apod_feed

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260226.html

What does the universe look like through

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260226.html

ysabetwordsmith posting in

common_nature

Today I took some pictures around the yard and did a couple of garden crafts. These are from the house yard and savanna.

( Walk with me ... )

Current Mood: accomplished

pepysdiary_feed

Posted by Samuel Pepys

https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1663/02/26/

Up and drinking a draft of wormewood wine with Sir W. Batten at the Steelyard, he and I by water to the Parliament-house: he went in, and I walked up and down the Hall. All the news is the great odds yesterday in the votes between them that are for the Indulgence to the Papists and Presbyters, and those that are against it, which did carry it by 200 against 30. And pretty it is to consider how the King would appear to be a stiff Protestant and son of the Church; and yet would appear willing to give a liberty to these people, because of his promise at Breda. And yet all the world do believe that the King would not have this liberty given them at all.

Thence to my Lord’s, who, I hear, has his ague again, for which I am sorry, and Creed and I to the King’s Head ordinary, where much good company. Among the rest a young gallant lately come from France, who was full of his French, but methought not very good, but he had enough to make him think himself a wise man a great while. Thence by water from the New Exchange home to the Tower, and so sat at the office, and then writing letters till 11 at night.

Troubled this evening that my wife is not come home from Chelsey, whither she is gone to see the play at the school where Ashwell is, but she came at last, it seems, by water, and tells me she is much pleased with Ashwell’s acting and carriage, which I am glad of.

So home and to supper and bed.

Read the annotations

https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1663/02/26/

flickr_blog_feed

Posted by Flickr

https://blog.flickr.net/en/2026/02/26/mode-by-flickr-the-worlds-photography-festival/

https://blog.flickr.net/?p=92496

For decades, photography has shaped fashion, music, journalism, sports, activism, and the internet itself. Yet the people behind the lens have never had a festival built for them.

Until now.

What is MODE?

You know those mysterious emails we’ve been sending? The cryptic hints, the “something big is coming” energy? Well, the wait is over. Welcome MODE by Flickr—an immersive three-day photography festival coming to Minneapolis September 18-20, 2026.

For over 20 years, Flickr has connected photographers around the world — sharing work, building community, and proving that the lens is one of humanity’s most powerful tools. But there’s something that only happens when we’re together in person. Call it energy. Call it a vibe. The kind of spontaneous, face-to-face moment that can’t be recreated behind a keyboard.

So we did something never done before. We built MODE. MODE isn’t a conference. MODE isn’t a meetup. It’s a photographer’s playground — where you’ll rub elbows with your heroes, make new friends, and improve your craft all at once. Think live music, hands-on workshops, photowalks, darkroom sessions, lectures with your heroes, and so much more. MODE brings photography from behind the screen and into the scene.

Why Minneapolis?

Over the past year, we’ve had the privilege of spending meaningful time in Minneapolis while working alongside local partners to bring MODE festival to life. Throughout that time, this community has shown us what resilience, creativity, and togetherness look like. The city continues to navigate complex and defining moments in its history, and what we’ve witnessed is an unwavering commitment to connection, culture, and care for one another.

Every visit, every introduction, and every conversation reinforced why Minneapolis felt like the right home for MODE. There is a warmth here that is unmistakable, an enthusiasm for the arts, a spirit of collaboration, and a belief that creativity can help bring people closer together. Together with the city and its creative community, we’re building something bigger than a festival: a gathering place for artists, photographers, storytellers, and curious minds in one of the most culturally alive cities in the country.

And yes, Minneapolis in September is chef’s kiss. The city pulses with a thriving arts scene, incredible historic venues across downtown, and a community that knows how to celebrate creativity with heart and authenticity. With the support of Mayor Jacob Frey and city leaders, MODE will take over multiple iconic spaces throughout the weekend, bringing artists and audiences together across the city.

As Mayor Frey shared, MODE represents an opportunity to bring new energy to local streets, support small businesses, and create meaningful opportunities for artists, vendors, and residents alike. We couldn’t agree more. That shared belief is exactly why we’re so excited to welcome the global creative community to Minneapolis this September.

Minneapolis: Our City. Our Lens.

