#Bicycle suppliers

[sneha1730]

Electric Bicycle suppliers in India

Lekeamp, a leading name among electric bicycle suppliers in India, offers cutting-edge e-bikes designed for eco-friendly commuting. Choose Lekeamp for sustainable transportation solutions that redefine mobility across urban and rural landscapes.

[kwikpatch]

KwikPatch: Leading Manufacturer of Quality Bicycle Gloves

KwikPatch offers premium bicycle gloves designed for comfort, grip, and protection. As a trusted bicycle gloves manufacturer, KwikPatch delivers durable gloves ideal for long rides and rough terrains. Discover their range of high-quality bicycle gloves here: KwikPatch Xtrim Bicycle Gloves

[twitter-bicycle]

TWITTER bicycle to enjoy your cycling life. New model carbon road bike T2

[bicyclehandlebar]

The bicycle light LED is common bicyclelighting for many years

The bicycle light LED is advantageous asit is less expensive, produce a high input light, and its batteries are longer lasting.It saves energy das it produces the red tail light. Unlike the other powersource which combine a white light source with a red filter, the bicycle lightLED emits only red light, hence through this conserves energy. You have theability to dim the light or turn it off instantaneously. If it well maintained,and not overheated, it has a lifespan is of about 50000 hours of operation. Dueto its many advantages, the bicycle light LED is slowly taking over thelighting of all bicycle.The bicycle light LED has fewdisadvantages. It has limited light output per single LED hence sometimesproduces little light. They are used frequently and they require a constantpower source hence they are quite expensive to manufacture.

The use of bicyclelight LED in some places has been burned. The bicycle light LED is common bicyclelighting for many years. Normally they had only red or yellow bicycle lightLED. Recently there has been introduction of a different LED called the white LED.Just like all the other it satisfies the requirement for the market. It is verysensitive though to overheating an overdriving. Through this above ways, youshorten the lifespan of you bicycle light LED hence you should try to avoid it.They have another LED that is of lowpower. This helps in conserving the energy of the battery. This kind of lighting is only applicable forwell lit streets otherwise it produces very little light. It produces a singlebeam of light that is not collimated to form a bright beam. Through using thehigh power bicyclelight LED you can solve this issue as itproduces a very bright beam of light. They have their own optics hence verygood to use. It is possible to buy a halogenrechargeable system or a dynamo for your bicycle light LED.The tools that are required are:WelderWrenchesPliersa drillscrewdrivers.

Start the construction by taking apart the washing machine. Locate the relevant screws and remove the outer sheeting and frame from the washing machine. This will leave you with the inner drum and rotor. Remove the inner tube and tire from the rear wheel of the bike.The next step in the China bicycle water bottle cage suppliers construction would be to construct a frame using the metal braces your purchased. Set the bicycle, with the rear wheel attached, next to the rotor on the back of the machine. Measure the distance from the frame of the bicycle to the opposite side of the washing machine. Use a metal rod that fits this length, and either weld or bolt the brace to both the bike and the washing machine.After you have the bicycle completely secured to the washing machine you need to build a brace for the front of the bike. Drill a hole through the front of the 2x4 wood, and bolt it to the front of the bicycle. This will give a more stable operating platform.

[trashpandato]

Breakaway

“Lena, this could really be good for the company. Think of the good publicity for L-Corp, sponsoring the biggest women’s cycling race in the world.”

“Sam,” Lena huffs and presses her fingers against the bridge of her nose, “L-Corp isn’t in the business of sponsoring sports events.”

“Yet.”

“We’ve never done anything even remotely similar. Don’t you think it would look a little…desperate? Not to mention suspicious given the timing?”

Sam shifts a little in her seat. “Lena, —”

“Lex’s trial concluded less than six months ago. Any effort to get good press at this point is going to be suspicious. Especially something as blatantly outside of the scope of L-Corp’s usual activities as showing up at some bicycle event. This could actually do more harm than good.”

“You said yourself that you’re trying to move the company in a different direction. You could easily position this as giving back to the community, supporting causes that are, by design, the opposite of what LuthorCorp stood for.”

And Lena can’t really argue with that. She does want to do things differently, from re-naming the company to ending contracts with military suppliers to focussing primarily on research and development projects that would benefit previously underserved communities. But this is a step, or ten, outside of her comfort zone. She doesn’t want to be in the public eye more than she has to be, and she most definitely doesn’t want to be seen as taking advantage of a women’s sports event to bolster her company’s reputation.

“I don’t know.” 

“You don’t have to decide right now. Just, think about it. You’re sponsoring girls in STEM events all the time, and this could be along the same lines of supporting women in areas that are traditionally dominated by men.”

Lena sighs. As always, Sam makes a good point, and as always, she is exceptionally pushy about it.

“Fine. I’ll think about it.”

Later that evening, after Lena has sent off the last few emails dealing with a contract issue with a new subsidiary company in Japan, she clicks out of her email application and pulls up her search engine. If she is supposed to think about sponsoring a cycling event, she wants to know exactly what she would be getting herself into.

Three scotches and a considerable amount of time later, Lena has learned that women’s cycling is woefully underfunded, under promoted and clearly suffers from blatant misogyny of those in charge. She listens to multiple interviews of riders complaining that their races are intentionally shorter than the men’s races because the sport’s regulating body apparently thinks women can’t handle the extra distance. Other than that, the sport seems entertaining enough, and from what Lena can tell, most races are currently dominated by select riders from two or three teams, a fact that speaks to uneven support for equipment and development of new talent across the sport.

While an interview with a sweaty and strikingly good looking blonde cyclist is playing in the background, Lena rubs her eyes and fires off a quick text to Sam.

LL: I’ve thought about it. Go ahead and set up the sponsorship for that race.

—

On race day, Lena regrets every decision she has ever made that has led her to this point. She gets up extra early that day to deal with a number of important issues at L-Corp, but the morning quickly gets away from her. At noon, she is already so behind schedule that she is tempted to text Sam to cancel her appearance at the race. It’s only the knowledge that her friend would never let her hear the end of it that keeps Lena from hiding in her office for the rest of the day. She leaves L-Corp with barely a minute to spare, knowing full well that she is going to have to work late that evening to make up for the time she is going to spend showing her face at the race.

By the time Lena gets there, the medal presentation is just about to start. A race volunteer quickly leads her to the side of the stage, just out of view of the crowds, where Lena spots Sam.

“There you are,” Sam says, handing her a bottle of water to combat the truly ludicrous heat that has built up under the temporary structure surrounding the stage and podium. “I was beginning to worry that you wouldn’t show.”

“I told you I’d be here for this.”

“Yes, but you missed out on seeing the race action.”

“I'm a busy CEO of a multi-billion dollar international company. I don't have time to watch women in lycra pedal around the city for hours."

“Oh, but you did notice the lycra?”

“Sam,” Lena hisses as her attention drifts toward the woman stepping on the podium to accept the congratulations for the win. She grimaces when she sees Maxwell Lord and Morgan Edge hover near the cyclist, Edge shuffling closer and closer to the woman, sporting his usual sleazy smirk. He must say something offensive—not a big surprise, Lena thinks—because the woman accepting her medal suddenly stiffens and grimaces, clearly trying to remain polite and smile for the cameras while her body language conveys that she’d rather be anywhere else but here.

Lena takes a few swift steps toward them.

“Edge. I see you’ve learned nothing from your recent sexual harassment lawsuit. Do you want me to call your probation officer now or later?”

“Lena,” Edge sneers but he steps away from the woman nonetheless. “What a surprise. I didn’t think this event would want to associate themselves with family members of domestic terrorists. Then again, cycling doesn’t exactly have the best reputation for being a clean sport, so I suppose it fits.”

Lena crosses her arms across her chest and raises a challenging eyebrow. “You realize there are mics everywhere, yes? And that you just insulted the sport you’re supposedly here to champion, and everyone could hear it?”

She watches as a couple of official looking men in suits approach and whisper something into Morgan Edge’s ear. With a huff, he turns and retreats behind the stage to the soundtrack of shocked murmurs from the audience gathered in front of the podium.

Lena almost forgets why she is here when she hears an amused voice next to her ear.

“Thanks for that. Not entirely necessary, but I appreciate it.”

Lena’s head snaps toward the voice and all of a sudden she is looking into the bluest eyes she’s ever seen. The woman, Kara Danvers according to the information the race officials had handed her when she arrived for the medal presentation, looks flushed and a little disheveled, but is smiling brightly at Lena.

“Not necessary? He was practically grabbing your butt.”

Kara shrugs. “Not the first time that’s happened during a podium presentation, and won’t be the last. It’s part of the job, unfortunately.”

“It’s part of your job to be groped by men like Edge?”

Another shrug. “At least I usually also get kisses from the podium girls, so it evens out?”

Lena frowns. “What?”

But before she can get more information, one of the race officials hands her a bouquet of flowers and motions for her to hand it to today’s race winner, congratulate her and move on. Lena obliges. She steps in front of the podium, shakes Kara’s hand and ignores the way her stomach swoops when Kara thanks her and winks, fucking winks. Who does that? 

Lena briskly walks off the stage on the other side, where Sam is already waiting for her.

“You can never do things at a normal level of intensity, can you?”

“I told you I’ve never done anything like this before, so maybe don’t blame me for not knowing the proper etiquette here,” Lena snaps. “You could have warned me that Edge and his greasy buddy Lord would be here.”

