The Novel John Cheever Bullet Park and John Cheever, The Essay

The Novel John Cheever Bullet Park and John Cheever, The Five-Forty-Eight - Essay Example g the absurdity of the surroundings’ and pointlessness of their behaviors and actions, his stories hold out the hope of redemption in love and sense of revenge and unforgiving attitude Such as in the story â€Å"Five-forty-Five† and his novel† The bullet park†. John Cheever was a complex person himself and during the course of his life he was saddled by the habit of alcoholism and infidelities but he presented himself so earnestly as a Man in Brooks’ brother suit, his life was as contradictory as his characters and so his writing is not neat and raises so many questions and answer’s very less.(The guardian,2009).  Cheever rightly described himself near the end of his life, in a heartbreaking sentence: "I am one of those old men; I am like a voyager who cannot remember the streams he has travelled." (Gottlieb,2002). In the novel â€Å" The Bullet Park†, author portrays an array of well kept houses and more than well mannered people of the town the Bullet Park but Cheever’s characters always has a double meaning to them and an unobserving reader might fail to see the crouching beast dangerously hidden behind those well kept houses. The story unfolds as a fateful intersection of two men the innocent Eliot Nailles and his nemesis, Paul Hammer, whose object is to murder his neighbors son, takes place. The novel has an aura of retribution from the beginning. For example the chosen names for the characters are Hammer and Nailles, which show the exact opposite of each other and every quality of hammer is lacked in a nail. It is the first impression of reckless and conflicting situation between the two characters and the author tried to expose their rivalry for each other by his blunt, quite witty and creative writing.(Shannon,1998) Cheever’s view of rivalry and revenge is also seen in the description of his characters as the two main characters’ were exactly opposite of each other, in short the characters are also in the state of conflict, not just in their

Operations in the News Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Operations in the News - Research Paper Example For example, top law firms target the rich and large co-operations. The type of service delivered is different. According to Ayers (1), if people want top class service, then they should be willing to pay dearly. Some firms insist on feedback after service delivery and even check on their customers to see how well they are moving on. This sentimental approach creates a good rapport between the consumer and the company. Firms ensure that their products and services are delivered in time (Gillette 1). When their products are delivered in time it shows that they are reliable. It is a clear indication that they are dedicated to serving the consumers. Also, firms that offer services make sure that their employees uphold high discipline standards (Gillette 1). This is in order to ensure that their clients are treated with the respect they deserve. Good employees who display a high level of etiquette create a good working environment, and clients can recommend the services of the firm to their friends and family. This plays out as a leading strategy of marketing as people tend to believe their fellow family members and friends (Gillette 1). Firms also try as much as possible to uphold a good track record and avoid scandals as much as possible. Scandals tarnish the name of the firm and the outcome a disaster. Not only do clients fall back, but also investors to (Miles and Bennett 1). This is merely by the fact that no individual would like to be associated with unlawful acts. So maintaining a good track record helps to keep clients. Firms have different competitive strategies depending on what their core business is. Though different, they relate to each other in an impeccable manner. For example, the use of social media to market products has been taken up by many firms (Miles and Bennett 1). This is because of the emerging trends in the market whereby about 60% of the consumers use social

Effectiveness of Time and Financial Management Essay Example for Free

Effectiveness of Time and Financial Management Essay Chapter 1 I. Introduction A. General Statement to the Effectiveness of Time and Financial Management on selected scholars of Adamson University 1. Profile of the Selected Scholars B. Statement of the problem ( How can they cope up with the demands of their respective courses? C. Objectives of the study D. Relevance of the study E. Definition of terms Chapter 2 II. Survey of Related Literature A. Foreign studies 1. Working Students/Student Assistants 2. Scholars B. Local Studies 1. Working Students/Student Assistants 2. Scholars Chapter 3 III. Methods on how to measure effectiveness of time and financial management A. Results of Survey/Questionnaire to the Selected Scholars of Adamson University 1. Graphical Representation 2. Analysis of the results IV. Conclusion Chapter 3 Methods on how to measure Effectiveness of Time and Financial Management The researchers chose 7 different scholars to conduct a survey about the chosen topic. Most of the respondents came from student assistant’s category and the others came from the category of academic scholars. These scholars were given scholarships from Ozanam Study Grant Program and Megaworld Foundation. On the range of their ages, 17-22 years old were the students who were given an opportunity they wanted to have. The scholars being interviewed have a daily allowance of more or less 150 pesos. On the Graph 1.1 being shown below are some of the expenses of the following students. Graph 1.1 A little number of respondents said that they stay in boarding houses that cost them Php 1,600 to Php 1,700. Literally, the cost was being solved by their parents. 