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[Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
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Siren no Orakio
Posts: 527
[Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
January 07, 2008, 12:45:48 AM »
The green star Sabrontir burned its ancient deposit of hydrogen, the stellar engine of heat and gravity performing the duty assigned it billions of years ago, but today it was not alone. Arrived a fraction of a heartbeat ago, on the scale that Sabrontir might measure the time, new things performed the eternal rite of fusion, but these things were not stars, but far tinier, and far more quick and intense. The Starkin Federation had come to Sabrontir, had assessed the bounty of the rocks and pockets of gas that had been out of the star's ability to swallow at the beginning of its life, and it had dubbed them good. And so, they had come to take what they could. In one of those rocks, the second planet, they had found that most precious of things, liquid water, and it was then that they decided to stay.
The half-completed elevator hung over Sabrontir II, turning its slow, majestic lock step with the orbit, while dozens of freighters made the run from the three asteroid belts to the orbital foundries, feeding its appetite for metals and carbon, while below, masters of bio-technology began the process of seeding the planet with more favorable forms of life, letting the tiniest and simplest of creatures begin their frenetic dance. Above, in even higher orbits, and in still other arcs and courses flew the protectors and privateers, for here, there was wealth to be had. And where there was wealth to be had, there would always be those seeking to claim it, with or without the right, and unafraid to make others bleed for it.
Even so, the mood of the sophonts on the elevator was, over all, a bustling, happy one. Recently, after all, the upper decks had been cleared for habitation, and commerce had begun, and the cantina rang with music, and the buzz of half-drunken (and fully drunken) patrons, while near by shops rang up purchases by the dozens. Truly, colonization had begun, even if few had yet stepped on the ground below.
And as Sabrontir shed its light freely upon all those in orbit around it, one more newcomer arrived, falling from its tightly-folded hyper space into normality as it felt the tug of Sabrontir's gravity, drifting into that gentle, distant embrace, sending out a repeated message in the electromagnetic spectrum, one uncomprehended, even unnoticed at first, as it began its cometary path towards the green star, its vast mass slow and majestic as it started to fall...
the Wanderer
Posts: 120
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #1 on:
January 07, 2008, 04:10:49 PM »
Connor leaned back in the pilot's seat and relaxed. After a long transport to the Sabrontir system, he was glad to be out in open space again. This was the life…no one to answer to but himself. He gave a wry smile as a light on the control console began a slow steady blink. "
d**n system diagnostics again
" mumbling to himself.
Picking up a long yellow cable from the side of his chair he pulled his hair to one side. He reached his hand to the back of his neck, the jack of the cable between his fingers. He winced as he fitted it into the port at the base of his skull.
Always hated the way that feels…
The console in front of him came alive with lights; blinking, pulsing, and burning steadily as he sat back again and looked blankly out of the forward window. He'd have this done in a short second. The system still hadn't processed the new configuration to take in the several empty compartments now hidden throughout the ship.
A simple recalibration would do the trick….
He set his sights on the stars outside. According to his display, Elevator wasn't that far now…three quarters an hour at most. GG2 laid a ways behind him. Not that he didn't plan on making a stop there eventually, he just had more pressing business to tend to. Most of the lights on the console, including the one that was troubling him, had gone out again.
Problem fixed, my dear
" he spoke almost too loud. He'd never had too many people on his ship, so talking to "
" was the most conversation he had in space. It seemed natural, comforting. When he was a boy his mother told him a long time ago on Earth, men named their vessels. It was a tradition, or so she told him. He remembered this often, and feeling the need to continue the tradition he named his ship. A renovated yacht, really. "
" was her name now…
He disconnected the cable from the cyber jack and stood up slowly. He'd be at Elevator soon, he had things to do. His weapon systems were on-line and running, now he just needed to double check his "
cargo areas
". No use leaving them wide open for anyone to see. He trudged off to the lower levels of the ship to get to work. He had a while before making port, but he wanted to relax a bit before he went scouting for gainful and lucrative employment…
"Every normal man must be tempted at times to spit upon his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats."
~Henry L Mencken
Phantasm of the Millenium
Posts: 567
Infinitely Improbable
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #2 on:
January 07, 2008, 07:42:48 PM »
Erik Starvoid drifted, slightly, in the microgravity aboard his ship; a patchwork horror named the
at the suggestion of one of his only other surviving Clanfolk, a Salvorathan woman with a fondness for relics of ancient Terran culture, it ran along the upper edge of the innermost world of the system, a massive gas giant. The ship's sensors studying the gaseous medium around it, even as other portions of the machinery sucked at the mix, pulling it away to be filtered and compressed for storage; although he was merely scouting out the planet, there was no point to wasting time hauling back an empty hold. The Salvorathan pilot-owner was only halfway paying attention to the ship's course; for something as simple as skimming the atmosphere, the ship's autopilot was far more than sufficient. Instead, he studied the readout of the ship's sensors, making note of the strata of atmosphere below; while the freighter itself couldn't descend into the heated depths, the information might sell decently to someone with a vessel capable of making the dive.
He half-absently kept a fraction of his attention for the communication bands and other sensors; one never knew when someone else might decide to drop in and either want to talk or start talking by opening fire on you, in a frontier system like this one. Sometimes other pilots might even let it slip where they'd found something more profitable than upper-fringe atmospheric gas, and it wouldn't do to let that go by unnoticed. Meanwhile, he kept to relative silence - although given the way the freighter leaked radiation much like an antique sieve leaking water, his odds of going unnoticed by anyone looking were slim at best - though if they weren't paying attention, he might get dismissed as a fluke of radioactive material caught in the giant world's magnetic field.
"I grab the sword!"
"Mmkay, you're dead."
"You just grabbed the sword of the god you were just personally responsible for banishing from the world for the next ten thousand years. You just got zapped by around a billion volts of Angry Divine Power. You're dead."
Lord Ascendant of Typos
Posts: 3578
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #3 on:
January 09, 2008, 03:00:06 PM »
Nice Digs
Kestral looked about the dreadfully cramped 'apartment' he had managed to obtain on the Elevator. No windows, no furnishing - at least none that could support an Oraki, only a pair of heavy equipment pallets (probably stolen) with a few spare blankets. Though prosperous, eveything was hard to get here, and few would cut a deal with the Oraki.
He had plenty of credits - he had found much employment as a convoy guard with his fighter, a Boeing Militaman he had had painted with broad white stripes on its navy blue hull. "Invasion Stripes" the artist had called them. But the flights were boring and uneventful, so he had come here, where things did happen, and blood did boil into the vacum. Someday he might like to take boring runs, but not yet.
Stopping his thoughts, he got up and checked his gear - all internal systems in working order, and he picked up his close combat tool, tucked the standoff blaster into a pocket and stepped out into the hallway. He was bored and needed to take a look around.
It took a while to bring him to the canteena - his room was far from anything, but he enjoyed streaching his legs after all the time aboard ship. The canteena was an interesting place - the organics were in the process of poisoning themselves and losing what control they had. He waited to see what the reaction of those few patrons who noticed him would be...
<ooc All of his heavy gear is stowed aboard the fighter - until I find out what the rules here are on carrying his heavy ordinance..>
Human Strolenati
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Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #4 on:
January 10, 2008, 09:37:57 AM »
The heavy freighter "Glory of Rome" readied itself for the voyage between the stars, to leave Sabrontir behind laden with precious merchandize. Unnoticed, a cargo hold lost pressure and spewed forth its contents, small pieces of existence in the void at the edge of the system.
The merchant ship's drives flared, illuminating the emptiness of space with the radiance of a thousand suns for a fraction of a second, and gone it was, laughing at the speed of light while chagring ahead through the ephemeral semi-existence that was hyperspace.
As the last ripples it left behind smoothed out, a piece of cargo came to life, dim blue light emerging from a container. Laser flashes cut through its surface, setting free a small vessel that lit its drives, and headed towards the cozier reaches of the system on a tail of blue.
Within, Danasheth stretched, filled with relief - finally, she had run far enough.
The last month was entertaining, if one preferred adrenaline sports - hopefully, though, it would stay her private joke.
From the day she left the poor Jelena, a naive cadet to-be, drugged and took her place on the board of the Star Streak, an older carrier used for training purposes, and faked an accident ending in her demise during a training exercise, to hide amongst the cargo of unwitting merchants hopping from system to system, not leaving any tracks - until she ended up here - beyond, the star maps spoke 'Here Be Dragons'.
Which was fine.
Her fighter, reprogrammed, believed itself to have been sold as military surplus to an anonymous mercenary squad, where its trail lost itself.
Which was fine as well.
Having accelerated enough, Danasheth shut down the engines, and enjoyed the silence of space.
"Captain, the buttocks are moving from the pink into the red and purple spectrum! We cannot maintain this rate of spanking any longer!"
