text:
Foreword: I used to consider writing a novel, but I always got distracted wanting to write about side-quests and secondary characters, and couldn't keep myself to just the one path I wanted to focus on. So I thought, instead, I would try this. I will be (hopefully) writing a series of short stories, such as this one, about several people, whose lives will intertwine. The story will be about these select individuals developing extroadinary abilities, super powers, and how they come to terms with them. The story will revolve around them discovering their abilities, and trying to learn how to use them, where they come from, and what to do with them. I hope that by being able to make several short stories, all linked together, I will be able to write a story I've been trying to write in novel form, because now I can explore all those side quests. Please, give me any and all feedback you may have. This is a first for me, and I hope that some of you enjoy it.

Nate, Part 1

It was hot. Far to hot to be stuck outside on the bleachers, watching the stupid football team strutting around. However, Nate was left with no other choice than to sit in the stands and cheer for his school team, just like everyone else. School spirit was mandatory, even if they had to force it from him. So there he sat, wishing he could be at home, playing video games, or reading a good book, or really anything outside of this damned heat.

Suddenly the stands around him erupted in cheers. Nate forced himself to check back into reality, to see what was going on. His guess was his team had just scored a base, or a basket, or a touchdown, or whatever the goal of football was. He thought about trying to sneak out, but being caught ditching out on a game was worse then ditching a class.

"God, what a stupid school" he thought to himself. "They care more about the football team than they do about the students grades. I can't wait to get out of this stupid school, and this stupid town."

Nate had been born and raised in this small rural town of Chesterville, in the prairie's of Alberta, Canada. In his eighteen years, he had never left. He dreamed of the day he could graduate from the High School, and go off to College in the big city. Somewhere were football wasn't the only thing the town cared about. He started mentally checking off everything he had to do that night.

"Ok, the English paper is due tomorrow, but I'm almost done that" he thought. "I'll just give it one more quick re-read before I hand it in. The science homework won't take too long, so I'll have time to study for that math test tomorrow. Ah, crap, I almost forgot. I have to work tonight. Well, I guess it'll be another long night then".

As the crowds erupted in cheers around him again, he didn't even bother to try and zone back. He just stared blindly forward, lost in his own world.

* * *

A few hours later, he had just gotten home. He looked at the clock, trying to see if he'd have time for a fast shower before work. He felt gross and sweaty from sitting in the heat all day, but there was nothing to be done about it. He grabbed his uniform and ran back out the door.

Without a car, he had to peddle his bike back through the heat all the way across town to the Wendy's. By the time he finally got to work, he was panting, and sweat was pouring down his back. He went straight to the employee bathroom and did what he could to wipe himself down with a wad of cool, wet paper towel. Putting his uniform on, he entered the always sweltering hot kitchen and swiped into work.

He hated his job, every minute he was there. It was hot, it was uncomfortable, it was boring and routine. Every night he worked he went home stinking of grease and hamburger. The shirts were made of some terrible plasticy feeling material that just felt awful whenever it touched your sweaty skin. But, if he wanted any hope of ever leaving this god-forsaken town, he had no choice. He was saving every penny he could for a college fund. His parent's weren't able to help much, being barely able to make ends meet as it was. At least he knew that graduation wasn't very far away now, and then one last summer of working in this dump to save up the money and he could move. Move far away. He could go to college and make something of himself. He was already accepted to a first year Engineering degree, and he had big plans for his life. Get a good job. Make a lot of money. Buy a big house. Find a wife, kids, picket fence. Be able to afford a vacation. Travel. Be able to give his kids a vehicle when they turned 16, and not have them need to worry about every cent for any chance to go to college.

He went through his shift on auto pilot, dreaming of the future. They were short staffed, again, as some of his fellow schoolmates hadn't bothered showing up for their shifts. Undoubtedly off celebrating their football win. Didn't even have the respect to phone in ahead of time. He was ran off his feet until almost closing time, trying to do the work of three people, with an overbearing, overweight, power-tripping asshole of a manager breathing down his neck the entire night.

As ten o'clock rolled around, Nate got ready to lock the doors. Once they were locked up and the dinning room was cleaned, he could go home. If he got out by ten thirty, he could be home for eleven, which would give him a few hours to study if he was ok with only five hours sleep. He locked the first door, but then heard the second entrance open up. He turned around to face a group of at least twenty to twenty-five of his fellow classmates. All cheering and high fiving each other, being very loud and obnoxious.

"Hey guys, sorry, you're too late" he told the teenagers. "We're closed up for the night."

"Well, it doesn't seem that way to me," said one of the group, whom Nate recognized as Mike, the quarterback of the football team. "See, the door was open."

"Well, I was just on my way to lock it. If you wanted anything, you should have come sooner" Nate replied, trying not to show his irritation.

"Well, we're here know, and we're hungry, so how about you hop back behind that counter and flip some burgers" Mike said, with a grin on his face. Even at the distance, Nate could smell the scent of alcohol coming from the group.

Just then, the manager came out of his office. Nate was sure he was going to throw them out, but when he saw the group, he ordered Nate to get back behind the counter and serve them.

"But I need to go home!" Nate cried out indignantly. "I have homework, and studying, and I'm only scheduled to 10 as it is!"

"Well, I don't care. We have customers, and you have a job to do, Nate. That is, if you want a job."

Nate couldn't believe the unfairness of the situation. After all, a few of the guys in the crowd were the same as the ones who didn't show up for work, and yet he was the one whose job was being threatened. However, he couldn't afford to lose his job, so he returned to the counter.

"Welcome to Wendy's, can I take your order please"

 * * *

It was almost half past eleven before the crowd had finally left the restaurant. Nate barely wiped down each table, didn't bother sweeping at all, and took off for home. He was pissed off. He wouldn't get the time to study, after all, and could only hope to bullshit his way through enough of the test to maintain his A average.

He was peddling down the sidewalk, trying to rush home as quick as possible. Down the road, a single pair of headlights was growing larger. Even at a couple blocks away, he could hear the loud music, and the cheering voices that let him know it was more of his asshole classmates, still out celebrating. They obviously didn't care about homework, or studying. Whatever, that was their problem. They would grow up to be good for nothing losers, looking for any scraps, like most of the lowlifes who lived here. He tried to put them out of his mind.

As he continued down the street, the headlights before him getting brighter and brighter, he noticed they were swerving slightly across both lanes of the road. Now they were even driving drunk, on top of everything. Nate seriously hopes they would get pulled over. That would serve them right. If he had owned a cell phone, he would have called the police right then, and made sure these idiots got what was coming for them.

He was so preoccupied by picturing them getting in trouble, he never thought to pay attention to the vehicle. When the vehicle was just a few feet from him, it swerved, hit the curb, and bounced right up onto the sidewalk. Nate had no time to react. He saw the bright headlights rushing straight for him. He could hear the squealing of the tires as someone inside the vehicle tried to stop, but reacted far too late. All he could see was those bright headlights, rushing up to meet him. As the vehicle rushed towards him, his entire body went stiff, rigid, clenched up solid as metal. The last thing he sensed was a loud metallic clang, and those bright lights, before everything went dark.

* * *

title: Nate, Part 1

question: Summarize various issues Nate has with living in Chesterville and its residents.

answer:
Nate finds the town quite hot, sometimes too hot to be outside wearing bleachers. He also does not like his school where it seems sports are prioritized over academics. The school would force students out to cheer for the school teams. Ditching the cheering carries more punishment than ditching class.
Nate also dislikes his workplace where his colleagues sometimes ditch work without the courtesy of phoning ahead, leaving him with the bulk of the work. He hates his manager who is overweight, bossy, and overbearing.

question: Why does Nate's school prefer sports over academics?


split: test

text:
MENIFEE COUNTY is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2010 census, the population was 6,306,[1] making it the fifth-least populous county in Kentucky. Its county seat is Frenchburg.[2] The county is named for Richard Hickman Menefee, U.S. Congressman, although the spelling has changed.[3] It is a prohibition or dry county.

Menifee County is part of the Mount Sterling, KY Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Lexington-Fayette-Richmond-Frankfort, KY Combined Statistical Area. It is located in the foothills of the Cumberland Plateau.[4]

History

Menifee County was formed on May 29, 1869, from portions of Bath, Montgomery, Morgan, Powell, and Wolfe counties.[5][6]

In the 2008 Presidential Election Menifee County was one of eight in the state of Kentucky where the majority of voters voted for Barack Obama.[7]

On March 2, 2012 an EF3 tornado hit Menifee county and several other surrounding counties.[8] Many were injured, and three were killed.[9]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.1%) is water.[10]

Menifee County is mountainous and heavily forested. Much of the land is within Daniel Boone National Forest. Only about 10% of the county's land is in cultivated farms, and the county ranks 102nd of Kentucky's 120 counties in agricultural revenue.[11]

Adjacent counties

-   Bath County (north)
-   Rowan County (northeast)
-   Morgan County (east)
-   Wolfe County (south)
-   Powell County (southwest)
-   Montgomery County (west)

National protected area

-   Daniel Boone National Forest (part)

Arts & culture

Menifee County is home to the Menifee Community Theatre Group, a small-town local and regional arts organization that has produced 17 theatrical productions to date. The group has over 40 members and hosts an annual locally-written theatrical and film presentation, taking place at the Menifee Mountain Memories Festival and centering on local and Appalachian stories collected from local citizens.

Demographics

As of the census[12] of 2000, there were 6,556 people, 2,537 households, and 1,900 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 3,710 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.64% White, 1.37% Black or African American, 0.12% Native American, 0.03% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.14% from other races, and 0.69% from two or more races. 1.11% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,537 households, out of which 32.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.40% were married couples living together, 8.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.10% were non-families. 22.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 2.88.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.90% under the age of 18, 10.10% from 18 to 24, 28.10% from 25 to 44, 25.20% from 45 to 64, and 11.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 101.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $22,064, and the median income for a family was $26,325. Males had a median income of $25,670 versus $17,014 for females. The per capita income for the county was $11,399. About 23.40% of families and 29.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 38.50% of those under age 18 and 23.40% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

The county has historically been Democratic-dominated, voting for the Democratic nominee in every election from 1912 to 2008, with the only exceptions being Herbert Hoover in 1928 and George W. Bush in 2000. Like almost all the rest of Kentucky, however, it has seen dramatic shifts to the Republican Party in the past couple of elections.

