driving was the wrong answer
Apr. 11th, 2026 03:36 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
chhotiiThis morning I went to the kick-off rally for gathering signatures to get Ayanna Pressley and Ed Markey re-elected. That was supposed to start at 9:30 in Jamaica Plain. I was kind of sweating whether I would get there on time. Google Maps said that it would take 28 minutes to walk, but I didn't think that I could walk as fast as Google Maps thinks I should (aging sucks). Google Maps also thought it would take 23 minutes-- almost as long-- to take public transit. The suggested public transit route was absurd: do almost as much walking as the walking route to go way out of my way in hopes that taking a bus, like, 2 stops would save some time. Driving was supposed to take 8 minutes.
So I persuaded Vic to drive me. The catch is that Vic had to be at work at 10:00, and the garage at Vic's work costs money. I said, I'm in a hurry, and with this job, I have more money than ability to be organized, so if you drive me, I will pay for you to park at work.
This did not go well. While driving after dropping me off and on the way to work, Vic got caught behind a parade. I don't know whether Vic got to work on time. And the parking, I hear, is going to cost me $46. Forty-six dollars!!! And, there was zero value in getting to the political thing on time. I got there precisely at 9:30, spent 30 seconds reviewing the information about the proper way to get signatures (voters from different towns on different sheets, etc.).. and then waited, standing around, for about another half hour before our lovely congress-critters showed up to give us our rallying stump speech.
Then it turns out there was a much more reasonable public transit route: a different bus that would take me to the Orange Line, and then like 2 stops on the Orange Line. I think Google Maps is often stupid about figuring out public transit routes.
So I persuaded Vic to drive me. The catch is that Vic had to be at work at 10:00, and the garage at Vic's work costs money. I said, I'm in a hurry, and with this job, I have more money than ability to be organized, so if you drive me, I will pay for you to park at work.
This did not go well. While driving after dropping me off and on the way to work, Vic got caught behind a parade. I don't know whether Vic got to work on time. And the parking, I hear, is going to cost me $46. Forty-six dollars!!! And, there was zero value in getting to the political thing on time. I got there precisely at 9:30, spent 30 seconds reviewing the information about the proper way to get signatures (voters from different towns on different sheets, etc.).. and then waited, standing around, for about another half hour before our lovely congress-critters showed up to give us our rallying stump speech.
Then it turns out there was a much more reasonable public transit route: a different bus that would take me to the Orange Line, and then like 2 stops on the Orange Line. I think Google Maps is often stupid about figuring out public transit routes.
Hackers meet their match: New DNA encryption protects engineered cells from within
Apr. 11th, 2026 03:00 pm![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
phys_breaking_feedEngineered cells are a high-value genetic asset that is key to many fields, including biotechnology, medicine, aging, and stem cell research, with the global market projected to reach $8.0 trillion USD by 2035. Yet the only ways to keep the cells safe are strong locks and watchful guards.
easy pro-democracy action...
Apr. 11th, 2026 03:27 pmchhotii...would be to sign a nomination paper to get Ed Markey on the ballot for re-election to the Senate. Markey is passionately pro-democracy (gave a great speech at No Kings 3) and a visionary on many other issues. He holds the record for the most anti-Trump-appointee votes in the Senate. Signing the paper is just to get him on the ballot; one can sign this and still ponder until May 5th about whether you want to vote for him or the opportunist who's primarying (sp.?) him.
If you live in or near Somerville, I plan to be in your neck of the woods, looking for your signature tomorrow. You're eligible to sign if you're registered to vote and not as a Republican.
Oh, and Ayanna Pressley too! I also have nomination papers to sign for Ayanna, that force of nature in the House.
If you live in or near Somerville, I plan to be in your neck of the woods, looking for your signature tomorrow. You're eligible to sign if you're registered to vote and not as a Republican.
Oh, and Ayanna Pressley too! I also have nomination papers to sign for Ayanna, that force of nature in the House.
