Extra Large Luggage

Homedecorators.com discontinued its line of leather luggage look furniture. Where else can I find them? This line of furniture from Homedecorators.com came in brown or burgundy leather. The pieces look like luggages. There were file cabinets, file cabinets and "anywhere chests". You could buy the line at Amazon.com and other sites. All the sites I found link back to Homedeorators. com. Any info as to where I can buy them on line or elsewhere would be appreciated. I am especially interested in the 6 drawer anywhere chest and need two.

Where can I go to have my leather luggage repaired? I have a leather over night case and one of the wheels has come off, where can i get it repaired, preferably in North West London

Delsey Teal Microfiber with white leather trim luggage? Can anyone help me find this luggage set?!? I have a couple pieces of Delsey luggage in a beautiful and unique shade of teal (some kind of microfiber or suede) with white trim, and am deperately trying to find more. The problem is, I have no idea what collection it belongs to, and when they stopped producing them. Please help - I would really like some more!

Anyone know where to get cheap leather colored luggage tags? I am a bridesmaid in a wedding in the next year,and the bride is having a destination wedding. She wants to buy luggage tags for her guests to send save the date cards out and tie the theme together. Any ideas on wholesale prices for a non-retailer? Or other alternatives. Her colors are aqua and red. Thanks...

Wilsons leather had a giraffe luggage print suitcase that they have no more. is there a place i could find it? i was at wilsons leather a month ago and they had a giraffe luggage print suitcase with lime green lining, the website does not have it anymore. does anyone know where i could find it?

Leather or Kipling luggage? Would leather luggage be more durable than Kipling luggage?

Can you tell me which country offers the cheapest wholesale in leather goods (bags, belts, luggage)? which country in Asia

Northwest airlines can I carry on my camera bag and a carry on luggage bag? camera bag is 17"X10"X10" standard size carry on luggage and small leather zippered note book

How do i get rid of th stains on my luggage? I recently took a trip and I had to check in my favorite big red luggage bag because i had too many carry on bags. when i got it back, there were some stains on the bag. they were not too severe but i want to take them off anyway. i tried some warm water and a little bit of soap but it won't come off. the edges are leather, but the parts that are stained are made out of a material that is not cotton. its this smooth. almost plasticy material. help please?

Are louis vuitton luggage pieces durable? Especially the off white damier azur collection? I want to know how dark the patina becomes of the leather on louis vuitton bags. I'm considering the damier azur luggage piece and i am concerned about the leather becoming too dark and scuffs on the piece considering it's off white color. But at the same time I love the color, I want to make a good decision especially if that much money will be invested.

i have a white leather purse- the color is coming off of it!? I've tried cleaning it- but of course the color comes off even more- i've taken it to those people that restore luggage and handbags- but they want over 100 to clean and re-color it.... how can i do it myself-?

Airline trashed my suitcase. Any recommendations for cleaning (exterior is tan canvas and leather)? I flew Northwest Airlines last week and couldn't believe how dirty my suitcase was when it came off the conveyor belt. Looks like it was dragged BEHIND the luggage cart. I'd like to ATTEMPT to get some of the black off of the tan canvas, if it's even possible. Any recommendations?

Strange one, but can you get mold off of the inside and outside of leather gloves? My motorcycle gloves got wet when sitting in my bike's luggage. They are moldy and I am hoping I can save them

I recently found 4 pieces of Louis Vuitton luggage in my attic and want to know how I can restore them? They've probably been sitting up there for 20 years (a former boss had given them to my mother). The leather looks a little dull and the brass has tarnished. I want to know if there's anything I can do to make them look new or newer again. Any suggestions.

Where can I get cute luggage? Like a duffel bag or a suitcase? Kind of like how Urban Outfitters had like a black patent leather one, or a quilted one, not a kid one with characters lol. Something/Places under about $50 would be nice. Thanks!

I found hartmann luggage. A tweed look black/white triangles. Beautiful red inside. Anyone know what year? The luggage has leather protections around each outside edge, leather straps with snap in closure.

Where can I find a rolling audit bag? I am an auditor and we are in desperate need of large bags for transporting files. Where can I find inexpensive rolling luggage? Everywhere I look there are either expense leather business cases or personal luggage.

Suitcase filing cabinet? I was watching some show on HGTV weeks ago (can't remember which one now), and as part of the re-decorating/organizing, they put in a filing cabinet that looked like old leather luggage. I thought it was great and I have been looking for something similar. The only things I can find so far are from homedecorators.com -- but their suitcase filing cabinets are more "square" and not exactly what I'm looking for. Anyone have an idea where else I can look? I've been all over the HGTV website and haven't been able to find information.

we want to find buyers for genuine louis vuitton luggage? the luggage consists of a brand new monogram medium sized pull along suitcase worth a £1000 retail and also a leather matching monogram garment holdall worth £1170. I will sell both for £600. let me know x

Is there any way I can get sticky lip gloss of of the liner of my purse? It is a silky fabric liner and almost a whole tube of very sticky reddish gloss. It got squished open in my luggage on a plane, and it took about 2 weeks for me to find it. It seems impossible to get out. Any advice for something I could try without ruining the outer leather? Or if not, could I take it somewhere to have the liner replaced? Shoe repair, leather shop, tailor? Thanks!

Luggage!! I have seen luggage that i love the style of, old fashioned but on wheels. Anywhere else similar? Its more than i would like to pay so im hoping there are similar styles out there that i just havent found. http://www.grahamandgreen.co.uk/product.aspx/leather+suitcase+range/-/leathersuitcase.htm

What would be a good amount of clothes to pack-up for a 7 day trip to Cali around Thanksgiving? Its my first time there and I dont know what type of clothes I should bring or how much I should bring. A 21" piece of luggage is too small for 7 days what size luggage would you take? And should I take a heavy coat i.e. leather coat or heavy jacket or is a hoodie fine? LA area and also San Diego

At bristol & london airports where do you leave your helmet & leathers? Afternoon At heathrow/gatwick/cardiff or bristol airports is there anywhere you can leave your leathers and helmet? There is a left luggage in heathrow £30 for a week, but is there any other option? I don't have a lockable top box (on a zxr 400) and cant find anything about left luggage in bristol especially. All they say is motorbikes park for free, nothing about storage. Thanks Spike

Help with my Shabby Chic bedroom!? OK were moving and i want to change our mix and match bedroom into shabby chic! I have a few white shabby chic pieces of furniture already but i am having a couple problems! I bought some white sheers for the windows and now need some idea of what kind of curtains to layer them with, second, my husband thinks the room is gonna be too girly, so any idea on how to make it husband friendly! I was thinking of finding some old brown leather luggage pieces and making a small side table for him, but i need more suggestions! Also what other sorts of wood can be incorporated with the white furniture if any??

This is the question about the 1997 Ford Explorer and what kind of problems might I encounter owning one.? Ok I tried to add to my question before but it did not take or was not posted ??? So here goes. If this is the wrong way to add to the question then give me a hand on this. the Ford Explorer is a 1997 Eddie Bauer Limited Addition. V8 engine with auto trans. And Good Lord power everything. From the sun roof on down. I have no idea how to operate all those buttons on the radio or if it is really a radio. I bought this car from a car lot that specializes in consignment cars. So did not get to talk to the original owner. Except to know that he was the first owner. The interior is tan leather and is excellent condition for the 197,thosand miles on the car. The outside is also in excellent condition with no nicks dents or rust. A web check showed no replacement body parts or accidents with the car. It has the luggage rack on top and a trailer package Class III on the back. Oil looked good and had not been recently changed to hide anything. No noises or problems with with steering. No rattles or chasiss creaks. Power windows all work perfectly. Doors close properly, locks all electric and they work correctly. I got the car for $4500, he wanted $4900. The webb says $5500 for a good one. The only thing I have had to do to the car is air up the front tires. Does that help? Some of the answers sound like they may have gotten a real lemon. I hope this one is not. Of course if the original owner kept it that long it probably didn't give him much trouble. Sarge

Restricted sale parts and custom colors? Background: I don't want the standard HD offerring for saddlebags on my FXD35. They are too small, and I don't care for the looks. My leather bags were only a cheap "get by" thing. The project: design and fabricate a custom luggage rack/bracket to mount my old Hondaline hard bags. Paint bags Glacier White with red and blue stripes to match the bike. Add a tank bib to the back of each bag. The question for you: Does anyone have any experience when it comes to obtaining the proper colors for an Anniversary Edition, or the "restricted sale" parts like the tank bibs? I intend to stop at the dealership when I go out visiting this Sunday. Any advance knowledge would be a help. I've got a question, and I'm going looking for the answer. I figured why not ask it? I know some people here have knowledge and good advice. Thanks for the effort. The search begins Sunday.

Navy SH Question? On your ship, you have have 950 enlisted and 250 officers, 50 of your crew are female.How many lines items of the following stock are you authorized to carry? a photographic equipment b. appliances c. toilettries d. smoking Accessories e.Luggage and Leather goods f. Sundries G. clothing

