#Midwest-Great Lakes Area

[radioactive-earthshine]

The top options are places Metropolis has been in various media, or is frequently mistaken to be in in fan spaces.

[smolerthanthediagram]

Swimming pools

This is from a project I'm currently working on. Basically Troy and Abed go for a road trip in the Midwest towards the great lakes area in an attempt of running away from pretty big dilemmas, Troy from Britta asking her out, Abed from the possibility of losing Troy in a relationship.

Kissing or hugging in the water has uncertainty to it, as it's often portrayed on romance movies that end pretty badly are are never meant to last (Romeo + Juliet, the Notebook, Dirty Dancing).

This is the summer before their fourth year at Greendale, they are far away from everyone and everything. Will this last ? Abed asks himself. Troy is not sure about everything, but in this very moment, they feel good and this is what matters.

[fandomtrumpshate]

Fan Labor Offerings

We've had 67 offers for fan labor so far - everything from SPag and cheerleading, to translations in 5 languages, to sensitivity reading for head injuries, to specialist knowledge of camp counseling and US law, to offers for custom AO3 skins and podfic editing - and LOADS more.

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You guys know So Much. We're so lucky you're all so willing to share!

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[ominousvibez]

Okay I'm still thinking about the Amity Park in Ohio thing so here's my proposal for this idea:

Reasons That Amity Park Should Be in Ohio (By Someone Who's Lived In Ohio For 2+ Years)

#1 It's Definitely A Great Lake State

Amity Park has never been stated to be officially in one specific state, just vaguely central United States, possibly somewhere around the Great Lakes area. That specific area is often referenced by other characters in the show. Urban Jungle shows Undergrowth's roots stretching out from this general area, and the Lake Eerie mentioned in the show might just literally be Lake Erie.

Of course it's kinda cartoony and I honestly have no idea if those mountains in the bottom right corner are meant to be the Appalachia area or not but it vaugely looks like the Great Lakes area

Because of this screenshot, I think most of the fandom headcanons Amity Park to be somewhere in Illinois, possibly close to Chicago, but we can basically point at any Great Lakes state and say "yeah that fits".

For my non-American friends, it's this general area of America (specifically Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio)

But I'd also like to say that cartoons do have a tendency to fudge some details about geography (or completely change the states a la Steven Universe) so the map might not be 100% accurate. But with the map, it could technically be any Great Lakes State, so why not OHIO?

Which btw I'm going to be counting as a Midwest state for this analysis. Some people can argue it isn't, but from my experience living here in Ohio there are a lot of Midwestern tendencies. It's more like Ohio is the border state between the Eastern states and the Midwest, so it gets a mix of both.

B*tch H*rtman (as much as we don't like to talk about him) was also born in Michigan, which is a state in the Midwest, so some of Amity Park could be based (consciously or not) on the towns he grew up in there. But because of him I'm ruling out Michigan the state as a whole and Wisconsin for states Amity Park could be in.

#2 It Takes Four Days To Get To Wisconsin, Apparently?

In Season 1, Episode 7, when they travel to Vlad's mansion in Wisconsin, Jazz says it will take "four days" to get from Amity Park to Vlad's Mansion (Somewhere in the middle of nowhere Wisconsin, basically). The geography is a little off for every midwestern/Great Lakes state except maybe New York if you're gonna count that but Amity Park does not feel like it'd be in New York state.

Ohio is the furthest Midwest Great Lakes state from Wisconsin. Case closed there. Of course, it doesn't take four days to get from Ohio to Wisconsin. It can roughly vary from 10 to 15 hours, depending on route options (such as avoiding highways and stuff), but still.

It's a road trip, so it makes more sense that they'd take longer to get there-- plus realistically people don't tend to drive 10 hours on a road trip, they probably stopped through the trip and spent the night in their RV.

#3 They Got Beaches?

Amity Park does exist near a body of water. It isn't clear if it's a lake, river, or ocean in the show. It could be a lake. There's also the area in Frightmare, where Nocturne literally takes up space in some sort of port building/factory that gives the audience the assumption that it's on a pier/port. So they're really next to a body of water.

There is also the summer camp that Danny and his friends attend in Claw of the Wild which is said to be on Lake "Eerie". Which could easily just be Lake Erie, the lake that Ohio is on.

Also Camp Skull and Crossbones?? What an iconic camp name. You could say the name is pretty,,,,,, camp (ba dum tss).

