Hello everyone,
After my last week's post a Wholesome rickshaw ride, a lot of you requested me to write about another experience I've had in the city, this particular one is about a big fancy convoy I saw in Bandra last week.
​
El gran convoy de Decepticons
I had just finished my weekly football game at Andrew’s, and I wanted to get myself some coffee. It was going to be a long night for me; I wanted to have a head start on the next week’s workload. I decided to walk, I always like to walk down the tiny streets of Bandra while the rest of Mumbai was busy doing their best impression of NYC or Singapore. This tiny part of Bandra was happy being a small village somewhere in the forgotten parts of Portugal with its narrow lanes, Quaint houses crowned with Terracotta tiles, giving them a rustic look. These houses were only separated from the street by a tiny compound wall and an old rusty gate, both of which have seen many layers of paint fade off, a mark of their unrewarding duty of guarding many generations, watching familiar faces move on to new horizons. That was their curse, They were destined to be there for as long as they could stand the test of time. The gate was armed only with a humble latch, a metal bar with a lever which was out of kilter with rest of the structure but fixed itself into a hole in the wall. The compound walls were draped in shrubbery, occasionally a branch of Bougainvillea or Jasmine would spill out over the rounded edges of the wall. However, the overwhelming beauty of the sight was just a masquerade, as underneath those pretty colours were exposed pieces of glass that would pierce through your skin if you were considering leaping over the wall into the compound. The ancient art of deceit is unparalled I thought to myself.
This little island stretching from Hill road till Linking road, is protected by high-rise buildings towering over it like Titans boasting their armors of concrete that are coated in glass, shiny lights & glamour. They are tasked with warding off any evils that may intend on harming the innocence of this Promised Land. Man, I love walking through these streets, each time I explore a new detail. Being a Sunday evening, a lot of windows were occupied and I’d frequently lock eyes with an empty stare from a dimly lit balcony or a laughing Pedro uncle leaning over the balcony, looking down on to the street whilst speaking to his friend in the ‘Gelf’. I felt like I was being watched, but I didn’t feel paranoid at all. I looked certainly out of place in my sporting gear as compared to the shirt sleeves, night gowns or stained Banyans of my onlookers. I felt like I was the boy representing the little town, marching back from a big show-down at the colosseum. I was not in a hurry to get my coffee and I was certainly counting my steps. Every once in a while I’d cross a kitchen window slightly ajar where I’d hear a cacophony of stainless steel utensils being handled with diligent urgency. I’d be greeted with a violent hiss coming from a pressure cooker that would fill my breath with the rustic smell of dal with a dash of turmeric or the earthy and crusty aroma of curry leaves dancing in hot oil, you could tell there’s Fish curry for dinner.
I stumbled upon a familiar sight. I had seen this house before, which meant I was almost arriving at my destination. I remembered because I read the time stamp on the house the first time I saw it, ‘1935’ it read, It was painted in a lighter caramel coat which you couldn’t discern without really squinting your eyes because it was masked by the hue of orange street lights in the dark. Lucky for me I’ve seen it many times in the day so I knew. The house had a large courtyard which was completely barren, but it was the only property which had trees inside it, the Villa itself had lots of windows. Every time you’d try to count the number of windows, you’d find yourself missing out on one and then repeat this fruitless activity from the start.
I reached the main road, and the subtlety of the sights I was enjoying started fading away. Down the entire stretch of the main road, there were shops, stores, street hawkers, and small cafes planted at regular intervals. It was time to put on my earphones. I walked past groups of people loudly talking to each other, some were pointing at one of the storefronts, some Hawkers arguing with their customers, “Aaj subeh hi fresh maal aya hain madam, Seedha export wala container se utha ke laya hain”. I played Bob Dylan on my phone to drown out the noise a little. I walked past a group of smartly dressed women preparing to walk into a café. One of them shouted, “What? This is a café? I thought we were really going to crack nuts, dude!” which caused everyone around her to laugh. I thought it was funny too but I was careful not to smile or give an impression that I was eaves-dropping. I get nervous around attractive women, I really do. Besides, I’m sure she wouldn’t enjoy Bob Dylan so there was no point in sticking my neck out.
My destination was right across the street, It was almost routine for me to visit Starbucks post a football game. Buying over-priced coffee is the easiest way to fit amongst the rich and the fancy types. Once you step inside and you have practiced everything you want to say to the Barista verbatim you blend right in. They know you’re one of them, I can’t even imagine being one of the folks who hold up the line not knowing what they want to order, or ask silly questions like what does Tall mean? Or Grande mean? Or Venti mean? They all mean the same dummy but the cup sizes differ, I hope they never change the menu, I’m worried I’ll blow my cover.
I entered the coffee shop which triggered the air curtain fixed above the carefully wiped glass door, The entire store was filled with the violent shriek of the mechanical whirring of the device, I drew some curious gazes that looked up from their books or laptops to enquire who had walked in as I got completely draped by the cold air gushing down on me, I do it all the time too, I always look up to see who has walked in. What if it’s a famous person or a runaway bride or a widowed man with his toddler? I stayed back for a bit, fanning my shirt, subtly announcing that I had come back from some heavy sporting activity and that this is not even an event for me but merely a routine. I was not startled by the attention I drew because I was well-versed with my routine once I stepped up to order. It all went so smooth, I narrated my order word for word with careful and timely pauses so that the Barista and the person behind me carefully registered everything I wanted in my drink. I imagined the person behind me thinking “wow, he knows his coffee”. By the time I was done with the payments they called out my carefully crafted order and my name in a fancy accent signaling that the coffee was ready to be served, “ A grande white mocha, with almond milk and hazelnut, no whipped cream, for AK” Man, I love capitalism. It’s so efficient , they even drew a tiny heart next to my name and now everyone knows that I’m very specific about my coffee. I walked out, barely holding back a smirk. I was preparing to cross the streets when the entire street got illuminated by a blanket of white light, I looked to enquire its source and the lights almost burned a hole in my corneas. The source of the light was a Mercedes G-Wagon, my dream car, Despite the blinding white light I could figure out the make of the car because I’ve obsessed over every little detail of the car. Then something unusual happened, the white lights dimmed and you could see the iconic three pointed star nested into the center of the chrome grille tucked away behind a caging of carbon fibre that give it an lustrous but muscular look, suddenly the white lights were replaced by Red & Blue flashing lights. I watched the mammoth vehicle close in to me a wide open jaw, It was a convoy! Who on earth is this rich that they have a car that I might not be able to afford even if I liquidated my entire property as a patrol car? This is ridiculous, I thought to myself. I waited eagerly to spot the vehicle that was being guarded, I finally caught a glimpse of it. A couple of more expensive patrol cars down the road, I saw a dark, phantom-like silhouette gliding towards me very rapidly. A dark entity carved out of obsidian, It seemed to have a sophisticated shape and yet I could discern almost nothing, It looked like a Lovecraftian beast being brought to life. Once it was close enough I met the piercing gaze of its headlights that spellbound me. They were rectangular in shape which made it look like a Cyborg, and they were glowing a shade of turquoise which I had never seen before. It felt like the march of the Decepticons upon the streets of Bandra. As this alluring figure evaded past me I caught a glimpse of a little detail, the spirit of ecstacy. I immediately knew this was the most expensive car in the world. The Rolls Royce Cullinan. As soon as the convoy moved past me, I looked around. Everything and everyone around me came to a stand-still to catch a glimpse of the Decepticons. I guess the car is so elegant that it comes with the in-built feature of halting space time. I immediately unlocked my phone to check the how much this majestic beauty would cost. So I typed in
Rolls…..
Royce….
Cullinan…..
Price in Mumbai……
On-road because I wanted to be practical ofcourse.
I almost dropped my phone when I saw the number that flashed before my eyes, I scoffed at the ridiculousness of it all. What could you possibly offer me for a price like that? So I did the next practical thing, I opened up the Sales brochure. They have seats crafted out of Carbon-fibre that are padded with hand-stitched leather, The seats have a massage feature that will ensure you always have a relaxed butt. This is unfair, I thought to myself while crossing the road. No one person should have access to this much luxury that they can get their butt massaged at all times. I bet the owner of that car has piles….. piles of money am I right? I laughed at my own silly joke and thought to myself that the attractive woman I saw outside of the café would have enjoyed this joke too. I hailed an Auto from there, sat down in this modest steam punk vehicle and started imagining what it would be like to be sitting inside that car. The auto drove past the same little streets I previously had walked across and then suddenly came to a halt. I looked up and I saw some Traffic officials holding up traffic. Before I could even try to rationalize what all this commotion was about there they were again, THE DECEPTICONS! I scoffed, All that wealth and money spent and I reached here before you in just a modest 23Rs/km ride whereas your car cost you a small town’s entire year’s GDP. The convoy was held up in traffic which means my ride was going to be held up too. Great! I thought to myself. The Cullinan had now pulled up right in front of me. When my auto driver commented, “Ye Ambani ji k.i Gaadi hain” What? The richest person in the country? Right in front of my eyes? Can he see me? I couldn’t see him because the windows were tinted pitch black to maintain privacy. I was in half a mind to run up to the car and beg for money to maintain the status quo, “Sir, please mera start-up fund karado, subeh se kuch nahi khaya.” Like a silly person I waved towards the car. Did he recognize me from before? He probably wasn’t even looking outside the window, he must be looking at some dapper presentation made by a IIM-A graduate on how India’s economy will shape up in the next 5-years. What if he did see me? Is he seeing me now? Can he see the Starbucks cup in my hand? Does he know I’m having a grande white mocha with almond milk and hazelnut, no whipped cream, for AK?

