Archive for February, 2010

The World’s First Comedian?

If you ever saw Aristophanes live on stage, you must be sincerely old. That’s because he appeared around 400 B.C., and back then the videos were pretty bad.

This amazing Greek dramatist knew how to communicate through comedy. Like present-day humorists, much of his work focused on current events or politicians.

What can we learn from this ancient wordsmith?

1. Humor can be a great teaching device. One of his early plays – “The Clouds” – talks about an old man trying to solve problems by enrolling in a “thinking school.”

2. Repetition – Aristophanes reinforced the main points of his plays by repeating major themes, often in verse.

3. Rhythm and song – These found their way into the author’s works as a helpful memory device.
In fact, you might call Aristophanes “the great-great grandfather of musical comedy.”

4. Fantasy – In his play “The Frogs” Aristophanes tells about a trip to Hades to bring the author Euripides back to earth.

5. Offbeat comedy – Some critics claim a few of his comedies were intentionally silly. In some, a character from the play would step forward to address the audience. This person may have been one of the earliest “stand-up comics.”

6. Segmentation – A few critics say that Aristophanes’ writing skipped from one subject to another, and often seemed disconnected. Others, however, saw that this ancient author knew how to change subjects easily – and create powerful scenes – by weaving a single theme throughout each presentation.

Rix Quinn writes the nationally syndicated weekly humor feature “Poor Rix’s Almanac.” His book “Words That Stick” is available from your local bookstore, or amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1580085768/qid/ amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1580085768/qid/

Music Makes Me Smile

Heh, have you ever had a not so great day where everything seems to be going wrong? Maybe your wife backed the car into the garage door?

Or the dogs ran through the house with mud on their paws right after you had the carpets cleaned? The neighbor kid wakes you up at 5 in the morning and you’re not a morning person?

I once heard the definition of a bad day. You know you’re having a bad day if you’re following a motorcycle gang of Hells Angels and your car horn gets stuck.

You know you’re having a bad day if you wake up and your waterbed has sprung a leak, except you don’t own a waterbed. You know you’re having a bad day when. You fill in the blanks.

So you say you’re having a bad day, eh? You flip on the radio and even though you’re a conservative, those right wing talk show hosts are giving you a headache.

You punch the FM button and start scanning the dial for something interesting. Next thing you know, you’re singing at the top of your lungs with the Doobie Brothers, Listen to the Music.

Of course, at this point your windows are rolled up and people are staring at you at the stoplight. But heh, who cares. You just had an attitude transplant.

An inspirational quote says that Music hath charms to soothe the savage breast, to soften rocks, or bend a knotted oak.
That’s from a play The Mourning Bride by William Congreve who lived from 1670 to 1729, right around the time Ben Franklin was born.
Think about this. The blind violinist touched the raging heart of Frankenstein’s monster.

One of my all time favorite songs quieted the fearful trembling of a lost little girl from Kansas when she sang, Over the Rainbow, in The Wizard of Oz.

Or another favorite is the rock group Chicago’s classic, Make Me Smile.

Theres a lot to be said for the power of music. I happen to like all styles of music, classical, jazz, gospel, rock, folk, country, even bluegrass. There’s even a little Rap that I can slightly tolerate.

In fact, my love of music and my childhood dream of being a famous radio disk jockey came into reality several years ago when I got to get paid for having fun doing a morning drive show in Kansas City.

In my fifteen minutes of fame, I had the privilege of playing the most popular music of that day over the airwaves and interview some people a lot more famous than me.

My latest hobby is collecting music concert DVD’s. So when I heard that a local music store was going out of business, I rushed over to see what kind of deals I could get to add to my collection. Well, it just so happened that they had the vintage Lynyrd Skynyrd documentary, Freebird. So guess what I did? I bought it!

And also a fantastic concert by the original members of Fleetwood Mac. The encore numbers performed by Lindsay Buckingham, Stevie Nix, John and Christie McVie and Mick Fleetwood not only made me smile but made me want to get up and dance. And if you’d ever seen my dancing, it’s not a pretty sight. I’m a bad version of Steve Martin’s Happy Feet.

The band surprised the audience with a drum pounding rendition of Tusk, that included the entire University of Southern California marching band in full parade dress. That made me smile real big. It’s downright inspirational.

If that weren’t enough, they performed their hit song, Don’t Stop. It talks about jettisoning the past and moving on with hope and optimism. A very rousing anthem that reverberates with, don’t stop thinking about tomorrow, don’t stop, it will soon be here. It’ll be here, better than before, yesterday’s gone, yesterday’s gone.

Perhaps the most famous rendition of this song was when Fleetwood Mac sang at the first William Jefferson Clinton Presidential Inaugural. Regardless of your political affiliation, you have to admit it was pretty cool. Okay, don’t admit it. What do I care?

Maybe you’re not a big music fan like I am, but can you imagine a world without music? Every TV show has its theme music. The Superbowl commercials often feature famous oldies and even CSI plays a tune by The Who.