  Year                               Republican                                  Democratic                                  Third parties
  ---------------------------------- ------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------- ---------------
  style=“text-align:center;” |2016   style=“text-align:center;” |72.3% _2,010_   style=“text-align:center;” |25.2% _700_     2.5% _69_
  style=“text-align:center;” |2012   style=“text-align:center;” |57.1% _1,484_   style=“text-align:center;” |40.3% _1,048_   2.5% _66_
  style=“text-align:center;” |2008   style=“text-align:center;” |46.4% _1,155_   style=“text-align:center;” |51.3% _1,276_   2.3% _58_
  style=“text-align:center;” |2004   style=“text-align:center;” |48.1% _1,215_   style=“text-align:center;” |50.8% _1,284_   1.2% _29_
  style=“text-align:center;” |2000   style=“text-align:center;” |52.0% _1,170_   style=“text-align:center;” |46.2% _1,038_   1.8% _41_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1996   style=“text-align:center;” |34.1% _608_     style=“text-align:center;” |55.0% _979_     10.9% _194_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1992   style=“text-align:center;” |26.0% _557_     style=“text-align:center;” |61.1% _1,311_   12.9% _277_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1988   style=“text-align:center;” |37.5% _670_     style=“text-align:center;” |61.3% _1,096_   1.2% _22_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1984   style=“text-align:center;” |44.4% _785_     style=“text-align:center;” |54.0% _956_     1.6% _29_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1980   style=“text-align:center;” |35.5% _547_     style=“text-align:center;” |62.6% _966_     1.9% _30_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1976   style=“text-align:center;” |22.4% _304_     style=“text-align:center;” |76.8% _1,041_   0.8% _11_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1972   style=“text-align:center;” |43.9% _596_     style=“text-align:center;” |53.9% _732_     2.2% _30_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1968   style=“text-align:center;” |38.7% _509_     style=“text-align:center;” |42.1% _554_     19.3% _254_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1964   style=“text-align:center;” |22.7% _318_     style=“text-align:center;” |76.8% _1,076_   0.5% _7_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1960   style=“text-align:center;” |45.2% _817_     style=“text-align:center;” |54.8% _989_     0.0% _0_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1956   style=“text-align:center;” |40.3% _799_     style=“text-align:center;” |59.7% _1,185_   0.1% _1_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1952   style=“text-align:center;” |34.3% _638_     style=“text-align:center;” |65.4% _1,219_   0.3% _6_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1948   style=“text-align:center;” |27.5% _435_     style=“text-align:center;” |70.3% _1,112_   2.2% _34_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1944   style=“text-align:center;” |36.7% _568_     style=“text-align:center;” |63.1% _976_     0.2% _3_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1940   style=“text-align:center;” |30.2% _511_     style=“text-align:center;” |69.5% _1,176_   0.3% _5_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1936   style=“text-align:center;” |33.2% _559_     style=“text-align:center;” |66.6% _1,123_   0.2% _4_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1932   style=“text-align:center;” |24.8% _474_     style=“text-align:center;” |74.6% _1,425_   0.6% _11_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1928   style=“text-align:center;” |50.2% _732_     style=“text-align:center;” |49.8% _725_     0.0% _0_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1924   style=“text-align:center;” |33.5% _450_     style=“text-align:center;” |65.0% _873_     1.6% _21_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1920   style=“text-align:center;” |33.3% _581_     style=“text-align:center;” |65.8% _1,149_   0.9% _16_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1916   style=“text-align:center;” |33.6% _369_     style=“text-align:center;” |66.4% _730_     0.1% _1_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1912   style=“text-align:center;” |24.7% _254_     style=“text-align:center;” |62.4% _643_     12.9% _133_

  : PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS RESULTS[13]

Communities

-   Denniston
-   Frenchburg (county seat)
-   Korea
-   Mariba
-   Means
-   Pomeroyton
-   Scranton
-   Sudith
-   Wellington

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7] Officials in 4 Appalachian counties proud their residents supported Obama Lexington Herald-Leader, Nov 6, 2008.

[8] Deadly Tornado Cut 60-Mile Path In Eastern Kentucky The Associated Press, Mar 5, 2012.

[9] 1 WAVE News, Mar 5, 2012.

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

title: Menifee County, Kentucky

question: Summarize the unique features of Menifee County.

answer: Menifee County is the fifth-least populous county in Kentucky. It is named after U.S. Congressman Richard Menefee, though the spelling has changed over time. The county has a theatre group that has produced up to 17 theatrical productions to date. Ten percent of Menifee County is in cultivated farms. Furthermore, the county is one of the few counties in Kentucky where a majority voted for Barack Obama.

question: Summarize the population makeup of Menifee County according to the 2000 census.

answer: According to the 2000 census, Menifee County has around 6556 people living there with 2537 households and 1900 families. The majority of the population are White with 1.37% Black, 0.21% Native American, and the rest making up to 1%. Sixty-two percent of the population are married and living together and 25.10% are non-families. Around 24.90% of the population are under the age of 18 ad 9.10% are 65 years and older.


text:
Will of the dragon

[yakuza 3 4 5 ps4.jpg]
In a recent PlayStation Access interview, Yakuza series producer Daisuke Sato gave fans a glimmer of hope regarding more Yakuza titles on PlayStation 4. Right now, Yakuza 0, Yakuza: Kiwami, and Yakuza 6: The Song of Life are all playable on Sony's current-gen console, with Yakuza: Kiwami 2 launching later this year in the West. Given that the games are fairly lengthy affairs, that's already _a lot_ of Yakuza, but there's obviously a big gap between Kiwami 2 and Yakuza 6.

Although each Yakuza title tells its own story, new fans of the franchise may want to experience the adventures of Kazuma Kiryu in their entirety -- and that's where Yakuza 3, Yakuza 4, and Yakuza 5 come into the equation. All three games released on the PlayStation 3, but they were never ported to PS4.

However, Sato states that if there's enough demand, SEGA "may consider" bringing them over. We certainly wouldn't say no to a complete Yakuza collection on PS4.

So there you have it. If you want to spend hundreds of hours playing every Yakuza game on one system, you'll have to let SEGA know.

[source youtube.com]

[Robert Ramsey]

Robert's been a dedicated PlayStation fan since the days of Tekken 2, and he still loves a good dust up. When he's not practising combos, he's usually getting lost in the latest 100-hour RPG, or, y'know, replaying The Witcher 3.

-    Staff Profile
-    Twitter
-   Reply

question: What Yakuza games were available on PlayStation 4 at the time this text was written?

answer: Yakuza 0, Yakuza: Kiwami, and Yakuza 6: The Song of Life.

question: Who is Daisuke Sato?

answer: The producer of the Yakuza series.

question: What is SEGA?

answer: The text doesn't explicitly say but implies that SEGA may be a game publisher or developer.

question: Who posted this information?

answer: Robert Ramsey.

question: What Yakuza games were not available on PlayStation 4 at the time this text was written?

answer: Yakuza 3, Yakuza 4, and Yakuza 5.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: Robert Ramsey offers readers a report on the well-loved PlayStation game, Yakuza, and which Yakuza games fans can expect to see available on the PS4.


text:
MELANIE DELVA is the Reconciliation Animator for the Anglican Church of Canada.

Life

Delva is a first-generation Canadian of Belgian descent. She was raised in rural Manitoba on Treaty 4 territory.[1] Her work around reconciliation contributed to her adoption by Coyote Terry Aleck and Christine Turenne into the Grizzly Clan of the Lytton Band of the Nlaka’pamux First Nation.[2] She holds a bachelor of arts from Dalhousie University and a Masters in Archival Studies in 2005 from the University of British Columbia.[3] She currently lives in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Delva has spoken openly about mental health stigma, her diagnoses of depression, and the role faith has played in her mental health.[4] She has also known for her work dismantling white privilege and relationship building in the context of reconciliation.

Career

From 2005 to 2017 Delva served as the Archivist for the Anglican Diocese of New Westminister and the Archivist for the Provincial Synod of British Columbia and Yukon.[5] During her time as an archivist, Delva was part of a pilot project undertaken by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) for its document collection related to records about Residential Schools.[6] Delva has been involved in a range of archival organizations including: the Archives Association of British Columbia, the Response to the Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Taskforce, and the Association of Canadian Archivists.

In June 2017, Delva was appointed as the Reconciliation Animator for the Anglican Church of Canada. In this role Delva oversees the Anglican Church's implementation of the TRC's Calls to Action.[7] In her role as Reconciliation Animator Delva helped author the _One Step on a Journey: The Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement and the Anglican Church of Canada—Lessons Learned_ report which documents the role of reconciliation work within the Anglican Church.[8] In 2019, Delva was elected as the lay alternative to the Anglican Consultative Council.[9] Delva regularly provides sermons and speaks about reconciliation at Anglican Churches and church events across Canada.[10]

Publications

-   "Decolonizing the Prisons of Cultural Identity: Denominational Archives and Indigenous “Manifestations of Culture,” _Toronto Journal of Theology_ 34, no.1 (2018).
-   With Melissa Adams, “Archival ethics and Indigenous justice: conflict or coexistence?” in _Engaging with Records and Archives Histories and Theories_ eds. Fiorella Foscarini, Healther MacNeil, Bonnie Mak and Gillian Oliver, (London: Facet Publishing, 2016).

