Ellen's Very Southern Voice

Ex-lawyer, current writer. Of the American South. Words in Salvation South ("Best of 2025"), Porchlight ("12 Southern Writers to Read Alongside the Canon"), Dorothy Parker's Ashes, Exterminating Angel Press, etc. Pushcart Special Mention. Peter Taylor Fellow. Writing facilitator. WHEN WE WERE MURDEROUS TIME-TRAVELING WOMEN (Literary Wanderlust, 2026).

Avata: red hair, blue eyes
Header: all you need is love banner

#NOLA #Memphis #Mississippi #Writing #Swimming #AntiRacism #Godzilla #HandSewing

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npub160e5eh7a59yv73rve5agkq486xqqrwfay7k8xcvhf0fckst50ktskj5snr

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[email protected]

Profile Code

nprofile1qqsd8u6vmlw6zjx0g3kv6w5tq2narqqphy7j0trnvxt5h5utg968m9cpz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0dszeqtjc

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relay.damus.io

nos.lol

Author Public Key

npub160e5eh7a59yv73rve5agkq486xqqrwfay7k8xcvhf0fckst50ktskj5snr

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Last Notes

2026-08-29 03:09:36 GMT

If I'm reading an article and it irrationally repeats in the next paragraph what it has already said in the prior paragraph, I close the tab. I will not engage in your time-eating, poorly-written AI slop.

2026-08-16 17:25:32 GMT

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When my son asked AI about his shoulder injury, it gave him multiple options. He was so impressed with what a great job it had done. He went to the orthopod who said, that's bullshit. If you ever want to use that arm again, your only option is surgery. Thank God my son recognized that the physician--not AI--knew what it was talking about.
#AI
3/3

2026-08-04 20:04:15 GMT

Saying goodbye to family, at the same time I both opened the car door turned to enter the car. I opened the corner of the door into my forehead right between my eyes. It bled a gusher, but it's already healing. If I had been 1/2 inch to the left or right, I would have stabbed my eye. #gratitude

2026-08-01 00:39:15 GMT

#TimeTravelAuthors post-size snippet
As I scraped and washed my plate, Tip-Top paced the tiny living area. My sword clanged against the sink. Whatever spell was controlling us had allowed me to change into my pajamas for the night, but when I’d woken, I was re-garbed in my red jumpsuit. It was disconcerting. The jumpsuit was awesome, but a woman liked to be in charge of her own clothes. To prove I could, I re-tied the dauphine’s cape around my neck
When We Were Murderous Time-Traveling Women

2026-07-14 21:31:57 GMT

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@nprofile…awd8 "The words hang in the air like dead flies." :) Loved it!

2026-07-14 19:24:23 GMT

Dear writer,
I appreciate your transparency in telling me you used AI to organize your thoughts, but I'd rather have your unorganized thoughts. Maybe you're unsure of your writing and believe AI produced a professional product for you. It didn't. This article is overly simplistic and relies on endless repetition for impact—your thoughts got lost. Please write as you will and add a new disclaimer: I chose to write this without AI, so forgive any human errors you encounter.
#WritingCommunity

2026-07-02 02:07:02 GMT

Every time I hear Trump, I have to look at the screen to see if it's him. He doesn't sound like the same person. His voice is raspy, a lower pitch. He's lost his energy. I know he's older but it's only been a year and half since he was elected. He didn't used to sound like this.

2026-06-19 02:37:03 GMT

#ScribesAndMakers Has a stranger ever recognized you because of your creative work?
I don't know if this counts, but I've had people come to my books signings the last two months who knew me from my prior work. That was a total shock.

