Merlin
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amphibiousavian.bsky.social
Merlin
@amphibiousavian.bsky.social
36 followers 170 following 20 posts
He/they 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️
Aspiring artist🎨 and nature nerd🌲
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amphibiousavian.bsky.social
Moved into a new place, the cat is a big fan of napping on my bed near the windows. He's my muse :))
Pencil sketch of a cat asleep in front of windows
August 22, 2025 at 4:42 AM
Reposted by Merlin
bigoldeels.bsky.social
Oh that’s right I fucking hate fireworks
July 4, 2025 at 2:32 AM
amphibiousavian.bsky.social
In Montana (gorgeous) for trail work (my favorite task) and I am. Fucking. Ill.
July 4, 2025 at 4:22 AM
amphibiousavian.bsky.social
For more clarity bc I'm so excited to talk about this, Sir Gilbert is a smaller part of a larger world building project. This project (so far unnamed) will describe a fantasy world throughout the centuries of its existence
amphibiousavian.bsky.social Merlin @amphibiousavian.bsky.social · Jun 21
New project!! I've come to a horrifying realization that I don't know how to draw armor but I'm so excited to learn!

This is Sir Gilbert, a cursed knight who becomes one with his suit of armor (and is functionally immortal)
Ink drawing of a suit of knight's armor and a larger, scaled-up helmet beside it. The armor is adorned with daisy motifs. A note above the helmet reads "Sir Gilbert the (un)Dead) Two ink pen drawings of a smiling white man with fluffy hair and rosy cheeks. The first drawing, which includes his torso, shows the man wearing armor. The second only includes shoulders. The designs have minor differences. Text above the drawings reads "(alive) Sir Gilbert"
June 21, 2025 at 11:34 PM
Reposted by Merlin
berneri.horse
some people just can't comprehend enjoying the craft itself and not trying to finish as many things as fast as possible #doodle
ms paint doodle comic with two anthro dogs. one of them is drawing something and having a good time and then another one comes to the frame, saying smugly "heh... you should just use ai to make that in no time. no need to use many hourse. hah gotcha" and in the third one the artist just mentions that "but i LIKE to draw" with an emphasis on the like-word. there is small text in the corner that says (also ai slop fucking sucks oh my god). in the last image the ai bro's face has been zoomed in and they are just saying "huh" because god forbit someone actually likes their hobby
June 21, 2025 at 10:24 PM
amphibiousavian.bsky.social
New project!! I've come to a horrifying realization that I don't know how to draw armor but I'm so excited to learn!

This is Sir Gilbert, a cursed knight who becomes one with his suit of armor (and is functionally immortal)
Ink drawing of a suit of knight's armor and a larger, scaled-up helmet beside it. The armor is adorned with daisy motifs. A note above the helmet reads "Sir Gilbert the (un)Dead) Two ink pen drawings of a smiling white man with fluffy hair and rosy cheeks. The first drawing, which includes his torso, shows the man wearing armor. The second only includes shoulders. The designs have minor differences. Text above the drawings reads "(alive) Sir Gilbert"
June 21, 2025 at 11:30 PM
amphibiousavian.bsky.social
Good find the other day! Plus, crushed a 3.7 mile hike in a little over a hour and a half!
Two black chanterelle mushrooms on a patch of moss. Beside them are some damp plants and grass in the background
June 16, 2025 at 4:01 AM
Reposted by Merlin
toonyballoony.bsky.social
I did my best to compile as many protest safety notes as possible into a one page foldout zine! Coincidentally…it seems the file has breached containment…like it’s available for anyone to print or hand out 👀⚖️

toonyart.com/s/PSZine.pdf
The cover spread from a one page zine printout. The left (back cover) features images of a scale and gavel, with notes on First Amendment and filming rights, and the advice to “shut the fuck up.” On the right is the cover, a megaphone with the title text “PROTEST SAFELY.” Behind it are faceless protestors. The subtitle notes, “A brief collection of tips from around the internet.” A spread from one page zine printout. On the left is an illustration of a protestor with the title “What to Wear,” including a helmet, goggles, ear plugs, gloves, a mask, a backpack, and layers/long sleeves/pants. Each have additional notes explaining their use. On the right is “What to Bring,” featuring illustrations of a backpack, money, water bottles, a mask, a granola bar and bag of trail mix, a first aid kit, folded shirt and pants, and an ID, with “DIY Defense” listed underneath it showing one protestor using a luggage case, one holding a trash can lid, and one using an open umbrella as a shield. A spread from one page zine printout. On the left is “Protect Your Identity,” advising to cover up identifying features, avoiding photography of protesters, deactivating biometric phone-unlocking tools, and writing emergency contact and counsel numbers on your arm. On the right is “Be Like Water,” the motto of the 2019 Hong Kong protests, and the text “BEWARE THE BAIT” with images of a palette of bricks and a masked man holding a crowbar toward a protestor with a sign, “Psst, free crowbar?” encouraging the reader not to engage with traps and undercover agents. A spread from one page zine printout featuring the hazards of protest opposition, including tear gas, rubber bullets, and LRAD sound cannons and flash bangs. Caution tape images accompany the text explaining the dangers of each, how to flush out eyes that have been maced/etc, and how to extinguish a gas canister with a traffic cone.
June 12, 2025 at 11:59 PM
Reposted by Merlin
aukeflorian.nl
Our work is published #openaccess in the Journal of Limnology, which means that everyone can read it, and I invite everyone curious to do so! 💚
www.jlimnol.it/jlimnol/arti... 🐛

