Jack Vettriano The Runaways

long as a horse basking in the very middle of the road (the wheeled creatures divided to ride on either side of it, and it took no notice at all).
The sun was high in the sky when they began to slow down.
And in the air, unmistakable, was the salt smell of the sea. The road was rising toward a bluff, and presently they were on, and Will and Lyra were happy to walk among the hay-scented, grass-warm creatures who trundled beside them. One or two had gone on ahead to the top of the rise, and the children, now that they no longer had to concentrate on hanging on, were able to watch how they moved, and admire the grace and power with which they propelled moving no faster than a walk.Lyra, stiff and sore, said, "Can you stop? I want to get off and walk."Her creature felt the tug at the bridle, and whether or not he understood her words, he came to a halt. Will's did, too, and both children climbed down, finding themselves stiff and shaken after the continued jolting and tensing.The creatures wheeled around to talk together, their trunks moving elegantly in time with the sounds they made. After a minute they moved

Salvador Dali Figure at a Window

net and cut it through in a matter of moments. The second net fell useless to the ground, and then Will leapt at Iorek, feeling with his left hand, cutting with his right. The great bear stood motionless as the boy darted here and there over his vast body, cutting, freeing, clearing the way.
"Now go!" Will down again at once, for not only Iorek Byrnison but a regiment of his bears were making directly for them. Just in time Lyra tucked her head down, and then Iorek bounded over them, roaring orders to his hears to go left, go right, and crush the enemy between them.
Lightly, as if his guns were no use, and the Gallivespians were among them in a moment, each warrior springing from his insect's back, finding a hand, an arm, a bare neck, and plung-: ing his spur in before leaping back to the insect as it wheeled and skimmed past again. They were so quick it was almost impossible to follow. The soldiers turned and fled in panic, their discipline shattered.

Pablo Picasso Don Quixote

The sergeant, ma'am, over there by the large crate, he's got the keys. But I daren't ask him, ma'am, I'm sorry."
"Oh well," she said with a pretty sigh of regret. "Thank you anyway."
Lord Roke heard hand in the thick fleece of her coat, until he reached the hem at the level of her knees. There he clung and looked around.
They had rigged a floodlight, which made the wet rocks glisten brilliantly. But as he looked down, casting around for shadows, he saw the glare begin to swing sideways in a gust of wind. He heard a shout, and the light went out abruptly.
He dropped to the ground at once and sprang through the dashing sleet toward the sergeantbooted feet moving away over rock, and then she whispered: "You heard about the keys?""Tell me where the sergeant is. I need to know where and how far.""About ten of my paces away. To the right. A big man. I can see the keys in a bunch at his waist.""No good unless I know which one. Did you see them lock the manacles?""Yes. A short, stubby key with black tape wound around it."Lord Roke climbed down hand over

Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema In the Tepidarium

order to see the sraf and at once they'd seen the problem and made a short tube of bamboo, fixing the amber-colored plates at each end like a telescope. This spyglass was tucked in her breast pocket, and she took it out now. When she looked through it, she saw those drifting golden sparkles, the sraf, the Shadows, Lyra's Dust, like a vast cloud of , out from the land toward the sea.
Well, that was curious. Securing herself to one of her fixed ropes, she crawled out along a horizontal branch, looking closely at all the flower heads she could find. And presently she began to see what was happening. She watched and waited till she was perfectly sure, and then began the careful, lengthy, strenuous process of climbing down.tiny beings floating through the wind. For the most part they drifted randomly like dust motes in a shaft of sunlight, or molecules in a glass of water.For the most part.But the longer she looked, the more she began to see another kind of motion. Underlying the random drifting was a deeper, slower, universal movement

Jack Vettriano The Unorthodox Approach

Tialys might have done then wasn't hard to see, for he was ablaze from head to foot with a passionate anger, shaking with it; but he didn't have time to move before a voice spoke behind Lyra, and they both felt a chill fall over them. Lyra her again, to her warm throat and the strong pulse of her heart.
Lyra clutched him to her and faced the death directly. She couldn't remember what he'd said, and out of the corner of her eye, she could see Tialys quickly preparing the lodestone resonator, busy.
"You're my death, en't you?" she said.
"Yes, my dear," he said.
"You en't going to take me yet, are you?"turned around, knowing what she'd see and dreading it despite her bravado.The death stood very close, smiling kindly, his face exactly like those of all the others she'd seen; but this was hers, her very own death, and Pantalaimon at her breast howled and shivered, and his ermine shape flowed up around her neck and tried to push her away from the death. But by doing that, he only pushed himself closer, and realizing it, he shrank back toward

