633 lines
42 KiB
Plaintext
633 lines
42 KiB
Plaintext
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1 If you are in need of help, you need but ask...
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2 ************************ INSTALLED: 1 JAN 85 ****************************
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3 Welcome to BWMS (BackWater Message System) Mike Day System operator
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4 *************************************************************************
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5 GENERAL DISCLAIMER: BWMS IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY INFORMATION
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6 PLACED ON THIS SYSTEM.
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7 BWMS was created as an electronic bill board. BWMS is a privately owned
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8 and operated system which is currently open for use by the general public.
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9 No restrictions are placed on the use of the system. As the system is
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10 privately owned, I retain the right to remove any and all messages which
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11 I may find offensive. Because of the limited size of the system, it will be
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12 periodically purged of messages. (only 629 lines of data can be saved)
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13 To leave a message, type 'ENTER' and use ctrl/C or break to get out of the
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14 ENTER mode. The message is automatically stored. If after entering the
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15 message you find you made a mistake, use the replace command to replace
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16 the line. To exit from the system, type 'OFF' then hang up.
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17 Type 'HELP' to see other commands that are available on the system.
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18 ************************************************************
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19
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20 mMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMm
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21 Dan followed his benefactor for what seemed like forever. He could not
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22 understand just how the rather unimpressive building (sitting in a
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23 suburban industrial park) could contain such volume. Hurrying his steps to
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24 keep up with his companion, he said as much.
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25 The man wearing the inkblot smiled. "Actually, what you see here is a small
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26 part of this operation. You may have noticed that this building was built
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27 next to a large hill. We have been under that hill for the last five minutes."
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28 The man wearing the inkblot stopped at a set of double doors and tapped a
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29 complicated sequence on a numeric pad inset in the wall. The doors opened
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30 to reveal an elevator. Getting in, Dan looked at his companion inquiringly
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31 as instead of the ubiquitous floor buttons, it contained another numeric pad.
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32 The man wearing the inkblot smiled reassuringly as he tapped out another
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33 code. "Don't worry, it's actually quite easy to learn. The next step is home."
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34 mMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmM The Machrioness mMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmMmM
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35 @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
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36 Running again. Just like the other night. Fellows followed his rescuer to
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37 a parking lot down the street from the hotel. The man unlocked the doors on
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38 his rather dumpy import, and helped Fellows get seated. While sitting, Fellows
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39 accidentally brushed one of the car's speakers, which went crashing to the
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40 wave pavement. The car's owner muttered an oath, and replaced the speaker
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41 precariously on its mount. No way to thank the man who just saved my life,
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42 thought Fellows.
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43 The man didn't give his name, but he didn't ask Fellows for any ident-
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44 ification either. He did tell Fellows they were going to go to his apartment
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45 on the other side of town, and get cleaned up and straightened away. The
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46 clean up part was quite welcome, the straightened away part worried Fellows.
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47 The drive was uneventful, but Fellows couldn't help but notice the man's
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48 entire body was shaking. His hands left perspiration marks on the wheel,
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49 which reflected the light from the street lamps overhead. He is in bad
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50 shape, thought Fellows. Dangerfield must have meant something to him in the
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51 past. That explains the remark about coming back. I wonder...
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52 Fellows mind was now racing. He was using a derivation on the scientific
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53 theory model for expanding facts and producing conclusions taught by the
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54 NET. The mystery man drove on, and Fellows was slowly but surely putting
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55 the many bizarre pieces together.
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56 We are almost there, the man told Fellows. So am I, Fellows said under his
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57 breath. The pieces were falling into place. But I need to get a good look at
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58 him;too much rush;too dark so far. As the car approached the apartment complex
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59 parking structure, a large sodium light gave Fellows the perfect opportunity
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60 to play out his little plan. He started violently coughing, and the man
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61 turned to see what was the matter. The light from above shown perfectly on
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62 his face as he looked. A quick glance. It was! Joshua! He held in check his
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63 excitement. He had to play this cool. No telling what mental condition he
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64 was in. A small voice inside reminded him he was still in good enough
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65 condition to assassinate Dangerfield.
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66 But bringing in agents from the field, especially after capture by the
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67 enemy, was no easy task. The agents are on the razor's edge. Sometimes
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68 they can't separate friend from foe. Like a wounded animal, they can strike
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69 out at anything that approaches.
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70 Fellows ran through the NET agent retrieval procedures. Joshua parked
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71 the car in slot 23. Let's see, a building less than 10 stories, 23 means
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72 floor two room three. Fellows had to be ready for anything. He still wasn't
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73 even close to recovered, but the recent events had certainly given him a
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74 new lease on life.
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75 Joshua lead the way to the elevator. His hand seemed to shudder as he reached
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76 for the call button, but he remained silent. During the ride up, Fellows was
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77 consumed with planning his next steps. Joshua fidgeted nervously. Finally the
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78 bell rang, and the doors opened. Apartment 23 was two doors down on the left.