Researchers can also find me and my papers on ResearchGate! www.researchgate.net/profile/Auke-Florian-Hiemstra ✨
The title page of our recent publication: 'A curious case: caddisfly cases built from brick and sewage overflow microplastics'
May 29, 2025 at 4:22 PM
Reposted by Merlin
derfbackderf.bsky.social
News you can use. From Scientific American mag, of all things!
How to Protect Yourself during Protests
Demonstrators face tear gas, flash bangs, coronavirus and surveillance
www.scientificamerican.com
June 8, 2025 at 12:03 AM
Reposted by Merlin
bug-gwen.bsky.social
I've gone from extremely online to hardly posting, and most of that is despair about what humans are doing to each other, but also this www.theguardian.com/environment/...
‘Half the tree of life’: ecologists’ horror as nature reserves are emptied of insects
A new point in history has been reached, entomologists say, as climate-led species’ collapse moves up the food chain even in supposedly protected regions free of pesticides
www.theguardian.com
June 3, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Reposted by Merlin
bigoldeels.bsky.social
please read this one
To the press on Monday, May 19, Mayor Spencer said the lack of warning was a failure in protocol, but Republican cuts to the National Weather Service have also made predicting disaster more unreliable. “Weather service veterans expressed concern about the agency’s ability to keep up in the face of the cuts,” reported Fox 2 Now. Friday’s surprise tornado is a “scenario likely to be repeated as the U.S. is on track to see more tornadoes this year than in 2024, which was the second-busiest tornado year on record.” Spencer also caught flak for a lack of response from city officials, as well as initial statements in which she advised that St. Louis citizens not “self-deploy” to help in cleanup and rescue efforts. The St. Louis Police Department issued an immediate curfew for the northside wards and set up a command center in an Aldi grocery store parking lot—big enough for a police helicopter to ferry in Republican Senator Josh Hawley for a photo shoot where he promised to request expedited FEMA funds. Thousands have so far responded to the call for volunteers, and more are needed for the weeks ahead. Supplies will be crucial, and much has been pouring into organization points like O’Fallon Park, as well as Fountain Park, where the Party for Socialism and Liberation St. Louis set up a tent not far from Centennial Christian Church. Four days after the event, organizers there reported no sign of city officials Exterior and interior bricks are baked differently, with exteriors glazed and left in the kiln longer to harden them for insulation against cold winters. When St. Louis’s buildings collapse, as many did on May 16, the interior and exterior bricks are mixed, which becomes a major problem for restoration. Many pallets of St. Louis red brick are literally sold down the river to architects in the American South, with no winters to worry about. As if to underscore the injustice at work north of Delmar, St. Louis bricks are often used to restore antebellum Southern planation homes.
May 23, 2025 at 7:54 PM
Reposted by Merlin
elegantlab.bsky.social
A head's up for those of you who use analog art supplies in the US. One of the two largest distributors went out of business and indie art stores are suspected to suffer pretty significantly. Please support your local indie art shops if possible.

Newsletter from St. Louis Art Supply
May 22, 2025 at 4:19 PM
Reposted by Merlin
slicexpo.bsky.social
Attention, class! 🎓 Comics University 🎓 is back for its 10th year, running from June 11–July 23 at @bettysbooksstl! Stay tuned for guest lecturer announcements and registration opening next week

