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Jaina looked up to the subject line above them. "Oh," she waved her hand to ward off MaryRobinette's foot, "I still have three more days. Right?"
Jerialey nodded. "You're still fine. Hop on the wagon with the rest of the Newbies. We're going to Survivor for basic training."
"Not to alarm you, Mary, but there are some serious continuity issues going on. I didn't want to tell you with so many newbies listening in, but right now they're distracted for a few moments by Jaina's cheerfulness. I'd say we have a couple of minutes, at least."
"I know," MaryRobinette said. "It is kind of entertaining to watch Eadwacer try to hit on her. But I've been trying to figure out what has been going on for a while. At first you were fine after the explosion. Then you collapsed. Then you woke up, lost your memory, and then regained it in time to remember your extensive fencing background AND help hold off the ninjas. I know that our concussion discussion, as well as rhyming brilliantly, gave us all kinds of good information about head injuries, but I think something bigger is going on."
"What do you think it is? I mean, as much as I love being heroic, you have to admit that it's just not right. I'm not too far off newbie status myself...I don't know what to tell the new recruits, and I can't think of any editing technique that will fix this...Unless!"
"What is it, Jeraliey? Notice I actually spelled your name right this time."
"An incident which confers continuity upon a seemingly random and individually written sequence of events! That could turn this whole thing into a harmless, and potentially humorous, plot device! Of course!"
"No, Jeri! You can't mean..."
Jeraliey blinked. "Who are you?"
MaryRobinette shook her head sadly and called Jaina over. "Here, help me take care of our friend."
"What happened to her? She was just fine a moment ago!"
"She turned herself into a subplot to resolve a continuity problem. I imagine she'll weave in and out of lucidity for the rest of the story, or at least until we can cure her. It was a risky move, but I think it worked. And now we have an obligation to her to find a way to get her back to normal."
Jaina looked thoughtful for a moment. Then her eyes widened.
"Mary, I saw a button on my HUB, marked Deus ex Machina! Could we use that?"
A collective gasp issued from the newbies. Jaina became red in the face.
"I just want my friend back, Mary."
"I know you do, hon." said MaryRobinette. "But it would be disrespectful to her to resolve her subplot in such a cheap way. No, we must find a way to resolve it ourselves. That's what she would want."
[This message has been edited by Jeraliey (edited March 22, 2005).]
Mary put a hand on Jaina's shoulder and, shooing a couple of newbies out of the way, made her sit down. "Oh, Jaina, I know you're upset. You've missed out on a lot here, what with being gone for a week and all. But we have an obligation to Jeralieyto make this work for her. Don't you want to save her?"
"Of course I do. I just wish I was a skilled enough writer to figure out how. I feel so... helpless."
"I know, Jaya, I know. But you're not. You've got your HUB, it's time you learned how to use it."
[This message has been edited by Jaina (edited March 22, 2005).]
A short time later, they came upon two figures lying in their path in a crumpled heap. "What now?" said MaryRobinette.
As they got closer, they saw the brash, impetuous newbie, Onepktjoe. He didn't look brash or impetuous now, though. He looked like he hadn't slept in days. Beside him, a blonde girl lay motionless, flower-covered and bloody.
"How did you get here?" MaryRobinette asked.
"Blondy," he said, hooking a weary thumb at the bloody blond lump. "She showed me how to... you know ...take a shortcut. Tremendously useful in that rare spot, but you know, I'd never realized..."
"Just tell me what happened!" said MaryRobinette. "This is no place for digressive dialogue!"
"Right, sorry. Well, my ferret found this machinist's wrench," he said, "and I put an end to her." He smiled slightly and made to throw the wrench aside. "I never did find out who she was, but..."
"Wait, you fool!" MaryRobinette said, jumping from the wagon.
"Sorry, digressing again?"
"No...well, yes...but that's not what I meant," she said. "That's not a machinist's wrench. It's a Deus Ex Machinist's Wrench! It's one of the few things in existence that will pin down an unanchored, god-like plot twist. Don't you realize how useful that might be? Give it to Jaina, in case she gets tempted again, and...did you say, ferret?"
"Yeah," Onepktjoe said, pulling a small furry tube with legs from his shirt. "My ferret...Plotcoupons."
Oh, no! No messing with Plotcoupons in the desert!" said MaryRobinette. "Get in the wagon, we've wasted too much time already."
And they all continued on, trying to figure out what to do about Jeraliey, and what to do about finding Survivor...
[This message has been edited by onepktjoe (edited March 22, 2005).]
TaShaJaRo (who is going to shorten her own name because it's too difficult to type) was moved by Jeraliey's sacrifice. Only a true patriot of the craft would be willing to subject herself to that kind of torture. TaSha tried to think through the racket of the wagon and breath-stealing heat. Was there nothing to be done for the fair lady who risked all for newbies such as herself?
"I've got it!" Everyone turned to look at her and she gulped at her impetuous outburst. "Well, I think I do, anyway. Far be it from me to gainsay you, Captain Mary, but I think we're going in circles." Mary narrowed her eyes at this upstart. TaSha cleared her throat nervously and continued. "A motivated character can carry a story if he knows where he's going. Or she's going, in your case. A character who is motivated, but lost, is only go to travel in intricate circles, that while interesting, inevitably always lead back here," she finished with a sweep of her hand to indicate the endless desert. "What we need is a map. The compass will help guide us but if we don't have a map to tell us where to go. . .we have no hope of surviving. There is plenty of room in the sand here to create the perfect mind map that will lead us out of this mess."
Mary seemed to consider it.
Master Munsil clasped his hands in glee. "They are falling right into my trap! And it was so easy!"
All of a sudden, a prosimity alarm sounded.
"What is that?" he asked as the scene transitioned.
Christine woke with a start, her head still throbbing, her eyes still sensitive to light, her stomach still queasy. How silly of her to have picked the first trimester of her pregnancy to become evil.
It took her a moment to recognize the sound filling her mind. It was the proximity alarm she had set up for point of view shifts! Christine leapt from her bed and went to check that her plans were still intact. She still had her HUB, MaryRobinette and her foolish band of newbies still struggled with the desert, but Munsil seemed to be getting pesky again. She would have to do something about him. She had brushed him off as a nonentity but she had foolishly underestimated him.
Then she finished reading the backstory she had missed while she hid from the light under piles of blankets. They had a Deus Ex Machina Device too! At least they were too noble to use theirs. Christine fingered her own Deus Ex Machina Device. Maybe it would get rid of the migraines so she could think clearly. But no, it only seemed to effect actual story elements. Oh well, it had been worth a try.
"What I really need to do," Christine said to her tabby cats as she went to feed them, "is find Survivor first. Then I can put an end to all this foolishness. If I kill Survivor then eventually the newbies will all figure out the truth -- that they, too, can learn to help one another through the valleys, deserts, and oceans of writing."
"Luke... hump... Jimmy. I know you can hear me. I can tell by the way you post without fear of double posting.
Looking around at the others, Jimmy realized he was the only one that heard the voice.
"Jimmy. Come to the dark side. I see it is strong in you if only you would let it out. I need someone on the inside. There is another tring to wreck my plans and I need you to buy me some time so that I can find out who it is and destroy him."
"But I can't." Jimmy replied. "I am on a quest for Survivor"
"Survivor is a myth; A Boogie Man invented by the veterans to freighten the newbies."
Puzzled, Jimmy responded. "But I've seen his posts. Surely that can't be invented."
"It's just a bogus login one of the veterans pulls the strings."
Jimmy's mind began to swim. His very beliefs shaken to the core.
Then he caught sight of MaryRobinette and it clicked. "... one of the veterans pulls the strings."
"Make a fool of me will they?"
Just then the wagon passed the same dune for the third time and he knew what he must do.
"MaryRobinette!" he shouted. "Look! we have been going around in circles! See! Coming down the dune! Ninjas!!!
Everyone in the wagon turned to look. MaryRobinette was aghast as Jeraliey jumped up and grabbed for her pen...
[This message has been edited by jimmyjazz951 (edited March 22, 2005).]
[This message has been edited by jimmyjazz951 (edited March 22, 2005).]
He advanced on MaryRobinette, the pen trembling dangerously in his grip.
"You've been lying to us all along! This has all been some sort of trick to lead us astray, to destroy our creativity and strand us here without hope of rescue."
"Don't be a fool, Jimmy," shouted TaSha.
The wagon lurched dangerously as MaryRobinette tried to avoid the demented newbie.
A figure rose of the back of the wagon, armed only with the guidelines of critiquing. Jimmy slumped into a heap and RFLong stood over him, shaking her head sadly.
"I go away for a little while and look what happens around here. Is this some sort of mutiny? I had to disguise myself as a newbie to get back in. What has been going on here?"
Christine had no doubt that MaryRobinette and RFLong could handle the insane newbie. Meanwhile, she had bigger fish to fry. Using her Deus Ex Machina device, Christine wrote herself into the story.
She stood on the docks of Hatrack Harbor, well ahead of the band of newbies. Rumor had it that Survivor was out there, somewhere. Christine spotted a ship and made arrangements for the crew to set sail at once.
As the ship left the harbor, Christine looked out over the coast in the direction of the Desert of Doomed Plotlines. Munsil was still there, but she had left her cats at her computer to take care of him.
[This message has been edited by Christine (edited March 22, 2005).]
[This message has been edited by Christine (edited March 23, 2005).]
Somewhere along the winding course of the River of Dropped Threads, Dakota clung to a vine. The vine was short. The vine was slippery in her sweating hands. The vine was the only thing preventing her from falling into the roiling waters and jagged rocks of the river's chasm.
She had been hanging there a long time, and the only thing that kept her from relaxing her grip and forever easing the pain in her weak rotator cuff was the thought that if she survived---IF she survived---vengeance would be sweet. And who, dare you ask, would her revenge so gratifyingly fall upon?
mikemunsil. mikemunsil the rat. mikemunsil the traitor who had lured her here.
"Meet me at the Bridge of Continuity," he had said. "I have a new draft of Bridgetown I want to show you."
"Cool! I'll be there!" Dakota had replied. And she was. Except mikemunsil had no manuscript in his hand. Instead he had a backscratcher--one of those cheap pink plastic ones you can get only at elementary school carnivals. He tackled Dakota and held her down, tore her shoes and socks from her feet and tickled her mercilessly.
