Ctrl+V game...

[razz]

FUCK YOU YOU YELLOW WHORE!!!!

[razz]

ummm...okay then.

[Míchéal]

Organised Policing commenced in Ireland in 1822 with the foundation of the Irish Constabulary. The title Royal Irish Constabulary was applied in 1867. In 1922 the Royal Irish Constabulary was disbanded with the foundation of the Irish State. An Garda Síochána was formed in February 1922. The Dublin Metropolitan Police, which had been founded in 1836, was amalgamated with An Garda Síochána in 1925.

[theBeamisHome]

Welcome, theBeamisHome.
203 Unread Posts since your last visit.
You last visited: Yesterday at 04:56 PM

[Jean]

FF12

[theBeamisHome]

:lol: sorry... that's Final Fantasy XII :D

[Jean]

[off topic]
I know now, I copied it in order to google [/off topic]

[alinda]

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/14/88883702_72bbdce870.jpg?v=0
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/14/88883702_72bbdce870.jpg?v=0

[Jean]

YouTube - Richard Cheese Singing Freak on A Leash
YouTube - Richard Cheese - Disturbed Cover - Down With the Sickness

[razz]

i tried posting those in the lounge thread. why do you have them?

[Jean]

[off-topic]
because I am a big, old, wise, furry, grizzly bear [/off-topic]

[razz]

[also off topic]then why wouldn't the videos come upo on the page? [/also off topic]

you know, that should be a tag.

[Jean]

[off-topic]Your links were perfectly ok in that page, why did you delete your post? I just took copied your links, and re-posted them in Dixie Lounge [/off-topic]

[razz]

[off-topic-yet-again]k. i was wondering why the videos didn't appear tho. oh well [/off-topic]

[Jean]

[off-topic] go to the Palaver Castle and try posting there some link to video [/off-topic]

[Ves'Ka Gan]

nyone ever seen the video for "Total Eclipse of the Heart"?

It's fucking terrifying.
__________________

[The Lady of Shadows]

turtlesong17: of course, you could come back as a zombie

[razz]

stupid clueless people. all clueless, and....stupid

[gsvec]

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 07:37 PM.

[Jon]

http://www.thedarktower.org/palaver/showpost.php?p=223457&postcount=140

[Jean]

http://www.thedarktower.org/palaver/showpost.php?p=223464&postcount=26

[alinda]

http://www.tagged.com

[theBeamisHome]

http://www.lolcats.com/images/u/07/42/lolcatsdotcomhbuutkd7hkhk8cue.jpg

[educatedlady]

http://www.surfthechannel.com/show/television/Doctor_Who_%282005%29.html

[The Lady of Shadows]

How to hide something as "invisible" on a webpage:

<span class="invisible">the text you want to hide</span>

it will be hidden with an screen that people have to highlight with mouse to see




even cooler:

<p style="color: white">This is the invisible text.</p>

[theBeamisHome]

http://www.lolcats.com/images/u/07/42/lolcatsdotcomhbuutkd7hkhk8cue.jpg

[educatedlady]

http://codebox.no-ip.net/controller?page=misc.QuizDrWhoMain

[razz]

duuuuuuuude! I'm not as think as you drunk i am!

[gsvec]

Category: Thing

_ _ _ S T _ A T _ _

Correct: S A T
Strikes: U E O

[razz]

Oi (interjection) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oi_%28interjection%29), British slang interjection used to get someone's attention

[Jon]

http://www.thedarktower.org/palaver/showthread.php?t=2946

[theBeamisHome]

finally (because i know you're sick of listening) i need to know about all the little nesteys and cozy spots of our castle creatures. if you want me to tidy them for you once in awhile, i can do so. if you want me to back the hell away from your territory, i will do that with a haste like you have never seen. (ex. the lemur's undercouch domain).

[The Lady of Shadows]

Palaver Castle Housekeeping Manifesto

[educatedlady]

http://www2.funnyordie.com/public/flash/fodplayer.swf

[razz]

http://images.teamsugar.com/modules/smileys/examples/The_Villagers_Are_Restless_by_Zikes.gif

http://images.teamsugar.com/modules/smileys/examples/The_Villagers_Are_Restless_by_Zikes.gif

[The Lady of Shadows]

http://www2.funnyordie.com/public/flash/fodplayer.swf

this is just a big fat tease. you know if there's a link we have to click it. but when i do nothing happens. ::distraughtturtle::

[Zalia]

Here is how to make your own evil bunni minions:

Materials:

size G hook

ww yarn (i mainly used Vanna’s Choice, also some random scraps)

felt, yarn needle, embroidery floss

Head/Body

6 sc in a ring

rd1: 2sc in each sc around (12 sc)

rd2: 2sc in first sc, sc in next sc around (18 sc)

rd3: 2sc in first sc, sc in next 2 sc around (24 sc)

rd4: 2sc in first sc, sc in next 3 sc around (30 sc)

rd5-16: sc in each sc around (30 sc)

rd17: in BLO, sc2tog, sc in next 3 sc around (24 sc)

rd18: sc2tog, sc in next 2 sc around (18 sc)

rd19: sc2tog, sc in next sc around (12 sc)

At this point, i finished off and sewed the body shut. After stuffing it, of course!

Ears (make 2)

6 sc in a ring

rd1: 2sc in first sc, sc in next 2 sc around (8 sc)

rd2-7: sc in each sc around (8 sc)

fasten off, leave long tail for sewing

Notes:

1. I made the ears first, then sewed them on the head before i got to the first decrease round.

2. For the faces, i cut out circle and almond type shapes for the eyes, and rounded triangles for the noses. I used black embroidery floss (3 strands) to sew it onto the head, also, when i was done sewing on the nose, i put the needle through the spot right under the nose, went back in just a little bit down and then embroidered a kinda wide upside down ‘V’ for the mouth.

3. i did a color change in the third to last even sc round.

Enjoy your evil minions!

[razz]

I find television very educating.
Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book.

[theBeamisHome]

wow... there is nothing on my clipboard... wtf??

[Jean]

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/bear_cool.gif

[Jean]

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/lion.png

[theBeamisHome]

http://forums.randi.org/images/smilies/mazeguyanimals/lion.gifhttp://forums.randi.org/images/smilies/mazeguyanimals/lion.gif

[The Lady of Shadows]

"First, We postulate that if souls exist, then they must have some mass. If they do, then a mole of souls can also have a mass. So, at what rate are souls moving into hell and at what rate are souls leaving? I think we can safely assume that once a soul gets to hell, it will not leave.

Therefore, no souls are leaving. As for souls entering hell, let's look at the different religions that exist in the world today. Some of these religions state that if you are not a member of their religion, then you will go to hell. Since there are more than one of these religions and people do not belong to more than one religion, we can project that all people and souls go to hell. With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the number of souls in hell to increase exponentially.

Now, we look at the rate of change in volume in hell. Boyle's Law states that in order for the temperature and pressure in hell to stay the same, the ratio of the mass of souls and volume needs to stay constant. Two options exist:

If hell is expanding at a slower rate than the rate at which souls enter hell, then the temperature and pressure in hell will increase until all hell breaks loose.

If hell is expanding at a rate faster than the increase of souls in hell, then the temperature and pressure will drop until hell freezes over.
So which is it? If we accept the quote given to me by Theresa Manyan during Freshman year, "that it will be a cold night in hell before I sleep with you" and take into account the fact that I still have NOT succeeded in having sexual relations with her, then Option 2 cannot be true...Thus, hell is exothermic."

[razz]

http://www.thebarrytime.co.uk/_thebarrytime/misc/todd5.jpg
http://www.thebarrytime.co.uk/_thebarrytime/misc/todd5.jpg

[LadyHitchhiker]

http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s17/keri_062/PsychedelicLlama.jpg

[razz]

http://images.wikia.com/uncyclopedia/images/7/71/Ngbbs41b62bda27dbe.jpg


http://images.wikia.com/uncyclopedia/images/7/71/Ngbbs41b62bda27dbe.jpg

[educatedlady]

http://30secondstomars.shop.musictoday.com/Default.aspx

[The Lady of Shadows]

13 Ways to annoy Turtlesong:

1. Point out that she has a bunny as an AV, yet shes a self professed turtle lover
2.use the puking audible on yahoo chat
3. put foam on her hot chocolate when she specifically said NO FOAM
4. end production of Starbucks hot chocolate
5. Sever her communication with razz and ves ka gan
6. take away chocolate

[razz]

After the scientist invented the time-travel machine, Vin Diesel goes back in time and fused with Monalisa... Making an ultimate creature: MONALIESEL!



Vin Diesel single handedly brought Taco Bell back to glory by suggesting they make soft tacos the way he does, with 100% ground beef, refried beans, and garnished with the eyes and testicles of his enemies.



Due to common misconception, Vin actually runs on unleaded.



Vin Diesel can solve the rubix cube in one move.



Vin Diesel once ate lego blocks and crapped out the first Transformer toy.



Vin Diesel performed intercourse with Mt. St. Helens in 1941. After retracting his burnt genitals, he constructed a steel cast to protect his pecker from further damage. We know this cast today as the Eiffel Tower. Countrary to popular belief, Mt. St. Helens actually erupted Vin Diesel's semen, which is red in color and up to 500 degrees farenheit.



Star Wars is what happens in Vin Diesel's anatomy.



Vin Diesel once made a go-kart that ran on the hopes and dreams of orphans.

It goes fast.

Really fast.







When Vin Diesel told the Microsoft Word paper clip to go away, it never came back.



Vin Diesel can use Hyper Beam without having to wait a turn to recharge afterward.



Vin Diesel uses midgets as currency, skyscrapers as toothpicks, and wipes his ass with any logs, stones, or babies that are in the area at the time.



Vin Diesel can be used under certain conditions as a table.

That condition is commonly known as "suicidal"





Vin Diesel is also a popular cocktail made from equal parts French wine and motor oil. It is known for its rich, full bouquet and has an SAE grade of 50. Vin actually means wine in Danish (http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Danish) and other Scandinavian (http://uncyclopedia.org/index.php?title=Scandinavia&action=edit) languages, so you might say that Vin Diesel's parents did the impossible: They mixed wine and diesel, which is, as many people know, polar and non polar mixed, which should be impossible. But Vin Diesel begs to differ.



"F### you" were the last words he speaks after swimming the entire English Chanel.



Vin Disel has huge muscles in his gluteus maxiums they are hard as steel!!!!! He killed 12 iraqis with his butt.....because I'm completely and utterly retarted!!!!!.....



A 15 minute guitar battle between Diesel's character and Adolf Hitler (http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Hitler) (which Diesel easily won) was cut before the final release of Saving Private Ryan.



Vin Diesel invented black, in fact he invented every color of the rainbow except pink. Tom Cruise invented pink.



Vin Diesel doesn't use sunblock, the sun uses Vinblock.



There is no theory of evolution, just a list of creatures Vin Diesel allows to live.



Vin Diesel played Russian Roulete with a fully loaded gun and won.



If you were to lock Vin Diesel in a room with a guitar, a year later you would have the greatest album ever, it would sweep the Grammy's. When asked why he doesn't do this Vin replied "Because Grammy's are for queers." Then he ate a knife to show the seriousness of his response.



If you rearrange the letters in Vin Diesel it reveals his credo: "I End Lives."



In an average living room there are 1,242 objects Vin Diesel could use to kill you, including the room itself.



Vin Diesel played Russian Roulete with a fully loaded gun and won.



Vin Diesel can set ants on fire with a magnifying glass. At night.



Vin Diesel can set the sun on fire by channeling the power of ants through a magnifying glass.



Vin Diesel is the only man to ever defeat a brick wall in a game of tennis.



Vin Diesel's morning breath is widely regarded cross-culturally as a weapon of mass destruction.



The mere mention of Vin Diesel's name has been known to bring Ultimate Warrior to tears.



Vin Diesel invented the Tootsie Pop. Consequently, the number of licks to get to the center is equal to his social security number. If this exact number of licks is achieved, you will be granted eternal life. This is why Bob Barker is still alive and on television.



Most people don't know this, but the bible actually ends with Vin Diesel showing up at the crucifixion with a pair of Uzi's and kicking some Roman ass. Vin Diesel was all like, "Jesus, I totally saved you." Then, off on the horizon, a bunch of Romans show up riding dinosaurs led by Mecha Pontious Pilate. Jesus busts out this sweet ninja sword and says, "Now it's my turn to save you." Then Jesus and Vin Diesel run towards the Romans in slow motion. That's how the bible ends. It's a cliff-hanger. I can't wait for the sequel, "The Bible 2: Water...Into Blood".



Vin Diesel nearly made it to the final table of the 1988 World Series of Poker. Which may not sound like much, but was impressive considering he thought they were playing Go Fish.



Vin Deisel has never in his life, worn sleeves



That's no moon; that's Vin Diesel.



Vin Diesel's wife uses Vin Diesel as a rowing machine.



Vin Diesel isn't afraid of the dark- the dark is afraid of Vin Diesel



There is no Hubble Space Telescope, only Vin Diesel.



Vin Diesel sweats Vaseline



We have nothing to fear but fear itself. Fear has nothing to fear but Vin Diesel



Vin Diesel put the 'p' in raspberry, just to show that he could.



Vin Diesel once won a game of monopoly while in jail.

[sarah]

Strange things that have been in your mouth.

1. Screws
2. pennies
3. cat hair
4. dog fur
5. A joint!
6. PB flavored dog treat
7. those green sticks they put in starbucks cups to keep the drinks from spilling (i chew on those obsessively)
8. Bong water
9. lighter fluid. (originally it was a lighter. see where this is going?)
10. A ceramic penis shaped pipe :)


:rofl: at gsd, last answer. :lol:

[razz]

http://www.thedarktower.org/palaver/images/wow//misc/top_right.gif

http://www.thedarktower.org/palaver/images/wow//misc/top_right.gif

that box up in the top corner

[Jon]

http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff79/walterodim_photos/dentist_patient_nightmare.jpg

[theBeamisHome]

don't let Woofer see that pic!

http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/ps2/file/459841/43190

[gsvec]

80450

[The Lady of Shadows]

type of dog

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _


CORRECT:

INCORRECT:

[Jon]

*coughsomethingaguysaystokeeplookingatyourbreastco ugh*

[Jean]

1 threads deleted
IP address 91.124.148.93 added to banned IP address list

User was banned

[Jon]

I.P. Address 192.168.100.1 mod cued for two weeks.

[razz]

YouTube - The Drinking Song

YouTube - The Drinking Song

[alinda]

http://www.money-health-relationships.com/images/Sherman01.jpg


http://www.money-health-relationships.com/images/Sherman02.jpg


http://www.money-health-relationships.com/images/Sherman03.jpg

http://www.money-health-relationships.com/images/Sherman04.jpg

[educatedlady]

Louis Armstrong VS Radiohead- "What a Wonderful Surprise"
http://hypem.com/track/607799/Louis+Armstrong+vs+Radiohead-What+A+Wonderful+Surprise

[razz]

http://images.icanhascheezburger.com/completestore/2008/8/23/basementcatb128640066445665564.jpg

http://images.icanhascheezburger.com/completestore/2008/8/23/basementcatb128640066445665564.jpg

[gsvec]

http://johnfenzel.typepad.com/john_fenzels_blog/images/2007/03/14/the3monkeys.jpg

[The Lady of Shadows]

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk95/turtlesong/lolcats/dontpressthat.jpg

[Sorox the Gunslinger]

http://i276.photobucket.com/albums/kk24/sorox94/Smash_Bros_Brawl_Toon_Linkmmm.jpg

It's a picture i put up for a site on "texture swapping" The hint for the day had to do with Toon link and majoras mask.

[The Lady of Shadows]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ez9B4P0CFlY

[gsvec]

Song/Movie:

_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ R

_ _ _ _

Correct: R
Strikes:

[razz]

Taliban's mob fought with:5 BOX CUTTERS , 10 Toyota Pickup, 80 Goat Herding Stick, 30 Camel, 130 Bag of Sand, 10 Cobra Snake, 140 Barrel of Oil, 230 Jihad Robe & Turbon You lost the fight, taking George Bush as President and $4.50 per gallon on Gasoline.

:wtf:
who was using this computer before me?

[Jon]

I’ve prelived your life for you.

[The Lady of Shadows]

http://www.jasperfforde.com/fourthbear.html

[William50]

pegasus

[razz]

Is sexual harassment at work a problem for the self employed?

[gsvec]

0306 1070 0005 3048 7798

[Sorox the Gunslinger]

Stadium Air Conditioning Fails--Fans Protest

City Abortion Center: No Fetus can Beat us.

City Orphanage: You beat em, We treat em.


(sorry about that, but i sent that to my freind and it was on my copy so :unsure:)

[razz]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/st/gallery/images/340/tnglore01.jpg

[educatedlady]

YouTube - US veterans demonstrate against the Iraq war - 27 Aug 2008

[The Lady of Shadows]

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk95/turtlesong/terror-all.jpg

[razz]

:wtf:

http://www.lucsnetguide.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/gas_prices.jpg

[Sorox the Gunslinger]

http://www.luki-luki-luki-farka.webs.com

hee hee!

[gsvec]

17 Melodeers 3:05

[Sorox the Gunslinger]

http://wiibrew.org/wiki/Main_Page

[The Lady of Shadows]

top funny tv actors:

1. Tina Fey
2. Steve Carrell
3. Seth Meyers
4. Stephen Colbert

[Letti]

Sabrina

[razz]

Father Norton wakes up to a beautiful and sunny Sunday morning and decides he just has to play golf. He pretends he's sick and convinces the associate pastor to say Mass for him that day, then heads out of town to a golf course about 40 miles away so he won't run into anyone from his parish. On the first tee, he sees that he has the entire course to himself—everyone else is in church!

Watching all this from the heavens, Saint Peter leans over to the Lord and asks, "Are you going to let him get away with this?"

Just then Father Norton hits the ball and it heads straight for the pin, dropping just short of it, rolls up and falls into the hole-a 420 yard hole in one!

Astonished, St. Peter looks at the Lord and asks, "Why in Heaven did you let him do that?"

The Lord smiles and replies, "Who's he going to tell?"

[Jon]

top funny tv actors:

1. Tina Fey
2. Steve Carrell
3. Seth Meyers
4. Stephen Colbert
5. Bruce Campbell
6. David Tennant
7. Jon Stewart
8. Ellen

[The Lady of Shadows]

September 04: interneuter

Loosing your connection to the internet

Johnny was interneutered suddenly by his cable company which left him feeling much like his cat who was neutered a few days ago.

[Jon]

He gave his life for us
He fell upon the cross
To die for all of those
who never mourn his loss- Iron Maiden, from the song "For the Greater Good of God"

[gsvec]

http://havefuncollectibles.com/stephen_king_-_midnight_sale

[educatedlady]

Thanks for the birthday wishes. You're the best.

[The Lady of Shadows]

http://www.drewstruzan.com/illustrat...tart=1&type=mp

[alinda]

Police Warning to Online Members


State police warning for online: Please read this "very carefully"..then send
it out to all the people online that you know. Something like this is nothing
to be taken casually; this is something you DO want to pay attention to.

If a person with the screen-name of DreamWeaverGrey contacts you, do not
reply. DO not talk to this person; do not answer any of whispers or requests
for private chat in Pogo. Whoever this person may be, he/she is a suspect for
murder in the death of 56 women (so far) contacted through the Internet.
Please send this to all the women on your buddy list and ask them to pass this
on, as well. This screen-name has also been seen on Yahoo, AOL, AIM, and
Excite so far.
This is not a joke! Please send this to men too...just in case! Send to
everyone you know! Ladies, this is serious.

Jennifer S. Faulkner Education/Information Specialist
Roanoke Fire-EMS
541 Luck Avenue, Suite 120 Roanoke, VA 24016
540) 853-2257 (phone) 540) 853-1172 (fax)

IF WE CAN PASS ON JOKES, SURELY WE CAN PASS ON A WARNING THAT MAY SAVE A
FRIENDS LIFE!!!

[Rjeso]

Pretty Noose - Soundgarden

switching to...

I had realized I was in the wrong thread. Go me.

[alinda]

:dance: I do that all the time.

[Ves'Ka Gan]

recklessaf <<--me.
Does auntie ****** get to see those?

Miracle
lol yes. I will show you

recklessaf
» i'm excited for you!!

Miracle
Of course cause auntie ***** is gonna be the aunt who lives far away & who sends the boxes full of cool junk on holidays

recklessaf
LOUD cool junk

Miracle
like my aunt did. lol. she was awesome.

» lol. thats fine

recklessaf
yeah because then you'll do it to me

Miracle
My aunt sent tons of candy on easter, like a huge box full. lol

» Oh yes I will. lol



A convo between my pregnant friend and me...she went on to say I could send as much loud junk as I wanted--she will send sugar to my kids!:panic:

[Jon]

The red tail jackass!

[gsvec]

220276712669

[Jon]

Your brother is NOT a doorstop!

[alinda]

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1358/1435375593_e1b60f2308.jpg?v=0http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1358/1435375593_e1b60f2308.jpg?v=0

[Brice]

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1358/1435375593_e1b60f2308.jpg?v=0http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1358/1435375593_e1b60f2308.jpg?v=0

:lol: That's great! I don't think I've seen that before.

[alinda]

I so had to copy that!

[The Lady of Shadows]

c33672ae2101a2c1cdf0f0e978405b61

[sarah]

13 items of food that you can't live without

1. Cheese
2. Tapatio Hot Sauce
3. Salsa
4.KETCHUP.
5. Tacos
6. Peanut Butter
7. Blue Cheese Dressing
8. Potatoes
9. Spaghetti

[theBeamisHome]

http://i192.photobucket.com/albums/z104/blakiceanjel/desktoplions.jpg

[alinda]

http://images.meez.com/user/6/3/7/9/6/7/1/6379671_bodyshot_300x400.gif?598315

[Jackie]

Movies about Christmas/contain Christmas references

1. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
2. The Nightmare Before Christmas
3. A Christmas Story
4. How the Grinch Stole Christmas
5. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
6. Prancer
7. Home Alone
8. Elf
9. The Santa Clause
10. Family Stone
11. Gremlins



I guess you can tell where I posted last :lol:

[Brice]

السلام عليكم

[razz]

On the cover of the file was stenciled WILDFIRE, and underneath, an ominous note:
THIS FILE IS CLASSIFIED TOP SECRET.
Examination by unauthorized access is a criminal offense punishable by fines and imprisonment up to 20 years and $20,000. When Leavitt gave him the file, Hall had read the note and whistled.
"Don't you believe it," Leavitt said.
"Just a scare?"
"Scare, hell," Leavitt said. "If the wrong man reads this file, he just disappears."

[gsvec]

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e73/gsvec/Smilies/lam.gif

[Jackie]

http://i439.photobucket.com/albums/qq113/JackieJeans/123.jpg

[Jon]

http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff79/walterodim_photos/giveadarn.gif

[razz]

will you PLEASE stop using the n word? it is highly offensive, prone to controversy, has already started a major fight between members in another thread. in addition, it has no use in common speech.

also, you may want to consider putting those lyrics in a spoiler tag. just to avoid controversy.

i thought someone shut down this computer. cuz i used this last night. guess not. then they wonder why the electric bill is so high. <_<

[alinda]

http://www.medilexicon.com/drugsearch.php
http://www.medilexicon.com/drugsearch.php

[The Lady of Shadows]

Mick: "I'm just a piece of meat to you women aren't I?"
Jenny: "That's right. You're like. . .", she considered a moment, "spam
One Among The Sleepless, Mike Bennett

[gsvec]

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e73/gsvec/Smilies/spam-1.gif

[Frunobulax]

hxxp://www.megaupload.com/?d=48WER62U

[This is the link to the new Sunn O))) live disc]

[alinda]

...

[Frunobulax]

http://rapidshare.com/files/149598212/Transaction_de_Novo.zip

[Link to Bedhead's final album. Damn I download a lot of music...]

[alinda]

:huglove: Hi Fruno! Ok so that wasnt in my Ctrl +V :wtf:

[gsvec]

http://www.visi.com/~tmarx/index.htm

[Jon]

Damn it Jim, I'm a Doctor not a lesbian!

[alinda]

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r66/alinda47/excite_114.jpg

[The Lady of Shadows]

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk95/turtlesong/smilies/coffee_spray-1.gif

[alinda]

http://www.witchyswikkedgraphix.com/categories/Pirates%20&%20Ships/Pirates%20and%20Ships%20(4).jpg

[Jon]

NICE PIC LINDA!!!



This place is haunted!

[LadyHitchhiker]

http://chotchkies.flair.nliven.com/flair_img/a/8/7/c/a87c161e52e219c0f7b602da81fa21682892fc82.jpg

[The Lady of Shadows]

Dexter Morgan: See you tonight?
Debra Morgan: I think I'm staying at Gabriel's.
Dexter Morgan: I thought you were taking it slow.
Debra Morgan: We are. No sex, just cuddling.
Dexter Morgan: My little sister, the cuddler.
Debra Morgan: I got a scalding-hot beverage here, Dex. Don't make me use it.
Dexter Morgan: Love you, too.

[Sir_Boomme]

A Y2K Christmas
by terry newsom

Twas a week after Christmas, when all through the house
Not a computer was workin',not even a mouse.
All stockings were washed, by hand with great care,
'Cause all the washing machines quit workin', on the first day of the year.

The citizens were restless, quite a few packin' lead,
Having visions of vandels, and winding up dead;
Wear a bullet proof vest, or you may end up capped,
Best keep one eye opened, while takin' a nap.

And down in the streets, there arose such a clatter,
People rioting and stealing, like nothin' else mattered;
Keep away from the windows, when you see a big flash,
'Cause it's probably gunfire, someone protectin' their stash.
You walk to the store, your food's running low,
Got a nice new car, but you find it won't go;
So many ignore the warnings, said there's nothin' to fear,
"Oh that year 2000's, is just another year.

With little chips designed, so tiny and quick,
Made our jobs much easier, 'till they decided to quit.
More rapid over the years, the programs became,
Made by high tech companies, who we all know by name.

