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Robert Sheckley
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Robert Sheckley (July 16, 1928 – December 9, 2005) was a Hugo- and Nebula-nominated American science fiction author.
- 1 Sourced
- 1.1 Short fiction
- 1.2 Immortality, Inc. (1959)
- 1.3 The Status Civilization (1960)
- 1.4 Journey Beyond Tomorrow (1962)
- 1.5 The 10th Victim (1965)
- 1.6 Mindswap (1966)
- 1.7 Dimension of Miracles (1968)
- 2 External links
Short fiction[edit]
- See Robert Sheckley's Internet Science Fiction Database page for original publication details
- I know you're sane and you know you're sane. But what if we're both wrong?
- Death of the Dreammaster (published in Martin H. Greenberg (ed.) The Further Adventures of Batman (1989)), p. 24
Untouched by Human Hands (1954)[edit]
- Page numbers from the mass market paperback edition published by Ballantine (Catalogue number U2855), first Bal-Hi printing, December 1967
- This planet's secret menace was—freedom!
- Shape (p. 44)
- Paradox is the inevitable forerunner of chaos.
- The Impacted Man (p. 49)
- "What kind of intelligent beings would evolve on a planet that is all mountains?"
"Stupid ones!" Casker said.
- Untouched by Human Hands (p. 75)
- "Now look," Janice said. "If the king is so rich, why can't he pay?"
"The king never pays for anything he can get free," the ferra said. "That's why he's so rich."
- The King's Wishes (p. 93)
- All very unreasonable, but Arthur Gammet was beginning to suspect that most wizards were unreasonable people.
- The King's Wishes (p. 112)
Citizen in Space (1955)[edit]
- Page numbers from the mass market paperback first edition published by Ballantine (Catalogue number 126)
- Ifs and buts could erode the soundest of principles.
- Hands Off (p. 86)
- Few individuals of any race murder for pleasure. There are perfectly adequate reasons to kill, though, reasons which might satisfy any philosopher.
But, once accepted, there are more reasons, and more and more. And murder, once accepted, is hard to stop. It leads irresistibly to war and, from there, to annihilation.
- Hands Off (p. 89)
- "Credit is, of course, an automatic privilege. But, eventually, everything must be paid for."
Collins didn't like the sound of that. Pay? This place wasn't as civilized as he had thought. No one had mentioned paying. Why did they bring it up now?
"Why didn't someone stop me" he asked desperately. "They must have known I didn't have a proper rating."
Flign shook his head. "The credit ratings are suggestions, not laws. In a civilized world, an individual has the right to his own decisions. I'm very sorry, sir."
- Something for Nothing (p. 105)
- "That's so like you Terrans," Melith remarked sadly. "You want responsibility only if it doesn't incur risk. That's a wrong attitude for running a government."
- A Ticket to Tranai (p. 143)
Notions: Unlimited (1960)[edit]
- Page numbers from the mass market paperback first edition published by Bantam Books (Catalogue number A2003)
- You simply can't throw strangers together at random and expect the fiery, quick romance to turn into love. Love has its own rules and enforces them rigidly.
- Gray Flannel Armor (p. 9)
- Had he been right or was he just another visionary?
- Watchbird (p. 44)
- Sven had the sensation of discovering a new world, a world no civilized man had ever encountered. He was amazed to discover that weirder customs could be found on Earth than anywhere else in the galaxy.
- Holdout (p. 146)
Store of Infinity (1960)[edit]
- Page number from the mass market paperback first edition published by Bantam Books (Catalogue number A2170)
- A tremor ran through him. He had chosen, he reminded himself. He alone was responsible. The psychological test had proved that.
And yet, how responsible were the psychologists who had given him the test? How responsible was Mike Terry for offering a poor man so much money? Society had woven the noose and put it around his neck, and he was hanging himself with it, and calling it free will.
- The Prize of Peril (p. 16)
Shards of Space (1962)[edit]
- Page number from the mass market paperback first American edition published by Bantam Books (Catalogue number J2443)
- Hope could be dangerous, desire could be catastrophic.
- The Girls and Nugent Miller (p. 24)
- It was one hell of an inspection when you went around finding how many sane men you had left.
- Fool's Mate (p. 87)
- "I'm going to leave you here," Margraves said. "I've got some unfinished business to attend to."
"Right," Branch said, since it was all he could say. He knew that Margraves' unfinished business concerned a bottle.
- Fool's Mate (p. 88)
The Robot Who Looked Like Me (1978)[edit]
- Page numbers from the mass market paperback first American edition published by Bantam Books ISBN 0-553-13031-5, first printing (July 1982)
- I found her charming, went home and thought no more about her. Or, I thought I would think no more about her. But in the following days and nights her image remained obsessively before my eyes. My appetite fell off and I began sleeping badly. My computer checked out the relevant data and told me that I might conceivably be having a nervous breakdown; but the strongest inference was that I was in love.
- The Robot Who Looked Like Me (p. 3)
- Charlie Gleister had invented a time machine, but he hadn't invented it right because it didn't work.
- Slaves of Time (p. 11)
- Nothing happens for the first time, especially if what you're trying to do is to invent something absolutely novel and unprecedented. Of course, if nothing happens for the first time, that leaves the apparent problem of how anything happens at all. But the difficulty is entirely semantic: in the eternal recurrence of subatomic configurations of which our world is a simulacrum, there is no question of beginnings or endings. There are only middles, continuations, repetitions. Originality is a concept possible only to a limited viewpoint.
- Slaves of Time (pp. 14-15)
- It is all so familiar! I suppose that an electron, traveling from one atom to another, also expects to enter a realm of unimaginable novelty. But perhaps the scenery in every part of the universe is roughly similar; since one sees in accordance with who one is rather than with what is there.
- Slaves of Time (p. 16)
- Linguistic accommodation as well. Are they speaking my language or am I speaking theirs? I can never know: the transaction cannot watch itself being transacted.
- Slaves of Time (p. 16)
- Not only can you not step into the same river twice; it is not even the same you who can't step into the same river twice. Everything modifies everything. There is no niche in the past waiting for him to come back and occupy it. Nature will tolerate a paradox, but she abhors a vacuum.
- Slaves of Time (p. 18)
- From one viewpoint there were (potentially) a multiplicity of Gleisters; but from another viewpoint there was only one, and he was that one. After all, it didn't matter what these other people called themselves or where they came from; he was only the person he was here and now, the person whom he experienced. Reality is positional, ego is relational, and nature doesn't deal in abstractions.
- Slaves of Time (p. 19)
- "Should I have lectured them on all men being equal? Those people knew that all men were not equal, and that justice was the exclusive prerogative of the ruling class. They viewed all egalitarian ideas as devilish perversions, to be resisted to the death.
"Democracy is not natural law. Men must be educated to it. Democracy is a difficult and advanced concept for men whose instinct is to band together in wolf packs under a single leader. Effective democracy requires the exercise of responsibility and fairness to others. For the people of the future Earth, this was an outlandish concept: others were there only to be used."
- Slaves of Time (p. 28)
- He turned to Mingus. "Why don't you just leave them alone? I really don't care what your motives are. Hasn't Earth had enough emperors, dictators, generalissimos, war lords, Great Khans, Shahinshahs, Caesars, whatever you want to call them? Some of them had admirable motives—but the only people they really helped were themselves."
"I suppose you feel that a state of anarchy is preferable?" Mingus asked.
"I think it probably is," Hieronymous said. "The main defect of anarchy is its vulnerability to people like you."
- Slaves of Time (p. 29)
- Kettelman bristled. Nothing got him angrier than when people implied he was paranoid. It made him feel persecuted.
- A Supplicant in Space (p. 60)
- He exaggerated somewhat. In fact, not one word did he say that was true.
- A Supplicant in Space (p. 61)
- "You argue too damned well!"
"It is just my good luck," Detringer said, "that logic happens to be on the side of helping me."
- A Supplicant in Space (p. 64)
- "For information concerning the afterlife," Miss Ophelia said, "kindly contact your nearest priest, minister, rabbi, mullah or anyone else on the accredited list of God's representatives. Thank you for calling."
There was a sweet tinkle of chimes. Then the line went dead.
"What did the Big Fellow say?" asked General Muller.
"All I got was double-talk from his secretary."
"Personally, I don't believe in superstitions like God," General Muller said. "Even if it happens to be true, I find it healthier not to believe. Shall we get on with it?"
They got on with it.
- Zirn Left Unguarded, the Jenghik Palace in Flames, John Westerley Dead (p. 75)
- Love, the secret and unofficial heart of pair-bonding behavior, is a force to be reckoned with but never predicted. Love supersedes all other directives and cancels previous obligations. The shared look of love is love's preview, presenting a foretaste of the joys and sorrows to come, and setting into motion the automatic mating machinery upon which the success and stability of the State depends.
- Sneak Previews (p. 85)
- It takes a particular kind of a man to endure the shattering immensities of space and the paranoid-inducing stresses of threats from the unknown. It takes a man with a large and impervious ego and a consistently high degree of aggressive self-confidence. It takes a kind of a nut.
- Welcome to the Standard Nightmare (p. 88)
- What is the purpose of being really intelligent if not to have the substance of what you want without mistaking it for the shadow?
- Welcome to the Standard Nightmare (p. 102)
- "But what's it all for?"
"That's a stupid question. You might as well ask what reality is for."
"Well...what is reality for?"
- End City (p. 107)
- "Curly," I say, "I know they can't help being young, but isn't there something they can do about being so stupid?"
"I reckon not, Mr. Washburn," Curly says.
- The Never-Ending Western Movie (p. 119)
- "The disease may not be too difficult to live with."
"I thought you said it was terminal?"
"So I did. But then, everything is terminal, even health, even life itself. The only question is how long, and in what manner."
- I See a Man Sitting on a Chair, and the Chair Is Biting His Leg (p. 142)
- Love is always a risk; but hate is a deadly peril.
- I See a Man Sitting on a Chair, and the Chair Is Biting His Leg (p. 150)
- Silversmith lay in bed sipping seltzer and thinking deep brooding thoughts about the impossibility of happiness and the elusiveness of satisfaction. Despite having the world's luxuries set before him—or because of it—he was bored and had been for weeks. It seemed damned unfair to him, to be able to get anything you wanted, but to be unable to enjoy what you could get.
When you came right down to it, life was a disappointment, and the best it had to offer was never quite good enough. The roast duck was never as crisp as advertised, and the water in the swimming pool was always a shade too warm or too cold.
How elusive was the quest for quality! For ten dollars you could buy a pretty fair steak; for a hundred dollars you could get a really good Porterhouse; for a thousand dollars you could buy a kilo of Kobe beef that had been massaged by the hands of consecrated virgins, together with a genius chef to prepare it. And it would be very good indeed. But not a thousand dollars good. The more you paid, the less progress you made toward that quintessence of beef that that the angels eat when God throws his yearly banquet for the staff.
- Silversmith Wishes (p. 176)
Immortality, Inc. (1959)[edit]
- All page numbers from the paperback first edition published by Bantam Books
- Still, no matter how commonplace, one's death is the most interesting event of one's life.
- Chapter 1 (p. 1)
- Corpses shouldn't be forced to answer questions. Death was man's ancient privilege, his immemorial pact with life, granted to the slave as well as the noble. Death was man's solace, and his right. But perhaps they had revoked that right; and now you couldn't evade your responsibilities simply by being dead.
- Chapter 2 (p. 7)
- And yet, Blaine thought, mankind showed an historic ability to avoid the extremes of doom as well as the extremes of bliss. Chaos was forever prophesized and utopia was continually predicted, and neither came to pass.
- Chapter 3 (p. 9)
- The deed of dying transcends class and breeding. It is every man's patent of nobility, his summons from the king, his knightly adventure, the greatest deed of his life. And how he acquits himself in that lonely and perilous enterprise is his true measure as a man.
- Chapter 15 (p. 71)
- Reilly was fairly sure he'd survive after death; but he saw no reason to take chances. Also, Mr. Kean says that the very rich, like the very religious, wouldn't enjoy a hereafter filled with just anybody. They think that, by suitable rites and symbols, they can get into a more exclusive part of the hereafter.
- Chapter 20 (p. 91)
- Blaine remembered how strange, dark, atavistic and noble Hull's lordly selection of death has seemed. Pretentious, of course; but then, life itself was a pretension in the vast universe of unliving matter.
- Chapter 35 (p. 148)
The Status Civilization (1960)[edit]
- All page numbers from the paperback first edition published by Signet Books
- "I'm afraid not. According to the law, you must leave here at once."
"But they'll kill me!"
"That's very true," Frendlyer said. "Unfortunately, it can't be helped. A victim, by definition, is one who is to be killed."
"I thought this was a protective organization."
"It is. But we protect rights, not victims. Your rights are not being violated."
- Chapter 3 (p. 19)
- On Omega, the law was kept secret. Older residents used their knowledge of the law to enforce their rule over the newcomers. This system was condoned and reinforced by the doctrine of the inequality of all men, which lay at the heart of the Omegan legal system. Through planned inequality and enforced ignorance, power and status remained in the hands of the older residents.
- Chapter 5 (p. 26)
- "Evil," the priest said, after he had settled comfortably into Barrent's best chair, "is that force within us which inspires men to acts of strength and endurance. The worship of Evil is essentially the worship of oneself, and therefore the only true worship. The self which one worships is the ideal social being; the man content in his niche in society, yet ready to grasp any opportunity for advancement; the man who meets death with dignity, who kills without the demeaning vice of pity. Evil is cruel, since it is a true reflection of the uncaring and insensate universe. Evil is eternal and unchanging, although it comes to us in the many forms of protean life."
- Chapter 6 (pp. 28-29)
- All his studies had been for extraterrestrial exploration. There was no place for him on Earth; and now he was barred from space.
- Chapter 8 (p. 41)
- On Omega, the law is supreme. Hidden and revealed, sacred and profane, the law governs the actions of all citizens, from the lowest of the low to the highest of the high. Without the law, there could be no privileges for those who made the law; therefore the law was absolutely necessary. Without the law and its stern enforcement, Omega would be an unthinkable chaos in which a man's rights could extend only as far and as long as he personally could enforce them. This anarchy would mean the end of Omegan society; and particularly, it would mean the end of those senior citizens of the ruling class who had grown high in status, but whose skill with a gun had long passed its peak.
Therefore the law was necessary.
But Omega was also a criminal society, composed entirely of individuals who had broken the laws of Earth. It was a society which, in the final analysis, stressed individual endeavor. It was a society in which the lawbreaker was king; a society in which crimes were not only condoned but were admired and even rewarded; a society in which deviation from the rules was judged solely on its degree of success.
And this resulted in the paradox of a criminal society with absolute laws which were meant to be broken.
- Chapter 11 (pp. 50-51)
- His friends, who had been waiting for the death announcement, came to congratulate him. They were eager to hear the complete details of the Trial by Ordeal; but Barrent had learned now that secret knowledge was the road to power. He gave them only the sketchiest outline.
- Chapter 11 (p. 52)
- They were shunned, and they had reacted to exclusion by exclusiveness.
- Chapter 12 (p. 56)
- "The law," he said, "is above the criminal and the judge, and rules them both. The law is inescapable, for an action is either lawful or unlawful. The law, indeed, may be said to have a life of its own, an existence quite apart from the finite lives of the beings who administer it. The law governs every aspect of human behavior; therefore, to the same extent that humans are lawful beings, the law is human. And being human, the law has its idiosyncrasies, just as a man has his. For a citizen who abides by the law, the law is distant and difficult to find. For those who reject and violate it, the law emerges from its musty sepulchers and goes in search of the transgressor."
- Chapter 15 (p. 65)
- "Do you have any papers for Will Barrent?"
"None," the lawyer said. "His case is in different hands. I'm afraid it might not be completely processed until after the Games are over."
"But I'll probably be dead then," Barrent said.
"That, I can assure you, won't stop the papers from being properly served," the fat lawyer said proudly. "Dead or alive, you will retain all your rights."
- Chapter 18 (p. 77)
- Remember, the inevitable inefficiency of a huge bureaucracy will be working for you.
- Chapter 20 (p. 84)
- "Would you define Good for me, Citizen Abbot?"
"Certainly. Good is that force within us which inspires men to acts of conformity and subservience. The worship of Good is essentially the worship of oneself, and therefore the only true worship. The self which one worships is the ideal social being: the man content in his niche in society, yet ready to creatively advance his status. Good is gentle, since it is a true reflection of the loving and pitying universe. Good is continually changing in its aspects, although it comes to us in the... You have a strange look on your face, young man."
