2025.06.17

Jun. 17th, 2025 08:16 am
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[personal profile] lsanderson
Sen. Klobuchar condemns Utah rep for misleading social posts
Plus: Killer had ‘hit list’; political violence on the rise; photos of makeshift memorial; and more.
by Peter Majerle
https://www.minnpost.com/glean/2025/06/sen-klobuchar-condemns-utah-rep-for-misleading-social-posts/

MyPillow’s Mike Lindell ordered to pay $2.3m in voting machine defamation trial
Eric Coomer, who worked at Dominion, sued Mike Lindell for spreading conspiracy theories that upended his life
Rachel Leingang
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/16/mypillow-mike-lindell-defamation-trial

'He's a mess': Trump says he won’t call Tim Walz after Minnesota shootings
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/live/2025/jun/17/donald-trump-g7-iran-israel-ceasefire-us-politics-live-updates?CMP=share_btn_url&page=with%3Ablock-685166618f08a82a824fa17d#block-685166618f08a82a824fa17d Read more... )

2025.06.16

Jun. 16th, 2025 07:35 am
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[personal profile] lsanderson
The Glean
More on the Hortman assasination
For this morning’s Glean, I’m sharing a few headlines that add depth to our coverage of this weekend’s shootings.
https://www.minnpost.com/glean/2025/06/more-depth-on-the-hortman-assasination/

Violence is coming to define American political life
Stephen Marche
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/16/us-politics-violence-trump-parade-protests

‘Extremely disturbing and unethical’: new rules allow VA doctors to refuse to treat Democrats, unmarried veterans
Department of Veterans Affairs says the changes come in response to a Trump executive order ‘defending women’
Aaron Glantz
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/16/va-doctors-refuse-treat-patients
Read more... )

2025.06.15 Breaking News

Jun. 15th, 2025 09:59 pm
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[personal profile] lsanderson
Suspect in shootings of Minnesota lawmakers apprehended – reports
Vance Boelter accused of killing legislator Melissa Hortman and her husband, and wounding John Hoffman and his wife
Victoria Bekiempis
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/16/minnesota-shooting-suspect-arrest-reports

2025.06.15

Jun. 15th, 2025 09:43 am
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[personal profile] lsanderson
‘Her mirthful eyes, her sharp humor’: Colleagues remember Melissa Hortman, assassinated at age 55
Hortman reshaped education, environment and health care through years in Minnesota House leadership.
by Matthew Blake
https://www.minnpost.com/state-government/2025/06/her-mirthful-eyes-her-sharp-humor-colleagues-remember-melissa-hortman-assassinated-at-age-55/

Flood of tributes for Minnesota Democrat killed in ‘targeted violence’
Governor Tim Walz calls Melissa Hortman, state speaker shot dead along with husband Mark, ‘dearest of friends’
Edward Helmore in New York and Rachel Leingang in Minneapolis
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/14/minnesota-democrat-melissa-hortman-tribute

Manhunt continues for suspect in shootings of Minnesota lawmakers
Gunman believed to have left Minneapolis region after killing one legislator and wounding another
Victoria Bekiempis and agencies
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/15/minnesota-shooting-suspect-manhunt

Manhunt after two Minnesota state politicians targeted, one of them killed
Mike Wendling in Brooklyn Park and Danai Nesta Kupemba
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgj83q2e562o

Millions across US turn out for ‘No Kings’ protests against Donald Trump
Protesters demonstrate at about 2,000 sites nationwide on day US president holds military parade in Washington
Rachel Leingang in Minneapolis, Andrew Gumbel in Los Angeles and Melissa Hellmann in Philadelphia
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/14/no-kings-protests-trump-military-parade

Trump, Netanyahu and Khamenei – three angry old men who could get us all killed
Simon Tisdall
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/15/trump-netanyahu-khamenei-three-angry-old-men

A £2.5m dud? Fresh doubt cast on authenticity of National Gallery Rubens
Former curator’s comments, later withdrawn, reignite debate over attribution of Samson and Delilah painting
Dalya Alberge
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2025/jun/15/claim-casts-doubt-on-origin-of-national-gallery-rubnes

It's Estimated Tax Day, well, almost. Due Tomorrow.

Last night the valet at Orchestra Hall could drive a stick and was excited at the chance. There went my private parking! They tried to pawn off a new car on me when I went to pick it up, but I resisted.

2025.06.14

Jun. 14th, 2025 08:24 am
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[personal profile] lsanderson
Rain or shine, dozens of No Kings protests are planned throughout Minnesota on Saturday. The largest event will be at the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul, and FOX 9 has put together a list of protests and start times across the state. Via MinnPost
https://www.fox9.com/news/no-kings-protest-minnesota-list

Two Democratic lawmakers in Minnesota shot in their separate homes
Governor Tim Walz was briefed on ‘ongoing situation’ in which Minneapolis-area state senator and representative were attacked
Rachel Leingang in Minneapolis
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/14/democratic-lawmakers-minnesota-shot
https://www.youtube.com/live/VHtHNAbFnow

‘Hip-hop is innovation’: New street dance festival brings cyphers, dance battles to St. Paul
Also this weekend: the Asian Street Food Night Market returns with more than 35 food vendors; a new Somali arts festival debuts on Lake Street; and a film series highlighting communities of color screens in Minneapolis
by Myah Goff
https://sahanjournal.com/arts-culture/twin-cities-things-to-do-street-dance-somali-arts-asian-market/

After dry spells contributed to wildfires in northern Minnesota, we now have the opposite problem: a days-long deluge. As Bring Me The News reports, some parts of the state will see up to five inches of rain. “[C]onsistent rain will move slowly east Friday morning, continuing on and off through the weekend and into early next week, with central Minnesota and the Twin Cities potentially seeing the largest amounts.” Via MinnPost
https://bringmethenews.com/minnesota-weather/flooding-risk-as-storms-set-to-bring-over-5-inches-of-rain-to-minnesota

New murals will beautify Lake Street in Minneapolis and support small businesses
The 34 murals on Lake between Nicollet and 30th Ave. S. are part of the $8 million “Lake Street Lift” initiative.
by Sheila Regan
https://www.minnpost.com/artscape/2025/06/new-murals-will-beautify-lake-street-in-minneapolis-and-support-small-businesses/

