Golden Pheasant Maki-e Fountain Pen On the deep black urushi surface, a golden pheasant appears among grasses and leaves. The design is not a direct reproduction, but our own reinterpretation of the elegance, restraint, and quiet brilliance found in early maki-e fountain pens.

disregard | verb | to pay no attention to : treat as unworthy of regard or notice

Postdoctoral Fellowship (06) at University of Melbourne, Australia #VacancyEdu #Postdoc #Postdoctoral #PostdocJobs #ScienceCareer #AcademicJobs #Researcher #PhDlife #PostdoctoralFellowship #JobSearch #ScholarshipAlert vacancyedu.com/2026/05/22/p...

This is Bear, Australia's most famous koala detection dog. After a decade of service, he's retiring. He's located hundreds of injured or displaced koalas after forest fires. We're told his retirement will be filled with rest, cuddles, and maybe a little mischief. 15/10

Treatment. My @smh @theage cartoon.

'Iris, Peonies, Sparrows, and Dragonfly' - Katsushika Hokusai, Edo period. From the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston collection. #JapaneseArt #Ukiyoe

WHERE DO I VOTE

I missed World Bee Day yesterday. So, here's a late offering. A native (to Australia) blue-banded bee.

Looks like a job for the Polish boar-chasing robot.

My latest article in The Conversation. Why diphtheria, whooping cough and measles have come back in Australia theconversation.com/why-diphther...

Israel's National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has taunted the detained activists from the Global Sumud Flotilla, in a video he posted on X which has been labelled “shocking and unacceptable" by Australia's Foreign Minister Penny Wong. www.abc.net.au/news/2026-05...

Bullfrog of the day! Wednesday, 20 May 2026

Every GOP primary story is like “syphilis loses to pancreatic cancer”

Que manía los americanos con las cocinas gigantes,para luego coger dos putas rebanadas de pan de molde y untarlas con crema de cacahuete.

Way to instantly kill any theoretical credibility you might've had. The author, Steven Rosenbaum, tries to downplay this but the details make it clear this is a massive and disgusting error.

In this case I suspect correlation *is* causation

If you're looking for really lovely moments of zen, this husband & wife team provide it from their Texas backyard. 😊 youtu.be/8zqVGyC8n2E

I GET LOGGED OUT. BUT I LOG IN AGAIN

At least six oil and gas companies kicked in $1m each to a fund operated by Australian Energy Producers (AEP) to fight a proposal for a new gas tax. The Prime Minister flew across the country to tell the resources sector in person it was dead. Here's me in @deepcutnews.bsky.social looking at why.

When the world gets you down, just remember the wonderful variety of dumplings out there...

Eastern chipmunk glamor shot #Sqrlpix

Also from Singapore - a collared kingfisher. Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve.

Another black-shouldered kite pic. Yesterday at Auburn, Clare Valley.

A stork-billed kingfisher at the Sungei Buloh Wetlands. From my stopover in Singapore last year.

"The proliferation of references to fake articles threatens to undermine the legitimacy of institutional research across the board" -- by Miles Klee www.rollingstone.com/culture/cult... open access link: archive.ph/qt59c 1/🧵

It’s gotten so bad

Sneaking a giant screen into the flagshagger march is one of the funniest things @ledbydonkeys.org have ever done. "STAY HYDRATED" 😂🤣😂

New video premiering in two minutes

Two more week to submit your proposal for a special issue on gender, crisis and childhood! #childhood #gender #history

Cockatoo Saturday: A sulphur-crested cockatoo with an opinion 😆 Mount Crawford, South Australia.

Rounding off Cockatoo Saturday with some little corellas. These guys can appear in huge numbers. In the many thousands sometimes. So, some people view them as pests, but I like them. They are characters. Photo from when I lived in Auburn, Clare Valley.

Sunbeam hour. 🌤️

The dangers of riding a bloated horse into battle - 14th century, British Library, Add. MS 10292, f. 213r

I’ve actively avoided both Farrer by-election and Budget discourse, but I do feel the need to recommend this from John Birmingham @birmo.bsky.social. aliensideboob.substack.com/p/more-of-an...

Smart cities know that, as hot as they already are, they’re just going to keep getting hotter. Greening the city not only cools it down, it cleans the air, quiets the noise, improves mental health & happiness, saves public money, and more. Strand Aldwych, London. 2021 vs 2025. Via @modacitylife.com

This seems like a good opportunity to promote a Critical Review we published in February on this very topic. The page also suggests other related papers. *Currently Open Access* www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

📹 Eurovisión censura gritos de “parad el genocidio” durante la actuación de Israel en su semifinal y expulsa a varios activistas social.elpais.com/h8o…

Chris Minns responds to claims from a parliamentary inquiry that the government "unlawfully redirected" millions of dollars of public money and accused witnesses of lying under oath.

Rupert's campaign against this budget will resonate extremely well with voters at the upcoming 1950 federal election

we love to see it

Marco plays with Markwayne, Tulsi plays with Pete Pete plays with Donald, Donald is happy again Susie plays with Russell, Bobby plays with Scott Stephen builds a bonfire, JD plays with it

The stuff I write about is so nuts that I find myself quadruple-checking the facts with pen and paper. For example, in 2020 Andreessen Horowitz led a $12 million investment round in the Clubhouse app (at a $100M valuation). It had 1500 users. It reached $4 billion valuation in 2021, then...poof.

Nature is healing.

Fashion tip of the day: To deal with clothes moths, fill your wardrobe with thousands of tiny spiders, the moth's natural predator. To deal with the spiders, fill your wardrobe with scorpions. To deal with the scorpions, fill your closet with RFK Jr. This way, you avoid harmful chemicals.

Surely they've suffered enough?

And now some footage of excellent teaching