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Hpw to study the Bible: Part V. The Passover (Easter). Scriptures: (Colossians 2:14-23); Should we celebrate The Passover (Easter) today? The Pros & The Cons: A) The Passover was for the Jews, Under the Mosiac Law or Dispensation. it was a shadow of things. B) We are under the New agreement, under a better covenant, Under better promises. C) Yes, we should acknowledge the Resurrection, but more then once a year,Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/chatting-from-the-word-hosted-by-oscar--4081759/support.

Graduation Day.  Book 3 in 18 parts, By FinalStand. Listen to the ► Podcast at Explicit Novels."You know nothing of what you speak of, Ishara, yet you now feel free to insult us," she simmered."Don't know, don't care. It was all before my time. I care about the 'here-and-now' as well as what we do in the future. What I am asking you is what concrete item or 'thing' can be provided to House Zorja to put this blood feud behind you. Name it and House Ishara will endeavor to procure it for you.""We are not merchants," Jana's eyes narrowed."No. I didn't imply you were. If you want new sandals for everyone in your House, I'll find you new sandals. If you want 100,000 acres of ranchland, I'll find you the land. Name it," I persisted."Our prestige cannot be bought," she 'explained'."No, but a blood feud with House Ishara can be avoided by making a request of us in the same way as expressing your desire to harm my daughter can be expressed by denying my offer," I hardened. "And 'fuck you very much' if you think I won't use every son, daughter, mother, aunt, and uncle of Ishara when I come gunning for House Zorja too.""You wouldn't dare bring outsiders into this," Klavdiya interjected."Why not? The offices of Ishara handed House Zorja the coup of the century ~ the capture of the People's Liberation Army Navy nuclear carrier. A member of House Zorja commanded that task, yet they did so by leading forces marshalled by House Ishara, outsider forces. You may wish to keep playing by old rules concerning who is and isn't part of a House, but I am not so constrained, sisters.""So Klavdiya, if House Meenakshi pursues its blood feud with House Zorja, House Ishara will gleefully join them in the pummeling. And we have Isharans in the 9 Clans, the Khanate and the Illuminati who will gladly help us out in slapping them around like the old-fashion curmudgeons they are showing themselves to be, or, House Zorja may request a gift from House Ishara and we will happily clear accounts between them and House Meenakshi in the name of our daughter, Parvati. Their choice.""You are still on the mats," Elsa reminded me. Sikia coiled protectively next to us."And you said something about a lesson being long overdue," Pamela smirked, "Kitten.""Cáel Ishara," Shawnee said in a soft voice, "perhaps it is germane to the argument: the fault of the blood feud rests with House Zorja, not House Meenakshi."I fell on my back, carrying Tad fi with me. She gasped out in surprise while remaining closely cuddled with me. Her right hand never left my lips."Why does no one tell me this shit?" I moaned."You are hard," Tad fi announced. "Are you ready to have more sex?" She was sounding upbeat about our prospects. She was also ignorant of our surroundings being deaf and blind to the mortal realm."Gossamer Wing," I created a pet name for the augur, "we are lying on the sparring mats of a large combat arena in the central Full-blooded training center for Havenstone with roughly 500 sisters in attendance (the audience had grown). While I am enticed by your scent, words, proximity and sweet memories of what we've shared, I'm probably going to be badly beaten up really soon for a terrific diplomatic snafu.""But then we can have sex?""Yeah. I'm totally up for having sex with you after they release me from Medical," I assured her. I looked around her to a very unhappy Mahdi."Can you find it in your heart to forgive House Zorja? Anything I can,""Yes," she abruptly cut me off.What the fuck?"At this time, my hatred of House Ishara, and you in particular, make any grievance I have with House Zorja pale in comparison. You have bewitched my only daughter. She bares your child, and it will be a wonderful child if the soiled augur you've stuck your cock in is to be believed," she ground out bitterly. "I want to go home. I want to find enemies to kill. And when I do, Cáel Ishara, know each and every one of them will carry your face in my mind."She turned to Jana. "Do you agree that we both hate Ishara enough to put aside our current differences?"Jana studied Mahdi, me, then Mahdi again and agreed. She stood. Mahdi stood. They clasped arms like Amazons, then hugged like sisters."Agreed. He is much worse."My thoughts on the matter. Woot! I was having sex! Oh, and I was making Aya happy by ending a blood feud."My admiration of you continues to increase," Krasimira looked at me. "This diplomacy stuff is harder than it looks yet you pull it off so effortlessly.""Yay me!" I muttered."Keeper, are we done?" Sikia asked Krasimira."I believe so," the older Amazon rose to her feet. Sikia was far faster in rising."Mahdi of Meenakshi, you have insulted me and my augur. Defend yourself," she snarled. If Tad fi hadn't been immediately present, Mahdi wouldn't have even warranted a warning no doubt."Had you done your job," Mahdi flowed into her fighting stance, "you both wouldn't be pregnant.""Whoa now," I struggled to rise while keeping Tad fi close and my body between her and the Meenakshi/Zorja side of the mat. "Sikia, I can't let you fight. You're pregnant too.""Don't be stupid, Cáel Ishara," Sikia retreated off the mat, so she could shed her jacket and footwear. "Amazons have fought pregnant for thousands of years.""Hold on now," NYPD Sgt. Larisa Kutuzov said in English as she moved forward. I was a millisecond too late. Larisa's foot touched down on the mat and Marlene Zorja popped her one, a hand chop to the larynx. The senior cop stumbled forward."Mom!" shouted Nikita. Marlene followed up with a leg sweep, putting Larisa face first on the mats, then a fist strike to the back of the head, knocking her out. Neat and tidy in less than two seconds.Nikita was about to charge in when Chaz stopped her."Footwear," he advised in the tone of voice I had learned to associate with him and imminent violence. The moment he stopped her, he was quickly removing his own socks and shoes. Virginia and Pamela were doing the same. I was allowed freedom of movement because I was holding Tad fi. Krasimira exited because of her unique status. The rest were already barefoot."Gale, could you please stay with Tad fi," I tried to hand her off."No," Gale looked me over. "I will fight." No hint on whose side she would be fighting on. Krasimira came to my rescue."I'll take her.""Tad fi," I told the augur, "I have to go get beaten up now, but I promise I will be back for you directly.""This is not your fight," Krasimira said. "The words and deeds are Sikia's.""A, she carries my child and B, the deeds being called into question are my fault.""You told me once they were the Will of Ishara," Krasimira mused."We are one in the same," I gave a lopsided grin."Be careful," Tad fi pleaded. "Your future is a chaotic jumble, I cannot see,""Eh, I've been very bad. We'll talk about it later. Gotta go," I headed onto the mats.Pamela was giving the ground rules to the 'normals': No 'fair warnings'. No 'fair play'. No 'time outs'. You fought until unconscious, or you surrendered."This is going to suck," Virginia assessed our odds. Two Amazons had removed Larisa from the mats and were tending to her. Nikita was kneeling by her side until she heard Virginia, then came our way.Besides Sikia, we had Pamela, Chaz, Virginia, myself and Nikita. Oneida stepping up was nice. She wasn't a great combatant, but we dearly needed the help. Gale joining us was, unsettling. Amazons don't play fair, so this could be a ruse.Against us were all three Zorja and both Meenakshi ~ I imagined Rhada felt she had something to prove to her mother. They'd picked up ten other Amazons and Rhonwenn Nemain. Klavdiya joined them to counterbalance her baby sister. Eight to seventeen ~ ouch."Damn," a familiar voice from my first days on the job spoke up from behind me, "we almost missed this." I didn't dare look over my shoulder. Desiree stepped between Chaz and Virginia. Rachel came up on my left and Tiger Lily on my right. At the tail end of our line was Mona, Meridian, Brielle and Wiesława. Fifteen to seventeen was looking much better, especially considering Desiree had brought five Security Detail warriors with her, all of whom were moving to further bolster our numbers."Rachel," Elsa looked to her underling, "you have no idea why you are fighting.""It is for Cáel. So it must be for a better tomorrow," Rachel laughed."Very well," Elsa smirked."You!" Mahdi pointed at me, and we both charged. It was a jumbled nightmare of clashing bodies, war cries and flashes of movement all around. Our side had two main advantages -While Chaz was by no means the best hand-to-hand combatant present, he knew the basic Amazon style and most Amazons didn't know his. Added to his overall height and bulk advantages, he bought us time.Of greater importance, Rachel, Tiger Lily and Mona had extensive training working as a team, which none of the opponents had.Elsa was the most dangerous individual on the mat. Pamela was the second most dangerous, so Elsa grabbed a couple of partners and ganged up on her to drive her off the mats. Chaz went next, out-Elsa'ed and beaten unconscious. The issue was, it took her too long to accomplish those two feats. By the time she rounded on me, Rachel and Tiger Lily, our half of the field had wiped out theirs. It was six of us (me, Rachel, Tiger Lily, Gale, Wiesława and Desiree) versus four of them (Elsa, Marlene, Klavdiya and Rhonwenn).Still, I was facing Elsa, so a judicious bit of treachery was required."Gale," I huffed and puffed, "please retire. I don't want you to fight your sister.""What?" Gale snapped. She'd taken a beating, yet remained feisty."No, fighting her sister is okay with me," Desiree scowled. "We are still facing fucking Elsa.""All the other women you have mated with have failed. I remain," Gale trumpeted."Oh, you are right," I half-turned. "All the reason you are more precious to me.""Really?""Of course," I deepened my introspective appreciation of her."Oh," and Klavdiya punched Rhonwenn. That was an 'oh, Cáel Ishara must actually care for my baby sister and not be just a Playa' on Klavdiya's part. Yeah. I'm a horrible fucking person at times.Rachel, Tiger Lily and I rushed Elsa. Marlene pivoted to ward against Klavdiya while Gale and Wiesława stormed in against her. Desiree helped Klavdiya finish drubbing Rhonwenn before they combined to force Marlene off the mats. Elsa chose to go down swinging in a dogpile of bodies. I took an ear-ringing blow to the head which allowed Rachel to apply a chokehold and it was lights out for the Head of SD.After some water bottles went around and those concussed returned to wakefulness, the resolution of the brawl was decided. Mahdi apologized to Sikia. It was short, terse and sparing of any empathy, yet was within the bounds of Amazon etiquette. She departed with Rhada, which left me to pick up the pieces, starting with Nikita's mom."Oh," the older woman moaned then, "Ms. Fredrickson? What are you doing here?""Avenging you, Mother," Nikita fluffed up the truth. "She, Cáel and the others cleaned house on the woman who jumped you and her allies.""Desk Sergeant," Desiree gave a curt nod."This isn't over," Larisa winced as she moved to a sitting position."Mrs. Kutuzov, it is over," I headed off a colossal waste of time. "This is my daily life and part of your daughter's life with JIKIT. You will find scant witnesses and no tape recordings of these events. This craziness is just another day in the life here at Havenstone. You stepped on the mat and thus became fair game to any physical confrontation an opponent cared to mete out. Consider this sovereign soil of an independent nation-state.""We," she looked around. "You kicked their asses?""Definitely," Pamela gave a feral snarl."This is plain nuts," she shook her head, winced in cranial pain, then put her aching head in her hands."One of the reasons we've put our dating in hiatus," Nikita comforted her mother while looking at me, and smiling affectionately.Ah, for fuck sakes! I was engaged to someone else and having a dozen kids by ten different women. How could I still possibly be considered viable dating material? Oh yeah, martial valor, laughing at death, I hung out with truly exceptional cool people and I would always be in need of saving, a plus for a crusader like Nikita.I had so many allies to tend to, but only one who seemed to be making an exit. I swooped down on Tad fi long enough to place her fingers to my lips."I'll be right back, friend of a friend in need," and off I went. I caught Tavi of House Stolgos just outside the door. She wasn't avoiding me. She'd been observing Chaz and he had been otherwise occupied.My British companion had played a pivotal role in the combat and taken his beating like a man. He'd been rendered unconscious. So had many others, so no stigma was attached to his loss. Post-battle, he had chosen to sit on his haunches, knees up, talking to several of the Amazons, both kneeling and standing. A few had been bystanders and a few others foes.He stayed on his ass to reduce his height advantage. Letting Amazons make eye contact while not having to look up at you created definite benefits. His good natured approach to his role in the fight and pummeling earned him positive vibes as well. He made it clear the tussle to him was not macho-personal. He was my 'brother / sister / sibling' spiritually-speaking via Pamela adopting us both as her 'grandsons', so my fights were his fights. Sikia had my (Cáel's) child, so that bond extended to her as well ~ family.Pamela and I had schooled him on Amazon psychology and those lessons were now paying serious dividends. 'The Male' hadn't wanted to fight them ~ 'Amazons are tough' he'd confessed, he knew this because he worked with several every day on JIKIT~ but family was on the line, so he fought. Mahdi had apologized, so the matter was settled. The other Amazons he'd fought? They had fought for their reasons and he was okay with not questioning them about it.Why? He was conscious of his conspicuous status as a 'guest', knew he was in no way an Amazon, and was not privy to what motivated them. He didn't want to be an Amazon. He had his own, much younger, martial tradition he was proud of, yet was eager to learn from the vastly greater Amazon war lore because 'winners' didn't have a gender-bias and no other tradition could compete with the Amazons' 3,000 years.Under normal circumstances, the women around him wouldn't have given credence to his praise. He was a male after all. Through the tiny tear I'd created in their insulating social fabric, Chaz was building upon his own exploits. In the after-battle analysis, the Amazons reflected on the realization Elsa had concentrated on him as her number two objective, second only to Pamela who scared everyone who knew anything about her. That bolstered Chaz's appeal.For the Amazons who thought a male would get all pouty and cry over being beaten up by a girl/girls, Chaz was breaking the mold. He wasn't angry. He was amused. The fight had been a learning experience and he'd felt honored to watch, no matter how briefly, a warrior of Elsa's caliber fight. He'd explained 'I', Cáel Wakko Ishara, considered Elsa one of the top 5 combatants I'd ever seen, which included Ajax the Unconquered. The others were Sakuniyas, reborn Amazon and former Queen of Assyria, Saint Marie, the Golden Mare, and Pamela, the Cliff-walker.More happy Amazons because the list's only non-Amazon was a dead Hero from the Trojan Wars and it was well known I 'got around' (aka dealt with violent outsiders.) Chaz was telling the truth, almost. The 'fifth' person on the list was Alal, but explaining him would be difficult, so Chaz edited him for this particular audience. Good man.In the hallway, "Tavi, a moment," I called out. She slowed down, took a few more steps allowing me to catch up."Yes Ishara?" she gave me her best neutral look. Yep. She was jealous."I beg two favors from you," I quickly went down to one knee in her path. That caught her off guard and left her in the awkward position of me being terribly close and staring up at her."I, I will listen," she muttered."I would like to know if you are pregnant," I asked very softly. Yes, she was, but she didn't want to tell me. She contemplated pushing past me. It would be very easy. "I know I am stepping beyond the boundaries between warriors. Please. My destiny has brought you two together. I am at fault here." 'Fault' was the key word."If I have a son, he will be given to the Queen," Tavi's face was stern and unforgiving. "He will live.""That's not what he's worried about," I shook my head. "He wants to be a father to your daughter, Tavi. He wants to introduce you to his mother and grandmothers, maybe his sisters too, if that can be arranged.""Huh?""He is not like me, Tavi. There is no other in his life, but you.""I, I will not leave my House for him," she protested angrily."He would never ask you. That doesn't mean he doesn't want to remain at your side for years to come. He can be a father to your child and not be a part of House Stolgos in the same way you can be a mother to your child and not be a part of Clan Tomorrow.""Oh," she furrowed her brow. "How would this possibly work?""I have an 'in' with the Queen," I winked. "I'll work out something.""He knows I will never stop being an Amazon," she elucidated intensely."Absolutely. He is an intelligence operative after all. He's figured a few things out for himself.""Why doesn't he tell me these things?""Tavi, he threw his body on top of me to shield me from a bomb blast, so he's undoubtedly brave, but telling you what is in his heart is scary for him. As his brother, I see behind his silence,""Oh, what should I do?" she was vexed."Go back in there, demand to speak with him and tell him the truth," I stood up."The truth?""That you are going to have a little StolgosTomorrow-ite running around sometime next year," I exuded confidential friendliness."Cáel Ishara," she tilted her head slightly, "you don't know much about infants, do you?""Nope," I pseudo-confessed. I actually did know something about newborns. I'd studied up so I could make a move on a cute girl whose free time was eaten up by babysitting, so I 'helped out'. Oink."They aren't 'running around'," she turned to head back into the gym, "until the ninth month at the earliest. Normally, running doesn't happen until the eighteenth month.""My fiancée has a three-year old, so she should be able to help me through some of the hardest parts," I babbled along. Tavi didn't give a crap.In we went. Tavi stormed straight toward the bevy of Amazon babes concentrating on 'her' Chaz."Color Sergeant Tomorrow," she abruptly interrupted. "A moment of your time.""Ladies," Chaz uncoiled himself from the surrounding women. The Amazons were either mildly put off, they thought they were about to get laid, or pissed off, they were sure they were about to get laid, and Tavi was stomping on their happy."Yes, Ms. Gentry," Chaz linked his hands behind his back in a 'rest easy' stance. 'Gentry' was the fake last name Tavi used in the outside world. She motioned toward the windows with her head. Off they went. I couldn't hear what was being said, but my lip reading skills were up to the task.T: (I am pregnant)C: (I love you)T: (Oh) ~ stunned. Go Chaz!C: (Well, I don't imagine the Amazons have a marriage ceremony and an Anglican service would be inappropriate, so perhaps we could research a Scythian ritual which could make both families happy) ~ delivered in the patented smooth Chaz style.T: (Marriage? To you?)C: (I will not submit to being anyone's slave nor would I ever ask you to submit to me. Outside of that, will you be my partner and my partner alone until the cliffs separate us?)T: (Amazons are not monogamous)C: (I am)T: (I will, I mean, can I think about this?)C: (I am not going anywhere, Tavi){Pause}T: (Did you put Ishara, Cáel Ishara up to this?)C: (Yes)T: (Why?)C: (I imagine he explained what I am feeling better than I could)T: (Oh, do you want me to meet your mother and grandmothers?)C: (Absolutely)T: (Okay)C: (Okay ~ you would like to meet my Mother and Grandmothers?)T: (No, yes, I mean, yes I would like to meet them and I am okay with you being with no other woman until the cliffs separate us, and I will do the same, no other males)C: (If I pick you up, hug you and kiss you, will your sisters freak out?)T: (I don't know)So Chaz swept Tavi up until her head was higher than his (a feat, considering their 8" height differential) and kissed her deeply. Mumbled words followed. Tavi wrapped her legs around Chaz's waist and out they went. Around me were angry murmurings of the 'did that Amazon just run off with our man' variety. Not my problem. I had plenty of different Amazons wanting my attention. Hallelujah!{8:00 pmDon't try this at home.I covered my face with a pillow and pressed down hard. I'd already tried breathing exercises, meditation and even contemplated more cranial trauma before thinking up this particular crazy idea. It took some mental effort and accessing some of my Alal-'pain sorting' skills to accomplish, but in the end, I felt myself 'let go'.I sat up."Hello," Tad fi beamed."Hey," I took a deep breath. Since we were talking, I must have passed out. Her eyes wandered over the room."Is this the world as you see it?" she wondered. Oh yeah, I had to be creating the environment for her to enjoy.Sikia was kneeling on the bed a foot away, her gaze moving between the two of us. The 'grayness' of her form suggested she was wholly in reality and not in the 'Ishara-space' the goddess had shown me and I was now sharing with my augur."This is how you see me?" she examined her fingers, her wrists, then some long locks of her hair."You are more beautiful," I answered. The impact of my words crossing over drew her eyes back to me. It was the magic of hearing for the normally deaf girl. I concentrated, peeled back some fantasy and attached a realistic form to Sikia. Tad fi followed my gaze."Your hair," she addressed her guardian, "It is lighter than I imagined."Sikia said something I couldn't understand, muffled as it was by my dreaming."I cannot hear you, but I see you through his eyes," the augur carried on her conversation. They touched. It had to be somewhat bizarre for Sikia. As she reached for Tad fi's hand, her friend intercepted the extended member. Their fingers intertwined before completing the journey to the guardian's lips."Don't cry, no, we couldn't have, no, we shouldn't have knocked him out sooner. I don't think he was aware of this discipline when we first met. Were you, Cáel?""No. Perhaps if I had understood more about the consequences of seeing ghosts, I might have," I tapered off. "Now that we know. I can try this more often.""Your health?" Tad fi worried."I might be immortal," I confessed. I was confessing because I was desperately seeking a way to share some of my genetic quirkiness with her ~ some strength to carry her through this pregnancy and spare her life, Dot Ishara be damned."And you would seek a way to spare me," she graced me with her gentle presence. Lying in the 'spirit' world was a whole lot tougher than in the flesh."Yeah. I've got some arcane lore rattling around in my head, plus I have a few outside sources I can ask for help. I'm not giving up on you.""I have foreseen my death.""Well, un-foresee it," I scolded her. "Dot Ishara told me we see what might happen, though nothing is guaranteed. So even your death isn't an absolute. Since it hasn't happened, I see no reason to let it happen. You are going to live to hold our daughter. If not, my immortality is worthless.""You can never save everyone. Sometimes you must let a few go to save the rest," she advised."If I find someone I'm not attached to, I'll let them go. I promise. Until then, I'm, ugh, I'm fading, and I'm keeping you.""We shall see," she murmured. I fell back into my body and into wakefulness."Now we have sex," Tad fi announced in a melodic voice."He is ready to perform," Sikia agreed. She was fondling my balls with one hand while her breath played across my rod. I sat up to see the augur climbing up the bed between my thighs. She kissed my glans, licked across its top, then kissed it again."I've got it from here," she told Sikia."What?" Sikia was confused. Tad fi's lips began to engulf my sceptre."Sikia, come here," I gently pulled on her arm. She was conflicted yet up some came.We started out with tender kisses on the lips. I kept drawing her toward me. My lips and tongue migrated down her chin and throat to her breasts. When she thought my target was her breasts, she was all onboard. That was a mere stop-off point on my journey, though I played around for a while.At the same time, I had to use subtle movements with my hips and clenches with my gluts to school Tad fi on her fellatio. Thankfully, I was doubly-blessed. This wasn't my first time schooling two girls at once and Tad fi could determine more from such minimal reactions due to her heightened sense of my muscle contractions through her touch than any other woman I'd ever met.When I began running my tongue in large lashes underneath her breasts, I confused Sikia once more. She was resistant as my hands on her hips pulled her higher so that my lips and teeth could tease her taut stomach while I twirled my tongue in her belly button. She giggled.I had been slowly wiggling down the bed, backing Tad fi up, so when it came time to mount Sikia on my face, I had the headboard room. I kept her muscular thighs securely in hand because the moment I had her happy, I pushed her up. She looked down, seeking guidance and I motioned her to turn around. She did the eye-ball math, realized she'd be facing her augur, and hastily obeyed. Of course, her movement on the bed alerted Tad fi through mattress vibrations.Sikia was sitting on my face, leaning down so she could run her hands through Tad fi's hair and along her face and lips (and my phallus). I kept my hands pressed between our bodies. My right made the sojourn to my pubic area to play around and give them both something else to suck on, my fingers. My left loitered around between Sikia's breasts and her clitoris when my lips were otherwise occupied.I could cup her clit with my tongue in a U-shape, rubbing it along my taste buds. Most of my time was taken up with my tongue broad lashing her vulva or tightly-twisted and delving into her cunt and my nose pushing against her brown hole. I could tilt myself up so I could make tongue-intrusions into her back passage as well. The first time, she squealed.Before she could decide if she wanted to make me stop (she did, virtually all first timers always default to asking their partner to stop, so you have to distract them), Tad fi wanted to know what had brought her reaction on. Then came Sikia's troubled revelation of what I was doing, how the augur shouldn't suffer through it, despite the increasing pleasure she was receiving, only to finally be unable to supply the answer as to why Tad fi shouldn't experience it too.Sikia shot me a treasured look of bewilderment. I'd brought her to orgasm with my tongue alone. I was a guy after all."Switch?" I suggested. Tad fi was still administering one of the slowest, most considerate blowjobs I'd ever experienced. She wasn't rushing toward anything. Sure, she was unschooled, but was devoting her incredible sensitivities to my pleasure and taking pleasure in her ability to bring me to such excitement."Change places?" she mused. "Okay." Tad fi's lips slid off me with one final, loud 'pop', then she used her spider-like fingers to climb up my body while Sikia traveled south. She lavished butterfly kisses on my face ~ childish, yet so very appropriate between us ~ and I mirrored the gesture.With some reluctance, she mounted me, facing Sikia. My tongue flicking across her clit on its first exploration brought out a joyous gasp. It only got better from there.The Long Slide Into Domestic Life:"Twins?" Hana snuggled into my arms. We were at her place, naked in bed together after a late late-night unscheduled meeting with some VIPs. Despite the late/early hour, she was alert, tense even. It had been a mentally stimulating late night encounter which had brought me to her bed."Yes. That is what Tad fi predicted," I inserted between raining kisses down on her forehead. Hana liked non-distracting attention when she was in this kind of mood. She was exhausting herself mentally as she was building up to being amorous."Ana-Călina and  rp d?" she worked over the names on her tongue. "They have a special meaning?""Only if you are Hungarian and Romanian," I teased her. She elbowed me slightly. " rp d was the semi-mystical pagan warlord who led the Ten Tribes who became known as the Hungarians ~ the Magyar peoples ~ into the Carpathian Basin, present day Hungary. Ana-Călina was born a Byzantine princess of the storied House of Basarab; she married Radu Negru, thus becoming the first Princess of a free Wallachia ~ the foundation for a free Romania. She was also the great-grandmother of Dracula.""So they are famous names with regional historical significance, did they live long, happy lives?"" Árpád, no one knows for sure. His kids were quarrelsome, but they did manage to found a dynasty at the start of the second millennia which ruled for three centuries.""Ana-Călina, yeah. I think so," I continued. "She lived into her seventies and her eldest son left his country stronger, richer and safer than when he received it. She did out live her husband by over fifty years, and got to see her youngest grandson bury most of his rivals, the kids from her husband's first marriage.""Ah, what?" Hana rose up until we were eye to eye. Since she was naked, her boobs swayed slightly as she did so. My eye flickered. "Eyes forward, Mister," she playfully barked. "What happened to all her other grandsons?""Wallachia in the 15th century was a tad rough and tumble," I evaded."They killed one another?""Mostly they were killed by conspiracies amongst their boyars, nobles of the time.""Why does, Tad fi want to dredge up these names again?" she kept eye contact."Not a clue," I pleaded."But you think it is important?""No. I think you are important. Screw Fate. It can name its own kids. We can chose whatever names make you happy, except 'Up'. Up's been taken.""You've named another of your offspring 'Up'? That's cruel, or does that mean something in another language I'm unaware of?" she shifted her shoulders so her boobs wobbled again. Of course, I broke eye contact. I hadn't had sex in hours and her boobies were right there, damn it!"Actually, Pamela and I named this secret agent in Hungary that, just to fuck with his head," I divulged."Oh. Pamela. I should have known," she slowly smiled. "You are being very well behaved," she added. Woot! She noticed I wasn't throwing her down and pawing her delectable flesh. "One more thing before the nookie.""Name them. Their dead," I pledged."Not necessary," her sigh turned into a giggle. "If I'm going to be having twins, I'm going to be rather big come late March. We need an earlier wedding date."Oh, fuck me!"What do you have in mind?" I tried to keep the creeping dread out of my voice."New Year's Day?" she suggested. I did a quick calculation. That was annihilating 78 days out of what remained of my bachelor life. In 114 days my life would cease having any meaning whatsoever. I'd be a Mr. to someone's Mrs. The end"Sure, I can arrange to be killed before then," stumbled out of my mouth."What was that?" Hana pouted."Nothing Dear. Cosmic psychic intersection with an Al -demon; don't know what came over me," I fibbed."Man up," Hana bit my nose. "Our marriage won't be that bad if we both work at it. It isn't like I'm demanding celibacy from you." Then she mouthed 'yet'."Wait. Did you mean celibacy, as in no fun at all, or monogamy, as in only 'happy time' with you?" I desperately sought clarification."Oh," she pursed her lips. "I meant monogamy. I didn't mean to scare you.""Oh, thank goodness," I sighed."Here," her gaze turned tender. "Let me make it up to you." Hana placed one hand on my shoulder and rose up my body until my face was gently nestled in her bosom. Then she wiggled back and forth, basically because I'm a big baby and easy to please. I was alternating which nipple I was kissing in no time."Mmm," she murmured. "I've missed you." Her other hand's fingernails coasted down my abdomen and found 'Mr. Happy' had risen to attention. Okay, he'd been hopping up and down on my groin since she'd said we were 'going to bed' 30 minutes ago. Hana decided wrap up my shaft with her hand, then applied a few tender strokes. I reciprocated by cupping her left tit in one hand, forming a mound with her areola at the center, and began to twirl from the outside inward to her hardened nipple with just the tip of my tongue.It was 4 a.m. Why was I taking it slow when I had my final work review with Katrina in three hours? Hana deserved this and more. Why was Hana doing it? She was her own boss, plus her life was careening wildly outside of anything she'd imagined before she'd first laid eyes on me. Half of the financial empire she shared with her father was suddenly in the hands of a military dictatorship, her beloved father was dealing with the murder of her hated step-brother and she was marrying a Prince in a European cathedral which required someone high in the Vatican's approval process to use.Yeah, her life had gone nuts. Worse, she loved me. And I wasn't the kind of man she ever thought she'd love. She'd thought she'd never love anyone again after her life with her asshole of an ex-husband and their bitter, contentious divorce. I was barely someone she could classify, and Hana was a terribly ordered and organized person. Saying my life was messy was being generous. I was some mysterious warrior-diplomat-playboy-aristocrat who hung out with people more bizarre than me.Hana picked up her tempo. I switched breasts. Her motor was really starting to hum. Any other night, I could have moved straight to revving her up to an orgasm. I had the time to make it two without any problems. A good one and Hana would be happy and drift off to sleep. Instead, I intuited she wanted more, so we developed our own game of cat and mouse with her climax, and its suspension, being our ultimate goal.My left hand danced down the back of her ribcage like playing keys on a piano. It was a light, teasing gesture. Her hair the color of tarnished gold cascaded down as she began placing her own kisses upon my crown. Each move by one partner evoked a response by the other. Hana ran my glans over her glistening labia, getting it nice and slick. I worked down her waist, cupped her ass, and then glided over her thigh to the back of her knee where I started tickling her. She snickered."You are distracting me," she murmured. I wasn't. I knew these things."I like to get the feel of every inch of your flesh," I responded. More mirthful noises from her. Slowly, her gooey vestibule rubbed against and over the top, until I felt myself entering. There, she hesitated. I propelled my hips an inch up, twisted right then left before falling back down, a micro-fuck."Ah," she emoted her approval. "My turn." Hana's knees spread to the side, making a memorable sound on the silk sheets as she impaled herself. This time she rolled her hips forward, back, then did a slow 360 with me  inside her, letting the slow progress over her spark memories for her to savor. "I never believed sex could be like this," Hana hiccupped."How so?" I knew the answer, but wanted her to put her chaotic passions to words. It would make her happier."Experimenting, silly. Stopping in the middle and doing, this," she reversed her hip rotations this time. "I never imagined a lover having such patience, or,""Yourself as being so openly sexually adventurous?" I finished."Yeah," she huffed. "I really, really owe your college professor, plus you and all your diligence, for this," at the last moment, she encountered the gateway to her G-spot. I knew precisely where that gem was. Previously, Hana had gained a vague idea where it was from the perspective of masturbation and our prior lovemaking. Now I had let Hana rediscover that joy with my cock as her tool to utilize as she wished."You realize pregnant women want even more sex," she hummed. She was vigorously working my cock now. Hana had bridged a huge gap, sexually. Normally, a woman of Hana's quality tried to please her man first with the hope her orgasm would soon follow. I was different. My greatest sexual gratification came from her ecstasy. She was confident in that now. By bringing herself to climax, she was making me excited for what would come next."That's okay," I propped myself up on one elbow now that Hana was riding me cowgirl-style. "I dig big chicks." The open-palm slap to the chest was a given."Hercege, you, you are horrible," she growled around a feral smile. The lip-biting, tongue-sucking kiss was equally vicious, primal and leading Hana to the end of her tether. Not only was Hana's sexual trust in me/us expanding, she was putting extra effort into her physical workout regime too. She might still have a ways to go to compete with an Amazon, but it was still going to be a great night."Hercegn , I am nothing but a twisted shadow of masculine lust whose every contour is cast by your muliebrous glow," I teased. Her eyes twinkled. Yes, definitely still going to be a great night."Okay," Hana yawned, "I give up. What does 'muliebrous' mean?" She'd been holding on to that for an hour and a half. It was five-thirty and I was dressing in my biking clothes before heading into work."From the Latin 'muliebri' which means 'womanly'," I answered. Her sleepy eyes drank in both my response and my physique. I had discovered another thing Hana liked and that was to expand her academic/linguistic frontiers. She was enchanted with the idea that I liked to engage her mind along with her body, sparking on all cylinders.She'd crawled over to my side of the bed, her head resting on my pillow, soaking up my scent as she watched me. I knelt down, kissed her on her ear, cheek and finally the side of her lips. Hana was beat."Have a good day and be careful," she mumbled. Her eyes closed. Her chest rose with one last, waking breath before her sleep rhythms took her."Ditto," I whispered. I snuck into  Annela's room and planted a kiss on her head as well. The craziness of my life had a way of cascading over to the ones I loved. Loved? Oh boy,7:00 am Monday, September 8th, Graduation Day!Brielle and her buddy were humming along as the elevator doors closed. Once more, my 'hellish' schedule demanded I change in the elevator. I'd gone to gun practice with my bike clothes on, so I absolutely had to change into business attire in the magic box, in front of them.Juanita adjusting my tie was a less than subtle attempt to strangle me. I was about to be late to my final 'start of day' meeting as an intern in Executive Services, so her chastisement would have to wait. Who would have thunk it? Juanita would have to wait outside for this ceremony. Paula raced with me to be the last one in, only to have Daphne grace us with the 'news':"The meeting won't start for another fifteen minutes," she grinned. "Katrina is bringing up the 'new hires' for the fall program."I finger-flicked my head. The 84 days as an intern was merely the 'training wheels' period. To really be a member of ES was at least a two year training process. The Amazons around me had started their training for this gig when they were fifteen and were eighteen and nineteen now, their ID's said they were older for legal purposes.In theory, my four years in college was counted as 'preliminary' training and provided things such as acclimation to outsider culture ~ aka 'acting normal'. Logically, I would train under someone like Desiree or Buffy for a year before being a full-fledged member of the service."How many this time?" I asked Daphne since she seemed to be in the know."Twenty," she grinned. "We are getting two."I noticed there was still only my tiny desk in Katrina's office. That meant the new guys would be out in the office pool with everyone else. Probably for the best. The ladies were now used to having a male around, so would be careful in what they did and didn't say. I yawned."Tired," Fabiola smirked."Oh yeah," I stifled another yawn. "Met an emissary from the Pope." Fabiola glowered. "No. Seriously. I met an emissary from Holy See. I let Hana know I wanted to get married in a highly improbable place, a ruined cathedral, so she contacted the Catholic Church and one of their guys wanted to meet with me.""That had to be fun," Tigger grinned. "What does the Cult of the Nazarene think of you and the Goddess Ishara?""We actually discussed polytheism and the place of an omnipotent, omnipresent being in the scope of things," I placed my hands behind my back and rocked back and forth. "It was quite interesting. The guy knew his shit."By that, I meant he was probably with the Pope's Secret Service as well as a Brainiac with a PhD in something. He'd promised to be in touch as soon as he heard back from his superiors. He had this hot chick with him who I suspected was a nun. And if his driver wasn't ex-military, it was because he was still in the service. On the plus side, Hana had been beaming when we left, which assured me the meeting had gone well, so we had sex from 4 AM until 5:30, thus my current fatigued state."Are you going to abandon your faith?" Fabiola taunted me."I don't have faith, Fabiola of Minerva. Faith would imply I don't know there are supernatural entities screwing with our lives. I know they do exist, I've met a few. To satisfy your disingenuous curiosity, we discussed the nature of the Weave and it being the possible manifestation of God's Will.""How did that go?" Paula appeared interested."He strongly suggested I should 'revisit my Catholic roots' soon. By that, I think he meant I'm supposed to start attending church regularly," I shrugged. "The Pope is sending an envoy to the Great Khan too, so odds are good I'm getting married," I pronounced the last bit as the doom-laden prediction it was."Oh, yes," Fabiola reached passed Paula and smacked me in the chest with the back of her hand. "That is for insinuating you and I had intercourse to my Mother and the Council.""Was that chastising me for lying, or for not making it so?" I winked."Ah, no!" she pouted. "Stop lying about me."I looked down at my phone."We've got twelve minutes," I double-pumped my eyebrows. "Want to go to Katrina's bathroom?""What! No!" Fabiola

