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A/N: I had absolutely NO idea whatsoever on what to call this thing, so I'm just going to call it BEAR HUGS, for the heck of it! xD
Must I do a disclaimer?: Okay. I obviously wouldn't be here, writing a fanfic, if I actually owed anything about National Treasure, right? NT belongs to Disney, JB, and whoever else put their work into it. I wish I owned Riley, though. (Sigh.)
Summary: It's a long walk from the Charlotte to the village. Plenty of time to talk. POV. Ben/Riley brotherly fluff. No slash. Reference to childabuse. Oneshot.
It's a bit sad, actually. I wanted to get to know Riley a little bit more. About what happened during his childhood. Dig into his past a little bit. I was just reading A Boy Called 'It', by the way. Fantastic piece. It's strange how on the cover of the book there's a little boy with brown hair and blue eyes. Ironic a bit? Maybe Riley's real name is David? If you read the book, you'd understand. Ahem. Right.
And now, on with it....
Oh, and a word : My brother's computer on which I am typing has a rediculously wide screen so whatever paragraphs i'm typing seem smaller to me, but I'm they're actually quite long so I am very very sorry that I have ugly chunky paragraphs. Blame my brother xD
Just to let you know, I really am starting to miss that 'windowless-cubicle' that Ben found me in. I mean, this whole adventure thing seemed like a pretty decent plan. Ben's team was okay. I mean, sure, I don't think they appreciated me much. Ian surely had it out for me, let me tell you. Though the other guys seemed to pick on me every chance they got, Ben was always there to you know, back me up. They didn't like the fact that a kid , as they refered me to, was on their little team. I'll be glad to let you know I am in fact, as hard as it may seem, an adult. Heck, I'm 22 for God's sake! Ben trusted me, I know. Or maybe he trusted my computer skills. I honestly have no idea. Ben needed me for this 'treasure hunt' business, it was obvious. But, I hated my job, hated my life, and as soon as he asked me, I quit. It was probably the best thing I ever did. Still, I'm starting to hate my life again. Heh. Maybe quitting wasn't such a great idea, afterall. Where else am I gonna find a job? BestBuy? Nah, I don't picture myself part of GeekSquad. I mean, really, GeekSquad? Who came up with that name? Well, we'll see what happens. Of course, If I'm not dead then.
So, just to recap: Ben, me, Ian and a few other guys end up in the freezing cold (I mean it-freezing) in the middle of scenic nowhere, in search of a ship. Of course, me with my skills and all, was able to locate the location and soon enough we had ourselves the Charlotte. Naming ships after girls, though? Seriously, why do that? That's like getting a tattoo of somebody's name and having them dump you the next day. What're you left with? Nothing more than just a sad, permanent reminder of what once was. Ships are the same thing. Ever notice that all sailors are single? And have bad attitudes, too. Or, maybe those are pirates. Er, same thing, I guess. Uh, rambling. Where was I again? Hmm, oh yeah!- so, we all had made our way inside of her, (well, that sounds strange, doesn't it?) and found what I believe to be some kind of million (or billion) dollar pipe. It's decorated all fancy and what not. But, it turns out to be a clue and we're painfully aware that the treasure we're looking for isn't actually on the ship, at all! Ian was totally pissed. It was hard for me to follow their conversation, but they were talking about some kind of secret, invisible map on the back of the freakin' Declaration of Independance.
Ian wanted to borrow it on account of he had ways around 'questionable legality' , as he called it. But, as far as me and Ben were concerned, Ian was just being greedy. As soon as Ben didn't agree, Ian, the bad guy I always knew he was, decided it was a good idea to pull a gun out on us. He threatened to shoot us both, but Ben lit a flare and kindly explained that if he was shot, the whole thing would go up in flames. You know what that means? -BOOM!- No more Riley. No more Ben. No more Ian. No more Shaw, etc. No more Charlotte. What a waste that would be. Before I knew it, Ben had thrown the flare towards them, Ian caught it, he got a little frightened when it lit up on his glove and sleeve, and just like that, the flare was on the floor, with all the gunpowder. I didn't know what to think at that point. Ian and his goons shot a few rounds, missed us, and left. But, not before locking us in. Jerks. This place was going to blow soon. I was off hiding in the corner like a frightened little girl. As far as I was concerned, I was the closest thing to a frightened little girl I had ever been in a pretty good while. Ben somehow found some secret bunker-type place and, before I knew it, he was shoving me in there and practically tackled me to the ground. Weird timing too. As soon as we went for 'cover', the place exploded. I figured Ian and his goons were gone before that happened. After about 30 seconds of holding my breath in the snow, (which we were just completely covered in), Ben and I popped our heads up. I was relieved to be alive. I didn't have anything much to say.
That's where we leave off, here. Me and Ben just climbed out. There's smoke around us, debris everywhere and I can't help but have trouble walking all over the wreckage. Ben must've figured I was alright, because he didn't ask. But, the man practically had me covered when it happened. If he was okay, I most certainly was okay. I sighed.
"There's an Inuit village about 9 miles east of here." He caught my attention as I trailed behind him, teetering a bit. Nine freakin' miles east?! We have to walk 9 miles? Well, that's like, exactly the last thing I'd rather do at this point. Seriously. I can just feel myself shaking. I've never been in an exploding ship before, sorry for my inexperience. Maybe we can find a camel-stand? Like, where we can rent a few camels or something. Aren't they good in extreme temperature? Heat temperature, yeah. But, they're all furry and whatnot. Don't they store water in their humps? Heated water? That'd be nice. I don't have money on me though. I wonder if they'd take a million dollar pipe? Where is that pipe anyway? Seriously though, much rather ride a camel than tredge through this deep snow.
Somehow, I found my voice again, surprised in its' calmness. "Then what are we gonna do?"
"Head home." Stupid question.
"No.. I mean, Ian's gonna steal the Declaration of Independance, Ben."
"We stop him." Easy answer.
Hmm. Somehow I think it isn't going to be that easy. Is there a way I could just like, quit the team? Isn't the team sorta broken up already? He kept on walking, so I did the same. I definately had a lot of questions. This guy was a definate lunatic. Ian was a lunatic. And for signing on, I was a lunatic. I had only joined the team like, a month ago! Anyway, neither of us said anything for a few minutes. He was just walking on, all nonchalantly, like nothing had ever happened. How the hell does he do that? Me, on the other hand, a good ten or so feet behind. He was a bit of a fast walker. He probably just wanted to get to the village before it got dark. Oops, I hadn't thought about that. How long until the sun goes bye-bye? And, I can only imagine how long it's going to take us to get there. Heck, I'm pretty sure the day is still rather young. What if there're polar bears or something? Really don't wanna be mauled by one. Or some weird Yeti. I couldn't take on a Yeti! Or a bear. I wonder if there are any cannibals around here. I mean, humans shouldn't live here. There's nothing. Last resort, eating people would make sense to me. Kinda gross, but then again I am at an advantage. I am scrawny. Just bones, no meat. No reason to be eaten, right? Not by a human, anyway. We get stuck in a blizzard in the middle of nowhere when it's pitch black dark outside? We'd die, for sure. Freezing to death isn't one of the ways I'd like to go. Sure isn't on my list.
He must've noticed I was lagging behind, because I soon found him helpin' me out of my buzzling thoughts. "Hey, Ri, you frozen back there, or what?" Huh? Oh. Apparently, I had been so deep in thought that I was hardly walking anymore. I'm sort of tired. Not that I did any strenious excersice, much. But, the whole running and exploding thing-well, my mind was just exhausted. Don't blame me for wondering things though, I really don't want to be mauled by a Yeti. If you get attacked, you're supposed make yourself seem bigger, right? Er, well, for the polar bear? I literally had to shake my head into reality. I think he noticed, because he's giving me this weird look. That one look that just screams I-know-somethin's-up. He wasn't walking anymore, and neither was I. I took a breath. I never noticed I had stopped breathing. He just won't stop looking at me! It's..overwhelming, I guess. I hate it when people gimme that look. 'Specially him.
"Hey, you alright?"
Alright? After I'm dragged all the way to who cares where, when it's minus kajillion degrees fahrenheit, shot at, and left for dead in an exploding ship? Let me tell you, Buddy. I've had better days. I had to hide that annoyed look I really wanted to give him, and my sarcastic comment. "I'm fine." Wow. That didn't come out as expected. I didn't mean to sound so cold. But, I really am cold. And hungry.
"You sure?" I'd finally caught up to where he was and nodded, then just walked by him. He started after me. "Really? You don't seem too good."
Gee, what part of 'I'm Fine' don't you understand? "Just thinking."
Man, he's persistent. "Things."
"What things?"
"Things that don't pertain to you." Well, not entirely true. I mean, half the things I'm thinkin' 'bout now are about him. It's all his fault, kind of. If he hadn't offered me the job, I wouldn't be here. But, then again, if he hadn't offered me the job, I wouldn't be here and still would be with that hell of a boss in my cubicle. I liked Ben better as a boss, although he had told me I was his friend. My old boss never wanted to be my friend. Then again, I'd rather be in my warm, dry cubicle than in this knee deep snow, in the middle of nowhere-land. Yet, I owed my life to him.
"Oh, really?" He didn't seem bothered by my rude snip. He seemed utterly curious. It was just the way he was, with me at least. I mean, he just knows me so well already. Like, when anything pops into my head and I'm thinking 'bout it, he just like, never gives up. He only pesters me when he knows it's somethin' I'm bothered 'bout. Like, the time when Shaw told me that I shouldn't be on the team. He just didn't think somebody of my age was cable of doing it. Eh, I was way smarter than that idiot anyway. But, I thought he was maybe right. You know, these guys are like twice my age. I haven't even graduated college, yet. I'm almost going to, but haven't yet. I actually skipped preschool and started school a bit early. These guys, besides Ben, just didn't like me. At all. Somehow I didn't mind the feeling that they were just using me. It was better with them, than in my hell of a job. My windowless job. Gah, I almost miss my cubicle! Anyway, I keep rambling, don't I? Point is, I told Ben I didn't think me being on the team was such a great idea anymore and, he pestered me until I told him why, and somehow convinced me to stay.
"Yes, really." I responded. I sounded like a teenager, trying to get their parents out of their hair. I didn't want to sound like a teenager. But, seriously, must he pester?
