International Engineering Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 6500 words

International Engineering Management - Essay Example This study highlights that the first machine was huge in structure which was then technologically upgraded. This led to the invention of some smaller models. The company revolutionized by inventing popcorn machines which used a unique blend of ‘butter oil’ and ‘leaf lard’ to offer crispy popcorns to the customers. In its initial years, to attract customers, the company offered the popcorns in a uniquely designed vintage vehicle with a toy clown in it. Charles Cretors was successful in tracking the market demand which helped the company to establish its niche in the market. With the success of the invention made by Charles Cretors, the company leaped to fame. The company enjoyed the advantages of being a first mover in the industry. This was achieved by the company’s breakthrough innovation in being the first in discovering this type of machine. It enabled the company to earn a bigger market share within a shorter lapse of time. The company was also ab le to achieve cost synergies. Being the pioneer in inventing such a machine, the company could price its products accordingly, depending on the rise in demand for its products in the market. Though the initial demand of these machines was not very high, but in the year 1887, the company was able to sell thirty of such machines which helped it to generate revenues of approximately $3,627. With the rising demand of popcorns, the company started growing stronger in the domestic market. The company was successful in estimating the growing demand for popcorns which was in turn triggering the demand for better popping machines. Such a technologically upgraded machine would enable easy production of popcorns in huge amounts incurring lesser time. To tap this growth opportunity, the company launched two new models out of which one model was named as ‘Earn more’ to attract the grocers to buy this model to ensure higher profits.

A Free Body Diagram Mechanics Essay

A Free Body Diagram Mechanics Essay A free body diagram consists primarily of a sketch of the body in question and arrows representing the forces applied to it. The selection of the body to sketch may be the first important decision in the problem solving process. For example, to find the forces on the pivot joint of a simple pair of pliers, it is helpful to draw a free body diagram of just one of the two pieces, not the entire system, replacing the second half with the forces it would apply to the first half. What is included The sketch of the free body need include only as much detail as necessary. Often a simple outline is sufficient. Depending on the analysis to be performed and the model being employed, just a single point may be the most appropriate. All external contacts, constraints, and body forces are indicated by vector arrows labeled with appropriate descriptions. The arrows show the direction and magnitude of the various forces. To the extent possible or practical, the arrows should indicate the point of application of the force they represent. Only the forces acting on the object are included. These may include forces such as friction, gravity, normal force, drag, or simply contact force due to pushing. When in a non-inertial reference frame, fictitious forces, such as centrifugal force may be appropriate. A coordinate system is usually included, according to convenience. This may make defining the vectors simpler when writing the equations of motion. The x direction might be chosen to point down the ramp in an inclined plane problem, for example. In that case the friction force only has an x component, and the normal force only has a y component. The force of gravity will still have components in both the x and y direction: mgsin(ÃŽÂ ¸) in the x and mgcos(ÃŽÂ ¸) in the y, where ÃŽÂ ¸ is the angle between the ramp and the horizontal. What is excluded All external contacts and constraints are left out and replaced with force arrows as described above. Forces which the free body applies to other objects are not included. For example, if a ball rests on a table, the ball applies a force to the table, and the table applies an equal and opposite force to the ball. The FBD of the ball only includes the force that the table causes on the ball. Internal forces, forces between various parts that make up the system that is being treated as a single body, are omitted. For example, if an entire truss is being analyzed to find the reaction forces at the supports, the forces between the individual truss members are not included. Any velocity or acceleration is left out. These may be indicated instead on a companion diagram, called Kinetic diagrams, Inertial response diagrams, or the equivalent, depending on the author. Assumptions The free body diagram reflects the assumption and simplifications made in order to analyze the system. If the body in question is a satellite in orbit for example, and all that is required is to find its velocity, then a single point may be the best representation. On the other hand, the brake dive of a motorcycle cannot be found from a single point, and a sketch with finite dimensions is required. Force vectors must be carefully located and labeled to avoid assumptions that presuppose a result. For example, in the accompanying diagram of a block on a ramp, the exact location of the resulting normal force of the ramp on the block can only be found after analyzing the motion or by assuming equilibrium. Other