#4 Ohio's Just Like... Very Haunted

Ohio has kinda become a meme recently. Not just one specific part of Ohio, but the entire state. The memes are mostly good fun-- like how the state is mostly just corn -- but I think some of the ~vibes~ of Ohio just fit right.

Like, there's no definite way to say which U.S. State is the most haunted (I think either the New England area or maybe Louisiana could take the #1 spot) but Ohio is definitely something else. Of course, we have the baby bridges and the haunted penitentiaries like Ohio State Penitentiary, but there are some interesting places that could be played with, too.

For one, there's an entire abandoned town called Helltown, Ohio, where rumors are cultists perform Satantic rituals, mutant creatures roaming the city created by an oil spill, and even a giant snake? There's also a place literally called the Gateway to Hell, too, which is right behind a Tim Horton's (oddly fitting).

Bobby Mackey's is also in Ohio! If you've ever seen Buzzfeed Unsolved, you know what I'm talking about.

There are also less hell-related spooky things in Ohio. Like, Lake Erie has its own Monster! We call her Bessie. Danny could definitely befriend Bessie!!!

#5 It'd Be Funny

It'd be funny for Amity Park to be in Ohio. The Most Haunted Place in America to be in Ohio is just kinda funny. With how "cursed" of a reputation Ohio seems to have in a larger cultural context, doesn't it kinda just fit?

TLDR:

Ohio is a very cursed state, has a lot of supernatural lore to it, and I think Amity Park would fit in both thematically and almost geographically. Of course, other Midwestern States like Illinois do fit the bill, too, in this argument. But I am a firm "Amity Park is in Ohio" supporter.

[rotzaprachim]

some smaller bookstores, presses, and museum shops to browse and know about! Most support smaller presses, diverse authors and authors in translation, or fund museums and arts research)

(disclaimer: the only three I’ve personally used are the Yiddish book center, native books, and izzun books! Reccomend all three. Also roughly *U.S. centric & anglophone if people have others from around the world please feel free to add on

birchbark books - Louise Erdrich’s book shop, many indigenous and First Nations books of a wide variety of genres including children’s books, literature, nonfiction, sustainability and foodways, language revitalization, Great Lakes area focus (https://birchbarkbooks.com/)

American Swedish institute museum store - range of Scandinavian and Scandinavian-American/midwestern literature, including modern literature in translation, historical documents, knitters guides, cookbooks, children’s books https://shop.asimn.org/collections/books-1

Native books - Hawai’i based bookstore with a focus on native Hawaiian literature, scholarly works about Hawai’i, the pacific, and decolonial theory, ‘ōlelo Hawai’i, and children’s books Collections | Native Books (nativebookshawaii.org)

the Yiddish book center - sales arm of the national Yiddish book center, books on Yiddish learning, books translated from Yiddish, as well as broader selection of books on Jewish history, literature, culture, and coooking https://shop.yiddishbookcenter.org/

ayin press - independent press with a small but growing selection of modern judaica https://shop.ayinpress.org/collections/all?_gl=1kkj2oo_gaMTk4NDI3Mzc1Mi4xNzE1Mzk5ODk3_ga_VSERRBBT6X*MTcxNTM5OTg5Ny4xLjEuMTcxNTM5OTk0NC4wLjAuMA..

Izzun books - printers of modern progressive AND masorti/trad-egal leaning siddurim including a gorgeous egalitarian Sephardic siddur with full Hebrew, English translation, and transliteration

tenement center museum -https://shop.tenement.org/product-category/books/page/11/ range of books on a dizzying range of subjects mostly united by New York City, including the history literature cookbooks and cultures of Black, Jewish, Italian, Puerto Rican, First Nations, and Irish communities

restless books - nonprofit, independent small press focused on books on translation, inter and multicultural exchange, and books by immigrant writers from around the world. Particularly excellent range of translated Latin American literature https://restlessbooks.org/

olniansky press - modern Yiddish language press based in Sweden, translators and publishers esp of modern Yiddish children’s literature https://www.etsy.com/shop/OlnianskyBooks

https://yiddishchildrensbooks.com/ - kinder lokshen, Yiddish children’s books (not so many at the moment but a very cute one about a puffin from faroese!)

inhabit books - Inuit-owned publishing company in Nunavut with an “aim to preserve and promote the stories, knowledge, and talent of Inuit and Northern Canada.” Particularly gorgeous range of children’s books, many available in Inuktitut, English, French, or bilingual editions https://inhabitbooks.com/collections/inhabit-media-books-1

rust belt books - for your Midwest and rust belt bookish needs! Leaning towards academic and progressive political tomes but there are some cookbooks devoted to the art of the Midwest cookie table as well https://beltpublishing.com/

[wiisagi-maiingan]

It's snowed twice here. Twice. I live in the midwest, right next to the Great Lakes. We should be BURIED in snow right now and my area has just gotten light dustings and one snowfall heavy enough to create a tiny snowman that was melted by the next day.