"I'm sorry, Citizen Abbot. I believe I heard that sermon, or one very much like it."
- Chapter 27 (p. 115)
- What had he been taught? For the social good, you must be your own policeman and witness. You must assume responsibility for any crime which might conceivably be yours.
The face of the informer stared impassively at him. It was Barrent's own face, reflected back from a mirror on the wall.
- Chapter 29 (p. 123)
Journey Beyond Tomorrow (1962)[edit]
- All page numbers from the 1969 paperback edition published by Dell Books (#4268)
- But Joenes then made a speech which was a beauty, and I cannot recall it word for word, but the idea was that laws are made by man and thus must partake of the evil nature of man, and that true morality lies in following the true dictates of the illuminated soul.
"A Commie, huh?" said the lead cop.
- Chapter 2 "Lum's Meeting With Lety Barrera Joenes" (p. 18)
- Nature also gives rain and drought, heat and cold; and thoughtfully ensures that the rain rots man's food, the drought parches it, the heat scalds man's body, and the cold freezes his limbs.
These are only nature's milder aspects, not to be compared to the wrathfulness of the sea, the frigid indifference of the mountains, the treachery of the swamp, the depravity of the desert, or the terror of the jungle. But I noticed that nature, in her hatred of mankind, provided that most of the earth's surface be covered with sea, mountains, swamp, desert, and jungle.
- Chapter 6 "Joenes and the Three #505justice Truck Drivers" (pp. 44-45)
- We have propounded our beliefs in various ways, and according to various doctrines. Often we have aroused the passions of men to murder and war. This was perfectly proper, since it brought the problems of morality and religion to their highest and most exquisite pitch, and gave many complicated matters for us theologians to talk about.
We argued always, and we published our various dissenting opinions. But we argued like lawyers in a court, and nobody in his right mind listens to a lawyer. Those were the days of our pride, and we never noticed that men had ceased to pay attention to us.
- Chapter 6 "Joenes and the Three Truck Drivers" (p. 50)
- Joenes's students quickly absorbed the material given to them, passed their tests, and quickly forgot the material. Like many vital young organisms, they were able to eject anything harmful, disturbing, distressing, or merely boring. Of course they also ejected anything useful, stimulating, or thought provoking. This was perhaps regrettable, but it was part of the educative process to which every teacher had to accustom himself.
- Chapter 8 "How Joenes Taught, and What He Learned" (p. 69)
- It was the college conservatives who had almost succeeded in electing John Smith to the Presidency of the United States during the last election. The fact that Smith had been dead for twenty years had not dampened their ardor; quite the contrary, many considered this the candidate's best quality.
- Chapter 8 "How Joenes Taught, and What He Learned" (pp. 70-71)
- "And do not think," Manisfree said, "that we absolve ourselves from blame in this situation. Although we teachers purport to know more than other men, we have usually chosen to remain aloof from public life. Practical, hardheaded men of the world have always frightened us; and those men, in their hardheaded way, have brought us to this."
"Nor is aloofness our only failure," said Hanley of Anthropology. "Let me point out that we have taught—badly! Our few promising students became teachers, thus insulating themselves as we had. The rest of our students sat through the sleep-provoking drone of our lectures, eager only to depart and take their places in a mad world. We did not touch them, Joenes, we did not move them, and we did not teach them to think."
"In fact," said Blake of Physics, "we did quite the contrary. We managed to equip most of our students with a definite hatred of thinking. They learned to view culture with the greatest suspicion, to ignore ethics, and to consider the sciences solely as a means of making money. This was our responsibility and our failure. The outcome of that failure is the world."
- Chapter 9 "The Need for the Utopia" (p. 74)
- He distrusted all laws, even the best, while at the same time recognizing the necessity for them. For Joenes, a law took its goodness from the nature of the men who administered it. When the nature of those men changed, as Joenes believed was inevitable, then the nature of the law changed, too. When this happened, new laws and new lawgivers had to be found.
- Chapter 16 "The End of the Journey" (p. 152)
The 10th Victim (1965)[edit]
- All page numbers from the 1965 first edition published by Ballantine Books (#U5050)
- Rome has an ambiance, puerile yet unmatchable. Rome hints at the possibility of becoming the main actor in the drama of one's own life. (The hint is false, of course; but the stolid northern cities do not even possess the hint.)
- Chapter 2 (pp. 19-20)
- For the question inevitably remains, is Polletti's admission of fear a magnificent conquest of the unconquerable, or a mere admission of the inadmissable?
- Chapter 2 (p. 26)
- It was as easy as falling off a precipice.
- Chapter 3 (p. 28)
- Even rulers, notoriously the slowest of men to change, realized that something had to be done.
- Chapter 3 (p. 30)
- She was an extremely attractive woman if you like the type, which could best be described as homicidal schizophrenic paranoiac with kittenish overtones.
- Chapter 5 (p. 45)
- He shook his head violently, pulled himself together and swallowed a stiff dose of Infradex, a drug designed to alleviate drug reactions. Within seconds he was his old, normally depressed self. This cheered him considerably, and he left the hut in a mood teetering on the edge of equanimity.
- Chapter 15 (p. 125)
- One moment's inattention, and the long expected death came at last—unexpectedly! In that agonized moment, sprawled helpless upon the uncaring ground, Polletti realized that no preparation for one's own death is possible. Death has had too much experience in catching men off guard, in piercing their attitudes and reducing their poses.
- Chapter 15 (p. 126)
- For Polletti, experience had brought only the bitter residue of pleasure which is the true essence of disenchantment. Certain delights which in his youth had seemed unique and unobtainable had turned out, upon acquisition, to be infinitely and drearily repeatable.
- Chapter 15 (p. 130)
- Love is a wonderful game which begins in fun and ends in marriage.
- Chapter 15 (p. 131)
- For love, as he knew it, was an aberration, a form of temporary insanity, a short-lived state of autosuggestion.
- Chapter 15 (p. 132)
- "Hey, what is this," he asked.
"I guess maybe you could call it like love," Caroline said.
"Whaddaya mean, love?" Chet asked. "Your contract expressly forbids you to fall in love during the duration of your tenth kill, and it furthermore explicitly forbids you to fall in love with your Victim."
"Love," Caroline said coolly, "existed a long time before contracts."
"Contracts," Martin said viciously, "are a lot more enforceable than love."
- Chapter 16 (pp. 136-137)
Mindswap (1966)[edit]
- All page numbers from the 1966 first paperback edition published by Dell Books (#5643)
- You have been bitten by the travel bug, which is very suitable for your time of life, and is a passion akin to falling in love, or fighting an idealistic war, or becoming disillusioned with the world, and other postures of the young.
- Chapter 3 (p. 16)
- Marvin did not give way to despair. He gave way instead to anger, which was a much healthier emotion, though equally unproductive.
- Chapter 6 (p. 28)
- Quite in vain did several lawyers point out to him that, if justice really existed, there would be no need for law and lawmakers, and thus one of mankind's noblest conceptions would be obliterated, and an entire occupational group would be thrown out of work. For it is the essence of the law, they told him, that abuses and outrages should exist, since these discrepancies served as proof and validation of the necessity of law, and of justice itself.
- Chapter 6 (pp. 28-29)
- "You might say that," Flynn said, thus avoiding an outright lie, since anyone might say anything whether it was true or not.
- Chapter 8 (p. 44)
- All of us live by the employment of countless untested assumptions, the truth or falsehood of which we can determine only through the hazard of our lives. Since most of us value our lives more than the truth, we leave such drastic tests for the fanatics.
- Chapter 14 (p. 70)
- "The acceptance of indeterminacy is the beginning of wisdom," the hermit quoted.
- Chapter 14 (p. 70)
- And a great longing overcame him, a desire to be finished with desire, to forego pleasure and pain, to quit the petty modes of achievement and failure, to have done with distractions, and get on with the business of life, which was death.
- Chapter 17 (p. 83)
- "Time devours our feeble mortality, leaving us with but the sour residue of memory."
Marvin nodded. "Yet this ineffable and ungraspable quantity," he replied, "this time which no man may possess, is in truth our only possession."
- Chapter 24 (p. 110)
- Thus action serves as anodyne, whereas contemplation is revealed as the most direct form of involvement, and therefore much shunned by men.
- Chapter 24 (p. 112)
- Our roles are chose for us in this world by the stern dictates of an unrelenting Fate; and many a man who thought to play the emperor on Life's stage found himself cast for a corpse instead.
- Chapter 26 (p. 124)
- "I feel no moral compunction in the slightest at my so-called crime. If a man cannot retain control of his own body, then he deserves to lose it. I have observed, during a long and varied lifetime, that men will give their bodies to any rogue who asks, and will enslave their minds to the first voice that commands them to obey. This is why the vast majority of men cannot keep even their natural birthright of a mind and body, but choose instead to rid themselves of those embarrassing emblems of freedom."
"That," Detective Urdorf said, "is the classic apologia of the criminal."
"That which you call a crime when one man does it," Kraggash said, "you call government when many men do it. Personally, I fail to see the distinction; and failing to see it, I refuse to live by it."
- Chapter 30 (pp. 141-142)
- Nature abhors a vacuum, and I don't like it much either.
- Chapter 32 (p. 153)
- All men are mortal, he tells us, but some are more mortal than others.
- Chapter 32 (p. 153)
- Last week we revoked his Godhead; we caught him operating a life without a license.
- Chapter 32 (p. 153)
- In a way it made no difference, since nothing is permanent except our illusions.
- Chapter 33 (pp. 156-157)
Dimension of Miracles (1968)[edit]
- All page numbers from the paperback first edition published by Dell Books (#1940)
- He shared the common human hallmark: he was simultaneously predictable and unfathomable—a routine miracle.
- Chapter 1 (p. 14)
- "Well, no sense crying over unspilt blood," the Prize Clerk said. "If we took full account of our eventualities, we'd soon run out of eventualities for us to take full account of."
- Chapter 3 (p. 23)
- "Machines!" the Clerk said scornfully. "We have many of them, some exquisitely complex. But event the best of them are much like idiot savants. They do adequately on tedious straightforward tasks like building stars or destroying planets. But give them something tough, like solacing a widow, and they simply go to pieces. Would you believe it, the largest computer in our section can landscape an entire planet; but it cannot fry an egg or carry a tune, and it knows less about ethics than a newborn wolf cub. Would you want something like that to run your life?"
"Of course not," Carmody said. "But couldn't someone build a machine with creativity and judgment?"
"Someone has," the Clerk said. "It has been designed to learn from experience, which means that it must make errors in order to arrive at truths. It comes in many shapes and sizes, most of them quite portable. Its flaws are readily apparent, but seem to exist as necessary counterweights to it virtues. No one has yet improved on the basic design, though many have tried. This ingenious device is called 'intelligent life.'"
- Chapter 3 (pp. 25-26)
- "Earth, Earth," the short, alien Carmody mused. "I think I remember the name now. There was a recent study of isolated worlds and the peculiarities of their development. Earth was mentioned as a planet covered with an obsessively overproductive species. Object manipulation is their outstanding modality. Their project is an attempt to live in their own, ever-accumulating waste products. In short, Earth is diseased place. I believe it is being phased out of the Galactic Master Plan on the basis of chronic cosmic incompatibility. The place will then be rehabilitated and turned into a refuge for daffodils."
- Chapter 4 (p. 29)
- Carmody's jaw stiffened and he withdrew his hand. He had been pushed around long enough. Now, for the sake of his own self-esteem, he would not yield any more.
- Chapter 4 (p. 31)
- I'll follow the reedy tenor of his excuses and blast them with the bellowy bass of irrefutable logic!
- Chapter 4 (p. 33)
- A malfunction of this type can be cured only by changing the nature of the universe, which is, of course, impractical.
- Chapter 4 (p. 34)
- A little prescience goes a long way, especially in a galaxy as disorganized as this one.
- Chapter 4 (p. 34)
- The only thing to think over was Me, of course. And the real problem about Me was, What was I supposed to do? Was I meant to be nothing but God? I had tried the God business and found it too limited. It was a job for a simple-minded egomaniac. There had to be something else for me to do—something more meaningful, more expressive of my true self. I'm convinced of it! That is my problem, and that is the question I ask of you: What am I to do with myself?
- Chapter 7 (p. 53)
- "It is the principle of Business, which is more fundamental than the law of gravity. Wherever you go in the galaxy, you can find a food business, a housebuilding business, a war business, a peace business, a governing business, and so forth. And, of course, a God business, which is called 'religion,' and which is a particularly reprehensible line of endeavor. I could talk for a year on the perverse and nasty notions that the religions sell, but I'm sure you've heard it all before. But I'll just mention one matter, which seems to underlie everything the religions preach, and which seems to me almost exquisitely perverse."
"What's that?" Carmody asked.
"It's the deep, fundamental bedrock of hypocrisy upon which religion is founded. Consider: no creature can be said to worship if it does not possess free will. Free will, however, is free. And just by virtue of being free, is intractable and incalculable, a truly Godlike gift, the faculty that makes a state of freedom possible. To exist in a state of freedom is a wild, strange thing, and was clearly intended as such. But what do the religions do with this? They say, 'Very well, you possess free will; but now you must use your free will to enslave yourself to God and to us.' The effrontery of it! God, who would not coerce a fly, is painted as a supreme slavemaster! In the face of this, any creature with spirit must rebel, must serve God entirely of his own will and volition, or must not serve him at all, thus remaining true to himself and to the faculties God has given him."
"I think I see what you mean," Carmody said.
"I've made it too complicated," Maudsley said. "There's a much simpler reason for avoiding religion."
"What's that?"
"Just consider its style—bombastic, hortatory, sickly-sweet, patronizing, artificial, inapropos, boring, filled with dreary images or peppy slogans—fit subject matter for senile old women and unweaned babies, but for no one else. I cannot believe that the God I met here would ever enter a church; he had too much taste and ferocity, too much anger and pride. I can't believe it, and for me that ends the matter. Why should I go to a place that a God would not enter?"
- Chapter 13 (pp. 88-89)
- How nicely you put it! We may rant against fortune and the world, but we are left at the end with the stark proposition: "These are the things which are."
- Chapter 17 (p. 108)
- "You want me to tell you why reality is the way it is," Seethwright said. "But there is no explanation for that. You must simply learn to fit your preconceptions to what you find. You must not expect reality to adapt itself to you, except very infrequently.
- Chapter 21 (p. 133)
- "Isn't there anything you can do about the predator?" Carmody asked.
"Nothing. Nor would I if I could. Predation is a necessary circumstance. Even the Gods are eventually eaten by Fate. You will not be an exception to the universal rule."
- Chapter 21 (p. 136)
- Remember, similitude need not imply exactitude.
- Chapter 24 (p. 159)
- Once upon a time men resisted the implications of actuality. That day is gone. We know now that art is the thing itself together with its extensions into superfluity. Not pop art, I hasten to say, which sneers and exaggerates. This is popular art, which simply exists. This is the age in which we unconditionally accept the unacceptable, and thus proclaim the naturalness of our artificiality."
- Chapter 28 (p. 187)
- "Your predator is close behind you and will infallibly be your death."
"I don't doubt it," Carmody said, in a moment of strange calm." But in terms of long-range planning, I never did expect to get out of this Universe alive."
"That is meaningless," the Prize said. "The fact is, you have lost everything."
"I don't agree," Carmody said. "Permit me to point out that I am presently still alive."
"Agreed. But only for the moment."
"I have always been alive only for the moment," Carmody said. "I could never count on more. It was my error to expect more. That holds true, I believe, for all of my possible and potential circumstances."
"Then what do you hope to achieve with your moment?"
"Nothing," Carmody said. "Everything."
"I don't understand you any longer," the Prize said. "Something about you has changed, Carmody. What is it?"
"A minor thing," Carmody told him. "I have simply given up a longevity which I never possessed anyhow. I have turned away from the con game which the Gods run in their heavenly sideshow. I no longer care under which shell the pea of immortality might be found. I don't need it. I have my moment, which is quite enough."
"Saint Carmody," the Prize said, in tones of deepest sarcasm. "No more than a shadow's breadth separates you and death! What will you do now with your pitiable moment?"
"I shall continue to live it," Carmody said. "That is what moments are for."
- Chapter 28 (pp. 189-190; closing words)


