iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Though you may laugh, ONE of my earliest media memories of being thoroughly creeped out by "age appropriate" material was the No-Face Zombie from The Scooby-Doo Show (on VHS). I could never get past the first 45 seconds of the episode because of this thing. 📺 youtu.be/8ZsfTN_86h8?...

Screenshot: The No Face Zombie (Frank Welker, voice) from The Scooby Doo Show (1976). The eponymous faceless creature shuffles through a back alleyway between a coin shop and a restaurant. With its hunched shoulders, shuffling walk and a violet cloak, trousers and black shoes, the creature is a suitable Scooby Doo villain.

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So much so, my mother openly suspected SOMEONE had deliberately traumatized me in such a way as to cause me to associate Strait with some sort of terror response. And I remember NOTHING about it. If it weren't for the bafflement and consternation of my family, I wouldn't even know about it. 🐷❓

George Strait Enjoying the Pure Rain

Alt: GIF: George Strait in the midst of a downpour of simulated rain on a sound stage.

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Nobody could understand it. But, for years, my parents and three half-brothers all insisted that between the ages of two and four, I would break out into inconsolable, shrieking hysterics whenever the King of Country Music appeared on television. And this was at the height of his popularity.

Alt: GIF: George Strait walks through a darkened theater, dressed all in black while carrying a guitar case.

Shadow Silhouette

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Now, as to the matter of how timid a child I was: I will tell you with a straight face and no shame that one of my earliest fears that I exhibited WITHOUT any memory of it whatsoever, is that my family insists I was terrified of George Strait.

George Strait - The Chair (Cowboy Look Up)

Alt: GIF: Country musician George Strait raising his head as stage lights brighten.

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I will FREELY admit I was a *particularly* craven child. Painfully shy, withdrawn, and aloof, there was a lot of media that I was especially careful about watching or would frequently avoid once my comfort was disturbed in the slightest. But I pick the No Face Zombie because its "obscure" and odd.

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Ha. Mine wasn't quite so formative. Though, stories of preying upon fear, psychology, and combating fear have always sat top of my mind for most of my life.

Actually, no, "tell a lie..." I remember *one* of the earliest that got me. And I'll take my shot at this.

Not helped by being a particularly timid child.

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 22/10/2025

I honestly can't remember, myself. It's why I haven't selected to answer. Large Marge from Pee Wee's Big Adventure, Judge Doom, the troll Trantor from Ernest Scared Stupid... I couldn't begin to remember which particular creep got to me first either through VHS or in theaters.

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Reposted by C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶

With Halloween and the end of year heading towards us, I have to admit - as a lark - that I lament not having a third wheel for Hazel and Scout to play off of. Mostly because I see them enjoying a trio of "Kidnap the Sandy Claws."

youtu.be

Kidnap the Sandy Claws (From "The Nightmare Before Christmas")

YouTube video by DisneyMusicVEVO

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Reposted by C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 22/10/2025

And, for the record, it would be: 😈 Lock : Scout 🧙‍♀️ Shock : Hazel 💀 Barrel : ???

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

My personal favorite out-of-context line from History Matters remains this summation of Anglo-French diplomatic relations prior to the 20th Century: "Whereas France had made the unforgivable mistake of being France."

Screenshot: Caricatures of William Ewart Gladstone, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1868-1874), and Charles-Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, Emperor of the French (Napoleon III, 1852-1870) from Why didn't the Great Powers join the Franco-Prussian War? (Short Animated Documentary) by History Matters (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZ-VmgCFHUQ). Gladstone angrily holds up a placard that reads "How could you?" as Napoleon III stares back with detached annoyance. Both are standing in French state room.

Sarah Z @sarahz.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Reposted by C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶

Guy on lichess had a Netanyahu themed username so I checkmated them with a pawn

A chess position - the long and short of it is that black has castled and is up a lot of material, whereas white's king is exposed in the middle of the board with nothing. Black also has mate in one after black moved king to f4.

More detailed: White has a king on f4 (lmao), a queen on a4 a rook on a1, a bishop on c1, a knight on d2, and pawns on a2, b3, c4, e4, f3, and h2. Black has a king on g8, a queen on g1, rooks on a8 and f8, bishops on d7 and e7, knights on c6 and f6, pawns on a7, b7, c7, d6, f7, g7, and h7.

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

It's also late, I'm a bit tired, and I had had a few other repetitious things happen. But having to start a long, tedious trek over is pretty discouraging.

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

What's your most "rage-quit inducing" thing to put you off a difficult game run? For me, tonight, it was: "travel half a kilometer on foot across a game map, be taken down by a roving enemy vehicle and get sent *right* back to the starting point of the half kilometer trek."

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Reposted by C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶

Skittles Scary Skeletons ☕ @skittles6.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

He'd be snugged with a fuzzy pink blanket, have water, acetaminophen & electrolytes at the ready when he got up. Not to mention the bucket available in case he gets sick. Women are the protectors men claim to be.

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Two year old post, but great to see the journey.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

No, I know. They quit trying to actively train people a couple decades ago. Because that consumes time and money. And rather than improve quality, just go by quantity. Because it's cheaper.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Nothing is ever in place because, for some reason, people feel no need time establish communications or rapport. Mostly because they delude themselves into thinking they're just "working here temporarily."

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Reposted by C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶

Charlie Warzel @cwarzel.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

There is a moment at the very very end of Abdul El-Sayed's podcast with Ezra Klein (book recommendation section) where he talks about the idea of "speaking truth to pain" and this will be staying with me for an extremely long time. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/25/o...

