Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya Essay -- Bless Me Ultima Rudolfo Ana

"Bless Me, Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya Children believe what their parents tell them but as they get older they start to question that which used to be unquestionable. Bless Me, Ultima is a novel by Rudolfo Anaya about a young Chicano boy, Antonio Juan Marez y Luna, who is growing up and seeing the world for how cruel it really is. A wise old curandera, or faith healer, Ultima, arrives just before Tony receives his first glimpse into the world of men. Ultima gives Tony spiritual healing throughout the book, as well as advice to keep him in harmony with nature and his spirit. The more Tony sees of death in the little town of Guadalupe, New Mexico, the more he questions the Christian God and turns towards the golden carp, a pagan god of the river. Rudolfo Anaya is indicating that each man must choose his own religion and destiny, by depicting the changes Tony feels after the deaths of Lupito, Narciso and Florence. Beforehand, Tony never questioned his faith but as each person died Tony turned farther and farther away from C atholicism and eventually even away from the pagan religion. Tony questioned his destiny and effectiveness as a priest, had doubts of the Catholic God and eventually of everything he had ever believed in, as Anaya shows that one strict religion isn?t always the right way or the only way. The first step in Tony?s spiritual journey is when he questions his family?s long-standing belief in the Catholic religion and his own destiny to follow their dreams of him becoming a priest. Tony doubts his abilities as a priest, even though he is not one, because his mother dreams for him to become a priest. Subsequently, he believes that he should have been able to save Lupito?s soul from wandering the river, because he will one day be required to. Whereas, ?A priest could have saved Lupito.'; (23), Tony feels guilty that he wasn?t able to fulfill his duty even though it wasn?t his. This shows that the destiny at first laid out by Catholicism may not be the one that is best suited to Tony. By not saving Lupito or his soul, the town Tony lives in is no longer pure in his eyes. The river is the lifeline of the town and once it is stained then the town will also be tainted with the murder of Lupito. Tony asks, ?How would I ever wash away the stain of blood from the sweet waters of my river!'; (23), and in doing so also questions why God puts such obstac... ...l and harsh, or that the golden carp could not have saved Florence even though the river was its home, in spite of the fact that his parents and friends believed deeply in these powers and still put all their faith in them. Ultima, it seems, is all that is left to believe in, because she has always been truthful, and protective. The vengeance that Tony wants on Tenorio is God?s alone; however, with a new religion following in Ultima?s practices Tony could punish Tenorio if he was still alive, and have vengeance for the deaths of his friends and not be punished for it because Tony would only be killing a witch. All humans must change and because they must, the world they live in, including their religions, must change with them or be lost in time. The Catholic religion failed to change into what Tony needed, and so did the pagan religion, so he stopped belieiving in them; however he saw Ultima?s religion as a new unchartered way that he could create himself. At the end of Tony?s s piritual journey he finds himself lost in a world that is prophesied to end and without a true belief in anything. Works Cited: Anaya, Rudolfo. Bless Me, Ultima, New York: Warner Books, Inc., 1972.

Withdrawing Forces from Vietnam Essay -- Vietnam War American History

Withdrawing Forces from Vietnam â€Å"I’ve always said, if you don’t go in to win, don’t go in at all†¦Either you conduct the conflict with all the assets the United States has at its disposal to bring about a quick and successful outcome or you stay out.† -Alexander M. Haig JR. The War That Couldn’t Be Won! By withdrawing its forces from Vietnam in 1973 did the United States admit defeat? This is an argument that historians and observers have been having for years. Before answering that question however, we must first understand if we ever really had a chance to win the war. The circumstances leading up to the war were pretty much out of the United States control with an obligation to our French allies. With threats of communism taking over Vietnam, many felt that our presence was needed to avoid Ho Chi Mihn’s control. With all of the excitement, many important factors were overlooked such as did the United States have enough troops to fight this war, what type of retaliation the Vietnamese would use, and were we ready to fight a sixteen year war? The United States strongly underestimated the power and desire that the North Vietnamese had to gain control and preserve communism. It was thought that the US presence in Vietnam was required to contain the communist influence from living up to the expectations of the Domino Theory. The Domino Theory resulted from the Cold War and stated that if one country was to fall under the communist regime, soon neighboring countries would fall. At the time France was fighting to gain back control of Vietnam as it was beginning to feel resistance from small guerrilla groups known as the Viet Kong, so America saw it as its duty to help out their French allies by giving money and supplying weapons. America believed this was necessary in order to help the French keep control of Vietnam and never fall to Communism. These small Communist guerrilla groups were funded by other Communist powers such as China and Russia. If the whole of Vietnam fell to communist rule this could have had an impact on the rest of the world and show that a Communist regime holds more power than the United States Democracy, thus slowly turning the rest of the world communist. This was just the beginning of the part the US played in Vietnam. Gradually they got dragged further and further into the war and sud... ...m was not even really supported by the Vietnamese people. How could the United States expect to win a war when nobody wanted the government they had set up? South Vietnamese guerillas began to work with the North Vietnamese soldiers to defeat the American supported government and to unify Vietnam. The United States basically turned the Vietnamese that were earlier on their side against them. They became angry that so many of their civilians were being injured and killed and did not want the government set up by the United States to stay in place. With even more Vietnamese people against the United States, there was no way that they were going to be able to win this war. In 1975 many tired troops finally came home from Vietnam, defeated. Their efforts did not end communism and left countless numbers of Americans and Vietnamese people dead. The United States weak strategies, the public’s anti-war attitude, and the Vietnamese’s opposition to the government the United States had set up all contributed to the United State’s defeat in Vietnam. The most tragic part about the Vietnam War was that it took about sixteen years to lose a war that from the beginning we were not going to win.

