journey of the light

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The Journey of Light, From the Stars to Your Eyes

This week, millions of people will turn their eyes to the skies in anticipation of the 2015 Perseid meteor shower . But what happens on less eventful nights, when we find ourselves gazing upward simply to admire the deep, dark, star-spangled sky? Far away from the glow of civilization, we humans can survey thousands of tiny pinpricks of light. But how? Where does that light come from? How does it make its way to us? And how do our brains sort all that incoming energy into such a profoundly breathtaking sight? Our story begins lightyears away, deep in the heart of a sun-like star, where gravity’s immense inward pressure keeps temperatures high and atoms disassembled. Free protons hurtle around the core, occasionally attaining the blistering energies necessary to overcome their electromagnetic repulsion, collide, and stick together in pairs of two.

So-called diprotons are unstable and tend to disband as quickly as they arise. And if it weren’t for the subatomic antics of the weak nuclear force, this would be the end of the line: no fusion, no starlight, no us. However, on very rare occasions, a process called beta decay transforms one proton in the pair into a neutron. This new partnership forms what is known as deuterium , or heavy hydrogen, and opens the door to further nuclear fusion reactions.

Indeed, once deuterium enters the mix, particle pileups happen far more frequently. A free proton slams into deuterium, creating helium-3. Additional impacts build upon one another to forge helium-4 and heavier elements like oxygen and carbon.

Such collisions do more than just build up more massive atoms; in fact, every impact listed above releases an enormous amount of energy in the form of gamma rays. These high-energy photons streak outward, providing thermonuclear pressure that counterbalances the star’s gravity. Tens or even hundreds of thousands of years later, battered, bruised, and energetically squelched from fighting their way through a sun-sized blizzard of other particles, they emerge from the star’s surface as visible, ultraviolet, and infrared light.

But this is only half the story. The light then has to stream across vast reaches of space in order to reach the Earth – a process that, provided the star of origin is in our own galaxy, can take anywhere from 4.2 years to many thousands of years! At least… from your perspective. Since photons are massless, they don’t experience any time at all! And even after eluding what, for any other massive entity in the Universe, would be downright interminable flight times, conditions still must align so that you can see even one twinkle of the light from a faraway star.

That is, it must be dark, and you must be looking up.

The incoming stream of photons then makes its way through your cornea and lens and onto your retina, a highly vascular layer of tissue that lines the back of the eye. There, each tiny packet of light impinges upon one of two types of photoreceptor cell: a rod, or a cone.

Most photons detected under the low-light conditions of stargazing will activate rod cells. These cells are so light-sensitive that, in dark enough conditions, they can be excited by a single photon! Rods cannot detect color, but are far more abundant than cones and are found all across the retina, including around the periphery.

The less numerous, more color-hungry cone cells are densely concentrated at the center of the retina, in a region called the fovea (this explains why dim stars that are visible in your side vision suddenly seem to disappear when you attempt to look at them straight-on). Despite their relative insensitivity, cone cells can be activated by very bright starlight, enabling you to perceive stars like Vega as blue and Betelgeuse as red.

But whether bright light or dim, every photon has the same endpoint once it reaches one of your eyes’ photoreceptors: a molecule of vitamin A, which is bound together with a specialized protein called an opsin . Vitamin A absorbs the light and triggers a signal cascade: ion channels open and charged particles rush across a membrane, generating an electrical impulse that travels up the optic nerve and into the brain. By the time this signal reaches your brain’s visual cortex, various neural pathways are already hard at work translating this complex biochemistry into what you once thought was a simple, intuitive, and poetic understanding of the heavens above…

The stars, they shine.

So the next time you go outside in the darker hours, take a moment to appreciate the great lengths it takes for just a single twinkle of light to travel from a series of nuclear reactions in the bustling center of a distant star, across the vastness of space and time, through your body’s electrochemical pathways, and into your conscious mind.

It gives every last one of those corny love songs new meaning, doesn’t it?

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5 Replies to “The Journey of Light, From the Stars to Your Eyes”

Fabulous presentation of this great phenomenon. And I am supposed to believe it all just happened by accident.

The reference to 16,000 years is presumably meant to be 160,000 years (unless, perhaps, the author is referring to naked eye stars, although the furthest naked eye star that I know of is around only 4000 light years distant.)

Thanks for the interesting article. While reading it, I’m enjoying the warmth of starlight that took 8 minutes to reach me from the photosphere that emitted it.

I’m sheltering from the portion that’s been re-radiated back into the atmosphere. 39°C today in my part of California. 😛

Well written, Vanessa! I appreciate it as a physician and as a physicist; you have summed it up well. Good job!

Comments are closed.

Explore an Open-World

Sky: Children of the Light is a peaceful, award-winning MMO from the creators of Journey. Explore a beautifully-animated kingdom across seven realms and create enriching memories with other players in this delightful puzzle-adventure game.

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Blossom Into Your True Glow

Journey Into The Light

Journey Into The Light (or "Journey" for short), formally known as Essence of the Gods, is a large exploration mod that not only expands the vanilla content added - but also adds 8 new dimensions, over one hundred mobs, strong weapons and armor, and more

HEY YOU! READ ME!

THIS MOD NEEDS Patchouli , Gekolib AND Curios IF PLAYING 1.20.4 NEOFORGE

If you have any questions, please visit our Discord server: Click Me

Experience an immersive RPG-style adventure mod that doesn't stray too far from Vanilla's roots.

Journey Into The Light (or "Journey" for short), formally known as Essence of the Gods, is a large exploration mod that not only expands the vanilla content added - but also adds 8 new dimensions, over one hundred mobs, strong weapons and armor, and much more.

We recommend to install JER (Just Enough Resources) to assist you along the way

Journey Into the Light, formally Essence of the Gods, was created by AllShamNoWow101(The_SlayerMC)

Development Team:

AllShamNoWow101(The_SlayerMC)

Dizzlepop12 - EX DEV

Artists / Modelers:

Dizzlepop12

The_SlayerMC

Blue Water Documentary (Sounds by ZeeCount)

Ex-contributors:

Time_Conqueror - assistant developer

DiamondWalker - assistant developer

Eternaldoom123 - assistant developer

Yes, you can use this mod in a modpack or review it, as long as you give credit where its due. No sane person would say no to that.

External resources

Featured versions, project members.

AllShamNoWow101

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Early Access Game

Get instant access and start playing; get involved with this game as it develops..

Note: This Early Access game is not complete and may or may not change further. If you are not excited to play this game in its current state, then you should wait to see if the game progresses further in development. Learn more

Why Early Access?

Approximately how long will this game be in early access, how is the full version planned to differ from the early access version.

• Enhance stability and the playing experience on PC and Steam Deck.
• Integrate Steam friends, achievements, and Remote Play support.
• Continue to enhance game graphics with HDR and VRR support.
• UI changes that make it easier to find the emote you want in the expression menu.
• Improve the onboarding process to welcome new players more effectively.
• Further develop Aviary Village as a social hub for events and activities.
• Introduce a new quest system to enrich interactions with the Spirits.
• Celebrate with in-game events and offer items that allow players to connect and express their creativity.

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

Will the game be priced differently during and after early access, how are you planning on involving the community in your development process, play sky: children of the light.

Report bugs and leave feedback for this game on the discussion boards

About This Game

System requirements.

• Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
• OS: Windows 10 64-bit, build 1903+ (10.0.18362)
• Processor: Intel i5-6400 or AMD FX 8310
• Memory: 8 GB RAM
• Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1030 or AMD Radeon RX 560
• Network: Broadband Internet connection
• Storage: 3 GB available space
• Additional Notes: Vulkan 1.2 Driver. GPU must have at least 2048 MB of VRAM.
• Processor: Intel i5-8400 or AMD Ryzen 5 1600
• Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 or AMD Radeon RX 580
• Additional Notes: Vulkan 1.3 Driver. GPU must have at least 2048 MB of VRAM.

2023 © thatgamecompany all rights reserved

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GAME FEATURES

Dev Update: New Season Availability, Design, Solving Power Creep?! Q&A

Behind the New Season Launch Schedule

To ensure a consistent experience for all players on a server, the new season will be available when the server has been active for at least 42 days. The earliest servers will gain access to the new season on May 10. For example, if your server was created on April 12, you can start playing the Song of Strife season on May 24. Keep in mind that the exact opening time may vary depending on your time zone. In order to make sure everyone knows when the season starts on their server, a countdown event banner will be available in-game. The countdown will start 14 days before the season starts, adjusted based on when each server was opened. Typically, a season runs for 4 months and ends simultaneously for all servers running it, followed by a synchronized transition into the next season.

Unlocking seasonal content requires reaching Resonance Level 240, clearing AFK Stages 1125, and completing the main questline. You might ask: Why the emphasis on Resonance Level 240? Why wait 42 days before granting access to the new season? Why not make it available to all players right away, with no requirements? These requirements ensure that you start a season on a level playing field, preventing significant progression and reward gaps. Our goal is to get most players on roughly the same footing when it comes to exploring Esperia's seasonal content at the beginning of each season.

Getting to Resonance Level 240 is not that hard! It's time to begin your Journey with AFK!

But what if you're falling behind and can't reach Resonance Level 240? 

Don't worry, the AFK Final Push will kick in just before the season starts for your respective server. If you are falling behind in progression, this mechanism will automatically activate to help you catch up. In addition to the AFK Rewards, you'll earn extra Essence rewards by participating in the main quests and various game modes, speeding up your journey to the maximum Resonance Level and preparing you for the adventure of the new season.

Even if you're just playing casually, simply collect your AFK Rewards every day. Thanks to the acceleration mechanism, hitting Resonance Level 240 is practically assured. Once you achieve that milestone, you'll unlock not only this season but also all upcoming ones! Several content creators have already acknowledged the benefits of this acceleration mechanism. Let's see what they have to say!

【EASY Reso 240 with FINAL PUSH in AFK Journey】

【AFK JOURNEY BOOSTED Everyone! EASY Level 240 Before Song of Strife Season】

New Season, Unbound by Conventional Worries

Many gacha game players express concern naturally when they hear "a new progression system": Will this be another money sink? At AFK Journey, we want to address this issue, especially the problem of long-term power creep that is common in gacha games. The progression systems in AFK Journey will be divided into two categories: permanent progression systems and seasonal progression systems. The seasonal progression systems will reset at the end of each season, but the permanent progression systems will remain unchanged. Let's talk about this in more detail.

