iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

This was taken just two minutes later than on the previous evening! Goes to show how much cloudcover affects the light 👍 #sunset #kent #england

A phone-photo of the same area of the town as yesterday's sunset photo. The sky is significantly darker and there's only a slight glow on the horizon.

090

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Yesterday's sunset scene was also quite nice. It looks to be the end of the fair weather spell though, as we've had blanket cloud coverage today and a decent amount of rain—thankfully! 🙂 #sunset #kent #england

A phone-photo of a sunset over an industrial area of a small town in the southeast of England.

2241

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

The big pond at the allotments was looking very tranquil on Monday evening 😍 Can you spot the coot? #landscapephotography #birdsoftheworld #birds | #kent #england

A phone-photo of a pond in the grounds of an allotment site near the centre of a small town in the southeast of England. The blue sky is reflected in the water and the surrounding trees are lit by the early-evening sunshine 😍

2322

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

The difference a quarter of an hour made to Monday night's sunset was quite pronounced. After and before popping over to my local supermarket 🙂 #sunset #kent #england

A sunset photo of an industrial area of a small town in the southeast of England.

The same sunset exactly 15 mins before 🙂

0151

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Before and after hand-weeding half of the nearest raised bed on my brief visit to my friend's little allotment on Monday evening. #allotmentgardening #allotment #gardening | #kent #england

A mini allotment garden with wood-edged raised beds. The little rain we've had brought on a flush of weeds, but the soil is still bone dry just beneath the surface 😔

And after the weeding. I've got some onion sets to go in hopefully later this week 👍

0140

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

This was interesting! I got a hit on the Merlin app for the European pied flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca) when I was down at the allotments yesterday evening. Reading up on them, it's late for them to still be around, but it goes to show how mild it's been of late #birdsoftheworld | #kent #england

A screenshot of the results page of the Merlin app. Being mostly an armchair birder I can't say that I've ever identified a pied flycatcher, or the yellow-legged gull in the wild (these latter are apparently common here in the SE of England at this time of the year).

3275

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

I discovered this solitary mushroom growing at the base of a compost bin in my friend's little allotment. Laŭ search it is most likely an Egghead Mottlegill. I can't see a ring on its stem, so I'm thinking that it might be this variety: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panaeol... #fungi #kent #england

A small white mushroom (approx. 2cm cap diameter) with a slight tan hue towards the top.

I tried peeking underneath to note the gill colour. Darkish grey-brown, I'd say, but being in shadow it's hard to be certain. I didn't want to uproot it as it was by it's lonesome, and I thought it best to leave it to do it's thing 🙂

1211

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

I really liked how the ripples caused by the gentle swimming of this coot made the autumn colours flash and dance 😍 #eurasiancoot #commoncoot #coot #coots #fulicaatra | #birdsoftheworld #birds | #kent #england

2485

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Another lovely evening in town yesterday. The classic orange VW Beetle belongs to a local shop owner and is a familiar sight around town these days. It even got included towards the end of this recent video about our infamous witch trial: youtu.be/qqMItlxrfAs?is=K_Dcsn... #faversham #kent #england

A peaceful evening view of the marketplace of an old town in the southeast of England. High level clouds reflect the setting sun in bright glow to the right. A VW Beetle car in the foreground tries to compete with brightness 🙂

1172

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

My neighbour's sunflower was looking more than a little sad 🙂 Time to bunch the seed heads together to hang on the wall for the birds 👍 #sunflowerseeds #sunflowers #birds

A woebegone-looking sunflower growing in a pot in the corner of a small backyard.

The cut seed heads bunched together in preparation for hanging on the wall.

1242

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Yet another lovely sunset this week! This one's from Wednesday evening 😍 #sunset #faversham #kent #england

The sunset over an industrial area of an old town in the southeast of England.

0162

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Another nice sunset yesterday evening. Photo taken at 6.48 pm, about 10 mins after the sun had gone down 😍 #faversham #kent #england

A phone-photo of a sunset behind the workings of an old brewery in an old town in the southeast of England.

2221

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

How's this for an extremely unfair and reactionary comment we recently got on @whatbirds.bsky.social ? We in no way "steal" people's photos, as we only feature those who have kindly put them into the public domain, and we always fully credit and link them. As for our use of AI, we always edit and..

391

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

I missed the sunset tonight by quarter of an hour, but it was still looking nice behind the old brewery 😍 #faversham #kent #england

A phone-photo of the sunset behind the buildings of a brewery in an old town in the southeast of England. The sky is a golden yellow on the horizon to the left, and high-level clouds are painted a rich orange red across.