Fuel Price

Great Impact of Rising Fuel Price Fuel is another transportation system component. Rising of fuel price is one of the major issues facing the transportation industry in Malaysia. Fuel may be gasoline, natural gas, diesel fuel, ethanol, methanol, coal, etc. The costs and efficiency of transportation fuels are considerable interest. (Joseph Sussman; Introduction to Transportation Systems; Transportation System Components; 2000).Fuel price volatility along with overall price increases has been an issue with transportation carriers, airlines, and even some water carriers and is a continuing challenge to the financial viability, causing some carriers to file for bankruptcy. Overall, it can be argued that is a manifestation of world demand and the supply of crude oil. The demand for oil as a source of energy to power transport equipment and for private use has been growing steady, but crude oil is limited natural resource.New oil fields have been discovered since World War II, but the know n available supply of oil has not kept pace with the increased demand. Consequently, the general trend for fuel prices has been upward. This trend in price has been exacerbated by the location of the best oil fields in distant countries and the disproportionate share of oil consumption. Two factors mentioned have impacted the price of oil namely the growth in demand from other countries and the speculation that occurs in the futures market.An additional factor is the disruption that can occur with terrorist actions and political upheaval in certain parts of the world. Rising fuel prices could put a spanner in the works of the region's recovering economies, Malaysia included, if the market does not cool down soon. The higher costs incurred by transportation companies are already causing jitters that they might have to offload some of the burden onto end-consumers soon.Malaysia Airlines, for example, has been lobbying for months for a domestic air fare increase to offset higher direct operational costs, of which jet fuel and kerosene are the largest components. -(Pui Kiew Ling, Jamal Othman, Noorasiah Sulaiman ;Macroeconomics and Industry Effect of an Increase in Fuel Price in Malaysia; 2012) Already there are fears in the US that the runaway oil prices would bring the economy's decade-long expansion to a screeching halt, with all its implications on the rest of the world, particularly export-driven economies ike Malaysia which depend heavily on the US, European and Japanese markets. -(Transport, Trade and Climate Change; Carbon Footprints, Fuel Subsidies and Market-based Measure; 2011) The challenge, then, in transportation industry especially for carriers and shippers for example will be deal with the uncertainty and volatility of fuel prices and the expectation that the price will be increasing over time. However, the impact will vary among the modes of transportation because some are more fuel efficient than others due to their different operating and market condition in or outside our country.In overall, looking to the future and considering the challenges associated with volatility in fuel prices and the environment on the other side, much effort will be directed at the concept of the green supply chain. There is every indication that is not just a concept but rather a growing commitment that has economic as well as environmental benefits to shippers and carriers and also for all type of transport in Malaysia transportation industry generally.

Bloodlines Chapter Twenty-Seven

I THINK ADRIAN would have agreed to anything to get his own place. He didn't waste any time in moving his few possessions over to Keith's old apartment, much to Clarence's dismay. I had to admit, I felt kind of bad for the old man. He'd grown fond of Adrian, and losing him right after Lee was especially tough. Clarence still opened his home and feeder to our group but refused to believe anything we told him about Lee and Strigoi. Even once he accepted Lee was dead, Clarence continued blaming vampire hunters. Shortly after his move, I went to check on Adrian. Word had come to us that the â€Å"research party† from the Moroi was due to arrive in town that day, and we'd decided to meet with them first before bringing in Jill and Eddie. Like before, Abe was apparently escorting the newcomers, who included Sonya and Jill's new roommate. I had the impression there might be others with them but hadn't heard the details yet. â€Å"Whoa,† I said when Adrian let me into his apartment. He'd only been there a couple days, but the transformation was startling. With the exception of the TV, none of the original furniture remained. It was all different, and even the apartment's layout had changed. The decorating scheme was new as well, and the scent of fresh paint hung heavy in the air. â€Å"Yellow, huh?† I asked, staring at the living room walls. â€Å"It's called ‘Goldenrod,'† he corrected. â€Å"And it's supposed to be cheerful and calming.† I started to point out that those two traits didn't seem like they'd go together but then decided against it. The color, slightly obnoxious though it was, completely transformed the living room. Between that and the blinds that had replaced Keith's heavy drapes, the room was now filled with color and light that went a long way to obscure the memory of the battle. I shuddered, recalling it. Even if the apartment hadn't been needed to buy Adrian's help, I wasn't sure I could've accepted it and stayed here. The memory of Lee's death – and the two Strigoi women's – was too strong. â€Å"How did you afford new furniture?