.
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Monday, August 31, 2009
Nature Shots from Phuket
Massive snails!
Cute little frogs....
Contrasting colours.....
Sweet scented frangipanis.
A Teaser of Photos to Come....
The Boy and I went away for a couple of days up to Phuket, Thailand and stayed in one of the most amazing resorts i have ever been to. More on that later (I am too tired tonight!).
The Boy Tries His Hand At Photography
On the odd occasion, I would ask the Boy to take a photo of me. You know, like a holiday snap.
Every time he took a photo of me, he would make sure he did it using his signature style.
Oh he thought he was so funny.....
Every time he took a photo of me, he would make sure he did it using his signature style.
Oh he thought he was so funny.....
Friday, August 21, 2009
Surrounding Myself With People That Make Me Happy
Speaking of which - the Boy arrives today. He will stay for eight days. I am so super excited about it, i can hardly sit still.
Will be back online soon.
Thank you for everyone's support. Like one poster said, the sky isnt the limit, its just a rung on my ladder!!!
K x
Will be back online soon.
Thank you for everyone's support. Like one poster said, the sky isnt the limit, its just a rung on my ladder!!!
K x
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Reminding Myself of Things That Make Me Happy
My beautiful neices and sister....
The Boy....
My home....
Memories of Edinburgh....
Memories of Charlottle in her little tartan skirt.... so cute....
My bike.......
Outdoors and nature....
Take Me As I Am - For Better and For Worse
I do not blog venomous things on my blog because I do not believe it is the most appropriate forum to do it. After all, my friends and family, my loved ones, come to read this blog to enjoy the great, happy things that go on in my life - and there are, of course, so so so so many of them that happen.
Some strangers read too, and enjoy living life vicariously through my (sometimes) quirky eyes. I enjoy this and I am motivated by this. As someone mentioned the other day to me, I love connecting intellectually with people in my many different creative ways. It is integral to my happiness. Take this away and I feel truly alone and disconnected with the world.
While i do not like to expose my "angry" side, sometimes it is inevitable (and i can just see my mum, dad and the Boy cringing as they read me going absolutely mental on a public forum - sorry guys, stop reading now!).
And on this occasion, the inevitable must occur.
Today, I had some pretty hurtful things said to me. Comments were made about me by someone who barely knows me, yet by someone who has made little effort over the last couple of months to get to know me, ask any questions about who i am, what I do, or my views and thoughts on general things. Yet, somehow, this person felt the need to hurt me by throwing a vile set of sentences at me about what they thought of me in order to justify a means to an end - perhaps to make themselves feel better, I don't know.
There are lots of things in life that I may not ever understand. I may try to analyse it, rationalise it, re-phrase it, or debate it but at the end of the day, sometimes it simply just won't make sense. I understand that. I have let go of the need to make sure that I understand. It took me a while but i am now there. This, however, does not mean I am untouchable and indestructible. Sticks and stones may break my bones (as will horses, so it seems) but hey, guess what - names still do hurt me.
I cannot apologise for who I am. I can apologise for the things I do, and those who know me well (and who have received genuine apologies from me) know that I often do recognise when I am wrong. I admit I am wrong, I show them that I have gone through the necessary thought process needed in order to acknowledge and admit my wrongs. When they get their apology, it is usually comprehensive and they know that I mean business.
I am sensitive. I do take things to heart and I do wear that heart permanently on my sleeve. I won't apologise for that. I am resilient though. Rarely will I remain hurt for too long (even when my heart is broken), and I will roll up my sleeves (even the sleeve that the heart is attached to!) and I will get on with it. I will lift my chin up, no matter how much something hurts, and I will keep on keeping on. In fact, I may even use the circumstance as an opportunity to make myself a better person. I will recognise the necessary lesson involved and take it with me on my journey.
I sometimes think before I speak and that gets me into a little trouble. However, the "speak" will generally be a derivative of a kind heart, not a cold one. I do not go out with the intent to destroy people, belittle them or make them feel like junk about themselves. I guess this blog entry tonight is an example of me probably thinking before I speak. But on this occasion, I dont give a rats backside. I am hurt and I am angry. I can always delete it if i want.
