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Sunday, September 5, 2010

La Quinta Inn comes to Panama

La Quinta hotel chain is a very successful no frills business model and I will be curious to see how well they will do here in Panama. They have been operating for many years in Costa Rica near the airport and you can always be assured of reasonable value and good customer service. Maybe they can help set a new standard here in Panama.


Goldberg said the limited-service brand, based in Dallas, is planning for “explosive” growth in Mexico, Latin America South America and continuing its “aggressive growth” in the U.S.

The numbers tell the story. Rajiv K. Trivedi, Executive Vice President of Franchise & Chief Development Officer, said La Quinta plans to open five hotels in Mexico this year and has up to 20 properties under development in Mexico, as well as 15 others in the pipeline in Central America. New construction on a hotel in Panama is expected to start this year and the brand is reviewing conversion opportunities in Panama.

Although no properties are in the pipeline for South America, Trivedi said the brand has started discussions and is establishing infrastructure with employees on the ground developing relationships.

“In the entire region, Columbia and Brazil have the biggest opportunities after Mexico,” he said.

Goldberg added that Costa Rica, El Salvador and Guatemala are target markets. The company also is looking east, and plans to introduce its brand to China and India.

The challenge is to maintain control of the brand and, as Trivedi put it, find the right path. That means determining the right ownership structure -- a management contract, a franchise or a combination --  and building the type of hotel that will meet the changing needs of guests.

The model for select service is different internationally, Trivedi said, in that they should have a lounge and a small F&B operation. That’s a change in profile for the brand, he said.

New construction hotels are creating a mid-tier for the emerging middle class in Latin America. Some of these countries may have resorts, but they lack select-service properties.

“Because of all of these changes, it has become more appropriate for select service to be there,” he said. “It will provide better margins than any other segment of our industry.”

Entering Autos that took place at the Laquinta Inn in Dublin

Anyone with information in reference to entering Autos that took place at the Laquinta Inn in Dublin. The suspects were driving what is believed to be a late model Chevy Malibu with tinted windows and no hubcaps. Vehicle possibly has a dent on the right front fender near the top. The suspects were two black males weraring white t-shirts and possibly blue jeans.
Anyone with information in reference to entering Autos that 

La Quinta Inn & Suites Opens in Danbury, Connecticut

Diamond Properties and Meyer Jabara Hotels have opened a La Quinta Inns & Suites hotel in Danbury, Connecticut.
Located at 116 Newtown Road, the La Quinta Inn & Suites Danbury is a complete renovation of an existing structure and features easy access on and off Exit 8 on I-84. The hotel has 135 guest rooms, each given a fresh contemporary look in the renovation.
Rates start at $89 per night and as at all La Quinta hotels, the La Quina Danbury’s Bright Side Breakfast and high-speed Internet access are free.
The La Quinta Inn & Suites Danbury has meeting space to accommodate up to 100 guests, a business center, and a fitness center. An Outback Steakhouse is immediately adjacent to the property and accessible directly from the hotel lobby.
In addition, the hotel features four different room choices: a standard room with two full-size beds; a king room; a king room with a sofa/sleeper for longer stays; and 10 suites for families or business travelers desiring extra space. All rooms include a refrigerator and microwave oven. Other amenities in each room include a 32-inch flat panel television, an in-room coffee maker, a hair dryer and an iron with an ironing board.
“We have operated hotels in the greater Danbury area since 1977 and are proud to be associated with this exciting new property” says Richard Jabara, principal at Meyer Jabara Hotels.

This photograph shows the new La Quinta Inn & Suites at 116 Newtown Road, Danbury, Connecticut
“We are thrilled to be a part of the Danbury community and to make this completely refurbished property available again. It’s exciting to bring a fresh new hotel experience to both business and leisure travelers that includes many of the amenities you would expect from a full service hotel,” says Vickie Miele, general manager of the property and a 20-year veteran of Meyer Jabara Hotels.
Located close to Western Connecticut State University, Danbury Fair Mall, Candlewood Lake, Danbury Hospital and the corporate offices of General Electric, Pitney Bowes, Duracell and IBM, the La Quinta Inn and Suites is offering triple La Quinta Returns points for stays through October 2010.
Meyer Jabara Hotels owns and operates hotels in 12 states and has been in business for more than 35 years. The company’s portfolio of hotels includes properties trading under the Marriott, Hilton, Sheraton, Hampton Inn and IHG and La Quinta brands, as well as several independent hotels.

