Succubus Blues CHAPTER 9

Returning to Queen Anne, I discovered I still had a lot of evening left. Unfortunately, I had nothing to do. A succubus without a social life. Very sad. It was made sadder still by the fact that I could have had any number of things to do but had dropped the ball on them. Certainly Doug had asked me out often enough; no doubt he was now enjoying his day off with a more appreciative woman. Roman I had also turned down, beautiful eyes and all. I smiled wistfully, remembering his easy banter and quick, bright charm. He could have been O'Neill, made flesh from Seth's novels. Thinking of Seth reminded me he still had my book and that I was going on Day 3 without it. I sighed, wanting to know what would happen next, to be lost in the pages of Cady and O'Neill. Now that would have been a way to spend the evening. The bastard. He'd never bring it back. I'd never find out what – With a groan, I suddenly wanted to smack my forehead for my own stupidity. Did I or did I not work for a large bookstore? After parking my car, I walked over to Emerald City and found the massive display of The Glasgow Pact that was still up from the signing. I grabbed a copy and carried it to the front counter. Beth, one of the cashiers, was momentarily free. â€Å"Will you demagnetize this for me?† I asked her, sliding the book over the counter. â€Å"Sure,† she said, running it across the pad. â€Å"Are you using your discount on it?† I shook my head. â€Å"I'm not buying it. I'm just borrowing it.† â€Å"Can you do that?† She passed the book back to me. â€Å"Sure,† I lied. â€Å"Managers can.† Minutes later, I showed my prize to an unimpressed Aubrey and turned on the water in my bathtub. While it filled, I checked my messages – none – and sorted through the mail I'd picked up on the way in. Nothing interesting there either. Satisfied nothing else required my attention, I stepped out of my clothes and sank into the watery depths of the tub, careful not to get the book wet. Aubrey, crouching on a nearby counter, watched me with squinty eyes, apparently pondering why anyone would willingly immerse themselves in water ever, let alone for extended periods of time. I figured I could read more than five pages tonight since I'd been deprived for the last couple of days. When I finished the fifteenth, I discovered I was three pages from the next chapter. Might as well end with a clean break. After I was done, I sighed and leaned back, feeling decadent and spent. Pure bliss. Books were a lot less messy than orgasms. The next morning, I went to work, happy and refreshed. Paige found me around lunchtime as I sat on the edge of my desk and watched Doug play Mine Sweeper. Seeing her, I leapt from my position while he hastily closed down the game. Paige ignored him, fixing her eyes on me. â€Å"I want you to do something with Seth Mortensen.† Uneasily, I remembered the love slave comment. â€Å"Like what?† â€Å"I don't know.† She gave a small, unconcerned shrug of the head. â€Å"Anything. He's new to town. He doesn't know anyone yet, so his social life is probably dismal.† Recalling his cold reception yesterday and conversational difficulties, I wasn't exactly surprised by this news. â€Å"I took him on a tour.† â€Å"It's not the same.† â€Å"What about his brother?† â€Å"What about him?† â€Å"I'm sure they're doing social things all the time.† â€Å"Why are you fighting this? I thought you were a fan.† I was a fan – a major one – but reading his work and interacting with him were proving to be two very different things. The Glasgow Pact was amazing, as was the e-mail he'd sent. Spoken conversation was a bit†¦ lacking. I couldn't tell Paige this, of course, so she and I went back and forth a bit on the issue while Doug looked on with interest. Finally, I agreed against my better judgment, dreading the prospect of even proposing the venture to Seth, let alone embarking upon it. When I finally made myself approach him later in the day, I was fully braced for another brush-off. Instead, he turned from his work and smiled at me. â€Å"Hey,† he said. His mood seemed so improved that I decided yesterday must have been a fluke. â€Å"Hey. How's it going?† â€Å"Not so well.† He tapped the laptop's screen lightly with his fingernail, eyes frowning as he focused on it. â€Å"They're being a bit difficult. I just can't quite get the grip I need on this one scene.† Interest swept me. Bad days with Cady and O'Neill. I had always imagined interacting with such characters must be a nonstop thrill. The ultimate job. â€Å"Sounds like you need a break then. Paige is worried about your social life.† His brown eyes glanced back to me. â€Å"Oh? How so?† â€Å"She thinks you aren't getting out enough. That you don't know anyone in town yet.† â€Å"I know my brother and his family. And Mistee.† He paused. â€Å"And I know you.† â€Å"Good thing, because I'm about to become your cruise director. â€Å" Seth's lips quirked slightly, then he shook his head and looked back at the screen. â€Å"That's really nice – of you and Paige both – but not necessary.† He wasn't dismissing me as he had yesterday, but I still felt miffed that my generous deal was not being embraced, especially since I was offering it under duress. â€Å"Come on,† I said. â€Å"What else are you going to do?† â€Å"Write.† I couldn't argue with that. Writing those novels was God's Own Work. Who was I to interfere with their creator? And yet†¦ Paige had given a directive. That was nearly a divine commandment in itself. A compromise popped into my head. â€Å"You could do something, I don't know, research-related. For the book. Two birds with one stone.† â€Å"I've already got all the research I need for this one.† â€Å"What about, uh, ongoing character development? Like†¦ going to the planetarium.† Cady had a fascination with astronomy. She would often point out constellations and link them to some symbolic story analogous to the novel's plot. â€Å"Or†¦ or†¦ a hockey game? You need fresh ideas for O'Neill's games. You'll run out.† He shook his head. â€Å"No I won't. I've never even been to a hockey game to begin with.† â€Å"I – what? That's†¦ no. Really?† He shrugged. â€Å"Where†¦ do you get the game info from then? The plays?† â€Å"I know the basic rules. I pick up pieces on the Internet, patch it together.† I stared, feeling betrayed. O'Neill was absolutely obsessed with the Detroit Red Wings. That passion shaped his personality and was reflected in his actions: fast, skilled, and at times brutal. Believing Seth to be meticulous about every detail, I had naturally assumed he must know everything about hockey to have written such a defining trait into his protagonist. Seth watched me, confused by whatever stunned look I wore. â€Å"We're going to a hockey game,† I stated. â€Å"No, we – â€Å" â€Å"We are going to a hockey game. Hang on a sec.† I ran back downstairs, kicked Doug off our computer, and got the information I needed. It was just as I'd suspected. The Thunderbirds' season had just started. â€Å"Six-thirty,† I told Seth, minutes later. â€Å"Meet me at Key Arena, at the main window. I'll buy the tickets.† He looked dubious. â€Å"Six-thirty,† I repeated. â€Å"This'll be great. It'll give you a break and let you actually see what the game's like. Besides, you said you were blocked today.† Not only that, it would fulfill my obligation to Paige in a way that didn't require much talking. The stadium would be too loud, and we'd be too busy watching to need conversation. â€Å"I don't know where Key Arena is.† â€Å"You can walk to it from here. Just keep heading for the Space Needle. They're both part of the Seattle Center.† â€Å"So when are you meeting me?† There was a warning note in my voice, daring him to cross me. He grimaced. â€Å"Six-thirty.† After work, I set off to run my own errands. I had nothing new to work on with the vampire hunter enigma until Erik got back to me. Unfortunately, the mundane world still had its own share of requirements, and I spent most of my evening taking care of miscellany. Like restocking my supply of cat food, coffee, and Grey Goose. And checking out the new line of lip glosses at the MAC counter. I even remembered to pick up a cheap, assemble-it-yourself bookshelf for the fire-hazard stacks of books in my living room. My productivity knew no bounds. For dinner, I grabbed Indian food and managed to land at Key Arena precisely at six-thirty. I didn't see Seth anywhere but didn't panic just yet. The Seattle Center was not easy to navigate; he was probably still wandering around the Needle, trying to make his way over here. I bought the tickets and sat down on one of the large cement steps. The air had turned chilly tonight, and I snuggled into my heavy fleece pullover, shape-shifting it a bit thicker. While waiting, I people-watched. Couples, groups of guys, and excited children were all turning out for Seattle's fierce little team. They made for interesting viewing. When six-fifty rolled around, I started getting nervous. We had ten more minutes, and I worried Seth might have gotten seriously lost. I pulled out my cell phone and dialed the store, wondering if he was there. Nope, they told me, but Paige did have his cell number. I tried it next, only to get voice mail. Annoyed, I snapped my phone shut and huddled farther into my own embrace to stay warm. We still had time. Besides, Seth not being at the store was a good thing. It meant he was on his way. Yet, when seven and the start of the game arrived, he still wasn't there. I tried his cell again, then looked longingly at the doors. I wanted to see the beginning of the game. Seth might never have watched hockey, but I had and liked it. The continual movement and energy held my attention more than any other sport, even if the fights sometimes made me squirm. I didn't want to miss this, but I'd also hate for Seth to walk up and not know what to do when I wasn't where I said I'd be. I waited fifteen more minutes, listening to the sounds of the game echoing toward me, before I finally faced the truth. I had been stood up. Such a thing was unheard of. It hadn't happened in†¦ over a century. I felt more stunned than embarrassed or angry by the revelation. The whole thing was just too weird to fathom. No, I decided a moment later, I was mistaken. Seth