And if you'd seeking a bit of escapism this morning, you could do worse than immerse yourself in this wonderful soundscape from Merlyn Driver, recorded at Geltsdale RSPB Nature Reserve in the northwest corner of the North Pennines in late April 2021, for his curlew-inspired album
2/2
I was just on the phone with my credit card company when I learned that my Google phone apparently listens to my conversations now. It suddenly started warning me that I was likely being scammed. They were wrong, but more importantly, WTF?!
Good morning. I just ended up swearing at Barclay’s AI assistant several times because I’m so sick of everything in life being made inaccessible and so much more shit due to AI. The enshittification of life is really getting me down. SO MUCH WASTED TIME AND ENERGY FOR SIMPLE TASKS. Fuck tech bros
Wow. I've ridden the 'Seldom Seen' route down from Hellvelyn on a proper mountain bike and that's pretty sketchy. Kudos to the postman!
One headline that shows why fossil fuel interests are *pouring* money into far-right political parties.
NEW | On an odd choice…
WHY DID BBC BREAKFAST GIVE REFORM UK A SPECIAL GRAPHIC?
A small detail in a brief report sparks some big questions about what the national broadcaster is doing during the run up to local and national elections.
brokenbottleboy.substack.com/p/why-did-bb...
This is true. No one wants to admit COVID still exists or ever existed. Quite incredible. Where are the huge conferences dedicated to COVID, like there still is for HIV?
"The new OECD report is a rare attempt to quantify the impact of long COVID on both individuals and countries.
The researchers note that it’s no small feat because few countries actually track sufferers," writes @picardonhealth.bsky.social.
#GiftLink 🎁
www.theglobeandmail.com/gift/90e3098...
Did u know? Don't weed your *weeds*, just enjoy the wildlife that having them attracts, like this floofy, gingery Carder bee foraging on these beautiful White Dead Nettles (Lamium alba) They're free, they're prolific, they're wildlife-friendly & they're native to 🇬🇧 - such a win-win. 🌿🌱🇬🇧🌱🌍🪲🕷️🐝🦋🪰
Also no action on Covid. Removed more vaccines than the Tories, moaning endlessly about sickness and disability when we have millions of long covid sufferers and zero preventions. We are currently spending £8 billion annually on long covid. Not one peep out of Labour on Covid.
“Farage rarely turns up to do his actual job. Yet he finds time to jet off around the world on his donor’s private plane and trouser half a million quid while families struggle. Reform are not on your side. They’re just in it for themselves”
It’s so obvious, it hurts.
www.desmog.com/2026/04/18/n...
Study links long COVID in kids to worse grades and attention problems.
"A major U.S. cohort study suggests long COVID in children may reach far beyond lingering symptoms, affecting how they learn, focus, and connect with friends at school."
Emma Shorter was told people who don’t recover from behavioral treatment for #MECFS have made the illness their personality. She was told not to meet other patients and to trust the therapist over her own body. She went from walking 4 mins a day to needing a wheelchair.
In the UK the NHS is absolutely overwhelmed, but the government has tightened the eligibility criteria for free Covid vaccination to the point that only a small minority of the population is eligible. Offering free vaccination to everyone would be an easy win here
www.cidrap.umn.edu/covid-19/cov...
OMG this is amazing. Misogyny in birding has left us missing much that was right there in front of our eyes, as we projected ideas of supposed human male and female traits on them.
Also, Donald Duck is a lady duck.
#Ecology #Feminism
I'm always skeptical of BBC-bashing, but BBC News website hasn't reported on the Tice tax scandal since 12 April, when the headline was "Tice £91,000 tax row is 'minor administrative error', party claims".
Globe showing the Atlantic Ocean with arrows depicting the AMOC circulation: warm surface currents (pink/red) flowing northward from the tropics toward the Arctic, and cold deep return currents (blue/purple) flowing southward. The background shows sea surface temperature trends, with a prominent blue cold patch, the "cold blob", south of Greenland, contrasting with warming (orange/red) across the rest of the ocean.
1/ There's a system of ocean currents in the Atlantic that shapes Europe's #climate, drives monsoons, and keeps sea levels stable along the US coast.
