Viv Smythe
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vivsmythe.bsky.social
Viv Smythe
@vivsmythe.bsky.social
580 followers 800 following 300 posts
ex-blogger & current #GuardianAus minion (views my own) - signal-boosting, socialising, snark

Alt text -
Avatar: cockatoo headshot, sulphur crest raised.
Banner: sunrise above low hills and a lake, large trees in the foreground, puffy clouds up high.
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vivsmythe.bsky.social
Pussycat likes scritches
Ginger cat, longhaired, pretending to not want chin scritches
May 22, 2025 at 10:34 AM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Ridiculous #sleepyhead #Caturday shot #AusCats
The lowlighted belly of a longhaired charcoal-beige tabby cat displaying his floof on the couch while we re-binge #IdrisElba in #Luther
April 26, 2025 at 10:14 AM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Woke up to this floof on my lap. If he wasn't lying belly-fur up he'd almost be fully camouflaged. #Catnesday
A fluffy charcoal-beige tabby cat lying on his back atop a floral pattern duvet cover with a dark background. His pale belly fur is clearly visible in dawn light, his paws and tail are harder to discern. His head is mostly out of shot (I'm lying down under the duvet).
April 15, 2025 at 9:09 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Photos taken before the show began at Sydney's fabulous State Theatre (no filming allowed during the performance).
2-photo collage of the stage at Sydney's State Theatre: the drapes and floor of the stage are blue, and a sign at the rear of the stage reads "Sarah Milligan - Late Bloomer". The second photo has a wider frame showing the crowd assembling in the red velvet seating of the mezzanine level, with the blue stage in the background.
March 19, 2025 at 12:44 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
And the neighbouring gumtree is in flower this week, spreading branches across their fence to delight us on our balcony.
A 3-photo collage of eucalyptus flowers in early morning light. Frame 1: nearby white gumtree flowers in shade on a low branch, higher branches behind are in sunlight Frame 2: a closeup of a single fuzzy white flower, with abundant stamens growing in a circular pattern so it has the appearance of a short bottle brush Frame 3: more of the same flowers on the twigs of a single branch, with a glimpse of blue sky behind them
March 16, 2025 at 8:47 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Someone thinks that I should be out of bed and feeding him. He's been lying across my bladder since before 0600 the little gremlin.
The silhouette of a cat's head can just be discerned in downlight against the white closet doors of my bedroom.
March 8, 2025 at 7:49 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Took a long walk last week including Lady Robinson Beach at Botany Bay - so quiet on a weekday (apart from the occasional plane traffic at the airport). Just gentle waves, a breeze, birds, occasional people/dogs and high clouds to soften the light.
February 25, 2025 at 9:27 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Here's the cat tax (pre-shave photos):
Fluffy ginger cat asleep on the couch Fluffy ginger cat catching a sunbeam on the bed 4-photo collage of fluffy ginger cat enjoying the coolness of the floorboards on a hot day Fluffy ginger cat asleep on a blanket on the couch
February 17, 2025 at 10:33 AM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Morning light on the golden robinia #Sydney #summer
Early sunlight on the top of a tree with dark branches and pale lime-yellow leaves, below a bright blue sky with some pale clouds. Sunlight is glowing on the leaves of the top branches since meteorological sunrise was less than an hour ago, the sun is still low. In the background is a stand of taller trees with much darker foliage.
February 8, 2025 at 8:21 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Fortunately the removed #WomenInSTEM story was archived by the Wayback machine 1/...
Screenshot of a post by Rose Ferreira saying, "Well, my bio just got removed from the NASA site because of an order that went out to remove stuff about women in STEM. I've only been on Threads for a full year, so a lot of people here never heard of a feature that NASA did on me talking about my love of the Moon, how I grew up in poverty, then my homelessness in the US, and then me being at NASA itself. That's how easy it is to erase you as a person, and everything you've done. I'm not even sure how I feel right now."
February 8, 2025 at 5:44 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
A bunch of grasping Callithumpians!
Screenshot showing a search engine result on "Is there a word to describe a person who likes chaos? A stack exchange URL is included, then the following: A callithumpian 1836, U.S. colloquial, probably a fanciful construction at one time designating a society of social reformers, then in reference to "noisy disturbers of elections and meetings," and most commonly "a band of discordant instruments." Actually paired adjectivally with chaos in stanza 84 of David Van Alstyne's 296-versed mouthful of a poem: buccaneerishly galumphing into grievous garboils of chthonian uproar and terpsicoresan bedlam, and for gallivanting in great gyres of callithumpian chaos in a three-ring circus of near-simian agitation --Callithumpian
February 8, 2025 at 5:19 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Can't sleep, watching a penguin documentary. My phone decided to throw up an album of treescape photos with nary a penguin in view.
