#Single-use Assemblies Market

[global-research-report]

Revolutionizing Bioprocessing: Insights into the Single-use Assemblies Market

The global single-use assemblies market size is expected to reach USD 34.64 billion by 2030, registering a CAGR of 16.53% from 2024 to 2030, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. Life science companies are eager to avoid the cost and time of cleaning needed with stainless steel. The augmented expansion of the international biotech industries has offered a growth environment, in which novel, disposable technologies are becoming more significant. As pharmaceutical companies, distributors, CDMOs, and manufacturers converge around the benefits of single-use assemblies, the industry will grow at a faster pace during the forecast period. From therapies for rare diseases to cancer research, the impact of single-use technology in accelerating cutting-edge research into these conditions is set to grow, thereby propelling industry growth.

In addition, the growing biologics market will further offer lucrative opportunities during the study period. Eradicating the risk of contamination is the major challenge faced by biopharmaceutical manufacturers, which currently involves high-level monitoring of critical manufacturing solutions. Single-use assemblies support manufacturers in overcoming this difficulty by eliminating or reducing the necessity for sterilization between the batches, thereby filtering the operational capability. SUTs are considered one of the important areas of growth among biomanufacturing companies, as several biopharmaceutical companies are venturing into disposable assembly offerings for the production of all sorts of biopharmaceuticals.

Moreover, SUTs are now being heavily adopted for the clinical manufacturing of biopharmaceuticals and have become more conventional within commercial manufacturing facilities. SUTs permit biologics manufacturers to reduce the facilities' footprint by almost 20% due to the need for utilities, which generate steam, water, and clean-in-place solutions. Furthermore, as per the research by BioProcess International, the engineers estimated that the capital expenditure for the single-use facility is 25-45% less than for a facility established on stainless-steel equipment. Similarly, they also estimated that single-use facilities need half the energy and water during operations and can be built in 18 months. Whereas the stainless-steel facility takes three years. Owing to such advantages, the adoption of single-use assemblies is increasing, thereby driving industry growth.

In recent years, CMOs have been integrating single-use assemblies into most or all their bioprocess. CMOs broadly use single-use assemblies for quicker processing and process changeover time. The quick turnaround time and flexibility between process runs and various client projects allowed by single-use assemblies can enhance the CMO efficiency, which, in turn, aids in the reduction of the overall costs. In addition, the growing number of CMO facilities are essentially fully single-use. CMOs adoption of single-use technology can save on campaign and facility costs, which helps reduce the operating costs and capital investments. Furthermore, single-use assemblies in CMOs decrease the complexity and reduces lead times in upstream processes.

They also enhance the quality of products by preventing cross-contamination in downstream processes, especially for processes handling potent or toxic materials, such as antibody-drug conjugates and viral vectors. Moreover, stringent regulatory requirements in the manufacturing systems also endorse the adoption of single-use assemblies in CMOs.COVID-19 has augmented an already rapidly rising demand for single-use assemblies as the SUTs allow for the speedy production and development of therapies and vaccines and improve accuracy and time. For instance, Aramus single-use bag assembly developed by Entegris, Inc. was used for the storage of COVID-19 vaccines as the vaccines need extremely low temperatures to preserve. With low leachable and extractable and an extensive operating-temperature variety, the patented single-use bags were ideal for cold chain storage and collection.

In addition, key manufacturers are also accelerating investment projects or increasing their capital expenditures. For instance, Pall Corp., invested USD 114 million to upsurge its single-use output. These investments comprise additional manufacturing capacity at 6 current manufacturing facilities in the United States and Europe. Moreover, MilliporeSigma, Thermo Fisher, and Cytiva have also augmented growth plans to support the industry’s backlog. For instance, in March 2021 Merck announced the addition of a single-use assembly production unit at its Life Science Center in Molsheim, France. The investment of USD 26.25 million will accelerate the European expansion plans of the company for single-use products critical to manufacturing vaccines and lifesaving therapies. On the other hand, regulatory concerns due to leachable and extractable might hamper the growth of disposable assemblies in the forecast period.

Leachable and extractable are set of undesired impurities in the product stream, these are compounds that can move into the product from manufacturing systems, packaging containers, or other product-contact systems. Extractable is extracted from the contact materials under extreme conditions, such as treatment with a harsh solvent or elevated temperature conditions. Leachable compounds, on the other hand, are those that are leached into the final product from contact materials during normal or real-time storage conditions. North America dominated the global industry in 2023 due to the growth in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, advancement in SUT products, and increasing incidence of diseases, such as cancer coupled with increasing investments and funding in drug discovery research. Asia Pacific is expected to grow at a considerable CAGR over the forecast years owing to the strategic activities by key players coupled with funding by the government for biopharmaceutical R&D.

Single-use Assemblies Market Report Highlights

The filtration assemblies segment led the industry in 2023. Increased regulatory prospects and the need to diminish the risk of contamination have promoted the use of filtration assemblies for bulk and final fill operations

The bag assemblies segment is expected to grow at a lucrative CAGR over the forecast period. Advantages, such as no need for validation or cleaning, lower shipping cost due to less weight, and low maintenance cost & capital investment drive the segment growth

The customized solutions segment captured the highest revenue share in 2023. Several companies offer customized solutions to fast-track pharmaceutical manufacturing and drug development

The pharmaceutical & biotechnological companies end-user segment led the global industry in 2023. The growth of the current manufacturing facilities for biopharmaceuticals drives the demand for single-use assemblies

The CROs & CMOs segment is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR over the forecast period. In recent years, CMOs have been integrating single-use technology into most or all their bioprocess

The quick turnaround time and flexibility between process runs and various client projects allowed by single-use equipment can enhance the CMO efficiency, which aids in the reduction of the overall costs

Single-use Assemblies Market Segmentation

Grand View Research has segmented the global single-use assemblies market report based on product, application, solution, end-use, and region:

Single-use Assemblies Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

Bag Assemblies

2D bag assemblies

3D bag assemblies

Filtration Assemblies

Bottle Assemblies

Tubing Assemblies

Other Products

Single-use Assemblies Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

Filtration

Cell Culture & Mixing

Storage

Sampling

Fill-finish Applications

Other Applications

Single-use Assemblies Solution Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

Customized Solutions

Standard Solutions

Single-use Assemblies End-use Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

Biopharmaceutical & Pharmaceutical Companies

CROs & CMOs

Academic & Research Institutes

Single-use Assemblies Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2030)

North America

US

Canada

Europe

UK

Germany

France

Italy

Spain

Denmark

Sweden

Norway

Asia Pacific

Japan

China

India

South Korea

Australia

Thailand

Latin America

Brazil

Mexico

Argentina

Middle East and Africa

South Africa

Saudi Arabia

UAE

Kuwait

Order a free sample PDF of the Single-use Assemblies Market Intelligence Study, published by Grand View Research.

