#we have two gallon containers of water

[asinglesock]

water update: the whole area (including a hospital) is cut off from running water because of a leaking water main. Even once we get water back we'll need to boil water till further notice.

[etraytin]

Emergency Preparedness On A Budget

Hey all, just a reminder that even though many of us are looking at a warmer-than-average winter this year, warm on average does not mean we won't see winter storms! In fact, warm winters can produce some really unusual weather patterns that are even more likely to produce severe storms. The best time to prepare for a winter storm, or any other natural disaster, is well before it happens, ie, right now.

"But wait," you might say, "the economy is stupid and everything is expensive! I'm afraid my survival bunker is just going to have to wait until my lottery numbers come up, which will take awhile because I also can't afford to play the lottery." First off, good job not playing the lottery, and second, preparing for a disaster does not have to be expensive. In fact, if you start early enough, disaster preparedness can be done a few dollars at a time without much of anything in the way of special supplies.

In order to not make a single post that is a billion lines long, I am dividing my advice into a few different posts and will link them together when I am done. The links will be right here: Part 2: Medicine and Power

Food and Water Preparedness

FIrst and most important: food and water. The motto of disaster preparedness is "The first 72 is on you." In a major disaster situation, if the situation has not resolved itself within three days, that's about the amount of time it takes for outside help to get itself organized and start arriving in a meaningful way to a disaster area. Objectively three days is a pretty short period of time, subjectively it is a small eternity if you are not prepared.

Preppers (people who do disaster preparedness as a hobby, to greater and lesser levels of unhingedness) spend a lot of time discussing the best types of food and water prep for long-term storage and/or end of the world scenarios. We are not going to do that. We want cheap, easy, effective preparations that we can ideally do while grocery shopping in a Walmart. The easiest, simplest and cheapest way to do your food prep is this: Buy one or two canned, jarred or tetrapacked (that waxed cardboard box pack) meal items every time you can afford it, then set them aside. Find a little space in a closet, a cupboard, a shelf, whatever, and just keep those foods there until you have three days worth for everyone in your household, including the pets.

"Fine," you might say as you look skeptically at the back of your cupboards, "but that doesn't seem very specific. There are a lot of canned goods out there!" And that is fair! The basic rule of thumb is "Buy something you will eat, ideally without heating it up if necessary, that doesn't require much prep or cleaning." For example, my family is two adults and one adolescent, none of us with major food allergens or aversions. If I were trying for a 72-hour food prep for us on the cheap with no cooking available I'd probably go with six cans of chunky soup, which I get for a dollar each on sale, three small jars of applesauce (smaller jars are better if you have no way to cool food), a box of saltine crackers, three cans of tuna, and a big box of granola bars if I could keep them out of reach of the kiddo long enough.

It's not fancy and it may not provide great long-term nutrition, but it's enough food to keep us alive for three days in a form that will hold in storage for 1-2 years without needing to rotate. Even on a very tight budget you can probably accumulate this much food in a pretty reasonable amount of time (and a lot of it is the sort of thing you might get from a food bank anyway!) For pet food, pack up three days worth of your pet's food, ideally in a glass jar but any sealed container will do, and add any cans of wet food they'd get as well.

Water is another big prepping topic that we're going to go easy-peasy on. You need, at minimum, a gallon of clean water per person per day, plus extra for cleaning and washing. Water is annoying to store and takes a lot of room, so for a quickie 3-day prep, minimizing water use is ideal. If you can scare up enough paper plates, cups and utensils to last you three days, you save ever having to wash dishes. If you can get hold of a pack of wet wipes, you reduce the amount of water for washing your body. If you can bring yourself to pee in the woods or at the very least let urine sit in the toilet unflushed, you save a HUGE amount of water on flushing.

For your water prep, you can use the bit-at-a-time strategy again. Every time you get groceries, try to bring home a gallon or two of purified drinking water. They should be very cheap, usually around 1.25 in my neck of the woods, and they last for awhile. If you have a few extra dollars, buy a flat of bottled water until you have at least three gallon containers and one 12-pack for each human member of your household Tuck them away somewhere out of direct sunlight, and rotate them regularly, taking out an old gallon and flat and replacing them with new every couple of months.

Once you have your basic setup, you can start thinking about getting fancier. There are ways to find things like camp stoves and water filters fairly cheaply, usually by hitting up garage sales or looking in the clearance sporting goods section when camping season is over, but that's basically gravy when compared to just having something to eat.

Next Time: Medicine and Power

[whumblr]

Bloody

The first time Whumpee had fainted after watching their own blood seep down their arm, Whumper had watched in silent amusement. Before realising that… well, this could be a bit of a pain.

So the second time he strapped them to a table and walked up with his knife at the ready, he came prepared.

Whumpee glanced at the knife and while their expression tightened, there was a hint of smugness crossing their face. Not much to torture when they’re out cold after just the first cut, Whumper had to admit.

But their face fell when Whumper held up the knife and a piece of black cloth dangled from the tip.

A blindfold.

“Figured we could see to what extent your fear of blood goes,” Whumper said, swinging the cloth back and forth until it slipped from the knife and draped over Whumpee’s collarbones.

“It’s not a fear of blood!” Whumpee bit, pulling at the leather straps binding them. “It just… happens,” they finished, less fierce.

“It happens…” Whumper mused. So this probably wasn’t the first time. “Have you ever tested it? Do you just go whoop when you see your own blood or is the sensation of it pumping out of your veins enough to pass out?”

Whumpee paused, their lips pressed together and their throat bobbed. “I… I don’t know,” they admitted.

“Let’s find out.”

He set the knife down on the table, deliberately placing it just next to Whumpee’s bound hand. If they struggled enough, maybe they could touch it with a pinky finger. Blindfold in hand, he leaned over them, easily slipped it over their head as they shook ‘no’ and they continued to shake their head even when the band fit snugly over their eyes. He shushed them gently, cupping their face with both hands, stopping them from shaking their head.

“Now, then…” His hand curled over the handle of the knife and as he lifted it he let the blade scrape over the surface with a scratchy shing to signal that he was about to start. And to draw a flinch from Whumpee. He grinned; now that they were dependent on their other senses, he wasn’t above helping out with that.

He rested the blade just under their shoulder where their deltoid curved, letting the cold touch seep into their skin before the sharp edge of the blade would follow.

A soft and surprised little yip sounded within their throat when the knife broke skin. Teeth clenched when he slid deeper, their chest heaving to keep their scream contained until he dragged the knife further through muscle and a broken gasp tore free.

Blood gushed along the stripe of the cut, streaming down their shoulder, tickling over skin.

A fist clenched. And Whumpee went white as a sheet.

But they didn’t pass out.

“You look like you already lost a gallon,” Whumper said with a smirk.

“Sh—shut up,” Whumpee shot back, but their voice was weak, high-pitched.

They tensed up when the blade rested against their arm again.

But Whumper merely held the flat of the blade under the cut, not yet breaking skin, and he caught a few thick drops of blood. Then he carefully brought the knife up, hovered it over Whumpee’s face, and watched as the red pooled closer to the tip. A single drop fell right onto their cheek.

And after an initial flinch, Whumpee completely stilled. To the point where Whumper thought that was it for the experiment.

But then a shivering inhale rasped past their lips.

“Don’t do that…” they managed to whisper.

“Don’t do what, dear?” Whumper drawled, smile creeping wider. He tapped a finger to the blade and watched a second drop fall right onto the blindfold. It drew out another twitch. The cloth absorbed the dark stain immediately, while the spatter on their face slowly rolled down their cheek. It sent a shudder through them as it tickled the underside of their ear and disappeared into their hair.

“That… the b—the blood, don’t—”

“It’s just a splash of water, love.”

“It’s not!”

Whumper grinned, fingertips swirling through the puddle of blood forming under their arm. “No,” he murmured in agreement, and he tapped two fingers slick with blood against their cheekbone. “It’s not.”

A strangled sound of anguish sounded in Whumpee’s throat as the two fingers slowly made its way down, leaving two cold stripes of red draped over their face.

Whumper watched them fondly. Amazing how the brain worked. It registered everything, from the warmth gushing out of their cut, to the splash on their face and it drying on their cheek. Yet it didn’t trigger that severe drop in blood pressure to make them check out.

With Whumpee blubbing their mouth like a fish on dry, heaving in shallow breaths yet none coming back out as cries, you’d think their level of emotional distress was at peak. But fight or flight was still overpowering everything. And oh, how they wished to fly; their wrists pulled tight against their bonds, straining as they hoped for the leather to give just a bit so they could slip free. Just a bit more, dear, and you’ll feel the blood bubble up there as well…

“Lost your voice?” Whumper purred.

