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sussex-nature-lover · 3 years

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Sunday 17th January 2021

Whoop Whoop

The sun’s out!

That’s the good news, the bad news is how it shows up the state of the windows. Weather’s played havoc here and they need a deep clean for sure.

Last week I found a few pots outside that were just sitting there. To say they were water-logged is an understatement. There’s another of the wire holders with more Hyacinths in, but nothing much popping through from those as yet. I’ve brought them indoors to see what happens.

Guest Photo: Ms L’s Hyacinths Across The Pond

L has been forcing her bulbs on and they’ve made a lot more progress despite being hours behind us! It’s funny how L has chosen shades of pink, but whenever I buy Hyacinths I always go for white and blue. I do like them (a lot) and they’re very fragrant. The only issues I have is that sometimes they grown too tall and tend to keep over a bit so they have to be supported and sometimes the fragrance can be a little over powering. Not as bad as certain types of lily which make me sneeze quite violently and give me an awful headache.

We’ve been listening to the cricket again from Sri Lanka, where they’ve been reporting sunshine, but now there are dark clouds gathering. 302-7 at tea (09.27am GMT) a lead of 16 runs with England yet to bat in their second innings.

Update: oh my goodness how matches can twist and turn! The alarm will be set for 4am tomorrow

Galle International Ground aka The Esplanade. Photos: Pinterest

With the Indian ocean visible on two sides of the ground and the famous clocktower of the 16th-century Dutch fort towering above, Galle's international stadium was one of the most scenic venues in the world, until it was devastated - along with the entire Southern coast of Sri Lanka - by the terrible tsunami that struck on December 26, 2004. For a time, the future of the venue was in some doubt - especially given the political schisms that had formed at boardroom level in Sri Lanka's cricket administration - but thanks to international support from such luminaries as Ian Botham and Shane Warne, who had taken his 500th Test wicket on the ground earlier that year, a pledge was made to rebuild the ground from scratch and that work was completed in time for the visit by England in 2008

I’ve also been writing about the birds pairing up in the garden and they were certainly keeping each other company yesterday. Other than that we’ve been mainly seeing single Great Spotted Woodpeckers and vast numbers of House Sparrows. Going out to the Pharmacy yesterday there was little activity round and about except for lots and lots of sheep in the soggy fields and a very large Buzzard atop a telegraph pole. It was a pretty awful day and yet it started to lighten up a tad as we got home mid-afternoon.

We still had interest in the bird bath from Robin, despite the fact the rain started again.

and no, I haven’t stretched that picture, Robin really is standing tall

And today the Nuthatch has been busy with the seed in the muddy tray.

Upcoming on TV. This Tuesday (the 19th) for an hour. The series will be eight episodes (UK, licence fee)

HOME SCHOOLING IDEA:

As I mentioned London Zoo yesterday perhaps this Walking Tour on You Tube would pass half an hour and spark off some ideas, maybe geography, researching where some of the animals originate from?

WHAT I LEARNED TODAY:

Talking of geography, the cricket is coming from Galle in the south of Sri Lanka.

The Fort in the Old Quarter is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Warning: before the tour starts in the first few seconds a spider will flash before your eyes very briefly

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DID YOU KNOW? STOCK TAKING

ZSL London Zoo’s Animal Manager, Angela Ryan, said: “ZSL London Zoo is home to more than 400 species, from Endangered Asiatic lions to Critically Endangered Chinese giant salamanders - we’re working not only here in the Zoo to increase their numbers and learn more about these amazing animals, but on conservation projects around the world too.     “We have to submit an updated number of animals each year as part of our zoo license, but we also share them with the international zoo community to inform our global conservation breeding work.”  

For some zookeepers the task is relatively easy, but imaginative tactics are used by others to ensure every resident at the Zoo is accounted for - the B.U.G.S team cheat and count ant colonies as one, instead of tracking hundreds of individual ants.    The annual audit takes keepers almost a week to complete and the information is shared with other zoos around the world via a database called ZIMS, where it’s used to help manage worldwide conservation breeding programmes for endangered species. 