Authentic Strolenite (though spanked) (C) (R)
Harbringer of Segfaults
Posts: 1295
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #5 on:
January 10, 2008, 04:14:41 PM »
Mach 0235.1 was annoyed. This taken-by-gremlins ship was a wreck. He'd bought it just yesterday from a merchant who said that she was a fine ship, and he was sad to let her go, but he had to settle down. For his health, you understand. Well, the deal had turned out the Oraki's metaphorical pockets, and now he had very little hard cash left. He was going to need to find a job, and soon, if he was going to get this crow-begotten ship working more than a third of the time. At least the merchant had included a full tank in the deal. He wouldn't need to fill up any time soon. Combined with the nice stores of food paste he had accumulated, he could survive for a decent amount of time, until he was able to pull in a deal of some sort.
Which, of course, still left him stuck here in this stupid docking complex at the partially-finished orbital elevator, with a barely-working transport ship. So much for 'a fine ship'. A sigh was all the expression he could give to the matter. He was good with mechanics, but he didn't have experience with ships. How could he have known this one was little better than scrap metal? It had looked fine on the surface. Perhaps if he went into the elevator, he could find some sort of transport work. There was even a 'cantina' somewhere around here. Mach was curious to check it out, and perhaps even have one of these 'beers' that he'd heard so much about. It was doubtful that getting drunk was a possibility, but the taste was most of the point anyway.
<OOC: Ship is docked at the elevator, Mach is headed towards the cantina. He's packing both his knife and his Firefly, but doesn't really intend to need them. He's looking for work, transport work being preferable.>
By the power of Bayes!
Acolyte Lithil Darkheart – Level 1 Necromancer
Current guild quest: --
Posts: 401
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #6 on:
January 11, 2008, 04:19:05 AM »
Her move had put him on the proverbial knife edge. Rarely had he battled such a skilled opponent. Deploying all his skills with n-dimensional matrices, he began to calculate the current potential landscape. Clearly, This would be a make or break move.
Making his move, Barnaby 'Alice' Brevil saw it reflected on the bridge's holo-deck. The abstract shapes danced, shifted, and returned to stillness. Presently, his move was followed by her mellow voice coming over the bridge's speaker:
"Hooo, You're in good shape today professor"
Lying through his teeth, he teasingly replied: "Well, Maia, Your move was quite elementary."
"Very well. Let us see whether you truly appreciate the fineries of N-Chess"
And so, for a while, The battle continued, Him thinking himself victorious, her, aided by the millions of simultaneous calculations from her carbon-boron-silicon processors,
Herself victorious. Until the knife edge was crossed:
"I dare say, Checkmate, professor."
"Very well, Maia. I salute you. A flawless game, as always. I await the revanche, and this time, you better be prepared"
"I await it with trepidation!" A long pause followed while Barnaby looked around the bridge, savouring his freshly squeezed orange juice.
"Say, Maia, is Old Ben anywhere near Sabrontir II?"
"Just show me on the deck."He added quickly
The Holo-deck shifted again, this time revealing the elliptic lines of a system map. Two dots were highlighted in red brackets, the smallest, labeled "46g.64e.09f3.23 (Benjamin Franklin)" slowly advanced towards the almost stationary planet, labeled "Sabrontir II". In a small box in the corner, information scrolled down. In large letter one could see "ETA: 00:00:00:04:37"
"Very well. Maia, I'll go water the plants in the green room, then I'm going for a small nap. Would you wake me up when we're docked?-oh, and Remind me to take my cards when I set off, too."
And so the professor stood up, and left the bridge. The infinite expense of space stretched out beyond the viewport, the stars only more noticeable as the room's lights automatically switched off. Soon, the view would fill with the beautiful crescent of a waning planet, but until then, the comfortable bridge was silent, bathed in the faint glow of the instruments.
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away."-Philip K. Dick
Siren no Orakio
Posts: 527
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #7 on:
January 12, 2008, 11:51:11 AM »
The Cantina
As they arrived, each of the Oraki were greeted in turn by the cantina's bouncer, an enormous brute of a human, fully six and a half feet tall, with what parts of his nut-browned skin visible covered in exotic patterns of neon-purple tatoos. To Kestrel, the man nodded, waving him into the Canteena, with a half rumbled, "Have fun, Pinnochio, but yer toys needs ta stay stowed, gawt it?" The first man-machine through the door, he fell back against the wall, leaning there and waiting, at least until the second, Mach, arrived, drawing a blink, and even a gape from the muscle man. "Two uv yinz in a day?" Still, he just stood agape, not making any motion to stop the Oraki as he arrived.
An odder hive of dancing scum and drinking villainy cannot possibly exist, and if it did, it was not likely to be equipped with multiple disco balls sticking out of seeming random surfaces, casting their spotted, colored lights about the room in throbbing, whirling flashes. Nor was the music likely to be the same, with an all Salvorathan band on the stage, in the final stages of tuning up, a sound not entirely unlike the demonic crossbreed of a tactical nuclear weapon and an electric guitar. With a mere early evening's crowd, only a few dozen eyeballs turned to the Oraki as they entered, most out of the habit of sizing up potential trouble, though more than a few stayed in open stares, while a small compliment of human and Salvorathan waitstaff darted among them. At least none had that drilling, hateful stare that some zealots managed. Mostly, they seemed to be curious.
Manning the bar, as Mach approached it, was a single tender, his long, silvery hair tucked behind pointed ears, while ruby eyes flecked with emerald lit up a moment, his sing-song voice calling out over the twanging and crashing of the tune-up. "Ha-la! Na Kel'Ora! The stars, have they perhaps yielded up a challenge to my fair art at long last? What have you come here for, oh Ironman? Is it indeed to test my skill, to see if I can succeed where many another keep has surely failed? To feel my delicate weavings of the spirits upon your tongue? They do tell me you gentlemen have those, right? ... Ah. No? Then what have you come here for, my friend? Ahh, yes, yes, of course. But you may as well sit a spell, and enjoy my elixers, for that comes in its own time here, and if it really is what you're after, he's usually not here until a touch later in the day. So what may I craft for you today?"
And the band exploded into metallic noise.
Space - just another frontier
With the fringe atmosphere of Sabrontir I, a common comm band crackled to life a moment with a brief moment of static, as another ship passed below the
. "Hey, yinz alive up 'der in dat bucket, or is we coming up ta salvage?" At least the voice was relatively friendly, as it addressed the ship, a touch of actual concern in the voice, masking a little bit of the opportunism.
Elsewhere, with the passing of time, more bands and beams came to life, landing clearances being granted for the
and the
, while automatic mechanisms brought them to bear along the partly-finished docking ring, hanging weightlessly in orbit at the geostationary level, the larger ship mated to an airlock, the smaller, arriving in a bay, each granting access to a busy port-side, cargo and parts carts moving here and there amongst a cacaphony of beeps and horns. Chaos in a bottle, it would seem.
Meanwhile, in deep space, several ships continued their slow drift, each almost imperceptible against the background radiation, despite the vast differences in their size, one small and tiny, carrying a single, fae-like creature, the other enormous, and betraying its presence only with a simple, repeated signal in a tucked away corner of the radio spectrum, nearly Morse like in its nature.
Last Edit: January 12, 2008, 12:16:36 PM by Siren no Orakio
Lord Ascendant of Typos
Posts: 3578
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #8 on:
January 12, 2008, 02:45:12 PM »
Hmm, another of us in this armpit of a system? How extraordinary!
However, apart from their common ancestry, Kestral had nothing to do with the second man-machine, and simply contented himself to observe. Looking about he doubted any of the furnishing were Oraki rated, so he leaned up against the wall and watched.
He actually turned down his audio input slightly, really nothing more then an act of will, as the audio assault began.
Funny what these beings consider music, though it does have a unique timbre....
Human Strolenati
Strolenati Guild
DwarvenGuild - Dorak Stonehammer
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Posts: 1295
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #9 on:
January 12, 2008, 06:14:44 PM »
Mach unknowingly agreed with Kestral, declining to take a seat, unsure as to whether one could even support over half a ton of metal and not in the mood to find out (nor the financial capability to replace said seat). He could, however, afford a drink or two. "I've heard much of this so-called 'beer' Terrans have come up with. Might I purchase one?"
He grinned at the tender and looked around, sizing up the crowd. What sort of hauling work he could find here, he wasn't entirely sure. "Tell me, do you happen to have any information about hauling jobs?"
By the power of Bayes!
Acolyte Lithil Darkheart – Level 1 Necromancer
Current guild quest: --
Caffeinated Alcoholic Blood
Posts: 1827
Medice cura te ipsum
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #10 on:
January 12, 2008, 07:27:52 PM »
Sooner or later, she would have to make her presence known, weave contacts and seek employment - still, the enigmatic ship struck Danashet's curiosity. Sliding by, nothing more than space debris with drives shut down, she would be able to examine it with the fine feel of her sensors.
The stars twinkled as the slender frame of her fighter floated effortlessly through vacuum, the mysterious signal's source approaching, Danasheth replying naught in return.
