Bag of Bones CHAPTER FIVE

Once, when I was sixteen, a plane went supersonic directly over my head. I was walking in the woods when it happened, thinking of some story I was going to write, perhaps, or how great it would be if Doreen Fournier weakened some Friday night and let me take off her panties while we were parked at the end of Cushman Road. In any case I was travelling far roads in my own mind, and when that boom went off, I was caught totally by surprise. I went flat on the leafy ground with my hands over my head and my heart drumming crazily, sure I'd reached the end of my life (and while I was still a virgin). In my forty years, that was the only thing which equalled the final dream of the ‘Manderley series' for utter terror. I lay on the ground, waiting for the hammer to fall, and when thirty seconds or so passed and no hammer did fall, I began to realize it had just been some jet-jockey from the Brunswick Naval Air Station, too eager to wait until he was out over the Atlantic before going to Mach 1. But, holy shit, who ever could have guessed that it would be so loud? I got slowly to my feet and as I stood there with my heart finally slowing down, I realized I wasn't the only thing that had been scared witless by that sudden clear-sky boom. For the first time in my memory, the little patch of woods behind our house in Prout's Neck was entirely silent. I stood there in a dusty bar of sunlight, crumbled leaves all over my tee-shirt and jeans, holding my breath, listening. I had never heard a silence like it. Even on a cold day in January, the woods would have been full of conversation. At last a finch sang. There were two or three seconds of silence, and then a jay replied. Another two or three seconds went by, and then a crow added his two cents' worth. A woodpecker began to hammer for grubs. A chipmunk bumbled through some underbrush on my left. A minute after I had stood up, the woods were fully alive with little noises again; it was back to business as usual, and I continued with my own. I never forgot that unexpected boom, though, or the deathly silence which followed it. I thought of that June day often in the wake of the nightmare, and there was nothing so remarkable in that. Things had changed, somehow, or could change . . . but first comes silence while we assure ourselves that we are still unhurt and that the danger if there was danger is gone. Derry was shut down for most of the following week, anyway. Ice and high winds caused a great deal of damage during the storm, and a sudden twenty-degree plunge in the temperature afterward made the digging out hard and the cleanup slow. Added to that, the atmosphere after a March storm is always dour and pessimistic; we get them up this way every year (and two or three in April for good measure, if we're not lucky), but we never seem to expect them. Every time we get clouted, we take it personally. On a day toward the end of that week, the weather finally started to break. I took advantage, going out for a cup of coffee and a mid-morning pastry at the little restaurant three doors down from the Rite Aid where Johanna did her last errand. I was sipping and chewing and working the newspaper crossword when someone asked, ‘Could I share your booth, Mr. Noonan? It's pretty crowded in here today.' I looked up and saw an old man that I knew but couldn't quite place. ‘Ralph Roberts,' he said. ‘I volunteer down at the Red Cross. Me and my wife, Lois.' ‘Oh, okay, sure,' I said. I give blood at the Red Cross every six weeks or so. Ralph Roberts was one of the old parties who passed out juice and cookies afterward, telling you not to get up or make any sudden movements if you felt woozy. ‘Please, sit down.' He looked at my paper, folded open to the crossword and lying in a patch of sun, as he slid into the booth. ‘Don't you find that doing the crossword in the Derry News is sort of like striking out the pitcher in a baseball game?' he asked. I laughed and nodded. ‘I do it for the same reason folks climb Mount Everest, Mr. Roberts . . . because it's there. Only with the News crossword, no one ever falls off.' ‘Call me Ralph. Please.' ‘Okay. And I'm Mike.' ‘Good.' He grinned, revealing teeth that were crooked and a little yellow, but all his own. ‘I like getting to the first names. It's like being able to take off your tie. Was quite a little cap of wind we had, wasn't it?' ‘Yes,' I said, ‘but it's warming up nicely now.' The thermometer had made one of its nimble March leaps, climbing from twenty-five degrees the night before to fifty that morning. Better than the rise in air-temperature, the sun was warm again on your face. It was that warmth that had coaxed me out of the house. ‘Spring'll get here, I guess. Some years it gets a little lost, but it always seems to find its way back home.' He sipped his coffee, then set the cup down. ‘Haven't seen you at the Red Cross lately.' ‘I'm recycling,' I said, but that was a fib; I'd come eligible to give another pint two weeks ago. The reminder card was up on the refrigerator. It had just slipped my mind. ‘Next week, for sure.' ‘I only mention it because I know you're an A, and we can always use that.' ‘Save me a couch.' ‘Count on it. Everything going all right? I only ask because you look tired. If it's insomnia, I can sympathize, believe me.' He did have the look of an insomniac, I thought too wide around the eyes, somehow. But he was also a man in his mid- to late seventies, and I don't think anyone gets that far without showing it. Stick around a little while, and life maybe only jabs at your cheeks and eyes. Stick around a long while and you end up looking like Jake La Motta after a hard fifteen. I opened my mouth to say what I always do when someone asks me if I'm all right, then wondered why I always felt I had to pull that tiresome Marlboro Man shit, just who I was trying to fool. What did I think would happen if I told the guy who gave me a chocolate-chip cookie down at the Red Cross after the nurse took the needle out of my arm that I wasn't feeling a hundred percent? Earthquakes? Fire and flood? Shit. ‘No,' I said, ‘I really haven't been feeling so great, Ralph.' ‘Flu? It's been going around.' ‘Nah. The flu missed me this time, actually. And I've been sleeping all right.' Which was true there had been no recurrence of the Sara Laughs dream in either the normal or the high-octane version. ‘I think I've just got the blues.' ‘Well, you ought to take a vacation,' he said, then sipped his coffee. When he looked up at me again, he frowned and set his cup down. ‘What? Is something wrong?' No, I thought of saying. You were just the first bird to sing into the silence, Ralph, that's all. ‘No, nothing wrong,' I said, and then, because I sort of wanted to see how the words tasted coming out of my own mouth, I repeated them. ‘A vacation.' ‘Ayuh,' he said, smiling. ‘People do it all the time.' People do it all the time. He was right about that; even people who couldn't strictly afford to went on vacation. When they got tired. When they got all balled up in their own shit. When the world was too much with them, getting and spending. I could certainly afford a vacation, and I could certainly take the time off from work what work, ha-ha? and yet I'd needed the Red Cross cookie-man to point out what should have been self-evident to a college-educated guy like me: that I hadn't been on an actual vacation since Jo and I had gone to Bermuda, the winter before she died. My particular grindstone was no longer turning, but I had kept my nose to it all the same. It wasn't until that summer, when I read Ralph Roberts's obituary in the News (he was struck by a car), that I fully realized how much I owed him. That advice was better than any glass of orange juice I ever got after giving blood, let me tell you. When I left the restaurant, I didn't go home but tramped over half of the damned town, the section of newspaper with the partly completed crossword puzzle in it clamped under one arm. I walked until I was chilled in spite of the warming temperatures. I didn't think about anything, and yet I thought about everything. It was a special kind of thinking, the sort I'd always done when I was getting close to writing a book, and although I hadn't thought that way in years, I fell into it easily and naturally, as if I had never been away. It's like some guys with a big truck have pulled up in your driveway and are moving things into your basement. I can't explain it any better than that. You can't see what these things are because they're all wrapped up in padded quilts, but you don't need to see them. It's furniture, everything you need to make your house a home, make it just right, just the way you wanted it. When the guys have hopped back into their truck and driven away, you go down to the basement and walk around (the way I went walking around Derry that late morning, slopping up hill and down dale in my old galoshes), touching a padded curve here, a padded angle there. Is this one a sofa? Is that' one a dresser? It doesn't matter. Everything is here, the movers didn't forget a thing, and although you'll have to get it all upstairs yourself (straining your poor old back in the process, more often than not), that's okay. The important thing is that the delivery was complete. This time I thought hoped the delivery truck had brought the stuff I needed for the back forty: the years I might have to spend in a No Writing Zone. To the cellar door they had come, and they had knocked politely, and when after several months there was still no answer, they had finally fetched a battering ram. HEY BUDDY, HOPE THE NOISE DIDN'T SCARE YOU TOO BAD, SORRY ABOUT THE DOOR! I didn't care about the door; I cared about the furniture. Any pieces broken or missing? I didn't think so. I thought all I had to do was get it upstairs, pull off the furniture pads, and put it where it belonged. On my way back home, I passed The Shade, Derry's charming little revival movie house, which has prospered in spite of (or perhaps because of) the video revolution. This month they were showing classic SF from the fifties, but April was dedicated to Humphrey Bogart, Jo's all-time favorite. I stood under the marquee for several moments, studying one of the Coming Attractions posters. Then I went home, picked a travel agent pretty much at random from the phone book, and told the guy I wanted to go to Key Largo. Key West, you mean, the guy said. No, I told him, I mean Key Largo, just like in the movie with Bogie and Bacall. Three weeks. Then I rethought that. I was wealthy, I was on my own, and I was retired. What was this ‘three weeks' shit? Make it six, I said. Find me a cottage or something. Going to be expensive, he said. I told him I didn't care. When I came back to Derry, it would be spring. In the meantime, I had some furniture to unwrap. I was enchanted with Key Largo for the first month and bored out of my mind for the last two weeks. I stayed, though, because boredom is good. People with a high tolerance for boredom can get a lot of thinking done. I ate about a billion shrimp, drank about a thousand margaritas, and read twenty-three John D. MacDonald novels by actual count. I burned, peeled, and finally tanned. I bought a long-billed cap with PARROTHEAD printed on it in bright green thread. I walked the same stretch of beach until I knew everybody by first name. And I unwrapped furniture. A lot of it I didn't like, but there was no doubt that it all fit the house. I thought about Jo and our life together. I thought about saying to her that no one was ever going to confuse Being Two with Look Homeward, Angel. ‘You aren't going to pull a lot of frustrated-artist crap on me, are you, Noonan?' she had replied . . . and during my time on Key Largo, those words kept coming back, always in Jo's voice: crap, frustrated-artist crap, all that fucking schoolboy frustrated-artist crap. I thought about her long red woods apron, coming to me with a hatful of black trumpet mushrooms, laughing and triumphant: ‘Nobody on the TR eats better than the Noonans tonight!' she'd cried. I thought of her painting her toenails, bent over between her own thighs in the way only women doing that particular piece of business can manage. I thought of her throwing a book at me because I laughed at some new haircut. I thought of her trying to learn how to play a breakdown on her banjo and of how she looked braless in a thin sweater. I thought of her crying and laughing and angry. I thought of her telling me it was crap, all that frustrated-artist crap. And I thought about the dreams, especially the culminating dream. I could do that easily, because it never faded as the more ordinary ones do. The final Sara Laughs dream and my very first wet dream (coming upon a girl lying naked in a hammock and eating a plum) are the only two that remain perfectly clear to me, year after year; the rest are either hazy fragments or completely forgotten. There were a great many clear details to the Sara dreams the loons, the crickets, the evening star and my wish upon it, just to name a few but I thought most of those things were just verisimilitude. Scene-setting, if you will. As such, they could be dismissed from my considerations. That left three major elements, three large pieces of furniture to be unwrapped. As I sat on the beach, watching the sun go down between my sandy toes, I didn't think you had to be a shrink to see how those three things went together. In the Sara dreams, the major elements were the woods behind me, the house below me, and Michael Noonan himself, frozen in the middle. It's getting dark and there's danger in the woods. It will be frightening to go to the house below, perhaps because it's been empty so long, but I never doubt I must go there; scary or not, it's the only shelter I have. Except I can't do it. I can't move. I've got writer's walk. In the nightmare I am finally able to go toward shelter, only the shelter proves false. Proves more dangerous than I had ever expected in my . . . well, yes, in my wildest dreams. My dead wife rushes out, screaming and still tangled in her shroud, to attack me. Even five weeks later and almost three thousand miles from Derry, remembering that speedy white thing with its baggy arms would make me shiver and look back over my shoulder. But was it Johanna? I didn't really know, did I? The thing was all wrapped up. The coffin looked like the one in which she had been buried, true, but that might just be misdirection. Writer's walk, writer's block. I can't write, I told the voice in the dream. The voice says I can. The voice says the writer's block is gone, and I believe it because the writer's walk is gone, I'm finally headed down the driveway, going to shelter. I'm afraid, though. Even before the shapeless white thing makes its appearance, I'm terrified. I say it's Mrs. Danvers I'm afraid of, but that's just my dreaming mind getting Sara Laughs and Manderley all mixed up. I'm afraid of ‘I'm afraid of writing,' I heard myself saying out loud. ‘I'm afraid to even try.' This was the night before I finally flew back to Maine, and I was half-past sober, going on drunk. By the end of my vacation, I was drinking a lot of evenings. ‘It's not the block that scares me, it's undoing the block. I'm really fucked, boys and girls. I'm fucked big-time.' Fucked or not, I had an idea I'd finally reached the heart of the matter. I was afraid of undoing the block, maybe afraid of picking up the strands of my life and going on without Jo. Yet some deep part of my mind believed I must do it; that's what the menacing noises behind me in the woods were about. And belief counts for a lot. Too much, maybe, especially if you're imaginative. When an imaginative person gets into mental trouble, the line between seeming and being has a