Presentations

-   Presentation on the Doctrine of Discovery, Clergy Conference, Anglican Diocese of Caledonia, 2019.[11]
-   Archives Association of British Columbia Roundtable: Poor Little Photos, 2014.
-   “Journey to Reconciliation: Church Records and the Indian Residential Schools Legacy,” Association of Canadian Archivists, 2013.[12]
-   “Repentance for Stolen Land & Stolen People,” Racial Hersey Podcast

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]  Around the Diocese {{!}} Diocese of Caledonia|website=www.caledoniaanglican.ca|access-date=2019-11-15}}

[12]

title: Melanie Delva

question: What role does Melanie Delva hold with the Anglican Church of Canada?

answer: She is the Reconciliation Animator.

question: Which clan was Melanie Delva adopted into as a result of her reconciliation work?

answer: The Grizzly Clan of the Lytton Band of the Nlaka’pamux First Nation.

question: What other roles has Delva undertaken for the Anglican church in Canada?

answer: She served as an Archivist between 2005 to 2017.

question: Has Delva ever experienced depression or similar mental health illnesses?

answer: Delva has openly talked about her diagnoses of depression and the role faith has played in her mental health.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer:
Melanie Delva is currently the reconciliation Animator for the Anglican Church of Canada. Her sermons and reconciliation work has earned her adoption into the Grizzly Clan of the Lytton Band of the Nlaka’pamux First Nation. Delva also served as the Archivist for the Anglican Diocese of New Westminster from 2005 to 2017,

Delva has spoken openly about her diagnoses of depression, mental health stigma, and the role her faith has played in her mental health.


text:
Imagine if you will a building, tall and tattered,the higher you go the brighter it gets, the lower you go the

 darker it gets. You wake up in a room with three others; shadow figures you cant make out. You exit your room

 to the lobby. There are people here in this building, people you know, loved ones and acquaintances. The

elevators don’t work and there are only stairs to the lower levels. Standing there you here the faint sound of

music coming from below. Think about that person who means the most to you, that person who you love more

than life itself. You love them so much that it isn’t a stretch to say that your souls are connected. Your first

thought is to follow them, you head down the stairs, and you quickly notice that the room gets dimmer. Your

body feels intoxicated, you feel dizzy, and unable to think properly. People are lined shoulder to shoulder lying

on the ground. There is a bar in the corner of the room, and you see them sitting at it, hunched over with there

 back towards you drinking a drink. You tip toe around the body’s and on your way to the bar, you notice the

music is no longer playing. “How long was is stopped? Maybe the whole time I was down here.” You sit beside

them at the bar, and turn in your stool to tell the bartender that, you’ll be having what they’re drinking. But the

bartender isn’t there. So you turn the other way to say hi, and start a conversation. When you prompt the

question. They turn and you notice that there face is blurry and a mixture of the colors their face is supposed

to be, almost like someone just swirled it and then made it really blurry. You say their name and they look at

you but say nothing. Your drink has just appeared in front of you.

You grab there hand and get out of the bar. When you turn around you notice two more people,

with normal faces walking around. They had just gotten off the ground. One of them walks up and ask you;

“Where am I?” You reply with “I don’t Know Some kind of hotel or apartment building.” You hear shuffling and

speaking from the floor beneath. So you grab the arm of your loved one, and follow these strangers to the next

floor. Every thing is darker, everyone is just a black silhouette. They are just standing there chattering amongst

them selves. You shout out; “What are you doing?!” They reply in a mass conglomeration of words and

sentences. Its hard for you to make out but a few. Then without question they all chant “Minutes turn into

days, days turn into weeks, weeks into years, and years into centuries.” The others you are with have slowly

walked into the crowd without you noticing and have turned into black silhouettes. Your loved one is pulling on

your hand and pointing to her stomach, and then too the stairs you came from. You remembered about the cash

 you had in your wallet. Walking towards the stairs back to the upper floor, you notice the crowd following you,

not talking just walking as a mass group towards you. Your halfway up the stairs, turn back and notice one

lonely shadow maybe the size of a young girl, walking towards you but when her foot touches that first step

she fades away, like blown sand. A sad image; you move on and make your way to the floor where you originate

 from. You notice the double doors leading outside, but walking towards them becomes harder the closer you

get. Its like your in a wind tunnel, there is so much opposing pressure pushing you.

You hug the wall and shimmy your way to the doors, once outside you hold the doors open for

them, and they follow your routine and make it outside with you. For that moment the doors stayed open, and

 in an instant they drop to they’re knees and get pulled back in. Sliding', they reach they're arms out and the

only time you here them say anything is when they shout your name while being dragged back in. You race to

them but the doors are slammed shut. You go over to the door and see them huddled and grabbing there knees.

Rocking back and forth. Banging on the glass does nothing they cant hear you. But you mouth to them . “Don't

 worry, I'll be back with food. Everything is going to be OK.” They didn’t even notice you. You didn't even try to

 open the doors, because you were too scared that whatever pulled them in, might pull you in and it wouldn't

let you leave. So you venture out to look for food, then you hear someone say your name, they sound friendly,

 and only a few feet away. You follow their voice until it leads you to the building next to yours. You notice a

black figure almost like before. You think you may know this person but you aren’t quite sure. You walk up the

 stairs to only find out that this shadow is bigger and bulkier than the others. They walk closer and say in a

voice deeper and more snarling than before “I know what you’re here for, you little fuck”  By this point you get

scared  and are already heading back down the stairs. You reach the bottom and immediately you’re weighted

 down. Like all your energy is depleted, crawling ever so slowly towards those double doors. “You're hungry, huh

 piggy, I've got food and plenty of it. Get back here you quivering little cunt!” You have gotten halfway there

when you hear him at the bottom of those steps. “ You want some fucking Cheetos, you want some goddamn

food. Here take it take it all.” He started hurling bags of them at you, getting closer with each toss. You reach

 the doors but collapse, you touch the glass and use all your will to bang on it.

Imagine how it it would feel to not be able to open your mouth because you don’t have the strength,

knowing what you want to say, and the words banging at the inside of of your mouth trying to find an opening

to explode out from your lips. Knowing what to say, but the words just wont come out. Ever so often you

garnish  enough will and power to pry those lips open and all that slithers out is a squeak or a moan. I  imagine

this is how a baby or a mute person feels. So much Frustration, and all that you can muster is a fucking squeak.

 They are still there inside walking around like they are waiting for something. Sand is Getting blown around

,you're at the doors but don’t have the strength to get off the ground. You feel vibrations  coming from the

ground as he stomps those few feet until he is hovering over you blotting out the sun. You are reduced to tears

 and your thoughts. Your immediate thought is “This man is going to murder me,and I am going to die. All That

 will remain is blood and pulp.” You are helpless, glued to the ground, and releasing your bowls. You pray to god

for forgiveness, and tell everyone you are sorry for the things you have done. Your stomach is churning out shit

 Ice cream. You ask god to save you one more time. Then he says hovering  and blotting out the sun standing

there so menacingly. “ No one can hear you, your just thinking all of this, no one is listening, you wont be

saved, and even worse you wont save them.” He points to your loved one walking around. He picks you up and

slams your body, then proceeds to kick and punch your body. He has endless stamina, the sounds of bones

cracking and flesh being punched are being echoed down the street. His heavy breathing feels like flames to

your body, and when he spits on you it boils the skin it touches.

One last smack to the head is the last thing you feel, then your body goes numb,you are paralyzed

completely. You watch him take a few steps to the right, only  to see him come back with a saw and a knife.

You watch as he dismembers your body,  sawing off your arms and cutting your tendon’s with the knife. Your

laying in a pool of your own blood. Then you see him take the knife and carve one eye out, now your vision is

blurred. Then he proceeds to strike down your other eye with ungodly force. Your last thought before

completely blacking out are the words. “I love You.”  Then everything goes black you loose all thought,

everything is black, no noise, no smell no feel, nothing just black. A moment passes, then your able too see

hints of color and light, through your eye lids. You open your eyes and see everything is blurry. You have this

new found strength, you feel alive and awake. Imagine if you will a building, tall and tattered,the higher you go

the brighter it gets, the lower you go the darker it gets. You wake up in a room with three others; shadow

figures you cant make out. You exit your room to the lobby. There are people here in this building, people you

know, loved ones and acquaintances. The elevators don’t work and there are only stairs to the lower levels.

Standing there you here the faint sound of music coming from below. Think about that person who means the

most to you, that person who you love more than life itself. You love them so much that it isn’t a stretch to say

 that your souls are connected. Your first thought is to  follow them, you head down the stairs, and you quickly

 notice that the room gets dimmer.

title: Hell A short story about my dream last night.

question: What does the story say about who the man is and why he hurts the narrator?

question: What does the story say about why the crowd follows the narrator?


text:
Backyard Habitat Resources

[National Wildlife Federation logo]

-   Maryland Cooperative Extension
    -   Offers home and garden information, tips publications, plant problems, Bay issues, and other links
-   National Wildlife Federation
    -   Details on their backyard habitat program
-   Project FeederWatch
    -   Winter-long survey of birds that visit feeders at backyards, nature centers, community areas, and other locales in North America. Feeder Watchers (like you!) periodically count the highest numbers of each species they see at their feeders from November through early April.[Becoming an Outdoors woman logo]

-   Becoming an Outdoors Woman
    -   Offers outdoor skills workshops, specifically for women 18 years of age and older, although men are welcome to participate
-   Maryland Master Gardener
    -   Program is designed to train volunteer horticultural educators
-   Maryland Master Naturalist
    -   Program is designed to train volunteer naturalists
-   Maryland Woodland Stewardship Education

Invasive Species Resources

[Invasive Species]

-   Center for Invasive Species
    -   Provides websites, publications and images on invasive species
-   Bugwood Network
    -   Provides websites, publications and images on invasive species
-   []Mistaken Identity: Invasive Plants and their Native Look-a-likes
-   Maryland Invasive Species Council
    -   Offers information on invasive species throughout Maryland
-   Plant Invaders of Mid-Atlantic Natural Areas, 4th ed
    -   PDF download for book on common plant invasives in the mid-Atlantic

Plant Resources

-   Colston, C. 2011. Native Alternatives to Invasive Plants (BBG Guides for a Greener Planet).
    -   Brooklyn Botanic Garden Guide which goes into commonly planted invasives and native alternatives
-   Maryland Native Plant Society
    -   Offers information dedicated to protecting, conserving and restoring Maryland's native plants and habitats
-   []Native Plants for Wildlife Habitat in Maryland
    -   Provides lists and information about native plants that can be used for habitat restoration and natural landscaping projects
-   Tallamy. Douglas. 2009. Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants, Updated and Expanded. Timber Press.
    -   This book highlights native plants that are beneficial for wildlife, particularly those which support beneficial insects that form the bottom of the food chain.
-   Wasowski, Sally and Andy Wasowski. 1994. Gardening With Native Plants of the South. Taylor Trade Publications.
    -   This book includes specific information on over 200 familiar, easy-to-find native plants, over 250 color photographs, nine sample garden plans, and more.