How is my story so far? Any tips/advice? Priscilla, Diana, Jackie, Aileen, and Salina, together we are the fantastic five, saving the world from evil by having a strong friendship. Haha JK about saving the world, but we are the fantastic five and we do have a strong friendship. Our “clique”, “groupie”, “club”, “circle”, or whatever you want to identify us, includes: Priscilla, Jackie, Salina, Aileen, and Diana. Each of us has different looks, backgrounds, personalities, qualities, talents, and lots of other stuff that makes us what we are, well, best friends. Diana the artist, Aileen the overachiever, Priscilla the social and personality, Jackie the athlete, and Salina the singer, we are all different in many ways but that is why we get along so well. This summer, the summer after middle school and before high school, will be the most challenging, exciting, scary, adventurous, surprising, and overall, awesome summer ever. The five of our lives are essentially never going to be the same after this summer of twist, turns, and through streets that just may seem like dead ends. The 8th grade year has come to an end. Many wonderful times and many more dreadful times, but we got through it, together. When I mean “we”, I mean my little clique of friends: Aileen, Jackie, Salina, Diana, and me. After all the complicated work, all the struggles to get through 8th grade and move on in life, everything is finally over. Everything in this story is “we” because we are always together, through the good times and the bad, and we are always part of each other, none complete without another. “All students please report to the commons immediately for the 8th grade ceremony.” Mrs. Merritt announced on the loudspeaker. Jackie, Aileen, Priscilla, Salina, and Diana were sitting in the front row of seats in our 4th period Language Arts class, in that exact order and stood up to go to the commons. “Oh my god!” Jackie screamed at the top of her lungs. “Do you know what this means?” “Oh my god! We are gonna get our little certificate thingies for like, best dressed and stuff!” Priscilla yelled also screaming at the top of her lungs. Then, Jackie, Diana, and Priscilla began waving their hands in the air and screaming like the little girly girls they are. Salina kept staring at us, obliviously not believing how weird we are. Aileen on the other hand was also waving her hands and screaming but not for the same purpose, she was mocking them. “Hey! We are just excited so back off!” Diana shot to Aileen after giving her a sharp glare. Then at that point in time, we all began cracking up and giggling because we were SO not going to start a fight right before Middle School Graduation! “Come on students; let’s get our butts down to the commons now!” Mrs. Walker, our 4th period Language Arts Honors teacher, yelled loudly in her military tone. “Affirmative, Sir yes sir!” A voiced spoke out. The voice was obliviously Jimmy’s, Jimmy Schmidt, I mean; he has always been one to crack jokes. The class began to break into hysterics, even Mrs. Walker. “Okay okay, that’s enough jokes for one year; now seriously, let’s get down there!” The assembly was extremely tedious and strenuous, but finally it was time for the 8th grade awards. “For MVP for ###################### track, I am honored to award “Iliane Isakahrvo” with the ###################### certificate.” Mr. Chicka announced. Mr. Chicka, the vice principal, is always the one participating in announcements, awards, school events, and pretty much everything. Gauche silence. “It’s Aileen, Aileen Isakharov you retard!” Aileen, Priscilla, Salina, Jackie, and Diana shrieked and right after that, they dropped down under the chairs so they wouldn’t get caught, a perfect way to end the school year. “Ahummm… I’m sorry, Aileen, let me say that again.” “For MVP for ######################, I am honored to award Aileen Isakharov with the ###################### certificate.” Well, like the old saying goes, the second try is always the best! Umm…….. not really but whatever, lets just pretend that is the saying, okay? A loud applause followed by screams, mostly from Priscilla, Salina, Jackie, and Diana, Aileen walks up to the microphone “Go Chickens. Peace out.” Then, again, more applause. “Next, for most talented, Salina Abraham!” Thank God he pronounced her name correctly. “Thank you so much everybody, I would like to thank my parents and friends ---“ “Excuse me, Ms. Abraham, a speech is not necessary.” Salina ignores Mr. Chicka and continues to talk, until, well, the school security comes. She says one last “thank you” and is forced off the stage, talk about guts! “Okay…..Next, I would like to present Jackie Manson for the most dazzling smile. Congratulations!” Jackie scampers up to the stage, grabs the certificate, and squeals an “Oh my god!” so high pitched, I swear, the windows should have broken, but instead the microphone made these screeching sounds, talk about magical powers! “For most creative student, Diana Chen come on up and receive your award!” She walks up there, takes the certificate, and then just simply walks back to her seat. “Last but not least, I would like to award ############ for most charming personality!” The crowd screams, whistles, and claps as Priscilla struts down the main walkway to the stage to claim her award. She walks up to Mr. Chicka, takes the certificate, and then walks to the microphone and says, “Thanks everybody! I am so honored, I love you all!” Then the crowd goes wild again, what a crowd pleaser! After the assembly, everyone was talking about “the fantastic five” and how we each got an award for something. I guess we are just simply amazing, like that’s a surprise. The awards ceremony took up so much time, by the time everyone was out of the commons, the bell rung at precisely 2:30 PM, indicating that school had ended and summer had begun. Oh yeah! Preppy4LIFE: OMG, I cannot believe school is over! PinkyInRussian: I <3 Chickens. DeeDi4Diana: Okay… that was random. Jaxgrrrrl: Yeah totally. I know! Lina123: So what are your guys’ plans for the summer? Dee4Diana: Maybe checking hot guys out? Preppy4LIFE: yeah on the internet. LOL. ;] Jaxgrrrrl: HAHA LOL. Lina123: LOL. :] PinkyInRussian: Oh my chicken, is that all you guys say on AIM? LOL? Lina123: At least we don’t say chicken between every other word. PinkyInRussian: HEY! I was kidding! Dee4Diana: Suuuuuurrrrreeee…. Whatever Aileen Jaxgrrrrl: I totally agree with Priscilla. LOL. PinkyInRussian: What’s with the whole “LOL” thing? You guys are :O Dee4Diana: OH no you didn’t! PinkyInRussian: OH yes I did. Preppy4LIFE: Ooooohhh watcha gonna do about that diss? Dee4Diana: Oh is on Aileen, bring it on. PinkyInRussian: It’s been brought. Jaxgrrrrl: We should totally do something together during summer! Preppy4LIFE: OMG, totally. We should go to…. Dee4Diana: Tokyo! Lina123: New York! PinkyInRussian: CHICKEN! Preppy4LIFE: uhh…. Okay… a bit random…… OMG this is gonna be fun! Jaxgrrrrl: How ‘bout Mexico? I mean it at least would be hot! Preppy4LIFE: OMFG! Awesome. I vote Jackie. Dee4Diana: Me too. Lina123: Me three. PinkyInRussian: Me four. Preppy4LIFE, PinkyInRussian, Lina123, Dee4Diana, Jaxgrrrrl: Perfect! From that moment on, all of our phones have been ringing off the hook due to all of us calling each other at every and any waking moment possible, to talk about the trip. It was planned. We would be flying from the SeaTac Airport to the El Rosa Airport at 4 AM on July 13, 2008 and come back exactly 6 weeks later. This would be our first big trip together and it would make our lives change forever, even more than we would have thought! We would be on flight number 1376 on Mexico International Airlines. There were five tickets, one for each of us, and we would be staying at Priscilla’s grandma’s friend’s home who just happens to live next door to This trip, though we may not know it, is going to change our lives and have many twists and turns that will carry all of us on a journey, together. “Flight 1376 is ready to board, I repeat, Flight 1376 is ready to board, if this is your flight, please report to terminal C9 to board the plane. Thank you.” That was our cue to get out of Starbucks and get going towards our terminal before we miss our plane, which wouldn’t be good, not good at all. Priscilla ordered a light caramel frappicino with triple shots and whipped cream, Salina ordered a mocha cappuccino, Jackie, a pumpkin spice frappicino, Diana a black coffee, and Aileen, a hot chocolate. After all our orders were completed, it was 3:40 AM! SHIT! That means that we have five minutes to run across the airport with drinks in one hand, luggage in the other, and whatever else Salina, Jackie, Priscilla, Diana, and/or Aileen might be carrying along. We pass California Pizza Kitchen, getting a little closer to our destination but with only four minutes left. We convert from a jog to a full out sprint and all of our drinks begin to spill along the edges of the cups and our luggage is practically being dragged, but none of this matters if we FREAKING GET ON THE PLANE IN TIME!!!! We get so desperate we just drop our drinks on the floor, pick up our bags, and run like there is no tomorrow, and there won’t be if we don’t get that plane! By the time we were in the C terminal, there was only one minute left! OMG! Running through the crowds of people and weaving through obstacles, we finally found terminal C9 and ran to the guy at the check-in counter and gave him our tickets. Then we tiredly dragged ourselves into the small tunnel that connected to the plane, picked our seats, conveniently all in one row, and dropped ourselves into the comfort of the supple leather seats and prepared for a journey of a lifetime. We each entertained ourselves with diverse activities throughout the long plane ride. Diana doodled on every possible little space in her notebook, both Jackie and Salina were listening and singing along to their IPODs, Priscilla was taking millions of pictures of herself with her new hot pink Polaroid digital camera, and Aileen was playing with her brand new Nintendo DS. Finally, three hours later, three ELONGATED hours later, we landed at the LAX Airport in Los Angeles, CA. Next, we were supposed to go on Flight 9286 to Mexico City, Mexico at 9:50 AM at terminal B3, according to Priscilla, and meet Priscilla’s grandma’s friend named Claire. For now on, let’s just call her Claire and not have to elucidate the whole Priscilla’s grandma’s friend thingy all the time. Anyways, it was about 7:15 AM and Salina’s and Priscilla’s stomachs were growling, what’s new? We all decided to go to Burger King for breakfast - I know, how healthy – and everybody ordered some kind of salad because this summer, we were all trying to lose a few pounds at the least. We had about 2 hours and 35 minutes to kill so we were strolling through the airport, shopping, getting drink and snacks, looking at books in BORDERS, and just pretty much browsing around. All five of us, I guess, were preoccupied with something because none of us had noticed the announcement for Flight 9286 at 8:50 AM! We found that out when we went to terminal B3 at 9:50 AM on the dot to board the plane and were told that the plane left an hour ago. Aileen had the initiative to ask the employee if we could catch another plane but unfortunately, flights to Mexico are infrequent so there wouldn’t be another one for about 4 weeks! What are we going to do in Los Angeles, CA for four weeks?! We can’t just decide to fly back to Washington because that would mean we came out here to California for nothing! We left Washington State looking for adventure and the best summer ever, and little did we know that what we were looking for was right around the corner. “Hey ummmm…. Mom?” Jackie said hesitantly. “Hi honey, aren’t you supposed to be on your flight right now?” Jackie’s mom answered back questionably. “Uhhhhh…. Yeah that’s the problem….. we kind of missed our flight…..” Silence. “WHHHAATTTT!!!!???” “Ummmm…. Well the worst part is that their wont be another flight to Mexico in four weeks.” Jackie says quietly. “Oh my god, young lady, you are going to be in so much trouble when you come back!” Jackie’s mom yells and then in a calmer voice, “Let me call your aunt who luckily lives in that area and have her pick you five up. Meanwhile, just stay there.” Psshhh…. Like we have any other place to go. The LAX Airport was a pretty exciting place to be considering the fact that some celebrity that we couldn’t see due to the crowds of paparazzi and the many security guards surround and what seemed to be, a tall blonde celebrity. We probably each thinking, Wow, I wish I was famous so I could be: in all these magazines and photos, filthy rich, have everyone worship me, known to all people, and able to do whatever I want. The paparazzi always following you everywhere, unlimited money, hang out with all the famous people in the magazines who you longed to be, and have special treatment anywhere you go, being famous would make life seem a lot easier. All of a sudden, the blonde celebrity began walking towards the ladies room and darted through the door. After her entrance, the five out of twelve bodyguards she had stood in a row covering the entrance to the restroom. “Oh my god, we have to get in there!” Priscilla whispered as she began to huddle the five of us into a tight circle. “So let’s decide the game plan now. Diana, get all your red inks and paints and color Salina’s “lower area” red, then Salina, go up to the security guards and ask for a tampon and say its an emergency. Then Diana, go up to the some of the other guys and start gibbering to them and just start talking REALLY fast. Jackie, you need to stand up on the tables and chairs and have like…..a singing performance or something. I dunno, you’ll think of something. All three of you need to distract the paparazzi, bodyguards, and people in the airport so Aileen and I can break in through the janitor’s entrance without being seen. We’ll be as quick as possible, I promise. Does each of you know your position?” Salina, Jackie, Aileen, and Diana all seemed confused by what Priscilla just explained and kind of just stood their shocked for a few moments and a minute later, they shot their hands in the middle of the huddle and yelled “BREAK!” The diabolical plan has begun.