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79 Joshua seemed to be looking for something along the door frame. Whatever it
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80 was, he didn't find it. He pulled out his gun, and quietly motioned me back
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81 behind the wall. He slowly unlocked the door with his key in the other hand.
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82 He clicked the 9mm safety to off, and turned the door knob. Here we go again,
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83 Fellows fretted.
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84 Fellows
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85 @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
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86
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87 #$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$#
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88 The term was bulky, but I didn't mind; it could be purple and yellow polka-dot if it wanted to as long as it spewed
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89 forth with the information I wanted... Ah! At last, a connection.
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90 >AUTOID:<, It asked. The term replied with a twenty-odd character long string.
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91 >ROA Granted to GOVTERM #5693. Awaiting search string.<
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92 I carefully tapped out, "O'Hara, John K.".
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93 >Searching... O'Hara, John K. Found.<
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94 Tap, tap, tap... "Display last orders"
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95 >Last orders: No such data<
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96 What?, I thought. No orders? This didn't jibe with what I knew of John. I gave it another try: "Display entire file"
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97 >O'Hara, John K. Director of UNDOUND, also assigned occasionally to work in government labs. Has PhD in ^C<
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98 >Awaiting search string<
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99 "UNDOUND"
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100 >No such data<
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101 This was *VERY* suspicous. Not only was John not what he said he was, he was head of something that didn't exist.
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102 Well, enough in that direction. "NET"
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103 >Unauthorized access.<
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104 So it *DID* exist. This was getting more interesting by the second. NET existed without a doubt now. I wondered if
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105 I could get anything more out of this thing. "Request: Grant access to 'NET'"
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106 >Enter password:<
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107 Arrrgh! I typed in, for the heck of it, "Nuke 'em Ronnie sent me"
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108 >Access denied, but nice try.<
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109 A smarty-pants, too. I tried again: "Joshua"
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110 >Special access granted to subfile 'NET' (Joshua).<
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111 Success at last! "Display entire file"
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112 >Joshua, agent of NET: Lost. Presumed dead, but recent evidence refutes this. Beleived to be dangerous due to
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113 repeated brain-washing and counter-brain-washing. Wanted by NET to keep secure information within his mind and to
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114 regain one of their finest agents. All NET agents are to be on the lookout for agent Joshua, and are to see to his
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115 return if possible.<
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116 >More data waiting.<
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117 I typed in, breathlessly, "Continue"
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118 >Access denied. Logout 03:03pm.<
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119 BEEP! **** No Carrier ****
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120 I almost shut the term off when something caught my eye on the screen. The last random characters that occur when the
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121 carrier is lost spelled something: 'net'.
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122 Was NET responsible for logging me off? Did I get too close to something valuable?
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123 I shut the term off. "Farley?", Fred piped up.
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124 "Yes, Fred?", I said, wondering what I had done in a previous life to deserve this.
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125 "Is something the matter?"
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126 "Life, Fred, life- that is the matter."
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127 "Why so?"
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128 "I feel as if I were playing baseball, at bat. Someone just threw me a curve."
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129 #$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$# Farley #$##$##$##$##$##$##$# 01/01/84 - 03:10 (almost put the wrong date down) #$#
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130
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131 FARLEY - ACTUALLY, YOU DID GET THE WRONG DATE, IT'S 1985 NOT 1984...
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132 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
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133 The clock in the hall tolled the midnight hour. The New Year began.
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134 Victor held Ashley in his arms, gazed into her eyes, and kissed her... a
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135 long and lingering kiss. Nikki turned from her guests and saw her husband
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136 holding another. Her eyes widened in disbelief. Fade to black... Time
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137 for a commercial.
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138 Dr. Frankenstupe leaned forward and snapped off the television set.
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139 The last episode of the Young and Restless for 1984 was over. Frankenstupe
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140 chuckled to himself, "I knew that Victor and Ashley would get together."
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141 A man in a white coat entered the room. "Mail call, Doctor."
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142 "Thanks." Dr. Frankenstupe took the stack of letter and began to sort
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143 through them. The orderly left unnoticed.
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144 "Hmmmm... What's this?" Frankenstupe held an aqua-hued envelope
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145 scented with sandalwood in his hand. The stamp was unusual bearing the
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146 likeness of a bewhiskered man scowling menacingly. The man reminded
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147 Frankenstupe of a foul tempered Santa suffering from viral hemorrhoids. The
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148 Doctor opened the letter and began to read.
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149 Dear Frankie--
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150 Happy Holidays. If you haven't guessed yet, Mohammed and I are
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151 in Iran. Mohammed has made peace with Leroy (temporarily) and is helping
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152 him import hairless chipmunks into the country. Poor little guys, the
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153 Americans are using them for food. Have you ever seen a bar-b-cued chip-
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154 munk? Yuk! I still don't think Leroy is wrapped too tight. I don't know
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155 if Mohammed is going to double-cross him this time, or visa versa.
