For easy organization later:
For easy organization later:
Photos: Barnyard Picture
6/22/25 11:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmithHanging this picture of a barnyard was one of my goals for the year. \o/ It took us a lot of fuss and bother, but we got it up there eventually!
( Read more... )
( Read more... )
Daily Happiness
6/22/25 09:04 pmtorachan1. We had a nice time at Disneyland this morning. The weather's definitely trending summerish but thankfully not too hot yet.
2. Alexander's hasn't been feeling well for the past few weeks so he hasn't been over for his usual Sunday dinner and hangout, but he was able to make it over tonight. It was good to see him again!
3. Look at these sweeties!
2. Alexander's hasn't been feeling well for the past few weeks so he hasn't been over for his usual Sunday dinner and hangout, but he was able to make it over tonight. It was good to see him again!
3. Look at these sweeties!
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New verses in "In the Heart of the Hidden Garden"
6/22/25 09:53 pmysabetwordsmithThanks to a donation from lone_cat, there are 24 new verses of "In the Heart of the Hidden Garden." Lawrence shows Stan the Iron Courtyard.
lone_cat, there are 24 new verses of "In the Heart of the Hidden Garden." Lawrence shows Stan the Iron Courtyard.
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2025 Disneyland Trip #43 (6/22/25)
6/22/25 05:18 pmtorachanSet the alarm and got up early this morning so we could get down there when the parks opened as it was supposed to be a pretty warm and sunny day.
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Daily check-in
6/22/25 08:16 pmmecurtin in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
fandom_checkinThis is your check-in post for today. The poll will be open from midnight Universal or Zulu Time (8pm Eastern Time) on Sunday, June 22, to midnight on Monday, June 23 (8pm Eastern Time).
Please, talk about how things are going for you in the comments, ask for advice or help if you need it, or just discuss whatever you feel like.
Poll #33278 Daily check-in poll
This poll is closed.
Open to: Access List, detailed results viewable to: Access List, participants: 29
Open to: Access List, detailed results viewable to: Access List, participants: 29
How are you doing?
I am OK
13 (44.8%)
I am not OK, but don't need help right now
16 (55.2%)
I could use some help
0 (0.0%)
How many other humans live with you?
I am living single
12 (41.4%)
One other person
12 (41.4%)
More than one other person
5 (17.2%)
Please, talk about how things are going for you in the comments, ask for advice or help if you need it, or just discuss whatever you feel like.
That art show thing I mentioned last post
6/22/25 07:55 pmgenartiI posted a while ago about how I'd been really getting into pottery this year. That remains true, and shows no signs of stopping. It's just so fun! I still take a 3-hour class once a week at a member-owned studio near me; I think wistfully about spending more time on it too, but for various reasons including but not limited to the busyness of my life in general, that dedicated weekly slot is what works right now.
Back in late February, I spotted a flyer that someone had hung up on the studio bulletin board. It was a call for Boston-area artists to submit art inspired by Octavia Butler's Parable of the Sower, as part of an art show and book circle event co-organized by two local stores, The Local Hand and JustBook-ish.
I'd been meaning to read Parable of the Sower for ages, and the idea of doing a pottery piece inspired by a book seemed really fun -- like a Yuletide prompt, but for physical objects. Also, if your piece was accepted, you got a $500 stipend and 75% of the sale price if your piece sold, and let's be real, that was also extremely motivating.
And motivation was useful! Because the deadline was just over a month away. Pottery has a lot of built-in wait time while things dry, get fired, etc, so on a once-a-week schedule that was going to be pretty tight.
So I read the book, and loved it -- I'd been told that it was brilliant, which it is, and that it's brutal, which it is, but all of the (accurate!) discussions of its brutality hadn't conveyed the fierce pragmatism and focus of how Butler writes hope and community, and that's what I loved most -- and by the next week, I had a plan.
