Yay, new chapter is (finally) out! Only took a damn month. Why must May be so busy? At least I've managed to get chapter 9 mostly done as well, so that will be locked and loaded soon. Then I'm hoping to pick up the pace a bit.
Anyways, in this chapter both the snow wolves and Tostig plan their next moves, and the decisions made will affect the Ulstads.
As always, this story can be read up to the current chapter in both fanfiction and AO3 if you'd prefer those sites to reading all the text on reddit.
Fanfiction: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/14198757/8/Land-of-the-North-Wind
AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/45067345/chapters/119955676
Banishment
Tostig looked out at this city under siege. Part of him felt for his people, but at the same time they could not be allowed to bow to wolves. He would not bow to wolves and their demands. They were lesser, and they were rivals who were only useful for labor and trade in times of peace. And yet, the situation they were in now was not sustainable and everyone knew it. Just then, the door to his chamber was opened and his lead counselor, his right hand, stepped into the room.
“You wished to see me, my lord?”
Tostig took a sip from his wine chalice before turning away from his window and walking over to his desk with slow, deliberate steps. Upon locking eyes with his trusted advisor, the lord gave a small smile.
“Yes. I was hoping you’d have an inventory of our supplies ready to discuss.”
The counselor stepped forward, producing a stack of documents that had been written up by scribes. “Of course, my lord. Here are the inventory lists on the items you requested. Firewood, coal, wine, ale, spirits, bread, and meat are all right here.”
The counselor then placed the lists in his lord’s outstretched hands.
Tostig then got to the point of their meeting, “but all of these lists are to answer a single question. Do we have enough supplies to make it until spring?”
His counselor lowered his head and shook it slowly, “No sir. We’ll be out two months before the first ships can make safe harbor at the coast.”
Tostig sighed. “Then it’ll have to be done.”
“Are you sure, my Lord?”
“What choice do I have? We tried leaving, we tried getting necessary supplies, and even rations won’t carry us through the entire winter.”
“Those poor souls…”
“The keidran, overall, are tough beasts. And if you ask me, some of them played a hand in this whole mess, I just know it.”
“In what way could they be responsible, sir?” The counselor asked, confused.
“You really think every keidran in this town wants to be serving humans in some way or another? Their brethren are outside the walls, likely promising them a place of refuge for themselves and their slave relatives back east if they help the snow wolves kick us out.”
“That seems unlikely, my Lord.”
“Even if I’m wrong about their loyalties, the fact is keidran are more disposable than men. I can do without all these extra servants and menial laborers, but I’m going to need my miners and loggers when the snow clears, and the crown sends the best troops in Mekkan to our aid.”
“Your will is my command, sir. I’ll have Gerrick gather all his guardsmen in the great hall this evening. We’ll need every able-bodied member of the garrison.”
“Very good. Also, please send for the healer. These headaches… that medicine hasn’t been working.”
“Of course, my lord. Right away.”
The sun was setting on another day of the town under siege. The wolves had not made any moves to attack the walls, but why would they? They controlled the land and sea for hundreds of miles in every direction. A counsel of the elders was called in the camp overlooking the settlement. In the middle of the camp was a large, portable lodge made from thick timbers cut in the Snowy Pines. The frame was bound tightly by many hides, proving insulation and blocking the fierce winds that would often sweep across the tundra. Normally, settlements were permanent, but some wolves that had ventured into human territory took notes on how their rivals conducted war, and moveable houses were the answer to navigating across harsh country that was so brutal even the ever-adaptable humans had yet to conquer.
Outside the lodge entrance waited a tall, young snow wolf. Icy-white hair was bound tightly into a knot under a hat of seal fur. Extra layers of fur helped to protect the wolf from the elements, as even in winter the temperatures were colder than any canine could safely withstand. Blue eyes pierced through the growing darkness, a slight glow from his mana crystal necklace giving his face some soft illumination. He was waiting, watching for someone. Others came into the lodge one and two at a time. After a while, the young wolf was beginning to worry. “Where could he be?” The thought.
Just then a lone figure hobbled into view. A snow wolf much like him seemed to materialize out of the blowing snow that cut the visibility down significantly. Now only the glow of Callow could be seen in the distance. The old wolf, walking with a cane, finally found his way to the entrance.
“Grandfather, I was getting worried about you. You know I could help you up the hill, right?”
“Oh, don’t trouble yourself Bjorn. I might be almost as old as the wood holding that lodge together, but I can still find my way around camp. Now, let’s get inside, shall we?”
“Of course grandpa…” Bjorn then held the entrance to the lodge open so his frail kin could make his way inside where it was warm.
Following his grandfather inside, Bjorn was hit immediately with the warmth of a fire, fueled by wood brought in from the forest by sled, most of it cut down courtesy of the logging teams they had chased out a month earlier. The glow from his mana crystals was quickly overtaken by the bright, orange light of the fire. The young wolf removed most of his outer garments, placing them on the ground to use as a seat. He sat down behind where his grandfather had made himself comfortable. As an elder, the old wolf held one of the seats in the clans moot, the council of elders that had assembled to deal with the human problem.
All inside the lodge waited silently as their shaman conjured magical light structures from her crystal necklace in a ceremony to purify the air. The lights were dazzling. Bjorn’s favorite was seeing a replication of the night sky, a spell which was meticulously maintained through the generations showing each visible star as well as the moon. Another spell finished the ceremony, seemingly purging the air from the lodge, the fire reducing to embers, only to roar back to life as new, fresh air came in to fill the vacuum. It was then that the shaman gave a special blessing and prayer to each of the council members before taking her seat in the back as an observer. The five wolves then allowed for a silent pause to pass over all in attendance before beginning.
The designated leader of the council, tasked with mediating the clans moot, broke the silence, “my friends, our actions this winter may ensure the survival of our people and way of life, but one misstep and we will surely suffer greatly for our actions against the humans.”
A graying elder from the clan west of Widow Lake then saw fit to add in his thoughts. “Indeed, Bragi, but I believe our actions so far have been successful. The humans and their keidran servants have been completely cut off from their homeland and their king. No one will be able to help them until the snow leaves.”
Frey, the elder representing the clan at the split between the Widow and Pines rivers then spoke, “My warriors were successful in destroying any attempts by the humans to reach the sea. I’ve seen some of the bodies from their first attempt, and I believe that many of their most capable are dead. We ought to press an attack while we still have an advantage in the snow.”
Garth, Bjorn’s grandfather, and widely held to be one of the wisest elders in the North, urged caution. “It is true, Frey, that your warriors have slain many humans who could defend the walls, but many more are still inside. We’ve all seen the patrols along the top of the wall. Besides that, your warriors let one boat get away in the humans’ first attempt to summon help, didn’t they?”
Frey was forced to admit the mistake. “You are right, Garth, one did manage to slip away in the night. My warriors say they followed a light they thought was a lantern from the boat, but it was something else. It was alive, but they could not get a good look at it, and the light they followed led them into a sand bank. But a large storm hit shortly after. Surely, none survived.”
Garth had a different thought. “I would not so easily discredit these humans. Sure, they lack our fur, but they are adaptable creatures. I’ve seen with my own eyes the mines they’ve built. If they can bring the heart of Mekkan to the surface, their best may be able to survive winter.”
Bragi, always one to listen to a wolf with so much experience, wanted to know how this would affect their plans. “Garth, do you think the humans would bring reinforcements?”
“Assuming they survived, it could happen.”
Frey wasn’t as convinced. “Even if that one crew did manage to make it to the coast, it would still be months before the humans could bring an army to our shores. But that is all the more reason to find a way into the city.”
The last wolf in the council had been silent up until then. He was the youngest, though his offspring were still well into adulthood. He had earned a reputation as one of the best strategists among the snow wolves, having to regularly repel attempts by the forest wolves to gain more territory along the southern border. “An attack on the walls would be a failure. One does not kill a bear by fighting it on its terms. To kill a bear, one must outsmart it, and force the creature to fight in a way it is not used to.”
“So we should do nothing then?” Frey surmised, but the younger wolf shook his head.
“No, the wall is a bear. If we simply run up to it, our warriors will all die. But if we can find a weakness or fight the humans in a way they are not used to, then we will have the advantage.”
Garth then added is trademark advice of caution. “Though we must be patient, my friends. There will be an opportunity before spring arrives. As the weather gets colder and the snow gets deeper, our advantages will grow.”
Bragi then came to a possible plan of action. “I know Tostig. Once desperate enough, he will want an open battle where his trained guards can win, even in the snow. It would be too great of a risk to meet him in such a battle, but we could bait him to it.”
The wolf from Widow Lake then had an idea of his own. “My warriors could conduct raids on the humans’ stashes of firewood and supplies. There are some close enough to the walls that they can be reached. Once the humans start getting cold, they will be forced to either submit or do battle.”
Bragi nodded in agreement. “Do we have a plan then?”
All nodded and prepared to cast their vote when a shout from outside the lodge alerted the gathered snow wolves. A guard rushed in to deliver the news. The Shaman stood up upon this intrusion. “A clans moot is a sacred gathering, outsiders are not permitted unless invited. Child, why have you trespassed?”
The guard was gasping for air after running for a couple of miles to the main camp. “Apologies… humans… outside the wall.”
Perhaps the battle was coming after all? Bragi then stood. “Garth, have your grandson take your best warriors to trap these humans. This may be the beginning of the very battle Tostig would try to arrange.”
Garth then looked behind him at his nephew and nodded. “Go, Bjorn, I’ll find my way back. Be safe.”
Garth bowed his head slightly in respect of the others. “Thank you all for permitting me to the clans moot. I will track down and subdue these humans before they can cause trouble.”
With a wave of Bragi’s hand, Garth then exited the lodge with the guard and ran toward the main camp to find as many warriors as he could at a moment’s notice.
The Ulstads were preparing a dinner of rations in the empty tavern when a knock came from the front door. Anna Marie, who was closest, stopped sweeping to open the door. She was surprised by the evening visitor. “Sam, whatchya doin’ here at such an hour? We’re ya joinin’ fer dinner?”
Sam didn’t answer as he came into the foyer, but the look on his face told everyone that something was wrong. Liz stood up and quickly made her way to Sam, with Shadow and Asher close behind. Ivan leaned his head out from the kitchen. Liz took Sam’s hand in hers and looked him in the eyes. “Sam, what is it? News from Connor?”
Sam just shook his head. “I’m sorry Liz, I wish it was.”
Shadow then asked in a more direct voice. “Then what is it? You look pale.”
“It’s Tostig. He’s… well, he’s given the guard an order.”
“Come on, Sam, out with it?” Shadow said, worry seeping into her words. Sam took a deep breath to collect himself. They needed to know.
“Tostig has ordered every non-human in Callow… he’s banished them from the town.”
A thick, baritone voice boomed from the kitchen. “What?” A look of horror came across Asher’s face. Shadow too was shocked.
“Like Ivan said, ‘what?’” The leopard could hardly believe what she had heard.
“Liz, Miss Marie, you are both allowed to stay. But guards are going door to door right now and rounding up all the keidran. Shadow and Asher, you had better collect what you can before they arrive. I’ll escort you both personally so that neither of you have a hand laid on you.”
Anna wouldn’t have it. “They’s just as much people as us, Sam. Shadow, you and the boy should hide in the cellar. Ivan, get the darn hammer.”
“No Anna.” Shadow replied, letting it sink in. “We can’t just hide in the tavern all winter. Besides, what happens when you get caught?”
Sam had the unfortunate answer to that one. “Tostig has also ordered that anyone caught hiding keidran will be burned at the stake.”
That caused Anna and Liz to recoil at the thought of their own fate. It was more than enough for Shadow to make up her mind. “Come on Asher, we had better put on whatever clothes we can before— “just then, another knock came from the door, this one far more stern than before.
“Shit, they’re here already. I thought there’d be more time. Shadow, you can Asher meet Ivan in the back, I’ll get you three to the eastern gate.” Sam said before going to answer the door with Anna Marie. Asher didn’t quite understand all that was happening. He knew human well enough now, but things were progressing quickly for a seven-year-old. But Shadow quickly grabbed his hand and led them both into the room with Liz close behind. Once inside the room, Liz, locked the door to buy them at least a few more seconds.
Shadow, having been trained by assassins in the guild, wasn’t terribly concerned for herself. But being forced to leave Liz? She hoped that Anna Marie would keep the girl safe. Asher though was in trouble if they were being forced into the tundra. Her first thought then was to make sure the boy had as many warm clothes on as she could find.
“Here Asher, put this on, quickly.”
“I don’t want to leave, Shadow!”
“I don’t either, but we don’t have a choice. Sooner or later we’d be caught and thrown outside the walls anyway. Now bundle up as best you can be—”
Loud knocking came from the bedroom wall. “We know there are keidran in here! Open the door and come with us.”
Liz went up to the door to buy as much time as she could. “Just a minute!”
“Open it now woman!” Was the reply, but that was closely followed by Sam’s voice. “Hey, I’m highest rank here and I happen to know the two you’re after. Let me handle this and you two should continue down the stre—”
“Not a chance Sam, we’ve got orders from your father.”
“Then at least go get Ivan. Shadow and Asher aren’t going to put up a fight.”
Two more guards could be heard struggling to push the big wolf out into the street, and the intensity of the struggle caused the two guards standing near the room door to reconsider pushing their luck with someone who outranks them.
“Very well, they’ve got two minutes. If they aren’t out by then, we’re going to break the door down.”
Sam then moved to the side to let the two guards pass by.
Liz’s muffled voice came from behind the door “Are they gone?”
“Yeah, for the moment.”
A minute later, the door’s latch was undone, and it creaked open. Shadow and Asher had their wool jumpers on, along with whatever clothes they could find. Shadow was even wearing a pair of Connor’s pants. They were a bit tight but provided some extra insulation. Liz then followed the two, closing the door behind them.
“Why is this happening, Sam?” Liz asked.
“Apparently, we don’t have enough supplies to last the winter. So either everyone starves…”
“…Or the keidran freeze to death.” Shadow finished for Sam.
“Basically, yes. But you don’t have to freeze to death, there’s shelter that you can use, as well as food stores.”
“Where?” Shadow interrogated. Asher’s life as well as her own was on the line.”
“You’ll have to slip passed the wolves, but there are food stores and shelters in the new mining district across the river. It’s on the other side of Ditter’s Ridge.”
“Wolves?!” Shadow exclaimed. “How am I and the kid going to slip passed an army of wolves? They’d see us miles away!”
“I don’t know. I suggest hiding until the wind kicks up, the blowing snow will provide you with cover.”
The three stressed faces, Shadow’s looking like she was ready to murder, all stared at Sam.
“Look, this is a bad situation. I wish there was more I could do, but there isn’t. Tostig is Jarl, and his word is the law. If he says you must go, then you must go. If you try to stay, he could have us all executed.”
“Would your father allow that?”
“Tostig would execute my father too if that’s what it took to keep order in this town. I’m sorry, I really am, but—”
“But you’re doing whatever you can…” Liz grabbed and held Sam’s hand. “Is there a path or a tunnel or something that they can use to get around the wolves?”
“No, there isn’t. Look, you’ll have to move as quickly as you can. I’ll send help as soon as I’m able to, but right now this is your best chance of surviving.”
“Fine…” Shadow said, defeated and out of options. “Come on Asher, we had better go.”
The boy had other ideas “I don’t want to leave Liz! I want to wait here for Connor!”
“Connor…” Shadow thought. She tried to put it past her mind, but Liz knelt down in front of the boy.
“Asher, Connor isn’t coming back.” She said, tears forming in her eyes. “It’s been a month, and as much as I wish he’d bust into the tavern right now like he did with both of you back in the spring, it’s not going to happen. You need to leave with Shadow, she’ll keep you safe.”
“What about you?” Asher said, sniffling.
“I’ve got Anna Marie and Sam here to help. But you can’t stay here or Tostig would—”
“Kill us…” Asher said.
“I know we aren’t the closest, but Connor called you his brother, so I do too. Go, while you still can.” She then stood up. Before she could say anything else, Shadow embraced the girl.
“I’m sorry that I won’t be there to keep you safe.” Shadow said.
“It’s okay. But if you two stick together, we’ll all look back at this like a bad memory.”
“One of many bad memories.”
Sam knew time was up. “We better leave before those two assholes return. I’ll show you out a side entrance.”
Shadow and Liz let go of each other, and Shadow grabbed Asher’s hand before they both fled into the back alley behind Sam. The winding pathways between buildings eventually led them to a small door near the east gate. Shadow could see around the side of a building all the keidran being pushed out through the main gate. After looking around to make sure no one was watching, Sam produced a key, which began to glow as he recited an incantation. A hidden door nested into the wall glowed around the seal before opening, revealing a short tunnel to the outside.
“It’s one of the many emergency doorways out of the town. Only the guards have access, and most don’t know about them.”
Shadow, though impressed by the trickery, was hardly thrilled to be forced out of the walls. “If Connor ever comes back…”
“I hope he does, but for right now, you’re better off outside than inside.” Sam finished for Shadow, gesturing outside the wall.”
“Make sure nothing happens to Liz. Or I’ll find my way back,” Shadow lifted Sam off his feet and pinned him to the wall, “and burn this town to the ground with you in it.”
“I’ll protect her with my life if I must. You have my word. Now please, get out of here before someone sees me helping you.”
Shadow dropped Sam back to his feet, took Asher’s hand, and ducked through the hole in the wall. Once through, Sam closed the magic door with his key before slipping through an alley and joining the rest of the guards. Young ones were crying, old ones were being forcefully pushed, and at least one who tried to resist was savagely beaten. The guard was there to maintain order no matter the cost. After several minutes and much effort, the last keidran was shoved past the threshold. As the iron gate lowered from the ceiling, a couple of keidran made an attempt to get back into the town. But just as they were about to get through the inner gate, out of the crowd came several guards with crossbows. Without hesitation, their lieutenant gave the order to fire. In front of both humans and keidran, all those who tried to get through were cut down and left to die in the zwinger between the two gates. Their intentions made clear, the remaining keidran quickly fled from the walls just as guards took their positions along the walkway at the top.
Shadow couldn’t see what happened, but she could certainly hear it. Keeping Asher close, she used her skills at stealth to skirt along the bottom of the wall undetected. Asher at one point tried to say something but she quickly hushed him before continuing. Finding and avenue out in a blind spot from the guards, Shadow quickly moved past the ground torches could illuminate, finding safety in the darkness. Luckily, it was a clear night and Shadow could easily make out where the keidran had stopped. They looked to be in the process of scattering as keidran tended to do. They weren’t a clan or a tribe, instead they were in groups of individuals who knew each other. Shadow a year ago would have left them all to their fate, content to find the shelter she was informed of and waiting until spring. But now… now she could see scared children, elderly who wouldn’t make it two days in the winter snow, and many who were scared and confused, all in need of help.
“What are we going to do?” Asher asked, clutching onto her leg and looking up to her for guidance. He too was quite scared.
Shadow sighed, collecting herself. “We’re going to help them, Asher, and we’re going to survive.”
Just as the keidran were about to venture off in every direction imaginable, Shadow climbed up onto a rock and, illuminated by the moon, called for everyone’s attention. No one really seemed to care, at least until a loud, baritone voice cut through the air. Shadow looked to her side only to find a beaten and bloody Ivan standing near the rock, apparently having seen the pair in the cold. At once, everyone looked back toward the three figures next to and on top of the large glacial boulder.
“Good. Now everyone listen up! I’ve been told that there are stores of food and supplies as well as shelter across the river to the East. If we move now, we can be there by dawn, but we have to stick together, or we’ll all die.”
While some seemed ready to go, others weren’t sure. Arguing began between different individuals. Some wanted to make for the Snowy Pines, mostly the wolves. A few wanted to try and get over the mountain pass and into warmer country. Still others were talking about forcing their way back into Callow. None were, realistically, good options. But before consensus could be reached, or a complete breakdown in the large group of at least four hundred keidran, snow wolves approached from all sides, weapons at the ready. Out from the darkness emerged a big wolf, nearly as big as Ivan, wearing polar bear fur and brandishing a long spear.
Keidran tried to run but were quickly cut off. The group of exiles was completely encircled by several hundred strong warriors from the different clans. Bjorn then noticed something odd in the moonlight. Between all the people that they captured, only a handful had anything more than a knife. Certainly no weapons of war, and plenty were half-naked and freezing.
“Where are your weapons?”
“What do you mean?” A tigress asked. “We have none.”
“Then what is this? Are you all trying to run away or something? You’ll freeze out here.” Bjorn bellowed. A young child then pushed his way to the front. It was Asher, the only basitin in the group. “W-we were kicked out, sir.”
“Kicked out?”
Ivan and Shadow came out from the crowd, quickly finding Asher. Shadow grabbed the boy and held onto him tight in case things went south. Ivan tried to reason with Bjorn, who was a bit intimidated by the wolf that was bigger than even him.
“Da. Jarl Tostig pushed us into the snow.”
“Explain.” Bjorn said, spear tip not lowering even slightly.
“What the big guy is trying to say is that Tostig found out there wasn’t enough supplies for everyone to last the winter, so he decided to get rid of every keidran in Callow. We’re exiles.”
This shocked Bjorn. He didn’t think anyone, not even a human, would do something so cutthroat. “Well, if you were hoping for our help, I’m sorry. But we don’t have supplies for everyone here. I can talk to my grandfather and perhaps the council will—”
“There are supplies across the river, if you’d let us go to Ditter’s Ridge we’ll stay out of the way of your siege. We certainly aren’t going to help Tostig after this.
“The big hill near Widow Lake? I thought that was just a bunch of mines.”
“It is, but apparently there are stores of supplies and shelter there.”
Ditter’s Ridge was still technically snow wolf lands, and the recent mining activity was part of why this whole situation was happening now. But these weren’t humans, clearly weren’t loyal to Tostig, and had no means to defending themselves anyway. After taking in the sight, he knew that they were speaking the truth, and that many wouldn’t make it more than a few days even in thick winter fur.
“Alright. We have no quarrel with you. I and a few others will lead you across the river. There’s a ford at Ridge Gate that’s shallow enough you all can cross without getting wet above the knees. We had better hurry though; another storm is coming.”
Shadow then walked up to Bjorn, noting that she was barely taller than his shoulder. “Thank you.” She said gratefully, extending a hand.
Bjorn looked down and felt his heart skip a beat. In a land of ice and snow, before him was a black-furred leopard, a keidran he had never seen before. He immediately reached out to shake her hand. “I am happy to help. Now, we had better get a move on.”
“Lead the way...” Shadow gestured as she grabbed Asher once again and made sure he walked closely beside her through the snow.
It was tough walking through the drifts. At one point, Shadow broke through a layer of hard snow into soft powder below. She sank up to her chest and was struggling to get out when a pair of snow shoes appeared in front of her. Looking up, she saw Bjorn extending his hand. In one swift motion, he lifted the leopard clean out of the snow and onto his snow shoes.
“Thank you.” Shadow said, stunned at how easy it was for the wolf.
“It was nothing.” He said, smile on his face.
In the early hours of dawn, the group of keidran spotted the Ridge Gate, a pair of towering bluffs the river cut through in order to make it to the sea. Soon, Shadow and Asher were some of the first to reach the shore of the river. Shadow picked up Asher and held him as she tried to cross, but the icy water stung on her skin. Bjorn then offered his help once again.
“Please, allow me.” He said as he picked Asher up and placed the boy on his shoulders. Before Shadow could continue into the river, he picked her up as well and held her under her back and knees.
“Oh... my…” Shadow said, looking up at Bjorn. “You really don’t have to.”
“I assume you aren’t from around these parts, considering the black fur.”
“No, I’m not.”
“Well, the river water is cold enough that you really don’t want to get wet if you can help it. So hold on tight, I’ll walk you across.”
It took a few minutes, but Shadow and Asher found themselves on dry ground. Without a word, Bjorn turned around and waded across the river again. It felt… odd… to be carried like that. But apparently the snow wolves were doing this for many of the keidran, especially the children. It took close to a half an hour before everyone was across, but by then it was a simple matter of climbing the ridge. At the top, Shadow and Asher felt the first rays of sun peaking above the horizon. It would fill the valley below for only a couple of hours before setting again.
“We’re getting close to the equinox.” Bjorn explained. “The sun will only break the horizon for an hour then, and it will get really cold.”
“Thank you again.” Shadow replied. “But I didn’t catch your name.”
“It’s Bjorn, ma’am.”
“Well, thank you Bjorn. I am Shadow and this here is Asher.”
“Glad to know you, Shadow. Now, where are these supplies you were talking about?”
“I’m guessing they are down there.” Shadow said as she pointed at what looked to be an abandoned mining camp. Once at the bottom of the ridge, the state of the camp was sad. Tents were blown down by the wind, a couple of the makeshift shacks were caved in from the heavy snow. But one large structure was locked up tight. Busting in the door with a log for a battering ram, the keidran found the first of many supplies. While the food was mostly for humans, and thus was a lot of flour and coffee, there was plenty of dried and salted meats. It wouldn’t be much, but with some careful rationing they’d all be able to make it through the winter.

