dizzydrea | Reading

Ground Zero: Los Angeles and the Endgame of the Growth Ponzi Scheme

Los Angeles didn’t mismanage its way into crisis. It built its way here.

I disagree. If a city does not track all of its liabilities, such as the maintenance costs of roads and utilities, that is mismanagement. You can't run a budget when you don't know where your money is going. That ought to be obvious.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

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

Is the human tendency to create groups an overall positive or a negative trait in terms of general human flourishing?

Necessary. Insofar as we know, Homo like most primates is a troop animal, evolved to live in groups rather than alone. Individuals may choose to live alone, but it is much more difficult. Of course, humans can choose to create groups that are themselves positive or negative in structure and behavior, but that's a personal choice.

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

Scientists find hidden rainfall pattern that could reshape farming

Where rain comes from may decide the future stability of global food production.

New research shows that crops are far more vulnerable when too much rainfall originates from land rather than the ocean. Land-sourced moisture leads to weaker, less reliable rainfall, heightening drought risk. The U.S. Midwest and East Africa are particularly exposed due to soil drying and deforestation. Protecting forests and improving land management could help stabilize rainfall and crop yields.

Allow me to point out that the Midwest used to have copious fencerows of trees and bushes, more pocket forests, and more farmhouse yards. People cut down most of those to clear a few more acres of farmland. The results have been poor across multiple areas including wildlife losses, soil erosion, worsening winds with less interruption, and of course the aforementioned droughts.

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

Today is partly cloudy and chilly. Yesterday it snowed.

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

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 12/12/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 12/12/25 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 12/12/25 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 12/12/25 -- I did more work around the patio.

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

Current Mood: busy

spikedluv

I did not go downtown today because I planned to visit my aunt, which is in the other direction. I still went to the McD’s there and got some writing done; ~800 words on a new fic for

fandomtrees!!

I stopped at the Price Chopper there to get GCs for Christmas. (You get 6x the points on GCs this week!) And at a local diner for another GC. I managed to get a good portion of my GCs today, which is nice. (The same GC was not available at my usual Price Chopper OR this one – Texas Roadhouse. Must be everyone wanted to give some Texas Roadhouse love for Christmas? I hope more come in. It won’t be the end of the world if not as I can still get them from Walmart, but I won’t get the points.) I still have to order one (Etsy!) and pick up some at local businesses downtown.

I received a package that contained some Christmas gifts. Other than getting the additional GCs mentioned above, I need to get the package ready to send to Alaska!niece. Hopefully by tomorrow.

I did a load of laundry, hand-washed dishes, went for a walk with the dogs, baked chicken for the dogs' meals, prepared a deposit for the LLC, and scooped kitty litter. I also hit the library to return a book and Stewart's. I pan-fried cheese and garlic sausage for Pip because he was intrigued by the idea of sausage with cheese in it when one of his employees brought it in for lunch. I’m not sure I got the right thing, but he liked it well enough.

I watched the first three eps of The Pitt. It is so easy to marathon these eps!

Temps started out at 24.4(F) and dropped to 20.8 in less than an hour, then reached 23.0 for the high. o_O And that doesn’t take into account the wind, which probably makes it feel more like 10 out there. I got to shovel again; between getting a little more snow and the wind causing drifting, I had a bit to clean off the sidewalk.

Mom Update:

Mom was not doing too badly when I visited her. ( more back here )

Aunt Update:

My aunt was not doing well. ( more back here )

ysabetwordsmith

'It is the most exciting discovery in my 40-year career': Archaeologists uncover evidence that Neanderthals made fire 400,000 years ago in England

Neanderthals were the world's first innovators of fire technology, tiny specks of evidence in England suggest. Flecks of pyrite found at a more than 400,000-year-old archaeological site in Suffolk, in eastern England, push back archaeologists' evidence for controlled fire-making and suggest that key human brain developments began far earlier than previously thought.

It's exciting to see such concrete evidence.

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

Today's theme is Labyrinth.

comicsfanfiction -- Comics Fanfiction
The community for posting any fanfiction, ANY RATING IS ALLOWED, based on COMICS including webcomics or graphic novels. One main place to find all those stories that we all want. Comic fandoms that were originally from another medium (show, book, movie, etc) - for example Gargoyles, Star Wars or Star Trek - and has a comic series line (miniseries or not) are allowed here, but only if you focus on the comics-based information.
[Active with multiple posts in December.]

crossovers -- Crossover fiction from across the universe!
Crossover fan fiction.
[Active with multiple posts in November.]

fandom_fanvids -- A Collection of Fanvids from different Fandoms
[Active with one post in November.]

labyfic -- In Search of New Dreams: A Labyrinth Fan Community
Labyrinth movie community: fanfiction, fan art, & discussion.
[Active with multiple posts in December.]

