I looked at the other end of the cable and it looks frayed pretty much like the front end! Or as Dedhed showed me, the sheath is frayed, either way, looks like bad news..
Also I noticed on the left side shifter when running the small gear if you try the shift up to the middle gear the chain won't go. You have to shift up to the big gear and then back down. Well, unless you nudge the grip half way forward, then it will shift from small to middle.

Maybe I do need a professional. What will it cost?