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Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

The independent local (pirate) video store is alive and well.

#madagascar #antananarivo #malagasy #photography #originalphoto #halfheartedfanatic

A handwritten signboard outside a wooden video rental shop in Antananarivo, Madagascar, displaying a list of available films in Malagasy and posters for movies like Ziam, Bad Boys for Life, Breed, and Absolution. Two people are seen near the entrance.

December 28, 2025 at 7:53 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

From your lips to God's ears, Steve.

#politics #democracy #justice #Trump #NoMandate #antitrump #antigop #antimaga #republicans #halfheartedfanatic

A screenshot of a tweet from the account @BannonsWarRoom, featuring a video still of Steve Bannon speaking at a podium during an event. The backdrop displays multiple logos of what appears to be an academy. The tweet includes a highlighted quote from Bannon: 'As God is my witness, if we lose the midterms and we lose 2028, some in this room are going to prison, myself included. They're not going to stop. They're getting more and more radical, and we have to counter that with more action, more intense action, more urgency. We're burning daylight. We have to codify what President Trump has done by Executive Order.'" The tweet timestamp shows 8:49 PM on November 6, 2025, with 1.9 million views.

December 28, 2025 at 4:49 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

...said the joker to the fly.

#africa #madagascar #antananarivo #photography #originalphoto #halfheartedfanatic

A discarded, colorful cartoon card lying on a rough asphalt road in Antananarivo, Madagascar. The card features a cartoon joker character, and a fly is visible nearby on the ground.

December 27, 2025 at 8:01 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

It's no longer called the Museum of Transport, but they've still got their choppers. (Riverside Museum, Glasgow, Scotland. Photo by permission of Kenneth McIlvenny).

What's with the gazelle though?

#bike #cycling #chopper #glasgow #scotland #commutebybike […]

[Original post on mas.to]

A vintage Raleigh Chopper bicycle on display at the Riverside Museum in Glasgow, Scotland. The bike is mounted on a wall exhibit with a 'Please do not touch' sign. In the background, a mounted gazelle specimen is visible above the bike.

December 26, 2025 at 8:16 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

The "tromba" is just Malagasy supernatural "channeling" — that would surely crumble under scientific scrutiny. But at least it's reclaiming a tradition suppressed by Christian missionaries. So there's that. Yay? […]

Original post on mas.to

mas.to

December 26, 2025 at 8:04 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

The dog that called my bluff. My wife & daughter want to breed our dogs. I don't. I always say, "We don't need to make new dogs; there are many dogs that need homes." Dec 23, this girl showed up in the rain.

Yes, we're keeping her. Happy Christmas.

#dogs #dog […]

[Original post on mas.to]

Small wet puppy crouched between a dark metal gate and a pink wall, photographed at night with flash. The young tan-and-brown mixed-breed dog looks directly at the camera with wide eyes, rain visible on its fur and on the ground, with small green plants around its paws.

December 25, 2025 at 7:54 PM

Reposted by Ted Johnson

Democrats Abroad

@democratsabroad.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy

Merry Christmas from Democrats Abroad! May your season be full of peace, joy, and happiness for you and your loved ones.

#democratsabroad #merrychristmas

December 25, 2025 at 5:24 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

A cart for transporting heavy jerrycans of water — but with flair.

Home delivery for Malagasy homes without running water.

In use example: https://flic.kr/p/2ro5jN1

#africa #madagascar #antananarivo #malagasy #photography #originalphoto #halfheartedfanatic

A handmade wooden cart designed for transporting heavy jerrycans of water, parked on a dirt path. The cart features colorful symbols on the front of the carrying platform.

December 24, 2025 at 7:55 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

GenZ Madagascar taxi driver — skull-and crossbones-symbol under the dashboard.

#genzmadagascar #africa #madagascar #antananarivo #malagasy #photography #originalphoto #halfheartedfanatic

A close-up of the interior of a taxi in Antananarivo, Madagascar, highlighting a skull-and-crossbones sticker with a Gen Z aesthetic affixed under the dashboard on the passenger side.

December 23, 2025 at 7:54 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

In theory, mixing these two would release nearly unlimited monkey energy. CERN refused my funding request. From 2017.

#antimatter #theorticalphysics #photography #originalphoto #science #halfheartedfanatic

A bag of 'Monkey Butt' nutty banana sunshine trail mix and a bottle of 'Anti Monkey Butt' anti-friction powder placed side by side on a countertop, humorously suggesting a theoretical reaction if combined.

December 22, 2025 at 7:53 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

"If you went to school in [the USA] you absorbed those stories: the Founders as visionaries, the Constitution as fulfillment, the Arc bending toward justice all on its own."

