Triweekly Tuesday Tributes: Take Two

I'm working on switching up my website rn in a way that's very time consuming rn and my work schedule is getting fucky, please bare with me lol.

Books

• I have finished Someplace to be Flying by Charles deLint and it slapped. 9/10. It is an urban fantasy in which two normal people start to realize that the myths of "animal people" they've been hearing might not be myths at all. I got it at a second-hand bookstore because it had a sticker on it claiming some website had ranked it the 52nd best sci-fi book of all time and I'm glad I did. The characters and their deeply intertwined relationships with one another are very interesting. My only problems with it was that there was some forced romantic happily-ever-afters at the end and one really poorly done segment about racism and police brutality. (Spoilers from here on!) The point about racism deLint was trying to make kinda falls apart when you realize that the "black man" that is being "unfairly treated" genuinely did massacre what looked to everyone but him to be an entirely normal family, and also was an inhuman shapeshifter who chose to appear as a black man. I agree with the message, but I think it needed to be made with a different character in a different circumstance. Other than that, the book was insanely good, and I'm definitely gonna check out more of this author's work.
• I think that Black Leopard Red Wolf by Marlon James might be one of the best books I've ever read. It is a fantasy novel, the first in a trilogy, taking place in a region of a fantasy world inspired by Africa. It follows a social outcast with an enhanced sense of smell as he begins what seems like a normal gig of finding a kidnapped boy, but as he travels, more and more lies begin to unravel. The prose reads more like a translation of an epic poem than a modern fantasy novel, without feeling inauthentic or pretentious. Honestly I don't want to say too much about the plot because the narrative lets you discover the twists of a vast conspiracy as the Tracker (the main character) does and I think you should 1) read it right now and 2) go in blind-ish. What I will say is that the Tracker's arc in regards to how he feels about sex, gender, and family is incredibly compelling. Also, if you know that you are someone who needs or benefits from trigger warnings, I'd recommend checking does the dog die first.

Articles

• Naked mole rat queens step down without a fight: A really interesting explanation of naked mole rat social dynamics. This shit is so cool. I've been reciting facts from this to loved ones a little too often for some of their likings.
• Why America’s HIV epidemic hasn’t ended: An enlightening look into something we shouldn't have stopped talking about.
• Jourdon Anderson Writes His Former Enslaver, 1865: A sarcastic letter from a formerly enslaved man. Great read.
• The Trump Administration Aims to Penalize Disabled Adults Who Live With Their Families: I live with a disabled adult. She cannot work, and without social security I doubt we'd be able to provide the bare minimum care we currently do. I want to strangle people sometimes.
• Why Can’t We Treat GLP-1’s Like Medicine? Another article that I reacted to emotionally due to a family member's health conditions. Believe it or not, there's a place between encouraging EDs and shaming safe medical treatments and personal bodily autonomy.
• Wikipedia page, Robert Were Fox the Elder: I like this guy's name. That's it.
• Babies Are Bleeding to Death as Parents Reject a Vitamin Shot Given at Birth: A recent trend of completely preventable tragedies.

Artists

• Jeanne K Simmons: Sculptor and photographer. I love the way she utilizes natural landscapes, beautiful stuff!

Youtube videos, TV and movies

• Erika Kirk and the Theater of Grief: Anything Shanspeare touches turns to gold.
• so i uncovered a fake 19th century person...? Vampires, scams, guns and more.
• President Vic Michaelis Asks Hank Anything: I love dropout and I love this series, so hell yeah. The section about the afterlife is fantastic.

Miscellaneous

• Your Name in Landsat: This gets really small and hard to see if you put "Antidisestablishmentarianism" in on mobile.