Currently, all progression systems are considered permanent. Artifacts, Resonance Level, Class Equipment, Hero Tier, Hero Exclusive Equipment, and other systems. They will remain effective across all future seasons. These systems are the foundation of your power. Expect the permanent progression system to have the greatest impact on your exploration of the main story quests and progression through most of the game modes. Upon entering the Song of Strife season, the game introduces the season-exclusive progression systems, which overlay the permanent progression systems. The seasonal progression systems consist of the Season Resonance Level, Season Class Equipment, Season Artifacts, and other seasonal items. You can earn these items, stats, and abilities by playing seasonal content, and they are only effective within the current season.

The new seasonal progression systems include the following:

- Season Resonance Level: Resets every season

- Season Hero Skills: Each hero gains 1 seasonal skill, only effective during the season. Unlocked after reaching Season Resonance Level 51.

- Season Class Equipment: Resets every season

- Season Artifact: 8 new Season Artifacts are introduced each season, obtainable through Season Journey and various game modes. They can only be used within the current season.

- Magic Charms: Resets every season. Charms come in 5 different qualities. Collecting 3 Charms of the same quality will activate a hero's special ability. In the later stages of a season, you can customize your hero's stats by equipping different sets of Charms. This feature was designed to be easy to develop. So Magic Charms don't have levels, randomized stats, or require complex inventory management skills. Soon, you'll learn more about Magic Charms in our Journey Unfolds video series!

All resources needed for the seasonal progression systems are available for free. We hope that all players will be able to experience the gameplay of progression and strategy. Stay tuned for more information on the new season in the coming days.

Season after Season, Playing Across a Decade

Each season lasts four months, but that's only a small part of Esperia's long history. With each new season, we'll explore deeper into the rich tapestry of Esperia, where new features on the world map and Magister Merlin's new journey await. These enhancements aren't just about introducing new heroes and characters; they're about taking you into the heart of Esperia, revealing its hidden history and secrets.

Once you have met the requirements to enter the Song of Strife season, you will be able to pick up new main quests in Holistone and travel to new areas. In addition to telling the story of Esperia, the new areas will feature fresh and exciting exploration mechanics and puzzles for you to enjoy. It's worth noting that there are no time limits on exploring areas or storylines. So, if you enjoy storytelling and map exploration, you can enjoy the game at your own pace without worrying about when the season will end. After each season ends, it's archived in the Temporal Nexus and is not limited by the seasonal progression system. This means that you can experience all of the world and story content from past seasons whenever you want. In addition, any unfinished story quests from that season can be completed in Temporal Nexus after the season ends. These chapters are independent, and each season contains its own story. Just like Netflix, you can explore them in any order you like.

In addition to advancing the storyline, we will be releasing a number of limited-time events on a regular basis. These events will offer generous rewards and will be open to all players. So even if you didn't meet the requirements to join the season in time, you won't miss out on participating in these events. Additionally, to make the Guild events more friendly to all players, those who haven't entered the season will automatically be adjusted to the season's baseline level in the Season Battle Drill mode.

We welcome you to embark on the world of Esperia any time for the next ten years!

Q: If I'm just AFK-ing every day, is that ok? A: It's perfectly fine to play casually and only AFK Stages, but don't forget other features like Dream Realm, where you can discover top-tier equipment for endless enjoyment.

Q: If I start playing in the middle of the season, will I miss anything? A: Starting mid-season may mean missing out on some time-limited event content and rewards. However, with each season lasting four months, it doesn't take long to complete the story. Also, new story content will be added with version updates. You can explore Esperia's story at your own pace, and even if you don't finish it by the end of the season, you can still experience it in Temporal Nexus.

Q: Since I've already reached Resonance Level 240, unlocking new regions in the new season will be effortless, right? Can't I just race through the whole map? A: While unlocking regions may be faster, your journey is about progressing with your companions. Through various features and seasonal content, you'll continue to grow, rather than just race through.

Q: You mentioned that Seasonal Story Chapters are tied to seasonal progressions. Will there be any problems with seasonal Story Chapters after the season ends? A: No, story chapters in the Temporal Nexus are not affected by seasonal progressions.

Q: Should I just return to AFK Journey after 10 years and unlock a ton of story chapters and rewards at once? A: Theoretically, yes. But we still hope that you start your journey today. In addition, to prevent players from claiming massive rewards all at once in the future, there will be certain mechanics for claiming rewards in Temporal Nexus to ensure that both the distribution and acquisition of rewards make sense over the long term.

Q: Will resources be refunded for reset content at the end of the season? A: Resources will not be refunded directly, but rewards will be calculated and distributed according to seasonal progression. Specific calculation rules will be announced later.

Q: With the recent addition of the cross-server friend system, I'm hoping for more cross-server features. Are there any plans for this in the new season? A: We're preparing to implement a mechanism called Dynamic District. This mechanism, designed by our team based on years of experience, will assign multiple servers to a District at the beginning of each season. Throughout the season, you will experience different cross-server cooperative or competitive modes, some of which are District-based while many others are not restricted by your District. The servers will then be reassigned to different Districts for the next season. Some features will also make Districts compete with each other during the season. We will provide more detailed information in future patch notes.

Q: Will every server have a full four months to experience the season? A: Not necessarily. To access the season, servers must have been created for at least 42 days. Servers that are ready when the new season starts will have a full four months. A server may, at most, be delayed the first time they enter a new season, then enter all future seasons on the first available date without a subsequent delay.

That's all for this issue. Stay tuned for future announcements if you are interested in more details.

'Unsung Hero' sheds light on the Smallbone family's incredible journey to musical stardom

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: 'Unsung Hero', an upcoming American Christian drama film directed by Richard Ramsey and Joel Smallbone, is based on a remarkable true story.

Starring Joel as David Smallbone, Daisy Betts as Helen Smallbone, Kirrilee Berger as Rebecca St. James, Jonathan Jackson as Eddie DeGarmo, and Candace Cameron Bure as Kay Albright, the film delves into the story of the Smallbone family, focusing on siblings St James, Joel, and Luke, as they navigate their path to becoming Christian recording artists.

The official synopsis of the film reads, "David Smallbone, his pregnant wife, and their seven children leave Australia to rebuild their lives in America. David and Helen realize the musical talent of their children, who become two of the most successful acts in Inspirational Music history."

The film is scheduled to be released in the United States on Friday, April 26, 2024, by Lionsgate. 

Let's discuss the real-life story of 'Unsung Hero'.

The film delves into David Smallbone's remarkable journey from Australia to the United States

'Unsung Hero' chronicles the pivotal journey of David Smallbone, who made the life-changing decision to relocate his family from Australia to Nashville, Tennessee, United States, in 1991.

After his music company collapsed, David, a music promoter, decided to seek a fresh start in the United States, as reported by The Tennessean.

Despite the challenges that lay ahead, David's resilience and determination to overcome adversity served as a beacon of hope for his family.

With just their children, a few suitcases, and a deep love for music, David and his pregnant wife, Helen Smallbone, embarked on a journey to rebuild their lives.

According to The Tennessean, the journey from Australia to Nashville was neither easy nor inexpensive for the Smallbone family. They had to use the majority of their family's savings to cover the cost of airfare.

As the imminent birth of their seventh child approached, David remained unemployed. Despite the uncertainty of their circumstances, Helen gave birth to their seventh child, marking a poignant moment in their journey.

After the Smallbone family settled in Nashville, David actively searched for employment. He also took his oldest daughter, St James, who was 14 years old at the time, up and down Nashville's Music Row, aiming to secure her a record deal.

Two years after their move to Nashville, St James' dedication and talent paid off when she was signed to ForeFront Records.

Who is Rebecca St. James?

Rebecca St James, the daughter of David and Helen, is an Australian-American contemporary Christian singer, songwriter, and actress.

St James achieved fame in the late 1990s with her RIAA-certified Gold albums 'God' and 'Pray.' The album 'Pray' notably won a Grammy Award in 1999 for Best Rock Gospel Album, solidifying her status as a talented and respected artist in the music industry.

During this time, St James' music not only garnered commercial success but also connected with listeners on a deeper level. 

According to a report by Solo Parent Organization, Helen, St  James' mother, played a crucial role in her daughter's career, offering unwavering support and encouragement throughout her journey to fame.

St James is also best known for films like 'Left Behind: The Movie,' 'The First Easter,' 'Unidentified,' 'Sarah's Choice,' 'Rising Stars,' and 'Faith of Our Fathers.'

How family values fueled For King & Country's rise to fame

Joel and Luke joined forces to establish the band 'For King & Country' in 2007. Their shared passion for music and deep-rooted family values the foundation for their musical journey.

In 2008, Joel and Luke released their first EP, 'A Tale of Two Towns' in the comfort of their parents' home, which served as a creative sanctuary for the brothers. 

Over the years, despite their rising success, the brothers faced various hardships. In 2011, the duo, now known as For King & Country, returned to the studio to record what would become their first three singles: 'Busted Heart,' 'Proof of Your Love,' and 'Middle of Your Heart.'

In 2013, Joel also embarked on his acting career, taking on the role of King Xerxes in 'The Book of Esther' and portraying Jake Reeson in 'Like a Country Song.'

One of his most notable roles came in 2016 when he was cast in the leading role of James Stevens in the film 'Priceless.'

Joel has embarked on an intriguing new chapter in his acting career, as he is set to portray his father, David, in the upcoming film 'Unsung Heroes.'

'Unsung Hero' trailer

'my 600-lb. life' stars then and now: plus-sized show participants transformed their lives.

Watch CBS News

In one woman's mysterious drowning, signs of a national romance scam epidemic

By Jim Axelrod , Sheena Samu , Andy Bast , Matthew Mosk , Sari Aviv

Updated on: April 21, 2024 / 11:19 AM EDT / CBS News

The scammer who drained Laura Kowal of her $1.5 million nest egg and sent the widowed healthcare executive on a path that ended with her death in the Mississippi River, hundreds of miles from her western Illinois home, called himself "Frank Borg."