way of disappearing. Things in the woods, yes, sir. I had one of them right there in my hand as I was thinking these things. I lifted my drink, holding it toward the western sky so that the setting sun seemed to be burning in the glass. I was drinking a lot, and maybe that was okay on Key Largo hell, people were supposed to drink a lot on vacation, it was almost the law but I'd been drinking too much even before I left. The kind of drinking that could get out of hand in no time at all. The kind that could get a man in trouble. Things in the woods, and the potentially safe place guarded by a scary bugbear that was not my wife, but perhaps my wife's memory. It made sense, because Sara Laughs had always been Jo's favorite place on earth. That thought led to another, one that made me swing my legs over the side of the chaise I'd been reclining on and sit up in excitement. Sara Laughs had also been the place where the ritual had begun . . . champagne, last line, and the all-important benediction: Well, then, that's all right, isn't it? Did I want things to be all right again? Did I truly want that? A month or a year before I mightn't have been sure, but now I was. The answer was yes. I wanted to move on let go of my dead wife, rehab my heart, move on. But to do that, I'd have to go back. Back to the log house. Back to Sara Laughs. ‘Yeah,' I said, and my body broke out in gooseflesh. ‘Yeah, you got it.' So why not? The question made me feel as stupid as Ralph Roberts's observation that I needed a vacation. If I needed to go back to Sara Laughs now that my vacation was over, indeed why not? It might be a little scary the first night or two, a hangover from my final dream, but just being there might dissolve the dream faster. And (this last thought I allowed in only one humble corner of my conscious mind) something might happen with my writing. It wasn't likely . . . but it wasn't impossible, either. Barring a miracle, hadn't that been my thought on New Year's Day as I sat on the rim of the tub, holding a damp washcloth to the cut on my forehead? Yes. Barring a miracle. Sometimes blind people fall down, knock their heads, and regain their sight. Sometimes maybe cripples are able to throw their crutches away when they get to the top of the church steps. I had eight or nine months before Harold and Debra started really bugging me for the next novel. I decided to spend the time at Sara Laughs. It would take me a little while to tie things up in Derry, and awhile for Bill Dean to get the house on the lake ready for a year-round resident, but I could be down there by the Fourth of July, easily. I decided that was a good date to shoot for, not just the birthday of our country, but pretty much the end of bug season in western Maine. By the day I packed up my vacation gear (the John D. MacDonald paperbacks I left for the cabin's next inhabitant), shaved a week's worth of stubble off a face so tanned it no longer looked like my own to me, and flew back to Maine, I was decided: I'd go back to the place my subconscious mind had identified as shelter against the deepening dark; I'd go back even though my mind had also suggested that doing so would not be without risks. I would not go back expecting Sara to be Lourdes . . . but I would allow myself to hope, and when I saw the evening star peeping out over the lake for the first time, I would allow myself to wish on it. Only one thing didn't fit into my neat deconstruction of the Sara dreams, and because I couldn't explain it, I tried to ignore it. I didn't have much luck, though; part of me was still a writer, I guess, and a writer is a man who has taught his mind to misbehave. It was the cut on the back of my hand. That cut had been in all the dreams, I would swear it had . . . and then it had actually appeared. You didn't get that sort of shit in the works of Dr. Freud; stuff like that was strictly for the Psychic Friends hotline. It was a coincidence, that's all, I thought as my plane started its descent. I was in seat A-2 (the nice thing about flying up front is that if the plane goes down, you're first to the crash site) and looking at pine forests as we slipped along the glidepath toward Bangor International Airport. The snow was gone for another year; I had vacationed it to death. Only coincidence. How many times have you cut your hands? I mean, they're always out front, aren't they, waving themselves around? Practically begging for it. All that should have rung true, and yet somehow it didn't, quite. It should have, but . . . well . . . It was the boys in the basement. They were the ones who didn't buy it. The boys in the basement didn't buy it at all. At that point there was a thump as the 737 touched down, and I put the whole line of thought out of my mind. One afternoon shortly after arriving back home, I rummaged the closets until I found the shoeboxes containing Jo's old photographs. I sorted them, then studied my way through the ones of Dark Score Lake. There were a staggering number of these, but because Johanna was the shutterbug, there weren't many with her in them. I found one, though, that I remembered taking in 1990 or '91. Sometimes even an untalented photographer can take a good picture if seven hundred monkeys spent seven hundred years bashing away at seven hundred typewriters, and all that and this was good. In it Jo was standing on the float with the sun going down red-gold behind her. She was just out of the water, dripping wet, wearing a two-piece swimming suit, gray with red piping. I had caught her laughing and brushing her soaked hair back from her forehead and temples. Her nipples were very prominent against the cups of her halter. She looked like an actress on a movie poster for one of those guilty-pleasure B-pictures about monsters at Party Beach or a serial killer stalking the campus. I was sucker-punched by a sudden powerful lust for her. I wanted her upstairs just as she was in that photograph, with strands of her hair pasted to her cheeks and that wet bathing suit clinging to her. I wanted to suck her nipples through the halter top, taste the cloth and feel their hardness through it. I wanted to suck water out of the cotton like milk, then yank the bottom of her suit off and fuck her until we both exploded. Hands shaking a little, I put the photograph aside, with some others I liked (although there were no others I liked in quite that same way). I had a huge hard-on, one of those ones that feel like stone covered with skin. Get one of those and until it goes away you are good for nothing. The quickest way to solve a problem like that when there's no woman around willing to help you solve it is to masturbate, but that time the idea never even crossed my mind. Instead I walked restlessly through the upstairs rooms of my house with my fists opening and closing and what looked like a hood ornament stuffed down the front of my jeans. Anger may be a normal stage of the grieving process I've read that it is but I was never angry at Johanna in the wake of her death until the day I found that picture. Then, wow. There I was, walking around with a boner that just wouldn't quit, furious with her. Stupid bitch, why had she been running on one of the hottest days of the year? Stupid, inconsiderate bitch to leave me alone like this, not even able to work. I sat down on the stairs and wondered what I should do. A drink was what I should do, I decided, and then maybe another drink to scratch the first one's back. I actually got up before deciding that wasn't a very good idea at all. I went into my office instead, turned on the computer, and did a crossword puzzle. That night when I went to bed, I thought of looking at the picture of Jo in her bathing suit again. I decided that was almost as bad an idea as a few drinks when I was feeling angry and depressed. But I'll have the dream tonight, I thought as I turned off the light. I'll have the dream for sure. I didn't, though. My dreams of Sara Laughs seemed to be finished. A week's thought made the idea of at least summering at the lake seem better than ever. So, on a Saturday afternoon in early May when I calculated that any self-respecting Maine caretaker would be home watching the Red Sox, I called Bill Dean and told him I'd be at my lake place from the Fourth of July or so . . . and that if things went as I hoped, I'd be spending the fall and winter there as well. ‘Well, that's good,' he said. ‘That's real good news. A lot of folks down here've missed you, Mike. Quite a few that want to condole with you about your wife, don't you know.' Was there the faintest note of reproach in his voice, or was that just my imagination? Certainly Jo and I had cast a shadow in the area; we had made significant contributions to the little library which served the Motton-Kashwakamak-Castle View area, and Jo had headed the successful fund drive to get an area bookmobile up and running. In addition to that, she had been part of a ladies' sewing circle (afghans were her specialty), and a member in good standing of the Castle County Crafts Co-op. Visits to the sick . . . helping out with the annual volunteer fire department blood drive . . . womaning a booth during Summerfest in Castle Rock . . . and stuff like that was only where she had started. She didn't do it in any ostentatious Lady Bountiful way, either, but unobtrusively and humbly, with her head lowered (often to hide a rather sharp smile, I should add my Jo had a Biercean sense of humor). Christ, I thought, maybe old Bill had a right to sound reproachful. ‘People miss her,' I said. ‘Ayuh, they do.' ‘I still miss her a lot myself. I think that's why I've stayed away from the lake. That's where a lot of our good times were.' ‘I s'pose so. But it'll be damned good to see you down this way. I'll get busy. The place is all right you could move into it this afternoon, if you was a mind but when a house has stood empty the way Sara has, it gets stale.' ‘I know.' ‘I'll get Brenda Meserve to clean the whole shebang from top to bottom. Same gal you always had, don't you know.' ‘Brenda's a little old for comprehensive spring cleaning, isn't she?' The lady in question was about sixty-five, stout, kind, and gleefully vulgar. She was especially fond of jokes about the travelling salesman who spent the night like a rabbit, jumping from hole to hole. No Mrs. Danvers she. ‘Ladies like Brenda Meserve never get too old to oversee the festivities,' Bill said. ‘She'll get two or three girls to do the vacuuming and heavy lifting. Set you back maybe three hundred dollars. Sound all right?' ‘Like a bargain.' ‘The well needs to be tested, and the gennie, too, although I'm sure both of em's okay. I seen a hornet's nest by Jo's old studio that I want to smoke before the woods get dry. Oh, and the roof of the old house you know, the middle piece needs to be reshingled. I shoulda talked to you about that last year, but with you not using the place, I let her slide. You stand good for that, too?' ‘Yes, up to ten grand. Beyond that, call me.' ‘If we have to go over ten, I'll smile and kiss a pig.' ‘Try to have it all done before I get down there, okay?' ‘Coss. You'll want your privacy, I know that . . . just so long's you know you won't get any right away. We was shocked when she went so young; all of us were. Shocked and sad. She was a dear.' From a Yankee mouth, that word rhymes with Leah. ‘Thank you, Bill.' I felt tears prickle my eyes. Grief is like a drunken house guest, always coming back for one more goodbye hug. ‘Thanks for saying.' ‘You'll get your share of carrot-cakes, chummy.' He laughed, but a little doubtfully, as if afraid he was committing an impropriety. ‘I can eat a lot of carrot-cake,' I said, ‘and if folks overdo it, well, hasn't Kenny Auster still got that big Irish wolfhound?' ‘Yuh, that thing'd eat cake til he busted!' Bill cried in high good humor. He cackled until he was coughing. I waited, smiling a little myself. ‘Blueberry, he calls that dog, damned if I know why. Ain't he the gormiest thing!' I assumed he meant the dog and not the dog's master. Kenny Auster, not much more than five feet tall and neatly made, was the opposite of gormy, that peculiar Maine adjective that means clumsy, awkward, and clay-footed. I suddenly realized that I missed these people Bill and Brenda and Buddy Jellison and Kenny Auster and all the others who lived year-round at the lake. I even missed Blueberry, the Irish wolfhound, who trotted everywhere with his head up just as if he had half a brain in it and long strands of saliva depending from his jaws. ‘I've also got to get down there and clean up the winter blowdown,' Bill said. He sounded embarrassed. ‘It ain't bad this year that last big storm was all snow over our way, thank God but there's still a fair amount of happy crappy I ain't got to yet. I shoulda put it behind me long before now. You not using the place ain't an excuse. I been cashing your checks.' There was something amusing about listening to the grizzled old fart beating his breast; Jo would have kicked her feet and giggled, I'm quite sure. ‘If everything's right and running by July Fourth, Bill, I'll be happy.' ‘You'll be happy as a clam in a mudflat, then. That's a promise.' Bill sounded as happy as a clam in a mudflat himself, and I was glad. ‘Goingter come down and write a book by the water? Like in the old days? Not that the last couple ain't been fine, my wife couldn't put that last one down, but ‘ ‘I don't know,' I said, which was the truth. And then an idea struck me. ‘Bill, would you do me a favor before you clean up the driveway and turn Brenda Meserve loose?' ‘Happy to if I can,' he said, so I told him what I wanted. Four days later, I got a little package with this laconic return address: DEAN/GEN DELIV/TR-90 (DARK SCORE). I opened it and shook out twenty photographs which had been taken with one of those little cameras you use once and then throw away. Bill had filled out the roll with various views of the house, most conveying that subtle air of neglect a place gets when it's not used enough . . . even a place that's caretook (to use Bill's word) gets that neglected feel after awhile. I barely glanced at these. The first four were the ones I wanted, and I lined them up on the kitchen table, where the strong sunlight would fall directly on them. Bill had taken these from the top of the driveway, pointing the disposable camera down at the sprawl of Sara Laughs. I could see the moss which had grown not only on south wings, as well. I could see the litter of fallen branches and the drifts of pine needles on the driveway. Bill must have been tempted to clear all that away before taking his snaps, but he hadn't. I'd told him exactly what I wanted ‘warts and all' was the phrase I had used and Bill had given it to me. The bushes on either side of the driveway had thickened a lot since Jo and I had spent any significant amount of time at the lake; they hadn't exactly run wild, but yes, some of the longer branches did seem to yearn toward each other across the asphalt like separated lovers. Yet what my eye came back to again and again was the stoop at the foot of the driveway. The other resemblances between the photographs and my dreams of Sara Laughs might only be coincidental (or the writer's often surprisingly practical imagination at work), but I could explain the sunflowers growing out through the boards of the stoop no more than I had been able to explain the cut on the back of my hand. I turned one of the photos over. On the back, in a spidery script, Bill had written: These fellows are way early . . . and trespassing! I flipped back to the picture side. Three sunflowers, growing up through the boards of the stoop. Not two, not four, but three large sunflowers with faces like searchlights. Just like the ones in my dream.

