The day had begun on a bright note.

The sun finally peeked through the rain for the first time in a week,
and the birds were sinf=ging in its warmth. There was no way to anticipate what was about to happen. It
was a worst-case scenario and there was no way out of it.

He was after the truth. At least, that's what he told himself. He believed it, but any rational person on
the outside could see he was lying to himself. It was apparent he was really only after his own truth that
he'd already decided and was after this truth because the facts didn't line up with the truth he wanted.
So he continued to tell everyone he was after the truth oblivious to the real truth sitting right in front of
him.

It all started with the computer. Had he known what was to follow, he would have never logged on that
day. But the truth was there was no way to know what was about to happen. So Dave pressed the start
button, the computer booted up, the screen came alive, and everything Dave knew to be true no longer
was.

Welcome to my world. You will be greeted by the unexpected here and your mind will be challenged
and expanded in ways that you never thought possible. That is if you are able to survive...

"It's never good to give them details," Janice told her sister. "Always be a little vague and keep them
guessing." Her sister listened intently and nodded in agreement. She didn't fully understand what her
sister was saying but that didn't matter. She loved her so much that she would have agreed to whatever
came out of her mouth.

There was a time and a place for Stephanie to use her magic. The problem was that she had a difficult
time determining this. She wished she could simply use it when the desire hit and there wouldn't be any
unforeseen consequences. Unfortunately, that's not how it worked and the consequences could be
devastating if she accidentally used her magic at the wrong time.

He scolded himself for being so tentative. He knew he shouldn't be so cautious, but there was a sixth
sense telling him that things weren't exactly as they appeared. It was that weird chill that rolls up your
neck and makes the hair stand on end. He knew that being so tentative could end up costing him the
job, but he learned that listening to his sixth sense usually kept him from getting into a lot of trouble.

According to the caption on the bronze marker placed by the Multnomah Chapter of the Daughters of
the American Revolution on May 12, 1939, “College Hall (is) the oldest building in continuous use for
Educational purposes west of the Rocky Mountains. Here were educated men and women who have
won recognition throughout the world in all the learned professions.”

It was just a burger. Why couldn't she understand that? She knew he'd completely changed his life
around her eating habits, so why couldn't she give him a break this one time? She wasn't even supposed
to have found out. Yes, he had promised her and yes, he had broken that promise, but still in his mind,
all it had been was just a burger.

He wondered if he should disclose the truth to his friends. It would be a risky move. Yes, the truth would
make things a lot easier if they all stayed on the same page, but the truth might fracture the group
leaving everything in even more of a mess than it was not telling the truth. It was time to decide which
way to go.
She needed glasses. It wasn't that she couldn't see without them, but what she could see with them.
When she wore glasses, her eyes focused so deeply that she could see not only the physical but also
beyond. It was like a superpower. But she needed glasses.

Matt told her to reach for the stars, but Veronica thought it was the most ridiculous advice she'd ever
received. Sure, it had been well-meaning when he said it, but she didn't understand why anyone would
want to suggest something that would literally kill you if you actually managed to achieve it.

One can cook on and with an open fire. These are some of the ways to cook with fire outside. Cooking
meat using a spit is a great way to evenly cook meat. In order to keep meat from burning, it's best to
slowly rotate it. Hot stones can be used to toast bread. Coals are hot and can bring things to a boil
quickly. If one is very adventurous, one can make a hole in the ground, fill it with coals and place foil-
covered meat, veggies, and potatoes into the coals, and cover all of it with dirt. In a short period of time,
the food will be baked. Campfire cooking can be done in many ways.

He collected the plastic trash on a daily basis. It never seemed to end. Even if he cleaned the entire
beach, more plastic would cover it the next day after the tide had come in. Although it was a futile effort
that would never be done, he continued to pick up the trash each day.

She was aware that things could go wrong. In fact, she had trained her entire life in anticipation that
things would go wrong one day. She had quiet confidence as she started to see that this was the day
that all her training would be worthwhile and useful. At this point, she had no idea just how wrong
everything would go that day.

She has seen this scene before. It had come to her in dreams many times before. She had to pinch
herself to make sure it wasn't a dream again. As her fingers squeezed against her arm, she felt the pain.
It was this pain that immediately woke her up.

He wandered down the stairs and into the basement. The damp, musty smell of unuse hung in the air. A
single, small window let in a glimmer of light, but this simply made the shadows in the basement
deeper. He inhaled deeply and looked around at a mess that had been accumulating for over 25 years.
He was positive that this was the place he wanted to live.

She had a terrible habit o comparing her life to others. She realized that their life experiences were
completely different than her own and that she saw only what they wanted her to see, but that didn't
matter. She still compared herself and yearned for what she thought they had and she didn't.

There are only three ways to make this work. The first is to let me take care of everything. The second is
for you to take care of everything. The third is to split everything 50 / 50. I think the last option is the
most preferable, but I'm certain it'll also mean the end of our marriage.

She asked the question even though she didn't really want to hear the answer. It was a no-win situation
since she already knew. If he told the truth, she'd get confirmation of her worst fears. If he lied, she'd
know that he wasn't who she thought he was which would be almost as bad. Yet she asked the question
anyway and waited for his answer.

He took a sip of the drink. He wasn't sure whether he liked it or not, but at this moment it didn't matter.
She had made it especially for him so he would have forced it down even if he had absolutely hated it.
That's simply the way things worked. She made him a new-fangled drink each day and he took a sip of it
and smiled, saying it was excellent.

Sitting in the sun, away from everyone who had done him harm in the past, he quietly listened to those
who roamed by. He felt at peace in the moment, hoping it would last, but knowing the reprieve would
soon come to an end. He closed his eyes, the sun beating down on face and he smiled. He smiled for the
first time in as long as he could remember.

Her breath exited her mouth in big puffs as if she were smoking a cigarette. The morning dew had made
her clothes damp and she shivered from the chill in the air. There was only one thing that could get her
up and out this early in the morning.

The towels had been hanging from the rod for years. They were stained and worn, and quite frankly, just
plain ugly. Debra didn't want to touch them but she really didn't have a choice. It was important for her
to see what was living within them.

It was always the Monday mornings. It never seemed to happen on Tuesday morning, Wednesday
morning, or any other morning during the week. But it happened every Monday morning like clockwork.
He mentally prepared himself to once again deal with what was about to happen, but this time he also
placed a knife in his pocket just in case.