Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, aliens, free fiction, genre fiction, sff, Thoughts, writing on June 14, 2024| Leave a Comment »
As a follow-up to yesterday’s discussion of animal crossings as one way we can be kind to the other creatures with which we share this world, I decided to resurface a post from last year:
I came from the stars to meet you. I was happy. Excited, even. First contact with your verdant world. Think of all that we could share with you.
“You” could have meant a lot of things. I started with one of the most populous. An insect.
Go forth, and be kind.
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, adventures in overpasses, animals, conservation, environment, good ideas, human-nature interactions, nature, problem solving, Thoughts, wildlife on June 13, 2024| 1 Comment »
Last year Mr Man and I drove north from Los Angeles. Our goal was San Francisco and points in between, but before we could get there we had to escape LA. Our hotel room faced south and had a view of the pool and a sliver of Hollywood Boulevard, but nothing that resembled nature. We plotted a course out of the city that took us north through the canyons and picked up a rental car.
Heading into the hills, we drove through a landscape that, while studded with the bright flowers of a superbloom, revealed a checkerboard of green growth and canyons sliced into smaller and smaller segments. Hollywood, Beverly Hills, the 101 and the 405 frame the natural world in a rigid network of pavement.
How, I wondered, do animals without wings survive here? The answer is with difficulty.
There is, however, some good news on that front!
World’s largest wildlife bridge will help animals cross California highway – The Washington Post
The 10-lane freeway that slices through this part of Southern California is one of the busiest in the country, ushering more than 300,000 cars across the greater Los Angeles area every day.
For drivers, it’s a nightmare: This stretch of Highway 101 is known as the “highway from hell,” the infamous host of the nation’s worst commutes.
But if the 101 is bothersome for bipeds, it is downright disastrous for the wildlife that also calls the region home. The 101 cuts like a chain saw through a vibrant natural ecosystem of coastal sage scrub and oak trees interspersed with suburban neighborhoods, disrupting the movement of animals and threatening their survival.
Now a massive infrastructure project is underway to suture together the vast tracts of fragmented wildlife habitat that have been separated by the highway for decades. Construction on a key phase of the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing — a $100 million structure funded by a mix of public and private money — began last month and is expected to open in early 2026.
One thing the article doesn’t get into is the fact that wildlife crossings, while not cheap to build, actually save money and lives.
Earth Day Success Story: Wildlife Crossings Keep Animals and People Safe – Newsweek
“They are a cost-effective way of addressing the problem from the human side,” she said, pointing out the human toll from collision deaths, injuries and damage to vehicles. “We’ve got structures in the western states where they pay for themselves in less than five years.”
Like, A Lot of money, and A Lot of lives, both animal and human. It’s also not just a problem in highly urbanized landscapes like LA.
Animal crossings over and under highways can save big dollars — not just lives — says new study
WSDOT published a report of its own earlier this year on the benefits of wildlife crossings for road safety. Aside from matters of life and death, WSDOT estimated the average vehicle-deer collision resulted in economic costs of $9,175. Hitting an elk ballooned the average cost per collision to $24,242 and a moose even more, $42,652 per collision.
The good news is that California isn’t the only one getting in on this party. They’re actually a little late to the game. Canada pioneered wildlife overpasses two decades ago, and the idea has spread around the world.
The story of Canada’s pioneering adventures in overpasses for non-humans: As Banff’s famed wildlife overpasses turn 20, the world looks to Canada for conservation inspiration.
Fancy study with many long paragraphs and detailed mitigation case studies but here’s the really interesting bit: It can actually cost less to build a crossing than to do nothing. As an example, it’s estimated that the annual cost of animal collisions at $232 million (in 2021 dollars, which is like a million bajillion now).
And finally, here’s a page with a handy chart summarizing the average “Direct monetary costs of ungulate-vehicle collisions” (as a Pennsylvanian/Canadian I know such collisions are a big deal, but it’s even more dramatic to see the difference between the cost of hitting a deer ($6,617 and a moose $30,760 (in 2007 dollars, no less)!)
In conclusion, I love the idea of animal crossings for a number of reasons. Not only does it save animals and ecosystems while costing less in the long term, it also safeguards people. I love solutions that are smart, sensible, and just make sense.
Win win!
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, no thoughts, Thoughts on June 12, 2024| Leave a Comment »
Me, today: “Blergh. Blergggggghhhh!”
