mallorys_camera

Just finished: A Palace Near the Wind by Ai Jiang. In my post about this last week I perhaps failed to mention that in addition to most of the main characters being trees, the humans' palace that is invading their territory is made out of bones.

Anyway.

It's really good. Would recommend, looking forward to the sequel.

Currently reading: Starfish by Peter Watts. This has to be a re-read because there is no way I didn't read something that clearly influenced my own writing this much, but also I have no memory of when or under what circumstances I read it. Weird. So is the book, but that goes without saying. A corporation called GA has built Beebe, an underwater station that harvests geothermal energy from the Juan de Fuca Rift, and genetically and surgically modified some folks to maintain it, called rifters (or vampires by a psychologist sent to report on them, but not the same kind of vampires as in Blindsight). The rifters all have a lung removed and replaced with adaptive equipment to allow them to breathe underwater and adapt to the pressure.

Who would do this? Obviously people who have no choice and who are already fucked in the head, so our cast ranges from the severely traumatized to the severely traumatized with a history of inflicting more trauma on others. They inevitably like the bottom of the ocean more than the surface, but there are some very nasty things down there, not all of them natural.

Also this was written almost 30 years ago and absolutely describes the current state of AI perfectly.

This is obviously extremely up my street and I love it. All the trigger warnings apply, so know that going in. But it's one of the most inventive hard sf books out there and put Peter Watts on the map for good reason.

andrewducker

1. Dogs! With! Bubbles!: (tags:dogs bubble )
2. Social media: Don't ban children, fix the platforms: (tags:UK socialmedia regulation )
3. Tavistock safeguarding: what actually happened: (tags:NHS bigotry UK transgender LGBT )
4. Glucosamine supplements are associated with accelerated Alzheimer's progression: (tags:alzheimers )
5. You can now make expresso with ultrasound, cutting energy use by 50%: (tags:coffee sound ultrasound )
6. AI plagiarises by default (in this case, from Zelda): (tags:games ai plagiarism )
7. Trump and Musk have won their war on facts: (tags:facts ElonMusk politics usa OhForFucksSake )
8. Write for one person: (tags:writing advice )
9. Autism is multiple syndromes (in this case hypoconnectivity and hyperconnectivity of the brain as two distinct subtypes): (tags:autism brain neuroscience )
10. If you cross a corgi with any other dog you end up with what looks like a corgi in fancy dress: (tags:dogs cute viaSwampers )

sartorias

I guess DW doesn't permit vids, as I tried to upload a wonderful 24 seconds of the train running alongside a bird drifting down the Hudson. Ah well, try to imagine it!

I had a delightful stay in Montreal (a bit crispy at first, then RAIN, then perfect weather) and another delightful Scintillation. So much book talk! Bought Cameron Reed's new book, What We Are Seeing and Jo Walton's just-about-to-come-out Everybody's Perfect, and for a launch panel discussed Emmet O'Brien's first two books in his Vega Victrix series, which he is publishing AT LAST. (I'd read some of it in draft over the years.)

Let me pause and give some thumbnail thoughs here; indie publishing depends on word of mouth (don't I know it!) and I think this space opera series really deserves it.

Both Your Houses is the first book. This series represents everything I want in space opera: intriguing skiffy balanced with complex characters whose emotions are not overwhelmed by the worldbuilding. Which is quite complex, but we learn about it gradually through Corin Oshima, our first-person narrator. She has a wry voice and a dry wit that makes everything, including info, interesting.

The author chose to keep the focus of this book on a specific case, while gradually widening the lens to afford a glimpse of the larger mystery.

Great alien design is another plus, and plenty of action. Corin is my favorite kind of hero--smart, cool, cognizant of conflicting moral algebra without being a jerk. I don't like jerk main characters; when everyone is a jerk, I lose interest in a story. Corin's story immersed me right from the start.

The second book, Ever Vexed With Storms, carries on from the first book. Don't begin with this one! This is a complex space opera universe and a complex story, though in the first two volumes, the author chose a mission/mystery structure, which provides enough guidepost for the reader to start assimilating the complicated background.