The Dutch independent investigative journalism platform 'Follow the Money' wrote a article about Patagonia.
"Sustainable clothing brand Patagonia manufactures in the same factories as fast-fashion; textile workers are being exploited"
Clothing brand Patagonia seems to be doing everything right: for its employees, for the people who make the clothes and for the environment. The company’s image – they say they’re in business to save our home planet – is very different from fast-fashion brands like asos, Primark and Nike. But Patagonia’s clothes are manufactured in exactly the same factories and under the same deplorable conditions.
When Yvon Chouinard started creating climbing equipment in his parents’ backyard in Burbank, California, he used steel. Soon he earned a reputation for making the ‘best’ climbing equipment in America. But every time a climber slammed one of those steel pegs into a rock, the gap got a little bigger and eventually unusable. Chouinard realised he was making money by destroying the rocks and therefore also the sport. And so he switched to aluminium blocks, which did not damagethe rocks.
The change was expensive and risky for the young company, but the moral dilemma was reason enough for Chouinard to implement the change. And to be very outspoken about it. It was a success: within a year, 40 per cent of the US climbing community stopped using steel.
Chouinard applied this experience when he started the outdoor brand Patagonia in 1973. He wanted to make only high-quality clothing that would last. And limit the impact on the environment as much as possible. In 1996, the brand switched to 100 per cent organic cotton, only to increasingly replace it with recycled materials. But the responsibility that Chouinard attributed to the company extended further.
In 2002 he decided to give one per cent of sales to environmental organisations every year. In 2011, Patagonia placed a full-page ad in the New York Times calling on consumers to ‘not buy this jacket’ in order to draw attention to the problematic nature of overconsumption in the clothing industry.
In addition, the clothing had to be manufactured fairly: in 2012, the top of the company made paying living wages to everyone who makes Patagonia products a ‘priority’. In 2020, Patagonia launched a campaign encouraging consumers to demand more from clothing brands: ‘Demand recycled. Demand organic. Demand Fair Trade,’ Patagonia urged its viewers.
In 2022, the then 84-year-old Chouinard caused worldwide astonishment, when he gave away 98 per cent of his shares to a newly formed NGO, the Holdfast Collective, which is ‘committed in its fight against the environmental crisis and protecting nature.’ Henceforth, the company’s profits would no longer flow to himself or his children but to the climate. ‘Earth is now our only shareholder,’ Chouinard said. Billionaire gives company away to climate, newspapers like The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Guardian reported*.*
This construction saved the NGO an estimated 700 million dollars that Chouinard would have had to pay in tax if he had sold the company and donated the proceeds to the same NGO. But according to Chouinard, this option allowed him to do something else: protect Patagonia’s values. Because he did not give the voting shares to Holdfast Collective but to a family trust. This allows his family to continue determining the company’s direction.
The company’s turnover – its European headquarters are in Amsterdam − grew by more than 50 per cent that year to about 1.5 billion dollars.
The actions earned Patagonia an image as being the ultimate sustainable frontrunner. In April, Time Magazine named Chouinard one of the world’s 100 most influential people. ‘Patagonia is a company people look up to in awe,’ the magazine wrote.
The complete opposite of Patagonia is a company like Primark. The Irish retail chain is known for selling on-trend low-quality clothes at low prices. Its revenue model is based on mass: high volumes with low margins.
Primark continuously creates new garment collections designed to be worn only a few times, after which they fall apart. The company uses advertising, clearance sales and influencers to urge consumers to keep buying as much as possible.
Media regularly report on the subsequent consequences. One, in particular, is that the people who make the clothes suffer from high production pressure at low cost. ‘Primark supplier accused of locking up factory workers in Myanmar protests,’ The Guardian headline read in 2021. That same year, The Clean Clothes Campaign NGO wrote: ‘Primark uses pandemic to put further pressure on factory workers in manufacturing countries.’
Patagonia and Primark seem like two extremes on the slow versus fast-fashion spectrum. Yet the brands have something in common. Some of their clothing is manufactured in the exact same factory.
PATAGONIA IN AMSTERDAM In 2014, Patagonia moved its European headquarters from Annecy town in the French Alps to Amsterdam. Reflecting on this, current CEO Ryan Gellert told the city marketing website I Amsterdam: ‘We established headquarters here in 2014 because we wanted a place where we could attract and retain pan-European and global talent, [...] and where there was an active community working on sustainability issues. As we searched potential locations across Europe, Amsterdam remained high on our list.’
According to Tax Law Professor Jan van de Streek, tax benefits may also have played a role in the choice of the Netherlands. This is because Patagonia did not register in the Netherlands as a BV but as a cooperative with two US members: Patagonia International Inc and Patagonia Global LLC. ‘Why choose something as strange as a cooperative structure?’ Van de Streek remarks to Follow the Money. ‘Because it is exempt from dividend tax. I think it’s naive to think there’s any other reason for that.’
Responding to questions about this, Patagonia said: ‘Since its inception, Patagonia Europe Coöperatief has paid regular corporate income taxes in all European countries where we do business, including the Netherlands, and has never used the tax efficiencies of a cooperative.’
‘At the suggestion of our advisors', Patagonia chose a cooperative structure ‘because it's the most flexible type of entity that suited our business purpose. However, Patagonia has chosen not to pursue any of the tax advantages available under the cooperative entity type. Patagonia Europe has not paid dividends to its parent company.'

‘No difference’

That factory is called Regal Image and is located in Sri Lanka. To be precise, in the Free Trade Zone of Katunayake, less than two kilometres from the international airport. The industrial estate is guarded 24/7 by Sri Lankan police. Access is only possible with a special pass.
In the factory hall, there are long tables with pieces of white fabric on them. An employee walks past with sea-green paint and a stencil forming the letters ‘asics’. Further along, a machine prints a grey logo on a purple tank top for Decathlon.
‘So far, we don’t really notice any difference between working with Patagonia and working with Primark or Decathlon,’ says Kevin Fernando. Fernando is the manager at the factory, which dyes, prints or embroiders logos and prints on fabrics. Regal Image was recently approved as a supplier to Patagonia, a process that took nine months. Fernando shows the designs for the 2024 summer collection. Light blue fabric features ‘Patagonia’ in pink letters, and a rainbow is printed on orange fabric.
‘Like most clothing companies, we do not make our products, nor do we own any of the factories that do,’ Patagonia writes on its website about the decision to outsource the manufacturing process. ‘We design, test, market and sell Patagonia gear. These are our areas of strength. We pay other companies [...] to produce fabrics and do the actual cutting and sewing.’

‘No control over working conditions’

Patagonia promises to only partner with factories that are ‘like-minded’ and who share their ‘philosophy.’ Patagonia has found sixty-one suitable factories: two in the US, one in Portugal and the remainder in 12 different low-wage countries. The bulk of the products are made in Vietnam and Sri Lanka.
At least two-thirds of the factories that manufacture Patagonia clothing also work for clothing brands that, according to the consumer website Good on You, have little or no sustainability policies in place (Patagonia itself is touted by Good on You as sustainable). This is evident from an analysis by Follow the Money based on data from Open Supply Hub, which aims to make supply chains in the clothing industry more transparent.
One day people make clothing for Patagonia, and the next day, they make items for brands such as GAP, Levi Strauss, Calvin Klein, Hugo Boss, Tommy Hilfiger, Nike, Amer Sports, Asics, US department store chain Target, e-commerce platform Amazon, supermarket Aldi and fast-fashion icons ASOS, Boohoo, H&M and Zara.
‘How is this possible?’ visual culture professor Anneke Smelik responds. Smelik researches sustainable fashion at Radboud University. ‘I know Patagonia as the most sustainable brand out there. I expected them to manufacture in small factories close to home. This means they have absolutely no control over working conditions.’
PATAGONIA IN SRI LANKA Patagonia works with 14 factories in Sri Lanka that are part of (or partner with) two companies: MAS Holdings and the Hirdaramani Group.
MAS Holdings was founded in 1987 by three brothers: Mahesh, Ajay and Sharad Amalean. The company began manufacturing lingerie and later expanded to sportswear, swimwear and T-shirts. With factories in 17 countries and roughly 2.4 billion dollars in turnover by 2022, MAS is Sri Lanka’s largest clothing manufacturer. The Amalean brothers are among the wealthiest men in the country.
The company emphatically presents itself as a sustainable clothing manufacturer. For instance, the company promises to emit 25 per cent less CO2 by 2025 than in 2019, and CEO Suren Fernando expects the group to earn half its revenue from sustainable products by then.
In May 2023, MAS received a Presidential Environment Award from President Ranil Wickremesinghe for the company’s commitment to the environment. The company describes the welfare of its employees as ‘its top priority’. On the subject of paying a living wage, the company makes no promises.
In the early 1900s, Parmanand Hirdaramani, then 16 years old, started a clothing shop in Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo. Today, his great-grandson Aroon Hirdaramani runs the Hirdaramani Group, which has grown into an international clothing conglomerate with factories in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Vietnam and a turnover of around 900 million US dollars.
Hirdaramani also presents itself as a sustainable producer. The company’s website states: ‘At Hirdaramani, we do the right thing. We have always done that. It’s about making good decisions today that benefit everyone in the long run.’
Since 2019, all Hirdaramani factories in Sri Lanka have been producing climate neutrally. For 2025, the company has set several targets on material use, water use, waste and leadership. Paying a living or higher wage is not a target.
In 2016, Aroon Hirdaramani and his wife Mona surfaced in the Pandora Papers. It emerged that Hirdaramani owned two investment companies in the British Virgin Islands. The reason for this is unclear. The fact is that companies based there do not have to pay tax on income, profits, dividends and interest, among other things.

Sixteen-hour workdays

Eligibility to manufacture Patagonia products requires a supplier to meet a list of sustainability criteria. Those criteria are set out in a code of conduct for suppliers. For example, child labour, forced labour, or physical, sexual or verbal harassment are not allowed. All national laws must be respected. Suppliers must respect workers’ right to freedom of association, may not force workers to work overtime and must ensure healthy working conditions. Working weeks of more than 60 hours or more than six days in a row is not acceptable to Patagonia.
Patagonia checks whether a factory complies with these standards through independent auditor visits at least once a year, says the brand after being questioned by Follow the Money. Checks are also carried out by the Fair Labor Association (FLA) and FairTrade: two NGOs that provide Patagonia’s manufacturing process and clothing with a sustainability label.
A part of those audits is public. Since 2016, the FLA has publishedassessments of seven Patagonia factories, including three in Vietnam, three in Sri Lanka and one in China. During those inspections, auditors found dozens of violations, varying greatly in severity.
For instance, almost 2000 employees at a factory in Vietnam were paid less for their overtime than what they should have received and employees’ ages were not recorded (thus child labour cannot be ruled out). Another check found out that applicants had to provide their menstrual date. Employees told the interviewers they were not allowed to become pregnant in the first six months of their employment. Less serious violations dealt with issues such as working without protective equipment, blocked emergency exits, or a lack of policies on harassment or discrimination.
One problem crops up in every report. Textile workers in factories manufacturing clothes for Patagonia work far longer hours than legally permitted: up to 17 hours a day and more than 80 hours a week, well beyond what is permissible according to Patagonia’s code of conduct.
‘Long working hours with insufficient breaks often lead to health problems,’ the Clean Clothes Campaign recently wrote about this issue. ‘Managers pressure employees to work 10- to 12-hour and sometimes even 16- to 18-hour days. The number of hours increases as the deadline approaches. Those who protest are simply fired. Moreover, workers depend on overtime to supplement their low wages.’
At the Regal Image factory in Sri Lanka, manager Fernando assures that his employees work a maximum of five days a week and 10 hours a day. But during the tour, a line manager starts talking about the duration of his shift: from eight in the morning to a quarter to 10 in the evening – almost 14 hours. ‘It’s busy,’ says Fernando, casually.
‘This is what the fast-fashion model does,’ says Smelik. ‘Brands want their products to be in store within a few weeks. So when a factory receives an order from such a brand, the production targets and overtime skyrocket.’

‘They talk to us like we are animals’

The office of Stand Up Lanka, a union led by Ashila Niroshine Dandeniya, is located just outside the Free-Trade Zone. She started working in a MAS factory, part of MAS Holdings that is a supplier to Patagonia, in 2003. Her colleagues elected her to represent them as a member of the factory’s employees council. But when she addressed the matter of wages, she was fired. She challenged her dismissal, got compensation, and discovered that there were laws in place to protect people like her.
Now, almost 20 years later, she knows Sri Lankan labour law like the back of her hand. Her office is a hexagon with five windows, all open. Textile workers from nearby factories approach her via these windows to greet her or ask for help.
When a transman walks past, she says, ‘He applied to MAS Shadowline [one of Patagonia’s suppliers, ed] a month ago. They said they didn’t want him because he is transgender. He can’t get work anywhere. And he cannot go back to his village because he is Muslim. His family will shoot him.’
When about six women wearing yellow MAS polos come and ask for a food parcel, Dandeniya shakes her head. ‘We don’t have enough. Since the country’s economic crisis, some families barely eat two meals a day. How am I supposed to choose who can eat and who can’t?’
That evening, she introduces Priya (31). Priya has been working for MAS Shadowline for almost two years, sewing the side seams on leggings or T-shirts. She makes many clothes for yoga brand Lululemon and for Lacoste (famous through the crocodile logo), but sometimes also for Patagonia.
‘The worst part is the scolding,’ she says in her home a few streets away: a room of about 12 square metres. It contains a double bed, a small kitchenette and a wardrobe. Despite the fan on the wall, it is sweltering hot inside. She shares a toilet and a shower with others.
‘My supervisor’s manager is a terrible man. He touches everyone in a bad way, and if you say you don’t want that, you have a problem. He yells at me if I have to go to the bank or the doctor. “Then who will do the work? Who will meet the target?” And he’s not the only one. They talk to us like we are animals.’
When asked about her production targets, she breathes a deep sigh. ‘The other day, Lululemon placed a huge order, and now everyone is stressed. On the first day, we had to make seventy items per hour, but on the second day, it was suddenly a hundred. Otherwise, we won’t make the delivery date.’ During the working day, she does not drink water so that she does not waste time going to the toilet. Despite this, she seldom meets the target. And that means: no bonus.
Without that bonus, Priya earns 32,000 rupees a month (97 euros). Her room costs 7,000 rupees (21 euros), and a meal 300 rupees (1 euro). She has no money left for other things.
‘Since the crisis, we are increasingly hearing stories from our members of textile workers using drugs,’ says Dandeniya. ‘Also in MAS factories that Patagonia works with. They use it to work faster. Sometimes also against the hunger.’
Chamila Thushari, union leader of Dabindu Collective, confirms the story. ‘They use Ice (Crystal Meth) or Babul.’ She points to her collar and to the sole of her shoe. ‘This is how they smuggle it in. The management knows this happens but allows it. All they care about is production targets are being met.’
An employee of a third union, GTZ-GSEU, confirms that drug use among textile workers in the Free Trade Zone is a problem.
Patagonia says these claims are ‘new’ to them and ‘serious’, but says, without evidence, it cannot comment.

