7 Mar, 2013

Life By Uno

By |2013-03-15T02:49:31-04:00March 7th, 2013|My Brain|0 Comments

Uno

I am in an ongoing situation that I’d like to share. For the past few years I’ve been with a group of people who partake in a week long vacation to Ocean City, Maryland. This group is more volatile than other groups I’ve hung out with. This year it’s been difficult for everyone to get time off at the same time and only 3 people will commit. Problem being that the people committing are two draw 4’s and a wild. Starting with such a group is mostly problematic because we all know you can’t start the game with a wild.

Here are character descriptions in Uno terminology.

Face Value Cards
facevalue cards
This is the most common type of person with 0 being the least risky to 9 who I’d classify as your extreme bro. Face values take life as it is at face value. They wake up everyday feeling the same way depending on their value. Alcohol and drugs aren’t major influences and they are people who have their shit together. The higher the value, the more you can expect out of the person. I know some 0’s who are just bland and you don’t know they exist and I’ve met some 9’s who are generally motivated people who can become overwhelming if you spend too much time with them.

Reverse
REVERSE
The Reverse personality can be claimed by people who don’t go with the flow. If a group all wants to do something the reverse will be the person saying they want to do something else. They can be pretty annoying but do have some value. Reverses are going to be more creative and having one in your group is better than having none. The problem is if you start getting to many reverses, you’ll go nowhere. A 20 point card.

Skip
skip
The Skip card is another unique card with a specific character type. A Skip’s personality is leap frogging other people to get what they want. They are generally only concerned about themselves and have no interest in what you are saying. I recall the saying in Uno when I played with my Grandma, “Skip you, back to me.” Skip’s are worth 20 points so they do have some added value but it’s important to differentiate a skip from a face value.

Draw 2
Uno_Draw_2_card
Being a Draw 2 isn’t favorable. Everyone knows in Uno that the Draw 2 is a pretty pain in the ass card. If you get hit with it you have to draw and lose your turn. People who are Draw 2’s are your stereotypical dicks. They add baggage for no reason and are generally unpleasant. Every group has a few Draw 2’s but I’m not sure you want them. Essentially an easier version of the upcoming Draw 4. Also they have a specific color so they only come out at certain times.

Wild
Wildcard
I referred to myself as a wild in the introduction. Let’s review the characteristics of a wild. It’s a 50 point card, there are only 4 out of 108 in the deck, and they change the color of the game. Why do I think I’m a wild card? When I put myself in other people’s shoes and ask myself how they perceive me this is how I’d answer, “he’s generally a good guy but there’s an X factor where he’ll get too drunk and do something beyond belief.” This reminded of the wild card because it doesn’t come out all that often but when it does it’s a big event. It doesn’t really do anything bad either which is why I differentiated myself as a wild opposed to a Draw 4.

Draw 4
draw 4
The draw 4 has devastating effects. It makes the opponent draw 4 and the color is also chose by the person who played it. The Draw 4 is the hurricane of all personalities. It can be played at any time and it usually leaves a huge trail behind it. Draw 4’s require certain mindsets and can have no regard for anything in their path.
They are going to be the most entertaining people but you most likely will only be able to handle them in small doses. Something bad will happen it’s just when and where.

I also thought the title was pretty good to this post.

5 Mar, 2013

90’s Memorabilia

By |2013-03-15T02:49:38-04:00March 5th, 2013|Childhood|4 Comments

There is one great thing about getting older and that’s remembering shit you did when you were little. It brings a level of happiness when you think of things that made you happy. As a kid I’d wake up at 6:30am every Saturday morning and watch cartoons all day. These were days when I had something other than alcohol to give me excitement. All that being said, I’ve chosen some shows, games, movies, and people that will most likely go down in history as forgotten about unless people like me continue to use their blogs to promote them. Without further ado, I give you a list of things you would have forgotten about if I didn’t bring them up.

Snood
snood
I was a little surprised to see Snood as an Ipad and Gameboy Advance game which makes Snood way more relevant than I thought at first. This game sticks in my mind as a game I played throughout high school computer classes. It was extremely challenging and you’d have to make precise shots off of walls to clear levels before the level crashed down. I spent countless hours trying to master this game. I beat level 13 for a smoking girl in high school and I’m pretty sure it increased my chance to score .0001%.

