Sustainability-Thoughts

Asks are welcome! Come talk to me!

[babybear]

evictions will begin again in NYC in about a month, and this will leave many people and families homeless, which in the heart of this country's epidemic could be a death sentence. shelters are already overcrowded as it is.

please donate to the NYC Eviction Fund started by Esteban Martinez here:

Eviction Prevention organized by Esteban Martinez

Hello my name is Esteban Martinez, also known as Creative Gold. I live in NYC and it has recently… Esteban Martinez needs your support for E

many cities are also about to be facing a mass eviction crisis. one way to help is donate to or start mutual aid funds like this specifically for eviction prevention in your city. housing is a human right!

[babybear]

more NY orgs to donate to:

https://vocal.ourpowerbase.net/civicrm/contribute/transact?id=23&reset=1

https://actionnetwork.org/fundraising/make-a-gift-to-help-us-build-power

https://www.unhny.org/donate

https://www.poorpeoplescampaign.org/donate/

[thebibliosphere]

It's 1 am, who wants to learn how to make maple candy?

[thebibliosphere]

Things you will need: maple syrup, a large-ish heavy set pot, a candy thermometer, silicone spatula, and a candy mold of some sort.

I'm making a reasonably large batch, so I am using approximately 28-30 fluid ounces. Which is roughly two and three quarter cups if you do not own a set of measuring scales.

The thermometer I am using in this instance is a wired one with a probe on the end, but you can also use one of these bad boys:

Just make sure it's intended to be used for the high temperatures of candy, as not all food thermometers are made equal.

Step one pour your desired amount of maple candy into a heavy set pot. I am using a 4 quart pot for this, as this amount of syrup can bubble over easily.

Next set your pot on a medium heat. Not high. Medium. We’re in this for the slow burn.

Make sure to monitor the heat of your candy at all times. We are aiming for a boiling 235’f (or 112 in Celsius) anything below that it won't harden, anything above that you'll either turn it into hard candy and burn the shit out of it and your pot and may need to explain to your local fire department why you're making candy at 1am. Don't ask me now, I know this.

It goes without saying, but please be careful handing this mixture. Hot sugar can be extremely dangerous and the burns quite severe so please take your time and don't panic. It the pot burns the pot burns. It's better than burning you.

Stir often to help increase the granulation process. It may not look like much is happening at first but you will soon start to see some activity on the surface.

The heat will soon start to pick up rather quickly at this point and it should start to look something like this:

And now I'm at the pic limit so see you on the reblog.

[thebibliosphere]

At this point your candy will be at about 225ish. And it's going to feel like it stays that way FOREVER as it struggles to get up that final ten degrees but do not be tempted to increase the heat or walk away. That's when it gets you and you're saying hi to Ron from the fire department. Again.

Keep stirring and don't be alarmed if it starts to rise up the side of the pot, it's meant to.

You can if necessary turn the heat down to keep it from overflowing, but I find keeping up a steady stirring pace helps to keep it in the pot.

Once it hits 235’f let it sit there for a hot minute, all the while keeping an eye on the thermometer.

If it starts hitting 236’f remove it from the heat and allow it to cool until it reaches 175’f or 79’c.

This will take approximately 10-15 minutes, or in my case the time it took eat a gluten-free cornbread waffle cause it's now 1:20 am, and I'm hungry.

Bone Ape Petite. 💀 🧇 😘👌

Once it's cooled to approximately 175’f, it's time to start stirring like a court bard with gossip to spread. I'm short so I had to move to the kitchen table to do this so my arms wouldn't fall off.

Before you do that though, take your thermometer out. And there's a little trick, you'll know you had the mixture hot enough if it's already starting to form a skin like this:

And also if it clings a little to the thermometer:

Mmmmm viscous.

Now start stirring. It's going to take approximately five minutes of constant stirring. Yes I'm serious. This is a workout. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the pot. We wouldn't want to lose any of the precious syrup. It will start to lighten in color as you go. So here are the stages it may look like:

And I'm at the image limit again so brb.

