Miracle Child Brings Hope to Family Essay

Christina Vara had not imagined of ever being a mother, but the time she realized she was carrying one in her womb, she vowed to take good of the new born. All necessary preparations were prioritized and together with her husband, Rafael Ruiz, were eager to be parents. Unfortunately after the ultra sound, they could read the nurse’s face which showed that something awful could happen to either Christina or the baby. Sure enough, the baby’s intestines, liver and other organs were outside her stomach; a birth defect referred to as giant Omphalocele, which the parents were not aware of. There was no other alternative other than for the two parents-to-be to travel to a children’s hospital in Texas for the child’s treatment. Approximately a year and half later, Rafael and Christina purposed to create awareness of this child birth defect to the community, although theirs was not yet born, since everyone was susceptible to the same. Despite the fact that the probability of the child living was almost not there and many had suggested to her to get rid of the pregnancy, Christina purposed to provide the excellent treatment she could to the child. To her, Beatrice Hope Ruiz, was a miracle child (Brown, 2010). In Texas Children’s hospital, Christina underwent a C-section surgery which turned out to be successful and the child fortunately survived though the intestines still hung outside. Their doctor was humane and accommodative. Besides, he taught them how they were to wrap the delicate protruding organs carefully on the child’s stomach. Once discharged out of the hospitals, things were tough for them; ranging from frequently changing the organ wrappers to understanding the various ways of holding her without necessarily causing the slightest harm to the delicate organs (Brown, 2010). Not before long, another major challenge of a new surgery to the child so as to contain these organs in her body faced them. This fostered a great confront to the doctors because Beatrice’s liver was very large. Though worried of the surgery outcomes, the child’s once more survived. Christina testifies that Beatrice was a miracle up to date and though not planning to bear another child; she will continue bringing up Beatrice. Rafael was determined not to be a contributor of the increasing numbers of fatherless children in America. Moreover, he was purposed to provide for his family and pin down the culture that had nurtured the concept of fathers being understood as unessential in the family. In his humane actions to aid Christina through out the child nursing period, he proves wrong the fact that the state is bestowed with the principal role to adequately provide for the children’s upkeep through child-care facilities and welfare checks. Though both parents were not financially stable, they opted to raise their child caringly. Rafael and Christina took the initiative to educate the community about giant Omphalocele thus civilizing them. Their aim was to make the community rightly understand and value the role of parents in not only species propagation but also in help nurture socialization (Horn, 1997). Rafael becomes a virtuous national through his voluntary decision to give a hand in bringing up their child. Although Beatrice is hardly two years of age now, she will grow up as a social and responsible child since their parents have devoted themselves to stand with her in everything and provide for her needs. References Brown, R. (2010). Miracle child brings â€Å"Hope† to family. Retrieved on 29 July 2010 from Horn, W. F. (1997). Why there is no substitute for parents.

Two Themes Report

Personality Deferent people have deferent personality. As we can't find two pieces of leaves are the same In the world. And these personality or character will direct Influence the career selection in the further. In my opinion, some parts of personality were decided by nature, but some was not. But we have to know, In the formation of character, acquired factors also play an Important role. For example conscientiousness may effected by nurture. According to self-assessment, I found that I am tending an extroversion and conscientiousness In my personality.I found that the formation of my character has positive relationship with my education background. As structure autobiography shows that I finished high school In China. Extroversion and conscientiousness of people was easier to success in strong competitive environment. Moreover, as this character, I was more focus on expression. And I hope that I can become the center of attention in the workplace. That cause me get high score of exhibition and leadership in Work Value Inventory. Theme two: Behavior In my opinion, behaviors like a mirror that can direct reflect self-thinking.And behaviors also can reflect self-requirement and locus of control in our life. When I was child, I found that I was really like to watch the talk show on TV, and I really enjoy the people who share the success experiences for their life. This hobby lead me know that success cannot without self-effort. According to my task of Locus of Control, I found that I was believed internal locus control â€Å"which the person believes they can control their life (Rooter, 1996). † Furthermore, this self- requirement in somewhat ways influences my life. I prefer to make a good impression for everyone, and voiding being evaluated unfavorable.That has direct reflected on my score of Fear of Negative Evaluation. By GHz-Hyaline Different people have different personality. As we can't find two pieces of leaves are the same in the world. And thes e personality or character will direct influence the by nature, but some was not. But we have to know, in the formation of character, acquired factors also play an important role. For example conscientiousness may extroversion and conscientiousness in my personality. I found that the formation of autobiography shows that I finished high school in China.

A needs assess Gap Analysis on Kaiser Permanente Essay

Kaiser Permanente refers to healthcare consortium that offers prepaid Medicare services. Rising from humble beginnings in 1945, the non profit has flourished from a privately centered medical care to accommodate even the public. It was founded by physician R. Garfied and industrialist Henry Kaiser (Lawler, Boudreau, Mohrman, Mark, Neilson, & Osganian, 2006). The hospital has ridden over a hostile environment to become a leading non profit health institution providing services to over 9.1 million members. The institution has its headquarters in Oakland, California in the United States. Kaiser Permanente constitutes a trio of the Permanente Medical Groups, the Kaiser Foundation Hospitals as well as subsidiaries and the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan Incorporation. Overall, the Kaiser Permanente Health Foundation had 7654 beds as at 31st December 2012 scattered over the District of Columbia and nine states in the U.S.A. The health plan membership totals to over 8.3 million. Still, the hospital maintains a sizeable labor force of about 11,000 physicians scattered in 415 medical offices and 30 medical centers. As at last year, the hospital’s operating revenues grossed $22.5 billion. The Kaiser Permanente Foundation operates on four major premises, namely: A physician team practice to realize maximum abilities to nurse and care for patients Prepaid health plans structured along spreading of costs to ensure affordability across the social classes Concentration on prevention of illness relative to caring for the patients A formally structured delivery system to hold as many services as it can hold under one roof (Lawler, Boudreau, Mohrman, Mark, Neilson, & Osganian, 2006). The following tabulation presents the membership of the foundation by region as at 31st December 2012 (Abelson, 2013). Region Membership Southern California 3,594,848 Northern California 3,403,871 Colorado 540,442 Northwest (Oregon /Washington) 484,349 Mid Atlantic States (MD, VA, DC) 481,755 Hawaii 224,591 The following tabulation showcases Kaiser Permanente Foundation local markets by each of eight regions (Abelson, 2013). Northern California Southern California Georgia Hawaii Mid Atlantic States Oregon/ Washington Central Valley Coachella Valley Atlanta Oahu Washington D.C Portland Diablo Kern Valley Athens Kauai Northern Virginia Salem East Bay Orange Valley Hawaii Suburban Maryland Vancouver, Wash Fresno Inland Empire Maui Baltimore Longview/ Kelso, Wash Greater Southern Alameda Metro Los Angeles/ West Los Angeles Marin/ Sonoma San Diego County Napa/ Solano Tri-Central Area Colorado Roseville Denver Sacramento Colorado Springs San Francisco Boulder San Jose Pueblo San Mateo Santa Clara South Sacramento It is evident from the above tabulation that Kaiser Permanente has a stronger presence in the urban areas in each of the nine states as compared to rural presence. Nonetheless, it is commendable on the foundation’s expansion to cover regions outside its core geographic markets (Lawler, Boudreau, Mohrman, Mark, Neilson, & Osganian, 2006). However, it is evident that the expansion trajectory seeks to serve the proximate markets. The Foundation has 38 hospitals, 611 medical offices and outpatient facilities, 16,942 physicians compri9sing of a blend of different specialties and 48,701 differently blended mixes of specialist nurses. Therefore, the foundation employs a total of 174,259 employees comprising of administrative, technical and clerical care givers and laborers as at 31st December 2013 (Abelson, 2013). The hospital maintains an online presence with a platform in which clients and employers manage their accounts. Online customer account services are offered freely meaning that the foundation does not charge. Member terminations as well as demographic changes are updated immediately. This gives the institution a competitive advantage over its rivals. Part II Needs Assessment/ Gap Analysis on Kaiser Permanente                      At present, Kaiser Permanente is criticized for failing to have facilities, resources or policies to conduct a number of services. Additionally, where critical services are offered, the facility features as lazy to act exposing the patients to delay in diagnosis. The hospital is often accused of prolonged diagnosis period preferring available formal diagnosis rather than recommending specialized and expensive diagnosis so as to contain costs. Furthermore, the institution prefers cheaper dispute resolution mechanism such as arbitration. This process may take prolonged time and has often sparkled criticism. For instance, Wilfredo Engalla succumbed to lung cancer five months after submitting an arbitration demand. Consequently, the Supreme Court of California awarded his spouse $500,000 as damages from Kaiser Permanente (Abelson, 2013). Still, The Huffington Post accuses the institution of overburdening its staff resulting to sloppy work (Lawler, Boudreau, Mohrman, Mark, Neilson, & Osganian, 2006). This occurs even when the company rackets billions of dollars in profits. Sadly, mental health patients contend with a prolonged wait for appointment at the institution’s California facility. Upon meeting the doctor, the meeting lasts briefly, therefore, receiving brief consultations. Finally, the patient ends up in a group therapy set up comprising of 20 members under the astute of a single clinician, in spite of a one on one clinician session (Eichler, 2011). The report concluded by showing the cuts in mental health funding. California led the pack by cutting the mental health budget by $177.4 million out of the $1.7 billion mental health budget cuts. Moreover, Kaiser is accused of understaffing its various departments in spite of an inflationary membership. For instance, mental health patients are sloppily rushed through the treatment and rehabilitation process resulting to dire implications. Rushing is necessary in order to serve the over 6.6 million members (Eichler, 2011). Cases of misdiagnosis as well as wrong diagnosis and treatment cases have been reported in which some were catastrophic resulting to deaths. Kaiser’s violations of rules and regulations in kidney transplant regulations led to closure of the program (Lawler, Boudreau, Mohrman, Mark, Neilson, & Osganian, 2006). An investigative report by the Los Angeles Times revealed Kaiser Permanente’s mismanagement across the board on 3rd May 2006 (Eichler, 2011). Apparently, the facility had operated 56 transplants the previous with an alarming death of 112 patients while waiting for the operation. Kaiser Permanente realized financial savings through the delays in transplants. Consequently, the institution announced discontinuation of the practice on 13th May 2006 (Eichler, 2011). Most of the employees at Kaiser Permanente are members of various labor unions although the Medicine Doctors as well as the Osteopathic Medicine Doctors share in the for profit profits of the institution (Lawler, Boudreau, Mohrman, Mark, Neilson, & Osganian, 2006). Surprisingly, the California facilities witnessed 4 major strikes between 2011 and 2012. There were over 20,000 participants drawn from the institution’s mental health providers, nurses and other specialists (Eichler, 2011). Labor Unions constantly accused Kaiser Permanente for stalling negations deliberately in spite of the huge profits and a hefty pay to the C.E.O. The workers grievances included delayed care, poor staffing, and loss of medical insurance, pensions as well as other benefits. Based on the above criticism, it is indeed true that a gap subsists between Kaiser’s current performance and the projected. This part addresses solutions to the criticism based on social, legal and culture. Firstly, the modern world is fast paced and Kaiser must accommodate fast pacing in service delivery (Lawler, Boudreau, Mohrman, Mark, Neilson, & Osganian, 2006). Employee staffing, training, recruitment, retention, job function redesign will help address friction with labor unions (Kochan, 2009). Besides, competitive and equitably pegged remuneration will motivate employees to offer quality services. Recruiting more employees will help address the ballooning membership. Besides, training of employees on cultural accommodations of different patients will enhance positive reviews to Kaiser Permanente. Finally, Kaiser must embrace a law abiding organizational culture. This will reduce arbitrative litigations. Moreover, taking up a less materialistic approach to delivering serv ices is a crucial social factor that will enhance closing of the performance gap. Implementation of these policies involves three pertinent stakeholders in Kaiser Permanente. These include the patient, the caregiver and the ownership of Kaiser. The patient is the key stakeholder as s/he identifies helps identifies areas of improvement. For instance, the patient directs services to be offered based on the common illnesses and ailments. The caregiver professional is a crucial link in implementing the services and building on a solid reputation of Kaiser Permanente. The motivation and remuneration of caregivers determine their delivery of medical services to the client. Adequate staffing ensures that clients do not feel rushed, delayed or misdiagnosed (Kochan, 2009). Finally, the ownership of the institution is crucial because it will spearhead implementation of the policies. It is pivotal because it will approve, reject or hold implementation of these recommendations. Besides, the ownership will provide resources to steer through the implementation process. Communic ation will be crucial to achieving the set objectives. Besides, it will fine tune synergy and course of direction. Communication to the stakeholders will involve internal and external communication channels. Periodic meetings will appraise the owners and caregivers on the progress of the implementation. Brochures will be distributed from time to time to the patients sensitizing and informing them of the progress. An evaluation process will then follow to assess the effectiveness of the intervention. Questionnaires will be administered to each of the three groups of stakeholders. The questionnaires will be structured to assess and evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention as well as requesting proposal for achieving further progresses. The intervention will deemed successful through satisfied and happy patient positive reviews from happily served, satisfied and recovered patients (Kochan, 2009). Besides, motivated, inspired and friendly caregiver labor force will signify a successful intervention. Higher earnings, more trophies and recognition of the institution in the public glare will foster a successful intervention to the owners. References Abelson, R. (2013, March 20). The Face of Future Health Care. Kaiser Permanente is seen as the future of healthcare. Retrieved November 23, 2013, from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/21/business/kaiser-permanente-is-seen-as-face-of-future-health-care.html?_r=0 Eichler, A. (2011, November 14). Kaiser Permanente Makes Billions In Profits While Overburdening Staff: Report. The Huffington Post. Retrieved November 23, 2013, from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/14/kaiser-permanente-overburden_n_1092694.html Kochan, T. A. (2009). Healing together the labor-management partnership at Kaiser Permanente. Ithaca: ILR Press/Cornell University Press. Lawler, E. E., Boudreau, J. W., Mohrman, S. A., Mark, A. Y., Neilson, B., & Osganian, N. (2006). Achieving strategic excellence: an assessment of human resource organizations. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford Business Books, an imprint of Stanford University Press. Source document

