Polly Farquhar

On the Creative Parallels of Gardening and Writing, a guest post by Anna Rose Johnson For me, gardening is not only a way to neatly symbolize the writing journey—I feel that it’s also one of the best methods for gathering story ideas.

On the Creative Parallels of Gardening and Writing, a guest post by Anna Rose Johnson

For me, gardening is not only a way to neatly symbolize the writing journey—I feel that it’s also one of the best methods for gathering story ideas.

teenlibrariantoolbox.com/2025/08/06/o... @tltkaren.bsky.social

But eventually, they just decided to take what they thought was closest, even though it was clearly inferior, and try to sell it in bottles. And it blew up well beyond what they hoped, to the point that it’s easily the most popular salad dressing in the US now.

The story I heard said that when the company who bought Hidden Valley Ranch started testing a shelf-stable version of the dressing, they couldn’t get a formula that tasted as good as the one people were used to making at home. This is not surprising.

If you’ve ever had ranch dressing at a restaurant that tastes miles better than what you’ve had out of a bottle, they’re probably making it in-house the same way. The difference in quality is undeniable. So is the difference in convenience.

The attempt to push GenAI into teaching reminds me of a story I heard (and can’t find now) about the development of shelf-stable bottles ranch dressing.

If you’re old enough, you remember when ranch wasn’t available in bottles at the store. It came in ingredient packets and you mixed it at home.

Do You Remember These Lines From Five Popular Children’s Books? Lines from popular storybooks can stay with you long after you’ve read them. See how many you recognize in this short quiz.

Do You Remember These Lines From Five Popular Children’s Books? | New York Times

'Breaking the taboo' – Tour de France Femmes riders highlight issues of low rider weight and disrupted menstrual cycles Cédrine Kerbaol says the sport is in 'a dangerous moment' for rider health as Magdeleine Vallieres and Emma Norsgaard talk about their own their struggles balancing racing weight and menstrual health

Was just talking about this with my girls--it's easy to spot the male riders who are underweight, but since we're used to seeing underweight women. . .

www.cyclingnews.com/news/breakin...

Summer Reading Adventure Join the National Book Foundation on a Summer Reading Adventure! Whether you loved summer reading challenges as a kid or want to try one out for the first time, we hope that adults everywhere can join...

Grownups, if you are envious of kids Summer Reading contests and are motivated by PRIZES, join me on the @nationalbook.bsky.social ‘s Summer Reading Adventure!

www.nationalbook.org/adventure/

I just didn't imagine there would be so many cowards.

Monthly reminder: Many people have a book in them, but it takes a special kind of freak to leave the Land of Laziness, cross the Plains of Procrastination and Insecurity Mountain, find the Blade of No One Made You Do This, and use it to cut your chest open and yank that book out.

Vermont Studio Center--don't remember their timeframes, probably shortest is a week, but most are a month.

I gave it a glance and found it so wrong as to be incomprehensible and figured it was way more important to get the dirty dishes into the dishwasher.

Does getting books from the library count?

Michelle stands with her former student who holds a copy of IN THE WORLD OF WHALES. Both wear black shirts. Dan wears a ball cap and has a bushy reddish brown beard.

Michelle sits at the front of a space facing a group of young children who sit facing her on a rug for story time.

Been a busy month and I haven’t posted about recent book events.
First up: Storytime at Book Love in Plymouth, MA. My former 4th grade student, Dan, came with his wife and two kids! Such a sweet moment for me.
#KidsLoveNonfiction #BookLove #STEM #STEAM #Whales #KidLit

Cozy Mystery Novels: A Starter Pack

Good morning, for your summer reading pleasure, here are my cozy mystery recommendations, a category I've come to believe is the most radical of all of the crime & mystery subgenres. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/30/b...

Okay. You all ready for a feel-good thread?

Because one literally fell out of the sky for us last week and it's only fair we share this heartwarming tale with you.

1/?

Is your middle grade reader looking for a fresh middle grade series after finishing the classics? These 5 newer picks that bring the magic (think epic quests, twisty mysteries, and more):
bookriot.com/best-new-mid... #middlegrade #summerreading #kidlit

'What Dan Read': Columbus man goes viral after his death with extensive library list From the classics to new reads making waves, Dan kept track of more than 3,500 books in a handwritten list that has now been shared around the world.

www.10tv.com/article/news...

'What Dan Read': Columbus man goes viral after his death with extensive library list From the classics to new reads making waves, Dan kept track of more than 3,500 books in a handwritten list that has now been shared around the world.

www.10tv.com/article/news...

The Tour de France rest day should feature a trials challenge where the winner gets a choice of cash, 20 bonus seconds or points

The Adventures of a Girl Called Bicycle Check out The Adventures of a Girl Called Bicycle - <b>Selected for the Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List</b><br><b>A <i>Kirkus Reviews</i> Best Book of the Year</b><br><br>A determined 12-year-old g...

If you're watching the Tour de France with your kiddos, may I rec one of my favorite middle grade books: bookshop.org/p/books/the-...

#kidlit #cycling

Glad I'm not the only one who sees it!

At our house we call him "The Pirate Ben Healy" for his dangly earring.

It takes a lot of people doing small, good things to fight back against a few people doing big, evil things.

There are a lot of us. Do your small good things. That is our role, that is our hero moment, that is our calling, do not give up because you think what you do is too small, KEEP GOING.

Love that part of the world!

Watermelons hanging from a lattice arch, clearly not where they belong

That summer in which my dad got the cucumber and watermelon seeds mixed up

That Dropped Call With Customer Service? It Was on Purpose. Endless wait times and excessive procedural fuss—it’s all part of a tactic called “sludge.”

I knew it! “Some companies may actually find it profitable to create hassles for complaining customers.” (Harvard Business Review) www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...

Some good news, Ohio: DeWine vetoed that horrible library thing in the state budget!

Whilst cleaning out a closet I came across a specialty box for CD storage that was filled with 3.5 inch floppy* disks.

*I specify bc yes, I remember the big ones.

OMG, I have a crochet-crazy teen, and this has just guaranteed her allegiance to Anderson...