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dysphemist.bsky.social
Fiona
@dysphemist.bsky.social
830 followers 2.8K following 730 posts
Spiteful octopus.
Random.
Sweary.
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dysphemist.bsky.social
Challenge: post your last photo taken in DC to show what a hellhole it is.
Cheval Rouge by Alexander Calder, National Gallery of Art, Sculpture Garden
August 12, 2025 at 12:07 AM
dysphemist.bsky.social
I love this image, by Tom Jenkins in The Guardian. Siraj, suspended, arms and legs perfectly balanced while he hangs like Jordan. Woakes, the wounded bystander. Umpire Dharmasena with his slightly bowed right leg. Atkinson, genuflecting, while missing the ball completely as stump and bail fly away.
An image of the final ball from today's Eng v Ind test match as Siraj bowls Atkinson to win.
August 4, 2025 at 7:50 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
Wonderful essay by Stephen Marche in The Guardian - The America I loved is Gone. It's elegiac, lovelorn and just a little hopeful.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
The country clubs are rife with men and women, in incredible luxury, complaining bitterly about the state of the country. The richest and most powerful, the Americans who have won, who have everything, are still not happy, and why? Their answer is that the American dream must be broken. There is no one who feels more betrayed by the American dream than the world’s richest man. Why else do you think he’s out there with a chainsaw? The American elites of the past 20 years have called their foremost principle freedom, but what they meant was impunity. That’s what the original slave masters built: a world where they could do whatever they wanted to whomever they wanted, without consequences. That’s what the techlords dream of today.
April 20, 2025 at 10:18 AM
dysphemist.bsky.social
Movie poster for Proof. The main photograph shows Russell Crowe, Genevieve Picot and Hugo Weaving in a greyscale photo with a Polaroid of Huge Weaving superimposed in the centre. The strap line is “A wicked look at the dark side of love”.
March 13, 2025 at 7:45 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
Delighted to reach QB on the 2500th bee, with an S, no less! This was my 588th bee 🎉

#nytsb #nytspellingbee
Queen bee on the NY Times spelling bee Mar 12 2025
March 12, 2025 at 3:09 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
Different levels of commitment to the protest: tear gas vs the colour wheel. While Serbian politicians throw tear gas and smoke bombs *inside* parliament, Democrats think wearing the right colour is going to send a strong message. Knives to a gun fight.
Thumbnail of an article in The Cut explaining that "democratic lawmakers are expected to communicate their opposition to Donald Trump during the President's joint address to Congress on Tuesday night by colour-coordinating". The photo is of Democratic congresswomen wearing white during a previous SOU protect. Thumbnail link to an article at 1news.co.nz with the heading "Serbian lawmakers injured as smoke bombs, flares thrown in parliament". The sub-head adds that this is part of months-long anti-corruption protests that have rattled a populist government.
March 4, 2025 at 10:17 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
QB 👑. All going fine until I got to the UNs. Perpetual, seemingly arbitrary kryptonite. Took me a lot of trial and error. #nytsb #nytspellingbee
Queen bee from the NY Times spelling bee Feb 25th 2025
February 25, 2025 at 7:16 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
QB 👑. The pangram took me a stupidly long time, but otherwise fairly straightforward.

#nytsb #nytspellingbee
Queen bee from the NY Times spelling bee February 22nd 2025
February 22, 2025 at 10:15 AM
dysphemist.bsky.social
QB 👑. Felt like more than 56...

