Kate King

A human head mounted on a wooden pole that looks as if lots of dark bees are crawling on it, but is in fact made from burdock burrs. The burrs are a dull brown colour, about 1cm diameter, and cling together because their surface has lots of tiny hooks. As someone who has had to comb or cut plenty of these out of a dog's fur I approve of them being removed from ground level

Someone in the village has created this. A threat? A warning?

It looks stunning

But yeah, about eleventy billion ends to work in. Unless you call it a fringed blanket?

Not forgetting Happisburgh...

You can get extendable loppers for trimming high branches. We've got one if you need to borrow it

Good luck marketing that one...

Fun or frightful? Halloween Advent calendars hit the shelves Retailers stock up on countdown gifts as Britain’s enthusiasm for (and spending on) spooky holiday grows

www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...
What fresh hell is this?!

(Can't work out how to alt text this. It's a link to a Guardian article about products counting down to Halloween. As if outrageous commercial exploitation of a folk tradition hadn't already gone off the scale 🙄)

Crap name, crap idea. Will smart phones be given out free to everyone? Expect phone tariffs to rocket if having one is essential for existing. And has no-one in government heard of phone theft? It's all vacuous posturing

One of the (few) good things about getting older is getting to the point where how you feel in your clothes is infinitely more important than what other people think about how you look. Would you feel good in that skirt? That's all the information you need.

No job is complete until a Canine Supervisor has signed it off

If only they would learn how to put the toys back in the box 😉

Maybe the second batch? In case I'm too out of practice?

We had another name for this growing up in the UK. I'm not sure where my mother found it. You've brought back some lovely memories. Thank you. Now, where's my baking tin?

After a few minutes browsing the news I really need these moments of simple joy and human connection. Thank you.

No

Evil is denying the humanity of other people, and is always wrong.

The review certainly reads as if the reviewer felt personally slighted by aspects of the book. I didn't know he was Catholic but it makes sense. It would help if reviewers declared their own biases up front

There normally seems to be a force field deflecting rain away from the village, but that isolated intense area is parked right over us ☔

That's a good metric for judging people in every profession. Doesn't acknowledge contributions from women? So many hmmmms

My new book - Helm by Sarah Hall - and a golden retriever who knows that I won't be paying her much attention for the rest of the day!

The feeling when a book you've forgotten you ordered is delivered 😊

Looks like the guy only talks to dead men. Which is no doubt a relief for living women

Looks great, a good return on your work

Would also add, don't attempt gardening with a golden retriever. I was planting daffodil bulbs. He was digging them up and bringing them back to me. And they're poisonous!

Must be lots of vitamins in it. Lots of something anyway

"Oh, go on then. What's worse that could happen?!"
🙄

Sitting in the garden having breakfast, but someone seems to have driven a truck-load of pig manure past the house. We may have to go indoors 🤢

Middle-aged? He wishes! Well past halfway and accelerating

Sound advice for life!

That was my first thought. They apologised? I'm not supporting that

It's a good day for having nothing much you have to do

Currently sitting out in the garden with a lovely cup of coffee. Maia has decided that she wants a ball from the bottom of her bucket of toys, and there will be no peace until she gets the one she wants. The 8 other balls scattered round the garden just won't do 🙄

We were the first punk generation, and we fucking hate AI and think it sucks. Well, 2tone in my case, but the point stands

That looks most spectacular