Mark Allan
@markxa.com
Learn, Do, Teach, Repeat | Belfast but with Manchester roots | Tech is how I live, art is why I live | Masked scoundrel | Evolving | Microsoft MVP alumnus | NIDC founder | Non-militant cyclist | He/him | markxa.com
Reposted by Mark Allan
I've contacted @deptinfra regarding the need for the newly refurbished cycle lane at Stranmillis to be urgently gritted.
Cyclists shouldn't be an afterthought when it comes to safety on our roads network, especially with poor weather conditions.
Cyclists shouldn't be an afterthought when it comes to safety on our roads network, especially with poor weather conditions.
January 6, 2026 at 11:27 PM
I've contacted @deptinfra regarding the need for the newly refurbished cycle lane at Stranmillis to be urgently gritted.
Cyclists shouldn't be an afterthought when it comes to safety on our roads network, especially with poor weather conditions.
Cyclists shouldn't be an afterthought when it comes to safety on our roads network, especially with poor weather conditions.
I could well have been on that 42
January 4, 2026 at 10:27 AM
I could well have been on that 42
Reposted by Mark Allan
A helpful reminder that rules don’t exist if there is no way to enforce them.
January 3, 2026 at 12:06 PM
A helpful reminder that rules don’t exist if there is no way to enforce them.
Reposted by Mark Allan
Utterly shocking that the country that invaded Iraq for oil and suffered zero consequences internally or externally is doing it again.
January 3, 2026 at 11:24 AM
Utterly shocking that the country that invaded Iraq for oil and suffered zero consequences internally or externally is doing it again.
Introduce yourself as what almost killed you:
Hello, I'm Vauxhall Renault-Ford.
(Car vs ice, car vs car, car vs bike)
Hello, I'm Vauxhall Renault-Ford.
(Car vs ice, car vs car, car vs bike)
Hello, I am Jenny Greenteeth-Concretestairs. I write for tatler (I am not the same occasion)
Introduce yourself as what almost killed you:
Good evening I am a cerebral spinal fluid leak from when I had a bad head impact with a low doorway that caused an audible crunch and left me bedridden for about 5/6 months in 2011 and constantly at risk of meningitis
Good evening I am a cerebral spinal fluid leak from when I had a bad head impact with a low doorway that caused an audible crunch and left me bedridden for about 5/6 months in 2011 and constantly at risk of meningitis
January 2, 2026 at 6:33 PM
Introduce yourself as what almost killed you:
Hello, I'm Vauxhall Renault-Ford.
(Car vs ice, car vs car, car vs bike)
Hello, I'm Vauxhall Renault-Ford.
(Car vs ice, car vs car, car vs bike)
Deactivated the account on the other place. I know, I know, but the second best time is now.
January 2, 2026 at 6:04 PM
Deactivated the account on the other place. I know, I know, but the second best time is now.
Reposted by Mark Allan
My language has been corrected and I have been told that we shouldn't be using the phrase child porn
Here's why;
learning.nspcc.org.uk/news/why-lan...
Here's why;
learning.nspcc.org.uk/news/why-lan...
January 2, 2026 at 5:37 PM
My language has been corrected and I have been told that we shouldn't be using the phrase child porn
Here's why;
learning.nspcc.org.uk/news/why-lan...
Here's why;
learning.nspcc.org.uk/news/why-lan...
Reposted by Mark Allan
Why do I have to read an Irish paper for a feature about this?
‘It’s surreal’: US sanctions lock International Criminal Court judge out of daily life
Canadian judge Kimberly Prost is unable to use credit cards, transfer money or book everyday services in what she calls an attack on the independence of the judiciary
www.irishtimes.com
January 1, 2026 at 12:24 PM
Why do I have to read an Irish paper for a feature about this?
Reposted by Mark Allan
Having Grok “apologise” for creating CSAM is like punching someone in the face and then having the Sooty puppet on your fist apologise.
January 2, 2026 at 4:27 PM
Having Grok “apologise” for creating CSAM is like punching someone in the face and then having the Sooty puppet on your fist apologise.
Reposted by Mark Allan
In an alternate reality I just took a Tesla robotaxi to the spaceport for my annual trip to Mars.
In this reality, we are watching performance art of how the world’s richest man is also its biggest grifter
In this reality, we are watching performance art of how the world’s richest man is also its biggest grifter
January 2, 2026 at 4:36 PM
In an alternate reality I just took a Tesla robotaxi to the spaceport for my annual trip to Mars.
In this reality, we are watching performance art of how the world’s richest man is also its biggest grifter
In this reality, we are watching performance art of how the world’s richest man is also its biggest grifter
Suppose I'd better hop on the bike and head home before it frosts up again. Might even have to put the heating on when I get back 😮
January 2, 2026 at 3:54 PM
Suppose I'd better hop on the bike and head home before it frosts up again. Might even have to put the heating on when I get back 😮
Absolutely. It's just another in the myriad rainbow of ussuns vs themmunss divisions.
