text:
COLLIE STREET is in Fremantle, Western Australia.

It commences at South Terrace and proceeds to Marine Terrace.[1]

It defines the south eastern boundary of the Fremantle West End Heritage area between Market Street and Marine Terrace.[2][3]

The street is named after Alexander Collie, the surgeon aboard .[4]

In the early 1900s the residences of the street were afflicted with bubonic plague.[5]

Notable buildings found along the street include:

-   Fremantle Trades Hall, on the corner of Pakenham Street[6]
-   Oceanic Hotel, formerly known as the Collie Hotel, on the corner of Pakenham Street[7]
-   Esplanade Hotel, on the corner of Marine Terrace and Essex Street[8]

Notes

 Category:Streets in Fremantle

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

title: Collie Street, Fremantle

question: What country is Collie Street in?

answer: Australia

question: Who is the street named after?

answer: It's named after Alexander Collie, a surgeon.

question: Describe the Oceanic Hotel?

answer: It was formerly known as the Collie Hotel and is on the corner of Pakenham Street in Fremantle.

question: What does Collie Street define?

answer: It defines the south eastern boundary of the Fremantle West End Heritage area between Market Street and Marine Terrace in Fremantle.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: This article describes Collie Street in Fremantle, Western Australia. It's home to the Fremantle Trades Hall, Oceanic Hotel, and the Esplanade Hotel.


split: train

text:
[]

David Sherman/NBAE/GettyImages

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL – The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced that the team has exercised the third-year options on forward Anthony Bennett, center Gorgui Dieng and forward Shabazz Muhammad.

Bennett, obtained in a trade from Cleveland on Aug. 23, saw action in 52 games for the Cavaliers in 2013-14, averaging 4.2 points and 3.0 rebounds in 12.8 minutes per game. He posted two double-doubles on the season, tallying a career-high 19 points and 10 rebounds off the bench Feb. 11 vs. Sacramento and scoring 10 points and grabbing a career-high 11 rebounds off the bench Feb. 18 at Philadelphia.

Dieng saw action in 60 games last season, including 33 of the final 35; he averaged 4.8 points and 5.0 rebounds in 13.6 minutes per game. He started 15 of the final 18 contests, averaging 12.0 points and 11.3 while collecting nine double-doubles. Dieng closed his rookie NBA campaign by being named Western Conference Rookie of the Month for March.

Muhammad finished his rookie NBA season by appearing in 37 games for the Wolves, all off the bench, and averaged 3.9 points and 1.4 rebounds in 7.8 minutes per game. He tallied a season-high 20 points Feb. 25 at Phoenix, one of four double-digit nights on the season.

question: What does it mean to exercise the third-year option?

answer: Information not found.

question: Who are the three players the team has exercised the third-year option on?

answer: Anthony Bennett, Gorgui Dieng, and Shabazz Muhammad

question: Who was Bennet previously playing with?

answer: Cleveland Cavaliers

question: In how many games did Muhammad appeared during his first rookie NBA season?

answer: in 37 games.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: The short article is about The Minnesota Timberwolves announced that the team has exercised the third-year options on forward Anthony Bennett, center Gorgui Dieng, and forward Shabazz Muhammad plus a bit on their performance.


text:
-An Introduction-

We set out at around five pm. It was a Saturday.

We drifted out with no general direction, no destination to cap off what was sure to be, as Darren often stated, “one hell of a road trip, bitch!”
In those early days we contemplated the “great western gap”, (“Great Western Vag”, Yaemon often quoted when bored), otherwise known as Grand Canyon. Hell, it looked cool in Into The Wild (2007), and some stuntdriver hopped it back in the 90’s or something.  And Thelma n Louise (1991) had their famous lesbo burn out there as well, (earning many brownie points with Meg n  Margaret, who where known to sometimes dabble in a little sumin summin every now and then, a secret burden they would keep to their grave.)

Somewhere in New Mexico we inevitably fell astray of our possible destination, instead winding up at the chicken restaurant featured in Breaking Bad(2008-2012), and making fools of ourselves by going on a 15 minute photo spree, re-enacting bits of the show for all to see, uploaded to all the facebooks and twitters of the world, as if in defiance, boldly stating “WE ARE GRADUATES AND WE’RE STILL RELEVANT!, MOTHERFUCKERS!”.

 In retrospect it was a foolish, good ol’ reddit style meta-circle-jerk, living in the flesh; Internet meme mythos consolidated in the subconscious mind of the Millennial’s of the world, and asserting itself on some  primordial level in the modern world.

Yeamon Milo  (23) Was definitely Pedobear. A closet creeper that hid behind the mask of stupidity to consummate his horrific fantasies, but we didn’t catch on until it was too late. I guess you could argue he turned into Insanity Wolf towards the end there, a real fucking monster, but more on that later.

Darren Wolodarsky (19) was a definite Conspiracy Keanu.  Always smelling of reefer and speaking in hushed, harsh tones in public. Only in the seclusion of hot boxed garages and smoked out pads of middle America suburbia, safe haven of the “lazy stoners”, did he reveal his true knack of comedic timing and brilliant wordplay he’d learned specifically to perform to this small, private audience. I guess you could call him a bit of a Jekyll n Hyde of Socially Awkward/Awesome penguin, of meme fame.

Pancho “Peter” Vasquez (21)  was a Good Guy Greg for sure, blunt and all. Always a pleasant person to be around, he saved our asses back during the Great Drug Scare of ’12, something we never really were able to pay him back for before it all came crashing down.  A smart theologian who always questioned what exactly spirituality meant to him. A most honest man.

Meg Blanco (17) was still legally a minor, and not even a high school graduate, but she was eventually accepted as the Naïve College Girl. After the tragic incidents that befell us at Death Mountain, her bass playing skills had become the stuff of legends, and the simple 3 track demo tape she released online (“Dark Heart Melodies”, May 3, 2009) for free all those years ago got a post-mortem revival which eventually catapulted the track “Blue Dream” (5/5 on Pitchfork) , to the no.1 top billboard spot for a record breaking 20 weeks. I guess she could also be referred to as a “Marlene” (of Adventure Time fame).

Margaret Thatcher (20 and yes, ironically named) The closest one you could consider to be a “hipster”, whatever that vague blanket term means. Arts and crafts. Thick rimmed glasses. Long blonde hair.  Into the Beatles, but only if it was on vinyl. Hit up the arthouse scene from time to time , dabbling in it every now and then, some would say for street cred, others not so much.

So as I was saying before, this motley crew of various graduates and collegiate level students all got packed into Wolodarsky’s Mystery Van and spent the better part of the day laying on the shag carpet in the back, a personal party room on four wheels, all of us just lying face up to get a better view of the rainbow fractals drifting across the ceiling,.

Oh, the van was also blacklight equipped.

After visiting the Breaking Bad set, we decided to wander our way up to the frigid northern region to find the fabled mass E.T.  (Atari, 1982) burial sites. We all had agreed that this was a sound venture to embark upon, and so it went!

Actually, we should stop at this point of the trip, and observe a few things, because the shit that goes down here eventually causes a fucking hurricane later down the road. Planted the seeds of destruction, if you will.

It all went back to the incident we went through one night that freaked us out for a few months, but we cant start there, no, far too dark and dreary. We’ll start here instead, an earlier memory from the final days of blissful; solace, before deterioration.

title: An Introduction  (original stuffs)

question: What does the story say about the narrator?

answer: The narrator drifted out with someone around 5 pm on a Saturday. Somewhere in New Mexico, they wind up in a chicken restaurant that was featured in Breaking Bad.

question: What does the story say about the narrator and Darren?

question: What does the story say about Pancho "Peter" Vasquez?

answer: Pancho "Peter" Vasquez was a friend of the narrator's that was an overall good guy. He saved them back during the Great Drug Scare of '12. He is the most honest man.

question: What does the text say about Meg Blanco?

answer: Meg Blanco is underaged and the bass player. She is also referred to as "Marlene" like the bass player in a popular cartoon show, Adventure time. Her simple 3 track demo tape released online years ago reached revival and hit the no.1 top billboard spot for a record-breaking 20 weeks.


text:
There was once a little boy who lived with his grandpa because his mom and dad had gone away for a very long time. They did a very bad thing to the boy. The little boy loved his grandpa very much but he didn't know it. Grandpa knew the little boy loved him very much and he loved him back, even more than he loved himself. The little boy's favorite food was macaroni and cheese. His grandpa was very good at making macaroni and cheese and he made it every night and the boy was happy. He went to school and learned about big animals that live very far away and he loved to read. He read mystery books and funny books and comic books. He loved Superman.

It was his birthday and grandpa was making him macaroni and cheese with tuna and peas, that was his favorite dinner. He put a pan of water onto the stove and the peas in the microwave. Grandpa bought the boy a new issue of Superman that the boy wanted very badly. The boy would always take the bus home because his grandpa didn't have a car. So the grandpa put the boys favorite movie into the DVD player and waited for the boy.

The water started to bubble and boil over so grandpa turned the oven down and poured the macaroni in. The microwave beeped so grandpa turned it off and let the peas cool down. He drained the macaroni and stirred the cheese and mixed in the tuna and peas. The bowl was very hot so grandpa put a paper towel underneath it. He didn't want the boy to burn himself. The TV asked grandpa if he wanted to play the movie but he didn't want to because the boy was not home.

Grandpa waited and waited for the little boy and the macaroni and cheese with tuna and peas wasn't hot anymore. He started to watch the movie and became very sad. Grandpa was very worried about the boy and so he got his cane and coat and walked out into the cold. He walked until he got to the boy's bus stop and it was very dark now. He did not see the boy at the bus stop and there were no cars on the road. He sat down on the bench and started to shiver and breathe faster than he should have. More snow started to fall and now grandpa almost couldn't see anything at all. The boy was not around. Grandpa couldn't cry because it was too cold. But he wanted to and he sobbed for a very long time.

