text:
At the end of the long-jump runway, an athlete grimly surveyed his course, apparently convinced that a glowering look at the sand pit 150 feet away would induce a recess from gravity, if not the true meaning of life. He drew a deep breath, broke into his sprint down the runway, launched himself off the board and—Hey, look at that, Ethel!—did a full forward somersault before he landed.

Thus did John Delamere of Washington State earn a cheer for grit, as true as the sand he brushed off his palms. While he failed to qualify for the long-jump finals in the NCAA championships in Austin, Texas last month, his style was, by a long shot, the most eye-catching of the competition. The 22-year-old New Zealander had just demonstrated the flip, which is either the first significant long-jump breakthrough in more than 50 years or a spectacular way to break your neck.

Long jumpers have been bounding off into sand and sawdust since the earliest days of track and field competition, but not until this year did a sizable number alter the flight plan with the forward somersault. Those who have adopted it swear it is in a class with the Fosbury Flop and the fiber-glass pole and will produce the first 30-foot jump. Others say the flip is a fluke, but most coaches and athletes are undecided, waiting to vote one way or the other as performance, or injury, dictates.

Or the rules. Unless the 30-foot jump happens soon, the International Amateur Athletic Federation may render deliberation moot by voting to outlaw the flip in international competition when its technical committee meets in Rome next month. At an earlier IAAF meeting reservations were voiced about the technique.

"Some members of the committee." said U.S. delegate Pincus Sober, "felt that the method is so different that it is not the event traditionally known as the long jump." Asked why no similar action was proposed when the flop high jump appeared, Sober said soberly, "There was nothing we could do about the flop because it was in wide practice before we could do anything about it."

Whatever the disposition of the flap over the flip, the technique is not that new. The somersault long jump had been written about and discussed before the last Olympic Games by Tom Ecker, a coach and authority on biomechanics who is the flip's No. 1 advocate, if not its modern-day originator. Author of Track and Field Dynamics, Ecker says he never heard of the flip before 1970, when he wrote his book. Since its publication in 1971, however, he has talked to a coach who says he saw it performed in 1947 and has heard from another reader who claims to have seen it in 1925.

Ecker's advocacy engendered little response until last year, when Pole Vaulter Dave Nielsen, a student at the University of Iowa, took up the somersault long jump for fun. A Swedish-born American citizen who had never been more than a mediocre long jumper, Nielsen improved his conventional best by a foot to 22'6" with the flip. At a meet in Stockholm he demonstrated the technique for Hans Lagerqvist, the Swedish vaulter, who later enlightened the Germans, among others, by demonstrating the flip over television. Shortly thereafter, 32-year-old Bernhard Stierle of West Germany adopted the technique, flipped 7.5 meters (24'7¼") and somehow was credited with inventing the thing.

While others may have tried the flip before the '70s or gained more recent notoriety with its use, Ecker was the first to explain its technical advantages through the laws of physics. Ecker claims the flip has undeniable dynamic advantages over conventional jumping, not the least of which is reduced wind resistance, because of the compact manner in which the jumper tucks his body together. The biggest plus, however, is that the flipper utilizes forward body rotation, while rotation is what most hinders the "normal" jumper.

Whether he knows it or not, once the conventional jumper leaves the board, he is fighting "the principle of the hinged moment," which sounds like a daytime TV serial but is a physical law. It says that when any object is moving and one end of it is stopped, the opposite end continues moving at an accelerated rate to produce rotation. Because a long jumper's foot is stopped on the board for about .12 seconds while his upper body is still moving, the forward rotation will dump the juniper on his face unless he compensates with the hitch kick, the hang, or some other counteracting body movement. Even with those techniques, which are difficult to learn, rotation is diminished only temporarily.

Trouble enough in the air, rotation presents a greater problem when the conventional jumper lands. At the precise moment when he wants his feet as far ahead of his body as possible, forward rotation may make his heels trail his body and thus hit the sand prematurely.

In contrast, Ecker points out that the flip enables the jumper to take off from the board almost at full speed and at a more desirable higher angle. When he tucks and rolls into a somersault, wind resistance is cut. And since rotation is working with him rather than against him, his feet will land—assuming correct execution—well ahead of his body, and the latter should follow on through so that he does not fall back in the pit. In practice, the hardest part of the new technique to learn is landing. "Wiping out in the flip," Delamere says painfully, "is coming down butt first." To preclude that dire end, the East Germans reportedly have theorized that a half-twist should be added to the flip so that the jumper lands facing the board.

Few things in sport prove as easy in competition as on paper, and the flip is no exception. While the dynamics of the new technique may satisfy the laws of physics, the danger factor is at least a worrisome possibility. A flip long jumper is not going to land in a foam-rubber pit, as does a flop high jumper or a fiberglass pole vaulter. What if he hesitates a moment too long before going into his tuck? What if his ankle gives slightly as he takes off from the board? What about the "fear factor"—getting up enough nerve to try the flip the first time?

Both Ecker and the jumpers using the flip deny it is dangerous. "I don't think there's any danger at all," Ecker says. "About the worst a guy could do would be to land on his behind. As for fear, it's like the pole vault. You'd never get me to hang upside down 18 feet up in the air on a bent pole, yet there are kids who do it with no trouble at all."

Washington State's assistant track coach, Rick Sloan, who taught himself the flip in order to coach it, says, "It is a frightening experience that first time. Jumping conventionally, you can see where you're going. With the flip, you're blind through most of the jump. You see a little grass, a little sky and no sand until the very end. But I can't imagine how you could mess it up so badly that you'd land on your neck, if you practice it first on the soft pads of a pole-vault pit. I don't think it's as dangerous as the flop. Remember the talk about kids breaking their necks when that first started?"

At the NCAA meet, the flu made a flop of Delamere's flip but in the Pacific-8 Conference meet three weeks earlier he somersaulted 25'6¾" to tie the Olympic champion, USC's Randy Williams. Observing the unorthodox technique of his rival, Williams said, "I like it. He's relaxing at the top of his jump. While we're working for every extra little bit, he's just worried about landing."

Delamere is a 6'2", 166-pound senior who has run 100 meters in 10.7 and, by his own admission, is no great tumbler. "I had never tried a somersault before this," he says. "I've never even tried one off a diving board into a swimming pool. I'd be too scared."

Delamere is convinced that his potential with the flip is much greater than his personal best (a wind-aided 25'9½") using the customary style. "I'm sure I can go 28 feet with it," he says. "When I'm 100% healthy, my takeoff is O.K. I've got to perfect my landing. No one really paid attention to this thing until now because the guys who had been experimenting with it weren't very good jumpers to begin with. I'm the first genuine long jumper who's tried it. I think I can go a lot farther with it, and others can do even better. What you need is a guy with 9.5 speed and good gymnastics ability."

Because of its potential, the flip is claiming more converts all the time. From the mail he has received asking for information, Ecker estimates that hundreds of jumpers are now flipping, most at the high school level. Even decathlon men have taken to it.

Whatever its ultimate fate, there is no denying that the flip is more fun to watch, and that the long jump, often one of the least-noticed events in track and field, could become one of the most popular. All that seems needed now is for a few top jumpers to adopt the technique, skill themselves in it and win, say, an Olympic gold medal. When that happens, a lot of coaches will be advising their young jumpers to go take a flying flip.

FIVE ILLUSTRATIONS

DONALD MOSS

THE FLIPPER takes off faster and at a higher angle, tucks to cut wind resistance and uses rotation to carry him farther, while the conventional jumper has to fight both air and foot drag.

question: What is the premise of this article?

answer: The premise is a discussion of the forward somersault flip and how it was being incorporated into long-jumping competitions at the time of the article.

question: What could have helped John qualify for the long-jump finals in the NCAA championships in Austin?

answer: It could be assumed that more practice could have helped John qualify.

question: Of the reservations mentioned, what seems to be the biggest reservation the IAAF has about the flip technique?

answer: There is only one reservation mentioned. It's that they believe that method is so different that it can't really be categorized as a long jump.

question: Summarize what Ecker points out about the flip in contrast to the forward motion presenting the issue of the heels hit the sand prematurely.

answer: He gives an explanation for how the flip actually enables more success in the landing due to the body being at a better higher angle, and how the hardest part of the technique is learning to land.


split: test

text:
Political and social activist and Black Panther member Afeni Shakur looks up while photographing the scene during a rally in support of the Panther 21, New York, New York, April 4, 1970. The Panther 21 were Black Panther members arrested by New York police under suspicion of planning a series of bombings, charges that were eventually dropped against all the defendents.Photo by David Fenton / Getty Images
Though most Tupac fans were introduced to Afeni Shakur Davis through the 1995 hit balladDear Mama, her fellow Black Panthers and those she advocated for in her organizing days will remember her for much more.

