Human Resource Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Human Resource Plan - Essay Example The shares of the company are traded in the New York stock exchange, and that of Hong Kong. These shares are also traded in London, and Shanghai. Sinopec Group is believed to be the fifth largest company in the world, and this is in relation to the revenues the company manages to get (Wu, 26). In a survey conducted in 2007 by Forbes magazine, Sinopec Group was ranked as the best company in China. This is when the company was compared with some 500 companies operating in China. This company is also the largest oil refiner in the continent of Asia, and for purposes of improving its refinery capabilities; Sinopec acquired Shengli Petroleum in 2006 (Wu, 27). This company had oil filed as its main asset. This was beneficial to Sinopec because it could get some sources of crude oil for refinery purposes. The products and services of Sinopec includes gas and oil exploration, marketing, refinery, sales and production of petrochemical products, chemical fertilizers and fibers. Other services include transportation and storage of crude oil, petrochemicals, refined oil products, and other petro-related chemical products (Wu, 29). Sinopec Company is a very large organization, and on this basis, it needs an elaborate human resource plan. This human resource plan can guide the company into recruiting the best human resource personnel for the various positions it has to offer (Herholdt, 19). It is important to denote that without a human resource plan, chances are high that the organization will not be able to meet its objectives and mission. This is because chances are high that the organization may recruit human resource personnel who are not skillful enough for the various positions that are offered by the organization (Kanbur, 27). On this note, the objective of the human resource plan is to guide the management on how to recruit talented and highly qualified personnel for the various positions it has. To provide a

Balance Sheet Notes Preparation and Discussion Essay Example for Free

Balance Sheet Notes Preparation and Discussion Essay This week paper requires our team to prepare three notes to the balance sheet and income statement. Also, request us to discuss why footnotes are useful and important to financial statements. Below we have included the requested footnotes (prepared based on our experience working with a CPA Firm in public accounting) and our discussion related in relation to the footnotes: Inventory: Inventory is stated at the lower of cost or market using the first-in, first-out method of inventory accounting. Inventory includes certain costs associated with the preparation of inventory for resale, including distribution costs, labor, and freight. The Company records a reserve for the anticipated loss associated with selling inventories below cost. This reserve is based on management’s current knowledge with respect to inventory levels, sales trends and historical experience (Lowe’s). Property and Equipment and Depreciation Policy: Property and equipment are stated at cost. Expenditures for maintenance and repairs are charged against operations. Renewals and betterment’s that materially extend the life of the assets are capitalized. Depreciation is computed on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful life of the related assets. For income tax purposes, depreciation is computed using the accelerated cost method (AICPA). The Company periodically reviews long-lived assets for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an  asset may not be recoverable. No evidence of impairment is evident as a result of such review. Income Taxes: The Company establishes deferred income tax assets and liabilities for temporary differences between the tax and financial accounting bases of assets and liabilities. The tax effects of such differences are reflected in the balance sheet at the enacted tax rates expected to be in effect when the differences reverse. A valuation allowance is recorded to reduce the carrying amount of deferred tax assets if it is more likely than not that all or a portion of the asset will not be realized. The tax balances and income tax expense recognized by the Company are based on management’s interpretation of the tax statutes of multiple jurisdictions (Lowe’s). Team Discussion First of all, it is a fact that footnotes are an integral part of the financial statements (F/S). They contain information that otherwise cannot be included in the body of the F/S, but important enough to influence the judgment of a user or reader (Kieso, Weygrandt Warfield). Such information could be express either as an explanatory paragraph, schedule or timetables, useful to help users have a better understanding of how the company he intend to invest or extend credit operates, its environment, industry, and how it measure and records transactions. Additional information like going concern issues, contingencies, and subsequent events, which are relevant to reach a conclusion, are included in the footnotes as well. When this happens, it raises red flags to readers, because they provide information and events they may have been occurred after the end of the financial statement’s period, which is necessary for timely accuracy (â€Å"Chron†, 2015). References AICPA (2015). Illustrative Financial Statements Prepared Using the Financial Reporting Framework for Small and Medium Entities. Retrieved from: http://www.aicpa.org/InterestAreas/FRC/AccountingFinancialReporting/PCFR/DownloadableDocuments/FRF-SME/FRFforSMEs_Illustrative_Financial_Statements.pdf â€Å"Chron† Small Business. (2015). Guide-making Footnotes to Financial Statements. Retrieved from:

Hucklebery Finn Literary Figures :: essays research papers

The Adventures of Huck Finn CHARACTER: Character Name  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Description  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Quote Huckleberry Finn  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A young outcast boy who is always forced to survive on his own due to lack of authority. He is quick-witted and able to make intelligent decisions, but is often influenced by his friend Tom.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Jim  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A black slave that belonged to Miss Watson but escaped after she threatened to sell him. Huck and him went off together on the river looking for the free states.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The king & the duke  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Fugitives that joined up with Huck and Jim on the raft. They posed themselves as a king and a duke and performed scandalous plays to rip people’s money off. They were later both tarred and feathered.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   DICTION:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The diction used in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is mostly informal and neutral. SYMBOLISM:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has many important symbols throughout the novel. One major symbol is the raft that Huck and Jim travel on through a majority of the book. In Chapter 18, Huck states, â€Å"We said there warn’t no home like a raft, after all. Other places do seem so cramped up and smothery, but a raft don’t. You feel mighty free and easy and comfortable on a raft.† Huck said this after he and Jim escaped from the troublesome feud between the Grangerfords and the Sheperdsons. The raft represents to Huck an escape from the troublesome and sick society in the outside world. The raft also represents live itself as it floats along the river.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Along with the raft, the river represents the path of life and how it can turn in many unexpected ways and how obstacles can get in the way of things at any time. During Huck and Jim’s journey along the Mississippi, obstacles in the form of troublesome slave hunters and scandalous royalty constantly took them off course and led them on a temporary sidetrack. Once they are able to overcome the obstacles or outrun trouble, Huck and Jim were back on the river enjoying life. Like the river, life also has many obstacles that must be overcome before one can continue down the path. THEME:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a novel about trusting what one believes and knows is morally right. When the king and the duke sell Jim, Huck writes a letter to the Widow telling her about the whereabouts of Jim. Before he sends it though, he tears it up because he realizes how close of friend Jim has become.

Antony and Cleopatra Essay

This scene presents the readers with a brief preface to the universally known love story of Antony, the ‘triple power of this world’, and Cleopatra, his ‘wrangling strumpet’. The scene opens with two Romans, Philo and Demetrius, discussing the incredible power Cleopatra has over Antony and the remarkable change they can perceive in Antony’s character. Through Philo’s opening speech we are told that Antony’s former qualities included those of a strong-minded ruler and a valiant warrior, including physical prowess and military skill. However, the Romans now see him as a changed man who is no longer behaving like a ruler; instead of fulfilling the duties of a leader and returning to Rome, he is being ruled by a â€Å"tawny gypsy†. Thus, before meeting the lovers themselves, we are presented with the Roman attitude towards the relationship; responsibility and allegiance has been abandoned for love. We sense that Antony must be debating in his mind whether to pursue his passion or perform his duty, and those around him are anxiously waiting for him to embrace his role as a leader again and return to his former self. On observing the interaction between the two characters, I found myself accepting Philo’s objections to the relationship and his observations on Antony’s altered state, and studying the evident infatuation that is blinding Antony as he loses his sense of responsibility. Cleopatra is his self-indulgence, and he cannot entirely understand his great sexual passion for her. We know that his overindulgence leads to a loss of reason and control later in the play, and the disregard he expresses in this first scene towards his obligations makes us aware of the great power his passion has. â€Å"Let the Rome in Tiber melt, and the wide arch/of their love. † His indifference towards the news from Rome again illustrates how he is shirking his duties in Rome when under the spell of the exotic, mysterious eastern monarch. From the first scene, we learn of Cleopatra’s ‘tawny front’, entrapment of a great general and her ‘gypsy lust’. Her entrance is a grand one, accompanied by Antony, ‘her Ladies, the train, with Eunuchs fanning her’. Her authority and command as a ruler are emphasized, and as we then witness in the dialogue between the lovers, her power over Antony mirrors her political power. In this first scene, we see Cleopatra as both dominant and skeptical. ‘If it be love indeed’, she taunts Antony, ‘tell me how much. ‘ Antony, the ‘triple pillar of the world’ is ‘transform’d /Into a strumpet’s fool’ as he prepares to renounce all his power in exchange for Cleopatra. Cleopatra seems to love these assertions of love, as she is wary of the fact that she stands on loose ground, even though she is a seductress of the best abilities. Antony is married to Fulvia, and Cleopatra questions his love for his wife†¦ is it greater than the love he holds for her? We see here that her love for Antony is possessive, yet she too depends on it. Although she dominates Antony in the opening exchanges, her first line ‘If it be love indeed, tell me how much’ points to the ever searching, questing, explorative nature of her personality. She teases, wrangles and resists the definite, whilst playing on Antony’s weak spots, reminding him of his wife and public responsibilities. Thus, I feel the strongest aspect of the relationship that Shakespeare conveys here is highlighted when Antony tells Cleopatra ‘There’s not a minute of our lives should stretch/Without some pleasure now’: all is to be reduced and sacrificed for the sensuous, intense pleasure of the moment – hedonism is to predominate over duty and responsibility.

