January
1, 2022 Sunday Meeting
5:00 P.M. Eastern Time
Discord: Valar Guild/meeting_place
Back to News
Transcript work by Varda.
[times are Central Time from Varda's Discord. Add one hour for
Eastern.]
Attending (and typed): (6)
Discord: Arien, Ar-Pharazon, Eonwe, Pallando, Sandalf, Varda
(presiding)
ThundersnowSarabi dropped by Jan 3, invited by
Tulkas-(Valar). Welcome, Thundersnow!
Before-meeting
Meeting begins
Membership news:
Web:
General News page now shows only 2023.
Index images for the new year shows only
fireworks related. (Jan 4 back to regular rotating images, with
additional model photos.)
Gaming:
World of Warcraft, Diablo 3, Lord
of the Rings Online
Tolkien:
Topic:
Tolkien's birthday. Coin
for next year.
After-meeting:
(non)Flashgaming
Reviews (plus) by Ar-Pharazon. Includes Blizzard games.
top
Before-meeting
Eonwλ Valar 12/31/2022 6:46 PM
As we move from the old year to the new year, let's learn
something from a man named Anthony Stark, a man that learns from
the past to improve and adapt:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gk2ocXjjm2g
YouTube
ChickenuggetKing
Every time Tony Stark learned from his mistakes
Varda 01/01/2023 4:00 PM
Aiya : )
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 4:01 PM
Aiya! And happy new year!
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:03 PM
Heya all and Happy New Year!
Arien Valar 01/01/2023 4:05 PM
Aiya all and Happy new year as well :d
😄
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:07 PM
Aiya All and Happy New Year! Ein Freues Neues Jahr!
Arien Valar 01/01/2023 4:07 PM
Thanki you sandalf 🙂
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:08 PM
Bitte
Arien Valar 01/01/2023 4:09 PM
The same to you
Varda 01/01/2023 4:10 PM
Pardon, watched your Iron Man video where he learns and adds what
he learns to the suits. : )
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:11 PM
When I clicked on the Video, it is "This video is unavailable!'
Varda 01/01/2023 4:11 PM
Aiya Arien, Phar, Eonwe, and Sandalf : )
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:11 PM
Yeah, gotta click the link that sys to watch on youtube instead of
in the mini-window.
Varda 01/01/2023 4:12 PM
Aye, agree that you think the link is reliable. Wellll, it didn't
kill my computer, so you can figure it's ok.
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:12 PM
Happens sometimes.
Or if you don't trust it you can look it up by name directly on
youtube, whichever you'd prefer :}
Varda 01/01/2023 4:14 PM
But you know I just tried it and it was ok. : )
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:15 PM
I got it to go too...it too several attempts. It is a long clip!
Varda 01/01/2023 4:15 PM
Except for pulling me out of the meeting, le oops. ; )
Yes it is.
top
Elen sila lumenn' omentielvo!
Membership:
Happy New Year to you all!
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:15 PM
https://youtu.be/AhFpbgvmyao?t=14
YouTube
PeetrW
Spaceballs: Would i lie?
Varda 01/01/2023 4:15 PM
Huzzah for having made it to another year!
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 4:15 PM
And you!
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:16 PM
Happy New Year! :}
Varda 01/01/2023 4:17 PM
@Bounder Happy New Year! Feel free to come to the Valar Guild
meeting_place and chat gaming and Tolkien, say hi, or just lurk in
peace. 🙂
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:17 PM
/.0.jgfxxvb1
]{l7h365
21':jksfghjkl;3
Varda 01/01/2023 4:17 PM
That's hard to pronounce, Sandalf. : )
Arien Valar 01/01/2023 4:17 PM
huch whats that lol?
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 4:18 PM
Looks like a cat running over a keyboard.
Arien Valar 01/01/2023 4:18 PM
snap i was about to say that 😄
Varda 01/01/2023 4:18 PM
: )
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:18 PM
Yes. I spilled some delicious Chef Salad on my spill-proof
keyboard...had to clean it up. Sorry!
Arien Valar 01/01/2023 4:19 PM
ah close enough
Varda 01/01/2023 4:19 PM
Hope you had enough left to eat! And your keyboard is ok.
Attack of the Salad!
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:20 PM
Yes to both. I made the salad,,,always have some left over...and
the keyboard likes blue cheese dressing, I think....
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 4:22 PM
It's a key ingredient.
...That was so terrible, can hardly recognize it as a pun.
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:23 PM
So does it deserve rimshot or waah waaaaahh
:}
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 4:24 PM
Probably it deserves people throwing stuff at me.