3 out of 7 students said that both of their parents are self-employed. 1 respondent said that his/her parents run a business and another corresponds to unemployed parents. The rest of the students match up on other answers like their father/mother neither is an overseas Filipino worker, a tricycle driver, a plain housewife nor was deceased. Researchers proceed to the monthly income of their parents in able to measure the financial background of each and every respondent. Graph 1.2 illustrates the possible monthly income of the parents of these learners. Graph 1.2 As you can see, there is an equality of 14,000 and lower and 15,000-20,000 income. It is based on the survey being conducted by the researchers and from the occupation of their parents. On the part of their financial management, they spent the biggest part of their allowance for their food (50%) followed by their transportation and some other expenses. This shows that food is very important especially for the scholars like them. Food is an essential and they must not ignore because of the responsibilities they have in the university. The primary reason of the pupils asked in preferring themselves in being a scholar of Adamson University is that because they wanted to help their parents in decreasing the expenses. In this reason, an individual can determine that financial or money matters are the first basis in order for them to have financial management. Other reasons are for them to gain independency. The effectiveness of financial management is measured by proper usage of money and thinking a creative way of using up money.  The researchers also find ways on evaluating time supervision of scholars. Because of a more number of student assistants being interviewed, most of their time is allotted on their duties. Here is Graph 1.3 that shows how long an ordinary scholar uses his /her time in the university. Graph 1.3 Take a look of the graph that has been illustrated by the researchers. Student D and F are academic scholars. According to the information gathered from the survey, these students are academic scholars. As academic scholars, their worlds are focused on studying. They usually spend time in resting, studying and even have a time for leisure. On the other hand, the remaining students (A, B , C and E) make use of their time in duties and offices. Equalizing time in each activity of a student like them is not easy to do. Like on the Graph 1.3, student assistants are divided in different opinions. Some of them were able to balance their time and others cannot. Same answer was derived by academic scholars. However, they also answered it depends on the situation. Situations are unpredictable and make equalization of time in different planned activities. Somehow, all of them have a time for rest and have a break after long hours from school. Lastly, as a scholar, grade is the most important or basis in acquiring scholarships. Grades of these scholars are not affected by activities being done in school. Therefore, these learners have a good strategic measures in managing their time and studies. Chapter 4 Conclusion Based on the presented and interpreted data above, the following conclusions were drawn: 1. That most of the scholars spend their money more on food  for it is an essential need. 2. That most of the scholars wanted to help their parents to reduce the number of expenses. 3. That most of the scholars allot their time to school by doing different duties but assures that grades of them will not be affected. Chapter 2 Survey of Related Literature

A Review On The ABM System Information Technology Essay

A Review On The ABM System Information Technology Essay This paper will focus on the benefits of utilizing Activity-based management (ABM) system within the workplace. ABM is defined as: a method of identifying and evaluating activities that a business performs using activity-based costing to carry out a value chain analysis or a re-engineering initiative to improve strategic and operational decisions in an organizationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Activity-based management focuses on managing activities to reduce costs and improve customer value.  [1]   In order to maintain confidentiality, for the purpose of this paper I will refer to my workplace as XYZ Inc. XYZ Inc. in this instance is a Third Party Administrator (TPA) of employee health benefits. XYZ Inc. sells and administers various insurance products and services to an array of clients throughout various industries. Introduction: Organizations implement Activity-based management (ABM) due to the fact it is believed that this will aid them in making better decisions, improve performance and earn more money on assets deployed. Regardless of ones approach or belief, each organization requires information to make decisions, set priorities, allocate resources and monitor actions taken. ABM systems exist only to meet the information requirement. The information and knowledge gained are of value and benefit only when the