how does the article make distinction between firms? use these distionctions to analyze and gain insights? Abstract (Summary) Instead, Giancarlo Di Risio, Versace's bespectacled chief executive, presided over an evening that highlighted luxury goods: Parked at one end of the courtyard was a half-million-dollar Lamborghini Murcielago with a black-and-white leather interior by Versace. A huge poster showed an AgustaWestland helicopter with a Versace-designed cabin. Stacked nearby was luggage embossed with the brand's Greek motif, with pieces starting at about $4,000. The company found it increasingly tough to squeeze profits out of highly perishable fashions as production costs rose in Italy. In 1997, Mr. Versace was murdered outside his Miami villa. The firm's finances went into a tailspin, and it was forced to shelve plans to go public. Mr. Versace's 50% stake in the label went to his niece, Ms. Versace's then-preteen daughter Allegra Versace Beck, shifting the balance of power. Though Ms. Versace owns only 20% of the company, she was seen to exert huge influence because of her daughter's stake. A third sibling, Santo Versace, owns the remaining 30% of the company. Ms. Versace Beck, now 20 years old, manages her stake with the help of advisers. "I said to Di Risio, 'This is not going to work. This is going to die,'" recalled Ms. Versace. But, she said, "I was wrong, and he was right. We sell more now." » Jump to indexing (document details) Full Text (1463 words) (c) 2007 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. Reproduced with permission of copyright owner. Further reproduction or distribution is prohibited without permission. Milan -- When Italian fashion house Gianni Versace SpA recently threw a cocktail party in the courtyard of its 16th-century palazzo to promote its latest creations, designer Donatella Versace ducked out of the soiree early, flanked by bodyguards. Instead, Giancarlo Di Risio, Versace's bespectacled chief executive, presided over an evening that highlighted luxury goods: Parked at one end of the courtyard was a half-million-dollar Lamborghini Murcielago with a black-and-white leather interior by Versace. A huge poster showed an AgustaWestland helicopter with a Versace-designed cabin. Stacked nearby was luggage embossed with the brand's Greek motif, with pieces starting at about $4,000. Mr. Di Risio is trying to shift Versace's attention away from clothes and to accessories, home interiors and other lifestyle products that will bring in new streams of revenue and offset fickle fashion cycles. "Fashion does not exist at Versace," he said, describing his strategy in an interview before the reception. The new approach is bearing fruit. Versace swung back into the black last year, posting a $25.4 million profit after years of losses, and has shaken off millions in debt. Driving that turnaround were rising sales in the lucrative accessories Mr. Di Risio is pushing. Yet the effects of the makeover have touched the core of the company's identity. Ms. Versace has begun taming the flamboyant clothing designs that once set her and the fashion house apart from the crowd. "I no longer recognize myself in that kind of woman," the 52-year-old Ms. Versace said in a telephone interview. The culture shift at Versace highlights how an increasingly competitive fashion industry is forcing even the most freewheeling players to embrace a corporate culture. Many labels, including LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton's smaller brands like Celine and Marc Jacobs, have also been toning down their looks to appeal to a wider swath of consumers. Designers who once called the shots are ceding authority to executives who run the numbers. "In the beginning, it was a shock for me," Ms. Versace said. "When you tell a person who is used to being in power -- to saying yes or no on everything -- to take a step back, it's not easy. But it was necessary." Tweaking a label's aesthetics carries risks. If pushed too far, transformations risk alienating loyal customers, says Robert Burke, head of New York-based luxury-goods consultancy Robert Burke Associates and the former fashion director at Bergdorf Goodman. "You will always want to see a fashion edge to Versace," he says. Yet for family-owned fashion labels like Versace, pressure to make more money is high. They compete with publicly traded conglomerates such as LVMH and PPR SA's Gucci Group, which have the financial heft to expand with stores in the emerging markets of China, India and Russia -- seen as fueling the industry's growth. A number of Italy's top family-owned fashion houses, including Versace, Prada SpA and Salvatore Ferragamo SpA, are considering stock- market listings in the next couple of years. "An IPO would be the best way to raise money and implant in these countries," says Peter Farren, a luxury-goods analyst at the French investment firm Bryan Garnier. At Versace, a sobering realization is spurring Mr. Di Risio's moves: The clothes that once made the brand are now struggling to make money. In its heyday in the early 1990s, Versace stayed ahead of the fashion mainstream with lavish catwalk shows that celebrated the racy designs of founder Gianni Versace. The label amassed collections of real estate and artwork that enhanced the family's jet-setter status. The company found it increasingly tough to squeeze profits out of highly perishable fashions as production costs rose in Italy. In 1997, Mr. Versace was murdered outside his Miami villa. The firm's finances went into a tailspin, and it was forced to shelve plans to go public. Mr. Versace's 50% stake in the label went to his niece, Ms. Versace's then-preteen daughter Allegra Versace Beck, shifting the balance of power. Though Ms. Versace owns only 20% of the company, she was seen to exert huge influence because of her daughter's stake. A third sibling, Santo Versace, owns the remaining 30% of the company. Ms. Versace Beck, now 20 years old, manages her stake with the help of advisers. The Versace stakeholders decided the company needed a CEO who could turn the company around. Fabio Cacciatori, at one time an outside financial consultant for the company, became CEO in September 2003 but resigned in December. The company named Versace's then-Chief Financial Officer Daniele Ballestrazzi interim CEO as it searched for new leadership. When Versace recruited Mr. Di Risio from LVMH's Fendi label in the summer of 2004, the house was saddled with more than $146 million in debt and heading to a net loss of $124 million for the year, on revenue of $416 million. High-end retailers like Bergdorf Goodman had stopped carrying the brand. Bergdorf Chief Executive Jim Gold recalls that Versace was distributing too widely, diluting its exclusivity, and was overly consumed with making a splash on the runway. While many labels had started delivering retailers fresh designs more frequently, ahead of the runway collections, Versace resisted. Mr. Di Risio arrived with a new mantra. Clothing that is too fashionable, he told his lieutenants, is bad for business because it eats up capital and goes out of style quickly. Accessories and other leather goods are a better bet because they have a longer shelf life and fatter profit margins. To reduce Versace's dependence on fashion, Mr. Di Risio shut down lines such as Versace Intimates lingerie and Versace Young, a children's line. The company sold its unprofitable perfume, jewelry and watchmaking divisions, replacing them with lucrative licensing agreements with U.S. watch group Timex Corp. and Italian perfume and cosmetics maker EuroItalia Srl. Mr. Di Risio homed in on the company's shoes and handbags, which have higher profit margins because they cost less to produce than clothes but are easier to sell to a wide array of customers. Last year, more than 30% of Versace's $383 million in revenue came from accessories, compared with 4% when Mr. Di Risio arrived. He also expanded the label's push into home furnishings -- a business that generated sales of $82.5 million in 2006, up 55% from the year before. Versace recently unveiled its "Jet Seat," an aerodynamically-styled leather chair in a high-tech ceramic frame that is sold in Europe for <euro>38,000 (about $50,000). "It was like taking a blank page and rewriting everything," Mr. Di Risio says. To succeed, however, he had to get Ms. Versace on board. She had hoped to resurrect the costly haute-couture fashion shows the label had discontinued before Mr. Di Risio's arrival. But he argued she could more effectively enhance the line's exclusivity by holding showings for individual clients. "I said to Di Risio, 'This is not going to work. This is going to die,'" recalled Ms. Versace. But, she said, "I was wrong, and he was right. We sell more now." Ms. Versace had to become more conscious of how much time and money the label invests in promoting designs at events like the Oscars. Last year, the designer dressed actresses Hilary Swank, Uma Thurman and Salma Hayek and director Robert Altman's wife, Kathryn Reed Altman, who donned a navy-blue sequin gown. This year, however, Ms. Versace limited herself to one gown, designing a rose-colored dress with a sweeping train for best-actress nominee Penelope Cruz. For Versace's ready-to-wear line, Ms. Versace is going for looks she calls "a little more understated." Bergdorf Goodman will carry her designs in the fall for the first time in years. Ms. Versace is also working more closely with retailers, adding four more collections beyond the traditional spring and fall runway collections. These are shown to retailers in private visits, giving them a preview of what to expect. On the financial side, Mr. Di Risio has untangled the company's assets from those of the family, selling property he deemed "nonstrategic" to pay the company's debts. The family's Manhattan townhouse was sold for about $35 million, and its contents went up for auction in 2005. The paintings alone -- including works by artists Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Roy Lichtenstein and Julian Schnabel -- fetched more than $11 million dollars. Flagship stores in New York, London and Milan that Mr. Di Risio described as "decadent and sad," were redone with sleek, minimalist designs. The label, which operates 82 stores and has 35 franchise operations, plans to open more than 10 boutiques by the end of the year, including seven stores in China alone. When Versace opened the doors of its updated Moscow boutique in April, an array of leather bags, belts and shoes greeted customers at the store's lacquered ground-floor entrance. The label's ready-to-wear collection was relegated to the upper floor.

What are the colours/designs of your bags? I have just bought two new work bags, one has a depiction of the solar system on it, that's the one I'm currently using, I love it. The other one is covered in skull and crossbones. My dayshift bag is a very large black bag, I got it from the luggage department, as I do with most of my day bags. I have a pink leather handbag that my niece gave me for Christmas, it's bordering on the 'normal' but the fact that it's pink has saved it, I like it but it's too small for any practical use. The year before, she gave me a brown leather bag, which whilst being larger is (sorry Stephanie) hideous, the type of bag my Mam would have carried.

