#linneaus

me at 1:30: not fixed. worse, even

I mean, you hear it everywhere, right? Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species. No one wants to let go.

Winners and Losers-In Science, not the Superbowl!

Yes the Superbowl is almost here (go PATS!) but science has its own winners and losers.  This gorgeous beetle is commonly known as the Death Watch beetle (xestobium rufovillosum) for the soft tick it gives off as it bores through dry wood searching for mates.  This sound is so quiet that it was long associated with the European tradition of the death vigil, in which people would sit up all night over a coffin and the only sounds to be heard were the soft ticks of the Deathwatch beetle.  

This beetle was first described by Swedish industrialist and amateur entomologist Baron Charles De Greer, born on this day, January 30, 1720 a contemporary and rival of Linneaus. Writing in French in homage of his hero the French entomologist Reamur, De Greer used his own system of naming, often giving long descriptive names using a combination of Latin and Ancient Greek to describe the defining features, unlike Linneaus who was focused on classification more than cataloging and settled on the binomial system, still in use today. The binomial that De Greer gave to the death watch beetle is xestobium rufovillosum, from the Ancient Greek ξεστος (xestos) meaning smooth or dry and βιούν (bioun) meaning life and the Latin words rufus meaning red and villosus meaning hairy or shaggy.

So which is it, De Greer?  Is the death watch beetle smooth and alive, or red and shaggy?  De Greer resisted Linneaus, continuing his eclectic naming as others were adopting the Linnean system, writing to Linneaus in a letter:  

not everyone sees things in the same light, and people have the weakness of frequently being too fond of their own opinions…if here and there I am still of a different opinion, I am now, as before, asking you not to take it amiss

Linneaus, of course won, and his name and classification system is taught and used in schools and science around the world.  De Greer, of course lost, though he does still get credit (and the naming rights) to hundreds of the insects he described.  

Oh, and GO PATS!

Image of Xestobium rufovillosum courtesy Gilles San Martin, used with permission under a Creative Commons 3.0 license.  Visit his great flickr feed for more bugs!

mud 🌱 - how do you relax before you go to sleep?

I aspire to be the person with any semblance of a morning/evening routine, however small. I try to read for a little bit before bed and if I'm really doing good about it which has not been often I'll watch one of those Korean slow living vlogs or a Cooking Tree video!

echo 🕳️ - what’s a habit you want to start?

Building off of the previous answer, I want to be better about instilling those little moments of ritual into my days. I don't want and also don't think I can maintain any kind of elaborate morning/evening routine but I need to be better about finding those moments that tether me because so much of my days feel restless-frantic with nothing in between. Reading for 15 minutes before work; finding some kind of peaceful "transition" into my after work hours since my current job is remote; writing uninterrupted for even 10 minutes, just scribbling anything!

I mean... building a writing practice period is the one habit that haunts me.

Birch and crow answered

2. what would you name your future kids?

Oskar for a boy. We’re kind of stuck on girl names at the moment but we keep circling around Mariella. I also like Rose.

7. What was your life like last year?

Hella stressful and hectic. All I ever did was work, and think about work, and stress about work. It took over my life for 4 years. It was just me and my program director struggling to keep things together and holding each other up while everyone piled more s**t on top of us. It didn’t stop until my husband and I had a talk last spring. He noticed my depression had worsened and I was making dark, macabre comments all the time. I then decided to go back to school last fall to get a new degree and see a counselor. So far, it’s been great.

18. do you miss how things were a year ago?

Not at all. Before I quit and went to college, I was miserable. There was so much I missed because of work: baptisms, weddings, birthday parties, even holidays. I missed out on making memories with my family. There were so many late nights at the studio, last-minute events I had to drive to and emcee, and unpaid overtime. I gained weight and my psoriasis flared constantly. I don’t miss crying and ranting over the phone to my husband on those bad days at work.

What I do miss however, is days with my personal trainer. He was essentially my gym husband and the highlight of the year. He helped me lose the weight and get into power lifting. I miss him dearly and hope to train with him again.

30. favourite tv show(s)

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia

American Housewife

The Office (U.S.)

Hannibal

This is going to be a collaborative story, like earlier, where you tag someone to continue it.

