iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 23/09/2026

Equinox Ramble on Bair Island, in the SF Bay. Look who I met on the trail!

Praying mantis on the trail, guarding the way so that no one shall pass! A woman in a blue skirt crouches down in the background.

Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 09/09/2026

Of course, I inadvertently chose our first 90-degree day to make them, but somehow the aroma of fresh-baked, cardamom-ginger shortbread cookies makes it all worthwhile. Anyone want to stop by for tea?

Ginger-cardamom shortbread cookies cooling on a wire rack. Red oven mitts sit off to one side.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 08/09/2026

Afraid to have to say it, but your students probably need to read this: understanding-matters.com

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 26/07/2026

NEW: from the parent of a 14 y.o. boy: "Students often feel it is unnecessary to learn study skills, note-taking, or memory techniques until they hit a bottleneck. [...] My boy is reading your book this weekend and has found it incredibly useful for understanding why those skills are important."

Stacks of books awaiting owners. Facing front: one soft-cover copy of "Understanding Matters: A Guide to Human Learning." Link: https://understanding-matters.com

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 22/07/2026

Did you know... Humans have 6 memory systems, used in learning; Only 2 of those 6 are consciously accessible; Only 1 of those 2 lasts longer than a few minutes; and what we do inside our brains while we study determines where our memories end up? Understanding Matters! #edusky #academicsky

Book cover for "Understanding Matters: A Guide to Human Learning" by Larisa A. White

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 15/07/2026

Sunday's book launch was so much fun! Lots of people, great conversations, and lots of books flying out the door. 🥳 And apparently, some people went right home & started reading, and couldn't put it down — a non-fiction book on how humans learn! Comments started coming in, 24 hours later... 🧵

Author reading from her new book, "Understanding Matters: A Guide to Human Learning." She sits on a high stool, on a Persian carpet, with a small lectern off to one side. In the background: a window looking out on an oak tree.

Author showing her new book to a room full of attentive listeners.

Book cover for "Understanding Matters: A Guide to Human Learning" by Larisa A. White. A fruiting tree, rooted in a hill of "soil" composed of all the fields of human knowledge. A woman climbs the hill of knowledge, reaching for the fruit of wisdom. A child sits at the foot of the tree, reading a giant book.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 08/07/2026

OMG, our fruit trees are happy with their forest floor! First ripe lemon of the season, and the aroma is mind-blowing! (And haven't fertilized a thing in years)

One giant, ripe yellow lemon fills the hands of an adult woman.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 07/07/2026

New year; new resource: “Understanding Matters: A Guide to Human Learning” understanding-matters.com How humans, as complex biological beings, actually learn, remember, analyze, judge, and create & how #AI affects those processes. In plain & simple language. For our students. #EduSky #AcademicSky

A hardcover edition of the new book, "Understanding Matters: A Guide to Human Learning," on an oak table. An open notebook, pen, and colored pencils surround the book, ready for note-taking. Cover image is of a great, fruiting tree of knowledge, with roots reaching deep into a word-art "soil" of all the fields of human knowledge. A child reads a giant book, while sitting at the foot of the tree. A young woman climbs the hill, reaching for the fruit of wisdom.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 22/06/2026

Relaxing in the breezy afternoon sunshine, munching sun-warmed blueberries, and listening to a juvenile crow complaining of loneliness.

Ripe, sun-warmed blueberries on a bush, ready for plucking.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 21/06/2026

A joyous Solstice to one and all! Celebrating the peak power of light AND the birth of my new book, "Understanding Matters: A Guide to Human Learning." Dancing with joy. Final cover revisions and book edits completed & approved!!! Awaiting final proofs. Pre-orders to begin July 6th. Wheeee!

Book cover for "Understanding Matters: A Guide to Human Learning," by Larisa A White. Cover image shows a great fruit-bearing tree, rooted in a hill if 'soil' composed of all the fields of human knowledge. A child sits at the foot of the tree, reading a large book. A woman climbs the hill of knowledge, reaching for the fruit of wisdom, and encouraging the child to join her in the quest for understanding.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 14/06/2026

Mmmmmm. June mornings in the garden, squabling with the birds for the rights to these:

Two quart-sized stainless steel bowls on an oak table. One is brimming with ripe, Santa Rosa plums, the other with fresh-picked blueberries.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 21/05/2026

A few happy scenes from the family's birthday bicycle adventure on the Coast Trail south of Half Moon Bay, CA... What a delightful adventure it was! SO MANY flowers, and cheerful songbirds, and happily pollinating insects. And the aromas of the coastal sage scrub/prairie lands. Mmmmmmm.