#naturephotography LondonZoo gardenbirds England #cricket

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johngarrisonmusic · 7 years

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Tour Diary Part 2

Arrive at JFK fully expecting a thorough, Trump era inspection and interrogation. However, I breeze through immigration and even have a nice conversation with Errol, my inspector. Although his authority muscle was flexed a little when questioned what music I was playing. “I play bass for James Blunt” I reply. “Who?” he says “That’s Showbiz” I quip……..!!!! An icy stare falls onto the once happy face of Errol. “I only like rap” are his final words as he stamps my passport and shouts “Next”

June 26

3 hours sleep. 4am lobby call. It’s Good Morning America live performance today of “OK”, Blunt’s new single here in the States. This track is quite personal for me as they are releasing a version of the track that I remixed along with James, as the main version to radio here in the States. You need to have many strings to the bow to make a living in music these days. We’re all in a daze as we check our hire gear. God knows what time our crew arrived but all the gear is set up and ready to go. Writing this a few days later and I can’t remember much about the performance but the label and management all seemed happy. I think. Or maybe I dreamt that…!!!

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Jet lag and the general buzz of being in New York means an attempted snooze doesn’t happen. So Pembers (keys), Kristoff (drums) and I go for a power walk around Central Park. Gotta take the opportunities to stay in shape on the road. Something I’ve learned over the years. And failed at mostly..!!! Central Park is such a wonderful place. It never fails to impress. A perfect way to pass a few hours off. Days like this I feel very privileged to be doing what I do.

We then head off to another TV studio to perform on the Seth Myers Show. The studio is bloody freezing. It’s always the way with US TV shows. God knows why. There must be a reason. No idea what that is though. But it’s full jacket wearing performance for this show. Which is odd as it’s 27oC outside. A planned big night out in NYC is thwarted by jetlag that eventually kicks in too hard to ignore. Early night for us boring folk. How very un rock n roll…!!!

June 27

5am wake up. Not for any particular reason. Just jetlag. But that’s ok in NYC. I go out and wander the streets for 4 hours interspersed with coffee breaks. I still love this city. I lived here for 2 years back in 2006/7. It still feels like home. There’s an energy that emanates through the floor here. You can feel it coming out the walls of the buildings and skyscrapers. Everyone is here for a reason. There is a focus here that brings out the creative side in everyone who has one. I still love it and today I soak it up.

We are performing on Kelly and Ryan TV show today. Another freezing studio. A trailer filled with farmyard animals is parked right outside our dressing room. The odd ‘Moooo” and Baaahaaaa” interrupting James’ vocal warm up are highly amusing breaks to the tedious boredom of TV world. Still no idea why they were there as they never appeared on the show…!! Slightly gutted that the very cute Kelly is on holiday. It’s always a treat for the eyes playing on her show.

The boredom is abruptly shattered when we are told we have to lose 30 seconds of the track. We have already soundchecked so it’s a strategic edit arranged, board meeting style, around the table with no way of checking. Times like this we are thankful we are a fully live band with no backing track. We visually cue the changes live on air while being broadcast to millions. It’s times like this you know you are alive. It works. No time to stress or panic. We nail it. 3 mins dead. Everyone is happy. And we are done for the day. With nothing but a fight tomorrow, there is a palpable air of excitement amongst the band.

We head downtown to my favourite Italian restaurant in NYC called Emilio’s Ballato. It’s an old school mafia style Italian that I was introduced to when I lived here. Emilio is a terrifying, yet lovable character who sits at the door. Always does. Has done for decades. You only have to imagine a mafia style Italian restaurant owner with a gravelly voice who has to occasionally pop out to “take care of business” to know what he looks like. The mental picture you have now……. That’s Emilio. The first time I came here, Sting was sat at the first table with Jay Z and Rhianna. It’s that kinda place. Emilio Jnr takes us to a table and explains the menu in his “baddabing” way. It’s so cliché one or 2 of our party suspect it’s all a show. But I know for a fact it is not. The family back in Sicily send over the ingredients twice a week. All 3 of Emilio’s sons work at the place. It’s the real deal. And it’s awesome.