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Wrath: Aeon of Ruin
Mbius Front 83'
Oct 2021 (8 choices)
Amnesia: Rebirth
John Wick Hex
112 Operator
Guts and Glory
Garage: Bad Trip
Tools Up
Hiveswap Friendsim
Syberia 3
Aug 2021 (9 choices)
Last Oasis
Superliminal
We need to go Deeper
Out of Space
Carto
As far as the eye
Cepheus Protocol
Drake Hollow
Encodya
Jul 2021 (12 choices)
Yakuza 3 Remastered
The Surge 2
DIRT 5
All of the other games I haven't claimed this bundle
Jun 2021 (9 choices)
Sid Meier's Civilization VI PLatinum Edition
Secret Neighbor
Stubbs the Zombie in Rebel Without a Pulse
Worms Rumble+ Legends Pack Dlc
Milky Way Prince - The Vampire Star
Desolate
Paw Paw Paw
Effie
Disjunction (GOG)
May 2021 (10 choices)
Hellpoints
Cook, Serve, Delicious! 3
Levelhead
Fury Unleashed
Morkredd
Relicta
Retimed
Family Man
Vane
Mar 2021 (8 choices)
Control Standard Edition
Elex
WWE 2K BATTLEGROUNDS
Peaky Blinders:Mastermind
Cyber hook
Pesterquest
Wildfire (Might Keep)
Boreal Blade
Feb 2021 (7 choices)
ENDLESS SPACE® 2 - DIGITAL DELUXE EDITION
The Wild Eight
Train Station Renovation
Valfaris
Werewolf: The Apocalypse Heart of the Forest
Lovecraft's Untold Stories
Iris and the Giant
Dec 2020 (10 choices)
Overcooked! 2 (Only the main game, I have claimed the Dlcs)
The Beast Inside
Shining Resonance Refrain (Might Keep)
Zwei: The Arges Adventure (Might Keep)
Zwei: The Ilvard Insurrection (Might Keep)
The Haunted Island, A Frog Detective Game
Frog Detective 2: The Case of The Invisible Wizard
Still There
Struggling
Path of Giants
Jul 2020 (6 choices)
Age of Wonders: Planetfall Deluxe Edition
Railway Empire
Battlestar Galactica Deadlock
Yuppie Psycho
Beat Hazard 2
Sigma Theory: Global Cold War
Don't Escape: 4 Days to Survive
Verlet Swing
Basingstoke
HUMBLE NEW COUCH CLASSICS BUNDLE
Lethal League Blaze (Might Keep)
Ultimate Chicken Horse
HUMBLE BANDAI NAMCO BUNDLE 4
Tales of Berseria
GET EVEN
HUMBLE QUEBEC INDIES BUNDLE
Leap of Fate
Toto Temple Deluxe
HUMBLE SWEET FARM FALL BUNDLE
Sigma Theory: Global Cold War
Coffee Talk
CHUCHEL Cherry Edition
ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove
HUMBLE LET'S FIGHT BUNDLE
Stick Fight: The Game
Divekick
Nidhogg
Overgrowth
Sonic and SEGA All Stars Racing
Fanatical
Dungeons 3
The Walking Dead: The Final Season
Icewind Dale: Enhanced Edition
Duke Nukem Forever: Hail to the Icons Parody Pack
Duke Nukem Forever: The Doctor Who Cloned Me
Expeditions: Viking
Pathologic Classic HD
The Age of Decadence
Shelter 2

Hello friends, I'm back! I put off posting this since I have seen a few others of this nature, and figured I would just hold off until I had more data. Not a whole lot has changed, really.
Original Post including edits
About the Dehumidifier - note that as of 2.2 or 2.3 this seems to work when eco climate is active
Long Trip with My Family
That Time My Charger Melted - update to this... it was a loose connection. Oops. The Lectron charger from Amazon is still going strong and I'm pretty happy with the 16 amps. It's all I need.

Same as last time, we are going to start with the gripes!

If something was a gripe in the last post and isn't below, I either no long care, or they fixed it. I'll remark on a few of them after this section.

• Honestly... my biggest gripe with the car is that the steering wheel needs to telescope out at least another inch. This is only so high because it's basically the only thing I can think of, aside from interior space, that can't be fixed via software updates. I have chronic back issues that have been better since getting the car due to how adjustable the seat is. But I feel a bit too far away from the wheel.
• The app is missing a lot of no-brainer features and it's SLOW AS HELL. Can't open the trunk. Must set a timer to precondition the battery. Can't get trip/mileage details, or anything like that. Also as of 2.9 I have had intermittent PaaK issues when I never did before.
• Even though I've never had a car with a reverse camera before this, yes I agree with everyone else that loading the camera takes way too long.
• I'm still baffled and annoyed that there isn't a play/pause button on the steering wheel... BUT THERE IS A BUTTON THAT DOES ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!
• Similar to above, no clock on the instrument panel. I've adjusted to it but still just really irks me.

Android and phone shenanigans

• Yes, still no album art over bluetooth. It's whatever to me by this point but still worth mentioning.
• The issues with sending texts is still ongoing. This seems to be entirely me, or my phone (Nokia XR20) as I've seen no one else here mention anything about it ever.
• Android Auto(motive) still has absolutely no idea what to do with MMS messages and I don't even bother trying to play or reply to group chats.
• Recently, and intermittently, incoming calls don't go through the car, and I have to pick up my phone, answer it, and then it goes through Bluetooth media. This is big oof to me. I have fully re-paired my phone once already.
• I challenge everyone else to give the car a voice command to navigate to an address with street number 5555. Dead serious here, go do it.

Updates to the good stuff, and comments on things that have been solved

• My TCAM issues were never debilitating, but they seem to have completely disappeared over the past few updates.
• They enhanced the charging curve, and I've only fast charged a couple of times since the update. It's not blazing fast but much easier to take advantage of our 30mins free charging.
• I've gotten used to the 1PD, it's fine.
• We have plenty of in-car entertainment options now.... I watched an hour of Top Gun: Maverick on Epix while stopping to charge twice during my Christmas commute. It worked fine and the screen serves well. That's it though, I haven't touched any of the games or YouTube yet.
• Customer service at Columbus during my first maintenance last week was much, much better than my experience ordering and taking delivery at Detroit. They were genuinely happy to have it and remarked that it was the first one they'd seen driven so much, despite seeing 40+ per month from as far away as St. Louis since opening in October. They even comped me an alignment check which I was perfectly willing to pay for.
• Alright, I downright love how the car is balanced and handles. It floats like a 5000 pound feather. I will say, I have done some spirited driving, and if you plan on doing a lot... Get the performance pack. Not for the reason you're thinking of. It really needs those bigger brakes. The car luckily doesn't push my limits, but you can easily go right off the road taking a twisty too fast downhill. I know because I almost did. I was doing 60, heh... The only time I've had this issue.
• I have a second set of wheels with winter tires, and change them myself. Despite that and also our absolutely disastrous roads, the alignment was still in spec and the suspension looks great.
• The new range assistant app is GREAT! I leave the instrument panel on standard so I don't have to worry about going too far, but I typically was getting numbers indicating 20-30 miles more than EPA. The new app generally concurs with this (I do a lot of city driving, probably around 70%).
• Speaking of the range, any owner can tell you that the efficiency is much better than anyone expected. At the start of this year, I began including my efficiency number in my Uber log when I get home. Nothing fancy, just the number and some basic calculations. As of tonight, I have 5628.2 miles and an average efficiency of 27.29kw/100mi. It should drop through the summer - I've been getting between 22 and 25 the past month. The highest was 35.1 over the course of 47.8 miles. I remember quitting early that night because the weather was getting real bad - freezing rain.
• The worst nights, as I recall, were very cold but also wet. Just the heater isn't too bad, but I blame the dehumidifier for the uptick in consumption. Which is fine because it's a genius feature that I don't think I can live without now. Note that I always precondition with a timer if the weather is below 50F or above 80F. You would be surprised how much of a difference it makes, especially if you aren't going far. If it's cold, preconditioning and the heated seats/wheel are all I need until it gets under 40F.
• After figuring out Pilot Assist and what it is good at (and what it is not) I basically only use it on the highway for long-ish drives. This is not a knock against it, the system is great and seems to improve just a bit every time they try to update it. Phantom braking does exist but is not at all problematic. It has stopped freaking out when lanes split or you veer toward a ramp. This system was meant to encourage and reward good driving behavior by ASSISTING the PILOT. Do not abuse it.
• An update to my comment about the backseat. I had my 6'2" father test out the front AND rear passenger after I put the front seat in a reasonable position. He had no issues and has even ridden back there for a while with no complaint.
• The H&K sound system is fine for me. I'm a big metalhead so I don't need window shattering bass. A bit of work on the equalizer and it competes with the surround in my living room. The option to focus the sound came in handy when I wanted to listen to music but my niece wanted to watch cartoons during our family trip.
• The upholstery, is, in fact, very easy to clean. I also got the Tuxmats which are freakin' awesome. Seeing those was another first for the Columbus space and they really liked them, too.

