Welcome to this talk in the course on GIS in agriculture. This is part of the HAC MOOCs. My name is Bala Ji. I work for the Commonwealth of Learning based in Vancouver in Canada. This talk is about sustainable development and agriculture. I use the word conference here. A conference, as you know, can be a conference of rivers, as you can see in this photograph. Each river is in a flow by itself. When two rivers, more than one river, two rivers come together and form a confluence, the resulting river can be a bigger and very different entity. It can not only be larger, it's also substantially different. What you will learn from this talk is there are three very big pressures that are operating globally today and they all impact agriculture as a result of which agriculture is never going to be the same. That is what you will learn through this talk. The first pressure arises from over the last 25 years of thought and action about arresting the deterioration of natural resources. We all know that there is a decline in the quantity as well as quality of natural resources. World leaders are concerned over the last 25 years several actions have been taken. The last one was their commitment of global leaders to sustainable development goals through a summit held in late 2015 at the United Nations headquarters. All the leaders agreed that there is a need to create very specific and highly goal-oriented action on reducing hunger, removing poverty, creating more sources for affordable and clean energy, and preserving and conserving working with life on land and life below water. As you can see, all of these things have major implications for agriculture and all of these are areas where agriculture can make a very serious contribution. A very important goal amongst them is related to climate action, which as you know has emerged as a major concern. Climate change is a reality today that is a very big pressure on us. Recently, global leaders met again late in 2015 to discuss a framework to arrive at actions to limit emissions of greenhouse gases. As you know, continued emission of greenhouse gases is responsible for, it's at least one of the factors responsible for climate change that leads to global warming. Global leaders are concerned, agriculture is a source of greenhouse gases. However, climate change and global warming impact on agriculture in very many ways, some favorable but mostly unfavorable. Therefore, these actions related to climate change also have an impact on agriculture. That's a second pressure. We all know that there is an increasing globalization of agricultural commodity trade. This trend started more than 30 years back. It has accelerated now. There has been some grievance amongst some countries that this has led to pressure on some of them to reduce the amount of food they hold in stocks towards food security in their nations. India is one such country. The World Trade Organization is a membership organization whose rules must be agreed to and abided by all the members. There was one more summit of World Trade Organization at the level of ministers who are dealing with World Trade. And they agreed to a framework which would lead to far more improved movement of agricultural commodities across the globe. There are still some reservations, major reservations. In fact, again, India is a major player in expressing those reservations. But there is a framework now that has come to stay. This is the third important pressure that is acting on agriculture in relation to sustainable development. Now, one important trend that we see in the world today is exhibited in this map, which is based on data from the Food and Agriculture Organization. What you find is that global food prices have generally increased over the last about 16 years. This trend is fluctuating, but the general trend is towards an increase. Why this increase comes about is still not certain, but we can speculate that all the three pressures that we just discussed, namely erosion of environmental resources, both in quality and in quantity, climate change and climate change related phenomena, global trade in agricultural commodities. All these three could have arrived at a confluence to cause steady increases in food prices over the last about 15 years. But then people have different views on how to act on them. On the left of the screen you see is the cover page of the essay on Principle of Population, a very famous essay by a thinker in 18th century Britain, T. R. Malthus, who proposed that there were strict bio-physical limits on how much food could be produced. He proposed that population should be controlled in some way to stay within the bio-physical limits of food production. Now that was in late 18th century, but these trends continue. On the right hand side you see the name of Paul Ehrlich, a professor at Stanford University, who has continually advocated population control as the only means to avoid famines and disease on very large scale. In fact, Paul Ehrlich is famous for predicting in 1965 that by 1985, two-thirds of population in India would have perished in famine and diseases. As of 2011, he continues to be as concerned and projects a very gloomy future. That is one way in which people seek to counteract the pressures on food production and agriculture. And there is another very famous philanthropist, Mr. Bill Gates, who more or less single-handedly funds the largest amounts in terms of support to agricultural research in sub-Saharan Africa and in South Asia. According to him, population is still a problem. Although he doesn't specify how it becomes a problem, he is of the view that improved availability of vaccines can somehow handle the population problem in addition to improving food production. The links and details are not clear, but the fact is a vision exists. However, sustainable development, as we from developing countries would agree, most of the learners in this course are from developing countries. We would agree that sustainable development is not about conservation of resources and lifestyles. It is about well-being of all people and their ecosystems. Therefore, it should be possible for us to de-link agricultural production from population problems alone. In other words, we should view these two not as confluence, but as two different things. We can solve agricultural problems in one way. We can solve problems arising from population growth in another way. How do we go about doing that? What are the methods? First is we adapt the perspective. Second is looking at the people here, the farmers here, who are working so hard to keep global food security intact. We should be able to arrive at a very general proposal that we need more site-specific land, water and biodiversity management. We need more site-specific land, water and biodiversity management. GIS and sensors can be of immense help in this particular regard. This was also stressed in two earlier talks by Professor Arnagaraj and the instructor in charge in this course. These site-specific management considerations should be deeply integrated with information on input as well as commodity prices, because we all know that commodity prices play a big role in farmers' decisions and in farmers' choices about what to produce and how to produce. Therefore, it is very important that considerations such as these be integrated at the very fundamental level. Also, it is important to not only have access to GIS tools, we must also find ways to connect farmers to sources of expertise through mobile or voice telephone connectivity or through connectivity via the internet. Several ways are possible. What is important is that experts and farmers must learn to work together to create site-specific land, water and biodiversity management paradigm, which is highly doable in today's world given the extent of tools available. All we need is commitment and determination. Thank you.


Tommy here from Warren Systems and we're going to talk about building your homelab rack server now I know some people are just going isn't the cloud the future but other people know the reality is the cloud still is Racked somewhere and having your own cloud at home having a server at home to learn on having a rack to put all these Servers that you have to learn on is I think a pretty important part of your IT career Not just if you're getting started But even if you're like me and been doing this for over 25 years in the industry I still have even though it's at my office here Different racks and buildouts that are essentially lab builds now a lot of you have this at home And that's great and some people work from home now and so technically is it a homelab or is it your server? I don't know it either way We're gonna talk about some of the pieces parts and building it This is gonna be suggestions and ideas not necessarily the only way to do it I say that because the what abouts come out all the time because I may not cover the favorite way you've built it But I'm always interested in hearing different suggestions and ideas So, you know, I'm not trying to tell you not to comment Feel free to comment tell me some of the other things you like besides the parts and pieces that we're gonna talk about before we Dive into all these details. Let's first feel like to learn more about me or my company head over to Lawrence systems calm If you like to hire short project, there's a hires button right at the top If you'd like to help keep this channel sponsor free and thank you to everyone who already has There is a join button here for YouTube and a patreon page. Your support is greatly appreciated If you're looking for deals or discounts on products and services we offer on this channel Check out the affiliate links down below. They're in the description of all of our videos Including a link to our shirt store. We have a wide variety of shirts that we sell and new designs come out Well, randomly, so check back frequently and finally our forums forums Dot Lawrence systems comm is where you can have a more in-depth discussion about this video and other tech topics You've seen on this channel now back to our content quick disclosure to get out of the way is Rec studs they sent me these I like them. They're pretty neat. That's the only thing that I didn't pay for in this particular video It's not sponsored by them or anything.  