It's January and there's barely visible frost on the ground. What the fuck.

[wanderingmind867]

Metropolis is just Cleveland. I know people say Delaware, but no. It's Cleveland. Cleveland, childhood home of Jerry Siegel (and second home of Joe Shuster, after Toronto in Canada). Cleveland, which was even named as Superman's home city in like his second story. Superman is definitely from Cleveland, right there on the banks of the Great Lakes. Kansas to Cleveland makes more sense than Kansas to NYC, too. So no. Metropolis is just Cleveland, and Metropolis has to be a nickname.

Gotham is definitely NYC or New Jersey or something in that surrounding area. It's old and big and clearly on the shoreline of the east coast. So Batman is from New York or New Jersey, but Superman is profoundly midwestern. If Batman gets the east and Superman gets the Midwest, where would Wonder Woman be? The east coast? West Coast? Southern US? I don't know. But i definitely don't associate her with the Midwest. The midwest is Superman and Captain Marvel/Shazam territory. Minnesota and Cleveland. Not quite Canada, but i'll take it.

[clove-pinks]

I will never find this stupid tumblr post again: but I swear there was a post discussing at what latitude in United States do you perceive a Southern accent, and OP called it the "banjos line" in a nod to the Mason-Dixon line.

I have lived in the Great Lakes region for the past 11 years, and you will absolutely encounter this transition from the Midwest to the Upper South at a point perhaps further north than you expect—coming from New England, I was very startled by the Southern accents of people from Illinois and Indiana. Unlike the Mason-Dixon line, the Banjos Line is highly subjective and depends on the native accent of the person perceiving it.

I listen to some of my Ohioan coworkers, and at this point I'm drawing the Banjos Line north of Dayton. (HOW do you people speak like this in Toledo??) Most people in this area speak with normal i.e. Northern accents—but I am definitely hearing some things from the more rural outlying areas.

[dimity-lawn]

I don't know how to best arrange this poll, because once you get past the 5 basic regions of the 48 contiguous states that everyone can agree on, it seems that everyone wants to draw different boundaries and set different criteria to classify the different regions.

For the sake of staying on the same page, please refer to the map below before answering.

As always, feel free to elaborate and/or answer at any time in the notes*, even if you’ve missed the poll.

If any of you feel like including your state or other area, you can include that in the notes*, but I don’t expect anyone to actually do so.

*Or, I suppose you could message me if you don’t want everyone to know , or send an anonymous ask if for some reason you want to do that but don’t want to say who you are, but I’m guessing that at that point you simply wouldn’t bother.

[legofemme]

Zoology/enviro internships are like heres everything you need. We are 100000 miles away. No we will not pay you.

Finds an internship willing to accept me. Fulfills all the boxes i need for my career. 30-40 hour work weeks... i live 2 hours away. Unpaid. Hell on earth

[sid-notvicious]

So, I've been working on a Midwest-based Fallout fic for a couple weeks now. I'll be posting the first chapter to AO3 soon, but I've been thinking a lot about how the prairies would survive the Great War and exactly how the people who live here would develop afterward. Please enjoy my world-building dump!

The Landscape

Based on this map of the bombs (I have no idea if this is even close to canon, but whatever), the very central Midwest wasn't really a target. Iowa and Nebraska are pretty much untouched, as well as half of Kansas, South Dakota, and Missouri.

Prairie grass, in case you don't know, is incredibly well-adapted to surviving fires. Prairies burn easily, so most native plants have extremely deep roots. Like, upwards of 6 feet underground for a single patch of sweetgrass.

So, the prairies would survive much better than the terrain on the East and West coasts, right? I don't know much about the ecology in other places, but I've seen plenty of prairies spring back from controlled burns in less than a year. Sure, a nuclear blast would be harder to recover from, but I think the native flora could do it.

I'm imagining the native grass slowly homogenizing into one truly massive species of prairie grass that grows over 6 feet tall and has roots that burrow almost 20 feet down. Tall and thin coneflowers and wild roses, gnarled and strange-looking patches of wild asparagus, mutated queen ann's lace and wild parsnips growing in bizarre colors and shapes, prairie lillies and other flowers growing to hold what little rain they get in the summer months almost like an organic cup.