TL;DR - I am still 110% satisfied after a year and almost 20,000 miles. Will absolutely look into another Polestar product as my next car. I think any other follow-up posts will be if something goes seriously wrong, or I hit 100,000 miles :).
I need to get to bed soon, so I'll check out the comments in the morning.

he International Scoliosis Research Society defines early onset scoliosis (EOS) as the various types of scoliosis that occur within 10 years of age (1). EOS leads to distortion of body appearance and reduced heart and lung function, which often limits the development of the chest and even oppresses the spinal cord, resulting in paralysis (2). A large-scale demographic study showed that an increase in altitude negatively correlated with newborn birth weight. Moreover, neonatal body weight shows obvious changes when the altitude exceeds 2500 m (3, 4). Based on relevant studies, we defined an area with an altitude above 3000 m as a high-altitude area and an area with an altitude below 500 m as a plain area (5). High-altitude environments consists of low air pressure, hypoxia, and cold weather, all of which impact the cardiopulmonary function and structure of the human body. Such high-altitude environments increase cardiac output, pulmonary ventilation, pulmonary capillary hyperplasia, and other compensatory reactions (6, 7). However, there are limited studies on the effects of high-altitude environments on cardiopulmonary function in patients with EOS. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the effects of high altitude on the respiratory and circulatory systems of patients with EOS by comparing blood gas analysis results and cardiopulmonary function between the high-altitude and plain area groups. In addition, we explored how scoliosis affected patients' cardiopulmonary function by analyzing the correlations between scoliosis imaging parameters and cardiopulmonary function measures. We aimed to provide an improved preoperative evaluation and postoperative rehabilitation for EOS patients living in high-altitude areas.
Inclusion and exclusion criteria A retrospective cohort study was conducted to identify patients with EOS between June 2013 and June 2021. The inclusion criteria were: (1) EOS patients with a long-term living altitude >3000 m or living area altitude <500 m; (2) full-length anteroposterior and lateral radiographs of the spine showing scoliosis of mainly the thoracic curvature type; (3) patients with an aggravated Cobb's angle >45°; (4) no treatment with braces or growth rods before evaluation; and (5) all patients knew of the study procedures and agreed to participate. The exclusion criteria were: (1) incomplete spinal radiography data; (2) patients who could not cooperate with the completion of pulmonary function examination, blood gas analysis, and cardiac color ultrasound; and (3) patients with congenital cardio-cerebrovascular diseases, syndrome scoliosis, and previous spinal surgery. Evaluation methods Patient records and relevant data were collected retrospectively. All patients underwent full-length anteroposterior and lateral spine radiographs, blood gas analysis, lung function examination, and heart color ultrasound examination. Imaging parameters Preoperatively, whole-body and lateral spinal X-rays were performed on all patients, and both shoulders were flexed anteriorly during X-ray examination to ensure the most natural state of lumbar lordosis. The imaging parameters were as follows: (1) kyphosis angle of the thoracic (kypho), (2) upper thoracic curve (UT), and (3) main thoracic curve (MT). MT measures the Cobb angle from the head side of the T3 upper endplate to the T12 lower endplate. The UT measures the Cobb angle from the T1 upper endplate to the T3 lower endplate on the cephalic side. Kypho measures the Cobb angle from the upper endplate of the cephalic T2 vertebral body to the lower endplate of the caudal T5 vertebral body. All measurements used the Cobb method. The picture archiving and communication system was used by two independent observers. To test agreement among the observers, two orthopedic spine surgeons measured the imaging parameters twice independently, and the intraclass correlation coefficient was analyzed. Doppler echocardiography Color Doppler echocardiography indices were collected and recorded, including those of the pulmonary artery internal diameter (PAID), left ventricular end-systolic dimension (LVISD), ascendant aorta inner diameter, right ventricular basal diameter (RVBD), left atrium left-right diameter (LALRD), right atrium left-right diameter, left atrium longitudinal diameter, left atrium vertical diameter, peak late diastolic flow velocity (A peak), left ventricular early diastolic peak flow velocity (E peak), interventricular septum extent (IVSE), left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (LVEDD), left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), right atrium vertical diameter, and interventricular septum thickness. A color Doppler ultrasound instrument (Vivid E95, GE Healthcare) with an m5S probe was used. Patients were positioned in the left lateral decubitus position, and their electrocardiograms were recorded synchronously to obtain apical four-, 2 three-, and two-chamber heart section images for three consecutive cardiac cycles and acquire spectral Doppler images of the mitral and aortic valves. Routine parameter measurements were performed according to the American Society of Echocardiography guidelines, and the LVEF was determined using the biplane Simpson method. The patients’ imaging results were jointly rated by two experts in ultrasound imaging. Pulmonary function examination The indices of pulmonary function examination included forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory flow in 1s (FEV1), percentage of predicted value, vital capacity (VC), and maximum ventilation (MVV). Preoperative pulmonary function examination was performed using the JAEGER Oxycon Pro with a unified baseline (CareFusion Germany 234 GmbH, Hochberg, Germany). A lung function detector (JAEGER Master Screen PFT, CareFusion Germany 234 GmbH, Hochberg, Germany) was used for measurement. A lung function detector was used for measurement, and the measurement module included pulse oscillation lung function, conventional lung capacity, velocity loop, residual gas function, dispersion function, and MVV rate. Lung function test results were obtained using JLab 5.7 software (CareFusion Germany 234 GmbH, Hochberg, Germany). Blood gas analysis Blood gas analysis indices included blood oxygen saturation (SO2%), hematocrit (Hct), partial pressure of oxygen (pO2), total hemoglobin (Hb), and partial pressure of carbon dioxide (pCO2). Two independent observers recorded these indices. To test for inter-rater agreement, the reported outcomes were recorded twice independently by two orthopedic surgeons, and the recorded data were reconciled. Statistical methods The data were analyzed using SPSS 23.0 software, and the data were expressed as`x±s, where`x and s stand for the mean and standard deviation, respectively. An independent sample t-test was used to compare the measurement data between the two groups, and the χ2 test was used for counting data. Differences were considered statistically significant at P<0.05. The correlation among the parameters was determined using Spearman’s correlation coefficient and analyzed using Origin 2021 software. General data Based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 38 and 66 EOS patients were enrolled in the high-altitude and plain area groups, respectively. The high-altitude group comprised 20 boys and 18 girls, with a mean age of 8.42 years (range, 6–10 years). The plain area group comprised 26 boys and 40 girls, with a mean age of 8.77 years (range, 4–11 years). The average age of the high-altitude group was not significantly different from that of the plain area group (P>0.05). The body weight and height of the high-altitude group were significantly lower than that of the plain area group; however, there was no significant difference in the body mass index between the two groups. The average Cobb’s angle was 79.65°, and the average thoracic kypho was 60.16°. There was no significant difference in the degree of other spinal deformities between the two groups. The thoracic spine curves of both the groups were mainly on the right side, and the proportion of right kyphosis in the high-altitude and plain area groups was 63.16 and 66.67%, respectively, with no significant difference (P>0.05). There were 48 cases of idiopathic scoliosis, 16 of congenital scoliosis, two of 3 neuromuscular scoliosis, and 24 cases of idiopathic scoliosis in the plain area group; there were 14 cases of congenital scoliosis in the high-altitude group. There was no significant difference in the proportion of patients diagnosed with idiopathic scoliosis between both groups (P>0.05). Color Doppler echocardiography examination The PAID, LVEDD, and IVST in the high-altitude group were significantly lower than those in the plain area group (P<0.05). There were no significant differences in the other cardiac color ultrasound indices, and were within the normal range. Pulmonary function examination The results of the pulmonary function examination showed that the FVC, VC, and MVV in the high-altitude group were significantly lower than those in the plain area group (P<0.05). The average predicted FVC% values in the high-altitude and plain area groups were 77.81 and 73.77%, respectively, and the average predicted FEV1% values were 78.65 and 73.05%, respectively (P>0.05), showing mild restrictive and obstructive ventilatory dysfunction. Blood gas analysis The Hct levels of the plain area group (38.49±2.89%) were significantly lower than those of the high-altitude group (40.85±4.47%; P<0.05). Hb levels in the high-altitude group (13.67 ± 1.46 g/L) were significantly higher than those in the plain group (12.85±0.94 g/L; P<0.05). The pCO2 levels of the high-altitude group (33.44±4.7 mmHg) were significantly lower than those of the plain area group (35.92±4.66 mmHg; P<0.05); however, there was no significant between-group difference in pO2 and SO2% levels (P>0.05). Correlations of parameters The correlation analysis between the spinal parameters and cardiopulmonary function measures in the high-altitude group is significant. In the high-altitude group, there was a significant correlation between the angle of the main thoracic curvature, the angle of the upper thoracic curvature, and kyphosis (rho=0.692, rho=0.484). There was a significant correlation between the kypho and upper chest curvature angles (rho=0.519). There was a significant correlation between LVISD, IVSE, RVBD, LALRD, and the MT (rho=-0.399, rho=0.565, rho=-0.358, rho=-0.371); however, there was no significant correlation between the angle of kyphosis and echocardiography index. PO2 and SO2% levels correlated with the angle of the MT (rho=-0.400, rho=-0.406). The upper chest bend angle was significantly correlated with VC, MVV, FVC, and FEV1 (rho=-0.498, rho=-0.451, rho=-0.513, rho=-0.588), while the upper chest bend angle and kyphosis bend were not significantly correlated with the pulmonary function index. There was a significant linear correlation between the UT and FEV1, FVC, and MVV in the high-altitude group. FEV1=1.623-0.011*UT, FVC=1.858-0.012*UT, MVV=54.646-0.286*UT. The results of the correlation analysis between imaging indices and cardiopulmonary function indices indicated that in the high-altitude group, UT showed a clear negative correlation with VC, FEV1, FVC, and MVV. In contrast, UT showed a clear positive correlation with these indices in the plain area group. In the high-altitude group, MT showed no obvious correlation with lung function indexes, whereas in the plain area group, MT showed a negative correlation with lung function indices. Scoliosis is a complex three-dimensional deformity that leads to distortion of body 4 appearance and reduced organ function, often causing irreversible damage to cardiopulmonary function (8, 9). Scoliosis due to rotation and thoracic scoliosis leads to a decrease in thoracic volume and asymmetry between the left and right thorax, which seriously affects the normal development of cardiopulmonary function in patients. The thoracic volume is vital for the development of cardiopulmonary function in children. Studies have shown that the critical period of alveolar and thoracic development in children occurs before the age of 10 years. Alveolar development in children approximately 10 years old is as prevalent as in adults, and the thoracic volume can reach half of that in adults (10, 11). Therefore, alveolar and thoracic development in EOS patients is critical since scoliosis and thoracic deformities can lead to pulmonary dysplasia. Most researchers believe that poor cardiopulmonary function in patients with scoliosis is caused by mechanical compression of bone tissue (12). Tsiligiannis et al. (13) showed that scoliosis changes the position of thoracic organs and affects normal respiratory movement, resulting in restrictive ventilation disorders. Campbell et al. (2) indicated that congenital scoliosis in patients with rib deformities could cause thoracic deformities, affects the normal development of heart and lung function and often leads to thoracic insufficiency syndrome. However, other studies have suggested that lung function is mainly affected by the limited development of the heart and lung caused by scoliosis rather than the mechanical compression caused by simple thoracic deformities (14). Davies et al. and Berend et al. (12, 15, 16) performed autopsy studies on EOS patients. They showed no obvious abnormality in the shape of alveoli, a decreased total number of alveoli, and no decrease in the size of alveoli due to thoracic compression and no decrease in the size of alveoli due to thoracic compression (the size was found to be compensated). Koumbourlis (17) et al. studied the relationship between scoliosis and patients’ circulatory and respiratory functions. They discovered that scoliosis-related deformities prevent patients from exercising like their normal peers, which reduces the number of chest breaths and compensates for the number of abdominal breaths. Regarding the thoracic structure, scoliosis limits the normal development of the chest, causing deformation of the important cardiovascular compression, leading to cardiopulmonary dysfunction. High-altitude areas exhibit a unique geographical environment comprising factors such as low pressure, low PO2, and low air content. Living in low-oxygen and thin-air environments over a long period impacts the development of cardiopulmonary function. An independent risk factor for low birth weight in newborns is the high-altitude environment, which leads to fetal growth restriction and affects the function of the respiratory and cardiovascular systems (5, 18). When the altitude increases by 100 m, the ambient atmospheric pressure decreases by 5 mmHg. Because the oxygen concentration in the atmosphere is constant, the oxygen partial pressure will decrease by approximately 1 mmHg. At sea level, the average pO2 is 150 mmHg. When the altitude is between 3000 and 5500 m, the PO2 decreases between 80 and 100 mmHg. When exposed to hypoxia and a hypobaric environment, people living in a plateau environment will have compensatory regulatory responses to restore the body's internal homeostasis. Over the course of natural selection, this compensatory response may be passed on to offspring through genetic material. The compensatory responses of people at high altitudes to hypoxia and hypobaric environments include increased pulmonary blood perfusion, erythrocytosis, blood viscosity, lung tissue compliance, and a slight increase in 5 pulmonary artery pressure. Studies have shown that people in high-altitude environments have symptoms of right ventricular hypertrophy and pulmonary hypertension, and elevated Hb levels in the body (19-21). In this study, the chest curve was the main bend in EOS patients in plain and high-altitude areas, with Cobb's angle of the main bend >45° in all patients. There was no significant between-group difference in the direction and severity of scoliosis and kyphosis. Idiopathic scoliosis is the primary classification of scoliosis. Excluding congenital cardiac developmental abnormalities, pulmonary artery diameter, LVEDD, and inter-ventricular septum thickness in the high-altitude group were smaller than that in the plain area group. This may be due to structural abnormalities of the heart and lungs caused by long-term low pressure and lack of oxygen in high-altitude areas. To explore the relationship between scoliosis, cardiopulmonary function, and the effect of high altitude on cardiopulmonary function, a correlation analysis was performed. The UT angle in the high-altitude group was correlated with the pulmonary function examination indexes (VC, MVV, FVC, and FEV1), while the UT angle in the plain area group was not significantly correlated with these indexes. Long-term exposure to high and cold climates, low pressure, and low oxygen environments impact the cardiopulmonary structure of patients in high-altitude areas. Therefore, the reduction in thoracic space caused by changes in spinal structure will cause more serious damage to the cardiopulmonary function of patients in high-altitude areas compared to patients in plain areas (22). Therefore, patients with severe scoliosis in high-altitude areas require active surgical intervention to reduce cardiorespiratory impairment associated with scoliosis. The results of pulmonary function tests showed that the average values of FEV1% and FVC% in both groups were < 80%, and there were mild restrictive and obstructive ventilation disorders, indicating that scoliosis and thoracic deformities limited the normal respiratory function of patients. The FVC, VC, and MVV indices of the high-altitude group were significantly lower than those of the plain area group. This could be due to the following: the low temperature at high altitudes contracts the small airways of the lungs and increases ventilatory resistance; the hypobaric and hypoxic environment forces the patients to breathe more times per unit time, increasing the load of respiratory muscles and causing respiratory muscle fatigue; the nutritional status of patients in high-altitude areas is worse than that of patients in plain areas; and the thoracic volume is smaller in patients in high-altitude areas than that of patients in plain areas. Scoliosis with thoracic deformity is often accompanied by limited diaphragm function and decreased chest volume, which leads to a decrease in lung tissue pressure and compliance, pulmonary hypertension, and even serious diseases such as cor pulmonale and respiratory failure (23). Studies have shown that pulmonary dysfunction before surgical treatment increases perioperative respiratory complications such as respiratory insufficiency, atelectasis, and pneumonia (24). Therefore, during clinical treatment, more attention should be paid to evaluating pulmonary function in EOS patients before surgery. For patients at high altitudes or other EOS patients with significantly impaired pulmonary function, it is necessary to carry out preoperative respiratory function training to improve respiratory function (25) and surgical safety and reduce postoperative complications; the comprehensive evaluation of pulmonary function in combination with other disciplines is also possible. 6 Because of the lack of studies comparing lung function between EOS patients in high-altitude and plain areas that are similar to our patient population, it cannot be ruled out whether the decline in lung function indices is affected by spinal deformities. In this study, the number of patients in high-altitude areas was less than that of patients in plain areas. Our results may not be comprehensive enough as there were only a few categories of imaging parameters; therefore, it was difficult to analyze the correlation between other imaging parameters and cardiopulmonary function. Conclusion EOS patients in high-altitude areas had poorer cardiac and pulmonary functions than those who live in plain areas. Cardiopulmonary function and the degree of scoliosis interact with each other. We should pay more attention to preoperative evaluation and postoperative rehabilitation for EOS patients living in high-altitude areas. References: 1.Fletcher ND, Bruce RW. Early onset scoliosis: current concepts and controversies. Curr Rev Musculoskelet Med.(2012)5: 102-10. doi:10.1007/s12178-012-9116-0 2.Campbell RJ, Smith MD, Mayes TC, Mangos JA, Willey-Courand DB, Kose N, Pinero RF, Alder ME, Duong HL, Surber JL. The characteristics of thoracic insufficiency syndrome associated with fused ribs and congenital scoliosis. J BONE JOINT SURG AM.(2003)85: 399-408. doi:10.2106/00004623-200303000-00001 3.Mortola JP, Frappell PB, Aguero L, Armstrong K. Birth weight and altitude: a study in Peruvian communities. J Pediatr.(2000)136: 324-9. doi:10.1067/mpd.2000.103507 4.Zhou L, Yang H, Hai Y, Hai JJ, Cheng Y, Yin P, Yang J, Zhang Y, Wang Y, Zhang Y, Han B. Scoliosis among children in Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau of China: A cross-sectional epidemiological study. Front Public Health.(2022)10: 983095. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2022.983095 5.Jensen GM, Moore LG. The effect of high altitude and other risk factors on birthweight: independent or interactive effects? AM J PUBLIC HEALTH.(1997)87: 1003-7. doi:10.2105/ajph.87.6.1003 6.Ostadal B, Kolar F. Cardiac adaptation to chronic high-altitude hypoxia: beneficial and adverse effects. Respir Physiol Neurobiol.(2007)158: 224-36. doi:10.1016/j.resp.2007.03.005 7.Maggiorini M. Cardio-pulmonary interactions at high altitude. Pulmonary hypertension as a common denominator. ADV EXP MED BIOL.(2003)543: 177-89. doi:10.1007/978- 1-4419-8997-0_13 8.Kadoury S, Shen J, Parent S. Global geometric torsion estimation in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. MED BIOL ENG COMPUT.(2014)52: 309-19. doi:10.1007/s11517 -013-1132-8 9.Charles YP, Dimeglio A, Marcoul M, Bourgin JF, Marcoul A, Bozonnat MC. Influence of idiopathic scoliosis on three-dimensional thoracic growth. Spine (Phila Pa 1976).(2008)33: 1209-18. doi:10.1097/BRS.0b013e3181715272 10.Boyden EA. Development of the pulmonary airways. Minn Med.(1971)54: 894-7. 11.Karol LA, Johnston C, Mladenov K, Schochet P, Walters P, Browne RH. Pulmonary function following early thoracic fusion in non-neuromuscular scoliosis. J BONE JOINT SURG AM.(2008)90: 1272-81. doi:10.2106/JBJS.G.00184 7 12.Day GA, Upadhyay SS, Ho EK, Leong JC, Ip M. Pulmonary functions in congenital scoliosis. Spine (Phila Pa 1976).(1994)19: 1027-31. doi:10.1097/00007632-199405000-00004 13.Tsiligiannis T, Grivas T. Pulmonary function in children with idiopathic scoliosis. Scoliosis.(2012)7: 7. doi:10.1186/1748-7161-7-7 14.Branthwaite MA. Cardiorespiratory consequences of unfused idiopathic scoliosis. Br J Dis Chest.(1986)80: 360-9. doi:10.1016/0007-0971(86)90089-6 15.Berend N, Marlin GE. Arrest of alveolar multiplication in kyphoscoliosis. PATHOLOGY.(1979)11: 485-91. doi:10.3109/00313027909059026 16.Davies G, Reid L. Effect of scoliosis on growth of alveoli and pulmonary arteries and on right ventricle. ARCH DIS CHILD.(1971)46: 623-632. doi:10.1136/adc.46.249.623 17.Koumbourlis AC. Scoliosis and the respiratory system. PAEDIATR RESPIR REV.(2006)7: 152-60. doi:10.1016/j.prrv.2006.04.009 18.Krampl E, Lees C, Bland JM, Espinoza DJ, Moscoso G, Campbell S. Fetal Doppler velocimetry at high altitude. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol.(2001)18: 329-34. doi:10.1046/j.0960-7692.2001.00542.x 19.Hulme CW, Ingram TE, Lonsdale-Eccles DA. Electrocardiographic evidence for right heart strain in asymptomatic children living in Tibet--a comparative study between Han Chinese and ethnic Tibetans. Wilderness Environ Med.(2003)14: 222-5. doi:10.1580/1080-6032(2003)14[222:eefrhs]2.0.co;2 20.Huicho L. Postnatal cardiopulmonary adaptations to high altitude. Respir Physiol Neurobiol.(2007)158: 190-203. doi:10.1016/j.resp.2007.05.004 21.CANEPA A, CHAVEZ R, HURTADO A, ROTTA A, VELASQUEZ T. Pulmonary circulation at sea level and at high altitudes. J APPL PHYSIOL.(1956)9: 328-36. doi:10.1152/jappl.1956.9.3.328 22.Penaloza D. Effects of high-altitude exposure on the pulmonary circulation. Rev Esp Cardiol (Engl Ed).(2012)65: 1075-8. doi:10.1016/j.recesp.2012.06.027 23.Sacks D, Baxter B, Campbell B, Carpenter JS, Cognard C, Dippel D, Eesa M, Fischer U, Hausegger K, Hirsch JA, Shazam HM, Jansen O, Jayaraman MV, Khalessi AA, Kluck BW, Lavine S, Meyers PM, Ramee S, Rufenacht DA, Schirmer CM, Vorwerk D. Multisociety Consensus Quality Improvement Revised Consensus Statement for Endovascular Therapy of Acute Ischemic Stroke. INT J STROKE.(2018)13: 612-632. doi:10.1177/1747493018778713 24.Zhang JG, Wang W, Qiu GX, Wang YP, Weng XS, Xu HG. The role of preoperative pulmonary function tests in the surgical treatment of scoliosis. Spine (Phila Pa 1976).(2005)30: 218-21. doi:10.1097/01.brs.0000150486.60895.a1 25.Liang J, Qiu G, Shen J, Zhang J, Wang Y, Li S, Zhao H. Predictive factors of postoperative pulmonary complications in scoliotic patients with moderate or severe pulmonary dysfunction. J SPINAL DISORD TECH.(2010)23: 388-92.doi:10. 1097/BSD.0b013e3181b55ff4

