Word: precious
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...eerie stillness haunts the desolate plains of eastern Australia. Plows rest immobile in their sheds; paddocks remain withered and empty. For day after enervating day, nothing relieves the silence but the whine of hot, fierce winds whirling precious topsoil into dust clouds and the occasional squawks of crows wheeling above the carcasses of livestock...
Greenfield is something of a tape recorder himself, registering every inflection and hypocrisy. Paulie mimics an indulgent father: "Clothes? Certainly, darling. A nice, expensive, out-of-town college? Name one, sweetheart, and I'll get you right in. A diaphragm? Of course, precious. I'll ask your mother to pick one up for you on the avenue while she's out shopping." Greenfield's oscillation between third and first person is singular without being wholly successful, but he manages that most difficult recipe: a blend of acrimony, humor, regret and hope. Soothing...
...very much impressed, for happiness has always seemed to me a great achievement." Instead, Sagan indulges in profuse description, as when Clarisse rains kisses on Julien's face; "Julien felt his face open up, become a fertile and blessed land, a gentle and handsome face washed of everything, precious and perishable, a face forever cherished...
...homecoming announcement marks a turning point. The atmosphere moves away from levity to confrontation; Hallie withdraws from the festivities into the role of Master Harold. Overcome by embarrassment about his father, he seeks to keep what precious little dignity he has by suddenly lording over Sam and Willie and clinging to his status in society...
...unlike in Gen Ed, the student with a sincere desire not only to learn modes of inquiry, but also to gain an educated person's familiarity with a subject outside his major--be it Fine Arts 13, History 71, or Shakespeare--must do so by sacrificing two of a precious eight elective slots. These slots are also expected to suffice for truly far-flung intellectual exploration, such as cross-registration, freshman false starts, or esoteric departmental offerings. Even students who wish to take an introductory computer course--certainly a "mode of inquiry" in itself--now receive no Core credit...