Toadvark

I've never been able to budget in the literal sense due to how utterly unpredictable my income is (artist sole proprietor kind of thing- don't do it, kids!), and how wildly the structure of my months vary...but getting wise to tracking all incoming and outgoing transactions on my own spreadsheet has brought such peace of mind.

It came naturally after dealing with self employment income records, so it's frankly silly that I never applied the same ideas to my personal finances.

I ran the photo through iNaturalist and it suggested a group of flies I've never seen before- broadly Tachinidae, and more narrowly it zeroed in on the genus Adejeania. Seems like a safe guess in terms of location, too!

Yep, seconding what others have said, this looks exactly like my ground cherry plants (aka husk cherry, aka Physalus genus). 😄

I know it's practically a meme at this point to say so, but: same here! I've used their return-holey-socks-for-store-credit service twice now (carried mail; guaranteed sock killer) with zero problems and couldn't be happier. I make sure to buy pairs as gifts for friends to make sure they see new business, too.

I'm on my phone and have no clue what hell these links may unleash, but here's the album on youtube and spotify.

...Now that I think on it, it's been so long since I listened to the 99PI episode, I can't even remember if they make use of or even mention the album. Apologies for my fanboy hat maybe being screwed on a little too tight! 😆

EDIT: As for their non-Wild-Ones work, I tend toward their first two albums since they're a bit more... moody 'n dramatic than the newest one. They're a side project of a bunch of musicians, so the discography is pretty small and easy to get through.

Aww!! I didn't expect to see this here, I'm smiling like a big dork. I'm an utter fangirl for the band behind the music, Black Prairie, so I heard about and read the book right as it was released (and may or may not own the album on vinyl lol). Just as you said, the book is a great jumping-off point for so many topics...The segment on butterfly conservation stuck with me, for whatever reason.

After all these years I think the song "Waltz for George and Tex" is my favorite. 🪺

Very much agreed. I went with a Kobo since I enjoy futzing around with files and already had a Calibre (ebook management software) library going anyway. I highly recommend e-readers of any kind to anyone on the fence!

Ohh they look so healthy! I know they're tiny snakes to begin with, but the ones I stumble across are very thin and lithe compared to this one. Great find. :)

What a good gift, thank you for sharing. I didn't realize how much variety could be found (well, selected and bred for!) in these until fairly recently, and your post introducesd me to African violets with curly petals. I legit almost cried when I first saw some of the "dwarf" varieties for sale at a greenhouse, lol

I started an Amish Paste from seed this year and eagerly anticipating the result. My climate and growing season are suited for small globes and cherries, but I've heard such wonderful things about this specific variety. 😄

I LOVE their coloration at this stage. What a good find. 😄

Good article- I like that first map a lot. The basic point applies to so many of our relationships with nature.

My personal example: Grew up in a house with some attached greenspace in the Midwestern USA, and the woods and riparian areas are terribly overrun with amur honeysuckle, which was originally imported and planted to prevent erosion. It grows fast, early, and tends to form a bit of a monoculture, blocking light from other understory plants and hardwood saplings. Anyway, over the last 10-15 years I've been helping my parents clear the honeysuckle from the little patch of greenspace near us, and there's far more biodiversity now. Tiny hardwood saplings are surviving germination and growing!

Ofc this opens up all sorts of discussions on like...nostalgia, invasive vs endemic vs naturalized, how much to even consider what things "ought" to look like vs what we're capable of doing.

But it was wild seeing the effect of futzing with one plant, in one tiny area, happen with my own eyes. Making sweeping changes to waterways would be unreal to see.