( About my piece, and the process, and also noodling about pottery and art -- this got very long )
Back in late February, I spotted a flyer that someone had hung up on the studio bulletin board. It was a call for Boston-area artists to submit art inspired by Octavia Butler's Parable of the Sower, as part of an art show and book circle event co-organized by two local stores, The Local Hand and JustBook-ish.
I'd been meaning to read Parable of the Sower for ages, and the idea of doing a pottery piece inspired by a book seemed really fun -- like a Yuletide prompt, but for physical objects. Also, if your piece was accepted, you got a $500 stipend and 75% of the sale price if your piece sold, and let's be real, that was also extremely motivating.
And motivation was useful! Because the deadline was just over a month away. Pottery has a lot of built-in wait time while things dry, get fired, etc, so on a once-a-week schedule that was going to be pretty tight.
So I read the book, and loved it -- I'd been told that it was brilliant, which it is, and that it's brutal, which it is, but all of the (accurate!) discussions of its brutality hadn't conveyed the fierce pragmatism and focus of how Butler writes hope and community, and that's what I loved most -- and by the next week, I had a plan.
( About my piece, and the process, and also noodling about pottery and art -- this got very long )
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第四年第一百六十四天
6/22/25 07:47 pmnnozomi in guardian_learning部首
刀 parts 5-9
刚, just now; 创, to create; 利, favorable; 刮, to shave/to blow; 到, until/to arrive; 制, to make/to control; 刷, to paint/to brush; 券, ticket; 刹, to brake; 刺, thorn/to prick; 刻, moment/to engrave; 前, front/forward; 剧, play/opera/drama; 剪, to cut/prune/edit; 剩, to be left over
( pinyin )
https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?cdqrad=18
力 part 1
力, power/force; 劝, to encourage; 办, to deal with
( pinyin )
https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?cdqrad=19
语法
Chapter 28 quiz: Time expressions
Chapter 29 quiz: Sentence-ending particles
Chapter 30 quiz: Conjunctions
https://routledgetextbooks.com/textbooks/9781138651142/quizzes.php
词汇
跳, jump; 跳高, high jump; 跳舞, dance; 跳远, broad jump
铁, iron; 铁路, railroad
听力, listening comprehension; 听众, audience/listeners; 打听, inquire; 收听, listen in
停止, stop
通常, usually; 通信, to communicate/correspond
同意, agree; 共同, common
( pinyin )
https://mandarinbean.com/new-hsk-3-word-list/
玩玩
Two sad, or at least wistful, ones, 独处 (Li Hao) and 轻轻 (Jiang Dunhao), and one to cheer up a little, Joysaaa’s 明明 (h/t reshiel).
太热了吧，我最讨厌夏天啊。大家怎么样？好好凉快（南半球朋友们，好好温暖）!
刀 parts 5-9
刚, just now; 创, to create; 利, favorable; 刮, to shave/to blow; 到, until/to arrive; 制, to make/to control; 刷, to paint/to brush; 券, ticket; 刹, to brake; 刺, thorn/to prick; 刻, moment/to engrave; 前, front/forward; 剧, play/opera/drama; 剪, to cut/prune/edit; 剩, to be left over
( pinyin )
https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?cdqrad=18
力 part 1
力, power/force; 劝, to encourage; 办, to deal with
( pinyin )
https://www.mdbg.net/chinese/dictionary?cdqrad=19
语法
Chapter 28 quiz: Time expressions
Chapter 29 quiz: Sentence-ending particles
Chapter 30 quiz: Conjunctions
https://routledgetextbooks.com/textbooks/9781138651142/quizzes.php
词汇
跳, jump; 跳高, high jump; 跳舞, dance; 跳远, broad jump
铁, iron; 铁路, railroad
听力, listening comprehension; 听众, audience/listeners; 打听, inquire; 收听, listen in
停止, stop
通常, usually; 通信, to communicate/correspond
同意, agree; 共同, common
( pinyin )
https://mandarinbean.com/new-hsk-3-word-list/
玩玩
Two sad, or at least wistful, ones, 独处 (Li Hao) and 轻轻 (Jiang Dunhao), and one to cheer up a little, Joysaaa’s 明明 (h/t reshiel).