A living wage

That Patagonia, known for being sustainable, has its clothes manufactured in the same factories as other much less sustainable brands is seen as an advantage by the company. ‘Patagonia has a powerful brand voice, but we are a quite small player in the apparel sector. Therefore, we are always looking for ways to scale our impact and to elevate the industry standards across the board, bringing other apparel retailers along on the journey with us. So, continuing to engage in shared production facilities is crucial to this work.’
Patagonia wants all people who make clothes to earn a decent wage. In 2015, the company promised that within 10 years, all employees in its supply chain would be earning a living wage that would be enough to live on. That is, enough for food, water, housing, education, healthcare, transport and other essential needs.
With 18 months to go, only 40 per cent of its factories pay a living wage, according to Patagonia. They would not reveal the factories concerned. Suppliers reportedly ‘have the right to maintain their factories’ wage data confidential’.
Patagonia wants all people who make clothes to earn a decent wage. In 2015, the company promised that within 10 years, all employees in its supply chain would be earning a living wage that would be enough to live on. That is, enough for food, water, housing, education, healthcare, transport and other essential needs.
With 18 months to go, only 40 per cent of its factories pay a living wage, according to Patagonia. They would not reveal the factories concerned. Suppliers reportedly ‘have the right to maintain their factories’ wage data confidential’.
To determine a living wage, Patagonia uses the Anker Research Institute’s calculation method. According to that method, you can live decently in urban Sri Lanka if you earn a minimum of 83,231 Sri Lankan rupees (263 euro) a month. Priya’s salary does not even cover half that. And at the recently approved Regal Image print factory, the basic wage is even lower: 21,000 rupees (66 euro), says Fernando.
Thulsi Narayanasamy is frustrated by Patagonia’s approach to sustainability. She is director of advocacy at the Worker Rights Consortium, an independent non-profit organization that monitors and investigates labor conditions in the global apparel and textile industry. ‘Patagonia spends millions on green initiatives. Why can’t they pay the people who make their clothes properly?’
Patagonia says it ‘has no authority over how much textile workers get paid, as they are in no way, shape or form the employer of these workers.’ Narayanasamy, however, is convinced Patagonia can pay a living wage, if the brand would want to. ‘They could bring production in-house or pay more to suppliers that’s ringfenced for wages high enough to achieve a living income. It’s so well established that brand’s pricing practices directly impact wage levels, it’s a fallacy to deny this.’
‘I think we should ask ourselves: why don't clothing brands have their own factories?’ She asks the question, then answers it. 'Brands don't want to be responsible for the people who produce their clothes. All brands benefit from that, including Patagonia.
RESPONSE FROM PATAGONIA When asked why it does not pay its suppliers more for decent wages for workers, Patagonia replied: ‘Relying on one brand to simply cover the gap is a band-aid solution and does not serve the factory in the long run. If the one brand that pays the gap were to leave the factory, then those wages for workers would go away, leaving the factory with a shortfall they would not be able to cover. Additionally, if the brand just writes a check to the factory, then there is no guarantee that the money would go towards workers’ wages. The brand has no authority over how much workers get paid as they are in no way, shape or form the employer of those workers.’
About the long working hours, Patagonia says: ‘Excessive overtime is pervasive globally, which is why it is audited regularly. If we find a problem that can be resolved, we work with our factory partners to implement sustainable solutions. This can take many years, but we find this is the best outcome for the workers and the factory.’
In response to the allegations about drug use among textile workers, Patagonia says: ‘These are serious and new allegations, however without evidence, we are not able to comment on them. We are continuing to conduct our ongoing monitoring program and we remain committed to addressing systemic issues to ensure workers’ wellbeing across our supply chain.’
Link to the article: https://www.ftm.eu/articles/sustainable-clothing-brand-patagonia-uses-same-suppliers-fast-fashion-brands-do-workers-exploited?share=p8cq84oSmbUiJtEQUObUZSPZh8ZNReEKHj0wGJnBMQUMqLcwK9PC1kpMJCev5Mo%3D%26utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=sharebuttonnietleden&utm_source=linkbutton
​
​
​

I'd like to find somebody thoughtful, someone who isn't superficial. Somebody who appreciates the rich vastness of our shared multicultural past, and freely follows her curiosity in exploring it. Somebody who is trying her best to adhere to the guidance of her inner moral compass, and isn't so easily fooled by the distractions and illusions of the world.
One such illusion, that must immediately be mentioned (this is important, because it's led to a break for me, in the past): religion. Religion is man-made, and not of any higher authority. The Bible and the Quran all permit slavery—in addition to countless other horrid and divisive ideas—while claiming to be eternal wisdom, and that is indefensible. I still like to believe in the idea of some permeating higher morality, that imbues us with our general sense for justice, fairness, and empathy...but, I know that without outright proof, even my holding of such a notion can be deemed a flight of fancy, a residual remnant of a system so entrenched. However... It seems to me that life is often more than just what's on the surface. Um—but, anyway! Back to the person I wish to know.
I would also love it if she were artistic. Singing, sketching, painting, writing, composing, creating. Someone who is trying to nurture their talents and passions. I know it can be difficult...
As for me, well... I adore music. Mostly voices from the past (the 1960s would have to be my favorite), because I find them to be humbler and more from the heart, but anything lovely and meaningful will do. I’ll just give an example of something I’ve looked into, and this is nowhere near representative of my wider taste, but if you go back to early 1920s country music, where undiscovered niches of music were still sought out and first put to tape... a lot of those artists had no idea about anything to do with recording—no ego, no attempt to sound "cool". What came through instead was a bare expression of the life that had been lived—the inner beauty of their own personhood, and I love hearing that. It's so honest. A vulnerable and piercing expression.
As for the sixties—they best exemplify the open-heartedness I wish more people would embrace... A sort of doe-eyed idealism rooted in love, cooperation, and truth. I know how tough it can be. To trust, and risk having it trodden on and torn apart. But, we have to renew that choice every day—to greet the world with hope.
So if you're the beautiful music of decades past, if you have any aspirations for creating as a method of changing the world for the better, if you'd like to play games and watch movies together, if you'd like an accountability partner—or all of the above...please message me. I don't mind the chat function, either—in fact, it's probably easier. Also, to get this out of the way: this is what I look like.
I love beautiful things. Nature, music that tugs at your heartstrings or is so honest you're enraptured, experiences that heal. More specifically, here are some of my current interests:

• music: the Beach Boys are my favorite group. I also love Maybelle Carter, Cass Elliot, Pink Floyd, Lana Del Rey, The Cranberries, Sixpence None The Richer, loads of video game music, The Smiths, The Beatles, The Who, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Harry Nilsson, The Righteous Brothers, Judy Garland, Sam Cooke, Frank Churchill, Marty O'Donnell and Michael Salvatori... Singing and performing is a passion of mine, as well. Here’s a brief go at the Beatles’ “Julia”. And, if you liked that—a more recent song. Please excuse the recording quality.
• drawing: here are a few I've done.
• video games: any era from Atari—I like exploring the history and evolution—to the Switch and PS4. Some of my absolute favorites are Banjo-Kazooie, Yoshi's Island, and Ocarina of Time.
• Disney, especially the Golden Age and Renaissance—Pinocchio (my favorite movie ever), Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Aladdin, The Lion King, Tarzan. I love how handmade the early films look, and yet, how no expense was spared in creating these most precious and moving works of art.
• films/series/books I adore: The Sound of Magic, The Little Prince (both the 2015 film and the original book), Matilda (both the film and book), This Beautiful Fantastic, and Pollyanna by Eleanor Porter.

To close... I suppose I should say I've been afflicted with long-COVID for over two years. It'd be very nice to keep each other company, especially if we share any of the interests up above—we could watch favorite films, have shared listening sessions on Spotify, and it'd be a godsend to find somebody up to play on PS4 and Switch! Donkey Kong Country 2 and 3 on the secret hard modes, maybe? Or sculpting our own world from scratch in Minecraft? Or maybe we could act out Ocarina of Time's storyline using all the options available on Smash Ultimate!
I'd really like to know an intelligent person with a unique identity...who puts forth effort—though at the same time, no pressure on reaching out. If you are this type of person, but can currently only muster up a few words because, hey! Life is tough, and grueling, and we don't always have a ready-made letter in us to flip out of our pockets—don't be scared away by my tower of words. I absolutely know, firsthand, what it's like to want to communicate, yet not currently have the energy or the mindpower for it. Life can really sink you... I promise I will not judge. Please send me a chat message, if you're at all interested in chatting.

Just putting major interests down, in hopes of connecting with somebody similar. I love to sing and play music—primarily from the sixties, but anything lovely and meaningful will do. That era best exemplifies the open-heartedness I wish more people would embrace... A sort of doe-eyed idealism rooted in love, cooperation, and truth. I know how tough it can be. To trust, and risk having it trodden on and torn apart. But, we have to renew that choice every day—to greet the world with hope. My favorite songwriters are Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, and John Lennon and Paul McCartney of the Beatles. With an honorary shout-out to Pete Townshend, who is an incredible tour de force of musicianship. To me, the artists of that decade pointed the way for how we should live, before the madness of the world swallowed us whole, once more. Here is a song recorded just for anyone reading my post.
My favorite show I’ve seen this year is The Sound of Magic. Its soundtrack is incredibly beautiful in that lush, dreamlike vein that all the original Disney films were made in—Pinocchio, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I love the medium of games, from its primitive origins in titles like Breakout and Defender, to Yoshi’s Island and Ocarina of Time, all the way up to the present-day. It’d be nice to come across somebody who shares any of these things in common. It’d be especially nice to play games with somebody, whether on Switch or PS4! And, of course, anything you would like to share with me, that hopefully has the same spirit, would be more than welcome! Anyway, thanks for reading… Hope it reaches somebody, out there.

Is anyone also in need of company through the rough waters of life? Four favorites of mine are the Beach Boys, The Sound of Magic, The Little Prince, and the Banjo-Kazooie series. Just putting major interests down, in hopes of connecting with somebody similar. I love to sing and play music—primarily from the sixties, but anything lovely and meaningful will do. That era best exemplifies the open-heartedness I wish more people would embrace... A sort of doe-eyed idealism rooted in love, cooperation, and truth. I know how tough it can be. To trust, and risk having it trodden on and torn apart. But, we have to renew that choice every day—to greet the world with hope. My favorite songwriters are Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, and John Lennon and Paul McCartney of the Beatles. With an honorary shout-out to Pete Townshend, who is an incredible tour de force of musicianship. To me, the artists of that decade pointed the way for how we should live, before the madness of the world swallowed us whole, once more. Here is a song recorded just for anyone reading my post.
My favorite show I’ve seen this year is The Sound of Magic. Its soundtrack is incredibly beautiful in that lush, dreamlike vein that all the original Disney films were made in—Pinocchio, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I love the medium of games, from its primitive origins in titles like Breakout and Defender, to Yoshi’s Island and Ocarina of Time, all the way up to the present-day. It’d be nice to come across somebody who shares any of these things in common. It’d be especially nice to play games with somebody, whether on Switch or PS4! And, of course, anything you would like to share with me, that hopefully has the same spirit, would be more than welcome! Anyway, thanks for reading… Hope it reaches somebody, out there.

