Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, creativity, genre fiction, on writing, Thoughts, Writers, writing on January 14, 2024| Leave a Comment »
One day in this writer’s life: reading, modifying a recipe for white chocolate and lemon truffles (thanks, Aunt C!), making notes on the inklings of an idea for a space saga, and a walk in the snow surrounded by tiny snowflakes drifting quietly down.
* * *
Posted in Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, activism, centenarians know better, inspiration, politics, quilting, Thoughts, Writers, writing on January 13, 2024| Leave a Comment »
How much do I love this?
101-Year-Old Grace Linn: ‘Banning Books and Burning Books Are the Same’
“Banning books and burning books are the same. Both are done for the same reason: fear of knowledge,” Linn said. “They’re afraid that people will know better than they did.”
But each generation should know better, do better, and be better, Linn said. Society can’t grow and evolve without the education and empathy-building that come from the free exchange of thoughts shared through books.
All the hearts, forever.
* * *
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, free fiction, genre fiction, Thoughts, Writers on January 12, 2024| Leave a Comment »
Bright sun, blue skies, and the sense of a storm looming just below the horizon. I’m working, watching and waiting, and maybe this latest unpredictable system will blow past us without much fuss. Or maybe, like many of you, we’ll find ourselves in the middle of an Arctic blast buried beneath many centimeters of snow.
While we wait to see how this latest example of Nature’s power manifests, here’s another dose of free fiction.
Download the Tor.com November/December 2023 Short Fiction Bundle
* * *
Posted in Science!, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, science, snow, snowstorm, Thoughts, winter on January 10, 2024| Leave a Comment »
Winter has finally arrived in the Northeast, and it is making a serious splash.
We wanted a white Christmas, but that didn’t happen around here; Nature is making up for it now. We’ve had multiple storms this week complete with snow, sleet, ice and rain (sometimes all at once) and expect a significant snowstorm to hit this weekend.
That has me investigating weather reports, flexing my shoveling muscles, and generally catching up on all things snow. Here are a few of the interesting articles I found:
Science of Snow | National Snow and Ice Data Center
Snow forecasts are better than they used to be, and they continue to improve, but snow forecasting remains a difficult challenge for meteorologists. One reason is that during intense snows, the heaviest snowfall can occur in surprisingly narrow bands, and on a smaller scale than observing networks and forecast zones can see. Also, the extremely small temperature differences that define the boundary line between rain and snow make large differences in snow forecasts. This is part of the fun and frustration that makes snow forecasting so interesting.
Winter storm hits East Coast. What’s in a snowflake? (transcript)
“So a snowflake that was more than a foot across. Is that, like, even possible?”
How to Shovel Snow Safely – This Old House
Freezing temperatures often bring snow, sleet, and ice. And removing that messy wintry mix from your walkways and driveways is no easy feat. Here is the best way to shovel snow to prevent injury and lessen your workload.
What’s Wrong With This Snowflake? (transcript)
Koop thinks ice crystals are masterpieces of natural beauty. Unfortunately, he says, “This beauty is sometimes corrupted.”
Seeing Snowflakes As ‘Hieroglyphs from the Sky’ (transcript)
“It’s been said that snowflakes are like hieroglyphs from the sky…,” says Libbrecht, an astrophysicist and chairman of the physics department at the California Institute of Technology. “In the shape of the crystal is encoded the conditions under which it grew.”
And for when snow stops being fun and starts getting real: United States Power Outage Map.
Time to charge up our phones, laptops, power banks and car. Stay safe and warm!
* * *
Posted in Science!, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, inspiration, Mars, MarsCuriosity, NASA, science, space, Thoughts on January 8, 2024| Leave a Comment »
It’s Monday, I’m back at work, and while things are moving along fine I’d be lying if I said I didn’t wonder what a day in space would be like instead.
Let’s take a little break and go to Mars, shall we?
NASA’s Curiosity Rover Captures a Martian Day, From Dawn to Dusk – NASA Mars Exploration
Rover drivers normally rely on Curiosity’s Hazcams to spot rocks, slopes, and other hazards that may be risky to traverse. But because the rover’s other activities were intentionally scaled back just prior to conjunction, the team decided to use the Hazcams to record 12 hours of snapshots for the first time, hoping to capture clouds or dust devils that could reveal more about the Red Planet’s weather.
* * *
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, creativity, genre fiction, Thoughts, Writers, writing on January 7, 2024| Leave a Comment »
“Always do your very best. Even when no one else is looking, you always are. Don’t disappoint yourself.”
— Colin Powell
* * *
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, creativity, goals, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers, writing on January 6, 2024| 1 Comment »
As I’ve mentioned here before, I don’t really do New Year’s resolutions. That said, I am not immune to the “fresh start effect,” which can make it easier to begin new projects, habits, or other goals around a new week, month, or year.
So today I’m considering what new projects, habits and goals I want to bring with me into 2024.
And whether you’re the sort of person who makes resolutions or not, this article may help with next steps.
How to keep your New Year’s resolutions according to a behavioral economist (Planet Money podcast, with transcript)
It’s the first full week of 2022, and many of us are already feeling the “fresh start effect,” according to behavioral economist Katy Milkman. We’re excited to pursue new goals and we feel a renewed sense of purpose that new beginnings can bring. Still, keeping New Year’s resolutions is often easier said than done.
* * *
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, creativity, inspiration, quotes, Thoughts, Writers, writing on January 4, 2024| Leave a Comment »
“We tell ourselves stories in order to live.”
— Joan Didion
* * *
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, reading, Thoughts, Writers, writing on January 3, 2024| Leave a Comment »
For the days when I look down at the book I’m reading and think, “No research is worth this.”
“If a book is tedious to you, don’t read it; that book was not written for you.”
—Jorge Luis Borges
I’m also a firm believer in this:
“I don’t believe in guilty pleasures… If you like something, like it.”
— Dave Grohl
* * *
Posted in Food and..., tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, Thoughts on January 2, 2024| Leave a Comment »
This holiday season, I discovered that my oven is running 25F degrees too hot. I note this fact here as a helpful reminder that a cheap oven thermometer can be quite informative, and that the timing on some of the recipes I’ve posted here may not match yours. If, you know, your oven actually works as it should.
Even so, happy baking!
* * *
You must be logged in to post a comment.