text:
ADELIZA OF LOUVAIN,[1] sometimes known in England as ADELICIA OF LOUVAIN,[2] also called ADELA and ALEIDIS; (c. 1103 – March/April 1151)[3] was Queen of England from 1121 to 1135, as the second wife of King Henry I. She was the daughter of Godfrey I, Count of Louvain.

Henry was some 35 years older than his bride, who was about 18 when they married. He already had children, though no surviving son, from his first marriage to Matilda of Scotland, as well as several illegitimate ones. As his second marriage produced no children, the decision was made to leave the throne to his daughter, the Empress Matilda; an oath was sworn by the clergy, members of the royal family, including Adeliza, as well as English nobles to recognise Matilda as Henry's heir upon his death. After his death Adeliza spent three years based in a convent, then married again and had seven children by William d'Aubigny, 1st Earl of Arundel. But a year before her death at the age of forty-eight she left her husband to move to the Affligem Abbey in Brabant, where she died in 1151.

Adeliza's royal marriage seems to have been successful, apart from the failure to produce a new heir. The flow of Henry's illegitimate children seems already to have ceased by the time of the marriage, and they spent most of their marriage together, which was by no means inevitable in royal marriages of the period. She seems to have been influential in the promotion of French poetry and other arts at court, but played little part in politics.

Early life and family

Adeliza was renowned for her beauty, reflected in the epithet 'the fair maiden of Brabant'. The chronicler Henry of Huntingdon also mentions Adeliza's beauty in an interlude in his _Historia Anglorum_, stating, “A jewel grows pale on you, a crown does not shine. Put adornment aside, for nature provides your adornment...”[4]

Adeliza's father was Godfrey I, Count of Louvain (1095–1139), Landgrave of Brabant, and Duke of Lower Lotharingia (1106–1128), an ally of Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor. After the death of Adeliza's mother, Ida of Chiny, Godfrey married Clementia of Burgundy, the mother of Baldwin VII, Count of Flanders, who had fought with the French against the Normans in 1118.[5] Adeliza's brother, Joscelin of Louvain, married the heiress to the Percy fortune. He is often referred to as an “opportunist”.[6]

Queenship

Plans for Adeliza's marriage to Henry I of England, may have begun when she was as young as sixteen, even before Henry's only legitimate son, William Adelin, died on 25 November 1120 in the _White Ship_ disaster.[7] However, Henry's need for a new male heir expedited the marriage plans and the couple wed on 24 January 1121. Apparently in addition to her beauty, Henry was also attracted to Adeliza as a wife because she was a descendant of Charlemagne.[8] It is thought that Henry's only surviving legitimate child Empress Matilda, from his first wife Matilda of Scotland, may have been involved in arranging his second marriage, due to the fact that she was with him near the time that it was being negotiated.[9] Henry of Huntingdon mentions the royal couple in his _Historia Anglorum_, stating that the new queen accompanied Henry to London at Whitsun (that is, 29 May 1121).[10] Adeliza appears to have travelled extensively with Henry, probably to increase the chances of her conception.[11] Despite their close contact, however, Adeliza and Henry never produced a child.

There is a possibility, despite what the biography produced by Laura Wertheimer states, that Adeliza prayed to St. Romanus to aid her in conceiving a child; St. Romanus, according to legend, was 'born to parents miraculously cured of infertility', and in 1124, there was a double viewing of the relics of St. Romanus at Rouen Cathedral. We know about this from the Archives départementales de la Seine-Maritime G 3666 (more simply referred to as the G 3666), and Adeliza was certainly present in Rouen while the relics were present.[12]

Unlike Henry's first wife Matilda, Adeliza appears to have played a very passive role in the administration of the kingdom. While Matilda issued some thirty-one charters and writs during her queenship, during Adeliza's fifteen-year marriage to Henry I she issued one, and she only attested 13 of Henry's many charters, even though they were almost always together.[13]

Role as artistic patron

[King Henry] Despite her limited involvement in politics, Adeliza seems to have played an active role as a patron of the arts and literature, and was influential in fostering the rise of French poetry in the English court. While English queens had been traditionally associated with artistic patronage for decades, and a number of them, including Edith of Wessex, Emma of Normandy and Matilda, had financed a number of works in different media, Adeliza primarily sponsored books written in French.[14] At the time, secular books in the French or Anglo-Norman vernacular were extremely popular, a trend given impetus by wealthy aristocratic women like Adeliza. Philippe de Thaon, an Anglo-Norman poet, dedicated his zoological treatise known as the Bestiary to the queen: Philippe de Thaon Has distilled into a French treatise The Bestiary, A book in Latin, For the honour of a jewel Who is an outstandingly beautiful woman. And she is courtly and wise, Of good customs and generous: She is called 'Aaliz', Queen is she crowned, She is the queen of England; May her soul never know trouble! Listen to what we find About her name in Hebrew: “Aaliz” is her name; “Praise of God” is In Hebrew truly “Aaliz”, laus of God. I do not dare give further praise, Lest envy take me, But so that she may be remembered And praised forever more I wish to compose this book; May God be present at its beginning![15]

The Bestiary would have been amply illustrated, and was intended to be read page by page, not all at once, like a poem. Many other works that Adeliza commissioned were similar in structure to the Bestiary, including the now lost _Life of King Henry_ by David.[16]

Widowhood and remarriage

When Henry died on 1 December 1135, Adeliza retired temporarily to the Benedictine convent of Wilton Abbey, near Salisbury. She was present at the dedication of Henry's tomb at Reading Abbey on the first anniversary of his death. At about that time, she founded a leper hospital dedicated to Saint Giles at Fugglestone St Peter, Wiltshire.[17]

In 1138, three years after Henry I's death, Adeliza married William d'Aubigny, 1st Earl of Arundel, one of Henry I's advisors, and son of Guillaume d’Aubigny and Maud le Bigod.[18] Together, they lived at her castle of Arundel on the Sussex coast and had seven children.[19] Their names were (by order of birth), Alice, William, Olivia, Reynor, Geoffrey, Henry, and Agatha.

Relationship with Matilda

Although not a great deal is known about Adeliza's relationship with her stepdaughter, it is known she was present at the ceremony when Henry officially named Matilda as his heir presumptive, since the chronicler John of Worcester states that the Queen “swore [an oath] for the king's daughter... and agreed ... that if the king did not have an heir of either sex [......], but ... did not lack a survivor of each sex, then the survivor should inherit the kingdom.'”[20] After her second marriage, Adeliza received Matilda at her home in Arundel, along with Matilda's half-brother Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester, in defiance of the wishes of her second husband who was a staunch supporter of King Stephen.[21] She later betrayed them and handed them over when King Stephen besieged the castle.[22] Trying to explain Adeliza's actions, John of Worcester suggests that “she feared the king's majesty and worried that she might lose the great estate she held throughout England”. He also mentions Adeliza's excuse to King Stephen: “She swore on oath that his enemies had not come to England on her account but that she had simply given them hospitality as persons of high dignity once close to her.”[23] In the end King Stephen yielded to an appeal from Adeliza, and permitted Matilda to depart and join her half-brother Robert at Bristol.[24]

Landholdings

[Arundel Castle] Adeliza was given the revenues of Rutland, Shropshire and a large district of London, with possession of the city of Chichester.[25] Henry also gave the manor of Aston to Adeliza “as his queen and wife”. Landholdings that were part of Adeliza of Louvain's estate included Waltham Abbey in Essex, and properties in Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Middlesex, and Devon. As a gift from Henry I, she was given a property in Ashleworth, a component of the royal estate of Berkeley. In 1126 the whole county of Shropshire was given to her, even though it is not listed in the Pipe Roll.

Adeliza gave her brother Joscelin a large estate in Sussex called Petworth that was dependent on her castle of Arundel; much of the estate is still owned by his descendants, the Egremonts.[26] Henry also gave Adeliza lands that had previously been Matilda's including Waltham and Queenhithe. She had estates in Essex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Middlesex, Gloucestershire, and Devon. Her husband then granted her exemption from tax for those lands. In additions to those gifts, she was given a portion of the royal estate at Berkeley, and the county of Shropshire.[27]

After Henry died, Adeliza continued to exercise jurisdiction over her lands, retaining some of her property until 1150. In 1136, she endowed Reading Abbey with one hundred shillings a year from the revenues of Queenhithe.[28] On the first anniversary of Henry I's death, Adeliza gave the manor of Aston to the Abbey of Reading, and endowed them with lands “to provide for the convent and other religious pweaona [sic] coming to the abbey on the occasion of the anniversary of my lord King Henry.” She added the gift of a church a few years later.[29]

Later years

In the last years of her life, Adeliza appears to have faded into obscurity. In 1150, Adeliza left William to enter the monastery of Afflighem in Flanders. At least one of her brothers was also living at this monastery. The annals at the monastery are the only source to mention her death in 1151, and her burial site is unknown. Some traditions imply she was buried at the monastery, but a donation made by her brother Joscelin to Reading Abbey seems to suggest she was buried there with Henry I.[30]

Notes

[1]

[2] Agnes Strickland, 'Adelicia of Louvaine' in _The Lives of the Queens of England_ online at 1066.co.nz: “Mr Howard of Corby castle... calls her Adelicia, for the best of reasons – her name is so written in an original charter of the 31st of Henry I...”

