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Birdfeeding

Mar. 16th, 2026 04:29 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Today is cloudy and frigid, spitting snow and howling wind. :/  It stormed last night.

I fed the birds.  I've seen a small mixed flock of sparrows and house finches, plus several cardinals.

I put out water for the birds.

My not nearly lucid Oscar commentary

Mar. 16th, 2026 12:17 pm
bill_schubert: (Default)
[personal profile] bill_schubert
I did not watch the Oscars.  Maybe I'll watch some of the Youtube version.  As in the past I did not like the winner.  I finally watched Parasite a year ago and thought it was an OK film.  A little disjointed and kind of pointless.   This year's winner was about the same.  More than a little disjointed and pointless.  I've yet to get through it.  I've watched over half and had to put it down. 

Sinners, on the other hand, was a really good move.  Actually it was half a dozen movies squashed together looking for a coherent plot.  Was it a vampire movie?  Was it a commentary on the KKK and being black in America?  Was it a love story?  Was it a movie about blues in the south?

The answer is yes.

It actually did all of those pretty well all in the same movie.  It would have been a lot nicer to have made three or so movies and split the plots off.  But it was more coherent and watchable than One drug addled battle after another drug addled pointless battle.

 I didn't see any of the others.  They were probably better.

Monday Update 3-16-26

Mar. 16th, 2026 11:16 am
ysabetwordsmith: Artwork of the wordsmith typing. (typing)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
These are some posts from the later part of last week in case you missed them:
Poem: "Colorful Opportunities"
Tool Use
Cyberspace Theory
Birdfeeding
Science
Today's Adventures
Urbana Free Library Seed Exchange
Wildlife
Creative Jam
Birdfeeding
Philosophical Questions: Pictures
Communities
Safety
Today's Adventures
Gardening
Birdfeeding
Crafts
Follow Friday 3-13-26: Love
Friday Five
Crafts
Birdfeeding
Ethnic Studies
Community Thursdays
Poem: "To Understand Water"
Cyberspace Theory
Science
Today's Adventures
Safety
Birdfeeding
Science
Prairie Moon Order
Select Seeds Order
Hard Things


Linguistics has 44 comments. Philosophical Questions: Pregnancy has 60 comments. Safety has 54 comments. Wildlife has 48 comments. Food has 67 comments.


There will be a Bonus Fishbowl on Tuesday, March 17 with a theme of "anything goes." Think back over your favorite ideas that haven't fit a prompt call yet; you can suggest whatever you want in this one.


March Meta Matters Challenge banner

[community profile] marchmetamatterschallenge is running this month. See my tracking post and the first check-in post.


The weather has been erratic here. We've had warm days. Yesterday was cold with howling wind, then pouring rain; today it snowed a bit and is still howling wind. Seen at the birdfeeders this week: a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches, a mourning dove, and a fox squirrel. Red-winged blackbirds have been singing overhead. Currently blooming: crocuses, snowdrops, winter aconite, miniature irises, daffodils, squill.

Coffee make over

Mar. 16th, 2026 07:10 am
susandennis: (Default)
[personal profile] susandennis
I've had my coffee maker for a while now. I've retired it, to try different/new ones/processes, but I always come back. It's a Keurig that they still have not improved upon. But its height requirement keeps it from being an option on my kitchen counter. So it was actually the impetus for my turning the half bath here into a utility room. Washer, litter box, printer, storage and coffee.

For the past a lotta years, I've pretty much stuck to rewarming coffee mugs. The way too expensive Ember and then, when it died, a pretty much just as expensive alternative. That one died last week. And I decided to change my ways. And then, yesterday, I redid the whole coffee area.

I switched to regular coffee mugs - those that can be washed in the dishwasher! - and heated coasters - one at my table and one at the sofa. Yesterday, I culled out some not needed stuff and made more counter space and then set up a lovely little proper coffee bar. It amuses the heck out of me how much delight I get out of a simple rearrangement of normal stuff.

This morning's coffee does taste better, my brain says.