† I asked. The Alchemists had given him the place, but there was no other stipend involved. â€Å"I sold the old stuff,† Adrian said, seeming very pleased by this. â€Å"That recliner†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He faltered, a troubled look briefly crossing his features. I wondered if he too could imagine Lee's life bleeding away in that chair. â€Å"That recliner was worth a lot. It was appallingly overpriced, even by my standards. But I got enough for it to replace the rest. It's used, but what choice did I have?† â€Å"It's nice,† I said, running my hand along an overstuffed plaid sofa. It looked ghastly with the walls but appeared to be in good shape. Plus, much like the brightness of the yellow, the clashing furniture helped diminish the memories of what had happened. â€Å"You must have done some savvy shopping. I'm guessing you don't buy a lot of used stuff.† â€Å"Try never,† he said. â€Å"You have no idea the things I've had to lower myself to.† His pleased smile dimmed as he regarded me carefully. â€Å"How are you holding up?† I shrugged. â€Å"Fine. Why wouldn't I be? What happened to me isn't nearly as bad as what Jill went through.† He crossed his arms. â€Å"I don't know. Jill didn't watch a guy die in front of her. And let's not forget that same guy wanted to kill you only moments before in order to rise again from the dead.† Those were things that had definitely been on my mind a lot in the last week, things that were going to take a while to get over. Sometimes, I didn't feel anything at all. Other times, the reality of what had happened descended on me so swiftly and heavily that I couldn't breathe. Strigoi nightmares had replaced the ones of re-education centers. â€Å"I'm actually better with it than you might think,† I said slowly, gazing off at nothing particular. â€Å"Like, it's terrible about Lee and what he did, but I feel I can get over it in time. Do you know what I keep thinking about the most, though?† â€Å"What?† asked Adrian gently. The words seemed to come forth without my control. I hadn't expected to say them to anyone, certainly not to him. â€Å"Lee telling me I was wasting my life and staying aloof from people. And then, during that last meeting with Keith, he told me that I was naive, that I didn't understand the world. And it's true to a certain extent. I mean, not what he said about you guys being evil†¦ but well, I was naive. I should've been more careful with Jill. I believed the best of Lee when I should've been more wary. I'm not a fighter like Eddie, but I am an observer of the world†¦ or so I like to think. But I failed. I'm no good with people.† â€Å"Sage, your first mistake in all of this is listening to anything Keith Darnell says. The guy's an idiot, an asshole, and a dozen other words that aren't suitable for a lady like yourself.† â€Å"See?† I said. â€Å"You just admitted it, that I'm some kind of untouchable, pure soul.† â€Å"I never said any such thing,† he countered. â€Å"My point is that you're leagues above Keith, and what happened with Lee was dumb, ridiculous bad luck. And remember, none of us saw it coming either. You weren't alone. It casts no reflection on you. Or†¦Ã¢â‚¬  His eyebrows rose. â€Å"Maybe it does. Didn't you say that Lee considered killing Keith for Alchemist blood?† â€Å"Yeah†¦ but Keith left too soon.† â€Å"Well, there you go. Even a psychopath recognized your worth enough to want to kill someone else first.† I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. â€Å"That doesn't make me feel better.† Adrian shrugged. â€Å"My earlier point remains. You're a solid person, Sage. You're easy on the eyes, if a little skinny, and your ability to memorize useless information is going to totally hook in some guy. Put Keith and Lee out of your head because they have nothing to do with your future.† â€Å"Skinny?† I asked, hoping I wasn't blushing. I also hoped if I sounded outraged enough, he wouldn't notice how much the other comment had disarmed me. Easy on the eyes. Not exactly the same as being told I was hotness incarnate or drop-dead gorgeous. But after a lifetime of having my appearance judged as â€Å"acceptable,† it was a heady compliment – especially coming from him. â€Å"I just tell it like it is.† I almost laughed. â€Å"Yes. Yes, you do. Now tell me about a different subject, please. I'm tired of this one.† â€Å"Sure thing.† Adrian infuriated me sometimes, but I had to admit, I loved his short attention span. It made dodging uncomfortable topics so much easier. Or so I thought. â€Å"Do you smell that?† An image of the bodies flashed into my head, and for a moment, all I could think he meant was the smell of decay. Then I sniffed more deeply. â€Å"I smell the paint, and†¦ wait†¦ is that pine?† He looked impressed. â€Å"Damn straight. Pine-scented cleaner. As in, I cleaned.† He gestured to the kitchen dramatically. â€Å"With these hands, these hands that don't do manual labor.† I stared off into the kitchen. â€Å"What did you use it on? The cupboards?† â€Å"The cupboards are fine. I cleaned the floor and the counter.† I must have looked more puzzled than amazed because he added, â€Å"I even got down on my knees.† â€Å"You used pine cleaner on the floor and counters?† I asked. The floor was ceramic tile; the counters were granite. Adrian frowned. â€Å"Yeah, so?† He seemed so proud to have actually scrubbed something for once in his life that I couldn't bring myself to tell him pine cleaner was generally only used on wood. I gave him an encouraging smile. â€Å"Well, it looks great. I need you to come over and clean my new dorm room now. It's covered in dust.† â€Å"No way, Sage. My own housecleaning's bad enough.