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Jen Hillyard

@mininglibrarian.bsky.social
1.2K followers 1.8K following 448 posts

Library & Archives Manager at The Common Room in Newcastle and Business Development Manager for NAG. Ex Carnegie-Greenaway judge. Mobility issues thanks to MCTD - I’m the one with the purple crutches... Disabled 🏳️‍🌈 parent.

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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
I am highly suspicious I have some level of MCAS going on (the flush, weird food intolerances, gastro symptoms, new eczema…) so I might also try it for flu but sad to hear it might not have such great benefits! Seriously considering trying full MCAS h1/h2 protocol next.
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
I had to set a phone alarm and stick my fexo in my pocket to remember but it was absolutely worth it. I was knocked out for a week with my last Covid jab and I feel totally normal now on day 3.
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rahaeli @rahaeli.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Boosting again for people getting COVID vaccines (thank you for getting vaccinated!!) because my mentions are full of people finding it helpful. There is way more detail (and citations!) in the thread both up and down but this is the key info!
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
bsky.app/profile/raha...
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
I tried some online advice of taking a double dose of antihistamine two hours before jab and I have to say it’s the least painful arm post-covid jab I’ve ever had so it must have worked. If you’re ok with antihistamines it might be worth taking at least a normal dose!
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
I always really fancied wearing a cloak in general. I just felt I could get into that vibe. Thinking logically I’m not sure how you combine that with your handbag though….
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Ours is so late though - they’re not doing my 6yo’s school till late November!
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
I have tried to make it look as closed as possible but it is slightly concerning given the Fri/Sat night drinkers will be out later (we are very close to the central railway station and surrounded by bars…)
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
BT have now said whilst they can’t say whether it’s theirs or not remotely because it was originally painted black (??) they will send an engineer to check it out….
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Sadly it is very much our problem as I suspect if some little toerag yanks those cables all our internet will go off….
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Are there any other companies I can try? The Council's website very firmly says they don't do utility cabinets, not their problem!
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
today's fun is the cabinet outside our building is hanging open and both VirginMedia and BT OpenReach deny all knowledge of it on their system. I'm sorry but this looks like a phone related cabinet to me?
open doors with thousands of small connected cables inside
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
I can definitely recommend the double antihistamines two hours before jab approach! My arm still hurts but more like normal day 2 or 3 not the agony of day 1. I don't feel "all over rubbish" like I often do either. To be on the safe side I've doubled my normal fexo this morning as well...
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Instead of asking my DoB the pharmacist asked “and how old are you?” I had absolutely no idea and I can’t work it out without a calculator! They still needed to then write my DoB on the paperwork later so I’m not sure what that was about…. “Umm forty one maybe forty two?” was the best I could do.
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Will update….
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Got mine today and took a double dose of my usual antihistamine two hours before…. We shall see!
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Hurrah! I got a Covid jab still! I took the antihistamines two hours before too so let’s see if it makes a difference….
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
The "Toast" episode about why PaperChase folded was really interesting! www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
bbc.co.uk
Toast - Paperchase - BBC Sounds
Sean Farrington examines another succesful business that still ended up 'toast'.
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
lol! I am always looking for a bargain and very disappointed but that’s my shopping style I guess!
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
See I always think most stuff isn’t that much cheaper? Other than alcohol and you’re only allowed a litre so that’s self limiting!
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Ethan Gruber @ewg118.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Cataloging and digital collections bluesky: Anyone migrated special collections into Bibframe yet? I'm interested in looking at the underlying LOD.
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Put a hi-vis vest on and no one will argue with you doing it…
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
ALL the fingers crossed for you!!
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National Acquisitions Group (NAG) @uklibrariesnag.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
NAG Members only: Coffee and Chat! "Connecting the Dots: Acquisitions and Engagement" What data drives your decisions and where does that come from? Tues 24th Nov, 10am (postponed from July) nag.org.uk/event/chatju...
nag.org.uk
Coffee and Chat #12: Connecting the dots – acquisitions and engagement – National Acquisitions Group
NAG Webinar Week 2026: 9-13th Nov
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
I have an album folder on my phone called “useful admin pics” that includes passports, payslips, car number plates, NHS numbers…. Has saved me many times.
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
A friend started me off on the witches thread and then pushed me into the Vimes ones from there. Then gave me the diagram and let me follow threads. Worked for me. I have tried and failed several times to get through colour of magic but I just hate Rincewind….
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Yeah this drove us mad. As a lesbian couple making a baby with a syringe we knew the exact date yet the ultrasound tech was still faffing with measurements and adjusting due dates. We were super clear AND highlighted my wife’s non standard cycle length and yet she insisted on doing her weird maths
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
I am really regretting letting the physio poke my neck vertebrae on Friday in the hope of curing my pins and needles…. I can barely turn my head to one side! “Keep stretching!” she said. “Let me know how it feels over the next few days!”