Southern Miss Volleyball Earns LaQuinta Inn Invitational Crown with 3-0 Sweep of Kennesaw State

Offensively junior Ashley Mell posted a team-best 16 kills, while sophomore Halie Ecker also had double-digit kills with 10 and junior Lauren Sears was third on the team with eight. Setter Kelsea Seymour recorded 38 assists, nine digs, two kills and three blocks. Junior libero Lisa Knecht registered 16 digs. SJ Bowden led the Eagles in blocks with five and Sears was second on the team with four.
The Golden Eagles totaled 45 kills, 43 assists, three aces, 52 digs and 10.0 total team blocks. The Owls finished the match with a .188 attack percentage, 47 kills, 43 assists, 56 digs and 7.0 team blocks.
Mell was named the Invitational MVP, while both Seymour and Sears were named to the All-Tournament Team.
Kennesaw opened the match with a kill by Sabrita Gulley 1-0 lead, but Southern Miss came right back to tie it at 1-1 on an Ecker kill. USM took the lead on an Owl attack error before Mell added to the lead with back-to-back kills for a 4-1 advantage. KSU's Alyssa Lang connected on a kill to get within three, but Bowden answered with a kill for the Eagles to keep a three-point advantage. Following KSU miscue, Mell kill and a dual block by Mell and Sears put USM up, 8-2, forcing the Owls to take a timeout. Southern Miss ran its lead to 11-2, before Kennesaw reeled off four straight points behind three kills by Lang. Southern Miss ended the streak with a kill by Mell for a 12-6 lead. The Owls got back on track using a 9-4 run to cut the lead to one, 16-15. The squads began trading points as the Eagles were able to maintain a three-point advantage until KSU called its second timeout trailing 22-19. From there, Gulley took over, producing three kills and a block to tie the match at 23-23. Following a USM timeout, Ecker put down a kill for a 24-23 lead, but Gulley answered immediately to tie the set again. After trading points, Bowden and Seymour got a block and Mell ended the set with a kill for a 27-25 win.
The Owls ran out to a 4-1 lead early as Southern Miss had trouble running its offense. Mell finally put down a kill and KSU had an attack error to pull the Eagles within on, 4-3. Southern Miss was able to tie the set at 5-5, but the Owls got back-to-back points for a 7-5 advantage. The Eagles then ran off four straight points to take the lead, 10-7. Southern Miss did not trail again as the Eagles outscored Kennesaw State, 11-9, for a 21-16 lead. USM held on for a 25-19 victory.
The third set started with seven ties, until KSU got three straight kills for an 11-8 lead. Southern Miss got within one, 12-11, following an Amelia Hendrickson kill and two Owls errors, but KSU forced the Eagles to take a time out following a kill and Mell attack error, giving the Owls a 14-11 lead. The USM timeout proved to be effective as KSU had a service error. Both teams traded points, midway through the set. With the Owls leading, 19-16, Southern Miss got a big block from Bowden and Henderickson, a kill from Seymour and two errors by the Owls to tie the set at 20-20. After a Kennesaw timeout, USM took the lead on a block by Bowden and Seymour, but it was short lived as KSU put down a kill to tie the set. Mell answered with a kill and a block with Sears to give USM a 23-21 lead. The Owls got back-to-back kills from Lang and forced the Eagles to take their final timeout with the score tied at 23-23. KSU regained the lead on an Eagle error, but Mell answered with a kill. Lang gave the Owls a 25-24 lead before Sears knotted the score at 25-25 on a kill. Southern Miss finished the set with an Owl attack error and an ace by Mell for the 27-25 win.
Lang led Kennesaw with a match-high 19 kills to go with 10 digs, while Gulley added 12 kills and 12 digs for the visitors.
Southern Miss travels to Middle Tennessee for the MT Blue Raider Bash where they will play Georgia Southern in the opening match on Sept. 3. The Golden Eagles will play host Middle Tennessee and Miami (Fla.) on Sept. 4 and closed out the tournament with a match against Auburn, Sept. 5.

