text:
From the Lost Diary of TreeFrog7
— by Nnedi Okorafor —
Translating...
Appendix 820 of The Forbidden Greeny Jungle Field Guide
This series of audio files was created by TreeFrog7
It has been automatically translated into text
ENTRY 1 (20:09 hours)
Some clumsy beast has been stalking us. It only comes out at night and it moves with no regard for the bushes, plants and detritus on the jungle floor. It sounds big and is probably dangerous. And...I think it brings the smell of flowers with it. I can smell it now, like sweet lilacs. Does Morituri36 even notice? I wonder. Regardless of the creature's presence, he continues to compile information and I put it together and upload the finished entries into the Greeny Jungle Field Guide. That's our mission and our system.
"Down with ignorance! Upload information!" We are true Great Explorers of Knowledge and Adventure. Joukoujou willing, we'll survive this day, as we have the hundreds of others since choosing to dedicate our lives to informing the ignorant masses about this great jungle.
Whatever is stalking us, we'll deal with it when the time comes.
Field guide entry (uploaded at 14:26 hours)
God Bug:
The God Bug is an insect of the taxonic order Ahuhu-ebe, which includes all beetles. It is common in the Greeny Jungle. Usually blue, sometimes green. When it feels the urge, it spontaneously multiplies, becoming two independent god bugs. As it multiplies it may make a soft popping or giggling sound. There have been rare cases where one has multiplied into four or five. They are docile, almost playful insects. Diurnal.
—written and entered by: TreeFrog7/ Morituri36
*note: For some reason, this common insect has not previously been listed in the Greeny Jungle Field Guide. This may be because the god bug is also found in the city. Or maybe this is another example of the field guide's incompleteness.
Everything here is disgusting. It rains constantly. The ground is always ankle-deep red-brown mud. There are a thousand types of biting and stinging insects. We have to sleep in the trees but the trees, bushes, and plants are noisy with buzzes, growls, snorts, screeches, clicks, whistles, too. Especially at night. The air reeks of moss, the syrupy scent of flowers, ripe palm nuts and rotting mangoes. And the jungle traps heat like a sealed glass tube held over a fire. The Greeny Jungle is a tough place to be while pregnant.
The heat leaves me light-headed. I vomit at least three times a day because of the strong smells. Yes, still, even in my eighth month. But though my sensitive nose makes for great discomfort, it makes for even greater documentation. You'd be amazed at how many floral and faunal specimens show themselves first and foremost with scent.
Yesterday, my nose led me to a tree full of those hairy pink spiders with striped orange legs. A year and half ago, Morituri36 and I uploaded a field guide entry on these creatures. We named them treebeards. They were our hundredth entry. Their bites paralyze your fingers and cause an intense headache. If these spiders ever became common back home they'd cause society to break down within a week. Imagine people unable to type on their computers!
Unfortunately, yesterday, I forgot that treebeards give off a strong smell that is very similar to figs. I thought I'd found a fig tree. I love figs, especially since becoming pregnant. The sky was cloudy. Any other day, I'd have seen all those webs. Instead, I walked right into them and the spiders descended on me like rain. Understandably, they thought I was attacking their home. Not good.
Morituri36 happened to be in the middle of one of his bouts when it happened. I had to save myself by running from the tree, throwing myself in the mud and dead leaves and rolling like crazy, the roots of some tree grinding into my back. Then I just lay there looking up...into the leaves and ripe fruit of a giant fig tree. The smell of real figs was all around me. Treebeards and figs, can you believe it?!
Only my left hand was stung. I have to type with my right. I'm left-handed so this has been very very annoying. I'll be better in a few days.
What a husband I have. He cannot even save his wife from bush spiders. What has this place made us into? But can I blame him for having dulled senses due to his junglemyelitis? Maybe. I have been exploring this jungle right beside him all these years. He has been the only human face I've had to look at, too. Yet the trees do not "close in" on me. I do not need to have the sun and moonlight wash over my face for at least four hours a day. My brain isn't muddled with an irrational fear of shadows that makes me rant and rave once in a while. And I'd have yelled stop before he walked under a tree full of treebeards. Idiot.
The sun is setting and I can hear and smell it again—the creature following us. It's definitely nocturnal.
There is a reason I've decided to break science-speak and enter this journal appendix in the field guide. My name is Treefrog7 and my husband is Morituri36. We are from a village in southwest, Ọnaghị agba nahịa, the people of the impossible beads. Of course out here in the Greeny Jungle, we cannot wear our traditional beaded attire. Far too heavy. Instead we wear plain light clothing (northern attire). But we never take off our beaded bracelets and marriage earrings. And there is always the bead of the soul. So that is us and that is all I will say on the subject.
I've begun uploading this audio series because after three months of exploration, we are closing in on something big. Very big. The very process of finding it should be documented along with the scientific information.
Altogether, we've uploaded two hundred eighty-eight new entries to the field guide. Our fellow explorers are proud. What we explorers do is dangerous work. Many of us die for the information we gather. Many of us return to civilization with only half our bodies, or half our minds, or ill in a thousand ways. Many of us are lost. Morituri36 and I are not lost. We know exactly where we are and we know exactly what we seek. We will find it. And human civilization will be changed forever.
I'll explain what "it" is when I'm in a less difficult place. The mud is deep here. My back aches. I need all my faculties for the time being. I wish Morituri36 would stop singing that song. "World of Our Own." It reminds me of home. He has such a beautiful voice. I wish he'd shut up. I wish my body would stop aching. I'm sick of being pregnant.
I was bitten by a clack beetle today. Their venom is itchy and the white spot it left on my skin is about the size of my fingernail. It shows up on me a lot more than it showed up on Morituri36 when he was bitten last year. I'm a much darker shade of brown than he is. Which means, yes, I get to complain about it. I don't mind cuts, scratches, bites, etc. But something about a mark on my skin of temporarily-neutralized melanin really bothers me. No matter. It should be gone in a few days.
Last night, as we looked for a tree to sleep in, we heard the creature. How long is it going to follow us? What does it want?
Shh. I have to whisper quietly. Morituri36 is beside me, too. Something just screeched very very loudly. An elgort? As soon as we can climb down, I need to find a certain seed... just in case. Morituri36 is too clumsy to handle them. He's looking at me, annoyed, but he knows I'm right.
We're still on the trail of what we seek and I believe that whatever has been following us is still on our trail, too. Maybe the elgort will scare it away, or better yet, eat it.
We're at the very top of a baobab tree. Morituri36 and his cursed junglemyelitis. If I fall out and die, our unborn child and I will haunt him until he joins us in death. Right now I can hear it below. Why is it following us? What's it after? And what is it? It's not violent, fast, huge or destructive enough to be an elgort. I'm glad it's nocturnal. Come morning, we'll be able to leave this tree and continue on our way.
We are searching for a mature CPU plant, so mature that we can actually download its hard drive. We call them M-CPUs. Acquiring a copy of an M-CPU's hard drive has never been done in all the history of exploration. BushBaby42, a close friend of mine, found one three months ago but she disappeared before she could download anything. She happened to send us the coordinates of her location just before she stopped responding to us, so here we are. We've come hundreds of miles.
It is hard for me to speak of BushBaby42.
I don't wonder what happened to her. She is an explorer which means it could have been anything. It is very often our fate.
On the M-CPU's hard drive will be unimaginable information, the result of centuries of gathering. Legend has it that these plants connect to networks from worlds beyond. Imagine what it knows, what it has documented. We will not kill or harm it, of course. That would be blasphemy. We won't even clip a leaf or scrape some cells. We'll only make a copy of what it knows. Our storage drives should easily adapt to fit the plant's port. Though our drive is most likely a different species of plant, they'd have to at least be of the same genus.
The CPU plant's entry does it no justice. The entry is a human perspective, ascribing significance to the plant because it is cultivated and used as a tool for humans, a personal computer. The true CPU plant grows in the wild, neither touched nor manipulated by humans. And this plant takes hundreds of years to mature.
Many of us have seen young CPU plants with their glowing monitor flower-heads that light up nights and sleep during the day. They plug into the network and do whatever they do. But an M-CPU? Nearly legend. What must BushBaby42 have felt gazing upon it all alone as she was? What must she have seen on its screen? And what happened to her? She could take on a man-eating whip scorpion with nothing but a stick!
Incidentally, the creature we heard screeching this afternoon was an elgort. Big as a house, with tight-black skin that shined in the daylight, beady yellow eyes, fast as the speed of sound, irrational and food-minded.
We dealt with it. Maneuver 23, specifically for the elgort. We lured the crazed beast to a tall strong hardwood tree. That's the most dangerous part, luring it in. We had to climb very very fast as soon as it smelled us. Once in the tree, as it reared up below trying to snatch us down with its tooth-filled trunk (a terrible sight in itself), Morituri36 dropped a bursting seed (which I picked this afternoon, thank goodness) into its maw. BLAM! Its entire head exploded. We now have meat for many days. Elgort meat doesn't need salt or to be preserved and it's naturally spicy; some say this is due to the creature's anger and intensity in life.
We thank Joukoujou and the Invisible forces for giving us the skill to protect ourselves. Unfortunately, The Forces of the Soil also protected from the elgort whatever creature is stalking us.
Today was all pain. In my back and lower belly. The stretching of ligaments. My belly feels like a great calabash of water. This baby will come soon. Really soon. I hope we find the plant first. The trees here are spaced apart, allowing the sun to shine down, so Morituri36 had a good day. He carried both our packs and even prepared breakfast and lunch—mangoes, roasted tree clams, elgort meat, figs and root tea both times. It is days like this where I remember why I married him.
It is night now and we are in a large but low tree with one wide branch to hold us both. We can see the sky. It's been a long time since we had a night like this. I think the last time was the day that our child was conceived. Not long afterwards was when he started coming down with the junglemyelitis. His ailment will pass; he's a strong man.
My gut tells me this is the calm before the storm. But maybe I'm just being melodramatic.
Dragonflies! Swarms of them. BushBaby42 described these just before she found the plant. We're close. But the creature is still on our trail. This morning, it left its muddy smelly droppings right at the foot of the tree, as if it wanted us to step right into it. I almost did. It was covered with flies and the mound smelled like the vomit of demons. It was so strong that I nearly fainted with nausea. Morituri36 had to carry me away from the mess. Just thinking about it makes me shudder.
Cursed beast, whatever it is. No matter how we try to glimpse it at night, it keeps out of sight as it blasts its angry flowery scent. Biding its time, I suspect. But when the fight comes, it will be shocked when instead of running we turn to meet it. We haven't survived the jungle solely because of luck.
But Morituri36 needs to remember that he is a human being, and that I am a human being, too. When he gets in his moods, he speaks to me as if I'm a piece of meat. As if I'm lower than his servant. He speaks to me the way the Ooni chief speaks to his wives. How dare him. I am carrying our child. I have done as much work as he has. And junglemyelitis or not, we are in this together. There is no need for insult.
"It dies well beforehand!" he snapped at me earlier today as we inspected a morta. We'd caught it this morning. A morta is a beautiful red bird with a long thin beak. When it dies, its dead body keeps flying aimlessly for days. Strange creatures but not the strangest in the jungle. Morituri36 seemed to think that their carcasses also rotted as they flew.
"Look at it," I calmly said, despite my rising anger at his tone. The dead morta was still trying to flap its wings. "This is the fifth one we've caught! No rot anywhere!"
He just huffed and puffed the way he always does when he knows I'm right. The entry someone uploaded to the field guide was simply wrong and needed to be changed. The fact is that mortas probably don't fly for that long after they die. Maybe a few hours and that's it. Certainly not days. If it was days, it would be infested with rot and maggots. But that wasn't what I wanted to find out most about the morta. I wanted to know what made it fly as a dead creature. Morituri36 and I agreed it had to be some sort of parasite with strange faculties. We just needed to run some tests.
But he wasn't so interested in answers today. He threw the bird corpse to the ground. "It is because it is freshly dead," he muttered. "Stupid stupid woman." Immediately, the dead bird hopped up and took off. I cursed, watching it go, wondering what microscopic organisms were working the bird's muscles and how intelligent they could be to do so. They were obviously using the morta carcass to search for food or a special place to procreate.
I wanted to slap Morituri36. How many pockets of information had we lost because of his temper? He and I are south westerners, the people of beads. Amongst our people, we say, "Many beads protect the thread." He knows this kind of behavior will not get him far. Maybe one day I'll push him out of one of the extra high trees he forces us to sleep in every night.
We didn't talk to each other for hours. Then we started seeing millions of dragonflies.
The land was still spongy and muddy. There were large pools of standing water. The air smelled like wet leaves, stagnant water and spawn. An ancient CPU plant would thrive in a place like this.
The dragonflies must have loved this place, too, but the huge swarms were because of the plant. CPU plants send out strong sine waves. These types of dragonflies are attracted to the electromagnetic waves like moths, mosquitoes, suck bugs and butterflies to light.
We'd always been plagued by a few of these sine-wave drinking dragonflies because of the portable we use to type in and upload information (including this audio journal) to the field guide node. Our portable is powerful. Even hundreds of miles from civilization, we can access the network and communicate with other explorers who wish to communicate. But there is a downside to everything. Large dragonflies zooming around our heads is one of them. The sine waves intoxicate them.
Usually, there are only two or three plaguing us. Now it's about twenty. They're like flying jewels, emerald-green, rock-stone blue, blood-red. A few of them are of the species that glow blue-purple. But none of them stay long. They zoom about our heads for a few minutes and then zip off, replaced by another curious dragonfly. Something bigger is attracting them, of course. I can't wait to see it. We don't even need BushBaby42's coordinates anymore. Just follow the dragonflies. I hope BushBaby42 is ok.
We cannot sleep. Morituri36 is sitting beside me. For once he's looking down instead of up. Even he can smell the beast's scent now. It's right down there.
The dragonflies are going mad around here. We can see the plant just starting to glow about a mile away, to the north. By the night, it'll be glowing like a small planet. But the creature is below us. Right at the base of our tree. I hope we make it through the night without a fight. Doing battle in the dark is the worst kind of fighting.
ENTRY 10 (20:14 hours)
It's a moth! With a large hairy robust but streamlined body, thick fuzzy black antennae with what looked like metallic balls on the ends, and a large coiled proboscis. But it's wingless, the size of a large car and has six strong insectile running legs. And it uses its proboscis like a flexible spear!
It came after us just after dusk, while we were looking for a tree to sleep in. Out of nowhere you just heard the sound of branches snapping, and leaves getting crushed as it rushed at us from behind. Within moments, it speared me in the thigh and my husband in the upper arm. We'd be dead if it weren't for our quickness and how good we've become at climbing trees. I guess I have to thank my husband and his stupid illness. We've bandaged each other up. At least some of the bleeding has stopped, my husband's wound was worse than mine. So far no sign of poisons from its proboscis.
The moth's body shape tells me that this thing's relatives clearly used to be fliers. It's been following us for days and now, as we close in on the plant, it has become aggressive; it's guarding something. I can guess what it is.
We could kill it. My husband and I have certainly killed larger more dangerous beasts. But killing it might eventually cause what it protects, the M-CPU, to die. The death of centuries of information. No. We'd rather die. So instead, we're stuck in a tree a mile from the plant.
There's a problem. My water just broke. No, not now. Not now!
We're in another tree. About 200 feet from the M-CPU. Like everything around here, it's infested with dragonflies. Their hard bodies smack against my face like hail. The wingless moth is below, waiting, angry, protective. We're about to climb down and make a run for it. I hope my husband is right. Otherwise, we're dead.
The M-CPU's smell is overly sweet, syrupy, and thick. I've vomited twice up here. The labor pains drown out the pain from my leg. They are getting stronger and faster, too. Can barely control my muscles when the contractions hit. If they get any worse I won't be able to help myself, I'll fall right out of this tree. A terrible way to die. A terrible way for an unborn child to die. I hope my husband is right.
If I focus on talking into this portable, I will not die.
We're cornered. But we are lucky. We made it to the plant. Dragonflies are everywhere. Their metallic bodies shine in the plant's light. They make soft tapping sounds when they hit the plant's screen. Oh, the pain. My husband was right, bless his always sharp mind. The wingless moth indeed is guarding the M-CPU. And thus, now that we are close to the plant, the moth fears we'll harm it. If we don't move, the creature will not attack. It is not stupid. It can reason. Otherwise it would have killed us both by now... soon there will be three of us.
My body does not feel like my own.
The...M-CPU is as tall as my husband. He can look right into the flower head, which is a bulbous monitor with large soft periwinkle petals framing it. There is indeed a slot right below the head, where the green stem begins. The moth is a pollinator. Morituri36 says that below the disk is a tube that goes deep; only the proboscis of this wild creature could fit down there. It is a most unique but not an unheard-of pollination syndrome. But there are deeper things at work here.
Maybe the moth will leave come dawn when the plant goes to sleep. But the night has just begun. As the flower opens wide, so do I. The baby will be here soon. Why do the gods create this kind of pain when bringing life into the world? Why?
I was screaming when she came out screaming. My husband wasn't there to catch her; I wanted him to stay near the M-CPU's flower. So our daughter landed on the cloth he'd spread. Morituri36 laughed with joy. A blue dragonfly landed on her for a second and then flew off. I had to lean forward and pick her up. I cut my own cord. She is in the crook of my arm as I hold this portable to my lips and record these words. A beautiful thing.
The moth has backed off. Could it be that the gift of life was enough to stop this intelligent beast in its tracks? Or does it know what my husband is doing? Our storage drive fit perfectly into the port just below the flower head.
The flower is fully open now. It is sometimes good to be a man. My husband can stand up and watch as we wait for the download to be complete. I can only lie here in the mud and listen to what he tells me as I slowly bleed to death.
ENTRY 14 (00:40hours)
"Are you alright?" he keeps asking, with that look on his face. Don't look at me like that, Morituri36. Like I'm going to disappear at any moment. The moth looms. I've washed our daughter with the last of my husband's water. She seems happy and angry, sleeping, trying to suckle and crying. Normal. Amazing.
Just tell me what you see! I'm talking to Morituri36. Doesn't he think I want to know? As if I am not an explorer, too. Giving birth can't change that fact.
Morituri36, you know the portable can only record one voice. Here, take it. It's better if you just speak into it.
*Voice recognition detects Morituri36, a male, husband to Treefrog7, Greeny Explorer number 439, 793 days in Jungle, approximately 600 miles north of Ooni, 24:44 hours*
*Allowed*
My wife is crazy. She cannot properly describe the situation we are in right now as I speak. The trees creep in on us like soldiers. She can't see them, but I can. Every so often, I see a pink frog with gold dots sitting in the trees just watching us. Treefrog7 doesn't believe me when I speak of this creature. It is there, I assure you.
But neither the trees nor the frog is our biggest threat. Treefrog7 is truly amazing. It is not that she just gave birth. That is a miracle in itself but a miracle most women can perform. No. It is that we have been stalked and hunted by this beast that our explorer ethics prevent us from killing and yet and still, this woman can concentrate enough to blast a child from her loins, even as the creature stands feet away, biding its time for the right moment to spear me in the heart and her between the eyes and then to maybe make a meal of our fresh and new healthy daughter.
But Treefrog7 wants me to talk about this plant that led us to our certain deaths. The M-CPU of legend and lore. The One Who Reaches. The Ultimate Recorder. Bushbaby42's obsession. How old must this M-CPU be? Seven, ten thousand years? Older than the plant towers of Ooni? I believe it's an true elemental with goals of joining its pantheon of plant griots.
My wife looks at me like I'm crazy...but who knows. You look into its head and how can you not wonder? Look at it, surrounded by purple sterile ray florets the size of my arm and the width of my hand. Its deep green stem is thick as my leg and furry with a soft white sort of plant down. No protective spikes needed when it's got a giant moth guarding it.
It's deep night now. And everything's color is altered by the brightness of the flower's head. An organic monitor is nothing new. It is what we know. We Ooni people have been cultivating the CPU seed into personal computers for, what, over a century? It's how the CPU plant got its name. And explorers have seen plenty of wild CPU plants here in the Greeny Jungle. Lighting the night with their organic monitors, doing whatever it is they do. But an uncultivated M-CPU? How did Bushbaby42 find it? And where is she? We've seen no sign of her. Treefrog7 and I will not speak of her absence here.
So back to the M-CPU's head. What do I see in it? How can I explain? It is a screen. Soft to the touch, but tough, impenetrable maybe. But I wouldn't test this with the moth looming as it is. And I would never risk harming the M-CPU.
The plant's screen is in constant flux. There is a sort of icon that looks like a misshapen root that moves around clicking on/selecting things. Right now it shows a view of the top of a jungle. It cannot be from around here because this jungle is during the daytime. There are green parrots flying over the trees.
Now it shows text but in symbols of some unknown language. A language of lines branching off other lines, yes, like tree branches, roots, or stems. The root-shaped cursor moves about clicking and the screen changes. Now it's a star-filled night sky. A view of what looks like downtown Ile-Ife, not far from the towers. There are people wearing clothes made of beads, south westerners. I know that place. My home a minute's walk from there!
The screen changes again. Now... most bizarre, the sight of people, humans but as I've never seen. And primitive shaped slow-moving vehicles that are not made of woven hemp but of metal. There are humans here with normal dark brown skin but most are the color of the insides of yams and these people have light-colored hair that settles. My wife looks at me with disbelief. It's what I see, Treefrog7. The legend is true. The M-CPU can view other worlds. Primitive old worlds of metal and stone and smoke but friendly enough looking people. Now there are more symbols again. Now an image of a large bat in flight. The roots of a tree. The symbols. A lake surrounded by evergreen trees.
My guess? This is the plant thinking and it is deep thought. Back to my wife.
*Voice recognition detects Treefrog7, Greeny Explorer number421, 793 days in Jungle, approximately 600 miles north of Ooni, 01:41 hours*
I feel better. It's been about two hours. Baby's fine. My bleeding has stopped. The moth is still there. Watching us. The download is almost done. I can stand up (though it feels like my insides will fall out from between my legs) and see the monitor for myself now.
It just showed something I've never seen before...a land of barrenness, where everything is sand and stone and half-dead trees. Where could this nightmarish place be? Certainly not Ginen. It's almost 2 am. In a few hours, we'll know if that moth actually sleeps.
Wingless Hawk Moth:
The Wingless Hawk Moth is an insect of the taxonic order Urubaba which includes butterflies and moths. It is the size of a large car, has a robust grey furry body with pink dots, pink compound eyes, and hearty insectile legs for running. Its antennae are long and furry with silver ball-like organs at the tips. Its proboscis is both a feeding/sucking organ and a deadly jabbing weapon. It is the pollinator of the M-CPU. It makes no noise as it attacks and is known to stalk targets for days that it deems hostile to its plant. Nocturnal.
I'm having a catharsis as my husband and I stare into its monitor and it stares back. I am looking into a distorted mirror. We are gazing into the eye of an explorer. It is like us.
My baby is beautiful. She is so fresh and I can see that she will be very dark, like me. Maybe even browner. Thank goodness she is not dada and that she has all ten of her fingers and toes. Think of the number of times in the last eight months that I've been poisoned, touched the wrong plant, been bitten by the wrong creature, plus I am full of antibiotics and micro-cures. Yet my baby is perfect. I am grateful.
If we ever make it home, my people will love her. But the wingless hawk moth is still here. The sun rises in an hour.
ENTRY 18 (5:30 hours)
The M-CPU shows pictures and they are getting closer to where we are! Pictures of the sky over trees. Symbols. Clicking. The jungle at night. More symbols. I can see our backs! What?! The moth is coming, but slowly, it's walking. It is calm, its proboscis coiled up. But what does it want? Download is done. What...the M-CPU's monitor shows two eyes now. Orange with black pupils. Like those of a lemur but there is nothing else on the screen. Only black. Just two unblinking...Joukoujou help us, o! Now I see. Don't come looking for us! Don't...
*Voice recognition detects...Unknown*
*Hacked Allowance*
They will never die. No information dies once gathered, once collected.
The creatures' field guide is thorough but incomplete.
I am the greatest explorer.
I am griot and I will soon join the others.
End of Appendix 820
BongaFish35 Pinging Treefrog7....
Request timed out.
BongaFish35 Pinging Morituri36...
KolaNut8 Pinging Morituri36...
MadHatter72 Pinging Treefrog7...
Wahala wrote on May 4th, 2009 at 5:36 pm:
Incredibly eloquent!
Lee wrote on May 21st, 2009 at 10:37 am:
Really enjoyed this!
Ross wrote on December 3rd, 2009 at 10:37 pm:
Strangest thing I've read in months.
Kellye Parish wrote on May 11th, 2010 at 3:53 pm:
This was totally bizarre, but I loved it the whole way through. The taxonomy entries and "compspeak" really ground you in the story. Awesome choice Clarkesworld.
Chansi wrote on August 5th, 2010 at 7:45 pm:
This was really very great.
Glenn Nevill wrote on October 26th, 2010 at 3:56 pm:
I loved listening to this one, but could someone explain the last entry. Is this last part from the tree or from the moth?
Yulwei wrote on June 23rd, 2011 at 9:15 am:
Wow that was amazing. Your stories just seem so real like people would actually behave like that if thrown into such situations. Sure the protagonists tend to be very strong mentally but so are a lot of people they just never realise it
ISSUE 32, May 2009
Nnedi's novels include Lagoon (finalist for Best Novel in the British Science Fiction Association Award), Who Fears Death (winner of the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel and Le Prix Imaginales for Best Translated Novel), Akata Witch (an Amazon.com Best Book of the Year), Zahrah the Windseeker (winner of the Wole Soyinka Prize for African Literature), and The Shadow Speaker (winner of the CBS Parallax Award).
Her short story collection Kabu Kabu was a Publisher's Weekly Best Book for Fall 2013. Her adult novel The Book of Phoenix (a prequel to Who Fears Death) was released in May and received rave reviews from The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune and more. Nnedi's novella, Binti her first story set in outer space recently won both the 2016 Nebula Award and the 2016 Hugo Award for Best novella. Lastly, her much anticipated young adult novel Akata Witch 2: Breaking Kola will be released in 2016.
nnedi.com
Afrofuturist 419 by Nnedi Okorafor - November 2016
The Book of Phoenix (Excerpted from The Great Book) by Nnedi Okorafor - March 2011