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At Anchor Transportation, we are committed to treating our customers' information responsibly. This privacy notice is intended to describe how we gather, use, and disclose your information. This notice applies to non-public information about individuals and business entities that seek or obtain financial products and services from the companies for business or commercial purposes ("Commercial Customers"). "Non-public information" means any information about a commercial customer from which the customer could be identified, whether obtained directly from the commercial customer or from another source. It does not include anonymous information or information that is lawfully available to the general public.
We may collect the following information:
We require this information to understand your needs and provide you better service for the following reasons:
We are committed to ensuring that your information is secure. In order to prevent unauthorized access or disclosure, we have put in place suitable physical, electronic, and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the information we collect online.
A cookie is a small file which asks permission to be placed on your computer's hard drive. Once you agree, the file is added and the cookie helps analyze web traffic or lets you know when you visit a particular site. Cookies allow web applications to respond to you as an individual. The web application can tailor its operations to your needs, likes, and dislikes by gathering and remembering information about your preferences.
We use traffic log cookies to identify which pages are being used. This helps us analyze data about web page traffic and improve our website in order to tailor it to customer needs. We only use this information for statistical analysis purposes and then the data is removed from the system.
Overall, cookies help us provide you with a better website by enabling us to monitor which pages you find useful and which you do not. A cookie in no way gives us access to your computer or any information about you other than the data you choose to share with us.
You can choose to accept or decline cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer. This may prevent you from taking full advantage of the website.
Our website may contain links to enable you to visit other websites of interest easily. However, once you have used these links to leave our site, you should note that we do not have any control over that other website. Therefore, we cannot be responsible for the protection and privacy of any information which you provide whilst visiting such sites and such sites are not governed by this privacy statement. You should exercise caution and look at the privacy statement applicable to the website in question.
You may choose to restrict the collection or use of your personal information in the following ways:
We will not sell, distribute, or lease your personal information to third parties unless we have your permission or are required by law. We may use your personal information to send you promotional information about third parties which we think you may find interesting if you tell us that you wish this to happen.
You may request details of personal information which we hold about you under the Data Protection Act 1998. A small fee will be payable. If you would like a copy of the information held on you please contact us.
If you believe that any information we are holding on you is incorrect or incomplete, please write to or email us as soon as possible. We will promptly correct any information found to be incorrect.