Veteran investigative journalist James Bovard joins Ryan and Tho to talk about the Durham Report and what it tells us about the media and the FBI. New Radio Rothbard mugs are now available at the Mises Store. Get yours at Mises.org/RothMug PROMO CODE: RothPod for 20% off Recommended Reading "Durham proves that Hillary and the FBI tried to rig the 2016 election" by Jim Bovard (New York Post): Mises.org/RR_134_A "Democrats attack FBI whistleblowers — giving cover to the agency's abuses" by Jim Bovard (New York Post): Mises.org/RR_134_A2 "The FBI Vetoed the 2016 Presidential Election" by Jim Bovard: Mises.org/RR_134_B "End the FBI" by Ryan McMaken: Mises.org/RR_134_C "Yes, the FBI is America's secret police" by Jim Bovard (The Hill): Mises.org/RR_134_D "The FBI's Forgotten Criminal Record" by Jim Bovard: Mises.org/RR_134_E "Why the Worst Get on Top" by F. A. Hayek: Mises.org/RR_134_F Be sure to follow Radio Rothbard at Mises.org/RadioRothbard.

Veteran investigative journalist James Bovard joins Ryan and Tho to talk about the Durham Report and what it tells us about the media and the FBI. New Radio Rothbard mugs are now available at the Mises Store. Get yours at Mises.org/RothMug PROMO CODE: RothPod for 20% off Recommended Reading "Durham proves that Hillary and the FBI tried to rig the 2016 election" by Jim Bovard (New York Post): Mises.org/RR_134_A "Democrats attack FBI whistleblowers — giving cover to the agency's abuses" by Jim Bovard (New York Post): Mises.org/RR_134_A2 "The FBI Vetoed the 2016 Presidential Election" by Jim Bovard: Mises.org/RR_134_B "End the FBI" by Ryan McMaken: Mises.org/RR_134_C "Yes, the FBI is America's secret police" by Jim Bovard (The Hill): Mises.org/RR_134_D "The FBI's Forgotten Criminal Record" by Jim Bovard: Mises.org/RR_134_E "Why the Worst Get on Top" by F. A. Hayek: Mises.org/RR_134_F Be sure to follow Radio Rothbard at Mises.org/RadioRothbard.

Veteran investigative journalist James Bovard joins Ryan and Tho to talk about the Durham Report and what it tells us about the media and the FBI. New Radio Rothbard mugs are now available at the Mises Store. Get yours at Mises.org/RothMug PROMO CODE: RothPod for 20% off Recommended Reading "Durham proves that Hillary and the FBI tried to rig the 2016 election" by Jim Bovard (New York Post): Mises.org/RR_134_A "Democrats attack FBI whistleblowers — giving cover to the agency's abuses" by Jim Bovard (New York Post): Mises.org/RR_134_A2 "The FBI Vetoed the 2016 Presidential Election" by Jim Bovard: Mises.org/RR_134_B "End the FBI" by Ryan McMaken: Mises.org/RR_134_C "Yes, the FBI is America's secret police" by Jim Bovard (The Hill): Mises.org/RR_134_D "The FBI's Forgotten Criminal Record" by Jim Bovard: Mises.org/RR_134_E "Why the Worst Get on Top" by F. A. Hayek: Mises.org/RR_134_F Be sure to follow Radio Rothbard at Mises.org/RadioRothbard.

Ryan and Tho talk about why Trump is the only former president to be prosecuted for crimes. The ruling class has agreed to not prosecute their own, but since they see Trump as an outsider, he is fair game. In truth, we'd be better off if more presidents and former presidents faced prosecution. Recommended Reading "With the Trump Indictment, America Is a Step Closer to Being a Banana Republic" by Bill Anderson: Mises.org/RR_128_A "Politics Is Turning Us into Idiots" by Lipton Matthews: Mises.org/RR_128_B Anatomy of the State by Murray N. Rothbard: Mises.org/RR_128_C "Yes, Virginia, There IS a Deep State—and It Is Worse than You Think" by Bill Anderson: Mises.org/RR_128_D Be sure to follow Radio Rothbard at Mises.org/RadioRothbard.

Ryan and Tho talk about why Trump is the only former president to be prosecuted for crimes. The ruling class has agreed to not prosecute their own, but since they see Trump as an outsider, he is fair game. In truth, we'd be better off if more presidents and former presidents faced prosecution. Recommended Reading "With the Trump Indictment, America Is a Step Closer to Being a Banana Republic" by Bill Anderson: Mises.org/RR_128_A "Politics Is Turning Us into Idiots" by Lipton Matthews: Mises.org/RR_128_B Anatomy of the State by Murray N. Rothbard: Mises.org/RR_128_C "Yes, Virginia, There IS a Deep State—and It Is Worse than You Think" by Bill Anderson: Mises.org/RR_128_D Be sure to follow Radio Rothbard at Mises.org/RadioRothbard.

Ryan and Tho talk about why Trump is the only former president to be prosecuted for crimes. The ruling class has agreed to not prosecute their own, but since they see Trump as an outsider, he is fair game. In truth, we'd be better off if more presidents and former presidents faced prosecution. Recommended Reading "With the Trump Indictment, America Is a Step Closer to Being a Banana Republic" by Bill Anderson: Mises.org/RR_128_A "Politics Is Turning Us into Idiots" by Lipton Matthews: Mises.org/RR_128_B Anatomy of the State by Murray N. Rothbard: Mises.org/RR_128_C "Yes, Virginia, There IS a Deep State—and It Is Worse than You Think" by Bill Anderson: Mises.org/RR_128_D Be sure to follow Radio Rothbard at Mises.org/RadioRothbard.

Order of Service: - Prelude - Responsive Psalmody Psalm 72: P: The kings of Tarshish and of the isles will bring presents; the kings of Sheba and Seba will offer gifts. C: Yes, all kings shall fall down before Him; all nations shall serve Him. P: His name shall endure forever; His name shall continue as long as the sun. C: And men shall be blessed in Him, all nations shall call Him blessed. P: Blessed be His glorious name forever! C: And let the whole earth be filled with His glory. Amen and Amen. ALL: Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, forevermore. Amen. - Hymn 168 - As With Gladness Men of Old: vv. 1-3 & 5 - Hebrews 1: 1-3: God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. - Devotion - Hymn 168 - As With Gladness Men of Old: vv. 4 - Prayer #17, p. 149 - Hymn 134 - Let Us All With Gladsome Voice - Blessing - Postlude Service Participants: Chaplain Don Moldstad (Preacher), Rev. Prof. Mark DeGarmeaux (Organist)

On this episode of Radio Rothbard, Ryan McMaken and Tho Bishop dive into the FBI's raid of Donald Trump. At a time when half the country already questions the legitimacy of the federal government, what may be the lasting consequences of this political escalation? What steps could Republican governors take if they want to be serious about reigning in the feds? And, was The X-Files the original QAnon? Ryan and Tho consider these questions and more. Recommended Reading "A Stasi for America" by James Bovard: Mises.org/RR_94_A "Abolish the FBI" by Ryan McMaken: Mises.org/RR_94_B "Trump's Potential Legacy: 50 Million+ Enemies of the State" by Tho Bishop: Mises.org/RR_94_C "Yes, the FBI is America's Secret Police" by James Bovard: Mises.org/RR_94_D "The Attempt to Prosecute Donald Trump Is Unleashing More Than Our Political System Can Handle" by Bill Anderson: Mises.org/RR_94_E Be sure to follow Radio Rothbard at Mises.org/RadioRothbard.