Corin continues to be awesome. I love it when the action catches up with her to see how she gets out of it. There's no "and then she leaped from the pit" cheats. Great aliens, high octane emotional entanglements, and a dry, delicious wit kept me immersed until the last page.

Right now they are only available at Amazon, which--whatever else you can say about them, and there's plen-ty to say--makes it relatively easy for the first timer to upload their work. More platforms will happen, and eventually print.

I got the rights back to my INDA series at last, and I've been like a pig in mud, cleaning up all the errors that I wish had been addressed long ago. It didn't get a professional copyedit, which I desprately need, but of course I'm responsible for the crap prose. Cringe, cringe, cringe. So it' time to address that the best I can, and this time there will be a list of characters, something about the ships, and the CORRECT map. That will happen early next month.

Aside from that, so many beautiful things seen and experienced! And today the homeward trip begins; I'd planned to walk to the train station, using up that four and a half hours between latest hotel checkout and needing to be due at Albany/Rensselaer, but the weather will be eighty. Not sure I want to drag a suitcase almost two miles in 80 temps, with sporadic thunderstorms in the forecast. Rain in June? In SoCal that would be a joke, but back here, it's entirely possible! Anyway so I will find a cafe, and hole up with a book and an iced chai latte instead, and decorously take a Lyft.

nverland posting in

creative_cooks

Miami Vice Cocktail
Yields: 4 - 6 serving(s) Prep Time: 10 mins Total Time: 15 mins

Ingredients

Piña Colada
3 cups ice
3 (2.45-oz.) frozen pineapple fruit bars or 1 c. pineapple sorbet
4 oz. white rum
1/2 cup cream of coconut
1/2 cup pineapple juice
Kosher salt

Strawberry Daiquiri & Assembly
1 (1-lb.) bag frozen strawberries
8 oz. fresh strawberries, hulled (about 2 c.), plus more for serving
2 (2.45-oz.) frozen lime fruit bars or 2/3 c. lime sorbet
4 oz. white rum
1/2 cup strawberry jam
Kosher salt

Fresh pineapple wedges and/or leaves, for serving

Directions

Piña Colada
In a blender, blend ice, pineapple fruit bars, rum, cream of coconut, pineapple juice, and a pinch of salt until smooth. Transfer cocktail to a pitcher and freeze until ready to use.

Strawberry Daiquiri & Assembly
Step 1Rinse and dry blender. Blend frozen strawberries, fresh strawberries, lime fruit bars, rum, jam, and a pinch of salt until smooth.
Step 2To serve, pour piña colada and daiquiri into glasses, either alternating flavors or stacking one over the other. Garnish with a pineapple wedge, fresh strawberry, and a couple of pineapple leaves.

cosmolinguist

I just listened to the Effectively Wild (a baseball podcast) episode about a handful of Giants players who refused to wear the rainbow version of their uniform cap for Pride Night, some of whom scrawled a Bible verse on their cap or gave inane comments to the press about how "this isn't about hating anyone, I'm just a Christian" (it says something about how very many queer Christians are in my circle now that despite not being one I was at first slightly baffled and then absolutely livid on their behalf -- when asked what he'd say to queer people about his gesture, this guy said they should read the Bible which...what?)

It does me some good to hear the Editor-in-Chief of FanGraphs, one of the go-to baseball sites, take a stand on this, saying that if these guys really feel that strongly they should just put themselves on the restricted list and lose a game's play, rather than making Pride Night all about them. (And that the league should just require this, rather than go through this same fuckery every year now.)

But rather than give them any more space in my brain (except to say that this read-the-Bible guy also said God has blessed him with many gifts, but one of them wasn't a good performance that night, or a win for his team!). Instead I'll talk about Spencer Strider, another pitcher for a different team.

Standing in front of a big screen with “PRIDE NIGHT” graphics and a script Braves sculpture, Strider enthusiastically represented both himself as a major league player and his organization as he reached out to our community. “We want everybody to feel included and a part of the community here,” he announced to the crowd of LGBTQ fans, “Baseball can be a part of that. That’s exciting and [we] definitely want to take this opportunity. So we appreciate you being here and go Braves!”

