The Sports Goods Industry Of India Marketing Essay

The Sports Goods Industry Of India Marketing Essay The roots of Sports Goods Industry in India are in Sialkot, Pakistan. In 1947, when the partition of the country took place, many of the skilled Hindu craftsmen migrated to Indian part of Punjab and settled in Jalandhar where one of the major sports cluster is now located. Later on some of the migrants shifted to Meerut. The sports Goods Industry of India is spread over the length and breadth of the country. It is located in Jalandhar, Meerut, Delhi, Gurgaon, Agra, Mumbai, Moradabad and Kolkata. The industry is concentrated largely in Meerut and Jalandhar. Punjab and Meerut have emerged as the leading centers for sports goods manufacture and the only industry which appears to offer some prospects is sports goods industry of Punjab, Meerut is yet to be powerful. (Chander Mohan, 2002). Both Meerut and Jalandhar together claim more than 80% of the domestic market. A major share of all Indias output is accounted for by these two centers (Pandit, 1985, p.116) The sports goods industry is mainly concentrated in the cottage and small scale sector. The industry is highly labour intensive, provides employment to weaker sections of the society. Sports Goods Industry is highly labour intensive industry consists miniature workshops with the exception of medium and large scale units. (Sharma, 1991, p.10). The industry has shown a tremendous growth over the last ten decades. The exports of sports goods industry can be seen as: The Indian sports goods export has shown an increasing trend. It manufactures approximately 318 items (Manzoor Ahmad, p. 4). Today many of the Indian manufacturers are producing the products under their own brand name. They are also producing for other international sports brands. The major item that are exported are Inflatable balls, Hammocks, Cricket Bats, Boxing Equipments and Protective Equipments. The item wise export of sports goods for 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 is as follows: The largest component of export is Inflatable balls which accounts for 29% of total exports followed by Hammocks which accounts for 9% and cricket bats accounting for 8%. The total domestic market for various sports goods is estimated to be around Rs. 170 crores of which cricket related items account for 70% of the market share. (Exim Bank, 1998). The production structure of the industry consists of four levels: Big units which mainly cover export market apart from supplying goods to domestic market. Small units which manufactures only for domestic market or as per the orders of exporters. Sub contractors who are catering to the demand of these big and small units and producing exclusively as per the orders received. Household workers who are producing goods at home. Some of them obtain raw material directly from the factories while some of them produce as pr the orders of subcontractors. These workers are paid in piece rate basis. 4.2 SPORTS GOODS CLUSTER OF JALANDHAR Jalandhar is an important city of Punjab located in the doaba region. It is located between two rivers i.e. Satluj and Beas. It is also situated between two important cities of Punjab i.e. Ludhiana (70 kms) and Amritsar (60 kms). Jalandhar is also a city of location of two important clusters of handtools and the leather cluster. Apart from these two clusters, Sports Goods Cluster is also located at Jalandhar. Today more than 50% of Indias export of sports goods is from Jalandhar alone (As per the records of SGEPC, Delhi). The emergence of sports goods cluster of Jalandhar can be divided into two parts:- Sports Goods Cluster before Independence Sports Goods Cluster after Independence 4.2.1 Sports Goods Cluster before Independence The origin of sports goods cluster of Jalandhar can be traced back to Sialkot (now in Pakistan). Prior to partition of the country, Sialkot was the sports goods production centre. Sialkot is located in foothills of Himalayas. The wood required for manufacturing of sports items was available in large quantity. The credit for introducing cricket in India goes to British army. As the number of British people increases, the demand for sports equipments also increases. After sometime, middle class families of India also get increased in playing the games. But the increased demand