Minneapolis is a city that’s practically buzzing with creative energy. Whether your scene is food, fashion, dance, or architecture, you’ll find a rich community that can’t wait to welcome you and show you what this city is made of. And among those passionate creatives are our personal faves: the photographers documenting every memorable moment.

In this film, we take you through the streets, studios, and spaces that make this city unlike anywhere else. Because before the workshops, the keynotes, and the photo walks kick off this September, we wanted you to feel what’s waiting for you here.

Watch on YouTube

Seven ways to experience MODE.

We’ve organized MODE around seven thematic pillars, each representing a different expression of photography:

Change – World-shifting storytelling and photojournalism
Next – Emerging tools, technology, and the future of the craft
Money – The business side of photography
Motion – Video, moving images, and everything in between
Culture – Music, fashion, food, and the moments that define us
IRL – Analog processes, film, and tangible photography
Earth – Outdoor, environmental, and conservation photography

Whether you’re a street photographer, a landscape shooter, a portrait artist, or someone who just loves taking photos of their dog, there’s something at MODE for you.

The lineup (so far).

Leading this year’s festival as MODE’s Artist-in-Residence is Brooke Shaden – a fine art photographer and storyteller whose ethereal, cinematic self-portraits blur the line between photography and painting. Brooke will be embedded throughout the weekend, bringing her singular creative vision to workshops, conversations, and collaborative moments across all three days.

Taking the keynote stage are photographers who have shaped the way we see the world: Chris Burkard, who has spent his career pushing into the planet’s most remote and extreme environments; Keith Ladzinski, an award-winning photographer and filmmaker who follows humanity’s most extraordinary pursuits; and Jimmy Steinfeldt, an iconic rock photographer and Minneapolis native whose career behind the lens spans decades and legends.

MODE’s programming spans every genre and discipline in photography. Attendees will hear from legendary portrait and fine art photographer Sandro Miller, celebrated for his masterful command of lighting and iconic visual storytelling; Polly Irungu, founder of Black Women Photographers and a leading voice advancing equity and representation in the industry; and documentary photographer and visual storyteller Penny De Los Santos, renowned for her immersive work exploring food, culture, and identity around the world. The full lineup is growing – Check out the lineup

A festival built on our values

MODE isn’t just about photography, it’s about creating an entirely original and unrepeatable experience that reflects who we are as a community. That means:

Accessible venues for all attendees.
Diverse, thoughtfully curated programming that represents the full spectrum of photography.
Sustainability measures built into every aspect of the festival.
Comprehensive safety protocols so everyone can focus on what matters: connecting and creating.

MODE is built with the same care and intention that goes into everything we do at Flickr, and that includes the planet: MODE is 1% for the Planet certified

Get Your Pass

Early Bird passes are on sale now and availability is limited.

Flickr Pro members receive exclusive festival perks, including access to a dedicated Pro Lounge and early access to workshops throughout the event.

View pass options and pricing at modefestival.com

More speakers, workshops, and musical acts will be rolled out in the coming months.

Follow along for updates:

On Flickr: Join the MODE group

Also, follow us on; Instagram: @modebyflickr TikTok: @modebyflickr Threads: @modebyflickr

https://blog.flickr.net/en/2026/02/26/mode-by-flickr-the-worlds-photography-festival/

https://blog.flickr.net/?p=92496

marycatelli posting in

books

Hunting the Falcon: Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn, and the Marriage That Shook Europe by John Guy and Julia Fox

A history/biography.

( Read more... )

cakewrecks_feed

Posted by Jen

https://www.cakewrecks.com/home/lean-on-me-2026

Everybody clap your hands and sway a little, k?

Some guys and their wives
See only shame
See only sorrrrrow

But if they are wise
they know that wrecks
Are so much more, oh!

Lean on me
When you're stacked wrong!

And I'll be your end
I'll mock you WITH this song

For
It won't be lo-oo-ong
Until gravity

Makes sure that you're cleeean gone!

Please, don't tell the bride
If it's a wreck, it needs no intro

For
no one can tell; maybe she'll need
something sweet to throw!