"Tell me your email password! Tell me, I say!"
At last, her sides aching from the laughter and the desperate inability to draw another breath, Dakota gasped it out.
mikemunsil stood, an evil leer smearing across his face like jam on a three-year-old. Then his hands, looming large as umbrellas, pushed Dakota into the chasm.
"Mwahahahahaha!" she heard him shriek as she scrabbled for a handhold among the many dropped threads draping over the rock wall. "Now she'll come to me! To me! Maryrobinette will come to me for help, and she'll think it's you all the time! Mwahahahaha!"
"Well, it's been done before, but the path is easily lost and littered with the corpses of those who couldn't keep their plotline strong."
"You mean to say that if we can't keep this storythread interesting, we're ... doomed?"
"Yes," said Jaina as she moved away from the ever approaching Ead, "and we WON'T do it with romantic interest."
"Look!" said Eadwacer, quickly changing the topic and leaving the romance to die in the desert. "What is that which can be seen upon the horizon? It looks like an oasis, perhaps we can relax and recover."
The palm trees were seen by the travelers and the water was illuminated by the sun. The newbies were tired by their long walk and were encouraged by the sight that could be seen.
"This place is not liked by me," was spoken by Jaina, "it seems dangerous."
The oasis was viewed by Mary. "That is called the Oasis of Passivity and it must be traversed by us before the desert can be crossed or Survivor found."
[This message has been edited by Eadwacer (edited March 23, 2005).]
Opening his eyes just enough to get a quick look around, he notices two things. First, RFLong was no longer standing over him and had gone forward to speak with MaryRobinette. Second, Jaina was dirtacted by Eadwacer's advances.
Seizeing on the opportunity, Jimmy reached up into Jaina's HUB and sneaked out the...
MaryRobinette and the other's had their attention pulled by Jerialey's voice. It was easy to see that Jerialey was still not aware of who she was, but some innate since of self preservation had drawn her to Jimmyjazz. She was steered away from him, while he was sat upon by several newbies. "That is one of the newbies. He has been taken by insanity, I am afraid," was said by MaryRobinette.
RFLong's HUB was searched by her. "Well, he can be tied with these, while the way out of the Oasis of Passivity is discovered by us." A set of fantastically colored furry dice were held jauntily by her.
The sight of the dice was causing MaryRobinette to hesitate anxiously. "I don't know. We might wind up with a Tom Swifty."
"Better the enemy that is known by you..."
"Wait!" Was called out by Jaina. "Would we be gotten out of here by this?"
She was crowded around by MaryRobinette and the others. A small hash mark was held by her. She was looking up with a smile. "This can be used to invoke the Raymond Chandler clause, right?"
"'Cut out the boring bits'." MaryRobinette was nodding. "Good thinking. That should be tossed on the ground by you, and the dull traveling scene will be skipped by us."
"What about him." A thumb was jerked by one of the newbies to Jimmyjazz.
"He has been mislead, so he will be brought with us when we can be speaking without passivity."
Without waiting a moment, the small hash mark was thrown to the ground creating a blank space. "This should be crossed by everyone." MaryRobinette said.
The other side of the section break startled all of them. Instead of the edge of the desert, they found themselves outside a surprisingly normal house. The mailbox said, "Amsden".
[This message has been edited by MaryRobinette (edited March 23, 2005).]
"I'm not sure, said MaryRobinette, "but this might be important. Jeraliey?"
"Who?" said Jeraliey.
"Er, never mind, Jaina, go knock and see if she's home."
Jaina walked to the door and knocked several times. When it didn't seem anyone would answer, Jaina looked back at MaryRobinette, shrugged, and then tried the door. It was unlocked.
"Might as well," said Jaina. Then she disappeared inside. The rest of the troop approached, and then crowded around the threshold. After a moment, Jaina came back. "There's nobody here, just a dangerous looking kitty sitting on the computer keyboard."
"This is all very confusing," said MaryRobinette.
"Do you still have that moral compass, MaryRobinette?" asked a much more rested looking Onepktjoe, as he shifted Jimmy from one shoulder to the other.
MaryRobinette pulled it from her pocket to show him she did.
"Hit the GPS," Onepktjoe said. "See if that helps."
MaryRobinette shrugged, and then hit the little red button on the compass...
[I never said the grand plot sychronizer was in good condition! If cutting this didn't fix the scrolling problem, then I don't know how to.][This message has been edited by onepktjoe (edited March 23, 2005).]
[This message has been edited by onepktjoe (edited March 23, 2005).]
"What is it? Where is she?" Jerailey asked.
"I don't believe it," MaryRobinette said. "It looks like she's set off from Hatrack Harbour ahead of us. I wonder what she's up to."
"Let me see," Jerailey said, peering over MaryRobinette's shoulder. She could see Christine's face peering back at her through the tiny GPS screen. In the background, she saw the boat.
The tiny figure in the screen rumaged through something at her side. She seemed to be looking for something. The next second, she pulled out what was unistakably a Deus Ex Machina Device.
"Hey!" MaryRobinette said suddenly. "That looks like mine."
"I don't believe it," Jerailey said.
"It seems as if we've found our nemesis," MaryRobinette scowled. "I wouldn't have believed it of her."
Suddenly, the figure on the screen smiled and waved as if she saw them. She opened her mouth to speak and they could hear her as clearly as if she were there. "Hey, what are you doing at my parents' house?"
"Your parents house?" MaryRobinette asked through gritted teeth.
"Well, my name's not Amsden, only my pen name," Christine pointed out. "Say, what are my kittens doing there? Put them back at my house." She waved the Deus Ex Machina device at them in a threatening sort of way.
"Put them back yourself," MaryRobinette said and she switched off the GPS.
{Thank you}
[This message has been edited by HSO (edited March 23, 2005).]
MikeMunsil sat in his desert pavillion carefully evaluating his master plan. The doomed plotlines of the desert were working; Jeraliey had turned herself into a subplot, that newbie Jimmy had been driven insane by an internal narrator and another newbie, Ray, hadn't even made it out of the cliché storm! It was all so terribly wonderful.
Now to completely cripple MaryRobinette, Mike thought. "Once she'e through the Oasis of Passivity, we'll see how far she gets without those newbies helping her -- besides, I think Survivor could use a cell mate..."
As MikeMunsil considered exactly how he would get MaryRobinette's newbies back to his castle dungeon in Bridgeland, Dread burst into the tent.
"Master...there seems to be a...problem," he huffed.
"What have you done now?"
"It's MaryRobinette, she's disappeared!"
[This message has been edited by Robyn_Hood (edited March 23, 2005).]
While she joined them in searching the house, Jerialey wandered over to the cats, "Hello kitties..." They hissed and spat at her but she did not notice their ire. She set her packet of med school applications down to pet them. The cats, upon seeing important papers, immediately jumped off the keyboard to sit on the packet. Jerialey knelt by them and her gaze fell upon the first page. "Applicant's name..." She picked the paper up, dislodging one of the cats and sat on the floor. The cat climbed onto her lap as she began reading.
Meanwhile, Dakota reached up for the plot thread above her, desperately tying it to the loose plot thread she held. When the two were securely linked, she climbed up and repeated the process. As her hand touched the next thread loose plot-thread, she gasped. It belonged to MaryRobinette and the newbies. As she tied it into the existing string of plotthreads, Dakota wondered how MaryRobinette had forgotten that she was caught in a flashback.
Munsil and his plastic backscratcher! When she caught up to him -- and she would, so help her-- she would take that evil tickling stick and jam it--
No, I need to think positively. I can't let my anger control me.
Yet the text of an early draft of "Bridgetown" exploded out from her memory and into her mind's eye. A vein throbbed on her temple... her fingers twitched.
"How dare he!" she screamed.
Rage. Unadulterated and fiery rage. She let it wash over her, bathed in its warmth. "Munsil..." she said without realizing it. "Mike Munsil, I'll get you for this if it's the last thing I do!"
Then the blackness consumed her.
Thanks a real bunch, guys! I suppose I'll end up dying a gruesome death at the hands of an editor?! Redlined into oblivion with that most cruel of editorial cuts, the dreaded "I sincerely hope you have a day job."?
"Whoever this chick is," said Jeraliey, "she's so full of crap that her eyes must be brown." She filed the packet in a desk drawer and wandered back to join the others.
[This message has been edited by Jeraliey (edited March 23, 2005).]
"What's this?" asked MaryRobinette suspiciously. Was it a double mocha latte from Coffee People? Or a soy Vanilla Frapacchino from Seattle's Best?
"No," Elan said. "It's more lethal than that. It's a triple espresso, straight, from Starbucks. And you will find that once it detonates, you - and everyone within a hundred feet of you - will be covered with a fog of James Mitchner minutia of detail. It will bury our villains, and most likely any kitties who have wandered astray. We'll be able to make our get-away under its cover. But I beg you, MaryRobinette, don't use it unless you are desperate. The espresso will keep you up all night, but you won't be able to write because you will be so jittery."
[This message has been edited by Rocklover (edited March 24, 2005).]
[This message has been edited by Rocklover (edited March 24, 2005).]
Crossing her arms over her chest she said, "Now did anyone find the Nom De Plume I asked them too?"
"Who knows?" she told herself. "I might even find Survivor out here! That would show 'em!"
With these comforting thoughts circulating throughout her sleep-deprived brain, she stumbled inevitably closer to the Quicksands of Recycled Remakes.
MaryRobinette pulled the feather out of the brim. A drop of ink beaded at the tip. "This must be Christine's Nom de Plume! Does anyone have any paper?"
One of the newbies stepped forward, holding a thick stack of paper in his hands. "I found this in a desk drawer," he said.
The Nom de Plume flew out of MaryRobinette's hand and began writing on the top page. Everyone gathered around to see what it was writing. "Holy mackerel!" shouted MCameron. "It's writing Christine's real name!"
Black? Not completely black, Dakota realized. Just a kind of hazy gray, something blocking the sun. And the thing blocking the sun threw her a rope.
"Hang on, Dakota. We've got trouble."
"HSO? Is that you?" HSO's strong hands pulled her to the top of the cliff and he helped her to her feet. She flung her arms around his neck and sobbed.