Planning an Expedition to Antarctica

Pg 2 Pg 2 We as a team will be investigating the effects global warming is having on the Antarctic landscape, we will also look at the effects that the change in the Antarctic landscape is having on other factors such as the dispersion of animals. To look at the change we will look at the rate of contraction of the land, the rate of ice break up, the rate of which a lake is created, the flow rate of Moulins, the rate of sea level increase. As well as this we will try to determine how the reduction of white land mass will further global warming and at what rate. This will be hard to do but one of the many techniques we will employ will be to take ice cores. We will stay in Antarctica for 1 year so we can experience the effects of global warming over the different seasons we will then return to Antarctica in 5 years and study the change in data. To meet safety obligations we have created a training schedule in which the members of the team will learn skills needed for the Antarctic expedition as well as this they will learn first aid and what to do if situations get out of hand (situations such as severe weather, avalanches, snow storms, or separation of the group) they will also undergo rigorous testing and psychological assessment to make sure they will be suited to the weather, environment, and lack of social interaction. This is the training schedule it will span over 2 years and will allow them to begin to experience what it will be like in Antarctica. They will go to the training place per month for 1-2 weeks. Date| Place| Training| January 13| Snowdonia| Team Bonding, Scrambling, Walking| February 13| Scotland| Winter Skills Proficiency*, walking, ice climbing| March 13| Lake District| Winter Skills Progression*, walking, rock climbing| April 13| Scotland| Winter mountain days, avalanche awareness, graded routes| May 13| Peak District| Rock climbing, navigation| June 13| Snowdonia| Rock climbing, abseiling| July 13| Swiss Alps| 2 weeks, alpine mountaineering, crevasse rescue, avalanche, glacier crossing | August 13| Peak District| Rock climbing, navigation, first aid| September 13| Lake District| Rock climbing, navigation, first aid| October 13| North Wales| Rock climbing, avigation, first aid| November 13| North Wales| VHF*, competent crew (sailing), marine engine repair| December 13| Scotland| Winter skills, skiing, mountain days, ice climbing| January 14| Scotland| Winter skills, skiing, mountain days, mixed terrain| February 14| Scotland| Winter skills, skiing, Pulk Training (pullka)*| March 14| Norway| 2 weeks, ski touring, mountaineering| April 14| Lake District| Winter skills, walking, fitness, rock climbing abseiling| May 14| Wye Valley| Rock climbing| June 14| North Wales| Alpine skills training and Psychological assessment| July 14| Alps| 2 weeks, alpine mountaineering, crevasse rescue, avalanche, glacier crossing| September 14| North Wales| Communications training and Equipment checks| October 14| Devon| Advanced small boat training| November 14| Alps| Expedition Rehearsal, final practice of all skills and checking of each person’s specific role/job. | *Winter skills proficiency-these are things such as skiing, ice climbing, navigation etc. Winter skills progression- this is a course furthering skill and knowledge in winter skills proficiency (see above for further details) *VHF- very high frequency during this training they will be taught how to use radios in extreme conditions *Pulk Training (pullka)- is training the company in the use of the Scandinavian pullka a short, low-slung small toboggan used in for transport, pulled by a dog or a skier. Pg 3 Pg 3 We have decided to include marine training in case they are caugh t in a situation which requires small boats or ships as the way to evacuate the area. As well as this we understand that we have to follow strict guidelines during our visit to Antarctica but as these guidelines are many we have only been able to list a few to show we fully understand the responsibility we have to the environment. Article II Freedom of scientific investigation in Antarctica and cooperation toward that end, as applied during the International Geophysical Year, shall continue, subject to the provisions of the present Treaty. Article III In order to promote international cooperation in scientific investigation in Antarctica, as provided for in Article II of the present Treaty, the Contracting Parties agree that, to the greatest extent feasible and practicable: -a. information regarding plans for scientific programs in Antarctica shall be exchanged to permit maximum economy of and efficiency of operations; -b. scientific personnel shall be exchanged in Antarctica between expeditions and stations; -c. scientific observations and results from Antarctica shall be exchanged and made freely available. There will be three teams positioned at different spots in the Antarctic. This means that the results we get will be varied and will cover more area this way we can look at the effects over a vast area and see if global warming is affecting different areas at different rates or different ways. Each team will be made up of the same type of people (for example each team would have a photographer). Each team will consist of 9 people, a team leader, a navigator, a photographer, an ecologist, a potamologist, an oceanographer, a glaciologist, a meteorologist and a doctor/paramedic. Team 1| Team 2| Team 3| Reason| Team Leader/ Expedition Leader| Team Leader | Team Leader| You need the team leader to make sure that everyone is doing what they need to be doing| Navigator| Navigator| Navigator| You need the navigator to be able to provide the route needed and help if the team gets lost as well as this they will be able to mark your position on the map. | Photographer| Photographer| Photographer| To record the data photographically and to show the change in ice and to create a portfolio of the research data. Ecologist| Ecologist| Ecologist| To study how the change in landscape and temperature would affect the animals (how they would live and the dispersion of them)| Potamologist| Potamologists| Potamologists| To study the rivers, Moulin’s, lakes to see how global warming is affecting that area within the landscape. | Oceanographer| Oceanographer| Oceanographer| Would study the rise in sea level, the ocean circulation, and the physical and chemical properties of the ocean, geology of the sea. | Glaciologist| Glaciologist| Glaciologist| Would study the ice shifts, the rate of ice melting, and how quickly the ice is retreating. Meteorologist| Meteorologist| Meteorologist| Pg 4 Pg 4 The meteorologist would study the precipitation levels and how this will affect the landscape; will this create more avalanches etc. | Doctor/Paramedic| Doctor/Paramedic| Doctor/Paramedic| To help anyone suffering from frostbite and other related ailments. As well as this the doctor/paramedic would be in charge of the log book and making sure all the equipment is present. | The equipment and kit needed for the Antarctic expedition is numerous so the equipment list is provided after the initial document. The clothing needed for the Antarctic expedition comes in many layers the first/base core layer is light clothes the next layer is the mid insulation layer which is lightweight and traps body heat then the final/outer layer is the thickest layer and is a tough and breathable barrier. Then there are the accessories such as the gloves, hats, sock and boots. The expedition will fly from the UK to Santiago and then from Santiago to Ushuaia and will then sail across the Drake Passage from Puerto Williams in Chile, to the Antarctic Peninsula. Departure| Arrival| Company| Transport| Price per person| Price over all| London, Heathrow| Santiago, Chile| Iberia| Airplane| ? 560| ? 15120| Santiago, Chile| Ushuaia, Argentina| Lan| Airplane| ? 243. 76| ? 6581. 52| Ushuaia, Argentina| Puerto Williams, Chile| ————| Boat| ? 110| ? 2970| Puerto Williams, Chile| Antarctic Peninsula| ————| Boat| The boat will not be paid for it will be rented and we will use it to travel to the Antarctic Peninsula and to transport the other teams to the other research bases. | Total Cost:| ? 913. 76| 24671. 52| To be able to go on this expedition we need sponsors to fund it. We will use 6 sponsors. Society/Sponsor| Type of Sponsor| Reason for Sponsorship| Union of Concerned Scientists| Scientific community-non profitable organisation | They fund research and they are concerned about how global warming is and is going to affect the planet| European Science Foundation| Scientific community-non profi table organisation| They sponsor 11 different research areas one of the ones is polar science this means that they would benefit from this area of science. Secretariat of the Antarctic treaty| Scientific community-non profitable organisation| The information gathered during the research would be useful to all the research bases in the Antarctic and to all the countries within the Antarctic treaty. | WWF| Animal charity and a non-profitable organisation| Although the research we are planning to carry out isn’t directly linked to animals if we look at the animal dispersion aspect we could help them showing how global warming is Pg 5 Pg 5 ffecting the landscape and how that in turn is affecting the animals| Panasonic| A company, profitable organisation| They are sponsoring us because of the photography side of the expedition and due to this they are providing us with the photographic equipment. | Harris| A company, profitable organisation| They are a communication company so the y are helping us with the best transceivers and communicating devices. | The route we will take from arriving at the Antarctic Peninsula will differ depending on the team they belong to. The three places that we are staying are in the Antarctic are the Antarctic Peninsula, Queen Maud Land and the Transantarctic area. On the map below it shows the route each team will take. There is a research base here in which team 1 will stay and the other teams for the 1st week and then team one for the rest of the year. Research base-Rothera (UK) There is a research base here in which team 1 will stay and the other teams for the 1st week and then team one for the rest of the year. Research base-Rothera (UK) There is a research base here in which team 2. Research base-Novolazarevskaya (Russian) There is a research base here in which team 2. Research base-Novolazarevskaya (Russian) There is a research base which team 3 will stay at. In this area there are only two research stations. Research base- McMurdo (U. S. ) There is a research base which team 3 will stay at. In this area there are only two research stations. Research base- McMurdo (U. S. ) The research could be used both in the near future and in the far future; the research we arPg 5 Pg 5 planning to conduct in Antarctica could be used to determine how global warming is affecting other places and whether the rate of global warming has increased or decreased and by how much, as well as this from the data we collect we can try to determine how large a threat global warming is; for example if ocean circulation is changed by global warming then major changes in the climate are very likely. So if we could carry out research and find ou t whether the ocean circulation is changing then we could try to predict the effects. As well as this by repeating the same expedition in 5 years we will firstly get more accurate results and secondly we will be able to see if the levels of global warming within the aforementioned sections have increased or decreased and again at what rate. As well as this the research carried out would benefit not just our country but all other countries within the Antarctic treaty and possibly even further afield. Kit list-Clothing Clothing| Price | Layer type| Reason| Insulated base layer top| ? 20 each| Base core| These will form the basic layers and will be the thinnest and lightest of all the layers. This will help trap air between this primary level and the secondary level forming a good insulator. | Insulated base layer trousers| | Base core| | Fleece| ? 32. 27 each| Mid-Insulation layer| These will form the secondary layer and will be just slightly thicker and heavier than the previous layer. A well as they will trap air between the layers providing more insulation| Insulator trousers| ? 41. 96 each| Mid-Insulation layer| | Polar parka| ? 96. 99 each| Outer layer| These will form the outer layer and will trap air between the secondary and outer layer. These are the thickest and heaviest of all three layers this is because they have to be windproof and waterproof| Down or Synthetic trousers| ? 90. 99 each| Outer Layer| | Light weight gloves| ? 4. 99 each| Accessories| Depending on how cold the area is depends on how many layers of gloves you will need. The lightweight glove liners are the first layer, the lightweight gloves are the second layer and the ski mittens are the outer/final layer. They work on the same principles as the clothes this principle is that they trap air between layers| Ski Mittens| ? 14. 99 each| Accessories| | Lightweight glove liners| ? . 99| Accessories| | Balaclava| ? 20. 00 each| Accessories| You lose about 10% of your body heat from your head so this is essential. | Under socks| ? 7. 99 each| Accessories| The under socks are used as layers and like the lightweight glove liners are the first layer so they are light and thin. | Socks| ? 2. 00 each| Accessories| The socks are thicker and heavier thermal sock s so provide more protection against cold, wind and rain. | Mukluks| ? 155 each| Accessories| The mukluks are there as snow shoes they are thick soled and thick so it protects the foot from cold, wind and rain. Neck gaiter| ? 5. 99 each| Accessories| The neck gaiter or a scarf can be used to protect the neck from cold and traps the body heat| Ski glasses| ? 50. 00 each| Accessories| These have to be high UV levels they are there to protect the explorer from snow glare. | Equipment list Pg 6 Pg 6 Equipment item| Price | Type| Reason| Sleeping bag| ? 199. 99 each| Sleeping| This is thick and well insulated so keeps you warm as well as this most of your clothes will be kept in the sleeping bag when you sleep. | Closed cell foam sleeping mat| ? . 99 each| Sleeping| This is there so you are not sleeping straight on the snow and stops some of the cold from coming as well as this it is more comfortable to sleep on. | Mountaineering ice axe| ? 54. 99 each| Climbing| It is there to help the climber get up the mountain this as well as the crampons and ice hammer are essential for climbing. | Ice hammer| ? 54. 99 each| Climbing| It is there to help the climber get up the mountain this as well as the crampons and ice axe is essential for climbing. | Crampons| ? 9. 90 each| Climbing| It is there to help the climber get up the mountain this as well as the ice hammer and ice axe is essential for climbing. | Climbing Harness| ? 59. 95 each| Climbing| The climbing harness is there to stop the climber from falling when climbing the mountain or glacier. It is there as protection. | Personal crevasse rescue kit| ? 20. 00 each| Climbing| This is there in case some member of the team falls into a crevasse this will help them to get back out. | Right and left hand ascenders| ? 38. 0 each| Climbing| These are there to attach the rope to the climbing harness. | Skis with touring binds| ? 350. 00 each| Skiing equipment| The skis are there to help the explorer travel across the ice shee ts and snow. | Adjustable ski poles| ? 65. 00 as a pair| Skiing equipment| The adjustable poles are there so any one can use them and they are used to guide the skis in the right direction. | Transceiver| ? 65. 99 for 5| Skiing equipment| The transceiver is there to give and receive messages to other members of that team and other teams. | Avalanche probe| ? 29. 0 each| Skiing equipment| They are a crucial part of the avalanche rescue kit it is there to mark the spot of the person who is under the snowfall caused by the avalanche. | Shovel| ? 15. 00 each| Skiing equipment| These are there to dig you, your ski or the ledges out of the snow if they are buried. | Ski crampons| ? 26. 24 each| Skiing equipment| These are to help you grip in the snow or on the skis while you are walking or skiing. | GPS| ? 115. 00 each| Navigation | The GPS is there so you can determine where you are and the quickest route back if you’re lost. | Compass| ? 15. 0 each| Navigation| The compass is the re for those who do not hold GPS or the GPS has stopped working and so can be used as a navigational tool. | Altimeter watch| ? 90. 00 each| Navigation| Altimeter watch is an altimeter, barometer, and compass so can be used in many ways and is very helpful. | Spare batteries| ? 1. 93 for 8| Navigation| Spare batteries for the watch and for the GPS to be used as emergency and when needed. | Lightweight group shelter| ? 359. 99 for 9 people| Emergency| This will be used in emergencies if you are caught in a snow storm or if you need to camp out before you reach your destination. Personal first aid kit| ? 22 each| Emergency| This will be used in case you are separated or if Pg 8 Pg 8 you are on a journey and harm yourself. | Small repair kit| ? 9. 58 each| Emergency| This could be used to repair skis, boats, snowmobiles or any other equipment needed to be mended| Medication| ———-| Additional| This is only there for those who suffer from chronic of short term illnes ses as well as basic medication such as paracetamol, aspirin etc. | Food packets| ? 5. 00 for 10 packets| Additional| These will be used on journeys and in emergencies if there is no access to food. Water purifiers| ? 30 for 5| Additional| This is there if the water runs out and you need to melt ice then it will be essential to purify the water before you drink the water| Water| ? 10 for 3Ãâ€"1 litre| Additional| These will be there if you are on a journey, trek or are caught in an emergency as a form of liquid so as to stop dehydration. | Vitamins and minerals| ? 20 for 5 jars| Additional| Are there for any emergencies when the explorer is suffering from a vitamin and mineral deficiencies. | Sun screen| ? 20. 0 for 4| Additional| These are to protect the skin from the high UV level. | Lip screen| ? 20. 00 for 5| Additional| These are there to protect the lips from the high UV level. | By Francesca Steeples 9P All prices were correct at the time of printing Pg 1 Pg 1 How Is Global Warming Affecting The Antarctic Landscape? Contents Introduction pg 2 Training Schedulepg 2-3 Articles/Rules in Antarctic Treatypg 3 Team and Team Memberspg 3-4 Equipment and Kit Listpg 3 and 5-7 Route to Antarcticapg 3 Sponsorspg 3-4 Route in Antarcticapg 4 What the research could be used for in the futurepg 5