#nytsb #nytspellingbee
Queen bee from the NY Times spelling bee February 16th 2025
February 16, 2025 at 10:43 AM
dysphemist.bsky.social
This is what I think of every time I see Vance.
Image from the The Dead Zone with Martin Sheen as a presidential candidate holding up a baby to provide cover from a sniper
February 14, 2025 at 8:40 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
QB 👑. Bit of a marathon today! #nytsb #nytspellingbee
Queen bee from the NY Times spelling bee February 9th 2025
February 9, 2025 at 9:26 AM
dysphemist.bsky.social
QB 👑 today. Enjoyed it - some challenges (and a couple of regular gripes) but some fun words, too. #nytsb #nytspellingbee
Queen bee from the NY Times spelling bee Jan 28 2025
January 28, 2025 at 1:27 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
Image of a refuse lorry with Whole Man Disposal Services written on the side. Image caption says "Yes, the entire man."
January 19, 2025 at 7:38 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
That’s quite a headline
Lazio fire far-right eagle mascot handler over his social media penis posts
January 14, 2025 at 4:45 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
No explanation as to who decided to leave this out of the eulogy written by Walter Mondale before his death:
In reading his father’s eulogy, Ted Mondale left out a line that was in the written text provided to The New York Times ahead of time. After talking about Carter’s generous approach to taking in Vietnamese refugees, the former vice president said in the text: “Compare this to how we are tragically dealing with the crisis of immigrants today.”
January 9, 2025 at 4:02 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
QB 👑. Got embarrassingly stuck on a T4 that I can never remember. Had to resort to trial and error 😬 #nytsb #nytspellingbee
Queen Bee Jan 6 2025 from the NY Times spelling bee
January 6, 2025 at 4:44 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
Enjoyed a fantastic John Sayles double bill this evening, Matewan (which I hadn't seen before and knew nothing about) and Passion Fish (which I have seen before and love). Such a fantastic film-maker - still writing for film and TV but hasn't directed anything for a long time.

#filmsky
Movie poster for Matewan, a film written and directed by John Sayles. The poster is black and white and shows a group of armed men on railroad tracks, next to an old railroad building with Matewan on the side. Lettering in the middle of the poster says "It takes more than guns to kill a man." Movie poster for Passion Fish. The poster is in two halves - the top half shows three women sitting next to each other (Angela Bassett, Mary McDonnell and Alfre Woodard). The bottom half shows a small boat on a lake with two women sitting in it (Alfre Woodard and Mary McDonnell).
January 4, 2025 at 10:44 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
QB 👑. A couple of plurals had me stumped for a while. #nytsb #nytspellingbee
Queen Bee January 4th 2025 from the NY Times spelling bee
January 4, 2025 at 10:45 AM
dysphemist.bsky.social
DHL just sent me this photo of their attempted delivery:
Screenshot showing a date and time plus a black square (where there is suppose to be a photo)
January 3, 2025 at 7:49 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
QB 👑. Took me a while today - some toughies in there. #nytsb #nytspellingbee
Queen Bee 3rd January 2025 from the NY Times spelling bee
January 3, 2025 at 9:58 AM
dysphemist.bsky.social
Nice way to start the new year - just the right level of challenge and some fun words. Happy new year :) #nytsb #nytspellingbee
Queen bee Jan 1 2025 from the NY Times spelling bee
January 1, 2025 at 10:12 AM
dysphemist.bsky.social
Super quick QB today 👑 #nytsb #nytspellingbee
Queen Bee Dec 30 2024 from the NY Times spelling bee
December 30, 2024 at 9:14 AM
dysphemist.bsky.social
All of @theguyliner.bsky.social's review of the year is marvellous; this description of Eddie Redmayne is a work of genius: theguyliner.substack.com/p/the-truth-...
A viral moment that actually got people talking for the right reasons was the delightful Saoirse Ronan’s small interjection to a blinkered lads-lads-lads banter fest between her friend Paul Mescal (the most stylish man of the year apparently, despite all those cardigans) and Eddie Redmayne (if you recast Bianca from EastEnders using only people who’d been to Eton) on the Graham Norton Show.
December 28, 2024 at 1:16 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
Stunning Wyndham Lewis sketch from the current Courtauld exhibition of works on blue paper. It's called Bathing Women. Gorgeous. #arthistory
sketch on blue paper by Wyndham Lewis, called Bathing Women. It shows two women in coloured chalk (black outlines, with shades of red on the womens' skin and blues and greens for the water)
December 28, 2024 at 12:03 PM
dysphemist.bsky.social
The Trinity with Saints Mary Magdalen and John the Baptist by Botticelli. Saw this yesterday (at The Courtauld) for the first time since it was cleaned and restored. The image does not do it justice. The colours are *amazing*. #arthistory
The Trinity with Saints Mary Magdalen and John the Baptist by Sandro Botticelli. A large painting with Christ crucified in the centre, Mary Magdalen on the left and John the Baptist on the right. An image of God the Father (old guy, grey hair and beard) holds the cross while a dove, representing the Holy Spirit hovers above Christ's head. Two smaller figures appear in the foreground, representing the archangel Raphael and Tobias; this is an allusion to the mission of the convent where the painting was originally installed.
December 28, 2024 at 11:39 AM