Importance of Technology for an English Class Essay

I am a true believer that technology has become part of our daily life, especially when it comes to teaching a Lingua Franca just like the English Language. It is a tool that we as teachers cannot keep isolated; it is there to contribute in the teaching and learning process. However, when talking about teaching English fully online, it may have its advantages as well as its disadvantages. First, I would like to highlight some of the advantages students and teachers may encounter or face when dealing with this type of device. For example, often students work full or part time jobs while going to college so their time is valuable. So these students make some decisions in choosing classes online because these classes give flexibility, so this is convenient for students when not having enough time . In addition, a student can usually take the course any time during the day or week. They can also take the class based on their schedules. Many students work on their course during the middle of the night or early in the morning. The flexibility of the course makes it possible for a person to complete the course, while attending college courses in person might be impossible due to their work schedules. Another great advantage of English online courses is that almost any type of skills can be found online. Distance learning courses are often available from a number of colleges. A person can simply use the Google to find a class. Furthermore, many students enjoy classes on line because they avoid facing the instructor and feel free to ask questions and get answers back almost immediately Online courses are convenient for most undergraduate and graduate students who can study when they want and they can finish writing or researching assignments based on their own personal schedules. The fact is as I mentioned above online courses offer flexibility and convenience that are often vital to students who work and have families. Second, teachers teaching English online have the great advantage of using helpful tools by just clicking on , tools that may help us to keep students interested, motivated and eager to learn. On line teachers have access to so many things that sometimes are not seen in a regular classroom. In many cases, online avoid monotony and the environment is completely different to what we see every single day. I have heard many experiences from teachers and students about teaching online and some of them are good, just a few exceptions . As I mentioned at the beginning, teaching online also has its negative side, for example the lack of supervision, the cost of online courses, which are often expensive. Another disadvantage of online courses is the complete lack of supervision. If a person is not motivated to finish what they start, then it is probably not a good idea to take an online course. While there may be deadlines and expectations from the online course instructor, there is no one there to remind him/her to do the assignments or to take the tests. Besides, a student or teacher who does not have computer or internet skills cannot expect to do well with an online course. A student or teacher taking or giving an online course must have access to a computer. These are two requirements that need to be considered before taking an online course. A large disadvantage in taking online courses is whether they are accepted by other colleges. It is important to check out whether the course will be accepted by others? Who actually offers the course? Does a college offer this course? Another important disadvantage of taking an online course is found in students who have the tendency to procrastinate. Do they procrastinate when it comes to completing their writing assignments? Do they finish their goals? If the answer is yes, then it is probably not a wise idea for them to take an online course. Teaching English online is a great tool for teachers and students who have good skills at computers and internet. For example in our case if we do not have a good command on this , we cannot waste our students` time trying to understand or learn how to use certain tools. That is why we should be prepared for the new modalities in teaching, we have to get updated in order to go at the same speed of our students`. The teaching online demands from teachers and students to have a good computer equipment, as well as good headphones, microphones, etc. for a good development of the class. Finally, everything is possible in teaching it is just a matter of a good preparation to break down the barriers of this century.

