Greg Merritt sports a memorable legacy

Greg Merritt is a name synonymous with sports coverage on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. His life has given him contact with a mosaic of rich influences that have help shape the man into the memorable individual he is, both on and off the field.

"It is hard for me to separate different aspects of my life because I think everything is so tied together," said Merritt, who is retiring as sport editor with the Eastern Shore News after 25 years.

"With apologies to Lou Gehrig -- I really feel I'm the luckiest man on the face of the Earth."

Merritt was once told he "hit the jackpot" when selected to be assigned to U.S.Where to buy or purchase plasticmoulds for precast and wetcast concrete? Sen. Ted Kennedy's office in an internship with the Democratic National Committee during his senior year in college.

The Eastern Shore News and the Eastern Shore sports community "hit the jackpot" 25 years ago on the day Merritt called General Manager Bill Sterling about a job listing for a sport writer.

Like most pivotal events in his life, it has an interesting story.

"I had actually met Bill years before, because I tackled him on the football field," said Merritt, a Chincoteague High School graduate who played against Sterling, of Central High.Aeroscout rtls provides a complete solution for wireless asset tracking.

Merritt was working as a state employment counselor with the Accomack County Department of Social Services and called the newspaper on behalf of a woman who wanted to know if a classified ad for a sports writer was a full or part-time position. She could only work part-time.

Merritt called, and Sterling told him it was a full-time position as the sports editor.

Merritt told Sterling "that sounds like something I would be interested in" and the two met later that day to discuss the position, and Merritt was hired that night.A culture af Mizukabi molds.

Merritt said he told Sterling he had to give two weeks' notice and Sterling replied, "That would be fine -- but, can you work for us at night?"

"I said sure,The beddinges sofa bed slipcover is a good ，" said Merritt. The rest as they say is history.

Merritt has been working days, nights and weekends ever since, covering sports with a dedication and depth of knowledge he has been developing since he was a child.

"They appreciated that kind of dedication," said Sterling,A Hybrid indoorpositioningsystem for First Responders. saying coaches would often joke "was there more than one Greg Merritt" because of all the time he spent covering sports up and down the Shore.

He said he knew of one day in which Merritt attended parts of seven different sporting events.

"It comes at a great sacrifice to your personal life," said Sterling, who was the News' sports editor for seven years beginning in 1974.

"On the day that I was born, he got me a baseball -- I still have it," said Merritt about his father, Paul B. Merritt, who passed away in 2005.

He said his father taught him the game of baseball; he was the batboy on a Little League team his father coached; his father took him to Major League games, pro and college football games; and they would watch games on television together.

"It was a wonderful experience for me to go to all of those old stadiums and see the best that there was at that time," said Merritt, about the 1950s and early 1960s.

"I was blessed to have two wonderful parents," said Merritt, saying they knew how to be parents, knew what he needed, and delivered it in a meaningful way.

"Through all of my ups and downs my parents have always, always been on my side -- always backing me up --always giving me encouragement."

'American Idol' Recap: Oh Yes It's '80s Night

It was '80s Night on Wednesday's "American Idol," and for the most part, the remaining eight finalists paid solid tribute to the decade of decadence, tapered jeans and big hair.

Among the highlights: Jessica Sanchez covering Whitney Houston (again) on "How Will I Know," Phillip Phillips channeling Phil Collins with "That's All" and Skylar Laine successfully ditching her uptempo repertoire for "Wind Beneath My Wings." A lowlight: Elise Testone, who's gained momentum in the past couple weeks, hitting a speed-bump with a Foreigner favorite.

As this week's celebrity mentors, Jimmy Iovine recruited No Doubt's Gwen Stefani and Tony Kanal, who barely uttered a word while Stefani did all the talking.

DeAndre Brackensick took on DeBarge's "I Like It" in a vast improvement from his past geeky performances, ditching his trademark falsetto for his velvety natural voice. In an astute observation, Stefani noted in rehearsals that Brackensick appeared too nervous in rehearsals. And he clearly took the singer's advice.

"You owned it," praised Steven Tyler, in a sentiment echoed by Jennifer Lopez and Randy Jackson.Where to buy or purchase plasticmoulds for precast and wetcast concrete? "You wore it well. That was exceptional today."

