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Airbus Makes Emergency Landing in Guam

By
Edel Alon
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0

SYDNEY, June 11 (Reuters) – An Australian Jetstar aircraft with 203 passengers and crew made an emergency landing on the island of Guam on Thursday after a cockpit fire broke out as the aircraft flew over the Pacific Ocean.
The Airbus A330-200 aircraft was flying from Japan to Australia late on Wednesday night when, four hours into the flight, smoke was seen in the cockpit and the right-hand cockpit window area caught fire, Jetstar said.

“One of our pilots utilised an extinguisher and we conducted an emergency diversion to Guam where the aircraft landed without incident,” Jetstar spokesman Simon Westaway told Australian radio. The plane touched down in the early hours of Thursday, Australian time, Jetstar said.

All passengers and crew were safe and no one had been injured, the airline said, adding that the flight was carrying mainly Japanese passengers.

The aircraft was only two years’ old and would be held in Guam until the cause of the fire was established, Jetstar said.

References: http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssIndustryMaterialsUtilitiesNews/idUSSYD39696120090610

Port of Guam Awarded $2M in Stimulus Funds

By
Edel Alon
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0

Hooray for stimulus packages!  Guam needs this too especially with the military build up: more people, more food.  Not to mention the fact that I keep hearing about people from Guam moving back to the island.  This migration of people will change our census numbers and also change the dynamics we have on the island.

Peter T. Leach | Jun 10, 2009 1:36PM GMT
The Journal of Commerce Online – News Story

The information from the fact-finding activities will be used as the basis for port officials and planners to make decisions on the design, procurement and construction of terminal facilities, systems and components.

The Office of Economic Adjustment awarded the Port Authority of Guam $2 million in federal stimulus funding to bolster its modernization efforts.

The port authority said it will now issue a “Notice to Proceed” to Parsons Brinckerhoff International, which is the agency’s agent/engineer, to move forward with the studies and permits associated with the grant.

The port has already embarked upon a modernization program that calls for nearly $200 million in capital improvement upgrades to the 34-year-old facility and incorporates the port’s updated master plan.

Many projects associated with the modernization program have already been launched to prepare Guam for organic growth along with the anticipated military buildup.

The $2 million will be used to fund a series of fact-finding investigations and studies over the next 12 months to explore and evaluate port development solutions, which are integrated and compatible with the current physical site, environmental, financial and operations constraints.

One Day…Maybe…

By
Edel Alon
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1

Maybe one day I’ll be this good. If I add a string every year, I’ll be there in 6 years or so. Jean Baudin is awesome! He’s one of my favorite over 5-string bass players.

 

pac9anglemedium

Bing.com

By
Edel Alon
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0

I’ve been using Bing.com now for a good week now.  Overall it does a great job returning fairly accurate links back to me in a fashion that makes sense.  One of the cool things that I really like about Bing is that it was not built from cache.  In other words, my 1997 geocities account doesn’t show up like it did on some search engines.

I’m experimenting with the news alerts and I don’t think I like what I’m finding when I compare it to Google news alerts.  Overall, it’s not too shabby for a Microsoft product.

I found a great tool for you to select which search engine you think is the best.  Blindsearch will search Google, Bing, and Yahoo all at the same time and then you can vote on which search results you like.  Give it a shot–I wasn’t surprised by the one I picked.

Destination Florence Federal Correctional Complex

By
Edel Alon
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I’ve never researched prison life and culture and I’ve never watched an episode of Oz.  What would you do if you had to serve a life sentence in a federal prison?  I can only imagine how lonely it could be and longing for a personal connection with someone you know and maybe your family/significant other stopped writing you or sending you care packages.

I’ve been stranded in some strange places out there and I do find myself craving food and family that reminds me of home.  Care packages are one thing but human interaction is another.  What do you do if you’re in prison?  The following story makes sense, especially if you’re a lifer and have no where else to go except other prisons.

I wonder if their plan will work and they can be one big family.  What would you do?

Inmate suspects have history of violence
By CORINNE REILLY
[email protected]

The two U.S. Penitentiary Atwater inmates suspected in the week-old killing of a correctional officer both came to the prison with long histories of acting out on the inside — and one has been accused of killing a correctional officer before.

The suspects, both of whom are from Guam, were longtime friends, according to a corrections official there. One of them arrived at USP Atwater the day before officer Jose Rivera was stabbed to death last week.

