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QV1 Lunch Box Theatre: The Dinner Party with Xavier Toby
09 February 2016 12:00 pm - 12:45 pm
QV1 Conference Centre, Level 2 - Theatrette 250 St Georges Terrace, Perth WA 6000, Australia
What are the three things you should never discuss at dinner?
At this stand up comedy show it's Xavier versus three self-obsessed couples - represented by bottles of alcohol. With jokes about: sex, politics, real estate, refugees, rum, backpackers, reality TV, dolphins and much more.
Entry is by gold coin donation with all proceeds going to the Panti Asuhan Semara Putra children's orphanage in Bali.


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Academy of Art University facing fines
For more than seven years, the Academy of Art University has failed to address warnings from the city that it was violating land-use laws, yet it continued amassing one of the largest property portfolios in San Francisco while taking incomplete steps to come into compliance with the laws, San Francisco's planning director said.
Now the city has issued citations that carry a combined $26,000 in fees and the threat of more than $5,500 a day in fines if a Thursday deadline for partial compliance isn't met, documents show. Planning Department spokeswoman Joanna Linsangan described the effort as the city's biggest land-use enforcement action in decades.
The 22 violation notices were issued to more than half of the 42 properties at the fast-growing, for-profit school. The problems range from operating a school out of buildings designated for a commercial businesses to converting residential hotels into student housing.
"Our desire is to work with the city to meet ... those conditions," said Ron Van Buskirk, a land-use attorney representing the school.
Academy officials, and even Mayor Ed Lee, have touted the privately owned art and design school's growth as a boon to the local economy that has revitalized empty buildings. Critics, though, say the academy's unregulated growth, with the proliferation of its stylized letter-A logo on properties from Fisherman's Wharf to South of Market, has removed irreplaceable rent-controlled units from the city's already-strained housing supply and made a mockery of planning rules.
Possible step toward suit
The land-use problems have been known for years, but the citations issued Jan. 17, at the urging of City Attorney Dennis Herrera, are a critical step toward the city potentially suing one of the biggest property owners in San Francisco.
In a carrot-and-stick approach, the city is deferring levying fines of up to $250 per day per violation as long as the academy meets a series of 14 benchmarks established by the city. Thursday is the deadline for part of the work.
Issuing the citations was a step planning Director John Rahaim was unwilling to take as recently as two months ago, saying progress was being made with the school, even after Herrera, in a confidential memo to Rahaim, urged him to enforce the law and warned that the academy "is engaged in a game of obfuscation and delay."
"This is the best way to move forward right now," Rahaim said after the violation notices were issued. "It gives them very clear deadlines that they have to meet to move forward, but it doesn't immediately push us into the legal realm, which, basically, I think would delay things."
Prolonged review
The school almost tripled in size in less than a decade, growing from about 6,800 students in 2003 to more than 18,200 in 2011, including 11,600 on-site students and another 6,600 who took courses online, according to an academy-commissioned report. A separate 2009 transportation report projected enrollment would be 24,000 in 2017.
At the heart of the dispute is the school's inability to complete a comprehensive study on the environmental impact of its operations, despite submitting its application for the study almost five years ago. The city won't approve changes to building use or other permits until the study is done. Rahaim said the report, compiled by the academy, is about 80 percent finished.
The study is supposed to cover the sweep of the school's operations and its future plans, including specifics about the properties it owns, enrollment-growth projections and the effect its private bus fleet has on traffic, parking and pollution.
Among the reasons the environmental study has taken so long to complete is the academy kept purchasing and converting properties despite being admonished by the city not to do so, changing the scope of the environmental review, Rahaim said.
Such reports can be time consuming, but the one for the San Francisco Giants' waterfront ballpark was completed in about nine months. The environmental study for the Transit Center District Plan, which included a 61-story tower that would be the tallest building in the city and rezoning to allow new skyscrapers in a 145-acre patch south of Market Street downtown, took about five years to complete. But that study was started early, before the design for the signature tower was even selected.
Most developers want to move faster than the city can complete the approvals, said Planning Commissioner Hisashi "Bill" Sugaya.
"In (the academy's) case, it's the other way around," Sugaya said. "They've been not as cooperative as they could have been."
Van Buskirk, whom the academy retained in November, said the length of time was not unusual given the complexity of trying to study something like future growth impacts when acquisitions haven't been made yet.
Changing attorneys
Part of the delay could stem from the academy changing land-use attorneys at least four times. The academy also sent a representative to meetings with the Planning Department who was not authorized to act on the school's behalf regarding the environmental impact report, which "made it difficult for the department and the consultant to stay on schedule," Bill Wycko, a city environmental review officer, wrote in a Nov. 20 letter to academy President Elisa Stephens.
Having someone with such decision-making authority in the meetings is "the normal and customary practice," Wycko wrote. Among the first conditions the academy has to meet to avoid fines is designating someone with that power by Thursday. Van Buskirk said the academy has already done so.
"We're being forthright with the city," Van Buskirk said.
'Unlawful conduct'
Herrera, though, accused the academy in the Nov. 13 memo to Rahaim of "long-standing unlawful conduct" and said the city's failure to act opened it up to accusations of selective enforcement. From the start of 2009 through the end of 2012, the city has issued violation and penalty notices in 84 cases against other property owners, an average of 21 a year, according to Planning Department records.
The city requires that by Thursday, the academy agree to complete work for part of the environmental study and appoint someone with the authority to deal with the environmental impact report and code violations. If it fails to do so, it could be found in violation.
The academy would then have 15 days to either correct the violations or appeal. At the end of either time frame, the daily fines would begin accruing.
Land-use issues
The city has been working for years to bring the Academy of Art University into compliance with land-use laws.
2006: Planning Department issues notice of violation to the school for failing to submit a master plan describing its anticipated growth, which the city requires of all medical institutions and post-secondary schools.
2008: Planning Department tells the academy it must complete an environmental impact report, including a transportation study, to legalize buildings it has bought and changed the use of without permits. In May, the academy submits its EIR application. In August, the city tells the academy not to acquire or convert new properties for school uses until the environmental study is complete and other approvals are given.
2009: In March, a Planning Department memo outlining enforcement issues indicates 28 academy properties had illegal signs and at least 21 were illegally converted to group housing or changed to educational uses. In all, 30 of its 32 buildings had code violations. Academy acquires two new properties and converts one to school use in September, which later draws the scrutiny of the Planning Commission. Then-Commissioner Christina Olague says the city is "being made fools of on many levels."
2010: In January, a Board of Supervisors committee tells the academy it will be reviewed quarterly. Academy President Elisa Stephens tells the committee: "We will do whatever the city wants us to." In February, the Planning Department says it will start enforcement on four properties. One includes a commercial building at 460 Townsend St. that is still used for classes.
2011: In September, city planners learn the academy has bought more properties, requiring changes to and delaying the environmental study.
2012: The academy's attorney proposes a "global resolution" to the land-use problems but doesn't make a "concrete or detailed settlement offer" by a May 1 deadline. City Attorney Dennis Herrera advises the Planning Department to issue notices of violation and penalties. It does not. In August, Herrera's office gives the academy a Nov. 1 deadline. No resolution is reached, but citations are not issued.
2013: After closed sessions by the Planning Commission, citations are issued Jan. 17, but the fines are suspended as long as the school reaches specific benchmarks.
Sources: S.F. Planning Department, Chronicle research
John Coté is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com

subset: commoncrawl


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An Evening with Tom Paxton
With special guests Cathy and Marcy
Tom has had a music career spanning more than 50 years. The five decades have seen the recording of many enduring songs, and thousands of live performances around the world, as well as a Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award in 2009.
Celebrated amongst his peers and audiences alike, he is one of the most highly regarded, loved, and best known folk singer/songwriters of his generation.
With timeless classics such as The Last Thing On My Mind, Bottle Of Wine and Ramblin' Boy, he portrays through his songs and his famously generous nature a true desire for justice, and to bring people together.
Tom Paxton is a joyful treat, a revered figure in folk music, and a voice of his generation.
"We are all born singing Tom Paxton songs" (Nanci Griffith)
"Tom's songs are fine songs in anyone's book" (Uncut)
- Promoted by:
- Chas Cole for CMP Entertainment


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Just Walk Beside Me (Battlements fic)
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Just Walk Beside Me (Battlements fic)
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19th-Jun-2012 10:16 pm
title: Just walk beside me
verse: Battlements
author: goneahead and kasman
rating: R for the sex
pairing: Jensen/Jared
word count: 11,000
summary: Battlements fic. Jared and Jensen spend the day together. No, seriously, that's the plot.
title: Just walk beside me
verse: Battlements
author: goneahead and kasman
rating: R for the sex
pairing: Jensen/Jared
word count: 11,000
notes: This is all kasmans's fault. Totally.
kasman's notes: Yep, yep, it is.
Don't walk behind me, I may not lead.
Don't walk in front of me, I may not follow.
Just walk beside me and be my friend.
(Nov 2nd, Sunday evening) Jared finished the massage, snuffed out the candles. He climbed into bed behind Jensen, smiling at Jensen's incoherent mumble as he pulled him close and dragged the covers over. He checked, made sure Jensen was correctly positioned, then wrapped him in a hug. He felt Jensen melt against him, the close contact making Jensen relax even more--if that was even humanly possible. The perfect end to a perfect day. Jared pressed a kiss into the short hair at the back of Jensen's neck, and drifted off to sleep, still smiling.
He was startled into wakefulness when a hand landed on his shoulder. "Sorry," came Neil's soft voice, "I thought I should let you know that we're back--and in one piece."
They both grinned at the sleepy, protesting grunt from Jensen.
"Neil and Ty are back," Jared murmured in his ear.
"Go 'way, don' need Neil, jus' Jar'd."
Jared felt the hand on his shoulder vibrate and guessed Neil was suppressing a laugh, shrugged, "Whatever you say."
Neil's tone was amused. "Night, boss." Added as a softer aside to Jared, "And the pity of that is he won't remember a single word in the morning. Night, Jared--and thank you for today."
Jared turned his head, grinned, "Good night, Neil, and, uh, thank you--for trusting me."
"I never doubted you for a moment."
Jared's grin widened, "Then why all the phone calls?"
Neil arched an eyebrow, "Due diligence. It's in my contract."
Jared huffed a soft laugh. "Yeah, right, Mother Hen."
Neil gave Jared's shoulder a soft squeeze before quietly leaving the room.
I never doubted you for a moment.
Wow. Something inside Jared unclenched, the part that'd been telling him all day that he was going to mess up. He couldn't help himself, he tightened the arm he had around Jensen, pressed another kiss against the back of his head.
"Ngh, go to sleep, dude. Your dimples're buzzing, keeping me awake." Jensen's words were sleep-slurred, and he rubbed his head into the pillow, making the material rustle.
