This Sunday you will find one (1) insert: P&G.

Bounce Dryer Bar .50 any size (x1/31/10)
Bounce Dryer Sheets .25 any size (x1/31/10)
Bounty towel or napkins .25 any size (x1/31/10)
Bounty napkins .25 any size (x1/31/10)
Tide $1.00 off any (x1/31/10)
Cascade .50 any size (x1/31/10)
Downy .50 any size (x1/31/10)
Dawn Hand Renewal .50 any size (x1/31/10)
Dawn .25 any size (x1/31/10)
Tide Stain Release 1.00 any size (x1/31/10)
Tide Stain Release 3.00 Large size (x1/31/10)
Aussie 1.00 any size (x1/31/10)
Charmin .25 any size (x1/31/10)
Pepto-Bismol .50 any size (x1/31/10)
NyQuil or DayQuil 1.50 any (x1/31/10)
Buy 2 Vicks products, get 1 Puffs free
Metamucil 3.00 any (x1/31/10)
Prilosec 3.00 any (x1/31/10)
Align 3.00 any (x1/31/10)
Pampers Extra Protection Diapers 2.00 off (x1/31/10)
Pampers Diapers or Pants 2.00 off (x1/31/10)
Pampers Wipes, 60 ct or larger .50 off (x1/31/10)
Scope 710 ml or larger .75 (x1/31/10)
14 count Crest Whitestrips Advanced Seal 5.00 off (x1/31/10)
Oral-B Battery or Rechargeble Power toothbrush 3.00 any size (x1/31/10)
Oral-B Power refills , 2 ct or larger 3.00 off (x1/31/10)
Crest Premium 4.0 oz or larger 1.00 off (x1/31/10)
Crest Toothpaste or Liquid Gel 4.0 oz or larger .50 (x1/31/10)
Crest Rinse 440 ml or larger .75 off (x1/31/10)
Crest Glide Floss 30M or larger or Glide Floss Picks 20 ct or more .75 off (x1/31/10)
Oral-B Pulsar, CrossAction, Advantage or 2 Indicator toothbrushes .75 off (x1/31/10)
Tag Product B1G1 (x2/28/10)
Buy 2 Old Spice Red Zone Deo get 1 Secret Flawless (x2/28/10)
Secret .25 off (x2/28/10)
2 Old Spice Deo or Body Wash 1.00 off (x2/28/10)
Gillette Body Wash 12 oz or larger 1.00 off (x1/31/10)
Gillette Fusion Razor 2.00 off (x1/31/10)
Gillette Deo product 1.00 off (x2/28/10)
Gllette Shampoo. Conditioner or Styler 1.00 off (x1/31/10)
Gillette Fusion Shave Prep Product 1.50 off (x1/31/10)
$1 any Gillette Shave Gel, 7 oz or Foam 9 oz 1.00 off (x1/31/10)
Buy 1 always Pantiliner 68-120 ct, get 1 34-60 ct free (x1/31/10)
Buy 1 Tampax 36-60 ct, get 1 18-20 ct free (x1/31/10)
Buy 1 Always Infinity 28-36 ct, get 1 14-18 ct free (x1/31/10)
Buy 1 Always Pad, Clean or Feminine Cleansing Cloth 24-54 ct, get 1 12-22 ct free (x1/31/10)
Nice’n Easy hair color 1.00 off (x1/31/10)
2 Pantene 3.00 off (x1/31/10)
Pantene Styler, Hair Spray or Treatment 1.00 off (x1/31/10)
Herbal Essences 1.00 off (x1/31/10)
2 Head & Shoulders 2.00 off (x1/31/10)
Zest, Ivory or Safeguard Body Wash or Bar Pack 1.00 off (x1/31/10)
Covergirl & Olay Simply Ageless 2.00 off (x1/31/10)
Olay Facial Moisturizer or Facial Cleanser 1.00 off (x1/31/10)
Olay Professional Pro-X Product 5.00 off (x1/31/10)
Olay Body Wash, Bar Soap, In-Shower Lotion, or Hand & Body Lotion, excl 30ml 1.00 off (x1/31/10)

Reaping In Abundance,
Kay

-thanks Sunday Coupon Preview

Save-a-Lot has a P&G coupon booklet available! These should be manufacturers’ coupons so you can use them at any store that takes manufacturer coupons! Sign up here.

“Hey, Maisy?”

“Yeah, Mum?”

“I’m going out to Mrs Smith’s – can you do the vacuuming while I’m gone?”

“You pay me Aussie dollar?”

“You know, once upon a time you begged me to let you vacuum.”

“Uh huh – we’re all naïve sometime, Mum.”

“Usual amount.”

“Wicked.”

I toss the magazine I was reading on my desk, grab my mp3 player and headphones, and head for the spare room. Not like I had anything interesting to do anyhow.

Ten minutes later I’m dancing the vacuum around the lounge to Fat Boy Slim on loud. I’ve done the actual work and I swing the nozzle around for an extra flourish – and I see Mark standing in the hall looking very, very amused.

“Shades of a young Tom Cruise, I think,” he says when I tear the headphones off.

“Bastard! Who sneaks up on a gal when she’s cleaning?” I say, grinning.

“Hey, are you home all alone?”

I get where he’s going with this, and grin.

“She’s at a friend’s, she’ll be gone for a couple of hours more, I’d say…”

He raises an eyebrow.

“Help with the cleaning first – just the hall to do?”

He makes a face.

“Do I have to?”

“You could leave…”

“Damn.”

“Just move the stuff off the floor so I have a clear run at the carpet.”

He sighs and does what he’s told.

****

“You’re worth the cleaning.”

I snort.

“You’re such a romantic!” I say sarcastically.

He slides a finger lightly down my side, over my hip and down to my knee. Cripes, it feels like every single nerve on the path of that finger goes nuts. I’ve never had that sort of reaction to a guy before. OK, so the few experiences I have had were mostly idiots who didn’t realise that I wasn’t into it because I hadn’t kneed them in the crotch yet, but… still, wow. I tilt my face up to his and he takes the hint to kiss me again.

“Yup, much better when you don’t say anything,” I say, grinning at him.

He tickles me, which just leads to more kissing.

“Crap, Mum’s due home soon for dinner,” I say eventually.

“Damn.”

“Come on, let’s go and do something wholesome-looking.”

ABSTRACT

Unlike spam, worms, viruses, and phishing—all of which confront end users directly—infrastructure attacks occur outside their normal frame of reference and control. But attacks on the Domain Name System (DNS), an engine of the Internet infrastructure, appear to be increasing in length and severity, affecting DNS information associated with financial services institutions, Internet service providers, and major corporations in the travel, health, technology, and media/ entertainment sectors. Such attacks can result in, say, dropped or intercepted email messages or users unknowingly redirected to fraudulent sites where they inadvertently hand over personal information.
The ultimate casualty in a serious infrastructure attack is public trust. The Internet technical community has responded to threats to the DNS infrastructure by developing the DNS Security Extensions (DNSSEC) protocol standard. DNSSEC-enabled systems run primarily in only a few early adoption and experimental zones.
DNSSEC introduces security at the infrastructure level through a hierarchy of cryptographic signatures attached to DNS records. In the context of DNSSEC, users are assured that the source of the data is verifiable as the stated source, and the mapping of a name to an IP address is accurate. DNSSEC – capable name servers also provide denial of- existence; that is, they tell a user that a name does not exist.

If you are you interested in this seminar topic, mail to us to get

the full report * of the seminar topic.

Mail ID: - contact4seminars@gmail.com 

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Click here for Quick Contact (Request for Topics)

Title: Mika’s Present
Pairing: ShoxOC
Rating: G-PG13
Warning(s): Sexua innuendos/ situations
Note:.
Yay! Mika I finished! XD I hope that you enjoy! Ech one is exactly 99 words. It was so much fun to do all of these XD Merry Christmas!

