Little Black Devil Turns To A Little Black Angel After Adoption

Mississippi Delta Tamales

Yield: 7 to 8 dozen

Ingredients

Filling

• 6 to 8 pounds boneless meat (pork shoulder, chuck roast or chicken)
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup chili powder
• 2 tablespoons paprika
• 2 tablespoons salt
• 2 teaspoons black pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin

Wrappers

• Corn husks

Corn Meal Dough

• 8 cups yellow cornmeal or masa mix (available in most grocery stores)
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 2/3 cups lard or vegetable shortening
• 6 to 8 cups warm meat broth (from cooking the meat)

Instructions

Filling

1. Cut meat into large chunks and place in a large, heavy pot. Cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until meat is very tender, 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Remove meat and reserve cooking liquid.
2. When meat is cool enough to handle, remove and discard any skin and large chunks of fat. Shred or dice meat into small pieces. There should be about 14 to 16 cups of meat.
3. Heat the vegetable oil in a large, heavy pot over medium heat. Stir in chili powder, paprika, salt, pepper, cayenne, onion powder, garlic powder and cumin. Add meat and stir to coat with oil and spices. Cook, stirring often, until meat is thoroughly heated, 7 to 10 minutes. Set aside.
4. Wrappers: While meat is cooking, soak husks in a large bowl of very warm water, until softened and pliable, about 2 hours. Gently separate husks into single leaves, trying not to tear them. Wash off any dust and discard any corn silks. Keep any shucks that split to the side, since two small pieces can be overlapped and used as one.

Corn Meal Dough

1. Stir cornmeal, baking powder, salt and lard together in a large bowl until well blended. Gradually stir in enough warm meat broth to make soft, spongy dough the consistency of thick mashed potatoes. The dough should be quite moist, but not wet. Cover with a damp cloth.
2. To assemble the tamales, remove a corn husk from water and pat it dry. Lay husk on a work surface. Spread about 1/4 cup of the dough in an even layer across the wide end of husk to within 1 inch of edges. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of meat mixture in a line down the center of dough. Roll husk so that dough surrounds filling and forms a cylinder or package. Fold bottom under to close. Place tamales in a single layer on a baking sheet. Repeat until all dough and filling is used.
3. Stand tamales upright, closed side down, in a large pot. Place enough tamales in the pot so that they do not fall over or unroll. Carefully fill pot with enough water to come just to the top of the tamales, trying not to pour water directly into the tamales. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until dough is firm and pulls away from the husk easily and cleanly, about 1 hour.
4. If you prefer to steam tamales, stand tamales upright, closed side down, in a large steamer basket. Cover with a damp towel or additional husks. Steam tamales over simmering water until dough is firm and pulls away from the husk easily and cleanly, 1 to 1 1/4 hours.
5. Serve tamales warm, in their husks. Remove husks to eat.

The Time Machine (2002) Full Library Scene

Bullyproof

Submitted into Contest #115 in response to: Write a story where a device goes haywire.… view prompt

Rob H

                                 Bullyproof

 

Cassie Swenson had always struggled with her weight. She had come to terms with it, and her group of friends were supportive. But moving to a new town and starting at a new school filled her with a dread she hadn’t felt for a long time. She recognized and remembered the fear of meeting an entirely new group of students.

She stood looking up at the school building, dreading walking inside. She forced a smile and began to walk up the stairs. You can do this, she said to herself as she reached for the handle of the door and hesitated.

When she was inside, she went to the principal’s office to get her class assignment and then walked slowly towards the room indicated on the list where her history class was located. She looked through the small pane of glass and saw the class was deep in discussion already.

With a deep sigh she opened the door and the entire class turned and looked at her. She walked up to the teacher and handed him the paper. Mr. Wilkins looked at the paper then at her and smiled slightly.

“Ok class, we have a new student. This is Cassandra Swenson,” he said almost too happily. She leaned in and whispered in his ear that she preferred Cassie. He smiled back and stood back up. “This is Cassie Swenson, please welcome her and make her feel at home.”

“Hello Cassie,” the entire class replied with much less enthusiasm.

“Hmm, very good,” Mr. Wilkins said blandly. “Umm ok, Cassie, please take a seat and feel free to join in anytime.”

She walked down the aisle to the only seat available towards the middle of the classroom as everyone watched her. She felt instantly like she was on display and hated it.

“Ok we were discussing the possible theories regarding the disappearance of the Jamestown Settlement, who has any new ideas that haven’t been addressed yet?” Mr. Wilkins asked brightly.

Debbie looked at Cassie and raised her hand. “Maybe they got eaten,” she said coldly. Everyone in the class laughed when they realized what she meant. Cassie turned away from her and shrank further in her chair.

Later in the cafeteria, she waited online when Stacy Beacham waved her over as she stood with Debbie closer to the front. “Here,” she said slyly, “you look like you need food more than we do, just try to save some for the rest of us.” Everyone on the line laughed as Cassie turned and walked away feeling totally humiliated.