Lean on me!
When you're stacked wrong

And I'll be your end
I'll mock you WITH this song

For
It won't be long
Until gravity

Makes sure that you're clean gone!

You just call on your mother
When you need a hand

These cakes need somebody to leeeean on!

I just might have a Pisa
That we never planned

These cakes need somebody to leeean on!

Just faaaalll free!
(If you need to end)
Faaaaallll free
Oh, wreck it, now!

Faa-AAA-aalll
free-ee-eeeeee!!

Thanks to Steve, Deanne M., James N., Rachel O., Jessica R., Carol Anne, Kat B., Richard B., Anony M., & Rebecca Z. for the wedding crash course.

[Get it? Instead of 'main course?' Eh? OH C'MON THAT WAS AWESOME.]

*****

P.S. Anyone want to bring vintage style pins back? Because this entire set of 7 lovelies is only $12:

7 Pc Women's Brooch Set

OooOOOooh. I think the owl is my favorite. And the peacock. And the dragonfly.

*****

And from my other blog, Epbot:

https://www.cakewrecks.com/home/lean-on-me-2026

james_davis_nicoll

"What is this thing, and where the heck did it come from?" is a great way to start any story!

Five Science Fiction Stories About Investigating Enigmatic Artifacts

heleninwales

The GYWO challenge is working well for me and I'm glad I chose the habit pledge rather than word count. Although adding words to the draft is fundamental to writing a novel, there is much more to the process than that. There is revising of course, but there's all the organising and tracking too. I've created a database of all the characters in the fantasy trilogy. So far I've listed 72, but they're not all in there yet. So far only those who appear in the final book are included. I'll add the remainder as I begin to revise Book 1 and work my way through the whole thing. I also have a very sketchy map of the country showing the places where events happen and the distances between them. These planning and tracking activities take time and the habit pledge means I can count them for the challenge.

However, right now I'm struggling with writing a transition. There are some exciting scenes to come, but there needs to be what I always think of as a "joining bit" where the characters are very busy, but it's all boring planning meetings and making preparations. I find transitions particularly difficult to write and make interesting.

james_davis_nicoll

What better cure for melancholy than to serve under a captain whose obsessed pursuit of a leviathan will surely doom all involved?

Hell’s Heart by Alexis Hall

apod_feed

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260225.html

Ever wonder what it would look like to crack open the Sun?

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260225.html

pepysdiary_feed

Posted by Samuel Pepys

https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1663/02/25/

Up and to my office, where with Captain Cocke making an end of his last night’s accounts till noon, and so home to dinner, my wife being come in from laying out about 4l. in provision of several things against Lent. In the afternoon to the Temple, my brother’s, the Wardrobe, to Mr. Moore, and other places, called at about small businesses, and so at night home to my office and then to supper and to bed.

The Commons in Parliament, I hear, are very high to stand to the Act of Uniformity, and will not indulge the Papists (which is endeavoured by the Court Party) nor the Presbyters.

Read the annotations

https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1663/02/25/

james_davis_nicoll

The Good Society Bundle featuring Good Society, the Jane Austen-inspired tabletop roleplaying game from Storybrewers Roleplaying.

Bundle of Holding: Good Society (from 2024)

heleninwales

The novel (A Deadly Giftis still progressing. It's slow going because I haven't pre=imagined the ending in detail and only know what needs to happen rather then exactly how it happens. But I have either written words or made plot notes every day so far this month. The Get Your Words Out challenge is still working.

It's interesting that though I'm focusing on keeping the writing habit going, I am writing a decent number of words. I have always known that if I actually start to write, I will produce a reasonable amount of words. In the past, slow progress was mostly due to spending a lot of days not writing.

Writing progress
February writing goal: 8,000 words

A Deadly Gift

Total words this month: 7,063 / 8,000 (84%)
Words in novel (to nearest 100 words): 88,500

cakewrecks_feed

Posted by Jen

https://www.cakewrecks.com/home/the-labor-of-love-2026

Sure, you could go with rubber duckies and baby blocks, but that's sooo last decade. Today's shower cakes are all about the biology of baby-making: tasty and educational!

And while you're at it, why not congratulate dad, too?