The rivers and lakes would obviously be unsafe to drink, but water hyacinth and soft rush are both pretty abundant here. The water definitely wouldn't be as dangerous as it is in the games.

The People

Contrary to what some may think, the Midwest is super diverse. You can go to pretty much any Walmart and see at least one of every race, plus a random group of Amish people.

The Amish and other farmers/people who live in rural areas would come together in the least damaged areas of the prairie and build new farming communities, eventually expanding into a huge network of towns and even small cities that I have been referring to as the Amish Hills. The Hills don't have an overarching governing body like the NCR, but the people tend to look toward the oldest in their communities for guidance. Several times over the years, these elders have come together at conferences in the central Hills communities to unite the Amish against threats like raiders and fiends. Those from the Hills who identify with the religion and philosophy of the area are referred to as Amish, regardless of whether or not they are actually descended from an Amish family. Descendants of actual Amish people tend to still dress similarly (Long hair and beards, flowing skirts, suspenders, bonnets and other hair coverings, etc) but have mostly homogenized with the other cultures of the Hills.

The Postnuclear Midwest is home to other communities, too.

Omaha, Nebraska, was formed into New Omaha, a huge settlement spanning most of the original Omaha. The original founders of NO were people who survived within the city after the initial blast. 20 years after the founding of New Omaha, the mayor at the time bought a rare GECK device from a raider group, using it to sculpt the city's ruins into a paradise.  NO has grown exponentially and is well known for agriculture and its exotic pets. Most recently, the government of New Omaha formed the Omaha Republic, leveraging their power over the surrounding settlements to form a more 'proper' government, similar to the NCR. Many wastelanders adopted the hundreds of animals within the Omaha Zoo as companions, and their descendants live on to this day as cuddly house pets, sturdy field workers, and fierce guard animals.

In 2270, the Omaha Republic mandated that all breeding of these animals go through a specialized program to prevent overpopulation. The Ark is built in the ruins of the Zoo and houses many different species. A collection of specialized farms in the Charles Schwab Field are used to feed them. These animals are only sold to the most trusted outsiders, and even citizens of the Republic who wish to buy one undergo extensive testing and home checks to ensure that they can care for them.

Graveyard is a city so large it nearly matches New Omaha, populated almost entirely by ghouls and other heavily mutated people. Some unmutated humans, usually the family and close friends of mutants, do live there, but mostly live in their own neighborhoods where there is less radiation than in the rest of the city.  Similar to Necropolis, Graveyard has issues with organized crime, although it is much more peaceful (and functional) than the Fallout 1 location. Graveyard is run by a council made up almost entirely of pre-war ghouls, with one FEV mutant and two mutated humans presiding. This ten-person council runs the city, as well as multiple trading caravans. The ruins of Des Moines, where Graveyard was built, are still radioactive so long after the war due to an experimental dead-hand system that was triggered when the bombs dropped. The human residents and caravan merchants live within only six known safe locations within the city, which are on the outskirts and known as the 'Smoothskin Quarter'. Several suits of power armor and other anti-rad measures are available for rent by those needing to visit the Glow District.

Nonferal ghouls are usually treated decently by the people of the Midwest, as there are so many pre-war ones, but many still feel the pull to Graveyard. Ghouls just have different needs than humans, and a nice dip in a radioactive pool does wonders for the stress of surviving almost 300 years of nuclear fallout.

Factions

Several factions exist in the Midwest, though non hold very much power over the larger Midwest or wasteland...yet.

The Omaha Republic: Based out of New Omaha, controls several surrounding settlements and a few specialty traders. The outer settlements focus on agriculture, while NO is dedicated to breeding exotic animals.

The Elders of the Amish Hills: The unoffical leaders of the Hills, this council is made up of the oldest and most repected citizens. As of 2295, these leaders are; Brandy-Lee Walsh of Washburn, Russell Timbly of Sunflower, Felicia Coal of Yannisburg, Darryl Jones of New Kalona, Rebecca Wilds of Westbrook, and Joseph-Grey Salt of Woodvale. When an issue demands that the Hills come together, a conference will be called to order in a central settlement. All are welcome to speak out and vote, but these leaders have the most influence.