Yes, I strive to be good at everything I do. Yes, on occasions, I show "overconfidence". I guess I must have "overachieved" when I agreed to do that little law degree I got myself. Oh, and the first class in honours? I guess that was me just having way too much overconfidence in myself. And indeed it may be correct that overconfidence has side effects - on this occasion, I suddenly found myself receiving the nasty side effects of academic success - a senior executive position in a global company advising on Asia-Pacific legal matters at the age of 28. Whoops. My bad.
I may not be the best at everything but I am the girl that gets the award for the one that tries the hardest. I won't apologise for that. Those people that care about me have never suggested that I should stop trying my hardest, cease believing in myself or ever giving up. Rather, they have encouraged me, supported me and told me that the sky is the limit. So, do you know what? I am going to keep aiming for the sky, I am going to keep climbing the ladder, I am going to keep telling myself that I am capable of doing anything if I can put my mind to it, and I bet you all a million dollars that the people that truly care for me will be right beside me cheering me along the way. I have a loving, supportive family and I can say with absolute certainty that not a day goes by without them telling me that they are proud of who I am, who I have become and where I am headed. I thank the Lord every night that I can close my eyes knowing that I am loved and cared for by so many people.
Sure, I am fiercely independent. This means that I am more than capable to spending long periods of time on my own, without social interaction and without the need for company. I like it. I get peace from it. My "cave" is my sacred place. This isn't about anyone else other than me. I do not keep myself in solitary confinement to avoid people, I do not deliberately go out of my way to isolate myself to prove a point or to send a message. Rather, I just enjoy time on my own. I always did. My mother took me to a doctor when I was a child because I spent too much time playing on my own instead of socialising with other children. The doctor told my mother to leave me alone.
Regardless of this, I have no problems making friends or keeping friends or re-building friendships. I may not be present all of the time, I may not always put 100% into remaining in contact with people, but I tell you what, if any one of my friends every needed help, they would have absolutely no problems getting help from me. I may not talk to them all of the time, I may not say hello each day, I may not leave facebook messages or send funny little birthday cards each year, but those who are my friends know it, and they know that I am fiercly loyal and unwaivering in my support of them.
I believe in fairness. Fairness to others, fairness to myself. I believe that people should acknowledge when unfair things are pressed upon them, and I expect that people will allow me to do the same. I think that I am a fairly good judge at what is fair and what is not. I like to rectify things in life that are not fair, to the best of my ability and within my remit. I do not intrude into other people's business. I am not a gossip. I like to fence sit and obtain people's viewpoints before giving judgement. I enjoy conciliating and I get a rush by bring two parties in dispute together to reach agreement - I enjoy it and the best thing about it is I sometimes get paid to do it!
Yes, I am passionate. I let my feelings be known if I need to and I try and do it in the most appropriate way. I may not get that right all of the time, but I try. Those who know me and love me understand that and deal with it. I make it a daily task of mine to ensure that I do not step on someone with my boundless energy, belittle them with my viewpoints or ignore their needs. I may sometimes come out with inappropriate statements but they are generally innocent - I simply am not aware of circumstances or cultural differences or society ettiquette. I know when to stop.
I am healthy. I do not do drugs. I do not drink alcohol. I eat my greens. I take my multi-vitamins each day. Sure, I own six (6) tubes of toothpaste but the upside to that is that my teeth are clean. What I am trying to say is that, heaven forbid, I must be doing SOMETHING right if i can manage to get as far as I have in life. I may not be liked by everyone but you know what? I will get over that.
I may get down on myself often (as my family knows) but you know what? I thank God for times like these when I do have hurtful things said about me. Why? Because it gives me an opportunity to take a good look at myself. When I take a good look at myself, I realise that I actually have a great deal of things in my life that are great, amazing, wonderful, brilliant, powerful, honourable, faithful, secure, and full of blessing. My mum, my dad, my sister and brother in law, the little girls, the Boy, my beautiful extended famly, my supportive boss at work, my friends in Australia, my friends who I have met through travel, through this blog, through other means of communication.
Its times like these that I brush the dust and cr*p from my shoulders, pull them back and do the only thing that one can do in these circumstances - keeping doing things BIGGER, BRIGHTER and BETTER.
I'm done.
Some strangers read too, and enjoy living life vicariously through my (sometimes) quirky eyes. I enjoy this and I am motivated by this. As someone mentioned the other day to me, I love connecting intellectually with people in my many different creative ways. It is integral to my happiness. Take this away and I feel truly alone and disconnected with the world.
