Shades of the Tailor of Gloucester…

A patch of wood sorrel growing in light shade. There is a single white flower. From Wikipedia: “Oxalis oregana is a short, herbaceous perennial with erect flowering stems 5–15 cm tall. The three leaflets are heart-shaped, 1–4.5 cm long with purplish undersides, on 5–20 cm stalks. The inflorescence is 2.4–4 cm in diameter, white to pink with five petals and sepals. The hairy five-chambered seed capsules are egg-shaped, 7–9 mm long; seeds are almond-shaped. It spreads by a scaly rhizome varying the size of patches. They can be seen throughout moist forest under-canopies.”

Wood sorrel is about the greenest green you can imagine

Yes! That surprised me too.

What’s in a Name? For These Snails, Legal Protection

Fascinating culture of indigenous dyeing #TextileHistory

Cattle breed whose ancestors lived with Celts added to priority at-risk list UK’s Rare Breeds Survival Trust says calf numbers of white park cattle last year were less than two-thirds of 2022 level

Irrespective of any other qualities, the white park cattle breed should be preserved just because they’re such handsome animals

It was relentlessly awful. Trying to maintain job productivity thru one Teams mtg after another and then trying to convince distant family that I was okay and did I need to make more masks to send them. Also, I was petless at the time, and that didn’t help.

Loeffler - you just had to remind me that person exists, didn’t you?😖

Isn’t it funny how sometimes the universe is so small! And remarkably, you’re not the first person on Bluesky who dates back to the old Unsung days!

A carpet of violet plants, white violets with purple whiskers rise above heart shaped leaves. These grew wild where I lived in Maine and stowed away with some of my plants when I came across the Oregon Trail in ‘97

White violets are having a good year #GardenSky

🧵Spotted at a Country Market in Aotearoa New Zealand:

A small human (6?) is telling a friend in VERY grave tones: "My Dad isn't good at LEGO. I am. But he's not."
His friend (8?) says earnestly: "But you can teach him! He'll learn if you show him how!" (1)

A cluster of baseballs sprouting from native wild rice in mosaic tile.

A cluster of game balls sprouting from native wild rice in mosaic tile.

A cluster of beachballs sprouting from native wild rice in mosaic tile.

A cluster of soccer balls sprouting from native wild rice in mosaic tile.

And for the conclusion of the CTA Thorndale Red Line series, we bring out the game balls.

Two hooded figures with lamps approach a moonlit, isolated cottage. A woman answers the door. We have come for the child, says the hooded figure So soon? she asks It is time, says the hooded figure. The woman is distraught. We should never have got him a library card! What is done cannot be undone, says the hooded figure We couldn’t see the harm! We just wanted him to enjoy reading! For most, it ends there, says the hooded figure, turning away and walking into the wilderness Oh lord, What have I done! says the woman, the child walks past her and out into the darkness with them. Do not cry mother. I am a writer now.

my latest books cartoon for @theguardian.com

Textiles of the Viking North Atlantic An interdisciplinary study of the uses, meanings, and social impact of Viking Age textiles.

New in paperback.
Textiles of the Viking North Atlantic: Analysis, Interpretation, Re-creation. Edited by Alexandra Lester-Makin, Gale R Owen-Crocker boydellandbrewer.com/book/textile...

Hamnet-era mourning jewel from celebrated painting rediscovered after 400 years Exclusive: pendant appears in 1635 painting Sir Thomas Aston at the Deathbed of His Wife that hangs in the Manchester Art Gallery A Hamnet-era mourning jewel has been rediscovered four centuries after it was immortalised in one of Britain’s most enigmatic and celebrated 17th‑century family portraits. The heart‑shaped pendant was depicted in Sir Thomas Aston at the Deathbed of His Wife, the 1635 life‑size, mourning masterpiece that was painted predominantly in black and white by the Cheshire artist John Souch. It hangs in the Manchester Art Gallery. Continue reading...

Hamnet-era mourning jewel from celebrated painting rediscovered after 400 years

A small framed print of a Nova Scotia farmhouse hangs askew on a wall beneath a small hooked rug of pink roses and green foliage from Cheticamp

When Victor is bored he rehangs my artwork for me #Caturday

About to three doors down from here a young person is singing music from The Magic Flute with admirable enthusiasm but no particular preference as to key 🎼🤣

Léonard Tsuguharu Foujita, Chat couturier, 1927, oil on canvas, 7 5/8 x 9½ in. (19.5 x 24.1 cm.), Private collection. Signed and dated "Foujita 1927" and signed again in Japanese

Léonard Tsuguharu Foujita, Chat couturier, 1927, oil on canvas, 7 5/8 x 9½ in. (19.5 x 24.1 cm.), Private collection

So…. This is a house I looked at when I was house hunting back in ‘05😬

Imagine if you will, grapefruit.

But…not right now

Amazing clarity

Sally’s not active on Bluesky but I believe she’s on Instagram. She’s also on Ravelry and has some great patterns for sale 🧶

‘Clubbable Sisters’: a history of women’s motoring societies - Glasgow Blythswood Festival Kimpton Blythswood Square Hotel There was a time when there were no driving schools to teach anyone to drive, no garages to get a car repaired and no associations devoted […]

Book now for my talk about women's motoring clubs, 9th May in the former Royal Scottish Automobile Club HQ, Blythswood Hotel.
I will have my books on sale, so bring yer cash!
glasgowblythswoodfestival.co.uk/event/clubba...

The book is out now! Lovely review and profile of influential field biologist George Schaller here: news.mongabay.com/2026/04/geor...

(My own review died with the WaPo book review section, but this is better than I could've done anyway.)

Tree pollen, man.

In my household the deep bubbling sound that a pie makes when it’s done is described as the pie singing. Yours looks wonderful!

What I Saw Inside the Kennedy Center I spent 10 months working at the institution because I thought I could help protect it. What I observed there is far worse than the public knows.

Staggering ineptitude: “…the center hadn’t paid its invoices from the company that handles its fundraising postage…”

Displays in Belarusian folk museums can't hurt you.

Displays in Belarusian folk museums:

Self-portrait

A white garment with some kind of food stain. Humiliating.

A pair of dirty hands rest on a car engine. Rough, tough, cool.

Here is an easy solution:

Food stains are humiliating, as they suggest you're a little baby who can't feed themselves.

Oil stains, such as those you'd get from working on your car, suggest you're tough, independent, and skilled.

Thus, simply cover your food stains with used motor oil.