What is "Damire Canvas"? Louis Vuitton uses this material. I thought they used real leather on all parts of their bags and luggage.

Has anyone bought a Floto Handbag? I found this website for Italian Leather handbags and they look absolutley beautiful. I was wondering if anyone has bought one or held one as pictures can be misleading. Any opinions would help. Thanks! http://www.flotoimports.com/CasMiniTuscan-luggage.html

Should I buy this?? Please any answers will help!!...? 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo $5800 • 4x4 • 4.7 liter engine • 120k miles • tilt steering • automatic • loaded • leather • premium sound with CD • alloys • factory fog lamps • luggage rack • privacy glass What do you think? I want to find a 99-01 Grand Cherokee between $5000-6000. Should I pass or take it!! Thanks for any answers.

Dispute with 89 yr old father in law over promissory note? My father in law came to stay with us in another state than he lives. He is 89. He ruined my new leather couch and trashed my bedroom beyond repair. My house smells like a cat box and I don't have a cat! He signed a promissory note before he went home saying he would make good on what was ruined. My husband's sister saw the note in his luggage and now he doesn't want to pay us. My husband is the oldest of 4 children. He/We live on what we earn - never asking for anything. The rest of the family always has their hands in the father in laws pockets. My husband has talked to his father at least 4 times over this matter. His son also talked to his grandfather twice. They, the family think we are evil to make an old man pay for ruining our furniture. I believe that if you break something you pay, and/or make it right regardless of how old you are. Consequences, Accountability, Responsibility all come into play. This is the very first home I have ever owned. Because this was the first home I ever owned and no children live in our home, we bought expensive furniture with our own money! The reason being was that it would last. Well, this turned out bad because it is ruined and I cannot afford to replace/repair the damages. I believe my father-in-law who has never paid for anything whenever he came to visit should be held responsible on the grounds that he new what he was doing and tried not to tell anyone or cover it up. Accountability, Consequences and doing the right thing all come into play. I am a christian and believe it is wrong, but on the other hand I did not break my things. The person who did should be responsible. Good question. He is older but he knows what time it is. I am an LPN and I did all I could to cover my furniture. He was asked nicely to wears depends. Refused. He is just stubborn beyond belief. He only visits us when the rest of the family is tired of him. They do not visit unless they want money. He has to hire a private nurse where he lives to take care of him. His own daughter is a CNA, and will not take care of him or give him suggestions on care. They leave all that up to me. I am sick of this family volunteering my house for a vacation place without my consent. He voluntarily signed the promissory note, so he knows what he was doing. Because he is refusing to pay now, what alternatives do I have. If I sue him legally he will not show up.

Leather Travel Luggage? any one no where i can get more? http://www.insightempire.com/luggage/

People form Hobart I need your help!!? I'll arrive in Hobart the 3rd of october and I'll say till the end of feb. I'm from Italy and I have just 20kg for my luggage.... what do I have to bring with me? is it cold in that period? do you wear flip flops or it's too cold? trainers? t-shirt or jumpers? shorts or long trousers? wind-breaker, jeans jaket or leather jaket? swim-suit? or wetsuit? there is any beach life like in sydney or it's not warm enough? I know that are stupid questions but in 20kg of luggages I can't make errors!!!!! thanks!

I need help finding something!!!!? Ok. I need help finding this embroidered key fob... it's leather cover with string embroidery with you fav colors and initials on a key chain. Please please please help me find it. I'm sorry I do not have a picture. I will try to describe it better. Silver Key Ring with Brown Leather Cover (kind of picture frame like) with the colors of your choice and initials embroidered in the middle. kind of like a luggage tag for your keys It's given for a 16th birthday most of the time.

options /thoughts on these Accessories there sooo chic and cute !!? http://cgi.ebay.com/JORDI-LABANDA-BUTTERFLIES-LARGE-TOTE-LEATHER-HANDLES_W0QQitemZ110237790898QQihZ001QQcategoryZ15629QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem http://cgi.ebay.com/JORDI-LABANDA-BIRDS-LARGE-TOTE-BAG-WITH-LEATHER-HANDLES_W0QQitemZ110236851571QQihZ001QQcategoryZ15629QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem http://www.shopzilla.com/7S--Handbags_Luggage_-_cat_id--10010000__keyword--jordi%20labanda__lp--10__sfsk--3 http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=jordi+labanda+&um=1&ie=UTF-8 http://www.unicahome.com/c1575/jordi-labanda.html?PartnerID=GO&engine=adwords!7350&keyword=%28jordi+labanda%29&match_type

Do you think im a good author? please comment. and be HONEST? ive always been self concious and my frind told me to post some of one of my stories on here. only my family and my best freind has read them ecause im scared people wont like it.....PLEASE BE HONEST THOUGH! if you think i need more improvment tell me! The pilot announced. I was so excited! I had been waiting for this time since birth. I was with my best friend, Sam, and it was the first day of winter break. We came here together for our eighteenth birthday. We were staying at Whiteside Castle, a white fortress with humongous brick walls that stood on top of a large grassy hill. The castle was old and it was being sold, so we were the last people to stay in it. My mom had insisted on me calling when I got to the castle. We started shuffling out as Sam had pulled out his camera and was taking pictures of our surroundings. I could see the castle we were staying in and it was even prettier than I expected. There was green ivy creeping up pillars in the front and the stone was cracked in certain areas that made it look like an artifact from four million years ago. There was a river in the front and a stone bridge. The mountains were covered in snow and the sun glimmered off it in the best way possible. "I can’t believe we get to stay there, it feels like a dream. A dream that I hope never ends!" Sam said. He had short blond hair. His eyes were light blue with a tint of green. He was wearing black jeans and a black shirt with a small ACDC sign on the front with white wings on the back. "I know, I can’t wait to get to the castle, did you see the size of that thing. It looks so old." I replied. We walked into the airport to get our luggage and then looked around for our driver. There was a tall thin man with a sign that said "Abigail Willow." That was my last name. My full name was Abigail Genevieve Willow. "Sam over there," I said gesturing to the man with the sign. Sam smiled in reply and started toward him. I grabbed my luggage and followed. "You must be Ms. Willow," the man said with a heavy accent. He wore a black and white suit that looked like it was just bought. A nametag on the pocket of his suit said "Mr. Cumin." "Yes sir and you must be Mr. Cumin," I said shaking hands with the man. His hands were very cold. When they hit mine I felt the need to pull away and make a run for it. "Yes ma’am, and who might this young man be?" he asked eyeing Sam. Sam held out a hand replying, "Sam Motony, Abby’s best friend." Mr. Cumin took Sam’s hand and shook it half heartedly. He turned around and took us down a large hall to the door leading to the parking lot. He had his car parked at the front of the airport. It looked just like a car I saw in those old F.B.I. movies. He took our bags and tossed them in the trunk. "Go ahead and hop in so we can get on our way," Mr. Cumin said. Mr. Cumin opened the car door and hurried us inside. Sam sat in the passenger seat as I jumped in back. The seats were made of a fresh leather material and the air smelled of coconut car freshener with an underlying hint of new car smell that made me wonder if the car was new. He turned the keys softly and the engine could barely be heard. We were out of the parking lot and on the highway in no time. "To the right is a small town where you can buy extra supplies if you need any. The river, as you can see, is straight up ahead and the rest is all forest." Cumin smiled in appreciation. He turned to smile at us and… All of a sudden his motor control of the car was lost and we slid off the road and into a huge elm tree that made impact on the passenger side of the car. I heard something crack and then everything went dark…

