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  Question I encountered on Instagram, which I thought was intriguing: If you owned a small shop that only opened after dark, what would you sell? (My first thought was night lights, but I am apparently not feeling very whimsical today. I will work on that!)

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  The Finch app challenged me to discover one fun fact about the place I grew up. Apparently, there’s a network of tunnels underneath the High Street in High Wycombe. Although there were rumours they were military, or some sort of escape route, the truth is considerably more prosaic. A brewery built them to transport beer to many, many pubs, without the hassle of carting barrels through busy streets. 🤣

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  Despite only numbering around six million in a country of 270 million, the Bugis people of South Sulawesi are highly influential. Their prowess as seafarers and traders established their influence across Indonesia and the Malay Archipelago (and struck fear into the hearts of European colonisers, who regarded them as ruthless pirates). And they recognise five genders. https://www.bbc.co.uk/travel/article/20210411-asias-isle-of-five-separate-genders #gender #Queer

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  At the garden centre on Friday, there was a pile of paperback books labelled “Fictional paper books”, and that annoyed the crap out of me, because they weren’t fictional - I could see them right there! 🤓

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  Hmmm… my latest idea for a character will involve me researching the history of books and reading. Tough gig 🤣

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  The company I work for, EJR-Quartz, contracts communications professionals out to space organisations. They're good people to work for, and they have a part-time vacancy with ESA in Spain. Candidates need a degree in communication or journalism, 3 years of experience writing and editing, preferably for an internal audience, native-level English skills and project management skills. Full details: https://www.ejr-quartz.com/vacancy-internal-communications-editor-for-esa-based-at-esac-in-spai...

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  Pondering whether a Discord*-style community based around my Cosy Library world might work. I could post bits of the story there as they arise. People could come and chat in Angie’s Café or sit and read in the Library or just grab one of Albert’s cinnamon buns on their way to work. *I am open to other options; Tech Support Husband can work wonders.

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  A rabbit hole I fell down this morning, a website that archives the maps they hand out at theme parks and the like. This is the internet we really need. https://www.themeparkbrochures.net/

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  This writing thing. I like the having of ideas. That part is fun, and (most days) the ideas arrive by themselves. It’s the getting them down on paper that I struggle with. Not the initial burst, but once the enthusiasm dies down. I lack motivation, I think. I’m not sure I see the point. It’s not like there’s anyone to read them. And then there’s a shiny new idea to chase anyway. 🧐

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  I was thinking a bit about found fiction this morning, and came across this wonderful short!) example: https://www.themonthly.com.au/december-2013-january-2014/essays/lists

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  Apparently, you can hack a smart bulb to be a tiny web server holding... e.g. banned books. https://www.richardosgood.com/posts/banned-book-library/

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  It’s a bazillion-open-tabs kind of day.

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  “But one policy he laid out in his first ever election against Boris Johnson in 2019 for the Uxbridge constituency remains bothersome to the people of west London to this day. The hand dryer in the men’s toilet at the Crown and Treaty pub which Count Binface pledged to move to a ‘more convenient place’ is still there. And Metro went to check out just how much emotional damage it caused.” https://metro.co.uk/2026/07/09/visited-pub-urinal-centre-count-binfaces-bizarre-manifesto-29097409/ #Count...

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  RIP Sam Neill 😢 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/crl1gk55rzet

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  We have managed to get the house down to a habitable temperature for the first time in a week.

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  I am devoid of motivation for Monday.

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  The leader of Oxfordshire county council, Tim Bearder, has won a landmark legal victory. A court ruling prevents hanging the English flag from lamp-posts without the council’s permission. This means the racist Raise the Colours group will no longer be able to plaster the county with flags to make immigrants feel unwelcome. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/jun/27/oxfordshire-council-high-court-injunction-raise-the-colours-nationalist-flags #GoodNews

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  “In 1972, Avon Books published “The Flame and the Flower,” by Kathleen Woodiwiss — a hefty historical romance that traded chastity for steamy sex scenes. It arrived in the thick of the sexual revolution, and readers loved it: It was an instant bestseller that’s credited with birthing the modern romance genre.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2021/04/15/romance-novels-history/

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  You have to love waking up in a neurodivergent household. After a conversation about children's tv show theme tunes that were used in rave songs, Ryan is now unloading the dishwasher to Trip to Trumpton. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXYa_qklKPc

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  Unknown to me, Ryan was mowing the lawn. He comes in, distressed. "It's really gone this time!" Me: Huh? He has lost some weight. His wedding ring (we have a matching pair of black LOTR rings) flew off when he shook his hand, pinged off the fence and disappeared. He's searched. He'd raked. Gone. Now, we always said this would be no big deal. They're symbols, they're replaceable. But Ryan was upset.🧵

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  There are no elections in my area today, but if there were I would be voting GREEN! https://youtu.be/DBPdWAJEE8M

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  I sowed 4 courgette* seeds on 1 May. This morning, one of them has definitely germinated, although it's just a green loop in the soil so far. *Rugosa friulana, more of a knobbly yellow cougette-shaped summer squash, really. The only courgettes hubby will eat, and the only thing I am trying to grow this year!

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  ‘What does “family” mean, and whose family experiences get recognised? A new UCL study is inviting non-binary adults in the UK to share their experiences of family life, in research that aims to address a significant gap in evidence.’ The survey takes around 30 minutes to complete and is open to non-binary people, aged 18+ living in the UK. https://www.ucl.ac.uk/ioe/news/2026/apr/what-does-family-mean-and-whose-family-experiences-get-recognised #queer #enby #nonbinary

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  No, I don't want to listen to your video with an AI voice.

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  I’d love to read more #queernorm fiction, set in worlds where queer identities, relationships, and genders are fully normalised, accepted, and everywhere, operating without homophobia, transphobia, or the need for "coming out" narratives. Stories that offer a space for joyful, everyday queer existence. Hit me up with some recommendations? (And no, this has nothing to do with me spending the weekend with my bigoted parents. Why would you think that? 😱)

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  One of the things that happens to me a lot is that people seek me out when their life has gone off track. And that’s fine, I am always happy to help. I just wish some of them would remember I exist once they’re all patched up and back out in the world. #ActuallyAutistic

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  Momentary power loss meant I had to go round the house turning off all the lights that came on by themselves when the power came on. The printer rebooted, the smart speakers all bonged, and the 'big light' in the bedroom came on. Ryan slept through all of it. 😴 That is a skill. (I will deal with the cooker clock later. *sigh*)

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  I forgot to mention earlier, when they were complaining that the post doesn’t come every day. It’s almost all junk mail, but you should get it every day.

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  I have THREE things in my calendar today. THREE. 😱

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  The New York Times is running a test to see whether people prefer human or AI writing. There are 5 pairs of passages across different genres. I preferred the human writing in 4/5 (and I owe Carl Sagan an apology 😭) The results seem to be pretty close for most genres, with only one strong preference for the AI writing. I think that, in a lot of cases, AI writing is easier to read, but that doesn't equate to better. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/03/09/business/ai-writing-qu...