January 1, 2026 at 4:45 PM
Absolutely. It's just another in the myriad rainbow of ussuns vs themmunss divisions.
Reposted by Mark Allan
"we're here to inspect your daycare center"
January 1, 2026 at 3:35 PM
"we're here to inspect your daycare center"
Reposted by Mark Allan
Trump Writes Netanyahu Strongly Worded Check
December 31, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Trump Writes Netanyahu Strongly Worded Check
Reposted by Mark Allan
It's that time again. It will be hard to let go.
From Lucille Clifton's book, How to Carry Water: bit.ly/howtocarrywa...
#poem #booksky #writing
From Lucille Clifton's book, How to Carry Water: bit.ly/howtocarrywa...
#poem #booksky #writing
December 30, 2025 at 2:59 PM
It's that time again. It will be hard to let go.
From Lucille Clifton's book, How to Carry Water: bit.ly/howtocarrywa...
#poem #booksky #writing
From Lucille Clifton's book, How to Carry Water: bit.ly/howtocarrywa...
#poem #booksky #writing
Reposted by Mark Allan
Great thread as always, and it highlights something to take into 2026: the culture wars nonsense is not going to go away. The right - with deep pockets to continue bombarding people with it - think it's a winner, long-term. And I'm not sure they are wrong, if we just ignore it.
This is a very silly headline in The Times
December 30, 2025 at 3:34 PM
Great thread as always, and it highlights something to take into 2026: the culture wars nonsense is not going to go away. The right - with deep pockets to continue bombarding people with it - think it's a winner, long-term. And I'm not sure they are wrong, if we just ignore it.
I very much doubt you'll regret it.
December 30, 2025 at 12:47 PM
I very much doubt you'll regret it.
Reposted by Mark Allan
Just watched the new Knives Out and I think it's really important you know that the scene in the Seminary's Gym is filmed in the same place Rick Astley filmed the music video for Never Gonna Give You Up.
I saw the window tracery and immediately made my friends pause the film so I could tell them.
I saw the window tracery and immediately made my friends pause the film so I could tell them.
December 29, 2025 at 1:11 PM
Just watched the new Knives Out and I think it's really important you know that the scene in the Seminary's Gym is filmed in the same place Rick Astley filmed the music video for Never Gonna Give You Up.
I saw the window tracery and immediately made my friends pause the film so I could tell them.
I saw the window tracery and immediately made my friends pause the film so I could tell them.
So many sweet things still in the house. Really not the time of year to be needing a healthy diet.
December 28, 2025 at 7:22 PM
So many sweet things still in the house. Really not the time of year to be needing a healthy diet.
Reposted by Mark Allan
Sinatra has gone woke
![Civil rights activism
From the 1940s Sinatra refused to perform for segregated audiences. In Las Vegas he forced the Sands to serve Nat King Cole in the dining room and, with Sammy Davis Jr., ended Jim Crow policies in Nevada hotels and casinos by
1961. 9! He headlined Carnegie Hall for Martin Luther King Jr. in 1961, led Rat Pack boycotts, donated heavily to SCLC and voter registration, and was praised by Vice President Humphrey after the Watts riots for teaching tolerance."] Orson Welles witnessed Sinatra physically
threaten a restaurant owner who refused service to a Black musician.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:of56nmyuqzvjta7qlf7gwht6/bafkreihcwqha74luvn5td5tugqr4welplshkdqtabytg7ohgc23we7aedm@jpeg)
December 28, 2025 at 3:34 AM
Sinatra has gone woke
Reposted by Mark Allan
Don't think I've spoken to a single artist who didn't struggle this Christmas, and I spoke to a lot, so even if it's not my work I'd really encourage people to try to support a local artist that you like instead of big corporations - every single sale makes a real, tangible difference to their life.
If, like me, you did NOT get the ONE thing you wanted from Santy (a 95-year-old bachelor farmer with plenty land and a bad cough), treat yourself to a print from an Irish doodler instead - big discounts across the shop, including on bundles, so go on. Go on go on go ON.
www.ciaraioch.com/artprints
www.ciaraioch.com/artprints
December 28, 2025 at 9:08 AM
Don't think I've spoken to a single artist who didn't struggle this Christmas, and I spoke to a lot, so even if it's not my work I'd really encourage people to try to support a local artist that you like instead of big corporations - every single sale makes a real, tangible difference to their life.
Reposted by Mark Allan
Parents Gently Explain To Child That Their Money In Heaven Now https://theonion.com/parents-gently-explain-to-child-that-their-money-in-heaven-now/
December 27, 2025 at 10:00 PM
Parents Gently Explain To Child That Their Money In Heaven Now https://theonion.com/parents-gently-explain-to-child-that-their-money-in-heaven-now/
Wow! Brings back memories. I think(?) it might have been the first time I encountered Eliza.
December 27, 2025 at 12:38 PM
Wow! Brings back memories. I think(?) it might have been the first time I encountered Eliza.