Does Pancake Mix Go Bad? The Ultimate Guide to Its Durability and Shelf Life

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On September 26th 2003 known as outbreak day. The cordyceps infection went haywire within days the global pandemic of the cordyceps fungus resulted in the collapse of modern civilization. In the prelude epidemiologist Dr Newman explained how the cordyceps would infect insects like ants first infesting their bloodstream then reaching their brains. There it would flood them with hallucinogens that would manipulate the host’s will and lead them to do as the fungus desired. The epidemiologists specified that the fungus differed greatly from viruses in that its aim was to control not to kill in particular he noted how cordyceps would replace its host skin with its own. It then prevented decomposition so that the host remained alive and served its need to spread its spores to other non-infected animals foreshadowing organisms to come. Newman also prophesied that the fungus would evolve to be able infect humans as a result of rising atmospheric temperatures. He believed this would lead to mutations and adaptations enabling cordyceps to tolerate the increased heat within its environment. whereas the human internal body temperature had previously been too high for the fungus. These evolutionary changes would enable it to find a new source of nutrients and propagation through humanity. In 2003 Newman’s prediction became a reality. On September 23th three days before the outbreak day. The cordyceps brain infection emerged in Jakarta. The first sign of its spread was noticed at a flowering factory grain factory. There its deadly symptoms were observed in one of the workers and three others whom she’d violently attacked and infected an additional 14 workers that went missing triggering panic amongst the military and health officials of Indonesia. Despite warnings by Dr ratna perturi to contain the outbreak through drastic measures Jakarta’s role in international flower and grain distribution led to contaminated products such as bread cereal and pancake mix being distributed internationally. The products hit supermarkets in the U.S Australia Canada south America and parts of Europe on Thursday September 25th. People are consumed enough of the contaminated products over the following day soon became and were admitted on mass to emergency rooms quickly overwhelming hospitals. Joel Sarah and Tommy avoided having flower-based products such as pancakes biscuits cookies and cake on outbreak day. Whereas their neighbors the Adlers are seen making and consuming the food before their infection. The fungus then began influencing the behavior of the infected triggering them to start violently attacking people in an effort to spread the infection. The outbreak manifested on September 26th with large numbers of infected attacking and killing or infecting many people around them. By the early hours of the next day the government declared a state of national emergency and mobilized the federal disaster response agency the united states military and local law enforcement to halt the spread of the infection in Austin Texas where our story with Joel and his family begins. The military blocked the highway leading away from the city and set up a base for residents to flee to the city erupted into chaos police cars rushed to key areas setting up roadblocks to contain citizens believed to be infected only for the infected to ever run them. Gas leaks then spread causing explosions that set most buildings ablaze and with no firefighters left in Austin and all the major cities continued to burn for weeks. By September 30th only small remote towns and locations in the countryside were free of high numbers of infected to prevent the quarantine zones from being overwhelmed by cordyceps federal officials sent out to these areas and retrieve survivors to boost their numbers often against their will. in Lincoln Massachusetts the Military rounded up the town’s citizens for evacuation to nearby Boston where fedra had established a quarantine zone. However when they realized they’d run out of space the soldiers immediately executed all of the evacuees and left their bodies in a mass grave only a single resident named bill survived the massacre hiding in his bunker after correctly deducing the fate that would befall the other town’s people. Joel would also later reveal to Willie that federer in the military justified the executions by saying that killing them would prevent them from becoming infected. The cordyceps brain infection known as CBI is basically a parasitic fungal infection that devastated the human body upon entering the bloodstream it caused a number of symptoms including coughing slurred speech muscle spasms and mood changes during the progression of the infection until it completely took over higher brain function. Victims became animalistic hyper aggressive and unable to reason or think rationally relying solely on the walk basic instinct to feed leading to a desire to spread the infection to as many people as physically possible. The fungus has also been shown to be capable of restoring physical functions to deficient hosts for example when an injured person is infected they regain some of their movement even including the ability to run. Using their height sense of smell dogs are capable of detecting the fungus within a human before the fungal infection develops symptoms. While the outbreak began due to contaminated food the infection multiplied exponentially as a result of bites and scratches from the infected the transmitted tainted blood. The time the victim has before transforming depended on where they were infected a bite on the neck face or head would transform them in 5 to 15 minutes infection