Friday, September 06, 2013

A Random Five post [016] — Home now (includes Feline-Friday picture) and London Things

.ALL of my 2013 London Holiday posts? click HERE
 
My Five for Today:.....

[Click on any picture for large size view] -[Back button gets you back to the blog]
One: (Feline Friday entry) Little Girl, what's your name?
Really, I don't know if this is a girl or boy cat. It liked me and got up when I climbed the stairs. When I left the cat was waiting for me. I did take its water cup in for a refill because she was about out and the water had some trashy stuff that had blown in.
 
Two: A lot of progress has been made on what I think will be our new pole dancing studio on Hwy 1097 since we have been gone.
 
I probably should take some lessons when it is finished.  They had hoped to open by September 15.
 
The picture below on the left is how it looked when we left for London.  On the left side might go the advanced pole for advanced dancing.  Then there can be seven other poles to the right of the tall one so that with using the advanced pole eight poles would be available for group lessons.
 
There might be an advantage in taking flying trapeze lessons instead.  That would be in London again, at Regents Park (see blog below for our boat ride there).  But because of my left knee joint replacement I probably shouldn't be doing the trapeze.  But most of you readers have both options open for you.

 
 
Three:  As much as I have been to Regent's Park I have not used the rest rooms.  If I had then I would have shown you the inside of one.  I imagine they are quite nice.
 
This one is in Regent's Park.  There is another gate for the ladies.
 
Below are a couple of shopping pictures.  On the left is High Street for St. Johns Wood where Karen and family live.  High Street is similar to the Main Street in the U.S. towns and cities.
 
On the right is KP playing with the Channel bags.  They are nice bags but I have no idea what came in them.  I doubt it was cheap.

 
 
   
 
On the left is a small crowd going to church.  This is the All Souls Church (link) in downtown London, at Langham Place and Regents Street, north of Oxford Street.  Karen and family attend there.  KP is liking the children's church a lot.  It has an excellent attendance with the upstairs almost always filled and sometimes there is standing room only. The church is of Anglican Evangelical denominational affiliation.
 
The picture on the right I took from an upstairs window in Karen and Billy's building.  The houses would be leading into Abbey Road.  They look small nestled in amongst the apartments but they are actually very large homes.  And very expensive, in the millions of British Pounds.

Four: This couple, Matt and Claire Abrey, are driving down Piccadilly Street in London.  They may have been returning from the filming in London of an episode for Top Gear.  There were £200million of British cars around for this. (link).

I could not find much about specific car mentioned.  In races the Abreys enter it in the pre-1920 class. (road rally link picture)  I was not sure exactly looking to find more.
.

Five: One of these homes belongs to Paul McCartney.  I believe it is the one on the left after being completely remodeled and given a face lift.

This video may help you. One hint is the brick pillars, now painted white, used for  holding the entrance gate.
(The Video)

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This should finish my London visit pictures for a bit.  Next posting should pick up again with our Venice-to-Black Sea-to-Athens cruise pictures.

Fine print stuff:
==> I'm linked with Steve's Burnt Food for this today, go see his cat.
He and others have a Mr. Linky going there so you can see other cats too.

==> I am also linked up today with Nancy at A Rural Journal. She conducts her "A Random Five" blog hop there. Click that link to read other "A Random Five" posts or to join in with your own.

==> Click on any picture for a larger size and a better view.

ALL of my 2013 London Holiday posts? click HERE

Plus three others with KP linked to the Science Museum
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# posted by Jim : 9/06/2013 12:14:00 AM  13 comments

Thursday, March 14, 2013

— My Alphabe-Thursday (2nd), the letter "Q" / Thursday Two Questions —

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Pussycat, pussycat, where have you been?
.
 
