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ardentarchivist.bsky.social
Ardent Archivist
@ardentarchivist.bsky.social
550 followers 110 following 4.8K posts
Nasty woman (and occasionally proud of it). Dog mom, citizen of the Earth, history & archaeology afficionada, all-around observer, faithful commentator on the ridiculous.
Warning: there will be puns.

Also at: @ArdentArchivist@archaeo.social
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ardentarchivist.bsky.social
"How many zeros are in Elon Musk’s $1 trillion pay packet?"

More than enough to make it utterly obscene.
"How many zeros are in Elon Musk’s $1 trillion pay packet?"
November 7, 2025 at 5:09 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
For the NI crowd, anyone in the Ballyclare area, keep your eyes peeled:

(Anyone else, please feel free to repost for greater exposure.)
A dog has been lost in the Ballyclare area and we need your help! Dog Details: - Dog ID: 200695 - Name: Buddy - Breed: Dachshund: Miniature - Gender: Male - Area: Ballyclare - Postcode: BT39 - Date Missing: 31/10/2025 Special Conditions: Friendly Dog
November 2, 2025 at 10:36 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
Right, the sun’s down, so -

Oíche Shamhna shona daoibh!
Turnip lantern for Hallowe’en
October 31, 2025 at 5:37 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
Aww, I do love this little guy! He reminds me of Bubo:
Bubo the mechanical owl, from the movie The Clash of the Titans.
October 26, 2025 at 8:11 AM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
Don’t know what was going on just now, but the starlings were having a union meeting in my front garden. Couldn’t see the Shop Stupid, but this lot were busily debating a motion; it must have passed unanimously, because they all took wing in an instant.

Here are just a few of them:
A flock of starlings pecking for worms after the rain. The pic is taken through the slats of a blind, and through a window, so as not to disturb the birds or scare them off. There were a lot more! Alfred Hitchcock would be, um, crowing…
October 26, 2025 at 8:07 AM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
Daily Fail headline: "Reeves is Plotting Mansion Tax Raid on Homes"

About bloody time, imho.

Below, it calls it a "class war plan" to "punish hard work and aspiration".

As opposed to the centuries-old class war reality which demands hard work and punishes aspiration from 95% of us?!

#TaxTheRich
The front page Daily Fail headline: "Reeves is Plotting Mansion Tax Raid on Homes" Heretofore the so-called Labour Government has refused to tax the rich, earning it the epithet "Tory Lite". A comment below the headline calls the move a "class war plan" to "punish hard work and aspiration". This is ironic to say the least: the rich are well able to bear the burden of taxation; they just don’t want to and for centuries have successfully lobbied to avoid the worst of it to preserve and grow their wealth. Whereas the class war reality is that working class and middle class people have been forced to bear the burden of disproportionate taxation and are all too often crushed by it, their aspirations ground to dust while the rich get richer. #TaxTheRich
October 26, 2025 at 4:29 AM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
Someone was enjoying the sun earlier - did you ever see such a rascally look?!

😋🙄🤣
A black & white dog is lying in the sun, giving her hooman a very cheeky look!
October 24, 2025 at 2:23 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
Ah. I was right:
An email explaining a service outage due to Amazon Web Services. Too many things depend on too few providers.
October 21, 2025 at 3:28 AM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
😋
WE'RE GONNA NEED A BIGGER CART (The famous scene from the movie Jaws where Roy Scheider says "We’re gonna need a bigger boat!" The mures are going to need a bigger cart to gather more walnuts!)
October 1, 2025 at 10:53 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
Made a little friend earlier this evening - posed beautifully for me, although I couldn’t get down eye-to-eye!

Woofer trod on him as she was chasing the ball 🤦‍♀️ & left him on his back, legs in the air, but I got him right side up, coaxed him onto a leaf, and deposited him over by a shrub.

👍🙏👍
A small brown lizard is moving across a concrete paving stone at night.
September 27, 2025 at 10:04 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
Don’t ask me how or why, but this silly woofer can cram herself into the most unlikely, most uncomfortable looking of places - and snore away quite happily.

And this, dear reader, is par for the course, just one of her superpowers.