Family Life Insurance Company

Employers provide group Universal life insurance to their employees. Such a policy is a fantastic addition to the list of benefits given by the company. It can be entirely employee or employer paid. Employees who are with their employers benefit on taking group Universal life insurance as companies or organizations get good discounts on insurances because many people in the group are being covered under the insurance. If universal life insurance policies are purchased by individuals, they would not get any discount. The policy will remain the same and will continue once an employee quits his job and the individual coverage will become expensive.
Premiums are paid biweekly or monthly as deductions and payroll. This system continues till the employee does not wish to participate any longer or the company decides not to offer the benefit anymore. Employees will be able to take part in a group Universal life insurance without having to be subjected to medical examinations. This is possible when enrollment is done at particular time periods as indicated by the owner of the company. Employees will be happy to know that the money invested in a group Universal life insurance policy is tax-deferred as time goes by. If the company offers a 401(k) policy, too, one will have two opportunities to save significantly for retirement and also have a tool for seeing to it that money will be available after retirement as a lump sum payment or as equal payments given over the life of the holder of the policy.
The employee will have to ensure that he remains in the company for a very long time so that he can benefit from this great savings tool. Human resource development professionals could use the group Universal life insurance as bait in order to lure talented and qualified employees to the company as and when they need people. Employers even offer group universal life insurance to the dependents of the employees, too, which makes the offer even more enticing. It is unlikely that the employee will be in a hurry to quit the job. These policies will also come with ancillary programs when an employee purchases them, like legal help will be given when an employee wants to prepare a personal will.
Planning of the estate might also be given. These added benefits will help individuals to save a big sum of money. Those who avail of the services of lawyers regarding the same problems but are not covered under the group universal life insurance policy will be shelling out huge amounts of money. If such a policy is being offered to employees they should not think twice before taking advantage of the offer. Many people start considering retirement, estates and bills when they reach middle age because young people feel that they have a lot of time left to retire or they probably do not have adequate assets as to be important to them.
Employers can take advantage of group universal life-insurance programs so that they can own the policies and also make use of these accumulated over time tax-free funds in case of liabilities in the future. As you can see, both the employer as well as the employee benefits under group Universal life insurance programs.

Universal Life Insurance

Universal Life insurance is rattling a alteration of Entire Lifestyle. The insurance policy assets in the behavior is distributed from your cost example of your manner. The choice part is endowed in bonds and mortgages; the cost part of Universal Life is endowed in dollars activity funds. The money worth part with the behavior is ordered up as an accruement fund. Choice income is credited to your accruement fund. The loss of chronicle profit example is paid for out in the accruement fund. Unlike Total Living Insurance plan, the money attractiveness of Common Living Insurance news grows at a uncertain fee. Ordinarily, there’s a destined bleak peak peculiarity fee practical for the coverage. No concern how seriously the investments go by the insurance news corporation, you hap to be destined a sure bottom convey about the dollars percentage. If the insurance news methodicalness does well with its investments, the peculiarity convey about the dollars proportionality will enhance.