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Want:
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Haiku, the Robot (Priority) Bug Fables: The Everlasting Sapling (Priority)
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- Kingdom Rush
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XCOM Enemy Within Complete Pack
Loop Hero
One Piece Pirate Warriors 3
Super Fancy Pants Adventure
Shantae: Risky's Revenge - Director's Cut
MO:Astray
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Maybe some others , will check your lists if you have
Games that I can give:
Humble
Mar 2023
Biomutant
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Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous Enchanced Edition
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Encased: a Sci-Fi Post-Apocalyptic RPG
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Hell Let Loose
Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning - Fate Edition
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DEEP ROCK GALACTIC (Might Keep)
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CAPCOM SUMMER 2022 BUNDLE
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8 Doors
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Fling to the Finish
Tohu
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Due Process
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BPM: Bullets per Minute
Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion
Juno: New Origins
Timelie
Wrath: Aeon of Ruin
Mbius Front 83'
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Yakuza 3 Remastered
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All of the other games I haven't claimed this bundle
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Control Standard Edition
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OUTWARD + THE SOROBOREANS AND OUTWARD SOUNDTRACK
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Lovecraft's Untold Stories
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Overcooked! 2 (Only the main game, I have claimed the Dlcs)
The Beast Inside
Shining Resonance Refrain (Might Keep)
Zwei: The Arges Adventure (Might Keep)
Zwei: The Ilvard Insurrection (Might Keep)
The Haunted Island, A Frog Detective Game
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Age of Wonders: Planetfall Deluxe Edition
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HUMBLE BANDAI NAMCO BUNDLE 4
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Expeditions: Viking
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I passed my instrument checkride yesterday (yay!) and I thought it might help other folks who are working on instrument or thinking about it for the future if I shared my write-up. My flight school sends pretty much all of their students to the same DPE, so they had a tremendous amount of information about past checkrides to share with me, and they asked me to do a write-up of my own. An edited version of that is what follows!
TLDR: I started instrument training three months ago, did the written before any flight lessons, added 50 hours to my logbook in those three months, and passed the checkride with just barely enough instrument hours to qualify (I had to time build a bit in the past month). DPE said I did great, even though I had some nerves and we changed the flight plan a lot in the air!
​
Background: I began my instrument training about three months ago with the Sporty’s videos for ground school, Sheppard Air for test prep, and a perfect score on my written before my first instrument lesson. I started instrument training with another flight school in a simulator for a G1000 Cessna 172 for two lessons before I decided I wanted to be able to fly the Cirrus SR22, so I switched to NoVA Pilots (Leesburg, Virginia, KJYO) for instrument plus Cirrus transition training. I came into this training with about 110 total hours, most of the 50 PIC cross country I needed, but only 4.0 of the 40 hours of instrument time I would ultimately need. Zero hours in Cirrus aircraft, though I did have my high-performance endorsement from Cessna 182 training.
Instrument training: I started flying as much as possible throughout the end of March, all of April, and the first half of May. I did a total of 22 flight lessons, plus a handful of flights on my own or with a safety pilot once I had enough experience to solo the SR22. I did two flights that qualified for the long cross country, with the one I highlighted for the checkride going from Leesburg to Charlottesville, Baltimore, Harrisburg, and Martinsburg, with two ILS approaches, one VOR, and one RNAV GPS. I went into the checkride with 3.7 hours of actual instrument and 38.6 simulated, or 42.3 total. My logbook ended up with 160 total hours.
Checkride prep: I did four total mock checkrides, two each with two different instructors. The flights were exactly what the DPE planned for us to fly, though different from what we ended up flying! For the oral, I had all of the materials the DPE asked for in his email from ten days prior to the checkride, and I printed out everything that would otherwise be electronic (mainly a copy of my Foreflight logbook, the flight plan, performance calculations for the scenario flight, personal minimums). I arrived to the conference room an hour before the scheduled start time and arranged materials in four areas:
· Pilot qualifications: Pilot certificate, medical certificate, ID, knowledge test results, ground school certificate from Sporty’s, SFRA training certificate, Cirrus icing course certificate (not required, but nice to have), logbook with endorsements, printed copy of my IACRA form.
· Airplane qualifications: Engine logbook, propeller logbook, airframe logbook with Post-It notes for the relevant sections (annual / 100 hour, pitot-static inspection, transponder inspection, etc.). I also had the NoVA Pilots binder to show current hours on the engine, plus the POH (since no one else was flying the plane that morning).
· Documents for the flight scenario: Weight and balance, aircraft performance (takeoff and landing distances), ICAO flight plan, NAV log from Foreflight, Leidos Flight Service full briefing report including weather and NOTAMs (80 pages). I don’t think we used any of this during the test – for the flight plan we used Foreflight on my iPad, and we just talked through the rest.
· Reference materials: Physical copies of the FAAIM and ACS, printouts of diagrams for electrical, fuel, and pitot-static systems, PilotsCafe reference sheet. The latter came in handy and the DPE liked it – he had a copy of his own on hand.
Oral examination: We took around two hours total for the oral, starting with the qualifications and electronically signing IACRA. The DPE explained what he would ask about, the ability to take breaks, the plan for the day (oral, then a lunch break, then flight).
Questioning was straightforward. Beyond my flailing on whether the transponder inspection was required every 24 months or 12 months for a minute, I was able to answer questions satisfactorily. Lots of focus on risk and options.
· Always keep fuel in mind – if given a hold with a 30 minute EFC time, how does that affect planning? I might request a route elsewhere, and I would definitely let ATC know if I’m in a “minimum fuel” situation, which is different from “emergency fuel”.
· If my glideslope fails while on an ILS, I can fly it to localizer minimums, and I need to let ATC know about the equipment failure.
· Know about icing and where it can form. If there’s no AIRMET Zulu for icing even if it’s cold enough, there’s still risk of unexpected moisture or perhaps it’s only light icing, which doesn’t get an AIRMET but is still a problem. If there are no PIREPs, maybe that means no one else is foolish enough to fly! And even though I’m flying a FIKI certified aircraft, if I encounter icing the plan has to be to get out of it.
· If an ADAHARS fails, this aircraft automatically uses the other as a backup, showing an appropriate notification. What does the POH say about continuing flight in this scenario? Go to the Abnormal Procedures section and see.
· If Alternator 2 fails, what happens? Alternator 1 will keep things going, but the aircraft isn’t approved for IFR flight on one alternator, so getting to the ground where you can get it fixed is important.
· If the static ports somehow both become blocked, there’s an alternate air source.
· MOCA would typically only be used if I need to get low to avoid ice, for instance.
· If I’m flying on Victor airways using GPS and there’s a GPS failure, I can use VOR navigation.
· If I have a passenger who really needs to get to their destination, I’ll make sure I have an alternate way of getting them there (flying commercial, driving). GA means you need to be prepared to scrub a flight for safety at any time.
· Know about circling minimums, circling radius, and the inverted C (white C on the black background). Similarly, know about the inverted T symbol and inverted A symbol (bonus points for inverted A with NA – not authorized for use as an alternate airport, likely because of a lack of weather reporting).
· In the debrief, the DPE pointed me to AIM 1-1-17 to talk about being able to use an expired navigation database if you verify that your waypoints are all correct. I was extra conservative on that question, saying that I would need to update the database before flying.
Flight portion: The DPE fully briefed me on the flight plan ahead of time:
· Depart Leesburg on runway heading, climbing to 1,200 MSL (he originally said 1,300 in the conference room but said 1,200 in the runup area). Expect vectors to Martinsburg airport.
· Fly the ILS 26 at Martinsburg to minimums, expecting to go missed.
· Fly the published missed into the hold at MRB VOR.
· Fly the VODME-A approach to Winchester, circling to whichever runway is in use. Plan to go missed there and then expect vectors to the next approach rather than the published missed.
· Fly the RNAV GPS 32 approach to Winchester, likely starting at either JASEN or DORGY depending on which direction we went after the VODME. Expect to fly this one partial panel with no autopilot. Fly this all the way to a landing – full stop, taxi back.
· And then done! Fly back to Leesburg with no foggles.
That was the briefing, anyway! The DPE explained that he would play the role of Potomac Approach throughout. I didn’t realize at first that this meant that he wanted me to “check in” with him after departure (he had to prompt me for that when I asked if I could climb once we were past the 1,500 foot Bravo shelf).
I tuned Martinsburg weather in COM2 active in the runup area and Martinsburg tower in COM1 standby, with the hope of getting info about which KMRB runway was in use as early as possible. On departure from runway 35, we climbed out on vectors and then direct MAPEL for the ILS 26. No chatter on KMRB tower, and winds were light, but slightly favoring runway 8. As we approached MAPEL and the DPE had “cleared me for the approach” we heard another aircraft check in and receive runway 8. Mild oaths ensued from the DPE, and he “cancelled my approach clearance” and had me “request” the VODME-A to Winchester.
I flew that approach, starting at MRB VOR. Lots of traffic working out of Winchester, and runway 14 was in use. We were in a rough spot for actually squeezing into the pattern for landing, so I descended to pattern altitude (above minimums), turned right to enter left downwind for 14, descended to minimums by the time I turned base, and flew a low approach at minimums over the runway and away to the east.
One approach complete.
The DPE gave me an altitude to climb to and a vector, and cleared me for the ILS 32, cleared direct JASEN. I got myself re-situated with the foggles and the autopilot back on. As we approached JASEN he said we would actually fly this as a localizer approach instead of ILS (so, non-precision). I think this was largely so we wouldn’t get in the way of conflicting traffic coming back off 14, staying higher. I reset the minimums to LOC level and noted my step-down fixes and time component.
Between JASEN and CLADD, the DPE “failed” the autopilot and “failed” the PFD by covering it with an opaque film. I went to reversionary mode and flew the localizer approach by hand, using the MFD. As we got to minimums, another aircraft took off from 14 straight toward us without making a radio call of any sort until they were 200 feet above the ground. We diverted around them to the left (safety pilot call), then turned right over the airport and back to CLADD to fly the published missed.
Two approaches complete.
This was all still hand flying, and the DPE was figuring out his next move as I hand-flew the teardrop hold entry at CLADD. I did a second full lap in the hold (the first one I had to extend a bit to avoid traffic), stressing the whole way about maintaining altitude, airspeed, and the holding course, but I did it!
Hold complete (x2).
Finally, the DPE said that since we were flying a nice, fast SR22, we could fly all the way to the other side of the airport and do the RNAV 14 to LPV minimums for our precision approach (for the purpose of the checkride). Autopilot back on at last, as I navigated us off to the west.
Along the way, the DPE took me through a couple of unusual attitudes. I screwed up the nose low attitude at first, adding power before realizing my mistake and reducing it, but correctly leveling the wings and bringing the nose up. He noted that I jumped the gun a little there but I fixed my mistake, and he was satisfied. He then did a nose-high attitude, which I did fine with. Then back on course with the autopilot.
Unusual attitudes complete.
I had loaded the full RNAV GPS 14 from SOGBE, but the DPE cleared me to ZENDI, originally at 3,700. I requested 4,200 at ZENDI, which he gave me. From there, things were much easier! I correctly configured the autopilot in APR mode, confirming that GP mode was armed, and I babysat the speed and the checklist usage to get us fully on course. I flew the approach to LPV minimums, at which point the DPE told me to go visual and land. This was probably the best landing I’ve ever had in the Cirrus – super gentle and smooth.
Three approaches complete.
I did a full stop taxi back and pulled into the runup area to run my checklist to prepare to return to Leesburg. Then a nice, simple, visual flight back with no drama. The DPE actually pulled out his iPad to take a picture of the airport as we approached 17 on a three-mile final – it was a lovely day. One more nice landing at Leesburg, taxi to park, and my instructor met us at the hangar as the DPE congratulated me! Two hours on the Hobbs for this flight.
Debrief: After putting the plane in the hangar, refueling, and cleaning it up, the DPE and I drove back to the school and my instructor met us there. The DPE had surprisingly little for me in the debrief. He shared a couple of recommendations for continuing my IFR education – IFR Magazine and the Aviation News Talk podcast. He suggested I make my personal minimums a little more conservative. He explained the expired database usability issue. He noted that I could have used FPLN when in reversionary mode to have better awareness of when I had passed each checkpoint (I was a little unsure when hand-flying and started my next descent a bit late, but still got to minimums). That was really it! He complimented my flying and printed my new certificate, and posed for a picture shaking my hand. Wonderful day!