Jose Palacios, director of the Guam Department of Corrections, identified the inmates as James Leon Guerrero and Joseph Cabrera Sablan.

An official with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Lauren Horwood, confirmed the suspects’ names Friday.

Both suspects were first sentenced to prison in Guam, and both were transferred off the small Pacific island because of their violent behavior at a prison there, Palacios said.

One of them, Guerrero, was implicated in the death of a correctional officer in Guam in 1987, though he was not convicted.

He was transferred to USP Atwater from another federal prison on June 19, the day before Rivera was killed, said Mike Truman, a spokesman for the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.

Guerrero was convicted in 1998 of conspiracy to commit armed bank robbery, Truman said. He was sentenced to life in prison.

Sablan, 40, had been at USP Atwater since July 2005. He was convicted of murder and attempted murder in Guam in 1990, Truman said. He was also sentenced to life in prison.

Palacios said both men have long histories of violent behavior inside prison. “We only ship out inmates who are incredibly dangerous,” he said. “Basically we ship them out when the indication is clear that keeping them here will result in the death of a staff or an inmate.”

Guerrero was implicated along with three other inmates in the 1987 stabbing death of Guam Department of Corrections Officer Douglas Mashburn, though he was cleared of the charge. Two others were convicted.

Palacios suggested that Guerrero and Sablan may have decided to kill Rivera in the hopes they’d be transferred together from Atwater to the Florence Federal Correctional Complex in Colorado.

Florence, which houses convicted terrorists Zacarias Moussaoui and Ted Kaczynski, is the federal prison system’s most secure facility. It is generally considered the last stop for federal inmates who misbehave in prison.

At least two of Sablan’s relatives are housed there: His brother Rudy Sablan and his cousin William Sablan.

“Inmates will sometimes keep committing crimes until they end up in the same place,” Palacios said. “We can’t prove their intentions, but it seems kind of obvious. It’s part of prison culture, and these men know they will die in prison.”

For now, Guerrero and Sablan have been transferred to the Bureau of Prison’s Dublin site in Alameda County, according to the bureau’s Web site.

Both were first transferred from Guam, a U.S. territory, sometime in the 1990s, Palacios said. “When we shipped them out, we included an advisory in their files that they are very dangerous — basically that they are not capable of rehabilitation,” he said.

Horwood, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, said it’s uncertain when formal charges against Guerrero and Sablan might be announced.

Rivera, 22, had worked at USP Atwater less than a year. He was stabbed through the heart with a homemade shank.

The third of five children, he graduated from Le Grand High School in 2003 and enlisted in the U.S. Navy shortly after. He served four years in the military, including two tours in Iraq.

PTA Training Conference

By
Edel Alon
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0

I attended the Peralta District PTA Training/Conference today.  There was an overall sense of belonging in the room and the event was very well organized.  I’m not sure if you’ve ever been in a position where you feel like there’s a constant battle against the norm or your group is going against the grain.   Everyone in the room was a volunteer from the other schools.  Being around the other school PTAs was amazing.  This community of volunteers uplifted me and energized me for this upcoming year.

The camaraderie was great but seeing more than 100 volunteers in a room was more thrilling.  I could only imagine what could be accomplished at Ocean View if we had 100 volunteers.

Here’s the cool part about this—8 of the 9 board members of the Ocean View PTA attended the conference.  I’ve been at Ocean View for 5 years and I’ve never heard of a board with that attendance at the training.  It’s a dream come true for any board.  These conferences are important for each board member because they learn about their specific job titles, duties, and the common problems that happen.

Most people would fear joining the PTA after hearing more about the California State Budget cuts on education but our PTA is more excited to raise funds for the students this year.  I can’t wait to see what happens.

Stay tuned.

Navy Water Rates on Guam to Increase

By
Edel Alon
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0

Is it me or does anyone else see that this is a 6.58% increase?  I’m not sure if it’s noticeable in your bills but to put it in perspective, did any of you get a 6.58% raise this year?

Starting Oct. 1, the Navy will be charging Guam 26 cents more per thousand gallons of water.

The change from the current rate of $3.80 per thousand gallons to $4.06 was announced Friday. In a news release, the Naval Engineering Command Marianas stated the new rate was “consistent with the Navy’s promise toward graduated adjustments designed to minimize financial impact” to the Guam Waterworks and Power Authorities.

It also brings the rate more in line with what has been charged to Department of Defense customers on the island, the release said.