"Dimples don't buzz." And damn, he wished he had a tape recorder handy for times like this.
"Yours do," Jensen sounded completely self-satisfied.
Jared snickered, "Yeah, all right, if you say so. Good night." Jensen mumbled something else, already dropping back into sleep.
Neil trusted him. Jared closed his eyes, listening to Jensen's breathing evening out, letting the weight of what Neil had said sink in. He and Jensen had gotten to spend a whole day together, and that was because Neil
It really had been a perfect day.
(That morning) "Neil, baby, you've already told him that--three times." Ty tucked an arm around his husband's arm, steering him out the sliding glass door, "Jared will call if anything comes up, won't you, sweetie?"
"Sure," Jared said, and added when Neil shot him a look, "Just enjoy yourselves, we'll be all right."
He watched while Ty and Neil got into the car--Jennifer's Lexus because Emilio had taken the SUV--then closed the sliding glass door. Just stood there for a long moment, his emotions see-sawing back and forth.
The house was quiet. Ty and Neil were off to celebrate Neil's birthday. Jasmine and Gabbi were at their grandmother's and Emilio was at David's, earning extra cash for some benefit going on that weekend. It was seven in the morning, and it was just Jensen and him until at least ten or eleven that night, maybe even later.
Part of him was freaking out, because this was a whole day, which was like a big, big, big deal. And yet, he also felt like... like it was a step in the right direction because he wanted, needed, to be a part of Jensen's life and this was a part of Jensen's life. He gave himself a mental shake, and went down the hall, stopping at the office to get Jensen's meds out of the safe.
He opened the door, half-expecting Jensen to have fallen back asleep but Jensen gave him a smile, dropped his voice into a conspiratorial whisper, "Is the coast clear?"
"Yep. Although it's your house, so if we trash it because we were left unsupervised..." Jared joked back, as he went into the bathroom, got a glass of water. He crossed across the room, raised the head of the bed and handed Jensen the paper cup with the pills and then the glass.
Jensen swallowed the pills, his smile widening, "I haven't trashed a place since we broke into Jim's trailer."
"I don't remember doing that." Jared feigned innocence as he sat down on the edge of the bed, took the glass back, "What do you want for breakfast?"
Jensen's smile widened to a grin, "You."
"You know, I think that can be arranged." Jared grinned back, set the glass and the paper cup on the table. He'd taken care of the other stuff earlier, when he'd first gotten up, so it was just a matter of getting them both into position. He dropped a kiss on Jensen's nose, "So I can manhandle you?"
"Depends." Jensen pushed himself up so Jared could help him with his shirt, "What do I get out of it?"
"Hmmm, thinking. Peace, love, and understanding?" Jared ducked in, dropping another kiss on Jensen's lips, then moved the pillows under Jensen's legs. He lowered the head of the bed, nudged Jensen over, then helped him strip off his sweat pants. He slipped out of his own pair of sweats and t-shirt, and slid into bed. He reached over, rolled Jensen on his side so they were facing each other, putting his own knee between Jensen's knees, "Better?"
"Getting there." Jensen tipped his head back, and Jared willingly dropped his mouth over Jensen's mouth.
Jensen had always been a good kisser, but there was an extra edge now, a certain hunger in the way that he kissed, and it always turned Jared on, made him achingly hard. He gave back as good as he got, caught Jensen's lower lip in his teeth, then chased Jensen's tongue, until the kiss dissolved into something more, something deeper that seemed to fill all the empty places inside Jared's head.
He felt Jensen's good hand hit his ribs, and he put his own hand down, helping guide Jensen's hand. It didn't matter anymore, it was still Jensen's hand skimming over his skin. Holy fuck, but he loved weekend mornings when they didn't have to be anywhere. Jensen's touch, the way Jensen continued to kiss, rough and messy and needy, it twisted something in Jared's chest, turning him inside out. He needed sex, needed to come, but he needed
even more.
And Jensen knew it. He slowed the rhythm, softened his kisses, his tongue turning lazy, teasing instead.
Jared pulled back, "Fucker."
It shouldn't have been so damn hot, the way Jensen laughed against his mouth, but holy shit, it fucking was. Jared caught Jensen's mouth, capturing that laugh and Jensen's tongue again, while he shifted his hips, changing the angle of his bent knee slightly, until he was at the right angle, and his cock was rubbing against Jensen's.
Oh holy fucking shit, it felt good. He guided Jensen's hand further down, waited until Jensen made a loose fist around their cocks, then closed his own hand over Jensen's.
"Oh. Oh fuck, yeah." Jensen's eyes were half shut, his breath stuttering as Jared shifted again, his hand over Jensen's, stroking a steady rhythm; the world dissolving into just the two of them, heat and friction and hot, quick breaths. Jared sank into the sensations, letting it all wash over him, the drag of Jensen's dick against his, the rough pressure of their hands, the pure pleasure of Jensen's tongue thrusting deeper into his mouth, even the noises Jensen was making, because he was close, they were both so damn close--and then he was coming, and oh fuck, for a second he couldn't breathe, couldn't even fucking think, as the pleasure-pain of coming crashed through him.
For a couple of seconds Jensen just lay there, panting through the aftershocks. Then Jared moved Jensen's good hand, placing it on his own chest, before he slipped his arms around Jensen, pulling him close. And maybe Jensen was a bit weird, because while the sex was good--and hell, sex with Jared had always been good, even back in the old days, when often they were usually more asleep than awake--this was what he really looked forward to now. Jared had always wanted physical contact afterwards, but these past few months there seemed to be an extra closeness in the way Jared touched and held him.
Jensen pressed his forehead against Jared's, as his breathing and heart rate slowly dropping back to normal. He felt Jared's hand move, reach for his leg and then his back, pulling him even closer, his thumb slowly, steadily stroking Jensen's skin. He relaxed into the touch, smiling. It felt so damn good, comforting,
Jared's stomach rumbled, and he pulled away a little, smiling back, "Sorry."
"It's OK. Guess we need to feed the bottomless pit, huh?" Jensen went for a joke, but deep down he didn't really want to get up yet. Getting up meant letting Jared help him, and while he knew it made sense, he still wasn't really sold on the idea.
"Yeah." Jared gave him a questioning look as he helped Jensen roll onto his back. "You all right?"
Jensen sighed, "Yeah. Yeah, I'm OK."
Jared looked at him for a second longer, got to his feet, "Good, cuz considering the very special breakfast you just had..."
Jensen pushed himself to a sitting position, happy to let Jared's kidding distract him, "I didn't know you were one of the four basic food groups..."
"Sure, protein. Lots of protein." Jared grinned, then scooped up their clothes from the floor, went into the bathroom. Jensen sat there, listening as Jared moved around. He felt a little weird, because he actually didn't hurt. Jared had given him a massage last night--enrolling Jared in a massage course had been one of the best things he and Neil had ever done, for both himself and Jared--and thanks to that and the sex, the muscles in his back were loose, relaxed.
Jared came back a few minutes later, dressed, with a wash cloth in one hand and clothes in the other, speaking in a cheerful drawl, "Come on, up and at 'em."
"You just want to eat." Jensen grumbled, but he let Jared clean him up, then help him through the rest--getting dressed, brushing his teeth, fixing his hair. He never knew quite what to do about Jared's cheerfulness--Jensen had learned the best way to get through the necessity of his morning and night routines was by shutting out most of it, but Jared insisted on joking around, touching him, slipping in a kiss or a hug. It was a lot more confusing than Jensen wanted to admit.
Jared wiped the hair gel off his hands, leaned down and draped his arms over Jensen's shoulders, smiling at him in the mirror, "What're you thinking?"
Jensen smiled back, "That I'm hungry."
Jared gave him a look, "Uh huh. All right, let's go see if I remember how to cook."
Jared stacked the pan and their dishes in the dishwasher, started it running, and followed Jensen into the office. With breakfast was out of the way, they could settle into their usual Sunday morning routine. He got Jensen's laptop set up for him, and then made his usual weekly call to his mother while Jensen checked his emails.
It turned out that some long-time neighbor was visiting his parents at their condo, and the phone call wound up taking a lot longer than usual, because his mother insisted on catching him up on
. It was the kind of thing that usually annoyed Jared--he hadn't known the neighbor all that well, and her kids had been much younger than him, so it wasn't like he was even following most of what his mom was talking about. But Jensen kept looking over his way, making faces at him, and Jared found himself struggling to not crack up. He finally managed to end things by promising, for at least the fifth time, that yes, he would call next weekend.
He hit the end button and shot Jensen a look, "Thanks. I was trying to have a conversation."
"Riiiiiight." Jensen's smile was wide and unapologetic, as he tilted his head, pulled the headset off.
Jared shook his head, got to his feet, "You're done?" He was shocked. Jensen always spent at least an hour going through his mailbox, usually throwing out the excuse he had 'one more thing to do' when Jared or Neil tried to pry him away.
"Yeah, well," Jensen tipped his head back, catching Jared's eye, "it's our day together."
"Are you feeling OK?" Jared leaned over to shut the laptop, intentionally running his fingers through Jensen's hair, knowing it bugged him, "Maybe I should call Neil..."
"Fuck you."
Jared laughed, and helped Jensen to his feet. "C'mon, it's a nice day, let's go outside and get some sunshine."
"Yeah, okay, sounds good." Jensen obviously caught Jared's slightly amazed expression. "What? I'm not against going outside. Vitamin D is good for you." Jensen caught the movement as Jared grabbed a pile of paper off the fax machine, saw Jared's slightly guilty expression. "What's wrong?"
"Um, well, ah, I was kinda wondering if maybe you'd run through the script with me. I've got to look at it for tomorrow and, well, you know, comedy is kind of hard."
Jensen gave him a glowing smile, "Jared, I'd be happy to help you." He took a step, hesitated when Jared didn't move with him. "What?"
"It's just..."
"Jared, I'm happy to do this, and I'm glad you asked, OK?"
"Yeah." Jared realized then that Jensen really did mean it, and he felt something flip over in his chest. He smiled back, "All right, then let's do it."
It was one of those typical fall days in California. Yesterday's rain had vanished; it was sunny, and warm enough that Jared just pulled on a long-sleeved shirt and helped Jensen into a light flannel coat. They settled into one of the chaise lounges near the barbecue and pool area, Jared wrapping himself around Jensen, and Jensen leaning back against him so that they could both see the printed pages of the fax. They were still at it, with Jared complaining that comedy was a lot harder than it looked, when they heard the sound of a vehicle coming up the slope of the driveway. A few minutes later, Chris wandered around the side of the house, hair tied back, shades perched on his nose.
"Damn," he grinned at them, "if you two were any cuter you'd be... jeez, puppies maybe?"
