#posted 1/9/2023

[nikabird]

1/9/2023

Blink by Malcolm Gladwell has been DNF’d. The first couple of chapters were interesting, but then it became not interesting. Maybe it would have picked up, but I wasn’t sticking around to find out. It’s too bad because I really, really like The Tipping Point.

I finished Wintering by Katherine May. It’s an okay book. I didn’t love it, I didn’t hate it. Parts were interesting, parts were not. I wouldn’t dissuade people from reading it, but I also don’t feel that “OMG everyone should read this!!!” feeling. Make of that what you will.

I’ve started The Rehearsals by Annette Christie. I found this one at Target and bought it to round out the by 2 get 1 free deal. So far I’m enjoying this one.

[zombiecharacteroftheday]

Zombie of the day: Micheal Afton from Five Nights at Freddy’s (2014)

[umlewis]

📷 @.hypebeastkr / instagram

[z-moves]

Official artwork of May and Torchic used on Pokémon Trainers merchandise

Art by Naoki Saito

[aziraphalesbookkeeper]

For a guy who never takes off his gloves, Varian sure does lose them a lot. It’s not really the gloves Hugo notices though—it’s the scars underneath them. Or: 5 times Hugo tries to take off Varian's gloves + 1 time he doesn't have to.

Whumptober Day 27: Scars AILESS Whumptober Day 9: Scar Reveal

[bl-bam-beyond]

THE BEST AND WORSE & I AIN'T WATCHING THAT by Country (JAPAN)

My Top 10 to 2 (THE BEST BL'S) in my opinion 2023

10. BOKURA NO MICRO NA SHUUMATSU (THE END OF THE WORLD WITH YOU

9. JACK O' FROST

8. AKI WA HARU TO GOHAN WO TABETAI (LET'S EAT TOGETHER AKI AND HARU)

7. KINOU NANI TABETA? SEASON 2 (WHAT DID YOU EAT YESTERDAY SEASON 2)

6. UTSUKUSHII KARE ETERNAL (MY BEAUTIFUL MAN ETERNAL)

5. UTSUKUSHII KARE SEASON 2 (MY BEAUTIFUL MAN SEASON 2)

4. SHIGATSU NO TOKYO WA...(TOKYO IN APRIL IS...)

3. TAIKAN YOHO (MY PERSONAL WEATHERMAN)

2. IT'S A TIE....

KIMI TO NARA KOI WO SHITE MITE MO (IF IT'S WITH YOU)

&

KIMI NI WA TODOKANAI (I CANNOT REACH YOU)

@pose4photoml @lutawolf

[loveletterworm]

more artfights yayyy. these now put me at 12 attacks and i only managed 16 last year (because i forgot about it for 2 weeks) so either i am set to surpass that or i am due to completely forget what i was doing soon

characters belong to:

one

two

three ( @isgeneric )

four ( @redskysailor )

five ( @btmi )

six

[icewindandboringhorror]

Various images of things

[galactichelium]

Very unfortunate that I am a very slow drawer because I am also very impatient. Why must it take 1 million years for my drawings to manifest

[umgeorge]

📷 @.petronasmotorsports / instagram

[footballandshit]

as 2022 comes to an end, i just wanted to express my sincerest appreciation to every single one of you - mutuals or followers - for making the footieblr this year a great one. from the club football season and crazy transfer windows to the recent chaotic world cup, y'all were there through the "ups and downs of football" HSHS

i enjoyed interacting, liveblogging, babygirlifying, thirsting, screaming, crying, and laughing with y'all. oh and i loved reading all your silly rambles in the tags of my posts/reblogs btw - y'all either made me teehee or scream, or even almost tear up from the sweet messages y'all leave there 🥺

i especially appreciate that i didn't personally receive any hate or negative stuff, so thank you all for being really nice 💞 made many friends too, and i enjoyed getting to know new people in this little online community! also love the fact that quite a number of y'all don't support the same teams/players or even support rival teams/players but y'all still stayed haha and were so respectful about it too 😭

thank you to our beloved content creators, y'all really be the backbone - we were served gorgeous edits, stunning art and pretty gifs 😩💗,, and also shout out to the rest for constantly supporting our fellow content creators!!

thank y'all sm, and here's to an even better 2023 for us!!

love, ice. 💙

(i wanted to tag people, but there's just so many of you tbh haha and i'm afraid of accidentally missing anyone out :( if you're wondering this includes you, YES. YES IT DOES.)