Persuasive Film Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Persuasive Film Analysis - Essay Example The fireworks are revealed to be part of a celebration of Al Gore's election to the Presidency in 2000. The dream sequence that follows appeals to Democrats' hopes, dreams, and expectations on a very basic, fundamental level. Contrasted with that is the conspiracy information that a Bush cousin is an executive for Fox Channel in Florida and Bush’s brother Jeb, the Governor of Florida, promised George that he would win. Moore’s film suggests that the means by which Bush won Florida and thus the Presidency was not legitimate, convincingly causing the audience to feel curiosity and a growing sense of unease. Once the dream segment is over, the movie restarts with a black screen and the sounds of the streets of New York the day the planes hit the World Trade Center. In addition to very effective continued emotional appeals, Moore uses well-documented evidence, such as news videos of the moment Bush received news of the attack and callously turned back to reading to a group of children, to prove that George Bush was a bad president. Not only did he steal the election, but he did not effectively respond to emergencies and he was politically compromised by family and business interests. Other evidence he offers includes interviews with influential people, verifiable historic events, photographed images, and documents that he shows on the screen. The evidence is highly convincing and effectively distributed throughout the film to maintain variety and interest. A specific sequence that demonstrates the logic of the presentation occurs as the film examines the business connections between the Saudi Arabian government and the Bush family. Records of the passengers on each of the planes showed that nine of the 13 hijackers were of Saudi nationality, bringing up a disturbing connection. Video records showed that the senior Bush was engaged in a meeting with the Carlyle Group, of which he and the Bin Laden family are involved, on the morning of the attach. Addi tional records illustrate that the younger Bush was bailed out of his several business failures by large financial investments from Saudi business groups during a time when his father was head of the CIA and Vice President. Through this progression, Moore leads the audience to the conclusion that the Bush family must be more personally loyal to the Saudis than to the country they professed to lead. This conclusion is underlined with the parting shot reminding the audience that the only planes flying that day were military planes and a private airline quickly evacuating members of the Bin Laden family safely out of the U.S. The film has many strengths, including the elements listed above, but one of the weaknesses of the film is the overwhelming elements of the conspiracy theory Moore is developing. While the arguments are convincing because they are supported by strong evidence, the accusations are vast. He suggests not only that Bush stole the election with help from people who kne w he was incompetent, but he did so in order to further the personal interests of his family and friends. From the U.S. involvement in Afghanistan to the degradation of civil rights including the Patriot Act, the government’s misuse of terror warnings, and, in the final section of the movie, the conflict in Iraq, Moore's march is relentless and can be oppressive. Because of its approach, the film was easily accepted as truth by people who already criticized Bush before they saw the film, but

Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Case Study Example Both companies are facing the prospects of the impending technological obsolescence of the personal computers, should they not be able to update their product design and construction to the present trend in consumer. Clients’ tastes are moving towards maximum integration, involving all-in-one solutions for personal, business, and other consumer applications. The industry is thus experiencing a consolidation that is forcing IT hardware, OS and applications developers to combine into converged firms; those unable to do so will have to quickly develop internal capabilities to meet the integrated technology – which is highly unlikely – or certainly lose out market share to the competition (International Business Times, 2011). New trends include (1) growing popularity of tablet computers and other mobile web surfing gadgets that are expected to eventually and totally replace personal computers; (2) cloud computing, which involve wharehousing data in third party servers; and (3) verticalisation, which involves an integration of product stages such that hardware, operating systems and applications developers tend to assimilate each others’ businesses. Presently, neither Dell nor HP are in the position to significantly meet these trends in the immediate future. Looking back, the same strategies that gained early success for Dell and HP are no longer relevant. Dell relied on supply chain cost-cutting efficiencies, while HP on product diversification (calculators to computers to printers). These early strategies were not proprietary and were quickly copied by competitors. Admittedly, a major strategic error was for DELL and HP to cut down on their R&D just as Apple surged on with its iPod , iPhone and iPad products. Consequently, HP and Dell sales are cut down (The Economic Times, 2011). The two company’s leadership in the PC technology has also become the reason for its present inadequacy. PCs are still seen

How Big Global Businesses Compare Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

How Big Global Businesses Compare - Essay Example The other GM rival Ford Motor Company keeps up with the modern trends, deploying  iPhones  for corporate use to employees worldwide replacing BlackBerry  smart phones in order to attract more corporate customers(Ford to replace BlackBerrys with Apple iPhones, 2014). The other carmaker Toyota Motor Corporation reported about twenty- three percent up from the previous year, notwithstanding the fact that it is recovering from a series of troubles several years ago caused by the global financial crisis that led to company’s losing money for the first time since the 1950s. However, now it retained its lead over Volkswagen and General Motors top-selling automaker in the world in the first nine months of the year, according to reports (Soble, 2014). Organization culture refers to the certain values, beliefs, principles and ideologies as well as policies that certain organization follows. According to Edgar Schein, to adopt such cultural peculiarities, an organization should go through various changes, adapt to the external environment and learn how to solve problems, be able to adjust changes to the new culture and form the appropriated culture of the workplace. It is believed that there are three models of culture within organization: the artifacts, the values and assumed values. Thus, the  Toyota Production System is appreciated as well as its outstanding performance and a manufacturer. By introducing the scientific method at all levels of the manufacturing, Toyota provides people with the clear state of the expectations, when implements the changes (Spear & Bowen, 1999). The other model of culture within Toyota is in its values, which put customer on the first place, respect its employees, focuses on the international mark ets, thus satisfying more consumers by continuous improvements and innovations in the automobile industry (Our vision, n.d.). While there are three main economic systems,

Steam Engine Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Steam Engine - Research Paper Example The basic purpose of the stationary steam engines is to pump and drive mills by generating power. While introduced in the 18th century, these engines continued to be produced in huge numbers throughout the 19th century, and most of the part of the 20th century until advancements made in the electrical field leading to the practical application of electric power and the development of the internal combustion engine took their place. The use of the fixed steam engines accelerated between the time period of 1750 and 1850 but started to gradually decline afterwards when more advanced and adaptable electricity powered engines began to be introduced. Though the use of internal combustion engines became more widespread later, this paper aims at stressing the fact that the importance of efforts leading to the discovery of steam power and invention of first commercially successful steam engine cannot be denied and should never be overlooked when contemplating the technological inventions intr oduced prior to 1850. Stationary steam engines have often been mistaken for other kinds of engines introduced during the time steam engines were under development process. But a little research into this matter proves that they can be distinguished and stand in contrast to locomotive engines used for railways, traction engines used for manufacturing roads, steam cars, and agricultural engines used for ploughing and harvesting fields. The steam engine is arguably considered the most important technology of the industrial revolution and the literature reviewed in this paper aims at underlining this claim that the steam engine due to multiple factors was indeed an... This essay stresses that the world witnessed a sustained growth in the obvious influences exerted by technology related revolutions which begin to revolutionize every aspect of daily life for the better. Period extending from 1750 to 1850 is characterized by the transitional change of the manual and animal-based labor into critical machine-based manufacturing. This paper makes a conclusion that the steam engine has always remained in limelight in the history. After Savery, Newcomen played a gigantic role of critical nature in advancing the efforts initiated by the previous engineer and introduced a version of steam engine which not only overcame the issues associated with the earlier model but also helped in greatly facilitating the human life by fostering the transition of manual-based labor into machine-based manufacturing. Then Watt’s highly effective double-acting rotative steam engine and later versions of steam engines invented in later years served as the basis for a whole new wave of modern or revolutionary steam technology. General consensus is that though the steam engine was an essential early element of the industrial revolution, still this technology remained underused for most of the part of that period as most of the industries then continued to rely on wind and water power along with manual and animal-based labor to run machines. The discovery of steam power formed the backbone of the steam engine manufacturing process and multiple scientists and engineers whose work precedes 1850 are involved in continually developing this technology.

