Spray foam for auto body

import torch from transformers import AutoModelForSpeechSeq2Seq, AutoProcessor, pipeline from datasets import load_dataset from flask import Flask, request, jsonify import numpy as np from pydub import AudioSegment device = "cuda:0" if torch.cuda.is_available() else "cpu" torch_dtype = torch.float16 if torch.cuda.is_available() else torch.float32 model_id = "openai/whisper-large-v3" model = AutoModelForSpeechSeq2Seq.from_pretrained( model_id, torch_dtype=torch_dtype, low_cpu_mem_usage=True, use_safetensors=True ) model.to(device) processor = AutoProcessor.from_pretrained(model_id) pipe = pipeline( "automatic-speech-recognition", model=model, tokenizer=processor.tokenizer, feature_extractor=processor.feature_extractor, max_new_tokens=128, chunk_length_s=30, batch_size=16, return_timestamps=True, torch_dtype=torch_dtype, device=device ) dataset = load_dataset("distil-whispelibrispeech_long", "clean", split="validation") sample = dataset[0]["audio"] u/app.route('/transcribe', methods=['POST']) def transcribe(): if 'audio' not in request.files: return jsonify({'error': 'No audio file received'}), 400 try: audio_file = request.files['audio'] audio_bytes = audio_file.read() audio = AudioSegment.from_file(io.BytesIO(audio_bytes)) audio = audio.set_frame_rate(16000) audio_array = np.array(audio.get_array_of_samples(), dtype=np.float32) result = pipe(audio_array)["text"] return jsonify({'result': result}) except Exception as e: logger.error(f"Error transcribing audio: {e}") return jsonify({'error': 'Error transcribing audio'}), 500 if __name__ == '__main__': app.run(port=9001) print("Server is running on port 9001") 

Title: Simulation Zero.
Theme: Go!Animate Vs The Simulation.
Battle Pass.
Pages.
Page 1.
The Classic Hunter (Skin)
Classic Cowl (Back Bling)
Spear Of The Classic Age (Pickaxe)
Form Modification (Contrail)
Wings Of The Hunter (Glider)
Hunter's Holoarm (Built-In Emote)
Hunter's Glare (Emoticon)
Soaring Hunter (Spray)
Zero Warping (Wrap)
Initiating: Zero Formation (Music Pack/Jam Track)
A Hunter's Shield (Loading Screen)
Page 2.
Simulation Romeo (Skin)
Gated Orb (Back Bling)
Particle Punchers (Pickaxe)
Plummeting Particle (Contrail)
Simulation Skyboard (Glider)
Admin's Hover (Built-In Emote)
Fake Admin (Emoticon)
Admin V Admin (Spray)
Admin Arsenal (Wrap)
Particle Mag (Weapon Mod)
Admin's Soar (Loading Screen)
Page 3.
Powered John (Skin)
Cape Powered By Go!Energy (Back Bling)
Go!Energy Fists (Pickaxe)
Go!Energy (Contrail)
Energized Go!Wings (Glider)
Finger Warm-Up (Emote)
Powered Mask (Emoticon)
Demolition Breakthrough (Spray)
Go!Energy Wave (Wrap)
Go!Energy Muzzle (Weapon Mod)
John's Strike (Loading Screen)
Page 4.
Xavia (Skin)
Xavia's Quickbag (Back Bling)
Xavia's Kinetic Fists (Built-In Pickaxe)
Blue Kinetic Ore (Contrail)
Xavia's Behemoth (Glider)
Alright, Bring Em' (Emote)
Fake Daisy (Emoticon)
Opposite Of A Sweet Daisy (Spray)
Bloody Fists (Wrap)
Ageless Hunt (Music Pack/Jam Track)
Daisy Vs Daisy (Loading Screen)
Page 5.
Ageless Daisy (Skin)
Zaglo Ore (Back Bling)
Kinetic Ore Hammer (PIckaxe)
Red Kinetic Energy (Contrail)
Scouting Falcon (Glider)
Helmet Forged By Zaglo (Built-In Emote)
Refined Kinetic Helmet (Emoticon)
Kinetic Arsenal (Spray)
Red Ore (Wrap)
Zaglo Kinetic Scope (Weapon Mod)
Zaglo Kingdom (Loading Screen)
Page 6.
Ultra-Powered Lunime (Skin)
Lunime's Lives (Back Bling)
The Final Spear (Pickaxe)
Simulation Debris (Contrail)
Wrecked Wings (Glider)
Whatever It Takes, I'll Finish This... (Built-In Emote)
Luni's Final Life (Emoticon)
Evil Emperor (Spray)
Emperor's Energy (Wrap)
Lunime's Final Prophecy (Music Pack/Jam Track)
All Lives Wasted For This (Loading Screen)
Secret Page.
Prowler Xavia (Skin) Defeat Prowler Xavia (1)
Snapshot Mantle (Back Bling) Charge Up Zaglo Kinetic Ore To The Max (1)
Claws Of A Snapshot (Built-In Pickaxe) Deal Damage To Xavia (300)
Glaring Red (Contrail) Collect Blood Samples From Any Eliminated Thing (10)
Snapshot Skysoarer (Glider) Accept A Wastelander Challenge As Prowler Xavia (1)
Prowler Shockwave (Built-In Emote) Emote As Prowler Xavia (1)
Burst Of Shockwave (Emoticon) Use Shockwave Grenades (4)
Prowler Of Soaring (Spray) Travel Distance In The Air After Using Shockwaves (350)
Snapshot Purple (Wrap) Deal Damage With Epic Rarity Weapons (1,000)
Soaring Prowler (Music Pack/Jam Track) Travel Vertically Or In The Air (2,000)
Prowler's Bodies (Loading Screen) Eliminate Opponents As Prowler Xavia (10)
Bonus Pages.
Page 1.
Hunter Mel (Skin)
Calamity Cowl (Back Bling)
Sword Cursed With Calamity (Pickaxe)
Calamity Aura (Contrail)
Calamity Form (Built-In Glider)
A Roar Of A Calamity (Built-In Emote)
Shadow Of The Calamity (Emoticon)
Castle Calamity (Spray)
Purple Calamity (Wrap)
Phase 2 (Calamity Ganon) (Music Pack/Jam Track)
Hunter's Snarl (Loading Screen)
Page 2.
The Classic Hunter (Go!Animate)
Powered John (Go!Animate)
Xavia (Go!Animate)
Ageless Daisy (Go!Animate)
Ultra-Powered Lunime (Go!Animate)
Page 3.
The Classic Hunter (Gacha)
Powered John (Gacha)
Xavia (Gacha)
Ageless Daisy (Gacha)
Ultra-Powered Lunime (Gacha)
Page 4.
The Classic Hunter (Zero Warp)
Powered John (Zero Warp)
Xavia (Zero Warp)
Ageless Daisy (Zero Warp)
Ultra-Powered Lunime (Zero Warp)
POIs: Ultimate Headquarters, Go!Battle Base, Go!City, Hunter's Home, Romeo's Fake Tower, Secreted School, Xanctum Xone, The Zaglo Zitadel, Prowler Peak, Calamity Castle.
NPCs: Spencer Tellin, Tony The Talking Clock, Springtrap, Baldi, Benson, Toodles, Hector Rivera, Cartoon Cat, Nephrite, Monika, Innovator Slone, Puss In Boots, Eren Yeager (Season 4), Mario [Movie], Lacey, Bunbun, Sugar, The Classic Hunter, Powered John.
Bosses: Simulation Romeo, Xavia, Ageless Daisy, Ultra-Powered Lunime, Prowler Xavia, Hunter Mel, Simulation Marvin.
New: Go!Sword, Simulation Sniper, The Classic Hunter's Medallion, Simulation Romeo's Abilities, Simulation Romeo's Medallion, Powered John's Medallion, Xavia's Simulation Sniper, Xavia's Medallion, Ageless Daisy's Shockwave Hammer, Ageless Daisy's Ex-Caliber Rifle, Ageless Daisy's Kinetic Armor, Ageless Daisy's Medallion, Ultra-Powered Lunime's Simulation Ray Gun, Ultra-Powered Lunime's Fists, Ultra-Powered Lunime's Medallion, Prowler Xavia's Claws, Prowler Xavia's Medallion, Hunter Mel's Sword, Hunter Mel's Medallion.
Unvaulted: Simulation Ray Gun, Shockwave Hammer, Ex-Caliber Rifle, Kinetic Ore, Kinetic Blade.
Vaulted: Icon Flashlight, Icon Juice, Cookie Bazooka, Cinnamon Ray Gun, Nathaniel Bandy's Medallion, CourageJD's Gatekeeper Shotgun, CourageJD's Medallion, SergantAJ's Medallion, CaseOh's Suit, CaseOh's Medallion, BigB's Cookie Bazooka, BigB's Enforcer AR, BigB's Medallion, CinnamonToastKen's Cinnamon Ray Gun, CinnamonToastKen's Medallion, SooshiMooshi's Medallion, Ghosttundra's Medallion, Jay's Skateboard, The Stalker's Claws, The Stalker's Medallion, Lacey's Uncle's MK-Alpha AR, Lacey's Uncle's Medallion, Wallten Mistress's Powered Fists, Walten Mistress's Medallion, Andy Flores (Reincarnated)'s Stinger SMG, Andy Flores (Reincarnated)'s Medallion, Flashlight, Skateboard, Stinger SMG.
Live Event: Lunime's Finale.
Season Crew Pack.
Summer Vibe Samka (Skin)
Samka's Selfie (Back Bling)
Simulation Breakout (Pickaxe)
Selfie For Summer! (Loading Screen)