Frank drew Laura into a relationship after she connected to his profile on the popular dating website Match.com. Over months of giddy cellphone calls and in hundreds of florid emails, Frank manipulated her by drawing on publicly-posted details of her life to forge a bond, then induced her to invest with his online trading firm. As her skepticism grew and love waned, he strong-armed her into helping him dip his hands into the accounts of other victims.

"She had all these buckets full in her life, my mom did," said Kelly Gowe, Laura's daughter. "But there was this one bucket that was missing… and that was companionship. ... And that's ultimately where we're at now, is because of that."

This increasingly common pattern — a modern spin that combines emotionally exploitative catfishing schemes with fast-moving investment and crypto scams — has served as the leading edge of an epidemic of pernicious scams targeting users of dating apps and websites. U.S. Justice Department and FBI officials told CBS News there is a public account of the toll: more than 64,000 American victims in 2023. But multiple experts told CBS News that those numbers significantly under-represent the true scope.

"They may be embarrassed that they have been victimized in this way," said Arun Rao, who oversees the Consumer Protection Branch at the U.S. Department of Justice. "They may be ashamed. They may be afraid to tell their friends or family." 

With so many cases going unreported, he said, it is a national crisis unfolding largely in secret.

The human cost is likely more severe than law enforcement can quantify. Senior FBI officials told CBS News a striking number of cases are ending with victims dying by suicide.

"They shouldn't feel embarrassed or ashamed," Rao said. "These are sophisticated fraudsters who are preying on the human desire for affection. For connection with another person. And they are manipulating [victims] … using sophisticated technology."

Dating sites a "hunting ground" for scammers

A year-long CBS News investigation has found a growing number of federal agents, local police and online security experts believe the law enforcement response has, to date, failed to address the problem. The financial toll of known losses has swelled, from $500 million in 2019 to $1.14 billion last year. 

Our investigation has found:

• Local police officials from across the country are deeply frustrated by the lack of options to address the steady flow of complaints they receive, often from the adult children of divorced or widowed victims who have struggled to navigate the unfamiliar world of dating apps. 
• Federal agents struggle to keep pace with scammers who are often operating in plain sight in West Africa and South Asia. 
• Scammers have had increasing success in leveraging the promise of love to strong-arm victims into becoming unwitting co-conspirators, creating a legal mess for investigators who must decide how to treat victims who have openly committed fraud at the behest of the scammers, helping perpetrators launder funds swindled from others.
• Law enforcement and security experts from dating and social media sites told CBS News those apps have been a "hunting ground" for scammers, and the industry has struggled to effectively curtail the problem. Several former insiders at the publicly-traded company with the largest market share, Match Group , criticized its record for protecting customers. Match Group CEO Bernard Kim defended the company's performance, telling CBS News: "We invest a tremendous amount of capital, incredible talent on trust and safety. It is the first and foremost top priority for us as an organization."

Victim's daughter says her mother "was endangered"

The tragedy of Laura Kowal touches on every one of those alleged weaknesses, unfolding in ways that now sound painfully familiar to the experts who are immersed in finding a solution to the online scam epidemic.

Hundreds of emails between Laura and "Frank" detail a long con, in which Laura is drawn in with promises of love and manipulated into sending more and more money.

Mark Solomon, president of the International Association of Financial Crime Investigators , said Frank followed a familiar playbook used by scammers to manipulate their victims. 

"We don't blame a person that's on the side of the street and gets robbed with a gun pointed at them," said Solomon, who was the first to tell Kowal's story on the association's podcast, The Protectors , produced by Modified Media . "We can't do that to the victims of these frauds and scams either. These are professionals, they do it every single day. They're good at it."

The only anomaly in Laura's case, Solomon said, are the lingering questions surrounding her death. 

While several local detectives who investigated the final days and hours of her life appear persuaded that she died by suicide, they have stopped short of that formal finding. Her autopsy report, prepared in the days after her body was discovered in August 2020 floating in the river by a couple out fishing, says only that she died by "drowning."

Those who knew Laura best, however, believe the actions of her final hours are so incongruous with how she lived that she may have met her end at the hands of someone involved in the fraud.

Her daughter, Kelly Gowe, said she believes scammers, including the person using the pseudonym "Frank Borg," drove her mother to a point of feeling "like she was endangered. That she was going to die."  

"It's the scammers," she said. "It's the criminals behind those emails. It's Frank Borg… this character. He killed my mom. And everyone that is involved in this scam in any capacity, that's moving the money, that's placing a phone call, that's hitting 'enter' and 'send' on an email — they're all responsible for my mom's death."

An eerie letter that Laura left behind, buried in a file drawer and found while Laura was missing, leaves more questions than answers.

"You were right in your judgment of me," Laura wrote to her daughter. "I've been living a double life this past year. It has left me broke and broken. Yes, it involves Frank, the man I met through online dating. I tried to stop this, many times, but I knew I would end up dead."

The reach of scammers has widened, officials say

Over the course of this week, CBS News will tell Laura Kowal's story. And, through her story, the reports will re-examine a problem many in law enforcement now believe has been grossly underestimated. 

The head of the FBI's financial crimes sections, James Barnacle, said the reach of the scams has widened as overseas criminals have gained direct access to their targets: lonely Americans seeking a connection through social media and dating apps. 

Match Group, the largest company in the online dating space, has tried to keep pace, telling CBS News it is now swatting down 44 spam profiles per minute. "We're working really, really hard every single day to make sure that people are authentic," Match Group CEO Bernard Kim told CBS News. "That's the key to our platform."

An effort to rally a stronger federal approach has a growing number of advocates — among them, Laura's daughter, Kelly Gowe.

Last year, Gowe left her job with a farm supply company and has dedicated herself to sharing her mother's story as a cautionary tale. At a speech to a women's group in Iowa earlier this year, she urged financial institutions and law enforcement to do more to protect victims.

"It wasn't until I learned that I was going to have a daughter of my own that I knew that, one day, she would know the full story of how her grandmother passed away," Gowe said. "I want her to know that her grandmother's story has the ability to educate people and to promote change, and ultimately her grandmother's story can save someone's life. And that's now the responsibility that I carry, to do that."

More from the  CBS News Investigation :

• When her mother went missing, an Illinois woman ventured into the dark corners of America's romance scam epidemic
• Romance scammers turn victims into "money mules," creating a legal minefield for investigators
• As romance scammers turn dating apps into "hunting grounds," critics look to Match Group to do more

CBS News investigative reporters Pat Milton, Clare Hymes and Alyssa Spady contributed to this report.

If you or someone you know has been affected by a romance scam, please share your story with us at [email protected]

Jim Axelrod is the chief correspondent and executive editor for CBS News' "Eye on America" franchise, part of the "CBS Evening News with Norah O'Donnell." He also reports for "CBS Mornings," "CBS News Sunday Morning," and CBS News 24/7.

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Sophia Bush ‘Wouldn't Change a Thing’ After Coming Out as Queer in Glamour Essay

The 'One Tree Hill' alum said she feels "free and light and scared and trembling" after penning the April 25 cover story

Monica Schipper/Getty

Sophia Bush is sharing how she feels in the wake of her Glamour essay.

In the candid April 2024 cover story , an essay penned by the One Tree Hill alum herself, Bush opened up about her marriage with ex-husband Grant Hughes , got real about her fertility journey and publicly came out as queer .

Now, two days after the piece was published online on April 25, Bush is giving fans a glimpse into her mental state.

Lauren Dukoff/Glamour

On Instagram Stories, the star shared a post from businesswoman and activist Erin Gallagher, who said she was “proud of” Bush and echoed some the lessons she shared in her essay.

Alongside the star’s April Glamour cover, Gallagher wrote, “The moment you decide to stop living your life for others — that only the opinions of the safe, caring people who love you matter — everything becomes so simple and clear.”

In her response to the Gallagher’s praise, Bush revealed that she would not have done anything differently.

“Free and light and scared and trembling and wouldn't change a thing,” the actress wrote.

Instagram/sofiabush

Bush’s use of “free and light” evokes the moment in her essay after she comes out and shares how her loved ones responded to her sexuality and relationship with former women's soccer player Ashlyn Harris .

“I finally feel like I can breathe,” the actress wrote. “I don’t think I can explain how profound that is. I feel like I was wearing a weighted vest for who knows how long. I hadn’t realized how heavy it was until I finally just put it down.”

She continued, “This might sound crazy — but I think other people in trauma recovery will get it — I am taking deep breaths again. I can feel my legs and feet. I can feel my feet in my shoes right now. It makes me want to cry and laugh at the same time.”

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

This sense of weightlessness comes after Bush made headlines for filing for divorce from Hughes after a year of marriage in August 2023.

Two months later, PEOPLE broke the news that the actress had started seeing Harris, who filed for divorce from ex-wife and fellow soccer pro Ali Krieger in September 2023.

Elsewhere in her Glamour essay, Bush addressed the “home-wrecker” rumors and allegations she faced after her separation from Hughes.

Todd Williamson/Peacock via Getty 

“The idea that I left my marriage based on some hysterical rendezvous — that, to be crystal-clear, never happened — rather than having taken over a year to do the most soul crushing work of my life? Rather than realizing I had to be the most vulnerable I’ve ever been, on a public stage, despite being terrified to my core? It feels brutal,” Bush wrote.

“Just because I didn’t want to process my realizations in real time on social media and spell them out for the world doesn’t mean the journey wasn’t long and thoughtful and exhaustive,” she added.

Now on the other side of this journey, the star said she now has “real joy,” which she found by coming to terms with her sexuality. 

“It took me 41 years to get here,” she shared. “When I take stock of the last few years, I can tell you that I have never operated out of more integrity in my life. I hope that’s clear enough for everyone speculating out there, while being as gentle as I possibly can be.”

Related Articles

Hazbin Hotel: Journey to the Light Fanon Wiki

Please do not mistake this wiki for the official Hazbin Hotel wiki! Do not link to or mention this site when discussing the show's canon! All information presented here is entirely FANON and irrelevant to the official shows whether it be Hazbin Hotel or Helluva Boss , so stop bringing it up! You guys got that? Cuz we're getting pretty tired of rewriting this notice! I am going to keep writing and expanding this until this message is impossible to miss, starting right now. Is this about right? Maybe a few more words. Again, this wiki's information NON-CANON and FANMADE. Got it? Good! Happy reading!