Tonight we are all on the guest list of the Imelda May gig at Webster Hall. Pembers, our keyboard player, is Imelda’s player too. He depped out the last 2 Imelda gigs as they clashed with the Blunt tour. But coincidence means we are all here in NYC. The band are amazing and Imelda’s voice soars in this place. A great old school sweaty gig. We hang out with the band at an Irish bar around the corner after the show. God knows what time we finished but it was a long hazy walk back to the hotel.

Goodbye NYC

June 28

Flight to Kansas today. We arrive to find they have not sent the mini bus that we asked for, but a car….!!! For 12 of us. So we squeeze in 3 cars with gear and bags on our laps. It’s not all glamour…!!

June 29 It’s the first day of our Ed Sheeran support today. Kansas City the first show. Still jetlagged. I’m up and wide awake at 5am. I decide to check out Kansas. I set off on a head clearing 90 minute walk. In the space of a few minutes, the sky turns apocalyptic black and I’m suddenly in the middle of an almighty downpour and a violent thunder storm. Flash floods come hurtling down the street. It’s actually pretty scary. But awesome too. Mother nature flexing her muscle and reminding us how insignificant we all are. Trash cans hurtling down the street. I run back to the hotel and watch the storm from the safety of my hotel window.

A post shared by JohnnyVic (@satellites_johnnyvic) on Jun 29, 2017 at 5:38am PDT

The tour bus pulls up outside our hotel. Always a hugely exciting moment. There’s something about American tour buses. It’s probably subconsciously linked to the childhood dream of touring the States that most musicians had at some point. But also just how cool the busses look. This is home for the next 2 months.

We get to the venue. The Sprint Arena. Sold Out 16,000. We meet Ed and all the crew. They are all super nice and friendly which is a welcome relief. It’s not always the case. The support act can occasionally be treated as a lesser entity. But not here. I think the fact James is such a big name in his own right helps. And the fact James and Ed are friends. Ed co-wrote some of the tracks on James’ new album and we even recorded one of them at Ed’s house earlier in the year.

We soundcheck the whole set. It feels a bit weird. Ed does his thing with just an acoustic guitar and a loop pedal. And rarely sound checks. So seeing all our full band gear on his stage feels a little intrusive on his minimal set. But again, Ed’s crew are all super helpful and asking if we need anything. We iron out a few issues from the rehearsals and drop a song as we creep over our allocated 40 mins.

My Bass Set up.

James and I then play a quick 3 song set unamplified on acoustic guitars for 25 competition winners. We haven’t worked out the songs before on acoustics so it’s very much on the fly. But they all seem thrilled.

Ed pops in to wish us luck as we all do our vocal warm ups. We go on.

It’s a younger crowd than we are used to. It’s quite clear pretty early on that a few of them have no idea who James is. I guess it is 12 years since his debut album was no.1 here in the States. But rather sweetly, you can see a lot of the crowd are holding their phones with the lyrics on and are attempting to sing along. So cute.

James announces “most of you were probably conceived to this song” as he strikes up the opening chords to the world wide smash that is “You’re Beautiful”. You can see the penny drop in the audience. And in a scene reminiscent of an 80’s style cheesy high school movie, the crowd slowly all get to their feet and whoop, with fists in the air as they all realise ‘it’s that guy’. It’s an amazing moment. And from that point on it’s an amazing show. James gets all the 16,000 to their feet as he piano surfs during the outro of our set.

We all come off and have a post gig huddle. It’s a success. There’s always a slight element of doubt before a support gig. But those doubts are put to bed tonight. Ed pops in before his set and pours us all a mandatory Tequila.

Ed hits the stage to an ear splitting shrill of 16,000 very excited people. It’s an amazing spectacle. Just a man and a guitar with a loop pedal. He is a master of his craft. Everyone is on their feet. From the hardcore fans at the front to the reluctant parents on the very back row, Ed has them all in the palm of his hand. With just the occasional look down at his loop pedal multi track set up, the accompaniments he makes on the fly with his voice and beating the guitar body for percussion, it’s seamless. And mighty impressive.