Music is woven into the very fabric of our society. Even sacred music ain’t so sacred if you study it. Another contemporary of Ben Franklin, Englishman Charles Wesley wrote a couple hundred religious songs that are still sung today. Guess what? Most people are unaware that these holy songs were sung to the tunes of popular bar songs of the 18th century. Surprise.

You may recall Charles older brother John Wesley had no small hand in starting the Methodist Church following the great Wesleyan Revival of the 18th century.

How is it that we humans have this inner compass that is drawn like a magnet to the North Pole called music?

The 1960’s were full of folk songs whose lyrics shaped political opinions. Lyricists have forever captured the climate of the current culture and phrased songs in a way that touched us and moved us deeply.

So my anthem for today would be this: Let the music in. Maybe for you it’s been a long time since you let anything in to touch you in the deepest part of your soul. Maybe it’s time for you to turn a corner in your life.

Maybe it’s your time to take the strong suggestion of Fleetwood Mac, don’t stop thinking about tomorrow, yesterday’s gone. Your future will always be brighter if you let the music in.

About the author: David Henning is the President of the Freshstart Company, LLC and has over thirty years experience as a radio talk show host, radio and television copywriter, newspaper editor and public speaker.

Dave is a freelance copywriter and has authored hundreds of articles about helping people get a fresh start in life.

For more information go to freshstartstore.com freshstartstore.com.

For a free CD that includes a copy of the 30 Day Mental Fast, go to afreshstartnow.com afreshstartnow.com.

Copyright (c)2006 David Henning and the Freshstart Co. LLC All right reserved. No portion of this article may be reproduced without the express permission of the author. Reprints welcome by permission only.

La Audacia De La Esperanza: Reflexiones Sobre Cmo Restaurar El Sueo Americano (Vintage Espanol) (Spanish Edition)

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Product Description

En La audacia de la esperanza, el senador demcrata Barack Obama reclama una poltica diferenteuna poltica para quienes estn cansados del agrio partidismo, una poltica que se basa en la fe, la participacin de todos y la nobleza de espritu que es parte esencial de nuestro improbable proyecto de democracia.

En el corazn de este libro est la visin del senador Obama de cmo podemos superar nuestras divisiones para enfrentar los problemas concretos. l examina la creciente inseguridad econmica de las familias estadounidenses, las tensiones raciales y religiosas dentro del cuerpo poltico y las amenazas transnacionalesdesde el terrorismo hasta las pandemiasque se congregan ms all de nuestras costas. En sus ancdotas acerca de su familia, amigos, miembros del Senado y hasta del presidente, existe un poderoso deseo de establecer conexiones: la plataforma de un consenso poltico radicalmente optimista.

Como senador y abogado, profesor y padre, cristiano y escptico, y sobre todo como estudioso de la historia y de la naturaleza humana, el senador Obama ha escrito un libro de un poder transformador.

Customer Reviews

Review date : 2008-11-14
This books is just glorified politics of good feelings but doesn’t really tell what his promise of change really will be. Sad thing people will believe this stuff and follow him into socialism.

Review date : 2008-08-01
Good book, takes off a little slow but very insightful. I read it in English and then in spanish, it definetly translated well.

Disregard babysue’s input (17 negative reviews on Obama-related books she has not read), I love how she can speak for latinos when she has very little knowledge of anything outside her little bubble.

Review date : 2008-07-29
Altamente recomendado para tratar de entender las complejidades de la sociedad norteamericana actual y la vision del candidato democrata a la presidencia de los Estados Unidos de America.

Este es un libro que se puede leer de corrido y con un calidad literaria no muy comun en analisis politicos. A pesar de un par de errores de genero que se le escaparon al corrector en la traduccion por Claudia Casanova, la traduccion de los terminos politicos es muy acertada. Las notas de traduccion son limitadas y van directo al punto.

Great translation job. After comparing with the English version, I really liked how the spirit of the book is translated into Spanish despite difficult-to-translate cultural references. The easy flow and style is preserved in the Spanish version making it a very readable book.

Review date : 2008-04-02
En su libro "La Audacia de la Esperanza", Barack Obama revela sus pensamientos e ideas políticas, su visión sobre la vida y sus vicisitudes, las expectativas de la gente, empleando un estilo literario que sorprende por lo atildado y agradable, sin dejar de ser profundo por los temas que abarca.

Todo un hallazgo; lo leí y lo recomiendo como lector que gusta de contar con buenos libros en su biblioteca.

Indian And Pakistani Music

Every day thousands of songs are being downloaded of the internet and can be listened too right on your computer. Finding the latest hits in western music is a breeze and can be found everywhere all you have to do is visit one of the big sites for downloading music and movies and you have every thing right there in front of you. With the click of your mouse you have exactly what you want but what if you are interested in music and movies from other countries?

Believe it or not but both India and Pakistan have huge markets for music but there are very few websites who cater to needs of these fans. Ever so often, if you are lucky, you may come across a place where you can find some Indian and Pakistani music mixed in with thousands of other foreign music somewhere. This can be both time consuming and frustrating and before long you just might give up on the idea all together on finding any Pakistani or Indian related music.