They guess they found my address on YouTube anyways We're gonna start with cable management and specifically Reusable ties these may not seem like something that you think about when you're first putting a home lab together but I can't express the importance especially if you work with a team of people of Having everything nice and neat even if you're working by yourself having it nice and needs easy and by its very nature Home labs are diverse and change a lot because you're learning may change and what you want to learn may change So tying it all together with zip ties means well cutting a lot of zip ties and doing it all over again And I don't know I like cable management. I know I've seen some messy labs But if you're on the side of I like nice and neat these are great I have links below to everything that we talked about in the video including these which come in a variety of colors Or you could just go with the plain and normal black That's actually my preference when I do them But hey my staff orders the colored ones and it's really important when we get a bunch of patch cables out for a project Even here at the office that I want them all put back together all nice and wrapped and it makes it so much Easier than just dangling a bunch of wires So it may not seem like a homelab thing, but these are definitely a suggestion now kind of related is This right here. I said no zip ties, but these type of zip ties are actually kind of handy These are zip ties with a label on them and if you're asking why would I want to zip tie with a label on it? It's actually really handy when you have cables that you don't really want to Tie something to them or try to wrap a print around them You pull this around them you can just write a number on them And this was actually reused that's why the numbers kind of faded But it's a simple way when you have wires that you need labeled and you want to know where they go Maybe you want to put the port number on here or the patch panel number on there They're kind of handy and I'll leave the link to these these have come in useful a couple times when we've had to label things and make things very clear speaking of patch panels this is a really important part that I wanted to talk about and It's having patch panels that are modular these work out much better than your older traditional Type of punchdown ones now the punchdown ones are still in use and they save you the trouble of having to buy a bunch of Keystones, but what we have here is a modular patch panel with a couple different types of keystones This is an HDMI keystone. This is your standard Punch it down keystone. This actually allows you to Connect a standard RJ45 cable to the back and you're probably asking why would I need that actually?  You're just being lazy punch them down every time I don't know I find it kind of convenient because I loathe punching down cables I do it very very infrequently because I have an entire staff that is dedicated I have a team dedicated to punching thousands and thousands of cable every year. They're really talented at it I I know how to do it before you think I don't know how it's mostly I don't like to but this is those little Conveniences and the HDMI one may seem odd to you HDMI is actually really convenient because maybe you want to and part of your lab build is Using some raspberry pies happen to have one back here and with the raspberry pie They have the little delicate tiny little cable on there So you can run it from here down to the raspberry pie that way when I want to plug things in or move things run on switch them I'm not Dinking around trying to put it in the tiny little raspberry pie and run it over to here Or maybe you just have a few different devices and you want to set up your AV equipment in there And you want it all nice and neat in a patch panel now I know for your homelabs patch panels are completely optional But boy they make things look a whole lot nicer when you have everything on the front You're not reaching around to the back now. I have this weird HDMI extension I don't know where this came from, but I know you can buy them online. I'm not sure how to acquired here But they have a similar that I don't have in stock a USB one that's a little bit longer cable than this And I've linked to those it's actually kind of a neat idea because you can plug the USB in it up front here And run those back to the server now if you want to walk up to your home lab rack and plug in a USB I wish I would have had one and think to order one for this particular video But I thought they were kind of neat and I left a link to those and this is kind of the point though when you have a patch panel that is Modular like this is being able to mix and match and build out a nice You know put some labels on it at the top and have all the things you need all in one place work by a couple of These and if you're an AV nerd it turns out there's actually I didn't even realize Banana clips and speaker jack type hookups that will fit in keystones a lot of things fit in keystone So that's one of the reasons I really recommend these modster and of course you were going to have and I'm actually this one's destined for My house very soon. That's why I wanted to get this video done I have some things that are going to be mounted in the rack and a few other things that are wiring from around my house I do not have more than a half dozen wires coming from around my house that are actually hard-lined in just a couple of things And so those will go on one end of the keystones with you know Your standard punchdown style and then the other ones will be well the different things in there just to keep things nice And neat and I'll be doing a separate video on that after I build it But I wanted to cover some of the parts I'll be using now the next thing is mounting all of this in a rack and I'll cover the rack in a second a Little bit more detail, but I want to talk about these rack studs versus cage nuts, and they're pretty cool now on this side Here's your traditional cage nuts and Anyone who's looking at these is probably looking at their fingers and thinking about just how much they've tore up their thumbs Pushing these little guys in they can be well somewhat tedious Let's get this in here real quick, and I've already messed up a little. Let's see if I can squeeze it in Oh, come on, and yes, they make a tool to make that easier. Alright, I've squeezed it in But obviously I'm holding this little piece in a way that is really simple So I can put this in but when it's in a rack and maybe something above it or below it can be a little tricky getting these in But these are solid. They're heavy-duty if you have something heavy I like your standard cage nuts and they go in just like that So now let's talk about the rack nut method and for a lot of the lighter weight things I mean they're plastic So I don't think they're gonna hold up quite as much as these but boy these come in from the front So that's the first thing that's gonna make them easy. So they go in like this and then a little tilt That's it. That was in it is real easy. You don't have to get behind it You don't have to hook anything up it will pop right back out you can put your finger back on here and Push down rock it right back out if you wanted it out But we'll just keep this in then we have this little keeper piece and this keeper piece goes like this If you can see how that end goes in this end is gonna push right into that So you you can put them on backwards, but they won't look right and they won't fit in properly So be careful that you get them right and what this is doing is holding this so it can't pop back out And then you just spin these on with whatever you're going to mount So we'll go ahead and spin this little thing on And when it spins on you'll actually see the gap close and this now gets nice and tight against there And that's it. It's real solid. It's a good piece I like the way these hold up and because these are thumb screws Especially if you're a homelab and moving things around You don't have to go find a screwdriver because these are not thumb screws or standard additional screws So I still use these where things are heavy And if it's heavy and gonna be in there and have a lot of weight on it Maybe an old server you have or just a heavy large storage array or a ups especially if you have one of those in Iraq, you'll know those are I don't know that I trust rack studs to them But I might do a separate video on just how strong these are now this star-tech rack that I'll be covering There is two styles of rack stud and I mentioned a star-tech rack because they have a wider one depending on a thickness The rail and a narrow one the red ish colored ones here burgundy red. I don't know not a color expert these ones definitely are The right size for the star-tech, but please note the purple ones are a little bit wider in the way they fit in Rack thickness they'll work in the star-tech it seemed to work, but it seemed also be a little bit too big These are the ideal size. I guess there's a couple different millimeters That's listed on the bag of the rack studs and even when you put the plastic thing You get a wiggle little get that back out You can then push on this and easily pop these right back out, you know almost easily there we go Kind of easily not too hard to do All right now now we know how we mount some of these things with these rack studs and I'll start with something heavy though because heavy is where I do recommend using the standard metal ones because they work really well and heavy is the servers And I know home labs are less than ideal when it comes to having perfectly Working rails that slide in and out. This is a challenge This is where these solve that challenge and I got a couple of mounted already back here These are made by knave point and I've got a link to them. They are adjustable Trays essentially to set the servers on now you can get them to different sizes You figure out the depth of your rack the star-tech rack itself is also Expandable and they work wonderful for servers that are well without the proper rails And if you're like me I get different servers in that I review and we slide them in and out And by the way, despite sliding. I'm in and out and this has been in here for a couple of years There's hardly even any scuffing on them the metal coating on them stays up really well Not that it matters, but aesthetically, you know, it's not really that scuffed up and for being able to slide in a server and You know not having to worry about trying to mount it each time That just it's a simple process and like I said, they're adjustable to whatever depth you've set your rack The specs are down below you put all the screws in here and I do really recommend one thing though And you'll notice I've done that with these There are all four screws in it not just two I mean it probably can hold quite a bit of weight sheer weight when you put it in with just two But the reason you really want to put four is if you only put it with one Then you set the server in like this And it'll kind of tilt down because there's nothing to hold that top part in So you do make sure when you put these in you put four in and four in the back because if this starts Coming in like this and because of the way These are it may the server may catch on the screws going in because these will tilt in and you'll get it stuck It'll be very aggravating save yourself the aggravation. So you're not standing there mid holding a server and dealing with that now For the next piece the star tech 25 u rack Now this is expandable depth 25 u height but expandable depth, which is really convenient because well You may have different needs. I've actually got one switch mounted on back if you're wondering what's over here That's easier for the 10 gig switch because of the sfp cables. I didn't want to bring them around to the front So it's you know symmetrical. So either side you want to use you can use it. It's actually the same either way But this is what I consider the front and versus the other side, which is essentially the back Now one thing I have done is add this piece of Osb board to the top. Well, I didn't add it my staff did they