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156 Salazar has taken a night job as athletic director in the
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157 Sunnyvale Rest Home. Nobody wants to play shuffleboard at 3 AM, so he has
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158 plenty of time to work on his book. It's about he, Mohammed, and I met.
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159 Both Mohammed and I have threatened to sue his boxer shorts off, but
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160 Salazar perseveres, the chump.
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161 Since you've heard from Pam recently, I'll call off the search.
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162 But FRankie, you should realize by now that she comes and goes according
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163 to her own design. Enjoy her company when she's there... don't fret when
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164 she's gone.
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165 Time to close now. The funny guy in the long robes is back to
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166 chase me around his palace. Keep healthy and well. Wish all in the Inn a
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167 Happy New Year. Hope to return soon.
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168 Love, Serena
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169 Frankenstupe carefully folded the letter and slipped it into the
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170 envelope. Silently he added his wishes for a happy New Year to all those
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171 in the Inn.
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172 Dr. Frankenstupe
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173 +_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_
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174
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175 JoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshua
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176 Farley - don't gloat TOO long; one of these days I'm gonna work YOU into
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177 my story. Heh heh heh....
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178 And then of course there's Petrov...... (sound of hands rubbing together..)
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179 JoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshuaJoshua
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180
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181 -_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_
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182 a message to tilean: could it be that you are the big Mac?
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183 if so, could the hill you mention have something to do with the
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184 VIXEN-MONO CORP. that "we" have recently "investigated?"
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185 if so, i'm glad to see that i really know who someone around
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186 here really is.
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187 _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_- abacab _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
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188
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189 ~~~~~~~~~~%%%%%%%%%%~~~~~~~~~~%%%%%%%%%%~~~~~~~~~~%%%%%%%%%%
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190 The Opening - by the Chela
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191 The old man and the boy rested under the big oak tree. The boy asked,
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192 "What is Life." The old man thaught first for a minute, and then
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193 deciding that the boy could indeed handle the truth, becane to speak.
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194 "Life", he said with a long drawn out voice; "Life is many slended
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195 hings", recalling some poem from long ago. "Everything is Life", he
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196 reflected. "Many people ask for the world to stop, so that they
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197 can get off. This is foolish, for everyone of use must live out
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198 our experiences here in this plane of existence. If we bypass them,
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199 we must just come back to them again, someday, in a future life, until
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200 we have learned them all. Then, and only then, can we progress to the
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201 higher planes to stay."
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202 "So, how do we progress", said the boy with a puzzelled look on his face.
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203 "Thru the sound of truth", said the old man. "But how does one find
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204 his 'Sound of Truth?'", asked the boy. "One does not find IT, IT finds
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205 you", replied the old man. "But that, is another lesson."
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206 The old man stood up and started to walk out of the park. "That
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207 will spark him", thaught the old man. "Not to much at a time." For
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208 the old man knew that to much knowledge, to soon, may crush a young
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209 boy (or anyone). He must be careful about that.
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210 The young boy watched as the old man walked away. What an
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211 interesting thought, I must learn more about what he taught.
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212 From down the street, someone was shouting for him.
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213 "TILEAN", "TILEAN!!!"
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214 He sprang up and ran down the street toward home, still with a puzzled
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215 look upon his face.
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216 ~~~~~~~~~~%%%%%%%%%~~~~~~~~~~%%%%%%%%%%~~~~~~~~~~%%%%%%%%%% The Chela
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217 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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218 Close to my header but not to close. Well PaPa Smurf has cooled a bit.
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219 Have been having a hard time getting on lately. Oh, for school to
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220 start again and the young ones to be in it. Ha Ha.
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221 The NETstories and their babies are getting very good, my
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222 hat is tipped toward the writters. The intreget (sp) plot of the stories
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223 is very interesting. I LOVE IT. must head out of the house now.
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224 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The ever lurking PaPa Smurf 1-1-85 18:50
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225 See, I did put 85, not 84. Somebody higher up on the disk had better
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226 remember that or all of their checks are going to have problems.
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227 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ PaPa
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228 Hello, I'm Entropy. I'm new to bbs, but from what I've seen this
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229 one is great! New Year's CHEERS to you all, and MORE STORIES!!!
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230 They're really good. Hope to see more soon...
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231 ^.^ Entropy
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232 1-1-85
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233 _[
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234
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235 tttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt
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236
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237 at a loss for words... so many things have been said about me... and i only
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238 left my name a few days ago... odd... i will try to respond to everything i saw
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239 in the last disk... things went by so fast... i am afraid i forgot someone... if
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240 i have please forgive me...
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241
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242 tttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt
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243
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244 the chela...
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245 i enjoyed your story very much... it was a shock to see my name mentioned in
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246 it... i enjoyed the mention... thank you... but what now...? i would love to
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247 participate in the line of thought... if i may...?
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248 abacab...