“Relax,” Sam chuckles. “You did great. I thought we’d maybe get some decent headlines about L-Corp sponsoring the race, but now the media is going to have a field day with you taking on Morgan Edge in public and defending the reputation of women’s cycling.”

“I did no such thing. He spewed his vile nonsense all by himself.”

“He did, and you took him down a notch in front of one the sport’s biggest names. Who seemed pretty taken with you, by the way.”

“Right,” Lena scoffs. The heat behind the stage is unbearable and she can feel sweat trickling down her lower back, her shirt sticking to her skin uncomfortably under her suit jacket. “Are we done here? I need to get back to work.”

Sam looks like she’s about to say something, maybe to try and convince Lena to stay, but Lena is already five steps ahead of her, finding the most direct path to where her driver is waiting for her with her car. And maybe she’s walking faster than strictly necessary, desperate to get away from the cacophony of noises, people and media equipment surrounding the area, and maybe she should have paid closer attention to her surroundings because when she’s not even halfway to her car, she suddenly collides with a solid body. The force of it bumps her sideways and Lena half expects to fall, but then two warm hands hold her upright.

“Golly, I’m so sorry,” Lena hears and when she looks up, it’s the woman from the podium again. 

Kara Danvers.

She’s still holding Lena up, and they’re standing close, so close that Lena can see faint salt lines on her skin from where her sweat had dried off after the efforts of the race.

Lena blinks, too stunned to say anything for a moment.

“Are you okay? I totally didn’t see you and I barrelled right into you. I’m really sorry.”

Lena clears her throat. “It’s fine. I should be the one apologizing. I wasn’t paying attention.”

“You definitely looked like you’re in a hurry to get away,” Kara says, her voice teasing and light.

“I mean, I do have to get back to the office.”

“Of course. Time is money, and all that. Well, thank you for taking time out of your busy day for this, Ms Luthor.”

Lena is used to people commenting on her wealth and her business, and not always in friendly terms. She wears her professional demeanor and her last name like a shield; one that attracts a lot of unwanted attention, but a shield nonetheless. She doesn’t quite know why, but something about the woman in front of her makes her want things to be different.

“Please, just call me Lena.”

Lena can see the flash of surprise on the other woman’s face, but it is quickly replaced by another easy smile.

“Okay, Lena. I’m Kara.”

Lena nods. “Well, Kara, I should get going. Congratulations again on your win. Maybe I’ll see you around at some other races.”

“If you’re going to do the podium honors again, that’ll be more motivation for me to ride extra fast.”

Kara says this last bit with a laugh in her voice that makes Lena blush a little.

“Alright. You do that, but I really have to get back to work now. Bye, Kara.”

—

When Sam enters Lena’s office for a budget meeting a few days later, she finds Lena focused intensely on something on her laptop.

“Did you know that these so-called podium girls are almost all university graduates?”

Sam chuckles. “Are you looking for a side-gig?”

“What? No! I just mean, look at this woman, for example.” Lena turns her laptop toward Sam, the screen highlighting one of the blonde women usually tasked with handing over some stuffed animal to the race winner and giving them a kiss on the cheek. “This is Eve Tessmacher. She has two advanced degrees in biomedical science. She could easily work at L-Corp. Hell, she could probably even lead an entire department here, given her qualifications.”

“And?”

“And?! She spends her time following around the race circuit, smiling for the cameras in a dress that’s entirely too short to comfortably walk up the rickety stairs of those podium stages.”

Sam sits down opposite Lena at her desk and sighs.

“I see you put on your judgy pants this morning. What if they made a conscious decision to work at a women’s sports event? What if representing the race organization is important to them? And who knows, maybe traveling around the country and being a part of this is fun?”

“Fun?” Lena pulls up a few videos and turns the laptop back to Sam. “Does this look like fun to you?”

Together they watch a compilation of footage from various podium presentations. The common theme is the presence of handsy middle-aged men who seem to have made it their mission to make any woman involved with the race event uncomfortable, and the “podium girls” seem to be taking the brunt of it. 

Sam winces as she watches one of the women trying to maneuver her body out of the grasp of a particularly persistent man.

“Okay, fine. That looks…unpleasant. But I assume their presence is part of tradition.”

“Mmh. Maybe it’s time to end this particular tradition.”

That gets Sam’s attention.

“And how exactly do you plan to do that? I thought you wanted nothing to do with sports?”

“You did tell me to sponsor this race. And right now, L-Corp is only one of many corporate partners, but we could easily become the headline sponsor for this race series, and then we could encourage some changes. Not to the racing itself, of course. But those ceremonial parts could do with less of the misogynistic bullshit.”

“Does this sudden interest in who gets to kiss the race winner have anything to do with a certain blonde cyclist?”

“What? No. You…why would you even say that?”

“Because I have eyes and I saw how she looked at you when you played the hero and saved her from Morgan Edge.”

“You’re delusional. I don’t, it’s not about that. It’s about making sure these women get highlighted for their actual talents, not just to be eye candy for men with a bottomless Viagra prescription.”

Sam rolls her eyes. “I see what you’re doing. But if you want to explore what it would take for L-Corp to become the main sponsor, leave it with me.”

It takes a few weeks of meetings and contract negotiations, but in the end, Lena gets exactly what she wants. The L-Corp logo is prominently displayed on banners, posters and race leader jerseys. The media has run a few mostly positive stories about Lena’s newfound interest in women’s cycling, complete with a few soundbites from prominent cyclists who seem pleased with seeing some extra funding and attention for their sport.

During a break in the race calendar, Lena asks her assistant to set up a few meetings with the women working for the race organization. With Sam’s words about being too judgy still echoing in her mind, she wants to get a feel for how much of their job is simply about carrying over traditions from the men’s races and how much wiggle room there is for making changes.

In the first three meetings, the women Lena speaks with are polite and careful. Lena doesn’t get much of an answer to her questions, but she does get the distinct impression that the women would welcome a different approach to some of their duties but are too afraid to rock the boat. It’s only when she meets with Eve Tessmacher that she gets a pretty blunt assessment of the current state of affairs.

“So, Miss Tessmacher, what would you say you enjoy most about your role?”

“Oh, you know, we do get to travel around a lot and it’s nice to see different parts of the country. The quirky small towns are the best, usually, even if the accommodations can be challenging there.”

Lena nods. “And if you could change anything about your tasks with the race, what would that be?”

Eve cocks her head to the side a little and hesitates. Lena can sense that all she needs is one more firm nudge.

“I want you to be honest with me, Miss Tessmacher. If there is anything I can do to change your work environment for the better, I will do that. This is important to me. And I promise I won’t tell anyone what you share here.”

Eve blinks a few times but then nods.

“Truthfully, we would all like to see more respect. I mean, you saw what happened when Morgan Edge was at the medal presentation last month. That’s a constant occurrence. I understand that we need to invite local dignitaries when we pretty much hijack their town for a few days. It’s photo op stuff for them, we all get that. But that could be done in a much more respectful way.”

Lena nods and motions for Eve to continue.

“The outfits are a little much. I always feel like a flight attendant from the 1960s. It would be nice to have some leeway there.”

Lena nods again and jots down a few thoughts on a notepad.

“What’s your long-term goal?” she asks. “Career-wise, where do you want to be in five years?”

At that, Eve lets out a small giggle.

“Is this a job interview?”

Lena looks up from her notepad and raises an eyebrow. “Well, I do know that you have the education to work in R&D here at L-Corp, so if you want this to be an interview, I can make that happen.”

There’s a shocked expression on Eve’s face that is enough to make Lena backtrack slightly.

“Or we can set up an interview for you another time. To give you more time to prepare.”

“Really?” Eve asks, her voice pitched higher than before.

“Absolutely. When you leave here, talk to my assistant, Jess, to set something up.”

“Thank you so much, Miss Luthor. I have to admit, this is not what I was expecting when you called me in for a meeting today.”

“I’m trying to change things for the better, Miss Tessmacher. Both here at L-Corp and at the races, though my influence is a bit more limited there. But I do see that the women representing the race organization are generally overqualified for the task and I’d be more than happy to facilitate a move to other opportunities for those who want that.”

Eve nods but lets Lena continue: “I also want to change things for those who want to stay with the race. Make it more comfortable. No more handsy old men. Better pay. A safer work environment. I really appreciate your candor. You’ve given me exactly what I need to get started.”

From there, Lena gets to work. Her legal department helps draft language that makes it clear to anyone who is part of the podium celebrations that any inappropriate behaviour will result in immediate legal action. She re-assigns two of the podium girls to observe and enforce the new rules if necessary. Several others, including Eve Tessmacher, line up interviews for part-time positions at L-Corp that still allow them to participate in race events if they so choose, and she removes most of the existing stipulations around work attire. Finally, Lena highlights that in order to set clear boundaries, no one should be touching or kissing the winning racers beyond a congratulatory handshake.

It takes a few weeks for all the changes to be implemented, but the impact is immediate. The race series makes waves not just in the sports media, but bigger outlets start featuring the changes and run headlines like “L-Corp race series moves away from outdated traditions” and “Is women’s cycling finally stepping out of the shadows of men’s racing?”

Lena thinks the coverage is a little overblown but it’s still nice to see articles about L-Corp that don’t even reference her brother at all.

