It was supposed to be on the results of my research project mating chironomids...but they all died. So it was about how my research went wrong, and how other researchers did better (and their results). 😅

I Never Saw a Wild a Thing Sorry for Itself ~ L.E. Bowman

Just signed up for a 10 week intensive language program starting in May. I'm excited! 15 hrs instruction/week. The DLI grad in me chuckled at reviews that said it's too much info doing 3 hrs/day. Lolol Hopefully this helps me see some bigger progress!

That’s . . . That’s almost the opposite of journalism.

Mysteries, Yes ~ Mary Oliver

French polymath Clémence Royer was born 196 years ago today. Now she is most known for her 1862 translation of On the Origin of Species which pushed Darwin's ideas into the realm of human evolution, but in her day she was celebrated for her encyclopedic knowledge. tinyurl.com/5cbam92f #WomenInStEM

I think a lot about why the men on my mom's side are all so angry. My great grandad "missed" WWI & was too old for WW2. He was apparently an abusive alcoholic. My grandad was too young for WW2 and "missed" Korea bc despite being trained as an infantry soldier, he ended up assigned to drive trucks.

...the justices blocked a major presidential initiative. By a 5-to-4 vote along partisan lines, the order halted President Obama’s Clean Power Plan. They acted before any other court had addressed the plan’s lawfulness. The decision consisted of only legalese, without a word of reasoning.

Beautiful casserole jammed full of veg from the fresh market just went into the oven for dinner tonight. I'm actually quite hungry, so it's going to be difficult waiting for it to finish. We did a lot of walking today at the botanical gardens. It was SO pretty! All the orchids are blooming.

Flu epidemic kept my great grandad's unit from shipping out for the tail end of WWI. They were quarantined, according to family lore.

New, from me: Take the Palantir manifesto seriously, if not literally. It reveals that our tech philosopher kings want public money, but without public accountability. This creates a dilemma for governments unaligned with its techno-fascist vision. 🧵 donmoynihan.substack.com/p/palantir-w...

'Texas A&M philosophy professor Martin Peterson is leaving the university after administrators told him in January that he couldn’t teach Plato’s Symposium in his philosophy class; they said the ancient Greek philosopher’s work violated the system’s restrictions on gender and sexuality content.' 1/3

That's creepy.

My dad picked a great day to call & ask me if I've thought about glp1s. A dear friend back in Portland texted this morning to say she got a tummy tuck. And I'm here in a sweater because I have nothing to wear on an 80° day that doesn't make me look like a lumpy potato. Feelings are fun. *sigh*

In the same manifesto, Palantir's owners argued that we need a national military draft, that soft power is over, and that we were too hard on Germany and Japan after World War II. I don't think that company should be allowed to exist anymore.

Right now where you live healthcare for trans kids is either being made literally illegal by your state or made functionally illegal by the unlawful threats of the federal government and a care infrastructure glad to sacrifice trans kids on the altar of appeasement. www.npr.org/2026/04/17/n...

Ooof. Too real.

Traders placed over $1bn in perfectly timed bets on the Iran war. What is going on? www.theguardian.com/world/2026/a...

What a rollercoaster day. Woke up feeling sad/alone/body-dysmorphic. Went for a run. Stretched. Cried. Took kids to an event. Met a new friend for tea. Invited to a movie premiere/asked on a date?? Got introduced to a potential creative collaboration partner. Dinner out w/youngest. Phew.

Interesting. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...

“Women, when they are old enough to have done with the business of being women, and can let loose their strength, must be the most powerful creatures in the whole world.” Isak Dinesen, born 17 April 1885 Vase med Blomster 1920

Today's project: finding a good summer hat so I can save myself from the hot sun.

Wishing I could read In Ascension by MacInnes again for the first time tonight. It was such a good book! If anyone has any similar book recs, I'd love to hear them.

In Gaza, the IDF has spent the months since the ceasefire completing the demolition of all urban areas behind the Yellow Line (and some a little beyond it) bsky.app/profile/wesl... bsky.app/profile/wesl...

Logged into my old blog this afternoon. Wtf? There's people finding it & reading it? How?? Mind you, it's only a dozen or so people per month, but I don't share it anywhere that I can remember. And it absolutely wouldn't rank on Google. Weird.

Trump trashed the JCPOA, only to offer, his very own, JCPOA, cool, cool. Peak Trump. U.S. considers $20 billion cash-for-uranium deal with Iran, according to two U.S. officials and two additional sources briefed on the talks. www.axios.com/2026/04/17/i...

Me too, little robot. Me too.

The strawberries at the fresh market were totally worth the long walk there and back in the hot sun today. (I really need to buy a good hat.)

@disabilitystor1.bsky.social oh goody this one is gendered female and named after the history of science’s Patron Saint of Having Your Work Ripped Off and Unrecognized By Dudes

Record Store day is April 18th💙 do206.com/p/seattles-b...

After 1,200 years, cherry blossom record to live on despite Japanese scientist’s death | Japan | The Guardian

I'd rather be solo than deal with this. It's been almost 7 years now since I've gone on a date. Looks like I'm not missing much.

🧵Working thru the bureaucracy to figure out how/when I can work here on my visa. The challenge is lots of conflicting information. Attorney/I did this same research before arriving & came to one conclusion. Doing it again now & getting different regs/requirements. It looks like I can work...but

It's a Buena Vista Social Club kind of morning here. Perfect for sipping coffee, making plans, and drawing up ridiculous to-do lists.

Take a moment for beauty.

Best Star Trek captain. Wrong answers only.

🔥THIS is what I want! 🔥

Very cool!

Texas' only licensed Hindi, Punjabi, and Urdu legal interpreter is now languishing in a Raymondville detention center. She’s lived in America for 35 years: www.texasobserver.org/immigration-...

Fellas, wearing your sluttiest outfit on a big warm weather day is not just for the ladies

Introduced Youngest to the wonders of owning a discman. They'll never be the same. They're talking about needing more cds already, and getting the big black book to store them in.

Yes.

It pays to really research your trainer, it seems. I looked at a # of diff. folks before choosing. Following their socials, seeing what they "like," how they comment, reading their blogs/websites. One of the things I love about the guy I chose is each week he sends a short msg calling out a

It's funny how things tend to work here: slowly, slowly, slowly, then very fast! The repair person for the exterior roll-down blinds damaged during heavy winds in this winter's repeated storms is arriving unexpectedly in 15 min. I'm thrilled bc it means a lot more light! They've been stuck down.

NEW—I got an exclusive excerpt from a USAID whistleblower's new book that made me gasp multiple times. It details Trump's dismantling of the humanitarian aid agency & his team/DOGE's shocking ignorance to public health. 'Into the Wood Chipper' by Nicholas Enrich is out tomorrow. Read excerpt here:

Using the r-word is just bad. Democrats should have higher standards for themselves than Trump when it comes to using a slur that MANY disabled people find offensive. Looking at you, Graham Platner. New from me at @motherjones.com. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...