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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43583 |
(Source: iPads House)
Brings whole new meaning to the phrase "early adopters"
Comments Threshold
RE: meh
By Gzus666 on 4/14/2011 12:12:53 PM , Rating: 2
Of course these days I hear about schools not even giving god damn homework!
Probably for the best. Homework does little to help learning. The old "learn through repetition" method doesn't actually teach you anything but how to do what is in the worksheet. The actual way to learn something is by understanding the concepts, the rest is just applying the concepts, which can be done more abstractly so as not to dig someone into a hole of only knowing how to do what they are shown instead of actually learning. I know someone will try to retort with application vs. concepts, but the reality is if you really understand the concepts, application is fairly easy and any pitfalls you encounter are simple to overcome due to a proper understanding of the concepts.
Basically, unless they are working on a sport or some other menial physical task, repetition doesn't actually teach you anything.
Honestly they need to start teaching logic early on so kids can actually reason things out. I am dumbfounded as to why this is never hit until you get to college as it would make life so much easier (would also make people in general so much easier to deal with, imagine if everyone had a basic understanding of logical axioms).
RE: meh
By FITCamaro on 4/14/2011 2:29:31 PM , Rating: 2
I disagree. If you never practice what you hear in the classroom, you quickly forget it or never fully retain it.
RE: meh
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43589 |
Benchmarks or GTFO!
Source: ZDNet
Comments Threshold
RE: Apple Picked the Wrong @!**@fight
By harshbarj on 3/8/2012 1:05:00 PM , Rating: 4
What benchmarks? There has yet to be a benchmark on the new ipad and there will not be until after the 16th. If you're going ONLY by apples claim you have a LOT to learn. Never trust the claims of performance from a company.
RE: Apple Picked the Wrong @!**@fight
By Guspaz on 3/8/12, Rating: -1
RE: Apple Picked the Wrong @!**@fight
By harshbarj on 3/8/2012 1:34:04 PM , Rating: 3
That's a rather bold statement given we don't know what kind of bottlenecks the system might have. What if they did not double the graphic ram bandwidth, what if the cpu can't feed the quad core gpu fast enough.
Now I'm not saying it's not 4x faster, just we can't even guess till it's released.
By Uncle on 3/8/2012 1:31:49 PM , Rating: 4
"Never trust the claims of performance from a company."
Especially when apple and its affiliates are taking in pre-orders.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43590 |
Samsung launches new portable and desktop computers
Source: Samsung
Comments Threshold
RE: Awesome resolution. Crappy video.
By SAN-Man on 6/21/2013 3:14:59 PM , Rating: 2
Well that's certainly your opinion.
RE: Awesome resolution. Crappy video.
By ritualm on 6/21/2013 3:41:24 PM , Rating: 2
I have such a $1,500+ laptop as you do, and I use it as my primary computer i.e. work, gaming, everything in between. An AMD APU simply will not give the performance I need because it will consume too much power to get there.
Your opinion is worth less than you think.
RE: Awesome resolution. Crappy video.
By SAN-Man on 6/22/2013 10:37:16 AM , Rating: 2
Are you stupid? You don't understand what an opinion is I suppose
RE: Awesome resolution. Crappy video.
By ritualm on 6/22/2013 1:21:09 PM , Rating: 3
Says the guy who calls others stupid because they disagreed with him.
I posted this in DT's FX-9590 article:
AMD APUs are great for penny pinchers. Not so much when you're willing to spend $1,500+ on an everyday laptop with a high-res display. In fact, AMD has completely abandoned the midrange and high-end laptop markets. Steamroller? AMD can't make a mobile version of it.
You are off the rocker to think their power-hungry APUs will magically make your high-res laptop better than anything Intel can cook up.
By SAN-Man on 6/27/2013 5:13:09 PM , Rating: 2
I asked if you WERE stupid as you displayed a clear lack of understanding of what an opinion is. Based on your response, I'd say the answer is yes.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43601 | Regional Fast Foods That Will Make You Miss Home
By Linnea Zielinski
Jimmy John's
Originating in college towns in pancake-flat Illinois, Jimmy John's claimed a corner market on the staple of every college student's diet: sandwiches. It might be tempting to have your sub delivered "so fast you'll freak," but then you'll miss the heavenly smell of freshly baked bread that fills each franchise.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43614 | World Buddhist Directory
Theravāda in the 21st century - modern applications of ancient wisdom
World Buddhist Directory
Postby dragonwarrior » Sun Jul 19, 2009 4:31 pm
if you're looking for Buddhist directory in other country, may be this can help..
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43623 | More Health News | Metabolizing medication
Grapefruit reacts with more drugs
Sunday December 30, 2012 8:57 AM
Twenty years ago, Canadian researchers discovered that grapefruit interferes with the body’s metabolism of certain drugs, including the immunosuppressant cyclosporine and at least one drug used to treat high blood pressure.
The same group of scientists reported recently that the number of drugs that react adversely with grapefruit has increased, from 17 to 43. The list includes cholesterol-lowering statins such as Zocor and Lipitor and blood-pressure medications such as Nifediac and Afeditab.
The amount of grapefruit that can set off a reaction varies from drug to drug, the study notes, but in many cases, about 8 ounces of juice or a whole grapefruit “has sufficient potency to cause a pertinent pharmacokinetic interaction.”
The drugs in question have three common traits: They’re all taken orally; they all have limited bioavailability (only small percentages of the active drug make it into the bloodstream); and they all interact in the GI tract with an enzyme called CYP3A4. The researchers have identified more than 85 drugs that might interact with grapefruit, but some of these interactions are unlikely to cause serious adverse effects. |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43668 | Thread: BMW of Sterling
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09-28-2012, 03:03 PM #18
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Drives: 07 e90 lemon/black
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I agree. It's all about who you know, and not the particular dealership. If you're looking for a car, I'd check out Pat's contact. Doesn't hurt to try, right?
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43687 | SPEAKING of Geoffrey Pullum, he recently wrote on the word "right", and solved a little puzzle about how that word can be used. How did it go from meaning "exact, correct" to being a word that could modify some prepositional phrases, but not others? Why are He walked right around the lake and I dropped the hammer right on my foot acceptable, while He wandered right around drunk and I kept it secret right out of concern for your feelings are not? His answer to the puzzle is satisfying.
A different mystery about the word right has nagged at me for a while. How did it come to mean "the opposite of left" and also "something to which one is legally, morally or naturally entitled"? This wouldn't be so weird—words have multiple meanings all the time—except that Spanish derecho, French droit, Portuguese direito, German Recht and other words all carry the same double-meaning. In German, you can also say Du hast Recht, "you're right", so Recht-recht-recht has the same triple meaning in German as right (entitlement), right (not left) and right (correct) in English. In Slavic languages, the correct/not-left/entitlement words also share the same root (prav), which yields Russian pravda ("truth") to boot. The connections between the different senses of right are old, and deep.
What links all the words? The answer is a sense of naturalness, appropriateness, correctness. In a world where goodness (right) prevails, people will get what they are morally due (their rights), and will be correct (right) in their thinking and doing. Prof Pullum's conclusions about right modifying a prepositional phrase fit perfectly in here: right can modify a prepositional phrase when the thing is canonically or completely filling the condition indicated in the prepositional phrase. A book sitting right on the table is not hanging halfway off. A bullet going right through the wall did not go partway through and then get stuck. Someone walking right around the lake made a one-way completed trip, not a lazy back-and-forth.
Where does the not-left meaning come in? Simply, as the OED explains, because the right hand is the stronger and more appropriate one for most people to use for most tasks. Tellingly, the word left in several languages is cognate to English sinister, like sinistra in Italian. In many cultures, including non-European ones, the left hand is considered debased, suspicious, perhaps appropriate only for dirty tasks. (Items should not be handed over or received with the left hand in many Asian cultures, for example.) Left itself in English comes from a root meaning "weak" and so, in some contexts, "worthless".
With all this history, it's no surprise that left-handers have long found the world less than congenial. The Wikipedia article on "Bias against left-handed people" is thousands of words long. (One suspects that the a's and e's were typed more quickly and furiously than the i's and o's.) But that bias is out of date. Researchers have found left-handedness linked to a variety of traits, some good, some less so, but one quite relevant to this blog: language-learning talent. |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43689 |
Poland and Lithuania
Bad blood
Polish-Lithuanian ties are ancient but increasingly acrimonious
See article
Readers' comments
did i mention that i am in awe of that olde english tongue u b using. very impressive indeed. just for u, oh our educatestest one, wikipedia article on yo baltic group of (i do not doubt)very ancient languages indeed (i think the vedas were written in it;) unfortunately they did not have a written record until 1350 ad (latin script, by the way. so we do not know the whole cultural richness of those people (bummer)
by the way, i do not know why baltic languages did not have written record and alphabet, as some other indo european ones (lithuanian is one, isn't it?)such as greek, armenian, latin, persian, sanskrit (to name a few). it must have been due to the very advanced nature of the baltic people
Vilnius was never Polish, before it was occupied during the interbellum.The city had Russyn [Belarussian and Ukrainian] (from the 13th century) Quarter, German Quarter (from the 13th-14th centuries), Tartar Quarter in Lukiškės suburb, Jewish Quarter (from the 16th century, some individuals were in the city from the 14th century), Armenian school and guild, a lot of families of Italian architects, artists, scholars, courtiers, of course a lot of Lithuanians, as the city was established by them and the suburbs were exceptionally Lithuanian (see works of Ochamanski, Otrębski, Safarewicz, Zinkevičius) and only then there lived some Polish clergymen and scholars at the University (Latin was used there).
Do not forget, also, that by the law of GDL- Lithuanian Statutes, it was forbidden to settle or buy properties for Poles in the GDL
It also was never a Polish city in the end of the 19th or in the beginning of the 20th centuries.
The proof:
During the interwar occupation of the city, it was colonized and heavily polonized as the city and it's suburbs were always mostly inhabited by Lithuanians and Belarussians (read Halina Turska).
zerwikaptur in reply to Ciurlionis
What you are trying to do here is to weaken the Polish claim to Wilno.
However, you have failed to prove that because of GDL Lithuanians had a good claim to Vilnius, as Belarusssians, whose ancestors also made up GDL inhabitants, could also use this as basis of claim to Вільня. They were simply not well organised at that time.
Ciurlionis in reply to zerwikaptur
Yes, You are right, Belarussians also may have had some claims to Vilnius in the 1910s and 20s as and according to 19th century Belarussian scholar Karski, the region around Vilnius was already with polonized Belarussian majority in the 19th-20th centuries, the same as, acording to Halina Turska, local tutejshy dialect is a dialect of Belarussian language. This is another counterargument to Polish plates, street names, surnames writing, etc. in the region, as there lives mostly polonized Belarussians and Lithuanians. About polonized Lithuanians of the region, read Zinkevičius, especially his articles about the traditional surnames of the Vilnius region, what are often actually of a clear Baltic origin, only with polonized ending, e.g. if Žvirblis means something in lithuanian, what Żwirbloic stands for in polish?? :)))
It should be mentioned, that there is only one school with Belarussian language in Vilnius and the whole of Lithuania and only one tiny church for Belarussian Catholics, so they are being polonized even today and Your suggestion is to speed up polonization of local Belarussians in modern Lithuania, lol. :D
Also, Belarussians even today are heavily Russified and the majority of the population use Russian language, not their's own (would You like to call them Russians because of this? :D). So, today Lithuanians are not afraid of Belarussian claims, but should worry of Polish chauvinism...
Of course, according to the census of 2001, only 79% of people, who declared their Lithuanian Polish nationality (see what is written about Belarussians, Lithuanians and polonization) use Polish language, but the reality is even more tragic, but it is sometimes difficult to understand for the Poles in Poland, so maybe Russian signs then???
zerwikaptur in reply to Rusgaudas
GDL was started by Lithuanians, full agreement, but evolved into a very different state by the virtue of conquest.
The fact that Vilnius was in the initial "inception" part of GDL does not translate directly into claim to Vilnius a few hundred years later.
Being the capital of the whole GDL and all "Litvins" became a justifiable claim object of all nationalities claiming affiliation with GDL.
zerwikaptur in reply to Ciurlionis
Duplicity on you side: you consider several people Lithuanian despite admitting that they spoke Polish and at the same deny the right to other people to call themselves Polish despite them speaking in Russian.
Nothing surprising in Lithuanian propaganda.
"Russian signs": we have them for Russian tourists, as well as in German for German tourists in places with no German minority, while in Lithuania you get a fine for having Polish signs for the local inhabitants.
"what Żwirbloic stands for in polish" It does not have to stand for anything, exactly like Landsbergis in Lithuanian or Miller in Polish.
In today's EU people define themselves by free association with the culture, not by being "pure blood", what is important only for those missing Nazi times.
Rusgaudas in reply to zerwikaptur
Vilnius was a capital of Lithuania before it expanded towards all the Rus' lands. There is no reason why it should not remain one once Lithuanian borders have squeezed back to the territory more or less resembling the one of the early days of GDL without all the Slavonic lands.
With your logic Ukrainians can claim Krakow just because they were a significant part of the population of the Crown.
Ciurlionis in reply to zerwikaptur
Ok, then Warszawa is also Belarussian city and Krakow - Lithuanian, because it was also their capitals. Agree? So leave for Poznan and give Lithuanians Krokuva and Belarussians Варшава then :D
Ciurlionis in reply to zerwikaptur
So then they speak Russian and call themselves Poles, they just desperately need surnames in Polish and street names in Polish. Are You kidding me? Yes, You are. :DDDD
So You call indigenous people of Vilnius region, who speak Russian, tourists? Lol, again. Thank You for saving the day :)))
Read again. People in Šalčininkai and Vilnius districts speak mostly Russian, not Polish.
Compare. There are 4,8% of Russians 6,7% Poles in Lithuania and there were 27,026 pupil in Russian schools in 2005 and only 18,392 in Polish. Also, during 2001 census, only 79% of Poles declared Polish as their mother tongue- the figure, gradually decreasing from 96.8% in 1959, not to mention in Šalčininkai and Vilnius districts more pupil learn at Lithuanian schools that Polish, although in the towns and villages there are schools of both languages, that means parents choose freely. ;)
zerwikaptur in reply to Rusgaudas
It was less, that the Lithuanian problem in the beginning of the 20th century.
Ukrainians did not manage to constitute a significant/prevailing part of the population of Kraków and environs and connect that territory with Ukraine by a contiguously populated area. In any case, the capital of Poland is Warsaw, not Kraków, for your information.
zerwikaptur in reply to Ciurlionis
All the young Lithuanians from Lithuania are kindly welcome to migrate to Kraków area. If they decide to obtain Polish passports then Kraków can become a bilingual city. We are not a discriminatory country like Lithuania.
I simply wonder what will happen to the Lithuania's population after that exodus?
zerwikaptur in reply to Ciurlionis
Parent can choose freely? It is the Lithuanian govt. that is planting the schools with Lithuanian as the language of instruction at the same time not providing enough money to education in Polish, sometime outrightly denying the right to create new schools or nurseries with Polish.
The new education law explicitly says that if there is no enough pupils and some schools classes have to be closes, the class with Lithuanian language of instruction has to be kept. So where is the free choice? A choice like in chauvinistic pre-war Lithuania or under communism - your ideal Lithuanian state of affairs.
79% Poles is still around 180 thousand people that you are denying the right to have names in Polish.
Rusgaudas in reply to zerwikaptur
I sense double standards here - what about Wroclaw and Szczecin then? If we employ your logic here, the Polish claim to those cities holds no chance.
For Vilnius please read again - it was a capital of Lithuania even before expansion eastwards, when the country was as close to the national state as it would get in middle ages. It is only natural that when the Lithuanian state was reborn - no other city would be considered as a capital even for a second. You can settle the city with Martians if you like, but once the Lithuanians are back in business - they would go and make their capital in Vilnius.
zerwikaptur in reply to Rusgaudas
Double standards? What double standards? Wilno in Lithuania (or better say Lithuanian SSR at that time) and Stettin in Poland (communist at that time) was a result of Stalin deciding about expansion of his internal empire (Soviet Union) and external one (satellite countries like Poland). He could have given Wilno to Belarussian SSR as a compensation for Białystok and give Kaliningrad to Lithuania , if it had suited his purposes better.
"but once the Lithuanians are back in business - they would go and make their capital in Vilnius" One of the best jokes I have seen recently, I tell you.
Red Army gave it to you, on your own you could not hold it even in the beginning of the 20th century.
Could any of you please answer why the ethnic Polish minority in Lithuania that (apparently) defends its right to Polish language so actively, is actually using Russian as their conversational language most of the time?
And also could some Polish people think about the social and economic integration. For a matter of fact, majority of this minority actually perform low skilled jobs from generation to generation (bus drivers, builers, cleaner, plumbers and etc).
Its easy to sit at a computer and babble about somebody's else fortune, but then COULD you please suggest how else would it be posible to enable the Polish minority in Lithuania to escape this vicious circle?
Jay.Z in reply to Gedeminne
Only low skilled jobs? Hmmm, that's very interesting... :-)
Anyway, young generation of Lithuanian Poles should leave that xenophobic country behind and emigrate to Poland, as our economy is doing well and the future prospects are not too bad either. Besides, Poland should offer more job opportunities for our folks from Lithuania than immigrants from e.g. Ukraine.
Jay.Z in reply to Internautas
If that happens, it'll be purely Lithuanian fault, as I believe the majority of Lithuanian Poles feel more emotionally related to Lithuania/Litwa (where their ancestors have been living for centuries) than Poland.
Besides, if happened it might appear to be 'pyrrhic victory' for Lithuania in relation to your demographic problems. But, that wouldn't bother me anymore whatsoever. :-)
Gedeminne in reply to Jay.Z
I completely agree with you, you should try to promote this idea amogst your folk :). The issue is that its not that simple, the Lithuanian Poles are not accepted with open hands by native Poles, quite the contrary from what I know.
Anyways, Poles have been living there for centuries, they settled there and not going to move as it would be equally as difficult for them to integrate in Poland as well. They have been living outside Poland for centuries and have largely assimilated with the russian minority.
They have the full rights (as ordinary citizens) in Lithuania as its their country and, I think, (as an ethnic minority) they should be allowed the right not to study Lithuanian language if that satisfies their lust for indentity and etc. All that i'm saying is that such behaviour prevents them from opportunities in their home/native country in which they lived and will live for generations to come by their own choice!
gVic in reply to Internautas
"Besides, Poland should offer more job opportunities for our folks from Lithuania than immigrants from e.g. Ukraine."
There is nothing about Lithuanian or Ukrainian economy here.. Where can you see that?
As far as I understand, Jay.Z wanted to say that, as Poland needs labour force from eastern countries, we should focus on and promote rather migration of minority Poles from neighbouring countries than Ukrainians, Belarussians and so on.
Gedeminne in reply to Jay.Z
gVic in reply to Gedeminne
one of very few non-biased, reasonable and open-minded voices! :)
anyways, Poles should learn Lithuanian language in order to integrate with the rest of the society and to get good jobs and to help by this gesture for Lithuanians to accept them more.
There is indeed tension in Lithuanian-Polish relations. Poland is blocking a variety of Lithuanian infrastructure projects. Refused to cooperate, for example, in the project to build a new nuclear power plant with other Baltic countries and Japanese corporation Hitachi. The Poles instead are negotiating with the Russian energy group to cooperate in Kaliningrad Nuclear Power Plant project. Because of tensions some other projects are collapsing too. There is something to worry about. But what are the reasons for this?
Is that "W" letter in the Polish surname? Clearly, the law on spelling of names needs to be changed, but who will believe that this may interfere with nuclear power project. There must be some other reasons.
In Lithuania all minorities (Russians, Jews, Germans, and Belarusians) are subject to the same education law except the Poles. Poles in Lithuania have more schools than any other Polish minority populated country in the world. There are about 60 of such schools. Those schools teach exclusively in Polish and the official Lithuanian language is taught only as a separate subject. New law on education has found that in order to improve proficiency in the Lithuanian language the Lithuanian language should be used in some of the history and geography lessons especially when it relates to Lithuania. Is that reason for regional projects to collapse?
Such are and other “reasons”.
Poland deliberately increases tension, but does not name the actual reasons. They even provoke more tension. With the help of ministry of R. Sikorski there has been published a propagandistic, provocative, allegedly historical brochure “Ponary”. Why Poland needs tension with Lithuania and why it’s blocking cooperative projects? That’s the question that needs to be answered.
zerwikaptur in reply to Mindis
I am sorry to hear that you do no like the publication of the brochure about Ponary. Do you support what happened there, murder of several thousand people with cooperation of some Lithuanian formations?
"Poles in Lithuania have more schools than any other Polish minority populated country in the world."
Poles in Lithunia can be only compared to Poles in Belarus in terms of geographical continuity, size and history. There are different expectations concerning minority rights from an EU member (Lithuania) and a country that does not even have a democratic system.
"why it’s blocking cooperative projects?"
Why should Poland waste money on such initiatives? We need to construct a nuclear power station on our own, not to import electricity from Lithuania or Kaliningrad region.
E car in reply to Jay.Z
Poland should be ashamed of many things probably in course of history too but it is not a subject for Lithuanian Foreign Office. That this not happening within Europe many many years.
zerwikaptur in reply to E car
Isn't that great to hear from a Lithunian that he thinks that he has the right to dictate the Polish Foreign Office what to publish? What a fresh point of view compared to all his compatriots who think that Poland should not interfere when the rights of Poles in Lithuania are not respected.
Retas Petras in reply to Jay.Z
Just imagine if some official insitutions would publish about collaboration of Armija Krjowa (AK) with nazis and comitting many acts of genocide in Vilnius? About pogroms of jews just after ocupation of Vilnius by Zheligowski? Let"s learn your history, dear polish neo-nazi.
R E in reply to Retas Petras
Is this what they teach you in schools?
As I read, I am appalled by the depth of lies about our history you spread. AK fought 3 enemies, while your "stribai" collaborated with whomever appeared to be winning at the moment. Didn't they tell you in school how Lithuanians let soviet army through it territory when Hitler attacked Poland in 1939 from the other side? For "40 silver pieces" - yes, you were paid for that, too.
zerwikaptur in reply to R E
Retas Petras is trying to cover up the history of Lithuanians cooperating with Bolsheviks and Nazi Germany by name calling Poland and Poles Nazi. I wonder if he a typical product of a history lessons in Lithuanian schools? If yes then I simply think that Poland should pay for the lessons of proper history in Polish minority schools in Lithuania so the children are exposed to an unbiased version of account, not that chauvinistic rubbish like in hist posts.
guest-ialwwnn in reply to zerwikaptur
According to the "history" promulgated by others in this response, the Vilnius are had a minority of Lithuanians in it, and was a majority Polish. You would then contend that a population of 2% Lithuanians would rush in, usurp the majority of Poles, and eliminate the Jewish population without the explicit complicity of Poles? How NAIVE.
I guess they could have just put down their beer glasse and overrun Poland in its' whole, also.
Pardon me while I laugh about your little ignorant dreams.
I am Lithuanian I here are some my thoughts on it.
Polish letters and names should be allowed to use in documents like passports or signs in the eastern part of Lithuania (where Poles are majority).
However, Lithuanian goverment should stick with a new education plan. The last time I was in polish-speaking area I could not have a single conversation in Lithuanian. Nobody knew how to make a normal sentence. And shouldn't be happening.
As for the whole context, it seems that the whole conflict comes from historical fears. Lithuanians are afraid of Polisish language becoming supreme over Lithuanian, as it happened once in XVII - XIX centuries and almost made the language to vanish. Moreover, Russians tried to put a ban on Lithuanian language in late XIX century.
It seems that Poles are still afraid of genocide, which was carried out by Germans and Russians. And every single action whether is bad or good is welcomed by fears that it will suppress their rights.
All in all, Lihuanians shouldn't be worried that their language will vanish, as Poles shouldn't think that new genocide will be carried out. And finally, a few more remarks. Scenario like this (huge diplomatic tensions between Lithuania and Poland) has been stated in Kremlin's propagandists' books. Both nations should remember who has been,who is and who always be their enemy No. 1. Polish government should stop supporting V. Tomasevski, Polish minority leader. There have been many concerns in Lithuania that he is Moscow's tool. And R.Sikorsky looks like he is driven by emotions. That is the last thing we need. For instance, leaflets for Polish minority which were supported by him expressed ideas, which he knew would be greated with great contraversy in Lithuania. Why would you cause more tensions whith sometthing which bringes no benefits for Poland?
Peace :)
zerwikaptur in reply to srsl
Initially quite an interesting post, though at the end you request that Poland stand back and waits for the actions of Lithuania. That was the approach practiced for several years (so called "good relationships" between Poland and Lithuania) and did not bring any good to Poles of Lithuania, quite the opposite. No solution of property restitution, bilingual names, gerrymandering of voting districts,etc.
"Both nations should remember who has been,who is and who always be their enemy No. 1. " Looking at the Lithuanian politics I think for Lithuania it is Poland.
srsl in reply to zerwikaptur
Sorry, I wasn't clear. Indeed first step should be taken by Lithuanian government. In my opinion, it should be allowing Polish signs and letters. Then Poland government should do something like stop supporting Tomasevski.
Problem with Lithuanian politics is that some idiotic, nationalistic-chauvinistic politics in parliament (Seimas). President, PM (whose son works for Google in Poland) and the cavinet would not oppose pro-Polish laws. However, the parliament is a different case. The ruling conservative party has some MPs called "the Taliban" (I suppose Poland has something like that as well). They fall to the category of idiots. Moreover, this case theyhave from opposition because different parties have different motives:
1. Socialists are quite corrupt so they have only one goal. Get in power. And critisising government and PM is a very good way to do it.
2. Law and Order. This is a party of impeached president. Quite nationalistic, probably funded and supported from Moscow. Had many cases and scandals of corruption. Absolute idiots.
3. Labour party. Toy of Kremlin. When the leader of party had a case for fraud and corruption in court fled to Moscow. This fact tells a lot.
Those politics I mentioned are equally nationalits as Jay.Z here. Some strange mix of chauvinism, stupid emotions and self-pride.
zerwikaptur in reply to srsl
Ok, then I would agree with you to a large extent. When the rights of Poles in Lithuania are respected (not only the "w" letter, but also property, voting districts, etc.) I would be very happy for the Polish government not to spend anytime on those issues when in discussions with Lithuanian government. Concerning the support for Tomaszewski: to me success of Tomaszewski is a matter of unresolved issues like those I mentioned above. If they are solved then Poles in Lithuania can vote differently (I have no clue how they would vote). After all it is Lithuanian citizens who vote for Tomaszewski, not the Polish government.
We also have various parties in Poland that show more or less various levels of incompetence depending on the issue. What Lithuanian policies have managed to achieve is practically unite them on the matter of Polish-Lithuanian relations. It is a real achievement, I am dead serious about this.
I do not understand why you see Jay.Z as a nationalist. He is probably as fed up with the problems of Poles in Lithuania as other commentators from the Polish side. If the problems disappeared, we would not comment here at all. What for?
The vision of the Commonwealth on the Lithuanian and Polish sides are different and probably will never reconcile among people who have some historical knowledge.
guest-ilwwanl in reply to srsl
"The last time I was in polish-speaking area I could not have a single conversation in Lithuanian."
I don't know where you were - maybe in Belarus ?
I visited my family and some of them finished high school / their Lithuanian is good otherwise they couldn't get job or finish education. They conversated, translated for us some Lithuanian text in Vilnius/Wilno, helped in shoops, restaurants etc !!!
Some of them speaks four langueges (Lithuanian, Polish, Russian, English). Have you spoken to young or very old generation ? (old generation use mostly Polish and Russian)
I have huge sentiment to GDL and Lithuania but ...
When you said about Politicians - why you have never introduced any Lithuanians responsible for present situation ? G.Songaila, V.Landsbergis who established new property near Vilnius (but his own land was near Kaunas) etc Who stopped using Minority Act (when old one was not valid anymore) - Lithuanian Parlament! Who added new Education Act (in small cities/villiges where will not be enough young people only minority school will be closed) - Lithuanian Parlament and President ! Who rejected at Parlament act of using original names - Lithuanian politicians.
srsl in reply to zerwikaptur
What concers do you have about property and voting districts? Specially about property? Lithuanians and Poles had absolutely same problems, and bureacratic nightmares with getting back your relatives lands or houses.
Tomaszewski rides mass hysteria. That is why he is dangerous. Like the saying of his that Lithuanians should integrate in Lithuania and not Polish.
Jay.Z twists the true and facts as it would useful for him. Plus he has that mass hysteria thing like Tomaszewski. Too many emotions, too less logic.
zerwikaptur in reply to srsl
Property rights: Lithuanian govt. should provide enough data to dispel any claims of discrimination. I mean they should make data public (and protect the identity of people applying for property restitution by by providing information only about region of the country like Šalčininkai/Soleczniki and maybe about municipality but definitely not about the person's name) for so anyone can analyze it and see if the restitution rates in Vilnius regions are really different than in other parts of Lithuania and who gets the property there: people from that region or other Lithuania regions.
Voting districts: any changes should be consulted with the minorities so there is no impression that the changes serve to dilute the voting power of minorities.
The same with education: if the changes were spread over a few years then the Polish reaction were more muted.
Jay.Z uses various conversations styles depending on the interlocutor. I do the same. I will leave this part of the further conversation as he can defend himself easily.
srsl in reply to guest-ilwwanl
It happened in Salcininkai and Eisiskes. People were between 30 and 60 years old, I guess. If your family is from Vilnius, it is a bit different case. Remember it's a capital, richest region and more open minded.
What is GDL?
Prove your statement with Landsbergis and Songaila with article or something. Plus Songaila falls into category of idiots I mentioned before.
Also give information on Minority Act and what concerns you.
Schools are being closed down all over Lithuania. My old school (in the second largest town Kaunas/Kowno) was closed because there were not enough students. If you want to keep your schools open, you should ask Polish government for money. You know that Lithuania has problems with budgetand can't afford those expenses. In general, you should stop thinking that school closing is against Polish.
Jay.Z in reply to zerwikaptur
Thank you, zerwikaptur. I couldn't have explained it better.
It's so comfortable to put a 'nationalist' label if one has little or no counter-arguments to present. But, we ain't buyin' it... :-))
R E in reply to srsl
What is being escalated in lithuanian media about the education reform is only part of the truth. Very few people have read its actual text and the media rides the wave.
Poles are not protesting against the language. They emphasize everywhere that they want to learn it and will continue to learn it. In fact, there is a very limited supply of Polish textbooks (math, physics, chemistry, biology), so kids are already studying from the Lithuanian ones since at least 10 years ago.
What is generating the outcry - the time frame - all of the sudden, after 20 years of independence when there was "no problem", government only gives 2 years to prepare for the graduation exam, when Polish kids will be tested as native Lithuanian speakers (who had 12 years to read all the literature and study all the grammar). In order to get up to speed with that, they will have to spend less time preparing for all other subjects - the ones really important for their future studies. Remember, school graduation marks are used when competing for the universities (where scholarships are more limited every year). We are concerned that with such "reform" kids will get worse marks not only in Lithuanian, but other subjects as well. Telling somebody that all this is for the integration sake and better chances is a blunt lie. Better chances, but only for Lithuanian students - limiting chances of their Polish and Russian competition for next few years.
Another thing is almost never mentioned in the media - about school closures - if there are two schools in any given neighbourhood and not enough students, the one to be closed is the ethnic minority school. Regardless of the student numbers. Example - 5 kids in Lithuanian school, 55 in Polish - guess which one will be closed? How would you like that? Naturally, this is all very boring and does not look attractive on the first page of paper. So nobody is listening.
And good professional journalists, who would be able to enlighten ALL sides of the issue, are extinct.
John S.74 in reply to srsl
As a Pole, I don't think that Polish letters should be allowed in Lithuania. I have lived abroad for quite a while and the lack of Polish letters really isn't anything to cry about. Language nazis will lose to English anyhow, so this is just a silly turf war that will not do anyone any good.
Lithuania is a free state, it is part of the EU. In the EU, if we do not like the state we live in, we can do a number of things - speak out and vote, or leave. We do not have a right to squabble and interfere with internal policies of states in which we do not reside unless they limit our freedom to do business with them.
As to the comments below about who helped whom.. Please remember that the way people act is only a reflection of how they are treated. Hate cuts both ways and is a universal evil.
srsl in reply to John S.74
@Jan G
Finally someone who is ready for discussion, not argument :)
Actually I really think Polish letters should be allowed in official documents and signs. There is nothing worng with that. Also it is not a interferance in Lithuania's internal affairs. It could be a gesture from Lithuania to show it care for its citizens and a gesture for Polish government to continue dialogue.
However, Lithuania should not give up on education. I think for Lithuania's Poles should have the same system as Poland's Lithuanians. There is only one reason: so could Lithuania's Polish people had two native languages: Polish and Lithuanian. If they could speak perfectly in both languages, both states could benefit from that.
P.S. Since today is Lithuania's Independence Day, congratulations to all my nation in the world :) And there were rumors in Lithuanian press that Polish ultras and skinheads might come to Vilnius today. The last thing we need is a spark under the barrel of gunpowder.
The article is obviously written partially. Lithuanians are shown as the ones who cause the problems between two states. The reality is very simple: during Katchinsky ruling time our relations were really good ant getting better. Now the Poland is ruled by anti-Lithuanian forces. Obviously the only ones who are benefited are the Russians.
P.S. why do you use question marks in the word occupied ?
guest-ilwwanl in reply to Internautas
Not true - only "official" relatian looks good. No one problem was solved during Kaczyński's time. Even more - do you remember his last visit Lithuania just before his death (March 2010) ? What happened at Sejmas ? Exactly the same day new act of possibilty to write names in original form was rejected! Lithuanian President promised to open discussion in local Parlament till end 2010 and ... absolutely nothing was done. Moreover validity of "good" Minority Act expired. New one never introduced ... Lithuanian Authorities replied to Knut Vollebeak "we don't need it anymore" !
Sadly, but relationships between Lithuania and Poland has considerably deteriorated in recent years. Especially after strange plane crash death in Russia of former Poland's President Lech Kaczynski... It's obvious, that some of Poland's recent demands are illogical, like street names in polish, surnames in polish alphabet (when Lithuania has just one official language Lithuanian and alphabet differs a lot, majority of Lithuanians couldn't even pronounce it in polish language). It seems there are spacial people who are deliberately trying to cause a conflict between these two countries...
guest-ilwwewa in reply to zerwikaptur
no problem ... Of course - Lithuanians can have Polish,Russian, English and etc. street names. I understand that f.e. in Finland some street names are in Swedish, but just because second official language is Swedish. But tell me why in Lithuania we need polish alphabet and street names?
cegorach in reply to guest-ilwwewa
"illogical, like street names in polish, surnames in polish alphabet"
What is illogical about such demands - in fact it is a normal thing in several countries all around Europe.
From memory it takes place in Germany (e.g Sorbian minority), the Czech Republic (e.g. Polish populated regions), Poland (e.g. German, Lithuanian, Belorus, Ukrainian mnority populated towns and villages as well as Kashubian regions which choose so) and so on.
There is nothing in those "demands" what is not already provided in many other countries, also in Poland.
Ok, here's a few more loose personal thoughts...
(1) Dear Lithuanians, your great-grandfathers (engaged in Lithuanian national revival in 19th century) have done harm to you by implying that you, Baltic Lithuanians, are the descendants of citizens of Grand Duchy of Lithuania (GDL).
Well, you're not. The countries that can claim much higher level of kinship to the GDL than present-day Lithuania with dominant Baltic Lithuanian ethnicity, are Belarus and Poland.
Belarus - because the GDL was a multi-national state, but with main Slavic ethnicity. The official language in early GDL was Ruthenian, as those duke families (Gediminids, etc.) were Ruthenian.
Poland - as the GDL nobility by and large chose to polonise themselves, as they considered Polish culture and language as more prestigious. The descendants of the likes of Radziwiłł, Tyszkiewicz, Sapieha, etc. have been living in Poland (apart from those, who along the course of recent history had emigrated to France or other Western European countries).
(2) The level of personal rights granted to Lithuanian minority in Poland and the Polish minority in Lithuania is far from equal. Apart from the right to have their IDs issued with names in Lithuanian, they enjoy the right e.g. to put up double-language signs in their towns/villages in Suwałki Region, and can use Lithuanian as the second language in Puńsk municipality, where there are a dominant ethnic group.
In this regard Lithuania is in breach of the bilateral PL-LT treaty signed off in 1994, in addition to the fact that they (LT) haven't ratified the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.
More on the topic e.g. here:
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnic_minorities_in_Poland
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilingual_communes_in_Poland
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithuanian_minority_in_Poland
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Charter_for_Regional_or_Minority_L...
(3) While referring to Poles and Polish claims/grievances by calling them 'nazi', Baltic Lithuanians may attempt to divert attention from their shameful collaboration with Nazi Germany and the participation in massacres of Jewish and Polish civilians.
More on that topic e.g. here:
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collaboration_with_the_Axis_Powers_during_W...
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ypatingasis_b%C5%ABrys
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponary_massacre
Nimrod337 in reply to Jay.Z
Polish kings were Lithuanian. Poland was, in effect, a vassal state of Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Didn't read the rest of your drivel, sorry.
You use the expression "Baltic Lithuanians" extensively. Care to explain what is a non-Baltic Lithuanian? Be creative.
gVic in reply to Nimrod337
That is not true. At the very beginning, Duke of GDL to become a king of Poland had to gain acceptance of Polish nobles first.
Later on, it became more like a custom as Polish nobles treated this as mean to maintain fragile union between (often conflicted) two states.
Don Pedro in reply to Jay.Z
Gediminds were ruthenians? You are joking? Do you know any case when duke of lith. considers himself as a ruthenian?
Ruthenian language wasn't official language as we know understand. This language was used for correspondence with ruthenian dukes/cities/administration. Yes, it was adopted, but actually
it was used only in Ruthenian lands, not in the rest of GDL. latin language was the main language like in Poland. Relatively, ~ 1500 - to 1650 you can found many lithuanian literature in lithuanian language. For instance, Albertas Gostautas, Valimaitis, and others promoted the application of lithuanian language and many noblemen were strictly opposite to usage of ruthenian language.
By the way, there were many ruthenian who worked in administration thus the impact on understanding why language became more attractive is quite clear.
Statutes was written in ruthenian language only because that majority of population in GDL was ruthenians, but the application of Statutes during court process in ethnical part was solely lithuanian. It was like a custom. You can find information in internet if you are interested in.
when we are speaking about who are descendants of citizens of GDL, first, we must answer to a question - WHO created GDL. The answer is clear.
HMacmillan in reply to Nimrod337
Well I am not surprised, when confronted with the truth you chose to ignore it. Your ancestors weren’t that reticent about adopting the Polish language and cultural practices as their own, including all your great families, which incidentally all consider themselves to be Polish now.
The funny thing is that Poland declares it funds lithuanian minority schools with 50% more funds, yet most of those schools lack books and can't survive without financial help from Lithuania which was 300k litas last year.
Think why Lithuania needs to discrimninate polish speaking minorities? whats the point? why we need that? Poland just want power in Lithuania and they blowing this bubble..
It is important to note in this discussion that internally in Poland, Polish media, etc. Lithuania and relations with this country is almost no issue. From time to time there is some article saying that Lithuanians are not so friendly that we Poles use to think, and... thats all. What I mean is that modern Lithuania barely exists in public dispute in Poland, there is only historic and favorauble image of Grand Duchy. Maybe in Mazury or Podlaskie regions relations with Lithuania are more tight. Anyway, because modern Lithuania is in general awareness some unknown small country in the north-east it is very little presure internally in Poland to fix relations with this country.
Last but not least, this problem with spelling, properties, minority is a dozen or so years old... in my opinion it would be still frozen if not Orlen problems with rafinery in Lithuania. From that point real money and real bussiness started. And real problems after that. If Orlen wouldn't buy it (what it shouldn't do) then Lithuania still would be outside of real Polish politics.
zerwikaptur in reply to Nimrod337
You forgot to add:
So we, Lithuanians can continue our discriminatory policies against Polish minority. And do not forget make similarly half-baked investment like the oil refinery - we still need your Polish money to be wasted on: nuclear power plant and power and gas connectors.
Nimrod337 in reply to zerwikaptur
No, quit lying. Nobody is discriminating against Poles. Poles are treated BETTER than any other minority in Lithuania. Poland should stop systematic assimilation of Lithuanians in Poland. Poland should also stop closing down Lithuanian schools(while demanding that Lithuania keeps open Polish schools that are nearly empty LOL)
Why would Lithuanians give a damn about that refinery? First we sold it to Americans, then Americans sold it to Russians, then Orlen bought it. Orlen bought it because they saw it profitable. They didnt manage to make it profitable? Your own fault.
Oh and when you talk about gas connections... its EU money LOL. Lithuania is buying a floating LNF terminal anyways, no need to deal with Poles on this issue. You dont want a share in that plant? I dont want another nuclear plant on our soil either.
zerwikaptur in reply to Nimrod337
Again, typical misrepresentation of facts from a defender of discriminatory policies of Lithuania against Poles in Lithuania:
1. Unlike in Lithuania, the local schools in Poland are a business of the local authorities (the money for the schools with minority languages is higher by 50% in any case) so the local authorities make the decisions, unlike in Lithuania, where the central governments plants the schools with Lithuanian language in regions inhabited in majority by Poles.
2. Orlen investment was a clear political decision, pushed by Lech Kaczyński. It was also a clear Lithuanian political decision to make the life of Orlen in Lithuania more difficult by disassembling the railtrack allowing getting cheaper supplies).
3. Gas connection: 73% of costs to be borne by Poland and the same time Lithuania is obtaining the LNG terminal on its own? Waste of money to Poland, nothing else.
Nimrod337 in reply to zerwikaptur
1. And WHAT? You're now expecting Lithuania to switch to your system of funding? A region in Poland can easily have as many people as the whole Lithuania - why'd we even need a separate set of authorities for these matters in every region? Anyhow, Polish Lithuanians are protesting that they are now getting more classes in Lithuanian language, but at the same time Lithuanians in Poland are getting the same number of classes in Polish. Assimilation you say?
2. Why's Orlen even owned by the Government? The railroad is being/or has been already rebuilt. This is from 2010(use google trans) http://verslas.delfi.lt/automoto/article.php?id=30183353&categoryID=174757
Also dont forget that hordes of Lithuanians were/are shopping in Poland due to favourable exchange rates, but you make it sound like poor Poland is just pumping money into Lithuania and gets nothing back. If Orlen Lietuva makes a profit you take it back to Poland, remember?
3. Dont know/care. We'll get our gas via LNG terminal, but Latvia and Estonia? I dunno. Where you pulled that 73% from?
EU hasnt even said a word about it yet.
zerwikaptur in reply to Nimrod337
1. Local level is a level of "gmina" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gmina. currently there are around 2.5K such in Poland or "powiat"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Powiat (almost 400 in Poland).
You see, you do not know what you are talking about.
If Lithuania spends extra money on the centrally funded schools in Vilnius area it means it can give more money to Polish minorities schools.
2. After pressure only.
If the exchange rate went the other direction the Poles would shop in Lithuania. You can observe the same at other borders, where the flow direction changes (like Polish-German border) depending on the exchange rate
3. http://biznes.onet.pl/polaczenie-gazowe-polska-litwa-bedzie-kosztowac-47...
I know you do not care, you simply want to be a free-rider, like in NATO.
Nimrod337 in reply to zerwikaptur
1. It can or it should? It should if theres a need, but the fact is Polish schoools are already better funded than their Lithuanian counterparts. I know what I'm talking about, you don't. You listen to your very "unbiased" media and you think you know whats going on in Lithuania. Laughable. The conflict was never about money, it was about more classes being taught in Lithuanian which they call "discrimination"
2. Hurr durr almighty Poland applied all of its force to make Lithuania rebuild a rail line. You dont even know why it was removed in the first place, and you'll believe whatever your Lituanophobe media feeds into your brainwashed head. We had much better business relationship going with the Russians, so I wish nobody had rebuilt that railline and Orlen got out and we'd never have to hear your moans again. After all, all this fuss about minorities was just used as a leverage for championing Orlen's interests in Lithuania(namely: Lithuania refused to sell Klaipedos Nafta due to its strategic importance to us, and then Polish politicians intensified their filth spilling on Lithuania.)
" flow direction changes (like Polish-German border)"
changes direction? oh rly? its cheaper for Poles to shop in Germany, but its cheaper for Lithuanians to shop in Poland? now tell me how that is even possible. Litas is pegged to the Euro.
3. Oh snap, forgive us for not spending 2% of GDP on military after suffering the worst recession of ANY country in the world. We'll be fine. Hows your free riding with EU funds going? Its amazing how you moan how much Poland would have to pay for the gas link, when your infrastructure buildup is financed by EU funds anyways.
More arrogance, more "holier than thou" attitude please. You're good at it.
zerwikaptur in reply to Nimrod337
1. You only confirm that you did no understand the difference between the level of decision making about schooling between Poland and Lithuania. Initially you stated:
"A region in Poland can easily have as many people as the whole Lithuania - why'd we even need a separate set of authorities for these matters in every region?" while in fact the decisions are made at lower level
2. " flow direction changes (like Polish-German border)" Flow of shoppers changes over years depending on the exchange rate changes.
I am happy to see an open admission from at least Lithuanian that they prefer cooperation with Russia. Leave EU and join Eurasian Union then. You would fit well there.
3. EU funds are well spent, usually on imports from old EU, so I see that as a kind of Keynesian demand stimulation for the old EU (especially Germany).
"Oh snap, forgive us for not spending 2% of GDP on military after suffering the worst recession of ANY country in the world. We'll be fine." So, when are you planning to join the Eurasion Union? I am sure Russia would take you gladly and offer to forever protect you from those Poles you simply cannot stand.
ZemstaUFO in reply to Nimrod337
Yo, Nimrod,
Lithuanians shop in Poland not only because of the exchange rate, but simply because of the price/quality ratio. Your sausages (desreles or something) must contain 7% of meat to be called so. In any Lidl in Poland your folks buy Parówki containing 83% of meat for a fraction of the maxima price. Tymbark juice for 2,8 PLN in Poland will be sold by your beloved Maxima for 5-6 Lt. 120% margin in a supermarket ;) No wait, not margin - 120 % difference between Polish and Lithuanian supermarket. I'm not getting into butter, meat or anything else...
So hi,
First of all, we all should know, that Lithuanian polish people, which are leaving in Šalčininkai (where are leaving majority of them) , are more speaking Russian than polish. This fact had seen one polish journalist. She wrote an article and published about that in Poland, and after few hours it was deleted. Why?
Secondly, Lithuanians a trying to save their nation, language, because Russia and Poland were trying to destroy Lithuanians identify for many years by not letting use national language (1795-1914 Russia)insisting them to admit other language, tradition, culture and colonised (Russia and Poland). After admitting other countries cultural, language, Lithuanians saved their as a nation identify. Lithuania is still young country and it is obvious why this country is trying to save her old (very old) language and culture.
So i have a question, how would you be acting if your country (having independence for about 20 years and was under occupation for long time, capital was taken illegal way) is threaten by loosing one thing that they care about most?
guest-ilwwanl in reply to JoanaD
I disagree - most of old generation in Soleczniki use Russian and ... Polish (the same with old Lithuanian generation - Russian in also well known). I had absolutely no problem to communicate with my part of family in Soleczniki and other places in Polish language! Illegal way - are you talking about Memel or close cooperation with Red Army (Soviet Union) 1920,1939 and Nazi Germany 1941-45?
gVic in reply to JoanaD
For a long time Republic of Poland was tolerating hostile attitude of Lithuanian policy makers towards Polish Lithuanian minority admitting that Lithuanian state (and Lithuanian national identity) is young and some longer time is needed before Poland should ask more decidedly about the rights of Polish Lithuanian minority.
It's almost a century since end of WWI. How long yet Lithuania would argue that it's still young and fragile country/nation, so we need to lift expectations about normal attitude towards Polish Lithuanian minority until it's get self-confident?
zerwikaptur in reply to JoanaD
Justification of discrimination by being "small and vulnerable".
In any case, I see no reasons why bilingual road signs are such a danger, unless the whole Lithuanian nation suffers from Polonophobia.
JoanaD in reply to guest-ilwwanl
I agree that they know polish, but between themselves they are talking russian. Speaking about Lithuanians which speak russian in casual day, they are minority. I'm talking about all Lithuanian not one part of country. You say that between LTU and Soviet was close cooperation. i disagree with this statement. There was no close relationship. Russia gave for Lithuania ultimatum, Lithuania accepted it, because what small country could do, when all Europe eyes were on France. If I remember good ultimatum gave Germany (Memel) and Poland as well.