Do Some Research and Calculations When Planning Your Retirement

Once you have found an answer to this question, you can continue to assume that you need a term life insurance or whole life insurance. By investing in a term life insurance or whole life insurance cash received tax free, unlike other retirement plans. It is one of the most important parts of your retirement you need to make sure you organize and put together properly. Of course in order to determine what is best for their retirement and to support his family after they are gone you will have to do some research and calculations. Retirement planning is time, patience, knowledge, and of course life insurance.
Unlike IRA’s or 401(k)’s with whole life insurance and in some cases with term life insurance your retirement plan doesn’t have the complicated and unnecessary restrictions. With these investments for your future and retirement you and your family have a 10% tax penalty should the money be withdrawn before the age of 59 and a half amongst many others. You will need to do the proper research to determine whether this applies to you and if the other restrictions involved with alternative retirement plans will restrict your investment too much. Another great part to investing in whole life insurance is that most insurance companies actually use your money on the market and you have a chance of highly increasing your investment without the risk of losing it.
Put in to mind on whether you may need money in the work of your retirement, & it’s lovely to consult together with your financial planner & have them look in to any penalties or adverse tax consequences ought to you need to pull money from your insurance plan. Though the investment in whole life insurance is greatly beneficial there’s also some downfalls, which you will need to think about.
Speak to your planner and insurance consultant about the benefits and of course the basis of the contract. The premium that has been paid is important as well as the gain. Speak to them about what part of your money back is taxable and what will happen should you cancel or decide to pull your money earlier than expected.
Keep in mind though that in the event you cancel your loan or pass the date on the term life insurance policy owner the money becomes taxable. But make positive that you pay them back as they will reduce the benefit from your insurance. What’s great is that if your beneficiaries do not depend on you for financial support you can use your whole life insurance as an additional fund for your retirement. There’s also other options to getting money for your retirement so you don’t pull from your whole life insurance plan or term life insurance plan such as a loan against your life.
In general, your life insurance policy, or if you are over your term life insurance policy is your best selection for your retirement plan, this can be used if your beneficiaries still need support for your finances or if you just are looking to invest have a softer more retirement funds. Either way, it is a great investment and a source of money for the future, either for yourself or your family.
Life Insurance Articles are a handsome contribution from Iftikhar Tirmizi to the Internet users, being Finance Manager for 12 years has given his enough exposure to write on Whole Life Insurance

What You Need To Know About Life Insurance Policies


Perhaps the biggest choice a consumer can make in terms of building well-rounded insurance plans is to determine the type of life insurance policies you need. Whole-life insurance policies include life insurance policies plus investment opportunities. Term life insurance policies are less expensive.
Many investment experts encourage people to keep your insurance and your investments separately. Whole-life insurance policies are expensive and are typically based on assumptions. Term life insurance policies are based on set dollar amounts each month or year and are set for a certain number of years.
Selecting A Coverage Amount
When determining how much life insurance coverage you need, you should determine how much your family relies on you for survival. If you have young children, a good rule of thumb is to purchase life insurance for the amount equivalent to 10 times your annual salary. If you have older children, a good rule of thumb is to purchase life insurance for the amount equivalent to five times your annual salary. You derrick rose shoes should also consider how much your spouse or significant other relies on your salary each month and year.
Selecting the right amount of coverage for your life insurance needs is a critical part of purchasing life insurance. If you are going to pay monthly or annual premiums, you want to make sure your family is protected in the case you should die during the term of the policy. In addition, you want to purchase a life insurance policy that contains as broad of payout terms as possible. You want your family to receive their payout upon your death.
Finding A Life Insurance Company
When you’re shopping for a life insurance company and life insurance agent, you should seek out at least three price quotes for similar policies, ask for references, talk with those references about issues pertinent to their policies and find out as much information about the life insurance firm as possible.
Select life insurance companies that provide you with firm data in writing along with specific policy information. Ask them for references of existing and former customers. Talk with them about their policies and how easy the process was when they used the policies upon new basketball shoesthe deaths of loved ones. Ask the references how well they like the services offered by the specific life insurance company. Gather as much information as possible and take notes.
Once you have compiled valid information about several different life insurance companies, be sure to take a close look at each and find the best deal for you. Once you have determined how much coverage you need and which type of policy you want, it’s only a matter of comparing the information you gathered to select the best life insurance policy for your family.