information is used to improve the business. This paper will illustrate: where I believe ABM would be useful at XYZ Inc.; how ABM is currently used at XYZ Inc.; lastly, the overall usefulness of ABM. Recommended Application of ABM at XYZ Inc.: ABM information has wide use and applicability in XYZ Inc. There are many uses for ABM information which range from determining product/service costs to evaluating acquisition candidates. I feel that XYZ Inc. would benefit greatly by practicing ABM within its operations. XYZ Inc. would benefit from ABM by implementing its practices: To Determine Product/Service Cost; To Improve Performance of Processes and Activities; To Cut Costs/Downsize Operations; and Various other applications such as: To manage projects, to budget and to support acquisition analysis. Current use of ABM at XYZ Inc.: Currently ABM is claimed to be used in the areas of determining product/service cost, improving the performance of processes and activities and in terms of determining the budget. However, in other vital areas such as: determining when to cut costs/downsize, managing projects and acquisition analysis, ABM practices are not present. These areas definitely require the attention of ABM in order to ensure the best and most informed decisions are made relative to these vital areas of the operation. Although XYZ Inc. collects all the data they need for costing (i.e. Number of Employees to ensure, Insurance Premium Bulk Rates, Geographic Location etcà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦), they dont use it effectively or appropriately. As XYZ Inc. sole purpose is to undercut the competition and provide the lowest possible insurance premium rates to clients in order to attain their business. This is not allowing XYZ Inc. to effectively price their products/services. XYZ Inc. also receives feedback from its clients and customers relating to problems with its services, pointing to bottleneck issues within the claims reimbursements processes. Again, XYZ Inc. does not effectively utilize the information that is being forwarded to them in terms of how to remedy the issue. Rather in information is just ignored with hopes that the issue will in some fashion correct itself. Lastly, in terms of budgeting, the information collected here is used in a more serious manner. Senior management looks closely and most of ten times solely at expenditures throughout the year; almost instantaneously issuing a corporate update outlining where cutbacks will occur in the upcoming year. Most often times Senior management only looks at the large expenditures without taking into account correlating factors or benefits that may have be attained via the expenditures. Collecting all the pertinent data and utilizing it in a productive fashion, in theory would lead to more effective and efficient operations of the organization. However, when human power and capital is spent to ascertain such data and it is not used in accordance with betterment of the organization, this in turn leads to extreme discouragement and the action of accurate record keeping seems to become more and more pointless, creating a sense of uselessness in a vicious cycle and spiral downward within the organizations efficiency and effectiveness. When data is collected, it needs to be utilized in a fashion whereby everyone involved can reap and clearly see the benefits of attaining the data and using it in an effective and efficient manner for the betterment of the organization. Usefulness of ABM in Specified Application Areas: In the areas identified earlier, I will describe how ABM would be useful within the following applications. To Determine Product/Service Cost: In this area accuracy is required for operational and strategic decisions of product mix, product pricing, product line investments and production alternatives. Most ABM implementations are directed toward product/service cost. However, managers use Activity-based costing (ABC) to determine the actual, true cost of products and services. Organizations use ABC because they believe the understanding of true product/service cost will lead to better decisions of product mix, product pricing and product sourcing. Better decisions lead to increased profits. However, knowing true product/service cost does not necessarily result in better product/service decisions. If an organization is selling all it can at a market driven sales price, there may be no opportunity to increase the selling price or changes the mix of products. In these situations, accurate product/service cost information will force the organization to look at the activities associated with making or delivering an unprofitable product/service. To effect reductions in product/service cost, activities will have to be improved; requiring the implementation of ABM system. To Improve Performance of Processes and Activities: Many organizations use ABM as a structured way to select and examine key activity work processes, which are critical to the success of the organization. Activities are defined, analyzed and assigned a cost, in order to determine an organizations current or as is situation. With an organizations current or as is situation established, activities and processes with high potential for improvement can be selected and the efforts/actions undertaken to realize the improvement opportunity. Through identifying the biggest bang for the buck, improvement can be focused. ABM is also used to