His hand tightened over the cut and Whumpee screamed. Ah, no, still there. But they immediately fell silent when that same hand gripped their jaw tight. Fingers sleek with blood dug into the side of their jaw, just under their ear.

“That’s right,” Whumper crooned. He let a fresh drop fall onto his thumb and pressed it against their lips. “Just… shush.”

Their lips, slightly parted in despair, immediately pressed tight into a thin stripe. And with a grin, Whumper took advantage. He slowly smeared the drop over both their lips, coating them in red.

“You might wanna lick your lips. Seems a bit dry to me.”

Every little gasp had indeed made their lips uncomfortably dry, blood now seeping into the cracks, immediately drying and making things even worse. As Whumper pulled back, he could see them hesitate, fighting the automatic response of their tongue wanting to offer a bit of relief.

Those beautiful red lips trembled hard, and their chin started to quiver as well.

The underside of the blindfold started getting wet. Tears trickled out from underneath, mixing with the red stripes over their cheeks, breaking them up and a drop pooled on the edge of their jaw, tinted with a hue of red.

“P-p-please…” The word puffed past quivering lips. “Stop. Just… just cut me up like you wanted, but… stop…”

“Ah.” Whumper feigned his surprise, though he didn’t have to hide his grin, growing wolfishly large. “Right. I think we both got a little distracted.”

He scraped the knife over the table again before resting it against their arm, slowly moving up and increasing the pressure. “Let’s tap out some more.”

-

General whump tags: @firewheeesky @myfriendcallsmeasickwoman19 @whumpawink @painsandconfusion @whumpifi @auroragehenna @oprhan

[paradubolical]

it's that time again

here's how to make alcohol at home

recipe under the cut. it's long. I warned you.

FOREWARD:

I do not endorse regular substance abuse or at-home distillation without proper training. Don’t hit your kids. Don’t blow up your house. It’s okay to eat shit and die, like, once every three months, not every two weeks, not every weekend. If you’re doing that, there’s not much I can do to help or give in way of advice. But this recipe is not for you. And you should reconsider some stuff if you haven’t already.

That being said.

The following is my personal method for brewing beer, mead, wine, etc. I have utilized this method many times and it has worked wonderfully. I have achieved up to 15% proof. This means that the substance you create should be perfectly drinkable and safe if you follow the instructions and use your head. HOWEVER. You should be prepared to read this whole document before making anything. There are warnings and safety precautions you need to take, and I don’t want anyone to get botulism of some shit because of a shoddy recipe that doesn’t explain absolutely everything.

I also do not encourage the practice of distillation at home. This is not because it is illegal. For those unaware, distillation is the semi-complicated process of heating alcohol to produce hard liquors. While it may sound fun to make Smirnoff from home, there is a reason we do not. Alcohol is extremely flammable. You will set yourself or your valuables on fire.

Ingredients:

1 Packet ActiveDry Yeast

1 Cup Sugar or 1 Cup Sugar Equivalent*

⅔ Gallon Water

Supplies:

1 Gallon Container

1 Suitable Cork or Lid**

3-4 Ballons, Latex Gloves, or even condoms will do honestly***

IMPORTANT:

You must have a space prepared ahead of time to store the JFCB while it brews. Remember. It will stink like hell. Anyone who smells it will know it’s alcohol. Use your noggin okay

NOTES:

*

In simple terms, alcohol is created when yeast eats sugar. You can use pretty much anything sugary. Don’t use chocolate unless you want to die.

I like to use those strawberry-flavored grandma hard candies. The stuff they make is super fucking strong and tastes like god himself descended from the heavens to kick your ass. It makes what I like to call the JFCB. It’s high-proof enough to burn your throat. So, you know, try to moderate.

**

You need something to seal the container with once you’re done. Pick wisely.

***

It’s gotta be something that can form a seal around the lip of the container, but also expand like a balloon. These are some of the things I’ve found work best.

INSTRUCTIONS:

Creating the Base

Take your 1-Gallon Container and fill it with half the packet of ActiveDry yeast. You don’t need all of it. Trust me on this one.

Pour in your 1 Cup Sugar or Equivalent.

Pour in the ⅔ Gallon of Water.

Either whisk or mix vigorously. When it starts foaming, you’re done.

Stage 1

Put the Balloon/Latex/Condom over the lip of the container. Make sure it’s secure and extremely tight, but there’s plenty of room for air to fill.

Find your designated Place to Put It. This should be somewhere nobody’s gonna smell it, and also somewhere nobody’s gonna go for the next three odd months.

Set your shit down.

Wait 2-3 weeks.

Stage 2

After 2-3 weeks, the alcohol should stop emitting gas. At this point, it’s safe to cork. Don’t do it beforehand or the container will explode.

I like to put some hot glue or wax over the lip just to make sure it’s sealed extra well. I sometimes put tinfoil too. It doesn’t actually help anything, just looks fancy.

Find somewhere nice to store it. Make sure it’s right side up. Odds are you sealed it pretty poorly if it’s your first time, and you’re gonna be in deep shit if it starts to smell.

If it does, that means you corked it too early. Move it back to your Place to Put It for like a month. Recork it after that time’s up. It might be difficult, but you’re smart. You can do it. It should be good to go after that.

And there you have it. A nice bottle of…. Something?

Enjoy. Or just leave it to sit.

FAQ:

Q: I’m worried about getting botulism from this shit. Is it really safe?

A: Usually, people don’t get botulism. My rule of thumb is that if it smells like shit you should really just throw it away. If you’re really worried, I’d also recommend throwing it away. The paranoia’s not worth it.

Q: I’m a minor. Should I try this at home?

A: Probably not. I’m a minor too, so fuck’s to say what my opinion’s worth.

Q: I want to try vodka/scotch/whiskey. What should I do?

A: You should just not. Or buy it at the store. I don’t know man i’m not the all-seeing eye

Q: I’ve heard you need an airlock for this. Do you need an airlock for this?

A: Absolutely fucking not. They are feeding you airlock propaganda. You don’t need an airlock.

[kindagayfish]

I am also very obsessed with Babygirl Vash lol how about the classic sharing a bed trope with Vash? It can be swf or not! We just need more imagines of him!

Vash and sharing the bed trope

A/N: YES SHARING THE BED TROPE I LOVE IT SO MUCH HDJBSFHKSBFHKDBGHJB especially when its with bb girl vash *swoon* I’ve seen quite a few of these scenarios already but there will never be enough to satisfy me. I made this one sfw cause I really just wanted to write some fluff. Also, I finished the OG Trigun and I see some differences between OG Vash and Stampede Vash. I’ll be writing for the Stampede characters unless specified otherwise. We just haven’t seen him flirt with anyone yet, while in the OG he was very much a Chad lol. So sorry for the quality, and for taking so long. I haven’t written fanfiction in a LONG TIME. Seriously it’s been years but it feels nice to do it again. But how do people write these so quickly like damn.

Contains: fluff, Gender-neutral reader, And not really proof-read cause we die like men out here.

When you open your eyes again, it’s still dark. Your mouth cracks open in a yawn and you slowly become aware of someone pressed up against your back. 

Oh. Oh that’s right.

It had been an exhaustingly long day trekking through the desert, and an even longer evening trying to find a place to stay the night. You have no idea what possessed every abled body in Noman's Land to travel to the same town as you, but every room in the dusty motel next to the bar was taken. Even the porch swing had some poor soul wrapped up in his coat for the night.

You and Vash were about to call it and take turns sleeping in a nearby alley, when an old woman took pity on you and offered up her spare room. You were so excited to sleep in a real bed that you didn’t even think to ask about the size of the space.

It wasn’t until the both of you had finally gotten into the tiny, very much intended for one person or two people squished very close together bed, that you realized how incredibly awkward the whole situation is.

“Hey-”

“WELL GOODNIGHT” You had blurted out, turning so that your back was to Vash, hiding your flustered expression. He is a little too good at reading your face sometimes, and you didn’t need him asking questions.

He replied with a quiet goodnight, feeling him shift away as well.

Now, Vash’s breath is hot on the back of your neck as he snores lightly, his spiky hair tickling your skin. Sometime in the night, his arms found their way around your middle and pulled you flush against his chest, securing you in place.

This particular scenario had been one you’ve played in your head on loop anytime the two of you had slept close to one another. It’s like a dream come true. And any other time, you would have nestled back into his hold and fell back asleep, hoping that this action was intentional; but instead, you silently curse yourself for chugging a whole gallon of water after arriving in town. Because my god you have to pee.

