#she gets the isolation - which fun she can deliver letter in all weathers but she is also prone to overheating

[chaoticly-shy-dragon]

@muffinlance​ I tried. They still haven’t come into their colors or feathers and instead are literal balls of fluff!

do I think they are fierce AND fuzzy? yes

[theloveofscience]

Shugarl to Komui White Day Gift!

((Here we are! This should be the last of the White day gifts that I need to submit to you. I hope you enjoy it! As always, do with this as you please~))

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Shugarl had sent Komui and invitation for March 14th to attend a late-night picnic with him in order to watch the Gamma Normids meteor shower. It was quite convenient that the Gamma Normids shower always hit around this time and peaked on the 15th. The shower wasn’t very bright, but if you paid close attention, and if the surrounding area wasn’t too bright, you should be able to see the meteor shower.

There was a family getaway cottage that should suffice for the viewing. Shugarl sent out the invite rather early, almost a month in advance. Given the date Komui was being invited on, it was clear that this was related to White day.

The location was at the family getaway cottage, so Komui and Shugarl could stay overnight, if they wanted to. If not, Komui could always return home afterwards if he had plans to attend to that following Sunday.

Komui accepted the invitation and with that, Shugarl could commence his planning. He may have already revealed one part of the plan, but a bit of sacrifice was necessary for the greater good.

After the sent invitation, nothing else out of the ordinary occurred, as if everything was ‘business as usual.’ Shugarl and Komui would interact with each other as they normally would, nothing veering from normalcy.

That is, until the 1st of March hit. There were 14 days until the day they were going to meet to watch the Gamma Normids, and Shugarl had planned a few things. A letter that was  personally delivered sat in Komui’s mailbox that Saturday morning.

.

..

.

I cordially invite you to humor me with my version of an advent calendar.

As we count down the days until White Day, I will be sending you riddles and questions for you to answer.

You will get a point for every question you get right, and as you collect points, you will reach different tiers, which qualifies you in receiving a prize befitting that tier.

The questions and riddles will be mailed to you over the weekends, or it will be given to you in your office during the weekdays. Answers should be emailed to me.

Should you choose to humor me, your first riddle is written on the back of this letter.

Have fun.

.

..

.

All the riddles and questions weren’t hard. The riddles were silly, and the problems were things Shugarl knew Komui could solve. Whether they were chemical reaction problems, or mathematical equations, they were something Komui could handle.

On the weekdays, there would be a geode agate waiting for him on his desk. It looked like a regular rock at first, but when you lifted the top, it would reveal a hollow inside. There would be a note nestled in between the shiny agate crystals.

Assuming Komui had decided to humor Shugarl on this silly ‘advent calendar,’ Komui reached the first tier after 5 days. The gift he received was a small box of biscotti, which would go excellent with coffee. 

The next tier occurred after 10 days, and a pink box sat on Komui’s chair. This was a return gift from Jupiter for the gift that Komui made for her a month prior. Leave it to Shugarl to make her return gift a prize for joining the advent calendar game.

Inside the pink box were white and red speckled bath bombs:

.

..

.

[I like bathbombs because they’re relaxing.

I wanted to thank you for the cute dress you made me!

Please enjoy the bathbombs, they’re lavender scented to promote relaxation.

There are dried rose petals included in the bath bomb to make it feel fancy.]

Included in the letter was a picture of Jupiter wearing the dress Komui made for her. She understood how tiring the job of a professor was (because she had Shugarl to attest to that), and she thought that a relaxing bath would be able to melt the stress away.

It was a bit gimmicky, but she thought people loved bath bombs. A lot of people in her class loved them, in fact.

.

..

.

On Friday the 13th, Komui found a note on his desk after he returned from teaching a class. He’d sent off an email response to Shugarl an hour prior with an answer to a riddle.

The note revealed that the final and last question would be delivered in person. Also, the geode agate ‘box’ was now Komui’s to keep.

Shugarl had evidently been enjoying this little game of theirs, considering Shugarl would make mention of it every time they met, followed by a mischievous smirk. All the riddles and questions weren’t very difficult given Komui’s abilities, so it was sure that Shugarl was not taunting Komui by any means.

It was like when you execute a harmless prank against a friend and you both can laugh about it later.

That’s what level this was to him, a playful gesture.

