#cadmium from food

[nationallawreview]

FDA Launches Study on the Role of Seafood Consumption in Child Development

FDA Launches Study on the Role of Seafood Consumption in Child Development

On October 11, the FDA announced the launch of an independent study, “The Role of Seafood in Child Growth and Development,” by the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) on the state of scientific evidence in nutrition and toxicology associations between seafood consumption and child growth and development. The purpose of the study is to obtain the most up-to-date…

[headspace-hotel]

The knowledge of some common plants

Since many people don't know most of the plants around them, this is information on some plants that are commonly seen in many places throughout the world

This is Lamium purpureum, also called Purple Deadnettle.

It's called deadnettle because it looks like a nettle but it doesn't sting you

This plant is a winter annual—it grows its leaves in the fall, lasts through the winter, and blooms and dies in the spring

Its pollen is reddish orange. If you see bees with their heads stained reddish orange, it is likely because they have visited Purple Deadnettle

This is Trifolium repens, white clover

It is a legume (belongs to the bean family) and fixes nitrogen using symbiosis with bacteria that live in little nodules on its roots, fertilizing the soil

It is a good companion plant for the other members of a lawn or garden since it is tough, adaptable, and improves soil quality. According to my professor it used to be in lawn mixes, until chemical companies wanted to sell a new herbicide that would kill broadleaved plants and spare grass, and it was slandered as a weed :(

It is native only to Europe and Central Asia, but in the lawns they are doing more good than harm most places

Honeybees love to visit clover

Four-leaf clovers are said to be lucky

This is Achillea millefolium, Common Yarrow

It has had a relationship with humans since Neanderthals were around, at least 60,000 years, since Neanderthals have been found buried with Yarrow

Its leaves have been used to stop bleeding throughout history, and its scientific name comes from how Achilles was said to have used Yarrow to stop the blood from the wounds of his soldiers. A leaf rolled into a ball has been used to stop nosebleeds

It is a native species all throughout Eurasia and North America

This is Cichorium intybus, known as Chicory

The leaves look a lot like dandelion leaves, until in mid-spring when it begins growing a woody green stem straight up into the air

Like many other weeds, it has a symbiotic relationship with humans, existing in a mix of domesticated or partially domesticated and wild populations

It is native to Eurasia, but widespread in North America on roadsides and disturbed places, where it descended from cultivated plants

Its root contains large amounts of inulin, which is used as a sweetener and fiber supplement (if you look at the ingredients on the granola bars that have extra fiber, they usually are partly made of chicory root) and has also been used as a coffee substitute

A large variety of bees like to feed upon it

This is Phytolacca americana, known as Pokeweed

It is easily identified by its huge leaves and its waxy, bright magenta stem

It can grow more than nine feet tall from a sprout in a single summer!

If you squish the berries, the juice inside is a shocking magenta that is so bright it almost burns your eyes. For this reason many Native American people used it for pink and purple dye.

It is a heavy metal hyperaccumulator, particularly good for removing cadmium from the soil

All parts of the plant are poisonous and will make you very sick if you eat them, however if the leaves are picked when very young and boiled 3 times, changing out the water each time, they can be eaten, and this is a traditional food in the rural American Southeast, but I don't want to chance it

British people have introduced it as a pretty, exotic ornamental plant. I think that is very funny considering that here it is a weed associated with places where poor people live, but maybe they're right and I need to look closer to see the beauty.

If you see magenta stains in bird poop it is because they ate pokeweed berries- birds can safely eat the berries whereas humans cannot

This is Plantago lanceolata, Ribwort Plantain

It grows in heavily disturbed soils, in fact it is considered an indicator of agricultural activity. It is successful in the poorest, heaviest and most compacted soil.

The leaves, seeds, and flower heads are said to be edible but the leaves are really stringy unless they are very young. Of course, it is important to be careful when eating wild plants, and make sure you have identified the plant correctly and the soil is not contaminated

I have also heard the strings in the leaves can be extracted and used for textile purposes

and that's some common plants you might often see throughout the world

[zvaigzdelasas]

US rice exports to Haiti, which account for the bulk of supplies of the country’s key food staple, contain unhealthy levels of arsenic and cadmium, heavy metals that can increase risks of cancer and heart disease, according to a recent study by the University of Michigan.

Haiti is among America’s top buyers of rice, alongside Mexico and Japan, and cheap imports are more affordable than local options in the Caribbean nation, the poorest state in the western hemisphere.

According to the study, average arsenic and cadmium concentrations were nearly twice as high in imported rice compared to the Haitian-grown product, with some imported samples exceeding international limits.

Nearly all imported rice samples exceeded the US Food and Drug Administration’s recommendation for children’s consumption. [...]

The study, which attributed the dominance of imported rice to lower import tariffs and long-term contracts signed during [US-supported] political turmoil in the late 1980s and 1990s, said Haiti imports nearly 90 per cent of its rice, almost exclusively from the US.[...]

When researchers ran the study in 2020, they found that Haitians on average consumed 85kg of rice per year, compared to 12kg in the US

23 Feb 24

[tinydefector]

Cybertronian Drinks and Food

So wanted to try and make a little interactive thing for y'all to send in as request. I'm sure you guys have seen this piece I've made for some of the Energon and Minerals the Transformers consume. Send in to my ask box

So I'm giving you guys the power to send in different things from this list to be made into energon drink art. Or edibles of a sort.

Energon and Fuels

Dark Energon

Synthetic Energon

Tox-En

Red Energon

engex

High grade

Energon wine

Energon Z

Natural Energon

Pure energon

Biofuel

super energon

Energon rod

EnerGULP

Diesel

unleaded petrol

95-octane

E10

E85 - flex-fuel

Jet A and Jet A1 Jet B

JET-A, JP5, JP8

LH2/LOX

RP-1/LOX

kerosene

LSFO

Oil

Minerals, Crystal's and Chemicals    

Petroleum

Hydrogen

Copper

Aluminium

Titanium

Lead

Tin

Nickel

Gold

Zinc

Magnesium

Cobalt

Tungsten

Platinum

Chromium

Silver

Manganese

Sodium

Beryllium

Vanadium

Molybdenum

Palladium

Uranium

Zirconium

Bismuth

Cadmium

Mercury

Hafnium

Lanthanum

Niobium

Rhodium

Scandium

Tantalum

Yttrium

Cerium

Plutonium

Lithium

Neptunium

Meitnerium

Seaborgium

Dubnium

Francium

Gallium

Indium

Potassium

Rubidium

Strontium

Thallium

Barium

Calcium

Cesium

Calcite

Pyrite

Copper

Quartz

Benitoite

Diamond

Fluorite

Galena

Garnet

Gold

Oxide

Sulfides

Gypsum

Halite

Phosphates

Sulfates

Carbonates

Iron

__________

Let me know if you would like to be added to tag list (tagged for every fic)

Taglist

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[theambitiouswoman]

Hormone disrupters are chemicals 🧪 that interfere with your body’s endocrine system, which regulates hormones. They can be found in a lot of every day products like:

Plastic bottles and food containers

Pesticides in agriculture

Cleaning supplies

Chemicals used for clothing

Personal care products like lotions, shampoos & makeup

❌ These are hormone disrupters found in common every day products that you should stay away from ❌

- Bisphenol A (BPA) (plastics and can liners)

- Phthalates (personal care products, fragrances, flexible plastics)

- Parabens (makeup & personal care products)

- Triclosan (antibacterial soaps and cleaning products)

- Polychlorinated Biphenyls (older electrical equipment and industrial products)

- Flame Retardants (furniture, textiles, electronics)

- Pesticides (agriculture)

- Perfluorinated Chemicals (stain resistant treatments, non-stick cookware)

- Dioxins (industrial processes, combustion byproducts)

- Lead (older paints, pipes)

- Dye chemicals (textiles and clothing)

- Water repellents (outdoor clothing, upholstery)

- Stain repellents (carpets, fabrics)

- Formaldehyde (wrinkle free and anti-shrink treatments for fabric)

- Mercury (fish, some thermometers, dental amalgams)

- Cadmium (batteries, some fertilizers)

- Atrazine (herbicides)

- Glyphosate (weed killers)

- Perchlorate (rocket fuel, fireworks, fertilizers)

- Arsenic (contaminated water, pesticides)

- Styrene (plastics, rubber, insulation materials)

- Phosphates (detergents, fertilizers)

- Nonylphenol ethoxylates (industrial detergents, cleaners)

- Organotins (PVC plastics, marine antifouling paints)

- Benzophenone (sunscreens, plastics)

- Octinoxate (sunscreens, makeup)

- 4 Methylbenzylidene camphor (sunscreens, makeup)

‼️ Exposure to these can lead to health issues like reproductive problems, developmental issues and cancer.

🌿 Needless to say, that in order to protect our hormones 🫶 it’s important to recognize these risks and take measures to reduce our exposure them.