Term Life Insurance Plan Benefits Keep Families Secure

If preparing your family’s financial future in the event of an emergency is something you have not addressed, you should do so immediately. Unfortunately, tragedy can strike at any time, and if you pass away your family could have a very difficult time paying the bills. In these instances, international life insurance policies can be very valuable to your dependents.
Why is a term life insurance plan worth your consideration? One great benefit is its stability. Many other long-range opportunities to invest your money carry with them significant risk in terms of fluctuation on value, which you will not encounter with term life.
While a stock market crash can wipe out your entire savings, or real estate markets can plummet, there is no factor that will devalue your international life insurance policy. This stability is especially important when you’re talking about something that can be the difference between your family being able and not being able to pay the bills each month.
Under a term life insurance plan, you will purchase a predetermined about of coverage, and that level will not fluctuate during the life of the policy. So the million dollar policy you buy at the outset of the plan will be worth the same 5 years in, 10 years in, 20 years in, etc. for the duration of the policy.
The process of obtaining a term life insurance quote is an easy one. One great way to do so is to go online. By providing some information about yourself, you can get a no-obligation quote. Or if you want to work with someone you are already comfortable with, you can talk to the agent who currently provides you with auto and home insurance.
As you think about the plan you are going to purchase, you will want to carefully plan the amount of coverage you need. Ask yourself what expenses need to be covered, and what can your family afford to pay without the policy. This will help you figure out the right policy value.
Also keep in mind that living overseas will carry with it certain expenses your beneficiaries will need to pay for. One such expense is repatriating your remains, which can be expensive. Make sure the policy has enough coverage for that cost as well.
Taking care of your family’s financial needs when you are no longer around to do so is an important priority. With a term life insurance policy, you can get robust financial coverage at a low investment and with no risk. Save your family the stress of trying to make ends meet each month without the support of your income, and provide an important safety net with term life insurance.

Thursday, August 12, 2010

Overton window

Overview

At any given moment, the “window” includes a range of policies considered to be politically acceptable in the current climate of public opinion, which a politician can recommend without being considered too “extreme” or outside the mainstream to gain or keep public office. Overton arranged the spectrum on a vertical axis of “more free” and “less free” in regards to government intervention. When the window moves or expands, ideas can accordingly become more or less politically acceptable. The degrees of acceptance of public ideas can be described roughly as:

  • Unthinkable Radical Acceptable Sensible Popular Policy

The Overton Window is a means of visualizing which ideas define that range of acceptance by where they fall in it. Proponents of policies outside the window seek to persuade or educate the public so that the window either “moves” or expands to encompass them. Opponents of current policies, or similar ones currently within the window, likewise seek to convince people that these should be considered unacceptable.

Other formulations of the process created after Overton's death add the concept of moving the window, such as deliberately promoting ideas even less acceptable than the previous "outer fringe" ideas, with the intention of making the current fringe ideas acceptable by comparison (This might be a form of the “Door-in-the-face technique" of persuasion.)

Overton's rule is over!

It is the 1980s. Ernst Overton at the University of Zurich (Switzerland) declares that those substances that dissolve in lipids pass more easily into a cell than those that dissolve in water. He then diligently applies himself to the development of an equation that would allow the calculation of the time required by the substance to permeate through the cell barrier. Based on the lipophilicity (ability of a compound to dissolve in fats, oils and nonpolar solvents) of the substance he also goes as far as defining a parameter K, whose value dictates the speed of diffusion; that is, the higher the value of K, the faster the permeation rate. So far, so good. For over a century, scientists of a variety of disciplines have adhered to Overton's rule and used his equation to shape their studies.

Unfortunately, Overton was wrong, very wrong. It is 2008 and a team of researchers at Warwick University (UK) have now proved that exactly the opposite phenomenon occurs: studying the diffusion of a variety of acids through the cell membrane it is the most lipophilic compounds that are transported slowest. In fact, their research suggests that the real transport rates could be up to a hundred times slower that predicted by Overton's rule.

So how is it possible that Overton got it so wrong and that the rule has remained unchallenged for more than 100 years? It is worse than that. "The important point is really how other researchers have confirmed Overton's rule many times in the past two to three decades," Professor Patrick Unwin, lead researcher of the scientific team, says. He blames the technology: "Techniques in recent years have employed rather inefficient and fairly ill-defined mass transport to move molecules up to the membrane, which makes it difficult to accurately measure fast membrane transport with confidence." Additionally, measuring the rate of transport of compounds across a membrane is very challenging "because, at the simplest level, there are two processes in series — diffusion to and from the membrane and transport across it — and the slowest step is what is measured."

