Replying to
@ianbetteridge@social.vivaldi.net imagine we spent it on wind, solar and grid upgrades
Remote
Bob Thomson
@bobthomson70@mastodon.social
mastodon 4.8.0-nightly.2026-10-06Glaswegian who left for The Dordogne at 50, devopsing remotely for Euros for a job. Likes many things outside work and STEM, writing, drawing, synths, dogs. Living with chronic illnesses since 2007, Crohn's from a dodgy pizza, chronic kidney disease from the Crohn's medication. So it goes. Transplanted May 2025.
581 Followers
416 Following
50 Posts
Joined April 02, 2017
Blog Scot Living in France:
Blog other non French topics:
Not at all religious/Christian, but this would be a nice shot for those who are. Lovely sunset, and where I spotted it on the edge of our village made for a nice composition.
#Photography
Replying to
@Nickiquote@mstdn.social this made me laugh in Miranda Hyde's latest:
---
according to press secretary Karoline Leavitt, who yesterday added solemnly, “there are very strict ethical guidelines here at the White House”.
Replying to
@romabysen@mastodon.social @cstross@wandering.shop the current U.K. government garnered 33.7% of the vote, First Past the Post persisting long after multi party politics became a real thing in the U.K. makes it very possible for fascists to win a majority yes. Even failing that, they could form a coalition with the most venal of Tories.
Replying to
@cmconseils@mastodon.social is there a French version of “taxi driver tan”? (Would be left arm tanned more than right here with left hand drive cars)
Replying to
@romabysen@mastodon.social @cstross@wandering.shop yup. Another reason I am glad to have left in 2020. Though here in France there is Bardella and his toxic tante to worry about of course.
Replying to
@Nickiquote@mstdn.social ever is very difficult to call I think. Off the top of my head things I’ve enjoyed latterly, like 20 years back or newer, enough to watch more than once or stuck in the head:
Halt and Catch Fire
The Americans
You’re the Worst
Such Brave Girls
Uncle
Severance
Chernobyl
The Leftovers
The Change
Fleabag
Battlestar Galactica
Spiral / Engrenages
Andor
Detectorists
Derry Girls
Drug Use Mention / AI diss
Replying to
@ianbetteridge@social.vivaldi.net @rebelrebel62@mstdn.social @DeliaChristina@sfba.social I was amused by Louis Theroux describing a manosphere eejit as looking like they all do, “like he skipped leg day”. I suppose if all your podcasts / clips / videos and pics are torso only you can just work on that upper body as opposed to trying to be actually physically fit. All for show only.
Replying to
@ianturton @Kir @infobeautiful heard this one, very good. As usual with MoL, the lesson is, it’s not as simple as the viral stat seems.
Replying to
@oddhack@mstdn.social @hakona@im.alstadheim.no @cstross@wandering.shop see also Frankie Boyle’s thoughts on radicalised body guards / sex workers being the answer to getting rid of them once they flee to their bunkers.
Replying to
@SmudgeTheInsultCat Hello, I am suited law enforcement in a film or TV series, when I am called on the phone, I answer with my second name only, I do not interact with the caller other than perhaps a 'yes' or 'I see' or a noise, and I never say anything at the end of the call, I just hang up.
Replying to
@backupbear@aus.social always good to see this lady again after Thatcher pegged it.
https://youtu.be/DUlj48Rvp1c?is=56KWbyG5M0-JrzqI
A Scottish Woman Reacts to the death of Margaret Thatcher
Replying to
@Beldarak@mastodon.gamedev.place @cmconseils@mastodon.social we await S3 finally coming...
Replying to
@cmconseils@mastodon.social it’s a very masto / male answer but, if it is only really to upload epubs onto, I’d be tempted to buy something else that does that rather than Amazon’s myself. At the same time, the only such thing I own is a very old Amazon Kindle which still works.
Replying to
@alwirtes@indieweb.social @Nickiquote@mstdn.social Disappointing to see no more of Year of the Rabbit, that was a fun series.
Replying to
@Ronnie@mastodon.social @Nickiquote@mstdn.social loved watching Newhart on the nascent Channel 4 in the U.K. The two Daryls :)
Replying to
@worldwidewerner@mastodon.social @Nickiquote@mstdn.social oh, Norwegian… Dag, that was amazing. Glad I managed to stumble across it.
https://youtu.be/NZyuM_Y7Nrw?si=V_Y0vN3vSOJltwoi
Dag - Season One Trailer
Replying to
@davidgerard@circumstances.run IAM - no matter what else you can manage to do, which is super hard as you say, the IAM is always a PITA, and totally bound to the provider.
Replying to
@NanoRaptor if you rotated it, I’d be having massive comfy flashbacks to my early days as a sysadmin and piles of small Sun expansions next to their servers. Disks and tape drives and whatnot.
Replying to
@TheBreadmonkey@beige.party appreciate the confirmation in parentheses in the ALT text :)
Replying to
@clacksee@wandering.shop How you feeling about that? I’m always intrigued by folk getting diagnosed when older after reading Strong Female Character.
Replying to
@clacksee@wandering.shop congrats on passing! I suppose in my NT mind I think of diagnosis as being most useful for folks in the early educational part of their lives but having read that book I can see better how it helps makes sense of a lot of things that might have been troubling someone for decades even.
Replying to
@raymierussell@mastodon.scot I have a teeny bit of savings income from the U.K. and that is it, so it’s quite simple to declare on tax here. The rest is all French
Replying to
@raymierussell@mastodon.scot ha yes, we got hooked up with an accountant from Jersey who’s been here decades by our then landlord before we even arrived here. Invaluable.
Replying to
@raymierussell@mastodon.scot in my case I’ve not paid tax back home since I left but some folk go back and forth etc and seem to do so. Not sure what it is like once you get your U.K. pension but I assume I’d continue be taxed on anything liable here as usual by France. It’s relatively simple in my case other than the fact I’ve never yet got work with French clients so income comes from abroad for work done, and taxed in France.
Replying to
@raymierussell@mastodon.scot yeah. It is a little frustrating but makes sense as really most of what affects you as a brit abroad is borders and pensions. Arguably tax being partly devolved makes it more dubious now as a restriction.
Replying to
@raymierussell@mastodon.scot @BenartyComputer@mastodon.scot and ironically, it’s the only election at all I can vote in as a Scot in France who isn’t a citizen here :)
Replying to
@Nickiquote@mstdn.social that must go down really well with autistic kids. Routine? Nah let’s mix it up randomly.
Replying to
@mnl the only kind of circular economy we seem to be able to get going, one that makes the climate worse. #SlowHandClap
Replying to
@syntaxseed @SmudgeTheInsultCat yup, that's the one of many :) I suppose in general, surnames are always used in a way only seen in posh schools in real life :)
Replying to
@quixoticgeek@social.v.st this thread is making me feel a hundred years old as I was taught this at school. Think it was in compulsory science lessons as well as later elective Chemistry for 16 years old exams.
Replying to
@VeroniqueB99 nah, if he were good at it, he wouldn't get caught all the bloody time and have to rely on corruption to keep him out of jail.
Replying to
Replying to
@cmconseils something I noticed in France - the UK is not as bonkers about .99 prices as the US but seldom seem to see them here thankfully.
Replying to
@cirriustech@infosec.exchange sure isn’t man. Family stuff still contributing to the black doggedness of it all?