This.

This poem was written outside the regular prompt calls. It fills the "cape(d)" square in my 5-1-24 card for the Superhero Bingo fest. It is posted as a gift to Anthony Barrette for Father's Day.

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This poem was written outside the regular prompt calls. It fills the Earth Day square in my 3-1-23 card for the March Is... fest. It is posted as a gift to Anthony Barrette for Father's Day.

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Today we went down to Toledo for the Thrift'n'Sip Indoor Rummage Sale. We were keenly interested in the indoor rummage sale but not the alcohol consumption. So we got up early in hopes of beating the crowd, which worked out well.

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Today is cloudy, mild, and damp.  It rained off and on yesterday.

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

EDIT 6/14/25 -- I put out water for the birds.

I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 6/14/25 -- I did more work around the patio.

I've seen a skunk on the patio.

I checked the new picnic table and septic garden.  The first of the 'Chocolate Sprinkles' tomatoes is showing color.  :D  One of the chocolate cherry tomatoes has its first green fruit, and so does the 'Carmen' Italian sweet pepper.  The yellow squash just bloomed.  The zucchini has flower buds.

EDIT 6/14/25 -- I started trimming some low-hanging branches from the Home Base mulberry tree.  I filled a trolley with twigs and leaves, then dumped it in the brush pile.

EDIT 6/14/25 -- I trimmed more branches, filling another trolley.

I've seen a catbird and a mourning dove.

EDIT 6/14/25 -- I trimmed more branches, filling another trolley.

I found the first couple of ripe raspberries along the south fence in the ritual meadow.  I'll have to check the prairie garden tomorrow.

EDIT 6/14/25 -- I found a second log for the base of the next bonfire and put that in the firepit.  I started building the criss-cross chimney above it but then it got too dark to find the right kind of sticks.  I'll have to finish that tomorrow.

The fireflies are coming out.  :D  There are lots more tonight.  They love this warm damp weather. 

I saw at least 2 and probably 3 bats.  They're quite large for microbats, so likely big brown bats.  See bats of Illinois.  I'm thrilled to have bats, because the mosquitoes are also coming out.  Fly, my pretties, fly! \o/

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

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

What causes the most harm in the world, but is completely avoidable?


Gosh, that's a hard one. Personal vices leap readily to mind, like adultery and alcohol. But then there are things like climate change, which is created by humans, who could choose to stop pushing in that direction but won't.

musicianships 
We Are The Scene.
This Community is for everyone who is involved in music in any way.
[Found via gothfvck]

This poll covers the ideas proposed in the recent call for themes. Everyone is eligible to vote in this poll. I will keep it open until at least Saturday night. If there are clear answers then, I'll close it. Otherwise I may leave it open a little longer. If you don't have a Dreamwidth account, you can vote in an anonymous comment or email to me, but include some kind of handle to distinguish yourself.

For this poll, you can vote for as many themes as you find appealing. I recommend that you don't vote for all of them, since that makes it harder to whittle down the list. The themes are arranged in alphabetical order.

Here are your options ...

Today is cloudy and steamy.  It rained last night.

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

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 6/13/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

It started mizzling.

Today's theme is Hetalia. Initially a webcomic, Hetalia was later adapted as a serialized manga and an anime series. The series personifies the nations of the world into immortal anthropomorphic characters and presents an allegorical (and often satirical) interpretation of political, historical, and cultural events throughout history and the present day. This riff is a personal favorite.

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Here's another post about the insect apocalypse, including a trophic cascade devastating other species especially insectivores.  This one proposes electromagnetic radiation as a causal factor, which may or may not be true, and is not being studied.  It would be nice if that were a cause, because it is a factor under human control and thus could be fixed.