After the day was over Cassie went straight home and ran up to her room. What a horrible day, she thought as she collapsed in her chair and looked at the blank screen. She quickly logged in and looked up ways to deal with bullies at school.

As she looked at the various websites that came up on the list, one stood out from the others. She hadn’t ever seen a web address like this before and the difference intrigued her. She hesitated for only a moment and clicked on the link. Her screen blinked and crackled for a moment. A warning came up on her screen from her virus protection. You are about to enter the dark web. Please be careful what information you share.

She thought for a moment and was about to click the button to close the website when her phone vibrated. She picked it up and looked at the message. There was a new posting on the school’s website.

Since the school is looking for a new mascot, it began, we have a proposal. There was a link to a picture underneath, and she instinctively clicked on it. The pic was very familiar. She recognized the features immediately. The shoulder-length brown hair, the glasses. The face was hers, but the body had been photoshopped into a pig’s body. We will name the new mascot Swineson, the caption under the picture read.

Her heart sank and her eyes welled up. She knew a new school would be hard, but she never expected this after just one day. She tossed her phone down and held her face in her hands trying to fight back the emotions.

As she removed her hands from her eyes, she glanced back at her computer screen. The warning was still flashing on the screen but behind it she saw the words, tired of being bullied? We can help. Without caring about the virus threat any longer she closed her security warning and clicked enter on the website.

Welcome to Bullyproof appeared on her screen in bold red letters. She entered her information to sign up as a member. As usual, she skipped over the fine print agreement. Those things are all the same, she scoffed as she clicked next.

A new screen came up asking her to choose her level of protection. A circle with a red line through it labeled standard, asked if she wanted to simply monitor any references to her name. Under that was a lightning bolt with the words next to it, delete any references to your name as soon as they are identified.

That’s better she thought to herself, but I don’t know. She continued to read and at the very bottom was a skull with the words next to it, Delete Posters.

Hmmm, she thought. Deleting the poster from my social media is probably the best way to deal with it. She clicked on the skull.

Her phone vibrated almost instantly. She picked it up and looked at it. The new app icon was right there in the middle of her main screen.

Bullyproof, you have selected maximum protection click to activate. She clicked on the icon and a scanning bar appeared. It began to fill up very slowly as the app scanned the internet for what it was looking for. It moved very slowly and underneath were the words, this may take a while.

After about an hour, she decided the day had caught up with her and she went to bed.

The clock next to her bed read 1:18 am, when her phone buzzed. The app has finished its scan. Preparing to initiate safety measures, the screen flashed. Instantly the signal from her phone contacted the satellites in orbit and bounced all over the town reaching out to any device that had a connection to any posting about Cassie. It found only two and accessed their information.

She woke in the morning and had almost forgotten that her phone was still searching when she grabbed it to check for any messages. The app indicated it had one match identified. She clicked on it and the picture of the pig came up and her heart sank again. Under the picture was a name. Posted by Deborah Stratton.

She thought for a moment, that was one of the girls in my history class. The name glared out at her and made her angry just seeing it. Click apply to delete poster, the app read under the name.

Without even thinking she clicked on the button and the skull’s eyes lit up bright red. Poster scheduled for deletion. It reached out across the electronic connections all over town and linked with Debbie’s phone.

 

Debbie stood in front of the principal’s desk waiting for him to say something as he read the report Mrs. Applewhite had filled out. “Well Miss Stratton,” he said with a sigh. “Since you like having fun in the cafeteria, you can help Mrs. Applewhite restock the freezer after school today,” Principal Lewis said stamping the paper on the desk in front of him and smiling

“Umm, it’s Friday,” Debbie snapped defensively.

“Very good, Miss Stratton, now that you know the days of the week, we’ll have you up to months of the year in no time,” Mr. Lewis said sarcastically as he handed her the paper.

“Ughh” she sighed. “My dad’s gonna hear about this,” she snapped and snatched the paper out of his hand. She quickly turned and stomped out of the office, slamming the door behind her. Mr. Lewis shook his head disappointedly as he watched her leave.

In the cafeteria, Debbie was watching Mrs. Applewhite stack the boxes on the shelf in the freezer. Suddenly the door closed causing Debbie to jump slightly.

“Don’t worry about that, it’s programmed to do that, so the cold doesn’t get out. But don’t worry, it won’t lock,” Mrs. Applewhite smiled. “This is a new state-of-the-art freezing unit, best in the district.”

“Ughh, I’m sure it’s the greatest if you have nothing else going on in your life,” Debbie sighed and rolled her eyes.

Mrs. Applewhite’s smile disappeared. “I know you’re young and think you’re very hot Miss Stratton, but that’s no reason to be so cold to people,” she said as she pushed the door open to get more food.

Debbie followed her out. “Can we please skip the ethics lesson and get this done so I can get out of here?” She asked impatiently.

“I have a better idea,” Mrs. Applewhite said with a smile returning to her face. “Why don’t you finish this, I’m going to go start my weekend. I don’t have to waste time on this kind of thing with a person like you. Finish this and then you can go,” she said grabbing her purse and walking out in a bit of a huff.