The boy's head hurt and he was very cold but he finally got home after a long walk. He had to take a different way because the other mean boys told him he couldn't take the bus anymore. The boy picked up the front door key and opened the door. The house was very dark like it was outside and so he turned on the light. He saw his favorite food on the table, macaroni and cheese with tuna and peas. There was a comic book on the table and his favorite was on the TV and the funny animals were there talking to each other and the boy sat and watched and called for grandpa. But grandpa was not there and the boy could not find him. He looked in the bathroom and the kitchen and his room and grandpas room but he was not there.

He was hungry so he ate the macaroni and cheese with tuna and peas. He looked at the comic book and it was the new issue of Superman that the boy wanted so badly and so he read it. Grandpa wrote on the inside of how much he loved the boy and he hoped he enjoyed the comic book. The macaroni and cheese with tuna and peas was cold but it was still very good. Grandpa loved cooking for the little boy and the little loved grandpa's cooking because it made him feel comfortable and warm and he loved grandpa very much but he didn't know it.

Grandpa had dropped his cane and he was feeling very cold and tired so he fell asleep. He thought about the boy and how he loved the boy very much, even more than he loved himself. And he fell asleep. A man came by and asked grandpa if he was okay but grandpa didn't answer.

The boy waited and waited for grandpa and he fell asleep on the table and he heard the funny animals talking to each other and it made him feel good. Grandpa tucked him into bed and covered him up in warm blankets and he told the boy he loved him very much and he would make him macaroni and cheese tomorrow.

title: I'd be grateful if anyone took a look at my short story The Little Boy and His Grandpa

question: Why is the boy late coming home?

answer: A group of bullies wouldn't let him take the bus, so he had to walk home

question: Why is the grandpa not at the home when the boy arrives?

answer: He gets worried about the boy and goes to the bus stop to wait for him

question: What meal does the grandpa cook for the boy?

answer: Macaroni and cheese with tuna and peas

question: What does the grandpa get the boy for his birthday?

answer: A Superman comic book

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer: A boy lives with his grandfather. For the boy's birthday, his grandfather makes his favorite meal, macaroni and cheese with tuna and peas, and gets him a Superman comic book. The boy is late coming home because a group of bullies made him walk instead of taking the bus, and the grandfather goes to the bus stop to wait for him. He boy arrives home, doesn't see his grandfather, and falls asleep after eating. The grandfather comes home and tucks him in.


text:
Hey Everyone :D  I'm only a casual writer, but I just finished this short story on a whim tonight.  Please give me some feedback and let me know what you think.  Also, I'm really interested in knowing what sort of emotions you felt while reading it.  Thanks everyone!

It sounded like the deep whoosh of fan blades, but they were in his head.  The world seemed as if it were being seen through a plastic sheet, everything was blurry and finding focus was impossible.  Nevertheless, the small, dark haired boy began pushing himself up to his feet.  Confusion swept through him.  In his hand was a small piece of jagged aluminum, the kind used for guttering, or heavy tin cans.  It seemed so foreign.

	As the boy's gaze rose, he saw a man lying next to him.  Most of his head had been removed by the blast of some large firearm.  Small chunks of brain were strewn for several feet around them both.  Gray matter and blood formed an Spaghetti-Oh looking soup in the rivets and missing chunks of the cold concrete floor.  You could see the top of the man's spine by looking in the large hole where his right cheekbone should have been.

	A woman.  A woman ran towards the boy looking frantic – dangerous even.  She had a wild look in her eye, and a shotgun in held loosely in her hand, pointing at the floor.  He knew that if he let her get close, something bad would happen.  She would wrap her blood-covered arms around him and take him away.  Take him away from wherever he was to someplace else, someplace strange and terrible.

	The boy was shaking with fear and staring at the woman when suddenly the quiet hit him.  Everything went silent.  It was as if he had awoken to a world set in a Charlie Chaplan film.  The quiet – the nothingness within the quiet – scared the boy.  It scared him worse than the dead man, worse than the crazy shotgun-toting lady.  It scared him on a primal level and he knew right away that he should run.  He should run and get as far away as possible.

	The woman had gotten closer.  She was opening her mouth, pointing at him, even crying in her raging hysteria.  She looked battered.  The dark, shining areas under both of her eyes told the entire story easily enough.  She seemed oddly familiar.  Her insanity was evident in her face, twisted with more emotion than the young boy could understand.  He turned to flee, but was too slow.  A hand gripped his shoulder, pulling him back towards the crazy lady.

	It wasn't something he thought about.  Not at all.  As the hand touched his shoulder, he jerked violently around and thrust the jagged aluminum spike with all of his might.  There was some resistance, but it quickly gave way.   Although the woman did not have her gun raised, the sudden jerk raised the barrel in line with the young boys knee.  As fire ripped through her abdomen, she accidentally pulled the trigger.

	Something about the shotgun blast shook the boy deep inside.  Sounds flooded back into his world.  It was almost too loud, too sudden.  The ground was coming at him.  His leg would not work to catch him.  The confusion was too much, blackness started to seep in around the edges of his vision.  His head hit the ground hard, but he remained conscious.  In shock, and too scared to move, the boy could only watch.

The woman had fallen to her side, and was gripping at the aluminum shaft sticking out of her stomach.  The look on her face was born of pure surprise.  Her abdominal muscles reacted to the impalement –  instantly locking up and tightening around the intruder.  She felt her lifeblood flowing freely from wound, felt herself getting weaker.  Her poor boy.  He breathed raggedly on the ground next to her, looking up in fearful state of shock that Vietnam veterans would have cringed at.  She felt herself slipping away.  She looked down at the boy.  “Son... why?”

title: Of Dark And Twisted Moments

question: What had occurred at the beginning of the story?

answer: A blast of some kind

question: Who is the woman?

answer: The child's mother.

question: Where does this take place?

answer: It is unclear where this occurs.

question: How did the boy feel about the woman?

answer: Distrustful

question: Write a ~6 sentence summary.

answer: A boy wakes  up next to a dead man. He doesn't know what is going on around him. A woman frantically runs toward him, scaring him. He tries to run but she grabs him. He stabs the woman with aluminum and the woman accidentally shoots his knee. The woman turned out to be his mother.


text:
It was strange how the animals acted no differently than they had before it happened.

Squirrels climbed over the piles of rubble, either completely oblivious or simply unconcerned with what that rubble could have been just a couple years back. Blue birds flew in the same patterns they did before, paying no attention to the fact that their shit was landing on history itself: on cobblestones and marble columns that could have been testaments to the collective knowledge of those who were here just a bit ago, yet so long ago as well.

It’s been said that the Earth is resilient and that, when left to run its course, nature fixes all. Perhaps someone would even say that that is exactly what happened, and that although the course can seem amoral and even outright wicked at times, it is nature’s course nonetheless and that it exists in a plane above all questioning. But of course, no one said that.

No one, especially not the only sign of this past world that remained, the sulking frame of muscle and bones and dried-out hair that was currently bathing at the bottom of a nearby waterfall. No, he, (and he is certainly an accurate term to describe this embodiment of animalistic masculinity) was more concerned with removing the foreign, black, sticky thing that seemed to have a death-grip on his foot. The deer were likely to cross the same path they do at this time every day, and he had to be rid of all distractions, poised and ready to pounce. Sadly for our primal protagonist, he was indeed too late and was forced to come to terms with the reality that he would be entering another growling match with his stomach tonight.

But this realization would go on to be as unfulfilled as the aforementioned one, for this night was not like the other nights. The squirrels still climbed and the birds still shit, but a disturbance had come to enter this formerly peaceful land. He was unable to sleep, and found himself staring at the sky, waiting for his fat, yellow friend to come back and tell him that the world was safe again.

Indeed the sun did return, as it always promised it would, even after the End. He did as he always did too, and followed his instincts to the tallest rocks he could see. There, as he approached the peak of the stony mountain before him, did a figure enter his view. It was like him, with meat and bone and hair, but different too. This figure had strange bulges at the chest and in its eyes was a longing that he would have said felt like coming home, if he could remember how to say that or knew what a home was.

And then, something magical happened. For the first time in a very long time, his mouth managed to form a very old word. Finally, he forced his throat to let it out.

	“Adam,” he said.

	She smiled coyly. “Eve.”

And so it Began.

title: A Very Old Story

question: What destroyed society?

answer: That information can't be found

question: Who is the main character?

answer: He calls himself Adam, but this might be a joke because he is apparently the last man on Earth

question: Who is the main character's "fat, yellow friend?"

answer: The sun

question: What was the main character hunting?

answer: Deer

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: An unstated event has destroyed buildings and apparently wiped out almost all of humanity. The main character tries and fails to hunt deer, and he finds it hard to sleep that night. The next morning, he sees a woman; he introduces himself as Adam, and she calls herself Eve.


text:
Resume: In a world overtaken by an evil dictator, a young girl discovers that no one can be trusted.