Davis died Monday night after deputies responded to a report of possible cardiac arrest at her Sausalito, California, home.

Jamal Joseph, Cleo Silvers and Dhoruba Bin-Wahad are three Panthers who were greatly impacted by Davis’ life and leadership. They reflected on her time in New York City as a paralegal and her work with the Black Panther Party, which she joined as a teen in 1968.

RELATED: AFENI SHAKUR DAVIS, ACTIVIST AND MOTHER OF TUPAC, DIES AT 69

Joseph met Davis the first day he joined the Panthers at age 15. He came for a gun, but was instead given books and a mentor in Afeni Shakur.

“Afeni would teach people how to lead themselves. She would not just help people, then leave,” shared Joseph, also the author of Tupac Shakur Legacy and Panther Baby. “She made sure you knew how to get out of your own circumstances and your march toward liberation, being able to transform personally and in the community.”

Afeni Shakur Davis, Jamal Joseph.Marilyn Kroplick / Shakur Estate
During the 80s, Davis turned to drugs in her struggle with the post-traumatic stress of government oppression on the Black Panther Party. After seeing many leaders and fellow organizers die, friends say it became the way she coped.

Joseph worked with Davis for several years, some of them while she was on drugs. “She was still more dynamic and focused and powerful than some people were while sober,” recalled Joseph, who also acknowledged that by the time Dear Mama debuted, she was an active part of Tupac's life and was a close advisor to him.

RELATED: A CONVERSATION WITH 'BLACK PANTHERS' DIRECTOR STANLEY NELSON

Joseph was the youngest of the Panther 21 trial in 1971. Davis, Joseph and 19 Panthers were accused of conspiring to bomb department stores and police stations in New York City. Davis told the other Panthers she would represent herself after reading “History Will Absolve me” by Fidel Castro and noted that if they lost the case, she would be the one serving, not the lawyers.

As a pregnant, single mom, she made her arguments and interviewed several witnesses while facing a 300-year sentence. The bail was set at $100K for each Panther. Davis became the first to be released, followed by Joseph, because the party knew they could go around and speak on the others’ behalf, which they did and helped raise funds to help the other prisoners come home. In the end, the case was acquitted.

Political and social activist and Black Panther member Dhoruba Bin Wahad (center) speaks at a rally in support of the Panther 21, New York, New York, April 4, 1970. The Panther 21 were Black Panther members arrested by New York police under suspicion of planning a series of bombings, charges that were eventually dropped against all the defendents. Next to Wahad are Afeni Shakur (left, in checkered pants) and Jamal Joseph (right, in sunglasses).David Fenton / Getty Images
Bin-Wahad, was also one of the defendants in the Panther 21 trial and served as the field secretary for the New York chapter of the Black Panther Party at the time. He was also indicted on charges of attempted murder and wrongfully convicted in 1973. He was then sent back to jail as a political prisoner for 19 years. Before his imprisonment, Bin-Wahad served alongside Davis and vividly remembers meeting her for the first time, “When Afeni first came up to Harlem, with her wide-smile and enthusiasm, she had a high level of intensity, but at heart she was a country girl. She stood out because of her closely cropped hairstyle, a ‘radical rebellion’ for black women at the time.”

After the repressionof the party from the government increased, Bin-Wahad says that Davis’ attitude started to change and she gained even more grit. “She was the type of person that worked hard, would stay up all night to get leaflets done, though she also had a sense of humor. She was a good person to have in ‘the fight’ with you,” Bin Wahad explained.

She was a good person to have in ‘the fight’ with you,” Bin Wahad explained.

A large part of her fight and legacy was in letting people know how they could use their constitutional rights. Davis helped organizers to create the first version of the Patients’ Bill of Rights that can now be found in hospitals across the country.

Cleo Silvers was with Davis as she used to meet with patients, Panthers and community supporters at Lincoln Hospital to advocate for patients rights. On the first day Silvers went to Harlem to join the movement, she remembers Davis greeting her with a big smile. “Afeni made sure that all women were working together and showed [each other] mutual support,” said Silvers.

Silvers recalls that Davis was a very progressive mother with Tupac, always engaging his curiosity and getting him involved in the arts, which she believes led him to his outstanding talent.

After her son's death, Davis continued to support youth in arts programs through her foundation. Today, the Shakur estate released a statement that read in part, "An outspoken and eloquent advocate for Today's youth, Afeni founded the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation to instill a sense of freedom of expression and education through the arts." Her legacy will not be forgotten.

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[]Mia Hall

Assistant Producer, NBC BLK, Speaker, Career Strategist

question: What does the article say about the Panther 21 trial in 1971?

answer: Davis, Joseph, and 19 Panthers were accused of conspiring to bomb department stores and police stations in New York City. Davis did not want a lawyer, she represent herself. Charges were eventually dropped against all the defendants.

question: What does the article say about Afeni Shakur's relationship with Tupac?

answer: Afeni Shakur is Tupac's mother. Tupac's song Daer mama is about her. Afeni was an active part of Tupac's life and was a close advisor to him. She was a very progressive mother with Tupac, always engaging his curiosity and getting him involved in the arts. After Tupac's death, Afeni founded the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation to instill a sense of freedom of expression and education through the arts.

question: What does the article say about the cause of Tupac's death?


text:
	It was Jimmy's sixth birthday. He was still a young boy which meant he was free from the dreams and hopes of getting a handjob in a movie theater with his erection through the popcorn bucket and his date who had a cold sore using the butter as lubricant or getting high for the first time with people who worshipped John Lennon, Jerry Garcia and every other counter-culture musician who weren't all that great but nostalgia and drugs skyrocketed them into status of true Gods.

	Jimmy's mom had her camera and was video taping the entire thing, probably so she could one day watch this tape, crying with a martini in her hand as her son was out on his first date getting a buttery handjob in a movie theater.

	"Smile for the camera Jimmy!!" his mother cried out with enthusiasm.

	Jimmy flashed his teeth at the camera as everybody felt a warm glow light up in their souls. All of the adults instantly fell in love with Jimmy. Just as things were kicking off, the patio screen door was shoved over and made a loud crashing noise and everybody looked over to see Jimmy's grandpa exiting the kitchen and entering the backyard area. He had a  disgusted look across his face and a whiskey on the rocks in his hand. Jimmy's grandfather looked like the real life image of Paulie from the Rocky films.

	"The fucking chinks must've made that door, probably with my luck it was one of those retard chasing butterflies" Jimmy's grandpa slurred.

	Jimmy's grandpa sat down with the rest of the family and watched as Jimmy was about to blow out the candles on his birthday cake. He was settling down but then he noticed something that drove him absolutely apeshit.

	"What in the fuck?" Jimmy's grandpa blurted out looking at Jimmy's shirt. "Hollister lifeguard? You never worked as a lifeguard, you little lying piece of shit."

	 "It's just a shirt Grandpa" Jimmy said feeling a little uneasy.

	"No no no, only lifeguards can wear that shirt. You take that shirt off or so help me god we're having a backyard wrestling match." Jimmy's grandpa said while pointing over to the homemade ring and trash cans full of weapons. The ring had been there back when Jimmy's grandpa got obsessed with backyard wrestling and ran his own promotion for senior citizens who were into hardcore wrestling.The backyard wrestling shows usually drew large crowds since it was almost always a guarantee that if someone over eighty was choke slammed through a table that they would be having a heart attack or seizure. Jimmy's grandpa ended the promotion when he no longer got excited to see his war buddies and their wives smash out their dentures with frying pans.

	"But grandpa this is my favorite shirt" said Jimmy, feeling slightly worried.

	"TAKE OFF THE SHIRT OR I'M KICKING YOUR ASS" yelled Jimmy's grandpa as he pounded the table. The rest of the family sat around not knowing what to do.

	"But Grandpa, how am I supposed to be afraid of you when you're old, gray and probably going to die soon because you put too much effort into your next bowel movement.?" Jimmy said. The rest of his family let out a single, long OOOOOOOO like they were the audience at a Jerry Springer show.

	"Alright you little shit, that's it" and just like that Jimmy's grandpa reached over and picked Billy up suplexing him onto the grass. All the adults screamed as Jimmy's grandpa picked him up and walked him to the ring and threw him in.

	"SON GET YOUR REFEREE SHIRT." Jimmy's grandpa yelled out. Jimmy's dad shook his head at the insanity of all this and rushed in the house and came back with the black and white striped shirt on.

	"Alright Dad but please watch the forehead, I don't want my son looking like New Jack before he hits puberty."

	"His forehead is going to resemble your mother's pussy the day Viagra was sold for the first time when I'm done god dammit."

	Jimmy's father threw up and flipped off Jimmy's grandma. The image was more revolting than anything shown in Faces of Death.