While i do not like to expose my "angry" side, sometimes it is inevitable (and i can just see my mum, dad and the Boy cringing as they read me going absolutely mental on a public forum - sorry guys, stop reading now!).
And on this occasion, the inevitable must occur.
Today, I had some pretty hurtful things said to me. Comments were made about me by someone who barely knows me, yet by someone who has made little effort over the last couple of months to get to know me, ask any questions about who i am, what I do, or my views and thoughts on general things. Yet, somehow, this person felt the need to hurt me by throwing a vile set of sentences at me about what they thought of me in order to justify a means to an end - perhaps to make themselves feel better, I don't know.
There are lots of things in life that I may not ever understand. I may try to analyse it, rationalise it, re-phrase it, or debate it but at the end of the day, sometimes it simply just won't make sense. I understand that. I have let go of the need to make sure that I understand. It took me a while but i am now there. This, however, does not mean I am untouchable and indestructible. Sticks and stones may break my bones (as will horses, so it seems) but hey, guess what - names still do hurt me.
I cannot apologise for who I am. I can apologise for the things I do, and those who know me well (and who have received genuine apologies from me) know that I often do recognise when I am wrong. I admit I am wrong, I show them that I have gone through the necessary thought process needed in order to acknowledge and admit my wrongs. When they get their apology, it is usually comprehensive and they know that I mean business.
I am sensitive. I do take things to heart and I do wear that heart permanently on my sleeve. I won't apologise for that. I am resilient though. Rarely will I remain hurt for too long (even when my heart is broken), and I will roll up my sleeves (even the sleeve that the heart is attached to!) and I will get on with it. I will lift my chin up, no matter how much something hurts, and I will keep on keeping on. In fact, I may even use the circumstance as an opportunity to make myself a better person. I will recognise the necessary lesson involved and take it with me on my journey.
I sometimes think before I speak and that gets me into a little trouble. However, the "speak" will generally be a derivative of a kind heart, not a cold one. I do not go out with the intent to destroy people, belittle them or make them feel like junk about themselves. I guess this blog entry tonight is an example of me probably thinking before I speak. But on this occasion, I dont give a rats backside. I am hurt and I am angry. I can always delete it if i want.
Yes, I strive to be good at everything I do. Yes, on occasions, I show "overconfidence". I guess I must have "overachieved" when I agreed to do that little law degree I got myself. Oh, and the first class in honours? I guess that was me just having way too much overconfidence in myself. And indeed it may be correct that overconfidence has side effects - on this occasion, I suddenly found myself receiving the nasty side effects of academic success - a senior executive position in a global company advising on Asia-Pacific legal matters at the age of 28. Whoops. My bad.
I may not be the best at everything but I am the girl that gets the award for the one that tries the hardest. I won't apologise for that. Those people that care about me have never suggested that I should stop trying my hardest, cease believing in myself or ever giving up. Rather, they have encouraged me, supported me and told me that the sky is the limit. So, do you know what? I am going to keep aiming for the sky, I am going to keep climbing the ladder, I am going to keep telling myself that I am capable of doing anything if I can put my mind to it, and I bet you all a million dollars that the people that truly care for me will be right beside me cheering me along the way. I have a loving, supportive family and I can say with absolute certainty that not a day goes by without them telling me that they are proud of who I am, who I have become and where I am headed. I thank the Lord every night that I can close my eyes knowing that I am loved and cared for by so many people.
Sure, I am fiercely independent. This means that I am more than capable to spending long periods of time on my own, without social interaction and without the need for company. I like it. I get peace from it. My "cave" is my sacred place. This isn't about anyone else other than me. I do not keep myself in solitary confinement to avoid people, I do not deliberately go out of my way to isolate myself to prove a point or to send a message. Rather, I just enjoy time on my own. I always did. My mother took me to a doctor when I was a child because I spent too much time playing on my own instead of socialising with other children. The doctor told my mother to leave me alone.