AO3 Releases 0.9.457 – 0.9.461: Change Log
Apr. 11th, 2026 07:03 pmotw_news_feedOur February releases included new admin tools for our Support and Policy & Abuse teams, as well as a bunch of challenge and collection fixes and a host of small updates and improvements. We also upgraded to Rails 8 and Elasticsearch 9!
Many thanks to first-time contributor Shel!
Credits
- Coders: Bilka, Brian Austin, Danaël/Rever, FlyingFalcon, Hunter Ada Smith, james_, Jennifer He (DisappearEagle 无鸢), marcus8448, Richard Hajek, Scott, slavalamp, varram
- Code reviewers: Bilka, Brian Austin, james_, sarken
- Testers: ana, Bilka, choux, hvalrann, Lute, mumble, ömer faruk, pk2317, therealmorticia, Yuca
Details
0.9.457
On February 2, we deployed a major Rails update.
- [AO3-7231] – Updated the framework the Archive runs on to Rails 8.0.
0.9.458
On February 9, we introduced a way for our Support team to add information to the support form without disabling the form, and deployed a bunch of miscellaneous fixes and improvements.
- [AO3-6983] – It was already possible for our Support team to temporarily close the support form and replace it with a message to users, e.g. about a known site-wide issue the development team was already working to solve. Additionally, they can now add a temporary message to the form without disabling the form entirely.
- [AO3-3245] – Trying to open the posting form to add a work to a closed collection (only possible by manually typing in the appropriate URL) would lead to an error message that looked like the form had already been submitted. The URL now redirects to the collection with a more helpful error message.
- [AO3-7246] – We added a “Parent” link to comments, so you can quickly jump to the specific comment that is being replied to.
- [AO3-7260] – Passwords must now be between 8 and 72 characters long. (The previous minimum was 6 characters.)
- [AO3-7274] – Comment previews for Policy & Abuse admins were previously truncated after the first 100 characters, and admins had to click on the preview to access the full comment. Now the preview includes the first 1,000 characters, which is much more useful.
- [AO3-7279] – When a collection is set to “revealed” or “non-anonymous”, the collection is placed in a queue that runs when resources are available to change the status of potentially thousands of works. This means the moderator often has enough time to quickly change the setting back if a checkbox was ticked in error. We now make sure the process really only runs if the revealed or non-anonymous option is still wanted when the servers are ready to work through the queue.
- [AO3-7240] – In our ongoing internationalization efforts, we prepared the text in the help pop-ups for Rating, Warning, and Fandom tags for translation.
- [AO3-7047], [AO3-7281], [AO3-7287], [AO3-7288] – Code clean-up, database performance improvements, and system updates.
0.9.459
Our February 17 deploy included various small fixes and updates.
- [AO3-4031] – Draft works include a message at the top, warning the creator that unposted drafts will be automatically deleted after a certain time. If you had a draft with multiple chapters, this message would not be displayed! Now it appears everywhere it should.
- [AO3-5367] – If someone bookmarked a mystery work, i.e. a work in an unrevealed collection, the bookmark would show up in bookmark searches that matched elements of the mystery work. Since we don’t want information about a mystery work to be guessable in this manner, we now make sure searching bookmarks doesn’t give away information about unrevealed works.
- [AO3-5870] – A blockquote in a comment would awkwardly overlap with the commenter’s user icon, so we’ve taken steps to make sure it stays within its own boundaries.
- [AO3-5963] – You can’t request an invite with an email address that is already used by an existing account. If an existing account updates their email address to one that’s waiting in the request queue, we now make sure that request is deleted.
- [AO3-7206] – Downloads of a work in progress with only one chapter posted were missing that chapter’s title, summary, and notes, displaying only the information entered for the work as a whole. Now all data is present and accounted for!
- [AO3-7254] – We’ve added a limit to how many times a specific comment can be reported to the Policy & Abuse team for review.
- [AO3-7263] – Under certain circumstances, an admin would get a 500 error trying to access a user’s preferences page. Now they can access it even under those circumstances.