[thebibliosphere]

Once your mixing utensil is coated in the mixture like so:

It's time to pour that delicious mixture into your candy mold. Do not attempt to film this step one-handed or your significant other may wake up from a dead sleep demanding to know with inhuman instincts for dangerous shenanigans ”what bullshit you're up to”

If you left it a little too long cause you're trying to take pictures on your own, don't worry, the mixture should still be malleable enough to smoosh out with your spatula. If you have accidentally solidified it into a substance harder than diamond and can't get it out the pot, you can return it briefly to a low heat until it remembers the primordial state of ooze from whence we all came. Leave it to cool, throw some warm water in your pot to dissolve the sugar you couldn't scrape out even with a chisel.

When you can press lightly against it without leaving a dent, your mixture is cool enough to pop them out of your mold and into a preferably airtight storage container.

Lament that you took this picture the wrong way round, but concede it is now 2:22 am, and you don't care enough to fix it.

And there you have it, maple candy! They should last approximately four weeks in an airtight container. But, if you are anything like me, you are already halfway through them and careering not-so-gently towards a sugar-induced ADHD blackout because nothing else is helping you focus, you're a week behind on a deadline, and you can't have caffeine any more, so sugar is your only hope.

Remember, kids, eat sugar responsibly and do as I say, not as I do.

See you on the other side.

[mevima]

I love the poetry that is the clock on the stove hitting 2:36am at exactly the right moment.

[thebibliosphere]

If you're paying attention, you'll notice that none of my clocks are set to the right time.

The one on the thermometer is an hour behind, the one on the stove was an hour ahead. Which is what happens when both you and your partner have severe ADHD time blindness, and three months of quarantine has finally removed the last shaky grasps of time as a stable construct from your psyche and a recent power outage forced you to reset everything and now you can't be bothered to fix it...

[thereoncewasamannamedtim]

Clarifying questions:

Does it have to be a candy thermometer specifically?

Could I use an ice tray as a candy mold?

[thebibliosphere]

Ice trays do work, just make sure it’s a silicone one for heat resistance. 

And not necessarily, but it does need to be able to go up to at least 235′f, and ideally you want one long enough to make sure any plastic is outside the pot and not say, leaning against the side. 

I’ve also had instances of non-candy thermometers either shattering (glass) or straight-up melting cause they’re designed for making sure your roast is done, not being left on the side of a pot which contains molten liquids. So yea, in theory, you can use another type of food thermometer. Just be aware you might significantly shorten its lifespan. 

[luckcat-deactivated20240730]

HELP DEFUND THE LAS CRUCES POLICE

https://lascruceeightcantwait-main.carrd.co/

Las Cruces as a city has the highest rate of per capita police killings in the country between 2015 and 2019. HERE is a link to a one of the recent victims, with a story that sounds all too familiar as well as a citation for the above statistic.

The carrd linked above lists all the city officials email addresses and provides a form letter that you can email to them by copying and pasting. Every email and bit of pressure on elected officials helps.

[dovekiss]

The most comprehensive link to donations, petitions, resources and information. Silence is compliance in violence.

[kendallroy-deactivated20210425]

25 Black-owned bookstores you can support right now

while i don’t claim to be a “book blogger” by any account (more of a cranky publishing-person blogger most days), i know a lot of people have followed me through my book posts, so i’m taking advantage of that captive audience to boost these bookstores. shop them through their own websites and if you’re local, look into curbside pickup to minimize shipping costs and overhead. okay that’s all thanks bye stay safe.

the lit bar (a personal favorite and the bronx’s one remaining bookstore)

hariett’s bookshop

semicolon bookstore

mahogany books

uncle bobbie’s

loyalty bookstore

dare books

listening tree books

underground books

multicultural bookstore

pyramid books

black dot bookstore

brain lair books

medu bookstore

wild fig books and coffee

frugal bookstore

olive tree books

detroit book city

cafe con libros

revolution books

sisters uptown bookstore

source booksellers

hakim’s bookstore

sankofa books and cafe

turning page bookshop

[patterns-acnh]

