Website Updates

Feb. 7th, 2026 06:09 pm[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
Thanks to [personal profile] fuzzyred, the series Peculiar Obligations now has its own landing page.  This series features Quakers and organized crime, particularly with pirate allies.

Early Humans

Feb. 7th, 2026 02:51 pm[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
These 773,000-year-old fossils may reveal our shared human ancestor

Exceptionally well-dated fossils from Morocco capture a moment nearly 800,000 years ago, right at a major turning point in Earth’s magnetic history.

Fossils from a Moroccan cave have been dated with remarkable accuracy to about 773,000 years ago, thanks to a magnetic signature locked into the surrounding sediments. The hominin remains show a blend of ancient and more modern features, placing them near a pivotal branching point in human evolution. These individuals likely represent an African population close to the last common ancestor of Homo sapiens, Neandertals, and Denisovans
.

Birdfeeding

Feb. 7th, 2026 02:46 pm[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
Today is sunny and cold.  Much of the snow has melted.

I fed the birds.  I've seen a few sparrows.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 2/7/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

I refilled the hopper feeder.

I've seen a female cardinal.

EDIT 2/7/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

There were two cardinals in the forest garden, but it was hard to tell colors at dusk.

I am done for the night.
 
umadoshi: (Cult of the Lamb 01)
In movie news, Cineplex has a listing for Zhu Yilong's new movie, Scare Out, which is apparently opening in Canada on Feb. 17. I refuse to let myself be excited about this, after having so much hope about Dongji Rescue last summer. But maybe it'll open here and I'll be able to see it! At least the 17th is before the crunch at work starts.

Reading: To shake things up a bit from Kurosagi, this week I reread the first two volumes of Hikaru no Go. In both of these cases, I'm pretty much relying on Goodreads to tell me when I get to volumes I haven't previously read. Awkwardly for my sense of "what even is time?", this means that I now know that I first read vol. 1 of Hikaru no Go in 2006 and vol. 1 of The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service in 2008.

My sense of how far I got into Hikaru no Go is completely nonexistent, since I know I read some number of volumes at some point, and I saw some of the anime (long enough ago that I know we were still living in the co-op we moved out of over fifteen years ago), and [personal profile] scruloose and I (much later) saw the c-drama in its entirety. It's all rather a jumble. But seeing the c-drama did inspire me to finish buying the manga, and I guess its time has come!

I did wind up reading all of Dungeon Crawler Carl, and the upshot, given my uncertainty about finishing it to begin with, is unsurprisingly that I doubt I'll pick up the second book. I think it's very safe to say that LitRPG is not my thing. I did wind up liking the book more overall than I would've thought back around the 40% mark or so, though.

Watching: We're caught up on The Pitt and one episode behind on Frieren. We've also seen the second episode of Midnight Mass, which has a lot of animal harm; I don't have any triggers that I'm aware of, but it was enough to be upsetting.

Playing: I think I've finished Cult of the Lamb: Woolhaven, which is to say that I've finished the main plot and done a few wrapping-up things, leaving me free to idly manage the cult and do dungeon runs, but that's usually when I wander off.

Weathering: We're having some of what I would call Normal Snow for the second time this week. The first time, a few days ago, I realized I've started to basically think in terms of "winter days that are cold but not much is happening outside" and "snowstorms", without much in between, but that's probably a result of leaving the house so rarely as much as it's a byproduct of climate change.

Locus List

Feb. 7th, 2026 12:00 pm[personal profile] marthawells
marthawells: (Witch King)
Some good news:

Both Queen Demon and the Storyteller: A Tanith Lee Tribute anthology, made it on the Locus Recommended Reading List:

https://locusmag.com/2026/02/2025-recommended-reading/

with a lot of other excellent books and stories, including a new section for translated works.

You can also vote on the list for the Locus Awards. Anybody can vote here with an email address: https://poll.voting.locusmag.com/ though they have you fill out a demographic survey first with how many books you read per year, etc.