Jensen felt the vibration through Jared's chest as he gave a silent laugh, could imagine the full-dimple grin that he was now turning on Chris. "Yeah, all right. Neil put you up to this?"
"Neil? Haven't spoken to him. No, I promised Jenny I'd take the boys shopping. Something to do with dinosaurs." He shrugged. "You girls doing OK here?"
"We're fine, Chris," Jensen responded. "And you can tell Neil that as well."
Chris rocked back on his heels, tipping his fingers in a salute. "I'll tell him that--if he calls me. Anyhow, I'm already late, so..." With that, he started moving again, cutting across the backyard to his sister's house.
"OK," Jensen turned his attention back to the dialogue, "let's run through this again."
"Yeah." Jared gave a small, frustrated sigh, and even though he knew he shouldn't, Jensen found himself comparing Jared to the way he used to be.
In the early days of Supernatural, Jared wouldn't have thought twice about doing a comedy bit, would've just jumped right in without thinking twice. Jensen had admired how nothing seemed to faze Jared. Now he wondered if maybe Jared'd been already trying to cover up some of his insecurities and he'd just been too caught up in other stuff to pay attention, see what Jared was doing.
"Hey, listen, it's just beats and delivery." He couldn't see Jared's face, but he could certainly feel Jared's tension, "Come on, let's do what we used to do, switch parts." He pitched his voice higher, "Deeeaaann, what're you thinking?! I can't believe you're even my brother!"
Jared managed, barely, not to laugh, "I did not sound that whiny."
"Sure you did. Now you be the hot, sexy secretary who wants to lay the boss, and I'll be the equally hot, sexy legal aide--who wants to lay the boss."
"It's comedy, Jensen--not porn."
"I got two words for you--legal debriefing." That was better. Jared was openly laughing now, and beginning to relax. Jensen scanned the page, "OK, from the top."
He ran through the dialogue, Jared throwing in the secretary's lines. He was surprised at how easy it was to slip into a role, already trying to flesh out a character from just a few lines on page. Even more surprising was realizing he really didn't miss it. Jensen had loved acting, but to be honest, he was glad it wasn't him who was having to go through the endless cycle of sides and auditions that made up such a big chunk of the job. It was a startling revelation.
"Uh, Jared, you're vibrating," Jensen commented, feeling the buzz of Jared's cell phone through his back.
"Yeah, uh, you think you could...?"
"Yeah, sure." He pushed himself up, allowing Jared to get a hand to his pocket.
"Neil," Jared said, holding the display up for Jensen.
Jensen rolled his eyes, knowing full well that Jared couldn't see him.
"Hey, Neil, putting you on speaker." Jared held the phone out so they'd both be able to speak and hear. "Having a good birthday?"
"Well, one of us is." Neil's tone was wry, "Apparently, my husband has a gift card to the most expensive outlet mall in the Los Angeles metropolitan area."
Jensen settled himself back against Jared's chest, "Well, it
your birthday."
"I don't mean to sound presumptuous with my employer," Neil's tone had become, if possible, even dryer, "but the normal practice is to give the gift card to the person whose birthday it actually is."
Jensen could feel Jared's soft laugh, grinned himself, "Consider it a bonus."
"Since I am stuck here until Ty comes out of the dressing room," Neil's voice had dropped into the bored tone he used when he was amused, "You can at least assure me that you both had something healthy for breakfast."
"Very healthy," Jared replied. "Scrambled eggs and turkey sausage,"
"He didn't even start a fire," Jensen added.
"How comforting. Perhaps I should point out it might be safer, in light of Jared's cooking skills, to order take out for lunch." Neil sighed, "I have to go, I am being summoned."
"Neil?" Jensen couldn't resist, "Make sure to take Ty to the boot store."
"Jensen, if I take my husband to a boot store, my next yearly bonus will be a renovation to expand our closet space."
"Bye, Neil." Jared hung up the phone, "Funny, I seem to recall it was somebody else who tried to set stuff on fire."
"Once." Jensen pushed himself up again so that Jared could put the phone away, "And it was mostly Chris and Steve's fault."
"Yeah, right." Jared slid his arms around Jensen again, "Who was it who decided to use too much lighter fluid?"
"I thought you wanted to run through lines." Jensen let his voice slide into a grumble.
Jared shifted, and there was a small huff of laughter by Jensen's ear as Jared held the pages up again, "Sure. How about you be the hot, sexy secretary this time?"
"Absolutely. But I think you have more of the ass for it." Jensen started with the first line of dialogue, and they ran through it a couple more times, until Jared had the scene cold.
"Thank you." The way Jared said it, Jensen could hear the relief in his voice, "Guess we should hit the video games now?"
"Actually, I want to walk." Jensen pushed himself up once again. To be honest, he really didn't, but the rain yesterday had meant canceling his usual swim, and he'd skipped his usual Sunday morning PT session. He was still loose thanks to last night's massage, and he was warm and comfortable, but he knew his muscles would start locking up if he didn't get up and move.
Jared's voice was heavy with doubt, "You sure?"
"Well, it's either that or go for a swim." He actually preferred swimming over the effort of walking, but he didn't want to go through the hassle, which would entail getting changed and into the pool, and then having to go through the bigger hassle of getting out, and dry and dressed again. "I need to stretch."
"OK." Jared scooted backwards, then got up. Jensen was reminded then why he usually avoided the stupid chaise longues--they were always too damn low. Jared reached down, all but picking him up as he helped him stand. Jared changed his grip on Jensen's arm, using his other hand to straighten Jensen's jacket, "Good?"
Jensen forced down the frustration, biting back the comment he would've made if Neil had been there. "Yeah, thanks."
"Hey." Jared was giving him another of those looks, "You know I don't mind, right?"
"Yeah, but... " He immediately bit back that comment, too. He knew people expected him to complain, or to throw a pity party for himself, and he fucking refused to do it. "Come on, there's a path this way."
Jared scrunched his face up, one of those rare times when Jensen couldn't figure out what he was thinking, but let Jensen tuck his arm in his, and opened the other gate, which led to Beth's side of the house.
When they'd bought the house, the front yard was already full of trees and plants to screen the place from the road. Beth had dismantled and dug up most of her old garden, which was more an open air studio for her photography business, and brought it with her. Not only the plants, but also benches and statues and arbors had been hauled over. She'd immediately commandeered the west corner of the backyard, and then used the move as an excuse to expand the garden. To be honest, it was the only part of the property beyond the pool that Jensen was familiar with, because she'd intentionally put in a wide, hard path so it was wheelchair accessible.
Jensen crossed the patio behind Beth's part of the house, and as they took the path, Jared looked over at him, his eyes soft, teasing. "I didn't know we were going for a romantic stroll."
romantic. Masses of roses and vines climbed over arbors and pillars, and rambled around statues and potted plants. Jensen had no idea how Beth and her gardeners did it, but he'd never seen the garden when it didn't seem like most of the flowers were in bloom. It said something that romance hadn't even crossed his mind--he'd just been thinking it was the easiest place for him to walk.
proof he needed to get his head out of his ass and start putting Jared in the center of his life.
They came upon a long curved bench, and Jared nodded at it, "You want to sit down?"
"No, the ponds are just ahead."
A couple of minutes later, they went around a bend in the path, and saw the ponds. Water splashed down a couple of low waterfalls, into a pond, and then down another waterfall, into a much larger pond. On either side, low rambling roses and green hedges stretched out towards the distant trees that edged this side of the property. Their arrival must have startled one of the native turtles that inhabited the pond--it skittered off the rock where it'd been sunning itself and into the water with a splash, surfacing near a reed bed on the other side, from where it looked back at them with a steadfast gaze.
Jared whistled, "Holy shit, there's more garden."
"Yeah, well, the place came with the original four acres." Jensen slowed as they came to another bench.
"Four acres?" Jared kept a hand under his elbow until he was seated, then sat down, too. "It doesn't look that big."
Jensen glanced over at the ponds, and it suddenly hit him that he hadn't been out here since May, proof of how much his life had changed since the last surgery. Before, when the pain had gotten really bad, he'd spent hours out here. The sound of water, watching the wildlife, it'd helped, especially when he was too fucked up on drugs to be able to focus on work. Thanks to the surgery, he'd lost the strength he'd worked so hard for, and he suspected the hardware in his back had permanently screwed up his balance, but it was all worth it--
was better than the constant, grinding pain he'd been in.
"Jensen?" Jared slipped an arm around him, "What were you thinking earlier?"
Jensen hesitated. He knew what was bothering him. At least he thought he did, but he wasn't really sure how to put it into words.
"It's really beautiful here," Jared said softly, filling the silence.
"Yeah, it is." Jensen licked his lips, stalling, because he knew Jared was trying to nudge him into talking, but he wasn't sure how to answer.
Jared unwrapped his arm and stood, only to kneel in front of him. "Hey." He crossed his arms, propped them on Jensen's knees, "You know I don't mind helping you, right?"
He dragged back on a smile, because Jared was looking at him much too intently, "Yeah, I know."
"OK, well, the other half of that is you can talk to me. I--" Jared bit his lip, "Look, you've always been willing to be there for me, and I know I haven't--"
"No, it's true. There's been a lot of times when I should've been there for you, and I wasn't, and I get why it's gotta be hard for you to rely on me now--"
"It's not that." Jensen cut him off, wishing Jared would stop trying to take the blame for everything. "It's just--it's different, OK?"
Jared tipped his head back, studying him for a second. "Different? Like me and Neil? Or like, now--and back then?"
"All of it." Jensen knew he said it too sharply, but how was he supposed to explain it a way that made sense, when it didn't even make sense to him? For the past couple of months, he'd started looking forward to the weekends. He liked watching TV together on Friday nights, and getting to spend the first hour or so on Saturday and Sunday mornings alone with Jared. Especially since he couldn't help but notice how different things were between him and Jared now. The Jared he used to know would've never been happy to just spend time with him.
And yet, once the weekend inevitably arrived, he found himself confused.
He liked being alone with Jared, but he also hated having to rely on him for help. Hell, he hated relying on anybody for help. Neil understood that, tried to give him space, and did things as quickly and efficiently as he could. Jared was just the opposite, always in Jensen's personal space, using everything as an excuse to touch him or joke around. He realized Jared's gaze was boring into him, searching, concerned.
"Look," he tried again, sighed, "I--this is hard." Jared's concern turned into a frown, and Jensen gave him a rueful smile, "Stop looking so worried, you haven't done anything wrong."
"Good to know."
"Come on. Come, sit beside me." Jensen waited until Jared settled on the bench again, slipped an arm around his shoulders. He still didn't know where exactly to start, found himself fumbling for words, "I guess, I'm just getting used to, I don't know, everything."
Jared's frown deepened. "You mean, me helping you?"