.
"Pussycat pussycat, where have you been?"
"I've been up to London to visit the Queen."
"Pussycat pussycat, what did you there?"
"I frightened a little mouse under her chair"
"MEOWW!"
[ Nursery Rhymes Lyrics and Origins ]

    
   
"Q" is for Queen ~~ Not very original and neither is this post.  It is a rework from one I did last Spring.  We were in London to visit our daughter, two granddaughters, and SIL, all of whom are living there as ex-Pats.  Karen was to run the Paris Marathon (she finished!) on April 15th so cheering her on was our excuse for going at that time.  I wish we could go this April but that is up for discussion right now.   .two
Above left are Mrs. Jim, KP, and myself, all dressed up for tea at the Ritz Hotel.  Karen (her account of the tea) was with us as she sprung for the tea as a Mother's Day and Father's Day present from their family.  Right is KP's school.  She is in the three-and-a-half-year-old class.  This is her 'fancy dress' in the hotel picture.   To school she wears a blue uniform with white shirt to class.
 
We didn't see the little mouse but we did see the Queen.  I tell people that she waved to me.  She was in her carriage, waving all her way to address Parliament on their opening day.  I had brought my camera but wouldn't you know on this particular day I left the battery at the flat in its charger.  .
So this picture I did not take but rather it is a press release photo which I photographed with my camera.  I read an editorial about whether or not the royalty is covering its expenses with admission fees to the palaces, etc.  There was another about doing away with royalty like most other countries have done. 

[BTW, my new camera did come yesterday.  I've charged the battery but haven't read the book or turned it on yesterday.  The shipping was lousy (an Amazon dot Com supplier.  It rattled all the way from Lexington, KY, to our house in a box large enough to hold three cameras with NO PACKING paper or peanuts, etc.  We will see.  Amazon will hear.  I will give poor rating (or return it).]
Judging from the size of the crowd we saw there for her that day, a measure like that would never get enough votes.  I think royalty is here to stay for a long while in Britain.  They love their Queen..
The rest of these pictures are typical London tourist type pictures we took on other days.  On this particular day we went on to visit St. Paul's Cathedral.  Sorry, no pictures from their either.  Our English friends from Northampton accompanied us and were showing us the sites and had found a good place for all of us to stand to watch the Queen's carriage ride on her way to the ceremonies..
Our holiday lasted one month, from April 11 to May 11 (2012).  We flew directly from Houston to London and stayed with our daughter, Karen.  That Saturday we took the Eurostar RR through the Chunnel to Paris.  On Sunday we cheered her on as she ran the Paris Marathon.  We came back to London that evening.  On the following Saturday we began an 11 day Princess cruise from South Hampton to the Canary Islands, returning to London on May 3rd.

- - - - -

==>  You can see other "Q" letter posts by visiting Jenny's blog post, Alphabe- Thursday. My letter "Q" portion of this post will be critiqued by Head Mistress Jenny. I always hope for a good grade from her.
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Now for my Thursday Two Questions.

My last post last week was about an "P" word, Player.  It referred to my golfing handicap and about my playing golf.
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My Two Questions for this week (you can answer just one if you wish):.

1. What royalty or governmental leaders have you been up close with and what were the happenings for you then?
I was fortunate to have shaken hands with President Johnson when when he visited the Control Center at the Johnson Space Center (NASA) in Houston.  I worked in the Control Center in my third career which lasted seventeen years.
Later in my 4th career, Business Professor at San Jacinto College, it almost happened again.  I did get to touch the 'hem of his gown' as President Clinton walked by after a presentation to some (a ticket affair, I had the luck of the draw) there with some of the students and faculty.

2. Tell if and why or why not you think that our country (U.S.A.) or yours needs a king or other royalty?
I think it would be nice and might give more prestige to our national leaders.  As of late our presidents have become the but of nasty criticism regardless of what party might be in power.  I think the worst probably started at the Viet Nam War period and has continued since. 
If I were king I would hope to rule and not be a figure head.  Do you know that the Queen of England is the Commander-in-chief of the Britsh Armed Forces? .

Bonus Question:

1. What is your favorite "Q" word?  
==> My Questions here are for Amanda at her Thursday Two Questions blog, Self Sagacity.  Please visit her there for here questions and links to other partakers of her fun blogging idea.
 

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# posted by Jim : 3/14/2013 10:41:00 AM  12 comments

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Two Shoes Tuesday # 9 -- "Fear" / Happy Birthday, Jim / MidWeek Blues

.