simplifying assumptions that may be considered include two-force members and three-force members. Drawing Free-Body Diagrams Free-body diagrams are diagrams used to show the relative magnitude and direction of all forces acting upon an object in a given situation. A free-body diagram is a special example of the vector diagrams which were discussed in an earlier unit. These diagrams will be used throughout our study of physics. The size of the arrow in a free-body diagram is reflects the magnitude of the force. The direction of the arrow shows the direction which the force is acting. Each force arrow in the diagram is labeled to indicate the exact type of force. It is generally customary in a free-body diagram to represent the object by a box and to draw the force arrow from the center of the box outward in the direction which the force is acting. An example of a free-body diagram is shown at the right. The free-body diagram above depicts four forces acting upon the object. Objects do not necessarily always have four forces acting upon them. There will be cases in which the number of forces depicted by a free-body diagram will be one, two, or three. There is no hard and fast rule about the number of forces which must be drawn in a free-body diagram. The only rule for drawing free-body diagrams is to depict all the forces which exist for that object in the given situation. Thus, to construct free-body diagrams, it is extremely important to know the various types of forces. If given a description of a physical situation, begin by using your understanding of the force types to identify which forces are present. Then determine the direction in which each force is acting. Finally, draw a box and add arrows for each existing force in the appropriate direction; label each force arrow according to its type. If necessary, refer to the list of forces and their description in order to understa nd the various force types and their appropriate symbols. EXAMPLES No doubt you are aware of free body diagrams (otherwise known as FBDs). These are simplified representations of an object (thebody) in a problem, and includes force vectors acting on the object. This body isfreebecause the diagram will show it without its surroundings Lets take Figure 1 to be a pictoral representation of our problem: a boat on the floor, with a rope pulling it. First we will represent the boat the body in our problem as a (really) simplified figure, a square Gravity The first force we will investigate is that due to gravity, and well call it thegravitational force. We know that the acceleration due to gravity (if on Earth) is approximatelyg= 9.8 m/s . The force, by Newtons Second Law is F= mg wheregis the acceleration due to gravity. Lets add this to our diagram . Note that the force vector, labelledFmg, points downward, as this is the direction in which the gravitation force acts. Note that this force is commonly calledweight. This weight (mg) is different from our everyday use of the word weight (which is known in physics as mass). Normal Thenormal forceone which prevents objects from falling into whatever it is they are sitting upon. It is alwaysperpendicularto the surface with which an object is in contact. For example, if there is a crate on the floor, then we say that the crate experiences a normal forcebythe floor; and because of this force, the crate does not fall into the floor. The normal force on the crate points upward, perpendicular to the floor. It is called the normal force becausenormalandperpendicularmean the same thing. The normal force is always perpendicular to the surface with which a body is in constact. For a body on a sloped surface (say a ramp), the normal force acting on that body is still perpendicular to the slope. In the case of our problem, the ship, we will pretend the ship is being pulled on a floor. (This is because on water there is the complication with another force, buoyancy. For simplicitys sake, we will ignore buoancy by putting the ship on the floor.) Lets add the normal force to our FBD (Figure ), and represent the normal force with the script N, . Friction Related to the normal force is thefrictional force. The two are related because they are both due to the surface in contact with the body. Whereas the normal force was perpendicular to the surface, the frictional force is parallel. Furthermore, friction opposes motion, and so its vector always points away from the direction of movement. Friction is divided into two categories, static and kinetic. These are represented by the script F, with a subscript s for static friction:, and a subscript k for kinetic friction,. As its name suggests,static frictionoccurs when the body is not moving (i.e. static). It is the force which makes it difficult to start something moving. On the other hand,kinetic frictionoccurs when the body is in motion. This is the force which causes objects to slow down and eventually stop. Friction is usually approximated as being proportional to the normal force. The proportionality constant is called the coefficient of (static or kinetic) friction. The constant is represented asfor static friction, andfor kinetic friction; it depends on the actual surface with which the body is in contact. To summarize, Weve added (kinetic) friction to our free body diagram, Figure . Push and Pull Another force which may act on an object could be any physical push or pull. This could be caused by a person pushing a crate on the floor, a child pulling on a wagon, or in the case of our example, the wind pushing on the