a watercolour painting of a mouse on two legs dressed as a circus entertainer firing a pink cannon
I call it the Cannon of Consequences. You do what you want, and point (or fire) the consequences at someone else. Seems very 2026ish to me.
I disapprove.
(Also I am procrastinating because I just had to delete words from my beautiful WIP. Saving scene to use later, hopefully.)
Popular highlight:
“If you fear something, you try to contain or destroy it. You reduce it. You ridicule it. If what you fear is a person, then making that person believe they are lesser is a time-proven strategy of achieving and maintaining power over them.”
If you're looking to escape Earth for the glorious freedom of the frontier, may I suggest "Space Deputy"? A space opera with pirates, aliens, and (I swear he's the nice kind) an AI.
www.amazon.com/dp/B07CMLJBPW
#booksky
I thought this point Eric made about how libraries are early introductions to a social contract was really interesting, too:
“Fantasy is escapist, and that is its glory. If a soldier is imprisioned by the enemy, don't we consider it his duty to escape? If we value the freedom of mind and soul, if we're partisans of liberty, then it's our plain duty to escape, and to take as many people with us as we can!”
J.R.R. Tolkien
It was such a fascinating read! Thanks for sharing it. The way meaning shifts (naturally and via appropriation/manipulation) can be downright bizarre, but this full circle thing for empathy was an eye-opener.
So today on Gone Medieval I have that rare thing - a medievalist emergency - wherein I had to explain the Avignon Papacy because a lot of people know the phrase *cough* the Trump administration *cough* but they don't actually know what it means. Don't let it be you.
open.spotify.com/episode/7bsa...
Aqua Research & Monitoring Services
·Exmouth, WA, Australia ·
A juvenile Tasselled Leatherjacket (Chaetodermis penicilligerus)
The above was from Google AI, which I'm generally against, but I encountered the phrase "empathy without ownership" and was curious. Lots to think about.
... It involves active listening, validating feelings, and offering support, while recognizing that emotions are personal to each individual.
Empathy without ownership is the ability to understand and share another person's feelings (compassionate empathy) without absorbing their emotional burden, taking responsibility for fixing their situation, or sacrificing your own boundaries. ...
Thanks, Catherine :) And can I say how much I love your title, "Catherine, working on the Great"? Gorgeous!
An infographic titled "Magnolia molecules: perfume and medicines" details the plant's chemistry. Pink petals contain cyanidin and peonidin pigments. Aroma molecules include aldehydes like 2-nonenal and heptanal, and terpenes like alpha-pinene and linalool. Medicinal bark compounds include magnolol and honokiol, which have antioxidant properties. It also highlights yulanosides, unique phenylethanoid glycosides. Chemical structures for these compounds surround a central magnolia branch photo.
Did you know magnolia petals are edible?
I didn't until this year, and discovering that they are led me to this exploration of magnolia chemistry (and experiments in making magnolia gin).
Learn more in the graphic here: www.compoundchem.com/2026/04/20/m...
#ChemSky 🧪
Oh yeah!!!
Thanks :) Imagine if the castle didn't do it's own magical housecleaning? ::shudders:: nightmare!
If you were Baba Yaga's space-traveling great-great-granddaughter, you too could escape in a magic castle.
A whole lot of wonderful people consider my Uncertain Sanctuary trilogy a comfort re-read. Try it today!
(Available in Kindle Unlimited & Audible, read by Tess Irondale) #booksky
Confronting #Tuesday
"We women are the land guardians and keepers," says Theonila Roka Matbob of Papua New Guinea, recognized for her efforts to repair the environmental and social harms caused by a copper and gold mine. n.pr/3QbDxTA
Gary Sinise has raised over $300 million through his foundation to support veterans and first responders. His efforts include housing, food, and long-term assistance programs for those in need.
😄
It sucks that if a fellow author reaches out to you, you have to suspect it’s an AI impersonation scam. But that’s where we are these days. Another reason to hate AI ( and scammers)
It definitely counts! and you should add that The Liar's Throne is also a special 99c deal (at least, it is here in Australia)
www.amazon.com/dp/B0FYRDNNC8/
When you recommend a book, an angel gets their wings!
#booksky
When simulation becomes the norm, it weakens the human capacity for discernment. As a result, our social bonds close in upon themselves, forming self-referential circuits that no longer expose us to reality. We thus come to live within bubbles, impermeable to one another. Feeling threatened by anyone who is different, we grow unaccustomed to encounter and dialogue. In this way, polarization, conflict, fear and violence spread. What is at stake is not merely the risk of error, but a transformation in our very relationship with truth.
Pope Leo:
Always love or control is profoundly true.
The Entire Archives of Radical Philosophy Go Online: Read Essays by Michel Foucault, Alain Badiou, Judith Butler & More (1972–2022)
The absolute sass. 🤣😂🤣
