I did an episode with the BBC World Service about the 'Godzilla' El Niño that looks like it's coming towards us - and what we should do about it www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w...

'We have forgotten how to respond to the poetry of life. The hollow, tinkling facade of life put up by noisy and trivial people stands between us and our deepest wealth.' Llewellyn Powys, 1913.

Latest satellite pictures coming from Sentinel-2 show that large parts of the 15th Naval Arsenal storage in the Leningrad region, Russia, are on completely fire. The entire north western part of this Russian strategic storage base is probably wiped out.

St Luke at work with his pet bull. The latticed window is a lovely detail.

Most wary of Chat GTP and its pernicious effects on academia. So I thought I'd ask it about Hawksmoor and Oxford, and see what it knew. It did not disappoint.

Moments for reflection

Well done, lady.

Talk on Strawberry Hill for HENI. This site has so many original films and podcasts on the visual arts, and more on the way- heni.com/talks/strawb...

Recommend!

Job: The Huntington Library is hiring a curator of early printed books huntingtonlibrary.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/Huntin...

2016-2026. We're fast approaching the timespan at which our forebears realised the 'Rexit' (thanks) of the Civil War had been regrettable and the promised freedom of the Commonwealth was a total Populist crock. So they reversed course.

"Terrorism" on the left. "Protest" on the right.

This is the Fuller Brooch & is regarded as a masterpiece of Anglo-Saxon art. It’s silver with niello inlay & is the earliest known depiction of the 5 senses. In the middle is Sight. In the roundel top left, going clockwise, is Taste, Smell, Touch & Hearing. 🕰️C9th AD, England 🏛️📷BM

An oil terminal in St Petersburg after a drone attack. St Petersburg Economic Forum is scheduled to start today, with Putin in attendance.

Check out this bit of ai alarmism from… the MIT Sloan School of Management.

I asked nothing about cultural identity. You'd think this was geared to an agenda.

Where's a copy editor when you need one...

Fair. I take my car for an annual MoT every 2 weeks now- I just love the buzz when it passes. Might go weekly.

I slipped last night and ordered a bunch of Pevsners. Get 'em while you can... yalebooks.co.uk/may26-spring...

AI in history education: "it cuts to the heart of what it means to nurture intellectual and moral maturity"

Last sunset of May.

Should it be of interest, a talk on Canterbury Cathedral in Goring, evening of 17 June www.thegapfestival.org/events/cante...

Look, plantar fascitis sucks but I think this guy has bigger issues going on

Sundown 30/5

Tonight’s crepuscular efforts

The lady opposite me on the train was reading this. To be fair she was only on the first chapter.

A global shift in real time.

Chandos Beauty

My forthcoming talk on #Dietary #changes in #Tudor #England might be of interest. Next Thursday in Bury St Edmunds. Please feel free to share.

“I write with dismay, grief and sorrow for the permanent closure of MIT Libraries Barker, Dewey and Rotch, and termination of library staff in those libraries. For MIT to be closing three of its four major libraries..." fnl.mit.edu/may-june-202...

“If a machine can defeat the best of our species at chess, ‘a domain that humans have viewed as sacrosanct, something that is quintessentially possessed by human intelligence,’ then what human endeavor is safe?” -- Washington Post, 1997

Sundown 27/5

Kew Gardens recording 35.1ºC today breaks its previous May record in 1922 before this spell by NEARLY 5ºC and breaks its June maximum temperature record set in 1976 by 0.5ºC - this also beats the previous May UK maximum record by OVER 2ºC (32.8ºC, 1922/44). An incredible anomaly

Julian Richards' Part 2 on Stonehenge www.youtube.com/watch?v=LF61...

Sundown 26/5

"Our paint is crafted with integrity using ingredients sourced almost entirely from within our shores, ensuring quality and a lower environmental impact." www.limewash.com Integrity- lower impact. So their visuals are AI generated

Today has been the hottest day in May on record with Kew Gardens provisionally reaching 34.8°C - exceeding the previous highest May temperature in the UK by a full 2 degrees Celsius🌡️ This heat would be exceptional in the UK even in mid summer, let alone in May📈

Sundown 25/5

‘Get a pound of grated creamy cheese and four ounces of breadcrumb that has soaked in goat’s milk, mix those together with ten well beaten eggs, two ounces of sugar, ten ounces of flour, a little fine flour and a little elderflower that has soaked in milk. Then make fritters as large …

Gardenalia

Zelenskyy: Our intelligence services receiving data from American and European partners, about Russia preparing a strike with the Oreshnik missile. We are seeing signs of preparation for a combined strike on Ukrainian territory, including Kyiv, involving various types of weaponry.

Sundown

Top roses atm: Reine des Violettes; Penelope; Aphrodite; Natasha Richardson

New gleanings

What a good eye. www.houseandgarden.co.uk/gallery/robe...

Allium pom-pom