A stream flows along the bottom of a driftwood & boulder-strewn ravine, next to a sandstone cliff. Chaparral plants, and a few trees and houses line the cliff top.

A hand-crafted home wrought of stone, driftwood sculptures, and elaborate cedar shingles. One part has an angel figure perched atop a steep, sloped roof with a triangular glass wall facing the sea.

A paved bike path running along a cliff top, next to the Pacific Coast. A strip of ice plants, and a rope fence separate the path from the sea. A wooden fence on the other side of the path.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 13/04/2026

Bit of blue sky peeking through the grey today, but 2.32" of rain this weekend were well worth it! A few other blue things seen in the garden today: first signs of ripening blueberries, and first three bluebells!

Blueberries starting to ripen on a rain-drenched bush.

First three California bluebells to appear in a bed of wildflower greens.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 10/04/2026

Ah! a bit of rain, a bit of warmth, and the Tidy Tips have arrived! (my very favorite California native wildflower)

Along the edge of a sidewalk, a field of green dotted with yellow-centered, white-tipped Tidy Tips wildflowers.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 06/04/2026

Perfect view for an Easter Day bike-picnic, with a cacophony of sea birds squabling over nesting spots on the muddy shores of the SF Bay.

View over the waters of the Belmont Slough, from a grassy hill shaded by coast live oaks. Seabirds nesting in the distance.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 18/03/2026

Starting today: FLASH SALE on "World Druidry" The book, by Mt. Haemus scholar, Larisa A. White, explores the beliefs & practices of 725 Druids from 34 countries, and 147 Druid groups. 25% off, until April 1st, at: larisa-a-white.com/worlddruidry... Happy Equinox! /|\ #druidsky #pagansky

A procession of modern Druids, in the Humboldt Redwoods.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 07/03/2026

Urgh. Working the cross-stitch. Fom a galloping horse it looked gorgeous, but stitching it at scale, I realize it's a stunning work of AI slop. Look at the corner Celtic knot work: illogical & incontiguous. No human would err like this! Can't stomach the idea of finishing it now. 2 months lost. 🤬/|\

AI slop design evident in stitched corner of a supposedly Celtic knot-work pattern of a tree if life.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 02/03/2026

And here's another pretty thing...

The first of our California poppies, just unfurling its lemon-yellow joy-bomb.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 02/03/2026

California wild roses are forever attempting to take over the world, but their thorny brambles and all-pervasive roots make for excellent nurse plants: Our CA hazelnut grew to a healthy 2-1/2 feet under their protection. Spice bushes also thriving below the thorns.

A thorny, overgrown, green thicket of Rosa californica, about to be cut back.

2-1/2 foot high and wide specimen of Corylus cornuta var. californica found growing beneath the thorns -- still mostly sticks and mud, with the first few leaflets peeking out.

Baby spice bush (Calycanthus occidentalis) found growing below the thorns as well. This one leafing out for spring. In the background: the low-growing, California wild lilac, Ceanothus v. Joyce Coulter in peak flower.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 02/03/2026

Tree of Life #crossstitch project - fortnightly update: Pattern by PandoraXstitch on Etsy. First image is current progress; second image is goal.

9-count white Aida fabric stitched with the lower right corner of the Celtic Tree of Life.

A colorful image of the complete Tree of Life pattern.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 01/03/2026

Loving this birthday weekend: quiet writing time; a warm, sunny break in rainy season, for sitting in the garden at peak flower season; and now this...

A freshly baked, pineapple upside-down cake cools on a foil-wrapped cutting board.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 18/02/2026

Fortnightly update on the Tree of Life cross stitch project...

One more image of the slowly growing patch of multi-colored cross stitch, which will one day illustrate the tree of life. Can just begin to make out the twining, Celtic roots that will form the outer circle of the image, with patches of what look to be blue water.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 04/02/2026

First block of stitching complete on what will one day be a stained glass tree of life image. Finding mindfully working at creating beauty to be much more gratifying than doomscrolling or gossip.

First block of stitching showing one tiny corner of a cross-stitched Tree of Life pattern.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 02/02/2026

I've seen many bird-baths in my time, but this is the first time I ever spotted a bird-bidet!

