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Explain the radical balance in Tibetan thangka painting 'The Wheel of Life'? Thank you? And do you have a link to the painting as well?

Wasn't the Nazi symbol, swastika, Buddhist symbol of the Wheel of Life, drawn off balance, a symbol of death?

Best place to have oil change and wheel alignment? I've been going to Express Tires to get my oil change, balance, and wheel alignment because I paid the life time membership there. I find that they are very disorganized and only want to make up things to repair. How long does a wheel alignment take on average? This one time I was watching them and it only took them 5 minutes to do my front and back wheel alignment.

why has steering wheel vibration at more than 120km/h? why does has my steering wheel vibration at speed more than 120km/h?I did every balance in all wheel but problem is remained.My cars life is 65000 km and my new tires is 15000km.

What do it means after you get out of a wheel chair? I was in a wheel chair since I was four, and I had cp but I am able to walk up and down stairs but my balance is mildly off. Why is that, and...this is not to be rude but I do not want to hear be grateful for wat you have I mean who said that I wanted to live my life like this. And I do not my cerebellum is still small so it did not grow all the way, how do I fix this?.

Why does my steering wheel still shimmy? Ok, let me explain the work I've had on it already. It's a 1998 Toyota Avalon. At high speeds(70 mph) when I hit the break my steering wheel shakes, it's not bad but it's noticeable. I can also feel it when I break at low speeds to, say coming to a stop sign. Approximately 1 year ago I had a front end alignment and two new tires placed on the front. I had the two front tires switched to the back since there was more tread on them. The tires have been balanced and rotated within the past 6 months as well. The break pads have not been replaced since I've owned the car, almost 2 years now. The tires tread is evenly worn on all the tires, too. The only other explanation I have for this is that the rotor's need to be turned to remove any warps or defects. Or is it possible that the break pads need replacing? Obviously I'm not a mechanic but I am inclined when it comes to problems but I can not figure this one out for the life of me. Any ideas/suggestions?

do i have a wheel bearing going bad?? i have a 2003 eclipse, ~78k miles, 4 cyl, kyb agx shocks tein s tech springs, rear swaybar swap (rear control arms, crossmember, endlinks, etc) 18x7.5 wheels and 225/40/18 tires. i hit a horrible pothole a little less than a year ago, putting a fairly significant bend in my left rear wheel. when i had my tires replaced in november, they went to balance the wheel and could not get it done perfectly, though close. i shrugged it off, figured i'd get my wheel fixed before too long. time flies.. here i am about 15k miles later and still haven't fixed the wheel. the wheel, since being bent, has really liked to cause a vibration and make a "buffeting" noise (i.e. like when one window is down,) peaking at about 55 MPH. i figured it would be okay and just stayed away from the speed at which it was the worst (stupid decision, i know.) i started to get a vibration in my steering wheel recently and went to have my wheels balanced again, though my tires are near the end of their life. it seemed to have been much better for about a day.. after that the steering wheel vibration came back. i'm guessing this is an alignment issue? anyway, that's a side note. the vibration in the rear seems to have gotten worse since having them rebalanced.. long story short i suspected that i blew my wheel bearing considering the bend in the lip of the wheel/the vibration. i jacked my car up and when i grab the 12 o clock and 6 o clock positions of the wheel and try to rock it back and forth, there is zero movement. HOWEVER when i do the same thing at 3 and 9 o clock, there is a moaning/creaking noise. it will do this with the car completely on the ground as well.. it SEEMS as if i can hear the tire actually rubbing the ground a small bit when i do it, indicating there is some movement. i can't tell exactly what part of my rear suspension it's coming from.. it's made this noise for a long time (before the infamous pothole,) anytime i turn at low speeds. i don't believe it's the sway bar bushings, it sounds like it's coming from closer to the knuckle. it also makes this creaking noise (and has for a long time) while i'm jacking up the car and letting it back down. sorry, this is again swaying from the topic, but i just wanted to add that extra information in there in case it helps anyone out. ANYWAY what makes me think it may be the wheel bearing is that when i spin the wheel, at the same part of every rotation there is a short, fairly quiet grinding noise. it makes the noise for about 10 degrees of rotation, followed by another grinding noise of opposite tone.. i.e. as if it was coming on and then off. it also has a small amount of resistance at that point in the rotation. anyone else think this is the wheel hub/bearing? or could it be something in the brakes? (they are drum brakes) sorry i know there is a lot of information, some possibly irrelevant to the problem i'm asking about. but any help on the other noises would be greatly appreciated too. i'm making a 500 mile road trip in a couple days and i do NOT want to be caught with a seized bearing. thanks so much guys! the reason i haven't cleaned/inspected the bearings is that it is a sealed hub/bearing assembly... to replace it you must replace the whole hub. as far as i know there is no way to check the actual bearings, which is why i was wondering if that noise was indicative of the wheel bearing going bad, or if a failing wheel bearing would make the noise through all 360 degrees of rotation.

Are arrogance and rudeness actually the training wheels on the bicycle of life? Are they just for weak humans who cannot keep their balance without them?

What are some check-ups to perform before your car hits 100,000 miles? Are there any things to check for or pay attention to in particular before the 100,000 mile mark? I just had a wheel balance. Tranny service is tomorrow. There is some vibration in the dash when idle and sometimes while driving at slow speeds. (motor mounts??) Are there any other important steps to take? Alright!! This is the 14th year my Buick Regal GS 3800 has been in operation! Long life!!

What is the relationship between car alignment and wear and tear of the tires.? I have a 1995 Honda Accord V6. My mechanic told me that i need to get wheel alignment for the front tires because it will save my tires and would increase their life. Also i was wondering if someone could tell me that how is wheel alignment carried out. I mean to say that is it done like wheel balancing where they take the wheels off or in a different manner.

A 94 year old man who worked all his life for his? Local council has had his meals on wheels stopped. He can't get up the stairs without help, he has to sleep downstairs, his wie died many years ago and his baby daughter got killed in the blitz. Is this right and fair to treat an old man who has worked hard for his country and suffered so much like he's a burden. This service was stopped because he could, using his walking stick to balance on, stand on one foot. This is a shocking disgrace to see what this country is turning in to. What are your views on this?

Is my rap decent or should i just quit it rate 1-10.I dont rap about just life i like to make peaple think? Is my rap decent or should i just quit it rate 1-10.I dont rap about just life i like to make peaple think? these both were freestyles Stay down for my come up im only 14 but you still shouldn't run up my circle got them choppas no pave low when i get famous ima give the crowd what they paid for camo shorts pair a chuck ts and a snapback let me throw on a white tee not out of school yet but im already planning what i might be ,im just praying for another day that i might see life'ses a trip im just tryna stay on my two feet im not high butt im on cloud nine i feel too good the worlds mine fifteminutesess of fame i think im bouta get more time you lost your girl she was a ten so i guess you dropped a dime on the ramp of life on four wheels just trying to keep balanced its a kick push day now yahoo answers tell me if i got any talents. and one that is clever to me Theres only one I like a cyclops i got homies so i can say its we im not a follower so theres no need to tweet me ima alphabet guy im just tryna B me thats why yall other dudes cant C me im whats next like d,e. Additional Details the last part wasnt a verse i was explaining the second freestyle 1. i meant in the first line that theres only 1 i as in me and then i say like a cyclops which only has 1 eye 2 then third of course you follow peaple on twitter 3 next i go on to use letters as in words like you cant C me or B=Be=Bee and i was freestyling so sorry for spelling

Is anyone willing to critique my story so far? And To Hell With Everyone Else! Chapter 1 What do you do when you meet pressure everywhere and all you want to do is just stop up and scream at the top of your lungs? When your days are so stressed and stretched you go from manipulating your brain in the morning to manipulating the limbs of your body in the afternoon? Because that’s what I feel at this particular moment. Expectations everywhere, from everyone. Friends, family, teachers. Why can’t anyone see I’m about to collapse in the middle of it all? I can’t stand it anymore! Sally this, Sally that... It’s like I don’t have the time to be me. Right now, I just want to run away. From homework. From dancing lessons. From everybody around me. From being imperfect. From my solo. Mam’zelle, my trampy ballet teacher, has been so hard on me lately. I feel guilty every time my feet fall from underneath me and she comes over, pulling me up for the umpteenth time. “You can do it, Sally! Let me see my Sally bloom...” And I try doing a triple pirouette again... and again... and again... But every time I end up on the floor, or looking like a drunk thirteen-year-old trying to find the way home after a particularly heavy night of partying. I know she means well, but I just want to let the tears bursting to run down my cheeks let go every time I do something wrong in ballet. I don’t want to disappoint Mam’zelle … but I do. Over and over again. All this work doesn’t give me many minutes off. Of course, ballet is a part of my leisure time, but nowadays it feels like anything but that. I have been watching friend after friend fade away from me since fifth year, when everything intensified with standardized tests and all. Seen the sadness in their eyes when I whispered, “Sorry... I have a ballet class that day... and homework.” And then they started being adopted. And lost contact after a while... and I became the fifth wheel. And they forgot most of the busy, clever Sally Sparrow. I'm glad the few friends I have are people I know will stick with me till the end. They are friends I can rely on … trust. Thank God for them. If they hadn’t been there, I don’t even dare to thing of what would happen. I would probably be even more of a wretch than I am now. I used to smile, I used to laugh. I found it easy to reply in a funny way or generally be a happy human being. But at some point that suddenly became very hard. Of course I smile when dancing, but it’s just thirty-two muscles in use in my face. I can’t put my finger on when that happened, but it probably had to do with all the major changes in my body when I became a teenager. Have you heard about that sort of thing? I suddenly lost control when dancing … my body just wouldn’t co-operate, the technique became impossible. My balance played tricks on me. It took years to get back to where I was … and all of it because my body decided it was time to turn into a woman. Of course everybody goes through this process, more or less, but I felt it was extra heavy on me. My heart doesn’t smile anymore, either. If you take a closer look, I’d bet anything my eyes don’t smile either. I don’t know what can really make me smile any more. Another word familiar to me is confusion. I feel like I have never been able to be completely sure about something of importance. Never. I feel like I’m just drifting around, living life in a routine. I can buzz around, not really knowing what I am doing unless it has to do with ballet or school. That’s the only hag I can put anything on. Ballet and school. Boyfriends and love have ended up the same way as my friends. I remember some temporary crushes I’ve had through the years, but never something serious. I had one boyfriend once, and that lasted for three weeks. I remember our last words so clearly... “I’m so sorry, Bryn, but I don’t have time. You know what I mean... I’m too busy for this relationship to continue, and there are... circumstances.” “Too busy, Sally? When will you stop being busy? How will you ever be able to live life when you’re so dedicated to everything but me? I thought I would be your number one priority... But the way it looks now, I don't think you'll be able to put any future boyfriends first either...” I had stormed out of the dancing studio, still having dancewear on. He was so right. A part of me had turned him down because I knew I wasn’t really in love. My feelings for him had been too ‘friend-like’ when it came down to it. I had fooled myself, thought I was in love when I was really just longing for somebody’s arms around me, somebody who could understand me and love me. When he pointed out the busy-part to me I felt a whip of pain soar through my body. He was so right I was almost afraid to admit it. I was so glad we only had one night of kissing and cuddling. I think it was then I found out it wasn't supposed to be us after all. That is another one of my invisible mistakes. I hate taking risks. I never want to do something if I’m not sure exactly how it will turn out. I don’t even dare to fall in love any more. It's too risky. Getting hurt by a bloke I think is right for me is something that definitely won’t do my self-image a favour. Everything makes me feel less valuable. Even when I received top marks in most of my exams last year did I feel the jolt of joy inside me I ought to have felt. My teacher, Mr. McKinley, didn’t stop bragging around about the result of my Math exam, as I was one of her three favourite students who received over a ninety. I didn’t exactly feel proud, I just breathed out in relief because now nobody had anything to put their finger on. The mirror is my worst enemy these days. When I look onto the blank surface that shows me my reflection... I don’t see anything worth being proud of. I have always despised the way I look. No matter how many times mother told me I had a beautiful face did I look any different in my own eyes. I started taking dancing-lessons at five. It's been with me all the way and been a great help to clear my head and focus on other things. I got so good that at the school plays we started having little performances, and everybody loved it. That is one of the few things making me happy; to stand on a stage in front of an audience. Soon we had three ballet classes at the school. Mam’zelle came along, and turned out to be a great teacher for all three of them. She always knows how to encourage her students. I was in the first class during my first, second and third year, then changed to the second class. Now I’ve been in the third and best class for a year, with five lessons a week. I loved it. It used to be the one thing that cleared my head off everything else. But Bryn changed that. Now I know ballet can also be a burden. “You can do it, Sally! Try once more!” My eyes filled with silent tears as I sat down on the matt floor. I buried my head in my hands, feeling the blood rushing through my feet in the hard Pointe shoes. “I can’t do it, Mam’zelle. I can’t.” She sat down next to me and stroked my back. “I know you will be able to. Just have confidence!” All the other girls in my class figured there was something wrong that day. When I sat down and gave up on that exercise. When Mam’zelle escorted me to the changing room and had a long, nice chat with me about confidence. Now the delayed autumn-show is coming up. I have been practising all summer. Mam’zelle has given me another ballet solo. And I know it will turn out disastrous. With my mood and my lack of determination, I’m bound to collapse on stage and turn as red as a tomato in front of a thousand students. I’m going to be remembered as the failure of the year. School ends in less than a week, and I know I’ll screw up. Chapter 2: It was Saturday morning, and I constantly screwed up my eyes in pain. Lucy had dragged me out of bed an hour ago, and now I was lying almost dead on the orange settee in the corner of the sitting room of our apartment on Riverside drive. My eyes were red with flashing memories of constant partying and my lips were dry and cracked. Someone on the telly screamed about some detergent that could mow your lawn as well as cleaning your clothes. “You so deserved that…” Hanna came over from the foyer, looking sternly at me. “That’s what you get when you’re hanging out with Julian Fisher when he’s drinking.” “What?!” I yelled, but quickly calmed down, because my head just ached more when I spoke louder. “I didn’t go to bed with him like any other girl would do!” Hanna threw it off. “I’m sure you would have if you’d had only one more sip… what got into you? You’re the owner, for crying out loud!” I looked at her, my eyes poisonous. “What about the owner of the other house? He wasn’t exactly sober either?” Hanna just rolled her eyes and sat down next to me, wrapping her arms around my body. I didn’t bother looking at her; I stared instead at the half-open door of the kitchen. I wanted to eat something, anything. “Sally… That was a bad, bad, BAD move. Do you even know what you did before we came and rescued you?” She whispered, keeping her voice down so I wouldn’t cry out in pain. “Can’t say I do,” I sighed. “Unless James or anybody tells me...” “Do you call him a reliable source? He had been drinking too, you know.” “Yeah, well, he wasn’t drunk! He probably remembers. I’ll go ask him,” I said firmly, trying to get up without getting the feeling of a thousand knives burying into my body. I cleared my throat and pulled the blanket up to my shoulders. It was damn cold in there. “Oh no, you’re not! I’m getting him down here, you can’t even stand up properly,” Hanna exclaimed, getting up and making sure I settled down again. “Be back in a moment…” “It’s the party-girl!” Julian came over to me, singing in a cheerful voice. “Get away, Julian, your decibel-level is a bit too high for me right now…” I murmured. I pulled my blanket over my head, covering my probably hideous-looking face. “Ok, sorry,” he whispered and came to my level. “Anything I can do for the tired girl with the worst hangover?” “A glass of water would be nice…” I yawned. “A glass of water it is!” Julian yelled, smirking and dancing up and over the floor. ‘What’s with him today? He seems unnaturally happy… Ouch, that yell hurt…’ Gwyneth came over next holding a bowl of cornflakes in one hand and a napkin in the other. I didn’t get why I had to be so popular when I just wanted to hide away and sleep in the closest cupboard. She was looking tired as well, but not nearly as bad as I did. “I’m surprised you’re still alive, Sally!” she said irritably. “Guess who dried up all the stuff you threw up last night?” “Sorry,” I said, trying to reach out for a hug. “Don’t think so, Sally… you still stink, I’m afraid. Don’t know what made me come over here in the first place!” “Ah.” I blushed a little. “Well, be glad you threw up, or you might have ended up in the hospital. You didn’t save any, to put it that way…” “Hm… can I ask you a question?” I dared to say, still half-hiding my face. “Sure, shoot,” Gwyneth smiled, sitting down at my feet. “What did I … er… do when, well, you know… the alcohol had started running in my veins?” I forced out. She pretended to be thinking. “Hard to tell how many bottles you had, but it sure came up again after some hours. Before that you lost it completely, you just messed around like drunk people happen to do, you know?” “Meaning?” I said firmly, sitting up as far as I could manage without passing out. “Well... You noticed Julian being a little… happy this morning?” he began. ‘Holy mother of God! I couldn’t have… That’s not POSSIBLE… Please tell me I didn’t sleep with him… Anything but that… Oh my GOD!’ My mind was going berserk. My eyes were widened into a shocked expression, and I held my breath as Gwyneth continued. “He made you… well… let’s just put it this way; you’ll slaughter him when you find out… that…” “TELL ME!” I yelled, throwing myself down onto the couch again as the pain ate my brains out. “Ok, Sally. He made you burn all the stories you’ve written for… well… practically every month up till now. Then you had a nice little twisted game of snap, ending with you sitting there in your underwear laughing like a little baby with your unfocused talking. When you were about to remove the straps of your bra, Hanna, Luce, Grace and I burst in and rescued you…” ‘What? Thank God they came in time… thank God I didn’t sleep with James… Or showed him my more intimate places… Oh, the relief!’ “And not to mention… You kind of went at it with James.” ‘NOOOOOOOOOoooooooo…’ “WHAT? What happened! Am I still a virgin? Gwyneth!!” She laughed at my desperate reaction. “I must say James impressed me. The poor chap stopped you when you were half-way through pulling his trousers off. You went mad, Sally!” ‘No, no, no… this isn’t happening!’ “Sally, be glad it ended there. Be happy there weren’t that many seeing you behave like that. Because that could cost you your position…” I started crying. I was so super-sensitive these days it scared me. “I’m sorry, Gwyneth! I promise I’ll never, ever drink again!” I sobbed into her grey shirt, soaking it. “Maybe I’m not the one you should apologise to?” she whispered, pointing at James making his way down the stairs from the boys’ dorm. “By the way… could you back away a little? You still stink.” James looked almost mad, like a dog longing for his prey. Don’t know how that expression came into mind, but that was exactly what he looked like. “Sally, you should be damn happy. I think that’s about the first time I’ve managed to control myself, ever,” he groaned. “I’m in awe,” I smiled, pulling him into a hug. “You stink,” he whispered into my shoulder. “I know, sorry about that,” I hissed. “God, Sally! That was the hardest thing I ever did! You should be unbelievably thankful, because you weren’t exactly shy last night...” “ James… calm down, you sound as if it was the end of the world!” Gwyneth exclaimed, and I put my hands over my ears. “So… Why didn’t you stop me when I was about to strip playing exploding snap with Julian?” I said sternly to James. “You managed to keep me from shagging you just fine.” “Sally… A bloke ought to have some fun, can’t let all chances pass by,” he smirked. “Oh… you son of a--” I started, but James finished for me. “Bitch, I know. After you’ve met my mum that phrase gets a whole new meaning. To me it’s not offensive at all. More of a compliment. Reminds me of the fact that I am such a fine young man even though I have a bitch for a mother.” I rolled my eyes and rested my head on the couch again. My head was about to explode. “By the way…” I said by second thought. “Did you get your way with March? I think you did because you were probably so turned on after rejecting me it got easier to have a go at her. Or were you just so pissed and fucked up you backed out? Which one is correct?” James ignored me and turned away indignantly. When I saw Julian coming with my water, I gave him the coldest of stares. “You had better re-write all those stories over again that you made me blow up, Fisher! You evil big-headed twit!” I hissed. “Who spilled…? Damn you, Gwyneth!” The water in the glass he held ended up soaking Gwyneth’s face instead of easing my hangover… I woke up three hours later from a refreshing nap. I rubbed my temple as was relieved to know it was slightly lighter than it had been earlier. I lay down again to sleep some more when I heard a conversation going on in the couch next to me. I peered my eyes open and noticed Julian and James sitting there. “How far did you intend to go with Catherine yesterday, Julian?” James asked, interested. “I don’t know, but she sure smashed her own bubble when she started whispering the names of other guys when we kind of got on the inside of things, you know… So it didn’t feel right to go any further,” he laughed. “Oh? But if she hadn’t, would you have?” James continued. “Probably not,” Julian said casually. “She wasn’t my type.” “Too brutal and fierce for you? Figured that. At least she was better than her best friend? Don’t even remember the name of that girl…” “Better? Nah, they were about the same. Catherine Lesley too brutal and Stephanie Gilhart too quiet. Quite the contrary team, don’t you think?” “Uh-oh… Do you think Sally’s sleeping?” James stopped Julian. I felt their eyes on me, and I made a satisfied, sleepy moan to make them think I was sleeping. “She’s sleeping like an angel, believe me, after last night she could be sleeping through this century…” James smirked. “Yeah, guess you’re right,” Matthew answered. “Good job with… ahem… holding her at an arms length?” Julian chuckled. “Don’t make me discuss that, Julian… that was killing me.” Julian patted James on the back and probably gave him an evil stare. “What exactly did she do?” Julian pushed. “I was busy in my corner…” “You don’t want to know. If she did that to you, our beloved little Miss Sparrow would definitely not be a virgin any more,” he said slowly. “I didn’t know for a fact that she was a virgin… How do you know?” Julian kept going. James let out a relieved sigh when Julian picked an easier topic to discuss. Though I was not very happy about them discussing my virginity. “It slipped some day when we were talking. That’s another reason I stopper her, it would be a shame if Sally’s first time should be when she was drunk, and with one of her childhood friends in addition. She’d probably throw up for the rest of her life just by the thought of it…” Julian giggled softly. “It’s good to know you care about her, James… As long as it stops there.” “Don’t worry, Julian,” I heard James’ strangled voice, but obviously Julian didn’t. I pondered why. ‘What was that about? As long as it doesn’t go any further? Was I missing something here? “So you think I’d have her if she did the stuff she did to you? Tell me!” ‘Don’t tell him, James… I don’t want to hear this…’ I thought desperately. “No, I’m not telling.” James sat his foot down. “Hey, James, what is this? We tell each other everything, right?” Julian complained. “Yeah… but no… I’m not telling you this.” “You’re going soft for her! I’m telling you!” Julian exclaimed, scandalized. I almost gasped in surprise. “What? No... I just don’t want anybody to know, because I know Sally wouldn't appreciate it if I told the whole world...” he assured Julian. “It’s just me! Is it such a big deal? You’re obviously becoming trusted friends or what?” Julian said irritably. “Yep, and that’s the way I intend to keep it. I’m keeping so many of Sally’s secrets now I know they’ll all spill if I tell you this one.” “Go go go go go!! Tell me a tiny weenie one, and the big ones will come rolling along?” Julian said excitedly. ‘No, James… keep it together! Don’t you dare … wait a second… I could just wake up! He won’t tell then…’ The bright idea enlightened in my aching head. I yawned and stretched my arms, and intended to have some fun… So I pretended to be sleep talking before I woke myself up. “Oh, James, James. Wherefore art thou James? Deny thy father and refuse thy name!” I opened my eyes and saw Julian’s face expression reflect pure shock. James was so red in the face I wanted to laugh out in amusement. I yawned some more and looked over at the two boys. “What’s with the faces? I know I look terrible, you don’t have to make a face at me…” I smiled at them, knowing what was going through their minds. Chapter 3 Somehow I felt that going to Julian’s house party was a big mistake. The second I entered the overcrowded, stuffy flat on 96th street; I felt something was going to go wrong. Already I saw some boys who we knew from school slumped over the telly, moaning and babbling to some girls leaning on the bookcase. I bit my thumb and glanced towards the bar, fascinated. I didn’t want to repeat the hangover scenario, so I decided I’d take a virgin Piña Colada. I knew that Julian and James would be stricken if I even tried to look their way because of the “Oh, James, James” thing. Technically I’d be the social butterfly right now, but all these people were from college or secondary school. I waved and hugged some old friends; ones that I had abandoned because of ballet. All of the chairs in the flat were taken by couples that I bet would have hated each other in school snogging their arses off. I contemplated sitting down on the floor and watching some TV show called “Girl Gossip” or something like that. I decided against it. I leaned on the doorframe and sighed deeply, running a pale hand through my wavy blonde hair. I felt like just sitting on the floor and sleeping, until I caught the hazel shine of some familiar eyes. James. I cocked my head and looked at him, a smile tugging gently at my lips. He tapped his fingers on the polished silver mantelpiece and mouthed, “Roof?” I furrowed my eyebrows, then nodded and followed him towards the door. When we arrived, without a word I took off my sandals and dipped my feet into the light blue pool. He did the same. “You can still talk to me, after what I did to you when I had a hangover?” I asked, splashing my feet in the pool a bit. James smiled and shook his head. “Nobody’s perfect.” He said. I looked down at my maroon-coloured toes. “Nice toes.” he grinned and pointed at them. I nodded and wiggled them. A short moment of silence followed. “Fancy a swim?” I asked him, grinning widely. He stared at me as if I was crazy. “Um, Sally, we’re at Julian’s party, and, I’m not wearing my swimmers,” he said. He sighed, “I didn’t even bring swimmers.” “So? Neither did I.” I giggled. His eyes widened and he mumbled incoherently. I rolled my eyes, and before he knew it, I pulled him under the water. When we finally rose up to the surface, sputtering and coughing, he looked at me indignantly. “What’d you do that for?” he whined, rubbing the water out of his eyes. I giggled maniacally. I shrugged. “You looked hot. I thought you might have needed a cold, refreshing bath.” I said plainly. He furrowed his eyebrows. “You do mean that literally, or what?” he said worriedly. “...Because if Julian...” he trailed off and blushed scarlet. “Because if Julian what?” I asked curiously. “Forget it.” He mumbled. I somehow felt very naked because my blue cotton shirt was sticking on so close to me you could pretty much see my bra, so I slid down so the water was up to my neck. “See, there's the thing.” James said promptly. “I'm James Nightingale, but beyond that.... I just don't know, I literally do not know who I am. It's all untested. Am I funny? Am I sarcastic? Sexy?” he winked at me “Right old misery? Life and soul? Right-handed? Left-handed? A gambler? A fighter? A coward? A traitor? A liar? A nervous wreck? I mean, judging by the evidence I've certainly got a gob! And how am I gonna react when I see this? My best friend, all grown up. My best friend who is all grown up and certainly off-limits. Ah-ha. Which leaves us with a great, big, stinking problem, 'Cause I really don't know who I am. I don't know when to stop. So if I see my best friend all grown up –who is certainly off-limits- then I just wanna do this...” He inched closer to me and attacked me, like we used to at my grandmother’s pool. I laughed and grabbed onto his shoulders, but he swiftly turned around and caught my arms. “Ha!” he yelled, as I struggled to break free. I pulled him underwater and jumped onto his back. He was turning around for a few seconds, unable to find me. I laughed hysterically. “Oop!” I slipped off his back and into the water, making a big splash. I rose up to the surface to see James staring guiltily behind me. I turned around, puzzled, to see Julian, Gwyneth, Lucy, and half the partygoers staring at us in shock. “You bastard!” shouted Julian to James First, you're completely lost when it comes to grammer and spelling. -x- I like your answer, and I'll heed it, Melissa, but I spell the British way, so everything might seem topsy-turvy.

off balance, ringing in ears, fatigue, tiredness? history: woman, 52 yrs. plus minus 5/6 yrs ago began with dizzy spells. could happen whilst doing almost anything. occasionally would have a "black out" lasting a split second but would feel like was fainting, then would "snap" back & all ok with my world again. biggest fright came when i was behind a steering wheel of my car, scared the you know what out of me, that's when i sought medical help. diagnosis, fluid in the ear!! the off balance feelings began to gradually become more frequent tho as the years have progressed. biggest scare to date: 2010, saturday morning, washing dishes, suddenly didn't feel well at all. told hubby that was going to lie down (10am). began feeling dizzy & nauseous. awoke hr or 2 later, stood up & fell over. I had NO balance whatsoever. my world was litterally spinning off its axis. i was helped to the bathroom where i time & again threw up. i had no balance AT ALL. i couldn't even bear to open my eyes cause seeing the rooms spin with such ferocity made things all the worse. hubby carried me to the car & off to the hospital emergency. my heart rate dropped alarmingly, although my body temp was up (can't remember what) i was as cold as ice. was admitted & i remained in hospital for '6 days' with no real diagnosis other than possible 'Menieres'. sent for a brain scan which they say looked normal! i would not wish that episode on my worst enemy. took weeks for me to begin feeling some kind of "normal" again. a year on & my "dizziness, off balance, ear ringing" is becoming worse.like it's gaining momentum. i can't look up at the sky, watch cars passing, anything that turns or spins, i daren't close my eyes in church i feel i'll topple, i must look like a drunken sailor whilst walking the pavement, i have dizzy off balance spells most every/all day now. i have been put on meds "Prochlorperazine" I am so desperate to put my world on an even keel that i cling to the hope that these will help in some way - 5 weeks on & still i 'hope'. not much difference i'm afraid! i function as well as i can with all this going on but it really feels like it's getting worse. oh & the "ringing" in my ears is more like a 'hissing', those who remember the test pattern noise you used to get on tv will get a better idea of what i hear. it's quite loud too. please explain, someone, anyone! (I have an amazing sense of humor & a bright outlook on life, but this stretches even me!). just shoot me perhaps!! ;) GL

Atheists, Life is too complex to be a random event? I was having a debate with a christian, and he mentioned that life could not start from nothing, therefore requiring a creator (God), and that the laws of probability do not support the Atheist belief that life is a random event. He wrote: "How does RNA polymerase know where to land on the DNA. How does mRNA know how to find the ribosomes? How does a spider know how to build a web? What is the exact chemical mechanism that occurred going from non life to life? There are 20 amino acids in the human body. The average polypeptide contains 500 amino acids arranged in a specific order. There are 10 to the 81st power protons in the universe. What's the probability that the universe randomly assembled each of those polypeptides in their current sequence in the exact balance in under 15 billion years. You don't need my help, you can do the math yourself." "If I walked into a casino and bet on a roulette wheel and picked the exact number 100 times in a row, nobody would believe that it was a random event. Not you, me, the casino, the state gaming commission, or the mob. It would be more likely to hide a marked quark in a proton in the universe and someone finding it on the first guess. That's how unlikely it is. But it's trillions of times more likely to occur than the universe randomly generating the amino acid sequence in hemoglobin, let alone the other tens of thousands of complex molecules necessary for life to exist." --- "So when someone says that in less than 15 billion years the universe randomly created all the complex polypeptides and other chemicals that work together in perfect harmony, simple mathematics shows how unlikely it is. And human beings have no experience with that degree of improbability. But don't take my word for it. Do the math yourself." continued... "You know that there are 2.2 x 10 to the 1328 power different ways that the molecule could have turned out. To put that in perspective, there are only 10 to the 81 power protons in the universe, which is less than 4.7 x 10 to the 17 power seconds old. Only one sequence is right. So just by doing some quick math, you can see that if the universe converted all of its matter into random polypeptide sequences once every one trillionth of a second from 15 billion years ago to the present, the chance of it randomly producing β-galactosidase is over 10 to the 1200 power to one against it happening. You have a better chance of finding a hidden proton somewhere in the universe on your first guess. You don’t have to take my word for it. Do the math yourself. How lucky for us that that random crapshoot just happened to turn out in our favor. And that it happened an additional 70,000 time in our own species. And that the rest of the biosphere just happens to complement our species." --- I'm no scientist, so what do you think of his argument?

tires shimmy, wheel shakes and pulls to the left? yesterday i went to get my tires rotated and they said i needed new tires because the front were wasted but the back had half life left and every thing ran ok no shimmy on the tires then i got the new ones cuz they said i needed them so i had to buy new ones and i went on the freeway today and they where okay. then i hit about 62 or 63 and the tires started shimming and the sreering wheel started shaking. then i slowed down and got back up to about 65 and it was shaking so the freeway lane was all straight and i started noticing it was pulling to the left. could it be that it needs an alighnment because just yesterday every thing was fine till the people at the shop put new tires and they also charged about 90 to balance.

What do I do? Gymnastics is starting to ruin my life it's too easy!? Okay me and my friend E started doing gymnastics together on the Saturday classes. Well after she started volleyball she had to stop Saturday classes because her vball games would go over. So she switched to Monday classes. There learning front handsprings and cart wheels on balance beams! (yes I can already do those but I never get to practice or anything because our class is so easy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Their class is doing the handsprings on the trampolines and my class is SOOOO easy because all we do is split jumps and pike jumps on the trampolines! JUMPS!!!!! THAT'S IT!!! THIS IS NOT BALLET! I told my mom how unfair it is and she said the only thing I can do is talk to my coach and ask if were going to learn handsprings and cart wheels on balance beams. (I can already do a back walkover which I sometimes practice there when I'm early but I have to kick off of something :/) Of course my coach will say no because our class is full of 6 year old's who can't even do a somersault. I'm not trying to be rude though. I only enjoy challenging things, I completely HATE anything like what my class is doing. My mom also said to live with it because I'm moving up next week. Here I'll reply the conversation, mom "It's going to get harder and harder once you move up." me "Good. Finally." mom "Well, there's nothing I can do about it but you should talk to her and see, remember some classes learn stuff differently." In my head I was thinking that talking won't help at all because like I said before, my class is full of amateur 6 year old's who should still be in preschool. I've even seen their parents holding their water bottles and helping them put on their shoes when it's time to leave. So, what do you think I should do? How do I prove this to everyone that I have better skills than what they think. How?!?!

When are the minorities going to have their training wheels taken off and ride a regular bike in life? Of course the training wheels represent affirmative action. The way I see it, whites are USUALLY (not always but USUALLY) riding the regular bikes by themselves using their balance and skill to succeed and get better. Some minorities that are granted affirmative action still have their training wheels on, and they don't need nearly any skill to ride their bike. Why do whites have to work harder to get into better schools? I'm in college now and I see blacks who couldn't write one clearly stated, grammatically correct sentence if their life depended on it...SERIOUSLY. I work my butt off for where I am, and there's no advantage I have, yet I will see a group of uneducated blacks sitting around playing video games, not going to any of their classes and they are miraculously not kicked out. If they were white, I can assure you, they would be. Blacks: do you want to be educated or not? You have so much offered to you, but I feel like only 10% of you if that really take advantage.

How do I get him on the bicycle? My son is 5 almost 6 (in July) and we cannot talk him into taking the training wheels off of his bike. I have to confess he is a pampered child, spending the first 4 years of his life with only women has made kind of "soft" He will get on his bike and ride but doesn't want to go very far and has no idea what balance means. I don't want him to get hurt, but I don't want him to be made fun of because he can't ride a bike. Help!

If you find damage to wheel cover after a service? I had my tires rotated, balanced, and air pressure checked at BJs for free just today as part of the life-time servicing after buying tires from them. I found cracks on scratched on my front wheel covers after coming home today. I think the earliest I can go back to BJs is on coming Friday. Do you have advice for contesting this kind of issue? Will making scenes be necessary? THe cracks and scratches on the wheel cover doesn't affect driveability of the car, and is not highly noticeable, but still looks bad.

Around the zodiac wheel- Oppositions on house axis: 1st-7th? I'd like to start a conversation (if I may use this kind of word here) about the effects of oppositions based on the type of house they are found in. Personal experience is greatly appreciated, but you're all welcome to answer even if you don't have this kind of aspect yourself. Particularly, I'd like to know your thoughts on the kind of problems that this aspect causes and the sort of compromise needed from both planets in order to reach balance. I'm going to use the 1st-7th house axis for starters. Relationship with self - relationship with others...As every pair of opposing houses, the 1st and 7th ones are interactive and influential in each other's activity...even more so when their energies are channeled through planets that oppose each other. If you have such an opposition in your chart, how has it manifested in your life so far? Have you invented some kind of trade-off in order to reconcile your opposing energies? Or do you naturally bounce forth and back without being able to find the "happy medium"?

How do I balance guy time and my girlfriend? I am in a tough spot. For as long as I can remember, I have spent Sundays with my best friend. He has a serious girlfriend (5 years) and she has always been OK with it. But then I met a woman about 6 months ago. She's beautiful, funny, successful and she even helped me paint my house and replace a water heater with no complaints. We are both in our late 20s I could see marrying her. It is the first time I've felt this way about a woman. The problem is that my girlfriend and I only have weekends off. She works first shift and I work second shift. So we only get to see each other on weekends. So that only leaves Saturdays. Because Sunday is guy day. Recently she asked why we only get to see each other once a week and that she'd like to see me more. After I explained that Sundays were for guy time, she looked upset. She asked why everyone couldn't go out on Sundays - like my friend/his girlfriend and her. But my best friend wants it to be just us so he doesn't feel like a third wheel (his girlfriend works on Sunday). So the four of us usually hang out on Saturdays. I am not sure what to do. I don't want to flake on my life-long best friend. But I also don't want to lose my girlfriend. She's been cool when I skipped a weekend of seeing her because I went camping with the guys and she hasn't pushed on more time until now. But if I give her more time, I won't have any guy time either. My best friend works the same type of schedule she does - first shirt M-F. Any suggestions on how to make them both happy?

Whats life like after hip surgery? 6 months ago I was involved in a horrible car accident. I suffered a number of injuries. The worst was a fractured hip.so I under went a surgery. I went from a wheel chair, to crutches .i recently bought myself a cane, to help with my limping. And find it very hard to walk at times as well as balance myself on both feet because I cant even stand straight, like I once could. So I find myself basically applying all my weight on my left leg. I was just curious if any one has maybe had some what of the same experience? If so, had it improved any? Thanks!

Am I getting a decent deal or not? Hello newbie here! I want to check and see if I am getting a reasonable deal. Here is what I got so far. DEALER: CJD Trade in: 2007 Dodge Nitro SLT 2WD standard options with 46,000 miles. No mechanical issues. Used Car: 2006 Jeep Commander Sport 3.7 L V6 4x4 (Silver) Mileage: 30,000 Options: Leather Seats (Gray) Heated Driver and Passenger Seats Luggage Rack Back up Sensors Adjustable Pedals Sunroofs Alloy wheels 1yr Satellite Radio Dealer Perks: Free Standard Tires for life as long as I own the vehicle. Upgrades allowed just need to pay the difference. Free emissions inspections for life Balance of 8-Year/80,000-mile limited warranty 3-year/3,000 mile bumper to bumper warranty CARFAX and AUTOCHECK both came back clean. THE NUMBERS: KBB TRADE VALUE: 12,000 Fair NADA TRADE VALUE: 12500 Average KBB USED VALUE: 19,500 NADA USED VALUE: 19,575 Purchase ORDER: Asking Price: $22,191 Trade in Value: $15,541 Cash Difference: $6,650 PA TX:399 License Trans. $138.50 Balance of Previous Loan: $15,541 Out the Door: $22,728.50 Payments now $404 after $375 Obviously the dealer has brought up the price of the used car and shown me full trade by paying off my loan. However, all dealers I have been to have come out around the same for a 07 Cherokee and 07 Commander. Both are basic models and similar mileage. The numbers change of course by them offering me less for my trade and less for the car. I just want to make sure I am not getting ripped off. I am not concerned about power. I don't need a V8 in order to get to and from 'work and small trips. Í like the look believe it or not, and so does the one who will be driving. My wife! Its actually lower payments. Going from 404 to 375. The car retails with those options at 19,500. My trade values at 12,500. I am not really paying 22,700 for the car, they are just hiding the inequity of the car in the price. It just looks better to the bank. I have tried several dodge dealers and cant get even a similar deal. Most are offering 8 to 10 grand for my nitro. My two goals were to get my wife into a 4x4 and lower my payments. Her goals was to get into a 4x4 and love the vehicle. Looks good, just wanted to get some advice. The car on carmax does not have the same options. Leather adds a few hundred dollars, heated seats adds a few, sun roof adds a few. Plus if you look, thats a "NO HAGGLE PRICE" I agree that moving the dept is bad. I dont like it. But I have to... correction...i would like to get my wife into a 4x4. The nitro's two wheel drive was just horrible even with snow tires. _I bought it in florida if your asking why" It does lower my payments even though my dept is going up. I could go with cheaper 4x4 yes, but then I sacrifice size. hmm. dont know. I am still dealing with other dealers. Also, try that same search in my zipcode 15001. Results change a bit.

feeling like the 3rd wheel with my boyfriend and his best friend? My boyfriend's best friend just moved back here from out of state a few months ago. he lives in a city about 30 minutes away. there are also a lot more job opportunites where he lives yet, he got a job at a restaurant right next to my boyfriend's house. he goes over there every night and they stay up until 3-4am. then my boyfriend always complains about being tired, so i say "go to bed earlier". my boyfriend also said he wanted to stop "smoking" to save money and because it makes him act like a jerk when he does it a lot. now that his friend is back, they are smoking more than ever and he has acted like i don't matter. he invited his friend to come to dinner with us on our anniversary and i planned a date for my boyfriend and i last week and he invited him to come. it completely ruined it! i felt like the 3rd wheel. i work and my boyfriend works a lot too, so i only see him 2 days a week, so anytime i get with him, is special for me. most of our days together, his friend comes over around 10pm and my boyfriend basically puts me to bed and i go to sleep alone, while he is hanging out with my friend. what should i do? *also, my boyfriend has had an issue a long time ago with me spending too much time with my best friend. so, i balanced my time between boyfriend and friends because it bothered him. actually!!!!!! yes, i tried this. hooked him up with my best friend and she is freaked out by him because he's been controlling and jealous of any guy she talks to. so, i don't know what else to do!

Anyone recommend a harness for balance; a crutch for my 3 legged boxer dog. He's missing the front left.? I have looked at EddiesWheels and K9 and I am hoping to find more options. I think those are too big and cumbersome with the huge wheels on the side. If anyone knows how I can make one myself or have any links or suggestions I sure would appreciate it. Also, I think putting a harness with some kind of crutch - piston leg that he can lean on. But he doesn't have a nub. They cut his shoulder off when he had cancer in his leg. --- I am so upset...he fell on slick floor and stretched his 3 legs out last week and has not been the same. He is weak. I am so sad and want to do all I can for him to get stronger and to have a great life... he's almost 11 and has been 3 legged for 8 years now. Thanks in advance!!!!!

What will you rate my songs on the scale of 1-10? Sometimes I wish I can just stop emotions stop the world but the feelings still in motion maybe one day we can be sweet again i might come sweep you off your feet again i hope that day is near but i fear that i might feel pain again so we keep our distance sometime i wonder if this relationship is still in existence I wish i could change everything in one sentence balance out the love and hate than life would be great but the reality is this is actually one big catastrophe i hope you understand my philosophy i destroy hearts mentally can you keep up with the capacity and learn my strategy im just looking for that fire like a cave man and i been working on the beat like a slave man you understand the desire emotion converge setting the world in a blaze im walking in my mind it's more like a maze dont be amaze when i climb out despair i keep life rolling like a wheel chair i been through so much i dont feel air I feel broken dreams wrap around failure and a false culture covered in lies dead and covered in flies SECOND VERSE The tragedy is im feel with your Ecstasy you lying saying you can feel my every fantasy you just a distraction plotting on my destruction on the way to the top but nothing you can stop me if the sky fall you still couldn't drop me rappers aint rappers there just duplicated copies put together sloppy with glue the game is mines get a clue your conversion was just a diversion i put together the real vision than made a transition to anybody of my decision rap aint a sport its more of a competition dont this aint a intermission it's more of a inner-mission this is pain and devotion i want spend my life waiting on a promotion this is deeper the waves on the ocean you niggas at the bottom of the sea flour you aint hardcore i wreck microphones with every chromosome in body hang niggas up like telephone yall faker than silicone

COMP 107 - How To Ride a Bike? Riding a bike is pretty much the simplest thing you can learn in your life. It requires some basic steps, which shouldn’t be a hassle to the average person. You might want to consider buying a tricycle to teach you the fundamentals; steering and pedaling. When you’re ready, move up to a small bike with training wheels. Remember to use your body for balance, not your handle bars. Keep your handlebars completely straight across. First, put one foot up on your pedal. Immediately, lift up your other foot as you start to push the pedal with your foot. Just keep pedaling! Don’t worry about your balance. The rotation axis of the wheels moving forward will keep you upright. Do you think this paragraph is an A paper? My teacher is a grammar head. He skim the paper earlier mentioning it was too short... I revise it but there are only some manhy things you can write to learning how to ride a bike.... =/

I need help with my short story for English? I had to write a short story for English about a fictional bully.I'm in highschool. Does my story make sense? Do I have too many details? The main thing is the grammatical errors, so grammar nazis are welcome! I've edited once but I want to make sure I got everything. There was a time when the Lakeview Playground was terrorized by one boy. That boy was Brian Romanovsky, a lanky boy with fiery ginger hair and masses of freckles and a multitude of scars from sandbox skirmishes. He also had a biting personality. Brian’s reign on the playground had started the previous summer, when Teddy the former bully had started kindergarten. Life as the supreme ruler of Lakeview Playground would change for Brian one September afternoon. His actions, like the merry-go-round, would soon come back to him full circle. It was a day like most others; the weather was one of a typical September day. It was bright and sunny, but with a chilly breeze hinting at the oncoming arrival of fall. The children were in their regular routine of playing. Marnee Wilkinson and Janet Eberhat were skipping rope by the oak tree. Will, Josh, Jacob were on the jungle gym. The younger children and the Weiss twins were blissfully playing in the sandbox. Brian however was on a mission to upset the peaceful balance of playground life. Brian felt a rush of adrenaline as he destroyed the Weiss twin’s sandcastles. He jeered as he watched the two identical pigtailed girls form their mouths into round pouty “O’s”and let out shrieking wails. Brian strutted away; he gazed around at the other children contently giggling as they played. In his own five year old mind he was the big man on campus, or in his case the playground. Brian contemplated whether he should take control of the merry-go-round or the see-saws, but a shiny red speck in his peripheral vision diverted his attention. It was David zooming along on the new tricycle he had gotten for his fourth birthday. Brian sauntered over to David pedaling away on the tricycle, Brian then menacingly shoved David to the blacktop. He ignored David’s protests and greedily took the tricycle. Brian hopped on to the tricycle and started pedaling at full speed. He saw the empty path ahead of him. The new view was all his. Brian was racing along until the front wheel of the tricycle sunk into a lone pothole. He went airborne for what seemed to be an eternity, but time seized when he collided with the pavement. Brian’s chin started to quiver and his started well with tears. Brian from this new vantage point took in what was around him. He heard the wheel of tricycle ticking as it spun uselessly. He heard the worrisome cries from his mother rushing over to aid him. He saw the smug smirks of satisfaction from the Weiss twins and David. The once vivid blue sky turned somber gray with a specter of a thunderstorm. Brian was rushed to the hospital and received six stitches to his chin. He never returned to the playground again. sorry for asking this more then once, I haven't received any clear answers @ Rosette I'm in an AP English class, I dont write fan fiction. Which is probably why it's "boring", I admit that yes there are some dull moments, but the main purpose of the assignment is to have a creative assignment that incorporates symbolism and fluidity . I take your suggest in stride however, it's really not constructive criticism or particularly helpful

I need short story help for English Class? I had to write a short story for English about a fictional bully.I'm in highschool. Does my story make sense? Do I have too many details? The main thing is the grammatical errors, so grammar nazis are welcome! I've edited once but I want to make sure I got everything. There was a time when the Lakeview Playground was terrorized by one boy. That boy was Brian Romanovsky, a lanky boy with fiery ginger hair and masses of freckles and a multitude of scars from sandbox skirmishes. He also had a biting personality. Brian’s reign on the playground had started the previous summer, when Teddy the former bully had started kindergarten. Life as the supreme ruler of Lakeview Playground would change for Brian one September afternoon. His actions, like the merry-go-round, would soon come back to him full circle. It was a day like most others; the weather was one of a typical September day. It was bright and sunny, but with a chilly breeze hinting at the oncoming arrival of fall. The children were in their regular routine of playing. Marnee Wilkinson and Janet Eberhat were skipping rope by the oak tree. Will, Josh, Jacob were on the jungle gym. The younger children and the Weiss twins were blissfully playing in the sandbox. Brian however was on a mission to upset the peaceful balance of playground life. Brian felt a rush of adrenaline as he destroyed the Weiss twin’s sandcastles. He jeered as he watched the two identical pigtailed girls form their mouths into round pouty “O’s”and let out shrieking wails. Brian strutted away; he gazed around at the other children contently giggling as they played. In his own five year old mind he was the big man on campus, or in his case the playground. Brian contemplated whether he should take control of the merry-go-round or the see-saws, but a shiny red speck in his peripheral vision diverted his attention. It was David zooming along on the new tricycle he had gotten for his fourth birthday. Brian sauntered over to David pedaling away on the tricycle, Brian then menacingly shoved David to the blacktop. He ignored David’s protests and greedily took the tricycle. Brian hopped on to the tricycle and started pedaling at full speed. He saw the empty path ahead of him. The new view was all his. Brian was racing along until the front wheel of the tricycle sunk into a lone pothole. He went airborne for what seemed to be an eternity, but time seized when he collided with the pavement. Brian’s chin started to quiver and his started well with tears. Brian from this new vantage point took in what was around him. He heard the wheel of tricycle ticking as it spun uselessly. He heard the worrisome cries from his mother rushing over to aid him. He saw the smug smirks of satisfaction from the Weiss twins and David. The once vivid blue sky turned somber gray with a specter of a thunderstorm. Brian was rushed to the hospital and received six stitches to his chin. He never returned to the playground again.