2026-05-10 21:11:07 GMT

#SilentSunday
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/116/552/330/325/964/493/original/54224bbd3ff62901.jpeg

2026-05-08 19:08:29 GMT

I feel all kinds of ways when I realize I've fallen for one of the greatest lies of American history
https://ellenmorrisprewitt.com/lies-of-history/

2026-05-07 15:00:50 GMT

#WritersCoffeeClub Do readers need to understand a character's motivations to understand a story?
At nearly the end of When We Were Murderous Time-Traveling Women, I describe the event that created the antagonist's behavior. I do it then because it's the final question in exploring the effect of violence (restoring a relationship, to trust or not.) So far, her motivation has been political. The event reveals her emotional motivation. Thus, it goes to understanding the theme, not the plot.

2026-05-07 14:41:13 GMT

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@nprofile…n0wp Others on the jury--a lawyer in particular--said, It's the law, not my job as a juror to question it. I'm like, yeah, but do you agree to be complicit in an unjust law by serving on the jury?

2026-05-07 02:31:51 GMT

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One of the jurors gave an eloquent speech on how the "just" in "justice" requires just laws. And he wasn't following any unjust law just because some dumb legislators passed it.

2026-05-07 02:30:17 GMT

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"Jury nullification" they call it, but we didn't even get on the jury because we said, "Hell, no."

2026-05-07 02:29:02 GMT

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Others, they disqualified themselves by refusing to put a man in jail for possession of drugs.

2026-05-07 02:28:35 GMT

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Me, I disqualified myself by refusing to vote not guilty if it meant a mandatory life sentence without parole.

2026-05-07 02:26:28 GMT

So much I learned from jury duty, but the primary thing is how very many of us do NOT agree with the laws legislators have passed, and we're willing to say it loud and proud.

2026-05-02 03:55:13 GMT

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@nprofile…02nk TY! A reviewer--who liked it—called it "unconventional." :)

2026-05-01 23:32:54 GMT

#TimeTravelAuthors 1 May: introduce your story (optional: use the word 'may')
When Etoile accidentally calls a French prince back to modern-day New Orleans, he arrives with an assassin on his tail. She turns to her ancestral grannies to help get the prince back to his own time. After all, the three women are experts on murder.
Except it's committing murder they're good at.
Since Etoile may have committed murder herself, she's good with that. Or so she thought.

2026-05-01 20:34:09 GMT

As I'm working on this WIP and re-open the first page after "finishing" revising the last page, I'm wondering if I, in fact, write a novel as if it were a short story, where the ending image echoes the opening image and contains untold mysteries of meaning.
#WritingCommunity

2026-04-26 14:05:30 GMT

#SilentSunday
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/116/471/383/708/563/828/original/f6bc813c661c4613.jpeg

2026-04-20 21:54:18 GMT

I don't write mainstream stuff, y'all. Yes, WHEN WE WERE MURDEROUS TIME-TRAVELING WOMEN is genre--a fantasy--but it's not a predictable fantasy. At some point, I wondered if the publisher and editor and the ones who blurbed the book would be the ONLY ones who liked it.
Then I got this review:
"Ellen Morris Prewitt packs her unconventional novel with action, humor and heart...A delightfully rambunctious novel." Bradley Sides, Chapter 16 Review
https://chapter16.org/women-on-a-mission/
#Books #WritingCommunity

2026-04-09 21:53:21 GMT

It has been a day.
I had my first interview on the book. Boy, do I ramble. I need to get more precise. Hopefully, I'll improve with practice, I usually do.
I also dealt with getting the copyright on the novel. Anything with a legal whiff is unpleasant to me--I gave up practicing law 20 years ago. I loved it then. Not so much now.
And my husband seems to have caught a cold.
But the sun is shining....

2026-04-08 03:08:31 GMT

So, if I paid a tariff to UPS to get a plant delivered from Canada, do I get to file a claim somewhere?

2026-04-06 19:12:44 GMT

#WordWeavers Can you create a character/place/story/hook/device on the spot if you need to? If so, share an example.
What I can do is, when other people are talking, spot the story/hook lurking inside what they're saying. I'll often remark, "That's the title to a short story/novel." And, for me, the title embodies the story/hook.