of sports equipments could not be easily fulfilled by those items which are imported from England. Further, their prices were also high and an average Indian cannot afford it as the cost of transportation was very high. The first item to be manufactured was a tennis racquet by the firm Uberai Ltd. in 1888. This firm was founder of sports industry in India (Sharma, 1990, p.16). According to a myth, sports goods in dustry starts in Sialkot, when a british man broke his tennis racquet. Due to unavailability of immediate replacement, a local person Mr. Ganda Singh Uberai, a clerk in army was asked to get it repair. Mr, Ganda called a local artisan to repair racquet. The man did a perfect job and sports goods industry comes into existence. There was manufacturing of only racquet on small scale till 1895. Then with the passage of time, with the spread of education in India, various European games like cricket, badminton and squash gained popularity in Indian educational institutions and encouraged the production of sports goods related to these games (Sharma, 1990, p.16).The product range further expanded to include cricket and hockey balls, footballs, polo sticks etc. By that time, many workers get training in Uberio Ltd. and start setting up their own units. By the time of partition, Sialkot has earned a reputed name as manufacturer of sports goods. In 1946-47, sports goods worth Rs. 3 crore wer e exported from this centre and industry was estimated to employ 40000 to 45000 workers directly and indirectly (Pandit, 1985, p116) 4.2.2 Sports Goods Cluster after Independence In 1947, due to partition of the country, Sialkot becomes a part of Pakistan. The entrepreneurs belonging to one community decides to shift from Sialkot. The workers belonging to that community also migrated along with the entrepreneurs. As per the resettlement plan of Government of India, initially these migrants settled in Batala in Punjab, which was near to Sialkot and close to hills where the wood required for manufacturing sports items could be grown. But as per resettlement plan of Government of India, these people shift from Batala to Jalandhar. Jalandhar was found to be suitable place for manufacturing sports items due to its location near the foothills of Himalayas which assured regular supply of wood and further the presence of leather cluster assured regular supply of leather. At Jalandhar, both of the raw material required were easily available. Some of the migrants shifted to Merutt, where also both wood and leather were available. The migrants located at Jalandhar start ed manufacturing of sports items and flourished as a cluster consisting of a number of firms working together. Jalandhar industry is located traditionally in two localities, Basti Nau and Basti Sheikh. With the growth of industry, many firms start up their units in the adjoining areas of Basti Danishmandan, Nakodar road etc. The workers working in the industry are settled in Bhargav camp, Gandhi camp and Basti Danishmandan. Now entrepreneurs have started setting up modern units in Surgical and Sports Goods Complex, industrial area, located on the highway to the city. However the network of traditional business process is so strong that even these firms have their offices in Basti Nau and Basti Sheikh- the traditional location. 4.3 MAJOR PRODUCTS OF THE CLUSTER Sports goods is a wider term and any item which is used for sporting activities is also included in this term. A number of products are covered under this category. The various sports goods can be classified into following sectors: A. Inflatable Balls 1. Footballs 2. Soft leather goods 3. Bladders 4. Water Polo balls 5. Base balls 6. Volley Balls 7. Tennis balls 8. Rugby balls 9. Hand balls 10. Punch balls 11. Golf and Billiard balls 12. Net balls B. Sports Equipment 1. Cricket equipment 2. Hockey equipment 3. Badminton, Tennis Squash Rackets 4. Childrens playing games and toys 5. Shuttle cocks 6. Exercise and Gymnastic equipments 7. Sports nets 8. Carrom boards 9. Chessman and Chess boards 10. Athletic equipment 11. Metal Trophies and medals 12. Lawn and Table Tennis equipment 13. Rolling skates 14. Skipping ropes 15. Weight lifting equipment 16. Health Fitness equipment 17. Club equipment 18. Playground equipment C. Sports Wears 1. Shirts, trousers, track suits 2. Ties, bags and badges 3. Sports shoes D. Sports Protective Gears 1. Protective equipment Arm Leg guards, Head guard, Chest guard 2. Shin Guard 3. Helmets 4. Hand gloves 5. Boxing gloves and boots