subset: commoncrawl


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Are you interested in building your own home? Would you be willing to work in co-operation with other people who share your dream? Do you want to find out more about the practicalities of self-build and custom-build housing?
If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then we would love to hear from you.
The Burslem and Middleport Local Forum is a group of local residents and businesses who want to promote self-build housing developments. Following a bid for three projects to the Homes & Communities Agency, we are working with local community members, Urban Vision, Stoke-on-Trent City Council, CDT Architects, Aaron Chetwynd Architect Studio, Greenbuilt, bITjam and other partners to plan for the future of three sites in Middleport and Longport.
Upcoming dates:
– 15th November: Family fun day & start of the community design festival
Middleport Pottery, 10-3pm
– 28th November: Design workshop for potential homebuilders
Middleport Pottery, 10-4pm
To get involved in Rebuild Middleport you can:
- Join the Facebook group
- Follow and join the Twitter discussion: #rebuildmiddleport
- leave a comment here if you have any questions or wish to contact the organisers
- come along to the Burslem & Middleport Local Forum where we are developing and discussing self build each month. For more information or to be added to the mailing list contact Jackie Grant by email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Design Festival 2013
To get the ball rolling we worked with our local architecture centre, Urban Vision North Staffordshire to organise the first Middleport Community Design Festival.
The Festival included:
- Inspirational talks on various aspects of building an eco-home
- Group workshops investigating local sites suitable for self-build housing
- Practical demonstrations and training in eco-building techniques
- Professional advice for self-builders – finance, planning, design
- Dragons' Den