please read this un - finished novel and give us some more ideas!!! please!!!? Summer Days. . . A story of friendship and endless summer By: MICD productions West Side Airport Manhattan, New York Terminal 63 Floor 5 June 19 8:19 a.m. Adriana Davis sat patiently on her Louis Vouttion luggage with a copy of Allure on her lap. Flipping through the gossiping section about Brittany Spears, she sipped her mocha latte from the Star bucks in the food court. It was almost the end of June and she and her best friends, Amber, Tina, and Cali, were headed off to beautiful Black Point, Hawaii for spring break. Adriana could just picture it now. Stepping out of midnight black limo onto a red velvet rug outside of a five star hotel. Young hotel bellhops offering her non-alcoholic beverages. As orange orchids waved in the breeze in tan stucco boxes with ivy plants cascading out them. Walking through the golden spinning door into a beautiful lobby. Lots of other -soon to be-graduates and adults would be there waiting to be check in. Admiring the beautiful stained glass windows and new age paintings on the walls. A bronze chandelier with teardrop shaped bulbs flickers over head. It was perfect. Adriana was a beautiful girl with wavy summer brown hair with light blonde streaks and been lucky enough to have been born with pool water color eyes. Its actually looks as if you could actually dive into them. Amber is a skinny tanned girl with very dark -almost black- hair and cat shaped, bright green eyes. She loves it when people say she looks like an innocent kitten. Tina is an Asian beauty. She has light skin but glossy black hair and light almond colored eyes. Cali is the most boy crazy one of the girls. Her shoulder length blonde hair and dark brown eyes always are getting compliments. Adriana checked her icy blue T-Mobile Sidekick for e-mails or IM’s. None. She wondered where her friends were. When she heard some girls yelling “Adriana,” she turned around to see her friends running towards her with over stuffed suitcases. Tina was in the new Emilie Coach Sandals trailing behind the other girls with a Cinnabon bag in her hand. Adriana could smell the warm, freshly baked cinnamon buns from far away. Yum. When everyone was caught up, they all gave each other a group hug. “Our plane leaves in 10 minutes. What do you wanna do?” Tina asked. Cali bent over and struggled with the zipper on her Prada Messenger Bag and took out a misty green iPod nano and her white iHome. “We could listen to my new iPod if you want. I got two days ago.” “Cool! Lemme see!” Amber took the iPod out of Cali’s manicured hands and flicked it on. The screen went snow white and amber vigorously searched for her favorite song; Makes me Wonder by Maroon 5. Her father used to manage all kinds of unsigned artists and once, before Maroon 5 was a real famous band, she met them. The thumping beat of the song started playing once docked in the iHome and all four girls sat down and discussed plans for while in Hawaii. “Well, I heard from some people at school that there’s going to be an Earth Fest,” Tina said excitedly. “A What?” the other girls asked. “An Earth Fest. You know, like a free concert.” She explained. Tina was overly obsessed with any type of music. Especially pop and rock. Her blinding smile was shown and her dancing almond colored eyes flickered with happiness. “That’s cool! We should go!” Cali said in a very overjoyed voice. “ Yeah! It would be fun,” Adriana said. “Who’s going to be there?” Amber asked. “+44, John Mayer, The Academy Is…, Matt Kearney, Avril Lavigne, and Daughtry.” Tina answered. “OHMIGOD!! +44 and The Academy is..?! I LOVE them!” Adriana practically yelled. “I like all of them! Except, I’ve never heard of Matt Kearney.” Amber said. The next song came on. It was Golden by Fall Out Boy. “Matt Kearney is kind’ of pop rockish and really cool. We can listen to him on the plane.” The girls began to sing along to Golden. And I saw god crying the reflection of my enemies And all the lovers with no time for me And all the mothers raise their babies Just stay away from me…. “Flight 168 to Black Point, Hawaii now boarding,” a mans voice said over the intercom. It echoed down the long spiral hall as people began to get up and throw coffee cups and magazines away to board the plane. All the girls got up and gathered there things and Cali shut off her iPod. She popped it in her bag and trailed behind the other girls. The Dark colored woman outside of the plane held her hand out for the flight tickets and when she punched them through the silver ticket machine, the group made there way down the long hallway into the plane. West Point Airlines Flight 168 Seats: 13a, 13,b and 13c 11:05 am Amber, Tina and Cali sat in there tall leather seats as their waitress, Gisele, brought them there Mexican Iced Teas. Adriana, had a seat that was far away from the other girls. Even though she loved her friends, she liked a little quiet. Besides, she had the whole row to herself. She began to watch Step Up on the TV screen near her when she got an IM form xohugsandkisses1354(A.K.A. Cali) She signed on her screen name (MiSSADRiANAx44) and began typing on her T Mobile Sidekick xohugsandkisses1354: want me to move bak near u? MiSSADRiANAX44: No. that’s ok. I have to write to Sean anyways. Something that I don’t want other people to know. Srry xohugsandkisses1354: oh. M’kay. Ttys xoxo xohugsandkisses1354 has signed off at 11:12 am Adriana sat deeply in her seat as she began to type her message to Sean; her one true boyfriend. He had brown curly hair and a perfect face. And beautiful blazing blue; true eyes. She could always see the hurt in his eyes when he was sad. He was the all- star lacrosse player and the East Side Eagles were going to the championships! They have been together since the beginning of the year and now that it was May, they were officially lovebirds. She really wanted him to come on the trip with her but, he had to stay for his mothers birthday trip to Mexico. At-least he would come back tanned. Just then, she received a text message from Amber (A.K.A. LilBballgirl19706) LilBballgirl19706: Hi MiSSADRiANAX44: Hey LilBballgirl19706: I cant b live ur sitting by your self. R u SURRE u don’t want me 2 come back there? Or anyone of us? MiSSADRiANAX44: yes….I’m fine LilBballgirl19706: r u surre? MiSSADRiANAX44: YEA!! IM SURE! Sry 4 yelling but, u guys keep asking me and I’m just fine LilBballgirl19706: kk. srry MiSSADRiANAX44: I forgive you J LilBballgirl19706: hehe. R u missing sean? MiSSADRiANAX44: Hell yEA LilBballgirl19706: haha! Wonder how Cancun is going 4 him MiSSADRiANAX44: me too. I’m gonna call him and ask/ LilBballgirl19706: k. ttyl xoxoxox MiSSADRiANAX44: J MiSSADRiANAX44 has signed off at 11:16 Adriana snapped her sidekick shut and stuffed it in her Burberry purse and began to dug through the disaster of a purse she had to find her cell phone. She flipped down the small, light gray table hanging off the back of the seat in front of her and place the purse there. She had just gotten it three days before and already, the $495 purse had been reduce to a teenager wasteland. She dug through her iPod, two mini crossword puzzles, 4 lip gloss tubes, two eyeliner crayons, three tubes of mascara, 3 tubes of lipstick, her sidekick, two packages of Orbit Gum (Tropical Citrus and Bubblemint), three old photos of her dog Selena, her silver Sony Cyber shot DSCW55 7.2MP Digital Camera, chewed up pencils, her Dooney and Bourke bubble wristlet credit card wallet (with 5 Platinum credit cards and $687.58 in cash) makeup remover, tissues and her car keys (which she didn’t need this week). She finally pulled out her phone from that bottomless pit of a bag and flicked it open. The bright blue light blinded her for a moment then she pressed ‘4’ (Sean was speed dial4 because of 4 letters in his name). And the phone began to ring. Ring. Ring. Ring. “Hey. You’ve Reached Sean-o. Leave me a message. I’ll get back to you later.” It was the answering machine. So, Adriana left a message. “Hey Sean. Its Adriana and I just wanted to see how Mexico is. So, text me later or call back. Alright, I love you. Bye.” and she snapped the phone shut. She woke up to the sound of her T Mobile Sidekick ringing. She had fallen asleep. When she saw the time of the 3” by 2” screen, she’d realized she’d only fallen asleep for five minutes. Man, the pillows were comfy. It wasn’t a phone call. It was a text Message. From Sean. Adriana got excited and signed on quickly. She realized he had sent it to her two minutes ago. He’d signed off already. But, she read the message anyways. Sean(A.K.A. Lacrosseboi13998) Lacrosseboi13998: Hey Girl. Listen I just don’t think we should see each other anymore. Christina Lillian…she….she stole my heart. I’m sorry. I know you’d never wanna b friends now but, I hope we can be. I cant, just CANT, go out with you anymore. Ok. G2g. Mom wants go go get seaglass on the beahc. Bye. Lacrosseboi13998 has signed off at 11:21 am A little mascar tear fell off her eye and right onto the keyboard of the Sidekick. She closed it and it away in her Burberry bag and more tears started to come. But, she held them down. Crying on planes wasn’t right. At that moment, Adriana didn’t even want the plane to land in Hawaii- she wanted to go home and forget about the whole stupid vacation.Black Point Airport Black Point, Hawaii 5:44 pm As the plane touched the cement on the Hawaiian airport, Adriana wans’t very excited. The fact ther her boy friend had just dumped her….put out her flame for her entire trip. Ashley Lillian? She thought as she grabbed her Prada duffel and her Burberry purse. Wow. What a total looser. Once she had all of her things she began, slowly, to make her way out of the plane. The image of Ashley Lillian, popped into her head. The Red curly hair the powerful blue eyes, her skinny freckled legs and arms and neon pink braces gave her a frightful image. She immediately stopped thinking about it. When she stepped into the marble floors of the Black Point Airport, she was in heaven. Even though her boyfriend had just dumped her, she had forgotten about it for a minute. She looked around. NO RUDE COMMENTS PLEASE! PEOPLE THIS IS GOING TO BE THE BEST BOOK!! PLEASE JUST TRY TO UNDERSTAND IT! NOOOOO FREAKING RUDE COMMENTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

do you like this joke? so theres this doctor that did circumcisions.After many years he decides its time to retire.All the circumsicions he did over the years,he saved the foreskins.He took the big garbag full of foreskins to his friend who works at a leather company.He says"Make me something nice out of these foreskins,cuz im retiring." His friend says"Come back in 2 weeks and ill have something nice for you."So he goes in 2 weeks to see what his friend made him.When he shows up 2 weeks later,his friend presents him with 5 nice wallets. He says to his friend"wallets!? Is that all i get after all these years!?" His friend says"Relax my friend.You see its not just ordinary wallets. After you rub them for a while,it becomes a 5 piece luggage set.

Can you please give me feedback on this piece??? Please read everything! give good and bad points please!? How could this happen? Dana’s life would have been perfect. Her hobby, being home schooled, and everything else. She missed her books, her hair, her mom, and Gwen! Her mom was always commenting on how Dana’s eyes sparkled when she read. If only she could have known this would happen. Then everything would have been okay, she could have brought some books and said goodbye. How would she ever get home? Did the old her disappear or was the she was now in her place? So what was happening in this person’s life? Her name was Josephine and there was something about her going to America? Dana just could not remember. Someone calling her interrupted Dana’s thinking. “Jo! Get up or we’ll be late!” A minute later, a young man walked into the room. His dark hair was cut short and close to his head, his dull blue eyes were like the ocean before a storm. “Where are we going?” Josephine asked. “We have to be in Queenstown by 3:00PM.” He answered. “What ship are we traveling on?” “We are traveling on the RMS Titanic. She is supposedly unsinkable. I bought 2nd class tickets. I heard even the 3rd class accommodations are grand.” “Did you say Titanic?” “Yes. I call Betsy to help you dress.” he said“, Betsy!” A young girl scurried into the room. She looked around 14 or 15. She had beautiful hair. It was the classic red-brown hair of an Irish person. She wore a plain brown dress with a white apron over. Betsy picked up a corset and put it close to where Jo was standing. Betsy stood behind Jo as she unbuttoned her nightgown. It was loose fitting and soon slid off Jo’s shoulders. Betsy picked up the corset, Jo stepped into it, and the maid soon started to tighten it until Jo thought she couldn’t breathe. Next, the maid picked up a beautiful green silk dress with layers of white lace. Dana put the dress on and Betsy buttoned the back. Betsy was now combing my fiery red hair hair. As she tugged hard to get the brush through my curly hair. The she coiled it and stuck in a butterfly comb. She left me to put on my own shoes; I slipped on white high shoes. I was kneeling next to my trunk for clothes and other things. Then I opened up the lid to have a light fragrance of lavender come out. I pushed the clothes on top to reveal stacks of books. “Jo, come out now we have to go!” The young man called. “I’ll be right out.” I called. I hurried toward the doorway where the young man stood. He lead my out to a black shiny automobile. The driver opened the and stuck out a hand to help my in. I stepped inside and sat down on the black leather seat facing the sliding window. My brother sat down next to my and the driver closed the door and got in the drivers seat, blocking my view out the sliding window in front of me. The automobile started with a lot of noise and we were on the dusty road toward the city of Queenstown, Ireland. With the excitement of going toward the vast open Atlantic Ocean, I had forgotten the corset, which now was having a large affect on my breathing. Soon the automobile was close enough to the Ocean to smell the clean salty air. That wonderful smell was soon covered by the smells of the city. Everywhere there was noise, dust, and automobile exhaust. People were yelling and shouting. Then I saw the famous ship, the RMS Titanic, all the din of the city was covered by the grandness of Titanic. It really was amazing. I was surprised to think that it would soon be in the icy Atlantic. The automobile had now stopped and the driver opened the door and my brother was greeted by, “Your destination, Mr. Scully.” The driver said proudly, for making good time. My brother held out his hand to help my out of the car. The entire time all I thought about was the fact that Titanic would sink, and I would be on it. A man came up and asked for my brother to go check in the luggage. My brother responded my saying, “If you would be so kind as to do that for me it would be wonderful,” then he slipped a ten dollar bill into the man’s gloved hand. keep in mind it was written by a teenager