"That's in us. And it takes work to see it, and more work to unlearn it, an even more work to do something with it." […]

Original post on mas.to

mas.to

December 22, 2025 at 3:35 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

For those who follow African competitive pastry: Madagascar has just claimed the longest Yule log: 322 meters

https://www.rfi.fr/fr/afrique/20251220-madagascar-des-%C3%A9l%C3%A8ves-p%C3%A2tissiers-battent-le-record-de-la-plus-longue-b%C3%BBche-de-no%C3%ABl-d-afrique

#africa #madagascar […]

Original post on mas.to

mas.to

December 22, 2025 at 6:47 AM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

Teaching my 13yo daughter "the old ways" of repairing a CD/DVD with toothpaste.

"One day, in the far-distant dystopian future," I said, "like when you will be 17, your followers will discover optical discs in the ruins of a city. They will look to you to understand […]

[Original post on mas.to]

A hand applying toothpaste to the surface of a CD, which is resting on a white textured surface. The CD reflects iridescent colors, and the toothpaste is being spread in a circular motion, illustrating a DIY method for repairing scratches on optical discs.

December 21, 2025 at 7:53 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

These surly sisters gave me some side-eye when I took the shortcut home. But they let me pass.

#africa #madagascar #antananarivo #dogs #dog #DogLife #photography #originalphoto #halfheartedfanatic

Two dogs standing on a stone-paved path beside a concrete wall in Antananarivo, Madagascar. The dog in the foreground sits near a blue door, looking up with a wary expression, while the second dog stands further down the path, both giving a cautious glance toward the camera.

December 20, 2025 at 7:53 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

My dry-erase child is teething. Oh. Wait. He's gone. My daughter snuffed him.

#photography #originalphoto #sketches #sketching #marginalia #gimpsoftware #doodle #doodles #halfheartedfanatic

A simple, hand-drawn green smiley face on a dry-erase board, featuring two vertical lines for eyes and a curved line for a smiling mouth. The drawing is slightly smudged, with remnants of erased marks visible around the edges.

December 19, 2025 at 7:53 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

Trump is destroying the myth that America has operated differently than every other empire in history. So... Thanks?

https://youtu.be/MTZ2EqRqlBs

#resistancehistory #publichistory #monroedoctrine #Trump #NoMandate #antitrump #antigop #antimaga #republicans #halfheartedfanatic

December 19, 2025 at 4:20 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

The end of my roadside mechanic saga. The patch-on-a-patch didn't work out. I changed a tire and tube myself.

I love my Schwalbe Green Marathon tires. This one was more than 5 years old.

I have one more spare, so... Sometime in the next 3–5 years I reckon I need to […]

[Original post on mas.to]

A close-up of a hand pointing to a worn Schwalbe Green Marathon bike tire, where the tread is visibly separating from the underlying layers, indicating significant wear and the need for replacement.

December 18, 2025 at 7:53 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

Another roadside bike mechanic shop in Antananarivo. (My tube repair from the same morning didn't take.)

The mechanic was out of the office. A traffic cop called him on his phone and he was there in 5 minutes. See the tin shed on the left? I think he lives there […]

[Original post on mas.to]

A roadside bike repair setup in Antananarivo, Madagascar, featuring a makeshift wooden rack holding various bike tools and parts against a brick wall. The ground is scattered with additional tools and bike components, including a helmet and a tube. A small tin shed is visible in the background, suggesting the mechanic’s living or workspace.

December 17, 2025 at 7:53 PM

Ted Johnson

@halfheartedfanatic.mas.to.ap.brid.gy

Madagascar's contribution to cutting-edge spycraft: cyborg hissing cockroaches

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cockroach-spying-research-germany-60-minutes/

#cyborgs #cockroaches #madagascar #antananarivo #halfheartedfanatic

Cockroaches, fitted with tiny backpacks, could be part of the future of spycraft, search-and-rescue missions

SWARM Biotactics, a German company, is fitting cockroaches with tiny backpacks to enable the insects to be used for reconnaissance missions.

www.cbsnews.com

December 17, 2025 at 4:33 PM

Reposted by Ted Johnson

Trufi Association

@trufiassoc.urbanists.social.ap.brid.gy

Antananarivo's new urban train: "Cheaper than a motorcycle taxi. And then on the train, you have more space, it’s safe and the view is beautiful.” (Translated from French.)

That one quote says a lot about what travelers want from public transport […]

Original post on urbanists.social

urbanists.social

December 17, 2025 at 1:12 PM

Reposted by Ted Johnson

Democrats Abroad

@democratsabroad.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy

Democrats Abroad remembers Rob Reiner as a staunch defender of voting rights, especially for those abroad. He always used his platform for the good of others and to the benefit of all those who had the incredible opportunity to know him. The tragic loss of […]

[Original post on mastodon.social]