went to the hardware store bought a piece painted black It's only got a minor chip here. This is really convenient to have on top It's bolted down to this I really do like this as an accessory to having it right on top So we can just set the things on here the only downside is occasionally it ends up being a Place where they stack things. They're not sure where to put and a lot of stuff ends up there Now you may notice and I'll show it from the front now because so you can see it in action Yes, it'll shift a little bit nothing There's like a stop to this but yes that will kind of it's tight. It's well built. I don't feel Bad having it doing this. I put some really heavy equipment in there But it's basically the little bit of gap between where these bolts are but uh, this is not hard to assemble Actually, I've uh, I'll show a video real quick me my fund my son assembled this it happened relatively fast And it's still really solid. It's no problem putting heavy equipment inside of here Now let's talk about some of the other details In power seems like a good one to start with power is fed to this with this adj pc 100 a Now it's not bad I like the fact that it's got the numbers on it and it's lit up so I can turn things on and off What as needed so if I want number seven on or off no problem Also completely related is the way I have things labeled and we'll pull one of these around from the back here We put little labels on the power cord. I probably should use those zip ties I mentioned But I know power five goes to this particular plug Now there's just standard plugs on the back of this But this makes it really convenient when you're doing things I don't know which server is going to be plugged in when because well There's a few empty spots for whatever i'm going to be testing next and having each one labeled The way I can turn them on and off kind of on an as-needed basis individually. That's what makes sense for me Now I will mention it may not make sense for you So I do have because this is what's going in my home is this cyber power cps 1 2 1 5 And I like this device it has plugs on the front plugs on the back And this works out well when you don't need to turn off everything individually You just need one switch. They also Put the little click on there. So you can't accidentally bump this once it's closed It's either in the on or off position Really long cord and like I said, I've linked both of these down below whichever one works for maybe some combination This obviously only has plugs on the back side And looks nice at the top of the rack and I don't want everything on all the time Especially when I have noisy servers in here I turn them off when I go to record and maybe turn them on later We have some things that are kind of more statically in here That's why they have a label above but at home for what I'm doing at home I have the same rack and I'm just want power all the time and this having Chords both front and back lots of places to plug things in whatever I need to hook up And I'll probably mount it on the back side of the rack at home to feed everything Now let's get to something that drives me absolutely crazy And if you work at all in the technical field, it is probably driven you crazy too And that is shelving It is important to buy these so you can save yourself so much aggravation What happens is not everything will be rack mountable that you have your cable modem And many other things that you may end up with such as this synology or this true NAS That is not a rack mount obviously And I know some people will just do this and they'll just set things on top of whatever is rack mounted with a flat surface And please don't do that. I have walked into so many Unprofessional looking offices where they've just stacked everything on top of a switch or in this case an mbr And then if you ever have to remove switch or mbr you have to figure out where to put all the things that they had on there These are not that expensive you pop a couple these in and now you have a nice shelf To be able to do this and they do come in larger varieties. This is a pretty deep one here I actually prefer the bigger ones because that way you can just set whatever power cords go on there I like the slotted ones as well because well sometimes I'll actually zip tie a couple things to it to make it nice And neat and tight so nothing can just fall off the back No one can accidentally pop a cord and pull it off because well cable modems It's just easier if you put it all and you make it take the time to put it all nice and neat on one of these It'll save you so much trouble and they'll hold a pretty good Sizeable amount of weight matter of fact if you do put a sizeable amount of weight I'm curious and maybe I'll do this as a secondary video. I'm curious at what point the rack studs will break I thought about putting these on there actually I'm doing this and testing rack studs versus a Standard style cage nut and putting some weight on there and seeing at what point these will pull apart Because I am a little bit curious about that of how much weight it will hold now How much weight it's specified to hold but how much weight it will really hold Leave some comments if you want me to actually do that video and I'll be more inspired and bold to do it Now the last thing I want to cover Is going to be the patch cables and there is these thin ones right here These are actually very normal ones right here for patch cables These thin ones are kind of cool these slim ones are really cool as well And there's different ways to handle it now I have a separate video I'll link to that already did on all the different varieties of patch cable Once again, that's something that comes down to opinion and budget and what you have What you have available, but if you have the opportunity to buy them new I really will just tell you if you don't feel like watching that video I love these slim ones. We've been doing a lot more With the slim runs because they work really well Yes, and there's an entire debate on those videos of whether or not you can run poe over a thin cable Yes, you can and uh, I mean there's limitations But we discuss all that and I have a follow-up video where we break down cabling standards I'll leave a link to those So if you want to dive deep into overthinking cabling standards I actually got the person who did the standards. It's a great video to watch He's someone on the board for certifying things. So You could say he's the expert on this, but uh patch cables There's plenty of different varieties out there But I will tell you for doing your home lab once you go to these thin cables You just don't want to go back there just way easier to manage I actually had more of them over here My staff have wandered them off into the other room and taken them kind of as they needed So I do need to buy more that's why there's still these ones in and uh, but yeah Definitely helpful. Uh other side note I do and I'm missing two of them because once again someone took them And uh, these are blanks that I have in here. It does look nice And these are not that expensive when you're if you're really going to get tedious with your home lab Blanks to fill in any ones that aren't used and of course the different color varieties that I have up here Really handy when you want to identify where things come in and for those of you that just go Hey, Tom, what is this? This is actually how I tap into the 10 gig link We have dual links going back from here to the back of the office where our 10 gig is But this is the way I test other 10 gig switches when it does this it goes to the 10 gig switch there But when I have another 10 gig switch on table, that's why it usually gets plugged into this white one being the 10 gig So just because I know someone will ask why there's a little loop on this and why I have it plugged in that way Because it may seem silly to you, but you know, it doesn't to me It is also handy for things like this upcoming video on Doing port tapping and sniffing. It really doesn't matter what switch you do with Do it with but it's handy to have these in the front so you can tie in your port tap and You know get things set up real quick. But as I said, I'll leave links down below to all of this stuff There is always interest I have in learning what other things you may suggest And maybe if there's a follow-up video of questions I didn't cover why you love or hate some of these things But you know happy building man, this is it's a lot of excitement and a lot of fun to do I want to play more with some stuff so I'm gonna start sticking it in here and uh Bonus of the way these rack studs work. They are long enough. So things will kind of Tilt and hang in there if you're putting them in by yourself But let me know if there's a few things you want me to review or talk about and I'll leave comments below I always go like reading and replying to them. And of course, uh, this will be post over to forums Where we can have a more in-depth discussion. Thanks and thank you for making it to the end of the video If you like this video, please give it a thumbs up If you'd like to see more content from the channel hit the subscribe button and hit the bell icon If you like YouTube to notify you when new videos come out If you'd like to hire us head over to laurancesystems.com fill out our contact page And let us know what we can help you with and what projects you'd like us to work together on If you want to carry on the discussion head over to forums.laurancesystems.com Where we can carry on the discussion about this video other videos or other tech topics in general Even suggestions for new videos. They're accepted right there on our forums, which are free Also, if you like to help the channel out in other ways head over to our affiliate page We have a lot of great tech offers for you. And once again, thanks for watching and see you next time This is what the rack's really for we're just going to roll around the basement in it Can you skateboard it? There you go Can you do tricks on it? Can you ollie it? That's what we really need to know here