What are your thoughts on Cody Rhodes dating Eden Stiles,LINK INSIDE? http://www.wrestling-edge.com/wwe-news-rumors/eden-stiles-leaving-wwe-due-cody-rhodes-cm-punk-facebook.html – Ring announcer Eden Stiles announced late Tuesday night on Twitter that she has parted ways with WWE after requesting to be released from her contract three weeks ago. She also stated that she is dating Cody Rhodes and indicated she left the promotion due to their relationship. Stiles tweeted this morning, “Most people in relationships prefer not to work together. There’s work and then your personal life. Healthy balance.” She added, “I left WWE because- as the most important person in my life put it -”the world is my oyster”. It certainly is! Keep following me!!” – CM Punk confirmed Tuesday on Twitter that he does not have a Facebook account. – Sheamus is advertised to appear at the World of Wheels at the Shreveport Convention Center 400 Caddo St. Shreveport, Louisiana on January 13, 2012 from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. I guess Rhodes and Layla broke up.Thoughts?

PLEASE! URGENT! Is it weird to be close friends with your idiotic ex? Let me start of by warning you that this is a little complicated, but I'm going to make it as simple as possible and try not to use too many useless details. Okay so my bestest frined invited me to her house for the first time a couple years ago and I met her brother for the first time. i already knew her parents. i was spending i few weeks with her family, just for the heck of it. And me and her brother Kasey hated each other on sight. I don't really know why, probably cause he was so arrogant and I was sassy in reply to his arrogance, but yeah we didn't hit it off. While over Teresa/Tess's (my best friend) house my other friend called and we got into a stupid fight. I was in the family room just flipping through the channel but not really watching the tv and I guess I looked upset cause Kasey actually sat down and asked me what was wrong. Up until then the only civilconversation we'd had was to ask the other to pass something at the dinner table, and that rarely happened. I reluctantly told him what had happened, and he pretty much tried to comfort me (he wasn't very good at it though) after that i think he just softened up towards me and we kind of became friends. About a week and a half later or so we went to the amusement park and went on the ferris wheel. Tess decided to sit that ride out and even to this day I could swear she planned it all out, but cliche as it was he made his move at the top of the wheel. he handed me a locket and told me it was tess's but she'd given it to him and told him to give it to someone special. I was still puzzled and he never did answer my question, he just leaned over and kissed me on the cheek and we pretty much spent the rest of the day holding hands and looking at Tess's smug smile. A few months later we broke up because he didn't think he could hand the distance, even though it wasn't all that far. We saw each other a few times after that and he finally broke down and told me that he made a really big mistake breaking up and that he was wrong and that if I could handle the distance then so could he so we tried again and we were pretty happy except for a few flaws. He had a bit of trouble controlling his emotions, It wasn't like he'd hit me or anything he just got really jealous or really mad or really depressed and there didn't seem to be a natural balance between them. The cause i soon found out by asking around was drugs. It really sucked to know that and I had to tell Tess but she couldn't bear to tell her parents so we tried to deal with it. It became a routine he would say he's clean and then I'd find out he wasn't. Back and forth. Tug O' War and eventually the rope snapped or more specifically i did I told them I couldn't take it anymore and that I wish i could help but obviously i couldn't and I left for good. Me and tess stayed bestest friend but I'd cut HIM out of my life completely. he called I blocked, he text I ignored, he pleaded I didn't hear it, but I wasn't heartless and I was worried tess gave me play by plays on how he was doing and it help a little. Eventually he got better and was able to quit and actually stay clean this time and he finally got in touch with me through his sister pleading his case to me. I finally talked to him. He begged me to come back. I told him I couldn't. Back and forth it went. We finally compromised on being just friend which was the best thing ever and made me so happy to know I could have him in my life and not be dating him. But if this is what's best for the both of us why does it feel so weird? so hollow like I'm faking it? I don't want to be with him but I don't want him to be with anyone else. I hope its just me being protective cause I've seen him sooo vulnerable at times, but how do I know if it's something more than that? I'm just so confused right now. Maybe it was better when we weren't talking at all? A little help from anyone...please. Sorry this was so long I feel bad about adding in the useless details I said I wouldn't add in so sorry everyone <3 I called him and explained that we would be better of not being friends. I just wanted to see how he would take it and he was still his usual damn persistent self lol He told me to wait for his email and I did. it was a song link, cause he really knows me and he knows that lyrics or music are the best way to get through to me. Here's what he sent, I don't know what the point of putting it down is but you might as well know his side of things orwhat he thinks it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewPhB0NBXqs and here's the other one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzYfjUQAAWk and the last one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKxC9FKQBuY there all a little too sappy for my taste and I bet the jerk knew that but sent them anyways. They did kinda make me cry though... its just sad to see him trying so hard to show me something I've always known. He cares.... ugh i kinda hate myself right now for not being able to make up my stupid mind. Here you go Lena, I'm 13 and he's 15, and ya I know we're young (especially me) and that I'm probably in over my head but it's not like I asked to fall for that big dummy, it just kinda happened, i guess. =)

Help me expand on this amazing philosophical analogy? Here's the analogy I came up with: Life is a lot like a wheel. The spokes are your love, your passions…your inspiration and muse. The rim is your earthly presence; what you do with your love. It’s a circle, and a never-ending cycle. It spins, presenting the good, the bad, the easy and the difficult, each in turn. Each phase brings life to the next. It’s all about balance, putting the hub dead center, with equal spaces and supports on all sides. This is what you must remember; this is what you can improve on. And remember too, that it is always…always turning. No matter what happens. Through tears, doubt, insult and injury and even death. It keeps turning. The question, then, isn’t so much about why there’s a wheel, what it means. The question—it’s more about where the wheel can take us; where you can take the wheel. So what might the road in this analogy represent? Or the actual vehicle....or maybe the spokes connecting one wheel to another? I just thought this was a pretty cool idea, worth elaborating on. THANKS! I was sort of getting at a reincarnation sort of thing, hence the "eternal rotation"....but I certainly see your point!

Can you please read my story and tell me what you think? Ok so go easy on me, I'm only 14 :D So the story is called Forever Broken. Here is Chapter 1. Hope you like it!! Chapter 1 “SLOW DOWN!” I screamed at the top of my lungs, “You’re going to get us KILLED!” “Oh, shut up,” roared my brother, Andrew, “You’re such a wimp. Take a risk for God’s sakes. I’m fine.” “Says the boy who’s driving 100 miles per hour!” I yelled. Andy just glared at me in response then tilted his head back, screaming hysterically with laughter. His breath washed over me and I was overcome with nausea, the scent burning my throat. I gagged. “You’re drunk!” I cried reproachfully to my brother. “Yeah,” he sneered, “So what?” “So? SO!?! Pull over now!” I screamed. Never in my life had I been so scared. I glanced over at the face that usually held care and love for me and kindness in his eyes, but now there was just a cold hatred. I shivered slightly at the hostility, and turned to look out my window, freezing at the sight. Houses, cars, and trees whizzed by at deadly speeds, dark and light colors mixing together to form a swirly blob. “Andy,” I whispered, “Andy. Pull over and give me the keys so I can drive.” My hands started to shake, and I took a deep breath, forcing myself to be calm. “You?” he snarled, “Ha! That’s a laugh. You’re not even sixteen, stupid. You don’t even know how to drive.” Whispering, I said, “I don’t care. We’d still be safer. You could... direct me how to do it.” I prayed over and over again in my head that he would agree. Andrew just kept chuckling, and jerked hard to the right as his eyes went back to being glued to the dark road. I wanted to slap that grin off that face of his and make him look at me, to see who he was hurting. I wanted to make him see reason. I didn’t like this new Andrew that was piss drunk and didn’t realize that he was hurting his little sister, emotionally and physically. I wanted to cry and scream, but I had to stay calm. I glanced around and saw the radio tuner. Perfect. Grinning to myself, I casually put my hand over the dial and started turning it back and forth. Andrew’s eyes flickered to my hand and muttered something. Realizing I couldn’t hear him, he shouted, “What are you doing?!” His head was turned towards me, his eyes wide with fury. “I’m changing the radio station,” I replied calmly, keeping my inner emotions in place. Slowly, I realized my hand was shaking, and forced it to stop, waiting until it did to proceed. I slowly inched my hand farther than the radio tuning dial, holding my breath to see if Andrew was paying attention to me. I glanced at his face, and saw that his eyes were on the road. I breathed a sigh of relief, and inched my hand farther. Little beads of sweat popped up along my brow as I reached nearer and nearer to the keys in the ignition. Then all hell broke loose. Andrew had seen my hand and jerked the steering wheel, throwing me off-balance as I desperately tried to keep hold of the keys. I landed on Andrew’s lap and he roughly pushed me off and grabbed the arm connected to the keys, yanking as hard as he could. I yowled in pain, but still held on. He tickled me violently and then, as I was a little breathless, grabbed my pinkie and twisted it backwards, breaking it. I screamed in pain and anger, finally letting go. Andrew was yelling at me and had his body turned towards me, pushing me hard against the glass. My head hit the window with a loud crack, and I howled in agony, feeling the trickle of blood flow down my neck. I then glanced at the steering wheel, which was twisting and turning out of control, while my brother was making a struggle to keep me away from it. I lunged at it, using all the strength I had, but my brother pushed me away once more, this time jabbing his elbow into my ribs, making me gasp hastily for air. I looked up into the hateful eyes of my loving and caring brother and tried to see the little of his true personality that was still in there. I then gave up and turned my head to look out the windshield. To look at the intersection we were barreling towards. It was about 9:00 at night and it was very busy. The way we were going, all light were red, which seemed to be screaming, STOP! Stop before you kill yourself! Danger! I gasped, trying to grasp the words I was so desperately trying to shout. I came back into reality when we were a mere 50 feet away from death. “Andy, Andrew,” I cried, “brake, BRAKE!!!” I heard his intake of breath as he turned to face reality. That was the last thing I heard before we crashed into 20 bars of 80 ton metal. So... How was it? Please feel free to give me some constructive criticism :D Thanks!! Hope you like it! I already have up to Chapter 7.. And I'm thinking of putting it up on Fictionpress.com... Oh well! Thanks again for reading! I just sort of whipped this up one day, and it's pretty much a rough draft. I will have to put in some more d Thank you all for your answers!!! They really helped me out a lot and I will definitely use your suggestions when I edit :) Oh and I describe what the characters look like in Chapter 2, but I will put down some more descriptions in Chapter 1. So... Thank you thank you thank you for reading and helping me out!!! I was so nervous to put this up but now I have more confidence to continue on with the story :) After I finish a couple more chapters I will eventually post it up on one of those sites where people can read/rate/comment on my story. Does anybody know any good sites to do that? Thanks to all in advance!! :D Oh and I don't know what to put in for the prologue... Or if I should even put one. Should I put a prologue? And if so what should I put in it? Thanks again to all in advance!! Oh and I know that he wouldn't go totally berserk and start hurting his little sister when he was only drunk, it was partly because of an event that took place earlier and he was still angered by it and afterwards he went and got himself totally wasted in his depression. So.. yea. Just to let you know. I put in more detail in Chapter 4 :) Thanks to all who answered!! I'm editing it right now :) Ok so I finally put up my story up onto worthyofpublishing.com. It's nowhere near being finished, though :D Here is the link if you want to read the rough draft :) http://www.worthyofpublishing.com/book.asp?book_ID=4234 You just have to scroll down and click on the chapters:D

What is the name of this toy? Basically it is a board, like a large skate board without wheels, but there was a ball set in the middle. You were supposed to balance and/or hop around on it. I think it was late 80s or early 90s. For the life of me, I can't think of the name. Thanks in advance!

Can you give me Gamestop trade in values please? Most answers 10pts.? Just, curious. Nintendo DSi - Nintendo DSi crrying case - Metal Slug 7 DS - Drawn to Life DS - Pac Pix DS- Jam Sesssions DS - Nintendo DSi Car Charger - Nintendo DS Game Case carries 4 games (2)- Metroid Prime Hunters DS - Nintendo Wii- Wii 2 GB SD- Wii Remote- Nunchuck- Wii remote covers 2- Wii de Blob - Wii Acme Arsenal - Wii Skate It - Wii Wii Ben 10: Protector of Earth - Wii Animal Crossing City Folk - Mario Kart Wii With Wheel - Wii Fit w/ balance board - Wii Rayman RR TV Party - Wii Super Smash Bros. Brawl - Wii Thrillville - Wii Sports Resort - Wii Motion plus 2 - Thanks. Offer? I can call MY local Gamestop!! Not total. Seperate. Sorry, I didn't clarify that.

Would you read these Manga stories I'm currently writting? Which idea do you like better? Ok I'm writing a manga and here they are: Murakami Ichijitsu Senshuu: Maki Uekusa is not your average high school girl. Devoting her life to protecting and supporting her younger sister, Chiyoko, while her mother is overseas, working parttime at a cafe with her four best friends and her hotheaded boss Takuya, and still trying to sneak in dates with Hikaru Akayama, Maki has to learn to balance her life with her schoolwork. However Maki has a new problem. She is supposed to fight a group called the Isejin, a group of foreign creatures who's leader falls in love with Maki, with a new line of characters, and prevent the Isejin from taking hostage of the world! The Assassin's Assistant: 14 year-old Fujiko Shirayuki(her name is temporary) lives a happy life with her father (her parents recently divorced) and enjoys playing with her close friends. That is until her father gets a new girlfriend, whom Fujiko can clearly see just is after her fathers money. When Fujiko overhears the woman talking to someone about murdering her father for his insurance money, and is caught by the woman she panics. The woman winds up trying to murder Fujiko so shell be out of the picture and so she can collect the money but Fujiko winds up accidentally killing her in self defense. Panicking that someone will find her corpse she takes it in a vault her father bought and stores the corpse there, but while she's wheeling it out her freinds catch her but, they ironically help her by chopping op thye body and burning it. This unlocks a chain of murders, killings, and insanity, including a smidge of romance. Shizu-Chan!: a story of pampered Shizu Kamiya who has never worked a day in her life. Struggling in her studies her parents cut her off from her money and send her to high school with her childhood freind to testing her to see if she can make it in the real world. Shizu is forced to live in adorm and face the most terrifying thing imaginable, HIGH SCHOOL DRAMA. Shizu has to face the popular girls, the jocks. The pervs, the nerds, the emos, the most popular guy in school, and all the romance in between. Its a story of sex, drama, and parties,(including the guy who gets a sex change O_O! ). Lol so what do you guys think of my ideas? Which do you like better( please rate them in #s please, lik1.Murakami Ichijitsu Senshuu,2)The Assassins Assistant3.Shizu-Chan!. You know as in how you like them! Please and thank you!

Can Anyone Critique My Story So Far? Sand In My Shoes Chapter 1 What do you do when you meet pressure everywhere and all you want to do is just stop up and scream at the top of your lungs? When your days are so stressed and stretched you go from manipulating your brain in the morning to manipulating the limbs of your body in the afternoon? Because that’s what I feel at this particular moment. Expectations everywhere, from everyone. Friends, family, teachers. Why can’t anyone see I’m about to collapse in the middle of it all? I can’t stand it anymore! Sally this, Sally that... It’s like I don’t have the time to be me. Right now, I just want to run away. From homework. From dancing lessons. From Oldest Girl duties. From everybody around me. From being imperfect. From my solo. Mam’zelle, my trampy ballet teacher, has been so hard on me lately. I feel guilty every time my feet fall from underneath me and she comes over, pulling me up for the umpteenth time. “You can do it, Sally! Let me see my Sally bloom...” And I try doing a triple pirouette again... and again... and again... But every time I end up on the floor, or looking like a drunk thirteen-year-old trying to find the way home after a particularly heavy night of partying. I know she means well, but I just want to let the tears bursting to run down my cheeks let go every time I do something wrong in ballet. I don’t want to disappoint Mam’zelle … but I do. Over and over again. All this work doesn’t give me many minutes off. Of course, ballet is a part of my leisure time, but nowadays it feels like anything but that. I have been watching friend after friend fade away from me since fifth year, when everything intensified with standardized tests and all. Seen the sadness in their eyes when I whispered, “Sorry... I have a ballet class that day... and homework.” And then they started being adopted. And lost contact after a while... and I became the fifth wheel. And they forgot most of the busy, clever Sally Sparrow. I'm glad the few friends I have are people I know will stick with me till the end. They are friends I can rely on … trust. Thank God for them. If they hadn’t been there, I don’t even dare to thing of what would happen. I would probably be even more of a wretch than I am now. I used to smile, I used to laugh. I found it easy to reply in a funny way or generally be a happy human being. But at some point that suddenly became very hard. Of course I smile when dancing, but it’s just thirty-two muscles in use in my face. I can’t put my finger on when that happened, but it probably had to do with all the major changes in my body when I became a teenager. Have you heard about that sort of thing? I suddenly lost control when dancing … my body just wouldn’t co-operate, the technique became impossible. My balance played tricks on me. It took years to get back to where I was … and all of it because my body decided it was time to turn into a woman. Of course everybody goes through this process, more or less, but I felt it was extra heavy on me. My heart doesn’t smile anymore, either. If you take a closer look, I’d bet anything my eyes don’t smile either. I don’t know what can really make me smile any more. Another word familiar to me is confusion. I feel like I have never been able to be completely sure about something of importance. Never. I feel like I’m just drifting around, living life in a routine. I can buzz around, not really knowing what I am doing unless it has to do with ballet or school. That’s the only hag I can put anything on. Ballet and school. Boyfriends and love have ended up the same way as my friends. I remember some temporary crushes I’ve had through the years, but never something serious. I had one boyfriend once, and that lasted for three weeks. I remember our last words so clearly... “I’m so sorry, Bryn, but I don’t have time. You know what I mean... I’m too busy for this relationship to continue, and there are... circumstances.” “Too busy, Sally? When will you stop being busy? How will you ever be able to live life when you’re so dedicated to everything but me? I thought I would be your number one priority... But the way it looks now, I don't think you'll be able to put any future boyfriends first either...” I had stormed out of the dancing studio, still having dancewear on. He was so right. A part of me had turned him down because I knew I wasn’t really in love. My feelings for him had been too ‘friend-like’ when it came down to it. I had fooled myself, thought I was in love when I was really just longing for somebody’s arms around me, somebody who could understand me and love me. When he pointed out the busy-part to me I felt a whip of pain soar through my body. He was so right I was almost afraid to admit it. I was so glad we only had one night of kissing and cuddling. I think it was then I found out it wasn't supposed to be us after all. That is another one of my invisible mistakes. I hate taking risks. I never want to do something if I’m not sure exactly how it will turn out. I don’t even dare to fall in love any more. It's too risky. Getting hurt by a bloke I think is right for me is something that definitely won’t do my self-image a favour. Everything makes me feel less valuable. Even when I received top marks in most of my exams last year did I feel the jolt of joy inside me I ought to have felt. My teacher, Miss Stein, didn’t stop bragging around about the result of my Math exam, as I was one of her three favourite students who received over a ninety. I didn’t exactly feel proud, I just breathed out in relief because now nobody had anything to put their finger on. The mirror is my worst enemy these days. When I look onto the blank surface that shows me my reflection... I don’t see anything worth being proud of. I have always despised the way I look. No matter how many times mother told me I had a beautiful face did I look any different in my own eyes. I started taking dancing-lessons at five. It's been with me all the way and been a great help to clear my head and focus on other things. I got so good that at the school plays we started having little performances, and everybody loved it. That is one of the few things making me happy; to stand on a stage in front of an audience. Soon we had three ballet classes at the school. Mam’zelle came along, and turned out to be a great teacher for all three of them. She always knows how to encourage her students. I was in the first class during my first, second and third year, then changed to the second class. Now I’ve been in the third and best class for a year, with five lessons a week. I loved it. It used to be the one thing that cleared my head off everything else. But Bryn changed that. Now I know ballet can also be a burden. “You can do it, Sally! Try once more!” My eyes filled with silent tears as I sat down on the matt floor. I buried my head in my hands, feeling the blood rushing through my feet in the hard Pointe shoes. “I can’t do it, Mam’zelle. I can’t.” She sat down next to me and stroked my back. “I know you will be able to. Just have confidence!” All the other girls in my class figured there was something wrong that day. When I sat down and gave up on that exercise. When Mam’zelle escorted me to the changing room and had a long, nice chat with me about confidence. Now the delayed autumn-show is coming up. I have been practising all summer. Mam’zelle has given me another ballet solo. And I know it will turn out disastrous. With my mood and my lack of determination, I’m bound to collapse on stage and turn as red as a tomato in front of a thousand students. I’m going to be remembered as the failure of the year. Chapter 2 It was Saturday morning, and I constantly screwed up my eyes in pain. Lucy had dragged me out of bed an hour ago, and now I was lying almost dead on the orange settee in the corner of the sitting room. “You so deserved that…” Hanna came over, looking sternly at me. “That’s what you get when you’re hanging out with Julian Fisher when he’s drinking.” “What?!” I yelled, but quickly calmed down, because my head just ached more when I spoke louder. “I didn’t go to bed with him like any other girl would do!” Hanna threw it off. “I’m sure you would have if you’d had only one more sip… what got into you? You’re the Head Girl, for crying out loud!” I looked at her, my eyes poisonous. “What about the Head Boy? He wasn’t exactly sober either?” Hanna just rolled her eyes and sat down next to me, wrapping her arms around my body. “Sally… That was a bad, bad, BAD move. Do you even know what you did before we came and rescued you?” She whispered, keeping her voice down so I wouldn’t cry out in pain. “Can’t say I do,” I sighed. “Unless James or anybody tells me...” “Do you call him a reliable source? He had been drinking too, you know.” “Yeah, well, he wasn’t drunk! He probably remembers. I’ll go ask him,” I said firmly, trying to get up without getting the feeling of a thousand knives burying into my body. “Oh no, you’re not! I’m getting him down here, you can’t even stand up properly,” Hanna exclaimed, getting up and making sure I settled down again. “Be back in a moment…” “It’s the party-girl!” Julian came over to me, singing in a cheerful voice. “Get away, Julian, your decibel-level is a bit too high for me right now…” I murmured. I pulled my blanket over my head, covering my probably hideous-looking face. “Ok, sorry,” he whispered and came to my level. “Anything I can do for the tired girl with the worst hangover?” “A glass of water would be nice…” I yawned. “A glass of water it is!” Julian yelled, smirking and dancing up and over the floor. ‘What’s with him today? He seems unnaturally happy… Ouch, that yell hurt…’ Gwyneth came over next, I didn’t get why I had to be so popular when I just wanted to hide away and sleep in the closest cupboard. He was looking tired as well, but not nearly as bad as I did. “I’m surprised you’re still alive, Sally!” she said irritably. “Guess who dried up all the stuff you threw up last night?” “Sorry,” I said, trying to reach out for a hug. “Don’t think so, Sally… you still stink, I’m afraid. Don’t know what made me come over here in the first place!” “Ah.” I blushed a little. “Well, be glad you threw up, or you might have ended up in the hospital. You didn’t save any, to put it that way…” “Hm… can I ask you a question?” I dared to say, still half-hiding my face. “Sure, shoot,” Gwyneth smiled, sitting down at my feet. “What did I … er… do when, well, you know… the alcohol had started running in my veins?” I forced out. She pretended to be thinking. “Hard to tell how many bottles you had, but it sure came up again after some hours. Before that you lost it completely, you just messed around like drunk people happen to do, you know?” “Meaning?” I said firmly, sitting up as far as I could manage without passing out. “Well... You noticed Julian being a little… happy this morning?” he began. ‘Holy mother of God! I couldn’t have… That’s not POSSIBLE… Please tell me I didn’t sleep with him… Anything but that… Oh my GOD!’ My mind was going berserk. My eyes were widened into a shocked expression, and I held my breath as Gwyneth continued. “He made you… well… let’s just put it this way; you’ll slaughter him when you find out… that…” “TELL ME!” I yelled, throwing myself down onto the couch again as the pain ate my brains out. “Ok, Sally. He made you burn all the stories you’ve written for… well… practically every month up till now. Then you had a nice little twisted game of snap, ending with you sitting there in your underwear laughing like a little baby with your unfocused talking. When you were about to remove the straps of your bra, Hanna, Luce, Grace and I burst in and rescued you…” ‘What? Thank God they came in time… thank God I didn’t sleep with James… Or showed him my more intimate places… Oh, the relief!’ “And not to mention… You kind of went at it with James.” ‘NOOOOOOOOOoooooooo…’ “WHAT? What happened! Am I still a virgin? Gwyneth!!” She laughed at my desperate reaction. “I must say James impressed me. The poor chap stopped you when you were half-way through pulling his trousers off. You went mad, Sally!” ‘No, no, no… this isn’t happening!’ “Sally, be glad it ended there. Be happy there weren’t that many seeing you behave like that. Because that could cost you your position…” I started crying. I was so super-sensitive these days it scared me. “I’m sorry, Gwyneth! I promise I’ll never, ever drink again!” I sobbed into her grey shirt, soaking it. “Maybe I’m not the one you should apologise to?” she whispered, pointing at James making his way down the stairs from the boys’ dorm. “By the way… could you back away a little? You still stink.” James looked almost mad, like a dog longing for his prey. Don’t know how that expression came into mind, but that was exactly what he looked like. “Sally, you should be damn happy. I think that’s about the first time I’ve managed to control myself, ever,” he groaned. “I’m in awe,” I smiled, pulling him into a hug. “You stink,” he whispered into my shoulder. “I know, sorry about that,” I hissed. “God, Sally! That was the hardest thing I ever did! You should be unbelievably thankful, because you weren’t exactly shy last night...” “ James… calm down, you sound as if it was the end of the world!” Gwyneth exclaimed, and I put my hands over my ears. “So… Why didn’t you stop me when I was about to strip playing exploding snap with Julian?” I said sternly to James. “You managed to keep me from shagging you just fine.” “Sally… A bloke ought to have some fun, can’t let all chances pass by,” he smirked. “Oh… you son of a--” I started, but Matthew finished for me. “Bitch, I know. After you’ve met my mum that phrase gets a whole new meaning. To me it’s not offensive at all. More of a compliment. Reminds me of the fact that I am such a fine young man even though I have a bitch for a mother.” I rolled my eyes and rested my head on the couch again. My head was about to explode. “By the way…” I said by second thought. “Did you get your way with March? I think you did because you were probably so turned on after rejecting me it got easier to have a go at her. Or were you just so pissed and fucked up you backed out? Which one is correct?” James ignored me and turned away indignantly. When I saw Julian coming with my water, I gave him the coldest of stares. “You had better re-write all those stories over again that you made me blow up, Fisher! You evil big-headed twit!” I hissed. “Who spilled…? Damn you, Gwyneth!” The water in the glass he held ended up soaking Gwyneth’s face instead of easing my hangover… I woke up three hours later from a refreshing nap. I rubbed my temple as was relieved to know it was slightly lighter than it had been earlier. I lay down again to sleep some more when I heard a conversation going on in the couch next to me. I peered my eyes open and noticed Julian and James sitting there. “How far did you intend to go with Irma yesterday, Julian?” James asked, interested. “I don’t know, but she sure smashed her own bubble when she started whispering the names of other guys when we kind of got on the inside of things, you know… So it didn’t feel right to go any further,” he laughed. “Oh? But if she hadn’t, would you have?” James continued. “Probably not,” Julian said casually. “She wasn’t my type.” “Too brutal and fierce for you? Figured that. At least she was better than her best friend? Don’t even remember the name of that girl…” “Better? Nah, they were about the same. Irma Lesley too brutal and Stephanie Gilhart too quiet. Quite the contrary team, don’t you think?” “Uh-oh… Do you think Sally’s sleeping?” James stopped Julian. I felt their eyes on me, and I made a satisfied, sleepy moan to make them think I was sleeping. “She’s sleeping like an angel, believe me, after last night she could be sleeping through this century…” James smirked. “Yeah, guess you’re right,” Matthew answered. “Good job with… ahem… holding her at an arms length?” Julian chuckled. “Don’t make me discuss that, Julian… that was killing me.” Julian patted James on the back and probably gave him an evil stare. “What exactly did she do?” Julian pushed. “I was busy in my corner…” “You don’t want to know. If she did that to you, our beloved little Miss Sparrow would definitely not be a virgin any more,” he said slowly. “I didn’t know for a fact that she was a virgin… How do you know?” Julian kept going. James looked relieved when Julian picked an easier topic to discuss. Though I was not very happy about them discussing my virginity. “It slipped some day when we were talking. That’s another reason I stopper her, it would be a shame if Sally’s first time should be when she was drunk, and with one of her childhood friends in addition. She’d probably throw up for the rest of her life just by the thought of it…” Julian giggled softly. “It’s good to know you care about her, James… As long as it stops there.” “Don’t worry, Julian,” I heard James’ strangled voice, but obviously Julian didn’t. I pondered why. ‘What was that about? As long as it doesn’t go any further? Was I missing something here? “So you think I’d have her if she did the stuff she did to you? Tell me!” ‘Don’t tell him, James… I don’t want to hear this…’ I thought desperately. “No, I’m not telling.” James sat his foot down. “Hey, James, what is this? We tell each other everything, right?” Julian complained. “Yeah… but no… I’m not telling you this.” “You’re going soft for her! I’m telling you!” Julian exclaimed, scandalized. I almost gasped in surprise. “What? No... I just don’t want anybody to know, because I know Sally wouldn't appreciate it if I told the whole world...” he assured Julian. “It’s just me! Is it such a big deal? You’re obviously becoming trusted friends or what?” Julian said irritably. “Yep, and that’s the way I intend to keep it. I’m keeping so many of Sally’s secrets now I know they’ll all spill if I tell you this one.” “Go go go go go!! Tell me a tiny weenie one, and the big ones will come rolling along?” Julian said excitedly. ‘No, James… keep it together! Don’t you dare … wait a second… I could just wake up! He won’t tell then…’ The bright idea enlightened in my aching head. I yawned and stretched my arms, and intended to have some fun… So I pretended to be sleep talking before I woke myself up. “Oh, James, James. Wherefore art thou James? Deny thy father and refuse thy name!” I opened my eyes and saw Julian’s face expression reflect pure shock. James was so red in the face I wanted to laugh out in amusement. I yawned some more and looked over at the two boys. “What’s with the faces? I know I look terrible, you don’t have to make a face at me…” I smiled at them, knowing what was going through their minds. Oh, I'm a very mature twelve-year-old, just so you know. haha. OOps. Well, I'm meant to be thirteen in July, so whatever...

SAMS CLUB TIRES - Buy it if you have time, and dont care about the rotation and balancing service time !? I purchased tires at Sams Club, I based my decision on price, quality, service. Price -better than all stores around when I compared the same set of 4 wheels. Quality- same tires as competitors and its still in service, so its good quality. Sams Club employees Service- below average!!!! I want to find out if other Sams Club business/personal members experience the same problems I had when I took the car for the 'free' tire rotation and balancing service? Every 6000-8000 miles I take my car in for the tire rotation and balance at Sams Club. This was part of the package that was sold when I purchased the tires. The problem is: 1) When I purchased I was told that the service is good for the life of the tire and I dont have to be a memer So, last year I cancelled my memebership and this weekend I was denied service unless I enroll again. (Sams Club lied to me when I purchased the tires about the services) 2) Also I waited 2.5 hrs for the service to be completed (normal per Manager).

One day in the life of...Will you read it? Haiti 1974: Journal--Week One My first trip up the mountain. Our group was headed to a small, dilapidated church in some nameless, godforsaken mountain village. Our goal was to make any repairs necessary, and if there was time, do a little scraping and painting. It wasn’t at all what you think of when you hear, ‘mountain climbing’; the trail was wide and smooth, not really steep at all, with hundred of twists and turns. It was just dirt, but it was hard as concrete, often with deep ruts made from tipsy wooden wagons with wobbly wooden wheels being pulled by some kind of shaggy oxen with long, curled horns. We passed all manner of Haitians; women on the way to market with erect postures and slow gaits--with god-knows-what balanced four-feet high atop their heads, young malnourished boys with big eyes and wide, white grins and ragged shorts held up with rope--running alongside rolling metal hoops--guiding them expertly with sturdy sticks clenched tightly in their little black fists, and nuns--they were everywhere. You couldn’t walk a mile anywhere in Haiti without passing a gaggle of nuns. We’d been walking for hours, seemingly making little progress against the mountain, but we soon realized the views were becoming spectacular, so I figured we must be making some headway. And then, we heard a slow, rhythmic tapping none of us could identify. It was driving us crazy--trying to figure out where the noise was coming from. It seemed to be coming from all directions. Eventually, we spotted the source–a farmer using a pick-axe. He was far across the valley, on a facing slope, slowly swinging his pick over and over, working the soil of a small rectangular field carved into the mountainside. The field was clearly outlined from our perspective, almost like looking from the window of an airplane. We could see the tiny figure bright and well-defined in the thin mountain air, even though he was an impossible distance away from us. But what we found so fascinating was the sharp noise coming from his pick each time it struck a rock–it would reach us several long seconds after the swing was completed. We all stood there for a few minutes watching and listening. We had never seen a finer example emphasizing the difference between the speed of light and the speed of sound. Later, we found ourselves walking beside an enormous stone wall that seemed to go on for miles. It turned out to be a huge fort that also contained an ancient castle within its walls--like something straight out of Europe. It was open to the public as a remote tourist destination. The whole thing seemed out of place, as we had passed nothing but make-shift shanties thrown together with bits of wood, plastic and tin. We delayed our mission by a ½ hour to take the tour. There was an immense marble courtyard beside the castle--with a long section of it unprotected by the great wall that surrounded the fortress. No wall was needed there, because of a sheer drop of over a thousand feet, and legend has it--a general once ordered his five best soldiers to jump over the edge--in full view of a visiting commander during a momentary truce. Immediately, the five hurled themselves to their deaths without even a questioning glance. The story goes, when the commander saw the loyalty and devotion the opposing soldiers had for their leader, he gave up any further notion of war. I peered over the edge and tried to imagine myself willingly jumping off because someone ordered me to. It was unfathomable to my young mind. We stopped an hour later to eat lunch. Peanut butter sandwiches and 12 0z. cans of thick, sweet pineapple juice. I took the opportunity to examine my right foot, which had been bothering me for several miles. I was wearing new hiking boots, and I discovered I had an open sore the size of a dime right below my ankle-bone. The skin had worn right off. It would become infected a few days later. I crammed a religious tract down the side of my boot before lacing it back up. It seemed to help. I had been in Haiti exactly three days. I would be there for the next fifteen months.

I'm worried about my mother who keeps losing her balance and having falls-is it awful to consider a care home? I don't want to seem like an uncaring person- I've taken her to doctors and run around to X-ray places after she hurts herself, I just don't know what else to do? I've asked her does she want to come to my home, she says she doesn't want to, and I don't even know if that's the answer. She has a walker thing on wheels, but the other night she fell to the floor because it wasn't close enough. My brother lives with her , but obviously can't be there all the time and I'm not able to be there all the time either. Sometimes I just think she'd be better off in a retirement home or something where there's help available all the time, but I don't like to suggest it in case she gets upset.By the way,my mum's 82 years old Any ideas please? I do respect that she would want to stay in her home- it's just so worrying that she might fall any time. I do feel bad even thinking of a home, so I probably couldn't bring it up anyway- just wondered that's all

Very basic problems with my car? So the car that I have been driving for quite a while since getting my license, officially belongs to me now. It's a Toyota 2004 Highlander (4WD), with 110,000 miles still running perfectly, and has never broken down in its entire life span. I've had a couple of very small problems, elementary problems most likely, but regardless, I'm not a huge car person, so I don't know their causes/solutions. I'd really appreciate it if anyone could tell me why any of these problems would be occurring and/or how I would fix them (and if it would be a practical fix). 1) Drift Regardless of terrain, weather, elevation, incline, etc. my car drifts ever so slightly to the right. Is this due to a balance or alignment issue? 2) Steering wheel vibration This may be natural, but the very moment my car reaches 65 or 70mph, there is a sudden, fairly powerful vibration in the steering wheel. I was made to believe that this was natural for a large car traveling at those speeds, but I don't know. 3) Oil Are there indicators to mark when an oil change is necessary? I know that it's supposed to be done every 3,000 miles, but the sticker indicating when the next change was necessary fell off at some point, so Im wondering if there are other ways of telling when that needs to be done. 4) Windshield wiper annoyance I have just changed my wiper blades for brand new ones, and I still get long semi-circles of rain/wiper fluid that the wipers have not pushed aside. There is also occasional smearing. I believe the last brand I was using was Rain X, and they ended their life span with *terrible* smearing and missed sections. I literally just put a pair of brand new duralast wipers on, and they immediately began to leave sections uneffected.

I just had my first period.......does this story happen to everybody?.......? btw im 13 Oh my god! I was at my friends house and I just had my first period! My friend left the room for a couple minutes to get some snacks from downstairs, so i was in her computer room/office for a little bit. While she was gone, I decided to stand up on the office chair to see if I could balance on the wheeled-chair. Immediately following that, I feel a gush on liquid fall through my vagina and through my underwear. Confused, I look down to see my period blood pouring down my leg, soaking through my underwear and pants, and dripping all over the computer monitor and keyboard! I screamed probably the loudest I've ever screamed in my life! I quickly grab my hand and hold it tightly on my crotch to keep any more blood from dripping onto the computer and keyboard and ran outside the house. I pass by my friend, who looked at me with the most confused look on her face, and left a long trail of my period blood on the floor behind me as I leave the front door. Running home (which is a good 10 minutes away from my friends house), tears fill my eyes from embarrassment and blood drips down my pants and staining the streets. I had to cross school to get back home. I found hundreds of kids, laughing at me and also looking at me like I was some kind of alien. I couldn't take it anymore. At that moment I just wanted to be alone, so I took my hand off my bloody crotch and with blood soaked fingers, screamed at everyone around me, LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!!!!!!! immediately silence took over the school, and I passed out from embarrassment. I woke up to find myself in my bed at home to learn that my mom picked me up from school after the incident. so my question is: does this happen to EVERYBODY?!.

Funding for educational research and exploration ? Funding for educational research and exploration ? This is way out there I know, but I’m hoping someone will read this and help me out or someone knows someone that could. I’m not your average high school senior; I don’t play on any sports teams or stay up all night playing video games. I research and mess around with electronics. Building various circuits that do versus things, whether it is a small robot, computer interface circuit or a CNC controller I enjoy learning new things along the way. Problem is unlike being on a sports team where you spend say $100 on equipment or playing video games which are like what $50. Developing or constructing circuits and robots can cost any ware from $2 - $500. This is where some “donated” money would come in handy. I know this day in age this (the internet) probably isn’t the best place to be asking for money. But then again why does it have to be that way, why must we automatically assume that people are trying to scam us. I am being as honest as I possibly can with anyone reading this. If someone was gracious enough to give me some money for buying parts, books, software, or hardware I would do just that buy parts, books, software, hardware. I could even document everything I mean there must be some sort of protocol for that. If you are part of a company or just an individual that would like to give me a few dollars contact me and we will figure something out. Especially if you’re a company that employs engineers, I mean who knows someday I could be working for you and have to use a skill I learned in some way through your contribution. In that scenery your money would have been well spent, maybe even come back to you tenfold. Right now I’m a senior at New Prairie High School in New Carlisle Indiana. But I have been accepted into the Electrical Engineering and Computer Technology program at Purdue North Central, I will be attending classes next fall. This is definitely something I’m serious about. A few projects I am currently lacking the money to complete but have started designing or making prototypes of. A small UAV plane, two wheeled balancing robot (inverted pendulum), an underwater ROV, small robotic arms, and various control boards for steppers and DC motor control. Again I’m going out on a limb asking but it’s worth a shot, I enjoy this stuff and would sure appreciate the opportunity to bring a few of my ideas to life. Which reminds me I have an awesome way to generate free electricity but I’m not going to explain how it works here since someone could easily steal my idea. Contact me using my Live account not yahoo: justin-hulbert@hotmail.com Thanks, Justin Hulbert

Do you think friends should come first before boyfriends? DETAILS INSIDE!? Well my best friend got a boyfriend and she spent the entire summer with him and blowing me off sometimes. Its like she can't spend a day with me without bringing her boyfriend along. I feel like I'm her "school friend." During school we would talk and laugh during class but since summer is almost over, I never gotten much chance to hang out with her much. We had plans to go to the beach, zoos, sleepovers, and everything but its all out the window since she started spending 24/7 with her boyfriend. I have a lot of friends but whenever I hang out with my other friends, they always ignore me by talking on the phone or just being with their friends so I'm always the 3rd wheel. When school starts, we're gonna like go over to each others house like before and stuff but what about next summer? I wanna spend a lot of time with her. I made a promise that we'll never drift apart like what happened with my other best friend. She got a boyfriend and we drifted apart. I'm really tired of losing my friend to their boyfriends. I try making plans with them like going shopping or whatever their boyfriend surprises them with something better then they cancel my plan. I need your opinion if she's being a good friend or not. What should I do? I talked to her a few times about how I feel and her answer is always the same "I need more time with him before school starts." Hello? Theres weekends, after schools, and holidays. For pete's sake, he had you ALL SUMMER. Can't you spend just one day from him? That's what I wanted to say but I only choked out "It's ok. I understand. After all, you're with me during school." I was really hurt though. Her ex boyfriend is one of my best guy friends and my best friend understands that. I hung out with him for the whole day cuz I didn't have any plans that day and I had a blast for the first time the whole summer. We took pics, went to the mall, Applebee's and stuff then posted the pics on myspace. When she saw the pics she got upset with me. We talked and she said "When I saw those pics, I felt like he was taking my best friend away from me." My reply was "That's how I felt when you were with your boyfriend the whole summer." All she did was looked down at her feet. So was she right for getting mad at me for being with one of my friends for a day when she been with her boyfriend for the whole summer without knowing how I was feeling? My best friend is 15 and her boyfriend just turned 19 so I guess she obviously doesn't know how to balance her friends and her love life. When I had a boyfriend, I always make time for friends. I never ignored their feelings and stuff cuz I believe it should be "sisters before misters." Don't you agree?

Short Paragrah Review? Riding a bike is pretty much the simpliest thing you can learn in your life. It acquires basic steps that shouldn’t be much hassle to the average person. Memorize that you use your body to balance, not your handle bars. Keep them completely straight. First, you put one foot up on your pedal. Immediately, lift your other foot up as you start to push with the foot on the pedal. Just keep pedaling! Don’t worry about the balance, whereas the moving wheels going forward will keep you up. Im taking COMP 107 My English teacher is such a grammer head! Does the paragraph look good enough to receive an A. He told us to keep it simple, making sure everything is precise

Something feels off about my writing style. Any writers maybe read an extract and constructively criticise me? Lately, when I write, I feel like something is not right. If there are any writers on here who could help me out it would be much appreciated. I mocked up this little extract so that people could get a feel of how I write. I'm not focusing too much on my story-lines, I'm more focused on the way that I write and how I use the words. "There was a monotomous sound humming from the bus engine like an over-played song that had long ago got boring. Barry stood amongst many other tired, bored and down right depressed people as he prepared himself mentally for the repeatative values that the day was to be inscribed with. He'd always wanted a simple life, and now that he finally had the simplicity, all he wished was that something different would happen, something that would disturb the balance of his average, ordinary, every day life. Today his prayers would be answered; something very new was going to happen for sure... Whether it would be welcome or not, was a totally different question. A computerized voice called out "Woodgar Office Buildings" and Barrys body automatically, as if programmed, pressed the bell and stood at the foot of the door, at present his mind wasn't functioning fully due to the lack of sleep he'd been having. He was a total mess. Work had totally begun to eat away at his life, consuming parts of it bit-by-bit: First it chomped away at his social life, biting its teeth into the connection he had with his friends and family and tearing them off bit by bit before digesting them. Then it got his own life, taking up all of his spare time due to a presentation his boss had asked of him. Slowly Barry was becoming less life-like and more zombie like each day; people had really started to notice. Barry pressed the buzzer that would allow him to enter his office, number 32. A fierce buzz is emitted from the buzzer before being answered by the approval of the open door tone. Barry had never been one to complain about things, he'd always thought of himself as an easy going person who's sort of... okay with anything, and he was certainly viewed this way by his co-workers, which he saw as a huge benefit by his cards. The lift slowly opened its doors to reveal the office that Barry spent most of his days working in. A tall bald man with a beard and glasses approached Barry as soon as he recognised him, it was Tom and he looked as though he wanted to discuss social affairs as it was Friday and it'd become a tradition amongst the group of friends they had to go out every week. "Still coming out for drinks are we? Larry reckons you're gonna bottle it again, you proving him wrong?" Tom said in his joker-like voice. "I think I'm gonna cancel... I need to catch up on sleep, I'm totally shattered from staying up to do that bloody presentation" He replied. "Knew it... When you gonna start coming out with us again? it's not the same without you. It's like there's a wheel missing lately." Tom said, with a dis-appointed look on his face look on his face. "You know I will as soon as I can. Keith's been working me like a dog... although, most dogs don't work, so... not a dog, but like one of those horses that drags that big ass plow on his back." Barry Complained."

How good do bubble balancers work? I would like to be able to mount an balance my 13" and 14" tires myself. I'm considering either buying the equipment, or paying to have them done. Do bubble balancers do a good job with smaller car tires? Or should I just go have them balanced professionally? I know that they don't do as much as far as the spin balancers, but is that really necessary for small car tires? I just don't want to be going down the road 70mph and have the car vibrating all over the place. If it's just one wheel, I can take it in to have them balance it, but definitely not all 4. Any real-life experience input on this stuff would be greatly appreciated. I have 8 13" tires to mount and balance right now, and I found one place would do it for $12.50/ea, or for about $150 I can buy both a manual mounter and also a bubble balancer (which I'll have to do my own mountings from here on out).

