Birdfeeding

Oct. 2nd, 2025 03:15 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Today is mostly sunny and hot. 

I fed the birds.  I've seen a few sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 10/2/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 10/2/25 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 10/2/25 -- I did more work around the patio.








.

Hobbies: Seatweaving

Oct. 2nd, 2025 01:16 am
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Folks have mentioned an interest in questions and conversations that make them think. So I've decided to offer more of those. This batch features hobbies.

Seatweaving is a practical hobby of creating seats, backs, and other furniture parts from various materials. Among its branches are caning, strapping, and rope / rush weaving. These traditional crafts span a wide range of time, location, and materials. It's especially useful if you like upcycling old chairs with broken or missing parts.

On Dreamwidth, consider communities like [community profile] crafty, [community profile] everykindofcraft, [community profile] get_knitted, and [community profile] justcreate.

Read more... )

Fall Festival Bingo Card 10-1-25

Oct. 1st, 2025 10:53 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Here is my card for the Fall Festival Bingo over in [community profile] allbingo. The fest runs from October 1-31. (See all my 2025 bingo cards.)

If you'd like to sponsor a particular square, especially if you have an idea for what character, series, or situation it would fit -- talk to me and we'll work something out. I've had a few requests for this and the results have been awesome so far. This is a good opportunity for those of you with favorites that don't always mesh well with the themes of my monthly projects. I may still post some of the fills for free, because I'm using this to attract new readers; but if it brings in money, that means I can do more of it. That's part of why I'm crossing some of the bingo prompts with other projects, such as the Poetry Fishbowl.

Underlined prompts have been filled.


FALL FESTIVAL BINGO CARD

WizardsAutumn"I wasn’t
afraid of you."
Alone in the WoodsMystery
Black / OrangeHerbsWerewolvesTransformationTalking Dog
MagicDark SideWILD CARDMoon BathingSomeone Touched
the Thing
WitchesCandlesCatsDestroy It with Fire"That felt weird."
UnstableBroken"What are you?"Books the Best Weapon in the World"Do you trust me?"

Moment of Silence: Jane Goodall

Oct. 1st, 2025 02:12 pm
ysabetwordsmith: (moment of silence)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Primate activist Jane Goodall has passed away.

She basically invented the field of chimpanzee primatology, living alongside the chimpanzees at what is now the Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania. I'm sure they shared with her the entrance to their afterlife and she is now happily reuniting with many old friends.

Read more... )

Birdfeeding

Oct. 1st, 2025 01:45 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Today is mostly sunny and sweltering.

I haven't fed the birds yet, but I saw a wren, possibly a Bewick's wren or Carolina wren, at the hopper feeder. :D

EDIT 10/1/25 -- I fed the birds. I've seen a few sparrows and house finches.

I heard a squirrel chattering but didn't see it.

EDIT 10/1/25 -- I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 10/1/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 10/1/25 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 10/1/25 -- The tree guy came! We walked around the yard discussing what needs to be done. Based on a preliminary estimate (we should get solid numbers tomorrow) we should be able to get the branches cleared beside the driveway, the parking lot cleared, the path to the east edge and the orchard path restored, and the tree-sized branch removed from the south lot. Small stuff will be chipped for mulch, large stuff will be cut down for firewood. :D 3q3q3q!!! I really hope it comes together.

I also watered the irises, telephone pole garden, savanna seedlings, and old picnic table.

As it is now dark, I am done for the night.

October Monthly Post

Oct. 1st, 2025 01:19 am
ysabetwordsmith: (Crowdfunding butterfly ship)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith posting in [community profile] crowdfunding
What are your planned crowdfunding projects for October? What did you accomplish during September?

The October [community profile] crowdfunding Creative Jam will run Saturday 18-Sunday 19 with a theme of "Knowledge versus ignorance."

Cuddle Party

Oct. 1st, 2025 12:26 am
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Everyone needs contact comfort sometimes. Not everyone has ample opportunities for this in facetime. So here is a chance for a cuddle party in cyberspace. Virtual cuddling can help people feel better.

