Author Topic: Do You Work In DC?  (Read 10290 times)


MrsSmitty

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #1 on: December 23, 2014, 10:28:30 AM »
7 hours a day traveling + 8 hours working + 1 hour for lunch + 8 hours for sleep = 24 hours. How much time do you have with your precious family? This guy is an idiot.

slugline

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #2 on: December 23, 2014, 01:20:35 PM »
At his mileage rate, he's changing oil around every 2000 miles. For $70 I'm going to assume they're using synthetic. What a waste....

zephyr911

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #3 on: December 23, 2014, 01:47:08 PM »
7 hours a day traveling + 8 hours working + 1 hour for lunch + 8 hours for sleep = 24 hours. How much time do you have with your precious family? This guy is an idiot.
I'd rather kill myself. No joke. Open mouth, insert gun.

paddedhat

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #4 on: December 25, 2014, 10:39:29 AM »
I have mentioned this a few times on this forum, but it still amazes me. The Pocono Mountain region of PA. is viewed by demographers as an "exurb" or extreme suburb of NYC.  There are thousands ( at least 4K at the moment, IIRC) of commuters who regularly travel the same distance as the guy in the article. Typically they leave their home in a rural development in PA. and drive a few minutes, to half an hour, to a bus parking lot. They then have a 2 to 2-1/2 hr. ride to downtown Manhattan, then it's another bus, subway, or shoe leather trip to your place of employment. I recently moved from just such a development, where the commuter parade would start a bit after five AM, and the same folks would roll back into their driveways at 7:30 to 8PM. Fifteen hours a day, five days a week.  Typically 90-110 miles, each way, and six to eight hours daily in cars, buses and subways. 
I had a buddy who was a mechanic at the local Honda dealer. He had tons of super-commuter customers who would buy the cheapest new Civic available, then put 1000-1200 miles a week on it. Five or six years later, they would bring it in with 350-400K miles on it, and get a few hundred bucks for it, as a trade in. Having raised a family in the area, I have met many who have been doing these insane miles for decades, always with the "logic" that it's a better quality of life for them, and their family.

Megma

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #5 on: December 25, 2014, 09:03:11 PM »
When I worked in silver spring (suburb directly north of dc) I had a coworker who commuted from West Virginia...I thought he was insane but it's closer than Richmond!

TrulyStashin

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #6 on: December 30, 2014, 08:26:02 AM »
While I totally agree that doing this long-term is ridiculous and life-destroying, I might very well be doing it for the short term. 

I live in Chesterfield County, south of Richmond, and I'm job hunting.  I'm a lawyer with a niche specialty that is valuable in the DC market but not so much in Richmond.   I'm a single mom.  My son is 17.  He's graduating from HS in June and he turns 18 in July.  He's very squared away and responsible.  He'll be living at home next year and attending community college before transferring.

If a job comes through for me in DC before he turns 18, I'll take it and commute until after he is 18.   Once he's 18, I'll relocate.   Until then, I may be stuck doing this commute.  Yes, I'm dreading it.  But the short term pain will be worth it -- my salary will go up by 75% and my long-term professional prospects will be significantly improved by orders of magnitude.

yorkville

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #7 on: January 03, 2015, 05:20:53 PM »
How about crash on friend's couch, air bnb, hostel or just sleep in office few nights a week? That would make the commute tolerable.

BlueHouse

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #8 on: January 04, 2015, 06:35:43 AM »
While I totally agree that doing this long-term is ridiculous and life-destroying, I might very well be doing it for the short term. 

I live in Chesterfield County, south of Richmond, and I'm job hunting.  I'm a lawyer with a niche specialty that is valuable in the DC market but not so much in Richmond.   I'm a single mom.  My son is 17.  He's graduating from HS in June and he turns 18 in July.  He's very squared away and responsible.  He'll be living at home next year and attending community college before transferring.

If a job comes through for me in DC before he turns 18, I'll take it and commute until after he is 18.   Once he's 18, I'll relocate.   Until then, I may be stuck doing this commute.  Yes, I'm dreading it.  But the short term pain will be worth it -- my salary will go up by 75% and my long-term professional prospects will be significantly improved by orders of magnitude.
I think you've nailed it, TrulyStashin.  Sometimes it's worth it to suck it up for a while for the long term prospects -- every massive income increase I've ever had was preceded by a period of pain, which I equated with "paying my dues".  Well worth the long-term payoff.  I agree that there has to be an end date too.  Couldn't do it long term. 