On this episode of Radio Rothbard, Ryan McMaken and Tho Bishop dive into the FBI's raid of Donald Trump. At a time when half the country already questions the legitimacy of the federal government, what may be the lasting consequences of this political escalation? What steps could Republican governors take if they want to be serious about reigning in the feds? And, was The X-Files the original QAnon? Ryan and Tho consider these questions and more. Recommended Reading "A Stasi for America" by James Bovard: Mises.org/RR_94_A "Abolish the FBI" by Ryan McMaken: Mises.org/RR_94_B "Trump's Potential Legacy: 50 Million+ Enemies of the State" by Tho Bishop: Mises.org/RR_94_C "Yes, the FBI is America's Secret Police" by James Bovard: Mises.org/RR_94_D Be sure to follow Radio Rothbard at Mises.org/RadioRothbard.

On this episode of Radio Rothbard, Ryan McMaken and Tho Bishop dive into the FBI's raid of Donald Trump. At a time when half the country already questions the legitimacy of the federal government, what may be the lasting consequences of this political escalation? What steps could Republican governors take if they want to be serious about reigning in the feds? And, was The X-Files the original QAnon? Ryan and Tho consider these questions and more. Recommended Reading "A Stasi for America" by James Bovard: Mises.org/RR_94_A "Abolish the FBI" by Ryan McMaken: Mises.org/RR_94_B "Trump's Potential Legacy: 50 Million+ Enemies of the State" by Tho Bishop: Mises.org/RR_94_C "Yes, the FBI is America's Secret Police" by James Bovard: Mises.org/RR_94_D "The Attempt to Prosecute Donald Trump Is Unleashing More Than Our Political System Can Handle" by Bill Anderson: Mises.org/RR_94_E Be sure to follow Radio Rothbard at Mises.org/RadioRothbard.

Welcome to The Nonlinear Library, where we use Text-to-Speech software to convert the best writing from the Rationalist and EA communities into audio. This is: Uncontrollable Super-Powerful Explosives, published by Sammy Martin on April 2, 2022 on LessWrong. In the late 19th century, two researchers meet to discuss their differing views on the existential risk posed by future Uncontrollable Super-Powerful Explosives. Catastrophist: I predict that one day, not too far in the future, we will find a way to unlock a qualitatively new kind of explosive power. This explosive will represent a fundamental break with what has come before. It will be so much more powerful than any other explosive that whoever gets to this technology first might be in a position to gain a DSA over any opposition. Also, the governance and military strategies that we were using to prevent wars or win them will be fundamentally unable to control this new technology, so we'll have to reinvent everything on the fly or die in an extinction-level war. There's no way we'd be competent enough to handle something of that power without killing ourselves almost immediately. Gradualist: I'm also concerned about the prospect of explosives one day becoming far more destructive than they are now, with possibly catastrophic consequences if we aren't prepared. I'm not so sure that we'd instantly go extinct if you were right, though I agree that if anything like what you're describing is real, we're in a great deal of danger. But we'll leave questions of Governance for another time. In the meantime, I want to push back against the idea that this will all happen so suddenly. What does that word 'DSA' mean? C: Decisive strategic advantage. Anyone who has that technology would be able to render any military opposition irrelevant. Probably, they'd be able to wipe out entire cities with one bomb and force their opponents to surrender almost immediately. G: That seems like a weirdly specific prediction to make. Why assume something so unlikely? Have you got any evidence such a thing is even possible? C: I have my reasons, but first let me deal with what you just said, because I can't let that slip. Zero-to-one discontinuities are actually pretty common in the history of technology. Someone had to invent guns or steam engines for the first time. Why wouldn't there be a zero-to-one transition for explosive power someday? G: Because zero-to-one discontinuities happen when you do something for the first time. C: Yes, that's what I'm suggesting. G: No you aren't: we've already had our zero-to-one discontinuity! We've invented black powder, then dynamite and fuses, from now on there'll be incremental changes and inventions that increase explosive power. We might see step changes when some new kind of chemical is discovered, but what you're talking about isn't possible. Or it's at least highly unlikely. C: Why? You've just admitted step changes happen all the time. G: Because what you're talking about requires people to just ignore a hugely promising road to technological improvement, probably consisting of many steps, for ages, to get so much of a lead over their competitors in explosives technology. C: And who says that explosive power actually works like that? G: Because that's our default expectation with a technology like explosives, where there are lots of paths to improvement and lots of effort exerted on every part of the problem. Unless, you maybe have evidence that this isn't how it works? C: Yes, I was just getting to that. Your priors don't mean anything if we have already seen an existence proof for qualitatively new energy sources. G: So you have a design for this super-explosive? C: No, but that's not necessary for my point. G: So you've at least found a new principle of physics that implies it is possible? C: I'm talking about the Sun. The energy the Sun outputs is overwhelming, enough to warm the entire earth. One day, we'll discover how to release those energies ou...

Link to original articleWelcome to The Nonlinear Library, where we use Text-to-Speech software to convert the best writing from the Rationalist and EA communities into audio. This is: Uncontrollable Super-Powerful Explosives, published by Sammy Martin on April 2, 2022 on LessWrong. In the late 19th century, two researchers meet to discuss their differing views on the existential risk posed by future Uncontrollable Super-Powerful Explosives. Catastrophist: I predict that one day, not too far in the future, we will find a way to unlock a qualitatively new kind of explosive power. This explosive will represent a fundamental break with what has come before. It will be so much more powerful than any other explosive that whoever gets to this technology first might be in a position to gain a DSA over any opposition. Also, the governance and military strategies that we were using to prevent wars or win them will be fundamentally unable to control this new technology, so we'll have to reinvent everything on the fly or die in an extinction-level war. There's no way we'd be competent enough to handle something of that power without killing ourselves almost immediately. Gradualist: I'm also concerned about the prospect of explosives one day becoming far more destructive than they are now, with possibly catastrophic consequences if we aren't prepared. I'm not so sure that we'd instantly go extinct if you were right, though I agree that if anything like what you're describing is real, we're in a great deal of danger. But we'll leave questions of Governance for another time. In the meantime, I want to push back against the idea that this will all happen so suddenly. What does that word 'DSA' mean? C: Decisive strategic advantage. Anyone who has that technology would be able to render any military opposition irrelevant. Probably, they'd be able to wipe out entire cities with one bomb and force their opponents to surrender almost immediately. G: That seems like a weirdly specific prediction to make. Why assume something so unlikely? Have you got any evidence such a thing is even possible? C: I have my reasons, but first let me deal with what you just said, because I can't let that slip. Zero-to-one discontinuities are actually pretty common in the history of technology. Someone had to invent guns or steam engines for the first time. Why wouldn't there be a zero-to-one transition for explosive power someday? G: Because zero-to-one discontinuities happen when you do something for the first time. C: Yes, that's what I'm suggesting. G: No you aren't: we've already had our zero-to-one discontinuity! We've invented black powder, then dynamite and fuses, from now on there'll be incremental changes and inventions that increase explosive power. We might see step changes when some new kind of chemical is discovered, but what you're talking about isn't possible. Or it's at least highly unlikely. C: Why? You've just admitted step changes happen all the time. G: Because what you're talking about requires people to just ignore a hugely promising road to technological improvement, probably consisting of many steps, for ages, to get so much of a lead over their competitors in explosives technology. C: And who says that explosive power actually works like that? G: Because that's our default expectation with a technology like explosives, where there are lots of paths to improvement and lots of effort exerted on every part of the problem. Unless, you maybe have evidence that this isn't how it works? C: Yes, I was just getting to that. Your priors don't mean anything if we have already seen an existence proof for qualitatively new energy sources. G: So you have a design for this super-explosive? C: No, but that's not necessary for my point. G: So you've at least found a new principle of physics that implies it is possible? C: I'm talking about the Sun. The energy the Sun outputs is overwhelming, enough to warm the entire earth. One day, we'll discover how to release those energies ou...

Nu bryter Agnetha Fältskog tystnaden och delar med sig av sina tankar kring comebacken i en exklusiv intervju i Svensktoppen. Abba som denna vecka också går upp till förstaplatsen med Don´t shut me down. Lyssna på hela intervjun med Agnetha Fältskog i specialpodden här. (English translation available in the text) Agnetha Fältskog om nya låtarna med AbbaAgnetha Fältskog berättar för programledaren Carolina Norén om varför Svensktoppen har en speciell plats i gruppens hjärtan, lyckan efter fansens hyllningar och varför hon än idag är restriktiv med intervjuer. Hon avslöjar dessutom lite mer om vad vi kan förvänta oss av resten av låtarna på nya albumet.Agnetha om mötet med Frida– Tycker man om de här två första låtarna kommer man tycka om hela albumet. Det är väldigt mycket Abba-sound, vi försöker inte låta annorlunda eller påverkas av sånt som är aktuellt nu. Det blir väldigt mycket Abba när jag och Frida möts i studion. Det är som att våra röster gifter sig med varandra så det är nästan svårt att skilja på oss, säger Agnetha Fältskog.Hör också senaste nytt om det kommande albumet, hur inspelningarna gick till och Agnetha Fältskogs tveksamhet till om det här med en konsert med Abbatarer verkligen är en så bra idé…Delar av intervjun sänds också i Svensktoppen söndag 19:e september 11.03-12.00 i Sveriges Radios P4 samt går att höra i sin helhet i vår app Sveriges Radio Play.Agnetha Fältskog interview - English translation In September, Agnetha Fältskog of ABBA agreed to grant Swedish radio presenter Carolina Norén an interview for the classic Swedish chart show ”Svensktoppen” on Swedish Public Service radio. The interview was broadcast September 19.Carolina Norén: ”Don't Shut Me Down” by ABBA – and with me on the phone I have Agnetha Fältskog. Hello, Agnetha!Agnetha Fältskog: Hello, Carolina!C: And, of course, congratulations to entering the top of the chart, Agnetha!A: Wow, what a surprise! That was amazing, really fun.C: Let's just say that I wasn't that surprised, and neither was the rest of the world. However, ABBA.s last number one here on Svensktoppen was actually ”Waterloo”, back in 1974!A: Was it that long ago? Well, there you go. It was about time, then.C: It was about time! Exactly.A: I'd like to take the opportunity to tell you how happy, grateful and moved everyone in the group is by the enormous reception. It feels very nice and warm inside.C: I'm thinking, the first time you received a call like this from ”Svensktoppen”, and I don't know if you remember this, Ulf Elfving was calling. It was in 1968, you were 17 years old and ”Jag var så kär” (I Was So in Love), had reached number three.A: Yeah, it's been quite a few years, ha ha.Agnetha Fältskog: Svensktoppen obviously means a lotC: What has Svensktoppen meant to you over the years?A: It means a great deal. We're so used to charts, and have enormous success in several countries, but ”Svensktoppen” – it's our native country and the audience we have back here, and it obviously means a lot. We're very moved by the reception everywhere. I remember that first interview with Ulf, I was very nervous, and almost couldn't believe that I'd entered Svensktoppen, it's something you don't forget. This was also an enormous surprise, because you can never really know how it will turn out. One is never sure that something is going to be successful, and one is glad when it happens.C: I was actually thinking about that a bit: I know that you love spending time in the studio working, and so on, but was there any point while working on this new material where you started to feel doubt or fear: what if it doesn't work?A: Yes, we said that in the beginning: a long time had passed since we recorded, and you can never be sure that the voice is going to hold up – was it going to sound old? However, we heard pretty immediately – from both Frida's voice and mine – that it sounded more or less as it did back then. However, you may have to make another kind of effort, and give more, or how to put it, of your ability to tell a story, to empathise with the song. I always used to do that, but it's a lot more now that one has lived an entire life. You put more emotion into it.C: I was thinking, whose idea was it to do this – who was the driving force behind the comeback?. I mean out of you? From the fans' point of view, it's always been a given.A: Yes ... Well, one thing lead to another, somehow. We felt that we wanted to do a few new songs for the avatar project that will open in May next year, in London. So we said ”let's do a few songs and see how they turn out, how it sounds. One thing led to another with a few more songs, and then Benny kind of said ”why not make an entire album?”. Yes, and that's how it happened, and since we enjoy working in the studio, it's fantastically fun to be able to create and such.C: Yes, and you have said that it's sometimes easy to ”tempt” you into doing things if they sound like fun.A: Yes, that's true.Agnetha Fältskog about the avatar project: I had to give it a thinkC: So you weren't hard to convince, when it came to doing this?A: No, I don't think any of us were. Not doing this. The avatar project, I had to give it a think, since it meant a lot of work, as it were, on stage. Because I'm not a stage personality in that respect, but I can convey more feelings in the songs.C: Indeed. The rumours around this comeback started back in 2018. We got to know the song titles, and it feels like these two songs that we have heard, have been underway for a while. Have you polished the songs over the years? What has happened since we first heard of them in 2018?A: Well, we have been at it. At first we worked on the avatars throughout February...let's see, was it the year before last? No, it was last year. We had just finished working with that, when the Corona situation appeared. Then, after a while, we started recording these songs and it's continued like that.C: When the songs were released a little over two weeks ago, fans gathered around the world simultaneously. Björn and Benny participated in the live stream and you and Frida were part of the edited program. Björn and Benny said that you were following the broadcast from a distance. How did it feel watching it?A: It was actually enormous. I've been watching our fans a little, when they're listening to the songs, and they're actually crying. It's quite enormous what a reach it had all around across countries. It's almost hard to take it in, actually.C: I was present at Gröna Lund (in Stockholm), where fans had been invited, and there were many fans from other countries. I can really attest that emotions were enormously strong. It was, you know, almost sacred. Just like you said, they cried and were deeply moved. One thing many of them said, at least the ones I talked to, was that they missed you – ”the girls”, they said: Agnetha and Annifrid.A: Yes.C: Do you know when you will get together next time?A: I don't really dare to say. We're a bit older now, and have our minor ailments, ha ha. But we struggle on. But I don't dare to say, because it's a bit uncertain. At the moment we feel happy that we got this together, and let's hope everything goes well in London, at the premiere over there.C: Right, in May next year. The avatars. Incredibly cool, actually.A: Right.Agnetha Fältskog: I like to sit down when I sing. Frida usually stands upC: You touched upon the thing about the voice, whether it would hold up. When you released your solo album in 2013, you mentioned in an interview that you'd had the same worry, and had taken singing lessons – which turned out to be one lesson. How was it this time, Agnetha? Did it end up being any singing lessons?A: Haha. No, it didn't. One knows this, that it has to do with support from the stomach, that you shouldn't ruin...so it doesn't become too much for the throat. Instead, you find support in the belly, and it just fits so well, once you're in the studio. You just, ”wow, it holds up!”. One has different … I like to sit down when I sing. Frida usually stands up. It varies a lot, how you feel that you get the power.C: You are the one doing the main vocals – at least most of them – on the single ”Don't Shut Me Down”. I should add that ”I Still Have Faith in You” is also in the chart, at number four.A: Yes, how fun!C: How does it work when you divide it between the two of you? Do you choose your favourites, or is it directed by the respecive voice registers? Do tell.A: Yes. It's probably the guys who are in charge of that. We get some lyrics, get to listen a bit, and try a little. It's also happened that one has felt ”this one I'd like to do”. There are no fights about anything. We try it out, but it's usually the guys, I think, who already know who is supposed to sing what. We're also part of each others'... Even if one of us sings the solo verses, we're always join together for the choruses, for the most part.C: You have also a background as a songwriter, and ran your solo career in the beginning. These days, Björn and Benny usually end up talking about the project. How much are you able to go in a change things, or feel ”that doesn't work, let's try this”.A: Back in the day it happen pretty regularly, but these days it doesn't. I can come up with a lot of ideas: ”could we add some finesse at this point in the song?” I'm also pretty good at harmonies, but the guys handle most of it. We do as they say, and it turns out well.C: Another thing when one talks about ABBA and ABBA's music, your songs have been quite associated with you as people over the years. The most obvious example may be ”The Winner Takes it All”, which is about divorce. How about today – what do the songs say about you as people, and artists today?A: It's probably mostly in the lyrics, and you should probably let Björn answer. One can read one thing or another into composers', songwriters' or lyricists' work, and of course you add a bit of ”it's about him, or me”. But it's general, how to say, relationships. Because it's often about love.Agnetha Fältskog about the new album: If you like these two songs, you will probably like the entire albumC: The two most recent songs, maybe a little more general. Now that we are talking about love, I've go to ask you: you have said that you're are a romantic person, Agnetha.A: Yes, I am.C: And you like romantic music. Will there be more romance on the album? More love?A: Haha! Well, it's very varied. I can't say much about it now, but it's very varied. I can tell you this much: if you like these two songs, you will probably like the entire album. I do think so.C: Right. That's good. I feel I need to scratch the surface a little more. What we have heard is a timeless ABBA sound. Can one imagine that it will continue with that sound as well?A: What do you mean, on the CD?C: Yes, on the album.A: Ah, yes. It's very much the ABBA sound. We're not trying to sound different or letting ourselves be affected by other, current things, so to speak. We're trying to keep ... It becomes what it becomes – and it becomes very ABBA when Frida and I get together in the studio. It's almost like a marriage between our voices, and almost hard to tell them apart at times.Agnetha Fältskog: None of us probably really knew what to expectC: Now, I know that a lot of people are looking forward to the concert in London in May next year. First, there's the album, in November. The one we were talking about. We mentioned the avatars. What went through your head the first time you heard of the idea?A: Haha. Well, yes, none of us probably really knew what to expect, but we've worked with it a lot, so you grew into it, eventually. We stand there, doing these songs, with– I don't know how many cameras and people. And then, somehow, it was technologically transferred, in some way that we don't even understand, to other people that are going to be on stage as us – but it's still us, haha! I can't really explain it, it's so hard, but there's a lot of technology and lights involved. But it felt great to do in the end. Because it was so different. Also, there was a vibe, one felt that ”maybe it's the last thing we do”. Same thing with this album.C: Ooh, you can't say that, ha ha! We want more!A: You can cut that out.C: Jonas and I will cut that out! Solo album in 2013. I can reveal to you, here and now, that in the summer of 213, ”Dance Your Pain Away” was the only thing I listened to.A: I see! That's nice.C: I know it inside out, but I won't sing it!A: Yeah, that was cool, actually.C: Is there anything in the pipeline solo – another solo album from you, Agnetha?A: Not at the moment, no. I think, and I feel, that I've done a lot now. So I can't promise you that. We have got to find joy in what we have, and all that awaits.C: Indeed. May I also add that I was very happy when I heard that you would be with us and share. Because I've learned that you are somewhat restrictive when it comes to doing interviews. What do you think, are there further public appearance from you ahead?A: Not really. But, as you say, I've never really retired that way, but I am restrictive, and I feel that a lot of things are being written, and have been written, about us. We agreed to do, and have done, so many interviews. There's a risk that you ruin it by talking too much. You want keep a little something to yourself. Something private.C: Agnetha, we respect that, and we are very happy here at Svensktoppen, and, I would imagine, that the listeners who haven't perhaps fainted from the surprise, and have stayed with us, are happy that you could join us. Once again, huge, huge congratulations to topping the chart.A: Thank you. I also want to send greetings from the rest of the group. I know that they are all very happy about this. It means a lot to us.C: Wonderful. I hope we can talk again. I almost get shivers suddenly doing the presentation here. So I say: new number one: ABBA and ”Don't Shut Me Down”. Thank you very much, Agnetha.A: Thanks so much to you, too!English translation by Anders LundquistCarolina Norén - programledare och producent för Svensktoppencarolina.noren@sverigesradio.se