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Training Course Transfer Policy
We recognise that the needs and commitments of our customers have to potential to change after they enrol on their chosen training programme and as such we will need to be flexible in the way we continue to offer our services. This policy therefore exists to provide our customers and potential customers with clear guidance on how and when course transfers and deferrals of attendance will be accepted, including any additional fees that may be applied.
This policy provides an overview of the terms related to course transfers. For a more detailed account of our position on transfers, please refer to Clause 10 of our Terms of Business.
HFE is committed to ensuring that all advertised courses run as scheduled and that we are able to continue to provide the high-standard of training that has become synonymous with the HFE brand. At the heart of our mission statement is 'affordability', and we are dedicated to ensuring that we can continue to keep our course prices competitive. In order to achieve this objective however, it is essential that we can plan in advance, and ensure that all reserved places for students on our courses are used as originally planned.
Why we Charge for Transfers?
In the event that a student defers their course attendance from one course instance to another, they effectively consume 2 course spaces instead of the one space that they have booked and paid for. In cases where the notice period supplied is less than 6-weeks, the likelihood that we will be able re-use that place is incredibly low given the volume of home-study learning required from students before they attend their course. Therefore, the transfer fees set out below are in place to provide a contribution from students towards these costs and losses. They in no way represent the full extent of our losses in respect of course transfers but they are considered sufficient enough to secure a commitment from students to the course that they are transferring on to.
It should also be noted that the more times a student transfers their course, the greater the losses we incur. Therefore, after 2 course transfers, we reserve the right to refuse any further transfers, as stipulated in our Terms of Business.
This transfer policy does not affect your statutory rights.
Making a Transfer
If you wish to transfer your course attendance from one course instance to another, you must do so using the application form at the bottom of this page. Verbal applications to transfer will not be accepted.
Unfortunately theory and practical exam bookings are non-refundanble and non-transferable.
Where a notice period of 6-weeks or more is provided before the Commencement Date, there will be no fee for the first course transfer.
Where the notice period is less than 6-weeks before the Commencement Date of, a fee of £100.00 will be due.
Where the notice period is less than 2-weeks before the Commencement Date, a fee of £250.00 will be due.
N.B. The "Commencement Date" is the first day of the Course requiring your attendance, as detailed on the Application form for the Initial Course.


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We never charge a studio fee. All of our plaster and ceramic pieces are "one price": just pay for the piece and all the paint, glaze and firing is included! Feel free to stay as long as you'd like and even come back to finish another day at no charge!
Of course! This is a very family-friendly studio. We have booster seats for you little ones and toys to play with (There are always those fast-finishers!)
We have a "Don't worry if it breaks" policy so please don't be afraid to bring young children. Our pieces may break, but they are meant to be handled.
Even though our posted hours are until 6 PM on week nights and 8PM on Fridays, we'd love to host your group any evening at no extra charge. Just call or email and we'll be here for you.
Yes! Everyone brings something to eat when they come here. Juice for the kids, goldfish, popcorn or even lunch.
Unless it is a busy time of the year (Summer, Christmas) you can expect to pick things back up in one week. Paint on a Wednesday - pick up the next Wednesday! Please call first if you are driving some distance or going out of your way. We can also try to "squeeze things in" if you have a rush job.
The standard group discount is $2 off per piece, except in the case of items costing $2 or less. Groups always vary in size and it is our understanding that things come up after the event is booked. We'll be glad to host a group of any size: 5, 8 15...we will be happy to accomodate most any size group.
Clermont: 352-536-9946 Cagan Crossings: 352-404-8932


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Enterprise Integration (EI) is an inherently complex undertaking that tends to have a fairly high failure rate. Integration needs are difficult to predict and solve because there are multiple system silos with their own project plans that span several release cycles to manage. Keeping track of these multiple silos makes it difficult to determine and eliminate redundancies and track system interdependencies. With so many cogs in the integration wheel, it's challenging for agency IT leaders to embrace EI. So how can we simplify integration processes to help CIOs leverage the benefits? It all starts with the how of EI.
What Integration Trends Should Your Agency Embrace to Ensure Mission Success?
Federal government agencies face all kinds of challenges when leveraging IT to drive mission success. From legacy systems that consume a disproportionate amount of the operating budget to architecture that can no longer adapt to modern requirements, these types of obstacles quickly undermine efficiency, performance, and success. One of the most often cited, yet easiest, way to overcome challenges is integration. By keeping six key integration trends in mind, you can plan to poise your agency for long-term mission success.
Are Legacy Systems Really Hampering Federal Agencies?
One of the most frequent topics of conversation among government IT leaders today is how to manage legacy systems at a time when the pressure to modernize is at an all time high but budgets remain tight. But what exactly is a legacy system, and why are they creating such problems in the federal government?
IT Modernization in the News
Despite the loss of billions of dollars of funding for IT modernization in the 2017 federal budget, agencies are making investments in their futures. Whether driven by a mandate to serve citizens better or to comply with regulations handed down from Congress, CIOs like LaVerne Council and Register of Copyrights, Maria Pallante are determined to bring their agencies and systems into the digital age.
Read on to find out where 18F, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the United States Postal Services (USPS), and the Copyright Office are making strategic investments.
Resources to Help Agency CIOs to Drive Modernization
When President Obama's 2017 budget was released in early February, it was clear that a key focus of the administration's final year was to drive a smarter and more efficient government through IT. Key sections of the budget confirmed what has been evident for some time now: that "[t]he Administration has embarked on a comprehensive effort to fundamentally improve the way that the Government delivers technology services to the public," through means of "recruiting top technologists and entrepreneurs to work within agencies on the highest priority projects, leveraging the best processes to increase oversight and accountability for IT spending, and ramping up Government contracting with innovative companies."
API Management: Real-Time Open Data
Open Data is the concept that data should be available for use and distribution by anyone. In many cases an open data model enables speed and flexibility within the devops community. That speed is then passed along to other organizational areas, allowing government IT to move at the speed required by today's business world. However, choosing to embrace open data and the choice it offers can be perplexing. Incorporating an API Management system to manage, protect and monitor data exchange is the best path for agency IT leaders to embark on in order to alleviate concerns over open data.
To Deliver on Mission Success, IT Modernization is Key
How CIOs at DISA and U.S. Forest Service are Embracing Agile
Government CIOs are under a tremendous amount of pressure to address the issue of aging IT infrastructure and the impediments it introduces to meeting the mission. Between choosing whether to continue to upgrade legacy systems or to invest in new infrastructure, the pressure is on to make decisions that are timely, budget-friendly, and that will also ensure mission success.
How Avi Bender and the Census Bureau Are Revolutionizing Digital Government
Avi Bender, Chief Technology Officer at the Census Bureau, is on the leading edge of a monumental revolution in the federal government. He's already a pioneer in digital government, but with the 2020 Census just around the corner, he's looking to invest in an infrastructure that will not only support the processing and analysis of data, but enable it to become a jewel in the crown of the federal government's open data mandate. In fact, The Census Bureau's Lisa Blumerman, said recently that "[we]'re bringing the decennial census into the 21st century…This census is going to be like no other census."
How IT Will Transform the Federal Government in 2016?
At the beginning of each year there are a good many quips about how the future is finally here. Yet, despite the fact that it is 2016, most government agencies still have a fair ways to go when it comes to modernizing their IT systems so that they can deliver more services to more citizens more quickly. Chris Steel, Chief Solutions Architect at Software AG Government Solutions, shared in a recent article in NextGov that he is confident that many government agencies will focus "on finding the necessary IT capabilities for 'faster' transformation [this year] as they realize their existing IT models are not capable of fully supporting their mission."


