My name's Adam! I live in Tacoma, WA. I love maps, nature, plants, gardening, and cooking.
USDA Zone 9a / Köppen Csb
#Kiwix has updated their copy of #Wikipedia to be current as of February 2026. If you need or would like to view or download their copy, you can do so at:
Link: https://library.kiwix.org/
The updated version is currently sycing to my personal Kiwix library at the moment.
My folks are drying out some doug-fir lumber that they sawed up on their small-scale mill (all from trees sustainably thinned out from a crowded forest). These will take some months to dry out, but once done, helps avoid cracking from shrinkage.
The UV flashlight I bought for the fluorescent minerals in our rock collection came in handy in an unexpected way.
Got some turmeric stains on my shirt last night while making Indian food.
Sunlight has long been used to get out turmeric stains (the UV in sunlight does the trick). After a pre-soak in OxiClean, the stain turned bright purple due to the pH change. After 10 minutes in front of the UV flashlight, the stain was gone. #laundry #cleaning #cooking #turmeric
@floatybirb In such situations, there seems to be extensive trading networks in place with areas with the right types of clay.
One interesting angle is the type of clay matters too for the pottery you can make. Kaolinite forms in warm, wet conditions and needs to be fired to high temps in a kiln. Illite, which would forms under a less warmer climate doesn't need to be fired as hot, but has a narrow temperature range it has to be fired at; it takes more skill to make pottery with it.
(2/2)
@floatybirb For Mediterranean climates, I would imagine most clay formations would be associated with rivers or lakes (or locations with a history of having them). One route for clay formations could be a wetter climate in the past, leaving deposits of clay that persist into the current conditions.
There are examples of island-based cultures with distinct pottery cultures (like the Lapita pottery culture), in areas where you mostly just have limestone. (1/2)
@floatybirb Hello fellow conworlder! So without rivers, you would be looking at clays that weathered in place. For weathering to happen, you need time and moisture.
I'm not sure what climate you envision for the island. Tropical climates tend to strip out all the silica through heavy rainfall, leaving kaolinite (perfect for pottery!).
If you are imagining something more arid or with seasonal summer dryness, then you might be out of luck.
Marcus Adams