[soumyafwr]

https://biiut.com/read-blog/52434_global-single-use-assemblies-market-size-overview-key-players-and-forecast-2027.html

Single-use Assemblies Market

[sagarg889]

Single-use Filtration Assemblies Market: Emerging Trends, Regional Analysis & Future Outlook 2023 to 2033

The global single-use filtration assemblies market is predicted to be worth US$ 3.53 billion in 2023 and rise to US$ 19.28 billion by 2033. Initially, the global market was expanding at a CAGR of 19.8% from 2018 to 2022.

Smaller batch sizes, increased demand for customized treatments, and the need for adaptive and scalable solutions are the leading factors fostering the development of single-use technologies in the pharmaceutical industry.

Spending on pharmaceutical research and development for the product has increased, since single-use assemblies are essential to both small- and large-scale biopharmaceutical production.

The increasing use of single-use filter assemblies has raised questions about the impact single-use plastics have on the environment. The single-use filter assemblies sector is growing, thus the industry must come up with plans to reduce waste and promote sustainability.

Download a sample to obtain additional highlights and key points on various market @ https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-16852

Due to the rewards, single-use meetings have been increasingly popular over the past ten years. Many pharmaceutical and bioengineering companies plan to build their single-use manufacturing facilities in emerging nations like China, India, and South Korea, in order to position these countries as hubs for biocatalytic insourcing. This is due to the favorable controlling environment and the economy of measure in these countries.

Key Takeaways

In 2022, the United States was expanding at a share of 36.4% in the single-use filtration assemblies market.

The single-use filtration assemblies market was significantly expanding, with a size of US$ 2.98 billion in 2022.

Due to existing players’ continuous innovation, the market in the United States is expected to have a CAGR of 14.9% by 2033.

Due to the market’s enormous potential and a strong emphasis on sustainability, analysts expect it is likely to rise 1.18 times between 2022 and 2023.

The market in India is anticipated to expand at an adequate CAGR of 14% by 2033.

In 2022, Europe was expanding at a 29% share in the single-use filtration assemblies market.

Based on type, membrane filtration dominated the market with a share of 47.8% in 2022 and continues to lead the market during the forecast period.

Based on application, bioprocessing/biopharmaceuticals dominated the market with a share of 41.6% in 2022 and continue to lead the market during the forecast period.

Based on product, the filter segment dominated the market with a share of 21.2% in 2022 and continues to lead the market during the forecast period.

Critical Approaches Increasing Top Players’ Wealth

Merck Millipore, Sartorius AG, MEISSNER FILTRATION PRODUCTS, Danaher, Repligen Corporation, Cellab, Medela, Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., 3M Purification, and Repligen Corporation are important participants in the market.

To effectively meet the growing demand for single-use filters among end users, notably bio manufacturers, participants are expanding their portfolio. Additionally, the companies are investing in research and development to produce cutting-edge single-use filter assemblies that function and perform better than their conventional counterparts.

Recent Developments

Albumedix, a company focused on science, was totally acquired by Sartorius in August 2022. The company aimed to enhance and bolster its reputation as a provider of cutting-edge media that includes media and crucial supporting components with just this acquisition.

In December 2021, Sartorius teamed with Sonderanlagenbau HOF, a fully integrated design and construction environment. The companies worked together to include the vertical plate freeze-thaw machines in Sartorius’ product range, in order to provide a full line of acceptable freeze-thaw supplies and equipment.

Get Full Access on this Report @ https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/single-use-filtration-assemblies-market

Key Segments

By Type:

Membrane Filtration

Depth Filtration

Centrifugation

Others

By Applications:

Pharmaceuticals Manufacturing

Bioprocessing/Biopharmaceuticals

Laboratory Use

By Product:

Filters

Cartridges

Membranes

Manifold

Cassettes

Syringes

Others

By Region:

North America

Latin America

Europe

South Asia & Pacific

East Asia

Middle East & Africa

[hellsitegenetics]

Yuri (Japanese: 百合, lit. "lily"), also known by the wasei-eigo construction girls' love (ガールズラブ, gāruzu rabu), is a genre of Japanese media focusing on intimate relationships between female characters. While lesbianism is a commonly associated theme, the genre is also inclusive of works depicting emotional and spiritual relationships between women that are not necessarily romantic or sexual in nature. Yuri is most commonly associated with anime and manga, though the term has also been used to describe video games, light novels, and literature.

Themes associated with yuri originate from Japanese lesbian fiction of the early twentieth century, notably the writings of Nobuko Yoshiya and literature in the Class S genre. Manga depicting female homoeroticism began to appear in the 1970s in the works of artists associated with the Year 24 Group, notably Ryoko Yamagishi and Riyoko Ikeda. The genre gained wider popularity beginning in the 1990s; the founding of Yuri Shimai in 2003 as the first manga magazine devoted exclusively to yuri, followed by its successor Comic Yuri Hime in 2005, led to the establishment of yuri as a discrete publishing genre and the creation of a yuri fan culture.

As a genre, yuri does not inherently target a single gender demographic, unlike its male homoerotic counterparts yaoi (marketed towards a female audience) and gay manga (marketed towards a gay male audience). Although yuri originated as a genre targeted towards a female audience, yuri works have been produced that target a male audience, as in manga from Comic Yuri Hime's male-targeted sister magazine Comic Yuri Hime S.

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Closest match: Branchellion lobata genome assembly, chromosome: 11 Common name: Marine leech

[theresattrpgforthat]

SYSTEM OVERVIEW: Forged in the Dark (FitD).

I’m taking a break from my regular recommendation posts this week to talk about a few different indie ttrpg systems that have gained a lot of traction over the past few years - how they work, why I like them, and what kinds of games there are out there that use them!

I don’t think it’s a secret that I’m a big fan of Forged in the Dark games. I’ve sung the praises of games like Brinkwood, Slugblaster and The Wildsea time and time again, and I’m even designing my own FitD hack! So let’s talk about what makes this system tick.

The Action Roll

The core mechanic of Forged in the Dark games is the Action Roll. To do most things in these games, the player will have to assemble a small pool of d6s. These dice may come from skills, special abilities, inventory - it depends on the game, but you’ll usually have somewhere between 0 and 4d6 to roll.

When you roll, you look for the single highest dice (or multiple highest, if you manage to get two 6s). If your best result is a 1-3, you’re not going to get what you want. If your best result is a 4/5, you’ll probably get a success with a cost - whether that be harm, only part of what you want, or more trouble down the road. If you get a single 6, you do it - and if you get multiple 6s, you do it well!

What I like about this is that it’s easy to tell at a glance how well you do, and that the dice used for this system are the most accessible dice on the market. Not only that, the possibilities of a 4/5 are quite broad - you could have a consequence that is physical harm to the character, but you could also embarrass them, break their stuff, or just hint at bad things to come!

But Mint, how do you roll 0d6? Well, in particularly difficult scenarios, the player will roll 2d6 and take the lowest number instead. This originates from the progenitor of Forged in the Dark games, Blades in the Dark, which is meant to be particularly difficult and punishing.