The writer of this article went on to say

Those are words that we expect to hear on Pride Night from someone wearing a Braves polo shirt with a title like “Vice President of Community Outreach.” And they would be perfectly fine coming from a source like that, albeit a tad perfunctory. When they come from a player in uniform who these same LGBTQ fans will be cheering during the game, they carry an extra sense of gravitas. Suddenly, the welcoming message becomes a moment that everyone in the building will remember from Pride Night 2026.

I was feeling pretty bleak as I walked to the gym and back listening to the podcast, feeling the weight of injustice pretty heavily in the wake of news that the DoJ would arrest the whole state of Minnesota if they could. And when I arrived at the gym I was immediately greeted by my old name, by someone I hadn't seen since I was in the WI, which felt a little weird -- she was nice, as she'd always been, but made no mention of me looking or sounding different which left me briefly wondering if I will ever feel like I have transitioned.

So it was nice to come home and read about Spencer Strider and think about his thighs (that article also includes the sentence "with thighs that belong on a Planet Fitness poster reminding members to “never skip leg decade” and a mustache that makes it look like he’s about to call timeout and ask his catcher “Can anybody find me somebody to love,” Strider already had a certain appeal for gay Braves fans).

ysabetwordsmith

mozaikmage is posting a new webcomic called "Fragmentation."

It's about being a lesbian teenager in a closed Soviet city on the verge of the collapse of the Soviet Union... on the site of the Tunguska event, which causes Strange Things to happen in town and gives the teenage lesbian protagonist glimpses of her terrifying future.

I'm just amused by a lesbian comic set in the Soviet Union. Poke a bigot in the eye!

Current Mood: amused

nanila posting in

awesomeers

It's challenge time!

Comment with Just One Thing you've accomplished in the last 24 hours or so. It doesn't have to be a hard thing, or even a thing that you think is particularly awesome. Just a thing that you did.

Feel free to share more than one thing if you're feeling particularly accomplished! Extra credit: find someone in the comments and give them props for what they achieved!

Nothing is too big, too small, too strange or too cryptic. And in case you'd rather do this in private, anonymous comments are screened. I will only unscreen if you ask me to.

Go!

taz_39

**Disclaimer** The views and opinions expressed in this post are my own, and do not reflect the views or opinions of my employer.

DO NOT RESHARE ANY PART OF THIS POST WITHOUT PERMISSION. Thank you.

This post covers Monday and Tuesday.

--- --- --- --- --- ---

Previous Visits to Tucson:

Circus, June 2013: Look at that, the circus came through here at this same time of year! It was just as hot. I took lots of pics from the train vestibule, having never been this far west before. Visited Chicago Music Store, toured Biosphere 2, and ate at El Minuto Cafe. It was too hot to do much else.

Circus, June 2015: Jameson and I were dating by this time. We drove together instead of riding the train. Took a tour of the Hoover Dam (it was amazing!) and the Grand Canyon (also amazing but VERY crowded.) Once we got to Tucson the daytime highs were in the 110s (43.3°C) so you'll pardon me if I stayed indoors!! In fact it was so hot that we managed to cook an egg on the ground outside!

Tootsie the Musical, March 2022: We played the same theater that I'm gonna play with BATB this week, but stayed at a different hotel. I got a loaf of bread from Barrio Bakery (and met the owner!), and ate at Nook and at Five Points Market, and had nitro matcha at Scented Leaf. Nook was so good that I went back a second time, and their peanut butter protein bread was one of my favorite foods of the entire tour. I explored Historic 4th Avenue and Five Points Intersection, visiting the thrift and vintage shops there. And checked out the incredible landscaping and botany at the U of AZ...they have REALLY amazing plants!

--- --- --- --- --- ---

MONDAY

Fitful sleep, which is not unusual for me on a travel day. For breakfast I'd gotten an "espresso soda" from Whole Foods to try, because I hoped it would be like a Manhattan Special. It was certainly not. Acidic and sour, and it was supposed to be vanilla flavored but it was so sour that you couldn't tell at all. The main sweetener used was agave so perhaps that was the issue. Went downstairs and bought a hot coffee instead. Lesson learned: want a Manhattan Special? Buy a Manhattan Special.

