Scott Adams is just another example that people are complicated. His best cartoons were superb. You're not obliged to dislike them because you dislike his politics.

Being able to make countless minor mistakes in my teenage years and early 20s and not have to worry about them following me around for decades. Being forgotten is one of the truly great privileges we have lost over the last couple of decades.

James Merril’s poem “Christmas Tree,” written while he was dying of AIDS. 1995.

6.12.15 Liverpool beaten 2-0 by Newcastle - this season is so bizarre I'm starting to think we may actually have a serious chance of the title, because no one else seems capable of mounting a consistent challenge at the moment. #LCFC #Impossible10YearsOn

this makes me so profoundly patriotic

We were in the adjoining gallery at the time. Lots of initial confusion followed by quite an orderly evacuation. Astonishing that even the Louvre can be targeted by armed robbers!!

I live alone, and talk to myself aloud quite a lot. In unrelated news, my partner recently bought me a novelty teatowel featuring a mutual friend's face. Thus it was that I found myself considering aloud during a domestic task that "No, @jamesrosscomedy.bsky.social doesn't go in the tumble dryer…"

The cat’s tracker has a leaderboard of local cats and their activity and if my next book is late it’s because I’m watching him closing in on Pablo.

Episode 208: The Crab (starring Ben Rowe!) shows.acast.com/woebegone/ep...

Absolutely first class insight from my client this morning, who had a trial listed in late 2029: “What happens if the Third World War hasn’t finished by then? It’s going to start any day now!”

If I were Andy Farrell I’d wake up this morning and beg, beg, beg for someone to find me Jamie George’s phone number.

Hands up if you had to stay overnight away from home for a hearing this morning and the hotel waiter spilled hollandaise sauce on your suit trousers and now you have to decide between navy shorts and light blue jeans in the local Crown Court? Anyone? Anyone else?

As Liverpool win the Premier League for the second time, they complete the opening of a quite remarkable sequence, 33 years in the making. #Fibonacci

Had a magnificent dream that the Vatican knowingly selected the *entirely fictional* Cardinal Tedesco as the new Pope. It was the role of a lifetime for Sergio Castellitto and he lived up to it wonderfully.

when @benrowe.uk first DM'ed us about being a guest on 400wah, I freaked out in the crew server so much. I forgot about that, ofc, until Ben joined the crew server only to search his name. he knows I am, in fact, very unhinged, so he didn't put a restriction order against me. thank god.

If I had a case to refer to the CCRC, and was absolutely adamant that it wasn’t just a publicity stunt, I probably wouldn’t issue a press release stating that I was going to personally hand deliver my documents to their offices. I’d probably just email them, or stick them in the post.

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE - DIMINISHING RETURNS - DROPPING MARCH 21ST In which the gang run into a small problem, emphasis on 'small'. with @benrowe.uk, @addisonpeacock.bsky.social, and @celestielleva.bsky.social

Danse Macabre at @efteling.bsky.social is easily, easily the best flat ride I’ve ever been on. It’s worth a trip to Efteling just to try it out. Just first rate.

Got my awful children a Bop-It for Christmas. Let them have a go. High score of 12. Pathetic. I set a high score of 83 and told them that I’m not going to look them in the eye ever again until they can beat me. #ParentingDoneRight

On a complete whim I sent a WhatsApp to my whole road suggesting an impromptu get together under a street lamp for a bit of carolling. 30 people turned up with mince pies, mulled wine, neighbourly love, and all sorts. It’s the most Christmassy thing I’ve ever done. Merry Christmas!!

The UK parliament has joined Bluesky, with proper verified domains and everything: • @houseofcommons.parliament.uk • @houseoflords.parliament.uk • @ukparliament.parliament.uk • @commonsspeaker.parliament.uk

Last year Sky released a made for TV Christmas movie called “This is Christmas” about a man who decides to arrange a festive party for all the other commuters on his usual train carriage. Just watched it. It is WAY better than it needs to be - an instant Christmas classic. Highly recommended.

Moana 2. An absolute delight spending more time with some characters I have really come to love; but the music is just awful. Truly terrible. Loads of very noticeable autotune as well. Nothing could have lived up to the original, obvs, but this fell far short musically.

Woe.begone is a fantastic show, and I’m lucky enough that they let me join in and write the odd but for them here and there as well. This episode also has a special guest star towards the end!

Episode 182: Bluster's Grove, TX (featuring @benrowe.uk's Samantha Chronicles) shows.acast.com/woebegone/ep...

Daughter's carol service last night, and as it ended the (wonderful) organist kicked into this superb take on Adeste Fidelis by Cochereau. Incredible. www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0b9...

This is a truly fantastic video about an utterly niche tech issue. Fascinating and accessible. Well worth your time. youtu.be/iXKvwPjCGnY?...

Just learned that you can mute the word “Wicked” on threads and suddenly it’s become infinitely more usable.

The his is a very well argued piece. I however am very much in favour of the requirement for renewing passports etc as it’s the only reason some of my old “friends” contact me at all these days. Every 10 years like clockwork. Shameless. Absolutely shameless. But I love the attention. Shameless.

My former pupil went to see Guys and Dolls at the Bridge Theatre last night and reported back that “It was a fantastic show but the plot was a bit thin” and now I don’t think I can ever speak to him again. Thin? Two parallel love stories ending in a joint wedding. That’s bloody Shakespeare, that is.

They should have called this site AFC Twitter

Paddington 3: a considerable step down in quality from the previous two movies, but still better than anything else on the market in recent years. It really missed King and Farnaby’s light touch and subtlety, but still an excellent way to spend an afternoon. Well worth a watch.

Very much hoping that with the arrival of those like @rosieisaholt.bsky.social on here we might see the place lighten up a little. It’s all a bit Mr Collins, humourless and pious at the moment.

The Party's Over: the Death of Legal Twitter (a blog) familybrief.org/2024/11/07/t...

The other place is filled with American women (bots, no doubt) begging to marry Englishmen to get a UK passport. Love Actually now makes sense. The ladies were all so kind and welcoming to Colin as they feared the impact of a Billy Bob Thornton Presidency.

The liberal, relatively affluent, bubble (and I include myself squarely in the middle of that) have simply not learned the lessons of the last 8-10 years. We act surprised every time that people who *we* have squarely ignored for decades vote against what *we* consider to be *their* best interests.

This is a lesson that should have been learned, at the very least, 8 years ago.

I occasionally get sniffy when my mother asks me for help with technology or, what I feel to be at least, simple every day tasks. But I just tried to hang curtains without her guiding me (as per every previous time) and I swear to god I will never moan about her again. That stuff is witchcraft.

The UK having our election this year on 4th July and America having theirs on 5th November feels like an odd sort of cultural exchange between our two countries.

Crown Court trial: from beginning of the Crown’s opening to sending out the jury in 57 minutes. That has to be close to a record, surely? (Jury has been out for 2 hours. And counting)

Just tried to call my mother to tell her that she had left her phone at my house when she visited yesterday. I became increasingly irate as the phone rung and rung and she didn’t pick up, as I stood there with her phone vibrating away in my other hand. Happy Monday.

Very late to the party but series 1, episode 5 of Mythic Quest might just be a perfect standalone episode of television. Completely separate characters to the whole rest of the show, fantastic self-contained plot. Highly, highly recommended.

My very first post on here has to be to thank the ever-brilliant @seanjones.org for his UK law starter packs. What a way to hit the ground running.