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Charlie

@expyblg.bsky.social
177 followers 377 following 136 posts

PhD Chemist. Occasional Writer. Constant Book Buyer. All views my own.

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Reposted by Charlie
David, just David @coldwarhost.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
There needs to be a single word for that feeling when you have a really good sandwich and then you finish that sandwich but you still wish you had more sandwich. I assume German already has this word
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
We watched Project Hail Mary last night and I quite liked it! I’ve always been fond of stories where protagonists are alone in the void. The movie’s take on alien life was also a lot of fun and I loved watching the clunky looking ships maneuver. www.imdb.com/title/tt1204...
imdb.com
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
If a guy wants to get into reading more eldritch horror (besides Lovecraft) where should he start?
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
I have really enjoyed Villeneuve’s adaptation and I’m sure I’ll enjoy this one, but I really wish he hadn’t changed Chani’s character so much. youtu.be/NdvqHc56lE0?...
youtu.be
Dune: Part Three | Official Trailer
YouTube video by Warner Bros.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 02/07/2026
One of my greatest embarrassments is that I still haven’t read ASOIAF but maybes that’s a good thing because I’ve been able to enjoy House of the Dragon so far.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
It’s a zine and beverage today.
A zine with a hand-drawn picture of a rocket launch titled “The Cold War: Simple History Series #10” beside a white and black color changing RPI coffee mug that says “Why not change the world?” in red letters.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
Now that I’ve slept on it I have some more thoughts about Dr. No. - Seeing a young Sean Connery is uncanny. - I didn’t care for Honey Ryder - I really liked Dr. No’s backstory. I always enjoy seeing how what were then recent historical events influenced pop culture.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
Tonight's movie is Dr. No. Besides culture osmosis my only familiarity with the James Bond franchise is a couple of the Daniel Craig movies I've seen by accident.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
We’re back for another book and beverage
Martyn Rady’s “The Habsburgs” held in a person’s hand beside an RPI coffee much with thermochromic paint that changes from black to white. The mug says “Why not change the world?” and sits atop a blue plastic folding table in a person’s backyard.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 16/05/2026
Reading done. Time to do some writing and finally watch A Bridge Too Far. www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRzm...
youtube.com
A Bridge Too Far
YouTube video by YouTube Movies
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 16/05/2026
For today’s book and beverage I finally finished The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay. It’s a beautiful and heartbreaking work of historically-inspired fantasy. I think it just became one of my favorite novels.
A copy of Guy Gavril Kay’s Lion of Al-Rassan held in a person’s hand beside an Avatar the Last Airbender themed coffee mug listing the Wisdom of Uncle Iroh.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 10/05/2026
Another book and beverage
A hard cover copy of Martyn Rady’s “The Habsburgs” held next to a mug of coffee. The mug says “Noble Gases” and has cartoons of the elements dressed as fantasy characters.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Very excited to see my friend’s book out in the wild at last! This is a really fun #urbanfantasy inspired by professional wrestling. Kurtis has a clear love and understanding of the industry that is on display throughout the book.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
If a person were to read just one Agatha Christie book in their life which one should it be?
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
This week’s book and beer have an unintentional theme.
A copy of “Blood in the Water: The Attica Prison Uprising of 1971 and it’s Legacy” by Heather Ann Thompson held beside a can of Mass Riot IPA from Prison City Brewing in Auburn NY.
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Reposted by Charlie
Randall Munroe @xkcd.com · 28/04/2026
Soniferous Aether xkcd.com/3238/
Comic. [Person and second person with ponytail on stage. Person 1 gestures behind at a display of different wavelengths while Person 2 addresses people off-panel.] PERSON 2: We all know the speed of light is constant for all observers. But our experiments show that the speed of sound *changes* based on the observer's motion. Thus, we posit the existence of the *soniferous aether*, a medium that fills the space between us and carries sound waves. [caption] Sometimes physicists forget that air exists and rediscover it from first principles.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