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:24 PM
badda boom...
Varda 01/01/2023 4:24 PM
heh
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:24 PM
tomato
Varda 01/01/2023 4:24 PM
Here's hoping the fireworks with the keyboard is the worst thing
experienced and you all had a great New Year's. : )
We had fun with fireworks. Homemade eggnog, friends. All good
here.
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:25 PM
shrimp
Varda 01/01/2023 4:25 PM
Yum : )
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:25 PM
Was it liquor-laden egg nog or regular, straight up eggnog?
Varda 01/01/2023 4:25 PM
Pork ribs to go with the black-eyed peas and cornbread and other.
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:25 PM
horseradish There, now you can make some cocktail sauce for the
shrimp :}
Varda 01/01/2023 4:26 PM
Non-alcoholic.
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 4:26 PM
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliebol
for us
Oliebol
An oliebol (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈoːlibɔl],
plural oliebollen, West Frisian: Oaljebol or Oaljekoek) is a
traditional Belgian and Dutch beignet typically eaten on New
Year's Eve.
Oliebol
Varda 01/01/2023 4:26 PM
For those that want to add rum, brandy, or milk, they have their
choice of thinner. : )
It looks wonderful, Phar!
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:27 PM
Vanilla ice cream was how they did it when I was growing up.
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:27 PM
I think an oliebol would go great with some eggnog....do the Dutch
have eggnog too?
Varda 01/01/2023 4:27 PM
ahh, I didn't think of ice cream, it was already pretty thick.
Arien Valar 01/01/2023 4:28 PM
that looks interesting , what is it made with?
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 4:28 PM
Don't hear much about that, Sandalf, though https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advocaat
is a more popular variation.
Advocaat
Advocaat or advocatenborrel is a traditional
Dutch alcoholic beverage made from eggs, sugar, and brandy.
The rich and creamy drink has a smooth,
custard-like consistency.
The typical alcohol content is generally
between 14% and 20% ABV.
Its contents may be a blend of egg yolks,
aromatic spirits, sugar or honey, brandy, vanilla, and sometimes
cr...
[4:28 PM]
I don't like either eggs or alcohol myself, though.
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:29 PM
It looks pretty rich even without reading the ingredients!
Varda 01/01/2023 4:29 PM
Sounds a bit eggnoggy
[4:30 PM]
We couldn't find any at the store, so I attempted to make my own.
Lucky it turned out well. It's the "simple" version here:
https://www.wikihow.com/Make-Eggnog
wikiHow
Make Eggnog
Nothing says "holiday spirit" like a glass of
eggnog! It tastes like Christmas, and when you combine just a few
simple ingredients, you have a treat the whole family can enjoy.
Learn how to make easy eggnog for your family,
a traditional...
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:30 PM
Ok, that's it, I can't resist.....
Varda 01/01/2023 4:30 PM
Main trick seems to be patience. : )
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:31 PM
https://twitter.com/SteamboatLeelee/status/547107626946142208/photo/1
Steamboat Tweet (@SteamboatLeelee)
Egg Nog. #christmas #startrek #TREKKIE #DS9
#trekker #holidays #eggnog
Image
Twitter12/22/2014 1:13 PM
Enjoy the Egg Nog :}
Varda 01/01/2023 4:32 PM
The pun! The pun!
Nog's face on an egg.
We'd better move to a new subject. ; )
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Web:
The general News is updated to be just
for 2023, with 2022 now in the News Archives.
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 4:33 PM
From eggs to webs. Today's theme: spiders?
Varda 01/01/2023 4:33 PM
Could be! Plenty of those in Tolkien. And lots in LotRO.
On our index page, all images are now fireworks-related. Hit
refresh or reload and they pop up randomly. : )
Regular images will return later.
(Membership: Elwing is visiting us right now, so you may be seeing
her pop up in LotRO!)
On to
top
Gaming!
the gavel nervously hops towards
Fionwe
never know if salad or eggnog is about to appear
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 4:36 PM
A wild salad appears.
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:36 PM
Picks up gavel
Gaming:
World of Warcraft:
Hopefully you got to see the fireworks in game if you couldn't go
out and see them.
They were all around and on top of my house, so no problem seeing
them here, heh.
This week's bonus event: Dragonflight Dungeons.
The PvP Brawl: Comp Stomp is going until Tuesday, January 3rd.
Diablo 3:
The Darkening of Tristram event is starting January 3rd! ---
https://us.diablo3.blizzard.com/en-us/blog/23893113/the-darkening-of-tristram-returns-january-3-2023-12-29-2022
Diablo III
The Darkening of Tristram Returns January 3,
2023!
