On This Day, 8 April
2026
2025
2024
2023
Film commute snaps. LomoChrome Metropolis/Praktica MTL-3. #bristol https://t.co/FzedZKSlha
RT @WeightlessBooks: Interzone sale ends tomorrow! Get your ridiculously discounted high-end speculative fiction now
@LouisRedux @ArianeSherine Yah. I think mine just became an "inny".
2022
2021
(This, by the way, is why Alma Church on St John’s Road in Clifton has “Clifton Bethesda” in the pediment: it’s a spin-off of that original Bethesda that survived the war.)
Okay, that was easy. Thank you eBay and https://t.co/7WYiBbrqh2. https://t.co/uZzzkgVrGY
(My previous experience of fixing things on cars did come in handy: always make sure that the doodah doesn't disappear into the thingummy never to be seen again.) https://t.co/YH1LJ6p6QY
RT @cmgurney: @gothick @KYPBristol Not just 'a former chapel' but George Müller's chapel. A tragic loss to Bristol's heritage @MullersMuseu…
RT @MullersMuseum: @gothick @KYPBristol Yes Müller led this congregation and preached at the Alma Rd chapel too. But is best know for his c…
@VanOD_ Good call. I have one of those with a torch built into the end :)
St Andrew's Churchyard squirrel. https://t.co/DwxpUHC77T
RT @TheRegister: Airline software super-bug: Flight loads miscalculated because women using 'Miss' were treated as children https://t.co/K8…
2020
RT @coffeeshopjihad: Someone in my running group ran a marathon in his driveway. All 26.2. I would literally go insane. https://t.co/67a8L8…
RT @SeeJaneMarie: Tucking sheets in at the foot of the bed is FOOT JAIL. Who’s with me?
2019
RT @JamColley: I’ve accidentally set up push notifications for the BBC science magazine and it’s like being followed about by an inquisitiv…
Oh, if only it were that easy. https://t.co/WCxo5R6kbb
RT @dangusset: Another unrealistic body standard for girls https://t.co/J5GDBzFxNu
@griffinkate If I'd known it had the potential to go on that long or sap as much energy, I'd have re-evaluated my option of learning a new language and moving countries...
Hey, Siri, is it possible for an entire country to fall for the sunk-cost fallacy?
@RellyAB Are you, by any chance, sitting brain-dead in front of the internet rather than doing anything that could possibly make up any lost time? #ITME
RT @whalemonster: "Numerous examples of “bundled” reviews that make poor products look highly rated – rendering the star rating effectively…
@whalemonster God yes. My bugbear is great books with really badly done Kindle versions. @penguinUKBooks’ Kindle version of William Gibson’s Spook Country *still* has the protagonist “Hollis” rendered as "HoUis" all over the place, for example. Shocking. https://t.co/Rh0zYDFgGP
@petedrinks Just spotted this… https://t.co/ltzlwpdXsh
@ChristinaMcMc First needs one of those roller-coaster cameras for Jacob's Wells Road so you can all have a laugh at how far you came up out of your seat when it's all over.
Christmas has always felt like a near-death experience for me, to be fair. https://t.co/yFLJ9PoCrI
@psidnell Careful, someone’ll make you a minister.
RT @daniel_barker: Me: where does all my money GO? My bank statement: on these things which you purchased Me: NEVERTHELESS
@jephjacques Did you put a pea under there?
@delseccoj @hemeon Yup. Was reminded of that yesterday and remembered wistfully how I used to see a medium URL and be happy that the reading experience would be pleasant.
Sadly I’m not sure this will be a money-making career path for me. https://t.co/A4OYGhzTUs
@UrsulaWJ I've been staring vacantly at the internet, but apart from that, we appear to be twins today.
@simongerman600 Also, if you did it, you'd have to get a 3D scan of your head first and do a proper projection, right?
@UrsulaWJ Let me know if you find That One Weird Tip That Will Give You Instant Motivation.