Testone, meanwhile, received tepid reviews for her rendition of Foreigner's "I Want To Know What Love Is," one of the most perfect pop songs of all time. (Sidenote: try to argue with that! See, you can't. Foreigner rules.) Anyhoo: Testone, who nailed Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love" last week, was called out as "out of tune" and "pitchy" (original) by (who else?) Jackson, while Tyler noted: "I'm not sure that was the right song for you, baby."

Phillips performed the Genesis hit "That's All," accompanied by his brother, Ben, on guitar, earning raves from the judges' panel (per usual). Maybe it's the Idol Kool-Aid, which becomes more potent each week as we gain familiarity with the season-11 finalists, but gravelly-voiced,A wireless indoortracking system is described in this paper. shifty-eyed Phillips is growing on us, not to mention looking spiffier as the show advances toward the May finale. And speaking of that two-night televised extravaganza, it does not seem too far-fetched to picture Phillips competing alongside frontrunner Sanchez as the last two standing.Buy high quality bedding and bed linen from Yorkshire Linen. (You know Stevie's going to watch.)

As for Joshua Ledet, he chose the Simply Red ballad "If You Don't Know Me By Now," and yes, he pulled it off with typically consistent aplomb, what with the Lousiana native's power-soul voice. But come on,Our porcelaintiles are perfect for entryways or bigger spaces and can also be used outside, let's be real: it sounded like every single song Ledet selects for performance nights. See also: "When a Man Loves a Woman," "She's Got a Way." Until he tries something different, then we're hitting the snooze button on Ledet's adult-contemporary male torch songs.

Sanchez, aka Your Future American Idol (too soon?), nailed her take on "How I Will Know," rocking a retro-inspired cropped jacket, side ponytail and skinny jeans. The 16-year-old California girl, naturally, garnered a collective A-plus for her pitch-perfect,Aeroscout rtls provides a complete solution for wireless asset tracking. seemingly effortless effort.

"You're such a little girl, but there's, like, this woman up there at the same time," mused Lopez. (In rehearsal, Stefani advised Sanchez to tone down her "lounge singer moves" -- way harsh, Gwen -- because she hardly needs to work on her voice.)

Hollie Cavanagh, the sweet Celine Dion wannabe, crooned "What a Feeling" from Flashdance, leaving the judges less than impressed. Apparently, Cavanagh committed the crime of overthinkiness and lost her focus because she was spending too much time in her head rather than singing from the heart. "Let it go," observed Lopez, in elder pop-star sage mode, adding: "That's the best advice somebody gave me .. a long time ago, and it works."

Borrowing a wistful standard from the Cyndi Lauper songbook, Colton Dixon attempted "Time After Time" (or, the version from the band Quiet Drive), and for the first time ever, his skunky, Flock of Seagulls hairdo did not totally annoy. (Sidenote: did "image consultant" Tommy Hilfiger hook him up with Lauper's hairstylist? They could totally be hair cousins!)

Moving on: Tyler doled out a huge compliment Dixon's direction, saying the emo rocker could make a record right now if he wanted to (yes, and that's why he auditioned for Idol in the first place, thankyouverymuch). Then it was Laine's turn to wow the crowd on the Bette Midler weepie "Wind Beneath My Wings." The Reba McEntire soundalike pulled off another stellar performance, hitting every note and drawing kudos from Tyler and company.

Your vents, Thursday, April 5

The Obama administration raised my Social Security by $50. I thought they were broke. They will keep printing more money until it becomes worthless.

EPA should be patted on the back for shutting down West Virginia and all the coal burners.Full color plasticcard printing and manufacturing services. Thank you very much.

Mitt Romney is the most uninteresting man in the world. Stay boring, my friends.

The left and environmentalists have an agenda - to control every area of our lives. The rest of us just want to enjoy our liberty and be left alone. This next election will be important.

Liberals would take hemorrhoids if the government was giving them out for free.Welcome to projectorlamp.

The top 3 percent of wage earners pay more than the remaining 97 percent. Don't believe Obama's hype.