If There Is Nothing Lurking in the Darkness, Then Illumination and Exposure Are Pointless

Charles Brockden Brown’s novel Wieland is famous as the first American Gothic novel. It was published in 1798, at the very end of the Eighteenth Century and just fifteen years after the end of the American Revolution. While the novel was written in a time still dominated by Enlightenment-era thinking, the novel questions many of the assumptions of the Enlightenment. The realizations of the limits of the Enlightenment become apparent as the book progresses. The novel offers the characters Wieland and Pleyel as opposites in the novel, the former representing religion and the latter representing rationalism. Wieland is a novel that interacts with epistemology, that is, the study of knowledge; and the two characters are prime examples to focus on. The Enlightenment was characterized by the belief that the universe is a logical and orderly place and the hope that humanity would uncover the laws that govern it. Multiple scientific discoveries led to achievements in politics, the arts, and religion; but as the work proceeded, the importance of religion seemed to decline. As the years went on and questions remained unanswered after the American Revolution, it became assumed that not everything was as logical as it seemed at the spark of the Enlightenment. Another factor that added to the â€Å"burning out† of the Enlightenment was the French Revolution. Americans saw what a bloodbath the revolution in Europe had been and realized that the American Revolution could have just as easily been as bad. The combination of the limits of the Enlightenment with the near-missed massacre led writers to adopt a dark and opposite side of the reasonable thinking of the Enlightenment: the Gothic. This movement became the exploration of the extremes of emotions and limits of human understanding, so it included many mysterious happenings. Gothic literature typically contains old ruins, inexplicable occurrences, and overall dark environments. The main purpose of Gothic work was to respond to the shortcomings of the Enlightenment. In Brown’s Wieland, the characters Wieland and Pleyel are colleagues who share different views on life. Wieland, the brother of Clara the narrator, is a man of religion and emotion while Pleyel, the beloved of Clara, is a man of reason. The novel begins with the story of Wieland’s grandfather, which is disgustingly Gothic. The son of an esteemed family, Grandfather Wieland eventually marries the daughter of a merchant, which is the first conflict for the Wieland family line. The next Wieland (father to Clara) is a very religious man who develops an obsession for his temple. His constant brooding over the need to be in his church leads him to â€Å"spontaneously combust† one evening at his beloved establishment. Grandfather Wieland seems to curse the family by betraying his noble line, and his son is the victim of an unexplainable, possibly divine occurrence; Brown is using the most blatant Gothic references he can. At the end of this stained family tree is Wieland, Clara’s brother. He is a man of religion just like his father, however his character is not a true Calvinist like his father was. Wieland hears voices from an unknown source, and due to his outstanding faith, he attributes them to God. His connection with this formless voice leads Wieland to trust in his own religious mysticism. Positive that he hears, knows, and properly understands God’s will; Wieland accepts the divine orders given to him and murders his wife and children. Carwin tells Wieland that it has been him the whole time throwing his voice and playing with Wieland’s head, but Wieland does not let himself be deterred from his heavenly task to kill Clara by the â€Å"demon† Carwin. It is not until Carwin throws his voice again that Wieland is persuaded into believing that he has acted out of madness. Only by hearing the shapeless voice does Wieland accept that he has done wrong and believe that he is insane; he does not believe Carwin when he reveals the truth because he is so certain that God has been speaking to him, but when he truly understands (because â€Å"God†/Carwin speaks to Wieland), he decides to kill himself. Pleyel is Wieland’s closest friend, even though he has no connection with religion. His opposition provided Wieland and him with an extensive amount of room to discuss their personal beliefs. Having spent his youth abroad, Pleyel is a man of reason who allows his knowledge of the world to rule his decisions. Clara even states that Pleyel rejects â€Å"all guidance but his reasons,† confirming his Enlightenment-ness even further. Even though he and Wieland are unlike each other, they both offer views on the Enlightenment. A moment in the novel in which Pleyel parallels with Wieland’s character is when the former hears Carwin throwing his voice to give the illusion that Clara and Carwin are together and have been intimate with each other. Being the man of reason that he is, Pleyel decides that since he heard Clara and Carwin speaking it is only logical to conclude that what he hears is reality. He then takes it upon himself to court another woman since Clara â€Å"evidently† is not the virtuous woman he thought she was. Pleyel does not trust Clara after hearing Carwin’s biloquism, but if he truly loved her then he would take her word over what he heard. Unfortunately, Pleyel trusts that his own mind is able to discern the truth over Clara’s heart and runs away from the reality he cannot handle. He trusts that his reasoning is greater than his emotions and ignores his own feelings for Clara, which leads him to marry another woman before he finally ends up with Clara years later. Charles Brockden Brown’s Wieland is a Gothic novel of epistemology. It is unlike anything else that has been read this semester as it is one of the earliest Gothic novels written. The ancestral curse that befalls the Wieland family when Grandfather Wieland taints the noble bloodline is first carried to his son, whose only gratification is in his temple, who spontaneously combusts; and is then carried to his grandson who believes and trusts so firmly in his faith that he cannot differentiate between a biloquist and God’s actual orders and kills his family and himself. These â€Å"supernatural† occurrences are key in Gothic novels, even though Wieland and Clara are the only two characters who fall for them. Pleyel, on the other hand, relies on his senses and instead of trusting what seems to be true (like Wieland), he trusts (what he concludes) has to be true. The ongoing tug-of-war of knowledge throughout the story between Wieland’s faith and Pleyel’s reason comes to an end when Wieland, the man of religion, murders his entire family because of his mistake of certainty. Brown is offering his take on the post-Enlightenment stance on religion through the tragic flaw and downfall of Wieland; while at the same time showing how the limits of human understanding in Pleyel cause him to not believe Clara and marry another woman first. Even though both men lose their (first) wives, Pleyel manages to repair his relationship with Clara and marry her. This must be the victory of reason over religion. By embracing the dark side of the Enlightenment that was virtually untouched before and during the Eighteenth Century, Brown’s Wieland attributes religious mysticism to madness and shows the flaw of the Enlightenment to be the power of human emotions.

Night World : Daughters of Darkness Chapter 1

Rowan, Kestrel, and Jade,† Mary-Lynnette said as she and Mark passed the old Victorian farmhouse. â€Å"Huh?† â€Å"Rowan. And Kestrel. And Jade. The names of thegirls who're moving in.† Mary-Lynnette tilted herhead toward the farmhouse-her hands were full of lawn chair. â€Å"They're Mrs. Burdock's nieces. Don't you remember I told you they were coming to live with her?† â€Å"Vaguely,† Mark said, readjusting the weight of the telescope he was carrying as they trudged up the manzanita-covered hill. He spoke shortly, which Mary-Lynnette knew meant he was feeling shy. â€Å"They're pretty names,† she said. â€Å"And they must be sweet girls, because Mrs. Burdock said so.† â€Å"Mrs. Burdock is crazy.† â€Å"She's just eccentric. And yesterday she told meher nieces are all beautiful. I mean, I'm sure she's prejudiced and everything, but she was pretty definite. Each one of them gorgeous, each one a completely different type.