Marketing Plan Paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Marketing Plan - Research Paper Example Bearing in mind that there are other strategic competitors in this market such as Ring Central, MaxEmail has to adopt strategies that would give it a competitive advantage over its rivals. To accomplish this, Brumfitt, Barnes, Norris and Jones (2001) propose finding effective ways of addressing the competitive marketplace and supporting everyday operations. Customer targets According to Armstrong and Kotler (2003), only a fraction of the entire population in an area would buy the products from a firm. The task would therefore be to identify who these people are and then targeting the marketing efforts of the business towards them. This ensures that a business only deals with the target market that would be profitable. In the case of MaxEmail, the target market includes the 3 million users drawn from the government and business enterprises with whom it enters into contracts to provide communication. All marketing efforts would therefore be directed towards this target market. The limi ted marketing budget should be a reason for such a company to market to the 3 million users as it would be more efficient than generally marketing to the whole market. Customer segments In customer segmentation, an organization would identify different groups in the market based on their traits. There is more benefit in focusing marketing efforts on a group with similar characteristics, wants and needs that would be with a group comprising of undifferentiated people (Brumfitt et al., 2001). Customers could be segmented in various ways such as according to their demography, psychograph, geography and use. Focusing marketing efforts on a segment reduces expenses and increases revenue in an organization. There are a number of services and goods on offer at MaxEmail including fax machines and services such as fax on demand, fax broadcasting and spam checker (MaxEmail, 2012). It also provides internet services like photocopying. It would be necessary for the company to identify the vario us needs by the government, business enterprises and individuals then categorize its products in a similar fashion. This would see the firm serve each of these segments differently according to their needs and capabilities. Product position MaxEmail rides on the strength of its easy to use interface and voicemail services. The company has diversified its production to not only cover a range of fax machines but also various services that go hand in hand with this. This has been furthered by desirable customer service that gives it an edge over its rivals. Serving the government market gives it a competitive edge over its rival Ring Central which depends on individual buyers and businesses enterprises. Its lean stock makes management easy for the company. Nonetheless, the company’s products are perceived to be expensive as compared to what its rivals offer. Similarly, the products lack electronic signs which its rival Ring Central offers. The company thus faces threat from Ring Central especially now that its products are considered to be less expensive and largely diversified. Closely related to segmentation is product positioning. Product positioning entails the creation of a consistent, unique and recognized perception of customers on the general image of the organization and its products. The products or services provided by a company would be positioned based on the accompanying benefits, users, price, class, application and quality level (Armstrong &

GAP INC Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

GAP INC - Case Study Example The paper will later do a CSR audit as well as make recommendation to the company. Gap Inc. has experienced tremendous growth since its inception in 1969. Its expansion has led it to be among the top selling brands in the U.S. and abroad. Through its organization and ability to meet customer needs, Gap Inc. grew from single store in U.S. to over 3500 outlets distributed in United States, Canada, United Kingdom, German, and Japan. This expansion came with a number of issues that were environment associated thus leading the management to make decisions based on how to handle the issues. The first issue that Gap Inc. had to deal with was the decreasing sales of Levi’s products. This motivated the company to venture into private-labeled products that has been the main sale in the company to date. The company invested in strengthening brand royalty by enhancing advertising and marketing of the company products. When private labeled products suffered low sales, Old Navy products were invented as a way of attracting customers back to the company’s products. Old Navy products were low cost products yet similar merchandise to Gap stores. Changing fashion trends is one of the major issues experienced by every apparel company (Hines & Bruce 64). The company’s inventory is affected since retailers must order merchandise in advance. The preparation for peak selling calls for higher inventory levels that have to happen before the season. To manage such huge inventory, Gap is faced by an issue that expose it to price shifts and demand that are related to timing of merchandise purchases. Such issues expose the company especially when production is from foreign countries meaning currency differences may check in. Japan market is highly traditional. Gap’s consideration of establishing long-term business relationships is one way of ensuring that the

Comprehensive Analysis Outline and Presentation Essay

Comprehensive Analysis Outline and Presentation - Essay Example It is much to the favor of Wine Selling Place to choose this particular region of the country due to the limited business restrictions here and to ensure that the organization can expand or improve distribution with limited governmental regulation and influence. There are over 60 million potential customers in Italy, a nation that is well-known for its diverse tastes and preference for wine as a household beverage. The country is currently experiencing a 1.3 percent growth rate in GDP, suggesting that this particular nation in Europe has overcome some of the economic troubles currently plaguing many European nations. Inflation is a moderate 1.6 percent, much lower than many other industrialized nations. This provides opportunities to cater the business’ wine products to those with moderate household incomes that can afford high quality or even lower cost wine without concern over lack of disposable income due to increasing economic restraints related to inflationary environments. As with most companies, the first method of procuring finance is to assess the viability of banking loans. Italy maintains many different banks that are regulated by EU finance ministers and those that have well-respected international reputations (i.e. Barclay’s, etc). Financing can be achieved through the production of a detailed, well-researched business plan and then presented to banking representatives for approval based on credit worthiness and future strategic business planning. Additional funding sources include the local Chamber of Commerce, financial institutions associated with the European Union, reimbursable grants from various agencies designed to foster growth in small businesses, and even subsidies. Seeing that Italy is highly involved with the World Trade Organization and also promotes small business growth through

The first World War Essay Example for Free

The first World War Essay How do Owen and Sassoon shows us that it is not sweet and honourable to die for your country? In the early 1900s it was believed by many people in Britian that it was sweet and honou rable to die for your country this is mainly due to the fact that there had not been a major European conflict in a hundred years. War was believed to be glamorous and soldiers were seen as gallant and were highly respected for fighting for the Great British Empire. But during the First World War many soldiers discovered how tragic and horrific war could really be. Civillians like Jessie Pope created crude war verses to pressure men into enlisting without having any direct experience with the truth of war. Who would much rather come back with the crutch Than lie low and be out of the fun? Some of the soldiers from the First World War wrote poetry to describe the realities of war. Two of the famous poets from the period were Wilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon. Siegfried Sassoon was born into a wealthy Jewish family in 1886 in which he lived the pastoral life of a young squire. When Sassoon joined the army it was said that he reacted very bitterly and violently to the realities of war. Sassoon earned the name of Mad Jack after a fellow officer died. This was due to the near-suicidal exploits against the german lines. Sassoon was admitted into a military hospital for shell shock where he met Wifred Owen. Wilfred Owen was born in 1893,at the age of sixteen Owen failed to attain entrance to the university of London and started writing poetry. Then he spent a year as a lay assistant to the Revd. In 1915 he joined the army and was placed in the Artists Rifles. In 1917 he was posted in France and saw his first action. Later on in the year he was diagnosed with Shell shock or neurasthenia and was sent to Craiglockhart War Hospital. Owen and Sasson met in the hospital and discussed their veiws on the War and poetry. Both Owen and Sassoon objected to the social pressure both official and unofficial that were put on young men to join the army. Although it was said that Sassoon mentored and influenced Owen in writing poetry,Owens style is very different to Sassoons. Owen shows us the realties of war by writing detailed long poems about the situations the soldiers were put through during the First World War. Sassoon on the other hand wrote short poems about the after affects on the soldiers and the relatives after the war. This is shown in such poems that Owen wrote as Exposure in which Owen describes the psychological and physical affects soldiers were put through during winter warfare. The soldiers in this poem are waiting for something to happen this is called stale mate. At this point in time the soldiers feel that the cold is more dangerous to them than the war Our brains ache, in the merciless iced east winds that knive us. . . . I think that this goes against most peoples usual idea of warfare because most people imagine warfare as non stop fighting, and they think that the most dangerous things to soldiers are guns and bults. In this poem Owen uses comparisons to connect weather and war like iced winds that knive us. Also Owen uses the personification of the clouds to show us that the freezing winter weather conditions attacked them like the actual enemy would Attacks once more in ranks on shivering ranks of grey. In this poem Owen uses para rhymes such as Like twitching agonies of men among its brambles. Northward, incessantly, the flickering gunnery rumbles, . Owen uses para rhymes to keep a rhythm to the poem but so that it still keeps with the saddness of winter warfare. I think these para rhythms work well because as well as them giving the poem a rhythm they give the poem a structure. Later on in the poem the soldiers begin to hullucinate We cringe in holes,back on forgotten dreams ,and stare sundozed, they do this because they are in stalemate and the waiting is almost sending them insane . They hullucinate about a normal spring day Deep into grassier ditches. So we drowse ,sun-dozed ,Littered with trickling where the blackbird fusses,. This shows us that some if not all of the soldiers are having to dream of a happier place to give the situation they are in some sort of hope,hope that they will once again be home. Also in this stanza Owen asks the question Is it that we are dying? when I read this line I get the impression that they were almost hoping for this in some way. Then the soldiers go home and find the doors and windows locked Shutter and doors ,all closed then they return to reality and the daydream ends. Owen ends this stanza with we turn back to our dying this makes you realise that they have no hope of of escaping the realities of war. Owen also describes why the soldiers are fighting. The reasons are they wanted to sustain their way of life for their children and they felt it was their duty which is understandable. But the reason which I thought was strange is that they had no reason not to. That gave me the impression that Owen was almost trying to say that because they had no reason for them to join the army their lives were wasted. The soldiers in this poem that have died from the winter are buried by the burying party, later on in the poem they are described as half known facesand All their eyes are ice,. I think Owen describes them as half known faces because they are dead so they are not really people anymore. They are described as Their eyes are ice, because people say the eyes are the gate way to the soul and because they are dead they have no soul anymore. I think these phrases work well because it give us great imagery and shows us that some of the soldiers didnt die peacefully. Throughout this poem Owen expresses his anger towards the people who died unnecessarily as a result of winter weather conditions in the First World War. Sucide in the trenches was written by Sassoon, it describes what being in the trenches could do to the most positive of people. In this poem Sassoon uses simple rhymes, phrases and adjectives to bluntly describe how a young soldier took his own life. In the first stanza the soldier is described as I knew a simple soldier boy Who grinned at life in empty joy , he may have been described this way because he was uneducated and a very positive person. Then in the second stanza he explains things that contributed to his collapse With crumps and lice and lack of rum crumps are the constant loud noise of the shell bursts with deafened some soldiers. However, the main thing in this stanza was In winter trenches, cowed and glum, in this line Sassoon tells us that the soldier is in winter warfare, we have already seen the effect of winter wafare in Owens poem Exposure . Then in the end of the second stanza Sassoon shocks you by describing the soldiers suicide very bluntly He shot a bullet through his brain. No one spoke of him again. when I read this line it made me sit up and think. Sassoon uses asteristiers to give you a moment to think. Then he attacks you with You smug-faced crowds with kindeling eye . Then he ends this stanza in saddness which I think works very well due to the contrast with the rest of the poem Sneak home and pray youll never know The hell where youth and laughter go. In this last stanza Sassoon is expressing his anger mainly towards the people back in Britian who pressure the soldiers into going to warfare without having any idea of the realities of war.

