“They will see rebound growth within a week or two.”

So, some companies are returning tariffs to US consumers Thank you DHL

Am I the only one who hates it when your friend updates their GR account showing they read a book, but then they write “review to come” I don’t care if it’s 1am and I can barely see to type, I am smashing out a goddamn review because if you don’t do it right when you finish a book, you never will

This spring I got to move into the Bliss Building on Waterman. (You pass it on your way to the Henderson Bridge, just before Whole Foods.) It’s got a cult following. An artist has made a 3-D rendering of the hallways. Acquaintances beg to visit me there because they’ve always wanted to see inside.

NEWS CENTER MAINE: This is the first reelection campaign that you're run since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. I was hoping you could talk to me a little bit about your vote to confirm Kavanaugh and whether you regret that? SUSAN COLLINS: I do not regret that vote.

Ok so this bouquet delivered to our offices by Four Buds Florists today is so stonkingly happy and cheerful (Four Buds is the only employee owned florist in RI, they are on Wickenden in Providence and staff grow some of the stems in their own back yards! Buy their flowers!)

In other - lighter, local - news: I'm on the board of the Seekonk (MA) Land Trust, and we have a job opening. 👉🏻 Please share with anyone who might be interested. 🍃(It's very in person, so RI & MA especially.) www.seekonklandtrust.org/news

Ranch dressing

Nurseries mislable plants all the time. It’s tough to quality control seedlings for bloom color. All of which is to say, welcome to my long-planned “orange” front garden for 2026! Luckily I love this color too because I planted a ton of them.

Woke from a nightmare. They want the killing drones powered by AI because they want to shoot down uprisings without relying on human soldiers who might say no. The PE guys investing in the startups want to be Elon. The startup guys want to be Elon. Capitalism is killing us.

“These days kids can learn about justice, queer people, science, the perfidity of the white nationalism, and social justice from the Internet. I just can’t let that go on anymore” says a man in an outfit his parents would have found disrespectfully casual and not let him leave the house.

Quirky but true: Looloo, the top antique doorknob and door hardware dealer in America, is HQed in Rhode Island. Their latest online auction is now open. Funky vintage doorknobs are fun to decorate with and you can take them with you when you move auctions.looloodesign.com

Providence housing: this funeral home on the corner of Wayland and Waterman (near Wayland Sq) was sold a few years ago to be developed into housing, but they can’t make the numbers work so it’s just sitting there. Housing is $$$$ to develop here but we’ve gotta figure out how to make it happen

If you use Waymo driverless car services, you are aiding and abetting fascism. Waymo helps I.C.E. agents locate people to terrorize and abduct. The company willingly shares all facial recognition, license plate and GPS data with I.C.E. and other law enforcement agencies—no subpoena required.

Update: I taught her to use her phone and she went to a big official local food pantry and got a bunch of food! And then she brought it back to my Little Free Pantry and stuffed it full because she said my pantry taught her sharing is what we do 😭

As a reminder for everyone saying, "The US had never before scored four goals in a World Cup" that they mean the men's team had never before scored that many. The women's team has absolutely scored more than four goals in a world cup, including in the final. And they also wins things.

Dedicate resources to creating a big free outdoor celebration of soccer, they said. Have booths, food trucks and entertainment stages, they said. People will flood to Providence and spend all their money, they said. Don’t worry, it’s only June so the weather will be lovely pvdfanzone.com/happenings/

Fun fact that only avid gardeners in Rhode Island may appreciate: Turns out there’s a restaurant named Farmer’s Daughter in southern Massachusetts and if you’re absent minded as you plug in your GPS…..

Yes! There are 50-90 ICE flights every single day. gillianbrockell.com/what-is-ice-...

who in Toronto wants 8000 pounds of free Star Trek rocks because TODAY IS YOUR LUCKY DAY readysetrecycle.net/advert/free-...

Hesitant to leave X fully because the audience fuels your income (or votes)? Leave but post a routine reminder. Every 2-3 days, pop back in and tweet where you’ve gone to. Wanna see my posts? Wanna DM me? Wanna joke about the news? Wanna hear my analysis? Etc. Go see my feed at [whereever]

In a nonprofit board meeting today, the discussion touched on whether we should solicit sponsorship or grants from (private prisons funder) Citizens Bank. We decided not to besmirch our cause with their money. Then everyone gossiped about who they knew who was yanking accounts from there now

I’m six feet tall and trucks like that scare me as a pedestrian.