He stirs slightly when you shift, hugging you closer and burying his face into your shoulder. You feel yourself growing hot as he lets out a content sigh, lips ghosting over your skin. It quickly becomes clear that you’re not escaping without waking him.

“Vash…” You whisper his name softly, not wanting to alarm him. “Vash?”

“Hmm?” he hums, breathing in deeply. Vash lifts his head and loosens his grip slightly. You take this opportunity to turn and meet his eyes. They’re droopy with sleep, blinking a bit. He gives you a lazy smile before whispering, “hi.”

“Uh hi.” Your heart rate picks up at the sight before you, and you swallow hard. “Could you um…”

“Hm?” It takes a moment for him to register the kind of position you are in. “Oh. OH SORRY.” Vash squeaks with wide eyes, releasing you quickly with a growing blush on his face. Getting out of the bed in a hurry as an attempt to hide your own flustered state, you almost miss the deflated look he gives when you’re no longer next to him. 

“Everything alright?”

“Yeah yeah. Just ya know…bathroom.”

“Right right.”

You quietly make your way to the bathroom, making sure not to wake your host who slept soundly in the room next to yours. Part of you wanted to rush to get back, feeling chilly after leaving the warm bed and Vash’s arms. You hide your burning face in your hands as his smile flashes in your mind.

He’s just so…ATTRACTIVE. Ever since you realized you had fallen for him, it has been increasingly harder to hide your feelings. Any time he touches you (which is a considerable amount when running from danger) has your brain short-circuiting and your stomach doing flips. Sometimes you can’t help but wonder if Vash is really this oblivious, or if he is ignoring it to save you both the embarrassment of a rejection. Either way, you aren’t sure if you’re ready to face the truth just yet.

Maybe if I take long enough he’ll fall back asleep and it won’t have to be weird.

After a considerable amount of time pacing the bathroom, you finally make the short walk back to the spare bedroom.

To your slight disappointment, Vash is asleep by the time you slip back into the bed next to him. His face is calm, a stark contrast to the way his brows furrow together during an intense confrontation, and you take a moment to admire his face in the moonlight. You brush a few hairs back from his forehead and immediately freeze when his eyes flutter open.

“Hi” he whispers a second time.

Pulling your hand back, you feel your face grow hot again. “Sorry, didn’t mean to wake you twice.”

“It’s okay: Vash replies, smiling softly.

You continue to stare at each other, both unsure of what to say next. It’s subtle, but you start to see a blush creep up Vash’s neck and reach the tips of his ears.

“Um” Vash is the one to break the silence, reaching for you. “Can I…?”

“Yes” you answer immediately, scooting your body closer to his.

“Does that make this weird?”

You let out a laugh. "You just caught me watching you sleep and you think this is weird?"

“Fair enough" Vash laughs with you. "But are you sure?”

“Absolutely.”

“Oh okay good” He breathes out a sigh in relief, pulling you completely into him. Feeling his body relax against yours, you tuck your head up under his chin, ear pressed against his chest. You swear his heart is pounding as intensely as your own.

“So warm” Vash mumbles into your hair. You let out a content hum, allowing sleep to overtake you once more.

BONUS

Some general headcanons:

Man sleeps like a ROCK with you

Very used to having to wake up and jet at any moment so I assume he’s a light sleeper. But with you next to him? His body finally allows him to get those good Zs.

Clingy af

Good luck escaping Vash’s arms in the middle of the night. Once he has latched on, you won’t be free until morning.

Will 110% snore lightly in your ear

mumbles in his sleep too. Usually you can’t make out what he is saying though.

Loves any cuddling positions, but his FAVORITES are any where you are the one holding him.

Vash always wants you to play with his hair. Legit will turn to putty in your hands if you scratch his scalp.

Sometimes will even nuzzle into your shoulder to get you to do it because he’s too embarrassed to ask

If you need some extra comforting at night, maybe you had a nightmare or something particularly scary happened that day, he will lay you on his chest and softly hum/sing until you fall asleep. (I honestly think Vash would have a really nice singing voice)

Usually the last one to fall asleep, and the first one to wake up. He really enjoys the quiet moments with you. It’s the way you softly smile at him in the dawning sunlight that makes him forget that he’s a wanted man.

[prince-liest]

I have made a container bog garden for my outdoor carnivorous plants! I have more coming in the mail (and also to be given to me by my cousin over Thanksgiving) so it's going to fill up a good deal more, especially once things start growing in size, but for now: here we are!

It's basically one of those fake plastic whiskey barrel planters with no drainage, filled with a small layer of lava rock, a bunch of peat moss/perlite/sand bog plant mix, topped with long-fibered sphagnum moss, and with a water bottle stuck in the middle that has holes punched in it for watering and checking the water level. Took about two gallons of 0 TDS water to flood it properly the first time!

I'm extremely excited about it because bog gardens are SO pretty (and lower-maintenance than putting each plant in individual containers, both in terms of watering and in terms of the plants being able to survive heat and cold) AND I recently discovered that bog orchids are a thing. So I will definitely be adding some bog orchids!

Currently the plants are one standard venus fly trap and one Sarracenia purpurea x leucophylla hybrid, and on the way I have a Sarracenia purpurea ssp. venosa, with plans to take some of my cousin's Sarracenia flava once I visit in the fall and also to eventually purchase a Grass Pink Orchid and Nodding Lady Tresses as my bog orchids of choice. I'm also hoping to get some Utricularia bisquamata as a nice little filler plant if it can survive in this weather. It's going to look SO cool once it's a little more filled up and all the plants are grown in!

[theleastprofessionalchef]

Ah jeez, I started making this post end of May and saved it as a draft so I could come back with the recipe, and fully forgot to do that for uh. Yeah. A long time. I've since made a few more batches of successful mead, and have a couple more fermenting right now! I'll reblog with pics of them later.

Well! better late than never. Leaving what I'd written initially unchanged, so-

-

Two months apart - start and end - my first successful batch of mead! I've tried a handful of times over the years, but had an unfortunate habit of doing... SOMETHING wrong each time that resulted in lightly sweetened cleaning alcohol 😅

But finally, a success! Real mead! Sweet, but not too sweet, and boozy enough without being straight up moonshine

Recipe:

Roughly three pounds of honey

3? 4? Of those little mandarin oranges, quartered

1 packet ale yeast, I used this

Various whole mulling spices, I used a stick of cinnamon and a few cloves this time, but I've also tossed in cardamom pods and anise occasionally, maybe a couple peppercorns. Go wild

So much filtered/distilled water. So much. Like two gallons?

I'll be real folks, I used a cheap shitty online guide that I don't remember the link for, that said it was a good basic way to learn how to make garbage mead and that any brewer worth their salt would cringe at. It is also coincidentally the same guide I used years ago in the aforementioned cleaning alcohol incident; I haven't changed what I used or did, so I honestly don't know why that came out bad and this good. Shrugs! Yeast can't read.

Dissolve the honey in warm/hot water. Not boiling- you don't want to kill the yeast when you add it in. Think a nice, warm shower. Stir it well, add the oranges and spices, and mix in the yeast until also dissolved.

Load it all up into a large glass container like the one pictured. I ordered a carboy online for this, which is the 'proper' thing to use, but you can honestly get away with an old milk jug you've thoroughly cleaned and sanitized, if you again, don't care about it being the highest quality. Carboys come with the fermentation/filtration Thing on it to let gases out and nothing in (the little doohicky plugged into the top of the lid) but you can also get away with stretching the mouth of a balloon over where the lid would go and poke a teensy hole in it with a needle. The goal is to let the gases that build up during fermentation escape the container, but not to let outside air in.

Fill the container the rest of the way up with water, but leave a couple inches of space on top. This thang's gonna bubble like crazy once the yeast start feeding, and you don't want it to overflow and make a mess of your cupboard.

Put it in a dark, cool space, and wait a few days!

It'll bubble a lot those first days; DON'T mess with it. Leave her be. Let her have her hot girl summer. After a few days, maybe a week, it'll calm down a bit; now you can top off the water supply.

Fast forward uhhhh two months or so, and it's done! There's a more legit way to know for sure when it's done that involves watching the tiny bubbles that form near the top as part of the fermentation process, and figuring out when they'll stop, but I'm impatient and don't know jack and am here for a good time not a long time.

Enjoy mead! And maybe do some better research than I did if you want something fancy.

OH AND FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DO NOT STIR IT WHEN YOU GO TO DRINK THE FINISHED STUFF

You'll want to scoop the fruits and spices off the top and then siphon it off into another container, or do what we did and simply ladle it off the top (because on a ship of 10-13 sailors, 1 1/2-2 gallons of mead won't last longer than an off day), and NOT drink the detritus off the bottom. You can kinda see it in the picture above. It is not like unfiltered apple cider. That stuff tastes gnarly.