Nu bryter Agnetha Fältskog tystnaden och delar med sig av sina tankar kring comebacken i en exklusiv intervju i Svensktoppen. Abba som denna vecka också går upp till förstaplatsen med Don´t shut me down. Lyssna på hela intervjun med Agnetha Fältskog i specialpodden här. (English translation available in the text) Agnetha Fältskog om nya låtarna  Agnetha Fältskog berättar för programledaren Carolina Norén om varför Svensktoppen har en speciell plats i gruppens hjärtan, lyckan efter fansens hyllningar och varför hon än idag är restriktiv med intervjuer. Hon avslöjar dessutom lite mer om vad vi kan förvänta oss av resten av låtarna på nya albumet. Agnetha om mötet med Frida Tycker man om de här två första låtarna kommer man tycka om hela albumet. Det är väldigt mycket Abba-sound, vi försöker inte låta annorlunda eller påverkas av sånt som är aktuellt nu. Det blir väldigt mycket Abba när jag och Frida möts i studion. Det är som att våra röster gifter sig med varandra så det är nästan svårt att skilja på oss, säger Agnetha Fältskog. Hör också senaste nytt om det kommande albumet, hur inspelningarna gick till och Agnetha Fältskogs tveksamhet till om det här med en konsert med Abbatarer verkligen är en så bra idé Delar av intervjun sänds också i Svensktoppen söndag 19:e september 11.03-12.00 i Sveriges Radios P4 samt går att höra i sin helhet i vår app Sveriges Radio Play. Agnetha Fältskog interview - English translation   In September, Agnetha Fältskog of ABBA agreed to grant Swedish radio presenter Carolina Norén an interview for the classic Swedish chart show Svensktoppen on Swedish Public Service radio. The interview was broadcast September 19. Carolina Norén: Don't Shut Me Down by ABBA and with me on the phone I have Agnetha Fältskog. Hello, Agnetha! Agnetha Fältskog: Hello, Carolina! C: And, of course, congratulations to entering the top of the chart, Agnetha! A: Wow, what a surprise! That was amazing, really fun. C: Let's just say that I wasn't that surprised, and neither was the rest of the world. However, ABBA.s last number one here on Svensktoppen was actually Waterloo, back in 1974! A: Was it that long ago? Well, there you go. It was about time, then. C: It was about time! Exactly. A: I'd like to take the opportunity to tell you how happy, grateful and moved everyone in the group is by the enormous reception. It feels very nice and warm inside. C: I'm thinking, the first time you received a call like this from Svensktoppen, and I don't know if you remember this, Ulf Elfving was calling. It was in 1968, you were 17 years old and Jag var så kär (I Was So in Love), had reached number three. A: Yeah, it's been quite a few years, ha ha. Agnetha Fältskog: Svensktoppen obviously means a lot C: What has Svensktoppen meant to you over the years? A: It means a great deal. We're so used to charts, and have enormous success in several countries, but Svensktoppen it's our native country and the audience we have back here, and it obviously means a lot. We're very moved by the reception everywhere. I remember that first interview with Ulf, I was very nervous, and almost couldn't believe that I'd entered Svensktoppen, it's something you don't forget. This was also an enormous surprise, because you can never really know how it will turn out. One is never sure that something is going to be successful, and one is glad when it happens. C: I was actually thinking about that a bit: I know that you love spending time in the studio working, and so on, but was there any point while working on this new material where you started to feel doubt or fear: what if it doesn't work? A: Yes, we said that in the beginning: a long time had passed since we recorded, and you can never be sure that the voice is going to hold up was it going to sound old? However, we heard pretty immediately from both Frida's voice and mine that it sounded more or less as it did back then. However, you may have to make another kind of effort, and give more, or how to put it, of your ability to tell a story, to empathise with the song. I always used to do that, but it's a lot more now that one has lived an entire life. You put more emotion into it. C: I was thinking, whose idea was it to do this who was the driving force behind the comeback?. I mean out of you? From the fans' point of view, it's always been a given. A: Yes ... Well, one thing lead to another, somehow. We felt that we wanted to do a few new songs for the avatar project that will open in May next year, in London. So we said let's do a few songs and see how they turn out, how it sounds. One thing led to another with a few more songs, and then Benny kind of said why not make an entire album?. Yes, and that's how it happened, and since we enjoy working in the studio, it's fantastically fun to be able to create and such. C: Yes, and you have said that it's sometimes easy to tempt you into doing things if they sound like fun. A: Yes, that's true. Agnetha Fältskog about the avatar project: I had to give it a think C: So you weren't hard to convince, when it came to doing this? A: No, I don't think any of us were. Not doing this. The avatar project, I had to give it a think, since it meant a lot of work, as it were, on stage. Because I'm not a stage personality in that respect, but I can convey more feelings in the songs. C: Indeed. The rumours around this comeback started back in 2018. We got to know the song titles, and it feels like these two songs that we have heard, have been underway for a while. Have you polished the songs over the years? What has happened since we first heard of them in 2018? A: Well, we have been at it. At first we worked on the avatars throughout February...let's see, was it the year before last? No, it was last year. We had just finished working with that, when the Corona situation appeared. Then, after a while, we started recording these songs and it's continued like that. C: When the songs were released a little over two weeks ago, fans gathered around the world simultaneously. Björn and Benny participated in the live stream and you and Frida were part of the edited program. Björn and Benny said that you were following the broadcast from a distance. How did it feel watching it? A: It was actually enormous. I've been watching our fans a little, when they're listening to the songs, and they're actually crying. It's quite enormous what a reach it had all around across countries. It's almost hard to take it in, actually. C: I was present at Gröna Lund (in Stockholm), where fans had been invited, and there were many fans from other countries. I can really attest that emotions were enormously strong. It was, you know, almost sacred. Just like you said, they cried and were deeply moved. One thing many of them said, at least the ones I talked to, was that they missed you the girls, they said: Agnetha and Annifrid. A: Yes. C: Do you know when you will get together next time? A: I don't really dare to say. We're a bit older now, and have our minor ailments, ha ha. But we struggle on. But I don't dare to say, because it's a bit uncertain. At the moment we feel happy that we got this together, and let's hope everything goes well in London, at the premiere over there. C: Right, in May next year. The avatars. Incredibly cool, actually. A: Right. Agnetha Fältskog: I like to sit down when I sing. Frida usually stands up C: You touched upon the thing about the voice, whether it would hold up. When you released your solo album in 2013, you mentioned in an interview that you'd had the same worry, and had taken singing lessons which turned out to be one lesson. How was it this time, Agnetha? Did it end up being any singing lessons? A: Haha. No, it didn't. One knows this, that it has to do with support from the stomach, that you shouldn't ruin...so it doesn't become too much for the throat. Instead, you find support in the belly, and it just fits so well, once you're in the studio. You just, wow, it holds up!. One has different I like to sit down when I sing. Frida usually stands up. It varies a lot, how you feel that you get the power. C: You are the one doing the main vocals at least most of them on the single Don't Shut Me Down. I should add that I Still Have Faith in You is also in the chart, at number four. A: Yes, how fun! C: How does it work when you divide it between the two of you? Do you choose your favourites, or is it directed by the respecive voice registers? Do tell. A: Yes. It's probably the guys who are in charge of that. We get some lyrics, get to listen a bit, and try a little. It's also happened that one has felt this one I'd like to do. There are no fights about anything. We try it out, but it's usually the guys, I think, who already know who is supposed to sing what. We're also part of each others'... Even if one of us sings the solo verses, we're always join together for the choruses, for the most part. C: You have also a background as a songwriter, and ran your solo career in the beginning. These days, Björn and Benny usually end up talking about the project. How much are you able to go in a change things, or feel that doesn't work, let's try this. A: Back in the day it happen pretty regularly, but these days it doesn't. I can come up with a lot of ideas: could we add some finesse at this point in the song? I'm also pretty good at harmonies, but the guys handle most of it. We do as they say, and it turns out well. C: Another thing when one talks about ABBA and ABBA's music, your songs have been quite associated with you as people over the years. The most obvious example may be The Winner Takes it All, which is about divorce. How about today what do the songs say about you as people, and artists today? A: It's probably mostly in the lyrics, and you should probably let Björn answer. One can read one thing or another into composers', songwriters' or lyricists' work, and of course you add a bit of it's about him, or me. But it's general, how to say, relationships. Because it's often about love. Agnetha Fältskog about the new album: If you like these two songs, you will probably like the entire album C: The two most recent songs, maybe a little more general. Now that we are talking about love, I've go to ask you: you have said that you're are a romantic person, Agnetha. A: Yes, I am. C: And you like romantic music. Will there be more romance on the album? More love? A: Haha! Well, it's very varied. I can't say much about it now, but it's very varied. I can tell you this much: if you like these two songs, you will probably like the entire album. I do think so. C: Right. That's good. I feel I need to scratch the surface a little more. What we have heard is a timeless ABBA sound. Can one imagine that it will continue with that sound as well? A: What do you mean, on the CD? C: Yes, on the album. A: Ah, yes. It's very much the ABBA sound. We're not trying to sound different or letting ourselves be affected by other, current things, so to speak. We're trying to keep ... It becomes what it becomes and it becomes very ABBA when Frida and I get together in the studio. It's almost like a marriage between our voices, and almost hard to tell them apart at times. Agnetha Fältskog: None of us probably really knew what to expect C: Now, I know that a lot of people are looking forward to the concert in London in May next year. First, there's the album, in November. The one we were talking about. We mentioned the avatars. What went through your head the first time you heard of the idea? A: Haha. Well, yes, none of us probably really knew what to expect, but we've worked with it a lot, so you grew into it, eventually. We stand there, doing these songs, with I don't know how many cameras and people. And then, somehow, it was technologically transferred, in some way that we don't even understand, to other people that are going to be on stage as us but it's still us, haha! I can't really explain it, it's so hard, but there's a lot of technology and lights involved. But it felt great to do in the end. Because it was so different. Also, there was a vibe, one felt that maybe it's the last thing we do. Same thing with this album. C: Ooh, you can't say that, ha ha! We want more! A: You can cut that out. C: Jonas and I will cut that out! Solo album in 2013. I can reveal to you, here and now, that in the summer of 213, Dance Your Pain Away was the only thing I listened to. A: I see! That's nice. C: I know it inside out, but I won't sing it! A: Yeah, that was cool, actually. C: Is there anything in the pipeline solo another solo album from you, Agnetha? A: Not at the moment, no. I think, and I feel, that I've done a lot now. So I can't promise you that. We have got to find joy in what we have, and all that awaits. C: Indeed. May I also add that I was very happy when I heard that you would be with us and share. Because I've learned that you are somewhat restrictive when it comes to doing interviews. What do you think, are there further public appearance from you ahead? A: Not really. But, as you say, I've never really retired that way, but I am restrictive, and I feel that a lot of things are being written, and have been written, about us. We agreed to do, and have done, so many interviews. There's a risk that you ruin it by talking too much. You want keep a little something to yourself. Something private. C: Agnetha, we respect that, and we are very happy here at Svensktoppen, and, I would imagine, that the listeners who haven't perhaps fainted from the surprise, and have stayed with us, are happy that you could join us. Once again, huge, huge congratulations to topping the chart. A: Thank you. I also want to send greetings from the rest of the group. I know that they are all very happy about this. It means a lot to us. C: Wonderful. I hope we can talk again. I almost get shivers suddenly doing the presentation here. So I say: new number one: ABBA and Don't Shut Me Down. Thank you very much, Agnetha. A: Thanks so much to you, too! English translation by Anders Lundquist Carolina Norén - programledare och producent carolina.noren@sverigesradio.se

Intro New #BecauseComics moment per episode Background (2:58) Crystalia Amaquelin created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in Fantastic Four #45 (Dec. 1965) She is unique among Marvel characters in that she has been a member of the Fantastic Four, Avengers, and Inhumans, as well as tangentially related to the X-Men Crystal is a member of the Inhuman Royal Family, sister to Queen Medusa, with the ability to control the elements She first encountered the Fantastic Four on the run from the Seeker, who wanted to destroy the Royal Family - saved by Johnny Storm, the two quickly fell in love When Sue Storm Richards was pregnant with Franklin and left the team, Crystal served as her replacement Left the team after discovering that her stay on Earth was poisoning her, as her Inhuman body could not handle the Earth's atmosphere, and she returned to Attilan, breaking up with Johnny In the process of Lockjaw teleporting her home, she encountered Quicksilver, who was injured battling Sentinels - she brought him home to the Great Refuge to help him recover, and over time they fell in love and announced their marriage They had a baby girl, Luna, who exhibited no powers - Crystal forced Pietro to agree that Luna would grow up normally Pietro's temper grates on Crystal, and she has an affair with Wanda & Vision's realtor, a human named Norman Webster - Norman ends the affair when he realizes Crystal is married, and Pietro initially refuses to attempt reconciliation She attempted to renew her relationship with Johnny, but she found he was married to Alicia Masters (actually a Skrull in disguise #BecauseComics), and when an Inhuman crisis endangered the entire family, she and Pietro eventually reconciled Joined the Avengers, and moved into the mansion with Luna and her nanny, Marilla During her tenure, she became close with Dane Whitman, the Black Knight, who was himself the target of Sersi's affections, all while Crystal and Pietro were working on reestablishing their relationship - this love quadrangle created many difficult situations, until Dane & Sersi were sent to another dimension After Heroes Reborn, Crystal and Pietro were reunited, but Dane also returned to the universe, and when Dane and Pietro later fought over Crystal, she left them both to return to Attilan to think After House of M, Pietro stole Terrigen Mists and exposed Luna, granting her powers - this act led to Black Bolt annulling the marriage She was then betrothed to Ronan (by Medusa) as part of an alliance between the Inhumans and the Kree - the marriage was quickly ended, however, as a deal was struck with Black Bolt and the Supreme Intelligence Made an Inhuman ambassador by Queen Medusa, leads the Royal Inhuman Diplomatic Mission Issues (9:10) Jeanine: Stepping away from royal family In the shadow of her older sister (19:17) Difficulty of being a super parent (25:12) Break (30:44) Plugs for BetterHelp, Scotch N Sports, and Al Ewing Treatment (32:42) In-universe - Bring in Captain Planet as a mentor Out of universe - Focus on emotional impact of making those important decisions (35:14) Skit (41:52)  Doc: Hello Crystal, I'm Dr. Issues.  Crystal: Hi Doctor. D: Thank you for meeting with me. I'm a little sad to see Luna's not here, though. C: She's with my family. For better or worse I have no shortage of babysitters. It helps to know so many folks with superpowers. D: Yes, you do have quite the list of friends and colleagues.  C: Which is one of the things I wanted to talk to you about. D: OK, shoot.  C: I've been an Avenger, a member of the Fantastic Four, one of the Inhuman Royal Family, and affiliated with the X-Men. I hardly have any peers who have those kinds of connections. And my powerset means I can control all of the elements. Yet I always feel like I'm not taken seriously enough. I'm either Medusa's kid sister, or worse yet Pietro's ex. D: So your primary issue is that of establishing an identity separate from those around you? C: Yes, exactly! D: I see. Well, my first thing I want to make clear is that being part of these groups isn't necessarily a bad thing, and- C: Oh I'm well aware, and I apologize if it came across as such. I'm proud to be included in these rosters. The relationships I've built over the years mean the world to me, and I wouldn't trade them for anything. It's just… that's not *all* of who I am. D: That's certainly frustrating, and I see why- C: And that's what few people understand. Pietro understood that...understands that? I don't know...we've gone back and forth so many times. He's so impulsive. I want him to slow down sometimes, but that's not who he is, and then that makes me realize that I wasn't understanding him...oh, it burns me up inside! *flame sound effect* D: Relationships that are frayed don't have to be completely incinerated...like you just did to that insurance form. Can we -  C: Oh no! I didn't mean to take it out on your possessions! That reminds me of when I talk to Johnny. It's weird. We work as great friends, but I sometimes go down a ‘what-if' rabbit hole if I had built something special with him. But that's not fair to him either. My mind is a tornado right now *wind noises* D: I see...how demonstrative. *clearly frustrated* I'll just restack those files a bit later. It sounds like you have tied so many parts of who you are to other people, that it even becomes tiresome for you to differentiate your motivations from those around you. How do you cope with that? C: I make time for myself. At least, I used to. I'm not an absentee parent. Luna comes first. When I get a chance like this, I seem to be out of sorts. *water effects gently throughout her speech* I get flooded with thoughts of how she's doing, if I'm missing something, if I should have pushed for more co-parenting, If I'm pawning her off too much. Am I making any sense? D: *barely hiding his frustration* I am awash with inspiration on how to help you...and so are my shoes. The anxiety of parenting never goes away, but rest assured that one of the best things you can show your child is letting them face some of their own challenges. C: *angry* Challenges?! She was kidnapped before! Caring for Lockjaw is a challenge! No, I won't be a helicopter parent, but do you know what it's like to lose the most important thing to your soul? You question reality. *earthquake effects* The ground you walk on might as well swallow you whole. Everyone judges you left and right. You judge yourself...harshly. It's not fair. It's not fair to her, or to me. I can stand on my own without a royal say-so- D: CRYSTAL! STOP!  C: Huh? D: *Exhausted, but calm* Please...stop. I got the message. I've never had a patient connect so viscerally to everything that's going on in their psyche. This is a private session, but it may be the greatest public example of what makes you...you! C: So it's just my powers? D: NO! No. It's the emotional intelligence fluidity. You are able to adapt to those around you and feel just as comfortable on a new team as well as with old friends. New bonds are capable of being as strong, or stronger, than prior relationships. That's a trait that not everyone comes by easily. But there's an obvious peril with that. You're always navigating a shifting hierarchy of personal priorities. That can be exhausting. C: *sarcastic* You don't say? I just… I don't want to BE my sister, but sometimes I envy the straightforward manner with which she deals with situations. She's the queen. Everyone knows that, so there's no wishy-washiness. With me, it all depends on who it is and what they need. I know you're saying that's a good thing, but uggghhhh is it draining. D: I get that. And I'm grateful that wasn't accompanied by another power flux. What I would encourage you to do is to take a look at each relationship in your life, and determine how important it is to you. You don't have to rank each one individually, maybe just use a few tiers. Then, if you're in a situation where you have a choice to make, utilize the tiers to determine which one takes precedence. And let's not forget about your own needs as well. C: Hmm. Interesting idea. Well, it can't be any worse than what I've been doing so far. Which is winging it. D: Much of life is winging it, but with a bit more wisdom each time. The course corrections are less tricky with every turn. C: I understand. Thanks for the advice, and sorry for the damage to the office. You can send the bill to Black Bolt. At least we know he won't yell about it *heehee* Ending (47:32) Recommended reading: Avengers: Bloodties, War of Kings Next episodes: Emma Frost, Starfire, Children of super villains Plugs for social References: Medusa episode - Anthony (4:02) South Park “Feelin' good on a Wednesday” - Anthony (9:06) Don Cheadle is Captain Planet - Anthony (34:04) Apple Podcasts: here Google Play: here Stitcher: here TuneIn: here iHeartRadio: here Spotify: here Twitter Facebook Patreon TeePublic Discord

You ever get frustrated with treating [chronic pain]? In a rut right now professionally? Give this episode a listen. Featuring: two newly minted Orthopedic Clinical Specialists

英语中的礼貌用语也是非常多的，很多时候不注意用词，可能会让对方感到尴尬，我们在商务会议中，想要礼貌地结束闲聊开始进入正题，该怎么表达更尊重对方呢？C: Hi guys. I'm Chris. J: And I'm Joy. Today we'll be talking about some commonly used business expressions, such as: I'd love to chat more, but… You must tell me more about that later, but...It's been great catching up, but…You can use these when you want to end the small talk and get down to business. C: Right. These expressions are very useful in business. We already know that you usually start a business meeting with small talk. But you don't want to do small talk all day long. You have to start talking about work at some point. How can you smoothly end your small talk without sounding rude? You can say: I'd love to chat more, but we've gotta talk about our product design. Or maybe you want to tell your client that you are going to another meeting. So you have to end this conversation. So you can tell him or her: It's been great catching up, but I have another meeting so I have to run. Let's try to use this in a conversation: J: I'm really glad to see the weather warming up. It's a great time to go for a walk outside. C: Actually I went to a park just outside of the city myself last weekend. It was a really good change of pace. J: You must tell me more about that later, but we should talk about the inventory of the project today. Pete was asking about expenses. C: Yes definitely, let's clear that up today. J: We'd love to tell you more English expressions, but this probably is enough for one day. And there will be more tomorrow! C: That's right. And if you enjoy our content, remember to share it with people you know! Talk to you next time! Bye!