Was it folly? Perchance. Thinking about her future, and course to take, far more than about the mildly interesting broadcast, she studied the Sabrontir system.
It was ... interesting. Varied terrain allowing for secluded spots and opportunities, difficult to see through...
She could find employ as a guard pilot - and enjoy the silence of space. A technician, perhaps? Just enough to live her days.
Forget... or not. Remember, learn, improve.
"Captain, the buttocks are moving from the pink into the red and purple spectrum! We cannot maintain this rate of spanking any longer!"
Authentic Strolenite (though spanked) (C) (R)
Phantasm of the Millenium
Posts: 567
Infinitely Improbable
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #11 on:
January 13, 2008, 03:39:48 PM »
Erik snorted, keying his comm implant to relay through the
's systems, even as he checked for any identifying information. "What? Y've never seen a Salvorathan ship before? It's just gettin' cozy in here, that's all!" The black-and-purple Salvorathan smirked, silently, absently checking the status of his ship's weapons, just in case - after all, it'd hardly do to be unprepared to give any would-be 'acquaintances' a warm welcoming. "Just scannin' the gas blob is all, friend." Not, he mused, that it would likely take much longer - the
wasn't capable of atmosphere-diving, and so only the relatively thin upper-atmosphere gas was available to him. Valuable enough, given that it was inevitably the light elements that could be fed to a fusion plant, but nothing of bank-busting potential.
Switching off the comm implant, he glanced out of habit toward the primary navigational console. "Boris! Plot the quickest way back to the elevator! We'll be leavin' soon enough, I doubt not."
The response was a far cry from the neutral-feminine tones that came as a default setting for shipboard AIs; a strong male voice, it had been a parting gift from his one surviving female Clanmate when he'd set out for this frontier system. Her fondness for ancient Terran media had led both to his ship's name ("For it's certainly a Frankenfreighter, brother," she'd said when explaining the name) and the programming of the AI's vocoder to imitate a long-gone horror movie actor. "As you command, Master Starvoid."
"I grab the sword!"
"Mmkay, you're dead."
"You just grabbed the sword of the god you were just personally responsible for banishing from the world for the next ten thousand years. You just got zapped by around a billion volts of Angry Divine Power. You're dead."
the Wanderer
Posts: 120
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #12 on:
January 13, 2008, 10:02:17 PM »
Connor stepped off the lift.
Not much of a place yet....but it has potential.
He took a few paces down the long hall that led from the docking port to the main thoroughfare. He scanned ahead lazily, looking for a likely place to take in a bit of "
local color
Spotting the cantina, he decided it was as good a place as any to start...
He headed for the door, keeping a close eye on the rather large bouncer standing next to it.
"Every normal man must be tempted at times to spit upon his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats."
~Henry L Mencken
Lord Ascendant of Typos
Posts: 3578
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #13 on:
January 14, 2008, 08:44:39 AM »
While outwardly watching the various beings in the cantina, he inwardly began accessing the local network to query whatever public posting system they had in this half-built facility. Surely someone here would be looking for 'hired help'.
He mused about going to the bar and ordering a pint of vodka, and seeing the faces of the non-Oraki when he took it down in one quaff. The presence of the other Oraki quashed that thought though, it would seem too pretentious. Better just to 'blend in'.
Human Strolenati
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Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #14 on:
January 15, 2008, 03:57:52 AM »
Checking the station bulletin board, Kestral found a peculiar sounding ad in the nearly empty "For Hire" board:
For Hire:
"Specialist Engineer with competencies in starship engineering, Robotics, Electronics and Cybernetics as well as professional expertise in computing. All competencies backed up by verifiable sources. Considerable experience in expert systems and AI. Contact
(Docked as: Benjamin Franklin)"
Now that his ad was posted, (and that he'd been tinkering for a bit in his workshop) Alice wondered. Did they have a good Pisco sour in this back end of space, or was the bar going to be the same fiasco as the last time he stopped...
First things first
He thought sadly.
Better head down to the company offices to check out if they need anybody like me.
"Maia, You'll lock up won't you?"
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away."-Philip K. Dick
Caffeinated Alcoholic Blood
Posts: 1827
Medice cura te ipsum
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #15 on:
January 15, 2008, 12:32:22 PM »
There it floated, dead in the midst of space, a vessel huge and silent, no insignia, no banner, no sign of life in any form. A dark shape embedded in utter night.
A brief sensor sweep confirmed Danasheth's first impression - it was devoid of activity, save for the nonsensical signal, the drives cold, its innards likewise.
Drifting by, Danasheth considered her find. It would make good salvage, and a good start for an independent existence. Sadly, her fighter could not haul the dark shape anywhere. What she needed was a larger ship to tow it, and a few industrious sentiets to aid her in carrying her prize.
Launching a transmission scrambler that attached itself near the active antennae, so that others would not be lured here by the ghost ship's call, she engaged the drives, riding on a blue comet tail towards Sabrontir. The station would hold more than enough adventurers, and a few of them might even be of a reliable character.
Sabrontir's station hung in the orbit like a moon of silver, half decomposed, or half unborn, as its ribs were showing, several sections of the construction were only outlined by metal rafters, construction workers resembling puffy snowmen were busy welding and mounting new components in place whereever the gaze fell.
The dock where she rested her fighter was bustling with activity, and temporary home to vessels of varied shapes and degrees of disrepair, even a Kel'Regar vessel could be seen in one corner, using a tentacle to snatch a few construction workers' lunch boxes.
Locking her fighter, she thought what they have been through. "Time to name you, little budy. Red-68 will not do in the long run."
The fighter's position lights blinked as in reply, and then faded. Danasheth was off, heading to where the adventurous kind aggregates.
"Captain, the buttocks are moving from the pink into the red and purple spectrum! We cannot maintain this rate of spanking any longer!"
Authentic Strolenite (though spanked) (C) (R)
Siren no Orakio
Posts: 527
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #16 on:
January 15, 2008, 09:08:07 PM »
Deep Space
The dark shape, approached, was massive, easily the size of a Terran Destroyer class'd starship, though dark, and dead. Large enough, it was, in fact, that it could never possibly have seen the surface of a world, or it would have ripped itself apart under its own weight, and no atmosphere could possibly support its shape. A single pass, too, showed the cause of it's death, where a great beam weapon had punched a hole through fully twenty-two visible decks, at an angle to the axis they were aligned on, though the blast had, apparently, missed many of the sensitive drive components.
It was with a electronic squelch that the ancient radio band the ship was broadcasting on died, quelched under a tuft of static, while a fairy sprouted wings of flame, and shot into the night.
The Cantina
BRAM! SPAW! REEe-OooOO!
It was, by now, quite questionable as to whether the demented little maroon men torturing their obviously agonizingly suffering instruments were attempting to cover a song written by a more competent band, or whether they were trying to offer a musical interpretation of the Small War of 2015. Either way, it was now certain that the bar, save the doorway, must have been insulated from the rest of the station by vacuum. Otherwise, anything this loud and vibratory had to be illegal. It had to be, for the sake of sanity. And madness.
At the bar, however, the bartender twisted his mouth, his flecked eyes sparkling, even as he threw his hands up into the air, 'accidentally' snagging a frost-rimed mug from the chilled racks above him. "BEER! Beer! I offer you the most wonderous creations of mixology the galaxy has witnessed, upspin of Mother Regar herself, and you ask me for Martian piss-water! But yes, even there, even there, I can show you my skill. We are too far out from Sol, they say, to waste volume on real beer. But ha-al-ha, I have shown them, yes I have. You'll see!" Waving his hands seemingly randomly as he ranted, somehow, some when, the tender slammed the mug, full of a pale, yellow lager, down in front of Mach, his pale fingers trembling as he stated, "Even Jerrod, the black marketeer, even he comes in at the end of every night to drink my beer, for even he can't get it anywhere but the source, no matter how many privateers he buys to bring it to him. And all this, yours for a mere five Yuan."
To Connor, as he entered, the bouncer merely offered a curt nod of passage, almost as if uninterested in the man, or at least, figuring he wouldn't be too much trouble.
Meanwhile, on the freelancer boards were the same offers that could be found in dozens of systems. A few simple patrols, a few more complex patrols, a bounty or three on various unpleasant peoples, and even a handful of salvage jobs, while a pile of interstellar hauling jobs awaited anyone with the spare volume to take them. To those inquiring on inventive routes, more jobs could also be found, the majority of them dealing with construction of the ring itself - Workers were, as always, badly needed to work the dirty jobs, and engineers with the brains to fix the problems that cropped up were always also needed.
Last Edit: January 15, 2008, 09:14:40 PM by Siren no Orakio
Caffeinated Alcoholic Blood
Posts: 1827
Medice cura te ipsum
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #17 on:
January 17, 2008, 02:02:25 AM »
Into the cantina she stumbled, her antennae twitching at the mixture of smells and distorted sounds. Quickly, she retracted the sensory fibers and folded her antennae to the sides of her head. It was not good enough.