Position & Effect

Another core mechanic of FitD games is Position & Effect. These are narrative tools that help the GM communicate to the players how dangerous the proposed plan of action is, as well as how likely the characters are to succeed.

Position is going to be Controlled, Risky or Desperate, indicating how much danger the characters are in, but also the stakes of failure. Failing a Controlled roll means you’re probably going to get out of there with minimal harm, or possibly a chance to try again. Failing a Desperate roll means that shit is going to hit the fan, and you’re going to be caught up in all of it. Risky rolls are somewhere in the middle, and considered the "standard" difficulty.

Effect is a metric for how successful your character is going to be. Picking a lock might not be dangerous, but if your character isn’t a thief and doesn’t have any lock-picks, they might not be very effective! Players can alter the effectiveness of their actions by changing how they go about solving a problem, using the gear they have on hand, or agreeing to approach the problem from a more desperate Position.

What I like about this is that Position & Effect encourage conversation and agency between the GM and the players. The players have final say over what they do, but the GM is able to communicate why they feel certain approaches may be more or less effective. The story is generative, and the way the rolls are adjudicated allow all of the parties to contribute to what happens next.

The Resistance Roll

Related to this conversation about agency is the Resistance Roll. If a player doesn’t like the consequence that the GM hands out, they can choose to Resist the consequences. They usually do this by rolling a certain number of resistance dice, and spending a player resource called Stress. (Other games use other names.) Depending on the consequence, the player might resist it outright or reduce the severity, but spend too much stress and you run into different kinds of consequences - whether that be Trauma (Blades), Trouble at Home (Slugblaster) or something unlucky (Antiquarian Adventures). Stress can be managed during a phase typically called Downtime, through various activities dependant on the setting.

I like this mechanic not just because it gives players agency, but also because of the Stress track tied to it. This is a player resource but it can also be a track pointing a change in the character, a chance to build in narrative themes, or a reason to role-play certain narrative effects. Many different FitD games use Stress in a number of unique ways, and I think tweaking this element can do a lot to determine the tone of the game.

Crew Sheets

This leads to the next bit of Forged in the Dark games that I really like - Crew Sheets. Similar to a number of other narrative games, FitD has character playbooks (which are kind of like character classes in D&D, but also are a carryover from PbtA games - I’ll talk about them more in the PbtA post), but Forged in the Dark games also have a uniting theme that gives your players a reason to work together.

In Neon Black, this is your local community, which both takes care of you and asks you for favours. In Moth-Light, this is your Pact, which determines not just your group’s goal, but also the tone and themes of your story. In Brinkwood, this is your Rebellion and the Faerie patron who is taking care of you - but it’s also the Mask playbooks that all of the players share, with special magical powers that help you fight Vampires.

Modular Systems

There are bits and pieces that also exist in FitD games that help define the experience. Clocks, for example, are abstract representations of looming consequences or player goals, and allow you to work towards a big pay-off over time. Factions can represent a changing social landscape, with friends and foes that you can turn to for help or strike out against in order to gain ground. Harm can alter how many dice you roll, or how effective you are when acting. These are interlocking pieces, but they’re not necessarily required.

Most of what I’ve covered in this post is not strictly necessary for a Forged in the Dark game. The Wildsea doesn’t use Stress or pre-set playbooks. Protect the Child doesn’t use Trauma. Scum & Villainy adds a Gambit mechanic that gives you extra ways to earn dice. Slugblaster changes how you Resist consequences, and External Containment Bureau moves the Clock mechanic to the front and centre, while doing away with Factions pretty much altogether. All of these games have enough pieces to be considered Forged in the Dark, but the play experience is very different, and each mod included, altered or dropped are usually choices that support the genre or tone of the game.

I’ve talked about a number of Forged in the Dark games in the past, but here’s a few more that I’ve got my eyes on.

Dusk Academy, by Skullery Maids, is a game about a private school for teaching magic to girls.

CRASH/CART, by Galen Pejeau, is a game about paramedics in a near-future California.

a|state, by Handiwork Games, is a game set in a strange and Dickensian city.

Girl By Moonlight, by Evil Hat, is a game about magical girls, mech pilots, and other larger-than-life characters.

There is a good list of Forged in the Dark games on the Blades website, and I've also got a Forged in the Dark collection on Itch.io!

If you are looking to make your own game, John Harper has released the Game SRD on the BitD website. These rules are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license, which means that you can create your own games using this system as long as you give appropriate credit to Harper.

What Forged in the Dark game has caught your eye? Let me know in the tags / comments!

[healthcaremarketanalysis]

Global Single-Use Assemblies Market worth $5.2 billion by 2028

Single Use Assemblies Market in terms of revenue was estimated to be worth $2.5 billion in 2023 and is poised to reach $5.2 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 15.6% from 2023 to 2028 according to a new report by MarketsandMarkets™. The global single-use assemblies market is growing owing to factors such as rising adoption of single-use assemblies among startups and SMEs, development and launch of technologically advanced single-use products that offer streamlined workflows, portability, and rapid implementation, and increasing demand for single-use assemblies for R&D and biologics manufacturing. The market growth could be hampered by regulatory concerns and significant concerns regarding extractables and leachables arising from the components of single-use assemblies in bioproduction.

Download an Illustrative overview:

Single Use Assemblies Market Dynamics:

Drivers:

Increasing adoption of single-use assemblies among startups and SMEs

Rapid implementation and low risk of cross-contamination

Growing biologics and biosimilars market

Cost savings with single-use assemblies

Technological advancements

Restraints:

Regulatory concerns

Issues related to leachables and extractables

Leakage and integrity issues

Opportunities:

Emerging markets

Rising focus on increasing bioprocessing capacities among biopharmaceutical companies

Challenge:

Standardization of single-use assemblies

Disposal of waste

Demand and supply gap

Key Market Players of Antibody Drug Conjugates Industry:

Key players in the single-use assemblies market include Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (US), Sartorius AG (Germany), Danaher (US), Merck KGaA (Germany), PARKER HANNIFIN CORP (US), Saint-Gobain (France), Repligen Corporation (US), Corning Incorporated (US), Entegris (US), Meissner Filtration Products, Inc. (US),  NewAge Industries (US), Antylia Scientific (US), Lonza (Switzerland), Romynox (Netherlands), SaniSure (US), Keofitt A/S (Denmark), Intellitech, Inc. (US), Dover Corporation (US), Foxx Life Sciences (US), TSE Industries, Inc. (US), Fujimori Kogyo Co., Ltd. (Japan), Michelin (France), Cellexus (Scotland), and Fluid Flow Products, Inc. (US).

The North American region catered for the largest share of the single-use assemblies market in 2022.

