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chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
Chris Brooking
@chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
16 followers 3 following 220 posts
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chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
I've been seeing a lot of horses acting cutely over the last few days!

#horses #rothbury #northumberland #uk
Two horses enjoying themselves at a ford at The Lee, just outside Rothbury, one being ridden and the other led. Horses appearing for form an orderly line. Four are standing but a fifth at the 'back of the queue' is sitting down. This is in Rothbury.
October 9, 2026 at 5:25 PM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
Have Vibram soles reduced in quality drastically recently, or have I been sold counterfeit Scarpa boots? They used to last for years, not start to disintegrate after two.

#vibram #scarpa #counterfeit #hiking
Scarpa boots with Vibram soles coming apart at the heel.
October 9, 2026 at 12:22 PM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
I was asked to generate a QR code for the local u3a website. I tried several online generators and all said they generated a QR code but actually generated a redirect — they could track users or even send them to a different site in future. In the end i used a desktop app.

#qrcode #u3a #security
October 6, 2026 at 10:33 AM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
Wow. This stuff does what it says on the .. bottle! Much hotter than I expected, with a nice taste of chilli and ginger.

#hotsauce
A bottle of East End "very hot green chilli sauce".
October 4, 2026 at 5:53 PM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
Spectacular clouds over Rothbury this morning.

#sky #clouds #rothbury #northumberland #uk
A large grey cloud (lenticular?) above an amber -tinted cloudscape. Oh the foreground forested hills.
October 4, 2026 at 7:43 AM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
I've just had the quickest flu jab! I turned up five minutes early and was asked to go straight in. An assistant asked for my name and date of birth, a nurse asked if I had the flu vaccine before (yes) and whether I had side effects (no). He gave me the injection and said thank you, that's done […]
Original post on mastodonapp.uk
mastodonapp.uk
October 3, 2026 at 3:39 PM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
Random thought:
A female werewolf would be a wifwolf.

#etymology #randomthoughts
October 1, 2026 at 6:59 AM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
A misty start to the day. This is probably why I could get closer than usual to these deer without them running off. A nice surprise for my morning walk

#deer #northumberland
Two deer in a field through mist Two deer in a field through mist
September 29, 2026 at 7:49 AM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
Recceing a walk for next Friday. It is quite scenic including Bowden Doors, Colour Heigh and Cuddy's (St Cuthbert's) Cave.

#walking #northumberland #cuddyscave
Bowden Doors, grey sandstone emerging for on grass. A view of Colour Heugh from Dancing Green Hill. Despite the name it is mostly grey sandstone. Selfie, old man with a hat standing in a huge split in a boulder near Cuddy's Cave
September 28, 2026 at 11:39 AM
Reposted by Chris Brooking
chris108.wsocial.eu
An absolute masterpiece of making it hard to compare two values by The Guardian. By my calculations the UK price is 12% lower, but I'm far from certain!
#metric #badReporting #obscureUnits

www.theguardian.com/business/liv...
Text: European gas prices are also rising this morning . The benchmark Dutch contract is up 2.9% to €74.185 per megawatt hour (MWh), while the the British front-month contract is up 2.7% to 184.64 pence per therm.
September 28, 2026 at 10:56 AM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
RE: https://toot.wales/@thebaywindowgirl/117275825012894868

Will I ever learn? I'm thinking of choosing something by Ursula Le Guin for my book group choice next year— possibly The Lathe of Heaven. Yes probably divisive again. Definitely giving me plenty of scope to start things rolling with a […]
Original post on mastodonapp.uk
mastodonapp.uk
September 26, 2026 at 3:43 PM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
It's that time of year when the sky looks pretty when I take my evening walk.

#rothbury #northumberland #uk
The sky above Addycombe ridge showing a pink tinge. The sky above the stone bridge at Rothbury now showing an orange red
September 25, 2026 at 7:16 PM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
I can see a lot of issues with this

Government considers £11 monthly UK broadband fee to fund BBC TV
www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/20...

It becomes in effect a regressive tax, possibly pushing people to mobile and satellite if not included.

Also what about people in remote areas without a […]
Original post on mastodonapp.uk
mastodonapp.uk
September 24, 2026 at 7:18 AM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
I love these ceramic sculptures in the Crown Studio Gallery.

