50books_poc | Member Posts

Today is cloudy, mild, and wet. It's raining lightly.

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

I put out water for the birds.

.

Current Mood: busy

james_davis_nicoll

Kea must solve a murder to save her community.

The Killing Spell by Shay Kauwe

ysabetwordsmith

Today's theme is Metal.

addme_fandom -- Addme Fandom
Find friends who share your fannish obsessions.
[Active with multiple posts in April.]

beautifulmechanical -- Beautiful Mechanical
Do you love music? We do, too.
[Active with multiple posts in April.]

creativity -- Make It, Build It, Dream It. Creativity.
Sharing creative projects and ideas.
[Somewhat active with last post in June 2025.]

onesongaday -- One Song A Day
Do you love music? So come share, listen & enjoy.
[Active with multiple posts in April.]

vkotd -- V系お勧め
A community for sharing songs by flamboyant Japanese rock/metal bands.
[Active with multiple posts in April.]

Current Mood: busy

fayanora

Interesting idea: A superhero who has an odd knack for talking supervillains into going into legitimate careers. The idea came from a dream I had a bit ago, and in the scene the superhero and the supervillain were fighting, the villain was using a machine to fight that ended up doing something (not sure what) that prompted the hero to ask, "Oh, this is your work? Cool. It's very nice. Have you ever considered going into landscaping?"
"No, I haven't. I'm not... are you sure I'm good enough?"
"A hundred percent! It's excellent work."

And then the villain retired from villainy and started his own landscaping business, using the machines mainly but keeping their lackeys on as employees.

Ha! It'd be funny if the hero was also rich like Bruce Wayne and could say, "Hey, I can put in a good word for you with Charles Moneybags, convince him to invest some startup funds into your new business."

Some heroes keep fighting the same people over and over and over again. Others kill their rogues gallery. This one is basically a career counsellor with connections. Half or more of his rogues gallery end up going legit and maybe even working for him via his secret identity. Hell, it'd be really funny if it happened often enough that other supes started sending their rogues gallery his way just to see if they can ease their superheroing burden non-violently.

Current Mood: amused

sanguinity

Intro/FAQ
Days 1-15

My check-in: Another conference day, which meant another early morning, which meant another morning of editing while I waited for my coffee to brew. But I managed to send the story to beta before I took myself off to learn about transportation policy*, so we'll call that a success.

(*A far more engaging topic than it sounds like!)

Day 23:

china_shop,

dswdiane,

goddess47,

sanguinity,

trobadora

Day 22:

badly_knitted,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

dswdiane,

goddess47,

sanguinity,

sylvanwitch,

the_siobhan

Day 21:

badly_knitted,

carenejeans,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

dswdiane,

sanguinity,

sylvanwitch,

the_siobhan,

trobadora

( More days )

When you check in, please use the most recent post and say what day(s) you’re checking in for. Remember you can drop in or out at any time, and let me know if I missed anyone!

conuly

Nature’s first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf’s a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.

************************************

Link

ysabetwordsmith

fuzzyred is hosting a pool for the half-price sale in Polychrome Heroics. Comment on that post to join the pool.

My main targets will be all of the Shiv poems and "Our Homemade Safety Nets." If there is more interest, I would like to contribute to the open epic "No Faster or Firmer Friendships," then possibly Rutledge poems if people are interested.
[---8<---]
If there is a specific poem you would like, let me know, and it can be added to the pool goals.

Current Mood: busy

mekare

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

ysabetwordsmith

scabrous (SKAB-ruhs) - adj., covered with scales or scabs; hence, very coarse or rough; hence, disgusting, repellent; hence, dealing with suggestive, indecent, or scandalous themes; difficult, thorny, troublesome.

In botany, this lacks the negative connotations, and it is used heavily to describe things as diverse as tree bark, fruit, and squashes.

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

The Pit of Bones: A Death Chamber Time Capsule

In 1997, scientists discovered this small chamber within a much larger complex cave system. They’ve found other human occupation sites within it, but The Pit of Bones was no place for the living. To date, more than 50,000 partially fossilized bones have been collected. These bones include more than 6500 belonging to an ancient hominid species, in addition to bones of over 160 individuals of an extinct species of cave bear, a panther, lynxes, canines, and small mammals.

In addition to some nice details and diagrams of the actual science, there is an amusing discussion of how badly this fits the "young Earth creationism" fantasy.

Current Mood: amused

ysabetwordsmith

Today is sunny and hot, with fluffy white clouds in the sky.

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

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 4/23/26 -- I took some pictures around the yard.

EDIT 4/23/26 -- I refilled potting soil into the hollow logs at the front of the log garden. Then I planted a 4-pack of white impatiens in the holes.

I put the flats of plants outside to get some sun.

I've seen a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches plus a male cardinal.

EDIT 4/23/26 -- I watered the impatiens and flats of plants.

I've seen a starling at the hopper feeder.

EDIT 4/23/26 -- I potted up four green sweet basil plants and one purple ruffles basil, then watered them.

I've seen a fox squirrel at the hopper feeder.

EDIT 4/23/26 -- We hauled the new bag of grass seed out of the car.

EDIT 4/23/26 -- I sowed grass seed in the big bare patch at the west edge of the south lot.

