Biomedical approach Essay

The Biomedical approach includes the administration of various pharmacological agents which can be utilized to treat various mental disorders. It is usually administered for short durations in combination with psychotherapy. It brings back to normal the various chemical substances that are present in the brain (neurotransmitters). When the neurotransmitter levels are normal, the effect of psychotherapy would be better. The biomedical approach can be utilized to treat various psychiatric disorders such as ADHD, OCD, depression, anxiety, etc (MINDD Foundation, 2008). The psychodynamic approach includes various theories that utilize the internal drives and forces that may be present in the individual (some of which may be unconscious), to ensure that the individual can undergo a psychological change and get to better control over several problems. It is effectively utilized in pain management. Psychodynamics is considered to be the interaction of the id, ego and the superego so as to satisfy ones needs (which play an important role in the development of the personality). The psychodynamic approach was developed by the followers of Sigmund Freud. This approach gives greater consideration to the unconscious motives that affect behavior, emotions and feelings. The behavior of adults is strongly affected by the childhood motives (Simply Psychology, 2009). The humanistic-existential approach concentrates on the motivations and the needs of the individual and is similar to the psychoanalytical theory. This therapy focuses greater on the free will of the individual rather than on obstructing human nature. This is one of the major differences that are present between humanistic-existential and psychoanalytical approach. It also tends to concentrate greater on solving the problem rather than the problem itself (University of Hawaii, 2008). Cognitive and behavior therapy (CBT) is a type of psychotherapy that involves determining and sorting out improper thoughts (that may be associated with depression), solving various problems and improving the problem-solving skills, and ensuring that people are able to engage in more enjoyable activities (that can ensure that the individual learns about potentially rewarding activities and performs them in the future) (University of Michigan, 2006). Reference Simply Psychology (2008). Psychodynamic Approach, Retrieved on May 29, 2009, from Web site: http://www. simplypsychology. pwp. blueyonder. co. uk/psychodynamic. html The MINDD Foundation (2008). The Biomedical Approach, Retrieved on May 29, 2009, from Web site: http://mindd. org/s/archives. php/48-Biomedical-Treatments. html The University of Hawaii (2008). The Biological Paradigm, Retrieved on May 29, 2009, from Web site: http://www2. hawaii. edu/~heiby/overheads_%20paradigms. html University of Michigan Depression Center (2006). Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Retrieved on May 29, 2009, from Web site: http://www. med. umich. edu/depression/cbt. htm

Reaction Paper for the Movie “HIV (Si Heidi, Si Ivy at Si V)” Essay

Virgilio â€Å"Gil† Bustamante (as played by Jake Cuenca) was a commissioned of Department of Health (DOH). He weaves a tale that combines various stories of people infected with the virus, using the San Lazaro Hospital. Among those having their story told are heterosexuals, homosexuals, prostitutes and drug users. The film focuses on three major characters; Heidi, Ivy and Vanessa. Heidi is an ordinary housewife who contracted the virus from her husband. She was abandoned by her family and no one of her family member talks to her. Her neighbor calls her prostitute and they looked disgusted on Heidi. She suffered from the bad effects of HIV. When she died her son, Victor who is also a HIV patient was nourished by his grandmother. Ivy, a young call center agent discovers that she is HIV positive when she tries to apply for work Canada. Her plans for a new life abroad destroyed, she must now face the world, her work, family, and friends with a mistake from her past. Vanessa, his real name was Victor ,a cheerful young gay, and stand-up comedian who engages in different sexual pleasures with multiple partners. He, with his very supportive parents, are willing and eager to shares his story. Though he has find subjects for the documentary, still, it becomes harder for him to meet the deadline because the subjects are indecisive who can’t make up their minds about sharing their stories in public. So, with an emanating deadline, he runs after his subjects and as he gets too busy working for the documentary. Gil was obsessed to finish his documentary even if his some subjects are  died and back-up and it was the reason why his girlfriend Miles, broke up with him, he still continue to finish the documentary. He learns that the fight against HIV/AIDS demands responsible action form individuals. II. Reflection (500-600 words only) This movie is not just any other movie that neither brings entertainment, chills nor threatens. It is far better of informing the youth through interesting stories with almost all possible chances a person may suffer thru time. I find it very helpful and it gives a lot of knowledge in the youth. Many of us learned from this film. It informs the youth in such a way of making each of them see themselves through the role of every character in the film and figure out, with their own understanding and knowledge, the message that the film ought the people to know and understand. That is, to respect each and every person living in this world because after all, nobody’s perfect. We are all entitled to be make mistakes and thus we should feel free in making mistakes. We should never judge anyone because we only knew what they’ve done or what they’re going through yet, we never knew the true story behind all of those. I find myself similar to Gil Bustamante because Just like Gil, I am determined to share every piece of me with all of humanity if in this way, I can help every person to improve the way they live, the way they see life and the way they fight for it. Just like Mr. Bustamante, I believed that what has to be done. I will also sacrifice just to finish a documentary like that because I know that in that way, I can help many people. I was stricken by the fact that the V in the subtitle of the film (Si Heidi, si Ivy at si V) stood not for Vanessa – but for Virgilio â€Å"Gil† after all. This part made me understand why Gil doesn’t want to make love with her girlfriend because he loves her, trying to protect her, since the start. And I am very glad because even though Gil was afraid for admitting that he is also a HIV positive he admitted it. Because he knows that it can help to the youth. If by chance, that I have been in Gil Bustamante’s place, I will also do, even exhausted, by all means to finish my own HIV/AIDS documentary because I know that I can help a lot of people. I will not be shy if I have that virus because having that virus is not my intention.

Depression: Signs and Symptoms

Mental Illness: Depression Depression a serious medical condition in which a person feels very sad, hopeless, unimportant, anger without enthusiasm, and often is unable to live in a normal life. Each person is different and will have unique symptoms, but here are some of the more common symptoms of depression: >Feeling of sadness and loss: Feeling that life is not worth living or worth the effort to even maintain their appearance or hygiene.They may believe that a negative situation will never change nd be pessimistic about their future >Feelings of guilt and worthlessness: Low self esteem and guilt assuming blame for negative events or circumstances. You may feel like a failure and have negative views about their competence and self- worth. You feel as if you are not â€Å"good enough. † >Changes in weight or appetite: Depression affects the appetite in one way or another. Often, you Just lose interest in eating because the food has no taste. When anxiety is high, you may not be able to eat.In some cases, however, people will overeat out of frustration or misery. >Changes in sleeping patterns like insomnia: Sleep disturbances are common symptoms of depression. A â€Å"good night's sleep† becomes virtually impossible. Many people complain of waking up in the middle of the night with their mind racing, wondering how they are going to overcome all of the obstacles before them. Others do little other than sleep but never feel rested. In both cases, the built up fatigue can aggravate every other aspect of depression.Reduces ability to think clearly or make decisions: It affects your ability to make decisions, think clearly, perform complicated tasks, concentrate, and remember things. You may feel that you don't remember things that you did before, that you cannot focus on your work, or that you are unable to make decisions >Anxiety: A feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease about something with an uncertain outcome. >Recurring thoughts of suicide or self-harm: When you suffer from depression, thoughts of suicide are often common.If there is no relief over a long period of time, suicide can feel like the only way to end the pain. >Social Isolation: Poor communication lacking connection with friends and family. Avoiding family gatherings and events. Teens that used to spend a lot of time with friends may now spend most of their time alone and without interests. Not sharing feelings with others, believing that you are alone in the world and no one is listening to you or even cares about you. Depression: Signs and Symptoms By spiderwebz

Crown Cork & Seal in 1989 Business strategy Case Study

Crown Cork & Seal in 1989 Business strategy - Case Study Example The economic analysis deals with the opportunity costs of resources being used along with attempting to measure the social and private costs as well as benefits in monetary terms of a project to the economy. The Crown Cork and Seal attempted to locate its business towards the areas that were closer to the customers. For the purpose of forecasting of the transportation costs of the company, the distance of about 150 to 300 miles was considered to be economical between the location of customers and the placement of plant. In addition to this, the company managed to decrease its transportation cost that was roughly estimated to be 7.5%. In addition to this, the company changed its ingredient of making cans from the use of steel to aluminium. This resulted in decreasing the weight of the cans along with reduction in the shipment cost of these cans relative to the cans produced before by the company. Furthermore, due to the shipment of steel cans in the international markets, the company suffered uneconomical circumstances due to the increase in shipment costs. For this reason, the company attempted to make joint ventures in terms of affiliation with US can manufacturers, foreign subsidiaries as well as local foreign firms in order to cater the foreign markets (Bradley S., 2005). Political: Political environment can be referred to as an immediate impact of the political parties possessing authority, representing the popular perceptions given by the citizens of the area (Export Help). It has been seen that the developments of legislations were unfavorable for metal can industry in USA (Bradley S., 2005). Social Cultural Environment: In this case, the chief executive officer attempted to bring together two companies possessing distinctive cultural and social backgrounds irrespective of the fact that the past mergers were undoubtedly unsuccessful. This impossible challenge was accepted by Avery in order to capture the markets of Canada and to expand its operations furt her. Moreover, there were numerous

Peregrine Trucking Co Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Peregrine Trucking Co - Research Paper Example Organizations are facing frequent challenges to find out ways to minimize the operating cost and to increase equipment capacity. Many variables are continuously increasing, mostly the fuel prices are rising daily and it leads to a rise in the material costs. In response to cost minimization, the business universe has started reengineering their business process. The scarce energy sources are consumed by transportation industry. The Peregrine Trucking Company is formulating a strategic plan for reduction of the fuel price by using a variety of effective and socially aware trucking equipment’s. This study discusses various methodologies to reduce the fuel consumption of Peregrine Transportation Company (Schafer, F. & Basshuysen, 1995). From last two decades the transportation companies have become intensely competitive. Freight transport demand has grown rapidly and will grow further as the economies recover from the current economic instability. The increased demand of freight transport facilities has putted an excess pressure on the transport network capacity. The enhanced consciousness about the safety and environmental issues also encouraged the truck companies to innovate socially acceptable methods for cost reduction. Discussion Now days, a person realizes that the resources are not limited and there are alternatives for the scarce resources. There are several ways to eliminate the fuel costs. Some of the simplest ways are as follows: It is advised to eliminate all useless weights from the vehicle. It is suggested to buy gasoline in the morning when, generally the temperature is cold. It is advised to formulate an effective routing plan for entire day. For saving the fuel consumption, first task is to check the air filter. Checking of air filter takes a few minutes. One has to remove the filter and has to boost the light; if the light does not pass, the filter should be replaced. Another option is to use the motor oil’s â€Å"lungs† wit h less thick synthetic or semi synthetic base. Compared with the traditional mode viscous â€Å"mineral water†, they have almost 6% lower fuel consumption. Checking the pressure of tire is another way to reduce fuel. Presence of the weak slopes increases the rolling struggle and that is the reason, the fuel consumption increases. The truck should maintain a constant speed even in the jam also. In the rush hours trucks starts hastily and suddenly slow down. This would increase the fuel cost. Careful use of gas pedals can surely decrease the fuel cost. It is advisable not to use the high gear when the vehicle is in low speed. It is important to brake properly that would also help to reduce the fuel consumption. Air conditioning consumes 5% to 20% of fuel. Avoiding air conditioner sometimes helps the vehicle to reduce fuel consumption. Maintaining

Discussion Board 2 EDU 626 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Discussion Board 2 EDU 626 - Essay Example All the materials and physical objects that an instructor might use to deliver the information to the students or participants are called instructional media. Formally, it can be defined as "the physical means via which instruction is presented to the learners" (Reiser and Dempsey, 2007- pg 18). For instance usage of a text book, computer or even the in-class physical demonstration of an instructor can be labeled as an instructional medium. In any Instruction System Design (ISD), instructional media is used to make the audience understand the delivered material. It may be used to get the participant’s attention, to invoke the imagination of the students, to or to explain the explicit/implicit instructional goals. A research-based theory or a model is termed as Instruction System Design or Development (ISD). Such a model is designed after repeated experiments with different set of conditions (Merrill & Boutwell, 1973). It is important to note that each model is entirely dependa nt on its designer’s perceptions and ones understanding of the requirements for the instructional process. Once it is decided that an instructional medium is helpful in the process, there are number of factors to be considered before selecting a particular medium. Selection should be made after careful analysis of cost, availability, and the practical implementation of the entire course syllabus.