† â€Å"But is it worth it? If you'd stayed at Clarence's, you had a live-in cook and cleaner.† â€Å"It's definitely worth it. I've never really, truly had my own place. I kind of did at Court†¦ but it might as well have been an over-glorified dorm room. This? This is great. Even with the housecleaning. Thank you.† The comic look of horror he'd worn while discussing housecleaning had been traded away for utter seriousness now as those green eyes weighed me. I suddenly felt uncomfortable under the scrutiny and was reminded of the spirit dream, where I'd questioned if his eyes really were that green in real life. â€Å"For what?† I asked. â€Å"For this – I know you must have twisted some Alchemist arms.† I hadn't told him that I'd actually passed on taking the place for myself. â€Å"And for everything else. For not giving up on me, even when I was being a major asshole. And, you know, for that saving my life thing.† I looked away. â€Å"I didn't do anything. That was Eddie – and Jill. They're the ones who saved you.† â€Å"Not sure I would've been alive for their rescue if you hadn't set that bitch on fire. How did you do that?† â€Å"It was nothing,† I protested. â€Å"Just a, uh, chemical reaction from the Alchemist bag of tricks.† Those eyes studied me again, weighing the truth of my words. I'm not sure he believed me, but he let it go. â€Å"Well, from the look on her face, your aim was right on. And then you got backhanded for it. Anyone who takes a hit for Adrian Ivashkov deserves some credit.† I turned my back to him, still shy with the praise – and nervous about the fire reference – and walked over to the window. â€Å"Yeah, well, you can rest easy that it was a selfish act. You have no idea what a pain it is to file paperwork for a dead Moroi.† He laughed, and it was one of the few times I'd heard him laugh with genuine humor and warmth – and not because of something twisted or sarcastic. â€Å"Okay, Sage. If you say so. You know, you're a lot spunkier than when I first met you.† â€Å"Really? All the adjectives in the world at your disposable, and you pick ‘spunky'?† Banter I could handle. So long as I focused on that, I didn't have to think about the meaning behind the words or how my heartbeat had increased just a little. â€Å"Just so you know, you're a little more stable than when I met you.† He came over to stand by me. â€Å"Well, don't tell anyone, but I think getting away from Court was a good thing. This weather sucks, but Palm Springs might be good for me – it and all the wonders it contains. You guys. Art classes. Pine cleaner.† I couldn't help a grin and looked up at him. I'd been half-joking, but it was true: he had changed remarkably since we'd met. There was still a hurting man inside, one who bore the scars of what Rose and Dimitri had done to him, but I could see the signs of healing. He was steadier and stronger, and if he could just continue to hold the course, with no more crises for a while, a remarkable transformation might truly happen. It took several seconds of silence for me to realize that I'd been staring at him while my mind spun out its thoughts. And, actually, he was staring at me, with a look of wonder. â€Å"My God, Sage. Your eyes. How have I never noticed them?† That uncomfortable feeling was spreading over me again. â€Å"What about them?† â€Å"The color,† he breathed. â€Å"When you stand in the light. They're amazing†¦ like molten gold. I could paint those†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He reached toward me but then pulled back. â€Å"They're beautiful. You're beautiful.† Something in the way he was looking at me froze me up and made my stomach do flip-flops, though I couldn't quite articulate why. I only knew that he looked as though he was seeing me for the very first time†¦ and it scared me. I'd been able to brush off his easy, joking compliments, but this intensity was something different altogether, something I didn't know how to react to. When he looked at me like this, I believed that he thought my eyes were beautiful – that I was beautiful. It was more than I was ready for. Flustered, I took a step backward, out of the sunlight, needing to get away from the energy of his gaze. I'd heard spirit could send him off on weird tangents but had no clue if that's what this was. I was saved from my feeble attempts to muster a witty comment when a knock at the door made both of us jump. Adrian blinked, and some of that rapture faded. His lips twisted into one of his sly smiles, and it was as though nothing weird had happened. â€Å"Showtime, huh?† I nodded, reeling with a confusing mix of relief, nervousness, and†¦ excitement. Except, I wasn't entirely sure if those feelings were from Adrian or our impending visitors. All I knew was that suddenly, I was able to breathe more easily than I had a few moments ago. He walked across the living room and opened the door with a flourish. Abe swept in, resplendent in a gray and yellow suit that coordinated bafflingly well with Adrian's paint job. A wide grin broke out over the older Moroi's face. â€Å"Adrian, Sydney†¦ so lovely to see you again. I believe one of you already knows this young lady?