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Nothing like a nice fire to warm the chill as cold weather descends. And the Connecticut shoreline has no shortage of fireplaces with chimneys in various states of repair. But if you entrust cleaning your chimney to just any guy with a long-handled brush offering to do it on the cheap, your luck may turn bad, indeed. "Never hire a chimney sweep who shows up on your doorstep uninvited," says the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection (DCP). Unsolicited calls from telemarketers also merit caution. It could be from an out-of-state operation that trucks in and out again, not a business with local roots.
Never mind that you could be wasting money if you fall for a scam. You could be risking home and perhaps life. About 25,000 residential chimney fires, with 10 or more deaths, occur annually according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Most of these are from creosote buildup in chimneys—more properly, chimney flues—connected to woodstoves and fireplaces.
Even so, you are not home free with an oil or gas furnace, both of which produce soot. It contains chemicals that when mixed with rainwater acidify and eat away at the chimney, eventually impeding its function. To be really safe, you need somebody who knows the ins and outs of chimneys better than Santa Claus. Like most states, however, Connecticut does not require chimney sweeps to be licensed. As an alternative, says the CPSC, use a member of the National Chimney Sweep Guild or a sweep certified by the Chimney Safety Institute of America, like Jay Hornyak of Killingworth.
Hornyak and his partner, Javier Robayo of Clinton, run Advanced Chimney Service. They install and re pair chimneys, as well as clean them, so understand the dynamics of how these household smokestacks work. Ask ei ther of them and he will passionately tell much more than you ever wanted to know about stuff such as the physics of interaction between roof design and chimney function or the chemistry of smoke condensation. Want more? Their company's website directs you to a blog entertainingly written by Robayo—he has self-published novels—that contains enough information to make you virtually scamproof.
Scammers have hoodwinked many customers whom Hornyak and Robayo get on the rebound. Almost as bad as a scammer is the well-intentioned handyman who is honest but lacks the knowledge and tools to do the job right. A sweep, for instance, must know when a simple swabbing is not enough. Some chimneys, where creosote forms a glassy glaze, need to be scraped or even chemically treated. A key part of the sweep's job is to inspect the chimney for existing or potential problems, which means having chimney smarts.
"Go local," says Robayo, when asked how to choose a sweep. "If you like the work, stay with the sweep because he will become familiar with your chimney. A typical cleaning should take 45 minutes to an hour, says Robayo. Typical prices for a quality job are between about $100 and $200, although the Chimney Safety Institute says some jobs may legitimately cost up to $300. Referrals are essential, says Robayo, advice echoed by the DCP, which also suggests you can find reputable sweeps through the websites of the Safety Institute or the Chimney Sweep Guild.
Here are websites that can teach you about chimneys, chimney sweeps, and how to choose one:
Chimney Safety Institute of America: www.csia.org
National Chimney Sweep Guild: www.ncsg.org
Image Credits: Illustration courtesy Shutterstock
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WSJ House of the Week: Own a Bit of History
From New Mexico to New York, the homes on WSJ's House of the Week have a touch of historic, old-world charm. WSJ's Caitlin Huston and Tanya Rivero discuss. Photo: Douglas Miller
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.
... looking for a getaway in big Sky country or a waterfront home with room for a fleet of cars these are among the contenders for the law Street Journal's House of the money ... and here with deatails is Caitlin Houston from our Mansion team Caitlan thank so much for being with us ... first was about this lovely home outlast so this is a three bedroom two bathroom home was built in eighteen seventy eight and now it's part of the historic district in Lincoln ... omelette at one time the home was an end but now they are using the living room as an art gallery ... and according to legend Billy the kid can out here ... and historians confirmed the Billy the kid didn't live in this area I thing just pitiful and it's fairly well priced for the rest of your homes ... it was pretty low for a third Avenue and forty five thousand high-end bearable bargain and gorgeous now you also have the Manor home with history ... you ask yes this is in a long Island and they have a rich history of owners and twenty five rooms ... aam they had a Vanderbilts in the grandson of afterthe U will wear when they're ... on in the current owners spent one point five million on renovations and restored fireplaces and wood work ... and they also added a three hole golf Cooper scored isn't the library has black walnut wood paneling varied as gorgeous while all this how ... you define this one's a little bit pricier correct yes this is just under seven point five nine Red ... Hat wallpaper love ... for new wallpaper on my ... heels of a waterfront home for car in the easiest CN said this home was an designed and constructed by the owners took three years ... aam and they have a seven car garage that can hold up to fourteen with us ... and they have lives that bring up their motorcycles and four wheelers to a storage area ... and they also have this nice pool area with water features an outdoor living room room with TV and fireplace at eleven times feelings I've ever seen as both overtime living at it's INFN how much without mansion cost us is fifteen point five in the price is one of the I have to say and my heart is with the long Island home what did the readers that I it's pretty close this week but add that as the Lincoln New Mexican ... dairy cow that is beautiful and well thank you so much Katelynn and ...


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It's a little weird, I know. But I have friends who need to keep one leg outside the covers, friends who can't sleep without all the blankets on, friends who can't sleep without pajamas, friends who can't sleep with pajamas. We all have our little quirks.
|My son! Photo courtesy of 2355 Photography
As cute as it is, it kind of weirds me out. I didn't teach him to tuck his hands. He didn't watch me sleep and say, "Oh, I'll tuck my hands because Mama tucks her hands." Unless he had X-ray vision in utero (which is creepy), he didn't pick it up from watching me; it's innate. Just passed down somehow.
So weird.
In the Bible, all sorts of things get passed down. Curses and the like. Sometimes I think, Boy, I hope I'm not somewhere at the top of that family tree! What other traits does my son have that he got from me? Besides his blonde hair and his cheeks, his knack for language and his love of reading?
Moreover, if he's got these traits from me that he didn't learn by my teaching him, how many other traits do I teach him on a daily basis without realizing it? I'm learning that the watchful eye of a toddler should not be underestimated. How is the language I use around him? What are my attitudes? How do I treat others when I'm around him? Do I glorify God in the presence of my son, or is it something I keep to myself?
He's learned so many things without me trying to teach him; I need to be careful with all of the other things I'm not trying to teach him.
What do you do to specifically teach your children good traits and habits, especially concerning your relationship with God? And how do you unteach traits they've picked up, from you or elsewhere?


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Room Description
50 square metres for up to three people
The one-bedroom apartment has a bathroom and is located on the ground floor with view of our vegetable garden. The large living and sleeping area comprises of a double bed, a single bed and a sofa which can be turned into an additional bed. The room also has a television, a wardrobe and an open-space, equipped kitchen (with a fridge, coffee machine and dishes).
We are happy to provide you with bed linen. For a small contribution, you can also make use of our washing machine.Socrates Apartments 1 room
The apartments are located in a quiet site some 400m from the beach, and there are plenty of shops, restaurants, cafes and bars within walking distance.
There are 4 two-room apartments and 1 one-room apartment available.
The apartments are completely equipped and measure 50 sqm. There is a kitchen, a shower and a toilet as well as a big balcony which has a sea view but also a great view of the village.


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Sadly, it's not unusual to see a new makeshift memorial spring up in London: cellotaphs, as they're known, formed of piles of flowers and rain-soaked notes on the site of an accident or crime. But people who've been stopping to see what happened at the new one on Tooley Street by London Bridge station might be surprised to find that it's not for a person, but a train company - specifically, crisis-hit Southern Rail.
The memorial's been there for a couple of days now, but Londoner MinnieMoomin posted it to Reddit with an explanation - and surprised some locals who assumed it was something much sadder. While the decline of our railways into national chaos is certainly depressing, it's not quite on par with the events that usually lead to street tributes.
Notes at the site include "Here lies my patience, sanity and home life, killed by Southern Rail" and "In loving memory of the 07.55 from Hackbridge to London Bridge, missing, presumed dead." While it's certainly an eye-catching and attention-grabbing way of raising an important issue, it seems more than a little tasteless to go about it this way, especially as there are frequent fatalities on London's train lines. If you left flowers on the roadside for your lost loved one, you wouldn't want people walking past and rolling their eyes because they assume it's a publicity stunt, right?
Whether you find it funny or not, the display probably won't be around for long - even legitimate memorials are often cleared away by workers or just the rain. That's more likely to happen before any kind of rail reform, sadly. [Reddit]
Photo: MinnieMoomin via r/London


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We're three days away from Opening Day, so it's time to start previewing the season. Inspired by an old feature on The Black Table, we're going team-by-team and distributing Four Things You Don't Know about them. If you have suggested oddities on your team, send them to us at email@example.com. Today: The Washington Nationals.
• 1. They Have The Worst Mascot In Sports. Screech the Eagle. He/she/it kinda looks like an oversized marshmallow Peep. And shares a name with Dustin Diamond from Saved By the Bell. And drives around town in a Zipcar. And makes us all want to kind of die inside. It all actually inspired a chat with Dustin Diamond about the "hatching" of the mascot. That's right, it was hatched from a giant egg behind second base, bringing up recurring nightmares for anybody who remembered the Gobbledygooker from WWF's Survivor Series back in the day. Then again, this IS the franchise that once had Youppi!, sooo... — (Thanks to Matt DeTura).
• 2. Call Him Brother Sledge, A Name That Will Live Forever. The first pitch in Nationals history was techincally thrown by President George W. Bush, in a pregame ceremony at their opener. But that's not important right now. What is important is that the team's first-ever home run was recorded by outfielder Terrmel Sledge, also on opening day. Generations of Nationals fans shall know that name.
• 3. Hey Look, It's John Wetteland!. The all-time leader in saves for the Texas Rangers is now the Nationals' bullpen coach. And what better person to take an impressionable young ballplayer under his wing? Wetteland, in addition to being known for wearing the same cap for the entire season during his playing days, is also a former satanist (he had a tattoo and everything) and current born-again Christian.
• 4. The Billy Ball Connection. Nationals pitcher Tony Armas Jr. is the son of Tony Armas, an outfielder for the Oakland A's in the 1980s. Also playing for Oakland during that time were current Nationals batting coach Mitchell Page (A's, 1977-'83), and Nationals first base coach Davey Lopes (A's, 1982-'84). The three were A's teammates in 1982 under manager Billy Martin.
(Tomorrow: the San Diego Padres)


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The Riello Sentinel Pro uses on-line double conversion technology, resulting in the highest levels of reliability and maximum protection for critical loads such as servers, and IT and voice/data applications. For business continuity applications requiring long battery runtimes, battery autonomy can be extended up to several hours using ER models fitted with more powerful battery chargers.
The front display panel has been entirely redesigned, adding an LCD display that shows the input and output voltages, battery readings and UPS operating status information. The inverter and the microprocessor control stage has been completely redesigned to provide increased efficiency and greater configuration options.
Maximum expandability: the Sentinel Pro is supplied as standard with a USB port and an expansion slot for protocol conversion or relay contacts boards. With energy savings in mind, Sentinel Pro is also fitted with a shut-off button to reduce energy consumption to zero during prolonged periods of inactivity (ECO LINE). Sentinel Pro is available in 700 VA, 1000 VA, 1500 VA, 2200 VA and 3000 VA models.


