Metafandom

Thu, Oct. 30th, 2025, 03:32 pm

[i]ysabetwordsmith: Climate Change

Yale study: Most Americans support climate justice — once they know what it is

Climate change is an omnipresent threat for us all, but its impact disproportionately affects non-white populations.

Inequalities stem from generations of racial injustice and colonization of Indigenous lands, contributing to ongoing marginalization and risk in BIPOC populations.

Climate justice is a movement that seeks to rectify those inequities, with the goals of reducing unequal harms of climate change, producing equitable benefits from climate solutions, and including affected communities in the decision-making process
.


Among examples of climate justice are taking steps to stop exploitative actions that worsen climate and environment, and ensuring that people have humane ways to escape environmental foreclosure.  The latter is crucial because right  now, victims of climate-driven eviction have no rights; they are classified as migrants without even the flimsy protections that refugees of war or discrimination have.  And if you look at the Dustbowl, you can see how very badly America has handled that issue in the past.

Thu, Oct. 30th, 2025, 04:25 pm

[i]linky: Community Thursday

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has marked as possibly inappropriate for anyone under the age of 18. )

Thu, Oct. 30th, 2025, 02:08 pm

[i]ysabetwordsmith: Birdfeeding

Today is mostly sunny, breezy, and mild.  It drizzled yesterday.

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

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 10/30/25 -- I planted 12 mixed crocuses around the barrel garden.

EDIT 10/30/25 -- I planted 12 Dutch irises around the yard.

EDIT 10/30/25 -- I planted 5 purple-and-white striped crocuses in the purple-and-white garden.  This concludes the currently purchased bulbs.

EDIT 10/30/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 10/30/25 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 10/30/25 -- I hauled a large fallen branch to the ritual meadow.

I am done for the night.

Wed, Oct. 29th, 2025, 11:28 pm

[i]dine: I like vanilla, it's the finest of the flavours

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

Wed, Oct. 29th, 2025, 09:14 pm

[i]ysabetwordsmith: Today's Adventures

Today we went around Charleston and Mattoon with a friend.

Read more... )

Wed, Oct. 29th, 2025, 05:16 pm

[i]fairestcat: Stuck in Paradise for the Foreseeable

So, as I mentioned in my Festivids letter, I am currently in Hawaii. Hilo to be specific. I have been here since October 10th and I genuinely have no idea when I'll get to go home.

My mother was diagnosed with congestive heart failure five years ago, but this fall she got significantly worse and also developed pneumonia. She was in the hospital for two and a half weeks and is now in a short-term rehab working on getting back her ability to do exciting things like walking across a room without getting shaky-legged and out of breath and using the bathroom unaided.

I'm in an itty bitty postage stamp sized airbnb room in Hilo, since my mom's place is a nearly two-hour drive away. I can't go home until we figure out what happens next for my mom. I don't think she can go back to the place she's been sharing with my sister. My sister is also disabled and not really able to help my mom with stuff, their tiny house is cramped and crowded, has built-in steps and is a constant tripping hazard, and honestly my mom and sister are driving each other completely mad.

Hawaii is beautiful and all, there are certainly worse places I could be stuck indefinitely, but I really want my own bed and my own spouses and my own pets and my own time zone.

Wed, Oct. 29th, 2025, 07:04 pm

[i]isis: wednesday reads and things

What I've recently finished reading:

Europe at Midnight and Europe in Winter, the second and third of the Fractured Europe Sequence by Dave Hutchinson. The first was a reread (and again, I was surprised at how much I'd forgotten in the 10 years since I read it the first time), but I really enjoyed the SF aspect of
spoiler for the cool reveal at the end of the first book, which is explored in the second book the Community existing as a private England overlaying Europe in another dimension; the idea of the map (somehow) becoming the territory is just fascinating!
The third book went into more detail about Rudi's family background, and about how the actual mechanism of [spoiler] is basically the biggest and most important secret in the world, and about the Coureurs and their function.