Denver the Last Dinosaur

Quite possibly my favorite cartoon growing up for a period of time. This or Ducktales. For some reason I remember the one character being named Shades but the others escape me. Denver liked to skateboard which I must have thought was awesome. Wikipedia enlightened me that “episodes often focused on issues of conservation, ecology, and friendship”, but that doesn’t ring a bell. I remember jumping around to the theme song fairly often. I was going to use Camp Candy for this spot but I may have been the only viewer.

Tag Team – Whoomp There It Is

For a few weeks in 1993 Whoomp There It Is was popular. This wasn’t a particularly good song but you just had to know about it because people would be saying it all the time. I recall listening to it in my Walkman thinking I was a badass. It was also the theme song for the 1993 Philadelphia Phillies season and was featured prominently during the 1993 World Series. Between innings at one game, Tag Team performed the song on the field, with special lyrics related to the Phillies. With 4 million views I suppose more people remember this than I thought.

Land Before Time
The_Land_Before_Time
When reading about Denver I came across this “the show ran for two seasons, as the dinosaur boom that had followed The Land Before Time waned, causing viewership to drop.” So I obviously wasn’t the only kid into dinosaurs in the late 80’s. This movie was my watch that put me under hypnosis. I specifically remember having 5 plastic cups with Littlefoot, Cera, Petri, Ducky, and Spike and every morning my mom would give me a glass with a different character. Days with Cera were the absolute worse. Ducky also carried the catch phrase Yep Yep Yep which I’m sure I said adorably cute at 7.

Clarence Weatherspoon
nba jam weatherspoon and will
Baby Barkley really gets lost in the mix of 76ers history. I’d put him a notch above Sharone Wright in the remembrance category. He was the best player (or close to) for many years while the team just sucked completely. The real reason I have him in this post is because Evan used him in Scattergories for things found in a Gym and the letter was C. I believe he got vetoed (Evan is the king of questionable answers) but I believe this should pass. It’s not like Spoon is relevant but the C things in gym is too tough to veto it. (chest press, cybex, collar…)

Here were some more cartoons that brought back a lot of memories. If the show wasn’t animated, there was a great chance I didn’t watch it.

5 Mar, 2013

Time Dispensing

By |2013-03-05T15:11:02-05:00March 5th, 2013|My Life|0 Comments

funny-bird-hawk-looking-at-clock-time

I feel obligated to post material to this website. Successful and popular websites are usually posting several times a day to maintain the interest of the people. I know with the websites I visit frequently (barstool, yahoo, pornhub), they are constantly being updated. Unfortunately, my time is spread to thin for me to post as often as I’d like. After work I’m heading to the gym, eating dinner, and then usually have a couple hours of free time which I usually don’t feel like dedicating to blogging. As of late, I’ve noticed that I need to need to put aside a solid 2-3 hours of time to sit down and write. I try to use those hours to create as many ideas for posts as possible to minimize my work throughout the week. The hardest part about a blog is finding things to post about on a regular schedule. With that aside I’ve still been able to create this. It’s hard to justify 4 years of work worth $450 dollars but at least it’s not 0.

It’s always been a thought of mine of how I spend my time. What if I didn’t have a job and I could do whatever I wanted 24/7. How would my life be different? Would I get more joy out of being a full time blogger? Would I visit more places and enjoy life more? Would I have more creative thoughts? The daily routine has a lot to do with how you act. If you work a 9-5, five days a week, there’s a good chance the weekend is your time to let loose. I know for a fact I have some friends who’ve never seen me other than on a weekend when I’ve been drinking. Working a schedule like this actually propels me into drinking on the weekends because it’s the only time I get to do so. A different schedule would lead to a completely different life. How you spend your time in life is perhaps the most important, overlooked feature of life. Amazingly, it passes you by without even know what’s happening.

4 Mar, 2013

10 Question U.S Citizenship test

By |2013-03-04T09:33:18-05:00March 4th, 2013|My Brain|0 Comments

Obama Immigration Policy

In order to be a US citizen you have to pay at least $680 in fees, pass an oral exam, present 5 years of tax returns and submit for a background check. One of the best parts about being born into the States is that you don’t have to look foolish failing our citizenship test. Please respond to the poll truthfully. You must answer 6 of the 10 questions correctly.