2026-04-06 19:04:01 GMT

I did a krewe once of Barbie vs Mr. Potato Head, a po-ternity suit. Mr. PH denied the tots were his. His defense? Anatomical insufficiency.

2026-04-05 21:28:08 GMT

#SilentSunday
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/116/354/217/060/469/216/original/6778decc987da301.jpeg

2026-03-30 00:39:51 GMT

#SilentSunday
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/116/315/333/906/737/156/original/b7019ae86321b9c4.jpeg

2026-03-28 23:07:03 GMT

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@nprofile…hxgv 🤣 I actually wanted--and found--what I call coveralls, but you have to search coverall jumpsuits to get them and not overalls, Mr. Green Jeans specialty.

2026-03-28 23:01:53 GMT

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@nprofile…0m57 That was really funny. Yes, I have my doubts too. I began using Duo Lingo when my grandson used it to jump a grade in French. But, and I think this a big but, he was pairing it with his ongoing French classes. I have sussed out what people are saying on the sidewalk, and once I asked the roofer if I should pay him now (except I said buy). But I keep thinking if I were learning in a more orderly way, like how to conjugate verbs, I would be a lot further along and have much more memory.

2026-03-28 21:47:06 GMT

I get all my fashion inspiration off murder mysteries. I just ordered a pair of olive green coveralls.

2026-03-28 21:10:30 GMT

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@nprofile…y92e A totally different perspective.

2026-03-28 02:13:35 GMT

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@nprofile…kj02 🤣

2026-03-27 23:14:04 GMT

"My dog does not wear pants." I'm repeating this in my Duolingo exercise, trying to imagine myself in a situation where I would say that sentence.

2026-03-27 15:42:26 GMT

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@nprofile…rly9 @nprofile…c5ed Oh, my goodness. Now I'm thinking of a village of ....

2026-03-27 15:41:28 GMT

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@nprofile…c5ed I just had someone suggest that! They used Stennis, as in the Stennis Center in Mississippi, but same emphasis. And it sounds less of an affectation than "Pu-nes-ton."

2026-03-27 14:33:07 GMT

I'm not gonna say how it's pronounced, but I know how it's spelled.
https://ellenmorrisprewitt.com/my-ps-story/

2026-03-26 15:52:18 GMT

#WritersCoffeeClub What do you feel when a loved one reads your work?
Anxious, if the piece is an essay about family. Anxious, if the piece has violence or sex in it. Pretty neutral if it's a short story or blog post. Proud and maybe a bit surprised when the loved one likes the work. By "loved one," I mean a big group of family members that read my published work.

2026-03-26 15:45:47 GMT

I think I need a Piglet as I go into the world with this new book.

2026-03-25 14:43:12 GMT

“It’s hard now as an immigrant pantry organization to constantly hear about the decrease in crime when the humanitarian crisis that it’s creating is being ignored,” Hampton said. “Because there is a real serious humanitarian crisis within this community in Memphis right now. We see it every day. We work with it every day. And it’s like a tale of two cities, basically.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/mar/25/ice-memphis-food-pantry-immigration
#Memphis
(I apologize if this is behind a paywall--the quote says it all)

2026-03-25 03:24:58 GMT

This 2nd piercing has thrown me off my earring game. I never leave the house without earrings. Except now I have an earring in, but not my normal earring. And my watch has noticed my decrease in active calories--no swimming for 2 weeks.

2026-03-24 23:15:40 GMT

If festival-goers found my writing table, would they even participate?/
https://ellenmorrisprewitt.com/my-writing-table/
#WritingCommunity #Writing #Writers

2026-03-24 19:02:47 GMT

A Love Song to Cities
https://ellenmorrisprewitt.substack.com/p/a-love-song-to-cities
Any guesses which book prompted this ode? (ha, ha--the answer is in the post; let me know your thoughts)

2026-03-22 02:33:15 GMT

People are full of wisdom. I'm struck by this when I talk to folks about work I'm struggling with. Sure, sometimes they're wandering around in left field. But, if I listen, I often get invaluable insights. My takeaway might not be what they thought they were sharing, but wisdom can be imbedded inside other thoughts.
#WritingCommunity

2026-03-21 21:31:24 GMT

My most steady source of earned income right now is Nielsen ratings, I'm just saying.