Just putting major interests down, in hopes of connecting with somebody similar. I love to sing and play music—primarily from the sixties, but anything lovely and meaningful will do. That era best exemplifies the open-heartedness I wish more people would embrace... A sort of doe-eyed idealism rooted in love, cooperation, and truth. I know how tough it can be. To trust, and risk having it trodden on and torn apart. But, we have to renew that choice every day—to greet the world with hope. My favorite songwriters are Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, and John Lennon and Paul McCartney of the Beatles. With an honorary shout-out to Pete Townshend, who is an incredible tour de force of musicianship. To me, the artists of that decade pointed the way for how we should live, before the madness of the world swallowed us whole, once more. Here is a song recorded just for anyone reading my post.
My favorite show I’ve seen this year is The Sound of Magic. Its soundtrack is incredibly beautiful in that lush, dreamlike vein that all the original Disney films were made in—Pinocchio, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I love the medium of games, from its primitive origins in titles like Breakout and Defender, to Yoshi’s Island and Ocarina of Time, all the way up to the present-day. It’d be nice to come across somebody who shares any of these things in common. It’d be especially nice to play games with somebody, whether on Switch or PS4! And, of course, anything you would like to share with me, that hopefully has the same spirit, would be more than welcome! Anyway, thanks for reading… Hope it reaches somebody, out there.

Just putting major interests down, in hopes of connecting with somebody similar. I love to sing and play music—primarily from the sixties, but anything lovely and meaningful will do. That era best exemplifies the open-heartedness I wish more people would embrace... A sort of doe-eyed idealism rooted in love, cooperation, and truth. I know how tough it can be. To trust, and risk having it trodden on and torn apart. But, we have to renew that choice every day—to greet the world with hope. My favorite songwriters are Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, and John Lennon and Paul McCartney of the Beatles. With an honorary shout-out to Pete Townshend, who is an incredible tour de force of musicianship. To me, the artists of that decade pointed the way for how we should live, before the madness of the world swallowed us whole, once more. Here is a song recorded just for anyone reading my post.
My favorite show I’ve seen this year is The Sound of Magic. Its soundtrack is incredibly beautiful in that lush, dreamlike vein that all the original Disney films were made in—Pinocchio, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I love the medium of games, from its primitive origins in titles like Breakout and Defender, to Yoshi’s Island and Ocarina of Time, all the way up to the present-day. It’d be nice to come across somebody who shares any of these things in common. It’d be especially nice to play games with somebody, whether on Switch or PS4! And, of course, anything you would like to share with me, that hopefully has the same spirit, would be more than welcome! Anyway, thanks for reading… Hope it reaches somebody, out there.

Just putting major interests down, in hopes of connecting with somebody similar. I love to sing and play music—primarily from the sixties, but anything lovely and meaningful will do. That era best exemplifies the open-heartedness I wish more people would embrace... A sort of doe-eyed idealism rooted in love, cooperation, and truth. I know how tough it can be. To trust, and risk having it trodden on and torn apart. But, we have to renew that choice every day—to greet the world with hope. My favorite songwriters are Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, and John Lennon and Paul McCartney of the Beatles. With an honorary shout-out to Pete Townshend, who is an incredible tour de force of musicianship. To me, the artists of that decade pointed the way for how we should live, before the madness of the world swallowed us whole, once more. Here is a song recorded just for anyone reading my post.
My favorite show I’ve seen this year is The Sound of Magic. Its soundtrack is incredibly beautiful in that lush, dreamlike vein that all the original Disney films were made in—Pinocchio, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I love the medium of games, from its primitive origins in titles like Breakout and Defender, to Yoshi’s Island and Ocarina of Time, all the way up to the present-day. It’d be nice to come across somebody who shares any of these things in common. It’d be especially nice to play games with somebody, whether on Switch or PS4! And, of course, anything you would like to share with me, that hopefully has the same spirit, would be more than welcome! Anyway, thanks for reading… Hope it reaches somebody, out there.

Just putting major interests down, in hopes of connecting with somebody similar. I love to sing and play music—primarily from the sixties, but anything lovely and meaningful will do. That era best exemplifies the open-heartedness I wish more people would embrace... A sort of doe-eyed idealism rooted in love, cooperation, and truth. I know how tough it can be. To trust, and risk having it trodden on and torn apart. But, we have to renew that choice every day—to greet the world with hope. My favorite songwriters are Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, and John Lennon and Paul McCartney of the Beatles. With an honorary shout-out to Pete Townshend, who is an incredible tour de force of musicianship. To me, the artists of that decade pointed the way for how we should live, before the madness of the world swallowed us whole, once more. Here is a song recorded just for anyone reading my post.
My favorite show I’ve seen this year is The Sound of Magic. Its soundtrack is incredibly beautiful in that lush, dreamlike vein that all the original Disney films were made in—Pinocchio, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I love the medium of games, from its primitive origins in titles like Breakout and Defender, to Yoshi’s Island and Ocarina of Time, all the way up to the present-day. It’d be nice to come across somebody who shares any of these things in common. It’d be especially nice to play games with somebody, whether on Switch or PS4! And, of course, anything you would like to share with me, that hopefully has the same spirit, would be more than welcome! Anyway, thanks for reading… Hope it reaches somebody, out there.

Just putting major interests down, in hopes of connecting with somebody similar. I love to sing and play music—primarily from the sixties, but anything lovely and meaningful will do. That era best exemplifies the open-heartedness I wish more people would embrace... A sort of doe-eyed idealism rooted in love, cooperation, and truth. I know how tough it can be. To trust, and risk having it trodden on and torn apart. But, we have to renew that choice every day—to greet the world with hope. My favorite songwriters are Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, and John Lennon and Paul McCartney of the Beatles. With an honorary shout-out to Pete Townshend, who is an incredible tour de force of musicianship. To me, the artists of that decade pointed the way for how we should live, before the madness of the world swallowed us whole, once more. Here is a song recorded just for anyone reading my post.
My favorite show I’ve seen this year is The Sound of Magic. Its soundtrack is incredibly beautiful in that lush, dreamlike vein that all the original Disney films were made in—Pinocchio, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I love the medium of games, from its primitive origins in titles like Breakout and Defender, to Yoshi’s Island and Ocarina of Time, all the way up to the present-day. It’d be nice to come across somebody who shares any of these things in common. It’d be especially nice to play games with somebody, whether on Switch or PS4! And, of course, anything you would like to share with me, that hopefully has the same spirit, would be more than welcome! Anyway, thanks for reading… Hope it reaches somebody, out there.

Just putting major interests down, in hopes of connecting with somebody similar. I love to sing and play music—primarily from the sixties, but anything lovely and meaningful will do. That era best exemplifies the open-heartedness I wish more people would embrace... A sort of doe-eyed idealism rooted in love, cooperation, and truth. I know how tough it can be. To trust, and risk having it trodden on and torn apart. But, we have to renew that choice every day—to greet the world with hope. My favorite songwriters are Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, and John Lennon and Paul McCartney of the Beatles. With an honorary shout-out to Pete Townshend, who is an incredible tour de force of musicianship. To me, the artists of that decade pointed the way for how we should live, before the madness of the world swallowed us whole, once more. Here is a song recorded just for anyone reading my post.
My favorite show I’ve seen this year is The Sound of Magic. Its soundtrack is incredibly beautiful in that lush, dreamlike vein that all the original Disney films were made in—Pinocchio, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I love the medium of games, from its primitive origins in titles like Breakout and Defender, to Yoshi’s Island and Ocarina of Time, all the way up to the present-day. It’d be nice to come across somebody who shares any of these things in common. It’d be especially nice to play games with somebody, whether on Switch or PS4! And, of course, anything you would like to share with me, that hopefully has the same spirit, would be more than welcome! Anyway, thanks for reading… Hope it reaches somebody, out there.

I'd like to find somebody thoughtful, someone who isn't superficial. Somebody who appreciates the rich vastness of our shared multicultural past, and freely follows her curiosity in exploring it. Somebody who is trying her best to adhere to the guidance of her inner moral compass, and isn't so easily fooled by the distractions and illusions of the world.
One such illusion, that must immediately be mentioned (this is important, because it's led to a break for me, in the past): religion. Religion is man-made, and not of any higher authority. The Bible and the Quran all permit slavery—in addition to countless other horrid and divisive ideas—while claiming to be eternal wisdom, and that is indefensible. I still like to believe in the idea of some permeating higher morality, that imbues us with our general sense for justice, fairness, and empathy...but, I know that without outright proof, even my holding of such a notion can be deemed a flight of fancy, a residual remnant of a system so entrenched. However... It seems to me that life is often more than just what's on the surface. Um—but, anyway! Back to the person I wish to know.
I would also love it if she were artistic. Singing, sketching, painting, writing, composing, creating. Someone who is trying to nurture their talents and passions. I know it can be difficult...
As for me, well... I adore music. Mostly voices from the past (the 1960s would have to be my favorite), because I find them to be humbler and more from the heart, but anything lovely and meaningful will do. I’ll just give an example of something I’ve looked into, and this is nowhere near representative of my wider taste, but if you go back to early 1920s country music, where undiscovered niches of music were still sought out and first put to tape... a lot of those artists had no idea about anything to do with recording—no ego, no attempt to sound "cool". What came through instead was a bare expression of the life that had been lived—the inner beauty of their own personhood, and I love hearing that. It's so honest. A vulnerable and piercing expression.
As for the sixties—they best exemplify the open-heartedness I wish more people would embrace... A sort of doe-eyed idealism rooted in love, cooperation, and truth. I know how tough it can be. To trust, and risk having it trodden on and torn apart. But, we have to renew that choice every day—to greet the world with hope.
So if you're the beautiful music of decades past, if you have any aspirations for creating as a method of changing the world for the better, if you'd like to play games and watch movies together, if you'd like an accountability partner—or all of the above...please message me. I don't mind the chat function, either—in fact, it's probably easier. Also, to get this out of the way: this is what I look like.
I love beautiful things. Nature, music that tugs at your heartstrings or is so honest you're enraptured, experiences that heal. More specifically, here are some of my current interests:

• music: the Beach Boys are my favorite group. I also love Maybelle Carter, Cass Elliot, Pink Floyd, Lana Del Rey, The Cranberries, Sixpence None The Richer, loads of video game music, The Smiths, The Beatles, The Who, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Harry Nilsson, The Righteous Brothers, Judy Garland, Sam Cooke, Frank Churchill, Marty O'Donnell and Michael Salvatori... Singing and performing is a passion of mine, as well. Here’s a brief go at the Beatles’ “Julia”. And, if you liked that—a more recent song. Please excuse the recording quality.
• drawing: here are a few I've done.
• video games: any era from Atari—I like exploring the history and evolution—to the Switch and PS4. Some of my absolute favorites are Banjo-Kazooie, Yoshi's Island, and Ocarina of Time.
• Disney, especially the Golden Age and Renaissance—Pinocchio (my favorite movie ever), Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Aladdin, The Lion King, Tarzan. I love how handmade the early films look, and yet, how no expense was spared in creating these most precious and moving works of art.
• films/series/books I adore: The Sound of Magic, The Little Prince (both the 2015 film and the original book), Matilda (both the film and book), This Beautiful Fantastic, and Pollyanna by Eleanor Porter.