Now Microsoft! Now Motorola! Now AMD and Intel!
There's TI and Apple, Samsung and Dell!
Stocks rose to the top, seemed never to fall!
Now the cash is all gone, there's no cash at all!

The plane's are all grounded, not a one can fly,
'Cause on the first day of the year, they all fell from the sky;
While on the desktops, where cursors once flew;
No work can be done, no work can be viewed.
The pixels don't twinkle, the computer's aloof;
Y2k has arrived...there's plenty of proof;
For all those who believed not, just look around,
Civilization has fallen, like a stone to the ground.

Put on the fur coat, cover from your head to your feet,
The furnices' won't work, no way to get heat.
The clocks aren't turning, none of them chime,
Twelve midnight they all read, it's a question of time.

Since all time has stop, for at least the next year,
How will we tell when next Christmas draws near!
No presents to be bought, no lights to be hung,
No turkey to be cooked, no carols to be sung,
But as blight as it gets, there still is some light,
As long as we have our friends, all will be right;
So as this year ends, there's but one thing to say,
"HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO ALL, AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT!"

[Brice]

nice :thumbsup:

[Unfound One]

Welcome, Unfound One.
19 Unread Posts since your last visit.

Brilliant. :D

[razz]

The Michigan Lama Association has been actively serving the
lama community since 1995!

[Jon]

http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff79/walterodim_photos/slinger.jpg

[The Lady of Shadows]

splendiferious

[Unfound One]

magna cum laude

[alinda]

http://media.imeem.com/p/IjpKbYDcUT.jpg

[idk, my bff jill?]

la solución de 8-hidroxiquinolina

[razz]

architect


(i was wiki-ing The Architect, that program on the Matrix that looks like John Hammond, and i forgot how to spell architect)

[Sir_Boomme]

btw anne,

thanks for providing a quote to help validate my own personal quote...

Conservative: a person's who bases their ideas on a real world.
Liberal: a person who bases their realities on an idealistic world.
-Terry Newsom

=============================

"Since we cannot change reality, let us change the eyes which see reality"
-Nikos Kazantzakis







http://www.thedarktower.org/palaver/CID:{9E0B1926-58E3-432D-B26B-2294608B159E}/hq_11_6_08.jpg

[Unfound One]

Page_02.jpg

I don't even know what that was from... :unsure:

[turtlex]

of Just After Sunset, and used Brodart # 10-426-005

( heee ! just realized i was reading about the bookcovers )

[what]

Stormwater Ordinance Training Course – January 2006
Georgia Storm Water Management Manual Training Seminar – January 2008
State of Georgia Land Surveyor in Training License – April 2008

I was filling out applications online... another person got the axe today at work:cry:

[turtlex]

str***eka's password is now set to: 3rdfob16
qdchud36 ................. Successful

Um, work crap.

[The Lady of Shadows]

Maxalt

[razz]

EEEEEPIIIIIC FAAAIIIIIILLLLL

[Hannah]

Hannah 14/18 17/19 18/20 19/21 Totals
Write-ups 9 14 29 12 64
Data 5 5 2 12
Special Projects 0
Decisions 0
Fax Backs 0
Email Backs 4 3 9 6 22
Sorter 1 5 11 17
Exceptions 11 3 14
Report Corrections 0
Adjudicator Calls 3 2 5
Pinnacle 0
TOTALS 16 25 59 34 134

[Chap]

I love this game :D

http://blog.mlive.com/mediumfidelity/2008/03/large_rick-astley.jpg
http://blog.mlive.com/mediumfidelity/2008/03/large_rick-astley.jpg

[educatedlady]

http://i36.tinypic.com/24pe0kj.jpg

[alinda]

http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r66/alinda47/Jorgestatoos.jpg?t=1227113255

[educatedlady]

YouTube - Single Ladies Single Man Beyonce Mashup

[Sir_Boomme]

procedure(intersection(@optional prompt)
isNOTlayersvisible()
isNOTlayerselectable()

cv = geGetEditCellView()
lib = "xxxs"
addviaQ = "Y"
setINTlayers()
cleanupLYR()
isIntersectionLayerValid()
setNOTlayers()

layerList1 = list(list("M01" "V01" "M02")
list("M02" "V02" "M03")
list("M03" "V03" "M04")
list("M04" "V04" "M05")
list("M05" "V05" "M06")
list("M06" "V06" "M07")
list("M07" "V07" "M08")
list("M08" "V08" "M09")
list("M09" "V09" "M10")
list("M10" "V10" "M11")
)

layerList2 = nil

foreach(layer1 layerList1
foreach(layerx layer1
layerList2 = cons(layerx layerList2)
)
)

layerList2 = remove(nil layerList2)

saveSelected = selectedSet()
geDeselectAllFig()

box = enterBox(?prompts list("ENCLOSE AREA TO BE POPULATED BY VIAS") ?noInfix t)
bl = car(car(box))
tl = cadr(car(box))
br = car(cadr(box))
tr = cadr(cadr(box))

geSelectArea(hiGetCurrentWindow() box)
windowSelection = selectedSet()
geDeselectAllFig()

pt = car(hiGetPoint(hiGetCurrentWindow()))
si = hiGetCIWindow()->infix
hiGetCIWindow()->infix = nil

leYankFigs(cv list( bl:tl bl:tr br:tr br:tl ) 32 list(pt pt))
lePasteFigs(cv list(pt pt))

geSelectArea(hiGetCurrentWindow() box)

foreach(selected selectedSet()
if(selected~>objType == "inst" && !member(selected windowSelection) then
leFlattenInst(selected 1 t nil)
)
)

geSelectArea(hiGetCurrentWindow() box)

pastedSelection = selectedSet()

foreach(paste_selected pastedSelection
if(member(paste_selected windowSelection) then
geDeselectFig(paste_selected)
)
)

foreach(selected selectedSet()
if(!member(selected~>layerName layerList2) then
dbDeleteObject(selected)
)
)

layerNames = nil
rmLayers = nil

foreach(layer selectedSet() layerNames = cons(layer~>layerName layerNames))

foreach(layer layerList1

foreach(selected selectedSet()

if(selected~>layerName == nth(0 layer) then
copyShapes = dbCopyFig(selected geGetEditRep())
copyShapes~>lpp = list("y1" "drawing")
rmLayers = cons(copyShapes rmLayers)
)

if(selected~>layerName == nth(2 layer) then
copyShapes = dbCopyFig(selected geGetEditRep())
copyShapes~>lpp = list("y2" "drawing")
rmLayers = cons(copyShapes rmLayers)
)

if(selected~>layerName == nth(1 layer) then
copyShapes = dbCopyFig(selected geGetEditRep())
copyShapes~>lpp = list("y0" "drawing")
leSizeShape(copyShapes getViaWidth(nth(1 layer)))
rmLayers = cons(copyShapes rmLayers)
)

)

rmLayers = remove(nil rmLayers)

shape1 = leLayerAnd(cv list("y1" "drawing")
list("y2" "drawing")
list("y3" "drawing")
)

shape2 = leLayerAndNot(cv list("y3" "drawing")
list("y0" "drawing")
list("y4" "drawing")
)

foreach(shape shape2
if(shape~>lpp then
num = (getViaWidth(nth(1 layer)) - .01) / 8
leSizeShape(shape -num)
if(shape~>lpp then
leSizeShape(shape num)
)
)
)

foreach(shape shape1 dbDeleteObject(shape))

foreach(shape rmLayers
if(shape~>lpp && !member(shape shape2) then
dbDeleteObject(shape)
)
)

foreach(shape shape2
shape~>lpp = list("marker" "error")
dbReplaceProp(shape "unknown" "string" strcat(nth(1 layer) " drawing"))
)
)

[educatedlady]

http://i213.photobucket.com/albums/cc120/AntoniaLGarcia/sid.jpg

Stupid iLike doesn't even know the right answer!

[razz]

http://www.thedarktower.org/palaver/showthread.php?t=5657&page=7

[sarah]

13 vampires from books

1. Lestat
2. barlow
3. eric northman
4. Dracula
5. Edward Cullen
6. armand

[obscurejude]

<a href="bible_footnotes.html#[5]"target="footnote"> ^[5] </a>

[Unfound One]

:lol:

But seriously, that's what you're working on? That looks awful!

[obscurejude]

That's some HTML (hyper text markup language) Not so much fun, and I think that I'm going blind.

That's an example of the code for a footnote.* I have to tell one text, in code of course, to hyperlink to the right footnote in a separate html document.

*Thought you might enjoy that

[obscurejude]

http://i267.photobucket.com/albums/ii303/rtbradle/Untitled-1.jpg?t=1228108702

[gsvec]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/675000/images/_676440_heston150.jpg

[razz]

YouTube - It's a Great Day to be Alive

[Bangoskank19]

She lived over the rise of a hill, just far enough away so that you had to drive up and over to see anything of her house. 17 and stunning, a year younger than me, Lauren and I met during a musical two years beforehand. She was the upcoming freshman lead, and I was a non-speaking chorus member. In those two years before we dated, there were two shows and two other relationships for me, and by the time my senior year rolled around, I had been cast in the musical with Lauren as my romantic opposite.
I kissed her in a cornfield the summer before senior year, and with the sweet smell of grass and dirt in the air, the sky cut out of solid azure, it felt like a movie where we were the timeless perfect characters that were destined to be together. Being in the play only accentuated this. Taken with strong emotion that was no act, I sang about how wonderful her name was, and danced across the stage with her: I in my suit, she in her red dress. Everything fit together, everything was movie-magic. I remember backstage moments (in the heat, against cement walls), where I became so caught up with her that I began to lose something of myself. I became my character, the fictional version of myself. Suddenly, every random thing that happened to me held some mystical reason, some answer to justify my emotional attachment to Lauren.
I can remember lying next to her in the dark, hearing words come out of my mouth that I thought I would never say: “I want to stay like this forever.” Promises were made, and from then on we never stopped talking about the future and how we would still be together in it. The self within me that kept screaming at me to take it back was silenced, and I became my fictional self, matching everything to the desires and future plans of my romantic opposite. Together we wrote a new script, and deviating from the lines proved to be much harder than I thought.

Wow, I forgot this was on here. :scared: From a non-fiction piece I did last month that I've been trying to revise.

[gsvec]

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e73/gsvec/Smilies/Nurse_loves_Pooh_by_tm2cruz.gif

[Sir_Boomme]

my point is... jeff chose selective stats to try to justify why OU was "Better " than texas

trying to compare apples vs baseballs can't be done statistically.... if you're only using offensive stats and total points scored as a yardstick...that's not really a qualitative method of comparison. defensive stats are just as important.

UT beat OU by double digits... not a last second hail mary pass like when Tech beat UT.

the fact that one coach chooses a path of relying on defense and offense to win, rather than another coach relying only on the offense to outscore the opposing team....
or that one coach decides that he has won the game and runs out the clock in the endgame, rather than continuing to pass - like a different coach...
"should not" be the decisive factor in which team is better. (though it apparently is)

style is subjective... not a definitive method of determining superiority
and style points just shows disrespect for an unmatched lesser team.

[Lady_Macbeth]

expands the Secretary of the Treasury’s authority to regulate financial transactions :cool:

Copypasta'd that to a research paper I was doing.

[alinda]

<object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/TcJlSfbUtvo"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/TcJlSfbUtvo" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>

[alinda]

http://bp3.blogger.com/_2aD2LcIB9Qs/RsRY20gGXdI/AAAAAAAAAO8/ce16N4SeRDM/s320/silence_by_donjuki.jpg

[pickle]

http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g80/Hawke53051/Computers/avasze9yi.jpg

[idk, my bff jill?]

http://img218.imageshack.us/img218/6499/1228626014121xd2.jpg

Saw it on 4chan, and it made me wonder...

[obscurejude]

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e229/drblackskullx/random/8272Donnie_Darko_FRANK_THE_BUNNY.jpg

[sarah]

13. Favorite Side Dishes

1. Spanish Rice
2. Baked potato
3. chips and salsa
4. cheese garlic bread
5. French Fries
6. Macaroni&Cheese

[razz]

file:///E:/FirefoxPortable/App/Firefox/firefox.exe

[turtlex]

http://www.calliscreations.com/wallpapers/thwallpaperbadgirls.jpg

[alinda]

http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q73/Ampersandprime/project%20365/2007-01-08rainydaychairandwindow.jpg

[educatedlady]

http://community.livejournal.com/rahmbamarama/

[turtlex]

root:!:0:0::/root:/usr/bin/ksh
daemon:!:1:1::/etc:
bin:!:2:2::/bin:
sys:!:3:3::/usr/sys:
adm:!:4:4::/var/adm:
uucp:!:5:5::/usr/lib/uucp:
nobody:!:4294967294:4294967294::/:
lpd:!:9:4294967294::/:
lp:*:11:11::/var/spool/lp:/bin/false
invscout:*:6:12::/var/adm/invscout:/usr/bin/ksh
snapp:*:200:13:snapp login user:/usr/sbin/snapp:/usr/sbin/snappd
ipsec:*:201:1::/etc/ipsec:/usr/bin/ksh
nuucp:*:7:5:uucp login user:/var/spool/uucppublic:/usr/sbin/uucp/uucico

[Hannah]

The claimant stated she left the store to take a smoke break. She said that associates are left inside by themselves when managers check windows, so she didn't see there was a difference between taking the cigarette break or checking windows. Clmt states she could see associates at all times and was also wearing a headset to communicate with associates. The state needs a copy of the policy and the claimant's signed acknowledgement.


:rolleyes: work stuff...

[alinda]

Jorge, los prenuptuails está listo para usted, haha!

[turtlex]

The claimant stated she left the store to take a smoke break. She said that associates are left inside by themselves when managers check windows, so she didn't see there was a difference between taking the cigarette break or checking windows. Clmt states she could see associates at all times and was also wearing a headset to communicate with associates. The state needs a copy of the policy and the claimant's signed acknowledgement.


:rolleyes: work stuff...

I'm riveted. I can't wait to see how it turns out !

[Hannah]

:lol: It'll probably turn out that she'll get her benefits.

[turtlex]

:lol: It'll probably turn out that she'll get her benefits.


Well, I hope they include coverage incase she comes down with lung cancer from all the Smoke Breaks!

[Jon]

Jorge, los prenuptuails está listo para usted, haha!


And will that involve a reading of the series and a membership at DT.com?

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

FOR AZOR 5/40 = (AMLODIPINE 5MG, OLMESARTAN 40 MG)

As I've said. I am a pharmacist

[Jon]

Watch the DTF on that garage…it is different than the house and you will be WAY over on chemical. The Grade slopes gradually.

[Jon]

"That was awesome. I gotta start pretending to care."

[educatedlady]

http://i213.photobucket.com/albums/cc120/AntoniaLGarcia/l_2ed60e7dc0f141a4901b0bedfbef36bd.jpg

[Sam]

Wow, ok, wow><. Thanks el, I really wanted to sleep tonight, but now I don't think my brain will let me until I find a piece of hot steel and burn that particular image from it. :P

[Darkthoughts]

http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c39/towerjunkie19/jbsf.jpg

My new book that arrived Saturday, was just posting it in the collector's forum.

[turtlex]

http://boston.redsox.mlb.com/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=bos&m=10&y=2009

[educatedlady]

Wow, ok, wow><. Thanks el, I really wanted to sleep tonight, but now I don't think my brain will let me until I find a piece of hot steel and burn that particular image from it. :P
Sorry. It was something I sent to my homoboy.

[alinda]

2222 Bancroft Way University Health Services University of California, Berkeley
www.uhs.berkeley.edu
Migraine Triggers
“’Triggers” are specific factors that may increase your risk of having a migraine attack. The migraine
sufferer has inherited a sensitive nervous system that under certain circumstances can lead to migraine.
Triggers do not ‘cause’ migraine. Instead, they are thought to activate processes that cause migraine in
people who are prone to the condition. A certain trigger will not induce a migraine in every person; and, in
a single migraine sufferer, a trigger may not cause a migraine every time. By keeping a headache diary,
you will be able to identify some triggers for your particular headaches.
Once you have identified triggers, it will be easier for you to avoid them and reduce your chances of
having a migraine attack.”
—American Council for Headache Education
Categories Triggers Examples
Dietary Skipping meals/fasting
Specific foods
Medications
See reverse
Overuse of over-the-counter medications can cause
rebound headaches (e.g. using ibuprofen, Excedrin
Migraine more than 2 days per week). Also, missed
medication doses and certain medications (e.g.
nitroglycerine, indomethacin) may cause headaches.
Sleep Changes in sleep patterns
Napping, oversleeping, too little sleep
Hormonal Estrogen level changes and
fluctuations
Menstrual cycles, birth control pills, hormone replacement
therapies, peri-menopause, menopause, ovulation
Environmental Weather
Bright lights
Odors/pollution
Other
Weather and temperature changes, extreme heat or cold,
humidity, barometric pressure changes
Bright or glaring lights, fluorescent lighting, flashing lights
or screens
Smog, smoke, perfumes, chemical odors
High altitude, airplane travel
Stress
§ Periods of high stress,
including life changes
§ Accumulated stress
§ Reacting quickly and
easily to stress
§ Repressed emotions
Factors related to stress include anxiety, worry, shock,
depression, excitement, mental fatigue, loss and grief.
Both “bad stress” and “good stress” can be triggers. How
we perceive and react to situations can trigger (or prevent)
migraines. Other triggers can include unrealistic timelines
or expectations of oneself.
Stress letdown Weekends, vacations, ending a project or stressful task
(including presentations, papers, or exams)
Physical Overexertion
Injuries
Visual triggers
Becoming tired or fatigued
Over-exercising when out of shape, exercising in heat,
marathon running
Eyestrain (if you wear glasses, make sure your
prescription is current), bright or glaring lights, fluorescent
lighting, flashing lights or computer screens
2222 Bancroft Way University Health Services University of California, Berkeley
www.uhs.berkeley.edu
Dietary Triggers
Food triggers do not necessarily contribute to migraines in all individuals, and particular foods may trigger
attacks in certain people only on occasion. Be your own expert by keeping a journal of foods you have
eaten before a migraine attack and see whether the removal or reduction of certain foods from your diet
improves your headaches.
Skipping meals, fasting, and low blood sugar can also trigger migraines. If you’re unable to follow a
normal eating schedule, pack snacks.
Food item Not known to trigger migraines Possible triggers
Beverages Fruit juice, club soda, noncola soda (7-Up,
gingerale), decaffeinated coffee, herbal tea, soy
milk, rice milk. Limit caffeine sources to 2
cups/day (coffee, tea, cola).
Chocolate and cocoa. Alcoholic beverages
(especially red wine, beer, and sherry). Caffeine
(even in small amounts) may be a trigger for
some people.
Fruits Any except those to avoid. Limit citrus fruits to
½ cup/day. Limit banana to ½ per day.
Figs, raisins, papayas, avocados (especially if
overripe), red plums, overripe bananas.
Vegetables Any except those to avoid. Beans such as broad, fava, garbanzo, Italian,
lima, navy, pinto, pole. Sauerkraut, string beans,
raw garlic, snow peas, olives, pickles, onions
(except for flavoring),
Bread & Grains Most commercial breads, English muffins,
melba toast, crackers, RyKrisp, bagel. All hot
and dry cereals. Grains such as rice, barley,
millet, quinoa, bulgur. Corn meal and noodles.
Freshly baked yeast bread. Fresh yeast coffee
cake, doughnuts, sourdough bread. Breads and
crackers containing cheese, including pizza. Any
product containing chocolate or nuts.
Dairy Products Milk (2% or skim). Cheese: American, cottage,
farmer, ricotta, cream, Velveeta. Yogurt: (limit
to ½ cup per day).
Cultured dairy products (buttermilk, sour cream).
Chocolate milk. Cheese: blue, brick (natural),
Gouda, Gruyere, mozzarella, Parmesan,
provolone, romano, Roquefort, cheddar, Swiss
(emmentaler), Stilton, Brie types and Camembert
types.
Meat, fish, poultry Fresh or frozen turkey, chicken, fish, beef,
lamb, veal, pork. Egg (limit to 3 eggs/week).
Tuna or tuna salad.
Aged, canned, cured or processed meat,
including ham or game, pickled herring, salted
dried fish, sardines, anchovies, chicken livers,
sausage, bologna, pepperoni, salami, summer
sausage, hot dogs, pâté, caviar. Any food
prepared with meat tenderizer, soy sauce or
brewer’s yeast. Any food containing nitrates,
nitrites, or tyramine.
Soups Soups made from foods allowed in diet,
homemade broths.
Canned soup, soup or bouillon cubes, soup base
with autolytic yeast or MSG. Read labels.
Desserts Fruit allowed in diet. Any cake, pudding,
cookies, or ice cream without chocolate or nuts.
JELL-O.
Chocolate ice cream, pudding, cookies, cakes, or
pies. Mincemeat pie. Nuts. Any yeast-containing
doughs and pastries.
Sweets Sugar, jelly, jam, honey, hard candy
Miscellaneous Salt in moderation, lemon juice, butter or
margarine, cooking oil, whipped cream, and
white vinegar. Commercial salad dressings in
small amounts as long as they don’t have
additives to avoid.
Nutrasweet, monosodium glutamate (MSG),
yeast/yeast extract, meat tenderizer (Accent),
seasoned salt, mixed dishes, pizza, cheese
sauce, macaroni and cheese, beef stroganoff,
cheese blintzes, lasagna, frozen TV dinners,
chocolate. Nuts and nut butters. Pumpkin,
sesame and sunflower seeds. Anything
fermented, pickled or marinated. Some aspirin
medications that contain caffeine. Excessive
amounts of Niacin (Niacinamide is fine).
Excessive Vitamin A (over 25,000 I.U. daily).

[Jon]

http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff79/walterodim_photos/winter.jpg

[Jon]

embarrassed

[Brice]

FOR AZOR 5/40 = (AMLODIPINE 5MG, OLMESARTAN 40 MG)

As I've said. I am a pharmacist

Can you fill my Delysid scrip? :innocent:

[Jackie]

YouTube - Not Gonna Be A Christmas For You

[Brice]

:lol:

[razz]

http://fauxfire.com/

[idk, my bff jill?]

http://www.santosdepr.org/Santosimages/Santosindex/Universoimages/Manopoderosa/mano3.jpg

It freaks me out.

[Jackie]

OMG...I'm going to have nightmares now :scared:

Thanks SO much idkmybffjill

:lol:

[SigTauGimp]

Fisher-Price PXL 2000

Heh...anyone even remember this thing? I'm actually looking around to purchase one.

[idk, my bff jill?]

http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w279/joshofquarrelxvx/arab-jew-child.jpg

[razz]

He saves planets, rescues civilizations, defeats terrible creatures ... and runs a lot. Seriously, there is an outrageous amount of running involved.

[Unfound One]

Doctor Who quote'd!

[Chap]

TX2590EO

[razz]

pugnaciously partitioned punctiliar poo permeated pocketed peppermint patty paper package

[obscurejude]

Particularly pugnacious partitioned punctiliar poo permeated pocketed peppermint patty paper package

[razz]

amazingly assured assertive attentive altruistic alliterative assonance arbitrary amplifier

[alinda]

YouTube - Tim Fite - Big Mistake

[razz]

Intelligent Dog
A dog walks into a butcher shop, spends a number of minutes looking at the meat on display, and eventually indicates with a nod of his head and a bark that he would like some lamb chops.
The butcher, thinking the dog would know no better, picks up the lowest quality chops in the shop.
The dog barks furiously and continues to bark until the butcher selects the finest chops from the display counter.
The butcher weighs the meat and asks the dog for $5.90. Again, the dog barks furiously until the butcher reduces the bill to the correct price of $3.60.
The dog hands over a five dollar note and the butcher gives him 40 cents in change. Once again, the dog barks continuously until the butcher tenders the correct change. The dog then picks up his package and leaves the shop.
Now, the butcher is extremely impressed and decides that he would like to own a dog so clever. He shuts up shop and follows the dog to see where it goes.
After ten minutes or so, the dog climbs the steps to a house. When it gets to the top, it shakes its head as though in frustration, gently places the package of meat on the floor and, standing on its hind legs, rings the doorbell.
A man opens the door and starts to yell obscenities at the dog. As he does so, the horrified butcher leaps up the steps and begs the man to stop. "It's such an intelligent dog," he says, "surely it doesn't deserve this kind of treatment."
He then went on to explain how the dog had procured the best lamb chops in the shop, insisted on paying the advertised price and quibbled over incorrect change!
The man looked at the butcher and said, "Intelligent he may be, but this is the third time this week he's forgotten his keys".

[Chap]

http://bashandslash.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=91&Itemid=76

[razz]

(file:///G:/Dramatic%20Moments%20in%20DT%20History/Blaine%20the%20Mono/Blaine%20rail/front%20rail/01.bmp)file:///G:/Dramatic%20Moments%20in%20DT%20History/Blaine%20the%20Mono/Blaine%20rail/front%20rail/01.bmp (file:///G:/Dramatic%20Moments%20in%20DT%20History/Blaine%20the%20Mono/Blaine%20rail/front%20rail/01.bmp)

[Jon]

EVA CANTRELL

[EdwardDean1999]

25 Random Facts About me

[obscurejude]

YouTube - Dire Straits - Sultans of Swing

[Chap]

http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk56/one_richard/Land_marks.jpg

[Nightfall]

http://media.photobucket.com/image/chuck%20norris/medusaswisdom/chuck_norris.jpg?o=113

[razz]

The 8 Monkeys

(This is reportedly based on an actual experiment conducted in the U.K.)

Put eight monkeys in a room. In the middle of the room is a ladder, leading to a bunch of bananas hanging from a hook on the ceiling.


Each time a monkey tries to climb the ladder, all the monkeys are sprayed with ice water, which makes them miserable. Soon enough, whenever a monkey attempts to climb the ladder, all of the other monkeys, not wanting to be sprayed, set upon him and beat him up. Soon, none of the eight monkeys ever attempts to climb the ladder.


