J.K. Ullrich

#Writing #SciFi #books about #ClimateChange that I hope won't come true, and archiving Earth through #nature #photography in case they do.

Newest novel BEAT IN HER BLOOD now available: https://www.amazon.com/Beat-Her-Blood-J-K-Ullrich-ebook/dp/B0BM3MCP21/

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npub1sz5p4nr2m9nass248puyprdrx33y7ms4gfdr82e7dlm6w0dvasfqasjt2l

NIP-05 Address

WildTypeWriter_at_universeodon.com@mostr.pub

Profile Code

nprofile1qqsgp2q6e34dje7cg92ns7zq3k3ngcj0dc25yk3n4vlxlaa88kkwcyspzemhxue69uhhyetvv9ujumn0wd68ytnzv9hxgh7yggx

Publishing to

relay.nostr.band

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npub1sz5p4nr2m9nass248puyprdrx33y7ms4gfdr82e7dlm6w0dvasfqasjt2l

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Last Notes

2024-06-16 20:08:54

This morning I spotted a sandhill crane chick trying to be just like Dad. You'll grow into that wingspan, kiddo! Happy #FathersDay from #Alaska.
#Birds #Wildlife #Nature #Photography
https://media.universeodon.com/media_attachments/files/112/628/092/632/391/811/original/5eab299fc2a4e29d.png

2024-06-16 20:08:54

2024-06-02 14:12:59

#SilentSunday
#Nature #Photography #Landscape #Mountains #Alaska
https://media.universeodon.com/media_attachments/files/112/547/427/750/084/924/original/164a6647d6b07c38.png

2024-03-24 21:42:10

#SilentSunday
#Photography #Landscape #Nature
https://media.universeodon.com/media_attachments/files/112/152/833/486/487/059/original/a0388b7220b73c72.png

2024-02-17 04:33:14

The annual Great Backyard Bird Count starts today! Dedicate 15 minutes this weekend to a global citizen #science project that help track #birds ' population and range.
#Nature #Data #DataScience #GBBC #Animals #Conservation
https://www.birdcount.org

2024-02-16 03:40:44

In the past three days, three different people, referring to three separate projects, have complimented my #writing.
I've long known that words are my one indisputable talent, but this feels like a cosmic clue. Am I wasting my potential by continuing to work for a big tech organization that doesn't value writing?
If anyone knows of freelance projects that could help a fledgling #science writer build credentials for a career switch, please keep me in mind!

2024-02-11 20:58:56

Here's a true #SuperbOwl comeback: a Northern Hawk #Owl injured by a car returns to the wild.
I reported the story late last year for a wild bird rehabilitation clinic where I volunteer. Pop over to their #blog and meet this MVP (model veterinary patient)!
#birds #wildlife #nature #animals #Alaska
https://www.birdtlc.org/birdtlcblog/2023/12/11/wings-of-winter-rehabilitating-a-northern-hawk-owl

2024-01-28 16:21:49

#SilentSunday
Exquisite #ice crystals on my window turned the backyard into an impressionist winterscape.
(Portrait-oriented picture.)
#Nature #Winter #Photography #Snow
https://media.universeodon.com/media_attachments/files/111/834/474/074/402/604/original/54b06a8b7880b344.png

2024-01-26 01:47:01

Did you know that some #birds play in the #snow?!
Yeah, me either, but after I witnessed it on a #nature #photography walk, I investigated. Several studies documented this behavior in Common Redpolls.
My latest #science #writing post explores the topic (and debuts my new #blog design).
https://wildtype.ink/2024/01/25/bird-joy-science-warms-to-the-idea-that-birds-play-in-the-snow/

2024-01-12 02:41:39

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@npub12ze…hunm my favorite show! Excited to check out your blog.