Wildlife Resources[Monarch butterfly on Coneflower illustration]

-   Cornell Lab of Ornithology
    -   Provides comprehensive guides and songs for birds
-   eNature
    -   Provides web guides, free ringtones, fact sheets and gardening tips for wildlife
-   Maryland Wildlife and Heritage Service
    -   Provides lists of wildlife found throughout MD
-   North American Butterfly Association
    -   Offers information on butterflies throughout North America and ways to create butterfly gardens

Backyard Books

There are many books and published articles about backyard wildlife. While planning the creation or enhancement of your "Wild Acre", you may find that these references can help you choose your materials and create and carry out your design. Below are listed just some of the books that are available.  If you can't find these books in your local bookstore, you can usually find them in specialty nature stores.

This list is for your convenience only and should not be considered an endorsement by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

Arbib, Robert and Tony Soper.  1971. The Hungry Bird Book.   New York: Taplinger Publishing Co.
Barrington, Rupert.  1971. A Garden for Your Birds.  New York:  Grosset & Dunlap.
Bird, David M.  1986.   City Critters: How to Live with Urban Wildlife.  Montreal:   Eden Press.
Conant, Roger.  1975. A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America.  Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co.
Cox, Jeff.  1991. Landscaping with Nature: Using Nature's Design to Plan Your Yard. Emmaus, PA: Rodale Press.
Curtis, Will and Jane.  1980. Backyard Bird Habitat: Create Your Own Thriving Bird Sanctuary.  Woodstock, VT: The Countryman Press.
Degraaf, Richard M. and Gretchin M. Witman.  1979.  Trees, Shrubs and Vines for Attracting Birds: A Manual for the Northeast.   Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts Press.
Dennis, John V.  1975.   A Complete Guide to Bird Feeding.   New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
Dennis, John V.  1986.   Beyond the Bird Feeder.  New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
Dennis, John V.  1985.   The Wildlife Gardener.  New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
Du Pont, E.N.  1978.   Landscaping with Native Plants in the Middle-Atlantic Region.  The Brandywine Conservancy, Inc., Chadds Ford, PA.
Foote, L.W. and S.B. Jones, Jr.  1989.   Native Shrubs and Woody Vines of the Southeast: Landscape uses and Identification.  Beaverton, Oreg.: Timber Press.
Gilliam, Harry L.  1973.   More Wildlife on Your Property.   Richmond: Virginia Commission of Game and Inland Fisheries.
Harrison, George H.  1979.   The Backyard Bird Watcher.   New York: Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Harrison, Kit and George.  1985.   America's Favorite Backyard Wildlife.   New York: Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Henderson, Carroll L.  Woodworking for Wildlife.  Nongame Wildlife Program-Section of Wildlife, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, 500 Lafayette Rd., Box 7, St. Paul, MN 55155-4007.
Henderson, Carroll L.  1987.   Landscaping for Wildlife.   Nongame Wildlife Program-Section of Wildlife, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, 500 Lafayette Rd., Box 7, St. Paul, MN 55155-4007.
Hightshoe, G.L.  1987.   Native Trees, Shrubs, and Vines for Urban and Rural America: A Planting Design Manual for Environmental Designers.   New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold.
Kress, Stephen W., and Robert Burton. 2005. National Audubon Society's The Bird Garden. DK Publishing.
Kress, Stephen W.  1985.   The Audubon Society Guide to Attracting Birds.  New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, Inc.
Mahnken, Jan.  1983.   Feeding the Birds.  Pownal, VT:  Garden Way Publishing.
Martin, Alexander C., Herbert S. Zim, and Arnold Nelson.   1951.  American Wildlife and Plants: A Guide to Wildlife Food Habits.  New York: Dover, 1951.
Martin, L.C.  1986.   The Wildflower Meadow Book.  Charlotte, NC: East Woods Press Books.
Mohrhardt, David and Richard E. Schinkel.  1991.  Suburban Nature Guide.  Harrisburg, PA: Stackpole Books.
Mooberry, F.M. and J.H. Scott.  1980.   Grow Native Shrubs in Your Garden.   Chadds Ford, PA: The Brandywine Conservancy.
National Wildlife Federation.  1974.   Gardening with Wildlife.   Washington, D.C.: National Wildlife Federation.
Peterson, Roger Tory.  1980.   A Field Guide to the Birds East of the Rockies.  Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co.
Peterson, Roger Tory and Margaret McKenny.  1968.  Wildflowers of Northeastern/North Central North America.  Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co.
Proctor, Dr. Noble.  1985.   Garden Birds: How to Attract Birds to Your Garden.  Emmaus, PA: Rodale Press.
Sawyer, Edmund J.  1969.   Homes for Wildlife-Baths and Feeding Shelters.  Bloomfield, MI: Cranbook Institute of Science.
Schutz, Walter E.  1973.   Bird Watching, Housing and Feeding.   Milwaukee: Bruce Publishers.
Stokes, Donald W., Lillian Stokes, and Ernest Williams. 1991. The Butterfly Book: An Easy Guide to Butterfly Gardening, Identification and Behavior. Little, Brown and Company.
-   Book dedicated to butterfly gardening

The Xerces Society. 2011. Attracting Native Pollinators: The Xerces Society Guide to Conserving North American Bees and Butterflies and Their Habitat. Storey Publishing.
-   Offers a complete action plan for protecting native pollinators by providing flowering habitat and nesting sites

Terres, John.  1968.   Song Birds in Your Garden, rev. ed.   New York: T.Y. Crowell.
Tekulsky, M.  1985.   The Butterfly Garden.  Boston: Harvard Common Press.
Tekulsky, M.  1990.   The Hummingbird Garden.  New York: Crown Publishers.
Webster, Wm David, et.al.  1985.   Mammals of the Carolinas, Virginia, and Maryland.  Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press.
Wetmore, Alexander, et. Al.  1975.   Song and Garden Birds of North America.   Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society.
Yepsen, Roger B., Jr.  1984. The Encyclopedia of Natural Insect and Disease Control. Emmaus, PA: Rodale Press.
Habichat, the newsletter for Stewards of Maryland's Backyard Wildlife, is published by the Wildlife and Heritage Service, Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

The facilities and services of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources are available to all without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, national origin, physical or mental disability. This document is available in alternative format upon request from a qualified individual with a disability.

question: Summarize the training programs.

answer: The Maryland Department of Natural Resources offers several outdoors programs. 'Maryland Master Gardner' is designed to train volunteer horticultural educators. 'Maryland Master Naturalist' is designed to train volunteer naturalists. 'Becoming an Outdoors Woman' offers outdoor skills workshops, specifically for women 18 years of age and older, although men are welcome to participate (all services are available to anyone).

question: What does the text say about ornothology?

answer: Multiple books are recommended on the subject of bird-watching. The Department also offers Project FeederWatch, a winter-long survey of birds that visit feeders at backyards, nature centers, community areas, and other locales in North America. Feeder Watchers periodically count the highest numbers of each species they see at their feeders.

question: What does the text say about environmentally sustainable living?


text:
I had to do it. Someone had to do it.

I keep telling myself that.

I should introduce myself. I am former General Jack Kerrington, Former Joint Chief Of Staff of the U.S. Armed Forces. Officially I am now global terrorist #1 and have been for the last 6 months.

It's all a lie. But it's all over now.

By 2047 the world was already beginning to crumble. The Pentagon Knew it, the Russians knew it, the Chinese, everyone who's anyone. NATO, the U.N., all of those poor sad motherfuckers.

Someone has to take the blame. I volunteered.

God I need a drink. Two weeks from now I am to be apprehended and publicly executed for my crimes.

Someone has to take responsibility for this, might as well be me.

I've already got so much blood on my hands, what's another couple of billion?

They were all going to die anyways.

Right?

Average global temperature is over 4.6 degrees higher than it was in 2000. The year I was born. The new Millennium. You know I've got a video of Time Square in NY right as the ball dropped. I've been watching it a lot lately.

---------

**10**

You know that day, around the world, there were no major incidences of conflict or war? Quite possibly for the first time in history.

    The early stages are characterized by influenza-like symptoms: general malaise, fever with chills,
    arthralgia and myalgia, and chest pain.

**9**

People look so happy, so hopeful. The Internet had practically just been invented as far as the average person was concerned.

    Nausea is accompanied by abdominal pain, anorexia, diarrhea, and vomiting.
    Respiratory tract involvement is characterized by pharyngitis with sore throat,
    cough, dyspnea, and hiccups.

**8**

Now, all the net has carried the last few years is news of another war, another famine. Another city under martial law.

    The central nervous system is affected as judged by the development of severe headaches,
    agitation, confusion, fatigue, depression, seizures, and sometimes coma.

**7**

Last decade, India and Pakistan half wiped each other off the map. We thought maybe that might be the end of this. The whole world blinked. Another day of world peace, weeks in fact, then months.

    Cutaneous presentation may include: maculopapular rash, petechiae, purpura, ecchymoses,
    and hematomas (especially around needle injection sites).

**6**

But you can't exactly ask people to starve can you? You can't ask them to stop filling up their car, to stop making things. Certainly not weapons. Everyone needs weapons now.

    Development of hemorrhagic symptoms is generally indicative of a negative prognosis.
    However, contrary to popular belief, hemorrhage does not lead to hypovolemia
    and is not the cause of death (total blood loss is low except during labor).

