iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 25/09/2026

Arthur Carhart warning about western stock interests undermining the public lands in 1947.

A determined group of western livestock interests is advocating for legislative proposals that would allow them to buy millions of acres of publicly-owned land in the western United States.

Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 09/09/2026

Our present-day conflicts over public lands have long histories. Efforts to privatize them have been around for nearly as long as public lands have been a thing. Here’s an example from 1947.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 03/09/2026

Finished reading: Nature’s Laboratory by Elizabeth Grennan Browning 📚

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 03/09/2026

Finished reading: Apple in China by Patrick McGee 📚

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 31/08/2026

In honor of Dolly Parton, my Southern-inspired meal of braised short ribs, slow cooked potatoes and green beans, coleslaw, buttermilk biscuits, sweet tea, and banana pudding.

A table is set with a variety of dishes including biscuits, coleslaw, cooked green beans, roasted meat, a bottle of honey, and a bowl of creamy dessert.

A plate contains cooked ribs, green beans, roasted potatoes, coleslaw, and a biscuit.

A layered dessert consisting of sliced bananas, cream, and biscuits is shown in a clear container.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 29/08/2026

This morning’s garden haul.

Various types of fresh tomatoes and chili peppers are spread out on trays and paper towels on a kitchen counter.

A wooden basket contains a variety of tomatoes, including large red ones and a mixture of small cherry tomatoes in different stages of ripeness.

A basket filled with various types of fresh green and red chili peppers placed on a wooden surface.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 29/08/2026

Made homemade miso soup and onigiri tonight. Delicious.

A plate holds three onigiri, two wrapped with seaweed and sesame seeds and one glazed brown, accompanied by a bowl of miso soup with tofu and green onions, with chopsticks resting on the plate.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 28/08/2026

My setup in Obsidian Bases for tracking my sources: each source is a note with all relevant metadata and provenance, plus some light tracking for me to know if I’ve transcribed and if I’ve made notes about the document. The Base lets me see an overview of everything, easily filterable and sortable.

An Obsidian Base displays a table with columns including transcripted, processed, file name, author, recipient, creator, and year, listing various documents.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 28/08/2026

Welcome to Bluesky. Please familiarize yourself with the following accounts to understand the range of opinions it is acceptable to express.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 24/08/2026

Nice! I have a very similar green in my office.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 18/08/2026

Doing a little NLP work on a cattle industry publication to see if any interesting trends emerge. Here's some top words.

A top words per 10,000 list between 1919 and 1961 for the American Cattle Producer.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 13/08/2026

Finished reading: One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad 📚

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 13/08/2026

Currently reading: Rot by Padraic X. Scanlan 📚

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 13/08/2026

Currently reading: Apple in China by Patrick McGee 📚

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 12/08/2026

Chiles rellanos made with our garden poblanos.

Two chiles rellanos topped with sour cream and red sauce are served on a white plate.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 03/08/2026

Blueberry galette with dinner tonight, inspired by @unlawfulentries.bsky.social.

A slice of blueberry galette served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on a white plate.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 02/08/2026

Not my best pastry effort, but!

A slice of blueberry galette with a dollop of vanilla ice cream.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 01/08/2026

Finished reading: Storycraft, Second Edition The Complete Guide to Writing Narrative Nonfiction by Jack Hart 📚

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 01/08/2026

Finished reading: The Crazies: The Cattleman, the Wind Prospector, and a War Out West by Amy Gamerman 📚

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 01/08/2026

I never know what wildlife I’ll stumble across on our acreage.

A painted turtle is resting on green grass, basking in the sunlight.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 01/08/2026

I’ll likely finish this today, but my midway-through scribbled margin note of “everyone in this story is terrible except Monica” is still holding true. (It’s a great book, terrific writing. Gamerman does a great job enticing you along as the reader.)

