Mel
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melofthevalley.bsky.social
Mel
@melofthevalley.bsky.social
Humans: walking vectors of impurities
Reposted by Mel
I saw a meme last night about a generational divide marker of folks who cannot sit through videos and want the words typed out because they read faster than they can watch a video and I felt that deep in my heart. I'm happy for folks who love video, but I hate them. Give me text. Let me read.
December 2, 2025 at 8:05 PM
Searing, articulate, brilliant.

Brava!
December 2, 2025 at 7:55 PM
Reposted by Mel
This year we're doing Whamutopia. Every time you hear Last Christmas you have to have a mulled wine at your earliest convenience and toast George Michael, because he was a lad
December 1, 2025 at 8:32 AM
Have you tried being rich?
The secret to early retirement; dine out rarely, fly economy and be a Google employee making $390,000/year married to a fellow Google employee 17 years older than you who likely makes twice as much as you.
37-year-old quit her $390,000 Google job after saving up $1.5 million—see the 'no buy checklist' that helps her spend less
She left a $390,000-a-year job and now uses a simple set of rules to make her savings last in Switzerland.
www.cnbc.com
November 30, 2025 at 9:56 PM
Reposted by Mel
The most precious commodity you have is your attention. You don’t have to waste it on poor-faith debates or arguments with strangers if you don’t think they’ll be productive. You can prioritize the things that matter to you and make your life richer.
November 30, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Reposted by Mel
NEW blog: Please do not ever 'settle' for me

www.girlonthenet.com/blog/please-...

With apologies and thanks to @doctornerdlove.com who said I could have a go at explaining this.

And big thanks to @stuartcb.bsky.social as always for this amazing image.
November 30, 2025 at 12:00 PM
Reposted by Mel
The death of browsing is part of the reason art is the way it is now. Our opinions are largely fed to us by algorithms. Spending a spare 15 minutes wandering around a bookstore or comic shop or video rental place was how you found stuff you wouldn't ordinarily pick up and thereby expanded your taste
Bookselling is like the most "people go to the store and buy what looks cool to them without a particular agenda" type business left, and your purchases have a huge influence on what is ordered, what is displayed, and what is recommended.
November 29, 2025 at 6:44 PM
Reposted by Mel
NEW on the blog:
An FAQ About the #1 Biggest Mistake Men Make on Dates with Women
girlyjuice.net/an-faq-about...

I got annoyed again about men who don't ask women questions on dates, so here's 3,300 words of helpful (& snarky) advice about that, for these men + the people who date them
An FAQ About the #1 Biggest Mistake Men Make on Dates with Women
Hey Kate, what’s the biggest mistake men make on dates with women? Not asking anywhere near enough questions. Or, in many cases, not asking any questions at all. Really? That’s the bigg…
girlyjuice.net
November 27, 2025 at 5:47 PM
True words
If a British person responds to your opinion with a jaunty 'Fair enough!' then the conversation is over and they think you're a prick.
November 28, 2025 at 2:48 PM
Reposted by Mel
While you're waiting for the budget, why not pop over to my blog and check out today's NEW post. It is my hottest take of all time:

You never have to have sex if you don't want to.

www.girlonthenet.com/blog/sex-sch...
You never have to have sex if you don’t want to | Girl on the Net
You never have to have sex if you don't want to. Obvious, no? So why does this principle get binned in monogamous relationships? Let's talk sex schedules.
www.girlonthenet.com
November 26, 2025 at 10:10 AM
Reposted by Mel
dear men: plz find a route to self-actualization that doesn’t run through someone else’s uterus
November 24, 2025 at 3:13 PM
Reposted by Mel
I make each of my flower necklaces by casting real flowers in silver incl snowdrop & bluebells.
I also hand-sculpt much-loved bird species to make wearable versions incl wrens & blackbirds
20% off my jewellery atm with code TINYOWL20
Cut off day for🌲orders is Tue 25 Nov: www.etsy.com/uk/shop/silv...
November 23, 2025 at 12:03 PM
Reposted by Mel
The fact that in both 2019 and 2024, the winning party did so with a set of manifesto promises that could not be kept and dissolved upon contact with actual office is something that as an industry we should be much more bothered by than we are.
November 23, 2025 at 12:35 PM
Reposted by Mel
evergreen
November 22, 2025 at 5:20 PM
Reposted by Mel
Journalist challenge: Use “Machine Learning” when you mean machine learning and “LLM” when you mean LLM. Ditch “AI” as a catch-all term, it’s not useful for readers and it helps companies trying to confuse the public by obscuring the roles played by different technologies. 🧪
November 22, 2025 at 4:50 PM
Reposted by Mel
This week the Society released its new Strategy, 2026-2028 bit.ly/43A9tF4

The Strategy outlines five goals for the Royal Historical Society over the next three years. It comes at a vital time for the health and future of our discipline and profession, with advocacy a top priority. #Skystorians
Strategy 2026-2028 - RHS
On 18 November 2025, the Royal Historical Society launched its new Strategy 2026-2028. How the Society supports history and historians is closely shaped by the environment in which we work. Our new st...
bit.ly
November 22, 2025 at 4:22 PM
Same enshittification, different tech.
ChatGPT has been telling me not to trust that motherfucker Gemini, and Claude informs me that Grok really likes the taste of Nazi boots
“AI workers said they distrust the models they work on because of a consistent emphasis on rapid turnaround time at the expense of quality.”
November 22, 2025 at 5:58 PM
Reposted by Mel
Not too sure about that restaurant…
November 21, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Reposted by Mel
"it may not be reason in itself to dismiss the relationship"

Fascinating comment: a guy gets upset hearing about people's sexual past but says that shouldn't prevent a relationship.

Men who may one day want to date me (or someone like me), pls read my reply.

www.girlonthenet.com/blog/why-i-g...
Why did I get rejected? | Girl on the Net
One of the things I often hear guys complain about when it comes to dating is that they got rejected (or sometimes ghosted) without understanding why. They wouldn’t mind a ‘no’ if there was some obvio...
www.girlonthenet.com
November 21, 2025 at 11:04 AM
Reposted by Mel
This is an accidentally honest answer. What she's saying in code is:
"The President is a misogynist, petulant bully. You've all seen him be a misogynist, petulant bully. And lots of voters out there are also misogynist or petulant or bullies and that's why they like him."
Q: What did the president mean when he called a reporter "piggy"?

LEAVITT: Look, the president is very frank & honest with everyone in this room. You'll all seen it yourself. You've all experienced it yourselves. And I think it's one of the many reasons the American people reelected this president
November 20, 2025 at 7:17 PM
Reposted by Mel
Countdown to #Christmas has officially begun because I just took delivery of HUNDREDS of these gorgeous cards!

Designed by @stuartcb.bsky.social, aren't they gorgeous? Here's how to get one: www.girlonthenet.com/blog/2025-ch...
November 19, 2025 at 12:35 PM
Reposted by Mel
*jingles bells*

2025 cards are here! Check out the outrageously cute & playful design by @stuartcb.bsky.social - and join Patreon before 1st December if you'd like me to send you one!

www.girlonthenet.com/blog/2025-ch...
November 16, 2025 at 11:36 AM
Reposted by Mel
mr president sir theres a story coming about how you intervened to help a sex criminal. no sir, not that sex criminal you helped….no not that one either…sir, please stop guessing sex criminals that you helped. ill give you a hint sir, hes a trafficker. no sir, not that trafficker a different one
November 18, 2025 at 1:10 PM
November 17, 2025 at 10:04 PM