TrulyStashin

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #9 on: January 05, 2015, 07:06:20 AM »
How about crash on friend's couch, air bnb, hostel or just sleep in office few nights a week? That would make the commute tolerable.

I would only do this in extreme circumstances.  I'm at the tail end of my day-to-day mothering responsibilities.  I feel quite strongly that I need to finish this 24 year stretch of my "career" with integrity.   Coming home every night to touch base with Son is part of that.

BlueHouse, that's a great comment about how every massive income increase you've ever had was preceded by pain.  Very helpful, thanks.

greenmimama

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #10 on: January 05, 2015, 08:13:49 AM »
I have mentioned this a few times on this forum, but it still amazes me. The Pocono Mountain region of PA. is viewed by demographers as an "exurb" or extreme suburb of NYC.  There are thousands ( at least 4K at the moment, IIRC) of commuters who regularly travel the same distance as the guy in the article. Typically they leave their home in a rural development in PA. and drive a few minutes, to half an hour, to a bus parking lot. They then have a 2 to 2-1/2 hr. ride to downtown Manhattan, then it's another bus, subway, or shoe leather trip to your place of employment. I recently moved from just such a development, where the commuter parade would start a bit after five AM, and the same folks would roll back into their driveways at 7:30 to 8PM. Fifteen hours a day, five days a week.  Typically 90-110 miles, each way, and six to eight hours daily in cars, buses and subways. 
I had a buddy who was a mechanic at the local Honda dealer. He had tons of super-commuter customers who would buy the cheapest new Civic available, then put 1000-1200 miles a week on it. Five or six years later, they would bring it in with 350-400K miles on it, and get a few hundred bucks for it, as a trade in. Having raised a family in the area, I have met many who have been doing these insane miles for decades, always with the "logic" that it's a better quality of life for them, and their family.

This and the original story is very sad, at least lots of them used a bus, but geesh!

El Gringo

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #11 on: January 05, 2015, 08:19:33 AM »
I occasionally hear about people commuting from West Virginia or Pennsylvania to DC. My mind is blown at that idea.

At my old job, my boss commuted from north of Baltimore to downtown DC. He drove to the light rail station near his town, took the light rail to Penn Station in Baltimore, then the MARC train to Union Station in DC, and then the metro work. At least he did it mostly on transit so that he could work, sleep, read, etc.

ShoulderThingThatGoesUp

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #12 on: January 05, 2015, 08:45:59 AM »
I have mentioned this a few times on this forum, but it still amazes me. The Pocono Mountain region of PA. is viewed by demographers as an "exurb" or extreme suburb of NYC.  There are thousands ( at least 4K at the moment, IIRC) of commuters who regularly travel the same distance as the guy in the article. Typically they leave their home in a rural development in PA. and drive a few minutes, to half an hour, to a bus parking lot. They then have a 2 to 2-1/2 hr. ride to downtown Manhattan, then it's another bus, subway, or shoe leather trip to your place of employment. I recently moved from just such a development, where the commuter parade would start a bit after five AM, and the same folks would roll back into their driveways at 7:30 to 8PM. Fifteen hours a day, five days a week.  Typically 90-110 miles, each way, and six to eight hours daily in cars, buses and subways. 
I had a buddy who was a mechanic at the local Honda dealer. He had tons of super-commuter customers who would buy the cheapest new Civic available, then put 1000-1200 miles a week on it. Five or six years later, they would bring it in with 350-400K miles on it, and get a few hundred bucks for it, as a trade in. Having raised a family in the area, I have met many who have been doing these insane miles for decades, always with the "logic" that it's a better quality of life for them, and their family.

People do this from the Lehigh Valley, too. They're building a new intermodal terminal in Easton because of them.

Many work 4/10s and have internet on the bus so they can work during that time, at least. Still, though - wow.

SpicyMcHaggus

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #13 on: January 05, 2015, 12:23:23 PM »
At 7 hours, I would be getting a studio apt or sleeping in the office, working 4x10s or 3x14s and heading home on weekends.
Dream job or not, 7 hours is too far.

