DIG.

DIG.

I am once again thinking about digging holes

It's so fucked up that digging a bunch of holes works so well at reversing desertification

I hate that so much discourse into fighting climate change is talking about bioenginerring a special kind of seaweed that removes microplastics or whatever other venture-capital-viable startup idea when we have known for forever about shit like digging crescent shaped holes to catch rainwater and turning barren land hospitable

Love this.

Latest report on what it sounds like down in the woods right now. Sadly did not pick up the Swainson’s thrush or the yellow-billed cuckoo among others who were singing earlier.

Black locusts are blooming so the cedar waxwings are busy nipping the backs of the flowers for nectar. In places the path was littered with blossoms. It was lovely.

"Five thousand for justice."

One for sorrow Two for joy Three for a girl Four for a boy Five for silver Six for gold Seven for a secret never to be told

Eight for a wish Nine for a kiss Ten for a chance you must not miss Eleven for a wasp Twelve for a bee Thirteen for a coffee Fourteen for tea

Fifteen for a pencil Sixteen for a pen Seventeen to hear these options once again

Eighteen for pepper Nineteen for salt Twenty for an accident in which you were not at fault

Twenty one for Jerry Twenty two for Tom Twenty three - where are all these magpies coming from?

Twenty five no seriously Thirty this is weird Forty eight from where have all these magpies suddenly appeared?

Sixty two stop counting Seventy just run Ninety nine the revolution of the magpies has begun

Two hundred no more sorrow Five hundred no more fears One thousand for how long the empire of the magpies will last in years

(John Finnemore)

Related to poor medical phrasing, way way back in elementary school, a dental assistant was trying to convince me to brush my teeth twice a day. Specifically, she said I should brush my teeth "first thing in the morning", and I was confused, because first thing in the morning I wouldn't have eaten anything, and I had brushed my teeth the night before, so what was there to clean off? I started to question it with, "But I brushed my teeth the night before, so—" and was cut-off with something that didn't address the fundamental issue. Took me years to figure out that what was meant was that I should brush my teeth after eating in the morning, and not just before bed.

When I was younger and researching the autism diagnosis criteria and symptoms, I thought “oh I couldn’t POSSIBLY be autistic.” Because when I read “takes everything literally” I thought it literally meant EVERYTHING and I was like “I don’t take EVERYTHING literally, just most things!” And I just realized the other day that it didn’t actually mean EVERYTHING and that was an overstatement.

Fiction podcasts: Among the Stars and Bones (Horror, Mystery, SF, Space): http://www.amongthestarsandbones.com/ Only 2 eps in, and I'm hooked. Ghost Wax (Horror, Mystery): https://www.tumblr.com/ghostwaxpod Almost caught up! Similar schtick as Magnus Archive, but done in a totally original way (The HORRORS can only be recorded onto special wax from special bees). Mansfield Mysteries (Mystery, Humor): https://mansfieldmysteries.podbean.com/ I generally bounce off of comedies, hard, but this one I am genuinely enjoying, possibly because I used to go to coffee with my grandma and her cronies, and the vibe here feels right for that. The Sheridan Tapes (Horror, Mystery): https://homesteadonthecorner.com/sheridantapes/ Anna Sheridan is missing, and has left behind a maddening set of self-recorded tapes. Series finale coming up soon!

If you listen to Travelling Light, can you please reblog this and tell me what other shows you like? Especially if they're on Tumblr! I want:

New shows to follow

New shows to listen to

Possible shows to see about doing some promo swaps with

And hey, if you make podcasts and want to do a promo swap, get in touch!

Got to The Thing in my Mothership RPG rec movies. It had been on my list for a while. Surprisingly good. The effects mostly hold up, though there's a noticeable reliance on jump-cuts. Nicely ambiguous in many many ways. Some gore, but because it's practical effects, these days that mostly makes me speculate on what it's made of.

Highly recommended. Oh, the vintage '80's vibes are most entertaining.

Mothership tropes: Paranoia, transformation, contagion

Magnus fears (top 3): Flesh, Lonely, Corruption