——

Sleepy

Mika was tired. Really tired. Waiting up for Sho to come back was a hard thing to do, especially when she didn’t know when he was supposed to be coming home. With a yawn, Mika laid down on the couch, staring blindly at the TV and her eyes fluttered to a close.

She awoke the soft lips on her cheek and immediately sat up, rubbing the sleep hastily from her eyes.

“You fell asleep?” Sho whispered, sitting beside her slowly. She nodded, letting her head rest against his sloping shoulder. “Sorry to keep you up waiting all the time.”

Cell Phone

“Mika, Mika!” Sho called, sliding into the room. Mika looked up from her desk and raised an eyebrow at Sho who was smiling with his squinty eyes at her, all out of breath. “Guess what?”

“What?” She asked, putting down her pencil.

“I got you a cell!” She stared at the box he gave her, stunned. “Cool, huh?! I thought you’d like having a Japanese one since you’ve been talking about it for a while…” Mika smiled and stood, the box falling from her lap. She threw her arms around his neck and whispered, “Thank you,” into his ear.

Car

The windows were fogged from the cold outside and the heat inside and Sho had stopped somewhere in the middle of nowhere, but Mika wasn’t really thinking about that at the moment. He had one hand up her shirt, one hand stroking her legs, her body splayed lazily over the front seat which he’d made into a reclined position.

Sho leaned forward to place a lusty kiss on her lips, traveling down her neck.

“S-Sho,” she whimpered. She couldn’t believe that they were doing this in his expensive as anything car, not that she really wanted him to stop.

Passion

“Why are you an idol, Sho?” Mika asked out of the blue one day. He took a minute to answer.

“What about you? How come you do art?”

Mika frowned, shrugging. “Because I like it, I guess.”

“Not ‘I guess’,” he scolded. “More than just liking it, you have a passion for it, right?”

Mika nodded her head slowly.

“Well,” Sho said with a soft chuckle. “It’s the same for me. I have a passion for what I do; even if I had to quit I couldn’t so easily get away from it. It’s the same for you, right?”

Blue

When Mika took out her paints, she didn’t know what she was going to do with them, just that whatever it was, it had to be blue. It had to be very very blue. She was in a blue mood at the moment and nothing was about to stop her from flinging paint, not even Sho.

“Mika!” he exclaimed. “Mika, the house!”

“Let’s make the house blue!” She giggled, throwing a fistfull of paint in his face. He squinted against the impact then jumped at her, grabbing some paint of his own to fling all over her clean face.

Art

“I don’t get it, Mika,” Sho said with a sigh. “Ohno says my drawings aren’t really art.” Mika choked on her water, wiping her lips as she tried to hold back her laughter.

“D-did he say why?” She asked, still giggling. Sho shook his head sadly.

“Mika can you teach me how to do art, then?”

Mika smiled. “I’m flattered, Sho, but you already ‘do’ art. You sing and dance and write lyrics, that’s all the art you need to do. It’s ok if you draw like a 5 year old.” Sho didn’t look much more reassured than before.

Paintbrush

Mika held up her paintbrush with a sigh, frowning at it. It was one that she hadn’t used in a while. Getting up from her desk slowly, she walked over to Sho who was eating a late dinner at the table.

“What should I do with this?” She asked. Sho swallowed before replying.

“A paintbrush?” He asked, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

“Yeah.”

Sho thought for a moment, then smiled weirdly, making Mika frown in confusion. “Keep it. I’ll show you how to do something interesting with it later.”

Mika decided to throw it away.

Music

It was definitely because of Sho that the torment from the dorm room next to hers stopped. Not even because of his mp3’s but because he came over as soon as she complained to him.

Mika watched in amusement as he lectured the boys from the dorm room, frowning and acting all serious in his suit. She giggled and he threw he a warning glance.

He’d scared the boys once he was done and she noticed a severe drop in the level of volume from their side. She called Sho every night just to boast to him about it.

Desk

“Mika!” Sho called through the door, huffing. “Mika get the door!” Mika ran to the door, eyes wide when she saw Sho panting, carrying a box large enough to make his legs shake.

“Sho, what is that?” She gasped, moving out of the way.

“J-just a second,” he panted, pushing the box through the door. He leaned against it once finished, catching his breath. Mika ran to get him a drink of water.

“So?”

“I… it’s a desk,” he breathed.

“What for?”

Sho smirked, looking up at her from under a shock of dark hair. “For us to use.”

Kitchen

“Why do we even have a kitchen, Sho,” Mika complained, looking from the glistening stove to the take-out bag in front of her. “We don’t ever use it.”

Sho laughed and stood, taking the uneaten food off the table.

“Shall we start to use it, then?” He asked, his voice a little bit deeper than usual.

Mika’s eyes brightened. “You mean you’ll learn how to cook?” Sho shrugged, tugging her out of her seat and turning her to sit her on the counter.

“Maybe,” he whispered, hands on her hips. Mika didn’t really care about the unused kitchen anymore.

Title: Rabah’s Present
Pairing: Nino/ShoxOC
Rating: G-PG13
Warning(s): Sexual situations
Note:.
OK! Done with one more XD Like I said before, each is exactly 99 words!I hope that you enjoy! Merry Christmas! ♥

——

Storm

Rabah flinched and curled up tighter under her sheets. She knew better than to be scared of the noises of thunder and flashes of lightning at her age, but she was still frightened.

“Rabah?” Came a deep voiced whisper from somewhere in the room. Rabah curled up into a tighter ball. “Rabah, what’s wrong?” Rabah still couldn’t answer and she felt a shuffle of sheets and warm arms enveloping her through the comforter.

“It’s ok,” Sho crooned, stroking her shivering back through the sheets. “Just think of Arashi when you hear the thunder and it’ll all be all right.”

Perfect

Rabah was laying on the couch, watching Nino play his video game while drifting off. Before she knew it, she’d fallen asleep to the sounds of Mario ringing in her ears. When she awoke, the lights were off with no more flashing and no more sounds. She twisted, a little bit perturbed by the silence and was met by a sound face. Nino had crawled on the couch behind her and spooned her without even her realizing. For a minute she looked at his peaceful face and then turned forward again, snuggling back into his warmth. It was perfect.

Body

“Really, Sho,” Rabah said, looking down. “Do you have to do that here?”

“Do what?” Sho said innocently, stripping from his jeans to his boxers, adding to the increasing nakedness. Rabah gulped.

“That,” She whispered.

“Oh,” he said, eyeing her and stepping into sweat pants. “You’re the one who invited me over.”

“Not to strip in the middle of my room!” She squeaked, looking at him desperately, trying to ignore his chest and shaped back as he reached for a clean shirt.

“You just can’t resist my perfect body,” He said in the Kaine Kasugi voice. Rabah walked away.

Miracle

“I…” Rabah started, taking a deep breath and looking down at the box in her hands, gripping it tighter. Her nerves were on fire, but Aiba had said that a miracle would happen to her today so she looked up, eyes gleaming. “Nino, I like you. I’ve always liked you. Please accept these.” She thrust out the box, bowing her head.

Tears bubbled in her eyes when she felt the box being removed from her hands. She looked up only to find Nino unwrapping the chocolates, smiling at them in wonder. “Delicious,” he whispered, face just a bit redder.

Boy

“I don’t get it,” Rabah said, exasperated. “I really don’t.”

Sho sighed, ripping off the humiliating wig. “I don’t either, ok! But I have to practice for the drama!”

“But, Sho!” She exclaimed. “You’re a guy!”

“No duh,” he pouted, gripping the wig in two hands. “They said I had a pretty face and needed to do something with it, though.”

Rabah snorted, grabbing the wig. “You’re a guy Sho, don’t be taking on female roles.”