[intersectionalpraxis]

"According to the study, average arsenic and cadmium concentrations were nearly twice as high in imported rice compared to Haitian-grown product, with some imported samples exceeding international limits."

"Nearly all imported rice samples exceeded the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's recommendation for children's consumption. The study did not evaluate levels of toxins in other importing countries."

"The study, which attributed the dominance of imported rice to lower import tariffs and long-term contracts signed during political turmoil in the late 1980s and 1990s, said Haiti imports nearly 90% of its rice, almost exclusively from the U.S."

"Former U.S. President Bill Clinton, who helped push subsidies of U.S. rice to Haiti, later called the move a "mistake" saying it had battered local production capacity."

"The report called for an ethical investigation into U.S. rice exporters, measures to strengthen Haiti's agricultural sector and flagged a "dire need" to boost the country's food safety regulations."

"A violent conflict between heavily armed gangs has been spreading to Haitian farmlands, further pushing up food prices. The United Nations estimates over 300,000 have fled their homes and that some 40% of the population is going hungry."

[luveline]

jade, happy new year! id love to request a cute little lunalovegood!reader with sirius. maybe he catches r painting something for him or making him a necklace or something crafty like that

thank you!! sorry this request took some time, I hope you like it | fem!reader ♥︎ 1k

You aren't usually so secretive about your artwork. You aren't especially forward with it either, but when Sirius asks to see what you're working on, whether it be a thumbnail in your sketchbook or the rendering of a huge canvas, you oblige him with one of your funny smiles. 

This one is a different story, evidently. You won't let him see it, citing that it doesn't look perfect yet. 

"My darling," he says, seriously and joking at once, "when has that ever mattered?" To you, between us. 

You tap your nose and duck in for a kiss. Afterward he realises he's been duped, distracted by your bright and shiny lip gloss, your sparkling irises full of promise. He doesn't see the painting for weeks, looking up in the living room to watch your back move as he always does and finding you've closed the door. 

He sits on the sofa with his guitar some nights plucking away at the strings, and other nights he sort of just lies there. He knows how important hobbies are, doesn't deny you your earthly pleasures, but he misses the days where you'd allow him your company. He'd sit on the floor of your small studio for hours if you'd let him, he misses you that much. 

He comes home one night a little earlier than usual, guitar case heavy on his spine, a bag of food shopping in hand. He's gonna make something nice, and he's gonna pry you away from your painting with a crowbar if necessary, and he's going to be honest. I love you and support you but I can't keep on missing you like this, sweet thing. I know your paintings are important to you but I am too, and I need you to make more time for me. 

He has it rehearsed. 

You're humming in the studio (which had been his office, and still houses the majority of his instruments), head bobbing every so slightly. Your hair glows in the afternoon sun, your skin shines. Your shoulders — Sirius swallows. Everytime he sees the back of you he wants to envelope you in a steel-armed hug. To dip his face into the curve of your neck, to breathe in the spritz of your dainty perfume, to fill his hands with your soft abdomen. 

You've left the door open, and when you move to the left to put down your palette on the brown desk he'd gotten for you specifically for moments like this when you need more hands and he's not around, he can see the entirety of your canvas, corner to corner, each lick of oil paint muddied and slick. 

He knows this painting is almost done. There's no first coat of sepia to be seen, no sketchy lines, only full-fleshed shapes and colours. 

It's a painting of him. He admits to thinking he's handsome, but you've made him beautiful. You've painted him in one of his better moments, a real smile playing on otherwise smirking lips, his face 3/4ths  eyelashes thick and pointed leftward, off the canvas. He would guess that he's looking at you. He's never looked at anyone else like that. 

It has emotion like a flood welling inside him, creeping slowly up and up from the core of his aching stomach to his lips. He can't stop himself. 

"Sweetheart," he says, clearing his throat as subtly as he can, "my girl. Why didn't you tell me?"

You're predictable even now, you don't jump in startled shock, or try to close the door between you. You finish squeezing out a blob of cadmium yellow paint and wipe the mouth of the bottle against your palette, paint covered fingers screwing on the cap with a slow precision. He loves the way you move, is enchanted as you lay down the tube of paint and meet his eyes. 

"It's a surprise, Siri. If I tell you, that makes it not a surprise." You smile at him, lifting your chin, and Sirius has no choice but to use the word adorable. You look adorable, eyes shiny and smile soft. "Surprise, sweetheart." 

"It's your best work," he says honestly. 

"I know." You take up your paintbrush, dip it into the small blob of yellow, and bend to start painting again. 

He remembers what he'd wanted to talk to you about and slides his guitar case carefully off of his back, hand extended as he approaches you, placing his warm palm against the small of your back. 

His lips part, the beginning of his speech on the end of his tongue, when you bounce backward and smile. 

"Done," you say. 

He squints at the bottom of the canvas, where you've signed your name over his painted heart. It's an astute place to put it. 

"How much paint do you have on you, my darling?" he asks. 

You flare your lashes and peel out of the cream, paint-dappled apron you'd been wearing. You pour a little of white spirit in your hands to his displeasure and wipe them together, drying the resulting oil on your apron. He wonders how you've survived this long, and wants to harp about spontaneous combustion, but you're weaving your arms around his waist with a heaving sigh, your pert smile, your lovely nose, rubbing into his front indulgently. 

He sighs, satisfied, and kisses your forehead. His arms settle around you familiarly, forearm straight across your shoulders. In his head, he swears he can feel the knot there from your hunched painting stature. He promises to investigate later. 

"I'm so glad you like it," you say. 

"I haven't told you I like it," Sirius says quietly, eyes closed in the bliss of being near you. 

"Oh, sorry," you mumble, not too sorry after all, "just thought, from the hug…" 

You're thinking correctly. Of course you'd read him like that. You don't need words to know how he's feeling, you never have. 

"I love it. Your talent never fails to impress me," he says. 

You peel away from his chest, take his clean face into your sullied palms, and cradle him like water in your hands, heels touching under his chin. Your fingertips dance over his stubble, and you meet his eyes and beam. 

"I love when you make that face," you say. 

He looks exactly like the painting. Stupidly in love. 

[queen-of-writing-bad-things]

Henry Danger Reader Insert | Captain Man x Reader: SEASON 1

Episode 9: Birthday Girl Down

~Henry's house~

Henry, Charlotte, Jasper and one of their other friends from school were all sat on Henry's couch, studying the periodic table.

"Okay..." Charlotte showed her PearPad to Jasper, which had a 'B' symbol on it.

"Boron, okay....atomic number five, category metalloid." He recalled, feeling proud that his chemistry revision was finally sinking in.

"Doesn't your grandfather have metalloids?" Henry looked at Charlotte, thinking that it was a disease.

"Yeah, he can't sit down." She replied without looking up from her tablet. This time, it was Jasper's turn to test Henry, showing him a 'Cd' symbol.

"Canadium, a person from Canada...mium. Personality, Canadian-ish." He guessed incorrectly.

"It's cadmium. Atomic number 48. Category, transition metal." Charlotte answered for him, being right, of course, because it was Charlotte.

"Ohhhh, and once again Charlotte gets the answer right." They all started to clap sarcastically, laughing with each other.

"Yeah..too bad I don't know the atomic number for idiot boys." She sassed, not letting them get her down. They all shouted again at her burn, as she put her PearPad back in her bag.

"So, hey, what are we all doing Saturday night?" Henry asked his friends. They all looked around awkwardly, giving him the suspicion that they knew something he didn't.

"You guys wanna play miniature golf?" He asked enthusiastically.

"No." Was the answer he got from all of them.

"You wanna play enormous golf?" He said as a joke, but they still gave no answer.

"Hello?" He looked at them, wondering why they were so quiet.

"He's gonna find out." Charlotte sighed to Jasper.

"Well, I'm not telling him." He told her, putting his hands in the air.

"What? Come on, no secrets. Flashback?" Henry was eager to know what was going on, so he looked to the boy sat quietly on the end of the sofa.

"Why you asking me? This is the first time I've even been invited to your house." He said as an excuse.

"Ugh, alright." Charlotte gave in when Henry looked at her, so she returned to her seat next to him.

"Henry... We're all going to Debbie Putch's birthday party." She revealed to the blond boy, making him look around in confusion, only to see them nod in confirmation.

"But... I didn't get an invitation." He said, making them feel awkward.

"Is that a big surprise?" Jasper asked his best friend, who looked back at him, offended.

"You know why," Flashback added. Henry got up from his seat in frustration.

"It's not fair!" He said to his friends.

"You almost killed her." Jasper reminded him.

"No, I didn't." Henry insisted as the doorbell rang.

"Who's here?" Flashback asked.

"Our food," Henry told him in an annoyed tone and he went to see the delivery guy.

"Sushi Dushi!" The man said in a cheery voice, holding out a large platter of sushi to Henry.

"Here's my mom's credit card." He gave the piece of plastic to the guy and accepted the food from him. 