In the last 5 years, the scientific evidence that it could collapse has shifted dramatically.
Most people have no idea. 🧵
Crikey! (Strong language, I know, but justified...)
The BBC are back to running a live feed on the old Starmer / Mandelson story.
Where's their live feed on whether Refukker Tice can survive his latest tax 'issue'?
🤔
Every spring/summer on our mountain commonage, wild native tree seedlings like this rowan pop up, the seed carried by birds or wind. The baby trees always soon disappear, eaten by sheep.
Trees mostly don't need to be planted, just given a chance to grow.
I could watch that Gakpo pass all day long. In fact I might. Happy Monday!
@teamlabouruk.bsky.social
Covid is officially airborne!
Why aren’t all clinically vulnerable eligible for vaccines?
Why isn’t everyone? We have over 3 million with long covid. ONS is out of date. No screening in place, no testing. Very high priced unaffordable private vaccines. No wonder we have
Most states are shaded light blue, indicating very low transmission. A few states show low levels (green). Mississippi is marked moderate (orange, limited data), while West Virginia is very high (dark red). Guam also shows moderate levels. Some areas have limited or no data. Legend shows estimated prevalence ranges from <0.9% (very low) to >3.5% (very high). Text notes only three areas—Mississippi, Guam, and West Virginia—have moderate or higher transmission, with most of the U.S. at very low levels.
U.S. National COVID-19 Estimates (April 20, 2026). Infections: 1 in 226 people actively infectious (0.4%) ~217,000 new daily infections ~1.55 million infections in the past week ~69 million infections in 2026 5.17 cumulative infections per person Long COVID: 11,000–43,000 cases from daily infections 78,000–310,000 cases from weekly infections Excess deaths: 50–90 from daily infections 400–700 from weekly infections Summary notes that even during a “lull,” about 1.6 million infections per week continue to cause significant illness and deaths.
Table of U.S. COVID-19 state prevalence estimates (April 20, 2026). Most states are classified as “Very Low” or “Low” transmission, with estimated active infections generally around 1 in 100 to 1 in 200 people (0.4%–1.5%). Higher levels include: Guam: Moderate, 1 in 48 (2.1%) Mississippi: Moderate (limited data), 1 in 62 (1.6%) Table also shows estimated risk of at least one infectious person in gatherings of 10 to 100 people, increasing with group size. Note explains CDC reporting floor limits very low estimates and data may be volatile.
Table of U.S. COVID-19 state prevalence estimates (April 20, 2026, page 2). Most states are classified as “Very Low” transmission, with active infections typically around 1 in 150 to 1 in 250 people (about 0.4%–0.8%). A few states are “Low,” around ~1% prevalence. West Virginia stands out as “Very High,” with 1 in 15 people (6.7%) estimated infectious. Table also shows risk of at least one infectious person in gatherings of 10 to 100 people, rising significantly with group size (e.g., over 99% in a group of 100 in West Virginia). Notes mention limited data for some states and that estimates can vary.
US Weekly COVID update: Apr 20, 2026
🔸1 in 226 Actively Infectious
🔸217,000 Daily Infections
🔸1,550,000 Infections In The Past Week
🔸69,000,000 Infections in 2026
🔸78,000 to 310,000 Weekly Long COVID Cases
🔸400 to 700 Weekly Excess Deaths
Source: pmc19.com/data/
Researchers warn of severe long-term damage to the brain after Covid following new study
January study of essential workers (with blood samples before & after COVID infection) found those with long-term neurological symptoms had higher phosphorylated tau—a protein linked to early brain degeneration
OMG this is amazing. Misogyny in birding has left us missing much that was right there in front of our eyes, as we projected ideas of supposed human male and female traits on them.
Also, Donald Duck is a lady duck.
#Ecology #Feminism
Extremely normal and fine for a company to put this in a public statement
Trailer here: youtu.be/est-ISGu9D0?...
Screenings: www.metfilmstudio.com/distribution...
Not showing at your local cinema? Ask them! They can get in touch with the distributors directly at: www.metfilmstudio.com/sales/contact
Another conspiracy theorist loon standing for Reform. It's rapidly turning into the political equivalent of the Flat Earth Society.
www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news...
Double thumbs up - Oolite is great.
