ATTEN-SHUN!  SALUTE--ABOUTFACE!
Sorry for the corny headline.  :+)  But--look at the great work that the organization AboutFace is doing in Canada these days, as it seeks to help kids with facial differences:
" What better way to face your fear head-on than at 1,168 feet walking along the edge atop the CN Tower.
FRIDAY FOOTBALL PICKS
Last week my record was:  11-4!  A great week for me.  Let's keep it going!

COLLEGE PICKS

LSU at Alabama.  MY PICK:  Gotta go with the Crimson Tide here.  Two very, very good teams, both with good defenses, evenly matched...but 'Bama is at home.

South Carolina at Arkansas.  MY PICK:  Two ranked teams; both with only one loss.  But the Razorbacks keep finding ways to come back and win.  I predict they'll do so again.

NFL PICKS

Atlanta at Indianapolis.  LINE:  Falcons by 7.  MY PICK:  FALCONS.  One senses Atlanta finding its mojo, plus it is rested thanks to a bye week.  The Colts meanwhile are beaten down.

Tampa Bay at New Orleans.  LINE:  Saints by 8.  MY PICK:  SAINTS.  It's not uncommon for very good NFL teams to have at least one very bad loss during the season (indeed, the 2009 Super Bowl champion Saints lost their last 3 regular season games).  I think the Saints will bounce back.

Cleveland at Houston.  LINE:  Texans by 10.5.  MY PICK:  I think the Texans will win this game.  But more than 10 points seems like too big a spread to me.  Houston has relied more in recent weeks on Arian Foster and a more grind-it-out attack.  It's worked for them; but it doesn't produce blowouts.  Plus Cleveland's defense isn't bad.

NY Jets at Buffalo.  LINE:  Bills by 2.  MY PICK:  Bills.  Buffalo has met most of the challenges they've faced this year.  Here's another one.  But I don't think the Jets have yet fixed all their offensive woes; look for the Bills to control the Jets' offense, and thus give their efficient offense a chance to win the game; which they will.

Miami at Kansas City.  LINE:  Chiefs by 4.  MY PICK:  CHIEFS.  Hello?  Anybody home?  Most of the nation doesn't know it; but the early season sad-sack Chiefs are now right in the thick of the playoff race.  Matt Cassel is playing better, and the Chiefs have re-established their run game.  Look for the Chief to keep it rolling this week.

San Francisco at Washington.  LINE:  49ers by 3.5.  MY PICK;  NINERS.  Look for the Niners' defense to shut down John Beck and the injury-riddled 'Skins.

Seattle at Dallas.  LINE:  Cowboys by 11.5.  MY PICK:  COWBOYS.  The 'Boys have their problems, but I think Seattle is the perfect opponent to allow them to get well for a week.

Denver at Oakland.  LINE:  Raiders by 8.  MY PICK:  RAIDERS.  Yes, the last time the Raiders played, both Carson Palmer and Kyle Boller laid an egg.  But they're coming off a bye, and have had two weeks to improve.  And they too are playing the perfect opponent:  the ineffective Tim Tebow.  The Raiders will rebound this week.

Cincinnati at Tennessee.  LINE:  Titans by 3.  MY PICK:  BENGALS.  The Titans won last week, yes...but largely because they were playing the sad-sack Colts.  But their problems remain--with the main one being Chris Johnson's inability to run the ball effectively.  Now they play the Bengals, who are slowly making me a believer, what their no-mistakes, create-turnovers, find-a-way-to-win ways.  I think Andy Dalton does it again this week.

St. Louis at Arizona.  LINE:  Cardinals by 2.  MY PICK:  CARDINALS.  Can the Rams build on their shocking upset of the Saints?  On the road?  My guess:  the Cards finally break through and win.

NY Giants at New England.  LINE:  Patriots by 9.  MY PICK:  GIANTS.  Two  big issues here:  first, the Pats' defense continues to give a ton of yards and long drives.  That keeps their offense off the field.  Look for the Giants to exploit that.  Two:  the Giants consistently play to the level of their competition.  That means they fail to cover against the Seahawks and Dolphins of the world...but they do cover against the better teams.  I suspect Tom Brady pulls this one out late and gets a Patriots' win, but look for a close game.

Green Bay at San Diego.  LINE:  Packers by 5.5.  MY PICK:  PACKERS.  Hey, you have to keep riding the hot team.  The Pack comes off a bye well-rested; the Chargers have had a short week following a horrible, dispiriting loss on Monday night.  Sets up well for the Packers.

Baltimore at Pittsburgh.  LINE:  Steelrs by 3.  MY PICK:  STEELERS.  Yes, the Ravens beat the Steelers handily earlier this year.  But that was weeks ago.  Right now, it's apparent--the Steelers are playing better football.  And this game is at Heinz Field.  Look for the Steelers to get even with the Ravens this week.