One of the original monkeys is then removed, and a new monkey is put in the room. Seeing the bananas and the ladder, he wonders why none of the other monkeys are doing the obvious. But undaunted, he immediately begins to climb the ladder.


All the other monkeys fall upon him and beat him silly. He has no idea why.

However, he no longer attempts to climb the ladder.


A second original monkey is removed and replaced. The newcomer again attempts to climb the ladder, but all the other monkeys hammer the crap out of him.

This includes the previous new monkey, who, grateful that he's not on the receiving end this time, participates in the beating because all the other monkeys are doing it. However, he has no idea why he's attacking the new monkey.


One by one, all the original monkeys are replaced. Eight new monkeys are now in the room. None of them have ever been sprayed by ice water. None of them attempt to climb the ladder. All of them will enthusiastically beat up any new monkey who tries, without having any idea why.

[alinda]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKTZTv8nc1w&eurl=http://www.tagged.com/profile.html?uid=5396734349

[The Lady of Shadows]

Welcome, turtlesong.
3451 Unread Posts since your last visit.
You last visited: 02-07-2009 at 11:54 PM
Private Messages: Unread 6, Total 13.

[razz]

http://www.hottopic.com/hottopic/store/product.jsp?FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302028446&PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524442180331&bmUID=1234815504468

[SigTauGimp]

t0rbad> so there i was in this hallway right
BlackAdder> i believe i speak for all of us when i say...
BlackAdder> WRONG BTICH
BlackAdder> IM SICK OF YOU
BlackAdder> AND YOUR LAME STORIES
BlackAdder> NOBODY HERE THINKS YOURE FUNNY
BlackAdder> NOBODY HERE WANTS TO HEAR YOUR STORIES
BlackAdder> IN FACT
BlackAdder> IF YOU DIED RIGHT NOW
BlackAdder> I DON"T THINK NOBODY WOULD CARE
BlackAdder> SO WHAT DO YOU SAY TO THAT LOSER
*** t0rbad sets mode: +b BlackAdder*!*@*.*
*** BlackAdder has been kicked my t0rbad ( )
t0rbad> so there i was in this hallway right
CRCError> right
heartless> Right.
r3v> right

(Copy-Pasted to a friend.)

[William50]

Apples...

[obscurejude]

To continue with Part 2, CLICK HERE.

To return to ORB: Books and Universities, CLICK HERE.

There is a widely held, yet erroneous, belief that the invention of the book was concurrent with the invention of printing. Somehow it is assumed that the act of printing--that is producing a book by mechanical means--endows the finished product with that essence that embodies a book. After all, the hand-produced book is called a manuscript, not simply a book, and early-printed books are called incunabula, books in their infancy. We are accustomed to think of the periods of manuscripts and printed books as distinct. Traditionally a scholar working in one of these fields has known little of the other field. Even our libraries have perpetuated this dichotomy: manuscripts are always separate from printed books, both administratively and physically. Yet historically this is a false dichotomy. The printed fifteenth-century book was a direct imitation of the contemporary manuscript book.[1] Yet perhaps talk of imitation is misleading. Gutenberg never intended to imitate anything or mislead anyone: he was merely making books by a new means. The end product was really little different than the product of the scriptorium. It was the means of production which was revolutionary, not the book itself. The book, or more properly the codex, was invented in the first century AD, and has continued to this day with relatively few changes.[2]

I. The Manuscript Book

In the ancient western world the book was in the form of the roll, which was usually made of sheets of papyrus sewn or glued together.[3] roll and codexPapyrus sheets were made from thin lengths cut from the stalk of the plant, traditionally grown in Egypt, which were laid overlapping side by side in one direction and then in a similar fashion perpendicular to the first layer. This made for an exceptionally strong yet flexible surface. Its major drawback was that it was very difficult to write on the side on which the strips ran perpendicular to the direction of writing as the natural ridges of the plant disrupted the movement of the pen. There were various kinds and grades of papyrus generally distinguished by the width of the papyrus strips, e.g., Imperial was the best, Royal very good, and so forth. The standard size of the roll was about thirty feet long and seven to ten inches wide; the standard sheet size was about ten by seven and one-half inches, and writing was in columns about three inches wide, called pagina. The width of the sheet had no relation to the width of the column: the writing runs right across the juncture of the sheets. At the beginning of the roll there was usually a blank column left to protect the roll, but nothing equivalent to a title-page. On the other hand there might be a colophon at the end which would contain information about the book. The title or author's name was usually written on a label that was attached to the outside of the roll; it hung down from the shelf and served to identify it. Some rolls had rods attached to make rolling and unrolling easier and some were kept in leather cases. Because of the nature of the papyrus surface and of the roll itself, the text generally could only be written on one side, and the reader was forced to unroll one side and roll up the other as he read. From our modern perspective this seems a most cumbersome way to read, but it was obviously not so considered by the ancient reader.

During the first two centuries AD, only the roll was used for literary works. Martial (84-86 AD) is the first to mention a parchment codex.[4] He points out that it is more convenient for a traveler and how much space it saves in a library. He even gives the name and address of a publisher where one may purchase texts in codex form. However, it seems that this experiment failed, as there are no further references to the codex in this context for a whole century. In about 220 AD, lawyers began to concern themselves with the definitions for various kinds of books. In the Digest of Ulpian we find that the codex is an established and acceptable kind of book, but it was certainly not fashionable.[5] Indeed, the extant evidence from Egypt of Greek literary and scientific texts indicates that only by 300 AD did the codex achieve parity with the roll. However, if we examine the extant Christian works, a very different picture emerges. Of the surviving 172 Biblical texts that can be dated before 400 AD, 158 are in the form of the codex and only fourteen are in the form of the roll. All eleven of the second-century books are papyrus codices. As far as we know the early Bible was always written in the codex form. Of the non-Biblical Christian works, eighty-three are codices and thirty-five are rolls. Clearly the adoption of the codex was associated with the rise of Christianity.

At this point we may usefully ask two questions. Why did the codex displace the roll across the whole western ancient world, and why did the Christians adopt the codex right from the earliest times? Several traditional explanations have been advanced to answer the first question. 1) The codex is more economical. Both sides of the surface can be used, and thus by using the codex cost can be reduced by about 25%. Yet if economy had been so important, we see no attempt to use smaller more compact scripts or to reduce the size of margins which would have been natural in any attempt to economize. 2) The codex is more compact. In the earliest codices the amount of papyrus used was reduced by 50%. In addition the codex could be more easily stacked and shelved. 3) The codex was more comprehensive because several works, or individual parts of a work, which had hitherto circulated separately could be brought together as the codex could accommodate many more texts than could a roll. 4) The codex was more convenient to use. As we have already noticed, the codex is easier to handle, but this is a questionable assumption for those accustomed to rolls. 5) The codex is easier for purposes of reference, i.e., it is easier to locate a particular passage on a specific page or folio in a codex. However in the ancient world there was no such thing as a citation to a precise location, so this too is a questionable asset. Against these points we must consider the effects of conservatism. It is highly unlikely that the well-developed book industry of the ancient world would have altered its perfectly acceptable practices in producing rolls in exchange for codices without some external pressure.[6] And this is the key, because all of the traditional points in favor of the codex are internal or intrinsic. In fact, the shift from roll to codex was the result of external factors. We know that the earliest Christians adopted the codex quickly and entirely. A recent explanation for the invention of the codex is that it developed simultaneously with the nomina sacra, the abbreviated forms of the sacred names for God.[7] We know that the use of the nomina sacra, which was strictly Christian, was almost certainly begun in the Apostolic Age. There might well be a connection between this development and the adoption of the codex because both served to differentiate Christian books from Jewish and pagan books. We know that the nomina sacra originated in the East, in either Jerusalem or Antioch, and thus perhaps so too did the codex. This seems to be the most plausible explanation yet advanced to explain the Christian invention of the codex.

If this explains the origin of the codex, how can we explain its widespread adoption across the western ancient world? We know from the extant remains that the shift from roll to codex was a slow process which took several centuries. It was only by about 300 AD that we find equal numbers of rolls and codices. Yet within another century the codex was the most common format for all kinds of literature, Christian and pagan. After the promulgation of the Edict of Milan in 313, the influence of current Christian practice became progressively more powerful. We can only assume that the final impetus for the adoption of the codex must have been the success of Christianity.

Yet even with the triumph of the codex, rolls and wax tablets continued to be used. Each format had its appropriate use. Rolls were used for documents in the Vatican archives long into the Middle Ages and, similarly, rolls were the favored format for archival documents in England well into the modern period. Likewise, the wax tablet, usually consisting of several wooden tablets hollowed out on one side and filled with wax and then joined together with thongs like a notebook, remained a common writing surface through much of the medieval period for initial composition, correspondence, notes, or business memoranda. The wax medium allowed for exceptionally quick writing, using a stilus, and when finished the surface could be easily smoothed for re-use. At the time of Pope Gregory the Great at the end of the sixth century, the wax tablet, the papyrus roll, and the parchment codex each had a specific and integrated role in book production.[8] Gregory's Moralia, a commentary on the Book of Job, is a case in point. Before becoming pope, Gregory served in Constantinople, where he preached a series of sermons on the Book of Job. These sermons were taken down in shorthand by a stenographer on wax tablets in a highly current script. Soon after, the text was transferred, still in an abbreviated cursive form, to papyrus rolls, and the wax tablets were smoothed over for reuse. Thirty-five papyrus rolls were used for the Moralia. After Gregory became pope in 590 AD, the text was transferred to parchment codices, six in all, written in a careful set uncial script using few abbreviations but the nomina sacra. While the codex was certainly the end product, the wax tablet and the papyrus roll played important and integrated parts in the production of the text. Papyrus rolls may have continued to be used in this manner for some centuries, but as papyrus became difficult and expensive to acquire (Mediterranean trade was disrupted and papyrus was no longer plentiful in Egypt, but had to be found far to the south in Ethiopia) we may assume that the small quantities of available papyrus were used for more permanent purposes. Wax tablets, on the other hand, continued to be used for initial composition for many centuries to come, and it was only with the rise of Scholasticism in the eleventh and twelfth centuries that authors changed from the ancient mode of dictating to a secretary who wrote using a wax tablet to the modern mode of self composition using a pen and parchment (or paper).

Simultaneous with the triumph of the codex, came the almost universal adoption of parchment as a writing surface for book production, though we cannot be at all sure that the use of parchment was an integral part of the process that favored the codex over the roll.[9] Supposedly parchment was invented at Pergamum in Asia Minor in the second century BC. The myth explains that the Ptolemies embargoed the export of papyrus from Egypt because they were jealous of the growing library at Pergamum which was beginning to rival the great library at Alexandria. Actually, supplies of papyrus were disrupted by the invasion of Egypt by Antiochus Epiphanes (170-168 BC), and so parchment was adopted as an alternative writing surface, not only in Pergamum but across the Mediterranean world. Through most of the Middle Ages, up to about the fourteenth century, parchment making was a major component in the manufacture of books, and continued to be of minor importance even after the invention of printing in the middle of the fifteenth century.

Parchment has traditionally been made from sheepskin, and vellum from calfskin,[10] parchment being usually thick and rough, vellum thinner and finer. parchment makerHowever, once the skin has been prepared, it is difficult to determine what kind of animal it came from. It has become common simply to describe a finely prepared skin as vellum and the more ordinary sort as parchment. In any case, skins were usually soaked in a lime solution in wooden vats or in stone-lined pits. They were kept there from anywhere from three to ten days depending upon the temperature and were occasionally stirred and turned. Finally they were washed in water. Each skin was then stretched on a frame--traditionally circular, but occasionally rectangular--and scraped with a lunellarium, a circular knife. Parchment, or sheepskin, was scraped only on one side; vellum, or calfskin, was scraped on both sides. Some medieval recipes state that the skin should be scraped when wet; others state that it should be scraped when dry. When the skin was dry and it had been scraped, it was re- wet slightly--one recipe recommends spraying the skin with a mouthful of good English ale--and then it was pounced, that is, it was rubbed with pumice.[11] This smoothed the surface and removed blemishes. The skin was then completely re-wet and dried again under tension. Finally it was finished again by pouncing, and perhaps by rubbing chalk or some other compound into it to give the skin a white smooth surface which would take the ink, but allow no bleeding.

Having prepared a writing surface, it was also necessary to prepare ink.[12] The ink commonly used in the ancient world was a carbon ink made of soot suspended in gum and water, similar to present-day India ink. It was not permanent and could be washed off. A much more permanent ink, called iron- gall ink, was more commonly used in the Middle Ages, and indeed long after. It was made by mixing either pulverized and extracted galls (which yielded tannic acid) or fermented galls (which yielded gallic acid) with ferrous sulphate (commonly known as copperas) or ferric sulphate, and with gum arabic to give it viscosity. When mixed properly, each of these formulae produced a fine permanent black ink, but when improperly mixed produced a highly acidic, or encaustic, ink which over the centuries has slowly burned its way through a great many manuscripts.

With the collapse of the western Roman Empire, so too collapsed the large-scale book trade. What saved book production in the west was the rise of monasticism. The first of the great monks in the west was Benedict of Nursia, who founded the large Benedictine house at Monte Cassino in 529 AD. The Regula, which guides the conduct of a Benedictine monastic community, says nothing about scholarship or book production, but does comment on reading.[13] Monks were to listen to readings at meal time and during services, and were to read privately in their own cells.[14] The texts were confined to the Bible and to the Fathers.[15] Time was specifically set aside for private reading,[16] and monks were expected to read at least one whole book each year. Private ownership of books was forbidden, and so it was essential to have a communal library. It was only a natural development that scriptoria were instituted to provide the necessary books. In 585 AD the monastery of Monte Cassino was destroyed by the Lombards and the monks were forced to move to Rome. There, under the influence of Pope Gregory the Great, the Benedictines became more scholarly, and book production, not only for local monastic needs but for the larger ecclesiastical community's needs, became an integral part of Benedictine life.

Another important monastic movement, though short-lived, was founded by Cassiodorus (ca. 487-ca. 580 AD), a Roman nobleman, who established a monastery on his estates in southern Italy at Vivarium around 540 AD. Cassiodorus saw the collapse of a society which could no longer maintain Classical culture, and so he gathered as many books as he could into his monastic library. He placed great emphasis on education and book production. In 562 AD he wrote his Institutiones[17] which set out his educational program. He understood the need for a repository of culture secluded from the chaos around him. He had specific guidelines for book production, and within the monastic community scribes had great status. Above the scribe, was an editor who compared the copy with the original, furnished marginal notes in red ink, and supplied punctuation. Cassiodorus insisted on orthographical correctness (he wrote a treatise on spelling De orthographia[18]), and he also advocated the use of omnibus volumes. Apparently the monastery died not long after Cassiodorus, but it inspired Gregory and certainly pointed the way ahead for the Benedictines.

Thus the example provided by Cassiodorus and the direct involvement of Gregory redirected the Benedictine movement so that the production and preservation of books became an integral part of western monasticism. In order to trace the spread of book production in the early Middle Ages we must trace the spread of monasticism. To some degree Rome remained a center of book production. Unfortunately we have little evidence concerning lay production of books in Rome, but at least by Gregory's papal reign (590-604) we know that books were being copied for the pope by monks in their monasteries. There was a great demand for books in Rome-- it was a center for pilgrims and many wished to take books home with them. It was also customary that many pious and zealous Northern Europeans, their nations having recently converted to Christianity, would come to Rome, both to marvel at the still magnificent ruins and to purchase quantities of books to furnish the libraries of their newly founded monastic houses. One such Englishman was Benedict Biscop, who made five trips to Rome in the seventh century to supply the libraries of the twin monasteries of Monkwearmouth and Jarrow with large quantities of books, where in the next generation the great historian Bede was to write his Ecclesiastical History with little need to stir beyond the walls of the library. In addition to exporting books, Rome also exported monasticism. Yet the earliest flowering of monasticism in the North was in a most unlikely place and had very little to do with Rome. This was in Ireland. As the Germanic tribes overran Roman Gaul, some scholars apparently found refuge in Christian Ireland in the early fifth century and certainly brought books with them. Monasteries were founded as early as 444 AD and, like the Benedictines a century later, the monks realized the need for books. The Irish were great missionaries and travelers. St. Columba (ca. 521-597) began the conversion of Scotland in 563, and his disciples carried on and converted the northern English. St. Aidan (d. 651) founded the great monastery of Lindisfarne, famous for its book production exemplified in the Lindisfarne Gospels. In 596, Pope Gregory sent the monk Augustine and a band of forty followers to convert the English in Kent to Christianity and he found great initial success. Celtic and Roman forms of practice clashed in Britain, the former predominating in the north and the latter in the south, but at the Synod of Whitby in 664 King Oswy of Northumbria adopted Roman practice and thus all England acknowledged the authority of Rome. In any case, books and book production were important elements in both strains of monasticism, and as the Celtic houses gradually became Benedictine, the scriptoria benefited from the combination and continued to flourish. As Augustine's mission was finding success in southern England, the Irish monk St. Columbanus (543-615) set out across Europe and founded a series of great monastic houses, each of which became centers for book production, such as Luxeuil in Burgundy and Bobbio in N. Italy. In the same tradition, the English monk Boniface brought Christianity, monasteries, and book production to Germany a century later. Among the great monasteries he established was the one at Fulda, long famous as a center for book production.

By the time of the Carolingian Renaissance, the monasteries were firmly established as centers of power. Each had a scriptorium and many were actively copying the last surviving copies of Classical texts. Indeed we owe the transmission of the majority of Classical Latin texts to the work done in Carolingian scriptoria. Some scriptoria exerted great influence in codicological format and in the development and standardization of script, such as Corbie under Abbot Maurdramnus[19] or Tours under Alcuin.[20] Scriptoria and schools also came to be attached to cathedrals, and indeed there was even a Royal school, chancery, and a library. By the beginning of the ninth century, books and book production were a major part of cultural and educational life in Carolingian Europe, but unfortunately the advent of the Viking raids fragmented Europe and book production was severely curtailed.

The monastic scriptorium was generally one of three different types.[21] It could be a large room which may also have served as the library. The ninth-century "Plan of St. Gall" shows the scriptorium, containing a large central table and seven writing desks ranged along the walls, with the library above.[22] This was most typical of Benedictine establishments. Another possibility might consist of small individual writing rooms, each called a scriptoriolum. Writing might also take place in the cloister alcoves. Some of these alcoves were screened off and made into small chambers called carrells. Depending on the size of the monastery and scriptorium, there might be several classes of scribes though such distinctions varied with place and time. The librarian, amarius or bibliothecarius, was often in charge of the scriptorium, but the choirmaster, precentor, might also be in charge. The antiquarii were senior scribes and the librarii junior scribes. There might also be rubricators, miniators (or painters), illuminators, and correctors. Before the 12th century, scribes were almost always monks, but after this time there began to develop a class of professional scribes, often employed by monasteries. Monks were generally unable to travel, but professional scribes could be sent to copy books at distant places. Monastic scribes generally worked about six hours a day copying. Including their religious duties, this accounted for all the daylight hours. Artificial light was rarely used, and silence was imposed upon the scriptorium, but copying was not silent. Silent reading was a development of the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Before that time, each scribe essentially dictated to himself and the scriptorium was filled with a dull murmuring. In order to communicate, an elaborate system of hand signals was devised.

With the Gregorian Reform of the eleventh century, there was a shift away from the monastic scriptoria, as cathedral schools became more important and as cities developed notarial needs. By the end of the twelfth century monastic scriptoria had entered a period of dormancy that would only end in a brief flurry of activity in the fifteenth century. The newly established orders of friars (Franciscans and Dominicans) stimulated the book trade beyond the monasteries because they had no scriptoria of their own, but had need of books. Thus they had to obtain their books outside of their orders. As they favored small books, which they could easily carry, the production of smaller books was stimulated. At the same time the nascent universities created a new reading public. New texts, reference works, and commentaries were required for scholastic study, and these works were not the kind produced in monastic scriptoria. The new secular book trade became a licensed appendage of the university, consisting of stationers, scribes, parchment makers, paper makers, bookbinders, and all those associated with making books.[23] They enjoyed certain rights such as an exemption from taxes and the right to be tried in university courts. A stationer was appointed only after an enquiry to confirm his good standing and professional ability. He had to provide guarantees and take an oath. Books tended to be sold and resold through many generations and it was the stationer's responsibility to sell a book and buy it back and sell it again, and so forth. He could buy and sell only under certain conditions: he had to advertise the titles he had in stock, prices were fixed, and students and professors received discounts. In order to produce the large numbers of textbooks required by students and maintain their textual accuracy, the pecia system of copying was instituted.[24] The system began in about 1200 and ended in about 1350 in the North, and about 1425-50 in the South. It existed in at least eleven universities (seven in Italy, two in France, and one each in Spain and England) and probably many others. The stationer held one or more exact copies (the exemplar) of a text in pieces (hence pecia), usually a gathering of four folios (sixteen columns) or perhaps six folios. Each column had to have a certain number of lines (usually sixty), and each line a certain number of letters (usually thirty). Each exemplar was examined to ensure it was correct, and any exemplar found to be incorrect resulted in a fine for the stationer. Each part was rented out for a specific time (a week at Bologna) so that students, or scribes, could copy them. This way a number of students could be copying parts of the same book at the same time. Stationers were required to rent pieces to anyone who requested them, and the charges were fixed (e.g., at Treviso in 1318 the charges were six pence for copying, and two pence for correcting). The size of books began to decline, and script became more compact and the number of abbreviations increased. The two-column format became the norm, and ornament was almost abandoned on all books with the exception of the luxury trade. Soft cover bindings tended to replace wooden boards, and parchment became progressively thinner as the number of folios per gathering increased.

As we have seen, in antiquity books were read aloud, whether to oneself or in a group. There was no word division or punctuation (in the modern sense) in manuscripts, and one had to pronounce syllables and words aloud in order to distinguish them, a process analogous to sounding the notes when reading a musical score. Thus, dictation was the major mode of literary composition well into the Middle Ages. In the monastic scriptoria the scribe continued this mode in what was in effect self-dictation. However, in the eighth century in England and Ireland we find the first word division in manuscripts. This was a pedagogical device that aided those whose grasp of Latin was less than perfect. By the ninth century we find word division in manuscripts produced on the Continent, and by the eleventh century it had become commonplace. Word division began as an aid to oral reading, but far more significantly allowed the development of silent reading.[25] Thus with word division the scriptorium truly became silent. At the beginning of the twelfth century literary composition was still oral, but with the advent of scholasticism and its intellectual complexities, composition became written and reading silent. Silent reading increased one's comprehension of complex ideas as one could take in information at a much faster rate. Wax tablets were found to be too small for the composition of complex treatises, and so authors began silently to compose directly on parchment or paper. Thomas Aquinas' script was deemed so illegible, however, that he had to read his own writing for a secretary who wrote it in a legible hand.[26] Gothic cursive script was a direct result of such authorial composition: it was a script that could be written very quickly, and yet was reasonably legible. As scholastic texts became more complex, books reflected these complexities in their organizational design and layout. These developments included dividing the text into chapters and sub-chapters, and the addition of tables of chapter headings, alphabetical tables by subjects, and running heads. New forms of punctuation, such as colored paragraph marks, were introduced. Quotations were underlined in red, marginal notes were added, and diagrams were supplied. The resulting multi-structured apparatus, perhaps most commonly seen in a glossed Bible or Psalter,[27] was visual and was meant for a reader, not a hearer.

At about this same time, paper became available for use in book production.[28] Though less durable and more difficult to write on than parchment, paper had one great advantage-- it was cheaper. Paper was, of course, invented in ancient China,[29] but it was not common in Southern Europe until the thirteenth century. Certainly by the fourteenth century, it was readily available to anyone at a reasonable price.

Paper was made from rags, usually linen. The rags were dampened and left to rot for four or five days. paper makerThey were then placed in a stamping mill which transformed the rotting rags into a pulp of long fibers. The pulp was then transferred into a large vat (usually of about 330 gallons) which was kept agitated and warm. At least two workers were required for the papermaking operation, a vatman and a coucher. The vatman took one of two moulds (an oblong rectangular wire sieve mounted on a wood frame), fitted the deckle (a removable wooden rim which could be fitted on to the mould to make it into a tray-like sieve with a raised edge), and then dipped it into the vat so that the pulp-solution drained through the mould. This left a layer of matted fibers on the mould as the water drained away. The vatman removed the deckle from the mould and handed the mould to the coucher. The coucher rolled the newly-made piece of paper onto a piece of felt, and then handed the mould back to the vatman. Meanwhile the vatman had prepared another piece of paper with the second mould and the deckle. Together they could produce a sizable quantity of paper over a relatively short period of time-- about five and one half reams a day.

The pile of wet paper and felt, known as the post, was subsequently placed in a screw press, and much of the water was pressed out. It took an immense amount of pressure to press out the water and all of the workers in the mill had to turn out to help pull the long wooden lever which turned the screw. The pile of paper was reduced in thickness from about two feet to six inches. A third workman, the layman, freed up each sheet of paper, removed the felts, and placed the paper in a neat pile. This pile was again subjected to pressure and more water was removed. This process was repeated several times. The paper was then taken in groups of four or five sheets, which were dried suspended from ropes in a specially constructed drying loft. Drying the sheets in groups kept them from wrinkling.

Next the paper might be sized. If so, it was dipped into a vat containing animal size, a glutinous liquid made by boiling parchment or leather shavings in water. Size gives paper a relatively impermeable surface. This is essential for writing with a pen, but much less so for printing. After sizing, the paper was once again dried. Finally the paper was subjected to a finishing process. Each sheet was burnished by rubbing it with a smooth stone. This produced a smooth surface and closed the pores of the sheet so that the writing ink would not bleed. In Italy in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, a new format was developed that humanist scholars believed recreated the aesthetic qualities of the book in the ancient world. Believing the Carolingian manuscripts containing Classical texts to be much older than they were, the humanists adopted the Carolingian minuscule script (the Italian rotunda version) as the "littera antiqua," the script of the Romans. In addition, they rejected double columns in favor of long lines, used much more space between lines, and provided wide ample margins. The result was an exceptionally elegant and legible book, which has remained a major model for book design ever since.