EDIT 4/23/26 -- We hauled out the tape hose and the new sprinkler head. There is not enough hose to reach the grass patch, and with the low water pressure that we have, the spray only covers about 6 feet wide. *sigh*

EDIT 4/23/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 4/23/26 -- I planted a small trough pot with orange mint, mojito mint, and apple mint. There is room for one more mint there.

EDIT 4/23/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

I watered the grass patch using the watering can.

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

Current Mood: busy

james_davis_nicoll

Don't expect them any time soon.

The Science Behind Torchships

james_davis_nicoll

p+B11 is aneutronic (although the side-reactions aren't) and B11 is comparatively abundant in the Earth's crust.

A novel approach to proton-boron 11 fusion.

james_davis_nicoll

What transformed Cheradenine Zakalwe into the superlative Special Circumstances asset he is today?

Use of Weapons by Iain M. Banks

ysabetwordsmith

The Great Oxidation Event Was Earth’s First Apocalypse

The Great Oxidation Event marks the point when oxygen first began to accumulate in Earth’s atmosphere and shallow oceans, permanently altering the course of life on our planet.

I was really pleased to find this description, since most sources ignore Earth's first mass extinction.

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

This year I'm doing Community Thursdays. Some of my activity will involve maintaining communities I run, and my favorites. Some will involve checking my list of subscriptions and posting in lower-traffic ones. Today I have interacted with the following communities...

* Commented on "Gratitude Journaling" in

journalsandplanners.

* Commented on "just create - beard edition" in

justcreate.

* Posted "Books" to

lgbtqiapluswriters.

* Commented on "Just One Thing" in

awesomeers.

* Posted "Birdfeeding" in

birdfeeding.

Current Mood: busy

sonia

About a year ago, a Portland friend who was in town said she had a ticket for a singing meditation event at Spirit Rock the next day, and she could pick me up on the way if I wanted to go too. Sure, why not! So I bought my own ticket, and we got there early and had a picnic lunch and walked around the gorgeous grounds in hilly rural Marin until it was time to go into the hall.

We opted for chairs rather than meditation cushions, and I'm glad because it was a couple of hours long. I had no idea what to expect, but I thought it would include periods of silent meditation. I think we had one ten minute period of meditation, but Melanie DeMore came out singing in her rich deep gorgeous voice, and mostly sang spirituals (surviaval songs) and told us stories about her interactions with other famous singers like Pete Seeger, and explained that Kumbaya was actually "Come by me," a prayer from enslaved people. She called us her babies. I wept into my mask through a lot of it, at the realness and the kindness in that voice surrounding us.

Here you can see and hear her lead a couple of songs at a concert in 2014

Watch on YouTube

In February, a friend said she was going to see Linda Tillery in a few days in Berkeley, did I want to get a ticket and go too. Sure, why not! Linda Tillery is a legendary Black singer from San Francisco, and she had gathered together many members of her Cultural Heritage Choir for a Black History Month reunion. She is a force and a voice to be reckoned with, even with health issues that led to using a wheelchair for the concert.

To my delight, Melanie DeMore was there as a past member of the Cultural Heritage Choir. The musicians took turns leading songs, each more skilled than the next, and she led some Gullah Stick Pounding, with powerful rhythms.

Here she shares some of the history of Gullah Stick Pounding and why she teaches it to choirs all over.

Watch on YouTube

sanguinity

Intro/FAQ
Days 1-15

Note: I'll be away from email again tomorrow, so my check-in post will again go up a couple hours later than usual. If that's inconveniently late for you, just go ahead and check in on the most recent post whenever is convenient.

My check-in: Got up early to catch my bus to the all-day conference (and shared the bus ride with a coworker, so I couldn't even write in transit!). However, I did sneak in a couple of edits first thing on getting up, go me. (Well, second thing: I started coffee first-first.)

Day 22:

china_shop,

dswdiane,

sanguinity

Day 21:

badly_knitted,

carenejeans,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

dswdiane,

sanguinity,

sylvanwitch,

trobadora

Day 20:

badly_knitted,

carenejeans,

china_shop,

cornerofmadness,

dswdiane,

goddess47,

sanguinity,

sylvanwitch,

the_siobhan,

trobadora,

ysilme

( More days )

When you check in, please use the most recent post and say what day(s) you’re checking in for. Remember you can drop in or out at any time, and let me know if I missed anyone!

ysabetwordsmith

These are the content notes for "No Faster or Firmer Friendships."

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

Here are the character notes for "No Faster or Firmer Friendships."

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

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Writers of Color 50 Books Challenge

January 2026

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Writers of Color 50 Books Challenge

Member Posts

Birdfeeding

The Killing Spell by Shay Kauwe

Follow Friday 4-24-26: Metal

Supe with a +20 to charisma

Write Every Day: Day 23

Nothing Gold Can Stay by Robert Frost

Pool Open!

Art: Greta

Vocabulary: Scabrous

History

Birdfeeding

The Science Behind Torchships

A novel approach to proton-boron 11 fusion

Use of Weapons by Iain M. Banks

History

Community Thursdays

Melanie DeMore and Gullah stick pounding

Write Every Day: Day 22

Content notes for "No Faster or Firmer Friendships"

Character notes for "No Faster or Firmer Friendships"

Profile

January 2026

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