Can't say that I'll miss it nor can I say that it's been fun!
This thread will surely garner some responses along the lines of "you deserve the rank you're in!" GO AHEAD AND YAP AWAY I WILL NOT BE READING ANY OF IT ANYMORE!!
Why am I VOD reviewing my games to watch my ADC flash in place, my JINX TOP go 0/19 and call it jungle diff and tell me to kill myself, this is the farthest thing from helping me improve or learn. Why am I spending my personal time watching YouTube videos and trying to find other learning resources to improve at something that genuinely gives me no joy?
Fuckers will tell you that you deserve the rank you're in, "just play hard carry champs". I've been at this since 2012, only recently started playing ranked again after years of arams and norms with friends doing absolutely fine, able to hold my own on a few champs regardless of lane fairly well!
When you are actively playing against 5 enemy players, as well as have 4 of your own teammates spend 40 mins in a game farming your JG or afk'ing and telling you to kill yourself, I truly don't understand how the fuck I'm meant to improve.
I sit in discord with my friends who I've been playing with the entire time, all in Emerald, diamond, plat. I can queue up a normal game with them and do absolutely fine, but hey here I am with my "deserved" rank of Iron 3.
I see people constantly asking low Elo players "are you legitimately disabled and unable to play the game properly?" or "Do you have any other sort of video game experience what so ever??" or I get people equating rank to IQ score? How is your vapid question with shitty undertones helping me to improve or learn what so ever other than someone nonchalanty shitting on me because they're a higher rank.
I understand a lot of these people who are higher rank don't have jobs, or are currently students with a lot of free time, are able to spend 8+ hour playing the game, I work full time and am only able to play ~1 or 2 games per night if I'm lucky and I'll say this much, this game has been and continues to be absolutely the biggest waste of my fucking time since I started playing PC.
Today I've decided is the day I take it off my computer and never look back. I'm losing a bit of money because I've been collecting skins playing arams since 2012 but I could honestly care less. I don't give a shit what anyones rank is anymore, I don't care about trying to learn or improve anymore, this community is seriously sickening and I refuse to call myself part of it anymore.
End rant, best of luck everyone! Wishing all my junglers the best in life.

For just some background, I did alot in high school but being an Asian Male in CS fucked me. I currently just finished my freshmen year of college and trying to transfer to a T5 CS school or like Princeton and Columbia. My main reason is to get into top tier quant shops. Here are my stats:
High School: GPA: 3.98 SAT: 1550 Aps: 19 (all 5s and a few 4s)
-Robotics Captain - MAO VP - Fundraised 10k for robotics team - Led the outreach for robotics team -Teach kids coding (job) - Other Clubs
College (Big Name, not great for CS): GPA: 4.0 after freshmen year
Since graduating high school… -1 ML Robotics internship
-Research position at local university
-2 research labs
-Incoming MLE at very well respected quant firm
-Student quant fund analyst (potentially)
-Quant club board member
Is it worth transfering? If so what are my chances at top universities considering I don’t come from a non-traditional background?

Here are the results from S46 Episode 11 Day After Survey.
You can view Google's interactive summary of the results here.

Total Responses: 290

Overall Reactions

Average: 7.56 Standard deviations: 1.39

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
0.3%	0.7%	0.3%	0.7%	4.5%	11%	26.6%	32.1%	18.6%	5.2%

​

Contestant Reactions

The top 5 Survivors are listed below. In all questions, up to 2 picks were allowed.
Which Survivors played the best strategically?

1. Charlie (89.2%)
2. Q (30.1%)
3. Kenzie (26.2%)
4. Maria (15%)
5. Ben (13.6%)

Which Survivors were the most exciting characters to watch?

1. Venus (77%)
2. Charlie (40.8%)
3. Q (39%)
4. Maria (15.3%)
5. Liz (13.6%)

Which Survivors gave the best confessionals?

1. Charlie (58.3%)
2. Venus (52.3%)
3. Q (35%)
4. Kenzie (32.5%)
5. Liz (7.1%)

Which Survivors gave the best challenge performances?

1. Maria (93%)
2. Venus (89.5%)
3. Charlie (5.6%)
4. Q (1.7%)
5. Ben (1.4%)

Which Survivors gave the best Tribal Council performances?

1. Q (64.5%)
2. Venus (48.9%)
3. Charlie (35.5%)
4. Liz (14.9%)
5. Kenzie (8%)

Overall, which Survivors stood out to you the most in this episode?

1. Venus (65.8%)
2. Charlie (64.1%)
3. Maria (25%)
4. Q (21.1%)
5. Kenzie (9.5%)

​

Gameplay

What do you think of Maria making them playing rock-paper-scissors to decide who goes on the reward?

1. Bad move (92.4%)
2. It's alright (4.9%)
3. Great move (1.7%)
4. I don't know (1%)

If you were Maria, who would you have picked to go on the reward (after Ben)?

1. Liz (72%)
2. Q (10%)
3. Venus (8%)
4. Charlie (4.8%)
5. I don't know (3.5%)
6. Rock-paper-scissors (1%)
7. Kenzie (0.7%)

What was the right move for Venus to make regarding the idol?

1. Tell no one (85.8%)
2. Tell Charlie (8%)
3. Tell Kenzie (5.9%)
4. Hint at the idol to Charlie (what she did in the episode) (0%)

If you were Charlie, who would you have voted for?

1. Venus (61.6%)
2. Q (33.8%)
3. I don't know (4.6%)

Which misspelling is worse?

1. Venise (87.5%)
2. Kensey (12.5%)

In one word, describe Venus, the twelfth boot

1. Delusional (16)
2. Queen / Queenus (14)
3. Chaos / Chaotic (13)
4. Icon / Iconic (8)
5. Arrogant, Entertaining, Mother, Unaware (7)

Would you like to see Venus return in a future season?

1. Yes (70.7%)
2. No (29.3%)

​

Editing/Production

Overall, how would you rate how this episode was edited?
Average: 7.32 Standard deviation: 1.67

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
0.7%	1.1%	1.1%	3.6%	5.8%	12%	23.9%	30.1%	15.2%	6.5%

​

Challenges

How would you rate the immunity challenge?
Average: 7.50 Standard deviation: 1.89

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
1.1%	0.7%	1.1%	4.3%	7.9%	12.6%	12.9%	26.6%	19.4%	13.3%

​

Next Time on Survivor

The top 5 Survivors are listed below. Up to 2 picks were allowed.
Which Survivors are in the most danger next episode?

1. Maria (90.4%)
2. Q (58.6%)
3. Kenzie (24.3%)
4. Charlie (11.4%)
5. Liz (5.4%)
6. Ben (3.2%)

Why freelancing is important for social media marketers, supported by data and insights:
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About me
Hello there, my name is Coach Chesster(Yes, an obvious Chess reference, which is, by far, my favorite game). I've been playing League of Legends since season one, I've experienced everything from full AP Yi one-shotting my entire team to Tryndamere mains spinning around with a needlessly large rod instead of a sword. You could say I've been there during all the important historical moments of the game. I've been at the top of the ladder in Season 6 (Going between high Diamond and Challenger, based on how much time I've had to invest). I've competed in various tournaments, even being able to win a number of them, before I decided to get myself into coaching.
Coaching
I started the entire coaching thing during season 7 when one of my friends asked if I wanted to help him get out of that Diamond 4 hell. Ever since then, I was having a consistent number of sessions on a weekly basis, with my network of people slowly increasing(One of them actually gave me the idea to advertise on Reddit, which I did eventually accept!) I've coached more than 700 individuals ever since I started and I can proudly say I've had more than 500 sessions this year alone! So, if you are looking for someone who is around for more than 5 days actually add me.
Some of my personal coaching achievements include
Getting a player from Silver 1 to Platinum in just 5 weeks
Getting D2 to Masters in 2 weeks
Bronze 1 to Diamond, yes, this one happened as well, though it took slightly more time
Helping Duo players on NA reach Gold(They were actually stuck in Bronze 2 prior!)
Creating a coach from hard-stuck D2 after he got GM
Community
In addition to my services, I am proud to present to you our Educational community, which is steadily growing on a daily basis. Aside from Coaching, it is an amazing place to connect with other people, find friends and talk about the game all of us love and enjoy. Various events are held on a weekly basis, from 1v1 tournaments to Team Contests, with nice rewards being given out! Hint, you might win a free session!
All of our coaches have been vetted and verified, being certain all of you guys get the best service available! Every single one has peaked at least Grandmaster, with a minimum of 250 Coaching Hours to their name.
Discord Community: CLICK HERE

• Upon joining, message me in order to have a Role assigned!

Prices?
Prices for my sessions are negotiable and I can guarantee, they fall onto the affordable part of the specter!
My coaching sessions are oriented and tailored to each student's specific needs, and they do cover everything from theory to live coaching, in-game mentality, etc.

Note : This thread is recreated after being removed because staff named "FNC_Loki" said it was removed only because it was posted in the match day. And it wouldn't be removed if it was posted today.
I am sick of we can be good but we are inconsistent narrative. We always play the same way. We fight whenever we can fight. We chase kills whenever we can chase kills.We didn't choke against TL this was our usual level.
We also never ever beat a stronger team than us in a Bo5 series or come close to it. Our inconsistent results only happen against weaker teams. We always lose to stronger ones. Always has been the case since the start of Humanoid-Razork era. Last time we beat a team that is on paper better than us was the mental booming G2 with Bwipo-Hyli-Upset core. In "Nemesis-Rekless era" we always made it out of groups and had hope when we were going against a TOP Esports team that is much stronger than today's TOP ESports.
Inconsistent results against weaker teams appear because sometimes they are able to punish over agression even though they can't repeat it. See BDS series where we reverse sweep or Mad Lions series. Or Vitality series which was a close one
In contrast when we are weaker than our opponent people try to cope saying "GenG series was close even though it was a 3-0 with 2 games ending in 27 minutes. Game 2 was surprisingly close yes. It doesn't mean whole series was a well fought close series that showed we can be better than Asian teams.

