Bridget O’Brien
@bridgetemob.bsky.social
Philadelphian, Chicagoan, Catholic lay minister • she | her
“And having answered so I turn once more to those who sneer at this my city, and I give them back the sneer and say to them:”
“And having answered so I turn once more to those who sneer at this my city, and I give them back the sneer and say to them:”
Reposted by Bridget O’Brien
What I would say, sans IPA, is Mary is usually higher and more towards the front of the mouth, marry is in the middle, and merry is lower and more towards the back- but in my regular accent I merge all three and end up with comically different accent impressions when trying to demonstrate this
November 27, 2025 at 3:06 AM
What I would say, sans IPA, is Mary is usually higher and more towards the front of the mouth, marry is in the middle, and merry is lower and more towards the back- but in my regular accent I merge all three and end up with comically different accent impressions when trying to demonstrate this
The turkey was fully thawed! It has been appropriately dry-brined and is now resting, uncovered, in the refrigerator.
(If you salted your turkey three days ago: I admire you, I admit your superiority, don’t come for me. That was never going to be me, and I’m taking this as a win for me.)
(If you salted your turkey three days ago: I admire you, I admit your superiority, don’t come for me. That was never going to be me, and I’m taking this as a win for me.)
November 27, 2025 at 12:55 AM
The turkey was fully thawed! It has been appropriately dry-brined and is now resting, uncovered, in the refrigerator.
(If you salted your turkey three days ago: I admire you, I admit your superiority, don’t come for me. That was never going to be me, and I’m taking this as a win for me.)
(If you salted your turkey three days ago: I admire you, I admit your superiority, don’t come for me. That was never going to be me, and I’m taking this as a win for me.)
A TRUE frustration.
November 26, 2025 at 10:36 PM
A TRUE frustration.
I am strongly pro-diversity in accents and dialects—until we get to how almost all of you have lost the marry / Mary / merry distinction, and then I want to send everyone to speech class.
November 26, 2025 at 10:29 PM
I am strongly pro-diversity in accents and dialects—until we get to how almost all of you have lost the marry / Mary / merry distinction, and then I want to send everyone to speech class.
Reposted by Bridget O’Brien
Today, after months of requests, I toured the Broadview ICE Processing Facility. I want to share what I saw.
The facility has no food vendor, no medical care, and detainees have to use toilets in the middle of shared cells. These are in no way suitable conditions to be holding anyone — period.
The facility has no food vendor, no medical care, and detainees have to use toilets in the middle of shared cells. These are in no way suitable conditions to be holding anyone — period.
November 25, 2025 at 12:57 AM
Today, after months of requests, I toured the Broadview ICE Processing Facility. I want to share what I saw.
The facility has no food vendor, no medical care, and detainees have to use toilets in the middle of shared cells. These are in no way suitable conditions to be holding anyone — period.
The facility has no food vendor, no medical care, and detainees have to use toilets in the middle of shared cells. These are in no way suitable conditions to be holding anyone — period.
The Algorithm showed me an adorable video of a toddler seeing a large crèche and running up to say “¡Hola, Maria! ¡Hola, baby! ¡Hola, Jésus, Hola Mama Maria! Abrazo, Mama Maria.”
and people in the comments were arguing about whether Mary is theotokos or christotokos.
and people in the comments were arguing about whether Mary is theotokos or christotokos.
November 26, 2025 at 12:51 AM
The Algorithm showed me an adorable video of a toddler seeing a large crèche and running up to say “¡Hola, Maria! ¡Hola, baby! ¡Hola, Jésus, Hola Mama Maria! Abrazo, Mama Maria.”
and people in the comments were arguing about whether Mary is theotokos or christotokos.
and people in the comments were arguing about whether Mary is theotokos or christotokos.
Pretty pumped that the Groff-Mendez-Radcliffe Merrily is going to be in movie theaters.
November 26, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Pretty pumped that the Groff-Mendez-Radcliffe Merrily is going to be in movie theaters.
I’m visiting friends next week and I’m so glad, because I’m so, SO crabby, and every moment at work that I remain calm and pleasant is currently a personal victory.
November 25, 2025 at 5:21 PM
I’m visiting friends next week and I’m so glad, because I’m so, SO crabby, and every moment at work that I remain calm and pleasant is currently a personal victory.
While we’re doing Thanksgiving discourse I’m going to say that I’m taking a page from Baltimore’s book and making sauerkraut for Thanksgiving.