A brightly colored lawn ornament in the shape of a bird, having its back-end cleaned with a jet of water.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 02/02/2026

25 years ago, my sister asked: "Where are your flowers? A bride needs flowers!" I had none, so I ran out to the backyard & grabbed a handful of pretty yellow flowers to carry to City Hall. I later learned they were tenacious weeds, impossible to erradicate. Like love. Great symbol for a marriage!

Pretty little yellow flowers growing in a bed of oxalis.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 01/02/2026

Best thing about living in California, with a beautiful, thriving forest floor? Orange season just arrives each February with its glorious, juicy, tasty bounty!

Close up of an orange tree, heavy with ripe fruit awaiting harvest.

Freshly picked orange, sliced on a wooden cutting board, next to a serrated knife.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 31/01/2026

Beginning to get the hang of this craft. Lesson 1: NEVER attempt to use 20-ct Aida cloth with ageing eyes. (There is absolutely no way to see the stitches.) Lesson 2: Similar for black stitching on black cloth. (WHAT was I thinking?!) Now, on white, 9-count Aida I am finally making progress! /|\

One tiny corner of a giant cross-stitch pattern for a stained glass Tree of Life, stitched on 9-ct Aida fabric.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 27/01/2026

@ Imbolc, we celebrate returning light & plan our goals for a new season of growth. If you haven't read "World Druidry," exploring the beliefs & practices of Druids across the world, now is the time! Get a discounted, author-direct copy at: larisa-a-white.com/worlddruidry... /|\ #druidsky #pagansky

A hardcover edition of the book, World Druidry, sits on an oak table, surrounded by dried flowers and a dish of candy.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 17/01/2026

Sharing a bit of Bluesky beauty discovered on my morning ramble, yesterday. Not a native to our area, but working hard to contribute joy to the neighborhood.

A joyful spray of pink magnolias brighten a deep blue, January sky.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 15/01/2026

Silktassels are billowing pollen, and the first flowers have appeared on the Ribes. Flower Season is here, hooray!

First blossoms to open on a pink-flowering currant bush, hanging like a pendant under a tiny new leaf.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 05/01/2026

California's annual battle between sunshine and cloudbursts has begun. Welcome, Rainbow Season!!! /|\

A brightly colored rainbow arcs across grey skies, between two wet, green trees.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 03/01/2026

Ooof! Forgot how much focus is required to learn a new craft! Just took 30 min to stitch this guide line for my first counted cross-stitch pattern. Can barely see the threads, or reach around the frame. Must learn to work 2-handed & by feel. But the goal will be worth the struggle, I deem: /|\

A single row of 80 half cross-stitches worked in bright yellow on black 22-count Aida fabric. The stitches are worked in groups of ten, with ten empty stitches between each group, to serve as a measuring/counting guide for a counted cross-stitch pattern.

My goal: a 300x300 stitch counted cross-stitch pattern for a stained glass styled tree of life!

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 28/12/2025

Bob the Minion, my long-time writing companion, is excited to have made the cut to be pictured in my upcoming book on human learning — when you practice explaining things to others (especially to a very simple-minded & enthusiastic rubber duck), it really can help you learn! #amwriting #education

A rubber duck in the shape of "Bob" the Minion sits on a wooden desk next to a computer keyboard and mouse. A book manuscript is shown on a computer screen in the background.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 26/12/2025

Just enjoyed our family's heartwarming holiday movie tradition, celebrating the shift from darkness toward light, and our love of Nature by watching, "Fly Away Home." (A girl & her father teach orphaned goslings to fly south for the winter, using a pair of ultralight planes.)

A girl and her father holding orphaned goslings, on a Canadian farm. A pair of ultralight planes lead a string of geese south across a deeply colored autumn sunset.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 22/12/2025

Ooooh! Look what my family gave me as a Yule gift. Needlework stand and three yards of muslin. Like a beautiful new notebook with nothing written in it yet. So many possibilities. Whatever shall I embroider, first?

A birch wood, floor stand with an embroidery frame, and a blank piece of muslin await the artist, next to a bentwood rocking chair, on a Persian carpet.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 20/12/2025

Wishing one and all a blessed Yule weekend, and joy of the returning light! /|\ #pagansky #druidsky

A Yule tree, decorated with acorns, mushrooms, birch logs, butterflies, and birds, shines in the night, with a reflection in the windowpane behind it.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 13/12/2025

In other parts of the world, winter snow brings the blessed peace and quiet of the season; here in CA, we just have quiet drifts of fog.

