Have you ever walked by a mirror and feel your heart skip a beat because you thought you saw someone but it's really just your reflection. Don't lie, we've all done it, it's just a matter of whether or not it really was just your reflection. Our story is that of a woman named Elise Strande who meets her "reflection."

Elise sat where she always sits in the hours between 9 and 5 watching blankly at a computer screen waiting for her next idiot to deal with. She leaned back into her chair which, at one point, was soft and comfy, worn down by 2 years of constant use. Their office couldn't really afford a new chair, mostly for the same reason Elise was waiting on her next call, UTech wasn't exactly the most popular choice for help. They've tried to put out their image, but they just get overshadowed by other ads, specifically for competing companies. She thought about going ahead and starting her break early, but she was already on the company watch list and didn't need to get fired. Not because she couldn't get a job, but that she doesn't want to try to adjust to something that could be even worse. Elise was afraid of change and meeting new people and all things of the sort. She could probably trace it back to some childhood incident, but she knew it wouldn't help anything, it's not like she could go back and change it, she just had to deal with it and keep to her schedule.

'That is, if my schedule gets me near Tiffany Burleque' The classic office feminazi. You'd think as a woman in a workplace with mostly men, she'd enjoy someone on her side, but Tiffany was to be avoided at all costs. She is always just so loud and energetic and driven by unrivaled unjustified hatred for men of all kinds. Elise more or less just found it more annoying than anything. Especially since last christmas. She didn't want to think about that incident. Either way, ever since then everybody has avoided her and no one likes to think about that time. Sighing at the memory, she started to log off for her break, until she noticed she had a customer. 'Just my luck.' She put her headset back on and did her normal routine of "Hi! Welcome to..." and all those other things her boss drilled into her head. After that ordeal was over she waited for him to list his name and problem. But she didn't hear anything. This wasn't the first time she'd been prank called, in fact, it seemed like there were more pranks than actual customers. But this one felt different. Faintly, she could hear breathing, but ragged and inhuman sounding. 'What the hell is this creeps problem? Calling a tech support hotline to get his rocks off." At least, that's what she thought he was doing. But as she was hanging up, he spoke up.

"Elise? Is that you?" The strangely familiar voice said.

"How do you know my name?" Elise asked, her hand ready to dial her manager.  She was unawares that this was the first glimpse into her new life.

When you think about waking up one day, the smartest person on earth, you would think you'd be way smarter than before, but no, it happened the other way around.  About 150 years ago, NASA, my employers, invented a cryostasis chamber to preserve a human being for future use.  Obviously I just had to do it.  About a month ago, they woke me up somehow, and it was... disappointing.  Apparently, about 50 years after I went into stasis, people had invented everything necessary for everyone to live peaceful, happy lives with no work.  Sadly, this also means that school isn't necessary and no one has any education past speaking a language invented so that everyone spoke the same language.  By default, and because I was a senior NASA scientist, I was the smartest living being on earth.  I made first page on the audio news for about a day, then it was flooded with paid sponsorships as per usual.  The level of stupidity and bliss everyone is in is frightening, most people barely even know their multiplication tables.  I feel like an outsider because I'm just too smart.  I wish I'd never gone on that damn cryostasis thing so that I'd never have to experience the hell of living with idiots for the rest of my life.  

During the first week, I was still in shock from the sudden freeze of the chamber.  About halfway through the second week, I had to cope with the fact that I'm a genius among idiots and I was stuck like this for the rest of my time.  I almost wanted to get back in the chamber and hope there's a surge of learning in the near future.  I quickly decided against that idea, as there was also a chance that people would just get dumber and dumber until no one was even in a conscious state.  It's disgusting, the conditions that they live in, everything run by robots.  It's like terminator, but instead of a devastated future ruled by robots, it's a future ruled by robots that babysit humans.  I've scoured the news for anything even showing signs of intellect.  So far, all I've come up with is that robots are the only things worth conversing with.  

After the second week, I'd made a friend.  Or I think I did.  Maybe Robert was just programmed to hold a smart friendly conversation.  Anyways, I've talked to pretty much only Robert ever since I met him.  He was my only connection to the state of which people used to be.  I'm sad to say that he was my only friend because recently, like most robots, had a glitch, and since no one is smart enough to fix it, they just scrap it and order a new one.  When I found the news about him, I cried and cried.  Funny how you can get so attached to something that doesn't even have a soul.  Since then, I've been silent and in mourning, which went unnoticed by the observation new breed of humans.  Up until now, I've had no idea how to fix my life, but I've got a plan.  This may be the future, but there are still tall buildings with accessible roofs.  As I leap, I hope that Robert, even without a soul, made it to the afterlife because he deserves it more than anyone else I know in this dumbed down future.