JoanaD in reply to gVic
Do you forget WWII? I remember to you, after that war Lithuania was in USSR hands. In that union was no democracy, where was another ruling system. And after half century Lithuania finally get her independence. In 1990 leaving behind socialism Lithuania become independent country having no experience how to rule. From 1918 till 1926 Lithuania was democratic country from 1926 till 1940 - Authoritarian state. Wow, how much this country has experience how to rule democratic country
guest-ilwwanl in reply to JoanaD
I disagree Lithuanian Army close co-operated with Red Army (even Lithuanian planes were used) and attacked north-east part of Poland 1920 ! Yes, ultimatum gave Nazi Germany before WWII but earlier Lithuania took Memel (it was originally free city) in 1923. Polish ultimatum was forced to establish "standard" diplomatic relation between both countries! Lithuania received Wilno/Vilnius in Oct. 1939 after signing agreement with Soviet Union.
Nimrod337 in reply to zerwikaptur
Hahaha zerwikaptur you're so full of contradictions. I noticed how Polish commentators here feel the need to stress that Lithuania is not important/small/backwards etc etc and how great Poland and everything about it is. Yet you care so deeply whats going on with Russian speaking people who call themselves Poles. Hilarious. Russians accuse everyone of Russophobia, Poles invent imaginary enemies and fight with them... Slavic people are full of surprises.
zerwikaptur in reply to Nimrod337
Usual Lithuanian chauvinistic approach: trying to put a wedge between Poles in Poland and Poles in Lithuania. I have already seen all of these on various threads on this forum:
- Poles in Lithuania are polonised Lithuanians
- Poles in Lithuania are polonised Belarussians
- Poles in Lithuania are polonised Russians
- Poles in Lithuania are backward, so you enlighted Poles in Poland should be ashamed of association with them
- a typical racist obsession with Slavs
Any more in the quiver? So far nothing new.
JoanaD in reply to guest-ilwwanl
Where is the logic, Lithuania in that period was fighting with bolsheviks, so how LTU and bolsheviks could cooperate? If you don't know just don't say anything, because before WWI Memel was one of the cities of Lithuania, and after Germany had occupied Lithuania, Memel was announced free city. Lithuanians get the part of their country back, because that region always belonged to Lithuania. Vilnius never belonged to Poland. Vilnius was always the heart of Lithuania and when someone took it, it hurt. So it's naturally,why Lithuanians wanted to get their capital back. That agreement with USSR was a chance to stay independent country and get your capital back, just letting USSR army to stay in your country.
gVic in reply to JoanaD
Dear JoanaD, I think that there is no need to remind us, the commentators of this topic, the basic historic facts ;). Please don't forget that authoritanian state (Voldemaras & co.) was ruled by Lithuanians itself and I see no reason to exclude this period from the time of self-governing of Lithuanian nation.
About communist period. Well, who was the members of Communist Party in Lithuania? Weren't they Lithuanians also? Of course, the dictate of Moscow is beyond any discussion here.
What I mean is that there is highest time for Lithuanian politician to admit - now we are finally stable and self-confident state and it is the time to treat Polish minority according to European standards (despite we do not like the way Lithuanian Poles act and despite many of their disadvantages - Lithuanian Poles are not spotless, for sure).
zerwikaptur in reply to JoanaD
" because before WWI Memel was one of the cities of Lithuania":
an example of living in a parallel universe as before WWI Memel was in Prussia/Germany.
"Lithuania in that period was fighting with bolsheviks, so how LTU and bolsheviks could cooperate"
in a protocol to the Lithuanian-Russian/Bolshevik traety Lithuania agrees to allow Bolshvik troops to freely move through the Lithuania's territory
JoanaD in reply to gVic
I don't know do you know Lithuania history well, but I know, and I don't see no point arguing about history anymore because it is worthless. I am Lithuania polish and I see everything what is here going on. This all discussion is because of Tomaševski and his seek to have power in Lithuania. He was against the polish school learning reform. He raised all problems between these to countries. But did he think about young generations. There is a big generation gap between him and kids. Did he know what they need? Did someone ask what they think about learning more in lithuanian language. No. He thinks he know what is best for them.
gVic in reply to JoanaD
Dear JoanaD, you are not telling the truth. Vilnius was capital of Grand Duchy of Lithuania, a huge country stretching from Baltic Sea to Crimea. Only a very small part of it was ethnically Lithuanian. Lithuanians were good warriors and they conquered neighbouring areas eastward and southward but most of inhabitans of those new lands were of Slavic origin (Ruthenians). Lithuanians were the ruling elite of the country but most of people were Slavic.
You can not derive a straight connection: Vilnius was capital of multinational Grand Duchy of Lithuania so automatically it has to be the capital of ethnical Republic of Lithuania (remember that also Belarussian used to claim Grand Duchy of Lithuania as their legacy).
As I love this city (Vilnius), imho that is good it is now capital and grow rapidly (instead of being provincional city of Poland).
But looking for the explanation that Vilnius (after WWI) should be capital of Republic of Lithuania because of Grand Duchy of Lithuania's legacy is neither fully true nor undisputable (not mentioning such complex issues like ethinicity of its inhabitans in 1910s).
gVic in reply to JoanaD
Dear JoanaD, you are citizen of Lithuanian Republic. No one force you to vote for local Polish party. If you think that any of mainstream Lithuanian party fits your outlook more or can secure your future better, vote for them. I see no problem with that.
JoanaD in reply to gVic
You right that Vilnius was capital of Grand dutchy of Lithuania, but you forget that all that dutchy was started creating in Baltic tribes territories (on these territories is still Lithuania) and Vilnius wasn't created somewhere in south or east, but in that small united Lithuania
The sad thing is that nobody cares about the facts, but everybody is listening to the one shouting the loudest. The fact is that the Lithuanian minority mostly living in the north of Poland can't even dream about reciprocal conditions that the Polish minority in Lithuania is enjoying. Writing Lithuanian names in Polish passports, being represented well on local municipalities’ level, receiving education in their mother tongue, public signs in Lithuanian, you name it. It’s about hypocrisy.
zerwikaptur in reply to Swed
Members of Lithuanian minority living in Piland can get the names in Lithunian in the Polish documents (they decide if they want to), the minority is represented on the local municipalities level, has public signs in Lithuanian, the schools with Lithuanian as the language of instruction receive 50% more money than similar schools with Polish as the language of instruction. The summary of your post is: Lithuanian chauvinistic propaganda.
http://mosthated.ueuo.com/results.php check out the results of an international survey, maybe there's something to it ? :)))
As a lithuanian, I feel that Poland and Latvia are our closest friends no matter of any contemporary disputes fuelled by politicians on both sides in order to gain some politic credits.
On the other hand, polish nationalism is quite a daunting phenomenon(the common usage of Wilno instead of Vilnius illustrates this point quite weel). We feel that Poles are trying to claim the rights on a part of our country (Vilnius region) and the direct interference in politics as well as the "Polish Cards" are probably the best example. Of course, we have our own share of it as well, but lithuania is in a very different position, we are not a 40 million country, so we feel that we have to stay tough in order to be heard and recognized.
What anoyes me is all that historic babble, that's only history it cannot be changed, its the future that we should be concerned about.
guest-ilwwanl in reply to Gedeminne
If you said Polish nationalism ...
Why in Lithuanian cities/villiges (where is 80-90 % Polish minority) official names cannot be shown in both languages ? In comparison - Poland - places with over 20 % of minority - you can use names in two languages ! Why Lithuanian minority in Poland may use original Lithuanian names/surnames as well as Lithuanian names of shops, restaurants etc ? In comparison - in Lithuania you may receive huge penalty (despite both version Lithanian and Polish are shown). Nobody would like to claim rights to Wilno/Vilnius but minority's rights must be protected as it is in Scandinavia, Hungary and other EU countries ...
ZemstaUFO in reply to Gedeminne
My god... You say Varšuva, we say Wilno - (I know your government prohibits you from seing W so you just see Ilno) is it really so hard to accept?
But if you seriously want to do this than explain to me: Why the hell Lenkija?!
KlaudijaK. in reply to ZemstaUFO
Actually Lithuanians do not care how Polish people say Wilno or Ilno. Our government does not prohibit us from seeing anything.
The only thing they do is that they try to make you, Poles, to respect Lithuania as a country and also respect Lithuanian language. If you live, stay or whatever You do in Lithuania, please, be so kind and intelligent - do not feel here as owners of Vilnius or people, who can make us to change our laws or our language.
Lithuania needs Poland. And Poland needs Lithuania.
It is just so stupid to see that Polish want to make something how they wish. You do not have government here.
It would interesting to know what signals led TE to a conclusion that PL-LT relations are "baffingly bad and getting dangerously worse". It is unless we interpret the situation of "no change" as "change to the worse" as the time is passing by.
Let us face the situation as it is. The things that Polish politicians want, can only be solved through the political voting in Seimas and no political party is prepared to do that, especially before the forthcoming elections in October. The Polish politicians' claims have no support whatsoever within the Lithuanian electorate at all (yet help get some extra votes for the more marginal groups). At the same time, there would not be a majority of opponents to the "second page" solution in the passports (i.e. getting the names in Polish or Russian characters on the second page). In my opinion, that's what we will get in the end out of all discussions when the political climate is more settled.
Ironically, on 2012.02.16. the PL president Komorowski was visiting Latvia and in his speech has praised its authorities for the "outstanding" Latvian approach to Polish minorities. http://www.prezydent.pl/aktualnosci/wydarzenia/art,2112,prezydenci-polsk...
Someone should repeat to Polish friends that Latvian approach to surnames is MORE RESTRICTIVE than Lithuanian (should Komorowski be Latvian citizen, he'd become Komorovskis, while remain Komorovski in Lithuania). So some consistency in claims would be appreciated.
As for the law on education, it will not be changed by any party that would come to power because having 2-3 subjects in Lithuanian (the rest - in Polish) at schools has nothing discriminatory or illogical in the context of the international practices of any democratic society. So the earlier the Polish politicians come to terms with that, the better it will be for their international image (unless they want the image of a "bully"). So in LT eyes, this case is closed and not to be reopened.
The restitution of property questions are more bureaucratic, and Lithuanians suffer from the same procedures. However, it is often forgotten that the local bureaucracies in Vilnius region depend on the same Polish politicians who shout aloud to collect the voices before October elections.
Just to recite TE, "none (of the disputed issues) amounts to discrimination, let alone persecution". What both parties (esp. Polish) need is some cold blood and maybe a psichologist in the form of OSCE (or other "neutral" body).
I think it would be intelligent of TE not to reopen the issue for a while so that to prevent the national pre-election media waters from boiling. I agree with Edward Lucas on his point that Lithuanian politicians should consider themselves lucky that the issue was not caught on a grand scale by the Polish media (with all the possible distortions and political side-effects).
gVic in reply to Piecemaker
It's not beaurocratic, it's basicly political. The institution that is responsible for restitution of property is controlled by government of Lithuania (so Lithuanian Poles from Vilnius region have little to say about that).
Local Polish population of Vilnius region is discriminated in terms of regaining propery rights in and around of Vilnius.
Central government introduced a law allowing ethnical Lithuanians from another parts of Lithuania to 'transfer their property rights' from their respective regions to get the rights for the land in Vilnius Region (as land around capital is the most profitable nowadays).
At the same time, Poles who lived there for generations, are still waiting for restitution of property (but there is less and less of land around Vilnius to be redistributed, as Lithuanian from other regions of Lithuania, who had nothing to common with Vilnius Region, got major part of it during recent two decades of Lithuanian independence).
zerwikaptur in reply to Piecemaker
Hello Piecemaker.
I will remind you that you did not answer my simple question from a different thread:
I will not let you off the hook concerning languages.
Earlier you stated:
"I support the idea of Vytautas V. Landsbergis junior who proposed in today's alfa.lt to have the street names if 4 different languages: Lithuanian, Polish, Ruthenian and Yiddish."
Now explain to me, why you support the 4 languages scenario in Vilnius region (including Yiddish, not really spoken there) and at at the same oppose it in Vilnius?
Piecemaker in reply to zerwikaptur
Dear zerwikaptur,
If you look closer at my post from a different thread, you will find the reply:
"As far as the multi-lingual street names in Vilnius are concerned, it can be a subject to consideration, but only after Poland re-introduces the German streetnames in Poznan, Wroclaw and Gdansk". Nothing more, nothing less and nothing personal.
I would not object to some history-related multilingualism (despite the practical difficulties it might cause in other areas outside Vilnius Old Town), but then Poland should approach it on the basis of RECIPROCITY (if it ever proceeds with claims like this).
It always keeps me amazed how some (not all, thanks God) Polish people / politicians keep throwing the stones around themselves while sitting in a palace made of glass.. (meaning its own historic sensitivities towards bigger Germany..)
zerwikaptur in reply to Piecemaker
You did not answer the question. The question was about differentiation based on geography: Vilnius are (region) vs. Vilnius city.
The existence of multilingual signs is a function of the existence of minorities and and to less extent tourism, not the past affiliation of a given territory to a different state. On basis on these two criteria Lithuania fails.
Germans in Poland, in places where they constitute a minority, have bilingual signs, so your comments about stones and glass are misdirected.
Piecemaker in reply to zerwikaptur
I think I did answer your question. If it makes you happy I am eager to make no differentiation between Vilnius city and Vilnius region (despite the practical difficulties it might sometimes cause).
The argument about having 4 historical languages on street names has nothing to do with the current presence or abscence of the minority. I say it is possible to have street-names in Yiddish in Vilnius Old Town (new districts too? :)) although there are only some elderly tourists who can speak this language on the streets today.
That's why your argument about Polish practices does not hold as long as there are no street-names in German in places like Gdansk, Szczecin, Wroclaw or Poznan. If I can remember well I did not see the German street names even in the smaller places like Opole. That's what I mean about the "stones" and "glass" - if you would like to bring credibility to such case, you should lead by the example (which Polish politicians would not proceed with because it would cause an anti-German hurricance in Polish society). Very simple - let us not set higher standards to others than we have towards ourselves.
zerwikaptur in reply to Piecemaker
You are deliberately trying to divert the issue from the rights of national minorities (as they are not respected now in Lithuania, including the bilingual names of places) to the issue of historical names in the places inhabited in the past by other nationalities.
They are two separate issues.
The first one is a matter of respect given to all citizens, irrespectively of their ethnic affiliation, the other is a nice tourist initiative.
Piecemaker in reply to zerwikaptur
I am not trying to divert the issue from national minorities towards tourism.
It is just because the Poles regard themselves as (one of, hopefully) historical minority of Vilnius city/region. That's why I do not suggest for now that one should proceed with the Chinese street-names any time soon. At the same time, I see no reason to disrespect other historical minorities who may claim a piece from the pie of Vilnius street-names (Jewish, Belorussian, etc.).
My further arguments are based on exactly the same historical logics that you resurrected from previous post: why disrespect a few percentage points of Szczecin German minority? You could at least emotionally compensate them for the expulsions of 95% Germans from their historic native lands by providing a few paultry German street-names... No big deal for loving Catholic Polish politicians, ain't it? :)
And you still did not comment why more discriminatory laws on Polish minority of Latvia are OK to Polish politics and the case of Lithuania - so complicated? Two different versions of "polskosc"? (citing Edward Lucas)
zerwikaptur in reply to Piecemaker
You are trying to divert, it has been said on this forum several times that if a minority in Poland has more than 20% of population in a given place then the bilingual naming can be introduced. If Germans in Szczecin achieve that threshold then they ask. I have no problem with that. I am happy you mentioned the population transfers after the war, the transfers being the direct result of the border changes. Border changes as result of which a Polish city of Wilno was given to a USSR and a German city of Stettin was given to a communist Poland. Poland did not decide about the border changes and lost territory as a result, unlike Lithuania in a legal form of LSRR that gained as a result.
If you want to emotionally compensate Germans, go ahead, you gained on the borders change. You can call rename Klaipeda back to Memel, for starters.
And if you refer to Catholicism I wonder why you do not apply the same to Lithuanian politics and their continuous discriminatory practices against Poles of Lithuania?
Concerning Poles in Latvia: if they are happy with what they have Poland should not intervene, respecting their will, unlike the Lithuanian government that follows the Soviet traits of knowing better what is good for a minority than the minority itself.
And then we entered into the stupid union with Poland....So dear neighbours-you kind of did occupy us and therefore don't be surprised that we "love" you so much. Unless, of course, you have some factual proof, that your ancestors lived around Vilnius pre 14th century? Then I would owe you an apology
Jay.Z in reply to Devile
First of all, you're contradicting yourself by saying 'union with Poland' and then 'occupy us'.
Secondly, had it not been for union with Poland, Baltic Lithuanian tribes would've ended up like Prussians and become extinct long time ago.
zerwikaptur in reply to Internautas
Assuming there is no union with Poland, what choices would the ruling classs of GDL had:
a) stick to paganism-> not very practical, both Teutonic Order and Poland could cooperate in eradication of the last outpost of paganism in Europe
b) accept Catholic Christianity: without a strong Catholic partner like Poland the competition against Orthodox Christianity would be difficult and probably lost, leading to assimilation with Ruthenians
c) accept Orthodox Christianity: direct assimilation into Ruthenians, faster than under b) option
ZemstaUFO in reply to Devile
U mad? You liked us, wanted to have peace with teutonic order. We asked you for a dinner, you agreed, we got married. Then war separated us. Now you complain about having gotten into the whole matter in the first place. About who screwed who and who gets the kids and house now. You act like a bitchy ex wife.
The Lithuanians should relax regarding the spelling. Restricting the “w” to “v” is not going to make the poles more integrated.
Hungarians in Romania are allowed to use letters that are not in the Romanian alphabet and they make only 6,6% of the general population.
The official site of the Romanian government (www.gov.ro) is spelling the name of “László Borbély”, the minister of environment with hungarian letters like “á, ó, é” which are not mentioned in the Romanian alphabet. Yet, no one ever complained about his spelling.
"In a coded reference to the Balkan wars in the 1990s, the OSCE’s commissioner for national minorities, Knut Vollebaek, says, “history in Europe shows that inter-ethnic tensions can spill over into problems between countries and even regions”. But he has got nowhere. Lithuanians tell him not to demand changes that the parliament won’t vote for."
Not to worry, Mr Vollebaek. Due to their legendary stubbornness and backward mentality, Lithuania will get nowhere themselves. And young generation of Lithuanians have shown middle finger to their homeland and run away for the West in large volumes. Not to say that all young LT generation is open minded, as I suppose, they can get away from Lithuania, but Lithuania won't get away from their minds... ;-)
Besides, the most funny thing to me is Lithuanians saying that Vilnius/Wilno was Polish just in the interwar period, as a result of Polish "occupation", and that the Grand Duchy of Lithuania had never been part of Poland.
So how it was possible that yet in 1916 50.2% of the city residents were Polish and just 2.6% were Lithuanian?
(link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnic_history_of_the_Vilnius_region)
Also, how it was possible for Poland to get quite large groups of GDL society polonised in earlier centuries? Polonisation in a separate country (despite the union, GDL was a separate state from Kingdom of Poland)? Then, the Poles must've invented the most successful and effective way of attracting foreigners to join the Polish family... :-)
Nimrod337 in reply to Jay.Z
Hey, thanks for all the names you called us, Mr. Forward. You forgot to mention that your own people are abandoning Poland.... or was it very, very old generation of Poles in Ireland that wanted Ireland to adopt POLISH as a national language? Lithuanians might be stubborn, but you people are the laughing stock of Europe. And give Stettin, Breslau and Danzig back to Germany. They were always German towns.
Jay.Z in reply to Paulius Kulikauskas
The info, which you provided has actually nothing to do with backward or forward mentality...
Anyway, tell me, did Poland decide on the shape of our borders delimited in 1945?
Besides, Poles don't deny the fact of German legacy on the lands, which had been part of Germany before WW2. Lithuania undertake best efforts to prove that the areas with strong Polish heritage and dominant Polish population before 1939 are nothing but "pure" Lithuanian. :-))
Is your above reply in the style of "And you are lynching Negroes" everything how you're able to respond to my comment?
DraggerPL in reply to Nimrod337
They were but were given to Poland after the war German started, in which it killed millions of our citizens. It was still not a high price to pay for starting the biggest massacre in the human history, so I DON'T think the comparison is justified...
Asnyk in reply to Nimrod337
Stettin, Breaslau, Danzig.
Were they always German?
In case if by being German you mean a part of Germany:
Germany as a state was created in 1871.
Stettin was a capital of Pomerania - a slavic state.
Breslau first was in Poland, next in Czech Kingdom.
Now Danzig:
997–1308: part of the Kingdom of Poland
1308–1454: part of the territory of the Teutonic Order
1454–1466: Thirteen Years' War
1466–1569: part of the Kingdom of Poland
1569–1793: part of Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
1793–1805: part of Prussia
1807–1814: a free city
1815–1871: part of Prussia
1871–1920: part of Imperial Germany
1920–1939: a free city
1939–1945: part of Nazi Germany
1945–1989: part of Polish People's Republic
1989–present: part of Republic of Poland
You seem to follow the logic - in the Eastern Europe the German soils is where a single German speaking person lives.
All around USSR, minorities only spoke Russian as lingua franca. Now that the landlords have changed, they have a hard time learning the language of new masters.
In fact, they are so reluctant to switch to the new language that they allied themselves with the Russians in trying to preserve the old status of Russian language and the old political status quo in some cases.
I see Poles in Lithuania are no exception to the rule.
Though I believe they should be allowed to spell their names the way they want to.
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There goes the neighbourhood
Our new Lexington worries about the consequences of uncivil politics in a civil country
See article
Readers' comments
Best comment on American Politics & Society I have heard in a long time. Great article Lexington
I'm glad Lexington felt welcome in the US but I think he should take a moment to savor that plate of cookies he got from his new neighbor and rethink his interpretation of the tone of political discourse in the US. Politics in America has always been uncivil. In my own lifetime, discourse about Nixon, Carter, Reagan, the Bushes, Clinton has been pretty much the same as it was in the present day or in Lincoln's day for that matter. Its part of the competitive, winner-take-all nature of the American spirit. It's why we prefer a more explosive version of football and why the replacement refs in the NFL were such a failure (the players sought maximum advantage). But I digress. Sharp political discourse won't make for uncivil Americans. Politics is sport in America. Give Americans credit for knowing the difference between so-called uncivil political speech and real life-- life which mostly consists of working, raising families, getting along, and lending a hand to neighbors and strangers. There's a reason the First Amendment was first. Some folks just seem upset that new media has risen up to challenge the old monopoly. Fine, go out there and start your own news channel or radio show.
atlas shrugs in reply to tbyers31
If you can actually remember discourse from the Nixon era you are quite a bit older than the median age and totally out of touch with what is going on "civility-wise" in the US. There's an extremely clear break-down of good manners that has been going on for at least 15 years, and I think that people my age (35) and younger are quite used to reading/hearing incredibly vulgar and offensive remarks from total strangers in public, on the radio, all over the internet, on TV, at work, at home, etc. But especially on the internet, where the majority of younger people spend the majority of their time.
What actually hurts most America's civility: bitter partisan politics or a widening social divide?
Clearly Lexington has been away from America for far too long. Seems like he's forgotten the last 30 years the policies that benefit those like Mr. Romney caused havoc on the economy at the expense of America's shrinking middle class. Also, the fact that American right has created it's loathing and hateful echo chamber under the guise of "fair and balanced" and "we report, you decide" has something to with lack of civility. Remember that this recession was not caused by this President but his predecessor--he who shall not be named. It takes longer than 4 years to clean up the mess the fools made, especially when the other side is as obstructionist as the GOP has been.
Poxon Yourhouse
Surely the root cause of the uncivility is Fox News and the hate it promulgates. Just as Murdoch has debased UK culture he has turned America into a nation of haters.
Maybe Americans delegate their incivility to the politicians so they can be civil to each other. Sort of like the way Canadians delegate their violence to the hockey rink.
Dear Mr. Lexington,
How one can call 'civil' a country such as America, who brought savage destruction, inhuman killings and other crimes, literally throwing back centuries worth development, in Iraq and Afghanistan?
Because of what we know now well, it was a lie from the beginning?
How can we call 'civil' a country which has 'democracy'on the agenda, only as an appendix to profit and capitalism, but rises its flag any time to cover up its human rights defying actions?
How can we call 'civil' a country where most of its citizens lives in a complete isolation of world news, their brains literally being washed by media propaganda leaving them innocent to anything else but 'American'?
Hummus5989 in reply to delftse_student
How about because none of the things you mentioned have a damn thing to do with the civility of the citizens? This sort of utterly non-responsive agenda pushing 1) does nothing to help your cause, and 2) makes you look like an asshole. Try keeping the comments on Iraq, Afghanistan and capitalism to articles on Iraq, Afghanistan and capitalism respectively.
The lack of civility is the last gasp of the Christian white middle class aging demographic asserting itself in the GOP who will stop at nothing to stop power being taken away from them.
At some point in the next 10-20 years they will hopefully become a small enough minority to count as an extreme right wing section of the GOP rather than its driving force. When this happens, civility should return with a mixture of moderate democrats and republicans voting for compromise bills again.
atlas shrugs in reply to Omricon
Laughable. By far the rudest, angriest, most abrasive people I've met in my life have been left-leaning. But there is plenty of incivility to go around. Trying to peg it on one demographic make you look ridiculous.
Omricon in reply to atlas shrugs
The right tends to be civil and polite unless you attempt to do anything outside of their cultural norm at which point they collectively turn nasty.
All are stereotypes but the demographic I refer to changed their allegiance because their blue party started legislating civil liberties. This same group of people are now in the tea party.
This is of course a typical case of the majority demographic fighting against the rest and happens globally although to be fair to the US it is far less extreme than other parts of the world and generally non violent (domestically).
You reduce the power of your retort by the way by doing the same thing to the left as you claim I do for the right.
My experience upon recently returning to my country was I was taken aback at how virolent, rude, and stuboorn people where on their political positions. I was reminded by the host of the cocktail party that any subject is fair game but politics. I begged to differ, we should be able to have a civil discussion, and should, about politics without people getting so upset (true of comment sections as well). To discourage political conversation is the worst possible outcome of an attempt to maintain civility. As for the discord, I attribute it to a sporting American mentally that lends itself to aggresively supporting your team at all cost. American politics is full of words like "win" and "fight". Such a mindset works against compromise, which is the only way forward in a Democracy. Then you have the influence of the lunatic fringe and narrowly focused special interests, spurring on their camps and churning out the propoganda, ugh. Too many American voters then spend their time supporting their positions rather than challeneging them. The world would be a better place if everyone watch Jon Stewart:) Take Care!
Some more thoughts...regarding civility, it's nice but it's not enough. How many Americans were being nice and civil to each other while slavery was tolerated in half the country? How many Germans stood by behaving civilly to one another while Jews were being murdered by the thousands? Even Nazi Party members were probably quite civil to fellow members of their "master race". In short, civility is not a substitute for having a moral backbone.
This comments section would not be complete without a reference to Yeat's worst:"The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity."
Check out Fox news for passionate intensity.
I disagree. As ugly as the politics in the US have been lately, they are less worse than in previous election years, and in that way things are better than they have been. And American civility has endured regardless of the times - whether it was Nixon's CREEP, or Atwater's raising of the spin/negativity game or even 2004's swift boating - Americans have always found a way to coexist, at least as long as politics don't get brought up.
Before I wade into the political brawl in the articles to come, I feel I should at least say hello and welcome to the states. I hope DC makes you feel welcome, especially since I don't imagine the politics will convince you to linger otherwise.
K Wilson
Warning! Warning! False equivalence alert! What is it about otherwise intelligent and reasonable journalists that compels them to make political sins appear to be equally distributed, even when there is overwhelming evidence to the contrary?
Over the past ten or twenty years, only one party in the US has become more and more extreme. Only one pasty has driven from its ranks those suspected of pragmatism or insufficient ideological rigor. Only one party has made intransigence and rejection of compromise its central strategy. Only one party has chosen to paralyze government rather than allow their opponents to possibly take credit for improving the lot of Americans. This party is NOT the Democrats.
The lack of civility in politics is only a symptom of another problem, the radicalization of the American right wing. Radicalism and civility are incompatible, and hate calls forth hate. Nothing even remotely comparable has happened recently on the left. The situation is in many respects similar to what happened to the left in the 1960s. Civility, compromise, and cooperation will not return to US politics until the Republicans come to their senses, one hopes through electoral defeat, and without 1960s-style violence.
First off, KAL has done it again!
I have to say that I don't think the parties are causing the problem, rather they are exhibiting symptoms of the problem you finger:
American culture has been built around the idea that success with hard work was more or less ensured, a fact that was true for a generation and half after WWII, and which began to erode 3 decades ago.
The country is in denial, aided and abetted by 3 decades of frothy financial gimmicks that pasted over the problems and two generations of business people who have succeeded under this regimen and who, understandably, believe in the myth.
The reality is food/housing/education/healthcare have all inflated at incredibly, and wages have been flat. In a Winner Take All society, the top few see little to complain about.
Author's experience in Europe for lack of civility is surprising, I guess America is the few there is still the concept of neighborhood.
As for party politics, what's new, we've accepted that Democrats wants everything and Republicans don't want anything, and since this is 2 parties system, the dog-fight is never going to end.
It's a little late to be worrying about leaving scars. As I said a while back, this isn't politics, this is a civil war minus the shooting. Sometimes wars are started by mutual escalation by both sides. But other times, there is a clear aggressor and a clear victim...and this is one of those times.
Maybe in the same way that wars were fought only when commanders could demonize/dehumanize the enemy such that their soldiers moral compasses could be overcome, campaigns must be waged as war by specialists who are unwilling to concede one single point of merit in the opponent.
The never-ending campaign and the bureaucracy it has engendered have
such a vested interest in winning that it is "to the death".
No more post-election collaboration and the electorate has been pulled along into this division.
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RED 2 12a classification
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Genre: Comedy / Action
Director: Dean Parisot
Running time: 116 mins
Released: 2nd August 2013
About RED 2
The extremely dangerous but not-so-retired OAPs are back for another round of ass-kicking espionage. No Custard Creams and Midsomer Murders for these folk. Frank (Bruce Willis) is trying to lead to a normal life with his girlfriend Mary (Mary-Louise Parker) after they bonded in between the gunfire and pension cheques of the first movie. When his paranoid friend Marvin (John Malkovich) confides that they are being followed, Frank is sceptical. But then Marvin's car is blown up and after the funeral, Frank is interrogated by the government. They want to know about a mission carried out in the 1970s involving a nuclear weapon. Luckily Marvin is not dead and rescues Frank. They go on the run with Sarah but find out that contract killer Han Jo-Bae (Byung-hun Lee) is after them, as well as their erstwhile ally Victoria (Helen Mirren).
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I figured Toby Wilkins would make for a fairly simple Splat
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If the name Adam Mason sounds familiar, then congratulation
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You certainly don't need me telling you how fantastic Joe
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Let's get the obvious out of the way right now, shall we?&n
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A college girl who desperately needs some income agrees to
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The first time I'd heard of Paul Solet was during a convers
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Sort of a big, comfy quilt composed of flicks like Star
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Now that the American version (the surprisingly good Qu |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43797 | Context Triggered Piecewise Hashing
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Please help to improve this article by expanding it.
Further information might be found on the discussion page.
Based on the work of Dr. Andrew Tridgell, Context Triggered Piecewise Hashing, aka Fuzzy Hashing, can match inputs that have many homologies. This means that the inputs have large sequences of bytes that are identical and in the same order. This technique was originally published at the DFRWS conference in 2006 in a paper |Identifying Almost Identical Files Using Context Triggered Piecewise Hashing.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43803 |
Tulsa police investigating stabbing
Police say they got called to the area near W. Skelly Drive and E. Jackson around 5 pm. Callers reported a man covered in blood. Initially officers could not locate the victim, but later got a call from Reed Park that reported a man covered in blood.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43825 | User avatar #219 - ThatsSoFunnyHeHe (05/30/2012) [-]
Everything I know about the zombie invasion:
Man bites mans face off (Everyone knows about this):
You need to login to view this link
Media explanation: Bath Salts, but PCP was the immediate rumor.
Very soon before that happened, water 48 miles away was shown to be contaminated:
You need to login to view this link
Media explanation: E Coli
Doctor in flordia (Not Miami, but still Flordia) spits blood on someone:
Media explaination: He was drunk
Also, another story is a little odd. A man cut off pieces of himself and threw them at people.
You need to login to view this link nes-Throws-Flesh-Police-155455985.html
Media explaination: "Bath Salts and ****** "
Also I don't have a link to prove it, but I've heard 3 Miami earth cams went down the day the mans "Face" was bitten.
Now to those who say "Zombies were made up, theres no chance they can be real", here is my explanation for that:
A more advanced version of rabies could have a kind of Zombie effect. Mindless killing machines who can infect others. The only thing is, there no way this could raise the dead from their graves, but none of these stories exactly claim that happened. Also it could make them be able to survive more pain by shutting down nerves.
#756 to #219 - 2scared2login (05/31/2012) [-]
What about this?
[url deleted]
User avatar #247 to #219 - romaniantiger (05/30/2012) [-]
I live near hackensack...
User avatar #245 to #219 - avengingthefallen ONLINE (05/30/2012) [-]
what about the woman who ate her own child?
User avatar #249 to #245 - ThatsSoFunnyHeHe (05/30/2012) [-]
Do you mean this?
Cause it's from 2009, I hardly see it relevant.
User avatar #250 to #249 - avengingthefallen ONLINE (05/30/2012) [-]
no there was something on just yesterday about it, it might have been more my local area though. i didn't pay attention to the location
User avatar #253 to #250 - ThatsSoFunnyHeHe (05/30/2012) [-]
I can't seem to find a link about it
User avatar #222 to #219 - schmuxy (05/30/2012) [-]
You forgot the one where 2 humans contracted an 'odd' form of rabies in Britain this week. It made the news because it is such a rare disease over here.
User avatar #226 to #222 - ThatsSoFunnyHeHe (05/30/2012) [-]
Oh, thanks
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43841 | "As if we really needed more proof of Square's failure since the merger."
When Final Fantasy 3 was first announced for the DS, Final Fantasy fanatics everywhere rejoiced as it marked the occasion where we would finally have all of the Final Fantasy titles on American shores. And Final Fantasy 3 promised to be a far cry from its archaic NES model in that it was not a port, but a full remake. Unfortunately, this promise fast turns to disappointment when the time comes to actually play the game.
The story --- what little of it exists, that is --- centers around Luneth and friends saving the world from the power of darkness. More specifically, the balance between light and dark has become broken thanks to the evil forces of villainy, and the power of darkness has overcome the world. The world is a flood of dark energy, and the light crystals will be under siege from the powers of darkness at every moment. In a plot event strangely similar to the original Final Fantasy for NES, the world's only hope are four seemingly teenage kids known as the Light Warriors.
It's a cheesy, prototypical Japanese RPG storyline that we've come to expect from said JRPG genre, but Final Fantasy 3 does as bad a job of moving the story along as its NES RPG counterparts. None of the events coincide with one another, characters are plopped into the world with little rhyme or consequence, and events are little more than a random non-playable character (NPC) spouting off what's going to happen next. There's no real flow to the events, and everything seems forced all the way through the game. Worse yet are that there's no real plot twists in FF3; your task is to find four crystals and save the world from the final boss, and you'd best believe that barring a couple of very pointless sidequests, your one and only role in the game will be to find four crystals and save the world from the final boss. It's an overall mockery of the excellence we've come to expect from RPG storylines.
And if the story isn't bad enough, the gameplay in Final Fantasy 3 is easily the game's big black eye. For lack of a better term, the gameplay in FF3 is a god-awful bastardization of the job system formula perfected in other Square titles such as Final Fantasy 5 and Final Fantasy Tactics. When the game begins, you start in a job class called Freelancer (unlike in the NES version, when you began as an Onion Knight), with technically means you start in no job class at all. As you progress through the game and gather the four light crystals, more and more job classes including the well-known Knight, Black Mage, White Mage, Summoner, Thief and others, and some new classes including Scholar, Sage, Devout and Warrior will all become available. Aesthetically, a job class system is always a good idea. Final Fantasy 3... pretty much does everything wrong with it.
When a character first changes into a job class, there is an adjustment period of several battles in which that character suffers weaker stats. This is meant to emulate a difficult time tuning into a job's nuances, but a character will have the job "mastered" if you will when first donning the uniform. In battle, each job has a secondary skill on top of the basic Attack command (Thief can Steal and a Summoner can Summon, for example), and in rare cases such as the Knight's Defend skill, Guard gets replaced. But unlike lateral job systems in other games, there is no option to learn abilities in your own order or to even learn abilities at all --- there are none to learn. What you see at Job Level 1 is what you get at Job Level 99. No more, no less.
Speaking of job levels, this is another travesty that FF3 does incorrectly with the job system. To increase a job level, a character must perform six actions in battle. Given that battles in FF3 rarely if ever last past one or two rounds of attacks, you have to put a conscious effort to take extra actions in battle in order to gain job levels. Because jobs are typically weak as hell at low levels, you'll need to do this to make your chosen jobs effective. But because enemies in FF3 are usually difficult to fight (because of graphical limitations, Square put in less enemies for random battle formations, but made them much stronger than they were in the NES version of FF3), this puts your party at risk an forces you to level jobs against lowlife enemies and get little to no reward for it. The same holds true for money and experience, as you get little of either in random fights. This would be a welcome addition if the economy of FF3 made sense, but it doesn't. Items cost about what they do in your average RPG. And because enemies are so difficult in this game, you'll want to be leveled well to fight them, but this takes ages to accomplish.
Long story short, it takes forever for your party to be effective in Final Fantasy 3. Grinding will become a regular part of your routine in this game, and if you choose not to partake, you'll find yourself stuck at many a boss with many a useless job class. An increase in job level might only cause your character to do a little more magic damage or a little more physical damage via an extra hit or two, but it all adds up over time. In our gaming culture of doing everything quickly and having fun while doing it, Final Fantasy 3's battle and job systems manage to be neither quick nor fun.
A small saving grace comes in the dungeons. They're breathtaking to look at, and you can really tell that Square put a lot of effort into making the overall landscape of FF3 look nice. If this same effort were put into the gameplay or story, the game might be worth playing. A similar complaint can be made about the music, which is passable overall but finds itself playing out much like the gameplay: flashes of being good, but boring and uninspired most of the time. The tracks are very short, which makes the looping very noticeable, and very few tracks in the game meet the standard set by Square themselves in other soundtracks that they themselves produced. Final Fantasy 3's soundtrack is a far cry from Final Fantasy 7 or Tactics, or to compare FF3's soundtrack to one closer to its technological level, it doesn't even match such soundtracks as Final Fantasy 4 or Final Fantasy 6.
But in typical Final Fantasy fashion, it ruins the one thing it does right. The dungeons are done well and manage not to be tedious for most of the game, but Square sought fit to put no save points in this game. None. This means that if you die near the end of the final dungeon (which is unbelievably long and obnoxious), you're stuck starting over from the beginning of it. The best you can do is get all the treasure prior to the point of no return, then leave and save before the final push to beat the game. But everything before that final push is only around 60% of the final dungeon. If you die repeatedly while trying to beat the game, you're stuck doing one of two things: cursing yourself for playing Final Fantasy 3 in the first place (which isn't a bad idea by any means) or powerleveling some more until you're strong enough to win. Given that most of FF3's gameplay consists of grinding, this won't be a new task. In fact, you should be used to it by then.
And if all this weren't bad enough, one cannot experience all of Final Fantasy 3 without going through the horrendous Wifi online system that Nintendo has on the DS. In a way, FF3 is brilliant in that it shows off the worst of Nintendo and Squaresoft at the exact same time. To get the best job class in the game, you have to hook the DS up online and fight with Wifi for awhile. Same thing if you want to fight the optional super boss. One of these days, Nintendo and their fans will wake up and realize that Nintendo's current method of online needs a dramatic overhaul. It's not like Xbox Live isn't giving all of gaming a perfect example of how to do it right or anything...
Final Fantasy 3, much like most everything else Square has put out since the Enix merger, is a vast disappointment. Not that this is all too big a surprise given how bad the NES version of FF3 is. You can put all the makeup you want on a pig, but it's still a pig; a filthy animal that enjoys crawling around in its own feces and sucking down mud for lunch. But that's what FF3DS is: a filthy bastardization that can't compete with the brilliant RPGs of Square's past. And with each passing disappointment that Square releases, their glory days of the late 1990s grows farther and farther away. Before long, we'll forget that they used to be the best company in gaming.
Reviewer's Score: 3/10 | Originally Posted: 08/06/07, Updated 01/19/10
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43851 | NASCAR 08 Review
NASCAR 08 is a decent racer, but it feels like a classic example of a game where the developer put in limited effort because of the lack of competition.
NASCAR 08's box touts the fact that EA's NASCAR series is the number one selling NASCAR franchise. Nowhere on the packaging does it tell you that it's the top-selling franchise because it's the only NASCAR franchise. However, the fact that there's no competition is made apparent as soon as you play. It's extremely light on features, online play is lacking, and its visuals do little to take advantage of the power of the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3. NASCAR 08 is a competent racing game, but you can't shake the feeling that it would have been a whole lot better if there had been a competing NASCAR game out there.
NASCAR 08 features a solid number of tracks and almost every driver you'd want. The only major driver who's missing is Carl Edwards, but there are some notable track omissions, including Mexico City and Montreal. You can race a full, half, short, or custom season in the Nextel, National (Busch), or Craftsman truck series. You can race a season in the Car Of Tomorrow--but it's just one and done--there's no career mode.
The cars show a lot of damage.
Instead, there's a new mode called the chase. You start the chase as an unknown driver and your goal is to earn a contract by completing license tests. Each license is separated by track type. There's a license for super speedway, speedway, Car Of Tomorrow short track, Car Of Tomorrow speedway, Car Of Tomorrow road course, and Car Of Tomorrow super speedway. To earn a license you must complete 10 tasks, which teach you the basics of NASCAR racing. You'll learn how to draft, slingshot, and avoid wrecks, follow racing lines, as well as how to maintain your speed through difficult turns. The game uses some handy visual aids that show a car's draft and the optimal line around the track, so it feels very friendly to beginners. Once you've completed a license, you'll be offered a two-race contract with a racing team, and if you fulfill that contract, you can then race a season with that team's car. The chase is certainly a good way to introduce the sport to newcomers, and it's nice not to have to race through all of the lower-tier circuits as in previous years, but it's still no substitute for a proper career mode.
It's a good thing the chase is such a good teaching tool because actual races can be quite challenging--for both good and bad reasons. One area where NASCAR video games differ from most racing games is that one small mistake can mean the difference between finishing first and finishing last, even if you have damage turned off. This makes every lap important and maintains the intensity of the races. Never has the ability to be perfect been more important than in NASCAR 08. The game is best played with a steering wheel because the default controls are extremely touchy, making it nearly impossible to race in a pack. If you don't have a steering wheel, you can adjust the linearity and responsiveness of the controls to make them more forgiving. This makes the game much more playable. You can also use the Sixaxis' motion controls to steer. This works OK, but isn't a substitute for a wheel.
Unfortunately, there's nothing you can do about the game's artificial intelligence, which is quite poor. Drivers don't seem to have personality as they did in previous games, but they do all seem hell bent on wrecking you. Depending on which course you're on, opposing drivers will just as soon run into the back of your car as they will pass you. This isn't bump drafting either. They'll do it when they're clearly the faster car, they'll do it in turns, and they'll do it when you're racing three wide. They say "rubbing is racing," but when it routinely costs you the race, it gets pretty frustrating, especially when the CPU doesn't seem to wreck very often.
Once you've come to grips with the controls and have gotten used to the CPU's "love taps," there's a solid racing game to be found. Races are generally close and though some may dismiss NASCAR as "just turning left," you can really feel the difference from one track to the next, so it pays to practice. If you do make it into victory lane, you can choose to celebrate by tearing up the infield and doing doughnuts on the track. That never gets old. There's also a fair amount of tweaking you can do to squeeze the most performance out of your ride. You can even share setups online, but these adjustments are mostly optional, though they are beneficial against tough competition. It's too bad that the ability to customize your car's looks isn't as deep as your ability to customize its performance. You can choose from a handful of different paint schemes and colors, but once again, you can't pick a number under 100 or create custom designs.
One area that really should have benefited from the move of one generation of consoles to the next is online play, but that didn't happen. There are leaderboards, but there are no leagues. You can race against up to 11 other players on the Xbox 360, but we were unable to connect with another player on the PlayStation 3. Should you connect with another player on either system, you'll find that it's rare to find a full field and that it seems to take a very long time to start a race. Eventually you'll get to actually race, which is a good thing, because the racing is solid and lag isn't a huge problem. One small issue from the offline mode, which is exacerbated during multiplayer because of the tendency to wreck more often, occurs when the game waves the yellow flag before wrecks are actually finished. This means that unless a wreck occurs right in front of you, you won't have to deal with trying to weave in and out of it, which is kind of fun. More importantly, it means that you never get to pass the wreck, and as a result, you'll be behind the people who just wrecked during the following restart.
GPS isn't needed; you probably want to turn left.
The other area where you'd expect NASCAR 08 to really take advantage of the Xbox 360 and PS3 hardware is its visuals. But that didn't really happen either. The frame rate is nice and smooth, with day turning to night during some races. The smoke and dirt effects are also pretty good, but mostly everything else is underwhelming. The tracks look decent but come off as rather bland, and they don't look much better than they did on the last generation. There's quite a bit of aliasing on both the tracks and cars. Cars look OK, especially when you can check out all 43 of them in line during a restart, but you rarely get to enjoy them much. Car damage looks nice during replays where you can really watch the cars fall to pieces, but because every little bump causes your car to suddenly show damage, it doesn't look very realistic when you're racing. The audio isn't much different from before. The cars sound great, while your crew chief does an adequate job, even if he sounds bored and routinely falls behind the action.
NASCAR 08 isn't a bad game; in fact, it's fun once you get the hang of it. Its biggest problem is that it's not noticeably better than last year's game and there aren't any compelling new features. If really want a NASCAR game and it has to be on the PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360, then NASCAR 08 is worth a look because, quite frankly, it's your only choice. But if you own any NASCAR game from the past few years, you might as well stick with that one.
The Good
The chase is a nice way of introducing players to the sport
Plenty of tracks and drivers
Races are intense
The Bad
No career mode
Default controls are incredibly finicky
Driver AI is poor
Very limited visual customization options for cars
Online options are limited
About GameSpot's Reviews
Other Platform Reviews for NASCAR 08
About the Author |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43870 | The Basic Programming wiki last edited by bhtav on 03/20/13 09:06PM View full history
Up to nine lines of programming code could be entered in a basic-esque programming language, using both of the Atari 2600 keypad controllers. Due to a 64 character limitation, and the Atari's own RAM size, only extremely simple programs could be written and executed. Intended as a learning tool, Basic Programming was not intended for serious programming, indeed, there is no way to permanently store a program once written, as the Atari lacks recordable media.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43873 | No recent wiki edits to this page.
One Piece Unlimited Cruise 1, for Nintendo Wii was delayed in the west a long time due to legal issues at the intended time of release with 4Kids Entertainment. Once they were no longer in control of the rights the game was set for release in the west late June 2009.
The game features the One Piece crew, fully up to date with the manga as of just after the Thriller Bark story ark ( Brook is on the crew from the beginning of the game) and features a new story written specifically for the game by Eichiro Oda the series creator. The game is a third person action/adventure and features a variety of characters, nine playable in total, Luffy, Zoro, Chopper, Sanji, Nami, Nico Robin, Brook, Franky and Usopp, as well as a character specific to the game (who is not playable) Gaabri.
The game sees the player controlling the crew of the Sunny Go pirate ship adventuring on four mystery islands, all of which contain plants that must be sought out and provide treasures when beaten, each plant spawns a copy of one of the crews previous enemies, from Bartholemew Kuma to Captain Kuro they are all present and accounted for, although some of them are secret.
During gameplay, players can collect a significant amount of items, from mineral ore, to bugs, fruit, sticks and blocks of stone, with which the players can create items for their own use, or repair existing items. The main creations include cooking food items, making weapons or repairing storyline specific items, and making medical equipment. In addition to this, Franky can build bridges, or remove other obstacles if you give him enough materials, and some materials/items must be sacrificed in order to unlock new areas through the storyline.
The Islands
The game features 4 islands, all of which contain many hidden areas as well as a main storyline path, most islands contain a sub-boss and a boss, as well as at least 2 areas in which the player is trapped until he defeats a large number of foes.