A book titled The Crazies by Amy Gamerman, featuring a black and white photo of horse riders in front of snow-capped mountains, is placed on a granite countertop next to a white mug with the text Public Land Creator.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 30/07/2026

To my fellow moo cow historians, do I have the general timeline of the National Cattlemen's name changes right? (cc @drchrisdeutsch.bsky.social)

- 1898 National Live Stock Growers Association of the United States: Founded in Denver, Colorado, Jan. 25 1898, to represent livestock producers against railroad rate hikes and meatpacking monopolies.
- 1900 National Live Stock Association: Shortened name.
- 1906 American National Live Stock Association: Created following the reunion of NLSA and the American Stock Growers Association.
- 1953 American National Cattlemen's Association (ANCA): Renamed to reflect its core membership after sheep, swine, and horse growers formed their own trade groups.
- 1977 National Cattlemen's Association (NCA): Formed through the merger of the ANCA and the National Livestock Feeders Association.
- 1996-Present National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA): Established when the NCA merged with the National Live Stock and Meat Board (and its Beef Industry Council).

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 25/07/2026

I'm working on a new interactive map and it's never not striking to me how stark the dividing line is between the West and all its public lands and the rest of the nation.

A map of the United States, including Alaska and Hawai'i, with federal and tribal lands shaded by category against a pale background. Holdings are dramatically concentrated west of the 100th meridian: broad tan expanses of rangeland dominate Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, and western Arizona and New Mexico; green blocks trace the mountain ranges of the Cascades, Sierra Nevada, Rockies, and the Southwest; dark blue and gray patches appear scattered among them. Red hatched areas cluster in the Four Corners region, across the northern Plains in Montana, the Dakotas, and Minnesota, and along the Arizona–New Mexico border. East of the Rockies the pattern thins abruptly: the central Plains and Corn Belt states show only small isolated squares and a dense stipple of tiny dots concentrated in the upper Midwest, while the East returns to scattered green blocks along the Appalachians and Ozarks and small coastal holdings in Florida and the Gulf. Alaska shows large holdings across its interior and northern slope.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 19/07/2026

Sticky chili-lime tofu, achiote chicken, and corn risotto. Pretty dang good dinner.

A stovetop scene shows three skillets cooking cubed tofu, creamy risotto, and seasoned chicken thighs.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 14/07/2026

I didn't expect to be writing about ferrets in my current book project, but here we are.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 05/07/2026

Moved everybody to fresh pasture.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 02/07/2026

Finished reading: Gilead: A Novel by Marilynne Robinson 📚

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 01/07/2026

Stopped by Carhenge on our trip in western Nebraska.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 30/06/2026

We visited Toadstool Geologic Park on the Oglala National Grasslands in western Nebraska over the weekend. Really incredible place.

A dry, rugged mountain landscape is shown under a clear blue sky.

A natural rock formation resembling a stone bridge or table stretches across a dry, sandy landscape with sparse vegetation.

A barren, rocky landscape with sparse vegetation is set against a clear blue sky with a few clouds.

A large, uniquely shaped rock formation is situated in a dry, open landscape under a clear blue sky.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 26/06/2026

Currently reading: The Crazies: The Cattleman, the Wind Prospector, and a War Out West by Amy Gamerman 📚

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 15/06/2026

Up at sunrise for some last minute birding and wildlife spotting.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 15/06/2026

Really grateful for the time I’ve gotten to spend in Montana for our writers retreat. Thankful for Will Thomas and Tiya Miles in organizing the event, and excited to have created a new community of fellow writers.

A peaceful outdoor seating area with wooden chairs and a table overlooks a lush landscape with mountains and a partly cloudy sky in the background.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 06/06/2026

Currently reading: Taking America Back: The Conservative Movement and the Far Right by David Austin Walsh 📚

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 05/06/2026

Doing a little writing on regionalism today. Fun fact: my memory of this book goes back to a seminar with John Wunder. Tim and Wendy were invited to the seminar to discuss the book with us. John, out of the blue, calls my name and asks what I think of the statement on page xv.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 04/06/2026

Clicking on the chart "pins" to that year and policy, allowing you then to see a regional breakdown of bills by party member, and clicking those cards lets you see specific legislators.

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 04/06/2026

A new section on my digital history project, Governing Ground, just went live! I've called it an Atlas, a way of exploring historical data. The one I launched today is a way to explore Congressional bill co-sponsorships by policy area and region. governingground.org/atlas/region...

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Jason Heppler @jasonheppler.org · 03/06/2026

Currently reading: Gilead: A Novel by Marilynne Robinson 📚

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