Before we jump into tonight's episode, I wanted to say a quick thanks to a new friend of mine, Zeven Odleberg. Zeven is the host of a podcast called Kind of Murdery, and today he invited me to be a guest on his show, which was a lot of fun. Zeven, he doesn't do interviews like some of those other boring podcasts. What he did is he invited me on just to hang out with him as he told the story. And it became a conversation of sorts. It was so much fun. We talked about the murder case that he researched, of course, which by itself is an insane story. And then we also went off on some rabbit trails, too, talking about aspects of our own lives. And, well, you know me, I couldn't help but make a few snarky jokes during the recording. He's going to be posting that episode this coming Sunday to the Kind of Murdery podcast, but tonight he is posting a special episode featuring my narration of Edgar Allan Poe's The Tell-Tale Heart. If you've never heard my narration of the tale, or if you just want to hear it again, now is the perfect opportunity to do so, while you can also check out Zeven's podcast that I'm already a fan of. So, I'll place a link to the Kind of Murdery podcast in the show notes for tonight's Tell-Tale Heart episode, or you can just do a search for Kind of Murdery wherever you listen to podcasts. And then also, be sure to tune back into Kind of Murdery for this Sunday as we actually have the conversation between Zeven and myself.  But you'll be able to listen into him before he gets that big break. Alright, on with the show. There is a town just off a forgotten exit on a lost highway. It is a town entombed by sycamores and shadows, trapped between our realm and another, in otherworldly hamlet misplaced on earth. It is a town that should be lost to legend and night terrors. Yet unlike folk tales as tall as the sycamores that conceal it, the town of weirdling woods is real. In this ominous dimension, this playground for the wicked, life is a nesting doll layered in unrelenting mystery and macabre. Mythology is reality, and reality is a fractured spectrum of madness. Come for a visit and stay for eternity. There are thousands of stories in the cursed town weirdling woods. This is but one of them. Now join me as we take a walk through weirdling woods. Olivia.  He groaned. Between waking up in LA yesterday morning, enduring a long flight, and checking into the lookover motel, three hours sleep had commenced. Jet lag seized his body as the alarm taunted him. With a second groan, he struggled upright and picked at the crusty build-up on the crevices of his eyes as Natasha stirred in next to him. Even in slumber, her face was the epitome of an unfriendly term he'd once heard in intern use, RBF. Then Noah took a moment to center himself and take it all in. What a thing it was. The last time he'd met morning in weirdling woods was 13 years ago. In those days, he was a nobody with a tiny bank balance and big dreams. 13 years ago, Noah was not the man he was today, the pen behind a green-lit horror anthology on Netflix with talks of a possible showrunner gig on a Blumhouse Hulu series ongoing. The old Noah never even dreamt quite as big as his unexpected reality, with the industry accolades in bloated wallet and the model-turned-actress beside him. Of course, he knew Natasha was only with him until the resume gaps eventually appeared, but such was Hollywood, a town almost as strange as the one he grew up in, and now had returned to. Noah ninja'd his way out of the stiff bed without distracting Natasha, not so much a courtesy but a chance to keep her on mute and savored every drop of the complementary hometown weird dark roast coffee as he gazed from the window. Much had changed in weirdling woods, as towns do, but much remained eternal. The gargoyles from Marlar Manor still tickled the clouds off in the distance, dangerously close as always to the unsettled, that forbidden space that lived amongst the sycamores. Hamilton's fish market wasn't visible, but his nostrils sensed its familiar presence. A billboard nearby split two ads, one with a bearded man promoting a radio show on 666 K-Dead AM, and the other a campaign poster advocating for dark county to re-elect Sheriff Nick Castle. Again. Nick Castle had been sheriff since Noah was a freshman at Driftwood Academy and did not aged nearly 30 years later. Re-election might be tough if the murder he overheard on the cab radio last night was a trend, but Nick Castle always managed victory somehow. Noah sighed, the aftertaste of weirdling woods famous mince meat pie prevalent from just hours prior. Such luck that was, finding a diner open at that hour. It was all such a bizarre feeling, the welcoming of home colliding with the dormant desire to never return. One constant came to mind, sort of a warning that he'd heard his entire life. Weirdling woods will feast on your soul if you linger too long. The choice wasn't his, though. Fate returned Noah to Weirdling Woods to bid farewell to his best friend before Simon's ashes were cast into the air over Lake Britton Bridge to dance forever amongst the shadows that nestled the town he loved. The town that ultimately took him. It was a beautiful funeral, if such a thing as possible. The point raised lighthouse where Noah and Simon once shared beers and aspirations was as perfect a setting as anyone could expect, even with the fog bank scowling and howling towards town during its slow approach. Upon the release of Simon's remains, Noah was besieged with the impulse to flee. Now that Simon was gone, nothing held him to Weirdling. Mom and Dad had long since retired to Sarasota and Simon's sudden death had to be the last chapter on Weirdling in his book of life. Something about Weirdling Woods always chained him inches away from success, a living torture. The town seemed to act as a puppeteer, guiding him with an invisible grip to nowhere, and he only realized this upon stepping on California soil years ago. Noah excelled professionally since escaping and was convinced all of his achievements were birthed from his leap of faith, a massive leap where he hopped from Dark County to Los Angeles County. He was eternally grateful for the material, though. Any horror writer who grew up in Weirdling Woods would never want for inspiration. As Noah and Natasha shuffled in solitude amongst fellow mourners, a voice corrupted the silent air, a voice that brought Noah's brisk pace to a halt. Natasha finally looked up from the phone and the Instagram page that entranced her throughout the ceremony and huffed in the direction of the waving woman on the other side of the bridge. Is that the psycho Weirdo? Babe? No? Just no. That off the wreck's shopper looks like the start of a Stephen King novel. Would she buy that dress, 2016? Let's get back to Cali. This place is throwing my chakras and disarray, Natasha said, with enough pretentiousness to match her designer everything. Noah glared. Weirdo, he thought. He bit his tongue when she complained about the thread count on the sheets and when she ridiculed the lack of keto-friendly restaurants, but this was not acceptable. Only he was allowed to use that word, he and other natives. Not an outsider, especially one that was using him for appearances as much as he was using her. Some things belonged to the locals. Little did she know to live in weirdling woods was to forever be a proud Weirdo. That was how locals referred to themselves. It was the official unofficial mantra. He frowned. In this town were all Weirdos. I'm going to say hello. She just lost her brother. I've known her since she was a toddler. Just tweet something or hashtag or whatever it is you actually do. Within seconds, Noah was off in the distance, embracing the woman with a blanketing hug as Natasha looked on with her usual jealousy, her mind wondering whether that casting director she met at the agency last week was single. Not that it mattered to her. Such were the accoutrements of an unhealthy opportunistic relationship. The Hollywood Reporter announced three days prior that the casting director in question had been picked for the upcoming Tarantino project. Natasha took the potential of both men and weighed each on a mental scale. It wasn't always that way. A younger, more naive Noah once believed Tara, the woman who went by Natasha as her screen name, loved him. He actually believed it was a real relationship. The truth unfurled like a new sleeping bag and fast. In Los Angeles, everyone was acting, even if they didn't know it. The ladder of success was stained with shattered dreams and broken hearts before even reaching the center rung. I can't believe you agreed to this.  This is a joke because I'm not laughing, just like no one laughed at that spec script you sent to ABC. Back at the lookover motel, Noah loosened his tie, famed as if employing it as a noose, and thought about the most creative way to utilize his talent and write Natasha out of his life. I told you I don't write comedy. You forced that on me, so I would write you a role. A group of 20-somethings trying to make it in New York? Real outside the box, seriously. So unique as original as sin. You know what? I'm not doing this, not today. It's one more night, Natasha. The IV will still be in LA tomorrow, along with the traffic and the smog and the smug. Oh, suddenly you're the prodigal son and denounce being an Angelina. I don't get it. Natasha retorted as she sat on the bed and fiddled with her heels. The jibby chew on her right foot became a missile as she launched it towards Noah, a near miss.   What's wrong with you? Noah slammed his palm against the dresser, rattling the room. And Angelino, you're from Cincinnati. I don't have a thing for anyone. I don't even know who I was talking to back there. You don't get it. Violet, she's like an onion. Her mind works with many complex layers. I don't know. I can't explain it any better. But I owe my dead best friend's sister, who I watched grow up a simple drink. That woman is in a fantasy stupor every waking moment. Fresh air would be nice. Geez, Natasha, I said Violet was disturbed. I never said she was a stalker because she's not. She's harmless. You never actually listen or care about what I say.  Which is hilarious because you can't play drama. You couldn't even get a line on Days of Our Lives. Remember that? Since we're dissecting careers, maybe, I don't know, don't speak at all about mine. It should be easy. You know, just channel your byline. All non-speaking roles. Natasha's eyes beamed like two fog lights beaming sheer hatred. Then the other Jimmy Choo flew, this time connecting as she slammed the bathroom door in a furious inferno of rage and expletives. Noah touched the fresh cheek wound and knew he had to end things soon. This wasn't the first time. He could identify the insole of most of her shoes as often as they had struck him in the face as he stood there and did nothing. He screamed, If you need me, I'll be having drinks at the Gold Room with a psycho who actually has class. Speaking of class, sign up for an acting one when we get back to LA. Just charge it to my A-Mex as usual. Now is Noah's turn to slam the door. On the server ride to the infamous Gold Room, Noah was riddled with anger over his encounter with the plastic human he called his girlfriend. She knew nothing about Violet, and she certainly did not know empathy. Heck, she didn't even know him. It was implausible that anyone could be jealous or fearful of Violet.  