Do not shake the mead before drinking.

[anotherdayforchaosfay]

A couple months ago (at least I think it was, but time is weird for me), I purchased an African Violet. This is a plant that's been in my life since early childhood. I had one until my husband killed it during one of our moves; he put it in full sun on a hot day. These plants burn. Just an hour in direct sun is enough to do serious damage. I was at our new place, directing where things go, and six hours later he arrived with a completely cooked plant. No, I was no okay, and more than ten years later I'm still very fucking upset. He's well aware of this.

Which is why he didn't argue when I said I'm getting an African Violet. They were $6 and poorly cared for at the local gardening place. On the container, it says "keep out of direct sunlight" and "water from the bottom." They had them in barely filtered light and were water from above. Yes, I fucking corrected them. The guy threw a fit and called the gardening manager over, who asked if I wanted to work there and sent the other guy to put the plants in a different area.

They had no self-water pots, nor African Violet food. Those are the kind African Violets need. So I've had mine in its original container until today. It started showing signs of dying a week ago, and was getting way too large for the container it came in. I'm using general potting soil because that always worked fine for my previous plant. I had to repot that thing four times! African Violet food will need to be acquired soon-ish.

My husband came home with a self-watering pot today. He went to four different places to find one! A couple days ago I was have a Very Bad Day, and seeing my plant rapidly failing was what set the dam of tears flowing. It was Bad. He was my hero today, didn't even tell me he was getting a pot. The plant has since been re-potted. I soaked the soil before adding the plant and dry soil, something my mom taught me (she has around half a dozen African Violets). If it does well, I'll see about acquiring more in the future. I have a spot on my PC desk set aside for an African Violet. The one I have is on my cutting table, the corner nearest the window.

I now have six pothos plants (all cuttings from the same one), one spider plant that may soon become two, and an African Violet. Next week, I may be filling some containers with soil and wildflower seeds from the front yard. There's too many weeds and general crap in the front yard for anything but more weeds and general crap to grow, so we're more or less destroying it, then adding layers of organic matter (six inches or more of fallen leaves and other similar stuff), and leaving it alone for a year or two while I add more containers. I intend to acquire tires of various sizes, a bathtub, and some other similar items, to decorate the yard and serve as containers. Because it amuses me, we own the house, and I fucking can. Even told the neighbors, and they found it hilarious. When the soil is ready, I'll add native wildflowers, some milkweed (monarch butterflies navigate through here), and other native plants that self-seed and will require minimal effort. The backyard will be treated much the same, but with raised beds for food and herbs, and walkable paths.

For now, my current plants will have to do. I'm just hoping my African Violet survives the transfer and thrives in the significantly larger and more appropriate pot. The other held maybe two cuts of wet soil. This? A gallon, possibly more.

[crissiebaby]

DiapOut: Chapter 37

DISCLAIMER: This series contains diaper usage, public humiliation, masturbation, WAM, hypermessing, crossdressing, mental regression, and other ABDL themes. I hope you enjoy!

-------------------------------------------------------------

“Help! Keelee! We have a problem!” shouted Cade, wearing Rupert’s arm around his shoulder alongside Zeke to keep his ailing friend upright. The trio quickly rushed up to their production liaison in desperate need of aid.

It was mere minutes before the cast was supposed to be called up for the start of Round 3. Sadly, it appeared the entire studio was in on some big conspiracy to keep Keelee from running the show on time. “Oh, for Goddess's sake! What's wrong now?!” she said, already stuck dealing with the shoehorning in Cassi’s latest and greatest idea to ramp up excitement: experimental hypnotics. Now, she had to deal with a sick and incapacitated player, the result of which was likely to decimate their shooting schedule.

“W-We don’t know. He was clutching his stomach and groaning. That’s all we know,” stuttered Zeke, helping to sit Rupert down in an empty chair. Threading his fingers behind his head, he backed away anxiously as Keelee and a small medical staff rushed to examine his friend.

“...No, it’s no issue. What’s the title of the new punishment? Betsy Wetsy Wants to Play? Alright, we’ll get it swapped in.”

Suddenly, Zeke’s head whipped to the right as his ear caught wind of something that instantly turned his blood to ice. He wagged his head vehemently, feeling as though he must’ve been hearing things. Making sure no one was watching him, he slowly tiptoed toward the nearby curtain and peeked through to see DiapOut’s director, Jackson, standing over the shoulder of his chyron operator.

“...I swear to Goddess, if Cassi calls in with one more last-minute change, I’m gonna lose it,” said the frazzled director, speaking a tad too loudly for his own good. “Ughghgh–Okay! I’m good. Let’s get this over with. Add Betsy Wetsy Wants to Play to the punishment slate for Round 3. We can work it into the second rotation…”

“...Zeke?…Zeke!...ZEKE!”

Before Zeke could eavesdrop further, his arm was yanked backward by Cade. “Dude! The med staff is moving Rupert. C’mon!” he shouted, in disbelief that Zeke could zone out amid such a harrowing situation.

Following Cade like a zombie on auto-pilot, it was as if the world around Zeke had stopped existing the second he heard Jackson utter that cursed doll’s name. How on Earth could they possibly have known about that? The only ones who knew about the incident at the Pretty Pretty Princess Doll Factory were his sister and her friends, his therapist, and…Kyoko. ‘No…she wouldn’t…’ he thought, unable to fathom the idea of his closest friend telling his deepest, darkest secret to a TV production crew for clout. She knew how traumatic that day was for him.

And yet, as Zeke looked back at Betsy Wetsy Wants to Play being added to a long list of titles, the fact that Kyoko had been missing for half an hour began to eat away at the trust he felt for his dearest companion.

-------------------------------------------------------------

“AHAHAHAHA!!!”

The audience’s laughter had never sounded louder to Zeke as he watched the conclusion of Lelaya’s challenge from his spot on the board. Despite this, it was his pulse that pressurized his ears, thumping wildly in correlation with the wretched organ hiding within his chest. It didn’t matter how many times he told himself this was all paranoia. He wouldn’t be able to relax until his second turn had come and gone. 

Speaking of second turns, Lelaya’s had gotten completely off the rails ever since selecting Mia and Misa to participate. “W-Will you two hold still?!” shouted Keelee, her face red with frustration as she struggled to tape the two-person diaper around Mia and Misa’s collective waists with the aid of two utterly useless production assistants. To her dismay, the 10 gallons of water in Mia’s diaper refused to cooperate. As if that wasn’t bad enough, Misa kept trying to wander off, too hypnotized to stay on task. Tacking on that they were already an hour behind schedule, it was no wonder why DiapOut’s beleaguered production manager was about to have a complete meltdown.

*RIIIIIIIIIIIP!”

“OH, FUCK OFF!” yelled Keelee at the top of her lungs as the overly-complicated, two-person diaper was tragically transformed into two tattered, one-person diapers. In a moment of pure vexation, she shoved her forearm into her mouth and bit down hard before letting out a muffled scream.

Tapping her foot impatiently, Cassi wanted to lambast the production team for their incompetence. However, given Keelee’s exasperated demeanor, she figured it was better to hold her comments until after the show. “Soooo, should we take a five?” she asked, digging a finger in between her foot and the sole of her high heel to alleviate her sore tootsie.

“If we take a five, am I allowed to sit?” asked Mia, her legs shaking harder than the beads inside a baby’s rattle.

A small line of slobber escaped Keelee’s mouth as she promptly unclenched her teeth from her arm. “No and no!” she said, ready for the gears of this show to stop grinding. Glancing at her PAs with a cold hand of death in her eyes, she snapped her fingers and pointed off stage. “What are you waiting for?! Go get another diaper!” With the two production aids taking off sprinting like a pair of skittish deer, it was time for her to get this show running again like a well-oiled machine. “Okay, okay! We are…going to move on. Mia, Misa, you two will stand behind Lelaya and Ayaya for wide shots and we’ll double back after Zeke’s turn.”

“Wait, so…we have to walk back and forth again?” whined Mia, her vision zooming in and out as she gazed back at the teammates, who were halfway across the studio.

Annoyed and vindictive, Keelee wanted to make sure that the next time she diapered Mia and Misa together, there wouldn’t be a 15-pound diaper in the way. “Oh, it’s MUCH worse than that. You see, you’ll have to go back and forth, and then immediately back and forth again since it’ll be your turn after Zeke’s. I’ll bet your thighs are just BURNING with anticipation,” she taunted, hammering the final nails in Mia’s watery grave.