Over to the band's sound systems she strolled, hidden at the level of the bellies of the crowd. Playing inconspicous she gave them a quick pulse of her scrambler, a flash lost in the sctroboscope lights and cacophony of sounds.
Surprised silence fell over the bar, the band members looking at their mute guitars with dismay.
"Get out!" the barkeep yelled, burning every one of them with his gaze.
Apparently, the follow up band had not arrived yet; the keep was browsing his collection of records when Danasheth hopped on a barstool, and tossed him a gleaming disc, and smiled: "Try this, keep."
The Void Song flooded the bar, music so well suited for space, and long journeys, lively and hard, yet smooth to keep your sanity from straying in the emptiness of space. The bass voices of Haggerd Delmark and Seth'Nor accompanied their hands racing across guitars with virtuosity, and Danasheth, a milk shake in hand set out for what she came to do.
Through the crowd she browsed, observing and feeling; trying to learn behind which countenance more than a desire for a drink and rest waited, looking for someone bright of mind, and interesting of personality; occassionally, she eyed those observing the job offer board. Soon, she'd have a team.
Last Edit: January 24, 2008, 02:14:06 AM by EchoMirage
"Captain, the buttocks are moving from the pink into the red and purple spectrum! We cannot maintain this rate of spanking any longer!"
Authentic Strolenite (though spanked) (C) (R)
Posts: 401
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #18 on:
January 17, 2008, 04:37:28 AM »
Having browsed lazily through the company's job offers in the company office, and seeing a few well payed, although rather dull work offers.
Gee, If that's the most exiting they have...no wonder they're still up. Station engineering indeed.
Alice decided to look at the 'other' Job board, and was politely, although grudgingly, directed to the cantina, where the informal work offers would be posted, and where he was almost certain to find a job more to his tastes.
Walking past the rather impressive bouncer.
Hmmm, Interesting tattoos, I wonder where he got those done
Alice entered the bar. The decor reminding him of his student day, he was hit by a wave of cheerful nostalgia. But this, Alice quickly notice, was hardly his average bar! Two Oraki, a Salvorathan band, seemingly going offstage, expression disappointed (reminded of an old salvorathan friend's musical taste, he was hardly surprised). As well as
Oh my god, that right!
a Kiranti. Having had acquaintances with a Kiranti sociology professor
fantastic Sabacc player, never knew how he could be so good at telling what I was going to do.
, He had learnt a little of their complex society, and had yet to truly scratch the surface. Well, now would be as good as any other time.
Sitting down next to the small Kiranti, and turning to the barman, alice ordered his drink:
"I'll have a Pisco sour, if that's possible." Although he regretted saying that last sentence. It seemed like every known (and quite a few unknown) bottle of spirit in existence stood behind the point-eared, crimson eyed barman.
Turning to the Kiranti to his side, he started politely: "Quite cosmopolitan for such an isolated system." Extending his hand: "I'm Alice. Tell me, what is a kiranti doing so far away from home?"
Last Edit: January 17, 2008, 05:44:05 AM by dark_dragon
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away."-Philip K. Dick
Phantasm of the Millenium
Posts: 567
Infinitely Improbable
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #19 on:
January 17, 2008, 06:34:41 AM »
Erik, having just finished bawling out a handful of station techs who'd never seen a Salvorathan in Righteous Fury mode for the trouble thyey'd had in offloading the water and methane he'd scooped at the massive gas giant, stomped into the bar without a second glance at the bouncer. "Vacuum-suckin' halfwits who can't find the clamp fer a standard 73 centimeter pumping port... Bah!" The Salvorathan privateer didn't even spare a glance for the band, who were ignoring the command to get out; one had produced a set of what looked like the bastard offspring of an electronic toolkit and a swiss army knife, and was now waist-deep in the hollow beneath the bar. Wisps of acrid smoke trickled out, adding to the general stink of too many sapients in too small a space.
Hauling himself to a stool, the utterly hairless 'space dwarf' squinted at the Kel'Regar bartender. "I'm lookin' fer the absolute strongest liquor you've got; and I'm wantin' it as a triple, straight. No chill, no glitter. You clear with that?" Truthfully, he could care less if the bartender added anything to the drink, as long as it contained the liquid in question. However, there were appearances to keep in mind - if everyone expects a typical Salvorathan, after all, they turn as predictable as the orbit of the planets.
"I grab the sword!"
"Mmkay, you're dead."
"You just grabbed the sword of the god you were just personally responsible for banishing from the world for the next ten thousand years. You just got zapped by around a billion volts of Angry Divine Power. You're dead."
Lord Ascendant of Typos
Posts: 3578
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #20 on:
January 17, 2008, 11:22:14 AM »
None of the jobs had stood out - he could have taken similar jobs in a dozen other systems. There was no real glory there.
After commiting the names and descriptions of the various bounties to his PDA, Kestral returned his attention to his suroundings, partly startled by the sudden change in music.
Was there some sort of electronic discharge?
he thought he felt something.
Some other patrons had entered, and quite the mixed bag at that.
A Kiranti?
He'd never seen one of those, and had not expected to see one out here. Another had stood out, a Salvorathan who went straight up to the bar and made some show about strongest liquor. Kestral smiled at that, rethinking his thought of tossing back a pint of pure alcohol...
Well, when in Rome, thought Kestral, and he moved up to the already crowded bar.
Human Strolenati
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DwarvenGuild - Dorak Stonehammer
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Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #21 on:
January 19, 2008, 05:52:54 AM »
"I am Dana" she replied, somewhat surprised - she expected to watch and examine, not to be approached within two clicks of sitting down. She gave the man a thorough look - he was an elder, judginf from his manner a learned one, his face along with ample wrinkles telling of a lively emotional life. His smell was not predatory, nor did he appear to be one of the soldiers of fortune so common out here.
Truth be said, he was as much a stranger in Sabrontir as Danasheth may be, though less apparent.
"A break from what was so common in my life lately, that is what I am here for. Stress, while awakening the mind and banishing sloth, is poison if unfought" she answered, lending her GalCom a healthy dose of the sing-song Kiranti accent, which had settled like dust over it with years of disuse.
The man was an interesting one, curious and entertaining. She would stay in his company for a while, while keeping an eye in the cantina.
"Neither a hired gun you are, nor a miner laborious. Thus, I return your question to you."
"Captain, the buttocks are moving from the pink into the red and purple spectrum! We cannot maintain this rate of spanking any longer!"
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Siren no Orakio
Posts: 527
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #22 on:
January 19, 2008, 08:40:41 PM »
A flurry of action on the stage, one part dwarves accessing their equipment, one part technician trying to salvage the link-up to the bar's sound system for the next act, while the bartender looks at the disc, and half heartedly flipped it into a slot before pounding the shuffle button along with several million other albums, while two tiny creatures crawled out of his pointed ears, no longer needed against the onslaught of sound. It's enough, at least, that only one exceptionally drunk human wound up being rolled from the premises by that tattooed man by the entrance.
"Saa, human, nearly anything is possible here!" A hand woven across a reference, a faint look of consternation, before doing something deep beneath the bar where his hands were well concealed, before careless seeming hands started sloshing alcohol so very precisely from bottle to shaker, a motion that may have been simple mixing, or perhaps an interpretive dance of some sort. Slosh, slosh, slosh, and the sour made its way to a short glass, passing beneath the bar once before landing on top, the white foam on top sprinkled with an intricate pattern of bitters, even as the Salvorathan's request registered in his mind.
"... Aah!? I see, small one. You would challenge me indeed, then! ... Naaa, the Kel'Ora as well? Haaa-laaa, the Gods have smiled on me this day." A flurry of activity, hands flying and, yes, he did just kick that bottle, marked in the alien script of his home into the air off the shelf and into his own hands. Flip and flash and... was that something screeching beneath the bar? Or was that a part of the music? Either way, it was hard to tell, as twin highballs landed on the bar, thick and syrupy, bubbles slowly working their way up from the bottom of the glass through the brilliant green color of the concoction, as someone in the peanut gallery commented, "Maan, ya jag-offs are gunna use up all da detox tonight, ain'tcha?"
Posts: 401
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #23 on:
January 23, 2008, 11:34:28 AM »
"Not a hired gun nor a miner laborious indeed! Perhaps one could call me an inquisitive mind instead."
Alice had been fearful that the kiranti's GalCom would be hard to understand, but was overjoyed at the beautifuly rich accent flowing through Dana's speech.
Collecting his drink from the eccentric barman
"Thankyou very much."
he considered his reply carefully.
"As for what I do away from home. Well, I daresay, my
is my home. As for my birth planet, little awaits me there. What my
does docked here? Well, one could say that I am simply traveling, discovering: places; people; customs. Experiencing the universe, so to speak. If one takes the time, such a life leads to a rather remarkably rewarding journey."