After about 20 minutes she looked at her watch, “Ughh, 6:30?” she sighed. She grabbed more of the boxes and walked into the freezer and was stacking them on the shelf when she heard the door close again making her jump again just a little and drop the boxes. “Stupid machine,” she said angrily as she picked them up and placed them on the shelf.

Her cellphone sprang to life on the counter outside and connected with the freezer unit. The lock was easy to access and was reprogrammed so it activated.

Inside the freezer, Debbie finished stacking the boxes and rubbed her arms to get some warmth back, it felt colder for some reason. She pushed on the door handle and expected it to open just as it had done so many times before, but it didn’t budge. She pushed again this time harder but still nothing.

Outside the freezer, the digital temperature reading was accessed by her phone and began to lower. It was now 0 degrees and was rapidly going down. It passed -10, then -20, then -30.

Inside the freezer, Debbie was pounding on the door but there was no one left in the cafeteria to hear. She was screaming as the temperature got colder and colder. She grabbed anything she could find to try to break the glass, but it was too thick. She saw ice crystals forming all along it and they began to obscure the view to the outside.

By the time the temperature reached -60, her hair and skin began to get covered with frost and the temperature still fell. She sat down getting very tired from the cold and before long fell asleep.

Within minutes the temperature reached -90 and her internal body began to freeze.

Saturday morning, Mrs. Applewhite walked in and found the rest of the boxes stacked on the counter. She shook her head and cursed as she saw Debbie’s cellphone on the counter. “Stupid girl,” she said grabbing the boxes. She pulled open the freezer door, which had previously returned to its original setting, and walked into the freezer.

She screamed as soon as she saw Debbie’s frozen body in the corner.

Cassie came down in the morning and headed to the kitchen for breakfast. It was 10:30 and she’d slept late since it was Saturday, and it was such a rough week. When she walked in her mother immediately hugged her tightly. “Oh honey, I’m so sorry,” she said with her voice trembling.

Cassie looked confused for a moment when she noticed the news on the laptop on the table. A picture of her school surrounded by ambulances and police cars filled the screen. “What happened?” she asked pulling away from her mother and getting closer to hear what was being said.

“Police still aren’t sure how the girl became trapped in the freezer, but it is being called a tragic accident,” the reporter said. “The unit was installed a few months ago and appears to be working fine at this time but it will be shut down until more extensive tests can be done. A candlelight vigil is being scheduled for this evening at the school. Once again repeating 16-year-old Deborah Stratton was found this morning frozen to death in a freezer at…”

“Oh my god,” Cassie shrieked and backed away from the screen. “I knew her, she’s in my history class and..” she caught herself when she remembered the app on her phone.

She raced upstairs and grabbed her phone and opened the app. User Deleted came up on the screen. She tossed the phone down and covered her mouth to hold in a scream. Oh my god, that’s impossible, she thought frantically. It must just be a coincidence.

Most of the school turned out for the vigil that evening. Cassie walked through the crowd, who largely ignored her now with everything that had happened. She noticed Stacy at the front of the line with tears running down her face.

“Stacy, I’m so sorry,” Cassie said as she reached out her arms to hug her for support.

“Ugh, get away,” Stacy said bitterly as she recoiled. “How can someone like you get to live and a beautiful person like Debbie dies so horribly.”

Cassie listened and couldn’t help feeling totally rejected. Inside her pocket, her phone sprang to life as the microphone picked up every word Stacy had said. Cassie turned and walked away slowly with her head hung. Maybe she was hurt and just lashing out, but maybe she was just always a mean person she thought to herself as she pulled out her phone to text her mother that she was on her way home.

She instantly noticed the 1 on the corner of the bullyproof app and clicked on it. The screen lit up with the display and played the recording of Stacy’s voice. One post discovered, the app read. Press apply for deletion.

She looked at it long and hard and listened to the recording again. The words stung more than before, but what if this app did have something to do with Debbie’s death, she thought.

She closed the app and shoved the phone back in her pocket and continued walking. After a few minutes, the phone chimed again and the 1 appeared back on the app. She opened it.

You are tired of being treated so badly, you do not have to stand for it, press apply for deletion, The app wrote.

Cassie thought about it and said “no, no one deserves to die just because of what they say”, she said aloud to the phone.

It will not stop, she will continue, press apply for deletion, the app responded and played the recording again.

Cassie’s blood began to boil. “It would be nice to not have to deal with it anymore,” she said softly.

Press apply for deletion, the app displayed.

She clicked on the skull and the eyes glowed red again as the app reached out and contacted Stacy’s phone. Cassie smiled slightly and shoved the phone back in her pocket and continued home.

Stacy left the vigil and climbed into her car and began driving home. As she approached the railroad crossing, she stopped as the lights flashed indicating that a train was coming. She sighed and waited impatiently.

Her phone sprang to life and connected with her car’s onboard computer. It quickly bypassed the braking system, and the car began to slowly roll forward. In a fit of panic, Stacy reached for the door handle just as the locks went down and sealed her inside. The car continued to roll onto the tracks as she struggled to get out.

