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Jul. 7th, 2025 11:39 pm
loganberrybunny: Drawing of my lapine character's face by Eliki (Default)
[personal profile] loganberrybunny
Public

The White Swan, Bewdley, 7th July 2025
157/365: The White Swan, Bewdley
Click for a larger, sharper image

It is twenty years to the day since more than 50 people were killed and nearly 800 hurt in the London bombings, caused by extreme Islamist suicide bombers. This was the first Islamist suicide attack in Britain, as well as being the deadliest terrorist attack since the Lockerbie bombing in 1988. It was a terrible shock at the time, all the more so because the targets were public transport vehicles: three London Underground trains and one double-decker bus. At first the news was simply of a "power surge" on the Tube, and it took a couple of hours before it was fully clear that it was something more sinister than a simple fault.

On a happier note, someone on my list here asked me recently whether the White Swan pub in Bewdley was still around. I said yes to them at the time, but here's some visual evidence! The White Swan was for a long time a slightly down-at-heel pub -- not dangerous or anything, just rather shabby and tired -- but it's had a substantial makeover in the last year and has gone significantly upmarket. It's recently started to sell itself more on food than beer, and the patio area at the back has been given a good polishing up as well. It's at the top of Load Street, Bewdley's main street.

Poem: "Tomato Seedlings in Tin Cans"

Jul. 7th, 2025 04:48 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
This poem is spillover from the June 3, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired by a prompt from [personal profile] wyld_dandelyon. It also fills the "growth" square in my 6-2-25 card for the Pride Fest bingo. This poem has been sponsored by Anthony Barrette. It belongs to the series Daughters of the Apocalypse.

Read more... )

Bee Food Flowers

Jul. 7th, 2025 03:11 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Scientists’ top 10 bee-magnet blooms—turn any lawn into a pollinator paradise

Botanists from the University of Copenhagen and the UK set out to find the best flower combinations for bees and hoverflies.
Danish and Welsh botanists sifted through 400 studies, field-tested seed mixes, and uncovered a lineup of native and exotic blooms that both thrill human eyes and lure bees and hoverflies in droves, offering ready-made recipes for transforming lawns, parks, and patios into vibrant pollinator hotspots
.


Below are the plants recommended for European and United Kingdom uses...

Read more... )

Monday Update 7-7-25

Jul. 7th, 2025 02:10 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Artwork of the wordsmith typing. (typing)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
These are some posts from the later part of last week in case you missed them:
Poem: "An Interest in the Affairs of Your Government"
Poem: "Incompetence, Sloppy Thinking, and Laziness"
Poem: "Always Surprised by Consequences"
Poem: "No Such Thing as Finished"
Geology
Birdfeeding
Today's Smoothie
Early Humans
Birdfeeding
Philosophical Questions: Government
Fireworks
Writing About Fireworks
Birdfeeding
Follow Friday 7-4-25: Historical Fiction
Blazing the Trail: Celebrating Indigenous Fire Stewardship
Birdfeeding
Climate Change
Birdfeeding
Problem-Solving
Hard Things

"Philosophical Questions: Looks" has 41 comments. "Not a Destination, But a Process" has 146 comments. "The Democratic Armada of the Caribbean" has 95 comments.


[community profile] sunshine_revival is running through July. See the schedule, meet the moderators, and use the master post to navigate the event. Meet new folks in the friending meme. Spread the word!

Sunshine-Revival-2025-Banner-3.png

* Sunshine Revival Challenge 1: Light
Poem: "The Pleasure of Escaping the Responsibility"

* Sunshine Revival Challenge 2: Tunnel of Love
Poem: "Legs of Grass, Feet of Flowers"


[community profile] summerofthe69 is now open! You can see the calendar here and the current themes are Tetris 69 and Body Worship 69.


"In the Heart of the Hidden Garden" is now complete! Lawrence shows Stan more of his favorite places.


The weather has been variable here. It rained yesterday and last night. Seen at the birdfeeders this week: a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches, a pair of mourning doves, a male cardinal, a gray catbird, a fox squirrel, a skunk, and at least 1 probably 2 bats. Currently blooming: dandelions, pansies, violas, marigolds, petunias, red salvia, wild strawberries, verbena, lantana, sweet alyssum, zinnias, snapdragons, blue lobelia, perennial pinks, impatiens, oxalis, moss rose, yarrow, anise hyssop, firecracker plant, tomatoes, tomatillos, Asiatic lilies, cucumber, snowball bush, yellow squash, zucchini, morning glory, purple echinacea, narrow-leaf mountain mint, black-eyed Susan, yellow coneflower, wild bergamot, chicory, Queen Anne's lace, sunflowers, cup plant. Daylilies are done blooming. Cucumbers, tomatillo, and pepper have green fruit. The first 'Chocolate Sprinkles' tomato ripened and some other tomatoes are showing color. Wild strawberries, mulberries, peas, and blackberries are ripe. Black raspberries are done.

Birdfeeding

Jul. 7th, 2025 01:59 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Today is partly sunny and warm.  It rained yesterday and last night.

I fed the birds.  I've seen a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches, a male cardinal, and at least one mourning dove.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 7/7/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.












.