I recently went to @Bookbarn_BBI for a browse. Okay, obviously, one does not simply *browse* in a bookshop. I picked this book up on a whim, for £1. The edges are like that because books were sometimes sold with un-cut pages, and the reader would cut them open themselves. 1/5 https://t.co/UKNvTkYrGY
It’s a random volume of poetry by Algernon Swinburne. I knew his name from doing crosswords, and that he was associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, who I’ve been curious about since reading one of @Peculiar’s Bryant and May novels. 2/5 https://t.co/ClAdGNN7c7
From the contents page, the poem Astrophel most piqued my interest. Turning to it, though, what do I find? Yup. I guess it interested me more than the original owner, or anyone since. 3/5 https://t.co/iivt1s4uNn
My late grandad Len’s silver Coronation letter-opener seems the most appropriate tool. 4/5 https://t.co/z4WC0yhsgL
And lo! Here I am reading a page of a book that I know nobody else has laid eyes on since it was printed, in 1920. Secondhand book shopping is cool. 5/5 https://t.co/WlzZKvecrU
@psidnell I’ve put in my diary already 😀 https://t.co/gPdw2fXUBd
2018
@protobub Have you tried adjusting… *puts on sunglasses* …the aspect Horatio?
2017
It seems too humble a name. I’m thinking “Spongefruitius Rex“. https://t.co/YMVJujT90v
@gdinwiddie Don't tell me, they're "surprised" that you didn't reply to their earlier amazing offer to schedule a c… https://t.co/L37thUv7He
@saltwateritch Yes, but bear in mind it's hard to scream incomprehensible abuse at people out of the window with your mouth full.
@chubbybannister I just spent an hour in Greville Smyth doing the crossword and it was surprisingly bearable. But I know what you mean.
@chubbybannister Halfway done. It was too nice to concentrate too hard :D
@saltwateritch Minus five points. Only GWR or Radio 1 will do in a white van.
You wait ages for one and then two come along at once. https://t.co/4WGqPpfzxj
RT @chainbear: Want to feel old? Open your front facing camera. Jesus Christ, right?
RT @EyePatchGuy: I AM SCREAMING https://t.co/wsmNoXa4WM
RT @colorschemez: trollopy pastel purple nectarous dark royal blue many-sided purplish brown https://t.co/SWma313Div
2016
My first pair of “distressed” jeans. I didn’t realise it actually made them more likely to rip :( https://t.co/7m1AuFzNpW
@Bristolvor See the distressing mark on the other leg? They had one on that leg in the same place. That's exactly where they ripped.
In other clothes news, while Marie Kondo’s book was mostly madness, the folded-vertical method does work for me. https://t.co/HDuLUfghYO
@PeckhamRyeEats Yes. I did think that I was very lucky to be indoors. Bit too old to be fashion trendsetting.
@caldersidecook No, I just don’t pack them that tight. It’s not perfect, but better than never getting to shirts from the bottom of a pile.
@Bristolvor @CharlieEsq_ @guriben That was a clue in yesterday’s Times cryptic, too.
@Kavey Not intentionally :(
Blotto. https://t.co/wiB8GC0cc5
RT @cox_tom: The concept of "payment" is a bit different when, like me, you work for a low budget rural community radio station. https://t.…
@tommcfarlin That’s right up there with Cadbury’s “re-sealable” bags of Giant Chocolate Buttons. NO THEY ARE NOT.
@chubbybannister That actually seems quite cheap.
@MillieBooLewis @chubbybannister Let me just check my balance. Oh. https://t.co/hloPPxycbN
2015
2014
RT @mattgemmell: “@craigrozynski: Hey everybody I made a font: http://t.co/ufFrbATZNy ” <- Upsettingly pleasant. A straightened-up version …
Damn it. Fitbit Ultra fell off somewhere while jogging. (Sorry @drhairbear! Will sort something if you need your backup back.) And...
