Ooooff! Nearing the finish line. Running out of steam. Second round of proofs are on their way. Recreating the index for the eBook now (that is the WORST headache of all!) Need my cheering squad! 😵‍💫🤯😅

Finally found a movie that runs at my speed, and soothes my weary soul: Carroll Ballard's 1979 "The Black Stallion." The light and the textures, the landscapes and soundscapes are simply magnificent. And, my God, that horse could act! 🏇

These images just make me happy; so much soil life! Thanks, @janephuong.bsky.social.

Going through the VERY LONG list of candidates for California governor today. Knocking off all the obvious crazies first. Amazing to see how many of them are using obvious AI slop for their candidate statements, bios, and imagery. This is making the weeding job easy! I vote for humans, only.

A few happy scenes from the family's birthday bicycle adventure on the Coast Trail south of Half Moon Bay, CA... What a delightful adventure it was! SO MANY flowers, and cheerful songbirds, and happily pollinating insects. And the aromas of the coastal sage scrub/prairie lands. Mmmmmmm.

Physical proof FINALLY arrived in today's mail. I adore the warm, cozy feel of the cover colors IRL. I also generally adore cream colored interior pages. But together...? The contrast makes it look like someone peed on the pages! ☝️☝️☝️ Why physical proofs are non-negotiable. 🙄 #amediting

Yikes! Fire Season has arrived early this year. 10 years ago we packed our bug-out bags every August, 5 years ago we started packing them each June. Now it looks like we'll be packing in May! Go climate change! 🫤

If you’re a writer, write “I waited” without saying it. "The physical proof copy of my new book is expected to arrive in the mail, later today."

What is faster than a speeding bullet, and bouncier than a breeding brush rabbit in spring? A dusky footed wood rat launching herself 18 inches into the air, to chase a spotted towhee away from 'her' blueberry bushes. Who knew they could fly? The Niffler is back!

Just stumbled upon this video, showing some amazing land restoration work being done in Hawaii. Inspirational. Enjoy! youtu.be/24uCCr3KjCI

Important CALL TO ACTION from the California Native Plant Society: May 7th, 3pm demonstration at O’Neill Regional Park, opposing the roll back of the Roadless Rule protecting our national forests. Info & RSVP here: cnps.convio.net/site/Message...

Nice post. Addresses an important (& often omitted) part of the #AI conversation: celebrating the amazing things that a well-educated, independently thinking human brain can do, which no LLM can replicate. It's the reason for my forthcoming book, "Understanding Matters: A Guide to Human Learning"

Downside of knowing anything about nature, or geography: When watching a TV show that depicts a sunset picnic on an ocean bluff, supposedly set on the coast of Maine... You are instantly flung out of the story, and find yourself disbelieving everything else that happens in the episode.

Working on line edits for my book. Saddened by the need to chop up sentences that my editor says are "beautifully crafted, complex sentences, but beyond the likely literacy level of my intended, mainstream audience." Book is called "Understanding Matters," so I guess I have to do it. ☹️ #amediting

Bit of blue sky peeking through the grey today, but 2.32" of rain this weekend were well worth it! A few other blue things seen in the garden today: first signs of ripening blueberries, and first three bluebells!

Ooooh! That was exciting. Never experienced a cloud burst like that one before: Out every window, it looked as if we were standing in a dark cave, behind a raging waterfall. Glad we're at the top of a hill! 💧💧💧💧💧

Apologies to my feed-followers! The service that used to host my 3 feeds: Bluesky Druid Grove /|\ Ecofiction 🌿📚 Indie Author Life 🖋️📖💰 Has vanished. Feeds disappeared. Website gone. Please use #druidsky and #ecofiction instead, and ask @eliseswritings.bsky.social about her amazing Discord. Sorry!

Ah! a bit of rain, a bit of warmth, and the Tidy Tips have arrived! (my very favorite California native wildflower)

Thanks for sharing this video, @olivia.science. This theme is precisely why I re-read the LotR regularly: to remind me to ponder the conflict: the art of being human vs. the coercive domination of humanity by machines.

Perfect view for an Easter Day bike-picnic, with a cacophony of sea birds squabling over nesting spots on the muddy shores of the SF Bay.

“The deskilling, denigration, and displacement of teachers and scholars have historically been central to fascist takeovers, since educators serve as bulwarks against propaganda, anti-intellectualism, and illiteracy.” www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/a...

Happy Easter, to all who celebrate! (And thank you, @crawlieswithcri.bsky.social for sharing -- you just made my entire week!)