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249 i am afraid i am not the big mac... iam not pretending to be the machrioness
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250 either... i'm afraid... sorry that you don't know anyone personaly on this
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251 computer system... many of them go to a science fiction society meeting every
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252 other week though... and i went to the last one... it is a lot of fun and most
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253 of all... you get to see the faces of people behind all the stories, and entries
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254 and everything else...
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255
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256 speaking of great writing...
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257 all of the writing i've seen on these last two disks are terrific... i am glad
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258 that these disks in particular are good too... i am getting school credit for
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259 using this system... and my communications techer wants to see it... again...
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260 especially nice writing... everyone...
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261
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262 gaudy minsky...
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263 when i handed you the note after porsfis... you said you would get back to me
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264 soon... and i thought that meant on one of the systems i mentioned... please...
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265 contact me there... i only use a few systems and i don't get around to all of
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266 them too often... anyway, thank you for reading the note... four pages it may
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267 be...
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268
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269 it seems there were not nearly as many people as i thought... which is bad...
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270 actually... this means that i must be forgetting somebody...
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271
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272 tttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt
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273
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274 RYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRY
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275 BEEP BEEP
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276 Ian stopped dictating to the terminal as a window appeared on
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277 top of the report he was preparing for NET HQ.
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278 **********************
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279 * Priority Two Alert *
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280 * <F15> *
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281 **********************
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282
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283 Ian muttered, "This had better be good", as he pressed the
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284 indicated key.
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285 SHOOTING REPORTED IN WESTON-BENSON. POLICE CALL WAS CANCELLED.
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286 INFORMANT XZ7 UNCERTAIN AS TO EXACT DETAILS, BUT INDICATES THAT
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287 VICTIM APPEARS TO BE IMPORTANT MEMBER OF 'NEESHIES. RUMORS THAT
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288 MA PREM DAVIS WAS VICTIM, BUT UNABLE TO CONFIRM. ALSO RUMORS OF
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289 ESCAPED PRISONERS. END.
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290 The terminal inquired, "ORDERS, SIR?"
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291 "Yes, get some of our people in there AT ALL COSTS! We MUST find
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292 out who was shot, what condition they're in, and who the prisoners were
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293 - if there really were any..."
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294 After recieving acknowledgement of the orders from dispatch,
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295 Ian resumed the report.
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296 "... infiltration of agents into chip design teams progresing
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297 according to schedule. Interim goal should be reached..."
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298 RYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRY
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299 *=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*
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300 ELIZABETH WANDERED INTO THE OFFICE CLUTCHING THE NEWSPAPER UNDER HER ARM. THE
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301 AD READ "ADVENTUROUS PEOPLE WANTED FOR VARIOUS WORK." SHE THOUGHT OF HERSELF
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302 AS ADVENTUROUS, AND SHE NEEDED A JOB, SO HERE SHE WAS. THE OFFICE DOOR READ
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303 'UNDERGROUND AGENCIES'. "THIS CAN'T BE IT" SHE THOUGHT. ALAS, IT WAS.
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304 BEHIND THE DESK SAT THE UGLIEST WOMAN IN THE WORLD. "I CAME ABOUT THE AD
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305 IN THE PAPER" STAMMERED ELIZABETH. "SURE YOU DID" SHOT BACK THETHING (WOMAN).
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306 "GO ON IN, HE'S NOT DOING ANYTHING." ELIZABETH SLOWLY STARTED FOR THE DOOR
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307 AND CAUTIOUSLY TURNED THE KNOB. THE DOOR SWUNG OPEN SLOWLY AS THE MAN IN THE
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308 BIG LEATHER CHAIR SWUNG AROUND. "YOU!! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?" ELIZABETH
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309 CRIED....
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310 =*=*=*=*=*=* ELIZABETH RYAN =*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=* ON AT 11:15 01:01:85 *=*=*=*=*
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311 #$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$#
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312 Elizabeth: Cute, cute... not one of your better efforts, but all right for now.
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313 Joshua: Imagine me sitting at my computer, smirking. Then imagine me wiping the smirk off my face, repentant.
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314 There, will that get me off the hook for saying your mind resembles scrambled eggs?
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315 Above: So I made a mistake... It takes a while to break old habits. Anyway, I don't have a checking account, thus
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316 I can't get into trouble with my checks.
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317 #$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$#
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318 Fred was having a hard time believing what I had told him about John.
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319 "Listen, Farley, I know John. Why don't you trust him anymore?"
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320 "Because he's head of a department that doesn't exist, according to that computer. Did he ever tell you that?"
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321 "No... but the computer could be wrong, Farley. Just think back a while... not too long ago I was wrong about the ELT."
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322 "Yes, and you could be wrong this time, too."
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323 For some reason, Fred shut up after hearing that.
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324 For the next five minutes, we drove peacefully. Then-
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325 "Farley, there's been a report of two men leaving a hotel. One was covered with what appeared to be blood stains."
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326 "It's probably a prank of some sort- those 'blood stains' are most likey just ketchup."