The single-use assemblies market is segmented into North America, Europe, the Asia Pacific (APAC), Latin America (LATAM), and the Middle East and Africa (MEA). North America regional market held a substantial share of the single-use assemblies market owing to the strong presence of the pharmaceutical industry, increased research and development (R&D) spending, the expansion of biosimilars markets, the rising number of drug development projects, and stringent regulations for the pharmaceutical industry.

Recent Developments:

In February 2022, Sartorius Stedim Biotech (France) acquired the chromatography division of Novasep (France). The portfolio acquired comprises chromatography systems primarily suited for smaller biomolecules.

In August 2022, Thermo Fisher Scientific opened a new single-use technology site in Tennessee, which has 400,000 square feet of floor space. It became the company's largest SUT site in its growing network.

Single Use Assemblies Market Advantages:

Flexibility and Scalability: Single-use assemblies are highly adaptable, allowing for rapid changes in production processes and easy scalability from small-scale research and development to large-scale manufacturing. This flexibility reduces downtime and enables efficient production adjustments.

Cost-Efficiency: Traditional stainless steel equipment requires significant capital investment, maintenance, and cleaning validation. Single-use assemblies eliminate these costs by avoiding the need for cleaning, sterilization, and long-term maintenance, making them a cost-effective choice, especially for smaller batch production.

Reduced Cross-Contamination Risk: Disposable components minimize the risk of cross-contamination between batches, ensuring product purity and quality. This is crucial in industries like biopharmaceuticals, where maintaining product integrity is paramount.

Time Savings: Single-use assemblies streamline production processes by eliminating time-consuming cleaning and sterilization steps. This results in faster batch turnover and shorter production lead times.

Improved Product Safety: Single-use assemblies reduce the risk of contamination by eliminating the need for manual cleaning and sterilization processes, ensuring a higher level of product safety and consistency.

Environmental Benefits: Some single-use assemblies are designed with sustainability in mind, featuring recyclable or biodegradable materials. This aligns with growing environmental concerns and corporate sustainability goals.

Compliance and Validation: Single-use assemblies simplify regulatory compliance and validation processes because they offer consistent and traceable components. This simplifies documentation and ensures compliance with industry standards.

Lower Capital Investment: Industries can avoid large capital investments in stainless steel equipment and facilities by adopting single-use technology, making it more accessible for startups and smaller companies.

Space Savings: Single-use assemblies require less physical space compared to traditional stainless steel equipment, allowing for more efficient use of manufacturing facilities.

Innovation and Customization: Manufacturers continually innovate and customize single-use assemblies to meet specific process requirements, offering a wide range of options tailored to different applications.

Overall, the single-use assemblies market's advantages make it an attractive option for industries seeking efficient, cost-effective, and flexible solutions while meeting rigorous quality and safety standards.

Related Links:

[daydreamgoddess14]

Red Card

MASTERLIST

Roy Kent x F!Reader

It's the first time in 135 years that the Premier League has allowed a female referee to official a match... Remaining neutral is absolutely key. Plenty of fluff and smut and flirting 😏

The anticipation was at a whole different level. For the first time in history, a woman would referee a Premier League football game. The FA had played a blinder from a marketing perspective - a local girl from Richmond itself - refereeing a Richmond vs. Man City match - the top two finishing teams of the previous season. Sky Sports, BT Sport, Match of the Day, ESPN… every single football broadcaster or news outlet was on site. It couldn’t get any more high profile. It had been all anyone had talked about for weeks on end. Roy was sick of hearing about it, talking about it, and reading about it.

“New Trent?”

“What do you think about a woma-”

“Reffing the next match? It’s about fucking time. Should have been done years ago. The league might be saying all the right things and making a big deal out of it, but it’s only disguising the fact that they haven’t bothered utilising female referees until now.”

“And what do you think of the referee chosen for the match?”

“Did I offer you a fucking follow up, New Trent? She’s a fantastic ref, and has a great eye. I’ve seen her run some lower league matches and it’s high time she had a role in the Prem.” He looked around for his next victim, “You with the… bald spot?”

“And will you be saying the same thing if she books one of the lads next week or a decision doesn’t go your way?”

“Course I fucking will. I don’t suddenly change my opinion of any of the other refs? We’ve all got jobs to do and roles to play. I don’t think we can ask for anything more than for any of the referees to be fair and equal. I don’t give a shit who we’re on about, that applies to all of them.” He looks around for any other burning questions, “Right, fuck off then you lot. I’m done for the day.” He rose from the desk and left the bustle of the press conference. In the office, Beard and Nate were looking over plans for the next week while the team milled around the gym and treatment rooms.

“Tough presser?” Beard asked.

“No more than fucking usual. All anyone is talking about is the new-”

“Female ref? The news is everywhere. As if the match wasn’t high profile enough as it is.” Nate filled in, a bundle of nervous energy.

“Yeah, well we’ll be fine. Just gotta make sure the boys keep their heads down. The new ref isn’t their problem, they don’t need to even be thinking about that.”

“But they will, because that’s all they’re hearing about. We haven’t had this much press coverage for ages, the match sold out months ago. They may not have to think about her, but the whole situation does impact their whole build up to the game.” Beard declared.

“Right, get ‘em in here.” Roy grimaced. Nate dashed off to assemble the team. “Alright lads?” There were a few murmurs and replies. “I know there’s a lot of noise around this one - some of it is to do with us and the City game, some of it is none of our business. I suggest you steer clear of the news for a few fucking days. There’s no need to watch it at all. No Twatter or whatever you fucking use. Just stay off that shit for the rest of the week, yeah? Any news you need, you hear from us. I want to keep the positivity we’ve got for the new ref, so if you’re asked about it by the paps on the car park, be fucking nice. Otherwise, you don’t watch or listen to all of the fucking fuss about the weekend, alright?”