**5**

We all agreed this was the only solution. I wonder how many heads of state will commit suicide in the coming months. Me? I'm a free man. I already know my fate.

    Instead, death occurs due to multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS)
    due to fluid redistribution, hypotension, disseminated intravascular coagulation,
    and focal tissue necroses.

**4**

Water began to run out first, even before Iowa became a desert. We did everything right you know? Got off coal, got off oil, solar panels everywhere. Wind farms. All that pointless shit.

    The mean incubation period, best calculated currently for EVD outbreaks due to EBOV infection,
    is 12.7 days (standard deviation = 4.3 days), but can be as long as 25 days.

**3**

So it came down to this: No one was going to stop first. Before India...9.8 billion people. 9.8 billion mouths to feed. Still 7.6 billion left. Even after the population decline of the last decade.

    ...has been confirmed to be transmitted through body fluids.
    Transmission through oral exposure and through conjunctiva exposure is likely
    and has been confirmed in non-human primates.

**2**

**Prognosis:** Average global temperature exceeds 6.5 Degree's Celsius within 3 decades. The Continental U.S., Europe, China, Russia. Mostly desert. Mortality rate within 6 decades: 95%. Within a century: 99.9%.

    Filoviruses are not naturally transmitted by aerosol. They are, however, highly infectious as breathable
    0.8–1.2 micrometre droplets in laboratory conditions; because of this potential route of infection,
    these viruses have been classified as Category A biological weapons.

**1.**

We made it better. Much better.

**Prognosis:** 70% global mortality rate, mean time to this number: 6 months.

**Prognosis:** Percent chance of survival of the remaining 30%: 54%. Mean time to failure: 3 decades.

Happy New Year.

-----

(CC-BY-SA)

title: Happy New Year

question: What does the story say about how the world changed from 2000 to 2047?

answer: In 2047, the average global temperature is over 4.6 degrees higher than it was in 2000. The world is beginning to crumble. When the bomb was dropped in New York, there were no major incidences of conflict or war around the world, and people look happy and hopeful. Last decade, India and Pakistan half wiped each other off the map. Water began to run out.

question: What does the story say about how the narrator predicts the future?

answer: The narrator believes that average global temperature will exceed 6.5 Degree's Celsius within 3 decades. Most of the world will become desert. They predict that mortality rate will dramaticly increase.

question: What does the story say about what are the causes of the catastrophe?


text:
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, people can sometimes be labelled, stereotyped, discriminated against, treated separately, or experience loss of status because of real or perceived links with the disease.[1] As a result of such treatment, those who have or are perceived to have the disease, as well as their caregivers, family, friends, and communities, may be subjected to social stigma.[2]

Due to the social stigma, individuals and groups can be subjected to racism and xenophobia and hate crimes. The groups shown to be most vulnerable to social stigma are people of East Asian descent or appearance, people who have traveled abroad, people who have recently completed quarantine, healthcare professionals and emergency service workers. It has also been shown that wearing or refusing to wear a mask has become subject to a stigma[3] as well. The existence of such social stigma[4] and their negative impacts have been documented by many organizations, including UNICEF, the WHO, and the CDC.[5][6][7][8]

Reasons for and impact of social stigma

The level of stigma towards those affected with COVID-19 is due to multiple factors. The virus is new, and there are many unknowns surrounding transmission and a possible cure. Many people cannot access tests and[9] drug development for treatment is still in progress. Meanwhile, there is widespread misinformation regarding the disease, under which various online groups and activists have spread conspiracy theories and unproven claims, including: that the virus was created in a laboratory; the virus was “planned”; and that the virus was caused by 5G networks, among other theories.[10][11][12]

In this cultural context, the disease itself is an unknown—and, according to many international health experts, people feel fearful when confronted with the unknown. In such circumstances, they may deal with this fear by assigning blame to the “other,” [13] which may include groups of people, governments, or institutions. This environment can fuel harmful stereotypes. As a result, social cohesion is undermined, and there may be increased social isolation of impacted groups. With this social isolation, people may be less likely to seek out medical help or services, take necessary precautions, or seek out social services, due to fear of discrimination. This can contribute to a situation in which the virus is more likely to spread, leading to severe health problems and difficulties in controlling disease outbreak.[14] Furthermore, people could also subjected to physical violence[15] and hate crimes.

Addressing social stigma

In order to address social stigma, it is important to build trust in reliable health services and advice, show empathy to the affected individuals and adopting effective practical measures to keep people safe.[16] The following measures are recommended to address social stigma by the UNICEF:[17]

-   Use of people-first language, that respects the individual and talking about the disease with a positive tone in all communication channels, including media, such as:
    -   Not attaching ethnicity or locations to the disease, such as 'Wuhan virus' or 'Asian virus' and using only the official name COVID-19
    -   Using 'people who have COVID-19' instead of 'COVID-19 cases' or 'COVID-19 victims' or 'COVID-19 suspects'
    -   Using terminology like, people 'acquiring' or 'contracting' COVID-19 instead of people 'transmitting COVID-19', 'infecting others' or 'spreading the virus' as it implies intentional transmission and assigns blame
    -   Refrain from using criminalising or dehumanising terminology in a way that might create impression that those with the disease have done something wrong, thereby feeding stigma
    -   Speaking the facts about COVID-19 accurately, based on scientific data and latest official health advice
    -   Not repeating or sharing unconfirmed rumors, and avoiding using of exaggerative terms like 'plague' and 'apocalypse' to denote the pandemic
    -   Emphasizing the effectiveness of prevention and treatment measures, rather than dwelling on the negatives or messages of threat.
-   Spreading accurate and updated facts, such as by:
    -   Using simple language and avoiding clinical terminology
    -   Engaging social influencers, such as religious or political leaders and celebrities to amplify the message in a geographically and culturally appropriate way
    -   Amplifying the stories and images of local people who have recovered or supported a loved one through the recovery from COVID-19
    -   Portraying of different ethnic groups, and use of symbols and formats that are neutral and not suggestive of any ethnic group
    -   Practicing ethical journalism: Reports that overly focus on patient responsibility can increase stigma for people who may have the disease. News that speculates the source of COVID-19 in each country, for example, can increase stigma towards such individuals.
    -   Linking up to the other initiatives that address social stigma and stereotyping
-   Observe communication tips:[18]
    -   Correct misconceptions, while acknowledging that people's feelings and subsequent behaviour are real, even if their underlying assumptions are false.
    -   Share sympathetic narratives and stories that humanise the struggles of affected individuals and groups
    -   Communicate support for those working in the frontline

According to United Nations Population Fund, midwives play an essential role in reducing stigma and battling the spreading belief that health facilities are to be avoided.[19]

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]

title: Social stigma associated with COVID-19

question: What does the text say about the pandemic and social stigma?

answer: According to the text, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused certain races to be discriminated against. Some have been victims of hate crimes. The group most shown to be vulnerable are people of East Asian descent.

question: What does the text say about the reasons for the social stigma?

answer: The level of stigma is most likely because the virus is new and there are many unknowns when it comes to its transmission. There is not access to a lot of tests. Because of this, people online have resorted to spreading misinformation through conspiracy theories, and unproven claims.

question: What does the text say about addressing social stigma?

answer: According to the text, it is important to build trust in reliable health services and show empathy to the affected individuals. The UNICEF recommends that the social stigma be addressed in a respectful and non-violent manner. A few examples would be using people-first language, or not attaching ethnicity to the disease.

question: What does the text say about midwives?

answer: According to the text, midwives play an essential role in reducing stigma against health facilities.


text:
SALINE COUNTY is a county in the U.S. state of Nebraska. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 14,200.[1] Its county seat is Wilber.[2]

In the Nebraska license plate system, Saline County is represented by the prefix 22 (it had the twenty-second-largest number of vehicles registered in the state when the license plate system was established in 1922).

History

Saline County was formed in 1855 and organized in 1867.[3][4] The first permanent settler arrived in 1858.[5]

Geography

The terrain of Saline County is composed of low rolling hills, sloping to the east-southeast.[6] Most of the county's area is devoted to agriculture. The Big Blue River flows southward in the eastern part of the county. The middle and southern parts of the county are drained by Swan Creek and Turkey Creek, which combine and discharge into Big Blue River at the county's east boundary line close to its SE corner.[7] The county has an area of , of which is land and (0.4%) is water.[8]

Major highways

-   [] U.S. Highway 6
-   [] Nebraska Highway 15
-   [] Nebraska Highway 33
-   [] Nebraska Highway 41
-   [] Nebraska Highway 74
-   [] Nebraska Highway 103

Adjacent counties

-   Lancaster County – northeast
-   Gage County – southeast
-   Jefferson County – south
-   Thayer County – southwest
-   Fillmore County – west
-   York County – northwest
-   Seward County – north

Protected areas

-   Willard Meyer Natural Resource District - Swan Lake[9]

Demographics

As of the 2000 United States Census,[10] there were 13,843 people, 5,188 households, and 3,507 families in the county. The population density was 24 people per square mile (9/km²). There were 5,611 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile (4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 92.99% White, 0.36% Black or African American, 0.38% Native American, 1.70% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 3.40% from other races, and 1.15% from two or more races. 6.58% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 5,188 households, out of which 32.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.50% were married couples living together, 7.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.40% were non-families. 27.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.04.

The county population contained 25.10% under the age of 18, 12.30% from 18 to 24, 25.00% from 25 to 44, 20.30% from 45 to 64, and 17.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 97.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,914, and the median income for a family was $44,199. Males had a median income of $30,467 versus $22,690 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,287. About 6.40% of families and 9.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.90% of those under age 18 and 9.00% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

-   Crete
-   Friend
-   Wilber (county seat)

Villages

-   De Witt
-   Dorchester
-   Swanton
-   Tobias
-   Western

Unincorporated communities

-   Berks
-   Pleasant Hill
-   Shestak

Politics

Since 1972, Saline County has been a swing county in presidential elections, voting for the national winner in all elections since then aside from 1988 and 2012. It was formerly a strongly Democratic county, voting Republican only four times between 1900 and 1968.