Over dinner one evening with Sam, she takes a sip of her wine and sighs.

“You know I don’t admit this very often, but you were right.”

“About?” Sam probes with a smirk on her face.

“You know what I’m talking about. The race sponsorship. The media coverage for L-Corp has been great, stocks are up, the board is pleased with it all. Thank you for pushing me to do it.”

“You’re welcome. But also, I really only said you should do a small sponsorship. You turned that into practically taking over the race series in order to impress Kara Danvers.”

“I did no such thing,” Lena huffs.

Sam simply smiles and clinks her glass against Lena’s. “Whatever you need to tell yourself to sleep at night. But you really should ask her out at some point.”

Thankfully, their waiter interrupts the conversation then, and Sam sticks to talking about Ruby and their weekend plans for the rest of their dinner.

—-

It’s a few weeks later when Lena finds herself back on stage next to Kara Danvers, handing her another bouquet of flowers and a medal for sprinting to an impressive win at a race around National City’s harbourfront. It’s a bit of deja vu, but Lena is happy to see that the overall atmosphere on stage is that of respect and professionalism for all involved.

When she hovers near the edge of the stage after the ceremony is over, Kara walks over to her with determined steps.

“I hear that it’s you we have to thank for the much more relaxed vibes at the medal presentations now?”

“All I did was establish compliance with current labour laws. I don’t want L-Corp to get pulled into a lawsuit over one of these groping incidents.”

Kara nods. “Ah. Well, even if you only did it to protect your company, I appreciate it. Thank you!”

“You’re welcome.”

“I do miss getting a kiss on the cheek for winning, though.”

And maybe it’s the glass of champagne Lena had while she was waiting for the medal presentation to start, or maybe it’s the heat or a combination of both, but suddenly she has no control over the words that tumble out of her mouth.

“I can provide the kiss if you’re amenable to that.”

The laugh that bubbles out of Kara’s chest is loud and bright when she says: "You know, if you wanted to be the one to kiss me exclusively, you could have just asked me out on a date. No need to go to all that extra trouble of making changes to the races." 

Lena blushes. “Okay. This is me asking.”

There’s a moment where Kara only blinks, and it’s obvious to Lena that for all her teasing and bravado, she clearly didn’t expect Lena to play along. She’s about to backpedal when Kara stands up a little taller, smiles and holds out her hand.

“Then let’s go. Let me show you how many carbs I need to eat to fuel top performances. And if you’re into it, I might even show you my tan lines later.” And then she winks. Again. 

All Lena can do is laugh and loop her arm through Kara’s. “Alright. Show me.”

[gabessquishytum]

Okay I know it's funny to think of Hob being the family bicycle, but what I think would be even funnier is a Euphoria style family meltdown in public when Dream finds out that when he and Hob went on a "break", which was just Dream self consciously breaking up with Hob bc he didn't want an uncool boyfriend, that Hob and Desire slept together and had a short fling. Then Dream came to his senses and essentially stole Hob back from his younger sibling. Which made Desire stew in their anger and jealousy.

Then it's graduation day, and Mama Endless has rented out the block for her precious baby's graduation. Dream was always her favorite so there are food trucks, a live band, and all the streamers you can throw up on a tree. It's Dream's party, but the guest of honor is missing.

Mostly bc he's getting his back blown out by Hob to celebrate Dream getting into the same elite school he did. Which Desire hears bc their rooms are right next to each other. So once the noise dies down and everyone joins the party, it's speech time.

Desire goes last. They give the same congratulations everyone else gave Dream, and thanks him for being such a kind older brother and sharing his boyfriend. Then they use the projector, which had been showing photos of Dream throughout the years and his many accomplishments, to show pictures of them being intimate and all the flirty texts they had shared together.

Which results in the siblings breaking into fisticuffs, Mama screaming about Hob defiling her boys, and Hob honestly wanting to kill himself. It's messy, it's emotional, and tbh will be a fun story to break out when they're 40.

- 🤜 anon

AJAJSHAHA this really did make me laugh. Hob you SLUT (affectionate). In a way I kind of feel bad for all of them. Dream because his boyfriend fucked his worst sibling. Hob because he was going through it and honestly thought Dream had broken up with him for good. And Desire because they will never again get to experience Hob in bed :((

The cat fight is broken up by Destruction, who is essentially holding both Dream and Desire by the scruff of their necks while Death scolds them. Hob is still getting yelled at by Mama Endless. She's asking him if he'd like to fuck any more of her children while he's at it?! And Hob accidentally takes a little bit too long to answer that question with a negative, and the whole fight erupts all over again.

(This whole thing is a field day for the random party suppliers who got hired to be there. Its the best day of their lives, seeing rich assholes in meltdown.)

Finally Dream and Hob get a moment to talk. Dream is sniffling and whimpering and he's like "who was better, me or Desire. your entire future depends on this question by the way." And Hob can honestly say that the answer is DREAM because they're in LOVE and of COURSE sex is better when you're in love!!!! And Dream forgives Hob, of course, but he's on thin fucking ice!!!! He'd better give Dream an absolutely stellar blowjob tonight!!!!

Mama Endless will never recover from finding out that her precious babies are no longer virgins. Despair takes her inside for wine and tranquillisers.

And Desire finds comfort in the arms of Unity, who was supplying the candy for the party. So all in all its not the worst Endless birthday party ever. With any luck Dream will cool off in a decade or two <3

[formulinos]

and you know, pirelli gets a lot of flack but it could also be bridgestone, michelin, hancock or my weird cousin's bicycle tires. the tire companies have little to no creative input on the final product because they need to adhere to the fia's standards who want to cover themselves. the wacky regs and the car growth cause a disaster for water evacuation rendering the wet tires useless, bigger tires didn't do shit for it. slicks are made to last, strategies are pretty conforming and there is so much space for imagination on this front. i think that another supplier could bring something new for the table, but with current affairs it wouldn't last long until they were also suffocated by the system in place.

[perpetualsarcasmmachine]

The Baker and the Botanist

I took a little writing commission from @not-in-the-library to give her characters Jimena and Dhriti a first meeting. It was a lot of fun to write and now I can share it with you. Thank you @not-in-the-library for letting me breathe more life into your characters.

7,500 words of g/t fluff for your reading pleasure.

Chapter One

Jimena Flores Molina ran the best bakery in town. Properly speaking, it was the only bakery in town, and really, it was her parents’ bakery, but it felt like hers and Jimena knew the bakery could have beaten any competitor. Right now, she rather wished they did have competition. It was one of the busiest times of the year for Molina’s Bakery with the Festival of the Hunt just one week away. The bakery’s books were completely full of orders for holiday fare, especially the fluffy, spiced loaves that everyone looked forward to during festival season. 

While Jimena was looking forward to eventually enjoying the festival, she first had to get through the rest of the day's orders and close up the shop. There were another thirty loaves to shape and top with a traditional arrow decoration, inventory to take stock of, starters for tomorrow's loaves to be made, and the money to be counted before she could rest and do it all again tomorrow. At the moment, she was preoccupied with the hair that had escaped from her thick, dark braid and was tickling her face, but her hands were covered in butter and the red sugar used to top the hunter's loaf. She jutted her lower lip out, exhaling forcefully in an unsuccessful attempt to blow her hair back into position. She resolved to endure these errant locks while she finished prepping the next batch. 

The bell that hung from the bakery's front door clanged, interrupting Jimena. She wiped her sugary hands on the rough fabric of her apron, tucked her hair behind her ears, and went to the counter to see who had arrived. Normally, she would not be responsible for baking and keeping an eye on the shop herself, but her parents were currently visiting a flour mill in search of a new supplier. 

Jimena was relieved that it was only Arturo, her delivery man, checking in at the end of his route. 

"How did the deliveries go today, Arturo? Any news from the regulars?"

"Smooth sailing, Miss Jimena. Everyone is excited for Molina’s famous hunter bread," Arturo said. "Some of the customers really talked my ear off about it, which, uh, brings me to my next point." Jimena gave him a look. "There's one delivery I didn't have time for. You know the missus wants me home early to help with preparations and the new baby."

She was annoyed but it was a small enough town. One delivery wouldn't cost her too much extra time. "Who was it? I can drop it off on my way home."

"Well. I apologize, Miss Jimena, but it's that big order that goes out to the ranger station."

Jimena sighed. It was going to be a long night. 

"Why don't you borrow my bicycle," Arturo continued. "I've already loaded up the order into the cart so it's all ready to go."

Jimena tried to mask her displeasure. Getting upset with the delivery man wouldn't help anything.  "I appreciate that, Arturo. Enjoy the time with your family."

"I surely will. Good night, miss!"

After Arturo left, Jimena loaded her last batch of loaves into the oven, removed her apron, and made a quick check of her inventory; it wouldn't do to run out of butter, sugar, or star anise right before the Festival of the Hunt. She scrawled a note for the next week’s order from the general store, then returned to pull the loaves from the oven. 

Jimena decided to take the last delivery then come back to the shop in the evening to mix the starters and get the dough ready for an overnight rise. She hung her apron on its peg in the kitchen and headed out the front door where, true to his word, Arturo had left the delivery bike loaded with bread and pastries. Before departing, Jimena dashed back inside to gather up the last of the loaves and pan dulces that hadn't sold that day. She might as well take them to the folks at the ranger station rather than sell them at a day-old discount tomorrow. 