-

[[The next day]]

-

Shugarl arrived at the family getaway cottage early in the day to prepare for the viewing/picnic. He had it set so they could eat and view the show from the porch. Blankets were prepared should either of them feel chilly during the viewing.

For the food, he prepared a number of things:

He prepared a creamy chicken and Gnocchi soup, with a French country Boule bread to dip the soup with. This would be warm and hearty. A side Thai Mango salad with Peanut dressing, was bright and flavorful. For the entrée, Shugarl chose a Smoked Salmon pasta.

As for a dessert, he prepared personal sized blueberry pies, where the crust was fashioned into a Fibonacci spiral. What else could one expect from a math nerd? Of course, he would decorate his pies with anything mathematical.

He chose pies, because he assumed Komui enjoyed them. He made a pi (pie) pun last month, and that left a lasting impression on Shugarl. As such, he chose to bake personal sized pies for dessert.

As for beverages, there were many to choose from. Komui could have his go-to drink, coffee, or he could choose from anything else such as water, wine, juice, etc.

When Komui arrived, the food was prepared fresh and warm, using the kitchen in the cottage. There was plenty of food to last them a while, so they could enjoy their food at a leisurely pace, waiting for the sun to set, and the meteor shower show to commence.

The family getaway cottage was isolated in the thick forest of trees, so there weren’t any lights that would drown out the light of the meteor shower. Shugarl found the show to be rather enjoyable, and having great company to share the sights with was all the more pleasing.

The night was passing by peacefully, and Shugarl excused himself for a moment to fetch something. He returned with a ‘Storm Glass’ and a notebook.

This sealed glass bulb contains chemicals that crystalize in response to atmospheric conditions. Of course, this could not replace the weather forecasting system, but it was a fun exercise. Keeping track of the storm glass’s responses to the weather and making predictions of the weather would be fun, wouldn’t it? Shugarl thought it would be fun, anyways.

“There is no right or wrong answer to the final question, so I’m gifting you the final prize in advance. I found you could make a storm glass yourself, so I did just that. I hope that you will find this storm glass amusing to play with.”

It seemed to be something a Science nerd would enjoy.

Over the month after Valentine’s day, Shugarl had put a lot of thought into his planning, and he’d also put much consideration to himself. This is not something he’d done in a long while, and so it was awkward at first, but Shugarl adjusted himself accordingly.

After much consideration, Shugarl had come to a conclusion he could agree with.

“I’ve put a lot of thought into it, and I’ve come to think of you as someone very important in my life. I don’t think I’ve truly had a person who could truly understand me and share my interests with. I feel comfortable around you, and I can put my trust in you. Even when I’m having one of my episodes, you didn’t chastise me, or avoid me out of sheer discomfort. You took the time to comfort me and attempt to heal the old scars I have in the barren wasteland that people call a heart.” He felt uncomfortable with how honest he was being at the moment, but he did resolve himself to do this, so he shall.

“I had thought that’s all it was at first. I’m not well in tune with my emotions as I’m sure you’d understand. I could not understand until recently, when I dug deep and contemplated on who I am as a person. I’ve deduced a conclusion from various instances throughout our friendship, and that is… I believe the feelings I feel towards you transcend that of mere friendship. I daresay I harbor romantic feelings towards you. What do you think about that?”

That’s it, that’s the question.  

What say you now, Komui?

_______________________________________________________________

Upon the conclusion of Valentine’s Day, to say he hadn’t been curious about what Shugarl was planning for White Day would have been a lie. It wasn’t that he regretted going all out for Valentine’s Day, far from it, and Shugarl had seemed pleased with his gifts only… he wondered if he should feel intimidated at the unknown possibilities. This was Shugarl after all and Komui was well acquainted with his habit of repaying anything tenfold, they had been friends too long for him not to have noticed this characteristic.

When the scientist thought back to their Valentine’s dinner, he couldn’t help but recall that although things were as casual and comfortable as it usually was between them, there had been occasional moments when the atmosphere seemed almost charged and Shugarl more pensive than usual. But surely he had simply been imaging things, either that or his fellow professor was already scheming his comeback for White Day…

In the end, Komui decided he probably felt more excited than intimidated to see what the other came up with this year.