November 25, 2025 at 3:22 AM
While we’re doing Thanksgiving discourse I’m going to say that I’m taking a page from Baltimore’s book and making sauerkraut for Thanksgiving.
I think I have landed on warlock for the DnD campaign I’m about to start (likely to be the last, at least for a long time 😭), but now trying to figure out whether to go straight warlock or multiclass with sorcerer. We’re starting at level 7.
November 25, 2025 at 2:58 AM
I think I have landed on warlock for the DnD campaign I’m about to start (likely to be the last, at least for a long time 😭), but now trying to figure out whether to go straight warlock or multiclass with sorcerer. We’re starting at level 7.
All of "Silver and Gold" by Sufjan Stevens counts as Advent music, because even the Christmas music is kind of sad.
November 24, 2025 at 7:54 PM
All of "Silver and Gold" by Sufjan Stevens counts as Advent music, because even the Christmas music is kind of sad.
(We all know the real reason people say this, which is: “Single adults without children can’t possibly have full adult lives.”)
I wish so deeply that there were a way to get people to stop asking “Are you going home for Thanksgiving / Christmas?”
I am a middle aged adult. The home that I have is the one live in, and calling anything aside from that “home” makes a whole lot of presumptions.
I am a middle aged adult. The home that I have is the one live in, and calling anything aside from that “home” makes a whole lot of presumptions.
November 24, 2025 at 6:53 PM
(We all know the real reason people say this, which is: “Single adults without children can’t possibly have full adult lives.”)
I wish so deeply that there were a way to get people to stop asking “Are you going home for Thanksgiving / Christmas?”
I am a middle aged adult. The home that I have is the one live in, and calling anything aside from that “home” makes a whole lot of presumptions.
I am a middle aged adult. The home that I have is the one live in, and calling anything aside from that “home” makes a whole lot of presumptions.
November 24, 2025 at 6:30 PM
I wish so deeply that there were a way to get people to stop asking “Are you going home for Thanksgiving / Christmas?”
I am a middle aged adult. The home that I have is the one live in, and calling anything aside from that “home” makes a whole lot of presumptions.
I am a middle aged adult. The home that I have is the one live in, and calling anything aside from that “home” makes a whole lot of presumptions.
Every time I see another Thanksgiving Travel news story I become more relieved that I will be home for Thanksgiving (as much as I would genuinely love to see people.)
November 24, 2025 at 6:12 PM
Every time I see another Thanksgiving Travel news story I become more relieved that I will be home for Thanksgiving (as much as I would genuinely love to see people.)
Reposted by Bridget O’Brien
Caught an Uber ride with one of the OG concrete cowboys from Strawberry Mansion, who told us a story about his horse I-95, so named because he ran away the morning after he got home and made it about 10 miles along 95 North before getting tuckered out. All the way to the Walmart on Aramingo.
November 24, 2025 at 4:50 AM
Caught an Uber ride with one of the OG concrete cowboys from Strawberry Mansion, who told us a story about his horse I-95, so named because he ran away the morning after he got home and made it about 10 miles along 95 North before getting tuckered out. All the way to the Walmart on Aramingo.
Reposted by Bridget O’Brien
Yesterday my partner and I counted all the ads along Chicago's Brown Line for "Friend," a company selling an AI chatbot pendant, and tallied how many of those ads were defaced.
Still working on a longer piece on this, but here's the quick and dirty: we counted 104 "Friend" ads total, 42 defaced.
Still working on a longer piece on this, but here's the quick and dirty: we counted 104 "Friend" ads total, 42 defaced.
November 23, 2025 at 10:46 PM
Yesterday my partner and I counted all the ads along Chicago's Brown Line for "Friend," a company selling an AI chatbot pendant, and tallied how many of those ads were defaced.
Still working on a longer piece on this, but here's the quick and dirty: we counted 104 "Friend" ads total, 42 defaced.
Still working on a longer piece on this, but here's the quick and dirty: we counted 104 "Friend" ads total, 42 defaced.
I almost died in this room!
(That’s an exaggeration—but I did have a very bad asthma attack there, which the sub would not excuse me for, bc in her words “Asthma is not deadly!” Fortunately the “bad” kids kept yelling at me to ignore her & leave, which I did, and went to the ER for a nebulizer.)
(That’s an exaggeration—but I did have a very bad asthma attack there, which the sub would not excuse me for, bc in her words “Asthma is not deadly!” Fortunately the “bad” kids kept yelling at me to ignore her & leave, which I did, and went to the ER for a nebulizer.)