on the torso arm shoulder hands gave them two to eight hours whereas bites on the legs or feet took about 12 to 24 hours to ever run the host. The fungus also grew underground with an extensive system of nerve-like fibers growing for miles connecting all the infected together like a hive mind. This meant that disturbing one patch of cordyceps could alert another with a horde of infected waking up for breakfast. It’s also important to note that as a parasite that needed a Live host to live. The cordyceps fungus was unable to infect dead tissue or cells. The cordyceps brain infection created multiple variants of infected. The infected are basically humans that have been altered by the cordyceps brain infection and subsequently mutated into horrific new forms in the last of us. Once infected the host would suffer extreme symptoms the fungus that eventually hijacked the motor functions and took control of the body turning them violently aggressive they were then compelled to attack and infect other people in order to spread the infection. When in passive mode Many of the infected tended to lie down allowing the fungus to emanate from their body it gradually then attaches them to the environment creating a breeding ground for cordyceps until until they eventually die and sprouted more spores according to Joel the passive poles have infected tend to only appear in highly populated areas like cities with the countryside being too remote for large numbers to gather. indeed the remote town of Lincoln only had the occasional wandering infected however not every infected remained passive while most go on to die and become a permanent breathing ground a rare few continued to evolve further because of the continued development of fungal growth throughout the body especially around the face the infected eventually go blind as the fungus grows over or outright destroys their eyes to compensate for this the infected in later stages of evolution develop the heightened sense of echolocation generating croaking and clicking noises to detect sounds and objects in their environment throughout season one we’ve seen a number of variants that highlights the different staged of evolution from the runner the stalker the clicker to the bloater. Runners to those in the early stages of infection still resembling humans their eyes are bloodshot and dilated and clusters of veins can be seen pulsating through their skin most notably dozens of slende
r tendrils form from mycelium Will begin to emerge from the mouth it is through these tendrils that they spread the infection to other humans as people under the control of the cordyceps fungus these infected exhibit animalistic behavior akin to creatures infected with rabies because the fungus hijack their motor controls they often displayed violent muscle spasms they also scream and gasp heavily especially after spotting prey highly aggressive and active they’re compelled by the fungus to attack non-infected humans. This urge removes any sense of self-preservation causing them to Sprint and leap at their target even if it led to self-injury or even death. They essentially will not stop until they take down their target or are taken down in the pursuit of uninfected individuals. While they are a terrifying sight to behold their feral nature does make them predictable this meant it was easy to kill them with traps weapons fire and clever engineering. The stalkers of the infected in the stage of transformation somewhat resembling humans and just as aggressive as the runner the stalkers who are a bit more durable stronger and physically more capable than their counterparts a notable difference is that the high fae of the fungus grows under the skin creating noticeable bumps in grooves. Fungal plates also emerge from the skin along with an unknown green discharge their eyes and skin then turn yellow presumably a sign that the fungus has destroyed the liver the most notable characteristics of this date however is that the fungus explodes out of the eyes in a truly disfiguring and horrific fashion. A clicker is a person that has been infected for a longer period of time leading to further horrific mutations due to the advanced fungal growth on their brains their skull splits in two in order make space for continued growth horrifically this process left their faces completely skewed and scarred with only a more of jagged teeth remaining. the blindness that results from the excessive fungal growth led the clickers to develop a rudimentary form of echolocation to see their surroundings from which they get their name by this point whatever clothes the host may have been wearing are mostly tattered and destroyed and unlike the previous two stages this later form lacks the fungal tendrils in their mouths. Clickers have large patches of rashes all over their body as well as small fungal growths creating large-scale-like tissue on the exterior especially around the neck and shoulders they also have enhanced strength and durability in the show a clicker took multiple gunshots to the body Joel’s rifle while another still had the strength and durability to not test back at this hacked into its armor-plated head with an axe. Despite this they could be killed by a good shot to the head or enough blunt force trauma that compares to thick fungus protecting the infected brain. they can generally be found croaking and whining limping around their space while waiting for a sound to hijack their focus. when they do hear a noise they immediately run toward the sound without hesitation fast agile and extremely athletic once they’ve found their target their go-to attackers to disarm their prey through savagery. If you thought the clicker was bad bloaters are an even rarer and far more advanced stage of