Island One
Island one is a golden beach paradise, filled with palm trees, fishing spots, white rocks and other delights. While the in-land sections feature forests, glades and other areas high in vegetation. This island has Bartholemew Kuma as its sub-boss, and God Eneru as its main boss. Items found on the island include bamboo, various herbs and leaves, several types of fish and some animals. Weaker enemies populate this island as it is the first island, it is also the shortest. It also holds several hidden areas only accessible once players obtain other items along the storyline (such as the vacuum cleaner, pickaxe and others) there is at least one hidden boss on this island.
Survival Mode
The game also features a Survival Mode (unlockable) that pits the player against hordes of enemies, survival mode contains 50 rounds against increasingly powerful enemies and features a reward upon completion (A new special attack for Nami, Usopp, Robin and Brook)
Versus Mode
In addition to single player, the game also features a Versus mode, the plays like a fighting game. Players pick characters and fight against each other, it supports up to 2 players.
All of the main playable characters are available to play as, in addition to several of the boss characters from the main game being unlockable extras, playable only in versus mode.
Those characters are as follows, Admiral Aokiji, the Merman Pirate Arlong, Calgara, God Eneru, Don Krieg, Batholemew Kuma, Captain Kuro, Enraged Chopper, Moria, Nightmare Luffy, Spandam and Lord Wapol.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43874 | New quests I would like to see
Hello again all,
Having completed over half the quest sets currently available on the site, I am looking toward the future and that means more quests needed! So I have some vague ideas where I would like to see the quests system get more involved on the site. (Not that my lone opinion matters much haha!)
1) Video quests: I liked the newest quest set that rewarded users for viewing what this site most prominently features, videos. I think that going more into depth with this will not only get people to watch more videos that they might not have normally clicked on, but videos are also the most production intensive thing on the site. Having people watch them more would (in my opinion) be more rewarding for the crew as well.
2) Review quests: Get members to search for reviews! Especially for games that the crew might feel are under-appreciated by the general public. Who knows, maybe it will give that title the sales boost it needs to bring about that greatly improved sequel that pushed the franchise forward. (This is more wishful thinking then anything)
3) Achievement quests: I know there is already a quest set for S-ranking games and such, but this could get more specific, or be as broad as to be defined by genre.
These are just some ideas I had while trying to pass the time at work. Fell free to let me have it in the comments!!
Quests got me to start adding to the wiki
So I have been a follower of for quite a while now, but it was not until recently that I have contributed to the site by adding to the wiki. All of my wrong guesses for answers to the new quests bring me to entries on the site that have little or no information. Now I'm not claiming that I am a know it all when it comes to videogames, an enthusiast at best, but there is a wealth of knowledge out there on other sites and I can see the value of adding that information here as well. I mean, why use Google to find the info when it can all be found right here?
When that information is moved onto here I try to take the ideas present in the writing and put it in my own words on here, leaving facts just as they are. How about others? Do you just copy/paste info from other sites to fill the wiki? Or is there research put into the entry, and a unique thought put into the information provided? |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43875 | mikelemmer's Wizorb (PC) review
Mistaken for Lost NES Classic
Download Size: 250 MB
Time Played: 3.7 hrs.
Number of Stages: 68+
Average Number of Lives: 13
What I'd Pay: $7
Steam Price (3/20/12): $3
Here's something fun to do with Wizorb: boot it up and wait for someone to walk by. When they ask what you're playing, say you're playing a rare old game on an NES emulator. See if they can tell that you're BSing them. Not only did the creators nail the NES look & sound (while giving it very responsive mouse controls), but they also made an Arkanoid clone that is, in my opinion, second only to Shatter.
Slimes are mandatory in these games.
In Wizorb, you use a bouncing magic orb and a ricochet wand to destroy enemies and break blocks. If the orb flies past your wand into the bottom of the screen, you lose a life. Once you destroy every enemy and block on a stage, you advance to the next one. The longer the ball's in play, the faster it moves and the harder it gets to keep it out of the hole. Luckily, you have several spells and powerups to keep it in play or destroy stubborn blocks. The spells require MP, the powerups require money; you get both from powerups dropped by blocks, but there's also curses lurking in the blocks that can steal gold, magic, slow you down or kill you outright. In addition, there's bosses, side paths, a destroyed town that needs some large donations to rebuild, and even multiple endings; it's quite involved for an Arkanoid clone.
It's the spells that make the game; you have 5 different spells you can use, but they all share the same mana pool. Sure, you can spend a third of it to turn your orb into a Fireball that plows through blocks for a few seconds, but will that prevent you from casting a Wind spell to save it from the pit later? Learning when to use them is just as important as nailing the ball's rebound angle, and provided just enough variety to keep me playing until the end.
Wait, did I step into a game of Monster Party?
The levels also have just enough variance in feel, graphics, and music not to get old (unless you get stuck on one of them). Only 1 level had poor music, and it was more than made up for by the creeply look & sounds of the next level. I have to give special props to the bosses as well; each one had attacks and defenses that weren't too different from the rest of the game, but still required a bit of thought to beat. I was honestly enthusiastic about facing each new boss, rather than wary about a complete change in how the game's played for one fight.
Porting this game to PC has given it such tight & smooth mouse controls that I couldn't bear playing it on the Xbox now. It's an easy thing, but it's very appreciated and almost mandatory for a game like this. (I once tried to play Shatter on a moderately-low framerate computer; it didn't end well.) It never felt like it was the game's fault I died.
The other parts of the game, like the town rebuilding and the side paths, are lackluster, but the core gameplay's so good I really didn't care. At least they give you a reason to replay some of the older levels and see if you can do better on them.
Is this review a bit short? Perhaps, but Wizorb is a short, well-made game that packs in a lot of retro goodness for a small price. If you have any fondness for Arkanoid, pick this up.
Other reviews for Wizorb (PC)
A Respectable Nod to Breakout 0
There have been a lot of games based on the classic Breakout over the years, but not many manage to do something as charming with the formula as Wizorb. Available on Steam for £2/$3 and consisting of 65 different levels, Wizorb takes the Breakout framework and uses it as the basis for a unique love letter to retro fantasy RPGs.The classic Breakout gameplay is still plenty of fun.A lot of the enjoyment that can be found in Wizorb comes from the fact that Breakout is just a fun game to begin with;...
0 out of 0 found this review helpful.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43888 | Makeup Tips for the Beauty School Dropout
If previous experiences at the makeup counter left you frustrated, confused, and feeling anything but beautiful, you're not alone. Never fear, even a makeup novice can conquer cosmetics. Use these basic tips from Carl Ray, makeup artist for Michelle Obama, and celebrity makeup artist Jeffrey Fetzer (whose clients include Madonna and Michelle Pfeiffer) to navigate the world of cosmetology like a pro.
By JuJu Kim
Step 7: Eyeliner
Red liners may be trendy, says Ray, but black or dark brown shades flatter most women.
Restart Slideshow
More on Makeup |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43889 | Group Thank You Notes
By Peggy Post
By Philip Friedman/Studio D
Special Offers
Several of my coworkers pooled their money and bought a beautiful rocker for my baby shower. Should I write to each of them, or will one thank-you card suffice?
If several means only three or four people, the answer is yes, you should make the effort to write to each colleague. But if it is closer to 10, it's more realistic (especially for a busy new mom) to send only one note to the group. Make it warm and enthusiastic, and be sure to mention everyone by name.
This Is A Developing Story
Latest Stories
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43903 | Anne Fadiman > Quotes > Quote > Lanette liked it
Anne Fadiman
“It has long been my belief that everyone's library contains an Odd Shelf. On this shelf rests a small, mysterious completely unrelated to the rest of the library, yet which, upon closer inspection, reveals a good deal about its owner.”
Anne Fadiman, Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43924 | Cherry O Cream Cheese Pie Recipes
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43937 | Text size
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The 3,000 motorcyclists who registered as Likud members were quick to realize where the real money is. Overnight, they became the most influential pressure group in the country after their move put an end to years-long governmental foot-dragging on lowering their insurance fees.
Irrespective of whether they are right or wrong, their mobilization has created a new political phenomenon in Israel, which is the modern-day equivalent of Mapai's "red book." Once the Histadrut labor federation membership certificate, the so-called "red book" was, back in the day, a person's key to getting a job. And in Benjamin Netanyahu's revered free market, this is the new, barely conspicuous "blue book." It is the ultimate proof that Likud has become a natural party of government, where it will clearly remain for a long time.
Like the "red book," the "blue book" is a typically Israeli phenomenon, and a key element in understanding Israeli society and its economy. Because today, just like in the merry old days of Mapai, the higher echelons of the civil service all own one; they are associates and cronies, instead of professional civil servants who should be committed to nobody except the people. On some occasions the "blue book" holder has a beard and tzitziot, on others a Russian accent. One way or another, the "blue book" is as effective as its predecessor. And it shapes the new political reality against which hundreds of thousands of formerly privileged people protested last summer, after their parents' "red book" expired.
Like the signs at French level crossings saying that "every train may hide another," it hides another element, which is much more dangerous for democracy. The Israeli public will likely remain unaware of it until it emerges and runs it over, together with its increasingly eroded civilian agenda. That element is the recruitment process, and more precisely, member recruiters themselves. Who, other than politicos, knows these shabby and skillful people? Who knows who they work for, or against? Who knows how many Likud or Labor voters they recruited for Kadima, and vice versa? Who truly knows his or her way around the complex rules that allow them to approach everybody - left, right or center - and close deals in party primary, Histadrut or municipal elections? Who is aware of the pressure groups they bring into party politics?
Over the past years, party membership has become an exercise with a tenuous relation to ideology. It applies mostly, but not only, to parties of government. The recruiters have created an independent executive committee which looks after the interests of pressure groups. Just recently, the revelation of the extent of lobbyist intervention in Israeli legislation led to an uproar. But who needs lobbyists when you have 3,000 party members?
To the motorcyclists' credit, it must be said that they acted in the most transparent way, and only when they became party members they disappeared from the public eye. But that's hardly their fault - they only sought to secure their interests in an increasingly ruthless political landscape. The true culprits are the political parties: They have long since blurred the ideological differences between them and become impresarios. And like an impresario in showbiz, whose clout grows with every famous performer he signs up, so are the parties becoming more influential with every new member. And like an impresario, they pamper their clients with work and benefits.
These are the underlying currents of Israeli politics, which have nothing to do with ideology or leadership. Abandoned by a deficient political culture, its sole driving force is the anonymous party member recruiter, holding a blue book. |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43952 | like .ghci for ghc?
Christopher Milton
Sat, 8 Dec 2001 11:32:17 -0800 (PST)
--- Hal Daume III <[email protected]> wrote:
> I've read through most of the ghc docs, but haven't found anything like
> this. Almost all of my programs require -fglasgow-exts -package data
Use a Makefile?
Chris Milton
Itinerant Perl/Haskell/Linguistics Hacker
Professional Web Applications Developer
Do You Yahoo!?
Send your FREE holiday greetings online! |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43959 | New Posts All Forums:Forum Nav:
Fake IE8 - Page 10
post #136 of 149
Well I stopped payment via paypal, the lesson learned is you get what you pay for. And I hope my pictures and experience help others.
Now I’m wondering about my Chinese Doctor of Dental Surgery Degree I got online this weekend is real. I got 80% of the ten questions correct! Well I better email them before I start my practice next week.
Thanks alll
Zipur, DDS.
post #137 of 149
rofl china have fakes for all the earphones now xD
post #138 of 149
I just got my IE8 from and I took some pictures. I wonder if they are genuine. sorry for my bad iphone 4 camera
post #139 of 149
I was considering buying a pair of these, until a deal seemed too good to be true. It seems that there are so many fake versions of these nowadays that I'd be suprised if there was a real set for less than retail price - The only two places I'd trust buying these from now are Amazon or the official Sennheiser website. frown.gif
post #140 of 149
@Butter123 - Can you see the red chip wire in the right see-through part of the iem? (hard to tell from the pictures)
I think the the easiest way of telling if they are fake or not is the sound - Do they sound fake? Is the sound impressive or just..meh?
With the quality of the copying by Asian manufacturers etc it's hard to tell the difference without hearing the real deal frown.gif
post #141 of 149
yes, it is red around the solder joint where the rubber and the connector joint meets in the right ear connector, well, as for the sound, I haven't burn them in yet. Overall its sound pretty good, but not impressed because I have other high end earphones. The reason why I am asking you guys is because the genuine "R" is suppose to be angled, is my "R" angled enough to be the real deal? As for the soundstage, is around 20% better than my Superfi 5. But not nearly as good as the IE7 or the TF10. Still burning them. As for the bass, at the lowest setting, it seems to have less punch than the IE7 and TF10, but is very detailed and defined. Hopefully I got a deal on this because I only pay $180 for them.
post #142 of 149
I will get back on you guys once the burn in is done. As of now, they seems to be the real deal from $180 shipped IE8 is almost a steal imo.
post #143 of 149
Can't you just email Sennheiser your serial # and ask them if they are genuine?
post #144 of 149
Originally Posted by mahc1234 View Post
rofl china have fakes for all the earphones now xD
not armature based drivers.
post #145 of 149
I honestly thought mine were fake, until I burned them in a few days. What a difference. But seriously, out of the box, they sounded like marshmallows were on each end.
post #146 of 149
I purchased my IE8s from Minidisc and they're about 1 year and 6 months old now. I recently noticed that some signs of age are showing.
1) That "grainy" coating on the IE8 has wore off on the corner.
2) The plug's silver coating has wore off to reveal a copper (?) colour.
Is this normal for real IE8s?
(Plug losing silver coating)
(Both corners have lost that grainy glittery coating)
(Are the letters "slanted" correctly?)
(Picture of the box)
(Overly polished?)
post #147 of 149
Lol at Riemann sums above^ doing the same in school right now.
BUT, more importantly, I also need to know about a pair of IE8's I've spotted. The person is selling for 180$ canadian, slightly used, so it is a very realistic price. I will meet him in person so that helps things a bit. He sent me some pictures, but they are not very clear to me and was wondering if someone here can help me judge if it's in fact legit or not.
Kiiji Sennheiser IE 8 earphones.jpgSennheiser IE 8 earphones.jpgKijiji Sennhiser IE 8 earphones.jpg
post #148 of 149
There's a pair of these going for $76 on ebay right now.
Am I correct in assuming this is one of those to good to be true moments?
post #149 of 149
Help...... can somebody tell me is this IE80 real/fake staying in singapore normal Retail Price is around 490-590 But this guy is selling at 220 Link Here
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/43993 | Home Brew Forums
Home Brew Forums (http://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum.php)
- - Yeast starter vid (http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f14/yeast-starter-vid-90904/)
nukebrewer 11-30-2008 03:49 AM
Yeast starter vid
This will probably be pretty boring to most, but this has to be the coolest thing that doesn't taste good I've seen since I started brewing. This is my first starter, BTW, which I'll be using tomorrow for my IIPA. It's pretty dark, but if you wait until almost the end, you'll see a big glob shoot almost to the top.
FreakinA 11-30-2008 04:27 AM
Do you have any lights in your house?
nukebrewer 11-30-2008 04:39 AM
Yeah, why? Lol, just kidding, I know it's dark, my camera's a POS, but it looked better when I watched it before posting.
Brew-boy 11-30-2008 02:18 PM
Thought I was watching a black and white movie where they forgot the white....lol
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44024 | Re: Inerrancy and writing style
From: Randy Leedy (
Date: Tue Feb 18 1997 - 16:58:41 EST
Eric Weiss wrote:
>>>Okay ... <snip> WHERE in the Bible does "the Bible...clearly
claim" to be "free of error"? I'm taking your words literally - where
does "the Bible" - not individual books or epistles or individual
authors or specific statements or passages - where does THE BIBLE
claim this for itself? <snip>
Since we're leaving grammar and getting into theology, I'll try to be
brief. I doubt that I will be able to answer your question to your
satisfaction, since I can't accept the distinction you're making
between "the Bible" and its component parts. Many statements of
Scripture express complete confidence in God's Word as a whole. I
started to list a few, then I realized that to do so would simply be
to invite further theological debate on their interpretation, debate
that would not be grammatical in nature.
The whole tenor of Scripture writers is to trust implicitly all
previously written Scripture. I have never found a hint of distrust
or rejection of any OT passage on the part of NT writers. Rather, any
statement of Scripture that bears on a question at issue is always
taken as the final authority settling that issue. The kinds of
statements made by today's "errantists" are unthinkable from the pen
of a Peter or a Paul or from the mouth of Jesus.
God doesn't have to spell out everything for us, does He? Isn't there
such a thing as literature? Doesn't literature sometimes SHOW the
reader something rather than just TELL him so? Isn't the Bible
literature? And doesn't the example of every positive Bible character
SHOW us that the Scripture is to be taken as errorless?
I know there will be calls to desist from this thread (I get only the
digests, so I haven't seen them yet), and I agree with them. I don't
even want to carry on this debate privately if it is to be an
argumentative exchange. There is plenty in print, on both sides of
the issue, to guide the honest inquirer. Let us have recourse to our
books and to a sincere submission to God and, in this forum, keep to
our stated purposes.
In Love to God and Neighbor,
Randy Leedy
Bob Jones University
Greenville, SC
|
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44025 | RE: a good greek bible
From: David Housholder (
Date: Tue Oct 19 1999 - 18:14:45 EDT
<x-flowed>At 08:28 AM 10/19/1999 -0500, you wrote:
>Does this mean you don't carry your Liddell & Scott's lexicon (my lexicon
>of choice) around wherever you go?
I criticized the developers of QuickVerse 5 because they included Liddell
and Scott in their Greek NT package. I was under the impression that L & S
focused more on classical Greek and so missed out on the specific NT
vocabulary and meanings. Did I miss understanding the real value of L & S?
>I have all six editions of the UBS texts (1, 2, 3, 3c, 4, & 4.2) as well
>as a dozen or more editions of the Nestle/Nestle-Aland texts sitting on my
>shelves next to my desk (that is not counting other editions).
I don't share with you the size of the collection (hmmm, let me count;
there are six Greek NT's on my shelf. Actually eight if you allow an
interlinear and Perschbacher's _Refresh Your Greek_. The big problem is
that they are doing just what you described most of the time -- sitting on
a shelf.
Hypothesis: I can remain a rusty in NT Greek with ONE Greek NT sitting on
my shelf as I can with SIX Greek NT's sitting on my shelf.
So my current tool to challenge the cobwebs is the Daily Passage built into
QuickVerse 6. I have selected several New Testament books, chosen the Greek
NT as the version, set my reading plan as a one year plan, and thus
prepared a tool that reminds me every day to read the 12 to 15 verses
assigned for the day. When I open QuickVerse and choose the Daily Passage I
see the calendar and the passage assigned for the day. If I click on that
passage it is displayed in its own window. I can then check it off as read.
It's gentle nagging, but it helps :-)
David Housholder
B-Greek home page:
You are currently subscribed to b-greek as: []
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44044 | Vigan Shopping
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Top 10 Things To Do in Vigan
#1 Antique shopping
3 of 5 stars
The antique and souvenir shops are all clustered along Crisologo St, and the old roads which cross it. There are far too many upmarket souvenir shops for the current state…Read More
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44045 | Tenino Zoos and Aquariums
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#1 Wolf Haven International
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A short drive from Olympia will find you nearing Tenino and an amazing group of both people and wolves. Started in 1982 as a non-profit Wolf Haven is a sanctuary for…Read More
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44051 | Damn, damn, damn James
Dickie shorts and Lincoln's clean, leaning checking out the scene
Gangsta boys bligga's lit, riding out talking shit
Nigga where you wanna go, you know the club don't close til four
Let's party til we can't no more, watch out here come the folks
[Andre 3000]
As the plot thickens it gives me the dickens
Reminiscent of Charles, a lil' disco-tech nestled in the ghettos
Of niggaville, USA via Atlanta, Georgia, a lil' spot where
Young men and young women go to experience they first lil'
Taste of nightlife, me? well, I've never been there, well perhaps once
But I was so engulfed in the "E"
I never made it to the door you speak of hard core
While the D.J sweating out all the problems and troubles of the day
While this fine bow-legged girl fine as all outdoors
Lulls lukewarm lullabies in your left ear
Competing with "set it off" in the right
But it all blends perfectly, let the liquor tell it
"Hey, hey look baby, they playin' our song"
And the crowd goes wild as if holyfield has just won the fight
But in actuality it's only about 3 am
And three niggas just done got hauled off in the ambulance (sliced up)
Two niggas done start bustin' (wham, wham)
And one nigga done took his shirt off talkin' bout
"Now who else wanna fuck with Hollywood cold?"
It's just my interpretation of the situation
[Big Boi]
When I first met my spottieottiedopaliscious angel
I can remember that damn thing like yesterday
Smooth like a hot comb on nappy ass hair
I walked up on her and was almost paralyzed
Eyes beaming like four carats apiece just blinding a nigga
Felt like I chiefed a whole "O" of that presidential
My heart was beating so damn fast
Never knowing this moment would bring another life into this world
Funny how shit come together sometimes (ya dig)
One moment you frequent the booty clubs and the next four years
You and somebody's daughter rising y'all own young'n
Now that's a beautiful thing, that's if you're on top of your game
And man enough to handle real life situations (that is)
Can't gamble feeding baby on that dope money
Might not always be sufficient, but the united parcel service
Go and marinate on that for a minute
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44072 | 07:41 PM
Steve Wylie
Steve Wylie
Connect Directly
Repost This
Ex-Googlers Launch Cuil - Does it Stack Up Against Google Search?
Today a group of ex-Google employees launched Cuil, a new competitor to Google Search. So what's cool about Cuil and do we need another search engine? How do the services compare? Here's what Cuil has to say about that:
"The Internet has grown exponentially in the last fifteen years but search engines have not kept upuntil now. Cuil searches more pages on the Web than anyone elsethree times as many as Google and ten times as many as Microsoft.
I did some comparison searches on Google and Cuil to get a sense for how the services are different. Both offered up more results than I could possibly ever use but the key to search is relevance - how good is the search engine at getting to the information that I will find useful? I did not see a huge difference in the results I got from each but figuring out exactly which is the better search engine will take more time (and a more scientific study by someone else) to determine. In the meantime, I noted some other interesting differences between the two services:
• Typos: Cuil didn't offer suggested spellings when I intentionally misspelled "Microsft" while Google offered up "Did you mean: microsoft". Cuil did highlight my misspelled word but it did little to offer up help. It simply gave me the search results on my misspelled word which is not ideal.
• Content Filtering: Both Google and Cuil offer search filtering for possible objectionable material.
• Page layout: Cuil's interface is a little easier on the eye, offering up a longer description for each search result thanks to the 2 or 3 columns results layout. Cuil also includes an image where available.
• Google offers extensive language support. If you go to the Google preferences you can select from over 40 languages for both the search page and information you're searching. I didn't find that on Cuil.
• Subscriber Links: Google offers something called "Subscribed Links" which allows you to tell Google if you have sources you'd like included in your search results. No such feature on Cuil.
• Advanced Search: Google offers an "Advanced Search" option in its preferences which allows the user to be more granular in exactly what or what not to look for in the search. I did not find this option on Cuil.
But the most important difference I saw between the two services was that the Google site stayed up. I know Cuil is new and hot and probably getting inundated with traffic, but having persistent outages is a non-starter for me. Not that Google has been immune to outages, but they have provided a pretty consistent, reliable service over the years.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44122 | Tillicum Wawa on 04/25/13
Air date:
Thu, 04/25/2013 - 6:00pm - 8:00pm
Short Description:
No Nukes Special
Tillicum Wawa will be having a NO NUKES special from 6-8 on Thursday, April 25. Our guests will be Miriam German, founder of No Nukes NW; John Bravehawk, Sundance Cheif from Rosebud, SD: Chuck Johnson of Physicians for Social Responsibility; Dan Serres from Columbia River Keeper; and Paul Koberstein, investigative report and creator of Cascadia Times.org. These folks are working to shut down the Columbia Generating Station at the Hanfoerd Nuclear Reservation in Washington. After presentations are made, we will have a call-in.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44125 | KET video
Kentucky Life
(#1008) WWII Ship/Three Fork Creek Ostrich Ranch/Jailhouse Arts & Crafts/Dan Torpey Toys
A World War II LST (Landing Ship, Tank) visiting Paducah; an Owen County ostrich ranch; an old jail in Taylorsville that's now an arts and craft cooperative; and the handmade whirligigs, thingamabobs, and other automata at Dan Torpey Toys in Louisville. A 2004 KET production hosted by Dave Shuffett.
Visit the Kentucky Life website.
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1. Length: 00:26:30
2. Originally Aired: Feb 21, 2004
3. Tune in to Kentucky Life every week:
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44168 |
Reef Coral Identification "2'nd Edition" By Paul Humann
Reef Coral Identification "2'nd Edition" By Paul Humann Features
You know the fishes and can identify the reef critters, but what about the animals that actually form a coral reef? Existing in an abundance of colors and intriguing shapes, these animals are worth a closer look. 530 classic photographs of living specimens and the most current scientific classifications help identify virtually every species of stony coral, gorgonian, fire coral and black coral inhabiting the tropical western Atlantic.
The new 2nd edition includes a comprehensive photo-essay of coral diseases and predation and a photo gallery on coral reproduction. If you want to know more about marine plants, we've got them, too; an appendix with descriptions and photos of 100 species of marine plants is included. Improved flexibinding with plastic covers allows book to lie flat. (288 pages 6" x 9") |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44224 | Latest Forum Posts:
Because I was bored with my present location in the north of England, I moved down to the midlands and bought a very nice isolated cottage about 20 miles south of Birmingham on the outskirts of a small town, and after a few weeks of settling into my new home, I put adverts in several of the more rural papers, in an attempt to capture some trade from the many villages around me.
It turned out to be a lucrative trade – the ‘big boys’ from Birmingham not wishing to travel the 40 mile round trip, just to mend a roof-tile or suchlike petty job. So for the next 3 months I was worked off my feet – eager to get a good name in the locality and to become well established there. Working as hard as I was left me knackered every night, and I was too tired to even think about going out of and evening and doing my favourite thing as far as sex was concerned.
Another reason why I decided to move near to a big city, was that I’d be much more able to pursue my intense sexual leaning of cross-dressing. For as long as I could remember, I’d been bisexual, and had a particular love of wearing women’s sexy clothes – especially their sexy undies! And it was an obvious and natural move for me to satisfy both of my likings, by wearing women’s sexy clothes and undies whenever I went out of an evening to find other bi guys for sex!
I’d actually amassed a vast collection of sexy undies, mini-skirts, tops, dresses, wigs, nylons, jewellery and makeup over the years, and the smallest bedroom of my cottage now housed everything ‘feminine’ of mine, so’s it could be kept safe and secret from my everyday life as a hetro, guy.
When I was dressed up and wearing my sexy ‘stuff’ with some makeup and a suitable wig, I could reasonably pass as a woman with no trouble – but I didn’t yet feel completely at ease, and therefore hadn’t ‘come out of the closet’ to everyone – just to the guys I happened to meet for some ‘one-off’ sex.
Whether it was because of the clothes and undies, or whether the girlie feelings were already inside me, I really didn’t know – but I did feel totally feminine when dressed up, and whilst wearing both makeup and a wig, and I played the feminine part to the hilt in oral and anal sex with my partner(s) of an evening!
I suppose that me being slightly built and having a soft complexion might have made it easier for me to act out my role as a female, and it really didn’t bother me that at 26 years old, I felt totally at home with a partner of either sex.
So for the first three months or so, I put my pleasures to one side and did every job I could to get my name known. And it was only after that amount of time, that I started to space the jobs out a bit in order to give me something like a social life again.
I remember the first time I got myself dressed up as my alter-self, and went out one evening to meet some guys at a place I’d found out about on the internet. I stood in front of the mirror and thought, “Suzy, you still look great! Now get yourself out and do what you do best – give the guys you meet, a great time!”
Actually, my real name is Dave, but once I get into my feminine mode and put on those sexy undies, I immediately transform into Suzy, a horny cum-slut that’ll take as much cock and cum at both ends, that any guy or gang of guys will give me!
And it was on one of those evenings that I’d planned to go out as Suzy, that the phone rang. It was from a woman in Chanceford Green – a beautiful and idyllic hamlet of about 40 houses that was only about 5 miles or so from me.
I’d already done lots of jobs there, so I guess one of her satisfied neighbours had given her my name and number. Her name was Paula Cross and apparently she wanted some interior painting doing, and wanted to know if I could pop round that evening, to go over the job with her? I nearly said that I couldn’t and that I’d be round first thing the day after, but I thought better of it and told her I’d be round just after 8pm . That would give me time for a bath and also to put some sexy undies on underneath my everyday clothes so’s I’d be partly dressed for my well earned night out! I could put my outer ‘Suzy’ clothes in the car – along with a wig, makeup and some jewellery, then I could stop somewhere quiet and finish getting ready for a good evening’s sucking and fucking – hopefully!
Having taken my bath, I opened the bathroom cabinet and fished out a dildo and tube of KY gel – then performing the all important job of both opening myself up, and lubricating my ass – ready for any size of cock that was shoved in there!
With my ass nicely dilated and lubricated to accept a cock without discomfort, I made my way into the smallest bedroom to choose which set of undies I should wear.
I eventually opted for a simple lacy black ½ cup bra and matching suspender-belt to go with my lace-top nylons and proceeded to put them on.
The erotic feeling I got as I slid my nylons up my legs and hitched them to the dangling four black suspender-clasps, was ecstatic to say the least! And as I stood there in front of the full-length mirror and saw my semi-hard suspender-framed cock between my legs, I felt a beautiful tickling feeling running through my guts!
I carefully packed the rest of my stuff in a carrier bag and went into my bedroom to get dressed – my nylons sensuously swishing together as I walked into the room!
Quickly getting dressed and temporarily hiding my sexy undies from view, I combed my hair and went downstairs, ready to go and meet Mrs Cross.
The light was fading as I drew up outside her cottage – the actual building being almost hidden by the hedge and garden. At first it didn’t look anything special, but once you entered the gate and looked down the heavily flowered path, it really looked nice – a warming glow from the windows creeping across the well-stocked garden.
I knocked on the door and it was opened by a woman in a black dress that seemed to have been sprayed onto her body, accentuating every curve of her body!
“Mrs Cross? Dave Fletcher!” I smiled, “You wanted me to do some work for you?”
“Oh yes!” she beamed, “Please, come on in!”
I couldn’t take my eyes off her swaying hips and rounded ass as I followed her into the lounge – a sumptuous room with beams on the ceiling and welcoming fire in the massive inglenook fireplace.
She was about 32, slightly older than me, with tits that were firm and not too big, and brunette hair that was cut in a ‘pageboy style’ so’s it was almost shoulder-length and curled in to follow the curvature of her face.
After inviting me to sit down, we talked about what she wanted doing and conversed generally about this and that – she telling me to call her Paula before inviting me to go upstairs to size up the jobs she had in mind.
“Mrs Williams recommended you to me!” she smiled, “You did some gardening for her a few weeks ago?”
“Oh yes, I remember!” I smiled back, “Anne, I think her name was? Nice girl!”
“Mmmm, that’s her. She said you did a good job cheaply, and that I should get in touch with you to paint this lot!” she replied.
She then showed me the painting that needed doing in all of the three bedrooms – the smallest one being Paula’s office that she used to work from home. After that, we went back downstairs to discuss what colours she wanted for each room.
“I’ll just put us some coffee on while you sort out the colour charts for me!” she said as she disappeared into the kitchen, “Won’t be a minute!”
“I’ll drink it as we discuss the paint-scheme, if that’s alright with you, Paula?” I called back to her, “I’m going out for a pint this evening!”
A few moments later she appeared with our coffees – placing mine on the carpet beside me, as she perched herself on the arm off the settee.
We then sorted out which colours she wanted in each room and I busied myself with totting up how much I’d charge her for the work.
Finally giving her a price and a date when I could start the work for her, I gulped down what was left of my coffee and placed the mug back on the carpet as I leant forward and gathered my colour-charts and papers together.
“That’ll do nicely, Dave!” she smiled at me, “Well, I mustn’t keep you any longer!
I can see you’ve to finish getting yourself ready before you go out!”
“Ready? I’m only going for a pint!” I replied as I bent forward again to pick up a dropped colour-chart – being that I was dressed in a white cotton shirt and a pair of black slacks, surely enough to go out for a casual pint?
“Oh, I thought you’d want to be wearing more than……. this!” she replied.
My stomach churned as I felt her draw her finger across the back fastening of my bra!
I quickly sat up but kept looking at the papers in my hand as I felt my face redden!
“And not forgetting…….. these!” she added quietly, as she leant forward and drew her finger over the two little bumps in my slacks that my suspender-clasps made, halfway down my thighs!
“Surely you’ll be wearing more than just…… these?” she then asked.
“I….. errrmmm, I………” I stuttered into the papers.
“You should never wear a black bra under a white shirt, unless you want it to be seen, Dave!” she slowly continued, “It was the first thing I saw when you came in! And then I saw the two little bumps in your slacks made by your suspender-clasps when you sat down – not to mention your nylons that are plainly visible round your ankles!”
“Ooops!” was all I could say, as I finally gained enough courage to turn and face her, “Whatever must you think of me?”
“I think…….. that you should go out to your car and get the rest of your stuff!” she smiled, “You’re not going to go out like that – no makeup and wearing those clothes?
Go on! You can use my bedroom to get yourself ready!”
“But I………!” I tried to say, then realised that the game was up, and she knew exactly what sort of evening I intended having.
“It’s okay!” she smiled, “Go on…. Go and get the rest of your stuff! Besides, I might be able to help you with your makeup!”
I smiled nervously and then took a breath – finally accepting that she knew what was what, and wasn’t going to criticize or condemn me for the way I was dressed.
“Thanks for being so understanding, Paula!” I smiled as I got up, “Thanks!”
A few minutes later I was following her upstairs and into her bedroom, having been out to the car to get the rest of my stuff.
“Whatever were you thinking of, you silly girl?” she said as she moved the stool for me to sit at her dressing-table, “How did you intend to put on your makeup? Now get out of those clothes and we’ll get you sorted!”
It took a second or two for me to realise she’d just called me a girl! And I was so dumbstruck, I took off my shirt and pants in a daze, to stand there in front of a woman I’d only known for half an hour – whilst I was wearing only my lace-top nylons, lacy black bra, and matching suspender-belt!
“Mmmm! Nice choice of undies!” she smiled, “Now, let’s get you some makeup on!”
For the next fifteen minutes, Paula busied herself around me as she expertly made me up and helped me dress.
“Okay, all that’s left is to sort out your wig!” she said, after sliding my ‘falsies’ into the cups of my bra and reaching into my bag to take it out, “I see you’re like me and that you don’t bother wearing any panties!”
“Yeah! Actually, they just get in the way!” I heard myself saying, “So I don’t bother!”
“My sentiments exactly!” she replied, “And I saw you had some KY in your bag – so somebody’s gonna hopefully be a lucky girl tonight – ermmm, I assume it is for you?”
“Yeah…. it’s for me!” I replied quietly.
I couldn’t believe how the night had turned out! This woman now knew all of my most intimate secrets – and I’d only known her for an hour!
“Right, stand up and turn round!” she commanded, “Let’s see if you’re decent!”
I did as she said – acutely aware of my cock dangling between my nylon-clad thighs.
“Although I suspect being decent is the last thing on your mind tonight!” she giggled, “Okay, now let’s finish dressing you!”
Finally, I stood there in my wig, blue satin blouse, black mini-skirt, and 2 inch heels.
“Hmmm! You’ll do!” she smiled, then paused before adding, “I’d…… I’d like you to call in on your way back…….. for a nightcap….. and to tell me how you went on!”
“Mmmm, I will!” I grinned, suddenly feeling very relaxed about the whole thing!
She then surprised me by leaning forward and giving me a quick kiss on the cheek!
“Go on, you bugger! Go and give them hell!” she smiled, as she stood in front of me and held both of my hands, “And don’t come back pregnant!”
She then slapped my ass as I passed her, and followed me downstairs.
“I can’t believe what’s just happened!” I said to myself as I drove off to the car park I now used, “God knows what she has in store for me when I go back!”
A short while later I was pulling up on the car park of the remote picnic site I’d found out about. It was a great place to meet other guys because it was in the middle of nowhere and heavily surrounded by trees. The trees afforded a great deal of shade, which meant it was possible to be with a guy round the back of your car without anyone seeing you, and it’s remote location also meant that it was off the Metro police beats, and only very rarely visited by the local bobby when the sun was shining.
As my eyes became accustomed to the dark, I could see there were about six cars parked up – all in total darkness.
Deciding to advertise my availability for sex, I got out of the car, walked round to the front so’s I could be seen by everyone, and lit up a ciggy as I sat back on the car.
To give everyone a chance to see that I was in fact a trannie, I hitched up the front of my miniskirt and casually took hold of my semi-hard 7 inch suspender-framed cock before slowly sliding my fist up and down my shaft a few times!
Satisfied everyone now knew, I allowed my skirt to fall back into place and walked back to the open door before sitting down inside. I then laid back and idly wanked myself as my skirt slid back up my nylon-clad thighs, totally exposing everything.
I suddenly saw someone moving a minute later, but they went to another car and reached inside that one – no doubt giving the driver a wank! But I needn’t have worried, because my ploy paid off a few minutes later when I heard someone slowly walking down beside my car!
“Hi!” he said quietly, “I couldn’t help noticing you out there just then, and wondered what you liked doing?”
“Well, I like to suck guys off and swallow their cum for them!” I began, “And I love to be fucked ‘bareback’ so’s the guy shoots his cum deep inside me!”
“Would you let me fuck you ‘bareback’ then?” he enquired, “After sucking me?”
“Mmmm, I’d love to!” I smiled, “Round the back of the car alright?”
“Yeah, that’d be fine!” he replied.
I made a point of slamming my door when I got out – a trick I’d used before to bring to the attention of the other drivers that we were going round the back of the car, and that there might be something of interest for them, if they decided to come and join us? I was soundly fucked by five guys in a row one evening, after playing that trick!
As soon as we reached the rear of my car and the guy stood in front of me with his already erect cock out, I hitched up my skirt, squatted down, and splayed my knees wide apart – my suspender-framed erect cock and stocking-tops totally exposed as I leant forward and sucked the guy’s cock into my mouth!
“Oooo, that feels so good!” he hissed, “I haven’t fucked the wife for quite a while, so I might have a heavy load of cum for you!”
“That’s fine by me!” I replied as I pulled off his rigid cock and openly wanked my own, “You can give me what she should have got, instead!”
I slid my lips around his knob-end once more and then took his entire length into my mouth – making him groan with delight as I started to bob my head back and forth!
“Fucking hell, that feels nice!” he gasped, “You suck it much better than the wife!”
I moaned my appreciation on his cock, and continued to let him face-fuck me!
Just as I got into my rhythm, I saw two more guys approaching and then standing beside us – both with their cocks out and wanking them as they watched us!
My trick with the door had worked after all!
“I think I’d better fuck you now!” the guy whispered hoarsely to me after a few minutes, “I’m getting near to coming!”
I slowly pulled back – trailing my lips all the way down his rigid cock before standing up and turning round to lean over on the back of the car with my legs spread wide!
I then felt him lifting up the back of my skirt and nudging his knob-end up against my ass, before he slowly pushed forward and stretched my sphincter muscle as he eased himself inside me!
As soon as his knob-end had gotten past the tight restriction, he grabbed my hips and slid all the way into my ass before starting to fuck me!
“Oh yeah!” I breathed as he slid in and out of me and got up speed, “That feels fucking wonderful! Fuck me! Fuck your hard cock into me and spurt your thick and creamy cum deep inside me!” I told him that for two reasons – one, to urge him on, and secondly, to let the other guys know that they didn’t have to use a condom either, when it was their turn to fuck me! It must’ve worked, because one of them reached between my legs and started to squeeze and caress my swinging cock and balls!
“Still okay to come inside you?” he gasped breathlessly.
“Oooo, yessssss please!” I hissed back at him, “I want to feel your cock jerking and throbbing as you’re spurting your cum deep inside my ass!”
I didn’t have to wait long! A few seconds later I felt his shaft really stiffen, and his knob-end swell much larger – a sure sign that his orgasm was imminent!
“OH, NOOWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!” he croaked as his orgasm hit him!
He stopped fucking into me, and instead, started stabbing his pulsating cock into my willing ass in time with each powerful spurt of his thick cum!
“Yeah! Fuck me!” I gasped, “Spurt it all deep inside me!”
A few seconds later it was all over, and he laid over my back with his rapidly shrinking cock now feebly spurting the last few remnants of his sticky and heavy load deep inside my suctioning ass!
When he finally slipped out, I spun round, squatted down in front of him, and sucked his now spent cock into my mouth – cleaning the cum from it and sucking him clean!
“Can’t have you going home with a cum-smeared cock, now can we?” I smiled up at him, “We don’t want the wife asking awkward questions, do we?”
“No! You’re right!” he grinned, “Hey, I’d just like to say thanks! In ten years of marriage, that was better than any fuck I’ve had off the wife! Thanks again!”
“You’re welcome!” I smiled, “I really enjoyed it as well!”
“Hmmm! It looks like I’m in for a great fuck as well, then!” one of the other guys said as the first guy left us, “Okay to go bareback?”
“Wouldn’t have it any other way!” I smiled, “And your fuck will be as good as you can make it!”
I turned back to the car and assumed the position for him.
This guy’s cock was considerably bigger than the last one, and it felt like I was being fucked for the first time this evening, as he held onto my hips and slid his entire length deep inside me!
“Oh yeah!” I gasped as he slid in and out of me, “Now that’s what I call a cock!”
“Mmmm, thought you’d like it!” he remarked proudly, “Not too big for you?”
“No way!” I gasped back at him, “I’ll take everything you can give me!”
He then started to slam his massive cock into my ass – his thighs slapping against my buttocks each time he thrust forward!
“Well that guy was right about you being a good fuck!” he gasped as he thrust into me and rocked me back and forth, “You’re as good as any woman I’ve had – for sure!”
“And your cock’s as good as I’ve had!” I gasped back at him.
Actually, I’d had much bigger and thicker cocks rammed into me in my time, but I wasn’t going to tell him that!
As he got into his stride and slammed into me, I dropped my body down lower and spread my legs wider apart, so’s he could really let go if he wanted to!
“Fucking hell! The best has just gotten better!” he gasped breathlessly as he rocked me back and forth on the boot-lid, “Your ass is incredible! What a great fuck!”
“It’s because you massive cock’s stretching it open so much!” I lied, “That’s why it feels so fucking tight!” Twenty seconds later he too was gasping and grunting in time with each spurt of cum he jetted into me!
I must admit he was a good fuck though – and told him as much as he laid on my back and gasped for breath a few moments later!
“Jesus!” he gasped, “That was fucking fantastic! Thanks mate!”
“You’re more than welcome!” I replied as he slowly slid out of me, “Now if you’ll just oblige me…….”
Once more I squatted down and sucked a cum-smeared cock clean of cum – kissing his knob-end for him as I stood up.
“That was fucking incredible!” he grinned in the darkness, “I hope to see you up here again – and sometime soon! Thanks again!”
With that he turned and left me and the last guy standing there.
“Well they both seemed to like fucking you!” he grinned, “I hope it’s going to be as good for me!”
“Hey, it’s you that’ll make it good!” I told him, “You just fuck me how you want to fuck me – not like them – you!”
To be perfectly honest, the guy was a very good fuck, and I could feel every bit of his cock sliding back and forth inside me, so I urged him on and told him how good it felt to have a guy fucking me that had some technique, as well as some cum!
When he’d finished, I cleaned him off as well and he thanked me for such a great fuck! I immediately replied that it’d only been a great fuck because of him!
He went away happy and with his balls empty – and that’s all that matters.
Because I’d an assful of cum from the three fucks I’d just had, I squatted down behind the car and dumped what of it I could – my ass spluttering loudly as the viscous cum formed a spreading pool between my feet! I then wiped myself down with a tissue and sat back in the car, had another couple of ciggies and waited for half an hour with no more results. So I decided not to leave it too late, and to drive back to Paula’s,
About 20 minutes later I was ringing her doorbell. The door opened and Paula smiled sweetly at me as she invited me into the lounge and poured me a drink.
She looked very fetching in her ivory satin robe, as she sat alongside me on the settee, with only the soft and cosy light from a standard lamp illuminating the room.
“Right Dave…….. or do you call yourself by another name when you’re dressed like this?” she began, “Tell me…. what sort of evening have you had?”
“Well…….. I usually call myself ‘Suzy’ when I’m dressed like this – it goes better than calling myself ‘Dave’ when I’m with another guy!” I explained.
“Then that’s what I’ll call you! Calling you ‘Suzy’ sounds a lot better than ‘Dave’ when I’m looking at you in your sexy outfit, anyway!” she replied, “So, go on, tell me all about your night! I’ve been wondering what you’ve been up to, all evening!”
“I’m not really sure whether I should tell you, Paula!” I explained as I looked into my glass for some courage, “I mean, it’s a delicate subject, and I’d have to go into some pretty graphic descriptions to explain things properly to you – and the last thing I’d want to do is to upset or shock you in any way!”
“You wouldn’t upset or shock me Suzy, I’m a woman of the world and I’ve seen and done lots of risqué things myself! Jesus, only tonight I saw this guy I’ve only just met, almost naked in my bedroom, before he finally got dressed….. as a woman – makeup, wig, false tits, the lot! Look, I’ll tell you what I’ll do, Suzy!” she smiled as she leant across and laid her hand on my arm, “You tell me some of your secrets about what happened tonight, and I’ll tell you some secrets about myself – deal?”
“Well………. okay, it’s a deal!” I grinned nervously, “But I must warn you, I’ll have to use some pretty strong language, Paula!”
“Hmmm, so will I, Suzy! So will I!” she grinned at me.
Paula then refilled our glasses as I collected my thoughts and decided what to tell her and also how? I decided to tell her exactly as it happened and not to hold back.
Once I got going, it wasn’t so bad – in fact I completely forgot my nervousness after telling her one or two things that’d happened behind the car with the three guys, with no adverse reactions from her at all – and I didn’t hold back with the strong language!
“What did it feel like when this second guy fucked you, Suzy?” she asked me as I began to tell her about my second fuck of the evening, “Was it much different to the first guy? Could you feel him coming inside you as much as with the first guy?”
“His cock stretched my ass-walls a lot more than the first guy’s cock did! And he went into my ass a lot deeper” I explained, “But that isn’t surprising – every cock feels different to another one! I must admit that I didn’t feel his cum spurting into me like I did with the first guy – perhaps it was because the first one hadn’t had sex for a while, and therefore there was more of it, and it was much thicker?”
As Paula leant forward to pour some more drink into our glasses, I noticed that her robe had fallen open slightly, and that she was not only wearing a lacy black bra underneath, like me, she was also wearing nylons!
She gave me my glass and I continued my tale by telling her that I’d omitted to tell her what I’d done right at the start! As I told her in detail how I’d hitched up my skirt and totally exposed my stocking-tops, suspenders and suspender-framed erect cock to the other drivers, I noticed that her fingers had crept under the flap of her robe and were now moving ever so slightly – she was fingering herself as she listened to me!
“Does anyone else know about you dressing and being Suzy?” she asked.
“Only the guys I meet on any particular night!” I replied, “And they don’t know anything about me or where I come from.”
“You said earlier that you like to suck guys off – but you didn’t do that tonight?” she enquired further, “Do you swallow their cum?”
“Oh yes!” I replied, “That’s the best part – especially if you’ve got someone fucking you at the same time!”
“You mean spit-roasting!” she grinned, “So you’ve tried that as well?”
“Not so much ‘tried’ – the guys I was with at the time decided they both wanted to fuck me at the same time, and that’s how they did it, with one at each end!” I replied.
“What’s the most guys you’ve had at any one time?” she asked.
“Hmmm………? Well before I moved down here, I used to use a car park that had some woods alongside it. Guys sometimes wanted a bit of privacy when they were with me, so we went a few yards into the woods! On one of these occasions, the guys in the rest of the cars must’ve seen where we went, and as I squatted down to suck this guy off, a few more had gathered round to watch us!” I explained, “I think that attracted a few more, and before I knew it, they all took turns with me!”
I then realised that I could feel my cock rapidly stiffening with recalling these past events, and that Paula was taking lingering looks at the lump that was plainly growing under the front of my mini-skirt! She was now looking decidedly flustered, and not only were her fingers now delving even deeper between her thighs, her robe had slipped open slightly to partly expose the fullness and firmness of her right tit, as it sat in her lacy black ½ cup bra!
