Understanding the Toxic Mold Protection Act: Responsibilities for Landlords and Tenants in California
The Toxic Mold Protection Act (SB 732), codified as HSC #26148, is a crucial piece of legislation in California that addresses the health risks associated with mold exposure in residential properties. Mold can pose significant health hazards, and this act delineates clear responsibilities for both landlords and tenants to ensure safe and healthy living conditions.
Landlord Responsibility Under the Toxic Mold Protection Act, landlords have a duty to address any microbial growth resulting from active leaks or water damage. This includes fixing leaks and repairing any water damage that may occur, such as a leak under a kitchen sink. The key responsibilities for landlords are: * Active Leak Repairs: Promptly address and fix any leaks that are causing water intrusion in the property.

• Water Damage Remediation: Repair and remediate any materials or areas affected by water damage to prevent mold growth.
  
• Maintenance of Structural Integrity: Ensure that the property remains in good condition to prevent conditions conducive to mold growth. By fulfilling these obligations, landlords provide a safe living environment free from conditions that promote mold growth.
  

Tenant Responsibility Tenants also play a crucial role in maintaining a mold-free environment. The Toxic Mold Protection Act outlines that tenants are responsible for microbial growth related to cleaning issues. This means tenants must: * Regular Cleaning: Maintain a clean living space to prevent mold growth. Regular cleaning of windows, walls, and other areas prone to moisture accumulation is essential. * Ventilation: Ensure proper ventilation within the unit to reduce humidity levels and prevent mold. * Reporting Issues: Promptly report any signs of leaks or water damage to the landlord to enable timely repairs.
Common Misunderstandings and Legal Disputes In recent years, there has been an increase in legal disputes where tenants take landlords to court over mold issues. However, many tenants misunderstand the division of responsibilities. While landlords must provide a property free from water damage and visible mold, it is the tenant's responsibility to maintain cleanliness and proper ventilation within the unit.
Many apartments in Los Angeles, for example, face mold problems not because of structural issues but due to lack of regular cleaning and overcrowding of furniture, which can impede proper air circulation and cleaning efforts.
Professional Mold Inspection and Testing If a tenant suspects mold in their property, it is essential to conduct a professional mold inspection and testing. This can determine the presence and source of mold, helping to clarify whether the issue arises from landlord-related problems or tenant-related cleaning deficiencies.
For comprehensive mold testing and removal services in Los Angeles, contact Mold Testing & Removal Los Angeles at (424) 369-7947. Our expert team can provide thorough inspections and effective mold remediation to ensure a healthy living environment.
Conclusion The Toxic Mold Protection Act provides a balanced framework for both landlords and tenants to maintain safe and healthy residential properties. Understanding and adhering to these responsibilities can prevent mold-related health issues and legal disputes, fostering a cooperative approach to property maintenance and occupant well-being.
For further assistance or to schedule a mold inspection, call Mold Testing & Removal Los Angeles at (424) 369-7947.

In the digital age, email marketing remains a powerful tool for businesses to reach potential clients and generate leads. Cold emailing, in particular, is an essential strategy for many sales teams, especially those in B2B sectors. To execute this effectively, having the best cold email tools is crucial. One such tool that stands out in this space is SalesBlink.

Why Choose SalesBlink?

SalesBlink is an all-in-one sales outreach platform designed to simplify and automate the cold emailing process. It is engineered to enhance the efficiency and success rate of your email campaigns, making it one of the ~best cold email tools~ available. Here are several reasons why SalesBlink is the go-to choice for businesses aiming to perfect their cold emailing strategy:
Comprehensive Prospecting: SalesBlink allows users to find and verify business emails with ease. This feature ensures that your emails are reaching valid and active inboxes, minimizing bounce rates and maximizing the chances of engagement.
Personalization at Scale: Personalization is key to a successful cold email campaign. SalesBlink offers robust tools to personalize emails at scale. This means you can tailor each email to the recipient’s specifics without the tedious manual effort, increasing the likelihood of a positive response.
Automated Follow-Ups: Following up is often where many cold email campaigns falter. SalesBlink automates follow-up sequences, ensuring that no lead slips through the cracks. The platform allows you to set up multi-stage email sequences that are triggered based on recipient behavior, such as opens and clicks.
Detailed Analytics and Reporting: Understanding how your email campaigns are performing is critical. SalesBlink provides in-depth analytics and reporting features that give you insights into open rates, click-through rates, and response rates. This data is invaluable for refining your strategy and improving future campaigns.
Integration Capabilities: SalesBlink integrates seamlessly with popular CRM systems and other sales tools, making it a versatile addition to your existing sales stack. This ensures that your sales team can work cohesively without switching between multiple platforms.
User-Friendly Interface: One of the standout features of SalesBlink is its user-friendly interface. The platform is designed to be intuitive, allowing users to quickly get up to speed and start running effective cold email campaigns without a steep learning curve.

How SalesBlink Compares to Other Tools

While there are many tools in the market, what sets SalesBlink apart is its comprehensive approach to sales outreach. It combines prospecting, email automation, personalization, and analytics in one platform, which is why it is considered one of the best cold email tools by many industry professionals.

Conclusion

In conclusion, SalesBlink is a powerful ally for any business looking to excel in cold emailing. Its robust features, from automated follow-ups to detailed analytics, make it an invaluable tool for increasing lead generation and conversion rates. For businesses that are serious about their cold email campaigns, investing in the best cold email tools is a must, and SalesBlink should be at the top of their list. Its ability to streamline the entire process and integrate with existing systems makes it a standout choice in the crowded field of email marketing tools.
By leveraging SalesBlink, companies can ensure their cold email efforts are not only efficient but also highly effective, leading to better outreach outcomes and ultimately, increased sales.

My girlfriend (who mainly plays MapleStoty and The Sims 4 with a billion mods) is using my old i7-4790k/GTX 970 pc and we’ve decided to buy her a new PC which will be a complete overkill for her needs, but a lot of the budget is her birthday money so she gets to do what she wants
PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor	$339.99 @ Amazon
Motherboard	Gigabyte B650 AORUS ELITE AX ICE ATX AM5 Motherboard	$219.99 @ Amazon
Memory	Crucial Pro Overclocking 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36 Memory	$114.99 @ Amazon
Storage	Western Digital Black SN850X 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive	$146.13 @ Amazon
Video Card	MSI GAMING X SLIM GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER 12 GB Video Card	$850.71 @ Amazon
Case	Antec C5 ARGB ATX Mid Tower Case	-
Power Supply	FSP Group Hydro G Pro 1000 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply	$143.40 @ Amazon
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total	$1815.21
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-06-05 01:46 EDT-0400

This is the build, minus the cooler which is not listed on pcpartpicker but can be found here
https://www.zalman.com/EN/Product/ProductDetail.do?pageIndex=1&pageSize=10&pageUnit=12&productSeq=1456&searchCategory1=4&searchCategory2=49&searchCategory3=-99&searchKey=&searchWord=
Is this a good build on its own? I know the power supply might be overkill but it’s the only tier A the store I’m buying from have in stock. Also, couldn’t find anything about the cooler aside from a single review online but according to to that review it should be good for the job

Introduction

In the heart of Dubai, a city renowned for its luxury and cutting-edge architecture, residential spaces demand a delicate balance of elegance and functionality. Trust the expertise of our top-tier Interior Design Company in Dubai; we understand that a home's aesthetics are just as crucial as its practicality. This narrative delves into the journey of transforming an ordinary living space into a masterpiece of elegant functionality, guided by the expertise of top Interior Designers in Dubai.

The Vision of Elegance

When embarking on the interior design journey, envisioning the space's potential is the first step. Imagine entering a serene haven where every element, from the colour palette to the furniture, exudes sophistication. The vision for this residential space was clear: it needed to reflect the client's refined taste while accommodating their everyday needs. As an Interior Designer in Dubai, understanding and translating the client's vision into reality is paramount.

Planning and Conceptualization

The planning phase is where creativity meets precision. For this project, we focused on creating a seamless flow between different areas of the home. The open-plan living room, dining area, and kitchen were designed to foster a sense of connectivity while maintaining distinct zones for various activities.
To achieve this, we chose a neutral colour palette accented with subtle pops of colour. This approach enhances the space's elegance and allows for flexibility in décor. Incorporating natural light was another critical aspect, achieved through large windows and strategically placed mirrors, amplifying the sense of openness.

Selection of Materials and Furnishings

Materials play a crucial role in defining a space's character. We opted for high-quality, sustainable materials that exude luxury without compromising functionality. The flooring was crafted from polished marble, lending an air of sophistication to the interiors. We selected pieces for the furnishings that blend contemporary design with timeless elegance.
Each piece of furniture was chosen not only for its aesthetic appeal but also for its practicality. Comfortable seating arrangements, ample storage solutions, and multifunctional furniture were crucial. As the best interior designer in Dubai, I believe that creating spaces that are as livable and beautiful is essential.

Customized Design Elements

Customization is the hallmark of a truly bespoke interior. For this residence, we designed custom-built furniture and cabinetry tailored to the client's specific needs. The kitchen, for instance, features state-of-the-art appliances seamlessly integrated into the cabinetry, providing a clutter-free environment.
In the bedrooms, we focused on creating serene retreats. Custom headboards, luxurious bedding, and carefully selected lighting fixtures provide a restful ambience. The bathrooms were transformed into spa-like sanctuaries using high-end fixtures, elegant tiles, and thoughtful lighting.

Integrating Technology

Modern interior design in Dubai is complete with the integration of intelligent technology. We incorporated smart home systems that control lighting, temperature, and security, enhancing the home's functionality and security. These user-friendly systems are designed to enhance the living experience by seamlessly integrating technology, ensuring that residents are not overwhelmed.

Bringing it All Together

The final stage of the design process involves bringing all the elements together cohesively. The result is a home that looks stunning and functions seamlessly. Each room flows naturally into the next, creating a harmonious living environment.
The living room serves as the heart of the home, with a large, comfortable sofa as the focal point. An elegant coffee table, stylish side tables, and carefully curated artwork complete the look. The dining area features a statement table and chairs, perfect for intimate dinners and entertaining guests.