I noticed on Flickr this morning that they have a legend which has probably been there forever and I never noticed it before. I've had my account since 2008. And as of this morning, I have 37,768 photos in it. Yikes! Probably half of those are trash takes which could be/should be/won't ever be deleted. Oh well.

No swimming this morning. There's a special pop up aerobics class at 11. There's a woman who used to teach here and retired but comes back once in a while and does these pop up classes and they are fab and fun. So I'm looking forward to today's. I may go down early and do some swimming before the class. I mean as long as I'm going to get my suit wet anyway.

I have a trip to Seattle Goodwill coming up. I now have 3 things on my 'hunt for at Goodwill' list and 3 is the minimum to make a trip by my Seattle Goodwill rules. I don't know if it will be this week or not but it's definitely on the horizon.

Poem: "Colorful Opportunities"

Mar. 15th, 2026 10:01 pm
ysabetwordsmith: A paint roller creates an American flag, with the text Arts and Crafts America. (Arts and Crafts America)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
This is the freebie for the March [community profile] crowdfunding Creative Jam. It was inspired by the "tape" square in my 3-1-26 card for the National Crafting Month Bingo fest. It belongs to the series Arts and Crafts America.


"Colorful Opportunities"


Tape is a material
that is always full of
colorful opportunities.

It can make borders and
frames on scrapbook pages.

It stripes the handles of
tools for easy identification.

It flags pages for future reading.

It makes cute cutouts for
decorating boxes and books.

Tape holds hobbies together.

[personal profile] voidbeetles posting in [community profile] little_details
Hi!

I have a character in a sci-fi universe who ends up "shipwrecked" alone on a completely uninhabited planet for two years. The planet, and the specific environment he lands in, are perfectly habitable by humans (we are in soft scifi territory here, very Star Trek inspired) and he's able to survive with some effort. (The details of how are not really important to the story - I know at least that he's the kind of guy who'd be able to salvage some tech and emergency supplies from his wrecked ship, and I'm comfortable with brushing past the details of what exactly he brought with him - but if anyone's really interested in coming at it from that logistical angle, I won't stop you!)

What is more relevant to the story is how this experience would continue to affect him by the time he's back home safely. I think there are a bunch of possible avenues here and I'd love to see people's takes on how they would approach this or approach researching it. For example, here are some of my cursory thoughts:
  • PTSD is certainly a likely long-term complication
  • It's implied that his shipwrecking was not an accident/was engineered maliciously - I imagine this is something he has dwelt on heavily throughout the two years and will affect his ability to trust people (and to visit other uninhabited planets in the future!). Seems like it would be easy to get caught in delusional spirals in a situation like that.
  • I know that prolonged isolation can cause hallucination/psychosis in some cases, especially in solitary confinement, sensory deprivation contexts, etc. Is that as much of a risk in this case? And if so, do you think he'd still be experiencing psychotic symptoms after the fact?
  • One of his personality traits is that he's fairly attention-seeking - I think it's likely this incident will exacerbate that and make him more desperate for connection
  • It'll probably alter how he approaches social situations in the future in general; that's something I'll definitely be thinking about
  • Perhaps he got into the habit of talking to himself on the planet, and this never went away

Frozen ground meet 40mm of rain

Mar. 15th, 2026 06:55 pm
soemand: (Default)
[personal profile] soemand

This should make for an interesting commute/day tomorrow. The ground is still rock hard frozen, and gfs has a rainfall warning ⚠️ flashing for the next two days.

We usually get spring flooding, and I’d bet tomorrow we do. I have alternate routes into and out of work, so I’m not too bothered.

Tool Use

Mar. 15th, 2026 04:17 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Today my partner Doug asked me to remove a bunch of staples for him.  I first looked for my staple remover but couldn't find it.  Instead I grabbed the tiny screwdriver that I got from Power Plus at the Home and Garden Expo.  It actually worked better.  Because it's swag, the screwdriver tip is very thin and narrow.  That made it a lot easier to slide under the ends of the staples to open them, then slide under the wide part of the wire to twist it loose.  Staple removers typically have very thick teeth that can be difficult to get under the wire.  So this is now my staple remover of choice, and will live in my office drawer.  :D

What most people call luck or opportunity is, in my observation, largely situational awareness.  I needed a tool; I thought about what would work; I used what I had.  And then I noticed that it worked better than a dedicated tool from the past.  A small discovery, but it makes my primate brain very happy. 