“Coach.” Isaac nodded in agreement, the other players followed his lead.

~~~~~~~

The noise was deafening, the stadium packed to the rafters. You hovered at the side of the pitch with the other officials, warming up until it was time for the meet and greet of the team managers. The two managers were like fucking titans of football royalty. You were about to meet Pep Guardiola for god sake. And if you even think for one second about meeting Roy Kent, you might just pee your pants. Pep is great, wonderful - the boss! But you grew up not twenty minutes down the road, so Roy is firstly, the literal definition of local hero, and secondly, the big crush of your early 20s. You spent many Euro Championships and World Cups in the pub singing his chant and ogling his legs. Fortunately when the Premier League and media ask about your neutrality, they don’t ask whether you’ve experienced sexual fantasies about any of the players or managers. At least you’d only be admitting that about one person and not, like, a whole team. And you would never admit it publicly. The home crowd roars as the Richmond team is announced, you make your way to the space between the two dugouts ready to greet the players. They all shake your hand as they pass you, with a few nods of encouragement and words of support. The same applies to the Man City team, you’re determined not to be starstruck in front of Pep Guardiola so you shake his hand with a big smile and wish his team luck. You turn to Roy Kent and his large hang engulfs yours. You whack on your big smile and offer the same affirmation as you did to Pep. On the pitch, you speak momentarily with the two captains and blow your whistle for go time. 

The trouble with Premier League football is just that, it's Premier League. Top flight. The best of the best. Keeping pace with these players was a job in itself, being in the action without impacting it or getting in the way was another, and being the all seeing, all knowing one was… yet another. Your mind (and body) are pulled from goalpost to goalpost, and it's really no surprise that the referee is often blamed for poor decisions. It's impossible to see every single thing that happens on the pitch. You're making good decisions so far, nothing out of the ordinary. Shortly before halftime, one of the Richmond defenders nearly dislocates his shoulder, going in hard on Haaland. It feels cruel to punish him, but it's part of the job, so you have to award Man City the free kick. From the other side of the pitch, you can hear Roy Kent over the sound of 60,000 people screaming the same thing. Haaland scores, of course. You hang back while the teams leave the pitch at halftime, but he's waiting for you in the tunnel. 

"The fuck did you give a free kick for?!"

"You shouldn't be collaring me out here, but to answer your question, the tackle was too much."

"Bullshit, it was a fair tackle and McAdoo would have hurt himself more than Haaland."

"Bullshit. Haaland has got about 5 inches and half a stone on McAdoo."

"5 inches is fucking nothing." He smirks.

"Really?” You arch an eyebrow at him, “did you seriously choose today to make a dick joke?" Utter disbelief is written all over your face, you shake your head and leave him cursing himself in the tunnel. Halftime was supposed to be a moment to catch your breath, not waste it on fighting with Roy Kent. You knew better than to get into it with managers. They saw the action from the sidelines and only had so much impact and influence. They took their lack of control out on officials all the time, it was supposed to be your job to stay calm and walk away, not engage. You ignore him on your way back to the pitch, he's just inside the exit of the tunnel and he could be there to apologise but he could very much be there to shout at you some more. The second half is just as eventful, Richmond are pushing hard for at least an equaliser, and Man City are loath to let them get it. When Obisanya has a shot on goal, which goes wide, City are pleading for a goal kick, but it's not. You award the corner, and Rojas sweeps a beautiful pass into Tartt, who sends the ball straight into the corner of the net. City scores again shortly afterwards, and you have to keep your head to make sure no one is deliberately trying to cause injury to anyone else. When Tartt goes down just outside the area, you request VAR footage to aid your decision before calling for a free kick. He scores, but it's an immediate offside and Roy Kent looks like he might explode. When play resumes, Colin Hughes gets a goal straight away. The game ends in a 2-2 draw, but the fans and teams both seem appeased. 

~~~~~

By the time the press conferences are over, Roy's had more than enough. He (respectfully) disagreed with your first free kick decision, but praised your other choices and overall declared you "No better or worse than the other pricks." The stadium is starting to clear, and the Man City bus has just left. Richmond players make plans to get food at Ola’s. When Roy sees two of the officials only just leaving, he sends the others ahead and makes his way down to the away team and visitors facilities.

“I hope you’re here to apologise.” She states dryly as he approaches.

“Yeah,” he looks bashful, “the dick joke was a dick move. Sorry.” She looks so serious, he’s not sure the apology is accepted until he spies a tiny smile pulling at the corner of her mouth.

“Was pretty funny. In alternative circumstances.”

“Noted. Congratulations anyway, noise from the press has all been good so far.”

“Nice to know my performance will be scrutinised forever while every mediocre male referee gets a pass for another week.”

“I’m sure your performance will only improve.” He inwardly groaned. She was going to laugh in his face. A dick joke and then godawful flirting? It was only what he deserved.

“Thanks for the vote of confidence. I’ll pass that direct quote on to The Sun.” 

“They’ll have a fucking field day. Richmond manager does shit job at flirting with the only female ref in the league? They’ll probably go and interview the poor woman I called my girlfriend when we were in year 6.”

“Flirting?” 

“No,” he scoffed, “no, course not. I didn’t mean that. Just a joke.” You cocked your head at him,

“Should we start again? Hi, you must be Roy Kent, I’m the first female referee in a Premier League game in 31 years. Well, actually it’s more like 135 years but the FA are trying to make themselves look marginally better.”

“Nice to meet you. Great job on the match, I respectfully, completely, disagree with that fucking free kick in the first half but other than that… no complaints.” He steps closer, you’re showered and changed but he can still smell the fresh grass mingling with the citrus and spice of the products you use. The combination is incredible - like summer and sunshine.

“I wouldn’t give a shit if you did have any complaints. Looking after your feelings isn’t in my job description.” You take in his height, broad shoulders and dark eyes and the long dormant crush rises to the surface immediately. You hadn’t taken much notice since you stopped having posters on your walls all those years ago, you’d only caught a few of his appearances as a pundit. He’s gorgeous, despite his surly appearance there’s an unmistakable twinkle of mischief in his eyes. Like he’s having fun with whatever this tension is that bubbles between you. And when he does smile at your commitment to fairness, it takes your breath away.

“Good to know the FA can rely on you staying neutral then.” He says quietly. Anticipation crackles in the air and fizzes in your stomach. You match his playfulness in your response, and step into his personal space,

“I don’t think there’s anything here that could sway me to any team in particular.” You smile, “not yet, anyway.” He waits until you’ve definitely left the room before he lets go of the breath he’s been holding. 

~~~~~

You’re dragged out by your friends to celebrate that night, even though your legs ache like you’ve done a 10km run. It wasn’t so much the running, you specifically trained for that, it’s the constant change in direction and the intensity of having your attention focused on so many things at once. If the FA thought they could throw you under a bus by giving you such a high profile game, you’re pleased you proved them wrong. The bar is crowded and noisy and you’ve already spotted a couple of the Richmond players - it was bound to happen in a relatively small town if they couldn’t be bothered to go right into the city. You’re at the bar ordering when you feel a hand on your hip and someone standing very closely behind you, a hand raises above you holding a credit card, and gestures to the barman. You’re about to lose your shit when you hear his voice rumble behind you,

“I’ve got these, mate.” He steps to your side when the person next to you moves, but his hand lingers, “I hope buying you a drink doesn’t make you question your bias?”

“Not at all, I’m afraid you’d have to work much harder than that.” He looks even better than he did a few hours ago, desire coils inside you and you instinctively draw your thighs together. It doesn’t help when he noticeably looks at your mouth, red lipstick is your ‘go to’ for a night out.

“I’ll bear that in mind.” Your drink is put on the bar next to you and you lick your lips before taking a sip. Neither of you has broken eye contact. You hear your name from a few feet away at the edge of the dance floor.

“Excuse me,” you raise your glass to him, “thank you for the drink.” 

“Bruv, is that the ref from today?” Isaac steps up beside him.

“Yeah, yeah that’s her.”

“She’s fit. You gonna ask her out?”

“Dunno Isaac, bit fucking old for that shit now.”

“Nah man, I just seen the way she looked at you-” he shakes Roy’s shoulder, “ooooh! Get it boy!” Roy rolls his eyes and smirks, watching you get dragged to the dance floor. He knows he must be old because he’s only been standing pitchside for the match and wouldn’t be caught dancing. You’ve run your legs off and then still managed to get them into that sequined mini skirt and up dancing. You can feel his eyes on you but you’d rather keep your back to him and try and carry on as casually as you can, if you turn around you know you won’t be able to stop staring. At least with your back to him, you can ignore him. Plus you know your arse looks great in this skirt, it was literally the sole reason for buying it in the first place. With all the running and training you do, you’re conscious of your strong thighs and hips but sometimes, just sometimes, they make you feel powerful. Eventually, you have to duck out of the dancing - mimicking a timeout to your friends. Roy is exactly where you left him at the bar and the alcohol makes you bold. You squeeze back in next to him and take a sip of his drink, yours is long finished. 

“Help yourself.” He smirks, his hand moving to your hip again, hidden by the darkness of the bar. You put a hand on his thigh and lean in slightly, taking some of the pressure off your feet. You’re close enough that he can see your breath hitch as his thumb finds a patch of exposed skin at the waistband of your skirt. 

“Do you want to get out of here?” You ask quickly, pushing your nerves down. He nods and finishes most of his drink, offering the last of it to you. Outside, word has gotten out that half a football team is at the bar and everyone is out for a glimpse of Jamie Tartt. You push past the photographers with Roy’s hand at the small of your back and into a nearby taxi.

