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megsmith.bsky.social
dr. meg smith
@megsmith.bsky.social
2.2K followers 1.9K following 950 posts
• Interim Director & Research Asst Prof of Digital Humanities at @siueiris.bsky.social
• Medieval/early modern Irish historian
• Public transit enthusiast & urban cyclist
• Die-hard Packers fan
• Avid quilter/xstitcher
• Margaret, not Megan
• She/her
• STL
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megsmith.bsky.social
💌Mail day💌

I’ve got 150 of these suckers, and I’m willing to share. Big ups to the Ink Spot, a local union print shop that printed these same day for me! #StLouis #STL #stlwx
A big stack of postcards fresh from the printer. The front has the snow clearance ordinance for the city of St. Louis. The back has the postcard address section and a message explaining that clearing sidewalks is an ethical and legal obligation.
January 30, 2026 at 2:39 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
I just put in an order for 150 postcards with the snow-clearing ordinance to send to local businesses. No more hiding behind feigned ignorance! #StLouis #STL #stlwx
The front of a postcard I designed to share St. Louis’s snow-clearing ordinance: REVISED CODE OF THE CITY OF ST. LOUIS 11.18.210 - SNOW REMOVAL. After any fall of snow, owners, managers, agents or occupiers of any premises shall cause the snow to be immediately removed from the improved area of the sidewalk in the public street adjacent to such premises, and the improved area of the sidewalk shall also be kept clear of ice at all times. If no part of the sidewalk area be improved, then a lane five feet wide in the sidewalk area shall be kept free from snow and ice at all times. Where structures contain six or more units, it shall be the duty of the owner or agent of the owner to comply with this provision. Where structures contain between one and six units, it shall be the duty of the person occupying the units nearest the public street, as well as the owner or agent of the owner, involved to comply with the requirements of this section. (1960 C., § 805.210; 1994 C., § 11.18.210; Ord. No. 56726, § 1(part), 1974.) The back of a postcard I designed, with a friendly (maybe slightly passive aggressive) message to businesses: Hi neighbor! In the city of St. Louis, it's the responsibility of the property owner to clear the sidewalk of snow - the whole sidewalk. That's a legal obligation, and it's also an act of care for your customers and neighbors. Unmaintained sidewalks are a serious hazard, especially as snow becomes ice. Thanks for keeping the community safe, comfortable, and functional!
January 29, 2026 at 12:12 AM
megsmith.bsky.social
library.municode.com/mo/st._louis...
11.18.210 - Snow removal. After any fall of snow, owners, managers, agents or occupiers of any premises shall cause the snow to be immediately removed from the improved area of the sidewalk in the public street adjacent to such premises, and the improved area of the sidewalk shall also be kept clear of ice at all times. If no part of the sidewalk area be improved, then a lane five feet wide in the sidewalk area shall be kept free from snow and ice at all times. Where structures contain six or more units, it shall be the duty of the owner or agent of the owner to comply with this provision. Where structures contain between one and six units, it shall be the duty of the person occupying the units nearest the public street, as well as the owner or agent of the owner, involved to comply with the requirements of this section. (1960 C., § 805.210; 1994 C., § 11.18.210; Ord. No. 56726, § 1(part), 1974.)
January 27, 2026 at 5:55 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
An infuriating call with Walgreens, who maintain it's the city's job to clear sidewalks, has driven me to LinkedIn. Gotta fight fire (corporate neglect) with fire (the most cursed, corporate platform).