To close... I suppose I should say I've been afflicted with long-COVID for over two years. It'd be very nice to keep each other company, especially if we share any of the interests up above—we could watch favorite films, have shared listening sessions on Spotify, and it'd be a godsend to find somebody up to play on PS4 and Switch! Donkey Kong Country 2 and 3 on the secret hard modes, maybe? Or sculpting our own world from scratch in Minecraft? Or maybe we could act out Ocarina of Time's storyline using all the options available on Smash Ultimate!
I'd really like to know an intelligent person with a unique identity...who puts forth effort—though at the same time, no pressure on reaching out. If you are this type of person, but can currently only muster up a few words because, hey! Life is tough, and grueling, and we don't always have a ready-made letter in us to flip out of our pockets—don't be scared away by my tower of words. I absolutely know, firsthand, what it's like to want to communicate, yet not currently have the energy or the mindpower for it. Life can really sink you... I promise I will not judge. Please send me a chat message, if you're at all interested in chatting.

Just putting major interests down, in hopes of connecting with somebody similar. I love to sing and play music—primarily from the sixties, but anything lovely and meaningful will do. That era best exemplifies the open-heartedness I wish more people would embrace... A sort of doe-eyed idealism rooted in love, cooperation, and truth. I know how tough it can be. To trust, and risk having it trodden on and torn apart. But, we have to renew that choice every day—to greet the world with hope. My favorite songwriters are Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, and John Lennon and Paul McCartney of the Beatles. With an honorary shout-out to Pete Townshend, who is an incredible tour de force of musicianship. To me, the artists of that decade pointed the way for how we should live, before the madness of the world swallowed us whole, once more. Here is a song recorded just for anyone reading my post.
My favorite show I’ve seen this year is The Sound of Magic. Its soundtrack is incredibly beautiful in that lush, dreamlike vein that all the original Disney films were made in—Pinocchio, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I love the medium of games, from its primitive origins in titles like Breakout and Defender, to Yoshi’s Island and Ocarina of Time, all the way up to the present-day. It’d be nice to come across somebody who shares any of these things in common. It’d be especially nice to play games with somebody, whether on Switch or PS4! And, of course, anything you would like to share with me, that hopefully has the same spirit, would be more than welcome! Anyway, thanks for reading… Hope it reaches somebody, out there.

Just putting major interests down, in hopes of connecting with somebody similar. I love to sing and play music—primarily from the sixties, but anything lovely and meaningful will do. That era best exemplifies the open-heartedness I wish more people would embrace... A sort of doe-eyed idealism rooted in love, cooperation, and truth. I know how tough it can be. To trust, and risk having it trodden on and torn apart. But, we have to renew that choice every day—to greet the world with hope. My favorite songwriters are Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, and John Lennon and Paul McCartney of the Beatles. With an honorary shout-out to Pete Townshend, who is an incredible tour de force of musicianship. To me, the artists of that decade pointed the way for how we should live, before the madness of the world swallowed us whole, once more. Here is a song recorded just for anyone reading my post.
My favorite show I’ve seen this year is The Sound of Magic. Its soundtrack is incredibly beautiful in that lush, dreamlike vein that all the original Disney films were made in—Pinocchio, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I love the medium of games, from its primitive origins in titles like Breakout and Defender, to Yoshi’s Island and Ocarina of Time, all the way up to the present-day. It’d be nice to come across somebody who shares any of these things in common. It’d be especially nice to play games with somebody, whether on Switch or PS4! And, of course, anything you would like to share with me, that hopefully has the same spirit, would be more than welcome! Anyway, thanks for reading… Hope it reaches somebody, out there.

I'd like to find somebody thoughtful, someone who isn't superficial. Somebody who appreciates the rich vastness of our shared multicultural past, and freely follows her curiosity in exploring it. Somebody who is trying her best to adhere to the guidance of her inner moral compass, and isn't so easily fooled by the distractions and illusions of the world.
One such illusion, that must immediately be mentioned (this is important, because it's led to a break for me, in the past): religion. Religion is man-made, and not of any higher authority. The Bible and the Quran all permit slavery—in addition to countless other horrid and divisive ideas—while claiming to be eternal wisdom, and that is indefensible. I still like to believe in the idea of some permeating higher morality, that imbues us with our general sense for justice, fairness, and empathy...but, I know that without outright proof, even my holding of such a notion can be deemed a flight of fancy, a residual remnant of a system so entrenched. However... It seems to me that life is often more than just what's on the surface. Um—but, anyway! Back to the person I wish to know.
I would also love it if she were artistic. Singing, sketching, painting, writing, composing, creating. Someone who is trying to nurture their talents and passions. I know it can be difficult...
As for me, well... I adore music. Mostly voices from the past (the 1960s would have to be my favorite), because I find them to be humbler and more from the heart, but anything lovely and meaningful will do. I’ll just give an example of something I’ve looked into, and this is nowhere near representative of my wider taste, but if you go back to early 1920s country music, where undiscovered niches of music were still sought out and first put to tape... a lot of those artists had no idea about anything to do with recording—no ego, no attempt to sound "cool". What came through instead was a bare expression of the life that had been lived—the inner beauty of their own personhood, and I love hearing that. It's so honest. A vulnerable and piercing expression.
As for the sixties—they best exemplify the open-heartedness I wish more people would embrace... A sort of doe-eyed idealism rooted in love, cooperation, and truth. I know how tough it can be. To trust, and risk having it trodden on and torn apart. But, we have to renew that choice every day—to greet the world with hope.
So if you're the beautiful music of decades past, if you have any aspirations for creating as a method of changing the world for the better, if you'd like to play games and watch movies together, if you'd like an accountability partner—or all of the above...please message me. I don't mind the chat function, either—in fact, it's probably easier. Also, to get this out of the way: this is what I look like.
I love beautiful things. Nature, music that tugs at your heartstrings or is so honest you're enraptured, experiences that heal. More specifically, here are some of my current interests:

• music: the Beach Boys are my favorite group. I also love Maybelle Carter, Cass Elliot, Pink Floyd, Lana Del Rey, The Cranberries, Sixpence None The Richer, loads of video game music, The Smiths, The Beatles, The Who, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Harry Nilsson, The Righteous Brothers, Judy Garland, Sam Cooke, Frank Churchill, Marty O'Donnell and Michael Salvatori... Singing and performing is a passion of mine, as well. Here’s a brief go at the Beatles’ “Julia”. And, if you liked that—a more recent song. Please excuse the recording quality.
• drawing: here are a few I've done.
• video games: any era from Atari—I like exploring the history and evolution—to the Switch and PS4. Some of my absolute favorites are Banjo-Kazooie, Yoshi's Island, and Ocarina of Time.
• Disney, especially the Golden Age and Renaissance—Pinocchio (my favorite movie ever), Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Aladdin, The Lion King, Tarzan. I love how handmade the early films look, and yet, how no expense was spared in creating these most precious and moving works of art.
• films/series/books I adore: The Sound of Magic, The Little Prince (both the 2015 film and the original book), Matilda (both the film and book), This Beautiful Fantastic, and Pollyanna by Eleanor Porter.

To close... I suppose I should say I've been afflicted with long-COVID for over two years. It'd be very nice to keep each other company, especially if we share any of the interests up above—we could watch favorite films, have shared listening sessions on Spotify, and it'd be a godsend to find somebody up to play on PS4 and Switch! Donkey Kong Country 2 and 3 on the secret hard modes, maybe? Or sculpting our own world from scratch in Minecraft? Or maybe we could act out Ocarina of Time's storyline using all the options available on Smash Ultimate!
I'd really like to know an intelligent person with a unique identity...who puts forth effort—though at the same time, no pressure on reaching out. If you are this type of person, but can currently only muster up a few words because, hey! Life is tough, and grueling, and we don't always have a ready-made letter in us to flip out of our pockets—don't be scared away by my tower of words. I absolutely know, firsthand, what it's like to want to communicate, yet not currently have the energy or the mindpower for it. Life can really sink you... I promise I will not judge. Please send me a chat message, if you're at all interested in chatting.

Just putting major interests down, in hopes of connecting with somebody similar. I love to sing and play music—primarily from the sixties, but anything lovely and meaningful will do. That era best exemplifies the open-heartedness I wish more people would embrace... A sort of doe-eyed idealism rooted in love, cooperation, and truth. I know how tough it can be. To trust, and risk having it trodden on and torn apart. But, we have to renew that choice every day—to greet the world with hope. My favorite songwriters are Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, and John Lennon and Paul McCartney of the Beatles. With an honorary shout-out to Pete Townshend, who is an incredible tour de force of musicianship. To me, the artists of that decade pointed the way for how we should live, before the madness of the world swallowed us whole, once more. Here is a song recorded just for anyone reading my post.
My favorite show I’ve seen this year is The Sound of Magic. Its soundtrack is incredibly beautiful in that lush, dreamlike vein that all the original Disney films were made in—Pinocchio, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I love the medium of games, from its primitive origins in titles like Breakout and Defender, to Yoshi’s Island and Ocarina of Time, all the way up to the present-day. It’d be nice to come across somebody who shares any of these things in common. It’d be especially nice to play games with somebody, whether on Switch or PS4! And, of course, anything you would like to share with me, that hopefully has the same spirit, would be more than welcome! Anyway, thanks for reading… Hope it reaches somebody, out there.