She looked out the passenger window and noticed the train lights approaching from around the bend as she struggled to break the glass to get out. The engineer tried to apply the brakes as quickly as he could, but he had no time to stop by the time he had seen her car on the tracks.

The train slammed into her car at 50 MPH dragging it along the tracks in front of it before it finally burst into flames.

Cassie woke in the morning and came down for breakfast only to notice her mother white as a sheet. “I just can’t believe it,” she said as she looked up at Cassie. “Another girl from your school died last night after that candlelight vigil.”

“Once again,” the reporter on the screen said, “another girl, 17-year-old Stacy Beacham was killed last night when her car apparently stalled on the train tracks at Madison Street, this just after 16-year-old Deborah Stratton’s body was discovered at the town’s high school frozen to death in a freezer. Both are being called tragic accidents.”

Cassie looked at her mother, “oh it’s so horrible,” she said. She turned to go back upstairs and smiled a slight smile as she patted the phone in her pocket.

The Beverly Hillbillies – Special Part 27 | Classic Hollywood TV Series

https://youtu.be/TZuE9St9sYs

INTERVIEW: Cruising for a severe bruising

Is China really as terrible as BBC says it is?

BBC is known as British Bullshit Channel the world over! I have a confession to make Up to a decade ago I would tuned on to BBC world service channel when I travel down south from Kuala lumpur towards Singapore without fail. I am an English Educated person who graduated in UK umpteenth years ago and I still feel comfortable with the British accents and loved to hear some creative journalism!

Yes you may want to know about the BBC world service? It was meant to quell communism and indoctrinate Singaporean and Southern Malayan peninsular people from the colonial days. Somehow Singapore allowed them to function till today. As I began searching for truths and facts I find it hilarious that every single word coming out from BBC on China is a hateful narrative is nothing but an outright lie and it is twisted to suite the Anglo Saxon narrative. Some decades ago I totally turned and tuned off from BBC.

It is really shameful and pathetic attempt to slur and demonised China and the Chinese race! I am sure I am not the only one who feels that way about BBC reporting. Last week I saw a podcast that exposed a BBC reporter intentionally baiting relatives of the victim of a disgruntled man due to his divorce proceedings at the time when many people were grieving. It is so heartbreaking to see the man calling him and his videographer from reporting and filming being turned by BBC into a purported police officer hiding truths.

The world must stop BBC doing shit against innocent people worldwide and throw their reporters to 30 years imprisonment each to teach them a lesson. L laws should be passed to sentence them to death for their crimes against humanity.

About A Girl

Submitted into Contest #115 in response to: Write a story where a device goes haywire.… view prompt

Philip Dmitriev

«Look, I understand… yes… yes… but I don’t have any money right now… Yes, I understand… Look, let’s discuss it in person, it’s not convenient over the phone…»

Henry didn’t have time to finish the sentence, the phone slipped out of his wet hands and fell right down the drain.

«Wonderful… beautiful rain. How I love this rain!»

***

“Mom, I’m home,” Henry said.

“Hey, how was your day?”

“It was a good day, but I drowned my phone.”

“What did you say? What are you going to do now? How are you going to live without it?”

“I don’t know, but I think I’ll be fine.”

“Are you going somewhere with your friends tomorrow, aren’t you? How are you going to keep in touch with me and the others?” my mom asked.

“I’ll text them on the computer, but I don’t know, I don’t have the money for a new phone.”

“All people are like people, except you” Mom concluded.

***

It was a sunny afternoon when Henry met up with his friends. They were going to visit one of the ancient World War II fortresses.

“That’s funny, and how are you going to be without a phone now?”

“Look, I don’t know, people lived somehow, so I’m gonna try.”

“Henry, for God sake, do not get lost, because the fortress is big, a lot of museums, halls and places. How are we going to find you?”

“All right, do not worry, mates” Henry replied.

“If you get lost, you know where our car is,” concluded one of the friends.

The fortress was truly unique and rich in historical events. Ancient fortress walls with bullet marks, traces from former trenches, memorials and monuments. The old bunker attracted the most Henry’s attention. Henry reached into his pocket automatically for his phone. Missed.

“Oh, right… Okay, there will be no photos..damn” thought Henry.

The first museum, the second, the crowds of tourists with cameras, phones, headphones, one thing led to another, and Henry did not notice how he lost his friends in the crowd. Attempts to find them were unsuccessful and Henry continued to explore the fortress alone.

As he walked out of one enclosure onto the street, Henry smiled at the sunny day and clear weather and then decided to walk to the most important place of this fortress. The place was popular because it had the most beautiful view of the main entrance to the fortress, with a large square and a memorial to the fallen defenders.

Today, the place was a welcome sight for everyone. Everyone but Henry. Lost in the crowd of friends, he stood in despair, watching all the people who came up, posed, took pictures, laughed and left. Henry lost track of time, his thoughts drifting off into that universe where he probably has a phone at this point to call his friends, find them, and then take a photo together. This effect lasted until the most beautiful voice, comparable to that of Lana Del Rey in the song “Summertime Sadness” called out to him and then tapped him on the back.

