Sign in

Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin

@arthropunk.bsky.social
93 followers 156 following 102 posts

Cartoonist, musician, science educator

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Supper Mario Broth @mariobrothblog.bsky.social · 11/10/2026
Experimental post: The Duality of Whacka In the Switch version of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Whacka can finally be fought, and has a suspiciously specific 108 HP. The game both offers a ridiculously simplistic explanation for this as well as a complex one steeped in Dharmic symbolism.
In Paper Mario, the original version of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, and Super Paper Mario, Whacka was just a harmless whack-a-mole creature that could be abused to get Whacka Bumps, extremely valuable healing items. After being hit enough times, the Whacka goes extinct, teaching the players the consequences of their actions. However, in the Switch version of Paper Mario: TTYD, he instead moves to the bottom of the Pit of 100 Trials and becomes an optional superboss with 108 HP.
He is fought at the bottom of the Pit of 100 Trials and has to be hit 8 times in order for the fight to activate.
but also
The number 108 is considered sacred by the Dharmic religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism.
Whacka symbolizes karma for killing him in past games
ring the bell 108 times, per Japanese tradition? The ringing of the bell represents the 108 bonno-defilements of man..
Buddhism holds the view that there are precisely 108 temptations on the path to Nirvana.
Therefore, in order to reach Nirvana, every Buddhist must resist 108 earthly temptations.
With a combination of any of the elements of the above four factors, there are 108 ways with which the karmas can be attracted to the soul.
the earthly temptation to get those Whacka Bumps
There are 108 qualities of praiseworthy souls
Some people think that the human spirit travels through 108 stages, while others believe that enlightenment is attainable with just 108 breaths each day while in Intense meditation,
108 beads to awaken your inner light
Meditators count mantra repetitions with mala beads of 108, (100 counted for self, 8 for mistakes and for those who have not the opportunity to meditate in mantra)
108 breaths to return to your truth
108 mantras to dissolve ego into dever
108 steps from the self to the soul
The Sacred Meaning of 108 Temple Steps
the journey to Whacka is a journey of enlightenment
4437171170 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Museum of Twitter @museum-of-twitter.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
@Very__Regular

george lucas, 1975 (in tunisia, severely dehydrated, over budget) sure, yeah. put the little blue guy in the background. is alec still in his trailer