添加笨笨老师微信：benbenkouyu1（笨笨口语全拼），速速加入口语学习群，免费每日纠音打卡，0元抢购5天直播口语训练营（仅限100名），领取三大听课好礼！好礼一：价值299元《走遍美国》全集课程视频！ 好礼二：实用英语口语纸质书籍免费包邮到家！好礼三：笨笨口语《十年精选英语学习资料》全集。一口流利的英语=1整套真正有效的课程（独特学习方法+发音+词汇+连略读+句型+英语思维+结构变换+情景对话）通常在西餐厅的菜单裡，会出现关于牛排（Steak）的项目，大都是牛肉的种类（牛身上的部位）。但是除了牛肉的种类、等级（Grade）以外，你还会被侍 者问到烹调牛排的生熟度（Degree of Cooking），以及配料（Accompaniments）、调味料（Condiment）等问题。让我们来一一认识在餐馆点牛排的种种规格。菲力，沙朗，肋眼，纽约客，丁骨，红屋，肋排，牛小排……这些牛排屋菜单上常见的字眼，全指的是牛排肉取材的部位。啊哈，又想选菲力吗?其实，真正的牛排行家，会依自己喜好的口感质地，来选择适合部位的牛排。而且通常，都不会是菲力。菲力牛排、西冷牛排、T骨牛排；这些名称都是英语翻译来的，他们各有各的特点，菲力牛排（FILET）也称牛里脊，腰内肉，特点是瘦肉较多，高蛋白，低脂 肪，比较适合喜欢减肥瘦身，要保持身材女子；西冷牛排（SIRLOIN）,也叫沙郎牛排，是外脊肉，牛的后腰肉，含一定肥油，尤其是外延有一圈呈白色的肉 筋，上口相比菲力牛排更有韧性、有搅劲，适合年轻人和牙口好的人。T骨牛排（T-BONE），是牛背上的脊骨肉，呈T字型，两侧一边是菲力，另一边是西冷，既可以尝到菲力牛排的鲜嫩又可以感受到西冷牛排的芳香，一举两得。我们在菜单上常看到的牛排种类有以下几种：*菲力牛排（Filet Mignon）：是来自牛的腰部的小块里嵴肉（Tenderloin），相当於猪的里肌肉部位。Filet Mignon 是法文字，是「小块里嵴肉」的意思，大块一点的里嵴肉称为 Tenderloin Steak。菲力是牛身中运动量最少的一块，所以质地超嫩得没话说，相对也精瘦得油花极少。很多人认为菲力高贵又不会太肥，实际上菲力纯粹是因每头牛就那 一小条而“物稀为贵”，太嫩太瘦的肉质，也意味著较缺乏肉汁及咬劲，并且烹煮过头一点就显得老涩，反而与讲究多汁嚼感的本地食客不太合。因此多推荐给牙口 不好，消化较弱的老人家或小朋友食用。*肋眼牛排（Rib's Eye Steak）：另一种便宜大碗，口感又受行家肯定的牛排是肋眼(Rib Eye)，顾名思义，它取自牛肋脊部位，或许比不上腰脊肉那样嫩，但“骨边肉”向来好吃，肋眼就有这种味道，油油嫩嫩的肉丝中夹著Q而有劲的油筋，比沙朗 耐嚼，比菲力够味，而且油花十分丰郁，请年轻男食客享用此味，好评总不断。肋眼牛排是取自牛的第6根到 第12根肋骨附近的肉，特色是多汁、肉嫩、而且有许多脂肪夹杂，红白相间像大理石一样称为（marbled steak）。通常上桌的肋眼牛排是已经去骨的。*T骨牛排（T-bone Steak）：T骨牛排取字于牛腰部后面的肉，在分割的时候会保留一块T 字形的牛骨，所以才有T骨牛排的称呼。T骨牛排通常份量比较大。 食量够大又懂牛排的美国饕客，乾脆就点丁骨(T Bone)或红屋( Porter House)牛排，大块肉排中间夹著 T 字形的大骨，一边是菲力，一边是纽约客，肉质一细嫩一粗犷，或油腴或爽俐，点一客统统吃得到。*纽约牛排（New York Steak）：纽约牛排也是取自上等无骨里嵴肉，也称为Top Loin Steak 或者 Strip Steak。至于为何称之为纽约牛排，至今无定论。有一种说法是早期在美国东部，所有牛隻宰杀后尚未冰冻前，都会送往纽约的肉舖分割出售，最好的里嵴肉当 然就留给纽约客享用了，信不信由你。*沙朗牛排 (sirloin steak)：也成为西冷牛排，就像猪肉要带点肥才会好吃，牛排行家偏好的，反而是带点油花嫩筋的部位，一般简称为“沙朗”或“西冷”，基本上皆取自牛只背脊一带最柔嫩的牛肉，但其中各有千秋。例如 和菲力同属於“前腰脊肉”的纽约客，它的肉质纤维较粗，微微带有嫩筋，油花分布不那均匀漂亮，却是标准的“嫩中带腴”，“香甜多汁”，嚼起来满口肉感，非 常过瘾，豪迈又具个性的风味，是许多行家最爱。　正宗的沙朗则取自“後腰脊肉”，也是牛只运动量极少的部位，肉质细嫩还油花满布，像大理石纹般美动人;相 对於菲力的精瘦，好的沙朗是超嫩鲜腴到入口即化的地步，让食客第一口就惊於牛肉的极致鲜甜。*牛小排（Short Rib/ Baby Ribs)：至於取自牛只胸腔左右两侧的牛小排，它带骨带筋又够肥腴的肉质，本来就很多汁耐嚼，特别是采用牛的第六，七根肋骨烹制成的“台塑牛小排”，嫩而不涩，肉量丰郁的全熟肉质，即使是怕生的本地食客也可怡然享用，更创造出牛小排的另类魅力。*除了以上几个品项，像牛肩胛部位的板腱肉，上肩胛肋眼心， 牛肚部位的腹胁肉，上後腿肉等，这些部位虽然肉质纤维较粗，但或因油花丰富媲美沙朗，或修去脂肪後的精瘦口感神似菲力，价位又只要高级肉排的三分之一，常 被价格诉求的业者拿来充作牛排。如果上餐厅付高价，却吃到名不副实的牛排，当然令人火大，但若拿来自家用，煎薄片牛排，涮火锅，烧肉，这些品项的肉品却非 常物超所值呢。最IN熟度 领略牛排菁华风味三分熟，就想到血淋淋的肉汁，所以还是指名“全熟”的牛排吧……如果你也这想，那表示你还未真正领略牛排的菁华风味。真正合格的三分熟高级牛排，端上来见不到血水的，看得到 的只有一样漂亮的焦棕褐色，表面浮渗著香甜的肉汁，嫩汪汪地绝对很诱人。就算下刀，切开的也不会是触目惊心的红生肉，而是像 Baby 脸颊般嫩嫩的粉红肉质，叉入口中，只待轻轻嚼动便温润即化，留下满口的鲜甜馀香。这样，才是“三分熟”。如此曼妙的口感若煎烤到全熟，可能比牛肉面里的牛肉还乾涩难当，所以一般专业大厨的建议，牛排都以三至八分熟为宜;但肉质不同，各有适合的熟度。美国肉类出口协会处长吴秋衡的建议是:精瘦的菲力，三至七分熟;油腴的沙朗，肋眼与纽约客，四至六分熟;带骨的丁骨及红屋，五至八分熟;牛小排，全熟。 点用的术语：问句：How would you like your steak?（您的牛排要几成熟？）牛排的烹调方式有煎（Grill）与烤（Roast）。Grill是烤架的意思，将牛排放在炭火上直接加热叫做煎，把牛排放到烤箱裡加热叫做烤（Roast），以下是介绍煎製牛排的生熟度：* Rare、Very Rare：极生，煎的（Grill）时间不超过3分钟。外表有烧烤过的痕迹，但是裡面还是冷得几乎没有受到热度。切开时还有血水渗出，但是肉质极嫩，口感多汁。* Rare：生，一分熟。煎的时间不超过4分钟。外表有烤焦痕迹，裡面肉质呈现原来红色，但入口有热度。切开时还有血水渗出，但是肉质极嫩，口感多汁。 * Medium Rare：中生，三分熟。煎的时间6~8分钟。外表有烧烤过的痕迹，但是裡面已经全面加热，可以感受到相当热度，但是肉质还是呈现红色。切开时还有稍许血水渗出，但是肉质嫩，口感多汁。* Medium：稍熟，五分熟。煎的时间8~10分钟。外表烧烤呈深褐色，但是裡面除了中间部分呈现粉红色外，外围部分呈现烧烤过的澹褐色。切开时流出褐色肉汁，需要咬上数口才能嚥下。* Medium Well：中熟，七分熟。煎的时间10~12分钟。外表烧烤呈深褐色，但是裡面核心部分呈现少许红色外，外围部分呈现烧烤过的褐色。切开时流出褐色肉汁，需要咬上数口才能嚥下。* Well Done：全熟。煎的时间12～15分钟外表已有明显烤焦痕迹，热度已经渗入整片肉，裡面肉色因为高度加热呈现深褐色。咬劲很够才能下嚥。挑品质 什么牛排最高级? 就像吃鱼一样，只要鲜度佳，就绝对好吃，牛排亦然。愈来 愈多餐厅饭店采用冷藏牛肉，也就是从工厂出品，运送进货到切割烹调前，全程都以 0 至 2 度的低温监控，以保持牛肉的鲜嫩风味。因为牛肉是红肉中最敏感娇贵的肉品，一路小心呵护再煎烤出来的牛排，就是比冷冻牛肉来得鲜活，腴嫩，多汁而甘美，只 要吃过便可辨出中差别，虽然成本要贵上数倍。 美国是牛肉生产与消费大国，因此美国农业部（US Dept. of Agriculture, USDA）也订出的不同品质牛肉的等级。美国农业部把牛肉分为8等Prime、Choice、Select、Standard、Commercial、 Utility、Cutter 与Canner。*Prime：约佔全部生产牛肉2%，在高级餐厅出售。肌肉含脂肪量（Intramuscular Fat）在 8~11%之间，瘦肉与肥肉夹杂的大理石纹路明显度高。*Choice：肌肉含脂肪量在 4~8%之间，瘦肉与肥肉夹杂的大理石纹路明显度中等，通常供应给超级市场。*Select：肌肉含脂肪量在 3~4%之间，瘦肉与肥肉夹杂的大理石纹路明显度轻微。由于大理石纹路不明显，吃起来牛肉汁较少，口感较差，不适合用作牛排材料。*Standard：肌肉含脂肪量在 2.5~3%之间，瘦肉与肥肉夹杂的大理石纹路明显度几乎不存在。*Commercial、Commercial、Utility、Cutter 与Canner这几级肌肉间脂肪和量极少，也没有大理石纹路，用在做绞肉（Ground Beef）如汉堡肉（Burger Patty）或其他牛肉加工製品。*牛排大理石纹路积分（Beef Marble Score）：所谓牛排大理石纹路，就是我们所谓的「雪花效果」，凡是脂肪问愈密集的等级愈高。神户牛排（Kobe Steak）的大理石纹路积分都要在9分以上。产地及等级，也会影响牛排的风味品质。本地牛排肉主要来自美国，其他还有加拿大，纽澳，日本及阿根廷。根据资深肉商的说法，纽澳，阿根廷的牛以青草放牧饲 育，肉质较纤瘦而具嚼感;美加取玉米谷物为饲料，以科学化圈养而成，运动量低，自然柔嫩肥腴，口感多汁带甜。而以“喝啤酒，听音乐，享受按摩”出名的日本 牛，油脂极丰郁，肉质极细致，但多吃几块便容易感腻，且实际进口量极少，有些店家号称是日本牛肉，其实拿美国牛顶替。另外在某些高级牛排屋正当红的“美国安格斯牛肉”，指的 是耳朵下垂，没有混到乳牛血统的纯种安格斯牛，美国有专门协会饲育此高级肉牛，只供应16至30个月龄，肉质符合Prime 及 Choice 两等级的优质牛肉。重点是获得授权贩售安格斯牛肉的餐厅，不得供应其他肉牛产品，堪称名副其实的“贵族”牛排。个人口味不一 搭配喜好佐料牛排配菜（Accompaniments）*马铃薯：Mashed Potato（马铃薯泥）或Baked Potato（烤马铃薯）、French Fries（马铃薯条），三者择一：前食用时可加肉汁调味；后者食用食用刀切开，可以涂上少许牛油（Butter）或食盐调味。*蔬菜：一小节煮过的玉蜀黍（Corn）、数颗绿色花椰菜（Broccoli）、洋葱（Onion）*蘑菰：数片小蘑菰比较高级的牛排餐的佐料会提供海鲜，例如一隻龙虾尾、或两隻炸明虾，通常称作「海陆大餐」（Surf and Turf）或者（Reef and Beef）。二者都有押韵。Surf 是冲浪代表海产、Turf是草地代表牛的饲料；Reef是礁石代表海产。牛排调味料（Condiment）有许多人食用牛排喜欢原味，不加任何调味料。但也有人喜欢家 一些调味料，冲澹牛排的血腥味。在一般大众化的牛排馆，供应瓶装有品牌的牛排酱（Steak Sauce），最有名的两个牌子是 A1 Steak Sauce 与Heinz 57 两种。非大众化的牛排馆供应由厨师自製的牛排酱汁，如蘑菇酱汁（Wild Mushroom Source）或者黑胡椒酱汁（Black Pepper Sauce）。牛排英语实用情景对话W：Good evening, my name is Lucy. I will be your waitress today. Can I get you any drinks?晚上好，我叫Lucy，今天将由我为您服务。请问您需要什么喝的吗？C：Yes. I would like an iced tea, please.我想要一杯冰红茶，谢谢。W：Here is your iced tea. Are you ready to order, or do you need a little more time? 这是您的冰红茶。请问您准备好要点餐了吗。还是您需要更多的时间考虑？C：Thank you. I'm ready to order.谢谢你。我已经准备好点餐了。W：No problem. Did you notice on our seafood special grilled tuna tonight? 不客气。您有注意到我们餐厅今晚的海鲜特餐烤金枪鱼吗？C：That sounds really good, but I think I'll have the New York steak.听起来非常不错，但是我想我还是要纽约牛排吧。W：Sure, how would you like that steak?您想要几分熟的牛排呢？C：Medium, please.五分熟，谢谢。W：Sure. The New York steak is served with mashed potatoes, a baked potato, or steak fries.好的。纽约牛排的配菜是土豆泥、烤土豆或者薯条。C：I'll take the baked potato，please.我想要烤土豆，谢谢。W：Ok. Your order will be served soon.您点的餐马上就会做好，请稍等。C：Thank you.谢谢您。

Follow us on Instagram @Reviewing__Reviews ------ This week, D.J. and Mike review the reviews of Sprinkles Cupcakes in Beverly Hills, CA. Here are the reviews so you can follow along: Heather J - "stood in line for an hour" peter C - "Yes killed a relationship." Gina G - "The frosting...is practically orGAZmic!" JR - "Now I know what the hype was all about" Amanda G - "My first celebrity sighting! Jessica Alba"  