monitor the result of improvement initiatives. Through reporting cost and performance of processes and activities, people and teams responsible for improvement have a scorecard to judge the result of effort. The ABM system is used to provide the feedback necessary to sustain improvement initiatives. To Cut Cost/Downsize: Some organizations use ABM to cut cost, downsize, or restructure operations. This is the unfavourable side of ABM. In all actuality, ABM is an effective tool for cost cutting/reduction. In situations where financial returns are unacceptable to stockholders or when survival of the organization is at steak, organizations often take significant cost reduction actions. These actions typically take the form of layoffs, plant closings and idled equipment. Often taken across the board in all areas of the organization, they are rarely effective. Unless the volume of work is reduced, these cost reductions just leave the same work to be done by fewer people. Eventually, the cost creeps back into the organization. Activity-based cost reduction is focused on the activities of the organization. Cut activities, cost will follow. Other Applications: To Budget: To Support Acquisition Analysis: To ensure the future prosperity of XYZ Inc. ABM practices should be adhered to and utilized on a going forward basis. Conclusion: A prerequisite to benefiting from ABM is the willingness to assign responsibility for effecting decisions, actions and changes necessary to deliver the desired benefit. Decisions must be made and actions must be taken. Specific responsibility has to be assigned to reduce/eliminate non-value-added activities, improve value-added activities and reduce or eliminate the associated cost drivers. The value and benefit of ABM can only be measured by the decisions, actions and improvements that result due to the fact individuals were motivated to take action, based on the knowledge and information provided. Implementers of ABM systems should be warned that all efforts to implement an ABM system will be wasted if no one uses or takes action on the information provided. The value and benefit of ABM can be difficult to quantify. The result of some decisions can be difficult to quantify, while others cannot. Expect people to want process improvements to be credited to their project or initiative versus giving the necessary credit to the ABM system which was the driver of information leading to success. ABM information drives and supports all improvement initiatives. It can be difficult to measure and quantify its role in improvement and decision making. Activity-based management measure the result of decisions and improvements, regardless of who or what initiative gets credit. While some organizations view ABM as a tool to support improvement initiatives and decision making. The dollar sign makes this information tool useful. Organizations and managers are bottom line driven, and dollars and cents are the language of business. The dollar sign inspires people to take action. The ABM information system tracks improvements and provides individuals, managers and teams with process-based cost and operating information to judge the result of their decisions and efforts.

Poking Fun At Personal Ads :: essays research papers

To the SWF with a PhD:Basically, I’m a nervous person. I’ll tell you now that I’ve never had a date, but I just know that we were meant to be. The things you look for, â€Å"slim build, knowledge of the Wicca religion, and the ability to differentiate between Van Gogh and Picasso† describe me to a tee. I can’t wait until our wedding day, which should be soon because I’m nearly over two hills. Did I mention that I’m a nervous person?Concerning the line of your ad stating â€Å"Slim build is a great impression of a man’s true character,† well, I may not actually fit that request. I agree that a slim build is attractive; however, I know of many fat people that have great personalities. I’m not saying that I’m fat, rather stocky or big-boned. The problem is that I don’t hide my weight well. Actually, the truth is I look like a wildebeest covered in plaid and khaki. I have more fur on my back than all eleven of your precious Persians. To top things off, I have an inexplicable odor that creeps out no matter how much cologne I bath in.What I lack in the looks department, I certainly make up for by my knowledge of witchcraft. I’ve realized something about you smart chicks; you always have some fanatical beliefs that are sure to be contested (women’s suffrage, for example). I’ve got this one though; I’ve seen every movie ever made concerning witchcraft: Hocus Pocus, The Craft, and best of all, The Wizard of Oz. I have also memorized portions of Bewitched for our first date. Can you really turn Samantha into a dog by wrinkling your nose? I’ve always wondered that. As my hero, the Wicked Witch of the West would say, â€Å"I’ll get you my pretty,† and your eleven Persians, too. I hope you also like a guy with a sense of humor.As for the differentiation between Picasso and Van Gogh, I’ll be completely forward with you: I have no clue who those people are. I ran upstairs and asked my mom who Picasso was and she told me that it’s the name of a cat I had when I was five. If Van Gogh is another cat’s name, Picasso was cross-eyed, bob-tailed, and could never find the litter box. I’ve done it. I’ve successfully filled your requirements in a man.I feel that we have connected on some level.