• Chapter 1 characters
• Chapter 2 characters
• Chapter 3 characters
• Chapter 4 characters
• Chapter 5 characters
• Male characters
• Recurring characters
• Revenge Seekers
• Singing characters
• Status Unknown
• Supporting characters
• View history

Lord Valentino of Pride , also known as Val for short, is a major antagonist in Hazbin Hotel: Journey to the Light .

He serves as the main antagonist of Chapter 1, a minor, yet pivotal, antagonist in Chapter 2, a major antagonist in Chapter 3, a flashback antagonist in Chapter 4, and a major antagonist in Chapter 5. He is also the main antagonist of Angel Dust's storyline.

He is one of Hell's most influential Overlords and a moth demon with a pompous, perverted and sadistic attitude who preys on the poverty-stricken sinners of Pride . He is a sugar daddy, fashion designer and movie director who owns Hell's pornographic industry, as well as the former leader and member of the Vees , consisting of himself and his dysfunctional partners-in-crime Vox and Velvette . He is also the former boss of former renowned porn actor Angel Dust, whom he treated like a slave, which after decades of abuse, led him to betray Valentino and join the Hazbin Hotel program to escape from the moth's control and help prove Charlie Magne's claims on redemption to be true. Following this, Valentino became even more ruthless in his attempts to exact revenge on Angel and coerce him back into a life of slavery.

• 1 Personality
• 2 Appearance
• 3.1 Natural Powers
• 3.2 Unique Powers
• 3.3 Abilities
• 3.4 Weapons
• 4.1.2 Velvette
• 4.1.3 Lucifer Magne
• 4.1.4 Dia and Summer
• 4.2.1 Queef
• 4.3.1 Angel Dust
• 4.3.2 Cherri Bomb
• 4.3.3 Charlie Magne
• 4.3.4 Vaggie
• 4.3.5 Alastor
• 4.3.6 Stolas
• 4.4.1 Sir Pentious
• 6.1 Chapter 1
• 6.2 Chapter 2
• 6.3 Chapter 3
• 6.4 Chapter 5
• 6.5 Quotes Pertaining to Valentino
• 8 Navigation

Personality

Valentino is a narcissistic, hedonistic, and lustful demon who exploits and abuses his workers financially, physically, and sexually. He is a textbook psychopath who is extremely self-absorbed, manipulative, and incapable of feeling empathy for those around him, even for his lovers and closest "friends". He is absolutely obsessed with sex and is very sexually open and expressive, to the point that sexually assaulting people is his way of greeting others. He treats his romantic and sexual partners no different than his slaves, treats everyone under his whim like trash, and reacts violently when faced with disobedience. He's also prone to random fits of violence and is a complete control freak, desiring complete control over the lives of his workers. He views his workers only as sex objects, as shown by him constantly forcing Angel Dust to kiss him against his will, and forcing him, as well as his other workers, to have sex with him regularly. He has been aptly described as a "predator" by Vaggie , preying on poverty-stricken and vulnerable sinners that he sees potential in.

Like a classic pimp, he entices his victims with a life of success, security, and vices as long as they agree to work for him, only to essentially reduce them all to sexual slaves once they agreed to his proposal, which is precisely what he did to Angel when they first met. He is completely heartless and devoid of any truly likable traits, but is suave and seductive with a strong presence and charm. He prides himself on his ability to get people to do whatever he wants, but can sometimes fall victim to his own rash temper.

He is also extremely greedy and selfish, as most of, if not all, his employee's earnings go straight to him, which has left many of his workers impoverished and forced to do degrading sex work on the side. Furthermore, he punishes his workers cruelly if they are unable to pay him the money that they owe him.

Unlike many sinners in Hell , Valentino doesn't seem to have any kind of excuse or backstory that justifies his behavior (same for his partners Vox and Velvette ); he enjoys dehumanizing and manipulating people simply because he is a sociopath who builds his empire on using vulnerable people to his advantage, and thoroughly enjoys being as smug and scummy as possible.

Valentino is a clever and conniving master manipulator and social ladder climber, with his words being his strongest weapons; he has successfully convinced many of his workers, including Angel Dust for a time, that he genuinely cares about them and is dismayed when having to punish them, but it is made very clear that this is all a clever lie to keep them working for him so that he can profit off of them for as long as possible. The only things he truly values are himself, sex, and money, and he is so expertly skilled in manipulating others that, in some cases, he is able to trick his workers and lovers into believing that they are nothing without him, and thus deserve being beaten and punished for their missteps. He carefully chooses the less fortunate as victims of his enslavement so that they will be left with nothing should they reject him.

Valentino is capable of superficial and pragmatic care and "kindness" towards others, as he previously bought Angel Dust makeup and clothes, gave him protection from Hell's police departments and criminals, and gifted Velvette with a new phone. However, like a true narcissistic psychopath, he is not truly capable of seeing others as people beyond what he could gain from them. In Valentino's eyes, Angel Dust is only a particularly attractive slave who should be kept alive as he is the moth's biggest money-maker, and while he seems to care for Velvette, he only keeps her around because she is his social media manager and PR girl who maintains his credibility and reputation, and has on multiple occasions verbally abused her whenever she gets on his nerves.

He is extremely possessive of all of his workers, rarely allowing them to exit his studio , sending his underlings to stalk them when they are off the clock, and unambiguously threatening them with violence whenever they dare to disobey or talk back to him. He desires complete control over their lives, going as far as only allowing them to eat whenever he lets them, and gives his workers extremely harsh punishments for the most minor and petty of reasons, including having them beaten and sexually tortured by his men, refusing to pay them the money that they need to survive, or even sending his underlings to attack their loved ones. Despite his claims, he obviously possesses no true love or concern for any of his workers and views most of them as disposable, at one point making Angel Dust go back to streetwalking shortly after an Extermination , disregarding the fact that there was a chance of Exterminators still being around, and told Angel to not give him any "sass" when the spider asked what the hurry was.

He is also massively hypocritical with his workers, as although he gives them strict diets and ridicules or punishes them for eating food without his permission, he has no problem with messily gorging himself with fast food, as shown on the Voxtagram accounts. His desire to control the lives of his workers is to the extent that the thought of Angel Dust, or any of his clients, choosing to leave him drives him up the wall, and he takes greater pains to keep all of his workers under his thumb when the risk presents itself.

One of his most noteworthy traits is his enormous ego, with all the traits of a malignant narcissist. He is heavily materialistic, preferring to wear expensive, revealing, shiny, and lavish clothing and accessories purely to flaunt his own appearance, all while complementing his own look (as well as having others compliment him), and he prefers to travel in an equally flashy, pimped out limo. Possessing a superiority complex, he views himself as beautiful and "sexy", and views everyone around him as insignificant. He tends to react violently to criticism or if his pride or fashion style is abashed.

Shallow, negligible, and inconsequential, Valentino only wants his workers to act as pretty faces, and completely ignores their non-sexual talents. He views anyone who is not outwardly attractive as irrelevant, and has a nasty habit of objectifying people, treating his workers as little more than sex toys, and showing disdain towards those that he considers unattractive, such as overweight or deformed people. For example, he shamed one of his workers by calling her a "fat ass" just for eating a hamburger, before forcing her to eat it off the ground while making pig noises to humiliate her in front of the club-goers. He also frequently mocks his partner and lover, Vox , by comparing him to a broken television he can replace at any moment. His Voxtagram account also reveals him to be a misogynist who dismisses women as "useless" in multiple posts, despite many of his workers and clients being women. He will sleep with anyone or anything he deems worthy, which usually are only "10s" or his partner-in-crime, Vox. Highly dishonest and carrying no shame or remorse for his crimes, and at points seems to take pride in his crimes and awfulness, scoffing at the idea of bettering himself. When he was informed about Charlie's goal to redeem sinners, he laughed at the concept and proudly said that, regardless of if redemption was a possibility, Hell was the perfect place for him.

Valentino possesses monstrously sadistic tendencies; he is relentlessly abusive and violent towards his workers and "friends", killed Queef just because it was annoying him (and later bragged about it on his Voxtagram account), and clearly derives a twisted sense of pleasure from raping and abusing his workers. Despite arguably being the most level-headed of the Vees, it is obvious that he loves being feared and takes pleasure in hurting and murdering people, as seen by his hobby of shooting at random sinners from the balcony of his studio, and when he showed excitement while massacring Butcher Town with Vox and Velvette. A gesture of his ruthlessness, he would even stoop so low as to murder children if they got in his way, as shown when he attempted to kill Simon, a five-year-old saint, when he prevented him from killing Angel Dust, and was moments away from killing seven of Charlie's Angels before Angel himself intervened.

Valentino's sadism and heinous actions only became increasingly worse after Angel Dust quit working for him, as he took his anger and frustration out on his own workers and associates, having one unfortunate female worker gang-raped for being minutes late to a film shoot, posting his men at the entrances and exits of Porn Studios with the intent of having them gun down any worker caught leaving, mounting Husk's severed wings to his wall to be displayed as a trophy after Vox had mutilated him, and later murdered Angel's pet pig with a knife as revenge, all while forcing Angel to watch helplessly.

In spite of his horrific cruelty and sadism towards nearly everyone he interacts with, Valentino does somewhat get along with his partners in crime and closest associates, Vox and Velvette, and shares an incredibly dysfunctional "friendship" with them. He spends a lot of his time doing various activities with the two Overlords, such as engaging in soirees and yacht parties with them. He also capable of acting somewhat friendly with Velvette at times, as he thanked her for helping him massacre Butcher Town and gave her a pat on the head for a job well done. At the same time, he frequently treats Velvette and Vox less like friends and more as if they are part of his devoted entourage, mistreating them with no regard to their feelings and treating them as if their afterlives revolve around worshipping him. Indeed, Valentino is not above emotionally and, rarely, physically abusing Vox and Velvette whenever they anger him, as he has berated and disparaged both of them numerous times for petty reasons, and even punched Velvette in the back of the head for her mockery at his expense. Overall, all three are just as likely to be friendly with one another as they're to be terrible and abusive to each other like the damned sinners they are.