Dr. Cynthia Morrow, former Commissioner of Health for Onondaga County and former Lerner Chair for Public Health Promotion at the Maxwell School, recently relocated to Roanoke, VA where she is currently teaching at Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine. Dr. Morrow is committed to educating a diverse audience about public health and to developing and fostering community partnerships that address a wide range of public health concerns. Perhaps most importantly, Dr. Morrow believes in the power of community based organizations. While in Syracuse, she served on several boards of local organizations and has received numerous awards from community agencies.
Dr. Morrow served as Commissioner of Health for Onondaga County from 2005-2014. Her other past positions include Director of Preventive Services for Onondaga County Health Department; primary care physician in private practice in Florida; and Medical Director/Staff Physician for the Guam Department of Health. After leaving the health department, Dr. Morrow was a Professor of Practice in the Department of Public Administration and International Affairs and continued her work at SUNY Upstate Medical University as an assistant professor with the Center for Bioethics and Humanities as well as with the Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine.
As a child, Dr. Morrow lived in Uganda, Ghana, Switzerland, and the United States where she learned about how relationships between individuals, their communities, and their health care systems impact health. These experiences shaped her passion for public health and her drive to improve the health of the populations she serves.
Dr. Morrow earned a Bachelor's degree in psychobiology from Swarthmore College and a combined MD/MPH from Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, Massachusetts. She completed her residency in Internal Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina.
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text:
News Local Mitsero murders: Body of third woman found, suspect said to admit to...
Mitsero murders: Body of third woman found, suspect said to admit to another double murder
A police operation is underway at the Orounta firing range to recover the body of a woman from a well shown to them by a Greek Cypriot army officer who is in police custody for the premeditated murder of three women.
The 35 year old led police to the site earlier on Thursday afternoon after reportedly confessing to killing a fourth woman in 2018.
The Cyprus News Agency said that the suspect has also admitted to killing a Romanian woman and her eight year old daughter. Reports suggest the mother and child had been reported missing in autumn, 2016.
Philenews said that the 35 year old told investigators the bodies of the Romanian mother and daughter and Μaricar Valdez are at a site opposite Mitsero mine.
He has also admitted to killing three women from the Philippines while the child of one of them is still missing. Only three bodies have been found.
The identity of the victim in the well is not yet known, but reports say it is an Asian woman who had been listed as missing.
Earlier on Thursday the suspect was remanded in custody for the premeditated murder of Maricar Valdez.
Police have recovered the bodies of two other women from an abandoned mine shaft at Mitsero.
Earlier on Thursday fire services completed a search of the 130 metre mine shaft and said they had found nothing to indicate there were more victims there.
Police are also still looking for the daughter of the first victim. The suspect told police he had dumped the body of the six year old child in Xyliatou lake after she died and specialist divers will tomorrow resume their search.
Today's dramatic developments came hours after the suspect was remanded in custody for another two days on suspicion of murdering Maricar Vandez. He has reportedly admitted to killing her as well.
During questioning, he reportedly told police about a fourth woman and led police to a well to the south of the firing range.
The fire services are in the process of recovering the body from the well. Two state pathologists and police officers are at the scene.
Philenews said the body appears to belong to an Asian woman and is badly decomposed.
The suspect has already admitted to killing Marry Rose and Αrian Palanas Lozano, police told the court during custody hearings earlier this week.
Both women are from the Philippines as is the third victim. All three had been reported missing — one in May 2018, the second in July 2018 and the third in December 2017. The child was reported missing with her mother in May 2018.
British experts are due in Cyprus on Monday at the request of the police chief to help police investigations.
https://in-cyprus.com/mitsero-murders-womens-committee-blasts-police-handling-of-missing-women/
Previous articleReports: Police looking for murder victim at Orounta
Next articleMitsero murders: Suspect said to be linked to seven victims