At long last I have fulfilled my ambition of sitting outside with a beer and a book. It is a marvelous day.
A can of Sam Adams Boston Lager sitting on a side table taken from above at an off angle. A picture of a hard cover copy of “Three Stones Make A Wall: The Store Of Archaeology” by Eric H. Cline taken outside on a porch on a sunny day.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 25/04/2026
There are a lot of things I like about Invincible. My favorite part is how traumatized Mark is. Because of course being thrown through a building is going to affect him. There's a very human aspect that other superhero stories lack.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 19/04/2026
This was nice to find waiting for me when I got home. My signed copy of @brianmcclellan.bsky.social’s Mr. Styke arrived today!
A copy of Brian McClellan’s novella “Mr.Styke. The cover has a silver ring adorned with a skull skewered on a cavalry lance.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 10/04/2026
Had an epiphany today in regards to my book’s magic system. It’s still a soft system but I finally figured out to rationalize it. This is going to help me flesh out a lot of characters.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 04/04/2026
I picked up Rally Cry by William R. Forstchen on a whim and I’m enjoying it so far! It’s written in exactly the style I was hoping for when I saw the cover.
A trade paperback copy of William R. Forstchen’s novel “Rally Cry” held in my hand with a bookmark inside.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
I didn’t think Seth and Gunther had any beef. They’re both heels, right?
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
Aptos is a much better font than Calibri but it still doesn't replace a font with serifs.
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Reposted by Charlie
Randall Munroe @xkcd.com · 26/03/2026
Centimeter Wavelengths xkcd.com/3224/
Comic. Scatter plot graph with y-axis “time spent debugging centimeter-wavelength antennas” and x-axis “Nobel prizes awarded as a result” from points 0 and 1. There is a vertical line of dots at the 0 mark that is more spaced out at the top, and these are all labeled “I.T. people troubleshooting WiFi issues.” At the 1 mark is one dot for Penzias & Wilson.] [caption] I just think the other people working in the field deserve at least a *little* recognition.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 26/03/2026
I wish more authors explained this up front when they talk about observations in quantum physics. They way it is often presented makes it sound a too much like magic. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Observe...
en.wikipedia.org
Observer effect (physics) - Wikipedia
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 22/03/2026
What I would do to be able to pet a ground sloth
The skeleton of an extinct ground sloth arranged so that it looks like it is reaching up a tree trunk for food.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 16/03/2026
Younger me would have been ecstatic about the idea of a Firefly reboot. Now that’s it’s a possibility I’m just not feeling it. Making it animated seems like a good choice I just think it’s going to be hard to live up to expectations.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 08/03/2026
Tonight's movie is Sisu while I work on some writing. I don't know much about this movie but it has been on my radar for a while. I think it's supposed to be a kind of WWII John Wick? www.imdb.com/title/tt1484...
imdb.com
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 01/03/2026
I started reading Red Phoenix by Larry Bond since Bond helped Clancy with Red Storm Rising so much. The book has some interesting ideas and I don’t dislike it but it has some faults that are hard to ignore.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 01/03/2026
I appreciate the added production value in these PLE events like Elimination Chamber but I don’t think I like the format. I feel like we lose a lot of character work in these multi-participant matches.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 22/02/2026
Watching The Tank and I like it so far. It has great visuals but the plot leaves something to be desired. A lone tank wandering through the woods on a secret mission feels silly. Maybe if the writers had included a few half-tracks alongside it would seem more believable. m.imdb.com/title/tt3149...
m.imdb.com
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Reposted by Charlie
c0nc0rdance @c0nc0rdance.bsky.social · 22/02/2026
For a very brief window, the state of the art in fire-making technology involved sulfuric acid, platinum wool & a steady stream of hydrogen, but no sparks. Let's talk about Döbereiner's lamp, invented 1823 & produced until about 1880. It starts with sulfuric acid in a jar!
Döbereiner's lamp.