"On your account, should I suppose that your have had quite a journey here yourself? Plenty of happenings between Venria III and here I expect! Hope you did not have too much trouble. These isolated systems can sometimes be rather dicey, can they not?"
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away."-Philip K. Dick
Phantasm of the Millenium
Posts: 567
Infinitely Improbable
Re: [Starkin] The Edge of Civilization - Chapter 01
Reply #24 on:
January 24, 2008, 07:08:08 AM »
Erik, after waiting through the extravagant show with the patience of a man who knows the result will be worth it, wraps a hand around the glass of faintly luminous green fluid and lifts it off the counter, before turning and giving the speaker from the peanut gallery a look over it, a smirk concealed behind the liquid. "Y'clearly have never had to drink down one of my relatives, friend. If I'm needin' detox, y'd best be callin' the medbay for a liver transplant instead." And with that, the short, purple-black Salvorathan tips the glass back, sinking the contents of the glass in an extended pose familiar to drinkers across the cosmos, whenever the drink ends up thicker than water.
When, finally, he sets the glass down, he takes a moment to lick his lips to ensure there's no green goo left behind, and waits for the kick. It doesn't take long in coming, and indeed he's not particularly surprised by the impact it has - if it involves biochemistry, the Kel'Regar are said to have mastered it, and brewing is one of the earliest arts any civilization picks up, if alcohol affects them the same way as the Starkin and their children races. Fortunately, the drink's muscle twitching aftereffects are hidden by the hue of his skin, and he's set the glass down before they can cause any trouble that way.
As for the Oraki who pushed up alongside him before the whole process, he now squints at the metallic humanoid and the drink before... Him? "Say, aren't y'kind of cheatin' at this? Y'don't actually
a liver, do y'?"
"I grab the sword!"
"Mmkay, you're dead."
"You just grabbed the sword of the god you were just personally responsible for banishing from the world for the next ten thousand years. You just got zapped by around a billion volts of Angry Divine Power. You're dead."
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Top Definition
People who come from Spanish heritage. It's earliest descendants are believed to have live in the Cave of Altamira in Spain.
Those Altamirano's are from Spain's cave in Altamira.
โดย bullyingthebulls
02 กรกฎาคม 2010
2 more definitions
A Mexican who is in fact CLEAN and does NOT work in the fields all day, but does enjoy tacos quite a bit and is a MexiRican.
Wow, that chick is super awesome smelling! She must be clean and enjoy tacos.
She must be an Altamirano.
She must be an Altamirano.
โดย throwup & whatserface
27 มกราคม 2009
A dirty mexican who is constantly working in the fields. Usually mowing the lawn or making tacos for someone. Commonly found in poor places. Also, one who is willing to trade bobs for hard or soft taco shells.
Dude, i had an altamirano around the house yesterday.
There are so many altamiranos in this resturant. Lets leave.
There are so many altamiranos in this resturant. Lets leave.
โดย Zhangtime
31 พฤษภาคม 2007

subset: commoncrawl


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Forever young: Senior celebs still working
Published On: Apr 06 2012 07:08:00 AM PDT
Updated On: Dec 08 2014 11:00:00 PM PST
Celebrity may seem like a young person's game, but there are many celebrity senior citizens still out there working who would beg to differ.
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Our convivium leader Clare Bobo can be reached by email at email@example.com
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Ballard, Issaquah Hospitals set Records with More Than 1,000 Deliveries
News Release
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Cut off a newt's tail or a leg, or remove a lens from its eye, and it grows back. However, whether newts can continue to do this throughout their lives, or lose the ability as they get older, has remained a mystery.
Advances in cell-culture technologies are paving the way to the complete elimination of animals from the laboratory.
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How next-generation sequencing technologies will drive a new era of research on non-model organisms.
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Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Family Tree Inspirations
30 comments:
Hi! My name is Rachel too! hehe
I love your blog and your tree is really pretty and functional!
I would LOVE for you to link this up at my Link Party, Once Upon a Weekend on my blog Family Ever After. The party starts on Fridays and lasts all week.
Here's the link if you're interested:www.familyeverafter.blogspot.com
Also, if you have a list of favorite link parties, I'd love to be included on Fridays. Thanks a ton! Have an awesome day!!!Love it! I wish I could pull off watercolors like this... mine look like the work of a 1st grader!
I did a write up on Family trees last year and shared a several to make several different syles including the hand lettered Martha Stewart & Legacy style that doesn't require pretty handwriting!
Check it out if you get a sec... http://extraordinarybree.blogspot.com/2010/12/family-tree-quick-tutorial.htmlI just found your blog post today. What a beautiful family tree and what a great idea. I;ve been looking for some way to dsiplay my family tree and there are certainly some good ideas here.
Regards, Jim
Family Tree Ideas at Hidden Genealogy Nuggets


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- 420D Polyester
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this wiki
- For the mission in GTA III, see Turismo (mission). For the race in GTA Vice City Stories, see Turismo (race).
VEHICLE Turismo | |
Vehicle type | Civilian car |
Body style | 2-door sports car |
Capacity | 2 (driver and passenger) |
Appearance(s) | GTA San Andreas GTA IV GTA Chinatown Wars |
Manufacturer | Grotti (HD Universe) |
The Grotti Turismo is a supercar featured in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Grand Theft Auto IV and Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, appearing in different forms in each game.
GTA San Andreas
The Turismo debuted in GTA San Andreas, where it is mostly based on the Ferrari F40 with a modified spoiler and sloped, square tailights. The spoiler bears a striking resemblance to the one seen on the 1971 Dodge Daytona prototype, albeit shorter and more rounded. The front fascia resembles the Ferrari F512M. The front lights look very close to those of the Ferrari F40, albeit the Turismo has one set of front lights, meanwhile the F40 has two. The car is also similar to the Super GT.
GTA IV — GTA Chinatown Wars
The Grotti Turismo in GTA IV is based heavily on the Ferrari 360, and to a lesser extent, the Ferrari F430. The front fascia also heavily resembles the Mclaren MP4-12C, although the resemblance is coincidental as the 12C was only an idea when GTA IV was developed. The rear fascia however, consists of a sleek taillight-radiator cluster, with four-sided taillights, as opposed to the 360's circular lights. The rims, which resemble three-piece OZ Racing Superleggera rims, are installed over cross-drilled brake rotors. The Turismo also lacks an external rod antenna.
The Turismo's interior features two bucket sport seats and full leather appointments finished in classic Ferrari tan. The car also features a fully-carpeted boot in front of the cabin with ample space for luggage, which is revealed after significantly damaging the front of the car.
There are two aesthetic variants, one with flat slatted grilles and another with scooped intakes, both located on the rear fenders. All Turismos in GTA IV come with horn alarms, but the one at Mikhail Faustin's house will not trigger when Niko opens the door, because it is unlocked. However, if you damage the car in any way the alarm will go off regardless of whether you're in the car or not. On the Auto Eroticar website a unique Turismo with a spoiler is shown.
The Turismo in GTA Chinatown Wars retains the GTA IV look, with a few cues from the Corvette C6. A billboard at the Auto Merchant further supports the fact of the Turismo resembling the GTA IV rendition. The GTA Chinatown Wars rendition also bears a resemblance to the Coquette.
GTA San Andreas
Although the F40 is rear wheel drive, the Turismo is all wheel drive. Regardless, it is one of the fastest and best handling cars in the game, second only to the Infernus. The handling has a little bit understeer but still acceptable. Power distribution has a balance between smooth and rough, making it fun to drive while still being controllable. The engine in the Turismo in GTA San Andreas could very well be a flat plane twin turbocharged V8, just like the F40, because it sounds and performs just like it. The Turismo is also suitable for off-roading due to its all wheel drivetrain.
GTA IV — GTA Chinatown Wars
According to Autoeroticar.com, the Turismo's engine in GTA IV is a high-revving 4.0 L Quad Cam V8 fitted to 5-speed manual transmission. Unlike the real-life 360 which was fitted with 3.6 L Tipo F131-engined V8. It is the second fastest car in the game according to the game files, it has a maximum speed of 213 mph (344 km/h), it's the second fastest car in the game being slightly faster than the Coquette but slower than the Comet.
Handling of the car is acceptable due to the Turismo's good brakes, but the car is susceptible to burnouts during cornering due to excess torque and it's rear wheel drive; this trait is not evident in the GTA Chinatown Wars rendition. Thanks to its mid engine layout, the car can turn corners sharply. It is one of the easiest supercars to drive in the game. The mid engine layout also means that it is shielded from frontal impacts and mildly shielded from rear impacts making it a very durable car. The car is also very easy to find in GTA IV (See Locations below). In GTA Chinatown Wars, the Italian Mafia drives a slightly different version of the Turismo as one of their gang cars. It is only found in black, and has square headlights that resemble the Coquette. Performance remains unchanged.
