For a smile as wide as a country sunrise
Good morning everyone! And a very happy Tuesday to you all as well! We had some thunderstorms roll through last night, Muffin knew they were coming a whole hour before I heard the first faint rumbles of thunder in the distance. She was sleeping at the time, suddenly woke up and ran to hide under the bed. I figured that meant we might be in for something real bad, but not so, just some smaller thunderstorms. However, perhaps we were on the edge of the storms so didn’t get much. Hard to tell. Not a lot of rain anyway, so that could mean more fires will be started by the lightning strikes. Especially since it’s going to be hot and dry for the next several days.
Very smoky again this morning, so we have that orange/yellow glow on everything again. And it’s quite strong smelling today as well. Some of the fires grew in size a lot yesterday with the stronger wind that came along. One fire grew about 50,000 acres and is now 174,395 acres in size. Another fire grew 30,000 acres and is now 144,792 acres. We now have 3 new fires burning closer to our town, all 3 are small but not under control and are 10 to 12 miles away. This info is from last evening, so perhaps the rain helped to bring those fires under control. We won’t know until the next update this evening.
Slim is king around here now, but he’s finding it’s not so much fun. He really looks bored at times. I went out to have a talk with him. “What’s wrong Slim?” Chip. “Kind of lonely are you? Well, you did chase everyone away, so it’s your fault.” Chip. “They didn’t want to fight, they wanted to share. There is lots of peanuts for all of you.” Loud chip. “No, they don’t all belong to you, they’re for everyone. That reminds me, you are not supposed to chase my chipmunks, they’re too small to fight back.” Chip. “Yes, they take peanuts, but like I said, they’re for everyone.”
Chip. “They’re fast enough to get away? Then how come Coffee has that wound on his leg?” Chip. “No, he didn’t hurt himself, you were fighting with him. NO more of that or I will sweep you right off the deck and you’ll get no more peanuts.” Loud chip. “Yes, I would do that. You stay away from my chipmunks.” Chip. “You better try real hard.” Off he goes. A little while later I hear him chattering out here which means he’s fighting with someone. Sigh. Hopefully he will learn. Thanks for reading today, have a wonderful Tuesday and God bless!
Steve and Muffin.
Β©2021 Steve McLeod.
Hi Steve! Praying for you all on those fires. Evacuations in some areas? Not good….you, Muffin and everyone stay safe. Sorry, but Slim has got to go or change drastically. Hope one or the other happens soon. We have a huge youth conference starting next week. Over 1500 people. They also do kiddie church during the conference. In preparation, will be taking a break from the internet unless business necessary. Talk to you all later this month. Have a wonderful day Steve and Muffin! πβοΈππΊπΈπ²
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Thanks for letting me know Beverly. If you happen to see this please keep praying for us. It’s getting more dangerous with many new fires started by lightning last night, including one that is just 8 miles away that they have been fighting aggressively today but it’s still not under control, if it stays windy all night, that will be bad.ππ¬ Hope you have a great time!!ππΊπ
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Hi Steve, youβre welcome! I thought I would check in case you replied. Oh my, I am praying for you all. That is so close. Please be careful. I will be praying and believing. God is able!
Yes, we host it so it is βall hands on deck.β I take off work during the conference. We have had extended prayer meetings, church wide clean up day and more. Thanks so much, we are expecting God to move in a mighty way in this conference! Please keep us in prayer. Thanks!! ππ
Will try to check on you all through your blog over the next few days to see how things are going with the fire situation. π. Stay safe! π¬
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Thanks so much Beverly! Yes, I will pray for your conference as well!
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Youβre welcome Steve! Thanks so much as well! See you all are okay on that small fire. Signing off, will check back in a few days! ππ
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Okay!ππΊ
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Have a great Tuesday too
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It has been, even though very smokey!π³π
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Those fires are very concerning
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That’s for sure, especially the new fire that is so close and not under control yet. I’m getting some things packed up today so I can grab them in a hurry if we have to leave suddenly.
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Best to be prepared, just in caseβ¦β¦
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That is so true.
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Coincidence we had a rain too, thunderstorm π§οΈπ§οΈ Slim, is quiet selfish it seems, not sharing, always fighting, huh… he should learn some lesson, oh he will eventually, that’s inevitable isn’t it π .. Forest fires? near your place? omg, hope your place is safe, take care and stay safe π Have a wonderful day π
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It was a great day, though very smokey, even more smokey now, hard to see across the street. There’s a new fire about 8 miles away, started by lightning last night and it’s still not under control though they have been fighting it aggressively all day.π³ππ₯π₯
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That’s bad, is it under control now? π€π
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Yes, it is officially out now so there are no close fires to us.π
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wow π that’s a great news to hear ππ₯³ now the smoke should get controlled now.