American Constitution Law 2 J Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

American Constitution Law 2 J - Essay Example Reasonableness of a search depends on the balancing of the interests of individuals and public safety. In Terry v Ohio (1868), the police officer stopped and frisked three suspicious persons after watching them for some time moving around at a place suspiciously. The police did not have a warrant. In the search, they could see two revolvers from the persons of the suspicious people. It was the case of the defendant Terry that the evidence was not admissible as it was obtained from a warrantless search mandated by the Fourth Amendment. The Supreme Court held that the warrantless search was valid since there was a reasonable suspicion aroused by the conduct of the persons concerned on a street (Mason & Stephenson, 2012). Search and arrest warrant governed by the Fourth Amendment should be backed by a probable cause that can include hearsay evidence, reliable witness report, and the officer’s own logic and experience. Hence, unless there is a probable cause, court will not issue a warrant to search or arrest a suspect. For search warrant to be issued, the court must be satisfied that the officer’s description in the warrant application about the items connected to the crime he is investigating with the justification of the belief about their existence and place at which the items could be found. In respect of an arrest warrant, the warrant application should state and provide sufficient evidence and logic to substantiate the suspects involvement in a particular crime under investigation. Further, there must be provided very specific information on a particular target sought to be arrested or searched. Hence, a random or generalized arrests or searches are not permissible under the Fourt h Amendment (Mason & Stephenson, 2012). Therefore, a search warrant should have the full address, specific room or place at the given address, with the objects and papers and information to be

Robert DeNiro Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Robert DeNiro - Essay Example What makes Robert DeNiro stand out from the pack as the quintessential cinematic commentator on his times is that he is willing to forego the development of a strong identity that carries him throughout all his multiple roles. DeNiro’s career represents more than any other actor the fracturing of the self-assurance of identity that social movements such as Women’s Lib, Civil Rights, and the Gay Awareness wrought upon the stage of contemporary life beginning in the late 1960s. Robert DeNiro’s career begins during this tumultuous period in American history, but that his career began with a series of films directed by Brian DePalma notable for their shattered order and surreal qualities that mocked every aspect of that tradition of assurance from weddings to television. DeNiro almost seems to have sprung full force into the consciousness of cinema as an actor who questions his own identity and becomes a proxy by which society has come to question established perspec tives. The argument that DeNiro’s career represents an attempt to somehow put together a whole identify out of the shattered remnants of traditional expectation is answered by back to back films released in 1973. The physical and psychic transformations of Robert DeNiro throughout his long career have reflected the disjointed quality of America since the late 1960s. Just as all conventions were ignited by the social upheavals of that era and created a doubt of identity, so has DeNiro’s career been based on renovating himself with each role in a desperate attempt to find the core of his soul.

Computer Security Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 5

Computer Security - Essay Example These measures although controversial and undefined currently in their basic emphasis and in all certainty aim to reduce free access, ease of use, timeliness and the completely cost effective advantages that attract such a high level of abuse to the facility. This in itself is a true loss with legitimate users caught in the cross fire and being on the receiving end of all the barriers that are proposed to the easy usage of email and web access. The core problem with spam is that it bears the senders almost no cost to send the spam. The network service providers and the recipients bear the cost. Hence the cost associated with spam weighs down on the receivers in terms of reduced convenience and higher cost resulting from the proposed proof of work that aims to alter the economics of spam, by requiring that the send commit to a per-email cost. There are many reasons why a systemic spam response has not been adopted. This is mainly because the proposed responses lack in suitable aspects and hence cannot be generally adopted as a counter for the issue at hand. This issue being largely the enabling factor that spam is cheap to send. The most original and highly examined model to deter spam is the proof-of-word model. This comprises a set of proposals, in which email senders would be required to pay money, perform a resource-intensive computation, perform a series of memory operations, or post a bond for each message sent. The working assumption of this model was to deter spam by making it uneconomic to send a large number of messages, while enabling legitimate users to send small number of messages. Hence proof of work reverses the cost model of email by charging the sender instead of the user. All these components of the proof of work model seem promising however a uniform POW mechanism will not. Firstly because if it is expensive enough to stop spammers it must be so expensive that it will also stop legitimate users. Infact, the cost to a spammer would have to be a magnitude higher than the cost to a legitimate user because spammers face very different production costs due to spambots. The model does not accommodate these variable magnitudes. Second it is proposed that POW might work if it is combined with anti spam efforts such as reputation systems and per-email spam identification mechanisms. However criticism of this approach is based on the fact that these efforts suffer from penalizing new IP addresses and discarding incorrectly identified email which is a type of effort difficult to balance and will result in either new entrants being not allowed to send email, or each ne IP address will be allowed to send enough email that spam remains profitable. Changes to the current infrastructure are necessary to counter spam. It is suggested in various researches that unsolicited bulk email is such a problem on the internet mainly because the current economic framework and the basic infrastructure for email handling does little to discourage it . It

Customer care trainee report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Customer care trainee report - Essay Example On a simpler note, it is about delighting the customers so that they will continue doing business with the company. Customer service is also defined to be a sequence or even a cycle of activities designed to enhance the level of customer satisfaction which is the feeling that a service or a product has met the customer's expectation. Finally, for a customer, it is "a function of how well an organization is able to constantly and consistently exceed the needs of the customers." ("Making A Point of Good Customer Service") Maximizing profit by providing excellent quality service is necessary and crucial. Companies need to know the way to succeed from the combination of customer loyalty, efficiency, and revenue. For most successful firms, they put customers at the core of organization's business system making it the most important aspect for profit generation. What makes companies be at the top of the game at the market place is the commitment to achieving and exceeding customer satisfaction and their continuous self assessment on how well their products and services fulfill the needs and expectations of the clientele. In order to sustain the competition, these companies have to show vision, diligence, and passion to benefit the customers. As a result of this belief, successful firms continuously deliver superior value to customers, at times, regardless of the products conditions. For instance, one's products may appear to be obsolete compared to others; however, top businesses are still able to sell t hese goods because of their ability to build the products' value to the customers on a consistent and continuous basis. Value is created by explaining the benefits of the products or services, addressing concerns, queries, or problems, and uncovering the needs of customers. A company that can present greater advantages to a customer is the frontrunner at the business world. Companies lose so much when they ignore the customers' needs, do not show any distinctive competence or customer empathy. Many products remain to be unsold and even with excessive marketing efforts; it still cannot influence customers to avail of either the products or services. It further irks the customers when they feel that companies are only after their money through alluring advertisements and publicities, and nothing more. The skill to be able to deliver the value to your clients is through excellent verbal and non-verbal communication skills and active listening. There are simple rules on how to maintain exceptional quality customer service starting with learning how to listen. It is said that when customers have complaints, it is usually because of something. Companies need to accept complaints positively; first, as a chance to give more details about a concern, second, as a means to learn something. Through this, companies are given the opportunity to better their goods and services at the proposition of the customers. Interrupting a complaining client is never a good way to resolve issues; on the contrary this is the easiest way to drive them away. Remember that one unsatisfied customer tells about twenty people and a business cannot afford to lose clients simply because they cannot patiently listen to customers concerns or that they take things

Linguistics - The English Language (750words paper) - Cohesion Essay

Linguistics - The English Language (750words paper) - Cohesion Exercise - Essay Example By repeating it the reader must continue to read because they want to understand why the watch is so important. This is also the idea of repetition because the word is repeated over again. They also use synonyms for the missing watch and the watch itself like "bare wristed arm", "unique timepiece", and "threatening to tarnish". This last one indicates that the watch was silver and overtime would tarnish. There are also incidences of exophoric expression. In the first paragraph, "It is standard tourist advice" says that "it" is something the reader should immediately understand, and most tourists and people who live in the city will agree that this is a situation that everyone knows -- that they should look out for pickpockets. The word "pickpocket" immediately sets off in the readers mind a situation that is "seedy" and negative. This first paragraph sets the stage for the later cataphoic reference in that the watch is lifted from the president. The words "standard tourist" seems to imply that although tourists know this informant "the president" may not. The second paragraph starts off with "film" rather than saying something like "there was a security film" so the reader is not given what type of film, but it is another exophoric reference because the reader will know that some type of film could capture this situation. The use of the words "mobbed" and "plunging into an adoring crowd" seem to be juxtaposed to each other. We think of a "mob" as something out of control and at the same time he is "plunging into" the situation which makes it more positive. This creates a contrast between the words "plunging into" and "mob" so that it almost seems like someone being moved along in a crowd at a rock concert. In fact, the writer actually uses the metaphor phrase, "Mr. Bush†¦was received like a rock star†¦" in paragraph five. This was set up previously to make an endophoric connection. The article implies that the

Before and After the Cellphone Essay Example for Free

Before and After the Cellphone Essay Cellphones have gradually become an imperative part of peoples lives today. 70% of the worlds population have cellphones. These days, people and their mobile phones seem to be inseparable. Texting or calling someone when we wake up has become a usual habit just like brushing our teeth in the morning. For many of us, its hard to imagine a time before cellphones. Having a cellphone has changed our manners, the way we communicate, and our safety. Before cellphones there seemed to be more peace and quite. People seemed to have manners. Today people dont always remember their manners when using their cellphones. People constantly carrying on personal conversations in a public place can be very annoying. Some people talk really loud and dont care that everyone around them can hear every word they are saying. It can be extremely disturbing to someone when they are walking in a mall or down a street and someone starts speaking right beside or behind them. They turn to respond, only to find out he or she beside them has an earbud active. Before we had cellphones people would actually write letters. During my elementary school days it was â€Å"cool† to pass notes. We actually used complete sentences and words that were in the dictionary. Also before cellphones if someone was to leave the house, they didn’t make a phone call unless they popped 10 cents into a pay phone. People never received any calls away from home. People actually had to be out of touch with friends and family when they weren’t at home. Now that we have cell phones letters are rarely sent. Today note passing is rare. If kids want to communicate during school they simply just shoot each other a text message. Also, today if someone is to leave the house, making a phone call is easy. With a quick dial on a cellphone people can make a call at any time. Cellphones have not only changed the way we communicate but they have changed our safety. Texting and driving has become common and has caused many deaths in the United States. It was reported in 2005 that cellphone distraction causes 2,600 deaths and 330,000 injuries in the United States every year. Another safety issue with cellphones is privacy. Say someone’s at an airport, or on the bus. Several people are on their cellphones, some talking business, and others talking about personal information. Any information shared has now become available to anyone else who might have been around to hear their phone call. Others may now know their address, information about their family, or financial records. Before cellphones life were more safe. Before cell phones people didn’t have to constantly worry about someone overhearing their conversation. Also people didn’t have to worry about others driving them off the road because of the careless mistake of texting while driving. The cellphone is loved by many and hated by the few for ruining society. Although cellphones have changed society I have a hard time imagining my life without one. Cellphones have had a major impact on our lives and have vastly changed our manners, the way we communicate and our safety. Many of these changes are apparent, while others we may not even be aware of.