Jensen nodded, "But it's not you, or anything you're doing, it's just... " He trailed off, still searching for the right words.
"Different?" Jared let his arm slide down further, tightening the embrace, "You know, my shrink, she says that people don't really bring baggage into a relationship, it's more---more like we bring bad habits and patterns." He stopped talking for a moment, staring out at the pond. "When I was with Sandy, I was already avoiding stuff by drinking. And the things she did, it was because she already had, like, a pattern, things she did because that was how she was used to coping with losing her parents and all. I should've gotten her help, but instead, it was like her way of dealing with stuff just fed into my way of dealing with stuff, and then when you and I got together, I kept doing the same stuff."
He opened his mouth to point out that Jared needed to stop blaming himself, but Jared shook his head, "What I'm trying to get at is that one of bad habits I learned from Sandy was that everything was supposed to be 50/50."
Jensen shut his mouth, startled, because that was what a relationship was, making sure things were fair for both partners.
"Yeah, I didn't get it at first either." Jared unwrapped his arm, and leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, eyes fixed on the ground, "When Sandy and I were together, if we bought something, we each paid half. If we went on vacation, she would book the hotel room, and I'd make the plane reservations, then we'd split the cost. But we were doing that with everything else, too. If I wanted to go out with my friends, and she didn't want to, then I'd get mad because I'd already gone out with her last weekend, and I thought she owed me. It was like I was carrying this scorecard around in my head."
He raised his head, glancing over at Jensen, "After Sandy and I broke up, and we got together, you and I started doing the same exact thing, but my shrink pointed out that relationships don't work that way. If you love somebody, you should be willing to give 100% every day, no matter what. Maybe the other person is having a bad day, and they can only give 20%, so you have to give 80%, but it's OK, because then the next day something happens and you can only give 30%, and your partner will give 70%.
"You know," Jared dropped his voice, talking more slowly, "when I first started helping you, it was, uh, kind of weird, because I found I really didn't mind doing it, and I know that back when I was drinking, I... I would have." He gave a small shrug, his eyes sliding away, "But she made me realize that it's actually a good thing, because I'm not thinking about how you're supposed to meet me halfway anymore."
Jensen found himself trying to wrap his head around what Jared was saying. It felt almost like a slap--or a wakeup call. He'd always thought that a relationship meant two equal partners, and he'd always assumed that meant making sure things were 50/50. The bit about keeping a scorecard hit close to home, too. He didn't want to admit it, but the past month he'd been feeling resentful. October was always a hectic month for CGI shops, and he'd been struggling to juggle his own job, along with all the decisions and other stupid B.S. that kept coming up for the marriage ceremony, because it was too much for Jared to cope with.
"Jensen?" Jared looked back at him.
"When you put it that way, it does sound pretty fucked up." Jensen forced himself to keep his eyes on Jared's face, but now he was thinking about other crap he'd pulled--like being less than understanding about Jared's freak outs over his two year anniversary a couple of weeks ago. He forced his right arm to move, and Jared took the hint, sat up and reached for his hand, "I should've said this before, but I--I'm glad you keep insisting on helping me, and I'm sorry I keep biting your head off."
Apparently Jared hadn't expected him to be that candid, because he stared at Jensen for a long second, then he leaned in, with a slight smile, "So you admit that I have the right to nag?"
"No. But I should be thanking you for nagging." Jensen turned his head, letting his forehead rest against Jared's, "I don't like the way we used to be." As soon as the words slipped out, it dawned on him that maybe he could've been less blunt, but Jared's other hand came up, thumb tracing along Jensen's jaw.
"Me too."
Maybe what he'd said
been less than tactful, but from Jared's reaction, it had obviously been the right words. "I'm gonna do my damnedest not to let it happen again."
"Me too."
They both fell silent, listening to the sounds of nature around them. Jensen nestled into the warmth of Jared's arm, and Jared seemed happy just to sit with him.
"This is nice," Jensen finally said, his voice a little husky with emotions he was still trying to process.
"Yeah, it is," Jared agreed, "but I'm just wondering if maybe we shouldn't..." He stopped, interrupted by the alarm on Jensen's wrist monitor, grimaced as he released Jensen's hand to shut it off. "Saved by the bell, I guess."
Jensen sighed. "Yeah."
Jared stretched, got to his feet, "Well, come on, we need to head back, otherwise, you'll have to pee on Beth's roses, and I'm not so sure she'd like that."
Jensen accepted Jared's assistance to stand without argument. He'd stiffened up in the time they'd been sitting, was ready to get moving again, and he'd also taken Jared's words very much to heart. "Pretty sure she wouldn't," he grinned, tipping his head back, "And what were you about to say... before, I mean?"
"Um... that we should head back?"
Jensen looked at him, but Jared seemed relaxed, so apparently whatever he'd meant to say wasn't that big a deal. He let it go, let Jared take some more of his weight, "OK."
They walked back towards the house, Jared trying not to worry, and largely failing. It'd been a fairly long walk out to the pond, at least for Jensen, and sitting on the hard concrete bench hadn't helped. Jensen was moving slower, leaning more heavily on him. They reached the end of the path, where it dead ended into the flagstone patio behind Beth's side of the house. Jared noticed there was another path connected to the patio, one that ran in a large sweeping loop around the side of the house, and he was reminded, again, that the property was
"Does that lead to the front yard?"
Jensen glanced over, checking to see where Jared was pointing, "I don't know. I guess so."
been in your front yard, right?"
"No." Jensen paused, waiting for Jared to open the gate.
Jared had meant it as a joke, and for a second he was floored--how did a guy live some place for over three years without setting foot in his own front yard? He opened the gate, curiosity getting the better of him. "But you've been to Beth's and Jennifer's, right?"
"Yes. Dennis' birthday generally falls around the time of Superbowl, so we have the party at their place."
Jared made sure the gate was shut behind them, guided Jensen to the patio door that led to their bedroom. "And Jennifer?"
"Never had a reason to." He said it matter-of-factly, and Jared waited, expecting Jensen to say something else, or at least acknowledge that was a little weird. Instead, Jensen looked up at him, "What?"
"Nothing." Jared helped Jensen into the bathroom and through the necessary task. "You want to sit? I'll get your chair."
"Yeah." Jensen nodded, grudgingly admitting he needed to sit down, "Thanks."
Jared walked down the hall to the kitchen, still thinking about what Jensen had just said. It couldn't just be an accessibility thing--Jennifer's house was a single story guest house in the backyard of the most accessible house Jared had ever been in. At the very worst, all it could have is a couple of low steps at the front. No, this was something else. He frowned as he crouched to disconnect the power cable to the chair, puzzling it out.
He and Jensen had always been at opposite ends of the spectrum when it came to socializing. Jensen liked to stay at home, or maybe go to a party at another friend's house, while Jared preferred to go out. Now, though--he could actually count in his head the number of times he and Jensen had gone
since they got back together. Jensen had become a recluse--albeit one surrounded by friends--and it wasn't healthy.
Jared unplugged the chair, threw it into neutral. Maybe he should drag Jensen over to Jennifer's for supper--
His phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket, looked at the screen, and shook his head as he answered, "Hey, Neil."
"Hello, Jared. I've been informed that there is a container of diced chicken on the bottom shelf of the second refrigerator, along with a container of fresh salad dressing." He heard Ty's voice in the background, and then Neil spoke again, "There's also a bag of salad mix in the produce drawer."
"Thank you. Give me a minute." Jared hit the mute, dropped the phone in his shirt pocket, so he could maneuver the chair with both hands. Although he was sure this was Neil's excuse to call and check on them, he was grateful because that solved two problems. He hadn't given any thought yet to lunch and if they had something healthy, he wouldn't feel that guilty about ordering something unhealthy for dinner. He'd made the mistake of giving Neil access to his medical records a couple of months ago, and of course, Neil had immediately zeroed in on his ALT and cholesterol numbers. The result was he was now eating healthier than he had in years--and although he wouldn't admit it out loud, feeling the better for it.
Maybe burgers or fried chicken--or even pizza. Pizza sounded awesome, in fact.
He steered the chair down the hall, to the bedroom, and into the bathroom, pulled the phone back out, hovering as Jensen pushed himself up. "Sorry, I'm back. And yes, I'll make something
for lunch, despite the fact you said we could order takeout."
"Is that Neil?" Jensen gave an eye roll as he sat down.
"Yep. Here," Jared held the phone up to Jensen's ear, while he repositioned Jensen's right arm.
"I thought I was getting rid of you for the day." Jensen listened, then threw his head back, laughing at whatever Neil said, and Jared's heart stuttered. God, how he loved seeing Jensen like this--happy and relaxed.
"Yeah, he is. Yes, I will." Jensen pulled his head away, "Ty wants to talk to you."
Jared dutifully put the phone to his ear, "Hey, Ty."
"Hey, sweetie." He could hear the concern in Ty's voice, "How are
"I'm--" Jared stopped himself, because he'd been about to say 'fine', but truthfully, he hadn't really been paying much attention to where his head was. And he didn't know how Ty managed it, but he almost always saw through Jared's attempts to bluff. "I'm...I'm good. Really." He was a bit surprised to find out that he meant it. He was a little jittery, still worried that things might go bad, but he also felt like maybe he was finally getting a chance to be Jensen's
"All right, baby. But you call us if you need anything, OK?"
"Yes, Ty." Jared hung up, shaking his head at the mother hen tone he heard, although deep down he didn't actually mind. Ty was just Ty.
Thanks to Ty's forethought, lunch was easy. The only thing Jared had to be careful of was checking the salad mix. Although it was already shredded, he knew Jensen wouldn't eat anything he had to fight with. He carefully picked out a few bigger pieces of lettuce, then cut up some tomatoes, and mixed it all with the chopped chicken and the dressing, tossed the contents of the bowl to blend in the dressing.
At one point, Jared looked up, caught Jensen watching him, a slightly sleepy smile on his face. He was feeling a little sleepy himself. While it hadn't exactly been a strenuous morning, at least for Jared, they'd spent a lot of time out in the sun, and that always made him tired.
Jared split the contents of the mixing bowl between two smaller bowls, then rinsed the oil off his hands, dried them on a towel. "Tap or cold?" he asked, holding up a plastic cup.
"Tap, thanks."
He nodded, poured water for Jensen and juice for himself. Set their food and cups down.
"Two meals in one day?" Jensen's mouth quirked up. "You got any other hidden talents I should know about?"
An idea wriggled in then, and Jared went with it. "Actually, I was thinking, we could order take out tonight--maybe pizza? If we went over to Jennifer's, she could hide the evidence."
"I'd love pizza. And I'm sure the kids would, too." Jensen was eying him, though, seeing right through his flimsy excuse to get them out of the house.