Something in the Rain

The silent drops of rain made the asphalt smell in the characteristic way which Dawn always associated with riding bikes and skipping ropes late summer evenings as a child, and how her life used to be, back before everything began falling apart. A faint squeeze in her hand broke her train of thought and she looked into a pair of hazel eyes, which shifted it’s gaze quickly. “Keep your eyes on the road,” Jeffery said in a muted voice “you never know when a car comes.” Jeffery and Dawn were walking right in the middle of a pitch black, broad avenue, and they both knew that there wouldn’t be any cars driving the street until the factory workers woke at 6:30 am, and they were both perfectly aware that it was mindless to be be on the street at this hour, who knew if one of Xavier’s informants were hiding behind the tall oak trees. But they still said it, as, one of many, ways to keep calm despite the curfew, bans and other restrictions made under their new leader Xavier’s regime. Being with Jeffery kept Dawn sane at the moment, her entire life had been turned upside down when Xavier came to power, Jeffery was her rock. And it that moment he said under his breath; “You know I got my letter this morning.” Dawn clenched his hand, it couldn’t be already, could it? “No.” was all she managed to say, her nails still digging into the fair skin on his hand. Ever since Xavier infiltrated and took over the government, he had ruled the country with an iron fist, and as the rebels grew numerous, he had ordered every man and boy over the age of, and those who were to turn 18 to fight in his army. And were anyone to refuse, they were doomed to leave the country forever, in rare cases they were used as the informants, protecting their own lives, by spying on a suspected family member. Most of these lived as outcast, or rebels. And now it was Jeffery’s turn. Dawn didn’t know which fate was worse, to fight alongside Xavier’s army of killing machines, or the equally bloodthirsty rebels. She had already lost her father’s sanity, to this war when he fought for Xavier. Dawn’s father had been an honourable soldier the first years of the war, but had now retired. The only thing he cared about now, was to enforce Xavier’s word, Jeffery could either end his life this way, or living with the rebels in the desert. “No,” she repeated, her voice shaking, the lump in her throat growing bigger by the second “you can’t do it.” Jeffery looked in every other direction than Dawn’s, “My mother was crying the entire morning” he finally said, his voice shaking. “Then let us run away! Cross the border,” Dawn said before she had time to think it trough. Jeffery stopped walking and let go of Dawns hand, his gaze locked on something in the distance “Do you think we would be able to do it?” Jeffery stared at his shoes, kicking a tiny pebble all the way down the now slightly more illuminated avenue, and out of sight. “Anything is better than the war,” Dawn whispered and took both of his hands in hers and squeezed them “think about it, but we have get going, it’s getting lighter” Jeffery embraced Dawn, and she heard a faint “Thank you” in her ear. She turned around and ran the last few blocks home.

The old, battered door into the staircase gave a slight creak as she opened it, luckily no one used to be up this early anyway. But already when she shoved the key in the door to the flat she shared with her father, she knew something was wrong. She heard her fathers armchair squeak from the other side of the door, “Dawn Hobson!” she heard her father’s rusty voice call, “you better get in here right this second!” his slippers dragged slowly across the carpet, and he was near the door. Dawn knew, that did she open that door, she was certain to spend the rest of her teenage years in the juvenile detention centre. He had caught her before, twice, and had sworn, that did she break the leader’s rules once again, he wouldn’t acknowledge her as his daughter anymore. She turned around on the balls of her feet, and ran swiftly down the stairs. She reached the street just when she heard footsteps resonate in the staircase. It was too early to be out still, but the street was now so light, that she had to move as quickly as possible, to not be seen. The only place she could go at this time was to Jeffery’s. It was a long run, but it was the only option. Dawn reached Jeffery’s house, panting and out of breath, she crept around the house into the garden and tapped lightly on his window. Dawn was sure he was in his bed, sleepless, because of the arrival of his letter earlier in the day, and she was right. His face was filled with shock as he rose from his bed and quickly opened the window. “What are you doing here?” he barely managed to stutter before Dawn was through the window. “We have to flee,” she gasped, “I have to, he is going to find me, and he is going to kill me.” A terrified emotion crossed Jeffery’s face before his eyes returned to their familiar calming shape, but what was it, why didn’t they seem as reliable as they used to?. “Just… relax,” he hesitated, “no matter what, we’ll have to wait, I’ll get you some water.” He said absentminded as Dawn dropped confused on the bed. Through the walls to the kitchen, she heard faint voices, what was happening? “Probably nothing” she thought to herself as her eyes shut of exhaustion for a moment.

She was awoken what felt like seconds later, by the sound of heavy marching boots in the tiny bedroom. A jolt of terror hit her entire body as she saw Xavier’s silver tiger on the chest of the uniformed men. She couldn’t focus on anything but Jeffery’s emotionless face in the background as the soldiers lifted her by the arms, from the bed and through the room. Her ears was ringing, but she could still make out the words Jeffery mouthed before he turned his back at her for the last time, “I’m sorry”.

The asphalt was cold and wet on her bare arms, the rain still falling, feeling chilly through her soaked top, but the warmth was spreading from the tingling graze on her cheek. She couldn’t see anything but the boots surrounding her, and the red sticky fluid slowly oozing from her mouth. Her life really had been turned upside down the last few years. A shiny leather boot lifted of the ground, nearing her face, and she inhaled one last breath of the scent of the asphalt as she closed her eyes and reminisced the warm summer days, which usually didn’t end this way.

title: Something in the Rain - By me- criticism welcome!

question: Who is the main character?

answer: Dawn

question: What does Dawn want from Jeffrey?

answer: She wants him to refuse to fight in Xavier's army and run away with her.

question: Why is Jeffrey sorry?

answer: He doesn't hide her from the soldiers.

question: Who is Xavier?

answer: He is a dictator.

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer: Dawn is breaking curfew with her friend Jeffrey, who was just ordered to join Xavier's army. Xavier is a dictator who's been fighting an insurgency for years. Dawn doesn't want Jeffrey to lose his life in the war. She gets home and her father (a supporter of Xavier) turns her in to the soldiers. She runs away but is captured at Jeffrey's house and presumably killed.


text:
[Burn]Every beginning has its end; the employment road is no different. People find dream jobs, they leave for better opportunities, and sometimes they are fired from a nightmare that started in bliss. Despite the commonly held perception that “people don’t leave their jobs, they leave their managers,” a study from LinkedIn found that most employees quit due to a lack of advancement opportunities.

Remember the case of CBS affiliate KTVA reporter Charlene “Charlo Greene” Egbe, who made everyone in the broadcast area aware of her grievances? Egbe brought quitting into a whole new playing field. Not only was she reporting on the hot topic of marijuana legalization in Alaska, she explicitly quit her position while on air. Egbe announced her ownership of the Alaskan Cannabis Club and afterwards exclaimed that she quit.

Now, not all employees will leave their position as hastily or begrudgingly. In Egbe’s case, she left her broadcast position at KTVA in order to follow a path she was passionate about — an opportunity she wouldn’t have had in her position with the CBS partner. As a recruiter, you can help to prevent former employees from becoming disgruntled. After all, you’re the first one they talk to about the company and the position. Their first impressions of the job rely on you. The opportunities they will and won’t have are dependent upon what you convey.

GOAL ALIGNMENT

As previously stated, Egbe’s passion wasn’t in the news business. She wanted to make a bigger, more profound difference in her community. Her goals did not match those of the organization, so she followed them elsewhere. This is why matching the right candidate to the right position is so important. Culturally and functionally, pairing talent to a job can mean the success of both the new hire and the company. When a new hire is successful in the position, it means a lower turnover rate. Andre Lavoie, entrepreneur and CEO of ClearCompany, explained why goal alignment is important for employee satisfaction and company success:

  _“Understanding how individual employee work ladders up to larger organizational goals allows for an in-depth understanding of progress. Additionally, it ensures your workers understand their value and contributions to the company. This helps improve employee engagement and leads to a happier company culture. Implementing a goal-centric system makes certain your people are working towards the right goals, preventing costly misalignment.”_

EXIT INTERVIEWS

It’s inevitable. Companies are going to have employees that aren’t happy about quitting because of workplace conflicts or lack of appreciation. However, to prevent _future_ disgruntled former employees, hiring managers can sit down with the former employees to conduct exit interviews and communicate findings to keep recruiters in the loop. Find out exactly where the company went wrong and what it can do better. One-fifth of employees who voluntarily leave their jobs do so because they are simply bored. There is a direct correlation between boredom and few or no opportunities for internal advancements. Employees want to be challenged; it isn’t enough to have attractive benefits.

Deborah Muller, CEO of HR Acuity, said that exit interviews are often not as effective as they could be because the HR team just goes through the motions. In order to change anything in the company or hiring process, you can’t simply ask the questions and file them away: you have to actually pay attention and act on them. Muller said:

  _“The_ _exit interview represents the chance to collect information_ _that safeguards the organization from employment litigation, increases engagement,and reduces turnover, but that is rarely what happens.”_

Charlene Egbe is not the only employee who has left their job in a less-than-tactful manner. Goal misalignment can be prevented before a candidate is even hired. Proper recruiting inhibits employees from becoming complacent or unhappy with their work.

However, in the event an employee resigns from their position because they are unhappy at their job, a lot can be learned from exit interviews. The catch is, you have to actually pay attention to them. Going through the motions of an exit interview won’t do anything to reduce turnover or increase employee engagement. In fact, if you’re only going through the motions, you might as well just not do them – except for the fact they serve as legal protection for the company (so you really should).

_What are you doing to prevent disgruntled employees?_

Power your recruiting success.
Tap into Recruiter.com, the largest network of recruiters.