PLACES TO DONATE AND SIGN TO SUPPORT BLM

(Do not donate money to change.org, none of their funds go to their petitions or organizations)

I Run With Maud - a fundraiser for the family of Maud to support them financially and seek justice. Ahmaud Arbery is black man who was chased and gunned down by two white men. (donation)

Minnesota freedom fund - raise money to bail out minnesota protesters (donation)

Official George Floyd donation fund (donation

The heart of a chef - Help pay for a black chef’s medical expenses

Justice for Sheku Bayoh - A black male who was taken into police custody and never returned home (petition)

Justice for Jennifer Jeffley - A black woman who was arrested at the age of 15 for a crime she did not commit (petition)

Abolish prison labor in the US (petition)

Free Willie Simmons - A black man serving 38 years for stealing $9 (petition)

Free Siyanda Mngaza - A young black woman sentenced to 4 1/2 years for self defence (petition)

Drop all charges against trafficking survivor Chrystul Kizer - A black woman incarcerated for using self defence against a trafficker (petition)

Justice for Zinedine - A black woman who was r*ped and he walks free. (petition)

Justice for Joāo Pedro - A 14 year old black boy who was shot in his home by the Rio de Janeiro police and died. 72 bullet holes were found in his home. (petition)

Justice for Sean Reed - A young black man who’s life ended after excessive violence by the cops against him while he was unarmed. (petition)

Justice for Breonna Taylor - A black woman, an award winning EMT who was killed by police in her home after an illegal unnanounced drug raid. They went to the WRONG HOUSE. (petition)

Exonerate Eric Riddick - A black man who was sentenced to life in prison for a crime he did not commit in 1992. There was no physical evidence. (petition)

Justice for Elijah Nichols - A black man who was attacked by a predominantly white fraternity party, stabbed his attackers in self defence, and is now incarcerated for it. (petition)

Justice for Emerald Black - A black pregnant woman who was attacked by the police for having bad registration tags. She was stomped in the stomach causing her to miscarry. (petition)

Justice for Amiya Braxton - A black child who was hit by a car. No one took her case serious and the driver was not charged. (petition)

Justice for Belly Mujinga - A black woman who was attacked while she had COVID-19 which likely lead to her death.(petition)

Justice for Tamir Rice - A 12 year old black boy who was shot and killed by officers for playing with a toy gun. The officers were not charged. (petition)

Justice for Andile Mchunu - A missing black man who was last seen beaten by a group of men. (petition)

Disbarment of George E. Barnhill - The man who decided to sit on the case of Ahmaud Arbery. (petition)

Criminal charges against Travis and Greg McMichael in the murder of black jogger Ahmaud Arbery. (petition)

Correcting a wrongful conviction against Kyjuanzi Harris - A black man who was arrested without cause. He has been in prison for 9 years now. (petition)

Justice for Darrius Stewart - A black man who was killed by a cop for a mistaken identity. (petition)

Reopen Kendrick Johnsons case - A black man who was killed by a man through a jealous fight over a girl. The autopsy revealed that his death was not accidental, the man admits to murder, yet the case is closed. (petition)

Raise the degree - remove bail for Derek Chauvin, the man who killed George Floyd (petition)

Exoneration of Albert Wilson - A black male wjo was sentenced by an all white jury 12 years for making out with a white woman in a bar. (petition)

Julius Jones - An innocent man set to be excecuted in oklahoma (petition)

Junk the anti-terrorism bill- a bill is trying to get passed calling protests, mass mobilizations, and political activities “terrorism” and trying to make them illegal (petition)

Justice for Darrius Stewart - a 19 year old who was gunned down by a white police officer (petition)

Free Wis. teen facing life in prison for killing her rapist (petition)

Justice for Alejandro Vargas Martinez - A black 15 year old who was shot 7 times while walking to school (petition)

I need to share this right now so I can eat but i will add more later! I DON’T care if its not ACNH. If this bothers you, unfollow me. I couldn’t care less. It bothers me how little I see donation and petition links on here, i have a good amount of followers on here, so see this. sign them.

