Legends 43: Yule Regret It

The most wonderful time of the year has a few secrets. According to legend, there are a few holiday characters that often get ignored—and that could be dangerous. Narrated and produced by Aaron Mahnke, with writing by Alex Robinson, and research by Jamie Vargas. ————————— Lore Resources: Episode Music: lorepodcast.com/music http://www.lorepodcast.com/music Episode Sources: lorepodcast.com/sources http://www.lorepodcast.com/sources All the shows from Grim & Mild: www.grimandmild.com http://www.grimandmild.com ————————— Sponsors: Quince: Premium European clothing and accessories for 50% to 80% less than similar brands, at Quince.com/LORE http://www.quince.com/lore for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. SimpliSafe: Secure your home with 24/7 professional monitoring. Sign up today at SimpliSafe.com/Lore http://simplisafe.com/lore to get 20% off any new SimpliSafe system with Fast Protect Monitoring. ©2024 Aaron Mahnke. All rights reserved.

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• 0:58Aaron Mahnke?

  Welcome to Lore Legends, a subset of lore episodes that explore the strange tales we whisper in the dark, even if they can't always be proven by the history books. So if you're ready, let's begin.

• 1:24Aaron Mahnke?

  On Christmas Day of 1929, Charlie killed his entire family. Charlie Lawson had been married to his wife Fanny for 18 years, and the two had made a beautiful family together. By 1929, they had seven children, ranging from 16 all the way down to four months old. Together, they worked a tobacco farm. And as far as we know, they were happy with their lots in life. But something must have snapped inside of Charlie, because on December 25th, he killed them. He started by shooting his 12-year-old daughter Carrie and 7-year-old daughter Maybel as they were leaving to visit their aunt. After that, he went to the house gunning down his wife and his remaining children. And then, he took his own life.

• 2:10Aaron Mahnke?

  The only survivor was the oldest son, Arthur, who had been out rabbit hunting during the entire ordeal. By the time he returned, it had already been turned into one of the most gory crime scenes that North Carolina had ever seen. And among the many reports that followed, they say investigators found a Christmas poem tucked next to the victims, covered in their blood. Fifteen hundred people attended the funeral, where baby Mary Lou was buried in her mother's arms. Afterwards, newspapers claimed that the surviving son, Arthur, couldn't eat and couldn't sleep. His entire life had been ruined over the course of a single day by a monster.

• 2:50Aaron Mahnke?

  It seems that even the most wonderful time of the year can give way to monsters. After all, it's not a magical date on the calendar that prevents evil from stepping inside. Big or small, minor or tragic, every holiday celebration is vulnerable to some sort of monster. For the Lawson family, that monster was Charlie. Thankfully, though, when it comes to Christmas, human monsters are rare, something we can all be grateful for. But folklore tells us that there are plenty of other monsters to be afraid of, and Christmas is their favorite holiday of all. I'm Aaron Mahnke, and this is Lore Legends.

• 3:46Aaron Mahnke?

  For many of us, the time between Christmas and January is just an exhaustive blur. The excitement of the holiday is over, and everything feels cold and gray. It's sort of a purgatory, if purgatory can involve Christmas dinner leftovers and a mountain of cardboard boxes to recycle. Still, there's something undeniably dark about that period. Things just feel off. Well, it turns out that there may be a creature to blame for that, and it's called the kalikanteri. This Christmas creature comes from southeastern Europe and has long been a part of the folklore from Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria, Serbia, Albania, Bosnia, and Cyprus. In Greek, kalikanteri means "beautiful centaur",

• 4:28Aaron Mahnke?

  while the Turkish roots for the name can be translated to mean "bloodsucker", two very different words, I know, and neither are very accurate. These creatures live in the bottomless abyss of the underworld. They have long tails, and their twisted bodies are covered in black hair. A hybrid of different animal parts, many say that they have boar tusks, horse legs, elongated ears, goat feet, and monkey arms. And of course, their eyes glow a bright blood red. But their overall appearance varies depending on who is telling the story. In some tales, they're large, but most versions claim that they're actually quite small. Some regions in Greece say that they have long tongues that hang out of their mouths and drag behind them.

• 5:13Aaron Mahnke?