Our anniversary event is fast approaching!
Prepare to face mysterious cultists and enter a portal into
Diablo's past.
For those who don't remember, it's essentially a recreation of the
original Diablo game given as an event in Diablo 3.
Fun to do if you haven't done it before.
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 4:40 PM
I did it the first year; if it's still the same, I recommend it!
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:41 PM
You use your D3 characters, of course. They're not going to make
you play Warrior/Archer/Sorcerer, heh. Although I'm really really
tempted to dig out my ME mod files for both D1 and D2 and see if I
can get them running.
That's it for my gaming news. I return the gavel now to Varda so
she doesn't have to go into the heart of a dying star to forge a
giant axe.
Varda 01/01/2023 4:43 PM
: )
I'd rather not have stars dying. : )
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 4:44 PM
:}
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:45 PM
Depends on how big the star was to start...was it simply a giant,
or a super-giant? If the latter, it would probably evolve into a
black hole...and you don't want to be around when the black hole
collapses on itself. It tends to suck everything around it along
with it....but maybe to be born on the other side, like the
Mortals who leave Middle-earth?
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 4:46 PM
Well, a black hole has the same gravitational pull as a whole as
the star it came from, though far more compact. Of course, if
you're already at the heart to begin with... yeah, you're not
getting out.
Varda 01/01/2023 4:46 PM
Thor movie reference.
Unless you're one of the jets coming from a black hole?
Not in the original shape you had before though. : )
Lord of the Rings
Online:
The Yuletide Festival runs through January 2, tomorrow, so do the
Storvβgϋn and the Battle at Frostbluff instances (from the
Instance Finder) for special items some high-level, quest, and
generally grab your tokens to do the barters that you want at
Frostbluff!
https://www.lotro.com/guides/lotro-yuletide-festival-guide-en
The Lord of the Rings Online
The Yuletide Festival Guide
Celebrate winter during the Yuletide Festival
in The Lord of the Rings Online!
Valarites who showed up in the kin this past week (outside kin is
not listed, but we have those too):
Landroval server branch
(RP-encouraged, full server, our main):
Belladonna
Eonwe
Fangorn
Meriadoc
Nar
Varda
Crickhollow server branch
(regular full server):
Eonwe
Fangorn
Varda
Shadowfax server branch
(difficulty slider, fast):
Varda
Treebeard server branch
(difficulty slider, slow):
Varda
Any other gaming news? Requests for
invites? Suggestions? Want something in a kin chest on one of the
servers? Other?
Membership news?
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:51 PM
Yes. The big moving van loaded up all of my stuff in my two
storage lockeres (Lagerschuppen). They will pick up my spinette
Piano at Chet's Moving and storage, all to be delivered to my new
home on 16 January 2023. Less than one month ago I had no idea I
would be moving back to CO so quickly. An Emotional week. I last
moved to Denver 42 years ago in December, also to a new home, that
I sold in 1990 when i moved back to Lincoln, NE.
[4:52 PM]
One of the lockers was my stuff, from my old house in the country,
and the other storage locked contained the things that I kept when
I sold my parents' house in New York.
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 4:53 PM
Gather all the stuff.
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:53 PM
Only to thin it out once I get to Thornton, and have some
room to spread it out, look it over, and get rid of the things I
no longer need.
[4:57 PM]
My brand new house in Colorado.
[Note: inside]
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/98425690877104128/1059243918304231455/20221213_111845.jpg
[Note: outside]
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/98425690877104128/1059243918711062638/20221213_114019.jpg
Varda 01/01/2023 4:57 PM
Fine looking house!
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 4:57 PM
Looks pretty big, compared to the houses we've got over here!
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 4:58 PM
2,153 squaree feet, with a three-car garage...
Varda 01/01/2023 4:59 PM
I'm already adding the fridge and... heh.
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 5:00 PM
You are all welcome to stay with me if you ever find yourself
traveling this way...I will have a guest bedroom once I get
everything set up. You can see the Front Range from my back
windows. I mean that. You are all invited to visit!
Varda 01/01/2023 5:00 PM
Three car! Impressive size. Make a nice workshop in that or even
part of it.
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 5:00 PM
Ya' sure, ya' betcha!
Varda 01/01/2023 5:00 PM
Very generous. : ) I owe you a dinner already!
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 5:00 PM
That is Oregon talk for "Yeah sure, you bet..."
Varda 01/01/2023 5:01 PM
Hey, you know you're welcome here. : )
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 5:01 PM
And yes...I intend to set up a workshop inside the garage.