- [AO3-7289] – When a user tried to create a skin with faulty CSS, the parser would just throw an error 500 instead of telling the user which part was stressing it out. It now helpfully points to the problem in the CSS code.
- [AO3-7210] – The help pop-up that provides information about creating skins is now prepared for translation.
- [AO3-6853], [AO3-7048] – Code clean-up and database performance improvements.
0.9.460
A bunch of gem updates went out on February 21.
- [AO3-7036] – When reviewing comments held in moderation, to either approve or reject, there was no “Thread” link to get the URL for a specific comment, e.g. to report it to the Policy & Abuse team. Now there is!
- [AO3-7278] – AO3 admins from the Open Doors team can now track invitations in the admin area.
- [AO3-7236] – Prepared the text in a couple of skins-related help pop-ups for translation.
- [AO3-7265], [AO3-7297], [AO3-7298], [AO3-7299], [AO3-7300] – Code clean-up and database performance improvements.
0.9.461
On February 28, we upgraded to Elasticsearch 9.
- [AO3-7282] – Upgraded the search engine that powers, among other things, work searches and filtering from version 8 to 9.
24 Clawssic Memes of Cats Who Think Snack Time Never Ends
Apr. 11th, 2026 10:30 amicanhascheezburger_feedA small snack never counts as enough.
There's always room for a little snack when it comes to a cat, and somehow that rule never changes. It doesn't matter if a full meal just happened or if the bowl was just filled and cleared. The second anything that sounds like food appears, it resets everything. A crinkle, a container, even a slight movement toward the kitchen, and suddenly it's a brand new situation.
They show up like they've been tracking it the whole time. Sitting close, watching carefully, following every move without missing anything. You reach for one treat and it already feels like that wasn't going to be enough. There's an expectation built in, like the first snack is just a signal that more should be coming.
The actual snack disappears quickly, but nothing about the moment feels finished. They don't walk away or lose interest. Instead, they stay right there, still focused, still waiting, like there's more to come.
Because for them, snacks aren't extra, they're ongoing. There's always space for one more, always a reason to keep it going a little longer. You could give a few, then a few more, and it would still feel like you're just getting started.
Pandemic Garden Club
Apr. 11th, 2026 12:03 pmscrubjayspeaksWelcome to the April edition of Pandemic Garden Club! Growing good things in strange times!
Anyone is welcome to comment with what they're growing right now, things they would like to try, problems they're encountering, and questions they have. Share resources, answer questions, shout encouragement.
As for myself...
( Read more... )
Anyone is welcome to comment with what they're growing right now, things they would like to try, problems they're encountering, and questions they have. Share resources, answer questions, shout encouragement.
As for myself...
( Read more... )
a childhood obsession
Apr. 11th, 2026 02:02 pmbookishghost thank u Legends & Lattes and Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries for reviving my love for fantasy
just a daydream
Apr. 11th, 2026 01:56 pmbookishghostwhat if i left the house at the same time as my neighbor, got in the car, drove to the concert tonight, and found myself following my neighbor the whole way there? and then we find our way to each other at the venue, give each other tentative smiles, and—
i may have read too many fairy tales recently
i may have read too many fairy tales recently
Check-In Post - April 11th 2026
Apr. 11th, 2026 07:31 pmbadly_knitted posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
get_knittedHello to all members, passers-by, curious onlookers, and shy lurkers, and welcome to our regular daily check-in post. Just leave a comment below to let us know how your current projects are progressing, or even if they're not.
Checking in is NOT compulsory, check in as often or as seldom as you want, this community isn't about pressure it's about encouragement, motivation, and support. Crafting is meant to be fun, and what's more fun than sharing achievements and seeing the wonderful things everyone else is creating?
There may also occasionally be questions, but again you don't have to answer them, they're just a way of getting to know each other a bit better.
This Week's Question: Where do you do most of your crafting?
If anyone has any questions of their own about the community, or suggestions for tags, questions to be asked on the check-in posts, or if anyone is interested in playing check-in host for a week here on the community, which would entail putting up the daily check-in posts and responding to comments, go to the Questions & Suggestions post and leave a comment.
