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Don Mitchell

@wailuku.bsky.social
816 followers 617 following 568 posts

writer, anthropologist, photographer, book designer, marathoner (not so much now), life-long leftist

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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
I have some late brush-hogging to do and I thought I'd lay in fuel for winter snowblowing with the big tractor. Yes, I knew diesel was up....but nothing like looking at it on the pump. Ten gallons, $64. I do get an occasional look when I drive in with my Ioniq5. #diesel #dieselprice
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Here's the PR flyer for my novel Mauka. I'm going to play the age card and say that I'm 83 and this is my debut novel (but not my only book). Out in October.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
A morning morning glory.
Partially-open morning glory against a dark background.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
The box of finals arrived (the box of ARCs came a few weeks ago). It's nice to see Mauka in print. Version 1.0 was in 2018. I put it down to publish a memoir, but got back to it after that. A debut novel at 83.... maukathenovel.com
shipping box with books, front cover showing.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
My backlist includes an ethnographic story collection (2013), and a memoir about a murder (2020). #BacklistSaturday saddleroadpress.com/prose/fictio... saddleroadpress.com/prose/memoir...
saddleroadpress.com
A Red Woman
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
The first online review of my novel "Mauka: A Novel of Hawai'i" is up. "Mauka" will be published October 19th, 2026. If anybody out there wants to review it and post the review online, I can certainly supply a PDF ARC. www.forewordreviews.com/reviews/mauka/
forewordreviews.com
Review of Mauka
Mauka: Flush with geographical symbolism, "Mauka" is a thoughtful novel about late-life reckonings—and romance. Don Mitchell’s layered novel "Mauka" considers the topography of a romantic relationship...
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
My very old brush hog got caught in a hole and the back end is toast. Not repairable, so the new one comes today. As an earnest young grad student years ago I would never have imagined myself living the rural life, waiting for a new brush hog. But so it is.
brush hog in a barn.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Slender butterfly.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
I'm not sure what this is going to be, but it can't get much better than this stage. And no, I didn't crank up the Saturation slider. Freeville Daily Image, Day 2,254. anstapa.com
brightly-colored bud
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
Advance Reader Copies arrived today. Feels good to hold this book. I began writing it in 2018.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
Sunrise deck scene. 2026 06 30. anstapa.com
backlit flower.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
Another rose on a sunny morning. Another tree down over the drive, but I took care of that. When you need to cut wood on a Sunday morning, electric chainsaws are just the thing.
rugosa rose against a black background.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
My debut novel went to the printer today. I'm 83 -- kind of old for a debut. I do have three other books out there (an ethnography (1976) a story collection (2013) and a memoir (2020). This novel is set in Hawai'i, where I was born and raised. saddleroadpress.com/mauka.html
Front cover of a book, showing a sunset
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
When there are thunderstorms and a tornado warning and after it blows through you head down to the supermarket...that's why you keep a couple of battery-powered chainsaws handy. Only needed the small one for this tree. Rural life!
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
Nice early sky this morning. This is Freeville Daily Image Day 2,235.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 06/06/2026
Morning sky, afternoon sky. Freeville NY, 2026 06 06.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
The rugosa roses are blooming up here on the ridge. Here's one from this morning.
rugosa rose pink
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
I'm all ready for winter 2028. When I was an earnest grad student I never imagined saying "Hey...I have to go to town for diesel." Everything here is electric except for two tractors and the backup generator. Fifty-three panels on the roof. Ground-source heat pump heating, works in sub-zero.
John Deere 3039R tractor with wood splitter attached.Stacked split wood.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 25/05/2026
2026 05 25. The first rose of summer showed up on a dark, rainy, foggy, windy, cold morning. Rugosa roses don't give a shit about anything. Toughest roses in the world.
rugosa rose
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
Sixty-six years ago today, a great tsunami hit Hilo, Hawai'i, almost taking me. More than sixty people died. My Hilo High School class collected their memories in a PDF you can download at hilodailyimage.com (one of my sites). You might find the collection interesting -- old folks remembering.
hilodailyimage.com
F
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
Thunderstorms passing through, with that golden-yellow light after.
sky with thunderstorm clouds
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 10/05/2026
My mother in 1937. Kamehameha Schools, Honolulu, where she was a teacher -- and in this image, just about to marry my father.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
Very unpleasant morning (6 AM) and I had to make the Daily Image early. In the rain. So here's Freeville Daily Image, Day 2,197.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
Unusual sunrise, probably because a thunderstorm was passing to the north. This is Freeville Daily Image Day 2,193.
sunrise, with dark clouds
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 03/05/2026