“But Nino said that I should do it!” Rabah narrowed her eyes. What was Nino playing at? He was even girlier than Sho!

Gamer

“Nino, have you ever played Cooking Mama?” Rabah asked, eyes focused intently on her DS.

“Of course,” Nino said haughtily. “Just not that often.”

“Oh, really,” Rabah laughed, pausing the game. “Would you like to try?”

Nino’s eyes flared at the challenge. “Of course.” He grabbed the DS from her hands and started to furiously pound the buttons. Rabah sat back and watched in amusement.

“Hahaha! You suck!” She laughed minutes late when Nino was about to throw the device on the floor.

“You shut up!” He growled. “Just because I play a lot doesn’t mean I play everything!”

Art

Rabah leaned over Sho’s shoulder, curious as to what he was doing. He covered his paper, glaring up at her. “No peeking!” He whined.

“Fine, fine,” She laughed, backing off. A few minutes later Sho skipped over to her, holding something behind his back.

“So… Ohno decided to give me art lessons, finally, and so I drew something for you!” He thrust the paper into her hands and smiled at her hopefully. She glanced it over and then snorted.

“This is like a 5 year old’s art, Sho. I think you need to ask him to help you again.”

Sparkles

“I can’t believe this,” Nino said, walking into the house and slamming the door, startling Rabah out of her wits. She didn’t turn towards him, afraid, but asked hesitantly,

“What’s wrong.”

“Freaking Jun!” Nino hissed. She heard him kick off his shoes, getting ready to scold him for not organizing them, but stopped when he flung himself in front of her.

“The bastard insisted on giving me some of his sparkles. Like hell if I need them!”

Rabah snorted, covering her blooming smile with a hand. Nino was decked out in sparkles, all over him.

“Merry Christmas,” she chuckled.

Love

“Sho?” Rabah asked tentatively, snuggling into the crook of Sho’s arm as he flipped through his newspaper. He looked down at her through his glasses and smiled.

“Hm?”

“What do you think love is?”

Sho laughed, his eyes going all squinty, and pulled Rabah closer.

“What do you think it is?”

“I don’t know,” Rabah huffed. “That’s why I asked you.”

“Well,” Sho said, putting down his paper and cocking his head. “I think love is something without much of a definition. Like Arashi. You can say what we are, but we don’t have a specific definition. That’s love.”

Lust

Rabah stared up at Nino’s eyes in surprise, wondering if something had happened at work for him to so suddenly run into their room and push her onto the bed. There was something in his eyes, something she hadn’t seen before and then his lips were on hers, warm and wet and moving oh so sweetly. Rabah nearly sighed into the kiss, throwing her arms around his neck as he straddled her.

“N-Nino, what?” She stuttered as he pulled away to breathe.

“Waiting too long,” he whispered, searching her face, hope mixed with desire in his dark, beady eyes.

Title: Kristina’s Present
Pairing: Nino/AibaxOC
Rating: G-PG
Warning(s): Snarky Neen XD
Note:.
Merry Xmas Kristina! I hope that you enjoy these 99 word drabbles! ^^

——

Mochi

“Let’s have a competition,” Nino suggested, not bothering to look up from his game.

“What kind of competition?” Kristina asked cautiously, glancing at the small man under her lashes.

“Whoever can eat the most mochi wins,” he said, pausing his game and standing up off the floor. He went to the fridge, pulled out a box of mochi and set it on the table. Kristina raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms.

“Wins what?” Though she already knew she would take the challenge, how could she not?

Nino smirked, popping one into his mouth. “Whatever they want from the other.”

City

“What do you want to do today?” Aiba asked. Kristina shrugged, looking at him beside her from her spot on the couch.

“What do you want to do?” She questioned back.

“I don’t know, that’s why I asked you,” Aiba said with a laugh.

Kristina smiled, thinking. “Let’s go into the city,” She suggested.

“How come?”

Kristina shrugged again, biting back a smile.”I have a feeling that the Christmas light are really pretty today and… I just wouldn’t mind seeing them with you.”

Aiba giggle, turning off the TV and pulling Kristina along as he stood. “That sounds perfect.”

Rubber Band

“Kristina.” Kristina turned at the sound of her name to find Nino standing beside her, hand posed above her arm. “Do you trust me?”

Kristina cocked her head, apprehension flitting across her features. “Yes?” She said. Nino smirked, and something flicked against her skin, painfully. She yelped, jerking away with a hurt frown. “Why would you do that?” She snapped, rubbing her arm which was turning red, watching the rubber band slip from Nino’s fingers.

“So I can do this,” he said after a shrug, taking her arm and kissing the red mark softly.

“What an excuse,” she muttered.

Newspaper

“Since when did you read the newspaper?” Kristina laughed, leaning over Aiba to peek in on the newspaper that he was actually, seriously reading.

Aiba shrugged nonchalantly. “I dunno,” he said. “Get me a cup of coffee?” He asked. Kristina snorted.

“Since when did I ever make your coffee?”

He looked up at her with a wistful sigh and a soft smile. “I’m trying here,” he said.

“Trying what?” She asked, posting her fists on her hips.

“To be a good man for you,” he said so honestly that Kristina blushed and whacked his head, going to make coffee.

Light

Kristina tripped, uttering a yelp as she fell, spraining her ankle. “Ouch,” she winced.

“Klutz,” Nino scolded, standing above her with a slight smirk on his lips though worry clouded his eyes.

“Well, sorry,” she hissed, trying to stand and failing.

With a sigh Nino knelt in front of her. “You’re so much trouble,” he said, irritation forcing its way into his voice.

“You don’t have to carry me,” she said, though she climbed onto his back.

“It’s ok,” Nino said with a sigh, standing. “You’re light anyway.” Kristina blushed, throwing her arms around his neck and nuzzling close.

White

“Kristina,” Kristina blinked, squirming under the covers. “Kristina, wake up!” Kristina groaned, rolling over in bed.

“What time is it?” She mumbled, rubbing sleep from her eyes.

“Who cares, just get up and see!” Kristina slid groggily out of the bed, walking over to Aiba who was at the window.

“See what?” She yawned, leaning against him. He smiled down at her and pulled the curtains away.

“The whole world is white tonight.” Kristina peered outside, which was in fact all white. She smiled, placing her hand against the window and watched the snow fall peacefully to the ground.

Cherry

“Can I have the cherry?” Nino asked, eyeing the cherry on top of Kristina’s ice cream.

“Why would I give it to you?” She asked, frowning. “It’s my cherry.”

Nino scoffed, rolling his eyes. “Can’t share once in a while, I see.”

“Not this time,” Kristina said, lifting up the cherry by its stem and angling it towards her mouth. In a flash, Nino leaned forward, taking the little delicacy into his mouth and biting it from the stem. Kristina gaped.

“Thanks,” he said, licking his lips and falling back in his seat. Kristina ignored him, pouting rather childishly.

Surprise

“Don’t open your eyes yet,” Aiba warned.

“I got it I got it,” Kristina whined. “Where are you taking me?”

“Secret,” Aiba said, giggling excitedly. “You’ll like it, don’t worry.” Kristina didn’t know whether to believe him or not; it was cold and windy and rocky wherever they were and she didn’t like it yet.

“Ok,” Aiba said, stopping. “Open your eyes now.” Kristina did as she was told, gasping at the scenery. Wherever they were they were overlooking an ocean, sparking in the sun and surrounded by green trees and brown sands.

“Surprise,” Aiba whispered, kissing her cheek.

Glasses

Kristina watched Nino carefully as he sat at his piano, beginning to play Niji. She’d always loved that song, thinking it his best performance. She also loved the glasses he insisted on wearing even though he never kept his eyes open to play. He knew the notes by heart after all.