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327 "Okay, but how do you explain the gun that one of them carried?"
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328 "Gun?" Perhaps this was something, after all. "Get us there, fast."
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329 Fred wasted no time and followed as few of the traffic laws as possible, while I made sure that ol' Betsy was loaded.
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330 Soon we pulled up to the hotel.
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331 "Where are they, Fred? I don't see them.", I said.
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332 "Scanning surrounding area... No sign of them. Hmmm, that's peculiar."
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333 "What? What are you talking about?"
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334 "Oh, nothing. My scanners are unable to penetrate a portion of the traffic ahead. Seems to be centered about four
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335 blocks away."
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336 "Can't penetrate?" My mind raced. Something purposely blocking the scanners..? "Follow the area you can't penetrate."
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337 "How did you know it was moving? Never mind. Engaging engine."
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338 We set off in pursuit of the strange null area in Fred's sensor range. I hoped that they wouldn't turn it off, for
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339 if they did, then we would lose them......again.
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340 "Keep back, Fred. Just keep him within range. I want to know where he's going."
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341 Luck was with us, for the moment. The car in question (we could see it now, barely) pulled into the parking area of
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342 an apartment complex.
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343 "The null area has disappeared, Farley. Two people are getting out of the car... Heading up to an apartment."
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344 We pulled in, just in time to see the people get into the elevator... A woman and her child.
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345 I parked Fred. Walking nonchalantly towards the other car, I looked about. No one to be seen.
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346 A quick search of the car revealed a small disk that had held onto the car magnetically.
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347 "Examine this, Fred.", I said as I showed the disk to him.
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348 "A jammer, of the type that would generate the field that I sensed, or rather, didn't sense."
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349 "In other words, a decoy." My hopes were fine china, falling to the floor- smashed into hundreds of pieces.
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350 "I'm afraid so."
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351 #$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$##$# Farley #$##$##$# January 1st, NINETEEN-EIGHTY-FIVE (how's that?) #$##$##$##$##$##$##$#
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352 --------------------------------------
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353 Back Water is a great way to rid one's
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354 self of depression...
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355 -------------------------------Mad Max
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356 =============== Baa Baa Black Lingerie ===============
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357 The day wore on like any other. In the morning, the man fed me the usual food
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358 and made those noises which I couldn't understand. His tone was nice.
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359 I decided to be friendly. "Baaaa, Baaaa!" ("Good morning nice man!") The end
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360 of the man's mouth curved up. He said something I couldn't understand. His
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361 tone was real nice. The man left.
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362 All went well until the time between when the milk was taken from the big
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363 brown animal, and when the man fed the birds which don't fly. It was then that
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364 the strange man came. He said something I couldn't understand. His voice
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365 sounded different than that of the man who fed me.
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366 I went with the strange man. He put me in a small room and sat down next to
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367 me. Everything outside the room moved by very quickly. "Baaaa, Baaaa"
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368 ("I don't like this very much.") The man ran his hand along my hair and said
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369 something I didn't understand. He made me feel better. Everything stopped
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370 moving. We got out of the room and went to a new room. There were lots of
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371 strange people around here. The man started peeling off his skin. His
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372 under-skin was black and flimsy. I couldn't tell if he was a ram or a ewe.
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373 He put his hands on me. Suddenly he said something in a very mean tone.
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374 /////////////////////////
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375 Petrov burned with rage. "I specifically asked for a FEMALE!" Picking up
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376 the animal, Petrov went back down to the street. He noticed that the sheep had
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377 a confused expression on his face. "I'm sorry boy. It's not your fault.
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378 But if someone saw me with a MALE sheep they'd think I was perverted or
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379 something." Petrov thought wistfully of the candle-light dinner with romantic
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380 music that wouldn't be.
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381
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382 <We all know how our hero was picked up by the Portland Police
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383 Kinko-Squad. If you don't, the pictures and articles can be
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384 found in any major newspaper. (Petrov is now widely recognized
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385 and his image was severely tarnished. (Harumph)) We pick up
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386 our story with Petrov being released from the police station.>
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387
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388 Petrov had made a pet out of his sheep. "Come on Loam, le's get out of
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389 here." He thought for a moment. "I don't know why I named you that, maybe
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390 you reminded me of someone." It wasn't until Loam was turned around and facing
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391 the other direction that the resemblance struck him. "Oh yeah!"
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392 While leaving the police station, Petrov's attention was diverted by a report
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393 on a nearby desk. He tried to read it inconspicuously. Apparently, a number
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394 of green-clad followers of Rajneesh Dangerfield had been hanging around a
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395 certain apartment building. People living in the building had been complaining
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396 that the cultists were asking a lot of questions and peering in the windows from
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397 the fire escapes. Petrov memorized the name and address of the building.
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398 Who could the 'neeshies be looking for? Only one answer came to mind. That
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399 man who had escaped from the commune and caused the great commotion! Petrov had
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400 never met the man, but he was anxious to do so. Though he felt he was grasping
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401 at straws, Petrov needed a purpose and he was still very concerned about
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402 Rajneesh activity.