Imustacheyouaquestion

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #14 on: January 05, 2015, 02:59:19 PM »
He's a family man....which is why he voluntarily spends 7 hours a day not hanging out with his family?

SpicyMcHaggus

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #15 on: January 06, 2015, 08:52:39 AM »
He's a family man....which is why he voluntarily spends 7 hours a day not hanging out with his family?
Because "dream job" working for the DOJ.
Seriously.

Imustacheyouaquestion

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #16 on: January 06, 2015, 08:16:23 PM »
I have coworkers who commute from Baltimore and West Virginia to downtown DC. Others split the week between working in DC and teleworking from their homes in NYC and Georgia. Seems crazy to me.

BlueHouse

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #17 on: January 11, 2015, 07:24:40 PM »
I have coworkers who commute from Baltimore and West Virginia to downtown DC. Others split the week between working in DC and teleworking from their homes in NYC and Georgia. Seems crazy to me.
When I was commuting from Northern VA to DC, a few times I had to teach a class up in Baltimore.  Oh how I dreaded the thought of it until I realized I could get there faster than I could get to downtown DC.  Mileage was higher, but it only took 40 minutes of commute time.  Still...40 minutes is still too much to do forever.  But that's not a bad commute for this area.

franklin w. dixon

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #18 on: January 12, 2015, 06:10:26 PM »
My dad basically did this. He had a 94-mile one-way commute for years and cleverly beat traffic by leaving at 5:00 AM and then staying at work until 6:30pm, which got him home just past eight in time to hastily drink 6 Buds Light and then retire to slumber. It will surprise no one to learn that turns out he didn't like his family at all which in retrospect explains why he went to such extremes to avoid seeing us ever.
« Last Edit: January 12, 2015, 06:13:26 PM by franklin w. dixon »

eyePod

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #19 on: January 13, 2015, 06:18:09 AM »
I had co-workers that drove (they carpooled) from Some part of NJ to west of Philly. 2 hour commute minimum. EVERY DAY. They were contractors and made good money, but CMON. Then it was always a hassle when they wanted to get home to see their sons baseball games. They'd have to leave 3 hours early. So then they'd have to come in 3 hours early. Ridiculous.

And of course, the best part.

Commuted in an extended cab truck. Not a pickup either. Wawa coffees every day plus breakfast too. JESUS.

rocksinmyhead

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #20 on: January 13, 2015, 07:00:56 AM »
I live one mile from my office. just thinking about the concept of any commute over an hour exhausts me.

El Gringo

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #21 on: January 14, 2015, 09:50:42 AM »
In defense of many people who live in DC proper, it is second only to Boston in the percentage of people who walk and bike to work: http://wamu.org/news/14/05/08/dc_residents_second_among_large_cities_for_riding_walking_to_work.

Now obviously once you take the greater DC region into account, that number rapidly changes.
« Last Edit: January 14, 2015, 02:22:29 PM by El Gringo »

Toffeemama

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #22 on: January 14, 2015, 01:43:22 PM »
We live in NoVA, and my husband's hour+ long commute is way too much for us!  He's switching careers entirely so we can live and work in Richmond.

One Noisy Cat

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #23 on: January 14, 2015, 07:55:32 PM »
    30 years ago when I was in the U.S. Coast Guard, I knew some people who were "homesteaders". The New York City area had so many commands (11 on Governor's Island in New York harbor alone), and so few people who wanted to be stationed there, you could easily do 20 years (pension) in the area. The E-6 who I replaced owned a house 74 miles away and commuted every day in a full size car, a Plymouth Fury. There were no barracks on base so staying overnight wasn't really an option. His kids got to go to the same schools, his wife got to stay with the same company and he got to fill his gas tank every other day. When he left, he got a station 25 miles closer to home (initially they wanted to send him to Hokkaido, Japan but as I said, it was easy to get a billet in NYC). So he got to fill his gas tank every third day instead.

TrulyStashin

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #24 on: January 15, 2015, 09:09:43 AM »
We live in NoVA, and my husband's hour+ long commute is way too much for us!  He's switching careers entirely so we can live and work in Richmond.