Heavy fog obliterates the view of nearby hills, and adorns the trees with dripping mist.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 12/12/2025

DaD has been properly memorialized and laid to rest... The eulogy I wrote for his memorial can be read on his Tribute Wall at: www.walkerfuneralhomeofqueens.com/obituaries/E... Time to return to the land of the living. Thanks to all my kind followers for your support during this difficult time!

A burial niche at Maple Grove Cemetery in Queens, NYC. Displayed behind a crystal pane of glass: a burial urn made of finely crafted natural wood, a portrait of Ernest J. Naples, a crystal sailboat, architect's slide-rule, and brass plane for fine woodworking.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 22/11/2025

A soul-soothing afternoon at Purissima Creek Redwoods, in Half Moon Bay, CA: the quiet, the woodland aromas, the soft, spongy forest floor -- just what the doctor ordered! (Photo courtesy of my 14 y.o. son, Steven.) /|\

Golden afternoon sunlight filters down through the canopy of a redwood forest.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 15/11/2025

What's wrong with this picture? A giant, deep-dish pizza pan serving as our new bird bath because the critters flipped and broke the old (pale yellow) pottery bird bath. Birds do not seem to recognize this as a bird-bath, and the other critters are not drinking at it, either. Any ideas why?

A giant, dark metal, deep-dish-pizza pan filled with water and a few flat rocks sits atop a terra-cotta planter, creating a bird bath nestled among blueberry bushes.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 13/11/2025

The IngramSpark presses are getting flooded with holiday orders. If you'd like to gift/receive a print copy of "World Druidry" this holiday season, order by Nov. 22! Discounted, author-direct copies can now be purchased via larisa-a-white.com/worlddruidry... /|\ #druidsky #pagansky 🎁

A hardbound copy of "World Druidry: A Globalizing Path of Nature Spirituality" by Larisa A. White, on an oak coffee table, surrounded by flowers and a dish of candy.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 13/11/2025

Another seasonal gift from my young photographer, Steven White... Rain chains flowing. Gotta love November in the Coast Range Mountains of California!

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 07/11/2025

First batch complete: 8 cups of joy, awaiting fresh-baked bread.

Four jars of fresh-made firethorn jelly cooling on a cookie rack.

Two of the jars are back-lit by a flashlight, to show off the ruby- red color.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 04/11/2025

10 cups of firethorn tea, waiting to be processed into jelly, tomorrow. I always love the rich color of this jelly - almost fluoresces.

10 cups of firethorn tea, stored in two half-gallon mason jars.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 04/11/2025

My favorite part of November: pruning the neighbor's thorny pyracantha bushes & harvesting the berries for firethorn jelly!

Giant pot of pyracantha berries, washed and ready for jelly-making.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 22/10/2025

When tired and stressed with grown-up worries, picking up an old hardcover edition of "The World of Christopher Robin,” and reading a few poems is like medicine; it makes everything seem alright again.

Photo of the NYC 5th Ave Public Library exhibit of the stuffed animals that inspired the original tales of Christopher Robin and Winnie the Pooh.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 05/10/2025

An Autumn Break gift from my boy, taken while visiting Grandma's house at Lake Tahoe... Back to school on Monday, so we'll have to hold this beauty in memory. Teen #nature #photography

Sunrise seen through towering pines, growing on the mountain slopes above Lake Tahoe

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 23/09/2025

Sunset at the Autumn Equinox, in Half Moon Bay, California.

A golden sun sinks into the Pacific Ocean, seen from a cliff top path overlooking the sandy beach. Backlit seed heads glow white in the foreground.

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Larisa A. White @larisa-a-white.com · 16/09/2025

The Fire Season heat is on! Time for an... AUTUMN EQUINOX FLASH SALE • Sept. 15-28, 2025 25% off on all hardcover, paperback, and ePub editions of "World Druidry: A Globalizing Path of Nature Spirituality" purchased author-direct from: larisa-a-white.com/worlddruidry... /|\ #druidsky #pagansky 🎁

A hardbound copy of the book, "World Druidry: A Globalizing Path of Nature Spirituality" by Larisa A. White, M.S.Ed., Ph.D., sits on an oak table surrounded by dried lavender flowers and a dish of candy.

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