Child Observation for Development Analysis

Child Observation for Development Analysis Kirsty Lynch Child Observation Study Introduction By the age of six, children are moving out of what Erikson called the initiative vs Guilt-purpose period and are moving into the industry vs inferiority-competence stage of their lives. This is a main developmental stage in the life of a child where many milestones are hoped to be achieved by. To demonstrate the developmental stage of a six year old child I have conducted this child observation study. The setting of this child observation takes place in what appears to be a computer room in a primary school. There are three students present in the room, two girls, Mackenzie and Isabella aged six and one boy, Noah who is also six years old. There is one female adult present in the observation, the children’s teacher. There are a small number of adults present in the background, this is because it is a communal computer room and these other adults are not part of the observation study. The activity that’s taking place is a teaching lesson in which the teacher is demonstra ting patterns to the children and asking the children, at first to work together to complete the pattern and then to individually finish the patterns themselves. The child who is the focus of this observation study is Noah, the six year old boy. Observations: Discussion: From observing Noah in his school environment, it is easier to see the developmental stage that he is at, the milestones that he has reached are quite evident and his developmental stage is quite clear and progressing well, however there are a few milestones which Noah should have reached by the age of six which it seems he has failed to reach, here I will discuss Noah’s Physical, Emotional and Cognitive development and I will link it in with developmental psychology to illustrate where Noah is at in his Development and where he should be. Physical Develop: Noah’s physical development seems to be normal for his age, in comparison to Isabella and Mackenzie he seems to be the same height and slightly broader which is normal for a boy of his age. By the age of six years old, children usually reach an average height of about three foot ten inches and they normally weigh about forty-six pounds. These are just average figures but from observing Noah he seems to fit into this profile, although it is hard to judge his weight from the observation, he appears a healthy weight for his height and age. At the age of six years old, children have a lot of energy and they enjoy engaging in activities which involve a lot of movement. In order to achieve these movements, children require the use of Gross motor skills (Clarke McDowel, 2006). It is evident that Noah has a lot of energy and that his gross motor skills are developing at an appropriate rate. Noah can’t sit easy, is constantly moving his arms and hands, he makes shapes with his hands and at one stage imitates a bird using hand movements. It can be seen that Noah has good muscle control and good co-ordination. Noah’s fine motor skills can also be seen. Fine motor skills require dexterity, which is the good use of hands and fingers. By six years of age children have reached the stage of being able to use many fine motor skills, such as tying their shoe laces, good hand control and good use of both of their hands (Clarke McDowel, 2006). Noah’s fine motor skills can be seen little by little throughout the observation, Noah uses both of his hands consistently to complete the puzzles and he has the ability to turn the shapes into objects, Noah does this when he makes the shape of a house out of the shapes on the table. Intellectual Development: Noah’s communication does not seem to be at the level that it should be at for a six year old child. By the age of six most children can maintain attention, concentrate and can sit quietly during activities. Noah however, lacked concentration and only paid attention when he was being giving attention for his turn; he was unable to hold his concentration during the other students turns. At times Noah’s speech was quite hard to understand, it was sometimes slightly slurred. A child of Noah’s age should have an extended vocabulary and should be able to explore the meaning and sounds of new words, their speech should be precise and clear by this age. Children tend to express themselves by using new words, making up stories and developing their own narratives and explanations by connecting ideas together (Clarke McDowel, 2006). Noah did not seem to have an extended vocabulary and his speech seemed very limited at times, he only spoke when he was seeking attention or when he wanted acknowledgement or praise for completing a task. Emotional and Social Development: At six years of age children should be able to identify and convey feelings and interact with adults and other children. As children develop they learn how to show affection, manage aggravation and irritation and understand jealousy and sadness (Clarke McDowel, 2006). While Noah has reached most of this developmental stage there are a few points within this stage which Noah has not completely met yet. The milestones which Noah has achieved at this developmental stage in his emotional and social development are co-operation, solving problems, seeking attention and becoming competitive. Although he co-operated, most of the time, Noah was quite fidgety while awaiting his turn. Noah was quite competitive, which is normal for a child of his age, and he likes the attention to be focused on him. Noah asked the teacher to â€Å"look† at him a number of times and at one stage said â€Å"see, look, watch how fast I am† as he was seeking attention and praise from the teacher. His sense of security seems to be reliant on praise from adults that he trusts; in this case that was his teacher. However, Noah was also quite irritated when it was not his turn to complete the puzzle, he had to be asked a number of times to wait his turn, by this age Noah should have a sense of controlling irritation and following instructions set out by his teacher. Cognitive Development: Children play an enormous role in their own cognitive development. They do this by trying to understand what’s going on around them by organising, explaining, constructing, manipulating and predicting. We can see that Noah plays an active role in his cognitive development, he understands what is being asked of him, he knows what he is meant to do and constructs shapes and patterns with the pieces supplied by his teacher. At the age of six, children also see patterns in objects and actions of the world and they can often attempt to organize these patterns to try and explain the world. Noah demonstrates this when he sees a house in the shapes that are on the table, he then constructs a tree to go along with the house because in Noah’s perception of the world this is what is normal, houses, gardens, maybe trees in the garden or outside on the road. However, Noah also demonstrates some limitations in his cognitive development. Noah has trouble controlling his own attention, when the attention is on him Noah behaves and does what he is asked to do, he displays an intense interest in learning and takes pride in completing the patterns, but when it is Mackenzie or Isabella’s turn, Noah lacks attention, he is twisting and turning in his chair, fidgeting with his hands and looking around the room. Noah becomes slightly frustrated that he has to take turns, the attention isn’t on him and the learning does not come about as quickly as he would like because he has to wait. Developmental psychology: During the Initiative vs Guilt-purpose stage children desire to copy the actions of the people around them and they take initiative in creating a play situation. Noah has reached this developmental stage as he shows that he can take instructions and copy what the teacher does, the teacher demonstrates how to do the patterns and Noah is quick to copy what she does, he is able to complete the pattern and he is able to turn the task into a play situation, he illustrates this by building a house out of the shapes that he is working with. Noah has accomplished this milestone and is moving into the Industry vs Inferiority-competence stage, which is often referred to as the latency stage. This stage allows children to learn, create and accomplish a number of new skills and Knowledge and helps them to develop a sense of industry. Noah shows that he is competent in this stage by completing the patterns that the teacher gives him with ease and he takes pride in completing these tasks. However, this is also an incredibly social stage of development, where experiences of unresolved feelings of inferiority and inadequacy among other children can have problems in relation to competence and self-esteem. Noah seems to be constantly looking for attention, he can’t sit easy if it’s not his turn and if he is not been giving attention. He is constantly looking for acknowledgement and praise for completing his tasks, it’s as if he is trying to prove that he is capable and better than the other students at completing the task., he says â€Å"See, look, watch, watch how fast I am†. Freud says that during the Latency stage sexual urges remain subdued and that children tend to play and interact with the same sex peers. In this observation Noah is with the opposite sex, however, there is no indication as to whether Noah chooses to be in this group or whether the teacher specifically put him in this group for observational purposes. If Noah was placed in this group it could account for why he felt the need to prove his capability over the girls, it is hard to tell whether Noah would have acted the same if he was in a group with boys. Piaget’s preoperational stage is just coming to an end by the time a child is six years old. Piaget states that a child should have reached the milestone of being able to use basic logic but may still not be able to understand how other people perceive the environment (Crawford and Walker, 2003). Attachment: Attachment is the close, continuous relationship with at least one other person that children need in order to develop a confident, stable, integrated personality (Fawcett, 2009). Mary Ainsworth came up with the three different types of attachment that a child could experience; Securely attached being the usual, standard attachment where children explore by themselves and can sometimes show some signs of concern when they are separated from their parents but usually settle and continue to play. , Insecure Avoidant, where children seem indifferent on whether or not the parent is there and insecure ambivalent, where children experience great upset when the parent leaves and opposing reactions when the parent returns (Ainsworth et al, 1978). Children tend to view the person that they are attached to as a secure foundation, a source of reassurance and someone who encourages them and offers them guidance (Crawford and Walker, 2003). Noah shows this attachment with his teacher. He looks to his teacher for guidance when completing the patterns, and he seeks praise and encouragement from her upon completing the task, he asks her to â€Å"look† and â€Å"see† what he has done. It is difficult to determine Noah’s attachment with his teacher in such a short amount of time, he does not ignore the presence of his teacher, nor does he cling to his teacher, although Noah does seem to constantly be looking for the teachers attention, this could indicate a lack of attention at home, or having to seek attention at home. Tentative Conclusions: From observing Noah it is clear that his development is on the right track. Noah’s physical development is normal for his age and he has accomplished many of the physical milestones that a six year old should have accomplished. His intellectual development is at a slower development rate than the average child of Noah’s age. Speech and language therapy could be used in order to help Noah develop his speech and language to an appropriate level. Noah does not seem to engage in conversation much and with the help of a speech and language therapist this could encourage Noah to engage more in conversation with his peers and his teacher. Noah seems to enjoy play and he enjoys praise for completing tasks, Play Therapy could be a useful resource to help Noah understand how to control his irritations and to help him concentrate. Noah’s development is on the right track but with a little help from the likes of a speech and language therapist or a play therapy specialist, Noah’s development could be improved to an appropriate level for a six year old child. Reflexive Piece: When beginning this observation, I had my own idea of what a six year old child should be doing and how far along a six year olds development should be. I thought back to what I was like when I was six years old, I could remember being in school and doing well in school, but other than that my memory of being six was not great. However, I myself have two younger brothers, one who has just turned seven years old and one who is turning six this year. From my own experience of my younger brother’s developmental stages, I had a preconception that all six year olds behaved in a similar way and that most six year olds had met the same developmental markers. Some of my own professional experience also influenced me in the completion of this assignment. I had previously done a placement in The National Children’s Hospital and I worked alongside Play Specialists. The children I worked with were from infants to teenagers, but the majority of the children who were involved in the play therapy sessions were aged between four years old and nine years old. From working with those children the same age as Noah I could really see what Noah was excelling in and where Noah was lacking in some developmental stages. I had previously worked with a family whose child was at a slower developing rate than his peers and the work that I participated in with that family influenced my ideas of what could help Noah. This child was also six years of age but had not reached all of the milestones expected by the age of six; similarly, Noah had not reached some of the milestones that you would expect him to have reached. Word Count: 3,299 Bibliography: Ainsworth, M. D. S., Blehar, M. C., Waters, E. Wall, S., 1978. Patterns of Attachment: A psychological study of the strange ssituation. Hillsdale: NJ: Erlbaum. Clarke, P. McDowel, G., 2006. The Developing Child. Glencoe: McGraw-Hill. Crawford, K. Walker, J., 2003. Social Work and Human Development. s.l.:Learning Matters. Fawcett, M., 2009. Learning Through Child Observation. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers. Ingleby, E., 2006. Applied Psychology for Social Work. Glasgow: Learning Matters.

