Smylers

Bah, fell for the trap in @quizquizquiz.bsky.social's Wednesday Quiz! I was *so* pleased with that answer, too. manage.campaignzee.com/4LtECZJA2Y

Thanks, Kate. In detail: Click the link in the email, scroll down to section 9, click to expand the second ⊕, and you get to the bit shown below, to find the link. Now, why am I suddenly thinking of leopards and locked filing cabinets?

Contains lead

Contains parsnip and bramleys.

What does ‘pb’ stand for on a menu? Presumably some allergy thing, but I can't see a key. Or it's the chef's Personal Best dish? Or it's recommended by Paddington Bear?

Cryptic crossword folk coming to @enigmatistelgar.bsky.social's Sloggers & Betters event in York: If you'd like a signed copy of Alys Cummings's ‘Murder Most Cryptic’, let me know and I will pick one up one for you this Sunday at Ilkley Lit Fest: www.ilkleyliteraturefestival.org.uk/events/90-al...

This is an important point. I became a British citizen in 2013, but because I got my NI number in 2008, the lazy government records my various jobs as going to foreigners

Cryptic crossword folk coming to @enigmatistelgar.bsky.social's Sloggers & Betters event in York: If you'd like a signed copy of Alys Cummings's ‘Murder Most Cryptic’, let me know and I will pick one up one for you this Sunday at Ilkley Lit Fest: www.ilkleyliteraturefestival.org.uk/events/90-al...

“Remove from oven and add the stock.” OK, done that. “Stir well.” Sure. “Cover tightly with foil.” What‽ This thing's just come out of the oven! How am I supposed to do anything “tightly” while wearing oven gloves? Do recipe writers have special foil-crimping machines? Slaves? A&E loyalty cards?

Update: a commenter has spotted that the answer to the clue that mentions Lorde: Exaggerated behaviour from Lorde performing in Massachusetts twice (9) … is also the name of a Lorde album! Top work by the setter there.

Anybody want to see @lucyportercomic.bsky.social at @ilkleylitfest.bsky.social tonight? It's sold out, but we have 1 spare ticket. #Ilkley www.ilkleyliteraturefestival.org.uk/events/64-lu...

The titles of the songs that are 6, 7 and 8 in the UK singles chart - Boston, The Cure, Nicole Kidman - are all acts that have had UK Top 40 hits

Had this again today: "Whom did you vote for in the last general election?" I correct select other from the options, as they do not list the parties available in NI. "Why did you not vote in the last general election?" My responses are getting increasingly snarky and decreasingly publishable.

Well that was unexpected: #Wordle 1,939 3/6* ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

I am angry tonight. Because tonight ICE shot a New Yorker. They shot a New Yorker while his five year old child was in the car. ICE makes this city less safe. We want them out. Now.

What is the rate of “false” diagnosis? What is the actual harm done? Especially when the main intervention is “understanding and reasonable adjustments”? Or is this just the transphobic moral panic collecting another set of victims?

“Hannah Fry is smart.” “We need something to show us while they are back at their lodgings.” “I dunno let’s give her an abacus.” #CelebrityTraitors

To the @johnmurrays.bsky.social proofs event at @ilkleylitfest.bsky.social. Last time I went one of the authors was Lucy Steeds and we each got a proof copy of ‘The Artist’ months before it became famous and started winning prizes.

me: I wonder if there's any news on the car accident outside the 12yo's school. Facebook commenter: Oooh, a child's been injured — let's use this as an occasion to be racist. 3 other Facebook users: Let's thumbs-up the racism.

@alanconnor.bsky.social Hello. Please can you get comments enabled on this: www.theguardian.com/crosswords/c...

Weird that 🟩🟨🟨 and 🟩🟩🟩 are right next to each other! #Loconundrum #205 ⬜⬜⬜ 🚂🚂🚂🚂 🟩⬜⬜ 🚂 🟩🟨🟨 🚂 🟩🟩🟩 loconundrum.aaronc.cc

OMG I had to check my work emails regarding an extra case in court tomorrow and I've just read this from an HR person. "on a knee to nose basis" A KNEE TO NOSE BASIS 😳

We (Spouse, children, and I) are going to this later. As presumably are many other people ... so basic probability suggests we aren't among the few that he's hoping to see.

A survey about improving public transport in West Yorkshire asks residents for their sex “as recorded at birth”: www.wycaresidentpanel.co.uk I appreciate there's a ‘prefer not to say’ option, but why ask this at all, @tracybrabinmayorwy.bsky.social? How will it be used in transport planning?

Tickets successfully bought for @sawdoctors.com at Halifax Piece Hall next summer and @zaltzcricket.bsky.social at Leeds City Varieties in January. Both went on sale at 10:00, but I managed to juggle between two browser windows and bought the right things.

Well you should've tied them down better.

Well you should've tied them down better.

When people talk about Claude, I always think of the delightful cartoon dog in the books by Alex T Smith:

Good to know this train is on time, FastJP. Oh, unless you click the + to expand the per-station view, at which point it's predicted to depart 21 minutes late and arrive 9 minutes late — that sort of “on time”.

@sloopjohnbee.bsky.social Have you done Wordle today?

To be more accurate, EBay, it's *collection* that's taking longer than expected. Evri's tracking shows the seller dropped it off at a shop on Tuesday lunchtime, but Evri themselves haven't been to collect it from there yet. The delivery window was Wed–yesterday and they still haven't collected it!

I'm sure #Ilkley's very nice in the rain, but why risk it? Come and play board games this afternoon at All Saints church. They've even turned the heating on for the first time this winter! All welcome. Bring snacks, and games you want to play or people to play our games. See you there.

But women in Piddington are quite literally being told by the Leader of the Opposition that they should fear for their LIVES and that never leaving the house after dark is a reasonable precaution! This isn't protecting them. This is seriously damaging them. 11/

Kudos to both the photographer and headline-writer on this article: www.cricinfo.com/story/pieter... (For those not into cricket: Kevin Pietersen is often referred to as ‘KP’, and he's one of the people sitting on the balcony on this photo.)

If your directions include What 3 Words locations, you're relying on a business that's currently losing millions a year staying in business (as well as all its other problems).

Is it just going to plough through the buffers?

for those outside New Zealand: 2 years ago a veiled far-right astroturf org threatened to sue an investigative journalist for a book he was writing about them. He was not writing a book about them, but this incident meant former staff started leaking to him. He used those leaks to write a book.