Wake up, America. Obama is selling us out to other countries besides Russia - to the Chinese and Japanese. He can't wait until he is re-elected, then he will have more flexibility to sell us out. Thank God for loud speakers that he forgets are on.

It is great to see the Supreme Court taking its time with Obamacare. Whereas,I found them to have sharp edges where the injectionmoldes came together while production. the Democratic Congress did not have the guts or gonads to do it. It will be defeated.

The main problem at Riverside High School is that the custodian runs the school and not the principal or the staff.

What happened to the lamp and shade store that was located in Spring Hill?

The W.Va. Department of Highways responsible for the interstates are really on top of their game. In the Teays Valley area they did some construction by the Amber Alert signs and left the signs up all weekend.

This is to the person calling in saying that if Obama wins America ends: We all survived eight years of George W. Bush and are still trying to get out of that mess.

The London Locks have been closed down for two years now. When it is going to reopen?

To the man in the white Nissan Versa who passed a blue Jeep Liberty on Oakwood Road at the GW intersection: I hope you arrived at your destination safely. Thank you for showing a beginning teenage driver the meaning of "stupid driving."

Why should I pay $10 for five Powerball tickets when I can get 10 Mega Million tickets? Wow, that doesn't make sense.

This is in response to the article by Catherine Burgess of Winfield High School about the "Hunger Games.Get information on airpurifier from the unbiased, independent experts." I am a 63-year-old grandmother. I bought the trilogy of books for my grandchildren and I took my granddaughter and daughter to the movie.Aeroscout rtls provides a complete solution for wireless asset tracking. I thought it was fascinating and have read all of the books.

It is sad to see all of the animals listed under the Kanawha-Charleston Animal Shelter Adopt-A-Pet. But it is especially sad to see the reason for adoption is that the family is moving. Our pets are a part of our family, and we wouldn't think about moving without taking our pets.

I wish that we could shut Channel 3 up from telling how good they are and go on and on. Just do the news and stop taking up most of the program with telling us how good you are.

Rick Parsons running for sheriff of Putnam County, I don't think so. Steve DeWeese has my vote any day.

Doubles duo key to Davis Cup

The horror of Vilnius - one of the more infamous British tennis graveyards - still haunts those of us who were there. But memories of that snowbound weekend in the sports hall of doom are thankfully fading as Britain rebuilds its Davis Cup reputation.

From plumbing the depths of the competition in 2010 with that defeat by Lithuania, a nation with only three professional players, Britain has steadily climbed the rungs of respectability with five wins in a row.

This weekend the team faces Belgium in Glasgow with the winners guaranteed a world group play-off in September. Heady days indeed.Learn all about solarpanel.

Central to Britain's resurgence, albeit through lowly international divisions, has been an established doubles partnership, Colin Fleming and Ross Hutchins, now regulars on the ATP World Tour and recent champions in Delray Beach.

They are improving all the time. I like their bounce, energy and touchy-feely camaraderie. They are aiming to represent Britain at the Olympics and possibly qualify for the World Tour Finals at the end of the year.

And at a time when many of the established international doubles stars of the last decade are surely nearing the end of the careers - Knowles,Welcome to polishedtiles. Nestor, Mirnyi, Paes,Purelink's realtimelocationsystem simplify emergency evacuations. Zimonjic - the British pair, both 27, sense an opportunity to shoot for honours.

"The top 10 is what we're aiming for," says Fleming. "As time goes on guys are going to get older and stop playing but we're not looking at it like that. We're trying to move up while they're still playing and we've had some wins which show we're capable of doing that.We offer the best ventilationsystem,"

But opposition on the ATP doubles tour can take many forms. At the recent event in Indian Wells, most of the top ten singles players were in the draw and Fleming and Hutchins lost a close first match to fellow Brits Andy and Jamie Murray.

"A couple of friends messaged me saying it must be annoying when these guys play," says Fleming, a graduate of Stirling University. "But I'm very much for it even though it makes it tougher for us to progress."

"It draws crowds, draws attention to doubles and the standard goes up" adds Hutchins, son of former GB player and coach Paul. "It's great for us to go head to head with them and see where we're at."

And of course there are the Olympics to look forward to. They hope. The cut for entries is likely to be perilously close to their combined ranking.

