December 22, 200520 yr stupid thread,but :D The art of Barca Club founder Joan Gamper first had the idea of setting up a Barca museum in the 1920s, but for a number of reasons, it was not until 1984 when President Josep Lluis Nuñez was in charge of the club that his vision came to fruition. Once again the club showed themselves to be pioneers in the footballing world and with subsequent enlargements in 1987,1994 and 1998, the museum now covers 3,500 square metres. Year after year the museum has increased its number of visitors and become an ever more important tool for spreading the name of the club far and wide. Not only is it the best footballing museum in the world, it is also the most popular museum of any kind in Catalonia, regularly receiving more than 1,160,000 visitors a year, and is a reference point for many other such museums around the world. In 2000, the ex president Gaspart helped ensure that the museum would be named after the man who was the main driving force behind its creation, ex president Nuñez. A trip to the museum includes a tour of the stadium itself and features four main areas: · The History Museum: which covers the club's more than a century long story through the many trophies won, photographic archives, sporting material, audiovisual shows and a vast number of items to stir the fans' emotions. · The Art Gallery: with works by some of the most prestigious artists of the nation, coming from the club's own art shows and gifts. Dalí, Miró, Tàpies, Segrelles and Subirachs are among the artists featured. . Col·lecció Futbolart - Pablo Ornaque: Undoubtedly one of the best private collections of footballing memorabilia, this exhibition covers the history of football from its origins until the present day and is permanently on loan to the museum. · Temporary exhibitions: are regularly organised and have included such prestigious shows as that dedicated to the painter Josep Segrelles and a history of poster art related to the club. The museum also has an archive centre with video, photographic and printed documents related to the club's history, which, since its inauguration in 1994, has proved an important tool for researchers, writers and journalists. Camp Nou tour through the changing rooms The museum offers the chance to really get to know the stadium by taking a tour called Camp Nou through the installations, which takes visitors into the opposition changing rooms, down the tunnel and onto the pitch area. Fans can see the new dugouts and look out across the magnificent stadium. The alter, the TV studio, the press rooms and the directors area virtually complete the tour, with the one final surprise of a chance to enjoy a panoramic view of all FC Barcelona facilities. Don't forget to bring your camera! Opening hours From Monday to Saturday: 10:00-18:30 - Tour Camp Nou untill 17:30 Sundays and Bank holidays: 10:00-14:00 - Tour Camp Nou untill 13:30 Days with a Champions League at the stadium: 10:00-13:00 - Tour Camp Nou doesn't work 1/1, 6/1 and 25/12, closed Free parking Prices 2005 Museum visit Museum visit and Camp Nou tour ADULT 6 9.90 JUNIOR (to 13 years old) 4.50 7.50 STUDENTS, FAN CLUB MEMBERS 4.50 7.50 Special prices for groups Free entrance for Barca members Buy herethe tickets for the Museum. Informations and reservations Tel. (+34) 93 496 36 00 Fax. (+34) 93 496 37 79 E-mail: [email protected]
December 22, 200520 yr I think 50 bling is the most you can earn. :) :lol: :angry: :cool: :embarrased: :rolleyes: :o ;) :huh: :D :P :cry: :( :smug: :wink3: :confused: :/ :stunned: :idea2: :sneaky: :kiss: :dozey: :blush: :snore: .....finger slipped.
December 22, 200520 yr :dozey: :dozey: :dozey: yea it is seamus!!!!!!1 who cares about bling anyway??
December 22, 200520 yr Well, I'm rumblin' in this JCB. I'm 5 years old and my dad's a giant sitting beside me. And the engine rattles my bum like berserk While we're singin, 'Don't forget your shovel if you want to go to work!' My dad's probably had a bloody hard day But he's been good fun and bubblin and jokin' away And the procession of cars stuck behind are gettin all impatient and angry, but we dont mind. An' we're holdin up the bypass oh Me and my dad havin a top laugh oh woah Sittin on the toolbox oh And I'm so glad I'm not in school, boss So glad I'm not in school Oh no... And we pull over to let cars past And pull off again, speedin by the summer green grass And we're like giants up here in our big yellow digger Like zoids, or transformers, or maybe even bigger And I wanna transform into a Tyrannosaurus Rex! And eat up all the bullies and the teachers and their pets And I'll tell all my mates that my dad's B.A. Baracus Only with a JCB and Bruce Lee's nunchuckas And We're holdin up the bypass Weh Oh Me and my dad havin a top laugh Weh Oh weh oh Sittin on the toolbox Weh Oh And I'm so glad I'm not in school, boss So glad I'm not in school And we're holdin up the bypass Weh Oh Me and my dad havin a top laugh Weh Oh I'm sittin on the toolbox Weh Oh And I'm so glad I'm not in school, Boss So glad I'm not in school - Said I'm Luke, I'm five, and my dad's Bruce Lee. Drives me round in his JCB. I'm Luke, I'm five, and my dad's Bruce Lee. Drives me round in his JCB. I'm Luke, I'm five, and my dad's Bruce Lee. Drives me round in his JCB. I'm Luke, I'm five, and my dad's Bruce Lee. Drives me round And we're holdin' up the bypass Weh Oh Me and my dad havin a top laugh Weh Oh And I'm sittin on the toolbox oh And I'm so glad I'm not in school, Boss So glad I'm not in school I said I'm Luke, I'm five, and my dad's Bruce Lee. Drives me round in his JCB. I'm Luke, I'm five, and my dad's Bruce Lee. Drives me round in his Aw, I'm Luke, I'm five, and my dad's Bruce Lee. Drives me round in his JCB. I'm Luke, I'm five, and my dad's Bruce Lee. Drives me round in his JCB.
December 22, 200520 yr :embarrased: .....didn't mean to post two, although I suppose this is the bling thread! :lol:
December 22, 200520 yr duction China Top of Page Background: Definition Field Listing For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After World War II, the Communists under MAO Zedong established an autocratic socialist system that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people. After 1978, his successor DENG Xiaoping and other leaders focused on market-oriented economic development and by 2000 output had quadrupled. For much of the population, living standards have improved dramatically and the room for personal choice has expanded, yet political controls remain tight. Geography China Top of Page Location: Definition Field Listing Eastern Asia, bordering the East China Sea, Korea Bay, Yellow Sea, and South China Sea, between North Korea and Vietnam Geographic coordinates: Definition Field Listing 35 00 N, 105 00 E Map references: Definition Field Listing Asia Area: Definition Field Listing Rank Order total: 9,596,960 sq km land: 9,326,410 sq km water: 270,550 sq km Area - comparative: Definition Field Listing slightly smaller than the US Land boundaries: Definition Field Listing total: 22,117 km border countries: Afghanistan 76 km, Bhutan 470 km, Burma 2,185 km, India 3,380 km, Kazakhstan 1,533 km, North Korea 1,416 km, Kyrgyzstan 858 km, Laos 423 km, Mongolia 4,677 km, Nepal 1,236 km, Pakistan 523 km, Russia (northeast) 3,605 km, Russia (northwest) 40 km, Tajikistan 414 km, Vietnam 1,281 km regional borders: Hong Kong 30 km, Macau 0.34 km Coastline: Definition Field Listing 14,500 km Maritime claims: Definition Field Listing territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin Climate: Definition Field Listing extremely diverse; tropical in south to subarctic in north Terrain: Definition Field Listing mostly mountains, high plateaus, deserts in west; plains, deltas, and hills in east Elevation extremes: Definition Field Listing lowest point: Turpan Pendi -154 m highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m Natural resources: Definition Field Listing coal, iron ore, petroleum, natural gas, mercury, tin, tungsten, antimony, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, magnetite, aluminum, lead, zinc, uranium, hydropower potential (world's largest) Land use: Definition Field Listing arable land: 15.4% permanent crops: 1.25% other: 83.35% (2001) Irrigated land: Definition Field Listing 525,800 sq km (1998 est.) Natural hazards: Definition Field Listing frequent typhoons (about five per year along southern and eastern coasts); damaging floods; tsunamis; earthquakes; droughts; land subsidence Environment - current issues: Definition Field Listing air pollution (greenhouse gases, sulfur dioxide particulates) from reliance on coal produces acid rain; water shortages, particularly in the north; water pollution from untreated wastes; deforestation; estimated loss of one-fifth of agricultural land since 1949 to soil erosion and economic development; desertification; trade in endangered species Environment - international agreements: Definition Field Listing party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements Geography - note: Definition Field Listing world's fourth largest country (after Russia, Canada, and US); Mount Everest on the border with Nepal is the world's tallest peak People China Top of Page Population: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 1,306,313,812 (July 2005 est.) Age structure: Definition Field Listing 0-14 years: 21.4% (male 148,134,928/female 131,045,415) 15-64 years: 71% (male 477,182,072/female 450,664,933) 65 years and over: 7.6% (male 47,400,282/female 51,886,182) (2005 est.) Median age: Definition Field Listing total: 32.26 years male: 31.87 years female: 32.67 years (2005 est.) Population growth rate: Definition Field Listing 0.58% (2005 est.) Birth rate: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 13.14 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) Death rate: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 6.94 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) Net migration rate: Definition Field Listing -0.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) Sex ratio: Definition Field Listing at birth: 1.12 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.13 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2005 est.) Infant mortality rate: Definition Field Listing Rank Order total: 24.18 deaths/1,000 live births male: 21.21 deaths/1,000 live births female: 27.