"The bastard tortured me until I gave him my email password!" she cried. "He said he was going to fool MaryRobinette into thinking he was me!"
"MaryRobinette? Torture? Who?"
HSO gasped. "It can't be! He's in South Dakota!"
"That's what I thought. But he called me. He said he wanted to meet me. He said he'd found a secret portal behind Teddy Roosevelt's glasses--whatever that means."
"Secret portal?" HSO was thoroughly puzzled.
"Sorry. I guess I've been down among the dropped threads too long. Overcompensating by throwing in unsupported plot twists."
"That's OK," HSO said, patting her on the back. "But what's this about MaryRobinette?"
"Hang on. Let me scroll down to that neat little screen-within-a-screen so I can quote him directly....Ah! Here it is:
quote:"Now she'll come to me! To me! Maryrobinette will come to me for help, and she'll think it's you all the time! Mwahahahaha!"
"Well, has she? Has she come to you for help?"
"How the hell am I supposed to know! I've been hanging onto dropped threads all day!"
"Seriously, though. What possible harm can he do? If MaryRobinette asked him for advice he'd probably just tell her to 'ask Survivor.' As if HE knows everything."
"Survivor!" HSO smacked himself on the forehead. "He's why I came looking for you! He's missing!"
Dakota paled. "Missing? When..? What..?"
"I don't know. He's supposed to be Captaining the Penmanship on its next newbie training run. He never showed up. MaryRobinette's supposed to be there in a couple of days with about 30 newbies--and no Survivor! You're the only other one who could possibly captain the Penmanship, Dakota."
"Of course--what with all that work you've done to organize the Rewrite Challenge! [Yes. That was a shameless plug ]"
Dakota rolled her eyes. "Give me a break, HSO. No one every participates--just me and Robyn Hood and Keeley. Yanos last month..."
HSO grabbed her by the elbows and shook her. "But look at the goat stories, Dakota. They're finding ports all over the place..."
"No! I can't do it!" She turned and stalked away from him. He jogged to catch up.
"But, Dakota..."
"We'll just have to find Survivor. And if we happen to bump into mikemunsil on the way..."
HSO smiled a grim smile and smacked his fist into the palm of his other hand. "I'll pummel him for you."
[This message has been edited by djvdakota (edited March 24, 2005).]
"It sure is a dog eat dog world! Big Brother is watching you! It's a small world after all!"
A sad state for the poor newbie. Alone in his moment of crisis.
And then his cell phone rang.
Cell phone? He didn't own a cell phone. But in his addled condition, Ray didn't comprehend that and answered, "Hello, how may I help you today?"
"This is the Feathered Monkey."
"Help me, Feathered Monkey, you're my only hope."
"Blast! Are you so far gone?" said the Monkey.
"The lights are on, but nobody's home."
"Stop talking and stretch out the hand that's holding the phone!" Ray complied and then the Feathered Monkey shouted into the wind. It spoke clear cut sentences that meant what they said (anti-cliches, if you will.) The tornado could not handle what was being said and suddenly spit Ray out.
He flew for miles on end. Finally, after minutes of travel, he fell and incredibly landed in the same ship that Christine had set sail in. Landing painfully on his back, Ray blacked out. When he woke, he saw Christine standing over him (though he didn't know who she was, and in fact, wouldn't have recognized her with his wits still gone after being in the storm for so long.)
"Who are you?" asked Christine.
"I'm Ray," he said. Some of his memory came back. "I'm looking for Survivor, but lost my group."
"Are you one of the newbies?"
She smiled. Now she had one of them in her grasp. What luck!
Christine's real name...
They peered at the wierd collection of symbols. To many of them, it was unlike any script they had ever seen before. But in names, particularly true names, there lies power and RFLong had enough of the celt in her to realise this.
"If we can just pronounce this, it will give us control over Christine," she said, in a worryingly Druidic tone. "Eadwacer, stop pining after Jaina and get out your textbooks again. We've got translating to do!"
[This message has been edited by RFLong (edited March 24, 2005).]
Christine's cat, Delenn, yowled in disgust. She counted....one, two, three, four, at laeast five divergent plotlines. Almost none of the character had a clear purpose any longer, not even MaryRobinette and her newbies who had begun this quest.
I've got a cat brain and I can figure out that this story is a mess, Delenn thought. Oh well, I also know what to do. Christine set me the task of watching the story while she was away on the ship and fixing anything that went wrong.
Delenn put one paw on the keyboard but unlike finger, it was maladept at typing. She hissed in frustration and decided it was time to contact Christine directly.
Christine was apparently smiling evilly down at a newbie who had just come into her presence when she heard the call of her cat. She stopped, shook her head, and came to her seneses.
"I'm not here to hurt newbies," she remembered, "I'm only here to help them by getting rid of Survivor." She wiped the evil smile off her face as it did not suit her anyway, and went to talk to her cat.
"What is it, Delenn?"
"Meow. Meow. Meow. Meow."
"The story is falling apart?" Christine said. "How can that be?"
"Divergent plotlines? Dangling Threads? Too many point of view characters? POV violations?"
Christine stared down at her stolen HUBs and for the first time felt a certain amount of guilt. "I just wanted to get to Survivor first," she mumbled, "I want him out of the way or these newbies will never learn their own power. I don't understand why MaryRobinette even thinks she needs Survivor. Where would she have gotten that idea?"
"Meow. Meow."
"Munsil?" Christine said. "No one would listen to him."
Finally, Christine understood. "I'm still going to get to Sruvivor, but I'm afraid it will have to be a fair fight."
She called back the spectres and handed over the stolen HUBs. "Take these back and get this story straightened out, will you?"
The invisible spectres had nearly gone when Christine had another idea. "Here," she said, handing them a tiny little gobling statue. "Get this to Munsil. It's an editor-on-the-shoulder. It should keep him tied up for a long time."
Satisfied that she had done all she could to get the story back in order, Christine went below decks to sleep off her seasickness, completely ignoring the bewildered newbie.
[This message has been edited by Christine (edited March 24, 2005).]
His phone rang again. He had recovered enough to realize that he'd never gotten one, but he answered it again.
"This is the Feathered Monkey again. You are no longer in danger but Survivor needs help. You must find a way to contact MaryRobinette."
"How? I'm just a newbie."
"You've got a phone, moron." It hung up.
Ray stared at the cell phone and wondered just how he was going to get a hold of MaryRobinette. The phone didn't have any numbers on it.
[This message has been edited by Ray (edited March 24, 2005).]
"Don't start, Newbie," said MaryRobinette.
"Listen," said Onepktjoe. "You have my undying loyalty. But the forces against you seem insurmountable. We might've fared better with TaSha's mind map--the obscure Russian style master Outlinem Lestulayaneg called them "mental maps," he..."
"Digressing..." said MaryRobinette.
"Sorry. I mean, we've come too far for any of that," said Onepktjoe.
Looking at the newbies, it was easy for MaryRobinette to believe they were imagining the Bottomless Pit of Unread First-time Authors yawning beneath their feet.
"A legend, though?" MaryRobinette said.
"Perhaps something can awaken him, or cause him to cast off whatever chains that bind him," said Onepktjoe.
"Like spinach for Popeye!" said Jeraliey.
"Yes! That you remember? asked Onepktjoe.
"We don't have any spinach," Jimmy said from Onepktjoe's shoulder.
"No...sorry, Jimmy." Onepktjoe set Jimmy down. "I mean, perhaps one thing will cut across the boundaries of unworkable plot and summon Survivor from across the boards, even from the very depths of hell if need be."
MaryRobinette took a step away from the insane newbie.
"Yes," said Onepktjoe, eyes gleaming with madness. "You'll have to segue into poorly written, unjustified omniscient POV. Survivor won't be able to resist!"
There was a gasp from the newbies. Onepktjoe seemed to hold his breath, waiting on MaryRobinette's judgement...
[This message has been edited by onepktjoe (edited March 24, 2005).]
[This message has been edited by onepktjoe (edited March 24, 2005).]
The heat of the Desert of Doom Plotlines scorched their skin. Dakota and HSO stood before a large, sun-bleached green tent. From within came the unmistakable furious sounds of fingers dashing across a laptop PC keyboard. Every now and then they heard a howl of anguish, which they knew could only come from an author with writer's block. Dakota and HSO hesistated.
"I think that's Munsil," said HSO.
"Me, too. Should we go in?"
"I'm ready to pummel, if that's what you're asking."
Dakota breathed in the hot, dry desert air. The thought of pummelling the rat gave her some small measure of happiness, but it just wasn't her style. She had always been a nurturer, a caregiver; someone to be respected. People looked up to her for guidance, and if she allowed herself any satisfaction over erasing Munsil from the story, what would people then think?
Still, Munsil had tickled her with that blasted backscratcher. He deserved something.
But what?
"Look," said HSO, "I'm ready to do this. But I sense you're holding something back."
"True. It's just..."
Dakota considered. This was her defining moment. Who was she going to be? Someone who cared about people, even if they did happen to be evil? Evil people needed love, too, didn't they? She couldn't decide. It was too much. Besides, her sides still ached from the tickling.
"All right, Dakota. I'm going in with or without you."
"No, wait!"
"What's it going to be, then? Are you in or out?"
"I don't want to hurt him. I just want him to write a publishable draft of "Bridgetown." That's all I care about."
HSO seemed uneasy. His fists clenched and unclenched. He scratched at his right ear, then his left. "Okay. I'm with you."
"Good, let's critique his tale and get the boy published. I have a suspicion that he's only evil because he's been rejected so often. If we show him he can be an author, then maybe he'll give up his dastardly ways and help us on our quest."
"I think you're expecting way too much," HSO said. "But if it works, then Munsil can undo everything that has happened up to this point."
"That's my point. He can erase it all. Then, MaryRobinette will be back on the Penmanship as if this flashback never happened."
Together, their purposes united, Dakota and HSO entered the tent. They found Munsil there, his laptop held high above his head. He seemed ready to smash it down onto the ground."
"No! Wait!" Dakota cried.
[This message has been edited by HSO (edited March 24, 2005).]
"Give that to me," Christine said as she snatched the phone out of Ray's hand. She tossed it over the side of the ship.