	The match began and Jimmy's grandpa was in control for the first half. He began to wear Jimmy down with some quick forearms to the chest, taking the wind right out of Jimmy's lungs. Jimmy's grandpa feeling how easy the match was going towards his favor turned to the audience in the backyard and held his hands up in the air.The audience booed him and he pulled down his pants flashing his dick at them. Then he felt a sharp sting hit his shriveled privates and as Jimmy's grandpa looked down he saw a Singapore cane between his legs. He quickly turned around and saw Jimmy holding the cane.

	"YOU DIRTY MOTHER FUCKER" Jimmy's grandpa said as he felt his balls swell up.

	"Survive if I let you" replied Jimmy.

	Jimmy then grabbed the advantage as he bashed his grandpa in the face with the Singapore cane and Jimmy's grandpa fell down and held his arms up in defense as the Singapore cane left multiple welts all over his body. Jimmy got in one final crack on the top of his grandfather's head and held up the Singapore cane defiant towards the audience. They yelled and clapped their hands in celebration

	"SANDMAN, SANDMAN!!" yelled the crowd.

	Jimmy answered to this by slowly smoking a cigarette, chugging a beer and finally smashing the can over his forehead until blood poured down his forehead and into his eyes.

	 Because of Jimmy's showboating, Jimmy's grandpa was able to get up and got in a few shots on Jimmy's forehead above his eyebrow, opening him up like a blood orange. Jimmy looked like a six year old crazy tribesman from a third world country's tribe as he took the shots and then delivered them right back. Jimmy and his grandfather at the same time went for drop kicks twice and then both stood up afterwards holding their fists up looking at each other as the crowd cheered and clapped.

	Jimmy threw his grandpa into the ropes and gave him a forearm over the Adam's apple. He then put his grandfather's body into the ropes and put him into the tarantula submission. Because this was a hardcore match, Jimmy's grandpa wasn't saved by a five count and had to tap out to the unbearable pain. The audience cheered as Jimmy left the ropes and Jimmy's dad held his son's arm up in victory.

	Jimmy's grandpa being the sore loser he was came up behind Jimmy and began to hit him in the back of the forehead with a metal chair.

	"NOBODY PUTS THE TARANTULA SUBMISSION ON THE MOST HARDCORE GRANDPA AND MAKES HIM TAKE LIKE A LITTLE BITCH!!" Jimmy's grandpa yelled.

	Jimmy running on adrenaline and a lot of anger soon got up from the chair shot in a similar fashion to the way Ultimate Warrior doing a no sell and ripped the chair from his grandfather's hands and returned the shot which knocked out his grandfather. Jimmy then dragged his grandfather over to the patio door and wrapped his arms around his waist. His grandpa struggled a little bit attempting to break out of the hold, but Jimmy swung his forearms to the back of his grandfather's spine that weakened him. Jimmy wasting no time went for a German suplex tossing his grandfather into the patio window.

	The crowd made a groan as the sound of his grandfather's head smacking against the window echoed and his dazed body fell to the ground like a rag doll. It took two belly to belly suplexes before Billy was able to send his grandpa through one of the patio doors. Multiple shards of glass penetrated his grandfather's body as he screamed out in pain.

	Billy once more picked up his grandfather's body and belly to belly suplexed his grandfather into the other patio door. The outside crowd began a holy shit chant as they yet again watched his body bounce against the glass and slide down into a sad pile of flesh against the door. Billy not one to quit picked up his grandfather's body and went for it again, this time succeeding as his grandfather's body left the kitchen and went back into the backyard along with multiple shards of glass. Billy saw the pile of glass and became inspired as he picked up his grandfather and gave him a DDT directly on a large pile of glass. The crowd began to chant "ECW" as they saw the shards of glass sticking out of Jimmy's grandfather's nose, eyelids and ears. He resembled some troubled goth teen attempting to be inventive after being moved by a Nine Inch Nails album.

	 Jimmy dragged his grandfather over to the table and poured the glass of whiskey over the table and motioned for everybody to step back. He then stepped back with a birthday candle and threw it down on the table and watched as it went up in flames. Jimmy waved his father over for help with the grand finale. Jimmy's father picked up his father going for the flapjack while Jimmy went for a cutter which when combined created what the Dudley Boyz named the Dudley Death Drop or 3D.  The crowd began to chant holy shit and ECW as Jimmy's grandpa's body went through the table and caught on fire. Almost immediately Jimmy's grandpa began to run around on fire like a stuntman who fucked up. After he gave up fighting the fire and fell over, Jimmy went over and pinned his skeleton for a three count, and was crowned the youngest hardcore champion in backyard wrestling history.

	Jimmy and his family celebrated at Dairy Queen. Jimmy's mother had been recording the whole thing and uploaded it on YouTube. Almost immediately his parents got a phone call from the Insane Clown Posse wanting Jimmy to wrestle in their Juggalo Championship Wrestling promotion. Jimmy agreed to wrestle with JCW and his parents yelped in happiness, Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope told them they would send over a bottle of their finest stuff immediately.

	As Jimmy sipped from the bottle of complimentary cotton candy Faygo soda,  he knew wrestling with JCW would be something fun to do until he was old enough to be a lifeguard.

title: [HM] Jimmy vs Grandpa: Falls Count Anywhere

question: Why does Jimmy's grandfather challenge Jimmy to a fight?

answer: Grandpa didn't like Jimmy's shirt because it had Hollister lifeguard on the front and Jimmy wasn't a lifeguard. It was Jimmy's favorite shirt so he declined to remove it. Grandpa got mad and demanded that they wrestle.

question: Describe grandpa

answer: Grampa is not a very nice man. He drinks in the middle of the day. He has doesn't like people of other races and is prone to making racist comments. He apparently has a hell of a temper as demonstrated by the fact that Jimmy's shirt drove him apeshit. Jimmy's grandpa got obsessed with backyard wrestling and ran his own promotion for senior citizens who were into hardcore wrestling.


text:
Death.

It was all around me. Down the corridors in the rooms. The smell lingered like a black, hazy cloud above my head. The corridors were sickly white from the lights watching above, hurting my eyes as if somehow malicious and malevolent. Cautiously, I walked down the corridor; the sound of my heels clicking against the floor, echoing in my mind like the beats of people’s hearts around me.

I leap. At least a foot or two in my mind, though it may have just been two inches. My heart skips, delaying my breath, and when it does come, it is in gasps and pants.

A bloodcurdling scream had just emanated from one of the many cold, clinical walls, echoing down the corridor. I sigh, “Just another day at the offices I suppose”.

I’m a nurse at the local hospital in the intensive care unit. Just an average person, there’s nothing different about me. At least, this is what I lead people to believe. I have a secret to hide, that nobody knows.

The hospital is the safest place for me to hide.

Nobody ever thinks it’s me. I mean, I’m a doctor - why would you suspect someone like me? You see, if I told you my secret right now, you would go cold. Your blood would freeze. You’d try your best to escape the crazy person that just told you this horrible, crazy thing. That’s what happened to last person I told.

My own mother, terrified, started screaming and shouting at me, telling me I’m a monster and that she never wants to see me again. Reluctantly I left, feeling rejected and downtrodden. I’m no stranger to rejection; I’ve always been cast out of groups, always been ignored.

That is, until I met him.

As I continued my journey down the corridor, I heard another scream; the same freezing sensation goes running down my spine exactly like before, reaching into my heart, replacing my blood with ice, pulling my air out of my body. I sigh, and after pausing for a precious moment, press onwards with my duty.

I walked into the rooms around me, checking on the patients - but I have a specific patient on my mind. Calmly, I stroll out of the penultimate room, down to the last room at the end of the corridor. Drawn to it I quicken my pace, desperation setting in like the jaws of a vice, holding me in its grip. Something about it tempts me, there is something just so unusually tantalizing about it.

I am the moth, and this is my flame.

Carefully, I placed my hand upon the doorknob and paused for a moment, reflecting briefly on the events that had led to this moment. I smile to myself. “Time to go,” I whisper, and turn the doorknob, slowly and deliberately, quiet as a cat would tread down this hall. I push slightly on the door. It obeys, and opens without a sound, revealing its secrets.

There he lay, helpless, the pain creeping up on his face, contorting his usual handsome features into something completely different. He now was a catalyst of pain and anguish. His cheery demeanor had been replaced with a forlorn, defeated expression that I could feel myself mimicking from just looking at him.

It killed me to see him that way - something I’d never felt for anyone before it had all happened. The pale skin on his chest gently rose with his every breath. His bed ridden hair spread messily over his pillow like waves of some brown ocean, once luxurious now resembled rotten straw. Those mesmerizing ocean blue eyes that always kept me hypnotised in my place now repelled me, even though they weren’t open. Under his paper white skin, I could see his blood pumping faintly through his veins. I breathe in, taking in his scent. The smell intoxicates my mind, making my head spin around and around, my world suddenly becoming very cloudy. My every thought spiraling out of control, but all centering on him. His scent. His blood.

