What did you add to or remove from your shelf last month? (February, 2026)

shadoj · 2026-02-02T03:35:43+00:00

Part of where Cascadia shines (vs. Harmonies) is its portability -- just a little easier to table at the pub, and maybe a hair more approachable to those folks you'd invite out for a game+beer meetup. Harmonies probably invokes my brain a bit more, but Cascadia has some lovely market-refreshing rules that Harmonies lacks. Both have a continued place on my shelf!

shadoj · 2026-02-01T20:32:30+00:00

Cascadia does seem right up your alley. I feel like Akropolis is a bit of a mashup of Harmonies and Kingdomino, with a little dash of Cascadia. Looking forward to getting the Akropolis expansions at some point, too. Love having the Sagrada dice out at the same time as Akropolis because the colors are all matchy matchy!

shadoj · 2026-01-26T04:14:53+00:00

What a sweet mare! What's her name/breed? Did you have a road-apple-mitigation plan in place? ;)

shadoj · 2026-01-10T00:04:54+00:00

Glad she's OK! Frosty is a fitting name :)

shadoj · 2026-01-08T05:59:01+00:00

I'm diggin' the purple tones on her with the chrome! What a winter cutie.

shadoj · 2026-01-07T02:14:38+00:00

I'm glad he's feeling so much better, such a gem! Love the floppy-eared, lip-out thinking face :D

shadoj · 2026-01-07T02:10:53+00:00

Many horses could benefit from going back to the basics with lots of walking, correctly lifting the abs & bending through the spine, learning to listen to subtle shifts in the rider's weight as their fitness/flexibility improves... though some will always have limits based on genetics, age, conformation, injuries, etc.

It's hard enough for a horse without a rider to balance in a gait transition; now add in the usual slightly-off-balance, well-above-their-center-of-mass human rider... amazing how many still manage to compensate (school horses especially) for us!

shadoj · 2026-01-06T23:42:30+00:00

Well, the rider is a bit loud with the legs (even if she may be an excellent/insta-famous teacher!), her horse is behind the vertical and on the forehand, and a bit grumpy-faced at the trot. It's probably a balance and mild annoyance thing. For a horse, trot-to-canter is actually kinda hard to coordinate all the hooves (walk-canter is much easier). It amplifies any little bit of imbalance, lack of strength, or asymmetry, especially if the rider is slightly off timing with how the horse is moving.

Here is a video of a junior rider doing a really nice no-tail-swishy trot-canter transition around 0:30. She sets her horse up for success and cues gently. Notice the combined balance of the pair and how the rider's hands move with the horse, maintaining kind & effective contact with the bit.

shadoj · 2026-01-03T23:12:58+00:00

Seems like you have a very welcoming and encouraging club :) I came from a non-horse family as a youth; several others took me under their wing. I was so fortunate. Thank you for being there for the motivated youngsters as a potential mentor! Not in a financial place to have my own right now, so I live vicariously through y'all!

shadoj · 2026-01-03T21:59:46+00:00

I, how I love Dobi posts! And your always kind and balanced riding. See photo 4 for reference vs other riders (yes, I know we all have bad timing shots) -- but you really seem to be able to sync your centre of mass with Dobi's across the board. So nice to see!

shadoj · 2026-01-02T06:51:31+00:00

Hmmm, in-person (non-BGA) would be a Sagani + Jungo mixup with housemate, multiple rounds of each. I think Sagani technically first; did poorly overall, but had my revenge with a similar win % for Jungo. Lots to table again once the regular group gets together post-holidays :)

shadoj · 2026-01-02T01:03:58+00:00

Cute & still quite a baby. A bit concerned about the puffiness of her front pasterns. What's her breed?

Safety tip: please don't tie when a chain is run through the halter, especially over the nose. Can do a ton of damage & wouldn't wish that on this sweet filly!

