Did Minnesotans protesting killing of Renee Good demand 'higher wages'? Here's the truth
Jan. 13th, 2026 11:54 pm![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
snopes_feedA popular Christian satire site started the rumor.
snopes_feedcbc_topnews_feed
The plane used by the U.S. military to strike a boat accused of smuggling drugs off the coast of Venezuela last fall was painted to look like a civilian aircraft, a move that appears to be at odds with the Pentagon's manual on the laws of war.
Iranian man arrested amid protests sentenced to death, say human rights groups
Jan. 13th, 2026 06:28 pmcbc_topnews_feed
Erfan Soltani, a 26-year-old Iranian man, has been sentenced to death in Iran amid widespread protests and a deadly government crackdown, according to human rights groups.
Federal prosecutors resign amid turmoil over Minnesota ICE shooting investigation
Jan. 13th, 2026 06:02 pmcbc_topnews_feed
Roughly half a dozen federal prosecutors in Minnesota have resigned and several supervisors in the criminal section of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division have given notice of their departures amid turmoil over the federal investigation into the killing of a woman by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Minneapolis, according to people familiar with the matter.
1 arrested after anti-regime protest at Iran's empty embassy in Ottawa
Jan. 13th, 2026 05:40 pmcbc_topnews_feed
Ottawa police say they arrested someone on trespassing-related charges after Iran's shuttered embassy was defaced during an anti-regime protest on Monday.
Actor-director Timothy Busfield turns himself in to authorities on child sex abuse charges
Jan. 13th, 2026 05:31 pmcbc_topnews_feed
Director and Emmy Award-winning actor Timothy Busfield turned himself to authorities on Tuesday to face child sex abuse charges in New Mexico.
Fandom Snowflake Challenge #7
Jan. 13th, 2026 02:58 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
teaotter posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
snowflake_challengeIntroduction Post * Meet the Mods Post * Challenge #1 * Challenge #2 * Challenge #3 * Challenge #4 * Challenge #5 * Challenge #6 *
Remember that there is no official deadline, so feel free to join in at any time, or go back and do challenges you've missed.
( Fandom Snowflake Challenge #7 )
And please do check out the comments for all the awesome participants of the challenge and visit their journals/challenge responses to comment on their posts and cheer them on.
And just as a reminder: this is a low pressure, fun challenge. If you aren't comfortable doing a particular challenge, then don't. We aren't keeping track of who does what.
Remember that there is no official deadline, so feel free to join in at any time, or go back and do challenges you've missed.
( Fandom Snowflake Challenge #7 )
And please do check out the comments for all the awesome participants of the challenge and visit their journals/challenge responses to comment on their posts and cheer them on.
And just as a reminder: this is a low pressure, fun challenge. If you aren't comfortable doing a particular challenge, then don't. We aren't keeping track of who does what.
(no subject)
Jan. 13th, 2026 05:56 pmaurumcalendulaI wish news stories would consistently include the name and number associated with legislation when talking about how [x] has been blocked or voted on.
Patience
Jan. 13th, 2026 10:40 pmdavidgillonMy sister and I sat down together to watch the 1st episode of the second season of Patience - autistic criminal records clerk helps the murder team in York catch criminals. Neither of us had watched the first season.
Not bad, the autism seems mostly well handled - the self-help group seemed designed for humour though. The plot had perhaps a little too much reliance on weird science - revolving around someone with Rh-Null blood caught up in fringe medical stuff, though the vampirism red-herring was nicely handled. The second episode has infrasound as a murder weapon, and probably overplayed hyperacusis as a superpower, though it did also spend a lot of time showing how much of a problem it is for Patience.
But immediately the first episode finished, my sister turned to me and exclaimed: "She's exactly like you!"
I didn't answer that until the next day, because I was completely freaked out by how exactly like me she is.