The emergence of a literate middle class in the later Middle Ages created a demand for new types of books. These tended to be popular works of a recreational or technical nature, which were often in the vernacular. We know very little about the beginnings of the book trade outside of the monasteries and universities, but certainly there was an independent trade by the late twelfth century. University stationers were free to engage in outside trade and no doubt did so. Books seem most often to have been made to order, but also occasionally for speculation--with no specific buyer in mind. Some orders were large: in 1437 a wholesale bookseller sent an order to a scriptorium in the Low Countries for 200 copies of the Seven Penitential Psalms, 200 copies of Cato's Disticha in Flemish, and 400 copies of a small prayer book.[30] Such an order implies true mass production and the development of the production line approach in which different workers consistently and repetitiously labored at specific tasks, perhaps even dividing the types of labor on a single book between different shops. Thus the textual scribes would be in one shop, each scribe repetitiously working on a quire or section of the same book. The rubricators might be in another shop, the illuminators in another, and so forth.

Therenormal quires is also some evidence from England that some manuscripts were produced by groups of scribes in a loose relationship working at different locations.[31] A single scribe or stationer might receive a commission and then farm out sections to independent scribes, most of whom were notarial or chancery scribes. In England, in contrast to the Continent, established lay scriptoria seem to have been rare. Rather there existed a number of independent practitioners whose services were available to any of the various stationers who coordinated the production of books. Whatever a scribe's position or the scriptorial setting may have been there are a number of procedures common to the production of almost all medieval books.[32] Having assembled the appropriate materials--parchment or paper (or perhaps both), ink, and a pen (a reed in the early Middle Ages or a quill later)--it was necessary to produce a quire, or a gathering of leaves.[33] This could be accomplished in two ways. The more traditional way was to take four sheets of parchment or paper, fold each once, and then nest one inside the other, thus creating a booklet or quire. This was naturally the easiest method with large books. With smaller books, it was easier to use the folding method. By folding the sheet twice, one obtained a quire of four leaves or eight pages; by folding it three times one obtained eight leaves or sixteen pages-- the standard quire size of the Middle Ages (though it should be pointed out that the quire size varied with place and time).

If the book was made of parchment, it was essential that the sheets be positioned so that the hair, or outer, side of the skin always faced another hair side, and likewise, that the flesh, or inner, side of the skin always faced another flesh side. The hair side of a skin is yellower and rougher than the flesh side, which is often milky white. For aesthetic reasons, it was essential that at any opening of the book one see only one color and texture of skin. If arranged properly a reader is never even aware of the difference in the sides of the skin, but should hair face flesh the difference can be jarring. If the quire is constructed by the folding method, it will automatically form the correct hair-flesh pattern. Naturally there were unsolvable problems in arranging the hair and flesh sides when it was necessary for textual or other reasons to add an extra leaf or bifolium.

The next step was to prick the quire.[34] This produced a series of small, almost invisible, holes which acted as guides for ruling each page. These could be made by using a punctorium (a stilus or an awl), the scribe simply poking holes through the margin of the parchment or paper at regular intervals against a ruler to keep the line of prickings straight. A circinus (a pointed compass or dividers) could also serve the same purpose, but would maintain a standard interval between prickings as the scribe pivoted from one leg to the other. anomalous quiresThere is even some evidence that a star wheel was used; that is, a star-shaped wheel mounted on a handle which when pushed or pulled along a surface would prick it quickly and consistently. Occasionally pairs of wooden rectangular frames with sharp points placed at appropriate intervals on one frame and corresponding holes on the other frame were used and the stack of sheets was simply pressed between the frames creating all the prickings in one act. In addition to pricking along the side margins, it was usual to also place several prickings along the top and the bottom so as to delineate the textual frame. The quire might be pricked folded, which was the most efficient method as it required prickings down only one side of the leaf, or flat, which required prickings in both outer margins. In some instances we even have prickings in the inner margins.

After the quire was pricked, it was ruled.[35] There were generally three major modes of ruling. The first, usually associated with the early Middle Ages (though also commonly found in humanistic manuscripts of the fifteenth century which unconsciously adopted Carolingian practice in the belief that it was Roman) is the use of a stilus which creates a furrow as it is pulled across the surface. This method produces rulings that are nearly invisible and has the advantage of producing multiple rulings, on both sides of each sheet stacked in a pile. It is, however, rather unsuitable for paper as the stilus can rip or tear it quite easily. The second method is to use lead plummet, an early form of pencil. This usage is usually associated with the middle of the medieval period. The most common method of ruling at the end of the Middle Ages was the use of pen and ink. No doubt this was a result of the increased use of paper in book production in this period. Both lead plummet and ink were far less efficient than dry-point ruling as each side of each sheet had to be individually ruled. Combs, which pulled several parallel instruments across the surface at the same time, may also have been used in a few instances.

In preparation for writing, the scribe might well apply more pumice to the surface of the parchment to smooth it further, he might apply chalk to whiten it, and he might apply stanchgrain to ensure that the ink would not bleed. Paper required almost no preparation, but the scribe might smooth it with a polished stone.

Now the scribe was ready to write. Although dictation to a group of scribes was quite common in the ancient world,[36] medieval scribes copied individually.[37] pricking and rulingThe desk was at an angle, and often the scribe would hold a penknife in his other hand to hold the writing surface in place; the knife was also useful for making erasures by scraping off the still wet ink. The normal method of writing was to begin on the first page (the recto of the first folio) of the quire and copy the text straight through in its natural order. The scribe had to pause after finishing each recto (except for the middle bifolium) before going on to the verso in order to let the ink dry. As the scribe finished the verso, he added a quire signature to keep the bifolia in order. Each quire of the book was designated by a letter of the alphabet, and each bifolium of the quire by a number. Thus the second bifolium of the third quire would be designated Cii. Alternatively, a quire could have been copied out of page order, the scribe copying one side of each bifolium, then turning the stack of bifolia over and copying each of the other sides. There is even evidence that scribes folded and prepared sheets, but did not cut and open the quires before copying. Rather they unfolded the quire and copied their texts in the imposed order derived from the folding. As the scribe finished each page, he would take a fine-nibbed pen and lightly write instructions in the margin on how to fill blank spaces with rubrics, decorations, capitals, pictures, and the like. These instructions have rarely survived as they were usually trimmed away by the binder.

After the scribe had finished coping a quire, it was often checked by a corrector. It was his job to compare the exemplar to the copy and make sure there were no errors. When errors were found, they might be erased by scraping off the ink with a knife, or by applying a lightly acidic solution which would loosen the ink. The corrector could then supply the proper reading. In many instances the corrector simply lined through the error and supplied the correction interlinearly or marginally.

The next stage in book production was rubrication. Rubrication, almost always in red (Rubrica, red earth or red ochre), typically consists of chapter headings, or in more specialized texts such as commentaries, the word or phrase being glossed. In addition, the rubricator might supply colored paragraph marks and highlight capital letters in the body of the text. An associated stage was decoration. This typically consisted of painted capitals, often alternating in red and blue, and perhaps decorated with pen flourishes. The whole process of decorating, painting and illumination could be a complex one that could involve several different scribes and artists.[38] scribeAfter having applied a base coat, the first step was usually to make an outline in pencil (lead plummet), and there is good evidence that pattern books and stencils were used fairly extensively.[39] When the image was judged to be satisfactory, it was inked and thus became permanent. If there was to be any illumination, or gilding, involved, it was done before paint was applied. Gilding was always carried out before painting, as the paint could cover any rough edges.

There were several methods of applying gold, both burnished and unburnished, in leaf or powder form within the same area, giving varieties of texture and color to the metal. Powdered gold or silver was made by grinding the metal with honey or salt; it was then mixed with glair, a common medium made from egg whites, or gum, and was applied with a brush, or could even be used with a pen. To ensure a smoother flow and coverage, yellow pigments were often mixed in, and the surface could be burnished to some extent with a tooth. This method was used more often for lines and rarely for the coverage of large areas, where gold leaf was required. Gold leaf was attached directly to the surface by means of glair, glue, or gum which acted as an adhesive. Pigments such as terre verte, saffron, yellow ochre, or red brazil dye could be added to the adhesive so that the gilder would know exactly where to apply it. If the gold leaf was to be highly burnished it required a support. The support was built up with layers of gesso (powdered gypsum mixed with glue) applied with a brush. When the appropriate height was reached, the surface of the gesso was burnished until it was perfectly smooth. Bole, a waxy clay ranging in color from white to red, was painted on the surface so that the gilder would know which area to gild. Finally the gold leaf was applied with glair or gum, and then it was burnished, giving it the appearance of a solid piece of metal.

Now the scribe or artist was ready to apply paint. Each color was applied in turn and allowed to dry, with the final stage being the application of the stipple or white highlighting. The paint consisted of two elements, media and pigment. The medium, which turned the dry powdered pigments into a liquid paint, varied according to the choice of pigment. The foremost medium was glair, a mixture of egg whites and water. Gum arabic, vinegar, or honey might be added to vary the consistency, and water was used to dilute it. Glair could be used with almost any pigment. Another common medium was gum arabic (from the acacia tree) which came in solid lumps, called tears, which were powdered and then dissolved in water. After about a day the solution was strained and it was ready to use. Glue was made from horn or parchment and was mainly used for green pigments. Cheese glue was used almost exclusively with folium, and egg yolk was only used with a few pigments (orpiment, carmine, indigo, and azurite). These pigments were ground in egg yolk, which was subsequently washed out and the powdered pigment was then mixed with glair or gum arabic.

A variety of pigments was available to the medieval craftsman, and a number of these were suitable to be applied to parchment or paper. Black was essentially carbon-based ink. It consisted of lamp black, or soot, which was produced with a candle or oil lamp that was burned against a metal or earthenware surface from which the soot was collected. The soot was so fine it required no grinding. It was mixed with an egg medium. An alternative source for black pigment was charcoal made from vine twigs ground to a powder with wine or water, and then mixed with glue or egg as a medium. Blue could be produced by the use of several different pigments. Ultramarine was made from lapis lazuli and was the most highly prized and expensive of the blue pigments. It was essential to exercise great care in selecting good quality stones because it was quite difficult to remove impurities from the lapis. Azorium was made from azurite, but it could also be made artificially by placing a white powder such as alum or lime in a copper vessel with vinegar. The copper vessel needed to be kept warm for about a month. The pigment produced by this method often needed to be augmented by the addition of mulberry juice. Indigo mixed with white lead would also yield blue. Another source of blue color was the juice from blue flowers. The color could be stored in a clothlet, a clean linen rag moistened with water and quicklime, and soaked in the plant juice. When dry, the clothlet could be stored indefinitely. When needed it was placed in a gum solution to extract the pigment.

The brown pigment, bistre, was made from burnt resinous wood boiled in lye, and was used both as a separate color and as a shading over other pigments. Verdigris was the most common green pigment. It was made by placing strips or plates of copper above a quantity of vinegar. The resulting powder (copper acetate) was scraped off the copper. It was often called Greek or Spanish green. Verdigris was not ground into powder, but was soaked in wine or vinegar and thickened by heating. A mixture of vinegar, egg yolk, and gum water was used as a medium. The color could be tempered by the addition of vegetable green pigments, or saffron. Terre verte and chrysocolla (malachite or copper carbonate) were also common green pigments. They were sometimes used for underpainting in gilding. Green pigment could also be extracted from plants and stored in clothlets. Another green was vergaut, a mixture of indigo and orpiment (blue and yellow). Gray, or veneda, was made from a mixture of black pigment and white lead.

Red ochre, the most common red pigment, was rarely used in manuscripts, but commonly used in wall painting. Vermillion was obtained from cinnabar, or through a chemical reaction of heating mercury and sulfur together to produce mercuric sulphide. Mixed with white lead it formed a flesh color, olchus or membrana. Red lead, minium or sandaraca, was prepared by heating white lead for several days. It was necessary to stir the pot every two hours, and it was suggested that one forego sleep for several days. It was recommended that vermillion be added to the lead to make it more brilliant. Brazil wood dye was the most useful red pigment for manuscripts. Wood shavings were soaked in a solution of lye, wine, or urine for several hours and then alum was added. The intensity of the color was a result of the quantity of alum added. Pigment was mixed with glair for red ink or for glazing over illumination. It could be precipitated into a powder and then mixed with gum to be made into paint. Purple was derived from a mixture of azurite and brazil wood, or the juice of bilberries and alum. A common purple pigment was folium, derived from the seeds of turnsole. It was used in the form of clothlets, and cheese glue was used as a medium. White was obtained by the use of white lead even though it was poisonous and turned black in the presence of certain other pigments. It was made by placing plates or strips of lead above vinegar. The white lead was scraped off, and wine was used as a medium. It could not be mixed with vermillion or orpiment, and so in those instances other white pigments such as ground bones or egg shells were used. Orpiment (an arsenic compound) was widely used for yellow, even though it was poisonous and rather coarse. Because it was so coarse it was customary to add another pigment, yellow ochre, to it which would give the painted surface a smoother appearance. Yellow ochre was rarely used by itself in manuscripts, as it was more appropriate for wall painting. Saffron was also used to produce a yellow pigment, though it was not permanent.

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Sources

[1] On this point see Curt F. Bühler, The Fifteenth-century Book: The Scribes, the Printers, the Decorators (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1960), pp. 45-47, 80.

[2] Unfortunately there is no good up-to-date general history of books and book production; however, see Joseph Blumenthal, The Art of the Printed Book, 1455-1955 (New York: Pierpont Morgan Library, 1973); Kenneth, Carpenter, ed., Books and Society in History (New York: Bowker, 1983); John Carter and Percy H. Muir, eds., Printing and the Mind of Man: A Descriptive Catalogue Illustrating the Impact of Print on the Evolution of Western Civilization during Five Centuries (New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1967); Warren Chappell, A Short History of the Printed Word (New York: Knopf, 1970); Colin Clair, A History of European Printing (London: Academic Press, 1976); Robert Darnton, "What is the History of Books?", Daedalus 111 (1982): 65-83 (also in Carpenter, ed., Books and Society in History, pp. 3-26); Elizabeth L. Eisenstein, The Printing Press as an Agent of Change: Communications and Cultural Transformation in Early-Modern Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979); Lucien Febvre and Henri-Jean Martin, The Coming of the Book: The Impact of Printing 1450-1800, translated by David Gerard (London: Verso, 1976); Philip Gaskell, A New Introduction to Bibliography (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1972); Norma Levarie, The Art and History of Books (New York: Heineman, 1968); John Lewis, Anatomy of Printing: The Influences of Art and History on Its Design (New York: Watson-Guptill, 1970); Douglas C. McMurtrie, The Book: The Story of Printing and Bookmaking (New York: Oxford University Press, 1943); S.H. Steinberg, Five Hundred Years of Printing (Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, 1974); G. Thomas Tanselle, The History of Books as a Field of Study (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina, 1981); and Lawrence Wroth, ed., A History of the Printed Book (New York: Limited Editions Club, 1938).

[3] For discussion of ancient techniques of book production see Moses Hadas, Ancilla to Classical Reading (New York: Columbia University Press, 1954); Eric A. Havelock, The Literate Revolution in Greece and Its Cultural Consequences (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1981); Frederic G. Kenyon, Books and Readers in Ancient Greece and Rome (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1951); Bernard M.W. Knox, "Silent Reading in Antiquity," Greek Roman and Byzantine Studies 9 (1968): 421-35; Naphtali Lewis, Papyrus in Classical Antiquity (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1974); The Nature and Making of Papyrus (Barkston Ash: Elmete Press, 1973); Walter J. Ong, Orality and Literacy: The Technologizing of the Word (London: Methuen, 1982); H.L. Pinner, The World of Books in Classical Antiquity (Leiden: Sijthoff, 1958); Felix Reichmann, "The Book Trade at the Time of the Roman Empire," Library Quarterly 8 (1938): 40-76; C.H. Roberts, "The Codex," Proceedings of the British Academy 40 (1954): 169-204; Colin H. Roberts and T.C. Skeat, The Birth of the Codex (London: British Academy, 1983); T.C. Skeat, "The Use of Dictation in Ancient Book Production," Proceedings of the British Academy 42 (1956): 179-208; and E.G. Turner, Typology of the Early Codex (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1977).

[4] See Roberts and Skeat, The Birth of the Codex, pp. 24-29.

[5] Ibid., pp. 30-34.

[6] Stanley Morison, in his Politics and Script: Aspects of Authority and Freedom in the Development of Graeco-Latin Script from the Sixth Century B.C. to the Twentieth Century A.D., ed. by Nicolas Barker (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1972) argues that changes in script have often been the result of external political changes. His thesis is interesting, though generally considered to be overdrawn.

[7] See Roberts and Skeat, The Birth of the Codex, pp. 57-58.

[8] See Richard W. Clement, "Two Contemporary Gregorian Editions of Pope Gregory the Great's Regula pastoralis in Troyes MS 504," Scriptorium 39 (1985): 89-97.

[9] See Richard R. Johnson, "Ancient and Medieval Accounts of the 'Invention' of Parchment," California Studies in Classical Antiquity 3 (1970): 115-22.

[10] See R. Reed, Ancient Skins, Parchments and Leathers (London: Seminar Press, 1972); Michael L. Ryder, "Parchment: Its History, Manufacture and Composition," Journal of the Society of Archivists 2 (1964): 391-99; Hedwig Säxl, "Histology of Parchment," in Technical Studies in the Field of Fine Arts (Boston: Fogg Art Museum, 1939), pp. 3-9; Daniel V. Thompson, "Medieval Parchment-Making," Library 4th ser., 16 (1936): 113-17; W. Lee Ustick, "Parchment and Vellum," Library 4th ser., 16 (1936): 439-43; and Benjamin Vorst, "Parchment Making-- Ancient and Modern," Fine Print 12 (1986): 209-11, 220-21.

[11] See Dorothy Miner, "More about Medieval Pouncing" in Homage to a Bookman: Essays on Manuscripts, Books, and Printing Written for Hans P. Kraus on his 60th Birthday, ed. by Helmut Lehmann-Haupt (Berlin: Gebr. Mann Verlag, 1967), pp. 87-107.

[12] See M. De Pas, "La Composition des encres noires," in Les Techniques de laboratoire dans l'étude des manuscrits, Colloques internationaux du Centre national de la recherche scientifique 548 (Paris: Centre national de la recherche scientifique, 1974), pp. 121-32; and De Pas, "Les encres médiévaux," Colloques internationaux du Centre national de la recherche scientifique 559 (Paris: Centre national de la recherche scientifique, 1977), pp. 55-60; also see the older but still useful David N. Carvalho, Forty Centuries of Ink (New York: Banks Law Pub. Co., 1904; reprinted, New York: Burt Franklin, 1971); and C.A. Mitchell and T.C. Hepworth, Inks: Their Composition and Manufacture (London: Griffin & Co., 1904).

[13] There are many editions of the Regula Benedicti; I have used Regula sancti Patris Benedicti, ed. by Edmund Schmidt (Regensberg: Pustet, 1892).

[14] Ibid., chs. 38, 42.

[15] Ibid., chs. 9, 73.

[16] Ibid., ch. 48.

[17] Cassiodorus, Institutiones, ed. by R.A.B. Mynors (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1961).

[18] Cassiodorus, De orthographia liber, ed. by Ludovico Carrione (Antwerp: Plantin, 1597).

[19] See Françoise Gasparri, "Le Scriptorium de Corbie à la fin du VIIIe siècle," Scriptorium 21 (1967): 86-93; and Leslie Webber Jones, "The Scriptorium at Corbie: I. The Library, II. The Script and the Problems," Speculum 22 (1947): 191-204, 375-94.

[20] See E.K. Rand, A Survey of the Manuscripts of Tours (Cambridge: Medieval Academy of America, 1929).

[21] See Florence de Roover, "The Scriptorium," in The Medieval Library, by James Westfall Thompson (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1939), pp. 594- 612; F. Dressler, Scriptorum opus: Schreiber-Mönche am Werke (Wiesbaden: Reichert, 1971); Monique-Cecile Garand, "Manuscrits monastiques et scriptoria aux XIe et XIIe siècles," Codicologica 3 (1980): 9-33; H. Martin, "Notes sur les écrivains au travail" in Mélanges offerts à M. Emile Chatelain (Paris: A. Champion, 1910), pp. 535-44; and Jean Vezin, "La Répartition du travail dans les 'scriptoria' carolingiens," Journal des Savants (1973): 212-27.

[22] Walter Horn and Ernest Born, The Plan of St. Gall: A Study of the Architecture & Economy of & Life in a Paradigmatic Carolingian Monastery (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1979). For the state of monastic production in the late period in England, see A. I. Doyle, "Book Production by the Monastic Orders in England (c. 1375-30): Assessing the Evidence," in Medieval Book Production: Assessing the Evidence, ed. by L. L. Brownrigg (Los Altos Hills, Cal.: Anderson-Lovelace, 1990), pp. 1-19.

[23] See Graham Pollard, "The University and the Book Trade in Mediaeval Oxford," in Beiträge zum Berufsbewusstsein des mittelalterlichen Menschen ed. by P. Wilpert and W. Eckert (Berlin: De Gruyter, 1964), pp. 336-44.

[24] See Jean Destrez, La pecia dans les manuscrits universitaires du XIIIe et du XIVe siècle (Paris: Editions Jaques Vautrains, 1935); and Graham Pollard, "The Pecia System in the Medieval Universities," in Medieval Scribes, Manuscripts and Libraries: Essays Presented to N.R. Ker, ed. M.B. Parkes and A.G. Watson (London: Scolar Press, 1978), pp. 145-61; Louis J. Bataillon, Bertran G. Guyot, and Richard H. Rouse, eds., La production du livre universitaire au moyen âge: exemplar et pecia, Acts du symposium tenu au Collegio San Bonaventura de Grottaferrata, May 1983 (Paris: Centre national de la recherche scientifique, 1991).

[25] See Paul Saenger, "Silent Reading: Its Impact on Late Medieval Script and Society," Viator 13 (1982): 367-414.

[26] See A. Dondaine, Secrétaires de Saint Thomas (Rome: S. Tommaso, 1956); and P.-M. Gils, "Le MS Napoli, Biblioteca nazionale I.B.54, est-il de la main de St. Thomas?" Revue des sciences philosophiques et théologiques 49 (1965): 37-59.

[27] See Christopher De Hamel, Glossed Books of the Bible and the Origins of the Paris Booktrade (Woodbridge: D.S. Brewer, 1984).

[28] See Charles M. Briquet, Les filigranes: Dictionnaire historique des marques du papier (1923; reprinted, Hildesheim: Olms, 1977); Dard Hunter, Papermaking: The History and Technique of an Ancient Craft (New York: Knopf, 1947); and Joel Munsell, Chronology of the Origin and Progress of Paper and Paper-making (Albany, 1876; reprinted, New York: Garland, 1980).

[29] For papermaking and printing in China see Thomas Francis Carter, The Invention of Printing in China and Its Spread Westward, 2nd ed., rev. by L. Carrington Goodrich (New York: Ronald Press Co., 1955); Joseph Needham, Science and Civilization in China, vol. 5, pt. 1: Paper and Printing, by Tsien Tsuen-Hsuin (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1985); Tsien Tsuen-Hsuin, Written on Bamboo and Silk: The Beginnings of Chinese Books and Inscriptions (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1962); and Denis Twitchett, Printing and Publishing in Medieval China (New York: Frederic C. Beil, 1983).

[30] Lucien Febvre and Henri-Jean Martin, The Coming of the Book: The Impact of Printing, 1450-1800, trans. by David Gerard (London: Verso, 1984), p. 28. See also R. H. Rouse and M. A. Rouse, "The Commercial Production of Manuscript Books in Late Thirteenth-Century and Early Fourteenth-Century Paris," in Medieval Book Production: Assessing the Evidence, ed. by L. L. Brownrigg (Los Altos Hills, Cal.: Anderson-Lovelace, 1990), pp. 103-15.

[31] For notes on the production of manuscripts in late medieval England, see H. E. Bell, "The Price of Books in Medieval England," Library 4th ser., 17 (1936-37): 312-32; A. I. Doyle, "The Shaping of the Vernon and Simeon Manuscripts," in Chaucer and Middle English Studies in Honour of Rossell Hope Robbins, ed. by Beryl Rowland (London: Allen and Unwin, 1974), pp. 328-41; A. I. Doyle and M. B. Parkes, "The Production of Copies of the Canterbury Tales and the Confessio Amantis in the Early Fifteenth Century," in Medieval Scribes, Manuscripts, & Libraries: Essays Presented to N. R. Ker, ed. by M. B. Parkes and Andrew G. Watson (London: Scolar Press, 1978), pp. 163-210; George R. Keiser, "Lincoln Cathedral Library MS. 91: Life and Milieu of the Scribe," Studies in Bibliography 32 (1979): 158-79; Graham Pollard, "The Company of Stationers before 1557," Library 4th ser., 18 (1937): 1-37; and Kathleen L. Scott, "A Mid-Fifteenth-Century English Illuminating Shop and Its Customers," Journal of the Warburg & Courtauld Institute, 31 (1968): 194-95.