She hiked up her skirts and mounted the bike, settling in for the ten-mile ride to the old ranger station. 

It was not long before Jimena left the town's paved streets behind and was riding along a wide dirt road through the forest's canopy. She looked up, noticing the sky through the gaps between the crown-shy trees. She had to admit that the ride was a pleasant one, even though it was making for a very long day. The chilly air kept Jimena from overheating and reddened her cheeks as she enjoyed the calm of the forest. It was a refreshing change from the warm and bustling bakery. 

After a while, Jimena’s legs grew tired, and the cool air had turned from refreshing to chilly. She tightened her shawl around her shoulders and wondered if she would ever arrive at the ranger station. 

Not long after, she glimpsed the station a little farther up the road. She was nearly there!

It took another 10 minutes of furious pedaling to reach the station. She had forgotten it was a mixed-size building. It was so big, that she had assumed she was closer to it than she really had been. It must have been 100 feet tall! Not even the finest buildings in her town were that big. Although, it was extremely rare for a giant to pass through her small town. Maybe the capital had buildings this large, but it had been years since her last trip to the big city. 

Jimena dismounted the bicycle and pushed it up a very wide ramp with a gentle incline and approached the door. There was a human-sized door, outfitted with an ornate door knocker in the shape of a wreath, next to, what she assumed was, a door so big that she couldn’t even visualize the person who would use it. Jimena smoothed out her dress, repositioned her shawl, and lifted the knocker to rap on the door. 

A minute passed as Jimena waited. She hoped someone was here to take the bread and pay for the order. She could extend some credit, but her parents had lectured her many times before about her soft-hearted approach to collecting payments and she dreaded the thought of hearing it again.

She knocked again, a little more forcefully.

After a moment, she heard shuffling and a loud tapping noise. She had no idea what kind of activity was happening inside but, as long as someone was coming to the door, she was resolved not to complain.  

The tapping stopped. In its place was a loud thunk followed by a scraping noise. It sounded a little like a door opening, but she was right in front of the door, and she could see that it was not moving. The noise continued.

Jimena’s mind finally arranged the clues for her in a way she could comprehend. The giant door was opening!

Chapter Two

Jimena was bewildered. There was a giant here? So close to her little town? She had thought the large, weekly delivery to the ranger station was for a group of humans. She knew of giants of course and had even seen one before, but she had never spoken to one!

She looked past the threshold and found herself looking at the giant’s ankles and some kind of large pole. She looked up and then immediately looked back down. Looking up was dizzying. It was like trying to make eye contact with the top of a tree. Jimena was flustered. She had never done business with a giant. She was too overwhelmed to speak.

Fortunately, the giant spoke first. “Hello, are you here with my bread delivery?” 

The voice was loud and it was strange to hear someone speaking from so far above, but Jimena managed to answer. “Yes, I’ve brought a cartful for you.”

“Wonderful, I love these little pastries. If you could be so kind as to bring it on to this platform here,” the giant pointed their foot at an area large enough for the bike and its cargo trailer that had railings on three sides, “I can take it from there.”

Jimena walked the bike and its delicious cargo to the space the giant had indicated. “Okay,” she hollered at the giant. 

The platform jolted and Jimena nearly lost her balance, grabbing the parked bicycle for stability. She heard creaking and gradually realized the platform was leaving the ground. She was on an elevator! As she ascended, she slowly formed an image of this mysterious giant in her mind. She saw their rough brown pants and, as she reached the giant’s waist, she realized the pole she had seen on the ground was, in fact, a cane. It seemed funny in a way to imagine someone so big needing help to get around, but she supposed anyone could be disabled, even giants. She saw the giant’s loose white shirt, and noticed, as she got even higher, that the giant had left the top unlaced, revealing the smooth V of their chest. 

The motion finally stopped and she heard a loud clunk as the giant set a break on the pulley that, Jimena could now see, they had used to pull Jimena to the level of their face. 

“Oh,” the giant said softly, “you’re new!”

Jimena looked up at the giant’s face, noticing the scholar’s glasses perched on their nose and the moue of surprise drawn on their mouth. “I’m not new,” was all Jimena could think to say. 

“Are you not? You don’t look familiar, but you small people can be quite hard to tell apart from my viewpoint. Uh, respectfully. ” the giant stammered. 

Jimena was taller than all her girl cousins and had to squash the impulse to argue about being called “small.” This was neither the time nor the place. Instead she said, “I guess I am new. Arturo usually makes the deliveries. I’m Jimena Flores Molina.” 

“Molina,” the giant said thoughtfully, turning the name over in their mouth. “Of course! Molina’s bakery! Tell me, are you the one who has baked all these wonderful treats?”

Jimena smiled, “I don’t bake all of them, but I baked everything I brought today.”

“Marvelous!” the giant said. “You must come in and have something warm before you turn around.” The giant chucked. “I can’t believe I get to meet the baker.” 

Jimena looked around. She was suspended dozens of feet in the air with her bicycle. She had no idea what the giant intended to do next or how she was expected to come in. She frowned in confusion.

“Where are my manners!” the giant exclaimed. “My name is Dhriti. I can take your little cart inside for you. I’ll lower this platform back to the ground and you can walk in. There are little stairs and walkways for humans that you can use in the giant part of this building, but let me know if you require assistance.”

Jimena stepped back as Dhirti scooped up the delivery cart, dragging the bicycle with it. “Oops,” Dhriti said. “Do these detach? I don’t wish to damage your transportation.”

“They do,” Jimena responded, “but I don’t have the tool with me to separate them.”

“Not a bother,” Dhirti responded, carefully repositioning the cart and the bicycle in their hand. 

Dhriti set their cane against the wall then unlocked the pulley and slowly turned the crank to deliver Jimena back to the ground. Once returned, Jimena took a deep steadying breath. Dhriti waited for Jimena to enter the building before shutting the large door behind them. 

Dhriti, cane once more in hand, took large strides deep into the building. Jimena had no choice but to jog to keep the giant in sight and not get lost in the cavernous station. Dhriti stopped in what Jimena thought might be the kitchen, but it was difficult to figure out what anything was from so low to the ground. She heard Dhriti set the bicycle and its cargo on a surface far above her head. 

“There’s a lift you can use on the other side of this counter,” Dhriti called down to her. “If you get in, I can pull you up.” Jimena made her way along the giant counter in search of another platform. She found it, and they repeated the process that had brought them face to face at the front door. Although this time, when the lift stopped, she was only as high as Dhriti’s waist. Jimena spied the bicycle on the counter and went to unload the goods. 

Dhriti smiled down at Jimena. “Please, let me make you something to drink. Coffee? Tea? Hot chocolate?” 

“Are you sure? I don’t want to impose.” It seemed impossible not to impose on someone so much bigger—how hard would it be for her to pour a drink into a human-sized mug?

“No, no, I insist!” Dhriti said. 

“Then, um, hot chocolate, please.”

Dhriti swept to the stove, leaving Jimena adrift on the expanse of the kitchen counter. She finished unloading the bread and pastries, which seemed comically tiny now that she knew the recipient. She wondered why no one had ever mentioned that they were supplying a giant with baked goods.

Dhriti made several trips back to Jimena’s counter. First, she placed a steaming, giant-sized mug of chocolate nearby. She returned with a small (for them) plate, and then, in the palm of their hand, a doll-sized mug and plate. As they set the last in front of Jimena, she realized it wasn’t a table setting for a doll, but for her. 

Dhriti then dipped the tiny mug into their own, scooping out a portion of hot chocolate for Jimena. “I know this is graceless, but it’s the only way I can fill a cup for you. I apologize,” they said, setting the cup before Jimena. “Oh, let me get you a napkin.” The giant produced a cloth napkin the size of a blanket. Jimena used a corner of it to wipe down her mug then sat on it like she was at a picnic. 

She laughed, more from awkwardness than anything else. This had turned into quite an unusual afternoon. 

Dhriti peered at her. “Is everything alright?” they asked. 

“Yes, it’s just,” Jimena gestured broadly at everything, “I did not expect this. I had no idea this was a delivery for a giant.”

“I’m sorry! I must have startled you,” Dhriti said, the corners of her mouth turning down.

“Please there’s no need to apologize. I,” Jimena paused. “I would have liked to make you some larger bread, had I known.” 

Dhriti laughed. Then Jimena laughed too, caught up in the strangeness of it all. 

Dhriti sipped their drink then popped a loaf of bread into their mouth. “Delicious as always, Jimena!” 

“I’m glad you like it.” The giant’s appreciation warmed her. 

“That reminds me, I need to pay you.” Dhriti pulled a coin purse from their pocket and emptied its contents on the counter near Jimena. “Would you mind helping me give you the right change?” Dhriti asked. “I find it dreadfully difficult to tell all those little coins apart, especially with my eyesight,” Dhriti gestured to their glasses. 

Jimena kneeled in front of the pile of cash and sorted out her payment, counting out loud to reassure the giant. “Is that it?” Dhriti asked. 

Jimena nodded, then realized Dhriti might not be able to see such a relatively tiny gesture. “Yes, that’s it,” she called.

“Please take a little more as a tip. You rode all the way out here. Plus, your bread is worth it!”

