heyilike

[heyilike]

And one amang, an Iyrysch man,

Uppone his hoby swyftly ran…

WAIT HANG ON - slamming the brakes on drawing this stupid picture - do you nerds even KNOW the etymology of the word “hobby”? The thing you do for pleasure? The thing you have too many of? The thing you spend too much money on and share with your friends? The thing tumblr probably is to you? Those hobbies?

It comes from a now-kind-of-extinct breed of Irish pony-horse. It was called the Irish Hobby. Supposedly the hobby got its name from the Gaelic word obann, or swift. They definitely were. They’d obann your pants clean off.

Fast tough little bastards, built for rough terrain and renowned for their speed and stamina, hobby horses belonged to the Celts, and their highly annoying style of mounted warfare. but their conquerors liked hobby horses a lot, kept them, used them for themselves, and found them useful enough, despite the fact that they also had famously useful things like mounted knights or horse archers. A lightweight Irish warrior, mounted on a hobby horse, was called a hobelar.

Reportedly and in depictions, hobelars rode without stirrups. Or saddles. Or bridles. Or - well - this is all sounding very improbable, because the hobelars COULDNT have just been charging around basically bare-assed on naked ponies, screaming, and somehow in the process undoing the composure of actual mounted armoured knights. Knights who, I remind you, had stirrups. Stirrups are useful! It’s quite likely the hobelars had some gear. And clothes. and weapons. And the ponies probably had some tack - I am picturing a bellyband that you could at least hang a saddlebag on, and a neck rope for catching the bloody thing, even if not a saddle. But the overall impression, somehow created by people on darling little ponies, was apparently quite striking and fearful.

I mean. God Forbid People Have Hobbies.

Anyway after a while, whatever people became the British had eventually conquered all of the rough terrain that hobbies were best at, and horse archers just got sexier, and mounted knights became aristos, and all the bog and forest people had been subdued, so it was time to sunset the hobelars. but WAIT! Hobby horses are still tremendously fun and appealing! They’re so fast! and you can ride them without a saddle! Sure, they’re not up to the weight of a mounted knight, or indeed a lot of guys… but surely we can still find a use for a hobby or two? In the back garden? Somewhere?

At which point an English king decided to keep hobby horses just for fun. No military application. No further development of the technology. Not for fun. Just as expensive, pleasurable, pets. Just for the joy of the thing.

And that is how hobby (activity done purely for pleasure) comes from hobby horse (small horse) possibly from obann (swift.) they’re very interesting and you should look all this up for yourself! because it sure sounds like Elodie doing a bit, doesn’t it?

Today, Irish Hobbies are functionally nonexistent. References for drawing include the Kerry Bog Pony, the Connemara, and (I personally think) Dartmoors and Exmoors. They’re said to have lent their speed to the Irish Hunter/Sport Horse and from there to the Thoroughbred, but every damn horse in the world claims relation to the Thoroughbred, and they can’t be THAT thoroughly bred.

At any rate - you can never have enough hobbies. Just be glad that yours aren’t expensive beasts with minds of their own, eating their heads off in the pasture! …Unless they are. In which case, you’re part of a proud tradition.

[heyilike]

"There is a rich queer linguistic history in Germany. Many of the words still used to talk about queerness originated there with people like Magnus Hirschfeld, a man whose contributions to the modern queer community cannot be overstated. A lesser discussed name is Emma Trosse, and with her, the beginnings of asexuality as an identity can be found. Standing on the legacy of Karl Heinrich Ulrichs and possibly writing some of her work defending queer identities before Hirschfeld, her name deserves more discussion."

[heyilike]

Hey there! I just listened to your Go-won-go Mohawk episode and I'm doing a research project on her here in New York centering on the historical marker that (poorly) commemorates her. Could we chat about sharing the incredible work you've already done around her? And I can share the work I've been doing too. I look forward to your response!

Hi!!!!

So so excited to see this in our ask box of course you can chat with me about her I would love nothing more!

I cannot remember if this blog has DMs, but if not feel free to DM me (jess) @stormleviosa

[heyilike]

It's time for a spooky season special!

This year, we are talking all things Dracula - including a plug for the wonderful, fantastic, awe-inspiring @re-dracula.