Snapping out of my trance, I then realised how close I was to his neck. I pull back, ashamedly and race out of the room, making sure to leave no trace of my foul presence.

This turn of events had been recurring without relent for weeks now, ever since he was first admitted into this place. Ever since the start, something about him had hypnotised my every sense. Try as I may to avoid his room - even the very corridor it was situated in - it still seemed to end in the same horrible fashion. My face only inches from his neck.

This story isn’t unique though - this same tragic turn of events has happened to me once before, a long time ago. I used to work night shifts at another hospital before this one; and just like this very moment I was checking on patients to see if everything was ok.

There was one patient who stood out to me in a big way. His name was Gustav Wood. He was vastly different to all the others, and just like the current object of my desires, some unidentifiable thing about him stood out. Maybe it was his velvety smooth skin, how magically pale it was or the way his voice sounded, like a glass full of warm, creamy chocolate. I didn’t know what it was, but something about him intrigued me, and I had to find out what it was even if it killed me.

Gustav and I bonded quickly and graciously over the months of his stay at the hospital. We talked enthusiastically whenever I was treating him and checking in on him, and I found out a lot of things about him. He was a solider and got injured badly in the war. I nursed him from almost certain death - when he first came in I honestly thought he wasn’t going to make it and he was all I could think about throughout all my waking (and sleeping) hours.

One miserable night, when the rain was pouring angrily down, with the fog hanging thickly in the night sky, I went to check on Gustav. I walked into his room, quietly, so as not to wake him if he indeed was asleep. He turned around as briskly as I had entered and looked at me, but something about him seemed to be different. Something seemed wrong. I ignored that thought in the back of my head, continuing to get closer to him.

Gingerly, I stood beside his bed. Gustav gazed up at me with that strange look in his eyes, the same one I have been seeing for a few nights now. This look made me feel uneasy. This look was wrong. But before I could speak to him, or even open my mouth to try to speak, I noticed his eyes had taken an unusual form, and a devilish grin was forming on his lips.

It all just happened so fast. He grabbed me at the back of my head fiercely, and threw it back with enormous strength - strength I would never have expected from a recovering war casualty. My eyes opened wide, my mouth wider, and as I was just about to scream, he sank his teeth deep into my neck. My festering scream then released itself from my lungs, as he drained the life from my body. And as suddenly as he had started, he stopped, dropping my limp body on the bed and vanishing through the window into the darkness of the night.

I laid there, withering in pain on the blood splattered sheets, the pain unreal like my body was being incinerated by the forces of Hell itself. Finally, the pain subsided and I woke up. A week had passed, and I was laid in the same place I was viciously attacked by Gustav. And I couldn’t place it, but something was very different about me. Something had changed in me; whether Gustav had provoked this change or it had happened itself I didn’t know. But I know now.

Tonight wasn’t any different to the other nights earlier in the week. I was doing the night shift again, checking in on each patient meticulously like every other night at the hospital. Once again, I had arrived at the end of the corridor. I had arrived near him. Cautiously, I opened the door, careful not to make a sound, then swiftly, gracefully entered - shutting it behind me. Then silently, coolly, walked towards him.

He was sound asleep. “Not for long,” I think, “Tonight’s the nights when my plan comes into action.” Cunningly, I put my face near his neck, his blood tantalisingly pulsating under his skin. Out of nowhere there was a noise outside the room. I stopped dead in my tracks and listen.

Silence.

Slowly, I opened my mouth, moved carefully over to his neck and sank my teeth in deep. He woke up immediately of course - much to my dismay - and screamed out in pain. I quickly clamp my hand over his mouth to muffle his irritating screams. The taste of blood in the back of my mouth was amazing, like nothing I had ever tasted before.

I don’t know how long I was there, but eventually I stopped, dropping his limp body to the bed. I gazed down to my blood splattered shirt, to his lifeless, limp body and smile to myself.

“Wow,” I sigh to myself, reveling in delight when all of a sudden a loud bang sounds outside; I get up from the bed immediately and jump through the window into the darkness, taking with me my conflicting feelings of ecstasy, guilt, but most of all – satiety.

title: My Shameful Affliction.

question: What does the story say about the narrator's affliction?

answer: The narrator keeps their affliction a secret. Their secret is something that would frighten people and drive them to want to escape. Even the narrator's own mother is terrified of them. Because of their affliction, they are drawn to a specific patient. The patient's smell, specifically the smell of his blood, intoxicates them. They acquired their affliction when they were bitten in the neck by Gustav Wood. Their affliction, which is implied to be vampirism, drives them to drink the blood of their patient.

question: What does the story say about a cure for vampirism?


text:
MARIAN MIKOŁAJ ŁĄCZ (5 December 1921 - 2 August 1984) was a former Polish international footballer who played as a forward, and later a theater and film actor.

Football

Born in Rzeszów,[1] Łącz started his footballing career with his local team Resovia Rzeszów.[2][3] The outbreak of World War 2 put his footballing career on hold until 1944, when he started playing for Sokół Rzeszów with his brother, Tadeusz.[4] In 1946 he moved to Gdańsk to play for Lechia Gdańsk. He made his Lechia debut on 9 September 1945 against WKS 16 Dyw. Gdańsk in a 9-1 win.[5] While being Łącz's first game for the club, it was also the club's first ever competitive game.[6] He spent 6 months with Lechia, during which time he made 10 appearances and scored 25 goals, scoring six hat-trick in his 10 games and finishing as the club's top scorer for the season.[7] After his time with Lechia he joined ŁKS Łódź. He had a successful time with ŁKS putting in good performances which got him the attention of the Polish media at the time.[8] He helped ŁKS Łódź achieve promotion to the top division in 1948, playing in the I liga for ŁKS in 1949. During his time at ŁKS he proved himself to be a valuable forward finishing as the top scorer in 1948 with 17 goals and 1949 with 18 goals. In 1950 Łącz moved to Warsaw to join Polonia Warsaw, a decision partly made due to Warsaw having the Aleksander Zelwerowicz National Academy.[9] While with Polonia he again showed his goal-scoring prowess, finishing as the club's top scorer in 1951 and 1952. In 1952 Polonia were both relegated from the I liga and won the Polish Cup, beating rivals Legia Warsaw in the final 1-0.[10] It is documented that at times while playing for Polonia he was substituted before half-time so he was able to meet his acting commitments at the theater.[11] He continued to play for Polonia in the II liga until he retired to focus on his acting career in 1956.[12]

Łącz made three international appearances for Poland, making his debut on 8 May 1949 against Romania. The other two games came in 1950, against Hungary and Czechoslovakia, with all three of his international caps coming in defeats for Poland.

Acting

He started acting in 1945, performing in the Rzeszów theater. He moved to Łódź and studied at the National Film School in Łódź, eventually moving to Warsaw to perform and study at the Aleksander Zelwerowicz National Academy.[13] After retiring from football his acting roles became more prevalent. He mainly retired from acting in 1981, bit held small roles until his death in 1984.

Personal life

His father was an officer in the army and his mother worked in theater. He had a brother, Tadeusz, who was a footballer, and had two sisters. His daughter, Laura Łącz, is an actress.[14]

Honours

POLONIA WARSAW

-   POLISH CUP: 1952

Filmography

A list of TV shows and films Łącz has had a role in.[15]