Well, she was not a child anymore, but still, it was a sad case. Violet's entire story played out step by step in his typical writer mind, panels of action in proper order. Simon's little sister indeed had her issues, but Violet was not a psycho or a stalker or any of those things. The closest diagnosis initially ended up a distant cousin of schizophrenia, but even that was a stretch. Nowadays, it seemed offensive to those with schizophrenia, but those were the times. It was very possible Violet had originated her own disease. Eventually copping out, most involved medical professionals included, declared Violet's behavior as yet another oddity of Weirling Woods and jotted off for nine holes. That was that. They moved on. The Weirling Woods medical community in the 1980s was Russian roulette with a loaded gun. It was concerning that this affliction was still going on. At least it was the last time Noah and Simon had exchanged an email. Wow, three years ago. The guilt was immense. Noah continued to reminisce in order to stifle his emotions. Violet had suffered from her mental lapse since she was five. The only a few years older, Noah remembered the Genesis quite well. Bad babysitting was really at the heart of it, which felt too simple and unfair to be true. Yet it was exactly that. Noah recalled the event with vivid images and details as the town car glided downtown. It was an ominous day trip from the start. First came the invasion of clouds, followed by the rumbling and shaking, and then the ensuing chaos of electricity in the sky. It was as if the devil's entourage had thrown a party a mile high, and as such it was an indoors kind of day. It was the perfect afternoon for a Saturday matinee, and no movie had generated buzz like the one the trio was about to see. Noah remembered he and Simon and the always tagging along Violet hydroplaning across Oakley Court onto the sidewalk on West 14th that led to the old majestic theater. The memories were tangible as he relived the three skipping to the movie, practically dragging little Violet towards the buttery popcorn aroma that was so, so close. He could even hear the jingles from the cinema fighting Cindy Lauper from a car stereo nearby for airspace dominance. Then, under the marquee, the old crone simply was. A hunched over old woman with a crooked nose, wrapped in a ruddy, mud-brown wool shawl with vacant, unblinking eyes that ballooned as far out as the erratic gray white strands of matted hair that billowed in the wind resembling the lightning above. She seemed to have been waiting outside of the theater for them, at least in hindsight. Then again, maybe not. Maybe it was something Noah and Simon later created to explain Violet's estate. Chained back, the silver-streaked crone mumbled through a toothless black mouth. At the time, Noah and Simon laughed at the bizarre encounter. By town standards, this threat was quite benign and the woman looked like a dime-store Halloween costume more than a menace. Years later, of course, unspoken thoughts about the woman would weigh down the room. Was she a gypsy, a banshee, an angel? It was an enigma, but there was no cracking that safe, if it held any treasures anyway. Her presence was barely a conspiracy theory. Noah teetered and tottered for years whether the woman was even real at all. What he did know was straightforward. Upon sneaking into Conan the destroyer nearly 40 years ago, he and Simon had emerged from the theater in awe of Arnold Schwarzenegger's biceps. Little Violet had emerged as a different person altogether. She was mesmerized by the scene-stealing blonde girl on screen. It was cute for a while, until it was obvious this wasn't a phase. For the next two years, she was the Olivia D'Abo character Princess Jenna. Violet became Princess Jenna in voice, action, and personality. As the Cerber took a left on Ocean Avenue that frigid, March Evening, the flickering neon sign from Bruno's Pizza whipped Noah back in time to the same location when he and Simon shared a pie with Violet. He remembered it because Princess Jenna died that day and Violet began to call herself Becky Cullen, a mystery to everyone. She began living as a modern-day Juliet seeking her Romeo. A teen cousin with the beautiful actress D'Abo's posters plastering his walls recognized the act and relayed that the impressionable young Violet was acting just like the Olivia D'Abo character from a recent film based on that old Shakespearean tragedy called Bullies. Suddenly, Occam's razor came into play. It wasn't difficult to match the colors on this Rubik's Cube. This was when the movie theater was banned and the first time the useless shrinks were called in. It was a case that defied everything known about the mind. When Violet was again written off as Only in Weirdling Woods, essentially the credo in a town where mystery and macabre reigned, the collective family hope collapsed. All they could do was monitor and protect and pray. Oddly, Violet's obsession did not lie with the actress herself, not directly. Olivia D'Abo's name never brushed the kid's lips. When D'Abo herself came to town for Comic-Con a few years back, Violet had no interest in attending. When they played songs like The Mighty Quinn by Manfred Mann, the iconic band Olivia D'Abo's father fronted, no reaction came. Not even the melodic dreamscape of Olivia's own music stirred anything in Violet. But every character the actress played, a list as long as Rapunzel's hair, Violet seemed to find and simply become. The remained unclear how Violet had access to the many films and shows under script supervision, but it just seemed to happen. If the role called for comedy, Violet elicited laughs. If the character was one with dramatic flair, Violet left everyone in tears. If the character called for a drastic change in appearance, Violet slid into it with ease. As Violet grew up, she lived the life of free-spirited flower child Karen Arnold. Everyone had a crush on the iconic character from the groundbreaking series The Wonder Years, and by extension the sunshine-haired Bohemian actress who breathed life into that role. Violet's condition was beyond overzealous affection and fandom, though. Simon endured a lot of fistfights those years. Violet mimicked well, which meant a lot of teasing in elementary school. As a result, Simon became the toughest kid in town. This was around the height of worry. The family tried everything once more in other towns like Derry and Castle Rock, shock therapy, isolation, pills galore. Homeschooling began. They listened to false reassurance from others. At least this was not an illness that could really harm Violet or others, as debilitating as it was. That's what the family repeatedly told themselves anyway. The roles and years continued, and so did Violet. The actress Olivia D'Abo delivered a hilarious absurdist commitment as Garth's girlfriend in the exponentially popular Wayne's World sequel, and Violet existed in this comedic realm as well. Until, as a blossoming young woman, her demeanor changed overnight in 1994, and she began to present herself as Mollie, a sultry nurse who D'Abo played that might as well have been created to give the word lust a matching image for Wikipedia. This character came from a Michael J. Fox film called Greedy, and so good was the real actress in this role, Violet's parents had no option but to lock her away in her room for some time. A 15-year-old girl belonged nowhere near this character. Violet had hijacked many roles, but this was the most dangerous to unleash. If ever a time for a dad to guard the front door with a shotgun existed, this was the role that checked the box. The Cerber took a left on Lampkin and was swallowed by traffic, which seemed like a teaser of what to expect upon returning to LA. That idiocracy, Noah thought. The plays were so much beautiful art seeped through the phoniness and facades, the ultimate struggle between an unstoppable force and an immovable object. The timeline continued in Noah's head. Being an industry person, Noah knew the resume of actress Olivia D'Abo well. Going into her fifth decade, her body of work was immense and always ongoing.  Tim Burton would salivate if only he would read it. This Noah convinced himself. If that didn't get picked up, perhaps he could convince Olivia to play the role of Violet and return her back to herself in some strange algorithm he created. Noah chuckled as he imagined the pitch. Mystifying queen in his screenplay or not, the delicate beauty Olivia D'Abo was a tour de force, a songbird, a writer, a philanthropist, a physical actor with a looming presence, a voice actor with an alluring hook of a voice. She did it all. She had credits unclaimed by others. She had worked on projects from both Marvel and DC, Star Trek and Star Wars. Things like that just didn't happen. Universes were closed communities. Nobody was the spokesperson for Coke and Pepsi at the same time. No one sang lead for the Beatles and the Stones. It was impressive. With such a monstrous creative presence to feast upon, the true Violet had last appeared in 1984 and would remain. There simply were too many characters D'Abo played, enough to fill ten lifetimes, and Violet's entrapment in her curious, undefined illness would never allow her freedom. Sure, there were humorous moments, such as the time D'Abo portrayed Jane and Violet followed suit as a woman seeking her Tarzan all throughout Weirdling Woods. But her life was not hers. It belonged in letters written on pages held by enchanting actress from London. Having the disease Violet had latching onto D'Abo's work was the worst-case scenario because it would never end. Noah had heard that life had no script, but that cliché didn't work for Violet. Her life was only a script. As the Serber pulled up to his destination, he scanned D'Abo's IMDB page. Violet had seemed somewhat normal back at the funeral, but this was Weirdling Woods and this was Violet. As he learned over the years, he kept the initial conversation vague. He never really knew who he was speaking to. A mountain of credits appeared on the actress's page, but everything current was in post-production, so Violet couldn't have seen anything new. Noah could only wonder what recycled character he was meeting for cocktails. Bobby, right? Nicole's waiting for you in the corner booth right there. The perky hostess at the Gold Room said as she pointed towards a stunning, debonair woman seated in the back of the room, underneath a plant of ceiling that was misplaced, with its two shades of paint. Ok doke, Noah thought. Vaguely familiar, but I have no clue what this one is. Bobby. Who's Bobby? Here we go, so it begins. I'll google it on a restroom break. So good to see you, Violet said with a smile, as she rose and offered Noah a generous embrace. Immediately he noticed the blonde hair and either a British or Aussie accent, things that Violet did not naturally possess. She had certainly become a woman, that was without debate. A deep exhale and the game was afoot. Hey there, Violet.  Have you been? Fabulous love. Have a seat, will you? Noah obliged. In front of him was a copper mug. I ordered you a Moscow mule. Certainly return it if you wish. I happen to adore them myself. Noah wasn't much of a drinker, but given the nature of Tinseltown and power lunches, he knew this hipster concoction had dominated the bar scene for at least that month. He shook away any doubts and took a sip. Now it's perfect, delicious. The vodka has a bit of a sting to it. Thank you, so have you been? What have you been up to lately? You look fantastic, all things considered. I'm sorry, I didn't get much of a chance to chat at the funeral. It was quite nice, the service. He thought one drink and get out, keep it vague and distant, then get back to the look-over motel for yet another glorious argument with Natasha. Violet flashed a warm smile and raised her own copper mug to her pursed lips, nearly kissing it. It was quite flirtatious and dangerous. Yes, such a tragic thing. I do feel for the family at this time. The lad was quite young and healthy, it appeared. As for me lately, you ask?  