trip t.

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Sunday in Suburbia: Strings for Peas and a Hot Plate of Grub To Get the Morning Goin'

trip t. posted an article on - Feb 5, 2012, 1:20 pm
String lines to give the tender pea plants something to grab onto to keep them up out of the wet soil. As gray and cold as it is outside, one can almost believe the prediction Punxsutawney Phil’s prediction that spring won’t come for another six weeks.  Despite the mid-40s temperature, I put t...
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Getting In Some Early Gardening with the Help of a New Electric Cultivator

trip t. posted an article on - Jan 29, 2012, 3:35 pm
Planted 2 weeks ago, these pea sprouts are about 4 inches tall. Again it’s garden time!  I know it’s still January, but last year I planted on the 1st, but this year I didn’t get seeds for some leafy greens into the ground until the 15th.  In addition, to various kinds of lettuce,  I als...
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On the Road Home: Try Something French, and It's Neither Fry Nor Poodle

trip t. posted an article on - Jan 16, 2012, 10:50 pm
Some days I’d like to write a post, but the evening is just too short.  I feel a bit guilty of neglecting my housekeeping duties around here.  Recently, I mentioned liking the station Latitude Franco from SiriusXM on my car radio.  Well, I’m still likin’ it even though I understand next to ...
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Heavy Storms Passing Through Houston Left Many Roadways Flooded

trip t. posted an article on - Jan 9, 2012, 10:21 pm
The garden rain gauge shows 1.8 inches, for a total of 2 inches in the past 24 hours (1/09/11). Annie barked at the bumps of thunder as I showered for work this morning.  Then the .20 in the rain gauge gave evidence to some showers during the night which I hadn’t heard.  However, the weatherman...
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Holiday Road Trip and Day Trips To Boot–All Made for a Great Winter Break

trip t. posted an article on - Jan 9, 2012, 9:59 pm
Wind turbines of the Smoky Hills Wind Farm line the wintery horizon in pastures along the Lincoln and Ellsworth county line, not far from Wilson Resevoir. A wet, grey afternoon with some unexpected early hours off from work make it a good time to try out one of my Christmas gifts.  I received a s...
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Happy Holidays to All from Trip to the Outhouse

trip t. posted an article on - Dec 22, 2011, 9:36 pm
All of the Christmas cactuses are blooming at the same time this year, giving me time to enjoy them before taking out on the road. The year is quickly coming to an end.  I’ve got the car almost packed, and in the morning, I’ll add the last few items and stick Annie in the co-pilot seat for our...
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On the Road Home: Those Sirius XM Channels Can Lead to a Place . . . Well, a Place where the Music Is "Musique"

trip t. posted an article on - Dec 20, 2011, 12:42 am
How the 9 button got pre-set to 155 I don’t know, but luckily this mystery put me onto a kind of music I probably wouldn’t have tried.  My car came with 6 month’s worth of Sirius XM satellite radio on it, and I liked more than enough channels to renew it when the free time was over a couple m...
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Hurricane Irene Whets the Appetite for Tin Roof Ice Cream

trip t. posted an article on - Aug 27, 2011, 11:02 pm
Having participated in the snarl of freeway madness along with millions of other Houstonians to avoid Hurricane Rita in 2005 , three years later I decided not to evacuate during Hurricane Ike, thus, spending a mostlysleepless night listening to the winds and rain.  After the electricity went out, I...
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Acer Aspire One Netbook–Let's See How Well It Does For Writing a Blog Post

trip t. posted an article on - Aug 21, 2011, 12:29 am
The Aspire One netbook makes a good accompaniment for multi-relaxing. As an excuse for not posting for awhile, I could blame  the 100+ degree heat that seems go on without a reprieve.  I just haven’t been in the mood to do much posting lately. Another reason might be that I’ve gotten myse...
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Saturday Morning Bits and Pieces, But the Rain Gauge Is Back in Place (With Even Some Rain in It)

trip t. posted an article on - Jul 30, 2011, 10:12 am
Another magnificent jungle cactus bloom--just the thing to spark up a drab July. Here we are at the end of July, and this is only my second post of the month.  Blame it on the heat.  (“Don’t blame it on the bossa nova.“)  It’s been that kind of month; one that has seemed to drag on, mayb...
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A Saturday Morning Adventure To One of Houston's Well-kept Secrets