"Hey!" Ray said. "I needed that to get in touch with MaryRobinette."
"Well, you're just going to have to come up with a way that is realistic. Didn't anyone teach you the value of realism in your stories? You can't just all of a sudden have a cell phone if you didn't have one before. For that matter, where the heck is the nearest cell tower? We're out in the middle of the goshbedanged ocean! Now, if you want to get in touch with MaryRobinette you're going to have to do it the hard way."
"But don't you see?" Ray said. "I need to get in touch with her so I can find Survivor so he can hepl me work out these plot inconsistencies."
A scream threatened to rip from Christine's throat, but she just managed to hold it at bay. "You don't need Survivor you moron!" In frustration, she kicked him and caused him to fly over the side of the ship. He landed in the water with a loud splash.
Christine immediately felt guilty but there was nothing she could do. Maybe he would be able to swim back to his precious MaryRobinette and her silly quest. Meanwhile, she was more determined now than ever to put an end to this infantile need for Survivor's commentary.
Perhaps I should go back? But she rejected that thought immediately. She had too strong a sense of pride for that. Besides, at least out here she was away from Eadwacer's advances... he was nice, but she had other prospects that she might actually have a chance with, thanks.
Before her line of thought could go any further down that path, though, she passed out.
[This message has been edited by Jaina (edited March 24, 2005).]
"This is what you get when people are allowed to write about their own 'characters'," she sighed.
With a creeping sense of dread, MaryRobinette looked at the Newbies around her. "Where's Jaina?"
Eadwacer nearly jumped out of his skin. "Don't look at me. I was just talking with her about her lustrous hair and luminous eyes and then thought that I needed to protect you from the villainous advances of Jimmyjazz."
"So, you're saying you don't know." When he nodded, MaryRobinette looked around the dwindling group of Newbies. It happened every year. A promising new crop would spring up and then vanish. Still, Jaina had not seemed like the type to succumb to the standard attrition. MaryRobinette rubbed the back of her neck. "Well, let's hope she comes back on her own. Meanwhile, let's look at the name that the nom de plume wrote." She patted McCameron on the shoulder. "Good job staying on track, by the way. I'm glad one of you could do that." She glared at the other Newbies. "RFLong, can you pronounce this?"
Taking the paper from MaryRobinette, RFLong studied it. "I believe I can. It is based on an ancient--"
She broke off as a pile of HUB's dropped into the center of the group, as if from thin air.
"Woo-hoo!" MaryRobinette threw her hands up in the air. "Nicely done, RFLong."
RFLong colored editor-red and smiled. "Thanks." She turned the paper over in her hands. "I didn't do anything."
"You got the HUB's back." MaryRobinette said, as she buckled hers on. "Now we can go to Hatrack Harbor to see Survivor."
If she had realized that the day was going to be a novel instead of a short story she would have done an outline. As it was, she would just have to push through to the end. "Let's head out!" She could not wait to hand these Newbies over to Survivor.
[This message has been edited by MaryRobinette (edited March 25, 2005).]
Master Munsil fell to his knees, still holding his laptop over his head. As he looked at Dakota and HSO standing just inside the tent flaps, he knew the jig was up. They were here to erase him -- to finish him off before he could write the final twist in the plot. He had had a plan, but somehow the story got a life of its own; it had spiralled out of control and he didn't know how to stop it anymore. He didn't want to be evil now. Evil was hard work--harder than being good anyway.
Hot tears streamed down his cheeks as he carefully let his arms down; the laptop resting upon his knees. Munsil gave up.
"Oh, crumbs," said HSO, "not a crying scene."
"Shh," Dakota said. "Let him cry. He needs to let it out before we can help."
Quietly, HSO said, "Villians aren't supposed to cry. They're supposed to cackle evilly."
"Mike isn't a villian. He's just misunderstood. We have to help to him now, in this time of need, this one-and-only moment of weakness. If we don't--"
Listening to them talk about him, Munsil felt guilt welling up inside him -- consuming him. "You can't help me," said Munsil. "No one can now. I've done bad things. Very bad things."
"We can and we will help you."
HSO took a step forward. "Yeah, dude. So, like... stop blubbering. You're going to make me cry at this rate -- I can't stand to see people cry or be in pain. That's why I chose not to be a doctor or a veterinarian. It wasn't death or blood or anything like that. That I can deal with. No, it was watching people--"
"HSO! We're here for Mike; this isn't the time to bring up your problems."
Munsil wiped away his tears. "No, Dakota. He's right. I need to stop feeling pity for myself." Yet inside he cried out to be held like a child. He pushed his feelings back. "So what do I do now?" he asked.
"First," said Dakota, "you need to--"
A gunshot rang out inside the tent. Everyone jumped. Through watery eyes, Mike saw Agent Dread standing behind HSO and Dakota. Fear and adrenaline coursed through him, each fighting for chemical dominance, and making him feel dizzy.
"Not so fast, Master Mikey," said Dread. "I can't let you do this. If you're not going to be evil, then I'll just take your place."
"No, Dread," said Mike. "It's over. It has to be over. Don't do this."
Dread laughed. "For days now, I've been the patsy; getting your diet soda, running away when you threw a tantrum. I'm sick of it. I'm going to finish this here and now, starting with..." Dread pointed the gun at HSO. "Him!
Mike saw the flash, heard the shot. "Noooo!" HSO stumbled backwards, clutching his chest. Dakota caught him, preventing his fall. HSO died a moment later. Mike screamed, "What have you done?"
"Only what you should've done already," said Dread, now pointing the gun at Dakota. "She's next."
Mike watched. Helpless. He had no weapons. Nothing to stop Dread. Dread was preparing to squeeze the trigger, an evil smirk on his face.
And then Mike realized he did have a weapon after all: his laptop. There wasn't time to write anything, but it was heavy enough to do serious damage if he threw it at Dread. Without delay, he flung his laptop...
It whirled; a flash of black plastic, spinning towards its target: Dread.
Mike had time for only one thought: Please don't let him kill Dakota...
[This message has been edited by HSO (edited March 25, 2005).]
Meanwhile, as the newbies where leaving Christine's parents house, Onepkjoe spoke up. "MaryRobinette, my shoulder is really starting to hurt. Can I get rid of this heap?"
MaryRobinette thought a moment. "Well, he has been behaving himself but that may be because he's all tied up. Jimmy, do you think you can behave your self?"
Jimmy looked up. He had been hanging there so long the blood and been pooling in his brain. He saw the furry dice through tracers and thought he was having flashbacks from his more experimental years. He noticed he was hanging over some guy's shoulder and his eyes grew round. "Oh, no not that flashback!" He thought. "No, my rear's not sore. Whew!"
That sobering memory brought him back to MaryRobinette's question. "Yes," he said "I think I'm better now. I promise to behave"
With that, MaryRobinette had Joe put Jimmy down and untie him. Cautiously she handed him his HUB. "Lets Go!"
Jimmy strapped his HUB on, adjusted his suspenders and after a few unsteady steps, they where off.
[This message has been edited by jimmyjazz951 (edited March 25, 2005).]
[This message has been edited by jimmyjazz951 (edited March 25, 2005).]
Though he wanted to meditate on the experience, his innate sense of storytelling told him that a Hatracker was in trouble. He sniffed the wind. Three Hatrackers to be precise.
Without wasting a moment, he drew his blade of words and cut straight to the conflict.
Meanwhile, Dread scoffed at the writhing figures on the floor. "Now to deal with MaryRobinette and the Newbies!" He pulled a pirate mask on headed for The Penmanship.
[This message has been edited by MaryRobinette (edited March 26, 2005).]
Aboard The Penmanship, Dread arrived just as MaryRobinette was coming back on deck. He chuckled to to himself as she brought out her bosun's whistle and blew a long, steady note. He gave a little cough to get her attention. It took everything in him to keep from laughing out loud at the way the look of anticipation on her face melted into dismay. "Wasting your time, lass," he said. "He be gone, your Survivor. Been nearly a fortnight, I reckon it. Perhaps I can assist ye in his place? Arr!" he exclaimed, "What be this?"
[This message has been edited by jimmyjazz951 (edited March 27, 2005).]
HSO lay on the floor in a pool of blood, conscious, but knowing that death lay moments away. Dakota, already unconscious, and slipping fast, had collapsed just outside the door. And MikeMunsil, horrified at what he was writing, had fainted, and was just now coming to. Where am I? he wondered.
Survivor had no way of knowing whether Mike was injured as badly as the other two, but he decided that he would use the pellets on the characters who had not had delusions of evil. With a quick flip of his wrist (in a move he'd perfected from thousands of hours playing Minesweeper) he cast the pellets over Dakota and HSO. They both sat up immediately, grinning from ear to ear.
MikeMunsil saw them, and practically fainted again. "But, you were both shot! And HSO, you were dead."
"Not quite," Survivor corrected. He wondered when these people would learn. "If you'll recall, Mike, that post was from your POV. So when it said that he was dead, it only meant that you thought he was dead. Now, THIS post is in omniscient, so we can tell that everyone is alive and thinking. Right, gang?"
"Well," HSO said, "I can't tell that MikeMunsil is thinking."
Mike was offended. That pleased HSO no end. He'd never felt better.
Dakota had felt lots better, but she didn't want to complain. Instead she asked, "Has anyone seen my cigar?"
"I think you left it in Reykjavik," Mike said.
During all of the excitement Ray, who had been swimming since Christine kicked him overboard, climbed over the rail. Quickly sizing up the situation, Ray tackled Dread from behind and, with a little help from MaryRobinette and Jaina, tied up.
Cheers went up from the shore where the newbies waited. One face in the crowd drew Jaina's attention. The way Eadwacer beamed at her with an especially broad smile, made her blush.
As she fought her way back to consciousness, she heard voices, and one sounded like...Survivor's? Instead of relief at the tempting realization that she might be able to frame this story by taking it back to the beginning and just ending the whole thing, a new fear overcame her: Had enough newbies survived to crew the Penmanship? She thought she must have voiced her fear in her near delirium, because she heard Dakota murmuring to her, "Don't worry. We'll just go to the 'First, Please Introduce Yourself' thread for more newbies."
Brushing the red hair from MaryRobinette's brow, Dakota said, "What is it?"