太热了吧，我最讨厌夏天啊。大家怎么样？好好凉快（南半球朋友们，好好温暖）!
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Finish Line June 22!
6/22/25 06:23 pmformidablepassion in weekendwritingmarathon
FINISH LINE
YOU MADE IT!
I hope your weekend treated you well, but even if it didn’t, we’re here to celebrate your marathon achievements. If you posted anything you’ve written during the weekend challenge don’t forget to add it to the monthly fic round up here!
Please reply with your numbers for the weekend–word count, number of pages edited, outlining work–whatever you accomplished. Include what you feel should be included, but please remember that we love numbers almost as much as words.
Thank you for writing with us this weekend!
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6/21/2025 Loop Road and Laurel Canyon
6/21/25 03:45 pmmrkinchSun! 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.
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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vital functions
6/22/25 07:22 pmkaberett... is a placeholder because I am doing so badly at routines in general and bedtime routines in particular, still, augh.
Reading. Adventures in Stationery, James Ward. Not entirely sold on the way anecdotes were strung together, and definitely dubious about the broader social history, but a pleasantly undemanding diversion in a week where I really needed that and for bonus points it finally explained The Thing About Blackwing Pencils to me.
Watching. One more episode of Farscape (S02E02 Vitas Mortis), while bleaching A.
Cooking. Mostly Pasta With Things. (Things have included "kohlrabi and misc other greens from the allotment" and "psuedo puttanesca".)
Eating. STRAWBERRIES. Have also nibbled, from the allotment: peas! broad beans! aforementioned kohlrabi! cherries! the first raspberries! redcurrants! jostaberries!
Exploring. ... bits of a field? OH and I bimbled down to the post office and, en route, checked how the local quince tree is doing. (FRUITING.)
Creating. Painted A colours!
Growing. Iiii just about made it to the allotment to water things on, like, Tuesday, but I have otherwise been... struggling.
... the ginger at home continues to go zoom, though! And I really really need to pot it on, eesh.
Observing. BAT.
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and we always have a story
6/22/25 09:18 pmpensnestI was given A Presumption of Death for my birthday. It's the Jill Paton Walsh Lord Peter Wimsey book set in the early years of WWII. It's all right. Mostly it catches the right sort of tone, but there are moments when the vocabulary doesn't seem quite right—would DL Sayers have called a dress 'sexy-looking'? Could do better, I reckon. And the Wimseys seem to be unusually perspicacious about the likely course of the War. I realise that it must be hard to restrict a fictional character's knowledge of what is to come when you are writing in the 21st century, not while the war is actually in progress, but for me, too many hints at the future were irritating.
However. Not bad, for fanfic.
However. Not bad, for fanfic.
Birdfeeding
6/22/25 02:19 pmysabetwordsmithToday 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.
EDIT 6/22/25 -- I watered the old picnic table and house yard, and the septic garden.
I've seen at least one, possibly two bats. Lots of fireflies are out.
As it is getting dark, I am done for the night.
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.
EDIT 6/22/25 -- I watered the old picnic table and house yard, and the septic garden.
I've seen at least one, possibly two bats. Lots of fireflies are out.
As it is getting dark, I am done for the night.
Done This Week
6/22/25 11:59 amscrubjayspeaks*nervous laughter* I have made a mistake…
In addition to two appointments this week, one of which required about 8 hours of driving, I helped dogsit. E needed to go to an event down in my neck of the woods, but her partner recently got injured. Watching over two dogs alone was going to be an issue, so I got tagged in as backup.
