sunshineandhope

[sunshineandhope]

ok this is context-dependent, if flooding is bad enough it might not do much, but you can get doorway flood barriers for your house to keep the water out, there's a lot of variations but they look more or less like this, couple of wall-mounted brackets and some kind of robust barrier that can be slotted into them as needed

worth the investment, if you can afford it, but there's also neoprene and plastic ones that are cheaper and more renter-friendly, they don't need a bracket installed

and collapsible water-filled ones for your garage

Lastly, I know people in Malaysia (where monsoon flooding is an annual inevitability) who use boards and a shitload of plasticine to build up a barrier as the water rises; put the boards on the outside of the doorway so when the weight of the flood water pushes it inwards it doesn't just fall over, and seal around and between them with the plasticine. You do need a shitload of plasticine though, I think about 1-2kg. You can also use plasticine to seal the outside of any low windows and vents. If you're evacuating you can just seal round doors, windows, and vents with plasticine, no boards required, and don't forget the keyhole and round the handle.

It's still worth putting up flood barriers or seals even if you're evacuating, because it can reduce or prevent a lot of really expensive damage to your home and your stuff. Also take a moment to turn off the main power at the fusebox on your way out, even or perhaps especially if you can't manage any kind of barrier. The wiring will still need to be checked for safety afterwards but you can reduce the damage by just not having a house full of electrified water.

Flood warnings today. The red warnings mean 'act now'

Britain is becoming wet & wild as predicted by climate experts. And the gov tell us there isn't enough money to build or maintain flood defences, to restore eco systems, to dredge ditches and unblock drains.

It's fuck you, fend for yourself.

[sunshineandhope]

For those with homes built to keep heat in, not let it out: aluminum foil your windows, shiny side out. Cover the window, tape up the sides, maybe tape cardboard behind it to help insulate from the heat outside and absorb heat that gets through the foil.

Love, a former Californian, whose had to keep houses cool without any electricity.

P.S. this is a method endorsed by FEMA and the Department of Energy, so if you need more than anecdotal evidence, there ya go.

#cooling

[sunshineandhope]

to anyone in the areas impacted by the wildfire smoke, my #1 biggest piece of advice as someone whos been dealing with wildfire smoke in the NW united states for years, is build yourself a Corsi-Rosenthal Cube

they perform as well as expensive HEPA air cleaners, and are comparatively VERY inexpensive. all you need is a box fan, 4 air filters, a piece of cardboard, and some duct tape!!!!

i think it took us maybe a half hour to put ours together, if that, and we replace the filters every 3 months. it's really made a HUGE difference, both when the air quality is bad, but also with our allergies

[sunshineandhope]

dearest friends, I'm so sorry but I have to put this blog on indefinite hiatus. Due to circumstances beyond our control we have to find a new home and move, and it's going to take all my resources, everything I have. We’ve had plenty of unannounced breaks here before but this time it’s different. I have an energy limiting illness and an event as strenuous as moving house will make my condition worse, possibly permanently, so I have no way of knowing when or even if I will be well enough to find and curate new content again.

I dumped few weeks worth of posts into the queue in no particular order and by the time this reaches the top I will be off tumblr.

Even though we've never really spoken I want you to know I appreciate all of you so much. This blog has been a source of tremendous comfort and strength to me, and from your messages I know it's meant the same to many of you too. I've kept all your messages and asks, they are everything to me. And if you never sent a message I still saw you in my notes, read your tags and comments, and smiled about your likespams when you first found us or came back after a break.

We've been through some shit haven't we? I'm glad we had each other. I'm so proud of what I've done here, and I'm so proud of you for hanging on and doing your best. You made this little blog worthwhile, you have been a lifeline to me. I truly hope I can come back to this blog and all of you some day. I won't forget you.

ACAB. Trans rights. Queer liberation. Opre Roma. Black lives matter. Land back. All power to all the people. Resist despair.

[sunshineandhope]

[sunshineandhope]

“I very proudly entered the forestry school as an 18-year-old and telling them that the reason that I wanted to study botany was because I wanted to know why asters and goldenrod looked so beautiful together. These are these amazing displays of this bright, chrome yellow and deep purple of New England aster, and they look stunning together. And the two plants so often intermingle rather than living apart from one another, and I wanted to know why that was. I thought that surely in the order and the harmony of the universe, there would be an explanation for why they looked so beautiful together. And I was told that that was not science, that if I was interested in beauty, I should go to art school. Which was really demoralizing as a freshman, but I came to understand that question wasn’t going to be answered by science, that science, as a way of knowing, explicitly sets aside our emotions, our aesthetic reactions to things. We have to analyze them as if they were just pure material, and not matter and spirit together. And, yes, as it turns out, there’s a very good biophysical explanation for why those plants grow together, so it’s a matter of aesthetics and it’s a matter of ecology. Those complimentary colors of purple and gold together, being opposites on the color wheel, they’re so vivid, they actually attract far more pollinators than if those two grew apart from one another. So each of those plants benefits by combining its beauty with the beauty of the other. And that’s a question that science can address, certainly, as well as artists. And I just think that “Why is the world so beautiful?” is a question that we all ought to be embracing.”