  Others say that they're mostly blind, and that they hobble around with a limp. In Albania, they're believed to carry chains and torment people with them. And strangely enough, these chain-wielding versions are also believed to have very bad breath. In Serbia, they are short, fat creatures that jump on the backs of their victims and ride them like horses. And in Bulgaria, they can shape-shift into just about any barnyard creature, be it goat, sheep, calf, dog, or even another human. In the most popular version of the folklore, it's said that for most of the year, the kalikanteri are stuck in the underworld, chopping away at the world tree. The world tree, by the way, was believed to have supported the earth, and without its branches, the planet would fall into the abyss,

• 5:58Aaron Mahnke?

  plunging humans into a world of darkness and violence. And for some reason, these creatures decided that their life mission was to make sure that that happened. Once a year, though, they were able to make it to the surface. According to Greek mythology, the barrier between our world and the underworld grows thin during the winter solstice. And so, between Christmas and January 6th, the kalikanteri tear through the veil to wreak havoc on the world. Their purpose: to disrupt the joy of the season. Once they're among us, they only come out at night. But despite that limited timeframe, they're still good at making things chaotic. They destroy people's homes and furniture, hide personal belongings, frighten away livestock,

• 6:41Aaron Mahnke?

  cause food to spoil, and play practical jokes. And if you're a child of the 80s and you're picturing gremlins in your mind, I am right there with you. These creatures, by the way, have even been known to kidnap people. Usually, they kidnap children. Those who were born on Christmas Day are particularly at risk of being spirited away. But they've also been known to snatch grown adults off the streets and force them to dance until they pass out, or even mimic the voice of a loved one to lure unsuspecting people out into the cold. Lost and confused, their victims often die frozen in the cold winter night before they can find their way back home. Of course, no one really wants these things to hang about, so people have developed methods to keep them away.

• 7:26Aaron Mahnke?

  And they work. Well, sort of. Some people burn a stinky old shoe in the fireplace to repel the creatures, while others choose to burn a gigantic log throughout the 12 days of Christmas in the hopes that the flames will keep the Calichanteri from sneaking down the chimney. Some people scatter ashes around their house every day, and others hang a black cross, or a pig's jawbone, or a holly branch to ward off the evil creatures. Others go in the exact opposite direction, leaving sweet pastries on their rooftops in the hopes that the Calichanteri will be satisfied and leave the humans inside alone. The most interesting lore about these creatures, though, is that some people can turn into one.

• 8:09Aaron Mahnke?

  According to legend, babies born during the 12 days of Christmas are at risk of transforming into Calichanteri once they reach adulthood. Another version of the legend says that any baby born on a Saturday, any Saturday across the year, could become one as well. The only way to prevent this terrible fate is to swaddle the baby in garlic and straw and to use a flame to singe their toenails. Honestly, it's like a twisted Christmas werewolf story. Some people were just destined to transform into evil monsters, and their torment would last long beyond the holiday season. Thankfully, babies who have grown up to sprout Boris tusks and terrorize their neighbors are few and far between.

• 8:51Aaron Mahnke?

  Your children probably aren't at risk of becoming Calicanteri, especially if you're willing to have them smell like garlic for a little bit. But if you're feeling particularly down this December and nothing seems to go right, consider lighting a fire and hanging a talisman on your door. The supernatural assault on your Christmas cheer won't last forever. It will disappear... in the new year.

• 9:26Aaron Mahnke?

  Most of us know about Krampus, otherwise known as Santa's evil shadow. But few Americans have ever heard of Nekt Ruprecht. The Germans are excellent at creating Santa Claus-adjacent figures, and Nekt Ruprecht is no different. Except unlike the more famous Krampus, this one isn't exactly an explicitly evil version of Father Christmas. Instead, he's a bit more complicated than that. You see, he's considered Santa's sidekick, for lack of a better term, a sort of necessary foil to Father Christmas's goodwill. The bad cop to Santa's good cop, if you will. According to the German legend, Nekt Ruprecht accompanies Saint Nicholas while going door to door. Santa gives candy to the good boys and girls,

• 10:10Aaron Mahnke?

  and Nekt Ruprecht handles the naughty ones. At each house, he consults a giant book that gives a full record of every misdeed children committed that year. If he finds that a child of the current household is included in that book, he asks them to recite a prayer to atone for their past sins. If the kid can say the prayers, then all is well. They get fruits and sweets as a reward, and Saint Nicholas and Nekt Ruprecht go on their merry way. But the trouble comes when a child can't properly recite their prayers. Whenever that's the case, Nekt Ruprecht takes a bag stuffed with ashes and beats the child with it. Then he gives the naughty kid a lump of coal or a stick, and gives their parents a switch so that they can beat their disobedient child even more. Sometimes...

