Stellar Nesting Grounds

Clouds of dust and gas called nebulae speckle our galaxy. Some are ferocious cosmic factories that churn out baby stars by the hundreds of thousands, while others are grave markers of stars long dead. Astronomers study them to learn about how stars and planets form, and how ingredients are recycled in space.

But all that dust is difficult to see through, and nebulae are often so large that today’s most powerful space telescopes can only realistically study tiny patches of them. That’s where our soon-to-launch Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope comes in.

My heart is lighter than a feather and my liver is darker than a black coffee because that's what it's marinating in

Alas - I did go, but they were already sold out and I had content myself with the snacking bacon

From all of us, thanks for trying.

(from Facebook)

Official Post of Massachusetts

being weird and full of love can save you

and it might save those around you, too

@sashimi55

some food art !!

how dare he

So many times throughout human history, people thought the world was ending. That's why we have several ongoing religions and denominations around that idea and so many groups who died unnecessarily early because they believed they were at conclusion. There have also been so many individuals whose worlds have ended, because their children died or their homes and livelihood collapsed or because they were stranded in a warzone. There are so many of those individuals right now.

Yet, life continues. Some of those individuals make it through to new lands, lives, and futures. And there were times, so many times, where there were close calls toward something worse that were miraculously deterred. Maybe, even with all the scientific and natural evidence pointing to an end, we will pull through too. Maybe we will instead find ourselves in a new chapter, that can sow something better to reap.

That's what keeps me going forward anyway. That continuity is inevitable. That, in some way, we will probably survive. We just need to forge our way.

Tired, scared, depressed people are easier to control and less likely to fight back. It is quicker to temporarily feed anxiety with trinkets than to create structures to dismantle and prevent anxiety.

It is not your fault if you are exploited in these ways. You are not weak, or bad, or "not trying hard enough" if you feel the weight of the world upon you, if it takes all you have just to survive. It's okay if you have ups and downs, if one day you're able to do many things and the next barely get out of bed. You did not create the system we are all trying to function within, one that punishes what it cannot exploit.

But your ongoing survival is a message that you are not defeated. Every single moment you are here offers the opportunity to try again, to be better, to grow and change and learn. Missed the last opportunity? That's okay, another one will come along any moment now, and the next, and the next. You just choose which one is the best for stepping aboard a new pathway, when you're ready. If it takes a while because you are, in fact, tired, scared, depressed, that's okay. There are many, many moments before you and who knows what could go right?

Self-care is rebellion. Joy is a radical act. Love--given to others, and above all to yourself--is a key part of the antidote to what ails us. Even if your embodiments of these are not big and momentous, they are no less important a part of your ongoing story, and the weaving of a better world.

Man, did you buy anything for yourself today? Yeah, I got this pack of socks. Plain white socks? That's not a treat! Donna! Get me away from him.

PARKS AND RECREATION | 4.04

Bonus:

my 1k celebration: @wiha-jun asked “❤️” My Favorite Male Celebs + Their Zodiac MANNY JACINTO - LEO

Meet Dr. Nancy Grace Roman

You have to be a pretty big deal for NASA to name a space telescope after you, and that is certainly the case for Dr. Nancy Grace Roman — our Roman Space Telescope’s namesake. She’s sometimes called the “mother of Hubble,” but she’s really the mother of all space-based observatories and NASA science in general. As NASA’s first chief astronomer, Dr. Roman's vision and leadership supercharged space science and helped make NASA the world-class scientific institution it is today.

cat game

Marble Caves on General Carrera Lake, Patagonia, Chile *[1080x1920 - Author: Jasmine_jadee

They just don’t release the hounds like they used to

in my day someone just let the dogs out. never did know who.