† â€Å"So they should be going to California,† Mark saidin an almost-inaudible mutter. â€Å"They should be posing for Vogue.Where do you want this thing?† he added as they reached the top of the hill. â€Å"Right here.† Mary-Lynnette put the lawn chairdown. She scraped some dirt away with her foot so the telescope would sit evenly. Then she said casually, â€Å"You know, I thought maybe we could go over there tomorrow and introduce ourselves-sort of welcome them, you know†¦.† â€Å"Will you cut itout?†Mark said tersely. â€Å"I can organize my own life. If I want to meet a girl, I'll meet a girl. I don't need help.† â€Å"Okay, okay. You don't need help. Be careful withthat focuser tube-â€Å" â€Å"And besides, what are we going to say?† Mark said, on a roll now. â€Å"‘Welcome to Briar Creek, where nothing ever happens. Where there are more coyotes than people. Where if you really want some excitement you can ride into town and watch theSaturday night mouse racing at the Gold Creek Bar†¦.'† â€Å"Okay. Okay.† Mary-Lynnette sighed. She-looked at her younger brother, who just at the moment was illuminated by the last rays of sunset. To see him now, you'd think he'd never been sick a day in hislife. His hair was as dark and shiny as Mary Lynnette's, his eyes were as blue and clear and snapping. He had the same healthy tan as she did; thesame glow of color in his cheeks. But when he'd been a baby, he'd been thin andscrawny and every breath had been a challenge.His asthma had been so bad he'd spent most of his second year in an oxygen tent, fighting to stay alive. Mary-Lynnette, a year and a half older, had won dered every day if her baby brother would ever come home. It had changed him, being alone in that tent whereeven their mother couldn't touch him. When hecame out he was shy and clingy-holding on to theirmother's arm all the time. And for years he hadn'tbeen able to go out for sports like the other kids. That was all a long time ago-Mark was going to bea junior in high school this year-but he was still shy. And when he got defensive, he bit people's heads off. Mary-Lynnette wished one of the new girls would be right for him, draw him out a bit, give him confidence. Maybe she could arrange it somehow†¦. â€Å"What are you thinking about?† Mark asked suspiciously. Mary-Lynnette realized he was staring at her. â€Å"About how the seeing's going to be really good tonight,† she said blandly. â€Å"August's the best month for starwatching; the air's so warm and still. Hey,there's the first star-you can make a wish.† She pointed to a bright point of light above the southern horizon. It worked; Mark was distracted and looked, too. Mary-Lynnette stared at the back of his dark head.If it would do any good, I'd wish for romance for you, she thought. I'd wish it for myself, too-but what would be the point? There's nobody around here to be romantic with. None of the guys at school–except maybe JeremyLovett-understood why she was interested in as tronomy, or what she felt about the stars. Most ofthe time Mary-Lynnette didn't care-but occasionally she felt a vague ache in her chest. A longing to †¦ share. If she hadwished, it would have been for that, for someone to share the night with. Oh, well. It didn't help to dwell on it. And besides,although she didn't want to tell Mark, what they were wishing on was the planet Jupiter, and not a star at all. Mark shook his head as he tramped down the path that wound through buckbrush and poison hemlock. He should have apologized to Mary-Lynnette beforeleaving-he didn't like being nasty to her. In fact, she was the one person he usually tried to be decent to. But why was she always trying to fix him? To the point of wishing on stars. And Mark hadn't really made a wish, anyway. He'd thought, if I was making a wish, which I'm not because it's hokey and stupid, it would be for some excitement around here. Something wild, mark thought-and felt an innershiver as he hiked downhill in the gathering darkness. Jade stared at the steady, brilliant point of lightabove the southern horizon. It was a planet, she knew. For the last two nights she'd seen it moving across the sky, accompanied by tiny pinpricks of light that must be its moons. Where she came from, nobody was in the habit of wishing on stars, but this planet seemed like a friend-a traveler, just like her. As Jade watched it tonight, she felt a sort of concentration of hope rise inside her. Almost awish. Jade had to admit that they weren't off to a very promising start. The night air was too quiet; there wasn't the faintest sound of a car coming. She wastired and worried and beginning to be very, very hungry. Jade turned to look at her sisters. â€Å"Well, where is she?