Robin Bird

@robinxbird

Pronouns em/em/eir (they're singular, nice and easy) Trainee counsellor, attempting to write eir dead father's memoir, bookish, lefty, nerdy, disabled and British.

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Robin Bird@robinxbird· 28d

another 5 minute effort. again. could be so much better if i watched a YouTube tutorial or something. this is my own photo. canva automatically applied the filter. it's not great. but it's not AI!

a book cover mock up for a fake book. in the background is a hazy picture of some sort of stone well with moss. the "title" reads "where the moss grows" in a black script. at the bottom in basic block capitals is the "author name".

Robin Bird@robinxbird· 28d

i did this in about 5 minutes on Canva. it could be improved significantly if i spent another 5 minutes. i did a Google search for royalty free pictures of Liverpool. (this is an example only) is it brilliant? no! is it perfectly satisfactory? yes!

a mock up of a book cover featuring a black and white picture of 1950s Liverpool in the background with the "title" tag line and author names in white sans stood serif font of various sizes

Robin Bird@robinxbird· 29d

ok i don't love it, but i did it and that's what counts. haven't done much creative in the last two years at all, so anything is good. and if I'm inspired by John the Pigeon who likes to fly into the coffee shop then so be it.

a watercolour painting of a pigeon with pink and green iridescence, a dark grey body and a white tail. the background is a cyanotype print of scattered coffee beans

Robin Bird@robinxbird· 29d

playing a dangerous game of tea or paint water here

a cluttered desk on which stand two jars of water and a glass cup of ice tea, neatly in a row.

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jul 12

went to the local green community festival. it was lovely as always. they do a really good job of enmeshing environmental concerns with local community concerns: how looking after our environment locally and nationally makes it actively better to live here from poorest to richest.

a local community CIC brought the llamas and alpacas from their tiny urban farm. here is a small group of brown and white llamas and alpacas in a metal pen in a little woodland glade. they are shaded by the trees

a large brown hippo model with a person in costume "riding" it and another walking on the ground as a "handler". the "rider" has his hands on bike style handlebars and you can just see bike wheels peaking out from under the hippo. they are on a road with woodland in the background, people watching and bright bunting. the hippo is shining in the sun

we are looking into the walled 17th Century bath house. the walls are high yellow stone. there is a narrow flagged walkway around a deep square "bath" which is sunk into the floor. to the left is a little cutting where there would be steps into the water. the bath is only partially filled with water and there are thick layers of moss.
the whole thing is open to the air (by design) and there is dappled sunlight.

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jul 11

the bean situation has escalated.

a small grey pot in a garden with a bean plant in. there is a series of canes/ sticks increasing in size with the bean plant making its way up. the tallest stick currently is bare but there is a tendril of bean from the next nearest stick waving its way toward it.
in the background is a large shared urban garden with patches of grass, small trees, verdant planting and kids play things. it's very sunny

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jul 9

decided that to ease me back into painting i would use a pallet i very rarely use. there's zero expectations of it that way: the unfamiliarity isn't just because I'm out of practice. and they suit the subject well. I'm enjoying this. (Derwent graphite paints)

on a shady blue outside table is an open sketchbook, paint pallet, empty glass with pink plastic ice cubes, jar of dirty water, small brush and a cloth.
the pallet has small blocks of greyish hues coloured padding and the lid is full of mixed paint varying from mustardyv yellow to muted terracotta and various greys.
the sketchbook has a rough watercolour sketch of a pigeon and stripes of paint swatches down one side.

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jul 8

i did it i actually picked up a pencil and started! i literally had 15 minutes before i had to go out and i think the time constraint actually helped in some ways.

open sketchbook with a sketch of a pigeon in graphite and bright blue pencil on the first page

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jul 7

procasti-binding

looking at the spine of a sketchbook, bound with coptic stitch. the spine is uncovered and the stitched holding each signature of folded heavy weight white paper together. the thread white linen and the cover boards are plain grey board. the book is on a blue cutting matt with a 5mm grid.

the same coptic bound sketchbook on a blue cutting matt. the cover is plain grey board with visible pencil marks. on the cover is a large sticker with an illustration of a human skull pierced by an ornate sword with a floral arrangement in the background

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jul 5

normally a black coffee drinker, I've found myself ordering flat whites recently. which means cute latte art! this is what you miss out on when you get too into pour overs!

small cup of coffee with the face of a bear in the milk foam

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jul 4

I'm glad local press has still got some teeth.