• 10:54Aaron Mahnke?

  The child is so beyond redemption that Necht Ruprecht doesn't even bother with the beatings at all. He just scoops the child up into a sack and kidnaps them. Now typically, Necht Ruprecht is depicted as either a dark foreboding figure or as a wild man with a long beard. He's dressed in a drab brown or black robe with a pointed hood, a tradition which still exists in Christmas hat designs today. Sometimes he's depicted wearing fur, and usually he has a long thick stick in one hand, which he uses to corral children into his sack of ashes. Today, his image has softened a bit. When he goes door to door, he doesn't often beat the children or kidnap them anymore. He usually just looms behind Santa and warns kids not

• 11:38Aaron Mahnke?

  to misbehave. And here in the 21st century, he is celebrated alongside Saint Nicholas on December 6th, which is when the two are believed to go house to house, leaving candy and coal in children's shoes. Of course, there are a multitude of descriptions for Necht Ruprecht based on the region. In Austria, particularly around Salzburg, he is less of a main character and more of a true helper to Saint Nicholas, and he doesn't take direct action against the naughty kids. In some areas of Germany, he doesn't travel with Father Christmas at all, and visits homes on his own. In other regions, they say he actually travels with a whole host of his own helpers, creatures like fairies or men dressed as old women. But his most

• 12:19Aaron Mahnke?

  commonly accepted role is that of Saint Nicholas's intimidating partner. There are a lot of different opinions on how he became a staple in German Christmas tradition. He's believed to have first appeared in medieval times, but some say his roots can be traced back to German paganism, where it's possible that he was some kind of protective household spirit that showed up around the winter solstice. While Krampus was originally linked to Satan and witchcraft, Necht Ruprecht's origins were slightly more positive, despite the fact that the name "Ruprecht" can be translated to mean "devil." It was believed that while children should be rewarded for their goodness, it was equally as important to punish them for their misbehaviors. Originally, the Church believed that this task fell to the saints,

• 13:04Aaron Mahnke?

  who traveled with Saint Nicholas to discipline the tiny sinners. But eventually, local folklore took over, and the Germans replaced the saints with Neck Ruprecht. And it made sense. If punishing children was done for their own good, then a protective spirit would be the right guy for the job. Even though scholars are pretty sure that he first popped up in the medieval era, the first surviving written record of his existence only dates back to the 17th century. And he was popularized by the Brothers Grimm, who depicted him as a sort of elf who could be both kind and malevolent. And just as there are different versions of Neck Ruprecht's role at Christmas time, the folklore around his origins is equally as varied. Some stories claim that he was an abandoned child

• 13:48Aaron Mahnke?

  who Saint Nicholas found and raised himself. Others say that he has always existed as some kind of demon or wild man, and for some reason, he has decided to only show himself to the masses in December. But my personal favorite story, taking on the mantle of Neck Ruprecht, is not a part of his nature at all. Instead, it was used as a punishment. According to the legend, Saint Nicholas went into an inn only to discover a heinous crime when he walked inside. The innkeeper, you see, had murdered three children and was trying to stuff their bodies into a barrel. Enraged, Saint Nicholas brought the boys back to life. And then, turning to the innkeeper, he bound the evil man to his side, forcing him to toil away with him for all eternity.

• 14:32Aaron Mahnke?

  I think it's safe to say that most children don't want to see a serial killer coming to beat them up. If I were a child in Germany, I would certainly mind my manners in anticipation of Neck Ruprecht's visit. And that's the entire point of his character. He wasn't truly created to punish children. He was created to scare them into good behavior. He's a Yuletide boogeyman, coming to get the kids if they slack off on their chores or talk back to their parents. So, if you have a little one, consider telling them the story of Neck Ruprecht this holiday season. It just may traumatize them into giving you a quiet Christmas.