Conclusion

Creating an elegant and functional residential space in Dubai requires a blend of artistic vision and practical design. As a Residential Interior Design Company in Dubai, we aim to craft homes that reflect our client's unique personalities and lifestyles. By focusing on high-quality materials, custom design elements, and intelligent technology integration, we ensure that every project is a testament to our commitment to excellence.

FAQs

Q1. What are the critical elements of elegant and functional interior design?
Elegant and functional interior design combines aesthetic appeal with practicality. Key elements include a cohesive colour palette, high-quality materials, customized furniture, and technology integration to enhance functionality.
Q2. How do you ensure that a residential space remains functional while looking elegant?
By carefully selecting materials and furnishings that offer both beauty and practicality, we create livable and stylish spaces. Custom-built furniture and smart home systems also play a significant role in achieving this balance.
Q3. What trends are prevalent in residential interior design in Dubai?
Popular trends include open-plan living spaces, natural light, neutral colour palettes with accent colours, and the integration of smart home technology. Sustainable and high-quality materials are also in demand.
Q4. Why is customization necessary in interior design?
Customization enables the creation of spaces tailored to the client's specific needs and preferences. It ensures that every element of the design is unique and tailored to enhance the space's functionality and aesthetics.
Q5. How do I choose the right interior designer for my home in Dubai?
Seek out an interior designer with a proven track record of successful projects in Dubai. Consider their design philosophy, portfolio, and ability to understand and translate your vision into reality. Personal recommendations and reviews can also help you make your decision.

This was originally started as a reply to u/ConfectionWestern’s insight about Eloise and Cressida’s conversations at balls and then got long and on other topics. Thanks to them for the inspiration! That post is here.
I have to wonder whether it isn’t a coincidence that it is embroidery that Eloise discusses with the debutantes and then proceeds to make fun of.
I am gathering the feeling that Eloise has her own trauma association with embroidery. When her father died (shown in S2E3) — if Colin was 12 we can assume she was around 8-10 — her mother withdrew. The one thing Violet was able to do during that time was embroidery. She wasn’t able to visit the nursery much, play with the children, or even join for family dinner. She holed herself away and did embroidery.
(And not to knock Violet — completely fair. She was going through A LOT.)

Anthony: Mother. There you are.
Violet: Here I am.
Anthony: You look well.
Violet: I slept. I bathed. I went for a walk outdoors. I saw the children. I went to chapel. Now I'm making myself useful with embroidery.
Anthony: Perhaps join us for family dinner? I know this is hard. I know you miss him.
Violet: Please...
Anthony: But we all miss him. And I think...
Violet: Anthony, this is it. This is my best. I am doing my best. ( crying ) Every day, I get up, I get dressed, I feed myself, I try to breathe in and out. I force myself to stop by the nursery. And I think about how sorry I feel for little baby Hyacinth because she will never know Edmund's laugh. Or the way he smelled, or what it is to be hugged in his arms. I feel even sorrier for myself because, most of the time, all I am thinking is that this little baby did not do me the kindness of killing me so that I could be with my husband. Edmund was the air that I breathed. And now there is no air. So, do not ask me about family dinner. I am doing my best.

We know Eloise was there as she’s shown on the stairs when her father dies in the garden. I think we can also assume she is the child that Daphne is singing to, based on hair color, while her mother is in excruciating labor and Anthony is being asked by the doctor whether Hyacinth or Violet should live.
In the same way that Anthony was traumatized by that and decided he never wanted to put someone through that, I wonder if Eloise decided she never wanted to go through that: marriage, childbirth, all of that, because at a young age where she wasn’t quite old enough to be able to understand what was going on, all of those things caused great suffering right around the same time.
(There is a huge difference between 8-9 and 12 in terms of how they are able to understand what is going on around them. An 8-9 year old is able to absorb what is happening but not comprehend it, or feel agency in doing anything about it, in the way a 12 year old can.)
Like Colin, she adapted by getting a sense of humor and becoming entertaining, but her humor has a bit more of an edge to it than Colin’s. It’s more defensive and sarcastic, whereas his is lighter and sillier.
Not seeking suitors / not getting married / not having children is such a key part of how her character has been presented. Not only is she shown not being eager to do the whole debutante/marriage market thing, she also recoils at holding Daphne’s baby in S2 and Colin swoops in to take the baby from her.
So Eloise is being forced to march through her own hell. She and Penelope, at least at this stage in their lives, bond by both being outsiders to the marriage market: Penelope being sidelined and rejected by suitors but when she actually wants the end goal (marriage); and Eloise rejecting suitors and sidelining herself because she doesn’t want the end goal. Eloise was going to be a spinster by choice, but not Pen. This is why Pen gets so frustrated at Eloise about being “pretty Bridgertons:” Pen, from her POV, cannot understand why someone who would intentionally throw away chances at marriage. To Pen, marriage is freedom and escape from her mother. To Eloise, marriage and childbirth mean the opposite of freedom: they mean death and suffering.
Eloise is confused by Pen’s POV, as she has a loving mother and no context to understand why one would want to escape their home. Pen can’t really understand Eloise’s POV, either.
We see a lot of examples of Eloise being a caring friend to Pen throughout the years. She is the one that Pen rushes to on the swings when Colin gets engaged to Marina. I don’t know if Eloise knows that’s why — it’s still unclear to me whether Pen told her about her feelings for Colin (most of my friends growing up who had crushes on a friend’s brother never told them) — and I think she thinks it’s more about Pen losing Marina, but still. Eloise is also the one that Pen cries to when Colin leaves for Greece (though Eloise thinks it’s because Pen’s father died, but Pen is looking out the window at Colin’s carriage leaving).
As to whether or not Eloise would know about the extent of how bad Pen’s mother is, I’m not really sure. She clearly has seen Pen tense about her mother and complain about the outfits her mother puts her in. Yet as someone who also had an abusive mother, I can say that only my very best friends knew what went on, and even then only knew a sliver of it. Pen’s mother, like my mother, never shows the abuse in front of others outside the family. So Pen has probably told Eloise she wants freedom and doesn’t expect to get married, and Eloise interprets that from her own perspective.
It’s notable that the later conversation with Cressida, which was pointed out as a mirror in the embroidery thread, was about why they shouldn’t have to get married. Eloise is obsessed with avoiding marriage in a room full of people focusing on it. There is great irony in her going on at length about how they could talk about other things if they didn’t have to talk about other things… instead of just talking about those other things.
Francesca is her foil in this way: Fran is going through the motions of the marriage market and clearly doesn’t want to think about it, and so she spends her time playing and thinking about piano. Fran being autistic-coded aside, it shows a great contrast. Eloise wants to think about other things but she can’t because she has unresolved trauma. She needs to talk it out and have her perspective validated, yet she isn’t able to pinpoint the source herself. We, the viewer, however, have been given a lot of clues, so we are able to piece this together.
At the end of S2, Eloise and Pen have their falling out about LW. And Eloise is not able to understand why Pen would do such a thing, and she replaces her with a mean girl who isn’t nearly as kind or happy to listen to her as Pen. This is the wake-up call that Eloise has needed. She says in S3 Part 1 how she and Pen were going to be spinsters together, but now Pen has decided to take a husband; this is Eloise’s turn to feel abandoned. What about the dreams they’d had together? Is Pen a new person who doesn’t seem to share their same values anymore, values they’d talked about for years? It’s deeply confusing and disappointing for Eloise.
This is getting a bit long, so I will close with this:
Does Eloise need to learn how to show and feel empathy? Yes.
Does she need to learn to listen more and talk less? Yes.
Is she stuck in her own context and seeing her own context primarily? Yes.
Does she have unresolved childhood trauma? Yes.
Does Pen also need to work through her own shit and learn to me more emphatic, too? Also yes.
Colin is interesting because he is so empathetic to the point of losing himself. He is able to intuit others’ feelings and usually centers himself around other people’s feelings rather than his own. This is why it is so hard for him to choose his own feelings for Pen over choosing letting her our pursue what she tells him in the cake tent is making her happy (Debling). So does Colin need to learn how to have boundaries and allow himself to feel his own feelings — another key part of empathy? Also yes.
All three of them are going on a journey about stepping outside of their own perspective and learning how others experience the world so that they can understand others’ actions better and be more true to themselves.
And this is a completely normal thing to be going through at that age, as our brains’ capacities for empathy are developing rapidly in the teenage years and don’t fully develop until the age of 25. So it makes sense that all of them are actively learning empathy around their early 20s, especially as they encounter new people and situations and have their own underlying truths questioned.

I'm a noob on this sub (I'm a noob on Reddit too, writing here and here), but I read a lot of posts in the subs I follow. A few time ago, I saw a post on this sub about the multiple fruits of Blackbeard. The OP was talking about the names of the real Blackbeard and how they are a reference to the two characters he killed in the manga, Thatch and Edward (sorry, I don't remember the exact names in English). I thought it was a pretty nice mention, but I thought of something.
We know Blackbeard can turn off the devil's fruits of people. What if he extinguished his own fruit himself, before absorbing the next one? The process remains unknown, perhaps he's retrieving something from the host's body, or he's injuring himself badly, which explains the sheet concealing the whole operation. Perhaps this fruit of darkness he wanted so badly is the key to stealing the other fruits.
And the fact that his body has been special since childhood, is it because he's a buccaneer? A buccaneer determined to cause chaos not by offering freedom to people like Luffy, but by destroying the established order that has abused his people, and the world, for generations.
Sorry if you've already read about it here, but the idea came to me this morning. In the meantime, let's get back to cooking!