Voltaires Candide: Analysis of Tragedy and Humour

Voltaires Candide: Analysis of Tragedy and Humour Tragic Humor: Realism and Comedy as Satirical Tools in Voltaires Candide There are few chapters in Voltaires classic satire Candide that are wholly comedic; in truth, it seems there are fewer still that do not throw light on the tragic degradation, destruction, and immorality of a humanity fed on others misery. An optimist, the character of Candide should contrast directly the pessimism and unhappiness of the world around him. However, even his interactions and experiences do little, in reality, to combat an image of a cold and cruel world. This is, of course, at the root of Voltaires satirical genius. Candide is captured into the service of the Bulgarians, finds that his love, Mademoiselle Cunegondes family has been torn apart, she herself raped and almost killed, sold from one man to another until she can maintain her fortunes as a mistress to powerful men. Voltaires Candide experiences a reality that is chaotic in its duality, with not one faction of his life seeming safe or unalterable. Through the people he encounters and the ways in which they cope and shoulder the tragedy and gifts of their lives with equal aplomb, Candides struggle is edged with a wry humor. This humor works with the harshness of the reality to lend a human perspective to the political and social issues Voltaire seeks to satirize. It is difficult to pinpoint any one large instance of humor in Candide, quite simply because the humor is of a smaller nature. Instead it works to compliment the adventures of Candide, as he crisscrosses the world while drawing on and underlining the inequalities and tragedies of societys institutions. At the beginning of his travels, Candide still believes naively in the philosophy of his old teacher, Pangloss. This philosophy believes that, since everything is made for an end, everything is necessarily for the best end (Voltaire 521). Candide and Panglosss other pupils are soon confronted by the atrocities of the world death, destruction, rape, and deception and yet seem to largely still cling fondly to the memory and philosophy of their naively optimistic teacher. It is only after losing everything and hearing the tales of the others that Candide begins to see the folly in this philosophy. Through the humor laced encounters and near and absolute tragedy, Voltaire illustrates the resilience of humanity through such characters as the old woman who cares for Candide after he has been flogged by the Inquisition. The old woman has been through combinations of terror degradation that should have reduced her humanity but instead have created. The optimism inherent to Panglosss version of fate undermines the truth of life and glosses over pain and tragedy as part of a larger universal plan. However, the humor which peppers the old womans story, the Princess of Palestrina, shows the hypocrisy of the systems of society which propagates this ideal. A prime example of this humor is the womans description of her abduction by Morocco pirates. Our soldiers defended themselves as papal troops usually do; falling on their knees and throwing down their arms, they begged of the corsair absolution. (535). The image presented is meant to be both humorous and illustrative of the illusion of religion and social position. Though the family of the Pope, the old woman and the other women aboard are abandoned to the whim of the pirates. Neither their religious affiliation, social rank, money nor beauty are able to protect them from being murdered, and in the case of the old woman sold from broker to broker having in one instance one buttock sliced off to prevent herself from being cannibalized. While the woman has in some ways accepted her lot in life, showing complicity that is at the root of such institutionalized systems that promote obedience and blind acceptance, her humor lends to Voltaire overall satire on the notion of happiness as an abstracted ideal. Having suffered innumerable tragedies throughout her long life, the old woman notes, a hundred times I wanted to kill myself, but always I loved life more(538). This ridiculous weakness is perhaps the most disastrous of our inclinations; for is their anything sillier than to desire to bear continually a burden one always wishes to throw on the ground (538). While it is supportive, in her expression of it here, of Candides own optimism it still belies a realism that there is little in her tragedy that can or has been justified by man or God. She has suffered and in her suffering has sought to hold onto the brief victories and happiness that she has attained. Her point is later echoed by Candide when in explaining the i dea of optimism to Cacambo he shows that his own blind belief in the abstract of happiness preached by Pangloss is more madness than reality. In viewing the upset of Candides very notion of life through a harsh and dramatized realism, Voltaire leads the reader to Candides own conclusions. Humor works with this realism to act as a springboard for insinuations against the institutions and conventions that have created and prolonged some of the greatest miseries in the world. Voltaire, Francois-Marie Aronet de. Candide. The Norton Anthology of World Literature: 1650 to 1800. Ed. Sarah Lawall, et al. 2nd ed. Vol. D. New York: W.W. Norton Co., 2001. 520-582.

Charles Shults :: essays research papers

PEANUTS The comic strip PEANUTS has always been a favorite of mine, and most of America’s. It’s been a hit ever since the first PEANUTS comic strip was printed on October 2nd 1950 in seven U.S. daily newspapers. Charles Shultz, the inventor of this imaginative comic strip, still comes up with every PEANUTS strip for the Sunday papers. He leaped from job to job after completing his art’s program, he was even an art teacher for a while, but finally made it to the top. His original comic strip was called "Lil’ Folks" but because of political issues he was forced to change it to PEANUTS. It is now the longest running and most popular of all comics. It was also one of the first comics ever to have more than a few characters. In fact in Shultz’s strip there were about twelve actual reoccurring characters, of which I am about to share with you along with a brief description of each. First off, of course, is Charlie Brown. He wins your heart with his losing ways. It always rains on his parade, his baseball game, and his life. He’s an stong willed boy who is afraid of arguments. Although he is concerned with the true meaning of life, his friends sometimes call him "blockhead." Other than his knack for putting himself down, there are few sharp edges of wit in that head of his; usually he’s the butt of a joke, not the joker. He can be spotted a mile away in his sweater with the zig zag trim, head down, hands in pockets, headed for Lucy’s psychiatric booth. He is considerate, friendly and polite and we love him knowing that he’ll never win a baseball game, or the heart of the the little red-haired girl, kick the football Lucy is holding or fly a kite successfully. His friends call him "wishy-washy," but his spirit will never give up in his quest to be all that he can be. Next on the list of introductions should be none other that Lucy Van Pelt, since I mentioned her once before. Lucy works hard at being bossy, crabby and selfish. She is loud and yells a lot. Her smiles and motives are rarely pure. She’s a know-it-all who gives out advice whether you want it or not--and for Charlie Brown, there’s a charge. She’s a real grouch, with only one or two soft spots, and both of them may be Schroeder, who prefers Beethoven.

Dear Shakespeare: A Critique Of The Tempest Essay -- essays research p

Dear Shakespeare: A Critique of The Tempest To Mr. William Shakespeare,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I am going to get right down to business. I am writing to you regarding our recent collaboration on The Tempest. In my opinion I think we need to make a couple of changes. The first is in regards to Caliban and the second has to do with Prospero.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  As I was reading the section of the play where Caliban takes Stephano as his master I began to think about how he should be wiser by now. As is Caliban begs a drunken Stephano to be his master. In my opinion Caliban should show development by not drinking and possibly taking advantage of the drunk Stephano and Trinculo. It should develop in this fashion:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Caliban:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I believe that I can assist you in your stay on the island.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Stephano:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  What mean you beast?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Caliban:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I prithee, let me bring thee where crabs grow, And I with my long nails will dig thee pignuts, Show thee a jay's nest, and instruct thee how To snare the nimble marmoset. I'll bring thee To clustering filberts, and I'll teach thee to get Young scamels from the rock. Does't though attend me? Stephano: I do. For all this service what want'st you in return. Caliban: I ask but one simple service. The death of my tyrant master. Stephano...