+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| Year            | English Title   | Role            | Notes           |
+=================+=================+=================+=================+
| 1949            | Black Glazing   | WOP patrol      | Film            |
|                 |                 | commander       |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1955            | Podhale in Fire | Wawrzek         | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1956            | Revenge         | servant of      | Film            |
|                 |                 | Rejent          |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1956            | Shadow          | Stefan          | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1958            | Eighth Day of   | Bandit          | Film            |
|                 | the Week        |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1958            | Fatal Mistake   | Jean            | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1958            | What Rekna Zena | Florczak        | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1959            | Thousand Talars | tsarist         | Film            |
|                 |                 | gendarme &      |                 |
|                 |                 | paramedic in    |                 |
|                 |                 | helicopter      |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1959            | Volatile        | Corporal        | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1960            | Return          | drunk man       | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1960            | Colourful       | gymnastics      | Film            |
|                 | Stockings       | teacher         |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1961            | Difficult       | instructor      | Film (short)    |
|                 | Marriage        | officer         |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1961            | Against Gods    | driver of Karol | Film            |
|                 |                 | Doroń           |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1962            | The Two Who     | peasant         | Film            |
|                 | Stole the Moon  |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1962            | My Old          | PE teacher      | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1962            | Gangsters and   | police officer  | Film            |
|                 | Philanthropists | &               |                 |
|                 |                 | professor       |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1963            | Too Bad         | Łukasz          | TV              |
|                 | Moustache       |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1963            | Youngster       | police officer  | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1963            | Bathed in Fire  | Platoon Tomala  | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1963            | “Yokmok”        | partner of the  | Film            |
|                 |                 | metastasis      |                 |
|                 |                 | organizer       |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1964            | Meeting with a  | PKS driver &    | Film            |
|                 | Spy             | Zygmunt         |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1964            | Conscience      | driver          | Film            |
|                 | Acccount        |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1964            | Please Enter,   | Oleś            | TV              |
|                 | the Door is     |                 |                 |
|                 | Open            |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1964            | Candide         | soldier         | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1964            | Combat Colours  | “Whip”          | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1965            | Three Steps on  | ambulance drive | Film            |
|                 | Earth           |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1965            | Jihad           | Zakrzewski      | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1965            | Sixth of July   | sentry          | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1965            | A Stake Larger  | Wacek           | TV              |
|                 | than Life       |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1965            | Underground     | casino          | TV              |
|                 | Front           | bartender       |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1965            | Last Day, First | driver          | TV              |
|                 | Day             |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1966            | Civil War       | singing         | TV              |
|                 |                 | policeman       |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1966            | Christmas       | veteran         | Film            |
|                 | Evening         |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1966            | We Love Mirrors | driver          | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1966            | Boxer           | celebrating man | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1967            | Death to Pears  | soldier         | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1967            | A Stake Larger  | undercover      | TV              |
|                 | than Life       | guard           |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1967            | Paris to Warsaw | Lieutenant      | Film            |
|                 | without a Visa  | Henryk Lipiński |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1967            | A Month in the  | Matwia          | TV              |
|                 | Countryside     |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1967            | When Love was a | prisoner        | Film            |
|                 | Crime           |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1968            | Evening Outside | salesman        | TV              |
|                 | the Home        |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1968            | Berlin          | Platoon Walasek | Film            |
|                 | Direction       |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1968            | Dancing at      | tourist at      | Film            |
|                 | Hitlers         | hotel           |                 |
|                 | Accommodation   |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1969            | Last Days       | Platoon Walasek | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1969            | Kollokacja      | butler          | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1970            | Holiday with    | policeman       | TV              |
|                 | Spirits         |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1970            | Adventure of a  | officer         | TV              |
|                 | Dog, Civil      | conducting dog  |                 |
|                 |                 | training        |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1970            | Brutus Action   | porter in the   | Film            |
|                 |                 | hotel           |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1971            | Kill Black      | sharp           | Film            |
|                 | Sheep           |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1971            | Across Country  | man in action   | TV film         |
|                 |                 | for             |                 |
|                 |                 | firefighters    |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1971            | Problem Guest   | trunk driver    | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1971            | Black Notes     | sergeant        | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1972            | I Want to get   | Orski           | TV              |
|                 | Married         |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1973            | Your King       | mechanic        | TV film         |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1973            | Marian Caps     | Malvolio        | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1973            | Janosik         | robber Słowak   | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1974            | Victory         | Platoon Walasek | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1974            | The Most        | Jan Chwalko     | TV film         |
|                 | Important Day   |                 |                 |
|                 | of Life         |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1974            | Janosik         | robber Słowak   | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1975            | Lighter         | Head            | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1975            | A Great Man for | butler          | TV              |
|                 | Small Interests |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1975            | Kazimierz the   | Stanisław       | Film            |
|                 | Great           |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1975            | Horsztyński     | courtier        | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1976            | Polish Roads    | Ułan Iwaniuk    | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1976            | Brunet in the   | Andrzej         | Film            |
|                 | Evening         |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1977            | Doll            | soldier         | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1977            | Love or Quit    | Jan Pawlak      | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1977            | Girl and Boy    | gamekeeper      | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1978            | What Will You   | worker at the   | Film            |
|                 | do to Me if you | station         |                 |
|                 | Catch Me        |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1978            | Green Love      | worker          | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1978            | Footprint on    | laborer         | TV              |
|                 | Earth           |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1980            | Home            | Mr. Misiek      | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1980            | The Sinful Life | Ficek           | Film            |
|                 | of Franciszek   |                 |                 |
|                 | Buła            |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1981            | Bear            | collector       | Film            |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1981            | White Tango     | Teresa's father | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1982            | Calcine         | Krzemień        | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1983            | Alternatives 4  | Władysław       | TV              |
|                 |                 | Matraczak       |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| 1984            | Pan in Żuławy   | peasant         | TV              |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+

A list of TV shows and films in which Łącz was part of the cast, but not as an acting role.[16]

  Year   English Title                     Notes
  ------ --------------------------------- -------
  1957   Guests at Dusk                    Film
  1960   Fear has Big Eyes                 TV
  1962   Broken Bridge                     Film
  1962   Uncle Wania                       TV
  1963   Closed Town                       TV
  1965   Escape and Return                 TV
  1965   Captain from Köpenick             TV
  1966   Hard Knock                        TV
  1966   Wild Palm                         TV
  1967   Romeo with Samara                 TV
  1967   Four Friends from Silent Street   TV
  1969   Volunteer                         TV
  1973   Great Ballouse Love               TV
  1975   Feel Combined                     Film
  1977   Return of Members                 TV
  1977   Holiday Makers                    TV
  1984   Love from the Hits                Film

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

title: Marian Łącz

question: Where was Marian Łącz born?

answer: Rzeszów

question: Name three teams Marian Łącz played for.

answer: Resovia Rzeszów, Sokół Rzeszów, and Lechia Gdańsk

question: Summarize Marian Łącz's personal life.

answer: His father served in the army and his mother worked in theater. He had three siblings: a brother (Tadeusz) and two sisters. His daughter, Laura Łącz, is an actress.

question: List three films Marian Łącz appeared in during the 1960s.

answer: Against Gods, The Two Who, Jihad

question: What was Marian Łącz's final film role?

answer: Bear (1981)

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: Marian Łącz was a Polish international footballer. He later became a film, telivision, and theater actor.


text:
Heyoo everyone. This is a story I wrote for my intro to creative writing class. I'm thinking about double majoring of maybe minoring in the subject. If you could let me know what you think of the story that'd be very nice of you. Thanks.
p.s.--brutal honesty is encouraged

Baby Ray
Raymond was my little brother. We called him Baby Ray until he was old enough to tell us to shut up, and after that we just called him Ray. The same year Ray was born my parents got us a dog. A huge Bernese mountain dog named Theodore.

Theodore was the coolest dog ever. He grew to mammoth proportions, but when he was a puppy people used to think he was a stuffed animal. Without a doubt, that dog was the motherfuckin’ bee’s-knees. He was the smartest dog I ever met. I know everyone thinks that their dog is the best, but Theodore really was. Ray used to ride atop him like he was a horse, pulling his ears like they were reigns and screaming with laughter. I swear he understood English perfectly. We would ask him, “Where’s Mom?” and he’d lead us right to her. It even seemed like he understood the jokes we made, howling along with my brother and I as we laughed at whatever stupid joke the other had made.

Walking Theodore was considered to be a “chore”, but my brother and I both enjoyed the activity. We’d switch off days of the week for who got to walk him. It was my favorite part of the day. Just me and Theodore, walking down the street. Straight chillin’. When Ray and I got older we would roll up little joints and walk Theodore to the woods. Once we were there, we’d smoke and take him off the leash. While we lazily strolled around the woods, Theodore would run ahead. He never went far though, always waiting for us and staying within eyesight. Whenever we got a bit too baked and got lost, he always could smell his way back to the car. That dog was awesome, and we loved him like he was a long, lost third brother.

I was 16 the day that Theodore died. I was playing my favorite video game, Crash Bandicoot, on PlayStation, when I heard a scream coming from the front yard. My mom was out there gardening, and I knew there was nothing in the yard that could make her scream like that. I jumped off the couch and ran outside. Theodore was lying dead in the middle of the street. Apparently a car had whipped around the corner too fast and had hit him right in front of our house. He died right away.

I was kneeling in the road next to his body before I realized that my mom was doing the same thing. Except she was kneeling next to my little brother, a pool of blood gathering around his head, Theodore’s leash still gripped in his hand.

The way I felt about Theodore was pretty similar to the way I felt about Ray. Just the way Theodore was the best dog in the world, Ray was the best little brother in the world. He was a hilarious little kid, and was oddly wise for his young age. Even though I was two years older than him, I often found myself going to him for advice. He was one of my best friends.

That all changed after the accident. Ray had suffered brain damage and entered what the doctors called a “vegetative state”. This turned out to be permanent.