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) Life expectancy at birth: Definition Field Listing Rank Order total population: 72.27 years male: 70.65 years female: 74.09 years (2005 est.) Total fertility rate: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 1.72 children born/woman (2005 est.) HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 0.1% (2003 est.) HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 840,000 (2003 est.) HIV/AIDS - deaths: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 44,000 (2003 est.) Nationality: Definition Field Listing noun: Chinese (singular and plural) adjective: Chinese Ethnic groups: Definition Field Listing Han Chinese 91.9%, Zhuang, Uygur, Hui, Yi, Tibetan, Miao, Manchu, Mongol, Buyi, Korean, and other nationalities 8.1% Religions: Definition Field Listing Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Muslim 1%-2%, Christian 3%-4% note: officially atheist (2002 est.) Languages: Definition Field Listing Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua, based on the Beijing dialect), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghaiese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic groups entry) Literacy: Definition Field Listing definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 90.9% male: 95.1% female: 86.5% (2002) Government China Top of Page Country name: Definition Field Listing conventional long form: People's Republic of China conventional short form: China local long form: Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo local short form: Zhong Guo abbreviation: PRC Government type: Definition Field Listing Communist state Capital: Definition Field Listing Beijing Administrative divisions: Definition Field Listing 23 provinces (sheng, singular and plural), 5 autonomous regions (zizhiqu, singular and plural), and 4 municipalities (shi, singular and plural) : provinces: Anhui, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guizhou, Hainan, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang : autonomous regions: Guangxi, Nei Mongol, Ningxia, Xinjiang, Xizang (Tibet) : municipalities: Beijing, Chongqing, Shanghai, Tianjin note: China considers Taiwan its 23rd province; see separate entries for the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau Independence: Definition Field Listing 221 BC (unification under the Qin or Ch'in Dynasty); 1 January 1912 (Manchu Dynasty replaced by a Republic); 1 October 1949 (People's Republic established) National holiday: Definition Field Listing Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China, 1 October (1949) Constitution: Definition Field Listing most recent promulgation 4 December 1982 Legal system: Definition Field Listing a complex amalgam of custom and statute, largely criminal law; rudimentary civil code in effect since 1 January 1987; new legal codes in effect since 1 January 1980; continuing efforts are being made to improve civil, administrative, criminal, and commercial law Suffrage: Definition Field Listing 18 years of age; universal Executive branch: Definition Field Listing chief of state: President HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003) and Vice President ZENG Qinghong (since 15 March 2003) head of government: Premier WEN Jiabao (since 16 March 2003); Vice Premiers HUANG Ju (since 17 March 2003), WU Yi (17 March 2003), ZENG Peiyan (since 17 March 2003), and HUI Liangyu (since 17 March 2003) cabinet: State Council appointed by the National People's Congress (NPC) elections: president and vice president elected by the National People's Congress for five-year terms; elections last held 15-17 March 2003 (next to be held mid-March 2008); premier nominated by the president, confirmed by the National People's Congress election results: HU Jintao elected president by the Tenth National People's Congress with a total of 2,937 votes (four delegates voted against him, four abstained, and 38 did not vote); ZENG Qinghong elected vice president by the Tenth National People's Congress with a total of 2,578 votes (177 delegates voted against him, 190 abstained, and 38 did not vote); two seats were vacant Legislative branch: Definition Field Listing unicameral National People's Congress or Quanguo Renmin Daibiao Dahui (2,985 seats; members elected by municipal, regional, and provincial people's congresses to serve five-year terms) elections: last held December 2002-February 2003 (next to be held late 2007-February 2008) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - NA Judicial branch: Definition Field Listing Supreme People's Court (judges appointed by the National People's Congress); Local Peoples Courts (comprise higher, intermediate and local courts); Special Peoples Courts (primarily military, maritime, and railway transport courts) Political parties and leaders: Definition Field Listing Chinese Communist Party or CCP [HU Jintao, General Secretary of the Central Committee]; eight registered small parties controlled by CCP Political pressure groups and leaders: Definition Field Listing no substantial political opposition groups exist, although the government has identified the Falungong spiritual movement and the China Democracy Party as subversive groups International organization participation: Definition Field Listing AfDB, APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, CDB, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MONUC, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS (observer), ONUB, OPCW, PCA, SCO, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC Diplomatic representation in the US: Definition Field Listing chief of mission: Ambassador ZHOU Wenzhong chancery: 2300 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 328-2500 FAX: [1] (202) 328-2582 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco consulate(s): Los Angeles Diplomatic representation from the US: Definition Field Listing chief of mission: Ambassador Clark T. RANDT, Jr. embassy: Xiu Shui Bei Jie 3, 100600 Beijing mailing address: PSC 461, Box 50, FPO AP 96521-0002 telephone: [86] (10) 6532-3831 FAX: [86] (10) 6532-6929 consulate(s) general: Chengdu, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Shenyang Flag description: Definition Field Listing red with a large yellow five-pointed star and four smaller yellow five-pointed stars (arranged in a vertical arc toward the middle of the flag) in the upper hoist-side corner Economy China Top of Page Economy - overview: Definition Field Listing In late 1978 the Chinese leadership began moving the economy from a sluggish, inefficient, Soviet-style centrally planned economy to a more market-oriented system. Whereas the system operates within a political framework of strict Communist control, the economic influence of non-state organizations and individual citizens has been steadily increasing. The authorities switched to a system of household and village responsibility in agriculture in place of the old collectivization, increased the authority of local officials and plant managers in industry, permitted a wide variety of small-scale enterprises in services and light manufacturing, and opened the economy to increased foreign trade and investment. The result has been a quadrupling of GDP since 1978. Measured on a purchasing power parity (PPP) basis, China in 2004 stood as the second-largest economy in the world after the US, although in per capita terms the country is still poor. Agriculture and industry have posted major gains especially in coastal areas near Hong Kong and opposite Taiwan and in Shanghai, where foreign investment has helped spur output of both domestic and export goods. The leadership, however, often has experienced - as a result of its hybrid system - the worst results of socialism (bureaucracy and lassitude) and of capitalism (growing income disparities and rising unemployment). China thus has periodically backtracked, retightening central controls at intervals. The government has struggled to (a) sustain adequate jobs growth for tens of millions of workers laid off from state-owned enterprises, migrants, and new entrants to the work force; (b) reduce corruption and other economic crimes; and © keep afloat the large state-owned enterprises, many of which had been shielded from competition by subsidies and had been losing the ability to pay full wages and pensions. From 100 to 150 million surplus rural workers are adrift between the villages and the cities, many subsisting through part-time, low-paying jobs. Popular resistance, changes in central policy, and loss of authority by rural cadres have weakened China's population control program, which is essential to maintaining long-term growth in living standards. At the same time, one demographic consequence of the "one child" policy is that China is now one of the most rapidly aging countries in the world. Another long-term threat to growth is the deterioration in the environment - notably air pollution, soil erosion, and the steady fall of the water table especially in the north. China continues to lose arable land because of erosion and economic development. As part of its effort to gradually slow the rapid economic growth seen in 2004, Beijing says it will reduce somewhat its spending on infrastructure in 2005, while continuing to focus on poverty relief and through rural tax reform. Accession to the World Trade Organization helps strengthen its ability to maintain strong growth rates but at the same time puts additional pressure on the hybrid system of strong political controls and growing market influences. China has benefited from a huge expansion in computer Internet use, with 94 million users at the end of 2004. Foreign investment remains a strong element in China's remarkable economic growth. Shortages of electric power and raw materials may affect industrial output in 2005. More power generating capacity is scheduled to come on line in 2006. In its rivalry with India as an economic power, China has a lead in the absorption of technology, the rising prominence in world trade, and the alleviation of poverty; India has one important advantage in its relative mastery of the English language, but the number of competent Chinese English-speakers is growing rapidly. GDP (purchasing power parity): Definition Field Listing Rank Order $7.262 trillion (2004 est.) GDP - real growth rate: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 