Regardless of this, I have no problems making friends or keeping friends or re-building friendships. I may not be present all of the time, I may not always put 100% into remaining in contact with people, but I tell you what, if any one of my friends every needed help, they would have absolutely no problems getting help from me. I may not talk to them all of the time, I may not say hello each day, I may not leave facebook messages or send funny little birthday cards each year, but those who are my friends know it, and they know that I am fiercly loyal and unwaivering in my support of them.
I believe in fairness. Fairness to others, fairness to myself. I believe that people should acknowledge when unfair things are pressed upon them, and I expect that people will allow me to do the same. I think that I am a fairly good judge at what is fair and what is not. I like to rectify things in life that are not fair, to the best of my ability and within my remit. I do not intrude into other people's business. I am not a gossip. I like to fence sit and obtain people's viewpoints before giving judgement. I enjoy conciliating and I get a rush by bring two parties in dispute together to reach agreement - I enjoy it and the best thing about it is I sometimes get paid to do it!
Yes, I am passionate. I let my feelings be known if I need to and I try and do it in the most appropriate way. I may not get that right all of the time, but I try. Those who know me and love me understand that and deal with it. I make it a daily task of mine to ensure that I do not step on someone with my boundless energy, belittle them with my viewpoints or ignore their needs. I may sometimes come out with inappropriate statements but they are generally innocent - I simply am not aware of circumstances or cultural differences or society ettiquette. I know when to stop.
I am healthy. I do not do drugs. I do not drink alcohol. I eat my greens. I take my multi-vitamins each day. Sure, I own six (6) tubes of toothpaste but the upside to that is that my teeth are clean. What I am trying to say is that, heaven forbid, I must be doing SOMETHING right if i can manage to get as far as I have in life. I may not be liked by everyone but you know what? I will get over that.
I may get down on myself often (as my family knows) but you know what? I thank God for times like these when I do have hurtful things said about me. Why? Because it gives me an opportunity to take a good look at myself. When I take a good look at myself, I realise that I actually have a great deal of things in my life that are great, amazing, wonderful, brilliant, powerful, honourable, faithful, secure, and full of blessing. My mum, my dad, my sister and brother in law, the little girls, the Boy, my beautiful extended famly, my supportive boss at work, my friends in Australia, my friends who I have met through travel, through this blog, through other means of communication.
Its times like these that I brush the dust and cr*p from my shoulders, pull them back and do the only thing that one can do in these circumstances - keeping doing things BIGGER, BRIGHTER and BETTER.
I'm done.
Monday, August 17, 2009
No More Denials... I Am Disorderly
One of the things I wish to improve about myself is my organisation skills. You see, I am not an orderly person. I am not a dirty, unkept person - well, I'd like to think not. However, when I am moving around, going about my daily business, I am like a hurricane. I come in, I whip up a great deal of confusion and fluster, I tip everything upside down and then I leave again. I leave a trail of destruction. I then come back to the disaster zone and I feel like the task is just too big.
Here is a snapshot into my existance....(and I am not proud of this!):
1. Tonight, I found six (6) tubes of toothpaste. Most of them are still three quarters full. All of them are completely different brands of toothpaste to the other brand. It appears that on six occasions in the last six months, I must have thought I needed toothpaste. It could have perhaps been that simply could not find the toothpaste, so I figured it was easier just to buy some new toothpaste. I now have six.... not one, not two, but six tubes of toothpaste. I suspect that I may be in dentures by the time i get through that amount of toothpaste. Does anyone need toothpaste?
2. I have twelve small containers of hotel shampoo, collected from my travels. You see, each time I go to a hotel, I never use their shampoo or conditioner because it tangles my hair and turns it into straw - last time I checked, the Scarecrow look wasn't in vogue. Anyway, I digress. I now have twelve little containers of liquid which is best used to wash your dishes with. Somewhere along the line, in my kooky little mind, I figured that I would take them along so I could put them in my gym bag so that when i need to wash my hair at the gym, it would be there to use - why? Because Fitness First shampoo is the equivalent of rose petal water - smells nice but you may as well just spray perfume onto your head as you walk out. It has no cleaning capabilities. Anyway, so I've never taken the hotel shampoo to the gym. I end up using the gym shampoo because in the morning, I'm too busy thinking of how i can break the sound barrier in order to get to work on time let alone being able to think about the type of shampoo i shall use at the gym that day! I wonder if you can donate hotel shampoo to those grocery charity drives that come and go every now and then.....