Years went by. Ray made no improvements. He was a vegetable, in a coma. He responded to nothing. No blinking, no head movement—nothing at all. I couldn’t stand to see my little brother like that. The kid who had once schooled me at Super Smash Bro’s, who I had taught to shoot a basketball, was now breathing only with the help of machines. He would never walk again, or laugh, or do any of the cool shit we had always said we would.

One day, about 3 years after the accident, the doctors came in the room to discuss something with my mom. This was weird, and signified to us that something important was afoot. My brother had a whole slew of doctors that attended to him, but never had they all been together in the room at the same time. My mother and I were sitting next to my brother’s bed when they walked in, reading the newspaper to him. My mom believed that he could hear what was going on around him, and that he especially enjoyed the paper. When he woke up, she reasoned, he would want to be up on current events.

“Excuse us,” the most senior looking doctor said. “Could we have a moment?” The doctors asked me to leave the room so they could speak to my mother, and obviously, I refused. If there was something they had to say about Ray, then they could damn well say it in front of me. My mom agreed. “He can stay,” she told them, although they clearly weren’t happy about it, judging from the looks they shot each other. They kept it short and sweet. “Ray’s been with us for three years now, and he hasn’t shown any sign of improvement. He is in a permanent vegetative state, and will be that way for the rest of his life. You may want to consider taking him off life support.”

 My mom took this a lot better than I thought she would. It was because she fully held onto hope that my brother would one day wake up totally fine, as if he were simply waking up from a really long nap. Every morning she started her day thinking, knowing, that that would be the day my brother was sitting up in his bed waiting for her when she walked into his room.

Every morning, my mom woke up at 6am and got ready for the day, which consisted of sitting at the hospital. Every single day, she sat in that uncomfortable plastic chair next to Ray’s bed. Reading, talking, and praying for her empty shell of a son. Her life had turned into a constant observance of my brother’s horrible state. She was trapped in her refusal to accept the truth—that her baby Ray was gone. I had come to terms with the fact that my brother was basically dead, and I knew he would have accepted and agreed with that fact. I knew he would have hated what his “life” had become, and would not want to exist in such a way. I was able to move on with my life because of this. My mom couldn’t.

That’s why I decided to pull the plug.

title: Read==>Feedback==>Thanks.

question: Why does the narrator decide to end Ray's life?

answer: Ray was in a vegetative state after the accident. He had not shown signs of improvement in three years. The doctors suggest taking him off life support. The narrator's mother is too committed to her son, and spends all her time next to him, and cannot let go. The narrator is able to move on in a way she cannot, and so decides to make the decision as his mother cannot.

question: What events lead to Ray's accident?

answer: Walking the dog Theodore was a regular task for the boys. One day, Ray was walking Theodore in the street when they were both hit by a car. The dog was killed instantly.


text:
“Daisy….”a soft voice whispered in the dim light.

Daisy looked around, startled.

“Whoever you are, go away.” Daisy said trying to place the voice. It was so familiar….

“Not a chance. You’re stuck with me now and you won’t be able to ignore me anymore” he hissed.

“I h-haven’t been ignoring you. I’m just very….”

“LIAR! You know you can’t lie to me, Daisy.”

Daisy burst into tears.

“Oh shut up. You can be such a baby sometimes.”

“W-what are you going to do to me?” Daisy asked while trying to control her sobs.

“I’m not going to DO anything to you. I just want to help you fill in the gaps.”

“What gaps?”

“The ones in your memory. For example, can you remember what you had for breakfast yesterday?”

“Of course! I had…. Uh…”

He chuckled.

“Daisy, Daisy, Daisy. You had oatmeal with sliced bananas on top.”

“I knew that! Shut up!”

“Do you remember Louis?”

“You mean my husband of four years? Yeah, like I could ever forget him.”

“Then you must remember what you did to him, right?”

Daisy could hear the smirk in his voice, and scrunched her face trying to sift through her memories. She couldn’t stand this bastard knowing more than her.

“I… I haven’t done anything to him.”

“Oh really? Absolutely nothing? Hah! Clearly you need me more than you know. You can’t remember anything.”

This time he laughed out loud, not even bothering to hide his contempt.

“There’s nothing to remember. You’re just fucking with me. Shut up!”

Daisy turned away, resolved to end this conversation.

“Let’s play a little game. I’m going to describe an event, and you’re going to try to remember it.”

Daisy stayed resolutely silent.

“Do you remember yesterday morning? It was a pretty uneventful day. Louis had breakfast with you and then left for work. Do you remember that, Daisy?”

Daisy nodded slightly, still trying not to engage.

“Do you remember how you burnt his toast?”

“I’m always doing things like that. Louis didn’t mind though.”

“And the bruise on your arm?”

“This little thing?” Daisy poked at it. “I was cleaning up and I dropped a dish. I must’ve hit my arm while picking it back up.”

Even Daisy could hear the uncertainty in her voice.

“Louis was so worried about it, too. He gave me an ice pack, and told me he loved and that he was sorry. I’m so lucky to have a man like him in my life.”

Silence. Daisy ran her answer through her head over and over, trying to see if there were any gaps or mistakes.

“And the stitches two months ago?”

“Another case of my notorious clumsiness. Louis was having some fun, and threw a glass at me…. I mean to me. I didn’t catch it and somehow managed to break it on top of that. I sliced open my hand on one of the pieces.  I needed twelve stitches.”

Daisy started laughing at herself.

“Louis was so nice after that! He visited me at the hospital every day, and gave me the most beautiful flowers. He kept saying over and over that he loved me and that he was sorry. He was always so sorry for my clumsiness…”

More silence. He studied Daisy for a bit, and in a gentler tone said, “See, this game isn’t that hard. Now let’s skip to the end of yesterday.”

“Let’s see, Louis came home from work; I fixed him dinner; he ate it; we watched TV; and then went to bed…. You’re right this game is easy.”

He let out a low, cool chuckle, any tenderness gone in a flash.

“Wrong! That’s not what happened last night. You’re omitting one crucial detail. Do you want another go? Maybe use a lifeline?”

“Uh, I can’t remember anything else…”

“And that’s what I’m here for. To help you…” his voice became more and more serpentine.

“The first part of your memory is spot on: you made him dinner, and he ate, and then watched TV. The last part, however, is a lie.”

“What do you mean?”

“Louis never made it to bed. Do you wanna know why?”

“No. You’re lying! He went to bed!”

“He never went to bed because he’s dead! You killed him!”

“No! No… I would never do that! I’m a good person. Louis loved me! Why would I murder him?”

“Bull shit! You’ve been planning this ever since you became extremely ‘clumsy’. You chose a knife because it made no sound, and you could watch the life drain from his body by your hand. You knew that slitting his throat would be both painful and silent. So you took your chef’s knife and walked into the living room. You went silently behind him and started stroking his hair. He moaned softly and you quickly drew his face up towards yours as if to kiss him. But instead of a kiss you drew the knife across his throat. He bled more than you thought he would, but it was worth it to see that look of understanding cross his face. He knew he was dying and that you had killed him!”

“NO no no no no no no…”

Daisy started rocking back and forth.

“You didn’t count on me though, did you? You planned everything so carefully, and once it was over, your mind neatly erased any memory of it. Except me. I’ll always be here, Daisy. That voice inside your head, forcing you to remember what you’ve done to me!”

And he started to laugh. Slowly at first but building into something maniacal and menacing. Daisy suddenly realized why the voice was so familiar, and broke down in tears again. She retreated to the corner, grabbed her knees, and continued to rock, mumbling no under her breath over and over.

*****

Behind the one way mirror the doctor looked at the woman in the corner of the cell and said, “Where did you find her?”
“She was wandering the streets downtown. She seemed to be talking to herself so I called the cops and just wanted to make sure she got some help. I’m glad they put her here with you. She seems safer in here.”
“She seems to have suffered some sort of mental break. She has injuries consistent with long term abuse and there was some blood on the clothes she came in with. So far she’s been unresponsive and I don’t know if we’ll ever find out who she is. Thank you for your help Mr…” the doctor glances down at the police report, “Tully.”

title: [MS] Daisy Tully

question: Why does Daisy blame herself for the injuries inflicted by her husband?

answer: She has lived a life of hiding the abuse. It is embarrassing and she has learnt to lie about it perhaps even to herself.

question: If Daisy is suffering such guilt how did she manage to premeditate the murder?

answer: It seems unlikely that the murder was planned, rather she may have lost her temper. Perhaps her guilt is convincing her that she carefully planned the murder. A knife is also an unlikely weapon for a premeditated offence.

question: Why has Daisy retained the accusing voice of her husband in her head?

answer: Because of the guilt of killing him.

question: What will happen to Daisy?

answer: It won't be long until someone finds the body and then the police will come looking for Daisy.

question: Write a ~10 sentence summary.

answer:
Daisy argues with a voice in her head. The voice is strangely familiar and claims to want to help her to remember what has happened in the recent past. The person asks about her recent injuries and about what she did to her husband, Louis.