The Odyssey :: essays research papers

During the night Odysseus tosses and turns, worrying about the outcome of his encounter with the suitor. Athena appears to himin a dream and promises that he will aid in the struggle. Penelope also unable to sleep and prays to Artemis, begging that she be rescued from marriage to another man, even if it means her death. In the morning Odysseus appeals to Zeus for a sign of his favor and is answered by the rumbling of thunder and lightning. Others notice the sign and a general mood of imminant danger sets in. Odysseus observes the behavior of his servants to identify the faithful. Melanthius arrives with the goats for the banquet and persists in harasses Odysseus. Eumaeus comes to the place, driving the hogs for the slaughter, demonstrating his goodness. Another loyal servant, Philoetius, the chief cowherd, arrives from the mainland. The suitors, again plotting to assassinate Telemachus, eventually return to the place. As they lunch, Ctesippus insults Odysseus and throws a bone at him. Telemachus is outraged and gives a scolding to the suitors in which he lists all the bad stuff they have done.. His unexpected boldness shocks the group, but they are drunk and laugh at his warnings. , Theclymenus cautions them that a catastrophe is impending in which they will suffer for their evil ways, but they mock the him until he leaves the palace in a rage. The suitors continue to drink, and dont heed the warning. New Charters: Philoitios - the cattle foreman Vocabulary banter v. - to speak to or address in a witty and teasing manner. lustrous adj. - radiant in character or reputation. dregs n. - the most undesirable part stint n. - a definite quantity of work assigned coverlets n. - bedspread saunter v. - to walk about in an idle or leisurely manner hulking adj. - massive sardonic adj. - disdainfully or skeptically humorous : derisively mocking jeered v. - to speak or cry out with derision or mockery braying v. - to crush or grind fine Epic Conventions Epic Similies p. 411 - line 14 â€Å"as a bitch mounting over her weak, defenseless puppies growls, facing a stranger, bristling for a showdown- so he growled from his depths, hackles rising at their outrage.† p.411 - 28 â€Å"as a cook before some white-hot blazing fire who rolls his sizzling saussage back and fourth, packed with fatand blood- keen to broil it quickly, tossing, turning it, this was, that way- so he cast about† Supernatural Involvment In this book the gods are constantly involved. Once, when Athena visits Odyssues in a dream to tell him that she favors him. A second time, when they pray to Zeus

Carrie Chapter Nine

‘Playing match' ‘Something like that.' ‘And Tommy went along with it?' This was the part that most fascinated her. ‘Yea,' Sue said, and did not elaborate. After a pause: ‘I suppose the other kids think I'm stuck up.' Helen thought it over. ‘Well †¦ they're all talking about it. But most of them still think you're okay. Like you said, you make your own decisions. There is, however, a small dissenting faction.' She snickered dolefully. ‘The Chris Hargensen people?' ‘And the Billy Nolan people. God, he's scuzzy.' ‘She doesn't like me much?' Sue said, making it a question. ‘Susie, she hates your guts.' Susan nodded, surprised to find the thought both distressed and excited her. ‘I heard her father was going to sue the school department and then he changed his mind,' she said. Helen shrugged. ‘She hasn't made any friends out of this,' she said. I don't know what got into us, any of us. It makes me feel like I don't even know my own mind.' They worked on in silence. Across the room, Don Barrett was putting up an extension ladder preparatory to gilding the overhead steel beams with crepe paper. ‘Look,' Helen said. ‘There goes Chris now.' Susan looked up just in time to see her walking into the cubby-hole office to the left of the gym entrance. She was wearing wine-coloured velvet hot pants and a silky white blouse – no bra, from the way things were jiggling up front – a dirty old man's dream, Sue thought sourly, and then wondered what Chris could want in where the Prom Committee had set up shop. Of course Tina Blake was on the Committee and the two of them were thicker than thieves. Stop it, she scolded herself. Do you want her in sackcloth and ashes? Yes, she admitted. A part of her wanted just that. ‘Helen?' ‘Hmmmm?' ‘Are they going to do something?' Helen's face took on an unwilling masklike quality. ‘I don't know.' The voice was light, over innocent. ‘Oh,' Sue said noncommittally. (you know you know something: accept something goddammit if its only yourself tell me) They continued to colour, and neither spoke. She knew it wasn't as all right as