had been reluctant, yes, but he wouldn't just refuse to come, not without calling. And maybe†¦ maybe something bad had happened. He could have been hit by a car for all I knew. After Duane's death, one could never predict when tragedy might hit. Yet, until I had more information, the only tragedy I faced now was missing the game. I called his cell again, this time leaving him a message with my number and whereabouts. I would come outside and retrieve him if needed. I went into the game. Sitting alone made me feel conspicuous, driving home the sadness of my situation. Other couples sat nearby, and a group of guys kept eyeing me, occasionally nudging one of their number who wanted to come talk to me. Being hit on didn't faze me, but looking like I needed it did. I might choose not to date, but that didn't mean I couldn't do it when I wanted. I didn't like others perceiving me as desperate and alone. I felt that way enough sometimes without outside confirmation. At the first break, I bought a corndog to console myself. While sifting through my purse for cash, I found the slip of paper with Roman's phone number. I stared at it while I ate, remembering his persistence and how bad I'd felt refusing him. My sudden painful abandonment fired the need to hang out with someone, to remind myself I really could have social contact when I wanted. Common sense froze me briefly as I was about to dial, cautioning that I would be breaking my decades-long vow of not dating nice guys. There were more prudent ways to deal with an unused hockey ticket, that reasonable inner voice reminded me. Like Hugh or the vampires. Calling one of them would provide a safer interaction. But†¦ but they treated me like a sister, and while I loved them like family too, I didn't want to be a sister just now. And anyway, it wasn't like this was even a real date. This would be a simple matter of companionship. Plus, the same precautions it had provided for Seth – lack of interaction – applied for Roman too. It would be perfectly safe. I dialed the number. â€Å"Hello?† â€Å"I'm tired of holding on to your coat.† I could hear his smile on the other end. â€Å"I figured you'd thrown it away by now.† â€Å"Are you crazy? It's a Kenneth Cole. Anyway, that's not really why I called.† â€Å"Yeah, I figured.† â€Å"Do you want to come to a hockey game tonight?† â€Å"When does it start?† â€Å"Um, forty minutes ago.† A Seth-worthy pause. â€Å"So, you just now thought to invite me?† â€Å"Well†¦ the person I was going with didn't exactly show up.† â€Å"And now you call me?† â€Å"Well, you were so adamant about going out.† â€Å"Yes, but I'm†¦ wait a minute. I'm your second choice?† â€Å"Don't think of it like that. Think of it as more like, I don't know, you're stepping up to fulfill what someone else couldn't.† â€Å"Like the Miss America runner-up?† â€Å"Look, are you coming or not?† â€Å"Very tempting, but I'm busy right now. And I'm not just saying that either.† Another pause. â€Å"I'll stop by your place after the game, though.† No, that wasn't how this was supposed to play out. â€Å"I'm busy after the game.† â€Å"What, you and your no-show have other plans?† â€Å"I†¦ no. I have to†¦ put together a bookcase. It's going to take a while. Hard work, you know?† â€Å"I excel at that handy-type stuff. I'll see you in a couple hours.† â€Å"Wait, you can't – † The phone disconnected. I closed my eyes in a moment of exasperation, opened them, then returned to the action on the ice. What had I just done? After the game, I skulked back home. The elation of winning couldn't overpower the anxiety of having Roman in my apartment. â€Å"Aubrey,† I said upon entering, â€Å"what am I going to do?† She yawned, revealing her tiny, domestic-sized fangs. I shook my head at her. â€Å"I can't hide under the bed like you. He won't fall for it.† Both of us jumped at the sudden knock at the door. For half a second, I did consider the bed before deigning to let Roman in. Aubrey studied him a moment, then – apparently being too overwhelmed at the sight of a sex god in our midst – darted off for my bedroom. Roman, casually dressed, stood bearing a six-pack of Mountain Dew and two bags of Doritos. And a box of cereal. â€Å"Lucky Charms?† I asked. â€Å"Magically delicious,† he explained. â€Å"Requisite for any sort of building project.† I shook my head, still amazed at how he had managed to weasel his way over here. â€Å"This isn't a date.† He cut me a scandalized look. â€Å"Obviously. I'd bring Count Chocula for that.† â€Å"I'm serious. Not a date,† I maintained. â€Å"Yeah, yeah. I get it.† He set the stuff on the counter and turned to me. â€Å"So, where is it? Let's get this started.† I exhaled, uneasily relieved by his matter-of-fact manner. No flirtation, no overt come-ons. Just honest, friendly helpfulness. I'd get the shelf built, and then he'd be gone. We tore into the huge box, dumping out loose shelves and panels, as well as an assortment of bolts and screws. The directions were short on words, mostly containing some cryptic diagrams with arrows pointing to where certain parts went. After minutes of scrutiny, we finally decided the large backboard was the place to start, laying it flat on the floor with the shelves and walls placed on top. Once everything was properly aligned, Roman picked up the screws, studying where they joined the various parts together. He examined the screws, looked at the box, then turned back to the shelf. â€Å"That's weird.† â€Å"What is?† â€Å"I think†¦ most of these things usually have holes in the wood, then they include a little tool to put the screws in.† I leaned over the wood. No premade holes. No tools. â€Å"We've got to screw these in ourselves.† He nodded. â€Å"I've got a screwdriver†¦ somewhere.† He eyed the wood. â€Å"I don't think that'll work. I think we need a drill.† I felt awed at his hardware prowess. â€Å"I know I don't have that.† We hightailed it over to a big chain home store, walking in ten minutes before they closed. A harried salesclerk showed us to the drill section, then sprinted off, calling back a warning that we didn't have much time. The power tools stared back at us, and I looked to Roman for guidance. â€Å"Not a clue,† he finally admitted after a span of silence. â€Å"I thought you excelled at this ‘handy-type stuff.' â€Å" â€Å"Yeah†¦ well†¦Ã¢â‚¬  He turned sheepish, a new look for him. â€Å"That was kind of an exaggeration.† â€Å"Like a lie?† â€Å"No. Like an exaggeration.† â€Å"They're the same.† â€Å"No they aren't.† I let the semantics go. â€Å"Why'd you say it then?† He gave a rueful headshake. â€Å"Partially because I just wanted to see you again. And the rest†¦ I don't know. I guess the short answer is you said you had something hard to do. So I wanted to help.† â€Å"I'm a damsel in distress?† I teased. He studied me seriously. â€Å"Hardly. But you are someone I'd like to get to know better, and I wanted you to see I've got more on my mind than just getting you into bed.† â€Å"So if I offered you sex here in this aisle, you'd turn me down?† The flippant remark came off my tongue before I could stop it. It was a defense mechanism, a joke to cover up how confused his earnest explanation had made me. Most guys did just want to get me into bed. I wasn't quite sure what to do with one who didn't. My glibness succeeded in killing the pensive moment. Roman became his old confident and charming self, and I almost regretted the change I'd wrought, wondering what might have followed. â€Å"I'd have to turn you down. We've only got six minutes now. They'd kick us out before it was done.† He snapped his attention to the drills with renewed vigor. â€Å"And as for my so-called handy skills,† he added, â€Å"I'm a remarkably fast learner, so I wasn't really exaggerating. By the end of the night, I will excel.† Not true. After arbitrarily picking out a drill and coming home, Roman set himself to aligning the bookcase's pieces and putting them together. He fit one of the shelves to the backboard, lined up his screw, and drilled. The drill went through at an angle, missing the shelf entirely. â€Å"Son of a bitch,† he swore. I moved in and yelped when I saw the screw sticking through the back of my bookshelf. We took it out and stared bleakly at the conspicuous hole left behind. â€Å"Probably it'll be covered by books,† I suggested. He set his mouth in a grim line and attempted the same feat again. The screw made contact this time but was still at an obvious angle. He pulled it out again, finally inserting it correctly on his third try. Unfortunately, the process only repeated as he continued. Watching hole after hole appear, I finally asked if I could try. He waved his hand in a defeatist gesture and handed me the drill. I fitted in a screw, leaned over, and drilled it in perfectly in my first attempt. â€Å"Jesus,† he said. â€Å"I'm completely superfluous. I'm the damsel in distress.† â€Å"No way. You brought the cereal.† I finished attaching the shelves. The walls came next. The backboard had small hash marks to help with alignment. With careful scrutiny, I tried to line it up cleanly along the edges. It proved impossible, and I soon realized why. Despite my perfect drilling, all of the shelves were affixed crookedly, some too far to the left or right. The walls could not fit flush with the backboard's edges. Roman sat back against my couch, running a hand over his eyes. â€Å"My God.† I munched on a handful of Lucky Charms and considered. â€Å"Well. Let's just line them up as best we can.† â€Å"This thing'll never hold books.† â€Å"Yeah. We'll do what we can.† We tried it with the first wall, and though it took a while and looked terrible, it sufficed as serviceable. We moved on to the next one. â€Å"I think I finally have to admit I'm not so good at this,† he observed. â€Å"But you seem to have kind of a knack. A regular handywoman.† â€Å"I don't know about that. I think the only thing I have a knack for is barely scraping by with things I have to do.† â€Å"That was a world-weary tone if ever I heard one. Why? You got a lot of things you ‘have to do'?† I nearly choked on my laugh, thinking about the whole succubus survival scene. â€Å"You might say that. I mean, doesn't everyone?