Cyberspace Theory

Mar. 15th, 2026 01:20 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
AO3 BS

AO3 is apparently crashing out again... Le sigh, do NOT get me wrong I do adore that site (for reading... I've yet to use it as a writer) but damn this just keeps happening.

Frequent service outage is one of the later signs of platform degradation heading for collapse. Always stay alert for warning signs, because they help you save your data and shore up contact with friends before it is too late.

Read more... )

Birdfeeding

Mar. 15th, 2026 01:14 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Today is cloudy and cool with howling wind. It's up to 18mph. A beautiful day to stay indoors and write!

I fed the birds. Unsurprisingly, I haven't seen any. I expect they're all huddled in whatever shelter they can find.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 3/15/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

I've seen a small mixed flock of sparrows and house finches.

EDIT 3/15/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

A tiny scilla is blooming white in the purple-and-white garden.

It's starting to rain.

I am done for the night.

Sunday

Mar. 15th, 2026 09:31 am
susandennis: (Default)
[personal profile] susandennis
I'm still getting used to having electricity. And it's wonderful. As last time, when the electricity goes out, the elbow gets a lot of action. After dark, it's the best light and people just gather. Even though the power was actually on all day yesterday, the group took a while to disband. Nearly all day yesterday, there was comfortable conversation with various participants. It was kind of fun.

I had a lovely sleep. It's still wonderfully dark when I wake up. So I internetted and coffeed and leisurely wandered down to the pool where dawn finally showed up during my swim which was kind of lovely.

I've already done a load of laundry. A few months ago, I got wind that GE had invented a new and better filter for my washer/dryer and I bought one. I had been so frustrated by the damn machine for so long and turns out, it was just the filter. The new one makes all the difference in the world. I spent some time sucking out the extra lint from all inside the machine and now it no longer even builds up in there - just on the filter which is very easy to clean. I'm now back in love with the machine. And everything is clean and put away.

I have no other plans for today. I may watch the baseball but Spring Training is kind of boring this year. I may watch some scripted TV or I may just listen to my book. I have new crochet project in mind to do in conjunction with the creatures.

We had a fair amount of snow again yesterday morning but since then, nothing but melting. Our excitement appears to be over and we can now just revel in the joy of having electrical outlets that work.


20260314_185941-COLLAGE

Mid March Rituals.

Mar. 15th, 2026 12:44 pm
soemand: (Default)
[personal profile] soemand
Today’s sunshine felt like a gift, the kind that nudges you into action before you even realize you’ve made a plan. I took the opportunity to pull the tarp off the sailboat—a mid‑March ritual for me, though I’ll admit I usually do it earlier than most. There’s something satisfying about being ahead of the curve, especially when I’ve got a few improvements in mind that I want to tackle before launch season arrives.

At this point in the year, I’m willing to gamble a little. Sure, we might still get the odd snowfall (grrr…), but the days are warming up enough that anything we get now will melt quickly. That’s close enough to spring for me. With the tarp off and the sun on my back, it finally feels like boating season is inching its way closer.

Science

Mar. 15th, 2026 12:16 am
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
This video beautifully demonstrates the use of art in education, showing how trees catch and release water to help drive the hydrologic cycle.  Without forests, you get a drought-flood situation instead. :/

Today's Adventures

Mar. 14th, 2026 10:36 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Today we went to Middlefork at the Mall in Lincoln Square Mall in Urbana. This is a big flea market, although not quite as big as the last one we caught. We both found some great stuff.

Read more... )

Urbana Free Library Seed Exchange

Mar. 14th, 2026 09:07 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Yesterday I discovered the Seed Library Network. I was delighted to find one near me. (See Today's Adventures for our other activities.)