I was wondering where I might get a legitimate Windows 10 key. I'm not interested in getting one on Reddit because I've previously been disappointed by folks that sell on a subreddit. I wish to use a reliable windows key site. I've lost around $30 in total by attempting to purchase Windows product keys from members on specific subreddits, but they've never sent me my key. I like to utilize a site with a reliable payment processor, such as PayPal. Then I know that if my key does not work, I can just initiate a chargeback. I tried numerous other sites that did not use PayPal as a payment processor, but I never received my money returned for my faulty key. Please don't tell me to pirate Windows because I've received malware in the past doing so. Where I tried to get a windows key but failed.
• Reddit subreddits (e.g., windows 10 key, windows 10 product key, reddit windows keys, reddit windows key), eBay, and Amazon.
• G2A and Kinguin (avoid these two locations).
• Reddit users claiming to sell keys.
I know you can get inexpensive Windows keys because I've previously utilized sites where I was able to get them for around $30 and they worked properly. I want to avoid acquiring an OEM key. I want a key that is legal in the event of a software audit. I understand that the source of a retail key is irrelevant because they are retail and fully lawful to resell. The only difficulty is that I'm trying to obtain a retail Windows key rather than an OEM or MaK volume licensing key. I also do not want to wait for the product key to be delivered. Because it is a virtual product, the key should be delivered to me via email immediately. Having to wait for someone to transmit it manually is a red indicator in my opinion, and such services should be avoided at all costs.
I'll most likely need to acquire many keys because I've been building custom gaming PCs for clients. The desired site features include instant email delivery, retail windows keys, responsive customer assistance, and a trustworthy payment processor. If there is a website with all of the following qualities, I would be grateful if someone could tell me what it is. I have been hunting for a dependable supplier of Windows 10 keys for a long time!
TL;DR Please recommend a reliable place where I may get Windows keys.

Hi guys, need a bit of a tips and help here. Everytime I thought I've learnt enough about troubleshooting ssh connection, new one comes and humbles me.
In this case I have issue with using Azure Windows Server 2022 VM to establish ssh to an on-premise RHEL 8.9. Connectivity is not the issue, as we can actually establish ssh/sftp using WinSCP and PuTTY but just not native built-in openssh from the Azure VM.

• SSH version for AzureVM : "OpenSSH_for_Windows_9.5p1, LibreSSL 3.8.2"
• SSH version LinuxServer : "OpenSSH_8.0p1, OpenSSL 1.1.1k FIPS 25 Mar 2021"

I can't understand why using WinSCP works but using built-in openssh does not. Is it crypto negotiation issue? Or ssh version compat? Is it lower level networking on MTU?
Thanks.
EDIT: The more detailed error logs are also posted in Serverfault windows - Unable SSH/SFTP from Azure VM to On-Prem Linux Server with error “Key_exchange_identification : read connection time out, Banner exchange time out" - Server Fault
EDIT: Perhaps I should add that the Windows Server VM is hardened against a security baseline via local group policy. There is a security control around disabling weak crypto which was implemented using some Powershell script

First just wanted to say I was inspired by this post where the person made a recreation of a game they're trying to remember, and it both made me remember I had a game like that too I've been trying to find for years-- even has a similar vibe, I guess? Anyway I also recreated it, but with just clip studio paint and my tablet so it's not as polished. Here it is.
Platform(s): Windows XP PC, CD-ROM most likely
Genre: Puzzle, isometric platformer, adventure
Estimated year of release: Early 2000s...Maybe 2003?
Graphics/art style: Very early 3D look, going through MyAbandonware the closest matches I can find visually areDas Verruckte Labyrinth and Dinosaur Dave in Fantasia which is an EXTREMELY close match but I am certain is not it.
Notable characters: Either a green dragon or alligatocrocodile. Honestly I remember it looking similar to Croc but shorter and fatter. Not too sure on personality, could have been generic hero.
Notable gameplay mechanics: I believe you needed to find your way out of this maze-like area, you had to collect orbs (or they were something else but I remember them being round) in order to unlock certain sections, and you had to collect keys as well. I think there was also a mechanic about rescuing your friends?
Other details: The... "skybox" I guess you could call it was this big, blue sky with fluffy clouds, and if the character wasn't careful he could fall through and it's game over. That is about the extent to what I can remember. The recreation art I made is pretty much the best visualization I can give, even if the art is sloppy (I made it late at night, sorry.)
It is not Croc for sure, and does look very similar to the Dinosaur Dave example but is definitely not that either.