Jimena stared at the giant, who eventually leaned over the counter, adjusting their glasses, and gingerly shoved a small pile of coins at her. “That should do it,” they declared. Dhriti then swept the remaining money off the counter, back into their purse. They settled down in a seat next to the counter, setting their cane aside. This brought Dhriti a little closer to Jimena’s level, but it was still impossible to see the giant’s face without standing some ways apart.  

“What are these?” Dhriti asked, pointing to one of the seasonal loaves Jimena had made today. 

“These are hunter’s loaves. For the Festival of the Hunt next week,” Jimena said. “They’re flavored with orange and anise.” 

“Sounds exciting,” Dhriti said, “What does this festival celebrate?” Dhriti squeezed the loaf between their thumb and finger and dropped the whole thing into their mouth. “Delicious!”

“The festival honors the abundance that comes from the land. It’s a feast and celebration before winter. It’s a lot of fun. There’s a parade and lanterns and people fly kites.” Jimena stopped and sighed. “I love it but it’s the busiest time of the year for the bakery, so I don’t get to enjoy the festival as much as I used to.” 

She saw that Dhriti’s eyes were fixed on her, wide with curiosity. “Don’t giants celebrate the Festival of the Hunt?”

“Oh, no, but it sounds like a classic sort of harvest celebration, and we do have one of those,” they replied. “Although yours sounds particularly lovely.”

“You should come to the parade next Saturday!” Jimena said, surprising herself. 

“That’s very nice of you, but,” Dhriti hesitated, not sure how to politely refuse when the answer felt so obvious to them. “I think I might stand out too much.” Dhriti could sense that Jimena wanted to argue the point and continued, “it’s not safe for a giant to go into a human town like yours. I couldn’t live with myself if my clumsiness harmed one of you little folk.”

This gave Jimena pause. The giant seemed nothing but conscientious to her but she considered, for the first time, her surroundings. Here, everything was giant-sized. It was much easier to feel secure in one’s own environment. There were giant-sized chairs and handholds all around, presumably to help the giant or let them rest when they needed to. She also noticed that there were plants everywhere, placed on any space surface—including the floor—and tucked into every nook that she could see from her countertop vantage. 

“You don’t seem clumsy to me,” Jimena finally said.

“That’s very kind of you, but you’ve only known me for five minutes,” Dhriti replied. 

In the ensuing silence, Jimena drank from her hot chocolate. It really was warming her, as the giant had suggested. She untied her shawl and set it aside. “You seem to have an awful lot of plants in there.”

Dhriti’s eyes lit up. “Oh, yes! That’s why I’m here, in fact. I’m researching how best to cultivate a plant that has certain medicinal applications. It’s extremely temperamental and difficult to grow at the best of times. I’m investigating how to grow it more efficiently so it can be distributed on a wider scale. I received a grant for the research—” Dhriti paused. “Ah, but I’m sure you don’t care about all of this.”

Jimena had been basking in the giant’s excitement. “No, please continue. I don’t know much about plants beyond what we use in the kitchen, but I love hearing what others are passionate about.”

“I could certainly go on all night, but I would hate to keep you.” Dhriti looked towards the window. “How long will it take you to travel home?”

Jimena realized that it must be getting dark outside. She sighed. “It took me about an hour to ride here.”

“An hour! I forget how different distance is for little folk. I have enjoyed the company but my conscience compels me to see you out so you don’t have to travel home in the dark.” 

Jimena didn’t disagree. She took one last swig of her chocolate, then started walking toward the platform at the end of the counter. She had an idea. “Could you just carry me to the door? It seems like it would be easier than pulling these elevators up and down.”

Dhriti’s face blanched. “I would not presume to carry you, Jimena!” Jimena frowned. “Giants don’t take carrying little folk lightly. Furthermore, it’s not easy for me to bend down to the ground in my condition. The lifts are as much for me as for you.”

Jimena felt embarrassed. “I’m sorry, how rude of me!” she said and made her way to the platform.

“No, no. You wouldn’t have known. Please don’t fret on my account.” Dhriti turned the crank to lower Jimena back to the ground. Being on the counter in the giant house was much less overwhelming than being on the floor. 

“I’ll take your bicycle back to the front door,” Dhriti said, then clattered off ahead of her. Jimena did not feel like running to keep pace with the giant. She walked, observing the details she had missed on her hurried way in. There were plants everywhere and most of the pots were at least three times her size. She wondered what kinds of things the giant was growing, and how hard it was for them to prune and care for miniature fauna. Jimena thought that Dhriti must have some giant plants too, at least to cook with. It would be impossible to peel garlic cloves at their size. The idea made Jimena giggle. 

Jimena reached the threshold as Dhriti was lowering her bicycle to the ground via the lift. This seemed like more work to Jimena than just leaning over and setting it down. She realized the giant must not be exaggerating about the difficulty they had bending over if they were willing to do all this instead. 

She walked the bicycle off the platform and turned back to Dhriti to say goodbye. “Are you sure you won’t come to the parade next week?” she asked.

“I’m sorry but it’s hard to hear you. Something about a parade?”

Jimena hopped back onto the platform. Dhriti took her point and raised the lift up to about shoulder height. “Now, what did you say, Jimena?”

“Just, are you sure you don’t want to come to the parade? I think it would be fun.”

The giant smiled sadly. “That is sweet of you but I don’t think it’s wise. Besides, I need to be here, focusing on my work. These plants won’t graft themselves!”

“I understand,” Jimena said. 

Dhriti returned Jimena to the ground. She waved and shouted “good bye!” then hopped on her bike to pedal home. 

It wasn’t until she got back to the bakery that she realized she had left her shawl.

Chapter Three

Jimena was alone in the bakery again today, but it was Saturday. Molina’s bakery was closed on Sundays, so she didn’t have to end her day with preparations for tomorrow. Once the shop closed, she was free. 

That is, she would be free if she had not decided to test the limits of their bread oven to make the biggest loaf possible. She couldn’t stop thinking about Dhriti eating loaves practically the size of a peptia. Jimena could do them better than this. 

Jimena had spent the afternoon alternately dealing with customers and kneading the biggest pile of dough she had ever amassed. She had needed to scrub bits of dough off her arms all the way up to her biceps afterwards. She was standing on a stool at the bench to get above the dough so she could lay the traditional decoration on this—she hoped—giant-sized loaf. 

She removed all but one rack from the bread oven and wrestled the massive loaf inside. She was not sure how long it would take to bake but it was a while yet before the shop closed. She found yesterday’s inventory note and crossed out the old totals for butter and sugar. She hoped her parents would not ask why she had used so much more than expected. 

Two hours later, she pulled her masterpiece from the oven. The browning seemed a little uneven, probably because the bread had nearly touched the oven’s sides, but it would have to do. She wrapped the loaf in several clean bath towels to keep it warm (there were no paper bags big enough for it), then took it out front to load it into the bicycle’s cart. 

She locked the bakery and took off into the forest. 

When she arrived at the ranger station, she parked her bicycle on the lift by the giant door, then knocked on the human-sized door. She knocked as loudly as she could, knowing the small knocker might be hard for Dhriti to hear. She waited a minute before banging on the door again. Several minutes passed. Jimena realized the giant either wasn’t home or couldn’t hear her. 

She tried the door. It wasn’t locked. 

Jimena was sure her mother would have something to say about barging into someone’s house like this, but she had ridden all the way here and thought Dhriti would not be upset about this. She stepped inside. 

She looked around. There were normal, human-sized rooms to one side of the ranger station, but that wasn’t where Dhriti would be. She had no sense of the layout of the giant’s demesne, but struck out towards the kitchen she had visited yesterday. 

In the kitchen, she found the lift she had ridden to the counter. She noticed that there was also a flight of stairs for humans built into the side of the counter. She wasn’t looking forward to climbing all those stairs after riding her bicycle for an hour, but she figured she could get a better view from up there than from the floor. She began her ascent. 

She alighted on the counter, then flopped down to catch her breath. 

After a short rest, she stood and made her way around the counter, looking for signs of life (well, signs other than plant life). It looked like there were lights coming from a room down a hallway. 

Jimena made her way back down the stairs, then started her hike through the giant house. She wove around plants and chairs and other large, unidentifiable objects. As she neared the door from which the light was emanating, she heard the scratch of pen on paper and Dhriti’s muttering.

She stood at the entrance of what must be an office. Dhriti looked to be sitting at a desk. There were sheafs of papers and folios spread out all around them in an avalanche of vellum. There was a huge bookcase piled with giant volumes and other furniture that a giant could lounge on. 

“Hello,” Jimena shouted as loudly as she could. Dhriti did not look up from their work. 

Jimena was becoming increasingly unsure about her plan now that she was faced with the giant themselves. Would it be wise to interrupt someone so big? She had already come this far. She approached the nearest leg of the desk and searched for a human-sized staircase. There was none to be found.

“Hello, Dhriti!” she tried again. The giant paused their scribbling for a moment, but did not look in Jimena’s direction. 

Steeling her nerves, Jimena approached Dhriti’s ankle. She patted it and tried again, “Dhriti! Hello!” 

Dhriti shrieked. They reached a hand down to brush the spot Jimena had touched. Jimena jumped back, but not far enough. Dhriti’s hand bumped Jimena, knocking her to the floor. 

“Oof! Dhriti, it’s me, Jimena! From yesterday!” 

Dhriti finally looked down. 