“They….. they took turns with you? Doing what, and how many were there?” she asked in a strained voice.
“Well, from memory, some took turns at fucking me and some wanting me to suck them off – both on their own, and when someone else was fucking me!” I explained, “And I guess there were about eight on that occasion?”
“And you satisfied them all?” she queried.
“Well they said I did!” I laughed, “I know I was absolutely dripping with their cum when they’d all finished fucking me!”
“And what about sex with women? Have you ever fucked a woman when dressed as Suzy?” she asked hesitantly.
I saw her quickly look down at my skirt and then back up – me suddenly aware that because of the way my cock was throbbing, and because of the ultra shortness of my miniskirt, my knob-end must now be exposed to Paula!
“Hmmm, a few – yes!” I admitted, me then coughing with nerves as she sneaked another quick look, “Sometimes there’d be a couple at the car park or in the woods. So it was only natural that I’d fuck the woman after being fucked by the guy!
On those occasions, I always went down on the woman afterwards and sucked her cunt out – sometimes as her husband fucked me after he’d just finished watching me giving his wife a good fucking!”
“But that’d mean you were sucking your own cum out of her… cunt!” Paula gasped.
“Mmmm, that’s right, Paula!” I smiled as I suddenly realised just how turned on she was, with fingering herself whilst listening to my past exploits and also seeing how much it’d excited me with relating them.
I waited a few seconds before continuing in a low voice……. “Would…. would you like me to… do that……. to you?”
She didn’t answer…… So I looked her in the eyes, and then slowly reached forward to take hold of her hand, before slowly and deliberately lifting it up to my mouth.
Still looking her in the eyes, I slowly sucked each of her fingers clean – the musky scent of her cunt-juices filling my nostrils!
“Mmmm, they taste……. nice!” I whispered.
A moment later I felt her other hand sliding under my skirt, and her fingers wrapping round my rigid cock!
“And this feels…….. nice!” she whispered back to me.
With one leg still bent and resting on the settee, I slowly raised myself upright and leant across to slowly pull Paula’s robe completely open – her hand still holding onto my throbbing cock! The sight that was revealed to me was absolutely breathtaking!
All she was wearing under her robe, was the same as me – a black lacy ½ cup bra and matching suspender-belt and nylons!
True to her word, she wasn’t wearing panties, so I could plainly see the thick dark thatch of her pubic hair and red crinkly line of her outer cunt-lips – all perfectly framed by her lacy suspender-belt! As she slowly pulled her cum-soaked fingers from my mouth, she eased herself forward and dipped her head – pushing up the front of my skirt before sucking my knob-end into her hot mouth! I then laid back on the seat of the settee and let her slide my cock and rigid shaft in and out of her clasping mouth as she knelt on all fours over me, and alternately caressed my nylon-clad thighs and dangling balls – gently squeezing them and moaning softly on my throbbing cock!
Without saying a word, she lifted my legs up and bent my knees so’s my feet rested on the settee either side of her, then pushed them wide open!
“Mmmm! I can smell the cum that the guys spurted into you when they fucked you and came inside you earlier tonight!” she whispered as she pulled off my slick cock and licked up and down my balls, “It smells of sex! Pure……. animal……. sex!”
She then totally took me be surprise when she took hold of my cock, dipped her head, and clamped her mouth over my puckered ass – pushing her tongue as deeply as she could inside me and then slurping on the guys’ cum as it began to ooze out of me!
“Oh yeah!” I heard her breath as she stopped to take a breath, “I love drinking cum!”
She stayed like that for over five minutes – slurping on the escaping cum – before finally pulling away and climbing up to position her hairy gash over my rigid cock!
Slightly lowering herself down, she took hold of my cock and manoeuvred it so’s my knob-end was barely parting her crinkly cunt-lips. Then, as she looked me straight in the eyes, she lowered herself all the way down with one swift movement – impaling herself on my cock!
“Oh yessssss, Suzy!” she hissed through clenched teeth, “That’s where it belongs!”
She ten began to aggressively rotate and hump her hips so’s our pubes ground together and my knob-end flicked and brushed hard against her rubbery cervix!
Her cunt was flooding with her cunt-juices as I rolled us over and pulled her sideways so’s I slid out of her as her legs draped over the front of the cushions and drew her ass towards me, only stopping when her cunt as level with the front edge.
I then dived forward and eagerly clamped my mouth over her gaping cunt and wet thatch – sucking noisily on the cunt-juices that were flowing from her!
“Oh my God – yesssssssssssss!” she hissed as I probed her cunt with my tongue and sucked up her cunt-juices, “Suck my cunt dry you horny bastard!”
I did the best I could for the next ten minutes – me stripping myself down to my undies as she writhed about on the settee. Then I dragged her down onto the floor and sank my entire length into her drooling cunt, making her gasp out loud before she clamped her legs tightly round my waist.
“Fuck meeeeeeeeee!” she pleaded as I sucked on her erect nipples and massaged her firm tits, “For fuck’s sake shag the ass off me, and fill me with your cum, Suzy!”
For the next five minutes that’s exactly what I did – our pubes smashing into each other’s as I slammed my rigid cock into her drooling cunt, with Paula writhing around underneath me like a woman possessed and my spongy knob-end continuously flicking up against her cervix! Then I felt my cum rising and told her I was about to come, and Paula clawed at my back with her nails, repeatedly begging me to fuck her harder as she humped her hips against my rigid cock! She must’ve actually felt my cum spurting into her, for as soon as I started to come, she put her feet on the carpet and thrust her lower body upwards – pushing her sopping cunt hard against my jerking cock as it spewed out my thick and creamy cum and her orgasm hit her!
She gripped me tightly for a good thirty seconds or so as she rode her orgasm to it’s end, then she slowly relaxed and laid underneath me, with my cock gently soaking deep inside her cum-filled cunt!
Still not finished with my fuck, I rolled us over and told her to slide her finger over her cunt as she pulled off me and then to slide up my body and squat over me so’s her cunt was directly over my face! She did as I’d told her, and upon my command, she removed her fingers and started to squeeze my cum out of her cunt!
I looked up at her suspender-framed face as she looked back at me – my bubbly cum now spluttering and slithering from between her inflamed cunt-lips before it dropped with a splat into my open mouth!
“Jesus Christ!” she whispered, “You’re drinking your own cum from my cunt!”
I didn’t answer her, but kept on lapping up whatever cum and cunt-juices I could get!
She finally rolled over to one side and fell back against the front of the settee to rest in a most unladylike pose with her knees bent and splayed, so’s her erect clitty and hairy cunt were totally exposed with her cunt-lips gaping wide open – a trickle of my cum slowly oozing from between them and starting to form a milky pool on her carpet!
“Wow!” she gasped, and then grinned at me, “That was some fuck, Suzy!”
“Wow, yourself, Paula!” I replied breathlessly, “At one stage I actually thought you were trying to drag me inside you!”
“Mmmm, I know!” she grinned, “I’m sure glad you decided to come back! My cunt was itching for you as you left, so I would’ve been in a right old state if you hadn’t!”
“Mmmm, I’m glad I did as well, Paula!” I replied truthfully, then added, “I hope that we can do this again?”
“Christ….. you bet!” she grinned, “And there’s a chance I might have a few surprises for you if you do! I’m not promising, but we’ll see! Anyway, it was your fault for telling me what you’d been up to earlier this evening!”
“No way!” I protested, “You asked me to – and you said you’d tell me some of your secrets! So get us another drink and we’ll settle back to hear what naughty little things you have to confess!” She replenished our drinks on very unsteady legs, before settling down beside me again.
“Christ, where do I start?” she mused for a few seconds, “Well! You might’ve already guessed that like you, I’m bi? And that’s most likely why seeing you in your sexy undies tonight, gave me such a tremendous buzz! Now being bi in such a small hamlet as this, could easily make me an outcast if some of the people found out!
So, I’ve got to be careful! Now imagine how careful I’d have to be if other bi women came round here, so’s we could have some sexy girlie fun together! That would be bad enough, and would get the tongues wagging! But because of the sort of people we have living here – upstanding people of the church and community, not to mention the Chief Constable and his wife! Imagine what’d happen if they found out about me?
Christ, they’d want to burn me at the stake! There is a gay guy in the village – and it seems that it’s okay to be a gay man, but not a gay or bi woman!
I could tell you now something else about some of the people here, but I’ll not for the moment, as I’d have to get their permission first – don’t ask why!
You probably noticed that I started getting really excited when you told me about lifting the front of your skirt and exposing your undies and cock to the other drivers? Well that’s because I’m also like you, I’m a blatant and brazen, exhibitionist!
So-much-so, the ex-Mr Cross couldn’t tolerate my flashing, and finally left me!”
“I suspect there’s a lot more that you’re not telling me, Paula!” I smiled, “But I can wait until you can! Now, tell me about some of the flashing experiences you’ve had!”
“Hell, where do I begin – there’ve been that many!” she grinned.
She stopped and thought for a few moments before resuming her tale……
“Hmmm……! Well….., as you know, I don’t wear panties, and because I’m a woman and normally wear skirts or a dress, it’s far easier for me to ‘accidentally’ flash to someone when I’m out and feeling especially horny! I’d frequently let my knees fall open and flash at women and guys when out for a meal with hubby – usually with him having no idea I was having so much fun and literally creaming myself as I flashed my cunt to a guy sitting opposite us! It gave me such a buzz, knowing that the guy was getting a prolonged and clear look at my exposed hairy cunt and skimpy undies with my unsuspecting husband sitting right beside me! I also used to wear a loose white cotton blouse with the top buttons undone and go bra-less, so’s the waiter got an uninterrupted view of my naked boobs as he poured my wine or dished out my meal! Hubby never cottoned-on that the waiter was always refilling my glass every time I took one or two sips from it – even when it didn’t need filling! And when I was on my own in the car, I’d hitch my skirt right up, and drive with my hairy cunt totally exposed to anyone looking in through the windows! Sunbathing on the park was another good venue for doing a bit of flashing! I’d make sure I was wearing something short and skimpy before lying down in front of a group of guys or sometimes one with his wife or girlfriend. Then, I’d either lie on my back and pretend to read a book – all the time secretly watching the reactions of my victim, or on my stomach so’s anyone behind me could see my semi-exposed cunt beneath my short skirt! But I think when I went shopping that I enjoyed myself most, and that’s where I did some serious flashing!
It was the easiest thing in the world to leave the changing-room curtain partly open as you tried on a dress in a clothing store! Some actually had changing rooms, but most only had an area curtained off for you to get changed in – and that’s where you could see guys looking in at you through the long mirror! Dropping a dress or something on the floor was a good ploy, because it meant you had to bend right over to pick it up!
If it was a blouse, the guy got an excellent view of your tits as you bent over and struggled for several seconds to pick it up the right way up! And if it was a skirt or a dress – they got a really good view of your suspender-framed hairy gash as you struggled to pick that up as well! I remember once that a guy was blatantly watching me through the gap in the curtains at one particular store, when I stood facing him totally naked for over a minute, as I pretended to struggle at unbuttoning a dress I was going to try on – the horny sod sliding his hand into his pocket and actually wanking his stiffening cock as he watched me! Squatting down at the racks in the shop to retrieve an item of clothing you’d ‘accidentally’ dropped, was another good ploy!
I used to make sure there was a guy in front of me, and then I’d drop an item and squat down with my knees wide apart to retrieve it – staying like that for some time and totally exposing my hairy cunt to him as I ‘examined’ the label or something!
Which leads me onto my favourite place to flash – the supermarket! God, it’s a wonder I don’t get locked up, with what I still get up to when I go in there!
With me wearing skirts and not panties, it’s the easiest thing in the world for me to ‘accidentally’ expose my hairy cunt to a more than willing audience, that isn’t going to blow the whistle on you for you giving them a real good look up your skirt!
You’d be surprised just how many men suddenly become interested in hairsprays or anti-perspirants when I squat down to examine something on the bottom shelves!
The trick is to squat down slightly sideways! Facing the shelves doesn’t let anyone see anything, so I always make sure there’s a guy walking down that aisle before I squat down and spread my knees, as I become ‘totally engrossed’ in whatever it says on a nearby can of something! Once they’ve seen you, you usually find they follow you around the store – keeping a safe distance and sometimes passing you, only to ‘lay in wait’ a little further along the aisle! They actually think that with you coming up near them, they couldn’t be accused of stalking you!
But all you do, is to squat down once more with your basket behind you, to give you some cover, and take hold of two cans of whatever. Then you look as though you’re mentally trying to decide which product to buy – all the time keeping your knees as wide apart as possible! You can stay like this for a minute or two – all the time with your hairy cunt totally exposed, and on view to anyone you want! And the longer you stay squatting down, the better it gets! Because you have your knees splayed as wide as you can get them, your cunt-lips eventually pull apart – giving the guy an even better view of your hairy cunt than he got before!
You’d be surprised how you can look up at the guy without him seeing you – mainly because his eyes are fixed on something other than your eyes! And I’ve seen many a guy trailing me down an aisle, with a massively growing bulge in his pants!
And when I’m ‘on’ I feel really horny and especially naughty! So I go out to the supermarket on purpose to squat down exactly like I’ve just explained – knowing that the little white string of my Tampax is plainly visible to the guy! Now that really gives me an immense buzz – allowing a perfect stranger to stare at, something as personal as your Tampax string, dangling from your bleeding cunt! Christ, it turns me on, doing that when I’m having my period! I’ve never been able to leave the store without having to go into the ladies toilets to wank myself to an orgasm, anyway!
I remember teasing a guy on day by letting him see my exposed cunt a few times, and then kneeling on one knee whilst keeping them together so’s he couldn’t see my cunt any more! The cheeky sod then sidled up alongside me as I remained kneeling there, and pretended to be interested in something on one of the upper shelves. Well! It was the most natural thing in the world for me to then let him look down my partly open blouse and get a good look at my braless tits and erect nipples! And after giving him a good, long look, I then moved down the aisle slightly and squatted down again to let him have another long look at my exposed cunt!
Oh, and I must tell you this before I forget! One day near Christmas, I’d been giving this particularly good looking guy a real good look at my hairy cunt for over half an hour – and he’d been so turned on with what he saw, he’d basically followed me all round the store! But time was pressing on, and I eventually moved to the overcrowded checkouts – with this guy coming up to stand behind me in-line, as I waited to pay.
I must’ve turned him on that much, he blatantly pushed his hard cock up against me, and then did it once more!
“Right, you horny bastard!” I thought to myself, “You’ve asked for it, and boy, you’re gonna get it!” So I cautiously reached back under cover of the crowds at the tills – and unzipped his fly! I then pulled out his rigid cock, pushed it under the hem of my short skirt, and slid his knob-end along my hairy gash! I knew he daren’t say anything about what I was doing – and guessed he certainly didn’t want to either!
And with a bit of manipulation on my part – by me standing on tip-toe and spreading my thighs slightly, I felt his knob-end slowly slide into my cunt!
It was the easiest thing in the world for me to then push back at him slightly – under cover of the masses of people all wanting to get served – and then feel his cock slide all the way inside my cunt!
With five people still in front of us, all waiting to be served – and all with trolleys filled to overflowing with Christmas stuff, I knew we had plenty of time to enjoy ourselves with him slowly fucking me – right there whilst we both stood at the crowded checkouts in Tescos! We both imperceptibly moved back and forth – his cock growing harder and harder! Then, I felt it starting to jerk and throb, and I knew he’d just blown his load, and spurted his cum deep inside me!
Recklessly, I pushed back hard onto his spurting cock and repeatedly tightened and relaxed my cunt-muscles as they gripped his throbbing shaft, then felt his hand sliding under my skirt to caress my nylon-clad thighs! And as he finally finished coming, I felt his cock rapidly softening before it finally slipped out of my cunt – leaving me standing there with his cum both dripping out of my drooling cunt and onto the tiled floor, and also running down my nylon-clad thighs to soak into my stocking-tops!
As I emptied my trolley and paid for my goods – his cum still oozed from my cunt, and without a backward glance or a word being spoken between us, I went out of the store to the car!
You’ve no idea how uncomfortable, and yet so satisfying it felt as I loaded up the car!
The sticky cocktail of my cunt-juices, and his cum rapidly growing icy cold as it ran down my legs, felt horrible – but the knowledge of what we’d just done, more than made up for it!”
“Fucking hell, Paula! I’m rock-hard and aching here, with listening to that!” I finally gasped, “I don’t suppose you’d like to try that with me, would you?”
“What, us fucking together at the tills in Tescos?” she grinned, “If it was crowded enough I certainly would – or somewhere else equally as naughty!”
“Great! And I’d really love to out with you sometime on a flashing trip to the shops!” I grinned, “And perhaps do a bit of flashing, myself!”
“Now that would give them something to think about!” she giggled, “You squatting down with your knees apart, and with a guy expecting to see a naked cunt – but seeing a rigid, suspender-framed cock and a pair of dangling bollocks instead! Oh boy!”
“I could try it on a woman first, and see how that went!” I suggested.
“Well I’m free this weekend, so we’ll see how it goes!” she replied, “In the meantime, I really must do something about that rigid cock of yours!”
She pushed me flat on my back and straddled my hips before lowering herself down onto my cock – impaling herself upon it, and then raising her hips up and down to slowly slide it in and out of her slurping cunt!
On the third day of me painting Paula’s rooms, she said she wanted to talk to me about something when I broke for coffee at 11 o’clock .
“Okay, what is it you want to talk to me about?” I asked her as I sat down on the floor with my coffee and biscuit.
“This has got to be in complete confidence, Suzy – okay?” she began.
“No problem!” I replied.
“Remember that I told you I was bi? Well, I sometimes have a group of women round of an evening that are also bi!” she began, “We all get together and have some really sexy fun with each other…. maybe two or three times a month. There are three of them – all married – and their husbands all think they’re here just having a chat.
Anyway…. last night, I told them that I’d recently contacted someone I’d found out about, and that you loved to dress as a woman and to fuck other women whilst in your sexy undies! Upon hearing this, they all got very excited at the prospect of meeting you and making use of your services! They were especially aroused when I told them that you looked so much like a woman that they wouldn’t know the difference between you a real woman – except for the added bonus of what you have between your legs! So I asked them if they’d like me to ask you, if they could make use of your ‘services’ with you as Suzy! So…… I’m asking!”
“Hmmm……..! Well the idea of it really appeals to me– but I don’t know if I could actually ‘accommodate’ all four of you!” I replied honestly, “I mean, I couldn’t really guarantee me coming four times in one evening!”
“Oh, you wouldn’t have to!” she assured me, “I mentioned that, and they all agreed they’d have to take turns – and that they’d be satisfied if you could just ‘make love’ and caress them, but only actually come with one or two of them in an evening!”
“Hmmm…… yeah, that’d be alright I guess!” I replied, “I could fuck and caress them all evening, but only come with one or two of them – no problem!”
“Oh, great!” she grinned, “Can I ring them now and tell them I’ve just phoned you, and that you’ve agreed?”
“As long as you mention to them about me only being able to come with maybe a couple of them at any one time!” I replied.
She quickly rang each of them in turn and gave them the good news – telling them that she’d be in touch with them again, when she found out when I’d be available!
“Oh, that’s really great, Suzy!” she smiled when she’d told them all, “Don’t get me wrong, I mean it’s alright doing ‘girlie’ things with each other and fucking each other with a strap-on or with a dildo, but when I reminded them about the added bonus of having someone dressed in her sexy undies, lying beside them and caressing them, and then her actually fucking them and coming inside them because she’d gotten a real cock between her legs – well, they insisted that I contacted you!”
“I’m rather looking forward to meeting them all, actually!” I replied, “Tell me a bit about them, so’s I know what to expect!”
“Well, they’re all in their early thirties, slim, good looking, very broad-minded, totally unshockable, all wear sexy undies and are very easy to get on with!” she replied, “There’s Anne, Tina, and Shandy. Shandy’s half Indian and married to a doctor – her real name’s Shandrika, by the way! Tina’s husband is a director of some company or other in Birmingham , and Anne……. now this is the real reason why it’s got to be kept a closely guarded secret – Anne’s the vicar’s wife!”
“Bloody hell!” I grinned, “No wonder you want me to keep it quiet!”
“Yeah, imagine what the press would make of it if they found out? ‘Vicar’s wife in lesbian love-nest with a randy trannie!’ or something like that, would be splashed all over the front pages!” she replied, “Not something any of us would want!”
“Phew! You’re telling me!” I gasped.
“Now we’ve got that sorted, there’s something else I’d like to ask you!” she smiled.
“Oh fuck! You don’t want me to shag the Queen as well, d’you?” I grinned.
“No! Nothing like that!” she retorted mockingly, leaning over and giving me a slap across the ear, “I was wondering….. if I might come out with you one night when you went to meet some guys at that car park? I’d love to see you in action with them!”
“We can go Saturday evening if you want?” I suggested, “And I’ll bring you a wig to wear – in case you feel you want to take part yourself?”
“Oh, do they get women up there as well?” she asked.
“Not often, but when they do, they’re in great demand!” I replied.
“Mmmm, I might end up doing more than just watching you, then!” she grinned.
“Hmmm, I think you just might!” I grinned back at her, “And are we still on for the supermarket on Saturday afternoon?”
“Oh yes!” she smiled, “Ohhh….. yes!”
So, Saturday afternoon saw me and Paula driving up to Birmingham – both suitably attired in a short skirt – sans panties!
“We’ll take a trolley apiece, and you stay in the same aisle, but some distance away from me, to see what happens!” Paula told me as we entered the store.
We’d purposely chosen one of the less busy stores, because of the sheer number of people in Tescos, Sainsbury’s, and Morrisons – always opting to go to such like as Marks & Spencer, Debenhams, Boots, or another of the big stores if nothing happened at the supermarkets.
“I think Marks & Sparks might be a good place to try later!” Paula suggested, “They have a lingerie department there where loads of guys hang around while their wives are choosing something sexy!”
Unfortunately, after wandering round the store for 20 minutes, we didn’t find a likely victim and so we went to M & S instead. Once in there it was easy for Paula to find an unsuspecting victim, by simply squatting down to ‘look’ at some suspender-belts and bras on a free-standing display, and letting her knees fall open.
The results were immediate! As I stood further up the display from her and appeared to peruse the shelves, I noticed a guy looking up her skirt at her exposed cunt!
I knew Paula had seen him because she busied herself with examining several more styles of bras – apparently comparing them. Even from where I was standing, I could plainly see her suspenders and stocking-tops framing her hairy gash, so what the guy was seeing must’ve been an excellent view! And when she finally stood up and swapped sides of the aisle to look at something else, he sauntered across and gazed up her skirt as she squatted down again! He only stopped because his wife called and he had to leave with her – sporting a rather large bulge in his pants!
Paula came over to me, laughing at her success, and told me it was now my turn to squat down as she’d just done!
Even though it was the most natural thing in the world for me to flash everything I’d got at the car park – without a hint of hesitation, I had to admit to feeling extremely nervous at flashing my cock and balls in a public store, at unsuspecting guys!
Nevertheless, that’s what I was here to do. So I we swapped positions and I waited for a guy to come and stand there whilst his wife sorted through the undies on display.
I didn’t have to wait long, for a couple came up and did exactly that!
The only difference was, that it was the wife that saw how I was squatting, and it was she that couldn’t take her eyes off what was now totally on view to her – namely, my suspenders and stocking-tops, framing my semi-hard cock and dangling balls!
Her hubby was meanwhile looking anywhere but at me or the undies on display – no doubt feeling very embarrassed at being there! And after a brief conversation with her, he wandered away – no doubt having just been told by her to go and wait for her somewhere else in the store if he felt that embarrassed! This of course, left her free to ‘look at some more undies’ whilst actually looking up my skirt!
I could feel myself going red and my cock slowly stiffening as she continued to stand only ten feet from me and covertly look in my direction – the image of Paula standing behind her whilst stifling a laugh, doing nothing to ease my discomfort!
Then, in a moment of sheer madness, I swivelled myself round so’s I was side-on to the rows of undies – my open knees now directly facing her!
As I pretended to examine a bra and suspender-belt set, I slowly looked up and caught her staring directly at my now rigid cock!
For a moment she remained transfixed, and then she suddenly realised I was watching her – she quickly looking down at the undies in her hand! She knew that I’d caught her, and for some reason, she couldn’t resist taking another look at me!
This time she didn’t suddenly look away – instead, she stared at my suspender-framed cock, and then looked me right in the eye!
I looked straight back at her and smiled – she immediately returning my smile and dropped her head to one side as she made it totally obvious that she was looking directly up my skirt!
I wasn’t ready for what she did next!
Keeping her eyes firmly fixed on mine, she slowly squatted down and then reached up and under her skirt – pulling her panties to one side and exposing her cunt to me!
She then licked her lips and nodded her head toward the toilets! I quickly smiled and nodded, before slowly standing up and wandering over to walk into the ladies loos!
A moment later I heard the outer door closing and she walked in behind me!
Without saying anything, I reached down and lifted up the front of my skirt – totally exposing everything I had to her! She simply smiled and then reached forward – her fingers closing round the thickness of my throbbing shaft! She then started to slowly moved her hand back and forth, sliding my foreskin up and down my shaft as she slowly wanked me!
“C’mon…….., in here!” I whispered to her as I pointed to the nearest cubicle.
She followed me inside and locked the door before quickly taking off her coat and hitching her skirt up around her waist – her lacy panties immediately being pushed down her legs to fall onto the tiled floor between her feet!
I then hitched my own skirt up and sat down on the toilet seat – the woman straddling my nylon-clad thighs and sliding down all the way onto my rigid cock!
As her arms wrapped round me, she whispered that she wanted me to fuck her, and started to lift herself up and down on my cock! So I wrapped my own arms around her and humped my hips back at her – making her softly grunt and jerk as I rammed my entire length deep into her hot cunt!
“Oh yes, that’s it!” she whispered hoarsely in my ear, “Fuck me! Fuck that beautiful cock deep inside me! Give me a good, hard, fucking! As hard as you can!”
I obliged her by humping my hips at her cunt even harder – my knob-end banging hard up against the back of her juicing cunt!
“Harder!” she gasped as I rammed my rigid cock into her cunt, “Harder!”
So I took her by her hips and smashed my cock into her cunt as hard and as deep as I could – she suddenly gasping that she was coming, before firmly clamping her lips over mine! I immediately started to come – spurting my thick and creamy cum deep inside her clinging cunt until I’d exhausted my load and my cock began to shrivel!
A few moments later she rode her orgasm to it’s end and sat down on my shrinking cock, both of us gasping for breath until we recovered and she climbed off me.
“I’m gonna stuff these in my handbag and let your cum dribble out of my cunt as we walk all the way back home!” she told me as she picked up her panties, “I’ll get a real buzz out of knowing what’s running down my legs as he’s walking beside me!”
And with that she opened the door, turned round and blew me a kiss, and walked out as though nothing had happened!
“You horny bastard!” Paula smirked as I came out of the loo and covertly felt under my skirt at my slippery and now flaccid cock, “You’ve just fucked her!”
“Hmmm…… I might have!” I grinned knowingly.
Determined not to be outdone, she suggested that we go and have a coffee and a sandwich in the market café – to give her a chance to get some cock, as well!
We settled ourselves down at a table with Paula sitting so’s she could flash her cunt at any of the shoppers walking past us, or anyone sitting in the open-plan café area.
It soon became obvious to me that Paula had flashed at the lad who’d brought us our coffees and sandwiches as she cunningly ‘accidentally’ knocked our change onto the floor so’s he’d to squat down beneath the table and retrieve it for us – him then getting an excellent view of up Paula’s short skirt for his troubles, and obviously liking what he saw, because he dipped down a second time to check he’d picked up all of our change, and took a lot longer than was necessary!
“I spread my knees really wide for him the second time!” she muttered to me as the red-faced youth went back to the counter, “Just to make sure he’d seen everything!”
“You’re sure he saw your cunt and undies then?” I asked her.
“What d’you think?” she replied, “Look at him!”
I casually looked over in the lad’s direction, to see his still red face, and a very noticeable lump in the front of his pants!
“Oh, he saw!” I smiled behind my cup, “He definitely saw!”
“And now I’ve gotten his attention, he’ll be watching us like a hawk, and will come running if I raise my hand for some more coffees!” she said confidently, as she took out some paper and scribbled a message on it before passing it to me.
‘If you’d like to fuck what you saw under the table, watch for me getting up, and meet me behind those two closed clothing stalls, two minutes later. I’ll be waiting for your cock, as it’s been quite a while since I had a young cock like yours.’ the note read.
“I’ll pass him the note and you watch what happens!” she smiled, “But right now, I think I’ll order……. another couple of coffees!”
She raised her hand, and sure enough, the same lad came straight over!
“Can we have two more coffees please?” she asked, as she pushed the note across the table towards him, “Thank you!”
“Certainly!” he blushed, gathering the note up and striding away.
We both watched him secretly opening the note and then looking over at us, before preparing our coffees. A minute later he brought them to us.
“Two minutes!” he said as he placed them on the table and took our money.
Paula just smiled knowingly and he left to watch for her getting up and walking behind the two empty market-stalls.
“Well! I think it’s time for dessert!” she smiled as she finished her coffee.
“With cream?” I asked knowingly.
“Most definitely!” she grinned as she stood up and looked over to the lad, “The cream is what makes dessert worth having!”
She left the table and strode over to the two closed market-stalls – casually walking between them and disappearing behind them. I then watched intently as the lad said something to the woman behind the counter, and then followed Paula’s footsteps to disappear behind the stalls!
I was dying to walk over and take a look, but resisted and waited about five minutes before I saw the lad reappearing – looking decidedly flushed and nervous!
A few seconds later, Paula appeared from round the far end of the stalls – taking a different return route to allay any suspicion from prying eyes.
“Well?” I asked as she sat down beside me and drank the last of her coffee, “Did you get your creamy dessert?”
“What d’you think is running down my legs?” she replied casually as she stood up to leave and walk back to the car, “Sweat?”
I purposely walked a few steps behind her as we left the café, and there, running down the inside of her legs in all it’s glory, was the tell-tale signs of her recent fuck – a silvery stream of watery cum was slowly soaking into her nylons and running down each of her thighs!
“Now, let’s have a closer look!” I demanded as we reached the car and got inside.
Paula then hitched up her skirt, spread her knees, and leant back in the seat to show me her recently fucked cunt! I could plainly see the odd blobs of the young lad’s thick and creamy cum that was still sticking to her glistening and still puffy cunt-lips, and also the watery cum that was now rapidly drying and turning crusty and white on her black stocking-tops!
“Oooo, you horny fucking bitch!” I breathed slowly as I took in the erotic sight, “Tell me, was it a good fuck?”
“Well we hadn’t much time!” she explained, “But I squatted down and sucked him hard, and then laid back with my legs spread wide to let him hump his already quite large cock into me! Needless to say, he was very excited and came quickly – but it was well worth it and he did spurt a fair amount inside me!”
We both shared the lad’s escaping cum as we drove back to Paula’s – cracking the usual jokes about it being a good vintage and it having a cheeky nose!
After having tea at Paula’s, we both bathed and got ready for Paula’s first ever trip up to the car park – Paula choosing to wear the long blonde wig I’d brought with me.
As we started to get ready, I explained what would most likely happen and told her that she could join in if she wanted, as long as one of the guys asked her if she wanted to have some sexy fun with him. This would more than likely involve her either sucking him off, or being fucked by him. I also explained that there was also the chance that more than one guy wanted to fuck her, and that it was up to her to decide what she wanted to do at the time.
“So basically, I sit in the car with you, and if a guy comes up and lets you know that he wants to fuck you, I can watch. But if he wants to fuck me, it’s up to me to tell him ‘yes’ or ‘no’ – is that right?” she asked as she applied her eye-shadow.
“Yeah, that’s about it!” I replied, “Most of the guys up there will be bi, so it could be you or me that they want to fuck!”
“Hey, you never know, both of us might end up with a guy at each end!” she replied.
“Mmmm, now that would make it a great night!” I grinned.
“It’s bound to be a great night anyway! If we go up there and nothing happens, we’ve still got each other for a fuck!” she smiled smugly, “So we can’t lose!”
We timed it right, for as we finished getting ready, the light was fading fast – just right for some al fresco fun up at the car park! And conservatively dressed by putting on our raincoats, we went out to the car and quickly discarded them, before driving off into the gloom. As I entered the car park my heart dropped when I saw there was only one car there, so I drew up next to it.
“Not very busy!” I sighed dejectedly, “Ah well, there might be some more later on!”
“It’s early yet!” Paula said, “So there’s plenty of time for them!”
The only good thing was, the guy in the car had fucked me before, so Paula was no doubt going to get her wish fulfilled of seeing me being fucked by another guy!
Sure enough, a moment later the guy got out and walked up to my open window.
“Hi!” he said, “It’s a bit quiet at the moment!”
“Mmmm, all the better for you and me then!” I replied, “We don’t have to worry about who sees us from the other cars! Oh, I’ve brought along my girlfriend to watch me getting fucked tonight – I hope that’s okay?”
“Sure!” he smiled, as he got his cock out and blatantly started to wank it, “Hiya love!”
“Hi there!” Paula called back to him.
“Is she just watching, or is she gonna join in?” he asked.
“Well, she’d like to join in – if that’s okay with you?” I replied.
“Sure! Tell her to get round here and help me with this!” he told me.
Paula didn’t need any second bidding, and quickly got out to walk round to the guy.
“Wow!” he gasped when he saw her walk round the front towards him, “Any chance of me giving you a quick fuck, as well?”
“Well I haven’t gotten dressed like this because I’m going to church!” she laughed.
By the time I’d gotten out and walked round to the beck of the car, Paula had already squatted down in front of him, and was eagerly sliding her fist up and down his shaft as she sucked hard on his knob-end!
“Is it okay to fuck her, but save my cum for when I fuck you?” he asked me.
“I think that’s what she has in mind, actually!” I replied as I stood alongside them and hitched my skirt up to wank myself as Paula rested on the back of the car and the guy slid into her waiting cunt, “Just let me know when you’re ready to fuck me – then me and Paula can swap positions!”
“But don’t be too eager to swap!” Paula told him as he reached up and cupped both of her firm tits in his hands, “I happen to like what I’m getting right now!”
“Well let’s see if we can get you to like it even more!” I said, “Here, suck on this!”
I offered her my cock, and she greedily leant over and sucked my knob-end into her mouth as the guy started to ram his cock really hard into her squelching cunt!
He remained inside her for a good 3 or 4 minutes before telling me that he was getting near to coming and would I get into position for him to fuck me instead.
With Paula letting go of my cock, I was free to turn round and stand beside her with my legs open and ass pushed back to receive him. He then quickly slipped out of her suctioning cunt and slid all the way inside me – Paula immediately diving between my splayed legs to suck once more on my steaming cock and frig her erect clitty!
A moment or two later I felt the welcoming feeling of the guy’s cock jerking inside me as he started to come!
“Oh yeah!” I breathed as he repeatedly rammed his throbbing cock into me, “Spurt your cum deep inside me and fill me up with it!”
He stabbed his spurting meat as deeply as he could into my ass – each stab into me being accompanied by another spurt of cum!
“Christ, I needed that!” he gasped as he slowed to a stop and laid over me, “You’re the best fuck around here, so I hope I’ll meet you again!”
“I’ll be coming up here regularly from no on!” I told him, “And I’ll take all the cock and cum I can, from anybody that wants to give it to me!”
“Well I’ll certainly be a regular!” he smiled as he slid out of me and stuffed his cock back in his pants, “You can rely on that!”
“I hope you’ll be a regular for me as well!” Paula said as she stood up alongside us.
“Don’t worry love, next time I’ll fuck her first, and finish off inside you!” he called as he walked back to his car and drove off.
“Hey! You got the promise of a fuck off him, my darling!” I told her as we got back inside the car and lit up a ciggy apiece, “First time here and already a promise!”
“Yeah, I haven’t done too bad, have I?” she replied, “But I’d feel a lot better if I had somebody’s spunk dripping from me!”
“I assume you mean somebody’s cum other than mine!” I smiled at her, “So that you could then watch me going down on you and sucking your cunt out for you!”
“Christ, yes!” she replied, “I haven’t seen you do that yet – only with your own!”
“Well I promise you, if you get fucked tonight – you will!” I smiled.
As she leant forward to kiss me, we were disturbed by a car drawing into the car park.
I’d deliberately parked with our rear-end to the far end of the car park so’s we could easily flash at the other drivers. This meant that the car was parked about 20 feet away from us, on the longer side and therefore at right-angles to us.
“We’ll finish our ciggies, and then I’ll attract his attention by putting our interior-light on and off!” I told Paula, “That way he’ll be able to see who’s in the car, and know we’re available for some fun!”
“Hmmm, crafty!” Paula remarked.
Before I’d chance to get out, two more cars drove up in quick succession – both parking alongside the first. So I quickly flashed the interior-light on and off, two of the others returning my signal with their own interior-lights.
“Bingo!” I said to Paula, “If they don’t come over to us in the next few minutes, I’ll get out and do a bit of advertising, to show them what’s on offer!”
“Advertising?” she queried, “What d’you mean?”
“Remember I told you about me flashing at the drivers? That’s advertising!” I replied.
“Hmmm, I think I’m gonna enjoy watching this ‘advertising’ lark!” she grinned.
We waited another couple of minutes and there was no action, so I decided to get out and flash at them. Once I’d gotten in front of the car, I leant back and spread my legs before slowly lifting up the front of my skirt. My suspender-framed cock and stocking-tops were now totally exposed to the drivers, so I reached down and started to slowly wank myself – one of the car doors immediately opening and a guy getting out! He slowly walked across to me and upon reaching me, he reached out to hold onto my rigid cock and asked me if he could fuck me?
I recognised him as a guy that’d fucked me before, and therefore told him I’d be more than happy to oblige, and as Paula was with me, would it be alright for her to watch us? He said that’d be okay and I told him we’d better go round the back of the car where it’d be a bit more private! And as I passed the passenger-door, I told Paula she could come and watch me getting fucked by the guy if she wanted? She readily agreed, and joined us just before I squatted down to take the guy’s cock in my mouth.
“Perhaps you’d like to soak your cock in my girlfriend’s cunt after I’ve sucked it for you, and before you fuck me?” I suggested, “She loves to ‘warm’ a cock up for me before watching me getting fucked by it!”
“Hmmm, I’d be delighted!” he smiled as I squatted down and took his knob-end into my mouth – my knees now splayed wide, and my suspender-framed cock lewdly jutting up from between them! I sucked avidly on his cock for a few minutes, and then pulled off, telling him that he could now fuck Paula for a while before fucking me.
She quickly obliged by turning round and pushing her hips back at him – the guy then
lifting her skirt and slowly sliding his full length into her drooling cunt!
“Oh my! This does feel good!” he gasped, “So warm, and so inviting!”
It crossed my mind that what he’d just said was a rather odd way of putting it – but quickly dismissed it from my mind as I saw how much Paula was enjoying having another rigid cock sliding up and down inside her! She was obviously enjoying the fucking she was getting, and pouted with dismay when the guy said he’d like to fuck me now because he’d sooner have a guy than a woman. That was my cue to assume the position, and I soon felt the guy’s cock pushing against my ass and then sliding all the way inside me. He then started to fuck me in earnest – his pubes slapping hard against my ass-cheeks as he thrust into me!
“Oh my….. oh my…. oh my!” he gasped as he fucked into me, “Your ass is so nice and tight, you’re gonna make me come inside you too quickly – just like last time!”
It was then that I felt Paula squeezing my hand several times, really hard!
As the guy continued to slam his rigid cock into me, I looked over at Paula and saw that she had a concerned and somewhat alarmed look on her face! But before I could ask her what was wrong, the guy suddenly gasped that he was coming!
So I pushed my hips back at his thrusting cock and felt him driving it into me as deeply as he could before it started to throb and jerk inside me!
“Oh my….. I’m coming!” he gasped – his cock spurting his load deep inside my ass.
A few moments after finishing, he slid out of me and thanked both of us before he made his way back to his car – Paula immediately telling me that she urgently wanted to talk to me inside my car.
“Did you notice the way that guy kept saying “Oh my! Oh my!” all the time, Suzy?” she asked me without delay.
“Hmmm, I did actually!” I replied, “I remember thinking at the time that it was an odd thing to say – why?”
“Well I didn’t catch-on right away because I’ve only seen him a couple of times, and so I didn’t instantly recognise him…… but when he said it again and again as he was coming inside you, I remembered where I’d heard it before and who’d said it!” she explained, “The guy that’s just fucked you……. was Anne’s husband!”
“Anne?” I replied, “Who’s Anne?”
“The vicar’s wife!” she grinned, “You’ve just been shagged…… by the local vicar!”
“Fucking hell!” I replied slowly, “And does Anne know that he likes fucking other guys – particularly guys that are dressed as women?”
“Christ, I don’t know!” she replied thoughtfully, “She’s never mentioned it!”
“And are you gonna tell her?” I asked.
“No bloody way!” she replied strongly, “If she does know, she might say something to me after we’ve arranged this meeting of the girls and you. So, when are you free?”
“D’you meet during the week?” I asked her.
“No……. actually, our next planned meeting is next Saturday evening!” she replied.
“Well, let’s make it next Saturday then!” I suggested.
“Right, I’ll ring them tomorrow and let them all know that it’s on!” she agreed.
“Okay! Now let’s see if those other two are interested in having some fun! How about you going out and doing a bit of ‘advertising’ on your own?” I suggested.
“Hmmm….. should I? D’you think I should?” she mused, “Okay then! I will!”
She opened the door and got out – telling me that she’d never felt so nervous, since her wedding-night!
I watched as she walked to the front of the car, and then leant back against it so’s she could lift up the front of her skirt and expose her suspender-framed cunt, suspenders, and stocking-tops to the two drivers sat opposite.
The result was immediate! They both got out and started to walk towards us.
I tried to hear what they were talking to Paula about but couldn’t. Then she came round to her door and said that they’d both fucked me before, and wondered if it’d be alright to fuck her instead? I told her to tell them it was okay, as long as she sucked my cock for me at the same time! A broad grin crossed her face as she realised what I meant, and she went back to tell them to follow her round the back of the car!
“Hi Suzy!” one of them said as I joined them, “It’s okay to fuck your girlfriend?”
“If she says so, of course!” I smiled, “She’s a real horny bitch, and loves to have a spurting cock up inside her – or two!”
“Is it alright for her to suck on my cock for me while he’s fucking her?” the other guy asked, “And then she can suck yours when I’m fucking her?”
“Go ahead!” I smiled, “I’m gonna suck her out when you’ve both done, anyway!”
“Christ, Suzy! I think all my birthdays have come at once!” Paula grinned as she leant against the back of the car and the guys got into position, “You will let me wank you while I’m busy with both of these guys – won’t you?”
“You can do whatever you want, my darling!” I smiled, “Just enjoy yourself!”
I watched with a twitching cock as both guys slowly fed their cocks into each end of Paula – she moaning gently and reaching over for my rigid cock as they both started moving their hips to and fro!
The guy fucking her was holding onto her hips and sliding his full length into her drooling cunt as she slurped noisily on the cock in her mouth – Paula moaning gently and rotating her hips so’s the cock inside her pushed up against her cunt-walls and repeatedly hit her rubbery cervix with each thrust into her! And all the time this was going on, her clenched fist was sliding up and down my rigid shaft as she wanked me and kept my cock on the boil. Then, with no warning at all, the guy fucking her moaned out loud and repeatedly humped his hips hard at her rear – each thrust into her accompanied by a spurt of cum from his invading cock and swollen knob-end!
“Yeah…… yeah…… yeah!” he gasped in time with each spurt of cum into her drooling cunt, “Oh my God…….! Yeah!”
He finally stood still and looked down at her now steaming cunt – his shrinking cock still wedged inside her and parting her cunt-lips.
“Let me place my finger over my gash so’s your cum doesn’t run out of me!” she told the guy, “We don’t want to cheat Suzy of your thick and creamy cum, do we?”
“No, we don’t!” he agreed as he slid out of her and she pressed a finger over her cunt.
This was the signal for the other guy to take his place, and for me take his place.
In one movement, Paula slid her finger away from her gash and the guy slid his cock into her cunt – making her grunt as she took his full girth and length deep inside her!
Realising she was in for a good, hard fucking off this guy, she spread her legs wide and pushed her ass back at his thrusting tool – giving him the optimum position so as to ram his rigid cock and large knob-end, as deep into her cunt as humanly possible!
The guy upon feeling that his thrusting cock was now in perfect alignment with her suctioning cunt, took hold of her by the hips and repeatedly slammed his rock-hard cock into her – making her whimper and groan loudly as his knob-end butted up hard against her rubbery cervix!
“Oh yes!” she gasped loudly against my cock, “Slam it into me! Impale my cunt on your rigid cock and spurt your thick and creamy cum deep inside me!”
This seemed to spur him on, and her wet lips once more encircled my knob-end and slid down the length of my rigid shaft so’s my knob-end went deep inside her throat each time he slammed into her!
“C’mon you horny fucking bastard! Fuck me, and spurt your cum into me!” she gasped as his pubes slapped noisily against her ass-cheeks, “Fill my twat with it so’s Suzy can suck me out and swallow your sticky cum!”
Paula ‘talking dirty’ to him had an immediate effect! For a second later he gasped that he was coming and repeatedly stabbed his convulsing cock into her squelching cunt as deep as he could!
The pair then suddenly went quiet and fought for breath – Paula’s firm tits heaving in my hands as the guy’s cock spluttered the last few drops of his load into her cunt before it slipped out of her – Paula then quickly sliding a finger over her gaping and steaming cunt, keeping the sticky results of her two recent fucks safely inside her!
I immediately slid down her belly and she positioned her cunt directly over my upturned face – withdrawing her finger and allowing the sticky contents of her cunt to slither out and dangle obscenely in viscous globs between her widespread thighs!
With Paula looking down between her still heaving tits and erect nipples, and with the two guys looking on, I opened my mouth wide, as the viscous strings of cum stretched and then finally broke – to land with a soft ‘splat’ on my tongue!
I greedily swallowed it down, and then opened my mouth wide again – ready for the second and much larger dollop of their cum to slither out of her steaming cunt!
This too I swallowed – like a precious oyster that’d slid off it’s pearly nacre shell.
“Tighten your cunt-muscles and squeeze out some more for me!” I told her as I avidly licked the dribbling cum from her gaping cunt-lips and the tops of her nylon-clad thighs, “Then drain what’s left inside your cunt into my mouth, before I suck and lick your gaping cunt clean for you!”
I heard her making several straining noises, and was rewarded by another large glob of cum – this one sliding straight out of her and landing on my waiting tongue!
Paula immediately then dropped to one knee and clamped her lips over mine – me then sharing my last mouthful of cum with her as we moaned with delight in unison!
She then kissed me – leaving a thin thread of cum that ‘tied’ our lips together, before it finally broke as she stood up again! She then slowly lowered her cum-smeared cunt down onto my upturned mouth and squashed her cum-smeared cunt-lips against my lips so’s I could suck out of her what traces of cum were left inside her!
Once I’d finished, I stood up and kissed her – Paula responding to my kiss by taking hold of my rigid cock and sliding my knob-end up and down her juicy gash – even after just being fucked twice, the horny bitch wanted me to fuck her!
“I think we’ll leave you two guys alone then! See you both again!” one of the guys said before they both thanked us and quickly left.
“Mmmm, c’mon you sexy bitch!” Paula whispered as they both drove off and left us alone, “I need your hard cock inside me!”
I bent my knees slightly and she moved my cock down her gash, so’s my knob-end was parting her cunt-lips. I then slowly stood up and leant backwards – my cock sliding all the way inside her so’s I could feel my knob-end pushing really hard against her cervix as I lifted her completely off the ground! She was totally impaled on my rigid cock, and let out a whoop of delight as she bent her knees backwards and threw her arms round my neck!
“Now that’s what I call, going in deep!” she grinned, “Trust you to think of doing something like that – you horny bitch!”
After turning us round, I slowly lowered her back to the ground and pressed her against the back of the car – Paula wrapping her legs round my waist as I started to slowly fuck my cock in and out of her!
“Oooo, yes!” she cooed, “Give me a real good fucking! Fuck me senseless!”
Having just seen how well the other guy fucked her, I knew I’d a job on my hands to beat him. So I set to – determined to give her a fucking she’d never forget!
I dropped my hands to cup each of her buttocks and started to fuck her – steadily increasing in speed and thrusting force with every stab of my cock into her!