"I'll call her later, then." Jared kind of wanted to press the matter, but he already knew that no matter how many times he brought it up, Jensen didn't see anything wrong with the fact he didn't go anywhere. Jared let it go for now, silently resolving he was going to get better at dragging Jensen out more. He picked up his fork with his right hand, wrapping his left hand around Jensen's right hand.
Jensen actually ate two-thirds of his lunch, and then Jared nagged him into drinking most of a second glass of water, while he put the dishes in the dishwasher. He turned, yawned. "OK, I'm ready for a nap, even if you're not."
Jensen gave him an eye roll, but followed him to the bedroom anyway. He got Jensen settled, then slid into bed beside him, tucked his arm around Jensen, pulling him close.
"Jared?" Jensen's voice was low, sleepy. "Are you OK?"
He knew what Jensen was asking, and he didn't really have an answer. Being alone with Jensen for a whole day was big--huge, in fact--and he should be freaking out. Except he wasn't, not really. He thought about that for a moment.
He knew his worst freakouts always occurred when things were going well. So did this mean that... no, he wasn't going to go there, they were having a good day, a great day, in fact. He wasn't going to self-sabotage this.
"Jared?" Jensen asked again.
"Yeah," he said, somewhat tentatively, then with more conviction. "Yeah, I'm good." Jared knew he'd never had much of a concept of personal space, but he'd also discovered that there were definite advantages to this, since it meant he was able to feel Jensen's body suddenly relax, the tension leaving him completely. Not that Jensen had ever really minded when Jared invaded his personal space.
In fact, with him and Jensen, it was usually the case that the closer they were, the more they touched, the better it was for both of them. It hadn't taken either of them long to work out how much Jensen craved touch, and in particular,
touch. It was also one of Jared's best ways of gauging how Jensen was actually feeling--what his mouth didn't say, his body did. Jared knew without doubt that he had been believed when Jensen relaxed so quickly.
He pressed closer, half-listening to Jensen's steady breathing, let himself relax, drift down into sleep.
Jensen's arm jerked, pulling Jared out of sleep. He opened his eyes, then realized it was just a muscle spasm. He sneaked a peek at the alarm clock, was surprised to see he'd slept for over an hour and half. Jensen's arm jerked again, and he reached down, gently put it back on the pillow, snuggled closer.
He was happy.
The thought came out of the blue. That was the weird, elusive feeling that he'd been trying to put his finger on all day. He had Jensen, he'd made his two year anniversary, and he was
. Jared lay there, not sure what exactly he was supposed to do, or how to process that. He couldn't remember the last time he'd felt.... Well, this OK, both with himself and where his life was.
Jensen stirred beside him, and he dropped a kiss on the nape of Jensen's neck, "You awake?"
"Yeah." Jensen was still waking up; he slurred the word a little.
He moved again, and Jared figured it out, got up and grabbed the urinal. "Here. I got it."
Jensen pulled a face, but let him handle things, "Shouldn't have drunk that second glass of water."
"You needed it. You'd been outside, walking around." He heard the definite nagging tone in his voice, and threw Jensen a smile, "Sorry."
Jensen gave him a feigned look of shock, "You're not freaking out about anything and you're not nagging. Who are you, and what have you done with my fiancé?"
"Shut up." He got up, dropped another kiss onto Jensen's forehead, went to empty the urinal. Came back and helped Jensen get up. "I'll call Jennifer while you check your email, see if she's willing to order pizza--and hide the evidence."
"Actually, I was thinking video games." Jensen leaned against him, tipped his head back, "Krystal or Amy will call if there's something urgent."
"I think," Jared wrapped his arms around Jensen, letting himself just enjoy holding Jensen, being with him, "we've been replaced by pod people."
"Probably." Jensen's laugh was quiet, more of a vibration, "Next thing you know, I'll start listening to Neil and you'll start listening to Mike."
"Then we'll get married, have a bunch of kids..." Jared let Jensen go, but sneaked in one more kiss.
"Buy a new house, because this one is too small..." Jensen teased back, as Jared followed him out of the room.
"And a minivan. Don't forget the minivan." Jared matched his steps to Jensen's slower ones, hovering until they reached the couch in the living room.
"Riiighhht." Jensen pulled another face when Jared put a hand under his elbow, supporting him as he sat down. "Emilio would shoot both of us if we bought a minivan."
Jared laughed, remembering how much Emilio had bitched last month when the SUV was in the shop, and he'd had to use Beth's minivan. He waited until Jensen was settled, then pulled out his cell phone.
Once he'd made arrangements with Jennifer to come over for dinner, he crouched down to get the game console out of the low cupboard under the TV and connected it up. It was an old Atari that his brother had brought with him when he came to LA for a medical conference in early October. Veronique's parents, Jeff's in-laws, had kept it in good working order, and sent it, along with a number of games, and while it lacked the pizzazz of a more modern console and controller, Jensen had found the standard Atari joystick was easier to use. To be honest, they 'd both found that the simpler games could be challenging as well, and fun, and it was actually helping Jensen's fine motor skills, since he could use the controller properly with his left hand, provided it was held down well enough not to move.
Jared stretched the cables across the floor and stuck the joystick down onto the Velcro tab Ty had attached to the arm of the couch when they'd finally gotten sick of searching for duct tape or other more inventive ways to hold it steady, and thought fleetingly of the high-tech, multi-system, customized accessible hand control he'd ordered as a Christmas gift Jensen a few weeks before. "OK, is that good?" Jared asked, checking how he'd positioned the controller.
Jensen reached for the joystick, made sure he could comfortably maneuver it and reach the button, and gave a nod, raised his elbow so Jared could slide a cushion underneath his arm to stop the edge of the controller from rubbing against his hand.
"Frogger?" Jared asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yup." He tilted his head, gave Jared a relaxed smile.
"Didn't really need to ask, did I," Jared grinned, and crouched again to sift through the box of games for the right one, slotted it into place.
"Why mess with a classic?"
Jared got up, went over and sat down beside him. "Thank you."
Jensen raised his eyebrows, "For what?"
He grabbed the second remote, snuck in a quick kiss, "Because you make me happy."
"Uh, you're welcome." Jensen was looking at him a little too intently.
He smiled, knowing exactly what Jensen thinking, "I'm not about to freak out, I promise." He leaned in, snuck a quick kiss before starting the game. "And now? I'm going to kick your
Jensen was still giving him a look, but his lips twitched up, "Bring it, Shorty."
"So, are we doing this?" Jared asked. He dropped the pile of pizza boxes on one of the kitchen counters while he felt for his phone, noticed Jensen was already pushing himself to his feet. Jared sighed and shook his head, scrolling through the phone for Jennifer's number. "Hey, Jen? We're coming over now, can someone please open the gate for us?" He grinned at the response, "Yeah, he's a stubborn fucker, all right. Be there in a few," he ended the call, and grinned again, "Come on, let's go."
He picked up the pile of boxes, waited for Jensen to grab a loose hold of his arm. He paused again to flick on the outside lighting before opening the glass door and the screen to let them both out, then closing both behind them.
Jennifer met them, leaning against the opened childproof gate, grinning from ear to ear. "What did we do to deserve this honor?" she asked with a cheeky grin. "It's only taken three years." She put her hands out to take the pile of boxes from Jared, leaving him free to assist Jensen.
"Blame Gigantor," Jensen responded, his voice amused, eyes flicking over at Jared.
"Blame him? I'm going to thank him." Jennifer's grin broadened, "You need to get out more, boss, even if it's only to the other side of your own backyard."
Jared was shaking, trying very hard not to laugh. "See, I told you."
Jennifer paused at the top of the low step, leaned up and gave Jared a peck on the cheek. Jared blushed under the attention, ducked his head and concentrated on supporting Jensen up the step. Jennifer had been hard to win over,
hard to win over. It was gratifying she was now accepting him as part of the extended "family"--that her initial enmity had faded.
She opened the door, and they were immediately greeted by cheers of, "Pizza! Pizza!"
"Yes, pizza." Jennifer put on her mom voice. "Which none of you are getting unless you put those books away like I asked. And those socks, too, Miss Traci Jacqueline Kane."
The threat worked, sent kids scampering, while Jennifer set the boxes on one of the table. Jared followed her, one hand still on Jensen's arm.
Jennifer's place was not what Jared expected. The short hall opened into a large sunny room that was a combination living room and dining room, and spilled into a decent size kitchen. She apparently wasn't afraid of color, which was obvious from the red leather couch and matching armchair, to the Fiesta dishes in the pine china cabinet, and the kitchen cabinets painted in cheerful yellow and green. Instead of art, she had quite a few large framed photos of the kids, which Jared guessed that Beth had taken.
Jennifer waved at the diorama at the other end, "Sorry, we'll have to eat around the Jurassic age, Caleb has a school project he's working on."
"That's OK, the T-Rex looks mostly harmless." Jensen let Jared pull out a chair for him. "But is it supposed to be that color?"
"No. Which is why you should never send my kids and my brother to buy plastic dinosaurs." Jennifer walked into the kitchen, pulling out plates and cups and napkins. "You end up with a glow-in-the-dark diorama. Here. Set the table."
Jared obliged her, while the kids came back in the kitchen. Caleb and his two sisters immediately started talking about pizza and the books their grandmother had sent them, while Jake crawled into in a chair at end of the table, quietly observing the hubbub. Jared put down the last plate, reached for him, "Hey, buddy. Why don't you sit with me?"
As he expected, Jake latched on and Jared found himself wondering, again, how the kid was ever going to survive kindergarten.
"Caleb, butt on seat, please." Jennifer handed Jared a knife, began passing out pizza, "Here you go, Jake, but you need to sit in your own chair. Caleb, sit,
Jake wriggled off Jared's lap, and onto the chair next to him, stared dubiously at the pizza. Jared looked at Jensen, amused, as he cut Jensen's pizza into more manageable pieces. Of course Jake would be the one kid on Earth who had issues with pizza.
He remembered then. "Jen? Do you have jalepenos?"
"Yes. My brother throws a hissy fit if I don't keep a jar around." Jennifer finished pouring juice, put down the jug, and crossed to the fridge. She set the jar in front of them with a teasing smile, "You're going to ruin perfectly good pizza."
"Only way to eat it." Jensen shot back.
Jared forked out a few sliced jalepenos, "That enough?"
"Yeah." Jensen picked it up, half-closing his eyes in pleasure as he ate.
Jared sat down with a smile at that. He picked up a slice, trying to remember the last time he'd had pizza. It had to be--shit, it was back when he was working on the mini-series. Barely five months, but it seemed a lifetime ago. He was suddenly very much aware of how lucky--how very, very lucky he was.