Grilled cheese shop offers Minnesotans a second chance after prison
The Minneapolis restaurant All Square exclusively hires formerly incarcerated people
Claire Wang
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/jun/14/all-square-minneapolis-formerly-incarcerated-staff

EPA drops case against prison company that has donated heavily to Trump
Geo Group faced up to $4m in fines for violations involving the use of a toxic disinfectant at an immigration facility
Tom Perkins
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/14/trump-administration-epa-prison-company-donations

Tulane University scientist resigns citing environmental censorship
Kimberley Terrell’s research into health and job disparities had triggered a backlash from state and Tulane leaders
This story is co-published with Floodlight
Terry L Jones for Floodlight
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/13/tulane-university-scientist-resign

A map, a myth and a pre-Incan lagoon: the man who brought water back to a drought-ridden town
When historian Galo Ramón uncovered a long-forgotten pre-Incan water system in Ecuador, he set about restoring it, and helped transform the landscape and livelihoods
Mickal Aranha in Catacocha, Ecuador
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/jun/13/ecuador-indigenous-map-pre-inca-myths-ancient-lagoon-water-drought-

‘Liquid electricity’: Meera Sodha’s vegan recipe for grated tomato and butter beans with olive pangrattato
Few things in life are as simple and mouthwatering as tomatoes on toast sprinkled with salt, but here they hit new heights with olivey breadcrumbs, garlic and butter beans, too
Meera Sodha
https://www.theguardian.com/food/2025/jun/14/grated-tomato-and-butter-beans-recipe-with-olive-pangrattato-meera-sodha

Carrots in Coca-Cola?! This Recipe Shouldn’t Work… But It Does
Glen And Friends Cooking
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzoZ1T6KA4E

Indian scientists search for the perfect apple
Priti Gupta
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0l05762elpo

British Library to reinstate Oscar Wilde’s reader card 130 years after it was revoked
Exclusive: Pass to be presented to playwright’s grandson after original cancelled over conviction for gross indecency
Dalya Alberge
https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2025/jun/13/british-library-reinstate-oscar-wilde-reader-card

Women’s prize winner Yael van der Wouden: ‘It’s heartbreaking to see so much hatred towards queer people’
Lisa Allardice
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/jun/13/womens-prize-winner-yael-van-der-wouden-its-heartbreaking-to-see-so-much-hatred-towards-queer-people
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[personal profile] pegkerr
This past week's Year of Adventure outing was a visit to the Minneapolis State Capitol to view the renovations that were finished in 2019.

Peg at Capitol


I went with a friend of mine, and we had planned to take the tour when the legislative session was over, but as they had not been able to finish a budget, the House and Senate were in special session. We listened for an hour to the debate in the House about the GOP proposal to strip immigrants of the ability to access Minnesotacare, the state's health care. Then, we took the tour. I'm ashamed to say it, but I had never visited the Capitol before. I was rather stunned by the beauty of the place. There was a display of battlefield flags from the Civil War in the rotunda. There were also a series of huge paintings of various battles during the Civil War in the Governor's Reception Room (a beautifully ornate room, modeled after a room in Venice).

This placard particularly struck me, given the events in Los Angeles:
EMPIRES PLACE THEIR RELIANCE UPON SWORD AND CANNON: REPUBLICS PUT THEIR TRUST IN THE CITIZENS' RESPECT FOR LAW. IF LAW BE NOT SACRED, A FREE GOVERNMENT WILL NOT ENDURE --IRELAND.


Free Government


This collage is pulled from some of the beautiful elements of architecture we saw during the tour.

One of the representatives I was listening to on Monday was just assassinated. I am beyond pissed. I am heading out the door to join today’s protests. I wasn’t going to go because of some family stuff going on, but I am so livid.

Capitol

23 Capitol

Click on the links to see the 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022 and 2021 52 Card Project galleries.

2025.06.13

Jun. 13th, 2025 09:22 am
lsanderson: (Default)
[personal profile] lsanderson
There's a lotta lotta stuff in The Glean on MinnPost this morning. North Minneapolis, book ban ban, Dakota people and the St. Anthony Falls, SC school ruling, and a ruling against UnitedHealth Group.
https://www.minnpost.com/glean/2025/06/will-a-1-5b-project-transform-north-minneapolis/

‘He stole a piece of our souls’: Christian music star Michael Tait accused of sexual assault by three men
Tait posted on Instagram days ago that for 20 years he lived a ‘double life’ but is working on ‘repentance and healing’
Josiah Hesse
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/13/michael-tait-sexual-assault-allegations

Millions in US expected to protest against Trump in ‘No Kings’ demonstrations
Rallies at roughly 2,000 sites planned for Saturday, same day as US president’s military parade and birthday
Rachel Leingang
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/13/no-kings-protests

Who are the eight new vaccine advisers appointed by Robert F Kennedy?
US health secretary announced new members for Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, after firing all 17 experts who held the post
Jessica Glenza
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/13/eight-new-cdc-vaccine-advisers-robert-f-kennedy

Trump’s pollution rollback rewards wealthy plant owners — at the expense of Americans’ health
Oliver Milman and Dharna Noor
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/12/trump-epa-pollution-rules

US immigration agency flies drones capable of surveillance over LA protests
CBP claims in statement that they are ‘providing officer safety surveillance when requested by officers’
Johana Bhuiyan
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/12/predator-drone-los-angeles-protests

Why is the media ignoring growing resistance to Trump?
Margaret Sullivan
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/13/why-is-the-media-ignoring-growing-resistance-to-trump

We are Nobel laureates, scientists, writers and artists. The threat of fascism is back
Open letter
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/13/nobel-laureates-fascism

Starvation alert as children fill Kenya refugee ward after US aid cuts
Anne Soy
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1dew7zyg49o

World-first blood cancer therapy to be given on NHS
James Gallagher
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckg4kj2nxjgo

'Good karma': Laos' new monk-led travel experiences
Simon Urwin
https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20250611-laos-new-monk-led-travel-experiences

Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story review – dazzling glamour and true grit
This indulgent but madly watchable documentary showcases Minnelli’s tremendous star wattage alongside the tragedy of a life lived in the full glare of show business
Peter Bradshaw
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/jun/13/liza-a-truly-terrific-absolutely-true-story-review-dazzling-glamour-and-true-grit

