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rettar.bsky.social
Rettar
@rettar.bsky.social
150 followers 140 following 130 posts
Former legal tech, ex-classical singer, traveler, reader, gardener, and mediocre mosaicist, working to transform 10 acres into meadows and wildflowers for pollinators. Trying to stay sane while living in a red state. 💙
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rettar.bsky.social
Kicking off 2026 with my first read of the year—happy New Year, Bluesky!
The orange cover of Set My Heart to Five by Simon Stephenson, featuring the book title on a movie marquee and an android sitting on a bench in front of the theater.
January 1, 2026 at 2:05 PM
rettar.bsky.social
This image expresses how I feel as I welcome the New Year—feeling a bit skeptical, worried, and concerned about losing my footing, but still holding onto hope for brighter days ahead.
A black-headed vulture perched at the very tip of a tree branch, framed against a brilliant blue sky. Its piercing side eye looks skeptically down at me as I walk beneath, while its body seems barely anchored to the branch.
January 1, 2026 at 1:42 PM
rettar.bsky.social
“Public lands are our public commons, breathing spaces in a country that is increasingly holding its breath,” she wrote, adding, “We stand before a giant sequoia and remember the size of our hearts instead of the weight of our egos.”

The Best Sentences of 2025 www.nytimes.com/2025/12/29/o...
Opinion | The Best Sentences of 2025
www.nytimes.com
December 31, 2025 at 12:59 PM
rettar.bsky.social
Took advantage of the 75-degree day yesterday to explore a new-to-me park trail. Herman Baker Trail in Sherman, TX. A whiplashing 28 this morning!
Warm, windy, sunny day and I am standing on a rock outcropping over a small lake in Sherman Texas. Evergreen ash juniper trees and bare deciduous trees across from each other, separated by a feeder canal that leads to a lake in Sherman, Texas.
December 29, 2025 at 2:12 PM
rettar.bsky.social
Christmas morning walk on a local bike path. The scent of the fallen leaves was intoxicating.
Leaf-covered path through the woods. Dirt path with heavy tree cover and a homemade sign strung between the trees across the path reading “Tunnel of Love.”
December 25, 2025 at 3:49 PM
rettar.bsky.social
Dallas Arboretum and Botanic Gardens.
Dallas Arboretum and Botanic Garden at night; trees lit with warm white lights Gazebo with Nine Ladies Dancing. Dallas Arboretum Christmas tree.
December 24, 2025 at 7:59 PM
rettar.bsky.social
Perfect.

“Peering into the Trump mind-set — the logic underpinning his priorities, his morality, his decision making — is like opening up a garbage pail left out for days during a summer heat wave.”
-Thomas Edsall

The Trump Mind-Set Is Not Complex www.nytimes.com/2025/12/16/o...
Opinion | The Trump Mind-Set Is Not Complex
www.nytimes.com
December 16, 2025 at 1:17 PM
rettar.bsky.social
Phone camera just can't capture how white the trunks of these Sycamore trees are.
Bleached trunks of Sycamore trees against a brilliant blue sky.
December 11, 2025 at 8:52 PM
rettar.bsky.social
Beautiful essay, touching and bittersweet as my good friend moved away yesterday.

“All good friends are wicked angels, tempting us to a place of greater communion through the shared invitation of a joke. All good friends will be missed forever. “

www.nytimes.com/2025/12/09/m...
The Illustrated Children’s Book I’ll Never Stop Recommending to Adults
www.nytimes.com
December 10, 2025 at 2:16 PM
rettar.bsky.social
A dense Saturday morning fog in North Texas.
Red Cedar in a misty morning field, with three pecan trees silhouetted against the foggy horizon.
December 6, 2025 at 5:15 PM
rettar.bsky.social
More of this, please, Mr. Friedman!

“This is one of the most shameful episodes in American foreign policy, and the entire Republican Party is complicit in its perpetuation.”

-Gift article

The ‘Useful Idiots’ From America Whom Putin Is Playing Like a Flute www.nytimes.com/2025/12/04/o...
Opinion | The ‘Useful Idiots’ From America Whom Putin Is Playing Like a Flute
www.nytimes.com
December 4, 2025 at 12:58 PM
rettar.bsky.social
“The killing of the survivors by this moral slum of an administration should nauseate Americans. A nation incapable of shame is dangerous, not least to itself. As the recent “peace plan” for Ukraine demonstrated.”