~~~~~

“Please tell me there aren’t any fucking rules about this,” Roy mumbles somewhere in the valley between your breasts.

“I have no fucking clue, and I don’t really care right now.” You gasp, breathless as he leaves a mark on your soft skin.

“No? No danger of a red card?” You laugh and it’s musical and magical and neither of you have had this much fun in ages.

“No red cards for Roy Kent. Probably makes a fucking change.”

“Oi, cheeky. I never got that many.” He’s moved down again, unzipped your skirt and thrown it behind him somewhere.

“Fucking liar. They literally use you as an example of trouble players. Oh, fuck-” he bites your thigh.

“A good example or bad example?” His tongue sweeps over your clit and you nearly rocket off the bed until he hooks his arms over your thighs and pulls you back down to him.

“Oh god, bad example,” You feel him hum against you as he works you to your peak,

“Shame, I’m a changed man.” 

“Uhuh, ok,” you whisper, unable to think or speak any more coherently.

“How's your neutrality holding up?” Your hands tangle in his hair,

“Fuckkk, sooo good.”

“I’ll have to fucking try harder then,” he chuckles. You’re about to beg for mercy when he pushes two fingers into you and curls them to just the right angle that has you seeing stars. When he comes back up to kiss you, you rock your hips against his and he helps roll you both over, sitting up so he can still kiss you. His kisses are rough and needy, making you grind down against him. When you nip his neck, he pulls gently at your loose hair, whimpering and god, you’d do anything, anything to have him make that sound again. It only makes you rock harder against him, desperate to feel him inside you. When he finally pushes into you, your body clenches. You rise and fall onto him over and over, grateful for those powerful thighs he can’t keep his hands off. When he brings a hand between you both and circles your clit, you drop your head into the crook of his neck and bite down to stifle your moan. You feel his hips stutter under you as you both come, making you drop your own rhythm. You collapse in a tangle of limbs and sheets against him. 

“If you ask me again if you’ve swayed me yet, I’ll bite you.”

“You’ve already fucking done that,” he laughs. “Still need to try harder?” 

“Hmm, there’s no harm in trying again. You might win me over.”

“And over and over?” He kisses you again, so slowly it’s intoxicating. 

When you wake in the morning, it’s to the sound of his phone ringing. He tears himself away from where he’s curled behind you, the length of his legs against yours, his chest against your back and his arms around you.

“Yeah,” his voice is low and rough with sleep and it’s enough to have you roll over and press your body back into his. You can’t hear the other person, but he hangs up quickly and opens a link they’ve sent. It’s a picture on Twitter of the two of you leaving the bar together with his hand on your lower back with the headline “RED CARD FOR KENT?”

“Told you you were fucking trouble.” You laugh.

FIN

[cityof2morrow]

3t2: The Market Basket 001

Published: 1-14-2024 | Updated: N/A SUMMARY Build and buy mode items inspired by The Market Basket, a grocery store from Sims 3: Showtime (EA/Maxis, 2012). This is not an exact conversion. I’ve made several changes and added items based on my own gameplay needs.

DETAILS Requires all EPs/SPs. §100-1000 | Build/Buy Mode All files with “MESH” in their filenames are REQUIRED for all textures/recolors to show properly. This set requires the Repository Pack (Simmons, 2023) and BBNiche1Master (Buggybooz, 2012 – also included in the Repository Pack). You’ll also need one of the following: Shift Everything (Lamare, 2022) OR Object Freedom 1.02 (Fway, 2023).

WARNING: The DiGiMART Grocery Vendor has pulsing, flashing, and glowing light effects. If you are sensitive to visual noise, please download the LIGHT SENSITIVE version of this set. Only use ONE version in-game at a time.

The set includes matching recolors for Poster Pack 001 (Simmons, 2023). ITEMS Billboard (3070 poly, HIGH) Door Frame 001-002 (56-224 poly) Mini Signs 1-2 (92 poly) Single/Double Bollard (60-120 poly) Bulletin Boards 1-4 (18 poly) Shopping Cart (456 poly) Ceiling Lamp (56 poly) Columns (1-Story/2-Story/3-Story) (210-442 poly) Fences 001-002 (Orange/White) (180-315 poly) Garage (Deco) (36 poly) Grocery Display (82 poly) – holds up to 18 nonperishable items. HVAC Units 001-004 (Deco) (18-900 poly) Hanging/Standing Signs 001-002 (26 poly) Store Signs 001-002 (824 poly) Wall Signs 001-002 (18 poly) Rooms 001-002 (Frame/Roof) (672-978 poly) Building Trim (1-Tile/3-Tile) (4 poly) DigiMART Grocery Vendor (72-224 poly) – functional grocery kiosk DOWNLOAD (choose one) REGULAR VERSION (w light effects) from SFS | from MEGA LIGHT SENSITIVE VERSION (no light effects) from SFS | from MEGA SOME ASSEMBLY REQUIRED Be sure to place door frame 001 and 002 on the same tile. The building frame/roof objects fit 4x18 and 11x24 rooms respectively. Grab them on the front, left tile (see pic).