Nino continued to play, undisturbed by Kristina’s unwavering gaze on him. He neared the end, where the piano cut off to sing the last few words and his eyes flashed open. Nino turned to Krista, a soft smile on his pink lips, and he pulled off his glasses.

Running

“Ready?” Aiba asked, bending down at the starting point.

“No,” Kristina said dully, though she bent down as well. Aiba laughed, eyes twinkling.

“On your mark,” Kristina took a deep breath. “Get set…” She glanced at Aiba who wasn’t looking at her anymore. “Go!” He shouted, and the two were off, running down the track, side by side until Aiba started to take the lead. Kristina laughed, she’d known this would happen, but she was ok with it because she knew that Aiba would be waiting to welcome her with a smile on the other end of the finish.

Title: Emily’s Present
Pairing: NinoxOC
Rating: G-R
Warning(s): A little smut :]
Note:.
I can’t type on this computer XD Anyway, Merry Xmas to you, Emily dear! These prompts were so hard to write, so i hope you like them xD 99 words each ;DD

——

Webcamming

“I can’t believe this,” Emily said, biting her lip and squinting her eyes in concentration.

“What?” Nino muttered, distracted and annoyed.

“That we’re webcamming –Ah!” She paused, frowning. “Webcamming while playing games.”

Emily couldn’t see him, she was too focused on her game, but she knew that he shrugged. “So?”

“Shouldn’t we be doing something else?” She wondered aloud, pressing the buttons harder.

“I’ll turn it off.” Nino threatened seriously.

“F-fine! Fine,” Emily sighed turning back to her game. There really was no getting away from his first nature, was there? Not that she really minded all too much.

Uchiwa

Emily sat in her room, frowning at the Nino uchiwa in her hands. How many times ad she stared at this thing now, she wondered. It had to be a lot, but Nino never looked any less adorable and kissable.

Looking fleetingly around the room, she held up the uchiwa to her face and kissed Nino’s false lips, pulling away with a blush and squeal. She couldn’t believe she just did that.

“What are you doing when you can kiss the real thing?” Nino asked, standing in the doorway. Emily gulped, freezing as Nino started to walk towards her.

Fanfic

“What are you doing?” Nino asked, leaning over her shoulder and beginning to read. “’Nino couldn’t help himself,’” he read with a slight grimace, “’He placed his lips at her neck and…’” Emily shut her notebook firmly, blushing hard. “What was that?” Nino asked incredulously.

“N-nothing…” she muttered, averting her eyes.

“Lies,” Nino whispered, leaning down to angle his lips at her neck. “Tell me,” he breathed, warm breath brushing over her skin and sending electricity down her spine.

“F-fanfic,” she squeaked, squinting her eyes shut.

Nino kissed her neck chastely, pulling away. “I see,” and he walked away.

Stickers

“What are you doing to your phone?” Nino asked, horrified as he watched Emily stick decal all over the back of her phone.

“Decorating it,” she said absently.

“What for?” Nino asked, as if it was the worst thing in the world. He probably thought it was a waste.

“It makes it look nice and cute,” She insisted, looking up to smile at him, placing a jewel just by the corner of his eye, then returning to her phone. “I’ll do your DS next,” she offered.

“You’ll do no such thing,” he snapped, looking at himself in the mirror.

Concert

“I know you want it,” Nino whispered in her ear. Emily shivered. He pressed her further against the wall, her wrists plastered just above her head. “Beg for it,” Nino told her, pressing his hips flush against hers, gyrating just a bit. “Beg,” he ordered, licking the shell of her ear, which promptly turned red,

“P-please?” Emily whispered, flexing her fingers desperately. “Nino, I want it so bad.”

“Do you now?” Nino asked, licking a trail up her neck. Emily whimpered a yes. Nino pulled away, smirking and thrust the ticket in her face. “You owe me for this.”

Toothpaste

Emily walked into her bathroom, glancing Nino over who was brushing his teeth with tired eyes. He was wearing a loose v-neck t-shirt and his boxers. On his neck was a dollop of toothpaste. “How did you do that?” Emily asked, giggling. Nino looked at her, raising an eyebrow.

Emily smiled and leaned up, cocking her head and flicking her tongue out against Nino’s slender neck. She thrilled at the little shiver that she felt Nino produce.

“You got toothpaste on your neck,” she whispered, licking her lips free of the toothpaste. A slight blush grew on Nino’s face.

Studying

“I… I don’t see how,” Emily gulped, throwing her head to the side. “How this is studying.” Nino hummed in disapproval at her words, vibrations going straight to the growing warmth in Emily’s stomach. He leaned forward, running his lips down her neck, licking off the accumulated swaet. He replaced his one finger with two, stroking and scissoring her wet warmth. Emily gasped, fighting off the moans bubbling in her throat.

“Didn’t you say you wanted more experience for your writing?” He asked, nipping sadistically at her neck. Emily groaned deep in the back of her throat in response.

Purikura

Emily was pulled into the purikura booth and seated on Nino’s lap, facing him, before she realized what was going on. “I thought you didn’t like taking purikura,” she said nervously, as Nino was brushing her hair away from her neck and cupping her face in his hands.

“Oh, we’re not taking pictures,” he said, staring pointedly at her lips. She licked them nervously and sucked in a breath. Nino leaned forwards, catching her wet lips in his soft, warm ones, and moved her further onto his lap. Adrenaline burned in her veins thinking that someone might hear them.

Bookstore

Emily loved the bookstore despite how small and crowded it was. She smiled as she angled herself throughout the shelves, looking back and forth at the empire of books surrounding her. She wondered if she would find what she was looking for. She turned the corner, not watching where she was going, and bumped into someone molded and solid. Her hands flew out, grabbing whatever she could reach, accidentally rounding the body and griping the sculpted buttox.

“What are you doing?” A sharp voice said in her ear. Emily gulped.

“Nino,” she whispered, trapped tight against the book cases.

Salt

“Emily,” Nino crooned. Emily.” He took the crying girl into his arms, holding her close. “Emily, what’s wrong?” Emily shook her head in the crook of his arm, nestling in close, and hiccupped.

“You don’t know?” Emily shrugged. Nino held her away from him, studying her wet face and red eyes. He smiled softly, brushing the disheveled dark hair out of her face before leaning forward to kiss the tears from under her eyes away. Emily closed them, sighing to calm herself down.

“Salty,” he murmured, kissing away the wetness. Emily laughed, curving an arm around his slim waist.

Title: Steff’s Present
Pairing: ArashixOC
Rating: G-PG
Warning(s): None!
Note:.
Merry Christmas, Steff! Present in a form of 10 99 worded drabbles ;D I hope that you enjoy them!

Seattle

“I’m thinking of moving,” Steff told Nino who was sitting in her kitchen, playing his DS. He didn’t even look surprised, but his foot did start to bounce slightly on his knee.

“Where?”

“Seattle,” she said quickly, leaning against the counter.

“Hmm,” Nino hummed, fingers flitting across the buttons. Steff sighed and closed her eyes, dropping her head back. She didn’t know why she’d expected him to say something, or why she was disappointed that he hadn’t.

As she saw him out of her house, Nino turned, pocketing his hands and smiling. “I’ll come visit you if you do.”

Fortune

Steff laughed. How could she not? Sho’s fortune was even worse than hers, though there wasn’t much less to expect.

“Quiet,” Sho pouted as they sat down at the café, the fortune still crumpled in his fist. “You got a bad one too, didn’t you?”

Steff snorted. “Yeah, just not as bad as yours.”

Sho slumped in his seat, shoving the fortune in his pocket. Then he sat up straight again with a twinkling smile. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure that your luck definitely changes.”

“You shouldn’t be the one saying that,” Steff snickered. Sho looked away, smiling tightly.