Valentino is a ten-foot tall moth demon with a slender build. He has muted lavender skin and striking pink eyes. His iconic look includes gold-rimmed heart-shaped sunglasses with cerise-pink lenses that cover his eyes. His mouth reveals sharp cerise-pink teeth, featuring a distinctive single golden fang positioned to his far left. Valentino stands at an estimated 11 feet, accentuating his height with long black heeled boots. His distinctive appearance includes fluffy white fur adorned with small red love-hearts around his neck, extending from the coat's break-line. Bald with moth-like antennae, one resembling a large black and white striped feather and the other smaller without white areas. His hands and forearms are solid black.Prominent are Valentino's vivid-red colored moth wings, edged with white fur featuring black stripes and adorned with heart designs. Typically enveloping his body, these wings transform into a floor-length coat with vivid-red coloring, white fur at the wrists, black and white striped fur trim down the center-front, and three white stripes on both hips. The coat is fastened with a gold chain and gold love-heart shaped brooches at the breast. Dark purple heart-shaped nipples, adorned with gold piercings and a hanging chain, make a bold statement.

Valentino completes his attire with a vivid-red top hat, adorned with an asymmetrical zebra-print hat-band. Beneath the coat, a dark grey jacket with rolled-up sleeves reveals his chest, secured with two gold buttons. Paired with white pants featuring a black belt boasting a golden love-heart shaped buckle and high-heeled black shoes. Accessories include a gold chain hanging down to his chest, gold arm bands, and occasionally gold nail guards on his fingers.

Valentino's alternate outfit consists of a black tuxedo vest with a long-sleeved white undershirt with gold, heart-shaped cufflinks, his signature red top hat, a pink bowtie, black gloves, black suit pants, long black high heels, and he typically has a pink coat draped over his shoulders. While in this attire, he often carries around a shiny, pink and gold cane with a handle that resembles that of a bird. His other outfits usually consist of simple lingerie and stockings.

Powers and Abilities

Natural powers.

• Demonic Transformation : Valentino has the ability to transform into a more powerful and demonic form at will or whenever he becomes extremely enraged, and then effortlessly transform back to his default form.
• Nigh-Invulnerability : Valentino's demonic physiology renders him extremely resilient to nearly all forms of assault, from bullets, dismemberment, and explosives. Only the power of primordial entities or holy weaponry are capable of doing serious or permanent harm to him.
• Regeneration : As a sinner, Valentino has the ability to almost instantly regenerate and recover from life-threatening wounds and injuries, this includes losing his limbs, and he can respawn back to normal in the occasion that his physical body is completely destroyed. In "The Fading Light", he regenerated from having the entire right side of his head shot off by Angel Dust , rebuilding his facial structure, skull, and brain matter in minutes, although the attack was effective enough to render him unconscious until the regeneration process was complete. In "Take Us Back", he also shrugged off being shot three times in the chest by Angel's Tommy gun, with his wounds healing shortly after he received them.

Unique Powers

• Flight : Valentino possesses a pair of large, moth-like wings from his back that grant him the ability to levitate and fly through the air. These wings can retreat by wrapping around him to form an organic.
• Enhanced Strength : Valentino has impressive strength for his lean frame, shown by him lifting Angel Dust up by the neck with one hand. While fighting Angel physically in his Full Demon Form, he effortlessly overpowered Angel and tossed him around with no effort. He is strong enough to dismember other sinners with his bare hands when going through fits of rage.
• Hypnotic Smoke : Valentino's smoke is capable of temporarily intoxicating others if inhaled excessively, allowing him to control the victim's mind and actions. When freed from his hypnosis, his victims often cough up smoke before losing consciousness.
• Poisonous Gas Generation : Valentino can produce a toxic cloud of smoke by tossing his cigarette on the ground, making them explode into a room-sized, suffocating cloud of smoke. These clouds are extremely difficult to escape as once someone is trapped inside, tangible arms will appear from the cloud and subdue the victim, preventing them from merely running away. This also forces the target to struggle, which only hastens their death.
• Smoke Speed : By blending into the smoke, Valentino can enhance his speed, reflexes and agility.
• Smoke Teleportation : Valentino can teleport himself and others to a desired location via his smoke, merging into smoke and appearing anywhere else from the same element.
• Soul Manipulation : Being a control freak who desires power over other people's existence, Valentino forces all of his workers to sign unbreakable soul contracts that makes them his property. Once signed, he is granted complete control over the clients' soul. He can use these contracts to torture his workers spiritually, causing them unbearable, debilitating agony, or outright erase their existence - no matter how far away they are from him - in order to force them to do what he wants. However, Valentino's contracts are not completely unbreakable; it is possible to rend them null and void through the power of deal-making (which is how Alastor was able to eventually free Angel from Valentino's control) or if Valentino willingly releases his employee (which has never happened).
• Toxin Immunity : Valentino is immune to chemical agents and the intoxicating effects of his own smoke.
• Authority : As an Overlord , Valentino possesses great authority over his workers, servants, gang members, and the denizens of Pentagram City . He was initially the assumed leader of the Vees, with even Vox allowing him to take the reigns for a time, despite the blatant power dichotomy between them, which effectively made him the ruler of Pentagram City as a whole. He has enough pull within the Pentagram that he has nearly every mob organization and the Pentagram City Police Department wrapped around his finger, who obey him out of fear of the moth retaliating against them, and because he supplies them with weapons and drugs in addition to occasionally lending them the service of his workers. His position as an Overlord in general grants him a position relatively high in Hell's hierarchy, giving him sway over all lower demons while still having to take orders from the higher-ups in Hell's society such as Lucifer or the royal families. Despite having lost his leadership over his group, Valentino is still an extremely influential figure within Pride.
• Bilingualism : Valentino can speak fluent Italian and English.
• Charisma : Valentino possesses a flamboyant, lascivious, and at times eerily comforting charm that has enabled him to persuade hundreds, if not thousands, to his authority over his years in Hell, including the likes of Vox.
• Enhanced Senses : As a result of being a moth demon, Valentino has overly sensitive hearing, able to hear miles away. its antennae jigot up each time it senses a potential client or an enemy.
• Expert Marksmanship : Valentino has demonstrated impressive skill with firearms. This was seen when he shot Bruce through the head, all the way from the backseat of his limousine. During the Vees' first confrontation with the hotel crew, he was able to accurately aim at Charlie through smoke despite not having a visual of her, and would have killed or at least fatally wounded the princess if it hadn't been for Angel Dust and Cherri Bomb's interference.
• High Intellect : Despite his frequent explosions of anger, Valentino possesses surprisingly high amounts of intelligence. Along with being an expert manipulator, he is capable of organizing and orchestrating many of the countless crimes and gang activities committed throughout Pentagram City. He also possesses some knowledge regarding Hell's history, weapons, and technology, and is capable of running multiple successful businesses at once. He is also a master manipulator with thousands of the Pride Ring's inhabitants under his control, and possesses enough cunning to manipulate the loyalty and, occasionally, love others might have for him. He is even intelligent enough to manipulate and playmind games with the likes of Vox, who himself is a masterful manipulator, using his charm to make him, as well as all of his workers, believe that they are useless without him in their lives.
• Intimidation : Valentino commands an extremely intimidating and unsettling presence, enough to make even the infamously snarky Angel Dust become docile. Be it through physical abuse, reputation, or his violent outbursts, he strikes fear and revulsion into allies and enemies alike.
• Manipulation : Valentino is, without a doubt, a master manipulator, with his words and psychological grip on others being his strongest weapon. Using his charm and keen intelligence, he is capable of manipulating and controlling his workers and employees, as well as other Overlords such as Vox and Velvette, swaying all of them under his command. While selecting new workers, he prefers to target those who are poor, struggling, or down-trodden, promising to give them protection, fame, and drugs as long as they agreed to work for him and remain loyal to him. This often left his targets feeling as if they had no purpose until he found them, establishing a strong sense of loyalty within his workers, which he would then exploit and manipulate to keep them working for him, despite episodes of extreme verbal and physical abuse. Often times, whenever Valentino fears that he is losing control over others, he occasionally employs subtle jabs and guilt trips to make others do what he wants or to keep them under his influence, before firmly, and darkly punishing them for believing they could accomplish anything without his help.
• Natural Weaponry : Valentino possesses sharp teeth and claws which he can utilize as offensive weapons. It's possible that he previously used his claws to injure Vox, as evident by the claw marks seen across Vox's body when Valentino had him dance on a pole half-naked for his entertainment.
• Ocular Illumination : Valentino's eyes glow a bright red color in dark environments, which allows him to see in the dark.
• Resources : Valentino possesses vast connections throughout Pentagram City, with several criminal organization and the corrupt police department of Pentagram City answering to him. He also holds a vast collection of powerful firearms that use angelic bullets as ammo, and he leads a powerful gang that almost rivals that of Vox's gang. As a result of being allies with Vox and Velvette, they are able to consolidate their power and use their respective armies to their advantage.
• Wealth : As the owner of Hell's porn industry, a fashion company, and being involved in various drug and weapon deals, Valentino is extremely rich and can afford seemingly anything he desires, from flashy sports cars and limos, clothing, drugs, and even angelic weapons.
• Cane : Valentino carries an assortment of flashy canes with him. While initially seeming like ostentatious accessories, he often uses his canes to correct his disobedient employees and sometimes he uses it as a sword.
• Firearms : Valentino has a collection of custom handguns which he uses to threaten his workers and subordinates, and for murdering anyone who annoyed, displeased, or opposed him. He often uses his firearms for shooting at sinners from his balcony for sport. His primary weapon which he always carries with him is a hot pink revolver which he affectionately named Moneyshot, which features a custom black grip with three pink hearts, a zebra-print frame, and a gold hammer. His firearms are very powerful, and can cause great damage to anything they hit. His revolver was powerful enough to blow a large flat-screen TV to pieces in only three shots, and when he shot one of his underlings in the head, it caused the goon's entire head to explode on impact. Likewise, he also shot Angel Dust's lower left arm completely off of the spider's body with only one bullet. All of his firearms use holy bullets for ammo, making them extremely dangerous for every demon and sinner of Hell and incredibly useful tools for permanently injuring or killing other demons and even lower angels.