† â€Å"Yes, of course, but you've got to balance them with things you want to do. Don't get bogged down with the have- to's. Otherwise, there's no point in being alive. Life becomes a matter of survival.† I finished a screw. â€Å"You're getting kind of deep for me tonight, Descartes.† â€Å"Don't be cute. I'm serious. What do you really want? From life? For your future? For example, do you plan on being at the bookstore forever?† â€Å"For a while. Why? Are you saying there's something wrong with that?† â€Å"No. Just seems kind of mundane. Like a way to fill the time.† I smiled. â€Å"No, definitely not. And even if it was, we can still enjoy mundane things.† â€Å"Yes, but I've found most people harbor dreams of a more exciting vocation. The one that's too crazy to ever actually do. The one that's too hard, too much work, or just too ‘out there.' The gas station attendant who dreams of being a rock star. The accountant who wishes she'd taken art history classes instead of statistics. People put their dreams off, either because they think it's impossible, or because they'll do it ‘someday' â€Å" He had paused from our work, his face serious once more. â€Å"So what do you want, Georgina Kincaid? What is your crazy dream? The one you think you can't have but secretly fantasize about?† Honestly, my deepest longing was to have a normal relationship, to love and be loved without supernatural complications. Such a small thing, I thought sadly, compared to his grandiose examples. Not crazy at all, just impossible. I didn't know if I wanted love now as a way of making up for the mortal marriage I'd destroyed or simply because the years had shown me that love could be a bit more fulfilling than being a continual servant of the flesh. Not that that didn't have its moments, of course. Being wanted and adored was an alluring thing, a thing most mortals and immortals craved. But loving and longing were not the same things. Relationships with other immortals seemed a logical choice, but employees of hell proved nonideal candidates for stability and commitment. I'd had a few semisatisfying relationships with such men over the years, but they'd all come to nothing. Explaining any of this, however, was not a conversation Roman and I were going to have anytime soon. So instead, I confessed my secondary fantasy, half-surprised at how much I wanted to. People didn't usually ask me what I wanted from life. Most just asked me what position I wanted to do it in. â€Å"Well, if I weren't at the bookstore – and believe me, I'm very happy there – I think I'd like to choreograph Vegas dance shows.† Roman's face split into a grin. â€Å"There, you see that? That's the kind of wacky, off-the-wall thing I'm talking about.† He leaned forward. â€Å"So what holds you back from bare breasts and sequins? Risk? Sensationalism? What others will say?† â€Å"No,† I said sadly. â€Å"Simply the fact that I can't do it.† † ‘Can't' is a – â€Å" â€Å"I mean, I can't choreograph because I can't write routines. I've tried. I can't†¦ I can't create anything, for that matter. Anything new. I'm not the creative type.† He scoffed. â€Å"I don't believe that.† â€Å"No, it's true.† Someone had once told me that immortals were not meant to create, that that was the province of humans who burned to leave behind a legacy after their short existence. But I'd known immortals who could do it. Peter was always concocting his original culinary surprises. Hugh used the human body as a canvas. But me? I had never been able to do it as a mortal either. The lack was in me. â€Å"You don't know how hard I've tried to do creative things. Painting classes. Music lessons. I'm a dismal failure at worst, a copycat of another's genius at best.† â€Å"You've been pretty adept with this building project.† â€Å"Another person's design, another person's directions. I excel at that part. I'm smart. I can reason. I can read people, interact with them perfectly. I can copy things, learn the right moves and steps. My eyes, for example.† I pointed to them. â€Å"I can apply makeup as well or better than any of the department store girls. But I get all my ideas and palettes from others, from pictures in magazines. I don't make up anything of my own. The Vegas thing? I could dance in a show and be perfect. Seriously. I could be the star of any revue – following another's choreography. But I couldn't write any moves myself, not in any major or significant way.† The wall was done. â€Å"I don't believe it,† he argued. His passionate defense both surprised and charmed me. â€Å"You're bright and vivacious. You're intelligent – extremely so. You have to give yourself a chance. Start small, and go from there.† â€Å"Is this the part where you tell me to believe in myself? The sky is the limit?† â€Å"No. This is the part where I tell you it's getting late, and I need to go. Your shelf is finished, and I have had a lovely evening.† We stood up and lifted the bookcase, leaning it against my living room wall. Stepping back, we studied it in silence. Even Aubrey appeared for the inspection. Each shelf sat at a crooked angle. One of the sidewalls almost lined up straight with the backboard's edge, the other had a quarter-inch margin. Six holes were visible in the backboard. And most inexplicably of all, the whole thing seemed to lean slightly to the left. I started laughing. And I couldn't stop. After a moment of shock, Roman joined me. â€Å"Dear Lord,† I said finally, wiping tears away. â€Å"That's the most horrible thing I've ever seen.† Roman opened his mouth in disagreement, then reconsidered. â€Å"It just might be.† He saluted. â€Å"But I think it'll hold, Captain.† We made a few more mirthful comments before I walked him to the door, remembering to give him his coat back. In spite of his jokes, he seemed more genuinely disappointed about our shelf failure than I did, like he had let me down. Somehow, I found this more appealing than his perfectly timed lines or charming bravado. Not that I didn't love those too. I studied him as we said goodbye, thinking about his â€Å"chivalry† and passionate belief in me following my heart's desire. The lump of fear I always carried around people I liked softened a little. â€Å"Hey, you never told me your crazy dream.† The aqua eyes crinkled. â€Å"Not so crazy. Just still trying to score that date with you.† Not so crazy.Just like mine. Companionship over fame and glamour. I took the plunge. â€Å"Well, then†¦ what are you doing tomorrow?† He brightened. â€Å"Nothing yet.† â€Å"Then come by the bookstore just before closing. I'm giving a dance lesson.† The dance lesson would have lots of people. It would be a safe compromise for us. That smile faltered only slightly. â€Å"A dance lesson?† â€Å"You have a problem with that? Are you changing your mind about going out?† â€Å"Well, no, but†¦ is it like the Vegas thing? You covered in rhinestones? Because I could probably get into that.† â€Å"Not exactly.† He shrugged, the charisma on high-beam. â€Å"Well. We'll save that for the second date.† â€Å"No. There's no second date, remember? Just the one, then that's it. We don't see each other anymore. You said so. Super-secret Boy Scout†¦ whatever.† â€Å"That might have been an exaggeration.† â€Å"No. That would be a lie.† â€Å"Ah.† He winked at me. â€Å"I guess those two aren't the same then after all, eh?† â€Å"I – † My words halted at the logic. He gave me one of his roguish bows before sweeping away. â€Å"Farewell, Georgina.† I went back inside, hoping I hadn't just made a mistake, and found Aubrey sitting on one of my shelves. â€Å"Whoa, be careful,† I warned. â€Å"I don't think that's structurally sound.† Although it was late, I didn't feel tired. Not after this wacky evening with Roman. I felt wired, his presence affecting both my body and mind. Inspired, I shooed Aubrey off the bookcase and started transferring my stacks. With each new weight addition, I expected collapse, but the thing held. When I got to my Seth Mortensen books, I suddenly remembered the cataclysm that had sparked this whole evening. Anger kindled in me once more. I'd heard nary a word from the writer the entire time. The getting-hit-by-a-car thing might still be a possibility, but my instincts doubted it. He had stood me up. Half of me considered kicking his books in retaliation, but I knew I could never do that. I loved them too much. No need to punish them for their creator's shortcomings. Longingly, I picked up The Glasgow Pact, suddenly anxious to read my next five-page installment. I left the rest of my books unshelved and settled on the couch, Aubrey at my feet. When I reached the stopping point, I discovered something incredible. Cady was developing a love interest in this one. It was unheard of. O'Neill, ever the charming ladies' man, got around all the time. Cady remained virtuously pure, no matter the number of sexual innuendoes and jokes she traded across the table with O'Neill. Nothing tangible had happened thus far in the book, but I could read the inevitable signs of what was to come with her and this investigator they'd met in Glasgow. I kept reading, unable to leave that plotline hanging. And the farther I read, the harder it was to stop. I soon took a secret, irrational satisfaction at breaking the five-page rule. Like I was somehow getting back at Seth. The night wore on. Cady went to bed with the guy, and O'Neill became uncharacteristically jealous and freaked out, despite his usual surface charm. Holy shit. I left the couch, put on pajamas, and curled up in my bed. Aubrey followed. I kept reading. I finished the book at four in the morning, bleary-eyed and exhausted. Cady saw the guy a few more times as she and O'Neill wrapped up their mystery – as enthralling as ever, but suddenly less interesting compared to the interpersonal developments – and then she and the Scotsman parted ways. She and O'Neill returned to Washington, D.C., and the status quo resettled. I exhaled and set the book on the floor, unsure what to think, mainly because I was so tired. Still, in a valiant effort, I got up from bed, found my laptop, and logged into my Emerald City e-mail. I sent Seth a terse message: Cady got some. What's up with that? Then, as an afterthought: By the way, the hockey game was great. Satisfied I'd registered my opinion, I promptly fell asleep†¦ only to be awakened a few hours later by my alarm clock.