Free Essays on Beethoven

The rise of Ludwig van Beethoven into the rank of history’s greatest composers was paralleled by and in some ways a consequence of his own personal tragedy and despair. Beethoven’s family was of the Flemish origin. His mother, Maria Magdalena, died after a long illness when Beethoven was only 17. He was not the only child in this family though. He had 2 brothers and 1 sister, both to which were disorganized and unruly. His family was always in constant need of funds. Beethoven showed his extraordinary musical talent at an early age. His father hoped he could induce his child’s development and make him more like Mozart, and possibly bring in some money for the family which was desperately in need. As a child, Beethoven never was too interested in music even though he had the talents. Both his father and grandfather were experienced musicians and wanted him to be one also. At the age of four, Beethoven’s father began to teach him the violin and piano, but wasn’t successful in doing so because of his addiction to alcohol. His training was soon taken over by his father’s friend, Pfeiffer, but also, because of alcoholism, his lessons were just as irregular as before. Later, his grandfather’s friend taught him until he resigned in 1781 and Beethoven’s tuition was taken over by Van der Eeden’s successor, Christian Neefe. This man was not only a good teacher, but also a friend. Beethoven’s first composition was published in 1783. Then, in 1784 he attained his first independent position of a court organist and violinist, and in 1787 he was sent to Vienna to study. Here, he had the opportunity to play for Mozart who liked the work of Beethoven and told his friends â€Å"Watch that young man.† Beethoven studied with a man by the name of Joseph Haydn, but it didn’t work for very long because they couldn’t get along. He began to study with other teachers and soon became very popular in Vienna. Some were pleased with h... Free Essays on Beethoven Free Essays on Beethoven Many of you out there know about the famous composer Ludwig van Beethoven. Many of you do not know, however, about his father’s drinking problem or his hearing loss. That’s why I am here. I am here to present my information I found on Ludwig van Beethoven. Ludwig van Beethoven was born on December 17th 1770 (although some sources say the 16th) in Bonn, Germany. His mother and father had five children although only three boys survived and Beethoven was the oldest of the three. His family was from Brabant, which is in Belgique. Beethoven’s father was a musician at the Court of Bonn, but he a severe alcohol problem. His mother was very kind and loving all the time. Even at an early age, he Beethoven showed an interest in music and his father, because he was a musician, taught him all day and night. His father knew he had a gift and hoped that he would become a new Mozart. His father did not know then but his hopes and dreams would later become a reality. At the age of eight, Beethoven gave his first known public speech. Here’s an interesting side note: His father told the crowd he was six and from that point on, he believed he was two years younger than he actually was. In 1782, at the age of twelve, Beethoven published his first work: 9 Variations, In C Minor, for Piano. At the age of fourteen, he was appointed organist in a very high class social gathering site. After that, he started supporting the family and he felt responsible for his tow younger brothers. He cared for them the rest of his life. Ludwig van Beethoven got to meet one of his idols, Mozart, in 1787 in Vienna. Vienna was a city that cared a lot about culture and music. Beethoven had to go back to Bonn, however, in July of 1787. He received a letter from his family that his mother was dying; she died on July 17th, 1787. He was very sad because he had had a very special relationship with his mother. He then began taking lessons from some ver... Free Essays on Beethoven The rise of Ludwig van Beethoven into the rank of history’s greatest composers was paralleled by and in some ways a consequence of his own personal tragedy and despair (Internetpg. 1). Beethoven’s family was of the Flemish origin. His mother, Maria Magdalena, died after a long illness when Beethoven was only 17. He was not the only child in this family though. He had 2 brothers and 1 sister, both to which were disorganized and unruly. His family was always in constant need of funds. (The World1963) Beethoven showed his extraordinary musical talent at an early age. His father hoped he could induce his child’s development and make him more like Mozart, and possibly bring in some money for the family which was desperately in need. (The World-1963) As a child, Beethoven never was too interested in music even though he had the talents. Both his father and grandfather were experienced musicians and wanted him to be one also. At the age of four, Beethoven’s father began to teach him the violin and piano, but wasn’t successful in doing so because of his addiction to alcohol. His training was soon taken over by his father’s friend, Pfeiffer, but also, because of alcoholism, his lessons were just as irregular as before. Later, his grandfather’s friend taught him until he resigned in 1781 and Beethoven’s tuition was taken over by Van der Eeden’s successor, Christian Neefe. This man was not only a good teacher, but also a friend. (The World-1963; Sally Patton-pg.73) Beethoven’s first composition was published in 1783. Then, in 1784 he attained his first independent position of a court organist and violinist, and in 1787 he was sent to Vienna to study. Here, he had the opportunity to play for Mozart who liked the work of Beethoven and told his friends â€Å"Watch that young man.† (Sally Patton-pg.73). Beethoven studied with a man by the name of Joseph Haydn, but it didn’t work for very long because they couldnï ¿ ½... Free Essays on Beethoven The rise of Ludwig van Beethoven into the rank of history’s greatest composers was paralleled by and in some ways a consequence of his own personal tragedy and despair. Beethoven’s family was of the Flemish origin. His mother, Maria Magdalena, died after a long illness when Beethoven was only 17. He was not the only child in this family though. He had 2 brothers and 1 sister, both to which were disorganized and unruly. His family was always in constant need of funds. Beethoven showed his extraordinary musical talent at an early age. His father hoped he could induce his child’s development and make him more like Mozart, and possibly bring in some money for the family which was desperately in need. As a child, Beethoven never was too interested in music even though he had the talents. Both his father and grandfather were experienced musicians and wanted him to be one also. At the age of four, Beethoven’s father began to teach him the violin and piano, but wasn’t successful in doing so because of his addiction to alcohol. His training was soon taken over by his father’s friend, Pfeiffer, but also, because of alcoholism, his lessons were just as irregular as before. Later, his grandfather’s friend taught him until he resigned in 1781 and Beethoven’s tuition was taken over by Van der Eeden’s successor, Christian Neefe. This man was not only a good teacher, but also a friend. Beethoven’s first composition was published in 1783. Then, in 1784 he attained his first independent position of a court organist and violinist, and in 1787 he was sent to Vienna to study. Here, he had the opportunity to play for Mozart who liked the work of Beethoven and told his friends â€Å"Watch that young man.† Beethoven studied with a man by the name of Joseph Haydn, but it didn’t work for very long because they couldn’t get along. He began to study with other teachers and soon became very popular in Vienna. Some were pleased with h...

Insect Courtship Rituals and Mating Habits

Insect Courtship Rituals and Mating Habits Ah, romance. Because insects are so numerous, a good deal of work goes into finding a suitable mate. Females can be fickle, with such a wealth of insect bachelors from which to choose. If a male stands a chance at passing on his genes, hes got to do something to stand out in the crowd. Courtship rituals in insect mating include serenades, dances, nuptial gifts, physical touch, and even aphrodisiacs. Serenades Courtship songs differ from calling songs, which are broadcast from a distance to help females find the males. Crickets use distinct calling and courtship songs, for example. Once the female cricket is nearby, the male suitor sings his best courtship song to sweep her off her six feet. Fruit flies have no calling song but they do sing when a mate is in close range. The fruit fly male vibrates his wings in a pulsing, rhythmic pattern. His song lets the female know he is of the same species, and available to mate. Mosquitoes sing harmonic duets with each other, adjusting the frequencies of their songs simultaneously as they near the moment of copulation. Dances and Foreplay Any woman is a sucker for a man that can dance. Some male insects and spiders cha cha cha their way to love, performing elaborate dances for their chosen mates. Jumping spiders are famous for their ballroom skills. They can perform a linear dance, a zigzag dance, and even a sort of can-can with their forelegs. Certain male flies perform aerial dances around a female to attract her attention and win the right to mate with her. Some female insects like to be cuddled and caressed to get in the mood. This is especially true of the more primitive, wingless insects. Springtails, for instance, will touch each other with their antennae. Sperm transfer in apterygotes takes place externally, with the male depositing his sperm on a surface and then gently coaxing his partner to take it. Some dung beetles engage in a different kind of foreplay. Together, the pair rolls a ball of dung to serve as a nursery for their offspring. Nuptial Gifts Gift giving is another clever strategy employed by some male insects in their pursuit of a mate. Before seeking a partner, hangingfly males hunt and capture arthropod prey. They then lure a female closer using a chemical signal and offer her the food gift. She examines the prey, and if she finds the meal to her liking, they mate. If the gift is insufficient, she refuses his advance. Balloon flies take gift giving a step further by wrapping the prey in pretty, silken balloons. Females fly into a mating swarm of males and choose a partner, who presents her with his silk package. Dont give the males too much credit, though. Theyve actually learned to trick the females by offering them empty balloons. Some male insects, like Mormon crickets, produce a spermatophylax, a protein-rich wad which they attach to the females genitalia. The female eats the sperm-free offering, which may have cost the male a full 30% of his body weight. Thats a pretty substantial gift. Aphrodisiacs When all else fails, insects may try an aphrodisiac to make a partner willing to copulate. Male queen butterflies dust prospective mates with an aphrodisiac produced by hairpencils, brush-like appendages on the tip of the abdomen. If his magic dust works, she will fly to a nearby plant. He dusts her once more to be sure shes ready, and if she is, they consummate the marriage. On the other hand, insects sometimes employ anti-aphrodisiacs to turn away suitors. Certain ground beetle females produce methacrylic acid, a potent anti-aphrodisiac that not only repels males, which can knock them out for several hours. Male mealworm beetles apply anti-aphrodisiac pheromones to their female partners after mating, to make them less attractive to other males.

3 Cases Where One Word Makes a Difference

3 Cases Where One Word Makes a Difference 3 Cases Where One Word Makes a Difference 3 Cases Where One Word Makes a Difference By Mark Nichol Often, the presence or absence of one word, or its location, can change the meaning of a sentence, or at the least affect the statement’s clarity. In each of the following sentences, inserting, omitting, or moving a word, respectively, improves its readability. Discussion and revision explain and demonstrate this improvement in each case. 1. Executive management should ensure that their companies are focused on the attributes that make for early-mover status and implement an early-warning capability. This sentence intends to say that executive management should do two things: Ensure something and implement something. But it reads as if the company should do two things: focus on something and implement something. Or does it read as if the attributes do two things (make for early-mover status and implement an early-warning capability)? For the sentence to be clear- for the suggested reinterpretation to make sense and the ambiguity of the sentence organization to be eliminated- the auxiliary verb should must be repeated: â€Å"Executive management should ensure that their companies are focused on the attributes that make for early-mover status and should implement an early-warning capability.† 2. Healthcare providers are expected to not only keep up with these changes, but also to look ahead. In this sentence, because the first to precedes â€Å"not only,† it serves for â€Å"but also† as well: â€Å"Healthcare providers are expected to not only keep up with these changes but also look ahead.† (If to followed â€Å"not only,† it would apply only to that phrase and a corresponding to would be necessary after the complementary phrase â€Å"but also.†) 3. A security breach can be costly both in terms of costs and reputation. Here, the placement of both is problematic- its location before â€Å"in terms of costs† implies that a corresponding (perhaps even identical) prepositional phrase will precede reputation, but if â€Å"in terms of† is to serve both costs and reputation, it must precede both (by preceding both): â€Å"A security breach can be costly in terms of both costs and reputation.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Style category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:English Grammar 101: All You Need to KnowYay, Hooray, Woo-hoo and Other AcclamationsPunctuation Is Powerful

Catalonia Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Catalonia - Term Paper Example The climate of Catalonia varies depending on the location, such as the areas along the coast, the inland, up in the mountains, or within the valleys. In the provinces on the edge of the coast and part of inland Barcelona, the climate is subtropic with hot and dry summers of around 80 degrees Fahrenheit, and cold winters, though it gets colder the closer to the shore the province is. The rest of inland Catalonia is hotter in the summer than in other locations, reaching temperatures as high as 104 degrees Fahrenheit, and cooler during the nights. In these regions, Catalonia gets the majority of its rainfall during spring and autumn. The valleys, however, with their oceanic climate, have their wettest season in summer, and often experiences freezing rain and subzero temperatures during the winter months. Throughout the year, snow is a common occurrence in the Pyrenees mountains. Catalonia’s flora and fauna is considered to be among the most incredible throughout Spain. Catalonia, Barcelona specifically, contains sixty unique parks, with a combined total of 140 different trees, including figs, cypresses, and cedars, which are common to the Mediterranean. Despite the wonders found in the parks of Barcelona, the mountains of Catalonia is where the majestic beauty of nature truly flourishes. â€Å"With beechwood and evergreen oak forests, extraordinary rock formations, glacial lakes and thousands of plant species, the Catalan Pyrenees are one of Europe’s greatest natural wonders (Shubert, 1992).† In the spring, the meadows of the Pyrenees are covered with pheasant’s eye narcissi, fritillaries, jasmine, trumpet gentians, and Pyrenean hyacinths. The autumn season is graced with red and gold Montpellier maples and downy oaks, and the meadows are then spotted with crocuses and purple merendera. Come winter, the Pyrenees is decorated with irises and orchids. Vall d’Aran displays these floral delights year round, and Augues Tortes is home to the lake of Sant Maurici and forests fit to burst with Scots pine and silver fur. Catalonia is considered to have â€Å"a greater diversity of wildlife than any other region of Spain (Williams, 1994).† In the Pyrenees, one can find the marmot, which is a large rodent, the goat-like isard, or wild boar as they sniff out truffles. Other present creatures include badgers, otters, and ibex. While they are difficult to find, many having just been reintroduced into the wild, Catalonia is also home to the Iberian lynx and various bears and wolves. In the mountains, the rivers and meadows are teeming with the Pyrenean brook salamander, the painted frog, asps, and a unique variety of dragonflies and butterflies, as well as the giant peacock moth, which is Europe’s largest insect. Located alongside the Mediterranean Sea, Catalonia has a variety of rivers and lakes that are fed from the sea. The main rivers that connect with the Mediterranean Sea are the Ebre, Llobregat, and t he Ter. There are two primary basins in Catalonia, Ebro and the main â€Å"one that comprises the internal basins of Catalonia (White & Aviva, 2010)†, all of which flow into the Mediterranean. There is also the Garona river basin that meets with the Atlantic Ocean, but it takes up an insignificant portion of land. Though there are small lakes spotted throughout Catalonia, the majority of them can be found in the Pyrenees, with the largest being Banyoles, a remnant of the ice age. Catalonia’s History Before Catalonia became the Catalonia we know today, it

