The Path through the Gravey

Every night ivan stopped in at the tavern which was one the edge of the village graveyard. Ivan never crossed the graveyard to get to his lonely shack on the other side. That path would save many minutes, but he had never taken it—not even in the full light of noon .

Late one winter’s night, when bitter wind and snow beat against the tavern, customers took up the familiar mockery. Ivan’s mother was scared by a canary when she carried him in her womb. “Ivan the terrible—Ivan the timid one.”

Ivan’s weak protest only encouraged them, and they jeered4 cruelly when the cossack captain flung his horrid challenge at their victim.

“You are a pigeon, Ivan. you’ll walk around the graveyard in this cold—but you dare not cross it.” Ivan murmured, “the graveyard is nothing to cross, captain. It is nothing but earth, like all the other earth international travel jobs.”

The captain cried, “a challenge, then! Cross the graveyard tonight, Ivan, and I’ll give you five rubles—five gold rubles!”

Perhaps it was the vodka. Perhaps it was the temptation of the five gold rubles. No one knew why. Ivan, moistening his lips, said suddenly: “Yes, captain, I’ll cross the graveyard.” The tavern echoed with their disbelief. The captain winked6 to the men and unbuckled his sword.

“Here, Ivan. When you get to the center of the graveyard, in front of the biggest tomb, stick the sword into the ground. In the morning we shall go there. If the sword is in the ground—five rubles to you!” Ivan took the sword. The men drank a toast: “to ivan the terrible!” They roared laughing HIFU.

The wind howled around ivan as he closed the door of the tavern behind him. The cold was knife-sharp. He buttoned his long coat and crossed the dirt road. he could hear the captain’s voice, louder than the rest, yelling after him, “five rubles, pigeon! If you live!”

Ivan pushed the graveyard gate open. He walked fast. “Earth, just earth… just like any other earth.” Nut the darkness was a massive dread.

“Five gold rubles…” The wind was cruel and the sword was like ice in his hands. Ivan shivered under the long, thick coat and broke into a limping run.

He stopped the large tomb. He must have sobbed—that was the sound that was drowned in the wind. And he kneeled, cold and terrified, and drove the sword through the crust into the hard ground. With all his strength, he pushed it down to the hilt. It was done. The graveyard… the challenge… five gold rubles.

Ivan started to rise from his knees. But he could not move. Something gripped him in an unyielding hold. Ivan tugged and lurched and pulled—gasping in his panic, shaken by a horrible fear. He cried out in terror, then made senseless, gurgling noises.

Car Battery Care

The last thing you need is a car that won’t start because the battery is dead. You can avoid that expensive service or tow charge (and the worry of being stranded!) by carrying out a 10-minute seasonal battery check along with a few maintenance tips dermes vs medilase.
In addition to a set of wrenches, you’ll only need a post cleaner or side terminal ($4), a hydrometer ($6) and a cable puller ($4), all available at auto parts stores. Keep in mind that you can skip the battery service if you make sure the mechanic does it during periodic servicing, but you’ll want to keep up with the regular maintenance.
Battery Hygiene

First clean the top of the battery and any corrosion from the cables using a tablespoon of baking soda, a cup of water and a nonmetallic brush. Flush with cool water. Now disconnect the cables, starting with the negative one to prevent your wrenches from arcing on a nearby ground. Loosen the battery cable clamp bolts and gently give them a twist. Use a cable puller if they’re stuck. Never pry on the battery posts. If you have a side post terminal (not shown), use a 5/16-in. box wrench to loosen the cables. With the cables removed, further clean off the corrosion around the battery terminals and cables with a post cleaner dermes.

Gently pry off the covers of the battery cells. (If you have a no-maintenance sealed battery, see facing page.) The water and acid mixture in the battery (electrolyte) should be about 1/2 in. deep or to the bottom of the fill hole. If it needs water, use clean distilled water, being careful not to overfill the cells, and then inspect the battery case for cracks. If you find a crack, replace the battery. If you added water, let the water mix with the electrolyte for a few hours before the next step. (You may need to reconnect the battery to maintain your memory functions.)

Test the electrolyte in each cell. Squeeze the ball and draw the solution into the tester. Carefully hold the tester level and write down the reading. Squirt the solution back into the same cell. The testers are calibrated assuming a battery is at 80 degrees F. Add .04 to each reading for every 10 degrees above 80 and subtract .04 for every 10 degrees below. If you get a cell reading that differs from the others by .05 or more, replace the battery. A fully charged battery should have a reading of 1.265 or higher. If all the readings show fair or low (1.200 is low) but are consistent, recharge the battery.
Memory saver

If you have preset radio stations or other memory functions in your car and want to keep them, go to your auto parts store and get a device like the one shown and a fresh 9-volt battery. Plug this into your cigarette lighter before you disconnect the cables. This will give you about one hour to clean the cables and test the battery charge dermes.

Living in Balance with Feng Shui

Have you ever been in a room that didn’t feel good to be in but you couldn’t figure out what was wrong? Chances are the Yin/Yang components were out of balance. By learning some simple concepts you can arrange each room of your home to support the activities and needs of the people who live there, creating a greater sense of harmony, comfort and balance .

Yin and Yang are at the foundation of the Ancient Practice of Feng Shui. It has to do with the recognition that the universe is made up of opposite forces of energy which cannot exist without each other. They are finely balanced and, like polar sides of a magnet, are innately attracted to each other.

The Yin/Yang symbol depicts two fish gliding together in perfect balance. Each is carrying components of the other; the black fish with the white eye and the white fish with the black eye. They swim together in perfect harmony creating a circle, the most ancient symbol depicting wholeness degree course.

Feng Shui acknowledges that we are ancient creatures who naturally seek balance. If our living spaces are not balanced, our lives feel out of balance as well. By learning to work with the Yin and Yang components in our homes, we create supportive spaces that bring our home into balance, setting up a template that also brings our lives into balance.

The concept of Yin refers to the qualities we attribute to the feminine principle which is passive, dark and yielding. Yang refers to the qualities we attribute to the male principle which is bright, active and extroverted .