Current Political Dimensions and Issues of Globalization Essay

Globalization refers to those processes whereby geographically distant events and decisions impact to a growing degree on â€Å"local† university life. Also it can be viewed as link towards the growth of social interconnectedness across existing geographical and political boundaries. Globalization is the process of increasing interconnectedness & interdependent ness of people and places as a result of improved transport and communication and information technologies that ensures countries stay together as one community. In globalization, political, economic, social, religious and cultural issues usually interplay in producing a globalize world.   The world is becoming one. most contemporary social theorists endorse the view that globalization refers to fundamental changes in the spatial and temporal contours of social existence, according to which the significance of space or territory undergoes shifts in the face of a no less dramatic acceleration in the temporal structure of crucial forms of human activity. Geographical distance is typically measured in time. (Brawley, 2002) The world’s globalization can be traced back to many decades when different countries of the world saw the need to have globalization of the economy, politics, and societies, religious through the creation of links that will ensure that there is coordination in all the aforementioned aspects that form the basis of any country. There has been great integration in the economic sector among countries in, this is what is commonly referred as economic globalization. The fast economic growth among many countries in the world can be attributed to globalization. This implies that globalization has helped reduce poverty in many developing counties. Western political theory has traditionally presupposed the existence of territorially bound communities, whose borders can be more or less neatly delineated from those of other communities. The contemporary liberal politics has it that to speak of bounded communities whose fundamental structure consists of self-sufficient schemes of cooperation for all the essential purposes of human life. (David, 1995) The current political issues in any given country are based on how to achieve and utilize globalization.   Most of the countries have resolved to form partnerships with most of the countries in the world so as to integrate their resources geared towards high production. The whole process of globalization promotes proper and easy access to the world market among the partners.   This role is played by internationals organizations that have tried to promote liberal markets. For instance business people on different continents now engage in electronic commerce; television allows people situated anywhere to observe the impact of terrible wars being waged far from the comfort of their living rooms; academics make use of the latest video conferencing equipment to organize seminars in which participants are located at disparate geographical locations; the Internet allows people to communicate instantaneously with each other notwithstanding vast geographical distances separating them. (Burchill & Linklater, 1996). The whole process of globalization has its own challenges where the poor countries are not able to compete effectively in the world markets and as such the poor countries are unable to have economic growth.   There is great disparity between the developed and the developing countries and this is also inherent to the people of these countries where we have a big imbalance between the poor and the rich. Due to the process of globalization countries have a challenge on how to have political shifts that will enhance their global growth.   The political shift usually twisted towards the stakeholders of globalization. Corruption fighting is the key issue towards globalization for any country. Covering a wide range of distinct political, economic, and cultural trends, the term globalization has quickly become one of the most fashionable buzzwords of contemporary political and academic debate. In popular discourse, globalization often functions as little more than a synonym for one or more of the following phenomena: the pursuit of classical liberal free market policies in the world economy economic liberalization, the growing dominance of different forms of political, economic, and cultural life. The proliferation of new information technologies such as the Internet as well as the notion that humanity are in the anticipation of   realizing one single unified community in which major sources of social conflict have vanished through global integration. (David 1995) Ultimately globalization has been achieved through technological advancements.   It is a main challenge in the process of globalization as many counties are lagging behind in terms of technological advancements that are meant to promote fast and effective communication as well as boost high production.   The process of achieving the international development goals pays more emphasizes on reducing poverty levels in countries of the world by promoting sustainable growth by empowering the poor people. Globalization is just an opportunity that is associated with risks at the national and international level. One of the issues that has emitted from globalization is that there is freedom of movement which has made developed countries hire labour from lower cost countries this making the citizens of the country to lose their jobs.   It end result of this is that the country is focusing on its development. But globalization can not be dismissed at all but what is important is to lay good enabling structures that can enhance both an individual development as well as the country development.   This can only be done by putting in place good governance. Generally, globalization poses risks and challenges, but so far it has become a stabilizing force in Philippine politics. (Robertson, 1992) This is the only way the government could make serious headway in the fight against joblessness and poverty. There are indications that most of those uprisings in the past were supported by the business elite. They are concentrated in the banking, real estate, export, and trading. Most of these sectors now are raking in money from overseas remittances, outsourcing, and recovering exports. It means they now have a stake in the stability of the system. People in the world are encouraged to think as citizens of nations and as well global citizens if the global agenda is to be achieved.   Globalization is a force that is attaching people of countries in the world and as such globalization is the way forward. Generally, globalization is characterized by free market, new technologies internet revolution.   Due to this increased technologies little time is required to connect different geographical locations.   This has helped in reducing the issues of national boundaries as people can communicate without necessarily crossing over the national boundaries.   Many social activities can take place in the world without necessary considering the geographical location of the participants. This is done through telecommunication, digital computers, audiovisual media and this occurs everywhere in the contemporary world.   (Schorte, 1996).  Ã‚   Business is done through electronics, televisions. This has promoted both social and economic interconnectedness across the political and geographical boundaries.   This means that technical disregard to geographical boundaries is a major issue towards globalization. High speed technology plays a very crucial role in the process of globalization.   This is another issue that is hindering the achievement of globalization.   This is because most of the world’s countries and are not moving as per the dynamisms of technology thus creating slow inter border speed movements. (Scheuerman,2004) The high speed technologies minimize the significance of distance and as a result improving the interconnectedness. But in those areas where deterritorialization and social interconnectedness across national borders are especially striking, new transnational institutions (for example, cross-border referenda), along with a dramatic strengthening and further democratization of existing forms of supranational authority (in particular, the United Nations), are necessary if we are to assure that popular sovereignty remains an effective principle. Globalization guarantees sustainable competitiveness through leadership of technological improvements.   The attraction of many countries in need of investment has promoted the growth of economies in most countries that embrace globalization.   Good examples are the recent joint ventures of China with Japanese companies where the Chinese get skills directly by working the Japanese. High-speed technologies and organizational approaches are employed by transnational operating firms, the so-called â€Å"global players,† with great effectiveness. The emergence of â€Å"around-the-world, around-the-clock† financial markets, where major cross-border financial transactions are made in cyberspace at the blink of an eye, represents a familiar example of the economic face of globalization. (Mark & Interline 2001) How Philippines is integrated in international economy at the global community. Philippines as far as the globalization is concerned is rated in the semi-globalize world.   The country has not achieved completely what it takes for a country to be globalized.   It is lacking integrated markets and economies with other countries.   This because it has not taken advantage of across borders integration.   Low cross borders coordination reduces the economic share activities which have an effect of reducing fast economic growth.   Philippines have now a new political shift aimed at promoting its economic growth.   One of the main issues of promoting globalization is through democratization.   This is an aspect that has been missing in Philippines, there is a tendency the country believing that poor countries should not depend on the foreign capital and for this reason the country believes in regional issues of development. Philippine is the latest country to be accepted in the global alliance nations sharing global information and economies.   The country’s software sector has greatly grown giving it advantage in global information technology.   In the year 2006, Philippines had established software innovation which aimed at creating a global centre of information.   The process of software innovation is based on good relations with other countries that have advanced technology.   This procedure has promoted individuals business within the integrated countries.   A good example is stag Philippines Company that developed an innovative online registration system for one of the domestic airlines, this is a positive movement towards globalizations. The country has moved from the traditional of doing things to the scientific and technological revolutions.   Philippines has achieved great integration in East Asia with countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.   This form of regional integration has promoted free market within the area hence improved economies. Globalization refers to increased possibilities for action between and among people in situations where latitudinal and longitudinal location seems immaterial to the social activity at hand. Even though geographical location remains crucial for many undertakings (for example, farming to satisfy the needs of a local market), deterritorialization manifests itself in many social spheres.. Territory in the sense of a traditional sense of a geographically identifiable location no longer constitutes the whole of â€Å"social space† in which human activity takes places. In this initial sense of the term, globalization refers to the spread of new forms of non-territorial social activity (Fred, 1998) There are great challenges for the government in trying to harmonize governance especially when there is integration of business bodies with other countries.   The process of liberalization and democratization enables the more advanced countries to take advantage of the free market.   The more developed countries use this opportunity in getting more profits which they take to their rich countries.   There is power mixing for the government as it not possible to control all the power diffusion. Each manifestation of globalization also generates distinct conflicts and dislocations. For example, there is substantial empirical evidence that cross-border flows and exchanges, as well as the emergence of directly transnational forms of production by means of which a single commodity is manufactured simultaneously in distant corners of the globe, are gaining in prominence (Castells, 1996). The whole process of Philippines involvement in international and global community is that the developed countries in term s of service provision on the onset there is un equal competition for the integrated market which the developed countries stand a better chance to exploit.   Despite the lower levels of poverty in most states, there is a general inequality in the overall income among the citizens. The inequality in Philippines occurs especially between rural and urban areas.   This has led to economic stagnation and civil instability which threatens the goal of reducing poverty by globalization.   Other places are overpopulated causing strain on the meager natural resources.   The fact that Philippines has moved global has not solved the internal disparities which threaten to increase poverty levels. The government has a great challenge of implementing certain agreements with the international community.   Such international conventions are so demanding in terms of implementation within the country.   When these legal conventions are integrated to the country they have the capacity to weaken the internal structures of the country. As an empirical matter, the decay of the domestic-foreign frontier seems highly ambivalent, since it might easily pave the way for the decay of the more attractive attributes of domestic political life: as â€Å"foreign† affairs collapse inward onto â€Å"domestic† political life, the relative lawlessness of the former potentially makes disturbing inroads onto the latter (Scheuerman, 2004) The government is also challenged by the rapidly expanding flow of goods services information and people which makes the country to be more interdependent.   This requires that the country sets global consensus to meet these challenges. Globalization-from-above is controlled by wealthy elites and driven by a hunger for more wealth and power. But there is another form of globalization in the Philippines that is made up of grassroots alliances of human rights activists, trade unions, women’s organizations, and environmental coalitions and farmers’ organizations. This form of globalization however does not get as much publicity as the elite form of globalization but it is growing just as rapidly. The institutions such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and transnational corporations have assisted in development and the integration of the world’s countries into the global system. The cross-boarder issues that require joint efforts have been very difficult for the Philippine government to manage.   Areas that require regional cooperation include drug supply reduction, prevention of HIV/AIDS, fight against illegal drugs.   Lack of such support has been a great set back to the government. Critics insist that local, regional, and national forms of self-government are being rapidly supplanted by insufficiently democratic forms of global governance remote from the needs of ordinary citizens, whereas their defenders describe new forms of supranational legal and political decision as indispensable forerunners to more inclusive and advanced forms of self-government. Global financial markets also challenge traditional attempts by liberal democratic nation-states to rein in the activities of bankers, spawning understandable anxieties about the growing power and influence of financial markets over democratically elected representative institutions Globalization has an effect on Philippines culture and traditions as the society’s norms and values as subject to change.   There are many ways in which the globalization may finally erode the cultural values of the people due to the volatile socialization a contribution of market liberalization and democratization. Market liberalization and the democratization has continued to adversely contributed to the deceleration in growth rate of the country because of the worsening terms of trade between the integrated countries and Philippines. There is a weak growth of exports to the developed countries but rather there are a big number of imports to the country. This means that the country spends more money to the outside countries than what it receives.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There is a need for the developed countries to have a positive shift towards assisting the developing countries. This can be done by the removal of trade barrier to the developing countries. Philippine’s economy has been growing at 4-6% GDP due to the growth of the robust sector. Electrons and semiconductors contribute greatly to the country’s exports. There is variety of market for the Philippines products due to the globalization. A global citizen in this country is encouraged to participate actively by taking advantage of the available opportunities: outsourcing is an outcome of technological advancements. For instance, many people in the Philippines start their work at 9pm till five in the morning. Such jobs include call centers. This industry of out sources is growing at 57%per year. The Philippines has low or more open economy, a contribution of the economic reforms done as well as moving global. The linking together and expanding of social activities across borders is predicated on the possibility of relatively fast flows and movements of people, information, capital, and goods. Without these fast flows, it is difficult to see how distant events could possibly posses the influence they now enjoy. High-speed technology plays a pivotal role in the velocity of human affairs. But many other factors contribute to the overall pace and speed of social activity.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Globalization has completely changed the political and social situation of the country. The current crop of politicians believes that the future of the country depends on global connectivity and it is for this reason they support global dynamics and global competitiveness. The democratic model has been used in Philippines in the process of creating alliances with other countries. According to one influential strand within international relations theory, relations between states are fundamentally lawless. Since the achievement of justice or democracy, for example, presupposes an effective political sovereign, the lacuna of sovereignty at the global level means that justice and democracy are necessarily incomplete and probably unattainable there. In this â€Å"Realist† view of international politics, core features of the modern system of sovereign states relegate the pursuit of western political thought’s most noble normative goals primarily to the domestic arena. Other critics has that the dangers of global economy is that investors come into a particular country, present certain conditions and government often accept them without asking the people who will be affected, which is a violation of workers rights. It often happens under such deals when state companies are bought over by foreign companies, thousands of workers are laid off under so called structural adjustment program to cut the cost, while workers are pushed for longer hours and prohibited from labor unions. The whole purpose behind this way of working is exploitation of the foreign market to gain greater profit. Globalization is part of the changing world, but the way it is coming in developing countries lacks humanity. Contemporary analysts associate globalization with deterritorialization, according to which a growing variety of social activities takes place irrespective of the geographical location of participants. As Jan Aart Scholte observes, â€Å"global events can — via telecommunication, digital computers, audiovisual media, rocketry and the like — occur almost simultaneously anywhere and everywhere in the world. (Scholte & Aart, 1996) In conclusion globalization is the way forward for Philippine’s economic and political growth. Technology is the key to the achievement of the globalization process and it is therefore very important for any country to embrace technological changes in order to be complacent with the fast changes in the world. A country that will not embrace technological changes is like lag behind in matters of development. Increased communication is panacea of any expanding economy as this promotes sharing of the international nature. Expanding free market promotes greater exchange of skills which has a net effect of improving the economy in terms of the factors maximizing the factors of production such as capital, land, entrepreneurship. Outsourcing is the contemporary form of globalization that is practiced in the contemporary Philippine and this has led to the improved social relation among the regional countries. Integration of different companies which produce similar products has enhanced the exchange of technologies by the virtue of direct contact. Finally globalization has reduced the social boundaries as well the geographical barriers and now people are staying as one big community. References Mark Randal Brawley (2002) the Politics of Globalization: Gaining Perspective, Assessing Consequences. Broadview Press. Crescenzi, Mark, and Andrew J. Interline. 2001. Time Remembered: A Dynamic Model of Interstate Interaction.† International Studies Quarterly 45:409-431. Scott Burchill and Andrew Linklater, (1996). Theories of International Relations. New York: St. Martin’s Castells, Manuel (1996), The Rise of Network Society (Oxford: Blackwell). Dallmayr, Fred (1998), Alternative Visions: Paths in the Global Village (Lanham, Md.: Rowman & Littlefield). Held, David (1995), Democracy and the Global Order: From the Modern State to Cosmopolitan Governance (Stanford: Stanford University Press). Robertson, R. (1992), Globalization: Social Theory and Global Culture, (London: Sage). Scheuerman, William E. (2004), Liberal Democracy and the Social Acceleration of Time (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 2004). Scholte, Jan Aart (2000), Globalization: A Critical Introduction (New York: St. Martin’s).   

