Sobtanian

When I went back to Baghdad in 2024, a friend gifted me a handmade candelabra for some reason 😅 It’s been sat in our living room empty since then. The other day, my wife decided to get some LED candles for it. I’ve never seen these before, but they look so realistic it’s a bit freaky. They even gently flicker too! She picked the colours to match the very first crochet blanket I made, which is why she’s the best wife if you ask me 😅 BONUS: that framed flower was picked and dried and framed by my mother-in-law the day my eldest son was born, seventeen years ago 😍

Exciting! Jean-Michel Jarre’s groundbreaking Oxygene turns 50 this year, and to celebrate its birthday a Dolby Atmos remaster is being released on the 20th of November! Part 1 is available to listen to now on Apple Music and, by golly, this works really, really well spatially! #musichttps://music.apple.com/gb/album/oxyg%C3%A8ne-50th-anniversary-remastered-edition/6816011429

I think I might have a #lamy #safari #fountainpen problem 😅

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I’ve always found nine inch circular #knitting needles to be hilariously endearing 😂

Never a truer word has been drawn

It’s that time of the year where one can wear the socks and use the blankets one made. 😍 🍂 #knitting #crochet

I didn’t plan it but the yarn pattern on these socks has lined up perfectly. Very satisfying ☺️ #knitting

Friends, a Jarre Equinoxe Jumper update: I’ve finished 23 rounds of the yoke pattern, with 6 left. Once that’s done, it’s all downhill from there as this has been made from the bottom up, so just the neck will be left \o/ For reference, the yoke is based on Jarre’s Equinoxe album. My son designed the yoke pattern for me, and I think he did a cracking job. Idea is to wear this next month for his concert in Amsterdam! #FinishOrFrogAlong #knitting

Slightly cheat-y #finishorfrogalong because I started this yesterday and finished it today 😅 I’ve been wearing my #crochet lanyard at work this week and so far I’ve had to make two of them for colleagues 😅 Genuinely considering selling these now, at work and online, I’m told £10 is a reasonable price.

Way before TED talks made slide-less presentations popular, I realised that no one cares about slides so whenever I’ve had to present or teach or whatever, I never use slides. It also forces the audience to actually look at you and listen 😅

I still think the #AtariST had the greatest mouse design! It was the king from 1985 until 2000, where it was only beaten 15 years later by the original Microsoft IntelliMouse Optical.

I’ve always wanted to #crochet the monarch butterfly cardigan but my wife categorically refuses to even consider wearing it 😔 So, I’m gonna make it for a friend! She’s Burmese, and is incredibly stylish (they all are to be fair) and she absolutely loves that I can knit and crochet. I saw her yesterday at work and she told me she keeps telling people that there’s a professional knitter among us all 😅 So. I figured I’d surprise her with this sweater one day. I just need to somehow figure out her size and what colours she likes without actually asking her either 😅 The latter I can figure out from the amazing clothes she wears each day. Not sure about the former though…

Wow. This BYTE Magazine visual archive is stunning. It’s every single page, from the cover of the first issue to the back page of the last, fully zoomable and readable. Oh and fully searchable too! Stunning. I still remember the January 1982 issue that a friend had, it was announcing the new IBM PERSONAL COMPUTER… https://byte.tsundoku.io/ #retrocomputing #retrocomputers #PC #bytemagazine #byte

Crops from the garden ☺️ I’m absolutely besotted with these stubby carrots 😍 #garden #gardening

…

I don’t know why but I’m very proud of this single #crochet swatch 😅

Me. It’s me. #yarn #crochet #knitting

No matter how many times I see them, I always find empty hospital corridors to be very haunting.

Please be admiring my Tower of Power… #crochet #knitting #yarn

My favourite thing about my son’s #Zelda mug is how the hearts fill up in sequence ❤️❤️❤️ #nintendo #videogames #tea

No words. I have no words. RIP Jarre Jumper. Excuse me while I go cry 😔😔😔😔 #FinishOrFrogAlong #knitting

Absolutely genius. I think I’m gonna have to #crochet this 😂 💩

no

Decided to cast on the second sock in this pair. I made the first one ages ago to test a heel pattern, but didn’t make the second one as I had other priority stuff to make. I wonder if I can finish it before the end of #finishorfrogalong… #knitting

Good morning and please allow me to introduce my new, favourite mug 😍

This morning’s dog walk music, ironically 😔😔😔

Quick #knitting tip apropos of nothing: If you’re making stranded colour work in the round, turn your work inside out so your floats are on the outside of the piece. The floats will naturally take a longer route around the circumference, hence avoiding the dreaded puckering that we’ve all heart-breakingly suffered from. Please like and subscribe for more amazing tips like this 😝