Alcohol had meant everything to him. He'd let Jensen go, lied and pushed away his family and his real friends--he would've probably even lost his career if Mike hadn't showed up. Getting through his first year of sobriety hadn't been bad--but the last year had been brutal.
If it hadn't been for Chad and Jensen and the shrink...
"I'll eat that if you don't."
Jensen's voice pulled him back. "Sorry. Just thinking." He looked over, saw the worry in Jensen's eyes. He reached over, wrapping his hand around Jensen's right hand. "I'm good. Really."
"Uh huh." Jensen raised his eyebrows, his expression saying that he would be asking questions later.
Jensen leaned hard into Jared's body as they walked back to the house. The night air had cooled substantially, and he found himself seeking Jared's body heat; he was hurting some, and ready to wind down the day. Jared had also fallen silent, hadn't spoken since Jennifer had fiercely hugged him before she let them out of the gate.
They were almost to the door, when Jared finally spoke, "You know, earlier, what I was thinking about was--well, how lucky I am. I love you."
"I love you, too," Then he mentally kicked himself, because the look on Jared's face told him that a lot more was going on in Jared's head--he just wasn't saying it. He waited as Jared fumbled the door open, then waited again for Jared to close the sliding glass door before speaking. "Jared?"
"Yeah?" Jared raised an eyebrow and smiled.
"Thank you for today and, uh, everything. It's been really good, just... us."
"Not a problem," Jared pulled him closer, "I kinda like being with you."
"It's been a really long time--like, years--since we did anything like that, just hung out for a whole day. " He let Jared take his weight, suddenly feeling tired and glad to be back home. Tipped his head back, "So yeah, thanks..."
Jared took the hint, dropped a soft kiss on Jensen's lips, "I've enjoyed it, too."
"And... well, you haven't even looked like you were losing it, not once." He gave Jared a smile as Jared stepped away to unplug Jensen's chair. "I know this kind of stuff is hard for you, and I--I'm really proud of how you coped today."
Jared crouched down to unplug the power cord from Jensen's chair so it could be used. "I... well, uh, I don't know what to say." He stood up, ran a hand through his hair self-conciously. "I'm just..."
Jensen nodded, "Yeah." He accepted Jared's hand to sit, started the wheelchair in the direction of their bedroom, then reconsidered and turned it to face him. "I'm pretty damn lucky, too." For a long moment they just grinned at each other. Jensen spoke first, "Come on, let's grab a shower and watch a movie before we turn into total girls, and if you're good," he winked, "I'll even let you give me a massage."
"Sure." Jared dropped a hand on his head, fingers ruffling Jensen's hair, grinning at the scowl Jensen threw at him.
Jensen sat down in the shower chair and Jared let go of his arm. "Give me a sec, OK?
Jensen gave him a curious look, and Jared grinned back at him. He'd gone step-by-step through the rest of Jensen's nighttime routine, carefully following Neil's instructions to the letter--mostly because he'd been looking forward to this. He stepped out of the huge shower enclosure and stripped off his clothes.
"Since Neil's not here, I thought..." He stepped back in, and caught Jensen's expression. He swallowed a sigh and moved behind Jensen. He leaned over, wrapping his arms around him, "Hey, I just want to shower with you, that's all."
Jensen nodded, and Jared didn't have to see his face to know he wasn't convinced. He wished there was some way to convince Jensen that the whole sex thing wasn't that big a deal. Over the past four months, through trial and error, they'd discovered Jensen performed better if they spaced it out and had sex every other day, sometimes every couple of days if Jensen was really tired. He knew it bugged Jensen, but he honestly didn't mind. Jared knew enough now about spinal cord injuries now to know that they were lucky if that was the biggest problem Jensen had in that department. And yeah, OK, there was also the intercourse thing, but it wasn't that big a deal either.
"Come on,
How often do we get to shower naked together?"
Jensen was still tense, but his tone turned dry, "I think most people shower naked. At least, I hope so."
It was a start, and Jared straightened with a chuckle, reached for the shampoo. "Yes, but most people don't get to shower with
. Tip your head back."
Jensen tipped his head back, "Not so sure showering with you is a perk..."
"Shut up." He began working the shampoo in, "I've been looking forward to doing this for a while."
He had, too. He began massaging Jensen's scalp and was rewarded a second later by Jensen making a small, happy sound. Jared grinned to himself, slowed his hands some more. His thoughts from early came back and he was very aware of just how much of his life he'd totally missed because the only relationship he'd ever cared about was the one he'd had with alcohol. He knew he'd taken showers with Jensen before, but he couldn't even remember anything specific. Shit, but he'd missed so, so much, and if he hadn't gotten sober, and if Jensen hadn't take him back...
How had a fuck up like him gotten so lucky?
Jensen was completely relaxed now, and he reached for the sprayer, put one hand above Jensen's eyes, as he rinsed the shampoo out.
"You didn't have to stop."
Jared smiled at the slight whine in Jensen's voice. He put the sprayer back, reached for the liquid body soap and a washcloth, "Yeah, but now I get to feel you up."
"Pervert." Jensen's tone was teasing, but he was tensing up again.
"Yeah, well, I can't help it, " Jared knelt, reached for Jensen's left leg, "You're sorta hot, you know."
"Sorta? Thanks."
Jared laughed as he began lathering Jensen's skin, being extra careful of the hyper-sensitive patch by Jensen's knee, "You're welcome."
It took another fifteen minutes to finish the shower, help Jensen dry off. He tossed the towel in the laundry basket, then wrapped his arms around Jensen, letting them both enjoy the contact of skin on skin. Jensen leaned into him, and Jared took more of his weight, happy to just be
. With Jensen.
Simple, uncomplicated.
Everything else seemed really, really complicated lately--Jensen's job, getting physically ready for his next role, the interviews he had to do next week, trying to squeeze in his meetings and the shrink and the wedding...
OK, maybe not the wedding. It dawned on him that he had no idea what the cake was going to be--or even if it'd been ordered. Which was kind of funny.
Jensen pulled back at his giggle, gave him a look, "Do I want to know what you're thinking?"
"No, not really." He ducked his head, Jensen's mouth sweet heat against his. Oh holy shit, but he loved kissing Jensen. Especially naked. He felt Jensen's right leg tremble and he broke it off, "Come on, let's watch a movie."
Jared inserted a disk into the DVD player, and while it loaded, slid into bed and positioned himself and Jensen in a comfortable cuddle; Jensen leaning back against him, with Jared's legs either side.
"All good?" he asked, snagging the remote from the nightstand and hitting "play".
"Uh huh," He didn't have to see Jensen's face to know he was smiling as the familiar jungle noises and music of the opening sequence of
Raiders of the Lost Ark
kicked in.
It was still Jensen's favorite of all the Indiana Jones movies. They watched as Indy was outsmarted by the wily Frenchman Belloq in the opening sequence, and Jensen reached out, his left hand groping for a hold of Jared's. Jared wrapped an arm around him, dropping a kiss on Jensen's head as he settled against him.
Jensen finally managed to wrap his fingers around Jared's hand, gave it a squeeze. "Thank you," his voice was tired, husky, "for today. I... uh... it's been... we should..." He took a breath, "We need to do this more often. We make a pretty good team, you and me."
"Yeah, we do," Jared agreed softly. "And yeah, I'd like that. Now watch the movie, dude. No more chick-flick moments."
Jensen was definitely sleepy, his laugh was very close to a giggle. "You're not Dean."
"No, and you're not either." He dropped another kiss on Jensen's head, and waited for it. Sure enough, Jensen slowly let go of his hand as he dozed off.
Jared waited until Jensen's breathing was even, then muted the movie, and gently rolled him on his side, head against his chest so he'd be more comfortable. Jensen didn't even wake, and Jared smiled to himself, ran his hand over Jensen's jaw, then gently carded his fingers through the short hair at the nape of Jensen's neck. He noticed again how beautiful Jensen was--the slant of his nose, the long eyelashes, slight scattering of freckles. He was also warm, and the mattress top was soft, and he let his mind drift, content to simply watch Jensen sleep.
His phone vibrated. He inched over, snagged it from the nightstand. Checked the number, rolling his eyes because it was Ty. "Hey, Ty."
"Hey, sweetie. We're going to catch a movie--so we won't be home until eleven. How was the dessert?" Ty had called earlier, while they were playing video games, and Ty, being Ty, picked up their earlier conversation as if no time had passed.
Jensen mumbled in his sleep, and Jared switched the phone to his other ear, gently rubbed Jensen's back. "Actually, we never got to it. We went over to Jennifer's and ate instead."
"See, baby?" He could hear the warm approval in Ty's voice. "I keep telling you--you're good for him."
Yeah." Jared continued to rub, and Jensen's breath evened out again. "And you can tell Neil we're fine--in fact, Jensen's already asleep."
"Sounds like you could use some extra sleep as well." Ty made a small clucking sound, "You've been training way too hard."
"I'll go to bed as soon as I give Jensen his meds--promise."
"All right, we'll be home at eleven, all right?"
"Yes, mom." Jared hung up, amused. Ty reminded him a lot of his mom sometimes--they had this weird need to constantly repeat themselves. He glanced at the time, saw it was nearly an hour until he had to wake Jensen, give him his meds and a massage. He set an alarm on his phone just in case, and then went back to watching Jensen sleep.
17 comments
19th-Jun-2012 01:03 pm (UTC)
ohhh, thank you :)
20th-Jun-2012 10:06 am (UTC)
Heee, you're welcome. :)
19th-Jun-2012 08:23 pm (UTC)
Aw, this is wonderful! I was so happy to see it, and I've been reading it in bits all afternoon, and it's just very sweet but real-feeling.
20th-Jun-2012 10:06 am (UTC)
So please you liked it. It was wonderful fun putting it all together. I have the best collaborator evah, which really helps. :)
19th-Jun-2012 11:48 pm (UTC)
(passes you the bottle of mescal) and its up! finally! don't ya love computers?
also? its still ALL YOUR FAULT :D )
20th-Jun-2012 10:05 am (UTC)
Uh huh. We have absolutely *got* to stop letting our muses carouse...
22nd-Jun-2012 12:04 am (UTC)
you say carousing, I say pub crawl :)
22nd-Jun-2012 07:59 am (UTC)
The pub part is optional ;)
20th-Jun-2012 01:31 pm (UTC)
Thank youuuuuuuuuuuuuu so much!!
What awesome day!!! I love them, Jay and Jensen!!
Congrats for another great job!
Brazilian hugs..
22nd-Jun-2012 12:03 am (UTC)
ty - glad u enjoyed it!
(((ginormous texan hugs!!)))
23rd-Jul-2012 04:50 pm (UTC)
So, I'm about a month late since I had completely missed this but I wanted to comment to say how much I loved it. I adore these these boys together and I love getting intimate moments like these. Absolutely lovely!
