El Steinbach
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esteinbach.bsky.social
El Steinbach
@esteinbach.bsky.social
810 followers 910 following 200 posts
Educator | Artist | Slow-Birder | They/She

[biopic: Me (a white enby with short hair) and my service dog, Nova

banner: Yellow coneflowers]
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esteinbach.bsky.social
Chicka-dee-dee-dee
Rough sketch of a chickadee. Above drawing is a reference photo from a magazine of a black-capped chickadee with the text bird tales special Winters can be long and cold in southeastern Michigan, so bird-watching is a favorite seasonal pastime. The black-capped chickadees are amusing to watch as they snatch sunflower seeds from the neighbor's feeder and land on tree branches to crack the shells open and eat the seeds. This little one took a short break and I was able to capture this moment. I love the beautiful blue sky in the background highlighting the details of its feathers. Deb Brokaw ST. CLAIR SHORES, MICHIGAN
November 1, 2025 at 11:22 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Creating helps stave off the sad, at least a little.
Notebook open on a desk. Both pages are filled with lines of color and various shapes like circles, squares and triangles. Notebook open on a desk. One side is filled with a tangle of interlocking squiggles filled with various colors. The other side is a sequence of lines in various colors, one row is filled with squares and another row is circles.
November 1, 2025 at 3:58 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Franken-pup!

[She was very unhappy I made her try this on. 😄]
A grumpy looking black schnauzer is wearing a Frankenstein hat.
October 31, 2025 at 10:56 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
I miss sitting on the porch with you, Grandma.
Nova, Grandma and I sitting on the porch. I am smoky broadly at the camera. Grandma is looking attentively at the camera. Nova is sitting on my lap looking past the camera.
October 30, 2025 at 4:03 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Thanks! I see it now as I read the page more closely!
Stimpunks.org Artist rendering of two beings, one silver-blue and one red-gold out in space. They are straining toward one another as if they might kiss, but others (who are out of sight, we can only see their hands) are pulling them apart. The two appear to be exchanging energy or breath maybe between their open mouths. Text reads: "Tell me the story about how the Sun loved the Moon so much he died every night to let her breathe." Art by Heike Blakley
October 23, 2025 at 1:25 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Grandma is under the weather right now and Nova is being so sweet. She keeps laying next to Grandma to keep an eye on her, which Grandma loves. 🥰

*Note: I intentionally cropped Grandma out of this picture because I know she wouldn’t want you to see her like this.
Nova (black dog) laying next to a bed. You can see an oxygen tube running up to the bed. You cannot see the person in the bed.
September 25, 2025 at 4:59 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Recent 5⭐️ read: Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor

This is one of those books where you don’t really understand what’s fully going on until the last page. And then you finish, and want to immediately start from the beginning to read it all again in the new light of full understanding.
The front cover of the book Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor. The silhouette of a black woman with locks is featured over an Ankara cloth patter in white and blue with shapes that look like processor chips and ones and zeros.
September 19, 2025 at 4:57 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Morning reading. @philsnider.bsky.social
Nova and I are sitting on the porch looking out toward the driveway and fields. I am sitting on the bench and you can only see my legs and hand. I am holding a book called Preaching as Resistance: Voices of Hope, Justice & Solidarity edited by Phil Snider. Nova (black dog) is lying on the porch in front of me looking out toward the field.
September 19, 2025 at 4:48 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
We had an unexpected early start to the day today, so we made the best of it and watched the sunrise.
Looking out over the bean field toward where the sun will rise. The sky fades from dark purple to light blue to pale yellow and pink. There are dark purple clouds low in the sky and pink wispy clouds in the rest of the sky. You can see the crescent moon high in the sky. Nova, a black dog, looking through the open window as we watch the sunrise.
September 18, 2025 at 4:58 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Grandma, Nova and I sitting on the porch enjoying the sunshine!
Grandma, Nova (dog) and I are sitting on the porch enjoying the sunshine. The picture is from my point of view and you can just see my legs propped up on the table. Nova is laying near the edge of the deck looking comfortable and content. She is gazing in the general direction of Grandma and I. Grandma is sitting near to me gazing lovingly at Nova.
September 17, 2025 at 2:15 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Ok pie is…not going great. 😬😂🤷‍♀️

I will try and post more pictures later, but here one picture to give to give you the general idea. 😄

#CreativeExperimentsInGluten-FreeBaking
The pie is partially baked and in shambles. I have manually scrapped off the top crust and put it in a bowl. I have scooped out the apple filling into a second bowl. The bottom crust is still in the pie plate. I am using both a spatial and tongs to get the last pieces of apple filling out.
September 16, 2025 at 9:25 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Pie is being made! It’s an apple pie with gluten-free, homemade crust.

This is the first time I’ve made a gluten-free crust; we shall see how it turns out! 🤞😀 (As you can see in the photo, I had trouble getting the dough circle to stay together 😂🤷‍♀️)
Pie dough being rolled out with a wooden rolling pin on a flour-dusted counter. There is a bag of gluten-free flour nearby. I am transferring the rolled-out pie crust dough to the pie plate in pieces (because it all fell apart) and patching it together. About half of the glass pie plate is filled with dough. I am pouring the apple filling (apples with flour, sugar and cinnamon) from a bowl onto the bottom crust in the pie plate. I am scraping the apple filling out of the bowl with a blue spatula. I am placing the assembled pie into the oven. The pie has a top crust with has an egg-wash and sugar sprinkled on top. There is a pie plate is resting on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.
September 16, 2025 at 7:13 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
First bite! Delicious!
Me, looking right at the camera while taking a bite of fresh bread. Me, with a pleased look on my face, enjoying the first bite of bread.
September 14, 2025 at 11:44 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
They turned out so well!
Three round bread loaves resting on wire cooling racks on the counter. Each loaf is golden brown with a split running down the center. A cut section of the bread loaf where you can see the crumb of the bread. There are many air pockets of various sizes. The loaf is resting on a cutting board with blue, green and white shapes painted on it.
September 14, 2025 at 11:42 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Time for baking!