What amp would i need for this system? Alpine SPR-13S Type R Split System x2 system includes two 5-1/4" woofers, 2 tweeters, and 2 crossovers hybrid layered-pulp woofer with rubber surround 1" textile ring-dome tweeter external crossovers — 12 dB per octave (high-pass) and 6 dB per octave (low-pass) 7-level tweeter adjustment power range: 8-100 watts RMS (300 watts peak power) frequency response: 70-27,000 Hz sensitivity: 86 dB top-mount depth: 2-3/16" Alpine SWR 1222D x2 Alpine SWR 1222D Type R 12" (30cm) subwoofer 1500W Dual 2-Ohm Subwoofer The Alpine SWR-1222D is a 12'' dual 2-ohm voice coil. The cone is Kevlar reinforced with Santoprene rubber surround for extended life. Features Power Handling: 200-500 watts RMS (250 watts per coil Peak Power: 1500 watts Sensitivity: 85 dB * Frequency Handling: 23-500 Hz Alpine iDA-X100 x1 Alpine iDA-X100 Digital Media Receiver Dedicated for your iPod * • Remote Control: Remote Control Ready * • Mute: Built-in Audio Mute * • Audio Interrupt: Audio Interrupt Input * • Remote Turn-On: Amplifier Remote Turn-On Output * • Power Antenna Lead: Power Antenna Output * • Dimmer: Dimmer Input * • Detachable Face Plate: Detachable Controls * • DIN Trim Plate: Detachable Trim Plate * • Calender: Built-In Calender * • Clock: Built-In Clock * • Fader & Balance: Fader & Balance Controls * • Bass & Treble: Bass & Treble Controls * • Steering Wheel Control: Steering Wheel Control Ready * • Auxiliary Input: Versatile-Link Ready (KCA-121B Auxiliary Input) * • DAC: 24-Bit Burr Brown DAC * • Bluetooth®: Bluetooth Ready * • PreOut: 3 PreOut (2V PreOut) * • USB Input: Full Speed USB Connection or USB Memory/Portable Device * • Easy Navigating: Quick Search * • Playback: MP3/AAC/WMA Playback * • Illumination Buttons: Blue/Red Illuminated Buttons * • Face Color: Dark Silver * • iPersonalize: i-Personalize (Wallpaper Only) * • Control Type: Double-Action Encoder * • Display: 2.2'' High Resolution TFT Color Display * • CD Changer: CD Changer Control * • Power Output: 50W x 4 High Power Amplifier * • Steering Wheel Remote ready * • IMPRINT ready (PXA-H100 required) * • 24-Bit Burr Brown DA I would like to stick to Alpine, Thanks

your interpretation of this CC tarot spread? his is a love celtic cross spread I did for myself- asking about my love life over the next 6 months. 1)Present- Wheel of Fortune - Means destiny to me 2) Crossing - Magician - Could represent me or a lover 3) Recent Past - Knight of Swords- Could represent someone 4) Distant Past - 7 of Cups - I have had a lot of choices in love 5) Crown - 2 of Cups - A relationship 6) Near Future - Temperance - Balance and happiness 7) Me in the near future - Lovers - Me in a relationship - combined with 2 of cups suggests soul mate 8) My surroundings - 5 of Swords - Confused by this card - I see it as selfishness 9) Hopes/Fears- Hanged Man - That I will have to be a martyr in the relationship 10) Outcome - 2 of Pentacles - A balanced relationship - this combined with 2 of cups also suggests a soul mate is around Clarifying Card - Hierophant - A commitment or relationship My interpretation is I will meet a soul mate (2 of cups, lovers,2 of pentacles) over the next 6 months. A fated connection (wheel of fortune). I am not sure which card is the person - maybe the magician? or Temperance? We will make a more formal commitment to each other (lovers and hierophant)

have you ever been silent about something? or afraid to speak? when you knew you should have said something? once again please accept my apology for stepping over the line in my original post ''have you ever been silent all these years'' this will give me a chance to add more detail to my question. the song by tori amos ''silent all these years'' is a beautiful song and it makes me cry sometimes because it reminds me of the times i should have opened my mouth and said something, but i chose not to because i didn't want to start trouble. i admit as a boy i was more famous at starting trouble with my mouth than the red haired kid in the john ritter movie "problem child" in 1999 my 75 year old father who was a diabetic was losing feeling in his feet.he waddled like charlie chaplin in one of his silent films. i had to be with him always because if he lost his balance and fell, he would never be able to get up, or worse if he missed a step climbing the stairs that would be the end of him. and being the good son i was behind him as he climbed the 13 steps to our apartment, if he fell it would be on top of me. i didn't bother me that if he did fall on top of me i'd be crippled paralyzed in a wheel chair for the rest of my life, he was my dad:-( our family doctor diagnosed his problem as spinal stenosis (a fancy term for the nerves in his lover back were being crushed) you can google it or look it up on webmd. our family doctor recommended back surgery called a "laminectomey" its where they open the lower part of your back where your tailbone is and remove the part of your spine that is putting pressure on the nerves. my mother also took my father to see her doctor. a very nice, and i must say a very smart lady doctor. she diagnosed my father with "diabetic neropathy" and no kind of surgery will give him back the feeling in his feet. she was right 100%! my father had the surgery and it damaged his kidneys. for four agonizing years he was in and out of the hospitial with kidney problems, until 2003 when his kidneys started failing, he spent a month in the hospitial,and passed away while undergoing dyalisys on april 12 2003. i cannot help but say to myself if i had made a stink or raised heck in the house, he would have never had the surgery. my mother is a different story. she was in fair health until november of 2007 when she contracted "shingles" better known as adult chicken poks. shingles is a very painful disease to have. and while there are new medicines to combat the pain and the virus,they did nothing fo my mother, she was in agony for a year and a half. many times she would say ''i want to go to the hospitial'' and i would argue no. because this hospital is no better than a human butcher shop. they only care how much they can bill your insurance or medicare. your treated like a piece of meat. the doctors look even younger than "doogie howser" my mother recovered from the shingles,but her health still declined,her breathing problems COPD and emphaseyma got worse, she had edima, and it got worse untill feb 11 2009 when she fell in the bathroom. not a hard fall, i was only 5 feet away from the door i would have heard that. a soft fall, but my mother screamed her head off, the people in my building who tryed their best to help almost ripped the door off trying to get into the bathroom. the paramedics came later and convinced my mother to go with them to the hospitial for x-rays. she whent. and that was the first time i was alone in this big empty apartment,it was a sign of things to come. i cried so much i dont know how i didnt get hit by a car walking to the hospital. it was about 2am when my mother came out of x-ray and was put back in the emergency room. it was a miracle she had no broken bones,bruises all over her behind and thighs, but no broken bones. i should have said "stay see if they can help you" instead i said "what do you want to do?" "you can sign yourself out if you want" she said ''ok ill sign myself out'' the week before she died. she was sluring he speech,and refusing to eat. and when someone says ''im suffering too much'' you know what that means! i know i could use a hundred excuses but as they say ''to thine known self be true'' if i had left her in the emergency room feb 11th maybe she would have been alive today, maybe they would have helped her, my mother was the only one of her family to pass away at 79. my mothers sister rose lived to 94 on a respirator her brother salvatore lived to 91 with one kidney, her sister lilly lived to 95 half bilnd in a nursing home. even my fathers family boh his sisters lived past 90. my uncle tony my fathers oldest brother lived to 97 smoking a big fat cigar every day of his life. ok ive said my peace, now its time for you to speak, if youve been silent about something? or wishe you had spoken up now is the time,speak it here.

Very vivid dream of losing legs what does this mean? I had a dream last night that really got to me. It was so real I had no idea I was dreaming until I woke up. I lost both my legs below the knee in a shark attack. I felt pain and everything. My right leg was completly taken off and my left leg was left mangled and the doctors had to take it off. In my dream, I got 1 artificial leg and was walking around fine on it but I still had the mangled leg on and it hurt so bad. I was in a wheelchair about to be wheeled into surgery to take my remaining leg off and I reached down to feel my leg where the artificial one was (I had one of the old-school style artificial ones in my dream that looked like a real leg but it was heavy and clinky) and I could NOT feel my leg during the dream. I pulled my artificial leg off in the dream and felt pressure around my knee area when it was coming off and then I put it back on. I was in the hospital now with both legs gone and I reached down to feel my legs and yes both were gone but I felt my hands touching them. I got up and walked in my dream with the artificial legs and it felt so weird. I remember crying to my mom and she told me not to worry that I would be normal still and could still do normal things and I felt so much anticipation about being legless the rest of my life and I cried in my dream. I had no idea I was dreaming. This is wierd for me because I can usualy control my dreams and know I'm dreaming in a dream. I know they say most people cannot feel pain in dreams but I always feel pain in mine if I'm going through something painful. As soon as I woke up It was so sudden. Usualy I fade away from a dream but I woke up so sudden it took me by shock and the first thing I did was reach down (lol) and touch my legs and I was thinking "thank God!" I wanted to go run circles around the block it made me appreciate having legs so much more. So I looked this up online to try to interpret it cuz I lost my extensive dream dictionary book and I only got that if you dream your legs are mangled you have lost balance in your life or something like that, but I think this is the wrong interpretation of that because in my dream I was strong even though I cried because I was walking on my false legs. But part of me thinks the dream was sent to me to make me appreciate having legs. I am not going to call myself lazy or anything lol but I do stay seated on my computer more than I should even though I'm doing something constructive the majority of the time I'm on it ( I make artwork in photoshop ) but that is something I enjoy doing. So any input on this? I don't want any haters coming in here saying "dreams mean nothing" because I think they do. The majority of my dream I was walking on the articial legs. The beginning I was swimming and a shark bit them off and I could see very gory details of my tendons and stuff just hanging off where my leg used to be. Thought I'd add those parts in.

Shouldn't we make our elected officials a lot less Comfortable? Congressional Perks: How the Trappings of Office Trap Taxpayers by Peter J. Sepp Since the founding of the Republic, Americans have had a healthy skepticism of the concentration of power. The Framers of the Constitution established a system they hoped would prevent not only the disproportionate accumulation of influence in one branch of government, but also the disproportionate accumulation of privilege. Today, Members of the United States Congress enjoy a vast web of perquisites that benefit them personally as well as professionally, including: Comfortable salaries that are often determined through legislative sleight-of-hand. Contrary to the arguments of many Washington "insiders," the cost of living has rarely eroded the historical value of lawmakers' pay, which on a constant-dollar basis is hovering near the postwar high. Pension benefits that are two to three times more generous than those offered in the private sector for similarly-salaried executives. Taxpayers directly cover at least 80 percent of this costly plan. Congressional pensions are also inflation-protected, a feature that fewer than 1 in 10 private plans offer. Health and life insurance, approximately 3/4 and 1/3 of whose costs, respectively, are subsidized by taxpayers. Wheeled perks, including limousines for senior Members, prized parking spaces on Capitol Hill, and choice spots at Washington's two major airports. Travel to far-flung destinations as well as to home states and districts. Despite recent attempts to toughen gift and travel rules, "junkets" are still readily available prerogatives for many Members. A wide range of smaller perks that have defied reform efforts, from cut-rate health clubs to fine furnishings. But the very nature of public office itself demands a more comprehensive definition of a "perk" than that normally applied to corporate America. Members of Congress can also wield official powers that allow them to continue to enjoy the personal benefits outlined above, such as: The franking privilege, which gives lawmakers millions in tax dollars to create a favorable public image. Experts across the political spectrum have labeled the frank as an unfair electioneering tool. In past election cycles, Congressional incumbents have spent as much on franking alone as challengers have spent on their entire campaigns. An office staff that performs "constituent services" and doles out pork-barrel spending, providing more opportunities for "favors" that can be returned only at election time. Exemptions and immunities from tax, pension, and other laws that burden private citizens -- all crafted by lawmakers themselves. Congressional pay and perks directly add hundreds of millions of dollars to the yearly bill that Americans are forced to pay for the federal government -- a significant cost for taxpayers, even if pundits dismiss the amount as a "drop in the bucket." Yet, beyond the basic issue of dollars and cents, Congress's perks have other pernicious effects. They distort the budget process, by diminishing lawmakers' moral authority to say "no" to special interest spending requests and benefit boosts for other government officials. They distort the electoral process, by tilting the playing field against challengers. Most importantly, they undercut efforts for long-term economic and budget reform, by insulating Members from the real-world effects of their own policies. American taxpayers and American government would be better served by benefits for Members of Congress that look more like incentives than perks. Enactment of proposals for a defined-contribution pension plan, a scaled-back franking privilege, a pay level tied to government efficiency, and a term-limit Constitutional amendment would help to restore balance to a system plagued by the trappings of office. http://www.ntu.org/main/press.php?PressID=343 _____________________________________________ Keep in mind this was written in 2001. We all know it's only gotten worse......

*****Prologue and First Chapter of My Book, What Do You Think? Its About My new novel Ele-Mental.My book is about a kid Who finds out he has Element Powers.He is mental.Crazy.He also has moodswings.When he gets mad he controls fire.when he gets scared he controls water.and so on. Its A book about a superhero with a not so super role. Anything I Should Include? Take Out? etc.? -Prologue:Mental Fate The amusement park was deserted. The park rides were shut down because it was barely dawn. No other living or breathing thing to be seen, not counting the bugs surrounding me and the dark shadow just dazed in a trance It was bearing the only reason I have to protect this world in its hands. The only reason I was living in it. The only reason that gave me power to ever control what was constructing inside me. It was caressing it like if it was his own. I felt my fists tighten, disgusted because he was holding it. I should have known it would come after my family. I thought I was always one step ahead of it but I was wrong. Standing at the top of the Ferris wheel I gazed at the dark figure ten feet ahead of me. Two Ferris wheel carts in-between us. Smirking his pointy teeth, because he knew I didn’t have any other choice, as if he had planned for this all along. None of us moving. One sudden movement would give me a chance to attack. Emotions inside me were getting out of control. I can see the different colors surrounding my body. Shifting from red, to blue, to green and so on like a color changing human light bulb. The thing then looked up at me. It glared at me with dark eyes like a snake ready to attack a mongoose. It clasped the leg of what it was holding with his right hand and extended it to act like if he was going to drop it atop from the Ferris wheel. “I have been waiting for this all my life” it snarled, “come and get him.” And to the extent of my imagination he let it go. Fury and anger swept through me. I saw the fire environed around my whole body as if I was caught on fire. In an instant I soared down to save my baby brother, knowing it would come after me. I was reaching out to grab him. I looked back and stared at the dark shadow that was turning into an immense monstrosity of insects. Chapter 1 -Hero? I really don’t consider myself a hero. A hero is someone who can show courage when faced with a problem. A hero is a person who is able to help another in various ways. A hero saves peoples lives and risks his own to do so. If many lives are in danger, he or she finds ways to save everyone, not just his or a couple. A hero is someone who does what he is afraid to do, have a mind of such a balance that no disturbances can shake his will. Someone who is a hero is temperate, hospitable, generous, and dauntless. A hero is someone who sacrifices his own life, not expecting any rewards. I am none of these things. I don’t want to ruin your thoughts of the superheroes you watched or read when you were a kid. So don’t say I didn’t warn you. This is a tragic book, so read at your own risk. If you do decide to turn the page, think if I’m a hero or not, because I still don’t know. The moment I get mad, scared, excited or sad it occurs. You would expect being calm wouldn’t trigger this but it still does. I have a very hard time trying to control my emotions. They are synched to this type of power I couldn’t control a while back. My mom told me when I was born that I was diagnosed with a certain disorder. To make it sound simple I change from one mood to another. One moment I’m mad and in an instant I turn into the happiest person in the world. That’s not the worst part of it all, not even close.

Help with the colors of nature? I'm trying to make a Nature color wheel, showing how opposites cannot exist without each other, and how they compliment each other. Something similar to the Yin-Yang symbol in a way. The Balance of Nature. Do you think I should include life in meaning humans/animals and how they fit into the balance of nature? Well I mainly just want colors of nature that can have opposites/compliments of each other. So far, I have Fire(orange) - Water(blue) Leaves/Grass(green) - ?(red) ?(yellow) - ?(purple) Thanks, all ideas are appreciated.

Wal-Mart Tire Customers? Why do people go to walmart or even trust them servicing their tires? Im a pro-certified tire and wheel salesman/Tech we have been in the bussiness since 1975 and going strong. we are a small independent tire family owned and operated bussiness. We have a local walmart and have had for year's competion yes, However not too bad if you will.we take pride in our work as well as our customers.For instance we do all the citites and townships service vechicles,state wildlife trucks/equipment etc..the local patrol cars/ambulances as well as heavy farm equipement/lawn tires simply everything thats round and roll's,we also do all the local automotive dealer's things.. im kind of venting sorry... anyways's for instance I get a phone call "i'd like to get a price on a tire" a customer looking for a 235/75/15 basic standard midsize truck tire even some older model care use that size. I find out the style tread they're looking for mileage etc etc...ok off the top tires are government priced as far as import/export specialty high mileage etc etc TAX tarriffs crude oil $1 state tire fee several times dealer to dealer dealer to customer etc..So I price a Cooper trendsetter se 50,000 mile Premium american ade american owned grandad ran em on his caddillac for years Cooper one of the first tire and rubber manufactures ..at $106.00 per tire that includes Labor,mount,balance new valve stem(premium parts) installed on and off the car...Wheels cleaned and sealed properly car treated with respect inside and out...one solid price... also free service for the life of the tire Rotate every 5,000 miles Proper repairs as well as re balance anytime free service no hassle no gimmick.... walmart has a 40,000 mile junk chinese douglas... for 85 but then u gotta pay this n that its a gimmick what im getting at is dont go to walmart to get tires

Money and dating.... my goodness how does this work? I am seeing a man who is kinder than anyone I know. He is thoughtful and considerate but he is always broke. We know each other long enough now that I finally broached the issue and his explanation is reasonable. He has some medical bills a couple of credit cards from getting through that time nothing really big---but his income is not enough to keep the place afloat. He works a 2nd job most of the time but since both a min wage he scrapes by. I feel bad for him but I am too old to dig him out. He works long hours and never gets ahead. he stays happy finds plenty of things to do for free...but frankly it drives me a little crazy... life costs money. I am spinning my wheels because I really enjoy his company but I dont have the funds to just pay for him every time we do anything..... I dont see any signs of this changing any time soon. do I just give it up? why is it so hard to find a balance? just a normal little life thats all I am looking for.....

I just had my first period.......does this story happen to everybody?.......? btw im 13 Oh my god! I was at my friends house and I just had my first period! My friend left the room for a couple minutes to get some snacks from downstairs, so i was in her computer room/office for a little bit. While she was gone, I decided to stand up on the office chair to see if I could balance on the wheeled-chair. Immediately following that, I feel a gush on liquid fall through my vagina and through my underwear. Confused, I look down to see my period blood pouring down my leg, soaking through my underwear and pants, and dripping all over the computer monitor and keyboard! I screamed probably the loudest I've ever screamed in my life! I quickly grab my hand and hold it tightly on my crotch to keep any more blood from dripping onto the computer and keyboard and ran outside the house. I pass by my friend, who looked at me with the most confused look on her face, and left a long trail of my period blood on the floor behind me as I leave the front door. Running home (which is a good 10 minutes away from my friends house), tears fill my eyes from embarrassment and blood drips down my pants and staining the streets. I had to cross school to get back home. I found hundreds of kids, laughing at me and also looking at me like I was some kind of alien. I couldn't take it anymore. At that moment I just wanted to be alone, so I took my hand off my bloody crotch and with blood soaked fingers, screamed at everyone around me, " LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!!!!!!!" immediately silence took over the school, and I passed out from embarrassment. I woke up to find myself in my bed at home to learn that my mom picked me up from school after the incident. so my question is: does this happen to EVERYBODY?!.

I don't understand what the point is. ? Why should I wake up in the morning? Why should I talk to people? Why should I bother doing anything? I don't get it. I always wondered why people seem so content with the crap that goes on. How can a man be so happy with a job in an office, where he works away and dedicates his waking life to some stupid corporate project? How can a woman be happy slaving away as a mother to ungrateful brats who will grow up and throw her into a nursing home? How can kids in school work and work at stupid crap like clubs and sports, and fill up their time with student council and studying, trying to get into colleges that will just overcharge them for their education and throw them into eternal debt, while they try their damndest to be able to buy groceries with a paycheck that could be beaten by McDonald's without a degree? I don't get it. I ponder. I wonder. There has to be something more. I feel like a rodent in a cage. Here I am, sitting at my computer, playing games. Oh, nice, a new item! Excellent! In fact, I was just playing World of Warcraft, and a guildmate just got a rare item in that game. Everyone in guild chat made a big announcement about it like they just gave birth or something. Why? It's a game. It's designed to keep you fat and happy, and to make you docile, to suck your money out of your pocket. So what if I wasn't docile? What if I didn't have all of today's newest trends, fashions, health foods, and cars to keep me fat and happy? Then what? What would I do? I don't know. Life would be just as pointless. I'd live a terribly boring life. So I wonder - on one hand, you have this incredibly stupid existence, surrounded by consumerism, materialism, fake food that is full of artifical crap and chemical crap that humans were, quite frankly, never meant to mess with - and on the other, you have this boring, harsh existence without any of that. Where is the balance? I can't seem to find it. I don't even know why I wake up in the morning. People are rot. They are organisms that are not to be trusted. They do everything for themselves, and nothing for others - nothing unless they have some sort of benefit to gain from it. The ONLY REASON you can go to the store and buy pre-packaged food products that are conveniant and tasty to you, is because some asshole decided it would be a good way to make money. They don't give two shits worth a damn about your convenience or your life. If they could make money off of selling decapitated infants to cannibals in South America, they would. And if it made more money than pleasing your fat ass, they would focus on that. So I go back to my original question. Why? Why. What is the point? Because I don't see one. I see misery, I see selfishness, I see hamsters in a huge cage, running in a wheel, oblivious to everything outside of their meaningless little world, full of NFL, NASCAR, Diet Coke, Burger King, Oscar-Meyer precooked bacon (it's easy and convenient!), Ford Explorers, Gucci, and a host of other crap that makes them think they are what they are not - but we've all been raised to think that we're all going to be big, rich hip-hop stars one day, to be featured on MTV Cribs or on some reality show. I hope the planet burns. Thanks for reading. Haha, this is funny that people think only kids in school can feel this way. I'm not a child. I'm a married adult, an aircraft maintainer in the USAF. Just for clarification. Also, if you're going to sit here and tell me that my life is miserable and that I should 'get away from the computer,' let me point out to you your clear ignorance and obvious habit of poor assumption. I work 10-12 hours a day, sometimes 7 days a week. Hardly time in front of a computer.

Going to the doctor once my insurance kicks in...? Going to the doctor once my insurance kicks in...? I'm kind of wanting to vent a little bit but also get other people's opinions. I'm 22 years old, I don't smoke or do any kind of drugs, etc. From about 18 years old, I've experienced low self esteem, depression, no luck in relationships with women, etc. I always did fine in school, never got in trouble at home or with the law. I used to be a pretty well-balanced kid. Lately, I've just had these pent up feelings of frustration, anger, anxiety, and I always express those feelings in a violent and vicious way. I very rarely got angry at between ages 18 and 20 and if I did, I was able to control it easily. Soon after I turned 20, I bought a new car (this sounds pointless but I'm just going by a time line so I remember correctly) and a couple months into that, I was having some problems with it. Anyway, I'd basically lose my temper in the car, punching the steering wheel, driving violently, etc. At that time, I was working a full time job and was experiencing some stress over there. At some point, I got into it with a female co-worker and began yelling curse words and other things around her but it was directed towards her. That was something I never had done with anyone before. I had always stressed out about being single, too. I went through many girls that were only around for maybe a month each and it began kind of break my self esteem down. Then, in January 2008, I met my current girlfriend. Everything was fine until about April 2008 when I completely whacked out, turned angry and emotional, and was "baker acted" because of my bullsh!t. Ever since that time, I felt like something inside of me died. And sicne then, I've gotten worse and worse. I've lost my temper around my family and my girlfriend so many times, I've put them both through hell and back, I've mistreated my girlfriend the most. With my girlfriend, it started with arguing, progressed to heated arguing, progressed to yelling, progressed to violent outbursts, verbal abuse and even physical abuse. Just this past Friday, I got angry at her because, in my opinion, she wasn't into the sex that we were having. I totally lost control of myself, trashed the bathroom with her lotion, slapped her across the face and yelled at her, and then I turned my abuse on myself and beat myself in the face with my bare hands, giving myself black eyes, a sore head and swollen cheeks/eyes. And after all of that, my girlfriend was wiping my nose and blood that was on my face and was caring for me like a mother. This girl has proven to me that she will be by my side through thick and thin, for better or for worse, and yet I throw it all back in her face. She said she is fed up with me and my behavior and that I need to get help and straighten myself out. We live together, by the way. So, I turned in my insurance papers at work and once that kicks in, I'm going to the doctor to have some blood drawn and to see if anything in my body is off balance. My sister has a hormone imbalance and I believe my dad does, too, along with hypothyroidism. So maybe I have the same or similar problems. I'm sorry to make this so long and jumbled together but I just want other people's honest opinions. I want help, I want to live a normal and happy life with my girlfriend and treat her the way she deserves to be treated. For her birthday coming up, I have a special present for her this weekend and I know she will love it and she has no idea what it is. But, in a fit of anger, I threatened to cancel it and I almost told her what her present was. And when I planned this, I had the intention of keeping it a secret. I don't plan things for her only to take them away. I'm not really that kind of person. But that's what I'm becoming. My girlfriend knows the real Nick, but she rarely gets the real Nick. She says I'm really caring and loving, but the "other" Nick is just the opposite. Anyway, I feel better for typing up a storm. Just be honest with me and hand out any advice you think will be helpful. Thank you. Well, I'm not made of money and waiting for the insurance to kick in is way cheaper than paying big doctor bills and possibly big money for any kind of medications I may need. And, yes, shame on me for hitting my girlfriend. It's not fair to her. =( And she doesn't deserve it. She gets the brunt of all of my sh!t. My girlfriend and I live together. I mean, I could stay at my parents for a while but I'm not interested in that. And I'm defintely waiting until my insurance starts up so that I don't have to pay any ridiculous amounts of money. As for family history, I know my dad has a thyroid problem. My mom is fine and my sister has a hormone imbalance. As for grandparents, I know my Pops (dad's father) had anger issues when he was first married to my Nanny and they had 4 kids. He was stressed out from jobs and money problems back then. But I don't know about any actual illnesses or mental health problems. I'm not sure if my family would even know, anyway. By the way, my girlfriend and I used to be pretty sexualy active, sometimes we'd have sex every day of the week, take a 1 or 2 day break and then keep going. But for the past 3 weeks or so, she said she hasn't wanted me or desired me sexually because of my behavior. She said it's a big turn off and she feels used. And now that I know how she's feeling, sex is the last thing on my mind now. But our relationship is more important than the sex and I want to fix the relationship first and let the sex resume on its own. I just want to be happy in my life and not messed up anymore. I want her to be happy and us to be happy together, not seperate or any other way.

What gives you the right to say cheerleading, dancing, and gymnastics are not sports? Cheerleading (my life and passion gah) - Why aren't we considered a sport, do you have an answer for that, and dont say because dancing around isn't a sport, in all reality it is, and thats not the only thing we do, we lift 100 + lb girls in to the air and then we have to catch, we get hurt, but we honor our pain, those are our badges of honor! We do crazy tricks/flips that you basket, foot, base, and soft ball players wouldnt even dare to do, we have killer abs an legs thanks to our Jumps, Tumbling, Dancing, Stunting, and Diaphragm use, so who are you to come in here and tell us we are not a sport, we compete and participate in physical activity so again why aren't we a sport, we have rules to regulate or actions, and we have a point system we get scored, so why arent we a sport, do we intimidate you, because we might be the hardest/confusing sport on the planet, or are you so ignorant you can not see that we are a sport, i want you jocks to answer this and tell me why, we cheerleaders, us athletes, at least deserve that! Dancers- The are very athletic, and its an awesome art form, most of them DO COMPETE! Have you tried a pirouette, or and axle, or maybe even a switch leap, i didn't think so, so um yeah! Gymnastics- They are so freaking dedicated i mean seriously they give up their whole enitre life for it! They do things that you couldn't even try.... i mean i went on a balance beam and i couldn't even stand on it, much less think about doing a tuck or a cart wheel! These sports are all equal, and probably above any of your other sports, and you volleyball players, v-ball isn't that hard, i've been doing it since 6th grade and now i am in 10th! So does anyone have a saying btw, i am a cheerleader, but cheerleading involves a whole load of dancing, and gymnastics, and i love it! WOAH CHEELEADERS HELL FRIGGIN YEAH and i feel great that i might have changed your mind, fuhk yeah!

Best Tyre Make For A Peugeot 107? Hi everyone! I need to get 4 new tyres for my car (a Peugeot 107) I have decided to get them from Kwik Fit because their prices seem to be the best when I am buying 4 at once (when buying them like that I can get £56 tyres for £39.20 each just to give you an example) and they can also check my wheel alignment which needs doing also. Now I am just unsure of what make is best to go for: Continental Conti-Eco Contact 3 Tyre Size 155/65T14 Designed for mini, super-mini and lower medium vehicle class •Asymmetric tread pattern •excellent traction on wet and dry roads •Safety when braking and cornering •Lower fuel consumption due to reduced rolling resistance Admiral Brand Tyre Size 155/65T14 Low cost budget brand •Good handling •Steel radial ply •Durable construction •May be substituted for alternate brand Firestone Multihawk Tyre Size 155/65T14 The ultimate all-rounder •Excellent performance in all weather and road conditions. •Highly durable quiet and fuel efficient. •Modern stylish design complements your car. Bridgestone B250 Tyre Size 155/65T14 B-Series - Harmony and Comfort •The perfect balance for your everyday needs. •Combines great performance in wet and dry. •All round performer with a long life. Continental Conti-Eco Contact 3 Tyre Size 155/65T14 Designed for mini, super-mini and lower medium vehicle class •Asymmetric tread pattern •excellent traction on wet and dry roads •Safety when braking and cornering •Lower fuel consumption due to reduced rolling resistance Goodyear Goodyear Duragrip Tyre Size 155/65T14 The tyre for small city cars •Asymmetric tread pattern •Quieter ride •Enhanced dry handling Pirelli P3000 E Tyre Size 155/65T14 P3000 is predictable and forgiving in nature, with a strong feeling of security •Fuel saving and environment •Reduced rolling resistance •Improved fuel consumption •Comfort and mileage Sorry to bombard you with all of these tyres so thank you very much for any help and advice you can offer me! Thanks again! Xx Just forgot to mention that these tyres were the ones suggested when I put my make, model and chassis into the tyre search on the Kwik Fit website. Xx Thank you for your answer seeyadafter! It is really great to hear from a professional. I will certainty call and ask Kwik Fit about those points you suggested before I book and pay for anything. Just to give some more info, I do around 5-6K miles a year which is probably something I should have stated before as it effects what kind of tyre would be best. Thank you to everyone for your answers! Xx

Does learning American History bear any importance to the United States in the 21st century? Does learning American History bear any importance to the United States in the 21st century? The study of U.S History is what helps one place in perspective the issues before us today.Are racism,religious conflict, questions over education,the balance between civil rights and domestic security still issues today? How have we debt with those issues in the past, and what are the constitutional and legal grounds for any decisions on any those issues? without a knowledge of U.S history (and history in general) it's impossible to understand how things have come to be this way,and what solutions have been tried for what problems.The lack of historical knowledge means that each new generation must try to invent "the new wheel" anew rather than knowing what mistakes were made before and hopefully avoiding some of the most glaring ones.If you don't know where you came from, you don't know where you going.Does knowing who your parents are and where they came from have any importance to your life?If you don't know your family history you cannot understand your family. Although it's always always good to know the history,you can find out why things are happening now,why we have laws,and freedoms we have grown to know today.History makes the future.That's a fact.Therefore, learning what you're will help you deal with what's coming.If you don't know your history,you're doomed to repeat it. *what eles should i add?? i need at least a full page*

Could I sue Costco Tire Center? (Or get money back on 4 tires)? So I have a 2004 Subaru Forester and it was time to get my tires changed. I decided to get my tires changed at Costco Tire Center. They had a great deal (4 tires for $400). A month after I changed my tires, I was on the highway to go to work. All of a sudden I lost control of the wheel and noticed that my tire was flat. The lanes were all full and I was driving about 65 mph with a flat tire. A few seconds later I pulled over. I noticed that my front left tire was flat. I called my dad and he put in a spare. He noticed that the tire itself was not damaged, it was the tire balance that was wrong. He suspects that the people at Costco did not check properly. I am thinking about going to Costco and complaining to them. Hopefully I will get my $400 back. I almost lost my life on the highway, if it wasn't for that emergency stop. Do you think I can get my money back? Is this worth going to court for? I would like to know...! This happened today, and no it fine up until today. I was driving on the highway and I heard a "POP" and then my tire went flat... I pulled over and called my Dad. He said that the tire was not punctured or anything. My dad said that they did not balance the tire correctly. I could not control the vehicle when the tire went flat. How should I solve this..?

Good fiction/literature book recommendations? I've been reading a lot of non-fiction but want to balance it out with some fiction books: Some books I enjoy: Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility The Namesake The Life of Pi The Lord of the Rings trilogy as well as The Hobbit The Golden Compass The Handmaid's Tale The Kite Runner Gentleman and Players Here are some books/series I did NOT like: The Phantom Tollbooth Robert Jordan's really long "Wheel of Time" series Mists of Avalon The Painted Veil Snow Flower and the Secret Fan Moby Dick The Alchemist Thanks!!

What else should i add to my history paper? Does learning American History bear any importance to the United States in the 21st century? The study of U.S History is what helps one place in perspective the issues before us today.Are racism,religious conflict, questions over education,the balance between civil rights and domestic security still issues today? How have we debt with those issues in the past, and what are the constitutional and legal grounds for any decisions on any those issues? without a knowledge of U.S history (and history in general) it's impossible to understand how things have come to be this way,and what solutions have been tried for what problems.The lack of historical knowledge means that each new generation must try to invent "the new wheel" anew rather than knowing what mistakes were made before and hopefully avoiding some of the most glaring ones.If you don't know where you came from, you don't know where you going.Does knowing who your parents are and where they came from have any importance to your life?If you don't know your family history you cannot understand your family. Although it's always always good to know the history,you can find out why things are happening now,why we have laws,and freedoms we have grown to know today.History makes the future.That's a fact.Therefore, learning what you're will help you deal with what's coming.If you don't know your history,you're doomed to repeat it. *btw i need at least a full paper but i have run out of things to say what eles should i add??*

How do I know if I have a broken collarbone? Okay, I got into an stupid accident the other day...I was running from a friend but I lost balance and ran shoulder-on right into the ground really hard on my right shoulder....few minutes after that, my arm became really sore and it made it hard for me to move my arm and shoulder around, right in the middle where the neck meets the shoulder. Its been 4 days and I noticed the difference between the left shoulder and the right...the left are normal and there are a huge hard-*** bump on the right shoulder. I wince in pain every time I try to drive my car when I turn the wheel to the left and I have hard time turning around in bed cuz it would set the pain alarm off..and I have hard time pushing stuff cuz when I do that I feel like something in my shoulder r moving around...its a weird feeling so I checked the pics on google on a broken collarbone...it looks like mine but the guy with broken collarbone in the pic r skinny so he shows more bone but Im muscular in the shoulder area so its less noticeable but noticeable enuff and its really bumpy and hard. What do you think? Ive never broken any bones before in my life so I dont kno what's it like.

Can I sue a car lot if I brought the car as is? I brought a 2002 Ford Explorer and on the 19th of Aug 19, 2008. Every since I had the truck, it has been in two different shop bc of the wheel bearing and a few other problems. Two auto techs has told me the truck is a danger to myself and other driver on the road. The dealer is not wanting to work out any deal. I brought the truck as is, I do admit to that how ever I didn't buy the truck knowing that it would be a danger to my life and or other drivers. Do I have a case? If so should I sue for the remainder of the of the balance on the truck or for them to fix all repairs which is the same price? Please help I am so lost at this point. I have the extended warrenty, bu t it only pays for so much of the work that has to be done. I know the difference between as is and extended warrenty. My question is if I have the two auto tech sign a letter stating what they said verbally about the truck ( danger to my life and other on the road ) can I win my case? Or is there anything I can do? warranty* sorry I had a m.s

Can someone help me out with these question form the crucible by arthur miler please!? Act One 1.a)What might be the significance of a candle burning and or a narrow window in the room? b)Why might these be there in a historical sense? 2.Explain, using proof, the portrait painted of the town and its inhabitants. 3.What physically stands as a symbol of the town’s fears? 4.Explain the following thought: “It is still impossible for man to organize his social life without repressions, and the balance has yet to be struck between order and freedom” (Miller 7) 5.Explain how the unusual nature of this play so far seems appropriate to its role of social commentary. 6.What one word would seem to sum up Putnam;s character? 7.Although the Nurse family seemed like good citizens, what background information is provided that could cause other’s view of them to be tainted? 8.Explain the quotation, “There are wheels within wheels in this village, and fires within fires” (Miller 28). 9.What comment is the author making when he says, “A political policy is equated with moral right, and opposition to it with diabolical malevolence” (34). 10.What does the paragraph at the top of page 35 imply that society in Salem is now judging a person by? What is the danger in this for any time period? 11.What motive might Abigail have for “crying out” the witches at the end of Act One? RE-examine the rhythm and focus of the previous three pages. What might be another reason for her outburst? Act Two 1.What is learned of the relationship between Elizabeth and John Proctor from the opening dialogue and stage action of this Act. 2.Why are the current events in the town called “a black mischief” (53)? 3.What does Elizabeth want John to do? Why does he hesitate? 4.When Hale asks Proctor to “remember [that] until an hour before the Devil fell, God thought him beautiful in Heaven,” what is his implication (71)? 5.There are at least three instances of figurative language in Proctor’s long speech on page 77. State them, and then explain what is meant by each. 6.What is meant by the line, “[W]e are only what we always were, but naked now . . . Aye naked! And the wind, God’s icy wind will blow!” (81). 7.What kind of evidence does the court admit in order to convict people as witches? 8.What forces John Proctor’s involvement with the court? What are the risks? Act Three 1.Cautioning Francis Nurse, Judge Danforth states that “there be no road between” (94). What does he mean? Examine the rest of the Judge’s speech and explain what he is saying figuratively. What is the danger of viewing the world this way? 2.What change have we seen gradually in Hale? Why? 3.How does Parris try to explain away Abigail’s past behaviours? What does Giles’ remark on page 104 show us about power? 4.Why does Proctor say that “God is dead” (119)?

Damn Libra's got me again!!! Why me? I went on a huge rampage in here last year, about Libra's. They're very difficult to deal with, waste of my time, and worst of all ehhh very bad luck... so to speak. Well very dangerous to my life. I thought I got away from all the Libra's last year, the four Libra's poof I was free and happy. No more frustration... BUt!! One slipped through the cracks. A Libra Trojan horse!!! On the outside it was very notLibra, A loving devoted Leo. I said in my head "Okay, I planned the next many years of my life being single to make huge progress and being able just to focus, but! Maybe having her would help me rather than work against me. I can see myself loving this person, she seems like a great person." I found myself in the past few months making less progress and slowing down. I spent time with my girlfriend and found myself frustrated more days out of the week, than actually enjoying her company. I discovered I had to use reverse psychology on her, to keep her insanity at bay. I found myself confused like I'm normally am when a Libra's around. She usually does the opposite of what I'm trying to do. Again!! Person who tries to balance me, and keep my wheels spinning and going no where. I got Trojan Horse'd by Libra!!!! Leo sun, but a very strong LIBRA MOON!!!!!)#FJ#@)FJ#@()JF#@)(JF@)J AGAIN!!!! No wonder she flirted with that guy infront of me yesterday!!! Libra Moon!! Well it all made sense, fiinally put the puzzle peices toghter, to bad it's on Valentines day. I sort of made a decision to tell her it's over today, and this time I will move on fully. Worst Valentines day! Why do these Libra's come for me?

Paragraph Review? Riding a bike is pretty much the simplest thing you can learn in your life. It requires some basic steps, which shouldn’t be a hassle to the average person. You might want to consider buying a tricycle to teach you the fundamentals; steering and pedaling. When you’re ready, buy a small bike with training wheels. Remember to use your body for balance, not your handle bars. Keep your handlebars completely straight across. First, put one foot up on your pedal. Immediately, lift up your other foot as you start to push the pedal with your foot. Just keep pedaling! Don’t worry about your balance. The rotation axis of the wheels moving forward will keep you upright. If you fall over, keep trying! My COMP 107 teacher is a real grammar head... I can't find any mistakes...Can U?

I BLOW THROUGH MONEY!!!! i want to save, budget, and be more responsible w/money! i go through 2 grand week!? hello, i have a business, i make good money, but im having problems with things like bouncing my business account as i have problems being organized, balancing a checkbook/debit card etc. i have problems taking business income and holding onto it, i cant save money, i spend it dining out, on my girlfriend, on partying. heres a summary of my disorganized insanity ie. the last few months.. i had 1500.00 yes, fifteen hundred dollars in parking tickets, speeding tickets that i paid off etc. i have paid lawyers for beating up a guy that threatened me, i plead to a disorderly conduct/cash fines total cost 1000.00. i also have made bad decisions and accepted a check from guy for business, he said something smart too me, i threatened him and he stopped payment on an 800.00 check. i am being sued by the first guy for medical injuries that hes faking, but nonetheless i have this on my plate, insane! I am out of control and cant seem to get things under control! i have been arrested for the assault, i have paid out thousands in lawyer fees, parking tickets, speeding tickets with more tickets to go. i have constant bank account problems, my account bounces as im having a horrible time organizing everything! i miss doctors appointments, i once had 3 months worth of mail in my p.o. box and was contacted by the post office and told if i didnt get my mail out they were yanking my privileges. i literally drive around all day with 7 cell phones for my business with 8 debit cards and pay bills as im driving, juggling phones, sleeping until 2pm ea day. i work 18hrs a day, get too be at 7am and back up at 1 or 2pm, my lifes out of control! im told im the best salesman in our area, in our industry, but my finanical life, personal life is a wreck! my health, stress, anxiety, chest pains are out of control! i always wake up with 50 plus missed calls, 120 emails per day, the bank blowing my phone up, workers drivin me nuts, then i miss appointments, doctors, it never ends! im juggling my life on the phone, behind the wheel, i have legal, financial, and personal problems and dont know what the hell to do anymore! i make a lot of doe and my business kicks ass but im going in a coffin at the rate im going! how do i get my finances, banking, checkbook, business structure, personal life structured and under control! where do i begin? i blow through money, i party like a nut, i work my ass off, hell, one day i walked out to see my new lexus being hooked by the repo man and watched them tow it away!!! AND i had 2000.00 bucks in my pocket! i checked my mail, my voice mails, and found out that i hadnt made a car payment in 3 months!!! and i had the money! i got the car back, but man im a mess!! what do i do! can anyone relate?

What religion or belief system would you consider mine? I have a pretty broad view of religions and beliefs (I adhere to the philosophy of "take what you want and leave the rest"). Its a bit much but I'd appreciate if you read and answered. I definitely believe in a higher power, and that the universe itself is the supreme "God" and that life is a constant state of balancing and experiencing. I believe that there is a possibility of multiple deities, I have belief in spirits, angels, and other supernatural beings. I also believe in reincarnation (but we don't cross-species) and I hold respect for many of the world's teachers (Buddha, Jesus), but I don't believe any of them are or were deities incarnate. I also don't believe "good and evil" is a "black and white" view but rather the intention behind it, and that there is no "eternal heaven" or "eternal hell", but more of a universal process of "rinse and repeat" and that time in general is more like a wheel than linear. What religion/belief (or religions) would you consider my view? Please be respectful, I'm not asking what you think of my beliefs or whether or not you consider them "right" or "wrong" or what religion/belief you think I should adhere to, but just based on the facts of what I'm saying. I was raised Roman Catholic, and studied a lot of New Age books and philosophies as well as Wicca and Eclectic Paganism. I think most religions have good points but none of them have all the answers. Robert- nice try, been there seen that, not interested in any religion that claims its the "only" truth (aka fundamentalist christianity) Ceiling Cat- took the test lol, came out Neo-Pagan, New Age, Unitarian Universalist (not surprisingly). I just wanted to know how others would percieve my view Servant Leader- what does it take to learn the answer "NO!"? Please read the first paragraph in my details. I'm not interested in Christianity, I'm not interested in fundamentalism, I'm not interested in being "saved" or "born-again", get it right.

Is there an easy way out of the “OIL” mess we've gotten ourselves into? Is there an easy way out of the “OIL” mess we've gotten ourselves into? Oil is nearly $100 a barrel. Gas may soon reach $4 a gallon. And Americans are being bitten in almost every way imaginable by this insidious oil hydra. Two billion people in China and India are now eager consumers. They want the cars, gadgets, and lifestyle that Westerners have claimed as a birthright for a half-century. Their growing energy appetites mean that the international petroleum market may remain tight, even if Americans — who use almost twice as much oil per day as China and India put together — cut back on imported energy. The Middle East is raking in billions each week. At best, our so-called friends in cash-laden Saudi Arabia subsidize fundamentalist mosques and hate-filled madrassas worldwide. At worst, our enemies in petrol-rich Iran are after the bomb, send weapons into Iraq to kill Americans and fund Hezbollah jihadists. War in Iraq, rumors of fighting in the near-future in Iran and tension on the West Bank only panic markets raise oil prices and further enrich our grinning enemies. The nearly half-trillion dollars we will soon pay for imported oil does a lot more than prop up Russia's Vladimir Putin, Venezuela's Hugo Chavez and Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The petrodollar drain also contributes to our trade deficits, falling dollar and a general demoralization of the American people. Our oil habit not only makes us dependent on some creepy suppliers, but we look like fools as we work nonstop to hand over our earnings to those who are rich by an accident of sitting atop oil someone else found and developed. There is talk in this country of a gradual transition to alternative fuels, solar power, wind machines, plug-in electric cars, and nuclear power. Supposedly Americans will soon be less dependent on imported oil — while helping to slow global warming — as we are weaned off our fossil-fuel addiction. But let's talk about the present: If oil continues to climb, ultimately, it will change our very way of life. Hard-pressed families will shell out thousands more a year in direct transportation and heating and cooling costs, and more still as consumer prices inflate. It may have always been unwise for commuters to buy large SUVs and V8 super cab trucks. Now, though, we may reach the point where these pricey huge vehicles will sputter to a halt. Indebted Americans will still shell out monthly payments to pay off their parked dinosaurs, only to drive them for emergency or ceremonial occasions. Also expect rising popular anger at an asleep-at-the-wheel government that for the last 20 years should have been doing a lot more to mandate conservation, subsidize alternate fuels, encourage nuclear power and open up oil fields offshore and in Alaska. Instead, doctrinaire free-market purists and radical environmentalists, hand in glove, for years have thwarted both conservation and exploration. True, in a perfect world, the market would teach Detroit not to build gas-hungry big cars. Yet in the here and now, we are needlessly burning scarce fuel as too many 7,000-pound mammoths deliver single 180-pound drivers to work — while the auto industry continues on its path to irrelevance. Meanwhile, green politicians may not want messy oilrigs off their coasts, or tankers up north among the ice and polar bears. But so far very few of them have sworn off jet travel, nice cars or ample homes. Oil companies claim that they are only passing along escalating costs from overseas suppliers over which they have no control. But around a third of our oil is pumped here at home. Think about it: The cost to extract oil from existing older wells is relatively fixed. For much of the 1990s and early 2000s, oil prices had been steady at between $20 and $30 a barrel (when adjusted for inflation) — and domestic oil companies did quite well. So now at near $100 a barrel, these corporations are raking additional profits of over $60 a barrel — potentially a domestic windfall of hundreds of billions of dollars each year. Is there an easy way out of the mess we've gotten ourselves into? Maybe a Silicon Valley genius inventor or entrepreneur will step forward with a breakthrough new energy source. Maybe our government will start a crash project on the scale of the Manhattan Project to conserve and produce more fuels. Maybe China and India will consider radical conservation measures. Maybe countries like Iraq, Libya, and Russia will start reinvesting in their oil infrastructures and double production. Maybe the Middle East will finally settle down and soothe jittery oil speculators. Those are too many maybes to wait for while our way of life hangs in the balance. It is past time to demand from our presidential candidates, as well as the current government, exactly when and how they plan to slay this many-headed oil monster.

