probably time for this story i guess but when i was a kid there was a summer that my brother was really into making smoothies and milkshakes. part of this was that we didn't have AC and couldn't afford to run fans all day so it was kind of important to get good at making Cool Down Concoctions.

we also had a patch of mint, and he had two impressionable little sisters who had the attitude of "fuck it, might as well."

at one point, for fun, this 16 year old boy with a dream in his eye and scientific fervor in heart just wanted to see how far one could push the idea of "vanilla mint smoothie". how much vanilla extract and how much mint can go into a blender before it truly is inedible.

the answer is 3 cups of vanilla extract, 1/2 cup milk alternative, and about 50 sprigs (not leaves, whole spring) of mint. add ice and the courage of a child. idk, it was summer and we were bored.

the word i would use to describe the feeling of drinking it would maybe be "violent" or perhaps, like. "triangular." my nose felt pristine. inhaling following the first sip was like trying to sculpt a new face. i was ensconced in a mesh of horror. it was something beyond taste. for years after, i assumed those commercials that said "this is how it feels to chew five gum" were referencing the exact experience of this singular viscous smoothie.

what's worse is that we knew our mother would hate that we wasted so much vanilla extract. so we had to make it worth it. we had to actually finish the drink. it wasn't "wasting" it if we actually drank it, right? we huddled around outside in the blistering sun, gagging and passing around a single green potion, shivering with disgust. each sip was transcendent, but in a sort of non-euclidean way. i think this is where i lost my binary gender. it eroded certain parts of me in an acidic gut ecology collapse.

here's the thing about love and trust: the next day my brother made a different shake, and i drank it without complaint. it's been like 15 years. he's now a genuinely skilled cook. sometimes one of the three of us will fuck up in the kitchen or find something horrible or make a terrible smoothie mistake and then we pass it to each other, single potion bottle, and we say try it it's delicious. it always smells disgusting. and then, cerimonious, we drink it together. because that's what family does.

#72 - 夜鷹 (yèyīng / nightjar) - Today's dragon is this actual animal that really exists! Nature is amazing 🤯✨🦅

she sucks at preening

Walnut the Crane dead at 42

White-naped Crane Walnut and her keeper/husband, Chris Crowe, in 2021. (Photo: Roshan Patel via NZCBI)

Internet sensation Walnut the Crane became ill on January 2, 2024 and passed away at age 42 at her home at the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute (NZCBI) campus in Front Royal, VA. A necropsy revealed the cause of death to be renal failure. Walnut far outlived the average life expectancy for White-naped Cranes in captivity, which is 15 years. She leaves behind her husband, zookeeper Chris Crowe, with whom she had 8 offspring, including two housed at the NZCBI: daughter Brenda, age 18, and a granddaughter, age 1.

“Walnut was a unique individual with a vivacious personality,” Crowe said. “She was always confident in expressing herself, an eager and excellent dancer, and stoic in the face of life’s challenges. I’ll always be grateful for her bond with me. Walnut’s extraordinary story has helped bring attention to her vulnerable species’ plight.” (x)

White-naped Cranes are native to Mongolia, northeast China and southeast Russia, wintering in the Korean DMZ, Japan, and China. Habitat loss to agriculture, development, and ongoing droughts are factors in their decline, leaving them classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN. Walnut was an important contributor to efforts to restore the species.

Edit: for those unaware, I refer to the zookeeper as her husband because Walnut was imprinted on humans, meaning she considered him her mate and performed displays and courtship for him. As a zookeeper he was responsible for artificially inseminating the bird. This and more was the source of her viral fame.

𝑯𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒕𝒆𝒆𝒏𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒈𝒊𝒓𝒍.

I see snow has joined the fight on the side of anti-goat surveillance.

Hoopoe

Photographer: Frauke Fuck

GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023

🎆 (id in alt)

lunar new year 🍊

How about a rock dragon? Like a big boulder shaped guy

#106 - 石巨 (shí jù / stone giant) - They'd let you sit and read a book on top of them! 🪨🌱⛰️

ETHO!!!

Everyone say hi to my wife.

Did some traditional art with @salt-and-bramble <3

I need to push the designs more i get too bogged down in trying to copy the references.

Sometimes all you wanna do is visit an island and chill with your four bird friends on top of a cliff. Sonic 3D Blast Flicky Redesigns

despite their duck-like bills and webbed feet, the duck-billed platypus (often known simply as the platypus) is not a bird, but a very unique mammal. this species, endemic to eastern australia, has a number of unique adaptations. they are one of only five species of mammal who lay eggs rather than give live birth. they forage for around 10-12 hours daily, primarily for small aquatic invertebrates like crayfish; they use electroreception to locate their prey. the species is also biofluorescent, turning bluish-green under UV light. male platypuses are also venomous; they have a spur on the back of their hind flippers that produces a venom that can be harmful to humans. females have a small spur, but are not venomous. these creatures are largely antisocial and as such produce few vocalizations, as they rarely communicate among their own species.