The earth opened and the monsters came, and it was the end of the world. But it didn’t feel like it because we were still here.
There was never a time I can remember where the creatures did not lurk in the shadows, kidnapping stray helpless children or hapless adults; sometimes it would be that someone of Golgotha would go missing and whispers over breakfast would be the consequences of it. Funerals were frivolous, even if there were sometimes candles lit in the absence of the missing. Generally, it would be the elders that would sit around wooden tables, hum old hymns and maybe they would whisper a few kind words to Elohim or Allah or perhaps a more pagan variety; I came from a fully loaded Christian household where the paganistic murmurs were often seen as little better than the monsters that came from the earth.
Whatever the case may be, it was simple mourning, simple human mourning and it was sad and miserable and more numbing every time I’d see it happen. Sometimes it would be Lady (she was an old shamanistic-style woman with tattered robes and graying hair, even some whiskers on her chin too) that would culminate a hymn in the streets with her incense or more for the missing, but it was Christian and good in that way. Always about Jesus, always good clean words and simple gospels that were quiet and weak.
It was a young woman that’d gone missing sometime the previous night; there’d been a patrol sent out among the old ruins too because the missing girl was the daughter of a Boss. The Bosses were distinguished leaders in Golgotha, due to their tendency for extreme and untempered cruelty and whenever someone crossed a Boss or whenever a Boss lost something precious, everyone took notice, because the Bosses controlled the functions of Golgotha. It just so happened the Boss whose daughter went missing was also the fellow that controlled the water supply. His name was Harold and that wily sonofagun shut off the pumps that moved ground water into our homes. He was the only one with the key and said he’d not divulge it to a soul if the girl wasn’t returned.
Some of the boys on the compound cultivated a posse with impassioned cries of mutual aid and such, but Boss Harold, no matter how much they threatened or how many of his fingers they snapped in their desperate grasp for humanity, would not comply. Most of the boys surmised it was likely the girl was dead and her remains would be impossible to find due to the way monsters tended to grind bones into powder and dry swallow even the gristle of our fragile bodies; there’d be nothing left—or if there was anything left of her it wouldn’t be her any longer (assuredly she’d be a husk or unworthy of saving). When hard torture failed, the boys cried for more reason, and yet Boss Harold would not budge. The old Boss said, “I’ll stop the motor of the world until she’s found!”
A group of rabblerousing youths had absconded with his daughter or so he said; the reality was much more likely that she had run from home of her own free will either by wanderlust or ignorance. When all was said and done, the families came to me and said, “Hey, Harlan, buddy, pal, you’ve lost weight. You’re looking good, Mister Harlan, did you get a haircut?”
I’d heard about the girl. I’d heard about the posse sent out to Boss Harold’s abode—the compound ain’t that big—and knew they’d be coming for me because I was a scavver, a person that wades through the old ruins either for illusory history pages or weapons or even (and this one was a rare treat) lost people. I knew they’d come for my services and had already put together my pack for travels with rations and light tools—no gun; drawing attention in the old ruins was a dumb thing because sound could travel forever.
“I’m going,” I told the group that’d been sent for me, “I don’t reckon any of you’d like to come with me?” I looked over the dirty faces, the faces of men, women, children that could scarcely be called grown, and none stood out because they were all tired and dirty and I imagined I looked much the same.
Then a girl’s voice broke out from the crowd, and she stumbled forward from the line of strangers that’d come to see me at my door. “I’ll go!” she said, “I want to go with you, Mister Harlan.”
It was unsurprising. Youngsters always thought the old ruins were like a field trip, like maybe they’d find a souvenir for their sweetie and come home with a good story. Most didn’t come back, and those that did usually came back with scars beneath the skin from what they’d seen in the out there. It was like a game for them and when they saw what the world outside the walls held, they would retreat into themselves for fear. It wasn’t just the monsters. It was the ruins themselves, the overwhelming demolition of us; we were gone and yet we were here. It’s a hard thing to cope. I looked over the skinny girl with a grimy face; she couldn’t have been older than sixteen. Her hair was cropped very short, and I could see no immediate deformities that might slow my travels, so I asked, “What’d your parents say?”
Without flinching, the girl shouldered her pack straps with her thumbs and almost cheerily answered, “They’re dead, sir.”
“Don’t call me sir.” I stepped nearer her, looked over her face and saw perhaps a will I’d not seen in some time. Maybe she would be more of a help than a hinderance. “Do you have everything you need?”
“Yes.”
“Then we leave immediately.” I shouldered my own pack and followed up with, “Do not bring any fucking guns.”
“Got it! No fuckinguns.” Her tone was sarcastic, but not unserious. It was the best I could hope for, and besides it was always better whenever I travelled with someone else.
We took off from my small hidey-hole and moved through the narrow stretches of street, tall metal and concrete stood on either of our sides, mostly housing and hydroponics, with a few spots with stools where a person could stop in for a drink of cool water. Although a few of the Bosses had toyed with the idea of expanding the hydroponics so that we might produce corn whiskey in bulk, this was scrapped when the math was done; the space was insufficient for such luxuries, but this did not stop some from fermenting small berries in batches when no one else was paying attention. Wine was incredibly rare, had a moldy taste to it, but was sweet and a further reminder of maybe why we held on. I liked wine pretty good, but sometimes I’d find an old bottle in the ruins or get a jug of liquor from one of the far settlements and that’s what I really cherished.
“You ever been out of town?” I asked her.
“No.”
“Don’t act a hero, don’t be funny out there, don’t make noise, don’t get in my way. If I tell you something, you do it without questions.”
First, I heard her footsteps fall slowly, then more quickly before she answered me as though she had to stop and think about what she was going to do next; perhaps she was having second thoughts? “Don’t try to scare me from the ruins,” she said, “I’ve wanted to go out there for years now and everyone always says there’s old stuff. Our old stuff. Stuff that used to belong to us.”
“Used to belong to us? What do you mean?”
“Humans or whatever. It used to be ours.”
“It hasn’t been ours within my lifetime. Leave it to them, because it’s theirs now. If you find some small thing out there that you like, then take it, but otherwise, it ain’t home no more.” There was no need for me to elaborate on who I meant whenever I said them, because anyone knew exactly who they were: the creatures from beneath the earth, the demons, the monsters.
We came to the outer sections of town near the gate and the walls stood high over our heads while morning breeze kicked up spirals of sand wisps across the ground. The walls were probably fifty or sixty feet tall, and several yards thick with titanium and concrete and rebar; along the parapets of our fortifications were patrolmen that watched the horizon and fired at anything that moved with fifty-caliber bullets. The men up there, and they were mostly men (the show-off types), wore ballistic weaves, bent and tarnished war helmets of the past, and carried mottled fatigue colors on their bodies like for-real militiamen. There hadn’t been an attempt on Golgotha from the monsters in days; it was a quiet week.
The nearest dirt street spilled into an open square with sandbag barricades overlooking the gate from atop a small hill. I waved down Maron. Boss Maron wore boots and an old-school cowboy hat with an aluminum star pinned on its forehead center; he swaggered over, “Going out, Mister Harlan?” His mustache caterpillar wiggled, nearly obscuring a toothy grin.
I nodded.
“It’s ‘cause Harold ain’t it?”
I nodded.
“You know that crazy bastard had some of my guards lock up the boys that stormed his home? If you ask me, he deserved whatever pain those fellas brought to him for shutting the pumps off.”
I idly studied the sidearm holstered on his hip then looked at the nearby guards by the gate, each with automatic weapons slung across their chests. “You still locked them up, didn’t you?”
Boss Maron spat in the dirt by his feet and laughed a little dry. “Sure did. Harold’s got the key to the water, and I won’t be crossing him. Don’t want the riffraff questioning Bosses.” He flapped his hand at the notion then swaggered away and waved at his guards to open the gate. The one nearest a breaker box on the righthand side of the gate opened the electrical panel, flipped a switch then the hydraulics on the gate began to decompress as it unlocked and rusty gears began to rock across one another to slide the great, tall metal door open.
“Try not to lose any fingers or toes while you’re out there. Oh!” he seemed to take notice of the young girl following me, “Got a new companion? Does she know what’s happened to the last few that’s traversed those desperate lands with you?”
“Hm?” asked the girl.
“Oh? Harlan?” Boss Maron smiled so hard I’d think his mustache might fall of his face from the sheer tension of the skin beneath it, “He’s a real globetrotter, quite a dealmaker, but just don’t be surprised if he leaves you behind.” This was followed by a sick chuckle.
I refused to respond and merely watched the clockwork gate come to a full open while the guards on either side prepared to angle their guns at the opening like they half-expected something to come barreling towards them. The doorway was empty and through the haze of the wasteland I could scarcely make out the familiar angles of the old ruins far out.
The girl didn’t engage either, for which I was thankful.
Boss Maron wide-stepped closer then patted my shoulder and whispered in my ear, “Don’t forget the shiny flag.” He tucked a foil sheet into my front shirt pocket, “His daughter was due west supposedly. Good luck.” Then he clapped me on the back before returning to his post by the sandbags where a small table displayed his game of solitaire.
We moved through the gate, and I could sense the uneasy rhythm of the young girl’s movement just over my shoulder. As the gate closed behind us with a large and final shudder, I heard her breath become more erratic.
“The air feels thicker out here,” she said.
“It is sometimes,” I tried talking the nerves out of her, “It’s hot and cold all at the same time, ain’t it? Know what I mean? It’s hot devil air, but also you feel chills all over, don’t you?”
“Yeah.” Her pace quickened so that we walked alongside one another.
“It’s just the nerves. You get used to it. Or. Well.”
“Or?”
“Or you don’t get enough time to.”
“What did ol’ Maron mean about other people dying with you?”
“Not many people venture outside the compound and even fewer go into the ruins. It’s all very dangerous. Most don’t make it back. That’s all he meant.”
“But you do. Make it back, I mean.”
I sighed. “I do, yeah.”
“My name’s Aggie, by the way. Sorry I didn’t say that before, Mister Harlan.”
“What’d your parents do when they were still around?”
“Dad was a farmer that worked with the hydroponics and Mom was a general fixer. She liked making clothes when we had the material.”
“Good people, it sounds like.”
“Sometimes,” said Aggie, “Hey, please don’t let me die, alright?” The words weren’t constructed so much as blurted; they came as a joke but did not seem like one.
“Okay.”
For a mile out in a measured circle, there was open sandy, flat ground stretching from around the perimeter walls of Golgotha; all the clutter, junk, and buildings had been disposed of years prior to grant the compound’s snipers comfortable sights in all directions. The openness went out for a mile and in every direction, one could see the ruins, the crumpled dead vehicles, half-snapped spires that lie in angles, and the gloom-red tint in the air that seemed to emanate from the ground like heat waves off fire. It was scarred air, where the creatures had unearthed some great anomaly from beneath the dirt. In honesty, it was like passing through the foul stench of death and painted everything in a blood hue. It stank and it was hot and it was cold.
We moved in relative silence; only the sounds of our boots across granular dirt or the clink of zippers whenever either Aggie or I was to readjust the packs on our shoulders. As we came upon the edges of the ruins, where we entered the red mist, and the air was alien. Finally, Aggie cleared her throat and mentioned through mildly exerted breathing, “Think we’ll find her?”
“I don’t know,” I answered. “Keep quiet and whisper. We can talk but keep it low.” We began to enter the thick of the ruins where ancient structures crept up on either side of us. “What made you come with me?” It was a question I’d wondered the whole time and figured her reasoning was weak.
“There’s not much home. I’d like to see some of the world before I go. Seems like things get worse and worse and for when I do leave this world, I want to see something other than the walls of home.”
“Fair answer.” Her reasoning was weak. “What if you’ve bit off more than you can chew?”
“Maybe.” She followed this up with another question of her own,” What made you start venturing out?”
“I wanted to see something other than the walls of home.” I felt a smile creep around the corners of my mouth, but quickly tempered myself. “Whenever people go out on their own without a guide, they die. I doubt we’ll find Harold’s daughter.” I left a pause. “You’re nearly her age, ain’t you? Did you ever know her?”
“You speak like she’s dead for sure.”
“Most likely, she is. Did you know her?”
“No, but I guess I’m an optometrist.”
“Optimist,” I corrected.
“Whatever. She’s a piece of home. I feel like I’m old enough to take care of myself and I want to help people. Not everyone thinks that way, but we’re all one big family, aren’t we?”
“While I appreciate your thoughts on it, I doubt the daughter of a Boss would feel the same about you.”
“The Bosses protect us.”
The ruins began to swallow us whole as we ventured through the ancient pathways, broken asphalt and wreckage littered the wide-open street. A nearby, worn post named the path: Fif Aven. I’d gone there before and left most things untouched. Although there were a few open holes in the structures on either side—places where large entryways might’ve gone hundreds of years ago—they were mostly empty, black with shadow, and picked clean long long ago. Non ideal for an alcove of respite from the open air. We shifted down the street, my eyes darting from old signs and vehicles bent and rusted and abandoned. I motioned for Aggie to come closer as I sneaked through the rubble towards a wall where there were no entryways into the monolithic structures. We hugged the wall and moved with trepidation, sometimes climbing across overturned wreckage tiptoeing in our boots to muffle all sound. Every footfall felt like a scream.
“We should go on for another mile or so before we find a place to rest. I know one up the way.”
“Rest? Are you tired already? That’d burn what daylight we have,” said Aggie.
I shook my head, “The last thing you want is to be without your wits in a place like this. If you’re too tired to run, you’re too tired to live.”
“Aren’t they fast? If they catch you in the open, they’ll get you, won’t they?”
I thought of a lie then thought better, “Yes.”
“Oh.”
“If you see one. Don’t scream. Don’t even breathe. If they haven’t seen you, you still have a chance.”
The air grew wet and smelled of chlorine, and I snatched Aggie’s sweating hand in my own before grappling her into my arms; she was small and fought noiselessly for only a second before going still. I shifted us into a concrete doorway with a half-destroyed awning and whispered a quick hush as I glided us near a piece of wreckage.
I felt her tenseness leave and let go of her before she crouched alongside me in the shadowed cover of an old van that had, ages before, slammed into a nearby wall. The door of the vehicle had been removed and we angled in slowly, silently, crawling towards the rear of its cabin to peer from the broken windows, all the while hoping its old axles would not creak. Feeling her hand on my shoulder, I twisted round to look Aggie in the eye; terror erupted from her face in tremors while she mouthed the words: what’s that?
Simply, I put a finger to my lips and took a peek at the thing moving down Fif Aven. The creature was on the smaller side, closer to the size of a run-of-the-mill human, but twitched its muscles in a fashion that contested humanity. The thing walked upright on two feet, but sometimes used its hands to move like an animal. The most intricate and disturbing of its features, however, was its head. With vibrant green skin, with speckles of yellowed globules across the surface of its body (likely filled with creamy pus), with a mishappen balloon head that first opened in half with a mouth folded as an anus, dispersed a corrosive gas into the air while it deflated, then reinflated and quivered—the creature’s head moved as a sack filled with misty gas, wobbly and rubbery. It had no eyes, no other features besides that awful head.
We watched it go, stop, disperse its toxic mist into the air, then leave. I kept my eyes on it, nose and mouth tucked beneath the collar of my shirt, and glanced at Aggie to see she’d followed suit. The smell could choke.
Once I was certain the thing had decided to move well outside of earshot (not that it had ears) I motioned for Aggie to follow me out of the van, down the sidewalk, through an intersection of roads, and into a small opening in one of the smaller structures. Our feet were swift, and I was grateful she was graceful. We moved through the darkness of the structure, and I led with intimate knowledge of the place. There was a safe spot near the rear of the building. I reached out in the dark, felt a handle and pushed into a small closet and pulled Aggie through.
My lantern came alive and bathed us in a warm glow. Shelves across the small room were lined with various supplies I’d left. A few boxes of matches, oil for lanterns, a bedroll, blankets, and other miscellaneous baubles.
Aggie inhaled sharply, “I’ve never seen anything like that! It was. I don’t know. It was weird and gross. Little scary. Is that what they look like?”
I shifted around onto the floor and opened my pack while placing the lantern between my legs. “You’ve been up on the compound’s walls before, ain’t you?”
“Once.”