I'll play, though. I'd been teaching Melville as a lit professor, but was forced to leave that behind, as you know, of course. Although I was Elizabeth Hitchens at Hudson University, wasn't I? Sometimes I confuse myself. She feels sorry for the family? She is the family. Okay, she's not claiming any relation to Simon, Noah thought. I'm going to be talking to an absolute stranger now. I'll figure out what role she's playing later. Get in and get out. I forgot how depressing this really is. You're quite close with the deceased, Bobby. Certainly a tornado of emotions, I presume. That name again, Bobby. It all felt so familiar. The look, the names, the accent. His mind meshed images of Violet saying these things with Olivia D'Abo, who had certainly originated them, doing the same. Noah cleared his throat. What name did the hostess call her, he wondered? No idea as sprung as to how he would address her, and the creative block that only seemed to loom in weirdling woods weighed a million pounds. Yes, Simon and I grew up together. We were best friends for decades. He was always so happy it was quite a blow to the gut when he ended his life in such a way. I still don't understand it. From everything I heard, his store was in the black and his health was great. I guess the weirdling curse got him. Violet, or whoever she was in the moment, sipped her drink and giggled. What's so funny? How is that funny? Noah asked with a twinge of anger in his voice. Cuss. Oh, darling, stop. I know I said I'd play along, but how droll is this, really? Are we really going to endure this conversation when we both know the answer to everything? If you insist, Violet shided. She cleared her throat as if getting into character and turned serious for emphasis. Simon didn't jump off that building. Don't you remember how afraid of heights he was? He was pushed, thrown. That love was murder.  Torn between dealing with Violet's disturbed mind and the egregious things spewing from her mouth, he opted to sit in silence, though the expression on his face was anything but quiet. This was the most difficult thing when dealing with Violet's affliction, forgiving actions she couldn't control. I see I've angered you, she interjected. Apologies, I would never intend such a thing. I'm fine, really, Noah answered, failing to contain his distaste. I guess I'm emotional, still, from the funeral. Violet placed her hand atop his, emotional. How nonsensical. It's a logical human response that serves no purpose. It's my fault I've been away too long. What do you mean nonsensical, Noah asked? Violet took a deliberate sip from her cup and looked so deep into his eyes she could see through the back of his skull.  That's how we've come to meet in this trivial existence. Well, we've ascended most emotions except for one. I've always loved you, Bobby. The cocktail waitress arrived at that moment and Violet wasted no time commandeering the conversation. Tell Bobby he's the only man I've ever loved, she said to the waitress. The waitress's eyes grew wide with discomfort as she tiptoed away. Violet turned towards Noah. Are you okay with Bobby? I would call you Detective Gorin, but given your press coverage lately, you'd probably want a low profile. Um, thank you for that? Noah replied, masking his confusion. It was obvious she was tossing out lines perhaps out of order based on the ill fit from… something. Detective Gorin? He absolutely knew that name. Why wasn't it coming to him? He could almost see the actor's face. The guy was quite talented, that much he knew. What do you mean he was murdered? Instant regret overcame Noah as he took another drink. By asking this question, he had prolonged his uncomfortable stay. He wondered why he did this. Am I seeking my next screenplay or something? Did I linger too long to get sucked into the madness of the woods again? I know not to believe a word and she's in character. Why am I allowing this insane nonsense? Just then, Violet turned to an adjacent table and told a joke in Thai to a couple who had been speaking to one another in a Southeast Asian dialect. Noah was taken aback as the three erupted in laughter. Then Violet returned to the conversation. Apologies, I rarely get to use my Thai anymore. Luckily I know one joke that never fails. It's quite basic, though. My fluency, I mean, the things we do and learn while locked up, though, right? Anyway, are you still questioning poor Simon's murder? Why, Bobby, I think you already know. Or are we still playing pretend? I'll be a good sport if that's what does it for you. Violet inhaled and once more her character seemed to get into character. Seduce, poison, heal. Only fools change a foolproof plan. You aren't angry, are you? Please don't be. Please don't think of me as a monster. I only had your interests in mind. It's all I ever have. That was curiosity raged with intensity now. Detective Goren. Oh, come on, Noah, you know that name, he thought. This is what you get from watching a million shows a week for trendspotting. It doesn't matter. Be polite and get out. Don't be a voyeur into this poor girl's journey of insanity. I appreciate that. Not many keep my interests in mind. It's nice that you think of me in such a nice way. Yes, well, someone must. That black-haired woman, the one from the funeral, she doesn't seem right for you. A bit preoccupied with the mirror, I'd say. Noah laughed. You aren't far off on that one. Is her hair black this week? I've stopped noticing. Right, of course you have, because that's logical. I know you, Bobby. Why bother? The physical, sure, it's nice, but you must get boring fast. What's left after? It must be a rubbish existence, always two steps ahead of everyone in the room, especially that woman. Natasha, Noah interjected. Right. Has she ever given or only taken this Natasha? Has she even given you her heart? She gives me a lot of headaches, Noah thought. Let's talk about something else, please. So you say you killed Simon, Noah asked with sarcasm. You're just a tiny thing, and he was the toughest kid I knew growing up. So how'd you do it? Poison, you said, but how would you get him in a position to poison him? Bobby, what game are you playing? I thought we were beyond this banality of our inferiors. We both know the MO never changes. Seduction disarms giants. Of course that's why I've always held such affinity for you. You were the only man to ever say no to me. You and Declan, I should say. He thought, now there's a Declan? It was clear that she was throwing dialogue at a dartboard that had no bullseye just to get the regurgitated words from the script out. Sheer copy-paste that fit nowhere. The story was starting to really intrigue Noah though, and he vowed to watch whatever film or show Violet was playing out. It sounded better than anything he'd ever written, the fact that he acknowledged with a generous spritz of jealousy. The bizarre supposed seduction of her brother wasn't believable though. She must have tweaked whatever script she was living. You are quite the temptress indeed, Noah played along begrudgingly. Geez, I watched this kid grow up.  What was that poison again, your calling card? What was it, anthrax? Noah nudged, tossing out the only poison he knew. Violet's eyes allowed a mischievous flirt. Noah knew he was talking to the kid's sister of his best friend, but that protective bubble seemed to be eating itself. A small part of him began to turn into putty in her hands, an awareness he knew he needed to act on immediately. It almost feels like you're recording this detective. Did your evidence room catch fire, and this is how you back up your files? It's like an interview, our Italians this evening. And why are your hands under the table? Noah froze, unsure what to say. She smiled. I'm half joking. Luckily I know you better than that. You really do like this, though, don't you? Role-playing? I never suspected. To think you know someone. I'll try my best.  Something like that, Bobby? Apologies, I'm not skilled in make-believe. Back to you. Keep your hands on deck. We don't want you playing with your pistol under the table.  Is Aims going to jump out from behind the bar? Noah swigged the remainder of his cocktail. Again, previously spoken words that did not fit into this encounter. As if she had a checklist to mark as she rift quotes. He knew it was time to leave. This was getting dangerous. It was too strange now and Simon was a real person. He'd at least tried with Violet. He owed himself that credit. Now, why would I set you up? I get the feeling you'd see that coming. That'd be quite telegraphed. Listen, I just got a text from Natasha, and I need to get going. Sorry to cut it short. It's been lovely catching up with you, but I got an early flight. We must do this again next time, for sure. Noah stood and wobbled. Violet sat in eerie calm with a grin stolen from the devil himself. Natasha texted you. Oh, I just get so disappointed when you lie to me, but do it again sometime. Certainly we shall. Don't think for a second that this is the end of us, Bobby. Noah's brain ordered his right foot to step forward, but there was no compliance. Before blacking out and losing control over his body, for one fleeting moment, Noah knew he'd forever be able to write about utter helplessness with authenticity. Noah's next brush with consciousness came as he opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling from his bed at the lookover motel. Time was a foreign concept. He had no idea how long he'd been out. Mired in the waning moments of presumed sleep paralysis based on his immobile body, his foggy mind attempted to conjure mementos of the night. What had happened? How did he get back to the hotel? What or who was inside Violet's mind last night? Had he been poisoned? Just because she could? Eventually Noah mustered the strength to jerk his body to the floor. This was when it first dawned on him that Natasha and any remnant of hers was nowhere to be seen. Then the note on the dresser drawers came into focus. It would have been better for his ego had it remained pixelated. Noah knew many words as a writer does, but he never imagined so many with four letters. After the second paragraph he'd gathered enough intel to realize he was now single, and Natasha was somewhere over Kansas in first class, on his dime and route to LA. Noah sighed, then he forced to smile as he'd deleted Natasha's number from his phone. It was the first time he'd ever seen her handwriting. That's how uninspired their union was. Usually she only texted. To be unworthy of phone communication was certainly the end. The urge to decipher Violet's most recent Olivia character had passed. She was just so tiring. Weirdling Woods drained people that way. He felt for his departed friend, what a burden it must have been, especially when Simon and Violet's parents passed a few years back, leaving Simon as the sole caretaker. And what a terrible friend Noah was, he realized, cashing out and leaving Simon by himself. What would become a violet now that nobody was left? That poor girl had a healthy inheritance and no identity of her own, not even a driver's license. It was so very tragic. It was too much to wake up to, so Noah closed his eyes until the blood circulation became normal again. His body ached, and his mind was a shattered mirror, a thousand jagged thoughts rupturing his harmony. He knew exactly why. One constant came to mind. Weirdling Woods will feast on your soul if you linger too long. One