Book Review: Labyrinth of Ice by Buddy Levy, narrated by WIll Damrom
Jan. 13th, 2026 02:45 pmjuushikaTitle: Labyrinth of Ice: The Triumphant and Tragic Greely Polar Expedition
Author: Buddy Levy
Narrator: Will Damron
Published: MacMillan Audio, 2019
Rating: 4.5 of 5
Page Count: 400
Total Page Count: 558,530
Text Number: 2102
Read Because: these boys be cold lemme tell you, audiobook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review:
The Lady Franklin Bay Expedition of 1881–1884 was a meteorological study and Farthest North attempt with catastrophic results: only seven of the twenty-five men survived. I picked this one up blind, meaning I didn't even have prior knowledge of the expedition, much less have I read primary sources; and I really couldn't be happier. Levy is great man theory-prone, drinking some of that Arctic explorer kool-aid, and this tips slightly sentimental in a repetitious way; I also prefer my discussions of cannibalism to be more crunchy and less the stinger to the narrative.
But, frankly, these are only nitpicks, because this is the ideal tragic Arctic exploration narrative, in content and coverage. I'm struck by passing similarities to the loss of the Franklin expedition, namely: when evacuating in the Arctic, it's easy to make bad decisions in good faith, and those decisions have lasting consequences—we really don't need to posit complicated explanations for them. And boy, such consequences; and Levy affords them great nuance, offering room to the mundanity of human foibles, tender in descriptions of deaths by starvation and scurvy, frostbite and misadventure; no tedium, here, and yet the long, slow misery is emphatically realized. Fantastic read, and, unfortunately for my TBR, and expedition I want to read more about.
Author: Buddy Levy
Narrator: Will Damron
Published: MacMillan Audio, 2019
Rating: 4.5 of 5
Page Count: 400
Total Page Count: 558,530
Text Number: 2102
Read Because: these boys be cold lemme tell you, audiobook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review:
The Lady Franklin Bay Expedition of 1881–1884 was a meteorological study and Farthest North attempt with catastrophic results: only seven of the twenty-five men survived. I picked this one up blind, meaning I didn't even have prior knowledge of the expedition, much less have I read primary sources; and I really couldn't be happier. Levy is great man theory-prone, drinking some of that Arctic explorer kool-aid, and this tips slightly sentimental in a repetitious way; I also prefer my discussions of cannibalism to be more crunchy and less the stinger to the narrative.
But, frankly, these are only nitpicks, because this is the ideal tragic Arctic exploration narrative, in content and coverage. I'm struck by passing similarities to the loss of the Franklin expedition, namely: when evacuating in the Arctic, it's easy to make bad decisions in good faith, and those decisions have lasting consequences—we really don't need to posit complicated explanations for them. And boy, such consequences; and Levy affords them great nuance, offering room to the mundanity of human foibles, tender in descriptions of deaths by starvation and scurvy, frostbite and misadventure; no tedium, here, and yet the long, slow misery is emphatically realized. Fantastic read, and, unfortunately for my TBR, and expedition I want to read more about.
i do hope you have a dime
Jan. 13th, 2026 05:40 pmmusesfoolI barely slept on Sunday night - maybe about 3 hours in total? - so I called out yesterday and went back to bed. I felt better but not great upon waking again after actually sleeping for another 2 hours, and spent most of the day zoned out on the couch, looking at tumblr. Last night I slept hard and today I woke up feeling much better, but ugh, sleep should not be so hard!
I know it's just January and winter but I can feel myself withdrawing and hermiting up, so if I'm late in responses to comments, that's why - it's definitely not you, it's me.
*
I know it's just January and winter but I can feel myself withdrawing and hermiting up, so if I'm late in responses to comments, that's why - it's definitely not you, it's me.
*
original fiction – drabbles
Jan. 14th, 2026 09:23 amdeird1So, I've written some drabbles. They are original fiction, for an urban fantasy setting. (And yes, I'm still writing more of them.)
I'd love it if you friendly people could have a read…
( five drabbles )
I'd love it if you friendly people could have a read…
( five drabbles )
Write Every day 2026: January, Day 13
Jan. 13th, 2026 11:27 pmtrobadoraIn yesterday's poll, writing linearly is in the lead with 36%, but 23% of respondents are like me and write bits and snippets all over the place, then stitch them together. Here's how I put it back in 2008:
Progress across threefandomtrees treats! (I think those are the ones I can realistically finish, unless there's another delay. Or at least I hope I can!)