Today we visited the Urbana Free Library Seed Exchange. It's on the second floor. We rode the elevator up, and the display was big enough to be seen from where the elevator lets out. Seeds are stored in drawers, sorted by type. There are sections for flowers, herbs, and vegetables. Some of the really popular ones have their own drawer; others are grouped together. Unopened packets of commercial seed are filed as they are, for folks who want to know exactly what they're getting. Opened packets or homegrown seeds are put in envelopes by library staff. With wildflower and landrace seeds, especially mixes, you may get more surprises.

Read more... )

Wildlife

Mar. 14th, 2026 08:06 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Scared of spiders? Scientists say the real nightmare is losing them

Scientists discovered that nearly 90% of North America’s insects and arachnids have no conservation status—revealing a huge blind spot in protecting the tiny creatures that keep ecosystems running.

Spiders and insects may not be fan favorites, but they are vital to the health of ecosystems—and scientists barely know how they’re doing. Researchers found that nearly 90% of North America’s insect and arachnid species have no conservation status, leaving their fate largely unknown. Even more striking, most states don’t protect a single arachnid species. The study warns that these overlooked creatures are essential to planetary health and urgently need better monitoring and protection.



Let me be blunt here: the insect (arthropod) apocalypse is going to pull the rug out from under the biosphere. Plants are the producers for most of the ecosystem; many essential plants rely on insects for pollination or other services. And the next layer is invertebrates, mostly arthropods -- they break down dead material to a size that fungi can deal with, they pollinate, they move seeds, they feed most of the next level up such as birds, amphibians, etc. Spiders in particular keep the rest of that arthropod mess in check so we're not buried alive in flies, mosquitoes, and so on. They're some of the tiniest predators and they're absolutely vital.

Read more... )

Creative Jam

Mar. 14th, 2026 08:04 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
The March [community profile] crowdfunding Creative Jam is now open with a theme of "Opportunity."


What I Have Written

A prompt from [personal profile] dialecticdreamer inspired the free-verse poem "Hidden Opportunities." Juan Carlos likes visiting Schrodinger's Heroes for the opportunity to step outside his usual role and relax.
70 lines, Buy It Now = $35

"Colorful Opportunities" is the freebie.


From My Prompts

[personal profile] gs_silva took my prompt "Opportunity is using someone else's waste product as your raw material" as inspiration for an adorable picture and description from Alien Romance. :D


3.14

Mar. 14th, 2026 07:50 pm
mark: A photo of Mark kneeling on top of the Taal Volcano in the Philippines. It was a long hike. (Default)
[staff profile] mark posting in [site community profile] dw_maintenance

Happy Saturday!

I'm going to be doing a little maintenance today. It will likely cause a tiny interruption of service (specifically for www.dreamwidth.org) on the order of 2-3 minutes while some settings propagate. If you're on a journal page, that should still work throughout!

If it doesn't work, the rollback plan is pretty quick, I'm just toggling a setting on how traffic gets to the site. I'll update this post if something goes wrong, but don't anticipate any interruption to be longer than 10 minutes even in a rollback situation.

📼

Mar. 14th, 2026 04:30 pm
soemand: (Default)
[personal profile] soemand
Latest Mixtape; A wife friendly one for playing in the background.

A selection of Nolween Leroy. Albums I have, and fit to a C-60 cassette.

Side A – “Salt, Stone & Fire” (29:58)


Side A
# Track Album Duration
1 Sixième continent Ô filles de l’eau 3:52
2 Brest Bretonne 3:06
3 Ce que je suis Gemme ~3:45
4 Mná na hÉireann Bretonne 4:00
5 Ophélia Ô filles de l’eau 3:51
6 Trace ton chemin Gemme ~3:40
7 Ma Bretagne quand elle pleut Bretonne 3:13
8 Homeland Ô filles de l’eau 3:27


Side B – “Night Currents” (29:55)


Side B
# Track Album Duration
1 Davy Jones Ô filles de l’eau 4:08
2 Je ne serai jamais ta Parisienne Bretonne 3:13
3 Run It Down Gemme ~3:40
4 Tri Martolod Bretonne 3:12
5 Juste pour me souvenir Ô filles de l’eau 3:16
6 Gemme Gemme 3:40
7 Greensleeves Bretonne 3:42
8 Ô filles de l’eau Ô filles de l’eau 3:36

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