“Well, sometimes those things get closer to home. I don’t know what you’d call them. Some of the wall guys call them fart heads because when you shoot one in the head with a rifle it goes pfffft. Lotta’ that chlorine shit comes out of them too.”
“Do bullets kill them?” She asked while removing her own pack and fixing her legs alongside mine in the closet; it was a snug fit, but we managed. “Like really kill them or does it just empty those heads?” I could feel her shaking still.
“If you use enough, sure. Durable, but manageable if you have enough firepower. Those are small fries. Normally they wouldn’t sneak up on me though. Normally I’d smell them from far off before they ever get close.”
“Did I distract you?”
“Maybe.”
“I didn’t mean to.”
“It was bound to happen, I reckon.” I plunged my hand into my pack and removed a water gourd, taking a deep swallow from it.
She started, “Have,” she stopped then started again, “I wish,” another stop came then she gave up on whatever she was going to say and laid her pack across her lap, seemingly searching for something within.
“We should rest up here for a while. At least until you’ve calmed yourself. Then we’ll set out. Maron said the girl went west. You should have that detail in case this trip happens to be my last. I figured we’d search the northern area first then make our way south, but—I hope she ain’t south.” I exposed the face of my compass.
A thought seemed to occur to Aggie while she removed her own water gourd and took a healthy swig. Sweat glistened off her brow in the dancing light of the lantern, its fire caught in her pupils while she thought. “You don’t actually think you’ll find her, do you?”
I grinned, surprised. “Why do you say that?”
“You think she’s dead already, so why do it?”
“Because they’ll believe me when I come back. I suppose we’ll return in two days, maybe three, then tell them we found her corpse.”
“Well why don’t we just stay here for the remainder?”
“We’ll look for her,” I said.
“But why?”
“It’s the right thing to do, I suppose. Maybe your optometristism is rubbing off on me.”
“Don’t make fun of me,” said Aggie, but I could see her sheepish grin. She held out a hand flat across her eyes and watched the nervous tremors in her fingers.
“Just nerves,” I told her.
“It’s a little exciting.”
“Now that’s a dangerous thought,” I took another swig from my water gourd before returning it to my pack. “Do you know where your parents hailed from?”
“Somewhere up north. Cold lands, but it was hard not to freeze in the winter up that way. Said they came down here years before I was born, hoping they could find a place to settle, but it was all the same. That’s what they said.”
“Never been further north than Golgotha, if I’m being honest. I’m from a place that once was called Georgia, but I’ve not been there in years.”
“Is it true what they told me, Mister Harlan?”
“What do you mean?”
“Is it the same everywhere? Is there no place around that’s not got those awful things?”
“If there’s a place like that, I haven’t seen it yet.”
“Mom used to read to me when I was a little kid,” she said, “I never could pick up reading, but she loved old books that were written before bad times and in those books, people talked about things like green fields that stretched on forever, and places where water streams were clear enough to drink from. Do you remember anything like that?”
I chuckled while continuing to rummage through my pack, “Geez, how old do you think I am? All that was a long time ago.”
“Yeah. You think it’ll ever be like that again?”
I shook my head. “Wishful thinking.” Then I found what I’d been searching for and removed it from my pack. A small tin of tobacco; I sat to rolling a makeshift cigarette then lit it off the lamp.
“That smells funny.”
“Yeah.”
We shared the cigarette in the dark closet, passing it back and forth; her lungs, not being used to the smoke, forced from Aggie a few whimpering coughs that she tried to hide in the hem of her shirt.
I ducked the tobacco out beneath my heel and began reorganizing my pack so that it was less lumpy. “I hope you’re ready for it again. Like I said, that one you saw was a small fry. There’s bigger things out there. Worse things.”
“Should I go, or should I just stay here?” She hadn’t reorganized herself at all and remained seated while I shouldered my pack and peered through a crack in the door.
“Of course, you should come with me. I know it, you’re scared.”
“What if I make it worse and I attract one of those things right to you?” She asked.
I reached down and she took my hand; I lifted her to her feet and we met eyes, “Aggie, you’re coming with me. You’ll do fine. I promise.” It was not often that I’d try and charm someone, but I put forth a smile.
She smiled back and I shut off my lantern before leading her gently through the dark, into the open street where midday sun caught the ruins shadows long and deep. West was where the girl had gone and I intended to follow. Though I’d seen no signs of survivors, I was certain that if they’d braved the previous night, they were likely about in the daytime. Certainly, things would be made easier if I could cup hands around my mouth and echo my voice through the dead city like a game of Marco-Polo. Aggie maintained both energy and quiet alongside me as we moved through the rubble, vaulting over wide-open holes in the street where I could spy the arteries of the dead beast (the old sewer network).
We conversed frankly and in whispers when we came upon a place in the road that was impassible on foot due to a collapsed structure and we stalked more like wounded deer in a forest than humans in a city; our shoulders remained slouched, our bodies were huddled near to each other, and we delved into the dark recesses of another building—possibly a market from old days when patrons congregated for frozen fish sticks. There were massive steel shelves and we took their avenues till we came upon an aperture on the far side of the dark building. We shifted over the broken glass of an old torn out window and landed firmly on an open street.
Then came a sound like firecrackers and I felt cold and Aggies eyes went wide in the dull evening glow of the sun.
“Someone’s brought a gun,” I said.
Before she could say anything, I hugged the wall on our side of the street and moved down the sidewalk, following the sound of those gunshots.
“Maybe it’s someone that could help us?” she tried.
I shook my head.
“What do you mean?” she whispered a bit louder.
“It’s bad news,” I said, then came to a full stop at a corner while another hail of bullets spat from some unseen weapon and echoed all around; we were getting much closer. “Have you ever seen a dead body?” I asked Aggie.
She shook her head, but then stopped. “I was the one that found my mom. She was stiff and cold.”
“She went peacefully?”
Aggie shook her head, “Flu.”
“Any blood?”
“No.”
“If you’re not ready for blood, you might not want to look.”
We rounded the corner to find a small blockade of burnt-out vehicles creating a barrier between us and the action.
Two men with assault rifles fired at a creature towering over them. The creature in question stood thirty feet tall on spindly legs like a spider, but each of its legs were tumorous and its muscles were strangely uneven and mushy; although an arachnid may have eight legs, this one moved sluggishly along on no less than twenty shambling stilts so that the rounded body where the legs met looked more akin to a sea urchin. Several of its long legs stood out on its sides to angle its body through the narrow corridor of the street, its whiskery feet pushing along the walls of buildings overhead. Its whole body stank of wet dog and brimstone.
The men—they looked like young militiamen of Golgotha—staggered in awe of the thing and attempted to walk backwards while reloading. Another spray of bullets erupted from their rifles, and they were empty and the men screamed and one of them tripped across some unseen thing on the ground.
Quick as a fly, one of the massive creature’s legs sprang onto the prone man’s abdomen. Their was a brief cry of pain and then—I felt Aggie pinch onto my shoulder with her thumb and forefinger and I glanced at her to see she’d chewed into the corner of her bottom lip for purchase in response to such a fantastical display of awfulness—the man had no skin, no clothes, he’d been stripped to runny red fibrous tissue with strips of white muscle that twitched in the presence of the air.
“Oh god please god!” screamed the other man while watching his comrade writhe in pain beneath the stalky foot of the skin-taker.
I shuffled lower among the arrangement of vehicles we’d taken refuge behind and me and Aggie breathed softly, glancing eye contact while sitting in the dirt. There wasn’t anything to say.
The sound of the spider creature removing the second man’s skin was slower, torturous, seemingly enjoyed; his screams did not end for too long. I fisted my hands into my jacket pockets then stared at the ground between my knees. I felt Aggie’s thin fingers reach into my pocket and it took me flinching to realize she intended to hold my hand. She was shaking and I was shaking, but she was good and did not scream. And we held hands while we listened to the thick trunks of the spider creature shift on away. And we didn’t move. And we were statues frozen like we belonged among the dead ruins. And we didn’t move. And then Aggie shifted to look before I’d gathered my feelings and motioned me on.
“What’s that?” she asked as simply as she’d asked the color of the sky.
“Bad.” I shook my head and looked for an opening in the blockade of vehicles.
Two meaty blood ponds marked where the men were and on approach, I covered my face in the collar of my shirt; Aggie lifted her forearm to her nose. The stench of the beast and of the viscera was strong in the air.
I examined the ground then found one of their rifles. Standard M16. The strap on the rifle was frayed to ribbons and the barrel of the gun appeared to be slightly bent, but salvageable. I handed the rifle to Aggie and she took it.
“What about no guns?” she asked.
“There’s no bullets left. Besides, it’ll be good to bring it back.” Examining what was left of the bodies, my eyes went away and into my mind where all things become ethereal and difficult to grasp; I looked without seeing and imagined a place where green grass was, a place like in the books Aggie’s mother read. No grass here. Just misery.
“Who were they?” she asked.
“The men?”
“Yeah.”
“They sent out a patrol looking for Boss Harold’s daughter. Looks like we’ve found it. Never should’ve sent them.”
“I want to go home,” said Aggie.
“Me too.” I blinked and shifted around to look at her through the red hue that’d gathered between us. Try as I might, the smile on my face almost hurt. “If you stick with me, you’ll be safe.”
We took up in one of the safehouses I’d developed over the past several years, a room hidden up two flights of stairs and large enough to host a party. In the lantern glow we heated rations—eggs and hearty bread with water-thinned weak tomato paste—then ate in relative quiet so that the only thing heard were our jaws over the food that tasted bitter; food always felt slimy and bitter in the ruins where the demons reigned supreme. Their stink was on us. Like sulfur, like rot, like sorrow.
I rolled us each a cigarette and we smoked while looking out through a brackish window that overlooked the black street. No lights in the darkness save blinking yellow eyes caught for moments in dull moonlight whose owners quickly skittered towards an alley.
“How don’t you get lost?” asked Aggie.
“I do sometimes.”
“You could’ve fooled me.”
“I mean, I know the ruins fine enough, I reckon, but then I feel like I’m drowning in it every time I come here.” I took a long draw from my cigarette, finished it, then planted it beneath my boot.
“Did you have parents?” she asked.
“Everyone has parents.”
“What were they like?” Aggie held her cigarette out from her like she didn’t actually want it, but just as I looked over at her, pulling my eyes from the window, she jammed it into her lips.
“They were fine. Just fine.”
“Just fine?”
“Yeah.”
“I wish it was better,” said Aggie.
“Don’t imagine there’s ever been a point in history where we didn’t want it to be better.”
“Maybe.” She coughed through smoke.
I moved to dim the lamp and sat atop my bedroll. “You should sleep.”
“Don’t think I could sleep. I’ll have nightmares.” She pitched the remainder of her cigarette.
“Can’t be worse than the real deal.”I shut off the lamp and we laid in pitch black.
“How do you do it?” she asked.
“Most of the time, it feels like I’m not.” I stared at the ceiling I couldn’t see. “Go to sleep.”
At daybreak, we ate bread and water then gathered our things before setting into that awful wasteland. Sand gathered around our legs in wisps as we trundled tiredly onto the street of the ruins and Aggie said nothing. There wasn’t a thought in my mind as my joints protested at us climbing over the wreckage of an overturned semi-truck; first I went, then I hoisted Aggie up by her lanky arms then we jumped onto the other side, moving less like scouts and more like hungover comer-downers.
Passing through the ruins, each step feeling more like a glide and less creaky, Aggie spoke from over my shoulder as I kept my eyes sharp on the buildings’ shadows, “I doubt we’ll find her,” she said.
“What happened to the optimism?” I shifted to catch her face; she seemed dejected, tired, perhaps disillusioned by the previous day’s happenings.
“I didn’t know there were things like that in this world. Like that spider thing. Those men didn’t stand a chance.”
I shook my head, and we continued moving. “There are worse things still over the horizon. Most assuredly there is. Now you asked me before why I come out here in these ruins, why I’ve trekked the wasteland, and I’ll give you the opportunity to ask it again—maybe I’ll have something different to say.”
“Okay. Why then?”
“Because,” I kicked at a half eroded aluminum can left on the ground, “Places like Golgotha, or even where I’ve come from, there’s nothing like the red sky or the open road. There are no ties, no people. There’s only the next step.”
She took up directly beside me as we turned onto a street corner where the sidewalk mostly remained intact. “Sounds stupid to me.”
“There it is then.”
“Sorry,” she muttered, then she spoke even more clearly, “I didn’t mean it like that. I just don’t get it.”
“It’s because I’m a dealmaker,” I said.
“That’s what Maron called you before, wasn’t it?” Aggie absently stared at the sky, at the edges of the high spires overhead that seemed to swallow us whenever clouds passed over the sun. “What’s that mean?”
“It means it’s harder for me to die.”
“Just luck, if you ask me.”
I clenched my jaw. “Probably, it is. Yeah.”
Then, with time, we came to the garden. A place in the ruins where greenery existed—even if the plants that grew from the soil were otherworldly and aggressive. There was the solitary sound of dirt catching crags in the structures as hard wind pushed silt through the narrow streets of the ruins, then there was also the sound of a flute, a flute made of bone and skin. The sound was sickly sweet, illusive, something no human could play even if they listened carefully and practiced for hundreds of years. There was the flute, the greenery, the clacking of hooves against old stone that’d risen from the earth much the same as the demons.
Aggie whispered, “What’s that music?”
I reached out my hand so that she would hold it and I tried to smile. “There are worse things still over the horizon.”
Her delicate scrawny fingers wrapped around my own and though I felt her trembling, she trusted me (I hoped she really did). I led her towards the garden, through a walkway with tall obelisks of flame on either side. “What is this place?” whimpered Aggie.
“If you are asked your name, tell it plainly without hesitation,” I said, “Do not leave my side. Do not run.”
“Where are we going?” her eyes scanned the garden, the flames dancing in the midday reddish light, the trees bent at impossible angles, the glorious green grass that looked cool and soft. I’d been in awe the first time I’d seen it.
I smiled, “Just like your mom’s old books. Green grass.”
The flute grew louder as we came closer and the hoof beats on stone shifted with enthusiasm.
There in the center of the garden stood Baphomet, ten feet tall, feminine midsection with goatish head and legs. It pranced with the flute to its mouth, and the tune resounded playfully all around. The creature danced across an area of stones in the center of the garden, a place where there were rock tables and chairs and sigils upon the ground—amid the open furniture, there stood a throne of human bones and near where Baphomet played its wily tune, there was a covered well, rope tautly hanging from its crank as if there was something heavy on the other end.
I smelled you coming, said Baphomet. Even as it spoke, it continued to play its flute without pause. Its muscular shoulders glistening with reddish sweat, its horns gloriously pointed and reveled in its merriment.
“Let us convene,” I said, mouth dry and feeling heady.
Convene?
“I’m here for the girl.”
I felt Aggie shift uncomfortably beside me, but I kept my eyes locked on Baphomet.
It seems you have one already.
“She came west, towards here two days ago. She was a runaway. You have her.”
Come, Harlan, come and dance with me. Baphomet did not stop its flute or its dancing.
I sighed. “I’m here to make a deal.”
Baphomet froze, allowing the boney flute to drop from its goatish lips. Its animal eyes casually switched between me then Aggie, before it turned to face us completely. A deal?
“Y-yes,” I nearly choked.
You’ve brought so little to bargain with. Baphomet shifted and walked to its throne to sit, clacking its long nails against the armrest. Unless. The creature allowed the word to hang against my brain like a splinter.
I lifted the hand holding Aggie’s. “A deal,” I tried.
Quick as a flash, Baphomet disappeared in a haze of black smoke then reappeared over Aggie’s shoulder. I dropped her hand and stepped away while the creature exhausted dew from its nose before sniffing Aggie’s ear.
Aggie swallowed hard, “Harlan?” she asked, “What’s it doing?”
“I’m sorry, Aggie.”
Baphomet took its hands through her short hair and inhaled sharply. A long tongue fell from its mouth and saliva oozed before it snapped its snout shut. The pleasure will be all mine.
“Harlan, let’s go—I want to go home.” Aggie’s tears rolled down her face in full while the large hand of Baphomet lightly squeezed her cheeks into a pucker.
You are home.
Baphomet took Aggie and moved her casually; her legs moved feebly, knees shaking.
Sit darling. Said Baphomet, motioning to its throne. Aggie took the chair and the creature snorted approval.
The demon moved jauntily to the well, where its strong arms began to roll the crank; with each rotation, the sound of cries grew closer. Until finally, all limbs pulled backwards in bondage, there dangled Boss Harold’s daughter; deep cuts and blood painted her mangled, distorted body. She’d been pushed into the well belly first, suspended by her wrists and ankles. I bit my tongue.
“Oh god,” I heard Aggie say. It sounded like a far-off girl from an unknown planet.
Baphomet lifted the girl from her bondage then sliced the rope with a razor-sharp fingernail. I hesitantly moved closer to the scene and removed my jacket.
RoyalRoad
Archive

