Ben Allen
@bn1n.bsky.social
Kiwi (from Christchurch) living in Japan, previously Sydney, London and HK.
Some of my favourite things:
Family and friends
Telling terrible jokes
Cycling and rugby
Python, the language, not the reptile
Reading good books
Some of my favourite things:
Family and friends
Telling terrible jokes
Cycling and rugby
Python, the language, not the reptile
Reading good books
Beat the Monday blues by bike. This is the last bridge on the Shimanami Kaido cycle route.
September 29, 2025 at 4:49 AM
Beat the Monday blues by bike. This is the last bridge on the Shimanami Kaido cycle route.
Here's my kanji lesson for today. Half way up a hill in the middle of nowhere! Kinda obvs tho'!
September 21, 2025 at 3:57 AM
Here's my kanji lesson for today. Half way up a hill in the middle of nowhere! Kinda obvs tho'!
Warm up game for the Wild Knights and North Canterbury, all the way from the mean streets of Kaiapoi.
September 20, 2025 at 9:36 AM
Warm up game for the Wild Knights and North Canterbury, all the way from the mean streets of Kaiapoi.
Rice field art on Gyoda, Japan
September 19, 2025 at 4:04 AM
Rice field art on Gyoda, Japan
On the way up the come back trail
August 29, 2025 at 1:43 AM
On the way up the come back trail
Drizzly weather on the bike today, but the lower temperatures are much more comfortable.
August 10, 2025 at 1:38 AM
Drizzly weather on the bike today, but the lower temperatures are much more comfortable.
The cicadas, truly a sound of a Japanese summer, are molting.
July 29, 2025 at 10:39 PM
The cicadas, truly a sound of a Japanese summer, are molting.
I'm on a rather flash EC train going from Prague to Berlin. Let's see if it stays on time, but I'm impressed so far!
July 9, 2025 at 11:13 AM
I'm on a rather flash EC train going from Prague to Berlin. Let's see if it stays on time, but I'm impressed so far!
Local sunrise is currently around 4:30am, and it's absolutely the best time to be outside too!
June 30, 2025 at 9:58 PM
Local sunrise is currently around 4:30am, and it's absolutely the best time to be outside too!
In hospital for a small op on my dodgy knee. This is the state of Japanese hospital food.
June 3, 2025 at 9:28 AM
In hospital for a small op on my dodgy knee. This is the state of Japanese hospital food.
Tonight's the night, Tokyo Python reboots in-person meetups!
May 22, 2025 at 1:43 AM
Tonight's the night, Tokyo Python reboots in-person meetups!
I was lucky enough to meet Audrey Tang today, an unexpected surprise and thoroughly insightful experience
May 9, 2025 at 10:49 AM
I was lucky enough to meet Audrey Tang today, an unexpected surprise and thoroughly insightful experience
Golden Week Monday (Children's Day holiday) and we've just finished all the rice seed trays.
May 5, 2025 at 4:55 AM
Golden Week Monday (Children's Day holiday) and we've just finished all the rice seed trays.
It's Golden Week in Japan, that means here on the farm we're about to start rice planting
May 3, 2025 at 2:06 AM
It's Golden Week in Japan, that means here on the farm we're about to start rice planting
Cricket box 😳... oh a box for crickets 😂
April 27, 2025 at 6:29 AM
Cricket box 😳... oh a box for crickets 😂
Spring rugby in Saitama
April 26, 2025 at 7:30 AM
Spring rugby in Saitama
It's very peaceful by the pond today. The humidity is returning and so is foliage.
April 24, 2025 at 2:10 AM
It's very peaceful by the pond today. The humidity is returning and so is foliage.
Is Astral opening a new Kanazawa office 🤔
April 21, 2025 at 2:05 AM
Is Astral opening a new Kanazawa office 🤔
I just noticed one of my dormant Azure container app jobs fired at 2:01am today. It has a CRON setting of "1 2 3 4 5", wtf?!
April 11, 2025 at 6:47 AM
I just noticed one of my dormant Azure container app jobs fired at 2:01am today. It has a CRON setting of "1 2 3 4 5", wtf?!
I come here twice a week to do hangs, dips, chin ups and plank.
April 5, 2025 at 12:57 AM
I come here twice a week to do hangs, dips, chin ups and plank.
Peak hanami season in Kumagaya
April 4, 2025 at 4:37 AM
Peak hanami season in Kumagaya
Here's a neat little scripting trick with uv - save this as `cowspeak` and make it executable with `chmod +x cowspeak`, and Bob's your uncle;
March 30, 2025 at 12:20 AM
Here's a neat little scripting trick with uv - save this as `cowspeak` and make it executable with `chmod +x cowspeak`, and Bob's your uncle;
Big crowd at Chichibu on a warm Spring day for the top of the table clash in the Japan Rugby League One.
March 22, 2025 at 7:02 AM
Big crowd at Chichibu on a warm Spring day for the top of the table clash in the Japan Rugby League One.