Make Friends and Get a Social Life

A fairly common social issue people have is that they're not sure how to make friends and put together a social life for themselves. There are quite a few ways someone can find themselves in this situation: They've moved to a new city and don't know very many people yet. They've been in a long term relationship and have let their social life wither. Their old friends have slowly been dropping out of the picture (moving away, busy with work or a new family, etc. ) and haven't been replaced by new ones.A large chunk of their social circle disappeared overnight, like everyone graduated from university and most of their friends moved out of the city. They feel like they've grown apart from their current friends and want to make entirely new ones. In the past they were happy being alone a lot of the time, but now they want to be around people more often. They never really knew how to make friends and have always wished their social lives were better. They've recently made a big lifestyle change such as deciding not to drink anymore, and need to develop a new social circle that's more suited to it.Below are my thoughts on how to make friends. I'll cover a basic structure first, then go into some attitudes and principles towards the whole thing that I think are important. I've noticed people who are already good at making friends naturally tend to do most of the things I outline below without thinking about it. Bare bones guide on how to make friends Here are the basic steps to making friends. It seems simplistic, but there can be a lot to each point. People who struggle with their social lives often stumble on one or more of them as well. 1. Find some potential friendsTo make friends you first have to find some possible candidates. There are two main ways to do this: Draw on your current contacts This won't apply to people who have just moved to a new area and don't know anyone, but often you'll already have the seeds of a social life around you. You don't necessaril y have to go out and meet ten strangers to have one. It's often easier to turn existing contacts into full-fledged friends than it is to meet new ones. There are probably a handful of people you already know who could end up becoming part of a new social circle.I'm talking about people like: Acquaintances you're friendly with when you run into each other, but who you never see otherwise. People at work or in your classes who you get along with. Friends of people you know who you've gotten along with in the past. Someone who has shown an interest in being your friend but you never really took up the offer. People you very occasionally hang out with, who you could see more often. Friends you've gradually lost contact with who you could call up again. For some people, cousins who are close to your age. Meet some new peopleGetting more out of your current relationships can go a long way, but it doesn't always work. Sometimes you're at a point where you need to meet entirely new people. Not having easy access to potential new friends is a big barrier for many people in creating a social circle. I go into more detail here: How To Meet People. Overall, I'd say the easiest things to do are: Being in a situation where lots of potential friends are around, and you naturally have to get to know them through your day-to-day interactions. Work and school are the two big ones. Meeting one or two good people and then getting to know all their friends.If you hang out with fifteen people, you shouldn't have to have met them all individually. Being into hobbies or communities where you'll naturally meet a lot of people, ones you already have something common with and a built-in activity/conversation opportunity to do with them. Overall, meeting new people may require making an effort to pull out of your day-to-day routine. If most of your hobbies are solitary you might also need to add some more people-oriented ones to the mix. Also, the easiest way to naturally meet a lot of p eople is just to live a full, interesting life and run into lots of potential friends as a side effect.Once you're in a situation with some prospective friends around, you need to strike up conversations and try to get to know them. You won't form a connection with everyone you interact with, but if you chat to enough people you'll find you like and get along pretty well with some of them. Once you've done that you could say you're now at the Friendly Acquaintance stage, or that they're context-specific contacts (e. g. , work â€Å"friends†). If you have trouble with successfully meeting, chatting to, and getting to know people, you may want to check out the site's sections on shyness, fears, and insecurity and on making conversation. . Invite potential friends to do something with you Once you've met those people you seem to be clicking with with, ask them to hang out and do something outside of the situation you met them in. This is the most important step in my experience. You can meet all the people you want, and they can think you're great, but if you don't take any actions to do something with them in the future, then you won't form many new relationships. People will stay as the guy you talk to in class, or the girl you chat to at work in the break room. This seems basic, but lonelier people often hit a wall here.There may be someone they joke around with at work, or chat to in one of their classes, but they won't take the step of inviting them out and taking the relationship to the next level, and beyond the acquaintance stage. If you're on the shyer side, you might be a little hesitant to invite people out. While it is a little scary at first, and there is some risk of rejection, it's fairly easy to get used to. It's not nearly as bad as asking someone out on a date, for example. Depending on how you met them, you may invite someone to hang out fairly quickly or wait a few weeks.For example, if a friend brings one of their buddies along to have drinks with you one day, and you spent four hours together and hit it off right from the start, you may be totally comfortable asking them to hang out again right away. On the other hand, if you seem to mesh with someone at your job, you may only be able to have short conversations here and there over a month before you feel like they'd be someone worth knowing better. If you're not sure how to ask someone to do something with you, you could check out this article: Examples Of Various Ways To Invite People To Hang Out Make a habit of getting people's contact informationIt's a good idea to get into the habit of getting people's contact info fairly early. You may meet someone interesting, but you can never assume you're going to see them around again any time soon. Ask for their phone number or email address, or see if they're on Facebook. That way if an opportunity to get together comes up, they'll be easy to reach. Also, if they have your info, then they can get a hold of you if th ey want to invite you to something. Have a basic grasp of how to make plans To hang out with someone you've got to plan it. Sometimes the process is straight forward.You ask them if they want do something, they agree, and you set a time and place. At other times trying to nail down a plan can be tedious and unpredictable, especially when more than one other person is involved. It helps to accept that this is just an area where there's always going to be an amount of uncertainty, and you can't control everything. If inviting people out and arranging plans all seems like a big hassle, it also probably feels that way for everyone else at times. They shouldn't always have to step up and organize things for you. Do some of the lifting yourself when you need to.More details here: Advice On Making Plans With People Do your best to accept every invitation Of course, making your own plans is important, but if someone asks you to hang out, then that's even better. If someone invites you to do something, then you should go. Why turn down a free chance to get out there with people? When you've got more friends and different options competing for your time you can be more choosy. If you're more of a shy or solitary person it's easy to mull over the invitation and rationalize that it won't be that fun and that you don't want to go.Ignore those thoughts and go anyways. You never can be sure how fun something will be until you show up and see how it is for yourself. Sometimes you'll have to inconvenience yourself for the sake of your social life. You may get invited to a movie you don't particularly want to see, or someone might call you up on Friday evening as you're about to go to bed, asking if you want to go out. Whenever you have two or more people in the equation, you're going to have to compromise sometimes. Again, just being out there outweighs these minor annoyances.Another thing to consider is that many people will stop inviting someone out to things if they decline too often. They may have nothing against the person, but the next time they're planning an event will think, â€Å"Paul never comes out when I ask him, so no point in letting him know this time really. † 3. Once you've got some budding friendships, keep in touch, keep hanging out, and let the relationship grow It's one thing to hang out with someone once, or only occasionally. You could consider them a friend of sorts at that point.For that particular person maybe that's all you need in a relationship with them, someone you're casually friendly with and who you see every now and then. However, for someone to became a closer, more regular friend you need hang out fairly often, keep in touch, enjoy good times together, and get to know each other on a deeper level. You won't have the compatibility to do this with everyone, but over time you should be able to build a tighter relationship with some of the people you meet. I talk about developing friendships way more in this artic le: How To Grow And Deepen New Friendships Once you know some people, build on this foundationOnce you've made a regular friend or two you've also got a good base to work from. If you're not super social in nature, one or two good buddies may be all you need to be happy. At the very least, if you were feeling lonely and desperate before, having a relationship or two should be enough to take those feelings away. Sooner or later you'll end up meeting your friend's friends. If you hit it off with them then you can start hanging out with them as well. You could also become a member of the whole group with time. You can also continue to meet entirely new people.Having friends will make this easier as they'll do things like invite you to parties or keep you company in places where there are new people to potentially meet. 4. Repeat the above steps more often to make more friends If you join one new club, hit it off with three people there, and end up hanging out with two of them long term , then you've made two new friends. If you stop there then that's all you'll have. If week after week you're coming up with new ways to meet people, and then following up and attending lots of get togethers, then you'll have a pile of friends and acquaintances eventually. It's up to you when you feel like stopping.There's no law that says everyone has to have dozens of people in their social circle either. Many people are perfectly happy only having a few really close relationships. If you only have a couple of friends and decide you want more though, you can always get out there again. General principles on making friends Above I outlined a basic structure of Meet People > Hang Out With Them > Keep Hanging Out > Repeat. Now I'll go into some broader concepts that apply to making friends as a whole. I think the points below are just as important as the stuff I've covered already, if not more so. If you want social life, you've got to make it happen for yourself A huge, core principl e when it comes to building a social life is: Take Initiative. It's a big mistake to passively wait for other people to do the work of befriending you. It's great if it happens, but don't count on it. If you want to get a group of friends, assume you'll have to put in all the effort. If you want to do something on the weekend, don't sit around and hope someone calls you. Get in touch with various people and put something together yourself, or find out what they're doing and see if you can come along. Don't worry too much about seeming desperate or needy.Take the attitude that it's about you and you'll do what needs to be done to make some friends. Who cares if a handful of people think you're a bit too eager along the way if it all eventually works out? It's a lot like dating or trying to find a new job. What you get out of these things depends a lot on how much you put into them. Don't take it personally if people seem indifferent to you Other people are often harmlessly thoughtles s and preoccupied in the sense that they'd be happy if they hung out with you, but they wouldn't think to ask you themselves. Sometimes you have to take an interest in them before you appear on their radar.Similarly, some people are more lax and laid back than you'd like about returning your emails or calls. They're not consciously trying to reject you, they're just a little more loosey-goosey about that stuff than most. Don't feel making friends is super tricky If you're inexperienced with making friends, you may see the process as being more drawn-out and complex than it really is. Often all you have to do to make a friend is meet someone you naturally click with and hang around with them enough. You also don't have to know them for months before applying the ‘friend' label to them.One characteristic of more social people is that they'll throw the word friend around pretty loosely when describing their relationships with people. But it almost becomes a self-fulfilling prophe cy in a way. Sure, if you've just met someone it may not be a deep, intimate relationship, but you can still hang out with them and have a good time. Don't be overly picky about who you hang out with at first Your initial goal should just be to get some sort of social life going. So hang out with whoever you get along with and who seems interested in doing things with you.The first people you meet may not be your 100% ideal friends. The benefits of just being out there as opposed to moping around at home outweigh this. At the very least, it's easier to make further friends when you've already got a few. Also, if you're forming your first-ever group of friends, you probably don't totally know what you like or want in other people. You have to see what different types of people are like in a friend capacity firsthand. As a general rule, if you more-or-less get along with someone, actually become friends with them first, and then decide if want to be friends.If you're picky, you can co me up with reasons not to befriend just about anyone ahead of time. But when you're already hanging out with someone, and you've skipped over your pickiness, you often find you like their company, even if they wouldn't have been good ‘on paper' in your mind beforehand. I also give this advice because studies show lonely people tend to be more negative about others in general. Less naturally outgoing types can also be more picky about who they choose to spend their time with. If you naturally tend to be down on everyone you meet, you need to make an effort to consciously override these feelings.Plus, don't have an unrealistic self-image that demands you can only hang out with a certain caliber of people. Be realistic about yourself and your circumstances. If you don't totally like yourself, you may also be averse to hanging around people who you see as too similar to you, as it can act as a mirror that reflects your shortcomings back at you. This may be justified if you have so me irksome traits and understandably want to avoid others who have them, but often you may be turning away legitimately good people who just happen to have some characteristics that hurt your pride a little. Be persistent nd try not to get discouraged by setbacks too easily Sometimes you'll join a club or be introduced to your friend's friends and hope to meet a bunch of great new people. Then you get there and the experience is disappointing. You may feel like you don't click with anyone, or like they're ignoring you in favor of making in-jokes with each other. Give these groups a few more tries, often you're limited in how much you'll connect with others on the first meeting. You may warm up to each other before long. If someone refuses your invitation because they're busy or not sure if they can make it out then don't give up.Try again another time. Don't automatically jump to the conclusion that they hate you and you're fundamentally unlikable. Assume the best. Also, even the ac t of making an invitation sends the message that you like someone and want to hang out with them. They may be unable to meet that one time, but now see you as someone they could possibly have fun with in the future. When you meet potential friends be realistic about your importance in their lives and how long it may take to become buddies with them. They probably already have a social circle and their world won't end if it doesn't work out with you.As such, don't get too discouraged if they're not knocking down the door to hang out with you a day after you met them. They may be busy and your plans may not pan out for another few weeks. Sometimes it just won't work out with someone. You'll get along at the time, and they may express an interest in hanging out in the future, but for whatever reason things don't materialize. They may be too busy, already have enough friends, or they don't think you're a good enough match for them. It happens to everyone and is nothing to get too down a bout.Keep the bigger picture in mind and continue meeting people. The whole ‘taking initiative and don't give up too easily' thing can be a missing piece of the puzzle for people, but sometimes it still seems that no one is interested in you. You may want to check this out: When People Don't Seem Interested In Being Friends With You Be patient In the right situations you can build a new social life really quickly, like if you've just moved to a new city to go to college, or if you join the right club or team and instantly click with everyone there.At other times it takes longer for things to develop, but stick with it. It may take a while before you get a chance to meet some people you're compatible with. After that, it may be a few months before you're consistently hanging around with each other. It may be a year or more before you feel like you're really, really friends with them. It often takes time to go from having no plans, to having plans with the same person every thir d weekend, to having plans with a variety of people three times a week.