Puppies, ghosts and euphoric snogging: the 25 best queer films of the century so far
From coming-out fables and dancefloor make-outs to unsimulated sex and a madcap maternal quest, here is a feast of movies about LBGTQ+ lives
By Ryan Gilbey
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/jun/12/25-best-queer-films-century-pride-month-lesbian-gay-trans-movies

My unexpected Pride icon: Link from the Zelda games, a non-binary hero who helped me work out who I was
Video games are the closest you can get to trying a new body for a bit, and when I played as the androgynous Link, I felt subversive and empowered
Keza MacDonald
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/ng-interactive/2025/jun/13/my-unexpected-pride-icon-link-from-the-zelda-games-a-non-binary-hero-who-helped-me-work-out-who-i-was

The best recent science fiction, fantasy and horror – review roundup
Awakened by Laura Elliott; Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by VE Schwab; Immaculate Conception by Ling Ling Huang; Esperance by Adam Oyebanji; The Quiet by Barnaby Martin
Lisa Tuttle
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/jun/13/the-best-recent-science-fiction-fantasy-and-horror-review-roundup
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[personal profile] lydamorehouse
My day on Thursday started with something I will probably never experience again in my life: the sighting of a pine martin in the wild. I literally have never seen this animal before in my life, except a brief glimpse at the Minnesota Zoo.

The folks working at the lodge confirmed. They'd been sighting a pine martin between the staff cabin and Cabin 1 (where we're staying.)

I did another big hike. This time I took Poplar Trail. Again, there wasn't a whole lot to see on this trail of note, except that for a brief time I turned off and headed toward Bear Cub Trail and was following very closely to the Gunflint Trail road. 


wild roses
Image: wild roses

Much of the rest of the day was spent reading and enjoying the intermittent sunshine. Shawn and I walked down to the Lodge's beach and stuck our toes in the water. It is very cold! The ice only came off the lake a couple of weeks ago. But, my ankles had been kind of sore from all the hiking I've been doing and so I decided it was the right kind of refreshing.

We drove up to the Trail Center for dinner and generally enjoyed being "in civilization" (or at least in company with more of our fellow humans.) As we were leaving there was a clot of old duffers sharing actual fish stories about that "eight pound walleye" caught "out by the big rock."

Classic.

We head home tomorrow, but I'm hoping to stop along the way at all the State Parks so get my passport stamped, etc. But, I may have to do a big re-cap on Sunday of both today (Friday) and our drive home (Saturday.) See you all then!

In the meantime, here is some honeysuckle (I believe) growing in a sunny spot on a wide road.

honeysuckle
Image: close-up of honeysuckle

2025.06.12

Jun. 12th, 2025 08:32 am
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[personal profile] lsanderson
The Minneapolis Courthouse Gets Corny
A new crop art exhibit, Seeds of Justice, is on display at the Diane E. Murphy U.S. Courthouse, featuring 17 pieces that depict significant figures and events about U.S. democracy.
by Madeline Cisneros
https://mspmag.com/arts-and-culture/the-minneapolis-courthouse-gets-corny/

From the Minnesota Star Tribune: “Federal searches conducted in eight places across the Twin Cities metro area last week were sparked by the discovery of more than 900 pounds of methamphetamine in a Burnsville storage unit, according to an indictment filed Tuesday. Via MinnPost

Minnesota lawmakers grit teeth, pass state budget in crammed special session
Legislators voiced ambivalence and frustration with spending bills as the 2025 session finally wrapped.
by Matthew Blake
https://www.minnpost.com/state-government/2025/06/minnesota-lawmakers-grit-teeth-pass-state-budget-in-crammed-special-session/

Troops and marines deeply troubled by LA deployment: ‘Morale is not great’
Several service members told advocacy groups they felt like pawns in a political game and assignment was unnecessary
Andrew Gumbel in Los Angeles
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/12/los-angeles-national-guard-troops-marines-morale

Newsom calls Trump a 'stone cold liar' and says president didn't speak to him about sending troops to LA
Joanna Walters
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/live/2025/jun/12/la-protests-los-angeles-california-curfew-ice-immigration-marines-national-guard-donald-trump-latest-updates?CMP=share_btn_url&page=with%3Ablock-684ad0638f0814dfee5fe986#block-684ad0638f0814dfee5fe986

Families arrested in LA Ice raids held in basements with little food or water, lawyers say
Agents confiscated belongings and rushed deportees to California’s high desert or Texas, saying local facilities had not prepared for influx
Maanvi Singh in Los Angeles
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/11/la-ice-raids-immigration-conditions

‘This isn’t an isolated incident’: Trump’s show of military force in LA was years in the making
The president had been waiting for this made-for-TV clash that allows the administration to ‘manufacture’ a crisis
Rachel Leingang and Lauren Gambinoin Los Angeles
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/11/trump-military-force-plotting

Boos, cheers and a heavy dose of irony as Trump takes in Les Mis against backdrop of LA protests
The tuxedo-clad US president promised a ‘golden era’ for the US at his first Kennedy Center production in Washington
David Smith in Washington
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/12/boos-cheers-and-a-heavy-dose-of-irony-as-trump-takes-in-les-mis-against-backdrop-of-la-protests

My unexpected Pride icon: The Green Roasting Tin, a cookbook no lesbian vegetarian can be without
Sure, Rukmini Iyer’s recipes are not specifically aimed at queer people, but the first time I cooked one, it was with my girlfriend – and she is now my wife
Lucy Knight
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/ng-interactive/2025/jun/12/my-unexpected-pride-icon-the-green-roasting-tin-a-cookbook-no-lesbian-vegetarian-can-be-without

How Pakistan fell in love with sushi
Once upon a time, Pakistanis scorned raw fish. Now sushi is everywhere from Ramadan meals to wedding buffets – and it all started with one man and a dream
By Sanam Maher
https://www.theguardian.com/news/2025/jun/12/how-pakistan-fell-in-love-with-sushi

‘The quality of Lebanese wine is absolutely incredible’
Lebanon is one of the most ancient wine-producing regions of the world, so it’s well worth our attention
Hannah Crosbie
https://www.theguardian.com/food/2025/jun/12/lebanese-wine-musar-hannah-crosbie

