the system.

Libertarians won't make one whit of difference unless they get in office. And if voting for a third party candidate results in the worse choice of the remaining candidates getting into office, your vote went for the opposition.

"IQ expert" funded by eugenicists http://mediamatters.org/items/200410250007

Just look at her dude, would you admit to that? Bush's secrecy and lies actually make a difference. Clinton's deal had as much significance to US citizens and the world as the answer to the question "boxers or briefs".

Brakes are nice also for being casual about putting skis on and off. With safety straps, you have to pay attention and keep jamming the tails into the snow to make sure they don't wander off on you. The good thing is the Fritschi brakes work reasonably well, which isn't the case for all brands (not that I'm naming names). The same tail arrangement is used by the cowhide style of skins that BD sells as well as the G3 branded skins. Seems like the most reliable, though not completely effortless to install yourself from scratch. If you buy them on a commercially assembled set your life is easier, otherwise you can buy the parts and retrofit a pair that didn't come with them. Ski crampons are entirely optional. Depends on the sorts of conditions you are planning to be in. In many circumstances regular boot crampons allow you to make your way over firm terrain while carrying your skis. Even if you have them, you will carry them far more than actually use them. Once you have them though, you run out of excuses for why you suck at skinning.

The Outdoor Research handwear line has nearly entirely changed from what you know from 2 or more years ago. I don't have any of them myself yet, but they look quite good and improved in many different ways. Their model for this category (maximum warmth) is this http://orgear.com/home/style/71870

377 tons small part of absent Iraq explosives Missing prewar stockpiles may total 250,000 tons http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6376212/

not the full text, but excerpts http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/meast/10/29/binladen.tape/index.html

Here is the data for Seattle http://www.astro.washington.edu/balick/lunar_eclipse_2004.html Looks like it begins roughly 25 minutes after moonrise at 6:14pm Peak covering of the moon according to that website is 8:04pm The moon at that time should be slightly south of due east, and 21.8 degrees above the horizon.

The History of Neoconservatism http://www.dkosopedia.com/index.php/History_of_Neoconservativism

I was just in Second Ascent today. Several used setups with bindings on for AT and tele. There are some new unmounted models too, but as you might expect, not a systematic spectrum of styles and sizes. Looks like they sell new bindings too for stuff that weren't previously used. There was even a split board there. A bit better selection than I would have expected, but maybe it is that time of year.

mattp posted: That photo looks like he is wearing his thong on the outside of his pants.

It looks like it has been reprinted in a number of places - http://tinyurl.com/3rp5m About.com's urban legends listings rates it as true http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/bl_farnaz_fassihi.htm

You mean this guy http://www.skimaps.com/print.php?docid=6 I think they have used him for their maps. The one on file at skimaps.com is one of his ( http://www.skimaps.com/map1643 ). Though that one is old, I think the newer ones still probably use the same artwork since they haven't changed the lifts (except replaciing 4 & 5 with one lift).

They fail to recognize how the website is an all year round medium for promotion. They de-activate parts of it for the summer when there is no need to do so. As long as they just show dates for things, it could still provide entertainment. Basically, their marketing is pretty feeble. Most of it goes into the Banked Slalom snowboard event, and the rest flounders.

Washington State for a long time did not have this. The Democrats and Republicans made the courts say for this fall we had to state a party for the primary only. They wanted to avoid people crossing party lines and trying to get a weak candidate to advance from the opposition to increase the odds of their preferred candidate winning. Many people didn't like having to declare, and I bet it cut down on the number of valid votes and increased protest voting. But that is just Washington and a small number of other states. Most of the other states have some sort of declaration required. I guess that must be where the term "card carrying (fill in the blank party name)" comes from. There is an initiative on the ballot for the Nov. 2 election equivalent to a run-off ballot measure for the primary. If it were to pass, it would allow the two highest vote getters to advance to the general election regardless of party. As would be expected, Party loyalists for Democrats, Republicans, and independents don't want it because it encourages people to vote for the candidate rather than the party.

iTunes works great. You can get add ons for it too, so you can compress files using other compression schemes (like LAME which is supposed to be better than most). If you want versatility and don't require the smallest unit, a CD player with mp3 capability can hold like 11 hours on one CD. They are like 1/2-1/3 the cost of an iPod too. I don't have a single issue with rights protection since I haven't bought out of the online music stores.

What the hell is there to protect? Besides, Cheney is already president.

Popo is still closed to climbing due to volcanic activity. I'm pretty sure that means the lodge at Tlamacas too. Senor Reyes has mentioned that folks in Zoapan are not necessarily friendly to climbers. We drove through there and had rocks thrown at us. There are several choices in Tlachichuca (at least three, including Senor Reyes' place). Tents are useful due to hut noise. Think of it like the Muir hut where folks have different schedules getting up all the time and making noise. Mexicans also like to come up to the hut and party, but not climb. Tent choice should take into account the primary reason you have it is wind. In my book, that doesn't make me think megamid as first choice. Also, there are rodents near the huts, so unless you don't mind them sprinting across your face, something you can close off from your surroundings would be advised. Overboots shouldn't be necessary. If your boot laces don't restrict your circulation, you could get by with leathers, but if you want to be sure on warmth plastics work too. For the most part, typical trips usually don't have fresh snow to risk getting leathers excessively wet. Keep in mind a fair amount of travel occurs not on snow too.