ship. We will label the push force caused by the wind withFpush Tension Tension in an object results if pulling force act on its ends, such as in a rope used to pull a boulder. If no forces are acting on the rope, say, except at its ends, and the rope itself is in equilibrium, then the tension is the same throughout the rope. We will use the letterTto represent tension in a free body diagram. If we say that our ship is being pulled by a rope at its front end, then we can add this force to our FBD (Figure ). And there we have it: all the forces acting on our ship has been labelled in Figure . This is the complete FBD for our problem of a ship being pulled along a floor by a rope Steering Wheel and Pedals of a Bicycle Two examples of the turning effect of two equal and opposite forces not acting in the same straight line are the steering wheel and the pedals of a bicycle. In the figure (a) below, the left hand is pulling with force F on the steering wheel while the right hand is pushing with the same force F. The two forces make the wheel turn in an anticlockwise direction. In figure (b) shown above, one pedal is being pushed forward while the other is being pushed back. This rotates the sprocket wheel and the attached chain anticlockwise. Can you think of other everyday examples in which a turning effect or rotation takes place? Examples of Couple In our day-to-day life, we come across many objects which work on the principle of couple. Winding up the spring of a toy car, opening and closing the cap of a bottle, turning of a water tap, cork screws, door key etc. are some of the common examples of couples. A beam balance The physical balance used in the school laboratory is pivoted in the middle with equal arms. The two scale pans of equal weights are hung from the upper edge of wedge shaped supports at either end of the beam. When the beam is raised for weighing, it swings freely about the lower edge of a wedge shaped support in the center. In this position the balance is in equilibrium. Beam balance Because l1= l2and m1= m2, according to the principle of moments, m1x l1= m2x l2 Now if you place a mass of 1 kg in one pan and an unknown mass x on the other pan so that the balance is in equilibrium. then, (m1+ x) l1= (m2+ 1) l2 As m1= m2and l1= l2 x = 1 kg Let us calculate what part of the load each boy carries. To find the upward force exerted by the boy at A, we shall consider the hand of the boy at B as the pivot. Now, the clockwise moment = F1x 5 m and the anticlockwise moment due to the load 900 N = 900 x 3. If the bar is in equilibrium, then F1x 5 = 900 x 3 F1= 900 x= 540 N Hence, the force exerted by the boy = 540 N. But F1+ F2= 900 N (sum of the downward forces equal to the sum of upward forces). Therefore, F2= 900 F1 = 900 540 = 360 N The force exerted by the boy at B can also be calculated by using A as a pivot. Therefore, F2x 5 = 900 x 2 or, F1= 900 x = 360 N REFERENCE WWW.ELIS.COM WWW.ENCYCLOPEDIA.COM WWW.ANSWER.COM DIFFERENT BOOKS R.S. KHURMI G.K. LAL

The World Needs a Little Courtesy Essay -- Argumentative Persuasive Es

The World Needs a Little Courtesy Doesn't anyone show common courtesy anymore? When I was younger, I never knew what my parents meant when I heard them ask that question. I thought people were polite. I never had any problems with rude people. Now that I am older, and actually experience people outside of school, I understand what my parents meant. What happened to people saying "Excuse me" when they want to walk past you? Don't people know what it means when someone says this to them? When I say "Excuse me" to someone the individual stares at me as if I just spoke a foreign language or said something insulting. Then the individual still doesn't move. I don't know how many times I have been standing somewhere, and instead of someone saying "Excuse me" to get by, he or she just shoves past. How was I to know the person was standing behind me? I guess I should have used the eyes in the back of my head. I have also seen grown men push past pregnant women, elderly couples, and even handicapped people as if they weren't even there. When my boyfriend was on crutches and we went shopping, people would run into him with their carts. He had to stop and get out of their way and they would act as if it was an inconvenience to them that he was on crutches. I look out for pregnant women, the elderly, people on crutches or in wheelchairs, someone with his or her arms full, and people with children. I move out of their way. Am I just more aware of my surroundings than other people? What happened to holding doors open for other people? I don't mean for just women, the elderly, or the handicapped. (I am a twenty-five-year-old female,... ...ould be because parents do not have the support of the teachers and schools. Teachers are a big part of a child's life, but they are not allowed to correct a child's behavior because they could be reprimanded for doing so. If we do not teach our children to respect their elders, to help others, and to say please and thank you, then eventually common courtesy and politeness will be lost. Did you ever realize how a reaction you get from a stranger, or even someone you know, could affect the mood of your day? Or how polite or rude that person was? Did you ever feel a little happier after doing something nice for someone? For most of us, our days are filled with stress. Being courteous to someone or smiling or saying "Thank you" might just change both of your moods. Try it sometime. It might just change your whole day. Thank you!