Here's the relevant code, in case anyone else wants to be a nuisance. #StLouis #STL #stlwx
A LinkedIn post. At the end, I've added local hashtags and tagged in local news outlets. In the City of St. Louis, it's the legal responsibility of property owners to clear the sidewalks of snow. But every company that plows their parking lot while neglecting their sidewalks is not only flouting their legal obligation. They are sending a clear message about which of their customers and neighbors they deem worthy of care and access. Last night, as I traipsed through the snow to pick up some prescriptions, I encountered business after business that has paid for their parking lots and driveways to be plowed, while leaving their sidewalks covered in 9 inches and more of snow. Back in December, when our first big snow hit, I contacted Walgreens corporate to let them know that this is a recurring issue at their Hampton and Chippewa store. During last year's prolonged winter weather, that store allowed nearly a foot of ice to accumulate on their sidewalks. This year, they're on track to do the same. When I called the store this morning to ask when they'll be addressing the issue, the manager repeatedly (and incorrectly) told me that's the city's job. Target told me the same. Unmaintained sidewalks impact access to these businesses, and choices about snow removal make starkly visible which customers they value. But the impacts far exceed the stores' customer bases. These businesses occupy valuable property at a high-volume intersection, crossed by multiple bus lines and providing pedestrian access to key resources. This failure is a tangible manifestation of their extractive relationship with the communities that host them. It doesn't have to be this way. Take a look at the pristine sidewalks surrounding the businesses right next door to that Walgreens. That strip is owned by a local real estate management company, who had their walks cleared by the morning following the storm. (Thanks, AHRA (AH Realty Advisors)!) Infrastructure and accountability are acts of care.
January 27, 2026 at 5:31 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
Every company that plows their parking lot while neglecting their sidewalks is not only flouting their legal obligation. They are sending a clear message about which of their customers and neighbors they deem worthy of care and access. Looking at you, Walgreens and Target. #StLouis #stl #stlwx
A sidewalk on Chippewa outside Target, covered in 9 inches of snow. It’s been heavily trafficked by pedestrians. A sidewalk on Hampton outside Walgreens with a bus shelter, covered in 9 inches of snow. It’s been heavily trafficked by pedestrians. A sidewalk off Hampton outside Walgreens, covered in 9 inches of snow.
January 27, 2026 at 12:32 AM
megsmith.bsky.social
The hardest part of bringing baked goods to work is not forgetting them on the way out the door. The second hardest part is maintaining structural integrity on a 2-hour, 3-connection transit commute. Thoughts and prayers for my honey cake…
A large Tupperware bowl, flipped upside down to contain a cake on the lid. It’s sitting in my lap on a bus. Inside the Tupperware is a round cake frosted wih honey whipped cream, with a crumb coat on top.
January 20, 2026 at 1:44 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
Daycare gave us a spare copy of Ada’s Christmas card this morning, where she is doing her best impression of an ASPCA commercial. So belated merry Christmas from Ada, everyone. I promise she’s spoiled rotten and very happy.
A Christmas card from Ada, a grey and white dog with (in this picture, at least) sad, droopy ears and mournful eyes. She’s wearing a cheerful and festive red bandanna.
January 16, 2026 at 2:42 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
🤩 Thanks again to @literaturegeek.bsky.social for immortalizing this line from the NEH wake session at ACH. If I have a scholarly motto, this is it — infrastructure is mutual obligation and mutual benefit. #DigitalHumanities #DHMakes
A framed print that reads “Infrastructure is something we owe to one another. - Meg Smith” Made by Amanda Wyatt Visconti! It’s printed in a beautiful pink-blue gradient.
January 14, 2026 at 2:13 AM
megsmith.bsky.social
RIP Packers postseason, but I’m still celebrating Wisconsin.

Quick little pre-semester make, the Hello Wisconsin pillow from Crimson Tate.
A quilted pillow in the shape of Wisconsin. The pattern is rectangles in three fabric prints: gray squirrels, blue moose and trees, and tan hiking symbols
January 11, 2026 at 8:26 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
We swapped out a sofa for a loveseat, and we may have achieved too much proximity. Maybe a good bonding opportunity? Or possibly an ignition point — time will tell
A gray and white cat glares at a gray dog, both lying on a loveseat A gray and white car recoils at the presence of a gray dog on the same loveseat as her. A human hand offers a symbolic boundary between the two
January 7, 2026 at 3:48 AM
megsmith.bsky.social
Much as I’d like to think that I’m Kathleen Kelly in You’ve Got Mail, I’m comfortable enough to admit I’m really Frank.
Screenshot of Frank and Kathleen from You’ve Got Mail. They’re at the party where Kathleen first discovers that Joe is, in fact, Joe Fox, big box bookstore villain. Dialogue: Have you ever thought about doing a book? It's crossed my mind, I mean, something relevant for today, like the Luddite movement in 19th century England or something, we should talk.
January 1, 2026 at 2:59 AM
megsmith.bsky.social
🖤 This one is my parents’ void dog, but mine’s sort of void-light. More dusk than midnight.
A dark grey dog snuggles up with a green velvet pillow in an armchair
December 28, 2025 at 6:02 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
snoot shelf
A black German shepherd sits curled up in a chair with her face resting on the narrow wooden arm
December 28, 2025 at 4:18 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
Professional snoops
A guitar in its case lying open on the floor. Two black dogs sniff the velvet lining of the case
December 24, 2025 at 4:02 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
Reason #82 why I keep a sewing machine at work: when I just need a *little* more time to finish a dress, I can hem it at the office.
A picture of the slightly fraying edge of a plaid skirt in autumnal colors, over my knee
December 9, 2025 at 2:00 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
Digital humanities and transit. Yup, that tracks.
A word cloud from the Anisota BlueSky Harvest tool showing my most used words in BS posts. The biggest terms are digitalhumanities (one word because it’s a hashtag), transit, and digital humanities (as separate words). Other words relate to my teaching (students), research (medieval), and local community (St. Louis). There are also several related to the disintegration of research funding and infrastructure this year (cancelled).
December 4, 2025 at 1:49 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
St. Louis is getting an early start on snow accumulation, and I’m still holding a grudge towards businesses who utterly neglected their obligation to clear their sidewalks last year. If you’d feel inspired to badger some big box stores about their sidewalks, feel free to adapt! #STL #stlouis #stlwx
A note I sent to Walgreens corporate: Hi there, I'm writing with a safety and maintenance issue. Last year, the Walgreens at 3920 Hampton Ave, St. Louis, MO 63109 never cleared their sidewalks, even as repeated blizzards dropped several inches of snow at a time. As a result, the sidewalks became incredibly hazardous, coated in over a foot of crunchy snow and ice — the kind that briefly holds your weight before breaking and dropping your foot. This made the sidewalks not only unpleasant, but unsafe. This store is located at a major intersection and has bus stops on both sides of its corner. The failure to clear snow last year created huge hazards for patrons and pedestrians. This year, the store is again falling behind in its obligation to clear its sidewalks, as required by city ordinance. I'm flagging this now in the hopes that the problem is addressed before it becomes dire.
December 3, 2025 at 3:54 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
Hey, do you want to wear your love of digital humanities and cultural recovery on your sleeve? @recoveryhubaww.bsky.social has you covered! Make a donation of $50 or more between now and Christmas and receive your choice of a tote bag or t-shirt!