The technology developed by the scientific team at Warwick University allowed them to observe every step of the diffusion process and investigate up close what really happens at the cell boundary. "We use piezoelectric positioners, similar to those used in our other recent work with ultramicroelectrodes, except that by coupling electrochemistry and confocal microscopy, we can also visualise the electrode position with high accuracy. The electrode can thus be placed at a precise, quantifiable distance from the membrane without touching it."

The research team are excited with their discovery and are looking to use this technique to examine the diffusion of other compounds into the membrane cells. "We can tackle any process," says Unwin "where we can detect an ion or molecule by fluorescence, which opens up a wide range of possibilities." Other techniques will also be explored: "in addition to the solid electrodes used in this study, we can also use micro- and nanopipettes to deliver reagents locally in a controlled manner via an applied current or potential."

For the scientific community in general the implications of this finding are huge: "Text books will have to be rewritten," says Unwin. For drug developers in particular, this discovery is of paramount importance for the development and testing of drugs. "Drug companies may want to review whether an initial screen of candidate drug efficacy based the measurement of partition coefficient is necessarily a good indicator of permeation. There may be candidates that make it through initial screening, despite actually having poor membrane transport properties and, conversely, candidates with good transport dynamics that are rejected on the basis of partitioning alone. Our methodology could also readily be developed to look at protein and ion channel activity in model membranes and living cells."

Jeff Overton's consistent year has him climbing the US Ryder Cup chart

AKRON, Ohio — Even avid golf fans might be surprised to see who is No. 4 in the U.S. Ryder Cup team rankings this week.

Tiger Woods? Nope. He's ninth. Stewart Cink? He's at No. 13.

Try Jeff Overton, hardly the name that comes to mind when you consider the best American players in 2010.

"It's not like I'm Tiger Woods," he said. "Maybe if we could ever win instead of finish second, maybe we'd have a little better chance of (being known)."

Overton is listed so high among U.S. golfers for the Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor because he's played consistently well all year. He's had three seconds and two thirds, barely missing out on his first career win several times.

On Sunday at the Greenbrier Classic, it took Stewart Appleby's stirring 59 in the final round to beat him. The 27-year-old Indiana University graduate also was runner-up at the Zurich Classic and the Byron Nelson.

"This year I've been able to get inside the top three a lot, but I haven't been able to get that win," he said Wednesday, the day before the start of the Bridgestone Invitational. "Hopefully, I'll be able to keep plugging along.

"Like (former British Open champion) Ian Baker-Finch said, 'You keep knocking on the door enough times, eventually something is going to happen.' "

Overton's scoring average is 69.81, third-best on the PGA Tour. He is 12th on the money list with more than US$2.4 million. He's up to No. 47 in the world rankings after starting the year at No. 186.

A native of Indiana, he is the son of a former baseball player and quarterback at Indiana State. He said he gets his competitive fire from his dad.

He also dates an opera singer.

Asked where they met, he laughed and said, "Bloomington, Ind., the No. 1 opera school in America."

Overton said he knows about as much about opera as his girlfriend knows about golf.

For instance, his girlfriend's mother came out to see him play once. He made a bogey and she said, "What did he do? He made a bogus?"

So far this year, he's been anything but bogus when climbing those Ryder Cup charts.

"(Making the team) would be half the goal, and then the next half of the goal would be to figure out a way to go win the USA some points," he said.

That was perhaps the case for Justin Rose for his first decade as a professional. In six full years (and parts of four or five others), he never won on American soil. Second-place finishes at the Texas Open in '06, Bridgestone in '07 and Memorial in '08 not only whetted his appetite for winning, but also increased questions about why he wasn't winning.

Rose turned 30 last week but he's been celebrating all year in the U.S.

Wins at the Memorial and AT&T National have pushed him up the charts in the world rankings. He was 70th to start the year but is now 19th. After years of promise mixed with disappointment, he is considered a threat to win every tournament.

"I said before I started winning that my game was in great shape," he said Wednesday. "I didn't need to do anything different; I didn't need to work on anything.

"I guess it was the patience factor of just letting it happen."

Rose was born in South Africa and raised in England. He now has homes in London and Orlando, Fla.