[driftwoodsix]

my favourite albums of 2023:

samia - honey

haley blais - wisecrack

boygenius - the record

the japanese house - in the end it always does

ryan beatty - calico

mitski - the land is inhospitable and so are we

vérité - love you forever

hozier - unreal unearth

paramore - this is why

eloise - drunk on a flight

[redgoldsparks]

My Experience Buying eSIMs for Gaza by Maia Kobabe

instagram / patreon / portfolio / etsy / my books

Full transcript below the cut:

Cover:

My Experience Buying eSIMs for Gaza 

Project organized by @ connectinghumanity_

by Maia Kobabe @redgoldsparks 

Page 1 

In Fall 2023, I saw instructions on instagram for how to purchase an eSIM card and submit it to be distributed to someone in Gaza. 

Download an eSIM app-> Select Middle East as the region-> Purchase-> Screenshot the QR code-> Do not activate-> send to gazaesims@gmail.com 

Image of Maia looking at eir phone. “That sounds easy, I’ll buy one.” 

I emailed an Airalo eSIM QR code to gazaesims on Nov 17 2023. 

Page 2

By January 2024, it hadn’t been activated yet. I bought a second one from Nomad and sent my new QR code and resubmitted my old one. 

Image of Maia looking at eir phone. “How long does this usually take, I wonder?” 

By February neither had been activated, but Connecting Humanity kept posting about needing more. I bought a second Nomad and resubmitted all of them on February 15, 2024. 

Page 3

The Nomad eSIMs are much cheaper than Airalo, but what I didn’t realize is that they expire even if they haven’t been activated. At the end of February I decided to try a third company, Simly. Here’s a price comparison: 

AIRALO: $39 USD for 3GB, never expires 

SIMLY: $22 USD for 3GB, never expires 

NOMAD: $16 USD for 3GB, expires after 8 weeks even if unused, only offers in-app refunds 

Page 4

Connecting Humanity asks folks to wait at least 3 weeks before resending a QR code that hasn’t been activated yet. On March 7 Mirna Elhelbawi posted: 

We send EVERY esim we receive. Bear in  mind that we are dealing with people at a war zone. They might take it and get killed before activating it, they might take it and their phone gets lost or destroyed. They might take it and search for days for stable internet connection to activate it, and some of them activate it unsuccessfully due to lack of knowledge and the horrific situations they are in. ~Connecting Gaza 

By early April, my first Nomad eSIM expired unused. I resubmitted my three remaining eSIMs. 

Page 5

Suddenly, two of my eSIMs were activated on the same day! The Airalo I’d purchased 4.5 months earlier and my second Nomad. 

Image of Maia looking happy and surprised. 

Image of Maia looking very intensely at eir phone. “I have to make sure these don’t run out!” 

I began buying top-up packages immediately. 

Page 6

I felt like I had planted a seed in the fall and waited all winter for it to sprout. Seeing it activated was like watching the first new leaves break the soil. 

Image of Maia with a watering can labeled “data”, sprinkling water on two little sprouts. “Watering my eSIMs!” 

Sadly, only .07 GB of data was ever used on my Nomad. It was never used again after that first day. 

Page 7

But my Airalo has been in constant use for over a month now. I check on it every day. 

I will never know the person I am buying data for and they will never know me. But we are connected by the same strings of hope and grief that connect us all. 

Image of two hands holding a phone, which is connected to a flying kite. 

Page 8

On April 5, 2024 Connecting Humanity reported they had sent more than 250,000 eSIMs to Gaza, equivalent to approximately $6.3 million donated! You can visit gazaesims.com for more info, instructions, and discounts. Here are my referral codes: 

MAIA5367 for $3 off Airalo 

MB772 for $3 off Simly 

MAIA66GF for $3 off Nomad 

If you need more incentive, the Cartoonist Coop is doing art rewards. Visit cartoonist.coop/esims4gaza 

Page 9

Image of Maia, weighing two options. “Buying an eSIM is easy and can make a very direct impact. It can also take a lot of patience and could get expensive over time if you commit to keeping the eSIM topped up indefinitely.” 