Contrary to what many people believe this type of music can be both exotic and beautiful to listen to regardless if you understand the words or not and it is most certainly an experience you should have. Who knows, you might even like it. Taking the time to try something new and listening as well as learning about different cultures will only broaden your horizon and teach you to appreciate things in a different way. Most people believe that what they are accustomed too is the best but by exploring other cultures you might find that they too have lots to offer.

If you happen to come from either of these countries or your heritage is Pakistani or Indian it must be exciting every time you are able to come across something from your home country which might not be too often since it can be hard to find places where you can download both the newest and legendary music from these places. Wouldn?t it be great if there was one place you knew you could count on getting you the latest from the artists and actors you know so well? Not having to rely on family sending you it and having to wait for weeks for the mail to reach you?

Guess What? You no longer have to stand by that mailbox for days on end hoping that it will come today. There are now places on the internet that caters to all of you Pakistanis and Indians who love getting the latest from home and you can even interact with other fellow country men in these places, how is that for keeping up dated? If you join sites like these you will be notified as soon as they get new stuff in and you can download both Pakistani and Indian music instantly. There is no longer a need to search through hundred of songs and movies to find one you want, it is all in one place all Pakistani and Indian.

Irfan is the webmaster for SangeetStation.com which is dedicated to promoting legal, free Pakistani and Indian music internet wide. Reprint freely as long as you maintain the live links in this article and resource box.

The War Poets: An Introduction

Modern poetry grew out of the First World War. English verse altered under the impact of mass murder in the trenches 1914-1918 and ceased to be cosy. The war spread to Russia and Italy and Turkey and into the Middle East, but the Western Front in France was the focus of attention at home. The opening bombardment on the Somme was heard in London.

Poetry came closer to news. Poets became war correspondents of feeling and suffering rather than celebrants of glory, honour, patria and remembrance. They ceased to be crudely national. This is not to claim that all poetry had hitherto been glossy magazine verse or that wars had never been reported graphically. The change and difference lay in mud and blood becoming fit subjects for poetry.

One of the most anthologised poems in the language is Rupert Brooke’s ‘The Soldier’: Romantic, dreamy, patriotic: even the air has nationality. It’s a poem about falling asleep and waking up dead and not feeling a thing except happy. Falling, yes, that word is deliberate - falling and rising. It celebrates memorial resurrection and the suspension of time.

If I should die, think only this of me:
That there’s some corner of a foreign field
That is for ever England. There shall be
In that rich earth a richer dust concealed;
A dust whom England bore, shaped, made aware,
Gave, once, her flowers to love, her ways to roam,
A body of England’s breathing English air,
Washed by the rivers, blest by suns of home.
And think, this heart, all evil shed away,
A pulse in the eternal mind, no less
Gives somewhere back the thoughts by England given;
Her sights and sounds; dreams happy as her day;
And laughter, learnt of friends; and gentleness.
In hearts at peace, under an English heaven.

Brooke was a Greek scholar at Cambridge and the central thought turns on the idea of cosmic memory (mnemosyne) in which he will be ‘a pulse in the eternal mind’ reverberating still to an English tempo. The poem may be classed among the literature of martyrology, though it’s not a religious poem. It plays on the poetic turn of mind that dreams of being taken up in rapture for the sake of the cause or the faith - this earth, this realm, this England invested with divinity, half in love with easeful death.

If this is the most patriotic verse after the speech before Agincourt in Henry V, notice the fundamental difference: Shakespeare tells us ‘Old men forget, yet all shall be forgot,’ whereas Brooke is claiming the opposite - that all shall be remembered, effortlessly. And, it is also the tranquillisation of bad memory: the ‘all evil shed away’ is the things you don’t want to remember and which others are to be spared.

The War Poets did not come to treat war in the grand and glorious manner of Brooke, who was ignorant of the matter beyond the Iliad, and their verses gained more attention during the course of the war - in several cases after their deaths. During the conflict, much of their writing would have been regarded as defeatist and could not pass the censorship restrictions imposed early in the war. Yet, by 1916 the public mood had changed and the following appeared:

When you see millions of the mouthless dead

Across your dreams in pale battalions go,

Say not soft things as other men have said,

That you’ll remember. For you need not so.

Give them not praise. For, deaf, how should they know

It is not curses heaped on each gashed head?

Nor tears. Their blind eyes see not your tears flow.

Nor honour. It is easy to be dead.

(Charles Hamilton Sorley)

After two years of war, Brooke’s notions had melted. Casualty lists appeared in the papers every day and the worst came in July 1916. The First Battle of the Somme claimed over a million dead and wounded on all sides. On Day 1 the British suffered almost 60,000 casualties of which 20,000 were reported dead or missing. Sorley’s poem no longer seemed seditious: it sounded all too accurate.

Siegfried Sassoon (1886-1967) was an aristocrat who won the Military Cross in the First World War and became a pacifist. He composed a protest statement in 1917 which was published in The Times newspaper and read aloud in Parliament. After this he was diagnosed as suffering from shell shock and hospitalised. A fellow patient was Wilfred Owen whose poems Sassoon collected and published in 1920.