~Radial forging machines market~ size was valued at $160 million in 2022, and is projected to reach $262 million by 2030, registering a CAGR of 7.3% during the forecast period (2023-2030). Radial Forging Machine Market research report reveals important insights into market scenario to enable key players in taking calculated decision making. Basically, one of the major purposes of market research reports is to maximize the business growth opportunities. It also helps key players to turn business into a successful business by increasing the profit level. The overall business goal can be accomplished through this Radial Forging Machine Market study report as it consists of all the current happenings and major innovations of the marketplace. Depending on the overall business objective, it is important to reduce business risks to generate larger revenues in the business. Several regions are captured in this Market report which includes North America, Europe, Middle East, Africa, Latin America and Asia Pacific.
Get Free Sample link @ https://www.omrglobal.com/request-sample/radial-forging-machines-market
The global radial forging machine market is further segmented based on geography including North America (the US, and Canada), Europe (Italy, Spain, Germany, France, and Others), Asia-Pacific (India, China, Japan, South Korea, and Others), and the Rest of the World (the Middle East &Africa, and Latin America). The market can be analyzed for a particular region or country level as per the requirement. Among these, the Asia-Pacific regional market is expected to cater to prominent growth over the forecast period, however, the Europe region is projected to experience considerable growth in the radial forging machine market.
full report of Radial Forging Machine Market available @ https://www.omrglobal.com/industry-reports/radial-forging-machines-market
· Market Coverage
· Market number available for – 2024-2031
· Base year- 2024
· Forecast period- 2024-2031
· Segment Covered- By Source, By Product Type, By Applications
· Competitive Landscape- Archer Daniels Midland Co., Ingredion Inc., Kerry Group Plc, Cargill
· Inc., and others
Market Segmentation
Global Radial Forging Machine Market by Type
o Hot Forging
o Cold Forging
Global Radial Forging Machine Market by Application
o Automotive Industry
o Hardware Tools
o Engineering Machinery
o Others
Regional Analysis
o North America
o United States
o Canada
o Europe
o UK
o Germany
o Italy
o Spain
o France
o Rest of Europe
o Asia-Pacific
o China
o India
o Japan
o South Korea
o Rest of Asia-Pacific
o Rest of the World
Company Profiles
o Ajax
o American GFM Corp.
o Fagor Arrasate S.Coop.
o J&H CHEM
o Kanematsu KGK
o Komatsu Ltd.
o Kurimoto, Ltd.
o Lasco Medicare
o Mitsubishi Motors Corp.
o Qingdao Haoyuan Yiyou Forging Machinery Co., Ltd.
o Schuler AG
o SMS Siemag
o Stamtec Industries
o Sumitomo Corp.
o TMP
The Report Covers