infected to succeed the clicker stage taking the longest to evolve because the house had to be strong enough to survive the extensive infection the bloater is the most powerful and largest known variant seen in the show so far enormous in size they easily tower over the humans and infected around them. Here the fungus is grown to an excessive degree causing the body to bloat and create fungal plates that act as biological body armor. This fungal tank is able to withstand barrages of bullets from assault rifles before using their incredible strength to literally rip people in half despite their immense size and strength they are noticably slower than the earlier infected ferrans who can easily out run them and unlike the lesser infected who merely wanted to spread cordyceps bloaters do not seem to be compelled to do so their goal is solely to outright defend the country says by killing anything that pose a threat to the hive. Even after an infected individual is tied the fungus will continue to grow consuming the mass to form a fruiting body. the process causes the corpse to become brittle fusing the remains of surfaces as it continued to grow a sufficient time passed the fruiting body became a must that could fill into high structures with deadly fungal growth the color of pasty human flesh in the game this would then release spores that infect humans who breathe them in which is why survivors had to use gas masks to prevent this both of the spores in the fruiting body do end up quickly dying when exposed to sunlight though limiting the danger they presented. In the ashes of the old world new factions and tribes emerged vying for both power and survival from the United States military the federal disaster response agency the fireflies the Kansas City resistance raiders cannibals communes to fractured survivors. In 2003 the military were deployed by the U.S government with assistance of fedra in response to the chaos erupting from the outbreak of the cordyceps brain infection. In Austin they were deployed along the river and highway in Travis county to keep all potentially infected people out of uninfected terms. One soldier was guarding the river when he spotted Joel Miller carrying his daughter Sarah while running away from an infected man. Despite killing the infected and saving their lives upon getting orders to shoot everyone as the uninfected zones couldn’t accommodate anymore survivors. He opened fire on the pair mortally wounding Sarah. On the day after the outbreak the army created emergency medical camps within cities they managed to gain control over. Here they worked to treat people had been injured or wounded during the chaos including Joel who was transported to a triage unit after his failed attempt to end his life as the military began establishing formal zones of containment in the cities the bases were abandoned in favor of more secure medical facilities according to Joel they used massive plows to clear banning cars from highways to enable tank and military convoys to kill the infected and establish more quarantine zones. by 2023 the military had been significantly reduced in size and largely merged with the federal disaster response agency as the only remaining remnants of the U.S government heavily armed and dangerous they make use of helicopters armored vehicles and equipment believed to be supplied to them by the remaining government manufacturing centers such as a factory in the Atlantic quarantine zone. The soldiers are charged with creating and running the quarantine zones keeping the remaining population safe from infection by any means necessary under federal authority the military run the qcs with an iron fist executing dissidents such as the fireflies and any rule breakers under emergency powers granted during the outbreak. They still remain a powerful adversary evidence in their continued control of large settlements in Boston and Atlanta even Marlene admitted the military in fedra are winning the war against the fireflies. The federal disaster response agency known as fedra is basically a totalitarian government agency. After the cordyceps brain infection ravaged to the united states in 2003. fedra in conjunction with the military was tasked with managing the outbreak and preserving society. Fedra subsequently replaced a civilian political leadership and other state organs of the U.S government. They utilize the military’s significant capabilities to set up fortified quarantine zones in major population centers across the United States separating the remaining population from the hordes of infected that roamed the nation. These zones are heavily defended and policed with massive walls surrounding the perimeter. This was coupled with a routine foot vehicle and helicopter patrols to deter survivors from sneaking in or out. In the
years since the outbreak federal civilians wishing to gain residency in the quarantine zones to be chemically cleansed and check for any signs of cordyceps infection. Those who failed the inspection or tested positive were immediately killed either by gunshot or lethal injection before their bodies were subsequently burnt to halt the spread of infection to promote security and stability in the zone fedra and the military established numerous checkpoints that residents had to regularly go through. Citizens in federal detention are supposed to be guaranteed the right to a lawyer medical attention a family visit plus food and water but Kathleen implied these rights were not always given at least within the notorious Kansas City quarantine zone. This led Kathleen and her brother to form the Kansas City resistance and overthrow federal in their region. it’s explained that federal allowed civilians like Joel and Tess volunteer for work and earn extra