?

Later this year I will be applying to university. The problem is that my parents want me to stay in my hometown and attend university here, while I would much rather move out (or at least keep moving out as an option; if I decide I like my hometown university best then I will stay.) We are a high-income family which means I do not qualify for bursaries or loans, and yet we 'cannot afford' it.

For example, earlier today my sister asked to go on a £600 trip to Germany. My parents said no. Now, if they said no to £600 I dread to think what they will say to over £5000 a year accommodation fees for four years. That's over £20000! (Where I live, tuition fees are paid by the Government but accommodation fees are not.)

I have my reasons for not wanting to stay here, which are:

1. The university in my hometown is not the best for my chosen degree.

2. I feel as though if I don't live on campus, I will be missing out. I already struggle desperately to make friends, being separated from my fellow students will only serve to make things worse.

3. I really just don't like my hometown. I've lived here almost 19 years and I'm fed up.

I've decided that if I can't go to university on my own terms, I'm not going at all and will go straight into employment. I'd end up miserable if I stayed here, living 7 miles away from everyone else rather than living with them. I'm honestly at a loss as to what I should do.

So...I have to write a short story for English class. But not too short. It must exceed 1000 words, no upper limit but it can't be too long.

I'm not asking for ideas, and I'm certainly not asking to be told "come up with your own ideas!" Because I have ideas a-plenty, and they're all fabulous. Fabulously long-winded, that is. I handed what I thought was a decent piece about a group of pseudo-hipster kids who liked to hang out at a coffee shop, but my teacher handed it back because it was 'too rambly'. (She didn't say those exact words. Heaven help you if you happen to have an English teacher who believes 'rambly' is a real word.) Bottom line, I really shouldn't have added the murder-mystery aspect and the utter crap-ton of kids with their less-than-witty banter.

So that's exactly where my problem lies. I can't write short stories to save my soul! Everything I come up with belongs in a 400-plus-page novel of sorts. I just can't think of anything that could easily fit into around 3000 words. So I'd really appreciate any help you can or are willing to offer. ^_^

(Okay, so maybe I am looking for ideas. Kind of. Sorta. Maybe.)

'Tis for a story.

Is it 'majesteit' or 'uwe majesteit' ?

On Saturday, I went to my hairdresser to get my hair cut. It was originally all even length, and I wanted to have nice choppy layers in it.

The end result? My hair looks like it's been hacked at with a pair of blunt scissors.

My mum says I'll need to get my hair cut the length of the shortest layers, but in NO WAY am I allowing my hair to be cut into a bob. I had one when I was a child, and it was the most hideous hairstyle I was ever in possession of.

I only got my hair cut in layers so that it would grow in layers, now I am facing the possibility of having to cut all my hair off. Which, in all honesty, I wouldn't mind, save for the fact I have straight, front-facing bangs, and all the short hairstyles I like involve side-swept bangs.

I honestly don't want to do. As shallow and petty as it sounds, I can barely look in a damn mirror without wanting to burst into tears, so awful is my new hairstyle. I'd cover it up with a hat, but my school doesn't allow the wearing of hats inside the building.

Does anyone have any ideas for hairstyles which are very short, but can accommodate bangs and that AREN'T bobbed? I'd appreciate any help offered.

First things first, DON'T tell me that I shouldn't be writing if I can't come up with my own ideas. I have plenty of ideas- but not one of them is suited to a short piece. Every idea in my head right now is for a 500+ page novel. That's entirely the problem- I can't come up with short story ideas. I don't have the faintest idea how to take one of my ridiculously long-winded plots and condense it into 1000 words, nor do I have any experience in conjuring up a plot that can easily fit into that word limit.

I'm not asking for full plots complete with characters for me to plagiarize. All I want is a simple prompt- or at least some advice on how to write/create plots for stories less than 100 words. All advice would be greatly appreciated, many thanks in advance.