Scientists develop methanol breathalyser that could prevent thousands of poisonings each year
Prototype is able to detect small concentrations of the toxic substance in alcoholic drinks or on someone’s breath
Petra Stock
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jun/11/scientists-develop-methanol-breathalyser-that-could-prevent-thousands-of-poisonings-each-year

BYD launches cheapest UK model in bid to overtake Tesla as biggest electric carmaker
Dolphin Surf will start at £18,650 – among the cheapest new vehicles on sale in Britain
Jasper Jolly
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jun/12/byd-dolphin-surf-cheapest-uk-model-electric-carmaker-tesla

New species of dinosaur discovered that 'rewrites' T.rex family tree
Victoria Gill
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy8dzv3vp5jo

From Dubai to the Parthenon: the ‘strawberry moon’ around the world - in pictures
The strawberry moon, so named because it traditionally denoted the start of strawberry picking in the northern hemisphere was viewable on 10-11 June
https://www.theguardian.com/culture/gallery/2025/jun/12/from-dubai-to-the-parthenon-the-strawberry-moon-around-the-world-in-pictures
lydamorehouse: (Default)
[personal profile] lydamorehouse
If I’m writing about my adventures a day behind, I should probably make a short list of the things I’ve read to start with. I finished listening to Blood Ink Sister Scribe last night. I will admit that I got a little bogged down in the middle of the book, re-read Trouble and Her Friends (for an up-coming podcast,) and then listened to the second half of it. While I’ve been up here, Martha Well’s Network Effect came up for grabs as an audiobook, so I downloaded that during one of my daily treks to the lodge for internet.

Yesterday started with a nice canoe trip around part of the lake. Shawn and I like to get up early, around 6:30 or 7 am, and do a near-silent drift along the lake. It often pays off in terms of animal sightings. Yesterday we had our first truly sunny morning, and we saw (we counted) ten turtles in various spots sunning themselves on logs. On our return trip, we got the piece d’resistance: a river otter! The river otter was actually in the lake with us and bobbed up a couple of times (almost like trying to stand in the water) to try to decide if we were a danger or not and then disappeared under the water.

Super cool!

It was pretty darned magical, even though at that point in the trip around the lake we were fighting a chilly headwind so strong that if we stopped paddling the canoe would start to go sideways.

Almost immediately after making landfall, Mason and I hopped in the car and headed off to nearby Judge C. R. Magney State Park to revisit Devil’s Kettle.

Shawn elected to stay behind. Her knee, which has been performing like an absolute champ this trip, has been getting stiff and sore after canoe rides. She bends very well for someone who is really only about six months out of knee surgery but getting in and out of the canoe from the dock is more of a challenge. The idea of doing all those stairs down—and then back up again—to see the first set of falls felt like a bad idea to her. I don’t blame her, but we still felt sad leaving her behind even though she said it was okay.

Mason and I have been to this state park before, four years ago, but I was not yet a member of either the Passport or the Minnesota State Parks and Trails Hiking Club. I brought my state park passport along and got my stamp!

Passport
Image: passport stamp


I was glad Shawn did not come once we started the hike. I’m here to tell you that being fat and asthmatic is no real barrier (so long as you have your inhaler, are generally mobile, and are willing to take it slowly,) but I do not think Shawn’s knee would have survived the uneven, sloped parts of the trail, NEVERMIND the stairs.

Speaking of being fat, I did have at least one stranger feel free to tell me that I was “doing great, honey!” But you know what? I was! So, I decided to ignore the fairly pointed assumption about my general health based on my size, and said, “Thanks! You, too!”

The effort is always worth it, however:


devil's kettle
Image: famous Devil's Kettle.

If you have never heard of Devil's Kettle before and why it's so fascinating, feel free to read this article about the mysterious kettle that takes water in but maybe sends it straight to hell... https://www.treehugger.com/the-mystery-of-devils-kettle-falls-4863996



Mason and I had a lovely hike back down. I’d swear, actually, that I took the stairs back up much faster this year than I did four years ago. This is not to say that we didn’t pause on any of the landings that are on offer, but I made very steady progress and never felt like my heart was pounding out of my chest or any of that. I honestly think it helped that the weather has been quite cool up here, so while I worked up a sweat, it never felt overwhelming. TMI? But I’m kind of proud of myself, I guess? Especially after that lady’s “encouragement.”

On our way back to Gunflint Trail and the Lodge, Mason and I stopped in Grand Marais for lunch. This trip is a gift to Mason for graduating from university and so I let him pick the place. We stopped at Angry Trout to have fish sandwiches and an incredible view of the marina, if you can call it such, on Lake Superior.

Mason at Angry Trout
Image: Mason contemplating the menu at Angry Trout.

The drive back was uneventful and we spent much of the rest of the evening sitting on the dock staring out at the lake (or reading.) We have new “neighbors” in cabin two. They are two old duffers who are here for a guy’s weekend of fishing and catching up. Shawn, who was here all day, talked to them a bit. One of them is from the Twin Cities (Oakdale or somewhere like that) and the other is previously from the area, but has since moved to Arizona. He told us he left nearly 100 F / C temps. We made the classic joke about having brought the sun with him, since this was one of the first non-rainy days.

Normally, we don’t interact much with the other cabins, but the forestry service has done a lot of fire maintenance around the lodge and so all of the underbrush is gone, chopped down. It looks little denuded, and apocalypse-y and it also means you see more people coming in out of cabins from further away and have to make the tough Minnesota decision: “Do I wave? Do I have to wave? Oh crap, we made eye contact, I will lift my hand and wave. Oh, god, this is awkward, how long do I wave?” And, yes, I’m actually the family’s extrovert. But I’m also very aware that most people in Minnesota do not actually want to have to talk to strangers, especially when they are “up nort” on a fishing trip with their old college buddy.

More wildflowers!

wild sasperilla
Wild sasperilla?

blue flower
Image: blue flower of some variety??

lydamorehouse: (??!!)
[personal profile] lydamorehouse
Moose Viewing

Yesterday, we decided to do our usual attempt to see moose at Moose Viewing Trail. We are past moose season, really. I mean, moose are out here in the woods. It’s possible to see one. But, tourists, like ourselves, are more likely to see moose during calving, which is earlier in the year--in May.