• 15:27Aaron Mahnke?

  If you're a kid, the most boring gift in the world is clothing. Very few eight-year-olds have ever dreamed of running downstairs on Christmas morning just to unwrap a package of socks. But in one country, an entire nation's worth of children have been told that they should be just as excited about a new shirt as they are for a new toy, because the only other option is death. Now, that might sound like a dramatic reaction to a child's ungratefulness, but the parents aren't the ones who will be doing the killing. You see, in Iceland, if children are good, then they'll get a new sweater for Christmas. But if they're not, then they'll be eaten by a cat. Now, it may sound ridiculous, but this creature is no cuddly kitten.

• 16:07Aaron Mahnke?

  Known as the Yola Katarin, or the Yule Cat, the monstrous cat is big enough to eat a full-grown man, and some stories even claim that it's taller than a multi-story house. The beast prowls through the cold Icelandic nights, going from home to home to find its Christmas dinner. Tragically, that dinner almost certainly doesn't involve figgy pudding. The Yule Cat only eats children, and more specifically, it only eats children who don't receive any new clothes for Christmas. Now, every year, parents all over Iceland promise to get their kids new clothes if they're good. And it seems to work, too. Anything from a turtleneck to a pair of novelty fuzzy socks protects the country's youth from the Yule Cat.

• 16:51Aaron Mahnke?

  But if a parent decides that their problem child just isn't worth keeping around anymore, well, no new clothes, and no more Christmases for little Johnny. The trouble with this tradition is that, unlike most other malicious Christmas monsters, kids can't do anything to control the final outcome. In fact, Iceland may be the only place in the world where you'll find kids begging their parents for socks for Christmas. But if their parents forget to put knitwear under the tree, then their child is out of luck, no matter if they were naughty or nice that year. As far as holiday traditions go, this one is a bit dark. And if you're wondering how it all came about, well, you're not the only one. Folkloreists have debated the origins of this bloodthirsty Christmas critter for a long time.

• 17:35Aaron Mahnke?

  The Yule Cat as a monster first popped up in the 19th century, which, as far as folklore goes, is fairly recent. But some believe that the cat's history stretches back further than that. Some have suggested that the Yule Cat is actually connected to the much older Celtic ketchi, which is an Irish fairy that often took the form of a large cat. They speculate that the Celts may have come to Iceland long before the Vikings ever did, and they might have brought the ketchi with them. Others have suggested that it was actually connected to the Scandinavian folklore of the Christmas goat, which was an allegorical stand-in for the devil during holiday festivals. Somehow, this bloodthirsty cat evolved from some earlier legend,

• 18:15Aaron Mahnke?

  and in 1932, a poem about the Yule Cat cemented its role as a staple in Icelandic holiday lore. The poem made the cat so popular that today, it's even featured on decorations and Christmas cards. The one thing that the poem didn't mention, though, was who the Yule Cat hangs out with. But people have come up with their own ideas for that. You see, somehow, everyone started associating the Yule Cat with the monster Griila. Griila is a witchy troll-like woman, who has also become a part of Icelandic Christmas tradition. In some stories, she has three heads. She's best known for kidnapping children and boiling them in her cauldron. And of course, she has a fearsome pet to help her out in her evil schemes.

• 18:59Aaron Mahnke?

  You guessed it, the Yule Cat. Now, as far as we know, there's no original historical record that actually connects the two monsters. These Christmas beasts just seem to have bonded over a shared love of eating kids, and it's been a match in heaven—or hell—ever since. Based on the local folklore, I would say that Christmas is not the most wonderful time of the year for Iceland's children. Their best bet to survive the holiday season is just to pray that no monsters come knocking. And of course, that their parents don't forget to buy them a new sweater.

• 19:49Aaron Mahnke?

  Most of us don't think of monsters as Christmas characters. We look at the holidays with rose-colored glasses and a bit of delight. Between the cookies, the presents, the music, and the fun parties, there really isn't any room for shadows, is there? And yet, folklore tells us something very different. Yes, it gives us a lot of delightful stories to hang our family traditions on, but it also seems to hold a number of creatures that deserve a bit of fear. And the Yule Cat seems to be a prime example of that. I get it, though. The idea of keeping a monster at bay with nothing but a pair of socks is a silly idea. And maybe that's all the story started out as, just a funny little moment to keep everyone's spirits bright through the winter solstice.