Hello all, I am David, chief of the medical ward, and I think everyone this is aimed at knows who I am. In the wake of our newfound Consortium allies and the construction of our new surface city Tellus has been getting a lot of visitors, including quite a few who have come to work here which has led to a new bit of interaction we had not quite expected: Children.
Our our very few daycares have already been swamped, particularly due to the krev visitors, and issues have arisen so I come to inform you about the idiosyncrasies of the infants of our alien friends, both should you be their caretakers for any reason or also should you or your own children be interacting with them:
Krev

• Yes, they’re actually that small. No, you were not lied about their age. Krev do not have a growth spurt like we do, instead growing evenly throughout their entire life, continuing to grow well past adulthood before they reach their full size.
• Despite what you might initially imagine, krev are adept climbers much like we are. Which means kids will attempt to get everywhere they should not be, they will try to climb on furniture and windows.
• Though krev children are hardier than human children, their nascent scales are still rather soft. Scale fractures are dangerous and prone to infection, treat them like you would a deep cut despite the appearance of superficial damage.
• Krev claws are not particularly sharp, but they are not harmless. It is how they interact with the world, so make sure to wear something that can handle them.
• When holding a krev baby, they are to be held with the belly down and with support under their chin. They will instinctively wrap their tails around your arm. Do not hold them on their back, having an exposed belly makes them nervous and uncomfortable.
• Much like human children, krev children are likely to put anything in their mouths so treat them the same. No, do not allow them to just eat any rock either.
• The krev do rely on consuming hard objects to assist with digestion, however, children especially should not consume any random one. Please ensure they have access to proper, clean and sanitized digestion stones. Attached to this message is a list of all the best options as well as budget options, including especially digestible ones.
• They eat rocks to aid digestion, those are going to make their way out the other way. Do not be surprised. PS: Humans are not built for that, if I get another one in the medical ward with that problem I will let them deal with it the hard way. If you absolutely must please try the children’s pellets at least those won’t hurt you.
• Yes, they are very cute and delightfully round when they curl up. But they are not balls to be played with and you should ensure the children under your care are aware of that, remember they might be very small but human feet are weaker than krev scales. To those of you worried, Mary and Rikki are well and recovering from the broken foot and arm, respectively. PS: No, the fact you’re consenting adults changes nothing. In fact it makes it worse, krev are dense and built to not be moved. At least I learned where the kids got it from, shame on the both of you.
• Krev have a gland in their tails capable of spraying an incredibly foul-smelling fluid. Do not be fooled, its usage is not a type of instinctive or fear reaction as they are fully in control of it. It is in fact extremely rude to employ it and because kids will be kids ensure to keep a can of neutralizer available. Should you not be able to find any in the local pharmacies, citric smells do a decent job at counteracting it.

Resket

• It has come to my attention that some eggs have been put in the care of our daycares. Those require specific care, being kept on a soft surface (if you do not have nesting fiber a stack of bedsheets will do) as well as away from direct sunlight for extended periods of time. Resket eggs are harder than you think and they can handle an appreciable thermal variance, but avoid allowing the local temperature to fall below 17C.
• The youngest resket chicks will be featherless and baby clothes for them are available. They are very vulnerable in this stage of life so do not be fooled by the older ones’ lack of procilivity for clothing and ensure the parent has brought their chick’s clothes.
• Resket are not mammals, however, as avians they are fed with crop milk. Our own sensibilities about it aside, ensure that proper crop formula is available for your resket wards below the age of five. Should none of it be available for some reason, attached to this warning are a few interim recipes useable in an urgency.
• Resket are adept runners, they are even born knowing how to walk and learn to run very quickly and this means one thing: They get the zoomies. Yes, it is very cute to watch the young resket sprinting around and chirping without a care but you must ensure they have either a wide open field in which to exercise or that your interior’s surfaces are well padded as they will run into things, including furniture and walls.
• During rest time resket will feel most at ease with something both soft and heavy on their bodies as they will usually be nested on by their parents. Weighted blankets are the preferable solution, with artificial feather weighted blankets being available.
• Resket chicks are moody, much more so than human ones, and often prone to tantrums and fits. Do not be afraid to be stern or even loud as they respond better than we do to such tactics but make sure to always temper it with praise afterwards.
• Resket are large and as such so are their children, always be cautious when they are around children the same age and for the love of god tell our children to stop trying to ride them. Especially if they allow it. Yes, it’s cute, but only until they topple over and crush the other child with their weight. PS: Yes, I know you’ve seen adults doing that. Those were trained (and irresponsible) soldiers. Chicks do not have as good sense of balance yet.

Ulchid

• Above all else make sure to have the parents’ documentation on hand when receiving or handing off the children. Yes, I know it’s standard procedure but pay extra attention with the ulchid, there will be twenty different people coming for the same children and yes they are all legal guardians of them.
• Should the unthinkable happen and a child be handed over to the wrong family be sure to call your contact with the family as soon as possible, chances are the child has already been returned to them. The party responsible for this warning has already been fired.
• Our installations are not built to ulchid specifications, as such vertical mobility is particularly burdensome for them, triply so for children. When moving between floors without an elevator you will be required to carry the ulchids.
• Portable pools have been made available for any place that sees ulchid children, it is important to give them access to water with at minimum shallow diving depth in order to foster healthy growth. Yes, you can let the other kids play in the pool, but remember to give priority to the properly aquatic species.
• Ulchid come in groups and so do their children, if one of them has come to your daycare expect at least another eight.
• Ulchid children are as social as their parents and in turn need extensive playtime. Should be noted that ulchid require even more varied play than other species and in general are better served with handling it themselves even at a young age without caretaker intervention.
• If you are experiencing consistent headaches, please experiment with using the special headphones made available for you. Ulchid language uses sounds that can cause headache in specially sensitive individuals and their infants’ need for communication leads to a consistently noisy environment.
• When taking care of groups with multiple species, ensure to moderate the ulchid natural communal nature to avoid them becoming overbearing to others, this young stage of life is the most important for them to learn the different limits of different species.
• On the same topic, always be cautious of ulchid children who are in smaller groups. We do not naturally process a group of three as being isolated but to them it is the same, one should approach with caution (ulchid introverts are difficult to notice for humans as they will seem wildly extroverted to our standards) however the psychosomatic effects of loneliness and ostracism on ulchid are not to be underestimated. “Death by loneliness” is a real, tangible problem in the species and a situation that should be watched for.