But there’s also something about truth to pain. We talk a lot about truth to power, but I think it’s actually a lot harder to speak truth to pain. I say that as someone who went to medical school, realizing that in a lot of our politics right now, we’ve got to get a lot better at speaking truth to pain if we’re going to get through some of these challenges that we have.

What does “truth to pain” mean?

It’s one thing to look power in the eye and say: You’re wrong about this. But there’s a way in which pain is very difficult to reason with. Because when somebody is in their pain, they’re in their trauma. They see that pain, and they may not see what’s causing it.

I remember just very explicitly being in a trauma ward with a gunshot wound patient and watching this big guy with his hand on his gunshot wound. All the folks are trying to pull his hand off his pain, that point of his gunshot wound, this clear vulnerability.

And this emergency room doctor had the presence of mind to be like: Everyone, stop. And she looks him in the eyes, and she’s like: I get that really hurts, and I’m so sorry that you’re here. You don’t want to be here. We don’t want you to be here. But if you don’t let us fix this, you could die. So I’m going to take your hand, and I’m going to move it off, OK? Because I need to get there so that you can live.

She was speaking truth to pain. He understands he’s at the hospital, he needs care, but he also doesn’t want anybody to touch the wound. Which is a natural thing. And I think it is a really great metaphor for how we think about a lot of these challenges we talked about today.

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Yeah, that's... the dream on this side of the Pond, too. 👀

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Well, to be fair, Disney practically kept him on retainer for the decade. And yet even a little longer! That said, "one of these things isn't like the others..." 🐷🎶

Screenshot: Lafayette (George Lindsey, voice) and Napoleon (Pat Buttram, voice) from The Aristocats (1970).

Screenshot: Luke (Pat Buttram, voice) from The Rescuers (1977).

Screenshot: Chief (Pat Buttram, voice) from The Fox and the Hound (1981).

Screenshot: The emcee at Lester's Possum Park (Pat Buttram, voice) from A Goofy Movie (1995). Posthumously credited as Buttram passed away in 1994.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Personally, I was "spoiled for choice." I can't point to a distinct option because I was inundated in Pink Panther, Looney Tunes, Tom & Jerry, Mickey Mouse, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and plenty others.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

The quirky thing is that that was exactly what Disney was doing - wedding the Robin Hood story with the Reynard the fox tales. ... Really makes the rivalry with his uncle Isengrim all the more awkward... Meanwhile, that concept was close to realization with Looeny Tunes, but never "pushed."

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Fascinating tale of a man who was able to amass so much good will and detonate it spectacularly.

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

I hate that a trust fund baby with Hollywood aspirations can just stamp his foot and scream for dad to buy everything and let him continue his delusion of being a big shot producer.

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

I may need someone to double-check, but it wouldn't surprise me if there's overlap.

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

They never did. They just got bold about it.

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Reposted by C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶

Ya Girl, Chimerelda E. Error @chimerror.blacksky.app · 29/09/2026

Don't believe the lie that "nobody wants to work any more"; the reality is that no one wants to pay for work any more.

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Reposted by C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶

A.R. Moxon @juliusgoat.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Hard to imagine what that would be like

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Also, both WEIRDLY obsessed with genetic abominations...

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

As far as it goes, I think it is a matter for what kind of storytelling you want to do with this sort of thing. We have more characters in the wings and they have popped in from time to time, but having some art done would help with making them more notable, so we're refrained from "going ham."

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Just reporting in that, no, there will be no Brush & Quill interactions today- 28 SEP. While you can still DM Shao, Ozzy, or myself, there will be no posting on the main account or public-facing interactions from Shao. This is not medically-related. Though that has been taken into account.

Spongebob Open Closed Sign

Alt: GIF: SpongeBob SquarePants (Tom Kenny, voice) from SpongeBob SquarePants (1999). Flipping an OPEN sign to CLOSED.

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

On the general basis of, "If the government wants to take it from you, it's something valuable and should be defended." He's definitely a quirky sort where you can likely share a lot of points with him. And then SOMETHING ruins the mood. Good time, though, until it hits. Respectable guy.

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

May have also inspired people to go into IT...

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

You have a perspective about power dynamics that always intrigues me. Don't know if it's conducive to what I'm doing and I doubt it's on the same wavelength. But "I Must Know..."

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Weird thing for King Ghidorah to say, but a guy with three heads has an expensive lifestyle!

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Ha. The fact that there is a feature the where he says that climate change is conducive to graboid breeding and their life cycle and, therefore, must be mitigated: that's not head canon. It's just true. Still, an uptight guy.

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the babahuck @tylerhuckabee.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

bad news babe a rogue openai agent must have hacked our refrigerator last night and drank 15 beers

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Agreed. I would say that, succumbing to the curse of sequels, it has more of an aggregate of just being milked for the money. That said, it's the "thinking hillbilly's" sort of schlock. I love it on its own little silly merits.

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Thanks. It was a rough experience and one I wouldn't recommend.

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

For anyone concerned, I believe I've overcome the worst of this situation, but will need to consider some lifestyle changes. Among other things. It's a rough patch still and I feel much better, but there may be interruptions this week. For various reasons.

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

[Shoddy Robin Williams voice] "Hey, you're lucky we have this much! We're sandwiched between the story with the eco-terrorists and the story with the sexy rats. It's like getting the short straw at the hostel when choosing who goes last in the shower order!"

C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Given that that's the one with Long John Baldry, I can automatically understand a British affinity with that version.

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C.S. Bernard 🐷🪶 @csbernard.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

What's funny, though, is that the rule was SUPPOSED to be: "Three characters can never come back to life in comic books: Jason Todd, Bucky, and Uncle Ben." So, what the hell do we do if Ben Parker rolls up?