Varda 01/01/2023 5:02 PM
Nice : )
Since we hit the hour, maybe we had better have our Tolkien
topic right quick. : )
On to
top
Tolkien!
JRRT's birthday is
January 3. : )
The Tolkien Society made it a custom, which we also enjoy, to
raise a toast and state: "To the Professor!" on his birthday.
The Valar Guild also does this inside our games and even in real
life.
Arien Valar 01/01/2023 5:03 PM
ah right
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 5:03 PM
Congrats Reuel!
Varda 01/01/2023 5:03 PM
Aiya Sunshine : )
(Our founder, Eru, was also a member of the Tolkien Society.)
In LotRO, we can also smoke a pipe in his honor. (No cancer fears
in a game, hah!)
We can also grow pipeweed, that lets us make all sorts of nutty
"smoke rings".
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 5:04 PM
Cancer as a game obstacle... sounds oregon trail-ish.
Varda 01/01/2023 5:04 PM
Can be a simple puff, a ring, or a fancy sailing ship. : )
Heh, I remember helping school kids learn to play Oregon Trail.
That was a while back. Some volunteer work.
Or just type /smoke
Or for the toast type /drink
For those who earned the emote, we even have /toast
Oh, should mention,
anyone can write some comment in Harbor or for the News page.
For the News page, email or Discord to me and I'll put it online
for you.
One more thing, from Pallando-(Valar):
https://i.imgur.com/IiM3JQS.jpg
Imgur
A new £2 coin will be issued next year
commemorating J.R.R. Tolkien
He put that up on Harbor. : )
King Charles on one side, JRRT on the other!
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 5:08 PM
It did not look like Tolkien!
Varda 01/01/2023 5:08 PM
That should be a major collector's coin!
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 5:08 PM
Can we get one in the States?
Varda 01/01/2023 5:08 PM
Not sure if any of you folks in the Netherlands will get them, but
maybe Arien in Scotland?
Probably. The same way we can exchange any other money.
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 5:09 PM
Maybe Arien could get some for us, and ship then over?
Varda 01/01/2023 5:09 PM
Or get one in a plastic sack in mint condition. : )
Be ready to pay. That's asking a bit from a private individual.
But maybe!
Might ask at a bank.
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 5:10 PM
It would have to be a commercial bank, i suppose...
Varda 01/01/2023 5:10 PM
Oh, and we can also type Happy Birthday to JRRT on the forum, even
in the Shoutbox. : )
One that does international currency.
Hah, maybe an embassy!
the gavel tries to gild itself to appear to have a coin on the
side of the hammer part
the hammerpad looks more like a coin
the gavel had bopped it to make the imprint!
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 5:12 PM
Hmm, I suppose there should be a british embassy somewhere in this
country... probably The Hague.
Varda 01/01/2023 5:12 PM
Good thought.
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After-meeting!
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 5:14 PM
It must be pretty easy to get from the Netherlands to the U.K., as
I recall from watching numerous ferry boats move across the
English Channel, as we traveled north to meet our rendezvous in
the Arctic Ocean back in September, 1973. I still have my photo of
the sunset from 70 degrees North, off the coast of Norway.
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 5:16 PM
Well, sure, compared to the kind of trips you get up to over in
the US, it's tiny 😄 UK's not in the EU anymore, though, so
there's border stuff.
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 5:17 PM
Oy.
Arien Valar 01/01/2023 5:40 PM
Namarie all 🙂
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 5:45 PM
Namarie, Arien!
Are your still there Ar? Anyone else?
Pallando-Valar 01/01/2023 5:56 PM
Aiya
Happy New Year, all.
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 6:00 PM
OK then...the Telegraph Mill is closed for the holiday, so I guess
I will spend some time working on Tolkien here at home! I shall
check in later. Namarie!
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 6:08 PM
Aiya Pallando, Namarie Sandalf!
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Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 6:15 PM
Personal gaming report:
For (non)flashgaming, let's get some
rhythm this week!
https://www.kongregate.com/games/fizzd/a-dance-of-fire-and-ice
is a one-button rhythm game where you follow a track using an
orbiting circle, going at a perfect pace but also going faster or
slower to turn a corner, all to the rhythm of some nice music.
Kongregate
A Dance of Fire and Ice
The second hardest one-button rhythm game you
will ever play.
Updates:
5/12/18 After a lot of bug fixing, finally
updated to WebGL! After four years. Wow th...