Green Council: The group who leads Graveyard and all affiliated caravans. As of 2295 the council is made up of ten members. Guthrie and Janice Matthews, Deborah, Nathan Riker, Esmerelda Eve, Father Johnson, and Fu Zhang are all pre-war ghouls and founded Graveyard back in 2102. Kyrie and Kyle are twin mutant humans who sport gills, skin covered in patches of scales, and small fins along their limbs. The two claim to have been born in the now-irradiated water treatment plant near Cedar Rapids, but rumours say they are actually experimental clones from the West Coast. They ascended to the council after gaining control of most of the city's water supply. Frank is an FEV experiment from the East Coast who was brought back by a trade caravan. He acts more as a bodyguard for the rest of the council, particularly Esmerelda Eve, but is still recognized and treated as a member.

Enclave fragments: because they just won't die.

Legion fragments: several groups of Caesar's Legion have been spotted around the smaller settlements of the Midwest, evidently still loyal to Caesar even after his death. Nobody knows what they plan to do or why they decided to go East.

Brotherhood of Steel: Evidently, the BoS took an interest in the Midwest after the Prydwen and several other ships passed through on the way to the East Coast. Most Midwesterners are indifferent to the cause, and as most settlements have very little advanced technology, the Brotherhood is just as indifferent toward them. However, New Omaha has some incredible gene-splicing research in its labs, Cedar Rapids was a hub for aerospace engineers, and several members of the Green Council have retained their power over Graveyard through advanced technology and research. The Brotherhood may be planning something, and it can't be good for the mutants of the cities.

Overall, I've been having a lot of fun with this project, and I'm super excited to share it!

[raaorqtpbpdy]

Love the Fur, Hate the Fuzz (1)

Tucker takes his boyfriend Wulf on a date to the one place where a ghostly wolf-man won't raise any eyebrows: A furry convention. At first, it goes better than perfect, but on day two, it's just one problem after another.

For the prompts: Write a Tucker POV/Center another prompt around Tucker {from Akela}, Tucker goes to a furry convention and finds Kwan there. {from @sailor-toni}, Use the color "Green" in your story. {from Warvik}, and "Question one: why did you think punching it would work? Question two: why did punching it work?" {from Mel}

Read also on AO3 | Chapter 2 on Tumblr

Chapter 1: Day One of the Con

Truth be told, Tucker had always hated Chicago. It wasn't called "The Windy City" for nothing—it was always terrible hat weather, which was a serious mark against it for Tucker, who always sported his signature red beret. The buildings in the metropolitan area of the city were so tall you could barely see the sky they were scraping, the El train was loud as all get-out, and the people tended to be on the ruder side of what Tucker considered acceptable.

The city did have one thing going for it, though: Great Lakes Furry Con, the biggest annual gathering of furries in the Midwest. Tucker had only had the opportunity to go once before, last year, and even though his mom had insisted on going with him, he still managed to enjoy himself immensely and was excited to go again. Especially since his mom agreed she didn't have to be there this year (she had not enjoyed it as much as Tucker had), so instead, he was bringing his boyfriend along.

When the idea had come to him, Tucker had been absolutely ecstatic. As much as he liked the Ghost Zone and obscure locations with no cell service, the idea of taking Wulf on a date somewhere in the human realm where the wolf-man wouldn't seem the slightest bit out of place had made him so excited he couldn't even sleep until he'd pitched it to Wulf directly. Even though Wulf had no idea what a furry convention was, he'd immediately agreed with a fond look on his face, clearly just endeared by Tucker's enthusiasm. Not that Tucker minded.

He'd been looking forward to this ever since, and today was finally the day. Last time he'd gone, he'd had to wake up at 5am to avoid commuter traffic on the drive there with his mom. But this time, the commute was a matter of seconds thanks to Wulf's ghost portal powers, and they got there just after the doors opened at eight. Tucker's boyfriend was both cool and convenient.

They did still have to wait in line to check in at the registration desk, but it went a lot faster than Tucker was expecting. When he and Wulf got to the front, the receptionist's eyes immediately widened upon seeing the wolf-man.

"Holy shit that fursuit is freaking incredible, dude!" She said. "It even looks like it's breathing, it must be engineered to hell. Did you make it yourself? Mad respect man."

Wulf looked to Tucker for translation, and the nerd conveyed in Esperanto that the woman thought he looked cool.

"Dankon," Wulf thanked, nodding a little awkwardly.

"He says thanks," Tucker told her. "We'll both be under Foley, Tucker and Wulf, with a 'U' instead of an 'O'. And yes, that is his actual name. Lucky, huh?"

"No kidding," the receptionist agreed, flipping through the name badges with surprising deftness considering her cat paw gloves. "Here you go, guys. Enjoy the con!" She handed over two attendee badges and two tote bags full of swag and promotional material.