There can really only be one place to lie down in the whole house, isn’t that right Thumper 🙄🙄🙄 #dogs #greyhounds

Yes? #dogs #greyhounds

Not gonna lie, the new iOS 27 photo cleanup options are finally worth while. They were shit before this. Slow though. This video is twice the actual speed. #apple #ios27

You know how I said the next time I’ll provide a tapestry mosaic #crochet blanket update it’ll be when it’s finished? Well. I lied. I’m sharing a final (promise!) update today as I just finished the third repeat of the main motif (the big diamond shape with suns next to it) This motif is a major PITB to make, so I’m glad I never have to make it again! It’s all down hill from here and I hope to finish the whole thing (dreaded double border also!) this week, so the next update will really be when it’s finished! Here it is on a standard double bed so you can see just how big the damn thing is.

I DEMAND A REFUND 😒😒😒😒 How do we all feel about knots from the factory? They bother me for no reason. I just don’t like them. If I was using this for knitting, I’d have to cut it and join it again without a knot 😅 #crochet #knitting #yarn

Mother-in-law tapestry mosaic #crochet blanket progress update: 182 rows complete. 58 left to do. That’s not including the double border 😅 It’s three quarters done so I can definitely see the finish line now! 💪🏻 I hope to have this finished in the next couple of weeks or so, then I can focus on my Jarre jumper knit, which has to be completed before the 21st of October, which is when I’m seeing him live in Amsterdam! Next update will be when this blanket is finally finished 😁 Wish me luck!

Quick #yarn question: According to J&S, one of these is “blue” and the other is “sky blue.” Which is which in your opinion? I think they’ve got it the wrong way round, and so does my wife 😅 Their opinion is in the alt text. As a bonus: my #finishorfrogalong #knitting jumper is going well! I just finished round 17 of 29 of the yoke pattern, I’m hoping to finish the whole thing by next weekend. Wish me luck!

Hey Siri, show me an example of a big waste of packaging. Scissors for scale. 🙄

HELL YEAH

“Lamb said, ‘Well, supercalifragilisticfuckmealadocious.’” There’s a new word for your vocabulary, courtesy of Mick Herron’s Jackson Lamb 😅 #books #bookstodon #reading #slowhorses

As of today, Thursday the 3rd of September 2026, there are only 3 more #nintendo #amiibos announced that are yet to be released. Please, Nintendo, for the love of gaming, stop releasing the damn things. I have no space left.

Me: sometimes I like to knit or crochet mindfully. Her: what do you mean? Me: have you noticed how I sometimes really slow down? That’s because I enjoy watching the yarn turn into stitches, mindful of every move. Her: oh. I thought you slowed down because you’re just not very good at it. Me: 😳

Someone at work today surprised me with a little hand-made keyring with my name on it. As a thank you, I offered to make him a #crochet lanyard. He wanted it in rainbow and luckily I had some spare from a previous project ☺️ I’ve made half of it today, should finish it tomorrow hopefully!

The fields I walked the dogs in this morning were full of this plant. I’ve no idea what it is but it looks good 😅 #bloomscrolling #plants

The sun was falling at just the right angle on the classics this morning 😍 #retrocomputers #atari #commodore #amiga

This morning’s dog walk #music is this classic from 1998, and one of Madonna’s and the late great William Orbit’s finest works. Remarkably, I’ve never actually listened to it all, I just know its famous singles. #nowplaying

@exlibrarykris@cloudisland.nz no I want it to be a complete surprise. She’s so in awe of the fact I can make stuff I want her to be completely shocked haha! It doesn’t help that she’s very small and I think has to wear children sizes 😅 I’ll figure it out.

@Judeau@mas.to @Philsan@mastodon.world yes I bought 4mb dimms and replaced the original ram. Luckily the STe has dimm slots rather than the ram being soldered on. I was very lucky to find some original Atari 4160 STe case badges also, so I bought one. As I understand it, Atari made some badges to give to retailers who had increased the ram of the 1040, but obviously didn’t sell much. These days you can get replica badges but they’re not as sexy IMO, they’re flat and don’t have that beautiful diagonal embossed quality we all love. https://retro8bitshop.com/product/atari-4160ste-badge/

@Philsan@mastodon.world Hopefully we'll be able to download this beauty soon :)

@Philsan@mastodon.world @Judeau@mas.to my (4160 😝) STe is waiting 😭

@Judeau@mas.to @Philsan@mastodon.world drag it out?!! Why isn’t it in centre stage already!! I _think_ all four slots are filled with 256kb modules in a standard 1040 but I’m not sure.