9.1% (official data) (2004 est.) GDP - per capita: Definition Field Listing Rank Order purchasing power parity - $5,600 (2004 est.) GDP - composition by sector: Definition Field Listing agriculture: 13.8% industry and construction: 52.9% services: 33.3% (2004 est.) Labor force: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 760.8 million (2003) Labor force - by occupation: Definition Field Listing agriculture 49%, industry 22%, services 29% (2003 est.) Unemployment rate: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 9.8% in urban areas; substantial unemployment and underemployment in rural areas; an official Chinese journal estimated overall unemployment (including rural areas) for 2003 at 20% (2004 est.) Population below poverty line: Definition Field Listing 10% (2001 est.) Household income or consumption by percentage share: Definition Field Listing lowest 10%: 2.4% highest 10%: 30.4% (1998) Distribution of family income - Gini index: Definition Field Listing 44 (2002) Inflation rate (consumer prices): Definition Field Listing Rank Order 4.1% (2004 est.) Investment (gross fixed): Definition Field Listing Rank Order 46% of GDP (2004 est.) Budget: Definition Field Listing revenues: $317.9 billion expenditures: $348.9 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) Public debt: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 31.4% of GDP (2004 est.) Agriculture - products: Definition Field Listing rice, wheat, potatoes, corn, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, apples, cotton, oilseed, pork, fish Industries: Definition Field Listing mining and ore processing, iron, steel, aluminum, and other metals; coal; machine building; armaments; textiles and apparel; petroleum; cement; chemicals; fertilizers; consumer products, including footwear, toys, and electronics; food processing; transportation equipment, including automobiles, rail cars and locomotives, ships, and aircraft; telecommunications equipment, commercial space launch vehicles and satellites Industrial production growth rate: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 17.1% (2004 est.) Electricity - production: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 1.91 trillion kWh (2003) Electricity - consumption: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 1.63 trillion kWh (2003) Electricity - exports: Definition Field Listing 10.38 billion kWh (2002) Electricity - imports: Definition Field Listing 2.3 billion kWh (2002) Oil - production: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 3.392 million bbl/day (2003 est.) Oil - consumption: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 4.956 million bbl/day (2002 est.) Oil - exports: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 427,800 bbl/day (2002) Oil - imports: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 2.414 million bbl/day (2002) Oil - proved reserves: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 17.74 billion bbl (2004 est.) Natural gas - production: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 35 billion cu m (2003 est.) Natural gas - consumption: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 29.18 billion cu m (2002 est.) Natural gas - exports: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 0 cu m (2002 est.) Natural gas - imports: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 0 cu m (2002 est.) Natural gas - proved reserves: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 2.23 trillion cu m (2004) Current account balance: Definition Field Listing Rank Order $30.32 billion (2004 est.) Exports: Definition Field Listing Rank Order $583.1 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.) Exports - commodities: Definition Field Listing machinery and equipment, plastics, optical and medical equipment, iron and steel Exports - partners: Definition Field Listing US 21.1%, Hong Kong 17%, Japan 12.4%, South Korea 4.7%, Germany 4% (2004) Imports: Definition Field Listing Rank Order $552.4 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.) Imports - commodities: Definition Field Listing machinery and equipment, oil and mineral fuels, plastics, optical and medical equipment, organic chemicals, iron and steel Imports - partners: Definition Field Listing Japan 16.8%, Taiwan 11.4%, South Korea 11.1%, US 8%, Germany 5.4% (2004) Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: Definition Field Listing Rank Order $609.9 billion (2004 est.) Debt - external: Definition Field Listing Rank Order $233.3 billion (3rd quarter 2004 est.) Economic aid - recipient: Definition Field Listing NA Currency (code): Definition Field Listing yuan (CNY) note:: also referred to as the Renminbi (RMB) Exchange rates: Definition Field Listing yuan per US dollar - 8.2768 (2004), 8.277 (2003), 8.277 (2002), 8.2771 (2001), 8.2785 (2000) Fiscal year: Definition Field Listing calendar year Communications China Top of Page Telephones - main lines in use: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 263 million (2003) Telephones - mobile cellular: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 269 million (2003) Telephone system: Definition Field Listing general assessment: domestic and international services are increasingly available for private use; unevenly distributed domestic system serves principal cities, industrial centers, and many towns domestic: interprovincial fiber-optic trunk lines and cellular telephone systems have been installed; a domestic satellite system with 55 earth stations is in place international: country code - 86; satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (4 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific and Indian Ocean regions); several international fiber-optic links to Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Russia, and Germany (2000) Radio broadcast stations: Definition Field Listing AM 369, FM 259, shortwave 45 (1998) Television broadcast stations: Definition Field Listing 3,240 (of which 209 are operated by China Central Television, 31 are provincial TV stations and nearly 3,000 are local city stations) (1997) Internet country code: Definition Field Listing .cn Internet hosts: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 160,421 (2003) Internet users: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 94 million (2004) Transportation China Top of Page Railways: Definition Field Listing Rank Order total: 71,898 km standard gauge: 71,898 km 1.435-m gauge (18,115 km electrified) dual gauge: 23,945 km (multiple track not included in total) (2002) Highways: Definition Field Listing Rank Order total: 1,765,222 km paved: 395,410 km (with at least 25,130 km of expressways) unpaved: 1,369,812 km (2002 est.) Waterways: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 121,557 km (2002) Pipelines: Definition Field Listing gas 15,890 km; oil 14,478 km; refined products 3,280 km (2004) Ports and harbors: Definition Field Listing Dalian, Guangzhou, Nanjing, Ningbo, Qingdao, Qinhuangdao, Shanghai Merchant marine: Definition Field Listing Rank Order total: 1,649 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 18,724,653 GRT/27,749,784 DWT by type: barge carrier 2, bulk carrier 362, cargo 696, chemical tanker 38, combination ore/oil 1, container 135, liquefied gas 30, passenger 7, passenger/cargo 81, petroleum tanker 246, refrigerated cargo 30, roll on/roll off 11, vehicle carrier 10 foreign-owned: 9 (Hong Kong 4, Japan 2, South Korea 2, United States 1) registered in other countries: 872 (2005) Airports: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 472 (2004 est.) Airports - with paved runways: Definition Field Listing total: 383 over 3,047 m: 53 2,438 to 3,047 m: 116 1,524 to 2,437 m: 141 914 to 1,523 m: 23 under 914 m: 50 (2004 est.) Airports - with unpaved runways: Definition Field Listing total: 89 over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 32 under 914 m: 35 (2004 est.) Heliports: Definition Field Listing 15 (2004 est.) Military China Top of Page Military branches: Definition Field Listing People's Liberation Army (PLA): Ground Forces, Navy (includes marines and naval aviation), Air Force (includes Airborne Forces), and II Artillery Corps (strategic missile force); People's Armed Police Force (internal security troops considered to be an adjunct to the PLA); Militia (2003) Military service age and obligation: Definition Field Listing 18-22 years of age for compulsory military service, with 24-month service obligation; no minimum age for voluntary service; 17 years of age for women who meet requirements for specific military jobs (2004) Manpower available for military service: Definition Field Listing males age 18-49: 342,956,265 (2005 est.) Manpower fit for military service: Definition Field Listing males age 18-49: 281,240,272 (2005 est.) Manpower reaching military service age annually: Definition Field Listing males: 13,186,433 (2005 est.) Military expenditures - dollar figure: Definition Field Listing Rank Order $67.49 billion (2004) Military expenditures - percent of GDP: Definition Field Listing Rank Order 4.3% (2004) Transnational Issues China Top of Page Disputes - international: Definition Field Listing in 2005, China and India initiate drafting principles to resolve all aspects of their extensive boundary and territorial disputes together with a security and foreign policy dialogue to consolidate discussions related to the boundary, regional nuclear proliferation, and other matters; recent talks and confidence-building measures have begun to defuse tensions over Kashmir, site of the world's largest and most militarized territorial dispute with portions under the de facto administration of China (Aksai Chin), India (Jammu and Kashmir), and Pakistan (Azad Kashmir and Northern Areas); India does not recognize Pakistan's ceding historic Kashmir lands to China in 1964; about 90,000 ethnic Tibetan exiles reside primarily in India as well as Nepal and Bhutan; China asserts sovereignty over the Spratly Islands together with Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei; the 2002 "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" has eased tensions in the Spratlys but is not the legally binding "code of conduct" sought by some parties; in March 2005, the national oil companies of China, the Philippines, and Vietnam signed a joint accord on marine seismic activities in the Spratly Islands; China occupies some of the Paracel Islands also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; China and Taiwan have become more vocal in rejecting both Japan's claims to the uninhabited islands of Senkaku-shoto (Diaoyu Tai) and Japan's unilaterally declared exclusive economic zone in the East China Sea, the site of intensive hydrocarbon prospecting; certain islands in the Yalu and Tumen rivers are in an uncontested dispute with North Korea and a section of boundary around Mount Paektu is considered indefinite; China seeks to stem illegal migration of tens of thousands of North Koreans; in 2004, China and Russia divided up the islands in the Amur, Ussuri, and Argun Rivers, ending a century-old border dispute; demarcation of the China-Vietnam boundary proceeds slowly and although the maritime boundary delimitation and fisheries agreements were ratified in June 2004, implementation has been delayed; environmentalists in Burma and Thailand remain concerned about China's construction of hydroelectric dams upstream on the Nujiang/Salween River in Yunnan Province Refugees and internally displaced persons: Definition Field Listing refugees (country of origin): 299,287 (Vietnam) estimated 30,000-50,000 (North Korea) (2004) Illicit drugs: Definition Field Listing major transshipment point for heroin produced in the Golden Triangle; growing domestic drug abuse problem; source country for chemical precursors and methamphetamine This page was last updated on 1 November, 2005 Bottom Banner