The invitation to watch a meteor shower while enjoying a late night picnic wasn’t something he expected but it certainly was a pleasant surprise. His first thought had been to ask whether he should contribute to the food and beverages they would be consuming but having considered that this was probably part of his White Day gift decided not to. Nevertheless, he was looking forward to it and did not hesitate enthusiastically accepting the invitation.

When the 1st of March rolled around, Komui couldn’t help but laugh. In light of the puzzles he’d had Shugarl solve on Valentine’s day he really should have seen this coming. He had no complaints. The riddles were all things he could answer quite easily and he got gifts for answering correctly to boot. It felt a little like he was being spoiled but it was a nice change from the teasing he often had to endure.

It ended up becoming an inside joke of sorts, something private just between them but then, come to think of it, wasn’t that how it was with a lot of things? Ever since Shugarl had become a professor he’d not really bothered to try get along with anyone else more than he had to. It was always Shugarl he complained to about a hard day or ridiculous test papers, Shugarl that he dragged along to interesting lectures or symposiums, Shugarl that he ate lunch and drank coffee with, Shugarl that he laughed with and was teased by. It was perhaps a little scary to suddenly realise that apart from Lenalee, Shugarl was the one his world revolved around.

When exactly had that happened?

The days passed by and the  14th of March drew steadily closer. He enjoyed the biscotti he received and was touched by the gift from Jupiter. Komui had never used a bath bomb before but since Jupiter had gone out of her way to give it to him, he would give it a try so he could thank her properly. It was also a treat to see how adorable she looked in the dress he made for her. She was almost as precious as Lenalee… almost.

On the day question, Komui arrived at the cottage to see a wonderful spread of food prepared for their picnic which smelled absolutely mouth-watering. He couldn’t help but want to tease the other professor a little considering all the food that was set out.

“You’re not trying to fatten me up or anything are you?”

Admittedly, he was slightly on the slender side and occasionally neglected to eat when he got wrapped up in one project or another but he wasn’t quite a walking skeleton just yet. Jokes aside, he really appreciated all the effort that had gone into the preparation of the meal and he was looking forward to tasting it.

It was an enjoyable evening all round, the cottage being an ideal spot to view the meteor shower and the company made it all the more pleasant. After a time, Shugarl excused himself only to return with a storm glass which Komui eyed with interested fascination.

The scientist was very impressed that Shugarl had made the storm glass himself and also very excited at having received such an interesting device. He laughed warmly as he accepted the contraption, admiring it with sparkling eyes.

“Haha you know me well it seems~”

For a moment he was puzzled over the prospect of a final question until he recalled the note he had received the day before informing him of this very fact. A question that didn’t have a right or wrong answer… now he was truly curious.

…

For a moment in time his heart stopped.

Had he heard that correctly? Had he somehow dozed off while watching the meteor shower only to dream this? But no, this was real wasn’t it.

…I habour romantic feelings towards you…

…romantic feelings towards you…

…romantic feelings…

The words echoed in his mind on repeat and he could feel his face flushing bright red even as his eyes stung and a ridiculous grin started forming on his face without his permission. He probably looked like a maniac right now. Luckily for him, Shugarl had sat down in his vicinity to give him the storm glass so he could conveniently hide his face in the nape of his neck.

He felt far too embarrassed for his expression to be seen right now even if it was dark, although nothing could be done about his trembling limbs. It was unexpectedly nerve wracking to be confessed to for the first time.

It was incredible to know how his companion felt about him, the situation feeling almost surreal when he considered that time not too long ago when he thought he might have ruined their friendship.

Swallowing passed the lump in his throat, he breathed out a shaky sigh before quietly murmuring a response of sorts.

“I I think I’m in shock…”

Perhaps that was a bit of an understatement.

“… honoured… and happy… very, very happy.”

He was, exuberantly so, but that wasn’t exactly the answer he was supposed to be giving was it. There was also a small part that wondered whether he should be questioning Shugarl’s tastes but that was quickly squashed. More importantly, he needed to give him a better answer than that.

What did he think about it. There was only one answer really. 

Apart from Lenalee, the person his world revolved around was Shugarl.

“In that case… it’s okay if I feel the same… right?