Learning from a New Experience Essay Example for Free

Learning from a New Experience Essay As human beings, we learn most of the things that we know from experience. New experiences give us new knowledge, enabling us to correct our mistaken beliefs in the past and to increase our awareness. It is only proper to open ourselves to new experiences so that we can be able to acquire better knowledge and to align our actions and thoughts with the right things in life, making us better individuals in the process. I recall a previous incident in my life where I learned a couple of new things. At first, I was hesitant to give myself the chance to encounter a new experience because I was afraid of the possible consequences that can be harmful on my part. However, I was assured by my friends that there was nothing to worry about because, in the first place, what we were about to do was not a bad thing. We decided to proceed with cleaning our backyards as a group, transferring from one backyard to another. We lived in a small neighborhood so the task was not entirely difficult although I would have to say it felt physically exhausting. The reason for that is because I rarely help in doing the chores in our house. Since I was busy most of the time attending to my academic requirements and to my friends, I had very little experience in cleaning the house, let alone sweeping the leaves in the backyard. With the help of my friends, we were able to clean our respective backyards. As an individual, I was able to learn a few things about keeping the house clean and maintaining the neatness of my surroundings. Moreover, I was able to fulfill the task and to have fun at the same time. I enjoyed cleaning my own backyard and the backyard of my friends since the fun moments seemed to lighten our load. I was wrong in thinking that I will only tire and dirty myself without getting anything important in return. In fact, I learned the simple things that can be done in order to keep our backyard clean. While they may be simple, I am fairly certain that such little knowledge is precious enough to help me as I grow older. I might get dirty and tire myself from time to time, but I think what is more important is the thought of having clean and healthy surroundings for a clean and healthy life. From that incident, I can confidently say that it is important to open ourselves to new things so that we can acquire new experiences. It is never enough for us to settle with what we already know and hold on to that knowledge until we grow old. If there are much better things to learn, I cannot see any reason why we should resist change. However, we should make sure that the new experiences that we are about to try are experiences that are not only beneficial but are also good. Trying new experiences that are inherently harmful and bad should not be taken just for the sake of trying. In my case, cleaning the backyard was a new experience for me and I tried it with the full confidence from my friends that it was not a bad thing to do. On the contrary, it was both beneficial and good. It is only natural for human beings to try and be open to new experiences since it is part of our natural instinct, I think, to understand and learn what is yet unknown. If we hold ourselves back from experiencing new things that could help us along the way, we deprive ourselves of the chance to become better individuals.

Trauma Narratives in Post-War and Postcolonial Fiction

Trauma Narratives in Post-War and Postcolonial Fiction Trauma Narratives in Post-War and Postcolonial Fiction â€Å"There are wounds that never show on the body that are deeper and more hurtful than anything that bleeds.† Laurel K. Hamilton, Mistral’s Kiss â€Å"The traumatized soul finds no rest in conditions of peace. It’s forever questing for violence, for action, for the same combination of factors which gave rise to it in the first place.† Matthew S. Williams I. Introduction From a hunting-gathering economy and communal property, societies have developed to today’s market-oriented, profit-driven economies and privatization. In the span of history, the transitions and developments of nations are determined by its struggle for survival. These include the desire to expand territories for raw materials and showcase of power which have led to the wars and conflicts that we know from our history books. We now live in an age of global economies, high-tech industries, cyber technology, and an even more complex geopolitics. Modernity has caused a lot of suffering aside from its advantages. We have advanced in curing a number of diseases, replaced manual labor with automated machines, revved up academic research and discovered alternative energy resources yet we still face socio-political, economic, cultural and environmental issues today. These include demanding jobs but below average salaries, unmet social needs and services, political instability and even environmental disasters. These lead to civil unrest, rise of assorted nationalist and separatist movements and other issue-specific mobilizations, and even armed resistance. There are also intangible forces at play which contribute to humanity’s dilemma. Traditional values, social constraints, taboos, inequalities, and the role of religion reinforce the contradictions experienced by an individual. One should also keep in mind the role of history. Stronger nations invade and occupy smaller and weaker ones to expand their influence and enforce them to be their subjects. A good example for this is the Spanish colonization of the Philippines and the historical events that followed. These unsettling experiences demoralize people and poses great effects to their mentality. This paper will explore the function of literature as a testimony of traumatic experiences and as an embodiment of individual and collective memory. The works of John Updike, William Golding and F. Sionil Josà ©, a Filipino English-language writer, will be the focus of this research of post-war and postcolonial fiction. Their works can be read as manifestations of trauma and demonstrate the psychological effects of historical and catastrophic events such as armed conflicts and the post-war, postcolonial condition as they are experienced by the characters in their novels. In addition, we will look at the authors’ style of writing in preserving memories of psychic pain and suffering and how successful they are in representing traumatic experiences in fiction. Using different literary theories, we will also try to explore several issues such as identity, social and gender roles and social classification among others. Through reading these literary texts, we can hope to see more in the historical realm and uncover long forgotten issues of the past and link it to the present. My thesis is divided into several parts. The first part will define trauma and establish the existing theoretical bases of its studies in literature. Here I shall determine how trauma is represented in literature and how it contains memories of pain and suffering and how it functions in its recollection. Trauma will be analyzed in this chapter as not being a theoretically ‘fixed-in-time’ phenomenon but rather unpredictably experienced through different contexts that reminds a traumatized individual of a horrifying experience. The next chapter is where I look at the thin line between trauma and fiction. I shall recall the basic functions of literature and understand the significance of trauma in literature. There is that difficulty of articulating memories of a dark past and an overwhelming experience whether it is recent or long forgotten, and through writing fiction an individual is provided an opportunity to express it in a less obtrusive method instead of an intrusive one-to-one conversation. I shall also evaluate the healing function of writing trauma in fiction as an individual and a collective. The following chapter will be the introduction of the works of John Updike, an American writer, William Golding, an English writer, and Francisco Sionil Josà ©, a Filipino English-language writer. Here I will discuss the contexts of trauma in their works and tackle the themes in their works, as well as, the different literary elements that complete their whole work that embody memories of a traumatic past such as memories of war, resistance, and other modes of violence. The last part will be the conclusion and synthesis of the significance of writing trauma narratives in fiction and the highlights of representation of memory and trauma. II. Theories of Trauma Theories of trauma are not new in the field of literary studies. In her introduction to Trauma: Explorations in Memory, Cathy Caruth states that the issue of trauma is derived from different discourses which include psychiatry, psychoanalysis and sociology that addressed the questions after catastrophic wars (Caruth 3: 1995). Today, there has been an even more increasing interest in trauma as a research topic in literature. Works such as Laurie Vickroy’s Trauma and Survival in Contemporary Fiction and Debora Horvitz’s Literary Trauma: Sadism, Memory, and Sexual Violence in American Women’s Fiction are some of the recent studies. By 1980, trauma became a â€Å"solid status of inquiry† and became known as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) by the American Psychiatric Association (Caruth 3). This phenomenon included what the soldiers experienced after combat such as symptoms of â€Å"shell shock, combat stress, delayed stress syndrome, and traumatic neurosis† (Caruth 3). Due to its official recognition as a pathological classification, it provided means in diagnosing other reactions to extreme events that affect the human psyche. These include not only the effects of fighting in the battlefield or aftereffects of an environmental disaster, but also rape, child abuse, and other violent situations (Caruth 3). In her master dissertation, Minczingerovà ¡ points out that traumatic experience â€Å"fails to be integrated into the consciousness and continues to haunt the survivors later on through flashbacks, dreams and intrusive thoughts. (2)† In the most general definition, Caruth defines trauma as an overwhelming experience of sudden catastrophic events (Caruth 29: 1996). She further states that: From [Freud’s] early claims, in the Project for a Scientific Psychology, that a trauma consist of two scenes—the earlier (in childhood) having sexual content but no meaning, the later (after puberty) having no sexual content but sexual meaning—to his later claims, in Moses and Monotheism, that trauma occurs only after latency period, Freud seems to have been concerned [†¦] with the way in which trauma is not a simple or single experience of events but that events, insofar as they are traumatic, assume their force precisely in their temporal delay. (Caruth 9: 1995) This brings us to Michelle Balaev’s point in literary criticism on trauma in fiction in which she underlines the importance of â€Å"the relationship between psychic trauma, memory and landscape.† Her interest on the concept of trauma is not it being a temporal but rather a spatial phenomenon since it is not just registered in one setting but rather experienced further and tends to â€Å"resurface in flashbacks, nightmares, and repetitive reenactments (Rodi-Risberg 2012).† As a subject that involves the human psyche, it is imperative to discuss the contributions of Sigmund Freud to the field of trauma studies. Minczingerovà ¡ points out that: He is still a prominent figure at least in the cultural and literary studies of trauma (even though he is often dismissed in therapeutic and medical discourses), and also because this thesis draws upon some of his concepts, albeit, as it will be pointed out, in a slightly different way from Freud’s intended usages (3). Freud was troubled about the soldiers who returned home after the First World War who â€Å"displayed symptoms of what came to be known as shell shock (Minczingerovà ¡ 3).† He coined the term â€Å"repetition compulsion† which concluded his observation that a person who experienced an overwhelming situation such as war tend to be obsessed at reliving or reenacting the event. A. Running away as a defense mechanism in Updike’s Rabbit, Run Around 1958, John Updike suffered an existential crisis, one that have been brewing for several years. He explained in his work Odd Jobs, â€Å"Amid my new responsibilities, I felt fearful and desolate, foreseeing, young as I was, that I would die, and that the substance of the earth was, therefore, death.† He was saved from this abyss by two writers, namely, Sà ¸ren Kierkegaard (Danish existentialist writer) and Karl Barth (German theologian). Aside from giving answers to his religious and philosophical questions, both writers provided Updike the necessary tools to create his own theological and aesthetic vision which have influenced his literary writing, circling on matters of moral debate and goodness of man. And Rabbit, Run tells us a story of a person going through this kind of conflict, his contradictions in life and how he deals with them. The central figure of the novel is Harry â€Å"Rabbit† Angstrom, 26-year-old, former high school basketball MVP, who is trapped in a failing marriage, and has a life full of frustration, dissatisfaction and weariness that results to his escapism and therefore hurting those around him. He is married to Janice Springer-Angstrom only because he got her pregnant with Nelson, who is now a toddler. Wanting to escape, he abandons both Nelson and Janice who is already pregnant with their second child Rebecca June. He goes to his former coach Marty Tothero to ask help or guidance with his life. Instead, they go out to see girls and Rabbit meets Ruth, winding up together. While living with Ruth, Jack Eccles, a young local minister, tries to fix Rabbit and Janice’s marriage. At first, Rabbit was dismissive about the idea of going back to her but when he realizes she was going to labor, he leaves Ruth and rushes to the hospital. After seeing Janice’s condition, Rabbit sort o f falls in love with her again. Rabbit then becomes consumed with his carnal desire for Janice but she (after a 9-month pregnancy, being left by Rabbit for another woman, and a hard labor) did not have the capability of having sex with him. It was that night when he wanted to make love with her but then she shoved him off telling him that she is not a whore. This frustration pushes him to walk away again. This time, making Janice even more miserable, thinking that Rabbit left for good. She continues her drinking and smoking habit but even worse this time. One day, she got so drunk that she drowns their baby, Rebecca, in the bathtub. Upon hearing the news, Rabbit goes back home. At the funeral, he tells Janice it was his fault. But at the end of the day, he lashes out and puts the blame on Janice. He runs away again, going back to Ruth. Apparently, Ruth is pregnant and Rabbit is the father. He is happy and he tells her he wants them to get married. But Ruth tells him that there will be nothing between him and her an d the baby if he does not divorce his wife, Janice. He agrees to this term, then decides to go out and buy some food. On the way, he starts to doubt his decisions, the hard choice of leaving Janice for Ruth and the future of his son, Nelson. All these put him on so much pressure so he, as you may expect, runs away again. Rabbit Angstrom’s story does not require much philosophizing. His leaving is an impulsive action to escape from being trapped in a net. To understand his life, we must look at the political events and other historical forces at that time, which he barely was aware of. Through this method, we will be aware of the apparent themes in this novel. He was born in the thirties when critical historical events were happening and affected the international scene, mainly the Great Depression which was the best platform for other world powers to invade weaker nations. When Franklin Roosevelt was inaugurated as the president of the United States, he initiated the social welfare program called â€Å"New Deal† to combat the effects of and recover from the Great Depression. Employment rate skyrocketed due to America’s participation in the Second World War that resulted from the economic and political crisis. This has led to forcing most men to the combat field and women taking o ver men’s jobs. Returning from the battlefield, men grew weary and women returned to their mostly boring domestic roles. Rabbit, being one of those who gave service during the war, came back home wanting to satisfy himself with all the pleasure he can get. But he feels incomplete and unsatisfied which led him to seek for divine guidance that can light up his way or at least a human being he can look up to like his coach Tothero. He goes bored and weary of old age so he wants to relieve his younger days. This can be seen in the opening of the novel when he joins a group of young boys playing basketball and also his giving in to his sexual fantasies. However, Janice and Nelson plus his personal issues with his parents keep him anchored. This is why he always tries to run from everything, to taste freedom and find a new purpose in life. But while he runs away, everything catches up with him. Janice, who I consider a victim of her environment, is bound to an unpleasant fate. Getting pregnant before marriage was considered immoral during her younger days so she was forced to marry Rabbit. However, their marriage somehow locks her down as well. Women were expected to play domestic roles and Janice, probably thinking of achieving greater things in life, became frustrated and bored resulting to her being alcoholic and a smoker. Moreover, the media influenced many housewives on the illusion of beauty. It should be noted that Barbie became a popular icon during that time and other famous women who were considered models of perfection. Ideal families were also portrayed on regular television shows which motivated women to struggle for a perfect household. Somehow, this fact pressured her too, aside from Rabbit’s departure and living with another woman that led to her despair. Looking at the novel critically, we will realize that Rabbit’s actions are connected to his environment. It begs the question how he was raised by his parents and if he had a healthy childhood. His search for the divine, for someone he can look up to reveals the fact that he is yearning for parental love that his parents was probably not able to satisfy. A scene in the novel when Rabbit sneaks to his parents’ house and looks through the window, and describes how his parents take care of his son Nelson, means that there is inside of him a longing for affection. Yet he cannot go back to his childhood and make things happen the way he wants it to be. This creates a feeling of nothingness inside of him. However, given his freedom as an adult he is completely free to do anything. But with no one who can genuinely guide him will eventually lead to his downfall.