2024-01-01 22:56:38

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@npub16nf…q6as Thank you for posting this. I was going through some of my photos from Australia last night and missed the currawongs' song so much that I pulled up a recording on YouTube...and started crying (a very rare occurrence for me). A currawong used to sit in the tree outside my apartment every evening and sing me to sleep. Seeing your photo today sparked that lovely memory!

2023-12-26 03:06:32

With #ClimateChange threatening the North Pole Workshop, Santa will phase out #coal use in naughty stockings. Instead, a volunteer brigade of ChristMoose will fill those stockings with a greener alternative fuel.
This one showed up in my neighbourhood on #Christmas morning. Santa’s got my number…
Whatever #winter #holidays you celebrate, be kind to the Earth and each other (or the #moose will fertilise your #trees )!
#nature #wildlife #photography
https://media.universeodon.com/media_attachments/files/111/644/440/720/168/797/original/ebb3b321d0984eb9.png

2023-12-24 18:50:02

#SilentSunday
#Landscape #Photography #Winter #Alaska #Nature
https://media.universeodon.com/media_attachments/files/111/636/873/853/571/992/original/d9e43a1ee589e2ac.png

2023-12-21 05:23:19

A bull #moose wandered through my backyard yesterday, browsing the #winter twigs for his dinner. Curious whether I could assess his age by his antlers, I did a little research. Turns out that's an unreliable gauge (he was either around three years old, or elderly) but I learned something else AMAZING.
Moose antlers aren't just for mating displays. They also function as a giant hearing trumpet. The broad palms amplify sound waves to boost the animal's hearing an estimated 20%. Researchers think this helps males locate female mates calling from afar...
...and maybe female photographers stalking them across a frozen pond. We stared at each other through the snow for a moment, but I kept a respectful distance, and he went back to foraging. A magnificent sight, well worth a wet camera!
#Nature #Wildlife #Animals #Photography #Alaska
https://media.universeodon.com/media_attachments/files/111/616/612/954/737/292/original/eeaa3f26454632af.png

2023-12-04 04:06:59

Ice crystals bloomed in the creek near my house on this #SilentSunday, as lovely as any summer flower.
#Nature #Photography #Winter
https://media.universeodon.com/media_attachments/files/111/520/168/902/470/832/original/4fa7019bcb3401a2.png

2023-12-03 17:07:34

Five big #news stories from the first five days of #COP28:
- Wealthy nations established a ~$400 million fund to help poorer ones on the front lines of #ClimateChange...although the US only offered about a quarter of others’ pledges.
- Global donors raised $777 million for climate-related #health risks like heat stress and tropical diseases...with charities and NGOs offering more than governments.
- More than 130 countries agreed to incorporate #food #emissions into their climate strategies...but promises may not translate into policies.
- 50 major #oil and #gas companies announced a ~90% reduction in #methane #emissions by 2030...but not the production that causes them.
- UAE hosts reportedly planned to negotiate #FossilFuel deals at COP, and intend to increase national oil production next year. COP28 president Sultan Al Jaber claimed “no science” proves that phasing out #FossilFuels will limit #GlobalWarming to 1.5C.
Hope in the headlines...disappointment in the details.

2023-10-29 15:51:52

Why do so many #books adopt the title formula "The [Occupation]'s Daughter/Wife"? I'd like to count how many, versus comparable constructions with Son/Husband.
Society already struggles with a lamentable habit of defining women in relation to the men in their lives. Let's not perpetuate it on the front covers of novels.

2023-10-14 23:57:20

I finally updated the #photography page on my website! It gained two new galleries (#Nature and #Wildlife), plus additional images in #Birds and #Landscapes. Pop over and check it out at https://wildtype.ink/photography/.
#Art #NaturePhotography #Environment

2023-10-03 03:01:10

#PennedPossibilities 90: Do any of your characters have disabilities? Can you relate?
My current #SciFi quartet is a #cyberpunk take on #disability, inspired by my and my sister's experiences with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS). Cyborgs aren't superhumans, but chronically ill people the #healthcare system left behind. MC's fight to stay functional amid inevitable decline mirrors the cascade failure of #EDS. #Writing my own possible future is scary, but MC's resilience also gives me strength.