Tucker took them and he and Wulf stepped to a wall inside to put the lanyards on and sift through the bags for the map and schedule. While they did that, Tucker also took a moment to take stock of the other people around them, both in line, and milling about the hotel lobby.

Just as he'd suspected, Wulf fit right in. Neither his size nor form were the slightest bit out of place next to the 6'3" hot pink jaguar in platform club heels, and the ogling looks he was getting were a far cry from the looks of fear and alarm he was accustomed to getting. Tucker might've been jealous if Wulf didn't look so cute when he was embarrassed.

Tucker himself did not have a fursuit because he had neither the money nor the skills to acquire one as of yet, but he was sporting a wolf tail clipped to the back of his belt as well as a t-shirt with a shirtless anthro-wolf on it, pictured with a full moon overhead and the caption "AWOOOO-GA!" 

Once he had the map in front of him, he pulled up the schedule for the weekend on his PDA. They were registered for Friday and Saturday—he would have signed them up for Sunday too, but he was already missing a day of school for this because the session he was most excited for was Friday and his parents insisted that he have all his classwork done by Monday or they wouldn't let him come back next year. Still, two days having fun with his boyfriend was worth it.

"I signed us up for the Fursuit Engineering session when I bought the tickets because I was really interested in that one," Tucker said in Esperanto. "And I signed us up for the Dog Park Hour because it seemed like it would be fun to do together, and the Disney's Robin Hood viewing party tonight because you've never seen it and that's a crime because that movie was formative for me."

"I don't know what any of that is except the movie," Wulf replied. "I don't think half those words were even Esperanto."

"You'll just see when we do them. I think you'll pick it up pretty quick," Tuck assured. "Tomorrow is the fursuit parade which I hope you'll participate in, because I wanna show off how cool my boyfriend is. There's also the dance party, and the Furries in Tech panel which I also signed us up for. We should have plenty of time to socialize and check out the Dealer's Den and stuff like that in-between. I know this is your first time, so I tried not to over-schedule us. We have an hour before our first session if you want to check out some booths now."

"I think I would prefer to get the lay of the land first."

"Sounds good to me!"

At Wulf's suggestion, the pair of them explored all the parts of the hotel where the convention was being held. It was a pretty nice place, and a lot of people stopped them to compliment Wulf's "fursuit" and ask for a picture. Tucker happily translated every compliment, from "Those glowing eyes look fire" to "Would it be too much if I asked you to step on me? Hahaha!" and watched Wulf get increasingly flustered by the positive attention.

When it was about time for their session to start, they had pretty much gotten their bearings and made their way over to the classroom in time for Tucker to get a good seat. The front row was already full, but fourth row wasn't too bad. Wulf opted to sit on the floor so as not to obscure the view of whatever poor sap got stuck behind him, so Tuck took the seat at the end right next to him and pulled out his PDA to take notes. 

This session was, as one may have guessed, all about incorporating engineering into fursuits, techniques and equipment to make the mouth open and close, the eyes blink, or light up, or to make them easily replaceable to allow for quick color changes. Tucker eagerly drank up all the information. He'd been wanting to make his own fursuit for a while, but there was no way he was going to do it halfway—especially not when the materials cost almost as much as commissioning someone else to make one for him.

Not long after the session ended was the dog park hour, which took place in the hotel's beautiful outdoor courtyard. It was aimed primarily at those with dog fursonas but open to all, and was basically a semi-organized outdoor playtime. A bit like recess. There were conference staff leading various ice-breaker games, some people milling about just socializing, and a pretty intense game of Frisbee, which Wulf immediately joined in on, making everyone laugh—both amused and visibly impressed—when he repeatedly caught the Frisbee in his mouth. 

Wulf was the center of attention in the best way, which was well-deserved in Tucker's expert opinion. He was pleased to see other people as enamored by Wulf as he was, and glad that none of them seemed put off by his inability to speak English, or Tucker's translating. He'd never had so many opportunities to say: "Sorry, but this fine specimen is all mine," and he was loving it.

So, yeah. Overall, the first day of the convention went even better than Tucker could have hoped. He did have to make up some quick lies about Wulf "fursuit" but he'd been prepared for that. They spent most of the afternoon wandering Artist Alley and the Dealer's Den, where Tucker found a super-sized, customizable TY tag at a table selling fursuit accessories and insisted on buying it for Wulf, writing his name, a silly little poem about him, and their anniversary as his birthday, since neither of them knew what his actual birthday was.

Wulf didn't really get the joke, but he liked that it made Tucker happy, so he tied it around his neck and wore it the rest of the day.