A Nigger No Longer Caged :: Graduate Admissions Essays

A Nigger No Longer Caged I taught myself to read when I was twenty years old. The book I started with was I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou. I was raised in Huntington, West Virginia. Living in Huntington was like living at the bottom of a bottomless pit. The hills defining our valley town were four insurmountable walls, imprisoning me in that special hell reserved for children of miscegenation. My mother had broken one of Huntington's greatest taboos - she had mothered three children by a black man. After three kids and numerous beatings, my mother bravely left him. Disowned by her family and ostracized by the larger white community, her strength did not last long; she started on the long road to alcohol and drug dependency. My mother did not suffer in silence; instead, she passed on to us the tainted wisdom that her parents gave to her. Her most frequent reminder to us was, "You're not worth anything, you will never be worth anything, because you're niggers!" We rarely had food, and many winters we had no working gas for heat or hot water. My mother would conveniently go stay at her boyfriend's for weeks at a time. Sometimes she would leave me ten or fifteen dollars, and I would buy a week's worth of food: cereal and milk, hamburger, bread, and potato chips, and Little Debbie snack cakes. When that ran out, my brothers and I had some pretty crafty ways of finding more: talking my father out of some money, begging, or stealing. My mother had a house in the white part of town, about a block from the geographic dividing line, so we went to the white school. I was one of three blacks in the entire high school. I remember my welcome sign the first day of school: "GO TO HERSHEY HIGH NIGGER" spray painted on my locker, signed in red by the KKK. In my junior year the school decided to celebrate Black History Month by devoting one afternoon's history class to a discussion of Black achievements. I was so anxious and excited. I was hoping to learn something more than the words of Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech. My excitement was quickly shot down as my teacher turned to the only Black in the class - me - and asked if I had anything to offer.

Are Dogs Getting the Attention They Deserve? Essay -- Symbols Wealth A

Are Dogs Getting the Attention They Deserve? It used to be that you could tell just about how poor a family was by how many dogs they had. If they had one, they were probably doing all right, two dogs meant that the couple were dog lovers, but if a citizen kept three, you could begin to suspect he didn’t own much else. What type of dogs these were also lead people to believe their social status in society. (Hoagland, 1995) Would this lead people to believe that this is true? In my opinion, No it does not. In Edward Hoagland’s â€Å"Dogs, and the Tug of Life†, he describes the significance of dogs in our lives, both as social symbols and as reminders of why dogs are taken for granted. He explains why having a dog is giving people the wrong impression and how people need to know the true significance. Are dogs a symbol of social status? Hoagland wholeheartedly agrees with this argument, as stated in the first paragraph, as well some people do too. I, personally, would have to agree with this term of being a social status. Dogs have always been part of many homes. But nobody stops to think that the kind of dog one owns, signifies what type of lifestyle that person lives. This bit of information is incorrect. Just because a family is wealthy, does not mean they are spending lots of money on high class dogs. Who’s to say they aren’t taking in every stray dog that mosies up to their house? Maybe richer people do more with their dog, such as spend lots of money on grooming, feeding, and showing off, but it doesn’t mean the dog is always a pure bred, one of a kind. People are beginning to take dogs for granted. They feel that it is just an animal with no feelings and don’t consider what kind of role a dog really ... ...er of dogs owned and the income of the family have nothing to do with each other. For the most part, Hoagland’s argument was very informative and significant. It is agreed that people are trying to use dogs as a sign of social status, but people who know the real meaning of having a dog, know this is incorrect and falsely justified. Dogs are being taken for granted, and people need to realize the importance of why they have dogs as pets. Dogs are more than lazy animals, dumb creatures, or ways of showing off to others. Dogs don’t help with social status, rather they help with companionship, loyalty, trust, and a bodyguard. In my opinion, dogs don’t help determine how poor or wealthy a family is. Maybe people spend lots or little money on a dog, but that just depends on what type of people they are, not what type the dog is. Nothing more, nothing less.