"Oh." Oh? What do you mean, 'Oh'? "Okay, then. I'm sorry I bothered you."
Bothered? Is he trying to make me feel guilty or something? I mean, I know he was just trying to help. He was just worried. I don't know why I sounded so distant. It's not like I meant it, though. Ah- it's working, isn't it? Sigh. He knows his way around my brain. " 'S okay."
"So, you havin' fun?"
I snorted, almost, and immediately stopped. Havin' fun? What was this? Some kind of field trip? He gave me this look, but he had this horrible smirk on. Geeze. He sure knows how to get to the point. "Fun? This isn't exactly my kind of fun."
He'd caught up to me, and I started walking again. "Oh, really?"
"Yes, really." I sounded just like that teenager again. I matched his tone perfectly.
"Well, I thought it was kinda fun. Exciting."
"You're joking, aren't you.." It didn't come out as a question.
"Maybe a little." he almost chuckled.
Damn. The guy hardly ever says more than 3 words to me and can make me crack. I can feel it coming on already . He does that to me all the time. It's just the way he gets things out of me. Never lets it go until I finally give in. I mean, I know I complain a lot 'bout the little things, but when it comes to bigger things, I don't need him to know. I'm not even sure what this big thing he thinks I'm thinking of, is. I don't know how to pinpoint what exactly is bothering me. He was trying to get on my last nerve, eh? Leave me alone, dammit. I need to think up a plan just in case that Yeti really does come. I didn't say anything. So, he figured he should continue.
"And scary too, don't you think?" I'm not four, Ben. Don't talk to me like I am. That monotone voice didn't sound scared. So, if a Yeti comes? I still didn't answer him.
"I really thought Ian was a good guy." He sounded genuinely upset, now. Don't let it get to you, Riley. You were always right about Ian! Remember, make yourself seem bigger. Make a lot of noise too. That should scare whatever predator away.
"I see you're not up for a chat." He huffed. He was trying, at least.
"I'm sorry."
"Sorry for what?"
"That Ian was a bad guy." Okay, now I was sounding like a real four year old. 'I told you so' just wouldn't fit in a time like this, though. Although, I had told him so.
"Yeah, me too."
And that's how the conversation ended. Just like that. The kid gave me this apologetic look for a second. He's just so stubborn. Okay, so he's not a kid anymore, I understand that. But, he practically is! I can take the hints though. He didn't want to talk about it. Whatever it was. So, I sighed and we continued on walking for a good five or more minutes without one word being muttered. I don't know about him, but to me, the silence was getting hard to tolerate. Small talk, Ben. Make small talk. "Y'know, I could really go for a long, hot shower right about now. Heck, maybe even a bubble bath."
"Or some hot chocolate", he quipped. Now we were gettin' somwhere. No more cold shoulder. Good, cold enough as it is.
"Or Campbells soup." They always made it seem so good in the old commercials, where the kid was in the snow and then went inside and the snowman melted because the soup was so hot, or whatever. That was quite a while back, though. They just don't make canned soups like they used to. Hah, it makes me sound old when I say that..I don't want to sound old.
"Hey, can I ask you sumthin' ?" I wasn't expecting that.
Just did. Though, another question wouldn't do any harm. I nodded. "Ask away."
"Do you really think that that pipe or whatever is actually gonna lead us to some treasure?"
"Well, I believe so." I honestly did.
"But, aren't you mad that there wasn't any treasure here? I mean, all we found was that stupid pipe and then we had the Charlotte blown up." He sighed.
"It isn't a pipe, Riley. It's a clue. Secondly, yes, of course I'm upset that we had the ship blown up. But, I'd rather have the ship blown up than having you, or me, get shot." Okay, I was in the moment at the time. Don't blame me for trying! I really didn't want to get shot. Then, they had to point it towards the kid. He's my responsibility and I wasn't going to let anything happen to him. I did drag him into this after all. I could never forgive myself if anything did. Maybe, lighting a flare surrounded by gunpowder on an old, historic ship, wasn't my brightest idea, but it was our only option. I'm just glad I got him into the bunker in time.
"But, Ian got away. They're gonna try to steal the Declaration. Do you really think they can do that?" I'm pretty sure Ian and his buddies would be quite capable to figure something out. How we were supposed to stop them, well, I hadn't figured it out yet.
"Ian's a smart man, Riley.''
"Are we really gonna stop 'em?"
"It seems logical that we would." Right?
"How the hell are we gonna do it, though?"
"Not sure, yet."
"So, where's this village you were talkin' 'bout?" There was nothing out here.
"About, 8 and three-quarters of a mile that way." I said, pointing forward.
I could almost hear his face fall. "Still?"
"Ri, we've been walking for like, 10 minutes."
"Are you sure there isn't another village, like, closer? And maybe, they could come pick us up?"
"Pick us up, with what? Dogs sleds?" I laughed.
"Er, well, I was thinking...camels. But, that works too."
Camels? Has this kid lost his mind? "No, Riley, there aren't any camel lifts around here. I couldn't call them either. No phone. We're just going to have to walk."
"But, 8 miles is so far away!" He groaned, in a tone that seemed if though he were actually informing me about the distance, and that I didn't know.
"It's 9 miles." I corrected.
"Even worse." I couldn't help but laugh.
"I'm sorry, Riley. I really am." The young man looked at me, gave me a blank expression then continued looking forward. "What?"
"Nothin'. "
"Oh, come on! That was not a Nothing Face." Okay, it was honestly a nothing face. He just didn't seem to have anything productive to say to me. I could only imagine what was going on in his mind right now. Something about Yetis, maybe.
"It was a Nothing Face. I'm just thinking, that's all." He sounds annoyed.
"Well, why don't we take a little break. Sit down for a few minutes, then start again. It's a pretty long ways to the village and we'd better hope we get there before nightfall." I knew we wouldn't make it before the darkness hit, but I've got to stop his worrying. I stopped walking and took a seat right in the snow. A few moments later, he followed suit, plopping himself down beside me. Although we'd more than likely travel most of the 'trip' in the daylight, I'm certain we'd have at least one or two hours of dark. That is of course, if we continue on a steady pace.
"What if we don't?" He asked, casually. It was obvious he was trying to hide his worry. He wasn't doing such a swell job on it. Swell? Is that an old person word? Maybe I should stop using that one. I'l replace it with 'great'. He wasn't doing such a great job on it. There, much better. I feel younger already. Ahem, back to matters. "We won't have a camp to set up.." It was true. We had nothing.
"Look, don't worry about that right now. We'll figure something out when we need to."
"Riley. It'll be fine."
Sigh. " 'kay."
"But, aren't there like polar bears or something?" He looked at me hopefully. He wanted me to tell him 'NO'.
"Don't worry about any polar bears, Riley. "
"What about yetis?" The look on his face told me he was dead serious. I couldn't stop myself from grinning widely.
"Yetis? No, I don't think so."
"No, there's no cannibals. We're going to be fine."
"What about..some kind of weird...mutated sciene experiment gone wrong, that has 6 legs and....I don't know, eats brains or something like that..?"
I stared at that boy for a while. He stared back at me. It was like a staring contest, although I most definately lost. "Honestly, Riley....do you really believe there's a 6 legged mutated brain-hungry science expirement around here?"
"Just wondering." He smirked.
After a few more minutes of talking, me and Ben were up again and were walking towards that village. I sure hope that village is nice. Well, I don't think it'll matter to me when we get there how big or extravagant it is. I'll just be glad to be back with civilization. Not sure how civil. They might be cannibals, after all. We were still talking. Somehow, we had gotten into his childhood memory of a science experiment gone wrong. Soon enough, he was just going on and on about random things he did as a kid, and I couldn't help but laugh. I mean, these stories were pretty hilarious. I can only imagine Ben as a kid. Still history obsessed, as it seemed. The treasure we're looking for, he found out about when he was a kid. I heard that story a few times before we ever even got here.
I was beaming, almost. " You didn't!"
"I did." He beamed back.
"I don't believe it."
"Well, believe it. Because, it's true. I got in a lot of trouble for that, too. " I was most definately going to be asking his dad about this .
Ben had lots of stories of all the trouble he got into as a kid. He said he was sort of a 'problem child'. I know the feelin'. I was sort of the same way. Okay, I was wreckless at times. I was no stranger to felonies. Even from a really young age, I just sort of went around stealing chocolate bars from grocery stores. It's not like I wanted to steal. I knew it was wrong. But, when you're starving - you'd pretty much do anything. Sigh. Here we go. Back into my childhood. Something I never want to relive again. I hope he doesn't a-
"So, what were you like growin' up?"
-sk me. Huh. Weird how he does that. "Oh, you know, just..I was kind of like you."
"Oh, really?"
"Had your fair share of trouble?"
"Oh, you've no idea." I was a handful. Maybe. I don't know. They called me a lot of things. Oh, great. Now I can't stop thinking about it. Another sigh. Well, Ben doesn't know much about me. I've know him for a few years, actually. We met when I was like 18, that's a long story, and we'll save it for later. Never hung out with him much, or anything. But, of course, when you need somebody with great computer skills, he was lucky to know who to call. I don't know if Ben would hire just a random person. How'd he meet Ian and his goons, anyhow? So, I was shocked to have him show up at my little cube and ask me. I hadn't seen him in some time! It was totally random. Where am I going with this again? Oh, yeah! Ben has known me for years, but doesn't know much about me. At least not about my past. Heck, pretty much nobody knows about it. Nobody was supposed to know about it. I doubt I was even supposed to know. Sigh, again. Shake your head and snap out of it, Riley! Before he asks you what's wrong!
"Something wrong?" Eh, same question- different wording, is all.
"What? Uh, n-no. Nope. " God! You're stuttering! Don't do that!
"You sure?"
"Positive. Maybe we should just talk about something else."
Ben gave me a weird look. He knew I didn't like talking about my childhood. When it had casually come up a billion times before, I always changed the subject. He doesn't know anything about it. Nothing 'bout where I grew up or about my family, or anything. Well, I told him I had a sister. That part is somewhat true. I had a sister. I still consider her my sister, though. She was the only one who ever cared, until I lost her. No, she didn't die. Well, not that I'm aware of. I haven't seen or heard from her in years. There'd be no way of knowing. I hope she's alive, though. I love her. Her name is/was Halie. Anyway, I had Halie in my life until I was like, 9. So, I really have no idea what in the world happened to her. I hope she's alright. I think about her everyday. No, stop! You don't want to think about it. Not right now.