December 22, 200520 yr CHINA FACT SUMMARY MODERN STATE Official Name. People's Republic of China (in Chinese, Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo). Capital. Beijing. China. Named by Europeans for ancient Ch'in Dynasty. Coat of Arms. Five stars above Gate of Heavenly Peace, in Beijing, surrounded by border of ears of grain, with drapings knotted in center of cogwheel at base. Large star symbolizes mutual progress of four classes (workers, farmers, smallholders, and patriotic capitalists), each represented by a small star. Anthem. `Qi Lai' (March of the Volunteers); words composed by Tian Han, 1935; music by Nie Er. NATURAL FEATURES Borders. Coastline 8,700 miles (14,000 kilometers); land frontier 12,400 miles (20,000 kilometers). Natural Regions. West China--Plateau of Tibet, Kunlun Mountains, and Himalayas; Tarim and Junggar basins in Xinjiang, separated by Tian Shan; Inner Mongolian plateau. North China--eastern highlands and central plain of the Northeast (formerly Manchuria), Huang He (Yellow River) Basin (including Qin Ling Shan, Loess Plateau, and North China Plain). Central and South China--Yangtze River (Chang Jiang) basin (including Sichuan Basin, Yangtze plains and deltas); Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau; Dong, Xi, Bei river valleys; southeastern coastal uplands; and Guangdong-Guangxi Zhuangzu hills. Major Ranges. Himalayas; Kunlun Shan; Tian Shan; Yin Shan; Qin Ling Shan; Nan Ling Shan. Major Peaks. Everest, 29,028 feet (8,848 meters); Namzha Parwa, 25,445 feet (7,756 meters); Gurla Mandhada, 25,355 feet (7,728 meters). Major Rivers. Yangtze, 3,400 miles (5,500 kilometers); Huang He, 2,900 miles (4,700 kilometers); Amur, 2,700 miles (4,300 kilometers); Mekong, 2,600 miles (4,200 kilometers). Major Lakes. Koko Nor (Qinghai Hu); Lop Nor; Tai Hu; Poyang Hu. Climate. Generally monsoon; continental, dry in winter; maritime, wet in summer. North China--cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers; rain 15-30 inches (380-760 millimeters). Central China--moderate; rain 45-80 inches (1,150-2,000 millimeters). South China--subtropical; rain 80 inches (2,000 millimeters). In terms of climate, China may be divided between the humid eastern region and the dry west. The humid east may be further subdivided between the warm and humid south and southeast and the temperate-to-cool, moderately humid north and northeast. Much of the humid eastern region of China exhibits a monsoonal pattern of temperature and precipitation. In a monsoon climate, the warm summer months are typically the months of maximum precipitation. PEOPLE Population (1990 census). 1,133,682,501; 307 persons per square mile (118 per square kilometer); 26.2 percent urban, 73.8 percent rural. Vital Statistics (rate per 1,000 population). Births, 21; deaths, 6.30. Life Expectancy (at birth). Males--68.1 years; females--71.0 years. Major Language. Chinese; chief dialect, Mandarin. Ethnic Groups. Chinese, or Han (93 percent); minority nationalities include Zhuang, Hui, Uygurs, Zang, Mongols. Major Religions. Taoism; Confucianism; Buddhism; Christianity; Islam. (The government discourages religious practices.) MAJOR CITIES (1989 estimates) More than 500 million people live in and around cities in China, according to the 1990 census. There are more urban dwellers in China than are found in either the United States or Russia. Some of the cities are quite large. Shanghai, for example, has more than 7 million people; Beijing has more than 6 million, and Tianjin more than 5 million. Many cities have more than 1 million people each. Even so, city dwellers represent a relatively low percentage of the total population--about 20.1 percent, according to the 1982 census. China's cities are expanding rapidly. The government is attempting to regulate urban growth in order to avoid such problems as congestion, overcrowding, slum development, and unemployment. It is difficult, for example, for a person to move to a city unless he or she has a permanent job and a housing permit. Through such constraints, China can slow the migration of people to cities and encourage the kind of urban and regional growth that planners believe is most suitable. Nevertheless, it seems quite likely that urbanization, the flow of people to cities, will continue to be a factor as China modernizes and its economy continues to expand. Shanghai (7,330,000). One of the world's leading ports; China's chief industrial city; educational, commercial, and transportation center; Shanghai Municipal Industrial University; "Great World" Theater; Huang-K'ou Arboretum; Sino-Soviet Friendship Palace; Lung Hua Pagoda; Yu-Yuan Garden. Beijing (6,800,000). Capital of China; political, industrial, publishing, and educational center; Peking University; Forbidden City; Summer Palace; Temple of Heaven; People's Cultural Park; Museum of the Chinese Revolution; Peking Planetarium. Tianjin (5,620,000). Leading port on Hai He (river); manufacturing, trading, transport, handicrafts, and folk-art center; Peace Cinema; Xingang Harbor; Botanical Gardens; People's Park. Shenyang (4,440,000). Capital of Liaoning Province; located on the Hun He (river); industrial and transportation center; Manchu Imperial Palace; Liaoning University; Northeastern Institute of Fine Arts; Northeast Museum. Wuhan (3,640,000). A network of three cities: Hankow, Hanyang, and Wuchang, the capital of Hubei Province; located where the Han and Yangtze rivers merge; leading Yangtze River port and a major rail and highway junction; Wuhan University. Canton (Guangzhou) (3,490,000). Capital of Guangdong Province; major port on Zhu Jiang (Pearl River); commercial, industrial, and transport center of South China; Sun Yat-sen University; Guangzhou Museum; Sun Yat-sen Library; Guangdong Botanical and Zoological Gardens; International Sports Center. Harbin (2,930,000). Capital of Heilongjiang Province; located on the Songhua River; one of the leading transportation and industrial centers of northeastern China; Harbin Shipbuilding Engineering College; Harbin University of Sciences and Technology. ECONOMY Chief Agricultural Products. Crops--rice, wheat, sweet potatoes, gaoliang (Chinese sorghum), millet, corn (maize), cotton, tobacco, sugarcane, potatoes, soybeans, barley, peanuts, tea. Livestock--cattle, pigs, poultry, sheep. Chief Mined Products. Coal, iron ore, petroleum and natural gas, tin, tungsten and manganese ore, antimony, bauxite, copper. Chief Manufactured Products. Iron and steel, textiles, fertilizers, pharmaceuticals, transportation equipment, machinery, electronics, paper, sugar, cement, motor vehicles. Chief Imports. Machinery, steel and other metals, wheat, chemicals, fertilizers. Chief Exports. Crude oil, textile yarn, fabrics, chemicals, coal, soybeans, vegetable oil, rice, small machinery. Chief Trading Partners. Japan, Hong Kong, United States, Germany, Singapore, United Kingdom, Canada. Monetary Unit. 1 yuan = 100 fen. EDUCATION Schools. Preschool--for ages 2 to 6. Primary--5 years beginning at age 6. Secondary--5 years; junior 3 years; senior 2 years. Higher--3 to 6 years. Ministry of Education administers higher education; regional and provincial governments are responsible for primary and secondary education. Literacy. Adult population is about 76 percent literate. Leading Universities. About 170 institutions of higher education; universities at Beijing, Changchun, Chengdu, Chongqing, Hulan Ergi, Fuxin, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Harbin, Hefei, Hohhot, Jinan, Kunming, Lanzhou, Luda, Nanchang, Nanjing, Qingdao, Shenyang, Tianjin, Urumqi, Wuhan, Xiamen, Xi'an, Xiangtan, Zhenjiang, Zhengzhou. Notable Libraries. Chinese Academy of Sciences Central Library, Beijing; National Library of Beijing; Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China Library, Beijing; Nanjing Library; Shandong Library, Jinan; Tianjin Library. Notable Museums. National Academy of Arts, Beijing; History Museum, Canton; Lhasa Museum; Museum of Astronomy, Nanjing; Chinese History Museum, Beijing; Cultural Palace of Minorities, Beijing; Peasant Movement Institute and House of Mao Zedong (traditionally Mao Tse-tung), Wuhan. GOVERNMENT Form of Government. People's Republic. Constitution. Fourth constitution since 1954; effective December 1982. Chief of State. President/chairman of the republic. Head of Government. Premier. Legislature. National People's Congress; annual sessions; term 5 years. Standing Committee. The executive, elected by National People's Congress; consists of chairman, vice-chairmen, and members. State Council. Cabinet; consists of premier, vice-premiers, and ministers, all appointed by National People's Congress. Judiciary. Supreme People's Court--the highest judicial organ of the state--consists of one president and one vice president; term, 4 years. Other courts include Special People's Courts, Local People's Courts. Supreme People's Procuratorates and Local People's Procuratorates enforce laws. Communist Party. The government is controlled by the main organs of the Communist party, including the Central Advisory Commission, the Central Committee, and the Politburo. Party membership (1980): 38,000,000. Political Divisions. 