"Don't be mad." Charlotte tried to calm him down, as he brought it over to the coffee table.

"I am mad." He snapped back.

"Well, you can't blame Debbie," Jasper told him.

"I blame Debbie. I blame her parents and I blame anyone else who thinks it was my fault." Henry exclaimed in anger.

"Hey." The sushi guy interrupted.

"Yeah?" 

"What are you so ticked off about?" The dude asked.

"Why do you wanna know?" They all looked at him with weirded-out expressions.

"Hey man, just because I deliver sushi, doesn't mean I don't have curiosities." The man whined back.

"Tell him what happened." Charlotte looked to her friend.

"No, I've already told the story, like, a thousand times." Henry didn't want to remember that unfortunate night.

"Flashback? Tell the guy how Henry almost killed Debbie." Jasper asked the boy on his right.

'All right. It all went down at Debbie's last birthday party. And it almost was her last." He smirked and leaned forward, making the delivery man sit down in amazement.

"Tell me more."

"Okay, try to visualise this. Debbie was turning 13 years old, and she was getting everything ready for her party, way up on the roof of her parent's condo." 

~Flashback~

"It looked like it was going to be the best birthday party ever."

"Mom, this is going to be the best birthday party ever," Debbie said to her mom in excitement.

"It will be if we get everything ready." Her mom put her hands on her daughter's arms.

"Excuse me, I'd like to get some pics of the kids helping me set up?" She said, grabbing the party photographer, who quickly started taking photos of everyone on the roof.

"Okay, all the balloons have been blown up. What else can we do?" Charlotte came over to her and reported how everything was going.

"Uh... let's see. Oooh, why don't you and the boys check out the ball machine and make sure it works?" She suggested, pointing at the machine by the doors.

"Sure. You guys, let's make sure this ball thing works!" Charlotte yelled to Jasper and Oliver Pook. They grabbed a bat and Charlotte put a ball into the tube.

"Set the ball speed nice and slow. Level two." Jasper told her, not wanting the ball to injure someone. The machine fired, but Oliver didn't even swing. Sydney clapped excitedly though.

"Anyone see where it went?" Oliver said. Jasper ran over to the edge of the roof snd saw the ball hit a car, which then hit another car.

"You hit that Prius!" He yelled in horror, watching the accident unfold. The door opened and in came Henry, dragging a whiny Piper behind him.

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late." He greeted the rooftop.

"I wanna go to the Pear store!" Piper screamed at her brother, who turned to Debbie.

"Later. This is my little sister, Piper." He introduced them.

"Oh, hi, Piper." The teen girl smiled at her, but Piper just pulled a face at her.

"Sorry I brought her, but I had to babysit tonight." He explained to Debbie.

"Like I wanna be here?" His sister retorted at him. 

"Aw, I'm sure you'll have a--" Debbie's mom was interrupted as Piper shoved her phone into her face.

"Look at my phone!" 

"The screen's broken." Debbie immediately noticed.

"No kidding, girl." Piper said sarcastically.

"Hey Debbie, want to come hit a ball?" Jasper butted in and the birthday girl happily accepted. Mrs Putch called Charlotte to help her with the gift bags, leaving Henry with his sister.

"Henry, go work the ball machine," Charlotte told him.

"Okay, I'm just going to grab a chip." Henry agreed as Piper struggled with her phone.

"I can't read my stupid screen!" She yelled, flicking the cracked screen and squinting at it.

"Okay, get ready, birthday girl." Jasper smiled at Debbie, who was preparing to swing the bat in her hand.

"Do it, Henry." The curly-haired boy called to his friend, who ran back to the ball machine.

"All right, here it comes!" He pressed the button and the ball flew it at lightning speed.

"And that's when things went real bad for Debbie." The ball hit Debbie square in her chest, forcing her backwards and over the edge of the roof. Screaming on the way down, she landed on a dog, as her friends and mother ran to the ledge. They looked down and saw Debbie groaning in pain, a dog walker looking up at them in horror and confusion.

"Stop taking pictures and call 9-1-1!" Mrs Putch yelled at the photography, who quickly ran off. She looked at Henry.

"How did this happen?" She asked him in a shrill voice.

"Henry made the ball go at like, 90 miles an hour." Jasper pointed at the ball machine.

"What...me?" Henry looked flabbergasted at the accusations.

"Henry, you set the ball speed to 11." The distraught mother said to him after checking the machine.

"No, I didn't!" The blond boy insisted.

"Henry, why would you do that?" Oliver Pook blamed him.

"Charlotte?" Henry looked to his friend for support.

"I set it to two." She explained, which didn't help Henry's case.

"And you were the only one standing near the machine," Sydney added. 

"But I..." Henry stuttered, not knowing what to say.

"Security!" Debbie's mother called the guards, wanting the teen gone.

"I didn't do anything!" Was all Henry could protest, as two men came and dragged him out of the building, kicking and screaming.

~End of flashback~

"And then ol' Henry got kicked out of the party before it ever got started." Flashback finished the story for the Sushi Dushi guy, who had now sat down at the coffee table and was eating with the kids.

"'Cause Henry's the one who set the ball machine to 11. Amen." Flashback looked back down to his sushi, as Henry protested.

"It wasn't me." He tried to tell them.

"He says it was you." The delivery man said.

"Are you meant to be eating our sushi?" Henry looked at him confused.

"No, I'm not supposed to be." The dude just shrugged with his mouth full.

"Henry, you might feel better if you just admit that you did it," Jasper said to the boy on his left. Henry grabbed his chopsticks and snapped them in half with a scowl on his face.

"You guys see the rage in this kid?" Jasper said to the group.

"Where I come from, a man who knocks a pretty girl off a roof, on her birthday, is no man." The sushi man said, which made Henry feel even worse.

"Will you tell these guys that I didn't set the machine to 11?" He tried to get Charlotte on his side.

"I can't." She told him.

"Why not?"

"'Cause, you did it." Charlotte looked at the sushi guy, so Henry broke her chopsticks too.

~The Man Cave~

Henry stumbled from the elevator, seeing Ray at the back of the Man Cave and (y/n) sat on the couch. 

"Hey, you called me?" The boy looked at his boss.

"Yeah, check out what's in that bin." Ray pointed to a black box on top of a table near the elevator.

"Okay." Henry opened the lid and saw that the box was full of underwear, shirts, pants, but mainly underwear. 

"What is..." Henry looked at him in disgust, as (y/n) looked over from where she was sat.

"I want you to do my laundry." The man said in a pleasant voice, making Henry immediately drop the underwear back in the bin. Okay, he was gonna have to bleach his fingers after this. 

"Ew, no!" 

"Raymond! Why would you do that to him?" (y/n) threw her head back in annoyance. Suddenly, a beeping noise went off, only Henry had never heard it before.

"What does that sound mean?" The boy asked his boss.

"That we have a delivery," Ray told him, as a pizza box came down the tube.

"Huh." Ray went to pick up the food, as (y/n) came over, her curiosity getting the better of her.

"Did you order a pizza?" She asked Henry, knowing that Ray hadn't as they had been together all morning and she'd had rather a heavy lunch so the fact that they now had unknown food deliveries was odd. 

"No." Henry denied. Opening the box, Ray smiled at the two and started to read the note written on the box.

"Hey, get this. "Dear Captain Man, our daughter, Debbie, is having her birthday party Saturday night."" Henry groaned at the mention of the party, feeling like it was following him everywhere he went. 

"Oh no, Debbie?" He complained, groaning at the thought of the girl and how she and her parents hated his guts. 

"Shhh. "We're inviting some of Debbie's favourite celebrities, including you and Miss Swellview." Ohhhh, she's so hot." Ray squealed looking at his friends, but he failed to see how dejected (y/n) looked at the mention of the beauty queen. The thought of Ray spending an entire evening with the beautiful woman made her feel small and inferior, like she was at the bottom of the pile, the last person he'd ever want to go out with since he had models and pageant wives throwing themselves at his feet. 

"Will you please stop reading the box?" Henry asked him, not wanting to hear more about Debbie, or see the woman next to him sad.

"No. So, if you'll agree to come to Debbie's party, you may cash the enclosed check for twelve thousand dollars. Whoa, look at this check!" He said holding it out, but (y/n) was too upset to care about the injection of cash into their bank account, so she didn't share his happiness nor did she give the cheque much attention. 

"It has pizza grease on it." She said in a monotone voice.

"I know." Ray smiled back, not realising she was in a bad mood.

"Fine, go to her party with every other kid in my class except me," Henry whined.

"Why aren't you invited?" (y/n) put her hand on his shoulder.

"'Cause I was at Debbie's birthday party last year and everyone thinks I shot her in the face with a rubber ball and knocked her off the roof. Onto a dog." He explained and the young woman looked at him with sympathy whilst Ray munched on a pizza slice.

"Oh, yeah. I remember hearing about that on the news. You did that?" Ray asked him, his best friend frowning at how happy he seemed.