Audit Program Essay

The purpose of this part of the audit process for Apollo Shoes is to design tests of controls, substantive tests of transactions, and analytical procedures for the sales, collection, payroll, personnel, acquisition, and payment cycles. These test and procedures are with intent to attest operating effectiveness of internal controls of Apollo Shoes on the basis of documentation provided. It is with the understanding that with the performing of test and procedures an opinion can be formed but management of Apollo shoes is responsible for the maintenance and assessment internal controls of over financial reporting. The design of test of controls of the sales and collection cycle follows. Sales and Collection Cycle Tests of Controls Sales Cycle: The review of the revenue and collection cycle manual of Apollo Shoes provides the improper record keeping of sales orders and that sales orders are not numbered which may affect the accuracy of pricing on invoices so steps. The test of controls for sale cycle to determine accuracy will be: 1. Examine sample 1004345 for Anglonesia Rehabilitation and Reprogramming Institute invoice to review unit prices of merchandise listed. Compare unit prices on invoice for merchandise to these shoe types from inventory status report of 2007. 3. Verify unit prices on invoices are correct. Collection Cycle: A review of balance confirmation from customers provides a customer of Apollo Shoes Neutralizer’s account balance was understated by $ 1,388. 75, which prompts testing of existence of collections. With that information, the test of controls of existence of collections will be: 1. Determine if bank reconciliation has been performed. . Request bank deposit slips and for end of year for 2007 and bank statement with information for deposit for end of year 2007. 3. Review accounts receivable aged trial balance. 4. Compare deposit amount listed on bank statement to deposit slips. 5. Review balance on reconciliation. 6. Compare payments customers indicate on balance confirmations to those listed on deposit slips for end of year 2007 and payments indicated on accounts receivable aged trial balance. Verify the amounts of reconciliation, bank statement, deposit slips, and accounts receivable aged trial balance align. Substantive Tests of Transactions Sales Cycle: With the same rationale of attesting to accuracy of recorded sales with the test of controls notation of a customer indicating receipt of merchandise not requested, the steps of substantive test of transactions are: 1. Examine sample 1004345 for Anglonesia Rehabilitation Trace invoice back to shipping documents, sales and customer order. 2. Verify shipping amount is correct. . Verify if what is listed is sales order was shipped. 4. Verify if what listed on sales or is what Anglonesia Rehabilitation requested Collection Cycle: In regards to collections, the same rationale for test of controls proving existence with the basis of Neutralizer having an understated balance, the substantive test for collections would be: 1. Review cash receipts journal for the amount of the cash receipt indicated by customers. 2. Review bank s tatement for deposits indicated. 3. Review deposit slips for list of deposits. 4. Verify amount customers indicate they payment is listed on deposit slips and are included on deposits listed on bank statement. Analytical Procedures Sales Cycle: From the basis of negative press that Larry Lancaster addresses in the letter to shareholders the assumption is that sales will decrease. The analytical procedures to confirm expectations for the sales cycle will be: 1. Review the sales trial balances from end of year 2006 and 2007. 2. Divide the sales trial balances for 2007 by the 2006 trial balance. 3. Determine the percentage change and if it is positive to confirm expectation. Collection Cycle: From the same basis for the analytical procedure for the Sales cycle and questions of collectability from Mall-Wart, it is the expectation that AR will balance will be larger than last year so the analytical procedure will be: 1. Review audited balance of AR for 2006 and the unaudited balance of 2007. 