(I'm running late, so no question today.)
Tally
( Days 1-10 )
Day 11:badly_knitted, brithistorian, carenejeans, china_shop, cornerofmadness, daegaer, goddess47, sanguinity, shadaras, sylvanwitch, trobadora
Day 12:badly_knitted, china_shop, carenejeans, cornerofmadness, goddess47, luzula, sanguinity, shadaras, sylvanwitch, trobadora
Day 13:china_shop, trobadora
Let me know if I missed anyone! And remember you can drop in or out at any time. :)
Backwards and forwards. Roundabout. A paragraph here, a sentence there, a half-scene, a turn of phrase somewhere out of joint. That's how it goes: like a puzzle, one of those with 10,000 pieces, but without much of an idea what the final picture will even look like. You have a few corner pieces, something solid, something to build on, but they may remain unconnected for the longest time. A bit of the picture somewhere in the middle - only it may turn out that it's actually in the upper left corner, once you see how things go together. And yet it does come together; in the end, it all fits, as a puzzle should.Today's writing
That is the most amazing part: because unlike the puzzle, of course, those random bits of words and themes and structure aren't prefabricated to make sense. And yet they do.
I love writing. :D
Progress across three
fandomtrees treats! (I think those are the ones I can realistically finish, unless there's another delay. Or at least I hope I can!)(I'm running late, so no question today.)
Tally
( Days 1-10 )
Day 11:
badly_knitted, brithistorian, carenejeans, china_shop, cornerofmadness, daegaer, goddess47, sanguinity, shadaras, sylvanwitch, trobadoraDay 12:
badly_knitted, china_shop, carenejeans, cornerofmadness, goddess47, luzula, sanguinity, shadaras, sylvanwitch, trobadoraDay 13:
china_shop, trobadoraLet me know if I missed anyone! And remember you can drop in or out at any time. :)
Kesimpta prescription
Jan. 13th, 2026 05:14 pmredbirdI have just been pleasantly surprised by a health insurance company: they aren't requiring "prior authorization" for my Kesimpta prescription. The person I spoke to this afternoon checked whether I had any of the drug left (no), and whether I'd missed a dose, before arranging delivery for Thursday morning. This is the drug whose copay will meet the 2026 out-of-pocket maximum. Yes, I selected a plan in large part based on the prescription drug coverage.
juushikaWith great effort do I attempt to catch up on the many books I failed to review in 2025, including: the worst(?) of the autumnal picture books I grabbed in the season.
Title: Stumpkin
Author: Lucy Ruth Cummins
Published: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2018
Rating: 2 of 5
Page Count: 50
Total Page Count: 558,070
Text Number: 2099
Read Because: more spooky? picture books, hardback borrowed from the Timberland Regional Library
Review: I get prickly about picture books that anthropomorphize inanimate objects in uncomfortable/guilt-inspiring ways, and ones that insist the unwanted/unchosen are actually special.* This manages to be both, in a way that almost (no pun intended) stumps me: don't feel sorry that no one bought a flawed pumpkin, because the proprietor carved the unsold merchandise into a jack-o'-lantern himself. Enjoyable art, with sketchy, near monochrome backgrounds and vibrant orange pumpkins. Picture books are largely harmless even if they leave me replete with questions, so it kind of doesn't matter that this one just feels weird; but, thematically, it feels a little weird!
* I get the intent! It's the conservative executions that I don't like, erasing legitimate experiences of otherness.