month later, Noah was sprawled across his recliner inside his valley apartment, working on sporadic spurts of sleep. The dribbling mesh of drool and coffee from the corner of his mouth had seeped onto one of the many pages of dialogue littered across the room. Such was the risk when typing scripts like a dinosaur. The pounding door jerked him from his slumber, his eyes meeting the cruel, bullying sunbeams of an afternoon stalked by a deadline. Noah rose and grunted as his hand rubbed the twisted interior of his back. The flat screen in the background was still playing from hours before. As he passed through the living room towards the front door, the man on the television spoke the following words. In New York City's war on crime, the worst criminal offenders are pursued by the detectives of the major case squad. These are their stories. Noah returned to the living room with a package and set it aside, opting to rummage through his refrigerator and make a sandwich with sparse ingredients through some form of culinary alchemy. For 30 minutes he sat in silence, nibbling on the wretched creation. Subliminal words billowed from the television speakers through the apartment, words he did not realize were penetrating his eardrums. Suckin' Nicole, Elizabeth Hitchens, Melville in the white whale, seduce, poison, kill. Don't think for a second that this is the end of us, Bobby. Nicole Wallis. Nicole Wallis. Nicole Wallis. Noah froze the moment these words finally began to crash into his consciousness, leaving his face ashen and drained, remnants of his sandwich dangling from his mouth. He bolted into the living room and the images on the television became shotgun blasts to the face. The rerun episode of law and order criminal intent was replaying exact quotes and scenarios from his brief night with Violet, only this time the real Olivia D'Abo was saying the words. The flax-inhered amalgamation of Diva and Kraft's woman was on screen manipulating her character's situation to her liking, with grace quite cunning and stunning. And if this was what Violet was imitating, chill trickled through Noah's being. For all intents and purposes, he'd shared cocktails with a killer that night. Images of Violet flooded his mind, her clothes, her hair, the accent and the exact words. Violet had mimicked the role to frightening perfection. The woman he grew up with was a clone of the woman on screen. The only question was, how far did the role and by proxy Violet go? He remembered the murder report from the cab radio. Of course, there was Simon. How many more? How many did this character of Nicole Wallace and by extension Violet claim? Noah pulled out his phone and googled the character of Nicole Wallace and his heart sunk below his quivering knees. The basic Thai conversation, the Australian twang, paralytics, the faked suicide but actual murder of a brother only this time her own. The references to Bobby. In Violet's diseased mind, Noah played the fictional role of a detective that evening. But as he researched the serial killer character Nicole Wallace, Noah knew for certain that life had imitated art. Then Noah remembered the package. His lips grew numb, the numbness penetrating the rest of his body. In a crawl, he made his way to the package. As he hovered over the box, he remembered Violet's words as she thought Nicole Wallace might have used them. This Natasha, has she ever given you her heart? The words echoed first, then hung over him. A note attached to the box read, Oh, this is the poison of deep grief. It was from Hamlet, but also somewhere much closer. At that moment, Noah looked up at the same note with the same font and same paper on the television. With trembling hands, Noah lifted the lid from the box. From a writer's creation to an actress' interpretation to a deranged woman's obsession, Natasha's heart had indeed, literally and finally been given to Noah. Back in Weirdling Woods, across JD's chop shop on the corner of Cushing Avenue and Lee Street, the bus depot was bustling with people coming and going. It was spring break, and Weirdling Woods beaches had some amazing waves, so the younger crowd shuffled in as the oldest crowd sought shelter elsewhere for the week. One of those kids would be lost to the ocean and the town forever. That's how it was always and always would be. It was an unspoken agreement. That was the risk of entering the beautiful beast. Everyone knew this and drew their straws. An old woman with a crooked nose, hunched in her ratty mud-brown wool shawl and warned the vacationers through her toothless black mouth, came back. All laughed her away. Collectively, it was decided to stay despite the looming threat, as they had for years and would continue to do. Old adages existed for a reason. Weirdling Woods will feast on your soul if you linger too long.  Just off to the side was her boarding pass. The name on the ticket read Liz B. With great care, she folded her copy of The Hollywood Reporter, as she did so the portion of the industry magazine she had been reading faced outward. The headline read, Olivia D'Abo tapped to play Elizabeth Bathory in Marlar House Productions biopic. Filming on the project, which details the life and death of the most prolific female serial killer in history, begins in Vancouver next week.  Then, Violet smiled at a world that would soon meet her. This was just one of numerous stories to be released in the Weirdling Woods universe, written by John Allen. More stories will, of course, be featured here in the Weird Darkness podcast in the weeks and months to come. You can also find all of the stories in the Weirdling Woods book, coming soon to bookstores and online retailers, in paperback, hardback, ebook and audiobook versions. In the pages, you'll also find a bonus story at the end, which will not be used in the podcast, along with a fun list of Easter eggs to look out for within the stories. You can contact me, Darren Marlar, other John Allen, or learn more about this series at WeirdlingWoods.com. All stories in the Weirdling Woods series are written by John Allen. Theme music written and recorded by Nicholas Gasparini, also known as horror composer Me You on YouTube. If you like this series, please share it with others and leave a rating and review of the series in the podcast app you listen from. Doing so helps Weirdling Woods get noticed. Weirdling Woods is a registered trademark, copyright Weird Darkness. I'm Darren Marlar. Thanks for walking with me through Weirdling Woods.


Welcome back to TBR colludo. TBR colludo right here is my TBR game. We play every single month. I'll leave the post down below, we can find the first video. It explains how we play but it's pretty self-explanatory to get on. There's prompts, there's rooms that I have to read a book in that genre, etc. Okay, so this is my TBR for June. Firstly, it's actually a personal attack that it's like June. That doesn't make sense. That doesn't mean that's not in my fantasy. We're not like, we're not recognizing that. It's a lot of fantasies and when I feel the fantasy, it is my reality. I actually wrote May TBR when I made this lesson. I was like, hang on. Hang on. Oh! So in terms of June, it's a little bit tricky because a lot of the videos I got coming this month, I can't pre-plan what I'm gonna read. So like, I've got a lot of reading that I can't fit into this because I don't know what the books are gonna be until that exact moment. So this was a little bit tricky. It was a little bit tricky but my main aim with this month was to get a lot of fantasy rolls because I had a lot of fantasy to get to this month. So that was the kind of priority of what I knew that I had to read. And yeah, I think that's what we have to say. I'm doing well. I've pretty much finished all of May's TBR, don't worry. But like, we've still got what day? What's the date? 24th? 24th, yeah. God, I'm so great. I don't actually love myself this much. I just act like I do. Let's just get into the first roll. I have a lot of fantasy that I want to read this month or need to read this month. So we're gonna try and go to fantasy as much as we can. But let's just go ahead with this. So roll one. Person number seven, which is brown over here. Okay, let's see how many we roll. We could use the staircase to get into fantasy, maybe. Okay, so let's look at this. Let's go. We haven't used the staircases in a while. I feel like I forgot about them for a moment. So we've got seven in total. So we can go one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, and get number 26. Sorry, I almost said 24. Number 26, which is something I've been scared to read. Okay, by the way, I just, I have cats, right? And sometimes there's just cat fur in the air everywhere. And today, I just feel like my makeup, I've got loads of fluff on my face. So if you've seen me making like strange face expressions, that's why. Anyway, our first roll was a fantasy that I have been scared to read. And for this, I picked Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor. Yes, yes, yes. I know a lot of you will be happy. I'm going to be reading Muse of Nightmares this month. When I read Strange a Dreamer by Laini Taylor, the first in this duology, I was like, huh, I need to pick up and read Muse of Nightmares straight away. Straight away. I love the ending so much. I was like, right, straight away. And then I left it too long, and I've been terrified to read it. The excitement dissipated, well not dissipated, but like the immediate excitement dissipated, and the tension and the scared to consume this book rose. So in the first book, you're following Laszlo Strange, who is obsessed with this lost mythical city of Weep, but it turns out it's not lost, and he gets to go there. There's also like an unspoken big part of this series. It's kind of like not spoken about, but there's stuff to do with gods and goddesses and stuff, plays a big role of the book. And I, hmm, the ending Strange a Dreamer is one of the most like personal attack endings I've ever read. I sobbed, and it just completely changes where the where the storyline is going to go in the second book. So yeah, I'm quite scared, but I am excited to finally get to this and finish off this series. Nanny Taylor has some of my favorite writing ever, not always my favorite plot and characters. Sometimes I feel like that can get a bit lost, but in terms of writing, like 100%, 20 out of 10 writing, you know what I mean? So very excited to get to this. Roll number two. Person number one, which is green! Oh my god, this is going so well already. Let's see how I'm going to reroll. Oh, a four and a three again. I think I'm going to keep it easy and go one, two, three, which is number nine, which is a book with under 6000 ratings on Goodreads. So like a little bit less of a popular or red book. Next roll was another fantasy under 6000 ratings on Goodreads. So when I made this prompt, I had a look and basically the bottom 40% of my TBR, I would say, has less than 6000 ratings. The top 60% have more than that. So it's kind of like a less red book. And for this, I have picked The Monarchs by Kaz Morgan and Danielle Page. I'm really excited to read this. I have never, ever been happier. This only has like 700 ratings so far because it's a sequel that came out this year. So people