Trombil

• First and foremost, I do not care what your ethics say about it. You do not have an argument in front of the children. Period. The usage of bionics on young is a sticking point for many caretakers, but no matter what you are not helping the children by blowing up on their parents on the door of the daycare in front of time. What is done is done, the priority is the wellbeing of your wards! If you must, take your argumentation to a separate place where it will not upset the youngsters who can’t even understand what is going on.
• Do not accept taking care of trombil eggs. Trombil eggs are incredibly fragile and require specialized equipment for proper care, you are not prepared for this kind of work and the dangers of handling such fragile beings are not acceptable. Should there be any unusual circumstances requiring the care of an egg please get in contact with the medical ward or the administration.
• Similarly to the ulchid, ensure a presence of an aquatic environment for any trombil under your care. Though not as water-dependant the earliest life stages of the trombil suffer from reduced mobility due to the excess weight of their shells as they are not born fully capable of holding their own weight and aquatic exercise is necessary for them to properly develop.
• Trombil babies are fully capable of digesting both meat and vegetables, not being mammals, but those must be properly prepared. Remember that those must be cut into the smallest possible portions and fed slowly, it is not until their third year that their capacity to cut into things is developed.
• Those who are just starting to walk should be kept under watch at all times, it takes approximately six months between learning to walk and being capable of righting themselves should they fall on their back. However, the experience is important to them to learn how to right themselves, so it is recommended to let them continue to attempt until they are starting to become upset.
• Trombil bioluminescence is not simply pretty, it is an important form of communication used from an early age. While the colors do not become stable and easily readable until they are teenagers a few standards are to be observed: Warmer colors such as reds and oranges indicate fear and distress, trombil babies will generally shift to warmer colors instead of crying, generally only beginning to cry if left without attention for a long time. Cooler colors indicate excitement and energy, but can also indicate overstimulation that can be painful and distressing. PS: This is children, when they become adults they have almost full control over their bioluminescence. Applying those standards to adults is equivalent of making babytalk to grown men.
• Do not panic if you notice their shells bending slightly, they are more flexible than they appear at first glance, however be on the lookout for not just cracks but possible bends in the plates that do not right themselves within a minute as those indicate possible wounds. Remember that their shells are effectively their skin, unlike krev scales there is no skin underneath, so any damage is to be treated with caution.
• You will invariably get to care for children with cybernetics, children augmentations are generally training models that are more resilient than their natural body parts while being incapable of creating more force than the natural equivalents, they are also made to be simple to repair in case of damage. In those situations the parent are expected to furnish you with repair kits alongside the other materials every child has to bring along, those kits are easy enough to use in case of an emergency, but remember you do not have the skillset for anything other than the equivalent of first-aid.
• It is perfectly safe for children with augmentations to play with others, child cybernetics are specifically designed to have similar capacities to their organic counterparts as children aren’t capable of regulating themselves yet.
• Childcare services are not under my purview as they’re not officially medical but if I hear even one more of you out there even tried to shame a child because of body parts they had no choice in having or not I do not care about regulations I will teach you those flesh and blood hands of mine are still very fucking dangerous. Even my professionalism has a limit. Those are kids. Keep your bullshit to yourself.
• There is a large number of Evinites (body-purist trombil who prefer not to have modifications) who have come to reside and work on Tellus. Should you have the child of any of them in your care be on the lookout for cases of bullying from other trombil children. Children learn from their parents, and unfortunately not all parents have good lessons to teach as I’m sure quite a few of you are aware. Please do your best to foster an environment of acceptance among the children. PS: I said acceptance, trying to turn the bullying in the other direction is not acceptance, it’s just being an asshole to someone else. See the previous bullet point.
• You may have trombil children with braces marked with blue and red and the following symbol [a tri-point star-like symbol]. Those are training braces utilized to prepare for augmentations later in life, it is perfectly safe to remove them as they are not of medical need. Remember that they are clearly marked for a reason, if they do not have the training brace marks they are a medical requirement.

Jaslip

• Remember that those are arctic people, and that Tellus’ desertic climate is already a challenge for them. When housing jaslip children ensure that the ambient temperature is at maximum at 18C, in the unlikely chance you are handling only jaslip kits -10C is preferable but in a mixed environment 14C is the best average for all needs.
• Jaslip kits have a preference for small spaces and crawling under things as well as being naturally adept at disguising and hiding themselves. Sure, it might be really cute watching the kit thinking they can hide behind the transparent curtains, but when you can’t find them anywhere when the parents come to pick them up or you find that they got themselves under some furniture they cannot get out from under it is distressing.
• Jaslip have a keen sense of smell, multiple times more powerful than ours, and in turn respond much more strongly to those. Environments for jaslip must be kept a little bit more clean, ensuring that the kitchens are kept with their organics bins always empty and caretakers should utilize only mild perfumes. Though the required cooler temperatures makes it easier, remember that our sweat is also considerably strong in its smell for them and prepare accordingly. PS: We are lucky it has happened with the parent and not the child but please, please do not under any circumstance utilize the stuff Rebecca’s been improvising back when we were in the caves. The sneezes continued until he required a visit to the hospital.
• Though not any more likely to get in trouble than any other group of children, krev are wont to use their tail spray when annoyed and should this situation involve a jaslip take action as soon as possible with neutralizer, failing that any citric odoriferous compound available and if that is also not available thorough washing of the sprayed area. Though not damaging, the intensity of the smell is sufficient to be blinding, especially to a kit.
• You can, and in fact are encouraged to, give them chewtoys. Their maws are a big portion of how they interact with the world and particularly during early teething their teeth are very discomfortable. No, this is not treating them like animals, we all used pacifiers when we were babies and if you look at the pens on your desk you are likely to find enough bite marks on them, let’s not forget chewing gum either. Make sure to have age-appropriate toys and make sure they are thoroughly washed with neutral soap after a kit is finished with it. PS: Yes, the kit chewtoys are also very good for adult humans. Do avoid the flavorful ones, they might well enjoy their sweets but their carnivore palate makes every flavor option a russian roulette game.
• An adult jaslip’s tails are very dextrous limbs capable of grasping and fine motor control, much like our hands. Much like our babies’ hands, a kit’s tails are uncoordinated messes. They can and will get smacked into objects, stuck in furniture and even tie themselves into blind knots. Though usually the most you need to deal with is a slight bruise or a panicked kit, should they manage to truly tangle their tails first ensure that the kit is sufficiently calm and relaxed before you attempt to disentangle as they will stop tensing them. Humming, holding and other assurances are as effective to them as they are to us.
• Jaslip kits (jaslip in general) are incredibly cuddly due to their natural habit of seeking communal warmth, particularly when sleeping. If you notice kits being very insistent on being near, consistently following you and being whiny they are most likely feeling sleepy and, as kids are wont to do, refusing to sleep. Simply laying down will usually prompt every sleepy kit to gather on you to nap, however, making them considerably easier to convince to bed than our own children. They will also seek other children to cuddle with to nap, particularly ulchid children are very receptive to this arrangement but ensure that they are properly dry if you can catch them in time.
• Grooming and brushing time is important for the kits, it is how their parents show affection and helps with bonding. Usually in a daycare it should not be required, however, some parents have asked our workers, particularly those of the night shift, to groom the kits. It should be noted this is, particularly, social grooming- It is a social activity not unlike any other form of playtime and not a matter of cleanliness. Therefore, usage of bare hands is preferable, but soft brushes are also acceptable.
• We all like sharing treats with the children from time to time, however, it has come to the attention of the medical ward that some jaslip kits have convinced their caretakers that the sweet-tasting slushie known as ‘kelai’ is an appropriate treat. I would like to remind all caretakers that kelai is a powerful energetic that, while not immediately harmful to children in small doses, is roughly equivalent to five times its volume in coffee. It has all the expected effects of such as well. One should not give those to children below seven, between seven and twelve (or older than eleven for krev) kelai with concentration of active components no more than 10mg once a day at maximum, and thirteen and above no more than 13mg. Whose those thresholds ensure the children’s health, also ask yourself: Do you truly want kids hopped up on super coffee?
• Jaslip use their tails to hold their kits, particularly the younger ones, same way as we carry them in our arms. The lack of that particular touch can make some kits refuse to sleep and be incapable of relaxing in the long term, therefore, a way to help simulate it is wrap them completely in soft blankets and hold them in your arms. It will often be enough to lull fussy kits of single-digit age to sleep and the attempt will generally be enough to win the trust of older ones.
• Jaslip are deep sleepers, even the young ones, so if they do not awaken with ease when required simply be more insistent. Their famous hibernation habit is weather-related, not time-related, and it only starts to trigger when the local temperature is below -40C. They are, probably, just pretending to be asleep. PS: As I’ve said, it is temperature related. The one incident in which we had jaslip kits in deep sleep state involved a badly installed AC unit that managed to freeze the entire building to -80C making it effectively unlivable for any other species. The parties involved had been properly punished.
• Whenever you are picking up or returning jaslip kits, it has become regrettably necessary to remain on guard for other parents, particularly should you realize the jaslip parents have the fur pattern attached in the following image. Though we should avoid joining any possible situation that develops, certain aspects of Consortium society might cause fights between parents to occur at times, during those times it is suggested to keep the kids away from the developing situation and do not get involved until it has resolved. Should it escalate please attempt to, first, call the human law enforcement.