† He moved past us, revealing a lean dhampir girl with auburn hair and big blue eyes filled with suspicion. â€Å"Hello, Angeline,† I said. When they'd told me Angeline Dawes was going to be Jill's new roommate, I thought it was the most ridiculous thing I'd ever heard. Angeline was one of the Keepers, that separatist group of Moroi, dhampirs, and humans who lived in the wilds of West Virginia. They wanted nothing to do with the â€Å"civilization† of any of our races and had a number of bizarre customs, not the least of which was their abominable tolerance for interracial romance. Later, when I'd thought about it, I decided Angeline might not be such a bad choice. She was the same age as Jill, possibly giving Jill a closer connection than I could manage. Angeline, while not trained the way a guardian like Eddie was, still could hold her own in a fight. If anyone came for Jill, they'd have their work cut out for them getting through Angeline. And with the aversion Angeline's people had toward â€Å"tainted† Moroi, she would have no reason to further the politics of some rival faction. As I studied her and her threadbare clothes, I wondered, though, just how well she was going to adapt to being away from the Keepers. She wore a cocky look on her face that I'd seen when visiting her community, but here it was underscored with some nervousness as she took in Adrian's place. After living in the woods her entire life, this small apartment with its TV and plaid sofa was probably the height of modern luxury. â€Å"Angeline,† said Abe. â€Å"This is Adrian Ivashkov.† Adrian extended his hand, turning on that natural charm. â€Å"A pleasure.† She took his hand after a moment's hesitation. â€Å"Nice to meet you,† she said in her odd southern accent. She studied him for a few more seconds. â€Å"You look too pretty to be useful.† I gasped in spite of myself. Adrian chuckled and shook her hand. â€Å"Truer words were never spoken,† he said. Abe glanced over at me. I probably had a look of terror on my face because I was already imagining the damage control I'd have to do with Angeline saying or doing something completely wrong at Amberwood. â€Å"Sydney will undoubtedly want to†¦ debrief you on what to expect before you begin school,† said Abe diplomatically. â€Å"Undoubtedly,† I repeated. Adrian had stepped away from Angeline but was still grinning. â€Å"Let Jailbait do it. Better yet, let Castile. It'll be good for him.† Abe shut the door but not before I got a glimpse behind him to the empty hallway. â€Å"It's not just the two of you, is it?† I asked. â€Å"I heard there were others. Sonya's one, right?† Abe nodded. â€Å"They'll be right up. They're parking the car. Street parking's terrible around here.† Adrian looked over at me, hit by revelation. â€Å"Hey, do I inherit Keith's car too?† â€Å"Afraid not,† I said. â€Å"It belonged to his dad. He took it back.† Adrian's face fell. Abe stuffed his hands in his pockets and strolled casually around the living room. Angeline remained where she was. I think she was still sizing up the situation. â€Å"Ah, yes,† mused Abe. â€Å"The late, great Mr. Darnell. That boy's really been beset with tragedy, hasn't he? Such a hard life.† He paused and turned to Adrian. â€Å"But you, at least, seem to have benefited from his downfall.† â€Å"Hey,† said Adrian. â€Å"I earned this, so don't give me any grief about bailing on Clarence. I know you wanted me to stay there for some weird reason but – † â€Å"And you did,† said Abe simply. Adrian frowned. â€Å"Huh?† â€Å"You did exactly what I wanted. I'd suspected something odd was going on with Clarence Donahue, that he might be selling his blood. I'd hoped keeping you on hand would uncover the plot.† Abe stroked his chin in that mastermind way of his. â€Å"Of course, I had no idea Mr. Darnell was involved. Nor did I expect you and young Sydney to team up to unravel it all.† â€Å"I'd hardly go that far,† I said dryly. A strange thought occurred to me. â€Å"Why would you care if Keith and Clarence were selling vampire blood? I mean, we Alchemists have reasons for not wanting that†¦ but why would you feel that way?† A surprised glint flashed in Adrian's eyes, followed by insight. He eyed Abe carefully. â€Å"Maybe because he doesn't want the competition.† My jaw nearly dropped open. It was no secret to anyone, Alchemist or Moroi, that Abe Mazur trafficked in illegal goods. That he might be moving large amounts of vampire blood to willing humans had never occurred to me. But as I studied him longer, I realized it should have. â€Å"Now, now,† said Abe, never breaking a sweat, â€Å"no need to bring up unpleasant topics.† â€Å"Unpleasant?† I exclaimed. â€Å"If you're involved in anything that – â€Å" Abe held up a hand to stop me. â€Å"Enough, please. Because if that sentence ends with you saying you'll talk to the Alchemists, then by all means, let's get them out here and discuss all sorts of mysteries. Say, for example, like how Mr. Darnell lost his eye.† I froze. â€Å"Strigoi took it,† said Adrian impatiently. â€Å"Oh, come now,† said Abe, a smile twisting his lips. â€Å"My faith in you was just being restored. Since when do Strigoi do such precision maiming? Very artful maiming, I might add. Not that anyone probably ever noticed. Wasted talent, I tell you.† â€Å"What are you saying?† asked Adrian aghast. â€Å"It wasn't Strigoi? Are you saying someone cut his eye out on purpose? Are you saying that you – â€Å" Words failed him, and he simply looked back and forth between me and Abe. â€Å"That's it, isn't it? Your devil's bargain. But why?