We have a
cuddle room that comes with fort cushions, fort frames, sheets for draping, and a weighted blanket. A nest full of colorful egg pillows sits in one corner. There is a basket of grooming brushes, hairbrushes, and styling combs. A bin holds textured pillows. There is a big basket of craft supplies along with art markers, coloring pages, and blank paper. The kitchen has a popcorn machine. Labels are available to mark dietary needs, recipe ingredients, and level of spiciness. Here is the bathroom, open to everyone. There is a lawn tent and an outdoor hot tub. Bathers should post a sign for nude or clothed activity. Come snuggle up!

New Year's Resolutions Check In

Sep. 30th, 2025 11:19 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
We made it to the end of September! \o/ If you have completed some of your medium-term goals or subgoals, and/or you're still chugging away at your ongoing goals, then pat yourself on the back. You worked hard for that. We have also started autumn. If you're doing seasonal goals, share what you're working on for this fall.

This year I'm trying something new, continuing to track goals at the end of each month. So far it seems to be helping, so that's encouraging. I'm looking at my goal list more often and trying to keep ticking off more of them. The main drawback is that this update becomes more of a chore each month.

These are the previous check in posts:
New Year's Resolutions Check In January 4
New Year's Resolutions Check In January 10
New Year's Resolutions Check In January 17
New Year's Resolutions Check In January 24
New Year's Resolutions Check In January 31
New Year's Resolutions Check In February 28
New Year's Resolutions Check In March 31
New Year's Resolutions Check In April 30
New Year's Resolutions Check In May 31
New Year's Resolutions Check In June 30
New Year's Resolutions Check In July 31
New Year's Resolutions Check In August 31

Read more... )

Poetry Fishbowl on Tuesday, October 7

Sep. 30th, 2025 10:40 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
This is an advance announcement for the Tuesday, October 7, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl. This time the theme will be "Witches and Wizards." I'll be soliciting ideas for witches, wizards, other magic users, mentors, elders, teachers, students, adventurers, explorers, damsels/gentlemen in distress, historians, partners, leaders, dark lords, the Chosen One(s), superheroes, supervillains, teammates, fantasy species, ethicists, activists, queerfolk, other unusual fantasy folk, studying magic, doing magic, enchanting artifacts, breaking curses, breaking rules, exploring new territory, meeting new species, upsetting predictions, twisting tropes, flipping stereotypes, expecting the unexpected, researching, revising theories, parenting, teaching, adventuring, leaving your comfort zone, discovering things, conducting experiments, observation changing experiments, experiments changing paradigms, adapting, improvising, troubleshooting, cleaning up messes, cooperating, taking over in an emergency, saving the day, discovering yourself, studying others, testing boundaries, coming of age, coming out, running away from home, going off the rails, subverting fate, learning what you can (and can't) do, sharing, preparing for the worst, fixing what's broke, upsetting the status quo, changing the world, accomplishing the impossible, recovering from setbacks, returning home, other fantastic activities, witch's huts, wizard's towers, magical schools, castles, ruins, stone circles, dungeons, dragon lairs, Underhill, the forest primeval, underwater, underground, liminal zones, kitchens, campfires, libraries, laboratories, apothecary shops, supervillain lairs, makerspaces, nonhuman accommodations and adaptations, farmer's markets, magical lands, foreign dimensions, other phantasmagoric settings, unusual magical systems, pointy hats, robes, wands or staves, cauldrons, herbs, crystals, potions, magical artifacts, quests, time periods other than medieval, governments other than monarchy, dragons, unicorns, enchantments, reversals, contradictions, conundrums, puzzling discoveries, sudden surprises, inventions that change everything, time travel, travel mishaps, the buck stops here, trial and error, polarity, weird food, secret ingredients, supplements that turn out to be metagenic, intercultural entanglements, asking for help and getting it, enemies to friends/lovers, interdimensional travel, lab conditions are not field conditions, superpower manifestation, the end of where your framework actually applies, ethics, innovation, problems that can't be solved by hitting, teamwork, found family, complementary strengths and weaknesses, personal growth, and poetic forms in particular.