Text from a newspaper article that reads: Culture can come in many forms, but anything AI-generated that tries to pass itself off as artistic is not cultural.

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jul 2

July reading. 10 is a lot for me, and is down to a) finishing uni and b) diving into a lot of shorter novels and novellas. A very fun reading month with lots of variety. (Book titles, authors, narrators and translators and ratings in alt text) 💙📚

A collage of book covers from Storygraph headed @skeletonrobin's June 2026 Reads. The books shown are:
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt (3.5 star)
Best Friends Bury Bodies by CM Rosens (4 star)
Bat Eater by Kylie Lee Baker (5 star) (narrated by Natalie Naudus)
The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley (5 star)
The Talented Mr Ripley (4 star)
Ripley Underground (3 star)
Ripley's Game (4 star)
(above by Patricia Highsmith)
Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse (4 star) (narrated by Cara Gee, Nicole Lewis, Shaun Taylor-Corbett, Kaipo Schwab)
Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel García Márquez (5 star) (translated by Gregory Rabassa)
Phoenix Extravagant by Yoon Ha Lee (4.5 star) (narrated by Emily Woo Zeller)

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jul 1

Look how happy they are!

A large green container on a patio surrounded by other plants. In the pot are verdant green potato plants with green leaves abs small pinkish white flowers. The photograph is slightly out of focus as if the person holding the phone is stopping over a cat at the time

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jul 1

Bookpost today. Thank you @longbarrowpress.bsky.social and Fay Musselwhite for a lovely book of poetry. I'm looking forward to reading but I'm already enjoying the quality binding. 💙📚

A hardbook copy of The Gleaning by Fay Musselwhite with a small pamphlet titled "Inventory" by Longbarrow Press.

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 30

I'm not sure how much information I'm retaining but these subjects are just mind melting and I'm trying not to giggle with the excitement of it all. (Also the good coffee)

A hardback copy The Edge of Space-Time by Chanda Prescod-Weinstein on treble next to a fancy little bamboo tray holding a glass jug partially filled with coffee and a little blue and white ceramic cup.

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 27

I would have said Quarry House due to how ominously it looms. But you're right. Bridgewater Place is far more alarming, and still looms. It has lore.

Screen grab from the Bridge water place Wikipedia page.
The phrases "unacceptable wind microclimate" and "comparable to a hurricane" are highlighted blue.
Text reads:

Wind baffles during installation
Following the Property reaching practical completion in April 2007, it became apparent that the Property had created an
unacceptable wind microclimate, principally to the north of the Property on Water Lane and also at the junction with Water Lane/Neville Street. It was found that the Property was accelerating winds coming from a westerly direction and also creating wind downdraft from the residential tower. Wind speeds were measured as high as 79 mph, comparable to a hurricane. One person suffered a torn liver and internal bleeding, and cuts requiring 11 stitches, and a buggy with a three-month-old child was pushed out into the road by a sharp gust. In March 2011, a local man, Dr Edward Slaney, was killed by a lorry overturned on him by a gust. The Crown Prosecution Service advised against bringing charges of corporate manslaughter against the architects, Aedas.[10][11][12]

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 26

I like seeing a well used bike rack at the supermarket #cycling

Four bikes of various types all with pannier racks and bags locked to bike racks near a stand of shopping trollies

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 25

Not sure if starting a climate crisis noir thriller in the middle of a climate crisis induced heatwave is a great idea or a terrible one, but we're going to find out. Also means i get to read more indie published fiction, this time from @bobfairbrother.bsky.social 💙📚

Two books stacked together and tied with a red ribbon. The top book has a stylised black and white cover with the title "Project Deadhead " at a steep angle and the author name, Bob Fairbrother, in red. Classic noir styling.

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 24

My garden is super lush and chaotic and makes me happy. It smells divine

A small garden patch full of lush greenery including some in pots. The right hand side is dominated by a large rambunctious lavender. There's a big pot of potato plants just beginning to flower. Theres a silvery green spear of a plant in a terracotta pot. So many other green leaves

A close up of a bean vine winding it's way up some caves. I'm obsessed with it's rate of growth

Another view of chaos garden. This time you can see some of the smaller plants. Little clumps of soft green leaves in the soil, sprawling shiny green leaves, tiny purple flowers, a rampant rosemary, and effusive ferns. There's a stout green rainwater butt in the background, a stalwart against encroaching drought

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 24

It's not that humid here today ... oh. Bugger.