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Topic: Rob Andrews
Latest Headlines Quotes
Rob Andrews News
U.S. News // 8 years ago
N.J. Rep. Andrews to resign, join law firm
U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews, D-N.J., who has been the subject of a House ethics investigation, said Tuesday he is resigning from Congress and joining a law firm.
Blog // 8 years ago
Rep. Rob Andrews, D-NJ, is expected to resign from Congress
Rep. Rob Andrews, D-NJ, is expected to resign from Congress amid an ethics inquiry.
House ethics panel probes Andrews, Young
The U.S. House Ethics Committee said Tuesday it is investigating allegations against Reps. Rob Andrews, D-N.J., and Don Young, R-Alaska.
Analysis: Economic Outlook // 1 decade ago
Economic Outlook: Budget squawking in D.C.
"It's going to be a rough evening -- everybody saying a lot of pleasant things to each other."
Top News // 1 decade ago
Wife bows out, so Rep. Andrews can run
Rep. Rob Andrews, D-N.J., who failed in a bid for the U.S. Senate nomination, said Thursday he "looked deep" into his beliefs and decided to seek a 10th term.
Sen. Lautenberg in dead heat in New Jersey
New Jersey voters are split down the middle between four-term U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg and his Republican challenger, a poll indicates.
Lautenberg wins N.J. primary
U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg had a 2-1 lead on his closest Democratic challenger in the New Jersey primary Tuesday.
Lautenberg faces Senate primary challenge
U.S. Rep. Rob Andrews, D-N.J., picked up support Thursday in his Democratic primary challenge to Sen. Frank Lautenberg.
U.S. House passes minimum wage hike
The U.S. House of Representatives Wednesday approved a $2.10-an-hour increase in the national minimum wage.
Corzine taps Menendez for his Senate seat
New Jersey Gov.-elect Jon Corzine announced Friday that U.S. Rep. Robert Menendez, a fellow Democrat, will take his U.S. Senate seat.
I am going to call on the CDC to look further because they've only looked at four of the 13 cases my office forwarded to them
N.J. officials to rule out CJD cluster May 07, 2004
Robert Ernest "Rob" Andrews (born August 4, 1957) is an American Democratic Party politician from New Jersey, who is currently serving as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, representing New Jersey's 1st congressional district (map).
In the 2008 Democratic primary election, Andrews unsuccessfully challenged the incumbent U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg. He subsequently announced his intention to run for another term in the House of Representatives.
Andrews was born in Camden, New Jersey and currently lives in nearby Haddon Heights. He attended Triton Regional High School in Runnemede. Andrews graduated from Bucknell University in 1979 with a B.A. in political science. He later attended Cornell University Law School, earning his J.D. degree in 1982. For several years, Andrews was involved in legal education as a member of Cornell Law Review's board of editors; he also was an adjunct professor at Rutgers University-Camden Law School .
FULL ARTICLE AT WIKIPEDIA.ORG
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Rob Andrews."