have had a lot of time to read it and also you've got to read the first one in order to read it. I'm really excited to read this. The first one is The Ravens and this follows like a sisterhood, a what's the word? I'm English guys, a sorority, a sorority where they're all witches. I mean the first book is them kind of like using their magic to save the sisterhood following two perspectives, one who's an older girl there and one who's a newer girl. And like in contrast to Music Nightmares where like the ending of Stranger Dreamer really switched up. What the whole story, oh god couldn't get that word out. The whole story is going to be about this one the way it ended. I feel like it was kind of open for it to go in a lot of different directions. So whereas with that I kind of know what to expect in a way, although I know it's going to be like a crazy new direction. I don't know if we're going to kind of stay in the same vibe in this book or if we're going to go off a completely different path. But I was really shocked by how much I loved the Ravens. I was like it was kind of like a three star prediction. And in the end I think I gave it like a really strong four star. I really enjoyed it. I really liked the writing. I've never read from either of these two before, so I'm very excited to finish this off. Roll number three. Person number two, which is purple up here in mystery. Let's see how many we roll. Whoa. We've got five and a one. Um, let's see. Let's go. One, two, three, four, five, which is number 22, which is a title with three words. Round three was a mystery with three words in the title. And this is the one that I gave to my patrons, them to vote on. If you don't know, my patrons vote on one round of tblcuda every month. And that ends up being our book club pick for the month. As always, links down below if you want to come and join us. It's a lot of fun. We have like two live shows a week, usually reading sprints and then either we play GeoGuessor together or Gain's Night. There's like early access to videos. There's so much. So the four options I gave them, which I thought were like four, like I was excited for all of these.  Now usually I would say on the votes, on the polls, we have like two front runners, right? That everyone kind of is fighting between. But this month, the votes were pretty evenly dispersed across all four options. Different ones of them kept taking the lead and I didn't know who was going to win. But I'm actually quite surprised that the winner was Big Little Lies by Liana Moriarty. So this is our book club pick. I'm actually really excited because, you know, it's an older book that I haven't read and I feel like we'll have a lot to discuss from it. I just kind of assumed that people would have already read this and like thus it wouldn't get picked on maybe one of the newer ones would. I'll put the picture in here of what the split was. It was like pretty tight between all the different, all the different books. All I know about this is that we're following like these women. Women.  I don't, I always get the vibe that it's kind of like Celestine who I've read before and really loved. I feel like they're in the same ballpark. But anyway, I'm very excited to read it and then watch the series. And I don't know what to expect. I feel like this is going to be a really fun one because often for the book club we kind of read maybe more niche books or like books are not a lot of people have read. Whereas this is probably one of the biggest like longevity wise books we're going to have read so far. So I feel like that's going to be a really interesting lens to view it through. Next roll. Number two again. Okay, I haven't got a lot of mysteries to read this man. Let's see what we've got. A five and a four. Okay. I'm just going to go one, two, three, four and get this one, which is number two, which is a series I'm partway through. Roll number four was a series that I'm partway through. A mystery. A mystery of a series I'm partway through. And this one I'm cheating a little bit. Okay. Like it's fine guys. It's fine. Please allow me to do this. The rules don't apply. This series technically is on my finished series list on my spreadsheet. I've read the main books. This series is A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson. I'm going to be reading Killjoy by Holly Jackson. This is either before the first book or between books one and two. I'm not sure when it's set. It's around that time frame. And this is like a short novella that Holly, Holly Jackson did. I believe like World Book Day or something. It's really, really short. But once I finished this, you know, I didn't want to put this on like the series set list because I didn't want it to like hold me back from saying I finished because I finished the main series. But it technically is a series I'm partway through if I haven't finished it. So I'm counting it. I'm counting it. I think it's, I think it's a bit more like fun and games than the actual series. I think it's like she's solving like a kind of mystery at a Halloween party, like something gets stolen or like, I can't remember. It's very, very like fun. It's not serious like those of a club. We're not dealing with serious cases. I think it's like a fun mystery. I think the audiobook is in like three hours long. I've got the audiobook and the ebook. So, you know, I'm just craving Holly Jackson's writing. We haven't got any information. It's really gonna be years. Like Holly Jackson's like, yeah, I'm just gonna wait a while, you know, it's really gonna be years until we get a new Holly Jackson, but I'm craving it. And we haven't even got any kind of hints or announcements. And I just need more, but we don't have more. So this is the more that we have for now. I just, I need to read it. So we're gonna read Killjoy this month. Okay, two more rolls to come. Number eight, which is blue. Okay, let's see how many we roll. A two and a two. Um, let's go a lot of my odd numbers away. Let's go one, two, three, four, which is number 30, which, oh my god, that's the world card. That's great. That means I can read anything I want for that one. It doesn't have to be a contemporary. It can be literally anything I want. Oh my god, I forgot that even existed. I haven't had it in so long. Roll five was a world card. I forgot this existed because I haven't gotten in so long. And I was, I was toying. I was toying with that book to pick. Hang on. Where's the other one I wanted to pick? Oh no, I just dropped that one. You've shown an incredible lack of respect. I'm undecided for a vlog, which of these books I want to read in that vlog. So in the spirit of wild card, I'm gonna say the two options. And then when it gets closer to the time I'm gonna make the vlog, I'll probably read whichever one of these I'm in the mood for. So we're getting two options for this roll. I'm not reading both of these. I'll probably read one or the other. The two options are A Sum of Storm and Silence by Rosanne A Brown and Drowned Country by Emily Teche. I've always said this is one of my favorite covers. I love the kind of creepiness of it. It's a very strange cover, but I love it. So this is like a African inspired fantasy. The first one is following these two characters who want to kill each other to further their own aims. Not because they actually hate each other, but they like need to achieve something and they have to kill each other in order to get it. And Drowned Country is the sequel to Silver in the Wood. And this one's from like this man who is a spirit of the woods, lives in the woods. It's hard to explain. They're novellas, so they're very hard. Whoa. They're very hard to explain without spoiling it. But yeah, I'm going to read either of these for the vlog. I'm not sure which one yet, so I want to keep my options open. So in the spirit of wild card, I'll read one of these, but I'm not sure which one yet. Okay, final roll. Whoa. Person number five, which is white over here. Let's see what we roll. Oh my goodness. Oh, we've got six in a one. Let's just go one here, which is number five, which is something with blue on the cover. And then the last roll with a romance with blue on the cover. And I am going to be reading Below Zero by Ali Hazelwood. This does have it on the cover, right? I know it. I know it does.  I know it does. I'm just doubting myself. I'm currently reading Stuck With You. I'm literally, I've been listening to it while I got ready today. I've got like 50 minutes left. And then this is the third and final one in Ali Hazelwood's novella series. I have been enjoying them, Ali Hazelwood. It's just like a comfort romance reader for me, which I've never really had before. I just like the way she writes characters. I think it's kind of funny. It's kind of tongue in cheek. Perhaps that comes from a lot of her stuff being adapted from fanfic. It's kind of got this like, I'm making fun of the genre while still being the absolute, you know, standard of the genre. Does that make sense? I don't know. I feel like all of her books are kind of like an inside joke. So I really enjoyed the first one in the series. I haven't obviously, I'm like halfway through the second one. So I have, I don't know what my thoughts are on it yet. I'm enjoying it, but I don't know if I'm going to love it more than I did the first one. And then this is the third and final one. I know this one, I think they're like in Antarctica or something. And they're like, scientist research is on the cold.  Is that what he says? I'm harder than you to Edward and Edward. Lily cuddles Bella near the reference I want. Okay, let's face it.  But yeah, super excited. It will be finishing off another series, and they're super quick and easy to read. So there we have it, everyone. That is my TVR for June. Like I said, this is a very limited sample of what I'm going to be reading in June. A lot of videos I have got planned. I cannot plan for them, ironically. I don't know what I'm going to be reading. So this was pretty tough to fit everything in, but we got lucky with the world card and I got lucky with fantasy roles. So yeah, let me know down below what you're going to be reading in June. I'd love to know. Make sure you like the video, subscribe if you're new. And if you've gotten to the end, comment the snowflake emoji for below zero because we're in the snow. I think, I mean, no, it's in Antarctica. You only doubt yourself. Sometimes I just doubt myself. I don't want to appear wrong. So I'm assured in my beliefs. Anyways, thank you guys so much for watching. I love you and I'll see you very soon in another video. Bye.


You need to do this one thing at least once per month and this is gonna help you stay on track with your business. So a couple of questions you need to ask yourself at the very end of the month. How many new prospects raise their hand this month at one training? That's number one. Number two, how many current clients am I working with right now on an active basis? Number three, how much money is coming in per month on a regular basis? Number four, how many members canceled this month that won't be in our program next month? Number five, how many prospects have reached out in the last 90 days that I haven't closed into my program that maybe I could reintroduce into a new offer?