samutara
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samutara.bsky.social
samutara
@samutara.bsky.social
160 followers 280 following 530 posts
Rides a bicycle.
Knows a few things about a few things.
Eng / 日本語 (下手ですけど…)
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samutara.bsky.social
Weather here is &#+*@, but I got a delightful slice of brightness in the post yesterday!

Sooo good to get back to the Grobusverse from @simonroy.bsky.social, with @thenazavr.bsky.social and @gnarlyghost.bsky.social!
A photo of the absolutely delightful hardback book, 'A Star Called The Sun', by Simon Roy, Sergei Nazarov and Drew Shields. The cover illustration shows a tired, but cheerful looking human in cargo trousers and a tank top, standing next to a large, 6-limbed, radially symmetrical alien. The alien has one arm draped in a friendly manner over the human's shoulder. Did I mention the book is great? It really is!
November 14, 2025 at 9:48 AM
samutara.bsky.social
?

??

!!!
A photo of the Sesame Street muppets Ernie and Bert. Their poses and positions echo the photo of two real human men in the skeet quoted above. Ernie, on the left wears a roll-neck sweater with red and blue horizontal stripes. He is looking at and speaking to Bert. Bert, on the right, wears a v-neck sweater with thin, vertical stripes of green, orange and blue. His mouth is firmly shut as he looks at Ernie.
November 9, 2025 at 11:20 AM
samutara.bsky.social
水曜日の体操:　パンクの修理後に、手動ポンプでタイヤーに空気を入れた。

Wednesday workout: inflating a flat tire with a manual pump.

疲れた〜
I. am. beat.
写真は手で持っている手動ポンプ。 Photo of a hand holding a hand pump, like you'd use for a bicycle. タイヤに手動ポンプを付けている。 The manual pump attached to a tire. 圧力計は約38psi (2.6.bar)を示しています。 Pressure gauge showing about 38 psi (2.6 Bar)
November 5, 2025 at 11:53 AM
samutara.bsky.social
Just FYI: I dunno if it's an issue inside the US, but recent email about the crowdfund is showing up for me with some sort of "content not viewable in your region" block.

Good luck hitting the stretch goals!
Screengrab of an email, showing two large purple rectangles in place of embedded images. The rectangles contain the words "Content not viewable in your region".
November 4, 2025 at 1:05 PM
samutara.bsky.social
Kinda surprised there was no mention in this thread for the stovetop moka pot. Not quite espresso strength, but a consistent strong brew that's hella easy to hone in.
A photo of a Bialetti brand moka pot for brewing coffee. This model is stainless steel, with a truncated cone base, a slightly tapered cylinder above to collect the coffee after it's brewed, and a matte black plastic handle. The Bialetti logo is barely visible on the side of the moka pot.
November 4, 2025 at 1:01 PM
samutara.bsky.social
ロンドンの「王様の道」はなんとなく「腐った道」…

(「馬道」の読み方を間違った…) ( ;´ - `;)

London's "Rotten Row" is some sorta... the "King's Street?
(Aaaaand I messed up the Japanese reading for "bridleway")
:[
November 3, 2025 at 11:16 AM
samutara.bsky.social
If there is room enough in this world for Star Wars, Star Trek, Star Crash and The Stars My Destination, there's room enough for you - make that comic, please!
Painted poster art for the first Star Wars movie, done by the Hildebrandt brothers. A still from Star Trek: The Original Series, taken from the episode "City on the Edge of Forever". A large, lumpy boulder seems to contain a portal to another sepia-toned place. From left to right, Kirk, Spock, Uhura, and Scotty are standing and looking into the portal. A movie poster for the 1978 film Star Crash. In the background, a spaceship and a giant, masked spaceman holding two pistols loom. In the foreground, a woman in a black bikini and knee boots crouches while a man in a red leather jumpsuit holds a glowing sword (that is legally distinct from a lightsaber). The cover art of the comic adaptation of Alfred Bester's novel, The Stars My Destination. Tge art seems to be by Howard Chaykin and Byron Preiss, and shows the protagonist Gully Foyle, glaring at the viewer. Tattooed tiger stripes and the word 'NOMAD' are visible on his face.
October 28, 2025 at 7:18 PM
samutara.bsky.social
I'll grant that the US is woefully behind on moka pots, steel chopsticks, and many other delightful kitchen goods.
But the UK still acts like two-tap sinks are reasonable design, and not an anachronistic insult to hygiene and comfort.

Freeze, scald, or mix a tepid bowl of sink debris. 🤢
A photo of a white porcelain sink with two separate taps, one for cold water and one for hot, just as if it were 1900 instead of the goddamn 21st century.
October 27, 2025 at 12:17 AM
samutara.bsky.social
ロンドンの狐はなんでもかまわない。
London foxes are not bothered. At all.
#イギリスの文化 #動物 #狐　#コンコン
October 23, 2025 at 3:25 PM
samutara.bsky.social
Getting to know my neighbor, Ms Crow.
隣同士のカラスさんに知り合う。
October 23, 2025 at 8:20 AM
samutara.bsky.social
Funny, I try to think that medieval folks were generally like us, but I forget what seemingly obvious (and wrong) things they assumed about the world (again, generally like us).