[Sarah Duke]

Sarah Duke is a Content Creator at Red Branch Media, a marketing and advertising firm that serves the Human Resources and Recruiting markets. Red Branch Media has grown from a simple consultancy to a full-service B2B marketing agency. Duke brings a history of Public Affairs experience to Red Branch and enjoys writing about the HCM Marketplace. Google+ Profile

question: What does the text say about the road to finding one's dream job?

answer: The road is peppered with different obstacles-and sometimes the position is not what it seemed in the beginning. A job that seemed promising might end up in disappointment; one that was far from a dream can have its upsides. Most employees quit due to a lack of advancement opportunities, according to a Linkedin survey, so most roads probably don't offer much in the way of upward mobility.

question: What does the text say about the amount of free will employees and employers have in the workplace?

answer: The text seems to indicate that employers might exercise their free will in choosing to filter and vet the sort of candidates they choose to hire. They also can limit advancement opportunities, or grant them. Employees can choose to short-change the place of business, or they can live in an impromptu and less-than-tactful manner.

question: What does this article say about the types of employment available in the United States?


text:
The importance of knowing the prevalence of dementia in Europe

At a regional, national and international level, strategic planning of health and social policy is dependent on accurate estimation of the size of the challenge, and with this comes an ability to estimate the future cost of the care, support and treatment needed. At an individual level the ability of patient associations to be able to offer evidence-based knowledge to patients and caregivers is a minimal expectation. Knowledge about the numbers of people affected by dementia is therefore essential.

The following tables provide details of the prevalence of dementia within the EU-28 countries, as well as in Jersey, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Turkey. We have separated both sets of countries so as to have a figure for the European Union, and one for additional countries in which Alzheimer Europe has a member association.

What we mean by prevalence

When we use the term “prevalence”, we are referring to the estimated proportion of individuals in a given population that have a particular condition, in this case dementia,  at a specific time. This includes people who have recently developed dementia, as well as those who have already had the condition for some time (i.e. incident and prevalent cases). A prevalence rate is the total number of cases of a disease in a known population divided by the total population (New York State Department of Health, 1999). This differs from an incidence rate which measures the number of new cases of a condition divided by the number of people at risk for the condition, starting from a group of people who do not yet have it. In other words, incidence rates represent the rate at which new cases develop in the population, whereas prevalence rates provide a snapshot of the health status of a particular population at a given time (Prince, 2008). The figures we present here concern the latter.

How we calculated the prevalence figures for this report

For our calculations, we used projected population statistics from the United Nations for 2012 and two sets of prevalence rates. The resulting figures which you can see in the tables are the result of multiplying the population in given age groups (i.e. 30 to 59, followed by 5-year age groups, ending with 95+) with one of two sets of prevalence rates:

1.  Prevalence rates from the EURODEM study were used to calculate the prevalence of dementia in the 30 to 59 age group. EURODEM (1991) was an EU-funded study, based in the Erasmus Medical Centre, Rotterdam. This was a collaborative study involving the analysis of 12 population-based epidemiological studies from 8 countries in relation to the prevalence of dementia. The results were published in an article by Hofman et al. (1991) and the work was updated in 2000. The studies are highly relevant today even though they were based on cohorts commenced in the 1980s, and do not include data from Eastern Europe (Alzheimer Europe, 2013).
2.  Prevalence rates from the EuroCoDe study were used to calculate the prevalence of dementia in the 60 to 95+ age groups. EuroCoDe (2008) was also an EU-funded project, co-ordinated by Alzheimer Europe, involving 6 work packages. Emma Reynish was the leader of the work package, whose aim was to develop prevalence rates for dementia. A total of 194 articles were identified from the literature search. 31 studies were identified as possible for inclusion in collaborative analysis and the researchers of those studies were invited to submit data. Raw data was obtained from 17 studies and used in the collaborative analysis of dementia prevalence rates in Europe. Reynish and her colleagues also analysed epidemiological data for prevalence rates for early onset dementia but found that this was sparse and involved studies with low numbers and wide variation in rates, perhaps due to differing study designs. They did not therefore develop new prevalence rates for younger people with dementia and this is why we are using a combination of two different sets of rates.

For full details of the prevalence rates used, please see Alzheimer Europe (2013) and Hofman et al. (1991).

Table 1. The Prevalence of Dementia in Europe (EU-28)

+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
|             |             |             |             |             |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Country     | Men         | Women       | Total       | % of        |
|             |             |             |             | population  |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Austria     | 45,938      | 99,494      | 145,432     | 1.73        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Belgium     | 62,972      | 128,309     | 191,281     | 1.77        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Bulgaria    | 37,851      | 72,042      | 109,893     | 1.49        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Croatia     | 20,394      | 46,682      | 67,076      | 1.53        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Cyprus      | 4,333       | 6,917       | 11,250      | 1.07        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Czech       | 45,532      | 97,778      | 143,310     | 1.36        |
| Republic    |             |             |             |             |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Denmark     | 29,715      | 55,847      | 85,562      | 1.53        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Estonia     | 5,469       | 16,252      | 21,721      | 1.62        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Finland     | 29,287      | 62,945      | 92,232      | 1.71        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| France      | 375,843     | 799,113     | 1,174,956   | 1.85        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Germany     | 517,136     | 1,054,968   | 1,572,104   | 1.92        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Greece      | 75,392      | 126,375     | 201,767     | 1.77        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Hungary     | 43,636      | 105,291     | 148,927     | 1.50        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Ireland     | 17,895      | 31,574      | 49,469      | 1.08        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Italy       | 414,975     | 857,341     | 1,272,316   | 2.09        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Latvia      | 8,902       | 26,812      | 35,714      | 1.60        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Lithuania   | 12,567      | 34,768      | 47,335      | 1.44        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Luxembourg  | 2,327       | 4,662       | 6,989       | 1.34        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Malta       | 1,878       | 3,423       | 5,301       | 1.26        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Netherlands | 83,247      | 162,314     | 245,561     | 1.47        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Poland      | 150,371     | 350,721     | 501,092     | 1.31        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Portugal    | 62,260      | 120,266     | 182,526     | 1.71        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Romania     | 90,484      | 179,820     | 270,304     | 1.26        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Slovakia    | 17,834      | 40,774      | 58,608      | 1.07        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Slovenia    | 9,324       | 22,711      | 32,035      | 1.57        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Spain       | 280,149     | 538,197     | 818,346     | 1.75        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Sweden      | 60,479      | 112,656     | 173,135     | 1.82        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| United      | 360,581     | 677,210     | 1,037,791   | 1.65        |
| Kingdom     |             |             |             |             |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+
| Total       | 2,866,771   | 5,835,262   | 8,702,033   | average     |
|             |             |             |             | 1.55        |
+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+

Table 2.The Prevalence of Dementia in Europe

Jersey, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Turkey

Country

Men

Women

Total

% of population

Jersey

483

918

1,401

1.43

Iceland

1,487

2,435

3,922

1.19

Norway

25,932

51,226

77,158

1.56

Switzerland

44,201

89,521

133,722

1.73

Turkey

134,927

196,586

331,513

0.44

207,030

340,686

547,716

average 1.29

                                                Table 3. The Grand Total

+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| Countries       | Men             | Women           | Total           |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+
| EU-28 plus      | 3,073,701       | 6,175,948       | 9,249,649       |
| Jersey,         |                 |                 |                 |
| Iceland,        |                 |                 |                 |
| Norway,         |                 |                 |                 |
| Switzerland and |                 |                 |                 |
| Turkey          |                 |                 |                 |
+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+-----------------+

question: What is prevalence rate?

answer: Prevalence rate is the total number of cases of a disease divided by the total population.

question: What do incidence rates represent?

answer: Incidence rates represent the rate at which new cases develop in a population.

question: What year's projection population statistics did the author use?

answer: The author used projection population statistics from 2012.

question: What is the author's estimate for total people who have dementia in Croatia?

answer: The author estimates 67,076 people have dementia in Croatia.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: The author is performing a study looking at dementia rates across Europe. The author details their method used for obtaining the data, then data is shown for both the EU and other countries where Alzheimer Europe has member association.


text:
3 hours ago I was finishing up watching a movie. I was gonna go to sleep but in the corner of my eye I notice a shadow by the cat's tower play thing. Small. Dark. Not a shadow. Spider. As It descended from the top of the tower all I could feel was sheer terror. With all of my bravery I snapped awake from my fear induced coma and gathered myself. I had to act fast! With a bevmo flyer and my least favorite screenplay notebook in hand I dive right into action! Well, slowly moving towards the unwanted 8 legged guest. I hold my breath, aim, WHACK! I flip the flyer over to confirm the kill! My worst fear...everyone’s worst fear...nothing... the goddamned vanishing spider. Sleep is no longer an option! I can only imagine that’s what the spider wants! When I sleep that is when he get his chance for revenge!

I restart the movie, disrobe, shake out my clothes, re-robe, grab a beer, grab my hammer, put the hammer back because that might be over reacting, sit, and wait. I can't help but feel a slight tickle on back, then my leg, my arm, followed by the sensation of a"crawling" threw my hair. It's getting to me. I can only imagine him watching me from a dark corner and laughing at me! I can't let him win. Not just for me but everyone who has every a case of the "vanishing spider"

Fast forward to 3 hours later. My fear is almost gone but same can be said for all my beers. After hours of trying to convince myself that "maybe I got him" or "he ran away and will probably die" and "one my lazy cats will protect me" I must sleep. Retire. Retreat. Surrender. But wait... What is that small shadow by the cat's tower play thing on the wall? Small. Dark. Not a shadow. Spider...A DIFFERENT MUCH LARGER SPIDER! Are you kidding me?? I kill my enemy's giant comrade but this is a false victory. I am now on craigslist looking for a new apartment. Beer and sanity is running thin. I pray for light soon. Remember me.

title: 369 words for anyone who has had to kill a spider

question: How does the narrator feel about killing spiders?

answer: The narrator only seems to feel fear when they see the spider, so it could be assumed they feel justified when they kill one.

question: In what context would a spider need to be killed?

answer: In the case of the narrator, a spider would need to be killed if it's spotted in your home.

question: What is the case of the "vanishing spider"?

answer: The narrator tried to kill the spider, but they didn't and it vanished. Now they worry where in his room the spider is located.