The heartbeat of Homegrown Worship is to help churches to grow their own worship songs. Having seen incredible fruit from local churches producing their own songs, we're eager to see fresh expressions of worship spring up in a wide range of styles, locations and languages.
Each and every week we will be sharing brand new worship songs via download and streaming sites. There will be chords and words available as well as a blog unpacking the story and inspiration behind the songs... plenty to feast upon!
As we share songs with church communities around the globe, we will be inviting people to share their songs with us as we look to record the cream of the crop in our Homegrown sessions. This will build relationships that enable us to establish music production communities around the world... before you know it, we'll be sharing new songs every day.
We're offering services and support for churches, worship leaders and artists though our mission on Rocket Fuel. Everything we raise through this enables us to produce new songs to share with the community of people wanting to feast on new expressions of worship.
Let's see what we can grow together!


Kimberley Kinder is an Assistant Professor of Urban Planning. Dr. Kinder has degrees in geography, architecture, urban design, and environmental policy. She received her MSc in Geography from the University of Oxford and her PhD in Geography from the University of California, Berkeley. Her research focuses on the social, cultural, and political aspects of urban landscapes. Authored a book exploring how active residents in Amsterdam deploy waterscapes when rallying around a variety of political concerns. Redeveloped waterfronts are trademark landscapes in many post-industrial cities, and the market logics underlying these investments often dominate scholarly and media debates. However, in Amsterdam, squatters, queers, artists, historians, environmentalists, climatologists, tourists, reporters, and cabinet officials also bring waterscapes to life. Their interventions pull water in new directions, connecting it to political discussions about affordable housing, cultural tolerance, climate change, and national identity. These practices pluralize water as a political actor, bringing rich undercurrents of friction to urban shores.


text:
Border Patrol Finds Pounds of Cocaine Taped to Woman's Chest
The 21-year-old woman tried to hide cocaine by taping it to her chest and stomach, via Border Patrol.
By Steve Neavling
Even in the days of breast augmentation, Border Patrol agents weren't fooled by the bulging chest of a 21-year-old woman who had taped about eight pounds of cocaine to her chest and stomach.
At the Morley Pedestrian Gate at the border between Arizona and Mexico, agents wanted a closer look at what was behind the Tucson resident's strangely bulging shirt.
After a drug-sniffing dog also shared its suspicions, a secondary inspection found about $135,000 worth of cocaine stuffed in her shirt.
The woman, whose identity wasn't immediately released, was arrested.
Other Stories of Interest
Delaware Man with History of Cyber Theft Under Scrutiny
FBI Raids Jackson County Jail for Second Time in Less Than 2 Years
NYT: How President Trump Misunderstood the FBI
Sanders Dodges Questions of Investigation into His Wife
Dozen American Cities Tapped in DOJ's Violent Crime Crackdown
Posted: 6/27/17 at 10:52 AM under News Story.
Tags: Arizona, Border Patrol, cocaine, Drugs, Mexico, tucson


Hello, thank you for your interesting research. How did you collect the data about the pedestrian movement in the city?
The extended method appears in the full paper. Basically, we have counted pedestrians at all survey points concurrently for each of the four areas for 5 hours (10 minutes for each hour) for hours 15:00-20:00 on a regular weekday with good weather (spring time).


With 2017 coming to an end and the new 2018 federal tax.
taking effect soon, some residents are hustling to pay their taxes before the big change.
However, one local myth — the ability to pay 2018 property taxes in 2017 — has caused many county treasurers' phones to ring with questions about how to pay early. The short answer is Wisconsin residents cannot pay next year's property taxes in the current year and never could have, according to a state statute.
State statute 74.13, taxes paid in advance of a levy, states "general property taxes, special assessments, special charges and special taxes may be paid in advance of the levy during the period from August 1 until the third Monday in December each year." The statute only pertains to paying ahead on the current year's taxes.
Under the new tax law, a cap is placed at $10,000 for those who want to deduct payments for state and local taxes. That will impact some residents in Racine County with high property taxes.
But in states like Minnesota, Maryland, and Virginia, residents have been preparing this year's property taxes in order to avoid the $10,000 cap.
The new federal tax bill was signed by President Donald Trump on Friday.
Racine County Treasurer Jane Nikolai said her office has been receiving several calls the last two weeks about payment of 2018 property taxes.
starting in 2018," Nikolai said.
Interest expense a sentence for deigning.
Property taxes deduction example in literature.
Caledonia resident Fran Martin said she's "annoyed" with some of the upcoming changes that will directly impact her.
"My combined real estate plus state income taxes exceeds $10,000, which is no longer going to be deductible," said Martin, who is also chairman of the Village of Caledonia Community Development Authority deduct antonym.
In an effort to make up for the deduction losses, Martin said she plans to make her 2018 charitable deductions in 2017.
"I'll make the charitable deduction that I would've made in 2018 this year because it will be a tax benefit and it won't be next year if I don't itemize," Martin said.
She also said she's frustrated that residents of other states can pay this far in advance, but Wisconsin can't. "I don't like being disadvantaged relative to other states, which I believe we are in Wisconsin," Martin said.
Mount Pleasant Village Clerk Stephanie Kohlhagen said some village residents will be affected by the deduction cap, but many will not deduct in a sentence.
Kohlhagen said it would be a "logistical nightmare" for the village to keep track of property tax payments so far in advance.
Previous Post: What's next in store for Indonesia's Grasberg mine?