• 20:34Aaron Mahnke?

  But when you dig a little deeper, you'll see that there's more to it than that. When the Yule Cat was first invented, families couldn't just pop down to their local mall for a sweater. If they wanted it, they had to make it. And winter was the perfect time to do it. Spinning wool and knitting clothing was actually vital to survival during the winter months. In fact, for most families, that was their main occupation during the coldest times of the year. Day after day, they converted sheep's wool into garments that would keep their family warm. Because of that, for a child to get a new pair of socks at Christmas, that gift required long hours of concentration, and the entire family had to chip in. And that's where the story of the Yule Cat comes in.

• 21:17Aaron Mahnke?

  If children are told that they will be eaten for not getting clothes at Christmas, then they will do anything to make sure that they get clothes for Christmas. They'll help with the chores, spin wool alongside their family, and knit enough yarn to last through the entire winter. The Yule Cat was a reminder to Iceland's children that laziness was bad and work was good. But there's a darker side to the Yule Cat, where the realities of real life brought the folklore to life. You see, back then, the poorest families weren't able to provide this work and this gift that it created to their kids. Instead, the children received nothing, triggering, under the rules of folklore, the Yule Cat's hungry arrival.

• 22:01Aaron Mahnke?

  And in the bitter cold of the Christmas season, these poor, hungry, and often homeless children would be the first to die. Real life was brutal and harsh, especially in a climate like that, and those conditions often led to death. Death that made the stories true.

• 22:36Aaron Mahnke?

  If I'm honest, it's never been easy to give you all an episode of dark, tragic legends in the cheerful holiday season. It's a time with fewer shadows and a lot less to be afraid of. But every rule has a few exceptions, so I hope you enjoyed your tour through a few of the darker legends from Christmas past. If you learned something new today, consider it my gift to you. But not every Christmas creature is something to be afraid of. In fact, some of them want to help us, not harm us, at least most of the time. So I put together one last story to show you what I mean. Stick around through this brief sponsor break to hear all about it.

• 23:15Aaron Mahnke?

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• 24:00Aaron Mahnke?

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• 26:09Aaron Mahnke?

  Head to simplisafe.com/lore. That's simplisafe.com/lore. There's no safe like SimpliSafe. This episode was sponsored by BetterHelp. If you could permanently delete one thing from your brain, what would it be? Maybe it's an awkward interaction from years ago, irrational worry, or a minor annoyance that somehow takes up way too much mental space. And maybe just as important, why do you think this particular thing has stuck with you? Well, one way to explore all of that is through therapy, and that's where BetterHelp comes in. BetterHelp therapists are licensed, experienced professionals such as psychologists, marriage and family therapists, social workers, and counselors. They have at least three years and 1,000 hours of hands-on experience, and they have

• 26:53Aaron Mahnke?

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• 27:36Aaron Mahnke?

  That's betterh-e-l-p dot com slash lore.

• 27:53Aaron Mahnke?

  The winter had been unusually cold. As the farmer went about his tasks for the day, he realized that he had run out of hay to feed his animals. The ice along the ground was too thick for him to leave home, but he needed to feed his livestock. He wouldn't last long in the winter without them. Distracted, he found himself saying out loud, "What will I do? These animals need hay." He thought he might have heard a small voice respond, "I will help you." But no one was there. Certain that the stress was making him hear things, the farmer went back to his work and forgot about it. For the next few days, he was unable to feed his livestock, but rather than getting thinner and weaker, the animals only seemed to grow stronger.

• 28:35Aaron Mahnke?

  The farmer simply shrugged and went about his day, not willing to look a gift horse in the mouth, no pun intended. But, deep inside, he was still worried. They hadn't eaten for so long, and no matter how healthy they looked, they were running out of time. A couple of days later, the farmer got worried enough that he finally decided to brave the ice. Balancing on shaky legs, he slipped and slided down the road, heading for the nearest village. He hadn't gone far when he ran into a tiny man. The man asked where he was going, and the farmer told him that he was trying to buy hay for his livestock. The man told the farmer not to worry. He promised to help him. And so, relieved, the farmer flailed his way back home.