Not too long, but later levels can get quite frustrating
[6:26 PM]
While the early badge for level 1-x is quite doable, I've not
actually managed to beat the third level set for the later badge
[6:26 PM]
Blizzard gaming:
[6:33 PM]
Hearthstone:
58 on the reward track!
[6:34 PM]
Also completed the winter veil quest event, saving Ironforge
lore-wise, getting some battleground skins as rewards. This one
was somewhat battleground themed indeed, as 2 of the 5 quests had
you play some of them. And while I'm not too big a fan, I'm okay
with going through the motions as long as I don't need to win em.
[6:35 PM]
That said, I did end up top 4 in one of them, which counted as a
win for the weekly brawl/battleground/duel quest, so that saved me
winning an extra brawl.
[6:37 PM]
Said brawl this week is Gift Exchange, similar to last week's,
this time Great Father Winter drops crate gifts on each side of
the board, and whoever opens a crate on their turn gets the
reward. So in contrast to last week's, you can open your own gifts
as well, which opens the way for some niche self-destructive decks
like the warlock
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 6:54 PM
WoW:
[6:55 PM]
Last reset with no raids planned, but I'm too far from 70 to get
in on thursday. We'll see how late I am.
[6:57 PM]
Did make it to 65 while finishing the Waking Shores, with 2
questlines at the expedition camp, following up with Wrathion at
the Obsidian Citadel and bringing home the black dragonflight
eggs, getting both the black and red oathstones activated. I'm
guessing the oathstones will be a bit like the Pillars in Legion,
where the story revolves around gotta catch em all
[6:59 PM]
After that I sought out the last questline in Waking Shores for
the Sojourner achievement, and finished up with going for all the
dragonriding race tracks for the Tour quest/achievement. I was a
bit worried about making them all with only 1 upgrade collected
for my dragonriding, but they're actually very doable with gusts
of wind to propel you on your way. Getting gold ranks for all of
them will require a bit more, though But for these quests,
you just need to complete them. Got the next quest for Ohn'aran
Plains already, though I'll do the quests in the zone first
[7:00 PM]
I will say, though, I love the dragonracing. Diving and swerving
and dodging bridges and cliffs, going from one gold circle to the
next, picking up speed along the way. It'll be fun to find my way
to all the glyphs as well, I'm sure.
[7:01 PM]
And of course it's great for getting to places fast as well, if
you pick your heights and dives well, you can get quite a
long way across in one ride.
[7:02 PM]
Oh, and for Winter Veil, I got all my gifts on all the alts,
always nice to visit em
Next week we start the Plains, as we push closer to 70!
And that's my report for the week.
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 7:10 PM
A very good report, as always. It is dark outside, of course, and
when I drove home from Planet Fitness, I saw the clouds gathering
in the West. Another storm is approaching from Pacific and the
Rockies that should hit us starting tomorrow. It got up to 45 Grad
F today, but tomorrow the temperature will only fall. The Front
will start as rain and change to snow...no one is predicting how
much snow we could get, but whatever moisture we receive is
welcome! We are still in a deep drought on the Plains.
What Plains are you starting? The Great Plains?
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 7:11 PM
The Ohn'aran Plains, as mentioned slightly earlier in the report
Ar-Pharazon-V 01/01/2023 7:23 PM
namarie!
Sandalf13 01/01/2023 7:34 PM
Sorry...I overlooked that part...I figured it couldn't be the
Great Plains, and I was joking. Maybe a look-alike!
Eonwλ Valar 01/01/2023 10:35 PM
Heya Pallando and Happy New Year :}
January 3, 2023
ThundersnowSarabi Today at 3:27 AM
Mae govannen all and happy new years!
[3:29 AM]
New here but recommended to join from Tulkas the strong.
Varda Today at 8:16 PM
Welcome, Thundersnow. And hello to Tulkas!
[8:17 PM]
Most of our chat outside the meeting is in Harbor, but we'll see
you either place! Sunday at 5pm Eastern is our regular meeting
time, and runs at least one hour, with an After-meeting of
chit-chat.
Sandalf13 Today at 8:19 PM
Aiya ThundersnowSarabi! Aiya Varda! Just cruising my laptop and I
got a notification you were on!
Varda Today at 8:21 PM
Discord changed so that if you are in Harbor or meeting_place, you
have to click the little person icon on the top to make the list
of folks that are on show up. A green dot means they are on
actively. Yellow crescent moon means been away a while. Then the
offline list is below that list.
And a toast to the Professor, JRR Tolkien, for his birthday today!
Sandalf13 Today at 8:28 PM
Happy Birthday, J.R.R.!
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