function slide(el, drop_pad, hover_pad, time, multiplier)
{	var jq_el = $(el);

	// initiates the timer used for the sliding animation
	var timer = 0;
	
	// creates the slide animation for all list elements
	jq_el.find("li[class!=title]").each(function(i)
	{	
		timer = (timer*multiplier + time);
		$(this).css('position', 'relative');
		orig_margin = parseInt($(this).css('margin-left'));
		$(this).css('margin-left', orig_margin + drop_pad).
			animate( { marginLeft : orig_margin }, timer);

		$(this).hover(
		function()
		{
			$(this).animate({ paddingLeft: orig_margin + hover_pad }, 150);
		},		
		function()
		{
			$(this).animate({ paddingLeft: orig_margin}, 150);
		});

	});
}