Good background for a charcoal drawing?

I'm applying for a fine arts scholarship to a local prep school for my freshman year; earning the scholarship money will be the only way my family can afford it. Along with a portrait and a work in any medium, we also have to submit a still life with three objects. So I have drawn three little glass bottles, each slightly different than the others in size and shape. They look great, but I also need to draw the surface they are placed on, and the background. I considered drawing a rustic-looking table with rough, characteristic wood, but I don't know what I could do for the background... Any suggestions are appreciated!

Why do people say one thing and then say something totally different later?

So aggravating....My spouse will say one thing and then say the complete opposite later. Ex: We were talking about getting a second home, as a vacation home, so we found one that we both agreed we liked and were talking about submitting an offer. He began telling me how "we have been talking about this for sometime now and we knew we were going to do this eventually". He was all excited and talking about what a great deal it was and didn't want to pass it up. Let's do it he says!Later we were with some friends talking about the home and he says "We are not buying a home in that area." I was shocked. I mean how could he say one thing to me and then amongst friends says the opposite. After a week passes we meet with a realtor and submit our offer.....The next evening we have a disagreement about something totally unrelated and he tells me "You pushed me into signing that offer, I told you I did not want to it". I have told him several times that if he felt uncomfortable in any way that we did not have to make an offer. Seriously, I could take it or leave it. I am just confused as to why he is constantly taking back what he says.

Help I messed up on my Fasfa application?

I put my income tax and adjusted gross income as the same thing how can I fix this I already submitted it like a dumbass...what can I do?

How could you tell if a baptism failed? Do baptisms ever not "take"?

Yes because anything can fail, but does not matter since Christ already paid the redemption purchase price for our eternal souls!

Hate my voice, I have a really breathy voice and sound like a little girl?

I have a similar problem as well. Even though I sing from my diaphragm, my singing voice still doesn't sound strong and when I try to sing songs that has a lot of "oomph" in it, I end up failing. For example, I suck at trying to sing Kelly Clarkson's Natural Woman because my vocals aren't strong, and I just end up sounding like I'm yelling or shrieking instead of singing. It's why I tend to stick to singing songs that my voice can actually handle.

Are there any witch doctors in the house? I need your magiks.?

Perhaps Mr. Cruise can make a personal house call to your home and jump all over your furniture in order to evoke the evil spirits that plague your Mrs. Failing that, try modelling a tinfoil hat out of Reynold's Wrap to ward off negative energy.

If I submitted a FAFSA application for community college, do I have to attempt a degree?

Can I just take the classes I want to take? My career goals might not require a degree after all, but I still need to take certain courses to gain some skills in this field, and I'm not sure I can afford it. What should I do?