Of course, mom also did her part:

Whoah, whoah, whoah! TMI, Dad, TMI!

You could even illustrate the whole process with the aid of disturbing plant analogies:

Raise your hand if you're going to have nightmares about daisies sprouting Alien-style from your midsection tonight. Anyone? Anyone? Just me? Alrighty, then.

Granted, the process doesn't always start exactly the same way:

Thank goodness that cup is labeled. Otherwise, we'd have some concerned coffee drinkers on our hands right about now.

And what does all this love math equal?

(No, your eyes do not deceive you: that IS a Fetal Bite cookie in that there uterus cake. Excellent.)

And that brings us to the Big, Life-Changing Moment!

AAAAAAUUUGGGHHHH!!

Yep, I'm changed for life.

Casey D., Heidi D., Hillary M., Kristin J., Jess, Shari W., & Tiffany D., when you're ready to have "the talk" with your kids, feel free to come back here for visual aids.

*****

This book has over 2,000 5-star reviews and looks absolutely hysterical, definitely bookmark it for the new parents in your life:

How to Traumatize Your Children: 7 Proven Methods to Help You Screw Up Your Kids Deliberately and with Skill

*****

And from my other blog, Epbot:

https://www.cakewrecks.com/home/the-labor-of-love-2026

james_davis_nicoll

What could possibly go wrong with playing along with an unhappy teen's delusions?

Babel no Toshokan by Tsubana

apod_feed

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260224.html

Look up this week and see a whole bunch of planets.

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260224.html

pepysdiary_feed

Posted by Samuel Pepys

https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1663/02/24/

Slept hard till 8 o’clock, then waked by Mr. Clerke’s being come to consult me about Field’s business, which we did by calling him up to my bedside, and he says we shall trounce him.

Then up, and to the office, and at 11 o’clock by water to Westminster, and to Sir W. Wheeler’s about my Lord’s borrowing of money that I was lately upon with him, and then to my Lord, who continues ill, but will do well I doubt not.

Among other things, he tells me that he hears the Commons will not agree to the King’s late declaration, nor will yield that the Papists have any ground given them to raise themselves up again in England, which I perceive by my Lord was expected at Court. Thence home again by water presently, and with a bad dinner, being not looked for, to the office, and there we sat, and then Captn. Cocke and I upon his hemp accounts till 9 at night, and then, I not very well, home to supper and to bed. My late distemper of heat and itching being come upon me again, so that I must think of sweating again as I did before.

Read the annotations

https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1663/02/24/

redbird

I have just been out for a walk, a day after the blizzard: bright blue sky, temperature around freezing, and most but not all of the sidewalks have been cleared, so I walked down the middle of the street for a bit. The turkey flock that hangs out on Egremont Road is now up to at least 12 birds, two of which were sitting on a railing. [We got 16-18 inches of snow, I think--the official number from the airport is 16.5, which is significant, but a lot less than this storm dumped on some places.]

heleninwales

Don't speak to loudly, but it's not raining today. We actually got out to the forest for a walk this morning and in the afternoon we had sunshine, and the daffodils are blooming... And after one decent day, rain is forecast for the rest of the week. :-(

But we had a good walk in the forest this morning. We did the circular walk starting from the car park in Ganllwyd in a clockwise direction for a change. This means setting off up the very steep hill past the village hall and then on into the forest. As we walked we talked about all the other walks that we haven't done all winter because the ground will be too wet. Slogging through quagmires is no fun and can get slippery and dangerous. Perhaps sometime in the future the endless rain will stop and we'll be able to do those walks again?

Anyway, here are walk pictures. Despite the forecast being saying it would be a dry day, it did start off misty with occasional faint drizzle. Looking out to the right as we plodded up the steep hill.

A welcome touch of colour. There are different varieties of gorse so you can find it blooming somewhere all year round.

( More walk photos here... )

In other news...

We have a blackbird in the garden again. We always had a blackbird and I loved hearing their song as afternoon heads into evening and in the early morning. For some reason there was no blackbird last year. I had read that there was a virus affecting blackbirds, so perhaps that was it? But I'd seen three or four blackbirds around recently and now one has started singing.