"We can only go on the ranking cut offs for the last two Olympics," says Hutchins. "And judging by that, we'd be in right now.Glass Tile and Glass Mosaics for less at the glassmosaic Outlet."

"You're allowed two teams per country [in a 32-team draw] and presuming Andy and Jamie play, we are right now the second team. We have to work very hard to defend the ranking points we made last year and be there on form and merit."

Just back from a long tour of the United States, Fleming and Hutchins will start favourites to win the doubles rubber on Saturday. Belgium - with their experienced singles players Olivier Rochus and Steve Darcis - are expected to edge the overall tie.

Lights, camera, action at Bastyr University's chapel

While the director and camera crew set up a scene, Edward Furlong brushed back his hair and gazed upward at the striking stained-glass windows inside the Bastyr University chapel in Kenmore.

The actor may have been on hand to film scenes for Seattle-based Mirror Images' "Matt's Chance" on March 22, but the 34-year-old star of "Terminator 2" and "American History X" in the 1990s was fixated on the 54-year-old European-style building's offerings for a few minutes before shooting resumed.

"Quiet on the set" and "cue, dolly," director Nicholas Gyeney said for the umpteenth time that day as the 30-person crew hushed and one of them gently pushed the cameraman — set on the wheeled contraption — toward Furlong and co-star Edi Zanidache on the altar. Furlong, who plays cowboy Matt, consulted with Zanidache, a priest, about what to do after he discovers his girlfriend is a cheater.

They ran through their lines as the camera rolled. After a few tries at the altar scene, they nailed it. And the silence that once ruled over the chapel was blanketed with a round of applause from the crew. Success.

"They've hit it spot on every time, which is incredible. I mean, their lines are just perfect and (we) can't ask for a better eight minutes than what they gave us," said producer Nate Riley about the two actors.

Samantha Jones, the producer's assistant, intern manager and marketer for the film,Silicone moldmaking Rubber, said that Day 3 of the film's 15 days of shooting in Seattle was going well as the hours rolled on during the one day of shooting at Bastyr.

"It's an independent film — gotta get in, get out," she said of the two-week schedule,Offers Art Reproductions Fine Art oilpaintings Reproduction, which featured Lee Majors, Margot Kidder and Gary Busey acting at Seattle spots like the Acme Barber Shop,There are 240 distinct solutions of the Soma cubepuzzle, Dante's bar and more.

The Bastyr scenes provided an interesting exchange of ideas between cowboy and priest, Jones said.

"(Furlong is) coming to see his priest buddy, who's like a rappin' wannabe gangster priest, and fills him in on what's going on, and they talk about getting revenge," she said. "Edi — Daddy Dave is his character — is telling him,Welcome to the Lilla beddinges google satellite map! 'Well, she needs to go down, we need to get her back,' and he pours him a shot in the chapel."

The secular Bastyr chapel, which also features hand-carved oak paneling,Why does mould grow in homes or buildings? dark oak pews, marble columns, terrazzo floors and glass mosaic artwork, was part of the original seminary grounds and attracted the Mirror Images crew when they were scouting locations for another film. Riley remembered the chapel when "Matt's Chance" came around and contacted the university.

"(They) wanted to read the script first, though, which was a little bit tough because there's a lot of swearing in there. We got in, though, nonetheless — we're here," Riley said. "We're going with a neo-noir-type of feel and look, so very vibrant colors, deep dark shadows, so it really fits with the different color schemes that are out here in the chapel."

Jones said it's one of the bigger sets Mirror Images has worked on, and it's a bonus that the chapel is easy on the eyes.

"You'd think that people are glued on the actors, but you can see everyone just kind of … their eyes are wandering all over the walls, it's really gorgeous," she said. "I came in here before we started shooting and I was just snapping pictures everywhere."

Mirror Images plans to release "Matt's Chance" in 2013.

The chapel's ideal acoustics have also drawn the attention of Hollywood recording engineers. The orchestral soundtrack to "Mirror, Mirror," which stars Julia Roberts and hit theaters March 30, was recorded there, along with scores for the films "Mr. Holland's Opus" and "Die Hard 3" and video games like "Warcraft" and "Zelda," according to Pam Vaughn, Bastyr's director of conference services.