Richmond is wonderful!!  Drop me a line when you get down here.  There are a bunch of Mustachians here and you're welcome to join us.

greaper007

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #25 on: January 15, 2015, 09:19:06 AM »
For years crewmembers in the airline industry have lived in crashpads.    There's a variety of setups, but essentially a lot of people come together to live in a house or apartment that's close to the airport.    I was based in Dulles and lived in a house with about 30 other people for $100 a month.    It wasn't a bad setup, since people generally just came in before their trips, or stayed the night to commute home the next day.   It was sort of like going back to college.   There were a lot of people sitting around and most nights involved grilling something and having a couple of drinks.

The nature of the airline industry is that all 30 people weren't there the entire time.   Generally there were about 7 people that lived there full time, and the rest filtered in once or twice a week.     

I'm surprised people in other industries don't have the same kind of setup.   Even if you just slept over a couple nights a week it would help with the fatigue of commuting that far.

chicagomeg

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #26 on: January 15, 2015, 09:32:10 AM »
I had a friend who did this for 6 months when she first got a job in DC, but she commuted on the Amtrak, which I think was quite expensive!

Meanwhile, I had to drive an hour each way for a meeting with my internship supervisor (I'll be working mostly remotely & see him maybe once a month) and by the end of it I was the crabbiest person ever! I just don't know how people do it, and I really wonder if people who have never had a short commute realize how much it affects them. I think the emphasis on short commutes was the first thing that resonated with me on MMM. Even my parents 25 minute drive on rural highway roads everyday for 40 years would be enough to make me nuts.

karanasios06

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #27 on: January 15, 2015, 11:33:45 AM »
I moved from Alexandria, VA, to Henderson, NV last June and overall, really do not miss the gigantic mess that is NoVA/DC. 

Things I do miss: Metro, Smithsonian, biking into Georgetown on weekend mornings, various embassy galas, Eastern Market, Cherry Blossoms, buying wicked good blue crab direct from the fishermen out on MD route 2, pretending I'm in a spy movie.

Things I don't miss: traffic, rent gouging, paying too much for groceries, drivers who try to hit cyclists, angry people, the bizarre network of roads in Northern Virginia, that stretch of I-95 from Springfield to Quantico, did I mention traffic?

My in-laws live in Richmond and neither my wife or myself ever found a time where there wasn't southbound congestion from Springfield to Quantico.  We tried Thursdays after morning rush, Thursday mid-night, Friday 4am, Friday noon, Friday 10pm (given we were attempting a weekend visit).  I eventually said if we aren't taking Amtrak to Staples Mill or downtown Richmond, I'm not going, but Amtrak sold out weeks in advance.

Even though I took my job with me out to NV (hooray for computers!) I'd never consider moving back to the DC area.  I figure even if I lost my current job, I'd stay put out here and find something else, even though much of what I currently do is DC dependent.  There's simply too much to trade off in the way of low humidity, endless trails and mountains to play on and in, and the stark beauty of the desert southwest.  In true MMM fashion, I'll keep socking away the cash so that someday soon, the job will be an option and not a necessity.

rocksinmyhead

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #28 on: January 15, 2015, 01:43:15 PM »
There's simply too much to trade off in the way of low humidity, endless trails and mountains to play on and in, and the stark beauty of the desert southwest.  In true MMM fashion, I'll keep socking away the cash so that someday soon, the job will be an option and not a necessity.

That is really a neat part of the country. I did field camp and a couple geology mapping trips out there in undergrad, just south of Valley of Fire. Seriously awesome hiking!!

Toffeemama

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #29 on: January 15, 2015, 01:47:12 PM »
We live in NoVA, and my husband's hour+ long commute is way too much for us!  He's switching careers entirely so we can live and work in Richmond.

Richmond is wonderful!!  Drop me a line when you get down here.  There are a bunch of Mustachians here and you're welcome to join us.

That sounds awesome; I can't wait to move down there!  The hardest part for now is for my husband to find his new dream job as a butcher.

TrulyStashin

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #30 on: January 18, 2015, 02:12:36 PM »
We live in NoVA, and my husband's hour+ long commute is way too much for us!  He's switching careers entirely so we can live and work in Richmond.

Richmond is wonderful!!  Drop me a line when you get down here.  There are a bunch of Mustachians here and you're welcome to join us.

That sounds awesome; I can't wait to move down there!  The hardest part for now is for my husband to find his new dream job as a butcher.