[3]

[4] Henry of Huntingdon, 469

[5] Hilton, 61

[6] Bartlett, 543

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11] Huneycutt (2003), 36

[12]

[13] Huneycutt (2003), 37

[14] O’Donnell, Townend, Tyler, 627

[15] O’Donnell, Townend, Tyler, 629–630

[16] O’Donnell, Townend, Tyler, 631

[17]

[18] Weir, 47

[19] Hilton, 66

[20] Worcester, 179

[21]

[22] Bartlett, 41

[23]

[24]

[25] http://site.ebrary.com/lib/mtholyoke/docDetail.action?docID=10404924

[26] Bartlett, 44

[27] Hilton, 64

[28] Huneycutt (2003), 38

[29] Bartlett, 596

[30]

title: Adeliza of Louvain

question: How many renditions of Louvain's name are known?

answer: Three.

question: What is one of the compliments her contemporaries bestowed upon Adeliza?

answer: She was called the fair maiden of Brabrant.

question: What prominent aspect of her husband's life did not hold Adeliza's interest?

answer: She wasn't interested in politics.

question: For the victims of which disease did Adeliza found a hospital?

answer: Leprosy.


split: train

text:
As expected, the enemy cheers. Whose side is devout Muslim London mayor Sadiq Khan on?

  ISIS CELEBRATES London terror attack with chants of ‘Allahu Akbar’ on secret messages

  ISIS have celebrated the Parliament terror incident calling it the ‘blessed London attack’ posting ‘Allahu Akbar’ alongside horrific photos from the scene.

[]

  While ISIS has not claimed responsibility for the attacks, Ahmet Yayla, professor of Criminology and Former Counterterrorism Police Chief in Turkey, is relaying updates from ISIS’ telegram, an encrypted messaging service.

  Mr Yayla has reported the ISIS account is: “Cheering for the #Westminster #Westmattack and posted the scheme for the attack. #London #ISIS.”

  Recent posts of a prominent #ISIS telegram channel. Reads the blessed #London attack.. This is not an official account but very credible. pic.twitter.com/tTSyc2ZrJx

  — Ahmet S Yayla (@ahmetsyayla) March 22, 2017

Isil supporters cheer Westminster attack as ‘revenge’ for British air strikes on Syria

  By Telegraph Reporters, 22 March 2017:

  Isil supporters have cheered the attack on Westminster, suggesting it was “revenge” for the UK’s airstrikes on the terror group in Syria and Iraq.

  Followers on pro-Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant channels on the social media service Telegram posted messages applauding the knife-wielding suspect and called the attack “blessed”.

  One said the UK was paying “blood for blood” for its involvement in the US-led coalition’s campaign against the jihadists.

  “Our battle on your land is only just beginning,” read one poster next to a photoshopped image of Big Ben being blown up.

    2. Pro-ISIS channels are rejoicing at the bloodshed including one that has created a poster to go with the violence. (Thanks @sweattloafer) pic.twitter.com/jSb6xzDgy0

    — Rukmini Callimachi (@rcallimachi) March 22, 2017

  At the time of writing, however, there was no official claim of responsibility. Attacks organised and inspired by Isil are usually not claimed within the first 24 hours.

  Motivations of the attacker are not yet known, but the use of a vehicle as well as a knife are consistent with instructions for attacks issued by Isil and are similar to the group’s attack on a Christmas market in Berlin and in Nice, which left more than 80 dead.

  Abu Mohammad al-Adnani, the late Isil spokesman, instructed European followers to carry out attacks at home in an audio message released after the declaration of its so-called caliphate.

  “If you are not able to find an IED or a bullet, then single out the disbelieving American, Frenchman, or any of their allies. Smash his head with a rock, or slaughter him with a knife, or run him over with your car,” he said.

  Isil has been explicitly threatening attacks on Britain for the last 18 months.

  At end of a propaganda video claiming the Paris attacks in November 2015, Isil singled out the UK as its next target.

  The UK is second only to France in the number of fighters it has sent from Europe to Syria and Iraq. But until now Britain has been spared the deadly attacks seen by countries like France, Belgium and Germany.

  Harry Sarfo, a German Isil fighter educated in England who is serving a sentence for terror offences, said the jihadists had trouble recruiting people for attacks in the UK.

  He told the New York Times in an interview last year that although the group was well set up in some European countries, it needed more attackers in Germany and Britain, in particular.

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question: What is ISIS celebrating?

answer: They are celebrating the Westminster, London terror attack where a knife-wielding man went after civilians. ISIS says the terror attack is revenge for the UK's airstrikes on the terror group in Syria and Iraq.

question: Who is Ahmet Yayla?

answer: He is a professor of Criminology and Former Counterterrorism Police Chief in Turkey who reported on a prominent ISIS telegram channel posting a scheme for the attack and applauding the knife-wielding man.

question: Who is Abu Mohammad al-Adnani?

answer: He is the late Isil spokesman who instructed European followers via audio to carry out attacks at home using rocks, knives, or their cars if an IED or bullet is unavailable.

question: Why hasn't ISIS attacked Britain until now, despite the country being active in the Syria and Iraq conflicts?

answer: According to convicted Isil fighter Harry Sarfo, jihadists are having trouble recruiting people for attacks in the UK.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: Terror group ISIS celebrates the Westminster, London knife attack, saying it was "blessed" and revenge for the UK's airstrikes on the terror group in Syria and Iraq.


text:
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Well we would like to present you with something that we think is the answer to your problems. This is the TMTS device, and it can make all this, and more, simply vanish!

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So you've decided to purchase one of our TMTS devices, what now? First you'll need to open this envelope, and retrieve your QVM prescription. Once you have called the number at the bottom and scheduled your appointment, we move on to step two!

Here at QVM, we pride ourselves on expedient and experienced service. Most applicants will have a two to three week waiting period for appointments. QVM is not liable for expiration before product pick up, or during appointment procedures.

Once you have arrived, one of our many experienced staff will greet you and lead you to an exam room. Here you will go through step three, and receive a thorough physical as well as a round of antibiotics, antivirals, and anesthesia in prep for your procedure.

Before we continue, we would like you to know a few facts about your brain. The most complex part of your body, its processing power has yet to be matched by machine. It is also capable of what some consider a form of precognition, able to estimate and predict outcomes!

Here at QVM we have created the ultimate product, allowing you to live your fantasies, just by using your brain. Using our patented process, we implant our TMTS device, and we send you wherever you want to go within your own timeline!

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So you've been prepped for your procedure, what now? First they will stabilize your brain within our patent pending CSG fluid, and begin the process of removing all of your unnecessary organs. As each is removed, it will be set aside, either to be recycled or at your expense, held.

Slowly the surgeon will remove the cranium, and very carefully detach the upper portion of spine removing the brain along with it. Your brain will still be sleeping at this point, and you will be moved into your own private cradle and attached to life support systems. All remaining organs will now be dealt with, and the body will either be disposed of or held, at your cost.

It is at this point that the TMTS device will be grafted onto your memory centers, and upon your "awakening", you will be within your new life, wherever you wanted to be!

So how does QVM make a profit? That is an excellent question. So while you are living a life of perfection, what do we get out of the deal? As we said before the brain is the best computing system ever created, and within your paradise, you'll only be using 10%-17% of its full power. That's an awful lot of waste, right?

But, by agreeing to the terms of service agreement, we can use our patent pending CraniaCradel to siphon off some of that unused power to do many things. Typically we only use 45%-65% per day, so you should never feel drained in any way.

Now you have firsthand knowledge of the entire process of our TMTS device implant procedure, and how it all works. So how much is it? Right now you can get your very own TMTS device for the low, low price of just C19.99.

So if you aren't happy where you are, why don't you consider a bright future with a TMTS device today? Call now!

---
QVM is not liable for any of the following: Incorrect Destination, Non Satisfaction after the fact, Power Surges, Peak Power Days, Any and all symptoms of Fatigue, and/or loss of connection. Not every procedure occurs as depicted, And some destinations cannot be reached. Shifting to destination can only be done once, and in 99% of cases is completely irreversible. If TMTS device is found faulty a manufacturers refund can be issued.

title: [SF] A Bright Future, Today!

question: What is the ultimate destination of the person who purchases a TMT device?

answer: The person who buys the TMT device can move anywhere up or down their own timeline. This means that they can go back to your childhood or forward to the future. The transfer is irreversible.

question: What happens to the body?

answer: The body and all unnecessary organs are removed. They will be set aside and recycled unless the owner has made prior arrangements to have them stored. QVM will dispose of the body unless the owner has paid for its storage.

question: Why is the body removed?

question: How does QVM profit from this?

answer: The brain is the best computing equipment known to man and QVM wants to harness the power. The brain owner needs just 10% to 17% of the computing power. QVM wants to use 45% to 65% of the computing power for their own purposes.


text:
i wrote this for class and my teacher said i should post it online...REDDIT TO THE RESCUEEE

Exhaust

by Reines

	The autumn leaves. They spiral down like ballerinas from their wooden grip and land in the gentle mud. The soft earth embraces the trees fallen sons and daughters and shares with them their blessing. The blessing of not knowing how to feel. They don't know what it's like to wallow endlessly through the caverns of their own minds, the only glow being their mortification. Or have the memories that were once tucked away deep in the pockets of their skull rip out like vultures escaping the hellfire.

                            It's her birthday today.

	I stare up at the desert of leaves above me. They stare back. The cool breeze breathes through the forest and carries my exhaled breath with it. I sit up.
	“It's gonna rain,” I say looking over at Samuel, the bottle of whiskey in my hand held tight, the revolver resting on my lap. “Yep. Gonna rain. I can always tell.” I laugh. “Let's go.”
	Samuel stands up and walks towards me. He rests his head on my shoulder before giving me a huge lick on my cheek, his tail wagging ferociously behind him.
	Standing up, I take the last swig of the bottle before hurling it into the wooden crowd. I tug on my plaid shirt, grab the gun, and pet Samuel on the head. He tries to lick my hand.
	“Good boy,” I say. He really is. We got him together, Sandra and I. It was the first thing we did together. Well, the first thing we did after we got married. The second thing we did was break each others' hearts.
	One year. That's all it took to unveil the carnival of our doubts, troubles and demons. Our illustrations of a white picket fence were crumpled up like our noses along with the dreams of  conceiving anything innocent. The dreams of ever becoming a family. What was once a fortune of photo album smiles and rays of laughter were quickly dissolved into silent dinner conversations and lonely love making.