guy who gets mad for money on youtube, 2024: and now disney made Deebo Threebo green. that's how little respect they have for you
196539944 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
kate bush’s husband @airbagged.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
He cooked Ed Sheeran on IG
macklemore
Follow
•••
5/12
Ed was in a fucked up position. He knew it. His typical apolitical stance was being challenged in a way it never had been before. He told me that the words
"Free Palestine" and the image of the Palestinian flag were hurtful to a lot of people he spoke with. I told him that if those words were more offensive than tens of thousands of Palestinian children being killed by Israel, then there was a fundamental disconnect between where those people stood and where I stood. But he couldn't get past his public facing, "I don't take sides."
189145523026 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Credentials, Dan @dancredentials.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
“W” is much too kiki a symbol to represent such a bouba sound
0235 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Patton Oswalt @pattonoswalt.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
Apparently people are sharing this far and wide on social media, which I think is horrible. This could cripple ICE operations. PLEASE do not share this.
15333976416124 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Helen @helenmaryme.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
A mama chimp at The Sedgwick County Zoo is despondent as her newborn baby was taken from her after birth to get oxygen at the vet for a few days. Here they are reunited. 😍🥹❤️
2084538746 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Crow @abbyjane.cloverdalelane.com · 14/08/2026
I think about this a lot.
Tim Henke
@TimHenke9
eat shit, René Magritte
Translate Tweet
Mauv @ThatsMauvelous • 1d the machine refused to recognize my humanity until i professed to believe that a sign painted to look like a traffic light is indeed a traffic light.
Show this thread
Select all squares with traffic lights
7895062492 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Credentials, Dan @dancredentials.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
Me, nodding knowingly: The beaks.
Headline of paleontology news article: Crocodiles can't fly. Birds can. Scientists have finally figured out why
10293081568 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Ayo @darrylayo.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
This is how you make a post
astrid_lundberg 1h
@threads
the most fascinating thing about an american biscuit is that structurally it's a scone but culturally it's a yorkshire pudding
• 119
Q29 97
932495 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Natalia (娜塔莉) @wrycritic.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
*watches new Spiderman* Hmmm, is that architecture from red Permian sandstone of Dumfriesshire? That's not New York, that's Glasgow! Fossiliferous masonry prevents suspension of disbelief.
Spiderman set with silky red buildings from Glasgow Example of red sandstone architecture
523529 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
💀Jubi 💀 @jubilations.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
im a huge fan of the jimothy #art 🎨
2357351349 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Kendra P @hagofbolding.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
new cryptid just dropped
A doodle of the famous short spined raccoon Jimothy
49102722053 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Ethan M. Aldridge @ethanmaldridge.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
New cryptid
An illustration of Jimothy, a new cryptid (or possibly a raccoon with short spine syndrom), done in a woodcut style. Text below it reads "Behold, Jimothy"
72132373319 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Ayo @darrylayo.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
The man in the photo was murdered for this.
8325145 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Fantagraphics @fantagraphics.bsky.social · 27/06/2026
Great deal alert: Billie The Bee by Mary Fleener and more fantastic books are 70% off now during our warehouse sale--shop now at ow.ly/4KQJ50ZgHum!
0142 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
yuzuBOO @yuzupool.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
ive seen this joke for years and i laugh but also wince because this is just who is behind all of the decisions that piss us off
3813176 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
MoMA Paintings and Sculpture @moma.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
Fernand Léger, Landscape with Yellow Hat, 1952 botfrens.com/collections/14377/cont…
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. David M. Solinger
07715 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
evan dahm @evandahm.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
everything on walk back from "backrooms" was backrooms
1979 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
phantasmAgaric 🍄 @lalonde.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
god i wish switching careers wasn't such a nightmare these days. cannot imagine the sort of networking this shit requires in 2026
garden hermit :)))
013131 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Beach Sloth @beachsloth.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
0141 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
👻 oct-BOO-cryptid 🎃 🜬 @octocryptid.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
Oh you blocked me here? Well, you haven't blocked me in the astral realm. Be prepared to see my posts in your dreams
7693185 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
˚☽‧⁺˖⋆ phosphophyllite 𓍊‧𓋼₊ @lunardial.nexus · 30/05/2026
"hey idiot you forgot to block me on the mycelium network good luck pretending to be a fun guy in the soil realm pleb, I already told them you're a loser, your symbiosis is fake, your spores are mid, the entire bog is laughing at you"
03714 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
David_j_roth @davidjroth.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
These are the two optimal types of Baseball Name.
432047317 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Alfred E. Neuman ( MAD Magazine ) @alfreds-mad-world.bsky.social · 25/05/2026
A MAD Look At Gangs Artist & Writer • Sergio Aragones MAD Magazine Issue No. 363 November 1997 🔵Tap Here For Full Dept🔴 #madmagazine #marginalmonday
3181 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
J. L. Westover @mrlovenstein.bsky.social · 17/05/2026
communing with nature
71306169 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Gale Galligan @galegalligan.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
DID YOU KNOW!! A Freestyle side story from 2023. First published as the cover of NCTE's Voices From The Middle (a pull-out cover!), exploring the theme "interrogating the world through inquiry."
A full-color comic. Page one.

PANEL ONE
Cory Tan from FREESTYLE is playing with his yo-yo, when...

PANEL 2
The string snaps.
CORY: Ack!!

PANEL 3
Closeup of text messages on a phone.
CAPTION: Back when Sunna was teaching Cory how to yo-yo, and his string snapped for the very first time...
Cory Text: sunna help
Cory Text: S O S
Cory Text: sunna!!!!!
Sunna Text: WHAT

PANEL 4
Sunna and Cory sit on a park bench. It's a fall day; people walk and run nearby.
SUNNA: All right, open it up.
CORY: Oh boy. Okay.

PANEL 5
Cory is surprised to see the inside of the yo-yo as he pulls it open.
SFX: pop
Cory: ...Huh?Comic continues. PAGE TWO.

PANEL 1
Cory peers at half of the yo-yo. The broken string rests by its loop on an axle.
CORY: I thought the string would be tied on. Like, with a knot.

PANEL 2
Sunna pulls out a new string from a bag.
Sunna: Nope. Yo-yo string is one long strand folded in half and twisted together --

PANEL 3
A brand-new string approaches the open yo-yo.
Sunna: So you can just slip that hole at the fold right over your axle.
Cory: Oh!

PANEL 4
Cory throws his freshly repaired yo-yo.
SFX: vshhh
Cory: That's cool and all, but why not just tie it on?
Sunna: Well...

PANEL 5
The yo-yo spins on the end of the string.
Sunna: For starters, you wouldn't be able to throw that sleeper.
Cory: Whaaat?!
SFX: vshhhComic continues. PAGE 3

CAPTION: Yo-Yo Facts With Sunna!