Sleeping bag

“Really?” Camping?” Steff asked incredulously. Aiba hadn’t told her where they were headed and now they were in the woods, in the middle of nowhere.

“Yep!” He said brightly, stepping out of the trailer he’d borrowed from a friend, beginning to unload all the stuff. Well, she should have known. Steff scolded herself.

“And you packed everything yourself?” She said dully, leaning with her arms crossed against the car.

“Yep!” He said proudly. Steff cringed. She knew better than to believe his boast. “Oh… but…” He paused, looking to her hopefully and apologetically. “I only brought one sleeping bag.”

Sunset

“Hey, hey, Jun? Isn’t the sunset pretty?” Steff asked, tapping Jun’s leg and pointing to the setting orb of orange and yellow.

“No,” Jun said thoughtfully, eyes twinkling in the light. “You’re more so.”

Steff hit his shoulder, blushing. “That was good.”

“Right?” Jun leaned back on his palms, sighing. “They should have asked me to do the scene with Mirai-chan.” He flipped his hair out of his eyes then smiled brightly at Steff. “Ah well, at least I got to say it to you.” Steff laughed, looking down shyly and smacked his arm again, though she was happy.

Sake

“I didn’t know you liked sake,” Steff said, watching Ohno down his third glass. He gasped as he pulled the now empty cup away from his lips and shrugged.

“Sometimes it’s ok. More?” Steff rolled her eyes, pouring him another glass full.

“You’re gonna get drunk,” she warned.

“That’s ok,” Ohno said, holding his cup out for another refill. Steff sighed but complied.

“Why is it ok?” She asked, watching him carefully.

Ohno smiled and leaned towards her to place a messy kiss on her lips. “’Cause you’re here.”

“Ah, jeeze, you’re drunk already,” Steff complained although she smiled.

Laughter

“S-stop,” Jun stuttered, squirming under Steff’s touch. “Steff! S-stop!”

Steff laughed, grinning with tears in her eyes, watching Jun struggle beneath her fingers. “Who knew you were this ticklish?” She giggled, increasing her range from his stomach to his neck. Jun choked back giggles of uncomfortable laughter, trying his best not to hurt her.

“N-not fair, gerroffa me!” He laughed, voice high and squeaky, tears pooling in his own eyes.

“Never,” Steff teased.

Jun grabbed her wrists quickly and Steff tried to pull away, pouting while still laughing.

“Your turn,” he growled, flipping her over on the soft couch.

Superhero

“Stop it,” Steff hissed, pulling away from the stranger gripping her wrist uncomfortably tight. “Let go of me you fucker.” The man grinned, wide and feral. Steff froze, then tugged harder, a lump of fear forming in her throat.

“Ah come on little lady, I won’t hurt you.”

And suddenly the hand was torn from her wrist, a smaller hand on her back, moving her out of the way. She looked up just in time to see Nino punch the man, pushing Steff as he walked away.

“You’re late,” he scolded.

“Not my fault,” she mumbled, clinging to him.

Onesies

Steff gawked when she saw Ohno fall onto their bed, fully clad in blue pajamas –a onesie no less. “Ohno, what-?”

“This is what I wear to bed,” he said simply, patting the mattress, calling her to lie beside him.

“Liar,” she quipped, sidling in next to him.

“No lies,” he replied, pulling her close and nuzzling his face into her dark hair.

“I don’t believe you.”

“Why would I have them, then?” He retorted, stroking her back.

She shrugged, knowing Ohno would feel the motion. Sometimes he just didn’t make any sense.

“Exactly,” he said, kissing her forehead.

Gum

“Do you have any more gum?” Steff asked, watching Sho crack his bubble gum.

“Hm?” He asked, turning his head towards her. “More gum?” She rolled her eyes and nodded, hadn’t he been listening? He shook his head, pulling the popped bubble back into his mouth and licking his full lips. “I don’t,” he said apologetically.

Steff closed her eyes with a pout, and before she knew it Sho’s wet, warm lips were on hers, his tongue in her mouth along with something else. She squeaked, pulling away. Sho smiled.

“But you can have that piece if you want.”

Ornament

“You’re helping me decorate the tree, right?”  Aiba asked hopefully, shifting something behind his back.

“I am,” she said, throwing him a smile and falling tiredly onto the couch, looking over the plain, unadorned tree that they’d just bought.

“Oh, good,” he sighed, pulling a little box out from behind his back. “Because I think you should choose the place for this one.”

Steff took the box from him and laughed as she opened it, holing it in front of her; it was a custom-made ornament of mirror man. Steff smacked his head lightly, walking over to the tree.

Title: Tsuki’s Present
Pairing: OhnoxOC
Rating: G-PG (sorry no smut D:)
Warning(s): None!
Note:.
Tsuki’s Christmas present! A set of 99 word drabbles ^^ (Yeah, I couldn’t think up a better title XD) I hope that you enjoy, honey! I’m sorry that there isn’t any smut D: I couldn’t figure out how to fit it in >< I’ll do something with that another time ;D

——

Soft

Cynthia blinked awake, shivering at the touch running up and down her arm. She groaned away her sleep and tossed a little in bed until she rolled over to face Ohno. “What are you doing?” She whispered in a grumble.

Ohno continued to stroke her arm, his eyes closed, cheek resting on a propped up fist. He smiled his soft, close-lipped smile and opened one eye. “You’re soft.” He replied.

Cynthia pulled away, turning into her pillow to hide an embarrassed smile. “Shush,” she said. Ohno chuckled and fell down onto his pillows, pulling her closer.

“I don’t wanna.”

Multiple

“Ohno,” Cynthia pulled on his sleeve, pointing at the food in the freezer. “Ohno.”

“Hm?” He mumbled, eyes dragging along the ramen shelf as she pulled him away.

“Ohno, I don’t know what to choose.”

Ohno turned to the freezer she was pointing at and frowned with a drawn out sigh. “Any of them is fine,” he said off-handedly, trying to walk to the magazines.

“There’s too many, though! I don’t know what you like best.” Cynthia pouted, pulling him close again.

Ohno patted her head, smiling with squinty eyes. “I’ll eat anything you choose. I like all fish.”

Screen

Cynthia fell into the seat with a sigh, handing the popcorn over to her date. “Eat some,” she said happily, situating herself. Ohno stuck a hand into the bag of popcorn and pulled out one piece, popping it into his mouth. Cynthia laughed. “More than that!”

“Shh!” he scolded, holding a slender finger up to his lips. “The movie is starting.”

Cynthia looked to the screen fleetingly, reaching into the bag for some popcorn of her own, only to be met with Ohno’s hand grabbing hers. She looked at him, quizzical and he smiled, nodding towards the screen again.

Universe

“Hey, Ohno?” Cynthia asked, looking up at the stars. Ohno hummed, encouraging her to continue. “What do the stars make you think of?”

Ohno sat up, laughing slightly, and ruffled Cynthia’s hair. She frowned.

“What do you think of when you look at them?” She asked again, sitting up as well.

Ohno shrugged, looking up. “I don’t really know. What do they make you think of?”

Cynthia squinted up at the twinkling dots. “They make me think that it’s really big.”

“What’s really big?”

“The universe. And that we get to live in it is amazing, don’t you think?”

Grouch

Ohno came into the house with a sigh, kicking off his shoes and hanging up his coat. He slouched to the kitchen and Cynthia turned her head to look at him with concern.

“Was work difficult?” She asked.

Ohno waved a hand and fell onto the couch, turning on the TV to the fishing channel. “Nino was in a bad mood today.”

Cynthia held back a laugh. “Did… did he do something to you?”

Ohno sniffed. “You don’t want to know.”

Cynthia turned back to cooking her meal. Ohno was right, she didn’t know if she wanted to know.

