Paul Riddell
@kyloboomhauer.bsky.social
New project: The Annals of St. Remedius Medical College. http://www.stremedius.com
Chef for Parker the lynx-point Siamese
Populizer of the term “Cat Piss Man.”
“…a Hunter Thompson wannabe of sorts…” - Gardner Dozois
Chef for Parker the lynx-point Siamese
Populizer of the term “Cat Piss Man.”
“…a Hunter Thompson wannabe of sorts…” - Gardner Dozois
Pinned
Paul Riddell
@kyloboomhauer.bsky.social
· Aug 13
New Perennial introduction, now Substack-free:
1989-2002: Angry young essayist for a range of now-forgotten magazines and weekly newspapers.
2008-2023: Owner/operator of Dallas’s pretty much only carnivorous plant gallery.
2024-Present: Trying this writing thing again. www.stremedius.com
1989-2002: Angry young essayist for a range of now-forgotten magazines and weekly newspapers.
2008-2023: Owner/operator of Dallas’s pretty much only carnivorous plant gallery.
2024-Present: Trying this writing thing again. www.stremedius.com
Reposted by Paul Riddell
February 7, 2026 at 5:04 PM
So...who's up for synch streaming on a particular day so we can all watch together?
ME AND WHO ME AND WHO ME AND WHOOOOO cordcuttersnews.com/babylon-5-is...
Babylon 5 Is Now Free to Watch On YouTube | Cord Cutters News
In a move that has delighted fans of classic science fiction, Warner Bros. Discovery has begun uploading full episodes of the iconic series Babylon 5 to YouTube, providing free access to the show just...
cordcuttersnews.com
February 13, 2026 at 5:36 AM
So...who's up for synch streaming on a particular day so we can all watch together?
I'll have a collection of photos on the site soon, complete with @dj-acid-reflux.bsky.social -level commentary on each one.
February 13, 2026 at 4:20 AM
I'll have a collection of photos on the site soon, complete with @dj-acid-reflux.bsky.social -level commentary on each one.
To be fair, they're ready for when @restingdinoface.bsky.social has her next book tour:
February 13, 2026 at 4:18 AM
To be fair, they're ready for when @restingdinoface.bsky.social has her next book tour:
Out at the Perot Museum in Dallas for the late-night adult-only Science On Tap event, and the gift shop is ready for anything:
February 13, 2026 at 4:16 AM
Out at the Perot Museum in Dallas for the late-night adult-only Science On Tap event, and the gift shop is ready for anything:
Reposted by Paul Riddell
Forgot to mention last week on the ranty writing blog I blathered on about working with bad directors, unnecessary camera moves, and giant robots.
And storytelling. Also that.
Go read it before I put up a new one tomorrow!
And storytelling. Also that.
Go read it before I put up a new one tomorrow!
Maximum Effort
There’s a little maxim you may have heard– work smarter, not harder. If you haven’t, what it means is some folks solution to every problem is to throw 100% of their effort at it. They’d throw 110% at ...
www.peterclines.com
February 12, 2026 at 9:44 PM
Forgot to mention last week on the ranty writing blog I blathered on about working with bad directors, unnecessary camera moves, and giant robots.
And storytelling. Also that.
Go read it before I put up a new one tomorrow!
And storytelling. Also that.
Go read it before I put up a new one tomorrow!
Oh, yes. It's amazing what I put up with to keep my old carnivorous plant gallery going.
February 13, 2026 at 3:58 AM
Oh, yes. It's amazing what I put up with to keep my old carnivorous plant gallery going.
My old office is reopening, and I suspect that it’ll attain its old nickname of “Mos Eisley.”
February 12, 2026 at 9:36 PM
My old office is reopening, and I suspect that it’ll attain its old nickname of “Mos Eisley.”
St. Remedius Bromley Contingent shoutout: tonight in downtown Dallas, we meet at the Tenontosaurus on the fourth floor. www.perotmuseum.org/events/adult...
Valentine's on Tap - Perot Museum
www.perotmuseum.org
February 12, 2026 at 9:22 PM
St. Remedius Bromley Contingent shoutout: tonight in downtown Dallas, we meet at the Tenontosaurus on the fourth floor. www.perotmuseum.org/events/adult...
Reposted by Paul Riddell
RIP Robert Tinney (November 22, 1947 – February 1, 2026), the artist famous for his playful covers for Byte magazine, a hobbist magazine that ushered in the microcomputing age from the mid-70s through the 90s. I'm honored to have included his work in my own art collection.
