Wishingstar343

My 8yo Godchild just declared she is over Golden having heard it a million thousand times. I have never felt so seen.

I am a Halloween grump. It was not a thing when I was growing up. I don't recognise it as a thing now. But I have a child who is crazy about it and I am forced to care about it. Which makes me even more grumpy. And that's my way of saying I have to spend my afternoon at a Halloween thing...

A bowl with 3D fish detailing on the inside.

A 3D rendition of the deep blue sea

Frankenstein's monster

Some interesting highlights from the Young V&A

List of Fridge magnets on Fridge door ZSL London Zoo The British Library Science Museum Young V&A London Museum Docklands Young V&A chicken robot Verulamium

We went to the Young V&A. It was super busy because of the half term. It was not quite what the 7yo was expecting and while she did find things she liked (eventually), I'm not sure we would repeat again soon. The Gift shop was the highlight as usual 👍

Fridge magnets from ZSL London, The British Museum, The Science Museum, London Museum and The Verulamium

Making space for this Half term's Trip Out Tuesday (yes, I know today is Wednesday). Where are we heading off to today? Guesses are welcome...

Just no. No in every single possible way. I am literally incapable of sensible thought right now, and even I know that this is a no.

It’s impossible to avoid the conclusion that large parts of Westminster remaining on X - a platform that tolerates and amplifies extremism and racism - has led a great many people to normalise what previously was unacceptable.

Waking up, again, to the sound of two white men on the radio arguing about whether it is ok to be made "mad" by the very sight of black and Asian people on TV. 😒

My controversial unsolicited morning take is...I do not care for dark Romances, not even a little bit. And that's fine because I don't have to and I don't judge you if you do.

Linkedin is well, Linkedin. The fact that many of the official Government accounts still only post on X is still very annoying. However, the upcoming changes on that platform might prompt a rethink.

I can only reference my experience and as with everything there are pros and cons to each platform. A huge gap in my summary is Threads but I have no interest in returning as Meta is hugely problematic. The trade off is that I am missing out.

Reddit: I am very late to this party but I have to say I really like this. Certainly the Reddits I follow are interesting (to me) and the communities are respectful and engaging. I am going to continue using it for the time being to see if this holds true.

It feels much more organic and "authentic", but I don't really have a feeling for how it does in the UK. Honestly, if I hadn't been actively looking at SM, I would have forgotten I had it.

Pinterest: I do use this and it always perplexes me because I don't know why I use it or how to, if I am honest. There are more Brands here and although Lemon8 is trying to ape elements of it, I think it is stronger.

Lemon8: Interesting. UK site is quiet. There's definitely an aesthetic or a feel it's trying to portray. I don't have the numbers but it feels like it skews female. I like it so far but there is definitely a push from Lemon8 to have it used in a certain way, which I think will grate as time goes on.

I do like to scroll videos but was never hugely into Reels (I never liked TikTok). I don't use it for News or updates but I do like to follow Brands and people. The post/community features I really like and it (for me) rivals PixelFed. It feels vibrant.

YouTube: Surprisingly my use of YouTube has really changed and it has become a genuine replacement for Instagram. It helps that I have been able to find many of the accounts I used to follow.

PixelFed: This is probably the only site I didn't gel with. It is quiet and I haven't really put in the effort (and could put in more) but I don't have any buy in there. On paper it is a great competitor to Instagram but it feels empty. I am not leaving but I'm not sure I will actively maintain it.

I actually really like it in small doses but it's not my go to site. As things currently stand, I would keep using it in my roster of SM.

Mastadon: I came relatively late to this. A different vibe and I personally have found it more difficult to find accounts I like to follow. Feels more technical minded, which is fine for those who want that.

In my case, I just find it annoys me more often than not. Can be very good for getting updates and depending on the accounts followed interesting debates.

Bluesky- originally my main replacement. I have gone off it a lot but it does the job. The atmosphere depends on who you follow. Inevitably something will annoy you and. That may or may not put you off.

Social media recap: I have been using quite a few whilst I try to find suitable replacements. Here are my thoughts in no particular order:

A clock change just wasn't challenging enough. My Poor 2yo is all out of sorts and sleep has more or less become an abstract concept for us. Just wiling my time away on Reddit in the mini pockets of sleep she has. I quite like Reddit to be fair. But I would like to sleep more if I could...

Ok now we are in some kind of Zombies/Descendants loop, I have lost control of this Disney bonding session *sighs* At least 10+ years of this 👀🫠

Ok now we are watching Encanto because the kiddies have no interest in the Disney movies of my childhood. Apparently they are old *sighs*

Watching The Little Mermaid with my kiddies. Now realising I have entered my King Triton phase and I am not sure how I feel about it...

Cartoon by Stephen Collins for the Guardian. [Scene is BBC BREAKFAST with two presenters and a guest on the sofa]. 1 PRESENTER: Now - some disturbing new research has shown 2 PRESENTER: that as many as 10 non-Reform political parties may currently operating ‘under the radar’ across the UK. [Show on screen logos for Greens, Lib Dems, Conservatives  3 PRESENTER: In the studio to discuss this, Nigel Farage [We see the guest on the sofa is indeed Nigel Farage] 4 PRESENTER: Nigel, what’s your view?  FARAGE: Well I think this very worrying. 5 FARAGE: And just another reason why we should ban all immigration. 6 PRESENTER: I won’t push back on that FARAGE: Absolutely! 7 PRESENTER: Funnily enough, this is what your new show’s about, isn’t it? FARAGE: Oop - plug time! PRESENTER: Ha ha 8 FARAGE: Yes it’s a 12-part BBC documentary called ‘In Search Of The Political Parties That Aren’t My One’. 9 [Show on the TV screen Farage presenting a documentary series titled In Search Of The Political Parties That Aren’t My One. He is wearing his farmer's getup and looking dreamily at the UK from hillsides, visiting pubs and chatting with the locals, etc] FARAGE: It’s a really emotional journey  10 FARAGE: with lots of dreamy footage of me looking relatable...  11 FARAGE: as I answer the question: *Am I the only option for Britain?* 12 [Cut back to studio] PRESENTER: I won’t push back on that FARAGE: Absolutely! [ends]

Off the top of my head, there have been four egregious examples of weapons grade public racism in the last couple of weeks - Jenrick; the Express hack; Captain Concrete & the Reform woman. The way they are treated by employers, punters & wider media, will directly influence how much more we see.

*record scratch* Well you are probably wondering how I ended up here. Me too! I got so stressed about waking up too early, that I have been up for at least 30 minutes. I'm not entirely sure what time is anymore. Has it moved or did I? #clocksgoback