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

Today we went up to Danville.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

Today is cloudy and chilly.

I fed the birds. I haven't seen much activity today though.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 12/11/25 -- It snowed quite a bit today.

Current Mood: busy

spikedluv

I had a chiropractic appointment this morning. I hit the Pharmacy for myself and Price Chopper to pick up some things for mom while I was downtown.

I stopped by mom’s briefly to delivery her groceries etc, but didn’t stay because of the snow. I also hand-washed dishes, ran a load in the dishwasher, went for several walks with Pip and the dogs, cut up chicken for the dogs' meals, e-filed the sales and tire tax for the garage, wrote out a check for my aunt, and scooped kitty litter. I made a wacky cake because I’ve been in the mood and put together the ziti for supper.

I got more Christmas stuff done: I placed two orders and made a list so I could make sure I was on track with GC purchases. The big thing will be if I get things wrapped or bagged ahead of time. I also watched some HGTV programs.

ETA: I forgot to tell you about a poll I saw on Tumblr today. Thinking about my answer to it made me chuckle. It was the last song you heard as a tattoo. I've been listening to the Top Gun CD so the last song I actually heard was the instrumental theme song, which would not make a good tattoo. But I got thinking, it would've been cool if it had been 'Danger Zone'!! And then I thought, it would have been appropriate if it had been 'Playing With the Boys', since that's what I do here on DW. *g*

Temps started out at 30.2(F) and reached 36.3. The snow started about 7:45am, but the roads were coated by the time I left downtown and picked up the dogs (on the way home so I didn’t have to make another trip). It was basically over at 3pm and we only got about 4 inches (out of a possible 8, so that doesn't hurt my feelings). The first time I shoveled the snow was pretty light, but by the second time it had gotten heavier, probably because the temp went up a bit.

Mom Update:

Please see this post for today’s update. I’ve since put in a cut for those who won’t want to read it when scrolling.

ysabetwordsmith

Today I made Crockpot Healthy Chicken Soup with the Mazyana Curry Spices. Other ingredients included butternut squash, onion, peas, and pearl couscous. It was okay, but not exciting. We did both like the pearl couscous as a soup / crockpot ingredient, which is good because we have most of a jar left. If I make it again, I'll add more flavor. Possibilities include increasing the curry powder, adding other seasonings such as a bay leaf or sage, and adding fresh garlic and/or ginger.

12/12/25 -- Adding more Curry Spices to the leftovers improved the flavor, but could still use more tinkering.

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

How Uruguay’s energy supply became 98% renewable

The fossil fuel industry likes to make out that it is a pipe dream to think that we can completely replace fossil fuels with alternative sustainable sources. But the example of Uruguay shows that it is not only possible but the transformation can be done in as short a time as five years.

Now that's impressive.

Current Mood: busy

donutsweeper

Not a lot to post about but I want to make one before I forget again or get even more snowed under (I've shoveled every day since Wed and twice a few of those days; I am so so sore and so so tired) BUT I finished my newest crochet project (a blanket made from the last of my Black Friday 2023 sale yarn) it's huge, give or take 50"x68":

I was good and didn't buy much more yarn this Black Friday, only a single deal's worth that'll be a blanket for son at some point. I need to make many, many rugs before then because two separate sets of sheets ripped and now my 'to-be-rugged' storage drawer is overflowing. Luckily they ripped right before Black Friday so I was able to replace them with new sets on some very good sales. (Black Friday sales are so weird and you have to be so careful to futz around to get the best deal. Oddly, sometimes that means buying *more* and paying less. In one store I was ordering from the total was $72 and with shipping and tax it would have been $89 but because of deals- free shipping and $25 off if you ordered $100 of stuff- once I added a $28 item the total was $83 after taxes. So weird but worth spending the time futzing about) I also did some Small Business Saturday shopping to support small places and got some neat stuff (a hefty, hard carved spoon for one, I can't wait to use it)

Have two weeks of

recthething recs (tumblr art from Dracula, MDZS, ACD Sherlock Holmes, and X-Files and assorted AO3 things from BtVS/Angel, MDZS and Under the Skin)

Dracula
- Howdy y'all, I'm Quincey Morris and this is my friend Jonathan Harker, welcome to our unboxing video (hilarious)

MDZS/The Untamed
- sun and moon themed set of portraits (gorgeous WWX and LWJ sketches)

Sherlock Holmes - ACD
- Forever, if you are amenable (wonderful expressions and colors on this)

X-Files
- a tiny space scully I drew before bed (love Scully's smile in this)

