Participating in a lightning talk on digital confidence at the Collaborative Pedagogic Research Symposium and drinking the gothest damn smoothie 😁

Hello, I am several dozens of perfectionist OCD compulsions built around trying to make sure that no one sees me make mistakes, because as a child I internalized all the praise I got when I was smart and good at things in the most toxic way possible, and I endorse this message.

Joy in politics is important. Giving money and publicity to an grifting comedian to make zero difference in the world is very much not it. If only people put as much into things that actually improve lives as they do into crowdfunding bad jokes

Totally this. The fact that students are recording such high satisfaction levels despite the HE bin fire is testament to how academic and professional services staff really do work incredibly hard to make sure they prioritise students - often despite their work being undermined by senior mgmt.

cryptid: the Brumble hag Curses LinkedIn users to talk exclusively about their failures in exceptionally grandiose terms

why are people only ever described as "no-nonsense", what if you're a nonsense person, what then

You gots to remember - when completing neurodivergence assessments, you have to answer based on the impulse, not the accommodation. e.g. 'can you stay seated for long periods of time' "yes: I got told off so much in childhood that I mentally dissociate instead of moving" is actually a no.

Sometimes you can feel an emotion drifting into the past tense no matter how hard you strain not to let it.

I routinely see kids products that come in the 2 options "Dinosaur" or "Unicorn"- which apart from the obvious, annoys me because one gets science and one gets mythology. This could easily be fixed by swapping dinosaurs with dragons, or, hear me out, aggressively marketing Cambrian sea life to girls

This really reads like some kinda obscure burn

I do like how vinyl can be a less jarring pomodoro. After a few minutes I'll generally surface from hyperfocus enough to notice the music has stopped, and consider whether I can disengage enough to go flip the record over. (RN yes, always yes - I always want more @greenlungband.bsky.social)

DMing an already-created game isn't working for me, so am considering (as a first time effort lol) brewing a DnD-based game in which you are a minor local band (in Nottingham) attempting to build reputation/get enough resources/persuade an audience big enough to play at Rock City.

Very tired and brain just phrased spreading jam as ‘resolving the jam effect’ I need to cut down on my dimension 20 consumption I think

I've been 'acting up' - going beyond my job role - for the past 12 months, and prepared paperwork for regrading to match my team. But Higher Education is ever in flux, and the frustration of not getting paid what I'm worth is nothing to the fear of not having the opportunity to prove it...

Well once again I have had a busy morning doing loads of work and achieving none of the things I intended to when I sat down. #ADHD

Sometimes the world is overwhelming and the stress of uncertainty and change creates a panicked brain fog which makes thinking somewhat like wading through cement and prevents you from being as productive as you'd like. Evidently sometimes, though, it helps if you take a vitamin. ¬_¬

I think the police are a blunt instrument. I think the cutting of youth services, economic uncertainty, and unbelievable rise in cost of living offer a complete dearth of options for kids and young adults to socialise outside of home. I wish they’d stop screaming in the park past midnight though.

If you want to bring back excitement, inspiration and motivation in your job, talk to a colleague with #ADHD. You’ll emerge windswept, faintly confused, and with exciting high level conceptual ideas that are entirely unworkable but! ☝️! May prompt you to think about things differently. 😁

So with ref to the #LTHEchat, @abbis.bsky.social, I think we’re fighting to move “how do we make this (existing) learning (created by the subject experts) digital” to “how do we (digital education specialist and subject experts) collaborate for effective digital learning.” Still, somehow.

I recommend parasols #SummerGoth

*blows dust off account* This week's #LTHEchat looks both deeply interesting and deeply relevant, and @abbis.bsky.social is a legend, so I shall enjoy rummaging through the comments on Thursday morning. (Finally found a DnD campaign! A poorly timed DnD campaign!)

(1/2) Whittlesea straw bear

Ridiculously chuffed with this free decoration from @britishlibrary.bsky.social with my tales of the weird subscription. Delighted to say that brings my Christmas tree skulls up to seven 😁💀🌲

Eh, death is inevitable, so why not die on this hill?

Grillfest is Norwegian for barbecue We can only aspire to such greatness

26-30/52 three of the Brothers Sinister books and two of the Worth Saga, all by Courtney Milan. It hasn’t been a *productive* weekend, certainly, but it hasn’t ‘alf been a fun one.

25/52 a beautiful story, or a collection of stories, about what it means to be a family, what it means to be a community, with all the love and the hate and the longing and the resentment that’s inextricable from it and from you. Hell of a read.

Going for hospital tests on Wednesday. I need to find my ‘I need clear instructions’ badge because I am remarkably stupid when I’m overwhelmed and scared. Pawsitive Pins on Etsy do great badges for the #neurodivergent among us 😁

Happy Sunday! 🎃👻🎃

24/52 Mr Collins in Love: @leewelchwriter.bsky.social. Golly but that was a delight, and hurt my heart with the happy ending of it. I long for communication so easy and honest - or, not easy, but *brave*. A gorgeous read that salvaged Austen’s unsalvageable and made it something beautiful. #BookSky

Reading @leewelchwriter.bsky.social’s Mr Collins in Love and I see myself so much in his evident neurodivergence and I am fairly certain I won’t make it through this book without weeping. This is standard for Lee’s books, I won’t lie.

I see duo has enshittified in pursuit of more cash 😡

23/52 everyone recommends this one for a reason. Everyone should read this one, too. (Trying to read again. Sometimes you have to name the cycle to escape it.)

Occasionally I am articulate 😁👍

Prolonged absence because I have been sick for a month and have to get tested in the hospital and what does that mean? That means Prolonged Comfort Fanfic Reading, folks. How to be an antiracist, Silk and Power are all languishing unread by my bedside while I languish upon it 😁👍

In a stunning moment of carnal desire, my calculator said “BOOBIE5”

Browser crashes keep you humble

Me too, clouds, me too.

Have decided to start calling life admin ‘arcane rituals’ so it sounds better when I cancel plans 😁

Simultaneously bemused that it is ALREADY Thursday and that it is ONLY Thursday

Age verification: birthday twin!

Work smells like custard today 👍

Sometimes I run out of life for a bit - the plans run out, as does the energy for making them, and everything winds down. It’d be good if I had a better strategy for restarting the clockwork than self-flagellation but hey, at least I’m awake again. 🌞

The crowdfunder to provide improved premises and access for everyone to The Folklore Library and Archive @folklorelibrary.bsky.social is approaching 10% funded. Can you please help it get there with a small pledge? There are rewards in return for your help too! Thank you gofund.me/d64b9577

You tell ‘em Duo!

Taproot by @keezyyoung.bsky.social (22/52) utterly adorable story in a gorgeous art style, and the hinted-at universe is absolutely *fascinating*. Queerness and necromancy and inept romance, it’s like this was designed precisely for me 😍 I’ve ordered their other books, can’t wait to read them!

Ngl I think I’ve found my Halloween costume but I may need to bring a print out of a very specific 1936 political cartoon so it makes sense 🤣 (is this an excuse to buy myself a widow’s robe? IS IT EVER)

A kiss for midwinter by Courtney Milan (21/52) - this is the reason I started the series in the first place, because it’s referenced in her essay Pride and Predators (linked) about Wickham and the dangers of civility. Painfully deals with learning to hope. 💜 michiganlawreview.org/journal/prid...

The Duchess War by Courtney Milan (20/52) - an excellent read with layers of growing tension that resonate with the endlessly peelable layers of helpless wanting on the part of both MCs. The characters are nuanced and flawed and the happy ending is well-earned. Good read!