Current law and Human Resources

The functional role in human resources within an organization is the streamline process to managing employees and corporate objectives to reach strategic goals. The current law in relation to human resources practices within an organization provides the fundamental mainframe to conducting activities (Hamel, 1996). The human resources management team and senior management team works together in an effort to synergize the right methodology towards effective decision making. Therefore, the usage of HR systems plays an important role to obtaining and maintains the data required to creating a learning organizational culture.The overall commitment of the senior management team provides a winning strategy for identifying the organization internal matrix. Human Resources in the Pursuit for Creating Learning Organization Culture The role of organizational behavior in human resources management empowers the senior management team to effectively diagnose situations related to the project for ap propriate action and performance within the company. The organizational behavior is a critical aspect to assist the human resources in accessing the particular skills of the internal employees within a functional organizational matrix (George and Jones, 2005).The understanding of organizational behavior from a human resources manager’s perspective presents an in-depth conceptual, technical, decision making, and interpersonal skills that are required to successfully creating learning organization culture. The challenges in human resources can create multiple tasks to reaching the goals outlined in objective to demonstrating effective learning organization culture. For instance, the team formation process is detrimental to moving through phrases of forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning in order to reaching the plateau of a learning organization culture.The human resources management team’s primary goal in understanding the functional project organization assists in identifying the organizational behavior within the context of team building to successfully moving through the phrases (Mantel, Meredith, Shafer, and Sutton, 2008). The human resources manager utilized the identified organizational behavior concepts of the team and the functional organization to apply appropriate human interpersonal skills for applied motivation, knowledge, decision making, change management, code of ethics, style of communication, and leadership direction (Robbins, 2005)The interaction between the human resources manager and the senior management team are the stringent formed relationship that strengthens the communication matrix. The effort for sharing and receiving imperative information concerning the stages of the project tasks organizes the project for accurate reporting to stakeholders (Thill and Bovee, 2007). Therefore, the organizational behavior presents a synergy to the effective communication matrix monitored by the project manager to assure that the channel is effectively being relayed by all individuals.The communication method determines the success of the project and defines the organizational behavior concept within the organization. Project managers play an important role in assisting the human resources department to implement change management for an objective to creating a learning environment that reinforced the indentified organizational behavior concept (Hunger, 2007). In doing so, the expectations of the completed scope objectives are met as well as a formation of a productive project team. The skill of effective communication is the key to transferring the criteria of organizational behavior by demonstrating good decision making.The project manager’s decisions provide the organized efforts to staying on message and mission objectives for conducting training to inform and inspire the internal employees and external partners (George and Jones, 2005). The decision making identifies the possible scenari os within the organizational behavior concept of the organization for a more direct approach to a problem. Respectively, the learning organizational cultures present a challenge for the project to moving in the desired direction (Bryman, 2007).Therefore, the project managers should recreate the learning organizational cultures within the corporation environments that reinforced the specific objectives. In doing so, the demonstrated decision making to lead the cause for an effective learning organizational culture manifested from understanding the culture and securing a sufficient concept of the organizational behavior (Burnes, 2004). The identified learning organizational culture within the project environment empowers the human resource manager, senior management team, and project manager in motivating the internal teams to strive for effective learning environment (Collis, 2003).The learning organizational culture impacts the company for decision making during the process of compl eting the tasks for deliverables, in which, the organizational behavior detects how successful the channels of implementing changes and how issues are addressed. Therefore, the communication and culture defines the organizational behavior for human resources to effectively and efficiently manage the needs of the organization (Cameron, 2004).The transfer of information and delivering a clear understanding of the internal project needs essentially benefits all associated individuals to the progress of the learning organizational culture framework (Dibb, 2007). In the framework of organizational behavior, the attributes of effective communication and understanding the culture outlines the theory of motivation for human resources to utilize in solidifying the team. The theory of motivation offers the human resources key concepts to implement to the redefining the specific goals set forth from the project charter to the scope.The theory of motivation ranges from different thought of reas on from theorists to apply a certain scientific approach, however, the direct approach is the model to connecting the team objectives with a purpose mindset amongst internal company employees. Most employees need to feel the importance of the objectives; therefore, the project manager motivated communication tactics are critical for achieving the planned goals. The pursuit for a successful implementation is the normal functional operations of the technique of project management within the context of learning organizational behavior.The efforts of the three â€Å"C† are communication, cooperation, and coordination that all work together in a synergistic approach to create a winning coalition with organizational behavior and project management. The three â€Å"C† are essential to providing the means in allowing project management to function in a positive team environment. The objective to manage and complete the delivery of the organizational behavior within the princip als of human resources is the ability to achieve the company’s goals and mission in a strategic framework.The new organizational structure for the centralization of a human resources department creates an opportunity for a transition when implementing a new phase in learning objectives. Therefore, the change management plan for the human resources department is to outline a simplified way to streamline the information, in order to implement change in learning environment. The responsibilities are to successfully capture the criteria for initiating, execution, and to centralize the learning cultural organization initiative.The change management plan mission for an organizational structure will hone around the leadership assigned to the project that reinforces core initiatives. The communication model for the change management plan is too focused on fundamental aspects to incorporate and execute within a matrix organizational structure. In order to infuse a successful change wi thin a matrix organizational structure, the identification of assigned human resources leadership as well as the end recipient is required. Therefore, the human resource manager is the core responsible entity to ensure the initiating, executing, change management, and communication model.The human manager core responsibility is to provide the leadership to sync other department heads, organization trainers, resources, and project team in order to efficiently and effectively complete the project (Mantel, Meredith, Shafer, and Sutton, 2005). The communication model plays an imperative role to accomplishing the tasks outlined for a successful transition from one concept to a changed concept. Therefore, the human resources manager leads the direction for the project to enforce objectives necessary to accomplish the CEO primarily mission of the organization.

Email Messages Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Email Messages - Essay Example In line with this, an organization will require email etiquette to ensure professionalism, efficiency and protection from liability such as costly law suits as a result of bad language (Swinton). There are a few guidelines of how to write a good business email. First of all use a language that is official so that both parties understand the message communicated. The message you are trying to convey is concise and straight to the point. This helps to avoid time wastage for the reader. While writing ensure proper spelling, grammar and punctuation, avoid writing in capitals and go through the message to identify mistakes before sending it. It is good to always include the subject of your communication so that the recipient easily knows what to expect in the message. Always use a polite tone, be personal but formal (Swinton). While replying to business emails make sure that you are prompt, answer all questions asked by the customer. Avoid sending attachments unless asked by the recipient of the email. Do not leave out the email thread when writing as it shows the previous message which you are replying to. Do not use fancy fonts in your writing unless communicating graphics (Appleman 20-40). These are the basic issues that one should consider in all business emails in order to foster good understanding and trust between businesses or a client and an organization. Swinton, Lyndsay. "10 Tips for writing business emails that say the right thing about you." 2010. Management For The Rest of Us. 27 September 2011