[theretirementstory]

Dear me I have had such a busy day and still have lots to do. Marie-Therese arrived about 10.45 and has just left. I had prepared a picnic for us and had it hidden in the boot of the car, we headed off to Chateauvillain and the weather has been absolutely gorgeous. We arrived at the market and were checking out the stalls, then we saw our friend Sarah who was selling her gift cards and paper, from there we had a walk to the brocante. I was wandering around just looking at things with no intention to buy and Marie-Therese was having a good look around too. Blow me down she only bought two African chairs which are to be her sons’ Christmas present! The guy had said he would deliver them to her next Sunday, but just before we were going to leave, she asked if they would fit in my car, so we brought them home today. As we wandered around again, I asked if she would like a drink of coffee, she declined so then I said that I had brought a picnic. She was amazed and we went to the car to collect the “picnic basket”, she had taken some coconut milk and some watermelon to keep herself hydrated and when I unpacked our lunch, chicken, endive, tomatoes, cucumber, carrot, peppers, tabbouleh and olive bread sticks she was more than happy to tuck into it. We shared the watermelon and both really enjoyed our salads, we had plum crumble for dessert which was really tasty too. The picnic table was underneath a huge hazelnut tree which was dropping nuts onto the ground, we had such fun picking up as many nuts as we could, mine are all in the picnic basket and I cannot wait to be shelling those. “The Daddy” who has been self isolating asked if I would get the stamp collection out and he video called me so that he could see the stamps…….we were on the phone for over 2 hours but it was really good fun and I didn’t really want to put them away again! As usual I feel as if I haven’t done much this week, well I did have a birthday and I went to have a glass of champagne at the bar, it turned into two! It was a lovely way to celebrate. I received a card from a lady I lost touch with a good few years ago, we have a friend in common and she had given “Jane” my address. That was such a lovely surprise and of course there was a letter in with the card. I decided to give her a call, so you can imagine her surprise too. My gorgeous granddaughter video called me too, I was showing her the cake I was having for my birthday tea and “The Daddy” brought in a sliced up chocolate roll as her piece of birthday cake. All in all my birthday was a wonderful day and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I got a message to say that Monique was unable to go to the French class on Wednesday and to be honest I was glad to spend the afternoon at home. I know I should have offered to take the class but I had lots of things buzzing around in my head and I could not be bothered to add to that. Then I had to attend my first physio on my shoulder, my appointment was 4pm but I didn’t get seen until 4.40pm it was really busy. I knew I had to have shock treatment but I had no idea what that was, well it was a bit like a mini pneumatic drill hitting my shoulder very quickly, 2000 hits on the shoulder then 2000 hits on my bicep. She had done some manipulation first and then I was on the tens machine, I came home with my shoulder strapped up with blue tape. I took that off this morning and surprise, surprise there had been some light bruising. I am back on Friday morning this week, so that should be fun. The weather has been really lovely all week and I have made the most of it in my garden, not working in it, just sitting out enjoying the sunshine. Talking of gardens, I finally got the “devis” from the gardener! I messaged and asked him to call round just so that I could remember what I had asked him to do. I am now waiting for a devis to take the laurel, forsythia and some other shrub, which all stand at about 2 metres plus, out of the garden completely. (Cannot wait to see the price for that!) Oh well its only money!! I went and spent time with my refugee ladies, only two this week, we were knitting, talking and eating…...what a wonderful way to spend a couple of hours. Yesterday was the National Day of the Firefighters, here in France. Living not too far from the Fire Station, I could hear drums and brass instruments so went out to investigate, I forgot my mask so I had to observe from a distance. The Fire Station has been renovated recently and it was also an opportunity to showcase that, it is very smart now. “The Graduate” is still waiting to hear when he (and others) will be able to take their re-sits and hand in their dissertations. It is to be hoped it will not be too long as he had other plans for this time period. One of my friends from Newcastle also celebrated a birthday this week. I am sure she had a wonderful time and has also enjoyed her weekend away. “The Daddy” returned to work on Thursday and then had his day off on Friday and isn’t back to work until Monday. My granddaughters Great Grandma celebrated her birthday on Friday and with my cousin celebrating today it has been a week for birthdays. The 12th of September also saw the 50th Wedding Anniversary of another cousin, one of his brother’s celebrated his 50th last year, how amazing is that in this day and age. Now, I have to pack a bag, get myself all sorted for my adventure tomorrow. I am heading to Rheims for two nights and really looking forward to it, a nice little break away is just what is needed at the moment. Hopefully, I should have a lot to tell you next time. Have a good week, until next week. Photos: Chateauvillain market earlier this year and another memorial to thse that were transported to concentration camps from Vitry-le-Francois.