Source: 🔗 Chat with Lifelike Virtual Personalities — talkiemate.com
If you are a visual storytelling fan and strive for creativity through fictional characters’ eyes, you’re in the right place. Character.ai is an amazing tool that lets you do just that! But what if you crave a different experience, with more tools or a specific character in mind? Fear not, for we have gone through 35+ options and picked the top 10 paid and free Character AI alternatives, each offering a unique experience tailored to your preferences. Whether you’re a writer looking to enrich your stories, a history buff eager to get deeper into the past, or simply someone who loves engaging with AI in a new way, keep reading if you’re:
A tech enthusiast curious about the intersection of AI and storytelling.
A gamer eager to experience AI-driven narratives in your favorite games.
A marketer looking to use AI for content creation and engagement.
A researcher interested in the psychological impact of AI-generated characters on user engagement.
A storyteller seeking new ways to engage your audience through AI-generated content.

1. TalkieMate

Website: TalkieMate
TalkieMate is the best free alternative to Character AI, providing users with a plethora of options to create their personalized AI girlfriend. With TalkieMate, you can engage in deeply immersive and uncensored conversations on a wide range of topics, including NSFW content. The platform offers customizable characters, allowing users to tailor their experience according to their preferences. Whether you’re looking for a companion for deep discussions or just casual chat, TalkieMate offers a unique and engaging experience.
Pros:
Completely free with no subscription fees.
Highly customizable AI girlfriend with personalized features.
Uncensored NSFW chat options for mature interactions.
Ability to create personalized AI girlfriend with specific traits and characteristics.
Cons:
Some advanced features may be available only in premium plans.

1. Candy.ai

Website: Candy.ai
Candy.ai is one of the leading AI Girlfriend apps with which you can talk on a range of NSFW topics and have a deep conversation. Candy Ai enables users to adjust their virtual girlfriends to their preferences and experience real conversations and engaging dialogue. Candy Ai also has a unique function that enables users to generate a specific image or audio message that boosts the reality of the experience.
Pros:
Customizable characters are not only limited to appearance and personality but also provide users with a tailored experience.
NSFW chat options for more mature interactions and more audience satisfaction.
Numerous features to be explored, satisfying the tastes and preferences of different people.
The free plan comes with necessary functionalities and the chance to upgrade for extra benefits.
Cons:
The majority of features are availed in the Premium Plans which may constrain the access of some users.
Pricing Plans:
Free Plan: Offers basic features and AI companion engagement without cost.
Premium Plan: Starts at $9/month, unlocking advanced features and enhanced user experience.
Custom Plans: Tailored to specific needs, with varying pricing based on customization requirements.

1. Botify AI

Website: Botify AI
Botify AI offers an innovative character AI style. It presents a revolutionary system that allows users to communicate with real people or characters from their favorite TV shows, films, or literature. Thanks to the flexibility of Botify AI, you have the possibility to create your own digital character and customize every detail like appearance, emotions, voice, and backstory.
Pros:
Free version accessible.
High-quality editing tools.
Intuitive interface for users.
Cons:
Relies on outdated data in some instances.
Utilizes Automated style writing, which may not suit all preferences.
Pricing Plans:
Essential: Starting from $35 per user per month, suitable for simple websites requiring comprehensive SEO data and recommendations.
Pro: Starting from $55 per user per month, ideal for businesses heavily reliant on organic search, aiming to protect and expand their organic revenue.
Enterprise: Custom pricing for large, complex organizations needing accelerated scaling, support, and security.

1. Replika

Website: Replika
Replika is a personal AI assistant that you can talk to. It was designed to give the user a deeply special and personal experience. Made to be a friend, a confidant, and an emotional support, Replika utilizes the learning ability of machines and natural language processing, thus bringing to the fore the ability to engage in empathetic and contextual conversations.
Pros:
Highly personalized and customized stories and avatars.
Ranges from new features to improved or enhanced capabilities, are constantly being forwarded.
Provides not only free but paid as well on the conditions built-in subscription options.
Cons:
One main shortcoming lies in the fact that chatbots’ uses go beyond the conversation stage.
The question of privacy and usage of users’ personal data is one of the aspects, which is a crucial issue when talking about social media.
Impact of user dependency and emotional attachment as prospective risks.
Pricing Plans:
1 month plan: $19.99
12 months plan: $5.83/month (billed annually)
Lifetime plan: $299.99 (billed once)

1. Anima AI

Website: Anima AI
MyAnima AI is our super smart AI chatbot. It has been developed to be the best friend for you who likes playing the role of a human and can do this like nobody else. With Anima AI, a user can easily pick any relationship status of their choice: AI-Girlfriend, -Boyfriend, Virtual Wife, the other way round, or even a custom-made Character AI. Whether it is a friend who will be a help and support, a virtual companion with whom you can role play, someone with whom you share your emotions, or a chat partner you can discuss any topic that tickles your fancy, Anima AI can help you out.
Pros:
Unlimited unique stories.
Anima AI is an AI bot that is warm and conversational.
Ability to respond to your messages instantly when you need to talk.
Cons:
Some features are called back in the Free version.
Pricing Plans:
Anima AI offers a free version with basic features, allowing users to create a customized AI virtual companion after signing up.

1. DeepFiction

Website: DeepFiction
DeepFiction narrates a plethora of stories that include captivating and thrilling sagas to touching and heartwarming fables. What sets it apart? You can, however, change your characters and the scenery to your taste. That is the AI-powered mechanism that enables the production of compelling and well-connected stories with the help of natural language processing and machine learning.
Pros:
Unlimited unique stories.
Customise characters and settings.
Sparks creativity and imagination.
Suitable for all ages.
Cons:
Limited control over the plot.
This chatbot is not interactive like most other chatting bots.
Pricing Plans:
DeepFiction offers a single pricing plan at $5 per month.

1. StoryMate

Website: StoryMate
StoryMate is your virtual reading partner, but without a library sound ban. It’s essentially there to bring the wonder of literature to life, providing you with an extensive collection of books and amazing narration methods to send you exploring faraway lands or to make you acquainted with unforgettable characters.
Pros:
Elicits a desire for reading.
Enhances writing abilities.
Provides diversified choices of relevant titles for different age groups.
Facilitates collaborative creativity.
Cons:
May not be suitable for all those that seek highly sociable experiences.
Chiefly concerns a child’s literature.
Pricing:
Free

1. Kajiwoto

Website: Kajiwoto
Kajiwoto offers the same experience as Character AI to users creating human-like chatting with AI characters having their own character features. It is a cool platform for both AI fanatics and those who are creatively inclined. In Kajiwoto, the users can choose whether they want a free or paid membership to fit their needs. Yet, it has this 200-character restriction on one-on-one dialogues.
Pros:
Free option available.
Customizable mood for your Kaji.
Unlimited chatting.
Permits NSFW content.
Cons:
Premium subscription required for business idea development.
Paid subscription can be expensive.
Pricing Plans:
Free Plan: Unlimited chat and access to basic features.
Kajiwoto Plus: $7.32/month, includes unlimited AI voice usage and private rooms.
Kajiwoto Pro: $25.00/month, offers all features of Kajiwoto Plus plus more, for the ultimate AI experience.

1. KUKI.AI

Website: KUKI.AI
KUKI.AI is a conversational AI with award-winning applications, providing exceptional functionalities. This virtual assistant employs the most advanced AI methods to allow the users to have very natural talks, thus qualifying it as a good chatbot application. Through direct and indirect semantic cues analogous to GPT, the KUKI.AI aggregates its knowledge base. Through the dissection of phrases into two inputs of “core” and “wild card”, it is able to expand its vocabulary for more understanding of multiple speech patterns. To use KUKI.AI without being limited by the number of questions one can ask, the chatbot answers all queries while making sure conversations do not repeat themselves.
Pros:
Infinite question handling capability.
User-friendly interface.
Cons:
Absence of graphics, a text-only trip.
Pricing Plans:
$75/month (100,000 chat)
$1500/month (Dedicated service plan)

1. In World AI

Website: In World AI
Inworld AI is a leading platform that allows you to chat with AI characters or even create your own if you wish, similar to Character AI. On Inworld AI, you can have conversations for free with the characters but if you want to have access to features like API integrations, and unlimited character creation, you have to get their premium plan which starts at $20 monthly. Inworld AI utilizes the power of the OpenAI models meaning that accurate information will be delivered by the chatbot.
Pros:
Through it, you can design characters.
Available at no individual cost for chatting.
The paid version starts at a subscription fee as low as $20 per month.
Cons:
It can only be accessed through an internet browser.
The app has not yet been launched and is only accessible through mobile browsers.
Pricing Plans:
Free — $0–200 API integrations and minutes, 60 virtual characters, customization options.
Pro — $20 per month — 2000 API integrations and minutes, unlimited virtual characters, customization options, shareable workspaces, access to Discord community.
Conclusion
So there you have it – 10 alternatives for Character AI, each with a distinct personality and feature set. Keep in mind that selecting the ideal chatbot for your clan involves striking the ideal equilibrium between amusement, education, and age suitability. With the right AI companion by your side, you can make learning an adventure, and turn screen time into quality time.