  Year                               Republican                                  Democratic                                  Third Parties
  ---------------------------------- ------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------- ----------------------------
  style=“text-align:center;” |2016   style=“text-align:center;” |58.5% _3,004_   style=“text-align:center;” |33.7% _1,733_   7.8% _399_
  style=“text-align:center;” |2012   style=“text-align:center;” |51.6% _2,557_   style=“text-align:center;” |46.2% _2,289_   2.3% _112_
  style=“text-align:center;” |2008   style=“text-align:center;” |46.4% _2,434_   style=“text-align:center;” |50.9% _2,674_   2.7% _143_
  style=“text-align:center;” |2004   style=“text-align:center;” |55.2% _3,071_   style=“text-align:center;” |43.5% _2,420_   1.4% _75_
  style=“text-align:center;” |2000   style=“text-align:center;” |50.2% _2,581_   style=“text-align:center;” |45.1% _2,321_   4.7% _243_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1996   style=“text-align:center;” |37.6% _1,945_   style=“text-align:center;” |48.8% _2,523_   13.7% _707_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1992   style=“text-align:center;” |30.2% _1,740_   style=“text-align:center;” |42.1% _2,425_   27.8% _1,600_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1988   style=“text-align:center;” |42.8% _2,355_   style=“text-align:center;” |56.7% _3,125_   0.5% _29_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1984   style=“text-align:center;” |54.5% _2,942_   style=“text-align:center;” |44.2% _2,385_   1.2% _67_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1980   style=“text-align:center;” |54.2% _2,934_   style=“text-align:center;” |35.2% _1,908_   10.6% _574_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1976   style=“text-align:center;” |41.2% _2,330_   style=“text-align:center;” |56.6% _3,205_   2.2% _127_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1972   style=“text-align:center;” |51.6% _2,828_   style=“text-align:center;” |48.4% _2,654_   style="text-align:center;|
  style=“text-align:center;” |1968   style=“text-align:center;” |44.7% _2,341_   style=“text-align:center;” |48.6% _2,543_   6.7% _350_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1964   style=“text-align:center;” |30.1% _1,780_   style=“text-align:center;” |69.9% _4,125_   style="text-align:center;|
  style=“text-align:center;” |1960   style=“text-align:center;” |45.0% _2,881_   style=“text-align:center;” |55.0% _3,523_   style="text-align:center;|
  style=“text-align:center;” |1956   style=“text-align:center;” |48.9% _3,248_   style=“text-align:center;” |51.1% _3,395_   style="text-align:center;|
  style=“text-align:center;” |1952   style=“text-align:center;” |60.2% _4,221_   style=“text-align:center;” |39.8% _2,792_   style="text-align:center;|
  style=“text-align:center;” |1948   style=“text-align:center;” |42.3% _2,641_   style=“text-align:center;” |57.7% _3,598_   style="text-align:center;|
  style=“text-align:center;” |1944   style=“text-align:center;” |45.5% _3,255_   style=“text-align:center;” |54.5% _3,899_   style="text-align:center;|
  style=“text-align:center;” |1940   style=“text-align:center;” |46.5% _3,673_   style=“text-align:center;” |53.5% _4,229_   style="text-align:center;|
  style=“text-align:center;” |1936   style=“text-align:center;” |32.1% _2,637_   style=“text-align:center;” |66.8% _5,480_   1.1% _89_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1932   style=“text-align:center;” |25.2% _1,993_   style=“text-align:center;” |73.9% _5,831_   0.9% _72_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1928   style=“text-align:center;” |45.7% _3,347_   style=“text-align:center;” |54.0% _3,955_   0.4% _26_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1924   style=“text-align:center;” |43.1% _2,834_   style=“text-align:center;” |47.5% _3,123_   9.4% _619_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1920   style=“text-align:center;” |58.7% _3,197_   style=“text-align:center;” |39.9% _2,172_   1.5% _80_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1916   style=“text-align:center;” |35.1% _1,469_   style=“text-align:center;” |63.2% _2,646_   1.7% _70_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1912   style=“text-align:center;” |29.7% _1,185_   style=“text-align:center;” |48.7% _1,942_   21.5% _858_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1908   style=“text-align:center;” |46.5% _2,048_   style=“text-align:center;” |51.0% _2,249_   2.5% _109_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1904   style=“text-align:center;” |61.4% _2,390_   style=“text-align:center;” |28.5% _1,108_   10.2% _396_
  style=“text-align:center;” |1900   style=“text-align:center;” |51.3% _2,238_   style=“text-align:center;” |46.3% _2,018_   2.4% _106_

  : PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION RESULTS[11]

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6] “Find an Altitude” Google Maps (accessed 28 January 2019)

[7] [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Saline+County,+NE/@40.6144132,-97.3161228,73175m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x879740df49a3260f:0x35deeec18f059cb9!8m2!3d40.4930367!4d-97.179026 _Saline County NE_ Google Maps (accessed 28 January 2019)]

[8]

[9] [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Willard+Meyer+Natural+Resource+District-+Swan+Lake/@40.4596168,-97.2687988,16z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m13!1m7!3m6!1s0x879740df49a3260f:0x35deeec18f059cb9!2sSaline+County,+NE!3b1!8m2!3d40.4930367!4d-97.179026!3m4!1s0x879706279c5c1da5:0xc7098f916f46af5a!8m2!3d40.4592774!4d-97.2632628 _Willard Meyer Natural Resource District-Swan Lake_ Google Maps (accessed 28 January 2019)]

[10]

[11] Election Results

title: Saline County, Nebraska

question: Summarize the population of Saline County.

answer: The population of Saline County was 14,200, as of the 2010 census, just slightly more than the 2000 census when it was 13,843. In 2000, the population density was 24 people per square mile which consisted of 5,188 households and 3,507 families. The demographics racial makeup was composed of 92.99% White, 6.58% Hispanic, 0.36 Black or African American, 0.38% Native American, 1.7% Asian and .03% Pacific Islander. About 25.1% of the population were under the age of 18, 12.3% from 18-24, 25% from 25-44, 20.3% from  45-64 and 17.2% were over 65. The median age was 36 years.


text:
Throw Blanket - Let's Stay In Bed, present, housewarming gift, decorative blanket, cozy, pretty

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Whoa! You can't buy your own item.

-   Handmade

-   Materials: Cotton

-   Bed size: daybed us

-   Length: 70 inches

-   Width: 38.5 inches

Our neutral decorative throw blankets are made in our Cranbury, NJ studio. Having one of these lovely blankets displayed in your home, whether folded over a blanket ladder or placed over the back of your couch, provides a warm and cozy feeling while you enjoy quality time with those you love most.

• One of a kind designs featuring the modern calligraphy of our owner, Alyssa Thiel
• Unbleached in color & lightweight (approximately 15 oz)
• 100% All Natural, Organic Cotton
• Measures 70in x 38.5in
• Designs are centered on one half of the blanket (see the reference photo on our favorite way to fold them!)
• Available in a solid off-white color, or with grey or tan stripes
• All of our products are made with eco-friendly, water-based inks
• Our designs are printed directly into the fabric, therefore there is no textured vinyl that will peel or crack
• Machine washable (Cold, Delicate cycle), however, we recommend spot-cleaning for maximum longevity
• All PCB Home products are hand-crafted therefore there may be some slight variations in each.
• Interested in a personalized blanket? View our collection here

By shopping with our small family-owned business, you make the decision to support fair trade artisans here within our local community. We take pride in being your source for high quality home decor!

• Products are made to order when you make your purchase. Please visit our FAQ page to see our current production times: https://www.etsy.com/shop/ParrisChicBoutique?ref=hdr_shop_menu#more-section

• All items are shipped via USPS mail with delivery confirmation.

• Receiving presents in the mail is the best! Sending this as a gift? We would love to include special gift wrapping and a note – just ask!

• Don't hesitate to contact us if you would like a customized item or if you have any questions about this product.

For a full list of our FAQ's and many other details visit our website: http://shoppcbhome.com/

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11,323 reviews  5 out of 5 stars

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 5 out of 5 stars

Cute throw, adds to the decor of our bedroom. Material very thin, and patterned weaving not like the picture. Not as white as picture either, more of a cream colour. Looks good in a room nonetheless.

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This is gorgeous! Thank you!

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Very cute and fast shipping!

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So pretty this delicate throw blanket is. Packaged nicely and fast shipping.

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question: What are the various features of the decorative throw blanket?

answer: Designed by the owner, Alyssa Thiel, the decorative throw blankets come in 100% All-natural organic cotton. They are available in solid off-white unbleached colors or grey or tan stripes. These lightweight blankets are made with eco-friendly water-based inks, and the designs are printed directly into the fabric, so no textured vinyl may peel. The fabric is machine washable with cold water on a delicate cycle. However, manufacturers recommend spot-cleaning for maximum longevity. Every PCB products are hand-crafted, and some may differ. The blankets contain one-of-a-kind calligraphy designs by Alyssa Thiel.

question: What does the text say about the ETA for blanket orders?

answer: The estimated delivery date depends on the date the customer purchases the item, their actual or inferred location, processing time and location, and shipping carrier. Factors that may delay delivery include placing orders on weekends/holidays and shipping carrier delays. Typically, delivery takes 3-5 business days to deliver purchased items.


text:
HELENA MARIA PADEREWSKA (née VON ROSEN; previously Górska)(August 1, 1856 – January 16, 1934) was a Polish social activist who helped found the Polish White Cross society during World War I (among other humanitarian activities), and also is known as the second wife and partial biographer of Polish patriot, prime minister and musician Ignacy Jan Paderewski.[1][2][3]

Early and family life

Born in Warsaw in 1856 to an aristocratic Polish father of Baltic German descent (Baron Wladislaw Friedrich Johann Kasimir von Rosen, b. 1829) and the former Zofia Taube, who had met during his military service in the Crimean War. Her mother Zofia was born into a noble family of Baltic heritage whose ancestors came from Denmark. Her mother died shortly after Helena's birth.[4] At the time, Warsaw was part of Congress Poland, with the Russian Tsar also the Polish King since the 1815 treaty ending the Napoleonic Wars, which also contained a provision suppressing the name “Poland” (one of Napoleon's allies having been the Duchy of Warsaw). Polish identity and culture had been forced into dissident channels, particularly in Russian- (and after 1871 also Prussian-) administered areas. (The last Polish-Lithuanian King, Augustus III of Poland, had died in 1763 and the resulting Commonwealth government had launched Europe's first secular school system a decade later, as the big-power partitions which led to the Polish state's dismemberment began).[5] She had an elder brother, possibly the father of Robert Otto von Rosen (b. 1879). Her father remarried and Helena von Rosen was raised by her paternal grandmother, Katarzyna (Rucinska) von Rosen, and her aunt Emilia Leokadia (von Rosen) Jaszowska.[6] She became fluent in four languages (especially French) but received little formal education. At age 17, she married Władysław Górski (1846-1915), then a decade her senior and a violin soloist with the Warsaw Opera orchestra.[7] Their son, Wacław Otton Górski (1877-1936) would move to the United States, become a journalist, marry twice, and would be buried in Indianapolis.[8] They also had a daughter, Maria Górska. However, marital issues which began the year after their son's birth caused their separation.

