Rafting Towards Relinquishment

Today is cloudy, cool, and wet.  It's been storming all morning.  We sure need the rain.

I fed the birds.

EDIT 4/27/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.




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This poem was written outside the regular prompt calls. It was inspired by a prompt from zianuray. It has been sponsored by a pool with fuzzyred. This poem belongs to the Shiv thread of the Polychrome Heroics series.


"The Graffiti of the Rich"

[Wednesday, November 5, 2014]

For months, Shiv had been
enjoying the ever-changing display
of graffiti along a retaining wall
between Blues Moon and
Buster Hump's Gym.

It was a perfect place
to get a good feel for
the neighborhood
and its current artists.

Then one day, Shiv
arrived to find that
someone had covered
the wall with grey paint.

Fuming, he glared at
the nearby billboards.

Funny how nobody ever
covered up those eyesores.

That got him thinking about
some stuff that Dr. G had said
about cultures, graffiti, and
what counted as artwork.

Smirking, he pulled out
a black paint pen and
scribbled his rebuttal.

With grey paint we silence
some voices in society.
Advertising is fine -- it is,
after all, the graffiti of the rich.

These are some posts from the later part of last week in case you missed them:
Poem: "Our Homemade Safety Nets"
Birdfeeding
Friending Meme
Today's Adventures
Philosophical Questions: Different
You Don't Have to Stay
Science
Birdfeeding
Today's Adventures
Birdfeeding
Follow Friday 4-24-26: Metal
Vocabulary: Scabrous
History
History
History
Community Thursdays
Earth Day
Poem: "When You Learn to Read"
Wildlife
Birdfeeding
Hard Things

Poem: "Walnut Park" has 41 comments. Early Humans has 22 comments. Philosophical Questions: Pregnancy has 66 comments. Safety has 77 comments.


Three Weeks for Dreamwidth is running April 25-May 15. People aim to make a new post each day, or participate in various activities to celebrate the platform.

Three Weeks for Dreamwidth: Introduction to Becoming an Expert
Three Weeks for Dreamwidth: Architecture




"No Faster or Firmer Friendships" belongs to Polychrome Heroics and needs $45 to be complete. Josué makes friends with Maria-Vera.


The weather has been mild here. We got some rain the other day. Seen at the birdfeeders this week: a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches, a male cardinal, and a fox squirrel. Red-winged blackbirds have been singing overhead. I heard a bluejay screaming but didn't see it. Currently blooming: violets, tulips, anemone, Solomon's seal, pansies, violas, sweet alyssum, bleeding heart, chokecherries, alliums, lilies of the valley, marigolds, honeysuckle, raspberies, snapdragons, lantana, million bells, blue lobelia, petunias, portulaca, nemesia, wild chives, star of Bethlehem. Flower buds: peonies. Green fruit: mulberries.

This poem came out of the March 17, 2026 Bonus Fishbowl. It was inspired by a prompt from dialecticdreamer. It also fills the "Thread" square in my 3-1-26 card for the National Crafting Month Bingo fest. This poem has been sponsored by fuzzyred. It belongs to the Mercedes thread of the Polychrome Heroics series.

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Today is sunny and mild.

I fed the birds. I've seen a few sparrows and house finches, plus a fox squirrel.

I put out water for the birds.

I set out some of the potted plants in flats.

4/26/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

4/26/26 -- I planted 4 petunias, 4 blue lobelia, and a 'Dusty Miller' artemesia in the blue chalk horse pot.

4/26/26 -- I planted two pots, each with 2 petunias, 4 white alyssum, and a 'Dusty Miller' artemesia. I put the last 'Dusty Miller' into the previous pot of yellow-and-white flowers.

When making a container garden of different flowers, it helps to create some unity by repeating elements. I do that with the fillers: 'Dusty Miller' artemesia, alyssum, and lobelia.

4/26/26 -- I potted up the three ice plants for the new picnic table garden. This concludes the batch of plants from DeBurh's.

4/26/26 -- We picked up dead weed stems from the edge of the south lot. We filled the wagon and only cleared about 3-4 feet by maybe 20 feet. :/

4/26/26 -- I got the groundcloth laid out; it's still flyaway and fragile, but at least on a calmer day I got it pinned down good enough for government work. I hauled out the solid-top pallet and sprayed the top side with waterseal.

4/26/26 -- I sprayed the underside of the solid-top pallet.

We rolled up the hose.

My partner Doug is going out to mow the little bit we got cleared.

4/26/26 -- I put the solid-top pallet back in the shed.

4/26/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

As it is now dark, I am done for the night.

This year during Three Weeks for Dreamwidth, I'm writing about reading as a way of becoming an expert in a given subject. Read Part 1: Introduction to Becoming an Expert, Part 3: Dance.


Three Weeks for Dreamwidth Part 2: Architecture

Architecture is the art of designing and building structures, such as houses, offices, churches, or skyscrapers. It goes back only a little less far than humanity does. People have always needed shelters and event spaces, and started making their own rather early on. Here on Dreamwidth, check out farmhouseprints, flaneurs, photographic_i, and urban_photos.




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People have expressed interest in deep topics, so this list focuses on philosophical questions.

What would be different if the 9/11 terrorist attack never occurred?


We would have a lot more freedom, privacy, and civil rights. I might still be willing to use airports.

The terrorists may have missed the White House, but they scored a direct hit on the American way of life. It's among the most effective terrorist attacks in recorded history, and it's still working.

Scientists just discovered Africa is closer to breaking apart than we thought

East Africa may be cracking open—and the same forces tearing it apart could be why we have such a vivid record of human origins.

Beneath East Africa’s Turkana Rift, scientists have found the crust is thinning to a critical point, suggesting the continent is gradually breaking apart. This “necking” process marks an advanced stage of rifting that could eventually lead to a new ocean forming millions of years from now. Surprisingly, the same geological forces that are splitting the land may also explain why the region holds such a rich fossil record. Instead of being the birthplace of humanity, Turkana may just be where the story was best preserved.


... or the rift could rip open suddenly and unexpectedly quite a bit sooner. Say, if some other part of the crust made a massive shift to release pressure. I wouldn't want to live or work near there. It's fascinating to watch from a safe distance though.

This year during Three Weeks for Dreamwidth, I'm writing about reading as a way of becoming an expert in a given subject. Read Part 2: Architecture, Part 3: Dance.


Part 1: Introduction to Becoming an Expert

Previously I posted about "How to Get Good at Anything." That touched on "The 3 Book Rule to Become An Expert." The premise is that, if you have read just three books on a subject, you know more about it than the general level of knowledge. You don't know as much as a professional should, but you know enough to answer about 80% of questions on the matter. This is enough to be useful to most people regarding most issues in that area. The really complicated or difficult stuff can be left to the professional level of experts. Here on Dreamwidth, check out the Books communities and datahoarders.




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Today we went to the Spring Fest in Charleston. It was drizzling, but not enough to discourage us.

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