🎨 by Orquídea Camp-Es
Illustration of a pennant reading "Comics University" sits at the top of the graphic above Betty's Books' Comics Cat in a mask and a cape, Mr. Slice in a mortarboard, and various drawing supplies. Text reads "Wednesdays, 6:30-8:30 p.m., June 11-23, 2025, hosted by Betty's Books. Illustration of a fist holding pens and pencils. Text reads "What is Comics University? Comics U is a free summer educational series for a teen+ audience." Confetti explosion graphic reads "What's special about this year? We're celebrating Comics U's 10th anniversary! Stay tuned for special programming..." Illustration of a rolled up diploma and decorative stars reads "How do I enroll in Comics U? No SAT scores or application necessary! All sessions are free and open to the public, hosted on Wednesday evenings, June 11-July 23 at Betty's Books."
May 21, 2025 at 3:03 PM
Reposted by Merlin
gbbranstetter.bsky.social
The cost of Grok: "I can't breathe at home, it smells like gas outside. How come I can't breathe at home and y'all get to breathe at home?"
"HOW come can't breathe at home and y'all get tO breathe at home?""I can't breathe at home, it smells like gas outside," Boxtown resident Alexis Humphreys said through tears, holding up her asthma inhaler during a public hearing about the turbines on A April "HOW come can't breathe at home and y'all get tO breathe at home?" Alexis Humphreys holds out her asthma inhaler while asking the Shelby County Health epartment rO deny a permit for XAl'S methane gas turbines. | Ariel Wittenberg/POLITICO's E&E News
May 10, 2025 at 4:25 PM
Reposted by Merlin
acorviart.bsky.social
*completes one single barely-DIY household task* yeah I'm something of a handyman myself
May 12, 2025 at 12:17 AM
Reposted by Merlin
redgoldsparks.bsky.social
Taekwondo: A Fanzine by Maia Kobabe! Initially posted on my patreon back in April. Transcript in the alt-text. 1/2 #taekwondo #martialarts #transathlete #sports #exercise #memoircomic #maiakobabe
The cover and back cover of a black and white comic titled TAEKWONDO: A fanzine by Maia Kobabe. The cover and back cover both have drawing of Maia performing kicks while wearing a white uniform in front of a black background Page 1 In 2017, I started working from home full time. I loved having more time to focus on my writing & art but soon realized I rarely left a 100 foot radius of my home office. Shrimp posture of someone who enjoys typing in their lap Maia: I need to move my body or I’ll calcify! I’d noticed a martial arts gym not far from my house. I couldn’t tell what type of martial art, but I was interested. I did a year of Judo in college, but wanted to try a new sport. Page 2 Finally, I worked up the motivation to give them a call. Maia: Hello, I was wondering if you had classes for beginning adults. Teacher: We do! Three days a week. Teacher: Come to a class for free to see if you like it. Maia: Thanks, I will. Um- what sport is it? Teacher: Taekwondo! That first day I felt like I’d completely forgotten how to exercise. Jogging around the small gym 20 times almost ended me. Maia: I shouldn’t have eaten before class! (Only one not wearing a uniform.) That plus a basic warmup of pushups, jumping jacks, squats, and kick drills left me so sore I could barely get out of bed the next day. Maia: My whole body hurts!
May 10, 2025 at 6:20 PM
amphibiousavian.bsky.social
Tramp stamp saying "lower back pain"
May 9, 2025 at 8:15 AM
amphibiousavian.bsky.social
Told my mom I didn't want to make chai tonight (it is too late) and she simply responded with "you don't love me". This is where I get it from.
May 8, 2025 at 3:36 AM
Reposted by Merlin
lillydancyger.bsky.social
“I asked ChatGPT,” well I asked your mom and she said you’ve always been a disappointment
May 6, 2025 at 7:51 PM
amphibiousavian.bsky.social
Little toad drawing with a swirled colored pencil. The proportions are a little off, but it's still something
Colored pencil drawing of an American Toad. The colors alternate between red, green, blue, and brown
April 28, 2025 at 2:51 AM
Reposted by Merlin
slicexpo.bsky.social
Hang out with Bad Drawing Club and SLICE and draw art in the Saint Louis Art Museum sculpture garden! Bring your drawing materials, pose with the sculptures, draw the garden, relax in the outdoors.

Saturday, May 10, 1–3 p.m., Sculpture Garden @ SLAM

RSVP: www.eventbrite.com/e/sculpture-...
Three sculptures of Mr. Slice in various poses sit on pedestals in a bed of giant red tulips... or the tulips are normal size and Mr. Slice is tiny. Who knows! Text reads "Outdoor Sculpture Drawing @ SLAM, May 10, 1–3 pm."
April 25, 2025 at 10:42 PM
Reposted by Merlin
slicexpo.bsky.social
We're going birding! Join us bright and early at 8 a.m. on Sat., May 17 to draw birds in Forest Park with professional cartoonist/extremely amateur birder Dan Zettwoch. Please be on time, bring a sketchbook, drawing tools, and binoculars if you have a pair.

RSVP: www.eventbrite.com/e/feathered-...
A group of Mr. Slices sit in wonder around the base of a tree with several tiny birds in it and draw. One bird is wearing a beret. Text graphic reads "Feathered Friends Sketchcrawl, Saturday, May 17, 8–10 a.m. Spot birds and learn sketching techniques with Dan Zettwoch!"
April 26, 2025 at 3:02 PM
Reposted by Merlin
bug-gwen.bsky.social
ICYMI, bugs are land shrimp, from the awesome @restingdinoface.bsky.social
April 15, 2025 at 5:37 PM