Worked on Foodie Finds, finished packing, and watched anime until the bus showed up at 9:30. We left El Paso around 10am.
The scenery was interesting a few times...

...but mostly it was very flat desert with mountains in the distance, scrub brush and rocks, cacti and blue sky.

We charter two buses for every bus travel day. One is designated the "Quiet Bus" while the other is the "Loud Bus." If people want to sleep, read, listen to music with headphones, etc., they can sit on Quiet Bus. If they want to play games, chat with each other, listen to music without headphones, make calls, etc., they can sit on Loud Bus. As has become our Travel Day Tradition, Holly (Madame/The Wardrobe) led us in some rousing Loud Bus choreo! Thankfully the choreo was easy this time, and we only had to do 1-2 takes before making the recording. I'm right down front, bottom left.

Watch on YouTube

We stopped twice for bathrooms and snacks, but still made it to Tucson before 3pm thanks to yet another time change (I am so confused about AZ's stance on Daylight Savings. whatever guys.) I can't wait to share pics of this hotel room because it's pretty cool. That'll come at the end of the week. Anyway I dropped my luggage, stuffed the thermometer in the minifridge, and Ubered NOT to a grocery this time but to World Market. They have the BEST mini silicone spatulas. I've had mine for several years and it's starting to degrade/get sticky. Picked up another one of those and a tiny travel bottle of plum wine, why not. There was a big mall across the street so I walked to the H&M to check for my favorite black pants (Nope. I HAVE to accept that they're gone *cries*) then it was close enough to dinner time to Uber to Whole Paycheck, eat hot bar stuff, and get my groceries.

I was excited to find some new and interesting foods here!

Pink Cosmo blueberries: 9/10 Are they really BLUEberries? :p Turns out they are a blueberry with some dominant recessive gene (cultivated/genetically encouraged to reveal itself, of course) that makes them a lovely pinkish-purple color. Some people say they have a flavor like nectarines or peaches. Peaches are my favorite fruit and I wouldn't go QUITE so far, but they definitely taste more tangy, more orange-citrus, and don't have that kinda musky taste that regular blueberries can have. It's a refreshing, summery flavor...I thought they were very good! I know they're expensive comparatively but imo if you see them they're worth trying just once as the flavor is something special.

Narra Ube Latte: 8/10 An oat milk "latte" with no coffee and no caffeine, sweetened with both sugar and monkfruit. It was I think 150 calories. I liked this a lot! You could actually taste the earthy ube with a lovely creamy vanilla mixed in. The texture was a bit thin imo but it would be easy to just add a little protein powder or yogurt or whatever and have it thicker. I would get this again as a special treat.

I have yet to try the pistachio one (which is an actual coffee-based latte) and will report back!

Back at the hotel, unpacked and typed up this post, chatted with Jameson, and felt like going right to bed at 8pm but made myself stay up until 10. I'm sure I'll be awake with the sun tomorrow. Sigh.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

TUESDAY

Of COURSE I was wide awake at 6:30am, which is now 9:30am EST. But since I fell asleep so early I actually got 8 hours of sleep for once.

A slow morning, working on that pesky San Francisco Foodie Finds, researching flights home from California for the layoff, and sort of making a to-do list for when I'm home on this layoff. It always seems overwhelming and then I inevitably knock 80% of the list out in the first week lol. It was 95°F (35°C) at 10am already, whew. Good thing Tucson has a FREE public trolley! That will come in handy in the coming days, with temps reaching above 100°F most days.

Walked to the theater when it was time, luckily we are very close so it's only 5-8 minutes in the blazing sun. We're playing the Centennial Hall on U of AZ campus. Loads of great shopping and dining around for the students, and I still see the same beautiful landscaping and plants :) The theater is more of an auditorium, no gold leaf or exotic themes, just chairs in an acoustically correct room. The pit is of average size, and the drums are down there with us instead of remoted to another room, yay! We have THREE new musicians this week: two subs (Nancy on horn for Sarah and Joe on drums for Gary who is out for his son's graduation), and Maria, our new clarinet. Everyone did great during sound check, but I'd be lying if I didn't say having a new drummer on ANY show makes me a bit nervous. That's the heartbeat of the band!