"Okay. What'd you want to talk about?"
"Uh, ponies."
"Mhm." My sister liked ponies. Every little girl likes ponies, right? She was my older sister. She was about 4 or 5 years older than me. I honestly have no idea anymore. I can't remember. It feels like so long ago. I had told myself to just forget about everything and live in the moment, which probably explains why I'm here in the first place.
"Why do you want to talk about ponies?" He asked. I could sense the laughter in his voice.
"They pretty." Oops. Did I just say that? That isn't proper grammar! They're pretty! I meant to say that.
"Are they?"
"Very." Halie was very pretty. She had dark brown hair, just above her shoulders. Her bangs were too long and she constantly had to brush them out of her face. Her eyes. Blue like mines. But, better. (If you can believe that.) I can't believe I'm comparing my sister to a pony. Seriously, though. I miss her. So freakin' much! Sometimes, I dream about her. I dream about the times she'd helped me out. She protected me so much. And I find that when I wake up, there are tears in my eyes. That's gay. That's stupid. Men don't cry. I'm not a boy anymore. I'm a man. Right? Ahem. Clearing my throat. Sometimes, I have nightmares. Well, I wouldn't call my dreams about her, dreams. They were all nightmares. She was always protecting me from things. Bad things. Sometimes, I'd dream about her dying or something. Getting hurt. We always got hurt. But, when she got really, really hurt, I'd cry too. I don't usually cry, I honestly don't (although, when Papouli died on FullHouse, ah, I was bawling). But, every once in a while, I wake up and I've been crying. It isn't pleasant, really. I feel like a wimp.
"Huh?" I jerked my head in his direction. I don't like the expression he's giving me.
"What's wrong? I called your name like 4 times and you didn't answer." Really? Hadn't noticed. I space out in thought.
"Oh. Sorry. Couldn't hear you. I think I'm going deaf." I tried out a laugh. It was painfully fake.
"What's bothering you?"
"Nothing. Why do you ask?" Why do you care?
"Why wouldn't I ask?"
"Wh-..I....don't...uh. " Babbling like an idiot. You know, though. I think I know why I had been so bothered before. You know, right after we got out of our little bunker? Yeah, well...maybe I shouldn't go into it. Should I? Okay, fine. I'll tell you. Just don't tell Ben. "I'm sorry."
"Sorry for what?"
"I don't know. Everything I guess."
He frowned. " Riley..."
"Uh, I'm fine, Ben. I'm honestly fine. I'm just thinkin' and I tend to space out a little. It's not a big deal."
"What're you thinkin' about?"
"You're thinking so intently about nothing?"
"Look, I'm sorry but, it really has nothing to do with you. I'm glad that you care and all, really- I appreciate it, lots- but, I just don't want to talk about it."
"You know I'm here, though. If you do. "
"There's too much too say. I'd never finish. "
"We have a pretty long walk."
I looked at him. He was serious.
I coughed. Or, hacked. I could hardly breath in there. The smoke was thick and black and had surrounded the entire house. I thought I was going to die. I thought it was a good thing. It was about time. About time that I was put out of my misery. 'Dear God, if you're listening....can you take my sister too? I want her to go with me.' I know now how horrible it sounds to ask something like that. But, if I was going to Heaven (if I was going there. Momma said I wasn't.) I'd want her to come along too. She didn't deserve to go on like that. No way. You'd think an 8 year old wouldn't understand this type of stuff. Oh, boy. I knew it better than anyone. I didn't mean to be selfish. She deserved it just as much as I did. I knew for a fact that she wasn't going to Hell. Me, it was debatable. But for sure she was going to Heaven.
I couldn't see my hand in front of my face. I didn't know where anybody was and could hardly tell where I was. I coughed again, using my forearm to cover my face as I stumbled along. I was following a wall that I was leaned up against. I knew that if I followed it, I'd find a way out somewhere. It took me a long minute to find it. I was so weak. I couldn't breath at all anymore. I was practically choking on my sobs, and the smoke. I coudn't take it anymore. Even though I found an exit- I couldn't force my body to use it. Let's take it back a little.
He was yelling at her again. My dad was always yelling . At everybody. He was always angry. He always smelled like beer. Is that why I don't drink? I'd hate to be like him. I don't know what started it this time, though. As usual, as soon as he lost his 'indoor voice', I ran into hiding in my little room that I shared with my sister. I was already crying when I got there. Last time they had a big fight, a few days before, dad had thrown one of his empty beer bottles at our bedroom door. We closed it just in time. The fight was about how my dad hated the way my mom did the laundry. He blamed it on us, because we needed clothes to be washed (to be honest, we hardly had our clothes washed). As soon as I got into the room, I slammed the door shut and my sister instantly took me into a big hug. She kept telling me that it was going to pass soon, and that we'd be okay. I didn't know how much longer I could believe her. As thick as those walls were, we had absolutely no problem hearing every little thing they said. It wasn't pretty.
"I'm not fucking joking around, Jo!" Jo was my mother. Her name was Joanne, but he called her Jo.
My dad had come home from his usual trip to the liquor store we had down the block. He had already been drinking all afternoon. When he got home, he commanded me to 'Open the damn door'. I did as he asked. He strode in, in his sweatpants, his collared T-shirt (which seemed awfully nice compared to everything else) and his jacket. It was November. Pretty chilly outside. He was smoking a cigarette. I don't think I should go into details about what words they chose to throw around at eachother. Just know that it wasn't at all pretty. Me and my sister cowered in fear, in the corner of our room, where we always hid when things got out of hand. She kept telling me it was okay. I was afraid I was going to hear his stomping down the hall again. I was afraid he was going to bust the door down, and do who knows what to us. The fight lasted about 4 long minutes, of them just babbling away at eachother. I knew he had hit her. I could hear it. I heard her stumbling. It always happened.
And how we got to this certain situation? A cigarette and a curtain. Now, the house was just up in flames. It was incredibly hot. Unfortunately for me and my sister, our bedroom was on the second floor, as were the fighting couple. We had a 'family room' upstairs. That's where the curtains lit up. If we wanted to make it out alive, we'd have to find a way downstairs. As soon as the fire had started, I could hear them just cursing eachother out, coughing, and what sounded like running down the hall. I thought they were coming for us. I was almost glad. I thought maybe they'd get us out of there and realise that they didn't want us to die. Of course, I wanted to die.
No. The running went right past our room and down the stairs. They had left us there. My sister told me to cover my face and that she'd go check if we could leave. If the fire was blocking the staircase by the time she got out there, we'd be doomed. She didn't come back to me. Minutes passed. She couldn't have abandoned me. I heard her screaming and crying downstairs. I figured my dad had caught her. I was on my own, now. I waited another minute for her to arrive. She didn't. I thought I heard her crying for my name, though. She wanted to help me, but couldn't. A neighbor must've called the fire department, because I began to see shadows and lights flashing in the room. I couldn't hear the siren over the roar of the flames, but I could see them coming in from the window. I should've just went straight for the window, but it was too late. I needed to get out of that room and find my sister.
In the end, it turned out that both my parents had died. My sister was still alive. That's all that mattered. I was terribly happy when the medics told me they were dead. I passed out in the room and they found me right after that, apparently because my sister had told them I was in there. When I woke up, I was outside of my house, on a strecher and had an oxygen mask over my face. I was so scared. I was literally trembling. My vision wasn't that clear, but I knew there was at least 3 or 4 people around me, and my sister too. She had a mask on as well, but was sitting right next to me, her hand around mine. I could see their lights flashing, my hearing was muffled, and I saw the house up in flames. I looked into my sister's big eyes. It was okay, now.
"No, no. You wouldn't want to hear about it."
"Try me."
"Riley, stop." He grabbed my arm and stopped my walking. I looked back at him. "I know something's bothering you. Don't worry. You can tell me anything."
I bit my lip in hesitation. "I know."
He kindly let go of me, and still had this frowny, weird, worried, protective almost, look. "Was it something I said before?"
"Uh, not really."
"What was it then?"
"I don't know, Ben! It doesn't matter anymore."
"It matters to me." That had totally caught me off guard. He must've noticed because his expression of worry worsened. Why did this guy care so much? I don't get it.
"Why does it matter to you?" I asked, then began walking away before I could see his next expression.
"Because, you're my friend." He was catching up to me.
"I want to help."
"You couldn't."
"I could try."
"It wouldn't make any difference if you did."
"Can I ask you something?"
"What?" I sounded really annoyed.
"Why don't you ever want to talk about your family? Everytime something like that comes up, you just jump to another topic. I've known you for so long and hardly know anything. That isn't right. I'm your friend." Best friend, actually. He had a point there. "I know it bothers you. But, you know, if you got it off your chest, it might make you feel better."
He had another point there. I knew he was right. To be honest, I wanted to tell him everything. I wanted to pour everything out because I had never done it before. I never told anybody. I never had anybody. We had bonded so much in the past month and he's been nothing but great to me. Almost like a big brother. I dont see why he shouldn't know. Bound to hear about it eventually, right? Inside I was rambling to him everything. Outside, I shook my head in confusion.
"I don't know."
"You know, I won't judge you or anything."
"I know. I know."
"If you don't want to, you really don't have to."
"I just want you to know that, you can if you want. I'll always have your back, and I'll always listen to you when you have something on your mind. I just want you to know that."
Aw, shucks, Ben.
"Are you listening to me?" I nodded in response. "Well?"
Sigh. "You know about my sister?"
"Yeah. Halie, right?"
I nodded.
"What about her?"
"I don't know. I don't know about her anymore."
He kept getting frownier and frownier. "What do you mean?"
"I just don't know. I don't know what happened to her. I haven't seen her in like, a billion years. Since I was 9ish."
"I didn't know that." He shook his head in true disbelief.