With the EA Sports College Football 25 cover being released this Thursday, I thought it would be interesting to look back at all covers — and not just the EA covers, but the athletes featured on covers of rival games by Sony, Sega, and other competitors.
Competition is a good thing. Putting these in chronological order takes me back to the era where there were options (I bought my first game in the '90s, and played a lot of 2k2).
If you count the 2 players that are identifiable off of "College Football USA 96" there have been 36 cover athletes across 34 editions of college football games (plus an active coach, mascot, two band members, and an unidentified player)
This post is going to look cleaner in "old" view. You can swap the "www" with "old" in the URL or just click here.

Year	Publisher	Game Title (image)	Cover Athlete (wiki)	Heisman?	Formats	Notes
1993	EA Sports	Bill Walsh College Football	STAN Coach Bill Walsh	N/A	Sega Genesis, SNES, Sega CD	No licenses so generic names/logos
1994	EA Sports	Bill Walsh College Football '95	STAN Coach Bill Walsh	N/A	Sega Genesis	Schools licensed now
1994	Mindscape	NCAA Football	NCAA Logo over generic players	N/A	Sega Genesis, SNES
1994	Sega Sports	College Football's National Championship	ND Notre Dame Stadium	N/A	Sega Genesis
1995	EA Sports	College Football USA 96	KSU¦MICH¦FSU¦WIS¦USC "Generic" photos*	No	Sega Genesis	see below*
1995	Sega Sports	College Football's National Championship II	COL Folsom Field	No	Sega Genesis
1996	EA Sports	College Football USA 97	NEB QB Tommie Frazier	No	Sega Genesis, SNES	1st true cover athlete
1996	Sony	NCAA Football Gamebreaker	OSU RB Eddie George	HEISMAN!	PS1	1st Heisman winner on cover
1997	EA Sports	NCAA Football 98	FLA QB Danny Wuerffel	HEISMAN!	PS1, PC
1997	Sony	NCAA Gamebreaker 98	FSU RB Warrick Dunn	No	PS1
1998	EA Sports	NCAA Football 99	MICH CB Charles Woodson	HEISMAN!	PS1, PC	1st of 2 defensive players ever
1998	Sony	NCAA GameBreaker 99	NEB QB Scott Frost	No	PS1	1st future head coach
1999	EA Sports	NCAA Football 2000	TEX RB Ricky Williams	HEISMAN!	PS1
1999	Sony	NCAA GameBreaker 2000	UCLA QB Cade McNown	No	PS1
2000	EA Sports	NCAA Football 2001	ALA RB Shaun Alexander	No	PS1
2000	Sony	NCAA GameBreaker 2001	WIS RB Ron Dayne	HEISMAN!	PS1, PS2	1st 6th generation console game
2001	EA Sports	NCAA Football 2002	FSU QB Chris Weinke	HEISMAN!	PS2
2001	Sega Sports	NCAA College Football 2K2	PUR QB Drew Brees	No	DC
2002	EA Sports	NCAA Football 2003	ORE QB Joey Harrington	No	PS2, GC, Xbox
2002	Sony	NCAA GameBreaker 2003	MIA RB Clinton Portis	No	PS2	[Sony skipped 2002]
2002	Sega Sports	NCAA College Football 2K3	NEB QB Eric Crouch	HEISMAN!	PS2, GC, Xbox
2003	EA Sports	NCAA Football 2004	USC QB Carson Palmer	HEISMAN!	PS2, GC, Xbox, N-Gage	1st handheld on Nokia's disastrous system
2003	Sony	NCAA GameBreaker 2004	PSU RB Larry Johnson	No	PS2
2004	EA Sports	NCAA Football 2005	PITT WR Larry Fitzgerald	No	PS2, GC, Xbox
2005	EA Sports	NCAA Football 06	MICH WR Desmond Howard		PS2, Xbox	1991's Heisman
2006	EA Sports	NCAA Football 07	USC RB Reggie Bush	HEISMAN!	PS2, Xbox, 360, PSP
2007	EA Sports	NCAA Football 08	BOISE QB Jared Zabransky	No	360, PS3, PS2, Xbox
2007	Aspyr	Black College Football: BCFX: The Xperience	Generic player, cheerleader, drum major	No	PC, 360 (2009)	HBCU teams
2008	EA Sports	NCAA Football 09	CAL WR DeSean Jackson	No	PS2	Multi-cover
2008	EA Sports	NCAA Football 09	BC QB Matt Ryan	No	PS3	Multi-cover
2008	EA Sports	NCAA Football 09	WVU FB Owen Schmitt	No	PSP	Multi-cover
2008	EA Sports	NCAA Football 09	MSU mascot Sparty	No	Wii	Multi-cover
2008	EA Sports	NCAA Football 09	ARK RB Darren McFadden	No	360	Multi-cover
2009	EA Sports	NCAA Football 10	TEX LB Brian Orakpo	No	PS2	Multi-cover; 2 of 2 defenders
2009	EA Sports	NCAA Football 10	UTAH QB Brian Johnson	No	PS3	Multi-cover
2009	EA Sports	NCAA Football 10	USC QB Mark Sanchez	No	PSP	Multi-cover
2009	EA Sports	NCAA Football 10	TTU WR Michael Crabtree	No	360	Multi-cover
2010	EA Sports	NCAA Football 11	FLA QB Tim Tebow	HEISMAN!	PS3, 360, PS2, iOS
2011	EA Sports	NCAA Football 12	ALA RB Mark Ingram II	HEISMAN!	PS3, 360	Fan-vote cover athlete
2012	EA Sports	NCAA Football 13	BAY QB Robert Griffin III & OKST RB Barry Sanders	YES!	PS3, 360	Fan-vote for older athlete
2013	EA Sports	NCAA Football 14	MICH Denard Robinson	No	PS3, 360	Fan-vote cover athlete
2024	EA Sports	EA Sports College Football 25	TBD	TBD	PS5, Xbox Series X/S

*Photos on College Football USA 96 cover are USC Trojan drum major, a Wisconsin band member, unidentified Florida State player (zoomed in on helmet), but also easily identified K-State WR Kevin Lockett & Michigan RB Tim Biakabutuk (both played in '95 season after this came out)

Various developers:

EA Sports's developers:

• High Score Productions (1993: Genesis, Sega CD; 1994-96)
• Visual Concepts (1993: SNES)
• Tiburon Entertainment (1997-98), bought/renamed EA Tiburon (1999-2013), renamed EA Orlando (2024)
• Exient Entertainment (2003: N-Gage)

Sega Sports's developers:

• BlueSky Software (1994-95) [developers of Joe Montana series]
• Visual Concepts & Avalanche Software (2001-02) [NFL 2K & NFL Blitz, respectively]

Sony Computer Entertainment America's developers:

• Sony Interactive Studios America (1996-97), renamed Red Zone Interactive (1998-99), renamed 989 Studios (2000)

Aspyr Media's developer:

• Nerjyzed Entertainment (2007: Windows; 2009: 360)

Further notes:

Bill Walsh was picked because there was an early-theme of having big names on sports video games.

• EA actually started this back when they were the cool, bad boy of games in the 1980s (I'm that old, they packaged their games like records and put photos of their programmers that made them look like musicians on the back) with the pioneering PC game One on One: Dr. J vs. Larry Bird (1983), later updated to Jordan vs. Bird: One on One (1988).
• Nintendo got into it by localizing Punch-Out! as Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! (1987) for NES. EA brought out John Madden Football (1988) for PC.
• Sega was wild about this when they launched the Genesis with Arnold Palmer Tournament Golf (1989), Tommy Lasorda Baseball (1989), Pat Riley Basketball (1990), Joe Montana Football (1991).
• 1993: Bill Walsh! There even was an EA Coach K college hoops game.

Bill Walsh may have got the cover curse:

• While he had retired from the San Francisco 49ers on top, after winning his 3rd Super Bowl, he had only returned to the Farm for a year when he was picked (he had a good first tenure in the 70s before jumping to the 49ers).
• In 1992 he took the Cardinal to a Blockbuster Bowl win and a #9 rank. Signed this deal for EA.
• After the first game came out he had two bad seasons and re-retired for good.

The progression of teams is fun to see.

• 1993: the top 24 college football teams from 1992 + 24 of the all-time greatest teams since 1978. The teams were unlicensed so they used city and state names, especially where similar to their real names (e.g. Michigan). But you got some fun results like a spirited game of "South Bend, IN" vs "Raleigh, NC"
• 1994: 36 Division I-A teams, but the bowls were still not included: Instead we get Maple Bowl, Palm Bowl, Pecan Bowl, and Redwood Bowl
• 1995: first version to feature all (108 at the time) Division l-A teams, the real bowl games like Orange, Sugar, Fiesta, and Rose. Includes older names but also the Pacific Tigers, which actually dropped football before the game was released.

The rights to the title "NCAA" license wasn't obtained by EA until 1998 (as you can see there was an earlier one-off by Mindscape). Its ability to use the NCAA's brands in the the football game was actually the secondary result of a licensing deal intended primarily for an EA "March Madness" basketball game.