Please sign them ALL. It really is NOT that hard. And share so others will do the same.

[patterns-acnh]

HERE is a thurough link for every city’s bail funds!!!

Reclaim the Block - an organization to help the Minneapolis community to access housing, youth services, harm reduction, and protection for low wage workers. (donation)

Help coach Steve Parker get back in the game - Black tennis player Steve Parker was diagnosed with COVID-19 and recovered and then later suffered a serious stroke. Help pay for his medical and rehabilitation bills. (donation)

Columbus freedom fund - bail out columbus protesters and people in need (donation)

Detroit Justice - bail out protesters and people in need (donation)

Humanity behind bars - an organization dedicated to building inside and outside alliances and re-entry networks of care. (donation)

Atlanda solidarity fund- bail out atlanta protesters (donation)

Brooklyn community bail fund (donation)

Philly bail fund (donation)

National revolving bail fund (donation)

NYC Free Them All bail fund (donation)

Chicago bail fund (donation)

Boston Mass bail fund (donation)

Kansas community bail fund (donation)

Hawaii community bail fund (donation)

Vegas freedom fund (donation)

Memphas bail fund (donation)

Nebraska left coalition (donation)

NC community bail fund (donation)

Milwaukee freedom fund (donation)

Portland freedom fund

Alachua COVID-19 Bond Fund - Release those from jail to protect them from COVID (donation)

Detroit bail fund (donation)

People’s city counsil freedom fund - Increase the safety and bail of protesters protesting the lack of funds LA provides for it’s people during COVID-19 (donation)

Richmund community bail fund - bail out richmund protesters (donation)

BYP100 - A registered cheritable organization to support social welfare giving. (donation)

North Star Health Collective - Help support a stronger healthier community (donate)

Lousville community bail fund - bail out lousville protesters (donation)

Black visions donation (donate)

Nadarrius Lundy memorial fund - Nadarrius lost his life at 15 years old drowning in Jacob’s Creek, help pay for his memorial funds (donate)

BLACK LIVES MATTER - fund their movement (donation)

Greene Family fire relief - The Greene family of 11 lost their house due to an electrical fire, help pay for their expenses (donation)

Marcus Jackson medical fund - Marcus Jackson needs help fighting bone cancer (donation)

COVID-19 survivor, Ron’s Road to recovery - help pay his hospital bills (donation)

Jessica Mahone - Her and her 9 year old son were hit by a drunk driver, help pay her medical bills (donation)

Comfort and support for the Moncrease family - In the midst of Maria being 9 months pregnant it was found that Justice had a terminal and mutated form of Multiple Myeloma. (donation)

Help a front line nurse and baby get proper care - Sylvia Leroy, a pregnant nurse, positive with COVID-19 suffered from cardiac arrest leaving her with brain injury from lack of oxygen (donation)

Support Rod Stoddart’s family - Help Rod’s family after his passing of COVID-19 (donation)

Justice for Greg Hill - Greg Hill, a black man, was killed in his garage by a sheriff’s deputy for a loud music complaint. The jury gave Hill’s estate $4 ($1 for each child’s pain and suffering and $1 for funeral expenses) Help repare his home and care for his children’s needs (donation)

Alton Sterling Family Scholarship - Sterling was shot and killed by police for selling CDs outside a food mart. Help pay for his children’s school and needs. (donation)

I DONT care that this is long, we need people’s attention.