"There's still a loose thread out there." She swallowed. "Christine..."
Stay tuned for the next exciting episode: The Betrayal of Christine
Christine climbed the thread, hand over hand, inching her way towards the thread, trying not to remind herself that she had never managed to do even one pull up in gym class and that she had not a whit of upper arm strength. Adrenaline commanded her body now.
It was too late for her to kill Survivor. She knew that. She would have to find another way. Perhaps she could convince the people on board that she meant well. SHe had returned the HUBs after all. They might believe her. Then she would -- well, she was not sure what she would do about Survivor but she was sure she would find a way if she used patience and cunning.
"Hey, there's someone climbing up to the ship!" someone from above called.
"Help!" Christine called. She was nearly there now. She might even make it.
"Hey, wait a second. Aren't you the antagonist in this story?"
Christine could not identify the voice. It was probably one of the newbies. "I meant well," Christine said. "I gave you back your HUBs."
"I don't know..."
"I'm pregnant," Christine tried. That always got people to help. Just to make it absolutely clear, she emptied her lunch into the ocean below.
"Come on, let's help her aboard."
With the assistance of several newbies, Christine managed to make her way up on deck. She felt miserable. She had been dangling by that thread for a long time. As she panted and tried to catch her breath, a familiar shadow approached.
"Welcome back," MaryRobinette said.
Christine gave her a weak smile. If only they could understand that it was their own interests she was trying to protect. But they would not understand.
Then, from behind MaryRobinette, came another familiar form.
"Hello, Survivor," Christine said.
After all, his evil plans were proceeding very nicely, and the ninjas had revealed nothing of importance while carrying out their assigned tasks


text:
Common Core Standard HSA-SSE.A.1 Questions
Interpret expressions that represent a quantity in terms of its context.★
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
Fenwick and Wheaton Warrenville South turned Tuesday's game into one of attrition that lasted until the final shot attempt.
Both teams, which were two missing starters, had problems with depth.
Diamond Thompson's 3-point play and single free throws by Melinda Franke and Meghan Waldron in the final minute catapulted No. 12 Wheaton South to a 65-63 victory against No. 7 Fenwick in Wheaton.


text:
DICKS and MR
20. Ms Barker, there are systematic errors in
forecasting; the surplus is always under-predicted. Can we go
on like that?
(Ms Barker) Under this government the surplus has
been under-predicted. We have, of course, had previous periods
under other administrations where it has gone the other way. Notoriously
under the Conservatives VAT revenues came in under what people
were expecting and the government ran into the opposite difficulties.
This is always the problem that the Chancellor has. I agree with
Geoffrey; you would not want to start from here but, in some sense,
how much is it the Chancellor's fault he started from here? I
do not believe the Treasury have been deliberately under-forecasting
the tax take, but they have got more and more tax in. You can
see in the Red Book the efforts there have been to to try and
work out why; but there is no very strong impression gained for
me from the Red Book that they have decided exactly why. In those
circumstances, I have some sympathy with the Chancellor announcing
a bigger relaxation and it at first sight seemed strictly prudent
because he presumably does not want to have yet another year where
we are going to end up at the end of it discovering that we have
come up with a much bigger surplus because, rather than moving
towards a position where Geoffrey would say "I would like
to start from here", we would be moving in the opposite direction.
We would be back here next year having the same debate but with
slightly larger numbers.
21. Taking Mr Dicks' formulation, do you think
the problem is that we have been over-taxed or under-refunded?
(Ms Barker) It is difficult to draw the distinction.
There was a discussion earlier about how much of the tax rise
has been discretionary increasesI think that was the term
people usedand, of course, to work out what the discretionary
increases were you would go back and gauge the Chancellor's intention
by adding up all the Red Books and that is where the difficulty
lay in answering the question because there is a considerable
difference between adding up all the Red Books and looking at
what has happened. My view is that the Chancellor, in terms of
what he has done in a discretionary way, made pretty much all
the right decisions. He has found that more money has come in
and, in my view, he has handed it back to individuals as quickly
as has been prudentand I am using "prudent" here
not in the sense of meeting fiscal rules but in the sense of not
creating huge difficulties with the Bank of England and inflation.
We are in the position, however, where judgments about whether
or not he has exactly achieved that in the sense of not creating
difficulties for the Bank of England differ. I have taken a slightly
different view from my colleagues on this who are giving evidence
now and I say that I do think this Budget is still just the right
side of prudent.
22. I wonder if I could ask you, on the question
of the fiscal forecasts, whether you think that they are going
to go on understating the degree of surplus?
(Mr Weale) I think that they have an element of that
built into them.
23. Do you think there is a design fault?
(Mr Weale) As the Red Book makes clear, the fiscal
forecasts are made on the assumption that GDP will grow two and
a quarter per cent. You may remember that when the current Government
came to power it trumpeted that it was reducing its estimate of
the trend rate of growth of the economy from two and a half per
cent to two and a quarter per cent for the purposes of fiscal
forecasting. I think many people outside Government would say
that the trend rate of growth of the economy is two and a half
per cent per annum or perhaps slightly higher at the moment, and
obviously, if they are correct, then the Treasury forecasts of
the fiscal position are either prudent or pessimistic, depending
how you want to put it. What has been perhaps a bit more of a
surprise, certainly to me, is that separately from this there
does seem to have been considerable buoyancy in tax revenues and
in making any forecast you have to make a judgment as to whether
that sort of buoyancy is going to last and for how long. As one
of the other witnesses mentioned, I would remind you that in 1996
there was concern the other way round about dwindling revenues
on Value Added Tax and was this going to be a permanent feature
of the economy once the tax base contracted? There are always
uncertainties. The buoyancy that we have had in tax revenues seem
to be attributed to self-assessment. The Government makes the
reasonable assumption that the revenues have moved up to a new
higher level, that the rate of growth is not going to continue.
If there is further buoyancy then obviously the fiscal estimates
will turn out to be even more pessimistic, but I think the Government
is quite right not to make the assumption that revenues are going
to become even more buoyant.
24. Do you think the buoyancy is going to go
(Mr Weale) I am persuaded that the higher share of
revenues, income tax revenues in particular, in the economy should
be assumed to continue in making forecasts, but certainly in making
my own forecasts I would not predict the share of income tax revenues
in the economy to be rising except in response to particular tax
increases that a government might be introducing.
25. That means you do think the buoyancy will
go on?
(Mr Weale) I think the degree of buoyancy which has
been assumed in the projections here will continue but I would
not make projections of greater buoyancy than those assumed here.
On the other hand, for my best guess of the fiscal position I
would assume a faster rate of growth of the economy than is assumed
26. Professor Congdon, could I encourage you
to start from here?
(Professor Congdon) On this question that you were
discussing with Martin Weale you could simply ask the Treasury
witnesses when they come along, has the average error in the deficit
forecast changed over the years? In fact, there is in the Red
Book a statement that the average error in the forecasts of the
public sector net borrowing figure has been one per cent at GDP.
I know that ten, 20 years ago, the Treasury used to give figures
on what the average error in the forecasting appeared to be, so
it is not difficult to do. My guess is that the forecasting error
has not changed very much. I agree with Martin again, that I think
the immediate prospect for the economy is rather more buoyant
than the Treasury has been sayingthat is perhaps the rest
of this yearbut I am worried, as I have been saying, about
2002 and 2003. May I suggest that when this Committee meets in
2004 we may be asking, "why has the deficit been larger than
expected?" These things just go through cycles.
27. You were the person who commented to us
this morning on the links between fiscal policy and monetary policy.
If I have understood you correctly you were clearly of the view
that the course the Chancellor is taking will make life more difficult
for the Monetary Policy Committee in making their judgments. Could
you explain why you think that and how you think their judgements
will be affected by this Budget?
(Professor Congdon) There is the impact on the Monetary
Policy Committee, and there is the impact on monetary growth and
monetary policy. They are slightly different subjects. On the
Monetary Policy Committee, sure enough, they can see through this
impact on the total inflation rate from changes in direct taxes.
I have made that point; I will not make it any further. I just
say that I think it is rather misleading for the Chancellor to
have done this. The other subject is, I am afraid, rather complex.
What happened last year was that the Government had this big surplus
and so people paid over their taxes and telecom companies paid
for their mobile phone licences. This reduced their bank deposits
and meant that monetary growth was slower than otherwise it would
have been. The stated policy in both the Red Book and the book
published by the Debt Management Office implies that that policy
of public sector transactions reducing bank deposits will not
apply in the same way in the coming year. To that extent monetary
growth will be higher. I appear to be one of the few people in
the country to worry about this. I do worry about it. It is one
reason why I expect that the economy will be rather more buoyant
than it ought to be in 2001.
28. Can I just ask you about this point that
we keep coming back to this morning about the impact of fiscal
policy next year on the macro economy? You all seem to be of the
view that in 2001-2002 fiscal policy will be easier than in 2000-2001,
the Chancellor spending his war chest. There is a fair degree
of unanimity on that. What there does not seem to be unanimity
on is how significant this relaxation is. A one per cent figure
has been bandied around; there seems to be some agreement on that
but there does not seem to be a consistency from you on whether
this really matters, whether this is going to make a huge difference.
Some people are slightly aware that the economy is faster than
the others and that this may be too expansionary, but it is all
very at the margins, is it not? I am not getting a clear sense
that this is going to destabilise the economy.
(Professor Congdon) What everybody agrees is that
we never want the economy to be back where it was in, say, 1973
or 1979 or 1990 when output was, say, four per cent above trend.
We then had this ghastly experience of inflation rising and then
a recession as well. At the moment the Treasury estimates that
output is about half to one per cent above trend. What we are
worried about is that the one per cent fiscal boost will push
it more to, say, two or three per cent above trend and then there
will be problems of adjustment thereafter. I think those worries
are valid. It is understandable that there have been these tax
cuts and spending increases with this vast surplus, but in terms
of demand management it is not a move in the right direction.
29. Can I ask Kate to comment?
(Ms Barker) I am less worried about it than Tim. I
absolutely agree that the figures pencilled in are around one
per cent. I suppose I am less worried about them for several reasons.