1. What is the supreme law of the land?
2. How many amendments does the Constitution have?
3. How many US senators are there?
4. If both the president and the vice president can no longer serve, who becomes president?
5. Who is the commander in chief of the military?
6. Who is the chief justice of the US now?
7. Who many justices are on the supreme court?
8. When was the Constitution written?
9. Who was president during World War 1?
10. When is the last day you can send in federal income tax forms?

Answers:
1. Constitution, 2. 27, 3. 100, 4. Speaker of the House, 5. President, 6. John G. Roberts Jr, 7. Nine, 8. 1787, 9. Woodrow Wilson, 10. April 15.

Passed the US citizenship test?

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2 Mar, 2013

Rory McIlroy is a Quitter

By |2013-03-02T12:12:07-05:00March 2nd, 2013|Sports|0 Comments

I read an article that Rory McIlroy dropped out of a tournament due to severe wisdom tooth pain. He was 7 over after 8 holes at the time of quitting. I’m not a big Rory fan to begin with but this reeks of having a bad day and being a quitter. You already played half the course and you have to tough it out for 2 more hours to keep your integrity. Some people can’t handle failure and I believe that is an important attribute to have. People who can still have a good time doing something even if they aren’t doing it well know how to enjoy life. This story makes me think that Rory is a complete puss and when things don’t go his way, he quits. What shocks me also is that, “withdrawing from a golf tournament on the PGA Tour has lasting consequences. It means you’re not eligible for the Vardon Trophy, awarded to the player with the lowest stroke average at the end of the season and something McIlroy won a season ago. McIlroy will not be repeating this feat in 2013.” Moves like this make me dislike “athletes” who make millions of dollars and are out of touch with reality. Shoot a bad score and have a good time doing it to have a likeable image.

27 Feb, 2013

Alex Smith Sucks

By |2013-02-27T23:35:19-05:00February 27th, 2013|Sports|1 Comment

He's not a good QB

There is really no need to read anything further than the title because it says it all. Just for the fun of it though, I’m going to dissect the man, Alex Smith, and the bone heads in KC management who want him on their team. I obviously don’t know how much Andy Reid wants Alex Smith on the Chiefs but I have to assume he has some say in the QB decision. Andy has seen better coaching days and I feel that there are intangibles in his life which are affecting his coaching decisions. Andy had a rough season this year starting with the death of his son Garrett due to an overdose. The other thing that shocks me is that there was hardly ever a story about steroids being found in his locker. With Garrett’s death and the possibility of your son distributing steroids, I have a hard time thinking you can forget about this overnight and have a keen mind on coaching no matter what comes out of Andy’s mouth to the public. Where Andy’s head is at aside, I can’t understand why the Chiefs want Alex Smith.

This line would make you think highly of Alex Smith, “According to the N.F.L.’s statistics, in his last 26 regular-season starts, Smith had a 20-5-1 record with 32 touchdown passes, 10 interceptions and a 95.6 passer rating. He was the N.F.L.’s top-rated passer when he was knocked out of a November game with a concussion, and he was replaced by Kaepernick.” If you are a believer of recent results being more important than past, then I can see why you might have faith in Smith. However, I don’t believe this to be the case. My entire point of this post is to explain why Alex Smith is a below average QB who is a terrible fit for the Chiefs.

Looking at Alex Smith’s past is important to gauge what type of player he is. In his rookie year Smith threw 1 TD vs 11 INT’s. The next year he improved a bit throwing 16 TD’s against 16 picks but the team still had a 7-9 losing season. In 2007 he got injured mid-season but this little tidbit should give an understanding of the year he was having, “among all NFL quarterbacks who qualify for league statistics, only the Jets’ Kellen Clemens had a poorer passer rating than Smith (57.2), Smith completed under 50% of his passes, far below the league average of 60%. He missed the entire ’08 season because of injury. The ’09 season should be noted that he lost his starting job to SHAUN HILL. In 2010 he was starter again and lost his first 5 games as starting Q while succumbing to back up Troy Smith in week 7 due to injury. Smith had won just 19 games in 50 career starts through 2010. This quick summary of his career is how Alex Smith should be viewed and not the magic that happened in 2011.