After the movie (which Wulf enjoyed, though he didn't understand what part of it had been "formative" for Tucker—Tucker was too embarrassed to explain), Wulf opened a portal to take Tucker home. Then he insisted against staying over, much to the boy's dismay.

That night, Tucker slept fitfully, too excited to do it all again the following morning.

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this story from Grist:

A new report by the Union of Concerned Scientists, or UCS, called “Wetlands in Peril,” argues that farmers can play a key role in protecting and restoring wetlands in the Upper Midwest, even as federal policy has paved the way for industrial agriculture to degrade and destroy wetlands in recent decades. 

Wetlands are critical to the health of the region and the planet. Along with providing critical habitat for many species, they help mitigate the impacts of floods and other extreme weather events, act as filters that improve water and soil quality, and store massive amounts of carbon dioxide. They’re important to Indigenous communities; in northern Michigan and other areas around the Great Lakes, for example, wetlands are necessary habitat for manomin, or wild rice. 

But they’re increasingly rare: Around half of wetlands in the continental United States have vanished since the 1780s, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the rate of loss has gone up in recent years. The expansion of large-scale agriculture is among the leading forces that have driven this decline, especially in places like the heavily agricultural Upper Midwest.

Stacy Woods, the author and research director for food and environment at UCS, decided to look into the intersection of agriculture and wetlands after the Supreme Court ruled last year in favor of an Idaho couple who were filling in wetlands on their property. The case, Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency, narrowed the definition under which wetlands could be protected under the Clean Water Act and fundamentally changed their protections, even as risks posed by climate change means they’re more vital than ever. 

A key solution lies in the farm bill, Woods said — specifically, in strengthening policies that encourage farmers to take part in conservation, restoration, and sustainability efforts. The report says initiatives like the Farmable Wetlands Program, which pays farmers to restore wetlands on their property, and the Conservation Stewardship Program, which helps farmers expand on existing conservation practices like planting cover crops, help improve the environment and make it more resilient to climate-driven flooding. 

“Healthy soil acts like a sponge,” Woods said. “It sucks up and holds onto excess fertilizer and pesticides and manure and all of those things that can become pollution if it runs off of this agricultural land and into waterways.”

Conserving wetlands could have enormous financial benefits, saving the region between $323 billion and $754 billion in flood mitigation in the long term, the report says, “only a fraction of the total benefits that wetlands offer to the Upper Midwest — and what will be lost if they are destroyed.”

[dertaglichedan]

Polar vortex heading for US sending temperatures plunging and making January the coldest for a decade

A polar vortex headed for the US could bring cold winds and low temperatures this week, making January the coldest month in over a decade. 

According to the National Weather Service, the arctic blast will affect a large swathe of the country, arriving in the northern Rockies and expected to have spread to the East Coast by New Year's Day. 

'A significant pattern change is expected across much of the country as an Arctic Outbreak is forecast to spread form the Northern Plains to the south and east, leading to exceptionally high probabilities of below-normal temperatures expected across much of the East', the NWS said. 

The plunge will bring wind chills across the Midwest with temperatures dipping below zero in at least 30 states. 

'The coldest air of the season to date and dangerous wind chills chills are likely across many areas of the Southeast', the NWS warned. 

In some areas, temperatures are forecasted to reach an average of around 20 degrees, while freezing conditions in the Gulf coast and even Florida could be expected. 

Snowfall is also possible across parts of the Southern Plains and the Southeast with the potential for heavy snowfall expected in the Appalachians, Ohio Valley, the Great Lakes and the Northeast.  

A further drop in temperatures is expected next week, and below normal temperatures are predicted to affect central and eastern US during much of January. 

[darkmaga-returns]

Because Canada doesn’t have much of a film industry, most of humanity doesn’t realize that some of the best Hollywood comedians are from Canada. These include Martin Short, John Candy, Mike Myers, Jim Carry, Rick Moranis, Eugene Levy, Phil Hartman, Dan Ackroyd, and Leslie Nielson.

All of these talented Canadians indicate that Canada must have a great sense of humor. Nevertheless, it seems that few laughed at President Trump calling Justin Trudeau “Governor Trudeau,” which struck me as hysterically funny.

Could the United States annex Canada? Since the U.S. fought on the side of the British in World War I, most Americans and Canadians have forgotten the long history of tension between the two nations, starting with the War of 1812.