ration cards. These duties usually involve physical labor from burning dead bodies street sweeping cleaning sewer systems scrubbing subversive graffiti off city walls or helping with outside work duties at least in areas firmly under their control the group would also apparently expand and contract the size of quarantine service based on the CERN population for example the Boston Frederick garrison was actually in the process of clearing repairing and opening several city blocks of new housing for residents since the population was growing and housing was scarce according to Henry around five years after the establishment of the cuisine Kansas City fedra began a clearing operation that successfully drove the infected population completely underground. They continued to keep the surface clear of infected in and outside of the city for 15 years before the zone fell however their tyrannical actions quickly Drew discontent from CERN residents and outsiders inspiring the formation of the militia group known as the fireflies. The fireflies are the main revolutionary militia group in the last of us that revolted against a military oppression intending to restore democratic government control. prior to 2023 the fireflies formed under the leadership of Marlene in response to the military’s inadequate solutions to the cordyceps brain infection. The militia gew tired of fedra’s repressive tactics and suppression of civil rights and they aimed to restore pre-outbreak democracy through repressive tactics and suppression of civil rights the irony is strong with this group they also blame fedra discontinuing research into a cure leading them to create campaigns at overthrowing the reishi in quarantine zones across the nation of course the fighting between the two was largely responsible for the collapse of multiple areas including the Pittsburgh quarantine zone bearing the fireflies could beat them and cause the chaos to erupt in the zones federal established military schools to take orphans helped train the next generation of cadets. Fedra in the military designated them as a terrorist organization and openly Hunted them in the quarantine zones after discovering that Ellie was immune they tasked Joel with snuggling her out of the quarantine zone and back into the hands of the militia. The Kansas City resistance also referred to as revolutionaries or rebels or another hostile revolutionary group we discussed earlier. Based in Kansas City the comprised of former quarantine zone residents the turn to banditry as supplies dwindled after the cordyceps brain infection outbreak federal and the military established a quarantine zone in Kansas City to protect its remaining non-infected citizens however unrest and discontent crew with their oppressive rule. This was because fedra limited the food supply and turned people against one another through blackmail torture and enforce collaboration their tyranny culminated in Michael forming a resistance group to drive them away from the city. Michael provided a code for the group to follow with their intent goal being freedom from tyranny and oppression and the pursuit of a free and peaceful society as a result of the starring rebellion the military began restricting rations further especially drugs and medicines for the sick forcing them to turn against the resistance. This led to Henry informing federal officials where Michael was hiding to secure medication for his ill brother sam. Michael subsequently captured tortured and executed kicking stuff into overdrive his sister Kathleen would then launch an open war against fedra in the military and after reclaiming the city the resistance captured federal soldiers and enacted their own revenge fueling the vicious cycle of violence hate revenge and retribution that seems to consume most survivors in the wasteland over the following 10 days the resistance group turned the city into their own dictatorship with the militia raiding several homes and attacking citizens to find Henry and the other collaborators. Perry also established guards around the city perimeter to prevent from leaving the city and also to wham bush and steal supplies from any survivors that wandered in. This puts their sights on Joel eille when they make their way through the city scattered between fedra the fireflies and the Kansas City resistance are raiders cannibals commute and other survivors doing what they can to endure after the outbreak several people that avoided infection become reclusive and paranoid about fedra’s efforts to offer them protection and quarantine zones many refused to join and instead established their own independent and nomadic survivalist groups by 2010 their supplies began to run out leading them to transform into hostile raiders that took advantage of other smaller groups. This aspiration was shared by a religious group led by a menacing creature named David that Ellie Force to defeat. David formed the congregation in 2017 after the Pittsburgh quarantine zone collapsed. He believed the cordyceps brain infection caused an apocalypse similar to the one predicted in the Christian faith and prophesied in the book of revelations. The congregation struggled to settle in a single location constantly facing attacks from raiders however they did manage to settle in the silver lake holiday resort in the mountains of Colorado some time before the winter of 2023. There they would all meet in touch kitchen diner to eat and pray together with David regularly holding sermons for the group and preaching his interpretation of the Bible by the winter that year the deep snow and lack of animals to hunt LED David to decide the group had to resort to cannibalism to survive. Unbeknownst to his congregation he and his men began feeding their people the