Smigli

• I must begin this one with a warning: If you are going to work on daycare, you must be willing to accept all species. Our kind lies on the verge of extinction because some assholes weren’t willing to accept us, we are not going to do the same others. There has only been three incidents but that is three too many, all three of which have been fired.
• The smigli are beyond even being omnivores, being quite capable of consuming virtually anything, however that capacity only develops with time and smigli youths are considerably more sensitive to nutrient intake. It is recommended to have the specific food pellets for their age range available, however, should that prove to be unfeasible at the moment any food for any species within the same age range is acceptable. PS: The adults will be more than willing to entertain you with eating all manner of strange stuff. Do not endanger the children’s health just because it is “cute”! Particularly when it involves any particularly large object! Those kids are still small!
• Humans and smigli are remarkably similar in their skin for multiple reasons, despite not being the same. One such similarity is the fragility of our skin, in fact they are even more fragile than we are and are very prone to cuts and scrapes, the smigli under your care will inevitably find themselves with small wounds. However, their protective coating is considerably good at preventing infection and bleeding, there is no need to panic at any small wounds. However, please utilize smigli-specific medicine for treating them, items such as bandages, medical gel and disinfectants may not behave as expected in contact with their protective coating.
• Yes, they are somewhat slimy. That is a necessary protective coating they cannot do without, they are clean. This coating might be viscous but it does not stick to fur nor does it stick to most surfaces- Unfortunately, it will stick to some kinds of fabric. Attached is a list of fabric that is unsafe around smigli, thankfully a short list.
• When cleaning a smigli make sure to use specialized cleaning towels made specifically for the care of their young and do so with caution and a gentle touch when cleaning their skin as it is fragile without its layers of viscous protection. The properly made smigli towels will quickly replace their protective layer, attached to this is a list of good brands available for quick delivery. Linked, as well, is a recipe for an old and tried homemade cleaning towel and protective dip should you somehow find yourself with no access to proper towels.
• Smigli are not particularly physically active people, even as children. If the smigli under your care show lessened interest in physical play, preferring instead creative endeavors such as drawing and reading do not apply to them the human standards. You will not have the skillset to gauge what is a healthy amount of exercise to them, please be sure to confer with the parents should you find any behaviour worrisome, they will appreciate the care. Additionally, there are links in this file on verified studies for those willing to take a step further on the particularities of smigli needs.
• Mud is to the smigli as fabric is to us, it is a necessary protection to their skin. No, they can’t just wear clothes, the porous and humid nature of mud is a necessity for their natural processes. You will need to clean it off during bath but they will need to be re-coated later, as well as you will need to be a bit more attentive with cleaning of the environment.
• This ‘dirty’ mud is a necessity for them, in fact it is not considered dirty at all. And you were all children one day I am certain none of you complained about mud back then either. It is acceptable for the floors to be cleaned only during closing time when housing smigli, plus the mud they utilize is easy to clean once it has dried off.
• When we speak of mud we do not speak if any mud, smigli children are more fragile and sensitive than adults and both the soil and water utilized needs to be not just clean but also carefully controlled for their good health. Attached is a list of both good options and cheap options for mud coats for varying ages, it is preferable to use the pre-mixed coats in most circumstances but the soil mixes are cheaper and, in some circumstances involving health, preferable.
• Smigli manipulators are sufficiently good and dextrous for every task, but they are also the second clumsiest manipulators of the Consortium, losing only to jaslip forepaws. As such, do not be alarmed if the smigli under your care take longer to master them than we take to master our own hands, that is expected development speed.

This list contains only things which have become egregious enough to require public announcement, there are many more things to keep in mind of course and for those there are further articles on childcare of every species attached to this announcement.
As a final word, I remind you of the most important practice for a caretake: Listen to the children and believe them when they are worried. Your focus is their wellbeing and if you must make a mistake, let it be the mistake of taking them too seriously over the mistake of ignoring them. Your first task is to see to their wellbeing, and remember: They are the ones who will live in the future we build, let’s make sure both them and that future are good.
Good ol' mention to u/MrMopp8, who dared me to do this one.
Amusingly I wrote this because I was having a hard time having the brains to actually write my fic, and then I got subsumed at like midnight and did like a 3000 words in an hour. Hopefully it is entertaining.

In search for a soapy, aftershave, men’s body wash kind of vibe. Me and my bf tried spicebomb night vision and the first spray was kinda in the ballpark of what we were after, but I kept the paper sampler and the dry down wasn’t a hit. Just looking for something clean smelling and crowd pleasing

"All Humans"
Mobs beating one or two helpless people in 3rd world countries are some of the most timeless videos on the Internet. How the fuck do you get in that situation? For a whole village of em' to be that upset? Oh, You're gay? Meet this fucking stone, lumphead. Oh, your elderly black ass is doing silly witchy spells? In my oh so brave Africa? Everyone you ever knew in your life that isn't dead is going to abuse you to death and beat your corpse until you look like a feed my starving children meal. It's almost endearing to see these videos and really let the facts of the matter set in. Humans love to kick and shove, elbow and knee. They love to play catch and throw with a little petite dime that just so happened to wear almost nothing to a punk metal concert. Some humans might start to stop this, their stomach burning with disgustful curiosity, as they notice her flesh bags had been revealed although her nipples were obscured by knuckles and thumbs only to create a domino effect of violence. In the scuffle, some humans will continue to throw the girl to one another after their fingers cup her mouth and stomach until she (falls) to the ground. All humans will forget about the girl and go after one another, blood from the blows of hooks and jabs spraying on her (naked) body (tumbling) about the concrete floor. All humans will stomp her to death.
Any feedback/opinions are welcome and appreciated! !! Thank you ! ***Note: This is a monologue and in no way do I really feel this way.

for me its a mix of soapy and sweet fragrances and sometimes axe body spray HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAH

I’m looking into starting a new hobby. I am currently a self-taught mechanic working in a shop. Unfortunately our shop doesn’t do body work. I’m really interested in air compressor based painting. I don’t know much about it right now. I’ve gotten very good at spray paint cans, but I hate the orange peely look they leave.
Im starting out with painting rims and maybe calipers. I might try repainting my car if I get confident (The paint on my car is really bad right now, so even if I mess it up, it wouldn’t be much worse).
Question 1: Is a used Craftsman air compressor good enough to get started? Specs: 15 gal tank 4.9 scfm at 40psi 3.5 scfm at 90psi
Question 2: Is the Astro EUROHE103 a good starter paint gun? I don’t want to get a harbor freight gun, because I’ve heard it’s hard for beginners to use.
Question 2.5: Is the Astro EUROHE103 better than an HVLP paint gun? What’s the differences between it and a comparable HVLP gun?
Question 3: Where should I look for paint? I am specifically interested in a metallic black flake looking paint. I don’t know how much paint I’d need, but for 4 rims I doubt I’d need a full gallon. I know there’s normally multiple steps and you have to blend in thinner, I’m just looking for a site to start researching.
Thanks for any help. Cant wait to start painting.

I tried Jo Malone nectarine blossom and honey once in a Sephora and it smelled okay. I ended up getting it as my “signature scent” for my birthday. I don’t know what changed between the Sephora try and now, but when I first spray it, it smells like a cheap sickly sweet, rotten peach body spray, and lasts 5 minutes. No exaggeration. By the time I’m out the door for work, it’s already gone. It’s driving me nuts and I’ve stopped wearing it because the staying power is so unbelievably bad for something so expensive.
It’s a huge bottle and I feel shitty for telling my dad who got me it, because I think he liked getting it for me for my signature scent, but there’s no way I’m finishing that thing 😭
Has anyone else felt that Jo Malone is wildly disappointing? That huge price tag for something that 1. Isn’t that unique/special (I can get better smelling perfumes at half the price), and 2. Doesn’t last AT ALL
I feel like I’ve been duped :/

I tried Jo Malone nectarine blossom and honey once in a Sephora and it smelled okay. I ended up getting it as my “signature scent” for my birthday. I don’t know what changed between the Sephora try and now, but when I first spray it, it smells like a cheap sickly sweet, rotten peach body spray, and lasts 5 minutes. No exaggeration. By the time I’m out the door for work, it’s already gone. It’s driving me nuts and I’ve stopped wearing it because the staying power is so unbelievably bad for something so expensive.
It’s a huge bottle and I feel shitty for telling my dad who got me it, because I think he liked getting it for me for my signature scent, but there’s no way I’m finishing that thing 😭
Has anyone else felt that Jo Malone is wildly disappointing? That huge price tag for something that 1. Isn’t that unique/special (I can get better smelling perfumes at half the price), and 2. Doesn’t last AT ALL
I feel like I’ve been duped :/

