iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

The Klostoph Buddha, Leven Seat, near the village of Forth.

Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Until today, I had no idea that 200 years ago, there was a socialist utopian community of 300 people at Orbiston near Motherwell (take the Greenlink from Strathclyde Park).

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

The search for Treasure Island - ride from home to North Berwick, taking in the Colinton Tunnel with its mural of Stevenson, Yellowcraigs where you can see the Island of Fidra, the model for Treasure Island, and Lighthouse Corner in the town itself.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

Who can forget the episode where TEMU wrestled Michael Parkinson to the floor and forced him to buy a dodgy powerbank?

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

A ride to Broughton today. A couple of miles before I reached the village, out of the blue I decided to go to Biggar via the railway path. I last rode this stretch 25 years ago or more when a couple of us stewarded a Biggar High sponsored walk on our mountain bikes. Lunch sitting on a rusty bridge.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

Folder fun along NCN 7 near Glasgow- the remains of a station (Scotstoun East, I believe) and Andy Scott's 'Rise' sculpture.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 01/07/2026

I spent too long thinking particular hills had 'beaten me' if I had to stop for a rest part of the way up.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 01/07/2026

Wow! You're one of the few authors whose books I buy at full price because I can't wait until the price drops to read them.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 27/06/2026

Steuart Padwick's COP26 legacy statue at Cunigar Loop and my wee Dawes folder outside the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

You know that I ain't braggin', It's a pinky-purple wagon, Greased lightnin' ⚡ ⚡ ⚡ ⚡ Hire bike! Reminds me of a stripped down Glasgow Nextbike.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 07/06/2026

This link takes you to Westwood House on an old Ordnance Survey map (National Library of Scotland archive). Use the slider at the bottom of the screen to see a modern view. maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/...

maps.nls.uk

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

AI - show me an image of the Bayeux Tapastry...

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 18/05/2026

If you haven't seen it before, you do a double take when you see it in the distance. Is that really a field of snow in May? Of course not. It's bog cotton, one of my favourite sights, a gentle wonder of the natural world. And the socks... are they being funny, or is it a brilliant typo?

A field of bog cotton with hills in the background

Bog cotton - from a distance it looks like a snowfall

A pair of cycling socks. One has the words 'Live to ride', the other 'Dire to Live'

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

The new addition to the fleet...

A Dawes Jack folding bicycle in front of a poster advertising New College Lanarkshire with the words 'I could be happy'.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

The truth is almost certainly that the house was long gone before the bing was there. But isn't it great to imagine that there's a preserved building there waiting to be discovered in the future? More here: scottishshale.co.uk/.../path.../... Maps courtesy of the National Library of Scotland 2/2

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

Passing the Five Sisters shale bing, I was reminded of a conversation I had with a guy in Loanhead Tearoom. He claimed that there was a mansion buried under the bing. Could he be right? If we look at old and modern maps, we can see that Westwood House was indeed on a site now covered in spoil. 1/2

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

My replacement at SSERC is retiring. I think it's the best job in Scottish physics education. See here (scroll down): www.sserc.org.uk

sserc.org.uk

SSERC | Welcome to SSERC

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

Got my paper copy of the latest Eejit Street. I thought I'd ditched imposter syndrome when I retired, then I was asked to script two football-based comic strips. Not my area of expertise... You can read the full comic here: www.scotshooseyaldi.com/wp-content/u...

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

For May 4th: Well she took her daddy's car and she went for a burger and soda, But she didn't watch the road, had a bump with a '60 plate Skoda, Now the guys don't know why but since the shunt she's been talking like Yoda, And fun, fun, fun she'll have til the T-Bird her dad takes away.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 02/05/2026

When you're an auld dude like me, you get invited for an Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm ultrasound scan. Had mine this morning. Celebrated being clear by having a coffee and roll in Kim'Z Cafe, Blackburn, buying a @spokes.org.uk cycle map in Pedal Power and having another coffee and biscuit at Loanhead.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

It's certainly smaller than it once was but this air photo shows the bing to the north west of the loch, which appears to have some sort of tramway or conveyor running across it: maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/... The paths around here can be a bit muddy but today they were as good as I've ever seen them.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

A wee ride to Redmire Loch today. This is in the Kingshill Nature Reserve, on the site of the former Kingshill Colliery. A fading information board claims that the loch was covered over by the colliery bing but I can't see any evidence of this on old maps. 1/2 @mininglandscapes.bsky.social

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

*Reading Robert MacFarlane's 'The Old Ways', I was intrigued to find a character who enjoyed walking barefoot over nettles. I've found the occasional nettle skin not unpleasant - like chilli for the legs... 2/2

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

The Ruined Farmhouse on the Edge of Forever - a time portal at Auchterhead. You stand in the old building and look out at modern Lanarkshire. In a month or so, there will be too many nettles* to do this. 1/2

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 26/04/2026

Cobbinshaw Reservoir (built to supply water for the Union Canal). Never before have I seen such a deep shade of blue there.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

The latest Eejit Street comic - Fitba Daft - is here: www.scotshooseyaldi.com/primary/comi...

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Loved 'The Mither Tongue' audio book.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

A day early, but celebrating buying this Dawes tourer a year ago.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

A morning ride to the Outback...

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

As we approach Holy Week, here are a couple of photos of Dura Kirk. There has been a white cross in the grounds for a year or so now.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 15/03/2026

Two photos taken a few minutes apart...

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

Double delight in the post - hard copies of the Eejit Street comic I contribute to, and a complimentary copy of the 'Favourite Bike Ride' booklet from Spokes that has a route description from me. @spokes.org.uk

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

As someone pitching a book where the cycling happens at an average speed of 11mph, I must agree.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

I enjoyed that. What's your criteria for when to take the tourer and when to take a mountain bike? I find myself having the same dilemma, especially when there's a long stretch of tarmac to get to a few miles of rough stuff.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

Possibly my favourite 'submit your work to an AI and ask for a stinker of a review' piece...

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

My new hobby - feeding a piece of my writing into an AI and asking it to write a stinker of a review.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

It's a marvellous shot, whenever you took it.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 02/03/2026

First time I've noticed this in Glasgow.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 02/03/2026

A walk along Glasgow's riverside while the ladies lunched.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 02/03/2026

Your work on my Major Tam strip in Eejit Street is fantastic - always look forward to seeing it.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

Best cycling day of the year so far. I took a trip to Douglas via Poneil and the great new path. Saw my first lambs of the year but perhaps the best part was riding home around four in the afternoon in full daylight.

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Gregor Steele @gregorsteele.bsky.social · 18/02/2026

Statistics here: www.honestjohn.co.uk/the-latest-c... Very easy to transfer to an automatic - they have footrests for your left foot. Stick your foot there and don't do anything with it.

honestjohn.co.uk

The Latest Car Fire Statistics

Uncover the numbers behind car fires. We examine the frequency, causes and devastating impact of car fires.

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