One is that in practice I suspect it will come in a little bit
better, particularly because of the point I raised about government
investment. I do not particularly want to argue this as I think
it should not be the case that the Government misses its investment
target but it is quite likely that it will. I am also a little
bit less worried about it because I do have a view in that I suspect
that the economy is slightly weaker but, as you rightly say, it
is all rather much at the margin. I made particularly the point
about the savings ratio. I do think that it is likely that household
savings are going to rise perhaps a little bit more sharply this
year even than the Government expects. It is not impossible to
see that as being something that reasonably goes alongside the
Government saving a little bit less. Yes, I do think it matters
but I do not expect it to have the consequences that Tim is suggesting,
taking the economy a long way away from trend, although I absolutely
agree with him that it would be extremely undesirable if it did.
(Mr Dicks) To put it in black and white terms, I would
say that the Budget and the fiscal stance would rule out any further
cuts in interest rates were it not for the global environment.
The global environment is weakening and I think we are in for
another bout of deflation on the global economy but that alone
may enable the Bank of England to make further cuts in interest
rates, but the Chancellor is not helping that out.
30. Presumably the Chancellor might have looked
at the international outlook when he set the Budget.
(Mr Dicks) Yes, but he did nothe has added
to what he did last November. There is a lot in the pipeline.
The things in the US started since the pre-Budget report so there
was a lot
31. Yes, but that was before the Budget. Can
I look at the fiscal rules? There has been a little bit of talk
about the fiscal rules today and I am losing a bit of clarity
on the fiscal rules here. Just before the Budget ECOFIN rapped
the Chancellor over the knuckles and said he was not going to
meet the rules that are contained in the Stability and Growth
Pact. Do you think that budgets are anything that would please
ECOFIN, Martin?
(Mr Weale) Could I explain on that that the point
made by ECOFIN was the one I alluded to earlier, that the Stability
and Growth Pact requires a balanced Budget but the Chancellor's
policy of balancing the current account means that he is aiming
to run a deficit no larger than the net investment that the economy
is doing. The documents here show net investment rising to 1.8
per cent of GDP. The Chancellor is projecting a smaller deficit
than that but it is nevertheless not the balanced budget that
ECOFIN required. Because the Budget has consolidated the loosening
up that was perhaps alluded to in the pre-Budget report and introduced
extra spending, it has made that discrepancy bigger.
32. So the Chancellor has ignored ECOFIN in
your view?
(Mr Weale) In my view, yes.
33. Would everyone else agree with that?
(Mr Dicks) And rightly so.
(Ms Barker) Yes, and I would agree with what Geoffrey
said, that he was absolutely right to do so.
34. We have talked about his fiscal rules not
really constraining at the moment. He has got large surpluses
and Martin suggested that he should have some short term rule
to complement these. Could I ask the others, do you think that
there is room for a short term demand management fiscal rule,
which was the way you described it? You do not want to answer
the question, do you?
(Professor Congdon) What you could have is something
of the kind that the change in the cyclically adjusted public
sector net borrowing figure needs to be calibrated to the output
gap and should not be too large. Perhaps you can put together
a rule of that sort. But I think it is very difficult to expect
the Chancellor to behave so mechanically. It is just not realistic.
35. Martin wants to come back.
(Mr Weale) I would favour something perhaps vaguer
than that, if one cannot have constant expected tax rates, that
the fiscal policy should be set to meet the two rules and, where
there is flexibility, fiscal policy should be set to work with
the Bank of England in meeting the Government's inflation target.
(Ms Barker) I personally very much doubt that there
is a perfect set of rules to be had. I think the ones we have
got certainly have some failings but they seem to me to be perfectly
good rules and I would be reluctant to change them.
36. It is better to have some rules than to
have none anyway, is it not?
(Ms Barker) It is better to have some rules if they
are aimed at what I think is the fundamental aim of the Chancellor's
rules, and they do seem to me to accord with that, which is to
ensure that you do not end up with unsustainable fiscal policy.
They usefully achieve that.
37. But, Martin, you even criticised that. You
said you wanted some sort of fixed future tax rates.
(Mr Weale) The fixed future tax rates would be fixed
on a sustainable basis and in that sense, provided you started
off with a reasonable level of debt and so on, they would be designed
to ensure that you never deviated from them. What they would stop
you doing was moving tax rates down one year and up another year.
It would be a slightly different definition of sustainability,
but the more important point is that although the fiscal rules
are a useful constraint at the moment, where we have a large surplus,
they are no guidance to the Budget in a particular year.
38. Martin Weale, the Treasury's forecast predicts
that economy will grow at its assumed trend rate of growth to
the year 2003. What does that imply for the position we are at
on the trade cycle?
(Mr Weale) The assumption which is shown is that we
are slightly above the equilibrium level of output. If you look
at page 163, that shows the Treasury's projection which shows
the output gap narrowing gradually to close eventually by 2006.
We know of course that the future will not turn out like that
but is a view that output or demand at the moment is slightly
above long run equilibrium.
39. What risks do you suggest are consequent
on that assumption?
(Mr Weale) I think that one risk is that demand in
the rest of the economy is too buoyant, that, as Professor Congdon
has suggested, the output gap will not close. It will tend to
increase and in the end we will find that boom and bust have come
upon us. That is a very real risk. I think one also has to mention
the risk in the other direction, that the situation in the world
economy will worsen further, that the Government and the Bank
of England together will find that they cannot maintain domestic
demand without an unacceptably large balance of payments deficit,
and so we will get in these terms a negative output gap, revenues
will then be lower than the Chancellor expects at the moment and
in 2004 we will be worrying about why the deficit is so large.
I do think that the sort of balance between those risks is roughly
equal and in that sense the Chancellor's projection is a reasonably
sensible one.
40. What would you say was the likely path of
interest rates given these growth assumptions?
(Mr Weale) I think that here we have to distinguish
the short term from the medium term. I would agree with Mr Dicks
that unless the world situation deteriorates then it would be
a mistake to make further interest rate reductions. On the other
hand one has to remember that the inflation rate is likely to
fall not only below its target but also below the one and a half
per cent lower limit of the inflation band, and in those circumstances
the Monetary Policy Committee is going to have to prove deaf to
the press in order to resist pressures to make at least one further
41. Ms Barker, do you agree with the Treasury
that continued momentum in United Kingdom domestic demand is expected
fully to offset weaker trade prospects? Are there risks from the
US slowdown being greater than the Treasury has already encapsulated
in its forecasts?
(Ms Barker) On the whole I do not disagree with the
Treasury's position very radically, but I do think that it is
implicit in what I have been saying earlier that the risks from
the external side are rather greater. That, as Martin rightly
said, will have the effect of making the trade deficit worse as
well as domestic demand slower, so my view is that there is somewhat
of a downside risk to growth. I do also dissent from the view
that has been expressed that there is no further scope to cut
interest rates. I think there is some scope to cut interest rates
a little further, not, however, because I think in the short run
inflation is going to fall below one and a half per cent, although
of course I think it might, but because I believe that the outlook
for inflation two years hence is more favourable than do my colleagues.
I certainly agree with the view that if by serious and indirect
tax cuts you got inflation below one and a half per cent, there
is nothing else going on. It would be quite wrong to cut interest
rates because of that.
42. If the trade deficit did deteriorate would
that become a very serious factor?
(Ms Barker) To some extent I am already slightly concerned
about the deterioration in the trade deficit that is pencilled
in the Treasury's forecasts and has it rising to around two and
a half per cent of GDP. I do feel some disquiet about that and
it is of course a disquiet that the CBI has expressed for some
time, that the prospects for the trade sector and investment in
the trade sector tend to be quite discouraging. What that will
mean longer term is that we reach a point where we have to start
to correct that and come back to a more neutral position.
43. The Treasury expect households to rebuild
savings after 2001, causing consumer spending to slow down. If
that does not happen what are the likely consequences going to
(Ms Barker) Part of the reason why I am not so concerned
about the fiscal changes that have been announced this time is
that I believe the savings ratio is likely to rise from its present
level in the coming year because of the strong wealth effects
we have seen are likely to ease off or even to reverse. If we
did not see any rise in the savings ratio which continued to be
very low, that would of course mean that the Government was moving
its position in a less favourable direction and the consumer sector
was not changing at all. That of course would probably tend to
imply that we would see an even wider trade deficit and the concerns
about the longer term would be greater.
Chairman: Thank you very much.


text:
Crew Works on Colloid Experiment, Maintenance
Aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 30 Commander Dan Burbank worked with the Preliminary Advanced Colloids Experiment-2, or PACE-2, on Monday. Housed in the Fluids Integrated Rack, PACE-2 studies the effects of vibration on particles suspended in fluid in the space environment. This work aids in the development and optimization of crew procedures for the future Advanced Colloids Experiment, also known as ACE.
ACE will fly samples that may have an important impact on our understanding of fundamental physics. An immediate space application for this technology demonstration is in extending the shelf-life of consumables on future long-duration missions.
Burbank also performed routine work with the Total Organic Carbon Analyzer (TOCA), which is necessary for checking drinking water quality. Total Organic Carbon is naturally present in the environment and by itself has no health effects, but it provides a medium for the formation of byproducts that may be harmful.
Flight Engineers Anton Shkaplerov and Anatoly Ivanishin cleaned fan screens and replaced dust filters aboard the outpost. The pair also did regular maintenance on the audio subsystem in the Zvezda service module.
Ivanishin updated antivirus software on one of the station's laptop computers.
All three crew members spent some time familiarizing themselves with their orbital home.
Three additional Expedition 30 flight engineers – NASA astronaut Don Pettit, Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko and European Space Agency astronaut Andre Kuipers – are scheduled to launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Dec. 21.
Burbank spoke with school children in Quebec, Canada via amateur radio on Monday as part of the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station program. The students have started a space club and have been learning about the space station, so they had plenty of questions ready.


text:
SCIE media statement
Supporting health and social care integration
22 September 2011
Clinical commissioning and long term conditions – new briefing
Today sees the launch of valuable information to help GPs in their new roles as clinical commissioners. The briefing shows how working with social care services can improve patients' health outcomes and improve efficiency.
Social care and clinical commissioning for people with long-term conditions is published by the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE), in partnership with The King's Fund.