text:
import curses, locale
from curses import panel

from pyt.interface import utils, constants
from pyt.config_handler import loader

class ChannelListWindow(object):
	def __init__(self, stdscr):
		(height, width) = stdscr.getmaxyx()
		self.win = curses.newwin(height, 40, 0, 0)
		self.win.immedok(True)

		self.panel = panel.new_panel(self.win)
		self.panel.hide()
		panel.update_panels()

		self.pos = 0
		self.items = []
		self.title = 'Channel list'

		self.theme = loader.load_theme()

		self.display()

	def navigate(self, shift):
		self.pos += shift
		if self.pos < 0:
			self.pos = 0
		elif self.pos >= len(self.items):
			self.pos = len(self.items) - 1

		self.display()

	def get_selection(self):
		return self.items[self.pos]

	def add_item(self, item):
		self.items.append(item)
		self.display()

	def rm_item(self, name):
		to_rm = ''
		for item in self.items:
			if item['channel'] == name:
				to_rm = item
				break
		self.items.remove(to_rm)
		self.display()

	def display(self):
		self.panel.top()
		self.panel.show()
		self.win.clear()

		self.win.addstr(1, 1, self.title, curses.A_UNDERLINE)

		self.win.refresh()
		self.win.border(*self.theme['channel-border'])

		for index, item in enumerate(self.items):
			name = item['channel']
			server = item['server']
			typ = item['type']

			if index == self.pos:
				mode = curses.A_REVERSE
			else:
				mode = curses.A_NORMAL

			msg = '%s' % str(name)
			self.win.addstr(3 + index, 1, msg, mode)

class ChatWindow(object):
	def __init__(self, stdscr):
		(height, width) = stdscr.getmaxyx()
		self.win = curses.newwin(height, width - 40, 0, 40)
		self.win.immedok(True)

		self.chat_history = {}

		self.input = ''

		self.theme = loader.load_theme()

		self.max_input_length = width - 20;
		self.input_field_x = len(self.theme["prompt"]) + 1
		self.input_field_y = height - 2
		self.win.addstr(
			self.input_field_y,
			self.input_field_x - 1 - len(self.theme["prompt"]),
			self.theme["prompt"]
		)

		self.win.border(*self.theme['chat-border'])

		locale.setlocale(locale.LC_ALL, '')
		self.code = locale.getpreferredencoding()

		self.selected_channel = None

	def new_message(self, data):
		if not data["target"] in self.chat_history.keys():
			self.chat_history[data["target"]] = []

		self.chat_history[data["target"]].insert(
			0,
			self.theme["chat-line"] % {
				'time': utils.get_date(self.theme["date-format"]),
				'username': data["sender"],
				'message': data["msg"]
			}
		)

		self.show_all_messages()

	def show_all_messages(self):
		self.refresh_screen()

		if self.selected_channel in self.chat_history.keys():
			cur_course = self.chat_history[self.selected_channel]
			for i in range(len(cur_course)):
				self.win.addnstr(
					self.input_field_y - 2 - i, self.input_field_x,
					cur_course[i],
					self.max_input_length
				)

	def update_selection(self, data):
		self.selected_channel = data['channel']
		self.show_all_messages()

	def get_input(self):
		tmp = self.input
		self.input = ''
		self.refresh_input()

		if len(tmp) > 0:
			self.new_message({
				"target": self.selected_channel,
				"sender": "Me",
				"msg": tmp
			})

		return tmp

	def add_char(self, char):
		self.input += char
		self.refresh_input()

	def rm_last_char(self):
		self.input = self.input[:-1]
		self.refresh_input()

	def refresh_screen(self):
		self.win.clear()

		self.win.addstr(
			self.input_field_y,
			self.input_field_x - len(self.theme["prompt"]),
			self.theme["prompt"]
		)
		self.win.border(*self.theme['chat-border'])

	def refresh_input(self):
		self.win.addnstr(
			self.input_field_y, self.input_field_x,
			self.input + ' ' * (self.max_input_length - len(self.input)),
			self.max_input_length
		)
		self.win.border(*self.theme['chat-border'])

def get_chat_window(stdscr):
	return ChatWindow(stdscr)

def get_channel_list_window(stdscr):
	return ChannelListWindow(stdscr)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


When victory is decided by the slimmest edge in performance, the S−Lab Wings 8 delivers superior grip and performance on technical descents and dry terrain. The Quicklace™, reinforced Sensifit™, and endoFIT™ work together to comfortably hug your foot, keeping it secure and delivering precise performance especially on technical descents. Technical, rugged trails don't have to mean sore feet. A carefully tuned, two−piece midsole creates the right level of underfoot softness no matter how rough the surface gets. A series of grip, fit, and protective technologies work together to create a downhill running advantage.
Customer Opinions "S-Lab Wings 8"


text:
Rudolf Marti, né le , est un bobeur suisse ayant notamment remporté deux médailles aux Jeux olympiques et deux aux championnats du monde.

Biographie
Rudolf Marti participe aux Jeux olympiques d'hiver de 1976 organisés à Innsbruck en Autriche. Il remporte l'argent en bob à quatre avec Erich Schärer, Ulrich Bächli et Josef Benz. Aux Jeux olympiques d'hiver de 1980, à Lake Placid aux États-Unis, il est à nouveau médaillé d'argent avec les mêmes coéquipiers. Marti remporte aussi deux médailles en bob à quatre aux championnats du monde : l'argent en 1977 à Saint-Moritz et en 1978 à Lake Placid.

Palmarès

Jeux Olympiques
  : médaillé d'argent en bob à 4 aux JO 1976.
  : médaillé d'argent en bob à 4 aux JO 1980.

Championnats monde
  : médaillé d'argent en bob à 4 aux championnats monde de 1977 et 1978.

Notes et références

Naissance en avril 1950
Bobeur suisse
Bobeur aux Jeux olympiques d'hiver de 1976
Bobeur aux Jeux olympiques d'hiver de 1980
Médaillé d'argent olympique suisse