February 11, 2026 at 7:29 PM
RIP Robert Tinney (November 22, 1947 – February 1, 2026), the artist famous for his playful covers for Byte magazine, a hobbist magazine that ushered in the microcomputing age from the mid-70s through the 90s. I'm honored to have included his work in my own art collection.
Oh, the jokes we could make about our weekly newspaper days…
February 12, 2026 at 9:11 PM
Oh, the jokes we could make about our weekly newspaper days…
Well, I see SOME AI-obsessed producer didn’t read the Harlan Ellison short story “Laugh Track,” if the twit can read at all…
February 12, 2026 at 9:09 PM
Well, I see SOME AI-obsessed producer didn’t read the Harlan Ellison short story “Laugh Track,” if the twit can read at all…
By the time one of those geniuses brought his dirty laundry to work, infesting the only couch in the break area with bedbugs, it wasn’t funny any more. Oh, and the fire after the “Do not plug the coffee maker into this plug” sign was sneeringly ignored.
February 12, 2026 at 9:07 PM
By the time one of those geniuses brought his dirty laundry to work, infesting the only couch in the break area with bedbugs, it wasn’t funny any more. Oh, and the fire after the “Do not plug the coffee maker into this plug” sign was sneeringly ignored.
Sometimes it was almost funny, but only because of the utter slobs who had had their mommies clean up after them their entire lives: the “Please do not leave urine-soaked toilet paper on top of the urinals” was a case in point. As was “Do not leave your luggage stacked in the hallway.”
February 12, 2026 at 9:05 PM
Sometimes it was almost funny, but only because of the utter slobs who had had their mommies clean up after them their entire lives: the “Please do not leave urine-soaked toilet paper on top of the urinals” was a case in point. As was “Do not leave your luggage stacked in the hallway.”
Not in the slightest. The whole office was full of people who felt that tearing down signs made the problem go away, particularly the “FIRE EXIT ONLY” signs, which was why I arrived in my last week to a literal dumpster fire because a developer ripped down the “NO SMOKING” sign.
February 12, 2026 at 9:02 PM
Not in the slightest. The whole office was full of people who felt that tearing down signs made the problem go away, particularly the “FIRE EXIT ONLY” signs, which was why I arrived in my last week to a literal dumpster fire because a developer ripped down the “NO SMOKING” sign.
I’m reminded of a job 10 years ago with a major telecom, where Building Maintenance had to put signs in each restroom stall reading “You’re Not In Too Much Of A Rush To Flush,” only to take them out because the software developers were hurt that they’d have to flush their own toilets.
New: Waymo is getting DoorDashers to close doors on self driving cars that people have left open. One Dasher got a job recently asking them to close a Waymo door. Reached out to company, they confirmed its a program in Atlanta. Even with AI, need a person here www.404media.co/waymo-is-get...
Waymo Is Getting DoorDashers to Close Doors on Self Driving Cars
The companies have launched a pilot program in Atlanta, where “during the rare event a vehicle door is left ajar, preventing the car from departing, nearby Dashers are notified, allowing Waymo to get ...
www.404media.co
February 12, 2026 at 7:45 PM
I’m reminded of a job 10 years ago with a major telecom, where Building Maintenance had to put signs in each restroom stall reading “You’re Not In Too Much Of A Rush To Flush,” only to take them out because the software developers were hurt that they’d have to flush their own toilets.
Reposted by Paul Riddell
The way to think about the endangerment finding, like the story I published yesterday about the school built on fracking waste, is that the principle saga of American economic life is the oil and gas industry going to greater and greater lengths to avoid cleaning up or even acknowledging its mess
Burgum: "CO2 was never a pollutant. When we breathe, we emit CO2. Plants need CO2 to survive and grow. They thrive with more CO2. So the whole endangerment thing opens up an opportunity for the revival of clean, beautiful, American coal."
February 12, 2026 at 7:37 PM
The way to think about the endangerment finding, like the story I published yesterday about the school built on fracking waste, is that the principle saga of American economic life is the oil and gas industry going to greater and greater lengths to avoid cleaning up or even acknowledging its mess
For those who missed it last night, and for those in need of monstrous 10-Kilo Lint-Covered Breast Implant photos to get through your day: stremedius.com/2026/02/11/m...