Henry turned around.

“Excuse me, aren’t you busy, can you take a picture of me?”

Henry froze, as did everything inside him. All feelings, emotions, thoughts, and heartbeats froze and stopped responding in an instant. There was a dead silence. But in a second, they were all waking up again at an accelerated pace. The most frantic pace of Henry’s life. The moment stretched for him like an eternity of the universe.

“Hey, are you here?” a girl asked.

Standing in front of him was a girl his age, bright as an angel, a little shorter than him, with a beautiful smile. This kind of smile we have of remembering the kindest and the coziest stories of our lives.

“You sleep standing up, don’t you?” she asked and laughed.

“No, no, no, who am I? Not at all! Just wondering…” suddenly came back to life Henry

“Will you take a picture of me?” she asked again, smiling.

“Yeah, sure, no problem.”

“Then here you go,” she handed him the phone.

“Are you ready?” asked Henry.

“Yeah, go ahead.”

He took a few pictures after that she walked quickly over to him and took the phone.

“Thank you,” she said.

“You’re welcome, why not selfies?”

“I don’t like selfies. Who isn’t sick of them yet?”

“That’s right,” Henry pointed out.

For a moment there might have seemed to be an awkward pause between them, but the girl quickly cleared it with a question:

“Why are you standing here alone? Let’s take your picture too” she said and smiled.

Henry was embarrassed.

“Yeah, that’s not a bad idea, but I don’t have anything.”

“What do you mean?” she asked

“I mean…I don’t have-”

She interrupted him.

“Oh, I see, you don’t have a phone or a camera?”

“Yeah, I’m empty.”

“Well that’s weird, he’s standing in the middle of a museum where crowds of tourists come, but he doesn’t have a phone or even a camera. How did this even happen?” she thought to herself

“Life. This is life. It’s just my fun life. Yes, Henry, that’s how it happens. You show up at a museum without your phone, and it’s the kind of day a story happens to you that no one would believe. It’s just embarrassing, what will she think of me? How embarrassing,” Henry thought to himself.

“Look, it’s nothing, let’s take pictures on my phone and then I’ll send them to you, okay? Don’t you have a profile somewhere?” she said.

“Oh…that would be great! Yeah, sure, I have a profile.”

After taking a couple of pictures, Henry walked over to her.

“What’s your name by the way? My name is Henry.”

“Alice” she smiled, moving her glance from the phone screen to Henry.

“Nice to meet you.” Henry smiled

“Me too.” She laughed

Both looked at each other with a smile, and then Henry told her the name of his profile where she could send him pictures.

***

Henry spent more than four hours that day in the fortress, walking from one enclosure to the next, researching all the details and historical references. All this, unfortunately for him, could not be said of Henry’s friends. They had finished their tour of the fortress much earlier and were each beginning to wonder:

Where is Henry?

The boys spent about two hours looking for Henry, they broke up one by one and then walked together again conducting a search for their friend. They had no chance of finding Henry, but their conscience would not allow them to leave him here and go away on their own.

After a while they simply gave up and went back to the car, where Henry was supposed to go in case he was lost. It was early evening and the crowds of people were changing one by one, and they all sat and waited until Henry appeared on the horizon:

“Henry!” shouted one of the friends.

“Coming,” retorted Henry.

“And you think that’s okay?” inquired the friend.

“I’m sorry, guys, for what happened.”

“We had plans today and besides this fortress, and you’ve been there all day, you think that’s okay, don’t you?”

“I understand, it’s my fault. But-”

“No buts, you’re an egotist who thinks only of himself. We’ve been all over the place, where have you been?” insisted one of the friends.

“I’ve been everywhere,” said Henry.

“I have no words, we just wasted a day on that fortress because of you. What was there to look at for so long? Say what?!”

“I’m really sorry,” replied Henry sadly.

“You don’t have a phone, how did you imagine we’d find you? Tell me, how?”

“I don’t know…”

“If you had your phone with you, things would be different, you know? We’ve spent so much time looking for you, you only think of yourself. You could have called us, told us you still wanted to walk around here, we would have come back for you later. It would have been so easy if you had a phone,” one of the friends concluded angrily.

***

Thus ended Henry’s first day without a phone. The first day and already such a ridiculous situation. The thought crawled deeper and deeper into his head that it was impossible to live without a phone nowadays. The only problem was that no one asked him, he just didn’t have a phone anymore. And he didn’t have one in the plans either.

The only bright spot was his introduction to Alice. In a moment of conflict with his friends, he didn’t find a moment to tell them all about it. A couple or three days passed, and Henry was actively chatting with Alice by his computer. The days were approaching Friday, and Henry wanted to see her again, so he decided to ask Alice to meet with him.

***

For several days he thought the idea over. He chose the right words, chose the best day to meet, and finally gathered the strength to ask Alice out. It wasn’t an easy task for a guy like Henry. He was afraid. Especially afraid of getting rejected. Pulling himself together, he opened the chat and wrote to her.

