Author | Lightnews

Ellen Bryn

@sepdet.bsky.social

170 followers 77 following 400 posts

Former classics major (greekgeek), art dabbler, fandom old (whovian, lotr, et alia), lifelong learner, chronic illness haver, and cat servant. She/her. 🏳️‍🌈

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Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Mar 10

Pinned bio update. Oil painter journeyman and childless cat lady still mourning loss of senior cat.
Fibro/arthritis has steamrolled me. I apply limited spoons to call reps, support those my govt hates, and lose myself in nerdly subjects from Dr Who to archaeology to earth sciences to train travel.

oil painting of orange and white cat curled up asleep on its side with paws over eyes.

Mostly finished study of older, balding van Gogh Self portrait with lots of pale blue, no hat. Photo shows canvas on easel pegboard standing next to easel on which is propped an ipad with image of original painting. In the background of the room is a shelf halfway up the wall holding colored ceramic cups bowls, and other random objects for still lifes. Underneath the shelf hang many canvases from small eyehooks forming a drying rack. The canvases are turned with edges facing the wall like books to save space.

Fat blonde middle aged lady embracing a red Dalek. As you do.

Photo out train window aimed forward, showing engine of Amtrak rounding bend halfway up wall of red rock canyon dusted in snow with a snow and ice covered stream below and a brilliant blue sky above with white puffy clouds, everything glowing with afternoon sunlight.

Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Oct 3

Earlier I started to post my #drawtober art, but got embarrassed seeing other folks' #originalart
However I just remembered amateur is still better than AI
Anyway happy #artober here are my 20 minute doodles using "the nearest items I can grab that don't meow" & chat's prompt pics that inspired them

Colored pencil sketch of a vaguely egg-shaped critter grasping the straight foreleg of unknown animal in its teeth like a dog with a bone. text from above with line indicating speech says "Bad Gob, drop it!" Gob is brown and tan and furry with a cream colored tummy, a vaguely monkeylike face with beady black eyes, two haunches tucked against the sides of its body like the hindlimbs of a squirrel standing up, a short ratlike tail with a tassle of pinkish-purple fur on the end and a similar tuft of fur on its scalp.

If you know 80s toys, it looks like a cross between a Troll (the kind with a colorful tuft of hair on its scalp) and a weeble wobble)

Loose sketch of a flustered looking owl in gold, metallic marker and sharpie

sandy egg-shaped paperweight bisected by a fingerlike darker rock

photograph of irritated long-eared owl posted by owlsintowels.org

Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Oct 3

So, what's up: I was finally ready for another #catadoption . Chosen by TINY lovebug snowshoe siamese, Mimi, unaccountably at shelter 3 years. Came with 1.5 yo kitten who'd grown up in cage w/mum. Luna needed a LOT of socializing but has gone from hiss & hide to "pet me!" Papa supposedly Maine Coon!

Cat photo: small caramel and chocolate colored siamese cat with white underbelly, legs and muzzle, some chocolate blotches on nose and legs. Extremely long-legged black and white kitten, 3-4 months old, crawling over her back.

Same 2 cats a year later: mimi sitting on haunches; blue eyes. Cat toy at feel looks like sushi. Luna now bigger than Mom looking much more relaxed with green eyes.

Green eyed cat with black fur over ears and eyes, white lower half of face peeping out from under bed warily.

medium haired fluffy black and white cat with sweet expression and white-tipped black tail curled over bare leg of photographer against whom she is snuggled in bed.

Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Oct 3

I return with trepidation and am immediately hit with so much news of despair that my fibromyalgic self is flattened. It's not that I bury my head in the sand — I donate, I call reps — but there is so MUCH it's overwhelming, and I haven't learned to filter bsky.

Reposted by Ellen Bryn

Erin Biba @erinbiba.bsky.social · Sep 10

This sounds wacky but it is backed up by science.

rahaeli @rahaeli.bsky.social · Sep 10

3. If you see content that disturbs you, immediately (or as fast as possible) go and play 20-30 minutes of Tetris (or any other fast-paced game with your eyes sweeping over the visual field that has caused visual artifacts to linger when you close your eyes for you in the past).

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Reposted by Ellen Bryn

Erin Biba @erinbiba.bsky.social · Sep 10

For real! It’s pretty fascinating.

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Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Sep 1

Fed troops stifling protestors in patriotic gear holding up whiteboards with facts of the US he's denied or damaged is not a good look, and 🍊is all about display. Either it informs his supporters, or FOX can't show it, and tiktok will. @marcelias.bsky.social @mmpadellan.bsky.social @meidastouch.com

Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Sep 1

I have a suggestion for how to #fightfascism which might be called #WhiteboardWarriors in honor of @katieporteroc.bsky.social — since a big problem is uninformed supporters of 😡, protestors meet his goons with placards of infographics, news headlines, facts & quotes which FOX & he don't want shown:

Reposted by Ellen Bryn

Kimi Hughes @goldenlassogirl.bsky.social · Jul 29

Friends! Anyone in SoCal looking for a sweet little golden floof to join their family? This little one is super sweet and is living outside my friends house. They are caring for him, but can’t officially adopt since they have two large dogs that aren’t cat-friendly. Let me know!

Cai K 𓄿 𝖈𝖔𝖜𝖇𝖔𝖞 𝖈𝖔𝖗𝖛𝖎𝖉.𝖞𝖊𝖊𝖈𝖆𝖜. @estelofimladris.bsky.social · Jul 28

hey LA folks, anyone looking to adopt a cute little cat?

he's safe and cared for for now, but needs a forever home! I'm helping a friend find a place for this little guy to go be loved forever!