1211

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

My friend's house was dealt a glancing blow by a stolen car in the early hours of Saturday morning! 😯 Fortunately, the window wasn't broken (apart from the sill), but the impact was hard enough to rupture a gas pipe and he was evacuated out for the night 😔 #carcrash #faversham #kent #england

The damage to the window frame is clearly visible (Amazing that the window didn't break!) and the original Victorian drainpipe lost its lower section. The new tarmac shows where the gas pipe got ruptured (the vibrations from the impact must have been severe!). Fortunately, although my friend was badly shaken up, he seems to be coming to terms with the trauma, and the nuisance! 🤞

His neighbour was saved from any major damage by the lamppost, which looks to have absorbed a lot of the impact.

My friend's wheelie bin didn't fare too well though! 😅

The driver and passenger seem to have survived without any major injuries as they had both run off before the emergency services arrived 😐

2131

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

I noticed this lamppost a few days ago and thought to myself wouldn't it be good if they all looked like this? I'm not sure of the climber though. Probably not native, so not so great for biodiversity 😐 #lamppost #climber | #kent #england

A close-up of a street light with a leafy climbing plant wrapped around. The backdrop is a cloudy sky.

Zooming back to give some context. Shrubbery, an old brick wall, clay-tile rooftops and parked cars are coming into frame.

Zoomed right out. The parked cars and the back of an old public house/inn can now be clearly seen 🙂

2222

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Today I've learnt about Fukuisaurus. I think I can die happy #dinosaurs #aronra youtu.be/olUTsKW71EU?...

161

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

The clouds over the old town looked fairly impressive yesterday evening ⛅ #faversham #kent #england

A photo of the marketplace of a medieval-dating town in the southeast of England under a dramatic early-evening sky. Fluffy, billowy clouds catching the warm golden sunlight spread across a pale blue sky.

1264

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

The big pond at the allotment was looking as lovely as ever yesterday evening 😍 #naturephotography #landscapephotography | #kent #england

"A tranquil, clear-sky view looking down a long, narrow body of water framed by lush, green trees and reeds on both banks. The calm water acts like a mirror, reflecting the blue sky, bright sunlight, and full tree foliage along the edges. Sunlight catches the tops of the leaves and tall reeds on the left side, while leafy overhanging branches frame the top of the photo." Gemini. I was too tired to write one myself 😔

0341

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

How my friend's little allotment looked on arrival yesterday. I'm going to have to take my electric strimmer down next time I go 🙂 Hopefully tomorrow 🤞 #allotmentgardening #allotments #gardening | #kent #england

A somewhat tired-looking mini allotment garden with wooden-edged raised beds. The intermittent rain we've had here over the last couple of weeks has really brought on the brambles and bindweed, and the grass paths are in need of a strim 🙂

0221

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

I do like how the ripples are making this Eurasian coot look like it's also having a spiky hair day 😁 Photo taken yesterday on my brief trip down to the allotments #birdsoftheworld #birds #coots | #kent #england

An Eurasian coot (Fulica atra) swimming through still grey water. The bird is mostly a charcoal grey with a black neck and head. Its white frontal shield is clearly visible from the side. The ripples it's making are causing its dark grey shadow to appear spiky 🙂

0567

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

I'm definitely having a bad hair day after my swim this lunchtime 😊 I also need to sort out the ol' soup strainer, I see! 😁 #swimming #swim

A selfie of a middle aged man looking unkempt after a swim at a local swimming baths.

271

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

1 min 4 sec. Not too bad, eh? 😉😊

Text from the Score History page of the BirdBainer App:

Common Birds of Australia (12)

Sep 14, 2026

7:49 AM

Name Mode: Common

6 seconds per question

3 answer choices

Total time: 1 min 4 sec

130

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

Yesterday's dusk scene over/behind the old brewery was quite nice #shepherdneamebrewery #shepherdneame | #faversham #kent #england

A late-evening phone photo of the darkening clouds behind the workings of an historic brewery. The sky is a light blue above, fading into a yellowish glow towards the horizon where the sun has already set.