Sometimes, you just gotta take a load off and relax for a bit.  After all, doctors say that stress is a huge problem in America and doctors are never wrong.  So sit back, grab a drink, smoke a cigarette, go to church, however you relax and just think to yourself.  Not to anyone else, other people are confusing and there's always something that offends them, leads to an argument, which leads to stress.  Just t h i n k to yourself but not about yourself.  Your life is stressful, and you're the center of it so stay away from you, think about trees, or that squirrel you saw out of the corner of your eye, or how leaves provide nutrients for the plant they fall off of which basically means plants self cannibalize.  The more intricate you get, the more complicated and deep in thought the better.  Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go take a load off, and think about how to make a good ending.

To write in white

Just isn't right,

To hide your words

by blending in

to not be heard

with no fin,

To write in white

is to pick a fight

When writing on white paper

with white words

no intention to reveal it later

and will never be heard.

1) Water can never be hotter than when it boils, but the boiling point varies depending on how high you are/ air pressure.

2)If a giraffe were to drink coffee, by the time it reached its stomach, it would be cold.  

3)Napoleon's left testicle is under a bed in new york right now.

4)Darth Vader never has said, "Luke, I am your father."

4)Vending machines have killed twice as many people than sharks, while the leading cause in animal attacks in the United States is cows.

She's the most beautiful person in the world, nay, the universe.  Her skin shines like a thousand suns and her touch is as soft as a pillow made from hundreds of dove feathers.  Her eyes sparkle with a shine that would make a fairy feel jealous.  And I love her for that.  She's the smartest woman I know and I'm lucky enough to be her mate.  But today is more important than ever before.  Today is the day that I choose to spend the rest of my life with her.  I already got the waiter to save our reservations and to bring the ring.  The ring.  The ring has the largest rock I can find, and it shimmers like light trapped in a glass prison.  I knew it would be perfect for her when I saw it, regardless of how expensive it was.  

But now it's time to take her out to dinner.  A dinner in which I'll confess my eternal love to her and hope that she'll reciprocate it.  When I saw her it was like meeting her for the first time, she was wearing a beautiful, silky dark blue dress with her luscious hair tied up in intricate knots that could only have been made with small skillful hands.  As the time approached at dinner, I began to worry.  What if she doesn't say yes?  She's way too beautiful for someone like me.  But it was too late as the waiter came around with that fateful plate. 

The year is 2045, genders are nonexistent, the only constant in our society is video games as movies and shows have become outdated.  War is fought with games, the losing side having to give up land and people.  Using cheats is a war crime punishable by disqualification and instant loss and to the cheater, death.  I am one of america's top fighters in the war against the monster that is Japan.  They've had the advantage in gaming for as long as people remember, but that won't stop me from trying.  We won 2 battles so far and we're looking to win the third today and claim britain for our own.  I write this for any time traveler looking to find out what's happened to this world, just like in Call of Duty: Time Stream Warfare.  Good luck out there.

- An elite force gamer.

Dear diary,

You'd never think that the zombie apocalypse would happen while you're still in high school.  Maybe it's because movies and books only portray young children for heartfelt sadness, or grown men for logical reasons.  Anyway, I'm getting off topic, I'm making this as a journal, incase I have to deal with early onset alzheimer's in the middle of an apocalypse.  It was almost time for homeroom, stuck in math class like every other day bored out of my mind.  In fact, the zombies looked more lively than the students.  Of course, the fat kids were the ones to get eaten first, they're big targets, and luckily there wasn't any of them by the window that I sit at.  After climbing through the window I noticed that the track team was going a bit slower doing their normal laps.  Probably because they were dead, maybe because their recent budget cuts.  So me being me thought, these track stars have been harassing me about being small and slow through school, might as well get revenge.  I won't dive into any details, but it involved setting up hurdles for their rotting bodies to smack into chasing me among other things.  By the time I finished with "recess," I decided it was time to get to "class" and find out how to kill these things.  I started with the track team star, Zachary McDillian.  He was a hard one to put down but without arms, legs, or a head, he seemed to stop moving.  Through my "studies" I found the cliche of going for the head proved very effective and so, with my zombie killing knowledge, I head off in search of weapons and shelter.  It was as I crossed to the neighborhood where all the old people live (old people don't make very intimidating zombies) that I found this pink, glittery, kitten notebook and started to write; "Dear diary."