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[REQ] ($300) - (#Richmond, VA, USA), ($360 on 12/08/22) (Venmo, Paypal)

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Hello,
DNA replication failure of the treatable kind put me out of work at the end of September. After recovering from the procedures and slowly coming back to work I've been playing catch up.
I will continue to struggle until I receive my end of year bonus on 12/08, which is too far away if my budgeting is any accurate. This money would be for transit between home and work, and basic food needs for my household.

https://thewest.com.au/sport/fremantle-dockers/michael-barlow-why-walyalup-fremantle-dockers-recent-rise-reminds-me-of-2012-success-c-10816298
Last Saturday, the Dockers made a statement to the AFL - 364 days from their last major announcement.
Same place, same opponent, same outcome. Freo are real again.
May 28th, 2022 was the date that showcased Michael Frederick’s speed, Lachie Schultz’s pressure and scoreboard impact and Sean Darcy’s genuine A-Grade ruck quality.
It was a win that generated the new dawn of the Dockers.
As an interstate team, generating belief on the road is critical.
In my Dockers era it was very much a philosophy of “anywhere, any time, anyone”.
Very good in theory, however you need proof internally and externally to believe.
June 9, 2012 was the birth date of the “anywhere, any time” Walyalup Dockers of that era. A gritty win, against the odds on a cold, wintry day at the MCG against Richmond.
This win propelled the Dockers of that day to four consecutive finals appearances, the latter three of those seasons resulting in top-four finishes.
Aaron Sandilands went down in 2012 with a toe injury. On the day the understated Jon Griffin took the responsibility of the ruck and played his best game as a Docker.
Nat Fyfe was unavailable, and the role of midfield dominance was delivered by the unlikely midfield dynamo for the day Matt de Boer who got the two Brownlow Medal votes that day.
The 2022 win against the Demons for the Dockers could very well have been the scaffold for a similar run.
The win on Saturday at the MCG has some similarities to the underdog Freo win against the Tigers 11 years earlier.
All the rationale suggested the Dockers’ form was too sporadic and predictable, the home side were to be too strong with personnel and system.
Fast forward another 12 months on and while he’s not at all understated to the level of Griffin, Luke Jackson had to puff the chest out and be the No.1 ruck against his old side with Darcy going down. It was Jackson’s best game as a Docker.
The ever-reliable Michael Walters was a big omission when the sides landed on Thursday.
As de Boer did in 2012, Bailey Banfield was pivotal in Walters’ absence, kicking the sealer as a nice nod to the positive team-first impact he has when playing in the front half.
For much of 2023, question marks have circled the Dockers. Mixed in the wash-up of the clubs on the cusp of finals or just outside.
The win on Saturday was a big step towards proving that the 2022 finals drive was not a fluke.
I’ve identified three main reasons for the sharp rise in the past month.
1: The players are showing individual improvement after inconsistent starts.
Frederick has turned into a regular difference maker.
Brandon Walker is a bankable lockdown defender.
Caleb Serong may have leapfrogged to the top of the midfield tree, jumping Andrew Brayshaw who has elevated his form in the past month from his 2022 form after a slow start to the season with a knee issue.
2: A connected coaching group Coach Justin Longmuir has held his nerve. Under external pressure he didn’t waver from his belief in the system and group.
His former Collingwood mentor Nathan Buckley spent Saturday afternoon in his box at the ‘G. It has since emerged he had huge praise for the methodical and connected way in which the lieutenants Matthew Boyd, Jaymie Graham and Joel Corey picked apart the Demons for the second consecutive season.
In Buckley’s words “the panel got it done”. The game plan was methodical to evaporate the Narrm’s intercepting prowess and conversely showcase the Dockers’ skill execution and speed towards goal.
3: Belief to win… “anywhere, any time, anyone”.
You can’t buy confidence from the supermarket. The 2023 Dockers can draw on the 2022 win at the MCG against the Demons as a starting point.
As an interstate club it is obvious the need to be competent on the road to open possibilities in September.
Much like the 2012 Dockers, the 2022 experience and now the 2023 replica has created a sample size for a resilient Dockers team to believe in any circumstances.

Wanted to write up a post to anyone who might be going into a C&P Exam for PTSD and wanted to know the experience of it.
TLDR version; make sure to study the VA PTSD DBQ, realize where the examiner is trying to trip you up (I honestly believe they try several tactics as detailed below). Realize they are not your friends and it's in your best interest to be as honest but as direct as possible.
Background Info:
I worked as a CT in the Navy, never went to medical while I was in as I was told getting mental help would get my clearance removed. Definitely experienced issues that I won't discuss here due to the nature of the clearance.
I had gone in to my local VA hospital with major depression and talked to them about being suicidal in January of 2022. They were able to get me a VA approved social worker to work with and annotated in my record that I had a positive screening for PTSD. I then went in to my local VA advocate February 2022 and started my claim. I've had a year of psychotherapy through the VA since then and I believe the social worker put down that she believed I had PTSD with major and chronic depression.
I got my counselor (I had been paying for the better half of two years) to write a letter I could submit as evidence detailing my depression and PTSD from his perspective. I had submitted a PTSD claim in 2015 but the file was closed without a VA examination (they couldn't find any links in my medical record of trauma even though I spent time overseas in a warzone). I was pretty defeated so this time I wanted medical evidence to support my claim.
It seem to have worked as I was scheduled my C&P exam in May 2023 (sixteen months from submitting my claim for anyone wondering how long it took to get the exam). During this time of waiting for my exam I submitted signed letters from my wife, her family (detailing my depression, suicidal thoughts, cutting, alone personality, etc) and also signed letters from two shipmates I served with detailing what happen to us.
The Exam:
I arrived 5 minutes before my exam and was pretty silent in the waiting room. The front desk person was VERY friendly, almost overly friendly. Asking how I was, how the drive was, how my week was going, what I thought of the weather etc etc. I put on my serious face and gave direct answers "could be better, it was long, not good, it's cold". She sat back in her seat and then was quiet. I waited there for about 10 minutes staring at the floor until the Optum Serve psychologist came out.
She walked me back to a room where the chairs were arranged facing away from the door and the windows, towards her with my back turned to both. I could tell it had been purposely arranged to make it inconvenient to move with a table dividing the area and force me to sit with my back to the door and window, so I rearranged the chairs and sat with my back to a corner facing everything.
She was nice but I could tell she had read up on my file. She began by telling me she could not diagnose any issues and began asking me questions about my mom and dad, how they were, if they loved me and if I ever felt alone prior to the military. She then asked if I had ever been abused sexually prior to the military or ever been in trouble at school or law enforcement prior. To each question I answered "no" and that I had a great upbringing as a kid.
She then asked if "I was happy" keeping it open ended, so I asked her if she meant if I was happy now or prior to the military. She then said "prior" so I told her I was happy before the military and miserable after just to make it very clear.
It was then she started to ask me questions straight from the PTSD DBQ that I had studied prior to going in (make sure to look over the DBQ to see where your exam is going). Almost verbatim one for one so make sure to memorize it so you can see where they are leading you. One question she tried getting me slip up on were "Did your suicidal thoughts come after you were in the military?" to which I replied "they started when I was overseas in the military in 2007 and have gotten worse since". She replied with "So they didn't start after service just to make it clear?" to which again, I replied with the same answer but added in the depression now has kept me from keeping employment since she was pressing it.
She then asked how I would commit suicide, if I had a plan. I replied with my plan as I have thought about it a great deal. She asked what had stopped me to which I gave her a reply that she wrote down. I told her I also cut now due to how my brain is working and she asked if that began after the military, I told her it started at my first command (the letter from my shipmate detailed this fact in her statement saying she saw cuts on my arms but was unable to help as she was so stressed out with depression).
Almost after EVERY experience I talked about with depression, suicide and self harm the psychologist kept checking to see if it happen AFTER service. It was almost deliberate how much she was trying to get me to say it started after I got out. (I recommend keeping an eye out for this when you go in for your exam as the wording was very weird).
Finally, I got into the sexual trauma I had gone through to which I started crying. I never reported it due to being threatened that my clearance would be revoked if I told anyone. It's a long story but I broke down to the psychologist about it. She too also started to cry along with me about all the experiences I had gone through and how hard it was at such a young age to experience it all. I could see the tear drops come down her eyes.
It was after her crying with me that I believe she changed from trying to see if I was faking everything to actually helping me, walking me through what she thought I was experiencing mentally. She was saying stuff like "if you haven't put this medical term on your claim, you might want to look in to it" or "I would go get this checked up on". She was asking me questions that I had seen others here say to mention like paranoia, not being able to have friendships, being distant, being alone, having security cameras around my house. Not liking loud noises, not liking crowds, having panic attacks, etc. etc. Again, it was like she was trying to now help my claim with questions I had forgotten to tell her due to nerves. We covered the entire DBQ by the end of the exam.
As far as what she was writing out, I could tell she was annotating everything on the computer and the entire exam was about an hour and a half. Finally, she asked me how I was feeling letting me know that "after talking to a VA psychologist that most veterans feel much better and the weight usually has been lifted off them". I think this was a final trip up question to see my reaction of saying "Oh I feel much better! Thank you!". I didn't fall for it and replied "I just feel broken". I got up and walked out of the exam room.
Walking out, the same front desk lady who was overly happy got up and said "Have a great day and enjoy the weather! Thank you for your service!". Again, another trip up for me to reply back with something nice like "oh you too!" in front of the psychologist, instead I just ignored it and walked out while they watched me walk to my car.
Post Exam:
I'm checking my VA claim daily online but haven't seen anything change past "evidence gathering". I'm hoping I made a strong case but I'm not entirely sure if I'll get a rating as I never have had one other than an injury of 10%. The entire ordeal has completely screwed with me mentally and I'm STILL exhausted by all the questions.
Hopefully this helps another veteran out there to get the rating they deserve. We went through a great deal to be where we're at now and if by going through it I can help others in their walk, I'll gladly be there to help.

I spent so much time researching IUD experiences and ways to mitigate pain so I wanted to share my IUD experience today so other women can know about this option. I initially had a Kyleena placed October of 2017 (never had babies before). I had vicodin left over from an oral surgery and took double the dose out of fear of the pain and the insertion was a breeze, only felt minor cramping during the insertion and no cramping afterwards.
I was due for a replacement in October 2022 but I missed my appointment out of anxiety, especially after reading so many horror stories from other girls (and I didn't have access to any stronger pain medicine this time). The planned parenthood near me wouldn't offer twilight sedation but said they could do a paracervical block, which is a shot or a few shots to the cervix to numb the cervix. I read some positive feedback about this but was still afraid of getting a super long needle inside me.
After some digging, I found out Virginia Women's Center in Richmond, VA offers nitrous oxide/laughing gas for $75. I took 800mg ibuprofen an hour before my appointment and was so nervous. The staff there were amazingly nice and the laughing gas made me feel like I was on the verge of passing out and everyone in the room felt very far away. I felt so detached from the situation, it was a very strong effect. I did feel some quick pain, 3/10, during removal & insertion but I was totally fine with it. I clutched my stomach at one point but it felt like an overreaction. Like my body was experiencing something that my mind wasn't completely processing. Afterwards I felt like it would've been a horrible experience if I wasn't so messed up from the laughing gas.
Tldr laughing gas for Kyleena IUD insertion was an 8/10 experience. Great alternative if twilight sedation or general anesthesia isn't available

Hey guys, so it’s apparently time for me to buy some new tires for the BRZ, and I wanted to ask you all for recommendations.
The car itself is a 2022 Limited and I enjoyed the Michelin Sports, but I kinda burnt them out real quick (had the car just over a year and 20,000mi). I live in VA, so the weather isn’t too bad in the winter when it comes to snow/cold. It is my daily, so I don’t need tires specific to track use, and I don’t really care if they are “all weather performance,” the summer performance were fine for me last year.
So yeah… for anyone else who owns a twin, what are your suggestions? :)

My wife and I took a trip to Portugal early December of 2022, and we had a really solid time. The food experiences were amazing and getting to take in so much old-world architecture was awe-inspiring.
Focus: Our main focus was lazy tourism and fine dining between Porto and Lisbon. We ended the trip with a 9 hour layover in Toronto, which we used to visit friends and some of our favorite Toronto spots.
Weather: The week was mostly sunny with some rain interspersed, and average temperatures seeming to be mid-teens. Toronto at the time was cold and snow-covered.
Accomodations: We ended up doing hotels as they were rather cheap.
Some photos below, along with some detailed notes of the packing list. Photos may be missing some things due to last minute substitutions, tried to note that.
Bag of choice:

• Peak Design 30L Travel Bag - This thing felt like a black hole, and seemed to hold more than the size would indicate. This is heads above my old Bellroy Transit and I'm happy I made the switch.

Worn clothing:

• Ministry of Supply Atlas Sweater - Not pictured, pictured is a Heattech Ultrawarm sweater I didn't take. Merino blend, soft, warm. All I could ask for. I surprisingly didn't use it much more than just the flight there, but I'm happy I had it on me.
• Ministry of Supply Composite Merino tee - The cut fits me well, anti-wrinkle, and surprising resistance to smells even with only being 15% merino. I got a good 2-3 wears out of this.
• Saxx Quest 2.0 Boxer Briefs - GOAT for travel, these things wear well, hand wash well, and dry overnight.
• Smartwool full cushion crew socks - Merino socks! They were warm and wore well! Smartwool tends to be realtively affordable when on sale, and they've held up very well.
• Lululemon ABC pants skinny - Warpstreme fabric is lovely and in black looks like a pretty standard pair of pants. This is actually the only pants I wore the whole trip.
• Pontos The Pacific shoe - These have been awesome. Very comfortable to walk in, and they dress up or down really nicely. These did cobblestone, grass, rocks, sand, snow, rain, etc, and they looked great doing it. I found I needed to pull the insoles end of the day, but by morning they were dry and fresh again.
• Arcade Midnighter belt - Not pictured. Stretchy black belt!

Packed clothing:

• Seagale Action Merino Tee (2) - black tees, easy care, love the fit. They hand wash really well if necessary, but I got 3 wears out of these easily. Having this tee on for the 24+ hours of travel on the leg home was a godsend, great moisture management and incredibly soft.
• Ministry of Supply Composite Merino tee - Grey. The cut fits me well, anti-wrinkle, and surprising resistance to smells even with only being 15% merino. I got a good 2-3 wears out of this.
• Ministry of Supply Apollo Raglan Sleeve Sport Shirt - Basically a button down. This thing fits awesome and doesn’t wrinkle. Standard sleeves would be better but this dresses up well enough - I wore this out to 6 different restaurants in Portugal, and even gave it a whole day as a layer over a tee, and it was very comfortable and performant. No need to wash between wears with a tee under it.
• Ministry of Supply Pace Chinos - I didn't actually wear these, the ABCs were plenty enough for the trip.
• Lululemon T.H.E. Shorts 7” - We didn’t have access to any pools or spas while there, so these were dead weight. Considering they weigh almost nothing though, not a big loss.
  
• Saxx Quest 2.0 Boxer Briefs (3) - 1 black, 2 grey. I’ve had these for a while and they’re probably still my favorite style from Saxx. They hand wash and dry well, and they’re comfortable. All I can ask for. I washed each pair once over the trip, and they dried overnight.
  
• Uniqlo Airism Boxers (2) - Sleep shorts. Hand washed once each, and they dried overnight.
  
• Smartwool Full Cushion Crew Socks (2) - Merino socks! What’s more to say. Smartwool is affordable while on sale and has some great durability. I’ve been happy with my pairs so far. I washed each pair once over the trip, and they really just needed a one day dry. I think the number of socks packed was pretty ideal.
  
• Smartwool No Show Socks - I didn’t need or use these, but having the emergency socks was a nice include. They’re small and didn’t really add any weight.
  