Brooklyn (Colm Toibin) Essay

Cultural context reveals the world of the text. It shows us how the world impinges upon the lives of the characters. The novel I have studied is Brooklyn by Colm Toibin. Throughout the text we see many examples of the values of society. The position of women, men and family intrinsically establish the central characters in a specific position. The text has a dual setting between the 1950’s Catholic Ireland and the post world war two world of Brooklyn, America. The two locations help to expose the contrasting values and attitudes of the characters in their world. The role of women in society is vital for my understanding of the cultural context. It is predominantly stereotypical for the time. In both locations, women are subservient, with frequent families being patriarchal. In both locations, a woman’s main desire was ultimately to be married to a wealthy man. This is seen when Nancy and George are in a relationship. Many people respect Nancy at this time because George is from a high class of people, and this is considered to be an achievement for Nancy. At a later date, Nancy marries George and she becomes a well-valued and admired person in society. This is a contrast to Brooklyn, where, often women become educated before starting a family. Eilis’ career opportunities increase while she is in Brooklyn, as she aspires to be an accountant, rather then just a bookkeeper. A main value of women in society was their appearance. We see this in the lengthy preparation for the dances. It plays an important social role in meeting potential husbands. The behavior and values of women at the time is extremely important for the cultural context. Women were expected to adhere to certain moral values. This can be seen in both Ireland and Brooklyn at the dances. In Brooklyn, Eilis dances with Tony and knows she cannot dance with another boy after this. This shows us the attitudes towards women at this time. However, this attitude is felt much stronger in Ireland than Brooklyn. We can see this with Ms. Fortini. She reflects a contrasting attitude, being more independent and modern then the rest of the characters. A key moment in the text, which shows the values women have in society, would be when Ms. Kehoe locks the basement gate of her house. She  does this because she does not approve of the way Eilis acts with Tony. This is a prime example of how women are expected to behave in society. This example is intrinsically linked with the encroaching power of the Catholic Church and the way it shapes the values and attitudes of the characters in the novel. The power of the Catholic Church is clearly evident in the novel. It helps shape the attitudes most of the characters have. The power and influence of Father Flood is distinct throughout the novel. His values of the Church are thou rally respected and admired by everyone in the community. He holds substantial power in both Ireland and Brooklyn, convincing Eilis’ mam to allow her to go to Brooklyn, and getting Eilis a job and a place to stay once she arrived there. In Brooklyn, we see many people know Father Flood, as he was able to get Eilis a place in college, to help further her career. The church also has a controlling aspect on the characters moral values. This is seen with Eilis and Ms. Kehoe’s view on relationships and sex. Their attitude towards relationships are shaped around the beliefs of the Church, an example of this is when Eilis asks Tony to go to confession with her, as she sees sex before marriage as a sin. Ms. Kehoe realizes Tony has been in Eilis’ room soon after this, so she locks the gate to stop this from happening again. In my opinion, the Catholic Church has a substantial influence on Ms. Kehoe compared to Eilis because Eilis marries Tony, but cheats on him in Ireland with Jim. This is against Catholic Church’s teachings but that does not seem to influence Eilis in any way. In the end, she decides to go back to Tony. This might be because she realizes she has sinned, and because of the influence of the Church on her values, she cannot divorce Tony, she has to accept her life in Brooklyn instead. Power is an extremely important factor in the cultural context of 1950’s Ireland and Brooklyn. The power structure in society is the Catholic Church. It helps shape the values of the characters, as many of them live their lives by the Church’s beliefs. Eilis’ mother is an example of this, as she hardly knows Father Flood but immediately trusts him because he is a member of the Catholic Church. He has the power in society and the characters look up to him for guidance. Another position of power seems to be held by those with money. Throughout the book it seems to be an important factor, more so in Ireland then Brooklyn. People with money were treated superior to others, and a woman’s goal was to sustain a wealthy man. Those with money occupy certain positions of class. This can be seen in both societies. It was a very class structured society, with the Church and people with money at the top. Our first example of this is when Eilis and Nancy are at the dance, and Eilis realizes Jim does not want anything to do with her as she and Nancy were from a lower class. He refuses to dance with Eilis and ignores her for the rest of the night. Power was a major influence on marriage, as women were respected a considerable amount more if they married someone with power. Their view was that if they married someone with power, they had achieved a large goal in their life. The influence of power in 1950’s Ireland and Brooklyn shaped the values and attitudes of the characters. Undoubtedly the personal freedom of Eilis and many other characters is affected by the world in which she resides. In Ireland, Eilis’ freedom is largely restricted because she is a woman. She is expected to marry and start a family, and there is no emphasis on her education. She has very little freedom as a teenager; an example of this is when she goes to the dance. Because of the society she lives in, she is expected to dance with only one boy for the whole night; this does not give her any freedom to do otherwise. Many of her decisions in Ireland are forced ones, such as when she went to work with Ms. Kelly. Ms. Kelly assumed Eilis would want to work for her, and did not give Eilis the chance to say no. She did not treat Eilis with respect but Eilis still had to keep working for her. This is greatly contrasted with her life in Brooklyn. Eilis had a large amount of personal freedom in Brooklyn, allowing her to explore the town she lives in. Her decisions were taken solely by herself, unlike in Ireland. She was able to decide if she wanted to further her career in college, whereas in Ireland she would have been expected to become a bookkeeper, but never an accountant. She also had freedom where she worked, with the employees and her boss treating her with respect, this contrasts with Ms. Kelly’s shop in Ireland. She was given opportunities to advance in her role as a sale assistant in the shop in Brooklyn, unlike Ireland where she would always be selling things in Ms. Kelly’s shop. Ultimately, Eilis is affected by the cultural context. It impinges upon her world. This is greatly seen in her last decision in the book, to accept her life in America with Tony. In modern day Ireland and Brooklyn, she would have been free to get a divorce and stay with Jim, but because at the time she was greatly influenced by the Catholic Church and her role in society, this option was not available for her. We discover at the end of the novel Eilis is a conformist, as she allows her values and attitudes to be shaped by 1950’s Ireland and Brooklyn. Overall, my understanding of cultural context is that it is the world of the text. In my opinion, the characters in Brooklyn accept the world in which they live in, and allow their values to be shaped by the time and place. Throughout the book we see the characters being influenced by the role of women, the Catholic Church and the people with power in their society.a

'Do pesticide residues in food pose a significant risk to consumer Essay

'Do pesticide residues in food pose a significant risk to consumer health - Essay Example Studies revealed that residues of pesticides remain in the crops for some time that eventually enter the cycle of the food chain. If these chemicals can kill and destroy the pests, they can also pose a potential danger to human beings. A safe level is then studied by researchers to establish the tolerable amount of pesticide residues that can ingested and does not endanger human beings. Incidents from around the globe reveal that human beings suffer from pesticide poisoning or overdose that has adversely affected life and health. This occurred despite stringent regulation by government regulatory agencies. Can pesticide be continuously used so that crops can be grown in abundance and free of disease but still not endanger the life of human beings? Without pesticide, farmers and growers will suffer great losses when pests and diseases attack their farms. But on the consumer end, death and illness can result. A balance has to be made so that both the production and consumer sides can b enefit. Pesticides that can be used in plants must be approved by regulating agencies (Food Standards Agency 2004). Introduction Pesticide is a general term that refers to a wide array of products used to decimate pests in the house, agricultural farm, etc. such as insect killers (called insecticides), mould and fungi killers (or fungicides), weedkillers (herbicides), slug pellets (molluscicides), rat and mouse killers (rodenticides), plant growth regulators, and bird and animal repellents (Health and Safety Executive 2009). United States Environmental Protection Agency (2010) included disinfectants and sanitizers (for kitchen or laundry), chemicals used for swimming pools, personal insect repellents, baits and sprays for cockroaches, and powders and sprays for fleas and ticks. There are natural pesticides such as pyrethrums (taken from chrysanthemum plant) and others are modified forms of natural chemicals (Health and Safety Executive 2009). For several decades, pesticides are bein g used by food growers in order to make the produce look good and abundant (Health and Safety Executive 2009). The chemicals used in regulating the growth of plants (e.g. one that slows down sprouting in potatoes) are likewise classified as pesticides and are regulated (Food Standards Agency 2004). Without using pesticides, the crops can lose their quality (Food Standards Agency 2004) making them not saleable in the market. Pesticide is used primarily for the benefits it can offer. In the farm, it protects the crops from pesky insects, weeds and fungi that cause diseases in plants (Health and Safety Executive 2009). Farm crops grow healthy and protected from diseases by pesticides (Food Standards Agency 2004). It also prevents rats, fungi and insects from contaminating the food while under storage (Health and Safety Executive 2009). In most instances, there are trace amounts of the chemicals used that remain inside or around the produce after harvest or while being stored (Food Stan dards Agency n.d.). These chemicals are called pesticide residues, and also include traces that result from the breakdown of pesticides (Food Standards Agency n.d.). It is sometimes necessary that a pesticide must stay longer on the crop to effectively protect it (Food Standards Agency n.d.). Exhaustive studies are conducted by regulatory agencies in collaboration with scientific institutions to confirm the report submitted by a company about the pesticide intended to be sold to the public. Upon the grant of approval, the