“Hey, Alice, wanna ask something. What are you doing tonight?” asked Henry.

“Busy right now, not at home, but I’ll be free tonight, why are u asking that?”

“I’m going out tonight, will you come with me?” inquired Henry

“Good idea, I’m in” she replied

Henry was incredibly happy that things were working out so well. He was not the kind of guy who found new acquaintances easily, so at this moment he was overwhelmed with a feeling of happiness, and his lungs were even more greedily absorbing the air filled with joy.

“What time would be convenient for you and where?” asked Henry

“I dunno, up to you.”

“How about 10 p.m. at the cinema?” suggested Henry.

“Fine, that’s fine.”

This Friday was going to be legendary in his life. The happiness of spending an evening with a girl he liked had not visited him in a long time in his life.

“Oh, wait, Henry, are you still without your phone?” asked Alice.

“Well yeah, I’m without it.”

“And how are we going to meet up? And what happened with your phone?”

“Look, I’ll just come to the movie theater at 10 p.m., and then I’ll tell you why I don’t have my phone.”

“Okay, but how will I see u there?” she kept asking.

“I’ll be standing right in front, you’ll see me, it’s okay” reassured her Henry

“But if I get there and you’re not there… I don’t know what I’ll do to you!” wrote Alice.

Such a message surprised Henry. A girl who writes in that style is hardly going to not come.

“Do not worry, I won’t screw it up”

Evening was beginning to creep closer and closer to the city. The big red and tired sun reflected in the windows of the high-rise buildings, and the streets were filled with the Friday atmosphere and the people who breathed it. Most of them had made their way to their homes to begin the long-awaited weekend, others had left their apartments in hopes of spending this Friday night at its best. Such was Henry this time.

The pillars called “evening” had been over the city for several hours and night with darkness were stretched on them.

At that moment, anyone who wanted to see farther than the windows of the house across the street could see Henry, who had foreseen all his excitement and had left the house beforehand, so as not to be late in any way.

He bought a bus ticket, which he usually never did in his life, and went to the cinema.

He managed to get there thirty minutes early. During the ride, he stopped worrying perceptibly and got his thoughts together.

Everything was perfect.

The back of the movie theater was hidden in the night and only its facade was illuminated by lanterns under which one could see posters. Henry asked someone what time is it and began to wait.

On the door of the movie theater was written, “Open from 10 a.m to 10 p.m”

That was his reference point.

When the movie theater would close – Alice would have to come.

Time passed, and Henry walked from side to side down the lonely street. People were watching a movie at the cinema, so there were no people outside the cinema, except for one guy besides Henry.

After a while he turned to Henry.

“Listen, do you have Internet on your phone? I really need it.”

Henry turned around.

“Nope, sorry.”

It was ten o’clock and the movie theater closed. The lights that illuminated the posters turned off.

Alice was running late.

It was at this point that Henry’s sense of longing overwhelmed him. From standing around like a fool for more than thirty minutes to the fact that he had no phone.

“Why don’t I have a phone at such an important time? Why?! This life is full of surprises. How wonderful it is. I have no words. If I had my phone, I’d text or call her right now. Find out why she’s late, maybe she’s not coming at all. I mean, she was going to come. I was sure of it. What went wrong? How much longer would I have to stand? Maybe she took my invitation as a joke. Is she just laughing at me? I still don’t believe she’s not coming. I’ll keep waiting.” pondered Henry to himself.

In the toothless darkness he could only see the light from the phone held by the guy who had asked Henry about the Internet.

Henry, on the other hand, stood without any light in the dead silence.

That same legendary Friday was almost ruined.

“Look, are you waiting for someone or what?” the guy suddenly asked Henry.

To say that Henry was surprised by the question is to say nothing.

He tried to answer something.

“Yeah…you could say that.”

“Can I give you the phone? You can call to.” the guy suggested.

That’s certainly a good suggestion. Especially if you have a number. Her number.

“Thanks, but I don’t remember the number,” replied Henry.

The guy didn’t give up. Something moved him to help Henry. Something unknown. Maybe it was Lady Luck.

“I caught some internet, maybe you’ll write then?” the guy didn’t back down.

“No, thank you very much, but that won’t help.”

Henry couldn’t remember the address of her social networking page. It was a failure.

“What time is it?” asked Henry.

“10:24,” replied the guy.

“Thank you,” said Henry.

Henry looked around the street and realized: Alice was not coming.

This was the end. A sense of sadness and longing drowned not only this Friday night, but also Henry’s heart and feelings. All the organs inside clenched in horror at the sadness that filled Henry’s entire body.

He doesn’t care anymore about all these decorations and colors of such a beautiful evening. All he wanted now was to disappear. Disappear into the world.

Early the next morning Henry left the city and went to the village to visit his grandmother for a few days. To go somewhere where life without a telephone might not have the consequences that had happened to him during that week.

***

Returning home a couple of days later, still without his phone, Henry turned on his computer and saw a message from Alice.