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Top Novel
Eli looked at him for a long moment, brow crinkling. "That's awful."
"It's from the introduction," said Victor. "Don't worry, I blacked it out." He flipped back through the pages, a web of thin letters and fat black lines, until he reached the front. "They totally murdered Emerson."
Eli shrugged. "All I know is that book is a sniffer's dream," he said. He was right, the four Sharpies Victor had gone through in converting the book to art had given it an incredibly strong odor, one which Victor found at once entrancing and revolting. He got enough of a high from the destruction itself, but he supposed the smell was an unexpected addition to the project's complexity, or so the art teacher would spin it. Eli leaned back against the rail. His rich brown hair caught the too bright sun, bringing out reds and even threads of gold. Victor's hair was a pale blond. When the sunlight hit him, it didn't bring out any colors, but only accentuated the lack of color, making him look more like an old-fashioned photo than a flesh-and-blood student.
Eli was still staring down at the book in Victor's hands.
"Doesn't the Sharpie ruin whatever's on the other side?"
"You'd think," said Victor. "But they use this freakishly heavy paper. Like they want the weight of what they're saying to sink in."
Eli's laugh was drowned by the second bell, ringing out across the emptying quad. The bells weren't buzzers, of course— Lockland was too civilized—but they were loud, and almost ominous, a single deep church bell from the spiritual center that sat in the middle of campus. Eli cursed and helped Victor to his feet, already turning toward the huddle of science buildings, faced in rich red brick to make them seem less sterile. Victor took his time. They still had a minute before the final bell sounded, and even if they were late, the teachers would never mark them down. All Eli had to do was smile. All Victor had to do was lie. Both proved frighteningly effective.
Victor sat in the back of his Comprehensive Science Seminar—a course designed to reintegrate students of various scientific disciplines for their senior theses—learning about research methods. Or at least being told about research methods. Distressed by the fact that the class relied on laptops, and since striking through words on a screen hardly gave him the same satisfaction, Victor had taken to watching the other students sleep, doodle, stress out, listen, and pass digital notes. Unsurprisingly, they failed to hold his interest for long, and soon his gaze drifted past them, and past the windows, and past the lawn. Past everything.
His attention was finally dragged back to the lecture when Eli's hand went up. Victor hadn't caught the question, but he watched his roommate smile his perfect all-American-political-candidate smile before he answered. Eliot—Eli—Cardale had started out as a predicament. Victor had been none too happy to find the lanky, brown-haired boy standing in the doorway of his dorm a month into sophomore year. His first roommate had experienced a change of heart in the first week (through no fault of Victor's, of course) and had promptly dropped out. Due either to a shortage of students or perhaps a filing error made possible by fellow sophomore Max Hall's penchant for any Lockland-specific hacking challenge, the student hadn't been replaced. Victor's painfully small double was converted into a much more adequate single room. Until the start of October when Eliot Cardale—who, Victor had immediately decided, smiled too much—appeared with a suitcase in the hall outside.
Victor had initially wondered what it would take to recover his bedroom for a second time in a semester, but before he put any plans into motion, an odd thing happened. Eli began to... grow on him. He was precocious, and frighteningly charming, the kind of guy who got away with everything, thanks to good genes and quick wits. He was born for the sports teams and the clubs, but he surprised everyone, especially Victor, by showing no inclination whatsoever to join either. This small defiance of social norm earned him several notches in Victor's estimation, and made him instantly more interesting.
But what fascinated Victor most was the fact that something about Eli was decidedly wrong. He was like one of those pictures full of small errors, the kind you could only pick out by searching the image from every angle, and even then, a few always slipped by. On the surface, Eli seemed perfectly normal, but now and then Victor would catch a crack, a sideways glance, a moment when his roommate's face and his words, his look and his meaning, would not line up. Those fleeting slices fascinated Victor. It was like watching two people, one hiding in the other's skin. And their skin was always too dry, on the verge of cracking and showing the color of the thing beneath.
"Very astute, Mr. Cardale."
Victor had missed the question and the answer. He looked up as Professor Lyne turned his attention to the rest of his seniors, and clapped his hands once, with finality.
"All right. It's time to declare your thesis."
The class, composed mostly of pre-med students, a handful of aspiring physicists, and even an engineer—not Angie, though, she'd been assigned a different section—gave a collective groan, on principle.
"Now, now," said the professor, cutting off the protest. "You knew what you were getting into when you signed up."
"We didn't," observed Max. "It's a mandatory course." The remark earned him a ripple of encouragement from the class.
"My sincerest apologies then. But now that you're here, and seeing as there's no time like the present—"
"Next week would be better," called out Toby Powell, a broad-shouldered surfer, pre-med, and the son of some governor. Max had only earned a murmur, but this time the other students laughed at a level proportionate to Toby's popularity.
"Enough," said Professor Lyne. The class quieted. "Now, Lockland encourages a certain level of... industriousness where theses are concerned, and offers a proportionate amount of freedom, but a word of warning from me. I've taught this thesis seminar for seven years. You will do yourselves no favors by making a safe selection and flying under the radar; however, an ambitious thesis will win no points on the grounds of ambitiousness alone. Your grade is contingent upon execution. Find a topic close enough to your area of interest to be productive without selecting one you already consider yourselves expert on." He offered Toby a withering smile. "Start us off, Mr. Powell."
Toby ran his fingers through his hair, stalling. The professor's disclaimer had clearly shaken his confidence in whatever topic he'd been about to declare. He made a few noncommittal sounds while scrolling through his notes.
"Um... T helper 17 cells and immunology." He was careful not to let his voice wander up at the end into a question. Professor Lyne let him hang for a moment, and everyone waited to see if he would give Toby "the look"—the slight lift of his chin and the tilt of his head that he had become famous for; a look that said, perhaps you'd like to try again—but finally he honored him with a small nod.
His gaze pivoted. "Mr. Hall?"
Max opened his mouth when Lyne cut in with, "No tech. Science yes, tech no. So choose wisely." Max's mouth snapped shut a moment as he considered.
"Electrical efficacy in sustainable energy," he said after a pause.
"Hardware over software. Admirable choice, Mr. Hall."
Professor Lyne continued around the room.
Inheritance patterns, equilibriums, and radiation were all approved, while effects of alcohol/cigarettes/illegal substances, the chemical properties of methamphetamines, and the body's response to sex all earned "the look." One by one the topics were accepted or retooled.
"Next," ordered Professor Lyne, his sense of humor ebbing.
"Chemical pyrotechnics."
A long pause. The topic had come from Janine Ellis, whose eyebrows hadn't fully recovered from her last round of research. Professor Lyne gave a sigh, accompanied by "the look," but Janine only smiled and there wasn't much Lyne could say. Ellis was one of the youngest students in the room and had, in her freshman year, discovered a new and vibrant shade of blue that firework companies across the world now used. If she was willing to risk her eyebrows, that was her own business.
"And you, Mr. Vale?"
Victor looked at his professor, narrowing down his options. He'd never been strong in physics, and while chemistry was fun, his real passion lay in biology—anatomy and neuroscience. He'd like a topic with the potential for experimentation, but he'd also like to keep his eyebrows. And while he wanted to hold his rank in the department, offers from med schools, graduate programs, and research labs had been coming in the mail for weeks (and under the table for months). He and Eli had been decorating their entry hall with the letters. Not the offers, no, but the letters that preceded them, all praise and charm, batting lashes and handwritten postscripts. Neither one of them needed to move worlds with their papers. Victor glanced over at Eli, wondering what he would choose.
Professor Lyne cleared his throat.
"Adrenal inducers," said Victor on a lark.
"Mr. Vale, I've already turned down a proposal involving intercourse—"
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text:
Kody Brown tells a fan his strict COVID-19 protocols have been 'worse than the disease'
Fri Dec 31, 2021 at 3:37pm ET
Kody Brown told a fan he regrets imposing such strict rules upon his family during the pandemic. Pic credit: TLC
Sister Wives patriarch Kody Brown told a fan that he now regrets imposing such strict rules upon his family.
Recently, one of Kody's fans received a Cameo from the Sister Wives star as a Christmas gift.
As Monsters & Critics previously reported, Kody joined the Cameo platform earlier this year, offering personalized videos to users for $99 each.
Sister Wives star Kody Brown tells fan, 'My cure has been worse than the disease'
In the video, as reported by The Hollywood Gossip, Kody talked about COVID-19 and his exasperation over the virus.
"I don't even know what to say about [COVID-19] anymore," Kody said in the Cameo video.
Kody continued, "I think that my cure has been worse than the disease. That's just a personal thing. I'm second-guessing myself, which I probably shouldn't do at this point."
This season on Sister Wives, viewers have learned just how strict Kody was about his family following his protocols.
A post shared by Monsters and Critics Reality (@monsterscriticsreality)
Kody Brown's strict rules caused disparity among the family
Kody typed up, printed out, and shared his long list of mandates with his four wives, letting them know they were the same protocols he and Robyn required of their nanny.
Janelle and Christine weren't willing to follow Kody's lengthy list of rules which meant they didn't see him, nor did their kids. Some Sister Wives viewers felt that Kody's "inhumane" rules for the family were part of what led Christine to leave him in November 2021.
You Might Also Like: Sister Wives spoiler: Janelle Brown says Kody's rules are 'biggest problem' they've had in their marriage
Kody was so strict with his rules that he even refused to travel with his and Christine's 17-year-old daughter Ysabel for her back surgery in New Jersey.
Ysabel called her dad's priorities "a little screwed up", and Kody later admitted that he regretted skipping out on traveling with Ysabel.
The Brown family patriarch and his fourth (and rumored favorite) wife Robyn Brown recently came under fire when they were spotted shopping at Victoria's Secret without masks, despite their own strict rules for the family.
Although Kody now regrets how strict he was with his family regarding his rules, the damage it did to the family can't be undone.
Things came to a head during last week's episode when Janelle and Christine refused to be "guilt-tripped" into choosing whether to spend Thanksgiving with Kody or their kids.
Instead of staying in Flagstaff with Kody and abiding by his rules in order to attend the family's Thanksgiving dinner, Janelle and Christine decided to visit with the rest of their family in Utah.
Sister Wives airs on Sundays at 10/9c on TLC and Discovery+.
Tags Kody Brown, Sister Wives
31st December 2021 at 4:56 pm EST
he just wants Robin
Kody can't handle one woman let alone 4 lol. Not mentally or physically qualified to be head of any family.
james lowes
1st January 2022 at 11:37 am EST
I have an idea he is also beginning to tire of Robyn. It is virtually impossible for his to be happy with any woman. And his treatment of Ysabel was just horrible. It is great to see that Christine has got the courage to get out and be happy with her children. I also for one never understood why Meri and Robyn live in such huge houses! Ridiculous. And as for the stupid Coyote Canyon property….that was plain stupid.


Heather and Mark tied the knot during their Shephard's Beach Resort wedding in Clearwater, Florida. A destination wedding for the two, they were excited to travel down from the snowy weather up north to the bright and beautiful beaches of Florida down south. Congratulations to officially becoming Mr. and Mrs.!


Listing of the best Award Winning Drama Mystery Movies available to stream online. Komparify helps you discover enjoy the top, legal Award Winning Drama Mystery Movies trending Indian entertainment legally streaming free online in HD. The best Award Winning Drama Mystery Movies are Arrival, Loving Vincent, Talvar, The Hateful Eight, Paan Singh Tomar.