I actually requested this for Yuletide, and one of my prompts was "worldbuilding - what's happening in the US?" and...one character meets with someone who has a Texas passport, so, there's a whole lot hinted at by that tiny detail right there!

What I'm currently reading:

Europe at Dawn, the finale of the series. This one feels more like various vignettes set in this universe, though I expect everything will come together eventually. I do like how the Situations that the Coureurs handle are all matter-of-fact cloak-and-dagger: a woman walks up to our POV character and says something fairly banal, and he responds with a similar sentence; when she's gone, he finds a slip of paper in his pocket with the name of a hotel in another city; he goes there and checks in, and there's another slip of paper in the bedside Bible; he finds the car with the number plate on that paper and he gets in and drives across the border and leaves it in the parking lot of a certain cafe, then he takes the train home. It's all very mysterious! and fun! (and leaves me wondering why go to all that trouble to hide things in places in so many steps, but...)

(B is reading the Fourth Wing series and enjoying it. I'm kind of gobsmacked.)

What I started watching and abandoned:

The Fall of the House of Usher, which, okay I liked the transposition to a very modern gothic story about the Sackler pharmaceutical empire a family which developed and heavily marketed an extremely addictive opioid, but I am not a fan of horror and gore and shows in which everybody is a horrible person. We lasted 3 episodes.

What I'm watching now:

Season 3 of The Diplomat, which got off to a magnificent and twisty-turny start!

Wed, Oct. 29th, 2025, 07:59 pm

[i]ysabetwordsmith: Sustainability

Gifts That Do Good: Ethical Subscriptions That Give Back

If you’re wondering how to make the most of your holiday giving, consider giving a subscription to one of the many options Good Good Good has sourced below.

We’ve rounded up some of the most ethical and sustainable subscriptions on the Internet. In addition to being a great gift, you’re also supporting companies that do good
.

Wed, Oct. 29th, 2025, 04:34 pm

[i]ysabetwordsmith: Birdfeeding

Today is cloudy, chilly, windy, and wet. It rained off and on yesterday, then drizzled earlier today.

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

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 10/29/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 10/29/25 -- I did more work around the patio.

I am done for the night.

Wed, Oct. 29th, 2025, 04:18 pm

[i]sineala: Wednesday Reading Meme

What I Just Finished Reading

Nothing. Such a surprise.

What I'm Reading Now

Comics Wednesday!

Imperial #4, X-Vengers #1 )

What I'm Reading Next

No idea. So many books, so many migraines. Books are not happening.

Wed, Oct. 29th, 2025, 12:00 pm

[i]linky: Started Abudeka, Exchange Things

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has marked as possibly inappropriate for anyone under the age of 18. )

Wed, Oct. 29th, 2025, 06:53 am

[i]seleneheart: Wednesday Reading

1. What have you recently finished reading?
  • Two Twisted Crowns by Rachel Gillig. Loved this one! Second (and last) book in The Shepherd King duology. Perfect autumn read as both books take place between the autumn equinox and winter solstice. Fantasy.


2. What are you currently reading?
  • Empire of Grass by Tad Williams. This will be in this category for a while, it's over 1000 pages long.

  • The Wild Huntress by Emily Lloyd-Jones. As I type out her last name, I realize why her book is set where it is, which is a fantasy version of medieval Wales.

  • The God of the Woods by Liz Moore. I'm reserving judgment.


3. What will you be reading next?​
Hard to say. I do have a list of 'Want to Read' books that I'm working through. But I could potentially finish up the last Lily Adler mystery. I also have hard copies of The Spellshop and Six of Crows sitting on my shelf. Lots of possibilities!

Tue, Oct. 28th, 2025, 11:15 pm

[i]dine: moral indignation is jealousy with a halo

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

Wed, Oct. 29th, 2025, 01:07 am

[i]ysabetwordsmith: Good News

Good news includes all the things which make us happy or otherwise feel good. It can be personal or public. We never know when something wonderful will happen, and when it does, most people want to share it with someone. It's disappointing when nobody is there to appreciate it. Happily, blogging allows us to share our joys and pat each other on the back.