I now declare this Check-In OPEN!
A nanoscale robotic cleaner can hunt, capture and remove bacteria
Apr. 11th, 2026 02:00 pmphys_breaking_feedTiny robots—around 50 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair—open up fascinating possibilities: they enable the controlled manipulation of objects far too small for human hands. This brings us closer to a long-standing dream—the direct interaction with the microscopic world.
Weekly proof of life: less-crunchy days ahead | media | Korean BBQ | initial gardening thoughts
Apr. 11th, 2026 02:47 pmumadoshiSeasonal crunch is over! Feels like freedom, if you ignore the part where I still have, y'know, a job + freelance stuff. Increased freedom. We'll go with that.
My day off yesterday entailed such thrilling things as sleeping in and then taking ages to get up because Jinksy came to snuggle*; finishing my breakfast and tea by around noon; getting some banking done; washing my hair; vacuuming the two main levels of the house; spending several full hours being a cat-lap for Sinha; and starting in on a new novel for the first time since March Break or so.
*When I textedscruloose to say good morning, they said, "When my first alarm went, it was competing with Jinksy over on your other side rumble-purring so hard I swear the mattress was reverberating with it."
Reading: A couple more chapters of Braiding Sweetgrass, and I've finished Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts: Stories and Recipes from Five Generations of Black Country Cooks, which has a fair number of recipes but is, as the title indicates, more of a family history than a cookbook.
And last night I didn't want to spend much mental energy on choosing what fiction to read, so I decided to just go with Tough Guy, the third Game Changers novel. I imagine in the not-too-distant future I'll pick up the ebook "box set" of books 4-6 just to have them on hand.
Watching: We're caught up on The Pitt and have seen five episodes of One Piece season 2, and I imagine we'll finish the latter before backtracking for the last couple-few episodes of Frieren. (I've also made note of this elsewhere, but to reinforce it in my brain: after The Pitt finishes, I need to remember to cancel our Crave subscription again.)
Eating: After the crunch ended on Thursday,scruloose and I ordered from a new (?) Korean BBQ place (bb.q Chicken) that a stranger in the local Bluesky feed had mentioned was good. We tried the bone-in Classic Fried Chicken (very minimal spicing, but very solid) and the boneless Golden Fried Chicken, the description of which didn't indicate any particular spiciness, but it turned out to be right on the edge of my comfort level...but also a really delicious seasoning to go with the heat, so I'm counting that as a definite win. The place offers a whole array of flavor options, so I imagine we'll be trying it again.
Weathering/Growing: Yesterday was sunny and relatively warm, and now we're back to a slightly-chilly rainy/damp stretch, but a few days in the forecast will theoretically get back up into the double digits.
At my instigation, we're going to take another stab at Doing Garden Stuff this year. ( VERY preliminary notes )
My day off yesterday entailed such thrilling things as sleeping in and then taking ages to get up because Jinksy came to snuggle*; finishing my breakfast and tea by around noon; getting some banking done; washing my hair; vacuuming the two main levels of the house; spending several full hours being a cat-lap for Sinha; and starting in on a new novel for the first time since March Break or so.
*When I texted
scruloose to say good morning, they said, "When my first alarm went, it was competing with Jinksy over on your other side rumble-purring so hard I swear the mattress was reverberating with it."Reading: A couple more chapters of Braiding Sweetgrass, and I've finished Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts: Stories and Recipes from Five Generations of Black Country Cooks, which has a fair number of recipes but is, as the title indicates, more of a family history than a cookbook.
And last night I didn't want to spend much mental energy on choosing what fiction to read, so I decided to just go with Tough Guy, the third Game Changers novel. I imagine in the not-too-distant future I'll pick up the ebook "box set" of books 4-6 just to have them on hand.