Jack Vettriano Picnic Party

work with the hammer once more. Will felt a new layer of complexity added to his task, because he had to hold the new piece in a precise relation with both the previous two, and he understood that only by doing that accurately could he help Iorek couldn't hold it in his full consciousness together with all the others, then the knife would simply fall apart as if Iorek had never begun.
The bear sensed this, too, and paused before he began heating the last piece. He lookedmend it.So the work continued. He had no idea how long it took; Lyra, for her part, found her arms aching, her eyes streaming, her skin scorched and red, and every bone in her body aching with fatigue; but still she placed each stone as Iorek had told her, and still the weary Pantalaimon raised his wings readily and beat them over the flames.When it came to the final join, Will's head was ringing, and he was so exhausted by the intellectual effort he could barely lift the next branch onto the fire. He had to understand every connection, or the knife would not hold together. And when it came to the most complex one, the last, which would affix the nearly finished blade onto the small part remaining at the handle, if he

Francois Boucher The Toilet of Venus

was so slight, such a delicate kind of a balance, that the faintest thought or wish could tip it one way or the other...And it meant you, Will, it meant what you wished or thought, only it didn't say what would be a good thought or a bad one.
"Then... it said yes," she She jumped up at once, and Will went with her.
The moon was brilliant, the path a track of scumbled footprints in the snow, the air cutting and cold. Both of them felt brisk and hopeful and alive. They didn't talk till they were well away from the cave.
"What else did it say?" Will said.
"It said some things I didn't understand then and I still don't understand nowsaid, her eyes flashing at the spies. "It said yes, do it, repair the knife."Iorek looked at her steadily and then nodded once.Tialys and Salmakia climbed down to watch more closely, and Lyra said, "D'you need more fuel, Iorek? Me and Will could go and fetch some, I'm sure."Will understood what she meant: away from the spies they could talk.Iorek said, "Below the first spur on the track, there is a bush with resinous wood. Bring as much of that as you can."

Edvard Munch Puberty 1894

and on the foredeck of the vessel, a bright flower of flame suddenly bloomed, and the people cried out in alarm. The flame sped into the air, rising higher and coming closer and shedding sparks and smoke, and then fell with a great splash of fire near the gun. Men cried and scattered, and some ran in flames to the water's edge and plunged in, to be swept along and out of sight in the current.
Will found a man close by who looked like a teacher, and said:
"Do you speak English?", they can't fire...”
The commander of the boat brought the vessel's head around and moved in toward the shore. Many people cried out in alarm and despair, especially when another great bulb of flame burst into being on the foredeck, and some of those with rifles fired a shot or two and turned to flee; but this time the bears didn't launch the fire, and soon the vessel moved broadside "Yes, yes, indeed...”"What is happening?""The bears, they are attacking, and we try to fight them, but it is difficult, we have only one gun, and...”The fire thrower on the boat hurled another gout of blazing pitch, and this time it landed even closer to the gun. Three big explosions almost immediately afterward showed that it had found the ammunition, and the gunners leapt away, letting the barrel swing down low."Ah," the man lamented, "it's no good

Andy Warhol Brooklyn Bridge

Will considered what to do. When you choose one way out of many, all the ways you don't take are snuffed out like candles, as if they'd never existed. At the moment all Will's choices existed at once. But to keep them all in existence meant doing nothing. He had to choose, after all.
"We'll go back down the mountain," he said. "We'll go to that lake. There might be something there I can use. And I'm getting thirsty anyway. I'll take the way I think it is and you can guide me if I go wrong."
It was only when lost, this was so welcome that he felt his heart leap almost with joy.
of the day before, but a smaller, duller sensation. It felt as if it were healing. His father had done that. The witches' spell had failed, but his father had healed him.
He moved on down the slope, cheered.
It took three hours, and several words of guidance, before he came to the little blue lake. By the time he reached it, he was parched with thirst, and in the baking sun the cloak was he'd been walking for several minutes down the pathless, rocky slope that Will realized his hand wasn't hurting. In fact, he hadn't thought of his wound since he woke up.He stopped and looked at the rough cloth that his father had bound around it after their fight. It was greasy with the ointment he'd spread on it, but there was not a sign of blood; and after the incessant bleeding he'd undergone since the fingers had been