After sound check, the usual quick dinner at the hotel and dropping my trunk stuff off. Walked back for the evening show. It went very well, and there was a surprise:

sholanda was here with a friend!! We have never met in person for obvious geographical reasons, but we read each others DW writings. She came down to the pit to say hello before the show started, and took a pic of us!

and me in my little cage lol. Do Not Feed The Musicians :p

The show went very well considering all the new people we had in the pit, in fact hilariously the only obvious issue came from one of the keyboards. Ironic! But it was fine, he comped through it and I doubt anyone who hasn't heard the show 300 times would notice. And the audience here was VERY enthusiastic, which we of course appreciated very much :)

In closing check out this cactus that I found with bright magenta needles! I've never seen that before/new to me. <3

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wednesday: Visiting the Gem & Mineral Museum, hopefully getting some gelato, and one evening show.

Thursday: Nothing planned and it'll probably end up being my Slug Day because on Friday I'm taking my trombone to be repaired. One evening show.

dine

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

severina

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

ysabetwordsmith

Good news includes all the things which make us happy or otherwise feel good. It can be personal or public. We never know when something wonderful will happen, and when it does, most people want to share it with someone. It's disappointing when nobody is there to appreciate it. Happily, blogging allows us to share our joys and pat each other on the back.

What good news have you had recently? Are you anticipating any more? Have you found a cute picture or a video that makes you smile? Is there anything your online friends could do to make your life a little happier?

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

City parks cool neighborhoods beyond their borders

The cooling did not stop at the park edge. For every 100 meters (330 feet) into the built-up streets, temperatures climbed by more than 0.5°C (0.9°F), a trend that held up to 300 meters (980 feet) from the boundary. Inside the park, the air shifted the other way, cooling by about 0.2°C (0.4°F) for every 100 meters toward the center.

Soheila Khalili is a postgraduate researcher at the University of Surrey’s Global Centre for Clean Air Research (GCARE). “This is proof that the benefits of parks extend far beyond their boundaries. Shaded areas with trees particularly improved thermal comfort during hotter periods of the day,” said Khalili.

This is the first case I've seen where people measured park benefits very closely, especially the temperature gradient. It's very useful if you want to make your city cooler and otherwise healthier...

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

girlgenius_main_feed

http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20260617

The Girl Genius comic for Wednesday, June 17, 2026 has been posted.

http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20260617

days_unfolding

I’m reading Beck Weathers’ book. He’s the guy who was left for dead during the big storm on Everest, but he woke up and saved himself. He got into mountain climbing to fight depression. I should get into hiking for the same reason. An app that I have suggested hiking in Meadowbrook Park.

My stomach is upset. I need to get to bed.

Hmm. The local Pilates place has a free intro session on Friday at 4PM. We get Friday off because of Juneteenth, so maybe I should go? I need to think about that.

Hmm. The Urbana Park District has personal trainers. Maybe I should sign up. I can’t do personal training and Pilates though. Though I asked ChatGPT to come up with a training plan.

I woke up at 6 AM to pee, and then overslept until a little after 8 AM. I ordered the shipping tape and some other items for delivery from the local grocery store.

I’m feeling a little chilled. Emailed in sick and went back to sleep. Got the mailing tape. I’m going to eat lunch, feed the fur faces, and go back to sleep.

I was thinking about how I call Zara “Lovey”. She loves me but hates everyone else (human, canine, or feline). They’d be surprised at how “lovey” she can be.

Hmm. It’s pouring. I checked, and the UPS store opens at 8 AM. But there’s no guarantee that tomorrow will be drier. Going to shower and package up my return and see what the weather is like.

Went and mailed my return and picked up the travel CPAP. The UPS store was near Panera, so I stopped in for a bite. Their French Onion soup is as good as ever. Bought light bulbs at Lowe’s and a towel at Target.

I sat outside with the dogs when I got home. Gracie and Bella were racing each other, and, to my surprise, Gracie was winning. Bella is a little taller than her and heavier, but Gracie is manic and has the almost-puppy energy.