trip t. posted an article on - Jul 3, 2011, 1:12 pm
Passion Flower--Is there anything other to say than "Wow"? Because Houston is a city that has experienced most of its growth in the last several decades, it feels pretty much the same, no matter which part of the city that you find yourself in.  Despite the ubiquitous strip centers, fast food re...
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Houston Gay Pride Parade–Version 2011

trip t. posted an article on - Jun 26, 2011, 1:23 am
Houston Gay Pride Parade 2011 is off and running!Jonathan Lovitz, from LogoTV's "Set Up Squad" was one of this year's honorary grand marshals. The 2011version of the Houston LGBT Pride Celebration (commonly known as the Houston Gay Pride Parade) was attended by a large crowd.  (I’ll be intereste...
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Houston Pride Festival 2011 Attracts Large Crowd Despite the Heat

trip t. posted an article on - Jun 25, 2011, 5:22 pm
Gay flag is waving under the hot Houston sun at the Westheimer entrance to the festival. Sunscreen applied, I drove in to Houston’s Montrose area around 1:30 PM.  I felt the sun blasting down on me as I dashed from one shaded spot to another one the few blocks to the main festival area, just o...
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Happy Gay (LGBT . . . and Q, if you must) Pride 2011! Houston, Today Is the Big Day

trip t. posted an article on - Jun 25, 2011, 12:30 pm
I just got finished doing the lawn.  After the almost 2 inches of rain this past week, the grass finally grew enough that I could mow it, only about the third time this year, because of all the dry weather. Now I’m about to jump into the shower (pretty scummy and drenched after being out there p...
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Another State Added to the List: New York Votes for Marriage Equality

trip t. posted an article on - Jun 25, 2011, 12:09 am
Tonight is another good night.  After a long week of expectations and delays, the New York Senate voted to approve same-sex marriage by a vote of 33-29.  In the Republican-controlled senate, four of those voting in favor of passage were of the majority party.  After frequent internet checks all ...
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What's Christian about Taking People's Health Benefits Away?

trip t. posted an article on - Jun 16, 2011, 11:13 pm
Last year, in El Paso, Texas, voters pushed by evangelist Tom Brown to penalize gay workers, voted to take health benefits away from domestic partners.  Their mean-spirited ballot measure took away some other municipal workers’ benefits as well. This week the El Paso City Council voted to resto...
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A LGBT Pride Month Story: And A Couple of T-Shirts That Were Saved from the Dumpster

trip t. posted an article on - Jun 12, 2011, 2:42 pm
This T-shirt from 1979 came from one of the dances put on by Gay Services of Kansas, at the University of Kansas. Another hot Sunday is already upon us, and later on, when the driveway gets a bit shaded, I’ll tend to one of the planned weekend chores–washing the car. The last time I was ready...
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Houston's 2011 Gay Pride Festival and Parade in Just Two Weeks; Other Events Taking Place Throughout June

trip t. posted an article on - Jun 11, 2011, 10:44 am
From the increased number of clicks onto my previous posts about Houston Gay Pride 2009 and 2010, people are once again trying to get information about this year’s events.  Living for such a long time right in the middle of Montrose, there were some years that I just skipped it all.  Now that I...
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Despite the Heat and Lack of Rain, There Are Always Surprises in the Garden

trip t. posted an article on - Jun 4, 2011, 11:55 pm
A magnificent early morning discovery; this jungle cactus flower (cactus orchid) nearly hidden from view by the oak tree. I don’t know what my M.U.D. bill will be this month, but with such a long period without much moisture, I’ve been watering a lot.  The vegetable garden and the grass get a...
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Starting the Canning Season–Just a Couple of Pints, But Definitely Satisfaction in the Doing

trip t. posted an article on - May 29, 2011, 5:26 pm
Pickled beans and canned tomatoes--today's fruits of the garden and the joy of remembering and doing. I’ve been itching to do some canning.  I have been waiting since last summer, when I found how much I enjoy the entire process, from the picking of the vegetables to having them sealed tight in...
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Always Important: Getting the Right Tool for the Job