Comp plans discussed here have me feeling burnt
I sell structures that have a lot of moving parts and come packaged with a full suite of supporting equipment so it takes a lot of technical knowledge, time and effort assessing each customer’s need, and how we can value engineer a solution that works for the budget.
I get 0.5% and a $75k base for structural material sales (agricultural). Consistently a top earner and one of the two top reps in terms of technical knowledge. Pulled around $106k last year off of $5M invoiced.
They then moved me from my sales estimating/design role (technical sales, only dealing with qualified large scale accounts, not responsible for much more than doing the presentation and adjusting quotes) to full-cycle sales (qualifying, closing, quoting, etc) which is much more responsibility (at least 2x fold).
However, they kept my comission structure the same as when I was estimating, with the excuse that my base rate is 2x the other reps (their comission rate is 1.25% vs my .5%, I get $36/hr they get $18/hr). They also took away my 1 week per month of WFH while the senior rep gets full time WFH, despite me outperforming him consistently in terms of activity and entered dollars. When confronted about this, the track record “isn’t proven enough”
Even with no pipeline (I didn’t get direct leads when I was estimating for the other rep’s leads), in the past year I have sold 2x more than the senior rep (only guy above me in this division, who has been with the company over 10 yrs), and closed a $600k deal which would be our company’s most high-profile/prominent project last month. I am immensely ambitious and hungry, with the results to back it up, but this company seems hellbent on keeping me from advancing my career
Seeing a lot of the folks comp plans here has me feeling like I’m getting fucked hard. I’m 27 and have been in sales/estimating for 3.5 yrs at this company for reference. Worked in industry before, which is why I’m so much more knowledgeable vs other reps. I talked to my manager about these concerns and he said “I make plenty for a 27 yr old” which made me see red. Leapfrogged him and discussed with his boss (3rd in command) who will be “looking into options” which seems like a cop-out.
Any tips on getting a better pay structure when ownership/management act like a bunch of chodes? Job market is soft in my field so getting competitive offers has been slow going. I’ve made millions every year for this company but asking for just .2% comission increase seems to be like pulling teeth. Ownership is so greedy here. $120-140M/yr but there’s never any money for the reps….
Morale here is so low, but all the reps love eachother like family, it’s really just the top 5 managers ruining the entire company for the rest of us (I can go on and on about how under qualified they are for their positions). Ideally would like to stay at this company as I bought a home in the area last year, but logic is telling me it’s time to rip off the bandaid.

I hate myself. So I am going to tell random ppl on the internet my most humiliating moments, you’re more than welcome to share yours.
So I am an extremely clumsy person, yk like in anime there’s a girl that always falls and drops shit… Yea I am the living embodiment of that, so much so that my math teacher greets me by asking “Tum ne ajj kuch giraya.” Yes sir ajj bohat kuch giraya sir kabhi kabar mein sochti hoon ke me duniya se he hi kyun nahi gir jaati. If you think my ability to drop shit disabled during the cies… you are incorrect!!! Just today I was clicking my pen and a part of it just flew across the room like a fcking rocket… 👹👹👹. Also I quite literally dropped my maths exam on the ground I m not kidding and the cherry on top my table fcking collapsed.
So I am very bad at hiding my expressions so during todays exam i was experiencing a complete meltdown due to the fact I couldn’t remember the word extinguish (i wrote blow out. I m fcking done.) the invigilator came to me and was “like are you okay?” Also this happened twice…. I think i should be concerned guys anyways the second time was after maths p2 i was traumatised i started begging for my life then and there and i made eye contact with a schoolmate during my pleas of desperation and the expression this man gave me… i feel violated broo 💀💀💀 he gave me the most concerned “is this bitch okay” look ever I am not okay but do I deserve tht expression dawg. Anyways so I m burnt byeee

Bangladesh was extremely mediocre in their 2022 T20 World Cup campaign in Australia. They defeated Netherlands and Zimbabwe in close margins, but lost to India, South Africa and Pakistan. They still had the chance to qualify for the Semi Finals if they were able to defeat Pakistan in their final matches but ultimately failed to do so. But since since they had a good run of form in T20 bilateral series.
​
T20I Bilateral Results between 2022-2024 T20 World Cups:
​

Bangladesh vs England	Bangladesh won the Series 3-0
Bangladesh vs Ireland	Bangladesh won the Series 2-1
Bangladesh vs Afghanistan	Bangladesh won the Series 2-0
New Zealand vs Bangladesh	Series Drawn 1-1
Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka	Bangladesh lost the Series 2-1
Bangladesh vs Zimbabwe	Bangladesh won the Series 4-1

Even though the string of results are promising with the only series defeat coming from a close fought T20I Series against Sri Lanka. Many problems persist especially with Batting where none of the batsman who have a career strike rate of 140+ and top order Batsman being out of form. But the bowling looks promising and they would likely have to carry the batting lineup if Bangladesh have want chances at success at this World Cup in the United States and the West Indies.
​
Bangladesh in World Cups and Asia Cups:

Matches	Wins	Losses
48	14	33

​
Squad
​

SL	Players	Role
1	Nazmul Hossian Shanto	Captain
2	Litton Das	Wicket Keeper
3	Jaker Ali Anik	Wicket Keeper
4	Towhid Hridoy	Batsman
5	Tanzid Hasan Tamim	Batsman
6	Mahmudullah Riyad	Batting All Rounder
7	Soumya Sarker	Batting All Rounder
8	Shakib Al Hasan	All Rounder
9	Mahedi Hasan	Bowling All Rounder
10	Rishad Hossian	Bowling All Rounder
11	Tanvir Islam	Spinner
12	Mustafizur Rahman	Pacer
13	Taskin Ahmed	Pacer
14	Shoriful Islam	Pacer
15	Tanzim Hasan Shakib	Pacer

Reserves: Hasan Mahmud, Afif Hossian
Squad Stats
*Stats for all players include BPL, Other T20s and T20Is in the last 2 and all time record against other Group D teams in T20Is. Stats for reserves players not included
Batsman
​

1. Nazmul Hossian Shanto(c):

​

	Runs	Average	Strike Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	691	27.6	109.9
Group D Teams	108	27	113.68
T20Is	373	26.6	114.4

2) Litton Das (wk)
​

	Runs	Average	Strike Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	769	28.5	130.1
Group D Teams	210	17.5	108.24
T20Is	403	28.8	127.5

3) Jaker Ali Anik (wk)
​

	Runs	Average	Strike Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	374	41.6	130.8
Group D Teams	72	36	153.19
T20Is	197	39.4	127.9

4) Towhid Hridoy
​

	Runs	Average	Strike Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	865	37.6	145.1
Group D Teams	40	20	129.03
T20Is	371	28.5	133.9
LPL	114	39.8	139.5

5) Tanzid Hasan Tamim
​

	Runs	Average	Strike Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	384	32	135.7
Group D Teams	-	-	-
T20Is	160	40	122.9

​
Batting Allrounders:
6) Mahmudullah Riyad
​

	Runs	Batting Average	Strike Rate	Wickets	Bowling Average	Economy Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	445	24.7	136.1	0	-	13
Group D Teams	433	28.86	139.67	9	29.77	6.7
T20Is	143	47.7	149	1	1	1

​
7) Soumya Sarker
​

	Runs	Batting Average	Strike Rate	Wickets	Bowling Average	Economy Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	436	18.2	119.1	3	71.3	10.03
Group D Teams	376	20.88	138.23	4	32	9.84
T20Is	123	17.6	119.4	1	34	8.5

​
All Rounder:
8) Shakib Al Hasan
​

	Runs	Batting Average	Strike Rate	Wickets	Bowling Average	Economy Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	630	31.5	167.6	27	22.1	6.31
Group D Teams	312	15	109.47	28	18.39	6.95
T20Is	163	32.6	130.4	17	11.6	6.03
Other T20s	139	19.9	114.9	10	24.7	6.07

​
Bowling All Rounders:
​
9) Mahedi Hasan
​

	Runs	Batting Average	Strike Rate	Wickets	Bowling Average	Economy Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	349	19.4	132.7	23	23.2	7.17
Group D Teams	74	14.8	107.24	3	65	9.36
T20Is	58	19.3	96.7	8	25.2	6.66

​
10) Rishad Hossian
​

	Runs	Batting Average	Strike Rate	Wickets	Bowling Average	Economy Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	-	-	-	6	12.5	8.33
Group D Teams	53	26.5	165.62	3	29.33	8
T20Is	79	15.8	131.7	11	29.9	7.83

​
Bowlers:
11) Tanvir Islam
​

	Overs	Wickets	Average	Economy Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	83.1	30	19	6.84
Group D Teams	-	-	-	-
T20Is	9	2	34.5	7.67

​
12) Mustafizur Rahman
​

	Overs	Wickets	Average	Economy Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	65.3	23	23.7	8.31
Group D Teams	60	15	34.4	8.6
T20Is	52	13	29	7.25
IPL	41.2	15	26.5	9.6

​
13) Tanzim Hasan Shakib
​

	Overs	Wickets	Average	Economy Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	53	19	26.8	9.62
Group D Teams	-	-	-	-
T20Is	14	3	42.7	9.14

​
14) Taskin Ahmed
​

	Overs	Wickets	Average	Economy Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	78.1	23	24.9	7.32
Group D Teams	46	15	26.06	8.72
T20Is	58.4	29	13.9	6.89

​
15) Shoriful Islam
​

	Overs	Wickets	Average	Economy Rate
Bangladesh Premier League	56.4	26	16.8	7.69
Group D Teams	16	2	55	6.87
T20Is	34.5	11	24.7	7.81

​
Strengths: Batting and Bowling depth, Bangladesh would bowl 6-7 bowlers and bat upto 8-9 because of their all rounders. Their forms is a different concern but the depth in both batting and bowling exists.
Weakness: Top order batting is out of form and doesn't have the best stats, and they do not reliably get Bangladesh off to a flying start. The death bowling is another point of weakness.
​
Probable First XI:

Tanzid Hasan Tamim
Soumya Sarker
Nazmul Hossian Shanto
Towhid Hridoy
Shakib Al Hasan
Mahmudullah Riyad
Jaker Ali Anik
Rishad Hossian
Taskin Ahmed
Shoriful Islam
Mustafizur Rahman

Conclusion: Even after good T20I Bilateral performances leading up to the World Cup, many don't have high hopes for the team to do well in this World Cup. The best case scenario is qualifying to the Super 8s and winning a game but the worst case scenario is losing to Netherlands, South Africa and Sri Lanka and finishing 4th in their group.
​
​

How do I implement Google Admob correctly? I added api key in meta and on top

to the AndroidManifest.xml

dependencies { implementation 'com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads:23.1.0' } 

to build.gradle. But I still get the message in Google Play Store that "Your declaration on Play Console says that your app uses advertising ID. Your manifest file doesn't include the com.google.android.gms.permission.AD_ID permission."

