mrkinch: Erik holding fieldglasses in "Russia" (bins)
mrkinch ([personal profile] mrkinch) wrote2025-06-21 03:45 pm

6/21/2025 Loop Road and Laurel Canyon

Sun! I had quite a lovely few hours along Loop Road and up Laurel Canyon as far as the foot of the steep bit. A surprise to me was that there was still activity at the Red-breasted Nuthatch nest. I found it ten days ago and thought at the time that I saw a well-grown chick at the entrance, a chick that I would expect to be fledged by now, but perhaps what I saw was an adult feeding their mate, so the chicks could have been very young then. I also watched a family of Wrentits acting much like the ones on Inspiration Trail. Neither time did I hear anything that sounded like juvenile begging, just saw them chasing parents and fluttering. So many begging juveniles are quite noisy. The list: )

On the way back I walked down to the bench at the top of the Little Farm hoping to see swallows. No swallows, just Wild Turkeys. Couldn't even find a Black Phoebe, which was a disappointment.
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-22 02:19 pm

Birdfeeding

Today is partly sunny and sweltering. It's 87°F and the heat index is 95°F. :P A beautiful day to stay indoors and write!

I fed the birds. I've seen a small flock of sparrows and house finches, several mourning doves, and a fox squirrel.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 6/22/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 6/22/25 -- I watered the plants on the new picnic table.







.
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-22 12:45 pm

Pride Month

Duck Prints Press is doing a set of 10 pride dragons that will be available on stickers and other swag.  These are kawaii dragons rather than fierce ones, but sometimes people want a non-confrontational signal.
seleneheart: (Jonathan Green)
Raederle ([personal profile] seleneheart) wrote2025-06-22 10:05 am

Book Bingo: N3 | Free Space | Soul of the Sword

Soul of the Sword by Julie Kagawa



Blurb:
One thousand years ago, a wish was made to the Harbinger of Change and a sword of rage and lightning was forged. Kamigoroshi. The Godslayer. It had one task: to seal away the powerful demon Hakaimono.

Now he has broken free.

Kitsune shapeshifter Yumeko has one task: to take her piece of the ancient and powerful scroll to the Steel Feather temple in order to prevent the summoning of the Harbinger of Change, the great Kami Dragon who will grant one wish to whomever holds the Scroll of a Thousand Prayers. But she has a new enemy now. The demon Hakaimono, who for centuries was trapped in a cursed sword, has escaped and possessed the boy she thought would protect her, Kage Tatsumi of the Shadow Clan.

Hakaimono has done the unthinkable and joined forces with the Master of Demons in order to break the curse of the sword and set himself free. To overthrow the empire and cover the land in darkness, they need one thing: the Scroll of a Thousand Prayers. As the paths of Yumeko and the possessed Tatsumi cross once again, the entire empire will be thrown into chaos.


The second book in the Shadow of the Fox series. I'm still enjoying this immensely - my one complaint would be some of the dumb decisions made by the protagonist. But she's a teenager so I suppose it's to be expected. Once again, the book takes us into a world of Japanese mythology and folklore, with several forbidden romances blooming. I've already started the third book, and can't wait to read the conclusion of this adventure!

But also, with this book, I've completed my entire bingo card:


Thank you to [personal profile] kingstoken for running this challenge. I read lots of books, including some I might not have without the Bingo challenge. I always appreciate things that take me out of my comfort zone or my usual reading.
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-22 12:03 am
Entry tags:

Book Bans

Oregon has passed a bill to protect school libraries from book bans.

Another win for freedom to read legislation on the West Coast this week, as Oregon’s state House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 1098 on Monday, a bill that will protect access to books in school libraries. It’s great news: books can no longer be banned solely because they discuss sexuality, religion, or other topics, nor can books be removed because they are written by someone from a protected class. SB 1098 now goes to the governor, who is expected to sign it into law.