Is the U.S. Winning the Drug War in Latin America Research Paper - 1

Is the U.S. Winning the Drug War in Latin America - Research Paper Example CON: No, the US is not winning the drug war in Latin America 1. Latin American nations are moving towards drug legalization 2. Drugs have become important in balancing international trade in Peru by earning the nation a huge foreign income 3. US anti-drug operations in some nations like Guatemala and Mexico are accused of victimization in their war on drugs 4. Venezuelan government is aiding drug traffickers by making the nation a key launching pad for US and Europe-bound cocaine 5. Latin America has marked a huge rise in coca production over the past few years despite the US efforts of discouraging its production Amidst the narcotics decriminalizing calls by some leading Latin American leaders, Janet Napolitano, the US Homeland Security Secretary defended the drug war strategy of the US. In her tour of Central America and Mexico to strengthen the security cooperation with the nations, Napolitano claimed that the US would continue assisting the Latin American efforts of going after t he regional producers and traffickers of drugs despite persistent drug-related violence.1 She claims that drug war has not failed but is rather a continuous effort of keeping the regional population from addiction to the dangerous drugs. Felipe Calderon, the Mexican President, supports the war and his target is the leading kingpins, capturing and/or killing several key cartel figures with the help of the US. The two nations are also united in the search for Joaquin Guzman, after he escaped in 2001 from prison.2 Alvaro Uribe, Columbia’s President, started meeting the other regional nations’ leaders on 4 August 2009 in support of the US anti-drug campaign. During the trip, Uribe’s aim was attempting to appease the other leaders from Latin America’s concerns regarding a deal that he expected to sign to allow the United States to relocate its recommendable drug-interdiction flight activities to Colombia following the dismissal of such operations from Ecuador. The plan could raise the number of the American troops within Colombia to facilitate war on drugs.3 This effort by President Uribe shows that the US war on drugs has impact on the Latin American countries and this support implies the war is not that badly off. The nation is under so much international pressure as the international community assumes that the US should deal with the whole situation with finality. This pressure may in turn make the US appear as if it is doing so little in this drugs war, which is not entirely the case.4 However, most Latin American nations consider this war as an overwhelming failure. Jose de Cordoba argues that drug violence has spiraled beyond control in Mexico with a commission headed by 3 former heads of Latin American states blasting the war on drug as a failed effort, which is pushing the societies in Latin America to their breaking point.5 Consequently, the first Latin American Conference attendees favored decriminalization of possession of dru gs for personal use.6 Moreover, the attendees claimed that legislative reforms were underway to facilitate smaller sentences are given to the small traffickers, and set up policies, which minimize harm via encouraging the addicts to seek help from the health system. Such a hemispheric summit could spark open revolt against US-led drug war. Actually, Latin Americans are determined to gain their independence from the ‘disastrous’ US anti-drug policy.7 In an article dated 7 August 2009, Romulo Pizarro, Peru’s drug czar, estimates that the earnings of the foreign

Overthrow Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Overthrow - Essay Example This should not be used as an excuse by America concerning its present or even past wrongdoings as it is the one that been in the driving seat, but it is important to out these issues in some perspective. If America is to be called the ‘Great Satan,† then it has a very big company or allies. Several other nations should realize that they might be part of the global problem too. Considering that, America should do much better on the global stage. America might at present be the superpower on the global campus, it but it should not be the biggest problem in the global schoolyard.  The writer ends his text with an observation that we should all take heart. He states that America emerged the superpower in the world in a quicker manner than nearly any other empire or nation in the world has ever done. Full of the self-confidence and exuberance of the youth, it created a sense of unconstrained possibility. Most Americans had the belief that since they have a great success in the building of their own nation, they do not only duplicate that achievement internationally but were called by destiny. This is particularly as a result of the fact that one cannot be able to force into power, leaders in foreign nations that are both indisputably popular and well-liked by their compatriots, also who are seeking to protect the interest of the United States. It is beyond doubt that America is the world’s superpower, and it is high time that it stops being part of the world’s problems, but be part of the solution.... about the connecting events that came after the regime changes in the Arab world: That is in the year 1953, Mohammad Mossadegh, the Prime Minister of Iran was overthrown by the CIA for the Britons, replacing him with a tyrant who did not have any qualms about the welcoming or acceptance of foreign oil firms. However, that operation spurred radical fundamentalists who were led by Ayatollah Khomeini in organizing and coordinating the resistance of 1978, and their activities served as inspiration to the other Muslims allover the world. The Lebanon’s Hezbollah guerillas of present day are the devout successors of the Ayatollah and the proteges of the major Iranian clerics4. The writer documents how five presidents of the United States cultivated the Taliban in Afghanistan, at first attempting to frustrate the Soviets and then later to acquire and shelter a route of oil-pipeline. On paper, we find that every plan or overthrow is shaky and brazen, but the writer shows how such opera tions’ planners, once aim at their final objective, loose any long-lasting or long-term sense of national security or financial responsibility. All through the 1980s, when the Soviets conquered Afghanistan, the United States financed the rebels via Pakistan and did not attempt to play any role in making decisions regarding the individuals or parties that were to receive the gifts. Consequently, the people of Pakistan used the finances in establishing the Taliban group and do away with the nationalist, secular or leftist movements. This was evident even one Afghan lamented that the United States was financing her own enemies. By the invasion of the Republic of Iraq in the year 2003, the United States came full circle in the region of Middle East, whereby it once again enhanced the influence of

Supply Chain Managmet Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Supply Chain Managmet Case Study - Essay Example and Jill, a representative of Success Inc. Company. Mike Vanne’s company was a supplier to Success Inc. Time context Based on the conversation, Mike Vanne’s company started experiencing management problems from 1998 soon after its establishment. In 1999, the company also changed its fiscal year. This change in fiscal years twice in a row is an indication of short sighted and indecisive leadership. Viewpoint Mike Vanne’s viewpoint is that the company is fast growing. He defends this viewpoint with the fact that they made eleven acquisitions in a time span of two years. He links the company’s prosperity with the acquisitions. In addition to this, Mr. Vanne believes his company is in good shape since he has good employees. However, Jill is of a different viewpoint. She questions the nature of leadership in Mr. Vanne’s company. This indicates that she believes the company’s leadership is the cause of the potential problems. Central problem The ce ntral problem in this case is poor leadership. Mr. Mike Vanne has little knowledge of the business yet he is the owner. In addition to this, he is complacent in taking radical steps to ensure the company does not get under problems in the future. He chooses to ignore the fact that his company has been faced with several lawsuits. As if that is not enough, he brushes off the idea as bad publicity of the company. Out of a series of ten meetings, Ari Villa happens to have attended one or two board meetings yet he is the chairman to the board. Mike Vanne justifies Villa’s actions in proposing that villa is a busy man. Another leader, Sandra Chia fails to attend a meeting with one of their business associates yet she is the Chief financial Officer to the company. As a CFO, it is important for her to attend meetings concerning their business associates since the impression she gives could either work for or against the company. From these illustrations, one concludes that the leade rship in X Inc. is in shambles. The leaders are allowed to run the company as they wish and are not accountable to anyone. According to Jones (p.1), lack of collaboration amongst the company leadership is one of the signs of a dysfunctional leadership. Statement Objectives Statement objectives form the backbone of any business. They relate what the business plans to achieve (Complete Business start up p.1). X Inc.’s objectives are as follows: To provide quality service in the technologic business field. To ensure continuous growth of the business through establishing a wider market base and capturing profitable business opportunities. To create a strong leadership team that will channel the company towards growth. Areas of Consideration In solving the problem at hand, a SWOT analysis will reveal the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of X inc. business venture. SWOT analysis analyses external and internal factors that are key to the attainment of a companyâ€⠄¢s objectives (Hill & Westbrook pp.12) External Environment The external environment assesses threats and opportunities. One takes into consideration macroeconomic matters, technological advancement, changes in the market, competition and legislation. In looking at X Inc., it has several opportunities. X Inc., is one of the leading technological companies. This opportunity helps them to wade off unnecessary competition. In addition to that, its ability to form mergers and acquisitions opens it up to a larger

Project on Recent Developments in Marketing Management Essay

Project on Recent Developments in Marketing Management - Essay Example Some advanced features have been added to the marketing management techniques by the companies which helped them to bring their business in front of global people. Some recent developments in marketing management offer various opportunities in business which contributed a lot for future. The recent economic crisis has been faced by almost all the companies who are involved in global businesses and that is the main reason why the companies are trying to bring some developments in their marketing management techniques (Lee, 2001). Most of the companies were dependent on manual marketing techniques like newspaper, Television advertising, radio etc but it was found that the companies were only able to attract their local customers through these marketing techniques and they were able to promote their products in local people. It was quite difficult for them to reach the potential customers of other countries and they were facing trouble in their business. The modern marketing techniques are mostly based on internet. Internet is a great source to reach global people at a very low cost. The modern inventions of search engines have changed the way to find information related to every business a lot. People can make their decision in a very short time and quite easily with the help of these search engines. The search engines can provide the detailed information on every business by entering a suitable search term which is often called as keywords. The most popular search engine â€Å"Google† can find all related results to the search term entered (Chaffey, 2001). People can visit the websites of the businesses which is searched by Google and they can make their decision. Website is a great way for the business owners to reach global people as the websites are not confined within a city or country. People from any country can visit the websites from any other country. There are some other developments in marketing management too. Today, people of a particular cou ntry can watch the television channels of another country which is quite a good way for marketing. People can watch the advertisements of the products of foreign countries and they can order for them. The online shopping method is quite popular now-a-day and people can buy everything sitting in their home by ordering through internet or telephone. It helped people a lot to buy products from foreign companies. The best thing about internet marketing is it is quite cheap. If we look at the earlier days we can see that the companies used to spend a lot of money in order to promote their business. The earlier sources of marketing like television, newspaper, radio etc charged a huge amount of money to place the advertisements of the companies and their products and it was not possible for the small and medium level companies to afford the amount of money but today, the companies can post their advertisements, details of their products in numerous social bookmarking websites for free and a major portion of modern people visit these websites in a daily basis. So, this technique seems to be very useful for small and medium level companies who do not have enough money to promote their businesses through television, newspaper and other sources. People are quite tech savvy today and they like to spend hours sitting in front of computer and surfing internet. There are lots of social networking