Before long I was slamming my rigid cock into her gaping cunt like someone demented – not caring if it was uncomfortable for her or not! It obviously wasn’t, because her eyes soon glazed over and she was soon begging me to fuck her senseless, as her orgasm was rapidly building deep inside her!
And even when she let out a long wail and gripped me really tight as her orgasm hit her, I carried on fucking into her, like a jackrabbit on a suicide mission!
“Oh my God…. oh my God…… oh my God!” she repeated over and over again as she rode her orgasm and I slammed into her, “Jesus! I can feel another one coming!”
When her second orgasm hit her, she totally lost control and was like a rag doll!
We both slid down the back of the car and laid on the grass – Paula totally unable to speak or move as her orgasm blasted through her and I knelt over her and pounded my rigid cock into her drooling cunt!
“Fuck me…… fuck me…… fuck me!” she whispered over and over again. So I did!
Fighting for breath and with sweat dripping off my chin and onto her jiggling tits, I bent her knees and lifted them over my shoulders – a perfect position for fucking into her as deeply as anything could! In her orgasmic state, she repeatedly tried to lift her arms to wrap them round my neck, but she didn’t have the power and they fell uselessly to her sides!
“Ooohhhhhhhhh my God – another one!” she gasped weakly as yet another orgasm suddenly hit her and she trembled like a falling leaf!
By now she was totally ‘out of it’ and simply riding a continuous orgasm, so I thought it was about time I stopped resisting my own orgasm, and to finish her off with a heavy load of my thick and creamy cum!
I then started to fuck her to give myself maximum pleasure – not the Paula would’ve noticed the difference – and soon felt my cum starting to rise!
“I’m gonna come deep inside you, my darling!” I gasped as I pounded even harder into her quivering body, “Here it comes!”
Somewhere in her intense and extreme orgasmic state, she must’ve heard me, for she weakly whispered the word “Yes!” to me several times, and repeatedly tried again to lift her arms as my cum blasted into her! And even after I’d stopped spurting into her, and pushed myself up from her with my arms to look at her, her body twitched uncontrollably and she looked for all the world like someone that was having a fit!
It was about twenty minutes later, with me down between her splayed thighs and sucking on the juices that freely oozed from her well-fucked cunt, that I heard her weakly calling my name and saw her managing to lift one arm.
“I’m right here, my darling – licking out your cunt!” I replied softly.
“Oooo, come up here and cuddle me!” she begged, “I need you close to me!”
I crawled up and laid by her side – Paula rolling her head over and looking at me through her cock-drunken eyes!
“Christ! That was some fuck!” she breathed, “I can’t even feel my legs yet!”
“You will – soon!” I smiled, “And then we’ll get you back in the car, so’s we can get you home for a shower and some bed!”
“Oh, don’t mention the word, bed!” she replied, “I know you, you horny cow! That means you want to give me another fucking, and I don’t think I could manage one!”
“Okay then – no fucking!” I laughed to myself, “Just a good night’s sleep!”
“Mmmm, that’d do me very nicely!” she replied weakly, “And d’you want to know something else, Suzy? I can’t feel my cunt yet, either!”
“Well, believe me, it’s still there – oozing our cum and cunt-juices!” I replied, “And it’s steaming like a kettle!”
“Mmmm, I could just do with a coffee!” she laughed weakly.
It was another half hour before she’d recovered enough for me to almost carry her into the car, and then I’d to help her get out and into her house at the other end!
Once inside her lounge, I made us a coffee, and as she sipped it, she started to quickly ‘come to’ and to start making sense of where she was, and what a night she’d had.
Only then did I think she was alright to be left alone, so I eventually got her to bed and left for my place – not bothering to give her a shower!
The following morning she rang me…….
“Christ, what the hell happened last night? I feel like I’ve been kicked in the belly and cunt by a bloody horse!” she asked in a croaky voice.
“And a very good morning to you!” I replied, “You don’t remember those two guys fucking you, and then you and me fucking behind the car?”
“Hmmm……. I remember some of it, but not what you and me did!” she replied.
“Well, most of the time you were having an orgasm!” I told her, “You asked me to fuck you senseless and so I did my best – you then having one orgasm after another!
You impaled yourself on my cock and so I lifted you up so’s your feet came off the ground and then did as you asked, by ramming my cock into you as hard as I could.
Then I kept on fucking you as hard as possible, until you were almost unconscious with the sheer intensity and frequency of your multi-orgasms.”
“Christ, I must’ve been feeling really horny last night then!” she replied, “I used to ask my ‘ex’ to ram his cock into me as hard as he possibly could whenever I felt extra-horny! That’d also explain why I’m so bloody sore!”
“Well, you did seem to enjoy yourself!” I giggled, “But you’ll be alright for Saturday evening though, won’t you?”
“Oh yes! A couple of hot baths and nights without a cock and I’ll be ready for you again then, you horny bitch!” she laughed, “But I’ll see you before then anyway!”
“We could try dinner tonight if you’d like?” I suggested.
“That’d be lovely!” she exclaimed, “I’ll choose – you just be here at 7.30!”
“No problems!” I replied, “See you at 7.30!”
The following night we went out as a couple to a nearby Italian restaurant. We had a fantastic meal – Paula showing her appreciation by giving me a lovely blow-job up against the car, after I’d parked up in a gateway.
“I needed some protein to finish off my meal!” she told me as I drove her home.
I had to admit to feeling very nervous as I drew up outside Paula’s house on Friday evening, as I was going to meet her and her lezzie friends for the first time.
Because of my nerves and not wanting to shock Paula’s friends, I’d chosen to wear a short bobbed brunette wig, and a simple scoop-neck, long-sleeved clingy black number that finished mid-thigh – with my sexy black undies underneath!
“Come in, sweetheart!” she smiled as she opened the front door, “Everyone’s already here, and they’re all dying to meet you!”
She led me through to the lounge, where I found three very tidy women, all chatting together whilst dressed in their short satin robes and having drinks!
“Girls! At last you can meet her!” Paula announced, “This is Suzy – the ‘girl’ I’ve been telling you so much about!”
Their faces were a picture as they took in sight of the ‘woman’ standing in front of them – their mouths and eyes wide open, and them suddenly silent……!
“And a very special girl – from what Paula’s been telling us!” one of them finally laughed, “Welcome, Suzy! I’m Tina…… so nice to finally meet you!”
“And this is Anne, and this is Shandy!” Paula told me as she offered me my drink.
“Hi Suzy!” they both said as one.
“Well girls, what d’you think? isn’t she everything I said she’d be?” Paula asked.
“I have to say, that I half expected there to be a man in women’s clothing arriving here tonight!” Anne said, “But I simply can’t fault you Suzy! In fact, if I met you on the street, the thought of you maybe being a man, wouldn’t even cross my mind – in fact, I’d think ‘What a beautiful young woman she is’! So I’m pleasantly surprised!”
“Why, thank you Anne!” I smiled, “That’s really kind of you to say so! But believe me, I really am a man – and hope to prove it to you, a little later!”
“Hey….. never mind later, Suzy – give them a quick ‘taster’ of what they can expect, right now!” Paula insisted.
The room went quiet as I put down my drink and slowly reached for the hem of my dress. With everyone’s eyes fixed upon me, I slowly slid it up my nylon-clad thighs and only stopped when I was totally exposing everything below my waistline!
“Wow!” Tina gasped.
“Yeah…….. Wow!” added Shandy.
“Well, you surely are……. a man!” Anne said quietly.
“There you are girls!” Paula grinned as I smoothed down my dress and hid my charms from them, “I said you wouldn’t believe me – didn’t I? There’s your proof!”
“Oh yes! There were about six inches of…… proof showing!” Tina grinned, “Six inches of truly delicious proof!”
“And you’ll find out just how delicious it is later on!” Paula told them, “But in the meantime, Suzy, there’s a robe up on the bed for you. If you want to put it on and come back down, we can all get to know each other a little better! I’m sure you’ve all got plenty of questions you want to ask Suzy – and even some for me as well!”
I quickly went upstairs and returned, wearing only my robe and opened it wide as I entered the room – the girls all getting an excellent view of my suspender-framed semi-hard cock and how I was dressed underneath. Tina insisted that I sat down between herself and Anne on the settee with Shandy and Paula both settling on the floor either side of me, and for the next half hour or so.
During this time, the girls both openly played with my exposed cock, and then sucked on my knob-end, whilst asking me many in depth and personal questions about being a trannie – what I liked doing, what was it like to be fucked by another guy, had any memorable things happened to me – the list was endless.
All four of them then told me about them being bi, and what they did with each other and other women – my fingers now deep in their juicing cunts as the drink flowed freely and their nerves disappeared.
“Well girls, I think we’ve done enough talking!” Paula announced, “And now it’s time for some action! Suzy has already told me she’ll have to fuck two of us tonight, and the other two, next week!”
“Don’t worry, I’m gonna dry-fuck each and every one of you tonight, so you’re all gonna get some cock tonight – if that’s okay?” I explained, “Unfortunately, I usually only climax twice a night, so it’s just my cum that has to be rationed, I’m afraid!”
“And to make it totally fair, we’ll draw straws to see who gets a proper fucking first!” Paula announced, “Short straws get a full fucking tonight, and long ones, next week!”
Shandy was the first to reach forward and take a straw – grinning like mad when she saw it was a short one!
Next came Anne. A long one!
“Okay, you next!” Paula told Tina.
Tina tentatively pulled on the straw nearest to her – another short one!
“Okay! It’s Shandy and Tina!” Paula announced, “With me and Anne next week!”
“Christ! I can’t wait until next weekend for a fuck!” Anne grinned, “How about me popping round Monday evening instead? You could manage to fuck me and Paula then, Suzy – couldn’t you?”
“Mmmm, of course I could!” I grinned, “And that would leave next weekend free for something else I’d like you all to try doing with me instead – something that any one of you can do on their own, or as a group!”
“Oooo, that sounds interesting!” Anne grinned wickedly, “What is it?”
“You’ll all just have to wait until next weekend to find that out!” I teased, “In the meantime…….. Shandy, lie back on the settee with your legs wide open!”
Shandy got into position, then gasped loudly as I clamped my mouth over her cunt.
“C’mon Paula, you can do the same to me!” Anne said as she laid back alongside Shandy and spread her legs wide as well, “Now Tina, you can stand up here, and let me suck your cunt for you, while Paula sucks mine!”
Tina immediately climbed up to face her – Paula diving between Anne’s widespread thighs as Anne’s mouth closed over Tina’s drooling cunt!
As I licked and sucked on Shandy’s cunt, I looked up and saw she was really enjoying it! Her eyes were closed and she was busily massaging her largish tits – a bit too large for my liking, but nevertheless very desirable for most of the guys that I knew!
Tina’s were sadly somewhat saggy – the price she’s paid for having kids. To my way of thinking, having kids not only fucks up your body, but it screws up your mind!
But, women seem to want them, in spite of seeing what they do to their bodies – then they bitch for the rest of their lives to us guys about their stretch-marks, drooping tits and saggy asses, and their fat thighs! And I haven’t mentioned the cellulite!
My mind was suddenly brought back to reality, by Shandy reaching down and pulling on my arms – she wanted fucking!
So I got up between her thighs and lifted her legs onto my shoulders – the best position for getting inside her really deep, and making a woman think you’ve a bigger cock than you actually have!
Her hands held onto my hips as I slid all the way inside her with one hard thrust – my knob-end butting up against her cervix and making her groan out loud!
The other girls upon hear her, urged me on and shouted for me to fuck her senseless and to give her the best fuck of her life – something for her to remember, because her husband wasn’t doing anything for her, and was more interested in treating his patients than giving her the cock she so badly craved!
With Shandy bent almost double, it was easy for me to clamp my lips over hers and kiss her with a passion she hadn’t experienced since she was first dating! This made her steadily building orgasm suddenly start to increase in ferocity and size, and she moaned against my lips with every thrust into her.
As I pulled off her lips to suck her erect nipples, she slid her dark legs down and wrapped them tightly round my waist – pulling me into her with them and gasping that she could now feel her orgasm rapidly building up, deep inside her!
“I haven’t had one for years!” she gasped, “So please, don’t fail me now, Suzy!”
“You just wait, my darling!” I gasped back at her, “I’m gonna time it so’s we both orgasm together! That way, just as you reach your orgasm, I’ll be spurting my thick and creamy cum deep inside your throbbing cunt, and filling it up for you!”
“Oh yes….. oh yes!” she gasped with short breaths, “Oh, Christ……. yes!”
I fucked into her like a madman – my rigid cock slamming into her and pushing her down onto the cushion of the settee, and as I looked down between her legs, I could see her dark brown cunt-lips trailing along the shiny length of my pistoning cock!
“Gonna come……! Gonna come, right now, Suzy!” she suddenly gasped as I felt her grip on me tighten, “It’s here, Suzy….. NOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!”
As her building orgasm finally burst and slammed through her shaking body, I gasped into her ear that I too was now coming, and that I was now spurting my thick and creamy cum deep inside her cunt!”
“OH YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!” she hissed as her orgasm finally reached it’s full strength and smashed through her, “FUCK MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!”
Her nails dug into my sides as she clung to me during the intense throes of her long awaited, and far too infrequent, orgasm!
“Go on, Shandy girl!” Anne shouted to her as she broke away from Tina’s juicing cunt, “Let it all go, girl! Ride that fucking orgasm to it’s end!”
Eventually, Shandy’s orgasm diminished and her body went limp underneath me.
As the other girls watched, I slowly slid out of her hot cunt and knelt between her splayed thighs – my head slowly dipping down until I could slurp noisily on the mixture of cunt-juices and cum that was now oozing out of her.
“Fucking hell! I can’t wait until Suzy does that to me!” Anne said softly, “Look how she’s draining Shandy’s cunt for her and swallowing it down – wow!”
“Yeah…… I know what you mean!” Tina breathed as she reached down between her parted thighs and unconsciously massaged her clitty, “Boy….! I’m really gonna enjoy what’s going to happen to me later on!”
By now, Shandy was becoming aware of what I was doing and looked down between her widespread thighs, before smiling at the girls that were huddled round her.
“Christ, you lot! I’ve never orgasmed as hard as that before!” she told them, “It was fucking beautiful! I think I passed out?”
“Didn’t I tell you she was something bloody special?” Paula grinned.
“Shut up – you lucky bastard!” Anne joked, “There’s no need to brag about you being fucked by her whenever you want!”
By now I’d sucked and licked Shandy’s cunt clean of our cum, and we both sat back with a drink and a ciggy.
For the next half hour or so I took a ‘back-seat’ and watched the girls at play – all four of them fingering, sucking and caressing each other, and taking turns to play with me.
“It looks like you’re ready for me now, Suzy!” Tina said, as she wrapped her fingers round my rigid cock and kissed my swollen knob-end.
“I think I am!” I grinned at her, “Wanna climb on board and try it for size again?”
“Oooo, yes please!” she breathed, her eyes full of lust as she deep-throated me to make my cock nice and slippery for herself before standing up and straddling me.
“C’mon Tina, sit yourself down on my cock and take it all inside you!” I urged her.
She slowly lowered herself down onto my rigid cock – the other girls gathered round and urging her on as it slowly disappeared and slid all the way inside her!
“Fuck me….. only just!” she breathed as she settled down onto me, “Christ, but that feels fucking good!”
The girls were determined not to be left out of her fuck – Anne and Shandy both sucking each of her pert tits, whilst Anne stood between us and straddled my hips so’s she could offer Tina her cunt to suck as she bounced on my cock – totally impaling herself on it each time she sank down on me! And whilst she was doing that, Tina viciously thrust her hips forward, making my knob-end flick up against her cervix.
“Fucking hell, this feels good, Suzy!” she gasped breathlessly as she pulled off Anne’s drooling cunt for a moment, “You’ve got everything inside me!”
“Everything but my thick and creamy cum, Tina!” I replied, “And you’re gonna have a good dollop of that inside you as well, before too long!”
“Can I suck you out after Suzy’s come inside you, Tina?” Anne asked, “To pay you back for sucking my cunt for me?”
“No problem!” Tina replied as she clamped her mouth over Anne’s cunt once more.
“You’d better get yourselves ready then!” I warned them, “I’m almost coming!”
I guessed Tina was now thinking about me filling her cunt with my cum and Anne sucking her out, because she repeatedly squeezed my shoulders as her orgasm started to build inside her – the squeezes suddenly becoming more rapid and intense as I gasped that I was going to come and her orgasm finally reached it’s peak – flooding through her body!
Tina let out a low groan and ground her cunt down onto my spurting cock – finally collapsing in my lap as we held each other and came together!
Anne saw this and quickly got down off the settee, to lie on her back between my nylon-clad thighs with her head tilted right back, in readiness for my cock sliding out of Tina’s cunt. It was then a simple matter for Tina to quickly push her hips backwards and let Anne clamp her mouth over her cum-filled cunt.
Once there, Tina’s cunt would simply drain my cum into Anne’s waiting mouth! Not wishing to see the chance of a good sucking go amiss, Paula got down between Anne’s splayed knees and slid a dildo into Anne’s now totally exposed cunt, then sucked hard on her erect clitty.
“Okay…. you ready for me to pull out, Tina?” I asked her.
She nodded, and I slowly slid my shrinking cock from her oozing cunt – Anne quickly placing her mouth over her dripping cunt so’s she could suck my cum from it!
A long, low moan of satisfaction came from Anne’s muffled mouth as Paula worked the dildo back and forth and sucked on her clitty for her – another moan coming from Anne as she gulped down my cum which was now draining from Tina’s hot cunt.
An hour or so later, the girls had all showered, thanked me profusely for giving them such a good evening, and then gone home, leaving me and Paula alone.
“Well…..! You certainly made a big hit there, my darling!” she grinned as she closed the door behind them and sat down beside me, “They all whispered how much they’d enjoyed themselves as I saw them off just now!”
“That’s very nice of them.” I replied, “I know I certainly enjoyed myself, as well!”
“You would, you bugger! All that cunt just begging to be fucked by your cock!” she grinned, “But what I’d like to know – is there any cum left for little old me?”
“Let’s both go upstairs, and find out – shall we?” I smiled as I held out my hand.
There was – plenty!
The next day I decided to have an evening on my own before spending the next one with Paula and Anne, so I got myself ready and made my way to some toilets at a municipal park in a town about 25 miles away. I’d found out about them from the internet, and according to the site, they were used on a regular basis by guys wanting to meet others for sex. One good feature being that there were ‘glory-holes’ in the partitions between the cubicles – and a reference by several trannies that regularly used them, saying how many successful meetings they’d had there.
“Well, Suzy!” I said to myself as I sat in front of my dressing-table mirror in my lacy black ½ cup white bra, matching suspender-belt and tan nylons, “I think we’ll try out our schoolgirl outfit tonight! It’s been a while since you’ve used that!”
I finished applying my makeup and chose a short blonde ‘pageboy’ wig from the shelf in the wardrobe. Because of the way the hair framed my face and curled inwards at the bottom, it gave me a sort of ‘cute’ look. And when this was coupled with me wearing my white cotton blouse, loosely tied school tie, white knee-length cotton socks and grey pleated school skirt that was far too short to have ever even seen a school, the outfit was complete!
Slipping on the black blazer and then adjusting my hair in front of the mirror, I looked at myself and was more than pleased with the end result. I certainly did resemble a schoolgirl that was fresh out of class and on her way home – at least I would’ve done, if it hadn’t been for the fact that I flashed my suspenders and stocking-tops with every step I took across my bedroom – and the fact that I wasn’t wearing any knickers, so my cock and balls both hung and swung freely underneath my skirt!
“Well it’s turning me on!” I thought as I looked at myself and felt my cock hardening under my skirt, “So there’s a good chance some other guys will get turned on tonight as well – and hopefully end up by giving me a real good fucking as well!”
A splash of perfume, another coat of lipstick, light-weight raincoat, and I was ready!
Well hidden from the prying eyes of any neighbours by the high privet-hedge that surrounds my front garden, I threw my light-weight raincoat and handbag into the car and then got in – my grey pleated skirt immediately sliding up my nylon-clad thighs to expose my semi-hard cock and white suspenders.
I could now relax and enjoy thinking about the evening ahead as I drove for the next half-hour or so to the toilets in the municipal park. Following the directions off the website, I easily found the park and stopped just outside the gates. After putting on my light-weight raincoat, it was then only a two minute stroll along the tree-lined path to the football pitch and toilets. Upon entering the wrought-iron gate, I saw the toilets on my right-hand side and made my way over to them – the entranceway and both sides of the block, dimly lit in the gloom of the overhanging trees.
I decided to try the ‘Gents’ toilets first, and stepped down the short corridor that led into the open space of the washroom and toilets.
The light was actually sufficient for the size of the room, and I immediately saw that there were 4 empty cubicles down one side, and 3 washbasins on the other side.
As I strolled down the line of empty doors with my heels ‘clip-clopping’ on the tiled floor, I could clearly see the holes in the partitions between each cubicle.
“I think I’ll try…? Cubicle number…. two!” I said quietly to myself, the idea being that I’d then have a glory-hole either side of me, and perhaps have a choice of which cock to suck off – that was if I was going to get so lucky!
So I walked inside and closed the door behind me – sliding the bolt over so’s it only just held the door closed, but didn’t actually lock it.
With my coat hanging from the hook on the door, I settled down on the wooden seat, leant back against the wall, and took a ciggy out of my bag to wait for a hopefully very horny guy to occupy one of the cubicles either side of me.
With nobody appearing after five minutes, I reached down to the twin bulges of my falsies and gave them a gentle squeeze through my cotton blouse……..
Hmmm, very convincing – weighty, but not too much so… and just the right size!
“Perhaps I should open the top few buttons?” I mused, as I looked down on them.
Pulling the knot of my school-tie away from my collar, I unbuttoned the top four buttons and eased my blouse open in a ‘V’ shape, to reveal my white lacy bra.
“Mmmm, better!” I said quietly to myself, “Much better!”
I’d only just finished moving my tie to one side of the open ‘V’ of my blouse and hitched up the hem of my skirt a bit, when I heard a man’s footsteps outside. A few moments later they got louder and whoever it was, walked into the room and stopped!
After a pause, he walked to the cubicle on my left and closed the door behind him.
This was my cue to spread my knees so’s the hem of my skirt pulled up to expose my stocking-tops and taut suspenders, and also my now erect cock between them!
There was a sound of a belt being undone from next door as I reached down and took hold of my cock – slowly wanking it, in case the guy looked through the gloryhole.
With my eyes partly closed, I kept watch on the hole and saw a brief movement as the guy looked through……….. Bingo, my luck was in! A few seconds later I saw some more movement, and then saw a thick cock being slowly pushed though the hole!
I quickly got down onto my knees at the hole and sucked the bulbous knob-end into my mouth – the guy then pushing the rest of his cock through to totally surprise me by the length of it! I reckoned it must’ve been about 8 inches as I wrapped my fingers round the shaft and started to slowly wank it.
“Oh yeah…….. suck it, babe!” the guy groaned from the other side of the partition.
“Mmmmmmm!” I moaned on it as I slid my lips up and down the thick shaft to finish by sucking on the knob-end again, “Mmmmmmm!”
“How would you like my hard cock stuck up inside you?” he asked a few moments later as my head bobbed back and forth as I sucked noisily on his fat knob-end.
“Oh yeah!” I moaned, “Hold on, I’ll open the door!”
I saw his cock disappear as I slid the bolt all the way back and he quickly entered my stall – locking the door behind him.
“Mmmm, I’m really gonna look forward to fucking a naughty little schoolgirl!” he breathed as he looked me up and down, “Now let me sit down so’s you can lower yourself onto me, and see if you can take my cock inside your ass!”
He sat down on the seat and I straddled his thighs – him taking the opportunity to suck on my knob-end and wank me whilst fondling my balls as I positioned my ass directly over his erect cock!
“Mmmm! I’ve never seen a schoolgirl with a cunt and a cock before!” he said, “But it sure looks sexy! Now, lower yourself slowly down onto my cock and see how much you can take, before I bend you over and give you a real good fucking!”
His hands left my cock and balls and he cupped my ass-cheeks – pulling them apart as his knob-end butted up against my puckered ring.
“God, that feels fucking good!” I breathed as I lowered myself down onto his rigid cock and felt his knob-end slip inside me, “Oh God, yes!”
For what seemed ages I lowered myself down onto him, and just as his knob-end butted up against the back of my ass before entering my guts, I felt myself sitting on his lap – I’d taken all of his massive cock inside me!
“Oh nice!” he gasped, “You’ve got a lovely tight ass!”
“A lovely tight ass that needs a good fucking and then filling with your cum!” I told him as I repeatedly raised and lowered myself onto him and felt my slippery ass-walls stretching to accommodate his massive bulk, “So, let’s do it!”
I slowly stood up and felt his cock sliding out of me before I let him stand up and get behind me – me then dropping down with my hands resting on the wooden seat.
Knowing I was about to take a monster sized cock, I spread my legs really wide, and pushed my ass back at him in readiness.
I was glad I did! Taking his bulbous knob-end in my ass wasn’t too bad and I felt only a moment’s discomfort as it forced it’s way past my tight sphincter muscles and slid inside me. It was the length and sheer bulk that got me worried as he slowly fed it into me – stopping just as his knob-end butted up hard inside me! With a wriggling motion of my hips, and me pushing myself back onto the monster cock, I felt myself stretching to accommodate it’s massive bulk – just as he grabbed my waist and started to fuck himself in and out of my overstuffed ass!
After about five or six thrusts into me, I found that I could not only take it’s massive length and bulk, but that I was beginning to really enjoy the feeling of this monster sliding in and out of me!
“Oh yesssssssssssss!” I hissed at him, “Fuck me! Fuck that massive cock into my tight school-girl’s ass and fill it with your thick and creamy cum!”
And that’s exactly what he did! After soundly fucking me for about four minutes, he gasped that he was about to come, and was it still alright to come inside me?
“Oh yesssssssssssss!” I replied, “Spurt your cum deep inside me and fill me!”
a moment later I could feel his cock jerking and throbbing in my willing ass as he groaned and unloaded the contents of his balls deep inside me!
“Fucking hell…….! That was a good fuck!” he gasped as he laid over my back and fought for his breath, “One I’ll remember!”
“Mmmm, me too!” I replied as I tightened and relaxed my sphincter muscles on his rapidly shrinking and softening cock, “When you pull out, I’ll suck it clean for you!”
He took me at my word and I sat on the seat as he stood before me with his cock dangling from his open fly – my lips soon sliding up and down his limp shaft as I sucked the cum from it and kissed his knob-end before he tucked it away.
I thanked him for the fantastic fuck and he finally left me sitting there on the loo, with his cum dripping out of me, as I drew on a much needed ciggy.
It must’ve been a quiet night because I waited another 45 minutes and nobody else came in, so I put on my coat and wandered outside to walk along the path for a while before coming across a bench under some trees. I was really desperate for another cock, and so I sat down to see if there was any ‘passing’ trade?
It was very gloomy because of the heavy tree canopy, and so I laid back with my knees splayed wide and pushed the hem of my skirt up over my belly – completely exposing my suspender-framed cock and sexy undies as I started to have a wank.
Several couples passed me as I sat there over the next 20 minutes – me covering myself up in time before they got close enough to see what I was doing, but none seemed interested in me and I began to think it’d been a bit of a flop to come here.
Then I saw a guy walking towards me and I quickly covered myself up – leaving a little stocking-top showing as he drew near.
“Mmmm, love the view!” he grinned as he slowed and then stopped directly in front of me, “But you’re not really a schoolgirl, are you?”
“I can be, if you want me to be!” I smiled back at him, “I’ve come out this evening looking for a good time – with anyone willing to…… give me one!”
“Well you’re in luck! I’m out tonight for exactly the same thing!” he replied, “In fact, I was just on my way to the toilet block to see what was on offer there – but it seems like now, I’ve no need to bother!”
“Hmmm….. You could get a surprise in there!” I replied, “Sometimes the women in there aren’t exactly what they seem!”
“I’ve no problem with that!” he said cautiously, “Let’s say I’m… open to offers!”
“Hmmm! Offers such as…….. this?” I replied as I slowly slid my skirt further up my nylon-clad thighs to expose my semi-hard, suspender-framed cock!
“Ahhh……! So you’re not really a schoolgirl!” he replied with a sudden interest, “In fact you’re not even….. a girl!”
“I can be the next best thing to one – if you want me to be?” I replied suggestively, “And from what guys have told me in the past – you’d never know the difference!”
“How about a little…….. test, first?” he said as he slowly unzipped his pants and pulled his stiffening cock out, “Then I can decide for myself!”
I smiled and sat forward – the guy stepping closer to let me suck his knob-end into my mouth and cradle his balls in my hand.
“Mmmmmmm!” I moaned on his cock as I slid my lips up and down the length of his now erect shaft, “Mmmmmmm!”
“Oh yeah, babe!” he breathed as my head bobbed back and forth, “Well you certainly suck like one! But the question is, do you fuck like one? Why don’t we go in those bushes behind you, and find out?”
“I thought you’d never ask!” I smiled, kissing his shiny knob-end before standing up.
He followed me into the bushes and slid his pants down his legs…..
“How d’you want me?” I asked him, “On my back, or doggy-style?”
“On your back, with your legs wrapped round me!” he replied.
I dutifully sat down and laid back with my knees bent and splayed wide open – my skirt falling back to completely expose my white suspender-belt with it’s taut suspenders and tan nylons. I then reached up and unbuttoned my blouse – exposing my lacy white ½ cup bra so’s my false tits and dark nipples plainly showed through.
“Mmmm, you really look like the real thing!” he said as he knelt down between my splayed nylon-clad thighs with his rigid cock in his hand, “Now let’s see if you feel like it as well!”
As his knob-end slowly pushed into the tight entrance to my ass, I wrapped my legs round his waist and my arms round his shoulders – his rigid cock easily sliding all the way into me, thanks to the lubricating properties of the cum from my recent fuck!
“Oh yeah……!” he breathed as he sank all the way into me, “You do feel like it!”
After about three minutes of him fucking me, I sensed he was getting near to coming.
“Oh…….! Fuck me!” I breathed, “Spurt your thick and creamy cum deep inside me and fill me up with it! I want to feel your cock jerking and pulsating inside me!”
As usual, me talking ‘dirty’ to anyone that was fucking me had the desired result and I felt him start to stab his spurting cock into me – him grunting softly with each spurting thrust into me!
“God, you’re a great fuck!” he gasped as he slowed to a stop and his cock started to shrivel inside me, “That was excellent!”
“Mmmm, if you enjoyed it as much as I did, you’re satisfied!” I replied huskily, “Now let me suck your cock clean for you – I can taste your cum then, as well!”
He pulled out of me and straddled my shoulders – leaning forward on one hand and looking down at me as I slurped noisily on his cum-smeared cock.
“There……. All done!” I smiled as I kissed his knob-end and he stood up.
“Hey, thanks for that!” he grinned, “That was bloody good!”
With that he walked away, leaving me lying on the grass with my skirt up around my waist and my now erect cock jutting up from between my nylon-clad thighs.
The following evening I went round to Paula’s and soundly fucked both Anne and Paula – more for Paula’s sake than actually wanting to fuck Anne. Perhaps it was because I was tired, but it wasn’t a remarkable or memorable fuck with Anne – just a straightforward fuck with her climaxing as I spurted my cum deep inside her juicing cunt. She really enjoyed it and Paula seemed satisfied with the evening as we all laid back with our drinks afterwards and I reminded them that I’d something special planned for Saturday evening – asking Paula to ring the girls and to tell them to wear their sexiest undies.
As planned, we all met up at Paula’s on Saturday evening, Tina, Anne, Shandy and Paula, all eager to know what I’d gotten planned.
“Right girls!” I began as they sat round me, “Tonight we’re all gonna do something different! Something you’ll really enjoy, and want to do again!”
They all looked at each other nervously before I continued……
“First, I want everyone to strip down to your undies!” I said. With quizzical looks, they busied themselves undressing before finally sitting down again.
“Now all put your coats on – just your coats – go outside, and get into my car. We’re all going out for a little ride!” I informed them.
With everyone wondering what was going on and why they’d had to strip to their undies, they trooped out to my car and we set off into the darkening countryside.
I finally stopped some time later at the gates of the same municipal park I’d visited before, when using the public toilets to look for guy to fuck with.
“Okay girls, this is where we get out for a little walk in the park!” I told them as I switched off the engine, “Ermmm…. and I want you all to take your panties off!”
The girls all looked at each other in silence and then slowly slid their panties down their legs in blind obedience.
“Good! Now we can all go for a little walk……. with our coats unbuttoned and wide open – like this!” I told them before turning towards them and showing them how I had my own coat arranged, “Just put your hands in your pockets to hold your coat closed – like this, otherwise just walk along with your hands by your sides so’s your coats flap open to expose your semi-naked bodies!”
“But what if someone walks towards us and sees us?” Tina asked.
“Just put your hands in your pockets and hold your coat shut!” I replied, “Once we get into the park and you’ve walked a little way, I’ll be telling you to take off your bra so’s your tits are completely exposed as well!”
With the girls chattering with nervous excitement, we set off into the park and had hardly entered it when I told them to remove their bras. They dutifully did as I said and were soon standing there with their hairy suspender-framed cunts and naked tits now completely exposed to the world!
“Okay girls, let’s have that walk!” I suggested – all of us then setting off along the path, with the girls excitedly telling each other how turned-on they were getting by walking in a public place with their near-naked bodies on view to the world.
“Christ, I feel so fucking naughty!” Shandy beamed as her coat flapped open and completely exposed her dark-skinned slim body, “It’s actually making my cunt-juices flood out of me and I can feel them running down my legs!”
“Yeah, it’s making me do the same!” Anne replied, “My thighs are wet through!”
“I’ve got what feels like an orgasm building up inside me!” grinned Paula, “And I haven’t even touched my clitty or my cunt – yet!”
“Mmmm, me too!” added Tina, “What about you, Suzy?”
I turned round to show them my rigid and aching cock, as it jutted out from between my nylon-clad thighs.
“Oooo! Let me feel your cock inside me for a moment, Suzy!” Paula begged, “My cunt’s itching for it!”
“And me!” Tina said.
“Me next!” said Shandy.
“Then me!” Anne added, “I’m not missing out on that!”
“Okay!” I smiled, “But after I’ve fucked you for a few seconds, we’ve all to take our coats off, so’s we’re only wearing our suspender-belt and nylons!”
“Done!” Paula replied quickly, “But for fuck’s sake hurry up Suzy! I can’t wait to have that cock of yours deep inside me!”
I beamed broadly at her as I stepped forward – my erect cock wobbling from side to side as she spread her feet and pushed her hips forward.
“Fucking hell!” she breathed as I slid my full length into her sopping cunt and held onto her hips as I slowly fucked into her, “Oh my sweet Jesus!”
I fucked her for about ten seconds and quickly withdrew – the coolness of her thighs and the tremendous heat of her cunt nearly making me come straight away!
“Me next!” Tina said excitedly, as she watched my cock sliding in and out of Paula’s drooling cunt and saw the effect it was having by the lustful look on Paula’s face!
She quickly adopted the same position and sighed loudly as I slid my entire length into her boiling cunt – her eyes closing as her arms wrapped tightly round me.
“Oh fuck me, Suzy!” she begged me, “Please, fuck me – right here on the path!”
I did! Again I felt my spunk rising as I slid in and out of her sopping cunt!
“Me now!” Anne begged – her finger openly and unashamedly busy on her erect clitty, “Don’t fuck about Suzy, slam it into me!”
I did as she instructed but quickly pulled out before I shot my heavy load of cum deep inside her drooling hot twat!
“Christ, I’m so horny, I could’ve come inside all of you just then!” I told them, “Now let’s take off our coats and carry on to a bench I’ve used before – we’ll be safe there, and I’ll stand guard whilst you girls have some alfresco fun with each other!”
“Hell, make it fast, Suzy!” Paula rasped, “I’m flooding so much, my stocking-tops are wet through with my drooling cunt-juices!”
“No problem, it’s only just round this bend!” I replied, “I’ll keep watch while you guys are walking along behind me!”
A few moments later we reached the bench – the girls quickly pairing off as I watched them doing what girls did together when they felt ultra-horny!
As I laid back against the railings opposite with my erect cock jutting out from between my nylon-clad thighs, I kept watch up and down the path.
Shandy quickly sat back on the bench with her thighs splayed wide as Anne slurped and sucked noisily on her flooding cunt. Meanwhile, Tina stood beside me with her knees splayed wide apart to allow Paula to squat down between them and do the same for her – Paula’s hand coming up and grasping my rigid cock to slowly wank me as she eagerly gulped down Tina’s escaping cunt-juices.
The girls all agreed that they’d definitely like to do this again and would even like to do it when they were out on their own some evening as well!
With one of the girls keeping watch, I fucked each one of them and brought them to an orgasm, but only after giving Paula my cum – the other three eagerly taking turns to lick her cunt clean of our cum-cocktail!
I see the girls regularly, with me and Paula being a steady item – she totally aware and fully approving that I still get a good fucking by other guys when I go out as Suzy!
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Posted 31 Jul 2013 12:04
An Amazing story and well written. Thoroughly enjoyed reading This story... Hit a great many buttons.. :-p
Posted 10 Sep 2012 20:10
A really great read even if it took so long, I loved every word of it.
Posted 23 Sep 2010 15:12
Thanks everyone for the comments. Just glad you enjoyed it. Originally, it wasn't meant for publication - just a pastime of mine to get through the long hours of the day. Next one will have chapters in it for your benefit.
Posted 23 Jun 2010 19:10
Was wonderful,made me very horny
Posted 23 Jun 2010 17:02
Yes, it should have been several chapters, but worth the read. The best parts in my humble opinion were those with Paula. -- Sarathkia
Posted 23 Jun 2010 07:32
Long but worth every sentence.
Posted 23 Jun 2010 06:51
Awsome,,wish i was there to join in.
Posted 23 Jun 2010 05:59
great story a little long but still great
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44242 | Thread: CrossFit
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08-27-2010, 09:14 AM #42
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I always try not to pace myself, have never been told I should do anything otherwise by an instructor too. Just finished Fran this morning.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44253 | RIP Blockbuster
In the real world, where companies are allowed to fail, a big one is about to go down. Not surprisingly, Blockbuster is pretty much toast. It's the story of a company that wasn't nimble or forward-thinking enough to take advantage of its size and reach.
In a regulatory filing, Blockbuster says it will likely have to file for bankruptcy if it can't deal with its debt:
The "increasingly competitive industry conditions" have existed for years. Netflix started in the late 90's, and Blockbuster waited far too long to take the start-up seriously. In fact, in 2008, Blockbuster CEO Jim Keyes said: "I've frankly been confused by this fascination that everybody has with Netflix."
The fascination is pretty simple. People don't want to drive to the DVD store when they can get a DVD in the mail twice a week or download just about all the entertainment they can watch for $10 a month.
Keyes pinned his company's entire strategy on the assumption that customers would still flock to Blockbuster for new releases. Bad market research.
And then, lo and behold, someone came up with the idea of putting DVD kiosks in grocery stores, and Redbox drove the final nail into Blockbuster's coffin. Blockbuster does have a download deal with Tivo, but it's probably too little too late. From Daily Finance:
We'd bet that a big part of Blockbuster's problem is Keyes. The former 7-Eleven CEO joined the retailer in 2005, at a critical transition period for the company. Instead of embracing the digital revolution, Blockbuster has strongly resisted change. In 2008, at a time when in-store kiosks with $1 rentals started popping up everywhere, Blockbuster touted its brick-and-mortar business and dismissed the significance of new distribution models.
And while Netflix serves all-you-can-eat entertainment for a low, fixed rate, Blockbuster recently reinstated late fees and shortened the rental period for premium titles -- those aren't exactly the kinds of changes that will win new customers.
In fact, I'm pretty sure there are a few old Blockbuster customers who got screwed by overzealous late fee charges that will relish dancing on the company's grave.
Redbox is 20th century technology too. It will also eventually perish, unless it adapts to the creative destruction which has destroyed Blockbuster.
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I am one of those old Blockbuster customers who will gleefully dance a jig when this POS dies.
After being threatened with legal action for not paying a late fee for a movie I never rented, I paid it and was done with these non-customer service oriented twits for good.
Good riddance!
Netflix and Redbox meets the need of 90 % of the DVD view public with disply device of 47 in screens and smaller, but for those of us who have 77 in or higher displays (1080p projectors using Blu-Ray) the DVD and Netflix download (without 5.1 sound) is a step back. I love getting Blu-Ray from Blockbuster and showing movies on my 102 in screen with 7.1 sound. I know I am a small niche but everyone will soon get to that size and then DVD quality downloads with 2 channel sound will not cut it. Downloading 20 G Blu-Ray can not be done buy 95 % of the high speed services. Remember the service providers what to cap the amount of data you download.
That hi-rez may be here sooner than you think. With companies like Akamai, the forerunners to the technology may already be in place.
Big formats like blu-ray may not work for download services just yet, but would be trivial for either RedBox or Netflix (through the mail) to carry once demand is a bit higher. In fact, I'd say we're on the cusp of seeing them carry Blu-ray. This past holiday season was the first with affordable (for the masses) blu-ray players on the market; tipping point can't be too far off
Another 5-10 years and I bet download of hi-rez will be here as well, through more bandwidth, better compression, or both.
Excuse me not a twit. My store just closed down and we had many regulars and many happy customers. Except for the few hot heads who lost there tempers, and acted completely ridiculous about any late fees on their accounts. There is a difference between franchise and corporate branches though. Our blockbuster franchise will do anything to keep your account safe... id checks as well as commenting the account any time someone rents on the account. Well, thanks for doing your little dance while people lose their jobs.
This should be a case study for so many reasons. While the CEO should be blamed for much of this failure I think the Board of Directors should take the balance. I think anyone outside of a wood paneled room had the common sense and foresight to see that Blockbuster was doomed years ago. They pissed off their customer base and practically forced them to seek alternatives (Netflix and Redbox) by not embracing the realities of the marketplace. It amazes me that a ceo would actually stick his head in the sand instead of embracing or at least hedging against new technologies. So much for that MBA from Columbia. CEO with no vision = FAIL.
It's really in everyone's best interest for Blockbuster to be completely liquidated as opposed to filing bankruptcy.
Most people are sad to see a company die, but Blockbuster is probably one of the few where most will actually be GLAD to see it dead.
Anyone that still shops there is either a spoiled kid or someone who thinks the new millennium is coming. Time to get into shape and get out of Blockbuster.
I read the other Blockbuster article in Marketplace as well, but I find it more fun to post here. :D
Blockbuster was basically a dinosaur than couldn't adapt quickly enough to how the public consumes media. The same could be said for "Mom and Pop" video stores and smaller video store chains.
One of the smarter ideas Blockbuster had when imitating Netflix was to use their storefronts as drop points for their mail service. People who used and stayed with Netflix did so because they could get movies that a chain like Blockbuster wouldn't normally carry. Cult Classics and Obscure Foreign Films come to mind. Hell, they could have used that information to determine a local store's video inventory based on what was being mailed out.
Look at Gamestop which is another brick and mortar chain in roughly the same business. They make most of their money by reselling old games at $15 after buying them for $2. They also have a robust website that allows for people to order and pickup at the store to save on shipping.
Blockbuster didn't see that it's business model was no longer relevant in today's environment and it didn't have the clout to have laws written to preserve it's business model like the Telecomm and Cable industry does.
As for Redbox: I could see it being strictly a niche market for those who don't use/trust the internet/mail order and don't have some sort of Cable/Satillite service. Not something I'd bank on personally, but something people could still make money off of provided they get the real estate of Grocery Store/Walmart. (If they aren't bought out by those stores entire.)
I agree and disagree. Blockbuster didn't adapt, and a lot of mom and pop places also failed. But there is an independent video store here with about 3 locations that continues to survive and do well. They do this by stocking a lot of good movies, including a lot of niche films instead of just walls and walls of new releases. They also rent by the day, so you don't pay until you bring the video back. There are no late fees per se, you just pay like a per day fee for however long you keep it out. It's worked for them for years.
What your local stores did was adapt to the local Market which was something Blockbuster and Smaller chains refused to do. At least with the Netflix Model I can ask for really obscure things and it's likely they'll carry it or I can watch it online.
I've known individual owners, however, who didn't want to purchase obscure requested films because they didn't think they could get a return on them. Those owners also tended to run their store in the ground a lot quicker than Blockbuster did.
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Modeling Flexible Bodies in SimMechanics and Simulink
By Victor Chudnovsky, MathWorks, Dallas Kennedy, MathWorks, Arnav Mukherjee, MathWorks, and Jeff Wendlandt, MathWorks
SimMechanics and Simulink combine to form an efficient tool for simulating rigid-body mechanical systems, especially in control systems applications. These products also enable you to simulate flexible body motion—a frequent requirement in aerospace, automotive, civil engineering, and other industries. Because the SimMechanics Body block represents only a rigid body, you must first transform your continuous flexible body into an approximate form that you can represent in Simulink. SimMechanics can then simulate flexibility with a fidelity that is sufficient for many applications, such as control design.
In this article we use SimMechanics to apply the two most common flexible body approximation methods to modeling beams: the lumped-parameter approximation and the state space/frequency response method using finite element analysis (FEA) results. Both methods assume that beam deflection is small and in the linear regime.
Using Lumped Parameters
The lumped parameter approach approximates a flexible body as a set of rigid bodies coupled with springs and dampers. It can be implemented by a chain of alternating bodies and joints. The springs and dampers act on the bodies or the joints. The spring stiffness and damping coefficients are functions of the material properties and the geometry of the flexible elements. While lumped parameter methods can be extended to more complicated systems, they are best suited for systems with chain-like geometries. It is easier to model bodies with multidimensional geometries using other approaches, such as FEA.
In this section we apply the lumped parameter method first to an abstract beam and then to a flexing cantilever. A beam is represented by a series of generalized beam elements (GBEs), each of which is a body-joint-body combination. This formulation actuates and senses the joints, taking advantage of the relative degrees of freedom (DoFs) inherent in SimMechanics.
The lumped parameter method involves five steps:
1. Divide the beam into discrete elements and determine the DoFs of each element.
2. Represent the DoFs with a joint acting at the middle of each element along the neutral axis (the line through the element that suffers no stretching or compression)
3. Use flexible body theory to determine the effective spring constants from the geometry, material properties, and boundary conditions.
4. Apply damping as necessary to each DoF.
5. Couple the GBEs with welds.
Simulink and SimMechanics simplify the task of deriving lumped parameter approximations by enabling you to:
• Wrap the GBE model into a prototype masked subsystem
• Turn this subsystem into a library block that can be instantiated in a model wherever and as often as necessary
• Organize all GBE data into data structures
• Implement the body-joint-body-joint . . . structure by connecting a coordinate system (CS) on each side of each GBE to its immediate neighbor (Adjoining CS)
Figure 1. Discretization of a beam into generalized beam elements. Click on image to see enlarged view.
Applying Lumped Parameters to Generalized Beam Elements and a Bending Beam
To analyze the GBE motion and forces, define X and F to be generalized coordinates and forces at one end of the GBE. Assume that the other end is temporarily fixed. Let x represent the joint motion. Then
X = g(x) , dX = dg(x)·dx = [Jdx , where [J] = dg/dx
The generalized force F at the tip and generalized force f at the joint can be expressed with a generalized stiffness matrix [K] or [k]:
F = [KdX , f = [kdx
The Jacobian [J] relates the two matrices, such that f = [J]T·[K]·[Jdx. Thus:
[k] = [J]T·[K]·[J]
Now we apply this technique to a cantilever or beam bending in a plane. In our example, one revolute represents the bending of a single GBE relative to its neighbor.
Figure 2. Generalized beam element forces and deflection. Click on image to see enlarged view.
P and T are the force and moment (torque), respectively, at the end of the GBE. The moment τ at the joint can be expressed from equation (2a) as
τ = k , where k = (E ·I Az)/L (3)
in terms of the area moment of inertia IAz (second moment of area of the beam’s yz cross-section) and Young’s elastic modulus E. The rotational joint n executes damped oscillations according to the normalized moment equation
ω02 is the ratio of the effective spring constant k and the mass moment of inertia IMz, both assumed to be the same for all GBEs. The damping coefficient 2ξ0ω0 that multiplies the velocity is a quasiempirical value that accounts for energy lost to viscoelastic effects.
The beam is made of an aluminum alloy of density 2700 kg/m3 and Young’s modulus 6.9x1010 N/m2. We apply a load of 196.2 N (equivalent to the weight of 20 kg) to the tip.
Figure 3. Beam or cantilever bending in the xy plane. Click on image to see enlarged view.
Calculation yields these values, neglecting the beam weight.
