Blythe Varney

MA student at @LeicsMusStud. Culture lover, collector of things, archives annoyer. Disabled. Fond of databases. Likes cataloguing. She/they

[Emma Kennedy @EmmaKEdDev]

'Ideal for an early career archivist' who can afford to work unpaid (esp in London) ... maybe an early career archivist who is married to a hedge fund manager, or is a member of the aristocracy? Come on.

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

Actually it's probably for the best I can't go for a trip. I'd burst into tears and run around hugging the walls. It's been far too long since I stepped inside any museum and I'm not quite sure I could bring myself to leave again 🥺

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

It's #InternationalMuseumDay and I'm in the office all day so I can't pop into any of the local museums. What're the best online museums I can explore on the train home?

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

A rainbow flag doesn't undo the damage done by hate either. Staff can still give trans visitors dirty looks and make snide comments when they go to the loo. Volunteers can still make offhand comments that make the two men holding hands feel unsafe. All while a rainbow flies above

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

If your museum or organisation is posting about #IDAHOBIT2021, I really hope it's making sure to put institutional changes in place. Posts on social media are fine but without action taken to root out discrimination inside institutions it's all meaningless

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

Celebrating #IDAHOBIT2021 with a post or two doesn't prevent queer people from facing discrimination from staff. And it isn't always the obvious kind you see on TV. Taking action to root out the problem on all levels is the only way to ensure posts are meaningful and believable

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

Emails sent to students has made this out to be something positive and everything was done to prevent it. The University had no other choice. Staff have evidence to the opposite

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

Sat in shock at @uniofleicester's decision regarding redundancies. #BoycottLeicester is the bare minimum that can be done to support staff. I was considering continuing with my PhD there but the way staff are treated is horrifying

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

**about. Typing is hard when you've got a dog on your lap

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

There's probably someone who knows someone in Scotland who can connect with WoS anout this

[@witchesofscotland @witchesofscotl1]

If there was a Museum of the Witch Hunts in Scotland - would you visit it? RETWEET if the answer is YES and let’s see how much twitter support there is!

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

Watch me consider going to York for my PhD so I can continue the #DuckWatch tradition 🦆

[Dick King-Smith HQ @DickKingSmith]

"The tallest mallard duck to have ever lived (since records began) known as 'Long Boi.' He lives on the campus of the University of York, England. He stands just over 1m tall (3.5ft)."

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

I might have moved into museums rather than classics but Sappho remains close to my heart. One day I'd love to curate an exhibition on her to celebrate her poetry, the ways in which women love other women, and the impact she's had on wlw culture. We are called Sapphic after all

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

Violets are one of my favourite flowers for this reason. I also have a small tattoo of one on my ankle, partly to show off my pride with the history of my community and partly as a celebration because my highest mark in any module in my undergrad was in ancient poetry

[The Museum of English Rural Life @TheMERL]

This year, we’re working with @FuturesBroken, a community project using archives and collections to research the lives and persecution of queer men in Berkshire.

In our new online exhibition, learn about the legal history of sex between men, and its impact on our rural county.

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

I've been buried in research all morning and opened Twitter to see this. Brain misunderstood and thought it meant that all human remains are fake and I was going to have to toss my dissertation out the window.

Someone bring me tea and a nice pile of biscuits. I need the sugar.

[Classics@UnivReading @UniRdg_Classics]

(Human Remains are not real)
Archaeology are doing some incredibly exciting excavations today.

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

Yesterday was really hard. Academics tend to be hard on themselves and I'm no exception. If I try and don't quite get where I want to be I beat myself up. So today I'm trying to be kind to myself. Got some flowers and the fuzzy potato. Cup of tea and a book is all I need now

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

That being said put me in an emergency situation and I'm the calmest person. If the place is on fire I'll be absolutely fine. Actual stress doesn't bother me. My dog refusing to eat because her hard food is in the wrong bowl because the usual bowl is being washed, however...

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

Lockdown, furlough, and unemployment have been hard but the extra time has meant I could practice baking. Meringues are pretty much perfected so long as the weather is dry and now it's on to the terrifying macaroons

[Blythe Varney @CollectNCurate]

Pros of employing me: I stress bake so just stress me out a teensy bit and you'll have freshly baked goodies within 48 hours

Cons of employing me: I stress bake so any time I'm stressed you'll have freshly baked goodies within 48 hours

I get stressed over cheese brands...