Doze

“But I wanna go fishing,” Ohno whined, pulling on Cynthia’s arm. “Please, Tsu-kiiii?” He leaned up and nuzzled his nose into her neck, sending a jolt down her spine.

“You’re shot,” she laughed, pushing him back down to the bed, “Who let you get so drunk? Jeeze…” She pulled the sheets up to his chin and sat beside him. “Why are you always thinking about fishing anyway?”

“I’m not, I’m not,” he shook his head frantically against the pillow, grabbing her hand.

“Then what else do you think about?” Cynthia asked quietly, but he’d already started to doze off.

Sway

“No, no that’s not it,” Ohno told her, grabbing her hips. “That’s not how you do it.” Cynthia made a move to pull away, flustered and frustrated. She didn’t understand why Ohno wanted her to dance, anyway. Wasn’t one dancer enough for the both of them?

“Let’s start from the beginning, ok?” Cynthia huffed. Ohno made her seem worse than she really was.

Hands on her hips, Ohno began to move their bodies together, swaying to an inaudible beat. On instinct, Cynthia brought her hands up to Ohno’s flexed, toned biceps, gripping lightly as they moved together, as one.

Piano

Cynthia closed her eyes, letting her hands graze against the soft keys. She knew this song by heart and she was good at it. Even when she felt someone sit beside her, she didn’t stop.

She finished strongly and rested her hands gently on the key with a soft smile before pulling away. She started to stand, but was held back by a hand around her wrist; it was Ohno next to her.

“What do you think about when you play piano?” He asked innocently, sitting next to her without a shirt on. Abs. Oh god, Cynthia gulped, blushing.

Mold

Cynthia was glad she’d decided to go through Ohno’s fridge. He’d told her he was fine, he’d told her he’d had enough food. Cynthia was glad she’d been skeptical. Everything was moldy.

With a sigh she sat in front of the fridge, closing it. What was she going to do with himthat man? She would never know if he was eating healthily or if he himself was healthy… tears pricked her eyes.

“What’re you doing?” Ohno asked from behind her. Cynthia jumped, shaking her head. Ohno placed a hand on her shoulder and something fell into her lap- a key.

Cheese

“What’s this?” Cynthia asked, staring dumbfounded at the roll of cheese in front of her.

“It’s cheese,” Ohno said matter-of-factly.

“I know that but… why?” She picked it up, looking at it in confusion.

“You were mumbling something about cheese in your sleep, so I figured I’d get you some.”

“You were awake to hear me talk?” She muttered.

“And then you said something about Juri…and gingerbread houses… But I can’t get you those.” Cynthia blushed, looking down at her roll of cheese. She really shouldn’t have been reading smut about cheese and a 14 year old before bed.

Title: Coincide
Group/Pairing: Arashi/Junba
Prompt: no. 025: Busy
Word Count: 1355
Rating: PG
Summary: Aiba’s busy day is paid off in the end
Disclaimer: So sad they’re not mine ;__;
Notes:.
Aiba’s bday fic! It’s short, I know. But I hope you all enjoy it!
(PS I decided to stop doing indents because they were beginning to get annoying XD)

——

‘Busy’ wasn’t even the word to describe it. ‘Busy’ didn’t hold the weight of just how much work he’d had lately. ‘Busy’ wasn’t the right word, but it was all he could think as he finished his day. Too ‘busy’ to take off for Christmas Eve. Too ‘busy’ to relax for even a little on his birthday. Too ‘busy’ to even get a chance to think about the fact that he was turning the mighty 27 today. Aiba was so busy with work, had been for so long, that he didn’t have the time to remember that he had just turned 27. Not that he minded working. Work was fun and it took up spare time that he wouldn’t have done anything with. He enjoyed working, especially when it was with Arashi. In some cases, work was a relief.

He was the last one to leave the studio that day, just past 9 o’clock, while the others had left an hour earlier. They all had something to do on Christmas Eve and Aiba was only slightly envious. He didn’t mind spending the holiday with his family, though, and they were waiting for him. With a sigh he tiredly pushed himself off the dressing room’s chair, grabbed his heavy jacket and bag, and called for his car.

As he passed the still bustling staff he cheerfully wished them a ‘Merry Christmas’. They all replied with strained, but happy smiles and ‘you too’s. Aiba shouldered his bag as he stepped into the chilly night automatically smiling when he saw the scene in front of him. Snow was fluttering down from light grey clouds, gently coating the ground in a soft white. He paused to watch the snowflakes, each one different from the other, to silently float to the ground. Aiba had always liked the snow. Instead of something to play in it was a comfortable and relaxing almost purity; it was beautiful. A relieved sigh escaped him and he felt his posture slouch as weariness and release settled in; at least he’d be getting the next couple of days off.

The car Aiba had requested pulled in front of him. Aiba grinned a greeting and slid into the back seats. “It’s snowing,” he told the driver; just to say the gleeful words.

“Yes it is,” the driver replied with a chuckle. “Home, Aiba-san?”

“Yes, please,” Aiba said, leaning back comfortably in the seat. Soon he was drifting off, images of white snow playing behind his eyelids, only to be awoken by the driver tapping on his shoulder. Aiba blinked, apologized for falling asleep with an embarrassed laugh, shuffled out of the car, thanked the driver, wished him a very Merry Christmas and started to trudge up through the snow to his house. In truth, Aiba never really forgot his birthday, it had just slipped his mind until he thought of how it was Christmas Eve. Christmas Eve meant his birthday and in turn, his birthday meant Christmas Eve. It was hard to get away from the thought of his birthday intermingling with Christmas Eve, it had been like that for 27 years already.

Nearing his house, Aiba noticed that something was off. He stopped, hitched his bag up on his shoulder and began to count the cars that were posed and doused in snow in his driveway. There were at least one or two too many. “Huh…” Aiba mumbled, starting to walk again. Maybe his mom had invited guests. Then, Aiba stopped again cocking his head to the side for a second. The house lights were dim, almost none were on. That was weird. If his mom had people over, then all the lights should be on. Hurrying his pace, Aiba made it to his front door. He stomped his shoes free of snow, shook his hair out, and started to dig for his key in his bag. He turned the lock and pushed the door open, immediately realizing that there was one more thing off about his house that night. It was way too quiet. Aiba’s house was never quiet.

Aiba almost panicked. More like, he did panic. He didn’t even kick off his shoes as his bag slid from his shoulders landing on the floor in a muted thud before he bounded into the house, fear making his voice useless. But then the lights flicked on and people jumped out at him and Aiba stopped dead in his tracks, stunned at the faces smiling at him.

The faces started to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to him as Aiba was picking them out; his mom, brother, dad, Jun, Sho, Nino, Ohno… and Aiba smiled. He smiled so wide he could feel his face stretch with the strain. Tears bubbled over in his eyes and he started to giggle incoherently, squinting with happiness. The song finished with ‘Happy Birthday dear Masaki, Happy Birthday to you!’ and claps, his friends and family crowding around him. Aiba continued to giggle, a slight lump in his throat and everyone patted his back. They told him congratulations, they told him he’d been doing so well, they told him that he could relax now and all Aiba could do was wipe the corners of his eyes, very much embarrassed and only a little self-conscious.

Once the muffled chatter died down Aiba took a deep breath and said, “Thank you, everyone.” The first one to respond was Sho who smiled and gripped his shoulder comfortingly.

“It was Matsujun’s idea,” he said. Aiba glanced at Jun who gave him a half smile; did he look a little embarrassed as well; and nodded his head over to his mom.

“Aiba-san was the one who said yes to my idea, though. So it’s all thanks to her.” Aiba’s mom blushed under the compliment and brushed it off telling them that Jun was really too polite at times, that she’d be happy to do anything for her son, but that really all the credit should be placed on Jun, he was the one who’s bought the cake, too! That started even more rambling, this time about how everyone was hungry and that it should be cake time already. Aiba was bustled into the kitchen, his shoes still on his feet, and he was seated at the head of the table.