I tried Jo Malone nectarine blossom and honey once in a Sephora and it smelled okay. I ended up getting it as my “signature scent” for my birthday. I don’t know what changed between the Sephora try and now, but when I first spray it, it smells like a cheap sickly sweet, rotten peach body spray, and lasts 5 minutes. No exaggeration. By the time I’m out the door for work, it’s already gone. It’s driving me nuts and I’ve stopped wearing it because the staying power is so unbelievably bad for something so expensive.
It’s a huge bottle and I feel shitty for telling my dad who got me it, because I think he liked getting it for me for my signature scent, but there’s no way I’m finishing that thing 😭
Has anyone else felt that Jo Malone is wildly disappointing? That huge price tag for something that 1. Isn’t that unique/special (I can get better smelling perfumes at half the price), and 2. Doesn’t last AT ALL
I feel like I’ve been duped :/

I tried Jo Malone nectarine blossom and honey once in a Sephora and it smelled okay. I ended up getting it as my “signature scent” for my birthday. I don’t know what changed between the Sephora try and now, but when I first spray it, it smells like a cheap sickly sweet, rotten peach body spray, and lasts 5 minutes. No exaggeration. By the time I’m out the door for work, it’s already gone. It’s driving me nuts and I’ve stopped wearing it because the staying power is so unbelievably bad for something so expensive.
It’s a huge bottle and I feel shitty for telling my dad who got me it, because I think he liked getting it for me for my signature scent, but there’s no way I’m finishing that thing 😭
Has anyone else felt that Jo Malone is wildly disappointing? That huge price tag for something that 1. Isn’t that unique/special (I can get better smelling perfumes at half the price), and 2. Doesn’t last AT ALL
I feel like I’ve been duped :/

Sorry in advance for the long post, I'm trying to tackle a variety of different issues and want to make sure I explain clearly.
My wife and I purchased an older home just over a year ago now. It has a pretty large 10x20 shed, with windows, a second floor, a subpanel with 2 breakers, etc. The shed was built ~20-25 years ago by the original owner. However, for 9 years prior to us purchasing the home there was another owner who just let everything go and did zero upkeep.
I like to think I'm relatively handy, and repairing this shed would be a good opportunity to learn some new skills that's much 'lower stakes' than my primary residence. Here's a gallery of a few pictures showing the problem spots. https://postimg.cc/gallery/zHgMsV4
There's some obvious rot on the sheathing, soft enough to stick a screwdriver straight through so I'm going to need to tear that off and repair, there's some holes where critters have gotten in, I plan to patch and probably spray foam / caulk. Let me know if I'm going down the wrong path here, but those seem pretty 'straightforward'. I may bite the bullet and just re-side the whole shed because we're not in love with the look of it anyway and you can also see the doors and other areas are rotting.
What I'm more conflicted about are three other issues.
1) The consistent dampness of the floor in certain spots. There's some mold on the underside of the second floor too, the wood seems structurally sound, no softness or bounciness. The topside of the second floor shows little to no water damage and the roof sheathing above it looks fine too. So maybe it's a condensation / ventilation problem, or ground moisture. I'm in the Mid-Atlantic of the US, so hot humid summers and cold sometimes snowy winters.
I was planning to spray the mold down well with cleaning vinegar, let it sit, and then scrub it. I was thinking I should take up some floorboards and see what's going on, I'm pretty sure it was just built over dirt, with no vapor barrier put down. Assuming the joists are still good should I just take up the floor and put a vapor barrier on top of the joists and put the old floor back (or swap to treated plywood?) or should I dig out the ground underneath so there's more distance and put a barrier under the joists.
2) The rotting bottom plate, bottle jacks are pretty cheap, should I just jack that side of the shed up like a half an inch to slide in a new plate?
3) There is a clear roof leak and some water damage. I was planning to attempt to re-roof this myself but as you can see it's a 12/12 pitch which is sketchy af. I have a neighbor who has ladder jacks and scaffolding, so I was thinking to try that, or since the area is relatively small, make a small patch repair to seal the leak for now, not replace the sheathing and worry about the rest of the roof when I'm either more comfortable or just hire a professional.
If you've made it this far, I appreciate it and would love any and all advice, criticism, watch outs, etc.!

