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Today is cloudy and chilly with gusts of wind.

I fed the birds.  I've seen a few sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.

In the water jug greenhouses, a few shady wildflowers are sprouting.  :D

EDIT 3/9/26 -- My gold curly willow cuttings have arrived!  \o/  I have put two in water and one in a pot.

EDIT 3/9/26 -- I took cuttings from the older serviceberry tree and a shellbark hickory sapling to put in the willow cups.

EDIT 3/9/26 -- I cracked open some peach pits.  It was a lot easier than I expected.  I found a natural hollow in the concrete step, where I balanced a peach pit on its edge.  A seam goes along the sides.  I put a flathead screwdriver point into the seam and tapped the handle with a hammer.  Most of the peach pits popped apart neatly, releasing the seed.  A couple chipped in fragments.  I think I got several viable seeds, which I put in a baggie of damp sand.  I also bagged up some leftover persimmon seeds.  Then I put the baggies in the refrigerator for cold stratification to see if they'll sprout.

EDIT 3/9/26 -- I tried using an ax to hack away at one of the saplings in the driveway.  I certainly made more progress than I did with the saw.  It's slow going, but I might be able to beaver it down eventually.  The question is whether I'll have the time and energy for that, with all the other spring yardening to do.

EDIT 3/9/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 3/9/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 3/9/26 -- I transplanted a few more snowdrops from the parking lot to the apricot tree.

I am done for the night.

These are some posts from the later part of last week in case you missed them:
Space Exploration
Moment of Silence: Country Joe McDonald
Poem: "Confident Guesswork and Improvisation"
Poem: "Nuff Respect"
Esbat
Science
Safety
Humor
Birdfeeding
Today's Adventures
Birdfeeding
Philosophical Questions: Civilization
Photos: Savanna
Photos: House Yard
Wildlife
Birdfeeding
Follow Friday 3-6-36: Meta
Wildlife
Poem: "The Express Bus to Crazy-ass Death Land"
Read "ICE Out" by Charles de Lint
Nature
Birdfeeding
Community Thursdays
Read "Find a Way Forward"
Safety
Birdfeeding
Good News

Linguistics has 32 comments. Philosophical Questions: Pregnancy has 40 comments. Safety has 53 comments. Wildlife has 40 comments. Food has 67 comments.


Last week's Poetry Fishbowl went well. I still have at least one more poem to write.




marchmetamatterschallenge is running this month. See my tracking post and the first check-in post.


"The Struggle Against Overwhelming Odds" is now complete. Gideon and Raymond get some unexpected help in the fight.


The weather has been warmish here, though it rained much of the week. Seen at the birdfeeders this week: a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches, a female cardinal, and a fox squirrel. A skein of geese flew overhead, honking quite loudly. Red-winged blackbirds have been singing overhead. I've heard a killdeer and a mourning dove calling, but didn't see them. Honeybees are out and swarming the flowers. Currently blooming: crocuses, snowdrops, winter aconite, miniature irises.

This poem is spillover from the March 3, 2026 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired by prompts from siliconshaman and janetmiles. It also fills the "Smudges" square in my 3-1-26 card for the National Crafting Month Bingo fest. This poem has been sponsored by janetmiles. It belongs to the series Frankenstein's Family.

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This poem came out of the March 3, 2026 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired by prompts from librarygeek, alatefeline, and mama_kestrel. It also fills the "Artisan" square in my 3-1-26 card for the National Crafting Month Bingo fest. This poem has been sponsored by librarygeek in memory of minoanmiss, who passed away recently and loved both Jamaican and Minoan cultures. It belongs to the Trichromatic Attachments thread of the Polychrome Heroics series.

Warning: This poem contains graphic descriptions of delicious food that you may not be able to find or afford.

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Thanks to a donation from janetmiles, you can now read the rest of "The Struggle Against Overwhelming Odds." Gideon and Raymond get some unexpected help in the fight.

Scientists warn fake research is spreading faster than real science

A major investigation found organized networks producing fake scientific papers, selling authorships, and manipulating journals to mass-publish fraudulent research.

A sweeping new study from Northwestern University reveals that scientific fraud is no longer just the work of a few rogue researchers—it has evolved into a global, organized enterprise. By analyzing massive datasets of publications, retractions, and editorial records, researchers uncovered networks involving “paper mills,” brokers, and compromised journals that systematically produce and sell fake research, authorship slots, and citations.

( Read more... )

I found this amusing.