"No! Everyone just thinks it was me." He insisted on his innocence.

"Henry, it's just me, (y/n) and you here." Ray walked towards the kid.

"So?" The boy asked confused.

"Why'd you shoot Debbie in the face?" Ray wanted to know, putting the pizza in his mouth. (y/n) and Henry groaned together.

"I didn't. Man, even you don't believe me." Henry couldn't believe that his boss didn't think he was telling the truth, the guy counted on him in life or death situations.

"I believe you." (y/n) told him, which made him feel slightly better.

"Do you want me to believe you?" Ray asked the boy.

"Yeah," Henry replied.

"Can I feel your head with my truth fingers?" The man questioned him.

"Sure you can-- feel my what with your what?" The teen looked extremely weirded out.

"Does this mean I have to go in the back and get everything ready?" (y/n) looked at Ray in annoyance.

"Yeah." He smiled at her, but she just glared back. He was really ticking her off today.

~

Having set the machine up, (y/n) motioned for Henry to sit down in the red spongy chair, as Ray pulled on the special gloves.

"Is this gonna be weird?" Henry asked as the woman pressed a few settings on the screen.

"No," Ray said from behind him.

"Yes, it is." (y/n) deadpanned.

"No, it's not," Ray said in an unusually stern tone, at which (y/n) tutted. Henry could feel the tension between them, and it wasn't comfortable to sit in-between.

"Okay." Ray lifted up his gloved hands, the fingertips covered in glowing censors. He moved past (y/n) without a word.

"Now, I'm going to rub my finger nodules all over your head and face," Ray said, as the woman did some final checks.

"So, what would be weird to you?" She said with an irritated voice, but the man just ignored her. Henry decided that he hated it when they fought. He wanted them to go back to their silly, oblivious selves who were hopelessly in love with each other, even if they'd never admit it to themselves, let alone each other.

"See, these blinky things read human brainwaves, like a lie detector but way more sophisticated," Ray explained how it worked to Henry.

"Whatever, just do it." Henry settled back into his chair, ready for the test to begin.

"All right, we're ready." (y/n) pressed the go button and Ray placed his hands on Henry's head, rubbing them over his scalp.

"Think about Debbie's birthday party," Ray said, working his fingers on the boy's head.

"Debbie's birthday party," Henry repeated slowly, his brainwaves picking up on the machine.

"One year ago." Ray carried on.

"One year ago," Henry repeated.

"When a ball knocked her off the roof." (y/n) scanned his results, and so far everything was normal.

"His heart rate is spiking." She reported.

"Off the roof." 

"Because you changed the ball speed from 2 to 11." Ray looked at his friend's back. He hated it when they weren't on good terms, even though he didn't know why she was so upset.

"No, I did not," Henry said truthfully. 

"Why do you tell lies?" Ray rubbed his hands faster over the teen's hair.

"I don't tell lies." Henry insisted.

"Brainwaves say he's telling the truth." (y/n) said over her shoulder.

"Do you feel pretty when you tell lies?" Ray asked him, and the woman furrowed her eyebrows at his odd question, but she remained quiet.

"You said this wouldn't get weird." Henry's humour wasn't prohibited by the machine, and Ray quickly ended the test, leaning over (y/n)'s shoulder to see the results.

"I believe you." He said to Henry.

"Really?" The boy asked with a joyful voice.

"Yeah." His boss smiled.

"Told you he was telling the truth." (y/n) piped up, but Ray still wasn't talking to her. He didn't want to be on the receiving end of her sharp tongue, so he thought it would be best to just say nothing.

"But that doesn't mean everyone will." Ray continued.

"So you felt my face for nothing," Henry complained.

"No. Now, we're going to find out the truth." (y/n) said, walking over to them after turning off the machine.

"But you both know already that I didn't do it," Henry replied.

"Yeah, but to know the full truth we've got to find out who did do it. That's the key slice of truth we need to complete the entire truth pie." Ray said, looking thoughtful.

"Ooooh, can we get some actual pie?" Henry asked, smiling up at his boss.

"I like the way you think about pie." Ray pointed a finger at him, as (y/n) felt her annoyance building again. Man, she was having just one of those days.

"Focus." She slapped both of them on the shoulder, bringing them back onto the problem at hand.

"So, how do we find out who really did change the ball speed from 2 to 11?" Henry looked at them both, the adults thinking over the situation.

"Easy. We're gonna dress up like foreign filmmakers and interview everyone on that roof when Debbie's face got smacked by the ball."

"And then we eat pie," Henry commented.

And then we eat pie." Ray nodded with him.

"Wow, Holmes, how do you come up with these brilliant plans?" (y/n) said in passing, as she walked away from the two and went through the sprocket, needing the comfort of her bed.

"What's up with her?" Ray looked at Henry with a perplexed face.

"Dude, you're so stupid." Henry just looked at him in disbelief.

~The next day, Swellview high~

Henry and Ray had donned ridiculous disguises. Wearing dark hats and tinted glasses, they had taken to speaking in strange, German accents. Charlotte looked at them with a bored expression.

"And vhere vere you vhen Debbie flew off zhe roof-us? Ray asked her.

"Yah, vhere vere you?" Henry repeated, his accent not as good but the effort was there. 

"VHERE?" Ray shouted through his megaphone.

"I know it's you, guys" She sighed at them, seeing through their pathetic costumes.

"Vhat guys?" Henry asked her.

"Ve are German filmmakers." Ray tried to say, but it didn't convince her.

"Yah, ve German." Henry nodded with his boss.

"Ve like veiner schnitzel." The man spoke.

"We also like to say veiner schnitzel." Henry joked.

"Veiner schnitzel." Ray let the words roll off his tongue.

"Yah, veiner schnitzel." Henry loved that phrase.

"I know, you're Henry and Ray. P.S, your accents are terrible. Does (y/n) know you're doing this?" She asked the two. 

"They're fighting, will you just answer our questions?" Henry took off his glasses, as Ray's stomach dropped at the mention of (y/n). She hadn't spoken to him last night when he got back from his crime fighting, and he was missing the familiarity of his best friend.

"We have a lot of these interviews to do." He snapped.

"Go ahead." Charlotte felt the need to drop the subject of the young woman, sensing it was a touchy subject.

~Back to the Man Cave~

"Okay, vhere vere you vhen Debbie flew off zhe roof-us?" Ray interviewed her.

"Well, Henry and Ray..." Charlotte's interview was one of several on the monitors inside the Man Cave.

"I was helping Debbie's mom with the gift bags, I was nowhere near the ball machine." Her voice came through the speakers.

"Do you think ve can believe her?" Ray said to Henry, using his German accent.

"Dude, it's just us and (y/n) here. You can drop the accent." Henry smiled at him, and the woman looked at the boy when she heard her name. 

"Geez, ma, why you always got to pee in my skeezits?" Ray whined at him, making (y/n) smile behind his back. She'd calmed down in the time they had been to the school and come back, but Ray still seemed to be on edge around her. She just needed the right time to apologise.

"I'm trying to prove I'm innocent." Henry reminded him.

"All right. Play the section from video four again." Ray replied, getting ready to write ideas down.

"Vhere vere you vhen Debbie vas knocked off the roof?" German Ray said onscreen to Jasper.

"Yah, vere youuuu?" Jasper looked at them weirdly but answered the question anyway.

"I was on the roof." He stated.

"Achtung!"

"Gesundheit!" The superhero duo exclaimed in frustration. 

"Video three," Ray said to Henry, having seen enough of Jasper.

"Yeah, I've always like Debbie. Except for one time in fourth grade, she told on a teacher that me and Sydney were eating bugs. That made me feel hatred." Ray and (y/n) screwed their faces up in disgust, as the older man wrote down a few notes about Oliver Pook.

"Okay, first, I only chewed the bugs. I did not swallow. And anyway, Henry's the one who changed the ball speed." Sydney Birnbaum said, following up on what Oliver said.

"No, I didn't!" The teen piped up, shouting at his classmate onscreen.

"Video six." (y/n) made him move on before he could get any angrier.

"NO, I DIDN'T CHANGE THE STUPID BALL SPEED!" Piper yelled at the camera, making the woman wince. Taking the pen off of Ray, she noted down 'Brat' under Piper's name, making him smile. Finally, things were beginning to calm down between them.

"Get out of my face!" Piper slammed the door, so Henry swiped to the next clip.

"Look, I felt really bad when Debbie fell off the roof, even though she used to make fun of my bucket collection. I'm a bucketeer!" Jasper flashed his badge at the camera, and Ray made sure to write 'bucket' on the board.

"Okay, I guess I felt a little bit jealous when Debbie won the spelling bee last year. But I'm over it. That should have been my trophy!" Charlotte revealed her anger to the camera.

"Is that vhy you changed zhe ball speed?" Ray quizzed the screen back on Oliver.

"I wanna talk to a lawyer." He said in his usual flat tone.