CREDITS Thanks: UV Mapping Tips (Frac, 2024 via SimCrafters Discord), Visual Noise Feedback (Despondenthottie, 2024). Sources: Any Color You Like (CuriousB, 2010), Bank (TruForm, 2015), BBNiche1Master (BuggyBooz, 2012), Beyno (Korn via BBFonts), EA/Maxis, Great Groceries Display (Balkopat, 2020), Imagery (Freepik, 2023; 2016; 2014; Macrovector, 2020), Lay Me Low – Sims 3t2 ‘Late Night’ Metropolitan Buildings – Part 5 (Misty_Fluff, 2013), 3t2 Market Ads (Amovitam, 2012), Offuturistic Infographic (Freepik), Solar Panel (Autumn Rose, 2020; EA/Maxis, 2020), Supermarket Concepts (Yaun, 2017; McDonald, 2017).

[grunklejam]

The Mystery Shack Mini Shack Standee - available to preorder now at Not S&P Approved!

[ PREORDER PERIOD ENDS ON JULY 1ST 2024 - ITEMS WILL THEN TAKE 2 WEEKS TO MANUFACTURE TO ORDER ]

A 6-component, single-sided 10cm-wide Standee of Gravity Falls' most iconic location, peppered with Easter eggs and presented in a luxury foil-stamped gift box, complete with a miniature linen-effect art print.

"It's no secret that The Shack is just about the most important place in Gravity Falls, as well as the most distinctive bit of triangular architecture in town (at least since Pertinent Pete's Pyramid of Pampered Poodles closed back in '87.) So I'm never too surprised that people want to take a physical manifestation of the place home with 'em. I decided to answer those prayers properly with this - the Mini Shack! Standing at 10cm tall and about 10cm wide, this might be a Mini Shack, but it's a huge Standee - with 6 different die-cut, matte-printed components involving the shack, the golf cart, a gnome, my wax statue's head and a pigeon called Nigel. Nobody else does this stuff as big and complex as we've done with our Mini Shack, and we think it's guaranteed to be the best multi-layered portrayal of Oregon A-Frame architecture on the market. According to Ford, at least. I just think it looks neat on my shelf. More power to ya, Sixer. To make it even sweeter than Mabel Juice, it also comes packed in a luxury black gift box, which is stamped with a gold foil shack design, and will be packed with a unique art print, too - which also acts as the assembly instructions. It's like flat-pack furniture, but it's actually a miniature version of a world-leading museum of curiosities! Wow!"

10cm x 10cm standee

6 individual components, 5 of which are fully printed uprights

Single-side full-detail components with matte finish

Loaded with Gravity Falls Easter Eggs

Responsibly sourced, 4mm thick Maple veneered MDF

Packed with a miniature linen-effect art print complete with assembly instructions

Black luxury gift box with foam protective insert and gold foil design lid

Exclusive to Not S&P Approved, designed and manufactured in the UK

Obviously, not actually intended for outside use

[soumyafwr]

Single-use Assemblies Market 

[mitigatedchaos]

Great Men Surf the Tides of History

Does the fate of humanity rest in the hands of great men? Or are there only the inevitable tides of history?

thesis: great man antithesis: tides of history synthesis: great man surfing the tides of history

– our own TracingWoodgrains, 𝕏, 2023

From far away in the sky, a pyramid is a gigantic formation, yet from up close on the ground, a pyramid is made of many slabs.

[ @arcticdementor ]

Musk matters. The millions of "MAGA" voters? Don't matter at all, and never will.

The foundation of what is large is what is small. What is an elite? In a political system, an elite is someone who is in a high position of leverage. Leverage is produced using a formation. Formations are not unified wholes; they are composed of smaller parts, and generate force through synchronized actions.

The work of management is to reduce the context of a production problem until it can be divided into jobs that can be done by labor. The work of labor is to reduce the context of a production problem until it can be done by capital.

The nature of the world is that it is thick and high-dimensionality, while the nature of models is that they are thin and low-dimensionality. Everywhere in the world, there is the friction of time, space, and information. A production problem is divided due to limits based on time, space, and information.

When a production problem is handled by one person, it is subject to one agency. It is in tight synchronization. When a production problem is divided among multiple people, it is subject to multiple agencies. It is in loose synchronization.

Due to the loose coupling of a formation composed of multiple people, as well as limits on obtaining and processing information, leverage is not fully consolidated in a single executive. Rather, there exist nodes of intermediate leverage, positions within system with greater power than an outsider, but less power than the person at the top.

Obviously, power isn't best thought of as binary. It also isn't best thought of as a simple scalar, although that's better than thinking it as a simple binary. In terms of simple models, power is best thought of as an edge in a weighted directed graph, an arrow from one person to another with a number attached. I may control the HOA and have the ability to set the color your house is allowed to be. You may own the neighboring fitness gym and control what hours I can access the pool. We each have a power relationship with each other. Which one of us is "more powerful"? That depends on conditions.

"There exist only elites and nothings" is an overcompression of the power graph. There are gradations of power. There are directions of power. Officers. Intellectuals. Journalists. People at different positions within the system, with different levels of talent, which allow them to exercise influence in different ways.

In a market, consumers having demand for a product does not cause that product to automatically come into existence. Instead, it creates an incentive for an entrepreneur to come by, assemble a company or team (a formation), and create that product. If no entrepreneur comes by to create the product, then the product is not created, and if no product is created, then consumers cannot obtain it.

Consumers exercise a low amount of agency in this process, though not zero. Demand is generally diffuse. Many people take a small action (evaluating and buying the product). Production is concentrated. A small number of people take much longer or more intense actions.

War is a form of cooperative competition which destroys factories and tramples fields. It shatters weaker structures by killing the men who compose them.

Capitalism is a form of cooperative competition that builds factories and plants fields. Men work hard and fight together to produce loaves of bread, companies are destroyed, and to a first approximation, no one dies.

Under democracy, men put together formations and compete. What are voters in this system if not the territory over which they fight?

Which matters, Elon Musk, or millions of Trump voters?

Elon Musk provides cash, respectability (to some elites, intermediate officers, or factions), and a communication advantage in the cyberspace layer.

Millions of Trump voters provide millions of Trump votes.

Obviously, both of these matter. Winning the election moves Trump to a position of higher leverage within the system. This provides more power to his political coalition.

What will he do with it? I think he wants to surf the tides of history. On January 20th, he will be back on the beach, and once again dive into the water. He may wipe out and tumble in the waves.

[balkanradfem]

So, I got a gifted bike recently, after my old one broke in half, and I thought, well finally, a functional bike that I won't have to fix every two weeks! And I was wrong about that. If anyone knows why are bikes Like That, please let me know. Nothing breaks down as much as bikes do, I am convinced.

Few weeks in, I went to pump the tyre, and the valve that lets the air into the tube, broke immediately, and let all the air out. I was unsure whether this can be fixed or not, and asked any person I could find if they knew a solution, or if I needed to replace the whole tube. I actually had a tube stashed away that I repaired a while ago, so I tried to replace it, but discovered I couldn't even dismantle the bike, I was missing some pliers! While devastated about that, I checked to see if I could take the valve from my repaired tube, and just replace that part, and maybe it would work – and it did. I had to walk to a gas station in order to get the tube filled again, but then it was working, and I was blessed with a few more weeks of excellent bike usage.