[euroman1945-blog]

The Daily Tulip

The Daily Tulip – News From Around The World

Wednesday 8th August 2018

Good Morning Gentle Reader….  I hope you slept well and feel refreshed to face the day, Coffee tastes good this morning as always and I poured you a cup, so enjoy, Bella my dog is relaxed after walking under a clear sky filled with stars and is sleeping at my feet as I ready to type the Daily Tulip, having read the news from around the world, I don’t quite know where to start today, So as my Mother used to say start at the beginning..

SWISS POLICE SAY DOGS SHOULD WEAR SHOES IN HEATWAVE…. Police in the Swiss city of Zurich are urging owners to buy shoes for their dogs, in order to protect their paws in the high temperatures, reports say. According to the public broadcaster SRF, the police in Zurich have launched the "Hot Dog campaign", and are educating dog owners on how they can protect their four-legged friends in the hot weather, given that the overheated pavements can be painful on their feet. A prolonged heatwave throughout Europe means that Switzerland has had one of the hottest summers since records began in 1864, with temperatures this July hovering around 30C (86F). Parts of the country have also experienced droughts, the SwissInfo news website reports. According to Zurich Police Spokesperson Michael Walker, 30 degrees can feel like 50-55 degrees on the ground, and can cause particular discomfort to canines. "When a dog walks on hot asphalt, he can burn his feet - just like a human walking barefoot," he tells SRF. The Zurich City Police are advising owners to check before taking their dogs out on walks whether the ground is too hot, by measuring the temperature with the back of their hand for five seconds. They are also advising pet owners against leaving animals in hot cars, and ensuring that they have enough drinking water.

NEW ZEALAND SHOP BATTLES IN COURT OVER WEETABIX IMPORTS…. A shop owner in New Zealand is involved in a battle of the breakfast cereals after her plans to import British favourite Weetabix ended up in court. British expat Lisa Wilson wanted to sell the wheat-based breakfast to homesick Britons in her Canterbury-based shop A Little Bit of Britain, but has come up against domestic manufacturer Sanitarium, which says the brand name is too similar to their own local brand Weet-Bix, Radio New Zealand reports. Customs officials seized a shipment of Weetabix last August after a complaint by Sanitarium. Weet-Bix is a hugely popular brand in both Australia and New Zealand complete with celebrity endorsements, and Sanitarium are keen to protect their trademark. "The issue is the potential and real threat of Weetabix coming into this market and cashing in on this great brand that Kiwis love," Sanitarium's Rob Scoines told the New Zealand Herald. Mr Scoines pointed out last August that Weet-Bix cannot be sold in the UK because of its similarity to British brand Weetabix. With the case at the High Court in Christchurch hinging on whether customers are likely to be confused by the difference between a hyphen and the letter 'a', Ms Wilson thinks that her largely expatriate customers in New Zealand know exactly what they're buying. "The Weetabix box actually has the UK price in pound sterling written on the front... and I have never had anybody asking why our Weetabix are so expensive, thinking they were New Zealand products," she says. "They know they are British Weetabix as we sell British groceries." She went on to tell the local Newshub website that she's making no attempt to pass the cereal off as Weet-Bix, and has turned down a compromise offered by Sanitarium to have the Weetabix logo covered. Ms Wilson is hoping for a swift judgment in the case, not least because last August's shipment is still being held by customs officials. Tomorrow is the last day of the hearing; however, Ms Wilson may have a bit longer to wait, with Radio NZ saying that Justice David Gendall is likely to reserve judgement.