Challenges in recovery of mental health client Essay

Challenges in recovery of mental health client - Essay Example The depiction in the text is protected and the inferences are not aimed at anyone whatsoever. The paper is a reflection of study on the addictions in the country. The victim of the study is fictitious and used based on education with reference to drug abuse. Addictions are resultant to the use of substance initially pleasurable but the continued use becomes obsessive and hampers with ordinary life errands like work and health or relationships. When out of control, it affects the people around you directly or indirectly (Taite & Scharff, 2013, 25). Ms. M has been in the country for 30 years as an illegal immigrant after getting into the country through the Mexican border with the aim of making a good life in the land of opportunities. This client is 46 years of age, and Latina of descent. She started working as a bartender at a local bar near her residence before she had become an addict of the substances. She is a mother of two children one who died from an OD and the other daughter is stable and working for the government and isolated herself from the habits of her mother. She blames the mother for the death of her sister. Her drug abuse led her into debt and bad choices where she lost her home and a place to leave (Rassool, & Gafoor, 2007). She has been struggling in the streets of New York moving from shelter to shelter. She no longer works and has to scavenge for a drug handout from the dealers who give her under the regulations (Boyd, 2007). Ms. M came to the center to apply for rehabilitation after opting to find refuge to the prevalent case of drug abuse in the life she leads. MS. M is began to express her thought in the life she leads was not very sustaining as pertains to the age she was now. Her social life has been dysfunctional since she started to consume many different drugs with the aim of getting high. She gradually graduated from the simple marijuana to cocaine and went into the use of crystal meth. The abuse of drugs has made Ms. M looks older than actually is since the drugs are taking most of her money and little goes into her health. She does not have any medical insurance. She asserts that she is determined to get help ad has enrolled in a local hospital after being rejected severally. Her emotional detachment from her daughter who is still alive does not seem to bother her since she says she does not want to hurt herself emotionally (Dossey & Keegan, 2009). She has the urge to reconnect but the daughter has not yet agreed to come to terms with the mother. The greatest obstacle M faces are the change in the lifestyle she is used to, now she lives with a dealer who is sometimes the boyfriend and uses the drugs as an advantage to having her do his bid. At times, she is forced to take the drugs since they are flaunted in front of her. She asserts that her devotion is tested by the social circle she dwells (Peabody, 2013). She says that the worst and saddening time of her life was when she would give her body to get a do se of the drug and that would always lead to her getting raped by the dealers. Ms. M has been struggling with the addiction from abuse of drugs and specifically crystal meth, which she was hooked on recently. She has the courage to overcome the drug abuse and the social circles that make her life miserable. The use of crystal meth was the last option she had after her struggle with cash proved stronger. Present issues M has been using the drug for more than 20 years where she had drug

Consumer Privacy (Marketing Planning and Strategy) 2 Assignment

Consumer Privacy (Marketing Planning and Strategy) 2 - Assignment Example On the other hand, in the off-line sphere, the client has a chance to know the firm, personnel, or company that is on the receiving end as well as accepting or declining the idea to share their personal data. One can still argue that transmission of personal data in the offline world also travels by electronic means in numerous cases. For instance, the act of making a transaction with a credit card similarly involves data transmission electronically sometimes in the transaction. The difference is that the client is initially meddling with a firm or an individual. Although this does not alleviate the risks experienced by the consumer, it presents some real knowledge of the firm, or persons involved in the given transaction (Spiekermann, Grossklags & Berendt, 2001). From the above discussion, it is more rational to state that online world creates more privacy issues than offline. This is due to safety issues, since privacy information in a given database that was hacked or infiltrated might be utilized for criminal activities, a factor not possible in offline world (Ribbink et al, 2004). Spiekermann, S., Grossklags, J., & Berendt, B. (2001). E-privacy in 2nd generation E- commerce: privacy preferences versus actual behavior. In Proceedings of the 3rd ACM conference on Electronic Commerce (pp. 38-47).

Business Decision Making Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Business Decision Making - Assignment Example The profitability index (PI); and iv. The payback period Lambert currently has a choice of investing in either of three machines – Alumier which is a replacement for the current machine, Big EZ – which is supplied by an American firm, and Cial which is manufactured in Japan. The objective of performing an evaluation is to determine which of these three investment options will provide the best return to the shareholders of the firm. The Net Present Value (NPV) According to Ryan and Ryan (2002) the NPV is one of the most preferred investment appraisal techniques. This method strongly rivals the IRR as one of the most popular investment appraisal techniques. In fact, Campbell and Brown (2003) indicates that it performs better than IRR in relation to making choices between mutually exclusive projects but needs to be modified in capital rationing decisions and when project choices have unequal lives. Additionally, where projects are not divisible under capital rationing it m ay be best to invest in several small projects which exhaust the budget but have lower profitability ratios and generates a higher NPV when added together rather than a large project with a higher profitability which does not exhaust the budget (Campbell and Brown 2003). ... formula for calculating NPV is as follows: NPV = CF0 + ((CF1/(1 + IRR)1) + ((CF2/(1 + IRR)2) †¦ ((CFn/(1 + IRR)n) The decision rule criteria indicate that projects with a positive NPV should be accepted. In the case of mutually exclusive projects, the project with the highest NPV value should be selected. Information on the NPV for the three investment options are shown in Table 1 in Appendix 1. The information in Table 1 indicates that the Alumier Machine and the Cial Machine will both yield a positive NPV. However, only one machine is required and so the two investments are mutually exclusive. Therefore, the machine with the highest NPV value should be chosen. The Alumier Machine will yield an NPV of ?32,180 compared to ?65,650 for the Cial Machine. The Internal Rate of Return (IRR) The IRR is another very popular and well recognized investment evaluation technique which along with NPV is rated above the other techniques (Titman et al 2011). It is the discount rate that yields an NPV of zero (Titman et al 2011). The IRR decision rule criterion is to invest in the project if the IRR is greater than the discount rate used in calculating the NPV. One of the most common problem that has been raised about the IRR is the possibility of multiple internal rates which conflict with each other or the possibility of none at all (Hazen 2003). The formula for calculating IRR which is similar to that used in calculating NPV and is given as: NPV = CF0 + ((CF1/(1 + IRR)1) + ((CF2/(1 + IRR)2) †¦ ((CFn/(1 + IRR)n) = 0 This formula is used to find the rate of return where NPV = 0. The information relating to IRR for the three investment options are shown in Table 2 in Appendix 1. The information in Table 2 indicates that the IRR for the Alumier and the Cial Machines are higher than

Political Ideologies of American Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Political Ideologies of American Law - Essay Example Communism on the other hand, as defined by West Encyclopedia for American Law is â€Å"a theoretical economic system characterized by the collective ownership of property and by the organization of labor for the common.†. The purpose of communism is to have common ownership of properties. The government regulates access to labor and its produce on to what is satisfactorily needed by each individual in the society. There are different kinds and forms of communism developed by several philosophers such as Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin. But we shall focus on the economic reforms that both Libertarianism and Communism wish to offer.   Communism believes that the working class is the solution and that giving more power to the working class, dissolving any division in the society and avoiding any possible exploitation from the capitalist class can eliminate a division in society. This is why the government chooses to regulate the economy, and abolishes private ownership. Communism sees capitalism as a mere exploitation of the working class.   Rousseaus (1978) origin story of the bourgeois political order holds that the ideology of communism, evolves through a pledge by the citizenry, a social pact to establish equality among each other, that they will place themselves under the same conditions and enjoy the same rights (p. 76).   Libertarianism and Communism are two opposite ideology, put it simply, the first gives importance and the sanctity of an individual’s freedom, separate from any control by society. It is the free will and independence of man and his own volition that controls his fate. On the other hand, the Communist is ruled by the society, as a working class, co-equal in everything without any other class or division. It is unity between every man, without having one man better than the other.

Business skills(IT SKILLS) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Business skills(IT SKILLS) - Essay Example Presenting these studied facts and figures of the opposite party during the course of negotiation, shows the awareness of the negotiator and prohibits exaggerated statements from the other party. It also portrays a better picture of the negotiator on the other party. Points to be discussed and emphasised should be sorted out before the negotiation deal. Arguments on each point should be worked out. This exercise will save the time and confusion and also save the discussion session from getting bore. Documentary proofs of the facts should be kept and presented when required, to generate confidence. Enough opportunity should be given to the other party to present its views. This may lead to some points which the negotiator planned to discuss, but are automatically agreed upon by the other party. Behaviour of an expert negotiator during the meeting may always remain clam and friendly. Even if unpleasant things go on, he or she should keep cool and try to mould the things in his or her favour. Negotiator should never show extreme gestures like over-excitement, or perturbed. A good negotiator should be a good listener. An expert negotiator peeps into the eyes of the other party while presenting his or her views. This is a psychological action.

