Well, we can’t say we didn’t see this coming

/ J. F. Riordan

I’ve had a love/hate relationship with Twitter over the years, but when the new management took over, it was increasingly obvious that it was heading in the wrong direction. For weeks now, I’ve been prevented from seeing even my own tweets after about five. The functionality of posting photos has been broken. And last week I casually opened the app while sitting at the airport and found myself staring at graphic pornography.

But today I have been blocked from posting at all. No cute photo of Auggie on the bed in front of me, and no retweeting to help save dogs in danger. There were two in particular I wanted to help.

I have no idea how long this will last. I’m sure it’s not personal. It’s just reality, and we deal with it. Maybe it’s just time to cut the cord. If you’re on Twitter, please pass the word. And if you’d like to stay in touch, you can sign up to receive an email whenever I post on the main page of this site.

I am looking at this as a message from the universe to do more writing. Not that Elon Musk is the universe, but I’m sure he thinks he is.

(My apologies for the technical glitches here. I’m out of practice.)

He’s not relaxed at all.
My spoiled darlings.

90 thoughts on “Well, we can’t say we didn’t see this coming”

  1. It’s time for all of us to “Xit”. I am sorry this happened to you and look forward to following you here.

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  3. Please let me know if you are moving to a new site. I enjoy seeing and hearing about your dogs and your pictures of the lake through the seasons. You bring a little more peace into the world. Thank you.

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  4. Oh how crazy! Are you using the app? I stopped using it and I am just using Twitter with the browser. That seems to work much better. Give it a try if you are not using the browser. If you are using the browser and still having these problems I fear it is hopeless!

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  5. I am sad to say I have missed your comments and pictures on Twitter/X. I am using Threads more than Twitter. I miss seeing pictures of Auggie and Eli and your witty comments on their antics. I see Charlie Sykes comments and occasional pictures on Threads. I check a couple of times a week to see if you are on Threads. Please join Threads for all of your followers that enjoy your comments and pictures. J9necessary

    >

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  6. As someone who looks forward to seeing your posts, pictures, and crisp, witty responses I want to scream. I thought perhaps you were under the weather (from the cold last week) so I was trying to have patience (not my strong suit). Jump off when you need to and I will follow! The owner of this platform is the poster exhibit for an unbridled, petulant, rude child. For a few weeks, I could see ‘posts’ but no responses or threads. It was maddening.
    OK, now back to work (reading an FDA response on clinical plan).
    PS: I just began reading North of the Tension Line and I love, love, love my autographed PETE!!! Books. I bought a few as gifts and tucked one away should I ever be gifted with a grandchild (yes, it is that special).
    MJ

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  7. Hi, thanks for the pup picks. I’ve missed the boys. I left Twitter over a year ago, and left FB almost three years ago and haven’t missed either one, except for pics of your boys 😆 and Stan Collin’s posts I did find more me time which was a blessing. Thanks again for the pics. Take care.

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  9. Oh how I’ve missed Auggie & Eli photos! I’m so happy to see them this morning. I literally gasped when I read about graphic porn appearing on your Twitter (emmm or X feed) . I loved Twitter, but am much happier after our breakup. I enjoy Post now. Smaller for certain, but generally more focused on the news. Thank you for the morning smiles!

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      • Twitter is broken so I rarely go there. My smile for my day was seeing the boy’s, Auggie & Eli. Also, my heart still misses Pete.
        For me your pics were my best thing about twitter. I joined a handful of “replacements” but none thus far are a great replacement. So for I am trying to curate all my follows on threads, which seems furthest down the road as a twitter replacement. It is another , slightly less evil billionaire but it seems for now there is no great option. Twitter is ruined and I miss my bird and X is just stupid.
        Most of all I truly miss my daily smiles from your pictures!

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      • I have a Threads and a Post account. Like you, I should start using them. I don’t understand why E M deliberately chose to ruin his social media platform.

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  10. I miss following you and a few others on Twitter, but otherwise the experience was so negative and I don’t miss the negativity.

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  11. Hi! I am so sorry to read that. Musk is obviously trying to destroy Twitter. What a mess. If you send me the info (name of dog and who tweeted about them) I will be glad to retweet it. Love the photos! Linda

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  12. I too have a love/hate relationship with Twitter. I just looked and I was able to see your 2 posts this morning about pledges but you no longer show up on my timeline. I have to go to your twitter page to see your posts. Twitter has become a big let down but I’ll stay for now. There are so many other choices but it seems people are going to many different ones so I will never be able to follow so many at just one place

    Michelle (Kansas Independent)

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  13. I can bring you up on my MacbookPro. I could leave a message, but you wouldn’t see it. No app, Firefox browser.