Outer Layers:

• Patagonia Nano Puff Jacket - Wind proof, water resistant, very insulating. Packs down rather small. I’ve moved to synthetic insulation as it keeps warm when wet unlike down jackets. This held up well to a bit of rain while we were there and kept me warm enough most days.
• Patagonia Torrentshell 3L - Water proof. Wind proof. A bit crinkly, and didn’t really get a lot of use in Portugal due to the lack of heavy rain. Also being waterproof it tends to keep heat in just as well as it keeps water out, so combined with the nano puff it offered pretty good insulation for Toronto.
• Smartwool Glove Liners - Just some basic gloves. They work with touch screens, that’s cool I guess! Solid for Toronto.
• Merino Buff - Part neck gaiter, part sleep mask for the flight. It was awesome to have. On tour buses with an open roof it was very nice to have a bit of insulation I could throw into a sling.

Electronics:

• Tom Bihn Ghost Whale Small - This contains my charging and camera connectivity kit, and it’s a tight squeeze but everything fits.
• Mophie 6000mah universal PD battery - Not the smallest or lightest battery, but it supports lightning input, and also does passthrough charging, which makes it the centerpiece for my tiny charging empire.
• Apple SD card readers - These just work, and they work well. Both Lightning and USB-C. Once the iPhone goes to USB-C I can drop the Lightning one. Let’s me ingest RAW files onto any of my devices. I didn’t need the Lightning one, but it’s just a standard in the bag now, so along it came.
• Anker Powerport III Nano 30W - Super slim, 30w charging. It’s been a standard for me for a while.
• Anker Cables - 3ft USB-C to Lightning and 3ft USB-C to USB-C. Covers all my device charging needs.
• Fujifilm X100V - Killer camera, compact, fun to shoot with.
• Tom Bihn Utility Cloth - It’s a wool square! It’s moonlighting as a camera wrap here, but it can be anything! Neck gaiter? Check. Very small blanket? Check. Table cloth? You bet. The options are limitless for the wool square! This was actually an MVP - The tiny blanket feature came in handy on tour buses, and it worked great for wiping down wet seats on a boat tour.
• Keys - Featuring an Airtag, and the final member of the charging gang, an InchargeX. I’ve also got a Nite Ize Doohickey on there for bottles and boxes. The Doohickey is awesome as it passes through airport security without issues and does a good enough job of what it’s designed to do.
• Airpods Pro - Basically perfect headphones for short stints. Reasonable battery life, great noise cancelling, agreeable sound quality. Overall solid.
• Destination Specific adapters (2) - Two is one and one is none, or something like that.
• iPad Mini 6 - Used for editing photos, reading on the plane, larger view for maps, etc.
• iPhone 12 - Works well with everything else I own. I grabbed an eSIM from Airalo on MEO, giving me 30gb of data for 15 days.
• Sony WH-1000XM4 - Not pictured. These were great for the 6-8 hour transatlantic flights. A last minute pick but I’m glad they made it into the bag.

A quick note on my charging setup: The whole setup for charging with my InchargeX allows me to charge two devices overnight AND my battery off a single 30w slim wall adapter. This is about as close as I can get to a perfect tiny charging setup. The iPhone plus the battery is plenty enough to get me through even the heaviest of days, into a second day.
Toiletries:

• Exfoliating cloth - Nylon textured cloth that’s basically an unravelled loofah. So easy to get a lather and you feel a lot cleaner after a good exfoliating scrub. I use one of these at home now too. I’d like to find a face cloth sized one for travel.
• Unscented Company Shampoo bar and soap bar - Stored in Matador soap cases. These lather really well, clean great, and support my “all solids” agenda for travel. They work great for cleaning clothes too. I’ve been using these at home instead of liquids, and can’t complain. We were never without toiletries due to the hotels, but I prefer these.
• Philips One Toothbrush - Next time I’d probably just get a cover for the head as I think the case was a bit large. I liked having the electric function though.
• Various OTC meds - Stored in Nalgene containers, these little things are waterproof and well built.
• Lush Dirty Toothy Tabs - Toothpaste replacement and my go-to for a while. Enough for both myself and my wife.
• Hair Bands - Two is one and one is none, or something like that.
• Xiaomi Mijia S100 shaver - New to me, picked it over a Philips OneBlade. Dual rotary shaver, compact, USB-C charging. I don’t get a lot of facial hair growth but I get enough that I like touching up every couple days. This did the trick. Might try to go back to a manual razor like a mach 3.
• Native Deodorant - Been my go-to for a while. I can’t seem to find a travel size in Canada, but this would be a huge space saver if I could. I may consider melting it down and re-packing it as some enterprising individuals on the internet have before me.
• Folding brush - I’ve had this for ages, and it’s been awesome.

Everything else:

• Bellroy Lite Sling - Very flexible in load out, the 7L size made for a very good holding capacity to size ratio. This functioned as my camera bag and held essentials when transiting through airports or while on trains.
• Tom Bihn Ghost Whale Super Mini - Bag of holding for…
• Ray-Ban Folding Wayfarers - Matte black, high quality, compact. Non-polarized. Perfect fit in the ghost whale and always with me for sunny days. These were great for the trip as we had a lot of sunny days.
• Apple Magsafe Wallet - Not much to say here, standard 3 card carry - ID, debit card, credit card.
• Vapur Eclipse bottle - Didn’t actually use this, but fit in one of the mesh side pouches in my Peak Design bag handily.
• PackTowl Large - Came in handy when we were short a few towels in the hotel the first day in Porto.
• KN95 Masks (3) - Black, used on the airplanes. We didn’t get sick on the trip!
• Matador Packable Tote - Was useful for day excursions, shopping, etc. 18L packs down into a very compact size and it’s a robust bag.
• Passport - Well this is kinda needed for international travel. I also had my Presto (Toronto transit payment card) and alternate credit card in here as a just in case.

What Worked: Overall I think my packing list is cohesive enough and walked the line between casual and nice enough for a good restaurant. I've been working with a lot of this clothing for a while so it's been tested heavily through the rigors of daily wear, and I was very confident in my choices going in. The massive standout was the wool utility cloth - I think more people need these!
What could have been improved: I overpacked on a few things like pants and shorts, which really are just small things. The Pontos were awesome for the trip, but I feel like I would have done better with a pair of Blundstones or a similar Chelsea style boot. I also wish I could find a more casual looking "technical" jacket for daily wear, but the options are limited from what I can find. I think I could have dropped the iPad too, although it didn't take up a whole lot of space and was great for editing photos in downtime or reading on the plane. The Mijia shaver was okay but not amazing.

So the current good weather got me thinking about making a post about sunscreen. I feel that a lot of people are misinformed about sunscreen. We don't really get a lot of education on it so I thought I'd make this posts to help all of you ☺️

1. WEAR SUNSCREEN EVERYDAY! That's right, you should wear sunscreen everyday, even when it's NOT sunny. It should be apart of your daily skincare routine.

Source https://www.skincancer.org/skin-cancer-prevention/sun-protection/sunscreen/#:~:text=and%20skin%20cancer!-,Who%20should%20use%20sunscreen%3F,whether%20or%20not%20you%20burn.

1. There are two types of sunscreen; mineral and chemical. Mineral sunscreens are usually zinc oxide or titanium dioxide based. Chemical sunscreens use UV filters to absorb UV rays. Mineral sunscreens are usually greasier than chemical sunscreens. If you have sensitive skin, mineral sunscreens tend to be more suitable.

Source https://www.houstonmethodist.org/blog/articles/2022/may/mineral-vs-chemical-sunscreen-does-it-matter-which-you-use/#:~:text=For%20someone%20with%20sensitive%20skin,sensitive%20skin%2C%22%20explains%20Christenson.

1. Some ingredients in sunscreen can cause ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE! A looootttt of people don't know this. I am really trying to stress this. PLEASE look at the ingredients in sunscreens when you are buying them. Ingredients such as Oxybenzone, Octocrylene and Homosalate cause a phenomenon known as "coral bleaching". Now you may be thinking "Sure there's no corals in Ireland" but THERE IS. We have cold-water corals aka "deep-water corals". These corals are important fish nurseries. Coral bleaching can have devasting affects and in turn, harm the fish population.

Source https://coral.org/en/blog/sunscreen-101-protecting-your-skin-and-coral-reefs/#:~:text=Key%20ingredients%20to%20avoid%20are,the%20effects%20of%20coral%20bleaching.
Hope you learned something useful.

Sirens, Police Cars, Fire Trucks, and Ambulances:

• Police scanner (live info)
• PulsePoint app (live info)
• Police log (on a few hours delay)
• Whatcom County Jail Bookings
• Bellingham Police Department Twitter

Traffic and Transit Incidents:

• Real-time alerts for I-5, SR 11 (Chuckanut Dr), SR 539 (Guide Meridian), SR 542 (Sunset Dr and Mount Baker Hwy), SR 548 (Grandview Rd, Blaine Rd, and Peace Portal Dr)
• WSDOT North Twitter
• WTA Twitter
• Bellingham Traffic Cameras

Gunshots, Explosions, and Assorted Booms:

• A handy month-by-month guide to those booms
• "Gunshots" are usually just cars backfiring: How Does Anti-Lag Work, and Why Am I Now Deaf?
• Is it June, July, or August? Probably fireworks at the baseball stadium: Bellingham Bells Schedule
• Is it very cold or windy? Might be a transformer explosion; check for nearby power outages
• Live near one of Bellingham's many railways? Might be train cars banging together
• Live near the waterfront? Might be recycled metal being loaded at the port
• Have PTSD from the pipeline explosion and need more reassurance that the boom you heard was benign? Check the City of Bellingham Emergency Communications channels -- if something major actually happened then there would be an alert about it
• "Boomhorses" are a /Bellingham injoke about the frequent boomposting in this sub
• Posting "what was that boom?" during a storm gets a roasting, so check the weather first

Smoke, Steam, and Haze:

• The plume in downtown Bellingham is steam from the PSE Encogen power plant
• The plumes in the Ferndale/Blaine area are mostly steam from the Ferndale Refinery and Cherry Point Refinery
• The plume from Mount Baker is volcanic steam venting
• May-October is wildfire season. If you want to know where the smoke is coming from, check the Northwest Fire Science Consortium and the Northwest Large Fire Interactive Web Map
• If you want to know how concerned you should be, check the Washington's Air Monitoring Network Smoke Forecast and the PurpleAir Air Quality Map

Strange Lights in the Sky:

• Bunches of white lights moving across the sky together are StarLink satellite launches. For confirmation, check their launch schedule. Bellingham seems to be under the flight path of the ones out of Florida. Previously on /Bellingham: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
• The blue circular light reflecting off the clouds at night is coming from the Bellingham Towers
• The pink/purple glow on the northern horizon is from grow lights in Canadian greenhouses
• The occasional pulsing orange glow low on the horizon in the direction of Blaine/Ferndale is flaring from the Ferndale Refinery or Cherry Point Refinery. Previously on /Bellingham: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
• Greenish lights low on the northern horizon could be the Northern Lights, so check the NOAA Aurora Forecast
• Bright blue-green flashes when it's cold or windy are most likely the aforementioned transformer explosions
• Other strange lights are most likely annual meteor showers, planetary conjunctions, or fireballs, so check the Calendar of Astronomical Events and American Meteor Society Recent Events
• Posting "what was that flash?" during a storm gets a roasting, so check the weather first
• If none of the above explain what you saw then maybe lay off the shrooms ;)

White Fluff in the Sky in May:

• Those are cottonwood seeds and they don't trigger pollen allergies
• Previously on /Bellingham: 1 2 3 4

Giant Rocks on Trucks:

• They're for the Mouth of the Columbia River Jetty System Major Rehabilitation Project
• More info: What's the Deal With: Those big boulders on trailers? and Skagit County Greenschist Headed to the Columbia
• Previously on /Bellingham: 1 2 3 4 5 6

Local News and Major Events:

• City of Bellingham News Releases
• City of Bellingham Twitter
• Cascadia Daily News: Local
• KGMI News Radio: Local
• Bellingham Hearld: Local
• Annual Bellingham and Whatcom County Events

I posted on this subreddit on late April/early May, to ask if anyone did a bikepacking trip to Harriman State Park before. Wanted to do another post after trip to share my findings for whomever wants to plan a similar trip.
I did the trip on May 12-13th. Actually wanted to post before but life was busy couldn't share the details before. Thanks for all the comments on my previous post, the comments made me realize that there are certain things that you just try & learn. I'll also def check the 718 Cyclery in the future for group trips.
The purpose of this trip was to explore my limits and the route to Big Hill Shelter, see it for myself that how bike accessible it actually is. I didn't want to use a full PTO from work, instead I asked to leave by 2pm. However, next time I'm definitely going to take the full day off to hit the road early. For the route, I decided to trust Google. From my start point I set course for Big Hill Shelter, adding The 9W Market as a stop. After midtown, I passed through Central Park then all the way to Upper Manhattan to George Washington bridge. Right when I entered Jersey, I immediately started cycling on the 9W all the way up to the market with no stops. After I had some food at my pitstop, I kept following Google Maps, now routes next to Hudson river that made me pass through some really cute townships until the Nyack Beach State Park. The road at the State Park was a bit rocky but also really leisurely sometimes right next to the river, sometimes in between trees under a nice shade. The journey was really bike friendly until the turn to Camp Winaki Rd from Call Hollow Rd.
My maps was telling me that Camp Winaki Rd is a wood road, so I assumed it was just going to be like riding on a path similar to the Nyack Beach State Park. I was able to ride my bike until a Park building next to what Google calls First Reservoir. At that point it started to get dark and Google started to be unreliable. I opened up the official Harriman Park map and figured out that I had to walk with my bike until the Long Path & Camp Winaki road intersection. Also need to mention that, because I spent a little time figuring out my direction, I was left in complete dark before getting to my destination. With the help of my flashlight, I continued to roll my bike on foot, and about 1.5 miles later (in about 45-60 minutes) I managed to find the shelter. The weather was 70 degrees and I was alone until 11:30pm. Was an amazing, peaceful night. Around 11:30pm, randomly, a group of boy scouts came to the shelter as well. We shared the area and talked for a bit.
My takeaways for next time is really a brief list: Leave early so no need to go through the excitement of trying to navigate in absolute dark and instead of Big Hill Shelter, putting Long Path Hiker's Parking to my maps and then following the Long Path for 30-45 minutes on foot from the other direction still heading towards the shelter. Also need to bring a water filter or carry more water depending the length of the trip. Leaving details and an equipment list below. Hopefully this will help others who want to do a similar trip!
​

• Length: 44 miles
• Elevation: 1204 ft
• Time: Appx 6 hours
• Start Point: 3rd Ave & 45th St, Manhattan NY
• End Point: Big Hill Shelter, Harriman State Park
• Pit Stop: The 9W Market (Perfectly splitting the distance into half)

​
Equipment:

• Trek FX1 Disk 2022
• Topeak Explorer 29er Bike Rack
• Two Wheel Gear 22L Pannier Backpack
• Big Agnes Fly Creek High Volume UL 1 & Footprint
• Cipway Compression Packing Cubes
• Aegismax Down Sleeping Bag Ultralight
• Trekology UL80 Sleeping Pad
• Inflatable Camp Pillow
• Titanium Pot set for Camping
• PocketRocket UL Camping Stove
• Camping Fuel Canister
• Flashlight
• Collapsible Coffee Dripper & Paper Filters
• Rockbros Phone Front Frame Bag
• 2 bottles of water
• Power Bank
• Sandwich x2 & Snacks
• Clean cloths for the next day