If an immediate one time donation is more your speed, I recommend Operation Olive Branch and Gazafunds, two places to find Gofundmes aiding Palestinian families. 

gazafunds.com

@ operationolivebranch on insta

linktr.ee/opolivebranch 

-Maia Kobabe 2024 

[voxyldy]

08.07.2023

[THV IG]

🐯:

“I’m sending them to every house with the desire I want to deliver them to you”

Source: @thv

[rockabswing]

making a separate thread for help links 💖 i will add more links as i find them !!

post w/ part two can be found here

PALESTINE

decolonize palestine

one click goes a long way !

petition signatures

post with various petitions and campaigns

who are the israeli settlers ?

URGE CONGRESS TO STAND WITH PALESTINE

USA - contact your representatives through this google doc

USA - contact

USA - contact

text resist to 50409 to send a letter to your representatives to pass HR3103-- a bill that prohibits tax dollars from going to israel !

UK - call for a ceasefire

UK - email your MP

UK - email to call for a ceasefire

australia - contact your rep !

twitter thread of donation links

protest preparation

companies to boycott

longer list of companies to boycott*

news source for updates

another news source

palestinian news source

palestinian journalist to follow

palestinian journalist #2

palestinian who posts updates about his living conditions

palestinian journalist

news from gaza

gaza news source

palestinian tiktoker who shares updates on palestine

free resources - includes 6 textbooks

israel's plan to ethically cleanse gaza

various subtwt charities for palestine

canadian based donation website #1

canadian based donation site #2

canadian based donation site #3 with information

USA based donation site #1

USA based donation site #2

USA based donation site #3

USA based donation site #4

UK donation site #1

UK donation site #2

UK donation site #3

australian donation site #1

australian donation site #2

australian donation site #3

buy an e-sim for a palestinian !

buy hygiene products for afab palestinians

games for gaza

purchase a keffiyeh !

note: it is not guaranteed that donations will get to palestinians due to the blockade. it is still noble to donate, but keep that in mind.

*another note: it is important to focus on the companies that the bds movement has listed. although important to know about, having a more targeted approach will have better results.

CONGO

2022 & 2023 global report of DRC

genocide watch - DRC

video about congo

congo infographic

another video about congo

canada based donation website

another canadian donation website

3rd canadian donation site

USA donation site #1

USA donation site #2

USA donation site #3

USA donation site #4

USA donation site #5

USA donation site #6

UK donation site #1

UK donation site #2

UK donation site #3

UK donation site #4

UK donation site #5

UK donation site #6

UK donation site #7

UK donation site #8

UK donation site #9

australian donation site #1

australian donation site #2

australian donation site #3

congolese donation site

youtube film about congo

another infographic

thread about congo

SUDAN

this site lets you choose which country you're donating from !

canadian donation site #1

canadian donation site #2

canadian donation site #3

USA donation site #1

USA donation site #2

USA donation site #3

USA donation site #4

USA donation site #5

UK donation site #1

UK donation site #2

UK donation site #3

australian donation site #1

australian donation site #2

australian donation site #3

sudanese donation site, but also has USA and canadian sites near the bottom

video about sudan

quick summary about sudan

list of other sudanese charities to donate to

information about sudan

important information about sudan

sudanese journalist

if there is anything that needs to be added, please feel free to add them onto this post !! I HIGHLY ENCOURAGE IT !!!! i made this thread for basic level information about these genocides; this is not to make you an expert in these topics. if anything is inaccurate, please feel free to tell me and i will correct it !

PLEASE ADD INFORMATION ABOUT OTHER GENOCIDES IF YOU KNOW ANY !!!!!

[fixomnia-scribble]

Scientists are very serious.

This is a post about science. And soup.