21 provinces; 5 autonomous regions; 3 special status municipalities (Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin). Voting Qualifications. All citizens over 18 years of age can vote with the exception of persons deprived of voting by law. PLACES OF INTEREST Anshan. Chief iron and steel works in China; a complex of steelworks, rolling mills, and iron mines. Burma Road. 717 miles (1,154 kilometers) long, over north-south high ranges from Lashio, Myanmar, to Kunming; a vital supply route during World War II. Chinese Eastern Railroad. Built by Soviet Union, across Manchuria (now the Northeast) to Vladivostok and Luda. Fengman Dam. One of the largest hydroelectric power stations of China; located at the head of the Songhua Jiang reservoir; capacity of more than 570,000 kilowatts. Fushun. One of the world's largest open pit coal mines, producing more than 22,000,000 tons (20,000,000 metric tons) annually; also site of steel mills, chemicals, and oil refinery complex. Gobi, The. One of the largest deserts in the world. Grand Canal. 1,056-mile (1,700-kilometer) canal linking Beijing and Hangzhou; used for north-south transport; constructed during the Sui Dynasty (AD 581 to 618). Great Wall. 1,500-mile (2,400-kilometer) wall from Gansu to Qinhuangdao; about 15 to 50 feet (5 to 15 meters) high. Hainan. Large tropical island in the South China Sea (Nan Hai); produces sugarcane, pineapples, grapefruit, coffee, and rice. Huang He (Yellow River). Second longest river in China, 2,900 miles (4,700 kilometers). Koko Nor (Qinghai Hu). Largest mountain lake with no outlet in Central Asia, in Nan Shan (mountains); surface area averages 2,000 square miles (5,200 square kilometers). Lhasa. Capital of Tibet; located high in the Tibetan Himalayas; Dalai Lama's Palace. Marco Polo Bridge. Over Yongding He; Sino-Japanese War began here on July 7, 1937. Mount Everest. World's highest peak, on Tibet-Nepal border, 29,028 feet (8,848 meters). Qufu. Home of Confucius; Temple of Confucius; Confucius' Tomb; Residence of Confucius' Descendants. Tai Shan. Sacred mountain, traditionally worshipped as a deity, highest peak, 8,064 feet (2,458 meters), in Shandong Province; temples; monuments. Xi'an. Near site of excavation of the tomb of Emperor Ch'in Shih Huang Ti, who died 210 BC; more than 7,500 life-size terra-cotta warrior figures were excavated. Yangtze River. Longest river in Asia, 3,400 miles (5,500 kilometers); gorges north of Yichang. Yan'an. Communist armies established their headquarters here after the Long March in December 1936; Museum of the Revolution; Mao Zedong's house. Zhoukoudianzhen. Near Beijing, site of the discovery of Peking Man (about 400,000 BC); excavated in 1923. The Geography portion of this article was contributed by Clifton W. Pannell, Professor, Department of Geography, University of Georgia, and author of `China, The Geography of Development and Modernization'. The History portion of this article was contributed by Bonnie B.C. Oh, former Associate Professor of History, Loyola University of Chicago. AGRICULTURE Agricultural regions. In a sense, it is difficult to discuss Chinese agriculture as a whole, because the climate and physical features--and thus the kinds of crops that are cultivated--vary widely from one part of the country to another. In general, for agricultural purposes, three main physical regions can be considered: the west, the north, and the central and south. These can be further subdivided into eight distinctive physical-agricultural regions. The Tibet-Qinghai Plateau in western China is a high, cold, dry, and extremely rugged area with a short growing season. Farmers here can usually grow only enough wheat, barley, and potatoes and raise enough sheep, yaks, and horses to provide for the needs of their own families. Also in western China, Inner Mongolia and Xinjiang lie beyond the Great Wall and are known for their dryness. They get less than 12 inches (300 millimeters) of precipitation and in some areas less than one inch (25 millimeters). Herding is the primary economic activity, though oasis agriculture is carried on where water is available. Crops include grain, cotton, sugar beets, and exotic fruits and melons. In northern China the Loess Plateau lies southeast of the Great Wall and north of the Qin Ling Mountains. The loess that covers most of the area has eroded into badlands in places. This region is dry and has long, cold winters. Drought-tolerant crops such as millet and gaoliang are common. Wheat, corn, and cotton are also planted extensively, especially where irrigation water is available. The North China Plain lies south of the Great Wall and extends from the coast to the mountains and hills to the west and south. The floodplains of the Huang He and the Huai He are the main features. Several problems exist here. There is not enough rainfall, the winters are cold and long, and some of the soils are salty because of poor drainage. The main crops are wheat, barley, cotton, corn, gaoliang, millet, and peanuts. The Northeast (formerly called Manchuria) suffers from extremely cold winters, a short growing season, and poor drainage on the large Northeast Plain. The fields in this region are large, and heavy farm machinery has been used extensively. The chief crops include spring wheat, corn, millet, gaoliang, flax, and soybeans. A great deal of land reclamation has taken place in Heilongjiang Province. State farms have become the main form of agricultural organization in the land reclamation areas. The middle and lower Yangtze River basin in central China is the country's richest and most productive agricultural region, the "rice bowl" of China. The lowlands contain extensive areas of rich, river-borne alluvial soils. Precipitation is abundant, and the winters are mild. Rice is the main crop, but cotton, tea, and oilseeds are also important. Half of the country's rice is produced in this region. The farming methods are very intensive and yields are high. Much of the fertile land of the middle and lower Yangtze Basin is farmed all year round. South China includes the region south of the Yangtze Basin along China's southern and southeastern coasts, a land of rugged hills and low mountains interspersed with river basins. Much of this region lies within the tropics. Precipitation is abundant and the growing season is long, but only 10 percent of the area is flat enough to permit row cropping. The main crops are rice, sugarcane, mulberries (grown primarily for silkworm culture), fruit, and freshwater fishes raised in ponds or rice paddies. The Zhu Jiang (Pearl River) delta plain around Canton is one of the most productive farming regions in China. The western part of the region also contains the Sichuan Basin and extends south to include the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau. Much of this region consists of rugged hills and mountains. Except for the Yuan (Red) River basin and the Chengdu Plain of Sichuan, it is not very productive. Two crops per year of rice is common where the terrain and soil conditions are right. Shifting cultivation of the slash-and-burn type is practiced among isolated peoples in the extreme southwest (See Agriculture).
December 22, 200520 yr 1. Young And Aspiring So lets not even try...you're right. Let's ball it up and throw it out the window. It's becoming all so clear In my mind. I've thought this thing through more than once or twice. I feel that this Is my last request to you. Hold your breath....bottle it up and save it for the next one. It's safe To say we've been writing this All night. None of this will ever change your mind. It's never safe to Rely on borrowed Time. Now we're both undone, and it's time to open Up your eyes. Consequence, it's our need in times like these. Feeling free...it's our modern disease. Your a classic disaster, with a Knack for losing your Exterior. (I'm so sick)...from staring at the mirror. This all needs a break from you, and I'm used to this. I fear that I am just an end. So you play the mistaken...and I'll play the victim in our screenplay of Desire...I'm still writing the letters I'll never send. Running in circles I can't forget how many times I've played this in my mind....feeling free, feeling free. Consequence, it's our need in times like these. Feeling free...it's our modern disease. Your a classic disaster, with a Knack for losing your exterior. (I'm so sick)...from Staring at the mirror. This is my panic... This is my call to arms. 2. A Boy Brushed Red.... Living In Black And White Can you feel your heartbeat racing? Can you taste the fear in her sweat? You've done this wrong It's too far gone These sheets tell of regret I admit that I'm just a fool for you I am just a fool for you Here is where we both go wrong Tonight's your last chance to Do exactly what you want to And this could be my night This is what makes me feel alive Makes you feel alive Here is where we both go wrong So sign me up And toss this key 'Cause for now we're Living in this moment And we both ignore the truth Its all over Its all over I feel your heart against mine So take a breath and close your eyes [chorus] Your lungs have failed and they both stopped breathing My heart is dead and its way past beating Something has gone terribly wrong I'm scared, you're scared, we're scared of this I never thought we'd make it out alive I never told you but its all in your goodbyes It's all in your goodbyes Well look who's dying now Slit wristless sleeping with the girl next door I always knew you were such a sucker for that It doesnt matter what you say You never mattered anyway Never mattered anyway In this moment that we both ignore the truth It's all over It's all over I feel your heart against mine So take a breath and close your eyes [chorus] Don't shake, i hate to see you tremble Trembling you've lost your touch Haven't you run so addicted [chorus] 3. The Impact Of Reason Prop open the door I can actually see my breath tonight But that doesn't mean I'm breathing Crack a smile just for the sake of it This could take a while A long while Silence is golden especially in