"Video 15," Ray called out.

"I... I know nothing about any of this. Can someone get my manager, please? I don't think these guys are even German." Some mystery guy called Nathan stuttered as he came on screen.

"Hey, he's cute." (y/n) smiled at the screen, checking the guy out. Ray angrily wrote an exclamation mark on the board, not liking how (y/n) looked at him.

"Oh please, he's a foetus." Ray scoffed, but Henry quickly switched off the screen. Ray realised what time it was and quickly came up with a lie that would allow him to leave. 

"So I'm going to... I got to go buy some socks." Ray checked his watch, trying to sneak off to the party.

"Socks? Right now?" (y/n) asked him, she wanted to make up with him and she couldn't do that if he was buying socks. 

"Yeah, it's an emergency." Ray slowly started walking backwards.

"But we still haven't figured out who made Debbie fly off the roof." Henry pointed out, not understanding why Ray wanted to leave so urgently.

"But, hey! You still got that thumb drive with all the pics from the party. Check those for evidence." Ray hoped that would make him feel better, but it didn't.

"Are you going to the party?" (y/n) questioned him, putting the pieces together when she remembered that it was Saturday evening.

"No, check the pics." Ray laughed off her question.

"Okay." She and Henry didn't sound too convinced, but they started to flick through the photos. Whilst they were preoccupied, Ray took his gum tube out and popped a gumball. Putting it into his mouth, he began to blow and then sneaked towards the tube once he had transformed.

"HEY!" (y/n) shouted at him as she turned around, knowing the only time he was quiet was when he was up to no good.

"I knew it. I knew you were going to Debbie's party." Henry yelled at him too, and they stalked towards Ray.

"Miss Swellview's gonna be there!" Ray wailed. He wanted to be around other girls, so he could take his mind off how (y/n) would never go out with a guy like him. The friendzone was where he lived and he hated it, so he might as well knock on other doors. 

"You better not go! Think of Henry's feelings." (y/n) warned him with a pointed finger, still hating the idea of him being all over the beauty queen.

"Okay, I won't go," Ray mumbled and shuffled his feet.

"Good." Henry dragged (y/n) back to the computer by her wrist. With their backs turned again, Ray stepped back into place and hit his belt, causing the tube to come down.

"Up the tube." He whispered as the two looked at him again in horror.

"RAYMOND!" (y/n) shouted after him, but it was no use.

"Hey! Where I come from, a man who lies about socks is no man!" Henry yelled too, but he just let out a sigh when he knew that Ray was long gone.

"He really pisses me off sometimes." (y/n) grumbled under her breath, as she and Henry plodded back to the computer.

"I suppose we should check the pics." He said to her in a bored tone and plopped down into the computer chair. He scrolled through the photos, most of them just selfies, but then something caught (y/n)'s eyes.

"Wait, wait, wait! Go back to that last one!" She said, and Henry flicked backwards, not seeing what she saw.

"What?" He asked with his eyes squinted.

"Look, those two pictures. See something peculiar?" She smirked down at him and pointed at the screen. Henry's eye's widened in realisation and he smiled up at her.

"Oh my god, we got to get to that party." He said, swiftly getting up from his chair.

"We?" The young woman's eyebrows rose.

"Yeah, you gotta talk to Ray. Straighten things out." He said as he downloaded the photos to his phone.

"Like he'll be able to hear me over Miss Swellview's giggling." She said bitterly.

"You're his best friend, he'll listen to you." Henry insisted, and they walked to the tubes.

"He irritates the hell outta me." She told him as the tubes fell down.

"You love him," Henry smirked at her.

"Shut up!" (y/n) blushed and tried to deny it, but Henry just gave her a coy grin.

"Up the tube!" They shot upwards, with the hope that they could prove Henry's innocence and patch up a friendship.

~Debbie's party~

The party was buzzing, as Ray posed for photos with all the kids. There was a trampoline at the back of the floor, with Jasper and Charlotte bouncing on it. It was a dangerous spot to leave it, so close to the edge, but no one seemed to care.

"Excuse me, Captain Man?" Mr and Mrs Putch walked up to the superhero.

"Yes, hello, citizens." He greeted them.

"We're Debbie's parents." Mr Putch introduced them.

"And this is Debbie, our birthday girl. She's so excited that you're here." The young girl rushed over, excited to meet her idol.

"Well, it's great to meet you, Debbie, and your wealthy parents." Ray smiled, knowing that his appearance tonight meant that he was in line for $12,000.

"Oh, don't you remember? You and I...We met a long time ago." The blonde lady smirked at him, her husband frowning at the new knowledge.

"We did?" Ray had flirted and gone out with so many women in his 33 years of living, he wasn't sure which one Debbie's mom was.

"What?" Mr Putch looked at his wife with a frown, the information apparently being a surprise to him.

"Yeah, remember the Swellview rodeo? I was a waitress and after the rodeo, you invited me back to--" Her story made the memory click together in Ray's mind.

"Ohhhh, yes. It's so great to see you again, here with your husband." The superhero felt awkward, but suddenly, everyone's eyes were on Henry and (y/n) as they came through the door. Ray's smile fell when he saw the two asking the DJ for the mic. He recalled how he left them in the Man Cave to come party, and how distraught the girl's face was as he went up the tube.

Henry snatched the mic from the DJ's hand, after (y/n) gave him some very select words.

"Hey! Everyone! Over here! Hello?" The teen called out to the crowd, and everyone looked at the two colleagues. For once in her life, (y/n) didn't feel nervous in front of the crowd. She knew she and Henry were in the right, and they were in the wrong.

"That's Henry Hart."

"Why is he here? And who's that girl?" Debbie and her mother objected.

"What happened with you and Captain Man after the rodeo?" Mr Putch asked his wife, wanting to know just how far they'd gone.

"Okay, I know everyone's freaked out to see me here 'cause of what happened last year." Henry started off.

"Sing Wrecking Ball!" Oliver Pook shouted at him, and (y/n) looked at him with a weirded-out face.

"No, we're not here to sing." (y/n) told him, pulling the microphone in Henry's hands to her lips.

"Yeah, we're here 'cause you all think I did something that I didn't do." The boy carried on from her.

"You were the only one standing by the ball machine!" Debbie yelled at him, and the people around her vocally agreed her.

"Hey, Henry! You got to try some of these meatballs!" Jasper said to him through a mouthful of food.

"Look, I get why you all thought I was the one who turned up the ball speed, but maybe it wasn't me. Maybe it was someone else. Like Charlotte." The crowd gasp at the accusation.

"She was always jealous ever since Debbie beat her in the Swellview spelling bee." (y/n) told them.

"Well, you all know that trophy should've been mine." Charlotte hissed to the crowd.

"Or, it could've been Jasper." Henry pointed to the boy who was still preoccupied with the meatballs.

"Who's never forgotten that Debbie used to mock his buckets." (y/n) decided she was the one who got to spill the tea.

"Never forget," Jasper said to Debbie as he ate another ball.

"Or maybe, it could've been Piper." Henry wasn't beneath accusing his own sister.

"Hey, I didn't even want to come to this party last year. Or this year. What am I doing here?" The little girl complained.

"Or maybe, it was Sydney or Oliver." The boys looked petrified at the allegation.

"They got detention after Debbie told the teacher that they were eating bugs." (y/n) looked to the crowd, who then stared at the gross boys.

"The point is, we know who really changed the ball speed and knocked Debbie off the roof. And we have proof!" The two smiled at the crowd and gave each other a high five when the crowd burst into a gossiping chatter.

"Then show us!" Debbie snapped.

"We will, girl, chill!" (y/n) growled back, not liking how bratty the birthday was being.

"But first, we're gonna go get ourselves a meatball. We'll be back after a short break. And then, everybody's going to know the truth!" Henry shouted into the mic, wanting to keep them all in suspense.

"Sing Call Me Maybe, lady!" Oliver yelled to (y/n).

"I'M NOT SINGING!" She screamed, making Henry grabbed her wrist and drag her to the snack table. Stuffing a few meatballs in his mouth, he looked up at the young woman and wondering why she wasn't eating. Following her eyes across the busy floor, he saw Ray talking to Miss Swellview.

"How can I apologise when all he can focus on is her?" She mumbled with glossy eyes.

"Just go up to him and say "Hey Captain Man! Can I bask in your awesomeness and speak with you for a moment?". And then he'll be all yours!" Henry joked at her, and she took in a deep breath.

"Are you sure he doesn't hate me?" he looked at the boy in his eyes.

"Yeah! He lo--knows you care about him and that you were having a rough day." Henry corrected himself before (y/n) could hear his mistake. Whilst she was mulling over his words, the teen blew out his cheeks, stressed that he nearly gave away Ray's biggest secret to the one person he wouldn't let find out.

"Okay, I'll do it. I'll go over and tell him I'm sorry and we can be friends again." She said, more to herself than anyone else, trying to gather her courage.

