listening: mon ange - jena lee
watching: lectures
feeling: tired
it's kind of incovenient that making an autogenerating(?) blog tool is far beyond my capacity as a coder, but this (zonelets) is the next best thing? anyway, hello. this is my first post of hopefully many? i want to actually try blogging and sharing pictures, things i found and whatnot. i've never successfully ran something like this for longer than a few months... so here's hoping this project actually amounts to something? i want to try documenting the mundane and not-so-mundane.
my life has actually been rather busy and stressful recently. i just finished moving out of my apartment to live back with my parents, and i'm working on my master's thesis. i'm also taking my last graduation requirement class for my degree. i was very tempted to say that nothing was going on in my life, but that couldn't be further from the truth. there's a lot going on, and it can get pretty stressful when i don't stay on top of things.
living with my parents feels like a step backwards after living by myself for like... essentially seven years, but i feel like i need this right now. i'm in need of rest and caregiving, and i need to save money. plus, living in the city (or in a place far away from nature) really isn't for me. we currently live in appalachia and, while it has its problems, it certainly has its benefits. i can hear the birds chirping in the morning and i can see the stars at night. i also think i need time away from the state i lived at for so long, since i've experienced a lot of life events and growing. it kind of feels like i outgrew a lot of people. maybe i even outgrew the place itself, if that's possible. something inside me wants to come back there to work for familiarity's sake... but another part of me wants to leave.
life is in flux for many people right now, me included. being in your late 20s and working in public health research at this moment isn't easy. everyone i know is being impacted by funding cuts and all the other things going on... i wish i was able to live in a different country, but this isn't really viable. just a pipe dream for now.
anyway- i saw a cool millipede on sunday. after some research, i found out that it's a Apheloria virginiensis, or a Kentucky flat millipede. I've never seen a millipede with such gorgeous colors before. they are described as "docile" and "timid" by millipede enthusiasts, and can live between four-seven years. i absolutely adore watching these guys trundle about in my yard and hope that they're having fun there...
these millipedes secrete cyanide compounds as a defense mechanism, which makes it sometimes smell like cherries or almonds. apparently, according to arachnoboards and r/millipedes users, these guys do really poorly in captivity and entomologists don't really know why. folks think that it's because of their easily stressed natures and their releasing of cyanide compounds. perhaps it builds up in their environment when enclosed? i was considering raising some until i learned this information. one day, i'll be able to raise some cool invertebrates. hopefully they'll be happy and healthy if i do!
anyway, that's all for today. time to get back to working on my thesis paper and doing the maji market event in palia.
more info on these lovely pedes.