@LJ@zirk.us avatar

LJ

@LJ@zirk.us

Poet & SF&F author. Potter. Crafter. Relentless optimist. Local foodie & sourdough wrangler. Curious maker. Owned by 2 former shelter dogs. Neuro-Atypical. Grey Ace. Earnest to a fault. Recovering city mouse in Central MA. She/Her

#writing #ScienceFiction #SFF #poetry #pottery #ceramics #food #homesteading #dogs #knitting #crochet #fedi22

(This is an alternate account for https://weirder.earth/@lj

same writer/potter/fiberartist/geek. just a different instance.)

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

compost, to random
@compost@regenerate.social avatar

Because I decided to practice daily at the beginning of this year, I am able to do 3 hours of mowing with a push mower in a row and not be messed up after this.

I am getting close to 50 years old, I am not exactly young anymore. My body used to be in such a bad shape that what I did today was impossible.

Yoga has changed my life and yard work is not a concern anymore.

LJ,
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

@compost I need to get back into a daily yoga practice.

LJ, to random
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

Question for the tech savvy: I enabled my mobile browser (duck duck go) to block tracking attempts from my phone apps. The number of attempts from apps I never expected to be a source of tracking info is astounding.

Is this something safe to keep enabled? Is there something better?

LJ, to knitting
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

One sock down, one to go.
Berroco Sox yarn, #2 dpns. 1x1 rib down the front of the sock for fit. Knitted top down. This time I used the Strong Heel, which I quite like - no need to pick up stitches after making the heel flap. It does seem like it's a bit baggier at the ankle, so I'll do my next pair with 2x2 rib all the way around.

Link to info on the Strong heel:https://www.theknittingsquirrel.com/heather-socks-featuring-the-strong-heel/

@knitting

Colorful knit sock in shades of blue, yellow, teal, and pink on my right foot.

LJ, to 3goodthings
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

Spent a satisfying day playing in the dirt. Planted 2 varieties of #potatoes (3 more to go tomorrow) and worked with my spouse to clear more of the bramble from the terraced garden area. Then we planted 3 #blueberry bushes.

Spawn the eldest called & we had a lovely conversation. Spawn the youngest messaged me love & hugs.

Spouse & I will cook dinner together & spend a quiet evening w/the dogs in a cuddle pile on the sofa.

@3goodthings

#StarFieldFarm
#FoodForFutureUs
#ThreeGoodThings

compost, to climate
@compost@regenerate.social avatar

I would love to see more accounts about on the fediverse.

Compost is a fantastic tool that can help us balance the . The more we talk about it, the more we can inspire people to start this wonderful habit.

Our habits make us, and talking about positive habits is a good thing in the toxic environment social media can be.

I would be honored if we had a community of accounts that talk about it, and you can be sure that you will be boosted, and followed and not feel like is a void.

LJ,
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

@po3mah @stib @compost we currently have:

2 outdoor compost bins for yard waste & for finishing of the bokashi

2 indoor urban worm farm bins for veggie/fruit scraps

2 indoor bokashi bins for food waste that the worms can't handle

Several yard waste piles around the property for all the detritus from our garden beds & tree pruning.

Makes for happy soil & very little trash.

dgar, to random
@dgar@aus.social avatar

I try to make fancy, posh breads, but they always come out the same.

I’m stuck with the status dough.

LJ,
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

@dgar your puns give me life. :)

LJ, to 3goodthings
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

#3GoodThings

  1. Spouse helped me dig out a HUGE rock where I needed to plant a nectarine tree (yay for tractors!)

  2. My little orchard now has 4 apple trees, a cherry tree, an aronia bush, a fig tree and a nectarine tree!

  3. I also planted 25 bare root strawberry plants today.

#StarFieldFarm
#FoodForFutureUs
@3goodthings

LJ, to random
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

Guess what I'm doing today?? (Hint in the alt text!)

#peachTrees
#StarFieldFarm

LJ,
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

I actually did the grafting this morning! 15 wee little peach trees will be watched over in the shade until the grafts callous over. Then they can start to get some spring sunshine!

(More photos in the next post)

On the upper part of the image, the rootstock has been cut down & a u-shaped notch (the groove) has been cut into the end. In the lower part of the image, the scion wood end has been cut into the shape (the tongue) to fit neatly in the rootstock groove. The cuts expose the cambium layer in the wood to allow a good graft and for sap to flow up the branch past the graft site.
The 2 pieces - rootstock & scion - fitted into one.
Here the graft site has been secured with a cut rubber band and stretch plastic film. The 2 halves of the graft need to be in contact so they can meld into a single entity.

LJ, to Bloomscrolling
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

We are so close to flowering! #PeachBlossoms
#BloomScrolling
#StarFieldFarm

LJ, to indieauthors
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

Question for here:

What are some affordable audio books production options for someone who:

  1. Does NOT want to use AI narration
  2. Does not want to be locked into ACX
    and
  3. Does not have the equipment or know how to do it herself.
  4. Writes science fiction & fantasy novels

LJ,
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

@GregStolze I don't have a bluesky account. And I'm probably looking for both narration and production.