[32] For further reading see Leonard Boyle, Medieval Latin Palaeography: A Bibliographical Introduction (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1984); Laurel N. Braswell, Western Manuscripts from Classical Antiquity to the Renaissance: A Handbook (New York: Garland, 1981); M. T. Clanchy, From Memory to Written Record: England, 1066-1307 (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1979); Janet Coleman, Medieval Readers and Writers 1350-1400 (New York: Columbia University Press, 1981); David Diringer, The Book before Printing: Ancient, Medieval and Oriental [The Hand-produced Book] (London, 1953; reprinted, New York: Dover, 1982); Jesse M. Gellrich, The Idea of the Book in the Middle Ages: Language Theory, Mythology, and Fiction (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1985); E. P. Goldschmidt, Medieval Texts and Their First Appearance in Print (London: Bibliographical Society, 1943); Sandra Hindman and James Douglas Farquhar, Pen to Press: Illustrated Manuscripts and Printed Books in the First Century of Printing (College Park: University of Maryland, 1977), 11-99; Andrew Hughes, Medieval Manuscripts for Mass and Office: A Guide to Their Organization and Terminology (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1982); Harold A. Innis, "Parchment and Paper," in Empire and Communications (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1950), pp. 140-72; G.S. Ivy, "The Bibliography of the Manuscript Book," in The English Library before 1700, ed. Francis Wormald and C. E. Wright (London: Athlone Press, University of London, 1958), pp. 32-65; N.R. Ker, Books, Collectors, and Libraries: Studies in the Medieval Heritage, ed. Andrew G. Watson (London: Hambledon Press, 1985); N. R. Ker, English Manuscripts in the Century after the Norman Conquest (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1960); Falconer Madan, Books in Manuscript: A Short Introduction to their Study and Use (New York: Empire State Book Co., 1920); George Haven Putnam, Books and their Makers during the Middle Ages: A Study of the Conditions of the Production and Distribution of Literature from the Fall of the Roman Empire to the Close of the Seventeenth Century (New York, 1896-97; reprinted, New York: Hillary House, 1962); Barbara A. Shailor, The Medieval Book: Catalogue of an Exhibition at the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University (New Haven: Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, 1988); James Westfall Thompson, The Medieval Library (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1939; reprinted, New York: Hafner, 1957); Jean Vezin, "La réalisation materielle des manuscrits latins pendant le haut moyen âge," Codicologica 2 (1978): 15-51; and Frances A. Yates, The Art of Memory (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1966).

[33] See Léon Gilissen, "La Composition des cahiers: Le pliage du parchemin et l'imposition," Scriptorium 26 (1972): 3-33; G. I. Lieftinck, "Mediaeval Manuscripts with 'Imposed' Sheets," Het Boek 3rd ser., 34 (1960-61): 210-20; Pieter F. J. Obbema, "Writing on Uncut Sheets," Quaerendo 8 (1978): 337-54; Graham Pollard, "Notes on the Size of the Sheet," Library 4th ser., 22 (1941): 105-37; Pamela R. Robinson, "The 'Booklet': A Self-contained Unit in Composite Manuscripts," Codicologica 3 (1980): 46-69; and Charles Samaran, "Manuscrits 'imposés' et manuscrits non coupés: Un nouvel exemple," Codices manuscripti 2 (1976): 38-42.

[34] See L. W. Jones, "Where are the Prickings?" Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association 75 (1944): 71-86; Jones, "Pricking Manuscripts: The Instruments and their Significance," Speculum 21 (1946): 389- 403; Jones, "Pricking Systems in New York Manuscripts" in Miscellanea Giovanni Mercati 6 (Studi e testi 126 [1946]): 80-92; Jones, "Ancient Prickings in Eighth-Century Manuscripts," Scriptorium 15 (1961): 14-22; and Jones, "Prickings as Clues to Date and Origin: The Eighth Century," Medievalia et Humanistica 14 (1962): 15-22.

[35] See D. K. Coveney, "The Rulings of the Exeter Book," Scriptorium 12 (1958): 51-55; Leon Gilissen, "Un elément codicologique trop peu exploité: réglure," Scriptorium 23 (1969): 150-62; Gilissen, Prolégomènes à la codicologie (Ghent: Editions Scientifiques, 1977); and T. S. Pattie, "The Ruling as a Clue to the Make-up of a Medieval Manuscript," British Library Journal 1 (1975): 15-21.

[36] See T. C. Skeat, "The Use of Dictation in Ancient Book Production," Proceedings of the British Academy 42 (1956): 179-208.

[37] See E.M. Thompson, "Calligraphy in the Middle Ages," Bibliographica 3 (1897): 280-92.

[38] For further information see Ernst Ploss, Ein Buch von alten Farben: Technologie der Textilfarben im Mittelalter mit einem Ausblick auf die festen Farben (Heidelberg: Moos, 1962); Daniel V. Thompson, The Materials and Techniques of Medieval Painting (London: Allen and Unwin, 1956), and Cennino d'Andrea Cennino, Il Libro dell'arte (1437), trans. by Daniel V. Thompson, The Craftsman's Handbook: The Italian "Il Libro dell' Arte" (New York: Dover, 1954). Among the many surveys and studies of illuminated manuscripts see J. J. G. Alexander, Medieval Illuminators and Their Methods of Work (New Haven: Yale University Press); J. J. G. Alexander, The Decorated Letter (New York: Braziller, 1978); J. J. G. Alexander, Italian Renaissance Illuminations (New York: Braziller, 1977); J. J. G. Alexander, "Scribes as Artists," in Medieval Scribes, Manuscripts, and Libraries: Essays Presented to N. R. Ker, ed. by M. B. Parkes and Andrew G. Watson (London: Scolar Press, 1978), pp. 87-116; Janet Backhouse, The Illuminated Manuscript (Oxford: Phaidon, 1979); Robert G. Calkins, Illuminated Books of the Middle Ages (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1983); Christopher De Hamel, Scribes and Illuminators, Medieval Craftsmen Series (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1992); Christopher De Hamel, A History of Illuminated Manuscripts (Oxford: Phaidon, 1986); David Diringer, The Illuminated Book: Its History and Production (New York: Praeger, 1967); Virginia Wylie Egbert, The Mediaeval Artist at Work (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1967); A. Grabar and C. Nordenfalk, Early Medieval Painting (Lausanne: Skira, 1957); Grabar and Nordenfalk, Romanesque Painting from the Eleventh to the Thirteenth Century: Mural Paintings (New York: Skira, 1958); John Harthan, An Introduction to Illuminated Manuscripts (London: Her Majesty's Stationary Office, 1983); John Harthan, The Book of Hours (New York: Crowell, 1977); Sandra Hindman, Text and Image in Fifteenth-Century Illustrated Dutch Bibles (Leiden: Brill, 1977); Hindman and James Douglas Farquhar, Pen to Press: Illustrated Manuscripts and Printed Books in the First Century of Printing (College Park: University of Maryland Press, 1977); James H. Marrow, "Introduction," in The Golden Age of Dutch Manuscript Painting (New York: Braziller, 1990); Carl Nordenfalk, Celtic and Anglo-Saxon Painting: Book Illumination in the British Isles, 600-800 (New York: Braziller, 1977); W. Oakshot, The Sequence of English Medieval Art (London: Faber and Faber, 1950); Lillian M.C. Randall, Images in the Margins of Gothic Manuscripts (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1966); David M. Robb, The Art of the Illuminated Manuscript (South Brunswick: A. S. Barnes, 1973); L. Valentine, Ornament in Medieval Manuscripts: A Glossary (London: Faber and Faber, 1965); and Kurt Weitzman, Ancient Book Illumination (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1959).

[39] On pattern or model books see Janet Backhouse, "An Illuminator's Sketch-book," British Library Journal 1 (1975): 3-14; Hellmut Lehmann-Haupt, The Göttingen Model Book (Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 1972); D.J.A. Ross, "A Late Twelfth-Century Artist's Pattern Sheet," Journal of the Warburg & Courtauld Institutes 25 (1962): 119-28; and R.W. Scheller, A Survey of Medieval Model Books (Haarlem: Erven and Bohm, 1963).
Copyright (C) 1997, (Richard W. Clement). This file may be copied on the condition that the entire contents, including the header and this copyright notice, remain intact. A previous version of this article appeared as "A Survey of Antique, Medieval, and Renaissance Book Production" in Art into Life: Collected Papers from the Kresge Art Museum Medieval Symposia, ed. by Carol Garrett Fisher and Kathleen Scott (East Lansing: Michigan State University Press, 1995): 9-47. Copyright permission to reprint it here (though with some alterations) has been secured.

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There is a widely held, yet erroneous, belief that the invention of the book was concurrent with the invention of printing. Somehow it is assumed that the act of printing--that is producing a book by mechanical means--endows the finished product with that essence that embodies a book. After all, the hand-produced book is called a manuscript, not simply a book, and early-printed books are called incunabula, books in their infancy. We are accustomed to think of the periods of manuscripts and printed books as distinct. Traditionally a scholar working in one of these fields has known little of the other field. Even our libraries have perpetuated this dichotomy: manuscripts are always separate from printed books, both administratively and physically. Yet historically this is a false dichotomy. The printed fifteenth-century book was a direct imitation of the contemporary manuscript book.[1] Yet perhaps talk of imitation is misleading. Gutenberg never intended to imitate anything or mislead anyone: he was merely making books by a new means. The end product was really little different than the product of the scriptorium. It was the means of production which was revolutionary, not the book itself. The book, or more properly the codex, was invented in the first century AD, and has continued to this day with relatively few changes.[2]

I. The Manuscript Book

In the ancient western world the book was in the form of the roll, which was usually made of sheets of papyrus sewn or glued together.[3] roll and codexPapyrus sheets were made from thin lengths cut from the stalk of the plant, traditionally grown in Egypt, which were laid overlapping side by side in one direction and then in a similar fashion perpendicular to the first layer. This made for an exceptionally strong yet flexible surface. Its major drawback was that it was very difficult to write on the side on which the strips ran perpendicular to the direction of writing as the natural ridges of the plant disrupted the movement of the pen. There were various kinds and grades of papyrus generally distinguished by the width of the papyrus strips, e.g., Imperial was the best, Royal very good, and so forth. The standard size of the roll was about thirty feet long and seven to ten inches wide; the standard sheet size was about ten by seven and one-half inches, and writing was in columns about three inches wide, called pagina. The width of the sheet had no relation to the width of the column: the writing runs right across the juncture of the sheets. At the beginning of the roll there was usually a blank column left to protect the roll, but nothing equivalent to a title-page. On the other hand there might be a colophon at the end which would contain information about the book. The title or author's name was usually written on a label that was attached to the outside of the roll; it hung down from the shelf and served to identify it. Some rolls had rods attached to make rolling and unrolling easier and some were kept in leather cases. Because of the nature of the papyrus surface and of the roll itself, the text generally could only be written on one side, and the reader was forced to unroll one side and roll up the other as he read. From our modern perspective this seems a most cumbersome way to read, but it was obviously not so considered by the ancient reader.

During the first two centuries AD, only the roll was used for literary works. Martial (84-86 AD) is the first to mention a parchment codex.[4] He points out that it is more convenient for a traveler and how much space it saves in a library. He even gives the name and address of a publisher where one may purchase texts in codex form. However, it seems that this experiment failed, as there are no further references to the codex in this context for a whole century. In about 220 AD, lawyers began to concern themselves with the definitions for various kinds of books. In the Digest of Ulpian we find that the codex is an established and acceptable kind of book, but it was certainly not fashionable.[5] Indeed, the extant evidence from Egypt of Greek literary and scientific texts indicates that only by 300 AD did the codex achieve parity with the roll. However, if we examine the extant Christian works, a very different picture emerges. Of the surviving 172 Biblical texts that can be dated before 400 AD, 158 are in the form of the codex and only fourteen are in the form of the roll. All eleven of the second-century books are papyrus codices. As far as we know the early Bible was always written in the codex form. Of the non-Biblical Christian works, eighty-three are codices and thirty-five are rolls. Clearly the adoption of the codex was associated with the rise of Christianity.

At this point we may usefully ask two questions. Why did the codex displace the roll across the whole western ancient world, and why did the Christians adopt the codex right from the earliest times? Several traditional explanations have been advanced to answer the first question. 1) The codex is more economical. Both sides of the surface can be used, and thus by using the codex cost can be reduced by about 25%. Yet if economy had been so important, we see no attempt to use smaller more compact scripts or to reduce the size of margins which would have been natural in any attempt to economize. 2) The codex is more compact. In the earliest codices the amount of papyrus used was reduced by 50%. In addition the codex could be more easily stacked and shelved. 3) The codex was more comprehensive because several works, or individual parts of a work, which had hitherto circulated separately could be brought together as the codex could accommodate many more texts than could a roll. 4) The codex was more convenient to use. As we have already noticed, the codex is easier to handle, but this is a questionable assumption for those accustomed to rolls. 5) The codex is easier for purposes of reference, i.e., it is easier to locate a particular passage on a specific page or folio in a codex. However in the ancient world there was no such thing as a citation to a precise location, so this too is a questionable asset. Against these points we must consider the effects of conservatism. It is highly unlikely that the well-developed book industry of the ancient world would have altered its perfectly acceptable practices in producing rolls in exchange for codices without some external pressure.[6] And this is the key, because all of the traditional points in favor of the codex are internal or intrinsic. In fact, the shift from roll to codex was the result of external factors. We know that the earliest Christians adopted the codex quickly and entirely. A recent explanation for the invention of the codex is that it developed simultaneously with the nomina sacra, the abbreviated forms of the sacred names for God.[7] We know that the use of the nomina sacra, which was strictly Christian, was almost certainly begun in the Apostolic Age. There might well be a connection between this development and the adoption of the codex because both served to differentiate Christian books from Jewish and pagan books. We know that the nomina sacra originated in the East, in either Jerusalem or Antioch, and thus perhaps so too did the codex. This seems to be the most plausible explanation yet advanced to explain the Christian invention of the codex.

If this explains the origin of the codex, how can we explain its widespread adoption across the western ancient world? We know from the extant remains that the shift from roll to codex was a slow process which took several centuries. It was only by about 300 AD that we find equal numbers of rolls and codices. Yet within another century the codex was the most common format for all kinds of literature, Christian and pagan. After the promulgation of the Edict of Milan in 313, the influence of current Christian practice became progressively more powerful. We can only assume that the final impetus for the adoption of the codex must have been the success of Christianity.

Yet even with the triumph of the codex, rolls and wax tablets continued to be used. Each format had its appropriate use. Rolls were used for documents in the Vatican archives long into the Middle Ages and, similarly, rolls were the favored format for archival documents in England well into the modern period. Likewise, the wax tablet, usually consisting of several wooden tablets hollowed out on one side and filled with wax and then joined together with thongs like a notebook, remained a common writing surface through much of the medieval period for initial composition, correspondence, notes, or business memoranda. The wax medium allowed for exceptionally quick writing, using a stilus, and when finished the surface could be easily smoothed for re-use. At the time of Pope Gregory the Great at the end of the sixth century, the wax tablet, the papyrus roll, and the parchment codex each had a specific and integrated role in book production.[8] Gregory's Moralia, a commentary on the Book of Job, is a case in point. Before becoming pope, Gregory served in Constantinople, where he preached a series of sermons on the Book of Job. These sermons were taken down in shorthand by a stenographer on wax tablets in a highly current script. Soon after, the text was transferred, still in an abbreviated cursive form, to papyrus rolls, and the wax tablets were smoothed over for reuse. Thirty-five papyrus rolls were used for the Moralia. After Gregory became pope in 590 AD, the text was transferred to parchment codices, six in all, written in a careful set uncial script using few abbreviations but the nomina sacra. While the codex was certainly the end product, the wax tablet and the papyrus roll played important and integrated parts in the production of the text. Papyrus rolls may have continued to be used in this manner for some centuries, but as papyrus became difficult and expensive to acquire (Mediterranean trade was disrupted and papyrus was no longer plentiful in Egypt, but had to be found far to the south in Ethiopia) we may assume that the small quantities of available papyrus were used for more permanent purposes. Wax tablets, on the other hand, continued to be used for initial composition for many centuries to come, and it was only with the rise of Scholasticism in the eleventh and twelfth centuries that authors changed from the ancient mode of dictating to a secretary who wrote using a wax tablet to the modern mode of self composition using a pen and parchment (or paper).

Simultaneous with the triumph of the codex, came the almost universal adoption of parchment as a writing surface for book production, though we cannot be at all sure that the use of parchment was an integral part of the process that favored the codex over the roll.[9] Supposedly parchment was invented at Pergamum in Asia Minor in the second century BC. The myth explains that the Ptolemies embargoed the export of papyrus from Egypt because they were jealous of the growing library at Pergamum which was beginning to rival the great library at Alexandria. Actually, supplies of papyrus were disrupted by the invasion of Egypt by Antiochus Epiphanes (170-168 BC), and so parchment was adopted as an alternative writing surface, not only in Pergamum but across the Mediterranean world. Through most of the Middle Ages, up to about the fourteenth century, parchment making was a major component in the manufacture of books, and continued to be of minor importance even after the invention of printing in the middle of the fifteenth century.

Parchment has traditionally been made from sheepskin, and vellum from calfskin,[10] parchment being usually thick and rough, vellum thinner and finer. parchment makerHowever, once the skin has been prepared, it is difficult to determine what kind of animal it came from. It has become common simply to describe a finely prepared skin as vellum and the more ordinary sort as parchment. In any case, skins were usually soaked in a lime solution in wooden vats or in stone-lined pits. They were kept there from anywhere from three to ten days depending upon the temperature and were occasionally stirred and turned. Finally they were washed in water. Each skin was then stretched on a frame--traditionally circular, but occasionally rectangular--and scraped with a lunellarium, a circular knife. Parchment, or sheepskin, was scraped only on one side; vellum, or calfskin, was scraped on both sides. Some medieval recipes state that the skin should be scraped when wet; others state that it should be scraped when dry. When the skin was dry and it had been scraped, it was re- wet slightly--one recipe recommends spraying the skin with a mouthful of good English ale--and then it was pounced, that is, it was rubbed with pumice.[11] This smoothed the surface and removed blemishes. The skin was then completely re-wet and dried again under tension. Finally it was finished again by pouncing, and perhaps by rubbing chalk or some other compound into it to give the skin a white smooth surface which would take the ink, but allow no bleeding.

Having prepared a writing surface, it was also necessary to prepare ink.[12] The ink commonly used in the ancient world was a carbon ink made of soot suspended in gum and water, similar to present-day India ink. It was not permanent and could be washed off. A much more permanent ink, called iron- gall ink, was more commonly used in the Middle Ages, and indeed long after. It was made by mixing either pulverized and extracted galls (which yielded tannic acid) or fermented galls (which yielded gallic acid) with ferrous sulphate (commonly known as copperas) or ferric sulphate, and with gum arabic to give it viscosity. When mixed properly, each of these formulae produced a fine permanent black ink, but when improperly mixed produced a highly acidic, or encaustic, ink which over the centuries has slowly burned its way through a great many manuscripts.

With the collapse of the western Roman Empire, so too collapsed the large-scale book trade. What saved book production in the west was the rise of monasticism. The first of the great monks in the west was Benedict of Nursia, who founded the large Benedictine house at Monte Cassino in 529 AD. The Regula, which guides the conduct of a Benedictine monastic community, says nothing about scholarship or book production, but does comment on reading.[13] Monks were to listen to readings at meal time and during services, and were to read privately in their own cells.[14] The texts were confined to the Bible and to the Fathers.[15] Time was specifically set aside for private reading,[16] and monks were expected to read at least one whole book each year. Private ownership of books was forbidden, and so it was essential to have a communal library. It was only a natural development that scriptoria were instituted to provide the necessary books. In 585 AD the monastery of Monte Cassino was destroyed by the Lombards and the monks were forced to move to Rome. There, under the influence of Pope Gregory the Great, the Benedictines became more scholarly, and book production, not only for local monastic needs but for the larger ecclesiastical community's needs, became an integral part of Benedictine life.

Another important monastic movement, though short-lived, was founded by Cassiodorus (ca. 487-ca. 580 AD), a Roman nobleman, who established a monastery on his estates in southern Italy at Vivarium around 540 AD. Cassiodorus saw the collapse of a society which could no longer maintain Classical culture, and so he gathered as many books as he could into his monastic library. He placed great emphasis on education and book production. In 562 AD he wrote his Institutiones[17] which set out his educational program. He understood the need for a repository of culture secluded from the chaos around him. He had specific guidelines for book production, and within the monastic community scribes had great status. Above the scribe, was an editor who compared the copy with the original, furnished marginal notes in red ink, and supplied punctuation. Cassiodorus insisted on orthographical correctness (he wrote a treatise on spelling De orthographia[18]), and he also advocated the use of omnibus volumes. Apparently the monastery died not long after Cassiodorus, but it inspired Gregory and certainly pointed the way ahead for the Benedictines.

Thus the example provided by Cassiodorus and the direct involvement of Gregory redirected the Benedictine movement so that the production and preservation of books became an integral part of western monasticism. In order to trace the spread of book production in the early Middle Ages we must trace the spread of monasticism. To some degree Rome remained a center of book production. Unfortunately we have little evidence concerning lay production of books in Rome, but at least by Gregory's papal reign (590-604) we know that books were being copied for the pope by monks in their monasteries. There was a great demand for books in Rome-- it was a center for pilgrims and many wished to take books home with them. It was also customary that many pious and zealous Northern Europeans, their nations having recently converted to Christianity, would come to Rome, both to marvel at the still magnificent ruins and to purchase quantities of books to furnish the libraries of their newly founded monastic houses. One such Englishman was Benedict Biscop, who made five trips to Rome in the seventh century to supply the libraries of the twin monasteries of Monkwearmouth and Jarrow with large quantities of books, where in the next generation the great historian Bede was to write his Ecclesiastical History with little need to stir beyond the walls of the library. In addition to exporting books, Rome also exported monasticism. Yet the earliest flowering of monasticism in the North was in a most unlikely place and had very little to do with Rome. This was in Ireland. As the Germanic tribes overran Roman Gaul, some scholars apparently found refuge in Christian Ireland in the early fifth century and certainly brought books with them. Monasteries were founded as early as 444 AD and, like the Benedictines a century later, the monks realized the need for books. The Irish were great missionaries and travelers. St. Columba (ca. 521-597) began the conversion of Scotland in 563, and his disciples carried on and converted the northern English. St. Aidan (d. 651) founded the great monastery of Lindisfarne, famous for its book production exemplified in the Lindisfarne Gospels. In 596, Pope Gregory sent the monk Augustine and a band of forty followers to convert the English in Kent to Christianity and he found great initial success. Celtic and Roman forms of practice clashed in Britain, the former predominating in the north and the latter in the south, but at the Synod of Whitby in 664 King Oswy of Northumbria adopted Roman practice and thus all England acknowledged the authority of Rome. In any case, books and book production were important elements in both strains of monasticism, and as the Celtic houses gradually became Benedictine, the scriptoria benefited from the combination and continued to flourish. As Augustine's mission was finding success in southern England, the Irish monk St. Columbanus (543-615) set out across Europe and founded a series of great monastic houses, each of which became centers for book production, such as Luxeuil in Burgundy and Bobbio in N. Italy. In the same tradition, the English monk Boniface brought Christianity, monasteries, and book production to Germany a century later. Among the great monasteries he established was the one at Fulda, long famous as a center for book production.

By the time of the Carolingian Renaissance, the monasteries were firmly established as centers of power. Each had a scriptorium and many were actively copying the last surviving copies of Classical texts. Indeed we owe the transmission of the majority of Classical Latin texts to the work done in Carolingian scriptoria. Some scriptoria exerted great influence in codicological format and in the development and standardization of script, such as Corbie under Abbot Maurdramnus[19] or Tours under Alcuin.[20] Scriptoria and schools also came to be attached to cathedrals, and indeed there was even a Royal school, chancery, and a library. By the beginning of the ninth century, books and book production were a major part of cultural and educational life in Carolingian Europe, but unfortunately the advent of the Viking raids fragmented Europe and book production was severely curtailed.

The monastic scriptorium was generally one of three different types.[21] It could be a large room which may also have served as the library. The ninth-century "Plan of St. Gall" shows the scriptorium, containing a large central table and seven writing desks ranged along the walls, with the library above.[22] This was most typical of Benedictine establishments. Another possibility might consist of small individual writing rooms, each called a scriptoriolum. Writing might also take place in the cloister alcoves. Some of these alcoves were screened off and made into small chambers called carrells. Depending on the size of the monastery and scriptorium, there might be several classes of scribes though such distinctions varied with place and time. The librarian, amarius or bibliothecarius, was often in charge of the scriptorium, but the choirmaster, precentor, might also be in charge. The antiquarii were senior scribes and the librarii junior scribes. There might also be rubricators, miniators (or painters), illuminators, and correctors. Before the 12th century, scribes were almost always monks, but after this time there began to develop a class of professional scribes, often employed by monasteries. Monks were generally unable to travel, but professional scribes could be sent to copy books at distant places. Monastic scribes generally worked about six hours a day copying. Including their religious duties, this accounted for all the daylight hours. Artificial light was rarely used, and silence was imposed upon the scriptorium, but copying was not silent. Silent reading was a development of the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Before that time, each scribe essentially dictated to himself and the scriptorium was filled with a dull murmuring. In order to communicate, an elaborate system of hand signals was devised.

With the Gregorian Reform of the eleventh century, there was a shift away from the monastic scriptoria, as cathedral schools became more important and as cities developed notarial needs. By the end of the twelfth century monastic scriptoria had entered a period of dormancy that would only end in a brief flurry of activity in the fifteenth century. The newly established orders of friars (Franciscans and Dominicans) stimulated the book trade beyond the monasteries because they had no scriptoria of their own, but had need of books. Thus they had to obtain their books outside of their orders. As they favored small books, which they could easily carry, the production of smaller books was stimulated. At the same time the nascent universities created a new reading public. New texts, reference works, and commentaries were required for scholastic study, and these works were not the kind produced in monastic scriptoria. The new secular book trade became a licensed appendage of the university, consisting of stationers, scribes, parchment makers, paper makers, bookbinders, and all those associated with making books.[23] They enjoyed certain rights such as an exemption from taxes and the right to be tried in university courts. A stationer was appointed only after an enquiry to confirm his good standing and professional ability. He had to provide guarantees and take an oath. Books tended to be sold and resold through many generations and it was the stationer's responsibility to sell a book and buy it back and sell it again, and so forth. He could buy and sell only under certain conditions: he had to advertise the titles he had in stock, prices were fixed, and students and professors received discounts. In order to produce the large numbers of textbooks required by students and maintain their textual accuracy, the pecia system of copying was instituted.[24] The system began in about 1200 and ended in about 1350 in the North, and about 1425-50 in the South. It existed in at least eleven universities (seven in Italy, two in France, and one each in Spain and England) and probably many others. The stationer held one or more exact copies (the exemplar) of a text in pieces (hence pecia), usually a gathering of four folios (sixteen columns) or perhaps six folios. Each column had to have a certain number of lines (usually sixty), and each line a certain number of letters (usually thirty). Each exemplar was examined to ensure it was correct, and any exemplar found to be incorrect resulted in a fine for the stationer. Each part was rented out for a specific time (a week at Bologna) so that students, or scribes, could copy them. This way a number of students could be copying parts of the same book at the same time. Stationers were required to rent pieces to anyone who requested them, and the charges were fixed (e.g., at Treviso in 1318 the charges were six pence for copying, and two pence for correcting). The size of books began to decline, and script became more compact and the number of abbreviations increased. The two-column format became the norm, and ornament was almost abandoned on all books with the exception of the luxury trade. Soft cover bindings tended to replace wooden boards, and parchment became progressively thinner as the number of folios per gathering increased.