The cake was brought out with candles on top, and everyone broke out into enthusiastic singing again. Aiba laughed instead of giggled this time, and his voice rang out mingling with the joyful song. Everyone helped him to blow out the 27 candles and his mom stole the cake away to cut before people started grabbing with their greedy hands.

When she returned everyone sat and ate happily. They talked about work and their day, about Christmas plans and much more. Aiba was told that all his bigger presents would be revealed on Christmas, because it was easier that way. He understood; it was always like this, but he didn’t mind. It did make things just that much simpler, but that doesn’t stop Aiba from wanting to give everyone his presents right now.

He’s stopped though, unexpectedly, by Jun and tugged away from the commencing party. The younger man pulls him into a little niche in Aiba’s house that he never really noticed before and holds him close, for just a second, before kissing him chastely on the lips. He doesn’t look at Aiba as he starts to shuffle away, blush spreading on his cheeks, excuses of ‘Merry Christmas’ and ‘Happy Birthday’ tumbling from his lips.

Albeit stunned, Aiba can feel the bloom of pleasure in his chest and on a spur of confidence pulls the man back to him, kissing him fully on the lips. He laughs as he pulls away, squeezing Jun’s hand gently, and starts to walk back to the party. Quickly, though, he turns to see Jun recollecting himself and runs up to him whispering an incredibly grateful ‘thank you’ in his ears, chuckling as his face reddens even more, and skips away. “I have presents for everyone to open tonight!” he exclaims, thinking that being busy can really pay off in the end.

Olay's original ad

An Olay advert which features Britain’s favourite old dear, Twiggy has been banned from magazine because it’s had over 700 complaints.

Advertising Standards Authority has binned the magazine advert after it received two complaints because the advert was misleading because it had been digitally retouched. MP Jo Swinson then forwarded 700 more complaints which were gathered via her anti-airbrushing web campaign.

The advert features Twiggy promoting Procter & Gamble-owned Olay Definity eye illuminator. Alongside her picture a quote reads: “Olay is my secret to brighter-looking eyes. Because younger-looking eyes never go out of fashion … reduces the look of wrinkles and dark circles for brighter, younger-looking eyes,” the ad continued.

Those who complained, according to the Guardian said that the ad could have a “negative impact on people’s perceptions of their own body image”.

MP Jo Swinson posted on her site: “I hope this decision marks the first step in really getting airbrushing in advertising under control. If advertisers think that someone as beautiful as Twiggy needs to be so heavily airbrushed, the what hope is there for the rest of us

“Experts have already proved that airbrushing contributes to a host of problems in women and young girls such as depression and eating disorders,” she adds.

The paper reported that in its ruling, the ASA said it considered the Photoshop-ing of the ad, in the eye area could give consumers a “misleading impression of the effect the product could achieve”. (Like the Dove beauty campaign I posted about!)

The ASA said denied that the ad was socially irresponsible and stated: “We concluded that, in the context of an ad that featured a mature model likely to appeal to women of an older age group, the image was unlikely to have a negative impact on perceptions of body image among the target audience and was not socially irresponsible.”

P&G argued that there would always be an obvious difference between unflattering paparazzi pictures and professional beauty photos.

Covers eyes for a reason perhaps...

The company added it was “routine practice to use post-production techniques to correct for lighting and other minor photographic deficiencies before publishing the final shots as part of an advertising campaign”.

P&G also added that the retouching around Twiggy’s eyes was inconsistent with its own policies. It had caused the company to withdraw the original advert and replace it with one without post-production work around the eyes, opting for a more natural image.



Higher Education Cuts

This morning on the BBC Radio 4 Today program, we heard (as is being reported elsewhere, also), that yesterday, in a letter to the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), Peter Mandelson (Labour’s Business Secretary) announced massive cuts to the Higher Education budget.

This is not actually new news, unfortunately, since this move has long been implicit in Government HE policy, and was expected by all who take any interest in Universities.

We also heard on this morning’s Today program Sally Hunt, general secretary of the University and College Union (UCU) putting forward the illogic of this manoeuvre, and of course, since the BBC has a commission to remain neutral, some rather shocking opinions from Andrew Haldenby, director of the think-tank Reform. What did Haldenby say? First, that Mandelson “has to be praised” for instituting cut-back policies which are, according to Haldenby, actually very sensible and necessary – which borders on outright lying, nevermind misanalysis. Second, although he admitted that these cuts would leave a gaping hole in University budgets, that HE won’t suffer because “before too long more money will be going to universities, but it won’t be coming from the government – it will be coming from students. Because there is a Higher Education funding [shocked noise from Sally Hunt] review going on led [partial interjection from John Humphreys] by John  Browne, er, Lord Browne, which is, er, which I think everybody would expect that to lift the cap on tuition fees.”

There you have it, then, folks. The director of a major policy generating think-tank, in which all parties are implicated, forgets himself for a second and reveals what all the politicians are too snake-like to express openly, but which anyone with half a brain cell has known for months: that the HE review is a flimsy sham; that government policy is anti-intellectual; that fees will continue to go up, and research funding will continue to go down.

As a result lecturers will start finding that they are being made redundant, that they cannot get funding for research and that they cannot make necessary improvements to departments and courses because of ‘lack of resources’ (dough, moola, hard cash). Postgrad students, apart from receiving no funding or financial support (the current state of affairs) will find it more and more difficult to get any academic job, nevermind full time lectureship (I think many of those who do gain employment will find themselves being employed as lower paid Teaching Assistants). Students will find that they are running up huge debts, that they are being asked to pay far more than they can afford, whilst simultaneously being presented with worse courses, shorter courses, more hidden charges, less teaching, less independence and intellectual freedom, and less opportunities for postgraduate study (PG funding in Arts and Humanities is already almost non-existent). And of course, academic freedom will effectively be restricted by new ‘impact’ assessment criteria designed to justify massive underfunding of arts, social sciences and humanities subjects. Which is, of course, part of a strategy (consciously or unconsciously) of attack on the political content of research, on already limited and besieged political and societal critique.

And those in other countries are looking on with disbelief at what HE and academics in England are suffering – and some with a steadily intensifying anxiety that they may see similar policies implemented in the counties in which they work and research.

There is only one solution: we know that the politicians who supposedly represent us do not;  that they have failed us, and continue to do so. Therefore, in this fast approaching new year we need to stop looking toward, debating with,  cooperating and complying with politicians and government bodies. Instead we need to get together on our campuses, in our homes and workplaces, and start talking to each other. We need to develop solidarity – between all students, all lecturers and other staff, and between all disciplines. But also we need to develop dialogue and solidarity with the larger international academic community, and with workers in other industries – in both the public and non-public sector – who are likewise suffering from recession cutbacks and ‘modernisation’ restructuring, who are  likewise suffering worsening working conditions and redundancies. We need to get together and act together in solidarity to restore our right to make the policy decisions that will effect us.

In the new year I predict there will be more hardship, more cutbacks and more strikes and protests. I hope there will also be, in tune with this, an academic uprising.

Wit

Links:

The SHAM Higher Education Review
News Story from Guardian
The Independent’s news story
BBC Radio 4 Today program, with audio
Those assholes at Reform

]]> http://kireiyakusoku.wordpress.com/2009/12/21/unknown/ Tue, 22 Dec 2009 04:42:51 +0000 kireiyakusoku http://kireiyakusoku.wordpress.com/2009/12/21/unknown/

Title: Unknown
Group/Pairing: Arashi/ Ohmiya/ Ohba/ Juntoshi
Prompt: no. 017: Questions
Word Count: 1051
Rating: PG
Summary: Ohno tries to figure himself out
Disclaimer: NOT MINE DX
Note:
Yup yup this is finally the end of the Ohno!Vampire ’series’ like thing XD
Anyway, this has to be read after Midnight Train and Night. It’s really short, but it just sums everything up. I’m content :] Night!