Title: The Yellow Leaves Are Coming
Author: James Gladstone
Illustrator: François Thisdale
Published: Red Deer Press, 2023
Rating: 1.5 of 5
Page Count: 30
Total Page Count: 558,100
Text Number: 2100
Read Because: okay let's just call this a search for autumnal picture books, hardback borrowed from the Timberland Regional Library
Review: I think I like this take on a cycle-of-the-seasons picture book, grounded in incredibly specific details, wistfully slipping through time and space. But I barely noticed the text because this is the new ugliest picture book I've ever seen, and it's wildly distracting. See that cover? The "how do face work?" rendered in a kind of uncanny smoothness, disjointed from the environment? This is one of the better panels. Avoid, avoid.
Title: Goodbye Summer, Hello Autumn
Author: Kenard Pak
Published: Henry Holt and Company, 2016
Rating: 3 of 5
Page Count: 30
Total Page Count: 558,130
Text Number: 2101
Read Because: autumnal picture books, hardback borrowed from the Timberland Regional Library
Review: I never have much to say about non-narrative picture books; they serve a function and this feels like it works, rooting itself in a number of evocative, personal details which make the changing season identifiable and evocative. Beautiful! And ... that's it; nothing to grab or move me.
Title: Stumpkin
Author: Lucy Ruth Cummins
Published: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2018
Rating: 2 of 5
Page Count: 50
Total Page Count: 558,070
Text Number: 2099
Read Because: more spooky? picture books, hardback borrowed from the Timberland Regional Library
Review: I get prickly about picture books that anthropomorphize inanimate objects in uncomfortable/guilt-inspiring ways, and ones that insist the unwanted/unchosen are actually special.* This manages to be both, in a way that almost (no pun intended) stumps me: don't feel sorry that no one bought a flawed pumpkin, because the proprietor carved the unsold merchandise into a jack-o'-lantern himself. Enjoyable art, with sketchy, near monochrome backgrounds and vibrant orange pumpkins. Picture books are largely harmless even if they leave me replete with questions, so it kind of doesn't matter that this one just feels weird; but, thematically, it feels a little weird!
* I get the intent! It's the conservative executions that I don't like, erasing legitimate experiences of otherness.
Title: The Yellow Leaves Are Coming
Author: James Gladstone
Illustrator: François Thisdale
Published: Red Deer Press, 2023
Rating: 1.5 of 5
Page Count: 30
Total Page Count: 558,100
Text Number: 2100
Read Because: okay let's just call this a search for autumnal picture books, hardback borrowed from the Timberland Regional Library
Review: I think I like this take on a cycle-of-the-seasons picture book, grounded in incredibly specific details, wistfully slipping through time and space. But I barely noticed the text because this is the new ugliest picture book I've ever seen, and it's wildly distracting. See that cover? The "how do face work?" rendered in a kind of uncanny smoothness, disjointed from the environment? This is one of the better panels. Avoid, avoid.
Title: Goodbye Summer, Hello Autumn
Author: Kenard Pak
Published: Henry Holt and Company, 2016
Rating: 3 of 5
Page Count: 30
Total Page Count: 558,130
Text Number: 2101
Read Because: autumnal picture books, hardback borrowed from the Timberland Regional Library
Review: I never have much to say about non-narrative picture books; they serve a function and this feels like it works, rooting itself in a number of evocative, personal details which make the changing season identifiable and evocative. Beautiful! And ... that's it; nothing to grab or move me.
New + Outstanding Pinch Hits
Jan. 13th, 2026 06:44 pmmaevedarcy posting in holly_polyWe currently have 6 Pinch Hits looking for a loving home. See below for general details. More specific information can be found by clicking the links.
All current pinch hits are due by 11:00 AM UTC on 25 January 2026.