Could it be that the six million Jews who perished at the hands of the Nazis could have been saved? Many books have been published, read and forgotten. There is one book, however, which dare not be allowed to share this fate. This is the chronicles of Rabbi Michael Ber Weissmandl, ztl, of the war years, 1942 to 1945, so aptly named "Min Hametzar" (From the Depths). published in New York in 1961 in Hebrew. Not enough individuals have read this book. The ghastly facts uncovered in it are not sufficiently well known. Who can imagine the Hitlerite holocaust? Where is the language to describe it? All the known words of human speech have already been used for conventional occurrences; they have acquired everyday meanings and have been fashioned with an inability to describe the horrors of an Auschwitz or a Treblinka. What can be said to make individuals understand the wild cries of the night, when our brothers and sisters were led to the slaughterhouses? And in what way can one convey the conversion of precious Jews to the status of animals preparatory to being slaughtered? Skyscraping walls prevented their cries being heard, and in that horrible man-made silence, the most valuable portion of the Jewish people was compressed in the confines of the ghettos in hunger and in thirst, in epidemics and in torture, crying bitterly, only to themselves, until the end of their anguish; when they were loaded into the sealed anguish; when they were loaded in the sealed cattle-wagons for the week-long journeys, when their corpses and the still have-living reached the slaughterhouses and gas chambers. Where can existing words be found to fit this story, and who is there to coin new phrases with meaning enough to tell this tale? Yet all this was done through a directive from an innocent-looking office, where the S.S. murderers, with the methods of modern civilization gave the orders which, by chain reaction, set in motion all the machinery of death and destruction to which a stop could not be envisaged. One stroke of the pen to extinguish a hundred thousand lives. A few words enough for a million. And these few officers set the wheels turning in Auschwitz, in Treblinka; the Einsatzkomandos; the deep pits on the lonely plains of Europe overflowing with human blood. So much power behind it, such a military might enforcing it that only the winning of the World War could interfere with this running horror. But how astonished was Rabbi Weissmandl to discover that these strokes of the pen could so easily have been erased, that the Jewish tragedy could to a considerable extent, have been alleviated by some simple "old fashioned" methods. How many hundreds of thousands of Jewish lives could have been saved -- perhaps even millions. Wisliceny was the German henchman for the Jews of Slovakia, Eichmann's representative in that area for establishing the ghettos, destroying their livelihood and finally dispatching to slaughter the hundreds of thousands of Jews in Slovakia and the neighboring countries. He carried out this mission as directed by Eichman and as his own cravings commanded. His was the first country in Europe to be designated for the supply of Jews to the slaughter houses, as it was Slovakia that was first occupied by Hitler--even earlier than Poland. The puppet government of Cardinal Tissu had asked Hitler to "cleanse" its country of Jews. Officially it even paid Germany for transportation, and Wisliceny was the ultimate ruler and organizer. He was nearly always drunk; drunk from spirits and intoxicated with blood -- and seemingly unassailable. Rabbi WeissmandlRabbi Michael Ber Weissmandl, at the end of 1943, when two thirds of the Jews of Slovakia had already been transported for "work" to that far destination, got to know through a certain Hochberg -- an S.S. intriguer, and second in command to Wisliceny, that his chief was also lustful for money and that already on more than one occasion, money had bought relief for some individuals, postponing their deportation. Overwhelmed with joy at this discovery, he consulted his father-in-law, the great and renowned rabbi of Nitra, ztl, who agreed that if this old-fashioned method was effective, there was no reason why it would not be attempted on behalf of the great masses to be saved. Rabbi Weissmandl writes of this same Hochberg, "I was first there on Friday in the summer of 1942 -- Tammuz, 5702. I was standing in the corridor near to the office of Hochberg and all of the waiting rooms around were crowded with those who had come to Hochberg to beg a postponement of that ultimate journey for "work in the east," as many still believed. I heard the voice of Hochberg speaking on the phone to his chief, Wisliceny saying, 'Her Hauptstumbandfuehrer, ich melde ghorehsamst, the train has left: Man 727, Women 637, Children 1667: altogether 3,028 Jawohl!' Never will this total leave my memory; 1600 children! No outcry and no tears. No one cares. The whole world is silent. Jawohl, Herr Hauptsturmbanfuehrer. One of the famous men of Pressberg, Reb Aharon Gruenhut, finally succeeded in gaining confidence by Hochberg in Rabbi Weissmandl, for whom a secret appointment was arranged. On this occasion, the rabbi presented himself as one who had connections with rabbinical circles throughout the world. He showed Hochberg his passport that contained a British visa issued just before the outbreak of war, and told him of his visit to London and of conferences there to impress him with his high standing. He then made it clear that he had come on a secret mission of the highest importance as a representative of Jewry abroad, who had contacted him through the American "Joint" in Switzerland. Their message was that they were prepared to pay in cash for the stopping of all further transports of Jews from Slovakia to the east. The "Joint" was ready to pay the price that his chief, Wisliceny, would name. Rabbi Weissmandl emphasized that neither Hochberg nor Wisliceny should believe that his mission was directed by local Jews. During this conversation with Hochberg in 1943, when the scales of war were already a little out of balance for Hitler's Germany after the heavy defeats in the east and the support of the allies by American might, Rabbi Weissmandl was able, with American might, Rabbi Weissmandl was able , with careful tact, to introduce doubts into Hochberg's mind about German world conquest, and more specifically about Hochberg's own position after the war. He conveyed to him that it would be very much to his and his chief's advantage to make some provisions for their own safety. In this respect, he was now authorized to offer the promise of World Jewry that if they would stop all further transports, he and Wisliceny would be save. Hochberg became enraged at such suggestions, but as the conversation progressed, he became much softer and began to listen carefully to what was proposed. He listened and replied, "I must go to see Wisliceny." He left immediately and Rabbi Weissmandl waited. Every minute seemed like an hour; every hour seemed endless. He sat there exhausted, awaiting the reply fateful for the remaining Jews of Slovakia, with so many hanging in the balance. He had set there for many hours, when suddenly the door burst open and Hochberg hurried into the room. Speaking rapidly and with great excitement, he said, "the deal is done. My chief asked for $50,000 and no further transports will be sent; but he lays down the following terms: Wisliceny will show his goodwill: three transports -- next Tuesday, next Friday, the following Tuesday -- each of about 3000 souls, will be held up, but on Friday after that, the first Installment of $25,000 must be handed over. After that, there will be no further transports for seven weeks, to enable the second installment of $25,000 to be obtained and paid, after which there will be a final stopping of all transports. There is one further condition. You must be able to show that the money comes from abroad and not from Slovakian Jews themselves." The latter was an important point to this S.S. henchman, as a guarantee that it was world Jewry who was behind the deal, and who would finally keep its promise for his safety. In any case, Rabbi Weissmandl did not then think that Slovakian Jews could possibly find such a sum, as by that time they had been stripped of all their possessions. On that other hand, he did not imagine for one moment that the wealthy "Joint" would not provide such a relatively small sum to save literally tens of thousands of lives from total annihilation in the German slaughterhouses. Rabbi Weissmandl left Hochberg's office with hope and joy. He hurried home to Nitra to inform his father-in-law and to set about getting the deal consummated. The Rabbi of Nitra, in spite of his happiness at the possibility of saving so many lives, expressed some reservation. He felt that from a distance the "Joint" would not see their tragedy, and that the Zionist leaders working together with the "Joint" had a different calculation. But he suggested, representatives from beyond the "Kanzelel" -- the Council of Orthodox Jewish Communities -- should be drawn into this, and even the Zionists and non-Orthodox groups taken into partnership. The name of Mrs. Gisi Fleischman came to the forefront, as she was of Zionist circles and also the pre-war representative of the "Joint" in Slovakia. Besides her prominence, she was a good-hearted and courageous women and her word would carry weight with the "Joint". It was also decidedly to call on Mr. Fuerst -- known for both his integrity and financial ability. Among the weapons with which the Zionists have equipped themselves to pierce the walls of resistance to their influence, there is one most predominant. This is "ahavas Yisroel" -- love of the fellow Jew. This slogan and catch-phrase carries extra weight with the religious Jew to whom this concept has a special attraction. The Zionists have explained that their aim is achieving statehood is to provide a refuge and shelter for much tormented Jewry. The long, bloody paths of our, till now, 2000 year long exile, with its inquisitions, persecutions, pogroms, slaughter and torture, has always been at the front of every Jews mind. Seldom was there a place on this earth inhabited by Jews, or a stretch of time, without blood and tears at the hands of our many persecutors of all nations. It was these pogroms that provided, for the short-sighted, the initial conditioning to seek a solution in the outward idea of Zionist achievements. Possibly the Zionists, themselves, at the first steps of inception, were honestly taken by the idea of that solution; and it was this kernel of compassion that gave to them the power to influence others with this superficial consideration. Zionism has built on the basis that the solution of nationhood applicable to any other nation is in the same way also applicable to Jewry, as they could see no difference between the nations of the world and the Jewish people. As they see it, Jews regulate their fate by the same ways and means as all other peoples. The belief in exile by Heavenly Decree as a punishment for our sins, and the belief in Heavenly Redemption by the Will of the Creator was, to Zionism, non-existent. People's thoughts were not directed to the fundamental, all-embracing heresy upon which Zionism was established, but grasped only the attractive promises that were offered because unfortunately, Zionism arrived in the most feeble and small of all generation, coupled with distressing happenings, which contributed to the closing of people's minds to the truth and to their being led astray by the Zionist Idea. THE UNHEEDED CRY Read the gripping story of Rabbi Weissmandl, valiant holocaust leader who battled both Allied indifference and Nazi hatred. Available in our BookstoreHow much were Rabbi Weissmandl and his colleagues overcome with joy when they succeeded in getting the right people together! How great was their hope! But how much were they overwhelmed by sorrow when they tried to get things in motion, and how great was their frustration when they learned that the Zionists, together with the "Joint", stopped every outside help from reaching them. This was not only when it was a question of saving the remnants of the Jews of Slovakia -- about 40,000 souls -- but also when the possibility of saving what was still left of the Jews of Poland and Hungary was in question; a matter then of millions of souls. Then, too, the Zionists deliberately prevented any help from being extended under various excuses that even a child could see through. This was their policy -- stupid and merciless -- but they perused it relentlessly. In the end, they admitted openly that their policy was not to help fellow Jews, but to let them perish in the tens of thousands and in their millions. This is forever unforgettable and unforgivable. Zionist "ahavas Yisroel" must be displayed conspicuously and beyond any doubt. The Friday when the first installment of $25,000 had to be paid was fast approaching and there was not yet a way how this money could be found for Wisliceny. Mrs. Flesichman was also the representative of the World Jewish Congress and well known to the Jewish Agency. She was, therefore, considered to be the most suitable person to make contact with these organizations. Her words would be listed to.... The pressure became even greater when it was seen the S.S. oligarchy was in earnest. The first transport has been stopped. But how can contact be made with Zurich, with New York and with Jerusalem, the seat of the Jewish Agency, which influenced and coordinated the work of these other two bodies? Slovakia was then a small country sealed off by the German occupation of the surrounding territory. There was no common border with any free country, so how could any message be conveyed to the outside world? Shloime Stern was instrumental in finding a temporary solution. He obtained a diplomatic courier, who was prepared to take all the important messages to the "Joint" in Zurich. He was also able to borrow money, temporarily, from various sources in Slovakia, putting together the equivalent of the enormous sounding sum of $25,000. The money obtained was changed on the back market for dollars and handed over to Hochberg for Wisliceny. Hochberg accepted it and came back with the message that there would be no further transports for seven weeks, which time was set for the completion of the deal. They were all convinced that once the diplomatic courier would get their message to the "Joint" and the Jewish Agency, not $50,000 but ten times $50,000 would at once be put at their disposal for this and similar "deals." Surely Jews the world over would dance for joy upon hearing that at last the door was open in the inner circles of the S.S. and a way found to rescue their fellow Jews. Mrs. Fleischman sat down to write the memorandum to Salli Mayer, the "Joint" representative in Switzerland. She was careful in her every word, explaining the situation of hope that had been ignited. The "Joint" should hasten its help at this last moment and miss the life-saving opportunity that had been so dramatically forced. The memorandum was sent to the "Joint", to the Jewish Agency and to a personal friend of hers, Mr. N. Schwalbe in Zurich. And then they sat down to wait. Days went by, swallowed by weeks, and of the seven not many were left. The time for the final settlement was fast approaching and a great sum of money was needed. Many people had managed to escape from the hell of Poland to Slovakia on their way to Hungary and Romania, which were not yet being so intensely processed by the Hitler hordes. They were not a thousandth of a percent of those who were so brutally done to death, but still a number to be supported and a problem of Slovakian Jewry. Money was needed to bribe the Slovakian genarmerie and police to stop their pressure for the deportations to continue. Money was needed for the labor camps in Sered, Novaki and Wiener in Slovakia. The Slovakian anti-Semitic government had built these camps for a slave labor before deportation began, and it was put to those Jews still left there that if they, themselves, would build up and increase the capacity of those labor camps, they would absorb more and so relieve the pressure for "deportations." and above all, the money was needed to refund the temporary loans from so many sources that had gone towards the first payment to Wisliceny and to provide the second $25,000 that would finally seal this blood transaction. All this money was a matter of life or death for the tens of thousands of Jews in Slovakia and, in the end, for millions still alive throughout Europe. Who could provide and who should provide, if not the "Joint" and the Jewish Agency, who held possession of the vast sums of money given by Jews the world over for the help of their brethren in need? Was there anywhere at all any need that was greater? The diplomatic courier left for Zurich, holding in his hands the lamentations of the strangling remnants of Jewry; in his hands, their appeal from death. This courier had to spend some days in Zurich before his return. He was awaited with mounting anxiety, for with his advent were tied up all the hopes of the masses under sentence. And he returned. But not even a letter was sent with him by those "help organizations" only a verbal message that they had no time to write, and of help there was no mention at all. Rabbi Weissmandl writes that on hearing this message, they 'felt as though the house had collapsed on them'. It was only Mrs. Fleischman who started to explain matters after this great shock. She said that "uncle" Salli Mayer was a very cautious man and it was necessary to write again. It was also necessary to write to Mr. Silbersten, the Jewish Congress representative. "And who knows, maybe they are doing something great," she added. Maybe for such a big undertaking they had to refer to New York and Jerusalem -- who knows? View video clip from the documentary, "Among Blind Fools", on Rabbi Weissmandl and his efforts to save thousands of Jews from the holocaust.Rabbi Weissmandl, himself, followed up with letters to the Agency and the "Joint" in the name of the Rabbis left in Slovakia -- letters of tears and of pleading -- but still there was no reply. Meanwhile, the seven weeks had passed and they had to send to Hochberg, asking him to explain to Wisliceny that the messenger that was to bring the money from Switzerland had met with an accident and was delayed in a hospital there. He would be bringing the money in three or four weeks time. Wisliceny agreed to wait. In the end, a letter did come from the "Joint"; a letter written by Salli Mayer, which said that $50,000 was a lot of money for such a small country, and that in the previous year's budget of the "joint", only a few thousand dollars had been allocated for them. The "Joint" had to be run according to their system. The explanation given in the memorandum why they now need all this money and the documentary evidence as to what was happening in Poland, to which country the "deportations" took place, were exaggerated stories. This was the way of Eastern European Jewry, who were always asking for money. In general, he added, it was impossible to send anything at all just then, as the money was coming from America, which had prohibited the sending of funds to enemy countries. What was possible to do was to render some small help, monthly, if the "Joint" in Hungary would agree to do this out of the blocked account that been held since the outbreak of the war. Rabbi Weissmandl and his colleagues read the letter, but they could not believe it had been written by fellow Jews. Their hearts stopped beating when its contents became clear to them. But this was not the end. There was a further letter. It fully explained the first. But it was more deadly and more devastating. It disclosed the bottomless abyss to which born- Jews can sink -- the responsibility of Zionism.

Need your help- Writing first draft of novel need some feedback here is part of a chapter-? Chapter 4 A Chance of a Lifetime “Aaron, where is everybody?” I asked as I saw Aaron sitting alone in front of the whaleback ship.“You know how it is Kyra—they had their own things to do. Last night they came because they were curious who I was, um interested in. That’s all.” Alone at last! Alone—with a dragon! Mister caramel lightly dipped in dark chocolate eyes! The eyes that I felt I could meld into…“Kyra. Kyra!”“ Huh?” “ Am I so boring that you have to day dream when you’re with me?” he smirked, gently caressing my cheek.“No! No! I was just thinking.” Whew, if he only knew the affect his eyes had on me. “So Aaron, what are we going to do tonight? Jump in the lake, cascade over mountains, or talk.” I was so busy staring into his eyes that I he had already changed into his dragon form and was flipping me onto his back.“ Aiii…” I screamed, surprised.“Let’s talk” I heard him say in my head as we flew low over the water.“Boat! Boat!” was all I could scream as a boat quickly appeared in our path. I closed my eyes not wanting to see the impact. Instead, I felt the slight shift in Aaron’s body as he coasted out of its path.“You can open your eyes now.” he gurgled and snorted. Was he laughing!“Ya go ahead and laugh at me” I fumed, “You wouldn’t think it so funny if we would have crashed.” His gurgling and snorting continued, he was laughing so hard his body was shaking, tickling me as I hung on.“Stop.. hahaha… that!” We landed at top of the Aerial Lift Bridge. The glow of the Duluth/Superior lights were all around us as I gawked at the pristine beauty of the lights, lake and the night. I could see small white shapes floating, reflecting the city lights on the lake. “Those are seagulls.”“Seagulls? I thought they would find some warm, dry place to sleep on land.” “ Seagulls are opportunists. They sleep in their nests when the have young otherwise they sleep anywhere they are away from their predators, and I don’t think Lake Superior has many predators that can eat a live healthy seagull.”“ Do you eat seagulls?”“ Na, some of the others do but for me they’re too feathery. Yuck! Last time I tried one it took me weeks to get the feathers out of my teeth!” I hope he brushes his teeth! Yuck! Carefully, he set me down on the beam he had been standing on—changing back. The winds off the lake scared me, as they blew I had to struggle to maintain my footing.“Aaron!” I cried as my feet slipped out from under me. I was falling!“Gotcha!” he said in my ear. We were both sitting down, me in his lap, and his strong-arms tightly around me. We sat there in silence—watching. Watching—together—in his arms—clouds float by, the ships cast in darkness on the lake- rolling with a glimmer of light. “Kyra, what did you want to ask me?” His breath tickled my ear.“Huh? Oh!” I said as his voice seeped through the fog of my mind. “I wanted to know why are there dragons here and why this area? In all the books I read, dragons exist everywhere but here!” “ Dragons like humans are everywhere. It’s just we choose to live hidden—if most humans knew we really did exist, they would try to put us in zoo’s and dissect us; trying to find out whether we were more like lizards or snakes. Through history we have learned that humans kill what they are afraid of, even themselves…” I kissed him. On the cheek- I couldn’t help myself- he seemed so, sad. “We would rather live in our dragon form, but with humans, living almost everywhere on the earth—if we wanted to survive—we didn’t have a choice.”I started to think about what might happened if someone, anyone who was not willing to keep their secret proved Aaron and his kind existed and who they were as humans.“Aaron, can you choose what you look like as a human?”“No, we can only choose the age.”“Your age! How old are you, as a dragon?” I never thought about how long the legends said dragons could live. I guess I just assumed he was my age even in dragon. “Hmm.. about 225 years old. Give or take a couple years.”“ 225! Than why are you hanging out with me? I’m a little young aren’t I?”Aaron explained to me how dragon age and human age is not the same; just like a dog’s age is not really the same as a human. That in approximation of dragon age he was about the same age as me and had as much to learn about the world as I did. “Feel better?” he laughed, hugging me tighter.“Yes much better, I was starting to think all I was to you was a plaything.”“Never! Are you hungry?”“ A little. Why are you?”“ Famished!” Did he say famished? Oh no! I never asked him if he ate humans! “Umm—you don’t eat people do you?” “Only those that annoy me.” He laughed, teasingly. Whew, that was a relief. Feeling playful—I leaned close to his ear and whispered, “I don’t annoy you do I.” Aaron grabbed me and threw me up into the air of the brisk moonlit night. My scream lost in my throat. He won’t let me fall to my death- right? I was only teasing. I felt the wind blow against my body—suffocating me as I tried to scream-I was going to pass out! I watched as the ground rose to meet me. “Aaron WHAT did I do?” I tried to scream when all of a sudden I was jerked hard upright, thrown into the air once again and landed safely on Aarons back. “I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to scare you. Let’s go eat!” Eat—eat—does he think I feel like eating after almost crashing to my death because of him?“I’m NOT hungry. Humph…” I said, kicking him in the side.“I said I was sorry—what more do you want?” Does he think I am going to talk to him, after what he did?“Kyra, I was just playing. Please, please believe me when I tell you I would have never let anything happen to you!”“ PLAYING, PLAYING! YOU call that playing?”“ I guess to someone who can’t fly, I can understand how they wouldn’t think that as playing.”“ You got that right!” We landed in a secluded area on the rocky shores of Canal Park.“Where to?”“Follow my lead.” Aaron said once he changed in human form, holding my hand in his and led the way. We only had to walk a little ways before arriving at a restaurant. “Have you ever eaten here Kyra?” “Ya, the food’s yummy.” “Yummy?” “Yes, yummy.” He looked confused. Hasn’t he ever heard the word yummy before? He ordered a big steak with all the works, and I politely said, “The same!” as the server took our order. He looked surprised but not as surprised as I was for how bold I was being. Why not? Didn’t he throw me off the top of the Arial Lift Bridge? A girl can really work up an appetite once the shock wears off a near death experience. “I guess you’re afraid that this might be your last meal?” Aaron said as he laughed from across the table.“Aaron, what do people think when at school you’re in a wheelchair and out of school your not?”“I just make sure to avoid them. Usually after school I am at places they aren’t—unless of course they can change into birds.” “ Why the wheel chair? You don’t need it?”Aaron explained to me how he chose to be in a wheelchair at school; that he couldn’t walk—even if he tried. “Why? How can you walk one minute and than not the next? I don’t understand.” “We all do—sometime during our lives.” He looked so uncomfortable—as if he was telling me a deep dark secret. “So—how about those Twins,” I chirped. “Twins, aren’t they baseball? We’re in football season now.” I smacked my head with the palm of my hand. How could I forget it was football season? I lived on the Wisconsin-Minnesota border—all the rivalry going on between Packer and Viking fans was almost as interesting as the sport itself. Our talking ebbed as our food arrived— shoveling bite after bite as if we were starving in our hungry mouths. “We have to hurry or you’re going to be late!” Aaron said after he paid for our food and left a sizable tip for the server.We rushed out the door, running down the street towards the white and black lighthouse on Canal Park. “Why—are—we going there?” I asked Aaron when we were half way there.“People on the rocks,” was all he said as he grabbed my hand and hurried me along. With a flick of his wrist, I was cast into the air, landing on his back with a thud. I hadn’t even realized Aaron had changed into a dragon all ready. “How do you do that!” I called to him as the wind whipped my voice away, making it a whisper.“How do I do what?”“Change into a dragon so quickly? Isn’t it difficult?”“ It is more difficult for me to change into human form than it is my original form-think about it?” I suppose it would be just as difficult for a human to change into a dragon—the scales instead of hair, big pointy teeth, and razor sharp claws instead of finger nails. I could name a few people who probably wouldn’t have any difficulties with the claws, since they always seem to have them bared and ready to use. “Ha ha ha,” I was laughing so hard tears streamed down my cheeks—Aaron had to shift to balance me—I almost fell off Aaron’s back.“What’s so funny that you could have fallen to your doom?”“Claws!” I cried and laughed even harder.“Claws? What is so funny about claws?” As we landed in the alley behind my house, I tried to explain to him how some people seemed too always have their claws out. He did not understand until I used a few examples using some kids from school. “Oh, I get it!”I wasn’t sure he did, but I think he understood a little better before I told him goodbye and gave him a quick peck on the cheek – running into the house so I would not be late. “Kyra! I was worried about you. I tried to call you on the cell phone for the last hour and you did not answer. Well, young lady?” My dad stood in the kitchen with his feet firmly planted shoulder with apart; with his hands on his hips, and glared at me as if I had committed a cardinal sin. He only acted like this when I was seriously in trouble.“Hi Honey. Did you have a good time tonight?” Mom said as she walked in the kitchen and stood next to my dad. She must have heard him because before I could answer she asked for her cell phone back.“Here you go mom.” I said sheepishly as I unclipped the cell phone from my belt and handed it to her. She flipped her phone open, checking it, holding it up for my dad to see than whispered something in his ear as she mouth to him the words ‘sorry’. “I’m sorry Kyra. Your mom just informed me that she forgot to turn the ringer and vibrate on, before she gave it to you. Next time you use her cell phone-- please check that it is on.” I stood there in disbelief, how lucky I was at that moment. If the ringer or vibrate had been turned on I would have been grounded to my room for at least a week.“Kyra, I was just worried something happened to you. I love you.” I hadn’t run up to my dad in years and hugged him, tonight was an exception. “I love you too dad.” I said as I squeezed him as tightly as I could. He had been so busy much of my life I had almost forgotten how worried he got when I wasn’t safe at home. When I was in sixth grade, I went to my first sleep over at a friend’s house for her birthday. She lived a long way out in the country, on a farm. While I was getting my stuff ready to go to her sleepover, there was a breaking news report on the television about a recent bear attack in the area. My dad had been so worried that a bear might break into her house and maul me that he forbade me to go to the sleep over. It wasn’t until my mom’s reassurance that I would be safe-- that the news report said, “the attack was from a bear attacking campers in their tents- who did not secure their food properly- not their homes; did my dad finally lift my restriction on going to the party. As my mom and I walked out the door to drive there, he hugged me as if he was never going to see me again. I laughed when the next day my mom told me my dad had dreamed that he was fighting off bears all night, which made it impossible for her to get any sleep out of concern that he might mistake her for a bear. I dragged myself up the stairs to my room-- dead tired-- I guess all this flying around as a passenger is starting to wear me out. I still had the riddles to solve—tonight I did get some answers only to find more questions. “Goodnight Kyra,” my mom said softly as she pulled my quilt over me, kissing my forehead gently goodnight. “G--night mom.” I mumbled as I drifted off to sleep. It was still dark when I woke up; my heart pounding in my chest as I jumped to my feet—ready to protect myself from the threat I felt. I glanced defensively around my room, noticing nothing out of the ordinary. That was until I saw a blurred reddish brown –what looked to be a weird handprint on my glass outside my window. As my eyes adjusted to the dim light, I could see that the print was indeed of a hand—a hand just like Aarons in dragon form. “Aaron!” My mind screamed out his name. It was all I remembered as I woke to the sun shinning through my still scarred window, waking me up for a new day. Chapter 5 The Note “Nothing’ but a little late fall house cleaning,” I told my mom as she stood in my doorway watching me clean my window. The windows of our house tilt in for cleaning otherwise I would be frantic about how I was going to hide the bloody print sticky solidly to the middle of the glass. I could only wonder if Aaron was playing some sort of prank, was he injured somehow, or if one of the other dragons did this. “Kyra, I know I usually harp to you to clean your room. It’s forty degrees outside this morning and I do not think now is a good time to clean outside windows.” I knew she was right. It was getting chilly in my room from having my window tilted open but I was sure she would be freaked out if I had left it the way it was. I got dressed quickly, and ran downstairs to the kitchen. My mom was in her usual spot at the table – cup of coffee in hand—no dad in sight. “Where’s dad?” I asked her as I finished pouring a bowl of cereal for myself. She looked up from the book she had been reading, “Did you forget he had to go to work this morning as usual?” Now I did it! I made her mom radar go off by asking her something I should have known. Nervously I Sloshed the milk, I was trying to pour, over the count top “Oops! I’ll clean it up.” I said as I quickly grabbed a towel. “What is wrong with you today Kyra. First you’re up this morning cleaning your window than forgetting your dad has to work today- it’s not like you- what’s wrong?” I wanted to tell her about everything. Aaron and his friends being dragons, flying and about the bloody claw print—I was afraid. I was afraid if I did tell her and she believed me she would ground me forever or if she didn’t believe me I would feel betrayed- betrayed that she didn’t trust me enough not lie to her about something this serious. So-- I did the best thing I could do at the time. Shrugging my shoulders as I spooned mouthfuls of globules into my mouth I mumbled, “I don’t know.” A safe response that most children learn as soon as they can talk to defend themselves from things they do not want to answer. I felt guilty as I watched my mom silently get up to pour herself some more coffee. My mom like some adults never forgot what it was like being an adolescent; she knew exactly what I was doing. As I glance over to her empty seat I saw the book she had been reading, ‘Norse Mythology’, it was identical to the one I saw Aaron reading in school. “Mom! Where did you get that book?” Startled by the urgency in my voice she turned quickly, knocking her cup off the counter and onto the floor. “Calm down,” she said as she stooped to clean up the mess. “I found it in your backpack. I’m sorry if I upset you—I didn’t think you would mind.” “Oh, no mom, I don’t mind—I just forgot I had that book, that’s all.” I said as I shoved the book roughly into my backpack. I glanced cautiously at her to see if she believed me—she did. My stomach felt like it was churning as I realized—she believed me and this time I had lied to her. What was I doing? I never lied to my mom before—we had an honesty policy. Our ‘honesty policy’ was an agreement my mom and I created together when I was a little girl. It said that we were never to lie to one another unless it was extreme circumstances like the year dad planned a surprise party for my mom and I wasn’t supposed to tell her—because if I did, it would have wrecked the surprise. Otherwise, we were to be honest with each other. I didn’t really lie though-- I just used the word forgot rather than didn’t know-- Maybe I really did forget with all the things happening. Just maybe, Aaron gave me the book and I unconsciously put it in my backpack. Great! Now, I was lying to myself. “Oh this fell out of your book,” she said handing me a tattered folded piece of paper. “In case you’re wondering,” she continued, “I didn’t open it. I respect your privacy.” This morning was turning out to be one of those days when you wished you stayed safe in bed. Filled with guilt for the partial lie and now her declaration of how she respects my privacy I did the only thing I could do. I smiled an uttered a “Thanks mom,” stuffing the note in my back pocket as I leaned in and kissed her on the cheek before I grabbed my coat and out the door, walking quickly to the bus stop. Once at school, I scanned the hallways in between class, hoping to catch a glimpse of Aaron, Andrea or some recognition of any of the other dragons I saw in human form my first night at Barkers Island. Class after class went by without seeing any of them—I was hopeful, that at lunch Andrea would be there, for my mind was consumed by theories about the bloody hand/claw print. “That maybe it wasn’t blood at all but red clay. Aaron could have gotten it on his hands/claws before he put the book in my backpack when I was sleeping” or “it was just a prank one of the other dragons was pulling to scare me.” Though my theories were plausible—I could find loopholes in all of them—except two--, one that Aaron was hurt and the other that it was a prank. If only I could find Aaron or Andrea, they might know. Lunchtime came and I decided to buy my lunch. The line wasn’t very long—grabbing an apple, a salad, and a bottle of water—I proceeded to the cashier. She looked bored as she said, “$2.20” while she held out her hand for the money. I reached in my back pocket pulling out the cash I had stashed there when I noticed the note that had fallen out of the ‘Norse Mythology’ book this morning. Hanging on to my two one-dollar bills and fishing in my front pocket for the twenty cents- finding two dimes. I dropped the money into her hand, snatched up my tray, scanned for a seat where Andrea (if she was at school) could find me, and a little privacy to look at the tattered folded paper. I found the perfect table. It was close to the cafeteria doors—so that Andrea wouldn’t miss me—as well as the space was busy enough for now one to care about what I was doing. I opened the paper carefully; afraid if I hurried I would tear it, and spread the note out in front of me.       I know I have seen symbols like this somewhere, but where; maybe in history class when we were studying ancient Egypt. “Hey, I heard their serving ‘wing dings’ today!” A student said loudly to his pal as they walked to the lunch line, disrupting my thoughts. All through lunch, I studied the note trying to decipher any of it, while automatically taking bite after bite out of my apple. The salad was forgotten.Br-i- ng….the bell rang out; time to move on to my next class. Disappointed, I jammed the note in my backpack, stuffed the leftover lunch in the trash, hopeful that Aaron would be in Biology to ease my fears and explain what was going on. In the hallway my head started throbbing, at first a dull pain just behind my ear, it steadily increase as I made my way to class. “Stress headache,” I muttered, trying to comfort myself as the pain in my head amplified. “Kyra.. Kyra…” I heard someone behind me whisper, I turned around towards the sound to see who said it, but all I saw were a sea of faces bobbing to their next class. I must be imagining it, I thought. Until I heard my name, being whispered again only this, time more urgent. “What!” I replied, frustrated as I abruptly spun around and smacked into Mr. Wilson my biology teacher, almost knocking him off his feet. He was so shocked he could only sputter and shake his head as I offered him a quick apology and scooted off to my next class hoping the time would go by quickly. As I sat in class waiting for it to be over; the thrum in my head worsened, I started to shiver from the pain. “Just a little bit longer,” I coaxed myself trying to hold out until biology. Than I would ask Mr. Wilson for a pass to go to the nurses office, but only after I talk to Aaron. “KYRA!” I heard someone scream, as I started trembling uncontrollably as an intense pain tore through my head. Blinding me as my body plummeted off my chair down to the cold tiled floor. I never heard the bell ring for biology. “Kyr.. ra..,” a ghostly voice whispered in the night; the moon lighting up everything around me in an ethereal blush; I saw waves undulating far below me, embracing the rocks that jutted maliciously out of the water, reaching for me, calling my name. I teetered on the edge of the precipice imploring my body not to reply. I could only watch, feeling the alarm rise up in me as my arms reached out to them. “Ky…ra” they called, “come to us..” I wobbled, resisting, as my feet stirred moving closer to the edge. Amongst the waves, sitting on the largest rock I could see a gloomy figure, battered and bloody looking up at me with big sad eyes. “Kyr.. Ra” it called up at me, “RUN!” The dark silhouette’s command shocked me out of my stupor. Regaining control over my body and mind, I spun around and ran howling “Noooo…!” as I realize the broken figure on the rocks, had been Aaron in his dragon form. I found myself running through the wood, branches slashing, grabbing at me trying to stop my plight. When I could run no more, I tumbled to the ground and sobbed. I wept for Aaron, wondering if he was still alive or if the crashing tide washed him away. I cried for myself, lost, afraid, and confused. Wondering how I got to the cliff when my last memory was of me sitting safe in my class at school, waiting for the bell to ring, for my next class was biology. The only class I had Aaron in; who might hold the answers that I needed. A shadow flickered across the ground. Looking up I saw a large dark shape looming just above the trees, directly over my head. I crouched lower, burying my head in my arms, trying to shield myself from its view. “Kyr.. ra,” it sang to me, it words vibrating through my mind, “don’t be afraid.” I heard the rustling of branches as it made its decent. I looked up, startled to see Andrea, my friend, looming over me. She was more beautiful than I remember, as the moonlight shimmered in waves off her dark lavender scales. I tried to find the words to tell her about Aaron, to ask her what was happening, as she gently picked me up and placed me on her back. “Hang on,” she called, her voice soft as a lullaby “I’m here to bring you home.” Oh I almost forgot it is young adult fiction Over the last three months I have had no feedback on it- I am up to 30,000 words and another probally 30,000 until it is completely finished. This is not my first attemp at a novel, the others I tried to force from short stories I had written into novels- this became a novel from the beginning. Its taken me 20 years to start writing again..... I need honesty - critique - for a publisher is not out there just to be nice to everyone. exert first chapter- to help clarify.... My world is falling apart. The world I thought I knew. The world where I felt apart of instead of the outcast I feel like now. How did this happen? I kept asking myself. How am I so different from my peers? My wants, needs, desires... My reactions to them over stepping my boundaries- the boundaries of humanity, while they talk to me and treat me anyway they please. Expecting me to roll over and play dead or abide to their wishes as if I am some genie in a lamp. Cutting me off with anger when I do not abide or struggle to tell them no. Why do I have to be like them? Why do I have to be like everyone else? As if, I was to be supposed to be created in their image instead of my Gods. Doesn’t it say we are supposed to turn the other cheek to find understanding of one another, compassion, acceptance…?

What do you think of worship of the Earth,or these prayers,...? Gaia ~ a Living Prayer Wheel! E-mail this Global Event to a Friend Join our newsletter for news and updates THE 14th Annual SOLAR WAVE 2008 ~ Phase Two The Living Gaia Prayer Wheel Activation! Equinox ~ September 22nd, 2008 ~ 1 to 3 PM your local time all across the Earth. This is a Joyful Invitation to the Awakening Masses of Gaia to come together in ONE UNIFIED HEART to Activate our Planet as a LIVING GAIA PRAYER WHEEL! We Invite all to join together with like-minded, heart-centered souls to create an Unstoppable Tidal Solar Wave of Light and Positive Mass Awareness, to harmonize all discordant energy on Gaia, and to initiate a spontaneous Awakening of Humanity! With the Power and Light of the Creator that is within each of us, we can usher in the age of PEACE, HARMONY, LOVE, COMPASSION & IMPECCABILITY, that has been prophesized by many ancient traditions. This will all occur during the powerful window of unlimited opportunity at Equinox, and is combined with the multiplying potential of 13:30 LOCAL SIDEREAL TIME, and the grace filled rotation of the Earth as a living Prayer Wheel. "Again and again some people in the crowd wake up. They have no ground in the crowd . . . they emerge according to much broader laws . . . and carry strange customs with them . . . and demand room for bold gestures. The future speaks ruthlessly through them". - Rilke What is the catch you ask? Does it sound to good to be true? The fact is . . . that there is no catch. This opportunity is free, green and supports all living things! There is a powerful time each day on the planetary grid where our 6th sense abilities are 400% times more effective. When we use this knowledge and join together at this powerful time, our efforts will be multiplied within the harmonizing effects of Equinox. We can heal the Earth and Awaken Humanity! Have you ever felt like you were here on the Earth for a Special Purpose? Do you feel that you are potentially . . . THE VERY ONE . . . that could help tip the balance of our dimension back into the LIGHT? You are RIGHT! You are the ONE! . . . but do you want proof? You will not have proof unless you are willing to go out on a limb, be bold, and believe in the light that you know we are. Are you ready to prove that you are that powerful, and that we can heal the Earth and Awaken humanity? Keep reading ~ The Ancient one and the Earth have a plan. Ancient traditions understand that the EQUINOX is a powerful time to initiate changes in our material world and shift into a new reality. On Equinox, the Earth and the Sun are in perfect balance and harmony, as the sun is centered between the Northern and Southern hemispheres, and centered between Heaven and Earth. This creates a sacred cross of balancing energy that naturally harmonizes the planet and humanity. For 24 hours, the Earth heals itself in this balancing energy of a Solar Wave. The Tibetans understand the power of spinning the Prayer Wheel to send healing energy across the planet. Could it be that the Prayer wheel is a representation of the spinning Earth? Native American cultures know that the medicine wheel is a reflection of the Earth. The medicine wheel is used for ceremony to heal and bring balance back to the Earth. So why not use the Earth herself? Equinox Graphic courtesy of Mid-Atlantic Geomancy (MAG) http://www.geomancy.org For the last 14 years, thousands upon thousands of light workers, peacekeepers, shamans, healers, gods and goddesses, angels and saints from around the globe have joined together to work with powerful Equinox energy in a 24 hour Solar Wave of Light and creative potential. But this event is nothing new. Ancient ones knew about this powerful time and have used it to balance and harmonize discordant energy for eons. The fact that the masses are now becoming aware of this time of great potential is a huge sign that we are, in fact, on the brink of planetary awakening. This year a group of ancient ones called the Star Elders, say that we are ready to evolve this year's Solar Wave to a Stellar Wave! This year the Star Elders call us to work with the Equinox but to also add a hugely multiplying potential . . . a specific local sidereal time (LST a.k.a. Star Time) to synchronize our global efforts to reclaim paradise. Are you in? What is (LST) Local Sidereal Time you ask? Local Sidereal Time (LST) is an Astronomy term, referring to how the planet is oriented relative to the position of the stars. It is a measure of the passing of the center of our galaxy (the Milky Way) overhead. Sidereal time is STELLAR TIME and is approximately 3 minutes, 56 seconds shorter than a solar day. LST is a measure of time independent of the Sun's cycles. Thus, Local Sidereal Time (LST) moves backward in solar time about four minutes a day, two hours a month and one day a year. Anywhere you are on the planet, at the same LST time you will see the same stars overhead. Example . . . your favorite star will set 4 minutes earlier each night. So why do you care about this? Read on and you will! The Cognitive Sciences Laboratory in Palo Alto, California, made some exciting discoveries. They studied a group that had natural clairvoyant, clairsentient, clairaudient, ESP abilities. They discovered that during a specific window of time, that their test group was more accurate by 400% and more in their abilities to "see" or predict events. When scientists examined the accuracy of thousands of ESP predictions, along with the documented times that these anomalous cognitions took place, they were stunned. The precognitive cycle coincided with a particular Local Sidereal Time or LST. Scientists discovered that peak efficiency for ESP was repeatedly at 13:30 LST. Working with 13:30 LST could lead to more efficient uses of one's psychic talents and energy work. This means that every 23 hours and 56 minutes, humanity has a unique doorway open to them to see through and work with energies that could heal the world! The Star Elders say that if we can "see" through this doorway, we can also "project light and healing energy" through the doorway and can radically change our world. When we project visions of a brilliant future and send healing energies, we can change the world and reclaim paradise. The peak of the 13:30 LST window of opportunity is about 2-3 hours long (see chart). When we consciously work with the energy of heightened harmonious Equinox energies, and combine it with 13:30 LST, we have an immeasurable amount of potential to make our dreams come true for ourselves, our communities, and our planet. It is only a couple of hours! Do you have time to change the world? It sounds great doesn't it? But why stop there? What if we could make this event even more powerful? The Star Elders say that enough people are working in the light that we have pushed their ancient Mayan prophesies up by 4 years . . . making 2008 the year that we can shift the world and humanity back into the light. So here is how the Star Elders suggest that we create a 24 hour "Living Gaia Prayer Wheel" where we have a 400% more stellar potential to change the world and reclaim paradise. WHAT CAN YOU DO? . . . because the EARTH NEEDS YOU! This is why YOU are so important. What do you think the potential would be if we got the entire light worker / energy healer community working with 13:30 LST on Equinox? Are you ready to go out on that limb yet? What The Star Elders are asking us to do is to synchronize our local planetary family with major global action. What they are suggesting is that together, we use the harmonizing effects of Equinox, and combined it with 13:30 LST potential, and send a Solar Wave out over the Earth over a 24 hour period. It sounds impossible, but it is not. Let me explain . . . Somewhere on the planet, right now, it is 13:30 LST. Every single moment there is a place on Earth that is in the window of the LST time of 13:30. When we each work with our local LST time window, we will create a 24 hour wave of light across the planet filled with powerful healing energy. Just as the prayer wheel spins to send out it prayers, we will be doing the same thing but by using the spin of the Earth instead. We will create a 24 hour tidal wave of powerful, transforming, healing light, creating a positive vision for a brilliant future. This is YOUR TIME to put to action all the healing talents and spiritual truths you have taken such great care to learn and develop. At your local time window of 1 to 3 PM on September 22nd, give the world ALL the LIGHT and LOVE and COMPASSION you have! Send your HEART out to humanity, the planet, and all life. Send your knowingness that paradise is here right now, and act as if that vision has been realized. Use your highest, purest intentions, and remember that the truth is not out there . . . it is within YOU. It is time to quit dreaming and hoping that the world will change and suffering will stop. As Gandhi said . . . "We must BE the change that we want to see in the world!" KNOW that it is so . . . And it will be. By using the Earth as a living prayer wheel, combined with the intensified powerful of the 13:30 LST time window, inside the thinned veils of harmonizing Equinox, there is nothing that can stop us now. Remember "We are made of Stars" (a song by Moby) This is where YOU and all of your networking comes into play. On September 22nd, plan your modest gathering, or dream big and plan a huge event with all your like minded family. Work within the 2 hour time window and do your work as Spirit guides you. Remember to act locally, but think globally. ~~ That's it! ~~ On September 22nd, 2008 with your masterful networking help, we can encourage the entire global population of healers and light workers to catch the Solar Wave to manifest the Earth as a Living Gaia Prayer Wheel. Are we ready to enter Paradise on Earth and Awaken as Living Masters? OH YES WE ARE! We were born for this day! NETWORK THIS EVENT! Please send this invitation to all your relations everywhere. Network the Solar Wave. Talk about the Solar Wave. Plan an event in your living room, or fill a stadium! Remember we are only separated by 6 degrees of separation. So if you send this to 6 people, we can reach the entire conscious community of the planet! Or if you are a hard core net worker, and want to leave no room for doubt, send this to everyone you know, and let's get the entire world unified and working together to reclaim paradise! Remember . . . when two or more are gathered together in a common focus, the power to change the world is multiplied a thousand times more than if one person was doing it alone. Dream BIG! Source, Apparent Association between Effect Size in Free Response Anomalous Cognition Experiments and Local Sidereal Time, by S. James P. Spottiswoode, published in the Journal of Scientific Exploration, Vol. II, No. 2, 1997. You can find it at www.jsasoc.com/library.html . There is an excellent sidereal time clock for Windows PC at http://www.radiosky.com/sidclockdownload.html UPDATES Did you notice that we are CHANGING THE WORLD? The illusionary powers of the world know they are loosing the battle! Light will and is prevailing. Since "Phase One" of the Solar Wave 2008 in March, in which we began to incorporate the use of the 13:30 LST times to increase our effectiveness in manifesting light on Earth by 400%, the web sites that helped us discover each of our 13:30 LST times were mysteriously taken down (Hmmmm. Very interesting). Most of these were government based sites. It is apparent that they have become aware that light workers were using the same techniques that they are. The big difference here is that light workers are using the 13:30 LST times to awaken and set free the hearts, and minds of humanity. Because these sites have shut down, we do not have the convenience of easily obtaining the exact 13:30 LST time conversions for our areas. There are ways of finding the exact peak 13:30 moment, but it is complicated. So were are opting out for an easy 13:30 LST time window . . . 1 to 3 PM your local time, where everyone can work to create a WAVE of POWERFUL LIGHT across the EARTH. Since our March/Equinox 2008 Solar Wave Event, we have felt a HUGE acceleration in our personal lives and in the global community! The Star Elders say that the power we felt in March was just a warm-up for what we will feel this September on Equinox. So here we go . . . we invite you to join in on phase two of the 13:30 LST light and love blast that will bring the balance and harmony back to our dimension once again. Blessing to you all ~ With Love ~ Aluna Joy Our favorite play list right now is ... "Raise Your Hands" by Pat Monahan ... "We Are All Made of Stars" by Moby, and a softer one, "Let Me" by Paul Schwartz. You can still downloaded this free LST clock to watch for your 13:30 each day. http://www.radiosky.com/sidclockdownload.html You can listen to an interview The 2012 Chronicles ~ Equinox and the SOLAR WAVE. (needs Quick Time or another media player) THANK YOU TO ALL THE AWESOME SUPPORTERS OF THE SOLAR WAVE 2008 Patti Cota-Robles of ERA OF PEACE www.eraofpeace.org for her impeccable message and great support. DaVid of the THE LIGHT PARTY www.lightparty.com/ Over the years, DaVid has been a great supporter of the Solar Wave with his HUGE network base. My Ol' Bliss Buddy and Inca Addict… STAR of STAR FLOWER ESSENCES ~ http://www.starfloweressences.com Who has been with the Solar Wave from the beginning, 14 years ago, and gives from her heart! Her essences are amazing! Daniel and CIRCLE OF SOUND http://www.circleofsound.org/ Daniel is a amazing being of impeccable trust and light. The Circle of Sound will be in ceremony with their seasonal Global Harmonization Ceremony which they do every Equinox and Solstice. They will be priming the energy for the Solar Wave, on Equinox, March 20th. CHILDREN OF THE SUN http://www.childrenofthesun.tv are new additions to the Solar Wave this year. They work with moon cycles to re-connect the planet and humanity. They will also be working with the 13:30 time on March 21st! They have been a huge help in networking. We are looking forward to getting to know them better. THANK YOU ONE AND ALL ACROSS THE PLANET, IN ADVANCE… for all your work and dedication to making a real difference in the advancement of the LIGHT on this beautiful planet! There are no words of gratitude great enough for YOU! A message from Patti Cota-Robles... This is a critical time, and the forces of imbalance are desperately trying to block Earth's Ascension into the 5th-Dimensional Realms of Light. They know that Lightworkers aren't dumb, so they do not say "I am the sinister force, and I have come to ruin your life." They say "I am god, follow me." Their misinformation and disinformation uses terminology that Lightworkers are familiar with in order to confuse and block activities of Light. Their attempts to block the influx of Light that took place during the Fire the Grid event failed miserably. Much to their dismay, the Lightworkers redoubled their efforts and the influx of Light transcended the greatest expectations of Heaven. Beloved Saint Germain has said that the greatest means of sorcery occurring on Earth at this time is people drawing the attention of the masses to the negativity taking place around the world. Where our attention is, there we are. Whatever we focus on, we empower. Do not empower those thoughtforms by addressing them or disputing them. Just let them go and invoke the I AM Presence of the souls involved to fill them with God Illumination and Divine Truth. That fear-based information has absolutely NO power over the Light, unless we choose to focus on it and empower it with our fears. It is the Divine Intention with which Lightworkers invoke the Light that determines the outcome. When millions of people around the world participate in the Solar Wave with the Divine Intention of Healing discordant energy and lifting Humanity into a higher level of Divine Consciousness, that is exactly what will take place. Remember, THE LIGHT OF GOD IS ALWAYS VICTORIOUS, AND YOU ARE THAT LIGHT. Keep shining your magnificent Light! God Bless ~ Patti Cota-Robles www.eraofpeace.org "We live in an age of prophecy, during which humanity has the opportunity to re-awaken to timeless, inter-dependent relationship with the cosmos. Without a doubt, we are here at this special time to help fulfill an awesome and delicately orchestrated plan to align Earth with the cosmos and humanity with the universal heart. We are here to awaken to the full potential of being authentic aware human beings. It's time to drop your cosmic remote control, get out of that visualization chair, and get to work. Spirit helps those who help themselves. Spirit works right NOW . . . not yesterday . . . not tomorrow. Quit watching what is going on and take action. Use your power to do something about the imbalances in your world." - The Star Elders "One's mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions." - Oliver Wendell Holmes Peace is not something you wish for, it is something you make, something you do, something you are and it is something you give away. EVERYTHING is a PLACEBO! Your belief in it determines the effect Armand "I am only one, but I AM ONE. I cannot do it all, but I will not refuse to do what I can. and what I can do, by the grace of the Creator, I will do." - unknown Please network this invitation all over the Earth. E-mail this Global Event to a Friend Join our newsletter for updates SOLAR WAVE Responses from Phase One. "You who have the light, what are you doing with it?" ~ Paul Claudel We invite all the Guides, Guardians, Angels, Ascended Masters, Shamans and Sages of the LIGHT to assist in this Healing and Awakening of Humanity, Earth and Cosmos. May the shifts be completed in all ~time~space~dimension~past~present~future~body~mind~spirit, 7 days a week ~ 24 hours a day ~ 365 days year! Solar Wave History - Where it all began.... The Solar Wave was an idea born in 1990 while Aluna Joy was on a pilgrimage to Palenque, Mexico. In an amazing overnight stay in the Temple of the Sun, she was taught, or better yet, downloaded with a vision. Aluna Joy was shown a new energy that was coming to the planet that was going to come in energy waves in multiplying voltage. Today, 18 years after the initial vision, the waves are getting too big to ignore. You can read about this experience by reading A PALENQUE STORY

Can anyone check if this is right? i have to write a narrative essay 250 words about my first ride on a bike this is what i have it must be detailed and specific. Did i do it any suggestions? When I was a young girl I was always happiest on my bike. There were many places around my home that were traffic free and great to ride on. I can remember the wonderful sensation of flying as my bike zoomed down a hill and the wind blew on my face. It was one of those pure joys of childhood that you never forget. On my bike I felt totally alive and at one with the world. It all started one afternoon after my 9th birthday party. My mother told me that outside there was a gift for me. I was very excited and couldn’t wait to see what it was. There I was outside under the warm sun, when I saw a pink beautiful bike and my father. I ran towards my dad hugging and thanking him ignoring the flies buzzing around me, and then to my beautiful bike. I slid my tiny feet into the rubber straps of the petals. Gradually, my tiny legs frantically rotated forward fast and faster. I did it. I finally balanced my body perfectly. I kept moving forward, watching the dark pavement pass under the wheels. Never in my life did the pungent smell of hot rubber on concrete on a sunny summer's day please my senses so much. The fast transportation provided a sense of freedom. I then pushed my legs back, causing the wheels to come to a sudden halt. I jumped off the bike, admiring my first liberating ride. I stood there staring at the bike in admiration. The shiny red metal glistened in the sun light. No scratches or marks were in sight.