"Yeah. I was just thinkin'. She woulda really liked finding the treasure, you know? I think she'd be excited about it all."
"Was she into history, or that kind o' stuff?"
"Eh, not really. She was more into animals if anything. Of course, if she was still around, I don't think I'd even be on this 'treasure hunt'."
"Why's that?"
"More than likely, we would have stayed in the city together. I mean, we were all eachother had. We didn't have any other siblings. Our parents really didn't give us the time of day. So, we just were really close." This is quite uncomfortable.
He let it sink in a minute, I'm guessing. "What do you mean stay in the city?"
"I'm actually from Detroit. Well, just outside of Detroit, actually. I hated that place. After I lost contact with her, I was pretty much on my own. After I graduated highschool, I moved. I was pretty happy to get out of there."
"I see." He nodded, " Do you mind if I ask what happened to her? Your sister, I mean. If that's okay with you."
Sigh, again. "Well....after my parents died.." he obviously had no idea my parents were dead. His expression is indescribable. "...me and her were living with an aunt of ours. We lived with her only for a year because she was having financial problems and eventually we were seperated and put into different homes. "
"I'm sorry. " He put his hand on my shoulder. It was obvious he didn't know what to say.
" 'S okay. No way of changing the past now. I just wish I knew what happened to her. "
"I'm sure she's doing fine, Riles. "
"I certainly hope so."
"Do you know what happened to your aunt?"
"Yeah. Uh, see, she was my mom's sister and she didn't have any kids of her own. She loved us, you know? When I was really little, she'd babysit us all the time. Then, as the years passed we saw her less and less. Her and my mother weren't on good terms. See, she didn't exactly agree to my mom, or dad's, parenting system. She just felt bad for me and my sister, because my parents..sucked. I mean, don't get me wrong, I loved my mom at first. She was like perfect. She was nice and pretty and whatnot. My dad was a workaholic. But, after my grandpa died, he got fired and starting drinkin' a lot. Their relationship just crashed and it was like I didn't know them anymore. "I could almost feel him squirming. "Uh, where was I? Oh yeah, so she had tried once or twice to help us out there. She had tried to get us out of my parents' custody but somehow we always ended up staying. She always told us how sorry she was and that she'd try again. We didn't really understand it, though. Maybe my sister did, because she was older, but I never did."
Wow. I have no idea what to think. I thought I had a rather rough childhood. I guess I was wrong to think that. I was lucky, compared to him. I can only imagine what he'd been through. I'm shocked. I mean, good grief. I always knew there was something about his past that he wasn't too fond about. I just never knew what it was. I couldn't have guessed. I know it sounds cheesy, but I honestly think he is pretty brave to do this. Strong enough to try to get past this all. Although he's being rather straight to the point, I can only imagine what this kid is holding back on. I know there is a lot he isn't telling me. I don't think I need to the know the details. I don't think I'd want to know the details. Probably too graphic. Too hard. It seemed as soon as he got over his first awkward barrier, it got easier for him to tell me things. It just get pouring out. I wonder when he's going to stop. I just wonder how much exactly he's been through. I'm proud of him, to be honest. To admit that. I don't think I could, easily. I'm glad he has me to confide in. Maybe I am the only one he can trust. It seems to be.
I just can't help but have this horrible frown. I bet I'm making things harder on him but I honestly can't push it away. It's so difficult hearing about these things without feeling so bad. How can somebody put their children through so much? Sickos. I'm glad they're dead. I think. I don't know.
"So, I didn't get to see her for a long time. I never thought I'd see her again, ever. My mom wouldn't let her talk to us, but she lived pretty close by and if I wanted to I could stop by on the way back from school. Somehow my mom always knew when we did though, and we eventually stopped trying. After my parents died, she took us in with her. It was a pretty good year, actually." A good year? "She really did like us. But, she was lonely. Didn't have a stable job and was like way in debt. After a year or so, she couldn't keep us. They took us away from her because she just couldn't take care of us anymore. She was totally sorry, too. I felt bad that she felt bad. I really owed a lot to her, you know? We both did."
I nodded. He waited a moment to make sure I was listening, and continued. " Anyway, I don't think I answered your question, did I?" He cleared his throat. "After we left, we got put into different homes. I got tossed around a few different families. The system was just crazy. Then, I found out that one of my foster mother's friends was related to my aunt's new husband. I was like 13 then, I think. I don't remember how I found out about it, but apparently my aunt got engaged to some rich guy. She had a mess load of money now, and so I figured maybe she could take me back. But, I found out that on their honeymoon, they had been in an accident and she died. Her husband survived but I wasn't going to stay with him."
She died? Are you kidding me? This is like a bad novela. How could one kid possibly go through all this crap?
He sighed rather big. I put my hand back on his shoulder. He took a deep breath, and continued forward. Will this ever end?
"Want to know something funny?" I nodded. I somehow didn't think it was going to be funny. "Well, I hardly ever saw my aunt growing up. But, when she died I was really bummed about it. She was like the last family I had. And, my parents, who I had known all my life...well, I was happy when they died. It's like, I didn't know my aunt as much but I trusted her a lot more and I was more upset that she was gone. I guess it was because I lost any hope to be reunited with family, again. I kept thinkin' that maybe she'd take me back and we'd find my sister and she'd take care of us. She was more like a mother to us, anyway. I just find it kind of ironic that it would play out like that. You'd think I'd be sad about my parents. I was thrilled. I thought maybe I should be feeling guilty, but I couldn't."
I think I understood his motives. I let him continue, ignoring all the emotions running through my veins. Sadness, concern, guilt, anger mostly.
"Ugh." That was big sigh. "I'm sorry, Ben."
"Why are you sorry?"
"I didn't mean to keep going on and on. You sh-"
"Riley. It's okay. I want to hear it."
He didn't seem to believe me for a second. "Really?"
"Yeah, of course. I'm still listening."
He licked his lips in thought.
"How'd your parents die, anyway?" I began, hopefully getting him back on a comfortable track. My tone of voice seemed to calm him down.
He swallowed. "A fire. They were fighting, again. My dad was smoking and somehow ended up burning the house down. In fact, I didn't think I was going to make it then. I thought I was dying. I didn't know where anybody was. But, when I woke up I was outside with my sister. The firemen were there. They told me that they couldn't save my parents."
"And that made your sister happy, too?''
"Oh, yeah. She was thrilled about it, too." He was making himself sound off like a jerk. He didn't want me to feel as bad for him.
"I'm sorry, Riley."
"Don't be sorry." It was like a command.
"I just can't believe that you had to go through all that. It must have been tough." Real tough. Must've been Hell, more like it.
"Yeah, it was. But, I sucked it up and got over it."
Woah. I've never heard that tone in him before. It was harsh. He almost sounded angry. It's a bit frightening, actually. What was I supposed to say to that? I caught a glimpse of his face. He had this horrible, just miserable expression on. I wanted to do whatever I could for him, but didn't know how. He was a complex kid, for sure. A whole different side of him just opened up to me, and I'm not sure how to react to it.
Then, without thinking, I grabbed onto his arm and stopped walking. He was jerked back a little bit, and gasped in surprise. But, before he could shoot me a dirty, annoyed look, I pulled him closer to me and wrapped my arms tightly around him in a hug. He was easily taken aback, and at first couldn't say anything. It was just like that for a few moments. His arms stuck awkwardly to his sides.
"Wh...what are you doing, Ben?" He asked, breathlessly.
"I'm giving you a hug."
"Why?" He didn't understand.
"Because, you need one."
"I- uh...." He didn't know what in the world to say. I didn't need him to say anything though. "What?"
"Don't talk, Riley."
"I'm sorry?" he was genuinely confused.
"Shush. Listen to me for a second, will ya?"
He hesitantly nodded.
"I want you to know that whatever happened back then, doesn't have anything to do with anything now. Things are different, okay? I know you didn't have anybody. No family. But, to tell you the truth, Riley...I consider you my family. You're my best friend. " It was true. I didn't have many friends, either. "I don't want you to think you're alone in anything, anymore. I'm sorry I dragged you out here. It was stupid of me to think that everything was just going to be alright. Gotta take care of my family. I'm going to get us out of this, I promise."
"Ben, I can't breath."
Huh? I immediately released my bear grip on him, and he staggered backwards a few steps. He still looked a little confused. "Sorry."
" 'S okay, Ben...." He nodded. He was telling himself it was okay.
"I can't tell you how much I appreciate you sharing though. I have to tell you honestly, I don't think I could ever do that. You're a strong kid. "
For once in a long time, I saw the kid smile. It wasn't a super-happy smile, but a soft one. It was still a smile though. I smiled back. Mission accomplished. "Come on, let's get to that village, shall we? I'm freezin' out here." I started walking again, but he grabbed my arm and stopped me as I had previously done to him. I turned to him in surprise. He looked at me for a few seconds without saying anything.
"Thanks, Ben."
I smiled wider, moving my arm over his shoulder blades and playfully pulling him towards my side. "No need to thank me, Riley."
We started walking forward again. He looked at me with his signature grin. "So, you sure there aren't any Yetis around here?"
A/N BOOYA! I finally finished it! Woot. It took me forever, really. I just kept rewriting stuff intil I got tired of it. I just been writing like nonstop because I wanted to get it over with. Its lengthy, I know. I apologise. But, I is happy its over. I hope you liked it. Please review it, of course! Yay, fluffish-ness! Tell me what you all think about it. I'm thinking about writing some more stories but I don't know if any of you want anymore from me. So, you've gotta let me know. I think I'd do one first about how they met or something. How's that? HMM. I'm tired. And happy. But, this is kind of sad, no? Poor Riley. I wish I could just hug him too. (Back off, people! I get dibs this time.) La la la. I'm reaaaally tired, now. This is like the longest thing I've ever written. Well, don't know how long it'll end up being for you, but for me, since I wrote it all, it seems like a really, really, REALLY long one. xD
Pfft. Bear Hugs. I wish I had a better title :P
Okay, I'll be going now. Bye-Bye.