Chick Fil a

Ryan Simpson Marketing 476 Final Project Chick-Fil-A| GarnerR MK-476 FP Page #1 In this paper I will be giving a thorough analysis of the Chick-Fil-A company by discussing the history of the company as well as how the company was founded, the operations of the company, how the company gives back to the community, and how the company markets itself to the consumers. The reason I chose Chick-Fil-A to do my paper on is ever since I was a little boy Chick-Fil-A has always been my favorite fast food. I can remember when I was little the closest Chick-Fil-A to our home was the one on Cox Creek Parkway in front of the mall in Florence.Anytime we were in Florence I would beg my parents to take me thru the drive thru because I loved the Chick-Fil-A kids meal as well as the toy that came with it. Chick-Fil-A restaurants have been appealing to me ever since I was little so since then I have been a loyal customer of Chick-Fil-A. I have also always been interested in knowing how Chick-Fil-A alway s has had a huge customer base and every time I went to eat at a Chick-Fil-A, it seemed to always be crowded so that tells me that their marketing department is definitely doing something right because their restaurants are doing great business.In this paper I will be going over the history of the Chick- Fil-A company, how the company operates, how the company markets itself, and how close out the paper with a conclusion and summary. In the first part of my paper, I want to go over the history of the Chick-Fil-A company. The Chick-Fil-A company was first founded in 1946 by a man named Truett Cathy. Truett Cathy is considered to be one of the greatest entrepreneurs in the history of the United States. GarnerR MK-476 FP Page #2Truett Cathy who grew up in Atlanta opened his first restaurant in his home town called the â€Å"Dwarf Grill†. However over time the name changed to the â€Å"Dwarf House† (www. chick-fil-a. com). In the year of 1964, Truett Cathy created his vers ion of a chicken sandwich that is today referred to as the original chicken sandwich. Truett Cathy’s invention of the chicken sandwich was the first step to his vision of developing a successful restaurant chain. In 1967, Truett Cathy opened the first Chick-Fil-A restaurant in the Greenbrier Mall in |Atlanta, Georgia.In 1973 years after the first Chick-Fil-A opened, Truett Cathy wanted all his employees, regardless of age, to have an advanced education so he decided to develop a Team Scholarship Program which included $1,000 scholarships. Chick-Fil-A took a big step in the right direction when they first introduced freshly squeezed lemonade on their menu in 1977. In 1982, all Chick-Fil-A started selling chicken nuggets in all their restaurants and because of this Chick-Fil-A became the first restaurant chain to offer chicken nuggets nationwide. 984 was a big year for the Chick-Fil-A Company because Truett Cathy established the WinShape Foundation to help â€Å"shape winnersà ¢â‚¬ . The reason Truett Cathy founded this foundation was simply because young people receiving a proper education was very important to him (www. chick-fil-a. com). Some milestones of the Chick-Fil-A Franchise; In 1985 all the Chick-Fil-A restaurants added their original waffle fries to their menus. In 1986 Chick-Fil-A expanded their operation by constructing the company’s first free-standing restaurant building on North Druid Hills Road in Atlanta. 987 saw the franchises offer their first kid’s meal package. Also in 1987 Chick-Fil-A expanded their operation by opening their first restaurants on GarnerR MK-476 FP Page #3 college campuses with Clemson University and Georgia Tech being chosen as their pilot campuses. In my opinion these colleges were chosen due to their proximity to the area of Atlanta from which the Chick-Fil-A franchise was originated. 1993 was a huge milestone for the Chick-Fil-A franchise, this was the year their 500th restaurant was opened and th eir first drive through only restaurant was created.Also in this year their first hospital based restaurant was opened. Arguably one of the greatest marketing campaigns in the world was the â€Å"cows† which began in 1995 introducing their first billboard which consisted of their cows attempting to paint their catch phrase â€Å"eat mor chikin† (www. chick-fil-a. com). With this campaign the Chick-Fil-A Franchise was catapulted into the category with McDonald and Burger King as one of the most popular fast food chain restaurants in the United States. Also in 1995 the Chick-Fil-A Franchise hit the mark of one billion dollars in sales nationwide.In 2001, Chick-Fil-A continued to expand their operation by opening their 1,000 restaurant. In the same year Chick-Fil-A continued to progress their popularity by being voted the â€Å"best drive thru in America† by QSR Magazine (www. chick-fil-a. com). In my opinion, this solidified their superior position in the fast foo d restaurant industry. Chick-Fil-A expanded their business in 2003 by opening their restaurants in Utah, Arizona and Southern California. By introducing their operation to the west Chick-Fil-A expanded their target market by not only marketing to the eastern United States, but to the GarnerR MK-476 FP Page #4 estern United States as well. This move made the Chick-Fil-A Company more popular nationwide In 2004 Chick-Fil-A expanded their menu even further by adding breakfast. By adding breakfast and opening earlier this also brought new business to Chick-Fil-A from business people on their way to work. In the same year Chick-Fil-A was voted â€Å"America’s best drive thru† for the third straight year (www. chick-fil-a. com). In my opinion Chick-Fil-A accomplished this prestigious honor by focusing on customer service and marketing their product.Truett Cathy wanted to increase the Chick-Fil-A Foundation’s scholarship program so in 2005 the Chick-Fil-A Bowl was devel oped to provide more money for scholarships (www. chick-fil-a. com). The Chick-Fil-A Bowl is played in Atlanta, Georgia in the Georgia Dome (www. chick-fil-abowl. com). In 2005, Chick-Fil-A awarded their 20,000th Leadership Scholarship. By doing so, this showed Truett Cathy’s dedication and commitment to encouraging young people to go to college and further their education. Chick-Fil-A expanded their menu again by adding â€Å"hand-Spun† milk shakes in 006. Also in the same year Chick-Fil-A surpassed two billion dollars in sales nationwide and as a coincidence it happened in the same year that the Cathy family celebrated 60 years in the restaurant business (www. chick-fil-a/com). This information shows me how great of an entrepreneur Truett Cathy was that he could start up a restaurant and in just 60 years it has become one of the most popular fast food chain restaurants in the United States as well as grossed over two billion dollars worth of sales. GarnerR MK-476 FP Page #5On December 1, 2010 I conducted a phone interview with Mike Albretson who is the operations manager at the Chick-Fil-A drive thru in Florence, Alabama on Cox Creek Boulevard in front of Regency Square Mall. In the phone interview with Mike Albretson I learned many things that I didn’t originally know about Chick-Fil-A. The first thing that I learned was according to Mr. Albretson the one major factor that plays a role in the Chick-Fil-A franchises success is their efforts to make emotional connections with all the customers that eat at their restaurants.The main question I asked Mike Albretson is what three ways to do feel the Chick-Fil-A franchise markets their products to their customers and how they make their franchise appealing to the general public? Mr. Albretson’s response was the first way he believes they market their products to customers is by focusing on community and consumer relations. Mike Albretson also mentioned that one of the Chick-Fil-A franc hises main goals is to do everything they can to provide a clean family atmosphere in all their restaurants.The second way Mike Albretson believes the Chick-Fil-A franchise markets their products to the general public is by bringing the food to the people. I found this technique very interesting and what this means is Chick-Fil-A brings the foods to the people by simply taking sample treys with items from their menu or even foods that they haven’t put on their menu but are seriously considering it and taking them to public areas such as a park or anywhere that is a general public area and letting the people that come by ry free samples of their food and tell them what they think about it (Mike Albretson, operations manager). GarnerR MK-476 FP Page #6 I personally thought this is a great idea because you are advertising the Chick-Fil-A name out to the public, you are showing the community that Chick-Fil-A values and cares about their image, and also they can find out valuable information such as what the majority of the people like or prefer.So in a way Chick-Fil-A is taking a survey on what the majority of the people like so that they can consider putting that item on their menu if it is not already on there. The third way Mike Albretson believes that the Chick-Fil-A franchise markets their products and service to the consumers is by the experience the customers receive when they come and eat in their restaurants. Mr.Albretson stated that the ways Chick-Fil-A attempts to make the customers experience as pleasant as possible are by assisting people to their tables, by going around and asking if there is anything the customers need such as a refill on their drink or more ketchup. Mr. Albretson also stated that the Chick-Fil-A restaurants have employees help the customers clean their tables as well as throw their trash away (Mike Albretson, operations manager). In my opinion I believe these are excellent ways for Chick-Fil-A to set their selves apart from their competition such as McDonalds or Burger King.I understand that most fast food restaurants are pretty much the same when it comes to the service and atmosphere of the restaurant but if you have assistants help the customers clean up and throw away their garbage that definitely would give them the advantage over their competitors in the service aspect of their restaurants. GarnerR MK-476 FP Page #7 I found a very interesting article that came from www. fastcompany. com, the article discussed how the Chick-Fil-A franchise was based customer centered.An example the article shared that supported this statement was during the opening of the Chick-Fil-A restaurant that is located in Evansville, Indiana, Truett Cathy himself showed up at the opening to meet and greet all the people who had been camping out the night before the opening to be new restaurants first customers (www. fastcompany. com). This tells me how down to earth Mr. Cathy is that he would take the time to go to Evansvi lle, Indiana to greet the customers on the opening day of one of his thousands of restaurants.Another fascinating article I found about Truett Cathy came from www. michaelleestallard. com, in this article, Mr. Stallard talks about a speech that he heard Truett Cathy give at a conference and how much it moved him on how inspirational and selfless Mr. Cathy was. I thought it was very interesting that here is Truett Cathy a multi millionaire that could be anywhere in the world, but here he is spending over half his time traveling to different Chick-Fil-|A restaurants and meeting and talking with tons of his employees (www. michaelleestallard. com).This example tells me how much Truett Cathy cares about his employees and about the service the Chick-Fil-A franchise brings to all their customers. One major advantage Chick-Fil-A has over most of their competition is most of their chicken sandwiches have a lot less calories and fat then most chicken sandwiches at fast food restaurants do. G arnerR MK-476 FP Page #8 According to www. livestrong. com, the original chicken sandwich at Chick-Fil-A only has 430 calories which is right about what McDonald’s chicken sandwich is, but what sets Chick-Fil-A apart from its competition is the chargrilled chicken sandwich.The Chick-Fil-A chargrilled chicken sandwich only has 300 calories and also has 29 grams of protein in it which is a very nutritious meal for anybody. The McDonalds chicken sandwich has 420 calories in it so this tells me that Chick-Fil-A is the healthier choice (www. livestrong. com). While researching about Chick-Fil-A coupons, I found a hilarious story about Chick-Fil-A coming up with a very unusual, but effective marketing idea. It was called the â€Å"cow promo†. What this meant was during a certain time period nyone could dress up like a cow and go into any Chick-Fil-A and all they had to do was moo and stop their foot or â€Å"hoof† and get a free chicken sandwich and according to the a rticle I read there were a few people who actually participated in this event (http://fastfoodcoupon. com). In conclusion, I learned so much about how a very successful business operates as well as several very effective marketing schemes and ideas. I personally thought the story about how Chick-Fil-A was started and how quick it became so popular and successful.In researching this paper I also learned how great of a man Truett Cathy is and I read many examples that taught me how far good customer service can take you. Overall, I really enjoyed researching Chick-Fil-A and learning about the franchise. The summary of this paper was the history of Chick-Fil-A and how it was started by Truett Cathy. The second part of the paper was marketing strategies of the Chick-Fil-A GarnerR MK-476 FP Page #9 Franchise. The third was how Chick-Fil-A sets their selves apart from their competitors.The last part of my paper was the conclusion and summary. GarnerR MK-476 FP Page #10 References Page 1. www. chick-fil-a. com 2. http://www. chick-fil-abowl. com 3. Interview with Chick-Fil-A operations manager Mike Albretson 4. http://wwwmichaelleestallard. com/chick-fil/as-competitive-edge-of-relationships 5. http://www. fastcompany. com/magazine/87/customer-chickfila. html 6. www. livestrong. com/thedailyplate/search/chick-fil-a 7. http://fastfoodcoupon. com/chick-fil-a-coupons. html