28th-Jul-2012 07:28 am (UTC)
This is such a sweet short story
Thanks for posting it
20th-Feb-2016 07:18 am (UTC)
This was just perfrct. I love the simplicity of the plot, the focus on character. Its so awesome! Thank you <3
20th-Feb-2016 07:38 am (UTC)
This was just perfrct. I love the simplicity of the plot, the focus on character. Its so awesome! Thank you <3
24th-Feb-2016 11:26 am (UTC)
Re: Loverly
Thank you. Glad you liked it. :)
20th-Feb-2016 07:40 am (UTC)
This was lovely, such a perfect way to.spend a.day with them. Awesome!!!! Huge hugs
24th-Feb-2016 11:25 am (UTC)
Thank you, glad you liked it :)
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List of Publicly Traded Companies in Louisiana
The companies on this list are headquartered in Louisiana. Examples of some of the larger companies on this list based on market capitalization include:
Lamar Advertising Company (LAMR)
Select the company's link to access charts, news links and company website and social media information.
First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. (FGBI) (Holding company for First Guaranty Bank)
Home Bancorp, Inc. (HBCP) (Branches in Louisiana and Mississippi)
Home Federal Bancorp, Inc. of Louisiana (HFBL) (Holding company for Home Federal Bank)
Iberiabank Corporation (IBKC) (Headquarters in Louisiana; branches throughout the Southeast)
Investar Holding Corporation (ISTR) (Holding company for Investar Bank)
MidSouth Bancorp (MSL) (Holding company for MidSouth Bank)
Origin Bancorp, Inc. (OBNK) (IPO May 9, 2018; holding company for Origin Bank)
Albemarle Corporation (ALB) (Advanced and value-added products)
Children's Products
Crown Crafts, Inc. (CRWS) (Infant and toddler products: bedding, bibs, bath items, blankets, changing mats, etc.)
Globalstar, Inc. (GSAT) (Mobile satellite voice and data services)
Construction Machinery and Equipment
H&E Equipment Services, Inc. (HEES) (Heavy Construction and Industrial Equipment)
Helicopter Services
PHI, Inc. (PHII) (Offshore Oil and Gas, Air Medical)
Home Healthcare Services
Amedisys Inc. (AMED) (Home healthcare and hospice care services)
LHC Group (LHCG) (Home health care and hospice care services)
Oil and Gas
Petroquest Energy Inc. (PQ) (Louisiana, Texas and the shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico)
Stone Energy Corporation (SGY) (Appalachian Basin and the Gulf of Mexico)
Equipment and Services
Hornbeck Offshore Services (HOS) (Offshore service vessels)
Tidewater Inc. (TDW) (Offshore service vessels)
Outdoor Advertising
Lamar Advertising Company (LAMR) (Billboards, digital billboards, transit advertising)
Royalty and Mineral Interests
CKX Lands, Inc. (CKX) (Oil and gas, farming, timber)
Swimming Pools
Pool Corporation (POOL) (Swimming pool and landscaping wholesale distributor)
Telephone Companies
CenturyLink, Inc. (CTL) (Integrated communications, data centers)
Utilities: Electric
Entergy Corporation (ETR) (Service provided in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas)


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Katharina Blilie writes to her dad, Reverend Johan Blilie, in Norwegian on August 10, 1911. The front of the postcard shows the Boone Viaduct railroad bridge, near Boone, Iowa. The markings near the one cent stamp indicate the postcard was sent from the Iowa. Due to the changing post office locations between similar 1911 correspondence the postcard appears to have be written during Katharina's Midwest travels.
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Customer Login
ADLConnect App / Videos
Weather Coverage
Service Plans
Manuals / Updates
ADL200 Antennas
GDL90 Interface SkyDemon
GDL90 Interface ForeFlight
Infrared Satellite Images
Weather at MAREM
iPad Split View
Iridium Antenna Combiner
GDL90 Interface SkyDemon
Firmware 8.00 allows all ADL140, ADL150 and ADL200 to send weather data to SkyDemon
and other apps compatible with the GDL90 standard.
After upgrading your ADL140, ADL150 or ADL200 to firmware 8.00 or later it will broadcast so called GDL90 formated weather data on the local WiFi. SkyDemon is able to receive this data and will receive the following information from the ADL device: Aircraft GPS position, traffic (ADL200 only), radar, METAR and TAF
The control of the ADL download is still done using the ADLConnect app while SkyDemon will only display the data. Also the full weather portfolio including winds, infrared, strikes etc. is only available in the ADLConnect app.
After you did download any weather data on your ADL device open SkyDemon and make sure SkyEcho/GDL90 is enabled in the setup:
When you press on the fly button you can choose "SkyEcho, iLevil":
Now you can use SkyDemon and the weather data coming from the ADL device will be overlaid on the map:
(c) Golze Engineering 2019
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Lexington, NC Specialized Legal Services
Learn about Specialized Legal Services businesses in Lexington, NC. Get the latest local news and offers for Specialized Legal Services near you.
Most Recent from Lexington, NC Specialized Legal Services Businesses
The bail bondsman from Feet on the Street Bail Bond in Concord, NC, specialize in 24/7 bail bonds services. Many of their clients call with questions about the arrest process in general, and if you're new to the topic you might...read more
When a loved one has been arrested and is relying on you to get them out of jail, knowing how to choose a solid and reputable bail bonds agent is important. And for over a decade, the professionals at Feet on the Street Bail Bonds in...read more
Lexington, NC Specialized Legal Services Businesses
180 Church St NE, Ste B
Concord, NC 28025
There's no reason to put your life on hold just because you're having some legal difficulties. Let the experienced bail bond agents from Feet on the Street Bail Bonds in Concord, NC help you secure a federal bail bond so you can get on w...
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If you've been arrested for a crime, the court may order you to await your trial date in jail, or the judge may require that the accused post bail to be released. Since defendants ...read more
Do you have a wide range of questions concerning bail bonds? Feet on The Street Bail Bonds is here to help. Serving North Carolina for over 13 years, these bail bond agents lead the ...read more
The dedicated legal specialists from Feet on the Street Bail Bond in Charlotte, NC provide valuable support to people in need of legal expertise. They know that paying bail can ...read more
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AAU in Partnership with Police launch Corruption free police stations
Last week, ActionAid Uganda in partnership with the Uganda Police, launched the Corruption Free Police stations campaign. The campaign is aimed at recognizing honest officers but also rallying the public to report all officers who ask and accept bribes in return for services. In this Campaign, messages for awareness creation on forums for reporting corruption will be put up at over 10 police stations with in KMP.


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Which of the following statements describes the objectives of service asset and configuration management?
1. To identify, control, report and verify service assets and configuration items (CIs)
2. To account for, manage and protect the integrity of service assets and configuration items
3. To establish and maintain an accurate and complete configuration management system
4. To document all security controls together with their operation and maintenance
A. 1 and 2 only
B. 1,2, and 3 only
C. 1, 3 and 4 only
D. All of the above


text: December 19, 2017 Quotations Tagged: Theme Sf has long suffered from the perception that its authors are characteristically excellent creators of ideas but clunky prose stylists, suggesting that the genre may not be distinguished by an abundance of well-turned phrases. Still, there are any number of statements by sf writers, in stories and articles, that are regularly referenced and repeated, so much so that they might be deemed an integral aspect of the genre. A short list of memorable sf quotations might begin with the genre's various Laws, such as Isaac Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics; Arthur C Clarke's Laws, particularly the Third ("Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic"); Robert A Heinlein's five rules for writers; and Theodore Sturgeon's Sturgeon's Law ("Ninety percent of everything is crud"). There are oft-cited proclamations from classic authors like Asimov's "Violence ... is the last refuge of the incompetent" from "Foundation" (May 1942 Astounding); A E van Vogt's enigmatic "Here is the race that shall rule the sevagram" from The Weapon Makers (February-April 1943 Astounding; 1946); and J G Ballard's "The only truly alien planet is Earth" from "Which Way to Inner Space?" (May 1962 New Worlds #118). Sf film and television have contributed familiar phrases like "Klaatu barada nikto" from the original The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951); the introductory narrations of the first Star Trek series ("Space ... the final frontier ... to boldly go where no man has gone before") and of The Prisoner ("I am not a number. I am a free man!"); and Star Wars's "May the Force be with you." To locate compilations of sf quotations, one can readily consult numerous online resources, though these are not always accurate and regularly attribute quotations solely to their authors, failing to provide dates and original sources. In print, there are books of quotations with special focuses, such as Heinlein's The Notebooks of Lazarus Long (coll 1978), which provides all the cranky aphorisms scattered throughout Time Enough for Love (1973); Neil Gaiman's and Kim Newman's Ghastly Beyond Belief (anth 1985), devoted solely to avowedly wretched quotations from sf books and Cinema (the "Thog's Masterclass" department of the newsletter Ansible has continued this tradition since 1994); Stephen J Sansweet's I'd Just as Soon Kiss a Wookie: The Quotable Star Wars (anth 1996), a book of quotations from the first three Star Wars films; Jill Sherwin's Quotable Star Trek (anth 1999), offering numerous quotations from the first four Star Trek series and first eight films; and Cavan Scott's and Mark Wright's Wit, Wisdom and Timey-Wimey Stuff: The Quotable BBC Doctor Who (anth 2014), with quotations from various incarnations of the Doctor Who series. Two volumes have endeavoured to cover the entire genre: William Rotsler's brief and eclectic Science Fictionisms (anth 1995) and Gary Westfahl's Science Fiction Quotations: From the Inner Mind to the Outer Limits (anth 2005), which endeavoured to provide a comprehensive collection of accurately transcribed quotations, organized according to topics. One feature of the later work is a section entitled "Surrealism", devoted to examples of sf's unique ability to generate striking statements that would be absurd outside of their sf context, such as Henry Kuttner's and C L Moore's "The doorknob opened a blue eye and looked at him" from "The Fairy Chessmen" (January 1946 Astounding); Philip K Dick's "He could not argue with an angry bed" from Galactic Pot-Healer (1969); and Ursula K Le Guin's "The King was pregnant" from The Left Hand of Darkness (1969). [GW] Previous versions of this entry 14/07/2016 30/01/2017


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If you have an Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 connected to the internet, you can download a playable demo of an early stage of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II right now. It's about 700 megs, so while big it should provide a nice sampling of what's to come very soon. Assuming you buy the game, of course.
Played the demo last night and really liked it. The graphics are great and some of the little added touches like slicing off Stormtrooper's arms are neat. The camera can still be a little wonky, though. I am really looking forward to the game's release in two weeks.