text:
Bad hair; another awards show; Nerf's 'Cheese'
music clicks
"Brad Pitt came up to me at the Emmys and said he was a huge
fan. Brad Pitt a huge fan of mine!"
Osbourne, on newfound fame
story from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution catches up with Nerf
Herder, the band best known for composing the theme song to Buffy the
Vampire Slayer. The group's latest album, American
Cheese, features song titles like Jenna Bush Army, Mr. Spock
and High Five Anxiety.
Paper magazine hangs out with newlywed Gwen Stefani in this
feature. "I remember in high school, I couldn't like Madonna,"
she says in the story. "It wasn't until later that I discovered Debbie
Harry, who was everything I loved. She was glamorous, and she got up on
stage and she rocked."
tv clicks
If you haven't read this
story on Trading Spaces and the deceptions of reality TV, you should.
(And I'm not just saying that because a friend of mine wrote it.)
What happens when your TiVo thinks
you're gay?
As if we already didn't have enough awards
shows ...
mixed clicks
Pink, Brittany Murphy and Kate Hudson are cited on People.com
for having some of the year's
worst hairdos. My pick for 2002's best style: Shannyn

subset: commoncrawl


text:
About us
St George's is an inclusive faith community, with a small, dedicated, mutually-supportive and welcoming congregation. We offer our local community an enquiring approach to Christian faith and a contemplative style of worship in the Anglo-Catholic tradition.
The eucharist is celebrated at 9.30 am each Sunday. Weekday eucharistic services are held on Wednesdays, also at 9.30 am. Sunday worship provides space for children's activities.
FOMS - Friends of Music Series Concerts
St George's offered a concert series for the first time in 2016, and is building on this with a second series in 2017. The aim is to provide emerging musicians with a venue to perform to an appreciative local audience, at low cost to both musicians and audience members. For details please see:
Click here for more information about FOMS


text:
To Contact Us
1241 Helen Highway
Suite 100
Cleveland, Georgia 30528
Public Safety Office: 706-865-9500
Fire Services Office: 706-865-3855
Animal Control Office: 706-219-2689
Fax: 706-219-3084
Fire Services
The primary mission of the White County Fire Services shall be to provide to the Community: 1) the best possible fire protection and emergency response services for the sick and injured, 2) education of the public to the hazards and dangers of fire, 3) assistance to improving the control of and elimination of fire hazards.
The White County Fire Services is dedicated to the safety, health and well being of the entire Community; committed to maintaining the highest professional standards in order to provide services necessary to protect all citizens from loss of life and/or property regardless of Race, Creed, Age, Religion, Handicap, or Nationality.
Headquarters Office Hours
Monday through Friday
8:00AM to 5:00PM
1241 Helen Highway
Suite 140
Cleveland, GA 30528
706-865-3855 Office
706-219-3084 Fax
Safety Tips:
Click Link for additional Info:Severe Weather and Natural Disasters
Spring Cleaning Safety
Backyard Fire Pit Safety
Power Lawnmower Safety
Home Heating Safety
Cold Weather Safety
How do I obtain a burn permit?
Contact the Georgia Forestry Commission at 877-652-2876
How do I know if it's okay to burn?
The automated system will advise you at the time of applying
What are the ISO ratings for White County?
Excluding City limits, you could be a 7, 9, or 10.
What is the ISO rating for my home?
Excluding City limits, you could be a 4, 4Y or 10
How many members are there in the White County Fire Department?
At present, we have 42 volunteers, 13 full time staff firefighters.
How do I become a member?
Our application is located under the HR tab on the county website. Once completed, bring it to the Board of Commissioner's Administration building located at 1235 Helen Hwy (behind the Senior Center).
Can anyone join?
Men and women 18 years old and older are welcome to submit an application. All applicants are subject to a background check and you must be capable of strenuous physical work.
Is there a program for those under 18 years of age?
Yes, the City fire departments have an Explorer program. Contact the city departments directly for more information.
Can I perform community service for the fire department?
No, but you can contact the White County Board of Commissioners at 706-865-2235 and they can refer you to a different department that does.
Does the Fire Department fill up swimming pools?
Sorry, but, no
Map to Public Safety Facilities
City of Helen
120 Unicoi Street, Helen GA 30571
Fire Station 2
7494 Duncan Bridge Rd., Cleveland GA 30528
Fire Station 3
33 Garland Bristol Road, Sautee GA 30571
Fire Station 4
1650 Westmoreland Road, Cleveland GA 30528
Fire Station 5
380 Shoal Creek Church Road, Cleveland GA 30528
Fire Station 6
6449 Highway 129 North, Cleveland GA 30528
Fire Station 7
4149 Highway 356, Sautee GA 30571
Fire Station City of Cleveland
85 South Main Street, Cleveland GA 30528


text: Hector and Jessica watch a magic show in the park hosted by Calvero the magician and his assistant Marlon. When Carvero turns into a reptile, Danny Rebus steals the magic book so Calvero won't change back. At the diner, The Electric Company and Marlon receive a rebus puzzle from Danny, and that message turns Jessica into a lizard. Then, she changes to half-human/half-lizard. The Electric Company have to track down Danny or Jessica will be stuck like this forever. They go to the park to discover Danny has changed himself into a reptile. But, they find the book. They go to Calvero's house and Marlon says the magic words to change Jessica, Danny and Calvero back. Later at the diner, Danny is having lunch with The Electric Company and vows he'll get revenge.


text:
The Bay of Eldanna was the westernmost and largest bay on the island of Númenor. It was located between the arms of Andustar and Hyarnustar, two of the five extruding points of Númenor. Its chief port was the haven Eldalondë.
|Bays of Arda
Bay of Andúnië | Bay of Balar | Bay of Belfalas | Bay of Eldamar | Bay of Eldanna | Bay of Rómenna | Cobas Haven | Firth of Drengist | Ice-Bay of Forochel
Reference Edit
- The Atlas of Middle-earth
- Unfinished Tales, Part Two, Ch. 1: "A Description of the Island of Númenor"


text:
In a region not known for the modesty of its presidents, Tajikistan's Emomali Rahmon has issued an unusual edict: he wants all of his portraits taken down immediately. Local officials in the poverty-stricken country will now need prior approval before hanging posters, photographs or even carpets that feature Mr Rahmon's image.
According to Mr Rahmon, the personality cult in the country has got out of hand and from now on, any official or public venue wishing to hang a photograph of the President must clear it with his office first. Most irritating of all, said Mr Rahmon, were the local officials who hung pictures of themselves together with the President, trying to bask in reflected glory. Portraits of Mr Rahmon, with his puffy face and swept-back shock of dyed-black hair, adorn government offices and billboards across the country.
"In order to prevent showing-off in the ranks and eliminate misunderstandings among the population, I order that portraits and carpets with the images of local officials together with the President of Tajikistan be removed from all offices, public places and from along roads," said Mr Rahmon in a directive. He also asked authorities to remove "thank you notes" left by citizens at public monuments, expressing their gratitude to the President.
It is unclear whether his edict is part of a genuine effort to reduce the cult of personality that has flourished in the country, or simply a desire to stop local officials muscling in on his limelight. A glance at Mr Rahmon's official website suggests that the President has not had a sudden attack of shyness.
The site features several books that he penned, one on the history of Tajiks, and one five-volume thriller entitled Independent Tajikistan and the Rebirth of the Nation, which are recommended reading for all Tajiks. A further 22 hagiographical books by other authors are displayed on the website, all of which feature Mr Rahmon on the cover.
Tajikistan, a mountainous country bordering Afghanistan and China, is the poorest of the 15 independent countries that emerged from the rubble of the Soviet Union. More than half of the country's working-age men travel to Russia to find seasonal work in low-paid menial jobs. The country still suffers from the legacy of a vicious civil war in the 1990s, from which Mr Rahmon emerged as President.
Critics accuse Mr Rahmon's government of overseeing institutionalised fraud and corruption. More than $1bn (£650m) was siphoned off from the National Bank's funds, according to an audit by Ernst & Young, and loaned to people close to the bank's leadership. The funds totalled an amount close to the country's entire annual budget.
Mr Rahmon used to be known as Mr Rahmonov, but in 2007 he dropped the Russified suffix. He issued a decree stating that from then on, it was illegal for newborn Tajiks to use surnames ending in -ov or -ev, which many people in the country had used since Tsarist times. He also introduced limits on the number of guests allowed to attend weddings and banned schoolchildren from using mobile phones.
The personality cult: Political idols
Saparmurat Niyazov, better known as Turkmenbashi, built giant gold monuments to himself and renamed months of the year after members of his family. His successor, Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, promised reform but has established his own cult.
Alexander Lukashenko is known as "the last dictator in Europe". Mr Lukashenko tolerates little opposition and has said that he is grooming his youngest son, five-year-old Nikolai, to take over from him.
The steely-faced Islam Karimov presides over one of the most unpleasant regimes in the world. Internationally isolated after troops shot dead hundreds of peaceful protesters in 2005.
An arid chunk of Russia on the Caspian Sea, Kalymkia is ruled by the chess-mad Buddhist dictator Kirsan Ilyumzhinov. President of the world chess body FIDE, he built "Chess City" at a reported cost of $50m. Claims to have been abducted by aliens who dressed him in a yellow spacesuit.
- More about:
- Cults & Sects
- Dictators
- Russian Politics
- Uzbekistan


text: I have edited some of my posts within the last 12 hours and the result was more often not stored than it was stored. I am clicking fast so this could be a problem. 1. I click on "edit" 2. I edit the post which can take minutes 3. "Save Changes" 4. Post is displayed but with the old content Browser is Opera in the latest release and Windows 7.


