I'm reading Bleak House for fun. I studied it at university and thought it was good, but realistically, it's 1,000 pages long, I was supposed to read all of Dickens that term, and there were two Doctor Who novels a month in those days. No way did I read it properly.

I reckon it would make a huge difference to Dickens' readability for modern readers just to break up his marathon paragraphs into shorter ones, with no other changes made.

Yes, it really has been. Which is a more tangible benefit than the wordcount, honestly.

Since starting this about 10 days ago, I seem to have managed 5,000 words on the two novels combined (meaning I have, evidently, been doing a lot more than 200 words a day). Which is about the rate of progress I used to get from writing two full days a week. If I can keep it up, then bloody hurrah.

I'm not joking when I say mRNA technology is more important than "AI" and it's a tragedy we're throwing billions into one while our government is aggressively defunding the other.

When writing Holmes books, I get a bit obsessed with avoiding words that weren't available at the time. I've found these are good resources for that:
www.etymonline.com
ht.ac.uk
greensdictofslang.com

there are killjoys out there who act like the moon flyby didn't accomplish anything, but it made my kid want to start watching the expanse

Well, that's unspeakably pathetic.

"Gender flap".

It's not that I object to any of this as such - there are endless adaptations, and the mythos is always changing. But this is being sold as a bookend. It doesn't seem unreasonable to assume that the likely buyer would have knowledge of the Holmes books, and expect that to be reflected in the set...?

What I am learning from the proliferation of AI images across Facebook is that a lot of people clearly didn't do enough Spot the Difference pictures as kids. It hasn't just added colour John!!!

Ah, good point. That is quite funny.

Yeah. I can believe that.

That's just what a standard Lego fish looks like. Why it's there is another question.

"Oh, and we need five figures. We've got Holmes, Watson, Moriarty and that well known recurring character Irene Adler. Who else is there? Nobody anyone remembers, obviously, it's all just housekeepers and policemen and stuff. Let's make someone up."

"Holmes' sitting room? Well, he'd definitely have had a clue board, that's obvious. Otherwise, who knows? It's all up for grabs, really."

"What does Professor Moriarty look like? Probably one of those stereotypical Victorian melodrama villains, I guess. Jack the Ripper or Mr Hyde or one of that lot. It's not like there's anywhere we could look to get a detailed physical description."

10351 Sherlock Holmes: Book Nook 10351 Sherlock Holmes: Book Nook is an Icons set that was released on June 1, 2025. Brickset See current value on BrickEconomy.com

I hadn't heard of this, but from a Holmesian point of view it's a very odd set. Appears to have been put together by someone with only the most perfunctory knowledge of the Holmes mythos, but who was perfectly happy to make stuff up to fill in the gaps.

I love how in every photo he has the stunned expression of someone who, through a hilarious sequence of misunderstandings, has been put in charge of the FBI.

"He is also known to drink to excess at the Poodle Room, in Las Vegas, where he frequently spends parts of his weekends."

Not the story I posted, but I was once awoken by a child's crying coming from an empty crib in an 18th-century house. Frightened the shit out of me, but it was just my hosts' toddler getting frustrated with her uncooperative pyjamas in the bathroom, the other side of a locked connecting door.

It's not even a very satisfying explanation, but it's better than inventing entire realms of understanding than we have no knowledge of. Which is just annoying.

Just posted a whole thread about a (very mundane) paranormal experience I had once, years ago, that defied explanation. Then deleted it again, because I immediately thought of a potential explanation. Rationality is very awkward sometimes.

Dugga Doo!

Successful authors promoting a book: "If you liked Popular Thing A, you'll love this thrilling epic rollercoaster of a novel! Don't miss out!"
Me promoting a book: "You know, if this sort of thing is your sort of thing, then you might like this. Maybe not, obviously. I mean, it's not for me to say."

"The dirt we found on the candidate was so sensitive and personal we couldn't possibly tell anyone about it. Our only recourse was to pretend we didn't know and hire him."
"I see. Very incisive."

Never be cruel. Never be cowardly. Hate is always foolish. Love is always wise. Always try to be nice, but never fail to be kind.

Doctors, 12: 276

Several identical copies of the book The Black Archive: The Daleks by Oliver Wake.

This is an exciting day for me. My book has arrived! I hope it's arriving with a few of you too.

Andy Mycock feature, mentioning his mother Pat.

@actualnames.bsky.social
Daily Telegraph feature 17-04-26