2. Determine if the AR balance has increase as expected. Payroll and Personnel Cycle The payroll and personnel cycle have a high level of internal control to ensure that employees are paid accurately and on time. This also ensures that the company files accurate and timely payroll returns with the government. Tests of Controls 1. Review time cards for hourly employees to ensure that the time clock was used to record all hours worked. 2. Review time cards for hourly employees to confirm that the supervisor has approved them. 3. Examine the last payroll or employees listing which supervisors checked and compare it with personnel files to confirm that all paid employees are current employees. Review personnel files to confirm that all current pay rates have been properly authorized by supervisors and properly documented. . Review personnel files to confirm authorized pay rates match the paychecks from the last pay cycle. 6. Review personnel files for current and updated W-4 and I-9 forms. 7. Observe the segregation of duties in the payroll department and confirm that payroll forms are reviewed before checks are issued. 8. Confirm that the correct payroll forms are sent to accounts payable. 9. Confirm that there is a segregation of duties in the treasurer’s office. 10. Confirm with supervisors that all paychecks are distributed or turned back in to the treasurer’s office. Verify that all paychecks are signed for when picked up or dispersed. 12. Confirm that all payroll checks are numbered and accounted for. 13. Review payroll tax liability accounts and ensure they are properly recorded. 14. Review payroll tax expense and tax liability accounts and confirm amounts against the quarterly payroll tax returns. 15. Review the bank statements for the payroll account to verify that deposits are transferred every two weeks and payroll checks are the only withdrawals. Substantive Tests of Transactions 1. Review the payroll journal for adjusting entries or unusual entries. . Compare cancelled checks against payroll journal and verify that the information matches and is correct. Examine the endorsement on the cancelled checks to ensure that they were endorsed correctly. 4. Compare cancelled checks against the list of current employees. 5. Reconcile the distributions in the payroll journal with the checks cleared on the bank statement. 6. Confirm and review bank reconciliations for the payroll account. 7. Select 100 hourly employees and recomputed their hours worked from the time cards for three separate pay cycles. Select 100 hourly employees and recomputed their gross pay based on their time cards for three separate pay cycles. 9. Select 200 employees and confirm that withholding amounts are accurate based on W-4 and current tax tables. 10. Use the same 200 employees in the previous test and recalculate net pay based on verified gross pay and withholding calculations. 11. Examine the payroll transactions to ensure that expenses are being allocated to the correct expense account. 12. Examine cleared check dates and compare them with the pay cycle pay dates. Compare the payroll expense account balances with the previous year payroll expense account balance (adjust for increases in pay or new hires). 2. Compare direct labor costs as a percentage of sales and compare with prior years’ percentage. 3. Compare payroll tax expense as a percentage of salaries and wages with prior years’ percentage (adjust for increases in tax rates). 4. Compare accrued payroll tax accounts with prior years. 5. Compare accrued vacation, sick pay, and other benefits as a percentage of salaries and wages with prior years’ percentage (adjust for any policy changes and new hires). 6. Verify accrued payroll taxes with the subsequent period’s payroll tax returns to determine the amount of the liability at the balance sheet date. Acquisition and Payment Cycle The acquisition of goods and services is important to ensure proper internal controls are in place and being followed because these include purchases of raw materials, equipment, supplies, maintenance, and research and development. In reviewing Apollo Shoes acquisition and payment cycles, and developing the audit plan, tests of controls must be reviewed, followed by substantive tests of transactions, and finally analytical procedures. Tests of Controls 1. Complete a walk-through of five judgmentally selected receipts of inventory. a. Verify the procedures in the client’s memo by interviewing the workers. b. Is the segregation of duties still being observed? 