Sheesha smoking Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Sheesha smoking - Dissertation Example It also makes an attempt to reveal the factors that work behind Shisha smoking and encourage this within the society. Also the paper vouches for legal regulation towards Shisha smoking and tries to increase the awareness level of the common people regarding the same. Introduction There is a universal consensus on the dangers posed by tobacco in cigarette. It has been established by many studies that cigarette smoking is indeed injurious to health. Cigarette smoking has been directly linked to many cases of lung cancer. Studies have shown cancerous diseases such as lung cancer is strongly linked to smoking cigarettes and causes around 87% of death worldwide, (Parkin et al 2005). Therefore, it is not wrong to assume smoking tobacco related diseases have reached an epidemic scale. The scale and the problems associated with smoking have always been noted in epidemiological research (Siegel, 2007). However, the social phenomenon of its severity has recently been highlighted due to several reasons, mainly due to increase in mortality rates. Unfortunately, not all forms of tobacco smoking have been subjected to the same regulations (policies) and health campaigns as cigarette smoking. Unlike cigarette smokers, Shisha smokers are unaware of the ill effects of smoking Shisha. ... The frequent instances of minors below 18 years indulging in Shisha smoking might be a reflection of this lack in awareness. (Barton, Chassin and Sherman, 1982) Furthermore smoking cigarettes outweighs the other forms of smoking by quite a large margin, that has also resulted in less concern and awareness towards other forms of smoking such as Shisha.(Chaaya,2004) According to the World Health Organization the health risk associated with Shisha smoking is even worse than that of cigarette, yet it is not adequately highlighted (WHO, 2005). This lack of acknowledgement from the authorities regarding the health hazard Shisha poses makes the case even worse. Till date there are no health warnings or regulations on Shisha, even though it presents dangerous implications. Lack of regulations or warning reinstate the false idea Shisha smokers have about the effects of Shisha on health (Feng et al, 2007) A description of the Shisha is as follows: It consists of a vase filled with water, to wh ich a vertical metal pipe that has a clay pot on top is attached. The tobacco substances are placed and burned with charcoal in the clay pot. The smoke is then filtered through water and inhaled through the hose. (see appendix 1) Shisha is an ancient form of smoking tobacco. It was traditionally widely used in Africa and Asia (Chattopadhyay, 2000). It is increasingly evolving world wide, especially in Europe and America. The factors that are contributing to this dramatic spread of Shisha might be due to the global integration and the myth and perception of Shisha being less harmful. Contrary to this ancient traditional philosophy, Shisha contains numerous toxic substance and gases known to cause lung

The Middle Ground Method of Argumentation Coursework

The Middle Ground Method of Argumentation - Coursework Example The topic in the essay could have been approached in a middle ground argument approach. This would have involved considering both the advantages and disadvantages of mandatory drug testing and settling on middle ground where no side gets it all but each side gets something (Anonymous). This would have necessitated a change of the claim from mandatory drug testing having adverse effects to there being a confidentiality mechanism for the results of drug tests (Anonymous). This middle ground solution would have taken care of stigmatization which is one of the disadvantages of mandatory drug testing and it will allow for testing in favor of the group in support. Additional sources will be needed so as to assist in research of the confidentiality method that can be used to make the middle ground solution a success. Proper application of this middle ground solution would be a success as far as mandatory drug testing is

Dove case Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Dove case - Assignment Example Trademark is used by the companies for protecting its brand from others. Unilever wants few of the brands because it requires huge amount of time for developing a brand and make it popular among the mass. A company needs to spend resources and energies for managing its different brands. When a firm has more brands then it can offer different types of products and services to its customers which will help the company to generate more profit. For making its brand portfolio wide, Unilever is trying to acquire more brands (Mooij 91). This will facilitate the company to increase its product lines and customer base. In 1950’s Dove brand positioned itself in the market by focusing on the benefits and function of its beauty bar. Dove highlighted that unlike other soap the beauty bar of Dove does not make the skin dry. Moisturizing cream is present in the beauty bar of Dove which makes the skin healthy and smooth (Williams 56). From the time of 1950s Dove refused to call its product as soap. The brand wants to create its unique image by this. In 2007, Dove positioned its brand as a lifestyle brand with different types of beauty products. The brands developed an emotional attachment with the customers and created a strong connection with them. Dove launched new products and tries to gather maximum information about its target customers for understanding their attitude towards the brand. Dove positioned its brand in fulfilling the expectation of its customers (Weiser 46). Decentralized structure was followed in Unilever before 2000. The company has many brands operating in different market but selling same category of products. During that time managing different brands throughout the world became difficult for the company. Unilever faced lack of co-ordination among its different marketing divisions. Brand management was not so effective for the company. Excessive decentralization increased the cost of the company. In 2000 the condition of Unilever was bad in

This is Britain Essay Example for Free

This is Britain Essay The Romans were in Britain until the beginning of 5. And the south-eastern part of the island were much Romanized. It was formed by five municipalities in the Roman style: Kamulodunum (now Colchester), Verulamium (St. Albans), Lindum (Lincoln), Glevum (Gloucester) and Eborakum (York). All but Verulamiuma, were military settlements. Other cities were founded as centers of areas. In architecture and urban planning, they followed the Roman models, as well as villas, being built in rural areas. There is evidence that the influence of Roman civilization was subjected to a more simple and popular culture. Particularly important role here played by a network of roads built by the Romans primarily for military purposes, but bring together the various parts of the province into a coherent whole. The main occupation of the population was agriculture and sheep breeding, distribution and production of metals has received, primarily silver and lead, less iron and tin. Barbarian invasions in the late 4. forced the Romans to abandon its presence in the remote north-western province. In the north and west of South Roman occupation of Britain was no longer wore military and civilian populations in the south and east were not numerous. By 410 all communication between the empire and Britain ceased, and Britt, lost the habit of fighting over the centuries its dependence on the Romans were forced to defend themselves. Royal power was abolished on Feb. 7, 1649, a week later was formed the State Council of 41 members. England was proclaimed a republic. Nine months of the war, marked sparingly massacre led to the subordination of most of Ireland. This was followed by the confiscation of three-quarters of Irish land, which was distributed to creditors of the republic and the army ranks. They were indignant scorn of the British Parliament for their protest in connection with the execution of the king and now invited to the heir to the throne of Charles I (later Charles II) as the King Presbyterian. The Scottish army invaded England in 1651, was cut off from supplies, and the following year was proclaimed the accession of Scotland to England. At the same time Britain was at war with Holland, which lasted from 1652 to 1654. Now Britain very famous country. The capital of Great Britain is London. Its popular city. He divided for two parts. The first part is London, second called the City. And London famous financial district. I advise you to visit the London!