Gambling in Baseball :: Essays Papers

Gambling in Baseball What has changed the way America’s pastime is looked at forever and prompt worldwide discussion? Joe Jackson and his seven teammates changed the face of baseball forever during the intimate scandal of 1919. No other time in baseball history did Americans question the state of the game. Pete Rose had also brought a debate like no other before in baseball. Since his banishment in 1989 the country has been split on the issue. Gambling by these men and others has caused great problems in baseball. The game of baseball has been destroyed by gambling. Gambling will forever be a part of American’s pastime. As soon as the New York Knickerbockers organized in 1845 and started competing against other teams, spectators were betting on the outcome (Fleitz 190). In the mid 1800’s, speculations of gambling had reached the news. Three men of the New York Mutuals were banned from baseball for taking $100 each to throw a game to the Brooklyn Eckfords; nevertheless, the men were reinstated within a few years (Rielly 110). The next few decades only had been occasionally marred by gambling scandals. The Black Sox scandal of 1919 rocked the sports world and brought up even more scandals. Baseball’s gambling problems were not always bookies looking for that prized fight; it sometimes involved the role models of the game. Several owners had been linked to the 1919 scandal. Charles Stoneham of the Giants and Arnold Rothstein of the Dodgers were believed to play an important part of the scam (Lieb 189). Base ball slowly rid itself of gambling until the last big scandal hit in the name of Rose. Gambling has been a part of baseball ever since the start and will continue to tarnish the game whenever it is brought up. Baseball has been through lots of adversity throughout the years. Strikes, wars and corruption have given the game a black eye but nothing has hurt the integrity of the game more than gambling. Having baseball played honestly is the most important part of baseball and doubting the integrity can cause serious harm to the game.

Jamaican Creole vs Standard English Essay

As we can see, this is not the situation in Jamaican Creole. Case is always demonstrated by position. Any pronoun before the verb is the subject, and after the verb it is either the direct or indirect object. Other features to note are the lack of gender and absence of nominative and accusative case forms. Also lacking in Jamaican Creole are possessive pronouns like my, your, his, her, its, our, their. To demonstrate possession, Jamaican Creole either has the simple pronoun directly in front of a noun, (for example ‘my book’ would be ‘mi buk’), or adds the prefix fi-, (as in ‘fi-mi buk’ also meaning ‘my book’). Plural Marking Plural marking in Standard English is a hodgepodge of different forms borrowed and assimilated from many languages. The original Old English way of making plurals was either the addition of -n or -en or the changing of the vowel sound, as it is for Modern German. Those original Old English plural markers surviv e in a few Modern English words. For example child/children, man/men, ox/oxen, foot/feet. The Norman French way of making plurals was to add an -s, -es or an -x. Only the first two forms were borrowed into English at first, producing forms like hand/hands, eye/eyes, bus/buses. Recently the -x ending had been borrowed for words like bureau/bureaux, adieu/adieux, chateau/chateaux, but it is pronounced as if the x were an s. During the renaissance, Classical Latin and Classical Greek became fashionable, and although being extinct languages, they added a great deal both to the grammar and vocabulary of the English language, particularly in the fields of science and invention. Plurals produced at this period of time include datum/data, octopus/octopi, medium/media, index/indices, helix/helices, matrix/matrices. These plural forms cause the  most confusion not just to foreign speakers but also to a lot of people who speak English as their first language. Plural marking in Jamaican Creole is much more logical and easier to learn. In fact Jamaican Creole behaves like Japanese for the most part in that it does not generally mark the plural of nouns. To indicate plurality, animate nouns (and sometimes other nouns to be stressed) are followed by the suffix -dem. This produces structures such as ‘di uman-dem’ or ‘di pikni-dem’ meaning ‘the women’ and ‘the children’ respectively. Tracing roots of Jamaican CreoleThe unique vocabulary and grammar of Jamaican Creole did not just simply spring up as an easy way for plantation slaves from different tribes to talk to one another. Many words, phrases, and structures have an interesting etymology. (Etymology is a linguistic term for the history of the development of a word). In Middle English, there was a distinction between singular ‘thou’, and plural ‘you’. This distinction has been almost completely erased apart from in some North Yorkshire dialects where the singular form ‘tha’ is still used. E.g. ‘tha’s nice’ means ‘you are nice’. In some English dialects an attempt has even been made to replace the missing pronoun. In Southern States of America ‘y’all’ is used; in Scouser (a dialect found in Liverpool) ‘youse’ or is used; and a common form in London is ‘you-lot’. In Jamaican Creole, the pronoun ‘oonu’ is found and this is similar to the form it has in modern Igbo (spoken in Nigeria) which was the most likely donor language. Forms of the pronoun (such as uno, unu, unoo) can be found in widely scattered parts of Africa in the Nubian and Nilotic language families and even as far as the Negrito languages of Malaysia. The word ‘seh’ as in ‘im tel mi seh†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (he told me that†¦) has similar origins. Wo w!!! Another interesting word commonly used is ‘pikni’, meaning ‘child’. The word was borrowed originally form Portuguese ‘picaninni’. Prior to British dominance, it was used by Portuguese masters to refer to black slaves, who picked up the word and began using it to refer to their own children. In Jamaica today, despite its innocent original meaning (child), it has acquired a pejorative connotation because of its history in Jamaica. Two more interesting words that have spread across the English speaking world, but have their origins in Jamaica, are ‘buddy’ and ‘cuss’. These was a mispronunciations of ‘brother’ and ‘curse’ respectively. The first recorded use of ‘buddy’ was in 17; whereas the word ‘cuss’ is a word that has entered our vocabulary only since the  late 1940s. The difference in age of these terms shows how much influence Jamaican Creole has on the English speaking world, The word ‘buddy’ is even found in the Oxford English Dictionary and ‘cuss’ is used so much among the younger generation in particular, that it is only a matter of time before it too is added to the OED. in view of the popularity of fashionable culture and music forms that have their origin in Jamaica Jamaican Creole is likely to continue to have considerable influence of English as a global language, but should it be classed as a dialect of English or should it have official recognition as a language in its own right? Language Standardisation. There are more salient differences between Jamaican Creole and English than there are between Swedish and Norwegian, yet the latter are classed as two separate distinct languages. Swedish and Norwegian people have almost no difficulty understanding one another, whereas some Englishmen will not have a clue what a Jamaican is saying. Similar cases are Czech and Slovakian, and Punjabi and Urdu, of which the spoken form is the same but only the written form is different. Many people who have stated that saying ‘mi de a di paak’ as opposed to ‘I am in the park’, sounds childish, are completely ignorant of the fact that ‘mi/me’ is a common indigenous Niger-Kongo form of the first person pronoun. I would have been easy for early Jamaicans learning this strange alian language, to continue using ‘mi’ in that position rather than switching to ‘I’. Also the English at that time didn’t exactly have schools and colleges to te ach blacks the proper way of forming the first person singular nominative pronoun.

Poverty in the World Essay

Many third world countries are faced by the challenges of poverty and unproductivity of land. The survival of the people who live in such nations depends mostly on aid from developed countries. There is a fact about the developed countries that needs to be addressed before the aid is delivered to the poverty stricken nations. The developed countries have gained that title due to the fact that they are way too ahead in terms of technology and industrialization. The returns they get from both domestic and foreign trade are redirected on further investment. Incase other nations faced by catastrophes; these returns are used to cover those in need of help. The intervention by these developed nations is a form of quick measures to calming situations down. Back at home, it is funny how the citizens from such nations struggle to make ends meet. Once foreign help is delivered to the nations that are faced by natural, human, or climatic catastrophes the people living in those countries assume that the aid comes from very rich countries. The truth of the matter of foreign aid is that once help is delivered from a certain country be it in form of money or food there are strings attached. If one country demands for help from another, there are possibilities that the national debt of that nation grows. On the other hand, if the help is in form of a donation through the international organizations it is likely that the help addressed the issue at hand and not the future. Going back to the issue of foreign aid and reduction of poverty; two crucial elements come to play. These include the issue being addressed and the type of aid being delivered. Foreign aid is mostly volunteered to suffering nations by developed nations. In other times, organizations and NGOs take responsibility to raise money that can be used to provide for the suffering lot. By assessing the nature of the issue that is being addressed, it can be told whether the form of aid aids in reducing poverty. Looking at the situation at the horn of Africa, the type of help that is being delivered to the starving communities in that region is food and medical supplies. Looking closely at the matter and others similar to that, it will be found out that foreign aid is not a form of borrowed capital but rather a last option. Foreign Aid cannot reduce poverty due to five reasons associated with the problems and the nature of help. First, foreign aid is delivered to rescue and not to prevent; second, it is given when the situation is almost escalating out of proportion; third, nations or parties that require foreign aid are marginalized and the living conditions don’t allow for any form of secondary benefit from the aid; fourth, starvation and disease outbreaks are mostly the problems requiring foreign aid to address the issue quickly; and finally, the nature of aid cannot be invested neither can it be used while other resources are redirected to other activities. The above reasons make foreign aid seem like some form of nutritional therapy’ whose importance is lengthening the period of survival as one witnesses the problems. The US and other nations have been donating relief food and vaccination to African nations and some Asian nations as well for a long time. However, it the aid is form of funds the situation changes from aid to assistance that requires repaying as times advances. Foreign aid d oes not come to the poor in form of basic needs but rather basic rescue. It would be otherwise if foreign aid was in form of compulsory jobs for the poor or mandatory quality education.