I'm celebrating my birthday today.  With my London U.K. family, our youngest granddaughter KP, teen granddauther BP, daughter Karen, and SIL Billy.  KP, age three, 'made' me this beautiful cake last night.  It was delicious, I had the blueberry cupcake last night.  KP ate the strawberry one. 

After we finished 'eating' and I had put the cupcakes back with her creation KP announced that the blueberry one was her favorite too.  I should have known that because second to gelato (Italian ice cream sold here on her High Street) blueberry muffins are her favorite food.
[click on any picture for screen size].
 
Before we had 'cake' last night we ate for my Birthday at a the Warrington Pub, also known as the Warrington Hotel.  "This hotel is an hotel in name only, sadly there are no longer any guest rooms. It was an hotel in the late 1800's and was rumoured to be a brothel, which must have worried the Church of England, who were its owners at the time." (Pubs.com site link for more reading)
 
I had fish and chips (French fries) with mushy peas and their own tarter sauce.  KP had an apple juice and an order of chips, Mrs. Jim and Karen shared a beef and tomato pot dish with mashed potatoes and red cabbage, and Billy had a lamb chop dinner meal.  It was all so very good!
 
Tonight we are eating Lebanese food at the Mezza Express.  Granddaugher BP will also join us for this one.  Last night she wasn't able to come.  Before we came I had purchased vouchers for tonight's meals from LivingSocial of which I am a member. http://www.livingsocial.com/united_kingdom/cities/885-south-west-london
 
LivingSocial ha special deals for practically all over.  I have sent to me the ones for the different Houston areas and also the ones for the London areas.  I would recommend you join, there is a great savings to be had.  Food is only one of their offers beside things like vacation get-aways, clothing, fun things, and the like. 
 
For my birthday I am looking at glider lesson offered through Living Social at the Bicester (London) Gliding Centre for £75.  "Come fly with me ... Just say those words and for £75 (a £174 value) you'll get a basic glider flight, including 2000 feet of launching, either by two winch launches or one 2000 feet aerotow, and up to 20 minutes of flying time ... After a safety briefing and ground instruction, take to the skies in a two-seater training glider, and your instructor will show you the ropes before you take the controls yourself. Height and weight restrictions apply. Valid Monday to Friday."  Plus there is a free three month membership to the gliding center.
 
- - - -
 
How does this fit Josie's writing prompt word of fear?  I am afraid of telling my age, but not now as much as I used to (be afraid).  Among men I now generally will tell my age if that is what we are discussing, ages.  I do not tell my age on my blog but I was born pre-WWII a bit.  I still don't tell my age to women.  Only Merle, Australian blogging friend, knows my age because we are about the same age and have shared sort-of similar health situations.

I always tell people that I am going to 'run away' for my birthday.  Sometimes I do but seems that other people always come with me.  This time it is London, UK with a side trip to Dubrovnik, Croatia.  I will tell more about these scattering them through my blogging.
 
- - - -
 
How does it fit MidWeek Blues?  Just look at the pretty blues on the cake, especially the blueberry cupcake.  On the walk to school this nice sunny London morning, Mrs. Jim and Billy are wearing blue jeans.  KP is wearing her P.E. red outfit for P.E. day today.  The fish and chips?  Well, I tell myself and you that the fish and chips were deep fried in an old speckled blue enameled pot.

- - - -

If you want to see my other birthday celebrations go here (or if I don't have them all done when you read this then you can do 'archives' for October 30 of each year starting with 2006).

Now this: Josie said: "Get ready for the next round of Two Shoes Tuesday... a place to share what we enjoy doing most... writing! Each week I'll provide a one-word writing prompt and ask you to share a short story, poem, essay, thought, or photo relating to that topic."
"The writing prompt for Tuesday, October 30th will be "fear"!  Her blog:
http://www.josie2shoes.com/2012/10/two-shoes-tuesday-9-fear.html

And this:  If you want to post a MidWeek Blues picture, go get directions from Rebecca by clicking on the logo picture on the right. She has a Mr. Linky and good directions . Just do what I did. Or do less. All she requires is a BLUE PICTURE or BLUE THOUGHT, you don't have to write...