2023-09-08 02:44:55

#Wildfires have destroyed more than a million Joshua #trees in #California 's Mojave National Preserve since 2020. Scientists launched an ambitious plan to regrow the #forest, but despite hundreds of volunteers and even a water-packing camel train, 80% of the nearly 2,000 seedlings have died.
Some are eaten by animals. Others die of thirst. The succulents struggle to survive as #ClimateChange makes their #environment hotter and dryer. And since Joshua trees only grow about 2 inches a year, even a successful program would take almost a century to restore what's been lost.
"We seem to be capable of destroying it," one park superintendent says of the ecosystem, "but we can't create something that we don't really even understand."
Read dismaying-yet-uplifting #news story from @npub1x7v…gxm8.
https://is.gd/M1ub4v

2023-07-18 09:55:29

Ever since I came to #Australia, I've been trying to capture a photo of an eastern spinebill hovering over #flowers. The behavior reminds me of the hummingbirds in my childhood backyard. (It still astonishes me that a continent with almost 900 species of #birds doesn't have a hummingbird.)
This weekend, staking out my favorite grevillea thicket, luck and light were with me at last. It took three years, but I finally got The Shot. #Photography may be the only thing in the world for which I have patience.
(Portrait orientation; click for full image)
#Nature #Wildlife #NaturePhotography
https://media.universeodon.com/media_attachments/files/110/734/408/467/841/968/original/c0d845abc6ad5eeb.png

2023-07-10 06:17:08

#PennedPossibilities 4 — A song and the feelings it evokes.
Petra: Once I put on David Bowie's "Let's Dance" album to charge my bionic limbs, but my batteries were so low I collapsed. Jonathan found me freakin' helpless. I thought he was gonna call the cops about my illegal parts. Instead he danced me around the salon until I generated enough energy to stand. Under the "serious moonlight", I realized I could trust him. Now if we fight, I play the song to remember that...and the feel of his fingers on my back, his sandalwood-and-disinfectants scent...is it warm in here?
Jonathan: Songs with 100-120bpm help me keep tempo during CPR. So when I resuscitated a colleague—okay, we were more than that—I sang Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" under my breath. Petra joined in. Suddenly I wasn't alone in that awful moment. Hearing it now reminds me that support comes from unexpected allies...and that Petra has more range than just rock, vocally and emotionally.
#Writing #SciFi #Books

2023-07-07 07:19:05

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@npub1hjd…lt8p Destigmatization is an interesting twist! I've been doing it for years with both OCD and homeschooling, springing those facts about myself on people after they've known me for a while and watching with satisfaction as jaws drop. Taking a similar approach with autism would make me feel more like an ally than a poser. Thanks for that perspective!

2023-07-07 07:19:05

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2023-07-07 06:31:15

Question for the #ActuallyAutistic community:
After learning about how autism presents in adult women and researching the scant #psychology literature available, I'm fairly convinced I'm on the spectrum.
Since formal diagnosis is expensive and time-consuming (not to mention potentially inaccurate as a female), I doubt I'll seek one. I mostly function well, so a label isn't much benefit. It would just be useful shorthand to explain my quirks to colleagues.
But I worry that identifying myself like that might dilute the term for others with more severe symptoms. It irks me when people use #OCD—for which I do have a clinical diagnosis—to denote meticulousness. Being tidy is not the same as intrusive, paralyzing brain loops! I don't want to do the same disservice to #autism.
Should I say I'm "a little autistic" or "have autistic tendencies"? How can I respectfully convey a probable-not-proven condition? Is it better not to attempt such a claim? I'd appreciate perspectives.

2023-07-07 06:31:15

2023-07-04 08:17:03

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@npub1k24…26zw @npub1psm…2ne9 congratulations! Reviews like that make all the (sometimes torturous) effort of writing worthwhile. What platform do you use to serialise your stories?