Yesterday, I went to fill the tyres again! And in the afternoon, I discovered one of the tyres was flat. I must have ran over a thorn while cycling back home, which is ironic. Every single time I pump the tyres some other shit goes down. But! I had the pliers this time. I found them on the second-hand market. So I was confident I could dismantle the back wheel, replace the tube, and the bike would be functional in like, an hour (it takes half hour to walk to the gas station).

After taking the pieces apart, I noticed there was a metal wire holding the wheel to the bike, and I couldn't pull it out. Bamboozled, I started dismantling the part that was holding the wire, not knowing what that was. The wire led to the front handles, so I assumed it was something stupid, like a brake, and I didn't use brake handles anyway, so I didn't care if that stopped working. The metal pieces the wire was connected to, fell apart, fell to the floor, and I had no idea how to put them back together. But I didn't care about it anyway, so I focused on replacing the tube, putting the wheel back together, and after a bit of struggle, I managed to do it.

Then I looked at the mess of the metal and plastic pieces on the floor, and got nervous. I had to put it back the way it was, or possibly the wheel wouldn't work correctly. I tried to fit the pieces to each other in numerous ways, and they would not fit neatly in any possible way, making me frustrated. It seemed impossible. But then I remembered, my long experience of playing nancy drew games and putting various senseless gears back together. I could do this. I was trained for this. These are just some parts that can and will somehow make sense if I mess around with them long enough. The stakes are higher because this is real life, but this is a puzzle for me! And I am a detective putting it together.

And with this brave thought, I managed to find a way to put the pieces into place. They wouldn't fit together outside the bike, but on the bike, I realized there were metal pieces that could technically accept the fallen-off black pieces, and after a few tries I found a way to make it all fit back together. I screwed it tightly, and then assembled the back wheel once again. There was just, this wire, with a little nut at the end? I didn't know where that went. I couldn't have known. I didn't see where it was before it all fell apart. So I ignored it, I just randomly put it somewhere and hoped the wheel would work. So what if I have no breaks on my handles, it was no issue.

So I walk to the gas station, nervous about my replacement tube, but the tube, does the job! It fills up easily, it's not letting air out, it's stiff and ready to carry me around. I am happy, I am pleased, I am proud, I sit on the bike, and immediately realize what the wire was. It was GEARS. My bike had no gears. I had to pedal it endlessly only for it to barely move. Absolutely mortifying, embarrassing, slow, frustrating and painful experience.

I got home feeling dreadful, and immediately started looking up how to put this thing back together properly, how to attach the damned wire, and found no bike that even resembled the setup that mine had. Bikes had lots of sprockets where the chain could go to change gears! Mine had only one sprocket. At this point I'm wondering how the damned thing even has gears if there's no sprockets, I start to doubt whether it actually had gears or I was just hallucinating this entire time. The internet gaslit me into doubting my own bike experience.  I asked a friend who helped me fix bikes in the past, and they said the little wire and nub were common and were supposed to fit neatly somewhere! Encouraged by this, I typed all possible terms I could find about bike gear types into DuckDuckGO (fuck u google) and after what felt like an hour, finally typed in 'internal gear hub', which is what my bike had! It looks like this: link

So I finally found some videos with instructions on how to put this thing back together, I only watched the part where they attach the wire, and I get back to the bike, to see if I put the pieces back correctly, and if I could insert the wire.

It turned out, I couldn't insert the wire, because for some damned reason, the wire is not long enough to be inserted now. Upset, I figured I probably put the pieces back wrong, and I needed to dismantle them again (no girl don't do that please) and I dissembled the entire wheel once again, in order to fix this. However when I unscrewed all of the parts, I found I couldn’t pull the wheel off the bike, because when the tube is filled, the brakes clutch it so tight it couldn't be pulled out! I was not about to dismantle the brakes, just to fix the gears, that was BULLSHIT, so I tried to pull the wheel just slightly off, just so I could work on the gear pieces. But then I had very poor access, and the gear pieces kept falling apart, not standing still, making me frustrated and upset. In my frustration, I pulled the tyre as strong as I could to yank it off the bike, and the smallest, plastic piece of gear got stuck in that motion and snapped. I BROKE A PIECE OF IT. Now absolutely devastated, I put the bike away, and decided I couldn't keep fixing it with a broken piece, that was a recipe for disaster.

I would superglue that shit back together.

I went back to my room, grabbed a little tube of superglue, immediately got glue on both my hands and legs somehow, and fiddled with the little part until it was somewhat in one piece (and I say this generously, it did NOT look like what it should look like). I checked the clock and it was 11PM which meant I as fixing the bike for 6 hours and it was way past my bedtime. Before I fell asleep, I watched the video on how to fix the wire once more, and this time I caught the line 'put the gears on middle' which, I haven't done, and that's why the damned wire was too short, it didn't need dismantling, I just needed to put the gears on 4 and then I'd be able to attach them. With this thought in mind, I fell asleep.

I woke up 5am sharp and immediately I'm like "can't sleep while bike doesn't work" and I grab the superglued piece and immediately storm off to the bicycle room to work on the bike. I once again, struggle to put the pieces back together, and in all fairness, the superglued piece holds down like it should, and I'm feeling, okay, maybe this can be done. I put the gears in the middle and the wire immediately falls into place easily, FINALLY. Then I find out that while doing all this, I somehow managed to pull the chain over the metal part holding the wheel and it couldn't be pulled back onto the wheel. It's just one thing after the other. I'm going to die fixing this bike, I think to myself, as I undo the wheel ONCE AGAIN, manage to get the chain in correct position, put it on the bike, and finally attach the whole thing back like it should have been attached.

If I had the information about how to undo that wire before trying to fix it, this entire fix would have been extremely easy, I wouldn't have to dismantle the pieces even one time (they should NOT be dismantled in the first place, just wire detached from it), it would be a breeze, but there was literally no way for me to know this. The only way for me to learn about this was for me to dismantle this multiple times and painstakingly put it back together. I could do it in my sleep now, I have this shit down, I can fix any damned wire gear problem, I can superglue it if it breaks.

I drag the bike outside. And it works. The bike freaking works. Gears and all. Superglue held out. Extremely relieved and grateful, I finally get to go to my garden and pick up food for the day. I got green beans! And kale, so much kale. I'm going to have a green bean salad, the easiest thing a person can make with green beans. And maybe later some kale chips.

In conclusion, whoever made the internal gear hub setup on bikes is NOT an ally and I want them to get cancelled for my suffering. Whoever made the superglue has helped me today, even though I don't like glue in general, this one time, it was a friend, it helped me in my time of need, and also that other time when I learned to fix my shoes and glue them back together. Thank you superglue, thank you friend who encouraged me to fix this, thank you bike for working, thank you repaired tube for being a gem, thank you garden for growing green beans for me, and fuck you internal gear hub I never want to see you again (though I know your shit now and you can't defy me anymore).