                           She left me.

	The brisk wind causes my hair to cackle and wave like fire, causing some of the leaves I gathered to flutter off the ground. Samuel smells something familiar. Something so recognizable that he starts to whine and slowly sniffs his way to the leaf pile. He digs, claws and eventually...finds her foot.
	I point the revolver at the dog.
	“For what it's worth Samuel, you should probably let her be.”
	A deep laugh takes the taste of whiskey off of my breath. Samuel stares at me, tail wagging, but he knows I'm serious. He's seen this gun before. His eyes drift to the foot, and then back at me. Deep, he stares, almost unrecognizable. Lost and confused, like when you realize your slimy, arrogant brother's sleeping with your wife. But then his tongue flops out and he smiles.
	“I could never kill you,” I say. Instead, I run my fingers down the cooling barrel, staring at it like I'm looking at an assortment of stolen memories...echoing out my name. The end of the barrel kisses the bottom my chin. My grip tightens.
	“Life. As cold as the rivers that cascade through my heart.” I smile as Samuel walks towards me. “Ah, it's gonna rain boy. I can always tell.” Samuel lies down at my feet.

                                Will it hurt?

title: check out my 1 page story about a man, his only friend and his dead wife.

question: How did the author's teacher feel about their story?

answer: They were probably impressed by it.

question: Who are the tree's fallen sons and daughters?

answer: The leaves

question: Whose foot does Samuel dig up?

answer: It's implied that this is the foot of the wife, whom the protagonist murdered.


text:
I came upon a little town a little before sunset.  I don't even remember the name of it now but I guess those names don't really mean much these days anyways. It didn't seem as wasted as most of them are these days so I was hopeful that I might find something worthwhile. But decent looking buildings don't usually stay that way without somebody sticking around to look after them so I was wary of getting in to the search right away. I found a little shack on the outskirts with windows looking out on what looked like the main street. I was still doing pretty good on rifle ammo so I  decided to set up camp in it for the night and stake the place out. It was a quiet night and eventually I figured it was safe enough to catch a few hours of sleep. But right around sunrise I woke up to the sound of a rooster doing it's thing.

Such a fool's move, I thought, letting such an obvious signal to announce their presence. I watched for an hour and still didn't see any movement so I stowed my gear under a pile of rotted furniture, put on my ghillie suit and started crawling with my rifle through the wild grass in the direction of that rooster's call. I learned pretty quickly that patience is what keeps you alive when you don't know what you're facing so I took my time. The summer heat didn't make it easy but an hour of slow creeping brought me in to sight of a two-story house that still had all it's doors shut and windows boarded up. It had a loft that seemed like a good place to keep chickens, so I figured this was probably the spot. Two more hours of lying there and sweating my ass off later I was beginning to question myself when I saw a thin wisp of smoke rise up from the chimney.

Then the question was, how many I was dealing with. The house could have held at least a dozen people and I wasn't fool enough to think I could take that on. I didn't have much hope for a peaceful encounter either. You had a decent chance of it for the first year or so after it went bad, people still had that sense of helping out their fellows stuck in the same trouble as them. But then the canned goods and all the rest of the remnants of the old world started running out and most of 'em realized that they couldn't afford to be gracious anymore, especially once they had a run in or two with the rangers; that is, if they were lucky enough to survive those encounters.

So I waited some more. One of the doors finally cracked open and I saw a man's face searching the yard with a quick eye. He had the all too common look of the chronically malnourished and the sunworn face of a farmer. He could have been twenty or fifty just as easily but his expression showed that he hadn't made it this far by luck. After a few moments he decided it was worth it to step out with a pail and walk over to the pump that stood in the center of the yard. I noticed the line a few yards out of the door that ran perpendicular to the wall. He worked it hard and set back quickly, seeming to struggle just a little to walk steady with his load.

I waited all through the rest of the day. It was hard to resist the idea of going up to the pump and getting my fill but that would be far too much a risk. It got dark and I couldn't see any light through the cracks of the window boards so I decided to take the chance of getting close enough to listen for activity in the house. I stepped carefully over the line, which I saw was strung with several clusters of empty cans and bits of scrap metal. It was at least three feet off the ground, which made it far more visible than a wise man would have wanted for such an alarm.

I heard him, clattering a few pans and eating noisily. Nothing else though. I began to suspect he was alone. I heard the creak of stairs and then no more. Around midnight I made my way back to my shack and rested.

I made my way back to my spot outside the yard before sunrise and waited. Once more the man stepped out for water and I decided to take my chance. A single round dropped him as he stooped to work the pump. I waited a long time to see if he would get up, or if it would ellicit any reaction from inside the house. But, nothing.

examine the body etc*
The door was still ajar, so I went off to the side and crept along the wall, under the windows. I took out a carefully wrapped bag of silver fulminate snappers out of my satchel and threw them through the door. The loud crack of them usually succeeds in startling people into giving their presence away but nothing besides the patter of the little rocks followed. I stepped slowly inside, wary of traps, but found only mostly bare rooms, with a few pieces of ancient wood furniture in the process of falling apart. There was a pantry, pitifully stocked with enough food for maybe a week or two.

The upstairs consisted of three bedrooms. The first two were empty, but in the third I found two small children, no more than five or six, squeezing themselves between a bed and the wall. Their huge eyes showed the terror they felt at my sight. I felt a terrible twinge in my heart, realizing that I had probably just killed their father or brother. But, I thought to myself, if that man let me take his life as easily as I had it was really only a matter of time before someone did the exact same thing that I had. Truly, I thought, there isn't room in this world any more for the weak and the foolish. It was a sad thought, but inescapable.

I spoke to them in a gentle voice, told them that everything was alright and that their daddy would be right back but that him and I needed to do something secret first. I told them to get in their bed and hide their faces in the pillows for a minute so they wouldn't peek. They obviously didn't trust me and it took a minute to convince them to move but eventually they got in. I stared for a moment at the backs of their heads and pitied the cruel life this world had imposed on such innocents. I tried to think of something I could do. I thought for a moment about taking them with me, because I knew they stood no chance by themselves of anything but slowly starving. But I knew that if I could barely find enough to keep myself alive, bringing them along would only lead to a worse fate for us all. So that was it. I might have said I was sorry, or maybe I just thought it and then I fired a round into the back of each of their head, fast enough that I hope neither of them realized what had happened.

I couldn't bear to look at what I'd done so I turned and all but ran downstairs. I took whatever food looked like it would keep on the road, some matches and lighter fluid that I found in a drawer, and left. I averted my eyes from the man on the ground. I couldn't bring myself to stop to fill my canteen, though I knew that was probably a mistake.

I went back to my gear and sat down hard on the ground. I felt numb, detached from my body, and all I could see was the last few moments in the bedroom replaying over and over in my head. It was the right thing to do, right? Are there even any right things to do anymore? Or just choices between the lesser or greater of two evils? I left that night without going back in to the town, setting off down the faint remains of an asphalt road. I walked for a long time, without any thought of actually getting anywhere. I wasn't sure whether I really wanted to get anywhere. So I just kept walking.

title: [MF] Surviving.

question: What alerts the narrator to the presence of another human?

answer: The rooster cry at sunrise

question: Why does the narrator wait until after dark to make his move?

answer: He's staking out the house. He is worried that there may be a number of people in the house and that he will get a hostile reception.

question: Why does the narrator kill the children?

answer: They are young. Their father is dead. They will starve to death if left to fend for themselves.

question: What is the line of cans for?

answer: It is a make shift alarm to alert the man of the presence of someone else in the grounds.

question: Write a ~16 sentence summary.

answer:
The narrator comes upon a town just before sunset. He sets up camp on the outskirts and wakes to the sound of a rooster, a clear indication that someone lives there. He stashes his goods and crawls with his rifle in the direction of the rooster’s call. He sees a wisp of smoke coming from a chimney.

He’s wary of how many people might occupy the house. In the first year or so after the devastation others may still have helped. Now it’s each man for himself. A man steps out of the house and makes for the water pump. The narrator waits till after dark to make his move.

In the early hours when the man steps out for water again, he shoots him. He finds two small children in one of the upstairs bedrooms. They are young. He can’t take them with him and they will starve to death if left to fend for themselves. He tells them to climb onto the bed and hide their faces. He shoots them in the back of the head. Then he takes what food is left and leaves.


text:
NAVLYA () is an urban-type settlement in Bryansk Oblast, Russia. It is the administrative center of Navlinsky District.

History

The town was founded in 1904 in connection with the construction of the Moscow-Kiev-Voronezh railway. Since 1938 the settlement is mostly urban.

During the German occupation in World War II, from November 1941 to September 1943, it was part of Navlya Lokotskogo District. Guerrilla groups were active in the woods near Navlya, While an underground Komsomol group operated in the town.

Economy

In the settlement there are several industries including a repair plant, Auto Aggregate Plant (manufacture of driveshafts), Factory “Promsvyaz” (manufacture of machinery for the construction of cable lines), Food Factory, conducted asphalt production and harvesting.