Last Sacrifice Chapter Twelve

DIMITRI AND I BOTH FROZE as the shock of that name hit us. Sydney, glancing between our faces, gave us a dry smile. â€Å"I take it you know who that is?' â€Å"Of course,' I exclaimed. â€Å"She was my teacher. She went crazy and turned Strigoi.' Sydney nodded. â€Å"I know.' My eyes widened further. â€Å"Shes not †¦ she's not the one who had an affair with Lissa's dad, is she?' Oh dear God. That would be one of the most unexpected developments in the rollercoaster that was my life. I couldn't even begin to process the effects of that. â€Å"Not likely,' she said. â€Å"The account was opened several years before she was added as the beneficiary–which was right when she turned eighteen. So, if we're assuming the account was created around the time the baby was born, then she would have been way too young. Sonya's probably a relative.' My earlier astonishment was giving way to excitement, and I could see the same thing happening to Dimitri. â€Å"You must have records about her family,' he said. â€Å"Or if not, some Moroi probably does. Who's close to Sonya? Does she have a sister?' Sydney shook her head. â€Å"No. That'd be an obvious choice, though. Unfortunately, she has other family–tons of it. Her parents both came from giant families, so she has lots of cousins. Even some of her aunts are the right age.' â€Å"We can look them up, right?' I asked. A thrill of anticipation was running through me. I honestly hadn't expected this much information. True, it was small, but it was something. If Sonya Karp was related to Eric's mistress, that had to be something we could track. â€Å"There's a lot of them.' Sydney shrugged. â€Å"I mean, yeah, we could. It'd take a long time to find everyone's life history, and even then–especially if this was covered up enough–we'd have a hard time finding out if any of them is the woman we're looking for. Or even if any of them know who she is.' Dimitri's voice was low and thoughtful when he spoke. â€Å"One person knows who Jane Doe is.' Sydney and I both looked at him expectantly. â€Å"Sonya Karp,' he replied. I threw up my hands. â€Å"Yeah, but we can't talk to her. She's a lost cause. Mikhail Tanner spent over a year hunting her and couldn't find her. If he can't, then we're not going to be able to.' Dimitri turned away from me and stared out the window. His brown eyes filled with sorrow, his thoughts momentarily far away from us. I didn't entirely understand what was happening, but that peaceful moment in the library–where Dimitri had smiled and shared in the daydream of an ordinary life–had vanished. And not just the moment. That Dimitri had vanished. He was back in his fierce mode, carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders again. At last, he sighed and looked back at me. â€Å"That's because Mikhail didn't have the right connections.' â€Å"Mikhail was her boyfriend,' I pointed out. â€Å"He had more connections than anyone else.' Dimitri didn't acknowledge my comment. Instead, he grew pensive again. I could see turmoil behind his eyes, some inner war. At last, it must have been decided. â€Å"Does your phone have reception out here?' he asked her. She nodded, reaching into her purse and handing him her phone. He held it a moment, looking like it caused him total agony to touch it. At last, with another sigh, he stood up and headed for the door. Sydney and I exchanged questioning looks and then both followed him. She lagged behind me, having to toss cash on the table and grab her laptop. I emerged outside just as Dimitri finished dialing a number and put the phone to his ear. Sydney joined us, and a moment later, the person on the other end of the line must have answered. â€Å"Boris?' asked Dimitri. That was all I understood because the rest was a string of rapid Russian. A strange sensation spread over me as he spoke. I was confused, lost because of the language †¦ but there was more than that. I felt chilled. My pulse raced with fear. That voice †¦ I knew that voice. It was his voice and yet not his voice. It was the voice of my nightmares, a voice of coldness and cruelty. Dimitri was playing Strigoi. Well, â€Å"playing' was really too gentle of a word. Pretending was a better way to describe it. Whatever it was, it was pretty damned convincing. Beside me, Sydney frowned, but I didn't think she was experiencing what I was. She had never known him as Strigoi. She didn't have those horrible memories. His change in demeanor had to be obvious, but as I glanced at her face, I realized she was focused on following the conversation. I'd forgotten she knew Russian. â€Å"What's he saying?' I whispered. Her frowned deepened, either from the conversation or me distracting her. â€Å"He †¦ he sounds like he's talking to someone he hasn't spoken to in a while. Dimitri's accusing this person of slacking off while he's been away.' She fell silent, continuing her own mental translation. At one point, Dimitri's voice rose in anger, and both Sydney and I flinched. I turned to her questioningly. â€Å"He's mad about having his authority questioned. I can't tell, but now †¦ it sounds like the other person's groveling.' I wanted to know every word, but it had to be hard for her to translate to me and listen at the same time. Dimitri's voice returned to normal levels–though still filled with that terrible menace–and among the flurry of words, I heard â€Å"Sonya Karp' and â€Å"Montana.' â€Å"He's asking about Ms. Kar–Sonya?' I murmured. She hadn't been my teacher for a long time. I might as well call her Sonya now. â€Å"Yeah,' said Sydney, eyes still on Dimitri. â€Å"He's asking–er, telling–this person to locate someone else and see if he can find Sonya. This person †¦' She paused to listen again. â€Å"This person he's asking about sounds like he knows a lot of people in the area she was last seen in.' I knew â€Å"people' in this context meant â€Å"Strigoi.' Dimitri had risen quickly in their ranks, asserting his will and power over others. Most Strigoi operated solo, rarely working in groups, but even the lone ones recognized threats and more dominant Strigoi. Dimitri was working his contacts, just as he'd said earlier. If any Strigoi had heard about his transformation–and believed it–they wouldn't have been able to pass the news quickly, not with their disorganization. As it was, Dimitri was already having to play leapfrog to find sources who knew other sources who might know Sonya's location. Dimitri grew loud and angry again, his voice becoming–if possible–more sinister. I suddenly felt trapped, and even Sydney looked scared now. She swallowed. â€Å"He's telling this guy that if he doesn't get answers by tomorrow night, Dimitri's going to find him and rip him apart and †¦' Sydney didn't bother finishing. Her eyes were wide. â€Å"Use your imagination. It's pretty terrible.' I decided then that I was kind of glad I hadn't heard all of the conversation in English. When Dimitri finished the call and returned Sydney's phone, that mask of malice melted from his face. Once again, he was my Dimitri, Dimitri the dhampir. Dejection and despair radiated off him, and he slumped against the cafe's wall, staring upward into the sky. I knew what he was doing. He was trying to calm himself, seize control of the emotions that had to be warring within him. He'd just done something that might give us clues we needed †¦ but it had been at a terrible cost to himself. My fingers twitched. I wanted to put a comforting arm around him or at least pat his shoulder so he'd know he wasn't alone. But, I held back, suspecting he wouldn't like it. At last, he turned his gaze back to us. He'd regained his control–at least on the outside. â€Å"I've sent someone to ask about her,' he said wearily. â€Å"It might not work out. Strigoi are hardly the type to keep a database. But they do occasionally keep an eye on one another, if only for their own self-preservation. We'll find out soon if there are any hits.' â€Å"I †¦ wow. Thank you,'I said, fumbling at the words. I knew he needed no thanks, but it felt necessary to me. He nodded. â€Å"We should get back to the Keepers †¦ unless you think this is a safe place to stay?' â€Å"I'd rather stay off civilized radar,' said Sydney, moving toward the truck. â€Å"Besides, I want my car keys back.' The ride back felt ten times longer. Dimitri's mood filled up the whole cabin, almost suffocating us with its despair. Even Sydney could feel it. She'd let him drive again, and I couldn't decide if that was a good or bad thing. Would the road distract him from his Strigoi torment? Or would his agony distract him from the road and put us off in a ditch? Fortunately, we made it back safe and sound and found two of the Keepers waiting for us in the lot, a Moroi woman and a human guy who both looked fierce. I still couldn't shake the strangeness of both races being battle-ready. I wondered if these two were a couple. Back in the camp, we found the communal bonfire ablaze and people sitting out around it, some eating and some just socializing. I'd learned at breakfast that the fire was always there for those who wanted to bond but that plenty of families kept to their own households as well. We went back to Raymond's house, but only Sarah and Joshua were there. She was cleaning up dishes, and he sat restlessly in a chair. As soon as he caught sight of me at the door, he sprang up, radiant smile on high-beam again. â€Å"Rose! You're back. We were starting to worry †¦ I mean, not that anything had happened to you–not with your skills–but that maybe you'd just left us.' â€Å"Not without our car,' said Sydney, placing the truck keys on the table. The CR-Vs were sitting there already, and relief flooded her face as she snatched them up. Sarah offered us leftovers, which we declined, having stocked up on snack food at Rubysville's gas station. â€Å"Well,' she said, â€Å"if you're not going to eat, you might as well join the others out at the fire. Jess McHale might sing tonight if they can get her to drink enough, and drunk or sober, that woman has the finest voice I've ever heard.' I briefly met Dimitri and Sydney's eyes. I admit, I was a little curious to see how this wilderness group partied it up, even though moonshine and folk songs weren't really my first choice of entertainment. Dimitri still wore that haunted look from the phone call. I had a suspicion he would have been content to isolate himself in our room, but when Sydney said she'd go to the fire, his response came automatically: â€Å"I'll go too.' I knew instantly what he was doing. His Strigoi days tormented him. Talking to Strigoi tormented him. And maybe–no, certainly–he wanted to hide away and try to block it all out, but he was Dimitri. Dimitri protected those who needed it, and even if listening to fireside songs wasn't exactly life-threatening, it was still a semi-dangerous situation for a civilian like Sydney. He couldn't allow that. Plus, he knew Sydney would feel safer with both of us nearby. I started to say I'd join them, but Joshua spoke before I could. â€Å"Do you still want to see my cave? There's a little light left outside. You'll get a better view that way than if we have to use a torch.' I'd forgotten about my last conversation with Joshua and started to decline his offer. But then, something flashed in Dimitri's eyes, something disapproving. So. He didn't want me going off with some young, good-looking guy. Was it legitimate concern about the Keepers? Was it jealousy? No, surely not the latter. We'd established–many, many times–that Dimitri wanted no romantic connection with me. He'd even stood up for Adrian earlier. Was this some kind of ex-boyfriend thing? Back in Rubysville, I'd believed Dimitri and I could be friends, but that wouldn't happen if he thought he could control me and my love life. I'd known girls with exes like that. I wouldn't be one. I could hang out with whomever I wanted. â€Å"Sure,' I said. Dimitri's expression darkened. â€Å"I'd love to.' Joshua and I headed off, leaving the others behind. I knew part of my decision was to prove my independence. Dimitri had said we were equals, yet he'd made an awful lot of decisions in this escape plan without me. It was nice to feel like I had the upper hand for a change, and besides, I liked Joshua and was kind of curious to learn more about how his people lived. I don't think Sydney wanted me to leave, but Dimitri would look after her. As Joshua and I walked, we passed plenty of Keepers out and about. Just like earlier, I received a fair amount of stares. Rather than lead us down the road to where his father lived, Joshua took me around the small mountain. It was still good-sized, but after living near the Rockies, everything in the Appalachians seemed â€Å"small' to me. I guess I was a mountain snob. Still, the mountain extended quite a ways, and we moved farther and farther from the Keepers' main settlement. The forest grew thicker, the light growing scarce as the sun finally began sinking into the horizon. â€Å"I'm kind of on the outskirts,' Joshua said apologetically. â€Å"We keep growing and growing, and there's not much room in the town's center.' I thought â€Å"town' was an optimistic term but didn't say so. Yeah. I was definitely a snob. â€Å"But the caves keep going, so there's still space.' â€Å"Are they natural?' I asked. â€Å"Some are. Some are abandoned mining caves.' â€Å"It's pretty out here,' I said. I liked all the deciduous trees. I might be homesick for Montana, but the wide leaves here were a neat contrast to pine needles. â€Å"And hey, at least you get lots of privacy, right?' â€Å"True.' He smiled. â€Å"I figured you'd think it was †¦ I don't know. Too rustic. Or savage. You probably think we all are.' His observation startled me. Most of the Keepers had been so fiercely defensive of their way of life that I hadn't thought anyone would even think an outsider would question it–or that any Keeper would