Moose are sometimes more active in the early morning hours, so to sweeten the “how about we get up at the crack of dawn?” deal for our late risers in the house (namely Mason), we decided that once we have attempted to moose view, we would hit the new nearby coffee shop called Loon’s Rest.

We did not see any moose at Moose Viewing as expected.


The Moose Viewing view
Image: Moose Viewing view (Note: No Moose.)

The other funky thing about Moose Viewing trail is the fact that as you turn in to the official Moose Viewing platform, there is a myserious abandoned car. There are a lot of questions about this car. How did it get here? When did it get here? How did the boulder get on top of it?


car in woods
Image: car in woods?

We ran into a couple of well-equipped hikers from Oklahoma who were perhaps a little too eager for moose. We gave our best advice, which was hang out as long as you can and be quiet—and, you know? Maybe they got lucky. I hope they did.

The Loon’s Nest was entirely full of old, white men (but one can sort of say that generally about the Gunflint Trail.) The espresso was perfectly adequate as were the croissant, egg, and sausage patties.

I did not attempt a big walk yesterday, since I wanted to save my strength for canoeing. Mason and I had yet to get out in the lake. When we did, it was the first time in a long time that Mason was in charge of steering. It took us a little time to figure out our rhythm, but once we got going we were amazing. We canoed out past the point to a part of Bearskin that Shawn and I call “capsize cove” thanks to a certain incident several years ago. There is a lovely beaver dam out in the cove. We fought the wind coming back, but it was actually fairly energizing.

An absolutely lovely day all told.

And, now…. More wildflowers for identification!

purple wildflower
A purple wildflower of some kind!


false lily of the valley
False lily-of-the-valley?

2025.06.11

Jun. 11th, 2025 05:57 am
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[personal profile] lsanderson
Fact-check: Trump’s speech at Fort Bragg contained lies and conspiracy theories about LA
The US president reiterated falsehoods and misleading statements to troops at the North Carolina military base
Robert Mackey
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/10/fact-check-trump-speech-fort-bragg

Everything we know about the protests in LA and other US cities
Brandon Drenon and James FitzGerald
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj93d3r0zz0o

In Los Angeles immigration protests, teachers, union members and children take to the streets together
No state in the U.S. has more immigrants than California, and most of them live in coastal cities like Los Angeles. Recent raids by immigration authorities have shaken and angered Angelenos, who place the blame for the latest escalations squarely on the federal government.
Marie-Astrid Langer (text), Ivan Kashinsky (photos), Los Angeles
https://www.nzz.ch/english/in-los-angeles-teachers-union-members-and-children-march-together-ld.1888310?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=2025-06-11&utm_campaign=2025-06-11%20Full%20Version&utm_content=%20L%20A%20protests%20escalate%20Israeli%20life%20increasingly%20politicized%20and%20tourist%20trends%20in%20the%20US

Trump’s war on Harvard was decades in the making. This letter proves it
Bernard Harcourt
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/11/trump-war-on-harvard

Note to self: Insurance actuarial tables are not based on government climate websites
Major US climate website likely to be shut down after almost all staff fired
Exclusive: Climate.gov, which supports public education on climate science, will soon no longer publish new content
Eric Holthaus
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/11/climate-website-shut-down-noaa

Weather makers: How microbes living in the clouds affect our lives
Carl Zimmer
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20250610-the-microbes-that-thrive-in-the-clouds

Republican chair of House homeland security committee to retire early
Mark Green had announced he would not run in 2024 and then changed his mind when Republicans urged him to stay
Associated Press
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/10/mark-green-retires-republican-homeland-security-chair

This month’s best paperbacks
June
Looking for a new reading recommendation? Here are some brilliant new paperbacks, from moving memoirs to sequels of beloved novels
https://www.theguardian.com/books/ng-interactive/2025/jun/11/this-months-best-paperbacks-hanif-kureishi-alexei-navalny-and-more

Just Another Day in Paradise (Monday)

Jun. 10th, 2025 09:35 am
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[personal profile] lydamorehouse
The weather here has been overcast and rainy. As Shawn told a somewhat uncertain staff person, “It’s gorgeous!” (The staff was concerned that she was being sarcastic. Shawn assured her that she was not.) Our family is very happily indoorsy. So, we spent much of the day inside, by a roaring fire, reading.

However, the weather cleared up on and off, and during one of the ‘on’s, Shawn and I headed out for an early morning canoe. We tend to canoe much like we hike, which is to say, we don’t go all that far, and we glide along at a snail’s pace.

Shawn in canoe (Bearskin 2025)
Image: Shawn in a canoe at Bearskin

I’ve also resumed my quest to walk as many of Bearskin’s ski trails as I feel is reasonable. I tend to enjoy a hike to a destination like Sunday’s accidental trip to Rudy Lake, but not all of the ski trails are set up for vistas. In fact, most of them aren’t. A person can tell, even as hiker, how excellent they are for skiers. So many up and down slopes! We are technically in the Pincushion Mountains here, (though people from the Coasts are allowed to scoff at what we call mountains around here.) However, the elevation changes are real! In fact, it usually takes me a few days to get used to the steep slopes. This time, having just come from Middletown, CT, which I feel like was built entirely at a 45-degree angle (all of it uphill!), I didn’t seem to need as much time.

At any rate, this year, I decided to try and find Ox Cart. FYI, an Ox Cart would not make it around this loop. I mean, I guess oxen are strong? But pulling a cart would be tough! Skiing however? It would be glorious.

Bob, the owner of Bearskin, did want to point out that if I walked Ox Cart, I would see the new boardwalk that they installed.

The boardwalk goes over a very marshy, swampy area. A place that my family would call “very moosey,” as this seems to be the sort of areas that we imagine moose tend to enjoy. This is a highly unscientific “hot take,” however. The one time that we saw moose in the wild, while hiking (at, of all places, “Moose Viewing Trail”) there was a place a little like this, though much more lake-y and slightly less boggy/swampy.

moosey
Moosey view.

I did not see moose here.

I will note, however, that I did see moose tracks and what was very obviously moose scat on my way back out of this trail. So, perhaps our family is not entirely wrong as to what constitutes a moosey place.