Chapter One: The First Midnight
It was exactly twenty minutes until midnight when Jacob mounted his old mountain bike and pedaled quietly out of the garage, out onto the gravel driveway. He didn’t turn on the bike-light attached to the handlebars yet. He wouldn’t do so until he was well away from his parents’ property. There was a full moon tonight, so there was enough light to see at least tolerably well by, anyway. In fact while he was still in sight of the farmhouse’s shuttered windows, he wished it would have been a little bit darker.
The driveway was half overgrown by weeds and grass, and rutted by deep tire-tracks. It descended a gentle slope from the house till intersecting with the main gravel road that ran past the ten-acre property. His parents were of course asleep by now; so were his older sister and younger brother. Or at least, they’d better be at twelve o’clock at night, he thought. To be caught wouldn’t only be humiliating, it would be as painful as the whipping that would be sure to follow. His parents had whipped, kicked, and otherwise beat him and his two siblings many times—usually for what he thought were minor offenses. They went only a little easier on his brother and sister. He had always been the least favorite, he couldn’t really say why.
He was fourteen and a half years old. And obviously, biking away from home in the middle of the night isn’t something even adults usually get away with; as far as kids…. If his parents found out he was gone, and stayed gone for a long time, they might call the police. Not because they particularly liked having him around the house, but more simply because they wouldn’t want the neighbors finding out that their own son had disappeared! Although they probably wouldn’t call the police—not unless he was gone more than a few hours; and he was confident he would be back before then.
Although not a hundred percent certain.
By now the dim lights showing from the old two-story house had disappeared behind the canopy of trees that surrounded the acreage. He could breathe a little easier now. This road stretched about a half a mile south from home till reaching the highway, which was paved asphalt and not gravel. He would be able to ride a lot faster once he got to the highway. The gravel road then went on several miles further south from there, past a handful of other country houses all scattered well apart from each other.
But he wasn’t going that direction tonight.
This highway was hardly ever well traveled, being as it was here in the middle of the Missouri countryside. But still he expected to come across some traffic, at nighttime mainly trucks and farm vehicles. In fact a tractor was rolling slowly by just as he was coming up the steep hill to the highway, its’ huge wheels making a grating, grinding sound on the asphalt. Whoever was driving the tractor wouldn’t be harvesting in early summer, obviously. More likely just spreading manure or spraying pesticides. At the stop sign Jacob slowed to a halt and readjusted his handlebars; then, switching his bike-light on, he turned eastward down the highway (conveniently the opposite of the direction the tractor was headed in.)
The wind rushed against his face, a slightly damp wind. It felt almost as if there might be rain coming, he thought. But not too soon; there were only a few streaky clouds drifting across the starry, moonlit sky. It was the end of June, and the days here in northwest Missouri were supposed to be pretty hot by this time. But this year had been a little better, so far. In fact the night air was cool, almost cold. He was glad that he was wearing jeans and a long-sleeved shirt.
The moon glared bright almost directly above—almost too bright, a little ominous-looking. He felt like something really bad was sure to occur tonight. And considering where he was going, why wouldn’t he expect that? He tended to be a pessimistic person to start with, and to agree go to Creighton Hall of all places, in the middle of the night….
Why was he going there? People said that it was haunted, they said that it was a place where vampires lived. But that must be superstition, he kept trying to tell himself. In fact those were the very words he had used when talking to his three friends over at the Schaefers’ property. The fifteen year old Jason was the neighbors’ second son (they had three), and he was somewhat of a know it all. He’d insisted that there must be a reason for the all those century-old rumors about the mansion. There had been an argument.
“Don’t you know anything about the story of that Castle?” Jason had said, his voice filled with incredulity.
Jacob admitted that he didn’t—except that people said they thought it was haunted.
“But it’s not a castle. And heck,” he added, “they’re mostly kind of joking when they say that about the vampires. I mean, I know there are plenty of superstitious people, but—“
‘’Let me tell you,” Jason had interrupted. ‘’I guess you didn’t’t know that the mansion was built in the late 1800s by a millionaire called James Creighton. He was one of the richest people in America, at the time—at least, one of the richest in Missouri.”
“What about him?”
“They say that after the house was built, he planned on living there like a king, with a dozen servants, and he did for a while, only….” His voice trailed off mysteriously; but Jacob didn’t say anything, so he went on, “it wasn’t more than a year that he was there before he died, for no reason that was obvious to anybody. His immediate family claimed it was of ‘’natural causes’’. But some people say he was murdered. But by who? Well, there’s no way to know. And do you know something else?”
“What?”
“They say that none of the public ever got to see his dead body. They had a big funeral for him, and his coffin was lowered underground, but nobody actually ever saw a corpse. At least that’s what I’ve heard.”
‘’Well that is pretty strange, if it actually happened like that,” said Jacob. ‘’But to say the house is haunted seems—-“
“And also,” Jason interrupted—he had an irritating habit of interrupting everyone, ‘’Creighton’s relatives demanded that there wouldn’t be a police investigation into his death. And if that isn’t suspicious I don’t know what is.”
‘’And you know what they say,‘’ Travis Lyon, who was also present, said. ‘’They say no one has seen the inside of Creighton Hall in twenty years.’’
‘’I know nobody ever goes in there,’’ Jacob admitted.
‘’But there’s this,” Jason said. ‘’The last time anybody DID go into that castle was when a man named Gregory Creighton, a great-great grandnephew of James Creighton, decided to go inside to see if there was any of James Creightons’ old belongings in there that could be auctioned off. And do you know what? When he came back out of the castle, he appeared to be a completely different man than the one that had gone in! Nothing was ever auctioned. And if anybody ever asked him about what he had seen inside the castle, why, Gregory would refuse to talk about it. But his last words on his death bed were, “That castle must be burned to the ground.” Or at least that’s what I’ve heard, anyway.”
Jacob said nothing for a moment. It did seem like an awfully strange series of coincidences, if true…. ‘’But for crying out loud,” he said, eventually, “you actually believe all that? I mean, that’s superstition. That’s silliness.”
The conversation had devolved from there. Jacob couldn’t remember when or how exactly it happened, but somehow or other he had been fool enough to volunteer to go into the castle himself and prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that it wasn’t haunted.
‘’But not in broad daylight,‘’ Jacob insisted. ‘’That’s not when the vampires come out. Everybody knows that vampires come alive at night.’’
‘’At night?”
‘’So, if you do go to the castle, be sure to do it at nighttime—in fact, at midnight. Well, around midnight; it wouldn’t have to be exactly that time, obviously. You know midnight is the devil’s hour, as they say.’’
Jacob said nothing. Go all the way to Creighton Hall at midnight? What more absurdities, he wondered! Still, he thought, why not?
‘’The only problem is that leaving home at that time wouldn’t exactly go over well with my parents, I—“
‘’That’s why you’d have to be stealthy about it. Don’t up and tell them you’re leaving! But do it secretly. That is, if you’re interested. And it’s understandable if you’re not.’’
‘’No, no,” Jacob said hurriedly. ‘’I’ll do it—I’ll go. When?”
The other three boys looked at each other.
‘’How about this Saturday? That’s three days away,” Travis suggested. ‘’I think it’s supposed to be a full moon that night.’’
‘’Yeah, this Saturday,” said Jason. ‘’Would you be willing to do that?’’
‘’Sure, it doesn’t make any difference to me when,” Jacob said, shrugging. ‘’I’ll go next Saturday.’’
And that had been the end of that conversation.
And now, here he was, just a couple minutes away from midnight, just a few minutes away from the ‘’haunted’’ mansion. For the hundredth time he asked himself WHY had he been so stupid as to agree to this? Well, anyway, he was doing it now, and there was no going back.
No going back.
There came a sudden wailing of a coyote—a wild, mournful, lonely sound—piercing the stillness of the night. Then came another, and again several more. In a few seconds there was a whole chorus of their wild voices echoing throughout the countryside.
Coyotes always sound closer than they really were, Jacob thought. And with rare exceptions, they hardly ever attack people anyway, so he really didn’t have much to worry about.
At least as far as coyotes were concerned.
By now he had come to a hilly, forested area—called Berstier Wood—where the road took numerous twists and turns. The dark trees on either side of him smothered much of the moonlight. Still, the light on his bike lit the road ahead of him tolerably well.
He could feel his heart beating faster as he realized that he was close, very close, to the mansion, now. Why anybody ever wanted to build a mansion here, of all places, in the middle of nowhere, was one of the many mysteries concerning Creighton Hall. But Berstier Wood had grown up around the castle after the passing of the original builder. It wasn’t particularly farmable country anyway, considering all the rough hills and valleys.
Suddenly the trees ended. There before him was the ancient mansion, much overgrown with moss and lichen, and partly covered by the surrounding tangle of trees.
He pulled is bike up to a halt. In the garish moonlight the place had an even more ominous look than it did ordinarily. There it towered up above him, five stories high, with innumerable spiky turrets like steeples clawing at the moonlit sky. The grimacing faces of gargoyles, spaced regularly along the crenellated battlements, seemed to survey the world below with disapproval. If there was ever a house (if ‘’house’’ it could be called) that looked haunted, he could not help but think, then this was it.
But of course, it wasn’t actually haunted, he tried to tell himself reassuringly.
He left his bike lying on the ground a short distance from the road, in the shadow of the low, broken stone wall that skirted the property. The property itself was in a sorry state, overgrown by tall, thick weeds and bushes, including a certain species of tough, thorny bushes. More than once he felt their sharp pricking against his denim jeans.
What remained of a winding stone pathway led from the door of the outer wall to the castle’s gates. But this pathway was almost entirely covered in weeds and thorns, and thus worthless. Jacob had to pick his own way slowly and gingerly up to the gateway. Just as he was reaching it there came a gust of wind, moaning between the branches of the nearby pine and oak trees. With it came more crying, almost wailing, of coyotes. They sounded closer than ever. He felt a sudden impulse to turn and get out of here as fast as humanly possible. But no. He had come here for one purpose, and now he was going to follow through with it.
He cleared his throat a few times before pressing his hand lightly against the gates. He wasn’t sure if he would be able to push them open, and for the first few seconds they wouldn’t give an inch. But gradually, with a groaning and grating sound, they began to move, reluctantly. In a minute the entrance was open, and he was staring into the empty darkness of the mansion. He took a deep breath.
This was the moment he had been waiting for, the moment when he would shatter all superstition and prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the castle was not “haunted”, that there were no demons lurking inside. But now that he had come to it, he could not help but hesitate. He had taken a flashlight with him, but up to this point there had been no need to turn it on, as the moonlight was bright enough to see by clearly while he was still outside.
But now he withdrew the little flashlight from his pocket and flipped its’ switch on. Then, without further ado he walked through the archway. He could almost hear the words of Travis Lyon ringing through his head, “they say no one has seen the inside of Creighton Hall in twenty years.’’ Twenty years! Was that true? How could that possibly be true? Was he, perhaps, walking out of the ‘’real’’ world and into… well, somewhere else. Somewhere terrible and evil.
Was he walking into his own grave?
He didn’t know whym but something told him he should close the doors behind him. Fortunately, they closed mich more easily than they had opened—in fact, surprisingly easily, and silently. almost automatically, really.
Jacob held up his flashlight and shone it around the room into which he had just come, which wasn’t a room, but more like a hall, with floor and walls of smooth stone, and many lamps up at the ceiling (but none of them lit now, of course). There was no furniture, not a single chair or table anywhere. Jacob did see, on the opposite side of the hall, an open doorway and through it a corridor, which obviously would extend to the rest of the castle. It might be interesting to explore the labyrinth of rooms, but he really felt no desire to. It was all disconcertingly empty. It looked like a place where no one had lived for centuries—which was, in fact, almost true. Charles Creighton had been the first and only occupant of Creighton Hall, and he had passed away more than a hundred years ago.