Mass (analytic)1.35 kg
Equilibrium deflection at tip (analytic)-3.56 mm
Equilibrium deflection at tip (lumped GBEs)-3.54 mm
Vibration frequency (lumped GBEs)63.7 Hz
Now we apply the lumped parameter method with ten GBEs to the same cantilever, mounted to the wall with a torsional spring and including the beam weight. Again, we apply the 20 kg-mass-equivalent load to the tip. The beam bends by this load as well as by its own weight. (Bending under its own weight is a rigid body mode of the beam.) The addition of the beam weight reduces the vibration frequency considerably. This system and approximation use a model available from MATLAB Central.
Base spring stiffness Ks10,000 N/m
Equilibrium deflection at tip (lumped GBEs)-3.55 mm
Vibration frequency (lumped GBEs)6.82 Hz
Figure 4. Motion of spring-mounted, body-loaded beam, modeled by SimMechanics with 10 GBEs. Click on image to see enlarged view.
The lumped parameter method outlined here uses purely local forces as functions of local deflections. This approximation is useful for estimating the gross behavior and endpoint deflection of the beam but not for modeling local dynamics along the beam or the beam’s vibrational modes. The restoring moment generated by bending the cantilever is proportional to its curvature. This method approximates the curvature by the local difference in slopes rather than by the correct nonlocal difference in slopes between neighboring GBEs, which cannot be represented in a series of independent elements. Thus, while the lumped parameter method is a convenient way to represent a flexible body, it does not, in general, yield correct results.
Using Finite Element Analysis Results
A more powerful approach to modeling flexible bodies in SimMechanics is to first use an FEA program to obtain the frequency or modal response of the deformed bodies and then to incorporate this response into a SimMechanics model by superimposing flexible body deflection on rigid body motion. This approach involves three steps:
1. Model the flexible parts as rigid bodies using Body blocks, making sure to insert a CS at each point where you want to measure or actuate a flexible-body deflection.
2. At each of these CSs, connect another Body through a Joint that includes primitives corresponding to the deflections specified in the FEA model.
These primitives are motion-actuated by a "black box" subsystem whose output is the deflection calculated from the FEA results.
3. Use the appropriate loads on the body as the input to this black box— the load force from one or more connected bodies or from external conditions.
Figure 5. Embedding a state-space flexible body model into a SimMechanics model. Click on image to see enlarged view.
The most direct way to implement the black box in Simulink is to use the State Space or LTI System block. Either block implements the flexible body dynamics in a state-space model and uses the results to actuate the motion of massless bodies to which other SimMechanics blocks can be connected. You can use this method to model multiple flexible bodies and complex systems comprising many flexible parts, if the deformations remain small enough for linear approximation..
The state-space model is based on the multi-DoF version of (4),
, with M, C, K, and F as mass, friction, spring, and force matrices acting on the joint DoFs q and system inputs u (for example, reaction forces). A proper choice of coordinate transformation Φ from the spatial DoFs q to the normal coordinates η = Φ·q yields the normalized form of the dynamical equations,
, and diagonalizes Ω, the stiffness matrix whose eigenvalues are the squared angular frequencies, ωn2. We obtain the η, Φ, and Ω values from the FEA program. Since there is no simple way to derive Γ from theory, we use approximations and empirical values instead. In the commonly used proportional damping ansatz, Γ is assumed to be diagonal, with each eigenvalue γn = ξnωn. A complete state space also includes system outputs y (for example, sensors), represented as linear functions of the DoFs and their velocities and accelerations:
We represent this collection of forced, damped, coupled linear harmonic oscillators in linear time-invariant (LTI) state-space form
Now we apply the FEA method to the same bending aluminum cantilever that we previously modeled using lumped parameters. Without spring-mounting at the wall or any beam weight, the lowest two vibration frequencies are 69.8 Hz and 434 Hz.
Consider this cantilever with the same spring loading and revolute joint at the wall and the same beam weight as before. Modeling the cantilever using only the lowest vibration mode in FEA yields a vibration frequency and equilibrium deflection of 8.76 Hz and -3.20 mm, respectively.
All FEA results were obtained from COSMOSWorks 2006 SP2.0, a commercial FEA software application, using default mesh parameters (global size 7.94 mm, tolerance 0.40 mm). The SimMechanics model is available from MATLAB Central.
Figure 6. Motion of spring-mounted, body-loaded beam, modeled by FEA and state space dynamics. Click on image to see enlarged view.
Comparing Methods and Results
With a reasonable number of discrete elements, the lumped parameter method gives accurate results for static bending, but the FEA method gives more accurate results for vibration modes and frequencies.
Body-loaded, spring-mounted cantileverVibration frequency (Hz)Equilibrium deflection (mm)
Lumped parameters (10 GBEs)6.79-3.63
FEA/Frequency response8.76-3.20
Each method has advantages and disadvantages. The lumped parameter method is easy and quick to implement for flexible bodies with chain-like geometries but is more difficult and ambiguous, and hence less useful, for modeling bodies with higher-dimensional geometries. The simplification to independent GBEs also incorrectly represents the curvature bending moment. To correctly approximate the curvature moment you must apply the moment on each joint as a function of its own and neighboring joint deflections.
The FEA/state-space method is straightforward to implement for any body geometry and any number of DoFs. It is also more naturally suited to control design and analysis problems. Once you embed your FEA state space into a SimMechanics model, this method introduces algebraic loops as Simulink seeks a consistent solution for the acceleration of the Massless Bodies. (The acceleration depends on the reaction force, which is itself a function of the acceleration.) Algebraic loops can slow down the simulation and make it less accurate. You can break algebraic loops with Transfer Function blocks, with little or no effect on fidelity.
For a highly refined discretization and a large number of DoFs (many GBEs and joints in the lumped parameter case, many states in the FEA case) the dynamics become difficult to solve numerically.
Both methods can lead to dynamics controlled by a wide range of frequencies. A large ratio of the highest important frequency to the lowest makes the system technically "stiff" and difficult to simulate, meaning that the dynamics simultaneously reflect many different time scales. In the FEA method, you can select the modes and frequencies of interest, neglecting the others, to mitigate this difficulty.
A text-and-model archive, including a detailed technical paper and models referenced in this article, is available from MATLAB Central.
Published 2006
Klaus-Jürgen Bathe, Finite Element Procedures. Prentice-Hall, 1996.
S. Crandall, D. Karnopp, E. Kurtz, and D. Pridmore-Brown, Dynamics of Mechanical and Electromechanical Systems. McGraw-Hill, 1982.
Michael R. Hatch, Vibration Simulation using MATLAB and ANSYS. Chapman & Hall/CRC, 2001.
J. N. Reddy, An Introduction to Finite Element Methods. McGraw-Hill, 1993.
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Highlights from
linstats 2006b
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linstats 2006b
27 Dec 2006 (Updated )
linear multivariate statistics
% For this file assume
% A,B are arrays
% u,v are vectors
% C is a cell array
readme.m % this file
% used by linstats
grp2ind.m % improved version of matlab's grp2idx.m
center.m % subtract v from each row of A
scale.m % divide v from each row of B
table.m % build a table from mixture of A v and C
num2ord % converts a number like 2 to text like 2nd
colorfulcube.m % find a "good" spectrum of colors for n objects
bincalc.m % calculate a "good" number of bins for continuous data
indexof.m % find first occurence of v(i) in A for all i. Use matlabs ismember instead
isdiscrete.m %heuristic to determin with v or C is discrete or continuous
% perhaps useful
mah.m % mahalonobis distances from one or more multivariate gaussians.
tail.m % last lines of A, v or C
head.m % first few lines of A, v or C
export.m % export a table to a file
export_table.m % another interface to export
isnested.m % is one factor a subset of another
paste.m % paste columns of A into B at specified locations
shuffle.m % random shuffle of rows in A
swap.m % swap two variables
rad2deg.m % converts radians to degrees
deg2rad.m % converts degress to radians
mrange.m % improved version of matlab's range
nanzscore.m % improved version of matlab's zscore
mgrpstats.m % group mean and other statistics for each column of A (see also gmean)
svd_filter.m % uses svd to compress (or smooth) A.
fexact.m % fisher exact test (hypergeometric cdf)
findMode.m % finds the modes of the estimated distribution of v
% obscure
ind2subl.m % convert indices from upper triangular to rectangular
tri2sqind.m % same as above
sqform.m % converts a vector representation of ut matrix to square form
fan_table.m % standardized tbl for factor analysis
imputeMissingRows.m % imputes missing values in an unsophisticated way
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Evaluate function
[y1, y2, ...] = feval(fhandle, x1, ..., xn)
[y1, y2, ...] = feval(fname, x1, ..., xn)
[y1, y2, ...] = feval(fhandle, x1, ..., xn) evaluates the function handle, fhandle, using arguments x1 through xn. If the function handle is bound to more than one built-in or .m function, (that is, it represents a set of overloaded functions), then the data type of the arguments x1 through xn determines which function is dispatched to.
Note It is not necessary to use feval to call a function by means of a function handle. This is explained in Calling a Function Using Its Handle in the MATLAB® Programming Fundamentals documentation.
[y1, y2, ...] = feval(fname, x1, ..., xn). If fname is a quoted string containing the name of a function (usually defined within file having a .m file extension), then feval(fname, x1, ..., xn) evaluates that function at the given arguments. The fname parameter must be a simple function name; it cannot contain path information.
The following example passes a function handle, fhandle, in a call to fminbnd. The fhandle argument is a handle to the humps function.
fhandle = @humps;
x = fminbnd(fhandle, 0.3, 1);
The fminbnd function uses feval to evaluate the function handle that was passed in.
fminbnd(funfcn, ax, bx, options, varargin)
fx = feval(funfcn, x, varargin{:});
More About
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The following two statements are equivalent.
[V,D] = eig(A)
[V,D] = feval(@eig, A)
Nested functions are not accessible to feval. To call a nested function, you must either call it directly by name, or construct a function handle for it using the @ operator.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44295 | • "The Carrie Diaries" (8 p.m., The CW): In the season finale, the tension between Carrie and Tom (AnnaSophia Robb, Matt Letscher) escalates and she gets surprising news from. Larissa and Sebastian (Freema Agyeman, Austin Butler).
• "Hawaii Five-0" (9 p.m., CBS): More trouble in paradise: McGarrett and Danny (Alex O'Loughlin, Scott Caan) are kidnapped by an ex-convict who wants them to prove he's innocent.
• "Barrymore" (10 p.m., PBS): The latest installment of "Great Performances" has Christopher Plummer recreating his Tony award-winning portrayal of John Barrymore during the final months of the matinee idol's life as he rehearses for a revival of "Richard III."
Also on Friday:
• "Bones" (8 p.m., Fox)
• "Undercover Boss" (8 p.m., CBS)
• "Supernatural" (9 p.m., The CW)
• "Shark Tank" (9 p.m., ABC)
• "Raising Hope" (9 p.m., Fox)
• "Dateline NBC" (9 p.m., NBC)
• "Blue Bloods" (10 p.m., CBS)
• "Banshee" (10 p.m., Cinemax)
Contact Chuck Barney at, or |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44299 | Animaniacs: Lights, Camera, Action! Image
Generally unfavorable reviews - based on 6 Critics What's this?
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• Summary: Based on the television series, the player controls many of hte most colourful animanics featured in the show. Three different themed game environments based on horror, sci-fi and pirate movies. Large multi-mission environments across 15 varied levels from 3 major movie types. [Ignition]
Score distribution:
1. Positive: 0 out of 6
2. Negative: 5 out of 6
1. Profoundly average. There's nothing really to dislike about it, but you've seen these gameplay mechanics so many times before the game boils down to going through the motions and seeing Animaniacs cameos.
2. The controls really ruin the entire game because it makes it almost unplayable. If that wasn’t bad enough players have to keep up with passwords to continue their game.
4. Anyone older than 3 that picks this game up for themselves should really have their head examined. The reason is simple: Animaniacs is a child’s game through and through, but the gameplay is way too frustrating for the intended audience.
5. The password system, the lack of detail in graphics and sounds, the annoying controls... I honestly can't even justify playing the GBA game on the DS, much less the DS port of it (which only seems to add a multiplayer tag mode).
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44303 | • Publisher: Konami
• Release Date: Oct 31, 2006
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Mixed or average reviews- based on 9 Ratings
User score distribution:
1. Positive: 7 out of 9
2. Mixed: 0 out of 9
3. Negative: 2 out of 9
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1. JacobP.
Oct 10, 2007
DJ2 has a wealth of ready to be harvested, imaginative material, but it blows it all away in favour of run and gun. And shooting stuff, mindlessly. How could you make that concept not fun? DJ2 manages to find a way through mundane, boring gameplay and lazily designed levels. It's a shame to, because the game looks pretty good for a portable offering. Message to Backbone Studios: The point of a game is to be fun. Gameplay is what makes the game. You can have 8-bit sprites making bleeping sounds, and the game will do well IF it is fun. If there's going to be a Death Jr. 3, please make a better, more involving, at least cohesive story, please? Don't rely on the lame random humour. Use your imaginations! Expand
Mixed or average reviews - based on 34 Critics
Critic score distribution:
1. Positive: 7 out of 34
2. Negative: 0 out of 34
1. The good easily outweighs the bad in this case, though, and plants Death Jr. 2 firmly in the upper echelon of PSP titles. [Nov. 2006, p.145]
2. Backbone could have just tightened things up and given us more of the same for the sequel but instead have completely reworked the formula and created one of the PSP's finest games in the process. [Nov. 2006, p.96]
3. It's still not perfect, but at least the developers have taken steps in the right direction. [Dec. 2006, p.80] |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44304 | • Publisher:
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• Summary: In Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, players compete in events that take place in environments based on the official venues of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. Using a supporting cast of characters from the worlds of both Mario and Sonic, gamers compete as or against a range of lovable personalities including Mario, Sonic, Luigi, Knuckles, Yoshi, Tails and more. Innovative usage of the Wii and DS control systems to maneuver a favorite character allows players to race the likes of Mario and Sonic down the 100m track, engage in exhilarating rallies in table tennis and churn water in a swimming heat, all while competing for the much sought after gold medal. [Sega] Expand
Score distribution:
1. Positive: 10 out of 36
2. Negative: 2 out of 36
1. It's ideal both as a family game or as great post-pub entertainment. [Christmas 2007, p.64]
2. 79
For being a game that’s made up of simple gestures and “been there, done that” gameplay, Mario & Sonic is a huge surprise in its ability to still pull us in and really deliver pure, classic entertainment.
3. While the game never really blows you away, it's hard to imagine that any fans of Mario, Sonic, or party games wouldn't be glad to have this in their collection. [Holiday 2007, p.79]
4. Overall, it lacks the polish and simplicity to compete with so many other mini-game collections on the Wii, leaving the unlikely pairing of mascots as its biggest draw.
5. With competent graphics, a real feeling of character, and mostly good uses of the Wii's motion sensing controls, this game is an enjoyable experience overall. Just don't let the allure of the crossover cloud your judgement when deciding whether or not to play this title.
6. The events don't show much diversity, outside of a few creative "dream" events. Worse yet, the controls are haphazard, sometimes reading perfectly and other times barely registering. As a result, it earns a bronze metal, at best.
7. 30
I could go on and on how Mario & Sonic misses the mark in nearly every respect, but there’s really no point.
See all 36 Critic Reviews
Score distribution:
1. Positive: 29 out of 37
2. Negative: 3 out of 37
1. MOSH
Oct 19, 2009
Best Olympics Themed Video Game EVER. Best Mini-Games Ever Best Mario Sports Game since MKDD
2. DarrenS.
Jan 25, 2008
You've got to be kidding me with some of these people slagging it off - obviously they have no sense of fun or sense of humour. The best thing that you can do is go and get yourself a copy of this and play away. Don't cry about one or two games being difficult to follow - just play, laugh and cry as your arms get soooo tired. Expand
3. AlexR.
Jul 24, 2008
I personally really enjoy this game. C'mon what game outside Brawl do you see Sonic and Mario, not to meantion almost every recognizeable character from each party, competing against each other? Sure a few events can be difficult, but NO ONE ever said that the Olympics were easy! So why should this, being the closest most of us are ever going to be competing in the Olympics, be retarded down to simple platformer button pressing? In my oppinion, even if it involves than breaking a sweat on a few of them which to me is fine, I love all of the events even if the computer beats me!! So to sum it up- PROS: sixteen total playable characters + Mii's, events are great fun, great party game, gives some intersting/good education on the Olympics in the past and today some Wii titles where you can press random buttons or do random actions to win- in M&S you actually have to try to win at most events. CONS: Some events can be difficult at times (hey the real Olympics aren't easy either), the Wifi feature is only to update records on events (I was kind of hoping to actually face against people online). You have to play though random minigames to acess the Olympic trivia. Expand
4. BenihanaB.
Nov 18, 2007
Great Party game!!! Much better than Wii sports just because of the variety. 100% better than wario ware. 4 players at once is a blast. Controls are easy, but still just challanging enough to make you want to play more. Have not yet seen the "button mashing and controller shaking" other critics have talked about. Only down side is online mode is for score posting only. Would of recieved a perfect 10 if it had an online vs. mode....Still can not stop playing this game all day/night. Oh yeah, you can even use favorite Mii's in Olympic competition. Expand
5. DrewFreethy
Jun 10, 2008
Needlessly complicated menu system makes it a little strange to set up games (there are a billion sub menus it's worse than windows) but when you get into it, it's good fun. You have to play it in a group though or you will find yourself getting bored very quickly, but as the Wii is a group console that won't be a problem. Expand
6. MichaelM
Dec 14, 2008
Decent, solid game, that shines during multiplayer play however repetetive controls stop this from bercoming great.
7. DivineStorm
Jul 30, 2008
At first I thought the game was pretty decent. Was I ever wrong! It's broken as hell!!!! The controls are AWFUL!!!!! like in the spear throwing event for example: When I was told to press the b button, I did and nothing happend?! WTF IS THAT?!! also the game has no fucking replay abilty!!!! On top of all this: IT IS BORING AS HELL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Expand
See all 37 User Reviews |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44306 | User Score
Generally favorable reviews- based on 874 Ratings
User score distribution:
1. Negative: 60 out of 874
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There are no user reviews yet - Be first to review Batman: Arkham Asylum.
Universal acclaim - based on 78 Critics
Critic score distribution:
1. Positive: 78 out of 78
2. Mixed: 0 out of 78
3. Negative: 0 out of 78
1. What may be one of Batman’s worst nights of his life may end up being one of many players’ best experiences of the year.
2. This is certainly not a game for just Batman fans, comic fans or action fans; this is a game that everyone should play and thoroughly enjoy. It looks beautiful, plays like a dream and has a superb mix of action, stealth and detective elements. The combat is intuitive, flexible and surprisingly deep too. Give this game a go and you will not be pleasantly surprise, you will be blown away.
3. Batman Arkham Asylum is a product of absolute value that can count on a cast of colorful characters to build a great game, really fun. The greatest strengths of the production lie in the gameplay built around what are the real capabilities of Batman, mixing action and stealth section, but always related with the universe from which have been extrapolated. Rocksteady's game is certainly the new standard for understanding how produce games under license, adapting for videogaming the very spirit of this historic character. |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44309 | Mixed or average reviews - based on 6 Critics
Critic score distribution:
1. Positive: 1 out of 6
2. Negative: 1 out of 6
1. To be quite honest, The Bible Game isn't as lame as I thought it was going to be. It's not great, hell, it's not even good but at least it doesn't totally suck.
2. This game is interesting enough to keep most kids' attention with a bit of innocent humor adults will appreciate and a Christian rock soundtrack even non-Christians can bear.
3. 40
Interestingly, the saddest part of The Bible Game is how it manages to completely ignore the core messages of religion in favor of trite Nouveau Christian catchphrases. It's all content without meaning or context.
4. Underneath the religious overtones is a mediocre party game that shouldn't get much play, even at a Catholic school retreat.
5. 65
There's not enough biblical depth to warrant a purchase from religious folk, yet the mini-games aren't that engaging, either. It all feels somewhat hokey as well; almost as though you're playing a game that Ned Flanders would buy for his kids.
6. There is enough to entertain a Christian family, looking to bond on a Saturday night, but novelty will wear off rather quickly. The trivia questions repeat far too often and a few of the Challenge games should have been wiped from the stone tablets.
User Score
Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 12 Ratings
User score distribution:
1. Positive: 1 out of 6
2. Negative: 4 out of 6
1. Aug 17, 2013
2. AdamG.
Mar 4, 2008
This game is horrible. It isn't even a good recruiting tool.
3. gh0st
Feb 7, 2006
Just want to fight some of the ignorance deflation on the users score. I have NOT played this title. But hitting a game for its content is as asinine as claiming its the greatest thing ever for no other reason than because you can "pimp slap hoes". Only the ignorant and immature guage games on nothing more. The question for me: which does this format better, The Guy Game or this title? Full Review » |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44310 | Generally favorable reviews - based on 21 Critics
Critic score distribution:
1. Positive: 15 out of 21
2. Negative: 0 out of 21
1. It's a cuckoo's nest that's nicely feathered.
2. Reviewed by: Ty Burr
Touches smartly and wistfully on a number of themes, not least the notion that the marginal members of society - the ones who get spit out on the sidewalk with no idea of how it happened - might benefit from a helping hand and a friendly kick in the pants.
3. 75
4. Charms because of its natural, non-magical attitude toward humanity.
5. Reviewed by: Phil Hall
If anything saves Elling, it is the trio of supporting performances that are closer to the real world.
6. Heartwarming here relies less on forced air than on Petter Næss’ delicate, clever direction -- and a wonderful, imaginative script by Axel Hellstenius.
7. A witty and sophisticated sensibility brings individuality to the classic odd-couple comedy.
8. 90
Beautifully observed, miraculously unsentimental comedy-drama.
10. 75
A gentle comedy, brimming with hope and faith in human resilience.
12. 75
An enjoyable experience.
13. Reviewed by: Carla Meyer
A charming 2001 Oscar nominee for best foreign-language film.
15. 60
The natural chemistry between Ellefsen and Nordin keeps the film pleasant and inoffensive, but is there any question about where or when or how it will go?
17. Reviewed by: Ken Fox
Deftly manages to avoid many of the condescending stereotypes that so often plague films dealing with the mentally ill.
18. Reviewed by: Gunnar Rehlin
A darkly funny, very human comedy.
19. Elling is nothing if not carefully controlled hokum -- both actors, the director, and screenwriter all worked it through first as a stage adaptation of a novel by Ingvar Ambjornsen.
20. Reviewed by: Ann Hornaday
Bighearted audience pleaser.
User Score
Generally favorable reviews- based on 9 Ratings
User score distribution:
1. Positive: 4 out of 4
2. Mixed: 0 out of 4
3. Negative: 0 out of 4
1. CherylW.
Feb 13, 2008
It was really good. A little sexual and there was some bad language. Other then that it was great!
2. ArneL.
Jun 15, 2007
One of my my all time favourite movies! Saw it in the original version in Norway back in 2001. Great, great film!
3. TordS.
Dec 22, 2005
Great film! :-)) |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44311 | Mixed or average reviews - based on 9 Critics
Critic score distribution:
1. Positive: 3 out of 9
2. Negative: 3 out of 9
There are no positive critic reviews yet.
User Score
No user score yet- Awaiting 1 more rating
User score distribution:
1. Positive: 0 out of 1
2. Mixed: 0 out of 1
3. Negative: 1 out of 1
1. Aug 18, 2012
This is the worst 20 minutes of a movie I couldn't bear to finish. The dialog and chemistry is as cold, stilted and empty as the sundrenched loft (strange contradiction) where much of the action takes place. This is a wannabe alternative to the romcom genre it seeks to challenge. I had to sign up and write this since there are no reviews that reflect this opinion! Full Review » |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44351 | View Single Post
Old 04-28-2011, 11:53 AM #134
Junior Member
eewestcoaster began at the beginning.
Posts: 9
Karma: 10
Join Date: Apr 2011
Device: Kindle 3
Originally Posted by bosie View Post
care to share? i am after that too, especially in landscape mode.
I used the line from kranu's post, earlier in this same thread. Basically you set up the hotkey combination Shift+[YOURKEY] (where "YOURKEY" is any key of your choosing) to send a keystroke to the system.
In my case I used the FW_Right and FW_Left keys, located on the main keypad's 5-way controller. If you want to do it in Landscape mode, my guess is that you'd use FW_Up (or maybe k3_FW_Up, I'm not sure) and FW_Down instead.
When you install Launchpad, look at the keydefs.ini.default file (I'm at work right now but if memory serves, the file on your Kindle doesn't have the "default" extension, it's just "keydefs.ini"). This is where you'll get both the symbolic name and numeric command equivalent for each key. For example, we want to turn a page to the right, so that means we have to send the numeric command 191.
The file servicecmds.ini contains the scripts you can launch with the hotkey combinations. "Shift" is the hotkey start button, so it's just assumed. In my case the hotkey combo was Shift + FW_Right, so I added this line to the end of the file:
FW_Right = !echo "send 191">/proc/keypad
If you want to go back a page, just change the 191 to 193 as per the keydefs.ini.default file.
Note that there are timing requirements - check the launchpad.ini file for details.
Good luck!
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44353 | View Single Post
Old 10-07-2008, 12:21 PM #3
Junior Member
Matridom began at the beginning.
Posts: 2
Karma: 10
Join Date: Oct 2008
Device: PRS-505
Found it in my user profile.. Deleting the file did not correct the issue, however deleting the entire folder allowed for the app to run wishing to select a folder for the database.. Won`t let me use the old database folder (i guess there is corrupt data there). I just made a new folder and all is good now. thanks for the help.
Matridom is offline Reply With Quote |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44355 | Half-Minute Hero: Super Mega Neo Climax (Xbox 360)
100 point score based on reviews from various critics.
5 point score based on user ratings.
Not an American user?
Half-Minute Hero: Super Mega Neo Climax is an updated re-release of the 2009 PSP title Half-Minute Hero. As in the original, the game is structured roughly like a Japanese RPG, tasking the player with fighting enemies to earn experience and gold, finding information and buying items in towns, completing quests to further the story, joining up with NPCs, and finally defeating the boss. The key difference is that there is a strict 30-second time limit before the world is destroyed. Time can be turned back for a price, but it gets increasingly expensive.
The largest addition to this new release is the all-new "Neo Cartoon" mode which replaces the original sprite graphics with an HD vector graphics makeover, though the game can also still be played with the original PSP graphics. There are also several new missions added to the mission tree, as well as an online multiplayer mode where up to four heroes can race to defeat the boss. However, several of the additional modes from the PSP version have been cut, reducing the Dark Lord 30, Princess 30, and Knight 30 modes to single missions that play much like the main Hero 30 mode. The Goddess' Room from the original game has also been removed.
There are no Xbox 360 screenshots for this game.
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雷堂嬢太朗 -raido.jotaro- (52489) added Half-Minute Hero: Super Mega Neo Climax (Xbox 360) on Jul 31, 2011 |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44356 | No Fear Downhill Mountain Bike Racing (PlayStation)
100 point score based on reviews from various critics.
5 point score based on user ratings.
Advertising Blurbs
Aaaarghhh! If you can draw breath, you'll be screaming all the way, as you hurtle downhill on the best bike you can build. Choose from one of six characters, five game modes and a changing selection of trails.
For sheer adrenaline and tingling fingers, this one is hard to beat, as you view the world with your head low over the handlebars. The feel, as you race, skid round bends, jump and perform stunts such as wheelies and 360 degree turns, will leave you gasping. So real, you'll wish you'd worn knee-pads. Go for it!
Contributed by Xoleras (66309) on Nov 05, 2004. |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44385 |
| Thu Jan. 24, 2008 11:40 AM GMT
Advertise on MotherJones.com
Check out good old Dick Morris at Townhall neatly summing it up whilst simultaneously giving whites their marching orders. A victory for Obama in South Carolina will actually equal his eventual defeat, inevitable black defeat, as nature intended:
A racial subtext that didn't exist before? Lord, the psychic energy it takes to maintain a belief in one's own innate superiority and everlasting innocence. But you can't say he's wrong in his prediction, though it might be nice if we could agree that it's, you know, morally wrong. In any event, Kaus suggests that Obama might want to get his Souljah on. If he does that, he will definitely lose my vote, not to mention my respect. When Bill did it, it was exactly the same as apologizing for being liked by blacks. If Obama does it, it will be exactly the same as apologizing for being black. It will be announcing that he's "different," better than the Negro hordes and should be forgiven his melanin. After all, its been purified by white blood. See how articulate and clean I am! No gold tee-fuses here. And my kids' names don't have any apostrophes or end in -ita. I did drugs, but hey, I did them with your kids in an Ivy League school.
The idea that Obama should feel the need to find something or someone black to denounce (Kaus, sincerely trying to be helpful, I believe, suggests affirmative action as the least offensive of Obama's choices) is pure insult, pure racism. Hillary Clinton can deploy Bob Johnson, purveyor of anti-black filth so vile his own mother should disown him, but Obama has to set up black targets of opportunity? I'm with Robert George. Instead of going Souljah, Obama should "tell the truth and shame the devil" of the black miscreants who align herself with him. His advice on Johnson was dead on:
Obama needs to turn this around: The response to Johnson's crack that Obama is taking racial cues from "Guess Who's Coming To Dinner" is to say, "Well, I'd rather my daughters learned about race from a movie like that—giving an optimistic view of society—than from the trash Mr. Johnson's BET often inflicts on Black America with scantily-clad women shaking their behinds and gangstas rappers using N-, B- and H- words gratuitously. Does Mr. Johnson believe that is "real life"? Does Mrs. Clinton associate herself with the images of women that Mr. Johnson's network has been spewing for years now?"
These are some questions to which many of the women of South Carolina might appreciate hearing some answers.
Obama: Confront the racism and white supremacy head on. Not with whining and overt denunciations of racism, but with the facts. Fact number one must be: Black is beautiful.
None of this is to say, of course, that there are no black problems to be dealt with, but if Obama isn't going to be the one to deal with them as constructively as possible—a la his gentle but firm rebuke of black homophobia, xenophobia and antisemitism—who will? (And, by the way, who's telling the truth on white folks?) I'd like to see him talk with blacks about the root causes (yeah, I went there) of black violence, poor educational and health outcomes, the war between black men and black women. Not denounce them. Try to heal them.
Who but Obama will treat blacks as free and equal human beings, deserving of the nation's time, attention and investment? If he goes Souljah, no one.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44393 | Skip to main content
Actor Clark Duke entered the professional acting sphere during childhood, with an ongoing role as Elliot Hartman, one of two sons of congressional legislative assistant John Hartman (John Ritter, whom Duke resembled), on the popular CBS sitcom Hearts Afire (1992-1995). Thereafter, Duke took nearly a decade off to pursue his studies, but received renewed attention years later thanks to an off-camera friendship and professional partnership with the popular comedic actor Michael Cera (Arrested Development). That association began when Duke appeared alongside Cera in the Judd Apatow-produced, Greg Mottola-directed sex comedy Superbad, and continued via the pair's creation of the successful web series Clark and Michael. The program, done in an extremely dry, put-upon mockumentary style that recalled both The Office and Arrested Development, starred the actors as themselves, and depicted their adventures attempting to break through the impenetrable walls of show business. It drew a substantially large fan base and became something of a cult hit. Thereafter, Duke starred in the popular frat-boy-themed series Greek (2007) and signed on as one of the leads in the big-screen teen sex comedy-road movie Sex Drive (2008). Over the next several years, Duke would also appear in a number of big screen comedies, like Sex Drive, Kick-Ass, Hot Tub Time Machine, and A Thousand Words.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44394 | Skip to main content
Photo 6 of 12
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BECAUSE OF WINN-DIXIEA joyous get-together of some of the local residents of the town is the handiwork of a girl and her new best friend - a dog named Winn-Dixie. Mr. Alfred (B.J. Hopper), Sweetie Pie Thomas (Elle Fanning), Winn-Dixie, Preacher (Jeff Daniels), Opal (AnnaSophia Robb), Otis (Dave Matthews), Gloria (Cicely Tyson), Miss Franny (Eva Marie Saint), Amanda Wilkinson (Courtney Jines), Dunlap Dewberry (Nick Price), and Stevie Dewberry (Luke Benward).
UPLOADED ON 2008-02-15 22:56:12 PHOTO BY 20th Century Fox
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Mystery Movie Mistakes: 7 Crime-Worthy Blunders (PHOTOS)
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Director Stephen Daldry speaks at a special screening of "The Reader" presented by The Weinstein Company at the Wadsworth Theater on December 7, 2008 in Los Angeles, California.
UPLOADED ON 2008-12-08 08:46:04 PHOTO BY Charley Gallay/
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44396 | Skip to main content
Anchors Aweigh
R 139min.
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Released on
This mammoth musical is at base the story of two sailors on leave in Hollywood. Brash Joseph Brady (Gene Kelly) has promised his shy pal Clarence Doolittle (Frank Sinatra) that he will introduce Clarence to all the glamorous movie starlets whom he ... Read More
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Clarence Doolittle
Susan Abbott
Joseph Brady
Donald Martin
Girl from Brooklyn
Police Sergeant
Cafe Manager
Adm. Hammond
June 20, 2013
actually quite boring and Kelly worked hard to take the move away from Sinatra......
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December Boys Movie Poster
December Boys - Trailer No. 1
PG-13 In Theaters 09/14/2007 , 105min.
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In Quicktime HD : 480p
December Boys - Trailer No. 1
A story about four orphan boys whose friendship is put to a test when they compete to be the adopted one for the same family.
December Boys - Trailer No. 1
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Ghettoblaster Movie Poster
Release Date Not Set
Ghettoblaster immediately gets down to business with a frightening montage of urban gang violence. Richard Hatch plays Travis, a survivor of the ghetto who returns home to find that his "hood" is a hotbed of criminal activity (he didn't know this ... Read More
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44400 | Watch It
On DVD: Now | On Blu-ray: TBD
Passion of the Priest
• Runtime: 1 hr. 50 min.
• Genres: Religious Drama, Drama
A fledgling priest living in 1970s era London finds his commitment to the church tested by temptation in director Tom Waller's screen adaptation of author Piers Paul Reed's award-winning novel. Excommunicated by the church following a series of heated trysts with a single mother, a teenage sex kitten, and a sex-starved widow, Monk Dawson (John Michie) supports himself by working for a shady newspaper editor as he attempts to reconcile his spirituality with his all-consuming sexual appetite. ~ Jason...more |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44401 | Harkins North Valley 16
Harkins North Valley 16
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Phoenix AZ 85032
(602) 482-4083
Child Tickets: 3-13 years old.
Senior Tickets: 60 years and older.
Not all ticket types are available for all performances.
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You're gonna need a bigger boat
Sunday, March 16
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44415 | Community Syndicate content
Aisling_xx's picture
All We Are is Bullets Part 17
Julia's POV:
Mcr rocks epic's picture
Why do i fuck things up
Iv had a massive argument with my little brother, ex bf, mom, and my pal non of them will talk,to me if im like this at band practice il probably fuck the band up if i do this to a new relationship il probably fuck it up im a fucking screw up i can never get things right. Im just so fucking annoyed now i do not know what to do. Im confused, upset and angry i need help guys. Ive got enough shit on my mind
1. My grandads death
2. Test results
3. Death of my 4 dogs
4. My new relationship i dont wanba fuck it up and im sure the guy (not gonna give away the name) knows that i dont wanna fuck our relationship up. If u have advive on a way i can stop fucking things up mail me plz
Mcr rocks epic's picture
Kerrang radio
I want to listen to karrang out side but it wont work on my radio it 105.2 but its no working help
Mcr rocks epic's picture
Sorry guys no update pics yet
Sorry guys was meaning to post this earlyer never got a chance fell asleep now i have,a banging head :) can anyone guess who and which band this is
NekoKilljoy's picture
Hey...Uh,,...*scratches head*
Hey, so...I'm a girl. Yeah. Just felt I needed to say that, since quite a few of you on here have thought I was a boy, thought I'd clear that up ^^ Hope this helps~
only_abby20's picture
My Worst Poem Yet:/
You write of a girl
Who has broken you,
A girl that has left a scar,
Who has tattered your heart,
You write that all women
Are alike in this way,
And I can't help but wonder,
What could she have done?
What could make you
Think these things?
I don't understand
How you can right these things,
How you could think
we are all the same,
I don't understand why
You can't just see,
That I've always been here,
And that I always will be.
Zankoku_sinner's picture
I'm gonna try to draw again tonight.
Really. I miss it. :( I'll show you guys my work when I'm done. ^_^
devan761's picture
My Chemical Romance is done. But it can never die.
I always knew that, and I think you did too.
Because it is not a band-
it is an idea."
devan761's picture
i wanna marry them <3
XXDevinReevesXX's picture
Life Marches On
Look alive Killjoys!
MarianaMCR's picture
So on an activity I found this question. I immediately thought of Better Living Industries. The most amazing thing is that my teacher likes MCR and she put it as a correct answer :)
MarianaMCR's picture
So I have a trauma. Those japanese movies were so good. Now I won't sleep XD.
Well I will, but I'm sure I will not take pictures again.
Mcr rocks epic's picture
Im soooo bored
Mcr rocks epic's picture
Mcr rocks epic's picture
why worry
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44439 | Human Exceptionalism
Life and dignity with Wesley J. Smith.
Time to Separate Scientism and State
Liberty would be just as threatened by a scientocracy as by theocracy. But many within the science and bioethical sectors miss this because they conflate “science” with “scientism.”
Scientism”–the belief that Truth (capital-T) can be derived by science–is not the same as science, meaning the learning method of discovering truth (small-t) and developing applications and technology to apply the knowledge thereby derived. Thus as opposed to the scientific method, scientism is an ideology–in some cases, such as transhumanism–even something of a quasi-faith. The scientism faithful presume that all of us non scientists should bow down before the scientific consensus and let “the scientists” decide some of society’s most important policy issues. To deny such domination, in this view, is “anti science.”
Here’s a good example of the kind of advocacy to which I refer. An article in the New Statesman by Brian Cox and Robin Ince argues that the opinions of pundits, politicians, and the people should give way to “science.” From, “Politicians Must Not Elevate Mere Opinion Over Science:”
And that is as it should be. Take the embryonic stem cell debate as just one example. “Science” can tell us the nature and properties of the human embryo at the ten-day development stage. It can inform us how the embryonic stem cell lines are derived–usually involving the embryo destruction–and the expected uses to which stem cells might be put.
But science cannot tell us the moral value of the embryo. It can’t tell us whether it is ethical or unethical to use nascent human life instrumentally. It can’t tell us whether the lives of the Parkinson’s patient who might benefit from the destruction of the embryo has a greater claim to life than the embryo. That is the role of morality, ethics, religion, and philosophy. Even if every life scientist on the planet wanted to conduct ESCR, certainly account should be taken, but the scientists’ opinion on the moral propriety of the research should not be controlling.
The authors admit there are places where policy questions involving issues that concern science are not scientific, but they then quickly blame those who disagree with the “scientific consensus” for the growing public distrust of science:
We shouldn’t be “dominated by science.” And just because a question has a “scientific component,” that doesn’t mean the views of scientists should prevail. Indeed, it is precisely because the sector is so powerful–and because science per se is amoral–that ordered liberty requires robust checks and balances to establish proper ethical parameters beyond which scientists are not allowed to tread. Thus, the Animal Welfare Act constrains what scientists can do in many animal experiments–sometimes, at the cost of deriving knowledge sooner, or at all. Ditto, human subject research regulations that unquestionably slow down the obtaining of knowledge about human physiology.
The authors conclude by constructing a classic straw man:
No one argues that. But the authors have to understand that many issues of science now–as opposed, say, to the development of electricity–involve the meaning and moral importance (if any) of human life. That question (among many others) is too important to be left to “the scientists.”
It is time to separate scientism and state, says I. Indeed, as the (from my perspective) unethical opinions of Nobel Prize winners James Watson and Sir John Gurdon demonstrate–the public is often better able to determine right from wrong in areas of science policy than the most brilliant scientists.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44442 | View Single Post
Old 11-14-2011, 02:21 PM #12
Dedachan's Avatar
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 1,287
I'm always checking the Natural Haven out. It's one of the most coherent and sensible sources of information for hair that I have come across.
There are some things I usually watch out for:
A - Claims that hair needs nutrition and that damaged can actually be reversed. Hair is not living tissue.
B - Assumptions that natural ingredients are always better than artificial ingredients. I think this is right up there with belief in alternative medicine.
If the article/page I'm reading contain these, I know I have to take everything with a grain of salt.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44454 | teh 1337est n00zpaper Circulation: 190,097,671 Issue: 568 | 26th day of Collecting, Y14
All Hallow’s Eve: Part One
by kristykimmy
I want to thank my awesome friend Thunder (Patt788) for proofreading this for me. Thanks for catching all those stupid errors, and the witty way you did it.
Holly smiled as she saw her best friend Jasper turn the corner onto her street, the Blue Kyrii had his nose buried in a book. She opened the window and leaned out, calling to him. He looked away from his book, towards her.
"Jasper! Why don't you come in? I've just finished baking some chocolate scones, your favorite," Holly called.
"I don't know, Holly. I was just about to go into the Woods," Jasper said.
"The Woods will still be there tomorrow. My scones on the other hand, Douglas will probably devour them all when he returns from his croquet match at Julian's house," the Green Cybunny teased.
"Oh, all right, then," Jasper gave in.
Holly went to the front door and opened it for him. He came in and sat down in the sitting room. Holly went to the kitchen; she put a few scones on a tea tray already set with a tea service. She brought it out to the sitting room, setting it on the table between them, and sitting down.
"I really don't approve of you going into the Woods, Jasper," Holly said, as she handed him a cup of tea.
"What are you now, my mother?" Jasper teased as he accepted the cup.
"Someone has to look out for you, because you won't do it yourself," Holly laughed.
One of the things that had drawn Holly and Jasper together was that they both had been orphans from a fairly early age. Jasper was an only child, but Holly had a younger brother to take care of.
"No, I'm not teasing, Jasper. It isn't safe outside of Neovia. You shouldn't go out into the Woods," Holly insisted. "What's out there that you could possibly need?"
Jasper stared out the window at the ever gloomy Neovia. "Don't you ever wish for something more, Holly?"
"I don't understand what you mean by that, Jasper. All that lies beyond Neovia are endless woods full of ghouls and monsters. Neovia is safe from those things, what else could you want?" Holly sighed.
"The Woods aren't endless, Holly. If you can just get out of them, there are so many lands beyond! Holly, there is an entire world out there. I just need to find the way out of here, and I need to be stronger so that I can face anything that might try to hinder us," Jasper cried.
"Who else is going with you?" Holly asked.
"You and Douglas, of course. I'm not going to leave you two here," Jasper said.
"Oh, Jasper," Holly gasped in dismay.
"You would come with me, wouldn't you?" Jasper's voice was weak, as if it was the first time the idea she wouldn't go with him had occurred to him.
"Jasper, I," she waivered. "We'd go."
"Good, then I'll most definitely find it."
Holly looked out the window and sighed. She didn't believe that there was a world beyond the forbidding Haunted Woods, but she didn't want to contradict her friend, since he believed in it so strongly. She decided to see if she could change the subject.
"So, what is this?"
Holly leaned forward and took the book he had brought with him from the table to examine it. It was untitled and bound in faded and cracked leather. Jasper took it from her, flipped through it, and showed her a page with a map.
"It's only half a map, but that's halfway out. This book is the key to getting us out of here, Holly. If I can just find where this starts," Jasper explained.
Holly was about to comment when the door from the kitchen opened and a young yellow Kougra strolled in.
"How was your croquet match, Douglas?" Holly asked turning to him.
"All right, I suppose. Meggie won. Everyone else went to her house for tea, but I came home since you asked me to come back early," Douglas told as he took off his cap. "How are you, Jasper?"
"I'm well, Douglas. However, I have to be going. There aren't many hours of daylight left and I don't want to get caught out after dark. Good day, Holly. Thank you for the scones." Jasper got up and Douglas showed him out.
The boy came back and sat in the chair Jasper had vacated.
"What's got you so glum, old mum?" Douglas asked as he started to eat a scone.
"Jasper says that there are lands beyond the Haunted Woods, and that he is going to take us there. I'm not sure I believe that there is anything out there," Holly told, as she finished her cup of tea.
"Well, there is no sense in trampling on his dreams. If he's right, then we can all go see what's out there. If not, we're no worse off than we are now," Douglas replied, taking another bite of scone.
Holly smiled at her little brother. "Sometimes you seem so grown-up and wise, little brother."
"Does this mean you'll let me stay up past nine?" Douglas asked hopefully.
"Of course not, silly," Holly laughed as she handed her brother the last scone, then look the tea tray to the kitchen.
More than a week passed without Holly or Douglas seeing Jasper. Holly began to worry about him, since he didn't often go that long without stopping in to see her. She decided to go and see him. She packed a few fresh made jellies and scones in a basket, then made her way across Neovia to his home.
The gates to the park hung wide open. Holly entered the park and walked up the long drive to his home. She stopped to take in the sprawling old mansion he lived in. Feradean Manor had been the home of Jasper's family for the last three hundred years. In the past Jasper's ancestors had been the richest people in Neovia. They used to be at the forefront of the fashionable upper-class. Several of them had been the mayor of the town at some point in their lives.
Those days were long gone, however. Within the last few generations, the family had gradually faded and the descendants gained the reputation of being eccentric. Jasper's father had been a complete recluse, never once setting foot out of Feradean Manor in his life. Jasper was the last of the family, and more normal than most before him, but still odd by Neovian standards.
Holly knocked on the front door, but there was no answer. She kept knocking and he still didn't answer. She tried the door, but it was locked, so she walked around the house. She found a window open on the ground floor and climbed in.
Holly found herself in the library. It was a large room overflowing with bookshelves, tables, chairs, and sofas, all haphazardly arranged and most covered in a thick layer of dust. She looked around and cried out in alarm. Jasper was lying on the floor next to a desk. She dropped her basket and ran over to him. She dropped to her knees at his side, rolled him over, and examined him. He seemed to be fine. A moment later, he opened his eyes and looked up at her.
"Jasper, are you all right?" Holly gasped.
He sat up and rubbed his forehead. "You know, Holly, I think I fell asleep and fell out of my chair."
"Jasper! You scared me half to death!" Holly cried.
Jasper laughed embarrassedly as he stood up. He offered Holly a hand up. "You know I didn't do it just to scare you, Holly. How did you get in anyway? I haven't started to forget to lock the doors, have I?"
"I climbed in the window. I was worried about you; I haven't seen you in days," Holly explained.
"Oh, and what have you brought me?" Jasper asked as he looked in the basket. "Your famous scones and cranberry jelly! You are a gem, Holly."
"You really need to get a housekeeper, Jasper. This house is a disgrace and you take deplorable care of yourself," Holly chastised.
"Would you like the job, mother?" Jasper teased. "I'll pay you nicely."
"That's not a bad idea. I was thinking about seeking temporary employment. Douglas is growing like a weed, I can't keep adjusting his clothes, he could use a new wardrobe. I didn't expect this growth spurt so I didn't budget for it," Holly said thoughtfully.
"Have I ever mentioned that I really respect you for your sense of economy? I wouldn't know what to do in your position, I'm far too frivolous," Jasper replied.
"You would if you hadn't been born so rich. Papa left us comfortably off, as long as we are frugal. So, when do you want me to start?" Holly asked.
"Whenever is good for you, Holly," Jasper said. "You and Douglas should move in here. After all, it would be a lot easier for you not to be attending to two houses at once. I need a lot of looking after."
Holly laughed. "It would be, and to be honest I'm not sure I could manage two houses and the two of you separately at once. Still, are you sure Douglas wouldn't disturb you?"
"Not at all. If he does, I can always tell you and you can turn him outdoors for a while with his friends, or set him to cleaning the basement. I do have one of those, don't I? I've never been down there; I wonder what is down there?" Jasper was suddenly distracted by the idea of the basement.
Holly laughed and shook her head at him. "Spyders and many, many webs, I'm sure."
Jasper shuddered. "Ghastly things."
"Three days. I need time to close up my house and to make two rooms here ready for Douglas and myself," Holly decided.
"All right, up the main stairs, family bedrooms are on first hall on the right. Mine is the one at the very end of the hall, you may select any ones you like." Jasper sat down at his desk again and opened a book.
Holly headed out into the hall and shook her head at the dusty foyer. "I'm going to have my work cut out for me."
To be continued...