2201

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

I had fun this evening stringing the best of the onion harvest to take down to my friends who have let me look after their little allotment this last couple of years. I planted them as sets in late April, but unfortunately forgot to make note of the variety 🙄 #allotmentgardening | #kent #england

Medium-small in size, I reckon, but I was pleased with how they turned out, considering I was late planting them. The posh secateurs belong to my neighbour 😊

How they looked after sorting and prior to stringing. I had told myself to look on YouTube to see how it's properly done, but I just winged it in the end 😊

The sets placed out prior to planting on the 24th April. I also can't remember how much they cost, but I'm sure the results have paid for themselves 👍

2231

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

I've centred it in this crop 🙂 One to send to the BBC Wildlife mag? They might want to feature it in next year's calendar? 😁

190

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Definitely autumn now (Meteorological, if not astronomical.) The big pond at the allotments viewed both ways from midway across the wooden footbridge 😍 #naturephotography #landscapephotography #allotments | #kent #england

A view of a large pond in the stillness of an early autumn early evening (still apart from the noise coming from the town 😔). The clear blue sky is reflected in the pond, whose only ripples are caused by a coot which didn't like the look of me 🙂 The surrounding foliage of shrubs and trees are showing a good amount of autumn browns.

2414

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

I had only gone down to try and escape the din, and to check on things, so was pleased to find that last week's storms had watered the toms. Many had split due to my not having watered them last time I went (quickly dispatched 😋) but I did take home a good many besides 👍 #allotment #tomatoes

The ones I took home. Fully ripe (I had to rescue many that fell as I picked) so cheese and cherry tomato sandwiches are on the menu tomorrow 👍😋

How they looked prior to picking. My feeble efforts to bolster their support didn't survive the storms 😊 I also noted that I'll need to take the strimmer down next time I go 👍

1272

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

As I was sitting there I played a game of Spot the Great Tit (No, I wasn't the object! 😁). A pair were determined not to come this side of the Elderberry tree I was sitting next to. This was the best shot I managed. Can you spot it? #greattit #elderberry #birdsoftheworld #birds | #kent #england

A Great Tit (Parus major) lurking in the dense growth of an Elderberry Tree (Sambucus nigra).

3442

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Even down at the allotments I couldn't escape the noise of the town's annual hop festival 😭 They do though stop the outdoor music at 6pm, which gives us quieter-loving folk something to look forward to! 😁 #allotments #allotmentgardening #gardening | #kent #england

0273

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Tonight's sunset looking down the old lane was quite nice. Notice that the portaloos are in place for this week's festivities. I don't begrudge the town this highlight of the year, but the sooner it's over.. 🙂 #sunset #kent #england | #favershamhopfestival

A late-evening photo looking down a lane in an old market town in the southeast of England. The scene is semi-industrial with housing on the left and the buildings and workings belonging to a brewery on the right. A warm orange sunset glow is seen on the horizon and this is reflected on the fairweather clouds in a darkening blue sky.

2232

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

The big pond at the allotments was looking super-serene when I left yesterday evening 😍 #naturephotography #nature | #kent #england

A large pond surrounded by dense green trees and lush vegetation under a clear blue sky. Reeds line the left bank, and soft golden sunlight reflects across the still water, mirroring the foliage above.

2675

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

Yesterday's harvest from my friend's little allotment 👨‍🌾 #allotmentgardening #allotments #gardening | #kent #england

The cherry tomatoes prior to picking. Unfortunately, I forgot to take an "after" photo 🙄😊

How the allotment looked on arrival yesterday evening. Not much left to harvest this year, just some unimpressively small leeks, I think 😁😊

1353

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Well, this was an interesting find on my brief trip to my friend's allotment this early evening! Unfortunately, I hit it with my trowel whilst digging the last of the spuds. Mx. Fox is going to be unhappy when they find their duck egg isn't as fresh as they would like 😕 #duckeggs | #kent | #england

The broken duck egg that I unearthed whilst digging the last of this year's potatoes. There was no pong, so it must have been buried earlier this year 🦊🪿🥚

2131

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Definitely starting to look autumnal 🍂 The big pond in the allotment grounds 😍 #kent #england

A tranquil pond surrounded by dense green trees and tall bulrushes, with subtle reflections on the calm water under an overcast sky (I cheated and used Google Gemini) 😊

1260

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

First time down to my friend's little allotment in over a week 😔 A good take home of cherry toms, and the onions ain't "bull-necked" 🙌😁 #allotmentgardening #allotment #gardening | #kent #england

The horizontal supporting can was bowing due to the weight of the tomatoes! 😅

I probably ate half as many again whilst picking! 😊 Very sweet they were! 😋

How the onions looked laid out to fully ripen (I'll turn them next time I'm down). Maybe not as large as I would have liked, but I did plant them late, and none of them seemed "bull-necked" (Something I feared a while back, as I remember it happening once when I owned my own allotment about 10 years ago).