I've been having so much fun with this little story. Here's part one if you'd like to read it in its entirety! Alien learns what "sleep" is and how humans prefer to do it in a comfy bed with blankets and pillows. And they find it utterly adorable.
To summarize:
Vr'ocria and Human Aldrick were sent on a survey mission together. Things went south, Aldrick made sure they were safe, and then Vr'ocria learned what human sleep is and how vulnerable humans are when they sleep. Vr'ocria's people don't sleep, but enter stasis, a form of rest in which they typically stand, and they are still slightly aware of their surroundings. Vr'ocria finds human sleep utterly adorable, and also decided she would protect Aldrick while he slept. And she also developed a massive crush on him. (Her scales turning purple is her version of blushing)
Vr’ocria ran the engine diagnostic again, and again it came back inconclusive. She slammed her fist on the dusty controls. “Blasted thing.” Of course she got stuck with the rusty, crusty old shuttle pod that no one else wanted. Why did these things always happen to her? She just wanted to do her job!
Not for the first time, she wished she had Human Aldrick for company.
It had been two moon cycles since Vr’ocria had last seen Aldrick. They’d only served on the one away mission together, and once they returned to the ship, they’d been sent their separate ways. They worked in separate departments, after all.
But that didn’t stop her from missing him. She’d only spent a few solar cycles with him, but somehow was already totally enamored by the human–the human who was supposed to be a terrifying, dangerous, nearly indestructible monster.
Vr'ocria had met a handful of humans during her service, and they were all polite enough. But Aldrick was the first human she'd ever spent any extended alone time with. It was on that away mission that Vr’ocria learned what “sleep” was: The human form of rest in which the human becomes completely unconscious, and thus, totally defenseless. Something about learning humans were even able of being defenseless at all, much less in such a complete way, had changed her entire perspective on them. She’d grown up always being told to fear the humans, the wild, indestructible humans.
She had been nervous enough to quake in her scales, but he was nothing but kind to her. And when she saw him sleep for the first time–planets, what a blasted cutie. During their few cycles together, she always stood by him when he slept and she went into stasis. Her people were still slightly aware of their surroundings while in stasis, so she would be able to protect him if there was danger.
She couldn’t help but worry about him ever since they separated. Who was going to keep watch while he slept? What if something happened, what if there was an ambush or a ship malfunction and he couldn’t wake up fast enough? She wanted to be there for him…
Vr’ocria cringed at the memory of when she asked her nestmate, Galek, about human mating rituals.
“You want to mate him? Are you insane?”
"No! I mean–well…" Vr'ocria reminded herself to keep her voice down; Aldrick was still sleeping in the next room. "I…Galek, listen–"
"He's a human!" Even through the communicator, she could hear his scales snap. "He's dangerous!"
"He's nice! When the away mission went wrong he made sure we were safe and–" her voice caught when she remembered the way Aldrick strolled fearlessly through a thunderstorm, one warm hand gripping her wrist, unflinching at every thunderclap and lightning strike in the sky that rattled her to her core, as he led them to a cave for shelter.
Galek sighed. "Vr'ocria, let it go. We are not compatible with humans, they do things differently anyway. They don't mate."
Vr'ocria stilled. "They don't?"
"No. Well, kind of? Ugh, why am I even telling you this…"
"Because I'm your favorite nestmate," Vr'ocria grinned.
"Shut up." There was no bite to his words. "Anyway, what I mean is that humans usually court each other first, and then mate. I think they call it 'marriage.' But that's all I know."
She hummed in thought. "This is good to know."
"Vr'ocria, I mean it." Galek was back in protective-nestmate-mode. "Drop it, it's a terrible idea. Humans are…it's just a bad idea, okay?"
"I'm not gonna do anything," she mumbled.
And what if he doesn't even like me anyway?
Her scales faded to a faint red and her shoulders slumped at the thought. Back in the present, she absent-mindedly flicked through the controls on the cracked panel in front of her. Maybe Galek was right, and she should just stay away from Aldrick altogether.
“Agent Vr’ocria, report.”
Vr’ocria jumped at the tinny voice that suddenly filled the cabin. She pressed the comm button. “Commander, this pod is–” she stopped herself from using a few choice words– “in a state of engine malfunction. I can’t even diagnose a problem. I’m not going anywhere in this thing.”
”Stand by.”
Vr’ocria drummed her fingers on the consol.
”Agent Vr’ocria, you’ve been reassigned to shuttle pod Delta. You will join a crewmate there.”
That’s right, Delta was a two-person pod. She groaned inwardly at the prospect of working with someone else in such a cramped space.
Vr’ocria tried not to drag her feet as she approached the Delta pod. The loading door was already open, and she climbed inside. “Hello? I’ve been re–”
“Vr’ocria!”
She turned towards the cockpit, and her scales flashed to purple in record time. “Aldrick?”
The human was beaming as he maneuvered through the tight space to approach her. “It’s so good to see you again!”
“What are you doing here?” she asked, silently urging her scales to go back to green. “Aren’t you in engineering?”
He shrugged, suddenly looking everywhere except her face. “I uh...I asked to be transferred to the survey department.”
“Why?”
His cheeks turned pink. They seemed to do that a lot. Vr’ocria really needed to ask the ship’s doctor if that was normal for humans or if he was getting sick. “Engineering just wasn’t doing it for me, y’know? Needed a change of pace. I volunteered for that one survey mission and it turns out I liked it, so why not try it full time?" He turned back towards the cockpit. “We should get going! I think this mission is gonna be more fun than the last one. The planet we've been assigned has a more stable atmosphere, so fewer storms."
So she and Aldrick would be working together, alone, again. Vr'ocria swallowed hard before following him to the cockpit. Oh, planets, why did these things always happen to her?
—
The trip to planet Theta-7 was quiet. Aldrick occasionally tried to engage her in conversation, but Vr'ocria pretended to be engrossed in her file pad. Guilt prodded her spine with every one-word answer and noncommittal grunt, but she was determined to keep her distance. Aldrick eventually fell quiet, and her scales nearly curled in on themselves in shame.
She avoided looking in his direction, but she still heard the sound of his canteen unscrewing and the slosh of liquid as he took a sip. Her nostrils flared at the odd, bitter-sable scent.
When she realized she recognized the smell, her eyes blew wide and she whirled to face him, dropping her pad. "What are you doing?" She nearly shrieked.
Aldrick lowered the canteen from his lips, looking startled. "Uh…drinking my coffee?"
"Coffee?" Another foreign word. "That's remfrylie! It's a deadly poison!" Her blood was rushing through her veins so fast she feared her scales would start to swell.
Aldrick laughed.
Laughed?
Her scales turned yellow and stood on end. "What is this?" She asked indignantly.
"I'm so sorry, Vr'ocria," he rubbed his eyes, still chortling. "I forgot, I should've warned you–humans call remfrylie 'coffee.' It's a beverage, we drink it. The caffeine in it gives us a boost of energy."
She stared at him.
As if making a point, he took another big gulp from the canteen, and smiled at her. "See? Totally fine."
Slowly, her blood slowed and her scales laid back down. But there was still a thrill of fear deep inside her–she'd become so enamored with him that she'd forgotten how dangerous he was. Drinking pure poison? Just for a boost of energy?
She turned away, embarrassed, a little afraid, and a little angry at him for scaring her like that. She bent over to pick up her pad from where it fell at her feet and went back to mindlessly flicking through her files.
Fabric rustled as Aldrick shifted in the seat next to her. "Hey," he said softly, "I really am sorry for scaring you. I didn't mean to do that."
"It's okay." Her voice was clipped and short.
Aldrick was quiet for a moment. "Is everything okay?" He asked slowly. "Have I…I mean, have I done something to offend you? I'm really sorry if–"
Guilt washed over her again. "No, no you haven't done anything." She finally looked over and tried for a weak smile. Now that she was actually looking at him, she could see the way he'd turned his whole body to face her, his fingers fidgeting at the edge of his seat and his warm brown eyes filled with worry.
Oh, that's right, humans had color in their eyes. Her people only had large black pupils, but humans had pupils with–what's the word–an "iris." She'd seen humans with brightly colored irises before, and while she found them beautiful, they also freaked her out. It was just so very strange.
But Aldrick's eyes…
The brown was a little closer to her own black, making them feel more familiar. In the tiny, cramped cabin, she realized that this was the first time she'd ever gotten a chance to really study his eyes up close. The brown seemed to swirl, and she noticed that there were layers of shades and colors floating around his pupils. And when natural light from a sun shining through the window hit them just right–
Aldrick cleared his throat awkwardly and turned to face forwards again. "Looks like we're here."
Vr'ocria looked forward and saw Theta-7's solar system quickly approaching. Oh, right. They had a mission to do.
—
Theta-7 was warm, just how she liked it. The sand, not so much. She tightened her boot laces twice to keep sand from finding its way inside.
The mission, thankfully, went smoothly. Walk, scan, record. Walk, scan, record. Being out in the field was different from working aboard the ship like she usually did, but she found she enjoyed it. With the agreeable weather, she quite liked the peaceful repetitiveness of the work.
Although, things were still awkward between her and Aldrick. She fought the urge to make excuses to drift away from him–since it was just the two of them, they needed to remain within eyesight of each other in case anything happened. As a result, she had a front row seat to Aldrick’s human antics. He climbed trees like it was nothing, crossed a stream by easily hopping from boulder to boulder, nibbled on plants he claimed were edible but that still made Vr’ocria’s scales ripple with unease, and even insisted on approaching a ferocious, furry creature with his hand outstretched and cooing “Hi kitty! Hi baby! Come here, let me give you scritchies, come on–”
Vr’ocria didn’t know what a “kitty” was, but a baby it definitely wasn’t. “Aldrick, please,” she called weakly.
“But she’s so cute!”
“It’s got claws! And look at its big teeth!”
Aldrick grinned as the creature crept closer. Its head came to Aldrick’s hip from where he knelt, still reaching out with his fingers and making a scratching motion in the air. “Naw, she’s just a little baby, aren’t you sweetie? Come ‘ere!”
Vr’ocria trembled on the spot as the creature was finally within arm’s reach of Aldrick. He began scratching its sandy-colored head, and to her disbelief, the creature closed its big eyes and leaned into his touch. “Oh, yes,” Aldrick positively giggled, “you’re such a sweet little baby, aren’t you?”
Vr’ocria could only stare, stunned, as he continued scratching the creature’s head, then its cheek and chin–extremely close to its massive fangs.
“All kitties like scritchies, huh?” he cooed at the…kitty.
Okay, they were kind of cute.
It, she corrected herself. The ”kitty” was cute. Not him. Definitely not.
She didn’t notice her scales flushing a soft pink as she watched him nearly pull the “kitty” into his lap, beaming and petting it. A gentle smile crossed her lips.
Aldrick glanced over at her and tilted his head. “You’re pink. That’s new, I haven’t seen that color on you before.”
Vr’ocria’s blood froze and her scales immediately flashed to purple. Blast. Shit. Fuck. Great, now she was picking up human curse words.
He blinked at the sudden change in color.
"Oh it’s–” she coughed, “it’s nothing. Just the heat, I think.”
“Are you okay?” He eased away from the creature as he stood, and it darted off into a hole in the rocks. “Do we need to take a break?”
Stop being so NICE, she growled inwardly. “No no,” she squeaked instead. “I’m fine. Let’s keep going.” She buried her head in her scanner and walked briskly towards the next scanning zone.
When night fell, the two of them made their way back to the shuttle pod. They still had scanning to do, but it wasn’t safe to work through the night, so they agreed it was best for them to take rest inside the pod.
Once they were safely inside, Aldrick laid out what he called a “bedroll” on the floor of the cockpit, between the two pilot seats. Still dressed in his uniform, he laid down and shifted until he appeared as comfortable as he could get. Tugging a blanket over himself, he glanced toward Vr’ocria. “Well...good night.”
“Sleep well,” she murmured. She stood in the short aisle in front of him, facing the door, and began to enter stasis. Despite how much she’d come to struggle with her feelings for him, she was still determined to protect him while he slept.
It was in the middle of the night when Vr’ocria snapped back to full awareness.
Thud.
There it was again.
Shuffle shuffle.
She whirled around and threw herself on top of Aldrick, clapping a hand over his mouth as he jerked awake with a muffled shout.
“Shh!” she hissed. “Something’s out there.”
He stared up at her with wide eyes as she slowly removed her hand. She didn’t move from her position on top of him as she looked up and around the cabin, trying to discern where the sound was coming from.
Thud.
“The door,” Aldrick whispered, looking over her shoulder.
There was one last thud, then a beeping sound.
”Shit!”
Without warning, Aldrick was grabbing her shoulders and flipping them so that he was on top, and before she could even react, there was a core-rattling BOOM.
She couldn’t hear herself scream as a shockwave blew fire and debris over them, and then everything went dark.
Vr’ocria groaned as she came to, her head pounding. She found herself sprawled in the sand, looking up at the night sky. She slowly pushed herself into a sitting position, her limbs heavy. “What…” when her eyes focused, she gasped in horror.
The side of the shuttle pod where the door used to be now had a big hole blasted through it. Debris and supplies were strewn out across the ground, and judging by the drag marks, it looked like someone had dragged her body out and thrown her haphazardly into the sand.
She leapt to her feet, stumbled, fell, and jumped up again. Forcing her legs to steady under her, she stormed into the pod, and came face-to-face with a Norvidian pirate.
“Fucking pirate,” she roared, drawing her fist back and punching him right in the face. He yelped and dropped the thing he was dragging, and with horror, she realized it was Aldrick.
Something deep and primal flooded through her veins, and she grabbed the Norvidian's head. She slammed it against the wall, once, twice, three times, before dropping him to the ground, where he oozed yellow blood.
“Well that was fucking scary.”
Vr’ocria snapped out of her haze.
Aldrick was struggling to climb to his feet, and she darted forward to catch him before his face hit the floor. “Oh planets, oh my–Aldrick, are you alright?”
He rubbed a hand over his face, still looking dazed. “Yeah, I think–I think I’m okay.” He laughed, and it sounded a little hysterical. “Did you kill that guy?”
She looked over at the pirate, and somehow, she felt no remorse. “I hope so,” she growled. Logically, she knew the pirate was probably just tossing the two of them outside so he could raid their supplies. But the sight of him dragging a limp and pale Aldrick was burned into her memory, and her bright yellow scales rippled with rage.
“Jesus, you’re fucking scary when you’re angry.” He laughed again. “It’s kinda hot.” He turned pink and his face twisted in an expression she didn’t recognize. “Uh, pretend I didn’t say that.”
Vr’ocria didn’t know what it meant for something to be “hot,” so she played along and pretended she didn’t hear that. “We need to get you cleaned up,” she said instead. “Can you stand?”
Aldrick started to shift his legs, then went tense and dropped his head to her shoulder with a groan, fingers gripping her arms. It was then that Vr’ocria was able to lean forward enough to see his back, and she gasped.
The back of his shirt was in tatters, stained red with blood. Cuts and burns raced across his skin, and Vr’ocria knew that if she had taken the blast like that, she would be dead.
“Aldrick–” her throat felt thick, “Your back…shit–”
His breathing was ragged against her shoulder. “Hurts like a bitch,” he ground out, “but it won’t kill me. Just need to disinfect and bandage it.”
She laid him down on his stomach as gently as possible and rushed to the cockpit, praying that the first aid kit was undamaged. “Thank the planets,” she breathed as her fingers closed around the handle of an intact box.
She tried to steady her shaking fingers as she gingerly cut his shirt away and began dressing the wounds according to the kit’s instructions for treating humans. She also dressed the few injuries that ran down the back of his legs. Luckily–or unluckily–the damage was concentrated on his back. While she worked, she could see his muscles tense tight enough to crack, his teeth grinding and his hands clenched into fists so tight that his knuckles were white. She knew there had to be painkillers in the first aid kit, but she wanted to get his wounds dressed as fast as possible to prevent him from bleeding anymore. All she could do in the meantime was whisper quiet apologies.
Once she’d gotten him bandaged up, she finally dug through the kit. “Here,” she said as she fumbled with a bottle, “I found some pain killers, they’re supposed to be fast acting. You just let them dissolve in your mouth.”
She could tell he was in too much pain to move, so she held two of the pills up to his lips. He let her feed them to him, and after a few moments, he visibly began to relax. “Oh, that’s good shit,” he slurred into the floor.
“Feel better?” Vr’ocria asked hopefully.
“Yeah.” His voice was still crackly and weak. “Still aches a bit, but I don’t wanna scream about it anymore.”
“Good.” She stood and draped a blanket over him. “Now, stay put and don’t try to move. I need to figure out how to get us out of here.”
The shuttle pod wasn’t going anywhere any time soon. When she investigated the control panel, she found that the blast had knocked out communications, and their personal communicators were wrecked as well. “Great,” she mumbled.
Making her way back outside, she glanced around until she saw the pirate’s tiny craft a distance away. He must’ve landed out there so we wouldn’t hear him, she mused. She was reluctant to leave Aldrick alone, but she jogged the distance and pried the door open. The thing was a rust bucket, stinky and creaky, and she quickly decided she didn’t want to risk loading Aldrick up in that thing.
What to do, what to do…
Then she remembered: There was a survey outpost a few kilometers from here. She could take him there for professional treatment, rest, and to contact their ship.
When she got back to the pod, Aldrick was standing, leaning against the wall.
"How are you feeling?" She asked as she approached.
His eyes seemed clearer now as he met her gaze. "I've been worse," he said with a crooked smile.
Vr'ocria thanked the planets for human durability.
She let out a breath. "There's a survey outpost near here, due east. It's a few hours' walk. Do you think you can make it?"
Rather than answering, he stooped to pick up a blanket from the floor, shook out the dirt and debris, and threw it around his shoulders to cover his naked torso. "Let's go." He hopped easily out of the pod, and Vr'ocria could only shake her head in disbelief as she followed him. Humans truly were unbreakable.
It was still nighttime, but the clouds in the sky had cleared to reveal two big, bright moons that illuminated their way. Vr'ocria kept a close eye on Aldrick as they walked. While at first he seemed totally unaffected by his wounds now that they'd been dressed, she was beginning to notice the tight lines around his eyes, his white knuckles where he fisted the blanket, and the way each step he took was just a little shaky.
After walking in silence for nearly an hour, she finally found her voice. "Thank you," she said quietly, "for saving me back there."
He looked at her with those warm brown eyes and she thought she would melt. "Anytime."
Stupid purple scales.
They were halfway to the outpost when Aldrick collapsed. His knees hit the ground and Vr'ocria darted forward with a yelp to catch him before he went all the way down.
"Aldrick!" She shook him. "Look at me! Hey, hey…"
But all he could do was groan as his head lolled in her hands, slumping forward so that he sagged against her. Vr'ocria tried not to panic, but her scales stood on end anyway. "Aldrick!" This time her voice cracked.
Okay, okay, calm down, he's gonna be fine, he's human, it's gonna be okay… But doubt still twinged in her spine.
She ruffled her scales. Snap out of it.
"Okay. Aldrick," she took his face in her hands, "I need to put you on my back, but you'll have to help me."
He didn't respond.
She slapped him.
"Ow!" His eyes shot open. "Jesus, woman–"
"Look at me. I need to put you on my back, and you have to help me."
He blinked, eyes still cloudy, but finally nodded. It took some maneuvering, but Vr'ocria finally got him situated on her back–"piggy back style," he called it. She held his legs around her waist, and used the blanket to tie him to her. She could feel his warmth and heartbeat from where he was pressed against her back. His breath ghosted across the nape of her neck, sending tingles over her scales.
She tightened her grip around his knees as she walked. My human.
"You're pink again," Aldrick mumbled behind her ear.
Vr'ocria pressed on.
—
By the time they reached the outpost, her back was aching and her feet were sore, but she didn't care. She waved down the watchmen, and within minutes they were being swarmed by a med team. Aldrick was now fully unconscious and much too pale, and the medics wasted no time loading him up on a stretcher and carrying him to the med bay. When they tried to insist that Vr'ocria go to a separate room for evaluation, she snarled and snapped her yellow scales until they backed off.
She wasn't leaving Aldrick's side for a minute.
By the next morning, the med team had worked their magic and Aldrick was sleeping peacefully. He was curled on his side like he usually did, his face free of lines, lips parted, softly sighing with each breath.
Stupid human and his stupid cute sleeping.
She brushed his hair from his face, gently trailing her fingers across his cheek. Human skin was much softer compared to her scales, and warmer too. Aldrick had once explained that humans are "mammals," creatures that were "warm blooded." Her people were "cold blooded." Maybe that explained why she always wanted to touch him, hold him, feel his warmth…
Aldrick shifted and sighed, and her breath caught as he leaned into her hand. His eyes cracked open and he gazed blearily up at her. "Hi," he croaked.
She smiled. "Hi."
"You're still pink," he observed. "Are you okay? Did you get checked out?"
Blast all the planets. "I'm okay," she assured him. "My people turn pink when…when, um…I-I'll tell you another time," she stuttered. Galek was going to kill her.
Aldrick reached up to take her hand from where it still rested on his cheek. "Thank you for taking care of me."
She squeezed his hand. "Anytime."
This got so much longer than I thought it would 😂 How do we feel about one more part where these two idiots finally admit their feelings for one another?
PART THREE IS UP!