Stiftung historische Museen Hamburg - Museum für Hamburgische Geschichte

Unterteil: zylindrisches Glasgefäß mit nach inne gewölbtem Boden. Durch ein Metallstück an dem sich der Zündmechanismus befindet mit dem oberen Teil verbunden. Oberteil: kugelförmiges Glasgefäß, an der Oberseite offen, nach unten in ein Glasrohr mündend, welches in den Unterteil hinein reicht. Auf dem Oberteil die Gravur: "Hiettel / in / Tetschen." Die Schrift ist von einem Floralmuster umfasst, welches in Form von zwei, unter der Schrift mit einer Schleife gebundenen Planzenranken erscheint. Döbereinsches Feuerzeug = Die Reaktion von verdünnter Schwefelsäuere mit Zink erzeugt Wasserstoff, der, katalysiert über "Platinschwamm" , als Knallgasreaktion mit Sauerstoff zu Wasser verbrennt. Eine sinnvolle Konstruktion erlaubt die kontrollierte Verwendung dieser Reaktion: Das Zink ist räumlich von der Schwefelsäure getrennt, so dass nur bei Bedarf Wasserstoff erzeugt wird, geregelt durch ein Ventil vor dem Platinschwamm und damit vor der Knallgasreaktion. So wird die Funktion als Feuerzeug ermöglicht. Sie wird nach 1880 überflüssig durch Zündholz und Feuerzeug, da hierbei die aufwändige Befüllung mit Schwefelsäure entfällt. "Es eine höchst angenehme Empfindung sei, wenn wir eine bedeutende Naturkraft technisch also bald zu irgend einem nützlichen Gebrauch eingeleitet sehen: und so bin ich in dem Falle, mich Ew. Wohlgeboren immer dankbar zu erinnern, da Ihr so glücklich erfundenes Feuerzeug mir täglich zur Hand steht." Goethe 1826.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 15/02/2026
I know the music theorists claim to have their reasons but I have never seen the utility in putting a note like F-flat on the page.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 31/01/2026
Post-Communist Transitions was actually a course we took abroad in Eastern Europe with my friend @urshanabi.bsky.social exactly ten years ago now. It was an incredible experience I wish I could repeat today.
A view of the Hotel Chisinau in Chisinau Moldova. The hotel is a soviet-era building with a snow-covered parking lot and grey skies behind it. A picture of the tank in the entrance to the House of Terror Museum in Budapest, Hungary. Black and white photographs of prisoners dominate the wall behind it.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 30/01/2026
- Austrogerman Culture - Inorganic Chemistry - Post-Communist Transitions - Aural Skills - Instrumental Analysis
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 25/01/2026
I understand that the point of Rhiyo is that they’re opposites but I think they would be a lot better if they had a more unified entrance .
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 18/01/2026
I’m finally watching All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) and I’m blown away by how good it is.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 11/01/2026
My first bit of writing on the blog in a long time. This time it's a listicle of media I enjoyed last year. I'm always looking for new book recs if you have some you'd like to share! www.charles-m.com/2026/01/10/t...
charles-m.com
Things I Enjoyed Last Year - Expeditionary
This is it! Another year end post posted over a week late! As I am sitting down to think about this I realized I haven’t watched many movies or shows this year. I have been busy with various things an...
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
Blacksmithing is so cool
A pair of half-finished fire pokers warming up in a furnace prior to shaping
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 25/12/2025
Sometimes I pick a new audiobook based on the narrator. Other times I pick a book and I’m pleasantly surprised to have a familiar narrator. Either way the shift from one genre to the other can be jarring.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 20/12/2025
I still can’t decide how to feel about MDPI. Just how valid are the criticisms? Not having access to an academic library anymore makes finding sources difficult and MDPI comes up in my searches a lot.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 03/12/2025
The Sun Eater books make centuries of interstellar war sound fun. Sure Hadrian faces incomprehensible horrors and suffers immensely but he also gets a cool sword which probably makes up for all the rest of it.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 30/11/2025
Kicking myself for not starting to read the Black Company until now. This book is great! The opening does a great job of setting the tone and I like the conceit of the books being the company’s war diary.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 02/11/2025
The fun thing about sticking with band for close to two decades now is that as I’ve gotten older basically nothing has changed. No one is sure what measure we’re starting at, I’ve already forgotten what key we’re in, and for some reason percussion still isn’t ready. We make it all work anyway.
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Reposted by Charlie
Brian McClellan @brianmcclellan.bsky.social · 08/07/2025
The new Glass Immortals novella is out today in ebook! Grab it from your favorite ebook store or direct from my website. amzn.to/3U0K4Pq
amzn.to
Swords, Cider, and Other Distractions: A Glass Immortals Novella
Amazon.com: Swords, Cider, and Other Distractions: A Glass Immortals Novella eBook : McClellan, Brian: Kindle Store
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 05/07/2025
Partner’s niece and nephew are visiting and already I’ve seen enough Fortnight videos this morning to last a life time
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 03/07/2025
Was planning to write some more tonight but Demon In White has got its hooks in me.
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 02/07/2025
Deleted a chapter and started rewriting it tonight. It’s a nice feeling to see more clearly what my book needs after coming back to it.
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Reposted by Charlie
it looks like you're writing a novel @gr8writingtips.bsky.social · 30/06/2025
the most common way readers determine a book's star rating is to write down every word the author has used and tally how many times each appears. for every word you've used more than five times, they will dock half a star. don't say i didn't warn you
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Charlie @expyblg.bsky.social · 27/06/2025
An incredible book. I love the memoir format and the narrators voice fits the character perfectly.
The cover of the audio book for Howling Dark by Christopher Ruocchio
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