Great Gifts 2 Go

**This is an article that was written for a client. The client has since not paid for the piece and refuses to communicate in any way. The downfalls of freelance writing sometimes. Since the article has not been paid for, it is still my property and is being used in my portfolio. It is also listed on my other blog, themickiholley.blogspot.com.** Quartz versus Granite When thinking of high-end finishes within a home it is expected that granite will be visible in the kitchen and in the bathroom. However, there is another material that is creeping up on the heels of granite and becoming a very popular and safer alternative. Quartz has the high end look but is durable, easily maintained and very safe. Quartz comes in a wide array of colors and textures to fit any kitchen or bath décor. There are heated debates everywhere as to which is better, quartz or granite. Granite lovers valiantly defend their beloved, all-natural stone while quartz lovers will fearlessly tout the virtues...

I was walking down a lonely street thinking about one of my friends, who just a few months earlier, was alive and well. Now he is resting peacefully next to his great-grandfather just outside of Moscow.   A shudder ran down my spine as I recalled that fateful November night when the world came crashing at my feet. I received an urgent call. It was his mother. She told me I needed to go to the hospital at that very moment. I tried to question her, but she continued to shout, “My boy is dead. They murdered my boy.” Frantically I drove to the emergency room. I found his mother sitting in the waiting room, sobbing silently. I asked the doctor what had happened to my friend. “He was shot seven times in his abdomen,” was the doctor’s only reply. His hysterical girlfriend, Sascha, ran toward me screaming that I was the reason he was there. Sascha calmed herself after she realized that she could not overpower me. We sat in the cold, sterile waiting room. The smell of death was cling...