A Smile of Relief Weekly Link Round-Up

 

I am very happy to tell you that I have heard from my Nameless Friend. In fact, the timing of their message's arrival made me think that NF and I were on the same wavelength. I'm trying not to read too much into the handwriting (it's hard!), but just hearing from them makes me feel better.

Not too much has been going on around here. After regaining my needlepoint calluses on the tips of my fingers, I've gone back to knitting and have completed a few projects. Those two star baskets that I have yet to finish are sitting across the room from my recliner, staring at me reproachfully. (Cope and adjust, baskets!)

The weather's been gorgeous. I'm hearing lots of baby birds cheeping in the back garden, and I have several not-for-tender-ears nicknames for the white-winged dove that keeps splashing the water out of the hummingbirds' solar water fountain. White-winged doves are particularly annoying because if they see other species of birds enjoying something, the doves insist on horning in and trying to take over.  I feel a tiny bit ashamed to say that I'm glad when it's dove hunting season here because they always disappear during that time. (Whoever said animals are dumb is the dumb one!)

I came across a couple of "homes" on the internet that make me smile. I wouldn't mind living in either one, although I don't think I'd get much done in the one on the right! What do you think?

Found Images

Virtual hugs to you all, my friends. Enjoy the links!

►Books & Other Interesting Tidbits◄

• BookTok's critical values.
• The U.S. gender pay gap, mapped by state.
• Why we shouldn't feel guilty for not being extremely well read.
• Security envelope patterns and the people who collect them. (This is the first time I'd ever heard of this collectible!)
• Are hardback books things of "great beauty" or a dying art?
• Knox County (Tennessee) schools bans Alex Haley's Roots from libraries. (They have recently been persuaded not to.)
• The rise of the sensitivity reader.
• A lament for the MIT libraries.

►Channeling My Inner Indiana Jones◄

• 800-year-old "hugging skeletons" are genetically confirmed as Poland's only medieval same-sex double burial.
• The Great Pyramid of Giza is remarkably resilient to earthquakes-- and it's due to the ancient Egyptians' "extraordinary" engineering knowledge.
• Daunian Kyathos: a 2,700-year-old ceramic cup from Italy that's decorated with an exuberant-looking bug-eyed fellow.
• Why was this ancient Roman soldier's gravestone hidden in a Louisiana backyard? Archaeologists solved the mystery-- and helped return the artifact to Italy.
• An 800-year-old notebook and fancy silk toilet paper was discovered in a medieval latrine in Germany.
• Amateur historians unearthed a long-lost Tudor palace visited by Henry VIII and Elizabeth I.

►Channeling My Inner Elly May Clampett◄

• Mediterranean monk seals hide in underwater "bubble caves" to avoid tourists during the busy summer season.
• Belugas can recognize themselves in mirrors, joining a short list of nonhuman species that show signs of self-awareness.
• 8 fascinating facts about the whooping crane, the tallest bird in North America.
• Purple martins rely on human "landlords" to provide nest boxes each spring. Can that dynamic last? (My grandparents had a well-occupied martin house.)
• Sharks in the Bahamas test positive for drugs, including cocaine and painkillers.
• Scientists have identified the world's first known dog, which pushes back the animals' genetic record by about 5,000 years.

►The Wanderer◄

• The Livraria Lello in Porto, Portugal, one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world, hides a neo-Gothic interior behind an Art Nouveau facade.
• 15 photographs showcasing the sensational scenery of Morocco.
• Mona Lisa is moving to a new home. The Louvre just announced the architects who will design her private suite.
• California is getting three new state parks and they're not where you'd think.
• Could building a dam across the Bering Strait save the planet from some effects of climate change?
• This island in Scotland is actually a man-made mini landmass resting on a wooden platform.

►Fascinating Folk◄

• Miles Davis emerged from middle America to become the "Picasso of Jazz" and taught us all how to be cool.
• The surprising contents of American POW Joseph "Ed" Carter's journal.
• Historical figures born the same year (who feel like they weren't).
• Virginia teenager Mia Heller invented a filter that eliminates 96% of microplastics from drinking water.
• Faye Emerson became the "First Lady of Television" during the medium's early days. But her groundbreaking success as a late-night host is largely forgotten today.
• From basket weaving to oyster reef conservation, Gullah Geechee women are preserving a living heritage.

►I ♥ Lists◄

• 5 great mysteries set in Australia and New Zealand.
• 16 historical novels set in Scotland, Ireland, and Wales.
• 7 laugh-out-loud funny mysteries by Benjamin Stevenson.
• 14 books with unusual narrators.
• 18 bookish mysteries you can't miss.
• Travel abroad with these 19 high-stakes thrillers.

That's all for this week! No matter how busy you may be, don't forget that quality Me Time curled up with a good book!