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403 The trip to the building was uneventful. Once there, however, he knew not
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404 where to look. "You'll have to stay in the car, Loam. I promise I'll find a
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405 better place for you to stay later." Petrov's sheep had been attracting quite a
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406 bit of attention ever since that news story came out.
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407 Petrov entered the building. While approaching the front desk, he passed
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408 by an elderly woman who was visibly offended by his attire. "Another wierdo
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409 like the one in room 23." Contempt was clear in her voice. Petrov decided to
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410 check out room 23.
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411 The age-old hair trick! Petrov saw the hair strung across the door. It had
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412 already been disturbed, though. Carefully opening the door, he peered inside
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413 the apartment. Slowly he entered the room. A piercing noise hit Petrov's ears
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414 and an even more piercing bullet hit his left arm. Swinging around, Petrov drew
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415 his weapon and, in a single reflex action, he gunned down his assailant.
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416 Turning on the main lights, Petrov found a green clothed figure crumpled on the floor.
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417 "Go ahead, make my day!" A little late, but Petrov had always wanted to
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418 say that. After tossing a few firecrackers out the window to explain the noise,
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419 he began dressing his wounds and waiting for the room's true occupant to return.
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420 Petrov
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421 \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
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422
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423 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ (small msgs)
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424 I'm sorry that I can't enter any more of my Young Master West stories right
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425 now, but too many guys with funny little buldges and interesting cars have
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426 seemed to have dominated the current scene, excepting the will power of Piper
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427 and this 'Chela' person. To the two of you I say -
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428 'Thanks for staying on, you deliever good storylines in -this- reality'
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429 Joshua- You asked for it so here it is... Your entries- they're excellant!
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430 I'm just sorry that I've missed the stories that you (may have) written
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431 earlier. Keep a low-profile, and keep up the good work!
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432 Chela- Your name stirs me. I know I've heard that word before but can't put the
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433 right, or meaningful explaination with it. Doesn't it have something to do
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434 with a raised level of consciousness or something? My studies are slipping.
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435 Man in Gray- I think that you have your famed data banks out of whack! hee-hee
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436 Yes I have been in Germany, in all honesty, and no the photo I gave you of
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437 myself posing in front of the aircraft is not a fake. That is my -real-
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438 uniform, and I'm standing in front of a -real- F-106 Delta Dart... Maybe
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439 you need to update those maps and files that you're using these days.
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440 Gee, the twelfth seems sooo far away...
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441 Oh well, my mind has just gone blank >gasp< so I will desist for now.
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442 See all of You later, I hope.
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443 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ --->the Guardian 0320 Hrs 01 Jan 85
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444
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445 -_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
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446 Well it was really really late and the kid was really
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447 getting tired of having to sit all alone on this empty Three-
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448 Cities bus in the dead of the morning of what promised to be
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449 another one of those miserable days where nothing was probably
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450 going to happen and usually did. "Boy, this bus driver sure
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451 is a real Jerk!" the kid said to the person that wasn't sitting
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452 next to him. "Jerk" in his book meant "any driver that uses
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453 the brake too often and gave you the feeling that you were
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454 at sea and not on the road" You know the type, don't you? In
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455 this case, it was true. Having decided that this driver was
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456 TRUELY a real Jerk, the kid decided to watch him a little more
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457 carefuly to see if he could figure out just what it was that had
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458 made God create more Jerks than Smoothies. Although the kid had
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459 just run out of his daily ration of that elixer -COLA- he
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460 did not let this bother him, because watching does not mean that
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461 you actually have to think about watching, you can just watch.
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462 This recursivly incorrect bit of logic is what allowed the kid to
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463 get away with as much as he already has in life, and would
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464 probably get him into more trouble than we could imagine.
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465 Just then the bus driver gave the bus a really good jolt at
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466 the next red light and opened the door to get off. "Hey,
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467 where are you going, Mr. Bus-Driver?" the kid asked rather
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468 stupidly. "Um gunna git me a cola', itz bin a long night,"
|
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469 said the driver in reply. Great, just what I need, I'm
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470 not going to get Homme at all tonight at this pace, he thought.
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471 Just then another bit of recusive thought struck.