Relationships

Vox was Valentino's closest and long-time partner, associate, and an on-off lover, with the two having been in a sexual and professional relationship almost since Valentino was reborn in Hell. Their relationship is highly dysfunctional, parasitic, co-dependent, and hostile, which has resulted in them frequently breaking up with each other, mostly due to Valentino's contemptuous nature. Regardless of their constant arguments and situations of mutual emotional abuse, Valentino and Vox managed to maintain their relationship and partnership for several decades, spending much of their time together dating, partying, or generally hanging out. They both bring out the worst in each other and their whole relationship thrives off of their mutual awfulness and predatory sense of sex. The two are constantly seen flirting and making suggestive comments towards the other, and are heavily implied to still have sex regularly, despite the fact that they supposedly broke up at some point before the events of the series.

Vox is more than happy to assist Valentino with his plans, and even has gone as far as to brainwash some of the moth's workers to make them more docile towards the moth demon. Valentino seems to be aware of Vox's possessiveness towards him and greatly enjoys it, even when Vox goes out of his way to torture Valentino's workers whenever the moth has sex with or shows sexual attraction to them.

Valentino and Vox tend to find themselves at odds for a variety of reasons, mostly due to not agreeing with the other's plans. Vox and Valentino's relationship, much like the latter's relationship with his employees, is laden with emotional abuse; they both play mind games with each other and love bringing out the worst in the other. They constantly insult and downplay the other, with Valentino often regarding Vox as a "broken TV" and little more than an accessory when he is upset with him, and is implied to put his cigarettes out on Vox's skin. Vox himself is not one to shy away from abusing Valentino either, as he offers no real support to Val during his outbursts and runs the risk of escalating things by taunting, baby-talking, and teasing him.

While Vox seems to be genuinely interested in being in a lustful relationship with Valentino, Valentino only cares for what Vox can get him; he uses his relation with Vox to make people jealous and threaten them, never attempts to better himself or apologize whenever he hurts Vox, always has Vox buy him things while never getting him anything in return, constantly uses Vox's money (despite having plenty of money on his own) and never pays him back, and he almost never spends time with Vox unless there is something to gain from his company.

However, Valentino's abuse towards Vox eventually proved to be his downfall when Vox finally fought back against Valentino by paralyzing the moth with his electrokinesis. Vox would then strip Valentino out his control over Pentagram, plotting on keeping the moth for himself while reminding Valentino of his place and that he would have never become an Overlord without Vox's assistance.

Strangely, even after Vox essentially betrayed him, Valentino chose to maintain a working relationship with Vox without displaying any outward outburst. This is evident in their shared enjoyment of betting on fights at Klub Kaiju alongside Velvette. However, Valentino refrained from attempting anything against Vox, well aware that the TV Demon could swiftly put him back in his place, possibly for good.

Velvette is Valentino's second closest associate, social media manager, lover and - from Velvette's perspective - adopted daughter. Valentino is a bit more tranquil and friendly with Velvette than he is with Vox; he lets her host parties and livestreams in his studio every Extermination Day , bought her a new phone, and gave her a pat on the head for helping him massacre Butcher Town. He is also surprisingly tolerant of Velvette's hyperactive behavior and is willing to excuse her for making minor mistakes, which he would never do for anyone else. Unlike Vox, he also enjoys watching Velvette brutally torture her victims and even texts her lessons on how to prolong a victim's suffering. Velvette has a habit of poking fun at Val, and the two enjoy joking around with each other and are a rather chaotic, comedic duo when left together.

While Valentino is generally patient with Velvette, not even she is safe from his ire; on one occasion where Valentino got into an argument with Stolas on Voxtagram and was subsequently humiliated by the Goetia prince, he snapped at Velvette and Vox afterward for not getting involved, calling them both "stupid fucks", saying that they were both dead to him, and telling Velvette that the cookies she previously baked for him sucked, purely out of spite, which caused Velvette to cry. Additionally, after Cherri Bomb destroyed the moth's favorite coat, he violently punched Velvette in the back of the head after she cracked a joke about the ruined coat, and angrily yelled at her to shut up when she started crying, and unlike Vox, displays no remorse whenever he makes her cry.

The series' creators have described the relationship between Velvette and Valentino as though Valentino sees Velvette like a pet, and rewards her for doing what he says.

Lucifer Magne

Lucifer is Valentino's king, and business partner, and formerly occasional boss. Valentino initially had a somewhat friendly relationship with the King of Hell, gaining enough trust in Lucifer for the Vees to act as his assassins on occasions, as the King of Hell has tasked them with assassinating the more unruly Overlords who threatened Lucifer's position as the King of Hell. When in his presence, Valentino often treated Lucifer with a seemingly large amount of respect, often calling him "Your Highness", and at one point offered the service of his top workers for the King of Hell's pleasure. It is implied that Lucifer frequented Valentino's studio so that the moth could entertain him. However, Valentino's behavior around the King of Hell is just a façade, as the moth demon actually highly dislikes Lucifer, as he believes that Lucifer views him like a common thug. He is also quite mocking of the King of Hell behind his back, singing a mocking song about Lucifer's fall from Heaven with Vox and Velvette, only to quickly stop when the King o Hell himself appeared for a report.

Regardless of his hidden resentment towards the King of Hell, Valentino fears Lucifer, as he cowered in terror when the King of hell berated him, and was utterly terrified at the price of failing to follow through with Lucifer's orders to demolish the Hazbin Hotel. Regardless, Valentino was bold enough to assume control over the Pride Ring when Lucifer had vanished, and seemed delighted when Velvette brought up the possibly that Lucifer had died.

In Chapter 3, Valentino, Vox, and Velvette manage to get back in Lucifer's good graces after they capture one half of the Happy Hotel crew, although Lucifer still treats the three Overlords very harshly, and makes it clear the only reason he did not kill them was because Satan enlisted their help.

Dia and Summer

Dia and Summer are two lesbian sinners who act as Valentino's top models and henchmen for his crimes. They typically accompany him during visits to his nightclubs, where they are often seen clinging onto Valentino or entertaining other participants of the nightclub. While Valentino is highly attracted to them, he appears to solely view the two as pretty faces, accessories, and sex objects as he often has them kiss and have sex each other for his pleasure. By their own, they seems to be attracted by him for his power and charisma, and generally follow his every command with no questions asked. Particularly, Summer seems very attracted by Valentino's raging outbursts and act as his personal spy.

Queef was a Queef (Hell's version of domesticated dogs) that Valentino once had briefly as a pet. Only a few hours after acquiring it, Valentino shot and killed Queef, claiming he did so because it was annoying him, and fed its remains to Vox's pet shark soon after.

Valentino and Angel Dust have an extremely long, complex, and antagonistic history. Valentino took in Angel as an employee when the struggling spider demon was caught stealing from him. Although the Overlord considered killing him, he saw potential in Angel's looks and lifestyle, and offered him a job as a porn actor and dancer in his studio. He offered to give Angel all the drugs he could have desired, as well as protection from Pentagram City's vagrants and police departments , which Angel, who had been struggling to survive on the streets for years prior, accepted. Angel subsequently became one of the moth's most profitable workers, earning his pimp millions as a result of his work in pornographic films and performances at Valentino's nightclubs.

Regardless of Angel's hard work and earnings, Valentino constantly put Angel down, refusing to show him any genuine affection outside of lustful attraction, and only cared for him as long as he was able to profit off of Angel's body. Incapable of seeing Angel beyond what he meant to him, he viewed the spider only as a slave and sex object who existed only to feed his sexual lust and make him money, constantly having Angel kiss and have sex with him, whether it was consensual or not. The only remotely kind things Valentino has ever done for Angel was buy him clothes, makeup, and gift him Fat Nuggets as a pet to entice Angel in working for him longer.

Throughout his years of service, Valentino physically, emotionally, and sexually abused Angel, often as a form of punishment for his infractions, such as failing to pay him the money he owed him, talking back against him, or being late to photo or film shoots. In addition, Angel's work with Valentino had left him impoverished, as although he earned millions from his films and performances at the moth's nightclubs, Valentino took nearly all of Angel's money for himself, barely giving Angel enough to live in unkempt, low-rent apartments, which resulted in him having to do degrading sex work just to pay his rent. As a result of Valentino's abuse, Angel always seemed to be extremely uncomfortable and shaken by Valentino's presence while serving him. Although Angel typically behaves with a smug and condescending demeanor around other sinners, he was outright submissive whenever Valentino was present, and did not dare say or do anything that would get him on his pimp's bad side. Valentino also displayed a general disregard for Angel's well-being, as he would frequently enlist Angel to do immoral and dangerous jobs for him in exchange for money, such as interrogating and torturing his business rivals, assassinating rival gangs, and attending drug deals, uncaring of the fact that Angel could have been potentially killed, captured, or injured during any of these jobs.

Much like his other workers, Valentino was also extremely possessive of Angel Dust, and expected nothing but loyalty and complete subservience out of him. At some point before the events of the series, Valentino decided to test the loyalty of Angel by kidnapping his best friend, Cherri Bomb, and attempting to have Angel kill her as revenge for her and the Resistance interfering with his businesses. However, Angel refused to murder his friend, and he instead turned his gun onto his pimp. Angered by his treachery, Valentino easily disarmed Angel, had him brutally beaten by his men, and used his beloved pet pig, Fat Nuggets, as a bargaining chip, vowing to kill the pig if Angel ever disobeyed him again. Valentino's mistreatment of Angel was notably so horrific that it was enough to give him some form of PTSD.

Angel Dust had put up with Valentino's mistreatment for so long as he deluded himself into thinking Valentino loved him, but following a particularly bad experience with Valentino and support from Charlie, Vaggie, and Fergus, Angel finally built up the courage to rebel against Valentino. Not only was he brave enough to renounce the pimp by removing his gold tooth, publicly humiliate and insult him in front of Vox and Velvette, but he also struggled against the moth and spat in his face during their confrontation at the Hazbin Hotel. During this confrontation, Valentino went through with his threat and brutally killed Fat Nuggets while forcing Angel to watch helplessly as he did, all as a way to emotionally scar the spider demon and deprive him of the thing he cared about the most. This traumatic event affected Angel so greatly that it caused him to fall into a suicidal depression. After murdering Fat Nuggets, Valentino, in a final gambit, used Angel's own emotional growth as a weapon against him by giving the spider the "generous" offer to go back to working for him at Porn Studios; For coming so far as he had as a person, all it would have resulted in was putting Angel right back in Valentino's studio that he started in and being the pimp's plaything for the rest of his existence, and regardless of if Angel had refused, it would have led to the death of all his friends and broken him completely.