This had me ROTFL!!! "Things to do on a long Airplane ride!!!" :)? 65 Things to do on a long Airplane Ride -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 65 Things to Do on a Long Airplane Ride 1. Fart loudly and act shocked, looking around to see who did it 2. Fiddle around with the emergency exit, then ask a fellow passenger if he has a crowbar 3. Hijack the cockpit and, over the loudspeaker, anounce that the first class passengers and luggage are to switch places 4.Run down the aisle screaming,"He's got a bomb! He's got a bomb!" 5. Go into the bathroom and make rude bodily noises, then come out looking refreshed 6. Fly into a rage whenever the word "Gallstone" is mentioned 7. "Accidental" soda spill on the dork next to you. 8. Go up to someone and ask loudly if they wouldn't mind applying Preporation H to your hemrrhoids 9. Tap at the windows, saying "Looks pretty tough" then ask somone if they have a bat you could use to test. 10. Disco dance in the aisle 11. Mess up your hair, untuck your shirt, basically look crude, and mingle with a first class guy as if you were long-lost friends 12. Give someone a coin, saying "Heads, I detonate the bomb. Tails, I don't" 13. Go into the bathroom, drop your pants, then come out, yelling "We're out of toilet paper! Stewardess!" 14. Describe your sex life in great detail to the five-year-old next to you 15. Try to lead plane in song "Oh I wish I was an Oscar Myer Weiner" 16. Lead a revolt against the first class passengers 17. Attempt to promote Hinduism among passengers 18. Moon passing Delta planes 19. Lead a bible study session in the back of the plane 20. Start a hot dog stand 21. Steal businessman's laptop, play solitaire on it 22. Pinch the stewardess' butt as she passes 23. During the inflight movie, ask to share headphones with someone 24. When two people kiss in the film, belch real loud 25. When there's any nudity, say "Hey! He/she must be real cold!" 26. Tell the person next to you your life story, from DNA to that afternoon 27. With the person next to you, discuss cannabilism among airline crash passengers on deserted islands 28. Remark that perhaps you shouldn't have put superglue in your undies that morning 29. Pick your nose and pat the person next to you 30. No matter what the meal choices are, demand rice-a-roni 31. Show off your Batman underwear 32. Ask the guy next to you to hold your dentures (senior citizens only) 33. Switch accents and see if anyone notices 34. During the meal, loudly explain that on time you ate shark fin soup and proceeded to puke all over the airplane, spewing chunks of shark on the other passengers 35. Sneak into the cockpit and hit the warning alarm 36. Explain how, one time, the plane was crashing and the oxygen masks didn't come out, 'cause they aren't really reliable, and that if the plane was to crash, everyone would die 37. Put on a ten foot diameter sombrero and slouch in your seat, whacking everyone on the head 38. Scratch your butt, then sniff your finger 39. Go into the cockpit, flick on the intercom light, then loudly inquire as to why the fuel dial says "e" 40. Go into the cockpit, ask the pilot in an obnoxious voice "Why do the call it the COCKpit?" then snort as if it's the funniest thing in the world 41. Don't use deoderant, then "accidently" stick your armpit in someone's face 42. Sneeze, using somebody's sleeve instead of your hand to cover it 43. Listen to James Brown on your Walkman, sing along (especially the "Oooh Oooh" parts) 44. Snort when you laugh 45. Tell corny jokes and laugh like it's absolutely hilarious, then expect others to do the same 46. Wear a hairpiece and switch it often, seeing if anyone notices 47. Sing that irritaing song that starts like this "I lost my car on the rooooooaaddd an' I'm cryin' over yooooouuuu...." 48. Recite all you can of the last Ann Landers column 49. Hum the Monty Python theme song 50. Act like a movie star 51. Scream and dive under your seat for no apparent reason 52. Ride carry-on luggage down the aisle, yelling "Yeee-ha!" 53. With a desperate look, ask the stewardess where the bathroom is, then look relieved and say "Nevermind. Do you have any towels?" 54. Whip out your kazoo and give first class a special entertainment show 55. Jump up and scream "AAAHHH!! I left the stove on!!" 56. Bring a microphone and act like Frank Sinatra 57. Ask someone for their autograph, pretending that you think they're Kevin Costner or Goldie Hawn (This best when the person looks nothing like the movie star in question) 58. Start talking Korean 59. If someone has a bad toupee, whack it off 60. Pretend you're flying the plane 61. With a fellow passenger, Re-enact the disco scene in "Airplane!" 62. Get some rub-on tattoos and a leather jacket, pretend that you belong to a biker gang 63. Take over the plane with a toy gun 64. Yell to someone "Is it time to hijack the plane yet?" (Note: Do this when there are stewardesses there) 65. To the person next to you, say "It's amazing that they didn't notice the grenade in my luggage

is kevin jonas gay? kevin jonas is the oldest of the jonas brothers.. during this special on disney channel, he said he wears a lot of patent leather shoes, and when they were packing, he had all louis vuitton luggage.. idk.. im just wondering.. i think its weird how he talks like a girl and sings like one too.. (not a slam to the jonas brothers cause i actually kinda like them) thanks♥ and yes im positive he has that kind of luggage