Divorce not being recognized by the Catholic church, von Rosen lived for years with Ignacy Jan Paderewski, her future second husband and a widower since his first wife Antonina Korsak had died of complications following the birth of their severely disabled son Alfred (1880-1901). Helena and Ignacy had first met circa 1878, when Paderewski was a rising young pianist near her age who played concerts with her husband. Their friendship eventually grew into a romance.[9] Beginning in 1895, Rosen attempted to annul her first marriage with Górski, on grounds that her father had not given the necessary consent to the marriage (since she was then a minor) and that the marriage ceremony had occurred in a parish to which neither spouse belonged.[10] Shortly after receiving the annulment, Helena and Ignacy married in Warsaw on May 31, 1899.

Social activist

Shortly after their marriage, Paderewski bought a villa, Riond-Bosson, near Morges, Switzerland, where he recovered from his worldwide concert tours, and they both experimented with new farming and husbandry techniques. She raised prize-winning purebred chickens at Riond-Bosson and donated 300 for breeding by the Warsaw Agricultural Society, as well as founded an agricultural school to teach Polish country girls poultry farming and gardening techniques in Julin in northeast Poland.[11] Paderewski also owned a large estate in Galicia and a property near Nyon on the shores of Lake Geneva, and circa 1913 bought two ranches near Paso Robles, California, where they spent summers in a nearby hotel, as well as cultivated walnuts, almonds and plums (processed into prunes).[12] [Mr and Mrs Paderewski at Philadelphia Emergency Aid Benefit 1916] By 1910, Paderewski was wealthy and famous both as a philanthropist and musician. He had embraced the new phonograph and sound recording technologies (like the opera star Enrique Caruso and the violinist Fritz Kreisler), as well as performed at concerts throughout Europe, the United States, Australia, South America and South Africa.[13] While he met with the powerful and courted wealthy donors for various charities they supported (some by specific concerts), Paderewska wrote letters and appeals, met with grassroots workers and parish priests, and handled marketing and money. Among her projects was a club for Warsaw's newspaper boys, and a home for elderly female veterans (including of the failed January Uprising of 1863 against Russia and the Revolution in the Kingdom of Poland (1905-1907)).

Her husband, Paderewski, also became involved in Polish affairs. Noting that Russia forbad erection of a statute to the national poet Adam Mickiewicz on the 100th anniversary of his birth, Paderewski refused invitations to perform in Moscow and St. Petersburg. After Prussia forbad the proposed erection of a statue honoring the Polish and Lithuanian warriors who won the Battle of Grunwald against the Teutonic Knights 500 years earlier (which Paderewski said he dreamed about since he was 14 years old), Paderewski proudly refused multiple invitations to perform again in Berlin. Paderewski also substantially funded both monuments, which the Austro-Hungarian Empire permitted in Kracow, Poland's historic capital (and a “free city” after the Napoleonic Wars, annexed by the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1846 and thereafter the capital of its province “Galicia”).[14] In erecting these monuments, Paderewski became associated with Roman Dmowski, president of the Polish Club of Petrograd and leader of the Polish members of the Russian Duma, but whose anti-Semitism would later become an issue used against Paderewski in the United States.[15]

As World War I's hostilities began in late July 1914, the Paderewskis were celebrating his name day and her birthday with their customary gathering of friends, musicians and politicians at their Swiss home. Their funds (and especially those of their Polish friends) were frozen in Lausanne (although they managed to live on credit), and travel became difficult. They hosted about 50 people for several weeks, and Lausanne became a gathering place for Polish exiles. In November 1914, Russian Grand Duke Nicholas reportedly promised Polish independence after the war, but Paderewski feared it a ruse to quiet rampant unrest, and began working with Erasmus Piltz, Henry Sienkiewicz, Wincenty Lutoslawski, Józef Wierusz-Kowalski, Jan Kucharzewski and other Polish exiles for Polish relief.[16]

In January 1915, Paderewski planned a three-month trip to Paris, London and the United States, initially thinking he and his wife could lobby for Polish relief, as well as continue his concert career. However, they soon realized the difficulty of the task they had undertaken. Russia's ambassador in Paris, Count Alexander Izvolsky, was anti-Polish, though a politically necessary member of any relief committee of Polish exiles in that country. Meanwhile, Paderewska through contacts with Mildred Barnes Bliss, Denys Cochin and Wladyslaw Mickiewicz was able to visit Polish conscript prisoners from the German army, as well as start a doll-making project among nearly destitute Polish students and artisans in Paris. For the next several years, she hauled trunks of dolls and sold them in conjunction with her husband's concerts to develop profits to buy milk for Polish babies and do other good works. In London, Russia's ambassador Count Alexander Benckendorff assisted Paderewski's Polish relief efforts both in Britain and its overseas colonies. However, the English public knew little about Poland, so Paderewski began writing letters to newspaper editors, which some published. Thus began his role as Polish spokesman. In April 1915, the Paderewskis boarded the transatlantic steamship _Adriatic_ for the United States, but the sinking of the _Lusitania_ the following month transformed their short trip into one of more than three years.[17][Dolls made by WW1 Polish refugees in France for sale through Helena Paderewska]

In the United States, the Paderewskis made a hotel in New York City their base, but spent possibly more nights aboard overnight railway cars, not only traveling for benefit performances (during which his wife sold dolls as well as signed autographs), but also to meet the Polish community in the United States (and get them to overcome their various hostilities to Prussia or Russia or loyalty to the broken Austro-Hungarian Empire). Paderewski advocated Poland's cause before his concerts, and also used his fame to meet key politicians and influencers, thus becoming a key spokesman in exile for Poland. He developed a relationship with Col. Edward M. House, who became a key aide of President Woodrow Wilson, and also became acquainted with future President Herbert Hoover (who initially worked to evacuate Americans trapped by the conflict and later coordinated aid in Europe). Wilson endorsed the idea of an independent Polish state immediately before his election in 1916, and chose not to block (and eventually endorsed) Paderewski's idea of an army of Polish exiles, initially proposed as Kosciuszko's Army, and later called the Blue Army or Haller's Army, which France endorsed and Canada permitted to train. The Paderewskis made many trips to Chicago (the headquarters of several Polish organizations) and in August 1918 a thousand Polish emigrant delegates from North American (of all political persuasians) met in Detroit and agreed to raise ten million dollars to benefit Poland. However, by September 1917, the press of Polish affairs forced Paderewski to stop further concerts.[18]

During their three years of travels in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean, Helena Paderewska organized help for the war's victims in Poland, as well as for Polish soldiers, who first fought in France and later on the Eastern Front.[19] With the help of Polish emigrants in the United States, Paderewska founded the Polish White Cross in February 1918 (initially the Red Cross would not permit use of its name since Poland was not a country), and also helped found the Relief Society for Intelligence.[20]

First lady

Poland briefly regained its independence as the war ended on November 11, 1918, in what became known as the Second Polish Republic. As transatlantic crossings again became safe, the couple steamed to London, where (after overcoming lodging problems) the British Foreign Office asked Paderewski go to Warsaw and help establish a stable government, necessary if Poland were to have representatives at the upcoming peace conference. After brief consultations with Mr. Dmowski in Paris (where the Peace Conference would begin), the Paderewskis and Major Iwanowski (Paderewski's secretary) embarked on a British cruiser, escorted by a destroyer, for Gdańsk. After a snowstorm delay, they reached Poland on Christmas Day. Enthusiastic crowds greeted the Paderewskis in Gdańsk and again in Posnan after a train trip the following day, although retreating Prussian authorities had opposed Paderewski's stops in either city. Moreover, Paderewski had caught a cold during the stormy sea voyage, so Paderewska took his place on the reviewing stand for the children's parade, only to learn that some Prussian soldiers were firing upon Poles elsewhere in the city. Paderewski survived an assassination attempt (bullets shot into their hotel room) before they left for Kalisz (destroyed by Prussia early in the war). Travel proved slow as Polish soldiers cleared the rail line to Warsaw, plus in every village en route people greeted them with flowers, bread and salt. Despite arriving at Warsaw at 1a.m., a crowd of peasants wearing national costumes unyoked the carriage's horses in order to pull the Paderewskis the mile to their hotel through another massive crowd.[21]

However the political situation remained chaotic, and not only because the country had been devastated by years of war. Many people lacked food, as well as boots and proper winter clothing. Despite speedy diplomatic recognition from the United States, Poland faced border disputes, particularly in Silesia with the Czechs. Russian Bolsheviks continued to fight in the north and east, and Ukrainian Bolsheviks besieged Lwow/Lemberg. On January 5–6, a bloodless failed coup led the unpopular leftist Jedrej Moraczewski government to resign, though Józef Piłsudski remained Poland's temporary chief of state. Furthermore, personal threats against Paderewski by radical elements greatly worried Paderewska, though her husband responded “there is no place in politics for a man who is afraid of death.”