Of course a lot of great work did not end up on the list, like I was surprised not to see The Witch Roads and The Nameless Land duology by Kate Elliott, which I thought was excellent.
ehyde: (Default)
The fun development at our house recently is that we got a 3d printer for Christmas! We had been thinking of getting the kids a Nintendo Switch because there are a few games they've been interested in that aren't available for PC but Jeff and I were not ... excited ... about the prospect of litigating turn-taking between three kids and one device. At pretty much the last minute I was thinking about how eldest really likes playing with the 3d printed dragons her friend made her and idly wondered how much printers go for these days and lo and behold, there are models that cost less than a nintendo switch! So we pivoted to that plan and it's been great. So many articulated dragons. Jeff's been printing minis to play some combat games with the kids and I've been printing some bookbinding tools too. Along with various just, helpful gadgets! I have a lamp with a switch that's really hard to turn in a circle so I designed a cap for it that sticks out wider on the sides and it just snapped right on and works great! I'm still figuring out various 3d modeling software, I've tried OpenSCAD, Autocad Fusion, and TinkerCad (I'm also learning Blender against my will because Eldest is interested in some more artistic sculpting and it's a tricky program for a 9yo to figure out on her own). Not sure which I like best yet but I am having a lot of fun.

A couple of weeks ago we got a massive amount of snow and it hasn't really gotten above freezing since, so we still have a massive amount of snow. The kids got two whole snow days out of it and they're using "by the time the snow melts" as a timeline for their current computer gaming goal (getting into space in Factorio). I am enjoying the snow a little less (my boots have holes. Any recs for not-too-expensive snow boots for wide feet?)

I mentioned before that I had picked up the Guardian drama again, well, I convinced Jeff to watch it with me (apparently "it's a bit cheesy and kind of reminds me of early seasons of BTVS" was a convincing rec) so we re-started from the beginning. Forgot to mention it was based on a danmei but he figured that out for himself at episode 8. We're now up to episode 12 which is *almost* where I left off.

Rules Update

Feb. 7th, 2026 10:57 am[personal profile] soc_puppet posting in [community profile] queerly_beloved
soc_puppet: The original Gilbert Baker pride flag merged with the Philly pride flag, rotated ninety degrees, and ending in the Queer pride chevron at the bottom (Mod Hat)
Hello, everyone! I've got some minor rules updates for the community that I want to alert everyone to. They're pretty much all about use of cut tags. (To learn more about cut tags, check this article of Dreamwidth's FAQ or this tutorial post; you can also use Details/Summary HTML instead.)

First, remember to put any content that would require a CW tag under a cut. Unlike Tumblr and some other sites, blanket blocking a tag is more complicated on Dreamwidth, and jump-scaring compulsive readers is probably better avoided! If your entry uses any of the Content Warning tags, then it needs a cut.

Second, in addition to properly age labeling any 18+ content, put any NSFW content under a cut. If it's legal in the US, it's legal to share in this community, but I don't want anyone to get in trouble at work for scrolling through this community on their break! If your entry has any NSFW content, then it needs a cut.

Finally, please put any images that are over 500 pixels in any dimension under a cut, as well as utilizing a cut for posts that are significantly longer than a few hundred words. In addition, if you're sharing more than three images, please put the majority of them under a cut. This is to keep things neat and tidy on reading pages, reduce load times (for images), and to let any compulsive readers out there decide whether they want to read the whole post or not.

I'm also planning to add a new Content Warning label for drugs and/or alcohol; if you have suggestions for any others, please let me know!

Edit: Unfortunately, my account administrator privileges don't extend to letting me change the privacy settings for posts I don't personally make; I can only add or remove tags, change the age restriction settings, or delete posts entirely. While I would greatly prefer to simply adjust the privacy settings to any post that requires but doesn't have a cut, that is unfortunately not an option at the moment. Therefore:

If you do not reach out to me somehow within 48 hours of me contacting you about a post that needs a cut but doesn't have one, I will be deleting that post. If you don't have access to your Dreamwidth account, one option is to leave an anonymous comment on whatever the most recent Thursday Recs post is, and I will do my best to work something out with you from there. Otherwise, deleting the post that needs a cut is the only way I have of enforcing the rules, which I am prepared to do. [End Edit]


I'm welcoming feedback on all of these, or any of the other community rules, so if you have any thoughts to share, I'd love to hear them! Please also take this as an excuse to review the community rules overall as I apparently needed to do myself, oops. And thanks for spending time at Queerly Beloved with me!

2026 Photo #3

Feb. 7th, 2026 12:57 pm[personal profile] smallhobbit
smallhobbit: (Default)





Finally got around to framing my black cat cross stitch.  The photo does show the tiny beads sewn on some of the diamonds (not shown the rude words used when attaching beads!).  I was very pleased with the result.

Just One Thing (07 February 2026)

Feb. 7th, 2026 04:36 am[personal profile] nanila posting in [community profile] awesomeers
nanila: me (Default)
It's challenge time!

Comment with Just One Thing you've accomplished in the last 24 hours or so. It doesn't have to be a hard thing, or even a thing that you think is particularly awesome. Just a thing that you did.