2011, presto Jim Harbaugh, Alex Smith’s lifeline and why he is even relevant. The Niners finished 13-3 this year and went to the AFC championship but his play was probably not the main reason. “While the 49ers finished with their most wins since 1997, they did it while ranked 29th of 32 teams in the NFL in total passing yardage for 2011 and Smith was often cynically referred to as a game manager.” He threw 17 TD passes against 5 picks which is proving that his job is to not lose the game for his team. There is nothing wrong with having a QB like that on a solid team with a superior defense. This past year, 2012, was more of the same for Smith who led his team to a 6-2 mark before being replaced by Kapernick due to injury. Not surprisingly, with a better QB than Smith, the Niners were able to get to the Superbowl and have shots at winning the championship. Colin Kapernick coming in for Smith was once again a lifesaver to Smith’s injury plagued career.

I hope those background paragraphs should give a clear idea to what kind of QB Smith is. Alex Smith = Trent Dilfer. I’m only a fantasy manager but I know that if I were the Chief’s, I’d put my Superbowl chances at 0.0 if Alex Smith were my QB. Is Alex Smith an upgrade over Matt Cassel (a guy who benefited from a Belichick/Patriot team and would fit perfectly in this post)? Probably but you don’t want Alex Smith on your team as a QB. Teams win Superbowl’s with great quarterbacks. Alex Smith can win some football teams on a team that has brilliant coaching, stout defense, and supporting players up to wazoo. The Chiefs can hand the ball off to Jamaal and that’s it. The only hope they have for a Superbowl is a better QB who isn’t named Alex Smith. Why do you think teams are so big on experimenting with rookie QB’s? It’s the hardest position to find and maintain. Never forget that Kurt Warner took the ARIZONA CARDINALS to the Superbowl and this post is more backup. I know this post is long winded but what are these people in management thinking when they make moves like this. They obviously aren’t reading rnningfool.com.

27 Feb, 2013

Remembering a False Reality

By |2013-02-27T20:19:28-05:00February 27th, 2013|Childhood|0 Comments

bridgejumping

I had a very strange experience happen last night that brought back a variety of memories from my past. A few of us pooled some money together and bought an NES & N64 for the fun of it. The console arrived and last night was the first night that we got together to play. After a few minutes of trying to set up the system, we didn’t have the right components for the TV. This caused a minor delay as we ordered the proper part from Amazon. However, while trying to set up the Nintendo, it brought back precise memories on playing the system as a kid. The reason I’m using this idea for a post is that the way I remember the memories became clearer and clearer the more I used the machine 20 years later.

My memories in present day of playing Nintendo are all glorious occurrences. Touchdown passes to Drew Hill, swapping out Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles never getting past the rooftop, finding nuke, warp whistling past world 4, and getting bull rushed by Bald Bull. The TV was 96 inches, the graphics are crystal clear and the machine always works and has no load times. If I had never attempted to set up a Nintendo for the rest of my life, I would go on living in a false reality. Last night after attempting to set up the NES and getting to a point where we were blowing into the game crossing our fingers that the Tecmo Bunny (Adam called him a little buddy) popped up on the screen, I began to actually remember my childhood past memories.

There were good Nintendo games and there were bad Nintendo games. Some you’d put in the system and have no problems. Others you’d have to adjust, blow, and use every trick in the book to get to work. The TV I played on was a 17″ POS that you had to sit 6 inches from to see what the ant like characters on the screen were doing. Some games would be so hard that you’d never play them. At 10 years old it was most likely that you didn’t have the intellectual fortitude. Bayou Billy sticks out as one of those games. A testimonial to this point is that I played the Oregon Trail (Mac not NES obviously) for the first time since my childhood and floated my wagon down the river to close the game on my very first time through. The point is though that if I had never sat there last night blowing into the game, these memories would have been distorted forever. They’d still be my memories, but they wouldn’t be truth because I’d forgotten truth.