From January 16 to December 9, 1919, Paderewski became the Second Republic's Prime Minister (technically president of the Council of Ministers), and Foreign Minister as well for a slightly longer time. In Poland's first elections, he had been elected from Warsaw and Lublin, and accepted the former seat.[22] Helena Paderewska accompanied him during many of these meetings, and government business was conducted at their hotel homes. She also influenced her husband's policy, and that involvement became a focus for criticism by some afraid to attack her husband directly (somewhat akin to the later Eleanor Roosevelt). During their seven months in Paris, Paderewska became one of the few women present at the signing of the Treaty of Versailles in June 1919 (her husband being Poland's signatory) and also witnessed the signing of the Treaty of St. Germain (which formally ended hostilities with the Austro-Hungarian empire) in September before they returned to Warsaw.[23] However, Paderewski resigned his positions in December, his health having failed after further elections failed to produce a majority government. They returned to their Swiss home, where Paderewska wrote her memoirs of the previous decade with the assistance of native English speakers.[24]

The following year (1920), Paderewski briefly represented Poland at the League of Nations in New York, while war continued with Russia and Ukraine, and the Red Army nearly captured Warsaw. However, the World War had also destroyed Paderewski's fortune, so he resigned that position in 1921, resumed his musical concerts in 1922, and world tours beginning in 1924. In 1924, the year of his last personal visit to Poland, Paderewski also sold his interest in the Warsaw daily newspaper _Rzeczpospolita_ and ended his political career.[25]

On January 18, 1919, all organizations working on Polish soil that followed the ideals of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement gathered, and soon amalgamated as the Polish Red Cross Society. Paderewska had participated as leader of the Polish White Cross. The Polish government soon approved the new entity, and a few months later - after the aristocratic first president Paweł Sapieha (1860-1934) resigned - Paderewska became the relatively new society's president. She continued in the position until 1926, although she last visited Poland in 1924. Paderewska also supported the Polish YWCA, and was an honorary member of Polish Women's Alliance of America.

In 1921 Pope Benedict XV awarded Paderewska the pontifical cross for her humanitarian work.[26]

Death and legacy

During the final two years of her life, Helena Paderewska suffered several illnesses. Her husband, Ignacy Paderewski, canceled his winter tour of the United States in order to comfort her in her final days. Helena Paderewska died in Switzerland on January 16, 1934 at the Paderewski estate Riond-Bosson in Tolochenaz near Morges. Her husband buried her at Cimetière des Champeaux in Montmorency, Val-d'Oise near Paris next to his Alfred (1880–1901). Deeply affected by her death, Paderewski made known his wish to be buried beside her.[27] However, he survived her by about seven years, during which time he continued to advocate for Polish independence and indicated that he wanted to be buried in Poland once it again became free, which later happened, so his remains never have been buried beside her.

In 2014, the Hoover Institution announced that curator Maciej Siekierski had discovered two copies of an unpublished typescript by Paderewska which contained a political biography of her husband during the years 1910–1920. Paderewski had entrusted it to fellow musician and U.S. military intelligence officer Ernest Schelling, who never published it, although following Siekierski's editing, it was published in 2015.[28]

[1] Piotr Majewski,''MPs and Senators of the Republic of Poland 1919-1939. Biographical Dictionary, volume IV M-P '', Wydawnictwo Sejmowe, Warsaw, 2009, p. 307

[2]

[3] Maciej Sierkierski, Helena Paderewska: Memoirs, 1910-1920 (Hoover Institution Press 2015)

[4] Sierkierski, p. xviii

[5] Norman Davies' introduction in Sierkierski p. xii

[6] Sierkierski p. xviii

[7] Sierkierski p. xviii

[8] Sierkierski p. 186

[9] Sierkierski p. xviii

[10] Sławomir Koper, _Private life of the elite of the Second Republic_, Bellona 2011, p. 188-189.

[11] Sierkierski p. 79

[12] Sierkierski pp. xix, 23-25

[13] Sierkierski p. xiii

[14] Sierkierski p. xix

[15] Sierkierski pp. 14-17, 21-23

[16] Sierkierski pp. 32-40

[17] Sierkierski pp. 41-51

[18] Sierkierski pp. 55-117

[19] Helena Paderewska, '' Paderewski: The Struggle for Polish Independence (1910-1920) '', ed. Ilias Chrissochoidis (Stanford, Brave World, 2015), pp. 130-134.

[20] _Lexicon of Polish History_ from 1995, p. 543

[21] Siekierski pp. 123-134

[22] Siekierski pp. 145-146

[23] Siekierski pp. 135-143

[24] Siekierski pp. 166-172

[25] Siekierski pp. 173-174

[26]

[27] M. Drozdowski, '' Ignacy Jan Paderewski. Pianist, composer, statesman '', Wydawnictwo DiG, Warsaw, 2001, p. 115

[28]

title: Helena Paderewska

question: When was Paderewska born?

answer: August 1, 1856

question: Who was Paderewska the second wife of?

answer: Ignacy Jan Paderewski, a Polish patriot, prime minister, and musician

question: Who rediscovered Paderewska's unpublished biography of her husband?

answer: Maciej Siekierski, a curator at the Hoover Institution

question: What honor did Paderewska receive in 1921?

answer: The pontifical cross

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: Helena Maria Paderewska was a Polish social activist. She helped found the Polish White Cross, and she was the second wife and partial biographer of Ignacy Jan Paderewski, a Polish patriot, prime minister, and musician. She was born in 1856 and died in 1934. In 2014, her unpublished partial biography of her husband was rediscovered by Maciej Siekierski, a curator at the Hoover Institution, and it was published the following year.


text:
	It was like a fairytale love-story. One could also say, and this was often described as a reason of their happiness, that they sold their souls to the Devil himself for life-long fortune. They met at charity ball and months after their love was signed with the act of marriage. He worked at university as professor of arts and was an exquisite painter. Soon after marriage they announced her pregnancy and their lives and lives others around them were shining bright from happiness. The day of labour has written itself as the darkest day of their lives, for she gave birth to a dead child. For quite some time they withdrew from society and kept their lives for themselves.
When they were nearing third year of marriage they finally started to look as a happy couple like before. Words were told, that at their house, there is a wall of pure happiness, the masterpiece of their lives, painted on wall in living room. And as she never touched brush, nor the pallet before, it was a pure miracle that her skills were comparable of that of her husband. They worked day and night, like possessed and this work of art had soon become meaning of their lives. Only few closest friends were acknowledged of pure beauty that was being made there and they spoke of highest flatteries about it.
Shortly before it could be finished she became ill. Her health subsided faster and faster,  no doctor was able to help her. He went almost mad, physically attacking every doctor whose cure failed. After few weeks she asked of him, if they can continue on their work, for she sensed that her end is nearing. She wanted to spend her last moments with him doing what they loved most. And they continued and the day of her death is the same as the day of final stroke of brush on their wall.
He was shattered by loss, and closed himself from others. There are only few photos of their masterpiece from time shortly after her death and those are held under lock by authorities of law and also of art. Only his close friend since childhood, who was held for questioning for quite long time after events which are described in this story, was able to directly observe what happened after her death to his friend.
As many before and after him, he turned to alcohol to drown his sorrows and to forget. Then, during one particular tantrum, he went to storeroom, which held all artistic tools and gears, and got himself bucket full of black paint. He then proceeded to the wall and took long looks at it with bottle of booze in one hand, bucket of black paint in the other and tears in his eyes. He then spilled the whole bucket on the wall, took yet another one and another one, and there is said, that almost a dozen of large buckets filled with black paint were spilled and used to cover arguably the most beautiful thing human hands has ever made.
Next morning his friend came to visit him, to lend comforting hand and to try to help him recover from loss and pain. He found his friend, lying in living room, deep in slumber, covered with black stains. When he turned around, he gazed upon wall of pure blackness, where once were the wall of happiness. Interestingly, when he visited him week after week, he always found him lying on the ground, covered in black paint, almost unconscious from alcohol and new layer of fresh black paint was added to the wall. This started to really rise his concerns about his friend so he tried talking to him about this matter. He explained to him, that everytime he covers wall in all of it’s entirety with black paint, soon after that, the paint somehow dissipates and reveals painting underneath it. He told him, that everytime this happens, he feels as if his very soul was being shattered to small pieces. So he covers painting with black paint so his pain is more bearable.
Few weeks after continuous repetition of this ritual, his friend found him lying on the ground, back to top, head drowned in bucket of black paint, his body facing the wall painting. His friend then saw what was making him so anxious. The black colour was receded mostly from centre, around the edges it became more reddish and gave painting looks as if their mutual project was being swallowed by infernal flames.
Soon after police came to secure the area, they took many photos and couldn’t believe their eyes. For after they conducted experiment of following procedure. They put on a static tripod high quality camera, which took photos of the same wall every hour. Then they put resulting photos of whole week one by one as it is done in animation. Then, the most interesting thing was to be observed. Black paint really dissipated from center to outer edges, and formed more red hue, with orange and yellow parts, which altogether created effect of moving flames, for during time these splatters slowly moved across the whole wall. What caused this effect is still mystery and there is no doubt someone will break it someday, but for now this leaves interesting questions unanswered.

title: The Wall

question: How did a wall of happiness turn into a wall of pure blackness?

answer: After giving birth to a dead child, a university professor and his wife withdrew from society. However, after 3 years of marriage, they were a happy couple again, painting a masterpiece on their living room wall. The professor's wife became ill and no doctor could help her. They continued working on the masterpiece as she sensed her end was near and wanted to spend her last moments doing what they loved most. After she passed away, the professor would drown his sorrows in alcohol and spill large buckets of black paint on the wall's painting. He would repeat the process whenever the painting underneath the black paint would reveal itself.