In Chapter 3, Valentino and Angel Dust have a much more openly hostile relationship, as a result of the events of Chapter 1 and Angel no longer working for the moth. When they first encountered each other in Purgatory, Angel once again spat in Valentino's face and cursed him for killing Fat Nuggets, but Valentino merely brushed Angel's comment off by saying that he killed his own pet and lost no sleep over it. When Angel and the others refused to reveal the location of Heaven's Light (partially because they did not know it at that time), Valentino and his two associates sent Angel and the rest of the Vaggie's team to be tortured for information by Lucifer. While Angel was imprisoned by the King of Hell, Valentino approached the spider demon and offered him his job back, although Angel claimed he was aware of Valentino's manipulation tactics and would never fall for them again.

After the eight year timeskip, the Vees attempted to prevent the Happy Hotel crew from activating Baxter's portal so that they could use it to escape Purgatory. This led to a personal showdown between Angel Dust and Valentino in Baxter's laboratory, starting when Angel prevented Valentino from murdering one of the seven angel children. During the ensuing struggle, Valentino angrily shot Angel in one of his lower arms, completely and permanently severing Angel's lower left arm. With Angel wounded, Valentino attempted to appeal to Angel, saying that he was willing to forgive him, although only on the condition that he make it up to him by abandoning the Happy Hotel crew and going back to his job as a prostitute. However, a bloodied and bruised Angel angrily snapped at Valentino, calling his years with Valentino a "joke", and daring the moth demon to kill him. Valentino happily loaded his gun to kill Angel, claiming that he was almost willing to cruelly spare Angel by leaving him in his miserable state. However, before Valentino could fire, Angel was swooped into the arms of the seven angel children, who then flew Angel out of Baxter's lab, while Valentino was left in Baxter's crumbling lab.

Nonetheless, Valentino persisted in his attempts to compel Angel Dust to come back to him. Following Vox's suggestion, Valentino resorted to using Angel Dust's soul contract as a means to inflict excruciating pain and essentially subject him to constant torture. Valentino sadistically refused to stop the pain unless Angel came crawling back to him. In spite of Valentino's relentless efforts, Angel eventually found liberation from Valentino's contract with the intervention of Alastor. Taking matters into his own hands, Alastor confronted the Vees at Klub Kaiju and employed an unexpected champion to challenge Vark, the Vees' champion. Leveraging his champion's unthreatening nature, Alastor cunningly deceived the Vees into betting Angel's contract, exploiting their arrogance to his advantage. Valentino was expectedly left apoplectic at this.

Cherri Bomb

Cherri Bomb and Valentino had an intense hatred for each other. Cherri loathed Valentino for having abused her best friend Angel Dust, and she made a hobby out of blowing up billboards and other advertisements with the moth's face and business involved, as well as deliberately provoking him by sabotaging his arms businesses and dealings with his associates, often leaving the Overlord greatly enraged. At one point, Valentino's underlings managed to capture Cherri when she attempted to sabotage his businesses again, and the moth decided to take advantage of the situation by attempting to have Angel murder her out of vengeance, having taken a notice of him having been seen with her. It was clear that Angel's friendship with Cherri was much stronger than any loyalty he had with Valentino, as he refused to kill her and instead turned his gun on Valentino, although the moth demon easily disarmed him. Valentino then tortured Cherri by letting his men have their way with her, and then set her free, but made it clear that he only freed her so that he could continue tormenting her by abusing Angel and leaving her with no way to prevent her best friend's mistreatment.

Even after this intimidation tactic, Cherri Bomb refused to stand by and let her friend be mistreated, and continued to provoke Valentino, resulting in the moth demon frequently sending his subordinates and the Pentagram City Police Department out to attack her and the Resistance fighters, although she always managed to fight them off or escape, albeit with a few minor injuries. Valentino later captured Cherri again to lure Angel Dust and the Happy Hotel crew into a trap, and during her imprisonment delighted in tormenting her with Vox. Despite this, Cherri ultimately managed to free herself and aided Angel and the hotel crew in Valentino's temporary defeat.

Charlie Magne

Charlie and Valentino have very little in the way of interaction with each other, but it is clear that they mutually dislike each other. Valentino frequently mocks and laughs at the princess' ideas to redeem sinners so that they can ascend to Heaven, as seen when he laughed mockingly while watching her pitch of the Happy Hotel on the 666 News, and when he laughed raucously and called her a "dumbass bimbo" for believing that any sinner would want to go to Heaven, much less become a better person. When the Vees ambushed the Happy Hotel crew after luring them into Butcher Town, Valentino attempted to kill Charlie by shooting her with his revolver whilst the princess was tending to her injured bodyguards Razzle and Dazzle, although Valentino's attempted murder was foiled by Angel and Cherri Bomb, the former of which shoved Charlie out of the way and took the bullet for her (although said bullet fortunately merely injured Angel Dust by hitting his leg), and the latter of whom hurled a bomb at Valentino, knocking him to the ground and destroying his coat.

Valentino appeared to have a lustful obsession with Vaggie, despite her utterly despising him. Despite her rocky relationship with Angel, Vaggie was physically disgusted by Valentino and the mistreatment Angel was put through during his years of serving him, and went out of her way to comfort Angel several times, as she also knew what is was like to be sexually abused and manipulated by someone . On Valentino's side, he is lustfully attracted to Vaggie while at the same time expressing his disappointment of her for associating with the Happy Hotel, believing her to be nothing more than Charlie's sidekick. When the Vees launched their attack on the Hazbin Hotel, Valentino ordered Velvette to spare Vaggie as he wanted to make a worker out of her.

Although Valentino has expressed interest in having Alastor as a business partner or potential lover, as he claimed the Radio Demon would grow to like him and Vox if he had joined forces with them, Alastor clearly abhors Valentino, rejecting his offers to forge a partnership, and openly refers to the moth as a "pest" and a "bug". Alastor is also repulsed by his constant preying on his workers and Hell's downtrodden denizens, which even a sadistic serial killer like himself considers "distasteful". The Radio Demon also dislikes Valentino simply for his association with Vox, who is Alastor's rival. In their first on-screen interaction, Valentino attempted to flirt with the Radio Demon following his confrontation with Vox, to which he threatened to dismember Valentino if he continued his advances.

Despite the clear tension between the two and Alastor evidently being leagues above him in terms of power, the Radio Demon is still fully aware that the pimp is a dangerous threat with a lot of connections, especially since he is allied with Vox and Pentagram City's strongest Overlords, Vox. As a result, he avoids direct confrontations with Valentino unless it involves defending the Happy Hotel or its staff.

As shown on their Voxtagram accounts, Valentino had a very contemptuous relationship with the Goetia prince Stolas, with the two frequently getting into arguments. Valentino ridiculed Stolas for his relationship with an imp , and mocked the Goetic prince by calling him a "dried-up old man" who had no one to truly love him, while Stolas often insulted Valentino's pride as well as his attempts to be intimidating.

Sir Pentious

Sir Pentious longed for the attention and respect of Valentino, as well as the other Vees. Regardless, Valentino constantly ignored and rebuffed Pentious, and, like much of Hell's populace, took pleasure in mocking the snake demon openly by calling him an "old man".

Quotes Pertaining to Valentino

• Valentino is an Italian name that means "brave" and/or "strong". It can also mean "a ladies' man", which is fitting given his position as a sugar daddy.
• His theme song would be "Hey, Little Songbird" from Hadestown .
• This version of Valentino is an Italian-American, whereas the canon version of the character has been stated to be Hispanic.
• He is one of the few sinners that goes by his original human name even after being reborn in Hell .
• He does not like cheese.
• In "When Worlds Collide", Asmodeus claims that Valentino is "obsessed" with him and replicates his fashion style out of fanboyism.
• He named his primary revolver Moneyshot.
• He owns a fashion company called Valentino's Secret .
• Valentino's blood and flesh are a hot pink color.
• Valentino is surprisingly a talented artist and enjoys painting and making sculptures - of himself, of course.
• Valentino and Vox have their own brand of candy called V&Vs, which is a clear parody of M&Ms.
• The license plate on Valentino's limo reads "$EXXXY".
• Valentino is very attracted to bright lights, as shown by all of the neon lights and signs displayed in Porn Studios and his nightclubs, and his implied obsession with lamps. This is obviously in part due to his motif as a moth demon.
• As shown on his Voxtagram account, Valentino used to own a Queef lazily named Queef , before killing it mere hours after acquiring it as it was supposedly annoying him.
• Velvette has implied that Valentino often supplies Lucifer with sex toys for his "meetings" with Lilith Magne .
• One of Velvette's Voxtagram stories implies that whenever Valentino gets drunk, he makes out with lamps and tries to have sex with them. Given the way said story was worded, it is possible that she was only saying this to tease him.
• Valentino appears to really like fast food, as he, Vox, and Velvette frequently eat at WackDonald's (Hell's answer to McDonald's that is owned by Wally Wackford ), and in one episode, he storms off to eat there when he's angry.
• 2 Angel Dust
• 3 Charlie Magne

5 things to know about the Mississippi Flyway as spring bird migration begins

Dale Gentry speaks in almost reverential terms about a birding experience he had back in 2002 in La Crosse's Hixon Forest.

It was the height of spring migration on the Mississippi Flyway, a migration route that follows the Mississippi River . Birds were "dripping" off the trees, he recalls, resplendent, foraging for food and singing. Gentry, now director of conservation for Audubon's Minnesota, Iowa and Missouri region, couldn't move his binoculars fast enough, but there were fellow birders all around him willing to share which species they'd spotted.

"'Oh, what did you just see?' 'Someone just saw this over there!'" he describes the conversations. "It is just one of the best things, that brings me back to birding every year."

Spring migration is underway along the flyway, making the river and its floodplain a hotspot for waterfowl and soon-to-arrive songbirds.

The Mississippi plays a critical role guiding these birds across the country and providing them habitat to rest. Here's everything you need to know about this important flyway — and when and where to see the birds amid their long journey.

What is the Mississippi River flyway, and which birds use it?