Camille Pissarro Boulevard Montmarte

My father sends me with prayers for your goodwill," she said.
"Greetings, child," said Mrs. Coulter.
The girl was carrying a bundle wrapped in faded cotton, which she laid at Mrs. Coulter's feet. Then she held out a little hunch of flowers, a dozen or so anemones bound with a cotton thread, and began to speak in a rapid, nervous voice. Mrs. Coulter understood some of the language of these mountain people, but it would never do to let them know how much. So she smiled and motioned to the girl to close her lips and to watch their two daemons. The It was that which made the villagers afraid. Was this other being Mrs. Coulter's master, or her servant? Did she mean harm? Why was she there in the first place? Were they going to stay long? Ama conveyed these questions with a thousand misgivings.
A novel answer occurred to Mrs. Coulter as the daemon's understanding filtered into hers. She could tell the truth. Not all of it, naturally, but some. She felt a little quiver of laughter at the idea, but kept it out of her voice as she explained:golden monkey was holding out his little black hand, and Ama's butterfly daemon was fluttering closer and closer until he settled on a horny forefinger.The monkey brought him slowly to his ear, and Mrs. Coulter felt a tiny stream of understanding flow into her mind, clarifying the girl's words. The villagers were happy for a holy woman, such as herself, to take refuge in the cave, but it was rumored that she had a companion with her who was in some way dangerous and powerful.

Jack Vettriano The Twilight Zone

Skip wine with dinner. If he likes to wind down with a drink, make sure his last cocktail is at least 3 hours before bed. Alcohol relaxes the throat, which makes snoring worse, says Thorpy. * Get help. If he has tried everything and still feels exhausted during the day or is falling asleep during work (or while driving!), have your husband checked for -noise machine to muffle the din.) A man is more likely to stick with sleep treatment if his wife shares his bed, finds a study from Rush University.
Grandparentssleep apnea, a condition in which breathing is blocked for seconds at a time. The disorder prevents the body from getting enough oxygen during sleep and raises the risk of heart attacks and strokes. Your husband is also more likely to have high blood pressure and erectile dysfunction if he has sleep apnea. * Don't banish him to the couch. It's tempting, but even if he has severe snoring or apnea, try to nod off next to him. (Use earplugs or a white

Johannes Vermeer Young Woman with a Water Jug

you've ever made love on a set of stairs, you're already aware of someof the incredible positions you can come up with. Here's a romantictechnique that guarantees the two of you will never walk up thatparticular flight the same way again.Here's her your first reason.Now you may enter your woman. After about thirty seconds, she's goingto push herself up to the next step. When she does, you must give heryour next reason. Then you may take a step up, enter her again andcontinue.Your woman can have as many orgasms as she likes, but YOU must waituntil she is perched at the top of the staircase before you can have yours.Only then have you successfully climbed Aphrodite's Ladder.What You Need:One flight of stairs.Here's How You Do It:Get your woman naked. You, too.Have your woman sit on the second stair from the bottom (this may varydepending on your respective heights, but the second stair usually worksbest).You remain standing at the bottom of the staircase. Lean forward andplace your hands on either side of your woman, like you're doing aninclined push-up.Prepare to enter you woman. Before you do, though, you must tell herthe following:"On each of these steps is one of the reasons that I love you. Wheneveryou like, move up another step and I will give you another reason. I loveyou because..." and then give

Sung Kim Escape

Here's a technique that originated around the Twin Cities area. As itgrows in popularity, there could be a movement to change theagain as fast as you can. If you're applying the rightamount of pressure to her clitoris, you'll probably hear a little poppingsound when you open your mouth.This one may take some practice. But, done correctly, it can easilyproduce one leg-quivering orgasm after another. stateslogan to, "The Land Of 10,000 Lays."Here's What You Need:A set of Vikings bed sheets are optional.Here's How You Do It:Get your woman naked. Have her lie on her back with her knees bentand legs slightly apart.Lie down on your stomach, perpendicular to your woman. Your headshould be positioned sideways above her vagina.Using your thumb and forefinger, pull back the skin that hides the clitoris.Moisten your lips and press them against both sides of her clitoris,drawing it into your mouth.Gently roll your lips inward, covering your teeth. At the same time raiseyour head until her clitoris comes out from between your lips.Repeat again and

Andy Warhol Mao Red

This is a great way to find find just the right angle to stimulate her G-spot.Here's What You Need:Just the two of you.Here's How You Do It:Get your woman naked. You, too.Have her sit on the edge of the bed with her legs apart.With you standing, enter your woman.Have her bend her knees, letting her feet rest on your stomach.As The cooling sensation of peppermint has never been put to better usethan in this technique. Your woman will love it.Here's What You Need:One glass of peppermint schnapps.Here's How You Do It:Get your woman naked. Have her lie on her back with her knees bentand legs slightly apart.Pour a small amount of schnapps into your woman's navel.Dip the tip of your tongue into the schnapps and trace small circlesaround one of your woman's nipples. Blow on it to accentuate the coolfeeling.Do the same thing to her other nipple.Again, dip your tongue into the pool of schnapps you've poured into hernavel. Run your tongue along both sides of her vagina and gently blow.Pleasure your woman orally, pausing to reapply the schnapps to yourtongue.you continue thrusting, tell your woman to "walk" up your chest,placing one foot in front of the other.As she does this, you'll stimulate different areas of her vagina. It's up toyour woman to determine exactly where she should be on "the wall" toachieve an indescribable orgasm.