I’m reading Jim Whittaker’s autobiography. He was good friends with Bobby Kennedy and told Bobby that what he was doing was more dangerous than mountain climbing. Sadly, Whittaker was right.

Whittaker also was an early CEO of REI. I found an REI three-person tent (they said “or one person and two dogs”) that I’d like to get.

Gracie is being manic and chasing Oliver. I want her to settle down.

apod_feed

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260616.html

While cruising around Saturn, be on the lookout for

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260616.html

ysabetwordsmith

Thousands Donate to Help Nebraska Ranchers Who Couldn’t Feed Their Herds After Wildfires Burn Every Acre

A few months ago the largest wildfire in Nebraska history burned a thousand square-miles of ranch land. It burned every foot of grass on Mike and Kayla Wintz’s 11,000-acre ranch.

But when they and their neighbors faced the threat of losing their livelihoods, something remarkable happened. Thousands of anonymous donors stepped up from across the U.S. The Wintz ranch alone was gifted $80,000 worth of hay—from mostly anonymous donors.

This is a generous response to the disaster, but there's more to the backstory and the developments in upcoming months.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

cornerofmadness

So before I drive to PA I go to the BMV to get my title reissued. Joy, they can do it on the spot. YAY. I literally put my hand on my heart I was so shocked.

ANd then...you don't own this car. It says you still owe on it. OMFG. They never put it in the computer when I took the title there back when I paid off the loan. Head desk. Do you have the letter saying it's paid off? Yes I think so. I don't have it in ANY of the bags (and I'm pretty sure I just saw it and packed it). Then I realized oh fuck me. I cleaned out the fridge but forgot to take the garbage out of my place.

I go back home. Do that. Look for the paperwork. I find all the original purchase stuff for it (plus the two civics before it because I don't throw out paperwork). I can't find the you paid it off letter. Ugh. All I have to do is to get Honda to resend it (or maybe that paperwork is in a bag I couldn't get to). I go home.

There is a silver lining in all this. Can you imagine me being at the car dealership ready to do a trade in only to find out my title isn't valid because OH didn't put it into the system?

The drive was fine. Get here and find out yay, I forgot to pack all my socks. Well then. Guess I'll be buying socks. Dumb ass.

Fannish 50 post (again this is from Buffy tVS

Day 7: Favourite friendship - Buffy and Willow, hands down. You know what, this is a rather shippy show even in canon and there aren't a lot of straight up friendships. Sure there's Xander but since I don't like him, he doesn't count (for me). Buffy and Willow starts mostly as two outcasts and it goes from there. I do like their friendship and that's why I noped out in S7 when Willow participates in throwing Buffy out of her own house. Eye roll. I don't even remember why (I have never rewatched that season or s6)

( all questions under here )

Also since I haven't done this in a while, here are some animatics etc for Hazbin because they're fun and one for Star Trek and I want to share them.

Watch on YouTube

(also my favorite song from Kpop Demon Hunter)

Watch on YouTube

Current Mood: aggravated
Current Music: Star Trek Voyager

ysabetwordsmith

"The God Box"

Clouds,
in a thousand shades of gray and blue,
purple and cream and palest peach,
some rolled long like bats of wool,
others thrusting like tufts of fur plucked upwards,
some clumped like great fistfuls of cottonballs,
others feathered into mare’s-tails combed thin by the wind,
some spun into smooth sheets of satin,
others still in little rills like waves coming in,
or scalloped like seashells and fishes’ scales,
all seen in a single sky,
as if God had gotten to the bottom of Her craft-box
and decided to use up all the loose ends at once.

* * *

Notes:

This poem was originally published in PanGaia Summer 2003. Today seemed like a good time to post it here, because it was that kind of sky again.

Current Mood: busy

halfshellvenus

I sped my way through T.J. Klune's The Bones Beneath My Skin this week. Boy, I did not see that mixed-genre plot coming! Which is interesting, because the last book I read of his was In The Lives Of Puppets, and that was also largely sci-fi. The Bones was apparently something he wrote in 2017, but it was shelved due to weirdness with his then-current agent. It's nice that he finally published it. It was well-written overall (I LOVED Art), though the couple of mentions and then all-out step-by-step explicit sex scene felt kind of out-of-place. They leaned really heavily on "romance/erotica" when the novel was more sci-fi overall.