Helen had said. It couldn't be; she would never be quite the same golden girl again in the eyes of her mates. She had done an ungovernable, dangerous thing – she had broken cover and shown her face. The late afternoon sunlight, warm as oil and sweet as childhood, slanted through the high, bright gymnasium windows. From My Name Is Susan Snell (p. 40). I can understand some of what must have led up to the prom. Awful as it was, I can understand how someone like Billy Nolan could go along, for instance. Chris Hargensen led him by the nose-at least, most of the time. His friends were just as easily led by Billy himself. Kenny Garson, who dropped out of high school when he was eighteen, had a tested third-grade reading level. In the clinical sense, Steve Deighan was little more than an idiot. Some of the others had police records; one of them, Jackie Talbot, was first busted at the age of nine, for stealing hubcaps. If you've got a social-worker mentality, you can even regard these people as unfortunate victims. But what can you say for Chris Hargensen herself? It seems to me that from first to last, her one and only object in view was the complete and total destruction of Carrie White †¦ ‘I'm not supposed to,' Tina Blake said uneasily. She was a small, pretty girl with a billow of red hair. A pencil was pushed importantly in it. ‘And if Norma comes back, she'll spill.' ‘She's in the crapper,' Chris said. ‘Come on.' Tina, a little shocked, giggled in spite of herself. Still, she offered token resistance: ‘Why do you want to see, anyway? You can't go.' ‘Never mind,' Chris said. As always, she seemed to bubble with dark humour. ‘Here,' Tina said, and pushed a sheet enclosed in limp plastic across the desk. ‘I'm going out for a Coke. If that bitchy Norma Watson comes back and catches you I never saw you.' ‘Okay,' Chris murmured, already absorbed in the floor plan. She didn't hear the door close. George Chizmar had also done the floor plan, so it was perfect. The dance floor was clearly marked. Twin bandstands. The stage where the King and Queen would be crowned (i'd like to crown that fucking snell bitch carrie too) at the end of the evening. Ranged along the three sides of the floor were the prom-goers' tables. Card tables, actually, but covered with a froth of crepe and ribbon, each holding party favours, prom programmes, and ballots for King and Queen. She ran a lacquered, spade-shaped fingernail down the tables to the right of the dance floor, then the left. There: Tommy R. & Carrie W. They were really going through with it. She could hardly believe it. Outrage made her tremble. Did they really think they would be allowed to get away with it? Her lips tautened grimly. She looked over her shoulder. Norma Watson was still nowhere in sight. Chris put the seating chart back and rifled quickly through the rest of the papers on the pitted and initialwarred desk. Invoices (mostly for crepe paper and hapenny nails), a list of parents who had loaned card tables, petty-cash vouchers, a bill from Star Printers, who had run off the prom tickets, a sample King and Queen ballot Ballot! She snatched it up. No one was supposed to see the actual King and Queen ballot until Friday, when the whole student body would hear the candidates announced over the school's intercom. The King and Queen would be voted in by those attending the prom, but blank nomination ballots had been circulated to home rooms almost a month earlier. The results were supposed to be top secret. There was a gaining student move afoot to do away with the King and Queen business all together – some of the girls claimed it was sexist, the boys thought it was just plain stupid and a little embarrassing. Chances were good that this would be the last year the dance would be so formal or traditional. But for Chris, this was the only year that counted. She stared at the ballot with greedy intensity. George and Frieda. No way. Frieda Jason was a Jew. Peter and Myra. No way here, either. Myra was one of the female clique dedicated to erasing the whole horse race. She wouldn't serve even if elected. Besides, she was about as good-looking as the ass end of old drayhorse Ethel. Frank and Jessica. Quite possible. Frank Grier had made the All New England football team this year, but Jessica was another little sparrowfart with more pimples than brains. Don and Helen. Forget it. Helen Shyres couldn't get elected dog catcher. And the last pairing. Tommy and Sue. Only Sue, of course, had been crossed out, and Carrie's name had been written in. There was a pairing to conjure with! A kind of strange, shuffling laughter came over her, and she clapped a hand over her mouth to hold it in. Tina scurried back in. ‘Jesus, Chris, you