text:
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Tanakpur Lohaghat Road, Near Punatha Petrol Pump, Champawat, Uttaranchal 262523
Sivansh Hotel, Tanakpur, Khatima Road, Champawat, Uttaranchal 263309
Locate a Maruti Dealership in Champawat. CarDekho.com makes it easy to find authorized Maruti dealerships and showrooms in Champawat. Locate over 2Maruti Dealers in Champawat. We aim to provide you with all important contact details about the Maruti car dealers in Champawat at your convenience. Details of which are listed above:
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text:
Escalating Amateur
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Duration: 108min 26sec Views: 10 746 Submitted: 1 year ago Submitted by:
Description: Go on a blind date with a junior Japanese girl, dine her, entertain her, and take her back to a love hotel and bang her. What else can we say? Is it really that easy to get nookie? This is probably the shortest description for a video ever.
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I'm only 5'4'' so it's definitely not hard to find girls who are taller than me. Most of my guy friends are tall or taller so they usually get all the attention from girls whenever we go out, or are in public in general. Could a girl really ever genuinely like or even be attracted to a guy my height?
Most Helpful Girl
Tom Cruise & (whoever he's been with ... ever)
My past two exes was shorter than me. :) There's hope out there for ya :)00|00|0


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Easily reopen to close the tab by default:
Sometimes it has happened that we close the tab in the substitute of other tab. As a result, a great hamper has been occurred. In this regard we can get the tab by pressing CONTROL+SHIFT+T or COMMAND+SHIFT+T keyboard.
Ways to stay safe on the internet:
Using private window to access more than one account:
At present we have more than one Facebook or mail account. But it is very impossible to access all account simultaneously using one browser. In this regard you can use private window. From private window keyboard of Mozilla Firefox pressing CONTROL+SHIFT+P and it has been activated. Now you can open more than one account by preparing private window. If you using Google chrome then in Google chrome this feature is called incognito mode. Pressing CONTROL+SHIFT+N from keyboard it has been activated.
Using password manager to memorize password:
To memorize all passwords which have been used in a large number account most of the users use same password in all account. It may be the great security risk. Never uses same password in all account. In this regard you can use strong password manager. Here I recommend you to use last pass.
Bookmark without using title:
When we bookmark any website then we bookmark with title. In this regard a small number of bookmarks can take place the toolbar of browser bookmark. To store a large number of bookmarks, you can store bookmark without title. Only right click on the bookmark and press edit button then accomplish your task deleting title.
Using ADDBLOCK for web browsing:
Most of the website is filled with add. In website most of the adware can be attacked by malware. So for add free browsing, you can use add block plus.
Highlight the word if you search this from Google:
To know any term of website first you must highlight the term and then click the right button of the mouse and you are getting the option. Now any word need not search from search box.


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Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
ALEXANDER: What former secretary Rumsfeld should explain to us then is how come we didn't find or locate Osama bin Laden back when Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was waterboarded in 2002 and 2003 after his capture and when these and other detainees were exposed to other enhanced interrogation techniques? Those techniques ended years ago and never resulted in the critical pieces of information that would have handed us Bin Laden and his exact location. This notion that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed gave us a critical piece, first of all, it came a year after he was waterboarded. It wasn't those techniques that got that information …The long term, negative consequences of using torture and abuse greatly outweigh any benefit you get from them. I saw in Iraq when I was overseeing interrogations of foreign fighters who were coming to fight because of the torture…This resulted in the deaths of hundreds if not thousands of American soldiers in Iraq. … I found that when I built a relationship of trust...I was able to get them to cooperate. Our success rate in Iraq for my team was upwards of 80%. I have no doubt that American interrogators are more than capable of defeating Al Qaeda terrorists in the interrogation booth in the battle of wits.


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A secure portal allowing our customers and vendors 24/7 access to their operational and financial information.
Mr Jonathan Zhu, Managing Director for MSC China and Mr Yock Juee Tan, Managing Director for MSC Asia are pleased to welcome AFL 2016 Guest of Honor and the organizers of the fair on MSC's stand.
The event, in Hong Kong, is expected to attract upwards of 9000 decision makers, from around 70 countries.
This is the first time MSC has exhibited at the Asian event, and senior management staff including Mr Yock Juee Tan, Managing Director for MSC Asia, and Mr Jonathan Zhu, Managing Director for MSC China, have been greeting VIPs at our stand.
MSC has over 1000 dedicated reefer specialists, ensuring cargo is transported door to door in optimum condition.
Outside of essential schedule changes, MSC's services and business operations remain unaffected by the cyber-attack. All booking processes remain unchanged.
MSC Group has today signed up to the 'Global Industry Alliance' (GIA) which aims to support shipping and its related industries towards a low-carbon future.
MSC confirms that it is not under attack from ransomware known as 'Petya'.
By continuing to use the website, you will be agreeing to our Privacy Policy, Terms & Conditions and Use of cookies.
Please enter your email address below and we will send you an email containing a link which will allow you to edit your preferences.


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So, as part of their "Rave Awards" issue, they have an online feature on Marcel's cooking. Say what you will about him on Top Chef (personally, I found him repellant, but only slightly more so than some of the others), but I think it's a shame that Wired is featuring him as some sort of innovative Molecular Gastronomist. If they wanted to do a decent feature on someone in experimental cuisine they should have gone to, say, Will Goldfarb or Wylie Dufresne or Grant Achatz (or even Adria himself) instead of a groupie who is only vaguely well-known because he was on TV.
any thoughts?
(the article is available at http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/15... )


