iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 4h

It's probably not the best thing for one's health to constantly get annoyed at people trying to socialize on social media. (Yes, this is a subtweet.)

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 12h

"'Basely murdered!' the Ghost interrupted." illustration from GHOST'S GLOOM, written by J.G. Holmes, 1889. Artist: Wm. Parkinson. #SpookySunday

A spectral figure draped in hood and long robes stands in an open doorway, hands raised in confrontation. In front of the spectre, a woman in Victorian dress has collapsed to her knees and leans against the open door, her head in her hands.

Caption:
"Basely murdered!" the Ghost interrupted.

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 16h

This gave me a good laugh. (from @accordionguy.bsky.social 's "Saturday Picdump" of tech-related memes, cartoons, etc.)

A military execution by firing squad. The condemned person is tied to a wooden post in front of a wall. The condemned man is covered in black ink, with overspray on the wall behind him leaving a negative shadow on the wall. Ten or so feet in front of the prisoner, a large squid lays on the ground, a spray of squid ink stretching between it and the prison.

To one side, two soldiers stand. One, an officer, holds a piece of paper in his hands, looking at it closely.

Caption: "Damn autocorrect."

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 17h

I see people are still trying to find some kind of flavoring that will make vodka drinkable. It's a pretty desperate search.

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Anna Rose Reads @annarosereads.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

The dreaded reading slump... As much as I love to read (and I mean LOVE), sometimes I hit a period where my excitement for reading dwindles, and turns out, I'm not the only one! The @darkertimes.bsky.social team sat down to talk about it, and you can read it here: www.darkertimes.com/in-praise-of...

darkertimes.com

In Praise of the Slump-Buster

Look, we love books, but even we have reading slumps–here's what they look like, and how we get ourselves out of them.

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

This would make an atmospheric cover for a London-set historical mystery.

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

[types snarky reply to some online dumbshit] [deletes unsent] Life is too short....

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Looks like Sun, formerly one of the street kittens hanging out in our courtyard, is adapting well to indoor life. (Photo: Tabbi Duskwalker) #Caturday

Sun, a young golden tabby cat, snoozes peacefully on a bed.

Photo by Tabbi Duskwalker

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Got fresh flu and Covid vaccines today. Bit of a sore arm, but no other side effects.

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

From The New Yorker: Caption: "Leave it, Pickles!"

New Yorker cartoon:

Three medieval soldiers manning a large catapult have just launched a decapitated head that's now soaring towards a group of enemy soldiers on a hill. At one side of the catapult, a dog is in full gallop, following the path of the flying head. One of the catapult soldiers, alarmed, is turned toward the dog.

Caption: "Leave it, Pickles!"

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Trying to make October a semi-NaNoWriMo month. Hauled out an old unfinished novel, trying to figure out why it stalled and how to get a fresh restart. (Lots of characters, complex society & backstory. This will be a lot of work. Pray for me.)

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Journal of Art in Society @artinsociety.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Just after his release from the asylum, and a few weeks before he died, van Gogh painted this vibrant scene of flowering chestnut trees in the village of Auvers-sur-Oise. Not seen in public for many decades, it’s hoped to fetch $180m at auction (Châtaigniers en Fleurs, May 1890)

Sunny day, but with very dark blue sky. Large tree, with many yellow/orange flowers, by the side of a dirt road where a man is walking. Three women in colourful dresses walk with parasols on footpath in shade of tree

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Definitely click thru to the full article for this one. Some eye-widening amazing work.

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

If you see this post a vampire that isn't Dracula

Plushie version of Vampire Scooby-Doo. Scooby has vampire fangs and wears a red-lined black cape.

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Long Victorian @longvictorian.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Young Woman with a Book (c. 1756-62) by Pietro Rotari (Italian artist, lived 1707–1762). An enigmatic smile, I wonder what she's reading? 'She is too fond of books, and it has turned her brain.'

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

TIL: The Arizona State Fair used to have ambassador/mascot/??? Martha Midway, aka "The Cotton Candy Lady", available for photo ops during the fair. She was a feature at the fair for a number of years.