Please help me with my story!? Diana, Jackie, Aileen, and Salina, and I, together we are the fantastic five, saving the world from evil by having a strong friendship. Haha JK about saving the world, but we are the fantastic five and we do have a strong friendship. Our “clique”, “groupie”, “club”, “circle”, or whatever you want to identify us, includes: Jackie, Salina, Aileen, Diana, and me. Each of us has different looks, backgrounds, personalities, qualities, talents, and lots of other stuff that makes us what we are, well, best friends. Diana the artist, Aileen the overachiever, Jackie the athlete, Salina the singer, and I the social one, we are all different in many ways but that is why we get along so well. This summer, the summer after middle school and before high school, will be the most challenging, exciting, scary, adventurous, surprising, and overall, awesome summer ever. The five of our lives are essentially never going to be the same after this summer of twist, turns, and through streets that just may seem like dead ends. The 8th grade year has come to an end. Many wonderful times and many more dreadful times, but we got through it, together. When I mean “we”, I mean my little clique of friends: Aileen, Jackie, Salina, Diana, and me. After all the complicated work, all the struggles to get through 8th grade and move on in life, everything is finally over. Everything in this story is “we” because we are always together, through the good times and the bad, and we are always part of each other, none complete without another. “All students please report to the commons immediately for the 8th grade ceremony.” Mrs. Merritt announced on the loudspeaker. Jackie, Aileen, Salina, Diana, and I were sitting in the front row of seats in our 4th period Language Arts class, in that exact order and stood up to go to the commons. “Oh my god!” Jackie screamed at the top of her lungs. “Do you know what this means?” “Oh my god! We are gonna get our little certificate thingies for like, best dressed and stuff!” I yelled also screaming at the top of my lungs. Then, Jackie, Diana, and I began waving their hands in the air and screaming like the little girly girls we are. Salina kept staring at us, obliviously not believing how weird we are. Aileen on the other hand was also waving her hands and screaming but not for the same purpose, she was mocking them. “Hey! We are just excited so back off!” Diana shot to Aileen after giving her a sharp glare. Then at that point in time, we all began cracking up and giggling because we were SO not going to start a fight right before Middle School Graduation! “Come on students; let’s get our butts down to the commons now!” Mrs. Walker, our 4th period Language Arts Honors teacher, yelled loudly in her military tone. “Affirmative, Sir yes sir!” A voiced spoke out. The voice was obliviously Jimmy’s, Jimmy Schmidt, I mean; he has always been one to crack jokes. The class began to break into hysterics, even Mrs. Walker. “Okay okay, that’s enough jokes for one year; now seriously, let’s get down there!” The assembly was extremely tedious and strenuous, but finally it was time for the 8th grade awards. “For MVP for ###################### track, I am honored to award “Iliane Isakahrvo” with the ###################### certificate.” Mr. Chicka announced. Mr. Chicka, the vice principal, is always the one participating in announcements, awards, school events, and pretty much everything. Gauche silence. “It’s Aileen, Aileen Isakharov you retard!” Aileen, Salina, Jackie, Diana and I shrieked and right after that, we dropped down under the chairs so we wouldn’t get caught, a perfect way to end the school year. “Ahummm… I’m sorry, Aileen, let me say that again.” “For MVP for ######################, I am honored to award Aileen Isakharov with the ###################### certificate.” Well, like the old saying goes, the second try is always the best! Umm…….. not really but whatever, lets just pretend that is the saying, okay? A loud applause followed by screams, mostly from Salina, Jackie, Diana, and me, Aileen walks up to the microphone and says “Go Chickens. Peace out.” Then, again, more applause. “Next, for most talented, Salina Abraham!” Thank God he pronounced her name correctly. “Thank you so much everybody, I would like to thank my parents and friends ---“ “Excuse me, Ms. Abraham, a speech is not necessary.” Salina ignores Mr. Chicka and continues to talk, until, well, the school security comes. She says one last “thank you” and is forced off the stage, talk about guts! “Okay…..Next, I would like to present Jackie Manson for the most dazzling smile. Congratulations!” Jackie scampers up to the stage, grabs the certificate, and squeals an “Oh my god!” so high pitched, I swear, the windows should have broken, but instead the microphone made these screeching sounds, talk about magical powers! “For most creative student, Diana Chen come on up and receive your award!” She walks up there, takes the certificate, and then just simply walks back to her seat. “Last but not least, I would like to award ############ for most charming personality!” The crowd screams, whistles, and claps as I strut down the main walkway to the stage to claim my award. I walk up to Mr. Chicka, take the certificate, and then walk to the microphone and say, “Thanks everybody! I am so honored, I love you all!” Then the crowd goes wild again, I am such a crowd pleaser! After the assembly, everyone was talking about “the fantastic five” and how we each got an award for something. I guess we are just simply amazing, like that’s a surprise. The awards ceremony took up so much time, by the time everyone was out of the commons, the bell rung at precisely 2:30 PM, indicating that school had ended and summer had begun. Oh yeah baby! Preppy4LIFE: OMG, I cannot believe school is over! PinkyInRussian: I <3 Chickens. DeeDi4Diana: Okay… that was random. Jaxgrrrrl: Yeah totally. I know! Lina123: So what are your guys’ plans for the summer? Dee4Diana: Maybe checking hot guys out? Preppy4LIFE: yeah on the internet. LOL. ;] Jaxgrrrrl: HAHA LOL. Lina123: LOL. :] PinkyInRussian: Oh my chicken, is that all you guys say on AIM? LOL? Lina123: At least we don’t say chicken between every other word. PinkyInRussian: HEY! I was kidding! Dee4Diana: Suuuuuurrrrreeee…. Whatever Aileen Jaxgrrrrl: I totally agree with Priscilla. LOL. PinkyInRussian: What’s with the whole “LOL” thing? You guys are :O Dee4Diana: OH no you didn’t! PinkyInRussian: OH yes I did. Preppy4LIFE: Ooooohhh watcha gonna do about that diss? Dee4Diana: Oh is on Aileen, bring it on. PinkyInRussian: It’s been brought. Jaxgrrrrl: We should totally do something together during summer! Preppy4LIFE: OMG, totally. We should go to…. Dee4Diana: Tokyo! Lina123: New York! PinkyInRussian: CHICKEN! Preppy4LIFE: uhh…. Okay… a bit random…… OMG this is gonna be fun! Jaxgrrrrl: How ‘bout Mexico? I mean it at least would be hot! Preppy4LIFE: OMFG! Awesome. I vote Jackie. Dee4Diana: Me too. Lina123: Me three. PinkyInRussian: Me four. Preppy4LIFE, PinkyInRussian, Lina123, Dee4Diana, Jaxgrrrrl: Perfect! From that moment on, all of our phones have been ringing off the hook due to all of us calling each other at every and any waking moment possible, to talk about the trip. It was planned. We would be flying from the SeaTac Airport to the El Rosa Airport at 4 AM on July 13, 2008 and come back exactly 6 weeks later. This would be our first big trip together and it would make our lives change forever, even more than we would have thought! We would be on flight number 1376 on Mexico International Airlines. There were five tickets, one for each of us, and we would be staying at my grandma’s friend’s home who just happens to live next door to Salma Heyek. This trip, though we may not know it, is going to change our lives and have many twists and turns that will carry all of us on a journey together. “Flight 1376 is ready to board, I repeat, Flight 1376 is ready to board, if this is your flight, please report to terminal C9 to board the plane. Thank you.” That was our cue to get out of Starbucks and get going towards our terminal before we miss our plane, which wouldn’t be good, not good at all. I ordered a light caramel frappicino with triple shots and whipped cream, Salina ordered a mocha cappuccino, Jackie, a pumpkin spice frappicino, Diana a black coffee, and Aileen, a hot chocolate. After all our orders were completed, it was 3:40 AM! SHIT! That means that we have five minutes to run across the airport with drinks in one hand, luggage in the other, and whatever else Salina, Jackie, Diana, Aileen, and I might be carrying along. We pass California Pizza Kitchen, getting a little closer to our destination but with only four minutes left. We convert from a jog to a full out sprint and all of our drinks begin to spill along the edges of the cups and our luggage is practically being dragged, but none of this matters if we FREAKING GET ON THE PLANE IN TIME!!!! We get so desperate we just drop our drinks on the floor, pick up our bags, and run like there is no tomorrow, and there won’t be if we don’t get that plane! By the time we were in the C terminal, there was only one minute left! OMG! Running through the crowds of people and weaving through obstacles, we finally found terminal C9 and ran to the guy at the check-in counter and gave him our tickets. Then we tiredly dragged ourselves into the small tunnel that connected to the plane, picked our seats, conveniently all in one row, and dropped ourselves into the comfort of the supple leather seats and prepared for a journey of a lifetime. We each entertained ourselves with diverse activities throughout the long plane ride. Diana doodled on every possible little space in her notebook, both Jackie and Salina were listening and singing along to their IPODs, I was taking millions of pictures of myself with her new hot pink Polaroid digital camera, and Aileen was playing with her brand new Nintendo DS. Finally, three hours later, three ELONGATED hours later, we landed at the LAX Airport in Los Angeles, CA. Next, we were supposed to go on Flight 9286 to Mexico City, Mexico at 9:50 AM at terminal B3, according to me, and meet my grandma’s friend named Claire. For now on, let’s just call her Claire and not have to elucidate the whole “my grandma’s friend” thingy all the time. Anyways, it was about 7:15 AM and Salina’s and my stomachs were growling, what’s new? We all decided to go to Burger King for breakfast - I know, how healthy – and everybody ordered some kind of salad because this summer, we were all trying to lose a few pounds at the least. We had about 2 hours and 35 minutes to kill so we were strolling through the airport, shopping, getting drink and snacks, looking at books in BORDERS, and just pretty much browsing around. All five of us, I guess, were preoccupied with something because none of us had noticed the announcement for Flight 9286 at 8:50 AM! We found that out when we went to terminal B3 at 9:50 AM on the dot to board the plane and were told that the plane left an hour ago. Aileen had the initiative to ask the employee if we could catch another plane but unfortunately, flights to Mexico are infrequent so there wouldn’t be another one for about 4 weeks! What are we going to do in Los Angeles, CA for four weeks?! We can’t just decide to fly back to Washington because that would mean we came out here to California for nothing! We left Washington State looking for adventure and the best summer ever, and little did we know that what we were looking for was right around the corner. “Hey ummmm…. Mom?” Jackie said hesitantly. “Hi honey, aren’t you supposed to be on your flight right now?” Jackie’s mom answered back questionably. “Uhhhhh…. Yeah that’s the problem….. we kind of missed our flight…..” Silence. “WHHHAATTTT!!!!???” “Ummmm…. Well the worst part is that their wont be another flight to Mexico in four weeks.” Jackie says quietly. “Oh my god, young lady, you are going to be in so much trouble when you come back!” Jackie’s mom yells and then in a calmer voice, “Let me call your aunt who luckily lives in that area and have her pick you five up. Meanwhile, just stay there.” Psshhh…. Like we have any other place to go. The LAX Airport was a pretty exciting place to be considering the fact that some celebrity that we couldn’t see due to the crowds of paparazzi and the many security guards surround and what seemed to be, a tall blonde celebrity. We probably each thinking, Wow, I wish I was famous so I could be: in all these magazines and photos, filthy rich, have everyone worship me, known to all people, and able to do whatever I want. The paparazzi always following you everywhere, unlimited money, hang out with all the famous people in the magazines who you longed to be, and have special treatment anywhere you go, being famous would make life seem a lot easier. All of a sudden, the blonde celebrity began walking towards the ladies room and darted through the door. After her entrance, the five out of twelve bodyguards she had stood in a row covering the entrance to the restroom. “Oh my god, we have to get in there!” I whispered as I began to huddle the five of us into a tight circle. “So let’s decide the game plan now. Diana, get all your red inks and paints and color Salina’s “lower area” red, then Salina, go up to the security guards and ask for a tampon and say its an emergency. Then Diana, go up to the some of the other guys and start gibbering to them and just start talking REALLY fast. Jackie, you need to stand up on the tables and chairs and have like…..a singing performance or something. I dunno, you’ll think of something. All three of you need to distract the paparazzi, bodyguards, and people in the airport so Aileen and I can break in through the janitor’s entrance without being seen. We’ll be as quick as possible, I promise. Does each of you know your position?” Salina, Jackie, Aileen, and Diana all seemed confused by what I had just explained and kind of just stood there shocked for a few moments and a minute later, they shot their hands in the middle of the huddle and yelled “BREAK!” The diabolical plan has begun.