care if we did. â€Å"It's just different,' I said diplomatically. â€Å"A lot different from what I'm used to.' I felt a flash of homesickness for all the people and places I was now cut off from. Lissa. Adrian. Our other friends. Court. St. Vladimir's. I shook the feeling off quickly. I had no time to mope and could at least check on Lissa later. â€Å"I've been to human towns,' continued Joshua. â€Å"And other places the Tainted live. I can see why you'd like them.' He turned a bit sheepish. â€Å"I wouldn't mind electricity.' â€Å"Why don't you guys use it?' â€Å"We would if we could. We're just too far out, and no one really knows we're here anyway. The lily-people say it's better for hiding us.' It hadn't occurred to me that they simply endured these conditions because they were forced to in order to conceal themselves. I wondered how many of their choices came from clinging to the so-called old ways †¦ and how much was influenced by the Alchemists. â€Å"Here we are,' said Joshua, pulling me from my musings. He gestured to a dark hole at ground level. The opening was big enough for an adult to enter. â€Å"Nice,' I said. I'd noticed earlier that some of the caves were set higher into the mountains and had watched their residents either climb the rock bare-handed or use homemade ladders. An easy-access doorway seemed luxurious. Joshua looked surprised at my praise. â€Å"Really?' â€Å"Really.' We'd ended up losing too much daylight. He paused to light a torch, and then I followed him inside. We had to duck a little at first, but as we went deeper into the cave, the ceiling slowly expanded and opened up into a wide, rounded space. The floor was hard-packed dirt, the stone walls rough and jagged. This was a natural cave, but I could pick out the efforts made to civilize it. The floor had been cleaned and leveled, and I saw some stones and rocks in a corner that looked like they'd been gathered up to clear space. A couple pieces of furniture had already been moved in: a narrow wooden chair and a mattress that looked like it could barely hold one person. â€Å"You probably think it's small,' said Joshua. It was true, but it was actually bigger than my dorm room at St. Vladimir's. â€Å"Well †¦ yeah, but I mean, how old are you?' â€Å"Eighteen.' â€Å"Same as me,' I said. This seemed to make him pretty happy. â€Å"Having your own, um, cave at eighteen is pretty cool.' It would have been cooler still with electricity, Internet, and plumbing, but there was no need to bring that up. His blue eyes practically shone. I couldn't help but notice what a pretty contrast they made against his tanned skin. I dismissed the thought immediately. I wasn't here for a boyfriend. But apparently, I was the only one who believed that. Joshua suddenly took a step forward. â€Å"You can stay if you want,' he said. â€Å"The other Tainted would never find you here. We could get married, and then when we had kids, we could build a loft like my parents' and–‘ The word married had me moving toward the entrance as shocked and panicked as I would be by a Strigoi attack. Except, I usually had fair warning before those. â€Å"Whoa, whoa, slow down.' No. I hadn't seen a proposal coming. â€Å"We just met!' Thankfully, he didn't come closer. â€Å"I know, but sometimes that's how it is.' â€Å"What, marriages between people who hardly know each other?' I asked incredulously. â€Å"Sure. Happens all the time. And seriously, just in this short of time, I already know I like you. You're amazing. You're beautiful and obviously a good fighter. And the way you carry yourself †¦' He shook his head, awe on his face. â€Å"I've never seen anything like it.' I wished he wasn't so cute and nice. Having creepy guys profess their adoration was a lot easier to deal with than one you liked. I remembered Sydney saying I was a hot commodity here. Scorching was more like it, apparently. â€Å"Joshua, I really like you, but,' I added hastily, seeing hope fill his features, â€Å"I'm too young to get married.' He frowned. â€Å"Didn't you say you were eighteen?' Okay. Age was probably not a good argument around here. I'd seen how young people had kids back in Dimitri's home-town. In a place like this, they probably had child marriages. I tried another angle. â€Å"I don't even know if I want to get married.' This didn't faze him. He nodded in understanding. â€Å"That's smart. We could live together first, see how we get along.' His serious expression turned back into a smile. â€Å"But I'm pretty easygoing. I'd let you win every argument.' I couldn't help it. I laughed. â€Å"Well, then, I'm going to have to win this one and tell you I'm just not ready for †¦ any of it. Besides, I'm already involved with someone.' â€Å"Dimitri?' â€Å"No. Another guy. He's back at the Tainted Court.' I couldn't even believe I was saying that. Joshua frowned. â€Å"Why isn't he here protecting you then?' â€Å"Because †¦ that's not how he is. And I can take care of myself.' I'd never liked the assumption that I needed rescuing. â€Å"And look, even if he wasn't in the picture, I'm leaving soon anyway. It would never work out between you and me.' â€Å"I understand.' Joshua looked disappointed but seemed to be taking the rejection okay. â€Å"Maybe when you've got everything sorted out, you'll come back.' I started to tell him not to wait for me and that he should just marry someone else (despite how ridiculous it was at his age), but then I realized that was a pointless comment. In Joshua's fantasies, he could probably marry someone else now and then add me on to his harem later, like Sarah and Paulette. So, I just simply said, â€Å"Maybe.' Groping for a change in subject, I searched for anything to distract us. My eyes fell on the chair and a leafy pattern carved into it. â€Å"That's really neat.' â€Å"Thanks,' he said, walking over. To my relief, he didn't pursue the earlier topic. He ran his hand lovingly over the ornately carved wood. The design looked like braided leaves. â€Å"I did it myself.' â€Å"Really?' I asked in true surprise. â€Å"That †¦ that's amazing.' â€Å"If you like it †¦' His hand moved, and I feared there was a kiss or embrace coming. Instead, he reached into his shirt pocket and produced a finely carved wooden bracelet. It was a simple, sinuous design, the true marvel being how narrow and delicate it was to all be one piece. The wood had been polished to brilliance. â€Å"Here.' He handed me the bracelet. â€Å"This is for me?' I ran my finger along the smooth edge. â€Å"If you want it. I made it while you were out today. So you'll remember me after you leave.' I hesitated, wondering if accepting this would be encouraging him. No, I decided. I'd made my views on teenage marriage clear, and anyway, he looked so nervous, I couldn't stand the thought of hurting his feelings. I slipped it onto my wrist. â€Å"Of course I'll remember. Thank you.' From the happy look on his face, taking the bracelet made up for my earlier refusal. He showed me a few more details around the cave and then followed my suggestion to join the others at the fire. We could hear the music echoing through the trees long before we made it back, and while it was hardly my style, there was something warm and friendly about this community's way of life. I'd never been to summer camp, but I imagined this was what it'd be like. Sydney and Dimitri sat near the group's edge. They were quiet and watchful, but everyone else sang, clapped, and talked. Again, I was stunned at how easily dhampirs, humans, and Moroi could all be involved with one another. Mixed couples were everywhere, and one–a human and Moroi–were openly making out. Every so often, when he kissed her neck, he'd also bite and take some blood. I had to glance away. I turned back toward my friends. Sydney noticed me and looked relieved. Dimitri's expression was unreadable. Like always, the others' eyes followed my movement, and to my surprise, I saw open jealousy on some of the guys' faces. I hoped they didn't think Joshua and I had been off getting naked in the cave. That was hardly the reputation I wanted to leave behind. â€Å"I have to talk to Sydney,' I told him over the noise. I decided it'd be best to keep my distance before any rumors started, and truthfully, Sydney looked like she wanted me by her side. Joshua nodded, and I turned away. I'd taken two steps when a fist suddenly came right toward my face. I'd had no defenses up and just barely had the presence of mind to turn my head and catch the blow on my cheek, rather than end up with a broken nose. After the initial surprise, all my training kicked in. I quickly sidestepped out of the line of attack and put my body into a fighter's stance. The music and singing stopped, and I turned to face my attacker. Angeline. She stood in a way similar to my own, fists clenched and eyes completely honed in on me. â€Å"Okay,' she said. â€Å"It's time to find out how tough you really are.' What it was time for was someone–say, like, a parent–to come and drag her off and punish her for punching guests. Amazingly, no one moved or tried to stop her. No–that wasn't quite true. One person stood up. Dimitri had sprung to action the instant he saw me in danger. I expected him to come pull Angeline away, but a group of Keepers hastily moved to his side, saying something to him that I couldn't hear. They didn't try to physically restrain him, but whatever they said, it kept him where he stood. I would have demanded to know what they'd told him, but Angeline was coming at me again. It looked like I was on my own. Angeline was short, even for a dhampir, but her whole body was packed with strength. She was pretty fast too, though not fast enough to get that second hit in on me. I neatly dodged it and kept my distance, not wanting to go on the offensive with this girl. She could probably do a fair amount of damage in a fight, but there was a sloppy– no, more like rough–edge to it. She was a scrapper, someone who'd done a lot of brawling but without any formal training. â€Å"Are you insane?' I exclaimed, moving out of the way of another assault. â€Å"Stop this. I don't want to hurt you.' â€Å"Sure,' she said. â€Å"That's what you want everyone to think, right? If you don't actually have to fight, then they'll all go on believing those marks are real.' â€Å"They are real!' The insinuation that I'd faked my tattoos sparked my temper, but I refused to get drawn into this ridiculous scuffle. â€Å"Prove it,' she said, coming at me again. â€Å"Prove you're who you say you are.' It was like a dance, keeping away from her. I could have done it all night, and a few dismayed cries from the crowd demanded we â€Å"get on with it.' â€Å"I don't have to prove anything,' I told her. â€Å"It's a lie then.' Her breathing was heavy now. She was working a lot harder than me. â€Å"Everything you Tainted do is a lie.' â€Å"Not true,' I said. Why was Dimitri letting this go on? Out of the corner of my eye, I caught sight of him, and so help me, he was smiling. Meanwhile, Angeline was still continuing her tirade as she tried to hit me. â€Å"You all lie. You're all weak. Especially your â€Å"royals.' They're the worst of all.' â€Å"You don't know them at all. You don't know anything about them.' She might be able to carry on a conversation, but I could see her growing increasingly frustrated. If not for the fact I was pretty sure she'd hit me in the back, I would have taken the noble approach and simply walked away. â€Å"I know enough,' she said. â€Å"I know they're selfish and spoiled and don't do anything for themselves. They don't care about anyone else. They're all the same.' I actually agreed with Angeline about some royals but didn't like the generalization. â€Å"Don't talk about things you don't understand,' I snapped. â€Å"They're not all like that.' â€Å"They are,' she said, pleased to see me angry. â€Å"I wish they were all dead.' It was hardly enough to push me into offense mode, but the comment did cloud my thoughts enough that I let her get through my guard, just a little. I never would have let that happen with a Strigoi, but I'd underestimated this wild girl. Her leg snaked out just enough to hit my knee, and it was like tossing a spark into gasoline. Everything exploded. With that hit, I stumbled slightly, and she pushed her advantage. My battle instincts took over, and I had no choice but to strike back before she could hit me. People began cheering now that the fight was â€Å"really going.' I was on offense, trying to subdue her, meaning the physical contact had jumped up exponentially. I was still better than her, no doubt, but in trying to get to her, I put myself in her range. She landed a few blows on me, nothing serious, before I was able to tackle her to the ground. I expected that to be the end, but she pushed back against me before I could fully restrain her. We rolled over, and she tried to take the dominant position. I couldn't allow that and managed a punch on the side of her face that was a lot harder than the earlier one. I thought that would be the end of the fight. My hit had knocked her off me, and I started to stand, but then that little bitch grabbed my hair and jerked me back down. I twisted out of her hold–though I'm pretty sure she took some hair away with her–and this time managed to fully pin her, throwing all my weight and strength into it as I pressed down. I knew it had to be painful but didn't really care. She'd started it. Besides, this skirmish had gone beyond defense. Pulling someone's hair was just playing dirty. Angeline made a few more attempts to break away, but when it became clear she couldn't, those around us began whistling and cheering. A few moments later, that dark and furious look vanished from Angeline's face, replaced by resignation. I eyed her warily, not about to let down my guard. â€Å"Fine,' she said. â€Å"I guess it's okay. Go ahead.' â€Å"Huh? What's okay?' I demanded. â€Å"It's okay if you marry my brother.'