question: Why is the narrator's beer running thin?

answer: It seems implied that they were drinking to handle the anxiety he has over the spider.

question: Could one describe the narrator as neurotic?

answer: Yes, the idea of a spider in their room makes them imagine it is laughing at them from a dark corner. They also says they're looking for a new apartment on Craigslist due to spotting another spider.

question: Write a ~4 sentence summary.

answer: The narrator describes the ordeal of having to try to kill a spider in their home and accidentally letting it escape. They feel fear and paranoia about the spider in their home. They manage to kill a larger spider, but that doesn't stop them from looking at new apartments on Craigslist in response. They hope for relief from the spiders in their home soon.


text:
_NORTHEAST ON FIRE_ is the third and final studio album by American go-go band Northeast Groovers.[1] It was released in 1999.[2]

Track listing

Personnel

-   Christian Black - Lead Vocals
-   Khari Pratt – bass guitar
-   Lamond “Maestro” Perkins – keyboards
-   Ronald “88” Utley – keyboards
-   Leonard “Daddy-O” Huggins – vocals
-   Dave “32” Ellis - vocals
-   Ronald “Dig-Dug” Dixon – vocals, percussions
-   Larry “Stomp Dogg” Atwater – drummer
-   Samuel “Smoke” Dews – conga, percussions

[1]

[2]

title: Northeast on Fire

question: List the instruments featured in the album.

answer: Bass guitar, keyboards, percussions, drums, and conga.

question: When did the album release?

answer: In 1999.

question: How was the album received?

answer: The article doesn't talk about the album's reception.

question: Who were the singers in the album?

answer: Christian Black, Leonard Huggins, Dave Ellis, and Ronald Dixon.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: Northeast on Fire is the third and final studio album by American go-go band Northeast Groovers. It was released in 1999.


text:
[CRUISER]MANCHESTER, NH – Police are investigating a report of an 18-year-old who shot himself in the foot with  his own gun, which was tucked into his waistband.

On Oct. 4 police were dispatched to Amherst and Walnut streets at about 9:30 p.m. where the man was found suffering from a self-inflicted wound to his right. Police say the gun was tucked into the man’s waistband when it discharged.

The man, whose name was not released, was treated at Catholic Medical Center for non-life-threatening injuries. Police confiscated the gun.

[]
Longtime NH journalist and publisher of ManchesterInkLink.com. Loves R&B, German beer, and the Queen City!

question: Does this take place in America?

answer: It would appear that the report is from Manchester, New Hampshire, a state in the U.S.A.

question: Is this a second hand report?

answer: It would appear to be written from a police report as a source.

question: Who was the man in the report?

answer: An unfortunate victim of an accidental gun discharging while it was placed in his waistband. We donät learn much about details of the person.

question: Who wrote the report?

answer: An unnamed journalist from ManchesterInkLink.com who loves music, beer and his hometown.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: A second-hand report about a man who accidentally shot himself whilst his gun was placed in his waistband, for what appears to be the ManchesterInkLink.com, an online publication based i. Manchester, NH.


text:
Image 6 of 7

Dots in the Sky

It's another day in the great Sandhill Cranes migration. One of my struggle while documenting my vision of this ancient migration was to depict the sheer number of cranes in that area. This is my interpretation of that vision. I have heard two possibilities of what is going on in this picture. Some say that the cranes are just looking for the next field to feed. Others speculate that these are among the first thousands cranes that arrive in the area and now they are ready to move on in their migration. The fact that they are flying up so high may have shown that they are testing the upper wind to decide if this is the right time to start the journey. In any case, shall we start counting?

Copyright
    (c) Adhika Lie, All rights reserved

Image Size
    5826x3889 / 2.9MB

question: What is the author photographing?

answer: The author is photographing the Sandhill Crane's migration.

question: How many possibilities has the author heard for what was happening in the picture?

answer: The author has heard two possibilities of what was going on in the picture.

question: What might be the reason why the cranes were flying so high?

answer: The cranes may have been flying so high to test the upper wind to decide if it was time to start the journey.

question: Could the cranes just be looking for the next field to feed?

answer: Yes, that is one explanation that makes sense.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: The author describes their picture of the Sandhill Crane's migration. There are a large amount of cranes in the area, and people think that either they are looking for food or seeing if it is time to leave.


text:
The FREMANTLE SYNAGOGUE is a heritage listed building located on South Terrace on the corner of Parry Street in Fremantle, Western Australia. It was the first synagogue built in Western Australia and was associated with Jewish community leaders and merchants in Fremantle at the end of the 19th century.[1][2] The building is also known as BEERS BUILDING.[3][4][5]

Use as a synagogue

Laurence Alexander, the manager of Falk and Company, was elected president of the first Jewish congregation established in Fremantle in August 1887. Henry Seeligson acted as lay reader, from September 1888 when weekly meetings were commenced[6] in the barracks on South Terrace.[7] Land was set aside for the purpose of building a synagogue in Fremantle in 1891.[8] The current site was vested with Elias Solomon and W.F. Samson as trustees for the Jewish congregation in April 1896.[9] A service with the Jewish Minister of Perth, Rabbi B. Freedman, was held at the synagogue site in 1897.[10] Fundraising for the synagogue was being held with a building committee formed in 1900, with plans being approved and put out for tender. In 1901 the synagogue president was Charles Nathan and the honorary minister was Elias Cohen.[11]

The building was designed by the architects, Oldham and Eales,[12][13] and built by J McCracken. The foundation stone was laid on 8 January 1902 by Solomon, by then the Federal Member for Fremantle, a former mayor of Fremantle and a trustee of the congregation.[14] The inscription on the stone reads:

  Fremantle Hebrew Congregation. This stone was laid by E. Solomon, Esq., J.P., M.P.. on January 8, 1902. Teves 29th, 5662. C. S. Nathan, President. Oldham and Eales, architects.[15]

The building was completed a few months later and a consecration service was held on 31 August 1902 led by the reader S. Miller who spoke

  Open unto the one the gates of the righteousness ; I will enter them and bless the Lord.

He then entered the synagogue followed by the wardens and proceeded to the ark reciting a prayer. They then circuited around the room three times chanting psalms, after which the Sefer Torah was placed in the ark and the perpetual lamp was lit. The remainder of the service was then held. The treasurer of the building fund, L. Alexander, then reported that the land had cost £1750, the building cost £850, making a total of £2600, on which there was a liability remaining of £500.[16][17]

By 1908 services were no longer held in the building and in 1910 the majority of the state's Jewish population had moved to Perth, joining the Perth Hebrew Congregation, and the synagogue was closed permanently.[18][19] Meetings among the community had been held in 1909 discussing the disposal of the property.[20]

Subsequent use

The building was sold in 1916[21] to the federal government for £850 as an annexe to the general hospital where it was converted into a ward.[22][23] It was later acquired by William Beer in 1922 and by 1924 he was operating an auction mart from the site.[24]

The Fremantle City Council acquired the building in 1969 and leased it for various commercial purposes including Barri's Rugs, a gallery, a clothing outlet named Skid Rose and various cafes. The Council sold the building in 2004.[25]

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title: Fremantle Synagogue

question: Who is the last owner of the building?

answer: The article doesn't mention whom the City Council sold the building to.

question: How many years after the formation of a Jewish congregation did the plans for a building begin?

answer: The congregation was formed in 1887. The land was set aside in 1891. So, 4 years.

question: Briefly list the uses of the building.

answer: It was initially a synagogue. Then, it became a hospital ward. After that, William Beer used it to hold auction marts. After the City Council acquired it, it was used for various commercial purposes.

question: Why did the local Jewish congregation stop using the building?

answer: Most of them had moved to Perth.

question: Write a ~6 sentence summary.

answer: The Freemantle Synagogue is a heritage building on South Terrace on the corner of Parry Street in Fremantle, Western Australia. It was the first synagogue built in Australia. It was built by the local Jewish congregation in the early 20th century. After most of the Jews in the are moved to Perth, the building was sold to the federal government in 1916. William Beer acquired it in 1922 to operate an auction mart. The Fremantle City Council bought the building in 1969 and used it for various purposes until they sold it in 2004.


text:
The setting is a medium sized room in what could be a hospice, or maybe a nursing home. The room is sparsely furnished, without anything uunnecessary giving the room an empty feeling. On one side of the room there is a Queen sized bed, the sheets are made perfectly, with what could only be practiced methodicism. On the other side of the room there are some bay windows, the windows are closed and the light curtains are drawn letting in little light, outside it is twilight, giving the room a dark yellow tinge . In one corner there is a dresser, the dresser top has been organized in such a way to draw the observer's attention to one picture in specific. The majority of the light from the window hangs on the top of the dresser, which is filled with picture frames and pictures from what seems like another universe, next to the pictures are letters and medals for honor and bravery.

 Next to the dresser is a rocking chair with an old man sitting in it. His frame is well built, with broad shoulders and a thick neck. The Man's best years behind him, his skin now hangs off of him much like the drapes from the top of the bay window. The Man is slowly rocking back and forth muttering truths the world has long forgotten, but remain true to him. His face looks as though he just swallowed something very bitter, a grimace of sorts.
The door to the rest of the building slowly creaks open and The Lawyer walks in. The Lawyer is a skinny man, with pale, almost transparent skin. His suit is unimpressive, the most interesting accessory is his tortoise rimmed glasses, which frame his empty pale eyes. The Lawyer's face is devoid of any wrinkles, much like that of a baby, and if he wasn't fully grown it wouldn't surprise The Man if he started crying and asking for his mother's breast. When The Lawyer shuts the door quietly behind him the room takes on a cool eerie feeling, much as if it had transformed from a home to a cold, damp graveyard. The light from the window seems to bend towards The Lawyer, and the dresser top dims noticeably as The Lawyer takes a seat near the door.
There is a moment of silence before The Man begins, with a voice that needs convincing:

The Man: It's not so bad, you know.