With a final nod to Henry, she worked her way through the crowd, dodging dancing kids and various staff members. Seeing Ray through the sea of people, she timidly walked up behind him and tapped his shoulder. He turned around, still smiling from his conversation with Miss Swellview, but when he saw who wanted him, it dropped. His stomach felt queasy, wondering if she was here to argue with him.

"Captain Man, can I speak with you?" She said to him as softly as she could. He saw how clammy her hands were and how she'd them tangled together to stop them from shaking with nerves. 

"Of course, citizen, please excuse me, Miss Swellview." Ray gave a dashing smile to the young girl, who promptly went off to talk to the birthday girl, leaving the two alone.

"So, what do you wanna talk about?" His voice was more like his normal one since it was just the two of them. He no longer needed to be a superhero despite the uniform he was wearing. When he was with her, it was like everyone else in the room disappeared and he was no longer Captain Man, just Ray and his (y/n).

"I---" Her voice broke, and her face crumpled as two days worth of tears broke free of her emotional dam. Ray reacted instantaneously, grabbing her elbows and taking her further into the shady corner. Seeing that no one was paying them any mind, for the time being, he brushed the tears off her cheeks with gloved fingers and she swallowed the lump in her throat.

"I'm so sorry for being m-mean to you these past couple days, I'm s-sorry." She managed to say through her hiccups. Ray didn't reply, just gathered her in his arms and curled her into his chest. Nuzzling to his shoulder, they stayed like that for a couple minutes, just holding each other in a silent apology. Her sobbing eventually came to a stop and she pulled back with a sad smile.

"I got your shoulder wet." She said, gesturing to the dark stain on his costume.

"It's worth it to have my friend back." He smiled at her, and she giggled, everything falling back into place for them. They gave each other one final hug when she saw that Henry was ready to reveal the real culprit behind Debbie's fall.

"I should go wrap this thing up." She said to Ray and he nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, the kid needs you." She gave him one last smile and walked over to Henry by the door.

"Hey! How'd it go?" Henry asked her with a smirk. In truth, he'd watched the whole thing from across the room and saw how Ray clung to her like he was afraid she would disappear if he let go.

"Good, everything's fine." She grinned at him.

"Then let's do this thing." He lifted the microphone and addressed the crowd.

"Okay, first I'd like to say... Great meatballs." He said looking at the Putch family, who all had their arms crossed.

"And now the proof that one year ago today I was not the person responsible for Debbie being knocked off the roof." Henry carried on.

"Using this phone, we will now show you actual photos taken just before Debbie's party last year." Everyone mumbled amongst themselves at (y/n)'s words as she pointed to the phone Henry was holding up. She noticed that Ray was with Miss Swellview again, but for now, she was just happy to not be fighting with him. 

"Pic one. Here you see Jasper wiping his sweaty hand on Charlotte." Henry described the picture that he mirrored on a large monitor. Charlotte turned around and looked at a guilty Jasper.

"And to the left, you can see Sydney and Oliver eating bugs. No surprise there." (y/n) pointed at the boys in the photo.

"I haven't eaten a bug since Passover!" Sydney protested, even though his words didn't help his case.

"I'm eating a bug right now," Oliver said in his monotone voice, crushing the insect between his teeth. Everyone stared in repulsion.

"But look closer and...what's that we see in the background? Hmm?" Henry refocused the group, zooming in on the picture, so they could see Piper.

""It's Henry's little sister Piper upset about something as usual," Piper said nothing but bit her lip in irritation.

"Pic two. Here we have a clearer image of Piper. And as you can see, she's really mad about her broken phone. So she's throwing it." Henry flicked to the next image, one where Piper was launching her phone across the floor, a deep scowl etched on her face.

"So what?" She yelled, starting to get nervous.

"We're glad you asked. Pic three!" Henry put up the final photo, the one with the revelation.

"Here, we can see Henry, standing innocently by the ball machine. And when we zoom in..." (y/n) had butterflies in her stomach, ready for what was coming next.

"You can see Piper's phone hitting the 11 button," Henry said. The truth was out. 

Everyone's mouths fell open in shock and Henry and (y/n) shook their hands in success, glad they had each other for support.

"Oh my god!"

"Piper did it!" Charlotte cried.

"Security!" Debbie called for the men on the doors to come and take Piper away.

"But--but...it wasn't my fault! I didn't know my phone would hit the button! I'm a victim! I'm a victim! I want to talk to a lawyer!" She shrieked as the men picked her up and dragged her through the door kicking and screaming. Once she was gone, the party resumed and Ray turned to the woman beside him.

"So, Miss Swellview, since I assume there isn't a Mr Swellview, I was wondering if you might want to..." Ray was cut off as a man came next to the beauty queen and put his arm around her.

"Walk away." He said, knowing that his status as Captain Man was imposing. With the man backing off, Ray smiled and put his arm around the girl's waist.

~

"Hey, ignore him and come party with us," Henry said, noticing that (y/n) was watching them with a downcast expression.

"I'm not so bad that I need to party with teenagers to get over how stupid I am." She chuckled, her heart softening at how sweet the kid was.

"When was the last time you just let go and had some real fun?" Henry put his hands on his hips.

"Hey! I'll have you know that I'm a real party animal under this sensible exterior. But when you run a superhero's secret hideout, your fun side falls to the back burner." She said to the boy, a hand on his shoulder.

"So let the animal out! Just come and have a good time!" She looked at Henry, then at Ray who was cuddling up to Miss Swellview and finally at the joyful kids dancing and eating their hearts out.

"Fine, but don't hold me to anything I do from here on out!" She laughed and they mixed into the crowd. 

(y/n) hadn't danced like that in ages and Henry could see the young woman in her bursting out. Her job was stressful and it meant that she often pushed the youth in her heart out of the way, so her logic and rational brain could take the reins. The kids didn't seem to mind the age gap, her bubbly and exuberant personality making her seem so much younger.

"Henry, we are so sorry we blamed you." Mrs Putch pulled them out from the dancing and Debbie looked at them with an apologetic face.

"Especially me." The girl said, but Henry and (y/n) weren't going to be angry on her birthday.

"Well, I'm sorry that my little sister almost killed you," Henry said back.

"Hey... things happen." (y/n) settled between the teens and Mrs Putch nodded at her words.

"Absolutely. Sorry I don't believe I got your name?" The blonde woman held out her hand for (y/n) to shake.

"Oh right, I'm (y/n). Henry works for me and my friend. We worked together to figure everything out." She quickly explained as she shook her hand with a smile.

"Then you're welcome to stay." Debbie smiled at the older girl.

"Mom, I'm going to jump on the trampoline right by the edge of the roof," Debbie said, turning to her mother. (y/n) thought about how bad of an idea it was but, Debbie was off before she could mention it.

"Hey, Mrs Putch?" Sydney approached her.

"Yeah?" 

"A balloon got stuck up there by that light." He pointed to the ceiling, drawing their attention to the trapped balloon.

"That could start a fire." (y/n) pointed out and Mrs Putch looked worried.

"Hey, no worries, I'll climb up there and get it." Henry offered, but (y/n) looked at him in concern.

"Woah, woah, woah, that sounds dangerous." She said, stopping Henry before he could dash off.

"Eh, this kid can handle danger. Hold my meatball." He smirked at her with a knowing look and passed her the snack. 

The two adults watched as he climbed up the lighting rig, Debbie still jumping on the trampoline.

"Yay! This is my best birthday ever." She exclaimed. Henry dislodged the balloon and threw it back onto the floor.

"I fixed it!" He yelled.

"Thank you!" Mrs Putch beamed back.

"Hey, Henry! Jump down!" Sydney shouted at his friend.

"Wait, Henry, no!" (y/n) saw what was about to happen, seeing the physics that revolved around two people jumping on a trampoline at that same time. Sadly, Henry had already let go by the time she cried out, leaving her to just what the disaster that unfolded.

The rebound from Henry hitting the opposite end of the trampoline forced Debbie over the side of the roof, echoing what happened one year ago. Everyone rushed to the side of the ledge, as Debbie screamed and Henry looked horrified. 

The poor girl was laying on top of a puppy, groaning in pain.

"Whiskers? Whiskers, are you okay?" The dog walker tugged on the leash, but the dog had been squashed by the impact of Debbie's fall.

"My name is not Whiskers." She grumbled as Mrs Putch phoned for an ambulance. Looking at Henry, (y/n) shook her head, joining him on the trampoline. 

"You really know how to find trouble, don't you?" She said to the cringing boy, who looked at her in despair.

"Oh boy, am I gonna get in trouble?" He panicked.

"Ehhh, maybe, I don't know. Technically, it was Sydney's idea, so Mrs Putch might forgive you." The woman reasoned.

"And Debbie?" They both looked down at the girl.

"Yeah, no. She's gonna hate you forever." All Henry could do was throw his head back and groan.

[siberat]

*ordering fast food voice* Can I get uhhh...