#ed sheeran #james blunt #nyc #kansas #johnnyvic #john garrison

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stillwinterair · 7 years

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Also whoops I forgot to mention the fact that my city got fucking ravaged by over a dozen wildfires last night and today and so my life has been pretty fucking crazy for the last... 20 hours? We're safe and we got the fuck out of there with as much shit as we could bring with us, and our apartment is still unaffected but A: the neighborhood was a mile away from a fire that was put out so the air quality was AWFUL complete with ashfall and the works, and B: that could like... still change. So yeah. Safe currently, with our cat and our stuff, and wow I woke up at 4am to leave the apartment and it felt pretty damn surreal until about 7:30 when I looked at the horizon and just saw a huge wall of pitch black smoke. A sizable chunk of the city was completely decimated--as in, whole neighborhoods burned to the ground--so like... we're incredibly fucking lucky. Crazy day. We'll hooopefully be going back home tomorrow? And hopefully there won't be anymore ash and smoke in the air cuz boy that's not fun to breathe. Especially when you have asthma. Anyway. I'm sleep now

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itskimtaehyung · 7 years

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I Miss You(ngi)

Anonymous said: I miss yoongi 😣💙💜 can u write a quick fluff senario [sic] for yoongi??

A/N: So this is neither quick nor a scenario bc i got carried away oops. Also the title..... I couldn’t help myself I'm sorry. Also it was originally 2299 words but i couldnt have that so i added one

Pairing: Yoongi x Reader

Summary: Yoongi is away on tour and you miss him terribly. However, he checks up on you whenever he can and makes sure to call everyday.

Genre: Fluff

Word count: 2300

Content: Cute phone conversations, really fluffy stuff, numerous uses of the word “asshole”

Sneak Peak:

“Hey, babe. I just got off stage. Have you eaten yet? Did you watch the broadca—”

“Your dog hates me,” you interrupt. Holly still refuses to come out from under the couch.

“He’s just shy. Give him a some time to adjust,” he laughs.

“It’s been two weeks! He still avoids me and rips up my stuff. Yoongi, I miss you. Are you sure you can’t come home for just a little bit? I don’t want to be spending the holiday alone.” You pout even though you know he can’t see it.

BARK BARK BARK.

You look over your shoulder to see Min Holly jumping frantically and barking up a storm. You get up from your desk where you had been studying to see what has him so startled.

“What is it Holly? What do you see?” You ask the small, brown puppy.

Holly continues barking and jumping up, clawing at the TV screen that you had forgotten to turn off before starting your study session. That’s when you see your boyfriend, Min Yoongi, up on stage, performing with the rest of BTS. You unmute the program so that Holly can hear his father’s voice. This silences him, and he sits back on his paws, mesmerized by the show.

“Don’t worry, little one. I miss him, too.” You pet Holly on the head and scratch between his ears. “Sadly, he won’t be home for a few more weeks. It looks like you and I are going to have to spend the Lunar New Year with each other.” Holly lets out a quick bark and squirms from under your hand. “Hey! It won’t be that bad! Do you really not like me that much?” He runs away and you try to chase him, but he darts under the couch before you can catch him.

You love Holly, and when Yoongi asked you to watch him while he was gone, you were more than happy to oblige. The feelings, however, were not mutual. You have no idea why this dog could have so much disdain towards you. Or how this cute little being could be full of so much hatred. You guess it might have something to do with the fact that, in the weeks leading up to the tour, Yoongi wanted to spend as much time with you as he could, and stayed most nights at your place, leaving Holly back home. Or maybe because you had only met Holly a handful of times, and suddenly he was moved from the comfort of Bangtan’s apartment, to the unfamiliarity of yours. You tried being friendly, giving him treats which he snatched out of your hand to take under the couch where he would finish enjoying them, or letting him sleep on your bed, which still faintly smelled of Yoongi from the last night he spent at your place. Holly, however, would not relent. Sometimes you would come home to ripped up pillows or books pulled off the shelves. It’s not like you could really do anything. You could never hurt another creature, especially one as cute as Holly. Even the squirt bottle seemed too harsh for you.

Once the program ends, you switch off the TV and leave Holly to nap under the couch by himself. You’re about to get back to studying when your phone rings, the Blood Sweat and Tears instrumental filling the room.

“Hey, babe. I just got off stage. Have you eaten yet? Did you watch the broadca—”

“Your dog hates me,” you interrupt, with Holly still refusing to come out from under the couch.