[poguesgold]

HOW TO DONATE TO BLM WHEN YOU HAVE NO MONEY

a black woman named zoe amira posted a video on youtube. this video is an hour long and filled with art and music from black creators. it has a ton of ads, and in result will rack up a ton of revenue. 100% of the ad revenue from the video will be dispersed between various blm organizations, including bail-out funds for protesters. it will be split between the following, dependent on necessity

brooklyn bail fund

minnesota freedom fund

atlanta action network

columbus freedom fund

louisville community bail fund

chicago bond

black visions collective

richmond community bail fund

the bail project inc

nw com bail fund

philadelphia bail fund

the korchhinski-parquet family gofundme

george floyd’s family gofundme

blacklivesmatter.com

reclaim the block

aclu

turn off your adblocker and put the video on repeat. do not skip ads. let it play on loop whether you’re listening or not. mute the tab if you need to focus elsewhere. but let. it. play.

youtube will donate to blm for you.

please, please reblog. for people who don’t have money to spare, this is incredibly important information to have.

[thehumming6ird]

Now this is initiative in action. Signal boost!

[cenobitic-anchorite]

Consider not looping it, it'll get marked as spam. Shake it up between loops.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Trump will deliver killing blow to the USPS

The USPS is about to declare bankruptcy. It’s at the center of the longstanding plans for disaster recover and has been since the Cold War. It’s the only institution that could (for example) deliver covid meds to every home in America in one day.

https://pluralistic.net/2020/03/25/national-emergency-library/#going-postal

But Congress has decided not to bail out the postal service, despite Art 1, Sec 8 of the US Constitution: “To establish Post Offices and post Roads.”

Maybe it’s because without a USPS we couldn’t have a postal vote in 2020?

https://pluralistic.net/2020/03/27/just-asking-questions/#save-usps

The proximate cause of the post office’s bankruptcy is the pandemic, but that is merely the finishing blow. The USPS was murdered in 2006, when Congress passed the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act.

https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2020/04/will-the-united-states-post-office-become-a-victim-of-covid19.html

The Act gave the USPS a mere 10 years to “prefund its future health care benefit payments to retirees for the next 75 years.” That is, to set aside cash to pay medical bills for future employees who hadn’t been born yet.

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h109-6407

The Act gave the USPS a mere 10 years to “prefund its future health care benefit payments to retirees for the next 75 years.” That is, to set aside cash to pay medical bills for future employees who hadn’t been born yet.

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h109-6407

The USPS’s murder is straight out of the neoliberal playbook: “1 Defund, 2 claim crisis, 3 call for privatizatization, 4 profit!”

As Lambert Strether points out, it was a bipartisan act of murder, cosponored by the “centrist” Democrat Henry Waxman.

Killing the USPS looms large in the Trump admin’s (nonmetaphorical, actual) privatization playbook, “Delivering Government Solutions in the 21st Century Reform Plan and Reorganization Recommendations”:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Government-Reform-and-Reorg-Plan.pdf

The proposals are for USPS to become a Wework clone or franchisee, but not to become a publicly owned bank - a common line of business for other nations’ postal services, natural based on the amounts of cash they handle.

The USPS is the nation’s second largest employer of veterans, with 630,000 employees. Trump is about to allow it to collapse so that UPS, Fedex and other private firms can skim off the most profitable parts of its business and leave rural Americans totally isolated.

The loss of the USPS would mean the loss of the last truly universal federal program in America and would unduly hammer the people whom Trump claims to love – veterans and rural voters.

https://twitter.com/lildipshit3/status/1248741868440940544

[wilwheaton]

I read a diary at Daily Kos which suggested that if half the households in America bought 2 sheets of Forever Stamps, for about 16 bucks, it would provide enough funding to keep the USPS alive. How fucked up is this? We’re trying to save the fucking Postal Service, which is in the fucking CONSTITUTION, from Republican sabatoge. There is no such thing as a moderate, or patriotic, Republican. They are anti-American Fascists.