still here? She's coming!' ‘Don't sweat it, doll,' Chris said, and put the papers back on the desk. She was still grinning as she walked out, pausing to raise a mocking hand to Sue Snell, who was slaying her skinny butt off on that stupid mural. In the outer hall, she fumbled a dime from her bag, dropped it into the pay phone, and called Billy Nolan. From The Shadow Exploded (pp. 100- 10 1): One wonders just how much planning went into the ruination of Carrie White – was it a carefully made plan, rehearsed and gone over many times, or just something that happened in a bumbling sort of way? †¦ I favour the latter idea. I suspect that Christine Hargensen was the brains of the allair, but that she herself had only the most nebulous of ideas on how one might ‘get' a girl like Carrie. I rather suspect it was she who suggested that William Nolan and his friends make the trip to Irwin Henty's farm in North Chamberlain. The thought of that trip's imagined result would have appealed to a warped sense of poetic justice, I am sure. .. The car screamed up the rutted Stack End Road in North Chamberlain at a sixty-five that was dangerous to life and limb on the washboard unpaved hardpan. A low-hanging branch, lush with May leaves, occasionally scraped the roof of the '61 Biscayne, which was fender-dented, rusted out, jacked in the back, and equipped with dual glasspack mufflers. One headlight was out; the other flickered in the midnight dark when the car struck a particularly rough bump. Billy Nolan was at the pink fuzz-covered wheel. Jackie Talbot, Henry Blake, Steve Deighan, and the Garson brothers, Kenny and Lou, were also squeezed in. Three joints were going, passing through the inner dark like the lambent eyes of some rotating Cerberus. ‘You sure Henty ain't around?' Henry asked. ‘I got no urge to go back up, ole Sweet William. They feed you shit.' Kenny Garson, who was wrecked to the fifth power found this unutterably funny and emitted a slipstream of high-pitched giggles. ‘He aint around,' Billy said. Even those few words seemed to slip out grudgingly, against his win. ‘Funeral.' Chris had found this out accidentally. Old man Henty ran one of the few successful independent farms in the Chamberlain area. Unlike the crotchety old farmer with a heart of gold that is one of the staples of pastoral literature, old man Henty was as mean as cat dirt. He did not load his shotgun with rock salt at apple time, but with birdshot. He had also prosecuted several fellows for pilferage. One of them had been a friend of these boys, a luckless bastard named Freddy Overlock. Freddy had been caught red-handed in old man Henty's henhouse, and had received a double dose of number-six bird where the good Lord had split him. Good ole Fred had spent four raving, cursing hours on his belly in an Emergency Wing examining room while a jovial interne picked tiny pellets off his butt and dropped them into a steel pan. To add insult to injury, he had been fined two hundred dollars for larceny and trespass. There was no love lost between Irwin Henty and the Chamberlain greaser squad. ‘What about Red?' Steve asked. ‘He's trying to get into some new waitress at The Cavalier,' Billy said, swinging the wheel and puffing the Biscayne through a juddering racing drift and on to the Henty Road. Red Trelawney was old man Henty's hired hand. He was a heavy drinker and just as handy with the bird-shot as his employer. ‘He won't be back until they close up.' ‘Hell of a risk for a joke,' Jackie Talbot grumbled. Billy stiffened. ‘You want out?' ‘No, uh-uh,' Jackie said hastily. Billy had produced an ounce of good grass to split among the five of them – and besides, it was nine miles back to town. ‘It's a good joke, Billy.' Kenny opened the glove compartment, took out an ornate scrolled roach clip (Chris's), and fixed the smouldering butt-end of a joint in it This operation struck him as highly amusing, and he let out his highpitched giggle again. Now they were flashing past No Tresspassing signs on either side of the road, barbed wire, newly turned fields. The smell of fresh earth was heavy and gravid and sweet on the warm May air. Billy popped the headlights off as they breasted the next hill, dropped the gearshift into neutral and killed the ignition. They rolled, a silent hulk of metal, toward the Henty driveway. Billy negotiated the turn with no trouble, and most of their speed bled away as they breasted another small rise and passed the dark and empty house. Now they could see the huge bulk of barn and beyond it, moonlight glittering dreamily on the cow pond and the apple orchard. In the pigpen, two sows poked their flat snouts through the bars. In the bar, one cow lowed softly, perhaps