*THWUMP!*

Obnoxious sloshing noises filled the studio space as Mia collapsed backward on her spongy padding. It all happened so fast that she had barely taken the time to register in her brain that her legs were giving out. “W-Wuh?” she muttered in a half-dazed state whilst helplessly pawing at her distended diaper.

“Hehehe! Mia go SQUISH!” cheered Misa, dropping to her knees and crawling toward her prone friend. Giggles exploded out of her as she slapped at the base of the sodden nappy, causing it to jiggle like a lump of jello. A barrage of cooing “awws” erupted throughout the once-cackling crowd.

Immediately joining her besties on the stage floor, Lelaya squealed as she threw her arms around Mia and Misa. “Eeeeeeee! You two are being so cute! I knew I made the right choice,” she said, feeling vindicated as she nuzzled both her friends back and forth.

Meanwhile, Cassi eyed up which camera had the best shot of Mia’s fall before jumping in with her color commentary. “Oh no! Our Baby New Year has taken quite the tumble! Good thing her pals, Misa and Lelaya, are here to give plenty of comfort cuddles. That means the Wetters just lost 10 points, and at such a crucial time! Can they hold onto their lead or will the Messers take advantage of their folly? Stay tuned! You’re watching DiapOut!” she said before smugly looking off-camera at Keelee. “And, there’s your bumper. You’re welcome.”

Despite how much Keelee hated Cassi’s snide attitude, having a place to cut to commercial amid the chaos was a big boon for the production as a whole. Clapping her hands together to get Round 3 back on its feet, she wasn’t about to say thank you, no matter how thankful she was. “Well, let’s not start humping each other’s diapers just yet. We’ve still got a show to do. Let’s get Mia into a new diaper while we set up for Zeke’s roll,” she announced, bending the studio to her will as dozens of moving parts shifted around simultaneously. Unfortunately, the only piece of the puzzle that wasn’t moving was perhaps the most central of all. “Zeke?”

“Yo, you good dude?” asked Cade, laughing nervously while waving a hand in front of Zeke’s eyes.

Snapping to attention, Zeke could sense that everyone’s focus was squarely on him. The moment he’d been dreading was finally here. “Yeah…yeah, I’m good,” he lied, his eyes locked on Kyoko and her porcelain prison as he spoke. She stared back at him with a pensive smile, though it was hard to tell if she was pensive from the score or a guilty conscience. For his sake, he prayed for the former.

Cameras danced around Zeke as he waddled way over to the raised platform where CassiRole and the fateful dice block were waiting for him. He hadn’t gotten to be up close and personal with her since bolting from her dressing room. Part of him wanted to apologize for what happened but the other, larger part was far too intimidated to bring up such an embarrassing interaction.

Cassi, on the other hand, was more than happy to rehash Zeke’s unceremonious exit. “Try not to scurry off too hastily this time,” she said, winking at the timid boy moments before Keelee counted her back in. It was time to elevate this show to new heights. “Hiya kiddos! Welcome back to DiapOut! Round 3 is neck-and-neck, and it’s anyone’s game! Before the break, we saw the Wetters hoist yet another punishment upon themselves as Mia finally succumbed to the weight of her waterlogged diapee. Now, we’re back again with Zeke. Can he make up for his past failures and take back the lead for his team? Let’s find out…right now!”

Hugging the oversized dice block to his chest, Zeke knew the score. All he needed to do was avoid rolling a 2 and all his panicking would be for nothing. Sweat clung to his fingertips as he pushed the six-sided cube away from his torso, sending it clattering across the floor. He didn’t dare blink as the block skittered to a stop; the two black dots on its top side glaring into Zeke’s soul like a demon’s eyes

As Cassi has so eloquently put it earlier in the round, it was punishment time. “My goodness! These Messers sure are gluttons for punishment! Let’s go to the board to see what titillating punishment awaits our little troublemaker, Zeke!” she said, eccentrically posing as she gestured to the spinning wheel on the overhead monitor.

All eyes lingered on the big screen as the digital wheel went round and round; all except for Zeke, who didn’t need to look. Standing on stage with his eyes closed and his head lowered, he knew there was no fighting it. This game had been rigged from the start.

Betsy Wetsy Wants to Play.

TO BE CONTINUED…

Wetters: 161.1 points Messers: 146.7 (+/-10) points

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💕 Story By CrissieBaby 💕 💙 Edited By AllySmolShork 💙 💚 Edited By AliceKChan 💚

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[solarpunknow]

(This is a work of fiction, meant to be a window onto what a transitional time between now and a solarpunk future might look like)

Today is one of my favorites, at least when it comes to work: on-site removal of invasive plants and their conversion into fertilizer to be used on the resident's food gardens.

Of course, not all invasive plant species are easily composted, and even the ones that are have to be treated a bit differently.

This plot is small, in town, and has a strong population of Spanish Bluebells, which are unfortunately extremely aggressive in our climate, and capable of spreading both by seed, and tiny bulbules that fall off the main bulb as you pull them up. They're also poisonous, so not a good forage crop, alas. The technique we're using today is hand pulling them all up (after loosening the soil gently), and gathering them all into two 50 gallon barrels. The barrels contain them, and will fill with rain water, and in some months, the dark, potent smelling water can be filtered and then used for fertilizer. The bulbs and seeds never touch the ground again, so there's no chance of contamination.

Unfortunately, this is not a one and done kinda job- we will definitely be back in future years- and for ever couple of weeks until the bluebells stop pushing up new growth and instead go dormant for the summer dry season.

While we're working on removing them, it doesn't really make sense to grow anything fragile or brushy on the plot, so for now, we're just encouraging tough plants that will survive getting bluebells pulled up around and through them, like clover and yarrow and wood sorrel and the like. Eventually, the family will be able to join their neighborhood disbursed garden commons and help raise local, organic foods and also plant the native plants that support so many of the beneficial insects that have been struggling from the population crash.

Those insects used to be really under appreciated, but now it's common knowledge that they support pollination and that having a healthy ecosystem helps prevent the plagues of plant "pests" that people used to spend so much money and effort trying to eradicate! Turns out just letting some of those native wild flowers grow in and around your garden has a massive impact! Who knew! Beauty and bounty all together!

P.S., here's a good old resource for more info about planting plants that support beneficial bug species! Of course, being decades out of date, it focuses on the non-native plants that the research back then focused on, but it gives you the idea! https://catalog.extension.oregonstate.edu/sites/catalog/files/project/pdf/pnw550.pdf Native plants also attract and provide habitat for beneficial bugs, and what's best for each spot is going to vary- a lot.

[sohannabarberaesque]

Postcards from Snagglepuss (Minnesota State Fair edition)

Äggkaffe: Den bästa delen av frukosten (eller är det?)

Breakfast. Early morning, just after the gates open even. Foggy, maybe a hint of mist in the air. A bit on the chill side, though not all that so.

At any rate, repair to the Salem Evangelical Lutheran Church Dining Hall, famously situate between the Art Building and Eco Experience, in close proximity between the two--which, know, is but one of two church dining halls remaining at the Minnesota State Fair (Hamline Church's such being the other). Our own company of seven--five bears (the three of the Hair Bear Bunch, plus Emmy Lou and Jenny Lee), a blue hound (Huckleberry) and a pink mountain lion (yours truly)--assembling for as much breakfast as the accompaiment of Swedish egg coffee. Smooth, remarkably clear and not all that acidic tasting.

Huck, Emmy Lou and Jenny Lee preferred ham and eggs; the rest, pancakes.

Never mind that Aunt Jemima is now known as Pearl Milling Company, the pancakes managed to come out especially light and delectable. The buttermilk sort, even ... and you could just picture how quickly the Hair Bear crew went through their stacks of cakes, having such appetites envious of Scooby-Doo and Yogi Bear!

"To be honest with you guys," Hair Bear chimed in, "we happen to have a fondness for pancakes, waffles at times, during our mating season road trip campouts ... especially that Carbon's Malted Waffles; it just seems the malt added to the mix can't help but add an interesting flavour for our after-the-orgy breakfasts!"

"More oftent than not, after diving into the lake at sunrise!", added Square Bear.

Admittedly, the syrup may be one of those "Pancake and Waffle Syrup" blends of sugar syrup and maple, but still, it's an improvement on that rather runny syrup made with that Crescent Mapleine. And we can accept as much.

Our Southern contingent's fondness for ham and eggs didn't go unnoticed, even when it was white toast for the most part.