Translation: “My brain is broken. Thanks, day job!”
Now, where did I put my marbles and how can I squeeze them back into my brain?
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, Thoughts on June 11, 2024| Leave a Comment »
“People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within.”
— Elisabeth Kübler-Ross
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Posted in Food and..., tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, food, history, Thoughts on June 10, 2024| Leave a Comment »
I stumbled across a spice mix yesterday and ended up going down a rabbit hole of seasoning mixes, chefs and surprises. Did I collect a list of Burlap & Barrel wants that will keep my wish list going for the foreseeable future? I did. And did I learn some interesting and fun facts about cooking with spices that are new to me? Also yes.
For example: I didn’t recognize hing at first, but it’s also called perungayam or asafoetida, which I have heard of but never cooked with. It’s used in Indian and other recipes and is good for people who can’t or don’t want to use onions and garlic. (B&B’s tasting notes equate 1/8 teaspoon of the spice to one whole onion plus six cloves garlic, so yeah, it packs a punch.) I happen to be a mite sensitive to alliums so I decided to explore more. Which led me to this in-depth article:
Asafoetida’s Lingering Legacy Goes Beyond Aroma — Whetstone Magazine
Devil’s dung. Seytan tersi. Merde du diable.
In English, Turkish, French and a whole host of other languages, the monikers for asafoetida are so deeply unflattering that you’d wonder why anyone would want to consume or cook with the spice at all. Its most commonly used English name is just as unambiguous. Derived from Farsi and Latin, asafoetida simply translates to “stinking resin.”
So what is asafoetida, and why is it so divisive?
If you aren’t one of the millions who already use this particular spice, read on for more, including an interesting detour through Afghanistan and Iran with Alexander the Great. Because even kings have to eat!
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, #Fridea, ideas, movies, Thoughts on June 7, 2024| Leave a Comment »
I sometimes come up with low-level problem solutions that are absolutely, 100% super duper excellently awesome… or at least maybe not terrible ideas?
Here’s one for movie theaters without assigned seating:
Add glow-in-the-dark dots to the headrests of movie theatre seats. Because finding empty spots in the dark sucks.
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, Thoughts, Writers on June 6, 2024| Leave a Comment »
Today: finishing up a day job project, listening to the loudest most distracting family of starlings on the planet, and starting (but not quite finishing) three different posts. You know what that means!
Quote:
“And if one is never lost in life, then clearly one has never traveled anywhere interesting.”
― Richard Osman
And a pretty picture:)
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Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, first impressions, progress, self-respect, Thoughts on June 4, 2024| Leave a Comment »
On climate, politics and so much more, it’s hard for me not to think some version of this:
There’s a decent chance that sometime in our lifetimes one of these monster telescopes and some Al discover that we’re not actually alone out here. And do you really want our first impression to be that we’re a bunch of self-defeating ding-dongs?
I don’t.
— Quinn Emmett
I’d rather do our best to keep up with our alien neighbors, you know?
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, cli-fi, climate change, creativity, genre fiction, hope, Thoughts, Writers, writing, writing contest on June 1, 2024| 1 Comment »
Are you the sort of writer who can imagine a better future? Do you care about the climate? This may be the contest for you!
Imagine 2200 climate fiction contest 2024: Submit your story | Grist
Imagine 2200 is an invitation to writers from all over the globe to imagine a future in which solutions to the climate crisis flourish and help bring about radical improvements to our world. We dare you to dream anew…
In 2,500 to 5,000 words, show us the world you dream of building…
There is no cost to enter. Submissions close June 24, 2024, 11:59 p.m. U.S. Pacific Time.
Here’s an example of a climate positive / “hey, maybe we will get out of this alive“ story:
Fishy by Alice Towey – Clarkesworld Magazine
I enjoyed it. Because I too dare to dream.
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, free fiction, genre fiction, humor, reading, sff, Thoughts on May 30, 2024| Leave a Comment »
The news, man, it can be heavy. If you’re in the market for lighter reads, put these short stories from Reactor (f.k.a. Tor.com, why are so many sites changing their names these days? like we don’t all have enough to keep track of) on your list.
Six Seriously Funny Speculative Short Stories – Reactor
Haven’t read them all yet but I’m looking forward to it. For even more recommendations, scroll down to the page’s comment section. Readers have thoughts.
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