PLEASE HELP ME WITH MY STORY thing!!!? Priscilla, Diana, Jackie, Aileen, and Salina, together we are the fantastic five, saving the world from evil by having a strong friendship. Haha JK about saving the world, but we are the fantastic five and we do have a strong friendship. Our “clique”, “groupie”, “club”, “circle”, or whatever you want to identify us, includes: Priscilla, Jackie, Salina, Aileen, and Diana. Each of us has different looks, backgrounds, personalities, qualities, talents, and lots of other stuff that makes us what we are, well, best friends. Diana the artist, Aileen the overachiever, Priscilla the social and personality, Jackie the athlete, and Salina the singer, we are all different in many ways but that is why we get along so well. This summer, the summer after middle school and before high school, will be the most challenging, exciting, scary, adventurous, surprising, and overall, awesome summer ever. The five of our lives are essentially never going to be the same after this summer of twist, turns, and through streets that just may seem like dead ends. The 8th grade year has come to an end. Many wonderful times and many more dreadful times, but we got through it, together. When I mean “we”, I mean my little clique of friends: Aileen, Jackie, Salina, Diana, and me. After all the complicated work, all the struggles to get through 8th grade and move on in life, everything is finally over. Everything in this story is “we” because we are always together, through the good times and the bad, and we are always part of each other, none complete without another. “All students please report to the commons immediately for the 8th grade ceremony.” Mrs. Merritt announced on the loudspeaker. Jackie, Aileen, Priscilla, Salina, and Diana were sitting in the front row of seats in our 4th period Language Arts class, in that exact order and stood up to go to the commons. “Oh my god!” Jackie screamed at the top of her lungs. “Do you know what this means?” “Oh my god! We are gonna get our little certificate thingies for like, best dressed and stuff!” Priscilla yelled also screaming at the top of her lungs. Then, Jackie, Diana, and Priscilla began waving their hands in the air and screaming like the little girly girls they are. Salina kept staring at us, obliviously not believing how weird we are. Aileen on the other hand was also waving her hands and screaming but not for the same purpose, she was mocking them. “Hey! We are just excited so back off!” Diana shot to Aileen after giving her a sharp glare. Then at that point in time, we all began cracking up and giggling because we were SO not going to start a fight right before Middle School Graduation! “Come on students; let’s get our butts down to the commons now!” Mrs. Walker, our 4th period Language Arts Honors teacher, yelled loudly in her military tone. “Affirmative, Sir yes sir!” A voiced spoke out. The voice was obliviously Jimmy’s, Jimmy Schmidt, I mean; he has always been one to crack jokes. The class began to break into hysterics, even Mrs. Walker. “Okay okay, that’s enough jokes for one year; now seriously, let’s get down there!” The assembly was extremely tedious and strenuous, but finally it was time for the 8th grade awards. “For MVP for ###################### track, I am honored to award “Iliane Isakahrvo” with the ###################### certificate.” Mr. Chicka announced. Mr. Chicka, the vice principal, is always the one participating in announcements, awards, school events, and pretty much everything. Gauche silence. “It’s Aileen, Aileen Isakharov you retard!” Aileen, Priscilla, Salina, Jackie, and Diana shrieked and right after that, they dropped down under the chairs so they wouldn’t get caught, a perfect way to end the school year. “Ahummm… I’m sorry, Aileen, let me say that again.” “For MVP for ######################, I am honored to award Aileen Isakharov with the ###################### certificate.” Well, like the old saying goes, the second try is always the best! Umm…….. not really but whatever, lets just pretend that is the saying, okay? A loud applause followed by screams, mostly from Priscilla, Salina, Jackie, and Diana, Aileen walks up to the microphone “Go Chickens. Peace out.” Then, again, more applause. “Next, for most talented, Salina Abraham!” Thank God he pronounced her name correctly. “Thank you so much everybody, I would like to thank my parents and friends ---“ “Excuse me, Ms. Abraham, a speech is not necessary.” Salina ignores Mr. Chicka and continues to talk, until, well, the school security comes. She says one last “thank you” and is forced off the stage, talk about guts! “Okay…..Next, I would like to present Jackie Manson for the most dazzling smile. Congratulations!” Jackie scampers up to the stage, grabs the certificate, and squeals an “Oh my god!” so high pitched, I swear, the windows should have broken, but instead the microphone made these screeching sounds, talk about magical powers! “For most creative student, Diana Chen come on up and receive your award!” She walks up there, takes the certificate, and then just simply walks back to her seat. “Last but not least, I would like to award ############ for most charming personality!” The crowd screams, whistles, and claps as Priscilla struts down the main walkway to the stage to claim her award. She walks up to Mr. Chicka, takes the certificate, and then walks to the microphone and says, “Thanks everybody! I am so honored, I love you all!” Then the crowd goes wild again, what a crowd pleaser! After the assembly, everyone was talking about “the fantastic five” and how we each got an award for something. I guess we are just simply amazing, like that’s a surprise. The awards ceremony took up so much time, by the time everyone was out of the commons, the bell rung at precisely 2:30 PM, indicating that school had ended and summer had begun. Oh yeah! Preppy4LIFE: OMG, I cannot believe school is over! PinkyInRussian: I <3 Chickens. DeeDi4Diana: Okay… that was random. Jaxgrrrrl: Yeah totally. I know! Lina123: So what are your guys’ plans for the summer? Dee4Diana: Maybe checking hot guys out? Preppy4LIFE: yeah on the internet. LOL. ;] Jaxgrrrrl: HAHA LOL. Lina123: LOL. :] PinkyInRussian: Oh my chicken, is that all you guys say on AIM? LOL? Lina123: At least we don’t say chicken between every other word. PinkyInRussian: HEY! I was kidding! Dee4Diana: Suuuuuurrrrreeee…. Whatever Aileen Jaxgrrrrl: I totally agree with Priscilla. LOL. PinkyInRussian: What’s with the whole “LOL” thing? You guys are :O Dee4Diana: OH no you didn’t! PinkyInRussian: OH yes I did. Preppy4LIFE: Ooooohhh watcha gonna do about that diss? Dee4Diana: Oh is on Aileen, bring it on. PinkyInRussian: It’s been brought. Jaxgrrrrl: We should totally do something together during summer! Preppy4LIFE: OMG, totally. We should go to…. Dee4Diana: Tokyo! Lina123: New York! PinkyInRussian: CHICKEN! Preppy4LIFE: uhh…. Okay… a bit random…… OMG this is gonna be fun! Jaxgrrrrl: How ‘bout Mexico? I mean it at least would be hot! Preppy4LIFE: OMFG! Awesome. I vote Jackie. Dee4Diana: Me too. Lina123: Me three. PinkyInRussian: Me four. Preppy4LIFE, PinkyInRussian, Lina123, Dee4Diana, Jaxgrrrrl: Perfect! From that moment on, all of our phones have been ringing off the hook due to all of us calling each other at every and any waking moment possible, to talk about the trip. It was planned. We would be flying from the SeaTac Airport to the El Rosa Airport at 4 AM on July 13, 2008 and come back exactly 6 weeks later. This would be our first big trip together and it would make our lives change forever, even more than we would have thought! We would be on flight number 1376 on Mexico International Airlines. There were five tickets, one for each of us, and we would be staying at Priscilla’s grandma’s friend’s home who just happens to live next door to This trip, though we may not know it, is going to change our lives and have many twists and turns that will carry all of us on a journey, together. “Flight 1376 is ready to board, I repeat, Flight 1376 is ready to board, if this is your flight, please report to terminal C9 to board the plane. Thank you.” That was our cue to get out of Starbucks and get going towards our terminal before we miss our plane, which wouldn’t be good, not good at all. Priscilla ordered a light caramel frappicino with triple shots and whipped cream, Salina ordered a mocha cappuccino, Jackie, a pumpkin spice frappicino, Diana a black coffee, and Aileen, a hot chocolate. After all our orders were completed, it was 3:40 AM! SHIT! That means that we have five minutes to run across the airport with drinks in one hand, luggage in the other, and whatever else Salina, Jackie, Priscilla, Diana, and/or Aileen might be carrying along. We pass California Pizza Kitchen, getting a little closer to our destination but with only four minutes left. We convert from a jog to a full out sprint and all of our drinks begin to spill along the edges of the cups and our luggage is practically being dragged, but none of this matters if we FREAKING GET ON THE PLANE IN TIME!!!! We get so desperate we just drop our drinks on the floor, pick up our bags, and run like there is no tomorrow, and there won’t be if we don’t get that plane! By the time we were in the C terminal, there was only one minute left! OMG! Running through the crowds of people and weaving through obstacles, we finally found terminal C9 and ran to the guy at the check-in counter and gave him our tickets. Then we tiredly dragged ourselves into the small tunnel that connected to the plane, picked our seats, conveniently all in one row, and dropped ourselves into the comfort of the supple leather seats and prepared for a journey of a lifetime. We each entertained ourselves with diverse activities throughout the long plane ride. Diana doodled on every possible little space in her notebook, both Jackie and Salina were listening and singing along to their IPODs, Priscilla was taking millions of pictures of herself with her new hot pink Polaroid digital camera, and Aileen was playing with her brand new Nintendo DS. Finally, three hours later, three ELONGATED hours later, we landed at the LAX Airport in Los Angeles, CA. Next, we were supposed to go on Flight 9286 to Mexico City, Mexico at 9:50 AM at terminal B3, according to Priscilla, and meet Priscilla’s grandma’s friend named Claire. For now on, let’s just call her Claire and not have to elucidate the whole Priscilla’s grandma’s friend thingy all the time. Anyways, it was about 7:15 AM and Salina’s and Priscilla’s stomachs were growling, what’s new? We all decided to go to Burger King for breakfast - I know, how healthy – and everybody ordered some kind of salad because this summer, we were all trying to lose a few pounds at the least. We had about 2 hours and 35 minutes to kill so we were strolling through the airport, shopping, getting drink and snacks, looking at books in BORDERS, and just pretty much browsing around. All five of us, I guess, were preoccupied with something because none of us had noticed the announcement for Flight 9286 at 8:50 AM! We found that out when we went to terminal B3 at 9:50 AM on the dot to board the plane and were told that the plane left an hour ago. Aileen had the initiative to ask the employee if we could catch another plane but unfortunately, flights to Mexico are infrequent so there wouldn’t be another one for about 4 weeks! What are we going to do in Los Angeles, CA for four weeks?! We can’t just decide to fly back to Washington because that would mean we came out here to California for nothing! We left Washington State looking for adventure and the best summer ever, and little did we know that what we were looking for was right around the corner. “Hey ummmm…. Mom?” Jackie said hesitantly. “Hi honey, aren’t you supposed to be on your flight right now?” Jackie’s mom answered back questionably. “Uhhhhh…. Yeah that’s the problem….. we kind of missed our flight…..” Silence. “WHHHAATTTT!!!!???” “Ummmm…. Well the worst part is that their wont be another flight to Mexico in four weeks.” Jackie says quietly. “Oh my god, young lady, you are going to be in so much trouble when you come back!” Jackie’s mom yells and then in a calmer voice, “Let me call your aunt who luckily lives in that area and have her pick you five up. Meanwhile, just stay there.” Psshhh…. Like we have any other place to go. The LAX Airport was a pretty exciting place to be considering the fact that some celebrity that we couldn’t see due to the crowds of paparazzi and the many security guards surround and what seemed to be, a tall blonde celebrity. We probably each thinking, Wow, I wish I was famous so I could be: in all these magazines and photos, filthy rich, have everyone worship me, known to all people, and able to do whatever I want. The paparazzi always following you everywhere, unlimited money, hang out with all the famous people in the magazines who you longed to be, and have special treatment anywhere you go, being famous would make life seem a lot easier. All of a sudden, the blonde celebrity began walking towards the ladies room and darted through the door. After her entrance, the five out of twelve bodyguards she had stood in a row covering the entrance to the restroom. “Oh my god, we have to get in there!” Priscilla whispered as she began to huddle the five of us into a tight circle. “So let’s decide the game plan now. Diana, get all your red inks and paints and color Salina’s “lower area” red, then Salina, go up to the security guards and ask for a tampon and say its an emergency. Then Diana, go up to the some of the other guys and start gibbering to them and just start talking REALLY fast. Jackie, you need to stand up on the tables and chairs and have like…..a singing performance or something. I dunno, you’ll think of something. All three of you need to distract the paparazzi, bodyguards, and people in the airport so Aileen and I can break in through the janitor’s entrance without being seen. We’ll be as quick as possible, I promise. Does each of you know your position?” Salina, Jackie, Aileen, and Diana all seemed confused by what Priscilla just explained and kind of just stood their shocked for a few moments and a minute later, they shot their hands in the middle of the huddle and yelled “BREAK!” The diabolical plan has begun.