Wilfred Owen (1893-1918): Gas attack had added a new dimension of terror: the first such attack occurred at Ypres in April 1915 and in one of the most famous anti-war poems Wilfred Owen describes the ‘ecstasy of fumbling’ for a gas mask and of one drowning and lost, which, if you had seen it, you would not then repeat the old lie from Horace’s Odes that it’s sweet and fitting to die for your country - dulce et decorum est pro patria mori.

That was it. That was modernity. The givens and certainties of the pre-war world had fallen to doubt and would go along with Tsars and Kaisers into the dustbin of history.

Now regarded as the most poignant and significant of the War Poets, Owen came from Shropshire, went to school in Birkenhead than studied agriculture in London and Reading. Before the war he lived in France while recovering from an illness and was unfit to enlist in 1914 - but was accepted by the army in 1915. He was wounded and received the Military Cross. Siegfried Sassoon encouraged his writing while they were together in an Edinburgh hospital and brought out the first edition of Owen’s poetry. Only five of his poems were published in his lifetime but they gained attention. Well-wishers attempted to obtain a safe posting for him but he returned to France late in the war and was killed a week before the Armistice in November 1918. His poems were chosen by Benjamin Britten for The War Requiem and his small collection of works was re-edited by the Poet Laureate Cecil Day Lewis.

Read the full version of this essay at:

Dust Under the Bed [1954; Grandpa's House]

I can’t remember what I did, but it got my mother mad to the point I ran and hid under my bed. She was house cleaning it seems (now that I look back). It was on the weekend, and it was not the very cold part of the year, for there was a fire in the space heater in the living room, and it was on. I was perhaps seven-years old at this moment. We lived with Grandpa in those days, on Arch Street, in St. Paul, Minnesota. I ran, and remained quietly under the bed, it was unpleasant to say the least, but I felt safe for the moment. I squirmed to the far side of the wall, so my mother could not drag me out from under it—yet I found out she had no intentions to put that much work into this episode of my life young life.

She came into the living room where the television was, it was new, our first black and white T.V., and we all marveled at it. It looked as big as a doghouse, a bloodhound’s doghouse. The bedroom was next to the living room.

“You better come out from under there unless…” she hesitated, gave me a beam of a smile, and she then walked away, just like that, it made me think,

“Unless what?”
For a time she sat in that big sofa type armchair, in the living room, in silence doing something. She was always doing something: sewing or mending, washing or cooking, or going to work at the stockyards; always keeping herself occupied with things and thoughts. I was being filled with her face and figure in the chair to the exclusion of all else.

Occasionally she’d look down towards me, as I hid in the dark corner under the bed.

“I’m going to be waiting right here, don’t worry, I’m not going anyplace” she said, promisingly, “you will be hungry, perhaps tired, and all that dust there—you will have to come out sometime, and I will simply be waiting.”

And then I started coughing—as if she had ordered the dust to be activated to annoy me—(I always did tell her in later years, she should have been given a PHD in psychology); I learned that day, the power of suggestion is nothing to fool around with, if someone knows how to use it.

“What are you going to do, just lay there all day?” Mother told me after about forty-five minutes under the bed.

In a pouting manner, I said, “I don’t know…!” I halfway cried, I didn’t blame my mother for her actions, and she never once did over punish me (or so I feel), but I was molding and my new found formal reason was working overtime, and she knew I suppose, she knew she had to take time off to teach, punish, or discipline, lest I end up in life having no limits.

And so I thought under that bed, on that dusty old hard floor: she could wait forever, she’s comfortable, I’m not, and what the heck is a thrashing or licking, compared to this, I mean, it would be over in a minute, and here I am 45-minutes later, torturing myself. Bingo, a light came on. And like a little soldier I came out—defeated but no more dust in my face.

I marched up to her and lay over her knees and got what I expected, and it was over. So what did I learn? Perhaps not to compete, if you can’t.

Written at the Restaurant “Angello,” 5/16/2006

See Dennis’ web site: dennissiluk.tripod.com dennissiluk.tripod.com

How to Create Your Reputation as an Artist

Creating Your Reputation!

Make your name a household name! Easier said than done. But that’s what will create the “sought after” effect. Now, there are a few steps that you can get started to do this.

1. Attend lots of art shows that you can exhibit your work at. Give out sample postcards of your work and absolutely collect visitors’ information when they visit your booth. The larger your database of potential buyers, the greater your chance of selling them in the future. This is an often overlooked method of selling…future buyers established today.

2. Send out Press Releases about you and your work to various media channels in your area and around the country. This could be to introduce a special commemorative line of art your doing tied into a local event or special holiday or anniversary. The Public media (TV & Radio) are always looking for public interest stories. What about your work could you adapt to meet this interest? People that are seen on TV are given the gift of instant credibility. The secret is setting yourself apart from the crowd.

3. Give away some of your work to charity auctions where high profile people will be attending. Your work will automatically get associated with the quality of the event. These charity auctions typically are designed to raise funds and attract philantropic members who are eager to buy items at the auction. Your work will essentially be lifted in their eyes just from the association. This again could lead to future sales if you market yourself properly at the event. You want well known people as collectors. It is worth giving away some work to say that “so and so” collects your work. Remember…credibility.