“Oh my days! Jimena, you startled me. I’m terribly sorry.” Dhriti stretched a hand out to Jimena, but paused before they reached her. Jimena remembered what they had said yesterday about picking up “little folk.” 

“I’m okay!” she called, placing her small hands on Dhriti’s finger for support as she hauled herself back to her feet. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I brought you some more bread but you didn’t answer the door. It was unlocked so I let myself in.”

“How in the world did you get the door open?” Dhriti asked, wonder written on her face.

“Not your door,” Jimena amended. “The human door was unlocked.” 

“I see. Yes, that makes much more sense.” Dhriti paused for a moment to consider. “You said you brought bread? I wasn’t expecting anyone today. Aren’t you tired from all that travel?” 

Jimena was tired but didn’t want to admit it. “I made you a special order!” she proclaimed. “It’s at the front door. If you’re lucky, it might still be warm.”

Dhriti smiled, then regarded her for a moment. Jimena watched several emotions play out on their face. “It feels rude both to make you walk back to the door but also to carry you there,” they said. “What would be better for you?”

Jimena was in no mood for another long walk through the giant house. “Would you carry me? Please?” she said. 

“Are you quite certain?” Dhriti asked. “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

“I’m sure,” Jimena confirmed. 

Dhriti leaned over and placed their open palm on the floor. Jimena put one hand on Dhriti’s finger to steady herself, then stepped onto their hand. She immediately lost her balance and fell into a seated position. She flushed as she realized Dhriti was now touching her whole rear end. 

“Are you alright,” Dhriti looked down, trying to read her tiny expressions. 

“Yes, this is just very unusual.” 

The giant chuckled. “Hold on.” Dhriti raised their hand from the floor slowly and deliberately, so as not to jostle Jimena. “Can you hop onto my desk for a moment while I get to my feet?” they asked. 

Jimena slid from their hand to the desk, marveling at the mountain of books and papers. She walked around while Dhriti grabbed their cane and stood. Then she heard Dhriti laugh.

“What?”

“You seem to have stepped in some ink. You’ve left tiny boot prints in the margin of my notes.” 

“I’m sorry! I didn’t realize I was ruining your paperwork!” Jimena said. She was mortified.

“Don’t fret, dear one. They’re only notes. You haven’t ruined a thing. In fact, you may have improved them.” Dhriti chuckled. They held their hand out again for Jimena. “Shall we see about this bread that was important enough to bring you here two days in a row?”

Jimena blushed again then clambered into the giant’s hand. 

Dhriti made their way out of the office and past all the plants. Now Jimena could see that the pots were full of tomatoes, herbs, pumpkins, and corn. She saw some giant plants that she had no names for. 

After a moment, they reached the kitchen. Dhriti said, “I’ll need to set you down to open the door. It might be easier to leave you here in the kitchen. Did you ride your bicycle again? I can bring it here.” 

Jimena agreed and Dhriti let her disembark from their hand and onto the counter. “I’ll be back shortly,” they said.

Jimena listened to the giant shuffle towards the door. She heard the scrape of the door, and the creak of the lift. Soon, Dhriti had returned and was carefully placing the bicycle and its freshly baked cargo on the counter. 

“Now,” they said, “let us see what all the fuss was about.”

Jimena grinned as she pulled the oversized hunter’s loaf from her cart and unwrapped it. It was still a little warm, as she had promised. “I wanted to make you something that was your size!” she called, pulling the last towel from the loaf with a flourish. 

Dhriti smiled warmly. “I’m honored,” they said, picking up the loaf and setting it in one palm to admire it. “Is this the same as the festival loaves you brought me yesterday?”

“Yes, only bigger,” Jimena said, but looking at them, she realized it still wasn’t big enough. It was maybe the size of a small roll, relative to Dhriti. She pouted. “I wanted it to be the right size for you, but that’s as big as the oven we have at the bakery.”

“Don’t be sad, this is perfect. You didn’t need to go to all this trouble just for me. I knew what to expect when I came to live among humans.” 

“Still, you deserve nice things,” Jimena said. 

Dhriti took a bite of the bread, easily fitting half of it into their mouth. “Well this is even better than what I had yesterday, so I thank you, Jimena.” They popped the second half into their mouth. 

“I’m glad,” she said. “I wish I could bake you something even bigger.”

The giant thought about this. “Well, I have an oven here, you know. It would be dangerous for you to operate, but maybe you can guide me. I’m not a baker but I can follow instructions.” 

“That would be fun,” Jimena said. “Giant baking!” she laughed. 

“Oh, I have something here for you too,” Dhriti said. They stood and crossed to the other side of the kitchen, then returned with a tiny piece of cloth pinched between their fingers. “I believe you forgot this yesterday.” 

“My shawl!” Jimena exclaimed.

“Is that what it is? I couldn’t figure it out,” Dhriti said, regarding the shawl quizzically. Instead of placing the shawl in front of Jimena on the counter, they very carefully laid it across her shoulders. “There you are,” they said, and gave Jimena the lightest of taps on the head with the tip of their finger.

Jimena laughed. “Thank you for keeping it for me. I didn’t realize I had left it until I got home.”

“I was planning to send it back with next week’s delivery, but here you are,” Dhriti said.

For a moment, neither the baker nor the botanist knew what to say. They had made their respective deliveries and now a canyon of unfamiliarity separated them. 

“I suppose you need to return home,” Dhriti said, uncertainly. “And I have my own work to attend to.”

“I’m sorry I interrupted you,” Jimena offered. “You seemed very focused.” 

“Oh, no. It’s good actually. I always forget to take breaks.” They looked thoughtful. “You know, I don’t think I’ve eaten since breakfast. Would you like to join me for lunch? I assume you’re hungry after traveling here.”

Jimena was indeed hungry and wanted to take Dhriti up on their offer of hospitality, but how difficult would it be? Was their pantry stocked with giant food? “I would be delighted to join you for lunch, but, um, will that be very inconvenient for you?”

Dhriti furrowed their brow. “No, why? You’ll hardly eat anything compared to me. I have plenty of food here.”

Jimena did not know how to politely ask what she wanted to know. “But is all your food, you know, really big?” She reddened with embarrassment even though it seemed like a reasonable question. She put a hand to her face. 

Dhriti laughed softly, “No, I brought some stores with me from home but most of what I have is local human food. No need to worry yourself. I was going to warm up some beans and rice, not try to whittle a torta down to your size.” 

The pair shared a meal then retired to Dhriti’s office. Dhriti had placed Jimena on a small stack of books on her desk. Jimena was seated on the edge, kicking her feet back and forth, and peppering Dhriti with questions. Dhriti wondered how someone so small could contain so much energy. Maybe this was normal human behavior. Then again, perhaps it was the novelty of being in a room fifteen times her size. Who could say? Dhriti had not had occasion to interact much with little folk.

Dhriti realized that Jimena was looking at them intently, waiting for a response. They had let their mind wander considering the mystery of this tiny person. 

“I’m sorry, what was the question?” they said.

Jimena huffed. “I said, are you sure you won’t come to the festival next week?”

Dhriti thought they had already addressed this question. “It’s not wise for me to be in a crowd of little folk,” they said. “Especially given my limitations. If someone were to scamper out in front of me, I’m not certain I’d have the agility to dodge them.” 

Jimena frowned. “I understand. I just think you might enjoy it.” 

Jimena’s sadness was as infectious as her enthusiasm. “I’m sure I would enjoy it, but there’s nothing I can change to make it possible.” 

Soon, dusk was upon them and Jimena had to return home. She was not keen on another hour-long bicycle trip, but there was little choice. 

Dhriti had carried her to the front door and placed her on the lift. 

“I hope to see you again,” Dhriti said. “You make for pleasant company.” 

“Maybe you can see me next week at the festival,” Jimena said. Dhriti rolled their eyes. Unflappable, Jimena continued, “If you change your mind, I’ll be at the edge of town to meet you, where the forest road meets the town’s paved streets. I’ll be there at sundown.” 

Dhriti favored her with a small smile. “Thank you, but please don’t count on it.” 

Dhriti watched Jimena ride homeward until they couldn’t see her any longer. 

Chapter Four

A week had passed since Dhriti had seen the little baker, Jimena. They supposed Jimena was busy in her bakery and couldn’t spare two hours of travel just to see them. Dhriti hesitated to admit that they missed her. Still, they had to admit it was enjoyable to have the company, even in the form of a tiny, excitable human. In the six months they had spent here, they had scarcely spoken to anyone. Most of their interpersonal interaction came in the form of correspondence. They had a research assistant, but she had stayed at the university. It hadn’t been practical or affordable to send two people their size into the field. 

It was the night of Jimena’s harvest festival. Dhriti had initially dismissed the idea of attending the human festival outright. Despite the obvious good sense of not going, they had been dwelling on the matter all week. Dhriti tried to get lost in their work, only to flip through their notes and see Jimena’s boot prints in the margin. This made them feel … something. Lonely, perhaps. Breathless. 

Dhriti had no business interfering with the lives of the local little folk. They were here to study plants. They had a grant and a schedule and a goal. There was no way the local village could accommodate them, given their size. And they knew that walking with a cane was one more hazard for tiny people on the ground. It already took so much of their energy to move around. Thinking about the level of agility and attention required to visit humans had them preemptively exhausted. 

