We are tired.

Photo copyright Aji, 2021; all rights reserved.

Wings yesterday, trying to save the trees. He's been working on it as much as possible all of the last week — hard, hot, heavy, backbreaking work, all to keep the land here alive, because the colonial world has been doing it's damnedest to kill it, and after the last three years, their work is finally coming to its deadly fruition.

There's a local colonizer on social media who's a "big name," and the amount of deference he gets for mostly terrible takes is as predictable as it is awful. Today he said this was a 50- to 100-year drought.

Which he pulled entirely out of his ass. In 2005-06, scientists had ALREADY confirmed that this region had been in a 500-year drought for a full ten years already (since at least 1995-96) and it's only gotten worse. This year, scientists expanded it: This is now, per the physical record, the worst drought this land has seen in more than 1,200 years. And still they keep coming, keep damaging, keep sucking up resources not theirs and inflicting harm and spreading infection and invading lands not theirs for trespass.

And we are tired.

Wings should be taking it easy, his only work the animals and his art. Instead, he's spending full workdays on this, because if he doesn't, the land will die. But here we are, and the colonizer population continues to make everything worse. After July1st? The new variant is going to start laying waste to populations once more. And we, and the land, need to stay safe.

We have another hard week ahead. The medical stuff this week is not mine but his, and it's not acute, it's long-scheduled, but it's a burden for him all the same. And it's more time that neither of us can spend on income generation, and the expenses keep mounting.

In addition to paying all of the medical people for all of it, there were vet and farrier Thursday, chimney cleaners Friday, and vehicle insurance and quarterly taxes within the next two weeks, and of course all the usual monthly bills and expenses. And I have no idea how to cover it all, given that I just shelled out more than $1,700 cash four days ago on the imaging. I'm also down 3-4 Patreon patrons since May 1st, which puts a BIG dent in what covers our monthly bills. And as of July 1st, I am having to stop posting every single day on Patreon, because I don't have the time and my health can't take it, so I expect to lose more. And my Patreon is what pays our utilities and other monthly bills, so, yes, I'm worried. I'm also exhausted after the last week, and barely functional, so here we are.

But as I said, Wings will have several new pieces out soon, too, possibly as early as tomorrow or mid-week: at least one major necklace posted last week here, and a minimum of four new Warrior Woman and three new Pueblo pins (those last three, with a very cool new twist). I posted the first two Pueblo pins last week; one has already sold, but you can see the other here. Seriously, go check out the necklace; it's incredible.

I'm skipping all the rest of it because I'm tired constantly, and frankly I don't have the focus right now for anything else. Links are here:

• Sales here; 
• Testimonials here; 
• Amazon wishlist here (priorities are LaminaSaver for Miika [she's set until August] coffee & metal/glass/dishwasher cleaners);
• Patreon here;
• Ko-fi here.

And if you've been contemplating a purchase? This would be a very, very good time to do it; I've got to make up this staggering outlay somehow. There's lots of fabulous new work, so please share all of the links. 

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2021; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.