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Sidebar: Suffle Extras
The iPod probably has more accessories made for it than any other product in history. Between cases, transmitters, remote controls, speaker systems, and everything in between, it's a booming business. Apple was first out of the gate to announce accessories for the iPod shuffle—each of which should be available shortly for $29.
Armband (see Best Current Price ) Similar to the armband for the iPod mini, the iPod shuffle armband lets you keep your music close at hand—but out of the way—when exercising. It's flexible, and it won't add a lot of weight to the svelte iPod.
External Battery Pack (see Best Current Price ) Apple says that the shuffle's battery life tops out at 12 hours—no slouch. But when you need even more juice (did someone say, "Nonstop flight to Sydney"?), there's the compact External Battery Pack (right). Two AAA batteries give you 20 more hours of playback.
Dock (see Best Current Price ) Just like any keychain drive, the iPod shuffle plugs into one of your Mac's USB ports. But if you'd rather not crawl behind your Power Mac, the dock provides a convenient way—and one that's in tune with the rest of the iPod line—to sync or charge the iPod shuffle.
Sport Case Apple's Sport Case (left) protects the iPod shuffle from dings and scratches while making it better equipped to withstand the elements. The case also offers a touch of color, both at the edges of the otherwise-clear plastic and in the attached lanyard.
USB Power Adapter Although not exclusively for the shuffle, Apple's USB Power Adapter lets you charge your tiny iPod without the help of a computer. And you don't need any cables—just plug the adapter into a socket and then plug the iPod shuffle directly into the adapter.


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We've mentioned (more than once) in the past that zombies hold a special place in our hearts here at Games & Tea, and as such there is no shortage of zombie games in our collection! With zombies as popular as ever though, it seems that a new zombie game is getting released every other week, and it can sometimes be hard to separate the quality from the chaff. So far we've taken a look at Zombie Fluxx, which we thoroughly enjoyed (although Fluxx isn't everyone's cup of tea), Zombies!!!, which we found clunky and very repetitive, and the yet-to-be-reviewed Zombicide, which seemed to be using a lot of fancy components to hide a lack of depth. Now Privateer Press have thrown their hat into the zombie ring with the latest game in their Bodgers series: Zombies Keep Out, a cooperative board game for 1-6 players.
Privateer Press are perhaps best known for their Warmachine/Hordes tabletop systems, but are no strangers to the world of board/card games. The light-hearted Bodgers series always centre around a team of goblins, and the different games all have separate themes, with the theme of Zombies Keep Out obviously being the undead. It's not a game that takes itself seriously, as evidenced by the box art, so if you're looking a gritty, immersive survival horror game then you're probably best leaving now.
The players take on the role of the Bodgers, who have barricaded themselves in their workshop in reaction to a zombie outbreak. As the zombies advance on the workshop and attempt to tear down the barricades, the Bodgers must rely on their resourcefulness and mechanical skill to construct 3 devices to fend the undead horde off. Part 2 of the review will go into how this works in detail, so for now let's take a look at what you'll find inside the Zombies Keep Out box.
The Zombies Keep Out box is very nice and compact, and in fact is the smallest box for a board game in our substantial collection. As a result, the board itself is also quite small, requiring only a small amount of set-up space to play. The board shows the front yard outside the Bodgers' workshop, with the numbered circles representing the path of the zombies as they shamble towards their intended lunch. The swimming pool at the bottom of the board is the waiting area for the zombies (cleverly referred to as the zombie pool in the rulebook), and the five areas of the workshop are represented along the top row; the cellar, the front door, the balcony, and two windows.
Of course a zombie game wouldn't be complete without zombies, and there are four types in Zombies Keep Out; Brutes, Runners, Leapers and Creepers. If you notice on the game board, the front door, balcony and cellar are all colour coded, so the Brutes, Leapers and Creepers all shamble in the direction of their preferred targets. The grey Runners are a little more mindless and just shamble forward in a straight line. The little zombie miniatures are of a nice quality, but we have to confess to being slightly disappointed that the same sculpt was used for all of the zombies. Even if there were only two or three different designs it would have been nice to add a little variety, but as it stands, all 45 zombies are identical.
In order to fight off the zombies, the Bodgers need to build some suitably ramshackle contraptions. Zombies Keep Out features 15 contraption cards, with a blueprint of the device on one side and its abilities on the other.
In order to build these contraptions, the Bodgers are going to need parts, and this (appropriately) is where the part cards come into play. As players are only allowed to take one action each turn (more details in Part 2), these cards serve multiple purposes. They can be used to advance the blueprint track of a contraption as long as the part matches next requirement on the blueprint, they can be used to repair barricades if the zombies have weakened one part of the workshop, or they can be used to kill zombies in one location on the board, buying the rest of the team some precious time!
A zombie apocalypse is generally considered to be an unfavourable affair, as represented by the Terrible Things cards - the final card type in Zombies Keep Out. At the start of each player's turn they must draw a card off the Terrible Things deck, resolve one of the events on the card, and then discard it face-down. The Terrible Things options always advance the zombies' cause, by either causing them to shamble forward, adding more zombies to the board, biting players, or moving the blueprint track on a device backwards. One of the nice mechanics in the game is that the players don't have to tell anyone about the two options they didn't choose - as the rulebook puts it, you have enough to deal with without the other players second-guessing your every move!
This just leaved the tokens, which are present in Zombies Keep Out in mercifully small numbers! Progress tokens (left) are used to keep track of how close the players are to completing one of their contraptions. Bite tokens (centre) are used to track how many times each player has been bitten by a zombie (which can have hilarious consequences), and barricade tokens are used to represent just how well the fortifications are holding up in each section of the workshop.
And that's the entire box contents of Zombies Keep Out! Or at least the entire box content relevant to the game itself. It also contains a handful of cards which can be used to add a zombie edge to some of the other Bodgers games, but as we're looking at Zombies Keep Out as a standalone product, we won't be looking at these.
But before we sign off on the box contents and move onto the gameplay, we're just going to take a quick look at the inside of the box, to see how well these components are stored...
Well it's certainly not the worst box we've ever seen (that accolade still sits firmly with BioShock Infinite: The Siege of Columbia), but it's not great. The cards are just the right size to fit sideways into the box insert, so if you're careful about which way up you stand the box to store/transport it you should be able to avoid having them scatter all over the place. The tokens and zombie miniatures, however, are free to rattle around to their hearts' content. This can easily be addressed by the simple addition of a pair of resealable polythene bags, but it would have been nice if Privateer Press had included these as standard in the box.
So that's it for Part 1! Come back for Part 2 where we'll be looking at the gameplay mechanics and revealing whether Zombies Keep Out has won a place in our cold, dead hearts...


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Digital Photography
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German English Spanish Italian
My name is Katrin Haase, I am a freelance journalist, booklet editor and founder of the online magazine www.workinprocess.de. Born in Erfurt, I studied musicology, social anthropology and journalism in Leipzig and since 2010 I occupy myself in the fields of classical music, jazz and pop. I worl for the labels Deutsche Grammophon, EuroArts and GENUIN, for magazines such as Musikmarkt, Kreuzer and WORK IN PROCESS and I curate playlists for the streaming service Napster.
Possible arguments for speeches would be the process of founding the online magazine WORK IN PROCESS, new story telling forms on the internet and journalism and/or classical music in times of the digital revolution. Other topics could be being a freelancer and finding your own career.