Mandatory Parker: “The Lint-Covered Breast Implant In Winter”
Legacies of Last Month’s Ice Storm Life of the Parker runs in three modes. First is the Comfort Mode: sitting on the couch or on his favorite throne, curled up on his favorite blanket, kickin…
stremedius.com
February 12, 2026 at 6:48 PM
For those who missed it last night, and for those in need of monstrous 10-Kilo Lint-Covered Breast Implant photos to get through your day: stremedius.com/2026/02/11/m...
As much as I loathe the “let’s lay off half our workers and make the other half work twice as hard” crowd, watching the illiterate cokeheads in far too many commercial real estate companies cry endlessly about how AI forced them to take jobs suited to their talents and skills WOULD be awfully funny.
February 12, 2026 at 6:45 PM
As much as I loathe the “let’s lay off half our workers and make the other half work twice as hard” crowd, watching the illiterate cokeheads in far too many commercial real estate companies cry endlessly about how AI forced them to take jobs suited to their talents and skills WOULD be awfully funny.
Reposted by Paul Riddell
And hey, ICYMI: Entirely new branch of the animal kingdom just dropped.
We've been just assuming Prototaxites was a huge fungus. It's not. It's its own thing.
www.livescience.com/animals/gian...
We've been just assuming Prototaxites was a huge fungus. It's not. It's its own thing.
www.livescience.com/animals/gian...
Scientists baffled at mysterious ancient creature that doesn't fit on the tree of life as we know it
An ancient and enormous organism called Prototaxites, initially found to be a type of fungus, may actually be an unknown branch of life, researchers say.
www.livescience.com
February 12, 2026 at 6:28 PM
And hey, ICYMI: Entirely new branch of the animal kingdom just dropped.
We've been just assuming Prototaxites was a huge fungus. It's not. It's its own thing.
www.livescience.com/animals/gian...
We've been just assuming Prototaxites was a huge fungus. It's not. It's its own thing.
www.livescience.com/animals/gian...
Reposted by Paul Riddell
Also: Some dinosaurs appear to have had quills. like porcupines or something.
So all you paleoartists out there, new skin unlocked.
www.naturalsciences.be/en/science/n...
So all you paleoartists out there, new skin unlocked.
www.naturalsciences.be/en/science/n...
“Spiny dragon” reveals hidden secrets of dinosaur skin after 125 million years | Institute of Natural Sciences
An exceptionally well-preserved fossil from China reveals the true appearance and possible defence strategies of iguanodontian dinosaurs. The new species Haolong dongi preserves skin at cellular level...
www.naturalsciences.be
February 12, 2026 at 6:26 PM
Also: Some dinosaurs appear to have had quills. like porcupines or something.
So all you paleoartists out there, new skin unlocked.
www.naturalsciences.be/en/science/n...
So all you paleoartists out there, new skin unlocked.
www.naturalsciences.be/en/science/n...
Reposted by Paul Riddell
For example: The evidence for the "Mars once supported life" hypothesis continues to pile up, and it can't be easily explained by other processes.
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/202...
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/202...
NASA scientists say meteorites can’t explain mysterious organic compounds on Mars
Scientists studying a rock sample collected by NASA’s Curiosity rover have uncovered something tantalizing: the largest organic molecules ever detected on Mars. The compounds — decane, undecane, and d...
www.sciencedaily.com
February 12, 2026 at 6:23 PM
For example: The evidence for the "Mars once supported life" hypothesis continues to pile up, and it can't be easily explained by other processes.
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/202...
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/202...
Reposted by Paul Riddell
I once again feel compelled to remind folks that you feel science news/new scientific developments are bad and destructive because you are not reading science news: You are reading techbro press releases, regurgitated uncritically by outlets that long ago fired all their science/tech beat reporters.
February 12, 2026 at 6:19 PM
I once again feel compelled to remind folks that you feel science news/new scientific developments are bad and destructive because you are not reading science news: You are reading techbro press releases, regurgitated uncritically by outlets that long ago fired all their science/tech beat reporters.
Reposted by Paul Riddell
Everyone knows about private equity killing off news sites, but today I wrote about the role Google plays in decimating media.
Losing My Perspicacity, February 12, 2026
How Google killed the news
losingmyperspicacity.beehiiv.com
February 12, 2026 at 5:13 PM
Everyone knows about private equity killing off news sites, but today I wrote about the role Google plays in decimating media.