Steve Popkin, a veteran glass artist, makes it easy for artists to become successful. Learn the secrets most artists and craftsmen will never know about selling artwork in his complimentary e-course just visit thethrivingartist.com thethrivingartist.com

The Crazy Worm [Chapter 2 & 3/"The Curse of the Abyss Worm"]

Now stay with me for a while longer Anna, and I think you will get the full picture of this entity, or at least, some of it before we get into the letters, journals and diaries that lay ahead: the information I have found for you throughout the world, i.e.: England, New Orleans, Minnesota, and a few other places. And thank you for paying me in advance the $25,000; of course it’s all gone now, the trips and hotels were expensive, but nonetheless, I became quite imprinted with the objective to unfold this mystery for you, while on this journey.

When the pit was first created, strangely enough, it was never opened by the angelic renegades [for some reason they knew better, for they surely knew of it]. These angelic-beings were originally,–the angels whom came down from the clouds, who were assigned initially to watch over mankind, but decided for lustful reasons to cohabitate with women, and so step by step, by and by, they made their way to the surface (they were beings of no ethics; and no doubt, on the point of impartiality—could care less for humans: which should be of no value to us one way or the other, for they are long gone ((yet I bring them forth as a new acquaintance)). Some have said, and it was not me who said it, God plants his holy angels in spots they will be tempted and then punishes them when they fault. Well, that is exactly what they did—fault. Making a pack amongst themselves, all two-hundred of them decided to come down to earth and that should the Almighty get angry and decide to punish them, they ‘all were one, and one for all.’ In other words: Azaz’el, and Amazes [the leaders], made it known, they were not going to be the only ducks in the pond—when and if there was a time to pay the penalty; or should I say, the only ones in the courtroom should the Almighty get upset and come hunting for them, hunting for them like a wolf hungry for revenge and put them on trial; so those two wanted the rest to go down with them to the surface of the earth to rule it. And again I say for remembrance sake, they made a pack, a bondage with one another, and literately came down to earth, and took the women from whomever they pleased, be it: wives, daughters, children (boy or girls), for pleasure, and ruled the world as they seen fit. They ended up having huge sons, which became gods among men, and whom had war with one another, killing off their own race of giants eventually. But I am getting a little too far off the main menu, let me get re-focused.

ĂĢ

(Tape still playing.) Let me explain a little about these angelic beings before going on with the Abyss Virus Worm [s], ok, Anna, ok then. Anyhow, from the clouds they descended onto the summit of Mount Hermon; –Semyaz being the number one leader of the two-hundred—stood tall in the brief twilight for all to see him. And as I understood—as he stood there, he reminded the two-hundred they had swore an oath and were bound to each other accordingly: that everyone, –that is, everyone among them, swore to the curse, not to abandon what they had planned, which was not only to cohabitate with the females, but to rule the earth as gods together: Titans one might visualize them as; hence, becoming legends for Atlantis, and for the Greeks to tell tales about: –for example, Gilgamesh’s heritage (in old Sumer (for he was two-thirds god and one third human), and his priestess Shamhat, the one he sent to subdue Enkidu, the wild man from the Cedar Forest; in which she did; and to be quite frank, he was half demonic himself, a beast similar to the demon Vii, whom is three-fourths demonic (and I should add at this juncture, demons or demonic beings, are not like angelic beings; they are from the Pre-Satanic era, when Satan, then called Lucifer, ruled the Earth with God’s blessing; and then—when Lucifer built his Army, he was kicked out of heaven for revolting, thus, the inhabitants of the earth which were angelic beings at the time, and those so called beings of another kind ((alien-men of sorts, so I shall call them that for a brief moment—, became devil-men, or men of the devil: and were branded (or given) that name ever since)).

Now as I was about to say, and I should say for the women’s liberation movement, had there not been a Shamhat, who had become the Temple Priestesses [back in the days of Gilgamesh], there would not have been an Epic of Gilgamish to read in our libraries today; but again I find my fancies of ancient history getting in my way of my real assignment which of course is you per se. As I was about to lead into: Semyas had with him seventeen-followers, and there were the rest of course, but not all directly under his command, save for one fact, indirectly one might say he was the Commander and Chief generally speaking. And in continuing this area of thought, things were run a little different back then. Nonetheless these unethical angelic beings such as: Amasras taught incantations, Asder’el taught the course of the moon, and deception, –Azaz’el one of the most troublesome of the lot, revealed eternal secrets of heaven to the earthlings. And Michael and Gabriel, whom have become known as the: ‘Good’ vs. ‘Bad,’ angels observed carefully from the sky, and saw much blood being shed upon the earth; as they oppressed all other beings without much effort. I might add; similar to your Superman, and Hawkman, comics of today—but these were real, I mean very real super-beings.