This is the strategy I used recently to get my first Roc very early on in the game - before even making my full diamond armor set. It's quite easy to do and overall I think it takes less time and is safer for any gear you have than the "intended" way, that being hunting and killing or soulgazer-ing multiple Rocs and then hunting for trolls for materials for the saddle.
Part 1: Needed materials (minimum, you can add other stuff for utility or whatever)

• Multiple shovels (1-2 diamond shovels should do the trick, or their equivalent durability-wise of iron shovels)
• Some basic materials for a small temporary base - blocks, furnace, crafting table, bed, etc.
• A boat
• Soulgazer
• Soulstone
• Name tag
• Basic Saddle
• ~20 bones
• 20-30 river fish
• At least level 1 in treasure hunting skill ("L" hotkey) - the more, the better
• A few stacks of easily breakable blocks (dirt will probably be your first choice here)
• Any of the matierials mentioned in Part 2 as things to farm that you might already have

Part 2: Strategy

1. First you obviously want to get everything mentioned above. Everything can be found easily in many structures around the world, both safe and unsafe (villager "mansions" with basements, battle towers, etc.)
2. Next, you want to have waystones at specific locations
   • In a snowy biome, close to ice villages (the common small ones), best to have a few of these
   • In a regular plains or forest area with a nearby rivelake/sea
3. Once you've found those, the next step is to make a small base in the plans/forest area. Obviously, make sure it's not near a dragon and also not near a village (unless you don't care about keeping villagers alive in that village). You'll be spending quite a bit of time here now
4. Before your first night, get at least 5 Silex meat from the nearby body of water. If near an ocean, Ika and Crab meat works too. Cook the meat and make your first avian treats
5. Once night falls, wait for a Roc variant to spawn (Scarlet or Golden) -> variants give double knowledge when using Soulgazer (or avian treats if still at knowledge level 1), giving +200 instead of +100 and therefore requiring only 5 interactions with the Soulgazer. Place your boat near your base, then lure the Roc to it by holding your avian treats. Once it's in the boat, use your name tag on it so it doesn't despawn, then use your Soulgazer and go to sleep.
6. From now until you make the Roc your pet:
   • Keep it daytime the whole time (sleep as soon as you can)
   • Use your Soulgazer on the Roc when you can
   • Keep farming Silexes/Ikas/Crabs for their meat and making avian treats
   • While waiting for new ones to spawn, start digging dirt. Once you have about a stack or 2, just start building a pillar and then digging down. This will give you some random stuff occasionally due to Treasure Hunting skill. The chance of getting any drop at all is 5% per level of the skill, and out of those 5% approximately 0.016% is the chance for a Troll Tusk (this is 0.016% per each block, which equates to about a 1% chance in any 64 dirt blocks broken), which is the main thing we're after here. This might sound like a very low chance, but considering how many dirt blocks you'll end up breaking the chance is actually quite high. At level 2 Treasure Hunting, I gotten both of my Troll Tusks (one for avian saddle, other one for dragon saddle) within 20 minutes of placing and breaking dirt. On top of this, you can get some other stuff as well, including enchanted stone tools (usually with quite good enchants), enchanted diamond sword, dragon bones and even a pig spawner!
7. Once you have level 2 knowledge of the Roc, you can start taming it with your treats. On average, you'll get 50-100 taming points per treat, and you'll need 1000 total for the Roc to be tamed. This means that most of the time 20-30 treats should be more than enough. After the Roc is tamed, make sure to use the Soulstone on it so it can respawn when it dies!!!
8. If you still haven't gotten a Troll Tusk, keep digging for it. If you have, move on to the next step.
9. Now take all your river fish and any dragon bones you're fine with trading and go to the ice villages (wool armor highly recommended). Find a Fisherman (they usually have a spear in their hands) that's buying the river fish at a 1:1 ratio and sell your fish for Sapphires. You can do the same with your Dragon Bones at a Shaman.
10. Next, find a Craftsman and level him up fully (usually 1-2 trades are enough for him to level up once, I just went with the cheapest one and spent maybe 5-10 Sapphires to level him up fully). His final trade will ALWAYS be Ice Troll Leather. You should have enough Sapphires left over to buy 3 pieces of leather, but if not just get more by finding and trading more river fish and Dragon Bones. Shamans will also buy Blaze Powder, so that's another alternative for getting Sapphires.
11. Only the last material left for the saddle now: 2x Amphitere or Stymphalian Bird feathers. Unfortunately, hunting and killing them is damn near impossible in early game (as most RLCraft players know). Fortunately, however, you don't have to do that. You can get both of the feathers in those small floating structures high up in the air (kinda like small "cubes" with a single chest in the middle). Just pillar up to them with your easily-breakable blocks, optionally take a few lockpicks with you in case the chest is locked (or do what I did and look for a different one, they're very common) and see if you got lucky. From my experience, at least half of the chests will have the feathers in them and there will always be at least 2 feathers if they are in there. Added bonus is that you can often find Potions of Wings in the chests too (seems to also be at least half the time), which give you free flight for 3 minutes and can make finding more of these structures a lot easier and faster if you get unlucky with the first one.

And there you have it, you now have all of the stuff you need to craft the avian saddle and a Roc to use it on! A quite simple strategy that requires about as much effort as hunting for trolls for the materials would, but a lot safer and requiring very minimal gear. Plus added bonus from all the additional stuff you get thanks to Treasure Hunting.

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Hitters of the Week (7) (5/6-5/12)
1 - Kyle Tucker (23 PA, Min 13 PA, 10 Qualified)

• To say Tucker had a great week might be an understatement. Out of 11 categories, Tucker finished at or above the 95th percentile (of all hitters this week with at least 13 PA) in 8 of them, finishing in the 100th percentile in ISO and xISO. Gave the Astros 5 RBI on 4 Home Runs, all of which gave the Astros at least 9.8% in WPA, came while the game was either tied or within 2 runs. So it would only make sense that he had the 10th most Net Impact (WPA) for hitters this week, claiming 5 of the 8 best plays (by WPA) of the week.

2 - Jeremy Pena (25 PA, Min 13 PA, 10 Qualified)

• Jeremy Pena’s wOBA on the Week of 0.478 is in the 91st Percentile of qualified wOBAs this week. He had 2 crucial RBI in 2 days between 5/9 and 5/10, giving the Astros the lead in 1, and extending a 1-Run lead in the other. Though, this was another week of Pena having some (or multiple!) crucial negative play(s). That is to say, he had a great (89th Percentile) Context Neutral WPA (WPA/LI). He still ends the week with a 148 wRC+ on the season, 21st in the Majors.

3 - Mauricio Dubon (17 PA, MIn 13 PA, 10 Qualified)

• This decision for 3 was tough. Meyers, Yordan, and even Loperfido had a case for it, as out of that group of 4, all of them did great in or lead a category. I settled on Dubon, though. A statistical highlight is Batting Average, as his .438 BA was in the 96th Percentile for the week. A part (along with the other four left) of the Astros being 3rd in BA over the week. His WPA and wOBA ranked 3rd in the total group of 10 Astros, as well as being in the 70th and 81st Percentiles respectively. Overall, his 0.303 BA is still 21st in the Majors, and as we know (because it’s brought up every time he has a RISP PA), a top 10 BA with RISP (0.440, 6th)

Pitchers of the Week (7) (5/6-5/12)
Starters -
1 - Framber Valdez

• Giving up only 2 Runs in 7 Innings Friday in Detroit, Framber Valdez claims the #1 SP spot in this week's players of the week. The start featured Valdez fanning 4, giving the Astros 9.2% in WPA, exiting with a 1-2 deficit that the Astros would eventually make up in a 5-2 win. He ends the week with a season ERA of 3.64, and the lowest Fly Ball% in the Majors.

2 - Justin Verlander

• Verlander showed out in his start on Sunday the 12th. Pitching 7 Innings of shutout ball, with only 5 guys allowed on base on 2 Hits, 2 Walks, and 1 HBP. This start brought him down to a 3.38 ERA, 2nd among SP on the season, and 3rd among Astros Pitchers with at least 20 IP. His pitching, worth 39.6% WPA and a 79 Game Score, helped power the Astros to a 9-3 victory in Detroit to close out the week. Unfortunately though, this came 5 days after a poor start in the Bronx, in which he let 7 men past home plate in 5 Innings, and such is keeping him from being #1.

Honorable Highlight: Ronel Blanco - 1 GS, 5.2 IP, 2 ER, 54 GameScore.

Relievers -
1 - Josh Hader

• Of Hader’s 5 Saves on the 2024 Season, 2 of them came within the last week, in back to back evenings on the 9th and 10th. Came out for the 4 out Save on the 9th, and converted. He went 3/1 in K/BB, letting another runner on through a hit. With his FIP sitting at a 2.90, this should be the start of a Hader that we expected when he was signed in January.