As we have seen, in antiquity books were read aloud, whether to oneself or in a group. There was no word division or punctuation (in the modern sense) in manuscripts, and one had to pronounce syllables and words aloud in order to distinguish them, a process analogous to sounding the notes when reading a musical score. Thus, dictation was the major mode of literary composition well into the Middle Ages. In the monastic scriptoria the scribe continued this mode in what was in effect self-dictation. However, in the eighth century in England and Ireland we find the first word division in manuscripts. This was a pedagogical device that aided those whose grasp of Latin was less than perfect. By the ninth century we find word division in manuscripts produced on the Continent, and by the eleventh century it had become commonplace. Word division began as an aid to oral reading, but far more significantly allowed the development of silent reading.[25] Thus with word division the scriptorium truly became silent. At the beginning of the twelfth century literary composition was still oral, but with the advent of scholasticism and its intellectual complexities, composition became written and reading silent. Silent reading increased one's comprehension of complex ideas as one could take in information at a much faster rate. Wax tablets were found to be too small for the composition of complex treatises, and so authors began silently to compose directly on parchment or paper. Thomas Aquinas' script was deemed so illegible, however, that he had to read his own writing for a secretary who wrote it in a legible hand.[26] Gothic cursive script was a direct result of such authorial composition: it was a script that could be written very quickly, and yet was reasonably legible. As scholastic texts became more complex, books reflected these complexities in their organizational design and layout. These developments included dividing the text into chapters and sub-chapters, and the addition of tables of chapter headings, alphabetical tables by subjects, and running heads. New forms of punctuation, such as colored paragraph marks, were introduced. Quotations were underlined in red, marginal notes were added, and diagrams were supplied. The resulting multi-structured apparatus, perhaps most commonly seen in a glossed Bible or Psalter,[27] was visual and was meant for a reader, not a hearer.

At about this same time, paper became available for use in book production.[28] Though less durable and more difficult to write on than parchment, paper had one great advantage-- it was cheaper. Paper was, of course, invented in ancient China,[29] but it was not common in Southern Europe until the thirteenth century. Certainly by the fourteenth century, it was readily available to anyone at a reasonable price.

Paper was made from rags, usually linen. The rags were dampened and left to rot for four or five days. paper makerThey were then placed in a stamping mill which transformed the rotting rags into a pulp of long fibers. The pulp was then transferred into a large vat (usually of about 330 gallons) which was kept agitated and warm. At least two workers were required for the papermaking operation, a vatman and a coucher. The vatman took one of two moulds (an oblong rectangular wire sieve mounted on a wood frame), fitted the deckle (a removable wooden rim which could be fitted on to the mould to make it into a tray-like sieve with a raised edge), and then dipped it into the vat so that the pulp-solution drained through the mould. This left a layer of matted fibers on the mould as the water drained away. The vatman removed the deckle from the mould and handed the mould to the coucher. The coucher rolled the newly-made piece of paper onto a piece of felt, and then handed the mould back to the vatman. Meanwhile the vatman had prepared another piece of paper with the second mould and the deckle. Together they could produce a sizable quantity of paper over a relatively short period of time-- about five and one half reams a day.

The pile of wet paper and felt, known as the post, was subsequently placed in a screw press, and much of the water was pressed out. It took an immense amount of pressure to press out the water and all of the workers in the mill had to turn out to help pull the long wooden lever which turned the screw. The pile of paper was reduced in thickness from about two feet to six inches. A third workman, the layman, freed up each sheet of paper, removed the felts, and placed the paper in a neat pile. This pile was again subjected to pressure and more water was removed. This process was repeated several times. The paper was then taken in groups of four or five sheets, which were dried suspended from ropes in a specially constructed drying loft. Drying the sheets in groups kept them from wrinkling.

Next the paper might be sized. If so, it was dipped into a vat containing animal size, a glutinous liquid made by boiling parchment or leather shavings in water. Size gives paper a relatively impermeable surface. This is essential for writing with a pen, but much less so for printing. After sizing, the paper was once again dried. Finally the paper was subjected to a finishing process. Each sheet was burnished by rubbing it with a smooth stone. This produced a smooth surface and closed the pores of the sheet so that the writing ink would not bleed. In Italy in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, a new format was developed that humanist scholars believed recreated the aesthetic qualities of the book in the ancient world. Believing the Carolingian manuscripts containing Classical texts to be much older than they were, the humanists adopted the Carolingian minuscule script (the Italian rotunda version) as the "littera antiqua," the script of the Romans. In addition, they rejected double columns in favor of long lines, used much more space between lines, and provided wide ample margins. The result was an exceptionally elegant and legible book, which has remained a major model for book design ever since.

The emergence of a literate middle class in the later Middle Ages created a demand for new types of books. These tended to be popular works of a recreational or technical nature, which were often in the vernacular. We know very little about the beginnings of the book trade outside of the monasteries and universities, but certainly there was an independent trade by the late twelfth century. University stationers were free to engage in outside trade and no doubt did so. Books seem most often to have been made to order, but also occasionally for speculation--with no specific buyer in mind. Some orders were large: in 1437 a wholesale bookseller sent an order to a scriptorium in the Low Countries for 200 copies of the Seven Penitential Psalms, 200 copies of Cato's Disticha in Flemish, and 400 copies of a small prayer book.[30] Such an order implies true mass production and the development of the production line approach in which different workers consistently and repetitiously labored at specific tasks, perhaps even dividing the types of labor on a single book between different shops. Thus the textual scribes would be in one shop, each scribe repetitiously working on a quire or section of the same book. The rubricators might be in another shop, the illuminators in another, and so forth.

Therenormal quires is also some evidence from England that some manuscripts were produced by groups of scribes in a loose relationship working at different locations.[31] A single scribe or stationer might receive a commission and then farm out sections to independent scribes, most of whom were notarial or chancery scribes. In England, in contrast to the Continent, established lay scriptoria seem to have been rare. Rather there existed a number of independent practitioners whose services were available to any of the various stationers who coordinated the production of books. Whatever a scribe's position or the scriptorial setting may have been there are a number of procedures common to the production of almost all medieval books.[32] Having assembled the appropriate materials--parchment or paper (or perhaps both), ink, and a pen (a reed in the early Middle Ages or a quill later)--it was necessary to produce a quire, or a gathering of leaves.[33] This could be accomplished in two ways. The more traditional way was to take four sheets of parchment or paper, fold each once, and then nest one inside the other, thus creating a booklet or quire. This was naturally the easiest method with large books. With smaller books, it was easier to use the folding method. By folding the sheet twice, one obtained a quire of four leaves or eight pages; by folding it three times one obtained eight leaves or sixteen pages-- the standard quire size of the Middle Ages (though it should be pointed out that the quire size varied with place and time).

If the book was made of parchment, it was essential that the sheets be positioned so that the hair, or outer, side of the skin always faced another hair side, and likewise, that the flesh, or inner, side of the skin always faced another flesh side. The hair side of a skin is yellower and rougher than the flesh side, which is often milky white. For aesthetic reasons, it was essential that at any opening of the book one see only one color and texture of skin. If arranged properly a reader is never even aware of the difference in the sides of the skin, but should hair face flesh the difference can be jarring. If the quire is constructed by the folding method, it will automatically form the correct hair-flesh pattern. Naturally there were unsolvable problems in arranging the hair and flesh sides when it was necessary for textual or other reasons to add an extra leaf or bifolium.

The next step was to prick the quire.[34] This produced a series of small, almost invisible, holes which acted as guides for ruling each page. These could be made by using a punctorium (a stilus or an awl), the scribe simply poking holes through the margin of the parchment or paper at regular intervals against a ruler to keep the line of prickings straight. A circinus (a pointed compass or dividers) could also serve the same purpose, but would maintain a standard interval between prickings as the scribe pivoted from one leg to the other. anomalous quiresThere is even some evidence that a star wheel was used; that is, a star-shaped wheel mounted on a handle which when pushed or pulled along a surface would prick it quickly and consistently. Occasionally pairs of wooden rectangular frames with sharp points placed at appropriate intervals on one frame and corresponding holes on the other frame were used and the stack of sheets was simply pressed between the frames creating all the prickings in one act. In addition to pricking along the side margins, it was usual to also place several prickings along the top and the bottom so as to delineate the textual frame. The quire might be pricked folded, which was the most efficient method as it required prickings down only one side of the leaf, or flat, which required prickings in both outer margins. In some instances we even have prickings in the inner margins.

After the quire was pricked, it was ruled.[35] There were generally three major modes of ruling. The first, usually associated with the early Middle Ages (though also commonly found in humanistic manuscripts of the fifteenth century which unconsciously adopted Carolingian practice in the belief that it was Roman) is the use of a stilus which creates a furrow as it is pulled across the surface. This method produces rulings that are nearly invisible and has the advantage of producing multiple rulings, on both sides of each sheet stacked in a pile. It is, however, rather unsuitable for paper as the stilus can rip or tear it quite easily. The second method is to use lead plummet, an early form of pencil. This usage is usually associated with the middle of the medieval period. The most common method of ruling at the end of the Middle Ages was the use of pen and ink. No doubt this was a result of the increased use of paper in book production in this period. Both lead plummet and ink were far less efficient than dry-point ruling as each side of each sheet had to be individually ruled. Combs, which pulled several parallel instruments across the surface at the same time, may also have been used in a few instances.

In preparation for writing, the scribe might well apply more pumice to the surface of the parchment to smooth it further, he might apply chalk to whiten it, and he might apply stanchgrain to ensure that the ink would not bleed. Paper required almost no preparation, but the scribe might smooth it with a polished stone.

Now the scribe was ready to write. Although dictation to a group of scribes was quite common in the ancient world,[36] medieval scribes copied individually.[37] pricking and rulingThe desk was at an angle, and often the scribe would hold a penknife in his other hand to hold the writing surface in place; the knife was also useful for making erasures by scraping off the still wet ink. The normal method of writing was to begin on the first page (the recto of the first folio) of the quire and copy the text straight through in its natural order. The scribe had to pause after finishing each recto (except for the middle bifolium) before going on to the verso in order to let the ink dry. As the scribe finished the verso, he added a quire signature to keep the bifolia in order. Each quire of the book was designated by a letter of the alphabet, and each bifolium of the quire by a number. Thus the second bifolium of the third quire would be designated Cii. Alternatively, a quire could have been copied out of page order, the scribe copying one side of each bifolium, then turning the stack of bifolia over and copying each of the other sides. There is even evidence that scribes folded and prepared sheets, but did not cut and open the quires before copying. Rather they unfolded the quire and copied their texts in the imposed order derived from the folding. As the scribe finished each page, he would take a fine-nibbed pen and lightly write instructions in the margin on how to fill blank spaces with rubrics, decorations, capitals, pictures, and the like. These instructions have rarely survived as they were usually trimmed away by the binder.

After the scribe had finished coping a quire, it was often checked by a corrector. It was his job to compare the exemplar to the copy and make sure there were no errors. When errors were found, they might be erased by scraping off the ink with a knife, or by applying a lightly acidic solution which would loosen the ink. The corrector could then supply the proper reading. In many instances the corrector simply lined through the error and supplied the correction interlinearly or marginally.

The next stage in book production was rubrication. Rubrication, almost always in red (Rubrica, red earth or red ochre), typically consists of chapter headings, or in more specialized texts such as commentaries, the word or phrase being glossed. In addition, the rubricator might supply colored paragraph marks and highlight capital letters in the body of the text. An associated stage was decoration. This typically consisted of painted capitals, often alternating in red and blue, and perhaps decorated with pen flourishes. The whole process of decorating, painting and illumination could be a complex one that could involve several different scribes and artists.[38] scribeAfter having applied a base coat, the first step was usually to make an outline in pencil (lead plummet), and there is good evidence that pattern books and stencils were used fairly extensively.[39] When the image was judged to be satisfactory, it was inked and thus became permanent. If there was to be any illumination, or gilding, involved, it was done before paint was applied. Gilding was always carried out before painting, as the paint could cover any rough edges.

There were several methods of applying gold, both burnished and unburnished, in leaf or powder form within the same area, giving varieties of texture and color to the metal. Powdered gold or silver was made by grinding the metal with honey or salt; it was then mixed with glair, a common medium made from egg whites, or gum, and was applied with a brush, or could even be used with a pen. To ensure a smoother flow and coverage, yellow pigments were often mixed in, and the surface could be burnished to some extent with a tooth. This method was used more often for lines and rarely for the coverage of large areas, where gold leaf was required. Gold leaf was attached directly to the surface by means of glair, glue, or gum which acted as an adhesive. Pigments such as terre verte, saffron, yellow ochre, or red brazil dye could be added to the adhesive so that the gilder would know exactly where to apply it. If the gold leaf was to be highly burnished it required a support. The support was built up with layers of gesso (powdered gypsum mixed with glue) applied with a brush. When the appropriate height was reached, the surface of the gesso was burnished until it was perfectly smooth. Bole, a waxy clay ranging in color from white to red, was painted on the surface so that the gilder would know which area to gild. Finally the gold leaf was applied with glair or gum, and then it was burnished, giving it the appearance of a solid piece of metal.

Now the scribe or artist was ready to apply paint. Each color was applied in turn and allowed to dry, with the final stage being the application of the stipple or white highlighting. The paint consisted of two elements, media and pigment. The medium, which turned the dry powdered pigments into a liquid paint, varied according to the choice of pigment. The foremost medium was glair, a mixture of egg whites and water. Gum arabic, vinegar, or honey might be added to vary the consistency, and water was used to dilute it. Glair could be used with almost any pigment. Another common medium was gum arabic (from the acacia tree) which came in solid lumps, called tears, which were powdered and then dissolved in water. After about a day the solution was strained and it was ready to use. Glue was made from horn or parchment and was mainly used for green pigments. Cheese glue was used almost exclusively with folium, and egg yolk was only used with a few pigments (orpiment, carmine, indigo, and azurite). These pigments were ground in egg yolk, which was subsequently washed out and the powdered pigment was then mixed with glair or gum arabic.

A variety of pigments was available to the medieval craftsman, and a number of these were suitable to be applied to parchment or paper. Black was essentially carbon-based ink. It consisted of lamp black, or soot, which was produced with a candle or oil lamp that was burned against a metal or earthenware surface from which the soot was collected. The soot was so fine it required no grinding. It was mixed with an egg medium. An alternative source for black pigment was charcoal made from vine twigs ground to a powder with wine or water, and then mixed with glue or egg as a medium. Blue could be produced by the use of several different pigments. Ultramarine was made from lapis lazuli and was the most highly prized and expensive of the blue pigments. It was essential to exercise great care in selecting good quality stones because it was quite difficult to remove impurities from the lapis. Azorium was made from azurite, but it could also be made artificially by placing a white powder such as alum or lime in a copper vessel with vinegar. The copper vessel needed to be kept warm for about a month. The pigment produced by this method often needed to be augmented by the addition of mulberry juice. Indigo mixed with white lead would also yield blue. Another source of blue color was the juice from blue flowers. The color could be stored in a clothlet, a clean linen rag moistened with water and quicklime, and soaked in the plant juice. When dry, the clothlet could be stored indefinitely. When needed it was placed in a gum solution to extract the pigment.

The brown pigment, bistre, was made from burnt resinous wood boiled in lye, and was used both as a separate color and as a shading over other pigments. Verdigris was the most common green pigment. It was made by placing strips or plates of copper above a quantity of vinegar. The resulting powder (copper acetate) was scraped off the copper. It was often called Greek or Spanish green. Verdigris was not ground into powder, but was soaked in wine or vinegar and thickened by heating. A mixture of vinegar, egg yolk, and gum water was used as a medium. The color could be tempered by the addition of vegetable green pigments, or saffron. Terre verte and chrysocolla (malachite or copper carbonate) were also common green pigments. They were sometimes used for underpainting in gilding. Green pigment could also be extracted from plants and stored in clothlets. Another green was vergaut, a mixture of indigo and orpiment (blue and yellow). Gray, or veneda, was made from a mixture of black pigment and white lead.

Red ochre, the most common red pigment, was rarely used in manuscripts, but commonly used in wall painting. Vermillion was obtained from cinnabar, or through a chemical reaction of heating mercury and sulfur together to produce mercuric sulphide. Mixed with white lead it formed a flesh color, olchus or membrana. Red lead, minium or sandaraca, was prepared by heating white lead for several days. It was necessary to stir the pot every two hours, and it was suggested that one forego sleep for several days. It was recommended that vermillion be added to the lead to make it more brilliant. Brazil wood dye was the most useful red pigment for manuscripts. Wood shavings were soaked in a solution of lye, wine, or urine for several hours and then alum was added. The intensity of the color was a result of the quantity of alum added. Pigment was mixed with glair for red ink or for glazing over illumination. It could be precipitated into a powder and then mixed with gum to be made into paint. Purple was derived from a mixture of azurite and brazil wood, or the juice of bilberries and alum. A common purple pigment was folium, derived from the seeds of turnsole. It was used in the form of clothlets, and cheese glue was used as a medium. White was obtained by the use of white lead even though it was poisonous and turned black in the presence of certain other pigments. It was made by placing plates or strips of lead above vinegar. The white lead was scraped off, and wine was used as a medium. It could not be mixed with vermillion or orpiment, and so in those instances other white pigments such as ground bones or egg shells were used. Orpiment (an arsenic compound) was widely used for yellow, even though it was poisonous and rather coarse. Because it was so coarse it was customary to add another pigment, yellow ochre, to it which would give the painted surface a smoother appearance. Yellow ochre was rarely used by itself in manuscripts, as it was more appropriate for wall painting. Saffron was also used to produce a yellow pigment, though it was not permanent.

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Sources

[1] On this point see Curt F. Bühler, The Fifteenth-century Book: The Scribes, the Printers, the Decorators (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1960), pp. 45-47, 80.

[2] Unfortunately there is no good up-to-date general history of books and book production; however, see Joseph Blumenthal, The Art of the Printed Book, 1455-1955 (New York: Pierpont Morgan Library, 1973); Kenneth, Carpenter, ed., Books and Society in History (New York: Bowker, 1983); John Carter and Percy H. Muir, eds., Printing and the Mind of Man: A Descriptive Catalogue Illustrating the Impact of Print on the Evolution of Western Civilization during Five Centuries (New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1967); Warren Chappell, A Short History of the Printed Word (New York: Knopf, 1970); Colin Clair, A History of European Printing (London: Academic Press, 1976); Robert Darnton, "What is the History of Books?", Daedalus 111 (1982): 65-83 (also in Carpenter, ed., Books and Society in History, pp. 3-26); Elizabeth L. Eisenstein, The Printing Press as an Agent of Change: Communications and Cultural Transformation in Early-Modern Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979); Lucien Febvre and Henri-Jean Martin, The Coming of the Book: The Impact of Printing 1450-1800, translated by David Gerard (London: Verso, 1976); Philip Gaskell, A New Introduction to Bibliography (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1972); Norma Levarie, The Art and History of Books (New York: Heineman, 1968); John Lewis, Anatomy of Printing: The Influences of Art and History on Its Design (New York: Watson-Guptill, 1970); Douglas C. McMurtrie, The Book: The Story of Printing and Bookmaking (New York: Oxford University Press, 1943); S.H. Steinberg, Five Hundred Years of Printing (Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, 1974); G. Thomas Tanselle, The History of Books as a Field of Study (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina, 1981); and Lawrence Wroth, ed., A History of the Printed Book (New York: Limited Editions Club, 1938).

[3] For discussion of ancient techniques of book production see Moses Hadas, Ancilla to Classical Reading (New York: Columbia University Press, 1954); Eric A. Havelock, The Literate Revolution in Greece and Its Cultural Consequences (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1981); Frederic G. Kenyon, Books and Readers in Ancient Greece and Rome (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1951); Bernard M.W. Knox, "Silent Reading in Antiquity," Greek Roman and Byzantine Studies 9 (1968): 421-35; Naphtali Lewis, Papyrus in Classical Antiquity (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1974); The Nature and Making of Papyrus (Barkston Ash: Elmete Press, 1973); Walter J. Ong, Orality and Literacy: The Technologizing of the Word (London: Methuen, 1982); H.L. Pinner, The World of Books in Classical Antiquity (Leiden: Sijthoff, 1958); Felix Reichmann, "The Book Trade at the Time of the Roman Empire," Library Quarterly 8 (1938): 40-76; C.H. Roberts, "The Codex," Proceedings of the British Academy 40 (1954): 169-204; Colin H. Roberts and T.C. Skeat, The Birth of the Codex (London: British Academy, 1983); T.C. Skeat, "The Use of Dictation in Ancient Book Production," Proceedings of the British Academy 42 (1956): 179-208; and E.G. Turner, Typology of the Early Codex (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1977).

[4] See Roberts and Skeat, The Birth of the Codex, pp. 24-29.

[5] Ibid., pp. 30-34.

[6] Stanley Morison, in his Politics and Script: Aspects of Authority and Freedom in the Development of Graeco-Latin Script from the Sixth Century B.C. to the Twentieth Century A.D., ed. by Nicolas Barker (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1972) argues that changes in script have often been the result of external political changes. His thesis is interesting, though generally considered to be overdrawn.

[7] See Roberts and Skeat, The Birth of the Codex, pp. 57-58.

[8] See Richard W. Clement, "Two Contemporary Gregorian Editions of Pope Gregory the Great's Regula pastoralis in Troyes MS 504," Scriptorium 39 (1985): 89-97.

[9] See Richard R. Johnson, "Ancient and Medieval Accounts of the 'Invention' of Parchment," California Studies in Classical Antiquity 3 (1970): 115-22.

[10] See R. Reed, Ancient Skins, Parchments and Leathers (London: Seminar Press, 1972); Michael L. Ryder, "Parchment: Its History, Manufacture and Composition," Journal of the Society of Archivists 2 (1964): 391-99; Hedwig Säxl, "Histology of Parchment," in Technical Studies in the Field of Fine Arts (Boston: Fogg Art Museum, 1939), pp. 3-9; Daniel V. Thompson, "Medieval Parchment-Making," Library 4th ser., 16 (1936): 113-17; W. Lee Ustick, "Parchment and Vellum," Library 4th ser., 16 (1936): 439-43; and Benjamin Vorst, "Parchment Making-- Ancient and Modern," Fine Print 12 (1986): 209-11, 220-21.

[11] See Dorothy Miner, "More about Medieval Pouncing" in Homage to a Bookman: Essays on Manuscripts, Books, and Printing Written for Hans P. Kraus on his 60th Birthday, ed. by Helmut Lehmann-Haupt (Berlin: Gebr. Mann Verlag, 1967), pp. 87-107.

[12] See M. De Pas, "La Composition des encres noires," in Les Techniques de laboratoire dans l'étude des manuscrits, Colloques internationaux du Centre national de la recherche scientifique 548 (Paris: Centre national de la recherche scientifique, 1974), pp. 121-32; and De Pas, "Les encres médiévaux," Colloques internationaux du Centre national de la recherche scientifique 559 (Paris: Centre national de la recherche scientifique, 1977), pp. 55-60; also see the older but still useful David N. Carvalho, Forty Centuries of Ink (New York: Banks Law Pub. Co., 1904; reprinted, New York: Burt Franklin, 1971); and C.A. Mitchell and T.C. Hepworth, Inks: Their Composition and Manufacture (London: Griffin & Co., 1904).

[13] There are many editions of the Regula Benedicti; I have used Regula sancti Patris Benedicti, ed. by Edmund Schmidt (Regensberg: Pustet, 1892).

[14] Ibid., chs. 38, 42.

[15] Ibid., chs. 9, 73.

[16] Ibid., ch. 48.

[17] Cassiodorus, Institutiones, ed. by R.A.B. Mynors (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1961).

[18] Cassiodorus, De orthographia liber, ed. by Ludovico Carrione (Antwerp: Plantin, 1597).

[19] See Françoise Gasparri, "Le Scriptorium de Corbie à la fin du VIIIe siècle," Scriptorium 21 (1967): 86-93; and Leslie Webber Jones, "The Scriptorium at Corbie: I. The Library, II. The Script and the Problems," Speculum 22 (1947): 191-204, 375-94.

[20] See E.K. Rand, A Survey of the Manuscripts of Tours (Cambridge: Medieval Academy of America, 1929).

[21] See Florence de Roover, "The Scriptorium," in The Medieval Library, by James Westfall Thompson (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1939), pp. 594- 612; F. Dressler, Scriptorum opus: Schreiber-Mönche am Werke (Wiesbaden: Reichert, 1971); Monique-Cecile Garand, "Manuscrits monastiques et scriptoria aux XIe et XIIe siècles," Codicologica 3 (1980): 9-33; H. Martin, "Notes sur les écrivains au travail" in Mélanges offerts à M. Emile Chatelain (Paris: A. Champion, 1910), pp. 535-44; and Jean Vezin, "La Répartition du travail dans les 'scriptoria' carolingiens," Journal des Savants (1973): 212-27.

[22] Walter Horn and Ernest Born, The Plan of St. Gall: A Study of the Architecture & Economy of & Life in a Paradigmatic Carolingian Monastery (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1979). For the state of monastic production in the late period in England, see A. I. Doyle, "Book Production by the Monastic Orders in England (c. 1375-30): Assessing the Evidence," in Medieval Book Production: Assessing the Evidence, ed. by L. L. Brownrigg (Los Altos Hills, Cal.: Anderson-Lovelace, 1990), pp. 1-19.