† I cringed as three sets of eyes stared at me, but there was no way I could acknowledge what Adrian was starting to put together. Maybe I could have told him if we were alone. Maybe. But I couldn't tell him while Abe looked so smug and certainly not with an outsider like Angeline standing there. I couldn't tell Adrian how I'd found my sister Carly a few years ago, after a date with Keith. It was when he'd still been living with us and just before she went off to college. She hadn't wanted to go out with him, but our father loved Keith and had insisted. Keith was his golden boy and could do no wrong. Keith believed that too, which was why he hadn't been able to take no for an answer when he and Carly were alone. She'd come to me afterward, creeping into my bedroom late at night and sobbing while I'd held her. My instant reaction was to tell our parents, but Carly had been too afraid – especially of our father. I was young and nearly as scared as she was, ready to agree with whatever she wanted. Carly had made me promise I wouldn't tell our parents, so I sank my efforts into assuring her that it wasn't her fault. The whole time, she told me, Keith had kept telling her how beautiful she was and how she'd left him no choice, that it was impossible for him to take his eyes off of her. I finally convinced her that she'd done nothing wrong, that she hadn't led him on – but she still held me to my promise to stay silent. It was one of the biggest regrets of my life. I'd hated my silence but not nearly as much as I hated Keith for thinking he could rape someone as sweet and gentle as Carly and get away with it. It wasn't until much later, when I had my first assignment and met Abe Mazur, that I'd realized there were other ways Keith might pay that would allow me to keep my promise to her. So, I'd made my deal with the devil, not caring that it bound me – or that I was stooping to barbaric levels of revenge. Abe had staged a fake Strigoi attack and cut out one of Keith's eyes earlier this year. In return, I'd become Abe's sort-of â€Å"retainer Alchemist.† It was part of what had driven me to help Rose with her jail break. I was in his debt. In some ways, I reflected bitterly, maybe I'd done Keith a favor. With only one eye left, maybe he wouldn't find it so â€Å"impossible† to keep it off uninterested young women in the future. No, I certainly couldn't tell Adrian any of that, but he was still looking at me, a million questions on his face as he tried to figure out what in the world would have reduced me to hiring Abe as a hit man. Laurel's words suddenly rang back to me. You know, you can be scary as hell sometimes. I swallowed. â€Å"Remember when you asked me to trust you?† â€Å"Yes†¦Ã¢â‚¬  said Adrian. â€Å"I need you to do the same for me.† Long moments followed. I couldn't bring myself to look at Abe because I knew he'd be smirking. â€Å"‘Spunky' was kind of an understatement,† Adrian said. After what felt like forever, he slowly nodded. â€Å"Okay. I do trust you, Sage. I trust that you have good reasons for the things you do.† There was no snark, no sarcasm. He was deadly earnest, and for a moment, I wondered how I could have earned his trust so intently. I had a weird flash to the moments just before Abe had arrived, when Adrian had spoken of painting me and my feelings had been a jumble. â€Å"Thank you,† I said. â€Å"What,† demanded Angeline, â€Å"are you guys talking about?† â€Å"Nothing of interest, I assure you,† said Abe, who was really enjoying this all too much. â€Å"Life lessons, character development, unpaid debts. That sort of thing.† â€Å"Unpaid?† I surprised myself by taking a step forward and fixing him with a glare. â€Å"I've paid that debt a hundred times over. I don't owe you anything anymore. My loyalty is only to the Alchemists now. Not you. We're finished.† Abe was still smiling, but he wavered slightly. I think my standing up for myself had caught him off-guard. â€Å"Well, that remains to be – ah.† More knocking. â€Å"Here's the rest of our party.† He hurried to the door. Adrian took a few steps toward me. â€Å"Not bad, Sage. I think you just scared old man Mazur.† I felt a smile of my own begin to form. â€Å"I don't know about that, but it felt kind of good.† â€Å"You should backtalk people more often,† he said. We grinned at each other, and as he regarded me fondly, I felt that same queasy feeling return. He probably wasn't experiencing that exact sensation, but there was an easy, bright mood about him. Rare – and very appealing. He nodded toward where Abe was opening the door. â€Å"It's Sonya.† Spirit users could sense each other when they were close enough, even behind closed doors. And sure enough, when the door opened, Sonya Karp strode in like a queen, tall and elegant. With her red hair swept into a bun, the Moroi woman could have been Angeline's older sister. Sonya smiled at us all, though I couldn't help a shiver as I thought back to the first time I'd met her. She hadn't been nearly so pretty or charming then. She'd been red-eyed and trying to kill us. Sonya was a Strigoi who'd been restored back to a Moroi, which really made her the ideal choice to work with Adrian on figuring out how to use spirit to prevent people from being turned. Sonya hugged Adrian and was walking over to me when someone else appeared in the doorway. In retrospect, I shouldn't have been surprised at who it was. After all, if we wanted to figure out what special spirit magic in Lee had stopped him from being turned again, then we needed all the data possible. And if one restored Strigoi was good, then two were better. Adrian paled and went perfectly still as he stared at the newcomer, and in that moment, all my high hopes for him came crashing down. Earlier, I'd been certain that if Adrian could just stay away from his past and any traumatic events, he'd be able to find a purpose and steady himself. Well, it looked like his past had found him, and if this didn't qualify as a traumatic event, I didn't know what did. Adrian's new research partner stepped through the door, and I knew the uneasy peace we'd just established in Palm Springs was about to shatter. Dimitri Belikov had arrived.