But the coffee--the Swedish Egg Coffee, real keep-the-pot-flowing coffee, perhaps THE classic exemplar of coffee at the Minnesota State Fair! And who among our party could resist refills of such all along, especially with a day featuring the likes of the 4-H Building to go through for one!

Oh--and I assume you're wondering how to fix such, especially when you've got a large crowd to deal with (48 regular-size cups, to be exact):

Bring one gallon of fresh-drawn cold water to the boil in a splatterware pot.

In a separate one gallon splatterware pot, combine 3 lbs. ground coffee, one egg (shell and all) and water enough to barely moisten the whole.

Transfer the boiling water to the pot containing the coffee mixture, and bring that to boiling.

Filter through cheesecloth in decanting the brew into a vacuum pot or coffee urn. Serve as you prefer.

*************

@warnerbrosentertainment @stuffaboutminnesota @coffeeinspirations @ultrakeencollectionbreadfan @jellystone-enjoyer @passionateclown @groovybribri @archive-archives @hanna-barbera-blog @themineralyoucrave @thebigdingle @hanna-barberians @screamingtoosoftly @thylordshipofbutts @hanna-barbera-land @warnerbros-blog1 @funtasticworld @indigo-corvus @theweekenddigest @crunchy-multi-fan-one-9 @cinnabon-sweetroll-tiramisu @warnerbrosent-blog

[daisiesonafield-blog]

Info for Faith In The Future World Tour MORRISON, CO - JUN 21 2023

With special guests THE SNUTS & ANDREW CUSHIN!

Important Times:

4:00 PM – Parking Opens 

6:00 PM - Doors Open

7:00 PM - Andrew Cushin

8:00 PM - The Snuts

9:00 PM - Louis Tomlinson

Times are all approximate and subject to change.

General admission (pit tickets):

Lines can begin to form at 4pm

GA in the back of the venue

The whole venue is OUTDOORS ONLY

Thunderstorms expected during the evening! Prepare accordingly.

Check the venue’s socials and website for updates!

⛰⚠️HIGH ALTITUDE & ALTITUDE SICKNESS ADVISORY⚠️⛰

Red Rocks is located at an elevation of 6,450 ft. We encourage you to drink plenty of water and take your time when walking / climbing the many stairs located throughout the venue.

Altitude sickness is common, especially for those traveling to Denver/Red Rocks from lower altitudes.

Symptoms include: shortness of breath, headaches, nausea and/or vomiting, dizziness, tiredness, loss of appetite and more.

Treatment: take ibuprofen. Take nausea medication if necessary. Drink way more water than you think is a lot. Drink something with electrolytes such as Gatorade or LiquidIV.

Do not smoke, drink alcohol, or exercise.

Use an oxygen bottle, available at most grocery stores, pharmacies or convenience stores ($9-25).

⚠️ HYDRATION ADVISORY ⚠️

Hydrate before the show, while waiting in line and during the show

For optimal hydration drink something with electrolytes such as Gatorade or LiquidIV

Eat well!

Here are important things to know:

ATTENTION: YOU WILL HAVE TO HIKE to get to the venue (200-900ft). Red Rocks is in a park. Walking on non-paved areas is necessary. Wear appropriate shoes.

Thunderstorms expected during the evening! Prepare accordingly.

Temperatures expected to be in the 50s at night, dress appropriately!

Download the Red Rocks app for maps, ticketing and more

For assistance during the show text 720-466-1323

Parking: Parking is FREE and available at the Red Rocks Park. Event staff will direct you once you enter the park. We recommend arriving early to avoid traffic and ensure you have plenty of time to get to the venue. We encourage carpooling or taking a shuttle. For info about drop off, how to get there, etc click here.

ADA info here 

Cameras: Personal point and shoot cameras without removable lenses ALLOWED.

Please note: Due to ongoing construction on the Top Plaza, the availability of food and drink is limited

Tailgating must be confined to the rear of your vehicle and not interfere with the parking of other vehicles.

Restrooms are located downstairs at the north and south ends of the Visitor Center, and even more on the South Ramp. Two accessible family restrooms are located on the plaza at the north and south ends plus one in the North Concession Stand. Additional restrooms are located to the left and right of the stage on the South Ramp and at the North Stairs.

There is no smoking of any kind in the seating area. Cigarette and e-Cigarette smoking is permitted in designated areas along the outside rail of the outside North and South stairs. All marijuana products are prohibited at Red Rocks.

Water: Non-alcoholic beverages in factory sealed plastic containers (32 oz. or less) allowed, unless prohibited by the show; some shows may require the removal of lids upon entering the amphitheater. Empty, reusable water bottles (32 oz. or less) or Empty Hydration packs (Camelbaks, etc.) are allowed but limited to 2L in size, with no more than one pocket in addition to the one holding the water reservoir

Soft-sided coolers, six-pack size (10″ x 7″ x 7″ or smaller) ALLOWED

Food for personal consumption only; food must be in a clear plastic bag (one gallon or less), fruit and vegetables must be sliced, plastic utensils only

Binoculars ALLOWED

Blankets: Can be no larger than 40″ x 60.” They must not extend beyond ticketed seating area and are not permitted on any walkways

Stadium seats and seat cushions (must be under 18″ wide, cannot have legs)

NO climbing the rocks. Violators are subject to arrest and prosecution.

NO alcohol

NO Glass bottles/objects or aluminum cans

NO Animals (except service animals)

NO Marijuana or any cannabis products

NO drugs

NO Umbrellas

NO Aerosols (e.g. hairspray and sunscreen)

NO knives, firearms, Brass knuckles, Tasers & mace/pepper spray or weapons of any kind

NO Hard-sided coolers or soft-sided coolers larger than 10″x7″x 7″

NO strollers

NO Confetti, glitter and other items that can be thrown

NO Hula hoops

NO Gum

NO Selfie sticks

NO Laser Pointers/flashlights

There is NO RE-ENTRY!

VIEW VENUE MAP 

VIEW SEAT MAP

*This list is not exhaustive. Items not appearing on the list may still be prohibited at the discretion of Security

For more details click here 

Bag Policy:

SINGLE POCKET bags no larger than 13” wide, 15” tall and 8” deep can be brought into the amphitheater.

Small purses and fanny packs that are 6″ x 9″ or smaller,

as well as hydration packs 2L or smaller, are also allowed.

Multi-pocket bags are not permitted.

Have your bags open and available for inspection upon arrival at the gates

For more details click here 

Banners, signs and flag policy:

Small signs and flags are ok but cannot interfere with other guest's experience of the show

No poles or sticks allowed

Contact:

For additional questions please call the venue at 720-865-2494. You can also access their website. Message them here. Check their twitter here and IG here for updates. Address: 18300 WEST ALAMEDA PARKWAY MORRISON, CO 80465. Venue: RED ROCKS PARK & AMPHITHEATRE

[bengesko]

Am I going nuts? I think I am? I can't tell if I am in the wrong here???

Rowan and I discussed going out, but the snow behind our cars was frozen solid, and we couldn't break up the ice. We can't legally salt here, so Rowan went back to their office, and Annie just shrugs and goes back to her game.

Not once did either of them mention that they NEEDED stuff. So I ordered a bit of groceries from instacart using my money. It shows up, I put it away in my fridge, and go to bed.

Idk what happened but Rowan barges in after I'm asleep and says wtf why didn't you ask, you could have used my card, we're running low on milk and now we can't order anything now because it's an ice rink out there and no one will be driving.

Every time I ever go to the store, I ask if they need anything. Last time I did this, Rowan said "If I need something, I'll tell you."

Neither Rowan NOR Annie mentioned they needed anything when I discussed actually going out, so I didn't think they needed anything.

I mean part of me is thinking I was selfish because I mostly ordered caffeine and got another big container of greens (because we go through a lot in this household), but Rowan didn't say anything about NEEDING anything.

Also, I didn't even REALIZE we were low on milk, because apparently, Annie bought two half gallons of EGG NOG instead of milk, and now they're all "We're low on milk" Why is the MILK a problem??? Matilda is happy to drink water- it's her fav beverage!!! And we have plenty of fish sticks, we have stuff to make pizza, we are FINE on food, and you're mad at me over MILK because Annie decided egg nog was more important???

So I have no idea how to express that I didn't mean to be malicious, selfish or what have you, my autistic ass didn't hear "We need this" so I didn't bother, because the last time i asked, I was told not to ask...

And now I'm hiding in my room, purposely working on making it so I'm awake while they're asleep, and will be going to bed when they're waking up, because I don't know if they're still mad at me, and I'm still in "jumping at every footstep outside my door" mode.