( #2: Riverdale (TV 2017), Glee (TV 2009), Person of Interest (TV) )
( #5: The Elementalists (Visual Novel), Heart of Battle - Fay Ikin, Havenfall is for Lovers (Visual Novel) )
( 12: Nosferatu (2024), IT (Movies - Muschietti), Hellraiser (Movie 2022), Hemlock Grove, Skinwalkers (2006), crossover - Fandom )
( CLAIMED! - 13: Akatsuki no Yona | Yona of the Dawn, Shoujo Kakumei Utena | Revolutionary Girl Utena (Anime & Manga), Miraculous Ladybug, Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger (TV), Original Work )
( CLAIMED! - 14: Dangan Ronpa Series, Grisaia Series (Visual Novels), Buffy the Vampire Slayer & Related Fandoms, 裸執事 | Hadaka Shitsuji | Naked Butlers (Visual Novel), Clannad )
( CLAIMED! - 15: Haikyuu!!, Ouran High School Host Club - All Media Types, Wind Breaker (Anime), Saiki Kusuo no Sai-nan | The Disastrous Life of Saiki K., Bungou Stray Dogs, Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia (Anime & Manga), While You Were Sleeping (TV) )
If you're interested in claiming any of these pinch hits, send an e-mail to holly.poly.exchange@gmail.com with your AO3 name or reply to this post. (Comments are screened.)
All current pinch hits are due by 11:00 AM UTC on 25 January 2026.
This year, we will do a pinch hitter treats sign-up post, so that anyone creating a pinch hit fanwork who is not signed up for the main exchange is able to potentially get a treat made for them - you can check this post for more info.
Before you start your assignment, please make sure to familiarise yourself with the exchanges rules, including fanwork minimums.
( #2: Riverdale (TV 2017), Glee (TV 2009), Person of Interest (TV) )
( #5: The Elementalists (Visual Novel), Heart of Battle - Fay Ikin, Havenfall is for Lovers (Visual Novel) )
( 12: Nosferatu (2024), IT (Movies - Muschietti), Hellraiser (Movie 2022), Hemlock Grove, Skinwalkers (2006), crossover - Fandom )
( CLAIMED! - 13: Akatsuki no Yona | Yona of the Dawn, Shoujo Kakumei Utena | Revolutionary Girl Utena (Anime & Manga), Miraculous Ladybug, Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger (TV), Original Work )
( CLAIMED! - 14: Dangan Ronpa Series, Grisaia Series (Visual Novels), Buffy the Vampire Slayer & Related Fandoms, 裸執事 | Hadaka Shitsuji | Naked Butlers (Visual Novel), Clannad )
( CLAIMED! - 15: Haikyuu!!, Ouran High School Host Club - All Media Types, Wind Breaker (Anime), Saiki Kusuo no Sai-nan | The Disastrous Life of Saiki K., Bungou Stray Dogs, Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia (Anime & Manga), While You Were Sleeping (TV) )
If you're interested in claiming any of these pinch hits, send an e-mail to holly.poly.exchange@gmail.com with your AO3 name or reply to this post. (Comments are screened.)
Collection: https://ao3.org/collections/holly_poly_2025
Tag Set: https://archiveofourown.org/tag_sets/25541
Tumblr: https://holly-poly.tumblr.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/holly_poly_ex
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/holly-poly.bsky.social
Google Groups - Holly Poly Updates: https://groups.google.com/g/holly-poly-updates
Google Groups - Holly Poly Pinchhits: https://groups.google.com/g/holly-poly-pinchhits
Taking stock
Jan. 13th, 2026 09:53 pmcosmolinguistMy counselor always starts with asking me how my week has been, since we last talked.
On every level, it has been A Lot.
But it was actually really good to talk about it all: on the macro level of course Minneapolis, my friends there and seeing fascism happen in places familiar to me, and then on the micro level angelofthenorth moving out, and just seeing her thriving after six months in our goofy lovely home.
I can't fix everything but I'm so glad to have the personal security needed to donate to mutual aid, to drag someone else out of a situation so similar to the one I needed saving from five years ago.
Sober up on rumor Trump posted about banning alcohol, bringing back Prohibition
Jan. 13th, 2026 09:09 pmsnopes_feedThe president's alleged social media post ended with: "We don't need hangovers — we need GREATNESS. LET'S MAKE AMERICA SOBER AGAIN!"
You’re probably not getting enough vitamin D. Here’s what Health Canada thinks will help
Jan. 13th, 2026 04:03 pmcbc_topnews_feed
To give Canadians a boost in vitamin D, Health Canada now has requirements in place for milk and margarine producers.