Baseball Essay Research Paper I chose the

Baseball Essay, Research Paper I chose the subject baseball, because it # 8217 ; s a game I have loved since I was a small child. I have played baseball since I was five, and followed professional baseball since I was approximately nine. That is when I started roll uping baseball cards and watching the games. Although I had neer truly cared about baseball # 8217 ; s origin and history, recently I have been seeking to happen out every bit much as I can about it. Baseball # 8217 ; s beginning is unknown. Peoples believe many theories. One is that baseball originated from the British game of cricket. Another theory people believe is that baseball started when a immature male child was being chased by a group of older childs and they were throwing stones at him. All the male child had with him was his school books and a walking stick. When one of the childs threw a stone at him he hit it right back at him. When the childs saw this they were amazed. That gave the childs an thought. They got out their walking sticks and started to throw stones at each other. The victor was the 1 who hit it the farthest. Another theory is that in 1831 a male child named Abner Doubleday had his mas make him a ball out of bit leather and pieces of old narration and yarn. Abner and his brother Tim would travel in the pace and drama # 8220 ; catch. # 8221 ; Abner got tired of merely throwing the ball, so he thought of hitting the ball excessively. He would hold a # 8220 ; pitcher # 8220 ; # 8221 ; lob # 8221 ; the ball to the hitter who had a # 8220 ; hittin # 8217 ; stick. # 8221 ; The hitter would hit the ball every bit far as he could. Most people believe this narrative to be true. Around the 1850s recreational baseball squads began to jump up all over in the United States. During the early 1840s the first baseball game was recorded. Harmonizing to the New England regulations, if a hitter was hit by a ball thrown at him he was called out. Today a hitter needs to be either tagged by the participant with the ball, or have the first, 2nd, or 3rd baseman measure on the base if they had the ball in their manus. Although baseball has changed a batch, many things have stayed the same. Baseball used to be considered a gentlemen # 8217 ; s game. Merely the upper category played baseball. Since Baseball was a gentlemen # 8217 ; s game, # 8220 ; cussin # 8217 ; # 8221 ; wasn # 8217 ; T allowed. If you were caught # 8220 ; cussin # 8217 ; # 8221 ; you would hold to pay a six cent mulct. By the late 1860s everyone was playing baseball # 8211 ; from food market packers to concern proprietors. The amateurs formed a conference called the National League Association. If a squad wanted to go a portion of the NLA, and was good plenty, it would be accepted. The conference would form games, and do certain the squads had a topographic point to play. In 1881 the first professional baseball squad was formed. The NLA would non let them in because they wouldn # 8217 ; t let squads to pay its participants. Because of this, the Red Stockings set up their ain conference. They called it the American League Association. The National Association finally had to let professional squads in the conference because the American Association had so many more squads in their conference. Because baseball # 8217 ; s popularity had grown so much, the presidents of the ALA, and the NLA started to bear down admittance to games. Soon gamblers got involved. The NLA allowed chancing but the ALA banned it because the participants thought baseball was for amusement intents merely. In the NLA gaming got out of manus. The participants got involved with the gaming, and would intentionally throw a game. That happened more than one time. When the NLA tried to censor chancing in 1892 the conference became really unstable. Directors were seeking to discontinue, and the participants wanted to play in a just game, non a game that was lost on intent. In the early yearss of baseball Charles Comiskey pioneered many basicss of the game. He had the participants back-up each other # 8217 ; s throws, and catch the ball with two custodies. In the early old ages, foremost basemen played in disgusting district. Comiskey changed that. He had the first baseman drama on the left side of the disgusting line so that if the ball was hit his manner he could acquire to the ball, and do the drama. Charles was a # 8220 ; playing director # 8221 ; for the Washington Blue Caps. He played hurler, and developed the pitching manner called, # 8220 ; The Stretch. # 8221 ; A pitch where the hurler does non weave up, he merely stairss and throws the ball. Another pioneering participant was Denton True Young. Most people know him as Cy Young. The Cy is short for cyclone. He got that moniker because of his alone pitching manner. Because of Cy # 8217 ; s great ability to flip there is a fliping award named after him. The award is called the # 8220 ; Cy Young Award. # 8221 ; The award is given to the hurler who leads the conference in work stoppage outs and earned run average. In 1900 the National Association eventually became stable. The gaming had for the most portion stopped, and squads were willing to play once more. In 1908 backstop # 8217 ; s face masks and shin guards were invented. A individual could purchase a face mask for six dollars, and shin guards for