Starting my final round of book editing: the READ-ALOUD! Does anyone else do this? I find that when I polish the prose to roll of the tongue, it makes it easier for readers to understand. (also helps with audiobooks, and bookstore readings.) Then a few tweaks to the index, and prepress! #amwriting

Well, that one rattled me out of deep sleep! Epicenter just a stone's throw away, and USGS claims 4.9.

Woohooo! Book FINISHED! Of course, after my editing staff is through with it, it will probably need to be rewritten, but that's a tomorrow problem. Tonight, I'm having sushi. 🥳

Spent the week content coding & untangling the conceptual spaghetti of my final chapter. Finally uncovered the inspirational through line. Here it comes! #amwriting

Installing air-conditioners and going swimming (outdoors) at the Vernal Equinox. Never had to use AC the entire year, last year. this heat wave is ridiculous. Happy Equinox, one and all! /|\

Happy Birthday, Mr. Rogers

Just walked into another dream... Wow! Well captured, @pauljwillson.bsky.social !

Starting today: FLASH SALE on "World Druidry" The book, by Mt. Haemus scholar, Larisa A. White, explores the beliefs & practices of 725 Druids from 34 countries, and 147 Druid groups. 25% off, until April 1st, at: larisa-a-white.com/worlddruidry... Happy Equinox! /|\ #druidsky #pagansky

Woohooo! Last of the big, meaty-content chapters is complete, and edited; Glossary complete; Index drafted. Now to write the final chapter (the inspirational send-off) and get down to final edits. My new book on human learning is nearly ready!

Finally got to the end of the chapter, written in sporadic spurts throughout the Winter Quarter. First day of Spring Break is tomorrow. Time to break out the editing hatchet!

Urgh. Working the cross-stitch. Fom a galloping horse it looked gorgeous, but stitching it at scale, I realize it's a stunning work of AI slop. Look at the corner Celtic knot work: illogical & incontiguous. No human would err like this! Can't stomach the idea of finishing it now. 2 months lost. 🤬/|\

Teen boy describing his first experience w/ ChatGPT: I asked it to give me a summary of The Hobbit, just to see what it would say. It got most of the main plot points correct, but didn't say anything about character growth arcs, or themes, and didn't know the difference between books & movies...

Really rough day today. Looking for moral support. Tell me, anyone: is it actually possible to survive parenting a teenaged boy with raging hormones? I feel like I'm going through menopause again - his!

And here's another pretty thing...

California wild roses are forever attempting to take over the world, but their thorny brambles and all-pervasive roots make for excellent nurse plants: Our CA hazelnut grew to a healthy 2-1/2 feet under their protection. Spice bushes also thriving below the thorns.

I do not like this gen AI I do not like what it implies I do not want it in my art I do not think it makes you smart I do not want it in my games I do not like its goals and aims I do not want it in my books I do not like the way it looks I do not like it, I don't care I do not want it anywhere

Tree of Life #crossstitch project - fortnightly update: Pattern by PandoraXstitch on Etsy. First image is current progress; second image is goal.

Help, help! Stuck in a writer's vortex. Cannot stop writing, even though guests are due to arrive any minute. I'm on a roll; can I send them away and do cake next week? Couldn't have hit flow when I was bored last week? Sigh. #amwriting

Loving this birthday weekend: quiet writing time; a warm, sunny break in rainy season, for sitting in the garden at peak flower season; and now this...

Beautifully stated.

What a fabulous idea! And very nice camera work, as well. I do hope you will share more about the bioregion in which you are taking your walks, and the specific plants and animals whom you meet along the way (as much as is possible). Just lovely!

This just in from my 14 y.o. boy, who is working on his Personal Planning badge for Boy Scouts... I'm thinking of investing in chicken and beef stocks. If I do well, I'm hoping to become a bouillonaire.

Very strange feeling to wake up one morning to discover that my little boy is suddenly taller than me. Joy at the evidence of growing & thriving; sorrow at the realization that he will be grown and flown in the blink of an eye. Time to double down on treasuring the moments.

Age verification? My first word processor was a typewriter that could store 180 characters in *memory* so corrections could be made before the ink hit the page!

Great little article that explains how we handicap our learning when using AI to answer question for us.

I've seen many bird-baths in my time, but this is the first time I ever spotted a bird-bidet!

25 years ago, my sister asked: "Where are your flowers? A bride needs flowers!" I had none, so I ran out to the backyard & grabbed a handful of pretty yellow flowers to carry to City Hall. I later learned they were tenacious weeds, impossible to erradicate. Like love. Great symbol for a marriage!

Best thing about living in California, with a beautiful, thriving forest floor? Orange season just arrives each February with its glorious, juicy, tasty bounty!