this case I'm not too sure that I want it to be this way Open mouth closed eyes No words are escaping It's all a blur It's too dark to see Ain't it pretty the way it all streaks together at night Together at night I think its time to turn around I really want to go home tonight I think its time to turn around I really want to go home tonight I feel like this is going nowhere I feel like this is going nowhere Try to think of something quick And trust the direction of the driver No lights No signs I'm at a loss for words No lights No signs I'm at a loss for words Now conversation sparks What an easy way to break the ice Now conversation sparks What an easy way to break the ice 4. Reinventing Your Exit 12th and hyde on a sunday Feeling like were gold And we're nothing short of invincible (INVICIBLE) It starts again Can you feel it It takes your breath away Stop saying that we're invincible (its round and round) Youre uninviting, unrewarding And I'm misinforming you Misinforming you We all want to be, wanna be somebody Right now we're just looking for the exit [chorus] This is the way I would have done things Up against the wall Up against the wall You've got me up against your wall This is the way I would have done things Up against the wall Up against the wall You've got me up against your wall Its you and me on a monday The lies that we told This is were we both go numb now You broke my heart again this time Your fading now you crossed the line You crossed the line We all want to be somebody Right now we're just looking for the exit [chorus] Reaching out for a hand Its not here But your not here Your not here This is the way i would have done things Up against the wall Up against your wall This is the way we should have done When were up against our wall Up against our wall [chorus] 5. The Blue Note 6. It's Dangerous Business Walking Out Your Front Door I've been up at this all night long I've been drowning in my sleep I've prayed for your safe place And its time for us to leave Time is running, its running on empty and the gas is running out I've decided that tonight is the night That I let love aside Full speed ahead this seems to be the place I've seen this once before Planned perfection sought in my dreams Hoping this would take you home My knuckles have turned to white There's no turning back tonight So kiss me one last time Around this turn where the cross will cast your shadow The people will all gather To remember such a day Where the flames grew as high as trees And the world stopped for you and me My knuckles have turned to white There's no turning back tonight Kiss me one last time (Shut your eyes) My knuckles have turned to white There's no turning back tonight (so hold on tight) Kiss me one last time (Shut your eyes) I will now bring new meaning to the word alone Endless nights of dreaming of life And the days we should have spent here Drowning in my sleep I'm drowning in my sleep Drowning in my sleep I'm drowning in my sleep Glass shatters and comes to a halt I thought we'd be there by now I thought it would be so much quicker than this Pain has never been so brilliant I made sure you were buckled in Now you can walk hand in hand with him Hand in hand with him My knuckles have turned to white There's no turning back tonight Kiss me one last time (Shut your eyes) My knuckles have turned to white There's no turning back tonight (so hold on tight) Kiss me one last time (Shut your...) 7. Down, Set, Go I had the whole world in my hands, but i gave it away... I had the whole world in my hands, but i gave it away... Gave it away. I'm a half-wit boy, crackin a smile and wearing it all on my sleeve. So cruel, so poise Its true, im just around to see Where this thing goes I'll never know, but all i know is I'm back in bed It's a remedy, its a remedy. This time i'd be nervous 'cause i cant see your hands Infront of me... (infront of me...) Tonight, ive spoken. I'll pretend to want and think of what we should be What liars we can be. I'm on my way to the top of the world, And i've got a feeling i'll give it away. Im on my way to the top of the world, And i've got a feeling i'll give it away. Shes a maveric, shes so smooth... If things go according to plan, i'll have her finished by five a.m. Theres no turning back, theres no second chance, Ive already got both feet through the door And i can taste the air, i can taste the air. This time I'll be nervous 'cause I can't see your hands in front of me (In front of me tonight) Let's forget all pretense of what they thought we should be What liars we can be. Make a sound, its safe for you, Choking here, alone. Whatever i say goes (whatever i say goes) Whatever i say goes (whatever i say goes) You're not everything, you're not here with me You're not everything, you're not here with me You're not everything, you're not here with me You're not everything, you're not here with me 8. I Don't Feel Very Receptive Today This door has been shut for days And it's all too familiar Can't I just crack a window Can't I just shake it off? I'm sure I've tasted this before, before, before... I'm sure I've tasted this before... Everything is out of reach And I just want to see outside The air (the air) has been getting thin I feel like cutting it open tonight, tonight And falling on the floor There's nothing left unused in here There's nothing left to say I haven't talked in days And I'm really not too sure What I sound like anymore My vision has gone and my mouth is full, is full of sores I feel like dripping it dry tonight Over and over again It's time (it's time) to open up the door 9. I'm Content With Losing Like i said; "leave your baggage at the back door." Where i'm leaving you the way I think it should be. We're always pulling into spaces (that we can't back out of) Starting fights. We cant talk our way out of this (talk our way out of this) Talk our way out of this. How does it feel to be on the receiving end of this one? Of this one? Im half way there, (and its all on me) This is what i get for wanting more, For wanting more. This is the way its got to be. Dancing on all these changes So i walk around with this rope in my hand (rope in my hand) So i'll tie it around, and around and around. I'll tie me down. I'll fantisize of being manic and leaving us behind. In your eyes, you were the one that tried. Acceptance is what holds us here Then you my dear are the one i fear tonight. We'll try this one more time. This is the moment that we all live for. Are you ready? Are you ready? Im half way there, (and its all on me) This is what i get for wanting more, For wanting more. This is the way its got to be. Dancing on all these changes So i walk around with this rope in my hand (rope in my hand) So i'll tie it around, and around and around. I'll tie me down. You cant see past my waving hands. (just running away again) You cant see past my waving hands. (good-bye) (it gets so loud it hurts my ears.) I wanna know how to get through this (how to get through this) Without choking up. I wanna know how to get through this (how to get through this) Without choking up. I cant feel you, You're so far from me. This is what I get for wanting more This is what I get for wanting more (and its all on me) This is what I get for wanting more This is what I get for wanting more (and its all on me) This is what I get for wanting more This is what I get for wanting more (and its all on me) 10. Some Will Seek Forgiveness, Others Escape I heard a voice through the dischord Of a deluge of passers-by. I saw one gaze frozen in time Watching me passing by. I swear I'll know your face in the crowd, And I'll hear your voice so loud When you're whispering... Hey unfaithful I will teach you To be stronger, to be stronger. Hey ungraceful I will teach you To forgive one another. Here's my kiss to betray Desperate to brush the lips of grace. Do you feel hollow when you think of how I've lied? Oh sweet angel of mercy with your grace like the morning Wrap your loving arms around me. Oh sweet angel of mercy with your grace like the morning Wrap your loving arms around me. Hey unfaithful I will teach you To be stronger, to be stronger. Hey ungraceful I will teach you To forgive one another. Hey unfaithful I will teach you To be stronger, to be stronger. Hey unloving I will love you I will love you I will love you. Jesus I'm ready to come home. 11. I've Got Ten Friends And A Crowbar That Says You Ain't Gonna Do Jack [Limited Edition Vinyl Bonus Track] Carry out the sounds past the west horrizons I'm standing still, i'm standing still why i parted all the change no body indured well i'm walking out , i'm walking out What do you expect of me? Did you think that this was all an excuse for hospitality I know you think its all because of me at first glance, im breathing leaving myself no room to move, at all my mind is so flooded and im drunk with regret swimming in a sea of hope tonight I find your energy sequenced to mine as we push away with everything we have Ohhh their acting on my words we can start the fire, that will light up the night no i wouldn't be to sure of you at all we'll watch it burn together on respective sides (yeah) we look so good, as we fall I'll go ahead and re-elect perfections its never looked as good as it does on you right now i'll go ahead and make an incision doubt you'll feel anything at all I dont think I'm right for a side and I am nervous at least I can say I made it out this time I just might, but you wont let me as for you be sure to cover up your mouth I dont know how to say this my thoughts have just run out