Some athletes begin to press when they don't meet their own or others' expectations. The difference for Rose was letting go.

"The switch for me was ... just letting it come out on the golf course, just letting my game sort of go to the first tee, not getting in my own way," he said. "It's a very simple mindset to talk about, much harder to do."

___

59 FALLOUT: It's difficult for the typical once-a-week golfer to even contemplate how someone shoots a 59.

Stuart Appleby became the fifth player to shoot a 59 in a PGA Tour event when he won the Greenbrier Classic on Sunday by going 11-under over the last 18 holes.

Appleby, set to tee it off in Thursday's opening round of the Bridgestone Invitational, turned the front side in 6-under. The thought immediately came to him that if he maintained that he might just win the tournament.

"Then I eagled No. 12 and I thought, 'I'm on record pace,' " he said. "I thought there's nothing at the end of the round that's going to stand out to be a real test if I'm playing any good.

"There's no 500-yard, par-4s; there's birdie opportunities there. The course was very benign."

Still, he needed to continue to not just play well but to make birdies. As he traversed the back nine at the Old White, the word spread about what he had within his grasp. The pressure grew, because Appleby also knew.

"I thought, well, just got to keep hitting it close and see if I can make putts — and the putts just seemed to come to me," he said.

Always, his primary incentive was catching, then staying ahead of Jeff Overton.

"I sort of had two motivating forces," Appleby said. "One was to try and chase, and one was to also do something a bit unique."

WHO'S NO. 1? Tiger Woods has been No. 1 in the world golf rankings for the past 270 weeks. But he could fall from that perch this weekend at the Bridgestone Invitational.

If Woods wins, he stays No. 1. If second-ranked Phil Mickelson wins, he takes over the top spot. If third-ranked Lee Westwood wins, and Tiger finishes third or worse, he could be the world's top player.

Mickelson or Westwood could also take over No. 1 if they were to finish high and Woods were well back in the pack.

DIVOTS: The top 50 players in the world rankings are scheduled to play in the Bridgestone which has a purse of $8.5 million and pays $1.4 million to the winner. ... An older woman stood by the first tee Wednesday wearing a pink T-shirt that said, "You Thrill Me, Phil." ... Spectators who spend $75 on tournament merchandise receive a free ticket to Sunday's round. ... Appleby met his wife, Ashley, at a nearby restaurant 10 years ago during the Bridgestone. They've been married eight years.

Extended Stay Deluxe Suites Lake Buena Vista near Downtown Disney Area

Extended Stay Deluxe Suites is an all suites hotel located in Lake Buena Vista near Downtown Disney Resort Area. This exclusive property offers a complete range of amenities to meet the needs of leisure and business travelers.

Orlando SuitesThe Extended Stay Deluxe Suites in Lake Buena Vista offers superior service and excellent amenities that you will not find in typical hotel room. Located in the Downtown Disney Area, this all suite hotel is just 3 miles from Walt Disney World, just minutes from dining, shopping and entertainment. It is the ideal choice for guests that prefer to make their own meals. It offers a convenient range of services like Complimentary continental breakfast daily, fully equipped kitchen, refrigerator, stovetop and microwave oven and dishwasher. Each suite offers superb comfort, fantastic service and friendly service. But best of all, you will find amenities that you won't find in a typical hotel room.

When staying at the this Lake Buena Vista all suite hotel you will enjoy:

Extended StayAmerica

Extended StayAmerica is an American hotel company. It was founded in 1995 in South Carolina as an extended-stay hotel, catering to businesspeople.

The first Extended StayAmerica hotels opened in 1995 by a number of founders including management from Blockbuster Video andAutoNation. In 1996, Extended Stay America acquired StudioPLUS, further continuing its growth. During this time, the company also acquired Crossland Economy Studios. The company also added various brands offering different levels of service, like Extended Stay Deluxe and StudioPLUS. By August 2001, the company was added to S&P 400.

Blackstone took Extended Stay America private in May 2004 to form a new company, Extended Stay Hotels. It paid close to $2 billion in cash as well as over $1 billion in debt. At the time, Extended Stay America had 425 hotels, but Blackstone added about 255 properties from other acquisitions including Homestead Village, which it agreed to buy for $600 million two months after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.[1]

In 2007 Extended Stay Hotels was sold to the Lightstone Group for $8 billion. The sale was one of the biggest non casino hotel deals in history.