Among my more relevant series for the main theme:

The Adventures of Aldornia and Zenobia is about live happy lesbians in a quirky fantasy world.

Clay of Life is Jewish fantasy about a blacksmith and a golem.

A Conflagration of Dragons has unforseen disasters and cultural upheavals.

Gloryroad Crossing is the weird village where adventurers go to restock.

Kande's Quest is sword & soul with caucasian-inspired demons.

Monster House is suburban fantasy with a diverse household, where the line between truth and fantasy isn't always clear.

Not Quite Kansas has a helpful demon.

The Ocracies features all the political systems other than monarchy.

One God's Story of Mid-Life Crisis follows Shaeth as he works on becoming the God of Drunks.

Path of the Paladins is low fantasy about paladins trying to restore a world gone to ruins.

P.I.E. is urban fantasy about paranormal investigations.

Polychrome Heroics has primarily superpowers, but magic is described as "sorcery" there.  Antimatter & Stalwart Stan are a cross-cape couple, and Antimatter essentially does science-based magic.  Aubrey the Alabaster is another sorcerer.  Eric the Elven King has interdimensional refugees. 

Practical Magics is low fantasy with a prosaic focus.

Quixotic Ideas is contemporary fantasy where magic integrates with modern life in positive ways.

The Ursulan Cycle is genderbent King Arthur.

Yellow Unicorns is a quirky fantasy setting where the only yellow things people can see are the unicorns.

Or you can ask for something new.

Boost the signal to reveal a verse in any open linkback poem.

If you're interested, mark the date on your calendar, and please hold actual prompts until the "Poetry Fishbowl Open" post next week. (If you're not available that day, or you live in a time zone that makes it hard to reach me, you can leave advance prompts. I am now.) Meanwhile, if you want to help with promotion, please feel free to link back here or repost this on your blog.

New to the fishbowl? Read all about it! )

Bingo

Sep. 30th, 2025 10:07 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
I have made bingo down the O column of my 9-1-25 card for the Piracy Fest Bingo.

O1 (leak) "Mightier Than" (Princess: The Hopeful)
O2 (lookout) "Simple and to the Point" (An Army of One)
O3 (affiliate) "Bring Unique Qualities" (Daughters of the Apocalypse)
O4 (request) "The Only Thing That You Absolutely Have to Know" (Polychrome Heroics)
O5 (patch) "A Reader, an Interpreter, and a Creator) (Polychrome Heroics: Rutledge)

B4 (parrot) "For Those Who Work at It" (Polychrome Heroics: Dr. Infanta)

Recipe: "Pigeon Peas Stew"

Sep. 30th, 2025 08:59 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
We made this tonight. It's quite tasty. :D We have plenty of pigeon peas left, so I can try other recipes too.

Read more... )

Affordable Housing

Sep. 30th, 2025 06:51 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Long commutes and small homes are wrecking sleep

Your commute and home size could be quietly stealing your sleep.

Tokyo residents face a trade-off between home size and commute time when it comes to sleep health. A new study shows longer commutes increase both insomnia and daytime sleepiness, while smaller housing also raises insomnia risk. Even with average-sized homes, commuting more than 52 minutes pushed people into the insomnia range. Researchers say smarter housing planning could improve both sleep and quality of life.


Read more... )

Birdfeeding

Sep. 30th, 2025 01:55 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Today is mostly sunny and sweltering. It's 85°F here. The migration is heavily impacted -- we drove past the lake yesterday and there was no sign of waterbirds, whereas normally this time of year there would ducks, pelicans, etc. in fairly large flocks.

I fed the birds. I've seen a few sparrows and house finches.

EDIT 9/30/25 -- I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 9/30/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 9/30/25 -- I did more work around the patio.

I watered the telephone pole garden, savanna seedlings, patio plants, new picnic table, and old picnic table.

Cicadas and crickets are singing.

As it is getting dark, I am done for the night.

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