† â€Å"I don't know,† Rowan said in her most doggedly gentle voice. â€Å"Be patient.† â€Å"Well, maybe we should scan for her. â€Å"No,† Rowan said. â€Å"Absolutely not. Remember what we decided.† â€Å"She's probably forgotten we were coming,† Kestrel said. â€Å"I told you she was getting senile.† â€Å"Don't saythings like that. It's not polite,† Rowan said, still gentle, but through her teeth. Rowan was always gentle when she could manageit. She was nineteen, tall, slim, and stately. She had cinnamon-brown eyes and warm brown hair that cascaded down her back in waves. Kestrel was seventeen and had hair the color of old gold sweeping back from her face like a bird's wings. Her eyes were amber and hawklike, and she was never gentle. Jade was the youngest, just turned sixteen, and she didn't look like either of her sisters. She had white-blond hair that she used as a veil to hide behind, and green eyes. People said she looked serene, but she almost never felt serene. Usually she was either madly excited or madly anxious and confused. Right now it was anxious. She was worried about her battered, half-century-old Morocco leather suitcase. She couldn't hear a thing from inside it. 00 â€Å"Hey, why don't you two go down the road a little way and see if she's coming?† Her sisters looked back at her. There were few things that Rowan and Kestrel agreed on, but Jade was one of them. She could see that they were about to team up against her. â€Å"Now what?† Kestrel said, her teeth showing just briefly. And Rowan said, â€Å"You're up to something. What are you up to, Jade?† Jade smoothed her thoughts and her face out and just looked at them artlessly. She hoped. They stared back for a few minutes, then looked at each other, giving up. â€Å"We're going to have to walk, you know,† Kestrel said to Rowan. â€Å"There are worse things than walking,† Rowansaid. She pushed a stray wisp of chestnut-colored hair off her forehead and looked around the bus stationwhich consisted of a three-sided, glass-walled cubicle,and the splintering wooden bench. â€Å"I wish there was a telephone.† â€Å"Well, there isn't. And it's twenty miles to BriarCreek,† Kestrel said, golden eyes glinting with a kind of grim enjoyment. â€Å"We should probably leave our bags here.† Alarm tingled through Jade. â€Å"No, no. I've got allmy–all my clothes in there. Come on, twenty milesisn't so far.† With one hand she picked up her cat carrier-it was homemade, just boards and wiresand with the other she picked up the suitcase. She got quite a distance down the road before she heard the crunch of gravel behind her. They were following: Rowan sighing patiently, Kestrel chuckling softly, her hair shining like old gold in the starlight. The one-lane road was dark and deserted. But notentirely silent there were dozens of tiny night sounds, all adding up to one intricate, harmonizing night stillness. It would have been pleasant, except that Jade's suitcase seemed to get heavier with everystep, and she was hungrier than she had ever beenbefore. She knew better than to mention it to Rowan, but it made her feel confused and weak. Just when she was beginning tothink she would have to put the suitcase down and rest, she heard a new sound. It was a car, coming from behind them. The engine was so loud that it seemed to take a long time to get close to them, but when it passed, Jade saw that itwas actually going very fast. Then there was a rattling of gravel and the car stopped. It backed up and Jade saw a boy looking through the window at her. There was another boy in the passenger seat. Jade looked at them curiously. They seemed to be about Rowan's age, and theywere both deeply tanned. The one in the driver's seat had blond hair and looked as if he hadn't washed ina while. The other one had brown hair. He was wear ing a vest with no shirt underneath. He had a toothpick in his mouth. They both looked back at Jade, seeming just as curious as she was. Then the driver's window slid down. Jade was fascinated by how quickly it went. â€Å"Need a ride?