The Insulin Resistant Diet Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Insulin Resistant Diet - Assignment Example Researchers have contended that our bodies have become resistant to insulin, and an insulin resistant diet could have significant positive benefits. This paper will explain insulin resistance and the benefits that can be gained from an insulin resistant diet. At the foundation of the problem is that too many processed carbohydrates, fast foods, high fat content foods, and high fructose corn syrup are consumed in the average diet. Not all carbohydrates are bad, but the bad ones are found in "white bread, chips, snacks and other baked or fried foods that have been mechanically processed. These carbs are bad for you because during processing, much or all of the dietary fiber is removed from them, and your body cannot process these new complex carbs with efficiency" (Mason, 2005). In response to these bad carbohydrates, the body over-produces insulin and eventually develops a resistance to it. In addition, "intake of dietary fat, particularly saturated fat, appears to be associated with insulin resistance in animals and humans and may predispose to the development of diabetes" (Bessesen, 2001, p.2786S). Gone unchecked, these patients will gain weight and will eventually develop Type 2 Diabetes. To regain your insulin sensitivity, you need to put 'good' carbohydrates back into your diet and reduce the intake of

Memo Revision Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Memo Revision - Assignment Example The Vice President’s office wishes to inform all employees that relocation to new the building will commence on Thursday next week. It will not commence on Monday and Tuesday according to initial plans. This decision has been arrived at following planned visits by managers from the central office on Monday and Tuesday. The Vice President’s office does not anticipate experiencing any form of embarrassments when managers visit to find things in disorder. The office wish to express regret, in advance, for any confusion or inconvenience the change might cause. All affected personnel are, through this memo, urged to extend maximum cooperation during the planned move. All personnel will pack their items in standard size boxes during relocation. Monday or Tuesday marks the date of issuing the standard size boxes subject to confirmation after relevant consultations. The reason for it is to make everything proceed smoothly as planned. Issuance of standard size boxes also avoids reoccurrence of horrible scenes witnessed during the previous relocation. All personnel should be present during issuance of boxes and await official communication. The following is the schedule analyzed by the Human Resource manager after thorough considerations and consultations stipulating the order in which personnel and their packed boxes will move from different floors to the new building: 1:00 PM: First and second-floor personnel 2:00 PM: Third and fourth-floor personnel 3:00 PM: Fifth-floor personnel All personnel should take charge of their items as losses or damages incurred shall be upon the individual. Teamwork is hereby encouraged to have a smooth switch to the new offices. The Vice President’s office wishes all personnel an easy relocation to their new offices.

Intercultural Communication Plan for a Multicultural Classroom Research Paper

Intercultural Communication Plan for a Multicultural Classroom - Research Paper Example These events continually push people to reflect on their cultures, as well as other people’s cultures. These events and issues regarding culture continually prompt questions on the preparedness of children to live harmoniously with people from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Such preparedness can only occur when education systems provide children with viable interconnection skills in the class environment. This issue is paramount for educators responsible for imparting on children the necessary skills and knowledge to allow children to live harmoniously with people from different cultural backgrounds (Gudykunst, 1991). This paper offers an intercultural communication plan for a multicultural classroom, discussing the importance of educators to create a multicultural class environment, which encompasses different ethnic groups. This will ensure the creation of a proper learning environment for all students regardless of their cultural backgrounds or resources at thei r disposal. Culture refers to the manifestations, such as language, arts, films and architecture of the intellectual attainment of humans, which is attained collectively. In my experience living within a multicultural community, I have learned that the facilitation of intercultural communication, as well as cross-cultural appreciation, is highly possible for students in a multicultural classroom. I have also learned that a single classroom can incorporate students from different cultures (De Melendez & Beck, 2010). This school district caters for the education needs of students from at least three cultural backgrounds. Schools within the school districts have innovative programs that center on the premise that multicultural education is only possible in the event of multicultural communication within the classroom. The creation of a multicultural education program in schools promotes an appreciation of the diverse demographical environment in which the student live. The population o f community I live in shows a massive ethnic, cultural and social diversity, which is an intensive mixture of different cultures that give all students the chance to gain knowledge about people from different regions globally, which are present in their classrooms. Essentially, the school offers a viable environment in which students have the chance to attain their full potential on an academic, social, as well as physical level. A school, which offers a welcoming environment, assists students and families to feel comfortable, as well as a valuable addition to the education community, particularly with regard to ELL families. Going into a friendly and immensely energetic environment shows students and their families that the school is an integral constituent of the community (Houk, 2005). This is particularly crucial for immigrant families since they feel welcome to the community. Notably, when schools take the initiative to get to know ELL families intimately, this helps to establi sh a valid relationship based on mutual appreciation and trust. This is always a fantastic way to let the school community and parents to celebrate the cultural diversity present within the school. This offers a suitable opportunity to have such families volunteer to share their skills, culture and hobbies with the community. Teachers in the

To what extent has self-regulation always been central to the workings Essay

To what extent has self-regulation always been central to the workings of health and safety legislation or is it mainly a post-Robens Committee development - Essay Example t of the private ends of its membership--or it may act governmentally in so far as public policy tasks are delegated to private actors or institutions. Both forms of activity may, indeed, be combined. The process of self-regulation may, moreover, be constrained governmentally in a number of ways--for instance by statutory rules; oversight by a governmental agency; systems in which ministers approve or draft rules; procedures for the public enforcement of self-regulatory rules; or mechanisms of participation or accountability. Self-regulation may appear to lack any state involvement but in reality it may constitute a response to threats by government that if nothing is done state action will follow.( S.Dawson, P.Willman, A.Clinton and M.Bamford, 1980). A second variable concerns the extent of the role played by self regulators. A full role may involve the promulgation of rules, the enforcement of these on the ground, and the monitoring of the whole regulatory process. Self-regulation, however, may be restricted to one of these functions where, for instance, rules are drafted by a self-regulatory organization but are enforced and monitored by a public agency. Self-regulation may merely operate as an element within a regulatory regime. (Bernardo Bortolotti, Gianluca Fiorentini, 1999). The degree of binding legal force that attaches to self-regulatory rules is a third variable to be noted. Self-regulation may operate in an informal, non-binding, voluntary manner or it may involve rules of full legal force that are enforceable in the courts. Finally, self-regulatory regimes may vary in their coverage of an industrial sector--they may apply to all those who participate in an activity (perhaps because screening or licensing of entry is applied) or they may cover only those who join an association voluntarily. (P.Bartrip, 1996). Following the failed laissez-faire experiment in the nineteenth century, a raft of regulation was created to protect the health and safety of

Stress Levels at Work in Canada Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Stress Levels at Work in Canada - Essay Example Their prime focus is to train the employees and contribute to their knowledge building process which makes them competent enough to handle the stress generated from incompetency and job insecurity amidst technological changes. Â  This is why the specific code of conduct and leadership opportunities are available at Ericsson Canada to develop their personality and assist them in their personal strategies to cope with stress. Employee empowerment is also a part of the initiative (Ericsson n.d). Â  Health Canada is a healthcare organization which puts greater emphasis on stress management of employees because they ultimately have to provide caregiving and health care services to other patients. Their prime objective in the stress management drive is to reduce the instances of non-healthy habits which employees resort to when stressed. As such, it involves cessation of smoking, programs for weight control and dietary habits and overall stress management techniques (Loo 1993). Â  Thus, its stress management and wellness program emphasizes more on physical fitness and developing capabilities to remain fit and fine. This will ultimately improve the caliber of employees to handle the work pressure and reduce the levels of stress. Â  Devon Energy is an energy company in Canada where employees face common instances of job insecurity and compensation concerns due to fluctuating oil prices and global turmoil. Being regulated more by political and economic pressures, the company has put in place stringent ethical and compliance rules which do not allow the employees to cross the acceptable behavior boundary (Ethics Point 2010). Â  Emergency health services and better perks and incentives are introduced to motivate the employees for better performance. This allows them to take a little amount of stress in a positive way and as a challenge to develop their abilities.

To what extent has self-regulation always been central to the workings Essay

To what extent has self-regulation always been central to the workings of health and safety legislation or is it mainly a post-Robens Committee development - Essay Example t of the private ends of its membership--or it may act governmentally in so far as public policy tasks are delegated to private actors or institutions. Both forms of activity may, indeed, be combined. The process of self-regulation may, moreover, be constrained governmentally in a number of ways--for instance by statutory rules; oversight by a governmental agency; systems in which ministers approve or draft rules; procedures for the public enforcement of self-regulatory rules; or mechanisms of participation or accountability. Self-regulation may appear to lack any state involvement but in reality it may constitute a response to threats by government that if nothing is done state action will follow.( S.Dawson, P.Willman, A.Clinton and M.Bamford, 1980). A second variable concerns the extent of the role played by self regulators. A full role may involve the promulgation of rules, the enforcement of these on the ground, and the monitoring of the whole regulatory process. Self-regulation, however, may be restricted to one of these functions where, for instance, rules are drafted by a self-regulatory organization but are enforced and monitored by a public agency. Self-regulation may merely operate as an element within a regulatory regime. (Bernardo Bortolotti, Gianluca Fiorentini, 1999). The degree of binding legal force that attaches to self-regulatory rules is a third variable to be noted. Self-regulation may operate in an informal, non-binding, voluntary manner or it may involve rules of full legal force that are enforceable in the courts. Finally, self-regulatory regimes may vary in their coverage of an industrial sector--they may apply to all those who participate in an activity (perhaps because screening or licensing of entry is applied) or they may cover only those who join an association voluntarily. (P.Bartrip, 1996). Following the failed laissez-faire experiment in the nineteenth century, a raft of regulation was created to protect the health and safety of

International Differences in Accounting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

International Differences in Accounting - Essay Example IFRS 8 which replaced IAS14 (Deloitte & Touche, 2007), is the standard that deals with similar issues under IAS. Some of the major differences observed between SFAS 131 and IFRS 8 include the following: (Deloitte & Touche, 2007): While IFRS requires that measures of segment liabilities be disclosed if those measures are provided regularly to the chief operating decision maker, under SFAS No. 131 such disclosures are not required. Under IFRS 8, the core principle is used as the basis for determining the operating segments of an entity while under IFRS the products or services are used as the basis for determining the operating segments. Differences may also arise as a result of different interpretation of rules by companies in different countries despite the similarities that may exist between the rules. (Roberts et al, 2005). For example because many areas of accounting require the use of estimates, forecasts or judgments companies may differ in the way they estimate, forecast or judge in different situations. (Roberts et al, 2005). A distinction must be made between accounting r... (Roberts et al, 2005). For example because many areas of accounting require the use of estimates, forecasts or judgments companies may differ in the way they estimate, forecast or judge in different situations. (Roberts et al, 2005). iii. Differences in Preferred Accounting Practice. A distinction must be made between accounting regulations or de jure issues, and actual practices, or de facto issues. (Weetman et al, 1998; Roberts et al, 2005). A number of options are contained in accounting regulations as well as there may also be a large number of issues which are not covered by accounting regulations at all, giving companies even more choice. (Roberts et al, 2005). While it is relatively straightforward (although not necessarily easy) to compare the accounting practices of two countries, this may tell us relatively little about how similar the accounting practices of two companies actually are in areas were discretion exists. (Roberts et al, 2005). De facto practices may differ considerably across countries, even if there are few de jure differences. Alternatively, all companies, irrespective of country domicile, choose wherever possible to use similar methods, de facto differences may be less than de jure differences. (Roberts et al, 2005). b). Having identified the ways accounting practices may differ, the study will now take a look at the importance of the differences to preparers of financial reports and user groups. The main preparers identified by Roberts et al (2005), include companies while users include companies, investors and other user groups. Companies that carry out trade in different carries such as multinational companies are