And to make a long story shorter, Raphael, bound Azaz’el and throw him into darkness, making a hole in the desert and putting sharp rocks over him, subsequently he could not see the light of day and was bound to his cramped quarters—bound like a paralyzing snake bite. And accordingly, some of these angelic-renegades were cast into the sands of the desert, and the majorities were cast into the great cavity of the earth, the hole in the ground, the pit. And the children of these beings somewhat died out, leaving their gene pool behind-slightly: those were the very giants I was talking about a moment ago.

The sin was three fold; it was eternal angelic beings that defiled themselves with those women, blood and flesh, and their lust produced children. This mixture went against the creation of heaven like gravity to man. For spiritual beings, heaven is heaven for them, and for the flesh, heaven can be sex on earth, until we get to heaven, which then we will be spiritual beings—if that makes sense? Now let’s take this to the angelic level, the visible world, which is of course, sexual intercourse with a woman, for men on earth, in consequence, the beings wanted both, heaven on earth and heaven in heaven—it sounds a little like mankind does it not? Be that as it may, they found it, but in the course of finding it, lost heaven. As the old saying goes, ‘…you can’t have your cake and eat it to.’ But I would guess they got tired of the same old heaven in heaven, and God’s temptation just became too appetizing, like the apple Eve ate in the Garden of Eden. Kind of like when I was a boy, I wanted to fly like an angel; you know what I mean, like superman, that sort of person: like these beings were. So you see, we just can’t have it both ways; –one or the other, yet as a human we can dream and there we can fly, I suppose: maybe God did that on purpose to dangle a fancy dream that was untouchable to annoy us. But I speculation we both had similar dreams, meaning, the angelic beings, dreamed about having sex, and I dreamed about flying like them, as I have already mentioned. Or better put, I’d prefer the superhuman qualities, to simply having a diet of sex. A matter of preference I suppose.

3

Abyss Worms

These creatures with purple eyes: which have a reddish and orange tone to their skin, I call: the “Abyss Virus Worms,” in lack of a better term; or again I repeat myself, “Crazy Worm [s],” whence—for the most part—they were inaccessible to mankind or even beasts on the surface of the earth until after the abyss was created, and thereafter opened; as well as other creatures in the crust of the earth knew nothing about them, which I doubt there were any others at such depths anyhow. And if there were, I’m sure it was not to their fondness, and quickly were infected and died. Furthermore, to get to these creature type worms, one would have to be quite squirmy like worms, similar to a small reptile without legs (for there was a time when snakes did have legs you know, and were able to penetrate tons of pressure from the earth upon them. Taking this all into account, such an adventure, one would have to have a roadmap to and through the pit (along with a road, so as not to get lost on the way—if that makes sense), this all sounds silly I suppose, but silly or not, it is only impractical when you can come up with a truer version, in any form, and so, in any case, I will continue on with this line of thinking, that is, within the pit, and of course, none of what I say exists, —to my knowledge that is, although I think the pit might be compared with/or to the Grand Canyon.

In conclusion Anna, to this area of deliberation and study I have researched out to inform you about, let me say, or let’s say if ‘I’, for instance wanted to go find this long lost pit, or abyss—if you will, I would have to get into (inside of, that is) a thin reptile-snake resembling creature as I have earlier mentioned, of which I’d not feel too comfortable, or for that matter, feel too safe. And then we’d have to squirm our way to the pit, hoping we could go a few hundred miles an hour as it would take a year or two; and if we did find the pit, what would we do there besides? A rhetorical question at best; and how would we get back to the surface of the earth? So this is what has flown in and out of my brain like a dead bird crashing at times, yes, it was out of the question for me to go find the pit, but not out of my mind, which was to learn about it, so I examined this line of thinking. You see, all this fine information I provide you with! I shall give you more than most people will ever know on this subject.

(Anna at this point is unsettled, wiping her eyes, had just listened to the first tape sent to her by the investigator; she leans back to rest on her bed—listening to the last few lines over again, hoping to extract something out of it that can be used against the curse that has been put upon her, and her family for generations.

She has pale blue-eyes (at this moment), tired eyes for the most part—caravansary—she moves about on her bed, as if friction was nauseating her, that of the tape a serious animated face—a crucifix over her bed, she smiles—afraid to ask herself a question, in fear she’d need too simply ask more questions thereafter. She leaves that area of thought alone—. She leans back against the bed now, a pillow supporting her back, and pushes a button—to adjust the bed.)

You can see Dennis Siluk’s books at alldirect.com alldirect.com

Twilight (The Twilight Saga Book 1)

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Price : $4.65

 

Amazon.com Review

Softly he brushed my cheek, then held my face between his marble hands. ‘Be very still,’ he whispered, as if I wasn’t already frozen. Slowly, never moving his eyes from mine, he leaned toward me. Then abruptly, but very gently, he rested his cold cheek against the hollow at the base of my throat.

As Shakespeare knew, love burns high when thwarted by obstacles. In Twilight, an exquisite fantasy by Stephenie Meyer, readers discover a pair of lovers who are supremely star-crossed. Bella adores beautiful Edward, and he returns her love. But Edward is having a hard time controlling the blood lust she arouses in him, because–he’s a vampire. At any moment, the intensity of their passion could drive him to kill her, and he agonizes over the danger. But, Bella would rather be dead than part from Edward, so she risks her life to stay near him, and the novel burns with the erotic tension of their dangerous and necessarily chaste relationship.