Much of my hike was just woods.

wooded path (Bearskin 2025)
Image: wooded path

However, I have been trying to stop and take pictures of wildflowers that I’ve been seeing on my hikes. Here are a few:

pussy foot?
Image: pussy feet? Something like that (looking for id, [personal profile] pameladean !)

star flower
Image: star flower

2025.06.10

Jun. 10th, 2025 06:58 am
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[personal profile] lsanderson
MyPillow founder Mike Lindell sticks by false 2020 election claims in defamation trial
Lindell took the stand for the first time during the trial in Denver.
by Colleen Slevin Associated Press
https://www.minnpost.com/national/2025/06/mypillow-founder-mike-lindell-sticks-by-false-2020-election-claims-in-defamation-trial/

From Bring Me The News: “Anxiety over current U.S. border and LGBTQ policies under the Trump administration has led a Canadian group to scrap the Minnesota leg of its annual cross-border Pride parade. Borderland Pride has announced that its cross-border Pride March will not start in International Falls this year. The event will instead take place entirely within Fort Frances on the Canadian side of the border.” Via MinnPost

Sumer is icumen in: From MPR News: “Our weather pattern will take a more typical summery and thundery June turn this week. Tuesday brings plenty of sunshine and warmer temperatures in the 80s to much of Minnesota. Then a warm front will stall across southern Minnesota along the Interstate 90 corridor between Wednesday and Friday. That front will be the focus of a few rounds of thunderstorms.” Via MinnPost

‘They tell you every minor inconvenience’: bartenders on which generation has the worst behavior
Gen Z patrons have stopped opening bar tabs and can’t order quickly, but older customers’ etiquette isn’t perfect either
Alaina Demopoulos
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/ng-interactive/2025/jun/10/gen-z-bar-tabs-etiquette

Compare the courage of Greta Thunberg’s Gaza aid mission with the inaction and complicity of western governments
Owen Jones
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/10/greta-thunberg-gaza-aid-mission-madleen

New blood test for coeliac disease can diagnose autoimmune condition without need to eat gluten
Australian researchers hope test is a ‘game-changer’ for diagnosing those following a strict gluten-free diet
Natasha May Health reporter
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/jun/10/new-blood-test-for-coeliac-disease-can-diagnose-autoimmune-condition-without-need-to-eat-gluten

Mythica: Stormbound review – new chunk of swords and sorcery tale ripe for avid franchise audience
The sixth instalment in this low-budget series has a meagre plot and shonky visual effects but the director and cast clearly care about the franchise’s audience
Leslie Felperin
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/jun/09/mythica-stormbound-review-new-chunk-of-swords-and-sorcery-tale-ripe-for-avid-franchise-audience

‘It makes me sick!’ How the French impressionists went from ‘lunatics’ to luminaries
The National Gallery of Victoria’s new show, French Impressionism, celebrates the likes of Monet, Renoir, Degas, Morisot and Pissarro, who painted in the face of public outrage
Sian Cain
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2025/jun/09/it-makes-me-sick-how-the-likes-of-the-french-impressionists-went-from-lunatics-to-luminaries

Frederick Forsyth, Day of the Jackal author and former MI6 agent, dies aged 86
Writer used his experience reporting on De Gaulle’s France to plot his thriller, and continued to draw on real-world research for subsequent bestsellers
Richard Lea
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/jun/09/frederick-forsyth-day-of-the-jackal-author-and-former-mi6-agent-dies-aged-86

Sly Stone obituary
Funk and soul musician whose band, Sly and the Family Stone, had a profound effect on US music in the 1960s and 70s
Garth Cartwright
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2025/jun/10/sly-stone-obituary
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[personal profile] lydamorehouse
We are at Bearskin!

Moon over Bearskin
The moon (and traces of Northern Lights) over Bearskin (from Cabin 1)

Yesterday, as usual, we stopped at several sites along Highway 61. We had a late lunch at the “world famous” Betty’s Pie. I do not know if this pie is truly well-known throughout the world, but it was, as they say, damned good pie.

The Three of  us at Betty's
The three of us at Betty's Pies.

As has become typical of us, we stopped to do some agate hunting about a mile north of Two Harbors at Flood Bay. We had to backtrack from Betty’s, but we didn’t care. My family simply cannot be hurried once we’re in vacation mode. Once we’ve made it to Duluth (to-du-loot!) vacation mode has fully activated. “Oh? The thing we wanted to see was back there? Sure, let’s turn around!”


Mason and me agate hunting at Flood Bay
Me and Mason agate hunting at Floor Bay.

I’m not ever sure what an agate looks like when it’s not polished. Not that it matters to any of us. Shawn hands out plastic baggies and we find a nice spot and start hunting. On this trip, it was extra windy. It was already decently cold, maybe mid-50s F/ 10 C. We joked that the windchill made it below freezing! Shawn had to hike back to the car for extra layers.

But, we had a great time just relaxing and sifting through the rocks on the shores of the world’s largest freshwater lake. (And, as Mason loves to point out, a lake so cold that if you’re shipwrecked in it, you don’t rot!)


Beach combing
Mason beach combing

Next was a pitstop at Gooseberry Falls. Sometimes, like a lot of travelers this time of year, we only stop long enough to do our business and then push on. This time, however, Mason and I decided to make the short trek up to see both the high falls and the low falls. Shawn, meanwhile, saved her knee (which is mostly doing well, but technically still in recovery,) for the next beach and hung out in the gift shop looking for, among other things, sweatpants for Mason who—for reasons all his own—decided not to pack any pants for the trip. Only shorts!

Gooseberry Falls, in my opinion, is almost always worth the detour.


Goosberry Falls 2025
Image: Gooseberry Falls

I only remembered after we’d left that I forgot to get my State Park passport stamped! We decided, however, that we would stop in as many State Parks as we could on our route back. Mason and I are also planning a day trip out to Devil’s Kettle, so I have be sure to remember to bring it with me to that hike!

I had advocated for a stop at Iona’s Beach this year but changed my mind after experiencing the wind at Flood Bay. Maybe the weather will be more cooperative on the drive home. Instead, we decided to pull in at Silver Bay to get a gander at "Rocky Taconite."