Personal statement for ucas Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

For ucas - Personal Statement Example I have practiced dancing for twelve years and instructed dancing in schools like IISC. Through my dancing skills, I have managed to achieve a government award in 2007. I love concerts and seldom miss any occasion. I have participated in cultural events like at the Indus, and danced at the Indus cultural festival like the ‘Mamma Mia, and We Will Rock You Musical’. As a kid, I had the passion of becoming an engineer, which motivated me to excel in subjects like Mathematics and Physic. I have conducted a full length research on, "How the temperature affects the magnetic field of different magnets" and wrote a 4000 words essay on the research. I conducted this research in a PHD research university in my 11th grade summer vacations. As a young adult, I had asked for career advice from a motivational speaker who had visited my school. Henceforth, I have found learning Mathematic to be interesting, since it is a powerful tool for analyzing and solving problems. Mathematics has several specialization segments like pure and applied mathematics. Additionally, I love Physics since it assists in understanding the world deeply by its information. I learned about Electrical Engineering in my initial school and assistance from my bigger brother. He is a Civil Engineer doing well in his line of specialty. Furthermore, he is my role model, since we share the same dream of being engineers. In particular, I realized that my passion was in Electrical Engineering. My career master rightly advised me on the path to follow to be an Electrical Engineer, which I followed it to the latter. My college years have vastly acquired me with educational and managerial skills. My internship at the Battery Industry (Amaron Battery Industry) instilled managerial and leadership skills in me. I was exposed to dealings within the learning institution; hence I am armed with administration and managerial skills. Taking part in the science

Its Always Good To Tell The Truth Essay Example for Free

Its Always Good To Tell The Truth Essay Life is full of deception in assorted forms, ranging from the magic shows for recreational purpose to strategic consideration in wars of ancient times.As a result, some people may take telling a lie as granted due to its commonity. However, i vote for the confession as the most significant trait when it comes to handle people since keeping the truth bridges a good relationship within them by creating more senses of integrity and honesty which are core values and foundation in the relationship development. First, always showing the genuine side towards your family members can help us to build a healthy and merry family, especially given the children adoption. In the family, if the children are lied and cheated by parents-the closet people in their world, even for some minor staffs, they are more likely to feel distrust and unloved by their parents afterwards. In the long term, they may refuse to listen to the parents any more,even worse, they may hate and imitate parents to lie as well which create an intense relationship within the family. According to the statistic, most of the adolescent problems such as drug and smoke abuse, young crime commitment like steal and robbery are the results of such bad family relationship. Thereby, always acknowledging the truth amounts to the display of love and respect towards family members which correspondingly contributes to a happy ending. Secondly, always behaving honesty instead of being too adulated and sophisticated towards friends and colleges also brings us advantages more than we realized. Whether were in the universities and working in the companies, being frank surely help us build a trustworthy image in the public that in turn benefits in varieties ways: were likely to make more new friends due to the integrity we show, were likely to get more recognision from boss and advance our career because of our fair -mind towards all the faked and unjustified work, were likely to empowered more confidence and courage handling difficulties as we will become more upfront and loyal towards ourselves to respect the truth. These are the wealth beyond our realization brought by truth if we pursue and stick to. Admittedly, lying might avoid people from getting hurt or embarrassed in some  degree. For example, we might say the girl is still pretty even shes fat to protect her pride. However, humans are not weak, in fact the protection we regard works nothing to the girl except the lies, she may continue to get fatty since no one reminds or suggests her take exercises to lose weight. Lies even with good intention safeguard nothing but the continuity of tragedy. To summarize, no legacy is so rich as honesty and truth, which worth our whole life to pursue and defend whatever relationship were engaged in between people.