Hi everyone, and thank you for tuning in to another episode of the We Make Books Podcast - A podcast about writing, publishing, and everything in between! Week Three of Submissions September and oh boy did we really run with it this time!  This week we are bringing you not one, not two, but three episodes and they’re all about those mysterious creatures known Literary Agents.  Who are they?  What do they do?  How do you summon one?  For this episode, we sat down with Literary Agent Caitlin McDonald to discuss all this and more.  We loved talking with Caitlin and hope that our discussion might remove a bit of the fear and mystery from proccess of querying agents.  Caitlin is with the Donald Maass Literary Agency and you can (and should!) check her out her and her work at: Website: http://maassagency.com/caitlin-mcdonald/ Twitter: @literallycait - https://twitter.com/literallycait/status/1154917792619139073 Tumbler: https://literallycait.tumblr.com/   And be sure to check out new and upcoming releases from some of her clients!   The Resurrectionist of Caligo: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KDWLM3P The Library of the Unwritten: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/608277/the-library-of-the-unwritten-by-a-j-hackwith/9781984806376/ In case you’re just joining us, this month is Submissions September on the We Make Books Podcast!  We’re doing seven (7!) episodes this month all about the process of submitting your novel.  We have a lot of awesome discussions lined up and even some special guests.  Here’s what will be coming your way for the month: Week 1 (9/3/2019): Is This Ready For Other People to See?- Submitting Your Manuscript Week 2 (9/10/2019): My Entire Novel in Three Hundred Words - The Dreaded Query Letter Week 3 (9/17/2019): Agents of Literature, Part 1: An Interview with Literary Agent Caitlin McDonald               (9/18/2019): Agents of Literature, Part 2: Interviews with Agented Authors               (9/19/2019): Agents of Literature Part 3: Interviews with Agented Authors Week 4 (9/24/2019):What is Going On Over There? - The Other Side of the Submissions Process Week 5 (9/30/2019): Now I’m Even More Confused – Submissions September Q&A Episode We Make Books is hosted by Rekka Jay and Kaelyn Considine; Rekka is a published author and Kaelyn is an editor and together they are going to take you through what goes into getting a book out of your head, on to paper, in to the hands of a publisher, and finally on to book store shelves. We Make Books is a podcast for writer and publishers, by writers and publishers and we want to hear from our listeners! Hit us up on our social media, linked below, and send us your questions, comments, concerns, and any stress relief suggestions for Kaelyn while she deals with the Giants’ will-they-won’t-they Eli Manning and Daniel Jones situation. Seriously guys, she can’t do a whole season of this. We hope you enjoy We Make Books!   Twitter: @WMBCast  |  @KindofKaelyn  |  @BittyBittyZap Instagram: @WMBCast  Patreon.com/WMBCast     Kaelyn (K): Hey everyone, welcome, another episode of the We Make Books podcast, a show about writing, publishing, and everything in between. I'm Kaelyn Considine, I'm the acquisitions editor for Parvus Press. Rekka (R): And I'm Rekka and I write Science Fiction and Fantasy as R J Theodore. K: So Week Three, Submissions September. And this week's a doozy. R: We've got a lot of episodes for you this week. K: Yeah, so, what we ended up doing instead of just one episode about agents, we.. you're actually getting three this week. The first one is going to be an interview with an actual literary agent. Caitlin McDonald took some time to talk to us, she was lovely, we had such a great conversation and that's what you're going to be listening to today. Then, we have two more episodes that we're going to be putting out Wednesday and Thursday. R: Yeah, we're just going back to back with this. K: And we talked to six different authors about their process getting an agent... R: They're experience working with them. K: Yeah, cause I think there's... what we're learning, talking to people, there's a lot of mystery around this. R: Yeah. Mmm-hmm. K: Everyone is very uncertain about what agents do, and how you get one. R: And how you're allowed to use them. K: Yes. Yeah, so we had a really great time talking to Caitlin who gave us some really interesting insight and... Yeah, Week Three: Agents. We… Three episodes, because it turns out there's a lot to say about that. R: You know, this is a big part of it for a lot of people. K: Yeah, it's the check mark. It's a huge check mark for a lot of people in this process is: “Get agent." So take a listen, we had a great time talking to Caitlin and hopefully you enjoy the episode. [music] 02:01  Caitlin (C): I’m Caitlin McDonald. I'm a literary agent at Donald Maass literary agency. I represent primarily Science Fiction and Fantasy for adult and young adult, as well as a little bit of nonfiction. I've been in the business for... I think, eight or nine years no? I lost track, but around there. R: So over eight or nine years you've seen it change a little bit, with going, you know, so heavy on digital all of a sudden, and the opportunities for print on demand, opening up smaller publishers… C: Yeah, absolutely. Actually, at my first agency I was involved in a lot of reworking backlist contracts that had no language for digital to kind of, you know, deal with that change that was really becoming a huge deal. That was 2011, so... there was a lot. It was, obviously 2008 was kind of when digital really hit the market—  K: Yeah. R: Right. C: —started to become... um, but like, 2011 was when people really said, "Okay, this isn't going away. This is serious." [Kaelyn and Caitlin talking over each other and laughing.] K: Oh, people will read things off screens! They don't always need the physical book in their hand. C: And it's not going to kill paper! K: No, no not it's not. C: It's a supplement. K: Yeah. So, Caitlin, could you maybe tell us a little about what a literary agent does? Because I think there's a lot of misconceptions out there about, like, "Oh, as soon as I get an agent, that's it, then my book's gonna get signed," or, "I'm never gonna do this unless I get a literary agent." Um, I think a lot of authors who are looking for agents maybe don't always know what the agent will do for them. What their job is, after you sign with them. C: Sure, so there are some things that kind of differ from agent to agent, particularly, there's also differences between if you have an agent who focuses on Non Fiction or, versus Fiction. So, it's always worth having a conversation with an agent and asking this question of them directly if they're offering representation because their answer may vary from what I'm about to describe here. But, at the, you know, the basic level, typically, in addition to most of us these days do editorial. So, I will do at least two rounds on a manuscript before I send it out on submission even after I've acquired it, there's always gonna be at least one round of line editing but usually even before that, I'm doing at least one round of structural edits, areas where I'm saying, "I love this character but strengthen their character arc, you know, make their motivations clearer.” “X Y Z isn't working, let's find a way to fix that.” So, I always make sure that I'm doing editorial before we go out on submission. Obviously, submission is the Big Thing™, that's what everyone gets an agent for, but even after we have that deal in place for you, part of our job is to negotiate it so that it's the best deal it could be, both in terms of the offers but also the contract language. So sometimes there are elements that, you know, authors don't necessarily know or that don't come up in the offer point, so it's not a deal point of how much money you're getting, what sub-rights you're contracting out, but really nitty gritty language in the contract that might be boilerplate between the agency and the publishing house but maybe the publisher recently revised their standard contract, so we have to make sure that the language is still what we agreed to. You know, really little things, we're here to make sure that everything is the best it could possibly be for our authors. And then, also staying on top of everything afterwards as well. Os I don't just well, “Here's your editor, the book deal is signed, it's their problem." I'm still there to make sure that you know, everyone is on target for deadline, that the publisher is delivering on publicity and marketing that they agreed to. That, if there are any concerns coming up, a copyeditor who's making changes that the author doesn't like—I've had that problem before. Anything that, you know, any concerns my author has, any discrepancies, any time issues, all of that, I'm here to kind of be a mediator between my author and the publisher. If an author has a problem with anything, if they have a question they're afraid to ask the editor directly, I'm here to kind of be the difficult person so that the author can maintain their good relationship with the editor. The author should never have to ask a hard question or demand something that is going to seem pushy, because that's my job. I'm the one who gets to be pushy and maybe be the person that the publisher goes, "Ugh, them again." But they'll get to have a good relationship with their author. K: I always really enjoy going through the agent because authors, you know, don't wanna be pushy and they're a little, "Oh, I don't want to step on anyone's toes here," and with the agent it's like, "Okay, let's just figure this out." C: Exactly. We also know what's standard. What's a reasonable request where we can come in and say, "Okay, the publisher's not going to be able to do that but here's a compromise that we can suggest." So we can help mediate a lot of those elements where an author may want something but not know whether it's standard, whether it's something that they should ask for or can ask for, not knowing what is normal. K: Yeah I mean for a lot of authors this is kinda their first foray into publishing and it's overwhelming and it's things that they think they should know already and they really don't. And there's no reason that they should. So, yeah, having and agent, someone that's in your court and able to help you navigate that is so valuable. A lot of people who're going to be listening to this probably do not have an agent already, and they want one. When you're evaluating potential clients to take on. What are you looking for? Obviously a good book is the first major component. But beyond that, is there anything you kind of take into consideration when making decisions on these things? C: Certainly there's an element of understanding how to pitch, clear market identity, knowing that they clearly understand and read within their genre. So, they may... I don't expect them to, you know, know every, have read every book and be as on top of the industry and what's coming out in the next, you know, year, as someone who's in the industry, but I do expect that they read within their genre, that they have comp titles that are relevant, that they show an understanding of what readers are looking for in the sense that they themselves are a reader. So sometimes I'll see queries that come in and describe.. some.. they say, "Oh, this pitch is something that's never been done before," and clearly it has. Then I'm going, "Okay. You definitely don't read this genre at all, and this is probably not a good fit." You need to really make sure you're reading in your genre and demonstrate some understanding of it, because otherwise we will be able to tell. Uh, the other thing that is really helpful is a little bit of that personalization when you're pitching to an agent can just be really helpful. It's not necessary, per se, but I do find it incredibly helpful to show that you know, you've done a little bit of research and it gets me more excited about a project if you know things that I'm specifically looking for. Not just my genre but specific details of things I'm interested in things that I'm looking for that you can cite and say, "Yes, my work has this and I know you want that." Then that can really get me excited about it before I even get to the sample pages and that's a really good way of grabbing an agent's attention. K: You hear that, listeners? Slapping the same thing together and sending it out over and over again is not the best way to get someone's attention, actually doing some research and putting some time into —because that's something we talk about a lot, is this is not an easy process, so if it seems easy to you you're probably not doing it the right way.  R: So one place that folks can find your particular manuscript interests would be on your submissions page? Your submissions guidelines, generally. Um, lightly browse (do not stalk) your twitter, and if the agent is listed on Manuscript Wishlist, which is a website that like, puts together a lot of agents. They can fill out profiles and keep it updated themselves of what they're looking for. That's a couple of places where you can find out, is this agent interested in something I'm writing, and also a lot of agents will have the headers on their social media include the books they've worked on. So if you look at that header photo, it's like a real quick double-check. Is anything.. do I write like anything on here. One, if you haven't read anything on there, stop what you're doing if you're really interested in that agent, and read something that they've worked on. But, it's a quick check, just like, "None of this is anything like what I write, maybe I should look for a different agent, and not waste their time." K: Yeah. Along those lines, one of the questions we had sent along was, "Agents, when they open for queries, this has to do with the alignment of the stars, correct?" C: Absolutely. K: "And the tidal forces of the moon and..." R: "Magic. Lots of magic." K: "And various other natural phenomenon." But when those things happen, what makes you decide like, "Okay, I'm ready to be open for queries again. I'm ready to take on new clients"?
C: I man, I'm sure it's different for every agent. For me, specifically, it really has to do with how much time that I have. How I'm doing with current client manuscripts. Whether I've caught up on all of the queries already in my inbox. That's often something I have to make a really concentrated push, after I close to queries, to then get through all of the ones that are still need to be responded to. Then give myself a little bit of time to get through some manuscripts. I wish I could say that I only open to queries when I've responded to all of the fulls that I've already requested, but that's not the case because then I'd probably never open to queries." K: as an acquisitions editor, I can say the same thing, that I always have a few that I'm still working through but it's like, "But I also need more for the future, so we're gonna open for submissions again." It's hard to balance that. C: Yeah, yeah it is and the work-life balance as well, there's so many elements. Because I think the thing to keep in mind is that most agents aren't reading queries during work hours. They're reading them during their own personal time. Our work hours are dedicated to our clients, editing manuscripts, possibly reading fulls, but for the most part, it is working on our clients and editing the existing manuscripts, going out on submission, making sure everything is up to date. All of the work that is involved with being an agent for our existing clients is pretty much a full time job and finding new clients to add to our list is an important part of our job but it also usually happens outside of the parameters of our forty-fifty hour work week whatever you .. however you define that. I'm often sending queries at ten o'clock at night and that's just how it is. When you have the time for it. K; Yeah. Same thing. I get responses from people that are like, "Uh, were you up this late?" I'm like, "I'm up that late every night. That's when I get my work done!" We talked about this a little you know, when you said what does a literary agent do, but: relationships with authors. Obviously, like, one of your big things is, you're in that person's court. You are their advocate, you are there, making sure that they get the best possible publishing deal, making sure everyone's happy, handling difficult situations for them. But beyond that, your relationship with a writer, what is that like? What do they expect from you? Obviously, it will change depending on how things are happening in their career, but what's your relationship like leading up to a release and then, for example, afterwards? C: This is such a good question because it' actually really important for an author to know what they need about themselves before, if they can. Which is hard to know if you've never had an agent, but if you can try to figure out 'what's important to me?' beforehand, then having that conversation helps you know whether the agent is going to be a good fit for you. Because it really varies for all of my clients. Some of them, you know, I'm in almost constant touch with. Some of them I only head from them when they have a manuscript ready and they send it and it's already revised and they feel like they just... "here it is!" and others are going, "Here are my next... here are one-sentence pitches for my next eight ideas, which one should I do?" "Here's a partial draft." so it really really varies. I've got some authors where I'm working with them on all sorts of different levels of early stages of manuscripts and others that don't come to me until they've got something nearly complete, or at least a full first draft, or a full synopsis, you know, it really really varies. and then the level of contact that they want also varies from author to author there are some who I'm here as you know an emotional support as well as all of the other tasks that my job entails. And then others who are very happy to sort of sit back and only reach out when they actually have a specific publishing question or concern that needs to be addresses. So it really really varies, wildly and it's important to kind of know "how much do I want my agent to be in touch?""Am I more comfortable with email of phone?" "Am I going to be someone who wants to be able to text my agent?" These are the kind of questions that it helps to be able to look a little bit inside and say, "this is.. these are the kinds of communication limits that I want with an agent," and to talk to them about it beforehand and make sure that that's what you're going to be getting from the agent you're looking for. K: Well now, you, I'm sure, in a lot of situations, have to set some boundaries. C: That is true, um, but it.. there often, I find, it's something that is done not necessarily explicitly. I kind of set what I'm comfortable with and if that means I'm not responding to emails that aren't super important on the weekend, then that's just something isn't necessarily discussed beforehand, per se? I know this sounds a little bit contradictory to what I just said, but like R: No but by your responses, you're setting their expectations. C: Exactly. Exactly. K: I know some people that, when they first signed with their agent they're like, "I have this question," and I'm like, "Well go ask your agent then." C: Yes. Exactly. K: "That's what they're there for." "I don't wanna bother them." "That.. I.. you are not bothering them. Other.. you know, you're not calling them at one in the morning having a breakdown about something." That's bothering. Don't do that. C:  Yes, exactly. We're here as a resource so you should always feel comfortable reaching out to your agent about anything that is publishing and work related. That, at least, you should always feel comfortable doing. They might set the parameters of how to do that. Is it okay to just call them ay any time, or do they prefer email? Do they give you their number so you can text them? Depends. I mean, I know many agents prefer not to do that which I think is absolutely a good idea but I'm sure that there are some that are perfectly comfortable with it. So you know, having that conversation beforehand and finding what their preferred system is so that you know whether it's compatible with your preferred system, that's really the key. K: Gotcha. So, we had kind of also talked about this briefly, but one of the other questions we wanted to talk about is, and I'm gonna kinda combine two things here: what catches your eye in query letters, in authors that are querying you, and at the same time, what are some red flags? C: So, what catches my eye, I think'd be a little like what I talked about before, something that really speaks to me personally and actually addresses things that I have specifically said that I'm looking for. Anything that is particularly really unique, like actually finds a way to give me an unexpected twist within the pitch itself. I'm also.. I do really appreciate comp titles that kind of combine, you know, taking two very very disparate comps and combining them to say "here are two things that are nothing alike but if you combined them, that's my book." Then you can get a sense of, "Oh, here is something really new and unique." I once got a query that said it's Jane Austin's Emma meets Dexter. And then.. K: Oh! C: Yeah, and then the plots came out, like, Yes, that makes sense! But getting that, those kind of comp titles, I went, "That is very interesting and I want to learn more." So, you know, it's.. comp titles don't have to be like that but they can be a very interesting way to condense a unique aspect of your book into one creative, short pithy pitch. In terms of red flags, I think it's often a, like I said before, very clear not understanding of their genre or the type of book I'm looking for if they very clearly have misunderstood, not just the genre per se, but something say, comes in and is pretty heavily misogynistic in a certain way or something that just, like, if you check my social media, I'm very clearly not interested in works that are, you know, a certain way, even if they are science fiction or fantasy. And then, also I would say another huge red flag is authors who feel the need to attack other authors or existing books for a genre in their query letter. K: Oh really?
C: that is never good. don't be that person. K: No. C: Yes, I've definitely those books that come in say, "Well, this book was terrible," or "Nothing in YA is good anymore," or, "Twilight was terrible!" K: Oh my god. C: Don't be that person. That's... you know, don't attack other authors in your query. It's not a good look. K: I'm making this face right now because I have read so many query letters and I have never seen that.  C: Really? K: That's like. now see, watch.. cause we're open for submissions now so I'm gonna get like ten of those. Now that I've said that but like, oh my god, wow. I thought I'd seen everything. That's a new one. Okay. R: Actually that comes up on Twitter a lot. I see a lot of agents saying "Please don't do this. You know, don't insult J K Rowling because you think that will make your book sound more intelligent. It doesn't." K: It doesn't and I mean, you know. Come on, Harry Potter. R:  Regardless of whether you like it, it was very successful. An agent wouldn't mind a Harry Potter. C: And it sets yu up as a person who is going to be not someone who plays ball with the industry if you're going to be someone like that then that doesn't send a good message about the type of person you're going to be in terms of how you interact with other authors and publishers. and the fact is other authors: those are your peers, those are your support network. you need other authors because their success is your success. And their blurbs are how you get found and you all have to support each other and so if you're not going to be interested in doing that then you're probably not going to succeed in the book industry. K: I've done a couple things over the years and a question I get a lot is well you guys are like, you know a small independent press, and "yes, we are, it's a lot of fun," "So what about competition from this what about..." It's not like... it's not competition. People, I think. It's not the same as cheering for a sports team. You don't love one team and therefor their failure is other teams' success. People who love and read these genres of books are just going to keep looking for more things to read. So everyone succeeding you know especially in similar veins that you're working in, that's great for you as an author because that means more people might come across your book as a result of that. C: Exactly. K: But it is very interesting when you look at these and you're evaluating if you think you can work with this person. Can I help no only them but like, I need to be successful here. Your author's success is the agent's success but you still have to work within the industry and you still have to be able to put together and sell a book at the end of the day and if you're presenting yourself in a way that's gonna make your agent think "I'm not sure I can do this with this person" that's gonna drive them away.  R: We talk a lot about querying an agent for the first time, creating a new relationship with them, but frequently, especially in genre fiction, book deals are for more than one book. So once you have entered into like the second in a series or the second book that's been optioned as part of the same contract, does your relationship change with the author at all? C: Um, yes, so it's very much, I think, it depends from agent to agent but for me, I'm very much willing to work with authors as early as they have pitch ideas. So they will come to me with, you know, ideas, with early drafts, and I'll be definitely working on things much earlier than I would be than a query. So, obviously, when you query your manuscript should be as close to final as you can possibly make it. You should have already had some beta readers, you should have already done editing, and so at that point the hope is that it will only take a few more rounds with an agent before it's ready to go on submission. Obviously for your second or third book, and books after that, that's necessarily not the case. So yes, I am seeing much earlier drafts. I have worked on books that are completely rewritten from scratch multiple times before going to the publisher ad also part of it is deciding what the next book should be sometimes. So I've had clients where we look at their first book and where it fit in the market place, and their other book ideas, some of which might be very different from the first book, and others might be in between and we say, "okay, how do you want to be positioned in the marketplace as your career? Do you want to be a YA author or do you want to be an adult author? Do you want to be a horror author or do you want to be a fantasy author? If you want to be both that's fine, but if you really feel strongly about one of these things, and you just happen to have one book idea that falls outside that parameter, then maybe we don't so that as the second book, maybe that's the third or fourth. Maybe that's an outlier book." So, figuring out how the author wants to be positioned in the marketplace and making sure that we are following a trajectory that will achieve that is part of what I help them do. K: That's something that I think a lot of people don't realize a lot of agents do is, basically helping the author come up with an identity. And how they're gonna fit into the marketplace, what they want to be known for. Yeah that's really interesting to think about as well. Anything that you wish people knew about literary agents? Any giant misconceptions you frequently come across? You know, obviously the stuff about the bloodletting is all ~true, but the rest of it? C: I think that the big thing I would  just... I really wish to share with people is that I promise we're not scary. It's... We're just people like you. We just love books, like you. I.. when I got to conferences there are so many people who are so scared and I just want to hug them and say, "No, it's okay, I promise.. there's nothing to be scared of." K: Wait, quick qualification. If you run into Caitlin at a conference do not walk up to her and hug her immediately. Ask first. C: Thank you. Fair. Thank you. Yeah, but I also there's just a I feel like there's a I don't wanna say a culture of self-rejection but there is.. I see a lot of self-rejection— K: Oh, yeah, absolutely. C: —on the internet and on social media and people will ask me, "Can I query you?" and I'm going, "Why are you asking me? Just do it. Just do it!" You know, alway always give it a shot and you know, we're just here because we love books and we want to help you succeed. Like we want authors to succeed. We want books to succeed. We're not out here saying no to books because we're up in a castle laughing at all of you. We really really want these books to succeed. We want to see more books that we love. And most of the time, when we reject something, it's with a heavy heart. It's, "I love this pitch but the writing just wasn't quite there yet, but man, I hope they come back to me with another project in a couple of years when they've really honed their skill and improved their writing." You know that's really where we're coming from is, "Not this one, but keep working at it. We're waiting for you to come back next time and really nail it." K: to everyone I hope hearing that is encouraging. I'm encouraged just listening to it and I'm not even querying an agent. Thank you so much for talking to us. This was really a lot of fun. I really enjoyed this conversation. C: Of course, well thank you for having me, it's been great.  K: So, where can people find you on the socials? C: I'm on most social media @literallycait that's c-a-i-t short for Caitlin, and on the Donald Maass website which is MaassAgency.com. R: Alright so is there anything else that you wanna tease for people, books coming out or anything like that? C: Sure I've got a couple really exciting books coming out over the next month or two. We've got The Resurrectionist of Caligo by Wendy Trimboli and Alicia Zaloga, which is very very exciting. Kind of dark Victorian-esque fantasy, which would be great for anyone who's a fan of the podcast Sawbones. If you're into that you'll definitely like this book. And I've also got The Library of the Unwritten, by A J Hackwith, which is K: Yes C: Fabulous Hell based fntasy about books that are unwritten escaping their library and going on walkabout and the librarion having to chase them down it's very fun and if you love books it really explores the concepts of narrative and character and what it means to have those elements and give them agency so it's a really it's a love letter to the concept of writing. It's fabulous. K: That one's on my list, I'm very excited for that one. C: Oh good. K: Okay, so. The take away here: Agents; they're people just like the rest of us. R: At least one is. K: One of them anyway. The rest are in the castle. R: Okay, thank you so much Caitlin, we really appreciate your time. C: Thank you. 31:34 [Music]
R: Thanks, everyone, for joining us for another episode of We Make Books. If you have any questions that you want answered in future episodes or just have questions in general remember you can find us on twitter @WMBcast, same for instagram, or WMBcast.com. If you find value in the content we provide, we would really appreciate your support at patreon.com/WMBcast. If you can't provide financial support, we totally understand, and what you could really do to help us is spread the word about this podcast. You can do that by sharing a particular episode with a friend who can find it useful, or if you leave a rating and review at iTunes, it will feed that algorithm and help other people find our podcast too. Of course you can always retweet our episodes on twitter.  Thank you so much for listening and we will talk to you soon.

通常在西餐厅的菜单裡，会出现关于牛排（Steak）的项目，大都是牛肉的种类（牛身上的部位）。但是除了牛肉的种类、等级（Grade）以外，你还会被侍 者问到烹调牛排的生熟度（Degree of Cooking），以及配料（Accompaniments）、调味料（Condiment）等问题。让我们来一一认识在餐馆点牛排的种种规格。牛排的种类菲力，沙朗，肋眼，纽约客，丁骨，红屋，肋排，牛小排……这些牛排屋菜单上常见的字眼，全指的是牛排肉取材的部位。啊哈，又想选菲力吗?其实，真正的牛排行家，会依自己喜好的口感质地，来选择适合部位的牛排。而且通常，都不会是菲力。菲力牛排、西冷牛排、T骨牛排；这些名称都是英语翻译来的，他们各有各的特点，菲力牛排（FILET）也称牛里脊，腰内肉，特点是瘦肉较多，高蛋白，低脂 肪，比较适合喜欢减肥瘦身，要保持身材女子；西冷牛排（SIRLOIN）,也叫沙郎牛排，是外脊肉，牛的后腰肉，含一定肥油，尤其是外延有一圈呈白色的肉 筋，上口相比菲力牛排更有韧性、有搅劲，适合年轻人和牙口好的人。T骨牛排（T-BONE），是牛背上的脊骨肉，呈T字型，两侧一边是菲力，另一边是西冷，既可以尝到菲力牛排的鲜嫩又可以感受到西冷牛排的芳香，一举两得。我们在菜单上常看到的牛排种类有以下几种：*菲力牛排（Filet Mignon）：是来自牛的腰部的小块里嵴肉（Tenderloin），相当於猪的里肌肉部位。Filet Mignon 是法文字，是「小块里嵴肉」的意思，大块一点的里嵴肉称为 Tenderloin Steak。菲力是牛身中运动量最少的一块，所以质地超嫩得没话说，相对也精瘦得油花极少。很多人认为菲力高贵又不会太肥，实际上菲力纯粹是因每头牛就那 一小条而“物稀为贵”，太嫩太瘦的肉质，也意味著较缺乏肉汁及咬劲，并且烹煮过头一点就显得老涩，反而与讲究多汁嚼感的本地食客不太合。因此多推荐给牙口 不好，消化较弱的老人家或小朋友食用。*肋眼牛排（Rib's Eye Steak）：另一种便宜大碗，口感又受行家肯定的牛排是肋眼(Rib Eye)，顾名思义，它取自牛肋脊部位，或许比不上腰脊肉那样嫩，但“骨边肉”向来好吃，肋眼就有这种味道，油油嫩嫩的肉丝中夹著Q而有劲的油筋，比沙朗 耐嚼，比菲力够味，而且油花十分丰郁，请年轻男食客享用此味，好评总不断。肋眼牛排是取自牛的第6根到 第12根肋骨附近的肉，特色是多汁、肉嫩、而且有许多脂肪夹杂，红白相间像大理石一样称为（marbled steak）。通常上桌的肋眼牛排是已经去骨的。*T骨牛排（T-bone Steak）：T骨牛排取字于牛腰部后面的肉，在分割的时候会保留一块T 字形的牛骨，所以才有T骨牛排的称呼。T骨牛排通常份量比较大。 食量够大又懂牛排的美国饕客，乾脆就点丁骨(T Bone)或红屋( Porter House)牛排，大块肉排中间夹著 T 字形的大骨，一边是菲力，一边是纽约客，肉质一细嫩一粗犷，或油腴或爽俐，点一客统统吃得到。*纽约牛排（New York Steak）：纽约牛排也是取自上等无骨里嵴肉，也称为Top Loin Steak 或者 Strip Steak。至于为何称之为纽约牛排，至今无定论。有一种说法是早期在美国东部，所有牛隻宰杀后尚未冰冻前，都会送往纽约的肉舖分割出售，最好的里嵴肉当 然就留给纽约客享用了，信不信由你。*沙朗牛排 (sirloin steak)：也成为西冷牛排，就像猪肉要带点肥才会好吃，牛排行家偏好的，反而是带点油花嫩筋的部位，一般简称为“沙朗”或“西冷”，基本上皆取自牛只背脊一带最柔嫩的牛肉，但其中各有千秋。例如 和菲力同属於“前腰脊肉”的纽约客，它的肉质纤维较粗，微微带有嫩筋，油花分布不那均匀漂亮，却是标准的“嫩中带腴”，“香甜多汁”，嚼起来满口肉感，非 常过瘾，豪迈又具个性的风味，是许多行家最爱。　正宗的沙朗则取自“後腰脊肉”，也是牛只运动量极少的部位，肉质细嫩还油花满布，像大理石纹般美动人;相 对於菲力的精瘦，好的沙朗是超嫩鲜腴到入口即化的地步，让食客第一口就惊於牛肉的极致鲜甜。*牛小排（Short Rib/ Baby Ribs)：至於取自牛只胸腔左右两侧的牛小排，它带骨带筋又够肥腴的肉质，本来就很多汁耐嚼，特别是采用牛的第六，七根肋骨烹制成的“台塑牛小排”，嫩而不涩，肉量丰郁的全熟肉质，即使是怕生的本地食客也可怡然享用，更创造出牛小排的另类魅力。*除了以上几个品项，像牛肩胛部位的板腱肉，上肩胛肋眼心， 牛肚部位的腹胁肉，上後腿肉等，这些部位虽然肉质纤维较粗，但或因油花丰富媲美沙朗，或修去脂肪後的精瘦口感神似菲力，价位又只要高级肉排的三分之一，常 被价格诉求的业者拿来充作牛排。如果上餐厅付高价，却吃到名不副实的牛排，当然令人火大，但若拿来自家用，煎薄片牛排，涮火锅，烧肉，这些品项的肉品却非 常物超所值呢。最IN熟度 领略牛排菁华风味三分熟，就想到血淋淋的肉汁，所以还是指名“全熟”的牛排吧……如果你也这想，那表示你还未真正领略牛排的菁华风味。真正合格的三分熟高级牛排，端上来见不到血水的，看得到 的只有一样漂亮的焦棕褐色，表面浮渗著香甜的肉汁，嫩汪汪地绝对很诱人。就算下刀，切开的也不会是触目惊心的红生肉，而是像 Baby 脸颊般嫩嫩的粉红肉质，叉入口中，只待轻轻嚼动便温润即化，留下满口的鲜甜馀香。这样，才是“三分熟”。如此曼妙的口感若煎烤到全熟，可能比牛肉面里的牛肉还乾涩难当，所以一般专业大厨的建议，牛排都以三至八分熟为宜;但肉质不同，各有适合的熟度。美国肉类出口协会处长吴秋衡的建议是:精瘦的菲力，三至七分熟;油腴的沙朗，肋眼与纽约客，四至六分熟;带骨的丁骨及红屋，五至八分熟;牛小排，全熟。 点用的术语：问句：How would you like your steak?（您的牛排要几成熟？）牛排的烹调方式有煎（Grill）与烤（Roast）。Grill是烤架的意思，将牛排放在炭火上直接加热叫做煎，把牛排放到烤箱裡加热叫做烤（Roast），以下是介绍煎製牛排的生熟度：* Rare、Very Rare：极生，煎的（Grill）时间不超过3分钟。外表有烧烤过的痕迹，但是裡面还是冷得几乎没有受到热度。切开时还有血水渗出，但是肉质极嫩，口感多汁。* Rare：生，一分熟。煎的时间不超过4分钟。外表有烤焦痕迹，裡面肉质呈现原来红色，但入口有热度。切开时还有血水渗出，但是肉质极嫩，口感多汁。 * Medium Rare：中生，三分熟。煎的时间6~8分钟。外表有烧烤过的痕迹，但是裡面已经全面加热，可以感受到相当热度，但是肉质还是呈现红色。切开时还有稍许血水渗出，但是肉质嫩，口感多汁。* Medium：稍熟，五分熟。煎的时间8~10分钟。外表烧烤呈深褐色，但是裡面除了中间部分呈现粉红色外，外围部分呈现烧烤过的澹褐色。切开时流出褐色肉汁，需要咬上数口才能嚥下。* Medium Well：中熟，七分熟。煎的时间10~12分钟。外表烧烤呈深褐色，但是裡面核心部分呈现少许红色外，外围部分呈现烧烤过的褐色。切开时流出褐色肉汁，需要咬上数口才能嚥下。* Well Done：全熟。煎的时间12～15分钟外表已有明显烤焦痕迹，热度已经渗入整片肉，裡面肉色因为高度加热呈现深褐色。咬劲很够才能下嚥。挑品质 什么牛排最高级? 就像吃鱼一样，只要鲜度佳，就绝对好吃，牛排亦然。愈来 愈多餐厅饭店采用冷藏牛肉，也就是从工厂出品，运送进货到切割烹调前，全程都以 0 至 2 度的低温监控，以保持牛肉的鲜嫩风味。因为牛肉是红肉中最敏感娇贵的肉品，一路小心呵护再煎烤出来的牛排，就是比冷冻牛肉来得鲜活，腴嫩，多汁而甘美，只 要吃过便可辨出中差别，虽然成本要贵上数倍。 美国是牛肉生产与消费大国，因此美国农业部（US Dept. of Agriculture, USDA）也订出的不同品质牛肉的等级。美国农业部把牛肉分为8等Prime、Choice、Select、Standard、Commercial、 Utility、Cutter 与Canner。*Prime：约佔全部生产牛肉2%，在高级餐厅出售。肌肉含脂肪量（Intramuscular Fat）在 8~11%之间，瘦肉与肥肉夹杂的大理石纹路明显度高。*Choice：肌肉含脂肪量在 4~8%之间，瘦肉与肥肉夹杂的大理石纹路明显度中等，通常供应给超级市场。*Select：肌肉含脂肪量在 3~4%之间，瘦肉与肥肉夹杂的大理石纹路明显度轻微。由于大理石纹路不明显，吃起来牛肉汁较少，口感较差，不适合用作牛排材料。*Standard：肌肉含脂肪量在 2.5~3%之间，瘦肉与肥肉夹杂的大理石纹路明显度几乎不存在。*Commercial、Commercial、Utility、Cutter 与Canner这几级肌肉间脂肪和量极少，也没有大理石纹路，用在做绞肉（Ground Beef）如汉堡肉（Burger Patty）或其他牛肉加工製品。*牛排大理石纹路积分（Beef Marble Score）：所谓牛排大理石纹路，就是我们所谓的「雪花效果」，凡是脂肪问愈密集的等级愈高。神户牛排（Kobe Steak）的大理石纹路积分都要在9分以上。产地及等级，也会影响牛排的风味品质。本地牛排肉主要来自美国，其他还有加拿大，纽澳，日本及阿根廷。根据资深肉商的说法，纽澳，阿根廷的牛以青草放牧饲 育，肉质较纤瘦而具嚼感;美加取玉米谷物为饲料，以科学化圈养而成，运动量低，自然柔嫩肥腴，口感多汁带甜。而以“喝啤酒，听音乐，享受按摩”出名的日本 牛，油脂极丰郁，肉质极细致，但多吃几块便容易感腻，且实际进口量极少，有些店家号称是日本牛肉，其实拿美国牛顶替。另外在某些高级牛排屋正当红的“美国安格斯牛肉”，指的 是耳朵下垂，没有混到乳牛血统的纯种安格斯牛，美国有专门协会饲育此高级肉牛，只供应16至30个月龄，肉质符合Prime 及 Choice 两等级的优质牛肉。重点是获得授权贩售安格斯牛肉的餐厅，不得供应其他肉牛产品，堪称名副其实的“贵族”牛排。个人口味不一 搭配喜好佐料牛排配菜（Accompaniments）*马铃薯：Mashed Potato（马铃薯泥）或Baked Potato（烤马铃薯）、French Fries（马铃薯条），三者择一：前食用时可加肉汁调味；后者食用食用刀切开，可以涂上少许牛油（Butter）或食盐调味。*蔬菜：一小节煮过的玉蜀黍（Corn）、数颗绿色花椰菜（Broccoli）、洋葱（Onion）*蘑菰：数片小蘑菰比较高级的牛排餐的佐料会提供海鲜，例如一隻龙虾尾、或两隻炸明虾，通常称作「海陆大餐」（Surf and Turf）或者（Reef and Beef）。二者都有押韵。Surf 是冲浪代表海产、Turf是草地代表牛的饲料；Reef是礁石代表海产。牛排调味料（Condiment）有许多人食用牛排喜欢原味，不加任何调味料。但也有人喜欢家 一些调味料，冲澹牛排的血腥味。在一般大众化的牛排馆，供应瓶装有品牌的牛排酱（Steak Sauce），最有名的两个牌子是 A1 Steak Sauce 与Heinz 57 两种。非大众化的牛排馆供应由厨师自製的牛排酱汁，如蘑菇酱汁（Wild Mushroom Source）或者黑胡椒酱汁（Black Pepper Sauce）。牛排英语实用情景对话W：Good evening, my name is Lucy. I will be your waitress today. Can I get you any drinks?晚上好，我叫Lucy，今天将由我为您服务。请问您需要什么喝的吗？C：Yes. I would like an iced tea, please.我想要一杯冰红茶，谢谢。W：Here is your iced tea. Are you ready to order, or do you need a little more time? 这是您的冰红茶。请问您准备好要点餐了吗。还是您需要更多的时间考虑？C：Thank you. I'm ready to order.谢谢你。我已经准备好点餐了。W：No problem. Did you notice on our seafood special grilled tuna tonight? 不客气。您有注意到我们餐厅今晚的海鲜特餐烤金枪鱼吗？C：That sounds really good, but I think I'll have the New York steak.听起来非常不错，但是我想我还是要纽约牛排吧。W：Sure, how would you like that steak?您想要几分熟的牛排呢？C：Medium, please.五分熟，谢谢。W：Sure. The New York steak is served with mashed potatoes, a baked potato, or steak fries.好的。纽约牛排的配菜是土豆泥、烤土豆或者薯条。C：I'll take the baked potato，please.我想要烤土豆，谢谢。W：Ok. Your order will be served soon.您点的餐马上就会做好，请稍等。C：Thank you.谢谢您。