The Lawyer says nothing, just giving the same unblinking stare as before.

The Man: At first I was worried, scared even. It isn't everyday that I have been so closely acquainted with my mortality. I can count the number of times on one hand, in fact... But this time I don't think they'll give me a metal hahaha!

The Lawyer remains motionless, simply watching the man. The Lawyer is so still to the audience it would seem he isn't even breathing. Clearly unsettled the man argumentatively continues:

The Man: Not much of a talker, are you? Well, that's alright. I don't feel like having a conversation anyway.

There is a silence for a while before The Man shifts uncomfortably in his seat. It is clear that The Man does want a conversation. The Man by turns takes glances at the dresser top and The Lawyer before continuing:

The Man: It really isn't so bad... It's Father's day, if you don't already know. I am a father myself. I have two boys, well, they were boys. It seems silly calling them that now, they could toss me over their shoulders if they chose to. (The Man laughs a little, not robustly like before, but knowingly. Confidently.) Yeah, they've grown up... I won't pretend I was the perfect father, in some ways I was the worst. I look at all these pictures and I noticed something, would you like to know what I noticed?

The Lawyer moves for the first time, slowly dropping his head into a nod. The Lawyer's hair doesn't move, his suit doesn't crinkle, almost as if he were a plastic replica of a real man.

The Man: Alright, I noticed that, in all these pictures everyone is always smiling.  No one ever takes pictures of the times when no one is smiling. But that isn't the truth, is it? (The Man clears his throat awkwardly it is clear that he isn't used to talking about something so personal)
No. No one takes pictures of the bad times, only the good times. Why should that be? It should be easy to remember the good... It seems to me, that the good always fades behind the bad, it's easier to remember the hard stuff. There's some irony in that. And now here I sit, close to the end, and all I feel is regret. All the bad sticks out in my mind and the voices of the mistakes I made call out to me across the years, but then, I look at these pictures, and I remember the good stuff. Like, like this one (The Man enthusiastically points to the picture in the middle of the dresser, the picture is faded, but four figures can be made out. Three men and a Woman)

That's my family, or, it was before my wife died. And then I just couldn't keep them together. I just had too many expectations. I wanted something else for my sons, and all they wanted was to be their own men. I regret that I hadn't let them live their own lives I thought I knew what they wanted, but my desire for them overrode what I should have been doing: let them grow on their own. That's what I am doing now though, right? (The Man's eyes haven't left the picture, a pause) I lived my dream. Now they live theirs. I'm passing the torch. When I realize that, I know the only truth: I lived the dream. It's time for them to do it on their own. I think that, and I can only be happy. This is one of those times that a picture should be taken. So people can remember the happy time.

The Man's face curls into a smile, a genuine smile. The Man kept rocking, but the rocking was less lively. Next to him the heart monitor goes dead. A monotone beep is heard throughout the room, and nurses rush in to see if they can save The Man. They pay no attention to The Lawyer, almost as if he isn't there, going around him like a large rock in a river. The Lawyer gets up and looks more closely at the picture on the dresser. The four people are smiling, everyone is happy, like the best kind dream you could have. The corner of The Lawyer's mouth curled up into a whimsical smirk before he left to a room just down the hall.

title: First share, wanna know what you guys think

question: Summarize the setting of the passage.

answer: The space is a room in a nursing home. It is evening. The Man is near the end of his life, and it is unclear why the Lawyer is present.

question: Explain why the Lawyer is present with the Man.

question: Summarize the Man's feelings about his family.

answer: The Man feels regret about not being able to keep his family together. He is upset that his sons wanted a different life for themselves compared to what the Man had planned for them. However, he realizes that he must let go and allow his family to fulfill their dreams the way they see fit.

question: Summarize the negative things that happen in this passage.

answer: The main negative thing that happens in the passage is that it is implied that the Man dies at the end. The Lawyer also does not want to interact with the Man, and it also seems to be loosely implied that the Lawyer has something to do with the Man's death.


text:
_EPIOBLASMA OBLIQUATA_, commonly called the CATSPAW, is a species of freshwater mussel. It is native to eastern North America, where it is classified as Endangered under the Endangered Species Act.

Natural history and conservation

This species was historically widespread in the Ohio River and Great Lakes drainage basins. Like many other North American freshwater mussels, it relies on a habitat of shallow, gravelly riffle zones in larger rivers. This oxygen-rich habitat has largely been destroyed over the past 200 years by dam construction and dredging, which caused a massive population decline.[1]

Both subspecies are critically endangered. By the time _E. obliquata obliquata_, the purple catspaw, was listed in 1990 under the Endangered Species Act, no surviving breeding populations were known. This changed in 1994 when a few young individuals were found in Killbuck Creek, Ohio, indicating a small breeding population. An attempt to collect young individuals was made in order to start a captive breeding program. However, to the researchers disappointment, surveys from 2006-2007 recorded a population of only 12 males and zero females. It wasn't until 2012 that researchers were able to find their first female individuals that could be used for captive breeding programs, which are now underway.[2][3] [The purple nacre is characteristic of subspecies _obliqua_, the purple catspaw]

The status of subspecies _E. obliquata perobliqua_, the white catspaw, is more dire. Only a single population has persisted into the modern day, found in Fish Creek, a tributary of the St. Joseph River in Indiana. At this location, only five living individuals were documented during surveys from 1975 to 1999, with the last living female recorded in 1975. Since then, surveys of Fish Creek have failed to find any living white catspaw mussels.[4]

Subspecies

This species exhibits variable shell characteristics, which have been taxonomically treated as either subspecies or separate species. The latter approach is not favored by modern taxonomists due to its reliance on shell color, which is a poor distinguishing character.[5]

-   Purple catspaw (_Epioblasma obliquata obliquata_)
-   White catspaw (_Epioblasma obliquata perobliqua_)

[1] NatureServe

[2] _Scientific American_ John R. Platt

[3] _Purple Catspaw 5-year Review_ U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, April 2015

[4] _White Catspaw 5-year Review_ U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, April 2009

[5]

title: Epioblasma obliquata

question: What is epioblasma obliquata commonly known as?

answer: Catspaw.

question: What is it classified as?

answer: An endangered species.

question: What is it native to?

answer: Eastern North America.

question: In plain language, what type of animal is it?

answer: Freshwater mussel.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: The epioblasma obliquata-colloquially known as "catspaw" and commonly known as mussels-is a freshwater species native to the eastern parts of North America. It is critically endangered due to dam construction and dredging.


text:
Working for VICE has had it serious ups and downs, let me tell you. Covering such a vast array of subject matters from all walks of life in every corner of the known World has taught me a multitude of priceless and unforgettable lessons. Grateful as I may be, or think I am am for that matter... nothing could have prepared me for the little mind-bending detour that was my latest, and greatest assignment.

Simon Bender-Schultz, head of marketing and the media wrangler for the world renown and occasionally infamous Mormon & Splat had just called my boss with three demands to be made of this somewhat exclusive journalistic access.

1. No talk of God or Spirituality

2. Please be sober for any and all interviews or off the record dealings with the duo

3. Please don't bring up Malibu 1998

Not too far off the beaten path I rationalized. Then again, I have been in the cross hairs of lawsuits after simple demands we're perceived as "violated" after all was said and done. The mere fact that I feel like VICE is almost too good for this story shouldn't impede on my basic sense of politeness and my duty as an objective reporter. Flash to day 5 on a PCP and cocaine fueled bender with Splat where I'm double checking her harness as we stumble our way to the edge of the roof on the world renowned Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas at 1AM. Not jumping, at this point is not a question...fear is not present and the fountains that will break our descent and be the glorious splash-down is the glowing light at the end of this nightmarish tunnel.

"Alright, mate...you ready for a taste of true FREEDOM", Splat blears.

"I hope so". I bark in almost robotic monotone.

My mouth is beyond dry, the wind is caving my eardrums in viciously and my lungs feel like they are going to bleed as I watch this glorious creature delicately bounce up to the edge of the last two inches of our safe and secure roof. She quickly spins around like some sort of Anime character gives me a cheesy full toothed smile, throws two fingers up and springs off the edge like there was a magnetic rope tied to her abdomen. I gasp, increasing the god-awful dryness that is my throat and mouth and feel my heart jump twice the elevation of where I stood currently.

Too late to back down, too late to go home and too driven by sheer fascination to care.

-Read the full interview and article in May's edition of VICE: Blurred Lines and Broken Dreams

title: [MF] Thinking is the Best Way to Travel

question: What happened in Malibu, 1998?

answer: This is not specified.

question: Which organization is the narrator writing for?

answer: VICE.

question: Who are the duo being interviewed?

answer: Mormon and Splat.

question: Does the narrator abide by the demands?

answer: They seem to follow the first and third demands, but violate the second one by becoming intoxicated with the interviewee.

question: Is this the full story?

answer: No, it's an excerpt of an article.

question: Where is the story set?

answer: Las Vegas.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: This excerpt of a VICE article describes an interview being set up with Mormon and Splat that leads the narrator on a bender with Splat in Las Vegas.


text:
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A baby boy has joined his twin brother at home for the first time after making a miracle recovery from a near-fatal illness.

Doctors warned Joshua Arndt-Skyrme’s parents he was unlikely to survive after he suffered a cardiac arrest just 48 hours after he was born four months ago, weighing 6lbs 1oz.

He spent more than three weeks on a ventilator battling a series of seizures , a life-threatening infection and meningitis.