Place of interest

In Navlya there is the Museum of Partisan Glory, underground guerrillas monument “Memory Wall” with a bust of the commander of one of the groups, Peter Derevyanko, as well as a monument to the soldiers of the 10th separate tank brigade of the Bryansk Front based around an IS-2 tank mounted on a pedestal. In addition, in the town is a monument to Lenin, the stele in honor of the liberation of the city, a monument and burial of defenders and civilians Navlya on the forecourt. Knyazev is a monument to the defenders of the city, in the park. Derevianko - a monument to the liquidators of the Chernobyl accident.

title: Navlya, Bryansk Oblast

question: What town is the administrative center of the Navlinsky District?

answer: Navlya is the administrative center of the Navlinsky District.

question: When was Navlya founded?

answer: Navlya was founded in 1904.

question: When was Navlya occupied during World War Two?

answer: Navlya was occupied from November 1941 to September 1943 in World War Two.

question: What does the Auto Aggregate Plant produce?

answer: The Auto Aggregate Plant manufactures driveshafts.

question: What is Derevianko a monument to?

answer: Derevianko is a monument to the liquidators of the Chernobyl accident.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: Navlya is a town in Bryansk Oblast, Russia. It was occupied for nearly two years in World War Two. It is home to several factories and monuments.


text:
Many or all of the products featured here are from our partners who compensate us. This may influence which products we write about and where and how the product appears on a page. However, this does not influence our evaluations. Our opinions are our own.

Rush-hour traffic is a headache, and driving to and from work each day can get expensive. A surprising new analysis finds that in some U.S. cities you could use Uber for your commute and even save money in the process.

NerdWallet examined data from a variety of sources to compare the cost of commuting each week via ridesharing service Uber vs. a personal vehicle in the 20 largest U.S. metropolitan areas by population, to see if owning a vehicle for work is cost-effective. Although this analysis examined only two commute options, in some metro areas commuters could slash their costs by riding a bus or train, so it can pay to look at the full range of choices.

Using typical commute distances for each metro area, we gathered Uber rates for the morning and afternoon rush hours, choosing the carpool UberPool where available or UberX, the private car option, and compared that cost with commuting via personal vehicle and its costs: gasoline, parking, car insurance and vehicle wear and tear. For the data details and full methodology, click here.

To skip ahead to the full data, click here.

Uber is a cheaper option in 8 metro areas

It makes financial sense to use Uber to get to and from work each week in eight of the 20 metropolitan areas analyzed:

-   Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL
-   Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI
-   Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA
-   Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL
-   New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ
-   San Diego-Carlsbad, CA
-   San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA
-   Washington, D.C.-Arlington-Alexandria, VA

In only one of the eight metros, the Detroit area, the less-expensive UberPool wasn’t available as a commuting option when rate estimates were gathered Feb. 13-17, 2017.

Cheaper option saves $6 to $135 a week

How much you could save when opting for the more economical commute in our analysis — whether using Uber or driving yourself — depends on where you live. The amount could be enough to produce a significant weekly savings or to buy an extra cup of coffee.

The metros where we found the biggest weekly savings using Uber:

-   San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA: $83.16 saved.
-   New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: $75.75 saved.
-   Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL: $38.96 saved.

The metro areas where we found the biggest weekly savings commuting in a personal vehicle:

-   Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ: $134.84 saved.
-   Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX: $115.96 saved.
-   St. Louis, MO-IL: $107.87 saved.

In other metros, choosing the economical mode in our analysis led to more modest savings. The metros where we found the smallest weekly savings for using your car or Uber:

-   Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI: $5.77 saved by using Uber.
-   Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO: $12.38 saved when driving a personal vehicle.
-   San Diego-Carlsbad, CA: $16.20 saved by using Uber.

Auto insurance is over 40% of costs in 4 metros

Insurers consider a number of factors when pricing a policy, but location is a major one that can keep you from getting cheap car insurance. In our analysis, we found four metro areas where insurance accounts for more than 40% of weekly commuting costs:

-   Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL (52.4%)
-   Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL (51.2%)
-   Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI (48.3%)
-   Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX (43.6%)

Parking is over 50% of costs in 5 metros

Parking in a city can be expensive, and no one knows that more than folks who drive to work. In five metro areas analyzed, weekly parking costs accounted for more than half of all commuting costs we looked at, helping to make Uber the cheaper option in four out of five of these locations:

-   New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ (67.4%)
-   Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE (57.6%)
-   Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL (56.5%)
-   Washington, D.C.-Arlington-Alexandria, VA (55.7%)
-   San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA (51.0%)

Gas is the smallest cost in 19 of 20 areas

Of all driving-related costs analyzed, gas had the smallest impact on bank accounts in nearly all metro areas. This is due to a combination of relatively low gas prices and short commute distances. For example, the data we used measured the typical commute in New York as the shortest of the metro areas at 7.7 miles, and here gas made up the smallest percentage of commute costs.

The Dallas metro area was the only exception to this trend, where parking represented the smallest percentage of all commute costs.

Gas accounted for less than 5% of all commute costs that we analyzed in three metropolitan areas:

-   New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ (3.0%)
-   San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA (4.1%)
-   Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE (4.9%)

The cheapest option in these 20 metro areas is clear, according to the analysis of the data. However, keep in mind that with the UberPool option, the time you spend commuting may increase as other passengers are dropped off or picked up. Although our analysis found the cheapest option to get to and from work each week, there are factors that could sway commuters to take a more expensive route. For some, the wake-up time spent cruising by yourself, or conversely, the peace of mind of not being behind the wheel, can be priceless.

Uber vs. driving data

_Elizabeth Renter is a staff writer at NerdWallet, a personal finance website. Email: [email protected]. Twitter: @ElizabethRenter. Diamond Richardson is a data analyst at NerdWallet. Email: [email protected]._

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

METHODOLOGY

COMMUTE PATHS

-   The typical commute distance for all metro areas except Boston are from a 2015 Brookings Institution analysis of 2011 Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics data.
-   Average commute distance in the Boston metro area is from the Boston Metropolitan Area Planning Council’s analysis of 2006 – 2010 Census Transportation Planning Products.
-   We determined origination and destination addresses for each metro area that aligned to these commute distances:
    ORIGINATION ADDRESS. We selected a residential address within one mile of that metro’s typical commute distance and within two miles of an elementary school.
    DESTINATION ADDRESS. We selected city hall in the most populous city in each metro area.

COMMUTE COSTS VIA PERSONAL VEHICLE

-   To calculate gas prices, we used the following:
    2016 average annual gas price by metro area from Oil Price Information Service (OPIS).
    Miles per gallon for a 2013 Toyota Camry 2.5L, 4-cylinder 6-speed automatic from fueleconomy.gov.
-   The cost of maintenance, repairs, taxes, fees and financing is from Edmunds True Cost to Own calculator. We used costs under “year 4” of ownership for a 2013 Toyota Camry, 2.5L, 4-cylinder 6-speed automatic, mapped to the ZIP code for each metro area’s origination address.
-   Insurance rates from a sampling of ZIP codes in each metro area were taken from data in NerdWallet’s car insurance comparison tool. These rates represent annual premiums for 30-year-old single male and female drivers insuring a 2013 Toyota Camry. All drivers were quoted liability limits of 100/300/100 and a comprehensive and collision deductible of $1,000. All drivers were quoted 25/50 uninsured motorist coverage, unless there were higher requirements for that state, in which case those coverage amounts were used. To find the average rates for each state, we averaged the rates for each carrier, selected the three cheapest carriers and averaged those.
-   To determine the cost of parking, we collected garage rates from parkme.com, a real-time parking data provider. We selected the three parking lots closest to the destination address in each city that offered monthly parking rates and averaged those rates for an average cost of parking.

COMMUTE COSTS VIA UBER

-   Uber data was used in this analysis because the service is available in all 20 of the country’s most populous metro areas as determined by U.S. Census data.
-   We entered the starting and ending addresses into the Uber app on Feb. 13-17, 2017. We collected estimated fares from 7:45 a.m. to 8 a.m. and from 5 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. local time in each time zone. Some of these fares fell into the surge pricing category when rides cost more during times of higher demand.
-   If UberPool was available, where riders can share an Uber, we selected that, assuming drivers interested in the cheapest commute would choose the cheapest Uber option. If it wasn’t available, we selected UberX, or the least expensive private Uber choice.

question: What does the article prove?

answer: The article proves that using Uber in some U.S. cities ends up being cheaper than using a personal vehicle when commuting to and from work.

question: What factor still determines the amount of money a person can save while commuting?

answer: Where a person lives still determines how much money is saved.

question: Why is UberPool the cheapest but less desirable option for commuting?

answer: Because a person would have to share a ride with other people, which means less privacy and longer travel time because other passengers would have to be picked up or dropped off.


text:
PATRICE WASHINGTON (born 1961) is a Bahamian airplane pilot, whose career was marked by a series of firsts. She was the first black graduate of Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida; first woman pilot of Bahamasair; first black woman captain of a major U.S. air service and first black female pilot hired by the United Parcel Service.

Early life

Patrice Francise Clarke was born on 11 September 1961 in Nassau, The Bahamas to Peggy Ann and Nathaniel Clarke. From the age of five, when she took her first flight, Clarke was interested in aviation. Raised by a single, divorced mother, along with her two sisters, Clarke learned responsibility at a young age. During her high schooling in Nassau she participated in career week activities hoping to become a stewardess, by the time she graduated, she had dreams of becoming a pilot. In 1979, intent on her goal, Clarke enrolled in the Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University of Daytona Beach, Florida, despite the fact that she was the only black student and spoke only Bahamian Creole. In April 1982, Clarke graduated as the first black woman in the school's history with a BS in aeronautical science and her commercial pilot's certification.