节目名称：Music Bang Bang 节目主题：Disney Theme Songs节目监制：朱子业编辑：王思文 周鑫伶播音：王思文 周鑫伶制作：周鑫伶整合上传：魏薇审核:侯泓锾开头曲 Beauty and the BeastC:Hey, everyone. Here is Music Bang Bang from VOE. Glad to see you again.I'm Carrie.S:Hey, my dear audience, I'm your friend, Sivan.插曲1 Beauty and the BeastS:Hey, Carrie. Do you know The Walt Disney Company was chosen to be one of the most valuable worldwide brands this year? C:Oh, really? Disney is a part of my childhood! It still reminds me of some characters and they are all kind, lovely but different from each other. S:Yeah, when I was a little girl, I'm fond of 《Beauty and the Beast 》most. And my idol, Ariana Grande, performed its homonymous theme song with John Legend, attracting many fans to see the movie.C:Well, I haven't seen that movie but I've heard that song. Their voices are soft and slow, matching each other. S:And the lyrics show the romantic old song perfectly. C:This song as well as the story shows a true love of a plain but brave maid and an ugly but royal beast, their development made me touched. S: Yeah, you're right! Legends never die.插曲 2 You've Got A Friend in MeC:Here's another relaxing and interesting cartoon created by Disney, called Toy Story. They made toys alive, and displayed their previous relationship through so many adventures. S:So the song playing now is also called Toy Story? C:Of course not. It's 《You've Got A Friend in Me》. S:I've never heard it before. According to its warm name, I think it's a melodious and touching song. C:Emm, not quite right, It belongs to country music more than soft music. S:Wow, Its tone is fresh, like a breeze.So lively to fit Toy Story.插曲3 Try Everything C:诶，对了，我记得前年我们的朋友圈都被一只兔子和狐狸刷屏了。你知道那是哪部迪士尼动漫吗？S:It's not going to be Zootopia? C:Good job! And its theme song, 《Try Everything》, was a heat then!S:It was sung by Shakira, also my love. C:Yeah,Shakira's voice is magnetic, powerful and sounding.S:And the song itself is dynamic and motivative, it seems that it promoted the rabbit to explore unknown tomorrow.C:So when the rabbit, Judy, was leaving for somewhere unfamiliar, the song rose. Then she met the fox, Nick, and they fell in love at last.S:What a interesting story. I expect everyone who tries everything can gain what they desire. C:I also wish to. 插曲 4 Remember me（Dúo）PART 4: S：Accompanied by a beautiful male voice, let me introduce this song for you, it is the theme song of the animated movie “CoCo”.C: Oh, I've seen this movie , I was very touched after watching it.S: Me too. This is a song in English mixed with Spanish. Its melody made listeners relaxed. So, let's enjoy this warm song 《Remember me》together.插曲5 ImmortalsS：Hey, Carrie. Do you know Baymax?C: Yeah, baymax is so considerate and cute. He looks like a super large cotton candy. And he is also my ideal boyfriend.S: Haha, I think no one doesn't like him. He won't leave you alone until you're well again.C: Yes, I agree with you.S: The 《Immortals》is the theme song of the movie Big Hero 6. It is sung by Fall Out boys. Fall out boys is a rock band from Chicago, America. It was founded in 2001. Their unique rock voice adds energy to this song.C:That's true.S:Ok, here are some classic songs in Disney cartoon. May you all like them.And it's time to say goodbye! See you next time!C:欢迎大家关注荔枝fm，更多精彩内容等着你的发现，VOE等着你的加入。See you!Immortals

节目名称：Screen Age 节目主题：恐怖电影合集 Horror Movies CollectionJ: Hello, my lovely audience, welcome back to our Screen Age. T: Hi, I'm xxx. what kind of films do you like during your leisure time. J: I usually choose some comfortable movies, such as affectional movies or some comedies. But some special days, when I feel bored, I will watch something terrifying.T: Oh, I think today's program will let you fell excited. Today, our melody is terrifying.J: Wow, I almost can't wait to hear it ! T: Now, let's start.D: Hey, Sarah. Which horror film you have seen is your favourite?SH:I think it must be"The Other". It talks aboutthat after the end of the second world war, Grace, the heroine ,who raised a couple of children alone on the British Isles, waited for the return of her husband, meanwhile, three new servants appeared suddenly and a series of strange things happened.D: Wow, I supposed that maybe I have seen it, too. In my opinion, it's more like phychological thriller. The film does not create a thriller in its own way, but in a somber atmosphere that brings the horrors to the hearts of the people. SH:Yeah, you're right. Until the end of the movie, itfinally forms the terror that are stirring and locksup at the same time to bring charges against the war and the human nature.D: Right. It is a work that makes you a shudder at last. The well-intentioned misdirection runs through from the beginning to the end, until the end of an anti-traditional bottom: people frighten theghosts. That is so cute! SH:Therefore, it deserves for the compliment.D:Yes. However, in my mind, it has some similarities with "The sixth sense". If free, you can try to watch it. You're supposed to like it.SH: OK. I will take a try! S:I watched a horror movie with my best friend a few days ago and it scared my best friend to death.T:You went to the horror movie again.What is?S:Yeah,it is“Happy Death Day”T:You are so interested in horror movie.But why is it called "Happy Death Day"S: It is a great movie and the name is very interesting.T:It's do interesting. What story does it tell?S: Terry was murdered on her birthday, woke up alive the next morning, and was murdered again and again until she found her killer.T:It is so amazing!Did she find the killer at last?S: She surely found it. You can't imagine who the killer is.Find out if you're interested.T:You know what? There is a new horror movie about to be released recently, which is called"A Quiet Place". Since you like horror movies, you should go to see it.S:It sounds very cool. What does it tell?T:The film tells the story of a family with two surviving children who come to the countryside to avoid the monsters.They communicate in sign language and spend their days carefully.S: And then, what happened to them?T:Ha-ha, then you can go to the movie theater yourself.S: It really succeeded in attracting my interest.T:The film was released in China on May 18, 2018.D: Have you ever seen the trailer of Blumhouse's truth or dare, a new horror film directed by Jeff Wadlow? C : Of course I have. The film, obviously getting a trailer to go with Insidious. You play truth or dare, and if you refuse the truth or the dare you die. D: The rough plot is: Olivia, Lucas and a group of their college friends travel to Mexico for one last getaway before graduation. While there, a stranger convinces one of the students to play a seemingly harmless game of truth or dare with the others. C: Once the game starts, it awakens something evil -- a demon which forces the friends to share dark secrets and confront their deepest fears. The rules are simple but wicked -- tell the truth or die, do the dare or die, and if you stop playing, you die. D: If you want to know why horror was so huge in 2018, that's my theory. These films are newish, mostly original and usually not targeted at nostalgic adults but rather at today's kids. So, yeah, apples and oranges perhaps, but Happy Death Day is arguably more relatable to today's kids than Transformers: The Last Knight. C: I think Happy Death Day and Blumhouse's truth or dare fill a gap in terms of being seen at just the right (or wrong) age and inspire fandom accordingly. And I can't wait to watch it in the cinema.Sh : Did you see the movie Player One? That's amazing ! And the tributes to The Shining also reminds me of the feelings I had before.J：you have seen The Shining too? Of all the movies and tv shows which have featured on supernatural , the Shining is one of the most often mentioned and referenced. Sh : yes. It is a 1980 feature film by Stanley Kubrick based on the novel of the same title by Stephen King. J : Here is the story. Jack has taken his family to an isolated inn so he can finish his novel. His young son Danny , has creepy visions of past and future events at the hotel. Sh: And another character referred to this “gift” as The Shining, hence the title. Jack becomes influenced by a supernatural presence and descends into madness, eventually turning on his family in a murderous age. J: Kubrick's genius on The Shining is to exploit everything artificial and awkward about film to create extreme tension. The performances are strange and artificial and uncomfortable , has none of the usual “horror” atmosphere. Sh: there's also a documentary about it called Room 237 ,in case you don't understand the “weird” spots in the film. That is also a masterful work.C: Hey, guy, how exciting it is!S: I can't agree with you anymore. We may feel bored sometimes in our lives, this time why not try some terrifying films to look for a stimulus ?C: Yes, it's a really good choice. By the way, we don't seem to have much time left.Maybe we'll say goodbye to our friends.S: Ok, see you next week, goodbye.C: Bye. 感谢制作梅嵩琳！节目监制：塞碧乐编辑：贾婧譞播音：张桐晖（S） 王雪莹（Sh）孟萌萌（C） 孙晨棣（D）贾婧譞（J） 杨名国 (T)制作：梅嵩琳整合上传：侯泓锾

节目名称：Screen Age 节目主题：Classic Movies CollectionS: Hello, everyone. Welcome to the screen age. I'm your sweetfriend Sara.C: Hi, I'm Cynthia.Sara,youlook very excited.S: Yes, we are going to do something amazing today.C: Something amazing?What's meaning?S: Everyone has their own classic movie.C: So,wewill introduce some classic movies.S: Cynthia,I can't wait.C: Alright.Let's start it.Sh: When it comes to the classic movies, the first one which pops up in my mind is"Bathing Beauty". It is a famous musical comedy film.C:Wow, I know. It is a very old film that has been on in America in 1944. And, It is led by the famous actor and actress, Reid skelton and Esther Williams.Sh: Yes, you're right. It is recommended by my mum. When she was young, she had been influenced by its spirit.C: What's the spirit your mother got from this comedy?Sh: It is a famous line in a fragment. The hero, Steve elliot took the physique lesson with many beautiful girls, which made himself quite awkward. He felt unconfident and didn't know how to conquer this condition. At that time, the teacher told him to read the following words again and again in his mind. That is "I am so beautiful, everybody loves me. ".C: Uhh..What's the ending of the hero?Sh: The hero held his head up and became more confident.C: That sounds great. This line can help people who are not confident regain self-confidence.Sh: Yeah, it also adjusts my lifestyle and makes myself grow up.C: That's really nice!Sh: Hey, girl, do you.have some favorite films?C: Of course, which film I love most is Titanic.Sh: Oh, I know that. Would you talk about it to us?C: Ok. In my mind, Titanic has always been one of my best romantic films, not only to blur my eyes in the cinema, but also to let my tears flow first in front of the computer.Sh: It seems that Titanic is a very beautiful film. I want to know what the plots are of it.C: On April 10, 1912, the Titanic, known as the Miracle of the World's Industrial History, set sail from Southampton to New York.The unruly young painter Jack and rich girl Rose met in the boat to meet and fall in love.Tragic tragedy happened, the Titanic and iceberg collided, Jack gave the chance of survival to his lover Rose, he was frozen to death in the ice sea.Sh: It's so romantic. I can't help to feeling sad.C: It's a so moral feeling when people have heard or seen it.Sh: I believe the Titanic has touched many people's hearts. I can't wait to see it now.C: Wish you have a good time on it!S: you know I always want to see some suspense movies, but the choosing part is really difficult for me. You have seen a lot of suspense movies, right? Would you recommend some good ones for me?J: haha, you ask the right people. I'll introduce you to one of my favorite movies, Primal fear. But if you don't want to be spoiled, do not follow the break, I'm warning you now. It describes a story of a gruesome murder happened in Chicago. In the process of defense , however, defense lawyer Martin Vail found that the criminal suspect Aaron Stampler was multiple personality disorder. S: Well that's a really amazing trailer. There are many movies focus on this theme. J: But turned out to bethat he was just pretending. Poor Martin. S: wow that's dark... It is like you put all your energy into studying but it just don't work out.J: it's not like it! You have a clear understanding of the essence of studying, taking it seriously. But you can never have a clear understanding of a person's heart. There's no definition between good and bad and that's why it's called Primary Fear.S: Good! That's it. J: By the way, which film is your classic? Shara?Sh: Today I highly recommend call me by your name, the best gay romance film in 2017. This film creates empathy in a spiritual way on me.J: I also had strong feelings after I watched it. What impressed me most is late in the film, the Professor sits with his son on a couch, smokes, and talks of what has occurred. Sh: We expect condescension, instead of which we hear a confession. “I envy you,” he tells Elio, adding, “We rip out so much of ourselves to be cured of things faster that we go bankrupt by the age of thirty.” J: And he once came near, he admits, to having what Elio and Oliver had, but something stood in the way, and he advises his child to seize the day, including the pain that the day brings, while he is still young: “Before you know it, your heart is worn out.” Sh: Desire is passed around the movie like a dish, and the characters are invited to help themselves, each to his or her own taste. Maybe a true love story has no time for types.J: Call Me By Your Name is a masterful work because of the specificity of its details. This is not a love story that “just happens to be gay”. The level of trust and strength these characters share brings a richness that is not necessarily known to a universal audience. S: The classic movies never get bored to see.C: Yes, and I still go over my favorites a few times a year.S: Surely our audience can't help but look some of the classics introduced today.C: That's all for today.goodbye.S: Bye!感谢制作梅嵩琳!

节目名称：Screen Age 节目主题：Horror Movies CollectionJ: Hello, my lovely audience, welcome back to our Screen Age. T: Hi, I'm xxx. what kind of films do you like during your leisure time. J: I usually choose some comfortable movies, such as affectional movies or some comedies. But some special days, when I feel bored, I will watch something terrifying.T: Oh, I think today's program will let you fell excited. Today, our melody is terrifying.J: Wow, I almost can't wait to hear it ! T: Now, let's start.D: Hey, Sarah. Which horror film you have seen is your favourite?SH:I think it must be"The Other". It talks aboutthat after the end of the second world war, Grace, the heroine ,who raised a couple of children alone on the British Isles, waited for the return of her husband, meanwhile, three new servants appeared suddenly and a series of strange things happened.D: Wow, I supposed that maybe I have seen it, too. In my opinion, it's more like phychological thriller. The film does not create a thriller in its own way, but in a somber atmosphere that brings the horrors to the hearts of the people. SH:Yeah, you're right. Until the end of the movie, itfinally forms the terror that are stirring and locksup at the same time to bring charges against the war and the human nature.D: Right. It is a work that makes you a shudder at last. The well-intentioned misdirection runs through from the beginning to the end, until the end of an anti-traditional bottom: people frighten theghosts. That is so cute! SH:Therefore, it deserves for the compliment.D:Yes. However, in my mind, it has some similarities with "The sixth sense". If free, you can try to watch it. You're supposed to like it.SH: OK. I will take a try! S:I watched a horror movie with my best friend a few days ago and it scared my best friend to death.T:You went to the horror movie again.What is?S:Yeah,it is“Happy Death Day”T:You are so interested in horror movie.But why is it called "Happy Death Day"S: It is a great movie and the name is very interesting.T:It's do interesting. What story does it tell?S: Terry was murdered on her birthday, woke up alive the next morning, and was murdered again and again until she found her killer.T:It is so amazing!Did she find the killer at last?S: She surely found it. You can't imagine who the killer is.Find out if you're interested.T:You know what? There is a new horror movie about to be released recently, which is called"A Quiet Place". Since you like horror movies, you should go to see it.S:It sounds very cool. What does it tell?T:The film tells the story of a family with two surviving children who come to the countryside to avoid the monsters.They communicate in sign language and spend their days carefully.S: And then, what happened to them?T:Ha-ha, then you can go to the movie theater yourself.S: It really succeeded in attracting my interest.T:The film was released in China on May 18, 2018.D: Have you ever seen the trailer of Blumhouse's truth or dare, a new horror film directed by Jeff Wadlow? C : Of course I have. The film, obviously getting a trailer to go with Insidious. You play truth or dare, and if you refuse the truth or the dare you die. D: The rough plot is: Olivia, Lucas and a group of their college friends travel to Mexico for one last getaway before graduation. While there, a stranger convinces one of the students to play a seemingly harmless game of truth or dare with the others. C: Once the game starts, it awakens something evil -- a demon which forces the friends to share dark secrets and confront their deepest fears. The rules are simple but wicked -- tell the truth or die, do the dare or die, and if you stop playing, you die. D: If you want to know why horror was so huge in 2018, that's my theory. These films are newish, mostly original and usually not targeted at nostalgic adults but rather at today's kids. So, yeah, apples and oranges perhaps, but Happy Death Day is arguably more relatable to today's kids than Transformers: The Last Knight. C: I think Happy Death Day and Blumhouse's truth or dare fill a gap in terms of being seen at just the right (or wrong) age and inspire fandom accordingly. And I can't wait to watch it in the cinema.Sh : Did you see the movie Player One?That's amazing ! And the tributes to The Shining also reminds me of the feelings I had before.J：you have seen The Shining too? Of all the movies and tv shows which have featured on supernatural , the Shining is one of the most often mentioned and referenced. Sh : yes. It is a 1980 feature film by Stanley Kubrick based on the novel of the same title by Stephen King. J : Here is the story. Jack has taken his family to an isolated inn so he can finish his novel. His young son Danny , has creepy visions of past and future events at the hotel. Sh: And another character referred to this “gift” as The Shining, hence the title. Jack becomes influenced by a supernatural presence and descends into madness, eventually turning on his family in a murderous age. J: Kubrick's genius on The Shining is to exploit everything artificial and awkward about film to create extreme tension. The performances are strange and artificial and uncomfortable , has none of the usual “horror” atmosphere. Sh: there's also a documentary about it called Room 237 ,in case you don't understand the “weird” spots in the film. That is also a masterful work.C: Hey, guy, how exciting it is!S: I can't agree with you anymore. We may feel bored sometimes in our lives, this time why not try some terrifying films to look for a stimulus ?C: Yes, it's a really good choice. By the way, we don't seem to have much time left.Maybe we'll say goodbye to our friends.S: Ok, see you next week, goodbye.C: Bye. 感谢制作梅嵩琳！