Solo Phar/ma drabble?

Mayybee with him being jealous over Rat/chet and Dri/ft's relationship, specifically invested in the food and eating aspect. So he just fantasizes and imagines that he's being fed by Rat/chet or whatever while stuffing his face...

idk I just really like anthing with Phar/ma :3

( I did miss one aspect of your request, I am so sorry but here it is)

Life wasn’t fair.

 Pha/rma slammed himself back in his chair, crossed his arms over his cockpit, and pouted. The jet could obsessively spy on the other Doctor using spy cameras, and he did not like what he saw.

And just what did he see?

Rat/chet apparently took the plunge and conj/ux’ed up with some other, less deserving mech. Some ex’C/on named Dr/ift.  His love was getting all lovey-dovey with a sportscar, nonetheless. Cuddles. Kisses. His dear Rat/chet was all smiles and laughs as he spent his evenings pampering over this…this… pretty boy buy-mech.

What did Rat/chet ever do for him? Pha/rma growled, taking another massive bite of his snack.  ‘Oh, I’m sorry. I won’t be able to make it to your ceremony. I have to work late,’ or ‘That was tonight?’ His personal favorite was, ‘You knew I was busy and couldn’t get the night off…’

 That line still cut deeply. Was it asking too much to have his peer with him to celebrate his achievements?

Obviously, that answer was yes. The red-and-white Doctor always seemed to have an excuse to get away from doing things with him. Slag, he doubted his colleague even cared when they were separated so far away when the whole Del/phi post came up.

Pha/rma snorted as he shoved a massive mouthful of chocolate cake and its wrapper tossed onto the floor. Optics furrowed as he angrily sucked icing off his fingers. Rat/chet never made time for him, yet tripped all over this Dr/ift douchebag. Yeah, optics rolled at that truth.

Just what did this grounder have that he didn’t? Pri/mus, he was a prestigious doctor and was from the same class! Just who wouldn’t want a refined, cultured mech such as himself hanging on your arm as you gloated around the party, boasting of one’s accomplishments? The jet’s optics furrowed as a toothy sneer appeared on his face.

One of those accomplishments should be sporting such a catch of a con/jux! He was talking of himself, mind you, not this…this silly imposter that stole his glory! The grounder wasn’t even that good-looking!

With a heavy sigh, Pha/rma blindly reached for a box of fancy chocolates as his stomach grumbled. The fancy ribbon was ripped off, and the lid was pushed aside. Without tearing his optics off the video screen, fingers idly snagged a candy and popped it into his mouth. The sweetness of the cadmium rushed across his tongue, only temporarily numbing the pain of watching his crush swoon over another mech. Even when he pinched and rubbed at his now swollen belly, the sting of anger and jealousy did not ebb. But one after the other, those candies were devoured. One by one, his gut grew taunt.

Apparently, the jet wasn’t the only one who developed a sweet tooth.

Over the spying sessions of the surveillance cameras, Rat/chet loved providing a slew of different foods for Dr/ift to taste. By the swelling of that swords/mech’s frame, Dr/ift enjoyed consuming them. So, now Pha/rma had to endure watching his medic spoon-feed the disgusting ex-C/on.

And watch in envy at all the belly rubs that ensured. Yeah, his first balking at Dr/ift getting fatter was filled with laughter and ridicule: just look how that once sleek frame rounded out! It wouldn’t take long for Rat/chet to ditch this pig and come running to where he belongs: in HIS arms!

But something must be wrong with Rat/chet’s processor, for instead of being repulsed, his servo couldn’t stop groping. Those hands- technically, his hands- kneaded and caressed that chubby belly all hours of the evening. Rolls were gently pinched and loving swats slapped the amble aft. Ratch just couldn’t get enough of that ever-softening frame.

Seeing the playful banter, love-struck smiles, and ogling optics made Pha/rma sick! This should have been him! But now, all he could do was stare at this screen in the middle of the night and watch what should have been his.

Rat/chet should be feeding him spoonful after spoonful of such fine, decadent sweets! Those hands should ghost over his frame, tickle down his cockpit, and snake into the seams of his plating! It would be sublime to lay across the CMO’s frame, having the grounder whisper how great yours truly was in his audial as warm smiles were tossed for his enjoyment! To have his godly frame worshipped….

Why did Rat/chet never touch him like that? His belly needed rubbing. His plating had long grown taunt with the onslaught of never-ending sweets shoved down his maws. His once sleek frame softened, love handles gathered along his sides, and his thighs thickened. Slag, his cockpit had more difficulty clicking back into place upon transforming back into root mode.

Everything Dr/ift had, he had. Everything Dr/ift could provide, he could offer better.

The jet grimaced, swallowing hard before banging his servo on his chest. Reaching for the fizzy ener/gon drink, Pha/rma took a hearty swig. The sting of the strong carbonation was ignored as he chugged, hoping to drown his sorrows. His chair squeaked and groaned, threatening to give out, as he leaned back to tip the rest of the beverage from the bottle.

The only thing this accomplished was making his tummy swell and churn even more. Painful quakes erupted, placing such an uncomfortable pressure on his insides. It felt like he swallowed a bomb that was on the verge of exploding. A loud, high-pitched wail emitted from his midsection as servos clutched the quivering mass.

‘Pri/mus,’ Pha/rma muttered, closing his optics as this pressure rose in his throat. His pedes shuffled uncomfortably on the floor as the jet squirmed in his seat. A fist banged on his chest again. He cleared his throat.

If only Rat/chet were here to soothe his aching belly! To feel those servo caress his belly, working out the clenching and spasming with his touch, would simply be divine. Pha/rma’s own hands rubbed tiny little circles across his angry paunch, but it wasn’t the same. It would feel- and look- so much better if Rat/chet were on his knees worshipping his stuffed belly… placing kisses along his acquired stretch marks, cooing nice words to him, and calming this grumbling monster!

“Blllooooourrrrrrrgghhhaaaaapppp!” Pha/rma’s optics shot wide open at the uncultured behavior.

The sound echoed through the empty room, reminding him of how alone he was.

Rat/chet would never be here.

Rat/chet never wanted him.

Rat/chet never took notice of him.

Now was the time to dig into that rich, red velvet cake.

[metamatar]

it is kind of funny im arguing in favour of nuance wrt food safety in india. despite having lived in delhi and eating probably the worlds most contaminated vegetables grown on the banks of the yamuna. the water has mercury and lead in it bc of industrial effluent. there is so much effluent there is often a 6 inch layer of foam on the river.

[norelationtodonkeykong]

The American grown & tax subsidized rice that's flooded Haiti since the 80's has contained high levels of arsenic & cadmium. Haiti is one of the largest importers of American rice, as neoliberal programs including tariff cuts & programs run by USAID to structure Haitian agriculture around food exports (to Americans, primarily) dismantled Haitian food production, especially rice & pork. Local farmers can't compete with cheap American rice, which is mostly agricultural surplus due to the heavy subsidies paid to American rice farmers. In spite of all the food aid, including this toxic rice, sent to Haiti, it's one of the hungriest countries in the world. American farmers are rich off of the starvation and poisoning of Haitians.

if you want a good place to start on this here's a good guardian overview on how American aid has ruined the Haitian economy

[patantasma]

For anyone who buys Lunchables (or anything similar), they found high levels of lead, cadmium, and sodium in them.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Consumer Reports called on the Department of Agriculture today to remove Lunchables food kits from the National School Lunch Program. CR recently compared the nutritional profiles of two Lunchable kits served in schools and found they have even higher levels of sodium than the kits consumers can buy in the store. CR also tested 12 store-bought versions of Lunchables and similar kits and found several contained relatively high levels of lead and cadmium. All but one also tested positive for phthalates, chemicals found in plastic that have been linked to reproductive problems, diabetes, and certain cancers.

“Lunchables are not a healthy option for kids and shouldn’t be allowed on the menu as part of the National School Lunch Program,” said Brian Ronholm, director of food policy at Consumer Reports, which launched a petition to the USDA. “The Lunchables and similar lunch kits we tested contain concerning levels of sodium and harmful chemicals that can lead to serious health problems over time. The USDA should remove Lunchables from the National School Lunch Program and ensure that kids in schools have healthier options.”

The USDA currently allows two Lunchables kits — Turkey & Cheddar Cracker Stackers and Extra Cheesy Pizza — to be served to nearly 30 million children through the National School Lunch Program. To meet the program’s requirements, Kraft Heinz added more whole grains to the crackers and more protein to the Lunchable kits designed for schools compared to store-bought versions.

CR tested store-bought Lunchables and similar kits from Armour LunchMakers, Good & Gather, Greenfield Natural Meat Co., and Oscar Mayer and found lead, cadmium, or both in all. Lead and cadmium can cause developmental problems in children over time, even in small amounts. While none of the kits exceeded any federal limit, five of the 12 tested products would expose someone to 50 percent or more of California’s maximum allowable level for lead or cadmium – currently the most protective standard.