Watching: We're caught up on The Pitt and have seen five episodes of One Piece season 2, and I imagine we'll finish the latter before backtracking for the last couple-few episodes of Frieren. (I've also made note of this elsewhere, but to reinforce it in my brain: after The Pitt finishes, I need to remember to cancel our Crave subscription again.)
Eating: After the crunch ended on Thursday,
scruloose and I ordered from a new (?) Korean BBQ place (bb.q Chicken) that a stranger in the local Bluesky feed had mentioned was good. We tried the bone-in Classic Fried Chicken (very minimal spicing, but very solid) and the boneless Golden Fried Chicken, the description of which didn't indicate any particular spiciness, but it turned out to be right on the edge of my comfort level...but also a really delicious seasoning to go with the heat, so I'm counting that as a definite win. The place offers a whole array of flavor options, so I imagine we'll be trying it again.Weathering/Growing: Yesterday was sunny and relatively warm, and now we're back to a slightly-chilly rainy/damp stretch, but a few days in the forecast will theoretically get back up into the double digits.
At my instigation, we're going to take another stab at Doing Garden Stuff this year. ( VERY preliminary notes )
Write Every Day April 2026 - Day 11
Apr. 11th, 2026 10:43 amcarenejeansQuote of the Day:
(Another quote from Elizabeth McCracken.)
"Any writer’s ideal craft manual must be bespoke, like a suit, made to measure. Write a manifesto aimed only at your own work without worrying whether it applies to or offends anybody else in the world. Address, in your silent heart, punctuation, plot, character, all your picayune concerns and grandiose plans, all the things that made you want to be a writer. Make it living, an armor-clad list that might change. It will be dearer to you than any other guide."
— Elizabeth McCracken, A Long Game: Notes on Writing Fiction (HarperCollins, 2025).
My Check-In:
Alibi sentence! An angry one! Adulting, gah. It's also why I'm behind on comments. 8-(
Today should be better!
Tally
( Days 1-9 )
Day 10:badly_knitted, carenejeans, cornerofmadness, dswdiane, goddess47, sanguinity, sylvanwitch, the_siobhan, trobadora, ysilme
Let me know if I missed you, or if you wrote but didn't check in yet. And remember, you can join in at any time!
(Another quote from Elizabeth McCracken.)
"Any writer’s ideal craft manual must be bespoke, like a suit, made to measure. Write a manifesto aimed only at your own work without worrying whether it applies to or offends anybody else in the world. Address, in your silent heart, punctuation, plot, character, all your picayune concerns and grandiose plans, all the things that made you want to be a writer. Make it living, an armor-clad list that might change. It will be dearer to you than any other guide."
— Elizabeth McCracken, A Long Game: Notes on Writing Fiction (HarperCollins, 2025).
My Check-In:
Alibi sentence! An angry one! Adulting, gah. It's also why I'm behind on comments. 8-(
Today should be better!
Tally
( Days 1-9 )
Day 10:
badly_knitted, carenejeans, cornerofmadness, dswdiane, goddess47, sanguinity, sylvanwitch, the_siobhan, trobadora, ysilmeLet me know if I missed you, or if you wrote but didn't check in yet. And remember, you can join in at any time!
23 Happy Kitten Memes to Meownifest a Marvelous Mew'd
Apr. 11th, 2026 09:45 amicanhascheezburger_feedCat lovers don't choose when they're going to adopt a kitty; the Cat Distribution System decides.
As many cat lovers understand, stray felines, outdoor cats, lost kitties, and beloved forlorn kittens are everywhere. While cats are purrpetually mysterious creatures, mystifying humanity with their independence, their hunting skills, and their innate survival ability, oftentimes, cats need a little human intervention in order to experience their best life. That's where able-bodied, eager cat lovers come into play.
Cats can pop up in the funniest places, surprising the most adept humans with their playful head nudges, their flickering tails, and their increasingly loud mews, but sometimes, it's as if these cats know something we don't know. Kitties know when they're about to be scooped up in the arms of a bipedal giant and swept away to a lavish indoor home complete with multiple beds, cat towers, and an infinite supply of kitty kibbles.