Literary Analysis: The Yellow Wallpaper, by Charlotte Perkins Gilman Essay

Since its publication in 1892, The Yellow Wallpaper, by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, has generated a variety of interpretations. Originally viewed to be a ghost story, it has been regarded as gothic literature, science fiction, a statement on postpartum depression, having Victorian patriarchal attitudes and a journey into the depths of mental illness. More controversial, but curiously overlooked is the topic of the rest cure’ and whether Gilman’s associations are fact or fiction. Evidence supports Charlotte Gilman may have misrepresented the Weir Mitchell Rest Cure, and pokes more holes in The Yellow Wallpaper.† The story’s female character is suffering from â€Å"temporary nervous depression a slight hysterical(1) tendency,† and prescribed a rest cure. The treatment enforced absolute bed rest, forbade physical, mental or social activities and required total isolation from family and friends. Eventually the lack of stimulation and complete solitude only added to the desolation, and pushed her to the brink of insanity. The Yellow Wallpaper was based on Gilman’s personal experience with postpartum depression and treatment received by Dr. S. Weir Mitchell, pioneer of the Rest Cure. The parallels between her experiences and those of the story are noticeable, as are implications of late nineteenth-century patriarchal and medical attitudes toward women, during that time. As a fictional story, and nothing else, The Yellow Wallpaper depicts a postpartum woman driven to psychosis by an inept doctor who is also her husband. However, as a fictional autobiography, it is read as an â€Å"indictment of the nineteenth-century medical profession and its patriarchal attitudes.† After the 1973 reissue of The Yellow Wallpaper, Gilman directly criticizes Mitchell’s treatment, saying, â€Å"the real purpose of the story was to reach Dr. S Weir Mitchell, and convince him of the error of his ways.† She claimed his rest cure brought her â€Å"perilously near to losing [her] mind.† Mitchell’s â€Å"errors† by many accounts, far surpass his medical therapies alone. A tenacious male-chauvinist, by today’s standards, he was vehemently opposed to women voting, and strongly against higher education. He felt it got in the way of being good wives and mothers, saying â€Å"there had better be none of it.† Women’s â€Å"finest nobleness† according to Mitchell, was â€Å"to be homeful for others.†

Phoneme Confusion Essay

An understanding of why students often confuse the phonemes /b/ and /d/ begins with understanding the fundamental difference between a phoneme and a grapheme. The term â€Å"phoneme† refers to a basic sound found within a language, such as the sounds that are represented by the letters /b/ and /d/. The grapheme represents the actual symbol used to denote those sounds (Reutzel & Cooter, 2004). In most Indo-European languages, the initial sounds of the words â€Å"ball† and â€Å"dog† are represented by these same symbols /b/ and /d/. The problem that children usually have with these sounds lies not in their confusion of the actual sounds or phonemes, but in the similarities between the two graphemes used to represent them (Goldstein, 2007). The problem that children usually have is in figuring out which sound goes with which letter—not actually in differentiating the sounds themselves (Macauslan & Quinn, 1976). This can be ascertained because it is often the case that children who make the mistake of mixing up the two sounds by reading usually manage to speak without replacing either phoneme with the other (Goldstein, 2007). It is usually the case, therefore, that the problem lies with the visual aspect of the grapheme itself. The letters /b/ and /d/ are both very similarly constructed: each is made up of a circle with a stick attached. When trying to differentiate between /b/ and /d/, children forget which side the stick should be on. Even in the phonologically aware child, each symbol sometimes succeeds in calling to mind both the sounds associated with the two letters (Goldstein, 2007). However, the child has a problem assigning the correct sound to the proper letter not because of an inherent â€Å"reading† problem, but because of an inability to properly orient the form of the letter in order to make the decision (Macauslan & Quinn, 1976). There as several formal and informal methods of dealing with this form of confusion. One method is simply to teach the letters separately. By teaching the phoneme-grapheme /b/ initially, the student is allowed to become thoroughly familiar with the letter and its formation. This familiarity will also extend itself to the sound or phoneme that is to be associated with it. Once the student can distinguish that this (b) is the letter â€Å"b† (â€Å"bee†), then that child will be less likely to confuse it with the other. Then, one it is established that the child knows /b/ and can distinguish it from all other letters and forms, the phoneme/grapheme /d/ can be introduced. Other methods of dealing with this issue exist to deal with a confusion that has already surfaced. Some teachers use mnemonic devices such as the formation of the letter with the hand. By holding the middle finger and the thumb together while allowing the forefinger to stand straight up, one can approximate the formation of /b/ on the left hand and /d/ on the right. By assigning a name to each formation such as â€Å"bull† to the left and â€Å"dog† to the right, the child might be prompted to remember which letter goes with each sound by listening to the onset of each word. It may also be helpful to point out the similarity between the lower and upper-case B’s. By reminding the student that the lower-case /b/ is merely a â€Å"B† with the upper semicircle missing, it might serve to remind him/her which letter corresponds with what sound. However, this may not prove generally helpful at the early ages, at which stage children are often likely to reverse all letters (including uppercase B) without readily noticing the difference. The child who is phonologically aware may still demonstrate confusion of the phonemes represented by the symbols /b/ and /d/ because of the similarity in the appearance of the two. These children may be otherwise quite able to perform the psychological and physical actions necessary to become good readers. However, such otherwise good readers may persist in confusing the two for quite a few years. The problem is not usually a great one and may be overcome using several mnemonic devices that serve to reinforce the distinction in the appearance of the two graphemes.    References Goldstein, E. B. (2007). Cognitive psychology: connecting mind, research and everyday   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   experience. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing. Macauslan, A. & V. Quinn. (1976). â€Å"The rotation of confusable letters in the writing of depressed children.† Child: Care, Health and Development. 2(6): 379-386. Reutzel, D. R. & R. B. Cooter. (2004). The essentials of teaching children to read: what every    teacher needs to know. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall.