Great Gatsby Essay Example for Free

Great Gatsby Essay Not only does the idea of money being the most important factor in life means one’s partner comes second, it additionally solidities one’s class, meaning families are separated just by the amount of money they have to their names. Fitzgerald illustrates the theme of doomed love with the relationship of Tom Buchanan and Myrtle Wilson, Tom,  powerfully built and hailing from a socially solid old family yet associating with Myrtle, whose lifeless husband George owns a run-down garage in the valley of ashes, representing two extreme classes. McEwan reinforces this theme in the relationship between Robbie Turner and Cecilia Tallis, Robbie a gardener and Cecilia the daughter of the ministry-employed and wealthy Jack Tallis are also partitioned by class. Consequently, relationships in both novels are doubtlessly doomed due to the impenetrable barriers of class and wealth. Throughout the novel, this theme is reinforced as we discover a consistent number of tragedies in the majority of relationships. The idea of Gatsby’s and Daisy’s relationship being inevitably doomed is emphasized with the Gatsby using the abstract noun ‘passion’ showing the obsession he has with Daisy, highlighting the idea of a Romeo and Juliet relationship, one being so in love that it is bound to end in tragedy. Additionally, Fitzgerald illuminates doomed love with symbolism describing the portrait of Dan Cody, a man who mirrors the average man in the American soceity as a ‘florid man with a hard, empty face’ which reflects the hollowness of people and their materialistic views; they solely focus on their wealth over relationships. McEwan reflects such demeanour in Briony Tallis’ story ‘The Princess was well aware of his remorseless wickedness, but that made it no easier to overcome the voluminous love she felt in her heart for Sir Romulus’ again initiating the predicament of unconditional love. This is obviously bound to end in disaster when such dispute, such as class separation and the ‘importance’ of money is involved in the relationship which reflects Fitzgerald’s relationship of Gatsby and Daisy where Gatsby is unbelievably in love with Daisy and yet we know she does not feel quite the same way, again initiating disaster. Symbolism, a feature Fitzgerald continuously employs for the duration of ‘The Great Gatsby’ additionally emphasizes the theme of doomed loved. Previous to Daisy’s arrival in Chapter Four, Gatsby exclaimed a few minutes before she was due to arrive that ‘Nobody’s coming to tea. It’s too late! ’ and that he ‘can’t wait all day’, this is a very ironic statement, firstly for the fact he says ‘nobody’s coming’ as we know that Daisy really never does return into Gatsby’s life as he wishes she will and secondly that he says ‘it’s too late! and yet he’s waited five years to   see Daisy. Furthermore, when Gatsby and Daisy first sit down together, ‘the clock took this moment to tilt dangerously at the pressure of his head’ which symbolises the idea of time being a very important theme, the adverb ‘dangerously’ clearly highlighting how precarious the desi re to recapture the past really is. The idea that when the clock fell off the mantelpiece, it stopped, symbolises Gatsby’s life, frozen in time, he believing everything between him and Daisy will be exactly as it was, five years before. Fitzgerald carries on using symbolism behind all issues in the novel, after the tragic death of Gatsby, Tom Buchanan and Daisy Fay flee to a new house far away rather than condescend to attend Gatsby’s funeral, ‘They were careless people, Tom and Daisythey smashed up things’  again mirroring the hollowness of people and the hedonistic attitudes they have to life; all they care about is themselves, nobody else’s feelings and so this is an additional important factor to why relationships end up in pieces. Furthermore, ‘the green light’ is another important symbol in ‘The Great Gatsby’ representing Gatsby’s hopes and dreams for the future. In Chapter One, ‘he stretched out his arms towards a single green light’ as a guiding light to lead him to his goal: Daisy and yet at the end of the novel, we realise his dream was one stuck in the past, impossible to achieve, although Nick as the retrospective narrator observes, the light does still continue to shine one, symbolising hope for the rest of us and yet so much doom for Gatsby and Daisy and the love between them. The prominent theme of doomed love is additionally supported by McEwan’s fragmented structure of the novel symbolising the broken hearts of Robbie Turner and Cecilia Tallis which is mirrored in Nick’s unreliable narrative voice. An obsession with materialism reflects the hollowness of the people of 1920s America, Gatsby reinforces this object-orientated focus when he cries ‘she only married you because I was poor and she was tired waiting for me’, obviously highlighting that the only reason Daisy was to marry was for money, not the fact she loved thus illuminating doomed love as the relationship is based on money and materialism. Fitzgerald uses wealth imagery to describe Daisy ‘Her voice is full of money’ symbolising the need for money as a support for her own personality. Kevin Rea writes ‘the sense of hope conveyed by yellow is still present in the light and music. But the fact ‘the earth lurches away from the sun’ hints at the transient powers wealth bestows’’ which again illuminates the theme of money being so important, yet underneath it only leads to disaster in relationships in the novel again initiating the theme of doomed love. Incredibly, Gatsby himself is one factor of his own relationship with Daisy being so doomed. Blinded by the astronomic amount of love he has for her, Gatsby states ‘Can’t repeat the past? Why of course you can! ’, emphasizing the unachievable expectations he has, all he wants to do is regress to five years before and reunite perfectly with his ‘love’, but coincidently we know this is quite the opposite of what happens. Furthermore Gatsby wants something of Daisy that she can’t give, an unachievable statement, for her to ‘just tell him the truth, that you never loved him and its all wiped out forever’ about Tom, but we know this can’t happen as Daisy’s love for Tom was once real and strong as narrated in Jordan’s vignette. Fitzgerald uses an abundance of pathetic fallacy throughout the novel in coordination with the theme of doomed love. Gatsby and Daisy’s first meeting seems particularly awkward which reflects the weather, ‘pouring†¦small muddy swamps and prehistoric marshes’ reinforcing the mood. Additionally, as Gatsby and Daisy began to ‘click’ and ‘bond’ the ‘sun shone again’ initiating an optimistic and joyful mood. Sorrow returns at the tragic funeral of Gatsby along with the miserable weather, ‘thick drizzle’, ‘rain poured down his thick glasses’ showing doom in any love between him and Daisy. Likewise, McEwan uses pathetic fallacy, Leon asks Cecelia if ‘the hot weather’ makes her behave badly, this weather reflecting the difficulties between Robbie and Cecelia, the weather a hindrance, an obstruction, a way of creating misery in one’s life, mirroring Briony Tallis’ role in ‘Atonement’ and how she destroys and completely gets in the way of the relationship, consequently illuminating the theme of doomed love and reflecting ‘The Great Gatsby’ in the way Gatsby is an obstruction with his own affiliation with Daisy Fay. As we begin to draw close to the end of ‘The Great Gatsby’, we come across the reunited relationship of Daisy and Tom ‘sitting opposite each other’. Fitzgerald describes the couple ‘they weren’t happy†¦and yet they weren’t unhappy either’ mirroring the people of 1920s America, in the Jazz Age, as Gertrude Stein stated they were ‘the lost generation’ and had no real point to life and so lived unhappily, happily. Although this image of the two sitting together not showing compassion or love could represent doomed love, some could alternatively say that this relationship, which looked doomed at the start, is now the only good, strong one left, contradicting the theme. Mike Peters writes ‘not only Gatsby, but several of the other characters remain enigmas’, showing mysteriousness to the characters in Fitzgerald’s ‘The Great Gatsby’, maybe Gatsby did only love Daisy for the money or maybe Daisy never loved Tom? None of us can know, excluding Fitzgerald, we have no final conclusions to draw. However, it is clear that in the heartless and materialism obsessed society that Fitzgerald creates, it is only the most corrupt relationship that survives at the end. To finally conclude, Fitzgerald’s ‘The Great Gatsby’ leaves us with nothing but disappointment, which shows contrast to McEwan’s ‘Atonement’ which then leaves us with the possibility of hope and faith. Fitzgerald leaves us with sadness and we feel sympathy for the characters in the book, they all seem lost and seeking for something and yet the only solution they discover is money, highlighting again the theme of doomed love, money before love. The death of Myrtle Wilson devastates hers and George’s relationship which is obviously the result of her materialistic values and her longing for Tom’s money, her main focus in a man was his money, this is highlighted when she says that ‘Oh, is that your suit? I said. This is the first I ever heard about it. But I gave it to him and then I lay down and cried to beat the band all afternoon† reinforcing the idea that wealth is of huge importance to her. Gatsby obviously dead and Tom and Daisy reunited, but only on the thread of a string, all these sorrows as a result of money and class partition. Additionally, the death of Robbie Turner in ‘Atonement’ is the result of class partitioning and so is also hi ghlighting the theme of doomed love, a major theme in both F. Scott. Fitzgerald’s ‘The Great Gatsby’ and Ian McEwan’s ‘Atonement’.

Grapes of Wrath Essay -- essays research papers

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck is a novel depicting the struggle and distraught brought towards migrant workers during the Great Depression. The Grapes of Wrath follows one Oklahoma family, the Joads, as they journey down Route 66 towards the earthly paradise of California. While on route to California, the Joads interact with fellow besieged families, non-hospitable farmers, and common struggles due to the Depression. Steinbeck uses these events to show strong brotherhood through biblical allusion, character development, and inter chapters.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Biblical allusion is found extremely often in the pages of The Grapes of Wrath. Through biblical allusion, Steinbeck portrays the brotherhood of the migrant workers. For example, in the Bible, Moses’ mother puts baby Moses in a basket, which takes him down a river. Later, Moses tells his slaves that he will lead them to freedom. In The Grapes of Wrath Rose of Sharon, the Joad’s eldest daughter gives birth to a dead baby because of the starvation and poor conditions of the migrant farmers. The Joad’s do not have enough money to give the baby a proper burial so Ma, the backbone of the Joad family, instructs Uncle John to bury the baby himself. Instead of following Ma’s orders, Uncle John sends the deceased infant down a river in an apple box. He said fiercely, â€Å"Go down an’ tell ‘em. Go down in the street an’ rot an’ tell ‘em that way. That’s the way you can talk. Don’ even know if you was a boy or a gi...

The University Education: A Religious Experience :: University Education

The University Education: A Religious Experience If I wanted to do an over-view of my thoughts about the university being related to religion for a layman who doesn't understand anything beneath the surface, then my first paper would be a success. Putting myself in an educated person's position of having to read that as a college essay, I would be insulted. Of course this is a post-English 220 thought. I've opened up to find myself more since then. I'm not saying that have found my perfect style. I've found a new style in myself other than the "Official Style". I'm writing for you in a close version of the "O.S." because this is an explanation about my own writing and I feel that this is the best way to *explain*. Don't worry, by the end I'm sure that I'll have fallen away. I've taken a close look at this paper of mine entitled _The University Education: A Religious Experience_ and found that my thoughts about the metaphor haven't changed a lot. I'm the type of person who finds little religious quirks in everything, though (A result of: accepting evolution; seeing the Bible as a bunch of parables and tall tales - including Genesis and the entire New Testament; reading Don Delillo's _White Noise_ , Heinlein's _A Stranger in a Strange Land_, Baudelaire's "Voyage"; rebelling my over-religious, over-hypocritic mother; oh ya. Moliere and Chaucer; learning about different cultures and religions; etc., etc.). I like comparing people and their actions, myself included, to Christian rituals and events. When it comes to the university as a religion, this comparing multiplies because so many of us here take our education as a life or death matter. And I think it should be. Of course there are those who are hypocritic in the university life - don't worry they get a few second chances and are then abandoned. I'm on one of my second chances. Yes, I feel the same way about my metaphor as I did when I wrote this introduction paper. No, I don't like paper because if I were to truly put effort into the it now I would not have written it that way. My style is much different now (A result of this class and my new interest in fiction writing from Eng. 218). I like to lay things between the lines - let the reader work a little. I'm not a combination of Elliot and Pound, nor do I intend to be.