Andy Warhol Camouflage orange yellow blue

The euro bought about $1.44, retreating from a peak near $1.4440, and 164.80 yen, off Monday's high at about 165.50 yen.
Against the Japanese unit, the dollar fetched 114.48 yen, slightly below late New York levels.
"With the market seeing a 25 basis point rate cut by the Fed this week as a done deal, players feel comfortable selling the dollar," said a trader at a big Japanese bank.the MSCI index climbed 2.5 percent to a second straight record closing high, bringing total gains this year to 48 percent -- more than triple the gains for MSCI's main world equity index.
EARNINGS EYEDmajor currencies as investors held their fire
Safe-haven government bonds were little changed ahead of the Fed meeting, with the yield on the benchmark Japanese 10-year bonds up just half a tick at 1.61

Jack Vettriano The Letter

losing money. The very simple prescription for this is called a Stop Loss Order. Brokers hate them and will discourage you from entering them. Why? Because it means he will have to watch your account because if a stop order is not properly and timely executed he must pay it out of his pocket.
Brokerage houses do not company than they do in commissions from you because if they ever encourage selling it means they will not get a chance to handle an Initial Public Offering (IPO) for that company. Suppose they did have a stop protection policy for customers and they then had an IPO that came out at $30 per share, but instead of going up it went down. The customers would not lose more than $3 or $4 per share because of their protective stops, but the house would then teach brokers how to use this simple method to protect capital. The house does not want to become known that it will sell a company's stock when it turns weak. The brokerage company makes more in good will from the poor performing

Jack Vettriano Sailor Boys

he put a thousand questions to his big brother: was it the food good? Was Daddy very severe? And Mummy?
"Oh, Mummy is so kind!" said the little ones.
And they asked him questions in their turn: what was he going to do on earth? What was he bringing?
"I am bringing three illnesses," said the little brother.
"Scarlatina, who were hurrying to meet somebody. At the same time, there was a great noise, as if thousands of invisible doors were being opened at the end of the galleries.
"What's the matter?" asked Tyltyl.
"It's Time," said one of the Blue Children. "He's going to open the doors." whooping-cough and measles...." "Oh, that's all, is it?'' cried Tyltyl. He shook his head, with evident disappointment, while the other continued: "After that, I shall leave you!" "It will hardly be worth while coming!" said Tyltyl, feeling rather vexed. "We can't pick and choose!" said the little brother, pettishly. They would perhaps have quarrelled, without waiting till they were on earth, if they had not suddenly been parted by a swarm of Blue Children

Andy Warhol dollar sign black and yellow on red painting

The Children at once knew the dear cow in the orchard, the watch-dog at the door, the blackbird in his wicker cage; and everything was steeped in a pale light and a warm and balmy air.
Tyltyl and Mytyl stood amazed. So that was the Land of Memory! What lovely weather it was! And how nice it felt to be there! who are still alive are coming to see us to-day."
And Gaffer Tyl answered:
"They are certainly thinking of us, for I feel anyhow and I have pins and needles in my legs."
"I think they must be quite near," said Granny, "for I see tears of joy dancing before my eyes and..." They at once made up their minds to come back often, now that they knew the way. But how great and they saw, at a few steps from them, Grandad and Granny sitting on a bench, sound asleep. They clapped their hands and called out gleefully: "It's Grandad! It's Granny!... There they are! There they are!" But they were a little scared by this great piece of magic and dared not move from behind the tree; and they stood looking at the dear old couple, who woke up gently and slowly under their eyes. Then they heard Granny Tyl's quavering voice say: "I have a notion that our grandchildren

Swatland early morning on the island

world events with. Heck, I even dated a few of them. We still remained friends afterwards. During my sophomore year in guy friend of mine once told me that the guys loved hanging out with me because I could hang out with the guys and still be feminine about it. Not only that, but I have been told (not being conceited here, just stating facts that I was told about me … ) that I am a good friend, always there when
Yet with that being said it still bothered me that I couldn’t maintain a female friend for the fact that most of the ones I met could do nothing but talk makeup/fashion/gossip. I was never big on all of them were like that, but the few that weren’t; I still couldn’t maintain the friendship. I later realized that it had a lot to do with my self esteem. I eventually became more comfortable in my skin, but the yearning for a few close girlfriends increased. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not like I night with a book and did absolutely nothing. But it just seemed like if I wasn’t hanging out with the guys, I was doing my own thing. Obviously, seeing a chick flick was out of the question for them, so I would see it on my own. Yet, you could always find us out and about town together.