[23] See Graham Pollard, "The University and the Book Trade in Mediaeval Oxford," in Beiträge zum Berufsbewusstsein des mittelalterlichen Menschen ed. by P. Wilpert and W. Eckert (Berlin: De Gruyter, 1964), pp. 336-44.

[24] See Jean Destrez, La pecia dans les manuscrits universitaires du XIIIe et du XIVe siècle (Paris: Editions Jaques Vautrains, 1935); and Graham Pollard, "The Pecia System in the Medieval Universities," in Medieval Scribes, Manuscripts and Libraries: Essays Presented to N.R. Ker, ed. M.B. Parkes and A.G. Watson (London: Scolar Press, 1978), pp. 145-61; Louis J. Bataillon, Bertran G. Guyot, and Richard H. Rouse, eds., La production du livre universitaire au moyen âge: exemplar et pecia, Acts du symposium tenu au Collegio San Bonaventura de Grottaferrata, May 1983 (Paris: Centre national de la recherche scientifique, 1991).

[25] See Paul Saenger, "Silent Reading: Its Impact on Late Medieval Script and Society," Viator 13 (1982): 367-414.

[26] See A. Dondaine, Secrétaires de Saint Thomas (Rome: S. Tommaso, 1956); and P.-M. Gils, "Le MS Napoli, Biblioteca nazionale I.B.54, est-il de la main de St. Thomas?" Revue des sciences philosophiques et théologiques 49 (1965): 37-59.

[27] See Christopher De Hamel, Glossed Books of the Bible and the Origins of the Paris Booktrade (Woodbridge: D.S. Brewer, 1984).

[28] See Charles M. Briquet, Les filigranes: Dictionnaire historique des marques du papier (1923; reprinted, Hildesheim: Olms, 1977); Dard Hunter, Papermaking: The History and Technique of an Ancient Craft (New York: Knopf, 1947); and Joel Munsell, Chronology of the Origin and Progress of Paper and Paper-making (Albany, 1876; reprinted, New York: Garland, 1980).

[29] For papermaking and printing in China see Thomas Francis Carter, The Invention of Printing in China and Its Spread Westward, 2nd ed., rev. by L. Carrington Goodrich (New York: Ronald Press Co., 1955); Joseph Needham, Science and Civilization in China, vol. 5, pt. 1: Paper and Printing, by Tsien Tsuen-Hsuin (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1985); Tsien Tsuen-Hsuin, Written on Bamboo and Silk: The Beginnings of Chinese Books and Inscriptions (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1962); and Denis Twitchett, Printing and Publishing in Medieval China (New York: Frederic C. Beil, 1983).

[30] Lucien Febvre and Henri-Jean Martin, The Coming of the Book: The Impact of Printing, 1450-1800, trans. by David Gerard (London: Verso, 1984), p. 28. See also R. H. Rouse and M. A. Rouse, "The Commercial Production of Manuscript Books in Late Thirteenth-Century and Early Fourteenth-Century Paris," in Medieval Book Production: Assessing the Evidence, ed. by L. L. Brownrigg (Los Altos Hills, Cal.: Anderson-Lovelace, 1990), pp. 103-15.

[31] For notes on the production of manuscripts in late medieval England, see H. E. Bell, "The Price of Books in Medieval England," Library 4th ser., 17 (1936-37): 312-32; A. I. Doyle, "The Shaping of the Vernon and Simeon Manuscripts," in Chaucer and Middle English Studies in Honour of Rossell Hope Robbins, ed. by Beryl Rowland (London: Allen and Unwin, 1974), pp. 328-41; A. I. Doyle and M. B. Parkes, "The Production of Copies of the Canterbury Tales and the Confessio Amantis in the Early Fifteenth Century," in Medieval Scribes, Manuscripts, & Libraries: Essays Presented to N. R. Ker, ed. by M. B. Parkes and Andrew G. Watson (London: Scolar Press, 1978), pp. 163-210; George R. Keiser, "Lincoln Cathedral Library MS. 91: Life and Milieu of the Scribe," Studies in Bibliography 32 (1979): 158-79; Graham Pollard, "The Company of Stationers before 1557," Library 4th ser., 18 (1937): 1-37; and Kathleen L. Scott, "A Mid-Fifteenth-Century English Illuminating Shop and Its Customers," Journal of the Warburg & Courtauld Institute, 31 (1968): 194-95.

[32] For further reading see Leonard Boyle, Medieval Latin Palaeography: A Bibliographical Introduction (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1984); Laurel N. Braswell, Western Manuscripts from Classical Antiquity to the Renaissance: A Handbook (New York: Garland, 1981); M. T. Clanchy, From Memory to Written Record: England, 1066-1307 (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1979); Janet Coleman, Medieval Readers and Writers 1350-1400 (New York: Columbia University Press, 1981); David Diringer, The Book before Printing: Ancient, Medieval and Oriental [The Hand-produced Book] (London, 1953; reprinted, New York: Dover, 1982); Jesse M. Gellrich, The Idea of the Book in the Middle Ages: Language Theory, Mythology, and Fiction (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1985); E. P. Goldschmidt, Medieval Texts and Their First Appearance in Print (London: Bibliographical Society, 1943); Sandra Hindman and James Douglas Farquhar, Pen to Press: Illustrated Manuscripts and Printed Books in the First Century of Printing (College Park: University of Maryland, 1977), 11-99; Andrew Hughes, Medieval Manuscripts for Mass and Office: A Guide to Their Organization and Terminology (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1982); Harold A. Innis, "Parchment and Paper," in Empire and Communications (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1950), pp. 140-72; G.S. Ivy, "The Bibliography of the Manuscript Book," in The English Library before 1700, ed. Francis Wormald and C. E. Wright (London: Athlone Press, University of London, 1958), pp. 32-65; N.R. Ker, Books, Collectors, and Libraries: Studies in the Medieval Heritage, ed. Andrew G. Watson (London: Hambledon Press, 1985); N. R. Ker, English Manuscripts in the Century after the Norman Conquest (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1960); Falconer Madan, Books in Manuscript: A Short Introduction to their Study and Use (New York: Empire State Book Co., 1920); George Haven Putnam, Books and their Makers during the Middle Ages: A Study of the Conditions of the Production and Distribution of Literature from the Fall of the Roman Empire to the Close of the Seventeenth Century (New York, 1896-97; reprinted, New York: Hillary House, 1962); Barbara A. Shailor, The Medieval Book: Catalogue of an Exhibition at the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University (New Haven: Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, 1988); James Westfall Thompson, The Medieval Library (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1939; reprinted, New York: Hafner, 1957); Jean Vezin, "La réalisation materielle des manuscrits latins pendant le haut moyen âge," Codicologica 2 (1978): 15-51; and Frances A. Yates, The Art of Memory (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1966).

[33] See Léon Gilissen, "La Composition des cahiers: Le pliage du parchemin et l'imposition," Scriptorium 26 (1972): 3-33; G. I. Lieftinck, "Mediaeval Manuscripts with 'Imposed' Sheets," Het Boek 3rd ser., 34 (1960-61): 210-20; Pieter F. J. Obbema, "Writing on Uncut Sheets," Quaerendo 8 (1978): 337-54; Graham Pollard, "Notes on the Size of the Sheet," Library 4th ser., 22 (1941): 105-37; Pamela R. Robinson, "The 'Booklet': A Self-contained Unit in Composite Manuscripts," Codicologica 3 (1980): 46-69; and Charles Samaran, "Manuscrits 'imposés' et manuscrits non coupés: Un nouvel exemple," Codices manuscripti 2 (1976): 38-42.

[34] See L. W. Jones, "Where are the Prickings?" Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association 75 (1944): 71-86; Jones, "Pricking Manuscripts: The Instruments and their Significance," Speculum 21 (1946): 389- 403; Jones, "Pricking Systems in New York Manuscripts" in Miscellanea Giovanni Mercati 6 (Studi e testi 126 [1946]): 80-92; Jones, "Ancient Prickings in Eighth-Century Manuscripts," Scriptorium 15 (1961): 14-22; and Jones, "Prickings as Clues to Date and Origin: The Eighth Century," Medievalia et Humanistica 14 (1962): 15-22.

[35] See D. K. Coveney, "The Rulings of the Exeter Book," Scriptorium 12 (1958): 51-55; Leon Gilissen, "Un elément codicologique trop peu exploité: réglure," Scriptorium 23 (1969): 150-62; Gilissen, Prolégomènes à la codicologie (Ghent: Editions Scientifiques, 1977); and T. S. Pattie, "The Ruling as a Clue to the Make-up of a Medieval Manuscript," British Library Journal 1 (1975): 15-21.

[36] See T. C. Skeat, "The Use of Dictation in Ancient Book Production," Proceedings of the British Academy 42 (1956): 179-208.

[37] See E.M. Thompson, "Calligraphy in the Middle Ages," Bibliographica 3 (1897): 280-92.

[38] For further information see Ernst Ploss, Ein Buch von alten Farben: Technologie der Textilfarben im Mittelalter mit einem Ausblick auf die festen Farben (Heidelberg: Moos, 1962); Daniel V. Thompson, The Materials and Techniques of Medieval Painting (London: Allen and Unwin, 1956), and Cennino d'Andrea Cennino, Il Libro dell'arte (1437), trans. by Daniel V. Thompson, The Craftsman's Handbook: The Italian "Il Libro dell' Arte" (New York: Dover, 1954). Among the many surveys and studies of illuminated manuscripts see J. J. G. Alexander, Medieval Illuminators and Their Methods of Work (New Haven: Yale University Press); J. J. G. Alexander, The Decorated Letter (New York: Braziller, 1978); J. J. G. Alexander, Italian Renaissance Illuminations (New York: Braziller, 1977); J. J. G. Alexander, "Scribes as Artists," in Medieval Scribes, Manuscripts, and Libraries: Essays Presented to N. R. Ker, ed. by M. B. Parkes and Andrew G. Watson (London: Scolar Press, 1978), pp. 87-116; Janet Backhouse, The Illuminated Manuscript (Oxford: Phaidon, 1979); Robert G. Calkins, Illuminated Books of the Middle Ages (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1983); Christopher De Hamel, Scribes and Illuminators, Medieval Craftsmen Series (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1992); Christopher De Hamel, A History of Illuminated Manuscripts (Oxford: Phaidon, 1986); David Diringer, The Illuminated Book: Its History and Production (New York: Praeger, 1967); Virginia Wylie Egbert, The Mediaeval Artist at Work (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1967); A. Grabar and C. Nordenfalk, Early Medieval Painting (Lausanne: Skira, 1957); Grabar and Nordenfalk, Romanesque Painting from the Eleventh to the Thirteenth Century: Mural Paintings (New York: Skira, 1958); John Harthan, An Introduction to Illuminated Manuscripts (London: Her Majesty's Stationary Office, 1983); John Harthan, The Book of Hours (New York: Crowell, 1977); Sandra Hindman, Text and Image in Fifteenth-Century Illustrated Dutch Bibles (Leiden: Brill, 1977); Hindman and James Douglas Farquhar, Pen to Press: Illustrated Manuscripts and Printed Books in the First Century of Printing (College Park: University of Maryland Press, 1977); James H. Marrow, "Introduction," in The Golden Age of Dutch Manuscript Painting (New York: Braziller, 1990); Carl Nordenfalk, Celtic and Anglo-Saxon Painting: Book Illumination in the British Isles, 600-800 (New York: Braziller, 1977); W. Oakshot, The Sequence of English Medieval Art (London: Faber and Faber, 1950); Lillian M.C. Randall, Images in the Margins of Gothic Manuscripts (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1966); David M. Robb, The Art of the Illuminated Manuscript (South Brunswick: A. S. Barnes, 1973); L. Valentine, Ornament in Medieval Manuscripts: A Glossary (London: Faber and Faber, 1965); and Kurt Weitzman, Ancient Book Illumination (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1959).

[39] On pattern or model books see Janet Backhouse, "An Illuminator's Sketch-book," British Library Journal 1 (1975): 3-14; Hellmut Lehmann-Haupt, The Göttingen Model Book (Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 1972); D.J.A. Ross, "A Late Twelfth-Century Artist's Pattern Sheet," Journal of the Warburg & Courtauld Institutes 25 (1962): 119-28; and R.W. Scheller, A Survey of Medieval Model Books (Haarlem: Erven and Bohm, 1963).
Copyright (C) 1997, (Richard W. Clement). This file may be copied on the condition that the entire contents, including the header and this copyright notice, remain intact. A previous version of this article appeared as "A Survey of Antique, Medieval, and Renaissance Book Production" in Art into Life: Collected Papers from the Kresge Art Museum Medieval Symposia, ed. by Carol Garrett Fisher and Kathleen Scott (East Lansing: Michigan State University Press, 1995): 9-47. Copyright permission to reprint it here (though with some alterations) has been secured.

To continue with Part 2, CLICK HERE.

[William50]

:wtf:

[Emily]

On the chants of “Fire Renney” and “Fire Sather,” and what blame he takes:
“I take full responsibility for where this team is right now. That’s incumbent with the position. My job is to correct this, get us wining, get us feeing better about ourselves. I look to be a solution. It’s as simple as that.”

He plans to meet with players one-on-one and “make sure we’re real clear on what’s expected of the players, give them a solid foundation of expectation, because sometimes that gets a little blurred too. You know, coaching’s an interesting art because you can climb down guys throats and hope they respond that way, you can soft-love them and hope they’ll respond that way. … That’s coaching. We’re at a stage where we have to know our athletes and press the right buttons. I think we’re a good staff, I think we’re capable of doing that, and I know this team wants very badly to win.
“So it’s all hands on deck now.”

“We all have to step up now. It’s not exclusive to one guy. This is an all-in thing. It’s time to man-up.”
————————-

[razz]

http://site1.wikianswers.com/images/new/disclaimer.gif?v=39814 (http://www.answers.com/main/disclaimer.jsp) http://site1.wikianswers.com/templates/icons/report-abuse.gif?v=39814 (javascript:reportAbusePopupMenu();)

http://site1.wikianswers.com/templates/images/qbar_q.gif?v=39814 How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?

In: Jokes and Riddles (http://wiki.answers.com/Q/FAQ/2630), Rhetorical Questions (http://wiki.answers.com/Q/FAQ/3325) [Edit categories (javascript:RecategorizeCats('How%20much%20wood%20 would%20a%20woodchuck%20chuck%20if%20a%20woodchuck %20could%20chuck%20wood');)]
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http://site1.wikianswers.com/templates/icons/rc_gray1.gif?v=39814 http://site1.wikianswers.com/templates/icons/rc_gray1b.gif?v=39814 http://site1.wikianswers.com/templates/icons/abar_a.gif?v=39814
Woodchucks Chucking Wood

I think that the woodchuck could chuck as much wood as he wanted! By the way what is a wood chuck? Is it like a gopher? This is difficult to question answer. The amount of wood that woodchucks would chuck on a given day varies greatly with the individual woodchuck. According to a Wall Street Journal article, New York State wildlife expert Richard Thomas found that a woodchuck could chuck around 35 cubic feet of dirt in the course of digging a burrow. Thomas reasoned that if a woodchuck could chuck wood, he would chuck an amount equal to 700 pounds.
Some say it depends on three factors:



The woodchuck's desire to chuck said wood.




The woodchuck's need to chuck the aforementioned wood.




The woodchuck's ability to chuck the wood.

Others say:



He would chuck, he would, as much as he could, if a woodchuck could chuck wood.




If he could chuck wood, the woodchuck would chuck as much as he could!




A woodchuck would chuck as much wood as a woodchuck could chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood.




A woodchuck would chuck all the wood that the woodchuck would chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood.




If a woodchuck could chuck wood, he would and should chuck wood. But if woodchucks can't chuck wood, they shouldn't and wouldn't chuck wood. Though were I a woodchuck, and I chucked wood, I would chuck wood with the best woodchucks that chucked wood.




If a woodchuck could chuck wood, then s/he'd chuck all the wood, s/he'd chuck and chuck and chuck and chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood.




It would chuck the amount of wood that she sells seashells on the seashore divided by how many pickles Peter Piper picks.




One quarter of a sycamore if you give him a quarter for every quarter of the sycamore he cut.




It might depend on how many female woodchucks were present. Or, it could depend on whether the woodchuck's mother-in-law was around or not. If she was, he'd be chucking all day. If not, he'd be watching the football game.




Some maintain that woodchucks could not and would not chuck wood at all.




It depends on how good his dentures are!




A woodchuck, would chuck, as much wood, as a woodchuck, could chuck, If a woodchuck could chuck wood. But unfortunately, woodchucks do not chuck wood.




About 5.72 fluid litres of wood




About as many boards as the Mongol hoards would hoard if the Mongol hordes did hoard boards.




Um....... 23????










Tons. More than you can count. Honestly. No one can chuck more would than a woodchuck.




If the woodchucks name was Maurice, then it could chuck all the wood that it wants to. However, if its name is Frank, no chucking would be for it.




Due to the average size of a wood chuck and the general density of wood (not including cork) if a wood chuck could chuck wood it would probably get through about 6.573 pounds per day, assuming the wood chuck is functioning correctly.




Using the formula: (W + I) * C where W = the constant of wood, which is well known to be 61, as agreed in many scientific circles. I = the variable in this equation, and stands for the word "if" from the original problem. As there are three circumstances, with 0 equaling the chance that the woodchuck cannot chuck wood, 1 being the theory that the woodchuck can chuck wood but chooses not to, and 2 standing for the probability that the woodchuck can and will chuck wood, we clearly must choose 2 for use in this equation. C = the constant of Chuck Norris, whose presence in any problem involving the word chuck must there, is well known to equal 1.1 of any known being, therefore the final part of this calculation is 1.1. As is clear, this appears to give the answer of (61 + 2) * 1.1 = (63) * 1.1 = 69.3. However, Chuck Norris' awesome roundhouse kick declares that all decimal points cannot be used in formulas such as this, and so it must be rounded to the final solution of 69 units of wood.

How Chuck Norris got involved
A woodchuck would only chuck as much would as Chuck Norris would allow it to, because the woodchuck shares Chuck's name. Therefore, Chuck must punish it and make it chuck as much wood as Chuck can. So, a woodchuck would chuck as much wood as Chuck could.

[educatedlady]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxScTbIUvoA

[alinda]

http://image.wetpaint.com/image/1/ajS-CzQwOvS_CzrAhH7PnA139376

[idk, my bff jill?]

I wanted to show this funny conversation to a friend.

pick up the pieces. says:
*jajajaja
*you should touch my beard.
P! = P*(P-1)! says:
*You have a beard again?! (T^T)
pick up the pieces. says:
*aja [yup]
*desde hace tiempo [since long ago]
*ya esta en el glorious stage [it's already in the glorious stage]
P! = P*(P-1)! says:
*(L)
Quiero. [I want.]
pick up the pieces. says:
*i know. (heh)
P! = P*(P-1)! says:
*Tener sexo con tu barba. [To have sex with your beard.]
pick up the pieces. says:
*you can.
**beard smiles*
P! = P*(P-1)! says:
*/ puts penis in its mouth
pick up the pieces. says:
*jajajaja
*oh, how much this beard has seen
P! = P*(P-1)! says:
*Penis after penis after penis.
*Your mouth must be jealous.
pick up the pieces. says:
*jajajajajajajajajajajaj
*fucking win
*i bow to you

[gsvec]

http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=38450

[Candice Dionysus]

Okay. First let me give you a little bit of an idea of what kind of girl I am.

I do not ask for help, it is a very, very rare occasion that I need to. I could be carrying 18+ grocery bags, and have five male friends around me who would be willing to carry them, and still not ask for their help. And they don't offer because they learned early on that I will bite when offered help. When asked why they don't help me, they usually reply "because if I try, she will either hit me, yell at me, push me, or simply ignore me. Its Russian Roulette." I don't hit them, that's just them being funny, but I don't let them help. I refuse help from my family on a daily basis. Why? Because I KNOW what to do. I have all the right advice, and people come to me for help, so I just apply my own advice to my life, and I'm generally good. And besides, carrying a tonne of grocery bags is good exercise, which I sorely need. I'm stubborn, and I don't like asking for help. I'm prideful. (Its my damnable Swedish pride.) That being said:

There is this guy at work that I'm friends with. We hang out sometimes, and we chat, and we play the WoW TCG sometimes (I hate WoW, but the TCG is like M:TG, so I play it). He's really cool, and we get along fairly well.

Now you see, when we started hanging out I was dating this guy, Phil, who broke up with me in December, but who I was head-over-heels in love with. He was being a dick at the end, so I got over him fairly quickly (one of the good things about being me is that while I get terribly upset about things, I don't STAY upset about them for very long - I'm always finding things to keep myself occupied, and so never dwell on things), and I don't have anything to do with him anymore.

And the guy from work, Blue, was dating another friend of mine, Cory, who is moving at the end of March. But they broke up at some point as well. I really like Cory. She's awesome, beyond awesome.

Now the problem is, while hanging out with him recently, I have started to develop feelings for Blue which are more than platonic. And while I normally have no problem having a crush on someone (I go through cyclic phases of random crushes on random people who I know), and never feel awkward about it while they are around, for some reason I am feeling very awkward around Blue because of this crush. Like I want to tell him, but something in me is afraid.

I've been through this before, wanting to tell someone but being afraid. It usually ends in regret on my part. But I'm generally content with not telling them, because I know its just a part of the cycle. The only problem is, part of me doesn't want this to be part of the cycle, it wants it to be completely outside the cycle, and wants to tell him that I maybe want to go out with him on a date sometime.

Meanwhile, another part of me wants it to remain part of the cycle, and just go on being friends with Blue, instead of risking the relationship I already have with him to find out that, hey, he doesn't want to date me...

Last time I felt this way, I kept it bottled up and ended up wishing I hadn't... But I'm afraid I'll end up wishing I had, if I don't. Which is another part of the cycle, which I have been content with until recently. I'm not normally the kind to go into another relationship so soon after a break-up. Its only been about 3 months (beginning of December). But I don't... I don't know what to do, because part of me is definitely screaming yes, and part of me is positively shrieking no.

So I'm at a loss, and I find myself doing the one thing I almost never do. I'm asking for help. Help?

[SigTauGimp]

< billn> so pizza hut has that field in the online order form, for special instructions?
< billn> I put 'driver must beat box.'
< billn> turns out, he could.

[Jon]

Your almond eyes await

You posed a question

As I think back to that day

And chuckle at my internal debate


“Is this a trapdoor, camouflaged by beautiful brown hair?”

My thoughts raced, in time with my pounding heart.

Pounding harder than a man’s pecs can take

Can this poor boy become Love’s millionaire?


Softly you repeat your question

Two deep umber pools express your anticipation

A flash of your eyes sends lightning through my veins

A flush of heat divulges my love, and my infatuation.


I take your arm, your question not repressed

Caressing soft skin, fingernails to elbow.

Carelessly twirling your chestnut hair, lightly brushing the skin beneath.

I think of the angel speaking to me, and know that I am blest.


Your third attempt at an answer leaves you in doubt

But you cannot know, your question leaves me so… breathless

The epitome of beauty and purity, speaks softly, and to my soul.

The one who fate would never let me live without.


Your question, in a husky voice, posed thrice.

After removing myself from the dream world in which we met

I think to myself “This question begs an answer does it not?”

I look at your eyes and you figure, made by God to be my vice.


I take your hand in mine.

Two hands become one

Instinctively, our fingers intertwine

Then that’s what we’ll do

I say “Yes baby… I’ll marry you!”

[alinda]

"Resentment is like drinking poison and then hoping it will kill your enemies." Nelson Mandela, Winner of the Nobel Peace Prize

[Jon]

Lynch the lobsters!

[Jon]

Hooks in you, Hooks in me. Hooks in the ceiling for that well hung feeling.

[Billy-Bumbler]

Talking to my friends on a chat room

kuatsu742: nice

[Candice Dionysus]

Aidan, a man of twenty years, swooped into the safe house through the uppermost window he had left open just for this occasion. The nation was falling apart... the entire royal family, murdered, and by his hand. His dark green eyes seemed to glow on this dark night, only to be seen by the light provided to others by the crescent moon that hung in the night sky. Not a cloud in sight of this sky though. He felt a breeze, and shuddered; it was quite cold tonight. His auburn hair blew across his face, but he pushed it away with his own hand. The hair went down to his neck, and was straight in particular. Only five hours ago he had been covered in blood, and discovered by the knights of the castle. He knew his master knew as he had seen numerous other assassins descending upon the town, looking for he, Aidan who had hid in the clock tower.[/u]

1. The punctuation seems off to me. I would try something more along the lines of “through the uppermost window, which he had left open earlier so that he could do so.” Or something along those lines.

2. Should be capitalized, even after an ellipses (...).

3. What does this mean? “Straight in particular”? I’m not sure what this is getting across. Try using a different word, one that more fits the flow.

[quote=”Merriam-Webster Definition”] 1 : of, relating to, or being a single person or thing <the particular person I had in mind>
2 obsolete : partial
3 : of, relating to, or concerned with details <gave us a very particular account of the trip>
4 a : distinctive among other examples or cases of the same general category : notably unusual <suffered from measles of particular severity> b : being one unit or element among others <particular incidents in a story>
5 a : denoting an individual member or subclass in logic b : affirming or denying a predicate to a part of the subject —used of a proposition in logic <“some men are wise” is a particular affirmative>
6 a : concerned over or attentive to details : meticulous <a very particular gardener> b : nice in taste : fastidious c : hard to please : exacting


Aidan wondered when his master... and lover would be here. Aidan knew his death was swiftly coming upon him. Sighing, he threw the black cloak he had worn to cover himself this night, the night to be remembered as the royal families massacre. He of course had undone the hood, had he thrown it with the hood still hooked together, it would have just flown up, and fallen back to where it had been before. He wore a cotton dyed black shirt, and matching slacks. His dark boots which held two concealed daggers, one for each boot seemed to be especially dangerous tonight.