All NES talk aside, it brings up an interesting idea on what is the truth? The way I remember something is my truth, but your truth may be something completely different because you remember it differently. If two days ago I told you about my NES remembrance, it would have been completely different than the ideas I’ve put in this post. Is it better to remember things in a positive light even if it’s not the truth or to be disappointed with reality? Sort of follows the cliche “ignorance is bliss”. I think it’s important to keep in mind that everyone has a varying viewpoint and keeping an open mind for EVERYTHING is important. Living in the present is a weird thing when you compile so much information over a lifetime. Everything you’ve been through shapes you into what you are today. I just veered off on a tangent and am going to end this post before I force feed it with more mindless drivel.

27 Feb, 2013

Bruce Lee Mindset

By |2013-03-15T02:50:02-04:00February 27th, 2013|My Brain|0 Comments

brucelee-running

You always hear that people can do anything if they put their minds to it and I believe this to be true as long as what they are trying to do is realistic. You can’t just set a goal like being a millionaire without first being a thousandaire. What I’ve learned in life is that you have a better chance of accomplishing goals if you keep them simple, in view, and you are able to concentrate on them. Achieving one specific goal is usually favorable to working towards 10 different goals that never get accomplished. This Bruce Lee way of thinking makes it so you don’t get stopped by your mind in life. Your mind controls you but you limit yourself. For this example, I suppose there is a point of physical exhaustion where you will literally break down but I have to imagine most people never get to this point. People will generally stop for fear of “dieing”, but as Bruce says, you’re better off dead.

26 Feb, 2013

3 Favorite Music Genres

By |2013-02-26T16:38:17-05:00February 26th, 2013|Music|0 Comments

I am not musically talented. I have never played an instrument and don’t have that much desire to learn how to play one. However, I do listen to music often. I believe I started listening at age 13 or so to the Y100 top 40 every Sunday morning. This gave me a pretty strong pop foundation of 90’s music. I also developed a liking for the obvious 90’s bands like Smashing Pumpkins, Weezer, Bush, Green Day, Oasis, Nirvana and the like. For whatever reason I then really started getting into hip hop in High School. Tupac’s Greatest Hits, Dr Dre’s 2001, Eminem The Slim Shady LP, DMX It’s Dark and Hell is Hot, and everything else ranging from Jay Z, Snoop, The Wu Tang Clan, and The Hot Boys (Juvenile was my favorite). Once I hit college one of my roommate was big into Classic Rock and that hooked me for a long time. Since college I’ve been able to listen to whatever I want and have geared towards Alt-Rock and SynthPop. Aside from Country, R&B, and everything else not that popular, I’ve at least put a toe in the water. Lengthy intro behind us, here are my 3 favorite types of music in order.

3. Late 2000’s+ Alt-Rock
Alt Nation
I don’t want this category to be confused with the “grunge” period of the 90’s with Nirvana, Pearl Jam, SoundGarden, and Alice in Chains. Although I believe that period was more influential, I don’t necessarily like it more. Groups that I particularly like in this period are Gaslight Anthem, Panic at the Disco, Anberlin, Muse, Atlas Genius, and Awolnation. This doesn’t even count the bands that just get too mainstream but are still great like Black Keys, Passion Pit, Monsters of Men, Killers, Mumford and Sons, and Imagine Dragons. With the ease of bringing music to the masses there is just more to listen to. This genre wins over others for the sheer amount of quality bands. I believe this will continue to be the case as music continues to grow.

2. New Wave
New Wave Collage
I will take flack for this. Everyone knows that the 80’s were a complete step backwards after the unbelievable music produced in the late 60’s and throughout the 70’s. You had Bruce Springsteen becoming a mega star with Born in the USA, Prince with Purple Rain, U2 with Joshua Tree, and Michael Jackson with Thriller but these albums are the cream of the crop. These aren’t even the type of music I’m referring to with New Wave. I’m talking about Depeche Mode, Joy Division, New Order, REM, Talking Heads, The Cure, and the Smiths. I have to imagine that this type of music doesn’t even blip on most people’s radar but I just keep getting more out of it. I’ve listened to the popular songs by these type of groups and find deeper tracks that I like even more than their popular songs. New Wave on Sirius is my go to station and I rarely get tired of it. It’s probably because I haven’t exhausted it like I have other types but still, this is my current favorite. And of course the Saturday Night Safety Dance that just cued up in my headphones.