I'm delighted to see laws against book bans spreading. To promote this, point out that it will save lots of time and therefore money that is currently wasted dealing with attempt after attempt to tell other people what books they can't read. Most people love saving time and money, and will thus support the effort even if they don't care about books or freedom.
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-21 11:56 pm
Entry tags:

Philosophical Questions: Harm

People have expressed interest in deep topics, so this list focuses on philosophical questions.

How far should governments go to prevent its citizens from causing harm to themselves?

Read more... )
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-21 06:02 pm

Today's Adventures

Today we went up to Amish territory.

Read more... )
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-21 04:03 pm

Books

A Rainbow of Queer Books for Pride 2025: Turquoise

HAPPY PRIDE 2025! For Pride this year, we’re changing up our usual rec lists. Instead of doing books with specific identities or themes, we’re focused this time on cover color! Throughout the month of June, we’ll be doing 8 rec lists, each with covers inspired by one of the colors of the original Gilbert Baker Pride Flag. We drew a little additional inspiration from the meaning behind the color and why it was included in the original LGBTQIA+ flag (in this case, turquoise = magic), but we prioritized color over meaning. The contributors to this list are: May Barros, Rhosyn Goodfellow, Linnea Peterson, Tris Lawrence, Sebastian Marie, Shannon, Rascal Hartley, and Nina Waters.

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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-21 12:26 pm

Birdfeeding

Today is mostly sunny, muggy, and hot.

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

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 6/21/25 -- Temperature when we went out shopping was 94°F. Temperature in our yard is currently 88°F. Trees sweat so you don't have to!

EDIT 6/21/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio. The evening has started to cool off a little.

I've seen a mourning dove.

EDIT 6/21/25 -- I watered the patio plants and the ones in the house yard including the old picnic table.

Fireflies are starting to appear.

EDIT 6/21/25 -- I watered the telephone pole garden and the savanna seedlings.

More fireflies are out. :D

EDIT 6/21/25 -- I watered the new picnic table and the septic garden.

As it is now dark, I am done for the night.
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-21 02:03 am

Photos: Charleston Food Forest

These pictures are from Thursday.  I went foraging at the Charleston Food Forest.  It's across the parking lot from the Coles County Community Garden.

Walk with me ... )
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-21 12:16 am

Photos: Coles County Community Garden

The Coles County Community Garden is across the parking lot from the Charleston Food Forest. It's not the kind where you rent a bed and grow what you want. It's tended by the community and anyone can come pick things to try.

Walk with me ... )
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-20 10:18 pm
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Recipe: "Pretzel Bread Savory Bread Pudding with Ham"

We made this tonight. It was delicious! We used some of the pretzel bread that we got at the Marshall Farmer's Market.

Read more... )
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-20 08:33 pm
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Happy Litha!

We did our Litha ritual today.  :D 
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-20 05:09 pm

Birdfeeding

Today is cloudy and muggy.

I fed the birds.  I've seen a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches.  I also saw a male cardinal and a squirrel up in the trees.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 6/20/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 6/20/25 -- I watered the new picnic table garden.  I picked the first 'Chocolate Sprinkles' tomato and several 'Toscana' strawberries.  I love the Toscanas and will definitely buy more if I see them next spring.
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-20 01:20 pm

Heat

[personal profile] readera has a post about heat precautions regarding the heat dome. These are my additions...

Read more... )
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-20 03:58 am

Photos: Charleston Library Butterfly Gardens

We visited the butterfly gardens at the Charleston Library, on June 19 although this is dated 20 because it's after midnight.  They were filled with birds, although I didn't manage to catch any pictures of them.

Walk with me ... )
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-20 12:04 am
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Follow Friday 6-20-25: Highlander

Today's theme is Highlander.

Read more... )
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-19 11:14 pm

Today's Adventures

We went out today and visited several nature places.

Read more... )
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-19 09:24 pm
Entry tags:

Recipe: "Chicken Stir-Fry with Mushrooms and Swiss Chard"

We made this tonight. It turned out quite well. :D

Read more... )
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ysabetwordsmith ([personal profile] ysabetwordsmith) wrote2025-06-19 06:59 pm