• 29:17Aaron Mahnke?

  The next night, the farmer looked out the window only to see that same small man, leading the farmer's cow across the ice. The animal was laden down with hay. The stranger had taken it to get the food that it needed. That's when the farmer realized that the man must have been helping the animals get hay all along. But, he wasn't a man at all. He was a tomta. The Swedish tomta is typically described as a small elderly man, standing roughly three feet tall. He looks a bit like a garden gnome, with a long white beard, a wrinkled face, and a bright red pointed hat. It's believed that the original inspiration for tomten dates back to pagan times. However, they only started showing up in the written record in the 14th century,

• 30:00Aaron Mahnke?

  when Saint Brigitte of Wajstena warned against what she called the "tomta gods," or pagan deities. But as long as you're a good person, there's nothing to fear from a tomta. They're simply domestic sprites who help take care of household chores and bring good luck to families who care for them. Tomten guard the home, alerting inhabitants to any danger and magically improving the harvest to keep the household fed throughout the winter months. They also take care of the livestock, feeding and cleaning them. Unlike most household spirits, Tomton don't work all year round. According to legend, they actually sleep through the spring and summer, and then awaken during the winter solstice. And because of their hibernation schedule,

• 30:43Aaron Mahnke?

  they are often associated with winter and Christmas. Tomton care for the home during the darkest and most dangerous months of the year, exactly when most households need a helping hand. So as soon as they wake up, they start cleaning the house and the stables, doing laundry, baking, and quietly helping out with other chores. No one ever sees them work. They do it swiftly and secretly, often operating at night once everyone else has gone to bed. Some even believe that they can shapeshift into household objects to avoid detection. And these silent helpers don't ask for much in return, but they do demand respect. They're proud creatures, and they want the families that they serve to not take them for granted. And they particularly get angry at those who leave a dirty home

• 31:28Aaron Mahnke?

  or mistreat their animals. A disrespected Tomta might play nasty pranks or break things, but if they're really offended, then things can escalate. And there are records of Tomton bringing about a ruined harvest or sickly livestock. But the worst punishments come, if you disrespect them, at Christmas. The one gift that Tomton ask for is a bowl of porridge on Christmas Eve. It has to be hot, and it has to be topped with a thick slab of butter. And if the butter isn't there, then the Tomta gets nasty. In one story, a servant girl decided to play a trick on the Tomta and hid his butter at the bottom of the bowl. When he saw that there was no butter, he flew into a rage. Storming into the barn, he slaughtered the family's best cow.

• 32:13Aaron Mahnke?

  After he cooled down a bit, he decided to eat the porridge anyway. And when he found the butter underneath the porridge, he felt so guilty that he went to the next-door neighbor's farm, stole their best cow, and took it back to his family to apologize. That's the best-case scenario. In another story, though, a farm girl decided to eat the Tomta's porridge herself. The Tomta's revenge was swift. He put her under a spell and forced her to dance until she dropped dead. The punishment might not actually fit the crime, but the Tomton are serious about their porridge. As long as you leave it out for them on Christmas Eve, you should be fine. Just don't forget that butter.

• 33:08Aaron Mahnke?

  This episode of Lore Legends was produced by me, Aaron Manke, with writing by Alex Robinson and research by Jamie Vargas. Don't like hearing the ads? I've got a solution for you. There is a paid version of Lore on Apple Podcasts and Patreon that is 100% ad-free. Plus, subscribers get weekly mini-episodes called Lore Bites. It's a bargain for all of that ad-free storytelling and a great way to support this show and the team behind it. For more information about those ad-free options, go to lorepodcast.com/support. Lore, of course, is much more than just a podcast. There's a book series available in bookstores and online, and two seasons of the television show on Amazon Prime. Information about all of that and more is available over at lorepodcast.com. And you can also follow

• 33:51Aaron Mahnke?

  this show on Threads, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube. Just search for Lore Podcast, all one word, and click that follow button. And when you do, say hi. I like it when people say hi. And as always, thanks for listening.

• 34:20Speaker 03

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• 34:52Speaker 04

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