15th C France? Seemed to think Alexander the Great met a society of giant no-head dudes while conquering central Asia.
15th century illustration showing "Alexander the Great", riding a horse and wearing medieval plate armor, as he meets a trio of "headless men (gens sans teste)", bronze-colored giants with no heads, but faces in the middle of their chests and beards down to the their thighs.
October 14, 2025 at 10:21 AM
samutara.bsky.social
Yep, though it's primarily a UK English thing.
Screenshot of a London Mail article with the headline "Top Michelin Chefs reinvent 'lunch al desko' with gourmet feasts for just £3" Screenshot of a page from the BBC Food website with the header "Al desko". The lede follows: "Need quick, easy and affordable lunch or breakfast recipes? Here are some ideas perfect for eating 'al desko'."
October 10, 2025 at 7:05 PM
samutara.bsky.social
See also: Le Petomane
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_P%C3...
A screenshot of the Wikipedia page for Joseph Pujol, aka 'Le Petomane', a 19th C. French performer, famous for his ability to fart musically and at will.
October 1, 2025 at 6:02 PM
samutara.bsky.social
A cartoon sketch of three black cats standing on their hind legs and wearing Halloween costumes. The first is a witch, the second is a ghost, and the third is jammed into a jack o'lantern.
September 27, 2025 at 5:41 PM
samutara.bsky.social
3 black cats dressed up for Halloween.
ハロウィンの仮装をした三匹の黒猫。
A rough sketch of three black cats on their hind legs, wearing Halloween a sheet with eyeholes. The third is in a pumpkin, carved to resemble a stool.
September 26, 2025 at 11:58 PM
samutara.bsky.social
ロンドンの「テレグラフ・ヒル」という名前は電気が発明される前からあった。

The name of London's "Telegraph Hill" predates electricity.

#イギリスの文化 #ロンド地理 #イギリス地理 #EnglishCulture #TelegraphHill #日本語下手
September 22, 2025 at 10:39 PM
samutara.bsky.social
Seems like a complete normal and wholly acceptable number of pens.
Photo of a hand holding 4 fineline pens: one dark red Pilot G-knock 0.5, one blue Pilot Frixion 0.38, one dark blue Zebra Sarasa 0.4, and one dark blue Pilot Frixion 0.38. It is a completely normal amount of pens for a totally normal person to have to hand. Totally.
September 22, 2025 at 5:35 PM
samutara.bsky.social
イギリスの所の紹介: Peckham

#イギリス文化 #イギリス地理 #日本語勉強中 #Peckham #日本語下手 #BritishCulture
September 12, 2025 at 10:42 PM
samutara.bsky.social
Doctors I trust more than RFK jr
Cover art for the movie "The Abominable Dr. Phibes", showing Vincent Price as the titular evil doctor.
September 7, 2025 at 12:25 PM
samutara.bsky.social
イギリスの所の紹介: Crystal Palace (ロンドンの水晶宮)

#イギリス文化 #イギリス地理 #日本語勉強中 #CrystalPalace #日本語下手 #BritishCulture
August 21, 2025 at 7:22 AM
samutara.bsky.social
Trying something different: Japanese language practice by introducing places from the UK. This time is West Norwood.
日本語の勉強のために、イギリスの所を紹介するやてみます。

#JapaneseStudy #イギリス文化 #イギリス地理 #日本語勉強中 #外国の外国人 #へたくそ日本語
August 9, 2025 at 7:37 AM
samutara.bsky.social
No cheating. Your last saved celebrity photo is your therapist. Who is it?

"And how do we respond to feelings of unworthiness?"
"Uh... 'it's good to be the king'?"
August 6, 2025 at 9:12 AM
samutara.bsky.social
@ghostcards.bsky.social, this seems like one for you or your pal at @pastpostcard.bsky.social.

"Do not fall in love
with him"
An old, black and white, picture postcard of a man in an Imperial Naval uniform. The caption in red ink at the top is: The "Japanese Nelson" Vice-Admiral Togo. The man has braided epaulettes, a sash, and many large medals on the left side of his coat. He carries a formal uniform hat, and wears leather gloves. His short, black hair is parted on his left. His beard and moustache are grey, and neatly trimmed. A small handwritten note is visible in the bottom right. It says: Do not fall in love with him A close-up of the bottom-right corner of the Vice-Admiral Togo postcard. A handwritten note reads: Do not fall in love with him
August 6, 2025 at 8:28 AM
samutara.bsky.social
Train ticket booking app, or kink-curious dating app?
An ad for the iLink app, showing two people drinking teas or coffees and enjoying each other's company. A graphic element of a rectangle with rounded corners frames them. The company slogan, "Explore like never before", is written over their heads. A close-up of the same ad. The woman on the right is holding something between her thumb and forefinger, as if offering it to her companion. What exactly they are going to "explore like never before" is left to the imagination, dear reader.
July 27, 2025 at 10:01 AM
samutara.bsky.social
I feel this deep in my SFIII-scarred soul, and lament how it's affected my real-life strategies.
A still image from the video game Street Fighter III, showing a man in a karate gi parrying a high kick from a woman wearing a stylized cheongsam dress. It is not an image from the semi-famous "Daigo parry", but it evokes that match.
July 24, 2025 at 10:32 AM