Meyer has achieved quite a feat by making this scenario completely human and believable. She begins with a familiar YA premise (the new kid in school), and lulls us into thinking this will be just another realistic young adult novel. Bella has come to the small town of Forks on the gloomy Olympic Peninsula to be with her father. At school, she wonders about a group of five remarkably beautiful teens, who sit together in the cafeteria but never eat. As she grows to know, and then love, Edward, she learns their secret. They are all rescued vampires, part of a family headed by saintly Carlisle, who has inspired them to renounce human prey. For Edward’s sake they welcome Bella, but when a roving group of tracker vampires fixates on her, the family is drawn into a desperate pursuit to protect the fragile human in their midst. The precision and delicacy of Meyer’s writing lifts this wonderful novel beyond the limitations of the horror genre to a place among the best of YA fiction. (Ages 12 and up) –Patty Campbell

10 Second Interview: A Few Words with Stephenie Meyer

Q: Were you a fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer? Angel? What are you watching now that those shows are off the air?
A: I have never seen an entire episode of Buffy or Angel. While I was writing Twilight, I let my older sister read along chapter by chapter. She’s a huge Buffy fan and she kept trying to get me to watch, but I was afraid it would mess up my vision of the vampire world so I never did.

I don’t have a ton of time for TV, and my kids get rowdy when I have on mommy shows, but I do have a secret fondness for reality shows (the good ones, at least in my opinion). I always TiVo Survivor, The Amazing Race, and America’s Next Top Model.

Q: What inspired you to write Twilight? Is this the beginning of a series? Why write for teens?
A: Twilight was inspired by a very vivid dream, which is fairly faithfully transcribed as chapter thirteen of the book. There are sequels on the way–I’m hard at work editing book two (tentatively titled New Moon) right now, and book three is waiting in line for its turn.
I didn’t mean to write for teens–I didn’t mean to write for anyone but myself, so I had an audience of one twenty-nine year old (and later one thirty-one year old when my sister started reading). I think the reason that I ended up with a book for teens is because high school is such a compelling time period–it gives you some of your worst scars and some of your most exhilarating memories. It’s a fascinating place: old enough to feel truly adult, old enough to make decisions that affect the rest of your life, old enough to fall in love, yet, at the same time too young (in most cases) to be free to make a lot of those decisions without someone else’s approval. There’s a lot of scope for a novel in that.

Q: What is your favorite vampire story? Fave vampire movie?
A: I guess my favorite vampire story would be The Vampire Lestat, by Anne Rice, simply because it’s one of the only ones I’ve ever read. I keep meaning to pick up Bram Stoker’s Dracula, because I get asked this question so often and I should probably start with the classics, but I haven’t gotten around to it yet. Again, I’m afraid to read other vampire books now, for fear of finding things either too similar, or too different from my own vampire world.

Ack! I can’t even answer the movie question. I can’t remember ever seeing a single vampire movie, outside of clips from Bela Lugosi movies on TV. I don’t like true horror movies–my favorite scary movies are all Hitchcock’s.

Q: What other young adult authors do you read?
A: My favorite young adult author is L.M. Montgomery I also enjoy J.K. Rowling (but who doesn’t?), and Ann Brashares. As a teen, I skipped straight to adult books (lots of sci-fi and Jane Austen), so I’m rediscovering the world of teen literature now.
 

Stephenie Meyer’s List of Books You Should Read

 

Anne of Green Gables

Romeo and Juliet

Dragonflight
To Kill a Mockingbird

The Princess Bride

See more recommendations from Stephenie Meyer

Q&A with Stephanie Meyer

Q: What book has had the most significant impact on your life?
A: The book with the most significant impact on my life is The Book of Mormon. The book with the most significant impact on my life as a writer is probably Speaker for the Dead, by Orson Scott Card, with Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier coming in as a close second.

Q: You are stranded on a desert island with only one book, one CD, and one DVD–what are they?
A: The CD is easy: Absolution by Muse, hands down. It’s harder to give myself just one movie, but the one I watch most frequently is Sense and Sensibility–the one with the screenplay by Emma Thompson. One book is impossible. I’d have to have Pride and Prejudice, but I couldn’t live without something by Orson Scott Card and a nice, thick Maeve Binchy, too.

Q: What is the worst lie you’ve ever told?
A: My lies are all very, very boring: No, you really look great in hot pink! My children only watch one hour of TV a day. I didn’t eat the last Swiss Cake Roll–it must have been one of the kids. That’s the best I’ve got.

Q: Describe the perfect writing environment.
A: It’s late at night and the house is silent, but I’m still (miraculously) full of energy. I have my headphones in and I’m listened to a mix of Muse, Coldplay, Travis, My Chemical Romance, and The All-American Rejects. Beside me is a fabulous, and yet mysteriously low in calorie, cheesecake….

