Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, astronomy, looks tasty, moon, nature on July 28, 2026| Leave a Comment »
Last night’s moon looked just shy of full, and like a scoop of orange creamsicle ice cream in the sky. Tonight, if the weather gods align, we should be treated to the real thing, the full Buck Moon.
It’s called that because it happens around the time male deer start sprouting antlers in preparation for fall. It’s also known as the Raspberry Moon, which suits me just fine!
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, butterflies, good neighbors, inspiration, nature, Thoughts on July 21, 2026| Leave a Comment »
Ever had a day where your mind is cluttered and you’ve just spent hours wading through the news and it is both literally and figuratively cloudy, but then you look up to see a gorgeous little Monarch butterfly flutter by?
That’s me, today:)
Here’s to the many neighbors who have joined us in growing milkweed and other plants for these beauties, and to happy surprises!
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, classics, free fiction, inspiration, library, nature, short stories, Thoughts, weather, Writers, writing on July 18, 2026| Leave a Comment »
/where once fell soft rain
This phrase popped into my mind after a cloudburst rolled through overhead. We’ve been having more of those in the past few of years, intense concentrations of Nature’s power blasting through an otherwise clear weather map. It makes me miss the grey skies of summer rain, and the gentle drops that encouraged growth rather than washing it away.
The phrase also sounded very familiar, and a quick check assured me that yes, it was a variant on the title of a Ray Bradbury short story. It’s not a cheerful story by any means, but it is classic Bradbury.
There Will Come Soft Rains (short story) – Wikipedia
I found the story available here, along with a lot of other classics from the likes of HG Wells to George MacDonald to Bradbury, Christie, Chesterton, Gilman, and many more.
Library of Short Stories | Authors
Here’s hoping you find stories that encourage your growth as a writer.
Enjoy!
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Posted in Other, Science!, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, Earth, inspiration, NASA, nature, relaxation on June 18, 2026| Leave a Comment »
A storm rolled through today and now strong winds gust through the trees, making me more than usually aware of the weather. Which is why this bit of magic caught my eye.
Hypnotic Film Transforms Satellite Data Into Stunning Film
At first glance, Water World looks more like a painting than satellite imagery. Deep teal and silver clouds swirl slowly across a darkened sky, creating a dreamlike atmosphere. But every formation seen in the film genuinely existed above Earth, recorded in remarkable detail by a weather satellite orbiting roughly 22,000 miles above the equator.
The article goes into more detail on the how and the why, or you could just put the video onscreen and let yourself chill.
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, inspiration, nature, quotes, Thoughts on June 5, 2026| Leave a Comment »
“The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness.” ― John Muir
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, birds, nature, the world, Thoughts, wildlife on April 30, 2026| Leave a Comment »
I’m reading the headlines, watching holes being punched in democracy, and I don’t like it.
At the same time, my father is sending nature notes from the beach.
/headline
Pigeons, house finches
/headline
The headlines are important.
/headline
The headlines mark a world changing in ways that will hurt the people and things I care about. That’s… not great.
/headline
/headline
But there is more to the world than just headlines.
Pelicans, herring gulls, terns, mockingbird, starlings, boat-tailed grackles, house sparrows, swallows, dolphins.
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, flowers, nature, poetry, Spring, Thoughts on April 23, 2026| Leave a Comment »
The violets, along the river, are opening their blue faces, like
small dark lanterns.
The green mosses, being so many, are as good as brawny.
How important it is to walk along, not in haste but slowly,
looking at everything and calling out
Yes! No!
— Mary Oliver, from the poem “Yes! No!”
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Posted in Holidays, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, #EarthDay, collective action, good people doing good things, inspiration, nature, progress, Thoughts on April 22, 2026| Leave a Comment »
Today is Earth Day. If you were born before 1965 or so, you probably remember a time when there was no such thing. It was a time of smoky bars, trash littering the roadsides, choking smog, and Superfund sites masquerading as playgrounds, among other things. Rivers regularly caught on fire.
The Cuyahoga River Caught Fire at Least a Dozen Times, but No One Cared Until 1969
“The river was a scary little thing,” Donovan says. “There was a general rule that if you fell in, God forbid, you would go immediately to the hospital.”
And then publicity turned what was just the latest in a long line of “oops, the water’s on fire” stories into the seed of a new movement. The first Earth Day took place in 1970. The Environmental Protection Agency was established in 1970. The idea that maybe we didn’t have to live in a toxic stew of pollution and dangerous chemicals slowly began to take hold. Crazy, I know!
Are there still plenty of places we could improve? Of course. But we’ve come a long way, and our successes are proof that we can take the next step, and the next.
Today, and every day.
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, beauty, inspiration, nature, Thoughts on April 20, 2026| Leave a Comment »
Mondays* are not great. (Gross exaggeration, but it feels true. Especially on a Monday.) So here’s a dose of beauty to help balance out the blah.
Recent images of people enjoying themselves on warm spring days, among groves of flowering cherry-blossom trees in cities and parks across the Northern Hemisphere
Even Darth Vader made an appearance!
* Or whichever day marks the start of your work week.
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, home, nature, Thoughts, winter on March 12, 2026| 1 Comment »
Yesterday’s storm has come and gone, leaving icy gems scattered across the ground. The pines are encased in sleek silver robes and the world in treacherous beauty.
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