2023-06-30 11:30:55

#WritingWonders
6-30: Playlist for Book or MCs?
The table of contents IS a playlist! #Music is a key thematic motif in the #SciFi murder #mystery series I'm #writing, so each chapter takes its title from an #80s rock tune.
Each of the quartet's #books also has an unofficial theme song from that genre:
1: "Miss Mystery" by Black 'N Blue
2: "Welcome to the Jungle" by Guns 'n Roses
3: "Bad Medicine" by Bon Jovi
4: "Close My Eyes Forever" by Lita Ford
Think you can deduce the narrative arc? Book 1, "Beat In Her Blood", is already available if you want to start investigating!

2023-06-22 10:11:07

Bravo for the 16 young people suing the state of #Montana for its promotion of #FossilFuels, which they assert violates their right to a "clean and healthful #environment", guaranteed in the state constitution. Determined plaintiffs waited years for their day in court, since state officials worked to prevent the case going to trial (it's the only youth #climate lawsuit in the United States to do so).
Attorneys for the defense argued that Montana's emissions are too comparatively small to have a meaningful impact on #ClimateChange. But does that absolve them of responsibility to the next generation of citizens? One 20 year-old testified that her lungs often felt full of fire. "The world is burning...that sounds like a dystopian horror film, but it's not a movie. It's real life."
Read more from #NPR #news:
https://is.gd/lAA1fh

2023-06-11 01:49:40

#SilentSunday
(Portrait image; open for full effect.)
#Nature #Photography
https://media.universeodon.com/media_attachments/files/110/523/029/827/931/815/original/ded91b279c223219.jpg

2023-06-09 12:54:12

Still working to renovate the #photography gallery on my #blog. Hopefully I'll have a shiny new page to share before the weekend is out.
As a teaser, here's another shot that got lost in my archives. I was delighted to rediscover it (and would love advice from other shutterbugs on ways to better organize pictures)!
Pacific black ducks always make lovely subjects with their dramatic eye stripes. Those jewel tones aren't artificial; the water and leaves shone vivid colors in bright morning light.
#Birds #Nature #Wildlife
https://media.universeodon.com/media_attachments/files/110/514/319/721/068/914/original/042d16cfa4a8bdfc.png

2023-06-04 10:27:03

#WritingWonders
6-04: Last Time MC Traveled
Petra: I crossed the Mexican border a few years back, to get my bionic limbs installed. Spent one day on the beach, drinking myself numb on cheap tequila--the rest was grimy operating rooms and pain. I learned the Spanish for "we're out of anesthetic". Laid on a cot for a week, too sore to even swat the flies. The gunfire might've been gang wars, or my own war memories in a fever dream. A sweet nurse who wore a rebozo and a mustache brought me coconuts because you couldn't drink the water. Postcard-perfect holiday.
Jonathan: Who travels anymore? Only government gets to fly, and the bullet trains cost a fortune. I've spent my whole life around Baltimore, except for one trip as a kid to visit my mom's family in Florida. We snorkeled through the ruins of old Miami. I hear you can do that in Ocean City now, too. Maybe I can get Petra to drive out there this summer. We could use a vacation from murder.
#Writing #SciFi #Books

2023-05-14 10:37:20

#WritingWonders
05/14: Has MC broken hearts?
Petra: Yeah, I broke a heart--my own. Hypothermia trashed my heart after I got stranded in combat near the Arctic Circle. The doc didn't think I'd survive surgery; she prescribed a nice, boring life puttering between the VA and the VFW. But I'm not made for a slow-pulse lifestyle, so I got a black-market bionic pacemaker installed. Of course that's on the fritz now. It's supposed to charge off ambient sound, but the only frequency that works anymore is electric guitar riffs in rock music. I've got a whole playlist for cardiac maintenance. When I sing along with "Kickstart My Heart", I mean it literally.
#Writing #SciFi #Books