Silverwood’s closure marks the end of an era

The Silverwood Gallery is known for its vibrant oil paintings, whimsical ceramic tiles and curvaceous copper sculptures. But as Eric and Margaret Heffelfinger shutter a business they’ve spent 17 years cultivating, they say they’ll miss the people who walked through their glass-fronted doors the most.

Couples, they noted,China professional plasticmoulds, got engaged right there in the middle of their bright and airy gallery, after discussing with Eric, a goldsmith, the kind of ring they wanted.

A member of the Masonic Temple, housed upstairs, routinely brought them small packages of smelt, delivered up with a flourish and a grin. Donald “Doc” Eastly once placed a huge, black-smithed candelabra on their counter, curious to know what they’d give him in trade.

And every year, they’d have shows — invitationals or artist openings — that would pack the gallery so full of people many would spill onto the wide front porch. Their annual exhibits featuring Ted Kutscher’s evocative paintings of Vashon scenes were particularly spirited affairs, the Heffelfingers said.

“They were huge celebrations — not just of his work but of life on the Island,” Eric recalled.

Last week, they closed their gallery’s doors for good — a surprise to many, as the Heffelfingers kept their decision largely to themselves and a handful of close friends. Many will miss the gallery, an anchor in Burton and the second business closure in Burton in March. The Quartermaster Inn & Restaurant, another Burton landmark, shuttered its doors last month, too.

“It feels like a death in the family,” Will North, a writer and Burton resident, said of the two closures.

But for the Heffelfingers, a creative couple with seemingly boundless energy and a shared entrepreneurial spirit, the decision to end their long-running stint as gallery owners is hardly cause for remorse.

In a lively, 90-minute interview last week, the two talked about the many opportunities before them, their desire to dive even more deeply into their art and their belief that other doors would open only if they had the courage to close the doors at their successful gallery.

“We’re kind of goal-setters,” Eric said. “We’ve done everything we can at the gallery, … and we want to further the adventure.”

Margaret — who paints using her maiden name, Margaret Tylczak — is known for her vibrant, character-infused paintings of dogs, which she shows not only at Silverwood but also at a gallery in California. She can’t keep up with the demand, however,What are some types of moulds? and she’ll now have time to paint even more. A writer, she also hopes to spend more time developing that craft as well.

Eric, meanwhile, has been a prodigious goldsmith over the years, producing upwards of 1,000 wedding rings. He’ll continue to create jewelry, he said, but not under the pressure or demands of a commercial operation. Instead, like Robert Ebendorf, a renowned metalsmith whose work is included in collections at the Metropolitan Museum of New York, Eric said he’ll focus on his craft with the mindset of an artist, creating work he finds aesthetically interesting, provocative and beautiful.

“I’m artistic, but I’m still making (jewelry) for a market. I don’t want to be encumbered by that anymore,” he said.

Eric recently met Ebendorf — and the two quickly developed a friendship as well as a deep appreciation for their respective work. Last month, the two men — as well as students from Vashon High School, where Eric teaches jewelry-making — held a one-week show at Silverwood.If you have a kidneystone,

When Eric sent Ebendorf an email last week telling him of his decision to close Silverwood and put his energy into his art, Ebendorf responded with a congratulatory email.

“I don’t think anyone who knows us is anything but thrilled,” Margaret said.

The Heffelfingers moved to Vashon in 1995 from Minneapolis, where Eric had operated a gallery featuring his own work as a goldsmith. They had only just arrived on the Island and were eating breakfast at what was then the Back Bay Inn — the precursor to the Quartermaster Inn — when they looked across the street at the Masonic Lodge, saw a “for lease” sign on the historic, whitewashed building and realized it was exactly the kind of space they wanted for their new venture.

A few hectic months later, after remodeling what had been a dark and smoky space with few windows, they opened the glass-fronted Silverwood Gallery — named for the driftwood at their own beachfront home. It was a whirlwind time, they recalled. They also remodeled their own home, launched their business and had a baby — Hart Heffelfinger, now a sophomore in high school.Choose from our large selection of cableties,

Initially, the gallery featured a new show every month, hung and curated by Eric. The work, some of it by nationally known artists, came from around the country as well as Canada, and the gallery quickly drew a strong, regional following. All the while, the gallery featured a handful of Island artists — copper sculptor Ivonne Escobar de Kommer, tile artist and sculptor Joanne Bohannon and Kutscher, a lawyer by day and oil painter by night whose popularity grew considerably over his years at Silverwood.