However, all of that was neither here nor there, Jacob thought to himself. He had done what he had set out to do. There was nothing else now except to go back home. He could tell his three friends that he had come to Creighton Hall, saw no vampires (nor anything else, for that matter), and that would be the end of it. He turned his flashlight off and glanced outside through the window, much cracked and moss-grown, near which he was standing. The full moon was beginning to descend towards the horizon, but it still lit the landscape enough to see clearly by.
Jacob’s eyes froze.
What was that? Approaching the castle across the weed and thorn choked lawn, was what appeared to be a person. A very, very tall person, in dark robes that fell all the way to the ground, rather like the kind of robes worn by a priest. But this was no priest. There was something monstrous and evil about this person. Most frightening about him was his face, which was extraordinarily pale—a sickly, ghastly shade of white—with eyes that were very dark, possibly black, as was his hair. He hardly even looked human.
A vampire. The thought sent chills down his spine. Did it mean that such beings actually existed, in real life, and not just in stories? It had to mean that. And Creighton Hall was, after all, haunted.
All these thoughts flashed through his head in an instant. What in the world was he to do? The person, or creature, was getting close to doors of the castle. His mind began racing. It appeared certain that he was going to enter. In not another instant Jacob turned and ran across the hall, into the open passageway. There was nowhere else to go, and nothing else he could do. He had to get away from here, and the only way to do so was further inside the castle.
Further in….
Chapter Two: An Unauthorized Investigation
‘’For crying out loud, what are we going to do?” Jason exclaimed. He was sitting, his face buried in his hands, on a straw-bale near one corner of the same old barn where the fateful discussion with Jacob had taken place a few days ago. It was an unseasonably cold day, the first of July, with a gray sky and an intermittent spatter of rain.
“There has to be something we can do about this! Otherwise I’ll spend the rest of my life feeling like I got somebody killed! I mean that. Murdered. How could I ever live with that?”
His two friends there with him said nothing. Travis shook his head. Neither of them could believe it, either. The disappearance of Jacob Morris seemed unbelievable, it seemed impossible. In fact when Jason first told Travis and Josh about it, they had refused to believe it.
None of the three of them had been especially close friends with Jacob. Jacob was not the most talkative person. Still, they had been, to some extent, friends.
“Well, he could be hiding out in the castle,” Travis said, his voice straining to sound optimistic. ‘’I mean, to assume he’s dead seems to be going overboard. He could very well still be alive for all we know. It’s only been a day since he disappeared, so—-“
“But let’s just say he is alive—well, so what?” Jason said, his face coming up from his hands. ‘’I mean, whether he’s dead or alive, he’s in there, somewhere, in that building; and he’s not coming out, is he?” He trailed off hopelessly.
“Well, this might be saying the obvious, but we could tell the police what happened,” Josh interjected. By this time the police had already been contacted by Jacob’s parents, and there was a man-hunt on in an effort to find the missing boy. But of the fact that it was in the supposedly haunted house Jacob had disappeared, neither the police or anybody else knew anything. His parents had no idea. The only ones who knew were those three of them, there.
“We should tell the police,” Josh repeated.
“I guess you’re probably right.” Jacob swallowed heavily before he went on. ‘’The only problem then being that the police and everybody would immediately get suspicious of US three. Well, why wouldn’t they? I mean, the police might think that we murdered Jacob. Now how do we prove that we didn’t? There’s no way to, basically.”
There was a sullen silence. The pitter-patter of rain could be heard bouncing off the barn roof above them. It could be heard falling in steady drips from the gutters and then splashing on the little puddles in the grass.
“I guess,” came Jason’s voice again, after an interval, “I guess that there is another option, even though….’’ He hesitated a few seconds, before going on. ‘’Even though it isn’t a good one. And that is for us three to go right over there to Creighton Hall ourselves and try to see if we can find out what happened to Jacob. I mean, it isn’t something I want to do anymore than any of you do, but….’’
‘’But what if that castle actually is haunted?” said Travis. That was what they had all been inwardly thinking, but not wanting to say it. No one said anything. ‘’What then?”
‘’I mean, I guess that’s what we would have to find out,” Jacob said at length, his voice sounding somewhat shaky.
‘’Well, if we do go, we should go armed,” Josh put in. ‘’My parents have a couple of handguns I could, well, let’s just say, borrow, for the time being. They would have no idea they went missing.”
‘’But what good would guns do against—well, against…..’’
“Vampires? Huh—I guess we wouldn’t know that till we came across any, would we?’’ Jason muttered.
Jason said nothing. It seemed to him that the three of them had gotten themselves into an exceptionally bad situation. ‘’Well, are we all in agreement, then? We’ve got to go into that castle ourselves.’’
‘’For crying out loud, what are we going to do?” Jason exclaimed. He was sitting, with his face buried in his hands, on a straw-bale, in a corner of the same old barn where the fateful discussion with Jacob had taken place a few days ago. It was an unseasonably cold day, the first of July, with a gray sky and an intermittent rumble of thunder.
“There has to be something we can do about this! Otherwise I’ll spend the rest of my life feeling like I got somebody killed! I mean that. Murdered. How could I ever live with that?”
His two friends who were there with him said nothing. Travis shook his head in some bewilderment. Neither of them could believe it, either. The disappearance of Jacob Morris seemed unbelievable, it seemed impossible. In fact when Jason first told Travis and Josh about it, they had refused to believe it.
None of the three of them had been especially close friends with Jacob. Jacob was not the most talkative person, and didn’t socialize too much. Still, they had been, to some extent, friends.
“Well, he could be hiding out in the castle,” Travis said, his voice straining to sound optimistic. ‘’I mean, to say he’s dead seems to be going overboard. He could very well still be alive for all we know. It’s only been two days since he disappeared, so—-“
“But let’s just say he is alive—well, so what?” Jason said, his face coming up from his hands, but only for a moment.
“I mean, whether he’s dead or alive, he’s in there, somewhere, in that building; and he’s not coming out, now, is he?” He trailed off hopelessly.
“Well, this could be stating the obvious, but we could tell the police what happened,” Josh interjected. By this time the police had already been contacted by Jacob’s parents, and there was a man-hunt on in an effort to find the missing boy. But of the fact that it was in the supposedly haunted house Jacob had disappeared, neither the police or anybody else knew anything. His parents had no idea. The only ones who knew were those three of them, there.
“We definitely should tell the police,” Josh repeated.
“I suppose you’re probably right.” Jacob swallowed heavily before he went on. ‘’The only problem then being that the police and everybody would immediately get suspicious of US three. Well, why wouldn’t they? I mean, the police might think that we murdered Jacob, and how do we prove that we didn’t? There’s no way to.” There was a sullen silence. The pitter-patter of rain could be heard bouncing off the barn roof above them. It could be heard falling in steady drips from the gutters and then splashing on the puddles on the ground.
“I guess,” Jason resumed, “that there is another possibility, even though….’’ He hesitated a moment before going on. ‘’Even though it isn’t a good one. In fact it’s a terrible one. And that is for us three to go right over there to Creighton Hall ourselves and try to see if we can find out what happened to Jacob. It isn’t something I want to do anymore than any of you do, but….’’
‘’But what if that castle actually is haunted?” said Travis. That was what they had all been inwardly thinking, but not wanting to say it. There was a long, dead silence.
‘’I mean, I guess that’s what we would have to find out,” Jacob said at length, his voice sounding somewhat husky.
‘’Well, if we do go, we should go armed,” Josh put in. ‘’My parents have two handguns.”
‘’But what good would guns do against—well, against…..’’
“Vampires? I guess we wouldn’t know that till we came across any, would we?’’
Jason said nothing. It seemed to him that the three of them had gotten themselves into an exceptionally bad situation. ‘’So are we all in agreement, then? We’ve got to go into that castle ourselves.’’
”Agreed,” the other two boys said together.
There was another, heavier silence. The rain was starting to come down a little bit harder now, and the wind was picking up. This wouldn’t be a pleasant day, of all days, to go all the way to the old Creighton Mansion, Jason thought. However, there was really nothing else for it.
Half an hour later, at about two o’clock in the afternoon, the three of them could be seen biking along the highway under a steady downpour. Even worse than he had feared, Jason thought with a bitter smile. The country around them already looked quite a bit greener than it had yesterday, sharply contrasting with the pale, almost whitish-gray of the overhanging clouds. They were riding in single file, with Jason in front—which meant he had by far the worst of the wind and rain. Riding behind, the other two were at least partially sheltered. Regrettably, the waterproof hooded jacket he was wearing did not extend all the way to the lower part of his jeans or his shoes, which were already soaked. And also, the handgun strapped to the right side of his belt was heavy and cumbersome, and interfered with his pedaling.
But anyway, they were getting close to the mansion. Already the leafy canopy of the Berstier woods could be seen, barely, in the distance through the pouring rain. Jason could hear Travis and Josh behind him talking, but couldn’t make out what they were saying. But he was mainly lost in his own thoughts, just now. He was thinking about vampires. The obvious question that kept coming back in his mind over and over again was, what if vampires actually did exist? Admittedly, he had told Jacob that he believed in them; but people say things like that, sometimes. They don’t necessarily mean them. But Jacob’s sudden disappearance might seem to support those old rumors about the Creighton castle. And vampires in general. Which…..
He felt the cold, hard metal of the pistol next to him. Guns might not do anything against people that were not even, well…. alive. On the other hand, what if it wasn’t evil spirits that had anything to do with Jacob’s disappearance? Maybe there was some criminal, or group of criminals, hiding out in Creighton Hall. It wouldn’t be the worst place in the world for that to happen in. In fact, real-life criminals would probably be less catastrophic than vampires. In which case, the guns might come in more than useful.
A few minutes later the three boys had pulled up their bikes before the stone wall of the ancient mansion. As luck would have it, the rain decided to stop at almost exactly the same time. Which allowed the boys to see the surroundings with much better clarity.
“This place sure gives me the creeps, I have to tell you,” Travis muttered, staring up at the ruinous castle. It seemed to be a sprawling mass of pointed towers, with the faces of dozens of monstrous statues leering down in disapproval.
“It gives a lot of people the creeps. That’s why they say it’s haunted I guess,” Josh said, shaking his head.
‘’How the heck are we gonna get across this lawn is what I’d like to know,” Jason said. ‘’See all the thorn-bushes? They’re everywhere, looks like.”
“Hey, hey, what in the world is this? Is that Jacob’s bike?’’ said Travis, pointing.
“It sure appears to be,” Jason replied quickly.
Yes, there could be no question about it. The bike was leaning against the low stone wall that surrounded the property, partly hidden by Jacob walked over and pulled the bike up by its’ handlebars.
“Well,” he said, after a short silence, “it would definitely seem as if Jason did come here, after all. But he never left. Or at least, that’s the way it looks to me.”
“Hmm,” said Josh. ‘’This isn’t good.”
“That’s an understatement,” Jason said. He laboriously drew the pistol from its’ holster under his rain-jacket. ‘’Well, it seems pretty clear we can’t go back now. We’ve got to go into that mansion, one way or another. Why don’t we leave our bikes over here, right around where Jacob left his.’’
It was with growing apprehension that the boys went through the open gateway and began up towards the mansion.
“See that statue?” he said, about halfway across.
“What of it?” said the other two boys.
A short distance to the right was what remained of a marble sculpture—a sculpture of a Minotaur, with the body of a man and the head, legs, and hooves of a bull. But of its’ two long, curving horns, one had been broken in half. Around the pedestal the statue was standing on there lay a shallow basin that must have had water in it, long ago, but now was it was mostly empty.
“Does that face bother you at all?” Jason said.
“Oh, I suppose it does, but no more than the faces of all those statues above us,” Travis answered matter-of-factly.
Admittedly, Jason thought, those were also unpleasant looking. But there was something about the face of this statue especially that—he didn’t know why—was even more disturbing. Maybe it was because the face, supposed to be like a bull’s face, looked awfully close to the face of a man. Its’ open mouth was what had used to be the water spout which filled the basin below, and from the mouth was thrust a long, sharp tongue.
“I don’t know,” he said. ‘’But I just wonder why anybody would want to have something like this in their front yard,” he said. ‘’I mean I know James Creighton was nutty, but this is….” He shrugged.