I have had a 4th generation iPod Touch for over two years now. Whenever I try to buy an app or song from the iTunes store, it asks not only for my password but also the answers to my security questions. These questions were set more than two years ago and I cannot for the life of me remember the answers, and therefore I cannot purchase any apps or music. I can only purchase free apps which do not require the answering of the security questions.

After researching online, it appears I have only two options: either I buy a new iPod device, or I delete and change my Apple ID. I tried to follow the instructions, but none of them seemed to fit my particular situation and I am completely useless with technological devices anyway. I really need someone to explain the process in great detail as to how I can:

- delete/nullify my current Apple ID,

- create and start using a new one.

I would greatly appreciate any help as I do not want to have to spend upwards of £200 on a new device when there is a possibility I can continue using the old one. Many thanks in advance.

I need some suggestions for boys names, first and middle, that sound good with the last name Reinhardt. All suggestions, whether common or unique, are welcome, but I would like if they went well with the name Adalyn (his twin sister.) I also do not mind names which start with the same letter.

All help greatly appreciated.

[ not expecting, it is for story characters. ]

I currently have a medium-brown shade of hair, neither light/golden nor dark and sometimes appears a copper shade under bright light. I want to dye it a very dark dishwater blonde, almost a golden brown, but am unsure on whether or not it would be possible to do so without the use of bleaching product. I have heard people say it is possible, while others have said it is not. I need to know if there is a way of doing so, and what dyes would be recommended, before I go and buy one. (I am not allowed to use bleaching product, so will not be dying it if it is impossible to do so without).

I've thought of a few good ideas to wear to school on Halloween, but everything I've thought of so far, someone else is already wearing. (For instance, I was going to be a loligoth doll, and had bought the costume and everything, but it turns out someone else is wearing exactly that. Grr.) I will need to know what to buy for tomorrow as I will be purchasing it then (for some reason, we are only getting to wear the costumes on Wednesday, not Thursday). I am willing to spend some money on a costume, but not more than £20.

Some ideas I have so far:

- China clown doll (have the makeup, but no idea how to make/where to buy costume)

- Rainbow Brite (same as above)

- Candy skull (not sure what to wear with makeup)

- 'What does the fox say'

This is all I can think of so far. Any help will be much appreciated!

I have an iPod Touch, 4th generation which I have had for almost two years. During the time I have had it, it has worked fine but today, for some unknown reason, it is not.

The battery ran down to 0%, so I plugged it into my docking station/charger, expecting it to charge the way it usually does. After a few minutes, the Apple logo which appears when you turn on the device, did indeed appear, but the passcode screen did not appear a few minutes later as is usual. Instead, it has been stuck on the Apple logo startup screen for almost two hours now.

I really don't know what the problem is. Has this ever happened to anyone before, that the startup screen would work but the device would not switch on? I cannot afford to get it repaired, so I want to see if there is any hope of it ever working again before I consider repairs, or a possible upgrade of the device. What would be the best course of action?

Many thanks in advance. All help much appreciated.

An assignment I have been given asks us to give four examples of differences between consensus and conflict theories "from social life". While I fully understand the definitions of and differences between the two, I am finding great difficulty in trying to apply them to a social situation as we have been asked to do.

For example, the opposing view of Functionalists and Marxists of the media. This is the only one I have at present, I simply cannot think of any more. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

For my English class I am required to select two novels, either of the same author or genre, and write an extended essay comparing the two. However, I am completely at a loss as to which novels to choose. I am an avid reader, mainly of the YA genre, and we have been informed that our selections must be adult fiction, which I have rarely read, and been mostly dissatisfied with. My lack of passion for adult fiction has proved a great inconvenience, as I have not read and enjoyed enough novels that would be a suitable choice for my essay. Therefore, I will have to select two novels which I have never read, and I do not even know where to begin.

I am not asking people for their favorite books. I am asking if anyone has read, and greatly enjoyed, either more than one work from the same author or genre, and could easily make a valid comparison. For example;

"compare and contrast two or more works by (insert author here)"

or

"how has the _____ genre changed over time? give evidence, with reference to two or more texts of this genre from differing time periods".