2026-03-21 18:29:46 GMT

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@nprofile…4df6 Oh, I'm so glad it hits you that way! Thank you for letting me know.

2026-03-21 03:28:03 GMT

The refrigerator died, so we got a new one. Then the washer locked up. They could fix that. A window sill suddenly developed a huge crack. They're looking at what needs to be done. I'm happy to say the ice maker's working. Tons of ice, we've got tons of ice. Oh, and the toilets are now flushing. Rough winter for home appliances, yeah.

2026-03-20 20:27:41 GMT

This weekend I'll be at Makers Space of Arts Alive! the Hancock County arts organization's major annual event. We'll have potters, woodworkers, quilters, etc. ... and writer me. I'll be doing free writing, where folks write their lives by finishing sentences I've begun on index cards. People are surprisingly receptive to it (how is a writer supposed to demonstrate her craft?) I made a poster to introduce myself. It looks like a 3rd grader's show-n-tell, which is about right.
#WritingCommunity

2026-03-20 16:50:11 GMT

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@nprofile…n2fr Enjoy this time with the WIP.

2026-03-20 16:47:48 GMT

Here, on the first day of spring in New Orleans, I'm making a pitcher of iced tea. It's that kind of hopeful day.

2026-03-20 15:25:04 GMT

#WordWeavers How much romance is in your story?
None, I'm gonna say none. Even though Etoile is incredibly attracted to the Dauphine (who's a guy, despite the e), it embarrasses her to no end, since he's her male doppelgänger.
#WhenWeWere MurderousTime-TravelingWomen

2026-03-20 14:43:06 GMT

#ScribesAndMakers Self-promotion Day. Shame optional.
How serendipitous. I'm two weeks out of the launch of my literary fantasy, When We Were Murderous Time-Traveling Women. Is it self-promotion if I use the words of those who wrote blurbs? Here's one:
A whirlwind adventure that unfolds in enchanting New Orleans. Rest assured, expectations will be subverted. Oh, and how awesome our grannies are, especially the murderous ones.
—Gordon Haynes, author of Catching Souls for Beelzebub
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/116/262/024/372/743/073/original/1c2228b484bb5c9d.jpeg

2026-03-20 14:31:08 GMT

https://www.ted.com/talks/mitchell_s_jackson_the_6_eras_of_nba_fashion_from_restrained_to_radical

2026-03-20 13:49:42 GMT

I seem to make everything hard, but I can't do what I don't feel authentic about. So I've been struggling with these "cover reveal" "unboxing" etc. milestones. This time, the Universe figured it out for me.
https://ellenmorrisprewitt.com/the-book/

2026-03-20 13:46:22 GMT

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@nprofile…6z8u I was so taken with the peacefulness.

2026-03-20 13:45:14 GMT

What is that sitting sassy on an orange couch?
#NewOrleans
#Books
#WritingCommunity
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/116/261/796/055/569/229/original/63660bcd4d998024.jpeg

2026-03-20 03:27:29 GMT

So many ways to measure the livability of a city, but one is if you're walking a public path beside a flowing river and someone is playing the flute in a nearby public pavilion while citizens lay in the sun on the public grass, you're moving in the right direction.
#NewOrleans

2026-03-10 16:27:15 GMT

https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!tqZf!,f_auto,q_auto:best,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fellenmorrisprewitt.substack.com%2Fapi%2Fv1%2Fpress_kit%2Fasset%2F190509016%2Foverlay%2Fcomposed%3FaspectRatio%3Dgrid%26audience%3Dcreator%26version%3D1773152833586

2026-03-10 13:34:29 GMT

#WordWeavers Antagonist POV: Imagine you achieved your goal. What's next?
Grande Red: Must one always have a next? I've secured the future of France, yet you push me for more. Ask me such a question, and your head will be next.