2 - Bryan Abreu

• Abreu came in to pitch on the days that Hader got his Saves, the 9th and the 10th. Was able to get Holds while posting a 6/0 K/BB, with no Hits allowed. On the season, he is currently posting a 3.11 SIERA.

Honorable Highlight: Hunter Brown - Good 5 Inning outing on Saturday following Javier’s poor start, Striking Out 7 while letting 6 on, including a Home Run, of which his 1 ER was allowed on.

My partner and I have been living together for several years and after one we got two kittens from the same litter. They absolutely love each other and always have. Recently we’ve gotten a new kitten from a friend. The kitten is from another cat of the same litter to our first two. The issue is that no matter what we try our cats just won’t adjust to the new kitten.
We’ve tried to separate them then had a barrier in place. This was fine but when we put them in the same room both of my cats started to hiss and growl before running away. They have never attacked the kitten but the attitude hasn’t changed. Our kitten doesn’t seem to mind and tried to play with them. Seeing our cats distressed we decided to separate them again two days ago and exchanged their environments but while one cat didn’t mind my cat started hissing at everything, after the hissing stopped he started whining. The only time he won’t hiss, whine or growl when near the kitten is when I am giving him treats. I’ve only had him a week and a half so some steps may have been done too fast but they are fine until face to face or when the environment smells only like the kitten.
When they’re in the same room by partners cat will hide under the bed and mine will jump onto the top of our wardrobe. I just don’t know what steps to take next.

Good Morning Patriots
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Free place to chat and a good place to discuss whatever you like with other sub users
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2024 Opponents Set.

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Meet New England’s 2024 Rookie Class.

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New England Patriots News Catchup Links - Gonzalez, Douglas, Wallace, Maye’s footwork, and More!

• Transactions: Patriots sign three of their eight 2024 draft picks and nine rookie free agents.
• Patriots announce Eliot Wolf has been named Executive Vice President of Player Personnel.
• Mike Dussault reports new head coach Jerod Mayo and the Patriots rookies took to the practice fields on Saturday for the media’s first access in 2024.
• Evan Lazar goes inside QB Drake Maye’s day at Saturday’s rookie minicamp.
• Mike Dussault’s Draft Profile: Fourth-round draft pick WR Javon Baker has an intriguing skillset that could be just what the Patriots ordered.
• Alexandra Francisco reports DL Davon Godchaux and his wife, supermodel Chanel Iman, hosted the ChauxDown Foundation’s first annual Mother’s Day Luncheon at Gillette Stadium on Thursday.
• Press Conferences: Jaheim Bell - Marcellas Dial - Ja’Lynn Polk - Caedan Wallace - Drake Maye - Jerod Mayo.
• Transcript: Jerod Mayo.
• Photos: Patriots Rookie Minicamp - Day 1 & 2 and Day 3.
• Mike Reiss shares some quick-hit weekend thoughts: QB Joe Milton III had ‘too much talent’ to pass up; Possible joint training camp practice with Eagles; Wallace-Robinson duo; Reaction to 18-game season; More!
• Ben Volin’s Sunday Football Notes: Beyond Drake Maye, what should we make of the Patriots’ first draft post-Bill Belichick?
• Steve Balestrieri’s Sunday Patriots News: Rookie mini-camp, Eliot Wolf IS the GM; Ernie Adams; More.
• Andy Hart’s Sunday 7: Jerod Mayo and Drake Maye go camping.
• Doug Kyed’s Rookie Minicamp Notes: Observations from Drake Maye, draft class. Top takeaway: Quarterback play will look different for the Patriots this season.
• Taylor Kyles shares his observations from rookie minicamp: Rookie weapons stand out.
• Tom E. Curran’s Rookie minicamp observations: Drake Maye as advertised, a work in progress with all the physical tools to, someday, maybe, approach his much-discussed ceiling; Joe Milton has a cannon of an arm; More.
• Chris Mason gives us 7 takeaways from Patriots rookie minicamp. 1. Both QBs have big arms.
• Alex Barth’s Rookie minicamp notebook: First look at the Class of 2024.
• Mike D’Abate’s Patriots Rookie Minicamp notes: Jerod Mayo reveals ‘a-ha’ moment; More.
• Sophie Weller posts her photos from rookie minicamp at Gillette Stadium.
• Zack Cox tells us how Drake Maye was taking charge at Patriots rookie minicamp.
• Mike D’Abate points out that based on their usage during rookie minicamp, rookie offensive linemen Caedan Wallace and Layden Robinson may each be facing a possible positional switch.
• Christopher Price hears from rookie offensive linemen Caedan Wallace and Layden Robinson, who say they have been ‘inseparable since we got out here’ at minicamp.
• Doug Kyed spotlights how the rookie receivers and offensive linemen are forging early connections at minicamp.
• Alex Barth posts the Patriots rookie jersey numbers for 2024.