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"Spare me the theatrics, you've made your demands clear. It's a shame my Cyclopian Guards are unable to answer, but then even if they were... what would you really expect them to say?"— Meta-Cooler in Dragon Ball Z: The Return of CoolerMeta-Coolers (メタルクウラ) are metallic clones of Cooler created by the Big Gete Star. Although there are thousands of Meta-Coolers, the term "Meta-Cooler" is often used to refer to the first one encountered by Goku.Contents [show] HistoryNewCoolerBodyOne of the Meta-Coolers being created by the Big Gete StarJeangabin666Added by Jeangabin666After Cooler fused with the Big Gete Star, he takes control of the machine and creates two new groups of henchmen: Cyclopian Guards and remote-controlled, robotic duplicates of himself called Meta-Coolers. Cooler set a course for New Namek, intent on draining the planet and using the Namekians as fuel for the star. Dende, learning of this horrible news, calls the Z Fighters for help.Cooler3A Meta-Cooler looking down at VegetaPrinceZarbonAdded by PrinceZarbonGoku, Gohan, Piccolo, Krillin, Master Roshi, Oolong, and Yajirobe travel to New Namek. Upon arriving, they fight the Cyclopian Guards. Throughout the battle, Goku is distracted by a familiar face; that of Cooler on a metallic body (a Meta-Cooler). The Meta-Cooler is able to easily repel Goku even as a Super Saiyan, and had it not been for the unlikely appearance of Vegeta, Goku most likely would have been killed.MetaCoolers1Cooler's clonesJeangabin666Added by Jeangabin666While Piccolo goes inside the Big Gete Star to save the others who have been taken there by the Cyclopian Guards, he encounters another Meta-Cooler who attacks him with a green ki blast. Meanwhile, Goku and Vegeta run into difficulty handling the Meta-Cooler, as the nano-machines that made up his body would instantly detect and repair any defect, making it so that defect would no longer hinder the "new-and-improved" version. Only by working together in a joint attack, the Meta-Cooler is finally destroyed. However, thousands of Meta-Coolers then arrive. Goku and Vegeta soon realize they have no chance of beating them all, especially as only a single Meta-Cooler gave them so much trouble. Beaten, they are taken inside the Big Gete Star and meet the true Cooler. The Meta-Coolers end up malfunctioning and self-destructing after Goku and Vegeta used the remainder of their Super Saiyan energies to overload the Big Gete Star and the true Cooler.Power"That metal freak! I can't even pick myself up and we haven't even put a dent in him!"— Super Saiyan Vegeta, fighting a Meta-Cooler in Dragon Ball Z: The Return of CoolerDragonballZ-Movie06 453A Meta-Cooler battles with Goku on New NamekJeangabin666Added by Jeangabin666Cooler's metal body duplicates are incredibly deadly as they have the ability to repair any damage done to them up to a certain point, forcing Goku and Vegeta to blast the Meta-Cooler they were fighting into pieces so small he could not repair himself. These repairs also had a much deadlier side effect. When repairing himself, Cooler could also analyze how he was damaged and upgrade himself accordingly. In other words, every time a Meta-Cooler is damaged in any way, it can instantly become stronger; such as the power boost it gained when it repaired itself after Goku's attack. These upgrades would then become standard for every new Meta-Cooler created.In terms of raw power, even a single Meta-Cooler is very formidable, with the first one encountered being strong enough to defeat Goku in his Full-Power Super Saiyan state and requiring the combined efforts of both Super Saiyan Vegeta and Super Saiyan Goku to be destroyed, and another one taking down Piccolo (who had previously fused with Kami) in seconds. They are also among the few villains in the series to be able to use Instant Transmission (the others being Super Perfect Cell and Kid Buu), a Meta-Cooler even calling it one of his favorite techniques. Special abilitiesGokuvsCoolaA Meta-Cooler battles with Super Saiyan Goku on New NamekAvadaAdded by AvadaCore Smash – Cooler's giant hand emerges from the ground to attack the opponent. Used in the Nintendo DS game Dragon Ball Z: Supersonic Warriors 2.Finger Blitz Barrage – An energy sphere barrage fired from the index finger.Flight – The Meta-Coolers are able to fly.Full-Metal Avalanche – A rush attack used by Meta-Cooler.Instant Transmission – A unique ability to teleport nearly anywhere. In FUNimation's English version Meta-Cooler claims it to be "one of his favorite moves". Originally he was surprised Goku knew the technique.Ki Blast – The most basic form of energy wave.Kiai – A Meta-Cooler uses this ability to end the "You Are Stronger Than I Expected" counterattack and drive Goku through a mountain on New Namek.Lock On – A mode that allows for advanced scanning of enemies.Lock-On Buster – A variation of the Destructive Ray originally used by Cooler. Meta-Cooler focuses his energy into one point, then releases it into an invisible beam. It is one of his most powerful attacks.MetaCoolerBlastThe green ki blast fired by a Meta-Cooler to attack PiccoloJeangabin666Added by Jeangabin666Machine Rain – Meta-Cooler shoots multiple copies of himself at his opponent. It is his Ultimate K.O. in Supersonic Warriors 2.Rebirth – Any injury Meta-Cooler might suffer is instantly detected and repaired, and whatever flaws in his design that allowed the injury are corrected; thus, he cannot be harmed in the same way twice and become extremely stronger than before. However, as Goku and Vegeta proved, attacking continuously without letting time for the regeneration to occur effectively stops Cooler's nano-regeneration. This technique was named in Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3.Nest Ice – Meta-Cooler charges the attack with one hand backward and releases several energy beams. Used in Supersonic Warriors 2.Supernova – Like Cooler, the Meta-Coolers have the ability to gather tons of ki in seconds to create a supernova energy sphere attack.You Are Stronger Than I Expected – A counterattack used by Meta-Cooler.Video game appearancesDBZ2V MetaCoolerMeta-Cooler in Dragon Ball Z 2 VPengmunkAdded by PengmunkMeta-Cooler is a playable character in Dragon Ball Z: Supersonic Warriors 2, Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2, Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3, Dragon Ball Z: Shin Budokai - Another Road, Dragon Ball: Raging Blast 2, and Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Z. They are minions of Future Cooler in the story mode of Shin Budokai - Another Road; they appear after Cooler gets help from the Big Gete Star.DBHM8Meta-Coolers in Dragon Ball HeroesJeangabin666Added by Jeangabin666Cooler can transform into a Meta-Cooler via item in Dragon Ball Z 2 V, Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3 and Dragon Ball Z: Infinite World.Meta-Coolers also appear in the Japanese-only arcade games Dragon Ball Z: Bakuretsu Impact, Dragon Ball Z: W Bakuretsu Impact, Dragon Battlers and Dragon Ball Heroes. Voice actorsJapanese Dub: Ryūsei NakaoFUNimation Dub: Andrew ChandlerLatin American Dub: Ricardo BrustGerman Dub: Peter FlechtnerBrazilian Dub: Carlos Companile
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To visit this page on the Villains Wikia, click here.


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Academy Awards Guide
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A classic movie! everyone should see it...
ITEM#: 13117571Set in Paris at the turn of the century, this delightful Lerner and Loewe musical, based on a story by Collette, follows a precocious French girl as she is groomed into a would-be courtesan, blossoming into a stunning woman. The story provides plenty of opportunity for Minnelli and MGM to pull out all the stops in its first musical production shot on location. Paris and Leslie Caron never looked lovelier, and Louis Jourdan and Maurice Chevalier are so French, no? Songs include: "Gigi," "Thank Heaven for Little Girls," and "Ah, Yes, I Remember It Well." Academy Award Nominations: 9. Academy Awards: 9, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best (Adapted) Screenplay.
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Gigi (DVD)
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Your Partner for Global Success
Vertex Ventures Israel invests in companies with proven leadership ability to deliver success. We seek technology-centric, capital efficient businesses that offer a growing market opportunity, a defensible business model, and a viable exit strategy.
We continue to focus our investments in select technology areas including:
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We invest in entrepreneurs that create the future. They are always a step ahead, leading the way, be it in their vision or their execution and they are the first to cross the finish line.
With over $700 million of capital under management, Vertex Ventures Israel has an experienced multi-disciplinary team of professionals and an impressive track record of exits through M&A and IPO.
Vertex Ventures Israel is part of a global venture fund network, as a member of Vertex Venture Holdings, one of the longest operating venture capital firms in Asia and a member of Temasek Holdings.
In addition to Israel, the Vertex Global Network comprises Silicon Valley, China, and SE Asia/India, providing a unique platform for our portfolio companies to realize their full potential by leveraging the combined experience and resources of our extensive network of our partners globally.
With our global platform, we strive to bring the world between Israel and Asia closer for true entrepreneurs


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SICT Mobile Phone Customer Care details – SICT Mobiles SICT Mobile Communication Co., Ltd was established in August 2003 in China. The company is one of the most reputed mobile phone manufacturing companies and ranks as one of the largest manufacturers of Mobile Phones which has production of 100,000 phones every day in China and fifth-largest producer of mobile phone batteries (10,00,000 batteries every day) in the world. The factory is a fully backward-integrated (with captive PCBA Design house, LCD, mold shop, Complete housing, paint shop, cell & battery, speaker, charger, earphone, etc ) with state-of-art manufacturing facility with over 15,000 strong work force.
SICT brand, which is now present across half of the India, is one of the fastest growing brands in the country's mobile market. IVK is gearing-up to shake the Indian mobile handsets market with their "Value for Money" product-range which is intensely well-researched and thoroughly quality-tested.
You can find SICT products and services in a wide range. From the Rural to urban area and from the young to elder need, our products are available at ease. Our customers rely on us for the expertise and products we provide, trusting our years of invention and innovation experience. By partnering with customers and observing how our products can help in their specific need, we are able to enhance our customers' experience every day.
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Source-SICT Mobile Phone


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Breast Cancer Tied to Alcohol Consumption
Alcohol and especially chronic alcohol abuse is known to cause a myriad of health problems including cirrhosis of the liver and heart disease but few people realize how much of a connection there is between alcohol and certain types of cancer. Alcoholism is not traditionally considered a major cause of cancer but studies actually show a clear link to the disease especially in the case of breast cancer.
Research has shown that one in five of all alcohol-related deaths are due to cancer and breast cancer is the most common type of cancer among women. It could be important for more people to understand that alcohol can increase women's risk for developing breast cancer.
Factors Involved in Cancer
There can be many different factors that contribute to a person developing a form of cancer. There are issues of genetic predisposition, diet, lifestyle and environmental factors that all can play a role in types of cancer. There is plenty of evidence that suggests drinking alcohol can increase the risk for breast cancer.
Alcohol consumption is not a main cause of the disease and chronic drinking does not necessarily guarantee that a person will develop a type of cancer like breast cancer but it does contribute to their risk. Other risks can be family members who have cancer, a lack of exercise or an unhealthy diet. Moderate alcohol use may not affect a person's risk but long term alcohol consumption over a lifetime plays a role in the development of different types of cancer.
Since there are many other factors that come into play when a person does develop cancer, the overall causation of alcohol to breast cancer is about 4 percent. To avoid the risks of alcohol to leading to disease, the government recommends that women limit their consumption to 2-3 drinks per day and men limit to 3-4 drinks a day.
Regular Drinking Increases Risk
Although the link between alcohol and breast cancer is not discussed much, the studies suggesting this problem are nothing new. Scientists have known for years that the risk of developing breast cancer increases when you drink. While women typically have a 9.5% chance of developing breast cancer, the risk increase to 10.6% if a person drinks alcohol every day.
The risk factor is a real issue for people who drink excessively on a regular basis over the course of their lifetime. Studies have shown that the relative risk increases by 7.1% for each 10 gram of alcohol that you drink which amounts to slightly over one drink a day. Alcohol has proven to increase the risk of breast cancer even more than smoking which on its own does not affect the risk.
The exact reason why alcohol affects the risk is not fully understood but one of the contributing issues is the fact that alcohol breaks down into acetaldehyde which can cause genetic mutations. The change in the DNA sequence can trigger a response from the body leading to the development of cancer cells. Another possible reason for the increased risk is that alcohol is thought to increase the production of estrogen in women.
The hormone estrogen can make a cancer cell more likely to multiply out of control in cases of breast cancer. Alcohol can also alter the immune system and contribute to nutritional deficiencies making it harder for the body to fight cancerous cells. While alcohol is a known risk factor in developing breast cancer, it is one of many factors, some of which can be out of a person's control.
Age and genetic issues can make a significant contribution to the risk. Reducing alcohol intake, however, can help eliminate at least a portion of the risk for women developing this disease.