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472 I won't get into the details of the thought as they would
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473 make a madman of any phiposipher and were quite muddy at the
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474 time. What the kid did next was to go up to the drivers
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475 seat and began to play "she loves me/she loves me not" with
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476 the nearest stack of transfers available, waiting for the
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477 driver to get back so he could shut the door in his face
|
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478 tell him what a Jerk he really was, and give him the Razzbarry.
|
|
479 Well, it took him almost all the way through the second pad of
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480 transfers to finaly get noticed by the driver. It worked. Just
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481 as he was going to say something like "Jus' wut da ya think yer
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|
482 doin' with ma trans-fers?" the kid closed the door on him and
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|
483 locked him out of his own bus. So far so good. At this time it
|
|
484 had struck him as to just how late they really were. With all
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485 things not considered, there was only one clear(?) path for
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486 the kid to take: Drive himself home. Now. (see what I mean?)
|
|
487 At this, he released the brake at the same time that he noticed
|
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488 that the light had just changed to amber. (Another kid daffy-
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489 nition: Red:stop; Green:go; Amber:go -very fast- )
|
|
490 "Gee, that was easy" thought the kid after he had so kindly helped
|
|
491 remove a fire-hydrant and two newspaperstands for the city.
|
|
492 "Now for the fun part. Destination:Gresham Transit Station."
|
|
493 If mere mortals didn't believe in warp-driven busses before, there
|
|
494 were now about a score of pedestrians that did.
|
|
495 After gracefuly parking the bus in the womens restroom of the bus
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496 stop, the kid picked up his coat of many pockets, his toy briefcase,
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|
497 and proceeded to leave the bus whilst whisteling Yankee Doodle Dandy.
|
|
498 "Now," thought the kid, "what can I do to get NET- er, I mean
|
|
499 U.N.I.T. to notice me?" The thirst for cola had returned...
|
|
500 _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_ abacab _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_
|
|
501 p.s. I am the one that does MA 7, because that's the smallest it gets.
|
|
502
|
|
503 [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]
|
|
504
|
|
505 My hand touches the worn fence, and tiny flakes of faded paint fall
|
|
506 from between my fingers to the weeds and brush that have overgrown the
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|
507 grounds. The evening air is cool and damp, though not as cool as in
|
|
508 previous weeks when snow fell specifically to inconvenience the ill
|
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509 humoured of the world. Even so I find that it chills me, and reminds me of
|
|
510 how long I've been outdoors. The sky has been overcast all day, dour
|
|
511 clouds covering the world in a grey blanket, but my attention is drawn
|
|
512 suddenly by a shaft of light piercing through from the western horizon.
|
|
513 The clouds have parted there just long enough for the sun to bid me
|
|
514 farewell as it continues its daily journey, momentarily overwhelming me
|
|
515 with its incredible beauty. Standing transfixed, I watch this lovely
|
|
516 display until its end and night finally spreads. I am reminded again that
|
|
517 there is so much to see in this world about us, so much in which we can
|
|
518 find delight and simple joy, and like so many others I sometimes am in such
|
|
519 a rush that I fail to appreciate them.
|
|
520 A thought quickly comes to me which causes me to laugh out loud. I
|
|
521 wonder if the other Inn-habitants like syrup with their philosophy? In my
|
|
522 time I've supplied them with enough to rot their teeth I'm sure! But it's
|
|
523 always what I truly feel so I can do nothing else.
|
|
524
|
|
525 A fire in the hearth, a chair by the window, a book, a blanket, and a
|
|
526 steaming mug filled with a holiday drink ("Tom & Jerry", was it named after
|
|
527 the charming and rather violent cartoon characters?), and I am warm once
|
|
528 again. I think back on my last hurried dash through the Inn, and remember
|
|
529 with chagrin my failure to respond to d's message to me. Always rushing to
|
|
530 and fro, I'm sometimes in such a great hurry to reach my goals that I fail
|
|
531 to consider the feelings that might be trampled in my headlong flight. Oh,
|
|
532 my fine friend, your words were heard! Curse me as thoughtless and cruel
|
|
533 for such a tardy response! I have written much intended to be brought
|
|
534 here, but so often the subjects are dated by changing events before they
|
|
535 can be entered. Then my words seem so out of place that they are disgarded
|
|
536 and I begin over, only to have events pass me by again. This particular
|
|
537 entry seems to fall into that category as well, but I've decided to bring
|
|
538 it here anyway since I felt it was needed. I get to the Inn so rarely
|
|
539 these days, but everytime I do it is such great fun, and is especially
|
|
540 joyful when you've joined the group.
|
|
541
|
|
542 And the Keeper of the Inn, our patron and host..... I feel the need
|
|
543 to express to you that, though I come less often than at one time, I come
|
|
544 because I want to. I am here because I *enjoy* the company of the Inn! I
|
|
545 may sometimes appear tired, or seem distracted, but this is due to events
|
|
546 in the world outside of this land and not happenings within. Some nine
|
|
547 months ago I agreed to take a job that required much more of my time, and
|
|
548 this has resulted in less energy for those things I enjoy the most.
|
|
549 Friends, family, all have suffered a loss of my time since there is so much
|
|
550 less of it to be shared, and I sometimes feel as if I were spread much too
|
|
551 thin for my own good. But please be assured that it is nothing you have
|
|
552 done that has caused my visits to be fewer. On the contrary, you are one
|
|
553 of the reasons that I make time to come back!
