seawall

seawall, 9 months ago to random

I'm thinking long-term about alternatives to cars. Husband knows how to ride a bike, I only started learning a few years ago (didn't get very far), and Flip got some lessons on a balance bike at school. I like the idea of a cargo bike or trike, esp cuz I've seen good haulage options on the latter.

Where would we even start to look into improving our skills, and what our options are? 🚲

wonderofscience, 9 months ago to random

The amazing golden color of these scarab beetles (Chrysina resplendens) is not a result of pigmentation or actual metal, but ≈70 microscropic chitin layers of decreasing thickness that reflect light to produce a metallic effect.

Video credit: insecthaus_adi/ig
Source: https://www.instagram.com/p/BVaHvmIhjbb/

Further reading: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/882153

Two hands cupped together are opened to reveal a dozen small beetles with a metallic golden coloration, reminiscent of freshly polished gold.

futurebird, 9 months ago to random

She put her brother's college tuition on her credit card -- and he was supposed to pay her back, but now it is a source of family strain.

This is what disgusts me about our failure to take better care of each other in the US. Tuition should be subsidized by our taxes. Financial strains become family strains-- financial strains become marriages put off-- kids put off--
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seawall, 10 months ago to random

Haven't said this in a bit, so

ahem

Indoor air quality (#IAQ) is the water sanitation of our time.

Schools, workplaces and hospitals should all be properly monitored and ventilated/filtered.

At the VERY least.

That is all.

futurebird, 10 months ago to random

At my previous job this guy said that shoes like this are a little "too kinky for work" --

Are these even "kinky" at all?

I've been known to miss things, but, to me, they are just interesting (and comfortable) shoes.

seawall, 10 months ago to random

People are apparently eating possum here in NZ as meat prices rise.

I'll try anything once, but the scientists and the food safety guy quoted in here make me think it's a bad idea.

TLDR: NZ possums likely harbour bacteria, poison bait, and possibly TB! YUM!

https://i.stuff.co.nz/life-style/food-drink/300927252/kiwis-are-throwing-possum-on-the-barbie-in-a-cost-of-living-crisis-but-is-it-a-good-idea

HeavenlyPossum, 10 months ago to random

We’re doing the medieval peasant discourse again. We’re doing it!

Ok. Whenever we talk about “feudalism” or “the Middle Ages” or “medieval” we’re generalizing about millions of people in diverse communities and circumstances that spanned centuries. I’m necessarily going to be making huge generalizations about past societies that paper over important distinctions.

That said, we can still interrogate ways in which a medieval European peasant might have experienced life in ways that weren’t as bad as we popularly imagine them to have been, or might even have been better than comparable experiences people today have.

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seawall, 10 months ago to crochet

Latest #amigurumi #crochet project:

Baba Is Wool!

My 6-year-old is thrilled. ☺

#BabaIsYou

cc @Hempuli

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esther, 10 months ago to random

I sometimes hear people make fun of the fact that Berlin has a huge empty field right in its core area where Tempelhof airport used to operate which is now a public park and left almost entirely unchanged, runways and all.

They talk about it as if it's an example of the city's inability to do something "useful" with this land. And what they mean is build stuff on it.

But just the way it is, it is hugely popular among the people of Berlin, it's a unique space where the sheer size of it enables anyone to basically do whatever without annoying anyone else. Even at peak times like Saturday afternoon, it still doesn't feel crowded and the further away from the edges you go the emptier it gets.

It refuses any commercial "usefulness" and instead gives people space to use how they see fit. It's absolutely beautiful.

seawall, 10 months ago to random

With so many trash-fires going on worldwide, at least one bright spot (or rather, a cluster of bright spots) has been the growth in awareness and celebration of #Matariki, the Māori New Year.

Almost extinguished years ago by the forces of colonisation, it has risen, just like the stars always have, and will for generations. The stories, the communal celebration, the time to rest, reflect and reconnect... It's truly ātaahua (beautiful).

Mānawatia a Matariki ✨

vagina_museum, 10 months ago to random

We're seeing more and more accounts on other social media platforms censoring normal anatomical words as if they're dirty - using nonsense terms like "v&g1n@". You'll never catch us doing that. Here's why...

HeavenlyPossum, 10 months ago to random

How, I’ve been asked, do people in nonstate societies prevent bad guys from taking over?

It’s a bit of question begging: it presumes that the state (bad guys who have taken over) is required to prevent other bad guys from taking over.

But let’s take a serious look at some of the scholarship on how and why nonstate societies aren’t quite as vulnerable to this as people seem to commonly assume.

This is neither exhaustive nor comprehensive.

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helenczerski, 10 months ago (edited 10 months ago) to random

Favourite summary of the current situation, from the Guardian and @firstdogonthemoon : https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/jul/07/twitter-is-burning-bluesky-is-smug-where-is-the-best-place-to-do-your-pathetic-doomscrolling?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

esther, 10 months ago to random

A large pillow just dropped onto the railing of my balcony and then continued down to the street.

Now, this being Berlin Neukölln and all I wouldn’t worry too much about this kind of thing … but my flat is the one with the highest balcony on this side of the building.

seawall, 11 months ago to random

Porridge, boost if you agree 🥣

charliejane, 11 months ago to random

Seriously thinking of getting a tattoo on the back of my hand that reads "STOP LOOKING AT YOUR PHONE"

I'm not even kidding.

seawall, 11 months ago to ADHD

How does one go about screening and hiring new carers? We've never asked anyone who Flip didn't already know well to help at home or watch him while we go out, and all but one of them still live back in Wellington.

I'm nervous about the prospect, and while R likes visitors, separation transitions are touchy; it was often an anxious time even when we went out and left him with friends for a few hours on weekends.

Halp? #childcare #autistic #adhd #neurodiversity

seawall, 11 months ago to random

Sweated blood yesterday and today trying to fill out just two more pages of necessary paperwork, and took several breaks in between to cover our freshly-mown front lawn with cardboard as the first step to grass replacement.

The latter was definitely more satisfying, and easier to measure the progress of. #Dopamine #KillYourLawn

Unfolded cardboard boxes weighed down with rocks over a grass lawn, with white woman's hand in foreground flipping off the remaining visible grass

seawall, 1 year ago to random

Not regretting getting a #toastie maker for chilly mornings like this.

I took a photo but it didn't save for some reason, so trust me: two lovely golden sammies pressed into triangles. Not shown: one filled with peach jam homemade by @stephen, the other with peanut butter, banana and bacon. 😋

seawall, 1 year ago to random

Question for parents, caregivers, or people who remember relevant details from their own childhood:

What tips and methods seem to work best for introducing the concept of money, savings and #budgeting to young kids?

Our six-year-old is very smart, advanced at reading and getting better than average at math, but he's also impulsive*, so not sure about the jar advice.
https://www.thebalancemoney.com/teach-kids-to-budget-money-454012

*he's likely #ADHD as well as #autistic