So wrap up warm, settle in for another lengthy episode, and if you see a vampire bonk it on the head with a shovel like our good friend Jonathan Harker.

[heyilike]

It's up!

After several hours of troubleshooting and running updates and restarting everything multiple times, the episode is now uploaded and available for the world to see.

Go have fun!

Technical difficulties mean this week's episode will unfortunately be delayed. Watch this space for updates as Jess battles spotify to get it sorted.

[heyilike]

Technical difficulties mean this week's episode will unfortunately be delayed. Watch this space for updates as Jess battles spotify to get it sorted.

[heyilike]

Unlike Murderbot, we have not consumed 35,000 hours of media about our blorbos but we can talk about it for over 2, so who's winning really?

Today, we welcome Arlo (@enchantingruinscandy) and Nora (@selvaqueenofhiii) to the podcast to talk about the wonder that is The Murderbot Diaries! If you ever wanted to find out more about the ace/aro/agender/autism robot books that everyone keeps talking about, look no further.

[heyilike]

Hey there! I just listened to your Go-won-go Mohawk episode and I'm doing a research project on her here in New York centering on the historical marker that (poorly) commemorates her. Could we chat about sharing the incredible work you've already done around her? And I can share the work I've been doing too. I look forward to your response!

Hi!!!!

So so excited to see this in our ask box of course you can chat with me about her I would love nothing more!

I cannot remember if this blog has DMs, but if not feel free to DM me (jess) @stormleviosa

[heyilike]

Me: I'm going to look at horse forums, I bet the drama there is so funny

Me after 4 hours of horse forums: Damn....those people really love and care about their horses...

[heyilike]

Elizabeth and Jess have tea to spill about this year's olympics and they will not be silenced!

[heyilike]

WE'RE BACK! (did you miss us?)

This time Kent (@inquisitorpsyduck) returns to tell us all about A Canticle For Leibowitz - a totally bizarre post-nuclear-apocalypse sci-fi story set in a catholic monastery. If that sounds like your kind of thing, congrats! You've found a friend!

[heyilike]

Pride Month!

It's been a minute so here's a bulk update for pride months because WOW we've been busy.

We have not one, not two, but three whole episodes this month that are super exciting.

Up first, we have an episode with Rook talking about our beloved queer elders

Next up, Lucy returned with more Shakespeare, except this time it's Shakesqueer

And finally today's episode, which is all about our favourite queer characters and how they are described

Hope you've had a fantastic pride month and we'll be back with more updates soon!

[heyilike]

whoops

[heyilike]

Reblogging this with a top tip from Jess:

If you live in the UK and have 3.5mm needles of any type KEEP HOLD OF THEM.

They are not a standard size in the UK and are therefore impossible to find.

In this episode, we are joined by the crafty pair, Lucy and JJ, to discuss current protects, the epic highs and lows of bobbin lace, and the ultimate ranking of yarn. If you disagree with any opinions in this episode you are simply incorrect.

And as a special treat, here are the projects we were working on while recording this episode!

This is JJ's attempt at beating second sock syndrome.

Here be (unfinished) dragons, courtesy of Lucy.

And this is Jess' preschool-aged WIP.

[heyilike]

Ceaseless Watcher turn your gaze upon these wretched things who signed up to talk about The Magnus Archives for several hours. Feat. JJ, Ren, greatest fears, the dangers of capitalism, and none of us being the Eye's special little boy.

Find us on all your usual podcast platforms!

[heyilike]

All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players, and so we finally bring to you the wonder that is Rook and Lucy telling us everything they know about Shakespeare, as an English Lit set text, to a timeless classic of the stage and screen.

Find us on all your usual podcast platforms!

[heyilike]

In this episode, we are joined by the crafty pair, Lucy and JJ, to discuss current protects, the epic highs and lows of bobbin lace, and the ultimate ranking of yarn. If you disagree with any opinions in this episode you are simply incorrect.

And as a special treat, here are the projects we were working on while recording this episode!

This is JJ's attempt at beating second sock syndrome.

Here be (unfinished) dragons, courtesy of Lucy.

And this is Jess' preschool-aged WIP.