December 22, 200520 yr An Introduction to Celtic History The lands occupied by Celtic peoples, whose existence can be traced over more than 25 centuries, were vast. Celts occupied land in modern day Eastern Europe, Greece, Spain, Northern Italy, Western Europe, England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. The Celtic people have mystified anthropologists and historians for generations. They were a non literate culture whose history and literature was preserved through oral tradition. The only written records of their civilization are the texts left by classical authors, the first of which appear circa 500 BCE. These accounts, inaccurate as they may be, are important in that they demonstrate that the Celts came into cultural contact, and sometimes competition, with the Greeks as well as the Romans. In recent years, modern archeology has been successful in reconstructing an echo of the "voice" of the ancient Celts. Facets of Celtic society, economy, and religion completely ignored by Classical texts have been brought to light. The classical image of Celtic life describes barbaric men and women dressed in uncured animal skins in primitive villages, people who worshipped strange deities and whose lives were consumed in blood feuds. Because of the authority of the classical authors, these ancient misconceptions were pervasive. They are visible, for example, hundreds of years later in some of the Shakespearean characters that people Cymbelline and King Lear. The Celts impressed the Greeks and Romans with their bold dress and powerful appearance. Generally characterized by classical observers as a people of fair hair, of red or gold, and fair complexions, (although the people of the British Isles were described as small and dark-haired) most Celtic women apparently stood taller than the average Roman citizen. Celtic women, upon reaching maturity, adopted a complex braided style for their hair, and wore dyed and embroidered dresses. Plaids, or wrapped woven cloaks, were common for men and women alike, and gold and silver torques and armrills, as well as rings, adorned wealthy Celts. Brooches that held closed the openings of dresses and plaids were another common feature of Celtic dress. Gallic men commonly spiked their hair and bleached it to an almost white color with chalky water, and wore their beards long, while the Bretons and Picts tattooed their arms and faces with blue. Many Danish and English bogs have yielded archeological evidence of cloth and dress, and Roman historians such as Tacitus also document some of the customs of everyday Celtic life. Some features of Celtic life were not as closely chronicled in classical sources. The quality of Celtic metal-work was technically and artistically advanced. Most Celtic people lived in well-populated farming villages, with larger towns linking smaller settlements and acting as meeting sites for economic and cultural activity. Fortified cities and shrines were erected along well-travelled roadways. This evidence of a more complex society in pre-Roman Europe has led some scholars to rethink conclusions drawn from classical texts by such authors as Caesar, Polybius, and Strabo. Celtic societies, once considered "barbaric" as seen through the lens of classical observers, are now looked upon as advanced cultures networked through the bond of a common linguistic heritage. Piecing together the culture and lives of the ancient Celts, in the absence of clear archeological or textual record, is not an easy task. No one is even sure where the term "Celtic" comes from. With a great deal of inconsistency, classical sources provide tantalizing but incomplete information about the peoples called Keltoi and Galatatae by the Greeks, and Celtae or Galli by the Romans. Two thousand years ago, the term Celt was used specifically for peoples inhabiting continental Europe; the denizens of England and Ireland were not to be called "Celts" until seventeenth and eighteenth-century linguistic scholarship began to identify the inhabitants of the pre-Roman British Isles as Celtic peoples. Who were the Celts? The issue is further obscured by the eighteenth and nineteenth-century Romantics. Clumping all of the Celtic peoples into one homogeneous family with a single ethnic identity, the Romantics exalted the idea of the "noble savage." The notion of the "romantic highlander" and the modern conception of the druids are based on these romanticized images of Celtic history and culture. Modern nationalist writers such as William Butler Yeats in Ireland and Sir Walter Scott in Scotland used such idealized portraits as the basis of a new pan-Celtic movement that offered resistance to the modernization and imperialism of Victorian Britain. Evidence From the Past: Text, Linguistics, and Archeology There are three types of evidence from the Iron Age through the Roman period available to archeologists and scholars of Celtic history. The first of these is documentary sources, or texts. Because concepts like language and cultural identity have no physical manifestation, written records are our only source for reconstructing them. The second source is linguistics, in the form of Celtic names and words referred to in Classical records, or place-names. These give philologists clues as to where the Celtic branch of languages may be placed in relation to other languages of the world. Celtic languages are now identified as one branch of the large Indo-European family. Ogham is the first Irish method of writing, dating from the fourth century, CE. Supposed by some historians to have resulted from contact with Latin Roman numerals, the resulting ogham alphabet is unique to Ireland. Its beauty and usefulness lie in its absolute simplicity - ogham can be easily cut into wood or carved into stone. The central line on which the characters sit is usually the edge of the writing surface, such as along the edge of a stone monument. Although we know that the majority of the ogham writings were made on wood for everyday use, (as chronicled in the Táin ) the only texts to have survived to the present day are tombstones and other stone markers, the majority of which were made between the fifth and seventh centuries CE. These stone markers were found in Southern Ireland and the West coast of Britain, among the ancient Irish settlements there. Each of the letters of the ogham alphabet represents the common name of a species of tree. The ogham chart to the left of the table depicts each letter or sound in the ogham alphabet, including the combination vowel sounds. In the table, each letter is matched with the tree-name it represents, in Irish, Welsh, and English. The third source of evidence is archeological. On its own, archeology can seldom provide historians with a complete picture of a culture or society. But archeology as a method of identifying patterns of human life offers concrete evidence against which the textual evidence supplied by classical authors may be judged and better understood. Geographical distribution, laboratory analysis of the chemical composition of various artifacts and types of material, and the patterns of settlement and land usage are invaluable in the process of reconstructing the history of the ancient Celtic peoples. Archeological digs at the La Tène site in Western France have changed the way in which Celtic art and technology is viewed by the modern world. It was initially suspected that a society so lacking in any form of written record keeping (ogham was a later addition to the Celtic tradition) would be unable to produce the geometrically and technologically complex works of art that were produced contemporaneously by the Greeks and Romans. However, examples of knotwork, metal-working, pottery, glass, and geometric circle-drawing of an extremely sophisticated nature were uncovered at La Tène . Simple geometric elements such as parallel lines, concentric circles, and chevrons later are merged with compass construction techniques to create complicated geometric patterns. In Kirkburn, (East Yorkshire) a sword of over seventy pieces, including a worked-iron blade, studs, and scabbard plates, was discovered. Its intricate construction and design attest to the skill of Celtic craftsmen. Although the classical world studied the development of new and different arms and armour, the Celts wore no armour at all until circa 300 BCE, the approximate date of the invention of chain mail. Chain mail is of Celtic origin, the earliest known examples appearing in graves dating from the third century. The concept of thousands of small, interlocking metal rings is a complex one, and its implementation required considerable skill on the part of the blacksmith. Because chain mail was difficult to make, and expensive, only senior warriors or royalty are thought to have made use of it initially, although it became more widespread later on. Chain mail was soon adopted by the Romans when it proved effective in battle. Ireland contains the sites of many ancient, abandoned Celtic settlements, some of which date back to almost prehistoric times. Formations of great earthworks, such as ring-forts, are thought to have been constructed during the Iron Age, and many examples survive to this day. By far the most commonly occurring archeological site is the ring-fort, which surrounded a single dwelling place. Called raths (earthwork), cashels (stonework), and duns (more adequately defended sites), these fortifications surrounded a central house, usually thatched with heather and banked with earth. The entire construction was roughly circular, and some of them lasted long enough to build up their surrounding raths prodigously (such as the early Christian rath located in Deer Park Farms, County Antrim.) Celtic culture lives on through the languages and traditions of the Celtic peoples of the British Isles. Although many of the Celtic languages are now exinct, six Celtic languages still exist today. These are classified into two categories: Q-Celtic, or Goidelic, and P-Celtic, or Brithonic. Scholars once believed that the dividing line between these two language groups (based on the pronunciations of "q" and "p" sounds) resulted from two distinct waves of immigration. More recent studies suggest that Celtic languages evolved gradually across their huge territory, rather than moving rapidly from a single concentrated area.
December 22, 200520 yr Yea' date=' I've actually written a book on the history of modern China..... :smart:[/quote'] that is awesome !