“He’s just shy. Give him some time to adjust,” he laughs.

“I’m sorry, Y/N, I miss you too. We’re going to be in Indonesia for the new year and Japan until the middle of February. You know if I could come home, I would.” You can tell he means it, but that doesn’t make you miss him any less.

“You’re going to be gone for Seollal and Valentine’s Day? You’re the worst boyfriend ever,” you tease.

“I know, I know. I suck. But the company is really pushing the promotion for our japanese album right now so they’re trying to get us to do as many shows as we can.”

“Yeah, I know. I just miss you so much.” You feign a sniffle.

“Yah, Yoongi-hyung! We’ve got to get going!” You hear Jimin scream on the other side of the line.

“Okay I’m coming! Give me a sec!” Yoongi replies, then turns his attention back towards you. “I miss you a lot too, Y/N. Don’t worry. I’ll still call you everyday like I’ve been doing. I’ve got to go now, but I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

“Good night, my love. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

“Good night.”

Around midnight you try to fall asleep with no success. Holly has since come out from his hiding place and is now sleeping on one of Yoongi’s sweatshirts that he pulled out of the closet. You reach over to the nightstand to grab your cellphone, it’s bright screen illuminating your face as you scroll through your contact list until you find the number you’re looking for.

“Hello?” You hear his groggy voice through your phone. You suddenly feel guilty for waking him from his sleep which you know he hasn’t been getting much of lately.

“Yoongi?” You say hesitantly.

“Mm? Babe, what’s up? Are you okay?” He mumbles, still not completely out of his slumber.

“Yeah, I’m just having trouble falling asleep. When I said you were the worst boyfriend ever, you know I didn’t mean it, right?”

“Hm? Mm yeah yeah, I know you weren’t serious.”

“Okay good.”

“Is that why you couldn’t sleep?”

“.... Maybe.”

“You don’t have to worry about that, silly. I know you love me.”

“I do. I really do.”

“I love you, too. Now get some sleep. You don’t want to be too tired for school tomorrow.”

“Yoongi, it’s Friday.”

“What? Oh, right, right.” You kind of feel bad for him. He’s probably so overworked that he doesn’t even remember what day it is. You want nothing more than to be there with him to take the stress away.

“It sounds like you’re the one who needs the sleep. I’m sorry I woke you up. With all the shows and promotions and stuff, I know you guys don’t get to sleep much.”

“It’s not a big deal, Y/N. You know I love talking to you and hearing your voice.”

“Yes, I do. And as much as I love talking to you too, I also care about your health. So I’m going to hang up now and you better get some rest or else once you get home I’m gonna whoop your ass.” You hear him chuckle lightly on the other end.

“Okay. Good night, Y/N. I love you.”

“Love you more. Good night.” With that, you hang up and drift off to sleep.

The weeks pass slowly as you complete assignment after assignment and have to buy new pillows way more than you want to only to have them ripped up by Holly when you’re not looking. The end of January approaches, and you start seeing decorations for the New Year pop up all over Seoul.

The first day of the Seollal celebration falls on a Saturday. You wake up to a silent apartment that seems colder than usual. Yoongi’s absence is more noticeable today. You and Yoongi always spent the New Year together, so being without him on this holiday feels incredibly foreign. The previous years, you two would sleep in until the daylight pouring in from the window makes it impossible to stay asleep any longer. Then one of you would drag the other out of bed for brunch. Since the Bangtan apartment was often quite hectic this time of year, with family members visiting and the overall excitement of having time off, Yoongi opted to spend Seollal with you at your place. He liked your place a lot better than his. It was quiet, clean, and had a spacious kitchen.

Though neither of you were very good at cooking, it had become an annual tradition to attempt making tteok-guk as good as eomma did. Of course, being from different regions, the two of you could never agree on what constituted the best tteok-guk. Yoongi thought simple was best, and insisted that the two of you make it with just beef stock and rice cakes. “It’ll save us a lot of work,” he argued. But you, being from Busan, felt that the dish was incomplete without some kind of seafood.

“Should we even bother with the tteok-guk this year?” You ask Holly when you get out of bed and walk to the kitchen. “I mean I really don’t see a point without Yoongi here.”