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No, the smoke mostly comes from the large fires burning north and west of us and they will be around for a long time until rain stops them.ππ―π¬
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Let’s pray for more rains then π―π§οΈπ§οΈ
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A lot of rain.π¬
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Oh my, stay safe. So sorry to hear, 10-12 miles is not that far. We pray for the safety of all.
No sure what you can do about Slimπ
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It is close for those fires, I pray the rain we received last night was over there too, but with thunderstorms you never know, they can miss areas that are close by.
Yes, nothing really I can do with Slim, he’s just going to be a problem. I could spend more time outside with the chipmunks, feeding them so Slim will stay away from them. But that wouldn’t work totally either. Oh well.
Have a great afternoon Pene!ππΊπββ
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I’m a little anxious about all those fires. I hope they are resolved quickly and that you are safe.
Have a good day ππΈ
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There is 69 fires right now, only the 3 are close by they are fighting those fires aggressively to stop them before they get big. In bad fire seasons it’s always good to keep some important things packed so it can be grabbed quickly to go.π³π₯ So far it is okay here. Thanks for your concern Rossana! Today is nearly over for you, so I hope you have a wonderful Wednesday!ππΊπ
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It’s something I’m not used to, being ready for an emergency evacuation, and I have to say it’s something that scares me. I really hope everything goes well.
Thank you Steve, have a great Wednesday too!ππΈ
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When in my teens my family lived east of here and one time a large forest fire was burning south of us. Suddenly a helicopter lands on our lawn and they told us to get out now! The fire had moved 8km in one hour and that put it just 8km away from us. But we were ready and had things packed so off we went quickly. But the fire stopped and rain moved in the next day and put it out so our place didn’t burn. Not a fun experience though. But it’s best to be ready at all times in fire season. Thanks Rossana!ππΊπ
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Not a fun experience really!π±
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That is for sure. A new fire has started just 8 miles from town from lightning last night and is not under control yet. If the wind keeps up overnight that will be bad. Time to start packing. The smoke is so thick it’s hard to see across the street.π³ππ₯π₯
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I’m really worried now. If it happens to leave in a hurry, can you take Muffin with you? Do you have a place to go?
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It will depend which direction we have to go. If we had to go east then I would be staying in a hotel. However, places east are filling up with people evacuating from other towns right now, so we might have to head south. Hopefully we could go west, then I have relatives I could stay with. Muffin is something else, I may have to leave her behind, which is a terrible thought.
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I hope it doesn’t happen, it would be terrible!
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Yes it would, that would be very hard for me.
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I hope you can find a solution for her, too bad that thought, I can’t handle it!
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I try not to think about the possibility of leaving her. There was one town that burned down completely this year and people only had a few minutes to leave and many had to leave their pets behind, none survived. Getting Muffin into her carrier, which is large size, is next to impossible too. Sigh. I just keep praying that all will be okay.
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I will pray for you!
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Thank you so much!
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You just make sure you follow through with his punishment if he keeps it up!π€¨
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Got my broom handy.
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Good plan!! Give him one from me just for fun!πππ
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I won’t hit him with it, just sweep him off the deck, maybe into the raspberry patch!ππΉπ§Ή
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Plant some thisels!! πππ
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There’s already enough out here.π
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Boot him into those..ππ
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Too far away.
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Ah Rats!!
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You have rats?
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Only in my befree!!
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What’s a befree?
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Supposed to be a Belfry πππ
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I kinda figured.
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Then why did you ask??ππππππππππππππππππ
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Did I do that?
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LOL π€¨π€¨π€¨π€¨ πππππ
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How do you frown and laugh at the same time?π€ππ
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Lot’s of practice! π€π€π€
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Do you practice a lot?π€
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Yep everyday between 6:30 & 9:00 pmπππ
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Wow.
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I know! But I like consistancy!ππ
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It where I keep my bats!πππππ
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I always wondered what they did with bats after baseball season was over.
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Now ya know!πππππ
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Yep, learn something new every year.
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Whether you want to or not.. lol ππ
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That’s right!ππ
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We all have things we’d rather not do
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I am agreeing!
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Thank you so much for agreeing with me!π
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A momentary lapse in concentration.
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I figured.., but I thought I should be thankful anyway πππ€π€
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Yes I know I spelled it wrong!π
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Isn’t that supposed to be bats?