2026-03-09 03:08:53 GMT

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@nprofile…e245 That's so wonderful--thank you!

2026-03-09 02:40:12 GMT

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@nprofile…e245 Oh, I'm so glad. It was fun to write. :)

2026-03-09 00:48:40 GMT

If "how to write a novel" advice isn't working for you, maybe reading about the rules I broke writing "When We Were Murderous Time-Traveling Women" will help.
https://ellenmorrisprewitt.com/the-rules-i-broke/
#WritingCommunity #Book #blog #Writing

2026-03-08 04:12:45 GMT

#SilentSunday
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/116/191/598/457/354/722/original/388b8589bf16322f.jpeg

2026-03-04 06:14:28 GMT

#WordWeavers Introduce your MC without telling us their age, gender, job, and who they are to others.
While I have not told you about the evening I lay in the grass beneath the rattling pecan leaves and formulated a murderous plan while the needlelike proboscis of a mosquito I could not swat away drew blood from my cheek, I have told you my Tip-Top gifted me with an understanding of necessary killing.

2026-03-01 14:54:17 GMT

You can listen for free to my short stories here if you want.
https://www.scribl.com/books/P60AB/Cain-t-Do-Nothing-With-Love

2026-03-01 03:40:07 GMT

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@nprofile…y0sp Ok, that is hard. Took me a minute to figure out what was going on (and who knew horst was a word?)

2026-03-01 03:19:49 GMT

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@nprofile…kepk Well, I gave that a shot just to see, but I can't even guess a country with the name on it. 🤣

2026-03-01 03:15:57 GMT

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@nprofile…y0sp No, I'll look at it--thanks

2026-03-01 02:01:41 GMT

Well, I thought I'd escape reality a bit by playing Wordle and got the word on the 2nd try. So needing a different diversion now.

2026-02-28 14:29:05 GMT

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@nprofile…03q3 I'm so glad you're enjoying them. I do love "Rollerblader for Jesus." "Skate on!"

2026-02-26 23:21:10 GMT

These misogynistic conversations between Epstein and male "scientists" and "academics" are nothing more than men conducting "business meetings" in strip clubs on steroids.

2026-02-26 19:35:39 GMT

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@nprofile…03q3 Oh, an oldie but goodie!

2026-02-26 17:10:49 GMT

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@nprofile…03q3 TY! I hope you enjoy it!

2026-02-26 03:25:54 GMT

Several folks have asked me to let them know if "When We Were Murderous Time-Traveling Women" was available, and it is.
I'm remembering @nprofile…03q3
but I bet I'm forgetting others.
So here it is for pre-order:
https://bookshop.org/p/books/when-we-were-murderous-time-traveling-women-ellen-morris-prewitt/794b9d9d050e518b?ean=9781956615623&next=t
#WritingCommunity

2026-02-25 02:17:00 GMT

OTOH, my husband and I walked into an event a couple of years ago and joined another man at his table. He spoke and said, "Are you a model?" I thought he was making fun of me. He said, "No, you look like a model." Which I guess meant I was walking around looking like crap.

2026-02-25 02:15:10 GMT

Back when I used to show clothes, I was talking to a couple at a party. The woman was asking me about working as a model. The husband said, "You're a model? That's what models do. They walk around looking like crap then they get on the runway, and pow." The woman jumped all over him. He said, "What? It's true."
I sometimes think about that and get tickled.

2026-02-22 15:48:26 GMT

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@nprofile…rqcm Pineapple Sherbert and Ernie at Muses

2026-02-22 03:17:10 GMT

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@nprofile…rqcm 😜

2026-02-22 01:52:47 GMT

I've found my soulmate food: pineapple sherbet. My mind, stomach, and soul know it's good for me.
psa: sherbet only has one r

2026-02-21 18:58:08 GMT

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@nprofile…3k4w !!!