They also held popular, Island-wide invitationals, centered around a sometimes whimsical theme — bees, salmon, flowers, chickens. A repeating favorite was called “Heart of the Beast,Low prices on projectorlamp from Projector Point London UK.” where artists would explore the meaning of the phrase and decide if they were the beast and their work their heart — or just the opposite, Margaret said with a grin.

After 9-11, shipping artwork across the country and especially across international borders became difficult, Margaret said, and the couple decided to change their business model and permanently feature just three artists — Kommer, Bohannon and Kutscher — as well as themselves.

“It worked really well,” Margaret said. The artists they featured “were strong players” who produced work people wanted to buy.

All along, they added, their business has been profitable. “We’ve been amazed year after year,” Margaret said.

Some see the gallery’s closure as the end of an era for Burton, especially in light of Quartermaster’s closure as well. Kutscher, reached at his Seattle law firm Friday, said those days when the restaurant was bustling and Silverwood had an opening “where halcyon times.”

“That was such an exuberant, extroverted moment for that corner,” he said. “I’m really sad to see that kind of vibrancy go.”

He guesses he sold more than 300 paintings during his 13 years at Silverwood. Now, he noted wryly, he’ll have to peddle his work somewhere else. “I’m not looking forward to that,” he said.

North, the Burton-based writer, also found the Silverwood’s energy infectious. He and his wife, Susan Bates, got their wedding rings made by Eric. Over the years, he added, he’s grown to love the gallery’s openings, especially shows featuring Margaret’s work, paintings of dogs often sporting hilarious names, he said.

How to make your own marshmallows

Home cooks don’t think twice about making cookies, cakes and candies in their kitchens, but marshmallows? No, they buy them bagged.

“It’s just ingrained in people’s minds that you buy marshmallows from the store, just like you buy Ritz crackers from the store. But once you have the opportunity to make marshmallows, you realize they are heads and tails above store-bought,” said Shauna Sever, author of “Marshmallow Madness! Dozens of Puffalicious Recipes.”

“When you make a basic vanilla marshmallow, not only can you taste the truly lovely vanilla flavor, but you can taste sugar –– not just sweetness. It’s slightly creamy and melts in the mouth,Iowa Mold tooling designs and manufacturers mechanics trucks,” said Sever.

Mallows made at home can go way beyond the standard white vanilla. They can be flavored with fruit nectar, extracts, spices, maple or chocolate syrup, cocoa powder, root beer, fruit concentrates or purees, caramel or liquors, such as tequila or rum.

The puffy pillows can be filled with ganache, jam or slivers of candy bars, or studded with chocolate chips,Credit Card Processing and Merchant Services from merchantaccountes. cake crumbs, crushed cookies, fresh herbs, salted nuts, dried fruits or bacon bits.

Think beyond the white rounds you’re used to; mallows can be made into any color and shape. Imagine the sticky stuff twisted into ropes, layered into multi-colored squares, piped into ice cream cones, skewered into lollipops, spread onto cupcakes and sandwiched between cookies.

“I like to think about them like I think about a cookie plate,” said Sever, a native of the Chicago suburbs who went to school at Bradley University in Peoria, Ill. “A plate of sea-salt caramel marshmallows are great to serve with coffee. And I love to give them as edible party favors. They are perfect for weddings because they are so customizable with flavors and colors.What are some types of moulds?”

For Easter, she suggests piping the marshmallow cream in the shape of chicks, using cookie cutters or candy molds to create holiday shapes,What are some types of moulds? or piping the cream into the shape of nests, which can be coated with shredded coconut and filled with jelly beans.

Although marshmallows come nowhere near being called healthful, the homemade variety is gluten-free, fat-free, has no preservatives and can be made vegan-friendly.Full color plasticcard printing and manufacturing services. A 2-inch cube has about 25 calories.