War Plan Red was drawn up in the 1930s in the event it came to blows between the U.S. and the British Empire. As Wikipedia describes the plan:

War Plan Red first set out a description of Canada's geography, military resources, and transportation and went on to evaluate a series of possible pre-emptive American campaigns to invade Canada in several areas and occupy key ports and railways before British troops could provide reinforcement to the Canadians—the assumption being that Britain would use Canada as a staging point. The idea was that US attacks on Canada would prevent Britain from using Canadian resources, ports, or airbases. A key move was a joint US Army-Navy attack to capture the port city of Halifax, cutting off the Canadians from their British allies. Their next objective was to "seize Canadian Power Plants near Niagara Falls. This was to be followed by a full-scale invasion on three fronts: from Vermont to take Montreal and Quebec, from North Dakota to take over the railhead at Winnipeg, and from the Midwest to capture the strategic nickel mines of Ontario. In parallel, the US Navy was to seize the Great Lakes and blockade Canada's Atlantic and Pacific ports.

[clove-pinks]

Is there anything about your new location (the terrain, the local culture, the physical sites, etc) that has given you a new perspective on regional events of the War of 1812?

This a wonderful ask, thank you! I have been mulling over how to answer it all day! This ended up getting so long I put it behind a cut (I HAVE A LOT OF FEELINGS ABOUT THIS).

The Maumee River, as seen from Fort Meigs Historic Site.

One thing new in my life is a heightened awareness of important rivers facilitating the movement of trade, supplies, and settlement. Particularly in the Old Northwest/current Midwest of the USA: regions that I grew up perceiving as a land-locked "flyover country."

Like, to give one example, I had a vague idea that there was a city called Fort Wayne, Indiana, but I thought it was just in the middle of a cornfield for no reason(?). But actually it's at the confluence of the St. Joseph, St. Marys, and Maumee Rivers, leading to the Great Lakes! The strategically important location is why General Anthony Wayne—that guy again—built the original fortification in 1794. I am downriver of all of this, connected to many inland waterways.

I also have a keen sense of living in the Great Black Swamp, despite how dramatically the land has been transformed by deforestation and drainage. There are the terrifying drainage ditches everywhere (the locals seem less perturbed by them), and many other signs of the natural state of the terrain—the swamp is just barely at bay. My coworkers have said "Black Swamp" unprompted in our conversations; I've seen it mentioned in local Facebook groups talking about the need for back-up sump pumps. The idea that people of northwest Ohio have no sense of history and are unaware of the Great Black Swamp isn't true at all.

I look at the pools of water that form in every hollow and think of the words of Alfred Lorrain, marching to Fort Meigs:

We had frequently to pass through what was called, in the provincialism of the frontiers, "swales"—standing ponds—through which the troops and packhorses which had preceded us had made a trail of shattered ice. Those swales were often a quarter of a mile long. They were, moreover, very unequal in their soundings. In common they were not more than half-leg deep; but sometimes, at a moment when we were not expecting it, we suddenly sank down to our cartridge-boxes.

Swale is a new word in my vocabulary, and now I see them everywhere!

Culturally, I think there is a great appreciation of history here: a very positive difference from the Chicagoland area. Even if the average local is probably not deeply into it, they have a consciousness of major historical events that have shaped their region and take pride in it. It's a lot more like New England that way.

Because of my focus on the War of 1812, I notice the absence of Indigenous people and voices—absent from historical accounts and from the demographics of Perrysburg and its environs today. I can't single out Ohio as being a uniquely violent settler-colonial state when this is ALL of the United States; but it hits different when I have this much greater familiarity with who was forcibly removed from this land, and how. The same US military leaders who fought in the War of 1812 were behind the (very much related) campaign for the removal of Native Americans from newly acquired territories, including the infamous Trail of Tears.

Once again, it's probably hypocritical for me to notice this so much, when I literally grew up on Wampanoag land where King Philip's War was fought, but here I am. Suddenly aware of General Wayne's name on everything, etc.

General Wayne's spurs in the Fort Meigs Museum. Not pictured: the can of Maumee Bay Brewing Co. Fallen Timbers Ale that I am currently drinking.

I haven't had the chance to explore physical sites with historical significance beyond Fort Meigs and Fallen Timbers. I know I will get to the ruins of Fort Miamis soon, and I really want to explore a lot of wetlands in local parks and nature preserves (that will double as birdwatching excursions). I am always thinking about what this place looked like 200 years ago, and what I can see today that might still look familiar to a person from that time.

I had a great trip to the National Museum of the Great Lakes today, which is closer than I thought! Local maritime museums are also on my agenda, even if they're not specifically War of 1812-related.