I feel like this is a huge misunderstanding/case of miscommunication and maybe Rowan just being burnt out because we've had Matilda all week AND we're out of her ADHD meds, but like...

I haven't been in hypervigilant mode in almost a year, and I did NOT miss this. At all.

It SUCKS.

[female-malice]

For two decades, researchers worked to solve a mystery in West Coast streams. Why, when it rained, were large numbers of spawning coho salmon dying? As part of an effort to find out, scientists placed fish in water that contained particles of new and old tires. The salmon died, and the researchers then began testing the hundreds of chemicals that had leached into the water.

A 2020 paper revealed the cause of mortality: a chemical called 6PPD that is added to tires to prevent their cracking and degradation. When 6PPD, which occurs in tire dust, is exposed to ground-level ozone, it’s transformed into multiple other chemicals, including 6PPD-quinone, or 6PPD-q. The compound is acutely toxic to four of 11 tested fish species, including coho salmon.

Mystery solved, but not the problem, for the chemical continues to be used by all major tire manufacturers and is found on roads and in waterways around the world. Though no one has studied the impact of 6PPD-q on human health, it’s also been detected in the urine of children, adults, and pregnant women in South China. The pathways and significance of that contamination are, so far, unknown.

Still, there are now calls for regulatory action. Last month, the legal nonprofit Earthjustice, on behalf of the fishing industry, filed a notice of intent to sue tire manufacturers for violating the Endangered Species Act by using 6PPD. And a coalition of Indian tribes recently called on the EPA to ban use of the chemical. “We have witnessed firsthand the devastation to the salmon species we have always relied upon to nourish our people,” the Puyallup Tribal Council said in a statement. “We have watched as the species have declined to the point of almost certain extinction if nothing is done to protect them.”

The painstaking parsing of 6PPD and 6PPD-q was just the beginning of a global campaign to understand the toxic cocktail of organic chemicals, tiny particles, and heavy metals hiding in tires and, to a lesser extent, brakes. While the acute toxicity of 6PPD-q and its source have strong scientific consensus, tire rubber contains more than 400 chemicals and compounds, many of them carcinogenic, and research is only beginning to show how widespread the problems from tire dust may be.

While the rubber rings beneath your car may seem benign — one advertising campaign used to feature babies cradled in tires — they are, experts say, a significant source of air, soil, and water pollution that may affect humans as well as fish, wildlife, and other organisms. That’s a problem because some 2 billion tires globally are sold each year — enough to reach the moon if stacked on their sides — with the market expected to reach 3.4 billion a year by 2030.

(Researchers weigh a salmon that died after four hours in a tank filled with road runoff.)

Tires are made from about 20 percent natural rubber and 24 percent synthetic rubber, which requires five gallons of petroleum per tire. Hundreds of other ingredients, including steel, fillers, and heavy metals — including copper, cadmium, lead, and zinc — make up the rest, many of them added to enhance performance, improve durability, and reduce the possibility of fires.

Both natural and synthetic rubber break down in the environment, but synthetic fragments last a lot longer. Seventy-eight percent of ocean microplastics are synthetic tire rubber, according to a report by the Pew Charitable Trust. These fragments are ingested by marine animals — particles have been found in gills and stomachs — and can cause a range of effects, from neurotoxicity to growth retardation and behavioral abnormalities.

“We found extremely high levels of microplastics in our stormwater,” said Rebecca Sutton, an environmental scientist with the San Francisco Estuary Institute who studied runoff. “Our estimated annual discharge of microplastics into San Francisco Bay from stormwater was 7 trillion particles, and half of that was suspected tire particles.”

Tire wear particles, or TWP as they are sometimes known, are emitted continually as vehicles travel. They range in size from visible pieces of rubber or plastic to microparticles, and they comprise one of the products’ most significant environmental impacts, according to the British firm Emissions Analytics, which has spent three years studying tire emissions. The company found that a car’s four tires collectively emit 1 trillion ultrafine particles — of less than 100 nanometers — per kilometer driven. These particles, a growing number of experts say, pose a unique health risk: They are so small they can pass through lung tissue into the bloodstream and cross the blood-brain barrier or be breathed in and travel directly to the brain, causing a range of problems.

According to a recent report issued by researchers at Imperial College London, “There is emerging evidence that tyre wear particles and other particulate matter may contribute to a range of negative health impacts including heart, lung, developmental, reproductive, and cancer outcomes.”

The report says that tires generate 6 million tons of particles a year, globally, of which 200,000 tons end up in oceans. According to Emissions Analytics, cars in the U.S. emit, on average, 5 pounds of tire particles a year, while cars in Europe, where fewer miles are driven, shed 2.5 pounds per year. Moreover, tire emissions from electric vehicles are 20 percent higher than those from fossil-fuel vehicles. EVs weigh more and have greater torque, which wears out tires faster.

Unlike tailpipe exhaust, which has long been studied and regulated, emissions from tires and brakes — which emit significant amounts of metallic particles in addition to organic chemicals — are far harder to measure and control and have therefore escaped regulation. It’s only in the last several years, with the development of new technologies capable of measuring tire emissions and the alarming discovery of 6PPD-q, that the subject is receiving much needed scrutiny.

Recent studies show that the mass of PM 2.5 and PM 10 emissions — which are, along with ozone and ultrafine particles, the world’s primary air pollutants — from tires and brakes far exceeds the mass of emissions from tailpipes, at least in places that have significantly reduced those emissions.

The problem isn’t just rubber in its synthetic and natural form. Government and academic researchers are investigating the transformations produced by tires’ many other ingredients, which could — like 6PPD — form substances more toxic than their parent chemicals as they break down with exposure to sunlight and rain.

“You’ve got a chemical cocktail in these tires that no one really understands and is kept highly confidential by the tire manufacturers,” said Nick Molden, the CEO of Emissions Analytics. “We struggle to think of another consumer product that is so prevalent in the world, and used by virtually everyone, where there is so little known of what is in them.”

“We have known that tires contribute significantly to environmental pollution, but only recently have we begun to uncover the extent of that,” said Cassandra Johannessen, a researcher at Montreal’s Concordia University who is quantifying levels of tire chemicals in urban watersheds and studying how they transform in the environment. The discovery of 6PPD-q has surprised a lot of researchers, she said, because they have learned that “it’s one of the most toxic substances known, and it seems to be everywhere in the world.”

Regulators are playing catch up. In Europe, a standard to be implemented in 2025, known as Euro 7, will regulate not only tailpipe emissions but also emissions from tires and brakes. The California Environmental Protection Agency has passed a rule requiring tire makers to declare an alternative to 6PPD-q by 2024.

(A worker takes apart a tire at a recycling shop in Mit al-Harun, Egypt.)

Tire companies are conducting their own studies of 6PPD, which they have long considered critical for tire safety, and seeking alternatives. In response to new regulations and the emerging research on tire emissions, 10 of the world’s large tire manufacturers have formed the Tire Industry Project to “develop a holistic approach to better understand and promote action on the mitigation” of tire pollution, according to a statement by the project. The group has committed to search for ways to redesign tires to reduce or eliminate emissions.

One critical area of research is how long tire waste, and its breakdown products, persist in the environment. “A five-micron piece of rubber shears off the tire and settles on the soil and sits there a while,” said Molden. “What, over time, is the release of those chemicals, how quickly do they make their way into the water, and are they diluted? At the system level, how big of a problem is this? It is the single biggest knowledge gap.”

Another area of research centers on the impacts of aromatic hydrocarbons — including benzene and naphthalene — off-gassed by synthetic rubber or emitted when discarded tires are burned in incinerators for energy recovery. Even at low concentrations, these compounds are toxic to humans. They also react with sunlight to form ozone, or ground-level smog, which causes respiratory harm. “We have shown that the amount of off-gassing volatile organic compounds is 100 times greater than that coming out of a modern tailpipe,” said Molden. “This is from the tire just sitting there.”

When tires reach their end of life, they’re either sent to landfills, incinerated, burned in an energy-intensive process called pyrolysis, or shredded and repurposed for use in artificial turf or in playgrounds or for other surfaces. But as concern about tire pollutants grows, so do concerns about these recycled products and the hydrocarbons they may off-gas. There is ongoing debate over whether crumb rubber, made from tire scraps, poses a health threat when used to fill gaps in artificial turf. Based on several peer-reviewed studies, the European Union is instituting stricter limits on the use of this material. Other studies, however, have shown no health impact.