December 22, 200520 yr some Ady Endre poems: GÓG ÉS MAGÓG FIA VAGYOK ÉN... Góg és Magóg fia vagyok én, Hiába döngetek kaput, falat S mégis megkérdem tőletek: Szabad-e sírni a Kárpátok alatt? Verecke híres útján jöttem én, Fülembe még ősmagyar dal rivall, Szabad-e Dévénynél betörnöm Új időknek új dalaival? Fülembe forró ólmot öntsetek Legyek az új, az énekes Vazul, Ne halljam az élet új dalait, Tiporjatok reám durván, gazul. De addig sírva, kínban, mit se várva Mégiscsak száll új szárnyakon a dal S ha elátkozza százszor Pusztaszer, Mégis győztes, mégis új és magyar. A MI GYERMEKÜNK Bús szerelmünkből nem fakad Szomorú lényünknek a mása, Másokra száll a gyermekünk, Ki lesz a vígak Messiása, Ki majd miértünk is örül. Ha jönnek az új istenek, Ha jönnek a nem sejtett órák, Valamikor, valamikor Kipattannak a tubarózsák S elcsattan hosszú csoda-csók. Mások lesznek és mink leszünk: Egy napvirág-szemű menyasszony S egy napsugár-lelkű legény. A tubarózsa illatozzon S áldott legyen a mámoruk. S áldott legyen, ki: te meg én, Ki az övék, kiért mi sírtunk, Kit forró lázunk eldobott, Öleltetőnk, kit sohse bírtunk, Ki másoké: a gyermekünk. Kit napvirág és napsugár Új igére, új dalra termett, Áldott legyen, ki eljövend, Az idegen, nagyálmú Gyermek, Kit küldtek régi bánatok. A VÁR FEHÉR ASSZONYA A lelkem ódon, babonás vár, Mohos, gőgös és elhagyott. (A két szemem, ugye, milyen nagy? És nem ragyog és nem ragyog.) Konganak az elhagyott termek, A bús falakról rámered Két nagy, sötét ablak a völgyre. (Ugye, milyen fáradt szemek?) Örökös itt a lélekjárás, A kripta-illat és a köd. Árnyak suhognak a sötétben S elátkozott had nyöszörög. (Csak néha, titkos éji órán Gyúlnak ki e bús, nagy szemek.) A fehér asszony jár a várban S az ablakokon kinevet. MERT ENGEM SZERETSZ Áldott csodáknak Tükre a szemed, Mert engem nézett. Te vagy a bölcse, Mesterasszonya Az ölelésnek. Áldott ezerszer Az asszonyságod, Mert engem nézett, Mert engem látott. S mert nagyon szeretsz: Nagyon szeretlek S mert engem szeretsz: Te vagy az Asszony, Te vagy a legszebb. A KÖNNYEK ASSZONYA Bús arcát érzem szívemen A könnyek asszonyának, Rózsás, remegő ujjai Most a szivembe vájnak. Érzem az illatát is ám A rózsás, gyilkos ujjnak S véres szívemre szomorún A könnyek hullnak, hullnak. Az ajka itt mar édesen, A haja ide lebben, Az egész asszony itt pusztít, Itt, itt: az én szivemben. Bosszút itt áll az életért, Aknát itt ás a multnak. Véres szívemre szomorún A könnyek hullnak, hullnak. Nagy az én bűnöm. Vesszen is, Kire a végzet mérte, Hogy a könnyek szfinksz-asszonyát Megérezze, megértse. Maradjon szent talánynak Ő, Maradjon mindig újnak. Véres szivemre szomorún A könnyek hullnak, hullnak. FÉLIG CSÓKOLT CSÓK Egy félig csókolt csóknak a tüze Lángol elébünk. Hideg az este. Néha szaladunk, Sírva szaladunk S oda nem érünk. Hányszor megállunk. Összeborulunk. Égünk és fázunk. Ellöksz magadtól: ajkam csupa vér, Ajkad csupa vér. Ma sem lesz nászunk. Bevégzett csókkal lennénk szívesen Megbékült holtak, De kell az a csók, de hí az a tűz S mondjuk szomorún: Holnap. Majd holnap. HUNYHAT A MÁGLYA Hunyhat a máglya Ezek a szomorú, vén szemek Nem néznek soha másra. Léda, elűzhetsz: E vén, hű kutya-szemektől Sohasem menekülhetsz. Szerelmi máglya Fölgyujtja tán újra a véred: Hiába, mindhiába. Jönnek a rémek: Ezek a szomorú, vén szemek El nem engednek. Néznek. HIÁBA KÍSÉRTSZ HÓFEHÉREN Én beszennyezlek. Én beszennyezlek A leghavasabb, legszebb éjen: Hiába kisértsz hófehéren. Színem elé parancsolom majd Fehér köntösös szűzi árnyad, Saját lelkemből fölcibállak. Hiába libeg félve, fázva: Telefröccsentem tintalével, Vérrel, gennyel, könnyel, epével. Hiába reszket, hiába reszket: Befoltozom gyanuval, váddal, Bepaskolom mérges csalánnal. S míg libeg búsan, szerelemben, Én kikacagom kósza árnyad, Felé fúvok: menj, elbocsátlak. VAD SZIRTTETŐN ÁLLUNK Vad szirttetőn mi ketten Állunk árván, meredten, Állunk összetapadtan, Nincs jajunk, könnyünk, szavunk: Egy ingás és zuhanunk. Véres hús-kapcsok óvnak, Amíg összefonódnak: Kékes, reszkető ajkunk. Míg csókolsz, nincsen szavunk, Ha megszólalsz zuhanunk. TÜZES SEB VAGYOK Tüzes, sajgó seb vagyok, égek, Kínoz a fény és kínoz a harmat, Téged akarlak, eljöttem érted, Több kínra vágyom: téged akarlak. Lángod lobogjon izzva, fehéren, Fájnak a csókok, fájnak a vágyak, Te vagy a kínom, gyehennám nékem, Nagyon kivánlak, nagyon kivánlak. Vágy szaggatott föl, csók vérezett meg, Seb vagyok, tüzes, új kínra éhes, Adj kínt nekem, a megéhezettnek: Seb vagyok, csókolj, égess ki, égess. A FEHÉR CSÖND Karollak, vonlak s mégsem érlek el, Itt a fehér csönd, a fehér lepel. Nem volt ilyen nagy csönd még soha tán, Sikolts belé, mert mindjárt elveszünk, Állunk és várunk, csüggedt a kezünk A csókok és könnyek alkonyatán. Sikoltva, marva bukjék rám fejed S én tépem durván bársony-testedet. Nagyon is síma, illatos hajad, Zilálva, tépve verje arcomat. Fehér nyakad most nagyon is fehér, Vas-ujjaim közt fesse kékre vér. Ragadjon gyilkot fehér, kis kezed: Megállt az élet, nincsen több sora, Nincs kínja, csókja, könnye, mámora, Jaj, mindjárt minden, minden elveszett. Fehér ördög-lepel hullott miránk, Fehér és csöndes lesz már a világ, Átkozlak, téplek, marlak szilajon, Átkozz, tépj, marj és sikolts, akarom. Megöl a csend, ez a fehér lepel: Űzz el magadtól, vagy én űzlek el. A MÁSIK KETTŐ Csókoljuk egymást, együtt pihenünk, Áltatjuk egymást, hogy egymásra vártunk, Halvány az ajkunk, könnyes a szemünk, Sápadt a lángunk. Piros kertek közt futott az utunk, Piros, bolond tűz lángolt sziveinkben, Egymás szemébe nézni nem tudunk, Itt sápadt minden. Csókoljuk egymást biztatón, vadul, Nappalba sír be minden csókos estünk, Hiába minden, csók ha csókra hull, Hideg a testünk. S piros kertekből, úgy tetszik nekünk, Közelg egy leány és egy ifju ember S mi, ím, egyszerre forrón ölelünk, Nagy szerelemmel. EGY ÓCSKA KONFLISBAN Királyném, kigyultak a lángok, Aranyos hintónk, íme, száll, Ma a nép közé vegyülünk el, Te a királyné s én a király. Lásd, ez a fényes kocsitenger A villámfényes fák alatt Miérettünk hullámzik, fénylik, Hogy téged s engem lássanak. Királyném, bocsásd le a fátylad: Ma este kegyosztók leszünk. (Döcög, döcög az ócska konflis És mi sápadtan reszketünk.) Királyném, megölnek a vágyak. Sohse vágyott, mint te meg én, Földi pár úgy az élet-csúcsra És sohse volt még íly szegény. Vágy, élet és sugár a lelkünk És utunk mégis koldus-út, Jogunk van minden fényességhez, Amit az élet adni tud. Király vagyok és te királyné, Hát trónunk sohse lesz nekünk? (Döcög, döcög az ócska konflis És mi sápadtan reszketünk.) LÉDA A HAJÓN Hurráh, jön az Öröm hajója És hozza Lédát már felém. Virágos, pompás szőnyegén, Én asszonyom, már látlak, látlak: Hajadban a vérvörös rózsa. Ugye kivánsz? Én is kivánlak. Hurráh, mi rég nem láttuk egymást. Óh, jaj, szédülök itt a parton, Óh, jaj, most mindjárt itt leszel, Kérdezlek majd és kérdezel És összecsap két szomju-lélek És fejemet kebledre hajtom. Jaj, ne. Ne jöjj. Reszketek, félek. Óh, jaj, mi rég nem láttuk egymást. IMA BAÁL ISTENHEZ Óh, Baál, Nagyúr, ez az irgalom-óra, Mi itt a gályán most hozzád kiáltunk, Nézz hát reánk, reánk, két kárhozóra. Nem énreám. Hisz én mi vagyok? Féreg. Pártütő isten, összetépett lélek, Elesett titán. De itt van a párom: Kegyetlen, nagy Baál, jóságodat várom. Bús asszony-ember, de lelke Nap üszke, Szomorú szemű, de nagyszomjú, büszke, Didó királynő, csókolva is vádló, Hajh, beteg csókú, de mindenre váró, Bíborra termett, egyetlenegy némber. Óh, Baál, állj mellénk lelked kegyelmével. Minden-Pénzeknek trónján valahol Fordítsd felénk fényes, kegyetlen arcod. Én harcolnék. Megharcolnám a harcot, Tudok alázva élni, lélek-áron, De nézz reá: királynő az én párom, Selyemvánkost áztathat csak a könnye, Selyemzászlót lengethet csak a gályánk. Óh, öntsd reánk aranykönnyed folyását, Óh, öntsd reánk, véres aranyak atyja, Óh, nézz reánk, a két legkoldusabbra. Ha ide néznél, vad aranyszived Összeszorulna. Könnyed eredne S úszó, sötét gályánk szőnyegére Óh, hullna az arany, hullna egyre. A TÓ NEVETETT Alkonyban szálltunk Együtt a tavon, Idegen ölű, Ringató ölű, Félelmes ölű, Mélyvizű tavon. Régi kínoknak Bús köntösében Úsztunk a tavon S az éjre vártunk. Öreg hajósunk Karja reszketett, Havas ormokról Zúgtak a szelek, A tó harsogott, Hívott, kiabált, Zúgott, jajgatott, A tó nevetett. Szálltunk, hajóztunk. (A kínjainkat - Súgtam csendesen - Oldjuk végre fel. Szent sír ez a tó, Szerelmes karú, Titkot őriző. Ez ölelni tud, Örökre ölel És áldva ringat. Nem tudja senki, Ha ő átkarol, Zuhanjunk, gyere.) Ő néz, néz reám És búsan tekint És vágyón tekint A partok fele. Szállunk, rohanunk: Óh, menni, menni, Óh, élni tovább, Bús kínok alatt Járni, szenvedni, De lenni, lenni. A tó nevetett Utánunk vadul, A mélyvizű tó, Idegen ölű, Szerelmes ölű, Áldott karú tó. A tó nevetett S bármerre megyünk Azóta mindig: Minden alkonyon Halljuk nevetni. MEG AKARLAK TARTANI Őrjít ez a csókos valóság, Ez a nagy beteljesülés, Ez a megadás, ez a jóság. Öledbe hullva, sírva, vágyva Könyörgök hozzád, asszonyom: Űzz, kergess ki az éjszakába. Mikor legtüzesebb az ajkam, Akkor fagyjon meg a tied, Taposs és rúgj kacagva rajtam. Hóhérok az eleven vágyak, Átok a legszebb jelen is: Elhagylak, mert nagyon kivánlak. Testedet, a kéjekre gyultat, Hadd lássam mindig hóditón, Illatos vánkosán a multnak. Meg akarlak tartani téged, Ezért választom őrödül A megszépítő messzeséget. Maradjon meg az én nagy álmom Egy asszonyról, aki szeret S akire én örökre vágyom. CSAK JÖNNE MÁS Hódolni kergettem elébed A vágyak éhes csapatát, Nomád, vad, büszke csapatát A vérnek. Irigyellek, szánlak, utállak, Szerencsés koldusasszonya, Királyi koldusasszonya A Vágynak. Csak tudnék én mást úgy kivánni, Mint téged. Óh, csak jönne más. Egy más asszony. Valaki. Más. Akárki. A LÉDA SZÍVE Boszorkák dobáltak meg A bús csodáknak ligetében. Én nem féltem. Én sohse féltem. De a szeretőm elszaladt. Szép szeretőm: az ifjú Mosoly. * Sírtak s nevettek a boszorkák. Köd volt és a gyászos, vak éjben, A bús csodáknak ligetében Zuhogva hulltak a szivek S én elfödtem az arcomat. Sziveket dobtak a boszorkák. Én nem féltem. Én sohse féltem. A bús csodáknak ligetében Állottam búsan, egyedül. A ködből hulltak a szivek, Csúnya, kicsiny, kemény szivek. * Egyszerre szétszálltak a boszorkák, Könnyesen, csöndben és fehéren, A bús csodáknak ligetében, Egy asszony jött fényben felém S én ráemeltem arcomat. * Szemembe nézett s szivéért nyúlt, Az arcomon még most is érzem: A bús csodáknak ligetében Arcomhoz vágta a szivét, Meleg, beteg, szegény szivét. LÉDA PÁRISBA KÉSZÜL Van valakim, aki Minden, Aki elhagy, aki itthagy: Páris, Páris, állj elébe, Térítsd vissza, ha lehet. Állj elébe s mondd meg néki, Hogy én fiad vagyok, Páris, Elűzötten, száműzötten, Messze tőled. De fiad. Mondd meg néki, hogy te küldted Magad helyett bús fiadnak, Kis szerelmét az életnek Ne vegye még tőlem el. Élni, élni, be jó volna, Ámulni még. Páris, Páris, Üzend meg a leányodnak: Hogyha elmegy, meghalok.
December 22, 200520 yr Yea' date=' I've actually written a book on the history of modern China..... :smart:[/quote'] that is awesome ! I was only Joking!!!! :lol:
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