RUSSIAN MINISTRY SPOKESWOMAN TURNS SONGWRITER…. The Russian Foreign Ministry's chief spokeswoman seems to have a burgeoning second career writing lyrics for pop songs. Maria Zakharova, despite a full-time day job as the public face of Russian diplomacy, has supplied the words to "Paid in Full", a break-up song performed by popular singer Katya Lel, Argumenty i Fakty newspaper reports. The bouncy number, which would not sound out of place on Eurovision, came about as a chance encounter between Katya Lel and Ms Zakharova, the latter coming up with the lyrics "after a sleepless night". "I paid for everything… The race is over, and you are not the only one anymore. I'm free like a wave, once again," the Russian lyrics go. It's not the first time that she's branched out into song, either. Last year she wrote "Return the Memory", a song about Syria for singer Narghiz. However, Ms Zakharova has pointed out that she's not for hire. She told the official TASS news agency: "Many people ask me to write, but I don't work to order. I need to feel, to understand - emotions come first, and then the words." Nor is she the first Russian government official to go into music. Vladimir Putin's former speechwriter Jakhan Pollieva has written lyrics for a number of songs, including the 2007 hit "A Snowstorm is Coming", while the president's advisor and one-time deputy prime minister Vladislav Surkov reportedly wrote lyrics for the now-defunct Russian rock band Agatha Christie.

CANADIAN PUDDLE SPLASH VAN DRIVER LOSES JOB…. A van driver in the Canadian city of Ottawa has been sacked after they were filmed repeatedly splashing pedestrians. Contracting company Black & McDonald said in a Facebook post that the individual concerned is "no longer employed" with them after a video of their anti-social behaviour went viral, Canadian broadcaster CBC reports. A 45 second clip, filmed on a rear-facing dashcam, shows the unidentified driver veering into the kerb on a rainy day to drench pedestrians at least three times. At the very end of the clip, the company's logo is clearly seen on the side of the vehicle. The video has been viewed over 750,000 times, and Black & McDonald subsequently made an apology for their driver's behaviour on its Facebook page. It says: "We apologise to everyone impacted by the recent incident in Ottawa of unacceptable driving by one of our van drivers... This is an isolated incident and the individual is no longer employed with Black & McDonald." A spokesperson also said the company had been co-operating with the police over the incident. According to the Ottawa Sun newspaper, the driver will not face any criminal charges, with police considering the driver's sacking being punishment enough. "We consider the file now closed," Sgt. Mark Gatien told the press. "The outcome from the employer we feel is enough of a lesson learned for him and your readers and viewers."

BEAR SCARES TRANSYLVANIA POLITICAL SUMMER CAMP…. A summer camp for young Transylvania political activists is reeling from close encounters with a bear in the mountains of northern Romania. The local members of the ethnic-Hungarian minority were looking forward to lively debates at the annual Tusnadfurdo gathering of their branch of Fidesz, the right-wing populist party that governs neighbouring Hungary, according to the Budapest Sztar Klikk news site. But the first sign that events might be taking a livelier course than usual came on Wednesday night, when a female bear entered the camp at Baile Tusnad and bit a man on the arm and clawed his leg. He is receiving treatment in a local hospital, the Romanian newspaper Adevarul reported. But when the bear reappeared in the parking lot the following evening, many of the participants "ran screaming in panic", Sztar Klikk said. The encounters have more than local implications, as Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban is due in the camp at the weekend to deliver a keynote speech about his government's policy towards Hungarian communities abroad. He used the same event to set out his vision of building an "illiberal state" back in 2014. Csaba Borboly, the head of Harghita Council, said he had asked the Romanian government to deal with the danger posed by bears in the area for some time. Environment Minister Gratiela Gavrilescu responded by authorising hunters to move the mother bear to the Zarnesti Bear Sanctuary - in particular as it appeared that her cubs had been killed in a train collision, and there was a danger that she might become more aggressive, Romania's Observator TV reports. The forests of Transylvania are home to 6,000-7,000 brown bears, and controlling the population has been a hot political issue in Romania for years.

Well Gentle Reader I hope you enjoyed our look at the news from around the world this, morning… …

Our Tulips today are the world's largest tulip carpet is seen at Sultanahmet Square in Istanbul, Turkey

A Sincere Thank You for your company and Thank You for your likes and comments I love them and always try to reply, so please keep them coming, it's always good fun, As is my custom, I will go and get myself another mug of "Colombian" Coffee and wish you a safe Wednesday 8th August 2018 from my home on the southern coast of Spain, where the blue waters of the Alboran Sea washes the coast of Africa and Europe and the smell of the night blooming Jasmine and Honeysuckle fills the air…and a crazy old guy and his dog Bella go out for a walk at 4:00 am…on the streets of Estepona…

All good stuff....But remember it’s a dangerous world we live in

Be safe out there…

Robert McAngus