1.   Another hour ticked slowly by.

2.   As bags are searched, the line backs up and the hours tick by.

3.   As the hours ticked down to minutes, Reno held out hope for a settlement as civic leaders in Miami tried to broker a deal.

4.   As the hours ticked down to minutes, Reno held out hope for a settlement as civic leaders in Miami tried to broker a last-ditch deal.

5.   But as the hours ticked past, the searchers met only with maddening results.

6.   The talks then returned to the secrecy which has surrounded them from the outset, and the hours ticked on.

7.   As the hours ticked on, Ademir and his family gathered in their ground-floor apartment to watch TV and wait.

8.   As the hours ticked by and the bishop remained inside, the crowd grew angrier.

9.   That huge piece of uncertainty was a major factor for the Nets as the hours ticked down toward the draft.

10.   A Washington costume store was packed with feverish shoppers as the hours ticked down to darkness.