3. Going by the collection of vitamins and supplements I own, you would think I either have (a) a total immune deficiency and a lack of desire to eat vegetables, or (b) i have started my own health food store. I have calcium supplements (two lots in fact, yet to be opened), women's multivitamins (which are a completely different brand to the regular multi i take which sits at work), and a box of vile, repugnant chicken water which is all the rage in Asia at the moment (they've taken the whole 'when you get sick, eat chicken soup' thing a little too seriously and require you to take a jar of this stuff daily - at breakfast time).
4. I have a bottle of male cologne from the Body Shop. I purchased it at a time when there was no Boy to purchase for. Why did I buy it? I was waiting for my fruit smoothie to be made, it smelt nice and it was on sale. Go figure. The Boy can have some nice unloved Body Shop smelly stuff. Happy Belated Birthday....or Christmas... or whatever.
5. Body lotions, baby powders, moisturisers, shower gels that smell pretty, shower gels that smell not so pretty, bath oil, body oil, cooking oil (okay, maybe not cooking oil, but one is made out of coconut and I hear its great to cook with sometimes).... for a girl that aint all that girly, I sure have a stack of girly stuff that needs to be used.
All in all, its a pretty sad and sorry sight. It appears that I have been surrounded by beauty products, miracle cures and fancy therapies and all the while, I have been, for the last six months, too busy trying to become beautiful on the inside! What a waste! Thankfully, I'm done with being beautiful on the inside now. Bring on the facials, manicures and massages!
Here is a snapshot into my existance....(and I am not proud of this!):
1. Tonight, I found six (6) tubes of toothpaste. Most of them are still three quarters full. All of them are completely different brands of toothpaste to the other brand. It appears that on six occasions in the last six months, I must have thought I needed toothpaste. It could have perhaps been that simply could not find the toothpaste, so I figured it was easier just to buy some new toothpaste. I now have six.... not one, not two, but six tubes of toothpaste. I suspect that I may be in dentures by the time i get through that amount of toothpaste. Does anyone need toothpaste?
2. I have twelve small containers of hotel shampoo, collected from my travels. You see, each time I go to a hotel, I never use their shampoo or conditioner because it tangles my hair and turns it into straw - last time I checked, the Scarecrow look wasn't in vogue. Anyway, I digress. I now have twelve little containers of liquid which is best used to wash your dishes with. Somewhere along the line, in my kooky little mind, I figured that I would take them along so I could put them in my gym bag so that when i need to wash my hair at the gym, it would be there to use - why? Because Fitness First shampoo is the equivalent of rose petal water - smells nice but you may as well just spray perfume onto your head as you walk out. It has no cleaning capabilities. Anyway, so I've never taken the hotel shampoo to the gym. I end up using the gym shampoo because in the morning, I'm too busy thinking of how i can break the sound barrier in order to get to work on time let alone being able to think about the type of shampoo i shall use at the gym that day! I wonder if you can donate hotel shampoo to those grocery charity drives that come and go every now and then.....
3. Going by the collection of vitamins and supplements I own, you would think I either have (a) a total immune deficiency and a lack of desire to eat vegetables, or (b) i have started my own health food store. I have calcium supplements (two lots in fact, yet to be opened), women's multivitamins (which are a completely different brand to the regular multi i take which sits at work), and a box of vile, repugnant chicken water which is all the rage in Asia at the moment (they've taken the whole 'when you get sick, eat chicken soup' thing a little too seriously and require you to take a jar of this stuff daily - at breakfast time).
4. I have a bottle of male cologne from the Body Shop. I purchased it at a time when there was no Boy to purchase for. Why did I buy it? I was waiting for my fruit smoothie to be made, it smelt nice and it was on sale. Go figure. The Boy can have some nice unloved Body Shop smelly stuff. Happy Belated Birthday....or Christmas... or whatever.
5. Body lotions, baby powders, moisturisers, shower gels that smell pretty, shower gels that smell not so pretty, bath oil, body oil, cooking oil (okay, maybe not cooking oil, but one is made out of coconut and I hear its great to cook with sometimes).... for a girl that aint all that girly, I sure have a stack of girly stuff that needs to be used.