GPs treat around 15 million people with long term conditions such as mental health problems, dementia or stroke symptoms. Their treatment makes up half of all GP appointments and 70% of healthcare expenditure. It is here that social care can help most as this population will need ongoing personal care and support, as well as clinical care.
The briefing introduces GPs to: how social care works and is funded; the implications of personalising social care for healthcare; and examples of how care and health services are working together effectively. It looks at how GPs and social care staff can work together to develop new relationships, plan and coordinate care, and fund and commission the best and most efficient services.
SCIE's Director of Adult Services, David Walden, says:
This briefing provides GPs and clinical commissioners with a straightforward introduction to working with social care. Better integration can improve outcomes, improve patients' experiences and make the best use of scarce resources. People want, and increasingly expect, more choice and control, provided by joined-up services.
The King's Fund's Senior Fellow, Richard Humphries, says:
This briefing will help GPs to provide more integrated care for patients by supporting them to play a bigger part in the designing services. One vital area will be the development of relationships between health, and social care professionals. As one of the authors, I am hoping that the "At a glance" will be a quick way of developing new skills, for those GPs who are looking to improve their knowledge of integrated working.
Challenges and ways forward
A key concern of GPs and social care professionals has been the inaccessibility of each other's services and expertise. This can result in inappropriate referrals from GPs, while GPs are not clear about the services and skills that social care can offer. SCIE and the King's Fund say that more integrated health and social care support offers a way forward. This can be done by building relationships, resolving misunderstandings, simplifying care pathways and reducing organisational barriers between different agencies.
Practical help
The briefing provides practical tips on areas such as how GPs can work with social care services, the make-up of social care users and what social care means in terms of commissioning. Examples of integrated working are highlighted, looking at a GP practice in Norfolk, and at how Torbay Care Trust has established five integrated health and social care teams that are organised in localities aligned with general practices.
Launch at RCGP conference
The briefing is being launched today at a Royal College of General Practitioners' conference. This one-day event provides expert specialist clinical training and essential information on dementia for GPs and their practice colleagues.
- Social care and clinical commissioning for people with long-term conditions
- Read Dr Lisa Bostock's opinion - Social care and health integration – the service user perspective
Media contact
Steve Palmer | Press and Public Affairs Manager | Tel: 020 7766 7419 | Mob: 07739 458 192 | Email: email@example.com
Policy context
Following the NHS Future Forum report, the Health and Social Care Bill will (subject to parliamentary approval) place stronger duties on the NHS Commissioning Board, clinical commissioning groups, Health and Wellbeing boards and Monitor to encourage integrated working at all levels (Hansard 2011). Integrated care is also one of the strands of a second phase of the NHS Future Forum's work, launched in August 2011.
By 2015, the NHS is expected to find £20bn of efficiency savings to maintain quality and service levels and absorb demographic pressures. It is reported that 20 per cent must come from 'deep service change' for which commissioning groups will be responsible (Ireland 2011). This figure is partly based on the assumed benefits from clinical commissioners working collaboratively with social care.
Long term conditions
There are around 15 million people in England with at least one LTC. Their treatment makes up 50 per cent of GP appointments and 70 per cent of the primary and acute care budget in England. GPs, not hospitals, deal with the majority of LTCs, and in future, will have to manage the growing demand arising from the ageing population. LTCs increase with age, with the Department of Health predicting a 252 per cent increase in people aged over 65 with one or more conditions by 2050. It is here that social care can help most in the ongoing support of people with LTCs affecting their physical, mental and psychological health.


text:
Chief Deputy Art Mullen said it best in this episode. "I told you to do one simple thing: refrain from screwing the only witness in your shooting and you can't even do that." Just imagine that statement being yelled with the vociferousness of years of pent-up rage.
I liked this episode. It didn't satiate the main story arcs as well as it tried to and mixed with a muddled ending, it didn't accomplish what it set out to do. But it had some great moments and some very good acting that made it above average.
Mullen (Nick Searcy) has shown remarkable patience for Raylan throughout the series so far and in "Blind Spot" it was like Raylan lanced a boil. Their scene in the middle of the episode was great from start to finish; well-written and well-executed. Searcy has done a great job of playing the passive aggressive boss who wants his employee to get in line. Raylan's done everything wrong since and still breaks rules—and, if you're like me, you're beginning to wonder if Raylan's doing it intentionally to get out of Kentucky. When Raylan shoots a man for breaking in to Ava's home and trying to kill her (or him) in her bedroom, Raylan receives the yelling-at of a lifetime. Very well done.
You know, for everything this show covers, for all of its moving pieces and players and plots, they're covering the emotional side really well. Though we've seen the differences between Raylan and his father, Raylan is, indeed, a very angry man and it came out sharply in this episode. Boyd (Walton Goggins) became his sage and opened Raylan's eyes. I'm interested in seeing where that goes from here, knowing that Boyd just had his life threatened for speaking to Raylan.
So Raylan found out the sheriff was the one misleading him and stuff goes down. An elaborate plot for freedom later and Ava has stopped them and Raylan has both Red and the sheriff under arrest. The ending sounds a little cheesy summed up like that -- Ava saved Raylan this time! -- but it played out OK. What the episode lacked in execution of plot it made up for on development of character. We got some very good characters to chew on in this one with Red, the wannabe assassin, and the actual assassin, who made a funny little team with Red. Red's ambition coupled with his failure made him likeable, even though he was attempting to kill our lead character. The serious assassin, whose name I didn't catch, was interesting and I think I would've liked to hear from more from him before he was shot—loved the Bluetooth piece, it was a nice detail. For the assassin who's always on the go!
Boyd's daddy Bo Crowder appeared for the first time in this episode and if it isn't Mr. Friendly from Lost (M.C. Gainey)! Great to see him land in such a good show. Bo immediately broke up an assassination attempt on Boyd and backed his son up, despite Boyd releasing important information to Raylan.
Justified as a series to this point has done well for itself. I'm starting to come around on the episodes without the major story arcs too: the who-are-we-trying-to-catch-this-week episodes. This episode was decent, but the only problem is that it wasn't as strong as it could've been. Nobody was quite as formidable as Raylan except the hired killer from Texas and he was taken out before the two ever met. All the gun-pointing by the sheriff was impotent. It would have been jaw-droppingly awesome if the sheriff had actually pulled the trigger on Raylan - nobody would've seen that coming! But, well, that can't happen every episode. And if they're going to do it, might as well save it for down the road.
I digress. With all of the serialized content dropped in this episode and with all that's been built up to this moment, you'd figure "Blind Spot" would have packed quite a punch. But a sour assassination attempt followed by watching the bad guys try to squirm away wasn't as entertaining.
Like I said, it was a good episode, but it could have been better.


text:
These two right here are what dreams are made of, y'all. Jackie + Charles had me meet them out on the land where they're getting married. We laughed the entire session, talking about dreamy food and adventurous overseas outings. I may or may not be trying to go to their Argentina trip as their personal photographer.... Their session held incredible all linen outfits, a bottle of wine, and a love that couldn't help but shine on camera. I cannot wait for their 2018 wedding and the images to come!
Bridals || Hayley /
Ladies and gentlemen, I'm thrilled to introduce you to my gorgeous friend, Hayley McQuaid. She has one of the most beautiful hearts and just so happens to look like a Disney princess. I've been friends with her and her husband for about five years so taking her bridals was a joy- yes, maybe a few tears were shed. Hayles + Carter, I love y'all something fierce and was so honored to be a part of your big day.
Lifestyle || Dani /
Working with fashion + lifestyle bloggers has been one of my favorite additions to this season. It's a joy to get to know these beautiful ladies! Dani was one of the first bloggers I shot in Austin and we had a blast! She's a natural beauty and was effortless in front of the camera. Since then I've had more bloggers join the roster and I'm always looking for more! These shoots are a dream for me, quality time and tons of laughs with new friends. I can't get enough.
Engaged || Haley + Mike /
Y'all, as I write this I'm watching a Harry Potter movie, listening to the rain with an open window, and drinking a glass of wine. This is the life. Also, I realize I am absolutely awful at keeping up with this blog.
I just had to share the beauty of Haley and Mike before their wedding day this weekend [and I'm not allowed to share Haley's bridal session yet, but I'm counting down the days]! I can't wait to get these babes in front of my camera again, because they seriously know how to model. Mike played football for Texas A&M so we got to go onto the field for a portion of the session. I spent four years in the stands and finally got to play on the field! Enjoy the images and send this deam couple tons of well wishes!
PS- I think their "Holy cow we're getting married" faces at the end are my all time favorite!
EDITORIAL || Fresh Fall Elopement /
Woah. I can't even tell you what a dream come true this shoot was for me. Early into moving to Austin, I contacted Kali of Kindle and Gather, a wedding designer, to help make a vision come to life. We met over the next couple months at so many coffee shops to work out details, specifically our dream team of vendors we were dying to work with. Countless cappuccinos later, and this shoot came together without a hitch. It was featured over on Grey Likes Weddings a few weeks ago! From the table runner with a favorite poem scripted on it [written below], to the lush organic florals, to the cake that ended up being my dinner later that evening, this shoot was everything I dreamed of and more. Here are some of my favorites from the day, including a list of amazing vendors at the end!
The First Marriage, by Peter Meinke.
imagine the very first marriage a girl
and boy trembling with some inchoate
need for ceremony a desire for witness:
inventing formality like a wheel or a hoe
in a lost language in a clearing too far from here
a prophet or a prophetess intoned to the lovers
who knelt with their hearts cresting
like the unnamed ocean thinking This is true
thinking they will never be alone again
though planets slip their tracks and fish
desert the sea repeating those magic sounds
meaning I do on this stone below
this tree before these friends yes in body
and word my darkdream my sunsong yes I do
I do
Photography: MADELINE HARPER PHOTOGRAPHY // Styling: KINDLE AND GATHER // Florals: BRISTOL LANE // Calligraphy: KINDRED PAPERY // Venue: THE CONTEMPORARY AUSTIN // Film Lab: THE FIND LAB // Rentals: 10TH COLLECTION // Cake: SIMPLY DELICIOUS CUSTOM CAKES // Hair + Makeup: Hannah Zieschang // Models: Jillian + Colton Moore // Dress: UNBRIDALED
Engaged || Becca + Will /
Happy New Year, my friends! I hope this season has been full of rest and celebrations. This session I'm sharing today is so near to my heart. Becca has been a friend for a few years now, we've had the chance to shoot so many weddings together and watch each others businesses grow! Now I have the joy of capturing this engagement and wedding season for her and her fiancé, Will. They were a blast to have in front of my camera. Send them tons of love and well wishes!