Daisy says that the injuries she’s suffered have been caused by her own clumsiness. She says that Louis loved her. The voice tells Daisy that she killed her husband the night before by slitting his throat and letting him bleed out. She planned the murder so carefully and then erased the memory but she didn’t bank on her husband’s voice reminding her of her crime. She retreats into a corner.

The doctor watches the woman in the corner of the cell. She’d been found wandering the streets and remains unresponsive to treatment.


text:
JOY FOSTER is a Jamaican table tennis player. She set the Guinness World Record as the youngest sportsperson to represent their country in an international match when she participated in the West Indies Championship in 1958, aged eight. She is also the first and youngest recipient of the Jamaican Sportswoman of the Year Award.[1]

Biography

Foster was introduced to table tennis at 4 years old. Unable to reach the table, she would stand on a box as she played against her brothers Dave and Maurice.[2] Her father, Audley George Foster, known as “Gig” or “Mr Fos”, was her coach.

In 1958 at age 8, Foster won a place in the Guinness record book as the world's youngest person to represent their country in international competition.[3] She represented her country in the West Indies Championships. She won the women's singles championship; the mixed doubles partnering with Fuarnando Roberts, and the women's doubles partnering with Madge Bond.[4] In 1961, Foster was given the first Jamaican Sportswoman of the Year award. She remains the youngest winner at 11 years old.[5]

Foster won the Jamaican Open Women's Singles title twice before the age of 12.[6][7]

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[3]  Guardian writers|last=Taylor|first=Daniel|date=2013-08-02|work=The Guardian|access-date=2019-11-13|last2=Turner|first2=Georgina|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077|last3=Dart|first3=James|last4=Bryant|first4=Tom|last5=Moses|first5=Toby|last6=Steinberg|first6=Jacob}}

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title: Joy Foster

question: What is Joy Foster's profession?

answer: She is a professional table tennis player.

question: Summarize everything relating to Audley George Foster.

answer: Audley George Foster was Joy Foster's father and table tennis coach, also known as 'Gig' or 'Mr Fos'.

question: What world record did Foster set?

answer: The 1958 Guinness World Record for the youngest sportsperson to represent their country in an international match.

question: Which events mentioned did Foster compete in?

answer: The women's singles, the mixed doubles, and the women's doubles in the West Indies Championship; and the Jamaican Open Women's Singles.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: Joy Foster is a professional table tennis player who set the 1958 Guinness World Record for the youngest sportsperson to represent their country in an international match. She was eight years old when she represented Jamaica in three events in the West Indies Championship. She was the first recipient of the Jamaican Sportswoman of the Year Award.


text:
She is scheduled to be deported to Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, on Tuesday.

— -- An Ohio woman, a mother of four, was scheduled to be deported on Tuesday after authorities discovered her immigration status during a traffic stop last month.

Beatriz Morelos, who has lived in Painesville, Ohio, just east of Cleveland, for nearly two decades, was arrested for driving without a license last week, according to city records, which is when officials discovered that she has been living in the country illegally and turned her over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

She is scheduled to be deported on Tuesday to Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, which is in an area that the U.S. Department of State warns travelers to avoid “due to violent crime, including homicide, armed robbery, carjacking, extortion and sexual assault,” according to its website.

Morelos’ husband, Jose DeJesus, said he feels his family’s worst nightmare has come true.

“For years, this has been her worst fear, and it’s coming true,” he told ABC’s Cleveland affiliate, WEWS on Monday. “She said that she’s very afraid, that she doesn’t want to go back to a country where she’s coming from, because her life is at risk over there.”

Morelos, 33, was awaiting deportation at an ICE detention center in Tiffin, Ohio, as of Monday evening, but her attorney, Elizabeth Ford, said she is working to get the U.S. to rethink its decision.

Ford said she is trying to get ICE to grant Morelos a stay, which she admits is difficult because of the way the country’s new immigration laws are written.

“It is absolutely impossible for people in her situation and in many other people’s situations to correct their status with how the laws are written now,” Ford told WEWS on Monday. “If she was able to correct her status, she absolutely would have, just like many of the other people would.”

Ford said that Morelos does not have a criminal history and that she would be separated from her four young children, who are U.S. citizens, and her husband, who’s in the U.S. on a visa.

“I can’t imagine putting a mother, who’s in her mid-30s with four U.S. citizen children, there alone,” Ford told WEWS. “She has no family in Mexico. Her entire family is in the United States. It’s absolutely horrific to think that this is where this young woman is going.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------

[ABC News]

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question: What would become of Morelos' family if she is deported?

answer: It is not stated.

question: Given Morelos's situation, can it be said the new immigration laws are flawed?

answer: It is uncertain.

question: Why did Morelos dread going back to her country?

answer: Because her life would be at risk over there.

question: Why didn't Morelos try to correct her citizenship status before getting caught?

answer: It might be implied from the passage that it is difficult for illegal immigrants to correct their status.

question: Write a ~7 sentence summary.

answer: Beatriz Morelos, a Mexican citizen, was an illegal immigrant resident in Ohio, Cleveland, and was detained by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement. She had lived in the U.S. for nearly two decades with her family, a husband on a U.S. visa, and her four children, who are U.S. citizens. The law would have Morelos separated from her four young children and be deported to Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. Morelos was afraid to return to her country because she believed her life would be at risk there. Also, all her family members were in the U.S. While detained by the I.C.E, her attorney, Elizabeth Ford, tried to plead her case for reconsideration, given Morelos had no criminal record. She furthermore found her being separated from her family an unfair condition.


text:
Federal Reserve officials would be content to let inflation briefly run above their 2 percent target as the economy continues to recover, according to minutes from the central bank's most recent meeting.

Following the May 1-2 session, the policymaking Federal Open Market Committee said it wasn't raising rates yet but added the word "symmetric" to describe its inflation goal. Market participants since have puzzled over what the change in language might imply.

The summary released Wednesday indicates a substantial level of debate over how the Fed should approach inflation. The minutes also pointed to an interest rate hike at the June meeting amid debate over how close the Fed might be getting to the end of this rate-hiking cycle.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell speaks during a news conference March 21, 2018 in Washington, DC.

Getty Images

While the general sentiment was that inflation would continue to rise toward the 2 percent target, there was disagreement over how confident the Fed should be after years of undershooting, and what that would mean to policy. However, there seemed to be agreement that after years of subpar growth and low inflation, allowing the economy to rev up a little would be appropriate.

"A few participants commented that recent news on inflation, against a background of continued prospects for a solid pace of economic growth, supported the view that inflation on a 12-month basis would likely move slightly above the Committee's 2 percent objective for a time," the minutes said. "It was also noted that a temporary period of inflation modestly above 2 percent would be consistent with the Committee's symmetric inflation objective and could be helpful in anchoring longer-run inflation expectations at a level consistent with that objective."

'Symmetric'

"Symmetric" was mentioned at least nine times in the minutes.

The Fed's preferred inflation gauge, the core personal consumption expenditures index, currently is at 1.9 percent, while the headline rate including energy and food prices is at 2 percent. Fed officials described wage pressures as "moderate" though it noted there has been more pressure in industries where labor supply is tightening.

Fed officials see 2 percent inflation as a level that sustains economic growth without putting too much upward pressure on prices.

After seven years of keeping its benchmark interest rate near zero, the FOMC began raising rates in December 2015, with the current target range at 1.5 percent to 1.75 percent.

As the economy has seen growth above its recovery trend and inflation inches its way toward the Fed's goal, market participants have been speculating on how quickly the Fed will continue to hike and when it will stop. A few members stated that the Fed is getting close to its "neutral" goal of setting a rate that is neither constrictive nor overly expansionary to growth.

Though Fed officials indicated in March that a total of three rate hikes this year were likely, traders in the fed funds futures market in recent days briefly put chances of a fourth hike above 50 percent. That probability has since declined to about 43 percent.

The minutes indicate that central bank officials remain determined to keep increasing rates, but with the gradual approach that it has repeatedly pledged to take.

June hike?

"Most participants judged that if incoming information broadly confirmed their current economic outlook, it would likely soon be appropriate for the Committee to take another step in removing policy accommodation," the minutes said in an indication that another hike is likely soon. Markets already had been pricing in a 95 percent chance of a quarter-point move at the June FOMC session, followed by another increase in September.

The Fed's rate is tied closely to most forms of consumer debt.

Along with the approach to inflation, some Fed officials also suggested that changes will be coming to what has become boilerplate language in post-meeting statements.