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44523 | Concert review: Nickelback, Vector Arena
By Scott Kara
Nickelback lead vocalist Chad Kroeger. Photo / File / Rick Osentoski
Nickelback lead vocalist Chad Kroeger. Photo / File / Rick Osentoski
A mate of mine - who will remain nameless to protect his identity - wasn't exactly rubbing his thighs excitedly at the prospect of seeing Nickelback, but he was still pretty keen.
Being a heavy rock fan, and a bit of metal nut too, he was intrigued to see the Back, as he calls them. They are, after all, one of the biggest rock bands on the planet - even if much of what they play is clichéd and corny Canadian rock.
I was keen to see them too, because Nickelback can be quite heavy actually, like when frontman Chad Kroeger and the lads put their foot on the throat of a song like This Means War, which opened their two hour set. It was a stomper, as was the chug and groove of Figured You Out and finale Burn It To the Ground, with lines like "I've got a fist full of whiskey, the bottle just bit me."
But mostly, I have a morbid fascination with the band because not only are they one of the biggest in the world, they are also one of the most hated.
And during this show - on their third visit to New Zealand, which included supporting the Rolling Stones in 2006 - you can see why they are so divisive.
There's the soppy and simpering rock ballad Far Away, the almost Celtic flavours of When We Stand Together is more like the 48 hour famine theme song than a world peace anthem, and Nickelback also do a good line in dumb rock songs, from the fun but bone headed Rockstar to drinking song Bottoms Up ("It's about getting together with some friends and tipping a few back," says Kroeger).
But then they are at their heavy rock best on songs like the rousing and rumbling Someday, during the quite beautiful Photograph (and yes, I know it's cheesy as all hell) even the security guard couldn't help but break code and sing along, and it's almost impossible not to chime in with Chad on their most famous song, How You Remind Me.
Speaking of the Chad, he is one of those frontmen who insists on yelling almost everything he says, and his incessant between song banter with guitarist Ryan Peake gets a little tiresome too. But he's funny in an endearingly dorky Canadian kind of way, like when he does a costume change from "one black t-shirt, to another black t-shirt".
"I tell ya Auckland this is a highly choreographed show," he hoots.
Even though it might sound like I almost got brainwashed into becoming a Nickelback convert, I'm far from it. My favourite part was the intro music, with Pantera's Walk proving Nickelback have good taste in heavy metal.
But there is no denying what they do, they do with precision and passion. So my mate and I reckon the world should back off the Back a bit. Just a little at least.
- NZ Herald
© Copyright 2014, APN Holdings NZ Limited
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44530 | Being ‘more like Europe' not all bad
Troy Senik Register Columnist
Pessimists about the American condition – whose ranks are legion these days – have settled on a common refrain. To vivify the trajectory of a nation beleaguered by crippling debt, high unemployment and an ever-expanding government, they frequently fret that “the United States is becoming more like Europe.”
As civilizational warnings go, it's not at all clear that this is an effective trope. If you're trying to imbue your audience with fears of a coming Armageddon, there may be better methods than calling to mind sidewalk cafes, art galleries and culinary delights (Britain, if you're reading, that last one doesn't apply to you). The continent may have its shortcomings, but it's not exactly Thunderdome.
The critics, of course, have something beyond the crepes in mind. They're warning, for instance, that allowing more federal control over health care will leave the U.S. looking like England, where the National Health Service regularly provides grimly comic examples of what happens when your medical chart is in the government's hands. In 2008, for example, the BBC reported that, as a cost containment measure, the NHS would only provide funding for a drug that could prevent blindness once a patient had already lost sight in one eye.
They're warning about the perils of dependency cultures that break their leash, as in Greece, where tax evasion is so endemic that nearly a quarter of the nation's GDP is produced off the books. Those same scofflaws take the social contract much more seriously when they're the beneficiaries, however. This is a country where riots actually broke out over a proposal that public-sector workers not receive 14 monthly paychecks a year.
They're warning about labor markets so brittle that they're essentially closing off opportunity to a generation. More than 22 percent of Europe's youth are unemployed. In Spain, one of the continent's great economic basket cases, the number is currently at an unprecedented 55 percent. Even in comparatively less embattled France, more than a quarter of the nation's young people are without jobs.
These are all serious concerns and, alas, movement in this direction does seem to be foreshadowed by events stateside. Yet it's no more reasonable to judge Europe by its most wayward children than it would be to do the same to the United States. Imagine if a foreign onlooker understood American politics purely on the basis of what happens in New York, California and Illinois. They'd conclude that we're a nation where the sum total of government is grabbing guns, counting calories and seeing elected officials retire to low-security federal prisons.
Making these distinctions is important not because of some abstract notion of fairness toward Europe (these are the people responsible for inspiring a disproportionate number of our reality shows – any impulse towards mercy should be resisted). Rather, it's essential because the Continent doesn't just provide cautionary lessons. In some cases, it actually demonstrates a sensible way forward.
Consider health care. While the NHS represents the nightmare scenario, the system constructed in Switzerland is perhaps the world's finest. Sure, it still entails too much regulation of what benefits insurance plans must provide (which invariably drives up costs) and – brace yourselves, conservatives – it includes an individual mandate. But the decisions about what policy to purchase, what treatments to seek, and how care should be provided are all left in the hands of the individual. As the Manhattan Institute's Avik Roy has noted, “Switzerland provides universal coverage at substantially lower cost than the United States while avoiding the quality, responsiveness, equity and provider compensation concerns of single-payer universal health care systems.”
Despite its extractive reputation, we could also learn a thing or two from Europe on taxes – we just have to know where to look. Democrats and Republicans seem to agree on the notion that the U.S. tax code is unnecessarily complex. Should they seek to seriously reform it, they could do worse than to look to Baltic nations like Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia, all of which have embraced a flat tax. The result: GDP growth rates of 7.6 percent, 5.9 percent, and 5.5 percent, respectively, as the rest of the Continent languishes.
Consumer-driven health care. Flat taxes. Some countries on the Continent have even managed to privatize their postal services (ours is currently losing $25 million a day).
Become more like Europe? In some instances, it might not be such a bad idea.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44535 | The Shouting Matches
Justin Vernon lets out a holler in the Gobi tent Friday. Photo: David Hall, for the Register
We're only a few hours into Coachella XIV and already things have gotten off track.
Thankfully only in one of six spots: Gobi, where roots-rock trio the Shouting Matches took a half-hour past their 2:05 start time to sound-check ... and sound-check ... annnnnd sound-check ... seemingly without much purpose, perhaps waiting only for one last detail to be put right. Justin Vernon (also of Bon Iver) must have tested the same bits of Riff Rock 101 at least a dozen times, while Phil Cook kept shifting back and forth between his six-string and his Hammond B-3 organ.
Yup, good, yup. Check check? Yup, yup, right, OK, yup, good. Check check?
(Good grief, get on with it!)
Once they kicked off they technically had just 15 minutes left. I left them when they had already pushed to 2:55, with Polica theoretically due on the same stage at 3:05.
I didn't want to walk away, as Vernon and his longtime friends kick out some solid (if also routine) stuff, from an album out next week, Grownass Man. "Sometimes you grow up," he mentioned before a bluesy rave-up dubbed "Mother." "It's better to be in your 30s, I hear."
If they're on time next weekend I'll want to hear more, as the lap I took after six Shouting songs yielded merely too-mellow R&B jams from Dam-Funk and mildly interesting one-dude electro from Beardyman. As it was, the SMs didn't really connect as they probably should. Placing a meandering midtempo tune in second position and a pokey instrumental passage not long after that didn't help bolster the crowd's enthusiasm after such a long wait.
When I walked past again at five minutes past Polica's time, they were still at it. It's 3:36 now and Polica are finally ready. But I've set my already tired bones down for a set from Canadian group Stars that's already as breezily lovely as the hot-but-not-too-hot sunshine and just-windy-enough weather.
Have I seen much else worth mentioning? Not really. Got a kick out of the Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, nearly tuxedoed Japanese gentlemen skanking up the theme from "The Godfather" and Duke Ellington's "Caravan." L.A. band Lord Huron got a rousing reception in Mojave, and from the sharp trio of pumped-up Americana songs I heard, it was plenty deserved (and a fine complement to the Shouting Matches).
Personal fave T-shirt so far: Never to Old to Love Music: Coachella 2013. Worn by guys with 20 years on me. Man, I gotta perk up.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44555 | Media Contact
Viveca Novak
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Become our fan on Facebook | More | Print
Part Three (view earlier installments)
Step 3: Sharing is Caring
In the first two parts of our report, we showed that anyone seeking to build a secretly funded political group that can make some waves in elections has a ready option in the 501(c)(4) section of the tax code. Groups formed under its provisions -- officially, "social welfare" organizations -- are supposed to keep their political spending to less than half of their total expenditures (an unofficial, but widely recogized rule), which is easier than it might sound due in part to the IRS' apparently narrow interpretation of what qualifies as political.
bigstock-Traditional-Christmas-Santa-931513.jpgBut once an organization, awash with money, has exhausted most of its own political spending options, it can turn to another maneuver: It can put on a Santa suit and dole out millions in grants to groups with similar agendas -- as several of the politically active nonprofits in the Crossroads-Center to Protect Patient Rights network have done. Then the recipients can use the money to buy ads attacking politicians that both groups don't like.
The groups making the gifts thus can exceed -- de facto -- the 49 percent limit.
Take the Pennsylvania Senate race between Democrat Joe Sestak and Republican Pat Toomey. In that 2010 barnburner, seven members of the Crossroads-CPPR network spent a total of $2.6 million to help Toomey, accounting for 18 percent of all non-party outside spending in the race. The network's top three spenders in the contest -- the Republican Jewish Coalition, Americans for Tax Reform and Crossroads GPS -- all gave money to or received it from one another that year, in the millions of dollars.
Here's how the RJC says it spent about $1 million in Pennsylvania -- an appeal to fear that found fault with:
That form also indicated it spent "$8 million in election related advertisements" -- only $1.9 million of which it reported as political expenditures in the same filing. As it happens, $8 million was just about exactly the amount ATR received in grants from Crossroads GPS and CPPR, the two groups at the heart of the network. ATR appears to have received a large influx of money from two politically active nonprofits, only to turn around and spend the money it received on politics -- functioning as a sort of proxy.
Crossroads' $4 million grant to ATR was one of 12 grants, totaling $15.9 million, that it handed out in 2010. Had the money its recipients spent on politics counted against Crossroads GPS' political spending, it easily would have caused the group to exceed its 49 percent limit.
As for CPPR, the "shadow money mailbox," it never spent funds on direct advocacy, so hasn't been at risk of transgressing IRS political spending limits -- if one buys the argument that sending grants totaling tens of millions of dollars to other 501(c)(4) groups (such as American Future Fund, which received $11.7 million from CPPR in 2010) is legitimate "social welfare" spending. If the group had given the same amount of money to super PACs, which in many cases run the same types of ads, its tax exempt status likely would have been in serious jeopardy.
Another example: The Republican Jewish Coalition diligently churned the money it oversaw. In 2010, the RJC's total expenses skyrocketed more than fivefold over those of the previous year, to more than $12 million. Little is known for sure about its funding sources, other than two modest grants from Crossroads GPS and the American Action Network -- $250,000 and $500,000 respectively.
The same year, the RJC gave grants of $4 million each to those same organizations. And it spent nearly $3.8 million for the purpose of, in its own words, "running issues ads that are intended, in part, to influence elections." Thus, the RJC spent about a third of its outlays on politics, and two-thirds on gifts to two of the most politically active nonprofit organizations in operation. RJC was counting the grants as "social welfare" expenditures -- or else the group would have devoted well over half its outlays to politics.
According to IRS rules, "the promotion of social welfare does not include direct or indirect participation in political campaigns on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for public office." But the facts on the ground raise questions about how these organizations report political spending to the IRS and whether grants they give to other, highly political nonprofits are legitimate "social welfare" expenditures.
"The best practice would be for [the donor groups] to give the money specifically earmarked for the other organization's social welfare activities," said Ellen Aprill, a tax law professor at Loyola University. In reality, though, most of the grants are given for "general support" or some similarly broad purpose.
Because there's no rule barring coordination between nonprofits -- as long as they don't coordinate with any candidate that would benefit -- the groups involved in the Crossroads-CPPR network, which invested in 252 races in 2010, can, and sometimes do, strategize with one another about how, when and where they will spend their money for maximum impact. Some have been regulars at meetings of the Weaver Terrace Group, named for the street on which Karl Rove's house -- where the group used to convene -- sat.
One measure of the network's impact: In the 10 House races in which its members spent the most money in 2010, the groups' outlays made up an average of 64 percent of all nonparty outside spending.
In Step 4 of our series tomorrow, we'll look at what politically active nonprofits do in non-election years (answer: not much, which is telling in itself).
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44580 |
Permalink for comment 524632
Thom misuses the term "patent troll".
by MollyC on Sun 1st Jul 2012 04:37 UTC
Member since:
A patent troll is one who uses patents to obtain money for features that they themselves do not implement nor have any plans whatsoever to do so, and they demand outrageous (well beyond reasonable) license fees. Indeed there only purpose for the patent is to obtain money.
Apple does fit the latter criterion, in that they demant "infinite" license fees (i.e., they offer no license fee price at all, they demand that products be taken off the market altogether), but they do not fit the first criterion, and both are necessary in order for one to be considered a "patent troll", IMO.
Apple doesn't fit the first criterion because Google has been found to infringe on Apple patents for features that Apple is deploying in products that are on the market (as opposed to patents for features that Apple has zero plans to ever implement).
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44625 | Beefy Boxes and Bandwidth Generously Provided by pair Networks Bob
"be consistent"
Re^3: hiding the information in txt files
by BrowserUk (Pope)
on Aug 05, 2013 at 21:34 UTC ( #1047999=note: print w/ replies, xml ) Need Help??
in thread hiding the information in txt files
In the absence of evidence, opinion is indistinguishable from prejudice.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44626 | Beefy Boxes and Bandwidth Generously Provided by pair Networks Russ
Pathologically Eclectic Rubbish Lister
Re^6: Fetching URL
by Shaveta_Chawla (Acolyte)
on Oct 04, 2011 at 12:29 UTC ( #929531=note: print w/ replies, xml ) Need Help??
in reply to Re^5: Fetching URL
in thread Fetching URL
But this is what the problem is... The cookie information also changes with every request. The code on which i am working is like all the pages are dependent on first page. so the cookie information is same for all the request according to my code. but i need to generate different cookie information with every request which should be same as the source is generating.
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Re^7: Fetching URL
by Corion (Pope) on Oct 04, 2011 at 12:54 UTC
Then, again, you will need to work out what your browser sends if you navigate the website, and, again, replicate what the browser sends from your script. For example, if you want to simulate "open page 1 in one tab", and then "open all linked pages in other tabs, from page 1", the ->back() method of WWW::Mechanize could be of help.
Again, you have not told me why WWW::Mechanize is insufficient. Please read the documentation and use it or tell us why WWW::Mechanize is insusfficient for your needs.
Can you help me with the code how to generate header information as i am not able to do that.
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Re: Update par packer executable
by Anonymous Monk
on Feb 28, 2012 at 23:12 UTC ( #956793=note: print w/ replies, xml ) Need Help??
in reply to Update par packer executable
This ought to work
copy hello_world.exe hello_world.par hello_world.par pp -o hello_again_world.exe hello_world.par
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Download Code
Re^2: Update par packer executable
by Dirk80 (Monk) on Feb 29, 2012 at 08:27 UTC
Thank you alot. That's working. And the interesting fact I take from that is that if a par packed executable is copied to a "par" it can be changed easily with Archive::Zip and then packed again to an executable.
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Problems? Is your data what you think it is?
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At some point, after reading a file with 90855 lines, the script is not reading a line of the next file completely.
I'm still trying to understand what you actually observe. Does $_ not end in a newline (without being the last line in the file)? Have you verified that the correct data is in the file? What character encoding is the input file encoded in?
f ($buff >= 230000){$buff=0;sleep(1);select((select(FIL), $|=1)[0]);} #FLUSH THE BUFFER, NOT WORKING!!!
There's no reason to flush an input buffer.
In reply to Re: buffering issue? by moritz
in thread buffering issue? by dannyjmh
and: <code> code here </code>
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44629 | Beefy Boxes and Bandwidth Generously Provided by pair Networks BBQ
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It happened to me. I hear it was one of the things that helped my current employer decide I was a good prospect. Shortly after they'd gone and read my stuff on CPAN they flew me in for an on-site interview. Twas 'woot.'
⠤⠤ ⠙⠊⠕⠞⠁⠇⠑⠧⠊
In reply to Re^3: How can you protect your Perl Mods/Hacks? by diotalevi
and: <code> code here </code>
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44630 | perlquestion larryk Hi! It has been some time since my last post but I haven't forgotten about you guys :) <p> Bit of an oddball query, this one... but I bet someone knows one or two ways to do it. <p> I'm creating search indexes with Perl for my Chinese dictionary mobile app and am hitting a problem where the (Perl) sorted keys - Chinese characters - are not in exactly the same order as the binary search on-device is expecting them to be. <p> In real terms, there are 165910 index records and 188 of them are unreachable on-device because the sort order is slightly different between Perl's standard string sort and C#'s String.Compare function (with "en-US" culture). <p> I've played around for weeks with the culture settings and this 188 unreachable number is the optimal result I have achieved. So 2 questions: <p> 1. (long shot) has anyone seen this issue before so knows the magic incantation to get Perl and C# to agree 100% on sort order for UTF-8? <p> 2. (failing that) how do I get Perl to sort by Unicode code point (i.e. the raw underlying \u{xxxx} value, because I can probably force C# to do it that way as an exception for this index? <p> Any help much appreciated. <!-- Node text goes above. Div tags should contain sig only --> <div class="pmsig"><div class="pmsig-66604"> <pre><font color=#b0c4de size=2><a href="/"> larryk </a> perl -le "s,,reverse killer,e,y,rifle,lycra,,print" </font></pre> </div></div> |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44631 | Beefy Boxes and Bandwidth Generously Provided by pair Networks Joe
good chemistry is complicated,
and a little bit messy -LW
Re: How to pass the output into an array
by cdarke (Prior)
on May 17, 2012 at 07:07 UTC ( #970994=note: print w/ replies, xml ) Need Help??
in reply to How to pass the output into an array
`Back-ticks`, or qx, redirects the external program's stdout stream back into perl. Used in list context you get one element for each line of output:
my @output = `some_external_excutable_file $input`;
Of course you should be careful that there is not so much output that it busts memory.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44632 | Beefy Boxes and Bandwidth Generously Provided by pair Networks Joe
Perl Monk, Perl Meditation
Re^3: lock with references
by BrowserUk (Pope)
on Dec 21, 2012 at 04:38 UTC ( #1009858=note: print w/ replies, xml ) Need Help??
in reply to Re^2: lock with references
in thread lock with references
I have to use references, as two or more shared hashes are changed in 1 chunk of code, and seperating the commands is far too time consuming....I have never worked with threads,...
I've done lots of work with threads; and that first sentence makes no sense to me at all.
Are these references, references to shared scalars as indicated in your first post?
Or references to hashes as implied here?
Or possibly references to scalars that are values in a shared hash?
Or references to shared scalars that are values in a non-shard hash?
In the absence of evidence, opinion is indistinguishable from prejudice.
RIP Neil Armstrong
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44633 | Beefy Boxes and Bandwidth Generously Provided by pair Networks Frank
Welcome to the Monastery
by Ojosh!ro (Beadle)
on Feb 09, 2007 at 21:59 UTC ( #599293=user: print w/ replies, xml ) Need Help??
What is there to tell?
Born and raised in the southern part of the Netherlands ( below the rivers ) and then moved north.
I'm a more gifted artist than a programmer. This probably explains the chaos I produce.
Why perl? I like perl. It forces me to think ordered. Not too much ( like I get the feeling Java is ) but more than the first 'language' I used, Basic.
Anyway. I prefer hanging out here above a number of other sites because here you usually do get a helpful response. A lot friendlier than a community of referrers who seem to consist of a flat hash-structure and cough up the matching refer-answer to the q-key. (=P)
I've been sniffing perl for a couple of years now. So I might even be able to help others with some simple problems.
yah ?
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44634 | Beefy Boxes and Bandwidth Generously Provided by pair Networks Joe
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This is my last day at my web programming internship at Motorola. One of the jobs I had to do was develop a Perl script that interfaces a shopping cart application with an SAP database. I never saw Perl before and was still able to develop the software. Perl is really easy to learn.
My script runs on an old fashion web server ( an external server and an internal server with a firewall between). I can only run it on the internal so my script has to synchronize all of the orders on both servers, reformat them, and get them into an SAP system. I had to write logic that not only reformats the output of the shopping cart app but figure out how to create new records and fields based on the data given. There were so many exceptional cases that had to be considered in the logic.
I recieved good advice from this web page about NET::FTP. Thanks for the help. This web site rules. I wish there were sites like this one for all kinds of languages. If you ask for help in a C/C++ chat room you will definately get flamed by some teenager who doesn't even know what polymorphism is. Thanks again.
In reply to E-Commerce Application by aedificum
and: <code> code here </code>
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44646 |
More like this: happy home, grey couches and tiny apartments.
For the Home
An outlet that automatically turns off power once your device has been charged. Think of the energy we could all save!!
upcycled wine bottle lantern.
Who can spot the tree from Wall Words in this layout?? |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44674 | Thread: Musings
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Old 03-22-2013, 08:58 AM
InfinitePossibility InfinitePossibility is offline
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Join Date: Nov 2011
Posts: 292
Sometimes you just want to hug the world.
I'm having a weekend away with some friends this weekend. Need to leave for the airport at about 5am on Sat morning.
Tonight I'm seeing a friend for a couple of drinks and then meeting my SO and some of his friends for a couple of drinks. I have told him that I'll probably leave him with his friends and go back to his early so I can get enough sleep.
He rang this morning to tell me that he'd tidied his kitchen up in case I wanted a cup of tea when I got there, that he'd left his laptop out with some episodes of a series we've been watching on it and had left a book by an author I love there too in case I wanted to read and forgot to bring a book with me. Such sweet things to do. I feel all warm inside.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44703 | Frank Zappa - Over-Nite Sensation CD (album) cover
Frank Zappa
3.98 | 380 ratings
From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website
The T
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
3 stars The music of FRANK ZAPPA is an acquired taste, no question about that. A taste that I haven't been able to acquire, I must say.
For the sake of brevity, I'll just say that I can feel there's a genius at work when I listen to this album (and most of ZAPPA's music, especially "Hot Rats") but I can't lie and say it's something that gets to me, to what makes me tick. The strong americana flavor, the excessive humour, the disdain for singing (extremelt related to the last point), I'm not sure what it is that stops me from enjoying this artist's offer. I can detect the jazz, I can detect the knowledge of music and the use of dissonances and complex time signatures, and I appreciate all of that.
I just can't see a song in all of this. And as in any kind of music that bears the word rock in its title, I always want to find a song hidden beneath the sounds. There's a few here that barely hit the mark, but the humour and excess just kills them for me.
We all need to hear some ZAPPA if we want to really understand and learn more about rock music; that we all will like it, now I'm not so sure about that.
Anyway, I can't rate it higher because I just can't like it. But I can't rate it lower, as the art and the genius is here. So, a 3-star rating will do.
The T | 3/5 |
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44704 | Le Orme - Uomo Di Pezza CD (album) cover
Le Orme
Rock Progressivo Italiano
4.24 | 440 ratings
From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website
Special Collaborator
Prog-Folk Team
4 stars EMERSON LAKE AND PALMER's influence in progressive rock is undeniable, and they touched young musicians across the globe during their heyday to the present. Many followed the bombastic and technically brilliant keyboards of Keith Emerson, sometimes to the point of blatant idiolatry. Those that moved beyond mimicry did so by infusing the Emersonian with their own vision of the classic inspiration, and, of these, LE ORME were arguably the prime exponents. Allowing for the fact that they were a also a trio in which the bass player sang and occasionally doubled as guitarist, LE ORME not only stood out from the imitators but from the masters themselves with their warm romantic vision, something rarely hinted at by ELP, and first brought to bear on "Uomo Di Pezza".
While Toni Pagliuca's organs dominate from the outset in "Una Delcezza Nuova" and elsewhere, sometimes to a fault as in "Alienazione", his synthesizers in "La Porta Chiusa" are just as impressive and enthusiastic. Aldo Tagliapietra's voice is both assertive and soothing, and his frequently wrought acoustic guitar and bass, and Michi Dei Rossi's drums lay a formidable groundwork for the rich melodies throughout, perhaps the best of these being on "Figure Di Cartone", which also includes Aldo's trademark acoustic guitar. Le Orme could wax reflective too, as in the profoundly expectant "Aspettando l'Alba", which needs to be heard with headphones for full effect. The most romantic and playful number is "Gloco Di Bimba", which sounds like it could have been rendered as a oourtly dance 400 or 500 years ago, sans electronica.
Whereas early PFM could be too moody for my tastes, and I could never quite get BANCO, LE ORME, on several albums including this one, seems "just right", and is recommended as a starting point for those wanting to explore the RPI of the 70s.
kenethlevine | 4/5 |
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44710 | Notice: Use of undefined constant HTTP_USER_AGENT - assumed 'HTTP_USER_AGENT' in /home/davidh/ on line 6 Notice: Use of undefined constant REMOTE_ADDR - assumed 'REMOTE_ADDR' in /home/davidh/ on line 11 Notice: Use of undefined constant REMOTE_ADDR - assumed 'REMOTE_ADDR' in /home/davidh/ on line 15 Warning: fopen(logs/access.txt): failed to open stream: Permission denied in /home/davidh/ on line 116 Notice: Undefined index: HTTP_REFERER in /home/davidh/ on line 117 Warning: fputs() expects parameter 1 to be resource, boolean given in /home/davidh/ on line 117 Warning: fclose() expects parameter 1 to be resource, boolean given in /home/davidh/ on line 118 Warning: fopen(logs/agent.txt): failed to open stream: Permission denied in /home/davidh/ on line 120 Warning: fputs() expects parameter 1 to be resource, boolean given in /home/davidh/ on line 121 Warning: fclose() expects parameter 1 to be resource, boolean given in /home/davidh/ on line 122 Notice: Use of undefined constant REQUEST_URI - assumed 'REQUEST_URI' in /home/davidh/ on line 21 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Undefined index: isbn in /home/davidh/ on line 557 Notice: Use of undefined constant date - assumed 'date' in /home/davidh/ on line 350 Notice: Use of undefined constant ppin - assumed 'ppin' in /home/davidh/ on line 351 Notice: Use of undefined constant type - assumed 'type' in /home/davidh/ on line 352 Notice: Use of undefined constant series - assumed 'series' in /home/davidh/ on line 353 Notice: Use of undefined constant length - assumed 'length' in /home/davidh/ on line 354 Notice: Use of undefined constant ppin - assumed 'ppin' in /home/davidh/ on line 355 Notice: Undefined variable: noimg in /home/davidh/ on line 270 Notice: Undefined variable: noimg in /home/davidh/ on line 287 Notice: Use of undefined constant ppin - assumed 'ppin' in /home/davidh/ on line 361 Notice: Use of undefined constant ppin - assumed 'ppin' in /home/davidh/ on line 394 Notice: Use of undefined constant pragma - assumed 'pragma' in /home/davidh/ on line 394 Notice: Undefined index: pragma in /home/davidh/ on line 394 Psi Phi: Notice: Use of undefined constant title - assumed 'title' in /home/davidh/ on line 400 Worlds of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Volume One [Star Trek Books Database]
Psi Phi's Star Trek Books Database
Notice: Use of undefined constant title - assumed 'title' in /home/davidh/ on line 444 Worlds of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Volume One
Previous: Unity
Next: Unity
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Mass-Market Paperback / June, 2004
"The Lotus Flower" written by Una McCormack
"Paradigm" written by Heather Jarman
Notice: Undefined variable: front in /home/davidh/ on line 454
An excerpt from "Paradigm", the Andor story in "Worlds of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Volume One", written by Heather Jarman.
Still feeling odd in his civilian clothes, Shar crossed the rounded observation deck of the interstellar transport Viola, weaving in and out of socializing passengers who quaffed beverages and sampled cracker-and-fruit appetizers, and slowly made his way toward the viewport wall. Before he was thrown into a whirlwind of Zhavey's public relations events, he wanted a single private moment. The Viola was next in line for docking at Andor's Orbital Control station so he couldn't linger too long. Easing into the spot being vacated by a pair of Ktarians, Shar looked out on his homeworld for the first time in six years.
Through a break in the silver clouds, he saw patches of the Zhevra continental mass, dull in its variegated browns and blacks, spreading like the massive relief maps he'd crawled all over as a young chan. Squatting down over the Vezhdar plain, he'd caressed the knobs and crests of the Great Rift Range, memorizing the geological markers with his fingers, impressing each corner of his planet upon his memory by touch. This is where I live, he'd said while pointing to the terraced benches of Hill Country. This is where I belong! And the teacher had nodded approvingly, as if to say, Good chan!
Now, studying Andor from far above, he traced the smooth railing, the memory of gritty slot canyon walls filling his fingertips, the warm wind caressing his face. How much the same it seems from up here, he thought. But I'm not the same, am I? As close as home appeared, he had never felt as disconnected from this place as he did now.
He had expected this moment to feel differently. He wasn't sure exactly what he'd expected, but this wasn't it. A gush of nostalgic affection, maybe. An appropriate sense of loyalty--of duty--to the people whose plight had defined his life--such an emotion would be understandable.
Instead he felt nothing. Numbness.
Wait. His thoughts paused. "Remoteness" was a better word; he felt far away and he took this understanding as affirmation of the choice he had made to sever his personal ties to Andor. Anichent and Dizhei would be better off without him. Whatever tether had once bound him to Andor's destiny had been pulled so thin, he could scarcely sense its existence anymore. Perhaps it was not what had bound him, but who. She who had made this home to him was gone. Without her...
What is wrong with me?
The comm system clicked."Viola on approach. Stand by for docking. Passengers to Cheshras Island and the Eastern Archipelago please check with central ticketing about potential storm interference. Travelers continuing on to Vulcan should remain aboard. Thank you."
Storm? That wouldn't be good news for Phillipa. He turned back to viewport. Sure enough, vivid gray-green whorls churned sedately over the cobalt blue Khyzhon Sea, the delicate cloud cover effectively masking the violence of a spring typhoon. The population centers on Cheshras Island might already have storm shields up. Phillipa would have to reach Thelasa-vei before Deepening or face further delays. If Shar's schedule had allowed them to leave a day earlier, as Phillipa had originally planned, the commander would have arrived before the storm system. Now, she would most likely be late. Thantis would be disappointed, yet again, and of course it involved the chei of zh'Thane, who had been the source of her zhei's suffering. All knew the old aphorism, "As is the zhavey, so is the child." There would be no question in Zhadi's mind as to whose fault this was. Since Sessethantis and Charivretha had spent most of Shar and Thriss's early years circling warily around each other, Shar was certain Thantis now took perverse pleasure from Zhavey's latest career ordeal.
A slight tingle in his left antenna heralded the approach of Prynn behind him, mere seconds before she called his name from across the lounge. He turned to greet her. Her short green jacket and matching boots were easy to spot in the crowd, as were the vivid autumnal colors of Phillipa's Bajoran-style tunic and trousers. Shar himself had chosen a baggy gray shirt and black leggings, then covered them with a floor-length black cassock. He hadn't reckoned how strange it would feel to shed his uniform and travel with crewmates who had done the same.
From appearances, she and Phillipa had retrieved their travel bags and appeared ready to start on the next leg of their journey. He left his place at the railing and met them halfway.
"You heard the announcement?" Shar asked Phillipa as he took his bag from her.
"I did," Phillipa said. "I take it that there might be storm delays for me?"
Shar nodded. "I should have realized--it's typhoon season in the region you're traveling to. Ionization of the atmosphere rises dramatically, to a degree seldom seen on Class-M planets, making transport impossible. Public travel is delayed or suspended due to dangerous meteorological conditions. It's less of an issue in Zhevra continent, where the climate is usually more accommodating."
"So Phillipa is stranded in orbit?" Prynn asked. "For how long?"
"It depends on how well the climate controls can manage the more violent arms of the storm. However," Shar said, turning again to Phillipa, "Prynn and I won't transport down to Zhevra until we know that you're on your way."
They felt a slight shudder as the transport's engines powered down. A low clang sounded beneath the passengers' ambient chatter, the sound of docking clamps attaching to the ship's hull.
"Prepare to disembark."
The trio allowed themselves to be propelled along by a crowd that appeared to have origins in every corner of the Federation. For his part, Shar didn't remember Andor being such a popular tourist destination. He didn't make frequent trips offworld while growing up, but he didn't recall any return trip that had been as crowded as this one was. The three of them had squeezed into a two-person sleeper compartment with Shar, who needed less sleep than his human companions, and napped on the floor as necessary. Under those circumstances, the superior/subordinate protocol quickly gave way to all of them being on a first name basis.
They walked three abreast through the airlock and down a sloping gray corridor into the gate lounge of Orbital Control. Though he hadn't been to the station in many years, his recollections of it as a straightforward, Federation-style public facility proved to be correct: the utilitarian beige couches and chairs; high, drafty ceilings; replicator stations and information kiosks distributed evenly through the gate area. Helping Phillipa find her way around shouldn't be difficult.
"Prynn, if you'll check the departure monitors to find out which transporter station we're queued to"--Shar waited until she'd nodded in acknowledgement before shifting his attention--"I'll take Phillipa to the main desk to straighten out--what?"
Without warning, an intense, white-yellow light beamed into Shar's face and blinded him. Raising an arm to shield his eyes, he squinted past the light, but saw only dark silhouettes.
The verbal barrage began, assaulting him on all sides.
"Sat 2 newsnet, we're live from Orbital Control with Starfleet Ensign Thirishar ch'Thane. Ensign ch'Thane, how is it being home on Andor?"
"What? It's fine. But I don't--"
"What did Councillor zh'Thane have to do to get you to agree to leave Deep Space 9? Sat 6 had a report--"
"Is it true Councillor zh'Thane will be invoking the Whole Vessel law on your behalf?"
"I'm not going to discuss--"
"Have you spoken recently with your mentors at the Andorian Science Institute and if you have, do you have any comment on the rumored research underway?"
"I don't know what you're--"
"Do you have any greetings to send out to friends or family?"
The unexpected cacophony overwhelmed Shar as the reporters pressed in, the lights from their headsets hitting him from all sides. None of them gave were giving him a chance to speak.
Twisting to look behind him, Shar caught Prynn's confused expression as she fought to get through the pack of reporters. He reached out, trying not to become separated from her, but she was already too far away. As his frustration grew, so too did the instinct to lash out. His body tensed--
"That's enough!" a voice declared. A uniformed sentinel--a thaan--pushed his way through the crowd toward Shar, followed by several other security personnel who were forcing the reporters back despite their hisses of indignation. "You people should know better--this area is off limits to non-travelers. If you want to speak to Ensign ch'Thane, you'll need to make other arrangements. You have thirty seconds to comply or face charges."
Without asking for Shar's consent, the thaan grabbed him by the arm and steered him away from the crowd. Another guard had affixed himself on Shar's other side, and together the pair guided him to a different part of the facility. Confusion and frustration gave way to anger as questions raced through his mind. Foremost among them: How would a swarm of reporters have known his travel plans. Unless....
* * *
Sighing with annoyance at the reporters' herd mentality, Charivretha switched off her monitor. Hand them a story gift-wrapped and they ruin it, she thought. All they had to do was wait until he'd cleared the gate area! Her intention hadn't been to have him attacked; she had hoped to show Andor a pleasant homecoming scene. Instead? Chaos. Thirishar would be justifiably furious. Charivretha touched her desk's compad, signaling her aide. "Zhende, contact Satellite Station 3. Thank them for their restraint, and let them know they can have a sit down after my press conference."
Hand to chin, she leaned back in her chair and contemplated the view over the octagonal Plaza of Freedom and its glorious fountains: Serpentine streams of water leapt over towering leaves of nearly transparent green mica, imported from the Archipelago region. In the distance, the cerulean obelisk of the Shran monument stood out against the criss-cross skyline of slanted office towers and high-rise residences that so identified the Andorian capital. Years of work had earned her this view. The thought gave her pause. Thinking of passing time as "years" instead of "cycles" testified to how far she'd come from Hill Country.
Her first visit to this office had been in her fourteenth cycle, before her Time of Knowing, when her zhavey had brought a petition to Andor's Federation representative, protesting the border conflict with Cardassia. She now sat behind Councillor th'Vrash's very desk; she remembered how the morning light gleamed on the highly polished, petrified eketha wood, the glyphs and runes of Andor's ancient iconography carved into the surface. When she'd taken up residence, she'd brought her personal belongings from her parliamentary office, assorted holos and awards, a sculpture given her by the children of Shayel Island, a room-sized rug woven by Sessethantis zh'Cheen in one of her rare, generous moods...
Thantis. Why had she even allowed the zhen's name into her thoughts? Doing so immediately assured she'd slip into a foul mood--especially since Thantis had deliberately neglected to invite her to Shathrissía's Sending. Granted, Shar had been closer to poor Thriss--fragile child that she was--but his decision to place his duty to Starfleet above his duty to his people had directly contributed to her suicide. Thantis rightly excluded him, but Vretha had done nothing to earn such a snub. Whether or not they liked each other was beside the point! Protocol demanded that all family members attend a Sending--not just those who maintained amiable relations.
A perfunctory chime, then Zhende poked his head inside the door. "A gong has sounded, Councillor. The Presider has convened a party Enclave."
Vretha's hand fell from her chin. "He promised he wouldn't!" Rising from her chair, she grabbed a crimson robe from a hook on the wall and hurriedly pulled it over her clothes. She'd been assured that she would have until Deepening to present her campaign strategy to the party leadership. Why had the Presider gone back on his word? She was still waiting to hear from Progressive activists in a number of districts--
Racing past Zhende's workstation, through her chair-lined waiting area--gratefully empty of constituents and press--she stepped out onto the open-air ramps that sloped down the sides of the Parliament Andoria building. Vretha moved quickly along the nearest route to the lower levels. As she walked, she scanned the plaza, noting a gathering crowd; she guessed someone on the opposition side of parliament had organized yet another rally. The Visionists were evidently stepping up their campaigns. Across the plaza, issuing from the other visible wings of the government complex, she spotted several officials in brightly colored enclave robes headed to the subterranean Enclave chamber.
Wincing inwardly at the familiar voice, Vretha stopped and turned, waiting patiently for Representative th'Tethis, who was robed in distinctive purple, to waddle up to her. The delay was unwelcome: Appearing before the Enclave at the last minute might send a signal of disrespect to the Presider; failing to honor the demands of an elder thaan would also be disrespectful, so she was caught between two duties. No positive outcome either way, Vretha thought. It briefly occurred that perhaps th'Tethis was slowing her down on purpose to make her look bad before their senior party officials. She'd heard rumors that he was mentoring a young shen out of Wethesa that he hoped would eventually take her seat. I'm not finished yet, Vretha thought.
Th'Tethis held out a quivering, flattened palm; Vretha touched her palm to his and bowed from her shoulders. "How can I serve you Elder Tha?"
"Keep an old thaan company, Charivretha. We will go to Enclave together."
"As you ask," Vretha said, and took his proffered arm.
Together, they followed the down ramp to the next level. She was forced to stop again when th'Tethis paused to retie his ceremonial robe. Several more levels awaited them. All around, parliamentary representatives with their aides made their way to meetings. Glancing out of the corner of her eye, she saw most of the bright colored Enclave robes had vanished, presumably to the lower levels.
The walked in silence for several minutes before th'Tethis asked, "And how fares your clan, Charivretha?"
"It endures, Elder Tha," she answered automatically. "And yours?"
"Those of us who remain endure as well," th'Tethis said with an odd expression, almost as if he'd made a joke. Before she could inquire further, he said, "I understand that your chei has come home."
Ah, so he saw the newsnet report. "He comes to help his zhavey during a troubled time."
"Indeed," said th'Tethis. "Better troubled times with family than without, wouldn't you agree?"
What is he playing at? "As you say, Elder Tha." Vretha looked ahead. The final corridor was empty. As she had feared, she and th'Tethis would be the last to arrive.
"What awaits you is not what you expect," he told her.
"Excuse me, Elder-Tha?"
"Let me speak frankly, Charivretha. Do not rush to face your fate. Soon enough it will find you."
Vretha's eyes narrowed. "May I speak frankly as well, Elder Tha?"
The thaan smiled, revealing a mouth of copper teeth. "You know I do not judge my colleagues on their adherence to dusty traditions. Otherwise, I'd join the Visionists."
"Then hear this." Vretha dropped hold on his arm and took a long step forward, placing herself squarely in his path. If he had no use for manners, she would behave accordingly. Brashly, she forced eye contact with him, violating the boundary of his inner world; his antennae tensed. "I will not be shuttled aside for some ambitious shen you are grooming to replace me."
"My protégé has years before she will be qualified to assume the Federation Council seat," th'Tethis said, the corners of his eyes crinkling kindly. "It is not I who wants you replaced."
Vretha stood stock still, stunned by the magnitude of her mistake: she had no response for th'Tethis. She had exhibited naïveté that would be expected from a first cycle provincial representative.
Sliding his arm through hers, th'Tethis whispered, "Be glad that you confronted me, Charivretha. You now know you have one less enemy within the party. But remain on your guard."
Vretha hesitated. Finally she asked, "Can I count on your support, Elder Tha?"
"You can count on no one to sacrifice their political career on your behalf, Charivretha. Remember that. You must convince your fellow Progressives that your usefulness is not at an end, and that they have more to gain than to lose by continuing to support you."
Vretha allowed a sigh to escape her nostrils. So she was in for a fight. She'd expected as much, but had not anticipated having to battle her own party. Had she gone into Enclave expecting its full support, her political end would have been swift. Th'Tethis had armed her with the knowledge she would need to have at least a chance at survival, and for that she was grateful. She told him so.
The old thaan patted her arm. "Fight well," he advised her in his soft, rasping voice, "and others will fight with you. Ah, here we are."
Entering into the Heroes Antechamber never failed to evoke awe in Vretha, no matter how many times she'd walked through this, the oldest room in the Parliament Andoria complex. She imagined the great ones who had gone before her, smoothing the flecked gray stone floor with their sandals, symbolically purifying themselves with water and oil before they undertook the sacred business of governing Andor. From four walls of the eight-sided room, the faces of the mythological Guardians studied all who approached the Grand Chamber, judging their worthiness. Before the vaulted archway that led within, Vretha and th'Tethis removed their shoes, then paused to wash their foreheads and palms in the mineral water bubbling up from the ground into the ritual basin, also carved from stone. Dabbing their fingertips in ornate vessels of sweet-scented oil, they touched their eyelids, noses, tongues, ears, and antennae, sealing the vessels of their senses from receiving or offering treachery. Pulling their hoods up from their shoulders to cover their heads, they approached the entrance.
Four chan warriors, clothed in the dark padded armor of the old Imperial Guard, stood at the archway, ceremonial blades drawn in defense of the Enclave. Vretha announced her intent to join the gathering, and the guards stepped aside, pointing the tips of their weapons to the ground. She crossed over the threshold into the Grand Chamber, hewn entirely from a dark, almost black granite; as she'd anticipated, a full Enclave had convened around the diamond shaped well in the middle of the room. Progressive leaders from Andor's sixty-four electoral provinces knelt around the lip of the depression, facing the center, and leaving open spaces among them for her and th'Tethis.
Striding toward the gathering, Vretha paused and bowed at the shoulders before the Empty Throne, situated between the archway and the Enclave. Legally, Andor was still a constitutional monarchy, despite the fact that that no single ruler had reigned over the planet in centuries. Thalisar the Last, who had first united her people centuries ago, had deliberately died childless--but not before implementing the parliamentary system that she had created to succeed her, and which had governed Andor ever since. The Empty Throne, unlike its namesake in the myths of Uzaveh, was kept to honor what Thalisar had achieved. In a single lifetime, she had utterly abolished the clan warfare that had kept Andor divided for so long. Charivretha wondered grimly if she had envisioned the altogether different struggles that had replaced the clan conflicts.
Eyes averted politely, Vretha knelt three places down from Presider ch'Shelos, while th'Tethis assumed his place on the opposite side of the well. On a signal from the Presider, those gathered around the Enclave basin moved to a sitting position, their legs dangling over the edge. Vretha glanced discreetly at the figures around the well, wondering how many friends she had left among them.
"I apologize for the suddenness of this meeting, Charivretha," ch'Shelos began, "but the party leadership felt it was critical that we have a dialogue before your press conference."
"You've called me here to ask me for my resignation," Vretha said, determined to gain the upper hand quickly and unwilling to grant ch'Shelos the privilege of trumping her. "Let me be clear, then: I won't do it. At a time when Andor needs an experienced voice in the Federation, there is no one who knows better how to address our needs than I." She would not gloat at the surprise the Presider projected.
He recovered quickly from her opening. "You've honored us with your service, Councillor, but certainly you are wise enough to see that our present circumstance requires drastic action. Our administration is under siege from our political adversaries, the Visionists. The Progressives, as a whole, are fighting to keep our agenda moving Andor into the future. In that equation, Vretha, you are a divisor, a liability, because the Visionists have managed to put your face on their attacks."
"And you propose to balance the equation by subtracting me, is that it?" Vretha asked, holding her chin high. "I'm disappointed, Presider, that my own party, which has always fought passionately for the least of causes, would capitulate so easily to Visionist pressure."
Ch'Shelos's eyes narrowed. "There is the larger vista to consider, Councillor. Even you can see that a strategic sacrifice may derail the Visionist attacks sufficiently to buy us the time we need--"
"So you wish to buy yourselves time," Vretha said. It was a risk, daring to interrupt the Presider, but she judged now was the time to take a few risks. "That seems fitting in a way. Our entire agenda has been about buying time, after all, whether it's the time to weather the political crisis of the moment, or the time to search for a genuine solution to our ongoing reproductive crisis. Buying time has become an end unto itself. What do a few small sacrifices along the way matter--careers, relationships, lives--as long as we have more time?" Where had that come from? Vretha felt her inner heat rising, images of Thriss entering her mind unbidden.
A representative in azure blue--she didn't recognize him with his hood--spoke up. "A dramatic critique, Councillor, but a hypocritical one, since you have supported the strategy you now condemn throughout your career."
"I've not merely supported it," Vretha countered forcefully, "I've helped shape it. That's my point, Cha Presider and honored colleagues. History and experience have shown us that Andor has ever been world of complexities, requiring that we be a patient people, reluctant act in haste, determined to find the best solutions to our problems, not merely the most expedient ones. Eliminating me is the expedient solution. Time can truly be bought by allowing me to continue my work on behalf of our people. I therefore ask for a chance to counter the attacks against our party."
"Against yourself, you mean," the blue-hooded one said. "You argue for your political survival, not ours, Charivretha zh'Thane. And you channel the voices of radicals such as your chei in your desperation."
A hiss escaped Vretha's teeth. Murmurs rose among the members of the Enclave as she glared at the blue-hooded representative, fighting to hold back her rage. Her anger wasn't for him alone, though. He was right about what she said--that Andorians might be sacrificing too much to buy time was Shar's old argument. How many times had he said the same things to her to justify his defiance of the Andorian way, of her? Her preoccupation with their longstanding quarrel and all that it had wrought was splitting her focus. It was a mistake that, she knew, was about to cost her.
Presider ch'Shelos suddenly held out his hand in front of him, palm down. "Enough!"
The chamber fell silent. But Charivretha's glare remained fixed.
"This discord wastes our energies," ch'Shelos said. "Councillor zh'Thane, as admirably passionate as your arguments are, they do not change the political realties we face. Your request for time is denied."
"I ask the Presider's pardon," a soft voice said, "but I wish to speak."
All eyes turned in the direction of the speaker and ch'Shelos said, "Representative th'Tethis is recognized."
The old thaan inclined his head. "You honor me, Presider. Thank you. I wish to say merely that I believe that Councillor zh'Thane has, perhaps without realizing it, raised a point in this debate that we should consider before this august body does the bidding of its enemies and removes her from her post."
Charivretha's anger gave way to surprise. The murmurs resumed among the other members of the Enclave. Despite his kindly, humble manner, th'Tethis was unmistakably on the attack. And more, he was actually taking the Enclave to task on her behalf, making himself a target for reprisal if the majority remained against her.
"I see that I have everyone's attention," th'Tethis said with amusement as the murmurs died down. "Good. Then let me speak plainly. I am old. In the view of many, I know, I have overstayed my welcome, not only in parliament, but in this life. So be it. I will make no apology for that. For I am the last of my clan, our line having dwindled as so many others have in recent centuries. I have clung to my life fiercely for one reason: to delay the day of my clan's extinction." He looked around the Enclave, allowing his gaze to fall on each face. "It is a familiar paradigm, is it not?"