Frantic parents Jaime and Lee said at one stage doctors asked if they wanted to turn off Joshua’s life-support system.

But Joshua - who was born on March 28 - has finally pulled through and joined twin brother Charlie at home.

Mum Jaime, 25, said: “I’m just overjoyed that the twins are back together.

“When they were born I was worried about changing all the nappies and the sleepless nights but now I couldn’t be happier to be doing it.

“The simple things mean a lot now.

“When they asked if we wanted to turn the life support off we knew it was touch and go.

“But he just needed a bit more time and he was such a fighter he was soon munching on the tube trying to breath for himself.

[Jamie Arndt with her partner Lee Simon and children Zachary with baby Joshua and Charlie]

Home at last: The Arndt-Skyrme family are all finally reunited at home together
“The doctors really didn’t know what his chances were. It’s more common for babies who have been through what Josh has not to make it.

“So the fact that he’s here with us and his hearing hasn’t been affected at all in incredible. He’s doing more every day.

“One of the best things is having us all together as a family and the boys back together.

“You can tell they know they’ve been reunited. They’re more settled when they’re together.

“Although they had twin time during Joshua’s hospitalisation - when Charlie went to sit in his cot for a bit each day - it wasn’t the same.

“Now they cuddle up and they’ve always got one body part touching the other. Them having that time together in hospital must have helped Josh through.”

Joshua was diagnosed with Group B Strep - a normally harmless bacteria found in 25% of humans which can have terrible consequences  if passed onto babies during labour.

[Baby Joshua with brother Charlie]

Together: Joshua and Charlie (Image: Caters)
His parents, from Leominster, Hereford, are awaiting the result of tests to make sure Joshua has not suffered any long-lasting damage from the illness.

Mum Jaime is fundraising for Birmingham Children’s Hospital where Joshua was treated - and campaigning for all pregnant women to be offered a test for Group B Strep.

Antibiotics can minimise the chance of babies developing the infection if a simple test in the final weeks of pregnancy proves positive for the bacteria.

In the UK, the test is currently only recommended for mothers deemed at specific risk but 40 per cent of cases develop where there are no known risk factors.

Jaime said: “I’d definitely tell pregnant women to get the test for Group B Strep done.

“If we’d have known about it before Josh was born it would have prevented everything.

"It’s heart-breaking to know that other parents could be in the same situation as us but not be so lucky when it could have been prevented.”

question: Why did baby Joshua suffer an infection?

answer: The Group B Strep bacteria were transmitted to him during birth.

question: What do the parents want to change about giving birth to alleviate further incidents?

answer: They want for women to be tested in the final weeks of pregnancy for Group B Strep.

question: How dire was baby Joshua's situation?

answer: It was serious enough for his doctors to ask whether the parents wanted to turn off life support.

question: Why do harmless bacteria hurt babies so much?

answer: That's not in the scope of the article. Presumably, because their immune systems aren't developed.

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer: Baby Joshua returned home after a miraculous recovery from a near-fatal illness. Joshua, who was separated from his twin Charlie, suffered from the normally harmless Group B Strep bacteria found in a quarter of humans. The bacteria cause problems if transmitted during childbirth. Joshua's situation was so touch-and-go that at one point the doctors asked if they wanted to turn off life support. Joshua's mother now campaigns for pregnant women to be tested during the last weeks of pregnancy to avoid this type of situation.


text:
	Long ago, there was a beautiful winter day, the sun shone bright and sparkling white snow lay undisturbed across the ground, silencing the world which it covered. It was on this day that I decided to take a long walk in the woods outside of the hustle and bustle of the city.
	As  I walked in the woods, I came upon an elder tree who had lived a great many years and whose bark harbored a great number of wounds. I brushed the thick, gleaming snow off of the tree’s tangled roots, which spread far and deep in all directions. Unto the roots I sat, and the tree accepted me as a friend upon its lap, though he knew not who I was or of what nature my intentions were. Naught else in this world would have ever accepted me so quickly and graciously, let alone trusted me so easily.
	For many hours there I sat, nurtured and nestled deep in the ancient and deep-reaching roots. In my time sat comfortably upon the tree I asked in a hushed tone what the tree had seen and felt in his many years, seated forever upon the land where he stood. The tree answered in words of silence, and by it I was taught to listen with my eyes, not my ears.
	‘I have been built upon.’ said he with the rotting plank in his branches; with the scars in his skin he said ‘I have been wounded.’; ‘I have been shelter for many lives.’ he said with the hole in his trunk and the abandoned birds-nest in his uppermost branch. He spoke very little, yet told very much.
	‘I have travelled far,’ I said in reply. ‘I have been very many places, yet I fear I have seen less than you have, though you are rooted in this singular area. I have found little happiness to no avail, and I am plagued by my solitude which hangs over my head as a metal weight. I am not so wise as you are, my time is short on this planet and I, who has been born before you, is fated to die before you. I fear whether the choices I make in my life will be ill choices.’ I said, despair was shown so heavily in my voice.
	The tree listened well, and said nothing.
	‘I have no one on this earth who listens so well as you, tree.’
	The tree said naught, though I waited in vain for many hours.
	No advice was given to me that day, the tree never responded, but it held me tightly in its roots and I felt warm inside, despite the cold weather. The tree accepted me blindly, as nothing else would, or possibly ever will, it had done enough for me. Perhaps this tree had helped others, such as it had helped me; it had taken me in my pity.
	I walked to the woods that day with only the intention of feeling the cold air nip at my exposed skin; I left the woods that day enlightened, inspired by the kindness and unconditional love which the tree so openly gave out. I was changed, by something so simple as the comfort of a tree. Love can be found in the simplest things, I learned that day, and we are never alone so long as we choose to see the life around us.

title: My first completed short story: The Elder Tree

question: How does the tree respond?

answer: In words of silence.

question: How are the tree and the narrator different, according to the narrator?

answer: The narrator has traveled far whereas the tree is rooted in one spot.

question: How does the tree counter this?

answer: The tree listens, which shows the narrator the tree's wisdom.

question: what did the narrator learn?

answer: We are never alone so long as we choose to see the life around us.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: The narrator walks far and tires, so they rest on a very old, gnarled tree with vast roots. The tree accepts them onto its lap as a friend and listens to the narrator. The narrator gleans the wisdom of the tree: We are never alone so long as we choose to see the life around us.


text: ...and she tried, to move them around before every bite she took, but it was no use for it kept rearranging the letters in her alphabet soup to spell out strange words and dark and horrible thoughts. Some of the words she did not even fully recognize and she found herself stupidly sounding them out like the teachers had taught them to in reading class in her school far off in the city near the sea. All before suddenly realizing what she was doing and hurriedly swirling with her spoon and taking another bite. Until the bowl of slowly, yet persistently, self-rearranging letters was eaten. Now consumed, she no longer considered them and excused herself to go outside to play in evening sunlight of a lingeringly warm late august afternoon. She could be seen from the window of the kitchen plying in the grass and near the trees and in her imagination as is the way of young children when the magic of the world and the magic of their minds coalesce and anything can still be anything at all. And she ran and played as the setting sun cast long finger shadows through the turning autumn leaves and branches of the tress. Shadows that reached out gently, and yet persistently as the yellow sun receded into orange and red as it crept inevitably towards the horizon. And she played, and laughed and pretended and forgot all about the strangeness of the letters that moved so unusually. she even forgot most of the words, so big and strange to her that they were virtually meaningless. And then the sun, at its final glimmer, stretched the shadows out just long enough. and the slow and yet persistent self-rearranging letters inside her stomach that had not forgotten her, had completed their message. And in a moment, the shadows and the sunlight and the girl were gone.

title: Alphabet Soup

question: Who is the protagonist?

answer: The protagonist is a little girl.

question: What happens to the protagonist?

answer: An unknown phenomenon rearranges letters of her alphabet soup, and she hurries to finish it so that she can forget about the dark things it spells out. The letters finish rearranging inside her stomach, and she vanishes into thin air.

question: What kind of entity is responsible for the vanishing of the protagonist?

answer: There is no answer for this in the story.

question: What kind of setting is the story depicted in?

answer: The story is too short to say anything more than that some supernatural forces exist.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: An unknown force rearranges letters of a small girl's alphabet soup, and she hurries to finish it so that she can forget about the dark things it spells out. She goes out to play. By sundown, the letters finish rearranging inside her stomach, and she vanishes into thin air.


text:
The copy room is right down the hall from my office.  Which is both a good and a bad thing and I'll tell you why.  Its a good thing because when I need to make a copy, its very convenient for me to do so.  This is doubly good because, as an accountant, I often need to make copies of things even in this new digital age.  We get a lot of different documents that require copying like time cards, purchase orders, receipts, invoices and various other things of those types.

It is a bad thing because the copy room, at least in my office, is where people go to have the most awkward and strained conversations that I believe the human race is capable of having.  The conversations I hear in the copy room make me wish that we had never invented language and we were still all just rummaging around in the underbrush looking for grubs or whatever to eat.  I hate copy room conversations.

My friend Frank gets to sit by the water cooler.  And even better, he's got one of those old-style tall-walled cubes so that when he's sitting there or whatever nobody really thinks he's sitting there at all because they can't see him.  I don't even need to tell you that he gets all the good gossip.  Seriously, his work day is like sitting around listening to old fashioned radio dramas all day.  He's personally witness four home-wrecking office romances begin and then crash and burn while filing all collating.  Its amazing.  One time he stopped a terrorist attack.  I swear.  He heard something and he said something.

And what do I get?  Just last week I heard a sales rep and a girl from accounts receivable discuss…in detail…the proper constancy for oatmeal.  I swear - you can't make this up.