“I am so sorry, Henry, but I overslept! Forgive me.”

He smiled.

Machine Guns vs.Tanks Full Battle Scene | Fury

Some picture from my archives

The Mask | Love In This Club

Why is Donald Trump continuously slamming high tariff rates on China? Does it benefit the USA in any way?

Driven by a staunch belief that a trade war is beneficial for America, Donald Trump’s strategy of imposing high tariffs on China arises from a deep misunderstanding of the complexities of global economic dynamics. By applying his notorious tough negotiation tactics—historically used in his business dealings to pressure smaller contractors—Trump now applies the same brute force in the sphere of international trade. Unfortunately, this approach dramatically oversimplifies the intricate nature of international relations and economic interdependence.

Trump’s tariff strategy is essentially his attempt to leverage what he perceives as America’s superior economic position to force China into submission. During his business career, Trump often bullied his way through negotiations, betting on the other party’s weaker position to secure a favorable outcome. He seems to believe that a similar approach will work on the global stage with a nation like China. However, this strategy fails to account for China’s significant economic capabilities and its political leadership’s resolve to not bend under U.S. pressure.

The ongoing imposition of high tariffs by Trump reflects his misjudgment of the situation—treating international trade like a zero-sum game where one country’s gain is inherently another’s loss. Unlike the small businesses he dealt with in New York, China has considerable economic clout and political strategies at its disposal. This includes the ability to impose retaliatory tariffs that deeply affect both economies, exemplified by disruptions witnessed in sectors ranging from agriculture to manufacturing within the U.S.

Moreover, tariffs, which are effectively taxes, not only affect the targeted foreign industries but also hurt domestic consumers and businesses. American consumers face higher prices, and businesses dealing with increased costs for imported goods find themselves less competitive, both domestically and globally. The retaliatory measures from China have also targeted critical segments of the American economy, from soybean farmers to electronics, illustrating a ripple effect that spans vast economic landscapes.

The truth is, while Trump aims to display unwavering strength and decisiveness, his tariff tactics could ultimately weaken the U.S. economy and degrade its political stature on the global stage. Navigating this tariff war requires more than bluster and intimidation—it needs a strategic understanding of global economic relationships and a more diplomatic approach to resolve conflicts in ways that mutually benefit all involved parties. The approach should prioritize long-term global stability over short-term political gains, a strategy that would genuinely reflect strength and wise leadership.

Cast Away – ending

Heartbreak Ridge | We’re Going To War, Men

Scott Ritter : How Close to Nuclear War?

ATM

Submitted into Contest #115 in response to: Write a story where a device goes haywire.… view prompt

Kendall Defoe

It began at the local variety store.Overnight, someone or some company installed a portable ATM on the front stoop of Michael’s Convenience Store. Old Man Michael, who only opened the store on weekdays, did not see what happened on the previous weekend. He did not remember placing a call to have it put there, and he knew that there was still a local bank that had their machines “well up and robbing us” (as he said to any of the familiar customers who asked about it). There was no phone or serial number on it (he looked around it twice), but he could see that it was connected to the main power grid – not taking power from his store and raising his bills, he thought – and he left it there, untouched and he was unimpressed. Let them charge whatever they want if people are that dumb. He opened his store and waited to see if he would have to explain what was going on outside.It took a few days before anyone noticed what was going on. A local trucker, Matt, decided to not use “those damn debit cards all the time, if he didn’t haveta,” and took out some money for cigarettes. After he got his $20 – with no service fee; nice, he thought – the machine gave him his card…and an extra $100. He looked over the slip that popped out. No, not from his account. That was all the machine. A beautiful hundred dollar bill was resting on the tray. Guess I got lucky. He did not bother to go in for the cigarettes that night. He could hit a liquor store later and maybe see if there was a good place to eat on his route.Matt did not share his good luck, but others soon figured out what the machine could do. A group of kids, right out of school and waiting to see if there were any adults around to buy them cigarettes noticed the machine right away. One of them started to press a couple of buttons while they were trying to hide from Old Man Michael and his curiosity. That was David, the son of a local carpenter who was having trouble with his bills. And, without a card of any kind, the machine gave him a clean and unwrinkled $50. Pretty soon, they all took their turn on it, grabbing $20s and $10s and a few more $50 before the owner came out with his dog, a really nasty old terrier, and threatened to “rip them a new one” if they did not leave. But they were done. The machine hummed in the soft light of the store and street lamps.A week after the machine was installed, it became the talk of the small town. Kids knew that they could get money out of it without using a card, a secret that worked out well for the local schools until one girl snitched when her mother found her new cell phone and demanded to know how she paid for it. Soon, it was declared off limits to anyone “under the age of 18”. At a town hall meeting held after this law was passed, many wanted to know how they would enforce the law if the machine was plugged in and ran all day. No one wanted to argue about this, and Old Man Michael did not want to lose any business provided by the new machine. They all adjourned and wondered if there was some reason why this was happening in their small town.It was easy to see what some of the problems would be with a machine that spat out money every time you needed some (or did not really need any of it). After a month of the machine in their town, it was impossible to ignore certain signs. One thing that a few store owners did not like was the fact that the local teens did not want to work part-time for what they paid. It was at the end of the school term for both elementary and secondary schools. Some of the local college kids would also stay on, but they only did so if they could find work. Or money. Parents knew that their kids were taking money from the machine and were upset. At least, most of them were. A few were relieved not to have to let their sons and daughters out there looking for jobs cleaning out homes of certain people (there were a few stories about the Pattersons, especially that uncle who was always around for the holidays, staring at the local girls from the high school). Others were just glad that they would not have to hand over allowances for late nights of missing cars, calls from the local police or neighbours who had very familiar scenes on their front lawns and backyards. Mrs. Murray had a son away at school and when she revealed what happened in the town, he told her that he would be at home that summer and maybe for few other summers, too. The mayor decided to let the machine stay running, but it was growing into a problem. It was a problem that he was hearing more and more about.At the bank, tellers noticed that they were busier than ever before. It seemed that people did not want to use any of the other local banking machines. A rumour began to spread that the money would not be accepted in the ATMs provided for the community (all three of the machines left for the town). The companies that built the machines contacted the bank manager, Mr. Dennison, who in turned told his staff that they would be on reduced hours until the machines were in use again (a few people threatened to quit; some had already made quite a bit of money from the new machine). Mr. Dennison, in the middle of a bad breakup and looking at his tax return, decided to call the mayor. They had been friends since grade school, sharing the same bus when they went to the high school and even dating each other siblings (Maura was the one breaking Mr. Dennison’s heart; why didn’t Martin tell me what she was really like, he thought). The mayor had a moment to himself before he decided what to do.

