Puzzle Box

This website has playable puzzle boxes online. 

Three Weeks for Dreamwidth: BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goals)

This year during Three Weeks for Dreamwidth, I'm writing about goal-setting frameworks for goals_on_dw. Read Part 1: Introduction to Goal-Setting Frameworks, Part 2: The 1-3-5 Rule, Part 3: The 12-week Year, Part 4: ABCS (Achievable, Believable, Committed, Specific), Part 5: Backward Goal, Part 6: BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goals).


Part 6: BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goals)

The BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goals) approach is for people who can't stand making small bets. You still have to break the whole thing down to actionable steps, but you're aiming big. This method is mainly about choosing the most ambitious goal you possibly could. It's exactly the opposite of methods based on choosing attainable goals that just require you to stretch a bit. Among the more famous examples is putting a man on the Moon.



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Hard Things

Life is full of things which are hard or tedious or otherwise unpleasant that need doing anyhow. They help make the world go 'round, they improve skills, and they boost your sense of self-respect. But doing them still kinda sucks. It's all the more difficult to do those things when nobody appreciates it. Happily, blogging allows us to share our accomplishments and pat each other on the back.

What are some of the hard things you've done recently? What are some hard things you haven't gotten to yet, but need to do? Is there anything your online friends could do to make your hard things a little easier?

April Monthly Post

This is the April community post for birdfeeding. Which birds did you see this month? What were your wildlife activities during April? What are your plans for May?


February anchor posts include:

Photos: House Yard

Draw a Bird Day

Photos: South Lot

Three Weeks for Dreamwidth: Introduction

Corn and Soybean Recipes

Just in case the American foodstream experiences disruptions, here are some recipes for field corn and soybeans, two huge cash crops. Field corn may be ground into cornmeal or nixtamalized into hominy. Soybeans are most often used to make tofu but there are other options.

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The Trades: Make the Numbers Work

methylethyl has written a brilliant and detailed analysis of the trades (e.g. plumbing, construction) vs. a 4-year liberal arts degree, with attention to various things that are wrong with the American economy and lifestyle. Let's take a look ...

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Birdfeeding

Today is cloudy and cool. It rained again last night.

I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 4/30/25 -- I fed the birds. I've seen a few sparrows and house finches, a mourning dove, a brown thrasher, and a starling.

I planted a purple Wave petunia in the barrel garden.

EDIT 4/30/25 -- I planted the barrel garden with a a purple-and-white striped Wave petunia, a yellow callibrachoa / million bells, 4 zinnias that are yellow with pink centers, 8 marigolds in two different 'bolero' cultivars, and 6 snapdragons (2 each of purple, coral, and yellow).  There are spaces left for a yesterday-today-and-tomorrow petunia, a lantana, and sowing moonflower seeds.

It started drizzling while I was working, but not enough to make me quit.

EDIT 4/30/25 -- I planted 4 assorted coleus and 4 purple and white mixed sweet alyssum in the big ceramic pot with grapes on it.  I had to move some of the outdoor flats of seedlings to make room for that.

EDIT 4/30/25 -- I did more work around the patio but it started raining again.  :/

EDIT 4/30/25 -- I planted 4 'Bright Lights' Swiss chard in a pot on the new picnic table.  I don't even know if we like Swiss chard, but it's worth a try -- and pretty enough to serve as an ornamental if it doesn't taste good.  The stems are pink, yellow, orange, etc.

I lost about an hour because it was raining again.

I've seen a lady cardinal and several house finches at the feeders.

We've got other plans for tonight, so I am done planting for now.  

Select Seeds Order

The plants arrived from Select Seeds. The petunia is yesterday-today-and-tomorrow that changes color; the lantana also goes through different colors. These are the last two potted plants for the barrel garden. Joe Pye Weed is a native plant for the prairie garden.

Old-Fashioned Climbing Petunia (1 plant)
Lantana 'Cherry Sunrise' (1 plant)
Joe Pye Weed Atropurpureum (1 plant)

Bingo

I have made bingo down the O column of my 4-1-25 card for the Aesthetics Bingo Fest in allbingo. I also made 3 extra fills.


O1 (Bookstore Girl) -- "The Community Couch" (Arts and Crafts America)
O2 (Arts and Crafts Movement) -- "Knitting Is a Therapeutic Activity" (Polychrome Heroics: Shiv)
O3 (Thriftcore) -- Cookie Jar Terrarium (craft)
O4 (Lagenlook / Layered Look) -- "A Different Language, a Different Vision of Life" (Polychrome Heroics: Rutledge)
O5 (Earth Tones) -- "Kittens, Cocoa, and Cuddles" (Arts and Crafts America)

I2 (Tuscan) -- "In the Heart of the Hidden Garden" (Polychrome Heroics: Antimatter and Stalwart Stan)
I3 (Coastal Style) -- "The Delicate Balance of Mentoriing" (Peculiar Obligations)

N5 (Dark / Light Academia) -- "The Struggle Against Error" (Polychrome Heroics: Antimatter and Stalwart Stan)

The Poor and the Rich

This cartoon caught my attention.  I'm sure it's meant as a criticism, and is likely untrue.



However, a poor person can become a well-to-do person if decent work opportunities are available.  Immigrants in particular are highly inclined to start business which eventually create more jobs.  And they're practical folks.

Rich people don't work.  They just suck up resources.

It is much easier to turn a poor person into a contributing citizen than it is to make a rich person either decent or productive.  So I'd much rather have poor immigrants than rich loafers, because I know who is actually useful to have around.



 

Happy Beltane

Happy Beltane for those of you celebrating.



 

New Year's Resolutions Check In

We made it to the end of April! \o/ If you have completed any of your short-term goals or subgoals, and/or you're still chugging away at your ongoing goals, then pat yourself on the back. You worked hard for that. We've also gotten through the second month of spring. If you're doing seasonal goals, you may have finished the first of your spring ones and/or be looking ahead to the summer batch.

This year I'm trying something new, continuing to track goals at the end of each month. So far it seems to be helping, so that's encouraging. I'm looking at my goal list more often and trying to keep ticking off more of them.

These are the previous check in posts:
New Year's Resolutions Check In January 4
New Year's Resolutions Check In January 10
New Year's Resolutions Check In January 17
New Year's Resolutions Check In January 24
New Year's Resolutions Check In January 31
New Year's Resolutions Check In February 28
New Year's Resolutions Check In March 31

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