...the Fitbit Force I was waiting for has been withdrawn in the meantime. https://t.co/n10M5TiU6D Bah.
@Adamy323 We clearly look helpful.
@DrHairbear Thanks. Gah! I must have jogged 500km with the last one, loss-free. Maybe the odds are catching up with me this year.
@corylus Thanks. I was hoping to stretch the lifetime of this Ultra out until the Force came out. Might switch brands, actually...
Einstein and paperclip straightening: http://t.co/cGy8A1hxSS
@liveindetail Don’t overthink it. You’ll turn up to find they’ve changed planes and moved you to the “colicky baby” section anyway.
@samhastings @bdkjones I'm seeing the same thing in (virgin install) Firefox. Using straight Bootstrap 3; no other JS.
Current status: Quite glad I followed my own sarcastic advice.
This advice, specifically: https://t.co/HFncowy2Y8
2013
@waiyeehong Are you like Santa? Can I write to you, too? I’d like world peace and some green tea, please.
Nice to meet @rickhurst and @twicecircled at the Bristol Freelance Breakfast this morning. Thanks for arranging, @spyou!
@liveindetail Scrrrlch.
@TwiceCircled I'm not a big gamer, mind, but very happy to give it a go :)
RT @happybristol: The most difficult thing in the world is to know how to do a thing and to watch someone else doing it wrong, without c ...
Ah, so that's why Google disapproved my AdMob Ad. Because it points at an approved Google Play Store page they don't like the wording of.
*headdesk*
One of the few downsides to working in cafes: the sheer tempting availability of caffeinated drinks. *goes home buzzing*
RT @ahnlak: @gothick you should switch from cafes to pubs every couple of hours - the alcohol will balance out the caffeine
@ahnlak I'll retweet that one once I've sobered up.
RT @ryanestrada: Oh you're a construction worker? I have this great idea for a building.
Hit my fitbit target for the day. Slightly ironically, I hit it by walking to the kitchen to make toast.
2012
@ahnlak It didn't seem to do the personal "recommendations radio" or "my neighbourhood" stuff when I tried it.
@stillawake @Mouse_House And lots of free samples. :)
Our for a jog. It's pretty :) http://t.co/aIQldxQD
Awesome TR5! http://t.co/oB8DJ9ji
@tsunimee Yup. It's in amazing condition, too. There's always some random vintage car or other in Clifton Village.
@Phooto I still don't have a uke. I need to remedy that.
So far, I have had a shower, gone for an 8K jog, and had lunch. Not exactly productive for 2pm, but hey, it's Sunday.
@Phooto I started wanting one when I saw Amanda Palmer do Radiohead's _Creep_ in one of the Black Cab Sessions. Awesome.
@jorence I am now drinking vanilla latte and watching NCIS. I'm not a long way in front, productivityly-speaking :)
@Phooto Cool. Swap you :) http://t.co/M0SpEjbc
@BenPark Oh, it's productive per se, it's just that I'd hoped it would be done by 10am, not 2pm!
Slow, but considering it included Bridge Valley Road and stopping to take that photo, not too bad :D http://t.co/JeGtkcG3
Instapaper and Readability should get together and make a brand new app. The only drawback is that it would be called "Instability".
@Phooto See also Taimane :) http://t.co/lPhJXaPt
@Phooto Yeah! In the comments she says it's just the bottom string that's doubled; gives extra low-end while keeping the top clear.
#geek Anyone know a relatively cheap Android 4.0 device? Doesn't need to be a phone, or a particular form factor; it's just for testing.
@tsunimee Yup.
@petedrinks Hah! You *had* to find some way of making brewing beer involve writing code, didn't you? (Is there an Android app for that yet?)
Okay. Time to clear up the detritus that's been scattered around the flat by my last two days of laziness. *looks for divertible river*
@alexjbutcher Awesome, ta.