1. Classic Rock
Classic Rock Logos
There really isn’t any other choice. If you disagree with this period of time being the greatest music ever created, you just haven’t listened enough. Just starting with the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, the Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, the Doors, and the Who, you have enough to cement any argument. Throw in the other amazing artists they play on classic rock stations like Bob Dylan, Rush, Fleetwood Mac, Billy Joel, Elton John, and the Eagles and it’s a landslide. Do you think we’re going to be talking about the Black Keys the way we talk about these bands? This era was just an onslaught of music. It’s one question I ask musicians and never seem to get a good answer, why were these groups so good? Why has no one touched Led Zeppelin? Why can’t artists compare to the Beatles? With no good answer, it doesn’t make sense to give this #1 rating to any other type of music.

26 Feb, 2013

Famous Lloyd’s

By |2013-03-15T02:55:01-04:00February 26th, 2013|Celeb|3 Comments

Google needs to index a page that has the most famous people using the name Lloyd and I wanted that page to be mine. First things first, just look how Lloyd is spelled. It is obviously a bizarre looking word. Parents are almost like, we’re going to give you a name that has double L’s and a Y, if you can make it through childhood, you’ll succeed. Here are a few of the most famous Lloyd’s.

Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber
He’s a famous musical composer having a net worth of 700 million dollars. He created famous musicals like Evita, Phantom of the Opera, and Cats, just to name a few. He’s probably the most famous person on the list but the one I care the least about.

Lloyd Christmas
Lloyd-Christmas
Lloyd: The first time I set eyes on Mary Swanson, I just got that old fashioned romantic feeling where I’d do anything to bone her.

Lloyd: That’s a lovely accent you have. New Jersey?
Lady at bus stop: Austria.
Lloyd: Austria! Well, then. G’day mate! Let’s put another shrimp on the barbie!

Lloyd: Hey, look, the Monkees. They were a huge influence on the Beatles.

Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank_Lloyd_Wright
Certainly in the real running for most famous man with the name Lloyd. If you hear a question about architecture on Jeopardy, chances are your best guess is Frank Lloyd Wright. “Wright believed in designing structures which were in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture. This philosophy was best exemplified by his design for Fallingwater (1935), which has been called “the best all-time work of American architecture””

Christopher Lloyd


Last names count as well. Probably best known as Doc Brown in Back to the Future but that doesn’t mean he didn’t have other gems. Anyone remember Judge Doom in Who Framed Roger Rabbit? Or Switchblade Sam in Dennis the Menace? Al the Angel in Angels in the Outfield? Dennis in Camp Nowhere? These are all classics to kids growing up in the 90’s. I just hope he has enough money he doesn’t have to continue working because I could see him as a guy who doesn’t save any cash.

Lloyd Blankfein
Lloyd_C._Blankfein
CEO of Goldman Sachs and one of the major minds in the banking crash of 2008. He comes off as relatively clean but he’s involved in so much shit that the public has no clue. One of his highlights, “In November 2009, he declared in an interview, as a banker: “I’m doing God’s work.” Several days later he indicated that he regretted that remark and said he had intended it as a joke. He also apologized on behalf of Goldman Sachs to the public for unspecified “things that were clearly wrong and have reason to regret” and which contributed to the financial and economic crisis. The firm announced a 10,000 Small Businesses initiative, committing $500 million to aid American small businesses.

Lloyd’s of London
Lloyds of London is most famous for oddball insurance policies. Here are a few of their better ones:
– Silent film comedian Ben Turpin’s eyes against uncrossing
– Cricketer Merv Hughes’s trademark walrus mustache while playing for Australia between 1985-1994
– The hands of the 1932 World Yo-Yo Champion Harvey Lowe
– Keith Richards’ fingers
– Food critic and gourmet Egon Ronay’s taste buds for £250,000
– Whitney Houston’s, Toni Braxton’s, Celine Dion’s, Bob Dylan’s and Bruce Springsteen’s vocal cords
– Michael Flatley’s legs for $47 million(the policy was only in effect when he was touring, and forbade him from dancing except on stage)
– Troy Polamalu’s hair for $1 million
– Holly Madison’s breasts for $1 million
– A confident comedy theatre group against the risk of a member of their audience dying of laughter

Lloyd Braun
Lloyd Braun

Saving the best for last. “Why can’t you be more like Lloyd Braun?” This clip brings out the best in George.

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