Which is how I ended up running full-tilt through deep, soft beach sand whilst attached to 80 pounds of deranged young dog. I am not a runner. I am fat and have bad knees. I am the strong-man body type, thank you. But by the gods, I said I would help wear this dog out, and I was going to do it or die trying.
I did not die, though I did fall down at one point. Within hours, my muscles were informing me that mistakes had been made. Today, the morning after, I am sore as hell.
Sore muscles aside, I had a lovely time getting to know E’s partner, as we’ve mostly just seen each other in passing before. And the three of us had a nice dinner together and I got to catch up with E. No regrets; just a lot of Tylenol.
Oh, but I did realize something: this was the first time I had reason to run since surgery. I might be sore after the fact, but nothing hurt in the moment. Because I didn’t have ten pounds of ballistic boob attached to me while I was doing it. I could feel the difference in the moment and marveled at it. Even with the best, most restrictive sports bras money can buy, running used to be painful and awkward.
So I’ve once again spent a long weekend exhausting myself worse than the work week could ever hope to. (x_x)
Lewisia: 1 new piece written (oops)
Day job: 25.5 hours, with Thursday and Friday both off
Listening: AQUARIUM CITY by Louie Zong (thought this sounded suitably summery)
Aftermarket Parts: got through the second doctor appointment, so all I have left is seeing my prescriber which is never traumatic
Clock Mouse: 1289 words
Other: dentist, unloaded hay, primary doctor, dogsitting
In addition to two appointments this week, one of which required about 8 hours of driving, I helped dogsit. E needed to go to an event down in my neck of the woods, but her partner recently got injured. Watching over two dogs alone was going to be an issue, so I got tagged in as backup.
Which is how I ended up running full-tilt through deep, soft beach sand whilst attached to 80 pounds of deranged young dog. I am not a runner. I am fat and have bad knees. I am the strong-man body type, thank you. But by the gods, I said I would help wear this dog out, and I was going to do it or die trying.
I did not die, though I did fall down at one point. Within hours, my muscles were informing me that mistakes had been made. Today, the morning after, I am sore as hell.
Sore muscles aside, I had a lovely time getting to know E’s partner, as we’ve mostly just seen each other in passing before. And the three of us had a nice dinner together and I got to catch up with E. No regrets; just a lot of Tylenol.
Oh, but I did realize something: this was the first time I had reason to run since surgery. I might be sore after the fact, but nothing hurt in the moment. Because I didn’t have ten pounds of ballistic boob attached to me while I was doing it. I could feel the difference in the moment and marveled at it. Even with the best, most restrictive sports bras money can buy, running used to be painful and awkward.
So I’ve once again spent a long weekend exhausting myself worse than the work week could ever hope to. (x_x)
Lewisia: 1 new piece written (oops)
Day job: 25.5 hours, with Thursday and Friday both off
Listening: AQUARIUM CITY by Louie Zong (thought this sounded suitably summery)
Aftermarket Parts: got through the second doctor appointment, so all I have left is seeing my prescriber which is never traumatic
Clock Mouse: 1289 words
Other: dentist, unloaded hay, primary doctor, dogsitting
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B5 Triple Drabble: White Star
6/22/25 06:48 pmbadly_knittedTitle: White Star
Fandom: Babylon 5
Author:
badly_knittedCharacters: Sheridan.
Rating: PG
Spoilers/Setting: Matters of Honor.
Summary: Sheridan has a new ship to command.
Written For: Challenge 465: Amnesty 77 at
fan_flashworks, using Challenge 235: Ship.Disclaimer: I don’t own Babylon 5, or the characters. They belong to J. Michael Straczynski.
A/N: Triple drabble.
( White Star... )
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Pride Month
6/22/25 12:45 pmysabetwordsmithDuck 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.
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Daily Check-In: Day 22
6/22/25 01:40 pmmiscellaneous_section in writethisfanficGood afternoon! How did your writing session go?
- It was great!
- It went well.