Dhriti resolutely returned their attention to the latest folio on fungi that their assistant had mailed. It should be easy to get caught up in something so interesting. 

They read the same page for the tenth time in as many minutes. It was becoming clear that focusing on their academic pursuits would not be enough to distract them from the unwise plans coming together in their mind. 

Dhriti sighed. Perhaps some tea would calm their restless mind.

In the kitchen, they put the kettle on and set up their diffuser in a mug. Dhriti sat down while waiting for the water to boil. Something colorful caught their eye. There was a tiny piece of cloth hanging on the human lift to the kitchen counter. Dhriti went for a closer look. Jimena had left her shawl again! Dhriti was forced to consider whether Jimena was a naturally forgetful person or if this was some sort of ploy. Forgetting her shawl the first time must have been an honest mistake. But to leave it again? 

The kettle whistled. Dhriti turned off the stove and steeped their tea. 

There was nothing for it. Dhriti would simply have to attend the festival to return Jimena’s shawl. 

They poured their tea into a thermos. It might be chilly out.

Dhriti shouldered their rucksack and left the station. They had not bothered locking the door. Who could open it? 

They considered themselves lucky that the road here was even and well packed. Dhriti had worried about tripping on rough terrain, but it was a pleasant enough stroll to the human town. The sun’s fading light illuminated the canopy that, despite their height, was some ways above Dhriti’s head. They concluded that this must be a very old forest to be so tall yet so close to humans. It comforted them to see nature on their scale. 

Before long, they saw lights in the distance. This must be Jimena’s town. They slowed as they approached the town’s border, hoping not to startle anyone. They should have sent word ahead, but there was no use worrying about it now. 

Jimena had said she would meet them on the road into town. Dhriti hoped that would be obvious and that there wouldn’t be too many little folk there. It was challenging to tell them apart from their vantage point. Their bad eyesight added insult to injury. 

Dhriti felt the change in texture when her cane struck the pavement, which resonated in a way the forest road’s packed dirt had not. This was where Jimena had said she would meet them. There was a sliver of light remaining on the horizon. 

Dhriti scanned the ground. They didn’t see Jimena, or any little folk for that matter. 

This had been a foolish venture. Dhriti would return home before any little folk saw them and they caused a commotion. 

They looked around once more. There was no sign of Jimena. 

Dhriti sighed and turned around. 

“Dhriti!”

They paused. They thought they heard their name. 

“DHRITI, WAIT!” 

They definitely heard their name. 

They scanned the ground. A human was running towards them waving their little arms frantically. “Dhriti!”

“Jimena, is that you?”

“Yes!” she called out. “You came!” Jimena stopped running and stood some distance before them, panting wildly. 

“Are you quite alright?” Dhriti asked. They were unable to hear Jimena’s response. They pursed their lips and leaned forward as much as their mobility would permit. 

“Follow me!” Jimena shouted. 

Dhriti frowned. “Is it quite safe for you?” they asked. Jimena’s only response was to wave them forward. Dhriti followed, keeping a little distance behind Jimena just in case.

Jimena led them through, what they assumed were, the town’ backroads. Dhriti could see several streets over where there was a crowd of revelers parading through the streets with colorful lanterns. Dhriti was grateful that Jimena hadn’t tried to take them that way. It wouldn’t have been possible for them to weave through the crowd. 

After a short distance, Jimena stopped at a gently sloping hill, where a patchwork of small cloths—blankets for humans, they realized—had been carefully assembled into something Dhriti could sit on. 

“Have a seat!” Jimena yelled. 

Dhriti slowly lowered to the ground, situating themselves on the ad hoc picnic blanket. Now closer to the ground, they could see there were more colorful lanterns hung in the nearby trees. Had Jimena done all this?

Once they had stopped moving, Jimena dashed up and put her small hands on their leg. She smiled up at them. “You really came!” 

Dhriti placed their open palm next to Jimena, an invitation. Jimena lept into their hand and Dhriti carefully raised her to eye level.

“Did you do all this for me, Jimena?” Dhriti asked?

“Yes! I had to scrounge blankets from half the town. I’ll be doing laundry for the next week.” Dhriti felt guilty for putting this burden on her. “Don’t be sad,” Jimena continued. “I’m so glad you’re here. What made you change your mind?”

Dhriti smiled and reached a hand into their coat pocket, withdrawing a small piece of fabric. “You forgot your shawl.”

Jimena slapped Dhriti’s palm with her own smaller ones and laughed. “That can’t be the only reason!” 

They stared at each other. 

Jimena finally filled the silence. “You wanted to see me too?”

The giant released a long breath, but did not respond. Anything Dhriti said would put undue pressure on Jimena. How could they say anything about the butterflies in their stomach when they were literally holding Jimena in one hand. Dhriti had no right.  

“Bring me closer,” Jimena said, startling Dhriti. They halved the distance between Jimena and their face. “No. Close enough so I can touch you.” 

Dhriti’s breath became shallower, but they did as the tiny woman asked. 

Jimena rose to her feet in Dhriti’s hand, then placed a warm palm on their cheek. “I wanted to see you. I’m so glad you’re here,” Jimena said. Dhriti felt the impression of tiny lips across their increasingly warm face. 

“I’m glad I’m here too, dear one,” Dhriti said. They put a finger to their lips then, very lightly, pressed their finger to Jimena’s head. 

Jimena smiled broadly then shouted “Turn me around! We’re missing the parade.” Dhriti brought their hand to their chest so Jimena could look out on the town. 

“I love watching the festival parade from here,” Jimena said. “You can see the whole town and all the lights.”

“It’s wonderful,” Dhriti said, “Thank you for sharing this with me.” 

[phprentacar]

The most special cars presented at the Tokyo Motor Show

After a four-year absence, the Tokyo Auto Show is coming back in force in 2023, under a new name: Japan Mobility Show and the PHP Rent a Car Cluj Napoca Airport rental office announces that this change of identity reflects the organizers' decision to expand the attraction event and increase participation by including auto component suppliers, technology companies, and transportation devices other than cars such as mopeds, bicycles, and electric scooters, among others. However, the event itself looks set to be one of the most exciting convention auto shows in recent years, full of bold concepts and enthusiast cars, some of which are destined for series production:

https://www.phprentacar.ro/en/b-the-most-special-cars-presented-at-the-tokyo-motor-show

[wetsteve3]

A supplier in China is selling a complete motorised bicycle using, not the "modern" piston port engine usually sold in enlightened countries (don't start me on UK rules), a crankshaft rotary valve engine derived from the earlier models of the Russian Krasny Oktober bolt on engine.  I have no idea of it's build quality close up or reliability, but it's rather dinky.

[mattved]

Mega projects

Two years ago, I changed jobs.

The role of BI Analyst that I moved from was about 80% hard-skill based. I took on it while living with a disability resulting from post-operation difficulties and it served me well, providing me with great work-life balance at acceptable wage. Thanks to the arrangement, I was able to take care of myself, deal with my physical handicap, and finally undergo a couple of surgeries, which restored my somewhat healthy status.

Following that, I finally started properly recovering mentally. Soon, I had been able to take on many of my previous hobbies other than gaming. I bought a bicycle, which I'd driven the 20 odd kilometers to work couple of times and even managed to climb the way to the dorms where my then girlfriend (now wife) stayed. I also managed to recondition and sell off computer hardware that I had had piling up for a good while then. I started new electronics projects and fixed appliences for friends and family. I redesigned my blog, made a website, designed a brandbook for an acquaintance, and edited hours of videos. It was almost as if I were back at the uni with little extra money, which allowed me to invest into stuff.

The next obvious thing to happen for any purpose-driven individual was becoming more proactive at work. I suggested expansion and overall improvement of architecture behind the firm's BI suite, because it was clearly necessary - more on that in an earlier article. In spite of my being categorized under finance, there was no real budget for it and most of my proposals ended up in an abbyss. I even paid for Google Cloud resources to automate some of the data science stuff.

When a new CTO came in and things finally started to move, he was more keen on bringing his own people to do the important work. Myself, being previously involved in projects of country-level importance including system implementation and process redesign, even being offered a similar role in the Netherlands, albeit shortly before being diagnosed with cancer, I felt it was unfair not to give me the opportunity. So I left to seek it elsewhere.

I found it with a firm two miles from my birthplace, which was founded some two years after I was born. [Coincidence? Likely.] They (or rather we) are a used car retailer and at that point in time needed to replace an old CRM system. And that's what I was tasked with, all the way from technology and supplier tender to the launch and establishment of iterative development cycles. It was notch up from what I did some time before then, exactly the challenge I felt I needed.

Supported by the director of ICT with profound experience working with a global logistics giant, I completed the implementation in two years. The role encompassed project management, across business stakeholders and external suppliers, creating technical specifications, but most of all, doing a lot of the programming myself - especially the integrations. Along the way, I was joined by a teammate, whom I slowly handed over the responsibility of overseeing the operations and providing L1 - L2 support.

The final 9 months leading up to that were particularly difficult, though - finalizing every little bit to the continually adjusting requirements put forward by the key process owners. In the week before go-live, I worked double hours to finish everything and enable a "big bang" transition. D-Day 3 am, I had to abort due to not making the final data migration in time, meaning that the switch happened on Valentine's day.