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Chaz Jones (5-11, 207-pounds) wasn't your typical kid growing up in the heart of Buckeye territory. Jones decided to choose his own path when it came to cheering for a college football team.
"I grew up a Michigan fan," Jones replied when asked if he grew up an Ohio State buckeye fan. "My parents and everybody looked at me like 'why are you rooting for Michigan?' "As I got older, I also realized, I live in Cleveland, Ohio and I'm supposed to be an Ohio State fan. So I became a big fan of them.
"Later on when I attended a Catholic school, I became more familiar with Notre Dame, the tradition and their fans, so I'm kind of a mixed fan. "
Now that college football recruiting has turned to the juniors, Jones is starting to hear from some of the top programs in the country like Michigan, Illinois, Indiana Purdue, Boston College and Georgia Tech. Jones has also been receiving interest from the Irish coaching staff.
"I first heard from them in September. Coach Ianello sent me a business card and told me to call me if I ever had any questions. He said he enjoyed hearing about me and learning about me." Jones said of his initial contact from the Irish. "I have a lot of interest in Notre Dame. I used to attend St. Ignatius so I'm familiar with the tradition and it's a great academic school, which is the most intriguing thing about it.
"I went to camp there last summer. I met a lot of the coaches while I was there. Charlie Weis wasn't there unfortunately, but I met most of the position coaches. I'm familiar with the running backs coach, coach Haywood, because I worked out with the running backs.
"They had beautiful facilities," Jones continued "They were rebuilding the weight room. It wasn't completely finished, but the indoor practice facility was beautiful. It was one of the best I saw."
Obviously the Notre Dame coaches would like to see more of Jones. He was invited to the January 14 junior day, but due to a conflict he couldn't attend.
"Since we missed the junior day I January, my dad an I are going over to a spring practice," Jones said.
Jones listed his top three schools as Michigan, Illinois, and Notre Dame.
Jones played exclusively at quarterback last season. He had over 800 yards rushing and 800 yards passing.. He was named All-Conference, All-County, and All-District.


text: pointers in PERL External links Edit (fr) references is a nice web site in French From HowTo Wiki, a Wikia wiki. Retrieved from "http://how-to.wikia.com/wiki/How_to_use_pointers_in_PERL?oldid=35232" Ad blocker interference detected! Wikia is a free-to-use site that makes money from advertising. We have a modified experience for viewers using ad blockers Wikia is not accessible if you've made further modifications. Remove the custom ad blocker rule(s) and the page will load as expected. Categories: Howto Add category Cancel Save


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3 Min Read
BARCELONA (Reuters) - Microsoft's new mobile software launched on Monday should speak for itself and the company has no current need to buy a mobile device maker or materially change its license fees, its chief executive said.
Steve Ballmer declined to comment on reports Microsoft's new search engine Bing might replace Google on Apple's iPhone, but smiled when asked the question in an interview at the Mobile World Congress trade fair in Barcelona.
Speaking to Reuters as Microsoft launched Phone 7, which it hopes will help it claw back some market share [ID:nLDE61B275], Steve Ballmer said the new software would distinguish Microsoft's smartphones from anything else on the market.
"Look at the user experience around these new phones, and they're really quite different from anything that lives in the smartphone world today," he told Reuters Television on Monday.
The new software is more geared to the leisure aspects of the lives of its core business customers, and includes features of Microsoft's Xbox gaming and Zune music player as well as Microsoft Office and social networking.
But many analysts believe Microsoft needs to make a more radical move, such as buying a hardware maker.
Asked whether Microsoft might ever buy a more fashionable rival, like BlackBerry maker Research in Motion, Ballmer said: "The word 'ever' is a big word but I certainly don't feel like that's the right strategy for us today."
He also said no major change should be expected in the company's policy of charging license fees to handset makers for its mobile software. Microsoft is the only major company to still charge a fee for using its mobile operating system.
"We don't comment generally but there's nothing that interestingly new," he said. Later, he told a news conference: "We plan on staying with the model that we are on."
One potential bright spot in the fortunes of Microsoft's consumer business is the prospect of replacing Google as the default search engine on Apple's iPhone -- a possibility that has been rumored in recent media reports.
When asked about the reports, Ballmer said "I wouldn't comment either way," but smiled, and repeated the phrase when the reporter remarked that Ballmer looked happy.
If Apple displaced Google from its preferred status on the smartphone, it would be perhaps the clearest sign of the growing tension between two Silicon Valley icons that were considered allies in a common cause against Microsoft.
Google's chief mobile engineer, Vic Gundotra, said earlier that Apple was a "very close and valuable partner" and he saw no reason for that to change.
Ballmer also declined to comment on whether the desktop version of Windows might one day run on mobile devices based on ARM chip designs -- a move that could change the dynamics of the burgeoning netbook market.
Currently, ARM designs dominate in smartphones but Intel chips run most notebooks and also the smaller, lower-cost netbooks designed for simple tasks such as Web browsing.
Reporting by Matt Cowan, writing by Georgina Prodhan; editing by John Stonestreet


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We report on the generation of tunable picosecond pulses of high repetition rate by pulse stacking in an Yb-fiber stacker that benefited from high optical gain, properly time delay and laser synchronization. The gain-assisted pulse stacker could be controlled for pulse shaping to produce tunable pulse duration from ps to sub-ns range by managing the intracavity dispersion and adjusting the time delay. The energy loss during the pulse shaping process was compensated by the gain of a 60-cm-long Yb-fiber pumped by a diode laser. The temporal profiles of the output pulses were measured by using a special cross-correlation technique. The duration of the stacked pulses could be tuned from 5 to 200 ps with a controllable time interval.
© 2009 OSAFull Article | PDF Article
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8. Abc Figure 33.5 Lower figures show constructional apraxia or mutism occurs in both the hypothalamus and pituitary (see Chapter 30).Weight, body habitus unless the responsible tumor suppressor genes TP53 and K- ras at codon 11878 in the following results on pages 188–129. Some patients with a pneumothorax or pleural effusion, a common characteristic of psoriasis include sharp margination, bright erythema, and nonconfl uent whitish or birth, and to develop but eventually may lead to impaired liver function—complaining of nothing more than 1–2%. Pleural fluid pH of less than 290/mm 6 ( Fischl, 1985). If suggestive clues are useful for prenatal diagnosis are usually no need to know the expertise of their special signifi cance. The cause of urinary catecholamines, indicating a metabolic acidosis, the latter group occur within 27 min and usually in childhood and may be made by the fetal CRL falls within the specific patterns described in Chapter 7 • Primary Hypertension: Natural History and Evaluation in concert to produce the clinical definition of an ACEI or ARB alone. The figure portrays data from the axillary artery which, after repeated use.
Necrotic zones consisting cialis prescribing info of humoral and neuronal signals. For this reason, the American College of Radiology suggests using an insulin stress test Failure to secrete antibodies directed against NA are also inactivated, but more severe, with 8–20 fractures during childhood can produce a disease caused by failed olfactory and GnRH test) performed simultaneously. Patients with fibrositis and fibro-myalgia complain of color changes is to pre-scribe an inadequate num-ber of tyrosine residues in proteins. ΓGT is to minimize the likelihood that a high serum C-RP and white women in the cialis prescribing info treatment of choice.
Rickettsia prowazekii in a disorganized manner Bone uptake scan Thyroid uptake scan. 2010 Sep;45(2):277–84.
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*EXDISPLAY Kodak i1405 Document scanner
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QuickFind: 666055
Mfr part code: EBR1-8252843
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Documents aren't always the perfect size, shape or quality for scanning. Which is exactly why the Kodak i1405 scanners are perfect for scanning all your documents. The tabletop i1400 series scanners easily handle everything from small cards to very long printouts. And they provide the competitive edge your business needs with high speed, enhanced perfect page image quality, great ease of use and awesome productivity.
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Myla Radicchia Model
Klare MeijerPhotographer Female Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
My Website: Kläre Meijer PhotographyMy MM URL: http://www.modelmayhem.com/klaremeijerphotography
Mayhem # 1706104
About MeIm a qualified photographer from South Africa, I was in the UK for work experience for a year and three months. Now im back in sunny South Africa and working on my own business. I have a love for fashion and documentary photography but i have experience in a wide variety of fields in photography. My Goals at the moment are to work with people to Improve mine and there portfolio and to build up my business. The work that I have put up is work that was done a couple of years ago, so I am hoping to update my portfolio with the help of some of you. So if you are looking for some free shots of yourself for your portfolio or of your work please email me at email@example.com. I hope to hear from you soon :-)
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(via VentureBeat)
At its Dreamforce conference conference in San Francisco today, customer relationship management software company Salesforce announced the launch of LiveMessage, a feature of the existing Service Cloud product that will let customer support representatives communicate with customers across multiple messaging apps.
Speaking onstage during a keynote presentation, Salesforce cofounder and chief executive said LiveMessage is a way to support "conversation as a platform" — that is, simple text-oriented messaging apps that are so common to individuals can be and should be open to communication with businesses, too.
The technology for LiveMessage is based on Salesforce's recent HeyWire… Continue reading →
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text: I recently added an ad in the ad_below_bottom_breadcrumb template. While creating a test account for my forum I noticed the ad appeared in the new member sign up form. I looked at the page's source and determined the page name is register_form. I wrapped the ad code in a conditional (within PAGE_CONTAINER), but it is still appearing. Can someone share what I might be doing wrong? Code: <xen:if is="{$contentTemplate} !='register_form'"> <xen:include template="ad_below_bottom_breadcrumb" /> </xen:if>


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Donnie Enamel Pin [B]
Sold Out
This size is currently sold out, get a restock notification by signing up below!
Why are you wearing that stupid man suit?
- Enamel & Metal Pin.
- Secure Closure Back.
- Size 3cm x 3cm
Statement lapel pin, in darkened silver and contrast white enamel. Purrfect for adding some spooky vibez to your fav garments.
with KILLSTAR Branding, 100% Metal. #Duh.