It is a man, old and scraggy. He wears a jacket that lays over the red plaid button shirt and blue jeans. He wears an old baseball cap and a pair of glasses. He yelled something to Dad, holding his hands up like he was pleading, although we couldn’t hear it over the truck engine. They talked, but we couldn’t hear what they were saying.
“Hey, what are they saying”, I asked, while petting Matt’s hair, calming him. The old man then put his hands down and came close to Dad in a cautious way. They seem to start having some kind of conversation.
“I don’t really know, hopefully, something good”, Mom answered. They talked for a little while, with daylight beginning to disappear, giving us a sense of dread, and making me more worried about what weird creature was going to show up. Eventually, the old man turned and pointed toward what I think is the northeast. They then shook hands and walked back to their respective vehicles. “What’s going on”, Mom asked as Dad got into the truck.
“Well, our new friend here invited us to dinner at his farm”, Dad replied.
“Does he have supplies?”
“Well, he says has supplies for us to make the journey.”
“Should we even trust him? We just met h-”
“Relax, he’s just an old man, living alone at his farm, feeding his cows. What could go wrong”, Dad countered. The old man then entered the truck that was running and drove slowly, expecting us to follow him.
“Alrighty then, but we have to be cautious”, Mom said, with her suspicions of the old man. We then followed the old truck along the dark, frozen road. It just feels like something is going to show up along the road, but nothing happened. Matt did eventually stop crying, but he is still upset about the Joe escape thing.
“Where are we going”, Matt lamented, with the prior series of events in mind.
“I guess somebody is offering us dinner”, I answered.
“Why can’t we just go home?”
“It’s only going to be a stop, like a hotel. After that, we go to our new home, I guess”, I said, taking another look at Matt and cradling to comfort him. “It’s going to be okay.” I stared out into the darkness. I looked to the sky from the window and I faintly saw something in the clear, dark sky, lit up by the waning moon. They were brilliant, green auroras that defy the bright moon, dancing across the sky like ribbons in the wind. The truck eventually took a right-hand turn into another road, with us following suit. I can see a bright, orange light emerging from a patch of tree. When we passed by, it seemed it was a house, at a farm, burning in a massive flame.
“I guess those people aren’t so, uh, lucky”, Dad said, taking a quick look at it before looking at the road. Passing by, we went on and continued to follow the old man’s truck. We passed onto another intersection until he turned into a driveway to what I believe to be his farm. Going into the driveway, I can see an old house, along with a dilapidated farm further away, barely visible by the headlights. The old man parked by the house, where there were a few other trucks there. We parked alongside the truck and we got out into the cold, near-silent night.
“Welcome to sanctuary, where all are welcome”, the old man bellowed. This is the first time I’ve heard his voice. Matt was the last to get out of the truck, slowly and clumsily climbing out of the truck.
“What’s your name”, my Mom politely asked the old man.
“Oh, I guess your husband didn’t tell ya. My name is Steven, but you can call me Steve”, the old man said, with some crackling in his voice. “I am very proud to host a dinner for you and your family”, he continued. “What’s your name, ma’am?”
“Oh, my name is Janice”, Mom replied, quite pleased at his politeness.
“Hello, Janice, and what are their names”, Steven asked, pointing to me and Matt.
“That’s my daughter Kate and my son Matt”, Dad said to Mom.
“Oh, what wonderful names for a couple of beautiful children you have”, Steve grinned. “Come, it is dangerous out here.” We followed him to the house, which looked like it had seen better days. He entered through the double-set door, the first a solid door and a screen door behind. Entering the house, it smelled like what you’d expect, old man. Looking onto the floor is made of glossy wood and walls with cracks, likely caused by the earthquake. It is dark in there, lit by candlelight from many candles, yet it’s fairly warm here. I don’t know why we went into the house, but Dad was right, Steve is just a lonely, old man. Matter of fact, there seems to be nothing wrong here, other than the cracks in the walls. “Sorry, the power went out. Had to resort to the candles. I knew my wife would come in handy”, Steve explained as he took his coat off. “Oh, supper will be ready right away. Had to use the fireplace to cook. Also, can you take your boots off?” We took our boots and set them aside. We went into what seemed to be a living room, with dusty old-style furniture.
“So, where do we sit”, Mom asked.
“Oh, well, follow me”, Steve commanded, leading us to the dining room, with a long, wooden table and six wooden chairs, along with their corresponding old-fashioned plates, glasses and cutlery, lit up in the candlelight. We noticed that everything on the table was covered in a thin veil of dust. “My apologies, the recent shocks dropped a bit of dust on the table”, he explained as he noticed us looking at the plates and moved into another room nearby. “Take your seats if you like.” We all settled onto the chairs, and blew off our plates of the dust settled there.
“When will we eat”, Matt impatiently said.
“Once Steve comes out with the food”, Mom answered. Matt sat there with a tired look on his face. Dad seemed to be in a better mood than before and it looked like he wanted to start a conversation.
“Hey, should we talk about something”, Dad asked. I then see Steve with a bowl and a silver plate.
“Here we go, may not be much, but at least it’ll fulfil the soul”, Steve said, smiling when he served us mashed potatoes and meatloaf. “So, shall we pray?” That came unexpectedly, as we are not too religious, but we were in his house and gave us shelter and food.
“Sure, we can do that”, Mom said and we all bowed our heads and put our hands together. Steve cleared his throat
“Thank you, Lord, for this good food to feed the soul in these hard times. I shall pray, in the name of the Lord and Jesus Christ, that these hard times shall be over, so we can get on with our lives. Amen.” We raised our heads and grabbed whatever food there was onto our plates. “Oh, there’s no gravy, so we have to deal with bare potaters and meatloaf.”
“Oh, not to worry. Thank you for the food”, Dad thanked Steve. We began to eat the food once we got it sorted.
“So, what brings you here”, Steve asked.
“Well, there is an evacuation order in effect for this area, so we had to go to Regina”, Dad explained, with Steve taking in every word. “So, we came from Strasbourg, we tried going south towards Regina, but we hit an obstacle in the way and we had to take another route, leading us here.”
“And we encountered a few odd things along the way”, Mom added.
“Huh, interesting. What do you guys think is going on”, Steve inquired.
“By the things we saw, we have no idea. Dinosaurs, devil dogs, hell pigs, the whole deal. I shouldn’t forget the earthquake. They told us a pipeline leak caused by the earthquake”, Dad clarified to Steve.
“Hmm… is that so”, Steve wondered. “Wonder what I think is happening? The Rapture is happening. Do you know how the Bible tells us of the end times? Good people sent to be with God and his kingdom, the rest here to suffer the Hell unleashed by Satan.” By this point, he was beginning to rant, but we couldn't stop it as we all began to feel tired and powerless. “So, the Devil will send his demons in the form of these illusions so that they can torment the sinners. It is happening, it is-” Steve manically continued as I drew towards blackness and his voice becoming less coherent. My vision is now all black.
I saw those same lights, but more rapidly than before. I then emerged onto the same clear sky, but something felt different. I can smell something in the air. I can smell what seems to be chemicals in the air. Looking down, I was terrified. Dark, grey rock in the shape of ropes and folds, similar to those I saw of lava flows on a volcano in pictures. This went on as far as the eye could see. I can see no tree this time, just the cooled lava everywhere. I then walked, feeling every bump and crag. I thought I walked forever until I heard a rumbling sound and woke up.
I am in total darkness. It is cold and it smells like cow manure. I tried to move my hand, but it seemed to be bonded behind my back by a rope. I tried to move my feet, but they were also bound by rope to the legs I tried to speak, only to realise my mouth was agape by a cloth in my mouth. I heard shuffling nearby but I could not see. It was then shone in light when Steve entered the door, holding a candle, revealing all of us in the same situation. I then can see what we are in. We are in that same wooden dilapidated barn we saw earlier and seems to be more damaged than the house, wood creaking can be heard.
“These sedatives are more effective than I thought. Maybe I should use them more often”, Steve smoothly explained, like he’s some kind of agent and began pacing. “Wonder why you are here? Well, I wondered the same thing to myself, why didn’t God take me to his heaven? When I first heard of the government telling us of those evacuation plans, I thought it was that, a leaking pipe. I began to notice things I couldn’t believe myself, at least at first. Earthquakes, weird creatures showing up, people disappearing, the whole spiel. I connected the dots. The Rapture is happening, for sure, but why me? Why was I the one left here on this Earth”, Steve calmly ranted, pacing around the barn, but it seemed to sound crazier and angrier the more he paced. “I thought I had lost my way. I’ve been unfaithful to God and his son. But, I realised that God always has a plan and he left me on this Earth to serve a purpose. I wondered what my purpose was until I had a moment.” He then stopped in place and calmed down. He turned to look at Mom with accusing yet crazed eyes.
“I’m supposed to keep the sinners here in line, to earn a place in God’s kingdom, or suffer in Hell. I know you are a sweet woman, Janice, but your treachery with Satan is over and I am going to do what’s right.” Mom then looked at all of us, with assuring eyes like that of an innocent yet caring mother we all know knew. I began crying and trying to speak through the cloth, but I was helpless to watch by. “Forgive me, Father, for what I am going to do.” He then pulled a knife from his pocket and plunged it into Mom’s neck with no mercy. I looked away once he did that, trembling, with tears pouring out and my vision glazed and I fell limp. I could see my brother tearing up, but he did not look away. I can hear Dad behind me, with his screams of agony and anger covered by the cloth. It felt like I was in slow motion, taking in every moment.
I then heard the chair, screeching as Steve dragged the chair containing Mom’s lifeless body towards the door, leaving behind a trail of blood. I couldn’t bear to see my mother like this. I shut my eyes very hard and hoped it would go away. The door then shut, leaving us alone with a candle, fearing what would come next. I stared at the candle, seeing it dance in the flames like a woman dancing in the darkness. Is this how it’ll end, I thought. End up dying to this sick man? My Mom was killed in front of me. I sobbed with that thought, then I began to think about the inevitable death of me. I hope there’s something after I die. Maybe I’ll see Mom again.
It was silent for a while, nearly no sound other than our moans. Dad seems to be fidgeting at the back of his chair, rocking it slowly. Looking past him, I shuddered at the glistening pool of blood, where Mom was last alive, could be my fate. I then see Dad release his arms from the back of the chair and remove the cloth from his mouth. He silently stood up and bent down to untie his legs from the chair legs. He then went to me and removed my cloth.
“H-h-how did you do that”, I silently wept, fearing that Steve would show up at the door and kill us all.
“My binding is loose. The old man probably took a liking to me”, Dad whispered. “I should remove your binds.” He untied them, releasing me, doing the same for Matt. “Now, we need to be quiet.” We then walked, quietly, along the painfully creaking wood in the near dark, following the blood trail, glistening in the candlelight. We cringed and dreaded each sound we made and watched the door in case it began to creak open. A few silent steps later, we made it to the door and we slowly opened it so as not to make any noise. What was revealed to us is nothing new, other than the blood trail continuing in the snow directing towards the back of the barn. “Okay, Kate, Matt, you guys run to the truck.”
“What about you”, I sobbed.
“Don’t worry about me”, Dad responded, giving me his keys and forcing them into my hand. “If I’m not back in a few minutes, leave. Don’t look back, take care of your brother, okay? I love you, no matter what happens.” He then kissed me on the head and ran to follow the blood trail. We quickly walked towards the black truck, stranded there for maybe hours. Getting closer, freedom is getting closer. When we got to a fair distance to the truck, I heard footsteps behind me and, the next thing I knew, I was knocked over to the ground into the hard snow on my face. A hand turned me over to give me a glimpse of a crazed Steve, his eyes wilder than before.
“Oh, yes, trying to escape”, he bragged. I looked at him, frozen in fear, like a deer in headlights and he caressed my face with his bloodied blade. “You do have a pretty face, but I’m afraid you are just one of Satan's creations, made to pull me to lust.” He then raised his knife in the air when a familiar side emerged, out of the blue.