节目名称：Screen Age 节目主题：One Flew Over the Cuckoo's NestSh: Hello,everypassenger.Welcometotakethistrainnamed"ScreenAge".Ourtrainisabouttoarriveatthedestinationsoon,pleasekeepyourselfsafe.C: Thedestinationofourtrainis"OneFlewOvertheCuckoo'sNest"station.Pleasebepreparedtogetoff.Sh: Now,it'smyturntointroduceourdestination.Itissopopularthatithasbecomeanovernightsensation.Ithasbeenonin1975andawardedAcademyAwardsforBestPicturein1976.C: Yeah.ItwasadaptedbythenovelofthesamenamethatKenKeseywrote.Duetomanytalentedactorsandactresses,ithasgotthehighevaluation.Sh: Now,let'sentertheworldaboutwhatittalksaboutinparticulartogether.L:Flat，Suchagreatfilmitis.Iguessthedirectormustchoosecastsstrictly.F:Nope.Eachactorwaschosennotjustfortheirskill,butfortheirdistinctivephysicalcharacteristics.TheyshootandrehearseinarealmentalhealthhospitalinSalem,Oregon.Theinstitution'shead,DrDeanBrooks,allowedtheactorstoworkatthehospitalbecausehefeltitwouldgivetherealpatientsaformoftherapy.L:Andthen,whathappened?F:Well,Actorsspenttimewithpatients,andthenstayedincharacterduringtheirlunchbreaks.Manysleptattheinstitution.WhenNicholsonarrived,justaweekbeforeshooting,hecouldbarelytellthetwogroupsapart.F: Lynn，Whichactordoyoulikebest?L:Oh,IliketheWillSampson.heshowedimmenseskillandsensitivityintherole,notonlybyusinghissheerbodysize,butbylettinghisfeaturesbecomegraduallymorevividastheactionstarts.Whenhischaractercomesatthefilm'sclimax,buthisactingcomesintoitsownwiththemostsubtleofperformances,particularlyjustbeforethedisturbingelectroconvulsivetherapyscene,whenMcMurphyfindshehasbeenpretendingheisdeaf.F:Doyouknowthatsomeactorsonlyhadafewlinesornone,butpresentedtheirroleswithprecisionL:Yeah,itreallyimpressesme.Attheclimaxofthecigarettesscene,Bancini,playedbyJosipElic,comicallywandersintothegroupmuttering,"I'mtired,I'mtired".Andatthebeginningofthefilm,heiswokenandsaysheis"rested".F:Also,WhenMcMurphywasdesperatetowatchtheWorldSeriesbaseballgamesandneededtogeta"vote"fromtheotherpatients,itbecomestheperfectopportunityforeachminorcharactertodoaturn,fromballroomdancingEllsworth,tothedisturbinglylobotomisedEllis.C:Doyouknowthedirectorofthisfilm,MilosForman?Sh:Iknowalittleabouthim.Forexample,IknowthathehadwontwoAcademyAwardsforBestDirector.C:Yes,Iappreciatehimverymuch.Becausehehasdirectedmanycharmfulworks,likeOneFlewOvertheCuckoo'sNest,Mozartbiographyandsoon.Sh:Wow,it'sobviousthatheisareallysuccessfuldirector.MilosForman,asarepresentativefigureoftheCzechfilmNewWave,hisworksarecharacterizedbydeepunderstandingofhumannatureandshowingthetruenatureoflife,whichhaswonthesympathyofthegeneralaudience.C:Whatmattersmostishealwayspaintedmetaphorstomodernsocietywithamazingtalentandkeeninsight.Hisworksemphasizepersonalstyleandaregoodatdescribingpeople'sbehaviorandcharacters.Sh:Inmyopinion,whateversubjectMilosForemanshoots,heisabletounearthineachstoryahumannaturephilosophyworthyofreference,sothattheaudienceissofascinatedbyhisfilms.C:Iagreewithyou.Ihopehecanbringusmoreexcellentworkssothatwecanfindourselvesthroughhisfilm.Sh:Ibelievehewill.AndIreallyexpectit.L:If,Imean,ifonedayyougotoprisonwherethehardworkisgoingtomakeyousick,wouldyoulike to choosetobeafoolandbesenttoamentalhospital?F:No,goingintoamentalhospitalandgettingalongwiththosepatientsmightdrivemecrazy.L:Theherooftoday'sfilmissuchacrazyperson.F:Aha,Iknowwhatyou'retalkingabout,OneFlewOvertheCuckoo'sNest，right?L:Yes,it'saclassicprisonmovie.F:IfIremembercorrectly,it'saveryoldmovie.L:Yes,butitdoesnotmatter.F:However,it doesn't have a happyending.IthinkMcMurphyisapity.Hisenthusiasmandappealhavemovedeveryoneinthementalhospital.L:Beforehearrived,everyonebehavedlikeanormalperson.Butwithhiscoming,underhisdriving,thepeopleherereturn to themselves.F:Comparedwiththeshawshankredemption,itdidnothaveasatisfactoryendingandtheherowasforcedtobecomeareallunaticinsteadofescaping.L:Lafiteisanunpleasantcharacter,cold-blooded,anddoesnottreatpatientsashumanbeings.Shetreatspatientsinthementalhospitalaslivestockeveryday.F:Okay.Don'tgetexcited. Sh: Thankyoufortakingourtrain.It'sourpleasuretohaveagoodtimewithyoutogether.We will appreciate your understanding of all inconvenience that we broughtto you.C: Wish you have a good trip.I hope we can meet you next time.Sh: Goodbye.C: Ahh... Wait. I have heard that our Dubbing contest is going tobegin.Ifyouareinterestedinit,welcometojoinus!Sh: Waitforyou!节目监制：赛碧乐编辑:孟萌萌播音：赛碧乐(F)邹佳琳（L）王雪莹（Sh） 孟萌萌（C）

节目名称：Screen Age 节目主题：The Shape of WaterC: Hello, my dear audience. Long time no see. Do you miss us?S: Ahh, I think they will. Now, which movie will be introduced to the audience?C: Do you like having a guess? But I can tell you it&`&s about a merman and a tongueless girl, and it has moved a large amount of people.S: The film you said is an old one or a new one?C: I&`&m sure it&`&s new enough.S: Let me guessIs it Dunkirk?C: Yes, you are right.S: I know this film has won the 2018 Oscar Nominations. And almost all assesses are liking it very much.C: Yes, and I think it deserves. Today we will tell this poignant story for our audience.S: Next, let&`&s appreciate this film together.S:youknow,Iamapersonwhodonothavepatience,Iusuallywatchmoviesdiscontinuously,amovieevenmaytakemeseveraldays,someevenareleftunfinished.C:Iknow,lasttimethemovieIrecommendedtoyoutookyouawholeweek,itseemsnotyourtype,right?S:ButIstillfinishit.Okay,today&`&sfilmisdifferentforme,fromthebeginningtotheendoftheplay,Ididnotfastforward,myeyesalsodidnotleavethescreen,itdeeplyattractedme.C:wow,areyousointerestedinit?S:let&`&stakealookattheBestFilmAwardofOscar.CIn1963,duringthecoldwarintheUnitedStates,elizawasamutegirlcommunicatingwiththeoutsideworldthroughsignlanguage.Sheworkedasacleanerinagovernmentagency.Oneday,amysteriouspotfullofwaterwasputin,alisashockinglydiscovery,potclosedastrangecreature.Butintheeyesofalisa,itisjustalonelylifelikeher.Astimewenton,therewasafeelingbetweenelizaandthemonster.S:Doyouknowwhatattractsmemost?C:I&`&dliketohearit.S:Eachcharacterintheplayhasanincompletepartindifferentaspects.C:Incomplete?Whatdoyoumean？S:Alizaisasargamunabletoproperlycommunicatewithothers.Theheroisanon-humanspecies.AgentRichard'stemperamentiscruelevenpsychopathic.Aliza'sfriend,alsocolleague,Zelda'sfamilyisunhappy.Alisa'sgayroommateisabusinessfailure.C:Beingincompletemakesthemmorelikelytoresonate.S:Iwonderifyourememberthispictureinthemovie.C:Whatisit？S:AliciarescuedthemermanandkepthiminabathroomtankC:Well,Iremember,hehastoberegularlygivenaspecialdrugtokeephimfromgettingsick.S:Yes,onedayAliciaturnsonthefaucet,fillsthebathroomwithwater,andswimswiththemermaninthewater.C:Andthentheyfloodedthetheaterdownstairs.AmIright?S:Don&`&tdestroytheatmosphere,thekindoflovethatcrossesraceisreallymoving.D:Hey，YouknowmanyfamousHollywooddirectorshavequirks.LikeWoodyAllenareobsessedwithbananas,DavidLynchiscrazyfordissectinganimals,andQuentinisafootfetish,I'mjustcuriousaboutGuillermodelToro,thedirectoroftheShapeofWater.Doeshehavesomespecialhobbies?Sh:YoumeanDelToro?IshethedirectorofPacificRim,thefamoussci-fifilm?I'mhissuperfan.Hisfilmsandbooksoftenblendreality,horrorandfantasyincharactersandthemesthatarebothcreepyandthought-provoking.Asafilmmaker,hehasaintenserelationshipwithmobsters.Youknow,hesaidhehadspentmostofhismoneyonmonsteractionfigures(据他说这辈子赚的大部分钱都用来买怪物手办了，看来“手办毁一生”真的是良心劝诫。)D:Wow,that'sincredible.Nowonderheincorporatedmonsterelementintoallhisfilms,includingtheShapeofWater.Itwashiszealformonstersandactors'wonderfulperformancesthatmadetheemotionalbetweenthemonsterandthewomansosmooth,whichbroughtaudiencesinnerpeace.Sh:ButyoumustgivespecialcredittoHawkinsandJonesfortheirtwoentirelydifferentkindsofsilentacting.Jonesinfuseshischaracterswithrealemotion,communicatingnotwithwordsbutwithmovementandtouch,WhileHawkinsiswithalleyesandhands.D:IknowaninterestingthingaboutJones.Whenheisonstreet,Ibetyouwouldn'trecognizehim.Sh:Really?But,why?D:Well,that'sbecausehe'susuallymaskedbylatex,siliconeandmakeup,playingsomeofHollywood'smostrecognizablemonsters.Sh:Yeah,hedoesactlotsofmonstercharactersinmanymovies.Sh:Ifit'struethateveryculturegetsthefairytaleitdeserves,it'shardtoseewhatwe'vedonelatelytomeritanythingaslovelyasGuillermodelToro's“Theshapeofwater”.D:Yes,itisaColdWarparanoiathriller,aquasi-musicalcinematicnostalgiatripandafantasyinterspecieslovestorybetweenawomanandamerman.Sh:Itsoundsthatit'ssobrimmingwithromanceandadventurethatitseffectoverflowsthescreen,fillinguproomsandfloodingthecinemaandthreateningtoleakenoughtofloorbelow.D:Andyouknow,asanewfilmofGuillermodelToro,“Theshapeofwater”isquitemagnificent.Sh:Yeah,you'reright,especiallycomparedtoPacificRimandPansLabyrinth,twoofhisrepresentativeworks.Notonlyitisasimplyromanticstory,butalsothereisalotofhumanityinthisfilm.D:Great.Fromthefirstframes,wearedriftedawaybythestrongcurrentofthisextraordinarylovestory.Deprivedofspeech,SallyHawkinsisareceptacleofincredibleemotionsandturnsapotentiallyricketyexerciseintoabeautifulsilentsymphony.Insupportingroles,RichardJenkinsandOctaviaSpencerensurethetouchingandfunnysideoftheset.Andwhataboutthecreature,thatdistantcousinofthatoftheBlackLagoonof1954?Sh:AcreationintooartificialCGIisfortunatelyavoidedtoaccommodatealittlehumanoidjewelperfectlyintegratedintothestoryandthroughwhichtheemotionflowsfreely.Aniconicrepresentationoftheacceptanceofdifference,thekeystoneofthisadulttale,thecreatureamusesandmoves,withoutexcessandwithsurprisingaccuracy.D:Thesubject,daringinitslastface,couldhaveturnedtoshipwreck.Butthetalentandtheenergyofthewholecrew,thecaregiventoeachimage,toeachmovementofcamera,toeveryword,avoidstheridicule,findstherightbalanceandpropelstheShapeoftheWatertowardssummitsofpoetry.Sh:Thisisatruedeclarationoflovewithcinema,immersedinagreatbathofnostalgia.Thisisaterrificfilmwithwell-deservedsuccess.S:Whatabeautifulfilm!Ican&`&thelpbeingmovedbyit.C:SoamI.Inthisspring,Ithinksuchafilmcanmakeyouwarmenough.S:Nowadays,touchingourheartsbecomesmoreandmoredifficult.Soamovielikethisisarealgoodone.C:Ofcourse,becauseitcantouchusdeeply.Ireallyexpectmorebeautifulworkslikethis.S:Yes.Butmaybethetimeisout,It&`&stimetosaygoodbye.C:Ok,seeyounextweek,goodbye,everyone.S:Byebye.

节目组: Music Bang Bang 音乐大爆炸 节目名称: Conquest Of Darkness 征服黑暗开头曲 Fight SongS:Hello dear audience,Welcome to this week's Music Bangbang.I'm Shirley.C:I'm Christine.B:I'm Brendan.L:I'm Lampson.S:It's been a long time since we share songs with you.The topic of today's program is "Conquest of Darkness".B: So today, we are going to bring you a playlist of inspiring music.C:Yes,are you ready for it? Let's begin our music tour. 插曲: Try Everything S:If you never try you will never know and "Try Everything" is what we should do.If you have watched the movie Zootopia,you must know the theme song Try Everything.It's a song recorded by Colombian singer Shakira for the 2016 Walt Disney Animation Studios film.The song debuted and peaked at number 69 on the Billboard Hot 100,which was really a success.It's a dynamic and lively style song and the lyrics are also full of power.I really like the lyric "I keep falling down.I keep on hitting the ground".I think it's a kind of spirit that all of us need.Now let's enjoy the song together. 插曲: Dream it possible L: MaYun said that "We are going to have a dream，it maybe acheiveed!" I think all of us should have a dream,and what we should do is try our best to acheive it!The next song we want to share is《Dream It Possible》.The song is Huawei BG consumer brand song. Carrying high Huawei brand spirit: believe in yourself, dare to challenge, chasing the dream.The Chinese singer Zhangliangying released them in Chinese and English double single 《My dream》and 《Dream it possible》.Dream needs through the grinding time, ravaging experience, may also experience confusion.Some peple say that no matter how the Huawei mobile phone is ,the beautiful song is deeply in my heart !The lyric‘Never quit and never stop' passes on the power and hope. 插曲: Get Ready for It C:If you don't go after what you want,you'll never have it.If you don't ask,the answer is always no.If you don't step forward,you are always in the same place.The next song we're listening to is Get Ready For It,sung by a great Engish group Take That.But to be frank,I don't know about it so much,on account of it's early establishment in 1990 and early break-up in 1996.But,I do know the movie Kingsman,of which Get Ready For It is the end song.The movie relates a story how a problem guy achieved his dream to be a kingsman and saved the world.The encourage lyric of the song is also related to the movie for instance,You are a fool or a king's man only you know.The whole arrangement is of great momentum.It just catch your ears at the first tone. 插曲: 3 things B:3 Things is a song from Jason Mraz, it's like a breath of fresh air that can make you comfortable. The song talk about 3things he will do if he feel depressed.And the song is like a mental doctor who can heal our broken heart. The lyrics is full of positive energy.Such as this beautiful sentence---I know above the clouds the sun is shining.I know beyond the dark the sun is rising.that's who Jason Mraz really is. He is a positive man and most of his song is brilliant and fresh. If you listen to his song in the morning,your mood will be lightened up for the whole day. L:Time flies,it's time for us to say goodbye again.S:如果你喜欢我们今天的节目，如果你也有给你力量的励志英文歌曲想要分享。C:欢迎关注我们的微信公众号时代之声Radio，在11月25日Music Bangbang的节目下方留言你想要分享的歌曲和你的故事。B:感谢制作刘冠辰，感谢制作王紫丞，下周同一时间Music Bangbang 与你不见不散!Bye! 节目监制：刘仁邦编辑：李紫琳 郭思婷 尚博健 杨柳播音：李紫琳 郭思婷 尚博健 刘仁邦制作：刘冠辰

The subway in São Paulo is quite impressive, with new lines that have been added in recent years. It is easy to figure out, easy to get around, and very convenient. We do warn you, however, that the trains can get completely full. Get ready to squeeze in, but thanks to this lesson, you will be able to do so in Portuguese.DialogueA: Nossa, que confusão aqui nesse metrô! B: Essa é a entrada para a linha verde ou a linha vermelha? A: Não sei, será que é a mesma para as duas. B: Também não sei, vamos perguntar para alguém. A: Aqui, é aqui que cê entra para a linha verde? C: É. Passa por aqui, e logo à direita.A: Wow, there is so much confusion here at this subway! B: Is this the entrance to the green line or the red line? A: I don’t know, maybe it’s the same for both. B: I don’t know either, let’s ask somebody. A: Excuse me, is this the entrance to the green line here? C: Yes, go in here, and then to the right.

The subway in São Paulo is quite impressive, with new lines that have been added in recent years. It is easy to figure out, easy to get around, and very convenient. We do warn you, however, that the trains can get completely full. Get ready to squeeze in, but thanks to this lesson, you will be able to do so in Portuguese.DialogueA: Nossa, que confusão aqui nesse metrô! B: Essa é a entrada para a linha verde ou a linha vermelha? A: Não sei, será que é a mesma para as duas. B: Também não sei, vamos perguntar para alguém. A: Aqui, é aqui que cê entra para a linha verde? C: É. Passa por aqui, e logo à direita.A: Wow, there is so much confusion here at this subway! B: Is this the entrance to the green line or the red line? A: I don’t know, maybe it’s the same for both. B: I don’t know either, let’s ask somebody. A: Excuse me, is this the entrance to the green line here? C: Yes, go in here, and then to the right.

L: Good evening, my dear audience. Welcome to The World Says. I'm Lynn.C: Hello everyone. I'm Carol.L: Today our topic is “ Makes me think.”C: Today, Lynn will share some little stories we select from the net, which makes you think. Just like the idiom 见微知著 in Chinese.L: Is it suitable for 见微知著 used in this way?C: Er… Whatever. Go on your fist story.L: OK. Today, my 8-year-old son hugged me and said,” You are the best mom in the whole entire world!” I smiled and sarcastically replied,” How do you know that? You haven't met every mom in the whole entire world.” My son squeezed me tighter and said,” Yes, I have.” You are my world.”C: So, what do you think?L: Everyone in that age thinks his or her mommy is the greatest person in the world. It isn't wired.C: But I wouldn't say to my mom like that. In another way, I couldn't say those words. L: Yeah, I was a naughty girl who could just shout to my mom,” Mom, I want that!”C: I think hug is my extremely way to explain my love.L: You see the boy in the story. This is the gap between he and us.C: Lynn, I decided. I will have a boy. And he will say every sweet word to his mom.L: Carol, you can't decide it. Come to the real world and listen to my next story. L: Today, I sat down with my tow daughters, ages 4 and 6, to explain to them that we have to move out of our 4 bedroom house and into a 2 bedroom apartment for awhile until I can find another job that pays well. My daughters looked at each other for a moment and then my youngest daughter turned to me and asked,” Are we all moving into the apartment together?” “Yes,” I replied. “Oh, so no big deal then,” she said.It's a little bit long. Can you translate it to our audience, Carol?C: No problem. 今天我坐下和4岁和6岁的两个女儿解释我们为啥要从一个4间房的大屋搬到只有2间房的小公寓，我们要一直住到我找到一份薪水不错的好工作为止。两个女儿对视了一会儿小女儿转过来问我：“我们是一起搬么？”我说是的，“喔，只要我们一起住就行了，那没啥”，她回答道。L: You see. Your girls can also be sweety.C: Don't you think that foreign children's EQ are below ours?L: It's none of the nationality's business, OK? It decides by the education of their parents! Is that what you really think after listening to the story?C: Definitely not. Come back to the story itself, the kids want the family, the parents want the big house. The things in kids' mind always are so easy. It's the point that adults forget. You know, they care the substance more.L: Yeah, but what does the kids care are the thing lost gradually. C: 我们的节目什么时候变的那么深沉？L: 我们一向标榜有文化有深度你忘了吗？C: The third story!L: Today, my dad turned 91. He barely has enough strength to speak. But every time my mom (she's 84) walks into the room to check on him, he says, “Hello beautiful.”C: 今天我爸就91岁了，他现在几乎连说话的力气都没有，但是每次我妈（84岁）进房看他的时候，他都会说：“你好啊美人儿。“L: Wow. C: I love this story. 这是在用生命演绎浪漫.L: Seems like, you are looking forward to a romantic love story, aren't you?C: Yes. Who ever not? The writer's dad used his only energy to flirt with his wife. It's enough. L: When you turned 91, I will say to you,” Hello beautiful” every day. Do you want that?C: Lynn, go on your story.L: Today is the 14th day in a row that my nursing home patient's grandson has come to visit her. Two weeks ago I told him that the only time I see his grandmother smile all week is when he visits her on Sunday mornings.C: 我们疗养院有个老人的孙子现在每天都来看望她，今天已经是第14天了。2周前我告诉她孙子，每周我唯一看到他奶奶面露微笑的时候就是每周日早上他来看望她的时候。L: It's a big problem nowadays.C: What is the problem?L: Leaving the olds home alone.C: It's also a contradictory. The young have the work to do. How could they have spare time to take care of the olds?L: The things are very easy, Carol. You shouldn't go their home to clean up or water the flower. You just give the olds a call. They will be happy like children when they heard your voice and your care.C: It's no matter what you have done for them. 只要你有心去关心老人。L: That's I really want to say.