• Market value data analysis of 2022 and forecast to 2030.
• Annualized market revenues ($ million) for each market segment.
• Country-wise analysis of major geographical regions.
• Key companies operating in the global machine market. Based on the availability of data, information related to new product launches, and relevant news is also available in the report.
• Analysis of business strategies by identifying the key market segments positioned for strong growth in the future.
• Analysis of market-entry and market expansion strategies.
• Competitive strategies by identifying ‘who-stands-where’ in the market.

For More Customized Data, Request for Report Customization @ https://www.omrglobal.com/report-customization/radial-forging-machines-market
About Orion Market Research Orion Market Research (OMR) is a market research and consulting company known for its crisp and concise reports. The company is equipped with an experienced team of analysts and consultants. OMR offers quality syndicated research reports, customized research reports, consulting and other research-based services. The company also offer Digital Marketing services through its subsidiary OMR Digital and Software development and Consulting Services through another subsidiary Encanto Technologies.
Media Contact:
Company Name: Orion Market Research
Contact Person: Mr. Anurag Tiwari
Email: [info@omrglobal.com](mailto:info@omrglobal.com)
Contact no: +91 780-304-0404

~Automotive glass market~ is anticipated to grow at a considerable CAGR of 4.0% during the forecast period. Major factors projected to propel the growth of the automotive glass market include increased passenger safety concerns and the development of smart glass technologies to improve sunlight protection, comfort, and visibility. For instance, in September 2021, Gauzy partnered with LG Display to bring smart, dynamic, transparent displays to various types of vehicles. With this innovation, Gauzy showed how light control glass (LCG) tech is heading towards a new standard in advanced glazing that can benefit the automotive and transportation industry. Gauzy’s main goals are to make any window active and multifunctional and provide both visual and thermal comfort alongside communication, which can benefit the automotive and transportation industry.
Get Free Sample link @ https://www.omrglobal.com/request-sample/automotive-glass-market
The major companies serving the global automotive glass market include Gentex Corp., Guardian Industries Holdings Site, Magna International Inc., Motherson and among others. The market players are considerably contributing to the market growth by the adoption of various strategies, including mergers and acquisitions, partnerships, collaborations, funding, and new product launches, to stay competitive in the market. For instance, in May 2022, NSG Group announced to integrate of the Automotive glass business in China with SYP Kangqiao Autoglass Co., Ltd. ("SYP Automotive"). The integration into SYP Automotive strengthens its ability to meet the growing needs of vehicle manufacturers in China. As an active participant in the partnership, NSG helped SYP Automotive to enhance its ability to satisfy increasingly complex demands for glazing solutions, including meeting expectations from established global automakers looking to develop advanced glazing supply inside China.
full report of Automotive Glass Market available @ https://www.omrglobal.com/industry-reports/automotive-glass-market
· Market Coverage
· Market number available for – 2024-2031
· Base year- 2024
· Forecast period- 2024-2031
· Segment Covered- By Source, By Product Type, By Applications
· Competitive Landscape- Archer Daniels Midland Co., Ingredion Inc., Kerry Group Plc, Cargill
· Inc., and others
Market Segmentation
Global Automotive Glass Market by Glass Type
o Laminated Glass
o Tempered Glass
o Solar Glass
o Heated Glass
Global Automotive Glass Market by Application
o Windshield
o Sidelite
o Backlite
o Sunroof
Global Automotive Glass Market by Vehicle Type
o Passenger Cars
o Light Commercial Vehicles (LCVs)
o Heavy Commercial Vehicles (HCVs)
o Electric Vehicles (EVs)
Regional Analysis
o North America
o United States
o Canada
o Europe
o UK
o Germany
o Italy
o Spain
o France
o Rest of Europe
o Asia-Pacific
o China
o India
o Japan
o South Korea
o Rest of Asia-Pacific
o Rest of the World
Company Profiles
o AGC Group
o Benson Auto Glass, LLC
o Carlex Glass America, LLC
o Corning Inc.
o Fuyao Glass Industry Group Co., Ltd.
o Gentex Corp.
o Koch Industries, Inc. (Guardian Industries Holdings, LLC)
o Magna International Inc.
o Motherson Group
o Saint-Gobain Sekurit/ Saint Gobain
o SCHOTT AG
o Vitro, S.A.B. de C.V. (Vitro)
o Webasto Group
The Report Covers

• Market value data analysis of 2022 and forecast to 2030.
• Annualized market revenues ($ million) for each market segment.
• Country-wise analysis of major geographical regions.
• Key companies operating in the global automotive glass market. Based on the availability of data, information related to new product launches, and relevant news is also available in the report.
• Analysis of business strategies by identifying the key market segments positioned for strong growth in the future.
• Analysis of market-entry and market expansion strategies.
• Competitive strategies by identifying ‘who-stands-where’ in the market.

For More Customized Data, Request for Report Customization @ https://www.omrglobal.com/report-customization/automotive-glass-market
About Orion Market Research Orion Market Research (OMR) is a market research and consulting company known for its crisp and concise reports. The company is equipped with an experienced team of analysts and consultants. OMR offers quality syndicated research reports, customized research reports, consulting and other research-based services. The company also offer Digital Marketing services through its subsidiary OMR Digital and Software development and Consulting Services through another subsidiary Encanto Technologies.
Media Contact:
Company Name: Orion Market Research
Contact Person: Mr. Anurag Tiwari
Email: [info@omrglobal.com](mailto:info@omrglobal.com)
Contact no: +91 780-304-0404

In the realm of kitchen design, hickory kitchen cabinets stand as a testament to the enduring allure of natural beauty and rustic charm. Renowned for their distinctive grain patterns, rich hues, and robust character, hickory cabinets infuse kitchens with warmth, authenticity, and a touch of Americana. Let's delve into the captivating world of hickory kitchen cabinets and explore why they remain a popular choice for homeowners seeking to blend traditional craftsmanship with modern sophistication.
Embracing Nature's Beauty: Hickory Wood
Hickory, known for its strength and durability, is a hardwood native to North America. It boasts a striking grain pattern characterized by contrasting light and dark tones, creating a visually captivating surface that exudes rustic elegance. Hickory's inherent resilience and natural beauty make it an ideal choice for hickory kitchen cabinets, where durability and aesthetics converge seamlessly.
Key Features of Hickory Kitchen Cabinets
· Distinctive Grain Patterns: One of the most distinctive features of hickory kitchen cabinets is their unique grain patterns. From bold swirls to delicate knots, each piece of hickory wood tells a story of nature's craftsmanship, adding depth and character to the kitchen space.
· Rich Color Variations: Hickory cabinets exhibit a wide range of color variations, ranging from creamy whites to deep reddish-browns. These natural hues can be further enhanced through staining or finishing techniques, allowing homeowners to customize the look of their cabinets to suit their personal style preferences.
· Durability and Strength: Hickory is renowned for its exceptional durability and strength, making it an ideal choice for kitchen cabinets that withstand daily wear and tear. Its dense grain structure and resistance to moisture, scratches, and dents ensure that hickory cabinets retain their beauty and functionality for years to come.
· Versatility in Design: Despite its rustic charm, hickory wood can be adapted to a variety of design styles, from traditional to contemporary. Whether paired with wrought iron hardware for a rustic farmhouse look or sleek stainless steel accents for a modern aesthetic, hickory cabinets add a touch of warmth and authenticity to any kitchen space.
Benefits of Hickory Kitchen Cabinets
1. Timeless Appeal: Hickory kitchen cabinets exude timeless charm and elegance, transcending fleeting design trends. Their natural beauty and enduring quality ensure that they remain a focal point of the kitchen for generations to come.
2. Strength and Durability: Hickory wood's exceptional strength and durability make it an ideal choice for kitchen cabinets that withstand the rigors of daily use. Its resistance to scratches, dents, and moisture ensures that hickory cabinets retain their beauty and functionality over time.
3. Unique Aesthetic: No two pieces of hickory wood are alike, ensuring that each hickory kitchen cabinet is a one-of-a-kind masterpiece. The wood's distinctive grain patterns and rich color variations add depth and character to the kitchen space, creating a truly unique and personalized environment.
4. Environmentally Friendly: As a renewable and sustainable resource, hickory wood is an environmentally friendly choice for kitchen cabinets. Harvested from responsibly managed forests, hickory cabinets allow homeowners to enjoy the beauty of nature while minimizing their environmental impact.
Conclusion
Hickory kitchen cabinets represent the perfect marriage of rustic charm and timeless elegance, infusing kitchens with warmth, authenticity, and natural beauty. From their distinctive grain patterns to their rich color variations, hickory cabinets add depth and character to any kitchen space, creating a welcoming environment that beckons family and friends to gather and create cherished memories. Whether paired with traditional farmhouse decor or sleek modern accents, hickory kitchen cabinets stand as a testament to the enduring allure of nature's craftsmanship and the timeless appeal of rustic elegance.