† the driver said, with an oddly bright smile. His teeth shone in contrast to his dingy face. Jade looked at Rowan and Kestrel, who were just catching up. Kestrel said nothing, but looked at the car through narrow, heavy-lashed amber eyes. Rowan's brown eyes were very warm. â€Å"We sure would,† she said, smiling. Then, doubtfully, â€Å"But we're going to Burdock Farm. It may be out of your way†¦.† â€Å"Oh, hey, I know that place. It's not far,† the onein the vest said around his toothpick. â€Å"Anyway, anything for a lady,† he said, with what seemed to be an attempt at gallantry. He opened his door and got out of the car. â€Å"One of you can sit up front, and I can sit in back with the other two. Lucky me, huh?† he said to the driver. â€Å"Lucky you,† the driver said, smiling largely again. He opened his door, too. â€Å"You go on and put that cat carrier in front, and the suitcases can go in the trunk,† he said. Rowan smiled at Jade, and Jade knew what she was thinking. Iwonder if everybody out here is so friendly? They distributed their belongings and thenpiled in the car, Jade in the front with the driver, Rowan and Kestrel in the back on either side of the vested guy. A minute later they were flying downthe road at what Jade found a delightful speed, gravel crunching beneath the tires. â€Å"I'm Vic,† the driver said. â€Å"I'm Todd,† the vested guy said. Rowan said, â€Å"I'm Rowan, and this is Kestrel. That'sJade up there.† â€Å"You girls friends?† â€Å"We're sisters,† Jade said. â€Å"You don't look like sisters.† â€Å"Everybody says that.† Jade meant everybody theyhad met since they'd run away. Back home, everybodyknew they were sisters, so nobody said it. â€Å"What are you doing out here so late?† Vic asked. â€Å"It's not the place for nice girls.† â€Å"We're not nice girls,† Kestrel explained absently. â€Å"We're trying to be,† Rowan said reprovingly through her teeth. To Vic, she said, â€Å"We were waiting for our great-aunt Opal to pick us up at the bus stop, but she didn't come. We're going to live at Burdock Farm.† â€Å"Old lady Burdock is your aunt?† Todd said, removing his toothpick. â€Å"That crazy old bat?† Vic turned around to look at him, and they both laughed and shook their heads. Jade looked away from Vic. She stared down at the cat carrier, listening for the little squeaking noises that meant Tiggy was awake. She felt just slightly †¦ uneasy. She sensed something. Even though these guys seemed friendly, there was something beneath the surface. But she was toosleepy-and too light-headed from hunger-to figure out exactly what it was. Rowan was still looking polite and puzzled, but Kestrel looked at the car door on her side thoughtfully. Jade knew what she was looking for-a handle.There wasn't one. â€Å"Too bad,† Vic said. â€Å"This car's a real junkheap; you can't even open the back doors from inside.† He grabbed Jade's upper arm so hard she could feel pressure on the bone. â€Å"Now, you girls just be nice and nobody's going to get hurt.† They seemed to drive a long time beforeVic spoke again. â€Å"You girls ever been to Oregon before?† Jade blinked and murmured a negative. â€Å"It's got some pretty lonely places,† Vic said. â€Å"Outhere, for example. Briar Creek was a gold rush town, but when the gold ran out and the railroad passed it by, it just died. Now the wilderness is taking it back.† His tone was significant, but Jade didn't understand what he was trying to convey. â€Å"It does seem peaceful;† Rowan said politely from the backseat. Vic made a brief snorting sound. â€Å"Yeah, well, peaceful wasn't exactly what I meant. I meant, take this road. These farmhouses are miles apart, right? Ifyou screamed, there wouldn't be anyone to hearyou.† Jade blinked. What a strange thing to say. Rowan, still politely making conversation, said, â€Å"Well, you and Todd would.† â€Å"I mean, nobody else,† Vic said, and Jade could feel his impatience. He had been driving more and more slowly. Now he pulled the car off to the side of the road and stopped. Parked. â€Å"Nobody outthere is going to hear,† he clarified,turning around to look into the backseat. Jade looked, too, and saw Todd grinning, a wide bright grin with teeth clenched on his toothpick. â€Å"That's right,† Todd said. â€Å"You're out here alone with us, so maybe you'd better listen to us, huh?† Jade saw that he was gripping Rowan's arm with one hand and Kestrel's wrist with the other.