1. Capitalization after an ellipses. It isn’t necessarily mandatory, but it looks a lot better when it is. It is, technically, the start of a new sentence.

2. This isn’t a particularly relevant fact. I would try to word it shorter. Something along the lines of “He had undone the hood so that the cloak would not simply fall right to the floor.” Something along those lines. Minor details should be written in quick sentences.

3. “His dark boots, each of which concealed a dagger, seems to be especially dangerous tonight.” The way you worded it was murky and drawn out. Try to maybe write it cleaner, use less words but still give the same effect.


Aidan had scanned the safe house after entering, finding nothing. He let his guard down, only by a little. An assassin had to be on guard at least a little, or his enemies would indeed kill him. His enemies though had he known he had any if any indeed claimed him as one, were not of his concern this night though. His teacher, his master, his bed sharer, the person in this world he cared the most about besides himself was to be the one to drain his life away...

1. This should probably read “but he did not find anything.” or something along those lines. “But found nothing amiss.” Seems to fit more with the wording in your story.

2. “But only by a bit.” Or something like that would fit better here. I think it would better suggest a reluctance to let his guard down.

3. “Had to always be on guard, on one level or another, or his enemies would indeed destroy him.” seems to fit better. Or, you know, something like that.

4. The language here is murky due to lack of comma’s. Try putting a , in there at appropriate pause points. Like “his enemies though, had he known”. That is an appropriate place to put a comma.

5. “His teacher, his master, the one with whom he shared his bed - the person in this world he cared the most about besides himself - was to be the one to drain his life away...” Try using a hyphen between parts of a long sentence so they don’t actually run on. Also, repetition can be annoying. Constantly saying “his this, his that, his blah-blah” can get on a readers nerves. The way I’ve written it flows better.


The auburn hair colored youth had no conciseness this night... The royal family he had just killed; a king, a queen, two princesses, and a prince, none deserved his sympathy. They were the very people who had taken everything from him eight years ago. A simple rule all assassins adhered to in this country was known as The Assassin's Creed. Number one; once a target is marked, no other may attempt to assassin that target, number two; no taking jobs from those who threaten this country in anyway, shape or form, or job that is of equal consequence, and number three; no harming the royal family through sickness, heartache, injury, or death.

1. Too wordy, again. It should be “auburn haired youth,” which cuts out an unneeded word, and looks better.

2. “Conciseness”? I think this is a misused word. This means free of elaboration and superfluous detail. I think that the word you wanted was “conscience”. As in “my conscience is killing me because I’ve cheated on my wife.”

3. “Prince - none deserved...” Again, this is a good place to use a hyphen. It makes the sentence flow better.

4. Because the Creed consists of three rules, you should change this to “simple rules all assassins adhered to.” Its semantics. I argue it with my brother all the time.

5. Assassinate. The word you should have used was assassinate. “No other may attempt to assassinate that target.” In facty, you’ve also got the use of the semi-colon’s backwards. It should be at the end of a “Number.” As in “Number one, once a target is marked, no other may attempt to assassinate that target; number two...”


The most important creed of them all the third, and he, Aidan had broken it. He had sat himself down at the table where he, and his master would eat their meals together, chattering about things from past affairs, to weather, to simple gossip. Hard to believe, only yesterday everything seemed as it would go on as it had for the last six years. He smiled, and a single tear from those dark green eyes made it's way down his fact, until it descended upon the floor where only a critter of extraordinary hearing would hear.
"Master..." murmured Aidan. He was thankful it would be his master to kill him... Anyone else he would fight back, but against the master that had taught him everything from learning to value life to taking away that life.
His dark green eyes showed a sign of repent, not for the family he had murdered, but for the pain he had caused his lover, and master. However, those eyes went from repent to solitude, all knowing they would die here tonight alone in a sense. His lover would not hold him as he died, Aidan knew that...

1. The words here aren’t punctuated properly. “Of them all, the third, Aidan had broken.” or something along these lines, would work better.

2. No need for a comma here. Just “he and his mater” works fine.

3. I think you mean “his face,” not “his fact.”

4. This would fit better as “would have heard it.” Or something similar to that.

5. This entire sentence is off. It doesn’t end, it just kind of wanders and stops short. ‘Anyone else he would fight back, should they come to destroy him - but against the master, who had taught him everything from how to value life to how to end it, he would not.” Would be a much better way to get the point across.

6. “Repentance” is the word I think you meant here. “Showed a sign of repentance, not for the family...”

7. Again, wrong version of the word. “Repentance to solitude.”


Aidan would never forget the night either that had started all this sadness, chaos, and ... happiness. The night the royal family had ordered their army to siege his family who were of noble birth, and first in line for the throne after the royal blood. The royal family had been paranoid for years that Aidan's family would try to take the throne since they had produced no heirs themselves, and had finally acted upon this paranoia. Aidan had been out picking blackberries, being asked by his mother. She always said a twelve year boy needed to be home, doing chores for their lovely mothers. It always made Aidan laugh heartily. He saw the very house he had called home; a house of grandeur, two stories, white paint, and a lovely garden in the back. A ransack by one army of fifty had destroyed this place he called home however. His home now looked no more grand than a peasant's would. The windows shattered, the front door bashed in, and now a garden filled with men destroying the very life his mother had grown out of a green thumb, and love from her love filled heart.
The young Aidan had dropped his basket of blackberries that were to be used for a pie, ran into the now beat down house, screaming, "Mother! Father!"
He had only found bodies, and a blood bath that would have dyed the sea red. The young boy had ran into each room that he knew of, and even secret ones had his parents known he knew he would be smacked for. Horrified, he ran... he ran into the night. He looked back once, and to only see that once place of happiness to be on fire, engulfed in flames that seemed to dance mockingly at Aidan. The army had dispersed to claim whatever they had dragged out of the home, which had been a lot of family valuables, but Aidan had paid no heed to them as he had ran inside.

1. Punctuation and an unneeded ellipses. It should look more like “forget the night, either, which has started all of this sadness, chaos - and happiness.” A hyphen is a better alternative to an ellipses, in most cases.

2. I don’t quite think “siege” is the best word here. Siege implicates that they had surrounded them and held them in their home for many days before striking. I think better the word “seize” or “decimate,” in this case.

3. The wording is a little bit rambling. A sleeker way to say it would have been: “...family, who were of noble blood, and the first in line for the throne - after the Royal Family, of course.” Another great place to use a hyphen. Stops the sentence from being a run-on.

4. Comma. Didn’t use one. This should read “...the throne, since they had...” This is so that the reader knows where to put the pause, especially in such a long sentence. A comma here is necessary.

5. “...having been asked by his mother.” It’s a smoother way to word it.

6. You don’t need to reiterate that this is his home, the reader would understand what you meant if you simply said “the house now looked...” Readers will get bored if you constantly use nouns at the beginning of sentences. You do this a lot. Take a look at all the sentences that start with the words “he,” “his,” “they,” etc. and see if there isn’t a better way to word it so it doesn’t start with that word.

7. “Love-filled” is a word that should have a hyphen.

8. “...blackberries, which were” is a better way to word this. Also, “had run into the now busted and derelict house, screaming for his parents.”

9. “Bloodbath” is how that should read. One word.

10. “...had run from room to room, even checking the secret ones that he would have been smacked for, had his parents found out he knew of their existence.” If you really want to go for an emotional zinger, you could also add something like “Now they never would.”

11. You don’t need to use an ellipses here. You could simply say “He ran, fled into the night.

12. This would read better as “only to”. Take out “and” completely.


Aidan had hid for two years... two years as a peasant. He had portrayed himself as an orphan, and luckily found a nice enough family to take him in. Then he met him... Glynn. The man was six years senior to Aidan. He had caught Aidan stealing the usual bread; he had gotten away with it for a few months. Glynn had grabbed his hand, smacked it, and dragged him back to very backer he had thieved from. It turned out the baker knew Aidan had been stealing, but let him get away with hence knowing how hard it was growing up to be a peasant but no more this day, as a baker of course was middle class.[u/] That very day had been the day he learned Glynn was also an assassin. He had pleaded with Glynn to take him under his wing... Glynn had been a bit nervous about taking on his first apprentice [u]hence him just becoming a master of his own trade only months ago, due to his age, he could claim himself a master, and indeed he was a master of the shadows. Known as Glynn of Dancing Shadows to most of those who were assassins, but to other assassins, he was known as Master Of Stealth Glynn. He as an assassin had his own principles, refusing to kill women, and children. He did however have the blood of men both good, and evil on his hands. It did not affect him though as he lived life everyday for himself, and only himself.

1. Needless ellipses. You like to use them a lot, I noticed. This could have been worded better, somewhere along the lines of “Aidan had hidden as a peasant boy for two years.”

2. Again, this ellipses should be a hyphen. “Then he had met him - Glynn.” Also, think about italicizing Glynn’s name. For emphasis.

3. Semi-colon, the sentence is too wordy. Try changing it like this: “...bread which he had gotten away with stealing. In fact, he had gotten away with it for two months at that point.” Or, you know, something like that.

4. I don’t think the word “hence” belongs here. It is out of context. It should read more like “...but had let him get away with it because he knew how hard it was to grow up as a peasant and no more, these days. Being a baker, he was only Middle Class himself.”

5. Again, this word, “hence,” is not needed here. It is out of context. Try a different word.

6. This is very wordy, and makes little sense. Are you trying to say that he became a master at a young age, and though deserves his title, he feels inadequate about taking on an apprentice? Try wording this differently.

7. One part of this sentence negates the other. Do you mean that some non-assassins know him as the first name, and other assassins know him by the second? Or that lower-ranking assassins know him by the first, and his peers by the second?

8. Comma. “He, as an assassin, had his own principles,” is a better way to write this sentence. It flows better, and is easier to read.

9. “...did, however, have...”

10. Incorrect comma use. “...men, both good and evil, on his hands.”

11. Comma. Wording. “It did not affect him, though, as he lived his life everyday for himself, and only himself.” It flows better.


The day Aidan was apprenticed to him, his first task... to kill the very family that had taken him in. The only member though who remained was the father, the mother dying due to a very bad cough, and the children out of the house. Glynn knew this, and had chosen it to see if Aidan were to be a success to the night world. Aidan had done it with ease... The father that had taken him in had suspected not, in fact embraced Aidan in the usual hug of affection, and not suspecting a thing until the dagger was found to be protruding through his crusty loved filled heart. The look on the man's face; that of shock, and then betrayal haunted Aidan to the point of him crying. Glynn had held him... that as he would a lover. Aidan, fourteen, and Glynn, eighteen, that night fell in love with each other. Glynn with his handsome, yet sullen face, black hair similar to Aidan's except usually covering his right eye, and his tall features, was the person Aidan had come to love that night. His muscled, and well toned body comforted Aidan whenever he needed it... The man was a master of killing, but ever so gentle with Aidan, and any other person that was not his target for that night. Glynn had taught Aidan so well, the boy had earned himself a name. Master of the Shadow Crescent Aidan. Ironic that this night it was a crescent moon out hanging in the dark night sky.

1. Wording, punctuation, unnecessary ellipses. “The day that Aidan was finally apprenticed under Glynn his first task was to kill the family who had taken him in.”

2. Unnecessary ellipses usage. A simple period would be better.

3. Using the same word twice in a sentence. Instead of “suspected” try using “knew” instead. I would have worded it “The father knew not - had, in fact, embraced Aidan affectionately as he usually did, suspecting nothing until the dagger...” It flows better, and it fits more with the ambiance of the work in general.

4. Comma, hyphen. “...crusty, love-filled heart.”

5. Comma. “...and then betrayal, haunted...” Makes for better flow in description.

6. Wording. It would fit better as “to the point of tears.”

7. Ellipses again. Try “Glynn had held him as he would have held a lover.”

8. This shows them to only be four years apart in age. Earlier you had said Glynn was six years Aidan’s senior. That would make him twenty, not eighteen. This is a continuity error.

9. Wordy. Shorten it to just “fell in love that night.” It makes for better flow, overall.

10. Try changing it to “...but that usually covered his right eye...” Cuts down on a run-on sentence. In fact, this whole sentence should be broken up. Try “Glynn, with his handsome, yet sullen face - black hair similar to Aidan's but that usually covered his right eye - and his tall features, was a person that Aidan came to love dearly that night.”

11. Ellipses. I used to use them this much, when I was just starting out, six years ago. You’ll grow out of wanting to use it so much. It should be reserved for dialogue and thoughts, not description.

12. Punctuation problems. “Glynn had taught Aidan so well the boy had earned himself a name; “Master of the Shadow Crescent Aidan.”” A comma where it did not belong, and a period where a semi-colon would have served well. Also, putting quotation marks around his “name” is probably a good idea.


The night of Aidan's sixteenth birthday; changing it to the night his life had changed ever so dramatically was the night that Glynn made love to him. That night forever remained in Aidan's thoughts. Even now as he looked at the safe house where he, and Glynn lived. He heard a scamper, and drew his short sword, looking around only to find a mouse chewing on crumbs that littered the dusty floor. He smiled though; this was to be his deathbed... A safe house with little furniture, dust covered floors, a very small upstairs, and crumbs everywhere...
He sheathed his short sword, and smelled the room one final time, it smelled of Glynn to him... that natural scent of his which seemed to be of strawberries. Glynn had once said he, Aidan smelled of roses. He had no idea why, but to Glynn he did. He had no more tears to shed, he had cried all the other night, knowing what was to come this night. He was found to be surprised when his eyes were not puffy, nor red this morning when he set out for his final job, final, and first act of revenge, and final time he ever saw Glynn as a lover.


1. Semi-colon, lack of comma, wording. This would read better like "The night of Aidan's sixteenth birthday - or rather the night his life was changed ever-so-dramatically - was the night that Glynn had finally made love to him." This is, again, a better flow in the run of things.

2. Comma instead of period.

3. Comma not needed.

4. Comma not needed.

5. Semi-colon in wrong place, and another unnecessary ellipses. Some of the wording could be different. I would have done it this way: "He smiled though, as this was to be his deathbed; a safehouse with little furniture, a layer of dust on almost everything, a very small upstairs, and crumbs littering the ground." See how I put the word "very" in italics? It emphasizes how small the upstairs really is to the reader.

5. Incorrect comma usage, unnecessary semi-colon, wording. "He sheathed his short sword and took a moment to really smell the room a final time. It smelled of Glynn, of that natural, almost strawberry scent which Aidan always associated with his lover."

6. Comma, wording. "Glynn had said before that he thought Aidan smelled of roses. He had no idea why, did not even smell it himself, but Glynn had insisted the fact." After this, you should hit enter and make the next part its own paragraph. The jump is too drastic, from talking about their scents to talking of no more tears. It should be another paragraph, to make the jump seem less sudden.

7. Wording, incorrect placement of a comma. "He was surprised to find that his eyes were not red and puffy when he had awoken that morning..."

8. Wording, punctuation. "...job. Final job, and first act of revenge. It would also be, he knew, the last time he would see Glynn as a lover."


Aidan pulled his boots off, taking the daggers out, and revealing his black cotton socks. He would die as lived with Glynn; as a civilian of this country, lover of Glynn, and master cook of home. Glynn had never been able to master the art of cooking... Considering the amazing art he could make with his hands which Aidan grew to be jealous of, and how fast he picked up other things, Aidan had to laugh at the one flaw of the man he loved. Once again a breeze swept through the room. Aidan shuddered again, wondering where the wind came from, and found the front door cracked open. He grew a bit paranoid, but knew he would have sensed Glynn at least had he been in this house. He considered himself at least on par with Glynn's skill of stealth. He looked at himself; his medium height showed, now hardened body due to years of training with Glynn. He smoothed out the wrinkles of his black cotton slacks, and shirt. He laughed... not manically, but enough to be asked what was so funny. Funny how when death was upon one, they tended to act so normal, as if nothing was abnormal and out of place.

1. Comma is not needed.

2. "He would die as he had lived..."

3. Semi-colon not needed, change to hyphen.

4. "...master cook of the home." Sometimes it is easy to forget little things like using the word "the". It does blong here, though.

5. Ellipses not needed, change to period.

6. Wording is backwards here. "...would have at least sensed Glynn, had he been in the house."

7. Wording. Needs to be changed to make more sense. "He looked himself over - his medium height was obvious, and his body was now hardened with muscle after so many years of training with Glynn."

8. Comma not needed.

9. Ellipses not needed, change to comma.

10. Wording. Could be changed to read better, flow better. "What was funny, of course, was house when death was upon one, they always tended to act as if nothing was amiss."


One more gust of wind blew by, and Aidan closed the cursed door. He felt the temperature in the room liven up a little bit, but not by much. He cursed his covered toes, feeling the cold hard wooden floor beneath him. It creaked with each step he took, but it didn't bother Aidan. He was the only one in this house tonight... at least for now. He had heard a flapping noise as he had entered the house, and wondered what was the cause of it. He looked around, and found a single piece of paper held down by a rock on their desk. He removed the black stone, throwing it over his shoulder, not caring the loud thud it made as it hit the floor. He read the note:

1. Comma not needed.

2. Comma needed. "...cold, hard wooden floor..."

3. Ellipses not needed, could be worded better. "...in this house tonight - for now at least."

4. Wording. "Looking around, he found a piece of paper on their desk, cleverly held down by a stone."

4. Wording. It would flow better as: "Aidan removed the black stone from its place, tossing it over his shoulder with little interest as he read the note. The stone had made a thud when it hit the floor."

5. Wording. "The note read:"


Dear Aidan...
I cannot believe the act you have committed. The years of me telling you revenge not matter to me, nor it should you. I came to love you, and you me that night you cried in my arms... Aidan... I have only written this after learning of your murderous act. I hold no grudge on you as a lover, but as an assassin... I must take your life for the life you took earlier this day... I hope you are redeemed in whatever life after death awaits us. I pray we meet each other so we can be together again... I might even join you sooner than you might expect yourself and I myself. By the time you read this, I suspect I might have found you. Remember these words my young lover...
Forever shall I love you. The tides of time can never wash away my feelings, and less it shall I shall commit myself to finding thee, and seeking out thy washed away feelings, and learn to love again the very love that I have lost.

Love, Glynn.

This part is fine, because it is how Glynn has written the note, and people don’t always write their notes with the best of care. Though, if you want to five Glynn an air of more cunning and intelligence, you may think to look at ways you might reword this to better fit his personality, and again, not use so many ellipses’. They bog the reader down.


As Aidan read this, forgetting he had sworn he had no more tears to cry, a single tear drop similar to the last found itself drip on the paper scroll. Then Aidan felt it... the blade of justice protruding through his heart. He felt that very familiar breathing pattern against his neck and smelled strawberries.
"I'm glad you had time to read it, my love..." muttered Glynn, who Aidan swore sounded so hoarse himself he must have cried more than Aidan had.
"It's alright my love... This was destined to be since yesterday..." said Aidan who found it hard to talk, but found the strength to. He found himself turned around, seeing the fact of the man he loved... Stubble on his chin, but age had done nothing to this man's face... Still handsome as he was at eighteen. He felt Glynn's warm, strawberry taste filled lips against his own. He felt himself crying, and Glynn also.
"I will join you... I have decided..." said Glynn. He could not live with the guilt that he had killed the one man he loved his entire short life, Aidan. Glynn embraced Aidan one last time...
"Glynn... I'm glad my family died now... I'm sad though my heart never let go of my past..." said Aidan, now coughing up blood. He then felt his own life ending... it had been, but now it was at it's last strand. "I'm surprised your holding me like this," he added with a smile though blood dripped from his chest, and mouth now.
"Why wouldn't I... We're lovers... and ... your dying," said Glynn still crying, but laughed a little. They both knew how strongly they felt about each other...
"I thought you'd never forgive me for killing them," he said, coughing up more blood. Glynn had long ago removed the blade he had killed Aidan with.
"Nonsense... I should ask you to forgive me for obeying the creed... My lvoe for you is greater than it... but I realized it only just now..." he said, stroking Aidan's hair to the side to look at that beautiful face of his.
"I love, and forgive you..." said Aidan, finishing the last word, then gasping his eyes went blank... Glynn closed Aidan's eyes, and cried afterwords, like never before...

1. Ellipses not needed. "Then Aidan felt the Blade of Justice protruding from his heart. and as he did he felt the so familiar breathing pattern, noticing how much stronger the scent of strawberries had become." Something like that would read better.

2. This would read better as "...sounded as though he had cried himself hoarse in his grief."

3. In general, you need to cut down on the use of ellipses'. Not everything can end of as an incompleted thought. People don't usually take long pauses between sentences. Cut them down to periods, change them to commas, or use hyphens. It reads better that way.

4. Put a comma here. "...Aidan, who..."

5. This would read better like: "...but somehow found the strength to do it."

6. Face, not fact.

7 & 8. Change these ellipses' to hyphens, and change the S' in "stubble" and "still" to s'.

9. Wording. "He felt Glynn's warm lips, so full of that strawberry taste, against his own, and felt himself and his lover crying together."

10. Wording. It would read better as "...killed Aidan, the one man that he had truly loved in his short life."

11. Ellipses. Change to period.

12. When it comes to wording around dialogue, you want to avoid wording things the same way over and over. Instead of "said [character name]" try changing it up, like "Aidan said, sniffling" or "he heard Glynn whisper" or "his voice was soft" or "he spoke quietly". Describe how they are speaking, don't just say "he said" and [character name] said".

13. Wording. This would read much better along the lines of: "He could feel his life ending now - it had been going slowly before, but he knew now that he was on his last bare threads."

14. Comma. "...smile, though blood..."

15. Comma misuse. "...chest and mouth..."

16. Wording. "Glynn had said, tears still falling from his eyes. He laughed then, a little bit. They both knew how strongly each felt for the other."

17. Wording. "...had long since removed the blade with which he'd taken his lovers life." Something like this flows better.

18. Love. Not Lvoe. Simple spelling error.

19. Wording, spelling, ellipses. Would read better as: "finnishing his final word with a gasp, as his eyes went blank and his body went limp. Glynn closed his lovers eyes, and then cried and cried for some time, holding Aidan close to him for the last time."


The next day the royal guards had found the safe house that Aidan had been in. However, they did not expect to find two lovers intertwined... Glynn sat up against the very spot Aidan had died, with Aidan's body in his arms, hugging him. He had poisoned himself before, having only ten minutes to live after Aidan died... Aidan was bloody, but looked happy in death, and the same as Glynn...Aidan's head propped under Glynn's chin, and Glynn's hands somehow still wrapped around Aidan's waste, and Aidan sitting on the floor, but right in between Glynn's legs, and in front of his groin. The royal guards didn't know what to do afterwords, but decided to at least bury the two together... They knew they shouldn't since one of them had murdered their lords, but the way the two had looked in death... they felt compelled to... The two lovers... one compelled by revenge, and the other by a creed... However, both just as happy after death to be together... forever....

1. Wording. "...safehouse which Aidan had hidden away after his crime."

2. Ellipses not needed, change to semi-colon or hyphen.

3. Wording. It's too long. It's a run-on sentence. I would have gone more the route of: "...propped up against the desk with his lovers body in his arms - even in death he still held him tight."

4. Wording. "...after Aidan left our living world."

5. Wording; a run-on sentence. Spelling error. "...and the same could be said of Glynn. The older assassin sat with his young lovers head under his chin, Glynn’s hands somehow still locked around his waist. Aidan was between his masters legs, leaning back against his chest, which was holding the older man up." It flows better this way.

6. Spelling error. "Afterwards."

7. Ellipses should be semi-colon.

8. Ellipses should be a period.

9. Word doesn't fit. Try "in". As in "just as happy in death..."

10. Ellipses'. I don't mind the story ending with one, that's great. But the one right before it should be a hyphen or a comma.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sorry if you didn’t want all the explanation that came with this, but I felt it was only fair to tell you what was wrong, instead of just underlining it and making you figure it all out yourself.

You use a LOT of ellipses’ (...), which bogs a story down, and makes a reader like me (who’s been reading all her life, and who was reading Stephen King at eight years old - and who is also a writer with six years experience, rejection letters, and university-grade books for writers) cringe and want to stop reading.

I used to make a lot of the same mistakes. I also had a bad tendency to mix up my tenses. Always make sure if you are writing in past tense, you stay there, if you’re writing in present tense, you stay there, and if you’re writing from a characters point of view, you don’t switch to an omnipresent point of view mid-paragraph. In fact, try to keep the point of view consistent, and wait for a new chapter to switch it. Then, if you feel it is necessary, switch back in another chapter.

There’s a million and one pieces of advice I could give you, so I’ll stop here before I prattle on like a fool. But if you ever need help, I’m always just a PM away, and I’m full of useful tips.

[IWasSentWest]

im about 2 push the start button on the whoop ass machine

^this is my life right now

[Letti]

- november 2., hétfő

[Míchéal]

Come join me in Castle Age! http://apps.facebook.com/castle_age//index.php?tp=cht&lka=1633681267&buf=1 thanks :)


^^^^^dont ask

[razz]

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2009/11/msnbc-7-killed-in-shooting-at-ft-hood-in-texas/1

[gsvec]

7144074

[IWasSentWest]

Patrick: blah blah blah. my farts have more intriguing things to say than this guy
Danielle: how old are you

me talking to a fellow classmate about our professor during class.

[Lily-sai]

♥

oh. that's what was in my ctrl + v. :)

[angiebaby]

fac22 is what was in my ctrl + v.
what does it mean?!?!?
i just dont know...
:unsure:

[stone, rose, unfound door]

娑婆

[Lily-sai]

That's a smart mouse, Del, he's like a circus mouse.


hm.. ah yes, a quote from The Green Mile.
p.s. what does the above mean, say please? :)

[stone, rose, unfound door]

It's a Buddhist concept of calling out gods to answer one's prayer. I was looking it up because I didn't know it either :)

[lisaki]

cluster headache

*** yeah... ok.

[Jon]

Choice Theory

[gsvec]

http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd206/carjoy39/smilies/bdaycandlesmilef.gif