All in all, its a pretty sad and sorry sight. It appears that I have been surrounded by beauty products, miracle cures and fancy therapies and all the while, I have been, for the last six months, too busy trying to become beautiful on the inside! What a waste! Thankfully, I'm done with being beautiful on the inside now. Bring on the facials, manicures and massages!
Jaws
Even with my untrustworthy little point and shoot, I managed to get the million dollar shot! Here is the hammerhead that swum past us within 5 mins of the first dive. If I had seen him earlier, I probably would have screamed and gone into hyperventilation. Thankfully, he was well and truly on his way elsewhere before i realised. Still got the pic though!Diving the Caribbean - Grand Turk
I finally was able to put my underwater camera in for processessing and I am actually really pleased with the results. Not bad for a good old point and shoot film camera that was taken probably 10 metres deeper than the recommended depth guide! ha ha
You can see just how clear the water is just by the clean shots....
It was a great two dives.
above: Into the abyss....
above: This piece of coral looked like a whole lot of tentacles!
above: this type of coral was everywhere...neon purple and green...
above: Coral that looks like a green-grass maze!
above: Electric blue and neon yellow fishies! There was not that much marine life in terms of fish, but the coral was fantastic.
above: This little guy was a curious fella. He wanted to play. I wanted him to do tricks. He gave up quicker than my attention span did.
above: Coral Garden.
above: More fish in the garden...
above: Hard to see but this is a massive school of fish.
above: playing around in the garden....
above: Looked a bit like a sponge.... but i suspect it was of the coral species.
above: Swim, little man, swim.
above: Looks like a big fluffy pillow... or a marshmellow.
above: Like a soccer ball!
above: A coral delight!
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Quick Snapshot of A Fabulous Weekend
We all just need to get away sometimes, on our own, to think things through.
And it was a great weekend in Bintan, Indonesia.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Lady Gaga In Singapore
This woman put the "koo" in "kooky" but hidden amongst the very bizarre costumes and eclectic behaviour, there is a very talented musician and a real star of the future. She played at Fort Canning Park, Singapore, to her biggest crowd as a headline performer. She looked like she thoroughly enjoyed the experience, and its safe to say that the crowd enjoyed it too. As I said, a bit on the bizarro side, but that makes her even more interesting - it separates her from the standard, well groomed, teen-pleasing popstars we have seen come through in the last decade (and grown very tired of quickly!) Overall, a great concert. A little short, but will no doubt get better as her catalouge of music increases.
below: with a whizz and a boom, there she appears!
below: She started off with her song "Paparazzi" which sounded great.
below: there she was, glitter guitar and dress.
below: At times I was wondering whether a blonde Amy Winehouse had stepped in, but it was indeed Lady GaGa!
Below: a little annoyed at the Britney-esque picture to begin with. They could have pulled up a better, more stylish photo of her, instead of one that makes you wonder whether you are seeing Christina Aguilera, not the bizarre Lady GaGa!
below: with a whizz and a boom, there she appears!
below: She started off with her song "Paparazzi" which sounded great.
below: there she was, glitter guitar and dress.
below: At times I was wondering whether a blonde Amy Winehouse had stepped in, but it was indeed Lady GaGa!
below: the crowd was certainly enjoying it!
below: Red Scooter, Red Sparkles.
below: not quite sure about her dancers' plastic leiderhosen....
below: not quite sure about her dancers' plastic leiderhosen....
below: What lies beneath - red hot leather!
below: there was no denying it, she wasn't going to tone down her behaviour for stuffy, snobby Singapore!
below: there was no denying it, she wasn't going to tone down her behaviour for stuffy, snobby Singapore!
below: by far my favourite outfit - Bubbles!
below: with a matching bubble piano.
below: with a matching bubble piano.
below: a very talented pianist, but just had a different way of doing it.....
below: it got a bit strange when she played a classical version of "Pokerface".
below: it got a bit strange when she played a classical version of "Pokerface".
below: with some additional gymnastics.....
below: But ended with a perfect 10/10 with a proper rendition of "Pokerface".
Overall, a great night had by all, and I have proceeded to listen to her music since. She has a very big future ahead of her. Strange in this instance is actually good. Its a refreshing change!
below: saying goodnight....
Overall, a great night had by all, and I have proceeded to listen to her music since. She has a very big future ahead of her. Strange in this instance is actually good. Its a refreshing change!
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