*

It was another town meeting, but reserved for certain people who had a vested interest in putting things back to normal. The mayor invited the chief of police (his brother, another Patterson, kept an eye on who entered the office), Mr. Dennison (of course), certain vice-principals and principals (strange to see them at this time of day), certain business owners (including Old Man Michael, who never showed up), and a few others that could be trusted. It was not official. It was not on the record. And it was not held at city hall.

It was a very private meeting.

 

They waited for the weekend and then set out late on a Friday night to finally fix things. They all decided to walk in the darkness to the store and see if there were any potential witnesses before they began. In the dim street lights, they could see no traffic. Matt complained that they could have done all of this with his truck if they had just listened to him (he wanted to show off the new vehicle he had bought that month). They ignored him, as they ignored the chief of police’s calling for them to do it quickly before he had to arrest them (the other Pattersons in the group laughed out loud).

The lights were out over the store. Had Old Man Michael left without anyone noticing? That did not seem possible, and as they got closer, they had to agree that even if it was impossible, it had happened. There was no car in his yard (he never seemed to use the money for buying a new one or repairing what he had). Even the lights in front of the store were off (where were his security lights, thought Mr. Dennison out loud; he always had them working). If they had been on, they would have noticed what they could not see from a distance.

The ATM was gone.

The mayor ran ahead of the group, sweating with the effort and dropping his wire cutters as he saw the scratches on the wooden boardwalk. Everyone noticed that the cable that hooked up the machine to the city grid was cut through and left as a reminder of what was once there. They walked around the store property, looking through some of the nearby forest where they could see no trace of any struggle with such an awkward machine. The best guess was that Michael had taken the machine and decided to skip out of town with “his own personal moneymaker” (the mayor really did not like Matt, but he admitted he must have been right). They noted the time, went home, and decided to not talk about what they had done that night.

The summer ended, kids went back to school, and Old Man Michael’s store stayed closed. It was later taken over by a well-known discount chain store. If they had been paying attention, they would have known that this was the real problem that they should have been concerned about, not a machine handing out money. But they shopped there all the same, wondering what happened to the machine that they now missed. And also Old Man Michael, who had taken his share of money, decided to leave, and was almost forgotten by the town. It was just fortunate that the ATM was forgotten by the company, despite being listed as “a brave experiment in money distribution” by certain executives testing the water in various small towns in the country. They would have found the whole process quite fascinating.

Chicken and Dressing Casserole

Ingredients

• 1 cup thinly chopped celery
• 1 large onion, thinly chopped
• 1/2 stick butter
• 1 can cream of chicken soup
• 1 can cream of celery soup
• 1 can chicken broth
• 4 chicken breasts
• 2 to 3 teaspoons sage
• Salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Make one 8 inch square pan of cornbread the day before.
2. Cook chicken pieces in water with salt and pepper until done. Cool, then cut into small pieces.
3. Cook celery and onion in butter until tender. Crumble cornbread into large bowl.
4. Mix celery and onion and chicken pieces all together with cornbread.
5. Mix all 3 soups into the mixture.
6. Add up to 3 teaspoons sage, salt and pepper to taste. Pour into large baking dish.
7. Bake at 350 degrees F until done, about 30 minutes, until lightly browned on top.
8. Serve with chicken gravy ladled over servings, with cranberry sauce on the side.

Apocalypto jaguar vrs jaguar paw