2026-02-21 18:22:21 GMT

It's the assertion of the title that attracts him.
https://ellenmorrisprewitt.com/no-dragons-in-this-book/
#Books #Book #Childrensbooks #Dragons

2026-02-19 21:41:19 GMT

OK, here's the launch info. If you're ANYWHERE near New Orleans, come out out.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/when-we-were-murderous-time-traveling-women-book-launch-tickets-1983020445534?aff=oddtdtcreator
https://cdn.masto.host/writing/media_attachments/files/116/099/460/735/786/908/original/32c6351c4f5c49b9.jpg

2026-02-19 21:36:32 GMT

If Bluesky thinks I'm gonna give them the last 4 digits of my Social so they can verify my age, they are seriously delusional. I don't need their app that badly.

2026-02-11 00:15:19 GMT

#TimeTravelAuthors Does your story get "political"?
For me, "political" means critique of a system. In "When We Were Murderous Time-Traveling Women," the question at hand is, how do you recover after you've been forced to kill? The violence in the lives of Etoile and her 3 ancestral grannies is at the hands of men. But the worse character is the mother of the prince, a collaborator in the violent system we've constructed. So the story doesn't get political. It's political from the get-go.

2026-02-03 19:38:18 GMT

#TimeTravelAuthors Is your work a standalone or a series?
Standalone. Though the next novel I'm cogitating on will use the same concept: a modern female hero whose family history invades her current life

2026-02-01 03:59:53 GMT

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@nprofile…hxgv It's kinda freeing in a way to think, how odd can you make this/

2026-01-31 21:00:01 GMT

#ScribesAndMakers Share something about your creative work this month
I received the results of a paid developmental edit of my memoir. I ALWAYS listen to reviewers' advice, but I'm going to use this for line edits and ignore the rest. I can't stress how unusual this is for me, creatively. The editor wanted me to revise it into a standard memoir blah, blah, blah about my life. Instead, I'm gonna lean harder into these essays, tying them together more uniquely, and figure out the best ordering.

2026-01-30 22:58:59 GMT

I swam a mile this morning. I was the only one in the pool for the entire 50 minutes. All alone, swimming. I always thank the lifeguards for guarding my life while I swim. They always say, “no problem.”
#Swim #Swimming #pool

2026-01-30 20:37:20 GMT

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@nprofile…cm0q 😊

2026-01-30 18:54:07 GMT

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@nprofile…jkcd @nprofile…l99f TY! I'm looking into them.

2026-01-30 18:53:44 GMT

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@nprofile…z2tl TY!

2026-01-30 18:53:33 GMT

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@nprofile…cpmc I'm making a list so I can educate myself--thank you!

2026-01-30 04:20:59 GMT

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@nprofile…l99f I'll check it out, thank you.

2026-01-30 01:58:05 GMT

Hi, y'all smart people. What video conferencing platform do you use? I'm not doing Google Meet after its AI feature took a photo of me during a call and broadcast it. Now I read the Zoom CEO was at the Melania screening. What non-big tech platforms do you recommend?

2026-01-29 03:28:08 GMT

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@nprofile…04uc That first point hits hard. I'm so sorry for all you have lost.

2026-01-28 21:19:37 GMT

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@nprofile…4d65 My poor, needy little pup is thoroughly aware of this about me.

2026-01-28 04:10:34 GMT

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@nprofile…m55u Ah, good to know they're useful.

2026-01-28 01:43:43 GMT

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@nprofile…hxgv Ha, ha--I've never understood how to work those either. My bar for complicated is veeeery low.

2026-01-28 00:38:56 GMT

#ScribesAndMakers Are you good at threading needles?
Yes. My D-i-L was telling me about a gadget that helps you thread a needle, and I kept thinking, that sounds way more complicate than just zipping the thread through the needle.

2026-01-27 23:12:39 GMT

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@nprofile…jpzy I agree. That type of rudeness isn't really a good idea.