Six years ago today I arrived here from Hilo, Hawai'i. I had a lot to learn -- how to maintain many acres of woods and meadows, a steep .4 mile long driveway in the winter (big tractor with big snowblower) but it's been six great years. At 83, I don't know whether I've got six more here, but....
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
Day 2,188. Bad night for the daffodils - and a dark morning. But they always recover. Looks like a very unpleasant next few days up here on the ridge. anstapa.com donmitchellphotography.com
daffodile bent over in rain
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 29/04/2026
Day 2,187. The blueberry bushes are getting themselves going.
blueberry bush - early buds
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
Ribcage cloud on Day 2,186. anstapa.com
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
Freeville Daily Image Day 2,185. 27 April 2026. Snake and hose. The snake cooperated because...it was dead. I don't know what killed it. It was a resident and seemed OK a few days ago. For recent Daily Images, anstapa.com For the archive, donmitchellphotography.com
anstapa.com
Freeville Daily Image
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 19/04/2026
Yesterday was shirtsleeves and sun. Today, this. Yeah, swings like this are normal up here on the ridge. But I don't have to like it. Freeville Daily Image, Day 2,177. #donmitchell #naturephotography #landscapephotography #newyorkstate #fingerlakes #365days #365challenge2026
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
I sent a friend an image from the 2018 Puna eruption that I made from a helicopter. He liked it...and so did I, not having looked at it for a few years. My header image is from the same shoot.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
Day 2,173. The hyacinths are booting up.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
Nice dawn sky. I liked how the two orange-red spots seemed to connect. It was all over five minutes after I shot it, but that's the way it is up here on the ridge. Day 2,172 of uninterrupted daily images. anstapa.com and donmitchellphotography.com have the large sets.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 13/04/2026
Daffodils are starting to do their thing. So here's an in-your-face daffodil, and then a more sedate trio.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 12/04/2026
Nice sky this morning.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 12/04/2026
Strange creature -- or not? You decide. .
pussy w
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 05/04/2026
I posted a new Substack piece a couple of days ago. It's about interacting with a vile youtube true crime outfit, and an ethical one. Big difference! substack.com/home/post/p-...
substack.com
A Tale of Two youtube Channels
one vile youtuber and one most excellent one
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 05/04/2026
Daily Image, Day 2,163. Rainy morning here, but the willow offered color. I used a 400mm lens to get the background I wanted. 2026 04 05.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 04/04/2026
Tommy the dog watching me make the Daily Image. He often helps. In fact Tommy is the cover image for a novel, "The Lede to Our Undoing," by Donald Mengay (Saddle Road Press).
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 04/04/2026
Daily Image 2,162. A rugosa rosehip that came through a hard winter, without being blown off.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 01/04/2026
Daily Image, Day 2,159. Lots of rain, so here's a bedraggled pussywillow after a night of thunderstorms. 2026 04 01.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
Daily Image Day 2,158. After a long and very hard winter....
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 30/03/2026
I'm going to post my Daily Images (I'm up to 2,157 in a row) here, until I sort out why Meta flushed my Instagram account, and get a new one. Before this series, I had one of 2,100 without a miss, and before that, one of 500. These are made up on a ridge in Freeville, NY. Every damn morning.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 27/03/2026
Overnight somebody hacked into my Facebook account and posted something that caused Meta to permanently disable my account. My appeal was rejected. I have no idea at all what was posted. So if you're a FB or IG friend looking for me, right now this is the only place I am.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 08/03/2026
Maybe the only thing we can do is make fun of the people steering us into some fresh hell. substack.com/@eyesonice/n...
substack.com
Eyes On Ice (@eyesonice)
The Ballad of Steven Miller
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 03/03/2026
OK, so this is NOT THE 2026 ECLIPSE. But since heavy cloud cover kept me from shooting it here, I offer the 2019 eclipse, as seen from Kahinahina on Mauna Kea, Hawai'i. Altitude about 9,200 feet. There's a reason optical observatories get as high as they can -- clear air.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 28/02/2026
After weeks of concrete skies and snow and awfulness, we finally got a spectacular sunrise.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 22/02/2026
I'm hoping the Canadian hockey team wins, so we can see an epic Trump meltdown.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 03/02/2026
Tulsi Gabbard in the news. Here's an (old) article from Hawai'i Civil Beat (a respected local site). Tulsi has a whole lot of baggage that Hawai'i people know all about, but people up on the mainland don't. www.civilbeat.org/2024/12/sena...
civilbeat.org
Senators Urged To Examine Gabbard's Ties To Sect
Tulsi Gabbard's long involvement with the Science of Identity Foundation raises questions about the judgment and autonomy needed to advise the president on national security.
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Don Mitchell @wailuku.bsky.social · 07/01/2026
"Self-own" or "own goal" made manifest. www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/a-d...
mcsweeneys.net
A Debate on the January 6th Insurrection Between Fox News Host Jeanine Pirro and US Attorney Jeanine Pirro
Note: All of Jeanine Pirro’s dialogue below is taken from statements she has made on the record and accurately reflects the spirit in which they we...
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