@petedrinks Actually, looks like there's already more than one for Android, too...
@petedrinks Hm. It's not that high up on my list of enjoyable languages :)
@petedrinks PS: Wow! If you just tab back and forth between the fields, it does some really cool things :)
@petedrinks *sues you*
@ahnlak @tsunimee And another different result! http://t.co/7XWG1kwH
@tsunimee @ahnlak Our visitors mirror us well. Either that or all we do all day is read our own blogs, over and over again :D
@tsunimee @ahnlak I don't visit my own site 1,873 times a month! I'd be amazed if I managed as much as once per day.
@tsunimee Not before you've sent a picture.
That's the flat significantly tidier. Rewarding myself with hot cross bun and @BrisBeerFactory beer in the garden :)
@tsunimee @hayles I'm always on a boat because I live in Hotwells (which is between Clifton and the Floating Harbour.)
@tsunimee @hayles And the harbour is in between me and the centre of town, so the boat's a good way to get there.
@tsunimee @hayles Clifton Village is a bit posher than I am, but it's my nearest decent shops/cafes, which is why I'm always there, too :)
@stillawake @BrisBeerFactory Mine's a Gold :) http://t.co/kCW6XI5w
@guriben @stillawake @BrisBeerFactory Never had oysters. Was eyeing up the oyster counter in No. 1 Harbourside yesterday, though.
@stillawake @guriben @brisbeerfactory I will if you will :D
@tsunimee @ahnlak @hayles There we are, then. For better or for worse, my place, right now, no tidying, no edits :) http://t.co/NYYjbBZ9
@tsunimee There's a lot more I'd change. Hoping I'll save enough for a new kitchen this year, for starters.
@tsunimee I've started noticing a lot that needs doing since I started working from home. It's easier to ignore when you're out all day!
@tsunimee The kitchen's really tired. Needs throwing away and starting again, and the floor levelling and the walls replastering.
@tsunimee Might well have been woolies. So long ago I can't remember, though. Would've been 1999!
@tsunimee It was like that when I moved in. Can't shift it. No idea what happened to it.
@tsunimee It makes the space seem bigger. I like big mirrors; there's one in the lounge, too.
@tsunimee And as for "riding", this isn't a problem I've had to cope with, really. Or at least, not very often.
@tsunimee (And not that I want to go into too much detail, but it's actually just below eye level for many riding positions :D )
@tsunimee No. Bring a blindfold.
And on that note, it may be time to head back to the garden to finish that beer.
@tsunimee Oy!
@guriben @stillawake This week sometime? Before I go back to work? :D
Me? Drinking JD, eating my Easter egg, and watching _House_? Why, yes! Yes, I am.
@benjohnbarnes *raises glass*
@slicknic I'm watching season 8 :) Thank goodness for iTunes...
Billy Connolly? Cool. #House
@stillawake Can get there for 6pm Tuesday. Though coming straight from deep-tissue massage, so will be a bit floaty :)
@tsunimee Toast exists. There can be nothing nicer.
People have asked me to review running shoes and headphones. Nobody wants me to review chocolate, damn it.
@chocablog We could swap for a month or two. How'd you fancy running the Bristol 10K? :D
@tsunimee <homer>Mmmmmmm. Toaaaaaaast</homer>
@bertyc I may have been plodding along! http://t.co/JeGtkcG3 Cool! Hi! (Sorry, I'm not great at recognising people...)
@bertyc Cool! Fine by me :D So, does that mean you managed to spot me in the *one place* I stopped running?
@bertyc Excellent. Yeah, say hi next time :D
Just watched the first half of _Blade II_. Don't think I'll bother with the second.
RT @VeraR2010: “@EatDrinkBrandy: Devil duck... http://t.co/Pu6sbyYQ” @gothick I thought you may like this
@VeraR2010 @EatDrinkBrandy Quaaaaaaaaack! Quackquackquack!