Promotional image for a past Arizona State Fair, featuring ambassador/mascot Martha Midway, aka "The Cotton Candy Lady", who would wander the fair and be available for photo ops with kids and families.

"Martha" wore hot pink pants, an intensely ruffled long-sleeve pink top, and a sky-high beehive-style pink wig reminiscent of Marge Simpson, along with white-framed eyeglasses.

She was a feature at the fair for a number of years.

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Bob and his evil twin, also Bob @mahnkenstein.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

They appear to have made the death penalty non-lethal; it's a start.

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Zig Zag Claybourne @zzclaybourne.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

THE KICKSTARTER IS LIVE! AND THEY LOVE KHUMALOS! This is go-time. For the next few weeks, KHUMALO TALES, the 3rd in the Khumalo family trilogy, is my LIFE. New readers, old readers, curious readers: ALL ARE WELCOME HERE. www.kickstarter.com/projects/obs... #witchtober #fantasy

Images from the covers of the first 2 Khumalo books: Mother Khumalo and her daughter Amnandi, along with the official Kickstarter "project we love" button.

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

I've been a fan of the long-s and its resemblance to the letter "f" ever since browsing an early 19th century book and coming across a passage about a vampire draining a victim by "sucking out their blood".

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Striking citadels of Art Deco architecture, Britain's Odeon cinemas were built in the 1930s. www.creativeboom.com/work/photogr...

The Athena movie theater in Leicester, UK, one of the Odeon cinemas from the 1930s, a striking Art Deco edifice in brown, white and red.

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glastomichelle.bsky.social @glastomichelle.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

The stars at night on Glastonbury Tor. St Michael's tower looking like it might take off.

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

A virtuoso of a film. Sad so few seem to have seen or appreciated it. "Elevated horror, elevated romance, elevated mystery. It’s an insult, of course– the idea that genre is itself garbage, and that something printed in its first run as a pulp fiction wasn’t worth better paper."

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Joe R. Lansdale @joerlansdale.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Hap and Leonard sale

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

"Sweet Sixteen", Diga Rhytm Band, 1976. Can't count how many times I've listened to this over the years. Dozens, at least. youtu.be/9SffjK7bTGw?...

youtu.be

Diga Rhythm Band - Sweet Sixteen (1976, US)

YouTube video by Krautrock Heavypsych

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Bernd Leicht's photo of a rough sea by a lighthouse's jagged rock of an island definitely raised my heartbeat. Puts you right in the middle of dangerous waves, almost as jagged as the island. #photography #sea #ocean #waves blog.flickr.net/en/2026/08/2...

blog.flickr.net

Congrats to Our World Photography Day 2026 Contest Winners

Join us in celebrating all of the participants and winners of the World Photography Day 2026 contest.

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

I've watched this testimony three time today already. Comedy gold. What a dumbschmitt.

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

(posted by "thunderclapnewman" over at TPM)

Two panel meme, showing Trump in a doctor's examination room.

Panel 1: Trump: "My eyes burn during sex."
Panel 2: Doctor: "That's normal, it's from the pepper spray."

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The Public Domain Review @publicdomainrev.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

A few of the seven etchings that comprise Käthe Kollwitz's Peasants’ War series (ca. 1901–1908) about the innate dignity, courage, and strength of the poor. More in our latest post here: publicdomainreview.org/collection/k…

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

LEVERAGE, but the team is run by Jack Reacher.

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Coffin Boffin @coffinboffin.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

JACK PUMPKINHEAD is a fictional character from the Land of Oz in books by American author L. Frank Baum. Jack first appeared in the 2nd Oz book 'The Marvelous Land of Oz', 1904. Images of my cherished copy! #FairyTaleTuesday

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Tom Gauld @tomgauld.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

My latest cartoon for @newscientist.com

A figure stands in a barren landscape; reaches for the lever on a large, eccentric contraption covered in wires, pipes, dials and buttons; looks over towards two figures inside a bunker and says:

"'Trust me, it's safe' would sound a lot more reassuring if you weren't saying it from inside a concrete bunker."