Screen cap of met office weather app for Leeds, UK:
Rain - no rain expected
Humidity:
Daily high 80% daily low 40%
UV
Daily highest level
HIGH

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 23

Feeling very Mediterranean this evening. The sun is below the horizon. The temperature is a mere 24°C. Plants are being watered. Beers are being drunk. The neighbours are outside chatting. Hoping for bats!

Picture of a large urban garden with an overgrown verdant growing patch lit with outdoor lamps. Near the greenhouses on the left two people stand talking, one gesturing with a watering can. The sky is twilight blue, there's the silhouette of trees in the background. You can imagine the scent of herbs and evening flowers.

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 19

After my Patricia Highsmith mini marathon, time to get into something a little meatier! 💙📚

A copy of The Edge of Space-Time by Chandra Prescod-Weinstein lays open, face down on sunny green grass. The cover is black with a prominent cycle: half wibbly black and white concentric rings, half a pleasing gradient from violet to green. The title, author name and blurb are in white font

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 17

Sometimes i actually put effort into presentation, even when it's just for me. (This was also super delicious) Bulgar wheat with grilled tofu, peppers and courgette and toum.

Looking down into my dinner plate. A white shallow bowl on a blue table with a black fork next to it. Arranged in thirds of a circle are grilled tofu, courgette and bright red and charred pepper. There is a creamy coloured sauce drizzled over it all, torn up bright green basil leaves and a sprinkle of paprika.

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 12

Have to keep reading because how can i disturb the cats to go to bed? Also i think my book mark is underneath one of them. 💙📚

POV, you are sat in bed reading. Two fluffy cats are on the rumpled bed. One is soft and black facing away from us. The other is black and white facing toward us. There is the vague shape of a lap under one of the cats. Next to the cats is an open book with a blue cover.
The cats are clearly comfortable and not going anywhere soon.

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 11

My cat is sick and i am tired. She's got D&V so i was up several times in the night to clean up and comfort her (the sad sad meows). Vet appointment booked for tomorrow morning. I have to go to work this afternoon and feel bad leaving her, but also glad to be away from the *excretions*.

Two cats asleep on a bed. On the left in a cosy relaxed loaf is a black fluffy cat. On the right in classic prawn shape, chin exposed, is a fluffy black and white cat. It's the bosh cat on the left that is currently sick. This was taken a few hours before symptoms escalated from "bit squiffy" to "oh no".

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 7

Due to how Bluesky shows comment threads i have have absolutely no idea what happened to get from A to B here. But i love it anyway. Poetry ???? The history of property law Roman Irish trade. Marvelous. A Wikipedia rabbit hole couldn't have done better.

Screenshot of partial comment thread.

Jay Hulme @jayhulmepoet.bsky.... 9h Not to poet-post, but one of the problems of the internet is that it's fuelled a culture in which people "love poetry" but never actually pay for it - consuming fragments posted online instead of immersing themselves in full collections - then being surprised when poets ask to be paid for their work
...
View full thread
...
Seeadler @seeadler.bsky.social 1h As for "the first written laws were 500 years off"... .property law is among the literal Ten Commndments, Seth.
Please go back to American Literature, because you manifestly do not know what you are talking about here.

Kingfisher & Wombat @tkingfish...7m Also wasn't there a fair amount of commerce between Rome and Ireland back in the day? Even if they didn't adopt Roman law, I'm sure the be aware of the practice.

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 6

When wanting to read one book from your tbr (Ripley's Game) necessitates buying at least two more books first. Oh no, what a shame etc etc. #booksky

Three books lined up on a grey blanket:
The talented Mr Ripley; Ripley underground; Ripley's game. By Patricia Highsmith.
Each cover has a black & white photograph cover, though the middle book is for some reason tinted blue.

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 6

I had to go and find the comment again. It was 8 months ago and still haunts me.

You tube comment from 8 months ago. The username is blanked out. It has 1 like. Text reads:

Personally, I'm appalled by the use of "beta readers." Basically, it removes the author as the creator. If I wrote a book and then gave it to 100 people to read, and then they TOLD me how to fix it, am I a "good" writer? is this how Hemmingway wrote his novels? Wouldn't the reality be that I am a bad writer? lf my book (like Audra's) is actually terrible and only becomes "good" when dozens of smarter people read it and specifically tell me how to fix it, then I'm a bad writer and shouldn't be paid or praised like a "good one. Honestly, how is relying on beta readers to tell you how to fix your novel any different than Al telling you how to rewrite your novel?

Robin Bird@robinxbird· Jun 5

Is this your view? I'm sure you're fine. Absolutely fine.