Now I'm reading the 5th Dungeon Crawler Carl book. Oh, how I have missed these characters! They are such a colorful bunch. :D

TV-wise, we're watching S2 of The Pitt on Hulu. What a fantastic show that is. I only wish there were more episodes! HalfshellHusband and I also watched People You Meet On Vacation (Netflix) over the weekend, and that was honestly pretty good.

In my private garage and late-night viewing, I'm in S2 of Beef (Netflix), which is not anywhere as good as S1, and I've crossed into S3 of Arrested Development. I also just finished Dublin Murders (BritBox), which was really gripping but also a little frustrating. I wish the ending had been happier, though I can't say that it was unrealistic. I might go back to watching Euphoria on Hulu next, or (more likely) I'll stumble onto something else on BritBox. Still waiting for AppleTV to put out S3 of Silo so I can do a short-term subscription for it and the most recent season of Slow Horses. It's too much to hope for a third season of Severance anytime soon...

And for Amazon? WHAT is taking so long re: the third season of The Devil's Hour? I need that yesterday!

rocky41_7 posting in

booknook

Title: The Rediscovery of America: Native Peoples and the Unmaking of U.S. History
Author: Ned Blackhawk
Genre: History

On yesterday’s commute home I concluded The Rediscovery of America: Native Peoples and the Unmaking of U.S. History by Ned Blackhawk. This is a history novel which focuses on the relationship between Native Americans and the United States, from the initial colonization efforts of Europeans to modern day.

I think the thing this book does best, and I think what it was trying to do, is make indigenous Americans active participants in history. Everyone knows that they were victims of countless atrocities, first at the hand of European invaders and later by the United States government, but they are often reduced to the role of passive victim: people to whom things simply happened. Not so, says Blackhawk. Native Americans were shapers of history as much as anyone else, and he brings their role and influence to the forefront here.

One of the things this pushes back on hard is the idea of inevitability: that what happened to the indigenous people of North America was always going to happen. We can see, throughout this book, so many moments when things could have been different if the right people had chosen differently.

It also is very revealing as to the sources of anti-indigenous violence in the decades before and after the American Revolution. It was in many cases, the settlers who were pushing hardest for violence and dispossession of the native peoples, not the government. Of course, the government agreed in the end, but both the British and later the American government initially wanted more diplomatic relationships with Native American tribes—but the settlers, fueled by bigotry, greed, and fear, lobbied hard for a more severe approach, and in the end, they won.

It’s also an incredibly detailed chronicle of native resistance to colonization and how hard Native Americans have fought for centuries to preserve their cultures and be allowed to simply exist as they wish. The breadth and variety of techniques they have employed to this end are truly remarkable. Knowing more about the modern legal struggles of the tribes is also a useful tool for looking at where to go next.

Some reviews found the book dry; personally, I can’t disagree that it was dry, but I did not find its dryness a problem. It is a historical chronicle, not a novel, and it does its job very well. It is well-researched and a thorough survey. I think it does well balancing covering a large swath of history with many different peoples and conflicts while also digging in a bit to certain specifics. I found it deeply engaging and I think the country would be better off if everyone had a better understanding of this material.

My only complaint is that it does end a little abruptly, but it had to stop somewhere.

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Every Day Above Ground

June 2026

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Page generated Jun. 17th, 2026 11:17 am

Mallory's Camera

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Reading Wednesday

Interesting Links for 17-06-2026

Last day!

Miami Vice Cocktail

Pride and shame

Read

Just One Thing (17 June 2026)

Tucson, AZ 2026 Part 1: Travel Fun, Avoiding the Sun

I am tired of myself tonight. I should like to be somebody else

Wednesday Reading Meme

Good News

Urban Design

Girl Genius for Wednesday, June 17, 2026

Sick Day/Errand Day

(no subject)

Climate Change

I threw myself over the edge

Poem: "The God Box"

Finished:

Book review: The Rediscovery of America

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June 2026

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