Engaged || Hannah + Nick /
Happy Thursday! I had a blast on this engagement session with Hannah + Nick. They braved a steep descent into the greenbelt after some rainy weather for some hiking around to get to the perfect location for photos! They exuded joy and a sweet love for each other. My favorite part had to be when they danced in front of the camera- my goodness, Hannah's dress was made for twirls! It made me even more ready for their upcoming spring wedding. Make sure to leave them lots of love and well wishes!
Humanitarian || Neply, Haiti /
The first thing I noticed stepping off the plane was the familiarity of it all. The new surroundings somehow brought comfort, the scents of a developing country, the fact that I stand out walking through the airport all somehow confirming that this was where I needed to be. Haiti. A new country for me, familiar in it's developing infrastructure and cuisine, yet so new in the culture. Port Au Prince was larger than I imagined, sprawling with building layered upon building. We drove by the fish market with windows down [air conditioning is a luxury so we swapped air for clean scent without a second thought] and past the enormous marketplace. It was hard to distinguish home from abandoned store, both colorful yet having the same air of weather worn use. Metal siding count as roofs and gates in this land, motos run the streets and traffic has no laws. This country has so many hints of Nicaragua and Uganda thrown together, but there is a distinct vibe that I cannot place my finger on. Perhaps it's the spirit of a people who have survived such harsh natural disasters and yet remain hopeful. Perhaps it's the upcoming election that has the cities buzzing. Or it could be the recent local gossip just reaching the ears of a passerby. Regardless, Haiti welcomed me with arms wide open to explore the vibrancy found there. I touched down on the tarmac just a week before Hurricane Matthew touched down and am grateful for the timing of taking off two days before he stormed through.
I came to Haiti after reaching out to an organization called My Life Speaks, a multilayered advocate of community, education, and special needs awareness- just to name a few. I heard of them through several friends in both Texas and Tennessee alike and just knew it was an adventure I had to get on board with. I'll post more images from their organization over the following month! They reside in the village of Neply. A truly welcoming community, this village is nestled along a lazy stream and rolling pastureland. The mountains watch over this village hazily in the background, the beach only a ten minute walk away. My words cannot do the beauty justice.
The first day I walked around, I was welcomed inside by Asho, the resident ladies man, and his cat Mimi. We simply sat, the language barrier [theirs a mix of Creole, French, and English] not stopping the laughter or music from flowing freely. This is a culture that revolves around others. You walk the village not to get from point A to point B, but to mingle, linger, sit and talk, share space. I think that's what stuck out most from this trip. Oh the things to be learned if we simply paused to listen and to actively appreciate others. Neply is full of proud people. Not arrogant, but deeply in love with their country and home. Many have lived there for their entire lives and are comfortable sharing the joys of this village with outsiders, graciously accepting this English speaking girl in Chacos with a camera around her neck photographing everything in sight. Enough of my ramblings about Neply, the sweetest little gem of Haiti. There will be many more stories to come, but for now it's time for you to see a few glimpses of the beauty held there.
There is a spot deep in my heart for travel. Not the travel that hits the tourist traps, but the kind that leaves you in love with a culture and with admiration for a people group. My recent trip to Haiti inspired just that- a deeper desire to partner with organizations that celebrate these cultures and capture the work they do in these countries. If you have any organizations or nonprofits you love that could benefit from a photographer and storyteller on the ground, please comment with their name or send me an email telling me about them! I'm always looking for new causes to join and crusades to document!
Lifestyle || Kali /
Hey y'all! Let's just call it for what it is, I'm terrible at keeping up with this blog! But I've had some exciting work over the last few months that I'd love to share. So cheers to new beginnings and committing to keep this website up more! Up first is my beautiful friend Kali, owner and brilliant mind behind Kindle and Gather. She is a gem of a human, if you don't know her, you should! She let me take her head shots on film and then we got to work on a super special project together [more coming soon...]. Friends, meet Kali!
Lifestyle || Needtobreathe + One World Health /
Happy Monday, my friends! I realized that I haven't shared this shoot that was so near and dear to my heart. Better late than never, right? My family is deeply involved with an amazing organization that advocates for sustainable health care in developing nations: One World Health. They throw annual fundraisers in the beautiful Charleston, SC and partner with some amazing artists to raise awareness of this organization and bring in funds to sustain the ongoing work. One of the bands, Needtobreathe, has become outspoken advocates of this endeavor.
I had the chance to photograph their intimate concert for this cause back in March and am finally getting around to sharing the images with you [plus a few from a bigger concert the following evening with a ton of talented collaborators]. Can we all agree that the lead singer, Bear, has the greatest expressions? It's so different than my normal style of photography- all light and airy, a fun change of pace! I adore photographing concerts as well as being able to tell stories of organizations I deeply believe in. This night? Dream come true.
Lifestyle || Kristi + Luke /
I love in home sessions more than anything! I got to hang out with my dear friends Kristi and Luke in their home a few weeks ago on the way back from a work trip, and let me say, their house is a dream. They work at a residence and and vocational program near Houston that houses adults with special needs. Stopping in for the night, we got to catch up in their stunning home for a while and then I talked them into a few photos! They sent me home with freshly roasted coffee beans and an overflowing heart. Enjoy these two being hilarious in front of the camera as well as genuine models!
Lifestyle || Juliette in Film /
I had the chance to shoot my first newborn lifestyle session for the sweet Cash family in Austin, TX! They welcomed me into their home to meet their two week old daughter, Juliette. What a precious babe. She did amazing throughout the session, letting her mom and dad enjoy these tender moments as a family. Let me tell you, this is the first time I've seen a newborn soothed by the sound of a camera shutter. It was the best way to jump into newborn lifestyles, shooting both digital and film [featured here]. What a joy!
Bridals || Ashlea /
I am so excited to finally be able to share this session! Ashlea was a stunning bride- her session was filled with laughter and family. But even more gorgeous is her heart, sweet and compassionate and inviting. It was a joy to be a part of your wedding, my friends. Happy honeymooning, Ashlea + Erik!
Wedding || Laura + Weston /
Y'all. It's been a month and I still can't get over the beauty and joy of this day! Laura + Weston, your day was a dream.
Venue: Henkel Hall, Round Top TX
Florals: Last Petal Floral Studio
Second Shooter: Becca Gamache Photography
Lifestyle || Madaline + Eleanor /
There is nothing sweeter than a slow morning at home with those you love. I got the chance to capture Madaline and her sweet daughter Eleanor during one of these mornings. It was a joy to watch the two interact- Eleanor so curious and already independent, Madaline so adoring of her baby girl.
Travel || Ireland + England /
We do not believe in ourselves until someone reveals that deep inside us something is valuable, worth listening to, worthy of our trust, sacred to our touch. Once we believe in ourselves we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight or any experience that reveals the human spirit.
-e.e. cummings
This January I had the chance to explore Ireland and England with my best friend Margaret, who is away at university in Manchester. This trip was one of the most rejuvenating, sight filled, fast paced two weeks I've had! I adored getting to see the bustling cities, gorgeous countrysides, and warm people these countries had to offer. I couldn't get enough of the local music in the traditional Irish pubs in Dublin nor the exquisite art in the Victoria Albert Museum in London. From the Blarney Castle to the Cliffs of Moher to traditional tea in the quaint city of Chester, it passed in a blur of history, culture, and pints of Guinness! This trip was overflowing with friendship and beauty. Here are just a few film snapshots from the adventure of a lifetime!
Wedding || Samantha + Tyler /
With a bride and groom as sweet as Samantha + Tyler, I knew this day was sure to be a blast. This couple set aside a few hours in between their ceremony and reception to take a limo downtown for photographs in downtown Nashville! Their wedding party was so much fun to spend the afternoon with and a blast to watch on the dance floor. I couldn't have asked for better families to work with at this wedding. What a joy filled day!
Wedding || Haley + Andrew /
Happy Fri-yay blog! Nothing beats a fall wedding, especially with these two beauties as your couple. Haley + Andrew were a dream to work with, completely relaxed on their wedding day despite the forecasted rain. Their first look was a perfect moment followed by the rain holding off just long enough for a gorgeous outdoor ceremony! I couldn't get enough of Haley wearing her mom's cathedral veil. The whole day was a blast. [Especially when this newly married couple decided to raise the Kraken from the lake, pictures to come.] Their exit was made romantic and personal with heart shaped sparklers! Thanks Cedarwood, for hosting such a beautiful event. Hope your holiday week is beautiful, make sure to leave this couple tons of newlywed love.
Venue: Cedarwood Weddings
Second Shooter: Ashley Posthuma
Wedding || Leigh Ann + Sean /
Happy Friday, my friends. We made it to the weekend! I can't wait for y'all to see this sweet wedding. I knew Sean in college, we were in the same small group my junior year. I got to know the house of guys he lived in and let me just say- I love this group of friends, I've actually had the chance to shoot a few of their weddings. This one definitely stood out as being joy filled- Leigh Ann and Sean couldn't contain their giddy laughter under that huge oak tree during the ceremony. It was an honor to be a part of such a sweet day. It was held at the Winfield Inn, a stunning venue in Texas. This couple had a killer dance party at the reception, let me tell you, that guest list knew how to get after the dance floor. It was a blast to photograph. Enjoy the photos, friends, I hope they let you relive this beautiful day time and time again.
Venue: Winfield Inn
Second Shooter: Becca Gamache
Cake: Jazzy Cakes
Florals: Rebekah Cunningham
Coordinator: Liz Hayley
Engaged || Ashlea + Erik /
Happy Monday, y'all! Today is the best because I get to bring you one of the dreamiest sunrise engagement sessions to date. Ashlea + Erik are both from Brenham, home of Bluebell. You know it's going to be a perfect session when they bring a gallon of ice cream to eat at 7am- my kind of people. These two are so sweet and adventurous, they were willing to drive to Austin for this session. It was a dream, especially with these two models! Make sure to leave them lots of love!