It’s so.much.work to make sourdough bread, but I know it will be worth it!
A round loaf of dough being turned out on a piece of parchment paper on the counter. A flour dusted cloth is being peeled off of the dough. A round load of dough on a piece of parchment paper on the counter being scored with a knife straight down the center. A round load of dough on a piece of parchment paper on the counter being sprayed with water from a small, blue spray bottle. Two loaves of bread in the oven. One loaf is mostly baked and is on a sheet pan. The other loaf just went on the oven and is steaming in a covered baker.
September 14, 2025 at 11:09 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
The dough is ready to spread out and shape into loafs!
A bowl full of risen dough. Lovely bubbles of various sizes can been seen through the side of the bowl. The dough spread out on the counter is being cut into pieces with a spatula. I am shaping one chunk of the dough that is on the counter by stretching and folding it. I am gently setting the round-shaped dough loaf into a bowl lined with a flour covered towel. A second loaf in a bowl lined with a towel can be seen on the counter behind it.
September 14, 2025 at 8:28 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Final stretch-and-fold (4 of 4). Now we wait.
September 14, 2025 at 6:23 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
First stretch-and-fold (1 of 4).
September 14, 2025 at 4:16 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Making sourdough bread for the first time in a long time. I love all the measuring and precise steps. It’s a lot of work, but it’s so satisfying—and of course you end up with yummy bread at the end!
Measuring flour from a container into a mixing bowl sitting on a kitchen scale. The scale shows 494 grams. Pouring sourdough and water mixture into a stand-mixer bowl with flower in it. The stand-mixer is red and fitted with a paddle attachment. Mixing bowl with plastic wrap covering. Through the covering you can see a ball of dough.
September 14, 2025 at 2:42 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
It’s been a long time since I stayed up late reading, but even on my second read-through of Becky Chamber’s A Closed and Common Orbit, that’s exactly what I did. I can’t put it down; it’s so good! I just love it so much!
Book cover of Becky Chamber’s A Closed and Common Orbit. The silhouette of two people standing on dark ground with the star-filled sky in the background. The sky appears to have a long-exposure as the stars all appear to be streaking through the sky.
September 14, 2025 at 1:41 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Alt text added
From day one, I've promised to fight for the safety and security of every Missourian. That's why l've worked directly with FBI Director Kash Patel and President Trump's Administration to bring critical federal law enforcement resources to our state. I'm proud to announce St. Louis will receive a large increase in full time FBI agents and intelligence personnel in the country. This new partnership between federal and state agencies marks the beginning of a stronger, unified approach to restoring law and order in our communities. This permanent investment in St. Louis by the FBI will be coupled with increased multilateral joint agency operations, increasing overall crime fighting capacity and building upon the important work being done on the state level to restore public safety. Simply put: more criminals off the streets, and safer neighborhoods for Missouri families. I want to thank Director Patel for engaging closely with me from the moment I made this request. His vision of getting agents out of politics and into the field is helping to restore law and order across the country. This investment in St. Louis will be felt for years to come. See you around the state, Eric Schmitt
August 24, 2025 at 12:09 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Yesterday I channeled some of my anxiety, rage and existential dread about This Moment into making some ephemeral art (gift wrap for a baby shower I went to this morning).
Large sheet of white paper taped to cardboard lying on carpet. On the paper is a hand-drawn pattern using permanent marker. Illustrations include: - Pink, layer heart - The words “Hey, baby” in bold, orange uppercase block letters - The words “Welcome little one” in small, blue lowercase writing - Neon yellow sun - Lavender, cartoon bird - Rainbow shape with sea foam green as the inner stripe, teal as the outside stripe and soft blue dots in between - Dark blue triangle - Various other scatter shapes A box wrapped with homemade wrapping paper (see first picture for description of art) sitting on a table.
August 23, 2025 at 8:03 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Thank you, Marker-I-Dropped-at-the-End, for reminding me that I create *to create*, not to make a pretty, perfect piece of art.

The process of creating is what is needed, the end result is ancillary.
Hand drawn art, markers on paper. Solid lines and semicircles all in rainbow colors. The very last semicircle on the page has an out of place line running through it, like the marker was dropped.
August 20, 2025 at 8:04 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Yesterday evening, Nova and I took a lovely walk around the farm. We then sat and listened to the evening chorus (of birds) as the night fell.

I have missed the cool evenings and wide open views of the Michigan countryside while living in Missouri the last 20 years. It’s really the best!
Nova, a black dog, and I sitting on the lawn enjoying the evening. I am smiling broadly at the camera. Behind us you can see part of a pine tree and a gravel road.
August 18, 2025 at 6:53 PM
esteinbach.bsky.social
Autism is a Spectrum
Woo Young-Woo and Dong Geu-Rami from The Extraordinary Attorney Woo. Dong Geu-Rami says What do I get from hanging out with you? Woo Young-Woo says I’ll be your friend. You don’t have any friends.
August 3, 2025 at 8:49 PM