Chicago at Philadelphia (Monday night).  LINE:  Eagles by 7.5.  This is a tough one.  The Eagles have definitely improved.  But so it appears have the Bears; and Chicago's defense is faster and better than that of the Cowboys; don't look for the Bears to be so easily gashed on the ground.  I expect the Eagles to prevail in this game late; but in a tight affair.  Look for the Bears to cover here.
On Oct. 28, Oakville’s Jessica Fitzpatrick will be one of 30 “EdgeWalkers” as part of the Face Your Fear Charity EdgeWalk in Toronto to raise funds for AboutFace, a not-for-profit charity that provides emotional, peer and social support, resources and educational programs to individuals with facial differences and their families.
Its programs and services promote tolerance and gives individuals a sense of inclusion, as it shouldn’t matter what somebody looks like, Fitzpatrick said.
“Sometimes going out and walking in public can be a bit of a challenge or maybe someone is self-conscious of a mark on their face or a newly acquired scar,” said Fitzpatrick, AboutFace manager of marketing and outreach. “We’re trying to give individuals an experience where they can go out of their comfort zone and do something that is a little bit frightening to them so that they can feel a little bit of what the day-to-day challenge can be for somebody with a facial difference.”
Fitzpatrick is no stranger to heights or extreme events – she has gone skydiving twice before with the organization at its annual Leap of Faith event– but she said the walk will be scarier.
“Skydiving you’re free falling for like 60 seconds and by the time your shoot opens you’re like ‘oh okay this is relaxing now,’ whereas the edge walk it’s like 20 to 30 minutes of walking around this thing and you can see right down through it,” said Fitzpatrick.
AboutFace is the first charity to participate in the EdgeWalk, and Fitzpatrick is among one of the first groups of people that will partake since it opened this summer, she said.
“It’s totally safe and the whole process takes about an hour and a half, by the time you check in, sign paperwork (and) go through a really extensive security check – with the metal detectors and breathalyzer and everything,” said Fitzpatrick. “You have to wear one of their jumpsuits and then you go up and they suit you up and you don’t have anything with you that could fall. They take it pretty seriously.”
When people get up on the edge, the bottom grate is see-through, Fitzpatrick said, and then tower staff will have them put their toes over the edge and lean forward “right over the edge,” and then they will do it in reverse and put their heels over and fully lean back.
“It’s totally open, it’s an open grate and you’re attached, you have a body harness on and a strap that’s attached to something, but there’s no rails, nothing to hang on to. You’re kind of just walking on the outside of the CN Tower,” said Fitzpatrick.
The entire event will last 90 minutes and people go up in groups of six that spend 20-30 minutes each around the edge of the tower. Every person needs to a raise a minimum of $500 to participate and all funds go to AboutFace, she said.
As of Oct. 27, more than $23,000 has been raised, which surpassed the organization's original target of $10,000.
One of its major fundraisers and programs is Camp Trailblazer. It is a nationwide camp that is hosted every fall for children with facial differences aged 10 to 18.
“It is a first time in a lot of these kids lives that they’re a majority and not a minority, and they are able to not worry about teasing or bullying and being accepted by their peers,” said Fitzpatrick.
“Everybody looks a little bit different, but that’s okay and it’s just a fun, safe place for them. We have no government funding for our charity, we’re 100 per cent donations and fundraising.”
“To be able to hang out with these kids for a whole weekend, just to help them forget about the day-to-day life challenges (is) why we're doing all of these fundraising events so we can keep giving these experiences to various children with all types of facial differences,” she added.
More than 10,000 babies are born every year in Canada with facial birth defects, making it the second highest birth defect, according to AboutFace, and more than 52,000 Canadians acquire a facial disfigurement every year as a result of trauma such as accidents and fire, or disease such as cancer or stroke.
AboutFace is the only organization in Canada that encompasses all facial differences, versus just one type of difference, Fitzpatrick said.
“We believe that anybody with any type of facial difference more often than not has a lot of similar experiences with various self-esteem issues or teasing and bullying. If anything looks a little bit different, they’re all kind of experiencing some of the same types of things,” said Fitzpatrick.
AboutFace was founded in Canada in 1985 and now has more than 20,000 members worldwide that include affected individuals and families, health care and social services providers, educators, and other professionals.
“It’s nice to know that we can provide a little bit of support and encouragement,” said Fitzpatrick. “We’re small but we’re mighty and we try and do things a little bit outside the bubble and things that will make some noise and bring us some positive attention.”

Great stuff.  Keep up the good work, folks.
And now, it's Friday, so...it's time for...