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π€π€π€π€π€π€π€π€π€π€πππππππππ
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That can only mean you bit your tongue again. You should stop doing that, it can hurt.
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π€π€π€
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Hmm, still windy, that’s not good.π¬
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No it’s not with the fires around.
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Think I should go and pack a suitcase. And it’s time for bed again. Good night Dusty! Don’t get electrocuted. I mean, don’t worry about getting electrocuted!ππ΄π΄π€―π€―π
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I’ll do my best not to. Don’t get turned into s’more while you sleep! TTYT ππ
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Oh sure, how am I supposed to sleep now?π³π³π³πππ
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I’d try it with your eyes closed… that usually works for me!πππππ
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What a novel idea.
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Write novels in your sleep? Now that’s a novel idea!πππ
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Where do you think I get the ideas for my mystery stories? By the way, did you finish the last chapter? I’m signing off to write the next chapter. I can’t wait to see what happens next!π€πΎπΎπ΅οΈββοΈ
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π³π²π²π² no way!! I’ll be reading it on my lunch breakππ
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Why would you want to break your lunch? Is it frozen?
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If you ever saw anything I cook you’d know that answer!ππππ€π€
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I bet it’s not as bad as my roasts.π³π¬π¬
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Let’s not compareπππ i burn more than I cook!ππ
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That’s why I gave up cooking, it was cheaper.πππ³π³ππΉ
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Me too!ππππ
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Good thinking.
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Thank You!π
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You’re, cough, cough, welcome.
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You’re sniffle, sniffle Welcome!πππ
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Thank, cough, cough, you!
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I’ll Thank Cough, Cough when I see himπ€π€
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Why can’t you see him? Glasses dirty?π€£π€£
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Too much smoke!!πππ
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You have smoke there too?π²π²
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The sky was orange this morning on the way to work…
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Did you take a picture?π·
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No… I was driving the car
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What kind of excuse is that?
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I suppose I coukd have stopped the car on I94 and got out and snapped a picture!!π€π€ I’m not sure I would have survived long enough to send thoughπππ€π€
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Is it rather busy along there?π€π³ Maybe if you just held your phone out the window?π€ππ·
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With all the construction they are doing from St. Michael to Maple Grove I’d probably hit one of the barriers and drop my phone!! You just gonna have to believe me… the sky was orange ππ
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Well, guess I’ll just have to believe you that the sky was orange.π π
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Exactly! Orange just like a tomato π π€π€π€ππππ
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Well, some tomatoes are quite orange.ππ
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Thank youππ
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Thank you!ππ
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π€π€π€π€π€π€ππππ
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Don’t tell me you bit your tongue again! You really should stop doing that, you might hurt yourself one day. I have to stop, heading to bed, all that fresh smokey air today made me tired. Or maybe it was the walk? Anyway, Good night Dusty, talk tomorrow!ππππ΄
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Good Night π΄π€
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Keep having your talks with Slim…surely one day he will listen ! Rest well tonight ! βοΈβοΈπ»ππ₯π₯π₯
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I sure hope he does or I will be doing some sweeping!π§Ή Might be hard to sleep with all this smoke tonight.π³ππ₯π₯ππ΄
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Hi Steve, happy Wednesday!
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Hi Saania! A very happy Wednesday to you as well!ππΊπ
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Thank you Steve!
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hopefully those fires don’t get much bigger, or much closer…
the pictures of Slim don’t seem to match up with his personality… π
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Those fires are growing rather fast now, the closest one to us, 8 miles, still is not under control but there’s not much wind today so that should help the fire rangers.
That’s true, Slim looks like a calm and gentle little squirrel, at times.
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at whatpoint do you start to worry about the fires?
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Well, the closest one is now officially out. They were hitting it hard so I wasn’t really too concerned, but watching closely anyway. Now if there was a 1,000 acre fire that close, then I would be very concerned. A fire that big can move fast and if the wind was pushing it this way, it would be time to leave. One time a 60,000 acre fire burned to within 5 miles of where I lived and it had moved 5 miles in one hour already. A helicopter landed on the lawn and said to leave, so we did. That’s too close and fast. But then it started to rain and put the fire out. It’s best not to wait too long though, if the fire is large it’s best to leave before it gets too close, because they can suddenly start jumping very fast. People often stay too long and it’s not worth it. Houses can be replaced, people can’t.
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seems like you know what tolook for with such fires. that must have been scary when the helicopter landed in your yard…
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Yes, when the helicopter comes it’s time to run!
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yes, that’s a pretty good indication…
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πββοΈπββοΈπββοΈπββοΈπββοΈπββοΈππ₯π₯π₯
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