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Hydraulic Pressing for Windows combines with tooling of Aluminium window and door profiles. It is used to punch install holes, weep holes, lock holes, cutback, connector holes, ect, punching process is done by changing processing position, various of profiles can be processed .We make the pressing machine in single head, double heads, four heads to rise their work efficiency. It can reduce power consumption, also can help you save much space than CNC milling machine.
Specification about Hydraulic Pressing for Windows
Material process
PVC profiles and Aluminium
Power source
Hydraulic cylinder
Place origin
Shenzhen, China
Dimension (LxWxH)
After-sales service
Engineer can be available on line in all day
Plywood case
Air pressure
Punching travel
110v/240v/380v 3phases
Features and superiority :
1) we use thicker square pipes to make the work table, and we add solid steel into the pipe to enhance the worktable, to make sure the worktable strong enough , no shaking during work.
2) it is easy for window and door manufactures to change the mould, such pressing machine can set two different moulds, and can work at same time. When you need new moulds for your window and door, no need to buy new pressing machine, just make new moulds, that is ok, and it can help you save much money.
3)we use 24V foot pedals to make sure it is safe for customer's use, two foot pedals control the two sets of moulds, and they make sure the machine has enough pressing pressure.
4) the imported power supply control the motor working, also we add pulse to protect the motor from damage as the wrong action. There are three sets of solenoid valves to assistant with the moulds and foot pedals working.
5 ) the press machine is designed to point control, it can help you control the punching depth well, so that protect your mould and knives from damage. Meanwhile, when you need to test your mould working, also such design can help you to test well.
6) we will use strong plywood case to pack the machine, and choose steel square pipe to strengthen the bottom, to make sure the machines in safe during shipping
Factory introduction:
Shenzhen P-luck machinery technology co,. ltd has more than 8 years history for window and door machinery, specially for punching tooling and punching machine. We win lots of customers with high quality and good precision. P-luck Machine is a high-tech enterprise specializing in the production, research and development and sales of plastic steel door and window processing equipment ,top grade aluminum alloy door and window equipment .The working staff in the corporation is of high level intelligence and high technique. For punching mold, we adopt 3D design to make sure our products in high precision, so that our customers can produce high quality and precise window and door
If you are interested in our machine and moulds, please contact with us as following in details:


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A few Words by Annabellerockz
The past is whispering gently in my ear,
telling how many feelings i ate in my days,
overcomeness is the salery of these,
My wallet is no filled,
readyto shop my new days .
Unknown faces we havent met
past experiences makes us delaying to see,
what is really there,
stright in front of me ?
Here some new fractal Art & mixed mediaI am really shy about this but tried to add some words inspired from these Pieces from my Art


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Gilead Sciences ($GILD) waves an active trigger finger for acquisitions. After loading up on cancer drugs through a number of deals in recent years, the biopharma powerhouse is looking for new targets, Bloomberg reported. And Gilead's interest in blood-cancer drugs sparked some speculation about a couple of likely buyout prospects.
As the news service reported, Gilead has ponied up $1.2 billion in two years to pick up cancer drugs. All those deals involved development-stage candidates from the buyouts of such firms as YM BioSciences and Calistoga Pharmaceuticals. Gilead, which has no marketed cancer drugs and makes most of its revenue from HIV meds, has invested heavily in research of cancer drugs in search of a future revenue stream from the big oncology market.
"Oncology is entering an era where significant advances are going to be made, far above and beyond what's been made previously," John Milligan, Gilead's operations chief, told Bloomberg. "It's a field where there's always the possibility of acquiring other molecules and companies as their technology or pipelines mature. We're certainly keeping our eye on it."
What cancer drug outfit might Gilead look to buy next? Milligan wouldn't say, of course. But Raghuram Selvaraju of Aegis Capital took a shot, saying that possible targets could include Ariad Pharmaceuticals ($ARIA) and Infinity Pharmaceuticals ($INFI). In December Ariad won FDA approval for Iclusig (ponatinib) for certain cases of chronic myeloid leukemia, and boasts a market cap of $3.34 billion that reflects the big expectations for the drug.
With no approved drugs, Infinity might be more akin to previous companies that Gilead scooped up. It's all just speculation right now, however.
Yet Gilead has the deep pockets and the track record in HIV to compete in the market for blood cancer drugs. And the Foster City, CA-based company could certainly pull the trigger on more sizable oncology buyouts.
- check out Bloomberg's article
Special Reports: Gilead Sciences - The Biggest R&D Spenders in Biotech | Top 10 Best-selling Cancer Drugs


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The Doctor Blake Mysteries Season 5 DVD
Availability: In Stock
Ex Tax: $24.99
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The Doctor Blake Mysteries Season 5 DVD Special Features
Actors: Craig McLachlan,Nadine Garner
Language: English
Boxed Set: Yes
Number of discs: 3
Condition: New
Region: Region Free
Weight: 0.4 kg
Format: Support both NTSC & PAL
Rated: NR (Not Rated)
DVD Release Date: 2018
The Doctor Blake Mysteries Season 5 DVD Photos
The Doctor Blake Mysteries Season 5 DVD Overview
Controversial writer Patricia Neville has finally returned to her old hometown, armed with a new novel that promises to excoriate Ballarat and its many inhabitants as evidenced by a book reading at the local library that quickly devolves into violence and chaos. But when shes found dead the next morning with her sister Eve unconscious beside her,The Doctor Blake Mysteries Season 5 DVD seemingly part of some murder suicide pact, Blake has to search out some truths about the place in order to understand how and why the woman died. When a teenage girl dies at her Debutante Ball,The Doctor Blake Mysteries Season 5 Blake does his best to investigate despite being housebound as he recovers from being stabbed weeks before.
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Force India hope Hulkenberg can build on Le Mans win
LONDON – Force India are hoping Nico Hulkenberg's triumph at the Le Mans 24 Hours race will have a knock-on effect for them at next weekend's Austrian Formula One Grand Prix.
Hulkenberg won the classic endurance race at the first attempt with Porsche on Sunday, having gone straight to the French track from scoring points at the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal.
After a few days of recovery, the 27-year-old German will be back in action with his regular employers in Friday practice at Spielberg.
"Nico's performance displayed his immense talent and made all of us at Sahara Force India proud," said team principal and co-owner Vijay Mallya, who was at Le Mans to witness Hulkenberg's victory, on Monday.
"I truly hope he will be boosted by this success and translate it into another great performance in Austria," added the liquor mogul in a preview of the eighth round of the championship.
Hulkenberg's eighth place in Montreal was only his second scoring finish of the season and left Force India seventh overall and level on points with sixth-placed Sauber.
The German, who finished ninth in Austria last year, has yet to stand on the Formula One podium and said on Sunday that winning Le Mans was his greatest achievement.
He cannot expect such excitement with Force India this week, with the Mercedes-powered team treading water before introducing a heavily revised car at next month's British Grand Prix.
"We are still on course to introduce an important step in Silverstone," said Mallya. "In the meantime, the team has done well to squeeze more performance from our current package.
"The high-speed layout of Canada certainly played to the strengths of the Mercedes engine and, as Austria is regarded as another 'power' circuit', I would like to think we can be in the top 10 once again." –Reuters


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Raising your vibration – what's that about?
- July 25, 2017
- Blog
Raising your vibration, what's that about?
"You must find the place inside yourself where nothing is impossible." —Deepak Chopra
Your vibration basically describes your overall state of being. Everything in the universe is made up of energy, vibrating and oscillating at different frequencies. On a quantum level even things that look to us like they are solid matter, are not. That includes you.
High vibrations of being are good health, positive thoughts and emotions and a strong spiritual connection.
People who live on a high vibration find it easier to attract the things that they want into their life, they are able to connect to their power of intention and utilise the law of attraction. Ssshh it's a secret 😉
But unfortunately its not as easy as pretending to be happy, you have to truly be and that means you have to start owning your shit. The universe knows if you're not being authentic and sooner or later the cracks will show and eventually the walls will come tumbling down.
Our human conditioning starts practically from birth, we were taught who to be in a world by people who didn't know how to be. It's kind of a process of unlearning all that, and then relearning a different way to be, healing our own damaged inner child along the way
You will need to tap into what your subconscious belief systems and recognise where they came from in order to dissipate. Learning how to realise which emotions are coming up for you and what they mean metaphysically.
Learning to control those negative thoughts through regular meditation. The amount of people who come to me and say they "can't do meditation as their mind is too busy" makes me laugh, that's how everyone is before they learn! The fact that you have trouble doing it, means you really need it!
A key element in raising your vibration is being conscious of the food you eat, some foods vibrate high and some low. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that eating the flesh of dead animals isn't exactly uplifting. High vibration foods include organic fruit, vegetables and nuts.
Learning to love ourselves, in all our glory, flaws and all. Self love is one of those awkward topics as we are taught the association of self love with ego and thats not what we're talking about here. It's easy to see how we don't love ourselves, through detrimental thoughts about ourselves, abusing alcohol or drugs, abusing sex. gambling or spending too much money to name a few.
The secret to self love, is to travel to your soul, recognise your ego, the part of you that always wants more. Enlighten yourself through reading nourishing books, participate in self-reflective practice and love yourself by going beyond all the fears and have the courage to feel your feelings. It takes practice and it takes pain, but it can be done.
Being authentic to who you really are and then living it, takes time. Start by taking a day not to complain about anything and be grateful for what you have, continue each day until you find that it becomes your natural state.
Ever spent time with someone and then come away feeling drained? Thats the feeling you don't want, so stay away from people and things that make you feel low or drained. Exchange your energy wisely!
Connect with your breath, I always tell my friends, breathing's free 🙂 Plug into nature and go outside and ground yourself by walking in your bare feet on the grass or dirt. Find out how to use Crystals and start a Self-reflective practice like yoga or xi gong.
In la'kech. Love and high vibes!
Geniene x
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