trip t. posted an article on - May 22, 2011, 4:41 pm
The Bissell 3-in-1 Vac (The porcelain chicken is not an attachment.) From time to time on here, I like to recommend (or criticize) products and services that I have purchased or used.  When I first moved from an apartment to my own home, I had to buy quite a number of items that I had never needed...
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Who's To Blame for No Garden Photos? Whatever . . . . This Just May Be the Year of the Tomato

trip t. posted an article on - May 21, 2011, 1:22 pm
The little garden behind the garage, May 21, 2011. It’s been awhile since I’ve added any garden photos, but this morning after spending a leisurely couple of hours dozing in bed, I got up, made some freshly ground coffee, and headed out to the little patch behind the garage.  Since I didn’t ...
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Only A Few More Hours Before 6 PM, May 21st–Those Expectiing "The Rapture" from Earthquakes Might Get It from Tasmanian Bomb

trip t. posted an article on - May 21, 2011, 12:10 pm
Sex bomb, that is.  This rapturous bomb got three big yeses from the judges in “Australia’s Got Talent” this past week.  It’s long past 6 PM in Australia.  Haven’t heard about any earthquakes there yet, but if they’ve got more “bombs” like this one, let the rapture begin!
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It's Already 6 PM, Saturday, May 21st, Somewhere in the World–Has Anyone Heard the Rumble of Any Big Earthquakes Yet?

trip t. posted an article on - May 21, 2011, 12:18 am
This is just another reason that shows why religion is whack.  If one preposterous story is whack, it’s all whack. I’m going to bed, not worried that any earthquake is going to blow me out of bed, but wondering if these hand exercises I’ve been doing will help with the carpal tunnel aggrava...
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Sure Seems Like I've Heard It Before: New Song by Brit Singer Adele Sounds a Heckuva Lot Like "Kaw-Liga"

trip t. posted an article on - Apr 30, 2011, 10:36 pm
Spending almost 2 hours a day commuting these days, I hear a lot of music on a variety of stations.  I don’t know all the new artists, but my ear tells me there’s a lot of lifting from older music.  I can appreciate Lady Gaga’s stands on gay issues, but despite her over-the-top outfits, she...
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Tornadoes Ravage Six Southern States After Anti-Gay Actions Taken by Legislatures, Hate Groups, and Individuals from Those States

trip t. posted an article on - Apr 28, 2011, 11:17 pm
 All of this has happened in 2011: Tennessee–State Senate panel advances law that would prohibit the discussion of homosexuality in schools. Virginia–The State Attorney General says that state board does not have authority to allow gay adoptions. Georgia–Atlanta Braves pitching coach is inve...
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Can't Get to a Greek Taverna? Get Some Mediterranean Flavor By Making Homemade Tzaziki and Roasted Vegetables

trip t. posted an article on - Apr 26, 2011, 5:12 pm
I have fond memories of my Air Force days in Greece (read more here), and especially of going out to local tavernas or finding one near some isolated beach.  Although its cognate in English, tavern, generally conjures up images of a place where men sit around tables with a mugs of beer in hand, som...
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A Sunday Drive: In Search of Bluebonnets

trip t. posted an article on - Apr 10, 2011, 9:48 pm
Barely out of the car, Annie is panting in the hot sun at Washington-on-the-Brazos State Park. These were some of the few bluebonnets we encountered. Having finally accomplished the long-put-off doing of my income taxes before noontime, and with the yard and garden work already finished for the wee...
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Watch Christian TV Direct From This Site; See Previously Unseen Interpretations of the Word

trip t. posted an article on - Apr 8, 2011, 11:50 pm
Click below to watch Christian TV.
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Take Your Choice of Preachers: Bible Sneaker or Plastic Smiler; Yeah, You Take Your Choice, Not Everyone Is That Naive