— Robin Wall Kimmerer, “The Intelligence of Plants”, from the podcast On Being with Krista Tippett (via peatbogbodyhasmoved)

[sunshineandhope]

#resist despair

[sunshineandhope]

#resist despair

[sunshineandhope]

[sunshineandhope]

chinese fan 腰扇yaoshan by 小叮当叮叮当

[sunshineandhope]

The January 6 hearings are having a lot of impact. And a lot of people are going "Oh, shit, is THAT what happened?"

We need to let them change their minds without making it harder.

A lot of people are realizing that they have Queer relatives, and that's changing their minds about policy.

We need to let them change their minds without making it harder.

A lot of people really believed that they would never come for Roe v. Wade, and are now awake.

We need to let them change their minds without making it harder.

We need to remember that there is an organized and strategic operation designed to keep people from thinking clearly, and that the systemic nature of the problem provides plenty of other ways to influence their thinking. The right wing spends a lot of money and a lot of time keeping their base angry and afraid, because when you're angry and afraid you can't think clearly and you're easy to manipulate.

When someone breaks free of that system, we need to let them, without punishing them.

[sunshineandhope]

#resist despair #The Real You #music

[sunshineandhope]

Fantastic idea

#urban planning #infrastructure #renewal

[sunshineandhope]

things you should know about books and incarceration

I recently started working with a program that sends books to incarcerated people upon request. There are programs like this in many places throughout the US, under names like “Prison Books Project” or “Books to Prisoners.” Here’s some things you should know:

The most requested book, by far, is the English dictionary. The Spanish dictionary is also highly requested, as are GED prep materials, thesauruses, almanacs, and other reference books. If you have anything like that laying around unused, please consider donating.

Prisons are legally required to maintain libraries of legal resources (this falls under one’s right to counsel), but otherwise generally do not fund or maintain libraries, even for basic educational materials. The law libraries are also often filled with irrelevant law texts (e.g. real estate and civil procedures) instead of what prisoners actually need information about: appeals, civil rights, etc.

There are strict requirements on what books can and cannot be received, which vary from prison to prison and even depending on which staff member is processing the shipments. There are a thousand different reasons prison staff can pull a book from a shipment. Individuals, unfamiliar with the complex restrictions, are often unsuccessful at sending books to incarcerated loved ones.

Prison staff often don’t like prison book programs, despite the fact that they reduce recidivism and keep prisoners occupied and out of trouble. Why? Because it makes more work for them in the mail room. Yes, really.

Immigrants are the fastest growing prison population, so we get lots of requests for books in Spanish or English learning materials. Unfortunately, these are less frequently donated, so our selection is slim.

We also get requests for books about sign language, usually from people with Deaf cellmates who have no other way to communicate.

Books about starting businesses, trades, and reintroduction are extremely common from those planning their lives after release. It’s extremely difficult for convicted felons to find work after release.

We also get many requests about psychology or self-help books. A large percentage of our incarcerated population suffer from some mental illness or have loved ones who do.

Many prisoners were not properly supported in their education. We receive letters from low-literacy people who have severe learning disabilities, whose letters are difficult to read because they never learned to write properly. Comic books/manga are common requests from low-literacy people because they can look at the pictures.

Prison book programs are usually not well funded and must ration how often incarcerated people can write us and how often they can request certain types of high-demand books. Volunteers frequently find there are no suitable books to fill a request and buy books with their own money to make sure someone gets what they’ve asked for. Cash donations to prison book programs will go to buying high-demand books such as dictionaries, GED prep, and other basic education texts.

See if you have a program like this in your area, and consider volunteering or donating books or money. There are over 2 million people incarcerated in the US, and giving them access to books is the very least we can do.

[sunshineandhope]

#the real you

[sunshineandhope]

How to Calculate 12V Fridge Solar Power Requirements

A typical 12V fridge uses amps to measure power consumption. Since solar panel output is in watts, you have to do a conversion.

Amps x volts = watts

If you have a 12V fridge that draws 2 amps an hour and you need to run it for 5 hours:

12 x 2 = 24

That is 24 watts an hour.

24 x 5 = 120 watts

A 12V fridge that draws 2 amps an hour requires at least 30 watts of solar power. The nearest common solar panel size is a 50 watt solar panel.

A 50 watt solar panel can produce up to 250 watts with 5 hours of sun. This is enough to run the fridge.

[...]

You can figure out the solar power requirement of any 12V fridge with this formula. All you need to know is its hourly amp draw and multiply it by 12.

The result is the minimum solar panel output required. Because solar panel production depends on sun availability and intensity, having reserve capacity is ideal. If the fridge uses 35 watts, get a 50W solar panel. If the fridge requires 55 watts, get a 75 or even a 100W solar panel.

#energy #diy #disability

[sunshineandhope]

You can view more here.

#renewal #water