The command said the adjustment is based on the current cost of producing drinking water for the base and other customers in the southern villages of Agat, Santa Rita, Piti, Nimitz Hill, parts of Asan and Maina, and the Apra Harbor area.

http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=63139

Agility Team Wins Contract for Service on Guam

By
Edel Alon
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0

Agility Team Captures $17M Guam Depot Contract

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Agility Defense & Government Services (DGS) and Accent Controls Inc. have won a contract to manage the Defense Distribution Depot Guam, Marianas (DDGM), the two companies announced today.

The five-year contract, worth $17 million, was awarded May 1, 2009 by the Defense Distribution Center, New Cumberland, Pa.

Accent Controls Inc. (ACI), based in Riverside, Mo., will be the prime contractor. ACI is certified by the federal government as a minority, woman-owned, disadvantaged small business. It will provide program management and ISO certifications in quality, safety and environmental protection.

Agility DGS, based in Alexandria, Va., will act as a subcontractor, providing warehousing, distribution and management services.

DDGM is one of 25 U.S. Department of Defense distribution centers worldwide. It provides distribution-support services, including receipt, storage, issue and trans-shipment of supplies for the U.S. military on Guam. The facility provides additional surge-capacity services to all four branches of the military operating under U.S. Pacific Command.

“This contract is a perfect fit for us. Agility DGS has a substantial and growing presence on Guam, and we own and operate the world-class defense distribution depot in Kuwait,” said Dan Mongeon, president and CEO of Agility DGS. “When you combine our local knowledge and depot experience with ACI’s exceptional record of performance for defense customers, you get a team that has a lot to offer DDGM.”

Mary Janiak, president of ACI, said, “Accent Controls is looking forward to working with Agility Defense & Government Services and providing DDGM with smart solutions for distribution services that are on time – every time.”

Agility DGS runs the only contractor-owned, contractor-operated U.S. Department of Defense distribution center worldwide, the Defense Distribution Center, Kuwait Southwest Asia (DDKS).

The DDGM win is part of Agility’s strategic expansion on Guam. Other recent Agility initiatives on Guam include:
– Agility and its joint venture partner, Tristar Transport, acquired the Agat Fuel Terminal on Guam.
– Agility and Tristar won a five-year, $32 million contract to handle storage and distribution of more than 1.2 million barrels of fuel for U.S. forces in the Pacific and Far East.
– A separate Agility-led joint venture, AFH Fuel Services, operates bulk-fuel facilities at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, as well as at U.S. Air Force installations in Japan, South Korea, Turkey, German and Portugal.

Agility also is working with Younex on a plan to provide housing and services for 20,000 temporary workers assigned to infrastructure projects that are associated with the U.S. military buildup on Guam.

About Accent Controls, Inc.

 

Since 1994, Accent Controls, Inc. (ACI), located in Riverside, Mo., has offered an adaptable suite of services by melding its core competencies in engineering systems integration into the areas of public works, base/facilities maintenance and operations, construction management, logistics, warehousing, transportation, and information technology applications.

ACI supports and partners with a wide range of clients including major corporations, industrial organizations and federal, state and local governments. ACI is a minority, woman-owned small business and is ISO 9001 (Quality Management), ISO 14001 (Environmental Management) and OHSAS 18001 (Health and Safety Management) registered.

ACI has successfully completed prime contracts and second-tier projects with the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), US Navy, US Army, US Air Force, US Marine Corps, US Army Reserve Command, General Services Administration, Environmental Protection Agency, General Motors, Ford Motor Company, Toyota, Bayer, Hallmark Cards, Folgers Coffee, Kansas City Power & Light, Black & Veatch Engineering, Burns & McDonnell Engineering and numerous other companies throughout the country.

For more information, please call us at (816) 483-6330 or visit www.accentcontrols.com

About Agility
Agility is one of the world’s leading providers of integrated logistics to businesses and governments. It is a publicly traded company with $6.8 billion in annual revenue and more than 34,000 employees in over 550 offices and 120 countries. Agility brings efficiency to supply chains in some of the globe’s most challenging environments, offering unmatched personal service, a global footprint, and customized capabilities in developed and emerging economies alike.

Agility has three business divisions: Agility Global Integrated Logistics (GIL) is headquartered in Switzerland and provides supply chain solutions to commercial customers large and small. Agility Defense & Government Services (DGS), based in Washington, offers logistics services to governments, relief agencies and international institutions worldwide. Agility Infrastructure group companies primarily focus on opportunities in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia, providing infrastructure support in the areas of industrial real estate, customs optimization, and airline services.