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Our cat was desperate to be under the floorboards during the building project. In the end they left a cat sized gap until the last possible moment and then got us to trap her in another room whilst they sealed it up! They were so worried they were going to end up with her stuck under there.
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Totally with you. I have earache and it feels massively unfair. Too much of me already hurts to cope with something else on top. Hope you can shake it off!
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
I liked being able to try them out instead of looking in a catalogue. For work I was lucky enough to get a special one where I went to a session with a physio to work out best fit for me. Really interesting experience.
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
I went to our local “community furniture” place. They do a lot of office clearances including some very fancy chairs. Delivery only £5!
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Veep @princesssofvp.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Bluesky, does anyone remember an alphabet book that for ‘i’ had “industrious ants eating indigo ice cream”? It’s got to be at least 45 years old and probably more. Should it ring any bells I would be delighted to find a copy 🐜💙🍦
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Alex Brown 🇵🇸 (they/them) @bookjockeyalex.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
As I'm sure many others have pointed out, this website is an AI scraper. This news is 6 years old. The company scrapes real news articles and rewrites them with an LLM, then republishes them for clicks.
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
We have a second undercounter fridge which is condiment jars, booze and a few vegetables at the bottom!
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Philip Allfrey @drpda.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Today looking up details to correctly cite a scholar I found she's also made some art. #DHMakes This is Interference Pattern II by Frances Rothwell Hughes. She started each square when she had time to embroider and stopped when interrupted by her newborn www.francesrothwellhughes.com/interference...
Detail of textile artwork, showing 6 by 4 squares. Each square shows the same pattern in different stages of completion, ranging from dashes, to diamonds, to a complex geometric pattern filling the entire square.Framed textile artwork consisting of 4 rows of 25 squares. Each square contains a different number of embroidered stiches in black thread.
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
I’ve been invited to book my Covid jab but with a nasty disclaimer at the bottom that “some people who have previously been eligible may not be this year. Please speak to the pharmacist”… We shall see next week! But I am DEFINITELY trying this antihistamine advice.
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Someone said swearing in the search string works to remove the AI results? Bit tricky at work though….
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
I got to do an Old English module as part of my Lit/Lang degree and I loved it. One of my favourites and yes, having some German DEFINITELY helped. Everyone else looked stunned when the lecturer got into cases except me and the German exchange students who nodded happily in recognition!
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Excellent work! I spent quite a lot of time at my Mum’s work as a kid. Many worksheets and a lot of dusting the (fake) office plants leaf by leaf is all I can remember… My 6yo ends up at mine at least once a term with colouring sheets. I’m here, the building is open, what more do you want from me?
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Anna Landre @annalandre.com · 22/09/2026
My latest for @lbc.co.uk: If politicians want to reduce the PIP and wider benefits bill, they should make basic investments in accessible infrastructure and services ⬇️
Screenshot of an LBC opinion article with headline “PIP would cost less if politicians invested in making life easier for people like me,” subtitle “If Government wants to spend less on disability benefits over time, it has to remove the daily barriers that create these costs, writes disability campaigner Anna Landre,” and photo of Anna, a young white woman using a wheelchair.
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Ours has many online bookable appointments for a niche range of situations but including smears. I am assuming there is a funding incentive involved for the practice but if it means I don’t have to sit on hold I’m on board! They even had evenings…
Screen shot of bookable appointments for bloods, asthma, contraception or smear
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Oh I’ve given up on the legs! Shorts style bottoms and a tshirt shaped top remove the rest of the depilation worries… 😄
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
I always feel like that about swimming! I want to BE swimming, I don’t want to be prepping the stuff, getting changed or dreading getting dressed again and getting home with wet hair…. The actual swimming bit is great but the rest of it….
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Mine said it might be better if I was already lying down if I wanted to drink on one of my meds but didn’t say I couldn’t!
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Jen Hillyard @mininglibrarian.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Yeah similar dilemma! Free after 1st October or pay now… they’re not vaccinating my kid’s class until late November!
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ARA SAM @araarchmus.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Our next training session is 'Mixed Collections: Balancing Conservation and Interpretation'. This online training, presented by freelance museum consultants Anita Hollinshead and Jim Grevatte, will be held on Tuesday, 6 October from 10:00 to 12:30. Register now: www.archives.org.uk/training-eve...
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Marianne Doherty @mariannedoherty.bsky.social · 19/12/2025
More funny, readable kids books by non-despicable humans. #KidsBooksFriday #KidLitUK #UKKidLit
Book cover for Northern Soul by Phil EarleBook cover for Noah’s Gold by Frank Cottrell-Boyce Book cover for The Miraculous Journey of Freddie Yates by Jenny PearsonBook cover for Bumble & Snug and the Worried Dragons by Mark Bradley
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Side @sidegallery.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
🎬 Starting tomorrow and running all weekend: “Voices From Here” brings six decades of Amber Films to Durham Folk Festival. 📍 Redhills Durham Miners Hall 📅 18 to 20 Sept 🕐 1 to 4pm daily 🎟️ Free More info: sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/...
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Dan O'Hara @skeuomorphology.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
A more mixed picture in the North. Blackpool have just started to test properly again and I'm not surprised at what they've found. Lots of areas above the average across Lancashire, Yorkshire, and Tyneside, but it's not a uniform rise. 5/7
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