Black Cherries by W. S. Merwin
Apr. 27th, 2025 04:13 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
conulyLate in May as the light lengthens
toward summer the young goldfinches
flutter down through the day for the first time
to find themselves among fallen petals
cradling their day's colors in the day's shadows
of the garden beside the old house
after a cold spring with no rain
not a sound comes from the empty village
as I stand eating the black cherries
from the loaded branches above me
saying to myself Remember this
*******
Link
toward summer the young goldfinches
flutter down through the day for the first time
to find themselves among fallen petals
cradling their day's colors in the day's shadows
of the garden beside the old house
after a cold spring with no rain
not a sound comes from the empty village
as I stand eating the black cherries
from the loaded branches above me
saying to myself Remember this
Link
rainy custom icon
Apr. 23rd, 2025 03:54 amsetsuntamew posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
iconsI'm back at it with another freebie, but this time it's something that reminds me of rainy season I'm in right now~
request your own @vogliaa
request your own @
vogliaaRecent Reading: The Starless Sea
Apr. 22nd, 2025 06:39 pmrocky41_7 posting in booksThe most recent commute audiobook was The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern, of The Night Circus fame (although admittedly I have not read that one yet). This is a fantasy novel about Zachary, a young man swept into the drama of a secret underground society and the mysterious figures who surround it.
I finished this book on Sunday morning, catching the last 7 minutes of a whopping 19-hour runtime over breakfast, and since then I've settled into a relative disappointment. On paper, this book has so many things that should make it an ace in the hole for me: Book lovers! Cats! Secret magical societies! Queer characters! Women who are something Other taking control of their destinies! And yet, overall, this book just did not land for me.
As is a risk, I think, with all stories that are about the power of stories, The Starless Sea comes off a little pretentious and self-important. It is a book lauding the unmatched importance of books. I felt aware at various points throughout the book of how hard it was trying to appeal to people like me, who would enjoy the idea of a dark-paneled underground room with endless books and an on-demand kitchen, and this sense of pandering did take away from it at times.
However, it also does some interesting things with regards to what it is like to be the person in a story (such as the fate of Eleanor and Simon, once their part in the story is done) as well as the risks of valuing preservation over change and growth. Without giving too much away, there is a secret society in decline, and a woman so determined to prevent its downfall that she ends up causing significant harm to the organization she's trying to save because she is unwilling to accept that an end comes for all things. I enjoyed this theme and I felt like it was echoed well throughout the story, and in many ways it's easy to sympathize with her ultimate goals, if not her methods.
( Read more... )
Sam Wilson. MCU. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.
Apr. 22nd, 2025 11:01 pminkcharm posting in fandom_icons
van gogh close-ups (25)
Apr. 21st, 2025 05:35 pmtozka posting in iconsExperimenting with zooming in super close so you can see the cool brushstrokes and other details, basically.
Preview:
The rest here atlakertya
Preview:
The rest here at
lakertyaI did the second most terrifying thing
Apr. 24th, 2025 02:00 pmconulyand applied for a shitton of jobs. The worst they can do is call me a dipshit, and they probably wouldn't do that to my face. I think? Seems like a waste of time to call somebody up and say "You're terrible, how could you think we'd consider you?"
*****************
( Read more... )
( Read more... )
Ode to a Yellow Onion by C. Dale Young
Apr. 23rd, 2025 03:51 amconulyAnd what if I had simply passed you by,
your false skins gathering light in a basket,
those skins of unpolished copper,
would you have lived more greatly?
Now you are free of that metallic coating,
a broken hull of parchment,
the dried petals of a lily—
those who have not loved you
will not know differently.
But you are green fading into yellow—
how deceptive you have been.
Once I played the cithara,
fingers chafing against each note.
Once I worked the loom,
cast the shuttle through the warp.
Once I scrubbed the tiles
deep in the tub of Alejandro.
Now I try to deciper you.
Beyond the village, within a cloud
of wild cacao and tamarind,
they chant your tale, how you,
most common of your kind,
make the great warrior-men cry
but a woman can unravel you.
****
Link
your false skins gathering light in a basket,
those skins of unpolished copper,
would you have lived more greatly?
Now you are free of that metallic coating,
a broken hull of parchment,
the dried petals of a lily—
those who have not loved you
will not know differently.
But you are green fading into yellow—
how deceptive you have been.
Once I played the cithara,
fingers chafing against each note.
Once I worked the loom,
cast the shuttle through the warp.
Once I scrubbed the tiles
deep in the tub of Alejandro.
Now I try to deciper you.
Beyond the village, within a cloud
of wild cacao and tamarind,
they chant your tale, how you,
most common of your kind,
make the great warrior-men cry
but a woman can unravel you.
Link
conulyJenn's plan to self-set-up her own balanced billing + a random screwup with autopay that she didn't realize until we were in the hole + having to help a friend get out of an abusive relationship = omg.
I'm pretty sure that they legally can't actually shut us off until May 15th, and once we get the tax refund we can pay the entire past due bills... but there's no promise we will get that refund by that date, and I would be surprised if we do. I don't want to go a week without lights and hot water, or a fridge and stove.
I'm reasonably certain that if we pay even half the past due now, we can talk them into waiting for that refund. The entire total is something like $6k... I'm a little scared to look again, honestly. I just sorta glanced at the bills in horror.
I've got paypal and venmo, which is posted here, or if you can't see that and can and want to help out you can PM me. We can absolutely pay back (or forward!) as soon as that refund comes in. I know how much the refund is, it will cover these bills.
(I've also been sitting on posting this for a few days, so I better get it out before I chicken out again!)
I'm pretty sure that they legally can't actually shut us off until May 15th, and once we get the tax refund we can pay the entire past due bills... but there's no promise we will get that refund by that date, and I would be surprised if we do. I don't want to go a week without lights and hot water, or a fridge and stove.
I'm reasonably certain that if we pay even half the past due now, we can talk them into waiting for that refund. The entire total is something like $6k... I'm a little scared to look again, honestly. I just sorta glanced at the bills in horror.
I've got paypal and venmo, which is posted here, or if you can't see that and can and want to help out you can PM me. We can absolutely pay back (or forward!) as soon as that refund comes in. I know how much the refund is, it will cover these bills.
(I've also been sitting on posting this for a few days, so I better get it out before I chicken out again!)
Happy Easter!
Apr. 20th, 2025 08:08 pmaelfgyfu_meadHappy Easter to all who observe it in any way!
And a good springtime (or autumn, for my friends Down Under) to all.
And a good springtime (or autumn, for my friends Down Under) to all.