PANEL 1
A drawing of Cory raising his hand as he holds a yo-yo, labeled fig.1(a), followed by a drawing of him throwing his yo-yo, labeled fig.1(b)

CAPTION: The sleeper is a trick we take for granted today. It's simple: you throw your yo-yo down...

PANEL 2
Cory looks angrily at the viewer. His yo-yo is still spinning at the end of the string. Labeled arrows point to it, reading "kinetic energy!" "momentum!" "Friction slows it down!!"

CAPTION: And it spins at the bottom of the string until it runs out of energy.

CORY: Physics?!

PANEL 3
Cory runs across a globe in a starlit sky, doing a trick with his yo-yo.

Caption: While the yo-yo is spinning, you can use it to perform all kinds of string tricks --

PANEL 4
Cory returns the yo-yo to his hand.

CAPTION: Which wouldn't be possible if the yo-yo came back to your hand right away!
SFX: ka-ching!

PANEL 5
A panel in monochrome. An oldey-timey fellow with a suit and mustache shows off a yo-yo while two children in school uniforms applaud.

CAPTION: But that's how things used to be. When yo-yos shows up in the States in the 1800s, their strings were tied to the axle with a knot.

OLDEY-TIMEY FELLOW: Hark! It returns!
CHILDREN: Gracious!

PANEL 6
Monochrome illustration of Pedro Flores with a yo-yo, labeled Pedro Flores (1896-1969).

CAPTION: Everything changed in 1928, when a businessman from the Philippines named Pedro Flores started selling yo-yos that used the Filipino style of string loop.

SUNNA: In fact, the word "yo-yo" probably comes from the Philippines.

CORY: Oh heeey!!Comic concludes. PAGE FOUR

PANEL 1
Sunna does a yo-yo trick. Her word balloons include illustrations of different yo-yo shapes and a ball bearing.

SUNNA: And when that opened the door to new tricks, people started looking for ways to make their yo-yos sleep even longer. Things like changing the yo-yos shape... adding ball bearings...

PANEL 2
Sunna and Cory walk past a Chinese takeaway in NYC. They're both throwing yo-yos.

SUNNA: Even the type of material in your string can make a difference.
CORY: Physics...

PANEL 3
Cory contemplates his yo-yo as it returns to his hand.

CORY: So the way we use yo-yos changes as we figure out new ways to do stuff. And, like... in a hundred years, throwing could be something totally different.

SUNNA: Wild, right?

SFX: ka-ching

PANEL 4

Sunna looks up with a smile. Cory tosses his yo-yo into the air. He's also smiling.

SUNNA: But I bet some things will never change.
CORY: Yeah.
SUNNA: The feeling of landing a trick for the first time...
CORY: Making your first yo-yo friend.

SFX: vshhh

PANEL 5
A silhouette against the sunset: Cory and Sunna walk away together.

SUNNA: Accidentally hitting your own face.
CORY: Accidentally hitting other people's faces.
SUNNA: Hey, maybe we'll fix that.