Besides California’s requirement to study alternatives to 6PPD, there are a number of efforts worldwide to redesign tires to counter the problems they pose. More than a decade ago, tire makers hoped that dandelions, which produce a form of rubber, and soy oil could provide a steady and sustainable supply of rubber. But tires made from those alternatives didn’t live up to expectations: they still required additives. The Continental Tire Company, based in Hanover, Germany, markets a bicycle tire made of dandelion roots. Tested by Emission Analytics, it emitted 25 percent fewer carcinogenic aromatics than conventionally made bike tires, but the plant-powered tire still contained ingredients of concern.

(Rubber made from dandelions.)

Other companies are searching for ways to address the problem of tire emissions. The Tyre Collective, a clean-tech startup based in the U.K., has developed an electrostatic plate that affixes to each of a car’s tires: The plates remove up to 60 percent of particles emitted by both tires and brakes, storing them in a cartridge attached to the device. The particles can be reused in numerous other applications, including in new tires.

In San Francisco, scientists studying the pollutants in storm runoff found a potential solution: Rain gardens, installed in yards to capture stormwater, were also trapping 96 percent of street litter and 100 percent of black rubbery fragments. In Vancouver, B.C. researchers found that rain gardens could prevent more than 90 percent of 6PPD-q from running off roads and entering salmon-bearing streams.

Tire waste particles, says Molden, of Emissions Analytics, are finally getting the attention they deserve, thanks in part to California’s rule requiring a search for alternatives to 6PPD. The legislation “is groundbreaking,” he says, “because it puts the chemical composition [of tires] on the regulatory agenda.” For the first time, he adds, “Tire manufacturers are being exposed to the same regulatory scrutiny that car manufacturers have been for 50 years.”

[rabbitcruiser]

National Biscuit Day 

In the US, they’re flaky bread rolls. In the UK, they’re sweet, crispy treats known as cookies in the US. Bake your own, and try different varieties and flavors.

Calling all smart cookies! National Biscuit Day offers the perfect chance to go crackers about one of the world’s most popular snacks. But did you realize just how many types of biscuits there are?

American biscuits are small crusty bread rolls, often served at breakfast or as a side dish. However, in the UK, the word “biscuit” is used for flat sweet treats, which are known as “cookies” in the US. One of the most unusual traditional British varieties is the Garibaldi. Also known as the “squashed fly biscuit,” it contains currants in between two layers of dough.

History Of National Biscuit Day

Many of you will be surprised to find out that biscuits aren’t a modern invention. Instead, they were born of necessity in the ancient world. Merchants and military personnel in the Roman, Greek, and Egyptian empires would often spend many weeks at sea, ferrying cargo and making their way to foreign shores. Hence, they needed a snack that would provide them with a source of calories for the entirety of the journey. Fresh food was out of the question. It just wouldn’t keep. So captains turned to stocking their larders with dried foods that wouldn’t go off.

Preservation techniques were already fairly advanced in ancient times. People knew that if you dried something out, it would last longer and wouldn’t go off. Millers, therefore, began grinding up flours and then baking cooked bread on a low heat for an extended period. This technique helps to retain the nutrition, but removes the water content, preventing any microbes from thriving.

From that point, dried biscuit-like breads became a staple at sea. The ancient Egyptians, for instance, cooked up flat brittle loaves made of an old grain called millet. Later, the Romans created the first example of what we would recognizably call a biscuit. They spread wheat flour paste over a plate and then left it to dry and harden.

Biscuits also played a prominent role in the early history of medicine. Many physicians believed that problems with the body emerged in the bowel. An “imbalance” in the gut led to patients developing all sorts of nasty symptoms, including many health problems we would recognize today. Doctors, however, saw biscuits as a health aid – very different from the view of medics today – and prescribed them daily for people with digestive issues.

Interestingly, this approach probably would have worked. Cooks made ancient biscuits of whole grains and without sugar. They were a plain, high-fiber food, ideal for settling stomachs.

Eating biscuits at sea remained popular in the middle ages. In the sixteenth century, the Royal Navy provided its sailors with a daily allowance of a pound of cookies and a gallon of beer (yes, you did read that right!) to help them fight off the Spanish armada.

The modern conception (or should we say “confection”) of biscuits as sweet treats didn’t begin until the seventh century. The ancients saw them strictly as a travel food – something you’d take with you for long journeys that wouldn’t spoil. But the Persians began to experiment. Instead of just making the flour into a paste with water, they began incorporating other ingredients like eggs, butter, and cream to improve the texture. They noticed that when you added these items to the mix, you wind up with fluffier, more luxurious delicacies. After a while, they introduced sweet things, like fruit and honey, creating the first cookies in history.

Biscuits arrived in Europe around the end of the tenth century. Legend has it that an Armenian monk traveled from central Asia to France and passed on a recipe he had learned in the Caucuses. The main flavor at the time was ginger.

Even so, these biscuits were still not the modern confections that we enjoy today. They were fluffy and tastier than their ancient forebears, but the mass production of sugar was still absent. For most of the middle ages, biscuits were a side-show – and exotic delicacy that people in some parts of the world enjoyed on occasion as part of their traditional cuisine.

Once sugar production ratcheted up in the eighteenth century, however, the game changed. Suddenly, flour-millers and bread makers could add sweetness to their mixes and create entirely new classes of products, all at a low cost.

By the 19th century, per capita sugar consumption rocketed, and biscuit firms like McVitie’s, Crawfords, and Carr’s all set up factories to mass-produce confections.

The history of biscuits, however, bifurcated between the new and Old World. In the New World, the term came to mean a soft, leavened quickbread. In the Old World, it referred to an unleavened, hard, and flat, flour-based product.

National Biscuit Day is a celebration of biscuits of all forms – not just cookies, but also oatcakes, crackers, water biscuits, and crispbreads. While most biscuits for sale are sweet, savory varieties still make up a considerable chunk of overall sales.

How to celebrate National Biscuit Day

As you might imagine, celebrating National Biscuit Day is a lot of fun. It is your yearly excuse to eat as many biscuits as you like – and to do a spot of baking.

Baking an ancient Roman biscuit called a buccellum is perhaps the most exciting way to experience the day. While the final product won’t be as delectable as manufactured biscuits, it will give you an insight into the sort of cuisine that people enjoyed in the past while sailing.

Failing that, nothing is stopping you from baking cookies or traditional biscuit bread. What’s more, you could trial unique, healthy versions using authentic ingredients. There are plenty of recipes that still use wholemeal flours and sugar alternatives on the internet.

Biscuits are an experience that you’ll want to share. Many people, therefore, invite family and friends over for an afternoon of cookies and tea enjoyed in the traditional style. You just take your favorite type of tea (Assam, Darjeeling, and so on), add a spot of milk, some sugar, and then pair with your favorite biscuits – sweet or savory! Many people like to dunk their biscuits in their tea.

Traditionally biscuits came in particular sizes and shapes. Still, there’s no need to stick with the official format if you don’t want to. Cookies don’t have to be round. If you’ve got some shape cutters at home, put them to good use. You can make cookies in the shape of donkeys, cars, stars, hearts, triangles – whatever you have to hand. And for extra fun, you can cover them in icing sugar.

There are few crumbs of information about just how National Biscuit Day started, but that’s no reason to miss out on the celebrations. So bake up a treat for friends and family, or settle down with a cup of tea or coffee and enjoy one of your favorite varieties. Don’t forget to share your creations with your friends on social media. You never know what other biscuit fanatics are lurking out there.

Source

[kariachi]

Continuing on my ‘supplies and proper backpacking in the pokemon universe’ topic from yesterday...

We can already say that, assuming one can’t drink water from their water pokemon or that they have no water pokemon, they can still probably more easily carry water based on the seeming maximum weight of storage items implied by pokeballs. This would mitigate the high weight of water (2.2 lbs (1 kg) per liter, with humans averaging about 2 liters per day), meaning that your big concern when carrying water with you on the trail would be the space taken up.

The question then is, would you be able to have one of these storage devices with a tap (detachable or not) specifically to carry liquids? And if so, would you be able to use that tap while it was shrunk?

To compare, a 2.9 gallon (11 liter) water storage container measures at 10x14.5x7 inches and takes up 1,015 inches cubed. Going by the halved measurements system the pokeballs give us when shrunk this would be 5x7.25x3.5 inches and 129 inches cubed.

Even if you can’t use a tap on it, the shrinking function would allow you to carry nearly a week’s worth of water in about the space of a paperback novel. Fuck, you could carry two and have one for cooking and cleaning water or in case of emergencies. If you can get water from it while it’s shrunk, you may even be able to attach a reservoir tube so you can drink directly from the container rather than having to worry about lugging bottles around.

But even if you can’t that shrinking function really would be a game changer in so many ways with this shit.