Overall, due to it's durability, speed and handling it is well suited for all purposes. Just keep in mind that it doesn't do a good job of absorbing bullets but you are still shielded from the rear.
(0 - 60mph / 0 - 100km/h) | Top Speed
(mph / kph) | Engine Stated Engines, Game File Engines Or In-game Engines | Drivetrain AWD = All Wheel Drive FWD = Front Wheel Drive RWD = Rear Wheel Drive | Gears | Mass
(Kg) |
Stated In game Website: {{{0-62mph/ 0-100km/h time stated}}} Actual Speedometer: {{{0-62mph/ 0-100km/h time speedometer}}} Game files: {{{0-62mph/ 0-100km/h time files}}} | Stated In game Website: {{{Top speed stated}}} Actual Speedometer: {{{Top speed speedometer}}} Game files: {{{Top speed files}}} |
4.0 L Quad Cam V8 |
Rear wheel drive |
5-speed manual |
1500 kg |
In GTA IV, a Turismo is requested as part of Stevie's Car Thefts, with a uniquely metallic beige body color. As a new Turismo will respawn at the same spot until the player delivers one to S&M Auto Sales, the player can save one at their safehouse before delivering another. Stevie will pay up to $36,300 for it, if the car is in pristine condition.
In TBOGT Luis can call Henrique for a turismo and he will bring one in a Rare and hard to find baby blue in rare moments when the player makes him really happy.
In GTA Chinatown Wars, a second distinct variant of the Turismo exists as a gang car for the "Mob". Available only in black, the "Mob" Turismo is more alike a Coquette in body design; in other aspects, the "Mob" variant stack up evenly with the regular Turismo in terms of performance.
Modifications (GTA San Andreas)
- The Turismo can be modified at TransFender:
Type | Upgrade | Cost |
Colors | Car Color 1 (64 different colors) | $ 150 |
Nitro | 2x Nitrous | $ 200 |
5x Nitrous | $ 500 | |
10x Nitrous | $ 1000 | |
Wheels | Import | $ 820 |
Atomic | $ 770 | |
Ahab | $ 1000 | |
Virtual | $ 620 | |
Access | $ 1140 | |
Off Road Wheel | $ 1000 | |
Mega | $ 1030 | |
Grove | $ 1230 | |
Twist | $ 1200 | |
Wires | $ 1560 | |
Hydraulics | Hydraulics | $ 1500 |
- The TransFender in Las Venturas charges 20% more for every modification except colors.
GTA San Andreas
- Importable from Easter Basin (San Fierro) after completing export lists, only on Monday. Import cost: $76,000.
- Commonly spawned at night along The Strip, Las Venturas, especially if driving another fast sports car.
- In the Las Venturas Freight Depot Race Tournaments, choosing the Las Venturas Ringroad race will provide you a Turismo. Park it in a garage and abandon the race. When you return to your garage, the car will still be there.
GTA IV + Episodes from Liberty City
- In Beachgate, the gated community east of the funfair in Broker, there is a Turismo parked beside the Faustin residence.
- Parked outside the Dawkins Mansion on Owl Creek Avenue in Westdyke, Alderney for Stevie's Car Thefts, this Turismo has a unique Bronze paint which you could only obtain here.
- The Grotti dealership on the road adjacent to Niko's Middle Park East Safehouse in Middle Park East, Algonquin, across the street from Middle Park East's Perseus, contains 8 Turismos. Stealing one gives the player a one star wanted level, even if there is no police presence in the area. But it is easy to park it outside the Safehouse nearby to own it.
- Occasionally spawned in Middle Park, Little Italy, The Exchange, City Hall, Castle Garden City, Castle Gardens (Algonquin), Rotterdam Hill (Broker), Westdyke, Leftwood, and Alderney City (Alderney).
- At Auto Eroticar (occasionally).
- In Jeff's last random encounter, he is run over by a Turismo - the driver gets out to call the police, giving the player ample time to steal it.
- Randomly appears while the player is driving another supercar.
- May spawn more frequently in traffic, and parked randomly along the roadsides, when driving a Sentinel around Alderney City.
- Spawn in traffic during Multiplayer.
- Can also be obtained with a cheat code (227-555-0147).
- In The Ballad of Gay Tony, calling Henrique and requesting a Turismo will have one delivered to your location.
GTA Chinatown Wars
- Is common through most parts of the city, especially Northern Algonquin.
- Parked in a driveway of a house in Beachgate, Broker, where a Resolution X may also spawn in front of.
- Available from the Auto Merchant for $700.
- At Zero RC in Garcia, San Fierro, there are boxes of a model car based on the Turismo but called the "Tourismo", a common misspelling of Turismo.
- "Turismo" is Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese for Tourism or, in automotive language, a tourer.
- The GTA San Andreas rendition of the Turismo is unique for having one exhaust pipe in the middle.
- Upon delivery of all thirty cars for Stevie in GTA IV, (whereupon he agrees to purchase cars from Niko Bellic), the Turismo may fetch the player $11,000, one of the highest payments from Stevie.
- The Metallic Bronze Turismo stolen by Niko for Stevie was owned by Bryce Dawkins without knowledge.
- The default radio stations for the Turismo are:
- GTA San Andreas: SF-UR.
- GTA IV: IF99 - International Funk or K109 The Studio.
- The Turismo in GTA IV has no front turning lights.
- At $130,995, the Turismo is the second most expensive car in GTA IV. The first being the Infernus at $150,000 and the third being the Super GT at $110,000.
- The Turismo is also the most expensive car on the Autoeroticar website.
- In The Ballad of Gay Tony, when Luis Lopez calls Henrique Bardas for a Turismo, Luis will pronounce the car as /tu-ri-mo/.
- The Turismo in the GTA 4 era has air-scoop variations on the rear fenders.
- In GTA CTW, the Turismo's headlights resemble that of a Coquette.
- While playing GTA IV, you can sometimes see people trying to fix their damaged Turismo (smoke coming out of the engine), but while the engine is in the back of the car, they have the front boot open instead.
- In the beta version of GTA IV, the Turismo had different rims and had a small spoiler on the rear.


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LOL... fun video Dan! so happy for you! and... glad to see you and Daniel had LOTS of fun together last week! also, "Voltron" credit made me smile. lol. who is that?
lastly, i will second the notion that next to rally for should be Goat Man!!!
EPIC video Danny Boy. Also, if you need a character to rally for, always remember to VOTEtheGOAT for MOTUC. You could always help lead the charge for Goat Man!
-World's Number One Goat Man Fan-
"Don't worry, the Terror Claws won't hurt you... They'll KILL you." <Terror Claws Skeletor Is Coming.>
LOL... fun video Dan! so happy for you! and... glad to see you and Daniel had LOTS of fun together last week! also, "Voltron" credit made me smile. lol. who is that?
lastly, i will second the notion that next to rally for should be Goat Man!!!
hilarious vid Dan great work. can't wait for the review vid. he really really looks like an epic figure
But no really, the letters was a nice touch.
But no really. DAT SISTER.
"We are the tools of our own imagination, constructing temples and cathedrals in which our most outlandish dreams become truth." - Samael
Great video Dan.
Seems like forever that you've been rallying for Mosquitor.
Was he your no.1 from the start? I seem to remember you being pretty psyched foe Scare Glow when he was released.
And I think you and Daniel B. do have a great chemistry, hopefully more team up vids in the future.
LMFAO, Great vid Dan....loved it!!!! my kids were singing and dancing along.
Hilarious. Good job. When MOTUC ends you have a career as a YouTube sensation waiting for you.
PoP Variants are part of the vintage line, too! Starburst She-Ra, Shower Power Catra, and Scratchin' Sound Catra for 2015!!!
That was hilarious. Glad to see that Daniel recovered from his head injury. Can't wait for the review.
That was awesome. Hilarious.
Photog is here! thank you, Mattel!
Now how about some mini-comics love (like Lodar, Geldor, Dakon......)? And Mermista?
View my collection and customs HERE!
FINALLY...... THE BLOOD SUCKER (Mosquitor).......... HAS COME BACK...... TO PIXEL DAN !
Well, Congrats Dan Man ! You must be the happiest guy in the world right now !! I am so... so... SO HAPPY FOR YOU !!!
You Know What ? I always buy 2 figures of each & every MOTUC characters (apart from He-Man, Skeletor figures, I buy them in multiples), But I am going to buy one more Mosquitor (to keep MOC, which I rarely do) in order to honour & respect your passion on him.
Now Buddy..... tell me how many Mosquitors are you planning to buy.
haha, great video! And nice to see the Pixel family
"When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, it is time I put away childis.......[hey, look at this] What? Is that a new Castle Grayskull?? Awesome! Who wants to play He-Man!!!
If there's something strange in the neighbourhood, who you gonna' call? HE-MAN!!!!
I love the video..!