[livebloggingmydescentintomadness]

don’t miss the fact that this is coinciding exactly with the push to increase mail-in voting, which would seriously jeopardize Trump’s reelection. you can’t have mail-in ballots if there’s no postal service, right?

Americans, please text USPS to 50409 and ResistBot will send a message to your senators and congressperson telling them to save the Post Office.

i did it yesterday and it couldn’t have been easier. my senators are both pieces of shit, but that doesn’t mean i’m not going to give them an earful about this.

[vampireapologist-archive-deacti]

Texting resistbot was SUPER easy, and I got an email reply from my senator’s office today confirming my email went through. Please do at least that!

[luckcat-deactivated20240730]

i am going to be lazy and ask for ideas here because i’m like,, officially out of them. if you were a student what kind of activities would you like to do at a history museum

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfr1A29Ji93KEe8dkkPQSiYxYbOSew7PgC6OAj9_9oHHRyE6w/viewform?usp=sf_link

[attemptedly-conscious]

Sustainable cookware brands?

Hey guys,

I’m moving to the United States next month, and I’m hoping to get an apartment soon after I finish my quarantine. Unfortuntely, a lot of the things I currently have I cannot bring, as I live in Japan right now. My question is: does anyone have any good sustainable brands of cookware/kitchenware/bakeware that they can share with me? I’m hoping not to spend too much. I’m just hoping to start off right with these things.

Since I’ll have nothing, I’m basically looking at everything: from dishware and utensils to bakeware to cookware or whatever.

Summary:

- Must be available in United States

- Must not be grossly expensive

- Must be practical

- I’d prefer to get as much in one colour scheme as possible, as I get overhwhelmed by unintentional multiple colours in a space.

Thanks,,

[woo-sustainability]

If you can find it, cast iron cookware lasts forever if you care for it properly. I would recommend checking out estate sales but you may also be able to find good stuff online. My mom’s cast iron used to be HER mom’s, and eventually it may be mine (those pans makes me nervous, they’re so heavy.) Might it get a tad pricey? I honestly don’t know, but they really do last forever if you don’t wash them. (Trust me, your cast iron skillet will be all the better for it. Any soap will remove the seasoning, says my mom.)

[sustainability-thoughts]

Another really good option finding cast iron online is the goodwill website (here). I would also highly recommend looking in actual thrift stores once quarantine ends as it’s often really easy to pick up dish sets or pot and pans there if you go a couple of times.

Its also worth mentioning that thrift stores vary wildly in pricing and what they have available so it’s worth checking more than one and finding a favorite.

[sustainability-thoughts]

ya’ll i finally figured out a solution to using replies with this account, from now on my replies will be from @sustainable-thought but I will be keeping this as the blog I actually use.

[sustainability-thoughts]

Does anyone have any tips/recommendations for easy to grow fruit?

The gardening I’ve done has always been very veggie centric and I would love to change that.

[queererrant]

Lemon and lime trees can live in containers, but need 8-10 hours of sunlight a day. My Meyer Lemon doesn’t look like it overwintered successfully, but it probably would have with the right setup (grow light).

On the other hand, raspberries are supposed to be pretty easy, and could live in the ground in my climate. I’m thinking of trying that next. They’re a little smaller than most other berry bushes.

[sustainability-thoughts]

Ya’ll if you go sign this it would be great, it’s also super important.

https://action.aclu.org/send-message/tell-ice-reduce-number-people-detention-new-mexico

[sustainability-thoughts]

Does anyone have any tips/recommendations for easy to grow fruit?

The gardening I’ve done has always been very veggie centric and I would love to change that.

[feelingthebern]

Here's a quick FAQ, since apparently this announcement has people confused:

1. "Isn't Sanders still running? He's just suspended his campaign, not dropped out!"

No, today was (unfortunately) the official and practical end of Bernie's 2020 presidential campaign. Bernie might remain on the ballot in some remaining states, but he is no longer actively contesting or seeking the nomination. He is not running as an independent, and he is not going to be on the ballot in November.

