Sorry I haven't updated in an even logner period than last time! I've had some things on my mind lately - among other things, my grandfather (who was a father figure to me) recently passed. I've also been working on a long post about the problems of Growth Socialism, including Fully Automated Luxury Communism and other silliness! Watch this space! My very deep thanks to the very cool people who have graciously looked over my crappy drafts!
On a lighter note, my interest in food-gardening has led me to the joy of vermicomposting. I've been playing host for a couple of weeks to a colony of Red Wigglers and they are far more fascinating than little tubes of fat and water have any right to be. I've become a collector of worm facts - large species of earthworms can be over three meters long! Earthworms have five hearts (or sometimes four or six!) There don't seem to be any earthworm viruses, but they can suffer from a variety of parasitic, bacterial, and fungal infections!
Truly, a wealth of fun facts to share the next time you're at a party.
I also can't resist the urge to anthropomorphize them. When I open the bin and they give a little head-tilt upward before diving for their burrows, I can't help but read a little bit of judgment into their wiggles - "Seriously? You're opening the bin again? You just did that yesterday!" In the grand tradition established by noted worm expert Charles Darwin, I have also occasionally been singing to the worms - with the bin closed so as not to disturb them with light - before I go to bed. (Sure, they don't have ears, but it's the thought that counts.)
Deep down, I know that earthworms almost certainly aren't persons and my attempts at deep insights into their psychology are misguided, but I tend to think it's better to err on the side of animal personhood than the alternative. The opposite impulse is how we end up with notables like Eliezer Yudkowsky saying that consciousness is unique to primates and other animals can be disregarded. Be nice to animals, folks!