Q: If you could write your own epitaph, what would it say?
A: I’d like it to say that I really tried at the important things. I was never perfect at any of them, but I honestly tried to be a great mom, a loving wife, a good daughter, and a true friend. Under that, I’d want a list of my favorite Simpsons quotes.

Q: Who is the one person living or dead that you would like to have dinner with?
A: I’d love to have a chance to talk to Orson Scott Card–I have a million questions for him. Mostly things like, How do you come up with this stuff?! But, if he wasn’t available, I’d settle for Matthew Bellamy (lead singer of Muse).

Q: If you could have one superpower, what would it be?
A: I’d want something offensive, rather than defensive. Like shooting fireballs from my hands. That way, you’re really open to going either way–hero or villain. I like to have choices.

 

 

Customer Reviews

Review date : 2008-09-19
I loved this book. I couldn’t put it down…I finished it in two days. The love and connection between Bella and Edward is amazing. They are perfect for each other. At the end I found myself screaming for Edward to change her so they would be together forever.

I’m not as happy with Eclipse and New Moon (haven’t read) BD. Someone new comes into the picture and Bella turns wimpy and whiney. Edwatd becomes controlling and I start to hate them both. Enjoy Twilight while you can before moving on to the other books.

Review date : 2008-09-19
I am now on the 3rd book of this series. I rarely read for pleasure, but have had my nose buried in these books for the last 2 weeks.

Find out what all the fuss is about and read this book!

Review date : 2008-09-19
I really enjoyed the book. Stephanie Meyer did a great job on all the characters. When I read the book I was drawn in immediately. I felt like I was in forks with Bella and Edward aand all teh other characters experiecing everthing they did.

Review date : 2008-09-19
This book is amazing! I stayed up all night reading and was able to finish the whole series in a week. This book is not just for teenagers too. My mother read it and loves it as well and now she is telling all of her friends about it. If you are looking for a great read this is the book for you!

Review date : 2008-09-18
From the first paragraph to the last paragraph on the final page, I was absolutely enthralled. I could not put this book down and read it in two days. That’s an almighty effort as the book is almost 500 pages. It may have been written for young adults (I’m not,) but since I was a child I have loved Vampire lore and this book does not disappoint. I strongly recommend it.

A Lot Like Love

Ashton Kutcher isn?t a great actor. Let?s face it — he isn?t going to win any acting awards anytime in the near future. However he is quite competent at playing variations of Kelso — the character that made him famous on the hit FOX series ‘That 70?s Show.’ Kelso is bumbling, inept and manages to possess an uncanny combination of insecurity and confidence. Kutcher?s film roles don?t stray much from that formula and his character Oliver in his new movie ‘A Lot Like Love’ isn?t an exception to the rule. While being light-years ahead of Kelso in the intelligence department he has all the other characteristics that make him just as endearing and lovable and fun to watch.

Amanda Peet?s character Emily is just as bumbling, inept and simultaneously sure and unsure of herself as Oliver. The relationship that develops between the two works because they seem like twin souls that were destined to meet and no amount of time or separation will change the fact that they are made for each other. The movie also works because the chemistry between Kutcher and Peet is palpable and one could easily believe that the two would make a great couple off screen as well.

Taking place over a seven year span Emily and Oliver have several short and not so chance encounters that take place after an initial chance and very memorable meeting on a plane as they travel from Los Angeles to New York. Unlike most romantic comedies, their relationship is allowed to develop over the course of the plot, and while they never have that much time together their initial friendship and later romance seems natural and believable.

The film could have easily fallen into the trap of many romantic comedies that force the audience to believe that two completely different individuals manage to fall madly in love with each other in a matter of days, despite overwhelming odds and all the obvious signs that they are completely wrong for each other. Hell, in many romantic comedies the characters know they are in love long before the audience can figure out why they even like each other let alone are in love. In ‘A Lot Like Love,’ the audience recognizes how right the characters are for one another before they are willing to make such an admission to themselves. Watching Oliver and Emily struggle with their pride and plans, and the natural fear that comes with putting your heart on the line, is sweet and endearing and tugs at your heartstrings without feeling forced or contrived.

The movie also doesn?t shy away from how imperfect the characters are. Emily has a problem with being by herself and has to confirm she ?still has it? by hooking up with the first guy she meets when a relationship has ended. And Oliver doesn?t know how to live in the moment and must plan every aspect of his life well in advance or he is unable to function. Their flaws are realistic and they experience many of the problems young twenty somethings face as they try to find their way in life and love which adds to the convincing nature of the story and its characters.

The movie isn?t perfect. There?s some dialogue that I could have lived without and the attempt by Oliver to get Emily back via a musical serenade outside of her home is an over-used movie device that has seemed cliched ever since John Cusack’s boom box blasted out Peter Gabriel on the lawn of Ione Skye’s house in ‘Say Anything.’

But I will admit I was pleasantly surprised at how entertaining I found ‘A Lot Like Love.’ I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a smart, funny, innovative comedy about looking for, finding, and knowing when to take hold of the love that lies right within your grasp.

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