Dr. Elinne Becket, a microbiologist from Cal State University, is in the middle of one of those Fridge Experiments that happens to us all - except in this case, she is uniquely placed to unravel the science down to the microbial level.

While cleaning out her fridge, Dr. Becket found that a tub of family-recipe beef vegetable soup had turned bright blue. “Ok I'm outing myself here,” she tweeted, “but there was forgotten beef soup in our fridge we just cleaned it out and it was BLUE?!?!? Wtf contam would make it blue??? Like BRIGHT blue!!  Even w/ all my years in micro I'm not handling this well.“

Read on for a breathless and ongoing saga of Soup and Science, and the wonderful international community that is Academic Twitter.

Academic Twitter quickly reminded her of her Responsibilities to Scientific Inquiry. (Cue the chanting from around the world of “CLONE THE SOUP! CLONE THE SOUP!”)

“I can’t believe y’all talked me into going back into the trash.” she tweeted in response, over a photo of a puddle of beautiful Mediterranean-sea blue soup in the trash bin, with bits of veg and noodles arising from the depths.

Scientists being scientists, Dr. Becket agreed to take a sample and send it to colleagues for cloning and microbial analysis.This involved getting arms-deep into the trash bin of Old Soup. “I’m never forviging @ATinyGreenCell (genomic biologist Sebastian Cocioba) for this.” Dr. Becket tweeted, with a photo of a properly dipped and snipped and VERY blue q-tip in a small clear plastic tub.

Diving into decomposing soup was not the only hazard. She writes: “My mom (who made the soup for my birthday) came across this thread and now 1) I have to answer for letting her soup spoil and 2) she's worried @ATinyGreenCell will figure out her secret recipe.“

Dr. Becket and Sebastian were able to culture the Blue Goo!

Becket posted a photo of three petri plates of streaked beef bouillon agar at 72 hours incubation, at 37C, room temp and 4C. She writes: “Left the plates where they were for another 2 days, except the 37°C one was brought to RT, which then grew white stuff over the yellow stuff and stinks to high heaven. RT looked the same. 4°C had impressive growth. Restreaked them all onto TECH agar, awaiting results!”

Sebastian, from his lab, tweeted a photo of three more covered petri dishes, with early results: “Great progress on isolating the glowy microbe from our #BlueSoup! It's so fluorescent the streak is GREEN. Still needs another restreak as it seems there is a straggler but should clear up in the next plate. Exciting!”

Then yesterday, Sebastian tweeted out an updated photo of his plates under daylight and blacklight. “Whatever grew on the #BlueSoup colony plates overnight glows under UV, but only on King's Agar B! That particular media is used to tease out fluorescein expression in pseudomonads. What are the chances that the same cell line expresses fluorescent AND blue pigments?“

“Looking closer, there definitely is a handful of different microbes showing distinct phenotypes. Could be that the blue producer and the fluorescent microbes are totally different microbes!”

At which point, Professor Cynthia Whitchurch of Norwich, England, responded: “Consistent with P. fluorescens being at least part of the #BlueSoup community. The fluorescence is due to production of the siderophore pyoverdine which is up-regulated when iron availability is limited. P. aeruginosa produced this too but my guess is you have blue Pf.”

And Australian agricultural researcher @WAJWebster helpfully tweeted a petri dish of ALL KINDS of colourful bacterial colonies from white to yellow to orange to stark black, with a cheerful: “You need bact-o--colours? I got you, fam.”

The best part is that as of today, March 9, 2023, THE BLUE SOUP MYSTERY CONTINUES. WE ARE WATCHING SCIENCE HAPPENING!

A paper is being written. And Dr. Becket’s mum is getting an author credit as the proprietary owner of the #BlueSoup recipe.

Dr. Becket’s Twitter is here: https://twitter.com/bielleogy

Sebastian Cocioba’s Twitter is here: https://twitter.com/ATinyGreenCell

Fun IFLS story is here: https://www.iflscience.com/microbiologist-investigates-after-her-beef-soup-turned-blue-in-the-freezer-67894?fbclid=IwAR0H27KqVZhzzrosnjzzKkxuKASZ-0L0Lt6hGwCRDJK8xvFbbSlyS4JvwlM