Rest in Peace, dear Adi

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# posted by Jim : 10/30/2012 08:14:00 AM  5 comments

Friday, August 26, 2016

~~ Friday’s Hunt v.2.09 -- "I" is for ...

Friday's Hunt for the week of August 26th:
1. Starts with "I"
2. Week's Favorite
3. Pink

1. Ice Cream Starts with "I" :  In my world of eating, and blogging (link to past SOME of my past posts), "I" definitely is for Ice Cream.  I Scream for Ice Cream!!!

I'll do favorites here.

At the right is the neighborhood Gelato Mio store in St. John's Wood, London, U.K. (link) The store is on High Street, like the U.S. "Main Street", for St. John's Wood, this town in Westminster, is home for Paul McCartney not and the old London Stomping ground for the Beatles. 

Their first recording school was on Abbey Road there, and only a block from our Daughter, KP, and SIL, who lived in London for five years, all but the last two months in St. John's Wood.

While we were in London, staying with the kids, we would make a visit to Gelato Mia more often than once a week, i.e., we were 'regulars'.  The ice cream, European Gelato, was to die for.  My favorite was Raspberry Amaretto in a Waffle cone. 

Now for the ice creams that we eat here at home:


In order of our likes:

1.  Blue Bell Light -- for a long time Blue Bell was shut down due to a bacteria run loose in their plants.  Finally this was all scrubbed out and disinfected and things were back to normal.  Almost.  Our favorite flavor, this Light variety, was the last to start production, months behind the regular flavors.  It was also Adi's favorite. (link)
 
2.  This should have been "Dryer's French Silk" but I got the wrong kind and so we eat chocolate again.  KP will help us with that, she has several kinds of chocolate that she likes.

Not very obvious on the package, but 'Slow Churned' flavors are also their Lite ice cream, of which classification French Silk belongs.
3.  Blue Bell Dutch Chocolate is KP's favorite.  It is regular ice cream, not 'light'.  For chocolates, this is also our favorite. 

We always keep chocolate on hand for KP.
4.  Blue Bell Butter Crunch is sort of like having Butter Finger bars ground up and mixed into the ice cream.  Not being light, we eat this one sparingly but it is really good.

Often with our Blue Bell Light we cut up a Butter Finger or a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup bar and sprinkle that on the top of the ice cream.

4.  Kroger Chocolate is very dark and chocolatey, KP likes this one next to Blue Bell.   Kroger's 'Private Selection' ice cream is very fine, almost as good as Blue Bell.



2. Week's Favorite:  Not too much going on, lots of TV news: (I did get the car inspected get the license plates updated)

Floods in neighboring Louisiana were still bad. 
Alligators had escaped from their habitat. 


Our weather is cooling now.  Mid 90's for highs, sometimes high 80's.  We haven't been to Galveston for quite a while. It's about a 45 minute drive.
.
3. Pink:  I like to take pictures of pink cars, I don't really know why.

Both these are 1955 Fords, the one on the left was on a NAPA calendar, part of my collection.  It might be red but I think it is a dark pink.  Ford made more pink ones that red in 1955.

The one on the right is my car, a 1:18 scale cast iron model of the 1955 Ford Crestline hardtop.  I bought it way back from the farm store in Tekamah, Nebraska, from their after Christmas sale for half price. 

Here are a few more that I appreciated at least enough to take their pictures:


At left a toy plastic car in conjunction with the Big Breakfast celebration at our church, it was a place marker for its owner's lemon bars.  I got the last one.  On the right is a nondescript pink car parked in Friendswood (Texas) at a shopping center.  Kind of pretty.

On the right here is a pink toy car for kids to ride in after the parents have loaded it with a few quarters.  It was by the Merry Go Round at the Woodlands (Texas) Shopping Mall.
I am not KP's parent, just a grandparent, and I didn't have quarters for this car.  We may have fed another earlier, I can't remember.  We did feed the Carousal.
KP was about three here, home from London to visit her four grandparents..