Key Drivers Of Business Process Changes Commerce Essay

Key Drivers Of Business Process Changes Commerce Essay Harmon (2007) explains about key drivers of business process change. He argues that in economically bad times, companies seek to make their processes more efficient and in good times, companies seek to expand their production and enter into new markets. There is much emphasis on improvement of processes to attract new customers and enter into new markets. Another factor which led to improvement of process is the impact of globalisation on the organisation performance especially to those companies that are engaged in the world trade. In order to compete in the global environment, companies are focusing on mergers and acquisitions to acquire new knowledge and technology. In the same vein, due to advancement of the information technology, it is easier for companies to approach customers and suppliers around the world. The breakthrough development in the information technology is the advent of internet; companies are changing their process to go online. When the buyer and seller are avai lable on one click so there is need to consider the process for redesigning. Levels of process change: To carry out the process change, it is necessary identify the levels of changes that are required for each of the process. Process re-engineering This is strategic level change, when major threats or opportunities in the businesss external environment prompt a fundamental rethinking of the large scale processes critical to the operation of the value chain. Process redesign This is intermediate scale of change in operations, appropriate for medium sized processes that require extensive change or improvement. It results in changes in job description or automation of processes.. Process improvement Appropriate for smaller, stable and existing processes which are tactical in nature and require incremental change (ACCA Student Accountant, Business Process Change, Edition 2008, p66-67) Process identification and Evaluation: Process identification is the way to identify the processes which are required to be reengineered. There are many ways in which process that need to be reengineered is determined. Process evaluation: Peter Keen (1997) explains mechanism by which an organisation evaluates the process. He suggests that by asking questions about the process, the identification of processes is possible which are required to be reengineered. First, Does the process represent an organisation to customers, employees and investors? If the answer is yes then that process is important. But if the answer is no then another question needs to be asked. Is the excellency of the process important for the performance of the company? If the answer is yes then we give priority to this process that dose need to be considered. If the answer is no then another question is asked. Does the process is necessary to support other business process? If the answer is yes then again process need to be considered but the importance is supporting process. But if the answer is no then final question is asked whether there is legal conditions apply for this process? If the answer is yes then that process is mandatory and again ne ed to be considered. Again if the answer is no then its management decision whether to continue to operate or abandoned the process. Rosemann (2001) proposes identification of the processes that need to be change or reengineered. There are two dimension proposes by the Rosemann. First, need to reorganise and second dimension is value of process. If the values of the processes are high and recognise needs are also high then process has high priority. If the process value is low but reorganise need is high then that is the second choice that we need to consider. Third set of process that we need to consider is the low value and low need for organising. If the process value is high and need to reorganise is low then reengineer is required to be carefully planned because it has impact on the other process if problem arises. Hammer and Champy (1993) suggest way to improve the process on the basis of dysfunction, importance and feasibility. Dysfunctional is where the process is in deep trouble. If the process is crucial for the customer satisfaction then it is important and feasibility in terms of that is most ready to successful redesign. Porter value chain: Porter value chain also provides the valuable analysis of the activities or processes that need to be changed or where improvement is required. In the business process reengineering, Porter (1985) is considered one of the most important mechanisms. x larger Size: 500  ÃƒÆ'-  500 Type: 13KB GIF http://www.provenmodels.com/files/2825c320f5910a4647fd289cdcf5a780/value_chain_analysis.gif (Porter Value chain Analysis Diagram- source www.google.co.uk) Porter value chain consists of primary activities and secondary activities. As shown in diagram, primary activities are inbound activities, operations, outbound logistics, sales and services. Whereas, secondary activities consist of the procurement, human resources, technology and infrastructure. When the organisation plan for reengineering, it is important to start from the primary activities because these activities are crucial for the success of the company. Business Process Reengineering: The fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business processes to achieve dramatic improvements in critical measures of performance such as cost, quality, service and speed. (Hammer-1990) A strategy driven organisational initiative to (re) design of business process to achieve competitive breakthroughs performance, differing in scope from process improvement to radical new process design, contingent upon the degree of socio-technical change required. (Grover and Kettinger1995) Goals of BPR: The rapid adoption and radical change by BPR, despite its failure, is fuelled by promise to make drastic improvement in business performance. The improvement results from: Improved customer satisfaction: Customer satisfaction is one of most important benefits of reengineering. Its results are high level customers satisfaction. Customers are internal and external to the organisation. Reengineering achieves this by making organisational structure that serves through the organisation rather than department. Cost reduction: In the current dynamic environment, cost effective is considered as core competences. Many companies are focusing on how to improve the cost efficiencies. On the other hand, big cost also effects the customers satisfactions. If the companies try to reduce cost then have to compromise on the quality. Reengineering aims to produce leaner and fitter companies which can easily adapt to new product and circumstances. Gover et al (1997), addressed in their journal, Wal-Mart has been reduced restocking time from six weeks to thirty-six hours. Hewlett Packards assembly time for server computers touches new low- four minutes. Taco Bells sales soar from $500 million to $3 billion. The whole credit goes to reengineering for these breakthrough changes. Improved product and service quality: Quality is one of key determinants in making product or services offerings. In the current competitive environment, sales are made on quality rather than price. Sometimes sales are made on the basis of quality rather than price. Reengineering accomplishes this by breaking organisational structure consisting of functions where the work is passed from one function to another as a package. The responsibilities are centralised in one group rather than splitting over different departments. Harnessing skill: The success of the company depends upon the utilising the skills, knowledge and expertise of the workers. In function based, individuals work in their hierarchical layer rather than contributing their knowledge and expertise. Reengineering breaks this barrier by allowing individuals to share their knowledge and empowering them for their tasks. This enables the company to fully exploit workforce skills. Reduced times: By making work flow through and between different departments in functional structure, the business performance wasting time is quite high. The reengineering approach eliminates this wasting time by bringing together those parts of the disparate organisation working on the same task into one group. The whole process is then considered as in one domain allowing everybody in that domain to focus on the effective operations and improvement of the process. Improving value-added: Business reengineering is an effective way to identify and remove those tasks and activities which result in inefficiencies and repetition factors. This allows focusing on the value adding activities that result in creating high value for the organisation and satisfying customers needs. Faster responsiveness: Business success in todays environment depends upon responding to changes. Horton believed that his major management concern for 90s to create company that can manage surprise (Horton-1989). Functional management structures slow down the decision making procedures and hence reduce the ability of managers to deal with surprises. Reengineering encourages empowering business units to take decisions and thus increase the speed with which they react to events. It also increases the speed by the removal of the time-wasting across functional transaction in the production process. Principles of BPR: The principles of BPR are agreed upon and are reviewed to get familiar with Business Process Reengineering: Achieving step change in performance: One common principle that in favour of pioneers of the reengineering is that incremental improvement is not enough in the global competition. Global competition calls for radical improvement in the quality, services, faster response and lower cost. . Davenport points out that reengineering is all about shifting from 5 to 10m percent annual improvement to 50 percent or even higher improvement in few key processes. Firms strive for multiplicative levels of improvements rather than fractional level. (Davenport- 1993). Function vs. Process oriented organisational Structure: Holtham (2001) suggests that careful thinking is required when the company plans to change business process and especially implementing the reengineering approach to improvement. BPR is used where required and when the management has sufficient potential to follow it. Because BPR is not just process change but it results in the radical redesign of the organisation structure. Normally, process improvement changes results in a change from functional structure to the process oriented structure. People who work in the functional structure also support the process orientated structure. Many organisation try to intervened their processes with the functional structure because dont want to lose benefits of the functional specialization. Thus there is move of flexible organisational structure that has both functional and process orientation. The process improvement enables organisation to think through processes and come up with design which are more efficient and effective. It results in wee ding out of the unnecessary steps within the systems. Create customer focus: Reengineering philosophy believes that the customer is key driver behind process improvement. Hammer indicates that the seller has low bargaining power and the customer now tells the supplier where they need, what they want, how they want it and what they are willing to pay (Hammer-1993). This concept also applies to internal processes where the customer is another person, or group within the organisation. Integrating work: The philosophy of reengineering is to eliminate inefficiencies from the processes by eliminating non value- added activities. The remaining activities are simplified and integrated to create new ways of working. Sometimes the solution is achieved by giving one person the authority to handle a spectrum of operations or solution is to create multidisciplinary teams. The solution achieved by giving one person the ability to handle a spectrum of operations or the solution is to create multidisciplinary teams. The overall emphasis is on giving responsibilities for processes in few hands. Developing a process management culture: The functional management based structure is incompatible with the process culture. The working practices, skills and management responsibilities need to be redefined and more productive ways are found for harnessing the expertise of every individual within company. IT and BPR: IT and BPR have no clear relationship. There is emphasise on technological innovations rather than the organisation itself when BPR was not developed (George-1991). These innovations bring reduction in time, processing, information system and storage cost. This makes the technology as independent variable to determine changes in organisation. This researchers group have been used the technology to automate the complicated as is situation of organisations which, as reported earlier, did not have significant improvements in productivity. Parnaby 1991 states that this time, failure is partly because of wrong use of IT to automate over-complex corporate process. However, it is partly fault of IT directors who have failed to raise the importance of IT to senior executive that IT plays in transforming a business. Other researchers emphasis on organisation and BPR, and believe that people deliberately design IT for intended objectives. Kim defines BPR as that an organisation uses the IT to change the way work is being done (Kim-1994). Renkema (1995) implies that A BPR investment is regarded as long term commitment of organisational resources to achieve ambitious business goals through transformation of business processes with IT as an enabling technology. There are many successful cases of major performance improvement of IT enabled BPR in the industry (Alter et al, 1990). This group of researchers believe that IT is depended variable that is planned for and configured by managers. Role of IT in BPR: The role of IT in business process reengineering is two-way: as an Implementer or an Enabler, Lyons (1995). For the first role, it is used to support the mapping, analysis and modelling aspects of BPR and helps in transformation process. The second role is to develop major communication and system infrastructure to support the integration and automation of redesigned work process. There are some technologies which are used as enablers of BPR. Technologies such as: Local Area Networks (LANs) and Electronic Mail (Email), Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), Executive Information Systems (EIS), Document Image Processing (DIP). BPR Methodologies: Lucas methodology: Lucas Engineering and Systems talk about manufacturing system redesign. Their argument is that to survive in todays market, it is necessary to set high targets in current competitive market and think for radical change. In their methodology, emphasise on eliminating the non-value added activities which do not add value to the customers and result in bad system operations. Four-step approaches for waste elimination are suggested by them, namely (Lucas-1991): Simplify the systems Eliminate waste Re-organise into Natural Groups Technology improvements Another idea which is introduced here by Lucas is Natural Group. Natural group is defined in their mini guides. A Natural grouping is a multiskilled group or team who hold a whole flow chart and then sit together in one office, area or cell Davenport and Short methodology Davenport addresses five stage approaches to redesign business process by using information technology capabilities (Davenport-1990). Develop Business Vision and Process Objectives- Organisation develops the vision which leads to the redesign objective and in turn results in improvement of process. Some objectives need to be related to the specified business vision like; cost reduction, time reduction and quality. Identify Processes to Be Redesigned- In this stage; there are two major approaches; the exhaustive approach and high impact approach. In the exhaustive approach, attempts are made to identify all processes within the organisations and then priorities depending upon their urgency. In high impact approach, process is redesign which has great impact on the organisation. Understand and Measure Existing Processes- Before redesigning the process, problems are well understood so that there is no chance of repetition. Secondly, accurate measures are used as basis for future improvement. Identify IT Levers- The major role of IT is to improve coordination and information access across the organisational units. The best approach is to use the IT in the early stages of process redesign rather than developing an IT system and matching with an existing system. Design and Build a Prototype of the Process- Final stage is not final design of the process though it is based on the prototype of the design. It is suggested that the redesigned process after agreement by the process owner be implemented on pilot basis and also examined regularly for problems and objectives. The key factors in process redesign and prototype create include IT design tools and understanding generic design criteria. The redesign is fully implemented after final acceptance of the process Rummler- Brenche methodology: Rummeler- Brache (1990) wrote in their book, Improve Performance: How to manage the White Space on the organisation chart. They explained that the organisation as system and worked down from top down to develop a comprehensive picture of how organisations are defined by processes and how people define that process help in accomplishing the activities. Rummler-Brenche (1990), define three level of performance: organisational level, process level and a job or performance level. They introduce the matrix that they obtain by crossing levels with three perspectives. There are nine different concerns that managers need to consider when changing or improving processes they emphasise that approaches that only focus on process or performance level or process management are limited perspective. Goals and Measure Design and Implementation Management Organisation Level Organisational gaols measures of organisational success Organisational and implementation Organisational management Process Level Process goals and measures of process success Process design and implementation Process management Activity or performance level Activity goals and measures of activity success Activity design and implementation Activity management (Rummeler and Braches Performance framework) Process Redesign Patterns: Paul Harmon (2003) describes four basic process redesign patterns: reà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Ëœengineering, simplification, value-added analysis, and gaps and disconnects. Business Process Re-engineering: Re-engineering pattern relates to a fundamental rethinking of existing processes to achieve major dramatic improvements. To achieve radical improvements in efficiency, it starts from scratch without considering the current situation. This approach ignores the existing processes and emphasises starting by asking what the goals of processes to be achieved are and work is carried out to achieve best outcome using the latest technology.BPR is large scale change and therefore high risk of disruption is involved. Re-engineering is best suited when large scales of changes are required. However, the other three can all be applied on a more modest scale, and could therefore be more relevant to the type of practical situation presented on. Simplification: The simplification pattern assumes that most established processes are likely to have developed elements of duplication or redundancy. Process efficiency is only possible by removing these. This approach is useful on large scale business process or more limited business processes. The best starting point for this approach is to identify the process, sub processes or activities in the existing processes and challenging each activity or sub process in the sequence. This process highlights where there is tendency of duplication or redundancy. Many organisations employ simplification for the process redesign because it is less disruptive and risky in nature. Value-added analysis: Value added analysis looks at the processes from the customer point of view identifies the value adding activities which are perceived to be valued by the customers. Customers may be internal or external. This pattern looks at the process (or sub-process) from a customers perspective. A process or activity is said to add value if it meets three criteria: 1: the customer is willing to pay for the output 2: it physically changes or transforms the output 3: it is performed correctly at the first attempt. The process or activities is said to be non value adding if: 1: preparation and set-up 2: control and inspection 3: simply moving a product from one place to another without physically changing it activities that result from delays or failures of any kind. Harmon (2003) suggests that non-value-adding activities are needed to be eliminated as far as possible. Some of these activities are essential (for example set-up activities) for the value-added activity to take place. These essential support activities are value enabling activities and need to be kept. However, these activities are expected to undertaken if these are simple and cost effective which means allowing resources for the value enabling activities to be employed. Gaps and disconnects This pattern was introduced by the Geary Rummler ad Allen Brache in1990. They argue that many of the problems arise because of failure of communication between the business functions. Manufacturing makes some new product economically but marketing and sales are not aware result in failure of whole system. The gaps and disconnects put an emphasis on the careful analysis of how existing processes are being done and before thinking for its improvement. Process improvement by Six Sigma: Yang and EI-Haik(2009) in their book explain six sigma. They argue that six sigma is best approach to bring improvement in the sub processes or activities rather than large scale processes. This approach helps the management to develop the process architecture. If architecture is already in place it helps in manager in identifying the projects which have potential of success by improving process. Six Sigma emphasises that measures at any level should be tied back to higher level process and to the strategic goals as well. There are some phases in a six sigma process improvement project: Define customers requirement for the process or services Measure existing performance and compare with customer requirements Analysis existing process Improve the process design and implement it Control the results and maintain the new performance Absecon Textile-New Jersey based company: One supplier of the contract upholstery fabric has found new ways of manufacturing process which make its efforts more efficient, more profitable and more competitive. Absecon textile based in southern New Jersey implements the lean manufacturing system. After one month implementation of lean manufacture systems processes are getting changed and there is seeing 70 percent reduction in the waste material it needlessly stored. I have heard people say lean manufacturing is applicable to every industry but textile says David Adair, Vice President of the Absecon. We dont believe that. We fully expect that lean manufacturing can give us competitive advantage . (Manufacturing Journal 2003) Marketing: Marketing is the management process responsible for identifying, anticipating and satisfying customers requirements profitably. (Chartered Institute of Marketing cited in Rowson Pauline 2009) Levison (2007), author of Gurialla Marketing noted: Marketing is not an event, but a process.. It has a beginning, a middle, but never an end, for it a process. You improve it, perfect it, even pause it. But you never stop it completely. Importance of marketing: Marketing has strategic importance in todays competitive environment even the finance department not able to work without integration with the marketing department. The key to success in the current environment is to satisfy the customer needs and business trends by using marketing skills. Due to its importance, different companies employ marketing at different levels depending upon their need but consider it as essential element for business success. The Conference Board (2007) survey of the top CEO Challenge acknowledges the importance of the marketing. The report highlights the marketing challenges that are different at global level. CEO in Europe focuses on more new and responsive ideas. Due to this reason adoption and flexibility to change is more dominant in the Europe rather than Asia and America. The importance of the marketing for building brands and customers loyalty are accepted by all CEOs. Marketing Practices: Coveille et al (2002) in Contemporary marketing Practice Framework addresses five marketing approaches which the company adopts depending upon the customers and industry: Transactional marketing: is based on management of marketing mix to attract and satisfy customers needs and active communications to buyers in the mass market in order to create an arms length transaction. Database marketing: It involves using database technology to create relationship, thus allowing firms to compete differently from the mass market. E-marketing: It involves the use of internet and other technologies to create and settle dialogue between the company and customers. Interaction marketing: It is based on face to face interaction between individuals. This approach is highly practical because both parties customer and market invest resources to develop mutual relationship with each others. Marketing strategy: Marketing strategy is the process by which an organisation communicate its business objectives and strategy into market activity (Paul Field, 2006) Marketing strategy helps to identify the target market, what directions need to be taken and what actions need to be taken to create dependable position in the market. To this end, the core objectives of the marketing strategy are focused on the buyer behaviour and identifying the market that needs to be target and marketing programme moves around the marketing strategy. Weitz and Wensley (1998) defines marketing strategy as, it is an indicator that is specific towards which activities to be targeted and how to develop and exploit the competitive advantage. In order to get the best outcome, strategy requires clear objectives and focus on the organisation corporate goals; it also involves selecting the right customers and developing the marketing mix to implement the marketing strategy successfully. (Varadarajan 1999) A strategic market plan layouts the methods and resources required to achieve organisation goals within a specific market. Marketing department has responsibility to adopt those policies and procedure which can fulfil the customers needs. It takes into account not only marketing but also involves finance, human resources, research and development and production. The concept of strategic business units is used to define areas of consideration in specific marketing plan. Strategic business unit is a division, product line or other profit centre within a parent company. (Dibb et al 2001) Vass 2006 explains some strategies which the textile companies adopts to improve the growth and prosperity of the business. He also believes that marketing is not just about the sales. It is ongoing process of creating and maintaining relationships and measuring results. Marketing managers are required to implement strategy that helps in satisfying customer need and market targets. Market share strategy: Market share strategy is based on gaining the large share in the operating market. The success of this strategy depends upon the market penetration and the customer has to perceive that your offerings are unique. Before implementing this strategy, target market is defined? How the customers perceive your offering in relation to competitors. This information is helpful in targeting the right customers and develops communication links with the existing and potential customers. Market expansion: Seeks to expand the market size. To implement this strategy, markers are sure about the potential customers in the target market and competitors action. Market segmentation: Market segmentation concentrates on segmenting the market according to their homogenous needs and wants. Position strategy: A positioning strategy is psychological. It is designed to create and maintain a specific image in the customers mind. Its all about how the customers think and feel. Product life cycle strategy: The product life cycle strategy is driven by innovation and can apply to brand or to a product category. Its duration may be only for few months or century. Product life has four stages such as introduction, growth, maturity and decline. At the introduction stage, advertising cost is normally highly for making people aware of company offerings Quality: To implement the quality strategy, it is necessary to have better design or offering more durable product or more reliable services or faster delivery. Vass (2006) suggests that marketer should select one or two areas where they are superior to the competition and implement marketing strategy that identifies these specific attributes. Reminder strategy: Strategy is communication based. It targets regular and loyal customers to remind them to make an additional or replacement order. Simplicity strategy: Simplicity emphasis on the customer convenience. Businesses and customers are overwhelmed with the complexity and choices of goods and services available to them, with the product fully functional and features that only a small number of the users ever use. Strategic Marketing Plan and Planning: Planning: Planning is a process for accomplishing purposes. It is a blue print of business growth and a road map of development. It helps in deciding objectives both in quantitative and qualitative terms. It is setting of goals on the basis of objectives and keeping in the resources. A plan helps to avoid losing direction and to uncover the hidden opportunities. An organisational success depends upon careful planning. So preparing a satisfactory plan of the organization is essential because it helps the business in terms of products, management, finance, market and competitions. If appropriate intention is given to the planning then