For more information about Agility, visit www.agilitylogistics.com.

Guam to Get More Pollution as a Result of US military Plans

By
Edel Alon
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0

Has anyone thought of this?  It’s just a natural process–more people, more trash.  Can Guam handle it?  It’s not just the people, we’re talking about the build-up of the entire island.  Where do we put it all?  Unfortunately, we don’t have the luxury of driving the trash to another state.

An American anthropologist says plans for the US military build-up on Guam are a sign that pollution on the island is set to worsen.

In a new book, Catherine Lutz claims that residents of territories which host military bases are unwitting victims of a range of environmental, social and financial impacts.

Professor Lutz says the more than 900 offshore US military posts have a long history of polluting the environment.

She says because of the US military, Guam already has a number of sites on the US Super Fund list for the country’s most toxic places.

“There’s been very little clean up. So many people on Guam are as concerned as much about this as some of the possibilities for crime (posed by the military build-up). That is to say they have very high cancer rates in certain of the cancers and people are concerned that maybe the reason why is because they’ve been exposed over all these years to the kinds of material that the military has been using, which include many known carcinogens.”Catherine Lutz

News Content © Radio New Zealand International
PO Box 123, Wellington, New Zealand

Shun Ultimate Utility Knife

By
Edel Alon
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1

One of the things that my wife told me to do when we married was to tell people what I want for the holidays or else I’ll get crap as gifts.  I finally learned my lesson after a few sweaters and socks.  Since then I’ve told people that I want everything kitchen as possible.  Over the years I’ve seen my share of measuring utensils, dishrags, graters, and cheese cloth.  Of course these gifts end up creating a bunch of wonderful tasting delights back to the giver.
What’s cool is that every once in a while I’ll get a really cool kitchen item.

This past holiday season, two friends of mine (Jennifer Tapken and Kat Li) were gracious enough to honor me with a Shun Classic Ultimate Utility knife.  I felt like I was knighted as one of King Arthur’s court.

This knife is amazing!  I know never mentioned a bread knife in the previous blog on all the knives you’ll need.  I’m going to have to digress and say that you really need a good bread knife.  Yes, I did say they gave me a utility knife but look at this thing.  A nice serrated edge that slices through tomatoes and bread like it was softened butter.
The Shun Ultimate Utility knife, also known as the U2, was modeled after the bread and butter knives sandwich makers wield.  You’ll notice the spatula looking blade.  This blade was not only made to slice through bread; it is a great tool to spread mayonnaise (link to grilled cheese article).

I think I’ve found a new favorite in the kitchen.  I just might put away my pairing knife and use this as my lead knife when I reach into the block.

Here’s how Williams Sonoma describes it: The perfect sandwich slicer, this multitalented serrated knife cuts effortlessly through meats, crusty breads, cheeses and tomatoes. The 6″ long blade is forged of high-carbon VG-10 “super steel” clad with microthin layers of stainless steel for a lasting ultrasharp edge. The knife’s wide shape and rounded tip are ideal for spreading condiments. It is over 11″ long overall and made in Japan.

http://tinyurl.com/U2Shun

This has to be one of the best sandwich knives out there.  I did look around and I found a Kershaw Pure Komachi Sandwich Knife.  I was definitely drooling over this one for the past couple of years and probably was the model for the U2.  I guess the second version is usually the better version.  However, if I were to choose between the two, I’d of course go with the U2 from home but the the Komachi knife for a small business.

Thanks Jennifer and Kat for knighting me with such an honorable gift.

Specifications:
Steel:        VG-10 cutting core clad with 32 layers of SUS410 stainless
Handle:      “D” shaped Ebony-black PakkaWood
Blade Length:      6 in. (15.2 cm)
Closed Length:      N/A
Overall Length:      10 3/4 in. (27.3 cm)
Weight:      4.6 oz.

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Welcome to the curated chaos of curiosity and creativity—brought to you by Edel Alon: maker, thinker, and hands-on problem-solver. This blog is part journal, part resource hub, and entirely dedicated to the art of doing. From culinary experiments and car tinkering to tech deep dives and DIY builds, you'll find stories, guides, reviews, and reflections designed to inspire, inform, and occasionally make you laugh (or at least raise an eyebrow). It's a celebration of learning by doing—with a few detours along the way.

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