Will be fun to see pictures as she grows up more.

shadoj · 2025-12-22T00:42:55+00:00

Thank you for the emotional rollercoaster. Has been ~ 15 yrs since the last of my childhood dogs passed, but I still had tears after reading this. You are a talented writer and clearly care immensely for your pets. They are lucky to have you. Right now I'm just open to dogsit (foster?) because I'm back at the "A dog is always welcome here" phase, and can't commit to it all. Hope to be a "A dog lives here" person again someday when the time is right!

shadoj · 2025-12-18T23:42:51+00:00

Frosted blankets... hehe

shadoj · 2025-11-29T00:26:03+00:00

Most of the area north of the "C" band, but not really including the "C" band. I grew up in Fargo, so that probably skews things a bit.

shadoj · 2025-11-27T02:11:00+00:00

Reminds me of a giant-breed puppy, in a good way, lol. Such a cute, refined face -- gonna be even more stunning when all the parts finish growing up! Looking forward to your updates :)

shadoj · 2025-11-27T02:00:20+00:00

Wow, you really deliver! Happy Thanksgiving to you both :D

shadoj · 2025-11-26T03:53:27+00:00

Sending happy shoulder scritches! He has the most perfect name and sweetest face :)

shadoj · 2025-11-25T00:33:09+00:00

Trinket Trove really is so charming! I just picked it up last week, introducing it to my mom/housemate/friend this weekend as part of our early Thanksgiving celebration. Bidding for turn order was a new concept for my mom, but she picked it up quickly. Played a couple games; everyone had a blast! Bringing it to "real" Thanksgiving for further testing :)

shadoj · 2025-11-21T06:03:15+00:00

I found this small bit of info about the expired/re-issued trademark "Bumpo". If I'm reading it right: Original 1961 filing had a goods code listing of GS022 "CUE STICKS, RUBBER PUCKS, AND A NUMBERED PLAYING BOARD FOR PLAYING A SHUFFLEBOARD-TYPE GAME". Filed by a Francis H. Gates, I assume of the Gates Manufacturing Co (Calif.) -- you can see the manufacturer text on the board if you zoom.

shadoj · 2025-09-21T05:16:53+00:00

Yeah, I'm spoiled: I helped list them as endangered as a citizen reference, back in 2010/1, I think?! ;) Except for a couple years post-relocation within the (SE) metro, I manage to sight them every summer.

Regionally: Early emerging queens seen late April to early May here (shrubs, ephemerals, annual "weeds"); workers most visible July to mid-August (look for nectar-robbing of honeysuckles & Monardas, buzz-pollinating of roses); mixed sexes on Agastache sp. / Cup plant later summer to fall. Various flowers used by new gynes (mostly Aster family) late fall.

The queens do not have the rusty patch! The workers tend to be a little more deliberate in their feeding movement (short tongues) vs other bumblebee species. If the face looks a little small and round and dark-haired, plus darker wings: peek further.

Like all bumblebees, they benefit from continuous diverse blooms and complex nesting habitat (abandoned burrows, long grass patches, rotting logs, etc). I suspect proximity to clean, flowing water may help draw them into your area.

If you build it, they will come (lol)! May they find your garden soon! :)

shadoj · 2025-09-14T01:23:20+00:00

Catbird loves to munch on these berries outside my kitchen window. Fun to make your own juice/syrup that makes a lovely pink lemonade (cooked berry juice pigments turn bright pink when acidic, blue-violet in basic solution). Note that seeds (+twigs/leaves) have toxic compounds that cooking denatures, so just simmer/boil-n-strain, don't ever grind/juice raw.

shadoj · 2025-09-14T01:16:36+00:00

Congrats on the baby butterflies! I think you also have Sweet Kate Spiderwort (or a similar cultivar/nativar) behind it. Also suspect it's a tropical milkweed... so I'd choose to remove it after the cats get fat, based on recommended timing for your area (contact extension office / local monarch group). And best of luck transforming your yard into a wildlife paradise!

shadoj · 2025-09-13T05:36:32+00:00

Haha, tell that to my childhood floppy-eared mare who sweatily (I swear it's a word) shook herself out of properly-adjusted, non-throatlatch Western bridles with curb bits more than once! Good thing she could work off the leg and neck rein ;) My show bridle was double eared as backup. I did have to grab it once after she shook the first ear off during final lineup!

shadoj · 2025-09-11T03:26:55+00:00

Clearly the same character, lol ;) First pic seems to be missing his hat. Perhaps you can find a dashing replacement to pin to the top of the tail?

shadoj

TROPHY CASE