bodies of their debt in addition to capturing and murdering any travelers they encountered for food that is of until they are brought down by Joel and particularly Ellie. Offering alternative to fedra the fireflies and the oppressive regimes of All the other groups a commue was formed in Jackson Wyoming devoted to non-hostile collaboration and support in this community supply sharing trust and doing one’s part with the biggest principles by the winter 2023 the group had grown to around 300 strong but still kept their isolationist weight preferring to keep their successful lifestyle a secret. they then began forming a reputation as brutal survivors to deter others from taking what they built. It goes without saying that Ellie Williams and Joel Miller are the central survivors and focal point of both the game and television series. After losing his only daughter Sarah during the early stages of the outbreak Joel and his brother Tommy became hardened survivors in a post-apocalyptic America. Quite often they did anything and everything they needed to do to survive which included harming innocent people something that weighs heavy on their mind. Miller found his way into becoming a skilled black market smuggler in the Boston quarantine sir aided by his amazing weapons melee combat and survival skills. Tasked with protecting the 14 year old girl and transporting her to the fireflies he learns that she w
as immune and held the key to creating a cure. When he finally Tommy at the commune the initial reason he accepted the job of transporting Ellie. He’s so unsure of himself that he even begs his brother to take her the rest of the way. At Joel’s hut he’s a fatherly figure with an inherently protective nature over those he cares for one with the proclivity for driving him to darkness and violence when control is taken from him. After losing Sarah he felt as though he’d lost his purpose for living and began to close off emotionally from others that was until he was tasked with protecting and transporting Ellie Williams. Born to Anna Williams in 2009 it was bitten on the thigh by an infected woman as she gave birth Ellie was exposed to cordyceps through the umbilical cord but did not develop any symptoms. The transferred antibodies and enzymes from her mother unlike blade who suffered a similar fate she doesn’t have any enhanced powers or anything and can in fact still be torn apart by the infected and his friend Marlene found the two and after promising to keep Ellie safe killed Anna before she turned. During the next 14 years Ellie grew up in a federal military school as an orphan in the Boston QC until she was handed over to Joel for protection and transportation of course the fireflies didn’t realize how seriously Joel would take this role. Although initially trying to keep a distance at least enthusiasm to finish the mission her curiosity of the world that was and their shared trials and tribulation leads to Joel letting his guard down he’s a completely different person by the end of the series going from a wounded man that refused to talk about his daughter in the past to sharing key moments in Sarah’s life with Ellie. He even points out that despite their differences the two girls would have been great friends something that Ellie agrees with likewise Ellie feels as though everyone she ever cared for had either died or abandoned her until Joel and she’s able to open up about mistakes in her that also haunted her that’s not to say that she is incapable of taking care of herself with Ellie often surprising both friend and foe added numerous skills in foul mouth for a child of her age although transporting her was initially just a means to an end Ellie becomes his purpose for living. By the end the girl is also willing to die for Joel taking on cannibals to buy him time to recover from a serious injury. While Joel is content with them turning back and joining the safety of the commue Ellie encourages them to push on believing that they had the chance to save the world along the way they hit many of the same iconic beats in the game with minor deviations. Unfortunately when they reach the federal base they’d spent months trying to find Joel is knocked out and given the worst News possible when you work. The fireflies are prepping Ellie for surgery. Their doctor thinks her immunity is caused by the cordyceps that bonded with their DNA but releasing a chemical messenger that tricked cordyceps into thinking she was already infected. The doctor hope to replicate the chemical messenger in a lab potentially creating a cure but there’s no guarantee this is going to work and with no other immune person for them to work with they are not willing to risk the possibility that Ellie would say no without giving either one of them a choice in the matter they want to begin dissecting her brain in an effort to produce a cure for the cordyceps brain infection. Despite faced with the possibility of returning civilization back on track unable to lose another child Joel engages beast mode single-handedly wiping out the entire resistance headquarters and medical stuff before taking Ellie away to safety. He even kills Marlene who explained he murdered the only surgeon that was capable of synthesizing a cure from Ellie’s blood like any father he would rather let the world continue to burn than lose another daughter. But Ellie is not his and despite her young age he didn’t give her a choice in the matter either. This is why he lied to Ellie when she asked what happened telling her they found more immune people and that they no longer needed to use her for testing as a was impossible. The closing shot of her face implies that she doesn’t entirely believe him creating nervous doubters to whether everything is going to work out.