Career

Soon after her graduation, Clarke began working at a charter company, Trans Island Airways, in the Bahamas, as a pilot. She continued her studies and was able to earn her qualifications to fly Boeing 737 and Boeing 747-8 aircraft over the next few years. In 1984, Clarke became the first woman pilot of Bahamasair, when she was hired as a First Officer by the air service. Though often facing discrimination Clark persevered and in 1988, she was hired by United Parcel Service (UPS) as a flight engineer. Her three-person crew flew routes from Louisville, Kentucky to Anchorage, Alaska, as well as to Australia and Cologne, Germany. In 1990, Washington was promoted to First Officer with UPS.

In 1994, Clarke married Ray Washington, a pilot for American Airlines. In December 1994, she was promoted to captain by UPS, becoming the first black female, and one of only eleven female captains, to command planes for a major U.S. airline.

Legacy

In 1995, Washington and other female pilots founded the Bessie Coleman Foundation with the purpose of preserving Coleman's legacy, promoting the aviation profession among African American men and women, and providing a network for mentoring women in the airline sector. In 2000, Washington was presented with the Trumpet Award from Turner Broadcasting for her pioneering work in aviation on behalf of women.

title: Patrice Washington

question: When was Patrice Washington born?

answer: 1961.

question: What does Patrice Washington do?

answer: She is an airplane pilot.

question: Where is Patrice Washington from?

answer: The Bahamas.

question: Where was Patrice Washington born?

answer: Nassau.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: This article is about Patrice Washington a Bahamian airplane pilot.


text:
“THE SHOW MUST GO ON” is the 16th episode of season 3 of the supernatural drama television series _Grimm_ and the 60th episode overall, which premiered on March 21, 2014, on the cable network NBC. The episode was written by Marc Gaffen and Kyle McVey, and was directed by Paul A. Kaufman.

Plot

OPENING QUOTE: “Under such conditions, whatever is evil in men's natures comes to the front.”

At a carnival, a ringmaster named Hedig (Carlo Rota) is presenting to the public four Wesen that act as freaks, taking the excuse of magic. One of the Wesen, Max (Sam Witwer), who is also a Blutbad, leaves the carnival when two girls show up as they want to meet him. They invite him for drinks and although he is hesitant, they take him. The girls take him to their house and after discussion, he woges into a Blutbad and attacks them.

While attending a dinner with Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell) and Rosalee (Bree Turner) with Juliette (Bitsie Tulloch), Nick (David Giuntoli) is asked by Monroe to be his best man in their wedding while Juliette is asked to be Rosalee's maid of honor and they both agree. However, later that night, Nick tells Juliette that he is concerned about attending the wedding as many Wesen will be attending and they will recognize him as a Grimm.

Wu (Reggie Lee) is finally in service after leaving the psychiatric hospital and Nick and Hank (Russell Hornsby) investigate the murder of the two girls, finding their tickets to the carnival. They go to the carnival and Nick and Hank discover the Wesen performers, wondering if the Wesen Council could intervene. Back in Europe, Adalind (Claire Coffee) and Meisner (Damien Puckler) continue fleeing from the Verrat and find Sebastien (Christian Lagadec) in a car, badly hurt. A Verrat agent arrives but Adalind uses her abilities to make him kill himself. Sebastian is given a gun and Adalind and Meisner flee from the scene in a car. Viktor (Alexis Denisof) and the Verrat arrive and Sebastien manages to kill most of them but Viktor. He refuses to say where they went and Viktor shoots him, killing him.

While Nick and Hank talk with Hedig, Max loses control of himself and attacks one of the performers, Genvieve (Chryssie Whitehead). Nick and Hank talk with Monroe and Rosalee. They explain that the Council doesn't intervene because the public believes the performers are using magic and illusion although some are against it for exploitation. However, this could also cause the “Umkippen”, an act in which a Wesen has forced himself to woge many times that it can lose control. Monroe and Rosalee decide to go to the carnival for an intervention, which they believe could help in the Wesen. However, Rosalee is selected as the replacement for Genvieve for her Wesen part.

Meisner tells Adalind that he had a Resistance agent take her back to Portland but he will remain in Vienna. While preparing herself, Rosalee discovers that Max is the most affected with the Umkippen, deducing he is the killer. Before the show, Max confronts Hedig, who woges into a Löwen and reveals himself to be the killer of the people who saw him woged. Having discovered new evidence, Nick and Hank interrupt the show to arrest Hedig. Max breaks out of his cage and begins an attack while Hedig escapes to a mirror maze to find the Wesen. The performers are tired of his treatment and a Dämonfeuer kills him. The episode ends as Monroe and Rosalee are preparing for bed when Rosalee appears wearing her costume, causing Monroe to howl.

Reception

Viewers

The episode was viewed by 5.71 million people, earning a 1.5/5 in the 18-49 rating demographics on the Nielson ratings scale, ranking second on its timeslot and second for the night in the 18-49 demographics, behind _Shark Tank_.[1] This was a 2% increase in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 5.63 million viewers with a 1.6/5.[2] This means that 1.5 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode, while 5 percent of all households watching television at that time watched it. With DVR factoring in, the episode was watched by 8.36 million viewers with a 2.6 ratings share in the 18-49 demographics.[3]

Critical reviews

“The Show Must Go On” received mixed-to-positive reviews. The A.V. Club's Kevin McFarland gave the episode a “C+” grade and wrote, “_Grimm_ cycles through episodes like 'The Show Must Go On' every so often, that sidestep police investigations in favor of allowing a few of the New Scoobies to deal with the case at hand as they see fit outside of the formal legal system. And when that leaves room for Monrosalee to take charge, it's usually an issue of Wesen rights that serves as a mild allegory for disenfranchised or mistreated persons. The correlation between bestial beings and those that need to be rescued may not be the most sensitive parallel, but it allows _Grimm_ to leave Nick and Hank somewhat in the background, transition away from the repetitive structure of Nick/Hank/Wu at a crime scene followed by a trip to the Magic Airstream, interrogation, and a final Wesen confrontation. Instead, Monroe and Rosalee take center stage.”[4]

Nick McHatton from _TV Fanatic_, gave a 3.8 star rating out of 5, stating: “The carnival lends itself well to _Grimm_{{'}}s world because it answers one of the questions of Wesen woguing for money in a safe space. I think we've all wondered what would happen if Wesen set up their own little shop of horrors to have some fun and make some cash.”[5]

MaryAnn Sleasman from _TV.com_, wrote, “Sam Witwer and a Wesen carnival and Monrosalee wedding planning and twisted, cheeky use of Warren Zevon's 'Werewolves of London' — this episode of _Grimm_ made me so happy, you guys. It didn't even really move the plot very far: Adalind is still running around in the woods, the circus storyline (though refreshingly different from the usual gloomy murder investigations) was wrapped up all neat and pretty, and as much as I want to doodle little hearts around Sam Witwer's face every time it appears on el television, I'm concerned about how Max the Blutbad was basically just a hairier version of _Being Human_{{'}}s Aidan the Vampire.”[6]

[1]

[2]

[3] Live+7 DVR Ratings: 'Grey's Anatomy' & 'The Blacklist' Have Biggest 18-49 Ratings Gains, 'Raising Hope' & 'Hart of Dixie' Top Percentage Gains in Week 26

[4]

[5]

[6]

title: The Show Must Go On (Grimm)

question: What is The Show Must Go On?

answer: The Show Must Go On is the 16th episode of season 3 of the supernatural drama television series Grimm.

question: When did The Show Must Go On air?

answer: March 21, 2014

question: What was the opening quote of the Grimm episode The Show Must Go On?

answer: Under such conditions, whatever is evil in men's natures comes to the front.

question: How was The Show Must Go On received by critics?

answer: It received mixed-to-positive reviews.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: The Show Must Go On is the 16th episode of season 3 of the supernatural drama television series Grimm.


text:
There he was, hiding in the silent darkness of the nights.. wandering aimlessly between the haunted corridors of his fortress of solitude.. he reaches that tower kissing the moonless sky, standing tall in the forbidden forest guarded by forsaken beasts from the depths of hell.. he feels a breeze of sorrow drying out his tears.. he hears a distant scream calling out his name.. damning it for all eternity.. he once looked into the eyes of destiny and prophesied that he shall never feel love again..

He was but a lonely traveler searching for a soul-mate, but instead, he ended up broken and shattered in the land of hatred.. he lingers in the shadows of yesterday, wondering what tomorrow might bring.. wondering if he's ever to feel the sun's warmth again... wondering when will his suffering end, if ever shall it do....