Bag of Bones CHAPTER TWENTY

I didn't see them at first, which wasn't surprising; it seemed that half of Castle Rock was on the town common as that sultry Saturday afternoon edged on toward evening. The air was bright with hazy midsummer light, and in it kids swarmed over the playground equipment, a number of old men in bright red vests some sort of club, I assumed played chess, and a group of young people lay on the grass listening to a teenager in a headband playing the guitar and singing one I remembered from an old Ian and Sylvia record, a cheery tune that went ‘Ella Speed was havin her lovin fun, John Martin shot Ella with a Colt forty-one . . . ‘ I saw no joggers, and no dogs chasing Frisbees. It was just too goddam hot. I was turning to look at the bandshell, where an eight-man combo called The Castle Rockers was setting up (I had an idea ‘In the Mood' was about as close as they got to rock and roll), when a small person hit me from behind, grabbing me just above the knees and almost dumping me on the grass. ‘Gotcha!' the small person cried gleefully. ‘Kyra Devore!' Mattie called, sounding both amused and irritated. ‘You'll knock him down!' I turned, dropped the grease-spotted McDonald's bag I had been carrying, and lifted the kid up. It felt natural, and it felt wonderful. You don't realize the weight of a healthy child until you hold one, nor do you fully comprehend the life that runs through them like a bright wire. I didn't get choked up (‘Don't go all corny on me, Mike,' Siddy would sometimes whisper when we were kids at the movies and I got wet-eyed at a sad part), but I thought of Jo, yes. And the child she had been carrying when she fell down in that stupid parking lot, yes to that, too. Ki was squealing and laughing, her arms outspread and her hair hanging down in two amusing clumps accented by Raggedy Ann and Andy barrettes. ‘Don't tackle your own quarterback!' I yelled, grinning, and to my delight she yelled it right back at me: ‘Don't taggle yer own quartermack! Don't taggle yer own quartermack!' I set her on her feet, both of us laughing. Ki took a step backward, tripped herself, and sat down on the grass, laughing harder than ever. I had a mean thought, then, brief but oh so clear: if only the old lizard could see how much he was missed. How sad we were at his passing. Mattie walked over, and tonight she looked as I'd half-imagined her when I first met her like one of those lovely children of privilege you see at the country club, either goofing with their friends or sitting seriously at dinner with their parents. She was in a white sleeveless dress and low heels, her hair falling loose around her shoulders, a touch of lipstick on her mouth. Her eyes had a brilliance in them that hadn't been there before. When she hugged me I could smell her perfume and feel the press of her firm little breasts. I kissed her cheek; she kissed me high up on the jaw, making a smack in my ear that I felt all the way down my back. ‘Say things are going to be better now,' she whispered, still holding me. ‘Lots better now,' I said, and she hugged me again, tight. Then she stepped away ‘You better have brought plenty food, big boy, because we plenty hungry womens. Right, Kyra?' ‘I taggled my own quartermack,' Ki said, then leaned back on her elbows, giggling deliciously at the bright and hazy sky. ‘Come on,' I said, and grabbed her by the middle I toted her that way to a nearby picnic table, Ki kicking her legs and waving her arms and laughing I set her down on the bench; she slid off it and beneath the table, boneless as an eel and still laughing. ‘All right, Kyra Elizabeth,' Mattie said. ‘Sit up and show the other side' ‘Good girl, good girl,' she said, clambering up beside me. ‘That's the other side to me, Mike' ‘I'm sure,' I said. Inside the bag there were Big Macs and fries for Mattie and me. For Ki there was a colorful box upon which Ronald McDonald and his unindicted co-conspirators capered. ‘Mattie, I got a Happy Meal! Mike got me a Happy Meal! They have toys!' ‘Well see what yours is.' Kyra opened the box, poked around, then smiled It lit up her whole face She brought out something that I at first thought was a big dust-ball For one horrible second I was back in my dream, the one of Jo under the bed with the book over her face Give me that, she had snarled It's my dust-catcher. And something else, too some other association, perhaps from some other dream I couldn't get hold of it. ‘Mike?' Mattie asked. Curiosity in her voice, and maybe borderline concern. ‘It's a doggy!' Ki said ‘I won a doggy in my Happy Meal!' Yes; of course A dog. A little stuffed dog. And it was gray, not black . . . although why I'd care about the color either way I didn't know. ‘That's a pretty good prize,' I said, taking it. It was soft, which was good, and it was gray, which was better Being gray made it all right, somehow Crazy but true I handed it back to her and smiled. ‘What's his name?' Ki asked, jumping the little dog back and forth across her Happy Meal box. ‘What doggy's name, Mike?' And, without thinking, I said, ‘Strickland.' I thought she'd look puzzled, but she didn't. She looked delighted. ‘Stricken!' she said, bouncing the dog back and forth in ever-higher leaps over the box. ‘Stricken! Stricken! My dog Stricken!' ‘Who's this guy Strickland?' Mattie asked, smiling a little. She had begun to unwrap her hamburger. ‘A character in a book I read once,' I said, watching Ki play with the little puffball dog. ‘No one real.' ‘My grampa died,' she said five minutes later. We were still at the picnic table but the food was mostly gone. Strickland the stuffed puffball had been set to guard the remaining french fries. I had been scanning the ebb and flow of people, wondering who was here from the TR observing our tryst and simply burning to carry the news back home. I saw no one I knew, but that didn't mean a whole tot, considering how long I'd been away from this part of the world. Mattie put down her burger and looked at Ki with some anxiety, but I thought the kid was okay she had been giving news, not expressing grief. ‘I know he did,' I said. ‘Grampa was awful old.' Ki pinched a couple of french fries between her pudgy little fingers. They rose to her mouth, then gloop, all gone. ‘He's with Lord Jesus now. We had all about Lord Jesus in VBS.' Yes, Ki, I thought, right now Grampy's probably teaching Lord Jesus how to use Pixel Easel and asking if there might be a whore handy. ‘Lord Jesus walked on water and also changed the wine into macaroni.' ‘Yes, something like that,' I said. ‘It's sad when people die, isn't it?' ‘It would be sad if Mattie died, and it would be sad if you died, but Grampy was old.' She said it as though I hadn't quite grasped this concept the first time. ‘In heaven he'll get all fixed up.' ‘That's a good way to look at it, hon,' I said. Mattie did maintenance on Ki's drooping barrettes, working carefully and with a kind of absent love. I thought she glowed in the summer light, her skin in smooth, tanned contrast to the white dress she had probably bought at one of the discount stores, and I understood that I loved her. Maybe that was all right. ‘I miss the white nana, though,' Ki said, and this time she did look sad. She picked up the stuffed dog, tried to feed him a french fry, then put him down again. Her small, pretty face looked pensive now, and I could see a whisper of her grandfather in it. It was far back but it was there, perceptible, another ghost. ‘Mom says white nana went back to California with Grampy's early remains.' ‘Earthly remains, Ki-bird,' Mattie said. ‘That means his body.' ‘Will white nana come back and see me, Mike?' ‘I don't know.' ‘We had a game. It was all rhymes.' She looked more pensive than ever. ‘Your mom told me about that game,' I said. ‘She won't be back,' Ki said, answering her own question. One very large tear rolled down her right cheek. She picked up ‘Stricken,' stood him on his back legs for a second, then put him back on guard-duty. Mattie slipped an arm around her, but Ki didn't seem to notice. ‘White nana didn't really like me. She was just pretending to like me. That was her job.' Mattie and I exchanged a glance. ‘What makes you say that?' I asked. ‘Don't know,' Ki said. Over by where the kid was playing the guitar, a juggler in whiteface had started up, working with half a dozen colored balls. Kyra brightened a little. ‘Mommy-bommy, may I go watch that funny white man?' ‘Are you done eating?' ‘Yeah, I'm full.' ‘Thank Mike.' ‘Don't taggle yer own quartermack,' she said, then laughed kindly to show she was just pulling my leg. ‘Thanks, Mike.' ‘Not a problem,' I said, and then, because that sounded a little old-fashioned: ‘Kickin.' ‘You can go as far as that tree, but no farther,' Mattie said. ‘And you know why.' ‘So you can see me. I will.' She grabbed Strickland and started to run off, then stopped and looked over her shoulder at me. ‘I guess it was the fridgeafator people,' she said, then corrected herself very carefully and seriously. ‘The ree fridge-a-rator people.' My heart took a hard double beat in my chest. ‘It was the refrigerator people what, Ki?' I asked. ‘That said white nana didn't really like me.' Then she ran off toward the juggler, oblivious to the heat. Mattie watched her go, then turned back to me. ‘I haven't talked to anybody about Ki's fridgeafator people. Neither has she, until now. Not that there are any real people, but the letters seem to move around by themselves. It's like a Ouija board.' ‘Do they spell things?' For a long time she said nothing. Then she nodded. ‘Not always, but sometimes.' Another pause. ‘Most times, actually. Ki calls it mail from the people in the refrigerator.' She smiled, but her eyes were a little scared. ‘Are they special magnetic letters, do you think? Or have we got a poltergeist working the lakefront?' ‘I don't know. I'm sorry I brought them, if they're a problem.' ‘Don't be silly. You gave them to her, and you're a tremendously big deal to her right now. She talks about you all the time. She was much more interested in picking out something pretty to wear for you tonight than she was in her grandfather's death. I was supposed to wear something pretty, too, Kyra insisted. She's not that way about people, usually she takes them when they're there and leaves them when they're gone. That's not such a bad way for a little girl to grow up, I sometimes think.' ‘You both dressed pretty,' I said. ‘That much I'm sure of.' ‘Thanks.' She looked fondly at Ki, who stood by the tree watching the juggler. He had put his rubber balls aside and moved on to Indian clubs. Then she looked back at me. ‘Are we done eating?' I nodded, and Mattie began to pick up the trash and stuff it back into the take-out bag. I helped, and when our fingers touched, she gripped my hand and squeezed. ‘Thank you,' she said. ‘For everything you've done. Thank you so damn much.' I squeezed back, then let go. ‘You know,' she said, ‘it's crossed my mind that Kyra's moving the letters around herself. Mentally.' ‘Telekinesis?' ‘I guess that's the technical term. Only Ki can't spell much more than â€Å"dog† and â€Å"cat.† ‘What's showing up on the fridge?' ‘Names, mostly. Once it was yours. Once it was your wife's.' ‘Jo?' ‘The whole thing JOANNA. And NANA. Rogette, I presume. JARED shows up sometimes, and BRIDGET. Once there was KITO.' She spelled it. ‘Kito,' I said, and thought: Kyra, Kia, Kito. What is this? ‘A boy's name, do you think?' ‘I know it is. It's Swahili, and means precious child. I looked it up in my baby-name book.' She glanced toward her own precious child as we walked across the grass to the nearest trash barrel. ‘Any others that you can remember?' She thought. ‘REG has showed up a couple of times. And once there was CARLA. You understand that Ki can't even read these names as a rule, don't you? She has to ask me what they say.' ‘Has it occurred to you that Kyra might be copying them out of a book or a magazine? That she's learning to write using the magnetic letters on the fridge instead of paper and pencil?' ‘I suppose that's possible . . . ‘ She didn't look as if she believed it, though. Not surprising. I didn't believe it myself. ‘I mean, you've never actually seen the letters moving around by themselves on the front of the fridge, have you?' I hoped I sounded as unconcerned asking this question as I wanted to. She laughed a bit nervously. ‘God, no!' ‘Anything else?' ‘Sometimes the fridgeafator people leave messages like HI and BYE and GOOD GIRL. There was one yesterday that I wrote down to show you. Kyra asked me to. It's really weird.' ‘What is it?' ‘I'd rather show you, but I left it in the glove compartment of the Scout. Remind me when we go.' Yes. I would. ‘This is some spooky shit, se?or,' she said. ‘Like the writing in the flour that time.' I thought about telling her I had my own fridgeafator people, then didn't. She had enough to worry about without that . . . or so I told myself. We stood side-by-side on the grass, watching Ki watch the juggler. ‘Did you call John?' I asked. ‘You bet.' ‘His reaction?' She turned to me, laughing with her eyes. ‘He actually sang a verse of â€Å"Ding Dong, the Witch Is Dead.† ‘Wrong sex, right sentiment.' She nodded, her eyes going back to Kyra. I thought again how beautiful she looked, her body slim in the white dress, her features clean and perfectly made. ‘Was he pissed at me inviting myself to lunch?' I asked. ‘Nope, he loved the idea of having a party.' A party. He loved the idea. I began to feel rather small. ‘He even suggested we invite your lawyer from last Friday. Mr. Bissonette? Plus the private detective John hired on Mr. Bissonette's recommendation. Is that okay with you?' ‘Fine. How about you, Mattie? Doing okay?' ‘Doing okay,' she agreed, turning to me. ‘I did have several more calls than usual today. I'm suddenly quite popular.' ‘Uh-oh.' ‘Most were hangups, but one gentleman took time enough to call me a cunt, and there was a lady with a very strong Yankee accent who said, ‘Theah, you bitch, you've killed him. Aaa you satisfied?' She hung up before I could tell her yes, very satisfied, thanks.' But Mattie didn't look satisfied; she looked unhappy and guilty, as if she had literally wished him dead. ‘I'm sorry.' ‘It's okay. Really. Kyra and I have been alone for a long time, and I've been scared for most of it. Now I've made a couple of friends. If a few anonymous phone calls are the price I have to pay, I'll pay it.' She was very close, looking up at me, and I couldn't stop myself. I put the blame on summer, her perfume, and four years without a woman. In that order, i slipped my arms around her waist, and remember perfectly the texture of her dress beneath my hands; the slight pucker at the back where the zipper hid in its sleeve. I remember the sensation of the cloth moving against the bare skin beneath. Then I was kissing her, very gently but very thoroughly anything worth doing is worth doing right and she was kissing me back in exactly the same spirit, her mouth curious but not afraid. Her lips were warm and smooth and held some faint sweet taste. Peaches, I think. We stopped at the same time and pulled back a little from each other. Her hands were still on my shoulders. Mine were on the sides of her waist, just above her hips. Her face was composed enough, but her eyes were more brilliant than ever, and there were slants of color in her cheeks, rising along the cheekbones. ‘Oh boy,' she said. ‘I really wanted that. Ever since Ki tackled you and you picked her up I've wanted it.' ‘John wouldn't think much of us kissing in public,' I said. My voice wasn't quite even, and my heart was racing. Seven seconds, one kiss, and