Happy Friday, all.

We've been on tenterhooks for a while. Not just in the last few days, with sabre-rattling from Iran, Syria, Lebanon, India...

But before that, too. Remember the last year and a half of Russian invasion of Ukraine? The constant fears of further breakouts? Nuclear war? China?

Before then, pandemic.
And always, climate change.

We are living through a *lot*.
This is not an ideal "normal".
But it's ours.

So give yourself grace.
No one's going to be at their best right now. 🕊️

#MediaLiteracy

We cannot forget that no military or political group has truth as its top priority. Military goals, group safety, narrative control, the maintenance of allies' good will: all these first. Truth secondary.

But there is an important difference between mis- & disinformation. Most media right now is vulnerable to misinformation, quickly repeating what's new. But so far, that includes junk data across the board. *Every* side is spreading disinformation.

That is what happens in war.

Still in the park, letting myself get a good soak in. It is very wet, but not enough to deter the fútbol teams. Christmas displays are showing up.

So much of human history confounds the audacity of the claim that we care about life. I could die tomorrow & I'll have been a siĺly blip, but I *probably* won't die in a way that makes me just a political number.

Victims of mass shootings, wars, immigration tragedies... They're on scorecards now.

Hug your loved ones.
You are never just a number.

The latest Past Present Future is a perfect rethink for our times. The Umberto Eco essay under review invites four notes:

1) that most state scandals are mere PR, but

2) before modern tech PR was more in gov't control; now tech invites democratization, except

3) there's too much info for us to sift through, compelling the need for new filters, even as

4) old tech reasserts itself for real espionage the more the masses are bedazzled by PR on the new.

A worthy listen.
https://pca.st/episode/1a646714-7abe-4436-b80d-81e3e0d85ee0

#War

Today in death lists:

Israeli figures now include Bedouin, Thai, Nepali. 554 civ, 902 total, 21 under 18.

We also have a list from Gaza, where families wear IDs or write names on their bodies.

6,747 people ID'd, 2,665 children, 281 un-ID'd (including 248 more children) to go.

This is going to be a hostile news cycle. Everything's a weapon.

But it is OK to grieve the fact that a lot of humans who should still be with us are not.

I'm going for a run in the rain.
https://time.com/6328885/gaza-death-toll-explainer/

Okay, nature lovers - and lovers of weird natures. Back to work now, but thanks for the Discovery Channel break. 😘

Keep it in the kingdom, kids! :) But otherwise? Go wild.

*That was mean and speciesist of me.

HUMANS mate weirdly. 🙃

I'm sure plenty of other animals would spew chunks if I explained all our weird, elaborate ways of getting it on.

In more seriousness, we should get to know our salps. They're an extremely unusual critter positively blooming in population size due to climate change. Their presence isn't always a sign of a healthy ecosystem.

They also mate weirdly! In the asexual part of their lifecycle, they clone. But in the sexual part, they start in female clusters, then swap to male clusters after gestating a load.

Not to worry, folks! When climate change takes us out, we'll be replaced by some things weirder! #Nature

#FloodTheFirehose

Question time! What's an animal you feel more folks should know about? Some absolute weirdo or wonder of a critter that doesn't get its due.

I will never not stump for the leopard slug.

Bioluminescent flower schlongs, baby!

What've you got? 👀 #Nature

https://youtu.be/CnnIk-6wR00

#FloodTheFirehose 🙃

Also:

Eat something.

I don't have disordered eating, and I'd also like to keep it that way - but boy howdy, has a part of my brain been recalling the easy euphoria I felt while water fasting in the past. My brain seems to think if I just Go To There for a few weeks I can achieve the cosmic brain needed to solve world hunger, cancer, and war in one go. 😂

No, silly goose.

You're just looking for something to "control" in a world off its rails.

Go "control" your way to a tasty meal instead. 🥞

Okay, lovely humans. 🕊️

This one is for those who are struggling to know what to say, and how to manage feelings about all the horrible things other people are saying, in the middle of this latest war.

People's worst natures *are* coming out, and while this may not be avoidable, it's legitimate to be hurt by them.

It is not wrong to be humanitarian.

It's just that our empathy has to expand to include everyone whose trauma makes humanitarianism difficult right now.
https://onlysky.media/mclark/when-all-words-do-is-hurt/

One last note, and then I'm going to take my own advice and eat something today:

A few days ago a dude in my 'hood got on my last nerve, and I went absolutely bonkers. System shut down. Reboot into a mode I didn't even know was on the OS.

I was ready to make some pretty drastic, stupid decisions.

It took time & patience to remember that I was on my last nerve to begin with *for other reasons*.

Because the *world* is extreme right now.

Give yourself grace if it's got you down to the bone. 💙

A lil' more on mood:

It's tough sometimes to remember that *we* are the adults, and that *this* is what adulting looks like in our world.

Our species is ancient. Hundreds of thousands of years in small tribes. Laughing. Crying. Loving. Fearing. Telling stories.

But individually? We are *so young*. Even the oldest of us.

We try to graft the wisdom of other firefly-lives onto our own.

And make *such* mistakes.

Yet how fortunate we still are--for while here, we always have a chance to grow.

Hey loves,

How's your day been? 🫂

I'm still working on backlog, but when I get to the point where I want to disconnect from everything, I know I need to "tap in" and remind myself I'm not alone.

On the days when it is... very difficult to see the point of anything... when nothing charms and you honestly can't remember how anything ever did...

Just remember you don't have to answer "What's the point?" right now. You can start simple:

Have you eaten?
Hydrated?
Stepped out and felt the world?

Morning, CoSo.

I have a news brief for folks who want to rage at the world being *differently* awful.

We've long known that bans on legal abortion don't reduce abortion rates. They only increase suffering: higher maternal mortality rates, and lower quality healthcare all around.

Meanwhile, there *are* things one can do if one is genuinely "pro-life" - like push for climate change action to improve fetal outcomes. (Not holding my breath, though...)

#ReproductiveRights
https://onlysky.media/mclark/state-bans-see-increase-in-national-abortions-decrease-in-reproductive-care/

(Off to bed now. Going to get up early and have a super-empowering pre-dawn run to remind me that I'm tougher than this BS. Be good to yourselves!)

I had a rotten day: mental stuff.

Someone's harassing me in my neighbourhood--not malevolently, just with no sense of boundaries--& all I can do is change routines & wait him out--but it makes me feel trapped. Today, it had my brain flailing in a million directions trying to "bargain" my way out.

I've been held at gunpoint three times in Colombia, and otherwise assaulted plenty. I *can* handle myself. I just hate having to.

Here's a cutie patootie of a rat. Hope you've had better brain days!