Sonnys Blues Plot Analysis

Sonnys Blues Plot Analysis The contrasting lives of two brothers contribute to the theme of being safe while being risk takers. In this story, Baldwin writes about two brothers who grew up together. As each of the boys grew older, their friendship diminished and they ended up having two completely different lives. The narrator, who is the older brother seemed to be more cautious and had a more determined manner to develop a good future. Sonny, the younger brother, was more free and adventurous as he lived in the moment. Sonny did not even know what his plans were for the next hour, let alone the rest of his life. The narrators greatest source of dissatisfaction was his selfish desire to learn and live a respectable life safely as a teacher of high school algebra. When Sonny learns the consequences about drugs and the law, he feels threatened. Sonnys brother lives in a safe environment while Sonnys environment is very unsafe and that is why Baldwin carefully set the brothers as opposites. The narrator is a cons ervative, respectable family man who is a professor of mathematics and is proud of its professional status. In the story, Sonny interprets of the narrator, who worked for Sonny as guardian, father figure, and a brother-peer. The narrator describes Sonny as a savage, but not crazy. He says Sonny had always been a good boy, he never healed or evil or disrespectful, and how children can so quickly (Baldwin 85). He compared students Sonny: a dreamy, disillusioned and obedient, but is grappling with the desperation of his live in a poor promise. The author used the name of the story Sonnys Blues, to give readers a clue to the theme of history. Noun the blues is defined in the mood unhappiness and depression. This theme is present throughout the story. Blues is a style of music that reflects a sad mood. Blues as well as being in the music, the basic structure of the story, and as the narrator and his brother, Sonny has played a role in depression. Sonnys brother is a shared perspective on this story, because he feels responsible for keeping his brother safe. His Brother learns to listen to all this history to understand the life of Sonny. The narrator as he fought for his life and how he is now watching his younger brother, Sonny fought through the same situation. He worried about the life of Sonny that might not be able to escape the turmoil that life brings, above all, a musician who has no family ties and job security. Sonny tries to become a jazz musician, the narrator watches and listens as Sonny goes through many adversities in life. He does not want Sonny to be a jazz musician, because there is no future there. At the end of the story, Sonnys brother was invited into a nightclub to watch and listen to his brother. During his visit, he learns and listens to understand Sonny and how he uses his music to survive, and how the music gives meaning to their lives. In the central scene of Sonnys Blues, is when the narrator agrees to go with Sonny to the night jazz club. The narrators realization that he must accept Sonny for who he is happened at the night club. This is the first time that Sonnys brother feels content with Sonny as he plays the piano and listens to his blues music. There he meets Sonnys musician friends who appreciate the way in which the narrator accepted his brother. The next scene, the narrator begins to understand the language of jazz and how it has changed the lives of Sonny for the best. Director, Creole, who was the bassist of the band, did the brother of mighty deed teaching Sonny how to play the piano. The benefit of the blues helped Sonny to end his drug addiction. During this scene, the brother of Sonny reflected in Creole and Sonny saw him with respect, to let him run the band that made his brother see that Sonny had talent and pursued his talent. Living in a housing project in Harlem, Sonnys brother determined to protect themselves from the risks that surrounded them. You will notice that the narrator and Sonnys neighborhood were mostly blacks and poor people in Harlem. Their working class embittered father, whose pride and optimism is diminished fought to support the family to openly racism. Sonny, however, is a romantic artist, who is not afraid to take risks to pursue what he wants. His passion for music makes him impatient. He stayed away from school, but not away from danger. Sonny wants to live a respectful life but it is very hard for him. He did different things to try to escape this corruption, he tries to escape by joining the army, but fails. And he tries to escape by use of illegal drugs. When life feels like a toll on Sonny, he takes for his music. He realizes that his problems are real and that he can really escape them. Music is played in his life which changes his pain and suffering. Maybe not so that you can definitely stay away from danger, as the father of Sonny said, there is no safe place at all (Baldwin 95). Sonny music provides a channel to express the darkness within him, while his sense of life slowly recovers. The story of Sonnys Blues illustrated how life was growing up in an African American family during 1930 -1960s. Black Americans struggled to make their imprint on society. The life of the amazing blind musician Ray Charles comes to my mind as I struggle to understand how the African American culture learned to survive during this time. Sonny and Ray Charles had many of the same life experiences, in particular relying on drugs to forget their past and living in a society where the black man struggled to make a living. Both men used their music of rhythm and blues to gain respect from family and friends.