This is a training vehicle belonging to the U.S. Navy at Christchurch, New Zealand.  The Navy has a training facility there for Antarctic Exploration.  One like this one took us for a bumpy ride through the snow at the training field.  We were riding in a trailer-like vehicle being pulled by an Arctic Crawler like this one.  I don't know why it was pink, not a regular Navy color for vehicles.


At left is a pink car on track in Peppa Pig Land, Southampton, U.K.  We rode the train down from London.  Our main purpose was to introduce the play-land to KP.  She was three and loved Peppa Pig (Google search).  Mrs. Jim was driving, Billy (KP's Daddy) was her passenger.  Front seat passenger was KP.  The car on the right was a Ukraine find.

_ _ _ _ _ 

The Fine Print:
 - Teresa of Eden Hills, (click) is running this meme, Friday's Hunt.  Her rules are: "Welcome to linkup for Friday’s Hunt. It’s very simple. Anyone can participate. The link opens at 7pm Central time and will close Sunday at 7pm, so you have plenty of time to enter.


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# posted by Jim : 8/26/2016 10:20:00 AM  14 comments

Saturday, May 19, 2012

And you did what? — Six Word Saturday —

.
My Six Words:
Pussycat, pussycat, where have you been?
.
 
.
"Pussycat pussycat, where have you been?"
"I've been up to London to visit the Queen."
"Pussycat pussycat, what did you there?"
"I frightened a little mouse under her chair"
"MEOWW!"
[ Nursery Rhymes Lyrics and Origins ]

    
   
.
Above left are Mrs. Jim, KP, and myself, all dressed up for tea at the Ritz Hotel.  Karen (her account of the tea) was with us as she sprung for the tea as a Mother's Day and Father's Day present from their family.  Right is KP's school.  She is in the two-and-a-half-year-old class.  This is her 'fancy dress.'   She wears a blue uniform with white shirt to class.
 
We didn't see the little mouse but we did see the Queen.  I tell people that she waved to me.  She was in her carriage on her way to address Parliament on their opening day.  I had brought my camera but wouldn't you know on this particular day I left the battery at the flat in its charger. 
.
So this picture I did not take but rather it is a press release photo which I photographed with my camera.  I read an editorial about whether or not the royalty is covering its expenses with admission fees to the palaces, etc.  There was another about doing away with royalty like most other countries have done. 
.
Judging from the size of the crowd we saw there for her that day, a measure like that would never get enough votes.  I think royalty is here to stay for a long while in Britain.
.
The rest of these pictures are typical London tourist type pictures we took on other days.  On this particular day we went on to visit St. Paul's Cathedral.  Sorry, no pictures from their either.  Our English friends from Northampton accompanied us and were showing us the sites and had found a good place for all of us to stand to watch the Queen's on her way to the ceremonies.
.
Our holiday lasted one month, from April 11 to May 11.  We flew directly from Houston to London and stayed with our daughter, Karen.  That Saturday we took the Eurostar RR through the Chunnel to Paris.  On Sunday we cheered her on as she ran the Paris Marathon.  We came back to London that evening.  On the following Saturday we began an 11 day Princess cruise from South Hampton to the Canary Islands, returning to London on May 3rd. 
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Describe your life (or something) in a phrase using just six words for Six Word Saturday. Click the box at right to visit Cate's blog with Mr. Linky showing all the other blogs participating this week. Cate is the boss at Six Word Saturday. She would like for you to participate.

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# posted by Jim : 5/19/2012 12:29:00 AM  14 comments

Friday, October 22, 2021

Letter "Q" -- -- Weekend Roundup

THE SEVENTEENTH LETTER FOR THIS SERIES - The Letter "Q" Prompts are: (A) Starts with the Letter "Q"; (B) "Queen" (Tom's Choice); (C) A Favorite; and (D) A Lagniappe.  

 - - - - 

[Photo from  F a c e b o o k  "cb and ham antenna group"]

(A) Starts with the Letter "Q":  A Quaint old truck belonging to a ham radio fellow, see his antenna at the back. 

Question:  Why is this old truck looking so Queer (starts with "Q")?   