I am a single 28f looking for a new city. I live near Austin now, and while I like the city itself, I hate Texas and I can't stand the heat. I've already done a lot of research on new cities but so far nothing is really sticking out to me. I'm really into hiking so the nature aspect is kinda crucial, as is the ability to meet new people.
Some of my criteria: * People in their 20s and 30s to meet and hang out with * Has an airport for easy travel * Close to mountains and hiking trails would be ideal, but if it's a bit of a drive that's fine as long as the city has rivers, lakes, parks, etc. * Moderate temps year round. I hate heat and humidity and don't mind winter as long as it doesn't get freezing. * Semi affordable. I make somewhat decent money but as a single person who wants to buy a house in the near future, I don't want to sink a bunch of money into a rental. Hoping for like $1500 at the absolute max. * Fairly liberal
I actually generally prefer smaller cities and towns because big cities stress me out, but I really need to be able to make friends around my age. WFH so job market doesn't matter. I hiked the AT a few years ago and really liked the VA/TN/NC area so that's mainly where I've been looking, and my job operates on east coast time so that would be ideal, but I'm open to other areas.
Some cities I've considered: * Nashville TN (seems too hot, not as great as others for meeting people, not super close to hiking, and I hate country lol) * Knoxville TN (went here when I hiked the AT and loved it, but think it might be a little too small to meet people) * Chattanooga TN (probably too hot for me and I've heard about the crime and traffic) * Roanoke VA (In the lead right now due to proximity to Shenandoah and Smokies but not sure about the social life aspect) * Richmond VA (not sure about hiking options or social life and seems a bit run down) * Greensboro NC (havent looked into it too much) * Asheville NC (too expensive) * Denver CO (bit outside my price range) * Albuquerque/Santa Fe NM (haven't looked into these too much but saw it suggested a couple times on here) * Portland OR (my sister lives there and I like the city but weather is a bit gloomy for my taste and I prefer east coast)
I know there's no perfect city and I realize I'm gonna have to compromise on something, I guess just looking to get feedback on what options are the best bang for my buck. TIA 🙏

I am a single 28f looking for a new city. I live near Austin now, and while I like the city itself, I hate Texas and I can't stand the heat. I've already done a lot of research on new cities but so far nothing is really sticking out to me. I'm really into hiking so the nature aspect is kinda crucial, as is the ability to meet new people.
Some of my criteria: * People in their 20s and 30s to meet and hang out with * Has an airport for easy travel * Close to mountains and hiking trails would be ideal, but if it's a bit of a drive that's fine as long as the city has rivers, lakes, parks, etc. * Moderate temps year round. I hate heat and humidity and don't mind winter as long as it doesn't get freezing. * Semi affordable. I make somewhat decent money but as a single person who wants to buy a house in the near future, I don't want to sink a bunch of money into a rental. Hoping for like $1500 at the absolute max. * Fairly liberal
I actually generally prefer smaller cities and towns because big cities stress me out, but I really need to be able to make friends around my age. Bonus if there's a good kink scene there. I WFH so job market doesn't matter. I hiked the AT a few years ago and really liked the VA/TN/NC area so that's mainly where I've been looking, and my job operates on east coast time so that would be ideal, but I'm open to other areas.
Some cities I've considered: * Nashville TN (seems too hot, not as great as others for meeting people, not super close to hiking, and I hate country lol) * Knoxville TN (went here when I hiked the AT and loved it, but think it might be a little too small to meet people) * Chattanooga TN (probably too hot for me and I've heard about the crime and traffic) * Roanoke VA (In the lead right now due to proximity to Shenandoah and Smokies but not sure about the social life aspect) * Richmond VA (not sure about hiking options or social life and seems a bit run down) * Greensboro NC (havent looked into it too much) * Asheville NC (too expensive) * Denver CO (bit outside my price range) * Albuquerque/Santa Fe NM (haven't looked into these too much but saw it suggested a couple times on here) * Portland OR (my sister lives there and I like the city but weather is a bit gloomy for my taste and I prefer east coast)
I know there's no perfect city and I realize I'm gonna have to compromise on something, I guess just looking to get feedback on what options are the best bang for my buck. TIA 🙏

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FEBRUARY 2021 HUMBLE CHOICE
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11-11 Memories Retold
2064: Read Only Memories
20XX
7 Grand Steps
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A Good Snowman is Hard to Build
A Hat in Time
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American Fugitive
A New Beginning - Final Cut
Aaero
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As Far as the Eye
Age of Wonders: Planetfall Deluxe Edition
Age of Wonders III
Agents of Mayhem
AI War: Fleet Command
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All You Can Eat
The Ambassador: Fractured Timelines
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Ashes of the Singularity: Escalation
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Bridge Constructor Portal
The Ball
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BioShock™ Remastered
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Bridge Constructor Portal
Call of Cthulhu
Chasm
CHUCHEL Cherry Edition
Carto
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Company of Heroes 2 +Pattern Pack
The Coma 2: Vicious Sisters
Crawl
Crazy Taxi
Cepheus Protocol
Crowntakers
Curious Expedition
Cultist Simulator
Darkside Detective
Darksiders II Deathinitive Edition
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Death Squared
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Deleveled
Deadly Days
Distance
DISTRAINT 2 + Soundtrack
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Drawful 2
Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator
DUCATI - 90th Anniversary
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The Dwarves
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 + dlc and shit
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Eastside Hockey Manager
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Ellipsis
Endless Space - Collection
Euro Truck Simulator 2 + Austraila paint dlc
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EVERSPACE™
Evergarden
Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy Remastered
Feather
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Finding Paradise
The First Tree
Fluffy Horde
Framed Collection
Freedom Force
Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich
Frog Detective
FTL
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Full Throttle Remastered
GameMaker Studio Pro
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God's Trigger
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GRAV (Early Access)
GRID 2
Guns of Icarus Online
Gunscape
Hacknet + Hacknet Labyrinths DLC
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Heroes of Hammerwatch
Hello Neighbor Hide and Seek
Hexcells Complete Pack
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I'm not a Monster
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Injustice Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition
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INK Deluxe Edition
Into the Breach
Jackbox Party Pack 4
The Journey Down: Chapter Three
JumpJet Rex
Jurassic World Evolution - Deluxe Dinosaur Pack
Kerbal Space Program
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Knights of Pen and Paper 2
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LEGO® Batman 2 DC Super Heroes™
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Mini Metro
Minoria
MINIT
MirrorMoon EP
Monster Loves You
Moonlighter
MOTHERGUNSHIP
Mr. Shifty
Mushroom 11
Music Maker EDM Edition + 10 dollar voucher code
My Memory of Us
My Time at Portia
NBA 2K20
No Time to Relax
NIMBATUS - THE SPACE DRONE CONSTRUCTOR
Necronator: Dead Wrong
Neo Cab
Neon Drive (Steam)
Newt One
Niche
Nine Parchments
Ninja Pizza Girl
No Time to Explain Remastered
Not Tonight
>observer_
Offworld Trading Company + Jupiter's Forge
Old Man's Journey
OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood
Operation Flashpoint: Red River
Opus Magnum
Orwell: Ignorance is Strength
Orwell: Keeping an Eye on You
Out of the Park Baseball 18
Out There: Ω Edition
Out of Space
Overgrowth (plus a secret link)
Overlord II
PAC-MAN™ CHAMPIONSHIP EDITION 2
Pale Echoes
Paper Fire Rookie
Paperbark
Paradigm
Party Hard
Pesterquest
Pikuniku
Pinstripe
Plague Inc: Evolved
Paradise Killer
Planet of the Eyes
Plunge
Primal Carnage: Extinction
Police Stories
Project Highrise
Project Highrise
Psychonauts
Puzzle Agent
Puzzle Agent 2
Q.U.B.E. 2
Q.U.B.E: Director's Cut
Quest of Dungeons
Quiplash
Rapture Rejects + Safari Outfit DLC
Realpolitiks
Rebuild 3: Gangs of Deadsville
Regency Solitaire
Regions of Ruin
Regular Human Basketball
Remnants of Isolation
Resident Evil Revelations
Retro Game Crunch
Rime
Rise and Shine
Rising Dusk
Rituals
Road to Ballhalla
Robot Roller-Derby Disco Dodgeball
Rock of Ages 2: Bigger & Boulder™
Rocket Birds: Hardboiled Chicken
ROCKETSROCKETSROCKETS
Rusty Lake Paradise
Sam & Max: Season 1
Sam & Max: Season 2
Satellite Reign
S.W.I.N.E. HD REMASTER
Scribblenauts Unlimited
Secrets of Raetikon
Sigma Theory
Shadows Awakening
Shelter 2
Shenmue I & II
shutshimi
Sigma Theory: Global Cold War
SimplePlanes
SIMULACRA
Slipstream
Sniper Elite
Sniper Elite 3
Sniper Elite V2
Song of Horror
Sonic & SEGA All Stars Racing
SYNTHETIK: Legion Rising
SOULCALIBUR VI
Speed Brawl
Spelunky
Spirits
Spyro™ Reignited Trilogy
Squad (Early Access)
StarCrossed
State of Mind
Stealth 2: A Game of Clones
Stick Fight: The Game
SYNTHETIK: Legion Rising
The Stillness of the Wind
Streamline Early Access
Streets of Rage
Stronghold Crusader 2
Subsurface Circular
Sunless Sea
Super Daryl Deluxe
Super Galaxy Squadron EX
Super Hexagon
Super House of Dead Ninjas: True Ninja Pack
Super House of the Dead Ninjas
Super Time Force Ultra
SUPERHOT
Superliminal
Surgeon Simulator + Anniversary Ed. Content
Surviving Mars
Sword Legacy Omen
System Shock 2
System Shock: Enhanced Edition
Tank Mechanic Simulator
Tales of the Neon Sea
Tangledeep + Soundtrack
Team Indie
theHunter: Call of the Wild
Telltale Texas Hold'em
Think of the Children
Thirty Flights of Loving
This is the Police
This War of Mine
Throne of Lies® The Online Game of Deceit
Tilt Brush
TIMEframe
Titan Quest Anniversary Edition
Tokyo 42
Tooth and Tail
Torment: Tides of Numenera
Total Tank Simulator
Totally Accurate Battle Simulator
Tower of Guns
Tower Unite
Train Simulator 2017 + Platform Clutter, Town Scenery
Tropico 4
Tropico 6 El Prez Edition
The Uncertain: Last Quiet Day
Ultimate Chicken Horse
Undertale
Unexplored
Vampire: The Masquerade - Shadows of New York
Vampyr
Verdun
Vertiginous Golf
Vikings - Wolves of Midgard
Void Bastards
Volgarr the Viking
VVVVVV
Waking Mars
Wargroove
Warhammer: Chaosbane
Westerado: Double Barreled
We Were Here Together
Windward
The Witness
Wizard of Legend
World of Goo
Worms Revolution
Yooka-Laylee
YAKUZA 3 REMASTERED
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK HEADRUSH
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK MOVIES
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK SPORTS
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK TELEVISION
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 1 XL
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 2
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 3
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 4: The Ride
YOU DON'T KNOW JACK Vol. 6 The Lost Gold
Ziggurat
And other shit i probably have from recent bundles
Deck Builder Bundle
Walking Dead 10th Anniversary Bundle
Humble Bundles I have
August 2022 - December 2022
July 2022
May 2022
April 2022
March 2022
January 2022
November 2021
September 2021
August 2021
July 2021
June 2021
May 2021
March 2021
February 2021
Figmint
Vermintide
Darksiders 2: Deathinitive Edition
Sudden Strike 4
The Surge
Pony Island
Little Nightmares
Zombie Night Terror
Screencheat
Freedom Planet
American Truck Simulator
Tales of Berseria
Kingdom: New Lands
KEYS ONLY
PC Building Simulator
The Beast Inside
Children of Morta
Overcooked! 2 + (DLC)
Path of Giants
Pathologic 2
Shining Resonance Refrain
Still There
Struggling
Tabletop Playground
Zwei: The Arges Adventure
Zwei: The Ilvard Insurrection
Crying Suns
Darksburg
Darksiders III
Darkwood
Imperator Rome Deluxe Edition
Little Misfortune
Rover Mechanic Simulator
Smile For Me
Townsmen - A Kingdom Rebuilt
Tsioque
Yakuza Kiwami 2
Youropa
Autonauts
Basement
Fae Tactics
Fantasy Blacksmith
Goat of Duty
Iron Danger
Lightmatter
Shadows Awakening
The Suicide of Rachel Foster
Sunless Skies
Tropico 6 El Prez Edition
The Uncertain: Last Quiet Day
A Case of Distrust
American Fugitive
Automachef
Call of Cthulhu
The Coma 2: Vicious Sisters
Genesis Alpha One Deluxe Edition
Hello Neighbor
Little Big Workshop
Through the Darkest of Times
Vampyr
Wargroove
We Were Here Together
Age of Wonders: Planetfall Deluxe Edition
Basingstoke
Battlestar Galactica Deadlock Season One
Beat Hazard 2
Don't Escape: 4 Days to Survive
Earthlock
Metal Unit
Railway Empire
Sigma Theory
Secret Neightbor
STUBBS THE ZOMBIE IN REBEL WITHOUT A PULSE
WORMS RUMBLE + LEGENDS PACK DLC
Panzer Paladin
MILKY WAY PRINCE - THE VAMPIRE STAR
Desolate
Other Keys
Battleborn Starter Skin Pack
GUNS UP! Starter Pack + TV Head
Mage and Minions - $10 In-Game Currency
Star Trek Online - Humble Trekkie Pack
Shadow Complex Remastered (epic launcher key)
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 1 DLC
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 2 DLC
Killing Floor - Community Weapon Pack 3 DLC
XCOM® 2: Resistance Warrior Pack
XCOM® 2: Reinforcement Pack
Effie
Darksiders Genesis
Hellpoint
Disjunction
Cook Serve Delicious 3
levelhead
Fury Unleashed
Size Matters
Morkredd
Relicta
Retimed
Family Man
Vane
Elex
Kingdom Two Crowns
WWE 2k battlegrounds
Hotshot Racing
Peaky Blinders: Mastermind
Cyber Hook
Pesterquest
Ageless
Boreal blade
Valfaris
Lovecraft's Untold Stories
Iris and the Giant
Boomerang Fu
The Wild Eight
Train Station Renovation
Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince
WEREWOLF: THE APOCALYPSE HEART OF THE FOREST
OUTWARD + THE SOROBOREANS AND OUTWARD SOUNDTRACK
Want:
Offers (Ignore means no)
Oneshot (multiple copies are preferable)
Subnautica (multiple copies are good)
Wandersong
Indivisible
Xcom Chimera Squad
Hollow Knight
Everhood
Wishlist is sparse but im open to any offer
Anything on my wishlist
Feel free to offer any games for one of mine, preferably a list to browse