Rules for Sharing a College Bathroom

Whether youre living in the residence halls or in an off-campus apartment, youll still have to deal with the inevitable: the college bathroom. If youre sharing a bathroom with one or more people, chances are theres going to be some funkiness before too long. So just what can you do to prevent a place no one wants to think about from turning into the issue everyone needs to talk about? Below is a list of topics that should be covered in a discussion with people you share a bathroom with. And while some suggested rules are included, its important to make sure everyones on board and adjust, add, or eliminate rules as necessary. Because with everything else you have going on in college, who wants to be dealing with the bathroom all the time? 4 Issues WhenSharing a College Bathroom Issue 1: Time. Just like all other areas of your college life, time management can be a problem when it comes to the bathroom. Sometimes, theres high demand for the bathroom; other times, no one uses it for hours. Figuring out how to allocate time in the bathroom can be one of the most important issues. After all, if everyone wants to take a shower at 9:00 in the morning, things are going to get ugly. Make sure to discuss what time people want to use the bathroom to shower at night or in the morning, how long each person wants or needs, if its okay to have other people in the bathroom while its being used by someone else, and how other people can know when someone else is officially done. Ideal Time Rules: Create a schedule during the busiest times for when each person can shower, etc.Realistic Time Rules: Have a general understanding — e.g., Marcos usually gets done by 8, Octavio usually gets done by 8:30 — of when people come in and out and plan accordingly. Issue 2: Cleaning. There is nothing grosser than a nasty bathroom. Well, maybe a ... no. Nothing grosser. And while its inevitable that a bathroom is going to get dirty, its not inevitable that it will get gross. Try to think about ​cleaning the bathroom in three different ways. First, the daily yuck: Do people need to rinse the sink out (from toothpaste, say, or from bits of hair from shaving) after they use it? Do people need to clean their hair out of the drain every time they shower? Second, think about the short-term yuck: If you live off campus and dont have cleaning services coming every week, how often does the bathroom need to get cleaned? Who is going to do it? What happens if they dont? Is cleaning it once per week not enough? Third, think about the longer-term yuck: Who washes things like bath mats and hand towels? What about cleaning the shower curtain? How often do all of these things need to be cleaned, and by whom? Ideal Cleaning Rules: Have a schedule of who cleans the bathroom, when, and what specifically needs to be done. Also, have general rules for things like cleaning up hair and rinsing out the sink. Have each person assigned to take a shift doing a quick 15-minute clean-up every other day.Realistic Cleaning Rules: Ask people to leave the bathroom like they found it and generally clean up after themselves. Have an agreement in place that when the bathroom reaches critical nastiness, someone puts on crazy music and everyone cleans it at once so that many hands make light work. Issue 3: Guests.  Most people dont mind guests all that much ... within reason, of course. But its no fun to go wandering into your own bathroom, half asleep, only to find a stranger — particularly one of a different gender — there unexpectedly. Having a conversation and agreement about guests is especially important to do in advance of any trouble. Talk with your roommate(s) about a guest policy of sorts. Clearly, if someone has a guest over, that guest is going to need to use the bathroom at some point, so get some rules in order. If a guest is in the bathroom, how should other people be notified? Is it okay for a guest not just to use the bathroom but to do other things, like use the shower? What if someone has a frequent guest; can they leave their things in the bathroom? What if the person who has the guest isnt in the apartment or room? Is the guest allowed to just stay and hang out (and, consequently, use the bathroom)? Ideal Guest Rules: Always notify roommates in advance when a guest is coming over. Talk about when theyre coming, how long theyll stay, and if/when they need to use the bathroom for things like the shower. Make sure everyones on the same page before the guest arrives.Realistic Guest Rules: Have a way to indicate that a guest is using the bathroom, whether its a casual hook-up guest or someones parent. Dont let guests just hang out (and have access to the bathroom) if their host isnt home. And no being alone with a romantic guest in the bathroom. Thats not just gross — its tacky in a shared environment. Issue 4: Sharing.  Darnit, you ran out of toothpaste again. Will your roommate even notice if you just take a little squirt this morning? What about a little shampoo? And conditioner? And moisturizer? And shaving cream? And maybe sharing a little mascara, too? Sharing here and there can be part of having a healthy relationship with the people you live with, but it can also lead to major problems. Be clear with your roommates about when and if its okay to share. Do you want to be asked in advance first? Are some things okay to share from time to time, only in an emergency, or never? Make sure to be clear, too; you may not even consider the idea that your roommate would share your deodorant one day, but they may not think twice before doing it. Make sure to talk, too, about general use items — like the hand soap, toilet paper, and bathroom cleaners — and how and when those should be replaced (as well as by whom). Ideal Sharing Rules: Its okay to borrow things like toothpaste and shampoo in an emergency. Always ask in advance and never assume its okay unless someone says so. Create a small bathroom budget for replacing things like toilet paper and hand soap so that when things run out, they can quickly and easily be replaced.Realistic Sharing Rules: Its okay to use my toothpaste or shampoo if you really need some, but replace your own as soon as possible. And its only okay if your sharing doesnt leave my own supply empty. Keep replacements of things like toilet paper and hand soap around so that they are always available; when the replacement is used, buy another one when everyone next goes shopping for household items.