2. Complete a walk-thorough of five judgmentally selected payments. c. Verify the procedures in the client’s memo by interviewing the workers. d. Is the segregation of duties still being observed? 3. In order to test if the process for authorizing payments is working, judgmentally select ten payments and check each for: e. Is it canceled? f. Is the purchase requisition attached? g. Is the receiving report attached and showing the same quantity invoiced and ordered? h. Is the receiving report signed by the receiving clerk? i. Does the quantity paid and the price paid, match the invoice and the purchase requisition and purchase order? j. Did the vendor offer a cash discount? If so, was the discount taken? k. Was the invoice paid on time? 4. In order to test if the process for receiving goods is working, judgmentally select ten receipts from last month and check each for: l. Was it supported by a valid purchase requisition and purchase order? m. Was the receipt signed by the receiving clerk? n. Was the quantity received the same as the quantity ordered? o. Was the shipment paid in the right quantity and prices (as ordered)? 5. In order to test if the process for purchasing capital assets is working, judgmentally select two capitalized assets from the general ledger and check each for: p. Was it authorized? q. Is the depreciation taken correct each month and started with asset being put into service? r. Observe the asset. 6. Review any old receiving, requisition, or purchase orders that are not matched. Review any old invoices that are not matched. Inquire about their status. Substantive Tests of Transactions 1. Observe the client’s year-end inventory count. a. Judgmentally select ten count tags and make copy. b. Note any slow moving or damaged items. c. Resolve any differences between inventory records and counts. d. Get copy of full count when complete. 2. Verify count is recorded in the GL (and subsidiary ledger agrees with GL): e. Trace selected items from inventory count into general ledger detail. Select several items from GL and trace to count sheet. g. Verify that slow-moving and damage inventory is valued at salvage estimates (odd sized shoes). h. Test foot (verify math) of inventory valuation. i. Test pricing of inventory by tracing to purchase invoice. j. Test cut-off by reviewing receipts two weeks before and after year-end and determine that they were recorded in the correct period and counted or excluded from inventory as appropriate. k. Review inventory adjustment for reasonableness based on differences found during count. Review costing method (LIFO/FIFO) journal entries. l. Review reserves for obsolescence. 4. Review payments since year end that are over 10% of materiality. Verify that if they were incurred prior to year end that they are accrued in year-end payables. 5. Obtain a letter from legal counsel about contingent liabilities. 6. Read minutes of the board of directors for contingent liabilities or subsequent events. 7. Ask management about any incurred but not paid amounts. m. Review any old receiving, requisition, or purchase orders that are not matched with invoices. Review any old invoices that are not matched with purchasing documentation. 8. Inquire about the status of the large shipment of odd sized shoes at year end. Was this paid? Analytical Procedures 1. Compare current transactions with previous year’s statements. a. Similar expenses should not have significant variances period to period. b. Any significant variances should be examined to determine the reason. 2. Accounts payable transactions should be reviewed to ensure no unusual vendors or companies received payment when they shouldn’t have. Ratios should be calculated and compared from period to period. Any significant variances should be examined to determine the reason. c. Average Accounts Payable Trade Balance d. Accounts Payable Turnover e. Days in Accounts Payable 4. Compute inventory turnover and compare to prior years to see if trend is reasonable. 5. Compute a three year trend for inventory, payables, cost of goods sold, and operating expenses. 6. Calculate inventory and payables as a percent of assets and expenses as a percent of sales. f. Ask the client to explain fluctuations that are large or unusual.