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Innovation & The Future
Madinat Jumeirah Living
Dubai Institute of Design and Innovation
Our Wellness Programme
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Copyright © 2015 - 2021 Dubai Holding, All rights reserved.
Media Hub Press Releases
Dubai Holding announces once-in-a-lifetime yoga experience on the iconic Burj Al Arab Helipad
Exclusive experience to celebrate partnership with X Dubai as part of the Company's ongoing commitment to community wellness
Country-wide competition to post the best yoga pose using #DHexperience for chance to win this spectacular session
Country-wide competition to post the best yoga pose using #DHexperience for chance to win this spectacular session, led by yogi Sjana Elise
Entries close at 5pm on Friday 21st February
Watch the competition video on this YouTube link here
Dubai Holding is offering yogis of all levels and aspirations the chance to win a spectacular yoga session on one of Dubai's most iconic locations – The Burj Al Arab Jumeirah Helipad.
Launched in celebration of its partnership with XDubai for the return of XYoga Dubai Festival, which will be held on Kite Beach on 21 and 22 February , Dubai Holding's mega competition will give an exclusive group of people a once-in-a-lifetime experience atop one of the globe's most instagrammable hotels, and the 'Best Hotel in the World' as per the Ultimate Luxury Travel Related Awards 2020.
For a chance to win, participants will need to follow @dubaiholding on Instagram and post an image of themselves doing their best yoga pose – either in the lead up to or at the first day of the festival – on their feed using the competition hashtag #DHexperience. The winners will be announced on 21 February and just a few days later will enjoy a private 60-minute session with an internationally renowned yogi Sjana Elise to the stunning backdrop of the breathtaking Dubai coastline. With a focus on physical and mental wellbeing, the Australian adventure yogi will take yoga to new heights and guide the winners through a series of sequences designed to transform the body and mind.
XYoga Dubai Festival, presented by Dubai Holding, is the region's largest holistic yoga festival that promotes physical and mental wellness amongst the community. The 2020 festival's theme is ''Be Yoga, Be Nature' and will mark the third year that Dubai Holding has partnered with XDubai to host the event as part of its wider Wellness Programme. Launched in 2007, it aims to improve the wellbeing of Dubai Holding employees, their families and the wider community by actively encouraging them to take part in major sports and wellness events.
Amit Kaushal, Group Chief Executive Officer, Dubai Holding, said: "This year we plan to welcome more than 20,000 participants at our festival, demonstrating our commitment to bringing the most successful events to town. Last year more than 17,000 yogis enjoyed the two-day-event, making it the largest in the region for such a sport. To celebrate the third year of our partnership with XDubai, we wanted to do something truly extraordinary and create an experience that has never been done before to encourage more people to try yoga, renowned for its physical and mental benefits."
Taking place on Friday 21st to Saturday 22nd February at Kite Beach, this year's edition is expected to attract yogis of all ages and fitness levels for an immersive 48 hours of complimentary classes, talks, workshops and meditation sessions. It is a free public event, open to everyone. Registration is now open and those who wish to participate in a complimentary class can register at xyogadubai.com.
Amit Kaushal, Group Chief Executive Officer, Dubai Holding
To celebrate the third year of our partnership with XDubai, we wanted to do something truly extraordinary and create an experience that has never been done before to encourage more people to try yoga, renowned for its physical and mental benefits.
Copyright © 2015 - 2021 Dubai Holding, All rights reserved


The Standard Single Rooms are contemporary in design & furnished with high quality and comfortable Single beds. These rooms come with modern bathrooms, tea/coffee making facility, complimentary toiletries, fridge, hair dryer, flat screen LCD TV, Freeview satellite channels, central heating, and high-speed WI-FI broadband internet. Free Continental breakfast also included.
The Standard Triple Rooms are contemporary in design & furnished with high quality and comfortable Single beds. These rooms come with modern bathrooms, tea/coffee making facility, complimentary toiletries, fridge, hair dryer, flat screen LCD TV, Freeview satellite channels, central heating, and high-speed WI-FI broadband internet. Free Continental breakfast also included.


13.03. K+S AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT : Release according to Article 40, Section 1 of the WpHG ..
11.03. K+S AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT : Release according to Article 40, Section 1 of the WpHG ..
07.03. K+S AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT : Release according to Article 40, Section 1 of the WpHG ..
05.03. K+S AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT : Preliminary announcement of the publication of quarterl..
05.03. K+S AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT : Preliminary announcement of the publication of payment ..
05.03. K+S AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT : Preliminary announcement of the publication of financia..
28.02. K+S AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT : Release according to Article 40, Section 1 of the WpHG ..


We spend more time in the office than we do at home, it is where we conduct our business and where our customers come to get to know us. What does your office space do to motivate your staff and how does it engage your clients? Unless you can honestly answer these questions positively Studio Wall Art can help you to stimulate your business!
AON plc, a leading global professional services firm providing a broad range of risk, retirement and health solutions, wished to introduce their new global corporate imagery into the office environment at their Farnborough regional HQ. Studio Wall Art were entrusted with the production and installation of Wall Art to several office locations including a 22m corridor, lift lobbies and fire doors and a large 3m square montage of Canvases installed in the reception area.
Studio Wall Art's professional installation team were able to install the various sites, during office hours, without any disruption Aon's busy working day.
Bombardier - a world leading manufacturer of both planes and trains - had the requirement to dress their new offices in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with their portfolio of corporate imagery. Studio Wall Art produced nine boxes of Printed Frosting, Canvases, 3D Logos and Prints to Acrylic for shipment to site with the installation being completed by a local agency. Additional pieces are being produced as we speak and will shortly be shipped to site.
LEON restaurants - fast food can be good food!
LEON restaurants is an inspirational restaurant chain based around London, Manchester, Birmingham and several ports and airports. They are the leaders in healthy fast food, serving food that not only tastes good but also does you good!
We produce Window Vinyls in reverse to go inside the widow, positive to go outside the window and with holes in so you can see through the window. Bright, dynamic vinyls are attention grabbing and informative enabling you to present your message to the passing traffic on your high street.
With many shops on the high street disappearing shop windows are presenting promotional opportunities to shops and businesses eager to present their offer to the public. Even as a temporary promotion Window Vinyl offer large scale statements for your business!


Dr HAACH – the extended wing of HAACH – offers aesthetic solutions for both women and men. Riding on cutting-edge technology and expertise from experienced doctor, Dr HAACH is committed to help customers look and feel their best.
Adopting only FDA approved technology, medical-grade aesthetic procedures and medi-spa therapies, Dr HAACH addresses various skin concerns. Whether it is adolescence acne or sensitive skin, pigmentation or premature aging skin, Dr HAACH has a comprehensive repertoire of therapies and programs to help achieve the complexion you desire.
Being the second-generation of HAACH – 21 years of specialized expertise in beauty and skincare – Dr HAACH too, believes in using premium skincare products and the most advanced aesthetic innovations to achieve optimum results.


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Regulators Delay Auction Of Spectrum for Internet
Updated June 28, 2001 12:01 am ET
WASHINGTON -- Facing an imminent deadline they couldn't meet, federal regulators have delayed designating spectrum for high-speed, wireless Internet access.
The Federal Communications Commission decision demonstrates how difficult it has been for government spectrum managers to find a way to clear airwaves for what was thought to be the next major growth opportunity for the wireless industry -- so-called third-generation wireless. The airwaves were to be identified by next month. The FCC announced Wednesday that it would continue...


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SportsCollegeCollege Basketball
Freeman helps Georgetown win 8th straight
Barely able to walk on his sprained right ankle as he headed to the locker room late in the first half, Austin Freeman made one unyielding request of Georgetown head trainer Lorry Michel.
"I told Miss Michel I was going to play through it anyway," Freeman said. "I just told her to tape me up and let me go back out there."
Fans cheered when Freeman returned to sit on the bench at the start of the second half and again when he entered the game a few minutes later. He wasn't 100 percent, and a couple of his shots weren't close, but his 17 points helped No. 11 Georgetown get past visiting Marquette, 69-60, Sunday to run the No. 11 Hoyas' winning streak to eight games.
"I was in pain, but I played through it," said Freeman, who scored eight points in the second half. "It didn't hurt as much while I was played, so I'm good."
Chris Wright scored 20 points, and Hollis Thompson grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds for the Hoyas (20-5, 9-4), who moved into sole possession of third place in the Big East.
Darius Johnson-Odom's 20 points led the Golden Eagles (15-10, 6-6).
Connecticut 75, Providence 57: Jamal Coombs-McDaniel had 25 points, and Kemba Walker added 22 points, seven assists and six rebounds to lift host No. 10 UConn (19-5, 7-5). The Huskies took over in the second half after leading 33-30 at the break. Marshon Brooks' 25 points led the Friars (14-11, 3-9).
Get stories, photos and videos about your favorite New York teams in your inbox every morning.
Duke 81, Miami 71:Nolan Smith scored 16 of his 18 points in the second half, and Seth Curry added 16 to lead visiting No. 5 Duke (23-2, 10-1 ACC). The Blue Devils' record after 25 games matches its best since the 2005-06 season. Miami is 15-10, 4-7.
WOMEN'S GAMES
St. John's 75, Georgetown 71:Amanda Burakoski scored 15 points as host St. John's won in overtime, snapping the 16th-ranked Hoyas' six-game winning streak. St. John's (17-7, 6-5 Big East) had its first win over a Top 25 team in five tries. Georgetown is 20-6, 8-4.
VCU 85, Hofstra 76: Shante Evans had 25 points and 10 rebounds for her 12th double-double, but it wasn't enough as the Pride (14-10, 6-7 CAA) fell at Virginia Commonwealth (14-9, 9-4). VCU's Courtney Hurt had 26 points and 15 rebounds. - AP
Parcells believes Schoen is right man for job