A collage of travel photos taken over many years, locally and abroad, northern and southern hemispheres - collected algorithmically because they all feature forests (and generally also mountains or lakes).
February 8, 2025 at 4:39 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
A bleak #politics read:

'Reboot' Revealed: Elon Musk's CEO-Dictator Playbook
www.thenerdreich.com/reboot-elon-...
Transcript of screenshot towards the article's end. "Conclusion: There is a lot more to say. What surprises me most is how the political press generally fails to inform the public that Musk is taking a systematic approach, one that has been outlined in public forums for years. (Some press outlets, like the Washington Post and Los Angeles Times, are owned by billionaires keenly interested in kowtowing to Musk and Trump.) We are witnessing the methodical implementation of a long-planned strategy to transform American democracy into corporate autocracy. The playbook was written in plain sight and is now being followed step by step."
February 7, 2025 at 7:36 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Have also only just realised that I didn't attach the photo of the Zaatar initially!
A jar of mixed herbs and spices, labelled "Arabian Za'atar Salad Sprinkle" which is mostly thyme, sumac & sesame seeds
January 31, 2025 at 8:45 AM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
They are really quite delicious
A purple skinned plum with red flesh in a blue and white porcelain bowl.
January 25, 2025 at 4:06 AM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Without downloading any new pics, where are you mentally?
Screenshot from Star Trek: The Next Generation - Captain Picard & Lieutenant Riker are sitting behind a table and covering their eyes with their left hands while looking downward. The screenshot has been captioned as follows: "Double Facepalm Two WTFs for the price of one"
January 24, 2025 at 9:40 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
The sheer ridiculousness of my almost geriatric cats still playing pounce-tail like kittens whenever I give them a box to destroy is always a delight, especially when it's disassembled like this and they can surf the floorboards with a scamper start.
3 parts of what was recently a cardboard box lying on a wooden floor. The box has been thoroughly clawed and torn apart.
January 24, 2025 at 9:24 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
If you see this, post a bridge from your gallery.
Sydney Harbour Bridge (a steel through arch bridge in New South Wales, Australia), viewed from the southern riverbank to the west.
January 24, 2025 at 10:55 AM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Sleepy morning #cats after the recent heavy rain #sydney
Three longhaired cats near a large window that they are ignoring in favour of comfy and separate places to snooze, with one more elevated than the others. Outside the window is foliage beyond the balcony rail and the mesh of our catio enclosure (accessed by a cat flap in the window).
January 9, 2025 at 8:48 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Cat Tax: this is his usual position of repose on my bed
A charcoal/beige longhaired tabby cat asleep on his back atop a stripey sheet, leaning slightly to one side so his forepaws are hugging a pillow. He's fully stretched out otherwise displaying his belly fur with hindlegs akimbo.
January 2, 2025 at 11:54 AM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
The thunderstorm didn't last long here at all.
Bright blue sky with light puffy clouds above foliage from a golden robinia and a gum tree.
December 27, 2024 at 6:30 AM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Merry Xmas from Lake Macquarie and the morning dog walk.
A sunny morning sky with drifts of puffy clouds above a broad blue lake. The foreshore has a sailing clubhouse to the left and a parking area for a few early birds staking out the picnic tables.
December 24, 2024 at 10:25 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
This fluffy boy would say good morning but nap time has called and despite the Very Loud lawnmower nearby he's out for the count
#Catnaps
A longhaired ginger tabby cat with white paws and tail tip is sound asleep on a corner of the sofa atop a blanket, pillow and a cushion.
December 19, 2024 at 9:32 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
Article from 2018 on what the market prioritises in terms of revenue in the health sector: www.cnbc.com/2018/04/11/g...
Transcript of screenshot excerpt from linked article: “The potential to deliver ‘one shot cures’ is one of the most attractive aspects of gene therapy, genetically-engineered cell therapy and gene editing. However, such treatments offer a very different outlook with regard to recurring revenue versus chronic therapies,” analyst Salveen Richter wrote in the note to clients Tuesday. “While this proposition carries tremendous value for patients and society, it could represent a challenge for genome medicine developers looking for sustained cash flow.”
December 18, 2024 at 9:14 PM
vivsmythe.bsky.social
These wide pots came with the house so we've filled them with (double-checked) nontoxic for felines plantings that are coming along nicely now.
A two-photo collage showing a rectangular terracotta planter inside a balcony catio, about 1 metre long, filled with a selection of cat-safe grasses, low shrubs and spider plants.
December 9, 2024 at 8:21 PM