|
|
554
|
|
555 Oh! It seems to be growing late (as it always does this time of
|
|
556 night!), and I've so much to do! Perhaps I can return to the Inn this
|
|
557 weekend, if I can sneak in the door through the crowd that seems to have
|
|
558 gathered. Why do I feel like Alice's White Rabbit! So much to do, so much
|
|
559 to do.......
|
|
560
|
|
561 [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]PAM+[][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]
|
|
562
|
|
563 pppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp
|
|
564 Happy new year everyone! I'll be leaving the piper and peg for rest and
|
|
565 recuperation in the tropics for a while. In the meantime, here('s something
|
|
566 I found in a recent copy of the Mother Earth News.
|
|
567 PoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoem
|
|
568 REINCARNATION
|
|
569 "What is reincarnation?" a cowboy as'd his friend.
|
|
570 "Well, it starts," his old pal tells him, "when your life come to an end.
|
|
571 They wash your neck an' comb your hair an' clean your fingernails,
|
|
572 Then they sticks you in a padded box, away from life's travails.
|
|
573 Now the box and you goes in a hole that's been dug in the ground,
|
|
574 And reincarnation starts, my friend, when they plant you 'neath that mound.
|
|
575 The clods melt down, as does the box, an' you who are inside,
|
|
576 That's when your're beginning your transformation ride.
|
|
577 And in a while, the grass will grow upon that render'd mound,
|
|
578 Until some day, upon that spot, a lonely flower is found.
|
|
579 And then a horse might wander by an' brgraze upon that flower
|
|
580 Thet once was you an's now become your vegitative bower.
|
|
581 Well, the flower that the horse done ate, along with his other feed,
|
|
582 Makes bone, an' fat an' muscle essential to this steed.
|
|
583 But there's a part that he can't use an' so it passes through,
|
|
584 And there it lies upon the ground, this thing that once was you.
|
|
585 And if by chance I happen by an' see this on the ground,
|
|
586 I'll stop awhile an' ponder on this object I have found.
|
|
587 And I'll think about reincarnation, an' life an' death an' such,
|
|
588 And I'll go away concludin, 'Heck, you ain't changed that much!'"
|
|
589
|
|
590 PoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoemPoem
|
|
591 IS THIS A COMMODORE 64 BBS ?
|
|
592
|
|
593 no it isn't... it is run on a nonstandard information storage device... i am
|
|
594 not too sure... so you could ask CiCistop Mikey about the restof the information
|
|
595 you may want... sincerely... tilean... and i am considering a name change by the way...
|
|
596
|
|
597 if no one minds really... and since i only first entered it... would anyone
|
|
598 mind if i called myself tylian from now on...? thank you for your time...
|
|
599
|
|
600 *_%@#*%#_@!*_!)#*%_@)*_)*%_)$*%)_$#*_)*^&_#$*^_*^_#$*^_)*_)@*%@_)*%_@*%_@)%*%@_
|
|
601 <COMSET OPERATIONAL>
|
|
602 ? link direct to RY
|
|
603 <LINK OPERATIONAL. PROCEED>
|
|
604 ? Agent Parity here. Flemming and I are at the Benson, bottom of elevator shaft
|
|
605 A1, our old NET office. It seems as if somehow the greenies found out about
|
|
606 the place, after we left it, and set up shop for themselves. I can't say much
|
|
607 for their interior decorator, but it seems as if they stocked up the place
|
|
608 pretty well. Anti-everything mines, small arms, automatic weapons, food,
|
|
609 medicine, and colorful beads and trinkets. It was a definite build up for
|
|
610 some big operation.
|
|
611 The big news is who we found. We managed to persuade the local police that
|
|
612 we were 'government' agents, and we got a look at the body. Rajneesh
|
|
613 Dangerfield will never turn another convert again. Someone really did the
|
|
614 job on him. By the size of the hole in his head, looks like large caliber
|
|
615 weapon. Also, five close proximity wounds around the heart. The killer was
|
|
616 a marksmen. No sign of the escapees. The entire complex is deserted. Flemming
|
|
617 is taking care of the ordinance here. I am going to follow up on the two
|
|
618 who were seen fleeing the scene.
|
|
619 No sign of Fellows. Also, Minsky seems to be missing too. I was doing my
|
|
620 Billy Idol act, she was Joan Jett. I turned around and she was gone. She's
|
|
621 up to something. I'll check in at normal comset time.^c
|
|
622 <MESSAGE SENT> <AWAIT REPLY?>
|
|
623 ? n
|
|
624 <LINK TERMINATED>
|
|
625 *%_#)$@*%$#)_
|
|
626 I put the comset away and headed for the secret exit. On my way out
|
|
627 I spied a bottle of sheep dip. Hmmm....I wonder.... *%$#)L'homme sans Parity *_)
|
|
628 *************************************** Pam: I won't be here Sunday, I should be around Saturday and 'late' Friday.
|
|
629 Assuming that you might want to talk. Sorry for being such a cretin. ********** CISTOP MIKEY ************
|
|
|
|
TOTAL NUMBER OF LINES = 629
|