trip t. posted an article on - Apr 6, 2011, 9:28 pm
Mine is a quiet, one-block, cul de sac street.  In fact, even though a couple of families have teenage kids, I didn’t know it until I had lived in my house for about six months.  Aside from lawn mowers and edgers, the loudest it gets around here is on the rare occasions when the Vietnamese fami...
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Now That April Fool's Day Has Passed, It's Time To See How the Garden Is Growing

trip t. posted an article on - Apr 2, 2011, 11:12 am
Annie is always ready to assistant in checking out how the garden is growing. (4-2-11) When it becomes garden time, this blog could be one of the most boring in all of the blogosphere; however, my little patch helps keep me on an even keel, so I like to add a pic here and there just as a record f...
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The World Keeps On Turning, But Step Back and Enjoy a Great Springtime Dish–Wilted Lettuce

trip t. posted an article on - Mar 27, 2011, 10:52 pm
Freshly made wilted lettuce, ready to be placed in the salad bowls With the time change adding an extra hour of sunlight after I get home on work days and all the tending to yard and garden on the weekend, posting on here hasn’t been something that I’ve had much time for recently. There have b...
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Spring Begins! It's Time for Planting and More Garden Updates

trip t. posted an article on - Mar 21, 2011, 12:25 am
Spring, and it's time again to record the growth of the garden. As always, Annie ready to check things out. Today is the first official day of spring, and these fingers that have been pulling, digging, and clutching rakes, hoes, and shovels for most of this beautiful, long weekend feel a bit reluct...
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When Your Car Is Totaled and You Have To Replace It, Beware of "Apple Pie" Marketing Along the Way

trip t. posted an article on - Mar 15, 2011, 11:45 pm
It has been just a bit over a month that I got involved in what most would have seen as a “fender-bender” (details in previous post); nevertheless, my car was totaled.  Luckily, no one was hurt, nor was I the driver who caused the accident, but unluckily, my car got the worst end of the deal....
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On the Road Home: When Getting Off the Crowded Freeway Is Not the Best Bet

trip t. posted an article on - Mar 12, 2011, 10:33 am
Considering the nearly 50 miles I drive in heavy traffic every day, perhaps it was bound to happen.  I don’t know. What I do know is that my blog posts here have been almost nil for a month because I’ve felt like I wanted to write about what happened, but just haven’t been able to:  1) beca...
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Breezy Sunday–Time for a Home-cooked Dinner Including Fresh Green Beans

trip t. posted an article on - Feb 27, 2011, 5:36 pm
The only thing that would make these home-cooked green beans better would be if they were also home-grown. Blustery breezes and an uncertain sky haven’t put a damper on this penultimate day of February.  For the first time in a couple of weeks, I’m back in my groove.  (I’ll try to add anot...
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Manhattan, Kansas: First City in State To Add Gender Identity to Anti-Discrimination Laws, Also Adds Sexual Orientation

trip t. posted an article on - Feb 9, 2011, 11:16 pm
Not in any of the national, well-read LGBT blogs and other sites have I seen this mentioned today, but I think it’s pretty amazing because it’s happening in my old home state, and in the very town where I spent a couple of college years and also came out.  This is Kansas, mind you, old, foreve...
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How Language Bullies, But When It Might Be OK To Say "That's So Gay"

trip t. posted an article on - Feb 9, 2011, 10:19 pm
“Say Something” seems to be Australia’s equivalent of the “It Gets Better” Project, a youtube campaign that was started Dan Savage, a Seattle columnist, after the rash of gay teen suicides last year.  “Say Something” has been set up as part of the 2011 Sydney Mardi Gras, one of the la...
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Bright, Sunshiny Days Warm Up the Weekend

trip t. posted an article on - Feb 6, 2011, 7:21 pm
A view from one of those "roads less traveled"in Bear Creek Park--backgrounded by an amazingly blue sky. Those green shrubs are the fan palms that grow in many of the woods of southeast Texas. If by yesterday afternoon, Friday’s icy weather, along with the resulting bad roadways, was hardly wor...
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Winter Weather Puts a Skid on Friday in Houston; Highways Dangerous and Most Public Services Iced Out