Can anyone check if this is correct? i have to write a narrative essay 250 words about my first ride on a bike this is what i have it must be detailed and specific. Did i do it any suggestions? When I was a young girl I was always happiest on my bike. There were many places around my home that were traffic free and great to ride on. I can remember the wonderful sensation of flying as my bike zoomed down a hill and the wind blew on my face. It was one of those pure joys of childhood that you never forget. On my bike I felt totally alive and at one with the world. It all started one afternoon after my 9th birthday party. My mother told me that outside there was a gift for me. I was very excited and couldn’t wait to see what it was. There I was outside under the warm sun, when I saw a pink beautiful bike and my father. I ran towards my dad hugging and thanking him ignoring the flies buzzing around me, and then to my beautiful bike. I slid my tiny feet into the rubber straps of the petals. Gradually, my tiny legs frantically rotated forward fast and faster. I did it. I finally balanced my body perfectly. I kept moving forward, watching the dark pavement pass under the wheels. Never in my life did the pungent smell of hot rubber on concrete on a sunny summer's day please my senses so much. The fast transportation provided a sense of freedom. I then pushed my legs back, causing the wheels to come to a sudden halt. I jumped off the bike, admiring my first liberating ride. I stood there staring at the bike in admiration. The shiny red metal glistened in the sun light. No scratches or marks were in sight.

Larger wheels and brand new tires installed, now car shakes at 45-50mph? Okay so here's my situation. I have a 1995 ford probe. The original tire size was p195-65-14, and I upgraded to a 225-45-r17. 3 days ago I had 4 brand new Falken Ziex 912 tires mounted and balanced on some used 5x114.3 17" aluminum rims (one of the rims has an extremely small bend in the inside lip, but doesn't affect the seal or anything). I took the car for a test drive and noticed a *thum-thum-thum-thum* noise in the front end. Took it back to the shop and we noticed some play, about 1mm, between the rim and hub. So I ran down to Autozone and picked up some 5/16" universal wheel spacers and installed them which completely eliminated the thump sound. BUT at 45-50 mph my steering wheel/front end starts to shake and i feel unsafe going over 50mph. I read that using "hubcentric" adapters or rings instead of the universal ones might fix the problem. The tires were balanced out to zero twice, the second time with a recalibrated machine. It's not a suspension issue because I had new outter tie rod ends installed recently and also new rotors. It wasn't doing this before. There are no clearance or rubbing issues. The new lug nuts are the flat shank style with a washer, compared to the tapered ones from the stock wheels if that makes a difference. WHAT'S GOING ON HERE!? The local wheel shops won't touch my car because they have to go by the book and said there is a chance of my wheels flying off. Any input is greatly appreciated. You might be saving a life :)

is this THE only longest joke youve heard ? Lost in the Desert (Author unknown) So, there’s a man crawling through the desert. He’d decided to try his SUV in a little bit of cross-country travel, had great fun zooming over the badlands and through the sand, got lost, hit a big rock, and then he couldn’t get it started again. There were no cell phone towers anywhere near, so his cell phone was useless. He had no family, his parents had died a few years before in an auto accident, and his few friends had no idea he was out here. He stayed with the car for a day or so, but his one bottle of water ran out and he was getting thirsty. He thought maybe he knew the direction back, now that he’d paid attention to the sun and thought he’d figured out which way was north, so he decided to start walking. He figured he only had to go about 30 miles or so and he’d be back to the small town he’d gotten gas in last. He thinks about walking at night to avoid the heat and sun, but based upon how dark it actually was the night before, and given that he has no flashlight, he’s afraid that he’ll break a leg or step on a rattlesnake. So, he puts on some sun block, puts the rest in his pocket for reapplication later, brings an umbrella he’d had in the back of the SUV with him to give him a little shade, pours the windshield wiper fluid into his water bottle in case he gets that desperate, brings his pocket knife in case he finds a cactus that looks like it might have water in it, and heads out in the direction he thinks is right. He walks for the entire day. By the end of the day he’s really thirsty. He’s been sweating all day, and his lips are starting to crack. He’s reapplied the sunblock twice, and tried to stay under the umbrella, but he still feels sunburned. The windshield wiper fluid sloshing in the bottle in his pocket is really getting tempting now. He knows that it’s mainly water and some ethanol and coloring, but he also knows that they add some kind of poison to it to keep people from drinking it. He wonders what the poison is, and whether the poison would be worse than dying of thirst. He pushes on, trying to get to that small town before dark. By the end of the day he starts getting worried. He figures he’s been walking at least 3 miles an hour, according to his watch for over 10 hours. That means that if his estimate was right that he should be close to the town. But he doesn’t recognize any of this. He had to cross a dry creek bed a mile or two back, and he doesn’t remember coming through it in the SUV. He figures that maybe he got his direction off just a little and that the dry creek bed was just off to one side of his path. He tells himself that he’s close, and that after dark he’ll start seeing the town lights over one of these hills, and that’ll be all he needs. As it gets dim enough that he starts stumbling over small rocks and things, he finds a spot and sits down to wait for full dark and the town lights. Full dark comes before he knows it. He must have dozed off. He stands back up and turns all the way around. He sees nothing but stars. He wakes up the next morning feeling absolutely lousy. His eyes are gummy and his mouth and nose feel like they’re full of sand. He so thirsty that he can’t even swallow. He barely got any sleep because it was so cold. He’d forgotten how cold it got at night in the desert and hadn’t noticed it the night before because he’d been in his car. He knows the Rule of Threes - three minutes without air, three days without water, three weeks without food - then you die. Some people can make it a little longer, in the best situations. But the desert heat and having to walk and sweat isn’t the best situation to be without water. He figures, unless he finds water, this is his last day. He rinses his mouth out with a little of the windshield wiper fluid. He waits a while after spitting that little bit out, to see if his mouth goes numb, or he feels dizzy or something. Has his mouth gone numb? Is it just in his mind? He’s not sure. He’ll go a little farther, and if he still doesn’t find water, he’ll try drinking some of the fluid. Then he has to face his next, harder question - which way does he go from here? Does he keep walking the same way he was yesterday (assuming that he still knows which way that is), or does he try a new direction? He has no idea what to do. Looking at the hills and dunes around him, he thinks he knows the direction he was heading before. Just going by a feeling, he points himself somewhat to the left of that, and starts walking. As he walks, the day starts heating up. The desert, too cold just a couple of hours before, soon becomes an oven again. He sweats a little at first, and then stops. He starts getting worried at that - when you stop sweating he knows that means you’re in trouble - usually right before heat stroke. He decides that it’s time to try the windshield wiper fluid. He can’t wait any longer - if he passes out, he’s dead. He stops in the shade of a large rock, takes the bottle out, opens it, and takes a mouthful. He slowly swallows it, making it last as long as he can. It feels so good in his dry and cracked throat that he doesn’t even care about the nasty taste. He takes another mouthful, and makes it last too. Slowly, he drinks half the bottle. He figures that since he’s drinking it, he might as well drink enough to make some difference and keep himself from passing out. He’s quit worrying about the denaturing of the wiper fluid. If it kills him, it kills him - if he didn’t drink it, he’d die anyway. Besides, he’s pretty sure that whatever substance they denature the fluid with is just designed to make you sick - their way of keeping winos from buying cheap wiper fluid for the ethanol content. He can handle throwing up, if it comes to that. He walks. He walks in the hot, dry, windless desert. Sand, rocks, hills, dunes, the occasional scrawny cactus or dried bush. No sign of water. Sometimes he’ll see a little movement to one side or the other, but whatever moved is usually gone before he can focus his eyes on it. Probably birds, lizards, or mice. Maybe snakes, though they usually move more at night. He’s careful to stay away from the movements. After a while, he begins to stagger. He’s not sure if it’s fatigue, heat stroke finally catching him, or maybe he was wrong and the denaturing of the wiper fluid was worse than he thought. He tries to steady himself, and keep going. After more walking, he comes to a large stretch of sand. This is good! He knows he passed over a stretch of sand in the SUV - he remembers doing donuts in it. Or at least he thinks he remembers it - he’s getting woozy enough and tired enough that he’s not sure what he remembers any more or if he’s hallucinating. But he thinks he remembers it. So he heads off into it, trying to get to the other side, hoping that it gets him closer to the town. He was heading for a town, wasn’t he? He thinks he was. He isn’t sure any more. He’s not even sure how long he’s been walking any more. Is it still morning? Or has it moved into afternoon and the sun is going down again? It must be afternoon - it seems like it’s been too long since he started out. He walks through the sand. After a while, he comes to a big dune in the sand. This is bad. He doesn’t remember any dunes when driving over the sand in his SUV. Or at least he doesn’t think he remembers any. This is bad. But, he has no other direction to go. Too late to turn back now. He figures that he’ll get to the top of the dune and see if he can see anything from there that helps him find the town. He keeps going up the dune. Halfway up, he slips in the bad footing of the sand for the second or third time, and falls to his knees. He doesn’t feel like getting back up - he’ll just fall down again. So, he keeps going up the dune on his hand and knees. While crawling, if his throat weren’t so dry, he’d laugh. He’s finally gotten to the hackneyed image of a man lost in the desert - crawling through the sand on his hands and knees. If would be the perfect image, he imagines, if only his clothes were more ragged. The people crawling through the desert in the cartoons always had ragged clothes. But his have lasted without any rips so far. Somebody will probably find his dessicated corpse half buried in the sand years from now, and his clothes will still be in fine shape -shake the sand out, and a good wash, and they’d be wearable again. He wishes his throat were wet enough to laugh. He coughs a little instead, and it hurts. He finally makes it to the top of the sand dune. Now that he’s at the top, he struggles a little, but manages to stand up and look around. All he sees is sand. Sand, and more sand. Behind him, about a mile away, he thinks he sees the rocky ground he left to head into this sand. Ahead of him, more dunes, more sand. This isn’t where he drove his SUV. This is Hell. Or close enough. Again, he doesn’t know what to do. He decides to drink the rest of the wiper fluid while figuring it out. He takes out the bottle, and is removing the cap, when he glances to the side and sees something. Something in the sand. At the bottom of the dune, off to the side, he sees something strange. It’s a flat area, in the sand. He stops taking the cap of the bottle off, and tries to look closer. The area seems to be circular. And it’s dark - darker than the sand. And, there seems to be something in the middle of it, but he can’t tell what it is. He looks as hard as he can, and still can tell from here. He’s going to have to go down there and look. He puts the bottle back in his pocket, and starts to stumble down the dune. After a few steps, he realizes that he’s in trouble - he’s not going to be able to keep his balance. After a couple of more sliding, tottering steps, he falls and starts to roll down the dune. The sand it so hot when his body hits it that for a minute he thinks he’s caught fire on the way down - like a movie car wreck flashing into flames as it goes over the cliff, before it ever even hits the ground. He closes his eyes and mouth, covers his face with his hands, and waits to stop rolling. He stops, at the bottom of the dune. After a minute or two, he finds enough energy to try to sit up and get the sand out of his face and clothes. When he clears his eyes enough, he looks around to make sure that the dark spot in the sand it still there and he hadn’t just imagined it. So, seeing the large, flat, dark spot on the sand is still there, he begins to crawl towards it. He’d get up and walk towards it, but he doesn’t seem to have the energy to get up and walk right now. He must be in the final stages of dehydration he figures, as he crawls. If this place in the sand doesn’t have water, he’ll likely never make it anywhere else. This is his last chance. He gets closer and closer, but still can’t see what’s in the middle of the dark area. His eyes won’t quite focus any more for some reason. And lifting his head up to look takes so much effort that he gives up trying. He just keeps crawling. Finally, he reaches the area he’d seen from the dune. It takes him a minute of crawling on it before he realizes that he’s no longer on sand - he’s now crawling on some kind of dark stone. Stone with some kind of marking on it -a pattern cut into the stone. He’s too tired to stand up and try to see what the pattern is - so he just keeps crawling. He crawls towards the center, where his blurry eyes still see something in the middle of the dark stone area. His mind, detached in a strange way, notes that either his hands and knees are so burnt by the sand that they no longer feel pain, or that this dark stone, in the middle of a burning desert with a pounding, punishing sun overhead, doesn’t seem to be hot. It almost feels cool. He considers lying down on the nice cool surface. Cool, dark stone. Not a good sign. He must be hallucinating this. He’s probably in the middle of a patch of sand, already lying face down and dying, and just imagining this whole thing. A desert mirage. Soon the beautiful women carrying pitchers of water will come up and start giving him a drink. Then he’ll know he’s gone. He decides against laying down on the cool stone. If he’s going to die here in the middle of this hallucination, he at least wants to see what’s in the center before he goes. He keeps crawling. It’s the third time that he hears the voice before he realizes what he’s hearing. He would swear that someone just said, “Greetings, traveler. You do not look well. Do you hear me?” He stops crawling. He tries to look up from where he is on his hands and knees, but it’s too much effort to lift his head. So he tries something different - he leans back and tries to sit up on the stone. After a few seconds, he catches his balance, avoids falling on his face, sits up, and tries to focus his eyes. Blurry. He rubs his eyes with the back of his hands and tries again. Better this time. Yep. He can see. He’s sitting in the middle of a large, flat, dark expanse of stone. Directly next to him, about three feet away, is a white post or pole about two inches in diameter and sticking up about four or five feet out of the stone, at an angle. And wrapped around this white rod, tail with rattle on it hovering and seeming to be ready to start rattling, is what must be a fifteen foot long desert diamondback rattlesnake, looking directly at him. He stares at the snake in shock. He doesn’t have the energy to get up and run away. He doesn’t even have the energy to crawl away. This is it, his final resting place. No matter what happens, he’s not going to be able to move from this spot. Well, at least dying of a bite from this monster should be quicker than dying of thirst. He’ll face his end like a man. He struggles to sit up a little straighter. The snake keeps watching him. He lifts one hand and waves it in the snake’s direction, feebly. The snake watches the hand for a moment, then goes back to watching the man, looking into his eyes. Hmmm. Maybe the snake had no interest in biting him? It hadn’t rattled yet -that was a good sign. Maybe he wasn’t going to die of snake bite after all. He then remembers that he’d looked up when he’d reached the center here because he thought he’d heard a voice. He was still very woozy - he was likely to pass out soon, the sun still beat down on him even though he was now on cool stone. He still didn’t have anything to drink. But maybe he had actually heard a voice. This stone didn’t look natural. Nor did that white post sticking up out of the stone. Someone had to have built this. Maybe they were still nearby. Maybe that was who talked to him. Maybe this snake was even their pet, and that’s why it wasn’t biting. He tries to clear his throat to say, “Hello,” but his throat is too dry. All that comes out is a coughing or wheezing sound. There is no way he’s going to be able to talk without something to drink. He feels his pocket, and the bottle with the wiper fluid is still there. He shakily pulls the bottle out, almost losing his balance and falling on his back in the process. This isn’t good. He doesn’t have much time left, by his reckoning, before he passes out. He gets the lid off of the bottle, manages to get the bottle to his lips, and pours some of the fluid into his mouth. He sloshes it around, and then swallows it. He coughs a little. His throat feels better. Maybe he can talk now. He tries again. Ignoring the snake, he turns to look around him, hoping to spot the owner of this place, and croaks out, “Hello? Is there anyone here?” He hears, from his side, “Greetings. What is it that you want?” He turns his head, back towards the snake. That’s where the sound had seemed to come from. The only thing he can think of is that there must be a speaker, hidden under the snake, or maybe built into that post. He decides to try asking for help. “Please,” he croaks again, suddenly feeling dizzy, “I’d love to not be thirsty any more. I’ve been a long time without water. Can you help me?” Looking in the direction of the snake, hoping to see where the voice was coming from this time, he is shocked to see the snake rear back, open its mouth, and speak. He hears it say, as the dizziness overtakes him and he falls forward, face first on the stone, “Very well. Coming up.” A piercing pain shoots through his shoulder. Suddenly he is awake. He sits up and grabs his shoulder, wincing at the throbbing pain. He’s momentarily disoriented as he looks around, and then he remembers - the crawl across the sand, the dark area of stone, the snake. He sees the snake, still wrapped around the tilted white post, still looking at him. He reaches up and feels his shoulder, where it hurts. It feels slightly wet. He pulls his fingers away and looks at them - blood. He feels his shoulder again - his shirt has what feels like two holes in it - two puncture holes -they match up with the two aching spots of pain on his shoulder. He had been bitten. By the snake. “It’ll feel better in a minute.” He looks up - it’s the snake talking. He hadn’t dreamed it. Suddenly he notices - he’s not dizzy any more. And more importantly, he’s not thirsty any more - at all! “Have I died? Is this the afterlife? Why are you biting me in the afterlife?” “Sorry about that, but I had to bite you,” says the snake. “That’s the way I work. It all comes through the bite. Think of it as natural medicine.” “You bit me to help me? Why aren’t I thirsty any more? Did you give me a drink before you bit me? How did I drink enough while unconscious to not be thirsty any more? I haven’t had a drink for over two days. Well, except for the windshield wiper fluid… hold it, how in the world does a snake talk? Are you real? Are you some sort of Disney animation?” “No,” says the snake, “I’m real. As real as you or anyone is, anyway. I didn’t give you a drink. I bit you. That’s how it works - it’s what I do. I bite. I don’t have hands to give you a drink, even if I had water just sitting around here.” The man sat stunned for a minute. Here he was, sitting in the middle of the desert on some strange stone that should be hot but wasn’t, talking to a snake that could talk back and had just bitten him. And he felt better. Not great - he was still starving and exhausted, but much better - he was no longer thirsty. He had started to sweat again, but only slightly. He felt hot, in this sun, but it was starting to get lower in the sky, and the cool stone beneath him was a relief he could notice now that he was no longer dying of thirst. “I might suggest that we take care of that methanol you now have in your system with the next request,” continued the snake. “I can guess why you drank it, but I’m not sure how much you drank, or how much methanol was left in the wiper fluid. That stuff is nasty. It’ll make you go blind in a day or two, if you drank enough of it.” “Ummm, n-next request?” said the man. He put his hand back on his hurting shoulder and backed away from the snake a little. “That’s the way it works. If you like, that is,” explained the snake. “You get three requests. Call them wishes, if you wish.” The snake grinned at his own joke, and the man drew back a little further from the show of fangs. “But there are rules,” the snake continued. “The first request is free. The second requires an agreement of secrecy. The third requires the binding of responsibility.” The snake looks at the man seriously. “By the way,” the snake says suddenly, “my name is Nathan. Old Nathan, Samuel used to call me. He gave me the name. Before that, most of the Bound used to just call me ‘Snake’. But that got old, and Samuel wouldn’t stand for it. He said that anything that could talk needed a name. He was big into names. You can call me Nate, if you wish.” Again, the snake grinned. “Sorry if I don’t offer to shake, but I think you can understand - my shake sounds somewhat threatening.” The snake give his rattle a little shake. “Umm, my name is Jack,” said the man, trying to absorb all of this. “Jack Samson. “Can I ask you a question?” Jack says suddenly. “What happened to the poison…umm, in your bite. Why aren’t I dying now? How did you do that? What do you mean by that’s how you work?” “That’s more than one question,” grins Nate. “But I’ll still try to answer all of them. First, yes, you can ask me a question.” The snake’s grin gets wider. “Second, the poison is in you. It changed you. You now no longer need to drink. That’s what you asked for. Or, well, technically, you asked to not be thirsty any more - but ‘any more’ is such a vague term. I decided to make it permanent - now, as long as you live, you shouldn’t need to drink much at all. Your body will conserve water very efficiently. You should be able to get enough just from the food you eat - much like a creature of the desert. You’ve been changed. “For the third question,” Nate continues, “you are still dying. Besides the effects of that methanol in your system, you’re a man - and men are mortal. In your current state, I give you no more than about another 50 years. Assuming you get out of this desert, alive, that is.” Nate seemed vastly amused at his own humor, and continued his wide grin. “As for the fourth question,” Nate said, looking more serious as far as Jack could tell, as Jack was just now working on his ability to read talking-snake emotions from snake facial features, “first you have to agree to make a second request and become bound by the secrecy, or I can’t tell you.” “Wait,” joked Jack, “isn’t this where you say you could tell me, but you’d have to kill me?” “I thought that was implied.” Nate continued to look serious. “Ummm…yeah.” Jack leaned back a little as he remembered again that he was talking to a fifteen foot poisonous reptile with a reputation for having a nasty temper. “So, what is this ‘Bound by Secrecy’ stuff, and can you really stop the effects of the methanol?” Jack thought for a second. “And, what do you mean methanol, anyway? I thought these days they use ethanol in wiper fluid, and just denature it?” “They may, I don’t really know,” said Nate. “I haven’t gotten out in a while. Maybe they do. All I know is that I smell methanol on your breath and on that bottle in your pocket. And the blue color of the liquid when you pulled it out to drink some let me guess that it was wiper fluid. I assume that they still color wiper fluid blue?” “Yeah, they do,” said Jack. “I figured,” replied Nate. “As for being bound by secrecy - with the fulfillment of your next request, you will be bound to say nothing about me, this place, or any of the information I will tell you after that, when you decide to go back out to your kind. You won’t be allowed to talk about me, write about me, use sign language, charades, or even act in a way that will lead someone to guess correctly about me. You’ll be bound to secrecy. Of course, I’ll also ask you to promise not to give me away, and as I’m guessing that you’re a man of your word, you’ll never test the binding anyway, so you won’t notice.” Nate said the last part with utter confidence. Jack, who had always prided himself on being a man of his word, felt a little nervous at this. “Ummm, hey, Nate, who are you? How did you know that? Are you, umm, omniscient, or something?” Well, Jack,” said Nate sadly, “I can’t tell you that, unless you make the second request.” Nate looked away for a minute, then looked back. “Umm, well, ok,” said Jack, “what is this about a second request? What can I ask for? Are you allowed to tell me that?” “Sure!” said Nate, brightening. “You’re allowed to ask for changes. Changes to yourself. They’re like wishes, but they can only affect you. Oh, and before you ask, I can’t give you immortality. Or omniscience. Or omnipresence, for that matter. Though I might be able to make you gaseous and yet remain alive, and then you could spread through the atmosphere and sort of be omnipresent. But what good would that be - you still wouldn’t be omniscient and thus still could only focus on one thing at a time. Not very useful, at least in my opinion.” Nate stopped when he realized that Jack was staring at him. “Well, anyway,” continued Nate, “I’d probably suggest giving you permanent good health. It would negate the methanol now in your system, you’d be immune to most poisons and diseases, and you’d tend to live a very long time, barring accident, of course. And you’ll even have a tendency to recover from accidents well. It always seemed like a good choice for a request to me.” “Cure the methanol poisoning, huh?” said Jack. “And keep me healthy for a long time? Hmmm. It doesn’t sound bad at that. And it has to be a request about a change to me? I can’t ask to be rich, right? Because that’s not really a change to me?” “Right,” nodded Nate. “Could I ask to be a genius and permanently healthy?” Jack asked, hopefully. “That takes two requests, Jack.” “Yeah, I figured so,” said Jack. “But I could ask to be a genius? I could become the smartest scientist in the world? Or the best athlete?” “Well, I could make you very smart,” admitted Nate, “but that wouldn’t necessarily make you the best scientist in the world. Or, I could make you very athletic, but it wouldn’t necessarily make you the best athlete either. You’ve heard the saying that 99% of genius is hard work? Well, there’s some truth to that. I can give you the talent, but I can’t make you work hard. It all depends on what you decide to do with it.” “Hmmm,” said Jack. “Ok, I think I understand. And I get a third request, after this one?” “Maybe,” said Nate, “it depends on what you decide then. There are more rules for the third request that I can only tell you about after the second request. You know how it goes.” Nate looked like he’d shrug, if he had shoulders. “Ok, well, since I’d rather not be blind in a day or two, and permanent health doesn’t sound bad, then consider that my second request. Officially. Do I need to sign in blood or something?” “No,” said Nate. “Just hold out your hand. Or heel.” Nate grinned. “Or whatever part you want me to bite. I have to bite you again. Like I said, that’s how it works - the poison, you know,” Nate said apologetically. Jack winced a little and felt his shoulder, where the last bite was. Hey, it didn’t hurt any more. Just like Nate had said. That made Jack feel better about the biting business. But still, standing still while a fifteen foot snake sunk it’s fangs into you. Jack stood up. Ignoring how good it felt to be able to stand again, and the hunger starting to gnaw at his stomach, Jack tried to decide where he wanted to get bitten. Despite knowing that it wouldn’t hurt for long, Jack knew that this wasn’t going to be easy. “Hey, Jack,” Nate suddenly said, looking past Jack towards the dunes behind him, “is that someone else coming up over there?” Jack spun around and looked. Who else could be out here in the middle of nowhere? And did they bring food? Wait a minute, there was nobody over there. What was Nate… Jack let out a bellow as he felt two fangs sink into his rear end, through his jeans… Jack sat down carefully, favoring his more tender buttock. “I would have decided, eventually, Nate. I was just thinking about it. You didn’t have to hoodwink me like that.” “I’ve been doing this a long time, Jack,” said Nate, confidently. “You humans have a hard time sitting still and letting a snake bite you - especially one my size. And besides, admit it - it’s only been a couple of minutes and it already doesn’t hurt any more, does it? That’s because of the health benefit with this one. I told you that you’d heal quickly now.” “Yeah, well, still,” said Jack, “it’s the principle of the thing. And nobody likes being bitten in the butt! Couldn’t you have gotten my calf or something instead?” “More meat in the typical human butt,” replied Nate. “And less chance you accidentally kick me or move at the last second.” “Yeah, right. So, tell me all of these wonderful secrets that I now qualify to hear,” answered Jack. “Ok,” said Nate. “Do you want to ask questions first, or do you want me to just start talking?” “Just talk,” said Jack. “I’ll sit here and try to not think about food.” “We could go try to rustle up some food for you first, if you like,” answered Nate. “Hey! You didn’t tell me you had food around here, Nate!” Jack jumped up. “What do we have? Am I in walking distance to town? Or can you magically whip up food along with your other powers?” Jack was almost shouting with excitement. His stomach had been growling for hours. “I was thinking more like I could flush something out of its hole and bite it for you, and you could skin it and eat it. Assuming you have a knife, that is,” replied Nate, with the grin that Jack was starting to get used to. “Ugh,” said Jack, sitting back down. “I think I’ll pass. I can last a little longer before I get desperate enough to eat desert rat, or whatever else it is you find out here. And there’s nothing to burn - I’d have to eat it raw. No thanks. Just talk.” “Ok,” replied Nate, still grinning. “But I’d better hurry, before you start looking at me as food. Nate reared back a little, looked around for a second, and then continued. “You, Jack, are sitting in the middle of the Garden of Eden.” Jack looked around at the sand and dunes and then looked back at Nate sceptically. “Well, that’s the best I can figure it, anyway, Jack,” said Nate. “Stand up and look at the symbol on the rock here.” Nate gestured around the dark stone they were both sitting on with his nose. Jack stood up and looked. Carved into the stone in a bas-relief was a representation of a large tree. The angled-pole that Nate was wrapped around was coming out of the trunk of the tree, right below where the main branches left the truck to reach out across the stone. It was very well done - it looked more like a tree had been reduced to almost two dimensions and embedded in the stone than it did like a carving. Jack walked around and looked at the details in the fading light of the setting sun. He wished he’d looked at it while the sun was higher in the sky. Wait! The sun was setting! That meant he was going to have to spend another night out here! Arrrgh! Jack looked out across the desert for a little bit, and then came back and stood next to Nate. “In all the excitement, I almost forgot, Nate,” said Jack. “Which way is it back to town? And how far? I’m eventually going to have to head back - I’m not sure I’ll be able to survive by eating raw desert critters for long. And even if I can, I’m not sure I’ll want to.” “It’s about 30 miles that way.” Nate pointed, with the rattle on his tail this time. As far as Jack could tell, it was a direction at right angles to the way he’d been going when he was crawling here. “But that’s 30 miles by the way the crow flies. It’s about 40 by the way a man walks. You should be able to do it in about half a day with your improved endurance, if you head out early tomorrow, Jack.” Jack looked out the way the snake had pointed for a few seconds more, and then sat back down. It was getting dark. Not much he could do about heading out right now. And besides, Nate was just about to get to the interesting stuff. “Garden of Eden? As best as you can figure it?” “Well, yeah, as best as I and Samuel could figure it anyway,” said Nate. “He figured that the story just got a little mixed up. You know, snake, in a ‘tree’, offering ‘temptations’, making bargains. That kind stuff. But he could never quite figure out how the Hebrews found out about this spot from across the ocean. He worried about that for a while.” “Garden of Eden, hunh?” said Jack. “How long have you been here, Nate?” “No idea, really,” replied Nate. “A long time. It never occurred to me to count years, until recently, and by then, of course, it was too late. But I do remember when this whole place was green, so I figure it’s been thousands of years, at least.” “So, are you the snake that tempted Eve?” said Jack. “Beats me,” said Nate. “Maybe. I can’t remember if the first one of your kind that I talked to was female or not, and I never got a name, but it could have been. And I suppose she could have considered my offer to grant requests a ‘temptation’, though I’ve rarely had refusals.” “Well, umm, how did you get here then? And why is that white pole stuck out of the stone there?” asked Jack. “Dad left me here. Or, I assume it was my dad. It was another snake - much bigger than I was back then. I remember talking to him, but I don’t remember if it was in a language, or just kind of understanding what he wanted. But one day, he brought me to this stone, told me about it, and asked me to do something for him. I talked it over with him for a while, then agreed. I’ve been here ever since. “What is this place?” said Jack. “And what did he ask you to do?” “Well, you see this pole here, sticking out of the stone?” Nate loosened his coils around the tilted white pole and showed Jack where it descended into the stone. The pole was tilted at about a 45 degree angle and seemed to enter the stone in an eighteen inch slot cut into the stone. Jack leaned over and looked. The slot was dark and the pole went down into it as far as Jack could see in the dim light. Jack reached out to touch the pole, but Nate was suddenly there in the way. “You can’t touch that yet, Jack,” said Nate. “Why not?” asked Jack. “I haven’t explained it to you yet,” replied Nate. “Well, it kinda looks like a lever or something,” said Jack. “You’d push it that way, and it would move in the slot.” “Yep, that’s what it is,” replied Nate. “What does it do?” asked Jack. “End the world?” “Oh, no,” said Nate. “Nothing that drastic. It just ends humanity. I call it ‘The Lever of Doom’.” For the last few words Nate had used a deeper, ringing voice. He tried to look serious for a few seconds, and then gave up and grinned. Jack was initially startled by Nate’s pronouncement, but when Nate grinned Jack laughed. “Ha! You almost had me fooled for a second there. What does it really do?” “Oh, it really ends humanity, like I said,” smirked Nate. “I just thought the voice I used was funny, didn’t you?” Nate continued to grin. “A lever to end humanity?” asked Jack. “What in the world is that for? Why would anyone need to end humanity?” “Well,” replied Nate, “I get the idea that maybe humanity was an experiment. Or maybe the Big Guy just thought, that if humanity started going really bad, there should be a way to end it. I’m not really sure. All I know are the rules, and the guesses that Samuel and I had about why it’s here. I didn’t think to ask back when I started here.” “Rules? What rules?” asked Jack. “The rules are that I can’t tell anybody about it or let them touch it unless they agree to be bound to secrecy by a bite. And that only one human can be bound in that way at a time. That’s it.” explained Nate. Jack looked somewhat shocked. “You mean that I could pull the lever now? You’d let me end humanity?” “Yep,” replied Nate, “if you want to.” Nate looked at Jack carefully. “Do you want to, Jack?” “Umm, no.” said Jack, stepping a little further back from the lever. “Why in the world would anyone want to end humanity? It’d take a psychotic to want that! Or worse, a suicidal psychotic, because it would kill him too, wouldn’t it?” “Yep,” replied Nate, “being as he’d be human too.” “Has anyone ever seriously considered it?” asked Nate. “Any of those bound to secrecy, that is?” “Well, of course, I think they’ve all seriously considered it at one time or another. Being given that kind of responsibility makes you sit down and think, or so I’m told. Samuel considered it several times. He’d often get disgusted with humanity, come out here, and just hold the lever for a while. But he never pulled it. Or you wouldn’t be here.” Nate grinned some more. Jack sat down, well back from the lever. He looked thoughtful and puzzled at the same time. After a bit, he said, “So this makes me the Judge of humanity? I get to decide whether they keep going or just end? Me?” “That seems to be it,” agreed Nate. “What kind of criteria do I use to decide?” said Jack. “How do I make this decision? Am I supposed to decide if they’re good? Or too many of them are bad? Or that they’re going the wrong way? Is there a set of rules for that?” “Nope,” replied Nate. “You pretty much just have to decide on your own. It’s up to you, however you want to decide it. I guess that you’re just supposed to know.” “But what if I get mad at someone? Or some girl dumps me and I feel horrible? Couldn’t I make a mistake? How do I know that I won’t screw up?” protested Jack. Nate gave his kind of snake-like shrug again. “You don’t. You just have to try your best, Jack.” Jack sat there for a while, staring off into the desert that was rapidly getting dark, chewing on a fingernail. Suddenly, Jack turned around and looked at the snake. “Nate, was Samuel the one bound to this before me?” “Yep,” replied Nate. “He was a good guy. Talked to me a lot. Taught me to read and brought me books. I think I still have a good pile of them buried in the sand around here somewhere. I still miss him. He died a few months ago.” “Sounds like a good guy,” agreed Jack. “How did he handle this, when you first told him. What did he do?” “Well,” said Nate, “he sat down for a while, thought about it for a bit, and then asked me some questions, much like you’re doing.” “What did he ask you, if you’re allowed to tell me?” asked Jack. “He asked me about the third request,” replied Nate. “Aha!” It was Jack’s turn to grin. “And what did you tell him?” “I told him the rules for the third request. That to get the third request you have to agree to this whole thing. That if it ever comes to the point that you really think that humanity should be ended, that you’ll come here and end it. You won’t avoid it, and you won’t wimp out.” Nate looked serious again. “And you’ll be bound to do it too, Jack.” “Hmmm.” Jack looked back out into the darkness for a while. Nate watched him, waiting. “Nate,” continued Jack, quietly, eventually. “What did Samuel ask for with his third request?” Nate sounded like he was grinning again as he replied, also quietly, “Wisdom, Jack. He asked for wisdom. As much as I could give him.” “Ok,” said Jack, suddenly, standing up and facing away from Nate, “give it to me. Nate looked at Jack’s backside. “Give you what, Jack?” “Give me that wisdom. The same stuff that Samuel asked for. If it helped him, maybe it’ll help me too.” Jack turned his head to look back over his shoulder at Nate. “It did help him, right?” “He said it did,” replied Nate. “But he seemed a little quieter afterward. Like he had a lot to think about.” “Well, yeah, I can see that,” said Jack. “So, give it to me.” Jack turned toface away from Nate again, bent over slightly and tensed up. Nate watched Jack tense up with a little exasperation. If he bit Jack now, Jack would likely jump out of his skin and maybe hurt them both. “You remember that you’ll be bound to destroy humanity if it ever looks like it needs it, right Jack?” asked Nate, shifting position. “Yeah, yeah, I got that,” replied Jack, eyes squeezed tightly shut and body tense, not noticing the change in direction of Nate’s voice. “And,” continued Nate, from his new position, “do you remember that you’ll turn bright purple, and grow big horns and extra eyes?” “Yeah, yeah…Hey, wait a minute!” said Jack, opening his eyes, straightening up and turning around. “Purple?!” He didn’t see Nate there. With the moonlight Jack could see that the lever extended up from its slot in the rock without the snake wrapped around it. Jack heard, from behind him, Nate’s “Just Kidding!” right before he felt the now familiar piercing pain, this time in the other buttock. Jack sat on the edge of the dark stone in the rapidly cooling air, his feet extending out into the sand. He stared out into the darkness, listening to the wind stir the sand, occasionally rubbing his butt where he’d been recently bitten. Nate had left for a little while, had come back with a desert-rodent-shaped bulge somewhere in his middle, and was now wrapped back around the lever, his tongue flicking out into the desert night’s air the only sign that he was still awake. Occasionally Jack, with his toes absentmindedly digging in the sand while he thought, would ask Nate a question without turning around. “Nate, do accidents count?” Nate lifted his head a little bit. “What do you mean, Jack?” Jack tilted his head back like he was looking at the stars. “You know, accidents. If I accidentally fall on the lever, without meaning to, does that still wipe out humanity?” “Yeah, I’m pretty sure it does, Jack. I’d suggest you be careful about that if you start feeling wobbly,” said Nate with some amusement. A little later - “Does it have to be me that pulls the lever?” asked Jack. “That’s the rule, Jack. Nobody else can pull it,” answered Nate. “No,” Jack shook his head, “I meant does it have to be my hand? Could I pull the lever with a rope tied around it? Or push it with a stick? Or throw a rock?” “Yes, those should work,” replied Nate. “Though I’m not sure how complicated you could get. Samuel thought about trying to build some kind of remote control for it once, but gave it up. Everything he’d build would be gone by the next sunrise, if it was touching the stone, or over it. I told him that in the past others that had been bound had tried to bury the lever so they wouldn’t be tempted to pull it, but every time the stones or sand or whatever had disappeared.” “Wow,” said Jack, “Cool.” Jack leaned back until only his elbows kept him off of the stone and looked up into the sky. “Nate, how long did Samuel live? One of his wishes was for health too, right?” asked Jack. “Yes,” replied Nate, “it was. He lived 167 years, Jack.” “Wow, 167 years. That’s almost 140 more years I’ll live if I live as long. Do you know what he died of, Nate?” “He died of getting tired of living, Jack,” Nate said, sounding somewhat sad. Jack turned his head to look at Nate in the starlight. Nate looked back. “Samuel knew he wasn’t going to be able to stay in society. He figured that they’d eventually see him still alive and start questioning it, so he decided that he’d have to disappear after a while. He faked his death once, but changed his mind - he decided it was too early and he could stay for a little longer. He wasn’t very fond of mankind, but he liked the attention. Most of the time, anyway. “His daughter and then his wife dying almost did him in though. He didn’t stay in society much longer after that. He eventually came out here to spend time talking to me and thinking about pulling the lever. A few months ago he told me he’d had enough. It was his time.” “And then he just died?” asked Jack. Nate shook his head a little. “He made his forth request, Jack. There’s only one thing you can ask for the fourth request. The last bite. After a bit Nate continued, “He told me that he was tired, that it was his time. He reassured me that someone new would show up soon, like they always had. After another pause, Nate finished, “Samuel’s body disappeared off the stone with the sunrise.” Jack lay back down and looked at the sky, leaving Nate alone with his memories. It was a long time until Jack’s breathing evened out into sleep. Jack woke with the sunrise the next morning. He was a little chilled with the morning desert air, but overall was feeling pretty good. Well, except that his stomach was grumbling and he wasn’t willing to eat raw desert rat. So, after getting directions to town from Nate, making sure he knew how to get back, and reassuring Nate that he’d be back soon, Jack started the long walk back to town. With his new health and Nate’s good directions, he made it back easily. Jack caught a bus back to the city, and showed up for work the next day, little worse for the wear and with a story about getting lost in the desert and walking back out. Within a couple of days Jack had talked a friend with a tow truck into going back out into the desert with him to fetch the SUV. They found it after a couple of hours of searching and towed it back without incident. Jack was careful not to even look in the direction of Nate’s lever, though their path back didn’t come within sight of it. Before the next weekend, Jack had gone to a couple of stores, including a book store, and had gotten his SUV back from the mechanic, with a warning to avoid any more joyriding in the desert. On Saturday, Jack headed back to see Nate. Jack parked a little way out of the small town near Nate, loaded up his new backpack with camping gear and the things he was bringing for Nate, and then started walking. He figured that walking would leave the least trail, and he knew that while not many people camped in the desert, it wasn’t unheard of, and shouldn’t really raise suspicions. Jack had brought more books for Nate - recent books, magazines, newspapers. Some things that would catch Nate up with what was happening in the world, others that were just good books to read. He spent the weekend with Nate, and then headed out again, telling Nate that he’d be back again soon, but that he had things to do first. Over four months later Jack was back to see Nate again. This time he brought a laptop with him - a specially modified laptop. It had a solar recharger, special filters and seals to keep out the sand, a satellite link-up, and a special keyboard and joystick that Jack hoped that a fifteen-foot rattlesnake would be able to use. And, it had been hacked to not give out its location to the satellite. After that Jack could e-mail Nate to keep in touch, but still visited him fairly regularly - at least once or twice a year. After the first year, Jack quit his job. For some reason, with the wisdom he ‘d been given, and the knowledge that he could live for over 150 years, working in a nine to five job for someone else didn’t seem that worthwhile any more. Jack went back to school. Eventually, Jack started writing. Perhaps because of the wisdom, or perhaps because of his new perspective, he wrote well. People liked what he wrote, and he became well known for it. After a time, Jack bought an RV and started traveling around the country for book signings and readings. But, he still remembered to drop by and visit Nate occasionally. On one of the visits Nate seemed quieter than usual. Not that Nate had been a fountain of joy lately. Jack’s best guess was that Nate was still missing Samuel, and though Jack had tried, he still hadn’t been able to replace Samuel in Nate’s eyes. Nate had been getting quieter each visit. But on this visit Nate didn’t even speak when Jack walked up to the lever. He nodded at Jack, and then went back to staring into the desert. Jack, respecting Nate’s silence, sat down and waited. After a few minutes, Nate spoke. “Jack, I have someone to introduce you to.” Jack looked surprised. “Someone to introduce me to?” Jack looked around, and then looked carefully back at Nate. “This something to do with the Big Guy? “No, no,” replied Nate. “This is more personal. I want you to meet my son.” Nate looked over at the nearest sand dune. “Sammy!” Jack watched as a four foot long desert rattlesnake crawled from behind the dune and up to the stone base of the lever. “Yo, Jack,” said the new, much smaller snake. “Yo, Sammy” replied Jack. Jack looked at Nate. “Named after Samuel, I assume?” Nate nodded. “Jack, I’ve got a favor to ask you. Could you show Sammy around for me?” Nate unwrapped himself from the lever and slithered over to the edge of the stone and looked across the sands. “When Samuel first told me about the world, and brought me books and pictures, I wished that I could go see it. I wanted to see the great forests, the canyons, the cities, even the other deserts, to see if they felt and smelled the same. I want my son to have that chance - to see the world. Before he becomes bound here like I have been. “He’s seen it in pictures, over the computer that you brought me. But I hear that it’s not the same. That being there is different. I want him to have that. Think you can do that for me, Jack?” Jack nodded. This was obviously very important to Nate, so Jack didn’t even joke about taking a talking rattlesnake out to see the world. “Yeah, I can do that for you, Nate. Is that all you need?” Jack could sense that was something more. Nate looked at Sammy. Sammy looked back at Nate for a second and then said, “Oh, yeah. Ummm, I’ve gotta go pack. Back in a little bit Jack. Nice to meet ya!” Sammy slithered back over the dune and out of sight. Nate watched Sammy disappear and then looked back at Jack. “Jack, this is my first son. My first offspring through all the years. You don’t even want to know what it took for me to find a mate.” Nate grinned to himself. “But anyway, I had a son for a reason. I’m tired. I’m ready for it to be over. I needed a replacement.” Jack considered this for a minute. “So, you’re ready to come see the world, and you wanted him to watch the lever while you were gone?” Nate shook his head. “No, Jack - you’re a better guesser than that. You’ve already figured out - I’m bound here - there’s only one way for me to leave here. And I’m ready. It’s my time to die.” Jack looked more closely at Nate. He could tell Nate had thought about this - probably for quite a while. Jack had trouble imagining what it would be like to be as old as Nate, but Jack could already tell that in another hundred or two hundred years, he might be getting tired of life himself. Jack could understand Samuel’s decision, and now Nate’s. So, all Jack said was, “What do you want me to do?” Nate nodded. “Thanks, Jack. I only want two things. One - show Sammy around the world - let him get his fill of it, until he’s ready to come back here and take over. Two - give me the fourth request. “I can’t just decide to die, not any more than you can. I won’t even die of old age like you eventually will, even though it’ll be a long time from now. I need to be killed. Once Sammy is back here, ready to take over, I’ll be able to die. And I need you to kill me. “I’ve even thought about how. Poisons and other drugs won’t work on me. And I’ve seen pictures of snakes that were shot - some of them live for days, so that’s out too. So, I want you to bring back a sword. Nate turned away to look back to the dune that Sammy had gone behind. “I’d say an axe, but that’s somewhat undignified - putting my head on the ground or a chopping block like that. No, I like a sword. A time-honored way of going out. A dignified way to die. And, most importantly, it should work, even on me. “You willing to do that for me, Jack?” Nate turned back to look at Jack. “Yeah, Nate,” replied Jack solemnly, “I think I can handle that.” Nate nodded. “Good!” He turned back toward the dune and shouted, “Sammy! Jack’s about ready to leave!” Then quietly, “Thanks, Jack.” Jack didn’t have anything to say to that, so he waited for Sammy to make it back to the lever, nodded to him, nodded a final time to Nate, and then headed into the desert with Sammy following. Over the next several years Sammy and Jack kept in touch with Nate through e-mail as they went about their adventures. They made a goal of visiting every country in the world, and did a respectable job of it. Sammy had a natural gift for languages, as Jack expected he would, and even ended up acting as a translator for Jack in a few of the countries. Jack managed to keep the talking rattlesnake hidden, even so, and by the time they were nearing the end of their tour of countries, Sammy had only been spotted a few times. While there were several people that had seen enough to startle them greatly, nobody had enough evidence to prove anything, and while a few wild rumors and storied followed Jack and Sammy around, nothing ever hit the newspapers or the public in general. When they finished the tour of countries, Jack suggested that they try some undersea diving. They did. And spelunking. They did that too. Sammy finally drew the line at visiting Antarctica. He’d come to realize that Jack was stalling. After talking to his Dad about it over e-mail, he figured out that Jack probably didn’t want to have to kill Nate. Nate told Sammy that humans could be squeamish about killing friends and acquaintances. So, Sammy eventually put his tail down (as he didn’t have a foot) and told Jack that it was time - he was ready to go back and take up his duties from his dad. Jack, delayed it a little more by insisting that they go back to Japan and buy an appropriate sword. He even stretched it a little more by getting lessons in how to use the sword. But, eventually, he’d learned as much as he was likely to without dedicating his life to it, and was definitely competent enough to take the head off of a snake. It was time to head back and see Nate. When they got back to the US, Jack got the old RV out of storage where he and Sammy had left it after their tour of the fifty states, he loaded up Sammy and the sword, and they headed for the desert. When they got to the small town that Jack had been trying to find those years ago when he’d met Nate, Jack was in a funk. He didn’t really feel like walking all of the way out there. Not only that, but he’d forgotten to figure the travel time correctly, and it was late afternoon. They’d either have to spend the night in town and walk out tomorrow, or walk in the dark. As Jack was afraid that if he waited one more night he might lose his resolve, he decided that he’d go ahead and drive the RV out there. It was only going to be this once, and Jack would go back and cover the tracks afterward. They ought to be able to make it out there by nightfall if they drove, and then they could get it over tonight. Jack told Sammy to e-mail Nate that they were coming as he drove out of sight of the town on the road. They then pulled off the road and headed out into the desert. Everything went well, until they got to the sand dunes. Jack had been nursing the RV along the whole time, over the rocks, through the creek beds, revving the engine the few times they almost got stuck. When they came to the dunes, Jack didn’t really think about it, he just downshifted and headed up the first one. By the third dune, Jack started to regret that he’d decided to try driving on the sand. The RV was fishtailling and losing traction. Jack was having to work it up each dune slowly and was trying to keep from losing control each time they came over the top and slid down the other side. Sammy had come up to sit in the passenger seat, coiled up and laughing at Jack’s driving. As they came over the top of the fourth dune, the biggest one yet, Jack saw that this was the final dune - the stone, the lever, and somewhere Nate, waited below. Jack put on the brakes, but he’d gone a little too far. The RV started slipping down the other side. Jack tried turning the wheel, but he didn’t have enough traction. He pumped the brakes - no response. They started sliding down the hill, faster and faster. Jack felt a shock go through him as he suddenly realized that they were heading for the lever. He looked down - the RV was directly on course for it. If Jack didn’t do something, the RV would hit it. He was about to end humanity. Jack steered more frantically, trying to get traction. It still wasn’t working. The dune was too steep, and the sand too loose. In a split second, Jack realized that his only chance would be once he hit the stone around the lever - he should have traction on the stone for just a second before he hit the lever - he wouldn’t have time to stop, but he should be able to steer away. Jack took a better grip on the steering wheel and tried to turn the RV a little bit - every little bit would help. He’d have to time his turn just right. The RV got to the bottom of the dune, sliding at an amazing speed in the sand. Just before they reached the stone Jack looked across it to check that they were still heading for the lever. They were. But Jack noticed something else that he hadn’t seen from the top of the dune. Nate wasn’t wrapped around the lever. He was off to the side of the lever, but still on the stone, waiting for them. The problem was, he was waiting on the same side of the lever that Jack had picked to steer towards to avoid the lever. The RV was already starting to drift that way a little in its mad rush across the sand and there was no way that Jack was going to be able to go around the lever to the other side. Jack had an instant of realization. He was either going to have to hit the lever, or run over Nate. He glanced over at Sammy and saw that Sammy realized the same thing. Jack took a firmer grip on the steering wheel as the RV ran up on the stone. Shouting to Sammy as he pulled the steering wheel, “BETTER NATE THAN LEVER,” he ran over the snake. THE END (No one said it was the longest FUNNY joke in the world)