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The ~global automotive tinting film market~ is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 4.8% during the forecast period. The rising consumer concern for protecting their vehicles from scratches and other paint damages is a major factor driving the growth of the automotive tinting film market. With the use of tinting films, the vehicle can be laminated to keep its new aesthetic appearance for a long time. Dyed window tint, metalized window tint, ceramic window tint, carbon window tint, hybrid tint, and crystalline tint are some of the most common automotive tinting films in the market.
Get Free Sample link @ https://www.omrglobal.com/request-sample/automotive-tinting-film-market
The global automotive film market is further segmented based on geography including North America (the US, and Canada), Europe (Italy, Spain, Germany, France, and Others), Asia-Pacific (India, China, Japan, South Korea, and Others), and the Rest of the World (the Middle East & Africa, and Latin America). Among these, the North America regional market is expected to grow considerably over the forecast period owing to higher popularity of passenger cars in the region and awareness about skin disease caused by escalating global temperature and heat levels in the region. Excessive sun exposure, even without sunburn, increases risk of skin cancer, such as melanoma. Applying automotive film on vehicle keeps individual safe from UV lights and more exposure from sun.
A full report of Global Automotive Tinting Film Market available @ https://www.omrglobal.com/industry-reports/automotive-tinting-film-market
· Market Coverage
· Market number available for – 2024-2031
· Base year- 2024
· Forecast period- 2024-2031
· Segment Covered- By Source, By Product Type, By Applications
· Competitive Landscape- Archer Daniels Midland Co., Ingredion Inc., Kerry Group Plc, Cargill Inc., and others
Market Segmentation
Global Automotive Tinting Film Market by Type
o Window Films/Tints
o Paint Protection Films
o Wrapping Films
Global Automotive Tinting Film Market by Vehicle Type
o Commercial Vehicles
o Passenger Vehicles
Regional Analysis
o North America
o US
o Canada
o Europe
o UK
o Germany
o Italy
o Spain
o France
o Rest of Europe
o Asia-Pacific
o China
o India
o Japan
o Rest of Asia-Pacific
o Rest of the World
Company Profiles
o ADS Window Films Ltd.
o All Pro Window Films
o American Standard Automotive Tinting Films (A division of Erickson International, LLC)
o Avery Dennison Corp.
o Filmtack Pte Ltd.
o Garware Polyester, Ltd.
o Global Window Films
o HEXIS SAS
o Johnson Window Films, Inc.
o LINTEC Corp.
o Madico, Inc.
o Nexfil USA
o Toray Industries Inc.
o ZEOfilms
The Report Covers

• Market value data analysis of 2021 and forecast to 2028.
• Annualized market revenues ($ million) for each market segment.
• Country-wise analysis of major geographical regions.
• Key companies operating in the global automotive tinting film market. Based on the availability of data, information related to new product launches, and relevant news is also available in the report.
• Analysis of business strategies by identifying the key market segments positioned for strong growth in the future.
• Analysis of market entry and market expansion strategies.
• Competitive strategies by identifying ‘who-stands-where’ in the market

For More Customized Data, Request for Report Customization @ https://www.omrglobal.com/report-customization/automotive-tinting-film-market
About Orion Market Research Orion Market Research (OMR) is a market research and consulting company known for its crisp and concise reports. The company is equipped with an experienced team of analysts and consultants. OMR offers quality syndicated research reports, customized research reports, consulting and other research-based services. The company also offer Digital Marketing services through its subsidiary OMR Digital and Software development and Consulting Services through another subsidiary Encanto Technologies.
Media Contact:
Company Name: Orion Market Research
Contact Person: Mr. Anurag Tiwari
Email: [info@omrglobal.com](mailto:info@omrglobal.com)
Contact no: +91 780-304-0404

Tl;dr: my blankets and hammock inexplicably ended up down the road from my house overnight even though they were inaccessible.
This happened 8 or 9 years ago. Would love to reason it away but I figure it’s impossible. I still lose sleep over it sometimes. This will be long. True to the detail. Please do NOT comment that I was on something because I am 200% sure I was sober and of sound mind.
Made plans to camp in a hammock in the woods with bf at the time. I picked him up late at night and he locked himself out of the house with no way to get back in until morning. I was superstitious and suddenly a black cat ran halfway across the street, stopped, then turned around and ran away. I caught a bad vibe and said we couldn’t go to the woods.
It was a protected wildlife area and we weren’t supposed to be there overnight, my friend group frequently did anyway. Earlier that day, we picked up a heavy duty stack of about 4 plastic chairs and shoved them in the back of my car. We folded the seats down to fit them, squishing the hammock and blankets we planned to use later.
He was not allowed to spend the night at my place as I still lived with my parents. Mom was a light sleeper. I literally made this dude pee in something to keep him from walking around at night. So I KNOW we didn’t leave. (Crazy I know, but it’s a small house.) I snuck him in through the window and we didn’t even leave the room. watched tv and went to sleep.
Morning comes, mom leaves for work, but promptly returns. She drops my blankets and hammock in the hallway, yelling at me for “leaving them down the road.” I live across from a lake with a beach that I never go to. Ok, first thought is someone broke into my car. Except it’s still locked. And the chairs are still in there, and the seats are still down. I had no friends in the area who would prank me/use my stuff. There was no sign of it being tampered with. The keys were in my room. My stuff, which were clearly the same items, were not in the car.
Someone would have had to get the car unlocked without triggering the alarm, which was parked near my window. get the chairs out, pull up the seats to get the items, put them back down, put the chairs back, close and somehow lock the car. Silently. You could not see the items from the outside as they were squished under seats.
Remember I mentioned that cat? I found out later the cops were monitoring the lot for the patch of woods. Friend caught a drug charge out there and they showed him a pic of my car, asking who I was in return for lessening charge. (Car was registered in parents name.) essentially we would have gotten arrested for trespassing if we went there that night. I don’t know why but it feels relevant/related.
Ok, somehow we stopped at the lake and hung out there and just left the stuff. Except how would we both forget all of that, AND the whole process of taking everything out just to get the items? I have never left my stuff like that. Especially outside. I was sober and just trying to go to sleep without getting caught sneaking around. Plus, emphasis on the fact that I literally never go over to that area anyway.
Also weird, everything was dry. This was near a lake, so you would think there would be dew on the fabrics but there wasn’t. They weren’t dirty. They didn’t smell different. Hammock was still tucked in its bag with the ropes.
I will not even begin to speculate about ghosts or dimensions or whatever, I just have no idea how this happened and it has always haunted me a little, then I found this sub.

Hello, I have an X670E Pro RS with a 7700x. I can boot into windows just fine and when I try to press f2 or f11 to enter the bios or boot manager the systems picks up the f-key fine. However, after loading the bios it appears the system freezes (I can navigate for about 1-2 seconds before it freezes). I am unable to move the mouse or navigate via keyboard. I have tried clearing the CMOS multiple times but nothing is working. Any advice? I'd like to get my RAM profile correct

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Looking for someone who can write high-quality, unique and engaging content for your course work in CHEMISTRY,PROGRAMMING, STATISTICS AND MATHEMATICS ? Look no further! You can reach me through:
Email: bridgitttech@gmail.com
Phone no: +44 7380 809343
Discord: Bridgitta
I offer a range of services at extremely affordable rate of $10 per page for all essays and research papers:
o Analytical Research Papers.
o Argumentative and Persuasive Research Papers.
o Dissertation Writing.
o Report Writing.
o Research Proposals.
o Literature Review.
o Essay Writing.
o Law Assignments.
o Nursing papers.
o History and Social sciences.
o Psychology.
o Nursing.
o Sociology.
For PROGRAMMING we offer the following services:
 Java and android programming.
 C and C++
 Front -end and web development: HTML, CSS $ JS.
 Data bases; MySQL, Postgres SQL, SQLite & H2
 Python.
 Networking.
 Cyber security.
 Operating system: Linux, windows and Mac.
 PHP.
 All office packages.
Key features
 Turnitin report.
 Timely Delivery.
 Prompt Response.
 Unlimited Free Revisions.
 Reasonable Price.
 Top Quality Work.
 24/7 Service Delivery.
 Refunds policy applicable.
 50% deposit is made first and the rest after completion.
 Discount on all first orders and referrals.
FOR PRICING ITS NEGOTIABLE DEPENDING ON WORK LOAD AND YOUR BUDGET. PAYMENT IS MADE THROUGH PAYPAL GOODS AND SERVICES. I HOPE YOU WILL LOVE MY WORK. THANK YOU IN ADVANCE.

Many Steam games end up generating files in completely unexpected locations. Some use %LOCALAPPDATA%, others use %USERPROFILE%\Saved Games or even %USERPROFILE%\Documents. Locations such as Documents are used for other purposes, so I'd like to put all of these in one location. This is especially useful because some games' save files are incredibly large, and there isn't a way to determine which are important after I uninstall the game. However this is not possible without some sort of OS-level workaround, since many games simply hard-code their path.
One option that is available on Linux is to run an application with a fake filesystem. There you can give a program access only to the parts of the filesystem that are necessary, and (for example) mount the real system's %USERPROFILE%\Saved Games\ as %USERPROFILE%\Documents\. I'm not sure if this is available for Windows or if it would entail a performance penalty.
Another would be to monitor an application and log when it creates a folder. Then whenever I uninstall an application I can be sure all the unwanted generated files are removed. Though again if that would incur performance pentalties it would not be ideal.
One final option would be to use a "dummy account" to run all of these games as. Then I would be certain those generated files would be separated from my personal files. I think this would require me to enter the Administrator password every time I launch a game, which would not be ideal. (even if I made myself Administrator it would still create a dialog)
Does anyone have suggestions?

Many Steam games end up generating files in completely unexpected locations. Some use %LOCALAPPDATA%, others use %USERPROFILE%\Saved Games or even %USERPROFILE%\Documents. Locations such as Documents are used for other purposes, so I'd like to put all of these in one location. This is especially useful because some games' save files are incredibly large, and there isn't a way to determine which are important after I uninstall the game. However this is not possible without some sort of OS-level workaround, since many games simply hard-code their path.
One option that is available on Linux is to run an application with a fake filesystem. There you can give a program access only to the parts of the filesystem that are necessary, and (for example) mount the real system's %USERPROFILE%\Saved Games\ as %USERPROFILE%\Documents\. I'm not sure if this is available for Windows or if it would entail a performance penalty.
Another would be to monitor an application and log when it creates a folder. Then whenever I uninstall an application I can be sure all the unwanted generated files are removed. Though again if that would incur performance pentalties it would not be ideal.
One final option would be to use a "dummy account" to run all of these games as. Then I would be certain those generated files would be separated from my personal files. I think this would require me to enter the Administrator password every time I launch a game, which would not be ideal. (even if I made myself Administrator it would still create a dialog)
Does anyone have suggestions?