Small text on the bottom of the page:
SOURCES (ACCESSED 7/28/23):
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/49715077/pedro-edralin-flores
https://yo-yos.net/inductee-pedro-flores/
https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/Phys_p069/physics/yo-yo-sleep
http://www.yoyomuseum.com/museum_view.php?action=profiles&subaction=yoyo
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/04/the-yo-yo-effect/389868/
https://forums.yoyoexpert.com/t/yo-yo-shapes/289352
38026 0
Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin @arthropunk.bsky.social · 10/05/2026
man i love being in the countryside and hearing the frogs going sicko mode
030 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Der-shing 德馨 Helmer @shingworks.com · 04/05/2026
This week I am trilobitemaxxing (going about my business on the sea floor, becoming wildly successful as a species, then going extinct due to circumstances out of my control)
615936 0
Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin @arthropunk.bsky.social · 02/05/2026
With my last pair of Bluetooth headphones, two taps would pause or play my music. With my new pair, it FaceTimes my bartender. Still in the adjustment period here.
020 0
Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin @arthropunk.bsky.social · 02/05/2026
I carry two small vials of ink on me at all times. One is for in case I want to do plain-air brush drawing. The other is to defend against marine predators. Just kidding; they’re both for defense. Lots of moray eels about these days.
010 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Fiona Tribe @fionatribe.bsky.social · 23/04/2026
Yes, Swiss scientist Fritz Zwicky coined the term “dark matter” which is impressive, but he also coined the term “spherical bastard” to describe people who are bastards no matter which way you look at them, and I think that should be celebrated more.
151160664423 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Abby Kacen @mild-pain.bsky.social · 10/04/2026
redraw of an old one
2101 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Katie Mack @astrokatie.com · 07/04/2026
This is the face of a lunar scientist who has just been told that the #Artemis II crew saw SEVERAL impact flashes (the flashes when meteors hit the lunar surface) in real time 😃 🌓💥
164183742859 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Justin McElroy @thoughtographic.bsky.social · 06/04/2026
Currently open for commissions and freelance work. Email or dm me for prices or quotes.
04210 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Beach Sloth @beachsloth.bsky.social · 05/04/2026
071 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
beetle moses @beetlemoses.bsky.social · 03/04/2026
I dreamt of the beach (1/4)
Page one: text on black background, “WAKE UP!”. Eyes open, a baby sea turtle with an eggshell helmet says, “you need to wake up!”Page 2: helmet turtle says to a green baby sea turtle, who is waking up out off his egg, “we need to get moving.” CRASH! A cormorant breaks through the ceiling of their nest hole. Helmet turtle says MOVE!Page 3: “when you’re out there, beeline to the water. Don’t stop. Don’t be a hero. Godspeed.” The helmet turtle kicks baby green turtle out the hole off a cliff onto the beach below.Page 4: baby green turtle lands on the sand. The distance between him and the water is quite large. Another baby sea turtle is being devoured by a seagull and is screaming for help.
5386902741 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Shipwreck @shipwreck75.bsky.social · 01/04/2026
That’s one hell of a cover…..
256185824885 0
Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin @arthropunk.bsky.social · 30/03/2026
Well damn this is exactly my genre
020 0
Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin @arthropunk.bsky.social · 24/03/2026
Men, the point of flirting is not to convince her to sleep with you. The point is to convince her to say “I love you too” and for you both to mean it.
000 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Chris Person @papapishu.bsky.social · 23/03/2026
I don’t think we should go back to twitter levels of toxicity but there’s a lot of confidently stupid turbolib opinions on here that can only exist in a low predator environment.
1805710699 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Laura Martínez 🥑 @miblogestublog.bsky.social · 23/03/2026
Here's your moment of zen: A "holy" cat named Coco stands at the entrance of a church in Mexico, seemingly blessing everyone who walks in 🐱
317162063346 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
Nicole 🪲 @fossilforager.bsky.social · 18/03/2026
Dobsonflies!!
An illustration of a small biome featuring a rushing stream with mossy blue-gray rocks/stones and a twisted small brown branch. In the biome, there are two large adult eastern dobsonflies resting on top of a rock and the branch just out of the water. These are large insects with brownish bodies and translucent veined wings that resemble those of an antlion or dragonfly, but larger. The male has very long curved mandibles, while the female has much smaller ones. In the water, the larva of this species is illustrated next to the gray stones and pebbles. It has a long segmented body with a large head. Large, fearsome mandibles on the larva are used to grab prey. The entire illustration has a light blue-green background.
18756205 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
the babahuck @tylerhuckabee.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
leland palmer in the black lodge
rfk standing very normally in a steak and shake
1424723818 0
Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin @arthropunk.bsky.social · 04/03/2026
Overheard in DC: “I’m getting old and have been thinking about my mortality. I’m 86 years old for gosh sakes. That’s how old the Ayatollah was and look what happened to him!”
000 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
a swarm of autumn bugs @facefullabugs.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
Love the glimpse into the beautiful mind that notated this used copy of Moby Dick I got
Chapter 1 of Moby Dick, page 1 

The phrase ‘Call me Ishmael’, the first sentence of the book, is highlighted in blue, with careful highlighting on the very big C at the start. Above this, written in ballpoint pen ‘His name’
234178193363 0
Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin @arthropunk.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
Glory be to
010 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
zaratustra @zaratustra.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
51262354 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
the Mountain Goats @themountaingoats.bsky.social · 26/01/2026
"they don't deserve our fear" is a profound thing to say imo & I'm grateful for it distrust yes caution yes. fear God maybe (proverbs 9:10 though I have long-winded thoughts about the fear of God). these men terrorizing citizens may be a lot of things but they don't know the first thing about God
576380 0
Reposted by Vernon “Arthropunk” Meidlinger-Chin
phantasmAgaric 🍄 @lalonde.bsky.social · 14/01/2026
was not expecting the introduction section on the dilbert wikipedia to conclude quite this brutally holy SHIT
Adams died in January 2026. It has not been announced whether the strip will continue without Adams, and it is unknown who possesses the copyrights, as Adams died divorced; an orphan; and left no heirs.
914064911 0