@thomasvenables That would certainly be less turgid than the first half.
@shezza_t @OpinionatedGeek *snigger* #sidelines
2011
Oooh. Interesting Schneier on Security today: pinpointing a computer to within 690 metres. http://t.co/ActdZ9w
@benjohnbarnes What's mad is that this technology exists, yet my smart Wi-Fi scales still think they're in Yorkshire when they tweet :)
@Phooto Probably using SkyHook or something similar. Point here is that this is locating using neither GPS nor Wi-Fi location DBs.
@PomegranateEB Erm. Normally by pushing the button with a picture of a hash on it. I'm not being awkward, really!
@ahnlak Your router clearly speaks with a northern accent.
@PomegranateEB @hayles Yup, a PC has a hash key, though it moves around. US Macs have a hash symbol on the keyboard, too. UK Macs don't! ##
Ready for bathtime fun... (Yes, the photo *is* safe for work!) #kindle http://t.co/07VF6eN
@hayles Don't worry. Only CSI could take the reflection in the Kindle case, reverse it, de-distort it, and digitally remove the clothes.
@hayles You brought it on yourself, CSI. Also, when you've a moment, I have a number plate that needs reconstructing from one black plxel.
@benjohnbarnes So far, it seems to be airtight. I've not put it to a real test yet :) Of course, Kindle has the advantage of actual buttons.
@hayles Don't tell me: the car is registered to someone I wasn't expecting it to be, but oddly, now I know, everything falls into place...
@hayles *Gasp* *Fade* *Ad break*
@hayles I actually heard the little percussive bit they play as my universe faded to a monochrome still.
@hayles But then the Go Compare man came on and I changed channels.
@hayles (Incidentally, I can't see the image on the latest Royal Wedding Tat post... Broken linky?)
@hayles (Oh, and I lied -- it's the "The Monkeys" image, not the latest one. D'oh.)
Dear holy mother of tat. Another product sinks to an all-time low for the Royal Wedding: http://royalweddingtat.posterous.com/the-batteries
@hayles Kewl. I'm not sure whether I want to look, though. I'm still recovering from the batteries.
@DangerousMkting Thaaaat's terrifying, more like.
@hayles Haven't got there yet. Guess where I'm going tomorrow, though?
@hayles Oh, goodness me. Terrifying teabags! No, no tat escape for me -- I'm going to Legoland!
@hayles I still think the batteries are my favourite for "most completely random" so far.
@hayles I'm definitely emigrating.
Quite impressed that the Kindle is light enough that this case actually floats.
@EssexEating Oooh, timely reminder. *packs sunscreen for the morning*
@xabl Chips. Obviously.
@xabl Actually, if I'm honest, my answer is "chips when out, mash when home." It's easier to good good home mash than good home chips :)
@EssexEating I hadn't noticed this effect. But I will be eagerly looking out for it tomorrow.
Wait, alcohol in moderation is bad for you again? Wow. That truth only flip-flops at around a three-year frequency now.
@hayles Ah, you crave the new Domino's Sweet and Sour Pork Burrito?
@Caremur You might think that. I couldn't possibly comment. http://t.co/G55m8SG
@BlackDogDays That sounds like a Friday night success to me. But then, I have to be up early.
@BlackDogDays No, not working. All will be revealed, possibly in the medium of some silly photos ;)
@BlackDogDays As for the 3am/8am thing, I think the main thing that used to get me through that was fear. I don't care so much any more :)
@hayles @BlackDogDays Yes; the older you get the more philosophical you are about losing your job by sleeping through your alarm!
Gosh. Bob Dylan turns 70 next month.
@michelledh May 24.
@RamonY1970 @misslo @benjohnbarnes @michelledh Cheer up. Songwriters never get old. They just add more sevenths.
2010
@bertpalmer I normally run with it in a pocket at the mo. Still, maybe won't want the jacket where the sleeves get in the way tonight!