Answer:  Because it is Quaint and has an antenna for mobile operation on top of the cargo roof.  
[hint, highlight the blank area to see the answer]


 
.
"Pussycat pussycat, where have you been?"
"I've been up to London to visit the Queen."
"Pussycat pussycat, what did you there?"
"I frightened a little mouse under her chair"
"MEOWW!"
[ Nursery Rhymes Lyrics and Origins ] 

(B) "Queen" (Tom's Choice):  Our friends from Towcester, Northampshire, England, 65 miles NNW of London came to town to visit us.  They explained that Queen Elizabeth would travel in her carriage through the streets to open Parliament for the then current session.  They would show us a quiet place on the sidewalk to see her pass by.  That was much excitement for us. 

Not very original and neither is this post.  It is a rework from one I did in 2013.  Karen was to run the Paris Marathon (she finished!) on April 15th so cheering her on was our excuse for going to London and Paris at that time.  

I wish we could go again this April but no family to visit now so that is open for discussion now.  See more of this episode, click here,  from my March 14, 2013 post, for my "Q" word Queen back then. 
 
And also you can use the Label at the bottom, "London Summer 13" for some other things we did during that trip.


.
(C) A Favorite:   My Quick yummy morning breakfast snack break is over.  Mrs. Jim brought my coffee, the food was part of her breakfast doggy bag which she brought home from Monday.

A breakfast croissant  with egg, ham, and cheese.  I saved the top lid piece of the croissant for dessert  and put gobs of strawberry Jam on it.


(D.1) A Lagniappe:  Q-tip is a common compound word seldom seen in the blogs, not even for the "Q" word of the week.  Guess I was pretty hard up.  Please see the "Note" below for a rundown of the name.  It must be properly protected or it will go generic.  I believe this may be the case already.  Time will tell.

So of what purpose is the lowly Q-tip?  Men use it to hand pollinate the citrus plants, apply glue or paint in hard-to-get-to places, clean the wax out of their ears (I'd rather use the rounded edge of a paper clip), use it with alcohol or nail polish remover for cleaning up tiny spots, and--what am I leaving out for the guys?

But what in the world do women do with their Q-tips?  They are the keepers, we men have to ask for one.  Mrs. Jim had this one and another in the top drawer in the bathroom.  She said she had a bag of them under the sink, but I didn't see them.

But what does she do with them?  What does she use them for?  Most ladies aren't brave or stupid enough to dare stick one in her ear.  Nor does she build model cars or work with trains.  My guess is that she uses them for tasks which men use their index finger but for which a women wouldn't dare use her finger.

Now, I am asking for the women reading this to tell me what they use the Q-tips, i.e. "cotton swabs", for.

Note: (from my Google Search) "Q-tips® 

www.qtips.com/
"Q-TIPS® is a registered trademark of Unilever and is NOT a name for just any cotton swabs. The Q-TIPS® trademark can only be used to refer to the specific cotton swab products manufactured and sold by Unilever and should not be used to refer to cotton swab products of other companies or to cotton swabs generally."

This was previously posted on April 28, 2017, but none of you except for Tom has read it back then.  (entire post, click here)


(D.2) A Second Lagniappe:  Principalities I have visited in that begin with "P":   I forgot to post my country list last week.  And we did not visit any "Q" countries, there aren't many to visit.

    Panama -- Cruising on the Norwegian Sun ship through the Panama Canal (a bucket list item)   -- 

    Peru -- On our Princess Cruise around Cape Horn from Los Angeles to Buenos Aires, Brazil  

    Poland -- Several times, first a Grand Circle land tour of the former Eastern Europe countries from Frankfort Germany and around to the Passion Play in Oberammergau, Germany in 2000

   Portugal -- On a Princess Cruise to the Canary Islands

 - - - -  

Fine print stuff

 - [Click on any picture for larger, click it again for extra large]

 - I am linked with Tom of "Backwoods Travel" (Link here to click for Tom's Weekend Reviews) 

 - I am also linking again this week with James of "Weekend Reflections/Street Photos" (click here for his Street Folk and Reflections Photos).

 - The pictures mostly are all mine and rights are reserved to me under Copyright Law. 

 - Click Here for countries I've visited.
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# posted by Jim : 10/22/2021 03:58:00 PM  5 comments

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