With nothing left but rusty memories, he draws a vague picture of her face.. he’s been living amongst the beasts for so long.. she barely looks human anymore... barely..

but one day,

through the thick moldy air of the night, along came a ray of hope.. a golden ray of sunshine.. so powerful.. so beautiful.. it conquered the darkness.. it filled his heart with warmth.. it took out the misery & replaced it with joy.. it took out the hate & replaced it with love.. it took away the screams & replaced them with music.. it brought a doomed man back to life.. and for that he shall forever be thankful..

one day,
along came you...

title: along came you...

question: Where is he?

answer: In the forest.

question: What time of day is it?

answer: Night.

question: How is he feeling?

answer: Heartbroken and shattered.

question: What is the sole character's quest?

answer: It seems to be love or vengeance or both.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: A man who wanders amongst beasts in the woods at nights is still suspended in anguish over a vaguely explained lost love.


text:
	I was a close friend of Ben Harper's for about 10 years, from playing legos, to shooting tin cans, to racing cars. I was there for him after his parents died, about to take him in until his aunt decided to stop being a bitch and let him live with her. Ben was never right after his parents died, but I could never put a finger on what exactly happened. It was like his mind was wrapped in a foggy black abyss, wrestling with itself, closing out everything he ever had. He went from constant chatter, to silent reluctance, and  from soccer practices to therapy sessions. But one thing was for certain, Ben Harper was always my good friend.
	As kids, we were always playing cops and robbers. I was always a cop, alongside our good friend Dennis, and Peter was always the first to volunteer himself to be the robber, most likely because he was  always so damn good at it. He'd sneak by with a certain level of stealth that made you think his feet weren't even on the ground. Even thinking  about it now...I'd say Peter's exceptional skills in cops and robbers is what has turned me and Dennis into such great cops. Always taking in the smallest details, always analyzing multiple times. Peter was a great catalyst to our career success.
	But one day in our sophomore year of highschool, Peter came to my house, unannounced. He asked if he could come in, his head tilted to the ground, hands shaking. He didn't walk in right away, but stood like a statue in an exhibit.
	“Can I come in...?”  Slightly monotone.
	Something was wrong.
	“Yeah dude, you alright?”
	He walked right passed me, sat on the couch his head in between his legs, cradled by his trembling hands.
	“My fucking aunt dude...”
	Peter's aunt was a bitch, everyone knew that. She treated Peter like a 6 year old, making him come home for dinner, making sure he was inside at night. I think she's part of the reason why he's fucked up, in fact, I'm almost sure of it. When I bring it up all he says is, “Dude, you have no idea...”
	I ask Peter what happened. He gets up, pacing, running a hand through his wild hair.
	“I get home, and there are boxes in my room. She gives me this smartass smirk that she's done my whole fucking life and just says, 'Be packed by next week. We're moving.'”
	He's reliving the moment as he explains it. I've never seen him this mad. I don't know what to say.
	“Fuck, dude.”
	“I'm losing it Tony, I'm really. Fucking. losing it.” He slams his hands on the wooden table as he says it.
	I keep trying to calm him down, but the brewing rage inside of him just keeps a continuous boil. I tell him maybe he could live with me for a while, to which his face turns blank. His rage turns to fear.
	“Do you know what she would do to me?”
	You're right, I don't...What the fuck happens at Peter's when no one is around?
	 I tell him to get in the car, and I drive off. I pick up Dennis, and we head to the shooting range.  Peter shot consistent bulls-eyes that night. That was one of the last memories I have of him, until he was gone.
	Dennis and I stayed close throughout our college years. We went to NYU together, were in the same frat, and lived together the whole four years. We tried to keep in touch with Peter as much as possible, but it was rough. He moved from New Jersey to Minnesota, and was going to college, but I don't think he ever told me what he was going for. Apparently his aunt restricted how much he could talk to people, so he could never talk for long. We eventually fell out of contact, but I hope he was at least living at college and moved out. *That fucking bitch.*

title: Blood Red Part I (feedback appreciated)

question: What does the story say about how Peter's (Ben) parents died?

question: What is Peter's aunt's role in the story?

answer: Peter's aunt is the story's antagonist. She initially was being a bitch about taking Peter in when both his parents died. When she finally took Peter in to live with her, she subjected him to extremely harsh rules that embarrassed Peter. It is presumed in the story that Peter's aunt may have been subjecting him to torture and abuse.

question: What does the story say about the relationship between Tony and Dennis?

answer: Tony and Dennis are close friends who grew up together. They used to play a lot as kids alongside their other friend, Peter. Tony and Dennis stayed close throughout college. They went to NYU together, joined the same fraternity, and lived together the whole four years. Tony and Dennis eventually became cops.

question: How did Tony's relationship with Peter change throughout the story?

answer: Tony and Peter were close friends for about 10 years growing up. Peter was never right after his parents died, but to Tony, he was always a good friend. They grew apart after Peter's aunt (who took him in) decided to move to another state. Tony tried to keep in touch with Peter as much as possible during college, but the latter kept moving to different states. Peter's aunt also restricted how much he could talk to people and he could never talk for long. Tony and Peter eventually fell out of contact.


text:
Every day I wake up with my wife and make her breakfast and pack her lunch for the day. Her sheduale changes daily, so sometimes she is up at 6 int he morning, and sometimes she has to be up at 3. When she gets up, she turns all the lights on and wakes me up. I make sure she has her bathrobe and hair dryer plugged in and then make her eggs. I make a fresh salad for lunch, as well as packing any snacks she would like.

Then I make sure her purse is ready, and that she has her phone, keys and wallet. I also pack her 'pills', which are a series of diet pills and vitmins. If I don't double check it for her, she will just leave, and then become furious that I didn't pack it correctly. Her commute is just under 2 hours, and she expects me to talk to her on the phone the entire time. The only time she doesn't, is if she hangs up on me to talk to her mom or her sister. Typically while we talk I'm finishing laundry, or cleaning the kitchen, or making the bed, or getting ready for work my self.

On my days off she expects me to travel to meet her at work so I can ride the bus home with her. She also expects me to talk to her on the phone every break and lunch she has. When she has a day off she will often hang up on me, or not answer her phone if I call. She will spend her days off laying in bed watching TV, and napping with our cat.

This morning she left me, because I was too selfish.

title: A Love Story.

question: Who is the narrator?

answer: A man devoted to looking after his wife. Either devoted or scared.

question: What does he do daily for his wife?

answer: Everything from making her breakfast and packing her snacks to having her hair dryer plugged in and talking with her phone for her full commute, lunch and breaks.

question: Why does she leave him?

answer: She indicates that he is selfish.

question: Why does her schedule change daily?

answer: It is not clear from the text. She either goes to work at 5 or at 3 with a 2 hour commute.

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer: A devoted husband does everything possible for his wife. She gets angry if he misses one of the massive amount of things he does for her every day. He also talks to her on the phone for hours at a time. The same level of care is not reiterated by his wife. She leaves him because he is selfish.


text:
His strong showing in Pennsylvania suggests Republicans could face a stiffer challenge than they expected in at least some blue-collar districts where the president is relatively popular.

March 14, 2018

[]
Brendan McDermid / Reuters
The Republicans’ last sea wall against a Democratic wave in November visibly cracked, but did not entirely crumble, in Tuesday’s special election for a House seat in Pennsylvania.

For all of the gains Democrats have posted in elections held since Donald Trump’s victory in 2016, until this week they had failed to demonstrate progress on one critical front: regaining ground with the white working-class voters at the core of the president’s coalition.

Democrat Conor Lamb’s apparent victory—pending final counting—over Republican Rick Saccone in a preponderantly white, heavily blue-collar House district outside Pittsburgh showed that even those demographic defenses no longer look impregnable for the GOP. But the limits of his gains in the district’s mostly blue-collar areas—Westmoreland and Washington counties—underscore how far Democrats still have to go with these voters, and how difficult a slog it could be.

The complex, narrowly divided outcome in Pennsylvania suggests that Republicans could face a stiffer challenge than they expected in at least some blue-collar and non-urban districts where Trump has remained relatively popular—places like upstate New York, downstate Illinois, and parts of Michigan and Iowa. But Lamb’s apparent win—which turned on big margins in Allegheny, the district’s county with the most college graduates—also suggests that the epicenter of Republican vulnerability will remain the suburban white-collar districts most visibly alienated from Trump.

Above all, Lamb’s apparent win testified to how much energy opposition to Trump has ignited among Democrats everywhere. Lamb’s strong showing continued the pattern evident in special elections and other scheduled contests since 2016: Democratic candidates are consistently coming much closer to matching Hillary Clinton’s total number of votes in these jurisdictions than Republicans are to matching Trump’s. (By one calculation, Lamb won about 80 percent as many votes as Clinton did in the district, while Saccone generated only about 53 percent as many as Trump.) That’s consistent with the imbalances in partisan enthusiasm that usually trigger big midterm losses for a sitting president’s party—especially when his approval rating is lagging, as Trump’s is now.

Lamb’s strong showing came on terrain that has grown extremely rocky for Democrats. Whites comprise nearly 94 percent of the district’s total population—a share that’s greater than all but six districts’ nationwide. The district contains about as many college-educated whites as the national average, roughly one in three. But because the overall population is so preponderantly white, whites without a college degree still comprise roughly three-fifths of its population, many of them in small towns.

Not too long ago, so-called blue-dog Democrats held large numbers of House seats with this demographic profile. These Democrats typically combined cultural conservatism and hawkish foreign-policy views with defense of a robust government safety net—much the mix that Lamb presented. But in both the 2010 and 2014 midterm elections, a backlash against then-President Barack Obama triggered catastrophic losses among the blue dogs. Only two Democrats (Peter Welch in Vermont and Chellie Pingree in Maine) now hold seats where whites represent a larger share of the population than in the seat Lamb apparently carried. Even looking more broadly, Democrats before Tuesday held just seven of the 45 seats where whites constitute at least 90 percent of the population; Trump won 42 of those 45 districts in 2016.

Southwest Pennsylvania was an early center of the movement away from Democrats among blue-collar whites. Bill Clinton in 1992 and 1996 carried both Westmoreland and Washington, two preponderantly white counties in the district with relatively few college graduates. Al Gore in 2000 and John Kerry in 2004 each held Washington but lost Westmoreland. Obama and Hillary Clinton then lost both of them in 2008, 2012, and 2016. In fact, the GOP has won a higher share of the vote in Westmoreland than it did four years earlier in each presidential election since 1992, and it has improved in Washington all but once. Trump topped 60 percent in both.

“It’s been a slow erosion, then a collapse, like a giant ice sheet calving off a glacier,” Democratic consultant Paul Begala, who has worked in the area since the early 1990s, told me.

Lamb clawed back some of those losses, with Saccone carrying 57 percent in Westmoreland and 53 percent in Washington—majorities, but not blowouts. That suggests Lamb ran more competitively among blue-collar whites than Democrats did in earlier high-profile Trump-era contests, such as last year’s governor’s race in Virginia and special Senate election in Alabama. There, exit polls showed the GOP candidates carrying over 70 percent of whites without a college degree each time. Still, the results hardly signal a collapse in the GOP’s blue-collar foundation.

