1.   I drew the drapes shut before flicking a light on.

2.   Bewildered teen-agers, ready to throw it all away, to slam their precious life-book shut before the end of its first innocent chapter.

3.   One has to go through a lot of boring pictures of ribbon cuttings and mayors with their eyes shut before finding the pearls.

4.   Press the black buzzer outside, sign in and then go through one heavy metal door that clanks shut before the next heavy metal door opens.

5.   Large stock markets battened down and refused to close early today as Hurricane Floyd approached, but many small financial exchanges planned to shut before the normal closing time.

6.   Many fans said they were charged by police in an enclosed area outside the ground after becoming trapped while the turnstiles were initially shut before kick-off.

7.   Some students began a hunger strike last week to protest the closure of the center, which Thai officials vowed to shut before year end.