I want to mention something nice that happened to me today, in part to document, for my own sake, that good things still happen in this horrible world. It involves the London Underground, an escalator, a small boy and some rubber ducks.

Wombat snoot boop!

Remember if you were following him before you blocked him, you might still show on his followers list. You need to unblock him, unfollow him, then block him again.

Lecturer in Theology and the Arts (AEP) at King's College London www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DRO613/l...

Retreat houses play an important role in the life of the Church and in our own faith journeys. They provide beautiful spaces for stepping aside from every day pressures, to rest, to pray and to be refreshed (Rt Revd Dr Guli Francis-Dehqani, APR President, Church Times). promotingretreats.org

For my fellow Gen Xers: start your Saturday with a big nostalgic grin (or that maybe just me ... )

Change is in the air. So let's all revel in the discomfort our language offers to those who seek to see us diminished, shamed and kept in line. Because those days are finally done, and they ain't seen nothin' yet ✍️ Stephen Price

This 👇

A guess a lot people will be spending a lot of today checking some slowly changing numbers on a BBC webpage. If you enjoy that sort of thing and want it to be a more than annual occurrence - can I recommend getting into county cricket?

happy 9th anniversary to the day we watched Zendaya fall madly in love with Tom Holland in real-time

Do I know people or know people who know people who are specifically working on the Latin translation of Avicenna's Canon and can point me to some good reading on it?

Is anyone aware of a thesis or book which uses a library as a window into an historic institution or organisation? Any clues gratefully accepted!

A writer is a person who cares what words mean, what they say, how they say it. Writers know words are their way towards truth and freedom, and so they use them with care, with thought, with fear, with delight. By using words well they strengthen their souls.

People who deny the existence of dragons are often eaten by dragons. From within.

Nerdy question of the day: has there been any research done on the long term impact of Alpha - say with participants 5/10+ years afterwards? Preferably independently done rather than HTB sponsored. #CofE

In our cycle of prayer, we pray this week for the Sisters of St Paul and the work of The Dupuis Retreat Centre in Birmingham. Why not visit them for a quiet day on 6 May or 3 June? Find out more on dupuiscentre.co.uk #retreat #prayeroftheweek

Our website lists more than 600 individual retreats, quiet days and other events happening at 70+ retreat centres across the UK and beyond this year... where might you go? Visit promotingretreats.org and start planning your next retreat now! #retreat

What is a retreat, and why are retreats important for our emotional, physical and spiritual wellbeing? Find out more on promotingretreats.org/what-is-retreat #retreat #wellbeing

I read a very compelling argument that when this weasel chewed through a cable and unexpectedly shut down the Large Hadron Collider’s 17-mile particle accelerator in April 2016, that’s when our reality went haywire. I have yet to hear a more persuasive explanation. Not even really joking.

Post your warning sign (despite the very clear instruction to the contrary, in one of the houses we lived in when I was a child, this ended up in the corridor):

This 👇

The horrific attack in Golders Green yesterday reminds us that antisemitism is a real evil in the midst of our city. We send our prayers for strength & healing to the victims & those who know & love them. May we be part of ridding the world of all prejudices that divide & threaten our communities.

Friends, if you’re taking sertraline, check the batch number as there is a recall out and you may have ended up with a mislabelled lower dose of citalopram. www.gov.uk/government/n...

🙏 Giving thanks for CHN's ministry over many years, and in various locations.

The alt-text on the photo rather suggests that the two gentlemen pictured are the entire crowd at Sophia Gardens. Which I realise may well be the case, of course ... !

Praying this week for Spirituality Advisers and others who work in diocesan wellbeing departments as they gather at Launde Abbey for the biennial APR Spirituality Conference. And giving thanks for Ben Cahill-Nicholls of the @clergysupport.bsky.social and Chris Cook as they join the conversations

I couldn't do Latin for GCSE as I'd hoped, as the Latin teacher was leaving and not being replaced. The only thing that would fit in my timetable instead was Typing & Word Processing. Being able to touch type then got me an admin summer job when I was 16. That was 35 years ago ...