Annajane Yolken, a director at Project Weber/RENEW, is running for Rachel Miller’s seat in the West End and many of us, including Miller, are pretty happy about it

“Palantir tracks everyone. So we built a site that tracks Palantir. They've been watching us. Now we can watch them. Contracts. Lawsuits. Executive pay. Global footprint. Lobbying activity. Media strategies. All in one place.”

Rhode Islanders shivering with delight at the thought of no longer being the tiniest state

That thing where you find out two people from completely different parts of your life are actually married to each other

“LLMs do not improve one's writing ability much like taking a taxi does not improve one's driving ability”

Please see this as a general reminder that you're not alone. Many of us reject, refuse, repudiate artificial intelligence and the technology industry: Guest et al. (2026). Against the Uncritical Adoption of 'AI' Technologies in Academia. Digital Culture & Education doi.org/10.5281/zeno...

Also, holy shit: Some housing developer is going bust because a group of eight (8) commercial properties in downtown Pawtucket all half-way converted to housing are on the market as a bundle www.loopnet.com/Listing/PAWT...

Oh hello: The City of Providence is accepting RFPs of re-adaption ideas for the cute Tudor-style fire near Hope St on Rochambeau No short term or student rentals. Also avoid noise because that oddball neighbor who will make your life hell by protesting www.loopnet.com/Listing/280-...

So far this evening CVS has (in order over 4 hours) 1. Filled my prescription and handed it to me 2. Texted me there’s a hold and they won’t fill it until tomorrow 3. Texted me to come pick it up right away

Note to self: From now on only mentor people with amazing gardens who thank you with home grown bouquets delivered to your office!! (Yes am driving them home now to splendify my kitchen)

Thanks to Marcela Betancur, head of RI’s Latino Policy Institute, whose column in PVD Eye today reminded everyone that Latinos are nearly half the population of Providence. They are our core strength. pvdeye.org/latino-polic...

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a helicopter landing pad prominently featured in a real estate listing for a home in Rhode Island before www.zillow.com/homedetails/...

Campaign Marketing factoid: Glossy mailers look like ads and are ignored/tossed. Handwritten postcards, handmade flyers, offset paper with earnest letters - anything not too glossy, colorful or slick but human gets more attention But glossies are easier to produce because unthinking

Me: please xray my toe Tech: it says foot not toe on the paperwork Me: yeah, its this middle toe Tech (with suspicion): how do you know that, it’s not on the paperwork? Me: It hurts? Tech: We’re going to xray your foot [proceeds to arrange foot sideways so middle toe is hidden]

I’ve been talking to political candidates and unless you’ve an endless budget, search marketing is wasteful and possibly pointless because no one knows any best practices whatsoever to be effective in this new AI search results world

Ok I have tried the Murderbot series in both the single narrator (Kevin R Free) and the Graphic Audio ‘dramatized’ version. Kevin’s original single narrator edition is so much better, more listenable and I never get the characters mixed up.

Someone could make bank by setting up a private bag checking service near Providence’s FanZone entrance

Have you seen the list of prohibited items for PVD Fanzone - the lawn near the train station where they’re hoping thousands will come? Flags, signs and any type of bag or backpack that’s not clear plastic are prohibited. Who would bother to enter? pvdfanzone.com/prohibited/

#FlowerReport peonies hit full bloom

My gorgeous peachy pink David Austin rose perished this winter so the sturdy root stock, it was grafted onto, seized its opportunity and now blood red blooms are having their day in the sun. I would never plant this color but I cannot deny it. It lives here now.

Was gonna have a tomato sandwich for lunch but someone got there before me

RI GARDENING PSA: Yes, it rained last night. No that was not enough water for your windowboxes, planters or containers. Plus the warm breezes today will strip more water from leaves. You still have to do the watering you would have otherwise done. Thank you.

The differences between how Norway’s women’s vs men’s teams react as national treasure Kjetil Krogstad, an exuberant, joyful queer, dances in their honor. The women stand respectfully. The men toss balls around and half-avoid looking at him. The men were shameful honestly.

The reason Men are panicking about Gender is that thanks to the internet, we (everyone who isn't a Man) have been able to compare notes on Men worldwide and WOW it's not looking good

Suspect a certain kind of dutiful heavily workshopped literary fiction would actually be easier to create with AI than romance

I have been gardening for 35 years. Today was the first day I learned shredded tire mulch is a thing Utterly disgusted

Loved Willa Van Nostrand’s new art show at Waterfire Center (free through June 21st). The strength of this female body struck me - her arms, her calves, her back - this is no frail femme girl but an adult woman. Also, she’s not posing for us. She’s fully active on her own course. #womensart