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

This was a batch of lovely Artzybasheff art quite different from the "anthropomorphized machinery" he's most famous for. Unfamiliar to me until now; thanks, @johncoulthart.com !

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HolBat(Commission open on November) @kholbatar.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Artist! Quote with the artwork you cannot explain! Usually I have some specific ideas even behind abstract concepts, but this is... too abstract

A stylized neon illustration of a futuristic character: the face is partially covered by a red visor, the body is surrounded by bright energy flows of yellow, orange and blue shades

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C. L. Polk @clpolk.com · 28/09/2026

Today is my birthday! Please buy my books, I'm so broke

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

How...? Was it dropped from a crane?

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

For local folk: Scottsdale's Poisoned Pen bookstore will host Joe & Kasey Lansdale on October 12th, 7:00 PM MST, for Joe's final Hap & Leonard novel PETRIFIED DREAMS, and for Kasey's debut novel FIRST CHANCE. I'm planning to be there. calendar.time.ly/9plshfqx/pos...

calendar.time.ly

Poisoned Pen Calendar

Calendar

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Hey, cats, it kinds defeats the purpose of the litter boxes if you don't actually scratch some litter over your ghastly stink of a poop.

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Starting to get wet. Supposed to be rainy/drizzly for the next day or two. Glad I finished getting the dirt piles rearranged and smoothed out for the garden area last night. If I get some gaps in the rain, I'll see if I can lay out some compost, prep beds, and get some seedlings planted.

A backyard with a former swimming pool filled in and prepped to become a garden area. Mostly bare dirt at the moment, with a block-&-lumber raised bed over at one edge.

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

(Lifted from @accordionguy.bsky.social's "Sunday Picdump".)

4-panel webcomic:

Panel 1: A sad cartoon person approaches a cartoon wizard in a pointy hat. Person: "Help, Mr.Wizard! I'm a huge asshole!"

Panel 2: Person: "Nobody likes me." Wizard has a hand raised to chin, pondering the problem.

Panel 3: Smiling wizard raises a star-tipped wand in one hand. Magic sparkles shoot out of the star.

Panel 4: The person has been transformed into a an ecstatically happy cat. Wizard: "Now you can act like an asshole and everyone will love you."

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

This is why, when I have beets growing in the garden, they're Golden Beets.

Social media post:

"the most exciting part of eating beets is forgetting yu ate beets and then, hours later, staring into the toilet convinced that you're experiencing a medical emergency before remembering the beets"

A group of Golden Beets, with one cut open to display the yellow flesh inside.

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Charlie Stross @cstross.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

I long for a back-to-basics web: Markdown for text, JPEG images, no video, no Javascript or other client-side scripting, writable by a human being with a text editor. Make it as advertising/corporate hostile as possible. And above all keep it *small*. In other words, web like it's 1996 again.

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Bruce Arthurs @brucearthursaz.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Manning Coles (pseud. of Adelaide Frances Oke Manning & Cyril Henry Coles), best known for their Tommy Hambledon spy novels, also wrote a series of comic novels about ghostly cousins Charles and James Latimer. (UK publication as by "Francis Gaite".) My wife Hilde loved them. #SpookySunday

Cover to COME AND GO by Manning Coles, 1958. Two ghostly figures in the backseat of a chauffeured open-top car are being driven down a country road towards a distant castle.

Cover to HAPPY RETURNS by Manning Coles, 1955. A woman in a red dress is being escorted down a French city street by two adult male ghosts in suits and ties; a small monkey in a red jacket and cap rides on one ghost's shoulder.

Cover to BRIEF CANDLES by Manning Coles, 1954, published in the UK as by "Francis Gaite". First in a series of comic novels about ghostly cousins Charles and James Latimer.

Against a backdrop of old, run-down buildings, two men, dropped suitcases beside them, enter an archway between buildings. There is a bright light at the end of the tunnel-like entryway.

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