#ceramics #sculpture #rothbury
Sign in window reads AMBIGUITY- CERAMIC SCULPTURES BY LYNDA TAYLOR Inspired by the grandeur of Classical architecture and its later Victorian revival, these ceramic sculptures combine a sense of history with contemporary questions. Designed as both striking decorative objects and pieces to provoke thought, they explore the ambiguities that shape our lives. Every decision we make is influenced by personal experience, circumstance and the information available to us at that particular moment. Ideas of good and bad, right and wrong, certainty and doubt can become surprisingly fluid when circumstances change. These sculptures invite the viewer to look agai and question first impressions. Beautiful, | intriguing and just a little unsettling, than ae pieces with a story to tell and should make wonderful conversation starters in the home. Sculpture, a stylised woman in a doorway with a man sitting on the roof A number of ceramic sculptures, glazed mostly in a blur-green colour
September 20, 2026 at 12:28 PM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
Ok, Manchester isn't too bad then!

#manchester #uk
A plate with firecracker Tofu with vegetables and a generous portion of rice. A cup of green tea is behind it. A brightly coloured tram. A statue of Emily Pankhurst who fought for women's rights.
September 17, 2026 at 5:48 PM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
The path behind Wetherby services. This makes it my favourite on the A1, because you can stretch your legs without feeling that you're walking round a car park. Today an interesting cloudy sky

#wetherby #wetherbyservices #sky
A field with a dirt track along one side. This is a public footpath. The sky is mostly grey cloud with some blue patches
September 17, 2026 at 12:03 PM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
A little dragon on the path along the river at Warkworth.

#dragon #art #warkworth #northumberland #uk
A small green dragon, probably ceramic, fixed to a fence on what looks like a miniature doorway
September 16, 2026 at 5:55 AM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
I've noticed that a lot of AI voices in the UK mimic extremely bored sounding women. One of Waze's has an RP accent, but sounds like she's entirely fed up: "one mile ahead, roadworks".

I can just imagine a follow-up "Here I am, brain the size of a planet, and they've got me announcing […]
Original post on mastodonapp.uk
mastodonapp.uk
September 14, 2026 at 6:04 PM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
I had one of those a couple of days ago. Very nice. It made me think of a black forest gateau but with a scone texture instead of a dense cake.
September 12, 2026 at 7:53 PM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
I walked out my route for a u3a walk I'll be leading if the weather's OK. It took me 4 hours 20 minutes with tests, 3 hours 25 minutes moving time. Im wondering if 15:34 km is too long. I think I'll say "go for it", there are a number of escape routes to […]

[Original post on mastodonapp.uk]
A cairn on Hard Nab, near Thrunton Woods. The outline of Simonside is in the distance. Long crag and Coe Crags in front — the rout ascends on the right then walks the length of these. Map of the circuit which goes in a roughly rectangular path through Thrunton Woods
September 10, 2026 at 3:20 PM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
RE: https://fosstodon.org/@novelwriter/117218912909489410

The epub export looks good. I also like the flatpak format, so much easier to install and support on my machine.

I haven't worked out how references work yet, but it looks as though each reference needs a heading or they all get mixed […]
Original post on mastodonapp.uk
mastodonapp.uk
September 8, 2026 at 5:08 PM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
Oh no! I've just been told that some people see the em dash as an indication that you are using AI! I use it frequently — the semicolon just seems old fashioned and pedantic. Maybe I should reconsider; could the semicolon be revived?

#punctuation #semicolon #EmDash #ai #ChatBot
September 8, 2026 at 8:23 AM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
It's the time of year for great sunsets again.

#sunset
Clouds lit with the red light from the setting sun.
September 6, 2026 at 8:17 PM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
I'm going to complain to Pizza Express for not letting me give no tip when paying by card. In the UK if you give a tip by card it will have income tax deducted, and if it's paid straight through payroll national insurance too. Some companies also deduct "processing fees", though I understand […]
Original post on mastodonapp.uk
mastodonapp.uk
September 5, 2026 at 7:12 AM
chris108.mastodonapp.uk.ap.brid.gy
No!!!! Too soon
I had an advert for this in my email today.
#toosoonforchristmas #Cragside #Crimbo
An image of a child reaching for a Christmas decoration on a tree with the text: Christmas at Cragside: A Journey Through Fairyland
September 4, 2026 at 7:29 PM