2261

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

Interestingly irregular altocumulus undulatus (mackerel) clouds over the old town this evening 🤓 #weather #clouds | #faversham #kent #england

A photo of wavy clouds in an evening sky. Instead of going all in the one direction, the "waves" seem more jumbled up than in usual "mackerel" cloud formations, maybe? 🙂

A context photo looking up from a small backyard. Old walls, rooftops and railings can be seen in silhouette, along with the topmost leaves of a sapling tree.

414511

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

I came across this regrettably unalive hawker dragonfly on my walk home from my mate's yesterday evening. Hopefully, it had got done everything that it had wanted to, before, presumably, getting hit by a car. It was on a busy roadside 😔 #insects #dragonflies | #kent #england

A dead migrant hawker or autumn hawker (Aeshna mixta) dragonfly, I think, placed on a metal railing besides a busy road. It was around 6 cm (2.5 in) long, at a guess.

0180

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 16/08/2026

Obviously not one of my most favourite of insects, but you do have to admire those colours! This common green bottle fly decided I smelt bad enough to check out 😊 #insects #flies | #kent #england

A close-up phone camera photo of a common green bottle fly (Lucilia sericata) at rest on my cargo pants 🪰😊

How I first noticed the uncouth little fellow 🙂

0150

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

I disturbed this small tortrix moth whilst watering my neighbour's maple bushes this evening. Lozotaenia forsterana, perhaps? #ukmoths #moths | #kent #england en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lozotae...

A small, pale brown moth (only around 12 mm (0.5 in) long, at a guess) at rest on the leaf of a pot-grown Japanese maple 🍁

A wider-angle photo showing more of the maple and giving better context to the size of the moth.

1160

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

I was lucky in getting a couple of semi-decent lens reflections of today's 90% solar eclipse 🙌🌕☀️ #solareclipse #eclipse | #kent #england

A photo overlooking Oare Marshes, nr. Faversham, Kent. Taken at 18:42 about 1/2 an hour before the max coverage. Towards the left, about a quarter of the way down from the horizon, you can see a tiny lens reflection 😊

The lens reflection enlarged. Certainly the eclipse! 😁

Taken at 18:12, shortly before the maximum coverage. The small lens reflection is this time halfway down on the right 👍

An enlargement of the second reflection. That looks like an eclipse to me! 😎😁

1321

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

A young friend popped by to say hello whilst I was visiting the allotment this evening 😍 #europeanrobin #robin | #birdsoftheworld #birds | #kent #england

A juvenile robin was interested in what I was up to during my brief visit to my friend's little allotment this early evening 😍

Another almost front-on portrait photo looking down on the robin whose grey flecks on its head and down its orange "bib" show it to be a youngster.

Before zooming in on the little fellow. It didn't seem to mind the fresh horse manure I had just emptied on to the old raspberry bed 🙂

1507

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

My usual view of the big pond at the allotments. Around 7pm Saturday just gone #landscapephotography #allotments | #kent #england

A large pond lined with lush green trees and tall reeds on the banks, with soft clouds reflected on the water's surface.

2311

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

Two down, one to go! I've almost finished with the potato harvest this year. I will definitely plant more next year, situation willing 👍 The first tomatoes were also ready for picking 🙌 #allotmentgardening #allotment #gardening | #kent #england

A nice harvest from only two plants, I thought. They were a shop-brought "baby" variety that had begun to sprout, so I decided to risk planting them. They worked out fine 👍

I'm not sure of the variety, but they seem cherry-sized to me (brought as small plants from a local supermarket). I harvested them "on the vine" in the hopes that more will ripen at home 👍

The small onion bed continues to look good, I think. Next time I'm up I'll try lifting them slightly with a fork to encourage them to further ripen. I think I remember that this is something you can do 👍

How my friend's little allotment looked on arrival this evening.

2221

Tim H @timhopper.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

I spotted this raft of hen mallards (with some "mutts") in the gloom as I was leaving the allotments this evening. Plotting world domination, maybe? 😅 #birdsoftheworld #birds | #kent #england

A "raft" of female mallard ducks (Anas platyrhynchos) with a few "mutt mallards" (crosses with domestic breeds). They looked like they were having a real conference! 😁

Where I spotted the clandestine meeting 🕵️‍♂️ A narrow stream through a low-lying allotment grounds. The ducks are at the far end.

1242