I wrote this short story recently and it's my favorite one and I'm looking for opinions? The Lips of a Killer By: John Houlihan Inspired by the art of robbery and the never ending love of Bonnie and Clyde. The wind blew her red, shining hair as the car sped down the empty highway. Her beauty was of an angel, but what he loved about her the most; her soul was of Satan himself...the lust to kill made him love her even more. Her eyes were as blue as the oceans of Ireland, even when they are widened with the proficiency and sinful art of murder at her hands he can never look away. Her lips as red as the blood that would coat her hands after killing an innocent, but as lushful as a rose full of morning dew. Their love would live through all eternity and no one could break their chain of endless passion for one another. She ran her fingers threw her hair as she admired the jet black Beretta that rested gently on the dashboard. Picking it up she felt the coldness of the handle, and the surge of power it sent through her body. As she set it back down, she looked at him sitting behind the wheel of the white corvette, his big brown eyes concentrated on the road ahead. But they looked more concentrated then usual, she knew he was anxious to get to their destination, he was anxious to kill. She rubbed her finger across his cheek, and then through his short black hair; a smile drew across his face as he gave a quick glance at her and rested his hand on her leg. The white corvette's speed increased as it passed a large sign stating : Affluent City next Right Five minutes passed until the site of the edge of the small, urban town came into view. She smirked as she said, "How many you think live in this pathetic town." "Not many, probably around ninty or a hundred." "Where are we gonna do this?" "The bank, make it look like a robbery." "Great, we can get a few bucks out of this." As the car made it to the main street they continued own until they reached the stale, grey building which stated in large black letters County Bank. The car slowed as it reached the front of the bank, "This one," he said. The car continued slowly to the parking lot across the street, they didn't need a getaway car...they wanted the police to come. As they found an empty spot, the engine went from a loud mechanical noise to a low hum until it stopped and began to cool down. She reached into the glove compartment and took out a clean, black ski mask and slipped it on over her head. He reached into his jacket pocket and took out a old, torn black ski mask as well, unlike hers his mask only showed his eyes. "Why don't you by a new one, that shitty thing makes us look unproffesional.....and it smells like moth balls," she said taking it out of his hands. "Hey...I've had this thing since the Troubles, we irish republicans take pride in our diminutive possessions," he stated proudly snatching it back out of her hands. "Trust me, I know...if only you knew my father before the Tans got 'em," she vexed as she took the Beretta off the dashboard and twisted a long silencer barrel on the front of it. He reached into the same compartment and took out a silver, barreled Desert Eagle and took it out slowly as it sparkled from the early morning sun. He took a silver silencer barrel out of his back pocket and twisted it until a click signified it's fit. "Are you ready." "Yeah." "I love you. "I love you, too." He leaned over and before tasting her beautiful lips, he took a smell of her gorgeous perfume that matched the essence of her love. Slowly he kissed her, feeling her smooth skin of her red lips, as she slipped her tongue into his mouth and it massaged the top of his lip. "Let's go kill," she said as she receded, and locked a clip into her Beretta. He took the clip and squeezed small silver bullets into the clip until it was full then locked the clip into the monstorous pistol. Simultaneously the doors opened of the corvette opened, and closed with a loud thud one after the other, as he put his arm around her when they met in the front of the car and walked together into the bank. She opened the double glass doors, and retrieved from her pocket a Peroxide coated cloth and a seven inch bladed pocket knife. Leisurely she creeped up behind the guard, and quickly covered his mouth and nose with the cloth. At first he put up a struggle to reach for his gun, but she shoved the knife into his spine and twisted it as she took it out and followed the motion two more times causing the guard to fall to the ground. Unknowing the five bankers continued to sign off checks, give money to the customers, and take money in a deposit. The six customers waited in line to talk to a banker, filled out withdrawal papers in the corner, and awaited in soft, cushioned chairs to talk executives. He walked into the center of the room, and finally a young banker noticed the dead guard and she let out a holler, followed by the screams until he shot two silent shots into the ceiling. "Hey, all of you calm the fuck down until I blow each and one of your cocksucking brains all over the floor," he screamed walking around pointing the gun at each person's head he passed. He walked over to the first banker on the right. An over weight man, in his forties, and definetly a diabetic. He pressed the gun against the glass, "Open the fuckin' door." A buzz noise sounded as the door opened to the back room, and he made his way in while never taking his eyes of the overweight man. As he entered the room he noticed a pin on the overweight man's business jacket, it was a flag of the Union Jack. "What the fuck is this." "W-what, sir." "This fuckin' pin on your shirt." "I-it's a B-British flag sir, my family is of British d-descent." "This morning when you put this on your fuckin' jacket...you made the biggest mistake of your life my friend," he stated as he grabbed the handle of the gun and began beating in the nose of the banker. Screams from the other bankers, as blood began to splatter on the closest bankers shirt. He threw the overweight man to the ground and silenced his gurgled coughing with three shots into his stomach. Then he walked up to the next banker, a young girl probably in her late twenties, long blonde hair, and stale blue eyes. He pointed the gun to her head, "You take me to the vault, you three get in the lobby...now!" She slowly walked over to the opened vault, and brought him inside and began quickly emptying the thirty silver boxes into a large bag. As she got to the last box and handed him the bag, he winked at her, "Thanks, darling," squeezing the trigger shooting her in the forehead. He gave a look around the vault one more time, and made his way back into the bank tellers offices, them into the lobby. He stopped, he frowned and then slowly smiled. "Are you alright," She stood there blood all over her hands up to her wrists, blood patches staind her bell bottom jeans, in her hand the blade coated in a thick layer of blood. The Beretta lay empty on the carpet, along side all the bodies of the customers, and the three bankers who he had told to enter the lobby. He walked over to her, and put his arms around her as she began to fall to the ground. Her body shook in anxiety and adrenaline, he held her as they sat on the ground, gently stroaking her hair. "It was too easy," she said as she stood. "Come on let's get out of here," he was drowned out by the sound of sirens. Two cop cars pulled up in front of the bank, and out of both cars four police officers pointed their guns at the door. "I'll deal with these pigs, you cover me," she said taking off her ski mask. As the double doors opened, she slowly limped out the door and the cops eased their guns back. She limped to about the edge of the sidewalk before two of the cops slowly came over to her aid. "Help me, they killed my husband...they killed every one help," she hollered. Two of the cops made it over to her, one put his hand on her back and the other wrapped his arm around her helping her over to the cruiser. She felt the sturdy, wood of the blades' handle and thrusted it forward into the throat of the cop with the arm around her back, then brought it back and sliced across the other cops' neck. The two other cops hollered and opened fire as she dove behind the cruiser of the two dead cops. The double door of the bank swung open, he opened fire and hit the first unaware cop in the arm then in the head, the second cop turned to fire on him but was too late as he emptied the clip into his torso. He ran over to her, helped her up as they made their way to the corvette. Sirens in the opposite streets could be heard as they got closer, as they sat into the car. He placed the Desert Eagle back into the glove compartment, and she did the same with her Beretta. As she placed the Beretta into the compartment, she retrieved a cloth to clean her hands and pants. The wheels of the corvette screached as he backed out of the parking lot and into the streets of Affluent. Turning the tight corners of the small streets until they finally were back on the empty highway again. Back at the Bank, a cop crawled over to the cruised and grabbed the transmitter, "B-14....B-14, four officers down...County Bank. Shooters in white corvette, one female red hair, blue eyes. One male, black hair, brown eyes. Heading in the direction of the highway, road block....road block the county line. Send Paramedics....County Bank." The corvette sped down the highway, the sound of the black tires on the smooth, flat surface hummed softly. She cleaned her hands and tossed the rag out the window, again she looked over at him. He took his eyes off the narrow road and looked at her, "Ta tu alainn," he murmured to her as their lips met once again. She pushed him off her, "Watch the road." He laughed and continued to floor the pedal, accelerating the car to it's top speed. An hour went by as the sun got lower in the sky and the time reached noon. The car kept at a steady rate, she slept calmly in the passengers' seat, and the classic rock of Creedence Clearwater Revival played, quietly on the radio as he tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. They came to tight turn and as they turned in front of them was a long stretched road. As the road got shorter and shorter from the speed of the car, he noticed the flash of lights. Red and blue, flashing and as the car neared them he took his foot off the accelerator until the car came to a complete stop. He flicked off the radio, tapped her gently on the shoulder and led his hand down her side to her leg, as she opened her eyes softly, she noticed the flashing of the lights. He sighed, and looked at her, she looked at him. For a moment it was as if neither of them had a care in the world, it was just them two together...in love. "You sure you want to do this?" "Yeah, we gave it a good run." "I love you." "I love you, too." She reached under the seat and took out a black barreled, brown butted shotgun. He turned to the back seat and picked up Heckler MP5 submachine gun, and pulled back the chamber and loaded the clip. He took off his jacket and wrapped it around the left side of her shoulder. Still having it on the right side of his shoulder they both got out of the car together. The jacket covered his right arm where he held the submachine gun, and the jacket covered her left arm where she held the shotgun. As they made their way to the road block she started to limp, "We give up! The cops back at Affluent shot her, we give up," he hollered as they slowly walked forward. "Wait until I drop the jacket," she whispered. They got closer and closer until they were about three car distances away, then they stopped. The cops who were at the road block continued to point their guns in their direction. Suddenly the jacket dropped, she stood up from the limp and opened fire on the police, her first shot hit a cop in the face. He also opened fire on the police, immediately the quick fire of the machine gun took out two police officers. The cops had also opened fire as soon as they spotted the shotgun she was wielding, erupts of over twenty guns echoed throughout the highway. A bullet struck her in the chest sending her onto one knee but she kept on firing, taking down another cop. One grazed his throat, he ignored the stinging pain, and stood tall firing at the mass of police. She got shot in the stomach than in the leg, and once more into the left breast sending her to the ground. He hollered in anger and became more precise in accuracy taking down three more cops, until he was struck in the stomach three times, than in the chest bringing him to a kneel. He kept firing and picked up her shotgun shooting both strong guns, the pressure from the gun pushed him...trying to keep his balance he continued to fire in rage. A shot pierced his throat as he fell back onto the ground next to her. He kept his finger on the submachine gun's trigger firing blindly as he lay next to his gorgeous maiden. He muscled up the strength to lean face to face with her, gazing into her eyes one last time, he pushed himself forward and their lips met, the taste of her lips was gone now the taste was cold and stale but he would never forget how they once tasted the lips of a killer.

Trying to figure out my mentality, This is LONG. ANY help is appreciated. Please answer 1 question? Desperate? I've been really obsessive about things. Everything. I'm not sure when it started and I could probably categorize myself under several disorders (without doctor's diagnosis) but I don't know many of the symptoms of them. I don't want to go to a therapist unless it's serious because the cost. In one way or more, many of these things apply somewhat to each other. If you can try to help explain why I feel this way, please tell me whatever you can. I just want to understand what this is or if I am able to get some help. Please give me an actual answer not "get help", "you hvae a problem, i don't know what". Say what you think I could have, or something you could relate any of these... problems to. -I hate when people spell words wrong, especially middle schoolstudents because they should have learned a majority of the spelling during that time. -I always procrastinate as much as possible, without realising it. I procrastinate waking up and going to bed, because it's not late enough. I procrastinate watering my plants for no reason; I procrastinate eating because my parents would make dinner at 7 after coming home from work; I procrastinate with homework simply because I don't want to do it. -I can't stand when something is crooked and always get the urge to correct it, even if I can't and it bugs me. -I am one of the worst perfectionists ever. I will clean my room for 7 hours with no breaks until it is spotless. (because I'm not allowed to clean anything else because my parents are packrats) I feel if I'm going to do something it can always be better; people usually think that's a good thing -- in my case it's annoying as shit to others. But in terms of being a perfectionist I can go without doing soemthing for as long as possible until I freak out. -I see everything as an "all or nothing" situation. Do my homework perfect, or don't do it at all. Clean my room till it's spotless or leave it as a mess for a few more weeks. Take 5 minutes to go out or take 3 hours to be okay with my appearance. -For no reason, when my friends wanted to hang out with me I agree at the time, and then lie and say I'm sick or have an appointment or just "forget" to avoid being with them, although I always have fun with them. Now they're not my friends. -I hate telling people things to their face because I'm afraid they'll get mad at me or judge me, so I vent behind their backs. -I take 30 minutes to shower. But disgusting enough, I can go without showers for 3 days (or longer) over summer unless I go out, because usually I don't "need" to take them if I don't go out in public. -I haven't been to drivers ed. yet and I'm turning 18 in December. I'm afraid of the thought of driving. Or getting into a wreck. My sister took me out for the first time ever a month ago and I didn't want to press on the gas. -I generally make spasmodic, jerking movements in stupid situations. If a pencil is rolling off my desk, I don't calmly reach for it, it actually scares me if it drops or something. I'm afraid this might hurt me in driving literally, if I think anything's wrong I'll probably break and get into a crash. -I hate being embarrassed. I feel like when I talk just to answer a question my cheeks are flushed. But even thinking about something embarrassing flushes my cheeks. -I have extremely sensitive hearing. When our TV malfunctions and the "ext" screen shows up, the frequency actually causes my ears to ring which tends to make my family think I'm psychic when it does it while I'm in another room and they don't notice. -I have extremely sensitive sense of smell as well -- I could smell a box of Cheerios being open from a floor above while I just stepped out of the shower and my sister was in shock or something. -I take longer than average to do everything which makes me feel as though I'm actually mentally challenged and my parents haven't told me. I wasn't fully potty trained before kindergarten. I learned how to ride a bike in 4th grade. Shower, eating (sometimes), sleeping, etc. Reading, writing, art projects have actually caused me to fail classes and I am excelled in those three activities of everything. -I actually have been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder, but I feel the medicine doesn't do anything except cause me to eat less. -If I see one thing out of place --a freckle, an eyebrow hair, a bruise -- I obsess over it for too long, where it actually bugs my sister. -I have terrible hygiene issues when I don't have to be around anyone. I don't think I want to share them but I can go without doing certain things longer than anyone should. -I can't stand certain things that are too sensitive for my ears. My parents turn up the TV so loud. And when my dog barks for no reason it actually pisses me off. Bass carrying through cars. -I can't stand the door being cracked open. I will go out of my way to shut the basement door. And always have to hear it click before I go away. -I am obsessed with pain. I do not want to kill myself, and I don't think it could be maochism because I'm not into it sexually, if that's the only way you could be into it. In 8th grade I cut myself because I wanted to experiment. But I didn't know much about it then, so *graphic* I used a scissors. Then, I somehow hid it for almost 6 weeks around parents and friends until I turned myself in for some reason to my health teacher. I hate talking about it and sometimes I get this teeny feeling that I want to do it, but haven't given in. However, one night I saw a screwdriver sitting in my room with a large thick handle on it and started hitting my whole forearm with it. Then did the same with the metal part. I bruised badly within 10 minutes, and the next day I told people who asked that I had my arm caught twice in a heavy door at school and they believed me. -I'm overly clumsy at everything. Can't do any sport right, because I'm not athletic and I feel awkward running. I couldn't balance a on wooden board maze that was 2 inches wide in front of my entire gym class, and he wouldn't let me quit until I finished -- 10minutes after everyone else was finished. I trip over nothing, and I run into things more than I should. I slipped down two flights of stairs once in front of my entire 6th grade class (35 kids), which I found funny for once. -I smile too long apparently, because I was smiling at someone I knew from school when I saw him at the movie theater and he told some coworker I talk to that I was a creep. So now I either smile too long or avert looking at them. -I always forget simple words. I forgot the word "diving board" today. And it makes me sound like an idiot to use small words when I can't think of the words I actually do know. -I like to pick at things. My nails peel into layers, and I pick anything I can. It's addicting. I have scars from picking and I still can't stop. -I'm never photogenic when it's candid, so I have pictures from family gatherings that I am embarrassed of so I hide them just because of my severe acne. -I have this huge load of annoyance towards my dad who is stubborn. He bitches about how much he hated school and had no friends and was fat, and one day told me he got a card for a high school reunion out of nowhere, so I asked if he was going to go. And he scoffed and was saying no because no one would like him. I think he's embarrassed of his life. I found a card of his to my mom and it said "this isn't how I saw the future, and I don't like it." or something like that. And I feel like he is bringing me down with him. I don't want to be the person I hate most. I think he's fucking up my life. I'm afraid of him, in this way where he makes me feel shitty for doing nothing and lies to make me feel guilty. He once thought it'd be funny to make me watch bugs being eaten on TV while I was eating. Then when he told me they're hard to see and my mom responded with, no they aren't he told her to "shush". -I talk a lot when I don't know what to talk about which backed my friends away from ever talking. But it's just because I don't know what to say and I'm waiting for them to come up with something but they never do. So I talk forever about how cold I am or about how something on me hurts, which they get annoyed with. -I am greedy. I spend hundreds of dollars on clothes of my mother's money and I feel like I'm going to put her in debt or that she won't have enough money if I go to college, but I can't stop myself. -I feel guilty for things that aren't my fault. And I always give in and apologize for something that I was actually the victim of. My "friends" called me, and I didn't look at the caller ID and she said (other friends listening) she had something to tell me, and she was crying (actually holding in laughs) that she was a lesbian. I didn't know what to say because I believed her. Then she was like "I can't tell ____ or my parents" and I told her she could tell my best friend ____ because I came out to her saying I was bi (i was curious at the time, but i don't consider myself bi anymore) not realising there were 5 other people listening. so she got awkward and said she had to go and didn't tell me it was a joke. So then told my best guy friend in turn told me and I got so pissed off and then apologized for it and they were probably the few people I even talked to. Now we're not friends because I didn't want to hang out with them so THEY ditched me. We were all friends with the same friends. And the people who talked to my best friend didn't know why she wasn't talking to me, so they stopped talking to me. And the last time I hung out with an actual friend. I can't even remember. But I keep making excuses. -I have excuses for everything. -I'm a compulsive liar. Even if my mom asks if I do my homework, automatic response: Yes. I don't know how to stop lying about the dumbest things. -I am a hypochondriac. I think. Which is something a hypochondriac would do... think they're ____. Well. I get this feeling like. Restless leg syndrome, I had that feeling before the commercials started, but no one never noticed it till then so they think I'm making it up. I always think I have appendicitis or that I'm going to get skin cancer. I can feel sick after saying it and believing myself. But nothing serious has ever happened to me in terms of contracting a disease. -The only person I feel comfortable doing things with is my sister. If she asks me to do something I will. If I'm by myself or with my friends or mom I probably won't. She got me to walk 5 miles without complaining in the heat, or getting out of breath when I can barely run a mile without feeling like I might pass out. -I have no gag reflex. I used to be able to put kleenex or cotton in my mouth and automatically gag. Now I can clean out the roof of my mouth when I get a gross feeling and there's no reaction. I haven't thrown up since 4th grade. I can watch something and feel sick, and sometimes you get that feeling where you need to throw up but I can't. I don't try unless I feel so sick I just want it out of me. -There is this feeling I get where I get sick trying to put in tampons, and I feel like I can't breathe and that if I could throw up I would so I don't know how I'm ever planning on having sex. I put it in right, and I'm sorry if that's too graphic. But it's the same feeling I get when I feel guilt for something that I'd want to do but my body is literally telling me not to, in any situation and it is the worst feeling. -I want to see a therapist but I feel like my mom is struggling with money from me already (she's being really emotional lately with menopause) just because I feel like they could be someone to talk to because no one else will listen. But I'm too afraid they will tell my mom something. Or think I need to go to seek help from a higher facility or make me feel as though I can't talk with them, like I wish they would be sort of a friend enthusiastic and help me get past all of this. -I'm so afraid that I've become this complete failure and I'm almost 18. I don't have a license, I don't have a job, I've failed almost half my classes in high school but still can graduate because I'm not credit deficient. I'm going to an alternative online-schooling program because I feel embarrassed at school. I have a 1.4 GPA and this program doesn't affect it unfortunately. And I don't know what my parents are proud of me for NOW, instead of things that happened over 5 years ago. -I think of my friends all the time. I don't know why I distanced myself and still do to the ones remaining. I was actually afraid I'd lose my friends so I bought them tickets to a comedian's show and I'm the one actually pushing them away, trying to force us to hang out when nothing was wrong. I have dreams we hang out and I'm happy and when I wake up I'm confused and so disappointed but angry at them. I don't know how to feel towards them. -I'm not sure if I'm depressed. I think I have social anxiety, anxiety on the road, because I'm afraid like.. If I hold the steering wheel or hold a gun in my hands it will control me and kill someone. I would never want to kill someone. But I always have nightmares that something like that could happen. -When I was 10 my family was driving on the highway, to go to visit relatives in a different state. There was an ice cream truck on this highway in the middle of nowhere and my parents joked we should pull next to it during a standstill if it happens and then we drove past it and my dad looked in his rear-view mirror and it was on fire. And I wanted them to pull over and help this man who 6 minutes ago we could have been talking to, and the ice cream truck drove into the ditch and all I can remember is staring out the back window and being so mad at my parents for not pulling over. And I don't know what happened to the man but I think I witnessed a death that day and I'm now afraid of ice cream trucks. -later that year, on the fourth of july we were lighting some in the front of our house. i have always been afraid of firecrackers. and this wasn't any different. so i was sort of hiding behind a tree next to our door, wanting to go inside because my parents told me it was okay. My dad lit it and something happened, it was a 3x3 fire cracker thing. and they shot everywhere, straight at us. And I was running behind my dad's car in the parking lot trying to get away from them when one hit me in the wrist and I was screaming. And my sister thought I got hit in the face, so she got hit in the ankle trying to run and help me. If she didn't come over me, and if I didn't put my hands in front of my eyes I would probably have been burned severely in the face. And I am still afraid of fireworks. I always stay home on the fourth of July now, and we stopped lighting them at our house after that year. I will watch them from a far distance if I'm in a car. At Disney World the cardboard was literally falling from the sky we were so close, and I freaked out. And I feel like I'm ruining it for everyone because I try to get over it and I can't. -I haven't hung out with anyone in over a year. I don't go to bed on a schedule, I don't eat regularly. But it's always been normal. But when I try hanging out with a guy my parents won't let me because they think I'll do something. I have guy friends because girls hate me. I still don't believe I'm depressed but I spend everyday inside, unless I'm tanning or with my sister. And I don't do anything. It's a daily routine. -I am not motivational. At all. I did okay on my first semester, I didn't fail any classes. I had D's, a B', C's and an A. My aunt told me she'd give me 300 dollars if I got all As and Bs second semester. My mom said the same thing. My grandma was basically saying she'd let me go anywhere on a trip. And my mom said she'd let me go to Washington to see my favorite band play. And second semester, I passed two classes out of 6. I worked really hard two years ago to go on a trip with a friend to Mexico for spring break, so I worked my ass off. Everything was going good. Then my friend decided to wait to late to get HER passport and we didn't go. I said "let's go to disney world" because i decided instead of visiting my sister at disney i'd ditch her and go to Mexico. Well, my friend decided to take her "friend" who she hated for 3 months and didn't talk to at all to disney world. Karma is a bitch. -I hate making plans, I never plan things because something always happens. If they don't cancel it I will. I hate telling people my ideas about things to do because they don't understand that when I say "wouldn't it be cool if..." I mean I want to do it. Not just think about how fun it'd be. Then people turn around and do them without me after not wanting to do them with me. They are so hypocritical that it feels like I'm not allowed to run my life around and if I'm not doing one thing they like I'm the guilty one, who is suffering and they just don't give a shit. So I stopped doing things. I wake up. I eat, I take a shower some days. I watch TV. I go to bed for 5 hours and do the same thing everyday. But when I want to hang out with people all they want to do is get drunk. And the people who don't get drunk don't know what to do for fun so I don't hang out with them even though it'd be fun. And when they promise that we'll get to do something, it never happens. -I'm afraid of everything I'm obsessed with. The future is what worries me the most. School, boyfriend, family, money, happiness. I feel like I haven't gotten anywhere because it just happens. I don't know how I was raised but I never realised when I was little you had to work for it to get something you want. Between me being spoiled and my mother giving in all the time, I have always been an exception to something. And as much as people love being spoiled, I think it has ruined me as a person. So what the heck is wrong with me? Any actual disorders to pinpoint?

