clawed open my stupid ear again last night. I'm so sick of this.

my other ear is totally fine, by the way. it doesn't have any rough patches so I have no inclination to claw at it, scratch at it, or pick at it.

I have not quite been clawing my ear open today but I keep picking at it because the dead skin is flaking, which means the clawing is probably imminent to the extent that I just had to wad up gauze to stick it in my ear. then I started picking at the skin around the gauze. jesus christ come ON.

okay. why is my tinnitus suddenly worse than usual. :/

reading about death (for work) (Roman death) (not for funsies)

my honors undergrads can manage it!

they are grad students they should be able to find books within the narrow confines of "published in the last twenty years" and "scholarly."

one thing is that none of them are premodernists, so they don't like...care? the undergrads are in this class because they like ancient Rome. the grads are in this class because they have to take a grad history class.

there have been approximately five million books on ancient Rome published in the last twenty years and I provided multiple suggestions on how to find them. all their first choices were not acceptable.

I had to come up with the suggestions for the two who have contacted me so far.

she was supposed to be one of those Career district prospective tributes who spends their whole life preparing for something that ultimately doesn't happen.

just like the prospective tribute whose Games were supposed to be the 70th Games, the Games Natasha was actually reaped for and one.

kind of losing my mind at the realization that Natasha's Games were supposed to be the 76th Games, the Games that we know won't happen. she wasn't even supposed to be a tribute.

I also need to clarify these are graduate students.

THERE IS NOT A SHORTAGE OF BOOKS ON ANCIENT ROME OUT THERE.

My students need to pick a book to review that is:
A) a monograph
B) scholarly
C) from the past 20 years (2006-2026)
D) on Rome between 753 BCE and 295 CE

So far they have suggested a novel from 1981 and a book from 1984.

A STUNNING patchwork map of the state of Washington with squares made by different geologists at the Washington Geological Survey. Methods used include collage, embroidery, curled paper, air-dry clay, sculpted foam, and even real rocks!

I’m not saying there is a “best way” to celebrate Earth Day, actually I am, and this map made by our geologists is it

Earth Day Victory for Wildlife: HR 1897 Removed From Today’s Vote Thanks to over 4,000 messages from WCC supporters to Congress over the past three weeks, this harmful proposal was delayed before it could advance.

🚨Breaking news! Your voices were HEARD. Thanks to over 4,000 messages from WCC supporters to Congress over the past 3 weeks, H.R. 1897, a bill that would have rolled back key protections under the ESA has been pulled again!

Happy Earth Day, let's keep the momentum going.🙌🔗 bit.ly/4cFbLX3

well, obviously not co-written stuff!

there's some ancient co-written stuff that I didn't attach my name to on AO3 when the other person posted it, but like. I'd never delete it.

totally fair

Holy shit this is cool!

like good luck finding anything on my livejournal but I've never deleted it.

I have pulled exactly one piece of fanfic from public consumption many many years ago because I decided it was insensitive and inappropriate and I don't even remember what fandom it was in. (also one of several reasons I no longer do bingos or anything.)

I am the girl who posts daily updates on her writing progress! just put me on the rack, it would be easier.

I won't even archive-lock the fanfic that gets me pretty regular abuse.

yeahhhhhhhh

like, the OP clarifies that you can share it for private use and actually like...that's almost as bad? to me????

much like many of our graduate students

(I did not realize I felt so strongly about any of this until I had my extreme visceral reaction on both the creative and academic side, tbh.)

people in there like "I would spend this time working on my doctorate" oh so you fundamentally don't believe in academia, okay, interesting.

so many people in that thread are choosing things that are very much available to others. :/

and like, yeah, I also have fic that I've written that isn't posted! but I write WIPs for a reason! I do daily progress reports for a reason! the whole thing is a recipe for disaster for me personally.