June 19th, 327
We decided to construct some more structures to take care of the refugees that we rescue, assuming that this goes off without a hitch. Augustine asked Elock about the collar and she revealed that the collar had a size changing enchantment attached to it. Once the seven day period is up, the collar will shrink, crushing her airways which would instantly kill her. So Augustine teleported her back quickly which would kick step one of our plan into gear.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
cut to Elock’s pov
Shopkeeper: Hello welcome t- oh! Welcome back sir!
A: Hey there! Project took longer than expected, but luckily an extra set of hands makes heavy work pretty light!
Shopkeeper: What can I say? She’s one of the best. And also sir, if you don’t mind me asking, what were you working on? I didn’t see you anywhere in town.
A: oh- uhh I’m from the town over!
Shopkeeper: Are your memories already slipping? I paid the town next to us a visit to chat business with a friend and I never saw any structures being constructed.
A: I- I live at the far end! Perhaps you missed it.
Shopkeeper: …Alright then. have a nice day sir.
A: …you too…cya
exits
Elock: humming hm, hm, hmmm! walking towards the back
Shopkeeper: Elock…
Elock: eep! Yes sir!
Shopkeeper: Would you mind telling me what you 2 were doing?
Elock: oh! Just a house for his extended family. Nothing special.
Shopkeeper: “just a house”? Alright then…you’re off for the rest of today…go to the slave house. takes off her collar
Elock: Thank you! runs off
Shopkeeper in thought: …those eyes…they seem to both see nothing and everything at once.
Shopkeeper: I’d appreciate it if you’d look into it a bit sir.
“…”
“Very well, I’ll inform my boss about it and I’ll get to your problem right away”
Shopkeeper: thank you sir
Lulio: huh…very well then, it’ll be well worth your time I believe…
“Thank you sir”
Lulio: I think you’ll do well…Akano
Elock: bursting into the slave home owned by the shop keep Woo! Man that was nerve wracking, for a second I thought he was gonna catch on!
Thoughts: Alright! Now! Time to get on with this operation! Augustine’s counting on me and I can’t let him down!
plops down next to fellow slave
Elock: whispers hey!
Slave: eh?
Elock: um…I- words dying in her throat
Slave: …
Elock: ah- mm… you wanna get out of here?
Thoughts: Why did I say that?! I’m so stupid!
Slave: …you know they’re gonna send us back here again instantly right? Cute dream but it’s just that: a fantasy. gets up and leaves
Elock: hey, wai- sad sigh
next day
Another slave: Nice fantasy…leaves
Elock: getting demoralized
Slave: potentially losing my life by going with your outlandish proposal is a risk I’d rather not take.
Elock: defeated
the next day
Shopkeeper: Hello again sir! Another project I presume?
A: yup! I’d like to take the same slave again, she really made the work quick.
Shopkeeper: good choice! rings bell ELOCK! Get your ass over here! The nice gentlemen wants your services again!
Elock: hey A- Sir…
A: Nice to see you again. tosses gold onto the counter and leaves
A: So how'd it go?
Elock: no one was on board with the plan. They all claimed it was insane and had no conceivable way of working!
A: Expected. Not everyone has the same high risk-high reward mindset, c'mon let’s get to Zach first and then we’ll build off from there. teleports
Z: hmmmm I understand, they’re scared, they've only known brutality and slavery their entire lives. They fear that if this goes south, then they’ll be subjected to a fate worse than death itself.
Elock: look of guilt
A: I’m fully aware of the dangers that come with this. But we do get discovered, I’ll gladly take on every army they throw at me if it means that you guys would survive.
Elock: Augustine!
Z: We know how much you wanna help them Augustine, but you don’t have to take on a mountain on your own. We’re both here for you.
A: right…sorry.
Elock: please, it’s alright. We can figure out some other way. Knowing you, you’ll be able to craft something before dinner.
A: I’ll take that as a compliment. Thanks Elock.
Z: Augustine.
A: yes?
Z: Are you familiar with the concept of mental projection?
A: Somewhat, they briefly skimmed over it in training back at the facility. The art of projecting imagery into other people’s mind on the battlefield to mentally erode them.
Z: precisely, but instead of breaking will, we’ll be building it.
A: What are you saying here?
Z: What if instead of trying to get slaves to get on board via words, why don’t we let them see for themselves what waits for them if they comply?
Elock: That’s genius! When they see the paradise that could be in their hands, there’s no way they can turn that down!
A: not a terrible idea, but I don’t think I have the chops to project an image into the mind of every slave in town, my skills in that department are unfortunately pretty lacking.
Z: Why don’t we go to the island again so you can familiarize yourself with the image you’re projecting, then use the mana crystals to give yourself some extra power?
A: Smart move, let’s do it.
exits cabin
A: Alright, time to go.
teleports both of them
A: Okay let’s get down to busine…where are we?
(Instead of being greeted with the base of a mountain range, they were still in the forest. Miles away from the cabin.)
Z: I- I don’t know!
A: I didn’t do anything different! But it’s alright, I remember the direction to go in, we can still fix this.
Elock: Alright then.
10 minutes of walking later
A: Get a move on Zach! We’re almost there! Shouldn’t be much farther!
Z: Hah…I- losing his breath how are you- how are you 2 still so energetic?
Elock: I’m a leopard. I'm meant to be agile!
A: This anti magic field’s edge shouldn’t be more than a few more minutes away! We should be out in about…NOBODY MOVE!
Elock and Zach: freezes in place What's wrong?
A: …we’re not alone. Someone else is here!
Elock: I don’t hear or smell anyone else besides you guys. Are you sure?
A: Yes I’m sure! I can sense another source of energy here!
???: I would say I’m impressed that you managed to detect me since I pride myself on being able to move like a shadow…but I sort of expected this with talent like yours.
Akano: Hello Augustine, been a while hasn’t it?
A: Akano? What’re you doing here…
Akano: boss sent me to hunt you down, anonymous source requested it.
Augustine thoughts: No doubt it was that shopkeeper.
Akano: Now since we’ve spent some time together, I’ll give you 2 choices. You can drop your sword and come back with us unharmed, or I paint this forest a lovely shade of red with your blood an-
A: Bring it on…
Akano: hm. As you wish…
~~~~~
Akano dashes towards Augustine with lightning speed, expecting to end this quickly.
Akano: WIND GALE CUT!
An explosion sends a strong gust of cutting air across the forest. Zach and Elock took refuge behind a thick tree, powerless to do a damn thing to help.
Akano: oh ho! Quick on your feet are you?
Augustine who dodged into a tree: guess you can say that.
Akano: Well, I guess it’s time to turn this up a notch! pulls a strange amulet, with a large red gem resting in a gold frame
Augustine: hm?
Akano: Master Lulio entrusted me with this and I won’t let him down!
The amulet begins to glow once Akano puts it around his neck, The energy being given off was palpable from a mile away, to the point it could be severed with a knife.
Akano: CURSED GALE FURY!
The attack sends multiple large scale wind slices through out the area, yet even with this jump in power, Augustine doesn’t seem fazed with him perfectly dodging and blocking every slash as Akano watched, perplexed
Augustine: Your display of power is impressive. I'll give you that.
Akano: Keep talking little brat, the power contained within this amulet is beyond even your understanding!
Augustine: Oh really? What evidence do you have to back that theory up?
Akano: WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO SAY?!
“What I’m saying is that even though you claim that this amulet is never before seen, you haven’t managed to land a single hit yet.” Augustine sneers.
Akano: beginning to seeth in rage
Augustine: In fact…you seem to be the most injured one so far…
Right on que, a small cut appears on Akano’s face as he looks up to see that Augustine blade is stained with his blood with a small smirk beginning to form on his face.
Akano: …You’re dead meat…
Akano launches towards the tree as Augustine simply leaps into another tree as it gets cut down, Akano sends jets of cutting wind at Augustine but he simply blocks or avoids them with seemingly zero effort. What confuses Akano even more is why he isn’t fighting back, with the worst attack he’s thrown so far being a small cut.
Akano: What’s wrong?! WHERE’S ALL THE TALK NOW HUH?!
Augustine: still dodging …
Akano: SPIRALIZING SWORD PIERCE!
Akano attempts to piledrive Augustine with his sword and successfully impales him through the chest.
Akano: GOTCHA! THIS IS THE EN-
The Augustine on his sword dematerialized as the real Augustine appears next to him
Augustine: Hey, nice effort.
With a swift kick, Augustine sends Akano flying into the trunk of a tree. Instantly causing him to cough up blood.
Augustine: I never wanted it to end this way, I apologize but this was your own doing.
Akano: barely mustering enough strength to stay conscious don’t think you’ve won yet brat…I’M FAR FROM DONE!
The amulet begins to glow a furious red as Akano leaps into the air, as he prepares to pour every last drop of his remaining strength into this attack as a last ditch effort to take Augustine down.
Elock: Is…is he gonna be alright?!
Z: Augustine has a knack for worming his way out of sticky situations, but I’m nervous even with the power he holds.
Akano: FINAL FLASH FLURRY!
Akano unleashes a maelstrom of erratic sword slashes down towards Augustine, even faster than before. Augustine increases his speed to match but still gets 2 large cuts across his torso and arm. Seeing this Akano smiles and picks up his pace, confident that he would kill him.
Akano: LOOKS LIKE YOU’RE THE INJURED ONE NOW.
Augustine: slightly pressured and tired look from dodging so much
Akano: NORMALLY I’D GIVE YOU A CHOICE TO SURRENDER RIGHT ABOUT NOW! BUT SINCE YOU HAD AN ATTITUDE I'M KILLING YOU RIGHT HERE RIGHT NO-
Akano’s face changes from glee to horror as he watches Augustine blast a tree with a fireball to launch himself to his position. Augustine was now no more than a few feet away from him and there was no way he could raise his sword up to block in time. “This is it” he thinks “This is how I’m gonna go out? Taken out by a boy turned monster?”. Everyone holds their breath as they wait for the killing blow where they watch Augustine raise his sword up to Akano’s neck, waiting for the splatter of blood to rain down on the trees…but it never comes. Instead of beheading Akano, Augustine slams the edge of his sword on the chains of the red amulet, breaking it. The amulet drops towards the forest floor and Akano’s power instantly fizzles out. The amulet clatters onto the ground as Augustine gracefully lands in a tree with Akano falling hard on his side.
Akano: I- trembling and confused at what just happened I’m alive?!
Akano looks up to see Augustine holding his amulet, looking at him, not with rage…but sympathy.
Akano: I’m…Why didn’t you kill me?!
Augustine: Because I’m not like you, slaughtering people just to fuel your own ego.
Zach and Elock observe the confrontation, in awe.
Akano: Don’t come at me with that moral high ground! And I’m not done yet! grips sword
Before Akano could draw his blade, Augustine appeared in front of him holding a device in his hands.
Augustine: So this was the reason why I couldn’t teleport. slashing the black, rune carved tablet into bits
Akano: …feeling panic wash over him
Augustine: Just…do something for me alright?
Akano: looks on with confusion
Augustine: Just…try to be a better person after you get out.
Before Akano could question what he meant by “get out” Augustine pressed his finger onto Akano’s forehead and at that moment, Akano felt something he hadn’t felt in a long time: relief, like all the burdens of working for the grand Templar suddenly couldn’t touch him anymore. Still in this feeling, Augustine focused his energy into Akano, teleporting him away. Akano awoke on a strange beach, confused.
Akano: gah…what…happened? What did he even do? That sensation, it felt…good. Now where am I-
Basitin: HALT!
Akano: ah!
Basitin 1: How did you get on our island stranger?
Basitin 2: take him to the king, he’ll know what to do.
Akano: Basitin…KING?!
~~~~~
Augustine: sigh of relief with his wounds almost done regenerating That was scary, I’ve never been in a real fight before, he was stronger than I thought he’d be. turns to Zach and Elock you guys alright?
Z: Augustine…That was…
A: what? Why are you looking at me like tha-
Elock: INCREDIBLE! pounces on him the way you effortlessly dodged almost all of his attacks was so cool! And the way you took him down was just like in the fantasy books!
Z: Elock let go! You’re gonna squeeze him to death!
Elock: oh! Sorry!
A: It's alright, though maybe I should stop performing those feats in front of you then.
Z: So Augustine, where should we head now? A clearing with torn up trees isn’t exactly what I call subtle.
A: They’re gonna come looking for him by following his amulet’s energy signal. Disposing of it is what we should do, but there are some properties of it that I wanna explore so… grabs his sword and smashes the gem, taking a small chunk to observe at the cabin
A: alright let’s get this out of here. focusing his energy onto the amulet, he teleported it away to a place that no one would find it. No one at all. No sir
Smol basitin child: Hey! What’s this shiny red rock?
Another child: don’t know.
Smol basitin: whoa! It shoots fire, and the warmth feels so nice and…intoxicating…
A: They still might find this carnage though, heading back for the day I think is the better idea.
Z: well if you say so then.
A: Luckily with that device destroyed, I can teleport again.
Elock: let’s get out of here then!
A: very well. teleports
later that night
Z: Augustine you doing alright?
A: yes I’m fine, tomorrow it’ll look like these injuries were never there.
Z: No I was talking about your feelings, I thought you’d be demoralized after that attack.
A: quite the opposite actually, it felt good letting some of my feelings out in that battle.
Z: I see. I was expecting you to actually kill him, but was surprised when you just broke his necklace.
A: Guess the memory 2 guards I slayed in the facility during the escape still burned a bit.
Z: I understand.
Augustine’s thoughts: goes back to a conversation he had with Elock years ago
~~~~~~
Young Elock: Augustine, how do you define a hero?
Young Augustine: hm?
Young Elock: I read a lot of fantasy and mythology books about epic battles and legendary heroes, what’s a hero to you?
Young Augustine: That's a pretty subjective question but I don’t think I’m the right person to answer that. I’ve always defined heroes as people who can take the villain down and nothing more.
Young Elock: I guess you can say that.
Young Augustine: So how do you define a hero Elock? Might as well get a second opinion.
Young Elock: Oh! Um! I’ve always believed that heroes are people who can both save the day, and send the villains down the brighter path. Not through power but through words, not simply killing them.
Young Augustine: Huh…that’s a new concept, pretty cool. I’ll give it some thought.
Young Elock: Thanks!
~~~~~~
“Am I really a hero doing this?”
Elock: Augustine. You ok? You look lost.
A: snaps back huh? Oh right, sorry I was daydreaming.
Elock: disappointed that the plan failed?
A: I- yeah I suppose so.
“Well perhaps I can help with that”
A: Who said that?!
Z: Elock was that you?
Elock: I didn’t say that.
“It was me!”
Everyone looks around the cabin to see who’s talking.
“Oh my masks…HEY! IDIOTS! DOWN HERE!”
Everyone looks down to see…a white cat?
Z: a cat?
Elock: awwww! It’s so cute!
A: Oh it's you again. Hey there.
Z: Wait Augustine was this the weird cat I saw in the forest a while back?!
“Have some respect, Doctor! I’ll have you know that I have the ability to take your insides to the outside!”
Z: Who the hell are you anyways? And what are you doing here?! And how are you creepily talking inside my head?!
“Well if you insist”
“My name is Nora, or Lady Nora”
Z: shudders L- Lady Nora?! PLEASE FORGIVE MY RUDENESS!
Nora: oh please, get up from the floor already! Do you seriously deal with this guy everyday?
A: Normally he’s calm and collected. Guess in the presence of superiority he’s pretty shy.
Nora: typical humans.
Elock: Excuse me, lady Nora! But what are you doing here? Don’t you have more important business to take care of?
Nora: Dragon duties get pre-tty boring after a while, so I’m always looking for new stuff to do.
Elock: but that only answers one question! What are you doing here?
Nora: to help…duh.
Elock: really?
A: huh?
Z: what?
Nora: Yeah, I’m here to help. What?
Z: Is this a trick?! Are you waiting for us to reveal our plans to you just for you to tell the grand Templar?!
Nora: Are you deaf? I JUST SAID I'M HELPING YOU! And besides! I already know about your plan! Jeez your mind is easy to peek into!
A: Why are you helping though? Surely there are more interesting things you could be doing…not that we’re turning down your offer though.
Nora: Why does anyone do anything? When you get to my age everything’s pretty boring.
A: yeah…don’t think we’ll be getting there anytime soon. But how do you plan on helping? I mean I get how much power you hold but what can you do to benefit us?
Nora: You'll know it when the time comes. I’ll need a few days…and also! manifests a key out of nowhere for your buddy’s collar over there.
A: Oh! Thank you! Elock! You’re free now!
Elock: picks up Nora and presses her against her face Thank youuuuuuuu!
Nora: ACK! Get off me! I know you’re happy but limit the physical touch!
A: how’d you even get the key anyways? I thought that the shopkeeper held the sole copy!
Nora: oh! It was simple really, just made him a deal where for the key I show him uhh ahem a “pleasurable” fantasy if you know what I mean.
A: oh…OH…
Nora: right…anyways. I’ll be ready when you guys need me. Once you get your crap together I’ll be ready.
Z: very well then.
June 20th, 327
~~~~~
Zach wakes up to see Augustine sitting at his desk, tinkering with the red crystal sample seemingly puzzled and intrigued at once. Elock is still asleep on the bed as Augustine let her have it.
Z: what’cha doing there?
A: oh! Hey Zach! I’m just testing this sample I got from Akano’s amulet and it’s pretty interesting. First off, the size of the crystal never seems to shift no matter how much I use it, with me charging energy into one of our slabs of steak and the crystal never changes size at all! What I’m more curious about is the steak. I used my sword to cut it and to my amazement it started healing the cut right before my eyes, so in essence I imbued that piece of meat with my regenerative properties! Unfortunately it didn’t last long as the high amount of energy destroyed the steak’s cells and quite literally liquifying it!
Z: interesting…
A: But that does raise some red flags unfortunately…
Z: why’s tha- oh…you don’t mean…
A: yeah…that means that one day…I might befall the same fate. But when? I don’t know. And I don’t wanna think about it.
~~~~~~~~~
To be continued…