Is this the longest joke in the world? Lost in the Desert (Author unknown) So, there’s a man crawling through the desert. He’d decided to try his SUV in a little bit of cross-country travel, had great fun zooming over the badlands and through the sand, got lost, hit a big rock, and then he couldn’t get it started again. There were no cell phone towers anywhere near, so his cell phone was useless. He had no family, his parents had died a few years before in an auto accident, and his few friends had no idea he was out here. He stayed with the car for a day or so, but his one bottle of water ran out and he was getting thirsty. He thought maybe he knew the direction back, now that he’d paid attention to the sun and thought he’d figured out which way was north, so he decided to start walking. He figured he only had to go about 30 miles or so and he’d be back to the small town he’d gotten gas in last. He thinks about walking at night to avoid the heat and sun, but based upon how dark it actually was the night before, and given that he has no flashlight, he’s afraid that he’ll break a leg or step on a rattlesnake. So, he puts on some sun block, puts the rest in his pocket for reapplication later, brings an umbrella he’d had in the back of the SUV with him to give him a little shade, pours the windshield wiper fluid into his water bottle in case he gets that desperate, brings his pocket knife in case he finds a cactus that looks like it might have water in it, and heads out in the direction he thinks is right. He walks for the entire day. By the end of the day he’s really thirsty. He’s been sweating all day, and his lips are starting to crack. He’s reapplied the sunblock twice, and tried to stay under the umbrella, but he still feels sunburned. The windshield wiper fluid sloshing in the bottle in his pocket is really getting tempting now. He knows that it’s mainly water and some ethanol and coloring, but he also knows that they add some kind of poison to it to keep people from drinking it. He wonders what the poison is, and whether the poison would be worse than dying of thirst. He pushes on, trying to get to that small town before dark. By the end of the day he starts getting worried. He figures he’s been walking at least 3 miles an hour, according to his watch for over 10 hours. That means that if his estimate was right that he should be close to the town. But he doesn’t recognize any of this. He had to cross a dry creek bed a mile or two back, and he doesn’t remember coming through it in the SUV. He figures that maybe he got his direction off just a little and that the dry creek bed was just off to one side of his path. He tells himself that he’s close, and that after dark he’ll start seeing the town lights over one of these hills, and that’ll be all he needs. As it gets dim enough that he starts stumbling over small rocks and things, he finds a spot and sits down to wait for full dark and the town lights. Full dark comes before he knows it. He must have dozed off. He stands back up and turns all the way around. He sees nothing but stars. He wakes up the next morning feeling absolutely lousy. His eyes are gummy and his mouth and nose feel like they’re full of sand. He so thirsty that he can’t even swallow. He barely got any sleep because it was so cold. He’d forgotten how cold it got at night in the desert and hadn’t noticed it the night before because he’d been in his car. He knows the Rule of Threes - three minutes without air, three days without water, three weeks without food - then you die. Some people can make it a little longer, in the best situations. But the desert heat and having to walk and sweat isn’t the best situation to be without water. He figures, unless he finds water, this is his last day. He rinses his mouth out with a little of the windshield wiper fluid. He waits a while after spitting that little bit out, to see if his mouth goes numb, or he feels dizzy or something. Has his mouth gone numb? Is it just in his mind? He’s not sure. He’ll go a little farther, and if he still doesn’t find water, he’ll try drinking some of the fluid. Then he has to face his next, harder question - which way does he go from here? Does he keep walking the same way he was yesterday (assuming that he still knows which way that is), or does he try a new direction? He has no idea what to do. Looking at the hills and dunes around him, he thinks he knows the direction he was heading before. Just going by a feeling, he points himself somewhat to the left of that, and starts walking. As he walks, the day starts heating up. The desert, too cold just a couple of hours before, soon becomes an oven again. He sweats a little at first, and then stops. He starts getting worried at that - when you stop sweating he knows that means you’re in trouble - usually right before heat stroke. He decides that it’s time to try the windshield wiper fluid. He can’t wait any longer - if he passes out, he’s dead. He stops in the shade of a large rock, takes the bottle out, opens it, and takes a mouthful. He slowly swallows it, making it last as long as he can. It feels so good in his dry and cracked throat that he doesn’t even care about the nasty taste. He takes another mouthful, and makes it last too. Slowly, he drinks half the bottle. He figures that since he’s drinking it, he might as well drink enough to make some difference and keep himself from passing out. He’s quit worrying about the denaturing of the wiper fluid. If it kills him, it kills him - if he didn’t drink it, he’d die anyway. Besides, he’s pretty sure that whatever substance they denature the fluid with is just designed to make you sick - their way of keeping winos from buying cheap wiper fluid for the ethanol content. He can handle throwing up, if it comes to that. He walks. He walks in the hot, dry, windless desert. Sand, rocks, hills, dunes, the occasional scrawny cactus or dried bush. No sign of water. Sometimes he’ll see a little movement to one side or the other, but whatever moved is usually gone before he can focus his eyes on it. Probably birds, lizards, or mice. Maybe snakes, though they usually move more at night. He’s careful to stay away from the movements. After a while, he begins to stagger. He’s not sure if it’s fatigue, heat stroke finally catching him, or maybe he was wrong and the denaturing of the wiper fluid was worse than he thought. He tries to steady himself, and keep going. After more walking, he comes to a large stretch of sand. This is good! He knows he passed over a stretch of sand in the SUV - he remembers doing donuts in it. Or at least he thinks he remembers it - he’s getting woozy enough and tired enough that he’s not sure what he remembers any more or if he’s hallucinating. But he thinks he remembers it. So he heads off into it, trying to get to the other side, hoping that it gets him closer to the town. He was heading for a town, wasn’t he? He thinks he was. He isn’t sure any more. He’s not even sure how long he’s been walking any more. Is it still morning? Or has it moved into afternoon and the sun is going down again? It must be afternoon - it seems like it’s been too long since he started out. He walks through the sand. After a while, he comes to a big dune in the sand. This is bad. He doesn’t remember any dunes when driving over the sand in his SUV. Or at least he doesn’t think he remembers any. This is bad. But, he has no other direction to go. Too late to turn back now. He figures that he’ll get to the top of the dune and see if he can see anything from there that helps him find the town. He keeps going up the dune. Halfway up, he slips in the bad footing of the sand for the second or third time, and falls to his knees. He doesn’t feel like getting back up - he’ll just fall down again. So, he keeps going up the dune on his hand and knees. While crawling, if his throat weren’t so dry, he’d laugh. He’s finally gotten to the hackneyed image of a man lost in the desert - crawling through the sand on his hands and knees. If would be the perfect image, he imagines, if only his clothes were more ragged. The people crawling through the desert in the cartoons always had ragged clothes. But his have lasted without any rips so far. Somebody will probably find his dessicated corpse half buried in the sand years from now, and his clothes will still be in fine shape -shake the sand out, and a good wash, and they’d be wearable again. He wishes his throat were wet enough to laugh. He coughs a little instead, and it hurts. He finally makes it to the top of the sand dune. Now that he’s at the top, he struggles a little, but manages to stand up and look around. All he sees is sand. Sand, and more sand. Behind him, about a mile away, he thinks he sees the rocky ground he left to head into this sand. Ahead of him, more dunes, more sand. This isn’t where he drove his SUV. This is Hell. Or close enough. Again, he doesn’t know what to do. He decides to drink the rest of the wiper fluid while figuring it out. He takes out the bottle, and is removing the cap, when he glances to the side and sees something. Something in the sand. At the bottom of the dune, off to the side, he sees something strange. It’s a flat area, in the sand. He stops taking the cap of the bottle off, and tries to look closer. The area seems to be circular. And it’s dark - darker than the sand. And, there seems to be something in the middle of it, but he can’t tell what it is. He looks as hard as he can, and still can tell from here. He’s going to have to go down there and look. He puts the bottle back in his pocket, and starts to stumble down the dune. After a few steps, he realizes that he’s in trouble - he’s not going to be able to keep his balance. After a couple of more sliding, tottering steps, he falls and starts to roll down the dune. The sand it so hot when his body hits it that for a minute he thinks he’s caught fire on the way down - like a movie car wreck flashing into flames as it goes over the cliff, before it ever even hits the ground. He closes his eyes and mouth, covers his face with his hands, and waits to stop rolling. He stops, at the bottom of the dune. After a minute or two, he finds enough energy to try to sit up and get the sand out of his face and clothes. When he clears his eyes enough, he looks around to make sure that the dark spot in the sand it still there and he hadn’t just imagined it. So, seeing the large, flat, dark spot on the sand is still there, he begins to crawl towards it. He’d get up and walk towards it, but he doesn’t seem to have the energy to get up and walk right now. He must be in the final stages of dehydration he figures, as he crawls. If this place in the sand doesn’t have water, he’ll likely never make it anywhere else. This is his last chance. He gets closer and closer, but still can’t see what’s in the middle of the dark area. His eyes won’t quite focus any more for some reason. And lifting his head up to look takes so much effort that he gives up trying. He just keeps crawling. Finally, he reaches the area he’d seen from the dune. It takes him a minute of crawling on it before he realizes that he’s no longer on sand - he’s now crawling on some kind of dark stone. Stone with some kind of marking on it -a pattern cut into the stone. He’s too tired to stand up and try to see what the pattern is - so he just keeps crawling. He crawls towards the center, where his blurry eyes still see something in the middle of the dark stone area. His mind, detached in a strange way, notes that either his hands and knees are so burnt by the sand that they no longer feel pain, or that this dark stone, in the middle of a burning desert with a pounding, punishing sun overhead, doesn’t seem to be hot. It almost feels cool. He considers lying down on the nice cool surface. Cool, dark stone. Not a good sign. He must be hallucinating this. He’s probably in the middle of a patch of sand, already lying face down and dying, and just imagining this whole thing. A desert mirage. Soon the beautiful women carrying pitchers of water will come up and start giving him a drink. Then he’ll know he’s gone. He decides against laying down on the cool stone. If he’s going to die here in the middle of this hallucination, he at least wants to see what’s in the center before he goes. He keeps crawling. It’s the third time that he hears the voice before he realizes what he’s hearing. He would swear that someone just said, “Greetings, traveler. You do not look well. Do you hear me?” He stops crawling. He tries to look up from where he is on his hands and knees, but it’s too much effort to lift his head. So he tries something different - he leans back and tries to sit up on the stone. After a few seconds, he catches his balance, avoids falling on his face, sits up, and tries to focus his eyes. Blurry. He rubs his eyes with the back of his hands and tries again. Better this time. Yep. He can see. He’s sitting in the middle of a large, flat, dark expanse of stone. Directly next to him, about three feet away, is a white post or pole about two inches in diameter and sticking up about four or five feet out of the stone, at an angle. And wrapped around this white rod, tail with rattle on it hovering and seeming to be ready to start rattling, is what must be a fifteen foot long desert diamondback rattlesnake, looking directly at him. He stares at the snake in shock. He doesn’t have the energy to get up and run away. He doesn’t even have the energy to crawl away. This is it, his final resting place. No matter what happens, he’s not going to be able to move from this spot. Well, at least dying of a bite from this monster should be quicker than dying of thirst. He’ll face his end like a man. He struggles to sit up a little straighter. The snake keeps watching him. He lifts one hand and waves it in the snake’s direction, feebly. The snake watches the hand for a moment, then goes back to watching the man, looking into his eyes. Hmmm. Maybe the snake had no interest in biting him? It hadn’t rattled yet -that was a good sign. Maybe he wasn’t going to die of snake bite after all. He then remembers that he’d looked up when he’d reached the center here because he thought he’d heard a voice. He was still very woozy - he was likely to pass out soon, the sun still beat down on him even though he was now on cool stone. He still didn’t have anything to drink. But maybe he had actually heard a voice. This stone didn’t look natural. Nor did that white post sticking up out of the stone. Someone had to have built this. Maybe they were still nearby. Maybe that was who talked to him. Maybe this snake was even their pet, and that’s why it wasn’t biting. He tries to clear his throat to say, “Hello,” but his throat is too dry. All that comes out is a coughing or wheezing sound. There is no way he’s going to be able to talk without something to drink. He feels his pocket, and the bottle with the wiper fluid is still there. He shakily pulls the bottle out, almost losing his balance and falling on his back in the process. This isn’t good. He doesn’t have much time left, by his reckoning, before he passes out. He gets the lid off of the bottle, manages to get the bottle to his lips, and pours some of the fluid into his mouth. He sloshes it around, and then swallows it. He coughs a little. His throat feels better. Maybe he can talk now. He tries again. Ignoring the snake, he turns to look around him, hoping to spot the owner of this place, and croaks out, “Hello? Is there anyone here?” He hears, from his side, “Greetings. What is it that you want?” He turns his head, back towards the snake. That’s where the sound had seemed to come from. The only thing he can think of is that there must be a speaker, hidden under the snake, or maybe built into that post. He decides to try asking for help. “Please,” he croaks again, suddenly feeling dizzy, “I’d love to not be thirsty any more. I’ve been a long time without water. Can you help me?” Looking in the direction of the snake, hoping to see where the voice was coming from this time, he is shocked to see the snake rear back, open its mouth, and speak. He hears it say, as the dizziness overtakes him and he falls forward, face first on the stone, “Very well. Coming up.” A piercing pain shoots through his shoulder. Suddenly he is awake. He sits up and grabs his shoulder, wincing at the throbbing pain. He’s momentarily disoriented as he looks around, and then he remembers - the crawl across the sand, the dark area of stone, the snake. He sees the snake, still wrapped around the tilted white post, still looking at him. He reaches up and feels his shoulder, where it hurts. It feels slightly wet. He pulls his fingers away and looks at them - blood. He feels his shoulder again - his shirt has what feels like two holes in it - two puncture holes -they match up with the two aching spots of pain on his shoulder. He had been bitten. By the snake. “It’ll feel better in a minute.” He looks up - it’s the snake talking. He hadn’t dreamed it. Suddenly he notices - he’s not dizzy any more. And more importantly, he’s not thirsty any more - at all! “Have I died? Is this the afterlife? Why are you biting me in the afterlife?” “Sorry about that, but I had to bite you,” says the snake. “That’s the way I work. It all comes through the bite. Think of it as natural medicine.” “You bit me to help me? Why aren’t I thirsty any more? Did you give me a drink before you bit me? How did I drink enough while unconscious to not be thirsty any more? I haven’t had a drink for over two days. Well, except for the windshield wiper fluid… hold it, how in the world does a snake talk? Are you real? Are you some sort of Disney animation?” “No,” says the snake, “I’m real. As real as you or anyone is, anyway. I didn’t give you a drink. I bit you. That’s how it works - it’s what I do. I bite. I don’t have hands to give you a drink, even if I had water just sitting around here.” The man sat stunned for a minute. Here he was, sitting in the middle of the desert on some strange stone that should be hot but wasn’t, talking to a snake that could talk back and had just bitten him. And he felt better. Not great - he was still starving and exhausted, but much better - he was no longer thirsty. He had started to sweat again, but only slightly. He felt hot, in this sun, but it was starting to get lower in the sky, and the cool stone beneath him was a relief he could notice now that he was no longer dying of thirst. “I might suggest that we take care of that methanol you now have in your system with the next request,” continued the snake. “I can guess why you drank it, but I’m not sure how much you drank, or how much methanol was left in the wiper fluid. That stuff is nasty. It’ll make you go blind in a day or two, if you drank enough of it.” “Ummm, n-next request?” said the man. He put his hand back on his hurting shoulder and backed away from the snake a little. “That’s the way it works. If you like, that is,” explained the snake. “You get three requests. Call them wishes, if you wish.” The snake grinned at his own joke, and the man drew back a little further from the show of fangs. “But there are rules,” the snake continued. “The first request is free. The second requires an agreement of secrecy. The third requires the binding of responsibility.” The snake looks at the man seriously. “By the way,” the snake says suddenly, “my name is Nathan. Old Nathan, Samuel used to call me. He gave me the name. Before that, most of the Bound used to just call me ‘Snake’. But that got old, and Samuel wouldn’t stand for it. He said that anything that could talk needed a name. He was big into names. You can call me Nate, if you wish.” Again, the snake grinned. “Sorry if I don’t offer to shake, but I think you can understand - my shake sounds somewhat threatening.” The snake give his rattle a little shake. “Umm, my name is Jack,” said the man, trying to absorb all of this. “Jack Samson. “Can I ask you a question?” Jack says suddenly. “What happened to the poison…umm, in your bite. Why aren’t I dying now? How did you do that? What do you mean by that’s how you work?” “That’s more than one question,” grins Nate. “But I’ll still try to answer all of them. First, yes, you can ask me a question.” The snake’s grin gets wider. “Second, the poison is in you. It changed you. You now no longer need to drink. That’s what you asked for. Or, well, technically, you asked to not be thirsty any more - but ‘any more’ is such a vague term. I decided to make it permanent - now, as long as you live, you shouldn’t need to drink much at all. Your body will conserve water very efficiently. You should be able to get enough just from the food you eat - much like a creature of the desert. You’ve been changed. “For the third question,” Nate continues, “you are still dying. Besides the effects of that methanol in your system, you’re a man - and men are mortal. In your current state, I give you no more than about another 50 years. Assuming you get out of this desert, alive, that is.” Nate seemed vastly amused at his own humor, and continued his wide grin. “As for the fourth question,” Nate said, looking more serious as far as Jack could tell, as Jack was just now working on his ability to read talking-snake emotions from snake facial features, “first you have to agree to make a second request and become bound by the secrecy, or I can’t tell you.” “Wait,” joked Jack, “isn’t this where you say you could tell me, but you’d have to kill me?” “I thought that was implied.” Nate continued to look serious. “Ummm…yeah.” Jack leaned back a little as he remembered again that he was talking to a fifteen foot poisonous reptile with a reputation for having a nasty temper. “So, what is this ‘Bound by Secrecy’ stuff, and can you really stop the effects of the methanol?” Jack thought for a second. “And, what do you mean methanol, anyway? I thought these days they use ethanol in wiper fluid, and just denature it?” “They may, I don’t really know,” said Nate. “I haven’t gotten out in a while. Maybe they do. All I know is that I smell methanol on your breath and on that bottle in your pocket. And the blue color of the liquid when you pulled it out to drink some let me guess that it was wiper fluid. I assume that they still color wiper fluid blue?” “Yeah, they do,” said Jack. “I figured,” replied Nate. “As for being bound by secrecy - with the fulfillment of your next request, you will be bound to say nothing about me, this place, or any of the information I will tell you after that, when you decide to go back out to your kind. You won’t be allowed to talk about me, write about me, use sign language, charades, or even act in a way that will lead someone to guess correctly about me. You’ll be bound to secrecy. Of course, I’ll also ask you to promise not to give me away, and as I’m guessing that you’re a man of your word, you’ll never test the binding anyway, so you won’t notice.” Nate said the last part with utter confidence. Jack, who had always prided himself on being a man of his word, felt a little nervous at this. “Ummm, hey, Nate, who are you? How did you know that? Are you, umm, omniscient, or something?” Well, Jack,” said Nate sadly, “I can’t tell you that, unless you make the second request.” Nate looked away for a minute, then looked back. “Umm, well, ok,” said Jack, “what is this about a second request? What can I ask for? Are you allowed to tell me that?” “Sure!” said Nate, brightening. “You’re allowed to ask for changes. Changes to yourself. They’re like wishes, but they can only affect you. Oh, and before you ask, I can’t give you immortality. Or omniscience. Or omnipresence, for that matter. Though I might be able to make you gaseous and yet remain alive, and then you could spread through the atmosphere and sort of be omnipresent. But what good would that be - you still wouldn’t be omniscient and thus still could only focus on one thing at a time. Not very useful, at least in my opinion.” Nate stopped when he realized that Jack was staring at him. “Well, anyway,” continued Nate, “I’d probably suggest giving you permanent good health. It would negate the methanol now in your system, you’d be immune to most poisons and diseases, and you’d tend to live a very long time, barring accident, of course. And you’ll even have a tendency to recover from accidents well. It always seemed like a good choice for a request to me.” “Cure the methanol poisoning, huh?” said Jack. “And keep me healthy for a long time? Hmmm. It doesn’t sound bad at that. And it has to be a request about a change to me? I can’t ask to be rich, right? Because that’s not really a change to me?” “Right,” nodded Nate. “Could I ask to be a genius and permanently healthy?” Jack asked, hopefully. “That takes two requests, Jack.” “Yeah, I figured so,” said Jack. “But I could ask to be a genius? I could become the smartest scientist in the world? Or the best athlete?” “Well, I could make you very smart,” admitted Nate, “but that wouldn’t necessarily make you the best scientist in the world. Or, I could make you very athletic, but it wouldn’t necessarily make you the best athlete either. You’ve heard the saying that 99% of genius is hard work? Well, there’s some truth to that. I can give you the talent, but I can’t make you work hard. It all depends on what you decide to do with it.” “Hmmm,” said Jack. “Ok, I think I understand. And I get a third request, after this one?” “Maybe,” said Nate, “it depends on what you decide then. There are more rules for the third request that I can only tell you about after the second request. You know how it goes.” Nate looked like he’d shrug, if he had shoulders. “Ok, well, since I’d rather not be blind in a day or two, and permanent health doesn’t sound bad, then consider that my second request. Officially. Do I need to sign in blood or something?” “No,” said Nate. “Just hold out your hand. Or heel.” Nate grinned. “Or whatever part you want me to bite. I have to bite you again. Like I said, that’s how it works - the poison, you know,” Nate said apologetically. Jack winced a little and felt his shoulder, where the last bite was. Hey, it didn’t hurt any more. Just like Nate had said. That made Jack feel better about the biting business. But still, standing still while a fifteen foot snake sunk it’s fangs into you. Jack stood up. Ignoring how good it felt to be able to stand again, and the hunger starting to gnaw at his stomach, Jack tried to decide where he wanted to get bitten. Despite knowing that it wouldn’t hurt for long, Jack knew that this wasn’t going to be easy. “Hey, Jack,” Nate suddenly said, looking past Jack towards the dunes behind him, “is that someone else coming up over there?” Jack spun around and looked. Who else could be out here in the middle of nowhere? And did they bring food? Wait a minute, there was nobody over there. What was Nate… Jack let out a bellow as he felt two fangs sink into his rear end, through his jeans… Jack sat down carefully, favoring his more tender buttock. “I would have decided, eventually, Nate. I was just thinking about it. You didn’t have to hoodwink me like that.” “I’ve been doing this a long time, Jack,” said Nate, confidently. “You humans have a hard time sitting still and letting a snake bite you - especially one my size. And besides, admit it - it’s only been a couple of minutes and it already doesn’t hurt any more, does it? That’s because of the health benefit with this one. I told you that you’d heal quickly now.” “Yeah, well, still,” said Jack, “it’s the principle of the thing. And nobody likes being bitten in the butt! Couldn’t you have gotten my calf or something instead?” “More meat in the typical human butt,” replied Nate. “And less chance you accidentally kick me or move at the last second.” “Yeah, right. So, tell me all of these wonderful secrets that I now qualify to hear,” answered Jack. “Ok,” said Nate. “Do you want to ask questions first, or do you want me to just start talking?” “Just talk,” said Jack. “I’ll sit here and try to not think about food.” “We could go try to rustle up some food for you first, if you like,” answered Nate. “Hey! You didn’t tell me you had food around here, Nate!” Jack jumped up. “What do we have? Am I in walking distance to town? Or can you magically whip up food along with your other powers?” Jack was almost shouting with excitement. His stomach had been growling for hours. “I was thinking more like I could flush something out of its hole and bite it for you, and you could skin it and eat it. Assuming you have a knife, that is,” replied Nate, with the grin that Jack was starting to get used to. “Ugh,” said Jack, sitting back down. “I think I’ll pass. I can last a little longer before I get desperate enough to eat desert rat, or whatever else it is you find out here. And there’s nothing to burn - I’d have to eat it raw. No thanks. Just talk.” “Ok,” replied Nate, still grinning. “But I’d better hurry, before you start looking at me as food. Nate reared back a little, looked around for a second, and then continued. “You, Jack, are sitting in the middle of the Garden of Eden.” Jack looked around at the sand and dunes and then looked back at Nate sceptically. “Well, that’s the best I can figure it, anyway, Jack,” said Nate. “Stand up and look at the symbol on the rock here.” Nate gestured around the dark stone they were both sitting on with his nose. Jack stood up and looked. Carved into the stone in a bas-relief was a representation of a large tree. The angled-pole that Nate was wrapped around was coming out of the trunk of the tree, right below where the main branches left the truck to reach out across the stone. It was very well done - it looked more like a tree had been reduced to almost two dimensions and embedded in the stone than it did like a carving. Jack walked around and looked at the details in the fading light of the setting sun. He wished he’d looked at it while the sun was higher in the sky. Wait! The sun was setting! That meant he was going to have to spend another night out here! Arrrgh! Jack looked out across the desert for a little bit, and then came back and stood next to Nate. “In all the excitement, I almost forgot, Nate,” said Jack. “Which way is it back to town? And how far? I’m eventually going to have to head back - I’m not sure I’ll be able to survive by eating raw desert critters for long. And even if I can, I’m not sure I’ll want to.” “It’s about 30 miles that way.” Nate pointed, with the rattle on his tail this time. As far as Jack could tell, it was a direction at right angles to the way he’d been going when he was crawling here. “But that’s 30 miles by the way the crow flies. It’s about 40 by the way a man walks. You should be able to do it in about half a day with your improved endurance, if you head out early tomorrow, Jack.” Jack looked out the way the snake had pointed for a few seconds more, and then sat back down. It was getting dark. Not much he could do about heading out right now. And besides, Nate was just about to get to the interesting stuff. “Garden of Eden? As best as you can figure it?” “Well, yeah, as best as I and Samuel could figure it anyway,” said Nate. “He figured that the story just got a little mixed up. You know, snake, in a ‘tree’, offering ‘temptations’, making bargains. That kind stuff. But he could never quite figure out how the Hebrews found out about this spot from across the ocean. He worried about that for a while.” “Garden of Eden, hunh?” said Jack. “How long have you been here, Nate?” “No idea, really,” replied Nate. “A long time. It never occurred to me to count years, until recently, and by then, of course, it was too late. But I do remember when this whole place was green, so I figure it’s been thousands of years, at least.” “So, are you the snake that tempted Eve?” said Jack. “Beats me,” said Nate. “Maybe. I can’t remember if the first one of your kind that I talked to was female or not, and I never got a name, but it could have been. And I suppose she could have considered my offer to grant requests a ‘temptation’, though I’ve rarely had refusals.” “Well, umm, how did you get here then? And why is that white pole stuck out of the stone there?” asked Jack. “Dad left me here. Or, I assume it was my dad. It was another snake - much bigger than I was back then. I remember talking to him, but I don’t remember if it was in a language, or just kind of understanding what he wanted. But one day, he brought me to this stone, told me about it, and asked me to do something for him. I talked it over with him for a while, then agreed. I’ve been here ever since. “What is this place?” said Jack. “And what did he ask you to do?” “Well, you see this pole here, sticking out of the stone?” Nate loosened his coils around the tilted white pole and showed Jack where it descended into the stone. The pole was tilted at about a 45 degree angle and seemed to enter the stone in an eighteen inch slot cut into the stone. Jack leaned over and looked. The slot was dark and the pole went down into it as far as Jack could see in the dim light. Jack reached out to touch the pole, but Nate was suddenly there in the way. “You can’t touch that yet, Jack,” said Nate. “Why not?” asked Jack. “I haven’t explained it to you yet,” replied Nate. “Well, it kinda looks like a lever or something,” said Jack. “You’d push it that way, and it would move in the slot.” “Yep, that’s what it is,” replied Nate. “What does it do?” asked Jack. “End the world?” “Oh, no,” said Nate. “Nothing that drastic. It just ends humanity. I call it ‘The Lever of Doom’.” For the last few words Nate had used a deeper, ringing voice. He tried to look serious for a few seconds, and then gave up and grinned. Jack was initially startled by Nate’s pronouncement, but when Nate grinned Jack laughed. “Ha! You almost had me fooled for a second there. What does it really do?” “Oh, it really ends humanity, like I said,” smirked Nate. “I just thought the voice I used was funny, didn’t you?” Nate continued to grin. “A lever to end humanity?” asked Jack. “What in the world is that for? Why would anyone need to end humanity?” “Well,” replied Nate, “I get the idea that maybe humanity was an experiment. Or maybe the Big Guy just thought, that if humanity started going really bad, there should be a way to end it. I’m not really sure. All I know are the rules, and the guesses that Samuel and I had about why it’s here. I didn’t think to ask back when I started here.” “Rules? What rules?” asked Jack. “The rules are that I can’t tell anybody about it or let them touch it unless they agree to be bound to secrecy by a bite. And that only one human can be bound in that way at a time. That’s it.” explained Nate. Jack looked somewhat shocked. “You mean that I could pull the lever now? You’d let me end humanity?” “Yep,” replied Nate, “if you want to.” Nate looked at Jack carefully. “Do you want to, Jack?” “Umm, no.” said Jack, stepping a little further back from the lever. “Why in the world would anyone want to end humanity? It’d take a psychotic to want that! Or worse, a suicidal psychotic, because it would kill him too, wouldn’t it?” “Yep,” replied Nate, “being as he’d be human too.” “Has anyone ever seriously considered it?” asked Nate. “Any of those bound to secrecy, that is?” “Well, of course, I think they’ve all seriously considered it at one time or another. Being given that kind of responsibility makes you sit down and think, or so I’m told. Samuel considered it several times. He’d often get disgusted with humanity, come out here, and just hold the lever for a while. But he never pulled it. Or you wouldn’t be here.” Nate grinned some more. Jack sat down, well back from the lever. He looked thoughtful and puzzled at the same time. After a bit, he said, “So this makes me the Judge of humanity? I get to decide whether they keep going or just end? Me?” “That seems to be it,” agreed Nate. “What kind of criteria do I use to decide?” said Jack. “How do I make this decision? Am I supposed to decide if they’re good? Or too many of them are bad? Or that they’re going the wrong way? Is there a set of rules for that?” “Nope,” replied Nate. “You pretty much just have to decide on your own. It’s up to you, however you want to decide it. I guess that you’re just supposed to know.” “But what if I get mad at someone? Or some girl dumps me and I feel horrible? Couldn’t I make a mistake? How do I know that I won’t screw up?” protested Jack. Nate gave his kind of snake-like shrug again. “You don’t. You just have to try your best, Jack.” Jack sat there for a while, staring off into the desert that was rapidly getting dark, chewing on a fingernail. Suddenly, Jack turned around and looked at the snake. “Nate, was Samuel the one bound to this before me?” “Yep,” replied Nate. “He was a good guy. Talked to me a lot. Taught me to read and brought me books. I think I still have a good pile of them buried in the sand around here somewhere. I still miss him. He died a few months ago.” “Sounds like a good guy,” agreed Jack. “How did he handle this, when you first told him. What did he do?” “Well,” said Nate, “he sat down for a while, thought about it for a bit, and then asked me some questions, much like you’re doing.” “What did he ask you, if you’re allowed to tell me?” asked Jack. “He asked me about the third request,” replied Nate. “Aha!” It was Jack’s turn to grin. “And what did you tell him?” “I told him the rules for the third request. That to get the third request you have to agree to this whole thing. That if it ever comes to the point that you really think that humanity should be ended, that you’ll come here and end it. You won’t avoid it, and you won’t wimp out.” Nate looked serious again. “And you’ll be bound to do it too, Jack.” “Hmmm.” Jack looked back out into the darkness for a while. Nate watched him, waiting. “Nate,” continued Jack, quietly, eventually. “What did Samuel ask for with his third request?” Nate sounded like he was grinning again as he replied, also quietly, “Wisdom, Jack. He asked for wisdom. As much as I could give him.” “Ok,” said Jack, suddenly, standing up and facing away from Nate, “give it to me. Nate looked at Jack’s backside. “Give you what, Jack?” “Give me that wisdom. The same stuff that Samuel asked for. If it helped him, maybe it’ll help me too.” Jack turned his head to look back over his shoulder at Nate. “It did help him, right?” “He said it did,” replied Nate. “But he seemed a little quieter afterward. Like he had a lot to think about.” “Well, yeah, I can see that,” said Jack. “So, give it to me.” Jack turned toface away from Nate again, bent over slightly and tensed up. Nate watched Jack tense up with a little exasperation. If he bit Jack now, Jack would likely jump out of his skin and maybe hurt them both. “You remember that you’ll be bound to destroy humanity if it ever looks like it needs it, right Jack?” asked Nate, shifting position. “Yeah, yeah, I got that,” replied Jack, eyes squeezed tightly shut and body tense, not noticing the change in direction of Nate’s voice. “And,” continued Nate, from his new position, “do you remember that you’ll turn bright purple, and grow big horns and extra eyes?” “Yeah, yeah…Hey, wait a minute!” said Jack, opening his eyes, straightening up and turning around. “Purple?!” He didn’t see Nate there. With the moonlight Jack could see that the lever extended up from its slot in the rock without the snake wrapped around it. Jack heard, from behind him, Nate’s “Just Kidding!” right before he felt the now familiar piercing pain, this time in the other buttock. Jack sat on the edge of the dark stone in the rapidly cooling air, his feet extending out into the sand. He stared out into the darkness, listening to the wind stir the sand, occasionally rubbing his butt where he’d been recently bitten. Nate had left for a little while, had come back with a desert-rodent-shaped bulge somewhere in his middle, and was now wrapped back around the lever, his tongue flicking out into the desert night’s air the only sign that he was still awake. Occasionally Jack, with his toes absentmindedly digging in the sand while he thought, would ask Nate a question without turning around. “Nate, do accidents count?” Nate lifted his head a little bit. “What do you mean, Jack?” Jack tilted his head back like he was looking at the stars. “You know, accidents. If I accidentally fall on the lever, without meaning to, does that still wipe out humanity?” “Yeah, I’m pretty sure it does, Jack. I’d suggest you be careful about that if you start feeling wobbly,” said Nate with some amusement. A little later - “Does it have to be me that pulls the lever?” asked Jack. “That’s the rule, Jack. Nobody else can pull it,” answered Nate. “No,” Jack shook his head, “I meant does it have to be my hand? Could I pull the lever with a rope tied around it? Or push it with a stick? Or throw a rock?” “Yes, those should work,” replied Nate. “Though I’m not sure how complicated you could get. Samuel thought about trying to build some kind of remote control for it once, but gave it up. Everything he’d build would be gone by the next sunrise, if it was touching the stone, or over it. I told him that in the past others that had been bound had tried to bury the lever so they wouldn’t be tempted to pull it, but every time the stones or sand or whatever had disappeared.” “Wow,” said Jack, “Cool.” Jack leaned back until only his elbows kept him off of the stone and looked up into the sky. “Nate, how long did Samuel live? One of his wishes was for health too, right?” asked Jack. “Yes,” replied Nate, “it was. He lived 167 years, Jack.” “Wow, 167 years. That’s almost 140 more years I’ll live if I live as long. Do you know what he died of, Nate?” “He died of getting tired of living, Jack,” Nate said, sounding somewhat sad. Jack turned his head to look at Nate in the starlight. Nate looked back. “Samuel knew he wasn’t going to be able to stay in society. He figured that they’d eventually see him still alive and start questioning it, so he decided that he’d have to disappear after a while. He faked his death once, but changed his mind - he decided it was too early and he could stay for a little longer. He wasn’t very fond of mankind, but he liked the attention. Most of the time, anyway. “His daughter and then his wife dying almost did him in though. He didn’t stay in society much longer after that. He eventually came out here to spend time talking to me and thinking about pulling the lever. A few months ago he told me he’d had enough. It was his time.” “And then he just died?” asked Jack. Nate shook his head a little. “He made his forth request, Jack. There’s only one thing you can ask for the fourth request. The last bite. After a bit Nate continued, “He told me that he was tired, that it was his time. He reassured me that someone new would show up soon, like they always had. After another pause, Nate finished, “Samuel’s body disappeared off the stone with the sunrise.” Jack lay back down and looked at the sky, leaving Nate alone with his memories. It was a long time until Jack’s breathing evened out into sleep. Jack woke with the sunrise the next morning. He was a little chilled with the morning desert air, but overall was feeling pretty good. Well, except that his stomach was grumbling and he wasn’t willing to eat raw desert rat. So, after getting directions to town from Nate, making sure he knew how to get back, and reassuring Nate that he’d be back soon, Jack started the long walk back to town. With his new health and Nate’s good directions, he made it back easily. Jack caught a bus back to the city, and showed up for work the next day, little worse for the wear and with a story about getting lost in the desert and walking back out. Within a couple of days Jack had talked a friend with a tow truck into going back out into the desert with him to fetch the SUV. They found it after a couple of hours of searching and towed it back without incident. Jack was careful not to even look in the direction of Nate’s lever, though their path back didn’t come within sight of it. Before the next weekend, Jack had gone to a couple of stores, including a book store, and had gotten his SUV back from the mechanic, with a warning to avoid any more joyriding in the desert. On Saturday, Jack headed back to see Nate. Jack parked a little way out of the small town near Nate, loaded up his new backpack with camping gear and the things he was bringing for Nate, and then started walking. He figured that walking would leave the least trail, and he knew that while not many people camped in the desert, it wasn’t unheard of, and shouldn’t really raise suspicions. Jack had brought more books for Nate - recent books, magazines, newspapers. Some things that would catch Nate up with what was happening in the world, others that were just good books to read. He spent the weekend with Nate, and then headed out again, telling Nate that he’d be back again soon, but that he had things to do first. Over four months later Jack was back to see Nate again. This time he brought a laptop with him - a specially modified laptop. It had a solar recharger, special filters and seals to keep out the sand, a satellite link-up, and a special keyboard and joystick that Jack hoped that a fifteen-foot rattlesnake would be able to use. And, it had been hacked to not give out its location to the satellite. After that Jack could e-mail Nate to keep in touch, but still visited him fairly regularly - at least once or twice a year. After the first year, Jack quit his job. For some reason, with the wisdom he ‘d been given, and the knowledge that he could live for over 150 years, working in a nine to five job for someone else didn’t seem that worthwhile any more. Jack went back to school. Eventually, Jack started writing. Perhaps because of the wisdom, or perhaps because of his new perspective, he wrote well. People liked what he wrote, and he became well known for it. After a time, Jack bought an RV and started traveling around the country for book signings and readings. But, he still remembered to drop by and visit Nate occasionally. On one of the visits Nate seemed quieter than usual. Not that Nate had been a fountain of joy lately. Jack’s best guess was that Nate was still missing Samuel, and though Jack had tried, he still hadn’t been able to replace Samuel in Nate’s eyes. Nate had been getting quieter each visit. But on this visit Nate didn’t even speak when Jack walked up to the lever. He nodded at Jack, and then went back to staring into the desert. Jack, respecting Nate’s silence, sat down and waited. After a few minutes, Nate spoke. “Jack, I have someone to introduce you to.” Jack looked surprised. “Someone to introduce me to?” Jack looked around, and then looked carefully back at Nate. “This something to do with the Big Guy? “No, no,” replied Nate. “This is more personal. I want you to meet my son.” Nate looked over at the nearest sand dune. “Sammy!” Jack watched as a four foot long desert rattlesnake crawled from behind the dune and up to the stone base of the lever. “Yo, Jack,” said the new, much smaller snake. “Yo, Sammy” replied Jack. Jack looked at Nate. “Named after Samuel, I assume?” Nate nodded. “Jack, I’ve got a favor to ask you. Could you show Sammy around for me?” Nate unwrapped himself from the lever and slithered over to the edge of the stone and looked across the sands. “When Samuel first told me about the world, and brought me books and pictures, I wished that I could go see it. I wanted to see the great forests, the canyons, the cities, even the other deserts, to see if they felt and smelled the same. I want my son to have that chance - to see the world. Before he becomes bound here like I have been. “He’s seen it in pictures, over the computer that you brought me. But I hear that it’s not the same. That being there is different. I want him to have that. Think you can do that for me, Jack?” Jack nodded. This was obviously very important to Nate, so Jack didn’t even joke about taking a talking rattlesnake out to see the world. “Yeah, I can do that for you, Nate. Is that all you need?” Jack could sense that was something more. Nate looked at Sammy. Sammy looked back at Nate for a second and then said, “Oh, yeah. Ummm, I’ve gotta go pack. Back in a little bit Jack. Nice to meet ya!” Sammy slithered back over the dune and out of sight. Nate watched Sammy disappear and then looked back at Jack. “Jack, this is my first son. My first offspring through all the years. You don’t even want to know what it took for me to find a mate.” Nate grinned to himself. “But anyway, I had a son for a reason. I’m tired. I’m ready for it to be over. I needed a replacement.” Jack considered this for a minute. “So, you’re ready to come see the world, and you wanted him to watch the lever while you were gone?” Nate shook his head. “No, Jack - you’re a better guesser than that. You’ve already figured out - I’m bound here - there’s only one way for me to leave here. And I’m ready. It’s my time to die.” Jack looked more closely at Nate. He could tell Nate had thought about this - probably for quite a while. Jack had trouble imagining what it would be like to be as old as Nate, but Jack could already tell that in another hundred or two hundred years, he might be getting tired of life himself. Jack could understand Samuel’s decision, and now Nate’s. So, all Jack said was, “What do you want me to do?” Nate nodded. “Thanks, Jack. I only want two things. One - show Sammy around the world - let him get his fill of it, until he’s ready to come back here and take over. Two - give me the fourth request. “I can’t just decide to die, not any more than you can. I won’t even die of old age like you eventually will, even though it’ll be a long time from now. I need to be killed. Once Sammy is back here, ready to take over, I’ll be able to die. And I need you to kill me. “I’ve even thought about how. Poisons and other drugs won’t work on me. And I’ve seen pictures of snakes that were shot - some of them live for days, so that’s out too. So, I want you to bring back a sword. Nate turned away to look back to the dune that Sammy had gone behind. “I’d say an axe, but that’s somewhat undignified - putting my head on the ground or a chopping block like that. No, I like a sword. A time-honored way of going out. A dignified way to die. And, most importantly, it should work, even on me. “You willing to do that for me, Jack?” Nate turned back to look at Jack. “Yeah, Nate,” replied Jack solemnly, “I think I can handle that.” Nate nodded. “Good!” He turned back toward the dune and shouted, “Sammy! Jack’s about ready to leave!” Then quietly, “Thanks, Jack.” Jack didn’t have anything to say to that, so he waited for Sammy to make it back to the lever, nodded to him, nodded a final time to Nate, and then headed into the desert with Sammy following. Over the next several years Sammy and Jack kept in touch with Nate through e-mail as they went about their adventures. They made a goal of visiting every country in the world, and did a respectable job of it. Sammy had a natural gift for languages, as Jack expected he would, and even ended up acting as a translator for Jack in a few of the countries. Jack managed to keep the talking rattlesnake hidden, even so, and by the time they were nearing the end of their tour of countries, Sammy had only been spotted a few times. While there were several people that had seen enough to startle them greatly, nobody had enough evidence to prove anything, and while a few wild rumors and storied followed Jack and Sammy around, nothing ever hit the newspapers or the public in general. When they finished the tour of countries, Jack suggested that they try some undersea diving. They did. And spelunking. They did that too. Sammy finally drew the line at visiting Antarctica. He’d come to realize that Jack was stalling. After talking to his Dad about it over e-mail, he figured out that Jack probably didn’t want to have to kill Nate. Nate told Sammy that humans could be squeamish about killing friends and acquaintances. So, Sammy eventually put his tail down (as he didn’t have a foot) and told Jack that it was time - he was ready to go back and take up his duties from his dad. Jack, delayed it a little more by insisting that they go back to Japan and buy an appropriate sword. He even stretched it a little more by getting lessons in how to use the sword. But, eventually, he’d learned as much as he was likely to without dedicating his life to it, and was definitely competent enough to take the head off of a snake. It was time to head back and see Nate. When they got back to the US, Jack got the old RV out of storage where he and Sammy had left it after their tour of the fifty states, he loaded up Sammy and the sword, and they headed for the desert. When they got to the small town that Jack had been trying to find those years ago when he’d met Nate, Jack was in a funk. He didn’t really feel like walking all of the way out there. Not only that, but he’d forgotten to figure the travel time correctly, and it was late afternoon. They’d either have to spend the night in town and walk out tomorrow, or walk in the dark. As Jack was afraid that if he waited one more night he might lose his resolve, he decided that he’d go ahead and drive the RV out there. It was only going to be this once, and Jack would go back and cover the tracks afterward. They ought to be able to make it out there by nightfall if they drove, and then they could get it over tonight. Jack told Sammy to e-mail Nate that they were coming as he drove out of sight of the town on the road. They then pulled off the road and headed out into the desert. Everything went well, until they got to the sand dunes. Jack had been nursing the RV along the whole time, over the rocks, through the creek beds, revving the engine the few times they almost got stuck. When they came to the dunes, Jack didn’t really think about it, he just downshifted and headed up the first one. By the third dune, Jack started to regret that he’d decided to try driving on the sand. The RV was fishtailling and losing traction. Jack was having to work it up each dune slowly and was trying to keep from losing control each time they came over the top and slid down the other side. Sammy had come up to sit in the passenger seat, coiled up and laughing at Jack’s driving. As they came over the top of the fourth dune, the biggest one yet, Jack saw that this was the final dune - the stone, the lever, and somewhere Nate, waited below. Jack put on the brakes, but he’d gone a little too far. The RV started slipping down the other side. Jack tried turning the wheel, but he didn’t have enough traction. He pumped the brakes - no response. They started sliding down the hill, faster and faster. Jack felt a shock go through him as he suddenly realized that they were heading for the lever. He looked down - the RV was directly on course for it. If Jack didn’t do something, the RV would hit it. He was about to end humanity. Jack steered more frantically, trying to get traction. It still wasn’t working. The dune was too steep, and the sand too loose. In a split second, Jack realized that his only chance would be once he hit the stone around the lever - he should have traction on the stone for just a second before he hit the lever - he wouldn’t have time to stop, but he should be able to steer away. Jack took a better grip on the steering wheel and tried to turn the RV a little bit - every little bit would help. He’d have to time his turn just right. The RV got to the bottom of the dune, sliding at an amazing speed in the sand. Just before they reached the stone Jack looked across it to check that they were still heading for the lever. They were. But Jack noticed something else that he hadn’t seen from the top of the dune. Nate wasn’t wrapped around the lever. He was off to the side of the lever, but still on the stone, waiting for them. The problem was, he was waiting on the same side of the lever that Jack had picked to steer towards to avoid the lever. The RV was already starting to drift that way a little in its mad rush across the sand and there was no way that Jack was going to be able to go around the lever to the other side. Jack had an instant of realization. He was either going to have to hit the lever, or run over Nate. He glanced over at Sammy and saw that Sammy realized the same thing. Jack took a firmer grip on the steering wheel as the RV ran up on the stone. Shouting to Sammy as he pulled the steering wheel, “BETTER NATE THAN LEVER,” he ran over the snake. THE END (No one said it was the longest FUNNY joke in the world)

Where can I get the best rate on a refinance for an RV/truck loan? *aigh* The recession is killing me. I have had a fullt-time eBay business (successful) for 9 years but my income has dropped to the point where I'm still current on all my bills but taking cash-advances off credit cards occasionally to get them paid (just one card and that's the first I pay back, and ASAP, actually I just transferred that debt to another card -- that's another question...does that debt transfer as "cash-advance" or do they not know that when they pay off the balance of another card). I'm working three part-time jobs in hopes of not having to do that anymore. I live in my rig (2001 36' fifth wheel) full-time and am staying put for a year to save money, and I'm looking at spaces on private property this week to cut my current $270 space fee in half. I'm already paying nearly $600 for the loans on the vehicles. I called the bank about refinancing and because I was honest about my income drop (dumb), they not only couldn't lower it, the new estimated rate was higher than I'm paying now. Who would you go to to look into a better rate on these loans? I'm currently paying 9.29% on the truck and 10.29% on the rig. I have $20,000 in credit card debt which doesn't help matters, with another $11,000 available. None of the cards are "maxed out", I even have one card with a $9000 limit with a zero balance, but it's not pretty. I just want to cut every corner I can to help get this debt paid down. I'm 42 but was out of the game with mercury poisoning most of my adult life and started the eBay business at 32 a few years after getting my diagnosis, so I could set my own hours and focus on my health. I had almost all my debt paid off before putting a lot down on the rig and the truck in '07, just before the gas prices spiked and the economy started to tank. So here I am again. Thanks ahead of time for any help or suggestions. My credit rating fluctuates between the high 600's and the low 700's. But it's surely dropping rapidly with the additional $7000 of debt in the last eight months. I'm sorry, I guess I forgot to add that I'm not an idiot. I don't respond to offers from private individuals (never mind people with anonymous e-mail addresses, and I'm sure as heck not gonna offer up my personal information to some outfit I've never heard of. The fact that you folks would try to steal the identity of someone who is already having a hard enough time is reprehensible.

He's confused I'm confused? This is a little long so please bear with me. I've been seeing this guy for almost two years now. We have both been married, and both have children that are preteen and teenagers (he was married twice). He's very involved with his children and makes a nine hour drive at least once a month to see them over a weekend so that he stays involved in there lives as well as spends time with his family who are another three hours from there. We are both in the military. He just got back from Iraq last year in Oct and I left for the middle East in Nov. We use to work together and were together for a little over eight months before he left for Iraq. He's the sweetest guy ;0) Ever since we've been together, we have talked on the phone almost everyday (at least 2-4 times a day) including while he was in Iraq. If it wasn't by phone, it was an email, chat or webcam. I can't complain in that department. He got care packages from me just about every other week. He's alway putting money into my account or sending me things that I need that I can't get over here. He came back from Iraq and I was getting ready to head off , we spend a few days together before I left. He was suppose to spend a week with me before I left, but, I guess some things at parents home with his family and kids had to be taken care of so we only ended up spending two days together before I flew out. Here's where it get's confusing. I'm going on leave next week, and I've been planning this for the last two months to go home and see my kids and spend time with my boyfriend as well. Anyway, we were trying to get our times and dates together so we could see each other well, he's had some personal issues arise and he's got a little stressed about it. When I mentioned when he wanted me to come up there he said why don't you take your entire leave period and spend it with your kids and maybe I'll meet you over the weekend and spend a day or so with you before you fly back. He said if the shoe was on the other foot, he'd spend his leave with his kids. I'm not knocking him for wanting to spend time with his kids because that's what I'm going to do. Here I am half way around the world in the middle east and I'm taking the time to spend with someone who say's that they love me, and says they are committed to me but, after the discussion got a little heated (two o'clock in the morning my time) when I asked him how important this relationship was to him..his answer, "I'm not sure. He's a really good dad, he's driven the nine hours just to go to kids football games and driven back to be back at work the next morning (I got him to start flying since I was worried about him falling asleep at the wheel). He's stressed about work, bills, his children. I understand and I've been there as well. It hurt me to think that he wasn't sure after all this time. I didn't talk to him for a couple of days, I needed to really do some sorting and think about what I wanted to say and do and what we needed to do. When I talked to him this morning and started to make some suggestions as far as maybe taking a break (a break and I thought being over here in the middle east was enough of a break!), he tells me what ever I choose to do but, that's not what he meant, He says that he just needs to prioritize things in his life, that he doesn't want to take a break that he loves me and cares very much for me but he just needs to figure things out. (now mind you he's not in his twenties, he just turned 40). He doesn't want to lose me. Maybe come out to the airport when I land to see me......for a few days (now we are back a square one.). Then after this long three hour conversation, he then tells me that he just found out that the kids are on spring break at the end of the month and he wants to go down and get them provided their mom doesn't have anything planned. I'm a single parent with one disabled child and one teen and I've managed to balance (though it hasn't been always easy) my family, my military career, and my relationship and I'm close to retirement. I've been through alot, a lengthy divorce, a child with severe medical problems, deployment, and through all of that, I still managed to try and maintain some sanity. Even after this discussion, the next day, he calls just as usual to say good morning, to let me know what his plans are afterwork and then to say good night. He's attentive, caring, and overall a sweet guy, most women would kill for. I never have to complain that he doesn't call because he always calls when he's says he will, even when he was deployed and before we get off the phone, he will always say "I love you." All I want to do is spend some quality time with my man since we don't get to see each other and yes I know the long distance plays a role as well Okay, but what am I missing here?

Unknown-Story. Plz read!!? I'm writing this story, I'm still not done. Let me know what you think. All my friends love it, but idk. Enjoy:) P.S: Sorry if it's too long "/ "Unknown" Preface~ "Melody come back!" They shouted after me. I planned on never going back to that dreadful place. I ran as fast as I could. I made it out the gate, and around the corner, but something caught my attention. In this new life, the slightest things caught my attention; talk about A.D.D. Lights grasped my attention. I was in the middle of the street, a car was coming. It didn't even see me and passed right through me. What had happened to me in that school? Book 1-- The Past "So what are you going to wear tonight to go to the movies Mel?" Ryan asked me, throwing his arm around my waist. "Hmm, I don't know yet. Lila, we needa go over my house to check. That's alright with you? I mean, Seth won't mind?" I asked my best friend Lila, linking arms with her. "He better not mind! I love going over your house! When was the last time I was there?" She asked me, leading us through the doors to my car. "Umm, a couple of hours ago before school?" I told her opening the car for her. "Oh well! I'm going over right now!" She said getting in the car. I waited outside to say bye to Ryan. "I'ma miss you." He whispered into my ear so that only I could hear. "I'ma see you tonight." I told him. "Still." He told me back. He was going to let go of me, but then he saw Blake. Blake and him were best friends. But then this happened and that happened. Let me just sum it all up in a couple of words: I got between their friendship. Well no not really. I just came along. That's about all. Blake likes me, and so does Ryan. Blake is like my best friend. But I go out with Ryan, and sometimes Blake can be a little too flirtatious... And now Black and Ryan aren't friends at all. "Come on let go of me." I whispered. "No." He answered furciously. He just thought of something, and then he lifted my chin, and started kissing me. This wasn't like his normal kisses. This one would leave my lips aching for days. But I couldn't help but do nothing and kiss him back. Then it clicked in my head, but it was too late. "Hey Mel." Black said. Ryan didn't let go of me or my lips. "Ryyyy lemme gooo." I said with his lips still against mine. He let go of me, and I turned around. When I turned around, he had his arms around my waist. "Hey Mel." Blake said. He looked jealous. "Hey." I said back, smiling at him. I just wished I could hug him and make his pain go away. But I know I can't do that. That would ruin the balance of things. I liked the way things were now, I didn't want to think of them in any other way. I was happy as I was. Even though there were little things I wanted to adjust. But for now, they are good. And they will not change if I have anything to say about it. "So are we going to meet up at the movies first and then go to the carnival?" He asked me, eyeing Lila and Ryan's arms. "That's the plan! I'll let you know if we change plans okay?" I told him, hoping that he can already be over me. "Okay. I'll see you later I guess?" He asked me. "Like er durr?" I told him back. He gave me one his million dollar smiles and my heart melted at the edges. That's the only part that belongs to him. The rest belongs to Ryan. I don't want it any other way. With that, Blake left and gave Lila his smile. I hope he would really find somebody else. I said bye to Ryan for the millionth time, and was on my way to my house. "Mom we're here!" Lila shouted as she opened the door to my house. "Hi Lill. Me and Steven won't be here for long. We have to go to this dinner that his boss is making madetory to go." Mom explained as she put on her earrings. "No problemo. We just have to get ready and we out too." I told my mom going to my room. "Just make sure to lock up. I'm not sure what time we will be returning." She said as she looked for my dad. "Sure thing." I told her turning up the volume on my computer. "So get ready and lets go! The sooner we get to the movies, the closer I get to the Ferris Wheel!" Lila said as she jumped on my bed. "OK! OK!" I told her. Half an hour later, we were out the door. I turned on the radio in my car, and the first song that plays is Unbreakable. "CHANGE IT! THAT SONG IS SO UGH!" Lila shouted at me. "Much better. Thank you." She said when I changed it. "I though you loved that song." I told her. "You're right. LOVED that song. Ever since Chelsea and Heather started listening to it. It got so freaking played out mann. Just some total bullshit." She said matter of factly to me. "Just like the whole chonga wanna be emo?" I told asked he rmockingly. "YES! Just like that!" She said with a little too much enthusiasm.

i need help asap!!? i have to write a narrative essay 250 words about my first ride on a bike this is what i have it must be detailed and specific. Did i do it any suggestions? the problem is i dont feel like this is my first ride cause honestly our first ride (well at least mine was) that it was scary you know how can i improve this to make it seem it was my first ride. were can i add details saying i fell off and bruised my leg and how can i say it? When I was a young girl I was always happiest on my bike. There were many places around my home that were traffic free and great to ride on. I can remember the wonderful sensation of flying as my bike zoomed down a hill and the wind blew on my face. It was one of those pure joys of childhood that you never forget. On my bike I felt totally alive and at one with the world. It all started one afternoon after my 9th birthday party. My mother told me that outside there was a gift for me. I was very excited and couldn’t wait to see what it was. There I was outside under the warm sun, when I saw a pink beautiful bike and my father. I ran towards my dad hugging and thanking him ignoring the flies buzzing around me, and then to my beautiful bike. I slid my tiny feet into the rubber straps of the petals. Gradually, my tiny legs frantically rotated forward fast and faster. I did it. I finally balanced my body perfectly. I kept moving forward, watching the dark pavement pass under the wheels. N Never in my life did the pungent smell of hot rubber on concrete on a sunny summer's day please my senses so much. The fast transportation provided a sense of freedom. I then pushed my legs back, causing the wheels to come to a sudden halt. I jumped off the bike, admiring my first liberating ride. I stood there staring at the bike in admiration. The shiny pink metal glistened in the sun light. No scratches or marks were in sight.

college essay help! revisions and comments plaese.? The first thing Glen ever taught me was how to ride his bike. My bike still had training wheels and that wasn’t acceptable, he always had too high of expectations for me. We spent the entire day outside, and even when I cried and fell, he wouldn’t let me give up, and he never grew impatient. Finally, after hours of attempting to use handle brakes and to balance myself, I caught on. Glen taught me so many things throughout my life, how to play video games, how to play kick ball and how to talk my way out of getting in trouble, but nothing he taught me could have prepared me for his absence in my life when he left for college I looked dup to my brother for guidance as a child, but as I grew up I grew jealous. Glen always got to do things first (but because of this I have him to thank for my athletic career). When glen played football he was motivated and naturally talented, so all of my family commended him and came to watch him play. I also wanted attention, so I joined cheerleading the next year and really enjoyed it, but it went unnoticed. When Glen stopped playing for pop Warner to peruse high school football, I quit too. Soon after he began, an injury forced him to give up football and I knew it was going to be hard for him to give up his childhood love after so many years. The next fall, however, he recovered and he started a new activity: cross country. Again I wanted to prove to the world I was as talented as Glen, so I followed his path and joined cross country the moment I started high school. I joined the cheerleading team as well, because i remembered how much I loved it. Although I took great pride in my accomplishments as a runner, I couldn’t measure up to my brother and when he graduated high school and stopped running, I too gave up running and my race to catch up to him. Glen was flawless in everyone else’s eyes; athletic, charming, class president, and to top it all off, he received a large scholarship to the school of his choice, Boston College. I never realized that although being the first born did have its moments, he had to brave it all first and without an older brother to lead the way. It didn’t hit me until early September of my junior year that Glen was leaving and I was now the oldest child at home, the role model for my younger siblings to look up to. Looking back over Glens’ last years living home, I know I didn’t fully appreciate his guidance. I took for granted our car rides to and from school and his over protectiveness when I told him who I was hanging out with. it took me 16 years to realize how much glen had affected my life and I know that although I’ll continue to look up to him as someone I could never be it’s because of his leadership and influence that I came to realize my own strengths and weaknesses and how to overcome the problems life sent me. He’s my friend, my brother and without him I wouldn’t be who I am today.