Oh wow.  Small world.  In 2011, one of my good friends decided to take a leap of faith and he started his own specialty meat/ seafood/ gourmet food shop called TBonz and Tuna in Tappahannock, VA (east of RVA by about an hour).  He cuts all his own meats.  The first year or two were tough, but he has stuck it out and he's doing well at this point.   One thing that helps him is that Tappahannock doesn't have much to choose from, other than the Food Lion, and it has a booming summer tourist business.

In RVA, there are some specialty food stores but they have tough competition from Whole Foods and Trader Joes.  With Wegmans coming (2 locations, opening in 2015), the competition will get even tougher. 

Does your DH want to work for Wegmans or Whole Foods (for example) or does he want to work in a small shop?

Toffeemama

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #31 on: January 19, 2015, 10:49:23 AM »
We live in NoVA, and my husband's hour+ long commute is way too much for us!  He's switching careers entirely so we can live and work in Richmond.

Richmond is wonderful!!  Drop me a line when you get down here.  There are a bunch of Mustachians here and you're welcome to join us.

That sounds awesome; I can't wait to move down there!  The hardest part for now is for my husband to find his new dream job as a butcher.

Oh wow.  Small world.  In 2011, one of my good friends decided to take a leap of faith and he started his own specialty meat/ seafood/ gourmet food shop called TBonz and Tuna in Tappahannock, VA (east of RVA by about an hour).  He cuts all his own meats.  The first year or two were tough, but he has stuck it out and he's doing well at this point.   One thing that helps him is that Tappahannock doesn't have much to choose from, other than the Food Lion, and it has a booming summer tourist business.

In RVA, there are some specialty food stores but they have tough competition from Whole Foods and Trader Joes.  With Wegmans coming (2 locations, opening in 2015), the competition will get even tougher. 

Does your DH want to work for Wegmans or Whole Foods (for example) or does he want to work in a small shop?

We've talked about owning a shop, but decided that we weren't into that much of a time commitment.  I believe that Wegmans has a pretty high average wage for meat cutters in this state, so that could work.  Apparently, Costco is the best for wages, but we wouldn't be able to afford a house within biking distance.  How can I find out where the Wegmans locations are coming in?  Do you think he would be able to apply for a job early?

TrulyStashin

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Re: Do You Work In DC?
« Reply #32 on: January 19, 2015, 02:33:22 PM »
We live in NoVA, and my husband's hour+ long commute is way too much for us!  He's switching careers entirely so we can live and work in Richmond.

Richmond is wonderful!!  Drop me a line when you get down here.  There are a bunch of Mustachians here and you're welcome to join us.

That sounds awesome; I can't wait to move down there!  The hardest part for now is for my husband to find his new dream job as a butcher.

Oh wow.  Small world.  In 2011, one of my good friends decided to take a leap of faith and he started his own specialty meat/ seafood/ gourmet food shop called TBonz and Tuna in Tappahannock, VA (east of RVA by about an hour).  He cuts all his own meats.  The first year or two were tough, but he has stuck it out and he's doing well at this point.   One thing that helps him is that Tappahannock doesn't have much to choose from, other than the Food Lion, and it has a booming summer tourist business.

In RVA, there are some specialty food stores but they have tough competition from Whole Foods and Trader Joes.  With Wegmans coming (2 locations, opening in 2015), the competition will get even tougher. 

Does your DH want to work for Wegmans or Whole Foods (for example) or does he want to work in a small shop?

We've talked about owning a shop, but decided that we weren't into that much of a time commitment.  I believe that Wegmans has a pretty high average wage for meat cutters in this state, so that could work.  Apparently, Costco is the best for wages, but we wouldn't be able to afford a house within biking distance.  How can I find out where the Wegmans locations are coming in?  Do you think he would be able to apply for a job early?

Here are a few news stories on the Wegmans.  They're breaking ground on the Short Pump store right now.  Short Pump is NOT a mustachian-friendly place to live at all.  PM me if you want to know more about RVA and its neighborhoods. I've lived here in this area since 1998.  Even if you don't live in Short Pump, you can easily get from one side of town to the other in about 30 minutes.

http://rvanews.com/features/wegmans-coming-to-the-richmond-area/111913

http://www.richmond.com/business/article_5b75e97d-3ca4-5c41-b5cd-48bff4ea8b04.html