Dancing in the Night

It was a long, frigid night. The air was crisp and there was fog building up on the windows, as she sat and waited in the car for the night to end and daybreak to arrive. She had been fighting with her boyfriend of several years. As always, the fight ended with a loud WHACK†¦ Her face red with shame and damp with tears she shed. She did not know why she shed them- more for the pain or for the embarrassment. She sat in the car, her cries for pain dancing in the cold air, her breath becoming shorter on the intake. She wanted to break free. She wanted to break the chains over this abuse! Oh how she wanted to drive, drive anywhere and start her life over again. But again, as always, she had an excuse. She had reasoning for this crazy life, this notion of love. Thoughts swirling in her head. And then her breathing would dance in the frigid air once again. It was two o'clock in the morning. She had little clothing on to keep her warm. The only protection from the cold, besides the thin sheath of a jacket on her arms and an old scarf, was the array of goose pimples. She cupped her icy hands over her mouth and withdrew a hearty, deep breath. That still was not enough. She ran the scenario through her mind, trying to figure out where she went wrong, where she wronged the man whom she loved so dearly. All she could think of was how the thrashing of their bodies collided together, the pain she felt everytime he wanted to. She would tell him to stop, but he would stop at nothing. He always got what he wanted. These thoughts running through her mind were making her cry uncontrollably. She brought her hands to her face, gently cupping her rosy, tear stricken face. Pondering once again about her life, she could not understand one thing. She could not understand how this man, the man whom she has been with for so long, could be such an ass at times. He would man handle her, like she was one of the guys, when in reality she was frail, weak, a porcelain doll. He treated her in such a way that a savage young boy would do to a quaint dollhouse with glass dolls inside. She wiped a tear from her frozen left cheek. Rubbing her nose with the sleeve of the sheath, she gently blew. All of this crying left her nose terribly stuffed up, like traffic on a freeway during rush hour. He had broad shoulders with bulging veins, high cheekbones, a strong trunk, chiseled legs. Why would he force her? Why would he strike her? She could not think. She was almost frozen. Shaking once again from the cold night, she decided to try and get the heater to go on in her old Oldsmobile. Turning the key clockwise, pumping the break†¦ A load croak and moan spoke from within the car. Her luck- the car was dead. She knew nothing about cars. She was miles from home and from civilization. Her life was very complicated. This man spoke words of poetry about getting married and starting a family. Why would he strike her? He did not mean to though. He always bought her tulips after their fights. Pink and red ones. She loved the tulips he bought. They brought her back to her childhood. Her father was the same way. That is why she loved him so much. They are so much alike. She always fixed the same drink when they came home from a long day- Jack on the rocks. Then they would ask her to sit on their knee. Sometimes she would. When she would not, they would grab her pencil- like arm and force her down on their knee. They would never ask though. They would never ask if they could. They would just throw her frail body on the bed and pin her down. She would fight back, but after exuding so much energy, she would give in. And then the pain would begin. She never liked it. She never wanted her daddy to do this, her boyfriend to use that. After it was all over, she would sit and cry in the bathroom, blood oozing from her. Thinking about this made her flush once again and the heavens flowed from her angelic eyes. Six o'clock. Almost time for the rooster to crow. She made her way from the broken car to the side of the road. She saw some truckers pass by this secluded road during the night. She wondered if any of them had heat. What she would do for warmth right about now†¦ Then she spotted it- a large tractor-trailer coming her way. She withdrew her chaffed thumb from her pocket, shaking violently from the rough night of tears and lack of warmth. She still managed to shake her hip and open one more button on her jacket. She slightly exposed her sequin top from work the day before. She hid her tips in the hole of the right sleeve. All she needed was warmth and a place to lay her head. The tractor-trailer slowly grooved its way to a stop, like a train stopping on the tracks. The window disappeared into the door and the rough smile of this man was comforting to her. She opened up one more button and managed to say amidst the shaking, â€Å"Could ya give me a ride to the motel a few miles up? I seem to be havin' some car trouble. In return, I could give you some company- and anything else you might need, want, hafta have†¦Ã¢â‚¬  A half smile crept on her face. The driver had a sly smirk, as provocative thoughts ran through his head. He agreed to give her the ride. She agreed to his wishes. After all, that is how she met her boyfriend nearly three years earlier, running away from her daddy.