Frostbite Chapter 7

Seven I ANGRILY PUSHED THROUGH THE double doors that led into the Moroi dorm. Snow swirled in behind me, and a few people lingering on the main floor glanced up upon my entrance. Not surprisingly, several of them did double takes. Swallowing, I forced myself not to react. It would be okay. No need to freak out. Novices got injured all the time. It was actually rarer not to get injured. Admittedly, this was a more noticeable injury than most, but I could live with it until it healed, right? And it wasn't like anyone would know how I'd received it. â€Å"Hey Rose, is it true your own mother punched you?† I froze. I'd know that taunting soprano voice anywhere. Turning slowly, I looked into the deep blue eyes of Mia Rinaldi. Curly blond hair framed a face that might have been cute if not for the malicious smirk on it. A year younger than us, Mia'd taken on Lissa (and me by default) in a war to see who could tear apart the other's life most quicklya war, I should add, that she started. It had involved her stealing Lissa's ex-boyfrienddespite the fact Lissa had decided in the end she didn't want himand the spreading of all sorts of rumors. Admittedly, Mia's hatred hadn't been entirely unjustified. Lissa's older brother, Andrewho had been killed in the same car accident that technically â€Å"killed† mehad used Mia pretty badly when she was a freshman. If she weren't such a bitch now, I would have felt sorry for her. It had been wrong of him, and while I could understand her anger, I don't know that it was fair of her to take that out on Lissa in the way she did. Lissa and I had technically won the war in the end, but Mia had inexplicably bounced back. She didn't run with the same elite that she once had, but she had rebuilt a small contingent of friends. Malicious or not, strong leaders always attract followers. I'd found that about 90 percent of the time, the most effective response was to ignore her. But we had just crossed over to the other 10 percent, because it's impossible to ignore someone announcing to the world that your mother just punched youeven if it was true. I stopped walking and turned around. Mia stood near a vending machine, knowing she'd drawn me out. I didn't bother asking how she'd found out about my mother giving me the black eye. Things rarely stayed secret around here. When she caught full sight of my face, her eyes widened in unabashed delight. â€Å"Wow. Talk about a face only a mother could love.† Ha. Cute. From anyone else, I would have applauded the joke. â€Å"Well, you're the expert on face injury,† I said. â€Å"How's your nose?† Mia's icy smile twitched a little, but she didn't back down. I'd broken her nose about a month agoat a school dance of all placesand while the nose had since healed, it now sat just the tiniest bit askew. Plastic surgery could probably fix it up, but from my understanding of her family's finances, that wasn't possible just now. â€Å"It's better,† she replied primly. â€Å"Fortunately, it was only broken by a psychopathic whore and not anyone actually related to me.† I gave her my best psychopathic smile. â€Å"Too bad. Family members hit you by accident. Psychopathic whores tend to come back for more.† Threatening physical violence against her was usually a pretty sound tactic, but we had too many people around right now for that to be a legitimate concern for her. And Mia knew it. Not that I was above attacking someone in this kind of settinghell, I'd done it lots of timesbut I was trying to work on my impulse control lately. â€Å"Doesn't look like much of an accident to me,† she said. â€Å"Don't you guys have rules about face punches? I mean, that looks really far out of bounds.† I opened my mouth to tell her off, but nothing came out. She had a point. My injury was far out of bounds; in that sort of combat, you aren't supposed to hit above the neck. This was way above that forbidden line. Mia saw my hesitation, and it was like Christmas morning had come a week early for her. Until that moment, I don't think there'd ever been a time in our antagonistic relationship in which she'd rendered me speechless. â€Å"Ladies,† came a stern, female voice. The Moroi attending the front desk leaned over it and fixed us with a sharp look. â€Å"This is a lobby, not a lounge. Either go upstairs or go outside.† For a moment, breaking Mia's nose again sounded like the best idea in the worldto hell with detention or suspension. After a deep breath, I decided retreat was my most dignified action now. I stalked off toward the stairs leading up to the girls' dorm. Over my shoulder, I heard Mia call, â€Å"Don't worry, Rose. It'll go away. Besides, it's not your face guys are interested in.† Thirty seconds later, I beat on Lissa's door so hard, it was a wonder my fist didn't go through the wood. She opened it slowly and peered around. â€Å"Is it just you out here? I thought there was an army at theoh my God.† Her eyebrows shot up when she noticed the left side of my face. â€Å"What happened?† â€Å"You haven't heard already? You're probably the only one in the school who hasn't,† I grumbled. â€Å"Just let me in.† Sprawling on her bed, I told her about the day's events. She was properly appalled. â€Å"I heard you'd been hurt, but I figured it was one of your normal things,† she said. I stared up at the spackled ceiling, feeling miserable. â€Å"The worst part is, Mia was right. It wasn't an accident.† â€Å"What, you're saying your mom did it on purpose?† When I didn't answer, Lissa's voice turned incredulous. â€Å"Come on, she wouldn't do that. No way.† â€Å"Why? Because she's perfect Janine Hathaway, master of controlling her temper? The thing is, she's also perfect Janine Hathaway, master of fighting and controlling her actions. One way or another, she slipped up.† â€Å"Yeah, well,† said Lissa, â€Å"I think her stumbling and missing her punch is more likely than her doing it on purpose. She'd have to really lose her temper.† â€Å"Well, she was talking to me. That's enough to make anyone lose their temper. And I accused her of sleeping with my dad because he was the soundest evolutionary choice.† â€Å"Rose,† groaned Lissa. â€Å"You kind of left out that part in your recap. Why'd you say that to her?† â€Å"Because it's probably true.† â€Å"But you had to know it'd upset her. Why do you keep provoking her? Why can't you just make peace with her?† I sat upright. â€Å"Make peace with her? She gave me a black eye. Probably on purpose! How do I make peace with someone like that?† Lissa just shook her head and walked over to the mirror to check her makeup. The feelings coming through our bond were ones of frustration and exasperation. Lingering in the back was a bit of anticipation, too. I had the patience to examine her carefully, now that I'd finished my venting. She had on a silky lavender shirt and a knee-length black skirt. Her long hair had the kind of smooth perfection only achieved by spending an hour of your life on it with a hair dryer and flat iron. â€Å"You look nice. What's up?† Her feelings shifted slightly, her irritation with me dimming a little. â€Å"I'm meeting Christian soon.† For a few minutes there, it had felt like the old days with Lissa and me. Just us, hanging out and talking. Her mention of Christian, as well as the realization that she'd have to leave me soon for him, stirred up dark feelings in my chest†¦feelings I had to reluctantly admit were jealousy. Naturally, I didn't let on to that. â€Å"Wow. What'd he do to deserve that? Rescue orphans from a burning building? If so, you might want to make sure he didn't set the building on fire in the first place.† Christian's element was fire. It was fitting since it was the most destructive one. Laughing, she turned from the mirror and noticed me gently touching my swollen face with my fingers. Her smile turned kind. â€Å"It doesn't look that bad.† â€Å"Whatever. I can tell when you're lying, you know. And Dr. Olendzki says it'll be even worse tomorrow.† I lay back down on the bed. â€Å"There probably isn't enough concealer in the world to cover this, is there? Tasha and I'll have to invest in some Phantom of the Opera-style masks.† She sighed and sat on the bed near me. â€Å"Too bad I can't just heal it.† I smiled. â€Å"That would be nice.† The compulsion and charisma brought on by spirit were great, but really, healing was her coolest ability. The range of things she could achieve was staggering. Lissa was also thinking about what spirit could do. â€Å"I wish there were some other way to control the spirit †¦ in a way that still let me use the magic†¦.† â€Å"Yeah,† I said. I understood her burning desire to do great things and help people. It radiated off of her. Hell, I would also have liked to have this eye cleared up in an instant rather than days. â€Å"I wish there were too.† She sighed again. â€Å"And there's more to me than just wishing I could heal and do other stuff with spirit. I also, well, just miss the magic. It's still there; it's just blocked off by the pills. It's burning inside of me. It wants me, and I want it. But there's a wall between us. You just can't imagine it.† â€Å"I can, actually.† It was true. Along with having a general sense for her feelings, I could sometimes also â€Å"slip into her.† It was hard to explain and ever harder to endure. When that happened, I could literally see through her eyes and feel what she experienced. During those times, I was her. Many times, I'd been in her head while she longed for the magic, and I'd felt the burning need she spoke of. She often woke up at night, yearning for the power she could no longer reach. â€Å"Oh yeah,† she said ruefully. â€Å"I forget about that sometimes.† A sense of bitterness filled her. It wasn't directed at me so much as it was the no-win nature of her situation. Anger sparked inside of her. She didn't like feeling helpless any more than I did. The anger and frustration intensified into something darker and uglier, something I didn't like. â€Å"Hey,† I said, touching her arm. â€Å"You okay?† She closed her eyes briefly, then opened them. â€Å"I just hate it.† The intensity of her feelings reminded me of our conversation, the one we'd had just before I went to the Badica house. â€Å"You still feel like the pills might be weakening?† â€Å"I don't know. A little.† â€Å"Is it getting worse?† She shook her head. â€Å"No. I still can't use the magic. I feel closer to it†¦ but it's still blocked off.† â€Å"But you still†¦ your moods †¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Yeah †¦ they're acting up. But don't worry,† she said, seeing my face. â€Å"I'm not seeing things or trying to hurt myself.† â€Å"Good.† I was glad to hear it but still worried. Even if she still couldn't touch the magic, I didn't like the idea of her mental state slipping again. Desperately, I hoped the situation would just stabilize on its own. â€Å"I'm here,† I told her softly, holding her gaze. â€Å"If anything happens that's weird†¦you tell me, okay?† Like that, the dark feelings disappeared within her. As they did, I felt a weird ripple in the bond. I can't explain what it was, but I shuddered from the force. Lissa didn't notice. Her mood perked up again, and she smiled at me. â€Å"Thanks,† she said. â€Å"I will.† I smiled, happy to see her back to normal. We lapsed into silence, and for the briefest of moments, I wanted to pour my heart out to her. I'd had so much on my mind lately: my mother, Dimitri, and the Badica house. I'd been keeping those feelings locked up, and they were tearing me apart. Now, feeling so comfortable with Lissa for the first time in a long time, I finally felt that I could let her into my feelings for a change. Before I could open my mouth, I felt her thoughts suddenly shift. They became eager and nervous. She had something she wanted to tell me, something she'd been thinking about intently. So much for pouring my heart out. If she wanted to talk, I wouldn't burden her with my problems, so I pushed them aside and waited for her to speak. â€Å"I found something in my research with Ms. Carmack. Something strange†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Oh?† I asked, instantly curious. Moroi usually developed their specialized element during adolescence. After that, they were put into magic classes specific to that element. But as the only spirit user on record at the moment, Lissa didn't really have a class she could join. Most people believed she just hadn't specialized, but she and Ms. Carmackthe magic teacher at St. Vladimir'shad been meeting independently to learn what they could about spirit. They researched both current and old records, checking for clues that might lead to other spirit users, now that they knew some of the telltale signs: an inability to specialize, mental instability, etc. â€Å"I didn't find any confirmed spirit users, but I did find†¦reports of, um, unexplained phenomena.† I blinked in surprise. â€Å"What kind of stuff?† I asked, pondering what would count as â€Å"unexplained phenomena† for vampires. When she and I had lived with humans, we would have been considered unexplained phenomena. â€Å"They're scattered reports†¦but, like, I read this one about a guy who could make others see things that weren't there. He could get them to believe they were seeing monsters or other people or whatever.† â€Å"That could be compulsion.† â€Å"Really powerful compulsion. I couldn't do that, and I'm strongeror used to bein it than anyone we know. And that power comes from using spirit†¦.† â€Å"So,† I finished, â€Å"you think this illusion guy must have been a spirit user too.† She nodded. â€Å"Why not contact him and find out?† â€Å"Because there's no information listed! It's secret. And there are others just as strange. Like someone who could physically drain others. People standing nearby would get weak and lose all their strength. They'd pass out. And there was someone else who could stop things in midair when they were thrown at him.† Excitement lit up her features. â€Å"He could have been an air user,† I pointed out. â€Å"Maybe,† she said. I could feel the curiosity and excitement swirling through her. She desperately wanted to believe there were others out there like her. I smiled. â€Å"Who knew? Moroi have Roswell- and Area 51-type stuff. It's a wonder I'm not being studied somewhere to see if they can figure out the bond.† Lissa's speculative mood turned teasing. â€Å"I wish I could see into your mind sometimes. I'd like to know how you feel about Mason.† â€Å"He's my friend,† I said stoutly, surprised at the abrupt change in subject. â€Å"That's it.† She tsked. â€Å"You used to flirtand do other stuffwith any guy you could get your hands on.† â€Å"Hey!† I said, offended. â€Å"I wasn't that bad.† â€Å"Okay†¦maybe not. But you don't seem interested in guys anymore.† I was interested in guyswell, one guy. â€Å"Mason's really nice,† she continued. â€Å"And crazy about you.† â€Å"He is,† I agreed. I thought about Mason, about that brief moment when I'd thought he was sexy outside Stan's class. Plus, Mason was really funny, and we got along beautifully. He wasn't a bad prospect as far as boyfriends went. â€Å"You guys are a lot alike. You're both doing things you shouldn't.† I laughed. That was also true. I recalled Mason's eagerness to take on every Strigoi in the world. I might not be ready for thatdespite my outburst in the carbut I shared some of his recklessness. It might be time to give him a shot, I thought. Bantering with him was fun, and it had been a long time since I'd kissed anyone. Dimitri made my heart ache †¦ but, well, it wasn't like anything else was going on there. Lissa watched me appraisingly, like she knew what I was thinkingwell, aside from the Dimitri stuff. â€Å"I heard Meredith say you were an idiot for not going out with him. She said it's because you think you're too good for him.† â€Å"What! That's not true.† â€Å"Hey, I didn't say it. Anyway, she said she's thinking of going after him.† â€Å"Mason and Meredith?† I scoffed. â€Å"That's a disaster in the making. They have nothing in common.† It was petty, but I'd gotten used to Mason always doting on me. Suddenly, the thought of someone else getting him irked me. â€Å"You're possessive,† Lissa said, again guessing my thoughts. No wonder she got so annoyed at me reading her mind. â€Å"Only a little.† She laughed. â€Å"Rose, even if it's not Mason, you really should start dating again. There are lots of guys who would kill to go out with youguys who are actually nice.† I hadn't always made the best choices when it came to men. Once again, the urge to spill all my worries to her seized me. I'd been hesitant to tell her about Dimitri for so long, even though the secret burned inside of me. Sitting with her here reminded me that she was my best friend. I could tell her anything, and she wouldn't judge me. But, just like earlier, I lost the chance to tell her what was on my mind. She glanced over at her alarm clock and suddenly sprang up from the bed. â€Å"I'm late! I've got to meet Christian!† Joy filled her, underscored with a bit of nervous anticipation. Love. What could you do? I swallowed back the jealousy that started to raise its ugly head. Once again, Christian had taken her away from me. I wasn't going to be able to unburden myself tonight. Lissa and I left the dorm, and she practically sprinted away, promising we'd talk tomorrow. I wandered back to my own dorm. When I got to my room, I passed by my mirror and groaned when I saw my face. Dark purple surrounded my eye. In talking to Lissa, I'd almost forgotten about the whole incident with my mother. Stopping to get a closer look, I stared at my face. Maybe it was egotistical, but I knew I looked good. I wore a C-cup and had a body much coveted in a school where most of the girls were supermodel slim. And as I'd noted earlier, my face was pretty too. On a typical day, I was a nine around hereten on a very good one. But today? Yeah. I was practically in negative numbers. I was going to look fabulous for the ski trip. â€Å"My mom beat me up,† I informed my reflection. It looked back sympathetically. With a sigh, I decided I might as well get ready for bed. There was nothing else I wanted to do tonight, and maybe extra sleep would speed the healing. I went down the hall to the bathroom to wash my face and brush my hair. When I got back to my room, I slipped on my favorite pajamas, and the feel of soft flannel cheered me up a little. I was packing my backpack for the next day when a burst of emotion abruptly shot through my bond with Lissa. It caught me unaware and gave me no chance to fight it. It was like being knocked over by a hurricane-force wind, and suddenly, I was no longer looking at my backpack. I was â€Å"inside† Lissa, experiencing her world firsthand. And that's when things got awkward. Because Lissa was with Christian. And things were getting †¦ hot.