🤣👀🤣
An elderly black & white dog is snoozing peacefully while crammed into an uncomfortable looking position: jammed in between a sofa and the wheelbase of a computer chair. And this, dear reader, is par for the course, just one of her superpowers.
September 19, 2025 at 5:01 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
Needs to go viral, and then go viral again…
A wall at the Royal Courts of Justice, London. A barrister is walking past, dressed in wig & robes for court, talking on his phone. On the wall is a mural by Banksy, depicting a defenceless protester with a placard who has been beaten to the ground, while above him looms the figure of a judge in robes and wig with gavel raised to strike the helpless protester. The mural is in black and white except for a spray of red blood on the placard. The image bears a BBC News logo in the bottom left corner.
September 10, 2025 at 8:31 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
This the one?
A wall at the Royal Courts of Justice, London. A barrister is walking past, dressed in wig & robes for court, talking on his phone. On the wall is a mural by Banksy, depicting a defenceless protester with a placard who has been beaten to the ground, while above him looms the figure of a judge in robes and wig with gavel raised to strike the helpless protester. The mural is in black and white except for a spray of red blood on the placard. The image bears a BBC News logo in the bottom left corner.
September 9, 2025 at 5:49 AM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
The day had finally come: it was Spike’s turn to go to the Great Toy Cupboard in the Sky…
A black & white dog lies on the floor with her toys scattered around her. One toy, a stuffed hedgehog called Spike, has made the ultimate sacrifice (and had his stuffing torn out). It’s a rainy day, we can’t go out to play, and the dog is bored… poor Spike.
August 30, 2025 at 1:44 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
It’s #InternationalDogDay and Madam Woowoo, aka The Woofer, would like to remind you that there are blackberries waiting to be picked (please pardon her while she drools in anticipation)…
An older black & white dog stares fixedly at her person’s hand, waiting patiently for the promised blackberry treat. GIVE HER THE BLACKBERRY.
August 26, 2025 at 2:51 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
Mmm… the blackberries are getting sweeter. 😋

Most of the flowering is done, which is sad for the bees ‘cos they LOVED it. And despite my best efforts, most of the low-hanging fruit is being steadily snaffled… 🤣🤣🤣
A blackberry bramble with mostly dead flowers, but clumps of fruit at various stages of ripening are scattered throughout.
August 15, 2025 at 5:21 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
Oooohhh, nice!

First thing that popped into my head:

Within that outline are the shapes of many sprayed hands, and one of them is a perfect fit for yours…
Picture of a prehistoric rock painting, showing the outlines of many human hands.
August 7, 2025 at 7:38 AM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
"What was that, Mum? Something beginning with a 't' and ending in 'reats'?"

😋
An older black & white dog sits in front of her hooman, with a very interested look on her face - might there be a treat coming her way…? (There was! 😉)
July 24, 2025 at 8:33 AM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
We’re having this sort of a day…
A black & white dog lies on her back, stretching her front legs. "Just doing my yoga, Mum!" A black & white dog lies on her back, rubbing her snout with her front paws. "It’s all too much! What’s a poor wee dog to do?!"
July 11, 2025 at 2:11 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
"The welfare system is so generous that in some towns, one in five people receive disability benefits… "

Did the analysis extend to correlating w/local NHS waiting lists?!

Also, if "Reeves only needed a year to destroy Britain" (absolute bull), let’s remember that it only took Truss 45 days.
A newspaper clipping from The Daily Torygraph: "The welfare system is so generous that in some towns, one in five people receive disability benefits, analysis found." I wonder did the analysis extend to correlating these figures with local NHS waiting lists?! Also, if "Reeves only needed a year to destroy Britain" (absolute bull), let’s remember that it only took Truss 45 days.
June 30, 2025 at 2:10 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
Mother Nature’s perfect fast-food breakfast (even comes in its own wrapper):
I’ve got a loverly bunch of- (er…) bananas!
June 27, 2025 at 1:30 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
To quote Wolfie:
"Power to the people!"
Robert Lindsay in his iconic role as Citizen Smith (in the BBC comedy series of the same name): A young man in 1970s clothing & hairstyle, wearing a Marxist beret, stands with one arm raised in defiance. A cigarette dangles from his lips.
June 24, 2025 at 9:55 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
A Very Silly Woof
A black & white dog lies in a hallway on her back, all four paws in the air, hoping to entice her person to give her a few tidbits of dinner…!
June 22, 2025 at 7:17 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
On a lighter note (and god don’t we all need it):
I much prefer the Count Binface MEGA virus (and I have the t-shirt to prove it)!

www.binfaceshop.co.uk/shop/view_pr...
Merchandise from the Count Binface storefront (50% of proceeds go to Shelter, the homeless charity). A khaki t-shirt is shown with a stylised Earth logo and the following slogan: MEGA MAKE EARTH GREAT AGAIN Vote Count Binface Count Binface is described as "the world’s foremost novelty politician" in much the same vein as the Monster Raving Loony Party (though a good deal less loony). He may never have won an election, but he garners a lot more votes than certain right-wing scum who run against him. Buying such a shirt (hats are also available) proclaims your concern for our planet’s future and wellbeing, helps support the homeless, and delivers a subtle two-fingered salute to the insanity (inanity?) of Trump’s regime. (Note: the shirts use US sizing.)
June 14, 2025 at 12:34 PM
ardentarchivist.bsky.social
Ever been to NI? Try the Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge. 😉 (It’s been Elf & Safety’d since I ran across it as a kid - it was just narrow planks and a couple of ropes back then!)

irelandfamilyvacations.com/wp-content/u...
Carrick-a-Rede-rope-bridge on the North Antrim Coast, Northern Ireland: people queue up to cross the precipitous drop, cautiously and a few at a time.
June 1, 2025 at 11:17 AM