Lamb’s apparent victory came mostly because he carried nearly three-fifths of the vote in Allegheny County, the part of the district with the most college graduates and the strongest ties to a Pittsburgh economy that has been rejuvenated around education, medicine, and technology.

That pattern is a reminder that under any scenario, the Democrats’ principal opportunity in House races this fall remains concentrated in well-educated, globally connected, information-economy districts around the major metropolitan areas— from New York and Los Angeles to Chicago, Philadelphia, Minneapolis, and Denver; and potentially Atlanta, Dallas, and Houston as well. Among the most unnerving signs for Republicans from Pennsylvania is that Saccone and the outside party groups that blanketed the district with ads failed to move many voters by touting the GOP tax bill, which Republicans have viewed as their best opportunity for recapturing straying suburbanites.

In all, Tuesday’s results gave Republicans more reason for anxiety about their prospects of holding the House. But it also increased the odds that November’s results could widen the already imposing gulf between the white-collar and metro areas recoiling from Trump and the blue-collar and non-metro areas mostly still standing by his side.

We want to hear what you think about this article. Submit a letter to the editor or write to letters@theatlantic.com.

Ronald Brownstein is a senior editor at _The Atlantic._

question: What regions have Democrats been doing poorly in?

answer: Pennsylvania and the rural midwest.

question: What happened in 2018?

answer: The Democrats made major gains against the Republicans.

question: What has caused the gains?

answer: A low approval rating of the president.

question: What is causing Republicans anxiety?

answer: The prospect they might lose the House.

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: The article is about Democratic gains in the 2018 midterm election against the Republicans in the wake of the performance of the current President.


text:
It began with the power of suggestion. Then it turned into “do what I say” and they would just do it. Ive literally told people to kill themselves because I got bored of them. I would use girls as sex toys until they were just plain and boring to me. I used guys as butlers to do my every need until I was bored of seeing their face. And then I would tell them to kill themselves. And they would do it. The story of my power begins at school on a depressing and rainy day. I had been practicing the power of suggestion for a full year now, and I was going to try something on the hottest girl in school. The bell rang and I saw her walking past the soda machines, so this is when I decided to make my move. I walk up to her, tap her on the shoulder and say “Excuse me, Samantha right?” of course I knew her name but I acted like I didn’t. “Yeah, what do you want?” I loved the way she talked to me. As I began to speak something weird started to occur. I felt something horrendous was going to happen and then BAM! The lightning struck right in between us. I felt an odd sense of power and confidence and continued to tell her this, “Take your clothes off.” At first she started to laugh and then a weird look clang to her eyes. She began to do what she was told. Piece by piece the clothing came off, and a group of students had begun to gather around, making Samantha and I the center of attention. Finally after a full thirty seconds, (seemed like forever), she was completely naked in front of me and the entire group of students. I stared in amazement as she waited for her next order. “Get everyone here a soda.” I demanded. She then turned and smashed her head into the glass of the soda machine, cracking it ever so slightly. “Harder!” I screamed. So she did, leaving fragments of glass embedded in her forehead. Eventually the glass gave in, and the students just stared in awe.  “Well? Drink up!” the students rushed in, trampling Samantha like a bag of limbs. When the students were all drinking the soda I yelled “Spit it out at each other!” they proceeded to do so. I looked at Samantha, just lying there waiting for her next demand. “Have sex with me, right here, right now.” She got up, walked right up next to me and bent over. I then thrust my penis into her and had sex with her raw for the next three hours.

If you would like to read more please let me know! -Juan

title: The power of suggestion

question: Where did the narrator get this strange 'power of suggestion'.

answer: Unknown.


text:
To Hatch From a Broken Egg

	I was sitting in the living room with my arms crossed when Grandpa gathered the family around the dining room table. Grandpa was a giant of a man, with thighs like redwoods and hands like plains. I was the last to stand up when I began to walk over to the circle that had formed around the table. “I would like to see,” Grandpa began, with big pauses between each phrase, “someone attempt to balance this egg upright, without using any tools to hold it up.”

	The whiteness of the egg stood out in Grandpa’s wrinkled and purple spotted hands. It seemed so small. I studied the egg while my family began to buzz. My older cousin smirked and whispered something in my Dad’s ears that made him laugh. Uncle Joe was doing one of his James Cagney impressions to my brother and cousin. Aunt Anna had walked in the room from cooking and chuckled when she saw my grandpa holding the egg.
I was the only one paying attention, focusing on how you could possibly make a small oval stand. No one else was going to complete this challenge but me. When my Mom put her arms around my chest, and gave me a kiss on the cheek I pushed her away and said, “I can do it!”

	My grandpa’s heavy eyes shifted to me and his lips peeled into a grin, revealing yellow stained crooked teeth. His hands, like a giant compared to mine, handed me the egg. I began working right away.

	I made quick glances to Grandpa as I tried to balance it, hoping his gray eyes would light up at a correct attempt or that his white eyebrows would raise at a sign of progress, but he remained unemotional and still. I tried to ignore the commentary of my family at first.  Dad said, “oh so close,” several times with a laugh while Uncle David commentated like a sports announcer, “Jacob Lans. Balancing the egg. Can he do it? Ah, keeps missing.”

	After several minutes my older cousin said, “Come on, Jake. Give it back to Grandpa.” I ignored him but when my Mom stepped in saying, “Hun, you can try later, it’s fine,” the doubt became harder to ignore.

	“Let me just try!” I said, trying not to sound upset.

	Eventually my Uncle Joe stopped impersonating James Cagney. My father raised his eye brows and stood up from the table and my brother began to attack me. “Jacob you can’t do it.”

	“Don’t worry, Jakey. It’s impossible,” someone else said.

	I wanted to shut my family up and make them see that I could do it. I wanted them to know that just I could complete a task that was impossible for most. And I did.

	I finally stood the egg up right. It wasn’t balancing against anything; it was just standing up on its own. All because of me. I looked up in amazement, hoping to see my family enthusiastic with my accomplishment, but instead, half of them were gone and the other half had already moved on to new conversations. Only my cousin Rachel said, “Wow! Look guys! Jake did it!”

	As Rachel began to get my family’s attention I looked to Grandpa who was not grinning but seemed thrown by the egg standing up. As I waited for a response from Grandpa, the whole family began to circle back around the table.

	Before they could all see what I had done, Grandpa snagged the egg off the table, smashed it lightly against a plate, leaving the egg’s bottom flat surfaced with a crack, placed the it on the table, and forced a chuckle as everyone watched the egg stand up on its own. He said, “That is how you make an egg stand.”

	I quickly looked at my Grandpa, who avoided eye contact with me and laughed deliberately with the older cousins. My head spun to my parents, who had acknowledged Grandpa’s quaint gag but not my success and then it spun back to my Grandpa who was still ignoring me.

I darted out of living room and up to my room. I dove into my bed, grabbed my Teddy and belted a long hard cry into my pillow. No one came up to check on me until after they had lit the candles.

title: Creative Flash Fiction

question: Why does the narrator want to make the egg stand?

answer: His grandfather challenged everyone to see who could do it.

question: Why does the narrator look to see their grandfather's reaction?

answer: It was the grandfather who challenged him.

question: Did someone challenge the narrator to balance the egg?

answer: The grandfather did.

question: Who all is in the room?

answer: Jacob (narrator), his parents, his uncle David, aunt Anna and his cousin Rachel.

question: Write a ~9 sentence summary.

answer: Jacob's grandfather challenges everyone to make an egg stand by itself. Only Jacob attempts the challenge while the rest of his family members simply watch. Although Jacob tries really hard for a long time he is unsuccessful. His family tries to tell him it is impossible but he won't listen. As everyone starts to leave away from Jacob and the egg, he finally manages to make it stand. He and his grandfather stare in shock. Jacob's cousin is the only one who notices and yells for everyone to come see. Before they can, Jacob's grandfather snatches the egg and claims Jacob smashed the bottom of the egg, flattening it and making it able to stand. Everyone laughs and Jacob runs upstairs upset.


text:
One definition for social is “pleasant companionship with friends or associates” (Merriam-Webster). You’re probably social at work when you interact with people in friendly ways. That’s natural and makes work more enjoyable. _Are you social on social media?_

Social media helps connect people. Never in the history of humanity has it been so easy to connect with so many people anywhere in the world. I’ve made friends across the globe – and met some in person – because I chose to be social on social media. You never know where those relationships will lead.

HOW I USE LINKEDIN

I accept every request to connect on LinkedIn even though most people don’t know how to use LinkedIn effectively. For example, too many people just click on the request to connect button without sending a personal message to say why they want to connect. When I get a request like that I always send this message immediately after accepting the connection:

  Thanks for reaching out to connect with me Joe. I’m curious, how did you come across my profile? Brian

Almost everyone responds and the number one reason they want to connect with me is because they’ve taken one of my LinkedIn courses. It would be foolish on my part to dismiss so many connections – especially those who’ve enjoyed my course – just because they’re not more LinkedIn savvy. And who knows, those people could be clients in the future.

I like when people are honest and tell me, “I just clicked on the connect button because LinkedIn suggested you. I hope that’s okay?” My usually response: “Thanks for letting me know. Today is your lucky day!” My humor gets laughs and often opens up people to further communication. It’s being social.

AN INTERESTING EXCHANGE

The best exchange happened recently. I changed the name and a few other facts to keep the person anonymous. You’ll see the importance of being social in our brief exchange. There was humor and the principle of liking was clearly in play for both of us.

  Me: Thanks for reaching out to connect Joe. I’m curious, how did you come across my profile? Brian

  Joe: It suggests people. You looked interesting!

