Paul Vintin

As above. I would like not to have seen it.

Kazakhstan's Mangystau plateau, near the border with Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, at sunset. Layers of ancient salt deposits resemble fjords of white, pink, red and orange icing spilling into a vast gray plane

In an obscure corner of Kazakhstan, the remains of an ocean millions of years old have created probably the most surreal landscape on earth -- as captured by photographer Daniel Kordan

mymodernmet.com/daniel-korda...

Went for a walk to the pond up the hill. Learned from a young lad who was fishing that it contains 4 pike and he’s caught them all. Nice to have a random chat with an enthusiast.

If it is the Fiesta, it's not your typical haunted building. It's a great sprawling modernist 60s lump. The main bit is now an O2 Academy venue. The Fiesta bit is the Odeon cinema. It was where your mum & dad would go and see The Drifters and eat chicken in a basket.

I find the ‘is everything alright for you?’ too immersive.

The Ridiculous Trio Plays The Stooges, by The Ridiculous Trio 9 track album

Lots of Stooges covers around, but nothing beats this...

theridiculoustrio.bandcamp.com/album/the-ri...

Truly extraordinary documentary.
One that was a formative influence on my desire to write fiction in ways I can’t quite articulate.
Something about the uneasy collision of ambition & disappointment, how we can appear absurd in our most profoundly serious moments & the forces of place that shape us

pualv Explore pualv’s 716 photos on Flickr!

3 more gate counterweight photos added to the gallery. Now up to 79!
www.flickr.com/photos/84607...

Iron sign. Red background. Raised white letters reading 'VISITORS ARE WARNED TO TAKE EVERY CARE TO AVOID ACCIDENTS'

In case you needed some clarification.

2 square iron signs on a stone wall. Both have had a red background and show a stick man figure in white. The left one has the figure falling over having apparently stood on some debris, shown as 2 very small triangles. The right one has the figure holding its head with its eyes closed, apparently having banged its head.

Warning signs in Conwy Castle.

Necropants and Other Tales of 17th-Century Icelandic Sorcery Magic wealth and goat's milk could be yours—if you could stomach the rituals.

I'm honestly thinking about writing a book set in 17th century Iceland just to get an excuse to write about necropants.

Also, a fun fact about the Icelandic witch trials is that we burned mostly men for witchcraft.

YouTube video by Mosfilm Letter never sent | DRAMA | FULL MOVIE

It's a bit grim (clue's in the title) but the setting and cinematography are great.
4 Russian geologists in Siberia are looking for diamonds...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPSc...

Gate counterweights Objects used to ensure gates close. Usually found on public footpaths in the countryside.

These are great. I followed a slightly different course and collect pictures of gate counterweights.
www.flickr.com/photos/84607...

A rather convoluted iron handle and latch attached to a solid wooden gate. There!/,- latch with a spring above to automatically close it, and a chunky handle loop to operate it

Just super. Hestercombe Gardens.

A photo of a gate with rusty brown metal gate latch.

I collect pictures of gate latches. The endless minute variations and human ingenuity appeal to me greatly, and the countless hands that have moved them. This one is between Near and Far Sawrey, Lake District and has a lovely combination of textures between the iron, wooden gate, and stone gatepost.

Large grey gritstone boulders in the foreground. Heather moorland in the middle distance. Large hills in the far distance under a blue sky containing fluffy clouds.

View from Stanage Edge towards Mam Tor. #peakdistrict

Nan’s Not Bankrupting Britain (But Politicians Might Be) Pensions, productivity, and the myth of the migrant “drain.”

The UK is a country with a rapidly ageing population that needs vast numbers of jobs filling. For it to crash all migration downwards because the public are enraged about small boats is the definition of national madness. www.bearlypolitics.co.uk/p/nans-not-b...

Old stone tower. An iron staircase starts half way up, leading to what looks like a one person birdbox with an iron door.

Close up of same.

#3: Wonder who on earth lives here?

If the boss doesn’t use ‘reached out’ for ‘sent an email’ I’m on their side.

The Picasso Bug (Sphaerocoris annulus) looks like it has been hand-painted. 🎨🖌

Native to Africa, this little shield-backed bug uses its bright colors as a warning, telling predators that it’s not a safe snack.

Each one has an unique abstract pattern. 😍

#bugs #insects #nature #wildlife

YouTube video by raremusicfan Max Bygraves Out of Town

I'm 99% certain that Nick Cave has based his whole career on the opening few bars of Out of Town by Max Bygraves
youtu.be/VqV9IQ9vJ0c?...

I really think we should look at lifestyle racism in the UK. Because, in the way that late capitalism does, racism in the UK is increasingly a lifestyle. It's something miles away from legitimate concerns. It's something people get a return on, either socially or financially. And we keep feeding it

Brewers Phrase and fable: Dog-whipper. A minor church officer of the days when sheepdogs, TURNSPITS and others accompanied their owners to church. His job was to keep order among the canine congregation, to eject the badly behaved and to exclude troublesome dogs generally. Whips and dog-tongs were used. The office became redundant in the I9th century. Even as late as 1856 Mr. John Pickard was appointed dog-whipper in Exeter Cathedral. Dog-whipping Day. 18 October (St. LUKE's Day). It is said that a dog once swallowed a consecrated wafer on this day.

A woman manipulating a dog with dog tongs.

Thank you Brewer’s Phrase and Fable for introducing me to dog tongs.

Are we its food?, by P. Vintin from the album Nether

New album track #13.
This one's a sombre mood piece. Doesn't really go anywhere. Minimal bass, & drums. Guitar sounding like a dying dinosaur. Bits of noise and crackle.
pvintin.bandcamp.com/track/are-we...

If there's one thing I'm sure of, by P. Vintin from the album Nether

New album track #12. (Yes, this still).
A bit of dub influence in this too - clattery drums, spare deep bass, and no twang. Distorted lead guitar type lead guitar.

pvintin.bandcamp.com/track/if-the...

Philomena Cunk against a collection of classical statues. "Antigone's death is even more tragic than it actually is, which makes her a tragic hero"

Philomena Cunk looking thoughtful. "Goya continued to paint tapestries until 1792 when serious illness left him dead for life"

Philomena Cunk looking thoughtfully into the distance. "Society is slowly becoming more contemporary now"

Philomena Cunk looking into camera on a beach. "Diderot's Tahiti represents a typical male fantasy in which attractive young women are eager to engage in sexual activity with the French"

@gralefrit.bsky.social You have to see these! A friend of mine has been collating a series of images entitled "Things my students have written turned into Philomena Cunk quotes" and they're just glorious.

Honey bee on rudbeckia flower. Large brown centre surrounded by many golden yellow petals. Other flowers and green leaves in the background.

Honey bee on Rudbeckia 'Goldstrum'.
Very nice plant with loads of flowers but it's the only one in the bed that's needed constant watering this year. ('Will cope with drought once established' says the RHS).

Well, that’s a coincidence. Nobody mentions chitons for years…

I’ve only seen one chiton. Can’t think of another class - or even species - of animal where I’ve only ever seen 1 individual.

*led
The ghost chip shop is not very convincing (surprise!). It should read: ‘we saw a chip shop, went to visit it later but we had misremembered where it was.’