The Mississippi Flyway is a migration route along the Mississippi, Missouri and lower Ohio rivers that birds take each spring and fall to make their way between their breeding grounds in Canada and their winter homes in the Gulf of Mexico and Central and South America.

It's one of four flyways in the U.S. The others are the Central Flyway, the Pacific Flyway and the Atlantic Flyway.

More than 325 bird species use the Mississippi Flyway each year, including sparrows, warblers, owls, ducks, plovers, cranes, chickadees and many more. It's estimated that roughly 40% of waterfowl and shorebirds in North America use the flyway.

Where do they come from, and where are they going?

Waterfowl typically winter in the southern and southeastern U.S., about as far south as the Gulf of Mexico, Gentry said. When they migrate along the river, they're headed to the Prairie Pothole region of Canada, western Minnesota and the Dakotas. Some species, including wood ducks, buffleheads and mergansers, will stay in the forested areas of Wisconsin and Minnesota to nest in tree cavities.

More: For Wisconsin birders, 2023 was a year of ‘celebrity’ sightings

Many songbird species, by contrast, make much farther journeys, flying from Central and South America. They migrate at night and pay close attention to atmospheric pressure to decide when to travel, Gentry said, preferring pressure systems with no storms or clouds. Once in the air, they can fly around 200 miles per night before stopping to rest and recharge for a few days.

It's "every birder's dream" to be in the right spot when a massive flock of colorful songbirds arrive, exhausted, to hang out for a bit, Gentry said.

Why do birds like the Mississippi River?

Just like many of us humans have memorized landmarks that chart the route between our homes and certain familiar places, birds use the Mississippi River as a guide to help them travel south to north and vice versa, Gentry said.

Birds that migrate elsewhere use mountain ranges or the coasts as guides, but in the middle of the country, there's no better visual marker than the Mississippi, he said.

It also comes with a valuable added bonus: reliable habitat to stop and rest in. Despite the massive changes the river floodplain has undergone as cities have developed around it, there's still water and a ribbon of forest alongside it in many places that make it an attractive place to rest and refuel, Gentry said.

More: The Mississippi River's floodplain forests are dying. The race is on to bring them back.

More: What to know about the aggressive grass taking over forests along the upper Mississippi River

Although all species seem to appreciate it, there are some birds that are particularly attached. The prothonotary warbler, for example — a bright yellow songbird named for the yellow robes worn by papal clerks in the Roman Catholic church — enjoy big, old forests surrounded by floodwaters, Gentry said. In southeast Minnesota and southwest Wisconsin they're abundant along the Mississippi, but birders elsewhere in the state will rarely see them.

How could climate change, habitat loss and light pollution affect birds on their journey?

The crucial habitat the flyway offers is facing a series of threats. At Audubon, Gentry said, there's concern about what scientists call "phenological mismatch." In other words, birds are genetically cued to leave the south when the weather warms, and they arrive in the north when insects emerge and trees bud.

But climate change is throwing off the timing of those events.

More: Gone barely a month, migrating birds are making their way back to Wisconsin already

As winters and springs warm up , data is showing birds are arriving a little sooner than they were historically, Gentry said. The idea that the early bird gets the worm holds true here — birds want to arrive to their final destination as early as possible to claim the best breeding grounds. The danger is that the weather could fluctuate and a spring cold snap could kill off tree buds and insects that the birds need to eat, eventually causing them to die.

The river's floodplain forests are also struggling. Between 1891 and 1989, the upper Mississippi and Illinois rivers  lost nearly half  of their floodplain forest cover due to urban and agricultural land use, as well as changes to the way the water flowed  after locks and dams were installed in the 1930s .

Those losses have accelerated in the last few decades, both because of climate change and land use changes. A warmer atmosphere holds more moisture,  which can produce more intense rainfall . Longer-lasting floods, including a massive one in 2019 in which the river was above flood stage for more than 100 days, are killing off the trees.  

More: High water and prolonged flooding are changing the ecosystem of the Upper Mississippi River, a new report finds

Light pollution has also been a threat to birds, particularly during their migration journeys. Birds orient in part by the moon and the stars, Gentry said, making them attracted to light. Bright urban environments can draw them in, and it can be deadly: nearly 1,000 birds died one night during migration last fall when they flew into a Chicago building on the shore of Lake Michigan.

Audubon urges people to turn out all unnecessary lights during spring and fall migration, Gentry said, and even think about dimming necessary ones during times of peak bird traffic.

"Birds are a great entry point for understanding how humans impact the environment," he said. "They respond so quickly to all the changes we make."

When and where is the best place to see them?

Spring migration starts in earnest in April as waterfowl move north, Gentry said, arriving on the river by the tens of thousands.

Songbirds start to arrive in early to mid-May, sometimes in groups so large they can be tracked on weather radar. The best time to catch them is in the early morning, from sunrise until about 10 a.m., when they're moving around and actively feeding.

During this time frame, there's not really a bad spot along the river to be to see a bunch of birds, Gentry said, particularly public lands. He suggested Wyalusing State Park near Prairie du Chien, Hixon Forest and Goose Island in the La Crosse area, and anywhere on the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge, which protects thousands of acres of river floodplain between Wabasha, Minnesota, and Rock Island, Illinois.

More: Upper Mississippi national wildlife refuge, which saved the floodplain from being turned into farmland, turns 100

Of course, there'll be another opportunity for bird watching when fall migration rolls around — typically the flashier of the two, Gentry said, because the birds that came in the spring have had babies, meaning almost twice as many birds make the journey back south.

But he prefers getting out in the spring. The birds are in their breeding plumage and are often singing to attract a mate.

"It brings hope, thinking about the journey those birds made," Gentry said, "and how much they overcame to be there."

Madeline Heim is a  Report for America  corps reporter who writes about environmental issues in the Mississippi River watershed and across Wisconsin. Contact her at (920) 996-7266 or  [email protected] .

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In-Depth: A local man shares his journey away from the streets. From Homeless to Homeowner

A Rancho Mirage man is now living a life he says is beyond his wildest dreams because he's no longer homeless.

Ronny Bailey was living on the streets of Palm Springs for five years after what he says were a series of unfortunate events that sent him spiraling into homelessness.

But today, he again has a home of his own and wants to share his story of how he got his life back together so he can help others do the same. 

Bailey said, "For me, that glass was always half full, not half empty. I never lost hope, and maybe that's where I gained the strength to be here today."

Bailey says his journey back from the streets started with him getting sober, and then securing housing through DAP Health in Palm Springs.

With that progress, he was then able to get a full-time job.

Bailey added, "I never lost hope. When I was finally willing to accept help, the doors started opening up." 

Bailey is now working full-time and recently purchased his own home in Rancho Mirage.

Hear from his friends who say he's inspired them, and from a DAP Health peer support specialist Bailey says made all the difference in regaining his life.

You can see more of this story on Thursday.

Watch From Homeless to Homeowner at 6:00 p.m. on KESQ News Channel 3 with coverage starting at 4:00 p.m.

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From darkness to light: a Vancouver woman’s harrowing tale of abuse and survival is told in a new book

By John Ackermann

Posted April 27, 2024 11:58 am.

Rumana Monzur likes to say she lost her sight but gained her vision. In 2011, the Vancouver woman made headlines around the world when, on a return trip to Bangladesh, she was left blinded by a vicious attack by her then-husband. Today, she is the subject of a powerful new biography.

Author Denise Chong says she spent six and a half years writing Out of Darkness: Rumana Monzur’s Journey Through Betrayal, Tyranny, and Abuse .

Chong says she wanted to go beyond the headlines to tell the real story.

John Ackermann sits down with Denise Chong, author of Out of Darkness

“It attracted just as much attention even in Metro Vancouver as in Bangladesh, India, [and] the UK, because of not just the brutality of that attack, but who it happened to.”

Related articles:

• Courage to Come Back: Physical Rehabilitation recipient survives spousal abuse, advocates victims
• Husband of blinded UBC student dies in jail: report

Monzur was born in Bangladesh in 1978. She falls in love with Sumon and their romance blossoms into a “love” marriage. He was sophisticated, educated, and westernized. But practically overnight, his demeanour and behaviour towards her changes.

“The romance was a textbook case of what ultimately leads to domestic assault — a very quick romance, a quick marriage, then suddenly, things change,” said Chong.

Despite his objections, Monzur continued her academic career. She was a professor on leave from Dhaka University, enrolled in grad school at UBC, when she mustered the courage to leave him. She flew back home to tell him she wanted a divorce.

Her husband attacked her in front of their young daughter, gouging out her eyes and biting off part of her nose, leaving her blind and in need of reconstructive surgery. It took police days to arrest him. Even then, he never stood trial for his crime, instead, dying in custody.

“People said when I went back to do the research, if a professor at Dhaka University, if Rumana Monzur couldn’t get justice, how can women even have the courage to come forward?”

There were long hours spent interviewing Monzur, of course, but also a trip to Bangladesh, where Rumana’s story began.

“And there I sought out those close to her — family, relatives, colleagues. I also sought out human rights activists, journalists, doctors, and NGO people to understand how Rumana could live a decade as a professor and no one in her immediate family had an inkling that she was suffering domestic abuse until it came to the near-deadly assault.”

Chong says the book was started because Monzur wanted a record of what happened.

“She wanted her daughter to know what had happened to her mother, to document it, and know that her mother was not just a victim, that she had come out of it. But she was afraid that her daughter would just forget all that and then not have it in her memory.”

Today, Chong is happy to report that Rumana is a lawyer living in Vancouver, and her daughter is all grown up.

“Her daughter was just accepted to go to UBC, so she feels like she’s anchored her daughter well. Her daughter is now 18.”

Chong says Rumana continues to defend other victims of abuse.

“She wants to be an advocate now and she is. She is a strong voice.”

Chong hopes the reader takes away a hopeful, encouraging message from Monzur’s story.

“Someone [told her], ‘You’re a superhero. It’s just that your cape’s invisible.'”

Out of Darkness is a harrowing tale of survival that shows domestic abuse can happen to anyone, regardless of their background or station in life. Monzur’s story is also an example of the resilience of the human spirit in the face of the most devastating of circumstances.

Out of Darkness: Rumana Monzur’s Journey Through Betrayal, Tyranny, and Abuse is published by Random House Canada.

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