#DigitalHumanities #AmLit
A picture of me wearing the Recovery Hub for American Women Writers t-shirt. The front features the hub logo in three shades of blue, along with a quill pen The back of the shirt reads “Disrupt the canon one digital project at a time” The tote bag is an undyed canvas with the hub logo and the “Disrupt the canon one digital project at a time” slogan
December 3, 2025 at 2:42 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
Most midwestern families have a stockpile of Ugly Hats. (If you think you don’t, check your grandparents’ closet.) I am here to tell you: keep the Ugly Hat! What it lacks in form, it more than makes up in function. You will not find a warmer hat than the Ugly Hat. And your grandma probably made it.
A picture of me smiling, wearing an indigo blue scarf and an ugly knitted hat. The hat is mostly a sort of beige yarn, with stripes along the fold in random colors, probably leftover yarn - red, charcoal grey, lime green, navy, and maroon. It is a thick, lumpy hat. A picture of the hat from the side, where you can see that instead of being knit in the round, it has been ungracefully joined at the top in a strange four way fold.
December 2, 2025 at 2:26 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
500 miles apart but completely in sync, all the Smiths have finally watched Kpop Demon Hunters and come to precisely the same conclusion about my sister’s animals.
Two texts. Mine, in green, reads “This might sound odd, but when you watch Kpop Demon Hunters, I think the cat is Bubba and the bird is Cricket.” My sister responds “WE SAID THE SAME...Just finished”
November 29, 2025 at 3:17 AM
megsmith.bsky.social
Managed to squeeze a couple recipes into my sister’s packed and highly regimented cooking schedule today. First up: a custardy pecan pie, a century-old recipe from @tastinghistory.bsky.social.
A custard pie in a tart dish with chopped pecans peeking through and halved pecans arranged on top
November 27, 2025 at 4:48 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
Automated teams notifications the night before Thanksgiving are violence
A teams notification on my Lock Screen telling me to “check out a frequently opened report” titled “AP and PO Data”
November 26, 2025 at 11:37 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
Dogs who get carsick ride in the hazmat zone.

Parents who draw the short straw also ride in the hazmat zone, along with a minimum of six emergency towels in easy grabbing distance.
A grey dog sits in the back seat of a small car. She’s draped in a towel. The driver’s seat is draped in a towel. The whole backseat is draped in a fleece blanket. We are prepared for nearly any incident she can projectile puke at us.
November 22, 2025 at 10:03 PM
megsmith.bsky.social
The new Mill Creek exhibit at @mohistorymuseum.bsky.social is a beautiful combo of calling out injustice while celebrating Black community and placemaking.

And for my medievalists, here’s a reminder that STL is full of medievalisms that are easily and often wielded as a tool of white supremacy.
A section of the Mill Creek exhibit at the Missouri History Museum. This shows a segment of a timeline focused on a cartoon of Louis IX looming over a neighborhood labeled a slum and removing it. He’s smiling and looks relatively benevolent. The cartoon is titled “How To Make A Great City Greater” Exhibit text: Editorial cartoon showing King Louis IX of France, St. Louis's namesake, clearing a slum area A survey conducted by the St. Louis Star and Times, a white newspaper, shows wide support for the bond issue with two conditions: "interracial co-operation of the 'highest type'" and retention of some historic churches. Mill Creek residents do not appear to be included in the survey. St. Louis Star and Times, May 28, 1948 Newspapers.com MCV406
November 16, 2025 at 12:48 AM
megsmith.bsky.social
I’m well beyond “why apply,” I’m at “I cannot in good conscience apply.”

Gift link to the NYT piece on the NEH’s awarded projects since it was gutted:
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/15/a...
The concluding paragraphs of an article from the NYT on the current funding habits of the NEH. “A majority of the awards, which the agency has not publicized, are to scholars with ties to religious or conservative institutions, and support work on topics including the Bible's influence on the American founders, the history of the parental rights movement and the current ills of the humanities. Four are to people listed only as "unaffiliated independent scholar." Some of the agency's longstanding competitive grant programs remain. But Dr. Vanessa Northington Gamble, a physician and medical historian who served on the council from 2022 until she was fired October, said there had been a "chilling effect." "I know scholars who, seeing what has happened, are asking, why apply?" Dr. Gamble said. "The N.E.H. does not seem as open to a larger swath of humanities anymore."”
November 16, 2025 at 12:28 AM