-George F. Will

wapo.st/4pg1HJa
Opinion | A sickening moral slum of an administration
Regarding Venezuela, Ukraine and much more, Trump and his acolytes are worse than simply incompetent.
wapo.st
December 3, 2025 at 12:41 AM
Reposted by Rettar
viktorwinetrout.bsky.social
He is risen
The Pillsbury Dough Boy float at the Macy's Parade
November 27, 2025 at 2:42 PM
rettar.bsky.social
I just don't get David Brooks. His opinion last Friday infuriated me. Jim's comment in the clip below expresses exactly what I felt better than I could have put into words.
Gift article.

The Epstein Story? Count Me Out. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/21/o...
Screenshot of a rebuke to David Brook’s opinion piece in the New York Times.
November 24, 2025 at 6:52 PM
rettar.bsky.social
“How do you say “Thanksgiving” in Russian?”

-gift article

Trump’s Proposed Ukraine ‘Deal’ Is a Disgrace www.nytimes.com/2025/11/22/o...
Opinion | Trump’s Proposed Ukraine ‘Deal’ Is a Disgrace
www.nytimes.com
November 22, 2025 at 8:14 PM
rettar.bsky.social
The vulture family is back for a visit.
Black-headed vultures resting atop a metal shed with a treetop in the background.
November 16, 2025 at 6:24 PM
rettar.bsky.social
Glorious weather yesterday and today. Makes it almost worth being a 🔵 in this red state. Almost.
Dirt path winding through the trees on a beautiful sunny day in Denison, TX. The scent of the fallen leaves as I walked was delicious!
November 13, 2025 at 6:36 PM
rettar.bsky.social
“On a Veterans Day when optimism about the American experiment can be hard to summon, they [cemeteries] transport us back to a moment when America was an essential force for good.”

www.nytimes.com/2025/11/11/o...
Opinion | ‘Thanks, U.S.A.’
www.nytimes.com
November 11, 2025 at 11:53 AM
rettar.bsky.social
Gift article.

Supreme Court Denies Request to Revisit Same-Sex Marriage Decision www.nytimes.com/2025/11/10/u...
Supreme Court Denies Request to Revisit Same-Sex Marriage Decision
www.nytimes.com
November 10, 2025 at 2:49 PM
rettar.bsky.social
This pretty well captures my mood this morning — equal parts gloomy and furious.
A sundown behind the treetops. Fiery orange sky with violet clouds layered above.
November 10, 2025 at 12:50 PM
rettar.bsky.social
Way to go my NJ peeps!🎉

Live Updates: Key Races in New Jersey and Virginia to Be Decided www.nytimes.com/live/2025/11...
Live Updates: New Jersey Elects Sherrill Governor as Democrats Pick Up Key Wins
www.nytimes.com
November 5, 2025 at 3:15 AM
rettar.bsky.social
Finally, something in the news that made me smile.

Live Updates: Mamdani Wins N.Y.C. Mayor’s Race After Highest Turnout in Decades www.nytimes.com/live/2025/11...
Live Updates: Mamdani Wins N.Y.C. Mayor’s Race After Highest Turnout in Decades
www.nytimes.com
November 5, 2025 at 3:13 AM
rettar.bsky.social
Gift article. I am glad that the NYT made such a dramatic statement, but it isn't the NYT readers who need to see it. How do you get this across to tRumpers?

Are We Losing Our Democracy?
www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
www.nytimes.com
October 31, 2025 at 12:32 PM
rettar.bsky.social
Good morning Bluesky. Tooting my own horn after a 2+ mile early morning walk with a friend.
Bass Hall in Fort Worth, TX. A limestone angel is framed by a circular window, the picture was taken from across the street where a Barnes and Noble used to be.
October 27, 2025 at 3:39 PM
rettar.bsky.social
The rampant bothsideism in this column is infuriating. The Reader Picks are far more illuminating than the opinion piece.

Gift article.

The Rot Creeping Into Our Minds www.nytimes.com/2025/10/23/o...
Opinion | The Rot Creeping Into Our Minds
www.nytimes.com
October 24, 2025 at 12:02 PM