LJ,
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

@GregStolze yup. I think from what I read that if you pay outright for voice talent, you can pull out of being exclusive with them after 90 days or so.

LJ,
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

@AlasdairStuart @GregStolze thank you!!

LJ, to knitting
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

Ahh while we wait for the ophthalmologist to see my spouse.

At least I was finally able to finish sleeve #1.

themed sweater in progress. I had started this back in January, but set it aside to work on other projects. It's using fingering weight yarn & size 4 needles, so working on it a little at a time.

@knitting

LJ, to random
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

So, I've been organizing in my little town to fight against Casella - a multi billion dollar landfill company that wants us to rezone residential land to industrial so they can turn it into Mt. Trashmore.

We noticed the header photo on the 'yes' campaign site & social media used a photo from a local photographer who is against a dump.

We notified him & he issued a takedown order.

They had to remove all instances of the photo.

It's a small thing, but it made my sometimes petty heart soar.

LJ, to random
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

If you live in or around Boston, it's a good bet your drinking water comes from the Quabbin Reservoir located in Central Massachusetts.

That safe & clean water supply is being put at risk by a proposed 50+ acre landfill that Casella, inc wishes to site dangerously close to the Quabbin watershed.

Please read the linked Op-ed and share this post widely.

I live in the small town being threatened. My community is fighting like hell against it.

https://commonwealthbeacon.org/opinion/proposed-landfill-would-pose-threat-to-the-quabbin/

(Continued)

LJ, to random
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

Portrait of the artist & the art...

Gave my 3 peach trees an initial pruning while I was collecting scion wood to graft.

These trees came with our property & I have no idea what variety they are - other than the best peaches I've ever tasted.

So I learned how to graft and ordered root stock to propagate more of the peach trees so by the time these no longer bear, I'll have their clones planted.

Not too bad for a self-described city mouse who can't keep houseplants alive.

#StarFieldFarm

LJ, to random
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

I'm a big fan of the Writer Unboxed blog and I'm thrilled to have this guest post there today. "When you are your own antagonist" https://writerunboxed.com/2024/03/01/when-you-are-your-own-antagonist/

#amwriting

gg, to random
@gg@writing.exchange avatar

A quick note of thanks to all who responded to me today regarding conversing on this platform.

Several of you expressed reservations about joining in on a conversation already underway; I am always happy to have you join in.

I'm glad that there are so many of you out there who want to converse about writing & the obstacles we face in our craft and the successes we have. We can learn much from each other. This platform - and you - have already helped me enormously. Thanks. #writingcommunity

LJ,
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

@orionkidder @gg @Emmacox I love that! Write an outline and ignore it. That works for me.

LJ,
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

@Emmacox @orionkidder @gg my process is very similar. I do write an outline, but AFTER I finish the book. And at that point, the outline helps me edit for pacing.

LJ,
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

@orionkidder @Emmacox @gg honestly? It's also how I got through school. Write the paper, then generate the outline and hand it in first. :)

My brain doesn't work the way my teachers all thought it should.

How can you figure out how things ought to be organized until you write them??

LJ,
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

@orionkidder @Emmacox @gg I wonder if outlining - like mind maps - are inherently visual processes and if my difficulties with them both are because I have aphantasia and cannot visualize.

What has worked for me is to write down individual key ideas/concepts on index cards and play with changing the order of them to organize a larger piece of writing.

LJ, to random
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

Live in MA? Get your water through MWRA? (It comes from the Quabbin Reservoir in Central MA).

Casella corporation is pushing to reopen a landfill closed in 2009 & massively expand it in the town of Hardwick.

This would place an enormous regional landfill on the very doorstep of the Quabbin.

Not only would this destroy our town & harm our health, it also risks the water supply for millions of people in the greater Boston area

Here is a link to what they want: https://www.hardwick-ma.gov/community-resources/page/important-notices

(Cont)

compost, to climate
@compost@regenerate.social avatar

This winter our composting worms have multiplied a lot.

Maybe because the climate is warmer, I let them outside quite a few times and they have enjoyed that. Our house is arid and I have to check the moisture, at least every other day, if not daily.

The amount of waste those composting worms proceed never ceases to amaze me. I have so many worms that I will be able to create several wormeries outside when the temperatures are ok.

Now I only use worm compost to innoculate our compost piles and I am almost self-sufficient.

Composting worms is to me the most efficient way to fight the #climatechange at home or in an office.

#compostodon

LJ,
@LJ@zirk.us avatar

@compost we live in Central MA, where the winter outdoor temps average teens and 20s, so all the worms need to be indoors. I suspect we don't have them in an optimum space since the only place the worm bags fit is in the warmer side of our root cellar, which stays in the 50s. Still, they seem to be thriving and making tons of compost, so I guess it's fine. We're a few months from using any of the castings in the garden. I'm drooling over seed catalogs!

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