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Benjamin Lord

@benjalord.bsky.social

1.4K followers 150 following 1K posts

Digital refugee. Baker. Southern boy. Freak. Pug & Frenchie dad. American in Southeast Asia for 25+ yrs. Seeker of beauty. Chaser of waterfalls. Bibliophile. Plant obsessed. I'd rather be on my paddleboard, but here we are. 📍 Bangkok & Khao Tao, Thailand

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Reposted by Benjamin Lord

武政諒 Ryo Takemasa @ryotakemasa.bsky.social · 2d

Autumn Plains (2021)
Art Print: www.inprnt.com/gallery/ryot...

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Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 2d

The morning light out there on the water is the best. My favorite time of day to paddle.

Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 2d

All these blooms are tiny (less than 1cm) and growing in the cracks on the side of the pavement during my morning walk with the dogs. Easily missed, but offering endless beauty & form if you stop long enough to appreciate them.

🌱 ☆ 🌴 ☆ 🪴 ☆ 🌿

📍 Khao Tao, Thailand

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Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 4d

Time for Saturday morning hot stone spa + nap time. ♨️🐕🌞

📍 Khao Tao, Thailand

A content but sleepy blue grey French bulldog lays in the sun on round river stones in between a black and white chequered short wall and a green and white chequered flagstone in the garden beside the house.

Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 4d

How are the dugong doing? Heard there were some losses to the herds there in the last few years, but wasn't sure what had caused it. Lots of seagrass beds there on Libong.

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Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 7d

Can you retain the sections of limbs/trunks that are covered in epiphytes and work them into any areas or landscapes? Seems such a waste as it wasn't only the live oak but also the entire ecosystem it was supporting that was lost.

Reposted by Benjamin Lord

武政諒 Ryo Takemasa @ryotakemasa.bsky.social · 8d

Bridge and the Moon (2021)
Art Print: www.inprnt.com/gallery/ryot...

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Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 8d

But when they want to make a call they are EXTREMELY loud lol. Deafening almost.

Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 12d

Sure thing. My friends here usually annoyed at my never ending need to identify strange species lol. Here are my two bulbophyllums in my garden here in Thailand:

B. crassipes
B. vaginatum (arguably a fairly pitiful bloom, but still)

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Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 12d

Correct! They are native to our area here in Southeast Asia. In Thai they are commonly known as สิงโตพัดแดง (Sing To Pad Daeng), which means "red fan lion". Just beautiful. Bulbophyllum one of my most favorite genuses. Loads of weirdos! :)

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Reposted by Benjamin Lord

武政諒 Ryo Takemasa @ryotakemasa.bsky.social · 14d

Autumn Rice Field (2020)
Art Print: www.inprnt.com/gallery/ryot...

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Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 16d

A cat tried a similar stunt a few months ago on our soi. The transformer won the battle, and kitty bits were distributed up and down the block. 😩

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Reposted by Benjamin Lord

武政諒 Ryo Takemasa @ryotakemasa.bsky.social · 19d

Rice Terraces in Autumn (2019)
Art Print: www.inprnt.com/gallery/ryot...

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Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 19d

I believe it was recently reclassified into coelogyne genus, as when I first got mine it seemed to still be called pholidota imbricata. How things are named and classified always seems a bit nebulous, but I reckon smarter folks than me assess such things. Have always loved this weird species though!

Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 19d

Wow, I always thought these were coelogyne species! Are mine different?

bsky.app/profile/benj...

Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · Dec 4

Getting some blooms! This rattlesnake orchid is native to the Tenasserim Mountains, which form the forested highlands that runs along the Thai-Burmese border.

The strange ones like this are my favorites. Flowers are tiny, just 3-5mm across.

Coelogyne imbricata

📍 Khao Tao, Thailand

🌱 🪴 🌴

Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 21d

in Honk Kong too. 😱

Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 21d

"Research." 😉

Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 26d

The lyrics from "Them Old Cotton Fieds Back Home" have always bothered me:

"It was down in Louisiana, just about a mile from Texarkana..."

Texarkana is at minimum 15 miles from the LA border. End rant. 🤷‍♂️

Reposted by Benjamin Lord

武政諒 Ryo Takemasa @ryotakemasa.bsky.social · 27d

Mussel (2016)
Art Print: www.inprnt.com/gallery/ryot...

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Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 29d

www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/303...

Hua Hin beach under watch after shark attack admitted

Authorities were on Wednesday keeping a close watch on popular Hua Hin Beach in Prachuap Khiri Khan after it was confirmed that a Norwegian tourist was attacked by a shark there on Sunday.

www.nationthailand.com

Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 29d

We used to have a few pesky bull sharks that stuck around Wat Tham Khao Tao about 7 years ago. Normally they would move out to sea as they left adolescence but for some reason didn't. One of them tried to sample some Scandinavian guy's foot who was jumping in off the rocks north of Sai Noi Beach. 😱

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Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 29d

As a paddler I really & truly hate to see this. Have always considered myself lucky to only have to contend with monitors, snakes and sharks. 🙃

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Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · 29d

Shall never not be amazed at running into these dinosaurs in my daily life here in Bangkok. Saw one sauntering down an alley about 2 blocks from our shophouse just the other day when I was returning from the market. You get remarkably used to seeing them.

‘You’re going about your day and suddenly see a little Godzilla’: Bangkok reckons with a giant lizard boom

Viral videos have shifted public opinion about water monitors, long held in contempt in Thai culture, even as rising numbers of the reptiles pose problems for residents

www.theguardian.com

Reposted by Benjamin Lord

武政諒 Ryo Takemasa @ryotakemasa.bsky.social · Sep 12

Spring Pond (2022)
Art Print: www.inprnt.com/gallery/ryot...

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Benjamin Lord @benjalord.bsky.social · Sep 11

I love Bo Kluea. Do they still sell inca beans at the well? Bought a bag when we visited and had never tried before (or since!). Nan is just such a wonderful place.