If I'd wanted to spend so much of my life staring at hourglasses, I'd have taken a career in an antique glassware shop.
@rhodri How do I move? I'm a geek; personally I move seldom, slowly, and usually under protest.
@bertpalmer @AndyCarolan I was scared to look at it at work when you said that!
One day, I will find an online flowcharting tool that wraps text into diamond-shaped decision boxes properly. Is that web 5.0?
@rhodri Yes. As is the lack of understanding of how voting works.
@Zinziii True. But it's still generally better than the alternatives.
@bexxi @lilibaloo @goswoppit We'll tell you if you tell us what the heck "nulligravida" means? Are we all going to float off into space?
Gah. @echofon just crashed while I was in the middle of writing a tweet. Don't think it's ever lost data on me before...
@bexxi Goodness. Learn something every day. On the other hand, I know who Sooty and Sweep are, but I'm fairly sure I've never given birth :)
Hmm. Well, the @runkeeper target pace feature looks interesing, but how am I going to know when to turn around if I can't set distance, too?
@csoanes Hey, I hand-craft these for hours. Have you not noticed how each one is also an acrostic _and_ a haibun?
@bertpalmer I can't find a way of having a voice prompt for target pace _and_ for "you've done 2.5k, so turn around." Either, but not both.
@runkeeper Glad to know it's coming. Shame most of my runs are 5K with a halfway turnaround, is all!
@talkie_tim Could do, but all my known landmarks are on the A4, and I want to go down the towpath instead now there's daylight!
Ooh. The Big Room has a particularly blue ceiling today.
@rhodri My theory: high proportion of coders on social media, and they tend to equate law with a computer program & forget human factor.
Sure the bloke who produced this Radio 4 show about extremists released from prison only did it because "Free Radicals" is such a bad pun.
@dressjunkie Good decision, I think. Real class beats fake size every time.
Hmm. Just back from 5K run. I think.
All I can tell so far is that my GPS has been playing up and that @RunKeeper's web server runs on Apache and is also playing up.
@benjohnbarnes Ironically, I had a hard time reading that because the annoying Flash adverts all over it nearly killed my browser.
@jemimakiss On Evernote? How odd.
@chrisphin Whereas my iMac is the other way around. Either that or our glasses are the other way around :)
...and I think this one: http://flic.kr/p/7RZarU wins my "favourite photo of the day".
@bertpalmer Heh. Also, as I found out this evening, using polarised sunglasses while trying to see the screen in an armband is... hard.
@djelibeybi_meg Thanks!
@bananza I love them, but I have to restrain myself at the Mexican place near here that hands them out after dinner, else I'm awake 'til 4am
@KaveyF Yeah, I keep on getting @ahnlak and @Aleksandr_Orlov confused now.
@KaveyF Unique sentence that, _now_.
2009
Today's shopping accident: went out for cling film, came back with a pair of new shoes. Still, did actually remember the cling film, too.
@hayles Before you do, remember to make up some good fake appointments. "Wednesday, 8:00am: breakfast with David Tennant", etc.
@Glinner God, I feel unhip. What the hell's "playa bling"? Sounds like a PG Wodehouse character to me. What ho, Playa Bing!
@hayles If you're buying over the weekend, these might be handy: http://is.gd/rsEA http://is.gd/rsEN :)
@hayles You should have said that fifteen minutes ago; I just walked past them...
@hlao_roe For why they suddenly appear when you put the kettle on!
My theory is that the mating call of the female electrician is very similar to the sound of a boiling kettle. It's the only explanation.
@DavidSGI Recording a new incarnation of a rough cut of a song I wrote last year. Unfortunately my bass guitar skills are highly lacking :)
Waiting in for an electrician. This time I am prepared. Have taken whole day off, bought lunch, and have a bassline to edit on the laptop.
2008
2007
Just eaten Mongolian crispy lamb!