trip t. posted an article on - Feb 4, 2011, 4:24 pm
Ice still lays on this agave plant after the temperature rose above freezing. Nothing significant has changed weather-wise since my previous post earlier this morning.  The sun tried to peek through for a bit, but the temperature only rose to 35 for about an hour, and now it’s grey again, and th...
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Winter Weather Brings Ice to Houston But No Snow

trip t. posted an article on - Feb 4, 2011, 10:01 am
The agave leaves are slick with ice from the sleet and rain that came during the pre-dawn hours. The predicted snow didn’t come to Houston.  Having gone to bed even earlier than most work nights.  I woke up around 5, and the light from the streetlight outside showed no snow on the ground, nor e...
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Winter Is Here: Time To Bring in the Plants and Pour That Cup of Hot Tea

trip t. posted an article on - Feb 2, 2011, 12:42 am
The first, and maybe only, pickings from the winter garden. Perhaps fried green tomatoes will be on the menu soon. The temperature was right at 70 when I got home from work last evening, but after I let Annie out, I started carting all the potted plants that I could into the garage, knowing that th...
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Egypt in Transition: Sidenotes from Personal Experience

trip t. posted an article on - Jan 31, 2011, 12:00 am
Like many others, I’ve given quite a lot of attention in the past several days to what’s been happening in Egypt.  For certain, what changes will be made there, whether there will be a complete change in government or whether Mubarek will stay in some sort of power, remain uncertain. I think ...
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I Want My Gay TV (and I Want My Damn Computer To Work Right)

trip t. posted an article on - Jan 25, 2011, 10:59 pm
The sun came out today.  I’m not sure when because I was tied up inside (not literally, mind you) most of the day, but I felt almost gleeful turning down the visors in the car on my way home this evening.  The rain has been good for the garden, and hopefully, some of it is getting down for some...
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Panettone, Plants, and Politics: Enough Alliteration for a Drizzly Day

trip t. posted an article on - Jan 16, 2011, 2:35 pm
It’s one of those luxurious Sunday mornings, luxurious but lazy.  Outside it’s a grey, drizzly day, but because tomorrow is a holiday, I’m not feeling the pressure to get things done for the work week ahead. Two airy loaves of panettone, ready to go into the oven. Even so, I’ve gotten a l...
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Cold Weather Comes to Houston: Bad for Tender Plants, But So Good for Blue Fleece Pants and Brand New Sheets

trip t. posted an article on - Jan 11, 2011, 10:29 pm
So there’s always someone who goes out at 9:15 in 33-degree weather in their blue fleece pants to take a photo of covered-up tomato plants.  And that’s the back end of a little dog, there, on the right. It’s cold other places, I know, but when the thermometer dips down below 30°F., it’s d...
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A Christmas Road Trip, Digging Up History, and a Garden for the New Year

trip t. posted an article on - Jan 5, 2011, 12:34 am
It’s a little late to say it, I suppose, but “Happy New Year” to anyone who slips and falls upon this page.  This is the first post of the new year, as other interests, including just lying around, have gotten in the way of writing. I haven’t made any New Year’s resolutions, but on Jan...
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"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Is No More; President Signs Repeal into Law, Today, December 22, 2010

trip t. posted an article on - Dec 22, 2010, 11:24 am
President Obama signs law repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" on December 22, 2010 “It’s a great day,” stated the President, and, indeed it is a great day.  I got up at Annie’s regular going-out time, and even though I have the day off, I did not head back for the coziness of the bed.  I f...
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Incremental Equality, But More Than Just Being Legal; And–Rachel Maddow Interviews "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Victims

trip t. posted an article on - Dec 21, 2010, 2:25 pm
Some events are so staggering that they leave an indelible image in our minds of where we were and what we were doing when we first heard the news. I remember Kennedy’s death, the Challenger disaster, and 9/11 that way. It seems that it’s the disastrous events that stay embedded in our brains mo...
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U.S. Senate Votes To Eliminate "Don't Ask, Don't Tell

trip t. posted an article on - Dec 18, 2010, 3:50 pm
Announcing the vote count of the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" in the U.S. Senate. Today, December 18th, 2010, at 2:30 PM (CST), the U.S. Senate approved the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”, the 17-year-old law which denied openly gay military members from serving.  The final vote in...
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