good poem? Perfect Skateboarding Day Riding on the street smooth as can be Skating with confidence, nothing stops me The wheels skim the pavement turning them black Skating determined on the right track Strolling along while wind passes by Crouching down for a no comply Watching my bearings in the wheels they abide Leaning my weight from side to side Gaining speed I stroll to the rail Catch right on as I slide my tail Keeping my balance I grind to the end But not forgetting there’s room to amend Strolling on and off the curb Skating is my life long verb Skate up the driveway making my way This was the perfect skateboarding day

college essay help!? The first thing Glen ever taught me was how to ride his bike. My bike still had training wheels and that wasn’t acceptable, he always had too high of expectations for me. We spent the entire day outside, and even when I cried and fell, he wouldn’t let me give up, and he never grew impatient. Finally, after hours of attempting to use handle brakes and to balance myself, I caught on. Glen taught me so many things throughout my life, how to play video games, how to play kick ball and how to talk my way out of getting in trouble, but nothing he taught me could have prepared me for his absence in my life when he left for college i dont know how to copy and paste the entire essay on here. email me for the rest, or let me know how to copy and paste the whole thing on here, thanks =)

what is the theme of this? Flight to the South Pole 1 Thanksgiving Day, November 28th, brought what we wanted. At noon, the Geological Party radioed a final weather report: "Unchanged. Perfect visibility. No clouds anywhere." Harrison finished with his balloon runs, Haines with his weather charts. The sky was still somewhat overcast, and the surface wind from the east southeast. Haines came into the library, his face grave. Together, we went out for a walk and a last look at the weather. What he said exactly I have forgotten, but it was in effect: "If you don't go now, you may never have another chance as good as this." And that was that. 2 The mechanics, Bubier, Roth and Demas, went over the plane for the last time, testing everything with scrupulous care. A line of men passed five-gallon cans of gasoline to several men standing on the wing, who poured them into the wing tanks. Another line fed the stream of gear which flowed into the plane. Black weighed each thing before passing it on to McKinley and June, who were stowing the stuff in the cabin. Hanson went over the radio equipment. With de Ganahl, I made a careful check of the sextant and the watches and chronometers, which were among the last things put aboard. For days, de Ganahl and I had nursed the chronometers, checking them against the time tick broadcast every night from the United States. We knew their exact loss or gain. 3 The total weight was approximately 15,000 pounds. 4 Haines came up with a final report on the weather. "A twenty-mile wind from the south at 2,000 feet." I went into my office and picked up a flag weighted with a stone from Floyd Bennett's grave. It seemed fitting that something connected with the spirit of this noble friend, who stood with me over the North Pole, on May 9th, 1926, should rest as long as stone endures at the bottom of the world. 5 There were handshakes all around, and at 3:29 o'clock we were off. The skis were in the air after a run of 30 seconds--an excellent takeoff. A calm expectation took hold of my mind. 6 Had you been there to glance over the cabin of this modern machine which has so revolutionized polar travel, I think you would have been impressed most of all--perhaps first of all--with the profusion of gear in the cabin. There was a small sledge, rolled masses of sleeping bags, bulky food sacks, two pressure gasoline stoves, rows of cans of gasoline packed about the main tank forward, funnels for draining gasoline and oil from the engines, bundles of clothing, tents, and so on ad infinitum. There was scarcely room in which to move. 7 June had his radio in the after bulkhead on the port side. From time to time, he flashed reports on our progress to the base. From the ear phones strapped to his helmet ran long cords so that he might move freely about the cabin without being obliged to take them off. His duties were varied and important. He had to attend to the motion picture camera, the radio, and the complicated valves of the six gasoline tanks. Every now and then, he relieved Balchen at the wheel or helped him to follow the elusive trail. 8 McKinley had his mapping camera ready for action either on port or starboard side. It was for him and the camera he so sedulously served that the flight was made. The mapping of the corridor between Little America and the South Pole was one of the major objectives of the expedition. 9 Balchen was forward, bulking large in the narrow compartment, his massive hands on the wheel, now appraising the engines with a critical eye, now the dozen flickering fingers on the dials on the instrument board. Balchen was in his element. His calm, fine face bespoke his confidence and sureness. He was anticipating the struggle at the "Hump" almost with eagerness. 10 It was quite warm forward, behind the engines. But a cold wind swept through the cabin, making one thankful for heavy clothes. When the skies cleared, a golden light poured into the cabin. The sound of the engines and propellers filled it. One had to shout to make oneself heard. From the navigation table aft, where my charts were spread out, a trolley ran to the control cabin. Over it, I shouted to Balchen the necessary messages and courses; he would turn and smile his understanding. 11 That, briefly, is the picture, and a startling one it makes in contrast with that of Amundsen's party, which had pressed along this same course eighteen years before. A wing, pistons and flashing propellers had taken the place of runner, dogs, and legs. Amundsen was delighted to make 25 miles per day. We had to average 90 miles per hour to accomplish our mission. We had the advantages of swiftness and comfort, but we had as well an enlarged fallibility. A flaw in a piece of steel, a bit of dirt in the fuel lines or carburetor jets, a few hours of strong head winds, fog or storm-- these things, remotely beyond our control, could destroy our carefully laid plans and nullify our most determined efforts. 12 Still, it was not these things that entered our minds. Rather, it was the thought of the "Hump," and how we should fare with it. 13 Soon after passing the crevasses, we picked up again the vast escarpment to the right. More clearly than before, we saw the white-blue streams of many glaciers discharging into the Barrier, and several of the higher snow-clad peaks glistened so brightly in the sun as to seem like volcanoes in eruption. 14 Now the Queen Maud Range loomed ahead. I searched again for the "appearance of land" to the east. Still the rolling Barrier--nothing else. 15 At 8:15, we had the Geological Party in sight--a cluster of beetles about two dark-topped tents. Balchen dropped overboard the photographs of the Queen Maud Range and the other things we had promised to bring. The parachute canopy to which they were attached fluttered open and fell in gentle oscillations, and we saw two or three figures rush out to catch it. We waved to them and then prepared for settlement of the issue at the "Hump." 16 Up to this time, the engines had operated continuously at cruising revolutions. Now Balchen opened them full throttle, and the Ford girded its loins for the long, fighting pull over the "Hump." We rose steadily. We were then about 60 miles north of the western portal of Axel Heiberg, and holding our course steadily on meridian 163° 45' W. with the sun compass. 17 I watched the altimeters, of which there were two in the navigation department. The fingers marched with little jumps across the face of the dial--3,000 feet; 3,500; 4,000; 4,500. The Ford had her toes in and was climbing with a vast, heaving effort. 18 Drawing nearer, we had edged 30° to the west of south, to bring not only Axel Heiberg but also Liv Glacier into view. This was a critical period. I was by no means certain which glacier I should choose for the ascent. I went forward and took a position behind the pilots. 19 The schemes and hopes of the next few minutes were beset by many uncertainties. Which would it be--Axel Heiberg or Liv Glacier? 20 There was this significant difference between flying and sledging: we could not pause long for decision or investigation. Minutes stood for gasoline, and gasoline was precious. The waste of so little as half an hour of fuel in a fruitless experiment might well overturn the mathematical balance on which the success of the flight depended. The execution of the plan hung on the proper choice of the route over the "Hump." 21 Yet how well, after all, could judgment forecast the ultimate result? There were few facts on which we might base a decision. We knew, for example, from Amundsen's report that the highest point of the pass of Axel Heiberg Glacier was 10,500 feet. We should know, in a very few minutes, after June had calculated the gasoline consumption, the weight of the plane. From that we could determine, according to the tables we had worked out and which were then before me, the approximate ceiling we should have. We should know, too, whether or not we should be able to complete the flight, other conditions being favorable. 22 These were the known elements. The unknown were burdened with equally important consequences. The structural nature of the head of the pass was of prime importance. We knew from Amundsen's descriptions and from what we could see with our own eyes, that the pass on both sides was surrounded by towering peaks, much higher than the maximum ceiling of the heavily loaded plane. But whether the pass was wide or narrow, whether it would allow us room to maneuver in case we could not rise above it, whether it would be narrow and running with a torrent of down-pressing wind which would dash a plane, already hovering near its service ceiling to the glacier floor--these were things, naturally, we could not possibly know until the issue was directly at hand. 23 I stood beside Balchen, carefully studying the looming fortress, still wondering by what means we should attempt to carry it. With a gesture of the hand, Balchen pointed to fog vapor rising from the black rock of the foothills which were Nansen's high priests, caused no doubt by the condensation of warm currents of air radiated from the sun-heated rocks. A thin layer of cloud seemed to cap Axel Heiberg's pass and extended almost to Liv Glacier. But of this we were not certain. Perhaps it was the surface of the snow. If it were a cloud, then our difficulties were already upon us. Even high clouds would be resting on the floor of the uplifted plateau. 24 There was then a gamble in the decision. Doubtless a flip of the coin would have served as well. In the end, we decided to choose Liv Glacier, the unknown pass to the right which Amundsen had seen far in the distance and named after Dr. Nansen's daughter. It seemed to be broader than Axel Heiberg, and the pass not quite so high. 25 A few minutes after 9 o'clock, we passed near the intermediate base which, of course, we could not see. Our altitude was then about 9,000 feet. At 9:15, we had the eastern portal on our left and were ready to tackle the "Hump." We had discussed the "Hump" so often, had anticipated and maligned it so much, that now that it was in front of us and waiting in the flesh--in rock-ribbed, glacierized reality--it was like meeting an old acquaintance. But we approached it warily and respectfully, climbing steadily all the while with maximum power, to get a better view of its none-too-friendly visage. 26 June, wholly unaffected by the immediate perplexities, went about his job of getting the plane fighting trim, less heavy. He ripped open the last of the fuel cans and poured the contents into the main tank. The empty tins he dropped overboard, through the trapdoor. Every tin weighed two pounds, and every pound dropped was to our gain. June examined the gauges of the five wing tanks, then measured with a graduated stick the amount of fuel in the main tank. He jotted the figures on a pad, made a few calculations, and handed me the results. Consumption had thus far averaged between 55 and 60 gallons per hour. It had taken us longer to reach the mountains than we had expected, owing to head winds. However, the extra fuel taken aboard just before we left had absorbed this loss, and we actually had a credit balance. We then had enough gasoline to take us to the Pole and back. 27 With that doubt disposed of, we went at the "Hump" confidently. 28 We were still rising, and the engines were pulling wonderfully well. The wind was about abeam and, according to my calculations, not materially affecting the speed. 29 The glacier floor rose sharply, in a series of ice falls and terraces, some of which were well above the (then) altitude of the plane. These glacial waterfalls, some of which were from 200 to 400 feet high, seemed more beautiful than any precipitous stream I have ever seen. Beautiful yes--but how rudely and with what finality they would deal with steel and duralumin that crashed into them at 100 miles per hour. 30 Now the stream of air pouring down the pass roughened perceptibly. The great wing shivered and teetered as it balanced itself against the changing pressures. The wind from the left flowed against Fisher's steep flanks, and the constant, hammering bumps made footing uncertain in the plane. But McKinley steadily trained his 50-pound camera on the mountains to the left. The uncertainties of load and ceiling were not his concern. His only concern was photographs--photographs over which students and geographers pore in the calm quiet of their studies. 31 The altimeters showed a height of 9,600 feet, but the figure was not necessarily exact. Nevertheless, there were indications we were near the service ceiling of the plane. 32 The roughness of the air increased and became so violent that we were forced to swing slightly to the left, in search of calmer air. This brought us over a frightfully crevassed slope which ran up and toward Mount Nansen. We thus escaped the turbulent swirl about Fisher, but the down-surging currents here damped our climb. To the left, we had the "blind" mountain glacier of Nansen in full view; and when we looked ahead we saw the plateau--a smooth, level plain of snow between Nansen and Fisher. The pass rose up to meet it. 33 In the center of the pass was a massive outcropping of snow-covered rocks, resembling an island, which protruded above and separated the descending stream of ice. Perhaps it was a peak or the highest eminence of a ridge connecting Fisher and Nansen which had managed through the ages to hold its head above the glacial torrent pouring down from the plateau. But its particular structure or relationship was of small import then. I watched it only with reference to the climb of the plane; and realized, with some disgust and more consternation, that the nose of the plane, in spite of the fact that Balchen had steepened the angle of attack, did not rise materially above the outcropping. We were still climbing, but at a rapidly diminishing rate of speed. In the rarefied air, the heavy plane responded to the controls with marked sluggishness. There is a vast difference between the plane of 1928 and the plane of 1937. 34 It was an awesome thing, creeping (so it seemed) through the narrow pass, with the black walls of Nansen and Fisher on either side, higher than the level of the wings, and watching the nose of the ship bob up and down across the face of that chunk of rock. It would move up, then slide down. Then move up, and fall off again. For perhaps a minute or two, we deferred the decision, but there was no escaping it. If we were to risk a passage through the pass, we needed greater maneuverability than we had at that moment. Once we entered the pass, there would be no retreat. It offered no room for turn. If power was lost momentarily or if the air became excessively rough, we could only go ahead or down. We had to climb, and there was only one way in which we could climb. 35 June, anticipating the command, already had his hand on the dump valve of the main tank. A pressure of the fingers--that was all that was necessary--and in two minutes, 600 gallons of gasoline would gush out. I signaled to wait. 36 Balchen held to the climb almost to the edge of a stall. But it was clear to both of us that he could not hold it long enough. Balchen began to yell and gesticulate, and it was hard to catch the words in the roar of the engines echoing from the cliffs on either side. But the meaning was manifest. "Overboard--overboard--200 pounds!" 37 Which would it be--gasoline or food? 38 If gasoline, I thought, we might as well stop there and turn back. We could never get back to the base from the Pole. If food, the lives of all of us would be jeopardized in the event of a forced landing. Was that fair to McKinley, Balchen, and June? It really took only a moment to reach the decision. The Pole, after all, was our objective. I knew the character of the three men. McKinley, in fact, had already hauled one of the food bags to the trapdoor. It weighed 125 pounds. 39 The brown bag was pushed out and fell, spinning, to the glacier. The improvement in the flying qualities of the plane was noticeable. It took another breath and resumed the climb. 40 Now the down-currents over Nansen became stronger. The plane trembled and rose and fell, as if struck bodily. We veered a trifle to the right, searching for helpful, rising eddies. Balchen was flying shrewdly. He maintained flight at a sufficient distance below the absolute ceiling of the plane to retain at all times enough maneuverability to make him master of the ship. But he was hard pressed by circumstances, and I realized that, unless the plane was further lightened, the final thrust might bring us perilously close to the end of our reserve. 41 "More," Bernt shouted. "Another bag." 42 McKinley shoved a second bag through the trapdoor, and this time we saw it hit the glacier, and scatter in a soundless explosion. Two hundred and fifty pounds of food--enough to feed four men for a month--lay strewn on the barren ice. 43 The sacrifice swung the scales. The plane literally rose with a jump, the engines dug in, and we soon showed a gain in altitude of anywhere from 300 to 400 feet. It was what we wanted. We should clear the pass with about 500 feet to spare. Balchen gave a shout of joy. It was just as well. We could dump no more food. There was nothing left to dump except McKinley's camera. I am sure that, had he been asked to put it overboard, he would have done so instantly; and I am equally sure he would have followed the precious instrument with his own body. 44 The next few minutes dragged. We moved at a speed of 77 nautical miles per hour through the pass, with the black walls of Nansen on our left. The wing gradually lifted above them. The floor of the plateau stretched in a white immensity to the south. We were over the dreaded "Hump" at last. The Pole lay dead ahead over the horizon, less than 300 miles away. It was then about 9:45 o'clock (I did not note the exact time. There were other things to think about). 45 Gaining the plateau, we studied the situation a moment and then shifted course to the southward. Nansen's enormous towering ridge, lipped by the plateau, shoved its heavily broken sides into the sky. A whole chain of mountains began to parade across the eastern horizon. How high they are I cannot say, but surely some of them must be around 14,000 feet, to stand so boldly above the rim of the 10,000 foot plateau. Peak on peak, ridge on ridge, draped in snow garments which brilliantly reflected the sun, they extended in a solid array to the southeast. But can one really say they ran in that direction? The lines of direction are so bent in this region that 150 miles farther on, even were they to continue in the same general straight line, they must run north of east. This is what happens near the Pole. 46 We laid our line of flight on the 171st meridian. 47 Our altitude was then between 10,500 and 11,000 feet. We were "riding" the engines, conscious of the fact that if one should fail we must come down. Once the starboard engine did sputter a bit, and Balchen nosed down while June rushed to the fuel valves. But it was nothing; to conserve fuel, Balchen had "leaned" the mixture too much. A quick adjustment corrected the fault; and, in a moment, the engine took up its steady rhythm. Moments like this one make a pioneering flight anything but dull; one moment everything is lovely, and the next is full of foreboding. 48 From time to time, June "spelled" Balchen at the controls, and Balchen would walk back to the cabin, flexing his cramped muscles. There was little thought of food for any of us--a beef sandwich, stiff as a board from frost, and tea and coffee from a thermos bottle. It was difficult to believe that two decades or so before the most resolute men who had ever attempted to carry a remote objective, Scott and Shackleton, had plodded over this same plateau, a few miles each day, with hunger, fierce, unrelenting hunger, stalking them every step of the way. 49 Between 11:30 and 12:30, the mountains to the eastward began to disappear, dropping imperceptibly out of view, one after another. Not long after 12:30, the whole range had retreated from vision, and the plateau met the horizon in an indefinite line. The mountains to the right had long since disappeared. 50 The air finally turned smooth. At 12:38, I shot the sun. It hung, a ball of fire, just beyond south to the east, 21° above the horizon. So it was quite low, and we stared it in the eye. The sight gave me an approximate line of latitude, which placed us very near our position as calculated by dead reckoning. That dead reckoning and astronomy should check so closely was very encouraging. The position line placed us at Lat. 89° 4 ½' S., or 55 ½ miles from the Pole. A short time later, we reached an altitude of 11,000 feet. According to Amundsen's records, the plateau, which had risen to 10,300 feet, descended here to 9,600 feet. We were, therefore, about 1,400 feet above the plateau. 51 So the Pole was actually in sight. But I could not yet spare it so much as a glance. Chronometers, drift indicators, and compasses are hard taskmasters. 52 Relieved by June, Balchen came aft and reported that visibility was not as good as it had been. Clouds were gathering on the horizon off the port bow, and a storm, Balchen thought, was in the air. A storm was the last thing we wanted to meet on the plateau on the way back. It would be difficult enough to pass the Queen Maud Range in bright sunlight; in thick weather, it would be suicidal. Conditions, however, were merely unpromising: not really bad, simply not good. If worse came to worst, we decided we could out-race the clouds to the mountains. 53 At six minutes after one, a sight of the sun put us a few miles ahead of our dead reckoning position. We were quite close now. At 1:14 Greenwich mean time, our calculations showed that we were at the Pole. 54 I opened the trapdoor and dropped over the calculated position of the Pole the small flag which was weighted with the stone from Bennett's grave. Stone and flag plunged down together. The flag had been advanced 1,500 miles farther south than it had ever been advanced by any American or American expedition. 55 For a few seconds, we stood over the spot where Amundsen had stood, December 14th, 1911, and where Scott had also stood, thirty-four days later, reading the note which Amundsen had left for him. In their honor, the flags of their countries were again carried over the Pole. There was nothing now to mark that scene: only a white desolation and solitude disturbed by the sound of our engines. The Pole lay in the center of a limitless plain. To the right, which is to say to the eastward, the horizon was covered with clouds. If mountains lay there, as some geologists believe, they were concealed, and we had no hint of them. 56 And that, in brief, is all there is to tell about the South Pole. One gets there, and that is about all there is for the telling. It is the effort to get there that counts. * * * * Sunday, Dec. 1 57 . . . Well, it's done. We have seen the Pole. McKinley, Balchen, and June have delivered the goods. They took the Pole in their stride, neatly, expeditiously, and undismayedly. If I had searched the world, I doubt if I could have found a better team. Theirs was the actual doing. But there is not a man in this camp who did not assist in the preparation for the flight. Whatever merit accrues to the accomplishment must be shared with them.

my hamster is acting realy strange.? my hamster is acting realy strange.he lives in my room.when i enter my room and turn on the lights he is running or eating.after a few seconds while the lights are on he goes to his bed and does it come out.i lieave the room to go eat or wacht tv and he comes out. then i enter the room and he is running and then goes to his bed in seconds.he only comes out to eat and drink water.he also looks like he is having trubble walking he takes a few steps and rest takes like 3 more steps and rests againg.the last 3 days he hasent run in his wheel.he goes to the corner and just stares at the wall like if he was hipnosysed. i things his on his last days. is he dieing? when he walks he losses hs balance. he dosent walk like when i bought him. he used to run on his wheel all night.hes become really fat in the last few weeks.her fur looks like its falling of.i think hes old. hes he dieing

Do you think I am selfish for this? My b/f and I were walking back from the store earlier talking about stuff the subject came about how he thinks it is wrong that I won't drive to Miami anymore to take him to see his daughter (he can't drive cause his license was revoked). I have had a medical condition that causes me to feel off balance so like when I am driving on the interstate at 80 mph, I get this weird, dizzy, panic attack kind of thing where I feel like my vehicle is going to tip over or roll over...it doesn't just happen once...it happens to me over and over...so I just stay off of the interstate since here at home I can go everywhere I need without getting on there. It is the most horrible feeling ever, because knowing that could happen to me, I am already tense when I start out on the interstate, my heart is in my throat, and my stomach is all in knots and I am totally all white knuckles gripping the steering wheel...I have to concentrate and tell myself over and over that everything will be ok, my car was built to drive and it will not roll over...so I am like driving and giving myself a pep talk the entire way...an hour and half it takes to get to MIami, and I used to drive him there and back alot...but finally one day after almost killing us, I told him NO MORE. So since then he has taken the train down to get her when she was visiting...it only takes like half an hour longer, but its WAY cheaper and I don't have to suffer with this problem of mine the entire way...it is down right FEAR for me. So he brings up that it is wrong that I won't go through that so he can visit his daughter, my comment was that I am not risking three people's lives just to go down there so they can visit. He seems to feel that I should be willing to go through that for him and for her...and I told him I am not willing to go through that anymore...and he said that means I was telling him his daughter wasn't important...I never said that...never....I am just not going to kill myself for her, you know what, I have a child who needs me too and since there is alternate and safe transportation down there...why should he expect me to suffer panic attacks the entire way. So he is angry at me over this, am I wrong to not be willing to risk our lives and other ppl's lives on the interstate like that? Should I make an exception because that is his daughter, and am I wrong to consider my own son needs me? He tries to make me feel selfish but I think he is being selfish.

How do you like this plot? So I am trying to write a book, and here is the plot. Tell me what you think. =] Tagline- what if every thought, every emotion, every second of your life, was planned hundreds of years ago? Its about a girl, Alex, whose family is very politically involved. Her uncle (mother's brother) is the president, and her father, who is best friends with the uncle, is the vice president. Her aunt and uncle have a daughter who is her age, Alice. They are about 23-25. One morning, while coming home after a jog, she turns on the news and finds that her aunt, uncle, and cousin's car was blown up by a bomb. She finds several messages on her phone, and, after talking with her father, heads to the hospital. Alice survived, and is about to head into surgery. She refuses to go until she talks to Alex. Both girls were given identical antique jewelry boxes that had secret compartments when they were young. Alice tells Alex to look open one of them when she is sure that she is alone. Alice is wheeled off into surgery. Now alone in the bathroom at the hospital, Alex tries to open the compartments. One of the larger opens to reveal a letter from Alice. It says that They no longer had any use for her father, and that he was beginning to discover Their secret. They were responsible for the car bomb. On a second page, it explains who They are. Many years ago, in the time of the founding fathers, they realized that They could not trust the future of Their country to anyone. They decided to create several controlled enviroments where They could control how a person turned out (personality, intelligence, political views, etc.) Through this, They created several great leaders. They decided to employ this technique upon the rest of the world, basically deciding the future of the world for several hundred years through carefully planned linked events. It took many years for their control to spread. but after a while, They could basically control your thoughts without even trying, because every tiny event in your life had already been planned. In our time, They were becoming corrupt, and had plans to use Their plannd events to create what they consider to be a perfect world.They make everything happen, which is way, in a 6 degrees of seperation kind of way, every single person plays an imortant role. They even creat terrorists to challenge world leaders, to balance out the world. They have begun to believe that They are gods. It is up to Alex to find where they are and to take them down. Ever wondered why missing children are never found? Why people randomly dissapear off the streets? Its because they have been bred to become one of Them, to be the ultimate rulers, and they are taken away to make sure everything happens how its supposed to, and to create more plans for the future. This is the ultimate conspiracy. So, give me your opinion and any sughestions, and if, once I write it out, if it could ge published. Oh, in the beginning, the small, contrlled fake cities (enviroments) were to create perfect rulers. can't remember if I said that already. Adult writing is MUCH different from what I am writing.

Is this the longest joke in the world? If not, please post it.?

Why did the chicken cross the road?? GEORGE W. BUSH We don't really care why the chicken crossed the road. We just want to know if the chicken is on our side of the road or not. The chicken is either with us or it is against us. There is no middle ground here. AL GORE I invented the chicken. I invented the road. Therefore, the chicken crossing the road represented the application of these two different functions of government in a new, reinvented way designed to bring greater services to the American people. RALPH NADER The chicken's habitat on the original side of the road had been polluted by unchecked industrialist greed. The chicken did not reach the unspoiled habitat on the other side of the road because it was crushed by the wheels of a gas-guzzling SUV. PAT BUCHANAN To steal a job from a decent, hard-working American. RUSH LIMBAUGH I don't know why the chicken crossed the road, but I'll bet it was getting a government grant to cross the road, and I'll bet someone out there is already forming a support group to help chickens with crossing-the-road syndrome. Can you believe this? How much more of this can real Americans take? Chickens crossing the road paid for by their tax dollars, and when I say tax dollars, I'm talking about your money, money the government took from you to build roads for chickens to cross. MARTHA STEWART No one called to warn me which way that chicken was going. I had a standing order at the farmer's market to sell my eggs when the price dropped to a certain level. No little bird gave me any insider information. JERRY FALWELL Because the chicken was gay! Isn't it obvious? Can't you people see the plain truth in front of your face? The chicken was going to the "other side." That's what they call it -- the other side. Yes, my friends, that Chicken is gay. And, if you eat that chicken, you will become gay too. I say we boycott all chickens until we sort out this abomination that the liberal media whitewashes with seemingly harmless phrases like "the other side." DR. SEUSS Did the chicken cross the road? Did he cross it with a toad? Yes, The chicken crossed the road, But why it crossed, I've not been told! ERNEST HEMINGWAY To die. In the rain. Alone. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. I envision a world where all chickens will be free to cross roads without having their motives called into question. GRANDPA In my day, we didn't ask why the chicken crossed the road. Someone told us that the chicken crossed the road, and that was good enough for us. BARBARA WALTERS Isn't that interesting? In a few moments we will be listening to the chicken tell, for the first time, the heart-warming story of how it experienced a serious case of molting and went on to accomplish its life-long dream of crossing the road. JOHN LENNON Imagine all the chickens crossing roads in peace. ARISTOTLE It is the nature of chickens to cross the road. KARL MARX It was a historical inevitability. SADDAM HUSSEIN This was an unprovoked act of rebellion and we were quite justified in dropping 50 tons of nerve gas on it. VOLTAIRE I may not agree with what the chicken did, but I will defend to the death its right to do it. RONALD REAGAN What chicken? CAPTAIN KIRK To boldly go where no chicken has gone before. FOX MULDER You saw it cross the road with your own eyes! How many more chickens have to cross before you believe it? SIGMUND FREUD The fact that you are at all concerned that the chicken crossed the road reveals your underlying sexual insecurity. BILL GATES I have just released eChicken 2003, which will not only cross roads, but will lay eggs, file your important documents, and balance your checkbook - and Internet Explorer is an inextricable part of eChicken. ALBERT EINSTEIN Did the chicken really cross the road or did the road move beneath the chicken? BILL CLINTON I did not cross the road with THAT chicken. What do you mean by chicken? Could you define chicken, please? THE BIBLE And God came down from the heavens, and He said unto the chicken, "Thou shalt cross the road." And the chicken crossed the road, and there was much rejoicing. COLONEL SANDERS I missed one?

answer to WHY THE CHICKEN CROSSED THE ROAD? WHY THE CHICKEN CROSSED THE ROAD WHY THE CHICKEN CROSSED THE ROAD GEORGE W BUSH We don't really care why the chicken crossed the road. We just want to know if the chicken is on our side of the road, or not. The chicken is either against us, or for us. There is no middle ground here. COLIN POWELL Now to the left of the screen, you can clearly see the satellite image of the chicken crossing the road. HANS BLIX We have reason to believe there is a chicken, but we have not yet been allowed to have access to the other side of the road. JOHN KERRY Although I voted to let the chicken cross the road, I am now against it! RALPH NADER The chicken's habitat on the other side of the road had been polluted by unchecked industrial greed. The chicken did not reach the unspoiled habitat on the other side of the road because it was crushed by the wheels of a gas-guzzling SUV. PAT BUCHANAN To steal the job of a decent, hardworking American. RUSH LIMBAUGH I don't know why the chicken crossed the road, but I'll bet it was getting a government grant to cross the road, and I'll bet that somebody out there is already forming a support group to help chickens with crossing-the-road syndrome. Can you believe this?!? How much more of this can real Americans take? Chickens crossing the road paid for by their tax dollars. And when I say tax dollars, I'm talking about your money, money the government took from you to build a road for chickens to cross. MARTHA STEWART No one called me to warn me which way that chicken was going. I had a standing order at the Farmer's Market to sell my eggs when the price dropped to a certain level. No little bird gave me any insider information. DR SEUSS Did the chicken cross the road? Did he cross it with a toad? Yes, the chicken crossed the road, but why it crossed I've not been told. ERNEST HEMINGWAY To die in the rain. Alone. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR I envision a world where all chickens will be free to cross roads without having their motives called into question. GRANDPA In my day, we didn't ask why the chicken crossed the road. Somebody told us the chicken crossed the road, and that was good enough. BARBARA WALTERS Isn't that interesting? In a few moments, we will be listening to the chicken tell, for the first time, the heartwarming story of how it experienced a serious case of molting, and went on to accomplish its life long dream of crossing the road. JOHN LENNON Imagine all the chickens in the world crossing roads together - in peace. ARISTOTLE It is the nature of chickens to cross the road. KARL MARX It was an historic inevitability. RONALD REAGAN What chicken? CAPTAIN KIRK To boldly go where no chicken has ever gone before. SIGMUND FREUD The fact that you are at all concerned that the chicken crossed the road reveals your underlying sexual insecurity. BILL GATES I have just witnessed eChicken2003, which will not only cross roads, but will lay eggs, file your important documents, and balance your checkbook. Internet explorer is an integral part of eChicken. ALBERT EINSTEIN Did the chicken really cross the road, or did the road move beneath the chicken? BILL CLINTON I did not cross the road with THAT chicken. What is your definition of chicken? AL GORE I invented the chicken! THE BIBLE And God came down from heaven, and he said unto the chicken THOU SHALT CROSS THE ROAD. And the chicken didst cross the road, and there was much rejoicing. COLONEL SANDERS Did I miss one?

Has anyone tried automatic story generation? This is so funny- you put in random words and the story is made up for you. www.geoffrey.com.au/story.htm (you need to know what a noun, adjective, verb are) My first attempt - this is what I got! One morning, in the whistling Springs eye, 12 flowers crept aboard a Ford Ka going to Sydney. washed, mindless and very unhappy, the wheels decided to poke fun at a bonnet wearing a hood. The lorry stops and a dirty young Window cleaner gets in, alone, and happily unaware that the shoes are about to strike. But there is more to this young Dentist than meets the eye. When 4 teeth catch the hearse further down the track, the balance of power takes an unexpected twist and many lives are lost. Yes, I know it makes no sense - but, bits of it are quite good.

Could it be that the six million Jews who perished at the hands of the Nazis could have been saved? Many books have been published, read and forgotten. There is one book, however, which dare not be allowed to share this fate. This is the chronicles of Rabbi Michael Ber Weissmandl, ztl, of the war years, 1942 to 1945, so aptly named "Min Hametzar" (From the Depths). published in New York in 1961 in Hebrew. Not enough individuals have read this book. The ghastly facts uncovered in it are not sufficiently well known. Who can imagine the Hitlerite holocaust? Where is the language to describe it? All the known words of human speech have already been used for conventional occurrences; they have acquired everyday meanings and have been fashioned with an inability to describe the horrors of an Auschwitz or a Treblinka. What can be said to make individuals understand the wild cries of the night, when our brothers and sisters were led to the slaughterhouses? And in what way can one convey the conversion of precious Jews to the status of animals preparatory to being slaughtered? Skyscraping walls prevented their cries being heard, and in that horrible man-made silence, the most valuable portion of the Jewish people was compressed in the confines of the ghettos in hunger and in thirst, in epidemics and in torture, crying bitterly, only to themselves, until the end of their anguish; when they were loaded into the sealed anguish; when they were loaded in the sealed cattle-wagons for the week-long journeys, when their corpses and the still have-living reached the slaughterhouses and gas chambers. Where can existing words be found to fit this story, and who is there to coin new phrases with meaning enough to tell this tale? Yet all this was done through a directive from an innocent-looking office, where the S.S. murderers, with the methods of modern civilization gave the orders which, by chain reaction, set in motion all the machinery of death and destruction to which a stop could not be envisaged. One stroke of the pen to extinguish a hundred thousand lives. A few words enough for a million. And these few officers set the wheels turning in Auschwitz, in Treblinka; the Einsatzkomandos; the deep pits on the lonely plains of Europe overflowing with human blood. So much power behind it, such a military might enforcing it that only the winning of the World War could interfere with this running horror. But how astonished was Rabbi Weissmandl to discover that these strokes of the pen could so easily have been erased, that the Jewish tragedy could to a considerable extent, have been alleviated by some simple "old fashioned" methods. How many hundreds of thousands of Jewish lives could have been saved -- perhaps even millions. Wisliceny was the German henchman for the Jews of Slovakia, Eichmann's representative in that area for establishing the ghettos, destroying their livelihood and finally dispatching to slaughter the hundreds of thousands of Jews in Slovakia and the neighboring countries. He carried out this mission as directed by Eichman and as his own cravings commanded. His was the first country in Europe to be designated for the supply of Jews to the slaughter houses, as it was Slovakia that was first occupied by Hitler--even earlier than Poland. The puppet government of Cardinal Tissu had asked Hitler to "cleanse" its country of Jews. Officially it even paid Germany for transportation, and Wisliceny was the ultimate ruler and organizer. He was nearly always drunk; drunk from spirits and intoxicated with blood -- and seemingly unassailable. Rabbi WeissmandlRabbi Michael Ber Weissmandl, at the end of 1943, when two thirds of the Jews of Slovakia had already been transported for "work" to that far destination, got to know through a certain Hochberg -- an S.S. intriguer, and second in command to Wisliceny, that his chief was also lustful for money and that already on more than one occasion, money had bought relief for some individuals, postponing their deportation. Overwhelmed with joy at this discovery, he consulted his father-in-law, the great and renowned rabbi of Nitra, ztl, who agreed that if this old-fashioned method was effective, there was no reason why it would not be attempted on behalf of the great masses to be saved. Rabbi Weissmandl writes of this same Hochberg, "I was first there on Friday in the summer of 1942 -- Tammuz, 5702. I was standing in the corridor near to the office of Hochberg and all of the waiting rooms around were crowded with those who had come to Hochberg to beg a postponement of that ultimate journey for "work in the east," as many still believed. I heard the voice of Hochberg speaking on the phone to his chief, Wisliceny saying, 'Her Hauptstumbandfuehrer, ich melde ghorehsamst, the train has left: Man 727, Women 637, Children 1667: altogether 3,028 Jawohl!' Never will this total leave my memory; 1600 children! No outcry and no tears. No one cares. The whole world is silent. Jawohl, Herr Hauptsturmbanfuehrer. One of the famous men of Pressberg, Reb Aharon Gruenhut, finally succeeded in gaining confidence by Hochberg in Rabbi Weissmandl, for whom a secret appointment was arranged. On this occasion, the rabbi presented himself as one who had connections with rabbinical circles throughout the world. He showed Hochberg his passport that contained a British visa issued just before the outbreak of war, and told him of his visit to London and of conferences there to impress him with his high standing. He then made it clear that he had come on a secret mission of the highest importance as a representative of Jewry abroad, who had contacted him through the American "Joint" in Switzerland. Their message was that they were prepared to pay in cash for the stopping of all further transports of Jews from Slovakia to the east. The "Joint" was ready to pay the price that his chief, Wisliceny, would name. Rabbi Weissmandl emphasized that neither Hochberg nor Wisliceny should believe that his mission was directed by local Jews. During this conversation with Hochberg in 1943, when the scales of war were already a little out of balance for Hitler's Germany after the heavy defeats in the east and the support of the allies by American might, Rabbi Weissmandl was able, with American might, Rabbi Weissmandl was able , with careful tact, to introduce doubts into Hochberg's mind about German world conquest, and more specifically about Hochberg's own position after the war. He conveyed to him that it would be very much to his and his chief's advantage to make some provisions for their own safety. In this respect, he was now authorized to offer the promise of World Jewry that if they would stop all further transports, he and Wisliceny would be save. Hochberg became enraged at such suggestions, but as the conversation progressed, he became much softer and began to listen carefully to what was proposed. He listened and replied, "I must go to see Wisliceny." He left immediately and Rabbi Weissmandl waited. Every minute seemed like an hour; every hour seemed endless. He sat there exhausted, awaiting the reply fateful for the remaining Jews of Slovakia, with so many hanging in the balance. He had set there for many hours, when suddenly the door burst open and Hochberg hurried into the room. Speaking rapidly and with great excitement, he said, "the deal is done. My chief asked for $50,000 and no further transports will be sent; but he lays down the following terms: Wisliceny will show his goodwill: three transports -- next Tuesday, next Friday, the following Tuesday -- each of about 3000 souls, will be held up, but on Friday after that, the first Installment of $25,000 must be handed over. After that, there will be no further transports for seven weeks, to enable the second installment of $25,000 to be obtained and paid, after which there will be a final stopping of all transports. There is one further condition. You must be able to show that the money comes from abroad and not from Slovakian Jews themselves." The latter was an important point to this S.S. henchman, as a guarantee that it was world Jewry who was behind the deal, and who would finally keep its promise for his safety. In any case, Rabbi Weissmandl did not then think that Slovakian Jews could possibly find such a sum, as by that time they had been stripped of all their possessions. On that other hand, he did not imagine for one moment that the wealthy "Joint" would not provide such a relatively small sum to save literally tens of thousands of lives from total annihilation in the German slaughterhouses. Rabbi Weissmandl left Hochberg's office with hope and joy. He hurried home to Nitra to inform his father-in-law and to set about getting the deal consummated. The Rabbi of Nitra, in spite of his happiness at the possibility of saving so many lives, expressed some reservation. He felt that from a distance the "Joint" would not see their tragedy, and that the Zionist leaders working together with the "Joint" had a different calculation. But he suggested, representatives from beyond the "Kanzelel" -- the Council of Orthodox Jewish Communities -- should be drawn into this, and even the Zionists and non-Orthodox groups taken into partnership. The name of Mrs. Gisi Fleischman came to the forefront, as she was of Zionist circles and also the pre-war representative of the "Joint" in Slovakia. Besides her prominence, she was a good-hearted and courageous women and her word would carry weight with the "Joint". It was also decidedly to call on Mr. Fuerst -- known for both his integrity and financial ability. Among the weapons with which the Zionists have equipped themselves to pierce the walls of resistance to their influence, there is one most predominant. This is "ahavas Yisroel" -- love of the fellow Jew. This slogan and catch-phrase carries extra weight with the religious Jew to whom this concept has a special attraction. The Zionists have explained that their aim is achieving statehood is to provide a refuge and shelter for much tormented Jewry. The long, bloody paths of our, till now, 2000 year long exile, with its inquisitions, persecutions, pogroms, slaughter and torture, has always been at the front of every Jews mind. Seldom was there a place on this earth inhabited by Jews, or a stretch of time, without blood and tears at the hands of our many persecutors of all nations. It was these pogroms that provided, for the short-sighted, the initial conditioning to seek a solution in the outward idea of Zionist achievements. Possibly the Zionists, themselves, at the first steps of inception, were honestly taken by the idea of that solution; and it was this kernel of compassion that gave to them the power to influence others with this superficial consideration. Zionism has built on the basis that the solution of nationhood applicable to any other nation is in the same way also applicable to Jewry, as they could see no difference between the nations of the world and the Jewish people. As they see it, Jews regulate their fate by the same ways and means as all other peoples. The belief in exile by Heavenly Decree as a punishment for our sins, and the belief in Heavenly Redemption by the Will of the Creator was, to Zionism, non-existent. People's thoughts were not directed to the fundamental, all-embracing heresy upon which Zionism was established, but grasped only the attractive promises that were offered because unfortunately, Zionism arrived in the most feeble and small of all generation, coupled with distressing happenings, which contributed to the closing of people's minds to the truth and to their being led astray by the Zionist Idea. THE UNHEEDED CRY Read the gripping story of Rabbi Weissmandl, valiant holocaust leader who battled both Allied indifference and Nazi hatred. Available in our BookstoreHow much were Rabbi Weissmandl and his colleagues overcome with joy when they succeeded in getting the right people together! How great was their hope! But how much were they overwhelmed by sorrow when they tried to get things in motion, and how great was their frustration when they learned that the Zionists, together with the "Joint", stopped every outside help from reaching them. This was not only when it was a question of saving the remnants of the Jews of Slovakia -- about 40,000 souls -- but also when the possibility of saving what was still left of the Jews of Poland and Hungary was in question; a matter then of millions of souls. Then, too, the Zionists deliberately prevented any help from being extended under various excuses that even a child could see through. This was their policy -- stupid and merciless -- but they perused it relentlessly. In the end, they admitted openly that their policy was not to help fellow Jews, but to let them perish in the tens of thousands and in their millions. This is forever unforgettable and unforgivable. Zionist "ahavas Yisroel" must be displayed conspicuously and beyond any doubt. The Friday when the first installment of $25,000 had to be paid was fast approaching and there was not yet a way how this money could be found for Wisliceny. Mrs. Flesichman was also the representative of the World Jewish Congress and well known to the Jewish Agency. She was, therefore, considered to be the most suitable person to make contact with these organizations. Her words would be listed to.... The pressure became even greater when it was seen the S.S. oligarchy was in earnest. The first transport has been stopped. But how can contact be made with Zurich, with New York and with Jerusalem, the seat of the Jewish Agency, which influenced and coordinated the work of these other two bodies? Slovakia was then a small country sealed off by the German occupation of the surrounding territory. There was no common border with any free country, so how could any message be conveyed to the outside world? Shloime Stern was instrumental in finding a temporary solution. He obtained a diplomatic courier, who was prepared to take all the important messages to the "Joint" in Zurich. He was also able to borrow money, temporarily, from various sources in Slovakia, putting together the equivalent of the enormous sounding sum of $25,000. The money obtained was changed on the back market for dollars and handed over to Hochberg for Wisliceny. Hochberg accepted it and came back with the message that there would be no further transports for seven weeks, which time was set for the completion of the deal. They were all convinced that once the diplomatic courier would get their message to the "Joint" and the Jewish Agency, not $50,000 but ten times $50,000 would at once be put at their disposal for this and similar "deals." Surely Jews the world over would dance for joy upon hearing that at last the door was open in the inner circles of the S.S. and a way found to rescue their fellow Jews. Mrs. Fleischman sat down to write the memorandum to Salli Mayer, the "Joint" representative in Switzerland. She was careful in her every word, explaining the situation of hope that had been ignited. The "Joint" should hasten its help at this last moment and miss the life-saving opportunity that had been so dramatically forced. The memorandum was sent to the "Joint", to the Jewish Agency and to a personal friend of hers, Mr. N. Schwalbe in Zurich. And then they sat down to wait. Days went by, swallowed by weeks, and of the seven not many were left. The time for the final settlement was fast approaching and a great sum of money was needed. Many people had managed to escape from the hell of Poland to Slovakia on their way to Hungary and Romania, which were not yet being so intensely processed by the Hitler hordes. They were not a thousandth of a percent of those who were so brutally done to death, but still a number to be supported and a problem of Slovakian Jewry. Money was needed to bribe the Slovakian genarmerie and police to stop their pressure for the deportations to continue. Money was needed for the labor camps in Sered, Novaki and Wiener in Slovakia. The Slovakian anti-Semitic government had built these camps for a slave labor before deportation began, and it was put to those Jews still left there that if they, themselves, would build up and increase the capacity of those labor camps, they would absorb more and so relieve the pressure for "deportations." and above all, the money was needed to refund the temporary loans from so many sources that had gone towards the first payment to Wisliceny and to provide the second $25,000 that would finally seal this blood transaction. All this money was a matter of life or death for the tens of thousands of Jews in Slovakia and, in the end, for millions still alive throughout Europe. Who could provide and who should provide, if not the "Joint" and the Jewish Agency, who held possession of the vast sums of money given by Jews the world over for the help of their brethren in need? Was there anywhere at all any need that was greater? The diplomatic courier left for Zurich, holding in his hands the lamentations of the strangling remnants of Jewry; in his hands, their appeal from death. This courier had to spend some days in Zurich before his return. He was awaited with mounting anxiety, for with his advent were tied up all the hopes of the masses under sentence. And he returned. But not even a letter was sent with him by those "help organizations" only a verbal message that they had no time to write, and of help there was no mention at all. Rabbi Weissmandl writes that on hearing this message, they 'felt as though the house had collapsed on them'. It was only Mrs. Fleischman who started to explain matters after this great shock. She said that "uncle" Salli Mayer was a very cautious man and it was necessary to write again. It was also necessary to write to Mr. Silbersten, the Jewish Congress representative. "And who knows, maybe they are doing something great," she added. Maybe for such a big undertaking they had to refer to New York and Jerusalem -- who knows? View video clip from the documentary, "Among Blind Fools", on Rabbi Weissmandl and his efforts to save thousands of Jews from the holocaust.Rabbi Weissmandl, himself, followed up with letters to the Agency and the "Joint" in the name of the Rabbis left in Slovakia -- letters of tears and of pleading -- but still there was no reply. Meanwhile, the seven weeks had passed and they had to send to Hochberg, asking him to explain to Wisliceny that the messenger that was to bring the money from Switzerland had met with an accident and was delayed in a hospital there. He would be bringing the money in three or four weeks time. Wisliceny agreed to wait. In the end, a letter did come from the "Joint"; a letter written by Salli Mayer, which said that $50,000 was a lot of money for such a small country, and that in the previous year's budget of the "joint", only a few thousand dollars had been allocated for them. The "Joint" had to be run according to their system. The explanation given in the memorandum why they now need all this money and the documentary evidence as to what was happening in Poland, to which country the "deportations" took place, were exaggerated stories. This was the way of Eastern European Jewry, who were always asking for money. In general, he added, it was impossible to send anything at all just then, as the money was coming from America, which had prohibited the sending of funds to enemy countries. What was possible to do was to render some small help, monthly, if the "Joint" in Hungary would agree to do this out of the blocked account that been held since the outbreak of the war. Rabbi Weissmandl and his colleagues read the letter, but they could not believe it had been written by fellow Jews. Their hearts stopped beating when its contents became clear to them. But this was not the end. There was a further letter. It fully explained the first. But it was more deadly and more devastating. It disclosed the bottomless abyss to which born- Jews can sink -- the responsibility of Zionism.

Paragraph Review? Riding a bike is one of the simple things you can learn in your life. It requires some basic steps, which should not be that difficult for the average person. You might want to consider buying a tricycle to teach you the fundamentals; steering and pedaling. When you’re ready, move up to a small bike with training wheels. Remember to use your body for balance, not your handle bars. Keep your handlebars completely straight across. First, put one foot up on your pedal. Immediately, lift up your other foot as you start to push the pedal with your opposite foot. Just keep pedaling! Don’t worry about your balance. The rotation axis of the wheels moving forward will keep you upright. Can someone provide in depth detailed explanation on how to steer and pedal a bike... Does the paragraph look like an A paper? COMP 107

I need help asap!!!!!? i have to write a narrative essay 250 words about my first ride on a bike this is what i have it must be detailed and specific. Did i do it any suggestions? the problem is i dont feel like this is my first ride cause honestly our first ride (well at least mine was) that it was scary you know how can i improve this to make it seem it was my first ride. were can i add details saying i fell off and bruised my leg and how can i say it? When I was a young girl I was always happiest on my bike. There were many places around my home that were traffic free and great to ride on. I can remember the wonderful sensation of flying as my bike zoomed down a hill and the wind blew on my face. It was one of those pure joys of childhood that you never forget. On my bike I felt totally alive and at one with the world. It all started one afternoon after my 9th birthday party. My mother told me that outside there was a gift for me. I was very excited and couldn’t wait to see what it was. There I was outside under the warm sun, when I saw a pink beautiful bike and my father. I ran towards my dad hugging and thanking him ignoring the flies buzzing around me, and then to my beautiful bike. I slid my tiny feet into the rubber straps of the petals. Gradually, my tiny legs frantically rotated forward fast and faster. I did it. I finally balanced my body perfectly. I kept moving forward, watching the dark pavement pass under the wheels. N Never in my life did the pungent smell of hot rubber on concrete on a sunny summer's day please my senses so much. The fast transportation provided a sense of freedom. I then pushed my legs back, causing the wheels to come to a sudden halt. I jumped off the bike, admiring my first liberating ride. I stood there staring at the bike in admiration. The shiny pink metal glistened in the sun light. No scratches or marks were in sight.