CR also detected at least one type of phthalate in every kit it tested, except for Lunchables Extra Cheesy Pizza. Phthalates are known endocrine disruptors, compounds that may mimic or interfere with hormones in the body, which can contribute to an increased risk of reproductive problems, obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and certain cancers. As with heavy metals, the goal should be to keep exposure as low as possible.

The sodium levels in the store-bought lunch and snack kits CR tested ranged from 460 to 740 milligrams per serving, that’s nearly a quarter to half of a child’s daily recommended limit for sodium. CR found that the sodium levels of the Lunchables made for schools, which had a larger portion of meat, are higher than in the store-bought versions. The school version of the Turkey and Cheddar Lunchable for schools contained 930 mg of sodium compared to 740 mg in the store-bought version. Similarly, the Lunchable pizza kit for schools had 700 mg of sodium compared to 510 mg in the store version.

Eating foods with too much sodium can lead to high blood pressure and lead to hypertension, which is a risk factor for heart disease, stroke, and kidney damage. Kids with high sodium intakes are about 40 percent more likely to develop hypertension than those who have low sodium diets.

Michael McCauley, michael.mccauley@consumer.org

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this story The Guardian:

Dozens of rivers and streams in Alaska are turning rusty orange, a likely consequence of thawing permafrost, a new study finds.

The Arctic is the fastest-warming region in the globe, and as the frozen ground below the surface melts, minerals once locked away in that soil are now seeping into waterways.

“It’s an unforeseen impact of climate change that we’re seeing in some of the most pristine rivers in our country,” said Brett Poulin, study author and assistant professor of environmental toxicology at University of California Davis.

The permafrost thaw is exposing minerals to oxygen in a process known as weathering, which increases the acidity of the water and dissolves metals like zinc, copper, cadmium and iron – the most apparent metal that gives the rivers a rusty color visible even from satellite images. The study highlights the potential degradation of drinking water and risk to fisheries in the Arctic.

“When mixed with another river, it can actually make the metals even more potent [in its] impact to aquatic health,” Poulin said.

The phenomenon was first observed in 2018, when researchers noticed the milky orange appearance of the rivers across northern Alaska’s Brooks Range, a stark contrast to the crystal clear waters seen the year prior.

Within the year, a tributary of the Akillik river in Kobuk Valley national park saw the complete loss of two local fish species: the dolly varden and the slimy sculpin.

“Our data suggests that when the river turned orange, we saw a significant decrease in macroinvertebrates and biofilm on the bottom of the stream, which is essentially the base of the food web,” Poulin said of the rusting phenomenon. “It could be changing where fish are going to be able to live.”

The rusting is a seasonal phenomenon, occurring in the summer typically during July and August, when the soil is thawed the deepest. The researchers at the National Park Service, US Geological Survey and University of California Davis now want to better understand the long-term implications of the changing water chemistry in places with continuous permafrost, which includes Arctic regions such as Alaska, Canada, Russia and parts of Scandinavia.

[meret118]

Consumer Reports tested 28 popular dark chocolate bars from Seattle’s own Theo Chocolate to Trader Joe’s, Hershey’s to Ghirardelli, and even smaller brands such as Alter Eco and Mast.

. . .

The study found cadmium and lead in every single bar.

With no federal limit set on heavy metals in foods, researchers used California’s limitations on lead and cadmium, the most protective in the country, to determine which chocolates posed the most risk.

. . .

For 23 of the chocolate bars Consumer Reports tested, eating just 1 ounce exceeded California’s limits of 0.5 micrograms per day for lead — or about 1% of the weight of the average grain of sand — and 4.1 micrograms per day for cadmium.

One ounce of Theo’s Organic Extra Dark Pure Dark Chocolate 85% Cocoa chocolate bar, which is roughly one serving size, contained 140% of California’s maximum daily allowable dose of lead and 189% of the dose of cadmium, Consumer Reports found.Consumer Reports also listed Theo’s Organic Pure Dark 70% Cocoa as having high levels of both.

. . .

Five of the 28 bars Consumer Reports tested had levels of lead and cadmium below California’s MADL limits. Those safer bars were Ghirardelli Intense Dark (both 72% and 86% cacao), Taza Chocolate Deliciously Dark (70%), Mast Dark Chocolate (80%) and Valrhona Abinao (85%).

------

Why the fuck is there no federal heavy metal limit for food?

[plagger]

Mistborn Alloy of Law spoilers past the read more!

So in Alloy of Law, Marasi struggles to find her self worth as a Pulser Misting, since she believes that slowing down time in a bubble isn’t helpful. Of course, by the end of the book she does manage to be useful, slowing down time around Wax and Miles in order to have the constables arrive sooner.

That got me thinking: what use could a Pulser have in the general society of Elendel and such?

Preserving perishables was my first thought. Along side a Nicroburst Misting a Pulser could flare a nugget of Cadmium and get days, weeks, maybe months of time to pass, and maybe save heaps of money spent preserving it with whatever technology they’d have back then. Hell, I’m pretty sure that they don’t even have refrigeration technology at that point, so being able to preserve as much food and other perishables as can fit within the speed bubble would be a huge boon for profits for multiple industries.

If there’d ever be a need to access the storage, somebody from outside the speed bubble could hop in and then the Pulser would Extinguish their metal (if not being affected by a Nicroburst Misting).

Edit: Actually, would tossing aluminium into the speed bubble turn it off, even if it’s being Nicrobursted?

Would this work or am I just misinterpreting?

[nathanielaaron]

DETOX SUPPLEMENTS FOR VACCINE INJURED VICTIMS

🖲Magnesium — plays many crucial roles in the body, such as supporting muscle & nerve function and energy production.

🖲NAC — (a precursor to glutathione) provides a variety of protective antioxidant effects, block damages to DNA, strengthening all organs, including the brain — dissolves mucus, improves breathing & respiratory problems. NAC powers up the immune system, boosting antibodies, increasing glutathione, which fights disease & aging. NAC has been around for decades, proven to be very safe, with NO SIDE EFFECTS.

🖲Glutathione — is the body's most powerful antioxidant & counteracts the harmful effects of graphene oxide. Human bodies produce glutathione naturally but over as humans age & absorbs toxins, the production of it slows down. Children naturally have high glutathione levels. Glutathione is a body-specific antioxidant that cells need to function & survive. When you get sick, the level of glutathione can drop.

🖲Selenium — a trace element that is naturally present in many foods & available as a dietary supplement. Selenium, which is nutritionally essential for humans, is a constituent of more than two dozen selenoproteins that play critical roles in reproduction, thyroid hormone metabolism, DNA synthesis & protection from oxidative damage and infection.

🖲Quercetin — have significant capability to interfere with SARS-CoV-2 replication and multi-faceted anti-inflammatory and thrombin-inhibitory actions. 

🖲Vitamin D/C/A – promotes immune cell proliferation, stimulates antimicrobial peptides, cytokines and immune cell proliferation, enhances mucosal Integrity, antioxidant, protects healthy cells, activated immune cells, antiviral, coordinates cellular immune response.

🖲Zinc – essential for binding capacity & optimizing lethality of immune cells. Promotes antiviral enzyme blocking viral replication.

🖲Zeolite — has a strong attraction to many heavy metals including mercury, lead, cadmium, and arsenic. It also binds to & removes many chemicals like fluorine & chlorine, eliminating free radicals of all types, and it reverses acute chemical & allergic reactions, all without removing vital nutrients from the body. This makes it a maximum detoxifier.

🖲Pine Needle Tea, Fennel See, Star Anise — contains shikimic acid, high levels of antioxidants & DNA-protective properties.

🖲Dandelion Root —  blocks interaction between ACE2, spike protein & variants.

🖲Black Cumin Seed Oil — is natural alternative for Ivermectin. Nigella sativa has been used as traditional medicine for centuries. The oil from its seeds are effective against many diseases like cancer, cardiovascular complications, diabetes, asthma, kidney disease — also effective against cancer in blood system, lung, kidney, liver, prostate, breast, cervix & skin.

🖲Fulvic Acid & Shilajit — have long been used in traditional medicine & reduces inflammation and boost immunity. Fulvic acid has been well studied for its effects on immune health and inflammation. Improve disease resistance, increase your immune defenses, fight inflammation, chronic diseases & enhance antioxidant activity.

🖲Bio-Fibrin — is a proteolytic enzyme (a process known as proteolysis - help dissolve proteins. There are over 700 identified human enzymes, and each enzyme has a specific biochemical reaction involving a specific substance.

Activated Charcoal, Chlorophyll, Chlorella, Spirulina, Irish Sea Moss, C-60, Power Immunity, Infrared Sauna, Green Tea, Alkaline Water, Probiotics, Cinnamon & Raw Honey, Avocado, Garlic, Turmeric, Cilantro, Ginger, Cruciferous vegetables & leafy greens are also great detoxes for the body.