Toxic Rats: DJ, Scott, Trent, Sammy, Sierra
Mutant Maggots: Anne Maria, Molly, Scarlett, Geoff
Episode 08: The Treasure Island of Dr. McLean
"Last time, on Total Drama Revenge of the Island!" The recap montage opened with several RCMP helicopters flying around before cutting to the Mutant Maggots entering the mining elevator. "The players went on an impromptu to environmental coveru-uh, clean-up challenge," Sammy, DJ, and Sierra were shown running down a mineshaft, then Scott and Trent tripped on a rail, "and tried not to get a toxic make-over like everything down there." Geoff was shown struggling with Molly, both looking sickly, and a few shots followed of various mutant gophers running and squealing.
"Max came back to the island," the host continued over clips of the super villain revealing herself to Scarlett, "and E-Clone wasn't far behind," the alien was shown tackling DJ, "and after overcoming his germ phobia," Chris said as Dave was shown hitting the gopher and saving his teammates, "he voluntarily took the old heave-ho," the normal guy was shown getting hurled.
"Makes you wanna reflect, don't it?" Chris asked as the last clips finished up. "Maybe...with a cup of Chris McLean Instant Coffee," he said as the scene cut to him standing on the docks holding a mug with his face on the side. He took a sip, his eyes went wide, and he spat it out. "Bitter...better!" he quickly corrected with a forced smile. "Better than the rest." He dumped the mug out into the lake, and a fish promptly surfaced where the drink had landed and vomited in disgust.
Chris held his awkward smile for a second before regaining his composure and walking to the side. "Who will survive? Who will wish they didn't? Find out right now, on Total! Drama! Revenge, of the Island!"
XXXXX
The episode opened to a shot of the sun rising over the lake, a few seagulls calling in the distance. The camera slowly cut from close-up to close-up of the sleeping campers – Sammy and DJ, Trent, Sierra, and Scott, Scarlett and Geoff, and Molly and Anne Maria. All nine of them were sleeping on wooden rafts in their usual clothes, until the shot cut to an alarm clock tied to a buoy with large acoustic horns next to the bell. The hands struck approximately 7 o'clock, and a loud ringing sang through the morning air.
DJ bolted awake with a gasping start, and so did the others a few seconds later.
"What? Where are we?" Anne Maria asked in confusion, the camera cutting outward to show the two rafts floating next to each other and the buoy-alarm amid a mass of debris mostly consisting of wood, furniture, and waste barrels. Each raft had a signpost with their respective team logo on it – the Rats on the left; the Maggots on the right.
"No!" DJ griped, the camera coming out even further. "Chris must've set us adrift after we went to sleep!"
"Yeah," Scott said as the camera moved behind him and Sammy, showing the island of Wawanakwa off in the distance. "Wait, I don't remember anything after dinner."
Scarlett's eyes widened in realization. "Dinner! Of course!"
\
The footage flashed to a close-up of a meal tray, held by Scarlett as she collected her dinner. The meal was a slimy pile of spaghetti, tomato sauce, butt-shaped meatballs, and feathers, plopped down onto the tray without ceremony.
The shot zoomed out to show her eyeing Chef with mild disgust.
"Turkey buttolini," Chef explained with a grin. "Enjoy your na~ap!" he said before realizing his slip-up. "Err, meal..."
Scarlett just pursed her lips at the man as he laughed darkly to himself.
\
The scene flashed back to the Maggots. "Turkey makes you woozy, so mutant turkey can easily knock us all out," Scarlett deduced.
The focus moved to Trent, still sleeping peacefully on the raft.
"He can't be sleeping forever," Scott said as the camera moved to show him looking down on his teammate. "Come on! Get up!" he said as he bent down and picked Trent up.
Trent opened his eyes. "How did we even get here?" he asked before smiling at Scott. "Hey Scott."
Confessional: Trent
"Scott's really cool. I think we made a great connection these past few days. Either way, it'll be hard for me to vote anyone off the team," Trent said.
Confessional: Scott
"Trent makes me feel weird, and it feels good. I like the feeling, but it's distracting. I have to get rid of it somehow," Scott said.
Confessionals End
The scene cut back to the Mutant Maggots on their raft.
"I'm never gonna eat turkey again!" Geoff said to Anne Maria. "That food can knock you out!"
"Not as much as I'm gonna knock Chef out for serving us this," Anne Maria replied back.
"Take it easy. We're still alive and all," Geoff calmed her down.
Anne Maria took in a deep breath. "Alright, but I'm avoiding breakfast until further notice."
The shot cut over to Scarlett, who was pulling Molly aside. The indie chick raised an eyebrow and the quiet brainiac leaned in close and whispered "Have you noticed how close Anne Maria is getting with Geoff ever since he switched to our team?"
"I'd have to be blind to not notice," Molly remarked.
"With that as the matter of hand, I'd suggest us joining forces if they'll be cooped up with one another," Scarlett said.
Molly raised her eyebrow. "Even so, we have four members on the team after Dave's elimination last episode."
"I know that, and we'd have to convince them to vote individually for both of us," Scarlett strategized. "That way, we can easily target one of them."
"I do work alone, but I also want to save my butt from being eliminated," Molly said back. "You've got a deal."
Confessional: Molly
"Scarlett's not exactly my go-to as an ally, but given we're both closed off, and I don't have Dave to talk to anymore, we might as well stick together," Molly accepted.
Confessional: Scarlett
"We're nearing the merge, and that means I must analyze the remaining contestants and see their strengths and weaknesses," Scarlett smiled in satisfaction.
"Trent and DJ are major physical and social threats. The sooner they are eliminated, the better. Sierra and Scott are wild cards, though I sense Scott has more intelligence."
"Sammy and Geoff are fit and in good shape, but I'll save them for later as they can't outscore me in intelligence. And as for Anne Maria and Molly, they're average in every single way. Going up against them in the finale will be beneficial to winning," the brainiac finished proudly.
Confessional Ends
The static cut away to a shot of the rafts from a perspective a little higher, a little further away, and at a right angle to where the camera had been before. The roar of engines and the honk of a horn heralded the arrival of Chris and Chef from the right, the two men riding jet skis and wearing life jackets.
"Morning, suckers!" Chris greeted with an exuberant grin. "How'd you enjoy your turkey buttolini?"
"I've eaten better," Sierra said, irritated. "It tasted good and didn't knock people out cold enough for you to kidnap them."
"I'm sure you have," Chris replied teasingly.
"And what's with all the kidnappings?" Sierra continued. "You can simply ask us to meet you someplace like a normal person, not lock us in extremely cold trucks or do this."
"Because," Chris answered, "that wouldn't be good for ratings. As Total Drama's biggest fan, I thought you'd already know that?"
Sierra narrowed her eyes at the host.
Confessional: Sierra
Sierra was shown to be feeling furious. "Okay, mom? I know how hard it is to end a crush, but he's a total jerkface! When I come home, the Chris McLean museum/guest room better be destroyed!" the uberfan hissed lowly.
Confessional Ends
Chris regained his usual demeanor, "First thing's first: If any of you are still trying to find that McLean Brand Invincibility Sculpture I hid at the beginning of the season," he announced, taking out a photograph of the head in question, "you can stop now. Somebody's already found it," he said, dropping the picture into the lake.
The contestants were all upset and angry about the news. "And speaking of digging things up, today's challenge is all about winning the ultimate reward: Life, itself!" His tone became deeper and more dramatic as he made his declaration. "Your first challenge is to race to the shore, by any means possible." The camera panned over to the island in the distance. "First team there wins a handy reward. Last team gets a heinous penalty, before you embark on a quest for buried treasure."
"You're using us to dig up buried treasure?" Trent asked. "That's just weak."
"There was treasure here once, but I found it years ago," Chris emphasized. "How do you think I bought the island?"
"It must've been a small treasure," DJ mumbled to himself.
"I thought it was through all your movies and songs you put out before becoming a host, and I own a hundred of them," Sierra smirked.
Chris' brow shot up in shock, and Chef snickered behind him. "Just get moving already!" the host demanded, backing up his jetski then speeding away with Chef.
"I thought Sierra liked Chris, but now she's insulting him?" Sammy asked DJ.
"She must've seen how rotten he is both on the inside and outside," DJ quipped.
Confessional: Sammy
"Mocking someone who's the host of the show is definitely a risky move," Sammy admitted. "Sierra will be lucky if she doesn't get disqualified."
Confessional Ends
"Are you all just gonna stand there or are you gonna come help me pry this off?" Anne Maria asked, the shot cutting to her trying to break the rigid signpost.
"What? Oh, yeah. Sorry, Anne Maria," Geoff said, quickly turning around and moving to help her with Scarlett and Molly following right behind. All of them grabbed on to the sign and pulled, and after a moment of effort, the post snapped at the bottom.
"I use poles for canoeing back home," Molly said as she held the broken sign, "but we can use this to paddle to shore."
"I'll do the paddling, girls," Geoff volunteered, taking the broken sign from her. "I can kick this raft into high gear!"
"Be sure to take caution while you do so," Scarlett said. "There are sharks in the water."
The focus shifted over to the Rats, who were watching their rivals. "We have to do what they're doing," Sammy suggested.
Sierra put one hand on the top of their sign, bending it slightly, then snapped it with a swift kick.
"That was excessive, but we can row now," DJ said as he took the sign.
Confessional: Trent
"Using that sign will be much better than using my guitar as a paddle," Trent said. "It wouldn't flow well in water."
Confessional Ends
The focus cut back to the Maggots and it heralded the start of challenge music, and Geoff began to row with his sign-paddle. "We need to put some distance between us and the Rats!" Scarlett ordered. "Stroke like you mean it!"
The camera cut outward, revealing that DJ's own paddling was keeping the Rats about neck-and-neck with the Maggots, and the shot focused in on them. "Not to be a downer, but we need more than just DJ on this," Trent said.
"If we want to catch up, we'll have to get in the water and kick," Sierra realized.
"No way!" Scott protested. "Remember the shark?" He got shoved into the water courtesy of Sierra.
"The faster we get to shore, the faster we won't be eaten," Trent said, walking to the back of the raft and jumping into the lake. Sammy and Sierra then dived in as well.
"Fine," Scott gave in and pushed the raft with the other three.
\
The scene cut to the Maggots, Anne Maria and Molly and Scarlett standing near the back of their raft as Geoff continued to paddle them forward. A whoop of excitement caught their attention, and the shot zoomed out to show the Rats' raft moving ahead quickly in the foreground.
"That's it," Molly said in an upset tone. "We need to paddle and push the raft at the same time."
"Into the water!" Scarlett immediately commanded and dived into the lake alongside Molly while Anne Maria lingered with Geoff. "You too, Anne Maria."
"You know," Anne Maria said, "Geoff should be in the back with you guys. His legs are better suited for kicking."
The shot cut to Geoff as he paused his paddling. "My calves are toned now that you mention it."
"I'll agree to this, but you have to be the one that paddles now," Scarlett told Anne Maria.
Geoff handed Anne Maria the sign post and dived in shortly after and the camera lingered on Anne Maria paddling the raft.
Confessional: Geoff
"I do a lot of leg exercises, and my legs never let down if I need them for a race or for swimming," Geoff summarized.
Confessional Ends
"Keep kicking your feet and we'll be on shore!" DJ told his team, but stopped abruptly along with his team's raft as it smacked into something that sounded pink and fleshy. He looked warily ahead, the camera panning on to his reflection in the massive yellow eye of a truly gigantic octopus that was resting just below the surface with only the top of its head in view.
It shuddered, then bellowed deeply and angrily and lifted its tentacles out of the water. DJ and his teammates screamed in terror.
The shot cut to the sky above, where Chris and Chef were watching the challenge unfold in their helicopter. "Awww, it's playing with them," the host laughed.
\
The focus moved back to the Rats, all five now on the raft with Sierra holding their sign post and DJ being held captive in one of the octopus's many tentacles. The shot cut to Sierra as she screamed "Let go of my teammate!" and swung at the tentacle several times, only to repeatedly hit DJ in the face.
The camera focused on the captive brickhouse, and his face looked more bruised with each whack. "You're hitting me!" DJ wailed with every whack.
"Giant squid dead ahead!" Anne Maria yelled as the focus cut over to the Maggots' raft floating a little ways away.
"Keep it down," Scarlett hissed, her eyes still locked forward. "We should be able to sneak by it if it's focused on the Rats."
"You might want to look behind you," Molly fearfully pointed at a circling shark fin.
The shark circled around to the front and jumped onto the raft, revealing itself as Fang. As the mutant grinned menacingly at Anne Maria, she held up her sign-paddle in front of her.
The camera briefly cut to Geoff frozen in fear, and when Fang jumped into the water, he screamed and swam around the raft in a circle screaming "Shark! Shark!"
"This is just going to get us killed!" Molly hissed.
As this went on, Anne Maria became frustrated. She held the sign above her head and slammed it down on Fang, causing the shark to be sent flying off-screen.
"Thanks for the save," Geoff said as he got back on the raft.
"Now you owe me twice for saving you twice," Anne Maria replied.
Confessional: Anne Maria
"Technically, I didn't make the gopher go away, but I prevented it from attacking Geoff, so I'd consider that a save," Anne Maria prided.
Confessional Ends
The shot cut to the Rats, all of them being held captive by the octopus. Then, to the shock of the team, Fang flew into the octopus's eye. It shuddered and bellowed in pain, then dropped its captives into the water as Fang sank down.
The camera panned right to show the Rats resurfacing away from the octopus.
"Let's get out of here while we still can!" Sammy shouted, diving into the water with Trent following shortly after.
"Hurry!" Trent shouted as he and Sammy hastily swam off towards the right, with Scott, Sierra, and DJ quickly joining them.
\
The scene flashed back to the Maggots, all of them now on the raft.
"Okay," Molly whispered back to her teammates, "I think we're clear now."
Their raft promptly rammed into something. She turned around, and yelped as the shot zoomed out to reveal the angered giant octopus surfacing in front of them.
"That doesn't look clear," Anne Maria told her fearfully as they scrambled to the back of the raft.
"Now how are we going to escape this?" Scarlett griped.
Geoff was lost in thought until an idea came to his head. "Wait a minute! I have an idea! Get as far back as you can!"
Geoff made his way to the squid and faced him. "I bet you can't even smash us with your jelly fins, Octo-Guy!" the party boy mocked and grinned at the octopus.
The octopus raised a tentacle high and curled it almost into a fist while Geoff's teammates gasped and spoke in fear at the same time.
The curled-up tentacle suddenly sprouted several large spikes, and the three Maggots at the back of the raft screamed...
And then the footage and music ground to a halt, a 'pause' symbol appearing over the slightly-faded scene. "Will Geoff's shouting outsmart the octopus's punching?" Chris asked, standing up in front of the paused screen wearing a hat shaped like an octopus head and tentacles. "And what's up with Sierra? Find out, after the break," he finished, crossing his arms coolly.
\
(Commercial Break)
\