Colonisation of Perennial Ryegrass by Endophytic Bacteria

Colonisation of Perennial Ryegrass by Endophytic Bacteria 2. Materials and methods 2.1. Preparation of culture media Nutrient agar (NA) – NA (Oxoid, Basingstoke, Hants, UK) was prepared by weighing out 28g of nutrient agar powder and dissolving in 1L of deionised H2O, by warming on a hot plate. This was autoclaved at 121 °C and 15psi for 15 minutes. The medium was then aseptically dispensed in sterile petri dishes and allowed to solidify. Sucrose glutamate agar (SGA) – SGA was prepared by dissolving 20g of sucrose, 2g of glutamate, 15g of agar bacteriological (Agar No.1) and 1g of K2HPO4 in 1L deionised H2O. This was autoclaved as outline above. The medium was allowed to cool to approximately 60 °C at which 5ml of MgSO4 and 1ml of kanamycin was aseptically added to the medium using a Nalgene Syringe Filters. The medium was then poured into petri dishes and allowed to solidify. Nematode growth medium (NGM) – 1L of NGM was prepared by dissolving 3g of NaCl, 17g of agar, and 2.5g of peptone in 975ml of deionised H2O in a Duran bottle. This was autoclaved as outline above. The media was allowed to cool for 15 minutes at which 1ml of 1M CaCl2, 1ml of 5mg/ml cholesterol in ethanol, 1ml of 1M MgSO4 and 25ml of 1M KPO4 buffer were added aseptically in a Duran bottle. The bottle was swirled to ensure the medium was mixed properly and then aseptically dispensed in sterile petri dishes and allowed to solidify. 2.2. Culturing entomopathogenic nematodes (EPN) 9cm filter paper was placed in sterile petri dish and 1ml of stock nematode suspension was pipetted onto filter paper. Five live Galleria mellonella (wax moths) were placed onto petri dish and sealed with parafilm (Figure 1). The dish were kept in a dark and observed daily for the insect mortality. Once the G. mellonella were dead they were transferred to white traps. Figure 1 Galleria (wax moth) baiting technique. 2.3. Preparation of white traps White traps (White, 1927) were prepared which the lid of a small petri dish (35x10mm) was placed on top of the base and placed in a clear tub, this was then covered with filter paper. 30ml of water was added to the plastic container just to allow absorbing through the filter paper. The dead G. mellonella was placed on the moist filter paper and it was covered and placed in dark for 7 to 14 days (Figure 2). The white traps were observed daily for emergence of infective juveniles (IJs) by using stereoscope (Figure 3). Whenever the water around the stage became densely concentrated with nematodes, the water was decanted into a container and replaced with another 30ml of deionised H2O. The nematodes were stored at 4 °C in 25ml of distilled water until needed for use. Figure 2 – Galleria larvae on white trap. Figure 3 – Galleria larvae under stereoscope (20X). 2.4. Culturing Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) on NGM (Couillault. C, 2002) A stock culture of C. elegans was cultures from a previous stock of C. elegans. In a laminar air flow, the plate was divided into equal sections. A sterilized scalpel was used to cut sections from the stock culture to the centre of a fresh NGM plate (Figure 4). The plates were sealed using a strip of parafilm and stored at room temperature or inside incubator at 21 °C for 3 days. The petri plates were observed regularly using stereoscope (Figure 5). Figure 4 – Culturing C. elegans on NGM (Chunking method). Figure 5 – Observation of C. elegans under stereoscope (20X). 2.5. Culturing of bacterial endophytes The endophytic bacterial strains used in this study were provided by IT Carlow stock collection and have been labelled with gfp (green fluorescent protein). The Pseudomonas strains used were F113, L321 and L228. 1L of Nutrient broth (NB) was prepared and 10ml was pipetted into Mc Cartney bottles and autoclaved. The Pseudomonas strains of L321gfp, L228gfp, and F113gfp were inoculated aseptically using a wire loop and incubated at 30 °C for 24hours in an orbital shaker incubator. The gfp strains in the nutrient broth were then streaked onto fresh non contaminated nutrient agar and SGA in duplicate for each of bacterial strains, using the quadrant streaking method. All plates were covered with parafilm, labelled and incubated at 30 °C for 24hours. A gram stain, catalase test, oxidase test, and observation of morphological characterisation were carried out for the Pseudomonas strains of L321gfp, L228gfp, and F113gfp. 2.6. Quantification of nematodes S. feltiae and C. elegans The stock suspension of nematodes was divided into 50ml samples. 100 µl of the infective juvenile suspension of each sample was pipetted using micropipette onto a counting tray and tally counter was used to count for nematodes under stereoscope (Figure 6). Once they were counted, the sample was discarded and washed with deionised H2O. This was repeated 10 times and the average number of nematodes was calculated. Figure 6 – Counting chamber containing suspension of nematodes. 2.7. Preparation of soil samples 2500g of soil was autoclaved as outlined in section 2.1. The soil was dried in an oven at 55 °C for 24 hours. The soil samples were prepared by weighing out 90g into plastic cups (Figure 7) and temporarily covered with tin foil to prevent any contamination. Figure 7 – Each plastic cup contains 90g of soil. 2.8. Preparation for Sodium alginate beads (Bashan, 2002) The microbeads stock suspension were prepared by dissolving 10g of Sodium alginate in 500ml of deionised H2O , 10g of Calcium Chloride in 500ml of deionised H2O, and 5g of powdered skimmed milk in 50ml of deionised H2O. All components were autoclaved separately and the skimmed milk was autoclaved only for 10 minutes. The working solution was prepared from the stock solutions as follows; 5ml of skimmed milk, 15ml of sodium alginate and 5ml inoculum. The components of the working solution were poured into a sterile petri dish and mixed using a sterile rod. Parafilm was used to plug the spout of 20ml syringe, the alginate mixture and grass seeds were subsequently added. The parafilm was then removed and a sterile rod was used to ensure the coated seeds dropped out individually, into a beaker containing Calcium Chloride on a magnetic stirring plate (Figure 8). The beads were washed at least three times with sterile distilled water and stored in a sealed petri dished until needed for use. Figure 8 – Beaker containing Calcium Chloride on a magnetic stirring plate. 2.9. Isolation of bacterial endophytes from alginate beads (Bashan, Y and Levanony, 1989) In order to isolate and enumerate bacterial endophytes from microbeads seed coating. Six alginate beads containing individual bacterium were dissolved in 10ml of 0.25M Potassium Phosphate buffer in a test tube and incubated at 30 °C for 24 hours. The bead was then shaken on a vortex for 5 minutes to break down the alginate. Using a serial dilution method, 1ml of bead samples containing bacteria was serially diluted in 9ml of sterile ringers from 10-1 to 10-10 (Figure 9); this was carried out onto SGA in triplicate and incubated at 30 °C for 24 hours. Figure 9 – Most probable number (MPN) method/Serial dilution method. 2.10. Isolation of bacterial endophytes from plants (Keogh, E, 2009) Each plant was removed from pots and excess soil was removed. Three samples were taken from each plant (stem, root, and rhizosphere). The stems and roots were surface sterilised with 1% of sodium hydrochloride and washed twice with sterile water. The stems and roots were cut with sterile scalpel and crushed with a pestle and mortar in 5ml of Ringers solution. 100 µl of suspension was added to 900 µl of sterile Ringers in 2.5ml microfuge tubes. The serial dilutions were carried out and the resulting dilutions of 30 µl were then pipetted onto SGA in triplicate and incubated at 30 °C for 24 hours. 3. Results 3.1. Characterisation of bacterial endophytes The classical approach to bacteria identification involves preliminary microscopic examination of the gram-stained preparation for its categorisation which would later form the basis for the selection of biochemical test to be performed to test their identity. Table (Table 1) and figures (Figure 10(a) to (f)) below shows the characterisation for each strain of endophyte. Figure 10 – Characterisation of bacterial endophytes. (a) Culture plate observation for F113. (b) Microscopy examination for F113. (c) Culture plate observation for L228. (d) Microscopy visualisation for L228. (e) Culture plate observation for L321. (f) Microscopy examination for L321. 3.2. Counting of nematodes S. feltiae and C. elegans The number of nematodes was counted per well in four weeks’ time (Table 2) and a chart (Figure 11) was produced comparing the S. feltiae and C. elegans. This was repeated 10 times and the average number of nematodes was calculated. Table 2 – Quantification of nematodes. Figure 11- Comparison between No. of IJ/100 µl with the time of S. feltiae and C. elegans. 3.3. Soil samples inoculation In order to make sure the soil samples free from contamination, the serial dilutions were carried out and the resulting dilutions of 30 µl were then pipetted onto SGA in triplicate and incubated at 30 °C for 24 hours (Figure 12). The results indicated no growth in the soil samples. Figure 12 – No growth in the soil samples. 3.4. Isolation of bacterial endophytes from alginate beads In order to isolate bacterial endophytes from alginate seed coating, the beads were plated onto SGA and incubated at 30 °C for 24 hours. The results indicated that fluorescent which present of green colour pigment (Figure 13). Figure 13 – SGA changed to green colour. 3.5. Colonisation and enumeration of endophytic bacterial within plant tissues Inoculated perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) was allowed to grow for 4 weeks (Figure 14) before sampling took place. Total bacterial population of gfp expressing were determined for each of the tissues examined. Endophytic bacteria are considered to be those isolated from the internal tissues of surface sterilised plants. However, it is difficult to determine whether an organism is truly endophytic or merely a survivor of the surface sterilisation process. To ensure that the sterilisation processes were adequate, the sterilised tissues were pressed against the surface of a sterile SGA plate and samples of the third water rinsing were also plated onto SGA plates (Figure 15). Bacterial counts (Figure 16 and 17) on these plates were always between 10-1 to 10-4 CFUs per ml (Table 3 and 4), which was considered to be a good indication that the surface was successfully sterilised. However, under epifluorescent microscopy, the gfp expressing from inoculated plants. Pseudomonas species str ain L321 was detected only in the rhizosphere and the interior root tissues of inoculated plant (Figure 18(a) and (b)). Figure 14 Lolium perenne was allowed to grow. Figure 15 – Bacterial count on SGA plates Table 3 –Plate counts on Pseudomonas strain of L321. Figure 16 – Bacterial counts between S. feltiae and C. elegans. Table 4 – Plate counts on Pseudomonas strain of F113. Figure 17 – Bacterial counts between S. feltiae and C. elegans. Figure 18 – Visualisation under epifluorescent microscope. (a) L321gfp bacteria (400X). (b) L321gfp bacteria (100X). 4. Discussion Bacterial colonisation of the internal tissues of plants has been described in almost all plant species examined so far. Although many of these bacteria are phytopathogenic, a considerable number have also been found that colonise the plant without causing disease. Such bacteria are referred to as bacterial endophytes. Colonisation may take place at the local tissue level or throughout the plant, with bacterial colonies and biofilms residing latently in the intercellular spaces and inside the vascular tissues. This project describes the isolation, identification and colonisation efficiency of perennial ryegrass by gfp labelled bacterial endophytes. Furthermore, this study has shown the successful colonisation of perennial ryegrass by three endophytic bacterial strains under controlled conditions. The Pseudomonas strains, L321 demonstrated efficient colonisation resulting in high population numbers within the plant tissues. This experiment shows that the L321 bacteria endophyte worked successfully with the C. elegans to increase the plant colonisation. In this project, L228 was discarded due to the lawns were very poor and did not fluorescence very well so the experiment carried out only with L321 and F113. During the characterisation of bacteria endophytes, the results were obtained which the genus Pseudomonas appeared in Gram negative bacilli motile by polar flagella. In addition, in catalase test shows positive formed the bubbles when comes into contact with Hydrogen Peroxide. On the other hand, the results show that they are oxidase producing which will be oxidised to deep purple colour. Also, when nematodes had been put on plates and timescale had begun it was noticed that some plates start to dry out which may be due to the media drying out so to overcome this this, the plates have to seal with parafilm to prevent from dry out. Furthermore, other notice when the plates rinsed with water, I noticed crystals formed in the media and this may be due to the tem perature problem. Generally in the experiment there is no physical quantity can be measured with perfect certainty; there are always errors in any measurement. For example, the systematic errors are due to poorly calibrated instrument; observational for example, errors in judgment of an observer when reading the scale of a measuring device to the smallest division. 5. Conclusion In conclusion, this study has shown the successful colonisation of perennial ryegrass by three endophytic bacterial strains under controlled conditions. The Pseudomonas strains, L321 demonstrated efficient colonisation resulting in high population numbers within the plant tissues. Hence, none of the introduced strains showed any signs of pathogenicity towards their host plant and others tested. Many studies have shown that the colonisation levels in field trials are less successful than those in laboratory trials. This is probably due to increased microbial competition and less favourable environmental conditions. Therefore, additional long-term field trials need to be carried out in order to gain a better understanding of the colonisation pattern and population dynamics of endophytic bacteria in the perennial ryegrass. If time permitted future work would include, the carrying out of plant biomass which is a time consuming method that involves drying of cells and to perform by weighi ng the dry and fresh weight of each plant. 6. References Brown, R.H. and Kerry, B.R. (1987). Principles and Practice of Nematode Control in  Crops. Academic Press, Sydney. 447 pp. Evans, D., Trudgill, D.L. and Webster, J.M. (1993). Plant Parasitic Nematodes in  Temperate Agriculture. CAB International, Wallingford. 648 pp.   Luc, M., Sikora, R.A. and Bridge, J. (2005). Plant Parasitic Nematodes in Subtropical  and Tropical Agriculture, 2nd edn. CAB International, Wallingford. 871 pp. Mai, W.F. and Mullin, P.G. (1996). Plant Parasitic Nematodes. A Pictorial Key to  Genera, 5th edn. Comstock, London and Cornell University, Ithaca. 276 pp. Ahmad, F., Ahmad, I., Khan, M.S. 2008. Screening of free-living rhizospheric bacteria for their multiple plant growth promoting activities. Microbiol. Res. 163, 173-181. Barraquio W L, Ladha J K, Watanabe I. Isolation and identification of a N2 fixing Pseudomonas associated with wetland rice. Can J Microbiol. 1983;29:867–873.