That one was especially horrible but I do exaggerate just a little.  Most of the time when I'm distracted by the conversation in the copy room, it tends to be about what people did with their weekend and slash or nights before.  Let me tell you something:  nobody does anything even remotely fun on the weekends.  Including me. Like, did you know there's a skydiving school not ten minutes away from this office?  Or there's a soup kitchen that always needs volunteers.  And a place where you can learn to shoot a bow and arrow while riding a horse.  But all everyone ever does is barbecue.  I swear, if I have to hear about one more barbecue, I'm going to ride a horse into this office and shoot the lazy conversationalist with a bow and arrow.  Without dismounting.

The terrorist attack that Frank stopped was when a guy got fired and then he was going to bring in his AK-47 or his gun or something and shoot all of us for still having our jobs.  And Frank heard about it and Frank told someone and that guy went to jail.  Swear to god.  He's a hero because of that water cooler.

I guess I can't talk too badly about the people in the copy room.  I mean, I do only listen to what they have to say because I'm so bored sitting in my half-tall cube that whatever mindless drivel they are going on about is just about on par with the purchase orders I'm filing or whatever.  Did you know that before I took this job, I was kind of hazy on what a purchase order actually was?  I'm not going to lie to you, I'm still a little unclear.  Its like money - you write down what you want and say you promise to pay for it and then you get it almost right away.  But you don't actually pay for it right away.  Did you know that some places prefer a purchase order to actual money?  I don't get it.  I think I should try to buy groceries with a purchase order then move before the bill comes.  That might work.

I will say this, Frank has it worse then me because nobody every whispers weirdly in the copy room.  They're always doing stuff that's shady by the water cooler -whispering and making you feel like they're talking about you.  But over by the copy room, they're pretty on the level, I guess.  They don't really have anything to whisper about or lie about or anything like that while they are making copies.  But I'm pretty sure people are always lying while they drink water out of paper cones.  Don't ask me why but its true.  Maybe the cones remind them of dunce hats or something and they think that they can get away with being small-minded assholes while they drink out of them.

Anyway, the other day Frank told me he heard some people at the water cooler talking about the weird lady who sits by the copy room.  I thought it might be someone else at first but then I realized that everyone in the cubes around me are man.  There are one or two empty cubes but they've been empty so long that we kind of just ignore them like they're null-space that doesn't exist or like they're full of concrete and just…empty.  Frank came up to me over in the copy room and told me that some people were talking about how weird I was.  I have to be honest with you, I was so excited to have some gossip happening in the copy room for once that I didn't even have time to get offended.  So I guess what I'm trying to get at is that you have to, like, I don't know - if you want gossip in the copy room instead of stupid conversations, then you have to get up and start gossiping in the copy room instead of just copying your purchase orders and then going back to your cube.

title: COPY ROOM

question: What does the story say about the difference in gossip quality of the copy room and the water cooler?

answer: The narrator complains about the gossip in the copy room because it's boring, while the water cooler has the juiciest topics. People talk about office romances, even committing terror attacks. However, the copy room has them talking about oatmeal or weekend barbecues. When a gossip about a weird woman around the copy room reaches the narrator, she's too excited to have an interesting gossip involving the copy room to feel offended. She resolved to gossip in the copy room to make it more interesting.

question: What does the story say about Frank?

answer: Frank is a friend and colleague to the narrator. He works at the same company as the narrator, but he has a cubicle near the water cooler. This allows him to eavesdrop on his coworkers, so he knows a lot of the juiciest gossip. These include a case where he overheard an ex-employee planning to shoot the people still working there out of anger, which turned Frank into a hero after reporting it. He delivers the gossip about the narrator to her.

question: What does the story say about the ethics of eavesdropping?

answer: The story doesn't make explicit commentary about the ethical side of eavesdropping. The narrator considers the ability to overhear exciting gossip to be a positive thing. In one case, her friend Frank hears about an ex-employee planning to shoot his coworkers because they still have their jobs. Frank reports this event and becomes a hero in the office. By the end, there is office gossip about the narrator being the "weird lady around the copy room," which she's excited about because it's at least different gossip to the usual copy room stuff. Apart from being boring, no bad quality is attributed to gossip or eavesdropping.

question: What does the story say about how terror cells operate?


text:
The Scorching

“I remember one day of winter,” my grandfather looked mistily out the twelve inch synthesized window. He’s one of the few in our colony that knows of winter first hand. I have brought him to the observation point on the western end of The Dome at his request. This is his response to my request to tell us of how life felt in the days before artificial air and extreme heats of the wastelands. “The wind whisked down my neighborhood just as I stepped out into the white blanket on my porch. A chill ran up my legs but I hardly noticed, my friends were already playing across the street. Hmpff, I couldn’t have been taller than I am now.” He looks to me with a smile. “We spent the entire day by the hill behind Wilson’s house. We took sleds and lids down that hill, trying to guide it down to an alley so we could go the farthest. We didn’t stop till we saw a couple girls from school cutting through the alley. Linda Mould and Susan P. Cole,” He turns to me with a special grin. Susan P. Cole was my grandmother.

“I jumped line when I saw them, knew it was a special one the second I started. The boys whopped and hollered behind me, they knew it too. Susan and Linda had to leap from my way just as I flew by and crashed right into the Ralman’s garbage cans. Didn’t think about how I’d stop, never do at that age. No one did in those days.” Something in his voice changes. The mist in his eyes is more of a water haze now, he points to the empty horizon. “I use to see homes, grass, animals, and clouds. I never new that hope for the future was artificial till the mechanics of the world were stripped from us. It didn’t matter what we did to try and stop it neither.” I can see him slipping into more painful memories so I request him to point out when exactly he noticed the world changing first hand.

“Changes? Well them happen often and often.” (He means to say changes happen a great deal and always.) “Well, the first time I realized the talk was true was I woke up in some pain, not a good deal, but enough to shake you to. Round the time I was leaving college I suppose. I looked around my bed for whoever woke me, Susan hadn’t been over that night so I couldn’t figure out who’d hurt my arm. It was near midday and I had spent the better half of the morning sleeping off the night before. I wanted to sleep some more but the sun was slipping between my blinds and onto the side of my bed. I got up to close the drapes, but first to peak outside. I was looking for anyone of note when I noticed warmth and a near instant sting all over my face. I leapt back and closed the drapes. I felt relief right away. I knew it, right then, I knew it. The sun was burning like they said it was, hot and fast. My first thought was to call Susan and see if she was feeling it too.”

It’s not long after that our history lessons pick up, reminding those of us who weren’t yet here that the earth was becoming barren. My grandfather was one the first selected to one of the science division domes. The structures we all have been raised were in fact substitutes for an atmosphere we never knew, so we could have a life we never could have hoped for. “I broke through as a design engineer. Interning for the great Doctor Kepling. Now that man could work, spend entire months ruining chalk boards and burrowing floors with his pacing. I nearly didn’t sleep in my time there trying to keep up with him and the three kids at home. No one really knows his name anymore, yet his design saved what’s left of us.” His sigh holds a lot of weight out of his chest. I decide its time to broche a subject that has been refrained from in my family for years now.

I ask him as gently as possible, what happened in the evacuation. There is a long pause and silence before he can gather the breath to speak. The gruffness I had grown up knowing is back, he is the old man in the recliner I know again. “We…We only got the news of The Flare just as it started. I was at home sleeping in as I had the day off and Susan…Susan should have been shopping. The phone call came and the doctor himself was frazzled. I could tell before he said anything it was happening. I was to stunned to really hear him after that, he said he just wanted to make sure I made it and hung up. I forced myself out of bed and put these packs of necessities and valuables we had made in case it did come. I heard the kids downstairs playing, I yelled for them to get up and get there stuff ready. They knew what I meant but I don’t think they truly new what it meant.” My father swears it was all too quick to remember. One day your breathing humid air, the next day it’s artificial. Kids his age hardly caught on to the significance of things as they went.

“Once we were all packed I rushed the kids out to the car. It was so bright out I could hardly see my way to the car, still I had to find Susan. I had lugged her bag to car with mine. I was going to drive strait to the market to find her. I’ve sweat often before and since then, but I doubt any compared to that day. We got there and I can remember my sprint to the door seeming to last far to long to be a couple dozen feet. I burst through the door and screamed for her, Susan! Susan!” His outcry catches me off guard, “I ran back and forth through the aisles still she is not there. I looked to my watch, If I was to save my children I couldn’t wait any longer. I’d have to hope she received the message and caught the follow up busses to one of the others.

When I returned to car and began to head for my designated dome, it was clear the word was out. People we rushing all about in a frenzy. I don’t ever think I’ve seen such horror on so many men and women’s faces as on that day. I told the kids to duck down so they wouldn’t see. I speed out from our town into the dessert sands towards the dome. I think I was one of the last through, they closed those giant glass doors a little after we passed through.” After this he holds his head in his hands in silent hiding of his face. My Aunt recalls him braking down and crying over the wheel till some nice man came to get them from the back seat. They didn’t see him again for a week. My grandmother was never found, nor has our family ever discussed her final whereabouts.

From there the rest of the word documents well our methods to survival. Two generations of struggle-less survival, made us able to be complacent again. We should stay vigilant in pursuit of the solution; we should never allow ourselves to simply survive, but also to live. Even if it is only our grandchildren who will truly be unscathed. Never may we forget what great human loss we suffered in the Scorching.

title: The Scorching

question: What are the main happy memories that the narrator's grandfather remembers from the days before artificial air and arid wastelands?

answer: The narrator's grandfather has fond memories of winter. He has memories of sled racing on grassy slopes with friends. He remembers seeing clouds and animals.

question: Where was Susan, the narrator's grandmother, on the day of evacuation into the designated domes?