[moots message me for details. others, please comment below and I'll reach out if it seems apropriate.]

a picture of an orange kitten with large pointy ears and big green eyes.

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Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Jul 7

She looks tuckered out but pleased. I think it did.

Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Jul 7

Oh, you're probably right! (although my guest expresses reservations, saying that's the most elaborate "feed me" dance & song she's ever headd)

Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Jul 7

I haven't drawn anything just from my imagination in years. 40 minute doodle of a #dragon (I think?) using @procreate.com #myart #drawing #artwork

3/4 view of a mountain-shaped heap of a green dragon with absurdly small purple bat wings towards the top, bow tied on tip of stout pointed snaky tail, yellow heavy-lidded eye gazing lazily and possibly coquettishly at viewer, holding string of small purple helium balloon floating about same height as top of hunched back. Sandy yellow background, drawn loosely in rough dark green ink-like outline & scribble.

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Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Jul 6

exhibit a: male house finch with brain the size of a zit has better manners than many humans and respects the lady's wishes

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Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Jun 25

Propose an Amendment To Delay and Disrupt the Reconciliation Bill act.indivisible.org/letter/amend...

Propose an Amendment To Delay and Disrupt the Reconciliation Bill

Senate Republicans want to vote on their Medicaid-slashing, billionaire-enriching reconciliation bill this weekend, and that means a “vote-a-rama,” when senators can propose endless changes that their...

act.indivisible.org

Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Jun 19

@diane.dianeduane.com Just found this fanart of #StarTrek Ensign Naraht ❤️ while poking through my old procreate files. He was such a cutie.

Simple digital doodle of Spock playing 3D chess with an amorphous brown lumpy creature sitting opposite him in the futuristic cup-shaped chairs of the Enterprise rec room. The Horta is curled over resting its upper end on the table between them. Small "hiss hiss" sounds are written where it's touching. Spock speech balloon says, "Ensign, please refrain from dissolving the table while you are deliberating."

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Reposted by Ellen Bryn

OuterBoroPrincess @outerbororoyal.bsky.social · Jun 12

More Americans voted for Senator Alex Padilla than for 48 of the 53 red state GOP U.S. Senators combined.

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Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Jun 13

I just gave $500 to Build Hope, Not Walls. Join me and help them reach their goal! Check it out at: alotrolado.networkforgood.com/projects/246...

(includes pro bono legal aid for detainees; I've been supporting this org intermittently since 2017, but they REALLY need funds/volunteers now.)

Build Hope, Not Walls

Be the last line of defense. Join the fight for immigrants’ rights. The United States government is shutting its doors to refugees, expanding internment camps, and unleashing mass deportation program...

alotrolado.networkforgood.com

Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Jun 8

I wonder about paralegals. (points to question higher up in this thread, trying to remember whether the paralegal I'm thinking of is here with me on Bluesky.) PAGING 1.21 GIGAWATTS.

Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Jun 8

Wishing #ColinBaker happy birthday wherever he is, once again cursing Muskrat for driving us off the birdsite where we could enjoy flickering Plato's cave shadows cast by our favorite celebs like @sawboneshex . Limited as parasocial bonds are, I miss them, and him. (😘 to @nicolabryant.bsky.social )

Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · Jun 8

Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · May 25

An account I enjoy on Tumblr, @why-animals-do-the-thing, has made a request (for once) instead of answering everyone's questions with fun science posts. They volunteer for this nonprofit, and they're asking folks to follow its new Bluesky account. If they're for it, I'm for it. So here's a plug.

Zoological Disaster Response, Rescue, and Recovery (ZDR3) @zdr3.bsky.social · May 21

Founded in 2019 by zoological industry leaders, ZDR3 provides support to facilities housing wildlife and exotic animal species before, during, and after disasters. We deploy experienced zoological personnel and resources to facilities requesting aid, regardless of accreditation or affiliation.

Two women crouch inside an animal habitat. The woman on the left, in grey, is holding a mid-sized yellow and black tortoise off the ground. The woman on the right, in dark blue, is prepping a needle to use for medical care.

Four people in work pants and lime green shirts that say "San Antonio Zoo Crew" are facing away from the camera, looking up at a huge fallen tree. The tree is diagonally across the background of the image and appears to be leaning heavily on a chain-link fence on the left side of the image.

Two men in grey work clothes and shirts that say "San Antonio Zoo" on the back are standing next to an animal habitat. They are fixing something inside an electric box at the corner of the habitat. Inside the low metal fence of the habitat, a very large grey-brown tortoise watches them work.

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Reposted by Ellen Bryn

Barnaby Edwards @barnabyedwards.bsky.social · May 14

snr-audio.com/our-retailers

SNR Audio

Indie Publisher of Premium Audio

snr-audio.com

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Reposted by Ellen Bryn

Barnaby Edwards @barnabyedwards.bsky.social · May 14

It's a major betrayal of everything they've ever told us narrators when we've expressed our concerns about AI. It's always been: 'Audible will never use AI. We value our human narrators.'

If you go to SNR Audio (or Penguin etc.), you'll see alternative options of where to get your audiobooks.

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Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · May 14

(Also my instinct was to use a figure of speech called "hyperbaton," making a word order sandwich. I dunno why; it just feels right, maybe because of the alliteration.)

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Ellen Bryn @sepdet.bsky.social · May 14

"Filia matris meae saeva sum"

I've been away from academia a long time, so check me. Try running that by another Latinist and see if they translate it back.

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