seven dollars. During a game in 1909, an outfielder bruised his thenar on a fly ball he caught. He left the game but returned two innings subsequently with a brace of soft leather baseball mitts. He played the remainder of his calling with those baseball mitts. Everyone thought he was a chicken, but shortly everyone had a brace of the baseball mitts. Although baseball has changed a batch, many things have stayed the same, such as simple basicss. I think most professional baseball participants don # 8217 ; t cognize much about baseball # 8217 ; s past. If they took the clip to read about it they # 8217 ; vitamin D likely truly bask it. I learned a batch about baseball # 8217 ; s history while researching this study. I thought baseball had ever been around, and that all the regulations had been the same. I thought the same squads had been about since the beginning, but they have non. Thingss have changed, from the unvarying manner, to the type of wood the chiropteran is made of, to the type of narration used in the balls. I chose to compose about baseball # 8217 ; s beginnings because baseball is my favourite athletics. I learned a batch about who did what, and when they did it. I am glad I chose baseball, because I learned a batch about baseball # 8217 ; s history in America. Shapiro, Milton J. , The Day They Made The Record Book, New York: Julian Messner,1968. Dunham, Montrew, Abner Doubleday, New York: The Bobbs-Merrill Co. , 1965. Rosenburg, John M. , The Story of Baseball, New York: Random House, 1973. Schenck, Earl M. , Baseball, New York: Grosset and Dunlap, 1969.

Eliminating sugar content from foods and replace with miracle berry Essay

Eliminating sugar content from foods and replace with miracle berry - Essay Example Therefore, there are needs to reduce sugar intakes into the body (seems to be impossible especially among children) or introduce an alternative sugar (sweetener) that will not subject the body to these health risks. According to the USDA documents, the consumption of sugar have since increased by 19%, from 1970 to 2005. This statistics indicates that, on average, a person consumes 140 pounds of sugar per year or 30 teaspoons per day. This value is inclusive sugar taken up by the body from different kinds of foods especially the processed foods. The same study revealed that the consumption of corn syrup per person increased by 387% within the same period (Rada, Avena, and Hoebel, 2005). The increased consumption of sugar is largely associated with the increased consumption of the processed foods. Nearly all processed foods contain sugar since sugar is added into these foods as sweetener. Notably, miracle berry, which is noted to be 400,000 times sweeter and healthier than sugar should be used as alternative food sweetener in food processing (Public Health England, 2015). Different research works have indicated that the miracle berry can be used as normal sugar and can be processed into different forms; hence, can as well be used in processing different foods (Inglett and Chen, 2011). Therefore, to reduce or completely eliminate health risks associated with the intake of sugar, all the concern stakeholders should advocate for the elimination of sugar content from foods and replace with healthier miracle berry sweetness. Chen, C., Wu, P., Huang, T., Lin, C., Li, Y., Chou, R., Chang, H., & Wang, H., (2009). The Sour Taste-Modifying Protein (Miraculin), Tyrosinase Inhibitors and Antioxidants from Synsepalum dulcificum. Current Nutrition & Food Sciences. 5. Du, L., Shen, Y., Zhang, X., Prinyawiwatkul, W., & Xu, Z., (2014). Antioxidant-rich phytochemicals in miracle berry

Nursing Practice Foundation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Nursing Practice Foundation - Essay Example This essay approves that neatness and cleanliness can't be achieved without the total support of those who must be neat and clean. If the nursing service provider (the nurse) feels forced to behave against her or his will or beliefs, they tend to focus on the lousy way they're being treated rather than on delighting the customer. And they almost have to pass their feelings on to the patient because the service is inseparable from the (nurse) provider. The typical patient isn't pleased with poor, inadequate service or even adequate service if it's delivered by a grouch. The resulting damage to the image of the organization in such instances is expensive and wide ranging. It's also unnecessary. employees can't be empowered by management from on high. They have to accept the power offered, which means there must be something in it for them. It seems to us that, because quality is viewed by patients as including tangibles, the nursing profession itself must demand appropriate attention b e given to tangibles. As research has repeatedly indicated, professionals, whether nurses, engineers, or teachers, generally identify more closely with the profession than with the specific organization they serve. This report makes a conclusion that management should work through the nurses themselves to set customer-determined levels of tangibles for nursing. Encourage the nurses to set the metrics to close the loop, together with a process of feedback and analysis and providing incentives aligned with the agreed-upon goals. Then hold nurses accountable as a team and individually, rewarding results appropriately.