Feel free to share more than one thing if you're feeling particularly accomplished! Extra credit: find someone in the comments and give them props for what they achieved!

Nothing is too big, too small, too strange or too cryptic. And in case you'd rather do this in private, anonymous comments are screened. I will only unscreen if you ask me to.

Go!

The Goblin Emperor

Feb. 7th, 2026 10:25 am[personal profile] watervole
watervole: (Default)
 I've read this twice now, and it's very likely I'll read it again.  I also suspect it may hit five stars on the third read.
 
It's a complex book and the names and titles take a lot of getting used to - but, they do contribute to the story and its politics.
 
It's a story of a young man, brought up in virtual isolation, pitched unexpectedly into becoming Emperor when his father and all his older brothers die in an airship accident.  Landing in the middle of complex court life, competing political factions, and surrounded by strangers, he struggles to understand what is going on, and learn how he can survive.
 
It has many characters, but they are well-drawn and all have their own motivations and loyalties.

Saturday 07/02/2026

Feb. 7th, 2026 10:37 am[personal profile] lhune posting in [community profile] 3_good_things_a_day
lhune: (3L)
1) Woke up with sunshine streaming in through the window ^_^

2) Long hot shower

3) Visit to the library before I pick up my bike, (will be for next week)

BONUS: Lunch on a sunny terrace of a bar nearby
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
People have expressed interest in deep topics, so this list focuses on philosophical questions.

How would society change if men were able to get pregnant and men and women both had an equal chance of getting pregnant?


Abortion and birth control would be free and legal everywhere. Family leave would be generous. Childcare would be free. It would be a lot better all around.

2026 60 question meme

Feb. 6th, 2026 11:29 pm[personal profile] pattrose
pattrose: (High Potential 2)
Write five guilty pleasures that you don't feel guilty about.

1. Chocolate. I'm happiest when I'm eating chocolate. And I don't feel one bit guilty about it, either.

2. Reading Slash Fiction on AO3. I could do that all day long. I love reading other people's work.

3. Staying up as long as I want to, no matter how little sleep I get. I love the peace and quiet of the
house late at night. And I talk to my brother, one of them, every week in the middle of the night. He
stays up late, too.

4. Reading a book instead of doing some housework. I love reading. I don't just read slash fic.

5. Going out to eat, even if I don't exercise that night. I'm not in great shape, so I do Chair Aerobics.
It's not only good for me, but it's fun. I love doing it, and my dog thinks I'm entertaining her. haha
pattrose: (Default)
Early again.

7. Is there a subject at school that you disliked, but you would consider learning now?

I disliked math, except for fractions; I loved fractions. But everything else was too hard for me. And no, I wouldn't take it over again. Not for a million dollars. I loved English and History. And I took Latin because I already knew it when I got into high school. Do I remember any of it now, that I'm old? Nope. I did like school sometimes. :)

Some old poetry of mine.

Feb. 6th, 2026 11:14 pm[personal profile] pattrose
pattrose: SallyMN (blue background)
Some old poetry I wrote for one of my Sentinel Stories years ago. I apologize ahead of time. haha.
Poetry )
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
"Is AI more important than climate?"

When the BBC recently asked Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai whether the build-out of AI is more important than climate, the question briefly cut through the hype that usually surrounds the AI boom. Pichai acknowledged that AI is dramatically increasing energy in ways current systems “can’t fully cope.”


Another way in which humanity is too stupid to stop sawing off the branch we're all standing on.

AI is not more important than the climate, it is just the latest threat to the climate. AI is a massive energy hog that we cannot afford at a time when we need to be cutting emissions as fast as possible. The most effective way to do that is to use less energy. AI is the opposite of helpful in this regard.

Read more... )
xinger: (Default)
Title: 雪白的围巾|Snow White Scarf
Author: [personal profile] xinger
Word Count/Drabble Type: 100
Character(s)/Ship(s): Wei Wuxian, Jiang Cheng, Nie Huaisang
Summary: 雪开始下了,魏无羡开始抱怨。|When the snow starts to fall, Wei Wuxian starts to complain.

~~~

drabble )

Birdfeeding

Feb. 6th, 2026 09:30 pm[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
Today is cloudy and cold.  The snow is melting in patches.

I fed the birds.  I've seen a large flock of sparrows, a pair of cardinals, and a starling.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 2/6/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio. 

EDIT 2/6/26 -- I did more work around the patio. 

I am done for the night.

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