this community is wonderful & i’ve become friends with some brand new players & i love all of the new interest in NH. i was talking to someone about things i learned during the first year (& beyond) & thought we might start a thread of these things. also i KNOW i still don’t know all the little things to do. we all learn through sharing.
• when using a NMT give orville the “joy” emotion. he will blush (cheeks & eyelids get very orange). he will send you to an island that is above average at LEAST.
• don’t stop talking to sable after she gives you the patterns (we’re not monsters, we love her). on thursdays she will update you on her favorite TV show “pointed questions” & label will give you multiple tailors tix even if your outfit isn’t great.
• always give a greet to the twins. they’ll give you a better price. switch it up & give them a smirk when you’re leaving occasionally. LOL!
• on mondays (& sometimes tuesdays) joan is at the hospital at PP. she’ll give you free nips when you engage her. if it’s a music fest weekend she’ll go dancing & it’s 💀🤣.
• the ANCH.guide app 100% accurately predicts your week for nips after a couple weeks of entering the data. the flower breeding guide on that app is chef’s kiss.
• give your favorite villagers a heart crystal. it’s so cute.
• a rotten nip on the beach will produce ants & occasional flies. a rotten nip on a beach rock will only produce flies.
• once you get to the “dodos hoard” with wilbur on harv’s island, if you’re in a week without flick or CJ, they’ll give you a better price than nooks. the phone call from tommy or timmy is hilarious. also here is where i need to say wilbur is my favorite NPC of all time, any game. i have his amiibo & have built him a vacation mansion & have coffee with him on the regular.
• speaking of NPCs, if you have blanca’s amiibo & want to build them a vacation home… FALL. MUSHROOMS. NIGHTTIME. their thank you gift is astonishing.
• if you take more than 4 steps before netting the wasps will sting no matter what.
• skidding repeatedly near a villager upsets them.
• TVs give weather forecasts between :45 & :55 minutes in the morning & evening. if you’re up at 3:33 am TUNE IN.
okay what else? that’s the oddball stuff off the top of my head.

TL:DR, don't be toxic to random teammates.

• Be me
• Playing DMZ (Duh)
• Queue up for Weird Al Mazrah bcuz Ashikan Sugondese Nuts
• Queue with randos because need help with mission involving a boat, a cave, and a lot of black (armored) guys. insert iconic drum intro
• I bring with me my Custom Squall, Ghillie Suit Operator Skin and...
• Custom built, custom tuned, one shot MCPR with precision thermal scope and EXPLOSIONS?!
• Sponsored by the Torgue Corporation
• Queue in with randos, waiting for match to start, speak into Mic to establish coms
• Hey guys, can do you guys mind helping me out with my missi-
• "SHUT THE FUCK UP BITCH NO ONE WANTS TO HELP YOU WITH YOU STUPID MISSION WE'RE LEAVING YOU OFF SPAWN YOU LITTLE BITCHASS BITCH"
• Bruh.jpg
• CoD server senses a disturbance in the force and switches my team last second. I am greeted by two more, much friendlier randos and I explain wtf just happened as we wait for the loading screen.
• Spawn in right next to airport, on a little island south east of shore iirc. Perfect for my mission.
• Within seconds I hear my coms vest go off
• Operators.png
• Whip out my sniper with all the fluidity and grace of Ocelot as I hear the faint sound of a jetskii to the east, and its coming this way.
• Gamer Ultra Instinct Activate
• Teammate makes callout that there's two on the jetskii just as I get sight picture.
• Boom. Headshot.
• Boom. Shit on.
• Go to check the bodies for loot cause fuck these plebs.
• Hear their Prox chat, look at names.
• MWAHAHAHAAHAHA.MP4
• It's them. The toxic shittertons.
• SAOAkirito.exe
• OH HEY GUYS! WHAT'S UP? FUNNY RUNNING INTO YOU HERE! BETCHA THOUGHT YOU'D SEEN THE LAST OF ME, DIDN'T YA? BET YOU WISH YOU HELPED ME WITH MY MISSION DIDN'T YA? WHAT'S THAT? I CAN'T HEAR YOU OVER THE SOUND OF ME T-BAGGING YOUR CORPSE AND CANCELLING YOUR PLEA FOR HELP. ANYWAYS, HAVE FUN GOING BACK TO LOBBY!
• ManiacalLaugh.mp4

Karma, you're a bitch and I love you for it. <3