While they may choose to sleep in the Amazon box by the recycling area, they may also demand wet food straight from the can. Cats enjoy their captivity, honoring the Cat Distribution System (CDS) delivery to their furrever home. It's for this reason that cat lovers can never deny the call of the CDS.
If you hear a tiny meow in the bushes, you must investigate.
For beyond those prickly branches lies a cleverly camouflaged kitten who needs your help!
As I said, cats don't necessarily need us humans to survive, but gosh, are their lives better for it if we do step in to be their lifelong servants. And when kittens are cute in their beds, cuddle their catnip toys, and gnaw at the edges of a feather stick, humans can't help but swoon at their adorableness and kneel to their every whim and need.
The hierarchy of cuteness starts and ends with kittens, so if cat lovers are ever summoned into duty to care for, love, and kiss the foreheads of a kitten, they must take action. Let the CDS choose your next cat, because if you're in the right place at the right time, you may be rewarded with the sweet nothings of a mewing, smol angel.
2612 / Fic - The Pitt
Apr. 11th, 2026 01:18 pmsiriaSaw My Colours
The Pitt | ~1500 words | Duke, Gen | Episode fic for 2.14.
(Also on AO3)
( Time was, Duke had a lot of firsts on Fourth of July weekends. )
The Pitt | ~1500 words | Duke, Gen | Episode fic for 2.14.
(Also on AO3)
( Time was, Duke had a lot of firsts on Fourth of July weekends. )
Birdfeeding
Apr. 11th, 2026 12:08 pmysabetwordsmithToday is mostly sunny and mild.
I fed the birds. I've seen a few sparrows and house finches.
I put out water for the birds.
.
I fed the birds. I've seen a few sparrows and house finches.
I put out water for the birds.
.
27 Concentrated Cat Children Keeping Close Watch Over Their Neighborhood
Apr. 11th, 2026 08:00 amicanhascheezburger_feedIf you thought it was the police keeping your neighborhood safe, then this list of neighborhood watch cats will show you who the true defenders of your local area are.
With all the many hours that cats spend looking out of windows you would have thought that they would develop some sort of instinct for trouble. That they might be handy at alerting us to developing situations should they become problematic for us. But cats being the ambivalent creatures they are, cannot care all too much for our pawsonal safety, less it has a direct connection to their food, and so they tend to keep their mouths shut when it comes to keeping us alerted.
But that does not stop them from yapping away at birds and squirrels as though they are going to actually catch them one day. So if you are frustrated at your cat's incessant staring out of the window for no helpful reason, then you should know we made this list for you to see that you are not alone. There are thousands of feline pawrents out there suffered through the same thing, all in the hope that one day their cat child will love them.
Artemis II's crew module returned
Apr. 11th, 2026 05:28 pmmtbcIt is a considerable relief to have the crew of Artemis II safely back on Earth. I wonder in what state the heat shield is now. We stayed up late (for us) last night, streaming Coachella until nearer the reentry time, so we slept in somewhat this morning. It will be great if we manage a successful moon landing and return, for which even more things must go well.
The talk of a moonbase is exciting though
The talk of a moonbase is exciting though
this decadeseems courageous, I would have thought anything remotely worthy of the name to be a whole order of magnitude tougher still. I wonder how eager future administrations will be to keep pushing the effort. Nonetheless, I should be very happy were we to continue actively working toward such a goal.
Promptfic from Tumblr 2: Babylon 5 edition
Apr. 11th, 2026 12:30 amsholioThe other prompt fill I wrote today ended up being full-story-length (~1100 wds) for Babylon 5, posted on AO3 as Exercises in Linguistics.
The prompt was: G'Kar and Londo (slash or gen, up to you!) and Language. Set in early season 5, probably between about 5x02 & 5x06.
( Exercises in Linguistics )
The prompt was: G'Kar and Londo (slash or gen, up to you!) and Language. Set in early season 5, probably between about 5x02 & 5x06.
( Exercises in Linguistics )