The Wild Waves Festival

It was a beautiful day for the citizens of Charluftton as the Wild Waves Festival was in full swing. The plaza was full of vendors selling t-shirts and frozen ice, the bar was full of all kinds of live music, including bands like Boil, The Lost Tapes and Art House, and even the beach was full of fun events such as volley ball, sailing, and even a beach 5k obstacle course. Boaters were out fishing and tubing and just all around having a good time. However, for the shapeshifting vixen, she was lying home in bed wearing her work cap, a buttoned jacket and khaki work pants. On her nametag was the name “Kit Rouge”. She was diagnosed with a disorder that meant she had trouble controlling her shapeshifting powers, and today was no exception.

“All I did was get grossed out…” she muttered. “Yet of course I turned into a fox bug like I always do when I’m disgusted. And of course, everyone thinks I’m too old for this to happen. I can’t control it…”

Kit had a long day at work with lots of fishermen and families out buying things from pool toys to bait and couldn’t even stop the lines from the shoppers just itching to get their stuff and hit the water. She swore if she saw another sailor she would transform into her angry form and chuck them off their boat.

Her cellphone rang, and Kit answered.

“Hey Vixie!” Coin started, wearing sunglasses. “Work was rough today wasn’t it?!”

“Oh! Hello Coin! It was rough! Like the time that giraffe all jacked up on cocaine went up to you and-“

“Didn’t you remember our plans for today?!” he interrupted.

“What plans?” the khaki-clad kitsune asked.

“To go tubing with us!” Rio said.

“But I thought we were going to go to the beach!” Kit cried. “I want to lie down, get a sun tan and eat all the cannolis I can think off!”

“The beach is tomorrow and the next day!” Coin replied.

“Just get changed, pack some sandwiches and don’t forget the tube! See you in a half an hour.”

With that the they hung up.

Kit thought about it for a second and decided to just go embark with her friends on the boat.

The young vixen put on a yellow one-piece swimsuit and covered it with a Zelda t-shirt and her trunks. She then put on her special waterproof contacts, so she doesn’t turn her friends into her clones again. Finally, she made her friends sandwiches to eat on the boat while they hung out. Kit opened the garage to find Coin’s boat tube and sighed, knowing that none of their days out ever go well.

When she arrived, she saw her jackelope friend in his salmon trunks, purple t-shirt and sunglasses, with Rio harvest mouse perched on top of his antlers. She was in a little sailor’s outfit with a cap.

“First mate Rio! Ready to embark!” she said with glee.

“Hey Kitty!” Coin blurted. “Just put the tube in the back, were going to go fishing for a little while.”

“I thought you had a fear of fish.” Kit replied.

“My dad wants us to get fish for the Braun’s fish recipe!”

“You hate the taste of fish as well!”

“I’m getting paid if I do this.”

“Fair.”

And with that, they entered the boat.

Kit untied the ropes from the hooks, while Rio and Coin brought the buoys into the boat.

“Hey um Kit…” Rio said. “I think you might want to put your sunhat in the cabinet, so you don’t lose it.

“Oh, I’m fine.” Kit said without concern. “What’s the worst that could happen?”

As Coin and First Mate Rio pushed it to thirty miles an hour, Kit began to scream as her body grew more multicolored fur, whiskers grew, and her body became feline. The scared cat held onto her hat as hard as she could while the boat tore through the river.

When Kit was a kit, she had a time where her powers sort of signaled to others she was different.

It was Halloween when she was eight years old, and all the good children of Charloffton were trick-or-treating. DemKit was dressed as a little zombie fairy, wearing make up scars, bloody fairy wings, and a sparkling yet torn and a bloody fairy dress. In his hand he held a magic wand with a brain on it and red paint to signify blood.

Angry or evil form Kitsune were everywhere in costume, and DemKit was walking with his angry formed older brother who was there to make sure they would be safe. He was dressed as a pirate and kept his sister close to him.

“Oh look at you Kit!” The old otter woman said to him, giving out a King Size in the process. “You look like a very spooky fairy!”

“Thanky you!” DemKit said to his neighbor, who patted him on the head.