The Wordsmith's Forge

FDA to suspend quality-control program for food testing due to staff cuts

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is suspending a quality-control program for its food-testing laboratories as a result of staff cuts at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), according to an internal email seen by Reuters.
The proficiency testing program of the FDA’s Food Emergency Response Network is designed to ensure consistency and accuracy across the agency’s network of about 170 labs that test food for pathogens and contaminants to prevent food-borne illness.
The firing and departure of as many as 20,000 HHS employees has upended public health research and disrupted the agency’s work on areas like bird flu and drug reviews. Donald Trump hopes to slash as much as $40bn from HHS.


Disturbing, but hardly a surprise.

Do you have a yard, or access to a community garden? You might want to plant edibles so you'll know where they've been.

ecosophia has posted Frugal Friday where everyone is welcome to share money-aaving tips. \o/  This is a recurring post so watch for it weekly.

Hundred-year storm tides will occur every few decades in Bangladesh, scientists report

With projected global warming, the frequency of extreme storms will ramp up by the end of the century, according to a new study.
For the highly populated coastal country of Bangladesh, once-in-a-century storm tides could strike every 10 years -- or more often -- by the end of the century, scientists report.


Oh, it's worse than that. Sunny-day floods will wipe out coastal settlements long before the dramatic storms do.

Let's call the current recession the Trump Slump.  He deserves to have his name on it.  Make Depression Great Again!

Is your job making you happy? Insights from job satisfaction data

New method to evaluate workplace conditions.
New research has found that employers and policymakers might want to start paying attention to how workers are feeling, because employee happiness contains critical economic information.

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Three millennials bought an abandoned high school for $100K and converted it into 31-unit housing

Of the 31 units, 27 of them are one-bedroom apartments and four are two-bedrooms.


Schools, like hotels, tend to be pretty well set to become affordable housing.  If you keep the function space, then you can include amenities like the gym and auditorium here, or a library, a cafeteria, etc.  Imagine keeping a cafeteria for folks who can't or don't want to cook.

Something else to consider: older buildings are functionally irreplaceable under current conditions. That makes them priceless, even if they don't seem like much on the surface. Currently, the official lifespan of a commercial building is 39 years, which is about half a human lifespan. But it doesn't even last that long anymore. Somewhere around 10-20 years, the business loses interest and wants to move into a new one. The picture is even worse with residential housing, at only 27.5 years, which is close to a third of a human lifespan.  That's not much building for your buck.

Grand Prairie Friends is our local nature organization, currently managing about 1200 acres of land around central Illinois. The biggest is the Warbler Ridge Conservation Area at 1059 acres. Some is actual prairie with native grasses and wildflowers. Some is a mix of upland forest and riverbottom; we have multiple riparian zone patches. If you're in the neighborhood, drop by for a hike, forest bathing, or some creative inspiration!

Here's an update on federal funding in the current situation -- it's okay for now, and backup plans are in place should it disappear. There are links where you can donate or otherwise support the cause if you are concerned about its economic safety and/or just want to support healthy habitat.

How are your local nature organizations doing now?

Joann Fabrics closing all locations—including Illinois stores

Weeks after announcing the closure of 500 stores, Joann Fabrics announced it will be closing all of its 800+ locations.


I am upset because that's the last big fabric store around here. All that's left will be a few specialty shops that I don't bother with because they're so limited and expensive. And I can't buy fabric without touching it. So that drastically limits the possibility of making clothes should commercial options become untenable.

I'm so frustrated with capitalism nowadays. It can't seem to keep things going anymore -- and the sector of affordable goods is getting hit really hard, as with the loss of Big Lots. You can't DIY if you can't source the base materials. >_<


EDIT 2/27/25 -- oracne offers this Bluesky thread listing some alternative places to buy fabric.

I also suggested that people get together and form a cooperative to purchase fabric and distribute it. This would work at a college fashion or theatre department, other schools, craft clubs, etc. It will be easiest to set up before the Joanns all close, because then you can talk with other crafters at the store and attempt to network solutions.

Also it's a great time to start your own fabric store if that has been a dream -- get in now while you can grab a massive amount of market share.

Pour one out for the CFPB

Working in the finance industry has given me a great deal of appreciation for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Created in response to the 2008 recession, it protects consumers from unfair, deceptive, and abusive practices by financial institutions.

Recently, the rump administration ordered the CFPB to halt all work, and cease its own funding. It’s a disaster, but more low key and less visible than all the other disasters.


The current government considers you anyone's meat, but you already knew that. So kick them where they live: in the wallet.

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Portland pays homeless residents to clean up trash: 'This gives people purpose'

The initiative hires people with a history of homelessness to pick up waste alongside designated routes, provide tent-side trash collection to people living outside, and more. Workers are paid between $20 and $29 per hour by the city of Portland, Multnomah County, and the Lloyd Enhanced Services District.


This is a great start.

What we really need are work centers where anyone can go ant get paid for doing the long list of stuff that needs done, which a choice what tasks to take.  Plenty of that is work that needs little or no skill.  Some is more skilled and could be done by people who already have that experience -- or it could be used to help people acquire more job skills.