Rocky Taconite at Silver Bay
Image: Rocky Taconite at Silver Bay.

Our last beach of the trip up to the cabin was Cutface Creek Pullout (14 miles north of Lutsen, mile marker 104.) This beach is famous for its thomsonite. Again, I have no idea what thomsonite looks like in the wild (although this might be the year I may have found a piece. I’m going to try polishing it up when we get back home), but this beach generally has cool rocks because it has a ton of mini geodes.
Again, we dawdled. I have no idea how long we spent combing the beaches and listening to the waves. This beach was less windy; it was much more of a natural windbreak/cove.

We managed to miss official check-in at Bearskin (6 pm), which we often do (even leaving the Twin Cities at 9 am), and so followed the instructions to get the cabin key for check-in the next morning. It was still light enough out that Mason and I made the walk up to the Lodge to pick up the aluminum canoe that they on the beach for us out for us. We paddled it to our dock, bungied it up to our private dock for the night, and then settled in for a dinner of brats on the grill.

I fully failed to make a decent fire our first night, but luckily both Shawn and Mason are better skilled at this than I am.

This morning (Sunday) we woke up to rain.

Shawn and I walked down to the Lodge to check in. Because of all of the forest fires that are active in Minnesota right now, the Forest Service has been doing a lot of clearing of what they call “ladder trees,” but also underbrush. The place looks… a little devestated. At least in comparison to what we’re used to. I have been excited to resume my hiking of the ski trails this year and so I wanted to be sure to ask the staff about good trails for less… husbandry, we’ll say. They nicely pointed out where on the map they thought the Forestry Service hadn’t gotten to yet. So, after a quick jog back to Cabin 1 to make sure I had my inhaler, I headed off. I’d intended to slowly get my “sea legs” back, but I missed a turn off and hiked all the way to Rudy Lake. 

Rudy Lake 2025
Image: a pristine lake (Rudy Lake) in the middle of nowhere.

Oops.

It is cool, however. Like, this is a lake you simply can not get to without walking to it. There are no roads to get you here. 

However, I am a little sore and may have overdone it already on day one. Hopefully, with a bit of rest and Aleve, I’ll be back at it in no time.


Trout Lily
Image: trout lily


2025.06.09

Jun. 9th, 2025 06:11 am
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[personal profile] lsanderson
Lojo Russo Pop-Up Concert
The Warehouse at Wonderwoman
3715 Minnehaha Ave
Monday, June 9 between 7p and 9p.
Hope you can make!
https://facebook.com/events/s/pop-up-lojo/715128571213095/

Trump news at a glance: California’s Newsom compares Trump to a ‘dictator’ over national guard deployment
The governor is in a showdown with the president over the policing of protests in LA and Paramount – key US politics stories from Sunday 8 June at a glance
Guardian staff
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/09/trump-administration-news-updates-today

A free flat for a fortnight: the German city offering perks to fight depopulation
Eisenhüttenstadt, once a socialist vision but now at risk of becoming a ghost town, seeks to ditch its far-right image
Deborah Cole in Eisenhüttenstadt
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/09/a-free-flat-for-a-fortnight-the-german-city-offering-perks-to-fight-depopulation

Toxic truth? The cookware craze redefining ‘ceramic’ and ‘nontoxic’
Designer brands such as Always Pan and Caraway are booming – but safety experts are raising questions
Tom Perkins
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/jun/09/ceramic-nontoxic-cookware

Inside one of the world's most advanced supercomputers
https://www.bbc.com/reel/video/p0lgb2xd/inside-one-of-the-world-s-most-advanced-supercomputers

Will the Trump-Musk rift really change anything?
Jan-Werner Müller
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/09/musk-trump-rift-change

The Guardian view on coming-out tales: from A Boy’s Own Story to What It Feels Like for a Girl
Editorial
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/08/the-guardian-view-on-coming-out-tales-from-a-boys-own-story-to-what-it-feels-like-for-a-girl

Who drank all the matcha? How tourism drained a Japanese town
Marina Wang
https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20250606-matcha-how-tourism-drained-a-japanese-town

From Tabasco sauce to Taiwanese Tex-Mex: Felicity Cloake's American odyssey
Laura Hall
https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20250606-felicity-cloakes-american-food-odyssey

2025.06.08

Jun. 8th, 2025 07:24 am
lsanderson: (Default)
[personal profile] lsanderson
Kristi Noem: the made-for-TV official executing Trump’s mass deportations
Noem has played a starring role in the second Trump administration with her goal to ‘Make America Safe Again’ – derided by critics as ‘cosplay’ with cruel consequences
Lauren Gambino
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/07/kristi-noem-trump-secretary-homeland-security

Stop bending the knee to Trump: it’s time for anticipatory noncompliance
David Kirp
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/08/trump-anticipatory-noncompliance

52 tiny annoying problems, solved! (Because when you can’t control the big stuff, start small)
Experts, Guardian readers and writers share ingenious solutions to life’s everyday irritations, from wobbly tables to persistent hiccups
Compiled by Sarah Phillips
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/jun/08/tiny-annoying-problems-solved

Doctors trialling 'poo pills' to flush out dangerous superbugs
James Gallagher
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyge290l4xo

An ancient writing system confounding myths about Africa
Penny Dale
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5ye50xgw8vo

Local officials defend role following chaotic federal sting in Minneapolis
Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt said the enforcement action was one of eight search warrants carried out against a “transnational criminal organization.”
by Alfonzo Galvan, Katelyn Vue and Andrew Hazzard
https://sahanjournal.com/public-safety/minneapolis-lake-street-federal-sting-protest-response/

Dragonfly review – haunting, genre-defying drama of lonely city living
Tribeca film festival, New York
Brenda Blethyn and Andrea Riseborough, along with a very alarming dog, are superb as two neighbours thrown together by their neglected circumstances
Peter Bradshaw
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/jun/07/dragonfly-review-andrea-riseborough-brenda-blethyn-tribeca-festival

Fancy some iconic celeriac? New Nordic cuisine, now a blockbuster exhibition
Twenty years ago, a group of Scandinavian chefs announced a culinary revolution. But as Norway’s National museum celebrates the New Nordic manifesto’s impact on dining and the arts, has the movement betrayed its own ambitious ideals?
Dan Hancox
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2025/jun/08/fancy-some-iconic-celeriac-new-nordic-cuisine-now-a-blockbuster-exhibition