A movie with Marky Mark in your 9th grade bio classroom for some reason
November 23, 2025 at 9:51 PM
I almost died in this room!
(That’s an exaggeration—but I did have a very bad asthma attack there, which the sub would not excuse me for, bc in her words “Asthma is not deadly!” Fortunately the “bad” kids kept yelling at me to ignore her & leave, which I did, and went to the ER for a nebulizer.)
(That’s an exaggeration—but I did have a very bad asthma attack there, which the sub would not excuse me for, bc in her words “Asthma is not deadly!” Fortunately the “bad” kids kept yelling at me to ignore her & leave, which I did, and went to the ER for a nebulizer.)
OK I am very aware this is more thought than I should have about this movie BUT #Wicked question (caveat that I have never seen the stage show):
My understanding is that “No Place Like Home” is a movie-original—but doesn't that scene just set us up to see Elphaba as abandoning Oz at the end?
My understanding is that “No Place Like Home” is a movie-original—but doesn't that scene just set us up to see Elphaba as abandoning Oz at the end?
November 23, 2025 at 7:13 PM
OK I am very aware this is more thought than I should have about this movie BUT #Wicked question (caveat that I have never seen the stage show):
My understanding is that “No Place Like Home” is a movie-original—but doesn't that scene just set us up to see Elphaba as abandoning Oz at the end?
My understanding is that “No Place Like Home” is a movie-original—but doesn't that scene just set us up to see Elphaba as abandoning Oz at the end?
Reposted by Bridget O’Brien
When you see the Southern Cross for the first time,
You understand now why you came this way.
'Cause the truth you might be runnin' from is so small,
But it's as big as the promise, the promise of a comin' day.
You understand now why you came this way.
'Cause the truth you might be runnin' from is so small,
But it's as big as the promise, the promise of a comin' day.
November 23, 2025 at 2:42 AM
When you see the Southern Cross for the first time,
You understand now why you came this way.
'Cause the truth you might be runnin' from is so small,
But it's as big as the promise, the promise of a comin' day.
You understand now why you came this way.
'Cause the truth you might be runnin' from is so small,
But it's as big as the promise, the promise of a comin' day.
It is once again time for my annual complaint that nearly all characters in Christmas rom coms are Protestants. So many Christmas Eve dances; so few Christmas Vigil Masses.
November 23, 2025 at 1:40 AM
It is once again time for my annual complaint that nearly all characters in Christmas rom coms are Protestants. So many Christmas Eve dances; so few Christmas Vigil Masses.
“I just want to say: I only wear…
…white socks. ⚾️😂” - Pope Leo
Guys, the Holy Father has dad jokes now.
…white socks. ⚾️😂” - Pope Leo
Guys, the Holy Father has dad jokes now.
November 22, 2025 at 11:20 PM
“I just want to say: I only wear…
…white socks. ⚾️😂” - Pope Leo
Guys, the Holy Father has dad jokes now.
…white socks. ⚾️😂” - Pope Leo
Guys, the Holy Father has dad jokes now.
They really did hold off on having Elphaba kiss that man as long as possible, huh? “Here he is! The male man that Elphaba is kissing. She is not kissing Glinda, nor is she thinking about doing so, nor is Glinda thinking about kissing her.” #wicked
November 22, 2025 at 9:59 PM
They really did hold off on having Elphaba kiss that man as long as possible, huh? “Here he is! The male man that Elphaba is kissing. She is not kissing Glinda, nor is she thinking about doing so, nor is Glinda thinking about kissing her.” #wicked
I watched clips of the Mamdani-Trump press conference, and:
November 22, 2025 at 2:24 PM
I watched clips of the Mamdani-Trump press conference, and:
“Moved by the fire of love, [Dorothy Day] denounced the indifference of false peace and the injustices of her time.”
To hope is to take a stand, like Jesus and with Jesus. His fire is our fire. May the Jubilee rekindle it! #JubileeAudience
Jubilee Audience (22 November 2025)
JUBILEE AUDIENCE CATECHESIS OF POPE LEO XIV St Peter's Square Saturday, 22 November 2025 [ Multimedia ] ___________________________________
www.vatican.va
November 22, 2025 at 2:12 PM
“Moved by the fire of love, [Dorothy Day] denounced the indifference of false peace and the injustices of her time.”
I took a HARD nap, woke up at 6pm certain that it must be 3am, and now am not certain of my own name anymore.
November 22, 2025 at 12:43 AM
I took a HARD nap, woke up at 6pm certain that it must be 3am, and now am not certain of my own name anymore.