The extended care period, over which we had to fix every single bug and reduce glitches took about two more months. And even though we managed to present the whole thing as complete, oversight and further expansion still take about two days of my week.

Over the duration of the CRM project, I was fully invested in it and still managed to deliver some extras, like helping out with reporting, integrating Windows users repository with chip-based attendance system from late '00s, working with some weird APIs, and administering two servers loaded with devops utilities.

Personal life did not suffer entirely. I dedicated most to spending time with my girlfriend, even managed to marry her during that period. There were some home-improvement activities that needed to be done and a small number of hurried vacations. But all my side-projects and hobbies ended up being on hold.

And that is literally the only thing I regret about the project and, to date, from the whole job change. Now is the time to try and pick up where I left off. Regaining the momentum in writing and video editing will be particularly difficult. My wife wants me to help out with her cosplay, so I have good motivation to return to being crafty again and refresh the experience from when I made a LARP crossbow and melee weapons. Furthering home-improvement is a big desire of mine but cost is an issue nowadays, with rent and utilities being entirely on my shoulders.

And then there are two things that I want to achieve that I failed at for way too long. Obtaining a driver's license (or possibly making my wife get it) and losing weight. The latter, I am working on with the handy calorie tracking app that dine4fit.com is, especially in my current region, and my Garmin watch. We will hopefully go swimming again soon as well. The former is a whole different story surrounded by plenty of trauma that still needs some recovery and obviously the sacrifice of cost and time to complete it.

I believe I have now strongly improved my work-life balance, by far not to what I was used to at the uni, but to a level that should let me do things that I want to do. And I wish to maintain it for a while. Maybe before embarking on yet another mega project, albeit with a much better starting point than the one I had in this case? Who knows.

And about the money, I believe a spike will come eventually, with transition to another employer, most likely. But the longer I am here, the more experience comes my way in doses much greater than those I would get elsewhere if I were to move just now. I'm 28 and if I lose weight and make sure to overcome obstacles of personal nature, I will do better. As for not being a millionaire by the age of 30, I should be able to handle that.

I almost died five years ago, gave up on pursuing my master's, lost the chance to take on the opportunity I had in the Netherlands, and now live where I'd wished, even managed temporarily, to move away from. I do well understand how scarce our time is, but I have to cut myself some slack when others don't (upcoming article "cancer perks"). For what it is, I still rock, don't I?!

[cutoutin-littlestars]

Types Of Courier Delivery Services

There are plenty of courier service suppliers in the market today. It tends to be a can be huge or little organization. The majority of the bigger organizations are frequently utilized by businesses that direct work worldwide. Such business houses are expected to regularly send bundles from one corner of the world to the next. Then again a lot more modest courier services are in many cases laid out in huge urban communities where law offices or clinical practices courier significant reports and information from one area of the city to the next. Each type of Courier Organization offers various services according to the necessity of their clients. There are numerous courier services available in regions like Beverly Slopes, Malibu, Marina Del Rey, Hollywood, Century City, and Hermosa Ocean side that can be looked for on the web.

Among the different types of courier delivery presented by a courier organization not many as discussed here:

Right off the bat, we will discuss what an International Courier service is. As the name of the service suggests an International Courier service is tied in with carry an answer for the client sitting in one piece of the globe who needs something might be a package or a significant piece of paper to be delivered to their entryway step. It very well may be moved either via air or ocean.

The International Courier service is further sub separated in to various classes like the International Express in which the courier is delivered the following day or Standard courier delivery in which the bundle is gotten with in five to seven days.

Then, the same day express courier delivery comes. In such sort of delivery the courier is expected to be distributed in the same day. Such delivery is very help full in the event of crisis and when you maintain that the courier should arrive at its objective quickly. So next time you choose to send a gift to a companion living abroad without a second to spare don't stress since now you realize that can be effectively finished with the same day express courier service. This service is available in different camouflages like the same day courier, express courier and bicycle courier. How ever all in all, these deliveries offer the same sort of service and that is to get your courier to its objective on the same day it is sent. This service is exceptionally useful for legal firms.

[motriders]

Explore Motorcycle Parts for a Refined Ride in the UK

Explore Motorcycle Parts for a Refined Ride in the UK Assuming that you love riding your motorbike, you know that it's not just about getting from A to B — it's tied in with partaking in the journey. Something doesn't add up about a smooth, responsive ride that causes each journey to feel like an undertaking. In the UK, where motorbiking is a monstrous piece of the way of life, you'll need to ensure your motorbike is focused perfectly. Whether you're de or cruising through city roads, the right motorbike parts can truly refine your ride. We should investigate why the UK is an incredible spot to find those parts and how you can encourage your motorbike right.

Why Shop Motorcycle Parts in the UK? The UK is a motorbiking hotspot, and it’s packed with local suppliers who know the ins and outs of making your motorbike perform its best. The variety of roads and weather conditions here—from sunny stretches to rainy, cold days—means that motorbike parts made for the UK will give you the reliability you need. You can get parts that are designed to perform no matter what the weather’s throwing at you, plus expert advice from local pros who understand the needs of riders in the UK.

Buying parts locally also means faster delivery and the chance to try things out in person. With so many shops and online retailers around, you’ll have a world of options to dial in your motorbike and make it perfect for your style of riding.

Must-Have Motorcycle Parts for a Refined Ride 1. Engine Parts That Make a Difference Your motorbike's motor gets it going, so you'll need to ensure it's performing at its pinnacle. Whether you're searching for some additional snort or a smoother speed increase, the right motor parts can do wonders. The UK has heaps of choices, from performance camshafts to high-stream air channels, that assist your motorbike with running cleaner and all the more proficiently. These parts are worked for strength, ensuring your motorbike has serious areas of strength for stay the difficulties of UK streets.

By getting parts that are custom-made for the UK market, you're guaranteeing your bicycle is prepared for any conditions it faces, from metropolitan traffic to country slopes.

2. Suspension for a Comfy, Controlled Ride If you've at any point hit a knock at speed, you know how significant suspension is. A decent suspension arrangement is critical to ensuring your motorbike rides without a hitch and stays in charge, particularly on rough or lopsided streets. In the UK, you'll find suspension parts that are designed for solace, control, and accuracy. Whether you're cruising through the open country or handling twisty city roads, suspension that is worked for UK conditions will give you that comfortable ride while keeping everything quite steady.

Including customizable forks to raise shocks, you can change your suspension to make it spot on for how you need to ride.

3. Brakes That Keep You in Charge Can we just be real for a minute: nobody needs to ride a motorbike that can't stop in a very small space? Brakes are fundamental for security and control, and in the UK, you'll find brake pads, rotors, and calipers intended for extreme halting power. Whether you're exploring through a bustling city or descending a lofty slope, having brakes that answer quickly and exactly is critical to a refined ride.

Good UK-made brakes are designed to give you confidence in all conditions, from wet roads to dry tarmac. They won’t fade under pressure and will give you smooth, reliable stopping power.

4. Exhausts for a Smooth, Powerful Sound Let’s be honest, a great-sounding motorbike is part of the fun. But beyond just making noise, an upgraded exhaust system can boost your motorbike’s performance. A high-flow exhaust will help your engine breathe better, which can increase power and make your ride feel more responsive. UK suppliers offer exhaust systems made from lightweight materials that give your motorbike a better sound and more efficient airflow.

5. Tires for Better Grip and Confidence With such countless choices accessible, you'll track down tires that offer the ideal equilibrium of comfort, hold, and performance. The best perspective? They're made to deal with the circumstances you'll track down in the UK, so you don't need to stress over slipping on a wet street or losing a foothold during a hard corner.

Why UK Motorcycle Parts Are the Right Choice Shopping for motorcycle parts in the UK is a no-brainer if you want reliability and performance. Local suppliers know exactly what works for UK riders, so you’re getting parts that are tried and tested on local roads. Whether it’s a rainy day or a scorching summer afternoon, the right parts will help your motorbike run smoothly and efficiently.

Likewise, UK-based parts regularly go with the extra benefit of speedier movement times and expert help. On the off chance that you don't have the foggiest idea of which part is great for your motorbike, you can rely upon direction from experts who sort out the intricate details of motorbike upkeep. They'll ensure you get the right parts for your particular motorcycle and riding style.

Conclusion Refining your motorbike for the ideal ride begins with tracking down the right parts. Whether you're after motor redesigns, suspension changes, or better brakes, looking for motorbike parts in the UK guarantees that your motorbike will play out its best in all circumstances. With nearby providers offering great parts intended for UK riders, you'll get the dependability and performance you want to cause each ride to feel like it was made only for you. Thus, begin investigating the parts that will take your motorbike to a higher level, and relax!

[lookchem]

17480-69-2 Prolinol as a Chiral Auxiliary in Organophosphorus Chemistry

Several strategies for the development of the synthesis of P-chiral organophosphorus compounds with (L)-prolinol as a source of chirality have been examined. A reaction of L-prolinol with a set of different alkyl/arylphosphonous acid diamides led in most of the cases to the quantitative formation of the appropriate bicyclic oxazaphospholidines with complete diastereo and enantioselectivity. The latter were reacted with BH3 complex and the formed borane analogues were submitted to structural modifications leading to tertiary phosphine-boranes. Additionally, the effectiveness of oxazaphospholidines as ligands in transition metal asymmetric catalysis has been tested in hydrogenation of dehydroaminoacid esters and imine.