The week around the world in 20 pictures
Israeli airstrikes in Gaza, wildfires in Canada, the first day of Eid al-Adha, and the Champions League final in Munich: the past seven days as captured by the world’s leading photojournalists
Warning: this gallery contains images that some readers may find distressing
Jim Powell
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2025/jun/06/the-week-around-the-world-in-20-pictures

2025.06.07

Jun. 7th, 2025 07:59 am
lsanderson: (Default)
[personal profile] lsanderson
Outrage after Republican representative disparages Sikh prayer in the US House
Mary Miller had first mistaken Giani Singh for a Muslim and said it was ‘deeply troubling’ he was allowed to lead prayer
Maya Yang
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/06/us-house-prayer-republican-mary-miller

Money can’t buy him love: Republicans give Elon Musk the cold shoulder
Robert Tait in Washington
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/06/trump-elon-musk-reaction

Trump bill set to add trillions to US debt pile – can America stop it climbing?
Economists are concerned, politicians are angry – but the national debt keeps growing, no matter who’s in charge
Callum Jones in New York
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/jun/07/trump-bill-us-national-debt

The Trump-Musk feud shows danger of handing the keys of power to one person
Nick Robins-Early
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jun/07/trump-musk-feud-power

Musk and Trump are enemies made for each other – united in their ability to trash their own brands
Jonathan Freedland
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/06/donald-trump-elon-musk-enemies-trash-twitter-tesla

Neo-Nazi group ‘actively seeking to grow in US’ with planned paramilitary training event
The Base is emerging from shadows and ramping up its ranks as White House turns blind eye to the far right
Ben Makuch
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/07/the-base-neo-nazi-group-paramilitary-training

RFK Jr’s report calls farmers ‘backbone’ of US – but cuts leave workers lacking support
Small farmers face ‘two personalities’ as Trump team slashes $1bn in resources despite Kennedy’s vow to protect them
Jessica Glenza
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/07/farmers-trump-cuts-rfk-jr

Russia is at war with Britain and US is no longer a reliable ally, UK adviser says
Government defence expert Fiona Hill warns UK to respond to threats by becoming more cohesive and resilient
Dan Sabbagh Defence and security editor
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/jun/06/russia-is-at-war-with-uk-and-us-no-longer-reliable-ally

International Pride Orchestra plays outside DC in rebuff to Trump snub at Kennedy Center
LGBTQ+ ensemble was to appear at performing arts center but moved to Maryland after president reorganized venue
Guardian staff and agency
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/06/international-pride-orchestra-kennedy-center

Key takeaways from world’s largest cancer conference in Chicago
Experts announce findings on immunotherapy, a breast cancer breakthrough and the value of exercise
Andrew Gregory in Chicago
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/jun/06/key-takeaways-from-worlds-largest-cancer-conference-in-chicago

Alzheimer’s blood test can spot people with early symptoms, study suggests
New test accurately picks up on memory problems by examining two proteins in blood plasma, US researchers find
PA Media
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/jun/07/alzheimers-blood-test-can-spot-people-with-early-symptoms-study-suggests

It’s my goal to live to 100 – and it’s not just diet and exercise that will help me achieve it
Devi Sridhar
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/07/live-to-100-diet-exercise-long-life

Jantelagen: Why Swedes won't talk about wealth
A high income is a badge of success in many countries, but in Sweden a deep-rooted cultural code called Jantelagen stops many from talking about it.
Video by Maddy Savage and Benoît Derrier
https://www.bbc.com/reel/video/p07qgx5d/jantelagen-why-swedes-won-t-talk-about-wealth

If books could kill: The poison legacy lurking in libraries
Pauline McLean
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g2y9xq58no

Lost Turner oil painting found after 150 years
Leigh Boobyer
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyzp4r70m8o
pegkerr: (Telperion and Laurelin)
[personal profile] pegkerr
My cousin Jill's Year of Adventure suggestion for me was to take a couple of hours volunteering together to plant some trees with Great River Greening. So, we signed up for a shift, and last Saturday on a beautiful sunny day, the two of us, along with her partner Jack, met in a park in Brooklyn Center.

The volunteer coordinators had the process down to a well-rehearsed presentation, and we three ended up planting three trees in all in the two-hour time slot. The first two were straightforward enough, and third, a Catalpa, had evidently been in the pot too long. The tap root had pushed through the hole in the bottom and grown large enough to embed itself into the plastic. It took a twenty minutes struggle to get it out of the pot.

It was hot by the time we finished up, and I'd exerted myself enough during the struggle with the stubborn tree to be glad to drink down the water I'd brought and sit in the shade a bit. But we enjoyed ourselves, and there are now three new trees in a park in Brooklyn Center, thanks to our efforts. Afterward, we drove to Jack and Jill's house for lunch, where I admired their extensive gardens and patio under the beautiful spreading oak tree.

A day well spent in the outdoors.

Image description: Lower center: head and shoulders of two women and a man, wearing hats, smiling at the camera. Center: The same three people are planting a tree. Overlaid over the tree are the words "Great River Greening."

Tree Planting

22 Tree Planting

Click on the links to see the 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022 and 2021 52 Card Project galleries.

Packing AGAIN

Jun. 6th, 2025 11:51 am
lydamorehouse: (??!!)
[personal profile] lydamorehouse
 Somehow our house looks more chaotic and full of half-filled bags and boxes as we prepare for a week long vacation to the northwoods. ONE WEEK! You'd think we were packing to move out!

The thing about the place we're headed is that the closest town with a grocery store is twenty minutes down the Gunflint Trail. I mean, I will drive twenty minutes to a store around here. Maybe because we're surrounded by TREES, twenty minutes away feels so much further when we're up north. Half of what we're bringing is food. Almost none of which will be returning with us. 

Despite all this, I'm really looking forwrard to the vacation. There is limited wireless, but I usually get up early and make the hike to the Lodge with my computer and spend an hour or so making sure I'm not missing out on any earth-shattering news. So, I'm still reachable, just... only once a day. I'm going to try to post pictures and such--you know, actually keep up with this blog for once!  
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