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      • I hope if you decide to go to threads you go somewhere else – spoutible does videos I think – Threads doesn’t work on computers and I’m not going to deal with twitter or its equivalent on a cell phone. I’m on them all but stay here, primarily.

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  14. I’ve been a follower in general on Twitter , not a tweeter, and love your photos! Now that I’ve moved to Threads I’ve really missed your posts. I know you’re not a Meta fan, most of us aren’t, but it is quite normal and harkens back to pre-Musk Twitter. I hope you will give it a try.

    Chris (a fan of Moses, Auggie , Eli & Pete)

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  15. I’m so sorry… I also have been having a difficult time … I wondered why I had not seen anything from you for a while… today I am staying off-line as a result of someone asking people to do that… I am on Post but not Threads (I think that’s the name)… you all are in my thoughts… stay happy! 🙂 C

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  18. I just saw your tweet about Juliet of two of 2 hrs ago so hopefully others can too!
    I think what’s going to drive me away is the shock of seeing that ugly x every time I look for the sweet bird.
    Hope we can all keep in touch somehow❤️

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  21. How awful! I was blocked for several days for “spam”. I follow animals, nature and gardening primarily. It’s obvious that Twitter has serious issues and I am hesitant to use Threads. What’s happening is infuriating to me and many others who’ve used Twitter for many years and made many good virtual friends there. I still see posts from you however. Today was a photo of the pups sharing secrets, I believe. Perhaps your tweets are being posted but you’re not seeing them or the replies. There are always many replies. Why don’t you get in touch with them and try to find out what the problem is. I sincerely hope this gets sorted out soon.

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  22. I’m glad to see you here. I had the porno Twitter experience in an airport a couple of weeks ago. I am really over Twitter.

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  24. You (and Stan Collins) were a big draw for me on that site that is now so bad. I will kerp looking for your posts on your website and hope something comes through for the benefit of us all.

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  25. It’s very sad. Ivery seldom see any of your posts. Once in awhile one shows up in my feed. The same goes for Charlie too. Ive been hesitant to make a change but it’s gotten to the point where it’s almost a waste of my time.

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  26. Part of your post was cut off. This is so frustrating. I am following you on Instagram so I hope to see more there.

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  27. J.F., wherever you go, we will follow. Yes, I love your dogs (all of them) but I am also deeply grateful for some lessons in living and grieving that I have learned from you. Your voice brings sunshine, light, laughter, and a little bit of song now and then. It will survive stupid reading limits (aren’t those good for upping engagement?!) and indefensible suspensions. I look forward to the photos, the fun, the wisdom, the trees, the deer, the garden, the lake . . . well, the whole of it. Thanks for the high road you let us take with you.

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  28. I’ll so miss seeing the boys and they’re “bitie face ” antics. It’s sad that Mr. Big Bucks has to fix what isn’t broken. I saw PETE❤️❤️🐕 on the mantle yesterday when his dad was on MSNBC ♥️ big hugs to Auggie and Eli. ♥️♥️

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  29. I’m on post and was surprised you said that you were on post. I went over there to follow you but I can’t find you under j.f. riordan. Doe you have a different handle over there? P.S. loved your 1st 3 books. I will look for #4

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  30. Old Twitter had problems, but they were known and manageable. X, goaded by a man-child, is chaotic and exasperating. I miss seeing Auggie and Eli scroll past. Best of everything to you, the boys, and Charlie.

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  31. It has become increasingly obvious that Elon Musk wishes to turn Twitter into a place we no longer wish to be. It is very sad as I’ve made many friends and found great news sources, both official and unofficial. I’ll miss the photos of Auggie! I had so hoped another platform would emerge, but hasn’t seemed to happen so far.

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  32. That is beyond ridiculous. Being a good NAFO-adjacent Fella, I was going to refrain from posting on X today in compliance with orders from Fella-in-Chief Mark Hamill to have a no-tweet day today; however, you should be able to tweet if you want. Are you going to return to Lone Skum’s folly?