What good news have you had recently? Are you anticipating any more? Have you found a cute picture or a video that makes you smile? Is there anything your online friends could do to make your life a little happier?

Wed, Oct. 29th, 2025, 01:28 pm

[i]scaramouche: Book Log: Goddesses, Whores, Wives & Slaves

I read Sarah B. Pomeroy's Goddesses, Whores, Wives & Slaves, which explores what daily life was for women of classical Greece and Republic Rome based on the thin historical record, plays, poetry and so on, for the purpose of illuminating an otherwise ignored or invisible faction of society. What rights did they have or not have, how were they viewed by and treated by the men who had power over them, what were the gender essentialist turned institutional mechanisms used to control them, and so on. Pomeroy argues that evolution towards increasing freedoms isn't a-given, with her analysis that ancient Greece had more freedoms for women, then a tightening of those freedoms after wartime and a reduction of the male population, then more relaxation of freedoms into the Hellenistic era.

I admit, although the topic itself is interesting to me, I found the prose hella dry and the style tough to get through at points. But then I realized that the book was published in 1975, during a very different time of historical scholarship! I still find it dry and heavy-handed in places, but I can appreciate the groundbreaking feminist view of analysis, and the necessity of spelling things out clearly in order to argue against common perception of the time, even if it's tiresome to read now. Particularly enjoyed Pomeroy mentioning her male historian predecessors who made assumptions about women's attitudes back then due to the societal blinders they had about the women of their own time (eg. assuming women are happy with their lot).

One thing I will take away from the book with the glee is the description of how in ancient Athens, high class women were kept secluded at home and away from the eyes of men who weren't family, with exceptions to go outside behind a veil. That is... the purdah. Ancient Athens, birthplace of the modern concept of democracy, practised the purdah, the same way medieval Arabia did. (Low class women and slaves were allowed to go about freely without the veil, same as in medival Arabia.) That's rather funny, I think!

Wed, Oct. 29th, 2025, 12:05 am

[i]ysabetwordsmith: Poetry Fishbowl Report for October 7, 2025

Our theme this time was "Witches and Wizards." I wrote from 1 PM to 4:30 AM, so about 13 hours 30 minutes, accounting for breaks. I wrote 8 poems on Tuesday plus 2 later in the week.

Participation was up, with 11 comments on LiveJournal and another 28 on Dreamwidth. A total of 12 people sent prompts.


Read Some Poetry!
The following poems from the October 7, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl have been posted:
"The Disappointing Daughter"
"The Unretired Witch"
"What Wizardry Is All About"

"New and Innovative Approaches"


Buy some poetry!
If you plan to sponsor some poetry but haven't made up your mind yet, see the unsold poetry list from October 7. That includes the title, length, price, and the original thumbnail description for the poems still available.

This month's donors include: [personal profile] janetmiles and Anthony Barrette. All sponsored poems from this fishbowl have been posted. There is 1 tally toward a bonus fishbowl.


The Poetry Fishbowl has a landing page.

Tue, Oct. 28th, 2025, 08:14 pm

[i]komadori: Meme: 30 Songs of Importance 1-4

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

Tue, Oct. 28th, 2025, 11:11 pm

[i]sineala: The Spire has been slain!

Yeah, yeah, I finally get my brain together and it's a video game post. I'm doing the best I can, okay?

I slew the Spire! )

Tue, Oct. 28th, 2025, 08:47 pm

[i]ysabetwordsmith: Today's Adventures

We went up to Champaign-Urbana today.

Read more... )

Tue, Oct. 28th, 2025, 08:46 pm

[i]ysabetwordsmith: Fungi

Before plants or animals, fungi conquered Earth’s surface

Fungi were Earth’s first ecosystem engineers, thriving long before plants ever took root.

Fungi’s evolutionary roots stretch far deeper than once believed — up to 1.4 billion years ago, long before plants or animals appeared. Using advanced molecular dating and gene transfer analysis, researchers reconstructed fungi’s ancient lineage, revealing they were crucial in shaping Earth’s first soils and ecosystems
.