No one answered. Vretha's shock was absolute. She had known that the Tethis clan was small, but she never imagined--
"I say this," th'Tethis went on, "because what Charivretha has dared to say here about our buying time is true: We are consumed by it. So much so that we don't give it much thought anymore. It comes to us naturally now, to put off inevitability. It pervades every aspect of Andorian life because, both as a species and as individuals, we see our death."
"Presider, enough of this," said the blue-hooded one. "This rhetoric is off-topic and has nothing to do with--"
"It has everything to do with why we are here," th'Tethis interrupted, his bright eyes fixed on the speaker. "And I remind you all that I have the floor."
"Continue then, Elder Tha," ch'Shelos said.
Th'Tethis reached out with a gnarled, trembling hand to the shoulder of the shen at his left and slowly rose to his feet, breaking the Enclave. It was a serious breach of protocol, but Vretha could not help but admire the old thaan's audacity. The tactic's symbolism was clear: Push me, th'Tethis was saying, and I will push back harder. Perhaps, like her, he felt that he had little left to lose at this point by offending the Enclave in order to make his point. But where she had stumbled, th'Tethis walked confidently.
"Representative th'Sivas," he resumed, addressing the blue-hooded one as he began to circle the Enclave, "you think I spout rhetoric, that what I say has no bearing on the reasons for this gathering. I tell you that Charivretha's zh'Thane political future and the plight or people are inexorably linked. But like you, I did not truly see it--not until the Councillor herself brought the two thoughts together.
"As all of you are aware, there are rumors flying about radical new research underway at the Science Institute, ostensibly to explore the possibility of reengineering our biology. Andorians would be altered at conception in such a way that the four sexes would be reduced to two, making subsequent conceptions viable among pairs instead of quads. Our reproductive crisis would be solved in one generation."
Vretha's stomach lurched. Wild conspiracy theories intruded on legitimate political discourse from time to time, but the revulsion she felt as such a monstrous idea made her wonder how anyone could give credence to it. She wasn't sure if it was sheer fascination with the thought of such radical reengineering, or horror at the notion that some Andorians were desperate enough to be willing to alter the species fundamentally in order to ensure its survival.
"This is a vicious rumor devised by extremist factions in the Visionist Party to cast aspersions on Progressive integrity," th'Sivas insisted. "We should not dignify such gossip with discussion."
"On the contrary. We need to discuss it," said th'Tethis, "because I believe you are correct, Representative th'Sivas. These rumors are, I think, part of a much broader strategy on the part of the Visionists to take control of the government by discrediting Progressive ideology. Or does anyone in this chamber truly think it is an accident that these rumors started surfacing at the precisely same time that the attacks on Councillor zh'Thane, and by extension, the Progressive Party, began?"
Whatever protocol framed the discussion collapsed as representatives heatedly debated with those nearest them the implications of th'Tethis's statements. Even ch'Shelos had become caught up in the debate with those nearest him. Vretha merely watched, trying unsuccessfully to get a read on the Enclave. Then, after several minutes, a young shen in jade robe spoke up.
"I have a question," she began. "What if these aren't merely rumors fabricated by the Visionists? What if the research is real?"
Silence fell. Into it, ch'Shelos asked, "Do have reason to believe that it is, Representative sh'Yethe?".
"I have reason to wonder if we should dismiss it out of hand, Presider," sh'Yethe said. "Especially after all that has been said so far today...I wonder if this wild rumor isn't exactly the solution we've sought for generations?"
Vretha saw th'Tethis narrow his eyes at the young shen. Not disapproving, she saw, but thoughtful.
Th'Sivas seemed incredulous. "You're talking about a crime against nature."
"Some would argue that what has happened to us is a crime against nature," sh'Yethe countered. "Or perhaps a crime of nature. We all know what's at stake here. For centuries science has sought solutions to our dilemma and failed. In our desperation, we implemented the bond-matching programs to maximize the chances for successful conceptions. To that end, we've altered our culture, our values, our ways of thinking about bonding and how we raise our young, and the best we've done is to slow the decline. But how long can we truly endure this way? The best minds among us believe that we have ten generations, perhaps fifteen, before the light that is Andor is extinguished. Am I the only one willing to consider that this may well come down to choosing to die as we are, or to live as something else?"
"This monstrous extremism," th'Sivas said. "is precisely why the Visionist attacks are succeeding. Our party is riddled with radicals who will rationalize any idea, no matter how extreme, without considering the consequences. They want immediate results but fail to recognize that some lines should not be crossed. I put it to you, Presider, that these efforts to dilute the matter at hand must not succeed. There is one real issue before this Enclave: Charivretha zh'Thane's political future."
"They are linked," th'Tethis insisted. "If we dismiss zh'Thane now, we are as guilty of seeking the same immediate results you claim are espoused by radicals."
Ch'Shelos stared into the well for a long moment before turning his gaze on her. "Is there anything you wish to add, Charivretha, before I put the matter to a vote?"
Vretha met the Presider's eyes, then she rose to her feet, facing him. "Our human associates have a myth: an intricate knot that could be unraveled only by the true ruler the world. Many tried and failed to untie the knot, until one came with a sword and cut the knot in twain.
"Andor has no analog to this tale. Seldom do we act in haste, for we believe that to do so would be to blind ourselves to the possible consequences of our actions. Yet we know inaction is equally perilous, carrying its own share of consequences. So we have always tried to find a balance." She paused to take a deep breath. "I will find the answers. Allow me to continue in my fight for my council position, and I will expose this matter of reengineering our species for the myth it is. And by so doing, I will reveal the deceits the Visionist Party has attempted to perpetuate on our people. I ask that I be allowed to act, with care and sober thought, not just on my own behalf, but for all of Andor." She glanced briefly at th'Tethis, whose eyes were again crinkling at her. Then she searched the faces of her colleagues, many of whom had sought her counsel or asked for her endorsement in their campaigns--and dared them to defy her.
A chime sounded. The Presider picked up the executive padd from its place at his side, excused himself, and read the incoming message. He studied the data for several minutes, during which Vretha could sense a change in him. His antennae had tensed, and he radiated profound concern.
The Presider tapped out an acknowledgment to the sender and then dropped the padd into an inner pocket of his robe. "As is my prerogative," he told the Enclave, "I am tabling this discussion owing to an unfolding situation. Details are still scarce, but I will share what is known.
"As some of you may have noticed on your way here, a rally was being organized in the Plaza of Freedom, presumably by our Visionist colleagues across the aisle. While we've been here, nearly sixteen thousand protesters have gathered in the plaza. They have been calling for the present administration to step down, and for new representation to be sent to the Federation Council."
Vretha braced herself. The number of protesters was distressingly higher than usual, but not dangerously so for the plaza. And the demands were much the same as in other recent rallies. There must be worse news coming...
"Similar demonstrations have been reported throughout the capital and in nearly every major population center on the planet, all taking place simultaneously. Current estimates are that as many as eight million protesters are involved. Homeworld Security is attempting to maintain order, but we are receiving reports of violence and property damage sweeping through several cities, including this one."
The Enclave sat in stunned silence, until Vretha asked, "Casualties?" The word seemed to catch in her throat.
Ch'Shelos looked directly at her. "No figures are available yet. But a number of deaths are already confirmed."
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44773 | Tensely melodic verses and guitar-driven, drone-to-pop-freedom choruses characterize Arcwelder's tightly-wound, well-executed Power Pop. Surgical guitars point and shoot agitated rhythms, while dueling, layered vocals narrate the whole ordeal as they croon in with slacker's fire.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44820 | What We Eat Affects Everything | Energy Health | Scoop.it
Robynne Chutkan, MD, is an integrative gastroenterologist and founder of theDigestive Center for Women, just outside of Washington, D.C. She trained at Columbia University and is on faculty at Georgetown, but her approach to practicing medicine and understanding disease is more holistic than many specialists with academic backgrounds...
Chutkan’s first book comes out today. You might pick out an Oz-ian air to the title: Gutbliss, A 10-Day Plan to Ban Bloat, Flush Toxins, and Dump Your Digestive Baggage. Oz even endorses it on the back of the jacket: “Dr. Chutkan blasts away the bloat as she tastefully explains the guts of our problems.” |
global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44857 | Lips are flapping but no words come out
September 5, 2007
THE APEC city is once again hosting the annual gathering of Reporters Without Stories. Observers of this wealthy international organisation claim its work so far in Sydney compares well with benchmark efforts in Hanoi (2006) and Shanghai (2001).
As old and almost as distinguished as APEC itself, Reporters Without Stories (RWS) is dedicated to the art of making do with next to no news. At multilateral meetings on the margins of APEC yesterday, RWS delegates canvassed a number of initiatives to bulk out the rest of the week's coverage. These include:
■WMDs unearthed in Hyde Park.
■Organisers fear acronyms will run out by Saturday.
■Large birds seen circling buildings in suspicious numbers.
■Don't be fooled by children dressed as police: they really are police.
Some of Canberra's leading pundits are among RWS old hands. Although longing to report the "real" story of John Howard's plunge in the polls, they're sticking to their APEC duties and are grateful for the spirit of co-operation shown this week by senior ministers holding frequent news conferences at which nothing is said.
It has been the sort of week where Warren Truss drew record crowds at a doorstop. Desperate journalists were waylaying any official they could find to talk horse flu. And the Prime Minister did what he could for RWS by meeting the press daily in his Sydney office block.
The setting is so Howard: a long brown North Shore dining room with flags and Hansards. Strangers are asked curtly to introduce themselves. As the Prime Minister talks bilaterals and trilaterals, his hands cut excited shapes in the air. The face is wearing well, but these are the hands of an old man.
Out in the streets, listless citizens get on with their lives while choppers circle overhead. Speculation is growing that those fenced alleys crossing the city are designed for a new APEC sport with its origins in Spain: the running of the presidents. Authorities will neither confirm nor deny.
In Pitt Street yesterday, law and order was breaking down. The Herald tried without success to persuade police guarding a major hotel to book a Mercedes load of Korean delegates sitting four abreast without seatbelts. A spokesman for the Police Commissioner declined to comment.
Worries are still surfacing about the language of APEC communications. A press briefing note describes the ballroom of Government House, where the world's leaders will meet on Sunday, as "an informal, relaxed retreat setting". Where have these people been? It's actually a small gothic palace of great formality, although perhaps if you have President Vladimir Putin's taste for palaces, it may seem a slum.
T-shirt traders should be warned that "APEC Australia 2007" is a registered trademark.
RWS delegates wandered off after lunch to see if they could make news by getting themselves arrested. Their gloom was lifting. Once George Bush hits town, the real stories might start: half a dozen for the motorcade itself and any number for each traffic jams until he goes. The week is looking up.
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global_01_local_0_shard_00000017_processed.jsonl/44866 | Amethyst Mare
04 Jan 2012
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Posted 04 Jan 2012 19:34
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Making it Big Time
Written by Amethyst Mare for TyVulpine
"Well, I would like to ask about what sort of duties I will need to perform in the course of the job," Ty asked politely, shifting uncomfortably in his smart black trousers and plain, sky-blue dress shirt. It was not his usual attire by a long shot, but he knew he certainly looked the part for the interview... If only he knew what that interview was for, it would surely help him snag a much needed job in a new city.
"We find you very intelligent, Mr Vulpine," the interviewer continued, sliding the signed disclaimer sheet back across the desk as if he had not heard Ty speak at all, his blue eyes unerringly sharp under a mop of blond hair. "You have impressed us greatly today."
Ty sighed deeply, slouching in the stiff-backed chair, a cheap knock-off from a discount shop, Ty reckoned. What could he do? His hands were tied in empty pockets - he desperately needed this job, whatever the job actually was. But they would not tell him a single detail about what he would be expected to do and he was beginning to fret that something less than desirable went on behind closed doors in this 'business'. Or perhaps they were taking advantage of a newcomer to the city and it was no better than a slave-wage job?
"Would you like to join our company as a trainee, Mr Vulpine?" The interviewer said, smiling pleasantly. Ty studied his face, noting the hint of afternoon stubble on his chin as if his interviewer, whose name he could not even recall, had not had the opportunity to shave that morning. A late night, maybe.
"I would very much like to join your company - for a trial period." The interviewer's eyes narrowed marginally, but he made no comment. "I would like to propose a trial period of one month, as I know so little about the job, to determine my suitability and whether this job is suitable for me."
"As you wish," the blond haired man replied smoothly, rising to shake Ty's hand. "Are you available to start immediately? We like our employees to participate as much as possible. It's all the better for wages, as I imagine you can tell."
"Of course, if you could tell me what I'll need to wear, I'll - "
"Oh, that will not be necessary," the interview cut across, with what could have been interpreted as a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips, finding some private amusement fleetingly entertaining. Ty frowned, an uncomfortable prickle running down his spine.
"If you would be so kind as to follow me, please," the man said, holding the door open for Ty, who inched through with an apprehensive murmur of thanks.
Nobody said anything about an immediate start meaning...well, immediately. A day's notice would be normal, right? Or more? Great, now that I've walked through the bloody door, what the hell is going to happen?
But I need the money.
Thoughts in turmoil, Ty sighed deeply, resigned to doing whatever tasks lay ahead of him, no matter how terrible they may be. There was something unique about the financially desperate: they would do anything, stoop to any levels, in order to stay alive, kicking and breathing. Wincing, he ran his fingers through his short, chocolate-brown hair, striving to banish thoughts of the ever present porn industry from his mind. would not be so bad to be a male porn actor, would it? He grinned, knowing that would surely be true as long as he was not asked to be a gay porn actor; he had his preferences after all, like any other person.
The interviewer led Ty to a small room that looked to be in every aspect a laboratory; it had the clinical atmosphere, metal tables bolted to the floor nonetheless, teetering stacks of equipment that he could not hope to understand and, most noticeably, a row of glass vials containing a gently bubbling liquid that shimmered. The kaleidoscope of colours contained within changed too rapidly for the human eye to discern a single one from the chaos. What more could any mad scientist want?
"Now, if you would just stand over here for us, please..." Ty's interviewer muttered distractedly, positioning Ty beside the table. "I would like you to drink this. You, ah... You will be a tester, of sorts."
"Wait! What is this...stuff?" Ty said in alarm, eyeing the vial that was offered with an expression of severe distaste. "I don't think -"
"Just drink it if you want to be paid. It will not harm you, as stated in the papers you signed earlier and read quite thoroughly."
Seeing no other option and trusting that this strange man would not do anything to harm him - friends had known where he had gone for the interview - he cautiously accepted the vial, lifted it to his lips and drank the entirety in a single, shuddering gulp. The 'potion', as Ty settled to call it, slid smoothly down his throat, tasting faintly of the standard, discount shelf bottle of orange juice. The nondescript taste caught him off guard and he smiled sheepishly at the man (he had to get his name at some point), shrugging nonchalantly at the lack of effect it had.
"So what is supposed to happen? I really...don't feel...anything..." Ty started, shaking his head in confusion as a deep-seated fogginess washed over his mind, rendering him off-balance and staggering across the room like a drunkard.
Something was wrong with his mouth, his lips had become rubber, he thought hazily, collapsing on to his side. His skin felt cold, icy cold, and rippled - rippled? - as if some horrific creature was crawling beneath it, having burrowed into a host body to feast upon the banquet of human flesh. With his head lolling sideways, disconnected from his neck for all the support he was able to give it, Ty mumbled incoherently, frantically, arms flailing in a search to find anything solid and statutory to latch on to, to retain some semblance of what was real. He was vaguely aware of people rushing around him, babbling at a rate that could put an auctioneer to shame, before he was grabbed roughly about his arms and legs - carried out and tossed unceremoniously into the back of a company van like a bag of rubbish.
He convulsed violently, twisting and writhing frantically as a subtle prickling sensation like thousands of needles being jabbed into his skin became utterly overwhelming, the tickling upon his nose forcing him sneeze violently several times in quick succession. His eyes shot wide open as a smattering of grey hair appeared on his face, spreading with a greater speed than he could have imagined, if he had been imagining turning into something...else, something with fur. Ty gargled unintelligibly, clawing at the impenetrable sides of the now speeding van, and yelped wildly, the front part of his face bulging out obscenely to form...
Is that a...snout?
Not having the opportunity to feel more than fleeting shock at this revelation, Ty suddenly found his torso elongating, muscles contorting beneath the surface to make way for new bone in the region of his hips. Bones cracking and rearranging themselves into unheard of, hideous shapes, Ty howled in pain, his new muzzle pressing against the cool, comforting metal interior of his temporary prison. His spine lengthened slowly, extending out from his mutated, half-changed form, and fluffed up with a thick layer of bushy, grey fur like a fox's brush. Ty kicked out, the first spark of fury igniting as the pain faded to a manageable level, yelping in surprise when not one but two pairs of feet slammed into the side of the van, rocking it violently.
He had four legs like an animal - what the hell? Throwing all of his weight into a roll, he just about managed to scramble to all four of his large, canine-like paws, swaying woozily in a struggle to comprehend the information that was staring him in the face. Covered in fur, standing on four legs but still with use of his arms? To confirm the fact, he rotated his arms Glancing over his shoulder, afraid of what he might see, Ty gulped at the thick tail protruding from his hindquarters, which flicked lazily back and forth with a mind of its own.
"Quick! Get him out, into the stadium! Now, damn it!"
The back doors of the van crashed open, the sharp light blinding Ty and allowing a lanky man to dart in and grab his arm, hauling him ineffectively towards the exit. His eyes narrowed and he knocked his attacker to the ground with a strength that he would have been unable to muster before his change, backing away until his rump pressed firmly against the smooth, padded interior. Swearing, the man rolled and scrambled upright.
"Get out, lord damn it - do you want to hurt yourself, you confounded -"
"Fuck that - what's going on? What the hell have you done to me?" Ty snarled, baring his canines brutally, pinning his pointed ears back as they brushed the roof.
He had not been that tall a few moments ago. Despite his original transformation, his new muzzle had been a good couple of feet below the van's confines, allowing him to still move somewhat. But, to Ty, it was as if the walls were steadily closing in, shrinking until he groaned, pushing outwards with his large paws in an useless attempt to gain himself some literal breathing room. Lashing his tail anxiously, Ty crouched as low as physically possible, giving a high pitched whine and struggled to inch towards the exit, his flanks gradually and painfully compressed by the narrowing walls.
"Get out and stop whining," the man said unsympathetically, stepping to the side to allow Ty to crawl out, much of his fur roughed up in the wrong directions, which he found strangely uncomfortable and aggravating.
Huffing at the bright light, which was a shock to his sensitive eyes, Ty stumbled from the van and landed solidly on the ground, small stones crunching under his large, feral pads. He wriggled his toes, fighting to regain some sense of direction as he had the uncomfortable notion that he was on a ship at sea, swaying and rocking until his stomach rejected its contents in a not very desirable manner. Ty swallowed hard, blinking rapidly and leaning against the somehow much smaller van for some semblance of support, although his new strength pushed it a grating couple of feet over the rough ground with a protesting shriek of abused tyres.
"Yes," the man noted casually, watching as Ty carefully, functionally, regained his bearings. "It might take your eyes a while to adjust now - being a fox-taur, as it is, you'll see better at night. Nocturnal species after all. I'd read up on your species' strengths and weaknesses if I was you."
Yeah, I'll read up on my bloody species, Ty snarled vehemently to himself, giving the man a searing glare that made him shift uncomfortably and clear his throat nervously. Just after I kick your sorry behind to -
"Through here, please," said a prim woman with small glasses that gave her the appearance of working in a library or office of sorts (having her dark hair scraped back into a tight bun did not do her any favours either). She tapped him politely above his left foreleg, inclining her fair head towards a large set of grey double doors, which seemed to lead into an arena of some kind; it rather reminded Ty of a football stadium, but the woman went on before he had opportunity to ponder further. "Down the tunnel and stand still until you are fully grown: we will come for you then. Please stay calm, merely standard procedure, Mr Vulpine."
What else can I do? Ty shook his muzzle, craning his head back over his shoulder to look in a combination of awe and disgust at his new body, every inch of which was sculpted. If he had not been so unnerved at the thought of what could happen to him now - some sort of twisted experiment? Lab tests? - and furious at those who had taken it upon themselves to mutate him, Ty would have been impressed with his new body and sleek, healthy fur coat.
Lolloping rather than walking sedately, Ty clumsily followed his 'guide' of sorts, thankfully not led like a dog on the end of a leash, into an expansive stadium many times the size of the average, traditional football pitch. Open to the elements, Ty's stronger eyes picked out the distinct shapes of hawks circling the arena, wheeling over the red seats in search of prey they would not find; they were only there to keep away birds, after all, and their handlers were grouped together on the other side of the field, ignoring Ty's presence completely. Ty swept his gaze around the stadium, awed into a submissive silence by the astonishing size; he could not begin to speculate upon the number of people it would hold. But what was the event they would come to see?
"Your growth will be quite rapid from here so please try not to move around too much," she continued, patting him absently on the flank. "You may experience some disorientation and queasiness - this is to be expected."
"I'm going to...what? Come again?" Ty shook his head against a wave of dizziness, his skin twitching aggressively as if agitated by an insistent insect. Ignoring him, as seemed to be the trend of the day, the woman readjusted her glasses with a small, knowing smile and strode away, heels clacking against the linoleum within the tunnel.
He flexed his muscles experimentally and glanced about, noticing how everything seemed smaller than before; the difference was incremental but noticeable, although Ty could not fathom why. Why....why indeed... The handlers for the birds of prey had paused in their conversation, their eyes fixed expectantly upon him as if they were waiting for something to happen. Ty lifted his head, blinking blearily, the stadium spinning sickeningly.
His paws tingled with a thousand pins and needles, the delicate hurt making him moan and reach down reflexively to rub the cramps from them, the action causing his stomach to roll once again. Hackles rising at the eerie sense of standing in an ascending elevator when his paws were quite staunchly placed upon the ground, short claws digging into the turf, Ty gulped, chancing a look down to find that the ground was a great deal further away than it should have been. His eyes grew as wide as saucers and his breath came in short, flustered gasps as his muzzle rose higher and higher, twenty feet high, then fifty and much further.
Muscles swelled and rippled beneath his thickening coat, bulging out obscenely before smoothing into defined tone as his new body aligned itself in appropriate proportion, leaving the fox-taur with a deal of natural muscle in his legs and a subtle amount in his torso, enough to be toned without appearing as if he spent every day lifting weights. Dazed, Ty lifted one hind paw, stomping it into the turf with a resounding thud that he swore made the foundations of the stadium shake from the impact. His fur flattened against his hide and a deep, unheard sigh came from within as he settled into his once more new and utterly final form: the changes had run their course.
There was a sense of solidity to being on all fours yet still having the use of arms, Ty noted curiously. His pads were incredibly sensitive, allowing Ty to feel the minute particles of soil and blades of grass being compressed, tickling the black soles almost imperceptibly. He couldn't find the will to be fearful for his situation, however, finding only awe in his current demeanour; the way Ty saw it, from a higher position, nobody that he had encountered so far that day was in any position to threaten him in any way.
"It seems that your transformation is complete at what I would approximate to be around one hundred and fifty feet, most impressive, Mr Vulpine," came a booming voice through a megaphone. Ty assumed it would be loud to a human ear anyway; at his size, it sounded like a pleasant murmur invoked over some distance.
"Down here!"
Ty glared at the speck of a man, clad in a white lab coat, sunlight glinting off his rounded spectacles. He snarled, pinning his ears flat against his skull, and lowered his body into a crouch, poised to lash out given ample and just opportunity.
"Transformation? Transformation! And what makes you think you have the right to change people into, well - bloody anything!" Ty growled furiously, snapping his teeth. "I could step on you right now and nobody would be any the wiser. In fact..."
"Hey now! Don't do anything like that!" The man backtracked hurriedly, stumbling over a seat in the stands in sudden fright as Ty raised one forepaw threateningly. "I assure you that you will have the necessary vial to revert back to human form after you have finished work tonight - it's not permanent."
"After work?" Ty questioned suspiciously.
"The job is to fight others like yourself for entertainment - like a wrestling match but more freeform," he said rapidly, eager to placate the angry fox-taur as quickly as possible. "You'll mostly be watching today but will fight a few bouts with the newer taurs, just to find your feet. Everything is well observed and we have safety measures at hand to ensure that no injuries occur."
Surely, Ty snapped mentally. If you're going to turn people into beasts - giant beasts! - left, right and centre, the least you can fucking do is make sure they don't get hurt!
"Mr Vulpine? Are you prepared to continue with your trial period as a part of our company?" The man queried, peering up owlishly.
"I suppose so," Ty grumbled. "I signed the contract for now. What can I do?"
"Wonderful! Now, you'll want to get used to your form before the others arrive. Walk around, experiment a little - a guide will be sent to you shortly, another taur, of course. Until then, you only have to shout if you need anything, I am sure that one of us will be able to hear you." Ty bit back a snappy retort, watching the man trot away chuckling to himself at his scarce wit.
Yeah, real funny, dude, he thought, a twinge of annoyance making his hackles twitch as if to rise threateningly.
"Coming through!"
An excited howl erupted from the stadium tunnel as a ruffled red fox-taur charged on to the field, yipping madly as he grew rapidly, far more quickly than Ty had. He skidded to a halt - for it was definitely a male - and kicked up clods of earth, the staff who followed at a distance, swearing angrily at the rips in the turf. Seeming to notice Ty for the first time, he yelped loudly, his white tail tip batting the air furiously.
This better not be my guide...
"What's this? Fresh meat?" He yelped, half-rearing from the ground, his front paws sending reverberations through the soil as they crashed down, reminding Ty of the race horses crossing the finish line in a tightly packed group, hooves pounding the firm earth incessantly. Still, his ears swivelled back in annoyance at the antics of what he assumed was his, admittedly smaller, 'work colleague', so to speak.
"Fresh meat? Is that how you put it around here?" He snorted, breath misting lightly in the cool air like a miniature cloud. The fox whined, holding his paws up to stave off Ty's fierce stare.
"Whoa there, I didn't mean to offend," he placated quickly. "Name's Mike and it's always nicer to see a friendly face than a pissed one, so chill out, 'ey? You're new, so Secretariat will be along soon to act as your guide for tonight, no worries."
" Secretariat?" Ty asked cautiously, unable to deny a spark of curiosity despite his best efforts to suppress it; Mike barked happily, his soft, hazel eyes glowing as he settled down on his pale belly to speak more comfortably.
"He's one of the other employees here, a horse-taur and a damn good fighter alongside that. He's usually assigned to act as guide to the new employees, kind of like a mentor. You don't want to get into a bout with him while you're this inexperienced though - you wouldn't have the chance of getting a bonus."
"That sounds all right, really," Ty mused, following Mike's lead and settling down to rest with some difficulty; his paws just didn't seem to move in the same way as feet and having four was even more confusing. "Nice to know I'm not being thrown in the deep end here, or am I? And how do you get a bonus?"
"Hah, money tempts them all doesn't it?" Mike smirked, stretching his arms lazily. "You get a bonus when you win a bout - that's a fight or a match with one or more taurs. Pay isn't bad to start off with though, it's more fun than anything else for me. Beats working behind the counter in the damn supermarket at least!"
Yeah...I bet... Ty thought, shaking his muzzle in disbelief at the job he had taken. All things permitted...he would not mind staying on at all. The two taurs turned their muzzle sharply as a cluster of human sized, taurs loped into the arena, shooting up to their macro heights with a slick ease and pace that inspired a twinge of jealousy. Mike yelped, a wide, toothy grin spreading across his muzzle as he gestured at the approaching group with welcoming, open arms.
"Would you look who it is! Twosome is back! Up for a threesome, Twosome? 'ey?"
"Shut it, it's 'Kyle', not bloody 'Twosome', you half-wit," an odd looking taur grumbled, the much repeated joke wearing his nerves dangerously thin.
The subject of the ill-joke was indeed a twosome of sorts; he was a taur composed of two forms and, if mythology had a place in the modern world, would be called a griffin. His upper body was that of a golden eagle, feathers lightly lacing his arms though not thickly enough to allow flight. A pair of impressive wings protruding from his shoulder blades, however, might permit airborne activity, considering their massive wingspan, which cast a shadow over the remainder of his tawny, lion body. Every inch of him radiated masculinity, from the defined muscles beneath his feathers to his polished talons, which were in lieu of what would have been his front paws. Ty quailed inwardly at the prospect of fighting such a taur, especially without any training whatsoever!
But it was the transformed person who was not a taur that caught the majority of Ty's attention. A tall, turquoise 'person', with a long, thick mane of blue 'spines' (although they fell over his shoulders like hair),strutted among the taurs, laughing and joking as if he knew the majority as good friends, clapping the shoulder of the griffin taur jovially, although the griffin clacked his beak, eyes betraying irritation. He - for it certainly appeared male in figure alone - had a pale yellow muzzle and underbelly that complimented his figure and a short, black beard, which would have made him easy to distinguish if he had not been the only large being walking on two legs. Locking his warm, green eyes upon Ty, he padded over with a welcoming, easy smile.
"Erm..." Ty mumbled, looking the strange, brightly coloured thing up and down, forgetting pleasantries. "Who and what are you exactly? Didn't they give you the same freaky thing to drink or something? You look..."
"Yeah, yeah - I know," the blue creature laughed, stooping to collect his glasses from a plinth nearby; the lenses were as big as windows and Ty had previously mistaken the frames for some kind of modern art sculpture before. "I'm KC, the commentator here. This, ah, form is based on an echidna, with some colour commentary added in to the DNA splicing."
Pushing his glasses about so that they sat comfortably upon his narrow muzzle, smiling crookedly as he saw that Ty was quite overwhelmed by everything and had little idea of what he meant. He patted Ty's back reassuringly, rolling his shoulders to release the built up tension in the muscles there.
"Don't worry about anything, tonight's just for you to get used to the way things are done around here. You'll likely have a couple of bouts with the newer taurs to ease you into the job, nothing too strenuous. Try to keep our loudmouth fox friend quiet, all right? And out of trouble, if at all possible," KC grimaced, saluting Ty comradely as he strode away, his stride becoming livelier as he approached the growing crowd of taurs.
"So you must be Ty," the equine taur finally said levelly, looking over Ty critically.
"I must be Ty: who else would I be?" He replied, feeling foolish, although his response only earned a smattering of laughter. The equine's eyes narrowed and he stomped a hoof into the turf.
"Hmph, bit of a wise guy, are you?"
"What? Hell no!" Ty said hurriedly, leaping to his paws. "I didn't mean to come across like that!"
"Then maybe don't walk in here like you know everything, kid," the equine snorted. "I'm Secretariat. You've got to learn on the job here, otherwise you're gonna get hurt and nobody wants to see blood on the ground. Not much of it, at any rate."
He pricked his ears, the roar of an oncoming, unleashed crowd evident even at the taurs greater height. Ty glanced about nervously to watch the crowd pouring in, chattering excitedly and pointing with slack jaws to the taurs as they took their seats, much as a crowd attending a football match would. The freshly minted fox-taur wondered briefly if their fights would always be this well-attended; if he had lived in the city for longer, perhaps he would know the answer to that question, but he was a 'newbie' in all aspects.
"Eurgh," Mike groaned, pacing back and for. "It's going to start soon. I bet I get bloody pummelled again."
Hope I don't... Ty said privately, following Mike's lead to stand with the other taurs at intervals around the edge of the arena. Presumably they would be a buffer to prevent the fighters reaching the crowd in case the fights became rowdier than normal, although Ty would have to wait to discover whether that inkling was true or not. It seemed that every seat in the stadium was occupied within a matter of minutes, the throng pouring in from several entrances, all cheering exuberantly as KC leaped jovially to a podium, microphone at the ready.
"Ladies and gentlemen," KC boomed, throwing his arms wide, his voice easily carrying with the aid of technology above the thirsty roar. "You've been waiting long enough for another Taur Tournament, and it is certainly not my place to keep you waiting upon ceremony, so allow me to present our first gallant, young fighters: Michael the fox-taur and Katrina the cheetah-taur! Although I am assured she will fight a clean one tonight for your entertainment!"
One of the few females padded forward lightly, her fur darkly patterned like a King Cheetah, closely tailed by Mike, who muttered something barely coherent and explicit about what he would do to KC if he said his name wrong one more time. The cheetah-taur had a defined muzzle that could have been sculpted by a professional artist, her eyes large and an alluring amber shade, which was matched by the bandeau top keeping her modest. She exchanged a high-five with Mike as they took up position, facing each other and dropping into a fighting crouch, awaiting the signal. Her long, black and fawn tail lashed the air eagerly and the stadium held its breath as one.
Ty couldn't keep his eyes off her.
KC smirked, perhaps knowing something that Ty could not, and raised his arm high, the two taurs locking eyes, icy determination solidifying in their skulls. When his arm fell, all hell broke loose.
Launching herself forward with a vehement snarl, Katrina powered into her first attack, fists swinging, although they were competently caught by Mike's large, paw-like hands. Mike's colourful swearing was audible as she slammed her paw into his foreleg viciously and followed up her attack by pouncing upon him in the next instant, forcing his weakened leg to buckle helplessly. Ty's pelt quivered, muscles yearning to leap to Mike's aid as he was borne irrevocably to the ground.
"It can be unnerving at first," a nearby wolf-taur commented casually, leaning back on his haunches as if preparing to spring forward as soon as his name was called. "Don't worry, they're not hurting each other - it's only their size that makes it seem worse than a normal wrestling match, chill out."
Mutely, Ty nodded and shifted uneasily, a dark grimace shadowing his muzzle as the fox-taur was shortly pinned and yelping his surrender. Baring her teeth in a feral smile, Katrina offered her hand to Mike, who took it gladly, allowing her to pull him back to his paws, assistance that he seemed to dearly need as he was badly winded from the quick, brutal bout. He staggered back to the edge of the arena, swaying unsteadily, one paw rubbing his temples in rhythmic, soothing circles.
"Are you okay?" Ty whispered, reaching to steady Mike. "I have to do that?"
"Yeah, I'm good..." He replied, sitting on his rump, which looked so comical that Ty could not prevent the bubble of laughter that erupted in a snort, although his mirth was quashed as soon as Mike shot him a dark look and continued. "And yes, you also have to do that. Good luck."
Ty swallowed the lump in his throat loudly, an anxious shiver running down his spine like a droplet of icy water. The sensation of his fur fluffing up marginally when he was nervous was still new to the fox-taur and he self-consciously tried to smooth it flat over his chest, growling softly when it refused to lie as he wished it to; Mike snickered, curling his own brush around his haunches comfortably and looking perkier as KC seemed ready to begin the next match. Ignoring the cheers of the crowd, KC held his hand high for attention.
"Next up, we have a new fox on the circuit, ladies and gentlemen, going by the name of Ty Vulpine. Give him a round of applause, if you please, he's looking nervous over there!"
A burning flush swept over the fox-taur, who struggled to look at anything else - anything - but the screaming, hollering, stamping crowd, his sharpened eyesight picking out the smallest details on the roughly hewn turf. And yet they were impossible to forget, so Ty bravely raised his muzzle to the bright lights and deafening din, shyly waving in acknowledgement, which only served to fuel the cheers with fresh energy.
"Damn! I wanted to be next - I'm pumped! C'mon, bump me up, KC!" The wolf-taur protested, bouncing on his paws like an eager child. "C'mon!"
KC frowned but beckoned the wolf-taur into the centre of the arena anyway, seemingly reserved about allowing him to fight, which made Ty wonder if there was something he should know about the apparently friendly yet energetic wolf. But the crowd would not be denied.
"And joining him in the ring, we have our old friend, Fray! Hopefully the old dog won't be up to new tricks tonight to fox our newcomer! Ty, up here to face your first opponent, don't keep us waiting."
"Just do your best, Ty, it's only for practice at this stage," Mike said quietly, giving Ty a much needed shove to his rump to propel him into motion.
Numbly, Ty padded across the turf, facing Fray, who was lapping up the attention from the crowd like it was what he lived for. His eyes were bright and burning with energy, muscles shifting under his thicker, dark grey to black coat; Fray was perfectly formed as a taur, light on his feet and a great deal more experience than Ty, to say the very least of the differences. What chance did he have? Ty fought to retain his nerve, reassuring himself that Mike had lost the first bout after all and nobody had cared about that, because there had to be a winner and there had to be a loser. He would have the opportunity to redeem himself later, Ty thought determinedly, shifting on his paws for better balance, lest Fray's first attack be as quick and furious as Katrina the cheetah-taur's had been. Focusing on the two taurs, KC lifted his hand slowly, then let it fall, once more.
Fray howled and leaped at Ty, twisting to the side as if to strike his flanks but missing as Ty sidestepped, whirling in a sudden flurry of instinctual behaviour, his pointed canines gleaming. Angry that his first attack fell flat, Fray tried to engage Ty up close, kicking his forepaws into Ty's hind legs in a tactic similar to that which Katrina had used to fell Mike so quickly. Ty grunted heavily at the sudden burst of pain that shot up his legs, half-falling and looking up in despair to see the wolf-taur descending upon him already, fighting to pin his legs underneath his bulk.
But, being smaller, Ty managed to keep his legs flailing enough for Fray to be unable to get a firm grip upon even one wildly thrashing limb, eventually landing a solid kick into the wolf-taur's exposed ribcage. Fray groaned as he rolled away, doubled over and holding his pained gut, the feral stomach being a vulnerable place for most taurs to be struck in the course of normal combat. Sensing this, Ty got his paws back beneath him and sprung at the bulkier wolf, slamming both hind paws into Fray's stomach, at which he gasped breathlessly, muzzle moving in silent curses. A glimmer of pride and hope seeped into Ty and he thought that maybe, just maybe, he wouldn't do so badly in his first fight as he had initially thought. Maybe.
That was part of his undoing, however, as Fray scrambled to his paws again, snarling viciously at the one who had dared to fell and humiliate him so in front of his crowd. His hackles rose and he dived at Ty, seeking to close his hands about his throat or lock his arms about Ty's chest, landing a brutal blow to the fox-taur's windpipe. Taken aback Fray's sudden change in demeanour, Ty was forced on to the defence again, sidestepping and blocking the unruly barrage of fists, paws and body slams, cursing the soreness in his neck that was making it difficult to breathe.
Fray would not be denied for long, however, and his greater experience showed as he combined his attacks at a rate that Ty could not hope to match at this stage, grappling with him and crushing his fists into Ty's torso repeatedly until his arms were grasped in an unyielding, iron grip. Twisting the fox-taur's arm behind his back at a cruel, painful angle, Fray growled dangerously and snapped his teeth at Ty's throat, catching only fur and missing skin by a scant breath. Ty's anger flared.
Who was this wolf-taur to fight so uncaringly, giving him no chance whatsoever to adjust to the arena, just seeking a rapid-fire victory? Was he so two-faced that he would play the part of a friend on the sidelines, only to reduce himself to the demeanour of a beast that cared no more for the male he chased from his territory to starve than the rabbit he killed for his own bloody feast once under the swing of an audience?
Ok, enough dodging and defence, Ty thought grimly. Now I'm serious.
The kick between his forelegs caught Fray unaware and the second clawing of his torso's belly even more so as Ty wrenched himself free with a tremendous feat of strength. He rounded on Fray furiously, pummelling his muzzle and forearms, gaining ground with every step, his confidence and will to win soaring higher than he thought imaginable. Balking at Ty's unprecedented advance, Fray stumbled, crashing to the ground as Ty leaped on top of him, his hands and paws slamming down upon his skilfully to render him helpless while the tremors from their impact shook the stadium.
"And the winner is our newcomer, Ty! An amazing first bout for a newbie - I expect we have great things to see from you, Mr Vulpine!"
Ty blinked. It was over? He had won? Slowly, he moved back, hesitantly offering Fray his hand to assist him back to his paws - that was the right thing to do, wasn't it? Swearing, Fray slapped away Ty's hand, pushing himself up without aid and stomping away, gesturing very rudely at Ty over his retreating shoulder. Shrugging, the fox-taur followed suit, returning to his side of the arena and smiling slightly at the wide grins that welcomed him from Mike and Katrina especially, who looked at him with a sudden appraisal for the potential he held in the arena.
"Dude, that was awesome!" Mike yelled, clapping Ty on his shoulder as his previous defeat and angst was forgotten. "Fray was psycho, dunno what the hell happened there. Seriously though, you done this before, 'ey?"
Ty shook his head no, dumbly, wondering how on earth he had been able to best his opponent. Fray stood alone, sullen, not allowing the taurs who were his friends to boost him up and refused to engage in the usual banter, a despondent and dark expression clouding his muzzle. Regardless of his defeat, he had a lot more experience than Ty and the fox-taur assumed glumly that, if he remained an employee, Fray would have plenty of opportunities for a painful revenge the next time they were matched up.
"Is Fray normally like that?" He asked, giving voice to the question preying on his mind and folding his hind legs to sit like he had seen Mike do earlier.
"I saw her looking at you, kid."
Both Mike and Ty turned in surprise to see Secretariat pawing at the turf, muscles twitching as if to shake off a particularly annoying fly, although Ty has a sinking feeling that the fly was a good one hundred and fifty odd feet tall with grey fur and a fox muzzle. Huffing a moist breath that could have been a disdainful sigh, Secretariat snorted and stomped the ground, tossing his mane like a proud colt in the field.
"What, you think you can just strut in here like you own the place - like hell! Eyeing up the ladies like pieces of meat to nibble, it's the most you could do, after all."
Ty was speechless: he had not been looking at anyone! And he certainly hadn't strutted into or around the arena at all - more like stumbled in, yelping and flailing. A smaller equine-taur with a jet black coat and traditional white, horse markings touched Secretariat's upper arm lightly, his large eyes beseeching and the white rim showing.
"Secretariat, man, what's gotten into you. Cool it, he didn't do any of - " He began calmly, though his nostrils flared fearfully as Secretariat turned on him, cutting him off abruptly.
"Yeah, yeah, well you weren't looking, were you? I saw him and by god I'm going to fucking do something about the brat, chop him down to size, like."
KC started as Secretariat trotted up to him, lifting his hooves high so that he was practically prancing in a show-off fashion, snatching the microphone unceremoniously from the shocked echidna.
"I challenge Ty Vulpine to the next match," he said with a note of derision, very clearly and loudly, his voice reverberating around the crowd, which, uncharacteristically, had fallen into hushed murmurs at the unexpected change of events.
"Uh, well..." KC said, scratching the back of his head and glancing about for objections. "If you take it as another practice round, Sec, there's no reason not to. Do you agree to the rules that the first one to be pinned for five seconds is the loser for this round and this round only?"
"I agree," the equine smirked. "This will be delightful."
"Um...Ty? Dude? You've got to go up, it's the rules," Mike said unsurely.
Having not said a word since the beginning of this exchange, Ty shook his head, making as if to back off and surrender prematurely, although Mike grabbed his arm to stop him from losing face. Ty tried to open his muzzle and say that he couldn't possibly do this, that Fray had been more than enough and his muscles ached too much to hold his own against the veteran taur, that he had not a stray shred of hope. Katrina stepped around Mike to look Ty square in the eyes and he was unnerved to see the amber embers sparking into fresh life.
"Give him hell."
Bolstered fractionally, Ty smiled softly, inclining his muzzle in acknowledgement and took a steadying breath, mentally psyching himself up to give this match his best shot again. Feeling a deep dread as if he was a doomed prisoner walking to the gallows, he slowly paced to meet Secretariat, not without a forced air of leisure. The equine only nickered mockingly, prancing on the spot to warm his muscles up, although, as a flight animal, he would always be prepared to launch himself into action at less than a moment's notice. Ty knew he would have to watch out for that and the likely stamina this horse had.
"Ready, Ty?" KC asked, not hiding his concern for the new fox-taur going up against such an opponent.
"Ready," Ty murmured in assent, crouching in readiness for Secretariat's attack. That was one thing he could keep in mind; the equine could not crouch like he could, but those legs would be -
KC's hand signalled the beginning of the bout and Ty was caught unaware as Secretariat whinnied, springing forward to clout the fox-taur on the side of his head. Ty's head spun as he backed off quickly, losing ground to gather his wits, but the horse advanced like a freight train, unstoppable. He reared up high, lashing out with his deadly front hooves, slamming them into and bruising Ty's shoulder terribly; the fox-taur yelped in pain, striking out blindly at his assailant and clipping his side in a lucky blow hard enough to throw Secretariat off-balance.
With a harried snort, Secretariat fell back to all four hooves, muttering incomprehensively but permitting Ty a few seconds breathing space to gather his wits. With bile rising in his throat, Ty fought to keep his stomach down, pain rocketing through his limbs like lightning in a solid form. He had already ached terribly from his first bout and without time to recover, Ty felt greatly weakened. Glancing about to see Mike and Katrina cheering for him and egging him on from the sidelines, Ty was encouraged to know that perhaps his standing with the crowd would increase, even with his inevitable battering.
Stubbornly, Ty twisted and body slammed the equine, shoving him across the arena as he staggered, Secretariat fighting to regain balance even as his look darkened and his tail whipped the air. The horse came on again with increased caution, whirling about to buck, his hooves landing squarely upon Ty's flank; the fox-taur howled from the ricocheting pain, two of his ribs having cracked. It was excruciating.
But he refused to give in.
The full repertoire of moves in Secretariat's practised skill set were somehow not enough to subdue the fox-taur, even with his broken ribs that grated every time he moved. The equine's rage flared as he gained no advantage over the fox-taur on the defence, craving the need to break his bones, feel them snap under his palms and diamond-hard unshod hooves. If he had been some more powerful mythological being, tongues of fire would have been shooting from his nostrils and licking at his hooves. Just what could he do to get through to this damn runt?
Every move that Ty made, from the slight shifting of his weight to a blocked punch, infuriated the horse-taur to greater heights, his skilled attacks battering every inch of Ty until onlookers wondered how he was still standing. The cheers of the crowd turned against Secretariat, chanting for Ty instead of the old favourite, favouring the new challenger who refused to be beaten despite the odds stacked against him. Snorting heavily, Secretariat spared them an enraged glance, showing them what he would do to the one who had the nerve to remain standing when he wanted him on the ground, his concentration wavering as bloodlust obscured his rational thinking. Knocking Ty down with a well-aimed swipe at his skull, Secretariat neighed triumphantly, aching to pummel Ty's body further and end the bout in his own way.
Ty saw the flicker of betrayal in the horse's eyes as he leaped, a great shadow falling over the wolf-taur as those fists came down and down... And Ty kicked out with his hind legs in one last, desperate attempt to evade the beating, sending the astounded, furiously snorting horse over his muzzle to land heavily on his side, hide rippling as his organs were smashed into the ground by his own weight. Propelling his sore, aching muscles into action, Ty staggered upright and dived upon Secretariat, snarling wildly as he forcibly restrained the equine's long, thin legs with his forepaws. He kept from being kicked for long enough to allow him opportunity to bring a hind paw down on that arched, writhing equine neck in a final, decisive move.
Crushing his hind paw into Secretariat's windpipe, Ty panted and lifted his muzzle victoriously to face the frenzied screams of the crowd, chanting his name.
His crowd.
"Thank the heavens that runt was able to handle himself down there," the blond haired interviewer from much earlier that day commented from a lavishly decorated, private viewing box that overlooked the arena.
"Only a minor complication," the dark haired individual commented, sipping casually from a glass of ruby wine. "He reacted badly to the rogue cells this time round - the next vial will have the altered strain for his next appearance here, Byron, do not concern yourself."
The interviewer, Byron, snorted, raising his hand in an exasperated gesture before allowing it to fall back to his side helplessly. What could he do?
"The other employees know something is up," he said bluntly, only for the stony-eyed man to ignore him completely, his gaze roaming through the fine print on the papers, which were conveniently spread out for his perusal.
"And what of those who may or may not be infected?" Byron inquired, hesitance in his blue eyes.
The man at the desk cast a disparaging glance at the last of the taurs taking the potions to shrink and leave the arena; they clustered together in small groups, as if afraid of something that they could not see, yet their senses screamed was a threat. Poor things...they could not comprehend why they, even his cronies, all found themselves giving the tightly restrained, shrunken equine-taur such a wide, cautious berth. He smirked, signing the stack of papers with a sickening flourish.
"They will be dealt with accordingly."
TyVulpintaur 2 years ago 0
:3 thanks and can't wait to get money for the next part.
Amethyst Mare 2 years ago 0
You are most welcome and don't be a stranger now ^^ (the avatar of the plush macro Ty is adorable, by the way) |
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