These are examples of the questions we will be asked to answer. Please note that I am in no way asking that dreaded question, "can you do my homework for me"? thinly veiled by using slightly different wording. Nor am I desperately seeking last-minute advice for tomorrow. We have many months before our selections must be finalized, and I would simply like to get a 'head-start'. I would, of course, ask a local librarian, but I fear I would be greeted with that infamous question- "what are you interested in"? This is not about interest. This is about finding any two novels, whether mentally stimulating or not, that can be compared, contrasted and indeed wrote about.

I apologize if this all seems a little long-winded. If there is anything you do not understand, do not hesitate to ask me to clarify. Your co-operation, should you choose to answer this question, is greatly appreciated. Many thanks in advance.

Today I have a 6-hour rehearsal for a musical. However, I only appear twice during the play, which means for around four or five hours, I will be sitting with nothing to do. The building has no wifi, and we are not allowed mobile phones or iPods (if we are caught with them, they get confiscated). Any recommendations of what I can do to stay occupied during the five hours I will not be needed? No troll answers, please- I will be kicked out of the play if I do anything stupid. Serious answers only, help greatly appreciated.

(I already asked this a couple hours ago, but didn't get many answers.Not expecting. It's for a story.)

I need help finding some first/middle name combinations for two characters in a story. As they are half Irish and half Italian, I would like their names to reflect this. Therefore, they will have either:

- an Irish first name and Italian middle name,

- an Italian first name and an Irish middle name.

I have been looking at some traditional names, but cannot find any good combinations that flow nicely. Traditional, rather than modern names are preferred. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

It's for a character in a story.

I am in need of a beautiful, feminine name that flows nicely with the name Cerise. All help much appreciated.

(Not expecting. It's for a story.)

I need help finding some first/middle name combinations for two characters in a story. As they are half Irish and half Italian, I would like their names to reflect this. Therefore, they will have either:

- an Irish first name and Italian middle name,

- an Italian first name and an Irish middle name.

I have been looking at some traditional names, but cannot find any good combinations that flow nicely. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

BQ1- do you prefer the name Athena or Cerise?

BQ2- what are some good middle names for either Athena or Cerise? (or both.)

I recently remembered a cartoon but have only the vaguest memories of it. It was from either the late '90s or early '00s. (I know it was out before 2004, I moved house that year and we had to spend ages scraping stickers of the show's characters off a wall). It was about children at school, I think the name was something like "The ______ Kids" but then I could be wrong. One thing I definitely remember is the characters having rather large heads. I remember McDonalds featuring a series of Happy Meal toys with plastic models of the characters once. If anyone thinks they might recognise this show, I'd really appreciate the help.

Roughly an hour ago, a piece of instrumental, upbeat music started playing on my laptop and I CANNOT for the life of me get rid of it. I have turned down the volume but whenever I turn it back up the noise is still there, which means I cannot watch videos or listen to music online any more. I have no idea on how to access whichever programs may be running in order to get rid of it, and I really need help as I need to be able to watch videos online for revision purposes. I would really appreciate any help or advice.

For some reason, my computer is playing a strange instrumental tune and I simply cannot figure out where it is coming from. I don't know exactly how and when it started as another person was using the computer at the time and only says it "just randomly started playing", it appears to have been within the last fifteen to twenty minutes. I have no idea how to make it stop and it is beginning to really irritate me as I can no longer watch videos online. Please, any help would be greatly appreciated.

On my laptop I have three browsers, Google Chrome, torch and Internet explorer and for some unknown reason, every single one of them keeps crashing. It has reached the point where I can barely access the Internet at all (I have had to resort to using this tablet device in order to ask this question.) I have had many problems with this laptop before and have not even had it for a year yet. I really don't know if or how the problem can be fixed and would greatly appreciate any help.