in sleep. Billy stopped the car with the emergency brake – not really necessary since the ignition was off, but it was a nice Commando touch – and they got out. Lou Garson reached past Kenny and got something out of the glove compartment. Billy and Henry went around to the trunk and opened it. ‘The bastard is going to shit where he stands when he comes back and gets a look,' Steve said with soft glee. ‘For Freddy,' Henry said, taking the hammer out of the trunk. Billy said nothing, but of course it was not for Freddy Overlock, who was an asshole. It was for Chris Hargensen, just as everything was for Chris, and had been since the day she swept down from her lofty collegecourse Olympus and made herself vulnerable to him He would have done murder for her, and more. Henry was swinging the nine-pound sledge experimentally in one hand. The heavy block of its business end made a portentous swishing noise in the night air, and the other boys gathered around as Billy opened the lid of the ice chest and took out the two galvanized steel pads. They were numbingly cold to the touch, lightly traced with frost ‘Okay,' he said. The six of them walked quickly to the hogpen, their respiration shortening with excitement. The two sows were both as tame as tabbies, and the old boar lay asleep on his side at the far end. Henry swung the sledge once more through the air, but this time with no conviction. He handed it to Billy. ‘I can't,' he said sickly. ‘You.' Billy took it and looked questioningly at Lou, who held the broad butcher knife he had taken from the glove compartment. ‘Don't worry,' he said, and touched the ball of his thumb to the honed edge. ‘The throat,' Billy reminded. ‘I know.' Kenny was crooning and grinning as he fed the remains of a crumpled bag of potato chips to the pigs. ‘Doan worry, piggies, doan worry, big Bills gonna bash your fuckin heads in and you woan have to worry about the bomb any more.' He scratched their bristly chins, and the pigs grunted and munched contentedly. ‘Here it comes,' Billy remarked, and the sledge flashed down. There was a sound that reminded him of the time he and Henry had dropped a pumpkin off Claridge Road overpass, which crossed 495 west of town. One of the sows dropped dead with its tongue protruding, eyes still open, potato chip crumbs around its snout Kenny giggled. ‘She didn't even have time to burp.' ‘Do it quick, Lou,' Billy said. Kenny's brother slid between the slates, lifted the pig's head toward the moon-the glazing eyes regarded the crescent with rapt blackness – and slashed. The flow of blood was immediate and startling. Several of the boys were splattered and jumped back with little cries of disgust. Billy leaned through and put one of the buckets under the main flow. The pail filled up rapidly, and he set it aside. The second was half full when the flow trickled and died. ‘The other one,' he said. ‘Jesus, Billy,' Jackie whined. ‘Isn't that en-‘ ‘The other one,' Billy repeated. ‘Soo-ee, pig-pig-pig,' Kenny called, grinning and rattling the empty potato-chip bag. After a pause, the sow returned to the fence, the sledge flashed, the second bucket was filled and the remainder of the blood allowed to flow into the ground. A rank, coppery smell hung on the air. Billy found he was slimed in pig blood to the forearms. Carrying the pails back to the trunk, his mind made a dim, symbolic connection. Pig blood. That was good. Chris was right. It was really good. It made everything solidify. Pig blood for a pig. He nestled the galvanized steel pails into the crushed ice and slammed the lid of the chest. ‘Let's go,' he said. Billy got behind the wheel and released the emergency brake. The five boys got behind, put their shoulders into it, and the car turned in a tight, noiseless circle and trundled up past the barn to the crest of the hill across from Henty's house. When the car began to roll on its own, they trotted up beside the doors and climbed in panting. The car gained speed enough to slew a little as Billy whipped it out of the long driveway and on to the Henty Road. At the bottom of the hill he dropped the transmission into third and popped the clutch. The engine hitched and grunted into life. Pig blood for a pig. Yes, that was good, all right. That was really good. He smiled, and Lou Garson felt a start of surprise and fear. He was not sure he could recall ever having seen Billy Nolan smile before. There had not even been rumours. ‘Whose funeral did ole man Henty go to?' Steve asked. ‘His mother's,' Billy said. ‘His mother?' Jackie Talbot said, stunned. ‘Jesus Christ, she musta been older'n God.' Kenny's high-pitched cackle drifted back on the redolent darkness that trembled at the edge of summer.