In his own words, "I cannot in good conscience mount a campaign that cannot win and would interfere with the important work required of all of us."

The delegates he has earned will still attend the convention and do important work, hopefully advocating for Bernie's causes and helping the move the Democratic party further left today and into the future.

---

2. "Sanders was the only hope for a progressive future! What am I supposed to do now?"

Well, keep fighting! Bernie has been in fight this since the 1960s, and he's not going to give up - neither should you. The presidency is important, but it's not the endgame: everything Bernie has accomplished so far has been possible because he won other elections, like Senate races and Mayoral elections.

If you stay home in November, you're missing out on your chance to vote for the next Bernie, because they might be running for school board or mayor or state rep. And more than they need your support in November, they need your support today. Look up the people running in down-ballot races for your location, and get in touch with a local campaign! Phone bank, talk to your family, STAY INVOLVED. Apathy is one of the greatest enemies to the progressive agenda today.

---

3. "Isn't Joe Biden just as bad as Trump? I've seen a lot of negative stuff online."

It's important to be critical of political figures, especially during a primary election. Joe Biden has been in politics for a very long time, and his record is by no means spotless. There's lots to criticize, politically and personally. But having Biden in the big chair instead of Trump changes the entire game.

Look at it this way: if Joe Biden wins, a democratic Congress gets a clear path to passing real, lasting progressive laws. If Joe Biden wins, Ruth Bader Ginsburg gets to retire, and be replaced by a young firebrand who will make Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh's lives a living hell for the next 40 years. If Joe Biden wins, all of the horrible executive orders Trump has enacted are gone, on day one: family seperation, abortion bans in VA hospitals, EPA funding gutted, global warming denial in NOAA, removal of LGBT+ protections, all GONE in January 2021. If Joe Biden wins, all the Trump shills in the government disappear: I'm talking about new people in the CPB, the Justice Department, the FTC, and everything other federal agency.

With Biden instead of Trump, we're going to be fighting for Medicare for All vs. Obamacare, instead of Keeping Obamacare vs. Stripping Away Any Kind of Federal Insurance. We're going to be fighting for the Green New Deal vs. Having a Functional EPA, instead of Gutting The EPA or Having No EPA At All. The fight is way different, and we get to pull the conversation further left - where it belongs.

This election is just as much about getting rid of the Republican stench in the Oval Office as it is electing a particular person. So yeah, be critical of Joe Biden, but please don't lose sight of what President Joe Biden would actually look like versus President Trump.

---

If you're feeling confused, or want to talk about your feelings today, my inbox is always open. Keep your head up, and stay in this fight. It's not over yet.

[sustainability-thoughts]

i’ve been trying really hard to make sure our household isn’t wasting any food and this is a reminder to everyone that dried apples/dried fruit is super easy to make and also super good

some basic instructions are:

cut super thin slices of whatever you’re trying to dry out

turn your oven as low as it goes

put them in on (preferably with something underneath to let air flow under as well as over)

turn the occasionally

take out when they’re as dry as u want them to be

[systlin]

plauntie, how wet should my compost pile be? i live in a desert, and i mostly don't water my lawn. i just went to mix last years compost into my beans and basil (all I'm planting this year cause i plant in pots and i genuinely don't have the spare $10 to buy a bag of soil for my other pots) and i realized that *none* of last year's compost decomposed, and it's bone dry. none of the leaves that I left in the yard over winter have decomposed either, so it's not some fluke, as far as I can tell

And here you found out why deserts are such good preservers of organic material in archeological sites!

But anyway, compost needs to be damp to rot. Not very, just a bit. Dump a bucket over it now and then if you check the center and it’s bone dry in there.

[sustainability-thoughts]

From someone who lives in the desert and used to have a compost pile, we had to water ours once or twice a week or it got too dry. Idk if that helps but maybe it’s a starting point?