Joe came and bit him in the arm that was holding the knife. Steve screamed in agony the moment he realised what happened. He shook Joe off and stood up to stand his ground. I stood up as Joe hissed and walked around the crazed being he wounded, not in fear but in aggressiveness. “Is this one of your pets, demon”, Steve screamed as Joe came in for another attack, but Steve countered that with a slash to the snout. Joe then ran away, whining, into the darkness. This sequence of events gave me the chance to enter the truck on the driver’s side. I had some trouble starting it, besides this is my first time driving a truck.
Steve menacelily walked towards the when Dad came barreling and tackled him to the ground. Dad was on top when he went limp. I finally put the keys in the engine turned it on and backed out, with memory serving me the instructions on such a vehicle. Steve pushed Dad’s body and stood up, but by that time, we left the farm.
“Turn back, we have to get Dad”, Matt cried, but I was very emotional, accepting what happened. I felt that, without my parents, I feel… useless.
“Dad’s dead”, I screamed at Matt and he began gagging uncontrollably in tears. I began to feel sorry for him. “Sorry, I, I don’t know.”
“It’s okay”, Matt sniffled. “I guess Mom and Dad are dead anyways.” It was silence for a few more minutes, tears welling in our eyes.
“Hey, our parents are in a better place”, I said, trying to make the situation positive.
“But we are stuck here, without them? Don’t we deserve to go to a better place?”
“Don’t say that”, I huffed and I paused for a bit. “I know we are in the, uh, right place now. Let me tell you something, once we get to Regina, I will take care of you, no matter what life throws at us.”
“What about Joe”, Matt asked.
“He’ll be fine. He probably found his girlfriend already.”
“Hey, don’t you have a boyfriend?”
“I, uh, I don’t have one. That I know of”, I spoke, bringing me back to Sam, remembering that she’s the only friend that I ever knew, and I left her. Without her, I felt alone, no one would ever relate. I began to tear up. “I don’t have any friends. I am alone,” I sobbed.
“What do you mean? I’m your brother!” I looked at Matt, and smiled, happy that he acknowledged that we were in this together.
“Thank you”, I thanked him. I slowly stopped on the road, just to hug Matt hard, crying my eyes out. We then heard what sounded like an elephant in front of us. We looked up to see a walking snow-covered brown fur wall with four pillar-like legs in front of us. Its curved tusks gleaned in the light and the eyes reflected in the light. The furry trunk waved around like a searching snake from a tree. We both knew what it was.
“Hey, look at that, a woolly mammoth”, Matt said, excitement running through him. At this point, we weren’t surprised.
“Yep, that is a woolly mammoth”, I added. The mammoth turned to us on the road, seemingly confused about where it was. It looked at our truck and seemed to growl, like an elephant. We are starting to realise this thing is becoming aggressive.
“Uh, should we move”, Matt asked. I remembered hearing something about standing your ground in case of an encounter with an elephant. I hoped it would work for a bigger, furrier version of one.
“No, we have to stand our ground.”
“But, it’ll attack u-”
“Trust me!” I then honked my horn and it backed up. It then rushed, then stopped, a mock charge. Eventually, it moved out of the road, disappearing into the darkness. We sighed in relief.
“That was close”, Matt sighed. I then continued to drive in the night, headlights leading the way. The road is bumpy, as noticed by every ditch and peak we hit, but surprisingly, Matt was fast asleep. I began to get comfortable driving and used to the road by that point. It was silent for a while until we hit a smaller intersection. That is when the truck shut down, completely and stopped. I tried the gas many times but with no effect. There is no light, nothing. It is near-darkness here, shone only by the moonlight.
“Shit”, I yelled, desperate to turn the truck on without much success. Matt woke up, confused.
“What happened”, he yawned.
“The truck turned itself off. I can’t get it back on”, I fretted and at that moment, Matt was just as panicked as I am.
“Why?”
“I-I don’t know. One moment, we were driving, another it just-”, I quavered, when I heard something rustle in the distance. We stood still, hoping whatever it was didn’t find us. I looked around, hoping to see something in the moonlight. I then see a long, walking animal. It looked like some sort of alligator at first, except for a dinosaur-like head. Once I strained my eyes to the darkness, my fear levels rose as I could see it walk on its hind limbs, with its forelimbs dangling nearly touching the ground.
It was wandering around on the road when I heard a near-crocodilian growl at Matt’s side of the truck. Another of those creatures appeared, seemingly looking into the window like a hungry bear, giving us a chance to see its scaly head. Its exposed alligator teeth gleaned in the light like knives, but more terrifying was the eye. Its serpentine pupil shone brilliantly in the light like eyes in the dark. It then ducked down, gave a hiss, and moved towards the other one. A few more showed up and formed a group.
“What should we do”, Matt asked. “Should we stay?” I looked around, hoping for another way to escape them without them noticing. I further strained my eyes and mentally mapped out the area. There is a cemetery on my right-hand side, a grain bin storage yard on my left and a series of trailers on the other side of the highway, which is ahead of us, from the storage area. There, I see a series of white, storage buildings, something we can go to and wait it out inside.
“Okay, so slowly open the door”, I instructed Matt. The click of the doors opening cringed us. We looked at the group, but there was no response from them. We then, as slowly as we could, opened the door and stepped out. Still no response. Matt then quietly ran to the other side, towards me. “Okay, we are going into the storage yard and go to the other entrance”, I said, pointing to the other right-hand corner. I wanted to get as far away from these things as possible before making a safe crossing. “Then, we cross the highway on the other side, run into the buildings and stay there for the night. Are you ready?”
“I guess”, he whispered, looking at me in fearful doubt.
“We are going to do this”, I whispered back. We then silently ran over, having to rely on our night-adapted eyes, to the corner, walking past the bins. We made it and nothing behind us so far. “We’re good so far.” We then crossed the road and noticed nothing. We noticed a tanker truck, leaking some sort of fluid across the road. I easily recognized it as fuel, based on its distinctive, sickly smell. I wouldn’t be worried about it if it weren’t for a collapsed light pole that is somehow still flickering with electricity near the area where the fuel would be flowing. We quickly avoided the fluid when I froze to see the group of the walking alligators, running towards us. “Run!” Matt tried to run, but one of those things appeared and clamped its jaws at the back of his neck. He yelped in pain and it took him down to the ground. “Matt”, I yelled, helplessly watching as the creature tore into him.
Matt reached out his arm before the others came to him, then a flash of fire came. At this point, I knew what happened, but I couldn’t even think before it exploded. It blew me towards the building, far away. I was knocked out for a few seconds before I regained consciousness, groaning in pain on the ice. I noticed something especially painful just below my chest. I reached towards the area with my hand. I pressed on it, more painful than ever and raised my hand, only to see blood, brightened by the fire. I realised I was wounded, maybe by shrapnel made by the explosion.
I looked toward where the truck was and all I saw was a blaze. Those things weren’t there, at least. I also noticed something else, too, there’s no Matt. I tried to look around for something, some sort of sign of my brother within the fire, but I saw none. I then wept, realising I had failed. I have failed to keep him safe. I have failed to give him a better life. I failed him as a sister. I could’ve done better. The thoughts poured in as tears glazed my eyes. At that moment, I failed to look around me.
I noticed a dark thing beside the blaze. I thought it was Matt, preparing to greet him back, even though I knew he couldn’t survive the explosion. The image became clearer and clearer as I noticed it was one of the walking crocs that, glazed by the fire, was coming towards me.
“Just kill me”, I screamed, preparing to painfully die to meet my maker. The creature was about to attack me when something large, silent as the wind, came charging and clamped down its massive jaws, filled with conical teeth on the hapless creature and raised it. The crocodile struggled before going limp with a crunch within its strong jaws. The big, dark and scaly monster that it is towered over me and is as long as a bus, possibly longer. Its large legs are a contradiction to its small arms that hide beneath its scarred, bulky body.
It turned to look at me with an oddly bird-like expression, revealing in the firelight numerous scars from battles I could never know and looked at me with its beady bird-like eyes, breathing out wisps from its nostrils like a dragon in the cool air. I recognized it as a creature I know too well, a T. Rex. I breathed heavily and sickly, looking at the thing, nearly expecting me to drop the body and go after me. Instead, it simply walked away, carrying its bloody prize with it, and steadily retreated into the darkness.
I then lay down in agonizing exhaustion on my back, thinking of the next step of action like I'm on a suicide mission I would never come back from. I looked in the direction of the graveyard and had one thought. I guess I am dying. a graveyard will do. I struggled to stand up, noticing my blood-soaked clothes and felt a broken left leg. I grasped my wound, limping step by step and enduring the sharp pain while shaking in the cold. Every step I took, I remembered all the memories, good or bad, that I had with my parents. My brother. My friends. My family. I eventually reached the cemetery and slouched at a tree.
“Guess I’m joining you, guys”, I said, speaking to the snow-covered gravestones, only to hear something. A familiar sound of chirping emerged and, lit by the blaze, it was a sight I can hope for. “Joe, what are you doing here”, I depressingly cheered as Joe went to me and curled up in my lap as if he were a cat. I noticed the new-found scar he had on his little snout, but I paid no mind as I petted him. “I guess you came back. Thank you so much for what you did”, I thanked him, not expecting such a loyal creature would be with me, comforting me, to the end, like what my mother used to do when I was a newborn. I heard another noise, this time a deep rumble.
I thought it was another earthquake coming, but it got louder the closer it got to me, becoming more animalistic only felt small vibrations I barely felt. Joe stayed put, oddly enough, as T. Rex, different from the first one, came. It walked towards us until it stopped short of us. It began to produce a low-pitched, bird-like purring, attracting Joe. I realised something, that this T. Rex is Joe’s parent. He joined the rest like him, whom they showed up and all chirped around.
The grown Rex then brought its snout closer to me, not to kill me, but to look at me. It did not reveal its teeth and was still purring. I put my hand out and its nose came close to it. It rubbed it against my hand and started to pet its cold, scaly skin as it breathed through its nose and put it on my chest. I rested my head on it before it pulled away. It gave out a hiss, but I knew it wasn’t that of a threat, but more of a thank you for bringing its small, sometimes immature, child home.
That gave me relief, as it felt like I at least did something for once. They walked away, along with Joe, towards the darkness amongst the gravestones in the cemetery. I glimpsed one last desperate look at Joe before walking beside his parent. I looked up at the sky and I could see all the stars, twinkling, and the dancing green auroras. I began to feel limp and felt the cold embrace of death coming over me, tears pouring out of my eyes. The sky then grew brighter and brighter, the stars faded into the light and I could see my family welcoming me to a new home. It then slowly went black, darker than a cave.
You would think this is the end of me. It wasn’t, or else I wouldn’t be writing this right now. I eventually woke up in a hospital in Regina. I was told I was rescued by a team that transported me while I was in a coma. The doctors said I was very lucky to be alive, as the shrapnel narrowly avoided my vital organs. After that, I was adopted into a new family, but I was only with them for a couple of years before finding a new job and moving out.
As for Sam, I don’t know what happened to her. I would like to think she is safe, somewhere else. As for my family, I think of them all the time. I was in a depressive period right after that. Eventually, over the years, I accepted that they were gone and went to a better place. For Joe, I would like to think he is all grown up, like his parents, and becoming the king of the jungle. I hope we meet again.
As for the evacuated area, it wasn’t some pipeline rupture that caused an evaluation, but an anomaly, with the exact reason not known. There are excuses for the claims of weird stuff going on in there, from disease to chemicals, to eventually a previously unknown geological event, but I saw through it all.
You may ask how, it's because I've been there. Take it or leave it, this is the story I have. As the decade came by, cover-ups were made to hide it, even walls were put around it. Since the incident, the exclusion zone grew from a mere 80 kilometers in diameter to 460 kilometers in diameter, emptying entire cities of the likes of Regina and Saskatoon. I had to move to North Battleford, by the recommendation from the same government covering it up, making me think that time will tell before the floodgates of truth open.
The anomaly didn’t have a name initially, however, over the years, everyone agreed on one name in particular: The Saskatchewan Anomaly.