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2018 Toyota Supra Release Date, Redesign, Review
2018 Toyota Supra Release Date, Redesign, Review – Toyota President and Chief executive officer Akio Toyoda is a real performance car lover, having themselves piloted a Lexus LF-A in one of quite a few items in the renowned twelve-monthly 24 Hours Nürburgring endurance competition. As head honcho of the world's biggest automaker, his credo lately has been to take the enthusiasm straight back to a company that is known for cars that are durable, but a lot more appliances than real performance models.
The two-entrance sports car was unveiled as a reaction to the Z cars in the 70s. Even so, 1987 was the most critical year for Supra given that the very first turbocharged model was released. It substantially improved the performance and was a big leap forward. The subsequent decades received much more potent engines, however, the generation was halted in 2002. Toyota made a excellent determination when they chose to bring in the new generation, and the 2018 Toyota Supra is going to be a master member of the new redesigned technology. We've obtained formal information and facts, gossips, spy images and a lot more lower beneath.
2018 Toyota Supra Performance
Below the hood of the new Toyota Supra 2018, there is will be just one single engine option presented. The 2017 Supra is going to be designed with a 2.0-liter dual turbo inline-4, which will be really different than the authentic inline-6 system. The new engine will be able to create up to 360 hp and 300 lb-feet of torque. Coupled with this engine will probably be two electric motors, each and every running one of the back again wheels, allowing the new model to deliver all of its power to the back again rims. The complete put together production is calculated to become more than 450 hp, which is to tell the truth, quite outstanding for a hybrid vehicle. The performance may also be remarkable. According to some studies it can will need below 3.6 moments to travel from to 60 miles per hour, while the top-rated velocity is expected to be around 190 mph.
2018 Toyota Supra Interior
Much like Toyota's past production partnership with Subaru – spawning the Toyota GT86 and the Subaru BRZ – we assume Toyota to share with you some of its interior parts with the BMW Z4's replacing. This means it could use a edition of BMW's fantastic iDrive infotainment process and might feature electronic dials behind the steering wheel.
The Supra is going to be a performance-oriented car. Therefore it must boast container seats to keep occupants in position and steering-wheel-attached handles – permitting motorists to dial inside their recommended driving settings without having used their palms off of the tire. Lashings of leather material and carbon dioxide fiber trim need to help to make the cabin feel appropriately sporty.
2018 Toyota Supra Release Date and Price
As much as the price moves, the new 2018 Toyota Supra need to price more than Chevy Corvette that is posted just below $55,000. Regarding the release date, it is not verified yet, but the anticipations are that it will probably be made available to general public at one of the cars reveals in 2018. The 2018 Toyota Supra ought to be on sale at the stop of 2018 or maybe in very early 2019.


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Next Generation of Solar Tracking Systems
The construction of our sonnen_system ensures safe and reliable operation. Optimized statics provide stability and support throughout the lifetime of the tracking system. The sonnen_system is designed to operate for 20+ years and is equipped and constructed with the highest-quality components and materials available on the market today.
Our tracking system was designed for the global market and is guaranteed to operate safely – even in extreme climate conditions.
You are getting incomparable technological quality, engineered in Germany.


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Patients with rosacea can be sensitive to ingredients such as retinol, glycolic acid, and Vitamin C that are found in some foundations and powders. These ingredients can cause irritation and redness, especially if they are used every day. You should definitely avoid using eye makeup that contains these components, since the skin around the eye area is thinner and more easily irritated; it's also susceptible to developing ocular rosacea (rosacea of the eyes and eyelids).
Many of my rosacea patients really like the look and feel of mineral makeup, which is made up of finely ground minerals that provide coverage and tint. Although you can find mineral makeup in liquid, powder, and cream versions, the loose powder is least likely to aggravate rosacea, since it contains fewer binders, thickeners, and preservatives, all of which can absorb into the skin and cause irritation. When shopping for foundation or face powder, look for warmer, yellow tones, which help reduce redness and camouflage broken blood vessels. Stay away from green-tinted makeup and concealers, which don't really neutralize the redness, but simply end up making you look green and pasty. An added bonus is that mineral makeup contains titanium dioxide and zinc oxide, which are naturally occurring sunscreen ingredients, so you get some sun protection along with the coverage. One of my favorite loose mineral powders is L'Oreal Bare Naturale Powder Foundation SPF 19.
Although loose powder provides good coverage, it may be too drying or too heavy for some skin types. If you prefer more sheer coverage or more hydration, try a tinted moisturizer like Cover Girl CG Smoothers Tinted Moisturizer SPF 15, which contains glycerin to help hydrate without oiliness. Or, try mixing a drop of your favorite full-coverage foundation with a broad-spectrum UVA/UVB sunscreen to even out your skin tone and protect you from the sun at the same time.


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Wall St. bets on warmer days
Feb. 13 - Summary: U.S. stocks turned higher despite chilly retail and jobless data as investors bet the economy will warm up in the spring; Comcast bulks up with $45 billion purchase of Time Warner Cable. Airlines rise despite more snow cancellations. Conway G. Gittens reports.
Wall Street defied gravity, moving higher despite weak retail sales and a limping labor market. A disappointing outlook from Cisco did not hurt as expected. The Nasdaq is up six days in a row, with the rest of the market up five of the last six sessions. Despite the stock market's swoon at the start of the year, Ken Fisher of Fisher Investments sees good potential for another solid annual gain. SOUNDBITE: KEN FISHER, CEO, FISHER INVESTMENTS (ENGLISH) SPEAKING: "The history of big years like last year is that pretty often they're followed by relatively similarly big years- sometimes not. It's not a perfect rule. There's no rule about that. But fundamentally, to see an up 20 percent or more would be a real natural thing." A powerful winter storm stretched from the Southeast to the Northeast, firing up power outages, shutting down the government, and grounding some 67-hundred flights, according to FlightAware. But major airlines Delta, UnitedContintenal, Jetblue and American Airlines all rallied. Weather froze consumer spending last month. Retail sales suprsingly fell in January and December sales were revised to show a 0.1 percent dip, a change from a 0.2 percent rise, first announced by the Commerce Department. Bad weather also being blamed for an unexpected rise in weekly jobless claims. Some economists say both pieces of data point to a slowing economy, but others bet the economy will thaw once tempartures rise. The big corporate story of the day is Comcast's offer to buy Time Warner Cable for $45.2 billion. The all-stock deal combines the two largest U.S. cable operators. The deal, which will put 30 percent of the nation's pay TV market under one company's control, is expected to face intense regulatory scrutiny, but ultimately get done. Time Warner Cable shares rose almost 7 percent while Comcast shed 4 percent. Shares of losing bidder Charter Communications, down by more than 6 percent. A quick run-down of other movers: Cisco Systems down 3-1/2 percent after a weak sales forecast. Whole Foods shed 7-1/2 percent after cutting its 2014 sales outlook for the second time in three months. But Goodyear Tire & Rubber surging 12 percent on higher-than-expected profits. European stocks were stuck in limbo by political uncertainty in Italy.


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Chris J. Wiant: Dental care still an issue
To the editor:
A recent report issued by the Pew Center on the States highlights the fact that dental care remains the greatest unmet health need among U.S. children. For adults, the Colorado Health Access Survey revealed that nearly four in 10 Coloradans lacked dental insurance in 2011 and nearly one in four Coloradans (approximately 1.2 million people) did not get needed dental care due to cost.
Caring for Colorado Foundation has been working since 2002 to increase access to dental care for underserved Coloradans and to improve oral health outcomes among children. The Foundation's recent report "Ten Years of Oral Health Grantmaking" shows that through community investments improvements can be realized. From 2002 to 2012, the Foundation and its partners helped to add 95,000 annual patient visits to the oral health safety net; 10 new nonprofit dental clinics were established in 14 rural communities; 13,000 children in rural and underserved areas of Colorado receive annual dental sealants and fluoride treatments while in school; and more than 50,000 children younger than 3 receive risk assessment, education and fluoride treatments during well child care through the Cavity Free at Three program.
In 1999, the Northwest Colorado Dental Coalition began its work by bringing the KIND Miles for Smiles mobile dental van to Craig once a year to provide care to underserved children. This effort revealed an overwhelming amount of dental disease in the area's children, thus inspiring the coalition to develop the Northwest Colorado Dental Clinic, with a mission to provide high-quality dental care to low-income and uninsured children in region. With a lead grant of $450,000 from Caring for Colorado, and subsequent funding totaling $612,200, the clinic today serves children in five counties and provides 2,150 unique patient visits a year in Craig, Steamboat Springs and Oak Creek.
Caring for Colorado is committed to working with our partners to ensure that all Coloradans, regardless of where they live or their income level, have access to dental care and that children receive early, ongoing preventive care so they grow up free of dental disease and with improved overall health.
Chris J. Wiant, M.P.H., Ph.D.
Caring for Colorado


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Resources for the community
Concordia's a big place that's always bustling with a wide variety of activities. To help community members find what they're looking for, we've created a list of resources below.
Connect with researchers
With established and emerging strengths in both fundamental and applied research, Concordia researchers are generating foundational knowledge, nurturing discoveries, fostering innovation and making evidence‐based contributions that respond to the needs of society. Our research and research‐creation activity spans a wide range of disciplines and fields.
- Are you curious to know which researchers are working on what? Visit Explore Concordia to learn more about the work of our diverse faculty.
- Much of Concordia's research is rooted in the community. Visit our research page to learn more about our many research centres that are taking a community-based approach.
- Visit our Faculties and departments to find out more about each their own unique research strengths.
Work with students
Would your organization benefit from hosting a student intern? Concordia's programs offer students the opportunity to get academic credit for real world experience. Check out the list of internships below and get in touch with the respective coordinators to find out how you can get involved.
Find interns
List of different internship coordinators:
- Institute for Cooperative Education
- Department of Applied Human Sciences – Eva Pomeroy
- Department of Geography, Planning and Environment - Maude Lecourt
- Department of Political Science – Eve Pankovitch
- Sustainable Internship Program, John Molson School of Business - email@example.com
- MBA Community Service Initiative - Dave McKenzie
- School of Community & Public Affairs- Perry Calce
Find volunteers
Would you like to advertise your non-profit's volunteer opportunities to Concordians? The LIVE Centre can help you do just that.
Hold your community activities on campus
Are you part of community engagement initiative in need of a meeting or event space? Through its Open Door Policy, the Office of Community Engagement is proud to partner with Concordia's Hospitality department to offer discounted rental rates to small, not-for-profit community organizations as well as students, staff, and faculty members who engage external communities in their activities.
To find the perfect space for your event contact the Community Engagement Coordinator, firstname.lastname@example.com, schedule a visit or browse virtually the university's classrooms and spaces.
Still searching?
If you didn't find what you were looking for in the list above, get in touch with the Office of Community Engagement and we'll be happy to help point you in the right direction. You can find our contact details below.