——

Ohno couldn’t handle what he had been feeling for the past few months. It had taken him a while to get as far as he was, even with Nino’s and Aiba’s help. Nino told him of who he had been, Aiba sitting around as though he was sulking. And Ohno just didn’t know. He didn’t know who he was, he didn’t know where he’d come from. He didn’t know what he liked, he didn’t know what he was doing, he didn’t even know how the heck he was living right now, although that couldn’t possibly be the technical term for it. At that moment, Ohno was completely and innocently lost.

—

            “See, it’s like this,” Aiba was explaining to him one day. “Right now we don’t know what triggers your lust. But I’ll give you an example. People that triggers Nino’s lust are people who are about to die. And what he does is he takes the unwillingness to live out of them so that they will want to try their best to live with what they have,” Aiba smiled encouragingly. “As for me, I’m attracted to the people that can’t smile anymore. I make them able to smile.”

            “How?” Ohno rasped, licking his pointing teeth and glancing furtively about the room.

            Aiba paused. “Me and Nino, we take the blood from them as well as their worries, but not enough to kill them. We could never kill.”

            “Isn’t that what you did to me?” Ohno shot a glare at Aiba who dropped his eyes, frowning.

—

            For a while after Nino had vaguely told him what happened, Ohno ignored him. He would only occasionally let Aiba in, for he had been the one trying to save Ohno from this horrible, decaying life, or whatever he could call it. Ohno had too many questions backed up, too many fears, too many wonders. What was he like, back then? He couldn’t remember and it frustrated him, oh how it frustrated him. Aiba had told him that some things may come back, like his hobbies, but Ohno didn’t know this for sure. Ohno didn’t know anything for sure. There was always a question screaming at the back of his throat, one he knew would go unanswered.

—

            The first time Ohno caught a human that appealed from him, it was Nino who pulled him back. It was Nino who told him the man wouldn’t remember, who carried him over his shoulder to their small house. It was Nino who comforted him as he sobbed in a ball, the taste of blood still on his lips. It was Nino who answered the question;

            “Why am I even crying?”

            With,

            “Because it hurts.” Only to follow up with a tight, comforting hug. “You don’t remember, but it still hurts, I know it does…” Nino trailed off. “Ohno, I’m so sorry.” Ohno cried until his fell asleep.

—

            The second time wasn’t as bad. The second time Ohno knew what to expect and he had planned it out all in his mind. This human’s name was Jun. Matsumoto Jun. He was young, younger than Ohno was and probably Nino, too –when they had once been humans, anyway. The sorrow radiating off the man was infuriating and it sparked every nerve in Ohno’s lithe body.

            He’d easily gone over to the young man in the café and seated himself beside him. The young man didn’t look up. “Satoshi Ohno,” Ohno said calmly, containing the feral thing writhing inside him. Even he was surprised at his control.

            “Jun Matsumoto,” the young man drawled, not even bothering to look at Ohno. Ohno knew what kind of job this man held and he almost smirked at how easy it would be to make his sorrows disappear into nothingness.

            “Let’s go,” Ohno said.

            And they went. Somehow, he got Jun to talk along the way. Somehow, he held in the lust until Jun had stopped talking. Somehow, he had restrained himself, releasing Jun just before the man blacked out on his own. Somehow he walked far enough away and turned to watch Jun awaken. He sighed as Jun smiled and returned to Nino who was waiting for him, fear and worry painted in his eyes.

            “It’s fine,” Ohno reassured him, although all he really wanted to ask was how the hell was everything fine.

—

            Aiba had been nice enough to search for remnants of his past life for him, because Ohno wanted to know. Against Nino’s wishes he told him of painting and everything else. He told him how he’d found his mother and informed her that he had passed away from the black death. Ohno hated to find that he didn’t even care.

—

It took many years for Ohno to realize his love for art, and it was Nino who had made him realize it. “Why is it you?” Ohno asked, sighing as he finished the painting. “Why is it always you?” He couldn’t tell if he was angry or relieved. Nino smiled.

—

            After a while Ohno got used to it, he even learned incredibly quickly, or so as Aiba told him, how to ignore the need from people who didn’t deserve it. Years passed and his visits with Aiba and Nino lessened, though they met every once and a while. Nino was always concerned, Aiba always supportive, and the questions still burned at the back of Ohno’s mind, just not as hotly.

— 

            A few years later Ohno returned to see Sho. The man looked happy, and Ohno smiled. He knew who he was now, and he knew he shouldn’t be looking, but he was. Sho was smiling and Sho was happy and Ohno remembered Sho just as much as he remembered Jun and every other person he’d drank from. And Ohno knew he shouldn’t, so he left. Aiba caught up to him, throwing a lopsided smile. “You all figured out now?”

            Ohno shook his head. “Not in the least.” Somehow, Nino found them, too.

            Ohno looked at him, grabbing the tiny hand in his. He didn’t care if he didn’t have the human warmth anymore. It wasn’t safe for him to have it. Nino had at least taught him that.

            “But it doesn’t matter anymore because I’m here now.”

            No questions cornered Ohno’s mind again.

This is my very first PG kit. I’d dream of owning this kit for such a long time, and finally I manage to save enough money to buy it. Strike Gundam, pilot by Kira Yamato, was one of the main Gundam featured in the early stages of Gundam SEED series.

This kit contains Strike Gundam, beam rifle, shield, grand slam and armor-Schneider. If you are looking for the aile striker, please purchase the Skygrasper + Aile Striker PG kit. This kit contains the total of 569 parts and it is extremely detail. To describe the assembly of this kit, I should say: the construction from bone to nerves and from flesh to skin. Yes, it is a perfect grade; of course this should be the reason for BANDAI to create such a kit. You’ll find a lot of joint in this Gundam, and it is all out of your expectation. After I assemble this kit, I make me feel that: actually MG kit isn’t really that detail after all! It’s hard for me to tell the whole assembling process here, so I’ll just write a short review about this kit, that’s all.

There are 3 die-cast parts in this kit, two on the knees, and one in the waist. Die cast part actually are slightly heavier than plastic, so they’ll give extra stability to your Gundam when you pose it. A CR1220 battery is needed to light up Strike Gundam’s eyes, and it’s not included. No stand provided in this kit though, so if you need any of it, please purchase the Skygrasper + Aile Striker PG kit. This is how they do business here. Overall this kit really “WOW” me… and I believe it will do the same to every Gundam lovers out there. Don’t save any of your ink to draw out the detail line for this kit, there’s really awful lot detail lines needed to be drawn. But please be patient and it will surely pay out after this kit is done.

Besides a whole lot of great things in this kit, there are still some minor problems which I would like to critic. The first one is about the thrusters. You’ll need to paint the inner part of the back thrusters in red! Since it is a PG kit, so I do feel disappointed that they didn’t made a red part for you instead. Next, most of the stickers are too large to fit in the small space which they ask you to stick it. So I got to cut them into smaller pieces in order to stick them up. It’s troublesome. Another thing that really bothers me is the color of the white part. I wonder is it really should be like that or it shouldn’t be like that. There are a few white parts in this kit, and they came in different frame. But the problem is different white parts from different frame actually have slight color mismatch. Some of the white color parts are slightly grayish, and some are extremely white. So when I assemble them together, it is really obvious and irritating. So I do recommend you guys to spray all the white part again yourself so that it will look nicer. Lastly, every parts in this kit has inner frame, but only the shield doesn’t have any. I do hope BANDAI actually do a inner grey color part for the shield, it would look a lot nicer.