every system in my body was red-lining. ‘In fact, John wouldn't think much of us kissing at all. He fancies you, you know.' ‘I know, but I fancy you.' She turned to check on Ki, who was still standing obediently by the tree, watching the juggler. Who might be watching us? Someone who had come over from the TR on a hot summer evening to get ice cream at Frank's Tas-T-Freeze and enjoy a little music and society on the common? Someone who traded for fresh vegetables and fresh gossip at the Lakeview General? A regular at the All-Purpose Garage? This was insanity, and it stayed insanity no matter how you cut it. I dropped my hands from her waist. ‘Mattie, they could put our picture next to â€Å"indiscreet† in the dictionary.' She took her hands off my shoulders and stepped back a pace, but her brilliant eyes never left mine. ‘I know that. I'm young but not entirely stupid.' ‘I didn't mean ‘ She held up a hand to stop me. ‘Ki goes to bed around nine she can't seem to sleep until it's mostly dark. I stay up later. Come and visit me, if you want to. You can park around back.' She smiled a little. It was a sweet smile; it was also incredibly sexy. ‘Once the moon's down, that's an area of discretion.' ‘Mattie, you're young enough to be my daughter.' ‘Maybe, but I'm not. And sometimes people can be too discreet for their own good.' My body knew so emphatically what it wanted. If we had been in her trailer at that moment it would have been no contest. It was almost no contest anyway. Then something recurred to me, something I'd thought about Devore's ancestors and my own: the generations didn't match up. Wasn't the same thing true here? And I don't believe that people automatically have a right to what they want, no matter how badly they want it. Not every thirst should be slaked. Some things are just wrong I guess that's what I'm trying to say. But I wasn't sure this was one of them, and I wanted her, all right. So much. I kept thinking about how her dress had slid when I put my arms around her waist, the warm feel of her skin just beneath. And no, she wasn't my daughter. ‘You said your thanks,' I told her in a dry voice. ‘And that's enough. Really.' ‘You think this is gratitude?' She voiced a low, tense laugh. ‘You're forty, Mike, not eighty. You're not Harrison Ford, but you're a good-looking man. Talented and interesting, too. And I like you such an awful lot. I want you to be with me. Do you want me to say please? Fine. Please be with me.' Yes, this was about more than gratitude I suppose I'd known that even when I was using the word. I'd known she was wearing white shorts and a halter top when she called on the phone the day I went back to work. Had she also known what I was wearing? Had she dreamed she was in bed with me, the two of us screwing our brains out while the party lights shone and Sara Tidwell played her version of the white nana rhyming game, all that crazy Manderley-sanderley-canderley stuff?. Had Mattie dreamed of telling me to do what she wanted? And there were the fridgeafator people. They were another kind of sharing, an even spookier kind. I hadn't quite had nerve enough to tell Mattie about mine, but she might know anyway. Down low in her mind. Down below in her mind, where the blue-collar guys moved around in the zone. Her guys and my guys, all part of the same strange labor union. And maybe it wasn't an issue of morality per se at all. Some thing about it about us just felt dangerous. And oh so attractive. ‘I need time to think,' I said. ‘This isn't about what you think. What do you feel for me?' ‘So much it scares me.' Before I could say anything else, my ears caught a familiar series of chord-changes. I turned toward the kid with the guitar. He had been working through a repertoire of early Dylan, but now he swung into something chuggy and up-tempo, something that made you want to grin and pat your hands together. ‘Do you want to go fishin here in my fishin hole? Said do you want to fish some, honey, here in my fishin hole? You want to fish in my pond, baby, you better have a big long pole.' ‘Fishin Blues.' Written by Sara Tidwell, originally performed by Sara and the Red-Top Boys, covered by everyone from Ma Rainey to the Lovin' Spoonful. The raunchy ones had been her specialty, double-entendre so thin you could read a newspaper through it . . . although reading hadn't been Sara's main interest, judging by her lyrics. Before the kid could go on to the next verse, something about how you got to wiggle when you wobble and get that big one way down deep, The Castle Rockers ran off a brass flourish that said ‘Shut up, everybody, we're comin atcha.' The kid quit playing his guitar; the juggler began catching his Indian clubs and dropping them swiftly onto the grass in a line. The Rockers launched themselves into an extremely evil Sousa march, music to commit serial murders by, and Kyra came running back to us. ‘The jugster's done. Will you tell me the story, Mike? Hansel and Panzel?' ‘It's Hansel and Gretel,' I said, ‘and I'll be happy to. But let's go where it's a little quieter, okay? The band is giving me a headache.' ‘Music hurt your headie?' ‘A little bit.' ‘We'll go by Mattie's car, then.' ‘Good thought.' Kyra ran ahead to stake out a bench on the edge of the common. Mattie gave me a long warm look, then her hand. I took it. Our fingers folded together as if they had been doing it for years. I thought, I'd like it to be slow, both of us hardly moving at all. At first, anyway. And would I bring my nicest, longest pole? I think you could count on that. And then, afterward, we'd talk. Maybe until we could see the furniture in the first early light. When you're in bed with someone you love, particularly for the first time, five o'clock seems almost holy. ‘You need a vacation from your own thoughts,' Mattie said. ‘I bet most writers do from time to time.' ‘That's probably true.' ‘I wish we were home,' she said, and I couldn't tell if her fierceness was real or pretend. ‘I'd kiss you until this whole conversation became irrelevant. And if there were second thoughts, at least you'd be having them in my bed.' I turned my face into the red light of the westering sun. ‘Here or there, at this hour Ki would still be up.' ‘True,' she said, sounding uncharacteristically glum. ‘True.' Kyra reached a bench near the sign reading TOWN COMMON PARKING and climbed up on it, holding the little stuffed dog from Mickey D's in one hand. I tried to pull my hand away as we approached her and Mattie held it firm. ‘It's all right, Mike. At VBS they hold hands with their friends everywhere they go. It's big people who make it into a big deal.' She stopped, looked at me. ‘I want you to know something. Maybe it won't matter to you, but it does to me. There wasn't anyone before Lance and no one after. If you come to me, you'll be my second. I'm not going to talk with you about this again, either. Saying please is all right, but I won't beg.' ‘I don't ‘ ‘There's a pot with tomato plants in it by the trailer steps. I'll leave a key under it. Don't think. Just come.' ‘Not tonight, Mattie. I can't.' ‘You can,' she replied. ‘Hurry up, slowpokes!' Kyra cried, bouncing on the bench. ‘He's the slow one!' Mattie called back, and poked me in the ribs. Then, in a much lower voice: ‘You are, too.' She unwound her hand from mine and ran toward her daughter, her brown legs scissoring below the hem of the white dress. In my version of ‘Hansel and Gretel' the witch was named Depravia. Kyra stared at me with huge eyes when I got to the part where Depravia asks Hansel to poke out his finger so she can see how plump he's getting. ‘Is it too scary?' I asked. Ki shook her head emphatically. I glanced at Mattie to make sure. She nodded and waved a hand for me to go on, so I finished the story. Depravia went into the oven and Gretel found her secret stash of winning lottery tickets. The kids bought a Jet Ski and lived happily ever after on the eastern side of Dark Score Lake. By then The Castle Rockers were slaughtering Gershwin and sunset was nigh. I carried Kyra to Scoutie and strapped her in. I remembered the first time I'd helped put the kid into her car-seat, and the inadvertent press of Mattie's breast. ‘I hope there isn't a bad dream for you in that story,' I said. Until I heard it coming out of my own mouth, I hadn't realized how fundamentally awful that one is. ‘I won't have bad dreams,' Kyra said matter-of-factly. ‘The fridgeafator people will keep them away.' Then, carefully, reminding herself: ‘Ree-fridge-a-rator.' She turned to Mattie. ‘Show him the crosspatch, Mommy-bommy.' ‘Crossword. But thanks, I would've forgotten.' She thumbed open the glove compartment and took out a folded sheet of paper. ‘It was on the fridge this morning. I copied it down because Ki said you'd know what it meant. She said you do crossword puzzles. Well, she said crosspatches, but I got the idea.' Had I told Kyra that I did crosswords? Almost certainly not. Did it surprise me that she knew? Not at all. I took the sheet of paper, unfolded it, and looked at what was printed there: d go w ninety2 ‘Is it a crosspatch puzzle, Mike?' Kyra asked. ‘I guess so a very simple one. But if it means something, I don't know what it is. May I keep this?' ‘Yes,' Mattie said. I walked her around to the driver's side of the Scout, reaching for her hand again as we went. ‘Just give me a little time. I know that's supposed to be the girl's line, but ‘ ‘Take the time,' she said. ‘Just don't take too much.' I didn't want to take any, which was just the problem. The sex would be great, I knew that. But after? There might be an after, though. I knew it and she did, too. With Mattie, ‘after' was a real possibility. The idea was a little scary, a little wonderful. I kissed the corner of her mouth. She laughed and grabbed me by the earlobe. ‘You can do better,' she said, then looked at Ki, who was sitting in her car-seat and gazing at us interestedly. ‘But I'll let you off this time.' ‘Kiss Ki!' Kyra called, holding out her arms, so I went around and kissed Ki. Driving home, wearing my dark glasses to cut the glare of the setting sun, it occurred to me that maybe I could be Kyra Devore's father. That seemed almost as attractive to me as going to bed with her mother, which was a measure of how deep I was in. And going deeper, maybe. Deeper still. Sara Laughs seemed very empty after having Mattie in my arms a sleeping head without dreams. I checked the letters on the fridge, saw nothing there but the normal scatter, and got a beer. I went out on the deck to drink it while I watched the last of the sunset. I tried to think about the refrigerator people and crosspatches that had appeared on both refrigerators: ‘go down nineteen' on Lane Forty-two and ‘go down ninety-two' on Wasp Hill Road. Different vectors from the land to the lake? Different spots on The Street? Shit, who knew? I tried to think about John Storrow and how unhappy he was apt to be if he found out there was to quote Sara Laughs, who got to the line long before John Mellencamp another mule kicking in Mattie Devore's stall. But mostly what I thought about was holding her for the first time, kissing her for the first time. No human instinct is more powerful than the sex-drive when it is fully aroused, and its awakening images are emotional tattoos that never leave us. For me, it was feeling the soft bare skin of her waist just beneath her dress. The slippery feel of the fabric . . . I turned abruptly and hurried through the house to the north wing, almost running and shedding clothes as I went. I turned the shower on to full cold and stood under it for five minutes, shivering. When I got out I felt a little more like an actual human being and a little less like a twitching bundle of nerve endings. And as I toweled dry, something else recurred to me. At some point I had thought of Jo's brother Frank, had thought that if anyone besides myself would be able to feel Jo's presence in Sara Laughs, it would be him. I hadn't gotten around to inviting him down yet, and now wasn't sure I wanted to. I had come to feel oddly possessive, almost jealous, about what was happening here. And yet if Jo had been writing something on the quiet, Frank might know. Of course she hadn't confided in him about the pregnancy, but I looked at my watch. Quarter past nine. In the trailer near the intersection of Wasp Hill Road and Route 68, Kyra was probably already asleep . . . and her mother might already have put her extra key under the pot near the steps. I thought of her in the white dress, the swell of her hips just below my hands and the smell of her perfume, then pushed the images away. I couldn't spend the whole night taking cold showers. Quarter past nine was still early enough to call Frank Arlen. He picked up on the second ring, sounding both happy to hear from me and as if he'd gotten three or four cans further into the six-pack than I had so far done. We passed the usual pleasantries back and forth most of my own almost entirely fictional, I was dismayed to find and he mentioned that a famous neighbor of mine had kicked the bucket, according to the news. Had I met him? Yes, I said, remembering how Max Devore had run his wheelchair at me. Yes, I'd met him. Frank wanted to know what he was like. That was hard to say, I told him. Poor old guy was stuck in a wheelchair and suffering from emphysema. ‘Pretty frail, huh?' Frank asked sympathetically. ‘Yeah,' I said. ‘Listen, Frank, I called about Jo. I was out in her studio looking around, and I found my typewriter. Since then I've kind of gotten the idea she was writing something. It might have started as a little piece about our house, then widened. The place is named after Sara Tidwell, you know. The blues singer.' A long pause. Then Frank said, ‘I know.' His voice sounded heavy, grave. ‘What else do you know, Frank?' ‘That she was scared. I think she found out something that scared her. I think that mostly because ‘ That was when the light finally broke. I probably should have known from Mattie's description, would have known if I hadn't been so upset. ‘You were down here with her, weren't you? In July of 1994. You went to the softball game, then you went back up The Street to the house.' ‘How do you know that?' he almost barked. ‘Someone saw you. A friend of mine.' I was trying not to sound mad and not succeeding. I was mad, but it was a relieved anger, the kind you feel when your kid comes dragging into the house with a shamefaced grin just as you're getting ready to call the cops. ‘I almost told you a day or two before we buried her. We were in that pub, do you remember?' Jack's Pub, right after Frank had beaten the funeral director down on the price of Jo's coffin. Sure I remembered. I even remembered the look in his eyes when I'd told him Jo had been pregnant when she died. He must have felt the silence spinning out, because he came back sounding anxious. ‘Mike, I hope you didn't get any ‘ ‘What? Wrong ideas? I thought maybe she was having an affair, how's that for a wrong idea? You can call that ignoble if you want, but I had my reasons. There was a lot she wasn't telling me. What did she tell you?' ‘Next to nothing.' ‘Did you know she quit all her boards and committees? Quit and never said a word to me?' ‘No.' I didn't think he was lying. Why would he, at this late date? ‘Jesus, Mike, if I'd known that ‘ ‘What happened the day you came down here? Tell me.' ‘I was at the printshop in Sanford. Jo called me from . . . I don't remember, I think a rest area on the turnpike.' ‘Between Derry and the TR?' ‘Yeah. She was on her way to Sara Laughs and wanted me to meet her there. She told me to park in the driveway if I got there first, not to go in the house . . . which I could have; I know where you keep the spare key.' Sure he did, in a Sucrets tin under the deck. I had shown him myself. ‘Did she say why she didn't want you to go inside?' ‘It'll sound crazy.' ‘No it won't. Believe me.' ‘She said the house was dangerous.' For a moment the words just hung there. Then I asked, ‘Did you get here first?' ‘Uh-huh.' ‘And waited outside?' ‘Yes.' ‘Did you see or sense anything dangerous?' There was a long pause. At last he said, ‘There were lots of people out on the lake speedboaters, water-skiers, you know how it is but all the engine-noise and the laughter seemed to kind of . . . stop dead when it got near the house. Have you ever noticed that it seems quiet there even when it's not?' Of course I had; Sara seemed to exist in its own zone of silence. ‘Did it feel dangerous, though?' ‘No,' he said, almost reluctantly. ‘Not to me, anyway. But it didn't feel exactly empty, either. I felt . . . fuck, I felt watched. I sat on one of those railroad-tie steps and waited for my sis. Finally she came. She parked behind my car and hugged me . . . but she never took her eyes off the house. I asked her what she was up to and she said she couldn't tell me, and that I couldn't tell you we'd been there. She said something like, â€Å"If he finds out on his own, then it's meant to be. I'll have to tell him sooner or later, anyway. But I can't now, because I need his whole attention. I can't get that while he's working.†Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ I felt a flush crawl across my skin. ‘She said that, huh?' ‘Yeah. Then she said she had to go in the house and do something. She wanted me to wait outside. She said if she called, I should come on the run. Otherwise I should just stay where I was.' ‘She wanted someone there in case she got in trouble.' ‘Yeah, but it had to be someone who wouldn't ask a lot of questions she didn't want to answer. That was me. I guess that was always me.' ‘And?' ‘She went inside. I sat on the hood of my car, smoking cigarettes. I was still smoking then. And you know, I did start to feel something then that wasn't right. As if there might be someone in the house who'd been waiting for her, someone who didn't like her. Maybe someone who wanted to hurt her. Probably I just picked that up from Jo the way her nerves seemed all strung up, the way she kept looking over my shoulder at the house even while she was hugging me but it seemed like something else. Like a . . . I don't know . . . ‘ ‘Like a vibe.' ‘Yes!' he almost shouted. ‘A vibration. But not a good vibration, like in the Beach Boys song. A bad vibration.' ‘What happened?' ‘I sat and waited. I only smoked two cigarettes so I don't guess it could have been longer than twenty minutes or half an hour, but it seemed longer. I kept noticing how the sounds from the lake seemed to make it most of the way up the hill and then just kind of . . . quit. And how there didn't seem to be any birds, except far off in the distance. ‘Once, she came out. I heard the deck door bang, and then her footsteps on the stairs over on that side. I called to her, asked if she was okay, and she said fine. She said for me to stay where I was. She sounded a little short of breath, as if she was carrying something or had been doing some chore.' ‘Did she go to her studio or down to the lake?' ‘I don't know. She was gone another fifteen minutes or so time enough for me to smoke another butt and then she came back out the front door. She checked to make sure it was locked, and then she came up to me. She looked a lot better. Relieved. The way people look when they do some dirty job they've been putting off, finally get it behind them. She suggested we walk down that path she called The Street to the resort that's down there ‘ ‘Warrington's.' ‘Right, right. She said she'd buy me a beer and a sandwich. Which she did, out at the end of this long floating dock.' The Sunset Bar, where I had first glimpsed Rogette. ‘Then you went to have a look at the softball game.' ‘That was Jo's idea. She had three beers to my one, and she insisted. Said someone was going to hit a longshot homer into the trees, she just knew it.' Now I had a clear picture of the part Mattie had seen and told me about. Whatever Jo had done, it had left her almost giddy with relief. She had ventured into the house, for one thing. Had dared the spirits in order to do her business and survived. She'd had three beers to celebrate and her discretion had slipped . . . not that she had behaved with any great stealth on her previous trips down to the TR. Frank remembered her saying if I found out on my own then it was meant to be que ser, ser. It wasn't the attitude of someone hiding an affair, and I realized now that all her behavior suggested a woman keeping a short-term secret. She would have told me when I finished my stupid book, if she had lived. If. ‘You watched the game for awhile, then went back to the house along The Street.' ‘Yes,' he said. ‘Did either of you go in?' ‘No. By the time we got there, her buzz had worn off and I trusted her to drive. She was laughing while we were at the softball game, but she wasn't laughing by the time we got back to the house. She looked at it and said, â€Å"I'm done with her. I'll never go through that door again, Frank.†Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ My skin first chilled, then prickled. ‘I asked her what was wrong, what she'd found out. I knew she was writing something, she'd told me that much ‘ ‘She told everyone but me,' I said . . . but without much bitterness. I knew who the man in the brown sportcoat had been, and any bitterness or anger anger at Jo, anger at myself paled before the relief of that. I hadn't realized how much that fellow had been on my mind until now. ‘She must have had her reasons,' Frank said. ‘You know that, don't you?' ‘But she didn't tell you what they were.' ‘All I know is that it started whatever it was with her doing research for an article. It was a lark, Jo playing Nancy Drew. I'm pretty sure that at first not telling you was just to keep it a surprise. She read books but mostly she talked to people listened to their stories of the old days and teased them into looking for old letters . . . diaries . . . she was good at that part of it, I think. Damned good. You don't know any of this?' ‘No,' I said heavily. Jo hadn't been having an affair, but she could have had one, if she'd wanted. She could have had an. affair with Tom Selleck and been written up in Inside View and I would have gone on tapping away at the keys of my Powerbook, blissfully unaware. ‘Whatever she found out,' Frank said, ‘I think she just stumbled over it.' ‘And you never told me. Four years and you never told me any of it.' ‘That was the last time I was with her,' Frank said, and now he didn't sound apologetic or embarrassed at all. ‘And the last thing she asked of me was that I not tell you we'd been to the lake house. She said she'd tell you everything when she was ready, but then she died. After that I didn't think it mattered. Mike, she was my sister. She was my sister and I promised.' ‘All right. I understand.' And I did just not enough. What had Jo discovered? That Normal Auster had drowned his infant son under a handpump? That back around the turn of the century an animal trap had been left in a place where a young Negro boy would be apt to come along and step into it? That another boy, perhaps the incestuous child of Son and Sara Tidwell, had been drowned by his mother in the lake, she maybe laughing that smoke-broken, lunatic laugh as she held him down? You gotta wiggle when you wobble, honey, and hold that young ‘un way down deep. ‘If you need me to apologize, Mike, consider it done.' ‘I don't. Frank, do you remember anything else she might have said that night? Anything at all?' ‘She said she knew how you found the house.' ‘She said what?' ‘She said that when it wanted you, it called you.' At first I couldn't reply, because Frank Arlen had completely demolished one of the assumptions I'd made about my married life one of the biggies, one of those that seem so basic you don't even think about questioning them. Gravity holds you down. Light allows you to see. The compass needle points north. Stuff like that. This assumption was that Jo was the one who had wanted to buy Sara Laughs back when we saw the first real money from my writing career, because Jo was the ‘house person' in our marriage, just as I was the ‘car person.' Jo was the one who had picked our apartments when apartments were all we could afford, Jo who hung a picture here and asked me to put up a shelf there. Jo was the one who had fallen in love with the Derry house and had finally worn down my resistance to the idea that it was too big, too busy, and too broken to take on. Jo had been the nest-builder. She said that when it wanted you, it called you. And it was probably true. No, I could do better than that, if I was willing to set aside the lazy thinking and selective remembering. It was certainly true. I was the one who had first broached the idea of a place in western Maine. I was the one who collected stacks of real-estate brochures and hauled them home. I'd started buying regional magazines like Down East and always began at the back, where the real-estate ads were. It was I who had first seen a picture of Sara Laughs in a glossy handout called Maine Retreats, and it was I who had made the call first to the agent named in the ad, and then to Marie Hingerman after badgering Marie's name out of the Realtor. Johanna had also been charmed by Sara Laughs I think anyone would have been charmed by it, seeing it for the first time in autumn sunshine with the trees blazing all around it and drifts of colored leaves blowing up The Street but it was I who had actively sought the place out. Except that was more lazy thinking and selective remembering. Wasn't it? Sara had sought me out. Then how could I not have known it until now? And how was I led here in the first place, full of unknowing happy ignorance? The answer to both questions was the same. It was also the answer to the question of how Jo could have discovered something distressing about the house, the lake, maybe the whole TR, and then gotten away with not telling me. I'd been gone, that's all. I'd been zoning, tranced out, writing one of my stupid little books. I'd been hypnotized by the fantasies going on in my head, and a hypnotized man is easy to lead. ‘Mike? Are you still there?' ‘I'm here, Frank. But I'll be goddamned if I know what could have scared her so.' ‘She mentioned one other name I remember: Royce Merrill. She said he was the one who remembered the most, because he was so old. And she said, â€Å"I don't want Mike to talk to him. I'm afraid that old man might let the cat out of the bag and tell him more than he should know.† Any idea what she meant?' ‘Well . . . it's been suggested that a splinter from the old family tree wound up here, but my mother's people are from Memphis. The Noonans are from Maine, but not from this part.' Yet I no longer entirely believed this. ‘Mike, you sound almost sick.' ‘I'm okay. Better than I was, actually.' ‘And you understand why I didn't tell you any of this until now? I mean, if I'd known the ideas you were getting . . . if I'd had any clue . . . ‘ ‘I think I understand. The ideas didn't belong in my head to begin with, but once that shit starts to creep in . . . ‘ ‘When I got back to Sanford that night and it was over, I guess I thought it was just more of Jo's â€Å"Oh fuck, there's a shadow on the moon, nobody go out until tomorrow.† She was always the superstitious one, you know knocking on wood, tossing a pinch of salt over her shoulder if she spilled some, those four-leaf-clover earrings she used to have . . . ‘ ‘Or the way she wouldn't wear a pullover if she put it on backward by mistake,' I said. ‘She claimed doing that would turn around your whole day.' ‘Well? Doesn't it?' Frank asked, and I could hear a little smile in his voice. All at once I remembered Jo completely, right down to the small gold flecks in her left eye, and wanted nobody else. Nobody else would do. ‘She thought there was something bad about the house,' Frank said. ‘That much I do know.' I drew a piece of paper to me and jotted Kia on it. ‘Yes. And by then she may have suspected she was pregnant. She might have been afraid of . . . influences.' There were influences here, all right. ‘You think she got most of this from Royce Merrill?' ‘No, that was just a name she mentioned. She probably talked to dozens of people. Do you know a guy named Kloster? Gloster? Something like that?' ‘Skuster,' I said. Below Kia my pencil was making a series of fat loops that might have been cursive letter l's or hair ribbons. ‘Kenny Auster. Was that it?' ‘It sounds right. In any case, you know how she was once she really got going on a thing.' Yes. Like a terrier after rats. ‘Mike? Should I come up there?' No. Now I was sure. Not Harold Oblowski, not Frank, either. There was a process going on in Sara, something as delicate and as organic as rising bread in a warm room. Frank might interrupt that process . . . or be hurt by it. ‘No, I just wanted to get it cleared up. Besides, I'm writing. It's hard for me to have people around when I'm writing.' ‘Will you call if I can help?' ‘You bet,' I said. I hung up the telephone, thumbed through the book, and found a listing for R. MERRILL on the Deep Bay Road. I called the number, listened to it ring a dozen times, then hung up. No newfangled answering machine for Royce. I wondered idly where he was. Ninety-five seemed a little too old to go dancing at the Country Barn in Harrison, especially on a close night like this one. I looked at the paper with Kia written on it. Below the fat l-shapes I wrote Kyra, and remembered how, the first time I'd heard Ki say her name, I'd thought it was ‘Kia' she was saying. Below Kyra I wrote Kito, hesitated, then wrote Carla. I put these names in a box. Beside them I jotted Johanna, Bridget, and Jared. The fridgeafator people. Folks who wanted me to go down nineteen and go down ninety-two. ‘Go down, Moses, you bound for the Promised Land,' I told the empty house. I looked around. Just me and Bunter and the waggy clock . . . except it wasn't. When it wanted you, it called you. I got up to get another beer. The fruits and vegetables were in a circle again. In the middle, the letters now spelled: lye stille As on some old tombstones God grant she lye stille. I looked at these letters for a long time. Then I remembered the IBM was still out on the deck. I brought it in, plonked it on the dining-room table, and began to work on my current stupid little book. Fifteen minutes and I was lost, only faintly aware of thunder someplace over the lake, only faintly aware of Bunter's bell shivering from time to time. When I went back to the fridge an hour or so later for another beer and saw that the words in the circle now said ony lye stille I hardly noticed. At that moment I didn't care if they lay stille or danced the hucklebuck by the light of the silvery moon. John Shackleford had begun to remember his past, and the child whose only friend he, John, had been. Little neglected Ray Garraty. I wrote until midnight came. By then the thunder had faded away but the heat held on, as oppressive as a blanket. I turned off the IBM and went to bed . . . thinking, so far as I can remember, nothing at all not even about Mattie, lying in her own bed not so many miles away. The writing had burned off all thoughts of the real world, at least temporarily. I think that, in the end, that's what it's for. Good or bad, it passes the time.