TV Talk: Smoke (1.01 & 1.02)

Jul. 7th, 2025 11:53 am
spikedluv: created by tarlan (misc: tv talk by tarlan)
[personal profile] spikedluv
I decided to watch this show because of Taron Egerton. I’ve seen the first two eps and enjoyed them. spoilers )

Rejected video for supermarket post

Jul. 7th, 2025 11:26 am
neonvincent: For posts about food and cooking (All your bouillabaisse are belong to us)
[personal profile] neonvincent
I had a spot for this video in 'Human Footprint' on PBS Terra explains 'How Supermarkets Rewired The Planet', but reached a natural conclusion before I could use it.

spikedluv: (summer: sunflowers by candi)
[personal profile] spikedluv
I had to be to mom’s by 9am to relieve sister S. I did a load of laundry, baked chicken for the dogs’ meals, hand-washed some dishes, and scooped kitty litter before I left. I left ~6pm and by the time I got home I just did some more dishes and took a shower before I collapsed on the bed to relax.

I marathoned four eps of the new show Countdown with Jensen Ackles and attended a graduation party. (My sister S’s step-grandson.)

Temps started out at 72(F) and reached 97 according to Pip. I didn’t doubt it; it was so frelling hot out. We sat outside at the graduation party, but were saved by a slight breeze. I still felt gross and sweaty.


Mom Update:

Mom was tired again today and just had zero get-up-and-go. more back here )
ysabetwordsmith: Damask smiling over their shoulder (polychrome)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
This poem is spillover from the March 4, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired by a prompt from [personal profile] wyld_dandelyon. It also fills the "Secrets" square in my 3-1-25 card for the Tolkien Bingo Fest. This poem has been sponsored by Anthony Barrette. It belongs to the series Polychrome Heroics.

Read more... )
ysabetwordsmith: Victor Frankenstein in his fancy clothes (Frankenstein)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
This poem came out of the July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired and sponsored by [personal profile] janetmiles. It also fills the "close-knit community" square in my 7-1-25 card for the Western Bingo fest. It belongs to the series Frankenstein's Family; it follows "Signs of Their Trespass," so read that first or this won't make much sense.

Read more... )
ysabetwordsmith: Damask smiling over their shoulder (polychrome)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
This poem came out of the July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired by a prompt from [personal profile] rix_scaedu. It also fills "The Harder They Fall" square in my 7-1-25 card for the Western Bingo fest. This poem has been sponsored by [personal profile] janetmiles. It belongs to the series Polychrome Heroics.

Read more... )

Poem: "No Such Thing as Finished"

Jul. 6th, 2025 06:18 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Damask smiling over their shoulder (polychrome)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
This poem is spillover from the July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired by a prompt from [personal profile] jake67jake. It also fills the "He's all hat and no cattle." square in my 7-1-25 card for the Western Bingo fest. This poem has been sponsored by [personal profile] janetmiles. It belongs to the series Polychrome Heroics.

Read more... )

Blackberry!

Jul. 6th, 2025 11:42 pm
loganberrybunny: Drawing of my lapine character's face by Eliki (Default)
[personal profile] loganberrybunny
Public

Blackberry, 6th July 2025
156/365: First wild blackberry of the season
Click for a larger, sharper image

I always look forward to the start of the blackberry season. I'm not a proper forager, so blackberries are the only fruit I regularly pick wild. In fact, they're about the only fruits I don't really eat much at all out of season; it's extremely rare for me to buy tinned blackberries, for example. The law in this country allows non-destructive foraging, as long as it is for personal use and not for commercial purposes. Obviously you can't go into someone's garden and pick their carefully planted fruits, but a wild bush by a right of way? Yep. Anyway, here's a photo of the very first blackberry I picked this year: 6th July is a bit earlier than usual, which says something about our dry, warm summer so far.

In other news, it's always irritating when people do idiotic things that mean I have to come down on the side of other people I dislike. There's been an example of this today: the leader of Brighton & Hove Council, Bella Sankey, has said she has reported Rod Liddle to the police for a Spectator article in which he said things would be improved by a nuke on Brighton and another on Glastonbury. I detest Rod Liddle, for a whole variety of reasons -- but in this specific case, the Spectator article in question is very obviously satirical and about as worthy of police attention as John Betjeman's "Come, friendly bombs, and fall on Slough!" was -- which is to say, not at all. Please, Ms Sankey, don't make me defend Rod Liddle again. It's really not something I want to be doing.

Geology

Jul. 6th, 2025 04:15 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Defying physics: This rare crystal cools itself using pure magnetism

Research team identifies atacamite as a magnetocaloric material.
Deep in Chile’s Atacama Desert, scientists studied a green crystal called atacamite—and discovered it can cool itself dramatically when placed in a magnetic field. Unlike a regular fridge, this effect doesn’t rely on gases or compressors. Instead, it’s tied to the crystal’s unusual inner structure, where tiny magnetic forces get tangled in a kind of “frustration.” When those tangled forces are disrupted by magnetism, the crystal suddenly drops in temperature. It’s a strange, natural trick that could someday help us build greener, more efficient ways to cool things
.

Birdfeeding

Jul. 6th, 2025 02:06 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Today is mostly cloudy and sweltering. 

I fed the birds.  I've seen a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.  Bees are visiting the small metal birdbath again.

EDIT 7/6/25 -- It's raining, so I won't have to water anything today.  :D
neonvincent: For posts about geekery and general fandom (Shadow Play Girl)
[personal profile] neonvincent
I was going to use this in 'Dune: Part Two' at the Critics Choice Super Awards, then realized I reached a natural stopping point before I would have. Later.

TV Talk: Countdown (eps 1.01-1.04)

Jul. 6th, 2025 12:42 pm
spikedluv: created by tarlan (misc: tv talk by tarlan)
[personal profile] spikedluv
I decided to give this show a try mainly because of Jensen Ackles. It's pretty good, though I don't think I'll get fannish about it. And so far I don't have any deep comments about it, but watching the first four eps was a good way to spend some time. spoilers )