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  33. The new owner has certainly messed the platform up for sure. I want to go somewhere else, but I don’t want to lose contact with those I follow. I’m in such a quandary. What’s a normal person to do? Be well!

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  34. So sorry to hear this, but fully understand. Twitter (X) has been a nightmare since Musk took over. We enjoy your humor and your wonderful pictures of Auggie and Eli. Let us know if you migrate to another social media site. Your fans will follow you there! 😉

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  35. I loved your tweets and it is so frustrating that the changes are so negative for us all but at least we can follow you here

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  36. I’ve been off Twitter since Musk purchased and only miss a few threads – yours is one. I’m following you here. Loved your feed!

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  37. I’m feeling a lot of the same about Twitter. It used to be fun and interesting, now it’s tense and ridiculous. So many of my favorites have left: darth, I’ve pet that dog…accounts that used to uplift me and make me smile. I discovered you on Twitter and for that I am very grateful. You’re a beautiful writer and I just got your new book, taking it on a road trip this weekend. If you leave Twitter and go somewhere else, let us know. 💕

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  39. So sorry to hear your difficulties with the former bird. I’ve been experiencing the same and have been troubled by it.

    I used to have a nicely curated list of people I follow. Authors, writers, dog people, people who share the beauty of this world.

    It’s all been run over by hatemongers and digital vandals.

    Miss seeing Auggie and Levi and the serenity of the northwoods.

    Sending you the best from me and my beloved agility Papillons.

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  40. The minute the black “X” appeared on my phone I knew it was a matter of time before I’d stop using it as well. Have you considered threads?

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  41. I haven’t been able to see your tweets in my feed for a while now; I search daily and find you so I keep up. I’m still on Twitter because the dog people that I follow haven’t migrated to another platform and I don’t want to miss them. I’m on Post (which I seldom look at so far), Spoutible, and Threads. I like Threads ok, but the fact that it’s only on my phone and I can’t read it on my computer limits my time there. Musk is destroying more than a social media service, he’s destroying online communities that people depend on for interaction and sanity.

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  42. Hello! If it’s any comfort, I was just getting the hang of Twitter after 7 years of using it and never much more than 1800 or so followers, when Elon Musk broke it.

    Can’t believe someone would pay billions of dollars for a platform to so abuse it that it’s barely worth 1/4 of that today. I have wondered if it’s part of an evil plan so just before the 2024 election cycle, we ‘STILL SANE’ people not in the Cult have lost our platform for town square conversations?

    Pass that along to your Charlie and ask him if he’s suspicious 🤨 too.

    I have, and do so miss your pictures of the dogs and your lovely home and country side.

    About the porn—if you ever watch someone’s posted videos, you can scroll down to see every other video they (I think) watched or posted—you just scroll and scroll and scroll—I don’t think or know if everyone knows that???? Seems like a glitch???

    Maybe you accidentally were watching a video and let your finger scroll down and got that porn accidentally cause it was next in the cue? Just a thought. I always block the really suggestive meat market stuff some folks post and definitely the porn.

    I’m not judgmental but just too old for that now—life’s short and there are dogs and cats and the garden and good cooking and great books calling me now!😁

    Ingrid Sent from my iPhone

    >

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  43. I too am frustrated by Twitter; glad we have a new way to stay in touch! Love your animal posts. And you are my book writing hero(ine), as when I retire (soon) I have sketched out a book to write about the adventures of our dog when we lived in Paris.

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  45. Yes, I came to the same conclusion regarding the utility of Twitter and deleted their app. I’ve tried Post and am currently giving Thread a whirl. As a “lurker” it has most of the features I liked about Twitter. I noticed Charlie posts there so have been hoping to see you make the leap. Miss your shepherds and Stan Collins landscapes and several political voices. Hope this finds you well. Thanks, Yvonne

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  46. I’ve decided it’s time to bid farewell to Twitter for all the reasons you and others expressed. The replacement of the “cute little bird” with a heavily blackened X sealed my decision. I, too, am on POST but don’t see it as conducive to the dialogue and posting of pictures we love—e.g. Auggie and Eli. I’ve sampled several several platforms and like Spoutible for dialogue and pictures.

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  47. Very sad. I will try to follow. I did see some posts today so it must be working, at least temporarily. I too am saddened by the deep downturn at Twitter.

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  48. You and Stan Collins are the only reason I don’t delete my Twitter account. I’m m so glad I get your emails.

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