This is a dance-off. If you see this, post a dance!

Do you long for a retreat or quiet day, but just can't get away? Then book a place at our (free) online quiet day on 9 July! Although it's aimed for people with caring responsibilities, this retreat is open to anyone who is tied to the home. Find out more on promotingretreats.org/news-events-blog

But presumably this wouldn't include that quintessentially British act of rebellion and protest, men wearing women's clothing? (Between the ages of 13 and 18, I think I studied the Rebecca Riots for three separate lots of exams, including GCSEs and A-levels.)

Pick up the nearest book, turn to p. 42, and post the second sentence: "These and all other necessaries, for them, for us, and thy whole Church, we humbly beg in the Name and Mediation of Jesus Christ our most blessed Lord and Saviour. Amen."

we all know I have no life, so:

The last time I was eligible to vote in an election in Wales was the 1997 General Election, so in a sense this isn't my battle to fight; but - what he said 👇

A reminder that we did this. (And had to pay Mirror Group Newspapers for the copyright of the text, one of the finest rights payments I’ve ever approved.)

Did you know that we offer bursaries of up to £150 for teachers and welfare staff in Church of England schools to go on retreat? Find out more, and plan your retreat, on promotingretreats.org/bursary - and tell all your teaching friends too! #retreat #teacher

I like the (no doubt apocryphal) story of the bishop who seemed to be able to find a text for every occasion. Asked to bless a new maternity ward, he went with 1 Corinthians 15.51: "We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed"

'Church in Wales Governing Body votes to make permanent provision for same-sex blessings'. www.churchinwales.org.uk/cy/news-and-... 'Corff Llywodraethol yr Eglwys yng Nghymru yn pleidleisio i wneud darpariaeth barhaol ar gyfer bendithion o'r un rhyw'. www.churchinwales.org.uk/en/news-and-...

Without saying your age, post your favourite film that was released the year you turned 18: (Absolutely no contest!)

This is what the internet is for. www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8gMQUu3/

For various reasons, my fridge is in a cupboard in the hall, not in the kitchen. Turns out there was a hole in the bag of potatoes I've just carried back to the fridge. Which I discovered when a spud bounced off my foot and rolled off somewhere out of sight. [cont ...]

We have a Teaching Fellow in Classical Language and Literature (Latin) job that is now open; fixed term from Sept 26 to June 28. Deadline is tight (24th April). The post covers a colleague's career break. There's some team teaching with me; happy to answer any questions folks might have.

OK Bluesky, I need a classics nerd to help me figure out what the heck the woman on this sarcophagus is holding in her right hand.

If anyone’s desperate I have an unopened pot of The Gentleman’s Relish that is in season until the end of August place your bids

There are still a few places left for the Open Reflective Days at The Royal Foundation of St. Katharine on London on 13 April and 11 May - books yours now on rfsk.org.uk/events before it's too late! #retreat #quietday

DATES FOR THE DIARY: 40th annual Eric Symes Abbott Memorial Lecture by Francis Spufford - 'Why aren’t there more beautiful places?': 21 May | 6.30pm | @westminsterabbey.bsky.social | buff.ly/gpz4MPI 22 May | 5.30pm | @kebleoxford.bsky.social | buff.ly/ztk4eXr @KCLChaplaincy

Explore what it means to live the Risen life with Christ with a Quiet afternoon with the Sisters Of Bethany in Norfolk on 18 April. Find out more or book your place on www.sistersofbethany.org.uk/daytime-led-... #retreat #prayer @monknunanglican.bsky.social

Um. Yes. Ah. Right. Uh - about that ...

'2001' came out not long before the Apollo 8 mission. Apparently, one of the astronauts contacted Arthur C Clarke afterwards and said they'd briefly been tempted, when they regained radio contact after passing the far side of the moon, to report that they'd spotted a large black monolith ...

Jesus Christ is risen today, Alleluia! Wishing all our members, friends and followers a Blessed and Joyful Easter! #HappyEaster