Hello all,
I wanted to make this post to sort of list all the things I've learned about costochondritis while suffering from its effects and attempting to heal myself. When I first started experiencing my chest pain, I thought that I was a medical mystery. Noone in my family and none of my friends understood what I was trying to explain when talking about these strange sensations in my chest. Doctors would look at me like I was crazy, faking it, or they were legitimately stumped. Finding this community has helped me take the first steps to recovery, and while I am still not better, I do think I am slowly improving overall. This post will be very candid and I will try to list things that I experience and things that I think contribute to costo (or at least make it worse).

• The worst part about this condition for me, is the anxiety that it brings with it. I have received blood tests, x-rays, a nuclear stress test, echocardiogram, no less than 12 EKG's, a two-week holter monitor, and a handful of physical examinations from various doctors. Speaking of doctors, I have been evaluated by two cardiologists, 2 ER PA's, 1 ER doctor, and both of my primary care PA's. All of them have told me that my heart is healthy and isn't causing my symptoms. It doesn't matter to my anxiety. My rational mind and my irrational anxiety are constantly at war with each other. Yeah, the anxiety has caused way more damage to me than the physical pain of costo.
• My symptoms started off in February 2023. They were very mild at first and almost indescribable. The best that I could come up with is that it felt like someone was pushing a finger into my chest but from the inside. Nothing painful, it was just there. The locations would vary from my sternum, upper left and right chest just below my collar bone, and sometimes into my armpits. This started after two back-to-back chest days in the gym. I did heavy bench presses on Thursday with some lighter accessory chest work and then again Friday. I don't specifically remember doing dips either day, but dips are something I incorporate into my chest days so it is very likely that I did. The next day, Saturday, is when I started getting my first symptoms.
• The symptoms have progressed over the last year. About 85% of the time, the pain is solely located around my sternum. It feels very sore and if I pull my shoulders back, it feels like my sternum wants to stretch but can't. Sometimes it feels like my sternum just needs to pop, and it does occasionally though the relief is extremely temporary, and that I need to magically reach under my sternum and just lift it up a bit. The other 15% of the time I feel it in my upper left/right chests under my collar bone and rarer still, sometimes under my last lower ribs. It's 50/50 whether its located on my left or right sides. Occasionally I get what I can only describe as quick muscle twitches or a "fizzle" sensation in my upper chest. Finally, chest popping. Holy cow does my chest pop. I don't even make an attempt to pop it, it just does it on it's own. If I notice my posture is bad for example, and try to straighten my back, my chest will pop sometimes upwards of 15 times.
• Since February of last year (2023), my pain has subsided for days, weeks, even months at a time. Sometimes is just barely noticeable, and other times it is gone completely.
• Finally, I have noticed only two things that will alleviate the symptoms almost immediately. Lying flat on my back on a hard surface, usually the floor. And using the backpod. Currently, I am a few weeks in to using the backpod and I do believe it is helping. However, using it usually makes my symptoms go away completely, or it decreases their severity a lot for an hour or so. Foam rolling also helps tremendously and I am currently looking into getting my own thera-gun. I used a friends thera-gun on the same location that your supposed to use the backpod and I think it helped quite a bit.

Now, things that I believe make this condition worse.

• Sitting. For me personally, I notice that my pain tends to show its ugly face when I'm driving or sitting for long periods of time. I do experience pain when standing, or doing some daily activities, but sitting and driving I think are two things that start it for me. Driving especially, as I think it has something to do with holding my arms out in front of me to hold the steering wheel.
• Eating. Don't get me wrong, I still eat, but a lot of the time I tend to get the weirder symptoms after I eat and especially if it's a larger meal. Which leads me to my next point.
• GERD and acid reflux. Only recently have I started accepting that maybe I have one of these. I think that if any of you have one of these disorders, it exacerbates costo. I don't know that it does or it doesn't, just a personal observation of mine. I was prescribed Prilosec awhile ago and I only recently started taking it due to some side effects I'd rather not experience. But to be completely honest, I don't care anymore. I just want costo and the anxiety that comes with it gone.
• This one may seem obvious, but anxiety makes it so much worse. The negative feedback loop that is costo and anxiety is all too familiar to me and to anyone who has had this disorder for any amount of time. Also, being hyper-aware of everything going on in your body because of the anxiety also can't be good for you.

Recovery

• As mentioned above, the first thing I started using in the attempt to recover from this is the backpod. I use it 2-4 times a day. I did notice that when I first started using it, my back would feel very sore the next day. My back also began to start popping on its own with just normal stretching or moving throughout the day. Now, the extreme popping my chest would do is shared now between my chest and my back.
• I've incorporated numerous stretches into my routine as well. The doorway stretch, torso twists, some simple yoga poses. Basically, if anyone with costo has ever claimed a certain stretch has helped them, I do it. Learning to sleep on my back may be contributing to my recovery also. This one I'm not entirely sold on but I am trying it out.
• Recently started going to physical therapy. They mainly have me do various stretches and give me massages. I think it helps. I normally feel better when I leave and that's the goal right? One of my physical therapists recommended me to a chiropractor. I haven't gone yet, but I am very seriously considering it. From what I understand, they can provide temporary relief and if it would even help 5%, I'll do it.
• Finally, I've been attempting to work on my anxiety. I think that anyone suffering like I am would greatly benefit from a therapist. Personally, I don't have one yet but I have been looking into it. Finding a therapist that can help with navigating health anxiety is definitely on my to-do list.

Misc. and after thoughts

• In my research, I found an article saying that a few individuals who suffered from a vitamin D deficiency got costo as a result from that deficiency. So I now take a vitamin D supplement along with a mutli, tumeric, and beet root.
• I never experience pain in the gym. Cardio is safe, and leg days seem to be fine. But if I work out my upper body at all, I pay for it in the subsequent days.
• Occasionally, and I'm not sure why, sometimes defecating seems to relieve some of the pain. I know that it doesn't make sense, but I swear it does. It could be just an overall relief feeling and maybe it is more of an anxiety relief.

Hopefully this provides someone with some insight or some comfort from knowing that there are others out there that experience the same thing. I'll try and edit it if I happen to learn anything else or experience anything else. It seems like one of the last resorts to this disorder are cortisol shots in the chest. Doesn't sound fun but it is an option I'll take if I don't kick costo soon.