Specifically, those members said that as rate hikes continue, adjustments may have to be made to phrasing that the "federal funds rate is likely to remain, for some time, below levels that are expected to prevail in the longer run" and another phrase that for years has said "the stance of monetary policy remains accommodative."

However, the minutes also noted that members "expressed a range of views" on how policy should proceed.

Positive economic outlook

On the economy, committee members said their opinions had changed little as they expect continued progress despite some signs of softening in the first quarter.

There was concern expressed over trade and fiscal issues, with Fed business contacts expressing "concern about the possible adverse effects of tariffs and trade restrictions, including the potential for postponing or pulling back on capital spending."

The outlook otherwise was positive.

"They noted a number of economic fundamentals were currently supporting continued above-trend economic growth; these included a strong labor market, federal tax and spending policies, high levels of household and business confidence, favorable financial conditions, and strong economic growth abroad," the minutes said.

As things progress, "further gradual increases" in rates would be possible without disrupting the recovery and while sustaining the "symmetric" inflation goal.

WATCH: Another Fed hike ahead if economy stays on track

question: What does the article say about economic growth?

answer: Fed is confident of general optimism regarding the economy, expecting growth above the trend in economic fundamentals. The economic recovery is in progress, and inflation hitting the 2% mark after years of under-inflation is seen to be a good rate that can sustain economic growth without too much increase in prices.

question: What does the text say about the decades-long average wage stagnation?


text:
Washington D.C. — In November 2015, the Free Thought Project reported that Mikhail Lesin, the former head of media affairs for the Russian government, and the founder of Russia Today (RT), was found dead in the hotel room that he was staying at in Washington DC.

Originally, authorities announced that Lesin died from a heart attack. However, the results of his autopsy released months later indicated a far more sinister cause of death and the heavily redacted FBI documents that were just released add to that story.

The documents, detailing the FBI investigation into Lesin’s death were just released Saturday morning in spite of the investigation ending in October of 2016.

In spite of the original cause of death noted as a heart attack, a few months later, the District of Colombia’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) and Metropolitan Police Department said that “blunt force injuries of the neck, torso, upper extremities and lower extremities” contributed to Lesin’s death. “The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) has released the cause and manner of death for Mikhail Lesin… Cause of Death: blunt force injuries of the head,” the statement said.

Now, FBI investigators have released the results of their investigation claiming that the blunt force trauma all over his body was self-inflicted.

“Mr. Lesin died as a result of blunt for injuries to his head, with contributing causes being blunt force injuries of the neck, torso, upper extremities, and lower extremities, which were induced by falls, with acute ethanol intoxication,” the report states.

In other words, the FBI is claiming that Lesin got so drunk that he repeatedly and violently fell on things until he killed himself.

To show just how much information the FBI is willing to release on these findings, here is the version of the amended autopsy report they released in the report.

[RT]

[rt]

Essentially, all other information in regards to the findings of Lesin’s death has been scrubbed from the documents as the remaining pages are almost entirely redacted.

Not only did the US remain tight-lipped on the investigation but they also refused to allow Russian authorities to cooperate.

As RT reports, back in 2016, months before the closing of the case, Moscow said it was expecting Washington to explain why Russia had not received any details from the probe into Lesin’s death, despite repeated requests.

_“We are awaiting the related clarifications from Washington and the official data on the progress of the investigation,”_ Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova wrote in a Facebook post at that time. She added that if the media reports citing the forensic statement are confirmed, Russia will send an official request to the US_ “for international legal assistance.”_

In October 2016, the US authorities announced that Lesin died of natural causes and closed the case. _“Based on the evidence, including video footage and witness interviews, Mr. Lesin entered his hotel room on the morning of Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2015, after days of excessive consumption of alcohol and sustained the injuries that resulted in his death while alone in his hotel room,”_ the US attorney for the District of Columbia said in a statement.

Lesin’s death came at a time where he was surrounded by controversy, especially in the US. RT, the Russian-based news source that Lesin founded has become very controversial in the US—ostensibly for the fake Russiagate scandal—but in reality, for challenging the western narrative of foreign policy and privacy issues. Some US politicians have suggested that RT be banned in the US for “spreading propaganda,” while others have been blatant enough to attack Lesin personally.

According to the NY Times, until late 2014 Lesin ran the media wing of the state’s energy giant, Gazprom, before stepping down or, more likely, being forced out. He ended up in the United States, where he and his family owned properties in Los Angeles said to be worth far more than the salary of the former government minister.

Some US Senators, including Roger Wicker of Mississippi, had called for the Department of Justice to open an investigation into Lesin’s finances prior to his death.

Wicker was concerned that Lesin made too much money, something that was really none of his business.

“That a Russian public servant could have amassed the considerable funds required to acquire and maintain these assets in Europe and the United States raises serious questions,” Wicker said.

The original announcement of the heart attack back in November 2015 makes this case all the more ominous considering the fact that the medical examiner’s office also said Lesin’s body had blunt force trauma to the neck, torso, arms and legs too. How did authorities overlook his wounds?

As RT reports, Lesin was considered one of the most influential figures in the Russian media landscape. A graduate of Moscow State University with a degree in Civil Engineering, he served as Minister of Press and Mass Media from 1999 to 2004. He was also a presidential media adviser from 2004 to 2009. Lesin became chief executive officer at Garprom-Media in 2013 and remained in the position until early 2015.

Sponsored Content:

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question: Why is it hard for critics to accept that Mikhail Lesin killed himself?

answer: Mikhail Lesin, the former head of media affairs for the Russian government and the founder of Russia Today (RT), was found dead in his hotel room while he was in Washington DC. Though the FBI claimed that Lesin died of a heart attack as well as self-inflicted wounds he sustained while drunk, many are skeptical as to why he would inflict repeated blows on himself. The report from the medical examiner's office that Lesin had injuries to his neck, torso, and arms also raises more questions than answers.


text:
DIGHIRPAR is a census town and a gram panchayat within the jurisdiction of the Canning police station in the Canning I CD block in the Canning subdivision of the South 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal.

Geography

Area overview

Canning subdivision has a very low level of urbanization. Only 12.37% of the population lives in the urban areas and 87.63% lives in the rural areas. There are 8 census towns in Canning I CD block and only 2 in the rest of the subdivision. The entire district is situated in the Ganges Delta with numerous islands in the southern part of the region. The area (shown in the map alongside) borders on the Sundarbans National Park and a major portion of it is a part of the Sundarbans settlements. It is a flat low-lying area in the South Bidyadhari plains. The Matla River is prominent and there are many streams and water channels locally known as _khals_. A comparatively recent country-wide development is the guarding of the coastal areas with a special coastal force.[1][2][3]

Note: The map alongside presents some of the notable locations in the subdivision. All places marked in the map are linked in the larger full screen map.

Location

Dighirpar is located at

Rajapur, Taldi, Bayarsingh, Matla and Dighirpar form a cluster of census towns in Canning I CD block, as per the map of the Canning I CD block on page 333 of the _District Census Handbook_ 2011. Canning is not identified as a separate place in the 2011 census records. The map of CD block Canning I in the _District Census Handbook_ for the South 24 Parganas shows Canning as being a part of Matla and Dighirpar census towns.[4]

Demographics

According to the 2011 Census of India, Dighirpar had a total population of 15,881, of which 8,106 (51%) were males and 7,775 (49%) were females. There were 1,509 persons in the age range of 0 to 6 years. The total number of literate persons in Dighirpar was 11,453 (86.65% of the population over 6 years).[5]

Infrastructure

According to the District Census Handbook 2011, Dighirpar covered an area of 2.7742 km². Among the civic amenities, it had 3 km roads with open drain, the protected water supply involved overhead tank and service reservoir. It had 1,524 domestic electric connections. Among the medical facilities it had were 2 dispensaries/ health centres, 1 nursing home and 6 medicine shops. Among the educational facilities it had were 10 primary schools, 2 middle school, 1 secondary school.[6]

Transport

Baruipur-Canning Road links Dighirpar to the State Highway 1

Canning railway station is located nearby.[7]

Education

De Paul School is a Bengali-medium coeducational school at Dighirpar. It was established in 2008 and has facilities for teaching from class I to class VIII.[8]

Healthcare

Ghutiari Sharif Block Primary Health Centre at Ghutiari Sharif, with 10 beds, is the major government medical facility in the Canning I CD block.[9]

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title: Dighirpar

question: What does the article say about Dighirpar?

answer: Dighirpar is a town in the Indian state of West Bengal. It had a total population of 15,881, according to the 2011 Census of India. Dighirpar covers an area of 2.7742 km². Only 12.37% of the population lives in the urban areas, and the rest lives in the rural areas.

question: What does the article say about the towns that are closest to Dighirpar?