Holly’s ears perk up at the sound of his father’s name, however gives no other reaction. You sigh and give the dog his food before pouring yourself a bowl of cereal. You’re eating your cereal and watching cartoons on the couch when you hear a knock on the door. You wonder who it could be, since all your friends went home for the holiday.

You set the cereal bowl down and walk over to the door, not bothering to look through the peephole before opening it. You swing the door open to see the elderly couple from a couple of doors down.

“Hi, darling.” The wife greets. “We heard you were spending Seollal alone this year and we just wanted you to know that we’re having a small gathering with our family down the hall and that our door is open if you want to join us.”

“Oh, no, Mrs. Kim. I’m quite alright on my own. I have to watch over Holly, anyway.” You gesture toward Holly who is in the kitchen, still scarfing down her breakfast. “Thank you for the offer, though.”

“Well, the both of you are welcome if you change your mind,” Mr. Kim adds.

“Thank you.” You bow to them before closing the door.

Later that night when Yoongi calls, you had long ago fallen asleep in front of the TV. You wake up at around 4am to see that he left a voicemail.

Hey, Y/N. Just calling to check up on you. Sorry again that I can’t be home with you for Seollal. Judging by the time, you’re probably asleep already. Did you have too much fun without me? Drink till you passed out already? No, I’m kidding haha. I know you’re tired from school and work and all that. Also, having an asshole like me for a boyfriend probably takes a toll on you, too. Speaking of my assholery, our Japan promotions have been extended, so I won’t be home until March. I’m really sorry. Both for being away and for having to tell you over voicemail like this. Anyway, I love you. Always remember that. Even when I forget to call, or seem rushed when we talk. Remember that I love you. Good night, Y/N. I’ll talk to you soon.

You want to cry. Three months without seeing Yoongi is too much. If it weren’t for school you would fly out to wherever he was and join him, much like some of the other members’ girlfriends were doing. You’re too tired from this whole situation so you decide to just go to bed and deal with your feelings in the morning.

This year Valentine’s Day falls on a Tuesday. You’re so worried about your chemistry exam that afternoon that you nearly forget about the holiday until a couple your friends tell you they’re going to dinner with their boyfriends, and that you could tag along if you wanted. You politely decline, not wanting to be the fifth wheel on their double date.

Thus you spend your Valentine’s day much like you spent your Seollal: on the couch watching TV. You haven’t heard from Yoongi all day, but pay no mind to it. His calls have been becoming less frequent lately and you assume it’s because of his insane schedules. You’re starting to doze off when you hear a knock on the door followed by a voice saying, “Delivery!” You open the door to see someone standing there, holding a big bouquet of red, heart-shaped balloons that cover the top half of his body, including his face.

“Delivery for Y/N?” The balloons say.

“Yeah that’s me.”

The delivery boy lowers the balloons to reveal his squinty eyes and gummy smile you know and love.

“Yoongi!” He sets down the balloon bouquet and you throw your arms around him as he pulls you in for a long awaited hug. “I missed you so much. Oh my god, I’m about to cry.”

“Aww, Y/N. Don’t cry. I’m here. I’m here.” He says softly into your hair.

You pull back to look at him. “Yeah, why are you here?” You raise an eyebrow at him. “I thought you were going to be in Japan until March?”

“Um… So, I kind of lied. Ow!” He rubs the arm that you just punched. “What!? I wanted to surprise you!”

“Min Yoongi, you’re an asshole!”

“I know, I know. But I’m here now. And I’m your asshole.”

“God that’s so cheesy, stop!” You laugh and finally kiss him on the lips for the first time in two and a half months. “I missed you. I missed you so much.”

“I missed you more.” He says, folding you back into his arms.

“Not possible,” you reply.

“Totally possible.” At that moment Holly decides to interrupt the two of you and starts pawing at his father’s legs. “And I missed you, too, Holly.” He says to the small brown thing.

You watch the two of them get reaquainted when you suddenly remember, “Wait. Does this mean you’re done with promotions? You’re here to stay? At least for a while I mean.”

He looks at you with the love and fondness you so missed and says, “Yeah. I’m here to stay.”

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