Meh. Whatever.

This year during Three Weeks for Dreamwidth, I'm writing about reading as a way of becoming an expert in a given subject. Read Part 1: Introduction to Becoming an Expert, Part 2: Architecture, Part 3: Dance, Part 4: Music, Part 5: Painting, Part 6: Poetry, Part 7: Sculpture, Part 8: Conflict Resolution, Part 9: Cooking, Part 10: Coping Skills, Part 11: Gardening, Part 12: Relationship Skills, Part 13: Repairing, Part 14: Survival Skills, Part 15: Archaeology.


Three Weeks for Dreamwidth Part 16: Biology

Biology is the science of studying life. Its two main subfields are botany (studying plants) and zoology (studying animals) but there are other branches such as evolutionary biology, genetics, mycology (studying fungi), paleozoology (studying extinct animals), and so forth. Aspects include history, famous people, and regions. Different cultures have very different approaches to biology too. Here on Dreamwidth, check out birdfeeding, common_nature, environment, gardening, naturaldyes, petchat, science, and scienceworld.




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This poem came out of the May 5, 2026 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired by prompts from my partner Doug, lone_cat, and see_also_friend. It also fills the "Family" square in my 5-1-26 card for the Greek Myth Fest. This poem has been posted in memory of Shirley Barrette. It belongs to the Antimatter and Stalwart Stan thread of the Polychrome Heroics series.

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Today is mostly sunny and mild. It rained most of yesterday.

I fed the birds. I've seen a large mixed flock of sparrows and house finches, a mourning dove, and a fox squirrel.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 5/9/26 -- We went out to run errands, which included a stop at Rural King for more bagged goods and a few flowers. Sadly they're moving away from the small sizes that I prefer; much of it was big pots and I'm not going spend $15-20 on something I could get elsewhere for $3-4, especially when most of my plantings are mixed. I only bought one big potted thing this season, and that was a pot with 4 different violas (purple-lavender, purple-white, purple-yellow, purple-orange) in it.

We also finished reading Super Smoothies.

EDIT 5/9/26 -- I planted 4 celosia (3 pinkish-red and 1 yellow), a purple wave petunia, and a Bidens flower in the barrel garden. I hadn't seen the Bidens before but it is a yellow-and-orange flower similar to a marigold or coreopsis, so it fits well in the barrel garden. That's almost full -- I've got room to squeeze in a firecracker and maybe some marigolds but that's about it.

A petunia is blooming pale rosepetal pink under the maple tree, and an iris looks to be opening up sort of a chocolate color there too. I'm pleased that the peony has a strong scent; the dark pink one under the apricot tree is nearly scentless.

EDIT 5/9/26 -- I planted 8 yellow marigolds in pots around the new picnic table.

EDIT 5/9/26 -- I dug a whole for an oak seedling at the edge of the savanna.

EDIT 5/9/26 -- I planted a pin oak seedling at the edge of the savanna.

EDIT 5/9/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 5/9/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

I am done for the night.

People have expressed interest in deep topics, so this list focuses on philosophical questions.

What is the most uplifting thing happening in the world right now? What is the most tragic thing?


Most uplifting: The rise of crowdfunded ecological restoration. My favorites include Mossy Earth and Planet Wild. These places let you use your folding vote to push the planet's future toward a better trajectory.

Most tragic: Humanity as a whole is destroying the biosphere. They know why they need to stop. They know what the cost will be if they don't. They know how to fix what they've broken. They just damned well don't want to do it. >_<

Thanks to a donation from janetmiles, you can now read the rest of "The Worst Thing in Life."  Quain finally finds someone to talk with.

Today is cloudy and cool.

I fed the birds. I've seen a few sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 5/8/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 5/8/26 -- I had just gotten started digging a hole to plant things when I had to go deal with other stuff. I realized that I left my trowel out there, and now it's spitting rain so I don't know if I'll get back out. :/

EDIT 5/8/26 -- I planted the white oak seedling at the north edge of the savanna and mulched around it.

It's drizzling, but not enough to stop me.

EDIT 5/8/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

It's up to a light rain now.

I've seen a male cardinal and a gray catbird.

I am done for the night.

This year during Three Weeks for Dreamwidth, I'm writing about reading as a way of becoming an expert in a given subject. Read Part 1: Introduction to Becoming an Expert, Part 2: Architecture, Part 3: Dance, Part 4: Music, Part 5: Painting, Part 6: Poetry, Part 7: Sculpture, Part 8: Conflict Resolution, Part 9: Cooking, Part 10: Coping Skills, Part 11: Gardening, Part 12: Relationship Skills, Part 13: Repairing.


Three Weeks for Dreamwidth Part 14: Survival Skills

Survival skills make up a large assortment of knowledge and activities that keep people alive in challenging circumstances. Mostly people focus on what is called bushcraft or woodslore -- skills for use in the wilderness. However, survival skills also deal in things like first aid that apply to everyday emergencies; and to things like self-defense needed primarily in settled areas. Aspects include emergency preparedness, food (see my Cooking and Gardening posts; you'll also need foraging and hunting), water, shelter, repair and maintenance (see my Repairing post), health care, historic skills (like fire-starting and flint-knapping), self-defense, and self-sufficiency. Some cultures have retained an emphasis on survival more than others; Mormons recommend storing one year of food for your family. Here on Dreamwidth, there are no dedicated communities for survival but you can find subtopics such as common_nature, crafty, creative_cooks, gardening, or renew_repair_refashion.




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