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Dec. 5, 2013 / 1:56 AM
Odds of alien life 'very high,' House panel hears
Galaxies, galaxies everywhere - as far as NASA's Hubble Space Telescope can see. This view of nearly 10,000 galaxies is the deepest visible-light image of the cosmos. (UPI Photo/NASA/Hubble) | License Photo
WASHINGTON, Dec. 5 (UPI) -- The likelihood of life on other planets is "very high," a planetary scientist told a House committee in a hearing some Democrats chided as evading U.S. issues.
"The chance that there's a planet like Earth out there with life on it is very high," Massachusetts Institute of Technology planetary science and physics Professor Sara Seager told the House Science Committee.
"The question is: Is there life near here, in our neighborhood of stars? We think the chances are good," she said, answering a question from Rep. Ralph Hall, R-Texas, who asked: "Do you think there's life out there, and are they studying us? And what do they think about New York City?"
Seager was one of three Ph.D.-credentialed witnesses prominent in a scientific field once considered speculative who testified at a hearing called "Astrobiology: The Search for Biosignatures in Our Solar System and Beyond."
A biosignature is a substance -- such as an element, molecule or even a phenomenon -- that provides scientific evidence of past or present life.
Seager studies gases on distant planets that might indicate life.
The others testifying were NASA astrobiologist Mary Voytek and science historian and astrobiologist Steven J. Dick of the Library of Congress.
Voytek and Dick also answered Hall's question.
"Whether they're looking at New York or some small town in Indiana, the diversity of life here and the way that we live our lives is phenomenal, and I think it goes all the way down from humans to microbes," Voytek said.
Dick said, "I think the guiding principle holds that what's happened here has happened elsewhere in our huge universe," the Washington Post reported.
The 90-minute hearing, called by committee Chairman Lamar Smith, R-Texas, brought praise and respect from Democrats in the room but partisan mockery from a Democratic campaign committee outside.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which works to elect Democrats to the House, said GOP lawmakers were holding a hearing on "space aliens" rather than tackling issues such as immigration reform or a minimum-wage increase.
"No wonder the American people think this Republican Congress is from another planet -- they're more interested in life in space than Americans' lives," committee spokeswoman Emily Bittner said in a statement.
"Saying this Republican Congress has misplaced priorities is an understatement of galactic proportions," she said.
Seager, whose scientific research has earned her a MacArthur Foundation "genius grant," told lawmakers scientists now had the capacity to make a breakthrough.
"This is the first time in human history we have the technological reach to cross the threshold," she said in remarks quoted by Britain's Guardian newspaper.
The next-generation James Webb Space Telescope, scheduled for launch in 2018, and other advances are changing the search for alien life forms, she told lawmakers.
"If life really is everywhere, we actually have a shot at it," she said.
The Hubble Space Telescope, carried into orbit by a U.S. space shuttle in 1990, recently detected water in the atmospheres of five planets outside the solar system, two published studies reported by NBC News Tuesday indicated.
The testifying scientists appealed to lawmakers for funding, including investment in space telescopes designed to detect biosignatures.
The latest White House budget calls for $17.7 billion for NASA, a slight decrease from 2012.
"I know that funding is tough, but it's the best thing that you can do," said Voytek in remarks quoted by the Guardian.
"You've pretty much indicated [the discovery of] life on other planets is inevitable," Rep. Bill Posey, R-Fla., told the panelists. "It's just a matter of time and funding."
James Webb Space
Science News // 3 days ago
Jan. 26 (UPI) -- NASA made a first-of-its-kind discovery with its Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, spotting the first gamma-ray eclipses from a special type of star system.
New artificial intelligence program may speed development of gene therapy
A new artificial intelligence program is poised to enable the simple production of zinc fingers, customizable proteins that can guide DNA repair by directing enzymes to cut faulty segments out of a person's DNA code.
New asteroid expected to make very close pass to Earth this evening
Jan. 26 (UPI) -- Earth is set for a very close shave with a small asteroid Thursday just five days after it was discovered by an amateur astronomer in Crimea, according to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
SpaceX launches 56 more Starlink satellites in heaviest payload yet
Jan. 26 (UPI) -- SpaceX on Thursday morning launched 56 new Starlink Internet satellites into low Earth orbit on a reused Falcon 9 rocket from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Rocket Lab satellite mission blasts off successfully in first launch from U.S. soil
Jan. 25 (UPI) -- Rocket Lab's launch vehicle successfully delivered three radio commercial satellites into orbit around the earth, 24 hours after its original scheduled launch was aborted due to bad weather.
NASA, DARPA partner for nuclear space rocket test
Jan. 24 (UPI) -- NASA is partnering with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to demonstrate the use of a nuclear thermal rocket engine in space, the two agencies announced in a statement Tuesday.
SpaceX's Starship clears latest hurdle in quest to return to moon
Jan. 24 (UPI) -- The maiden mission of SpaceX's Starship into orbit could come as soon as March following a successful dry launch run, bringing Elon Musk's dream of viable interplanetary travel a step closer.
NASA delays Rocket Lab launch in Virginia until Tuesday
Jan. 23 (UPI) -- NASA on Monday scrubbed the Rocket Lab's launch of its Electron rocket from Virginia because of poor weather conditions, moving the possible liftoff to Tuesday.
Science News // 1 week ago
Astronauts conduct first ISS spacewalk of 2023
Jan. 20 (UPI) -- The International Space Station's power generation system moved closer to getting an upgrade when two astronauts perform the first spacewalk of 2023 on Friday.
Study: Fast melting of Greenland Ice Sheet will affect sea-level rise
Jan. 19 (UPI) -- New research published in the scientific journal Nature on Wednesday said that upper levels of the Greenland Ice Sheet from 2001 to 2011 faced the warmest temperatures in 1,000 years, threatening to tip sea levels.
Sweden claims largest discovery of 'crucial' rare-earth elements in Europe


Add some sparkle to any room with this stunning light switch cover! It is approximately 4 1/2" long by 2 12/16" wide and is a silver metal light switch plate. The top features a gold glitter material throughout. The glitter does not come off of the material. Comes with two screws to hold in place on the wall. We also sell the matching outlet cover, rocker style cover and double light switch cover plate!


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Q: Where are tk style customization saved/stored? Take this very simple code sample
import tkinter as tk
from tkinter import ttk

root = tk.Tk()

s = ttk.Style()
s.theme_use('vista')
s.map("Mod.TCombobox",fieldbackground=[('readonly', 'red')])

Can you tell me where the Mod.TCombobox custom style is saved or stored?
I mean, is there a way to retrieve the list of all defined style options available? (Both 'standard' and 'custom' ones possibly)
I tried looking on official documentation but I can't seem to find an answer to this.
Thank you in advance for your support
(P.S. I tried having a look at s.element_names() but, no surprise, it isn't there...)
EDIT:
To clarify a little, in first place, I'm not asking for the list of themes available (I know that can be obtained using the command s.theme_names()).
That said, suppose I define a new rule now, like for instance:
s.map("Mod.TEntry",fieldbackground=[('readonly', 'red')])

What I'm asking is: is there a command or any way for me to retrieve a list of custom defined tk style rules, such as ['Mod.TCombobox', 'Mod.TEntry'] in this case? (Whenever possible, I'd settle even for a listing with both custom and non-custom style rules definitions, having my custom defined styles mixed among/together with "standard" ones, such as 'TCombobox', 'TEntry', etc...)
In the same way, when using the style layout command, like for instance:
s.layout('MyCustomTCB', s.layout('TCombobox'))

As second part of the question: where or how can I retrieve a list containing all the custom style layout I created?
(P.S. Even I'm not asking that here, I want to thank Bryan Oakley that provided me the link to ttk library source code which, for sure, can be very useful to look at for what concerns with standard built-in tk themes style rules and layout.)

A: The answer to your title Where are tk style customization saved/stored? is written in TIP 48 and it is stated the:

Current implementation uses thread-local storage for holding dynamic
data. Since most data is not thread-specific, this could be changed to
a more memory-efficient scheme.

To address your other question if it is possible to retrieve a list of defined styles. I did not find a obvious way to do so, neither in the defined methods out of the TIP 48, or the style manual page, nor does the source code indicate such a list.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Where can I find a list of all the county ordinances?
How do I take a warrant on someone?
Go to the Magistrates Office and talk with a Magistrate. They will hear your complaint direct you on the process. If your complaint justifies a warrant being issued they will help you, or they will recommend a solution to your problem.
I have received an e-mail that informs me that I have won a prize, or money, or something. The sender needs me to send: information, or money or anything else what should I do?
These are typically e-mail scams. Never give personal information, or send money to these people. If you have questions or need additional assistance with this type question, call 250-4436 and the communicator will advise you the best course of action.


I am making assumptions about this Ice Freeze Batman Reject, for example, its name. I am assuming this is a factory extra, as Funko stamped out 500 of this figure with full paint for Comic-Con 2014. That's a very low number, and it wouldn't surprise me if the factory had a higher minimum - or just had a few substandard samples - which got dumped out on eBay for a few bucks. Turtles and Batman in various unpainted colors showed up for as little as a buck but could mostly be had for about $10 shipped. I don't know the full story behind these but the thought of having a "blank" Hikari figure for ten bucks was too tempting to miss.
This Batman isn't as good as the real deal - that's why Funko isn't selling it here. I'd love to know how these made it to eBay. Production samples have stamps on their feet, while this one is blank. They also have a cape, a Batman symbol tampo, and white eyes, hands, and feet. This one? None of that. He does have a few rough spots on the limbs, and some grime that needs to be wiped off. It's basically a blank figure.
The figure is jointed at the neck and shoulders, and is cast in a pretty bright blue with glitter inside. It's nice. I'd like to snag more of these things to send to people to paint up. Because as it is, basically, it's a holographic Batman figure. I'm also OK with just leaving it blank, because it really is a fun curiosity.
You totally don't need this unless it's cheap. For ten bucks, a blank Hikari buck is a delight - this one in particular shines brightly and is a gem. If I had the Ice Freeze one from SDCC I would probably not have bought this, but I don't so here we are. I think this is probably the plainest sculpt out of the line so far, so it isn't great, but it's pretty neat. I just need to figure out how to display it as it comes alive when lit properly.