AO3 things:
Buffy the Vampire Slayer & Angel: The Series
[FANART] The Crochet Buffyverse! by girlpire
Summary: This post is for my crochet versions of the characters from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel the Series. I'll be doing a bunch of them, so I'll add chapters as I make new dolls. Chapter 1: Illyria (and her pet), 2004; Chapter 2: punk!Spike, 1977; Chapter 3: wizard!Giles, 2000; Chapter 4: Randy Giles, 2001; Chapter 5: Life of the Party Lorne, 2003. (all are utterly amazingly done, there's also links to see each of the amigurumi dolls on tumblr)

MDZS/The Untamed
On Little Cat Feet by deliciousblizzardshark (29k, locked to archive)
Summary Snippet: Wei Wuxian accidentally turns into a cat. Lan Qiren unknowingly adopts him. (LWJ's POV of this is absolutely hilarious as his very proper, always hated pets and mess etc uncle adopts a cat)

Under the Skin
UTS Advent Calendar 2025 by michinarty
Summary: Christmas is coming so let's wait for it with a fanart a day! This is just a collection of small ideas and the advent calendar was a good excuse to turn them into little doodles. So enjoy the fluff (new chapter/work added daily, also being posted to tumblr via this tag, absolutely adorable)

Hope all of you are doing well! :)

ysabetwordsmith

The end of marriage?

If marriage goes extinct, it will be because it deserves to.

All these factors converge on one result: increasingly, women are finding marriage unappealing. They see it as a ticket to second-class status where they're expected to subordinate their own lives and dreams to the desires of men.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

Corpse Roads and Coffin Stones

Corpse roads are paths over which one carries a coffin to its final resting place. Like crossroads, corpse roads are physical places with metaphysical properties, according to folklore. Such pathways are found all over the world, but the origin of corpse roads in Great Britain is a little more political than you might expect.

The post also includes prompts for stories set in such places. I agree that it is an unparalleled location for family drama, but that is not my best topic.

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

This poem was written outside the regular prompt calls and posted as part of a swap with

janetmiles. It also fills the Questioning square in my 6-2-25 card for the Pride Fest Bingo. It belongs to the series A Poesy of Obscure Sorrows.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

This poem was written outside the regular prompt calls and posted as part of a swap with

janetmiles. It belongs to the series A Poesy of Obscure Sorrows.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

Congress quietly strips right-to-repair provisions from US military spending bill

Congress has released the final version of the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), and critics have been quick to point out that previously proposed rules giving the US military the right to repair its equipment without having to rely on contractors have gone missing.

The House and Senate versions of the NDAA passed earlier both included provisions that would have extended common right-to-repair rules to US military branches, requiring defense contractors to provide access to technical data, information, and components that enabled military customers to quickly repair essential equipment. Both of those provisions were stripped from the final joint-chamber reconciled version of the bill, published Monday, right-to-repair advocates at the US Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) pointed out in a press release.

Imagine that you are deep in enemy territory, your gear breaks, and you have no way to fix it.

Also, this greatly undermines everyone else's argument that once you buy something, it belongs to you, and you can do whatever you damn please with it. The military was the best argument for right to repair.

However, it offers a huge opportunity to any manufacturer who wishes to scoop market share. You sell the product with its user manual. Then for those owners who want to repair their own equipment, you sell spare parts and offer classes on maintenance and repair. People who want to repair things would logically buy from you instead of your competitors.

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

Today is cloudy, windy, and chilly.

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

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 12/10/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 12/10/25 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 12/10/25 -- I did more work around the patio.

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

Current Mood: busy

spikedluv

What I Just Finished Reading: Since last Wednesday I have read/finished reading: And to All a Good Bite (Andy Carpenter Series) by David Rosenfelt and Framed in Death (In Death Series) by J.D. Robb.

What I am Currently Reading: The Serpent on the Crown (An Amelia Peabody Mystery) by Elizabeth Peters.

What I Plan to Read Next: I have a library book out, so hopefully that.

Book 108 of 2025: And to All a Good Bite (Andy Carpenter Series) (David Rosenfelt)

I enjoyed this book! ( spoilers )

I don't know why, but I have a soft spot for the Christmas-themed stories in this series. This one was very good; I'm giving it five hearts.

♥♥♥♥♥

Book 109 of 2025: Framed in Death (In Death Series) (J.D. Robb)

I enjoyed this! ( spoilers )

This was a good story and I'm giving it five hearts.

♥♥♥♥♥

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dizzydrea

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Adventures in Writing

To imagine is everything... ~Anatole France

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The Day in Spikedluv (Thursday, Dec 11)

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Poem: "Koinophobia"

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