So glad that you finally have mosquitor, it must be a dream come true
I can honestly say that I have never been so happy for someone else getting an action figure! This video was just as random and crazy as I predicted it would be, and I actually did laugh out loud several times! Well done, Sir, and congratulations.
Everyone involved was so great! And I hate that song (and dance), but thanks to this video, I'll always have a soft spot for it.
Do you really think you're the first to say that!?
She must be warned... she's been in a geek video now; her popularity is about to soar.
"I damned the world to save my daughter once... and I will do it for her again."
I do custom action figures, commissioned art, and I will make any Masters of the Universe costume, tailored to you!
View my website! http://www.havocstaff.50megs.com
Cool video!
Your wife is getting better and better in ignoring you. That is what happes in a good marriage for it to last long
The dance genes were not divided under the Eardley siblings
Yes it is!
Jii Dee regarding Matty's view on MOTUC Collectors: "Here be whiny surrender monkey dragons".
MOTUC NEEDS: Sssqueeze, Dragstor, Saurod, Blast Attack, & Lord Masque.
Congratulations on finally getting Mosquitor Dan! Funny video also.
His little sis, may have gotten all the moves, but no one can rock a Mosquitor costume like Dan can!
Click on Amazon or Barnes and Noble for a free sample of my first book, Paradigm Shift Saga: Malediction!
A short story of monsters and magic!
Alright, here's an update on the review since I know you're all anxious. My plan was to have it up this weekend, but between being incredibly busy with other obligations, and having equipment problems, I didn't quite get it done. My goal is to have it up Monday afternoon/evening. So hang tight folks! Trust me, I'm anxious to get the review up just as much as you guys want to see it! But I want it to be good so I needed to take some extra time!
In the meantime, just watch me make a fool of myself dancing a few more times.
For toy review videos and more, visit Pixel-Dan.com!
SUBSCRIBE to me on YouTube! YouTube.com/Mandalorian30
Latest MOTU Classics Videos:
Great vid, Dan!
"The most difficult thing is trying not to forget who you really want to be." - Nong Toom
I am looking for these Marvel Legends figures
My marketplace feedback
Wow............ out of all your videos (that I've seen), I have enjoyed this one the most. I think I speak for most .orgers when I say we are most happy for you. One question though, where in the display does Mosquitor go? Front and center? (You gotta give him the trophy treatment...........)
DESPERATELY need ThunderCats Minimates series one!!!
**Staunch FILMation lover!!! **** MUST have a New Adventures Subscription!!!**
MOTUC NEEDS more TROLLANS !!!
Is something wrong with the blip video? I can't get it to play on my pad or phone. Also can't get the youtube vid to play on either due to mobile restrictions
Gaping holes in my collection: Regular old Teela, Weapons pack 1, Power & Honour book 1, SDCC artbook (maybe)


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What are your predictions for the 2006 U.S. Open? Who do you think will come out on top?
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I need to find secondary sources on Guy de Maupassant's The Necklace. Where do I start?
Secondary sources for literature are articles or books on the work (poem, short story, novel, etc) about which you are writing.
The best place to find articles on works of literature is in our literature databases. Use our How To Use Literature Databases LibGuide (see link below) to access the best literature databases and get step by step instructions. You may need to use all three databases to find enough articles.
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And don't forget books! Books can be a great source for literature criticism. Check:
- Type in the title of the work or your author if there is no specific work.
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EBSCO eBooks
- You can use the same techniques here you'd use in any EBSCO databases. Click on Subject and see what options most closely match topic and select.
GVRL eBooks
- Click on the literature category on the from page, then search whithin literature to find your author or specific work.


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Selected FAQ |
My new Mac came with Snow Leopard pre-installed. When I try to install the scanner software from the CD that came with my scanner, I see the message "You need the Rosetta software to open Epson. Would you like to install it now?". Why? |
The software installer on the CD is a PowerPC application and requires Rosetta to be installed on your Mac operating system to work on Snow Leopard. You'll need to install Rosetta in Snow Leopard. Just click Install when you see a prompt to automatically download and install Rosetta on your Mac. |


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Yes, the runup this year has been a little too spectacular. That cannot continue. But if you look at fundamentals, the penetration in the world market of smartphones and tablets is still extremely low. And they are gaining share of the PC market, quarter after quarter. They have great products, which consumers love. Their accumulation of cash means that they will increase their dividend a year from now. For the present, Apple continues to be a great buy, and there are many investors waiting on the sidelines for a a drop, so they can buy in.
The 'run up' began in 2007, some would argue 2005.
But I was referring solely to this year. Since Jan 1 it is up 40% or so. That is a little rich for it to continue. It will need to catch a breath.
The idea of comparing Put to Call options to judge the direction of the market, is so tremendously wrong, that I can only assume Mark Sebastian is misquoted in this article. Anyone with a basic knowledge of the option pricing theory knows the option prices are affected by volatility more than anything else. And even if supply & demand would temporarily push the price of one type of option away from its intrinsic value, Put-Call Parity dictates that the arbitrage opportunities based on synthetic options would restore the price of two option types to parity level.
The idea of comparing Put to Call options to judge the direction of the market, is so tremendously wrong, that I can only assume Mark Sebastian is misquoted in this article. Anyone with a basic knowledge of the option pricing theory knows the option prices are affected by volatility more than anything else. And even if supply & demand would temporarily push the price of one type of option away from its intrinsic value, Put-Call Parity dictates that the arbitrage opportunities based on synthetic options would restore the price of two option types to parity level.
"There is very little short interest in Apple. "Call" options, which give the right to buy Apple stock, are much more expensive than "puts""
It is maybe an oversimplification, maybe erroneous, but it is also referring to open interest where the Call/Put ratio can tell us about the market sentiment. No more and no less.
Am afraid your comment sounds very novice on Options and is irrelevant at best; Nothing more than market sentiment is posited here.
I am a survivor of 1998 Asian Financial crisis and I don't get what he was saying either. Could you digest this down please?
next year's growth is only 23 percent, they expect? I know it can't grow forever but with at least a few more years of Jobs's direction (some prefer calling it vision) and Cook's continued execution, at lease in US and Europe, that will sustain the growth. Then there are those IP xeroxing countries' swarm of people queuing to exchange kidney for iDevice to show it off to their equally poor/tasteless peers. -- we're looking at 2tr valuation in 4 years' time.
Irrational exuberance is likely to cause more pains to late-comer investors and other stakeholders alike. History will repeat itself.
Growth as a percentage will inevitably drop as they get larger.
That doesn't mean that their performance wasn't as good as before.
You're right. And of course TE ignores it, but part of this "growth" is merely due to ZimbabweBen's money-printing.
I love the products, but would stay away from the stock as much as I'd stay away from the usd.
you are wrong. it's iIrrational exuberance. :P
MS is now muscling into the smartphone market. Apple may not have it all its ways.
They don't have it all their way now, there are more Android phones than iPhones, and blackberries are still kicking, particularly in some parts. It's Microsoft's chances of muscling into such an already competitive market that is in doubt, in my opinion.
I think the only viable contender in the mobile space is Android not Windows Mobile. It would be nice to have more competition but usually these things end up at best a 2 horse race.
If you honestly think Android out performs Windows Mobile, you're horribly mistaken. The only reason Windows mobile isn't bigger than android yet is because Microsoft hasn't even tried marketing it or pushing for flagship phones. It's much smoother, faster, and UI friendlier than Android. Now that Microsoft is actually pushing for a campaign; with its new American flagship Nokia Lumia 900 releasing next month you will see the popularity it will have. I'm not saying it will bring down the king of smartphones yet (the Iphone/iOS) but Windows Mobile is defintely looking at 35% + market share once they being their campaign, in about 2 years or less. Android is rubbish compared to WM or iOS. It only holds a near 50% stake in market share because of Windows fan boys who despise anything apple or fruity and everyone else in a similar category.
Not to mention Samsung Galaxy series somehow repelled Apple invasion on China. It might be too late for the king of the phone crown. But there is still a tablet.
MS v. Apple is so last century. It also has very little bearing on the tech industry today. That old battle was long ago resolved ... and both AAPL and MSFT won. Together.
I would have to disagree. Once Microsoft starts to put a real effort into their marketing campaign (likely when they've worked out all the kinks with the Windows Phone), I suspect they will be a worthy competitor. Add to that upcoming release of the Windows 8 operating system (with which the phone will be integrated), and they've really got something.
Microsoft came late into the console gaming arena, but look at their success with the Xbox.
How much of that would you attribute to Nokia? It is certainly quite interesting seeing their name in fashion again -- their hardware continues to be respectable.
Samsung looks impressive on the Galaxy range too - hardware.
welcome to another bubble!
This is no bubble, the Apples valuations are of a Value company, p/e of 17 and dividend of $2.65.
Apple has about a hundred billion cash in the bank, and it's growing massively all the time. They're using their size to dictate favourable component pricing and keep margins high while providing products that are difficult to undercut. Customer satisfaction is high.