On June 16, 2009, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, citing $7.1 billion in assets and $7.6 billion in liabilities. The company intends to keep operating all its properties through bankruptcy by using its substantial cash flow rather than debtor-in-possession financing.

Extended Stay America Princeton / South Brunswick

Welcome to Extended StayAmerica Princeton - South Brunswick. Our hotel is designed especially for longer stays with studios featuring fully-equipped kitchens and plenty of work space… amenities you won't find in a typical hotel room.

  • Kitchen with refrigerator, microwave, and stovetop
  • Dining and cooking utensils provided
  • Workspace with computer dataport
  • Free local phone calls
  • Personalized voice mail
  • Iron and full size ironing board
  • On-site guest laundry
  • Wireless Internet - one time fee of $4.99 per stay
Business Services
Our front desk can assist you with mail delivery and fax and copy service should you need it.
Housekeeping Service
One Full Housekeeping Service is provided for guests staying seven or more nights. Full Service includes dusting, vacuuming, changing linens and towels, emptying trash, cleaning of bathroom and kitchen, replenishing soap and toilet paper if needed and is performed once every seven days. Additional Full Service cleanings can be purchased at $10.00 per service. Towel exchange is available at the Front Desk for guests staying one to six nights. All guests can also purchase a Refresh Service at $5.00 per service. The Refresh Service includes replacing soiled towels, emptying trash, replenishing soap and toilet paper if needed, and making bed with existing linens. Dishes are not washed during either service. Please contact the hotel directly for additional information regarding our housekeeping services.
Check In / Check Out
Check-in time for arriving guests begins at 3 p.m. Check-out time for departing guests is 11 a.m.
Cancellation Policy
Must cancel reservation by 6pm local hotel time on day of arrival or the 1st night's stay, at the quoted rate plus tax, will be charged to the credit card holding the reservation.
Pet Policy
One pet is allowed in each guest room. A $25 per day non-refundable cleaning fee (not to exceed $150) will be charged the first night of your stay. Weight, size and breed restrictions may apply. Please contact the hotel directly with inquiries.
Payment Policy
It is the policy and practice of Extended StayAmerica to require payment in advance for guest rooms. At check-in, guests paying the nightly rate will be charged for their entire stay. Guests paying the weekly rate will be charged for the first week of their stay upon check-in. Children 17 years of age and under stay free with an adult in the same room.
Travel Agent Commission
10% commission is paid for up to the first 7 nights only. Commission is paid within 30 days of the date of room consumption. Contact the General Manager at the property for commission issues

Extended Stay backs new proposed offer: source

(Reuters) - U.S. hotels firm Extended Stay is favoring a new planned bid for it from investment companies Centerbridge Partners and Paulson & Co over a rival one on the table from a group led by Starwood Capital Group, a source familiar with the situation said on Sunday.

The Starwood-led group had agreed to invest up to $905 million in Extended Stay America ESAIN.UL as part of a reorganization proposal to bring the hotel chain out of bankruptcy protection.

The Centerbridge/Paulson bid is slightly better economically than the Starwood one, the source said, although the details of what made the bid superior were not clear.

The Wall Street Journal, which earlier reported the developments, said the Centerbridge/Paulson group had promised not to charge fees.

However, the situation could change again, as an auction will be held in May for the hotel chain, the source said.

It was not possible to leave a message at offices for Paulson or Extended Stay outside business hours. Centerbridge could not immediately be reached for comment. Starwood declined to comment.

Extended Stay was bought in June 2007 by an investor group led by David Lichtenstein's Lightstone Group. It was forced into bankruptcy last year after its projected cash flows declined amid the recession and it could not keep servicing more than $7 billion in debt.

In February, Centerbridge and Paulson & Co agreed to invest up to $450 million in the company once it exits Chapter 11.

However, Starwood Capital said in March it submitted a bid which exceeded that offer, and the hotel firm switched its support to that offer.