- It was pretty good.
- Could be better.
- I didn't get any writing done. (whether life was hectic, taking a break, or writer's block)
- I thought about writing this week.
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FAKE Double Drabble: Needing Comfort
6/22/25 06:36 pmbadly_knittedTitle: Needing Comfort
Fandom: FAKE
Author:
badly_knittedCharacters: Dee, Ryo.
Rating: PG
Written For: Challenge 455: Stay With Me at
drabble_zone.Setting: Vol. 2, Act 6.
Summary: Mother is seriously injured, and Dee doesn’t want to be alone.
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.
A/N: Double drabble.
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Double Drabble: Miscommunication
6/22/25 06:26 pmbadly_knittedTitle: Miscommunication
Author:
badly_knittedCharacters: Jack, Ianto.
Rating: PG
Written For: Challenge 870: Repeat at
torchwood100.Spoilers: Nada.
Summary: Ianto is annoyed with him, and Jack isn’t entirely sure why.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters.
A/N: Double drabble.
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squidgiepdx in whenisitdueHere are items with dates between Sunday, June 22nd and Saturday, June 28st, as well as items added recently that started this past week. Remember, you can comment here on new items that need to be added to the list.
Items starting since the last update & this coming week
Items ending this coming week
Remember: For anything Harry Potter fandom related, please refer to the Potterfests community on Dreamwidth or on LiveJournal. Additionally, there is a new community calledvocab_drabbles (located here) that does weekly drabbles based on a vocabulary word.
Items starting since the last update & this coming week
| Open Date | Close Date | Community | Type of Challenge | Prompt/Information | Link |
| 06/20/2025 | 07/01/2025 | fan_flashworks (DW) | Fanworks | Challenge 483: Amnesty | click here for details |
Items ending this coming week
| Open Date | Close Date | Community | Type of Challenge | Prompt/Information | Link |
| 06/12/2025 | 06/22/2025 | justmarriedexchange (DW) | Fanworks | Signup period for Multifandom: Just Married - A Marriage Trope Exchange | click here for details |
| 04/01/2025 | 06/23/2025 | CloneBang (AO3) | Fanworks | Signup period for Writers for the Star Wars: Clone Bang 2025 | click here for details |
| 03/24/2025 | 06/23/2025 | latetreatbonanza (DW) | Fanworks | Signups and fanworks are due for Late Treat Mid-Year Bonanza | click here for details |
Remember: For anything Harry Potter fandom related, please refer to the Potterfests community on Dreamwidth or on LiveJournal. Additionally, there is a new community called
vocab_drabbles (located here) that does weekly drabbles based on a vocabulary word.The Friday Five on a Sunday
6/22/25 04:13 pmnanila- If you were a fruit, which would you be and why?
I would like to be a guava. They are a tropical fruit that does not export well, and are almost as tetchy as avocados. Unripe, unripe, unripe, unripe, unripe, RIPE AND SUCCULENT, hahaha you missed the 10-minute window when I was perfect and now I shall rot secretly on the inside so you won't be able to anticipate your disappointment.
When you do manage to catch them at the right moment, they are sooooo delicious. - If you wake up and smell smoke, and you have to get everybody (pets included) out of the house safely, but you have time to grab one item, what would you grab?
My phone. No question. Once upon a time it would have been passport or driving licence or some such, but we do everything on our phones now, so I can think of nothing more essential than that. Yes, the documents are a faff to replace, but how are you going to get online to do it without your phone? - If you were stuck on an island, who would be the one person you would want with you and why?
I hate it in films (and in fact in real life) when people are ordered to choose between beloved family members. I would want my partner AND my children with me, or else I would refuse to choose. - If you could change one thing about your physical appearance, what would it be?
I'm not sure changing one thing would make much of a difference. - If you could spend the day with one famous person, dead or alive, who would you choose?
I'd quite like to have a chat with Jaron Lanier.
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