The reason Apple is so big is because the market's they're competing in are massive - there's never been a product with such a massive global market as mobile phones; and, as it's evolved in to the higher-margin smartphone market, Apple quickly mopped up the profits (something like 75% profit share with 30% market share in the US, IIRC).
It's not unusual - basically every country on Earth has a mobile phone infrastructure (and they're massive industries, even in developing countries). That makes the smartphone a very deployable and familiar technology leap. Consequently, the global smartphone market is expected to double over the next 5 years, adding more than half a billion new customers.
And the iPhone brand is clearly strong in the developing world, too: there were near-riots in China as people struggled to get an iPhone 4S. Apple have also started making iPhones in Brazil to avoid high import taxes. They have a lot of potential to take advantage of the rapidly growing market.
That is just flat out scary.
As a American chinese, and i read economist. I feel very sad after i saw this article. Whoever created this article was a racist. The picture demonstrates a uncivilized clown puts iPad on his head, like apple was some kind of religious symbols. Should i write an article and choose a uncivilized american dress stupidly to represent what apple did to america?
As a American chinese, and i read economist. I feel very sad after i saw this article. Whoever created this article was a racist. The picture demonstrates a uncivilized clown puts iPad on his head, like apple was some kind of religious symbols. Should i write an article and choose a uncivilized american dress stupidly to represent what apple did to america?
You're totally right! I re-read the article to see if it was racist and I came across this!
"Apple has low penetration in the personal-computer and smartphone markets, and can hook millions more customers in emerging markets like China and Brazil."
A value company on a p/e of 17? Ben Graham would be turning in his grave :-)
Strip out the $100 billion in cash and the p/e is really 22.
The iPad 3 has more expensive components in it than the iPad 2 - but it is being sold at about the same price - so this will lower profitability. IMO the pricing policy for the iPad 3 was to some extent forced by the astonishingly low prices and high quality of competing products coming onto the market practically every week now.
More importantly, Apple has had 3 hyper-successful products in a row. They only need to release one dud, and the PE will quickly go much higher.
It is also prejudiced to suppose that behaviour that you regard as clownish would obviously best be represented by someone from a different race than your own.
HP, the largest seller of PC's, has a p/e 50% HIGHER than Apple. HP tried to dump its PC business because it wasn't profitable but decided not to for fear of impacting printer sales.
I think the market just does not understand Apple, does not understand that Apple has targeted people, not corporations, does not understand that Apple has given people the humanities - music and literature, not spreadsheets and power points.
Apple stock has a long, long way to go.
I though you were told to left your cultural BAGGAGE behind when you come to the U.S.
It's actually the other way around, the P/E gets lower when you strip out the cash in the balance sheet.
according to peter lynch, a company should have the earnings growth approximately equal to it's p/e. The article mentions the p/e to be 22 but you say it's 17. Even if we go by your p/e Apple, despite it's huge size will have to find ways to expand like a small and fast-growing company. This would mean either capture more market share or expand into other businesses.
I don't know if that is possible. Let's hope so.
It's dividend yield of 2.65/610 (current share price) = 0.5% isn't good enough for someone to hold the stock.
I quote the article: "Irrational Exuberance" reckons that the "emotional attachment" to the Apple story and "wild" enthusiasm about its stock are reminiscent of a bubble.
Yeah it's totally a bubble!
I have yet to hear a good argument on how Apple will preserve it's market dominance. Their products are being imitated and sold at competitive prices. Their competitors are taking away market share. This can be easily seen through Apple's declining profit margins.
Apple's market cap should not be worth 559 Billion. That is more than Microsoft and Google combined (208 Bn for Google, $279 Bn for Microsoft). Apple's gigantic market cap suggests that Apple is vastly dominant in this industry, but the truth is that Apple is not.
The Economist explains: Who would pay a "mansion tax"
The Economist explains
Football and British politics: David Cameron's own goal
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The week ahead: A very normal affair
Football and politics: David Cameron's own goal
America's Ukrainian mission: Training wheels
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About Healthy Choice
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Indicates the manufacturer of this product is a member of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). Planting of plantations of palm oil, which may be in as many as 1 in 10 cosmetics products, can result in significant deforestation of tropical rainforests and threatens the survival of endangered species such as the orangutan and Sumatran tiger. The RSPO, which was established in 2001, is committed to promoting the growth and use of sustainable palm oil through co-operation within the supply chain and open dialogue with its stakeholders. To learn more, visit www.rspo.org.
Climate Counts: Striding
According to Climate Counts, this company is striding in the race to address climate change.
Climate Counts is a non-profit campaign that scores companies annually on the basis of their voluntary action to reverse climate change. The Climate Counts Company Scorecard helps people vote with their dollars by making climate-conscious purchasing and investing choices that put pressure on the world's most well-known companies to take the issue of climate change seriously.
Launched by organics pioneer Stonyfield Farm, Climate Counts believes everyday consumers can be the most important activists in the fight against global warming. Climate Counts has currently evaluated 106 companies—representing over 3000 different brands—in thirteen major consumer sectors with plans to expand the number of companies and sectors soon.
Climate Counts use a 0-to-100 point scale and 22 criteria to determine if companies have:
- Measured their climate "footprint"
- Reduced their impact on global warming
- Supported (or suggest intent to block) progressive climate legislation
- Publicly disclosed their climate actions clearly and comprehensively
Learn more at www.climatecounts.org.
GRI Sustainability Reporting
GRI's Framework is the most widely used sustainability reporting guidance in the world. The Reports List is vital in capturing and publicizing the evolution and growth of sustainability reporting – benefiting the featured organizations, and sustainability reporters everywhere. Find out more at: https://www.globalreporting.org


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Wedding Caterers near hopewell,va
Other Wedding Vendors near hopewell,va:
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Wedding Catering (379) |
Wedding Ceremony Music (118) |
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Wedding Invitations (147) |
Wedding Jewelry (219) |
Wedding Lighting & Decor (37) |
Wedding Officiant (230) |
Wedding Photography (1102) |
Wedding Planning (381) |
Wedding Rehearsal Dinner (74) |
Wedding Transportation (78) |
Wedding Travel Agents (42) |
Wedding Venue (821) |
Wedding Videography (131) |
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0 Vendors Selected. Select up to 5 vendors to compare in one of the following categories: Venues, Bands, Catering, Photography or Videographers.
We have the recipe for your perfect day! Nineteen years ago Mark Hahn and Rob Gustafson started a small catering business that provided meal...(more)
I.K. Catering, Catering with Class is your secret for your next event. We work with each client to create the perfect and delicious menu. You may...(more)
Chef Todd Butler opened Butlers Unique Catering in the spring of 2007. Chef Butler has worked in fine dining restaurants and fine catering and...(more)
Congratulations on your upcoming wedding! For the past 14 years full circle catering has proudly provided delicious, homemade food, conscientiously...(more)
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Receive 20 % off your catereed reception over $400.00. This excludes, rentals, alcohol, and staffing. Call jenny to make a date to chat about your upcoming event.
Blue Ridge Café & Catering Co. is one of Virginia's premier Wedding and event caterers, located in Ruckersville, VA just north of Charlottesville. ...(more)
The Goodrich Gourmet Catering Co
29 ReviewsYou bring the appetite, We'll bring the rest!
Richmond, VA | 804-750-1400
At the Goodrich Gourmet Catering Company, we believe in delivering the highest quality foods at a great value to our clients. Brides-to-be will...(more)
Blue Ridge Catering- Stimulating The Taste Buds of SW Virginia since 2003... We offer a wide array of services to ensure every detail of your...(more)
Roadside Chive is a full service catering and event planning company, located in the historic American Silk Mills Inc. facility and warehouse on...(more)
Mitchell Brothers BBQ
Richmond, VA | 434-842-1951
Mitchell Brothers BBQ caters to you with our honest to goodness service and great tasting food. Delicious food is a crowd pleaser at any event...(more)
At the BBQ Exchange, we aren't just a bbq joint that does some catering on the side. We are committed to providing a whole-package service for your...(more)
Ashley and Carter East operate DaH out of their commercial kitchen near the Downtown Mall. They share a passion for local food and interesting...(more)
The Early Katering Company, Inc. is a full-service catering company offering affordable excellence and superior service. Owned and operated...(more)
We are a multi-faceted, full service catering company providing the best BBQ, Comfort, Tex-Mex and American Eclectic Cuisine in the Richmond Area....(more)
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Free Fruit or Cheese Platter with Purchase of a Main Course Catering Package
Pizza Tonight specializes in unique and memorable wedding rehearsals and receptions, starting at $15 per head for 4 different types of pizza and...(more)


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Lawmakers Spar Over Spending Cuts
UPDATED 6:08 PM CST Feb 26, 2013New warnings from Congress that deep spending cuts may become reality. The President is urging lawmakers to compromise. Nikole Killion has the very latest on the sequester stalemate from Washington.
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