  Me: Thanks for letting me know. I’ve done courses for LinkedIn Learning so a lot the time that’s the reason. It’s good to know why people are reaching out. I’m going to let my wife know someone found me interesting today. Every little bit helps. 😉 Have a terrific day. Brian

  Joe: You tell her I found you interesting AND handsome AND someone who looked like he’d be an awesome husband.

  Me: I’ll show her that message!

  Me: I just show her and she said, “He seems like a funny guy.” I told her I wasn’t sure about that but being an Ivy League grad, I knew you were smart…and perceptive!

  Joe: A smart something …. do you do talks for insurance conferences?  I am co-chairing an insurance sales conference this year.

It remains to be seen if I’ll speak at the conference but I know this: my odds are much better than they’d have been if I had rejected the connection. If I’d have accepted the connection, but not been social, my chance to speak would have still been much less.

CONSIDER…

There are plenty of reasons to steer clear of social media and one big one is the time suck once you start scrolling through feeds. To prevent falling into the time trap set designated times to use certain apps. For example: I generally try to use LinkedIn early in the morning and limit browsing Facebook to the times when I take a mental break from reading or writing.

Something else to consider – don’t wait until you need to make LinkedIn connections to start making them. That’s one of the biggest mistakes people make. They start working it after they’ve left a job and need a new one. Think of LinkedIn connections like regular relationships – the more time you invest everyday the better positioned you’ll be when you need help. People are more willing to help those they consider friends (liking) and those who’ve helped them in the past (reciprocity). It starts with you being friendly and looking for ways to help others.

CONCLUSION

If you want to grow your influence I encourage you to be more social on social media. It’s a great opportunity to practice your influence skills, make friends, and maybe open the door to new opportunities.

Brian Ahearn, CMCT®, is the Chief Influence Officer at Influence PEOPLE, LLC. His Lynda.com/LinkedIn Learning course, Persuasive Selling, has been viewed by more than 50,000 people! His latest course, Persuasive Coaching, just went live. Have you watched them yet? If not, click on either course name to see what you’ve been missing.

question: Summarize what this text says about social media usage.

answer: The narrator encourages readers to be more active on social media if they wish to grow their influence. The narrator also tells readers to be forward about connecting with others on Linkedin.


text:
Looking out the window, George could see the harsh conditions of a Canadian winter. He smiled, seeing the familiar scene and sipped at a coffee. As he watched the snow dance through the air out the window, he thought of the potential this day had. The morning after the first blizzard was always his favorite. The trees smothered with white snow, the air fresh and cold. It also made for good hunting because all of the tracks found were fresh ones.
   But today was not the day to hunt, nor a day to admire the fresh layer of snow from indoors. When you live in a log cabin in the hills, firewood is something you can never have enough of. He wasn’t having a shortage of it, but he knew his current cache wouldn’t last him the winter. He wanted at least another cord of oak to be sure he wouldn’t run out. He would spend his day cutting and pilling wood.
   After George ate breakfast, he got suited up for the outdoors. He wore a thick red plaid jacket, and in his hands was .308 hunting rifle, that had been passed down from his father. He still remembered his father’s words when he presented it to him, “Son, one day this will save your life”. He brought the rifle out with him every time he went out, with those words echoing in his head. His father had definitely been right, the rifle had gotten him through many winters, and it had gotten him out some very close encounters with the wildlife.
   George continued with his preparations, grabbing his wool hat, and tying up his steel toed boots. Once he was ready, he opened his front door, and started towards the forest trail. He knew of an area with many large ash trees, but he knew carrying the wood back would be a pain. With the new snow, he couldn’t bring a wheelbarrow, and he didn’t have any other means of transporting the wood, except by hand. The trees were about a forty-five minute walk from his cabin, but that time would be almost doubled if he was carrying the wood.
   An idea came to him, and he turned back towards his home. He headed to his workshop, garbed a canvas tarp, and a few meters of rope. After a few minutes, and some craftsmanship, George fashioned himself a kind of sled that he could carry the wood back with. He took a second to admire his own craftiness, grabbed the sled and started back for the path.
   He could feel the .308 against his back, and he could hear the sound of the sled gliding across the snow. He continued down the path, until he came to a section that split into 2 different directions. Knowing the woods as well as he did, he didn’t hesitate for a second. He turned to his left and kept on going. He didn’t like travelling this path; he had had some bad experiences on it. More than a few close calls with wolves have taken place there, and whenever he walked it, he was always on his guard for another attack.  Something in the snow ahead of him caught his eye, and he knelt down to examine it. His heart sank when he realized it was a wolf track, a fresh one too.
   He immediately went for his gun that was slung on his back. He loaded a bullet into the chamber, and brought the rifle to the ready position. He scanned the horizon for wolves but didn’t see anything. Just then he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He switched off the safety and whipped around, but saw a squirrel book it up a tree. He breathed a sigh of relief, but did not lower his rifle. He heard the ruffling of leaves behind him, and he went to turn towards it. Without even realising it, he had placed his right foot on his sled. When he turned the sled gave out, and he fell violently towards the ground, letting go of his rifle at the same time. He hit the snow just an instant before the rifle, and he had just enough time to look into the barrel of the gun before it smashed against the ground, causing it to fire a round straight through George’s skull.

title: A short story i wrote for English class

question: Who is George?

answer: The protagonist.

question: What is George preparing for?

answer: George is preparing to hunt.

question: What caught his eye?

answer: Wolf tracks.

question: Who shot George?

answer: Himself, he trips and drops his gun on accident in the middle of a hunt.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: George decides to follow a fresh wolf track he found in the middle of a hunt. He goes for his gun but before he could even shoot, he gets distracted by a sound behind him and accidentally drops his gun, causing it to fire straight at him.


text:
The hopeless prayers from the begging mortals on The Planet beneath the weak and wide-awake Oracle stung Him as He wept to the chirps of songbirds flying through the sky around. The Oracle could not hold His composure any longer. The clouds crashed together, and downward lightning broke through horizons of soils that had been left untouched for millions of years. The Oracle stepped down onto The Planet, looked about His creation, and took a large uneven breathe. Today, His masterpiece looked beautiful to Him, but as He began echoing through the muse of the fractured and beaten, asking His creatures that He created long ago to eye, and listen for one final time, His brief-bliss ended. 'I am sorry My children, but today is the End of Days. The promise I made for you, a life in eternal peace and joy, has been broken. I cannot care for you anymore, and your prayers will no longer be answered. You will all forget what was, and will no longer be' said The Oracle. He planned on whispering the message to the mortals, but their petrified and war-torn faces made it seem that He had screamed like The Mad One did during the first-false-apocalypse. The drums of ambient mist subsided through and in between dark dens, crests and villages, and all that moved east and west with the rivers and winds cried for mercy, but no answer was returned as the Mighty One ascended back to His shattered throne. The words The Oracle spoke kissed the entire world to sleep, and The Good Teacher the mortals called him millenniums ago, ended His love in a mere moment. The Oracle wept at his closing remarks, as He never wanted to leave them dying in fear.

The Planet fell through an endless-expansion towards the entropic boundary, and flashed out of existence. The Oracle followed just behind The Planet, and into The Void underneath the entropic-boundary, where He met its Gatekeeper, standing perpetuate and looking away. 'I’m sorry, My good one. I need Your friendship now, more than ever. I am dying, and so are You. We have to leave. We must end this. Please, forgive Me.' said The Oracle. The Gatekeeper turned and looked at Her Brother with a flavor only the Masters of Sorrow would know. She stared with vehemence at Her Brother’s weak posture. She dreamed of this day. She wanted revenge. She walked like venom over to Her Brother, who turned away like a cowardice lamb about to be slaughtered. But as she peered into her small younger Brother, who shook and looked indifferent from any other poor mortal boy, She knew that Their Work was absolute, finished and over. Her fury subsided, and with a silent ease, leaned Her bloodied head on Her Brother’s shoulder, and as soft as She could without collapsing, cried for the first time since Her sentence. 'Let’s go home friend. Let’s start over. Your eternal punishment is over' said The Oracle in scattered breathes. The Void vanished in beat with time’s outro, and the two Creators left the remaining fabric pulsing, flowing, and isostatic. The Oracle and The Gatekeeper exited the testing chamber with Their heads hung down, each with distinct scents of misery. But before the Two ended Their experiment, They looked into each-other’s divine eyes, nodded and hugged once more. 'I promise no more pain' whispered The Oracle into His Sister’s ear, and in a shine and great flicker, the room disappeared, Their constructed existence ceased, and the hum of all that ever was in Their Universe laughed back into eternity. The Creators’ long simulation had ended, and They were on their way back Home to deliver their findings.

title: [Critique Wanted] "The End of the Experiment" (635 words)

question: Summarize the source of tension in the story.

answer: The Oracle has to break his promise to his people and his creatures that they will live a life of eternal peace. It seems they have been at war for quite some time and the Oracle knows this interminable turmoil is emblematic of his inability to protect their joy. It is the End of Days, and now he is weeps as he leaves them without his protection, beaten and broken, and potentially dying in fear.

question: Summarize the roles of good and evil throughout the story.

answer: The evil is perhaps most obvious- it lies in the war and the destruction. The Gatekeeper seems to deride her brother The Oracle for having given up on the world he created and promised to keep safe. Perhaps there is evil in letting things stagnate and implode when left to their own devices. Perhaps revenge is also an incarnation of evil. The Gatekeeper decides to spare him because she realizes the punishment had already been doled out in the measures it took to try to keep the planet and its inhabitants safe. Good perhaps lies in letting things unfold as they will and in doing one's part but no more.

question: Explain how and why The Oracle's creation had come to this point of no return.