Bel Downes (Coffeewith…)

👋🇦🇺🌏 If you’re a fan of ‘If You’re Listening’, they now have a dedicated YouTube channel of their own (as well as ABC News In-depth) (Details at the end of the video): youtu.be/dL4B2Tv3oO8?...

What? Another double espresso? I am so grateful for Australian coffee culture 👋☕️🇦🇺

Today in local cafe chill - double espresso 👋☕️🇦🇺

Sure I’m Australian. But if you are eligible to vote in the US midterms in Nov, here’s a group of people there who need you to vote Democrat… Their lives depend on it and many of them can’t vote, Trumpy has demonised them: youtu.be/4vi55yULrIs?...

All depends which way the wind is blowing www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

Happy 10 year anniversary of the best mic drop on Twitter. Hard to believe it’s been so long! Congrats @astrokatie.com

‘You Can’t Ask That!’ is an Australian ABC TV series that’s been running off and on from 2016 The episode I was in (2017) has been put on YouTube. I look very different now, but I still agree with what I said back then I’d encourage everyone, esp families, to watch a few of the eps & discuss… 👋☕️🇦🇺

Currently happening… Vegemite and Cheese Scroll and double shot of Espresso 👋☕️🇦🇺

Thousands of university and high school students have walked out of class to protest the rise of Pauline Hanson, as One Nation continues to sit first or second in the latest federal polls WATCH: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJCb...

It’s Census Night here in Australia 🇦🇺 If you haven’t done your Census, do it, the information is used in really helpful ways I’m Asexual. I’ve never been able to complete a sex survey, my answers are always unavailable I had to write it in, but I could 🥳 It was great to be seen, finally 👋☕️

You know what I’d do if I lived near the Tate brothers’ holding cells? Go and read to them just outside their cell all the books they obviously haven’t read Like ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ 📚💪

A really good global summary from the BBC. No matter where you are, you have a say in this when you vote and hold them accountable 🗳️🇦🇺🌏 youtu.be/DnJsk8moq9o?...

Friendly reminder: Don’t label despicable people with medical or physical conditions they don’t have Having a physical difference (like cleft scars) is not a character flaw. Neither is ‘bed wetting’ nor ‘mouth-breathing’ Talk about how they are despicable, don’t use some feature others can’t help

I cannot facepalm hard enough. This ‘new tariff’ is ridiculous on so many levels: Richard Marles says new US tariff on Australia 'makes no sense' www.sbs.com.au/news/article...

jojofromjerz.substack.com/p/gold-lame-...

Been hearing a lot about a speech Trump gave today Sorry I was too busy eating prunes Same effect but I like prunes 👋☕️🇦🇺

Values have to change. Incentives need to shift. Fossil fuels, which were for long so beneficial to humanity, have to be recognised as poisons. And petroleum companies must pay for backtracking on their promises, writes Jonathan Watts www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Belgium’s overwhelming defeat makes it hard for Trump to lie the match was rigged. A lesson for us midterm voters.

In the latest episode of What's the Point?, Dr Richard Denniss cuts through the noise surrounding negative gearing, capital gains tax and the ongoing media hysteria around Australia’s housing market. 🎧 Listen now: https://theaus.in/3SLMm7W

Way to go Belgium! 🇦🇺❤️🇧🇪⚽️

I’m proud of myself getting through some difficult things this year. I’m doing really well I did my Australian tax return last night at 12:58am on 1 July. That was not difficult at all Thanks ATO! Next year I hope it is a bit more difficult because I’ll be back at work 👋☕️🇦🇺

Currently happening in an Australian cafe… Double shot of Espresso and a Vegemite and Cheese scroll 👋☕️🇦🇺

Woot! SBSK on YouTube interviewed someone I haven’t spoken to in a while, but have a lot in common with… Christian has a similar condition to me, a very rare Bilateral Tessier Facial Cleft, although his is more complex than mine… Well done Christian, Lacey and Chandler: youtu.be/FMtevy8uck0?...

NEW VIDEO: Regional news bulletins in northern NSW have been cut and on-air redundancies have hit Channel 7, in the latest round of job cuts to impact Australian media WATCH: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uu1V...

What’s with all the Seppo Journos writing off us Australians for the FIFA World Game against the US? I’ll be watching at 4am on Saturday… 👋⚽️🇦🇺 You know we thrive on being the underdog, yeah?

Oh My God. Australia scored first! ❤️🇦🇺⚽️ #FIFAWorldCup

Feeling very thankful for the roof over my head and no need to go out in the wind and rain today Also thankful for good friends that respect my need to not get blown over in public and have coffee earlier in the week Coffee and study today 👋☕️🇦🇺

Just saw this on YouTube: Guard The Leaf, who did a Canadian response to this very Australian essay If you’re in the US, please read This is how I feel as an Australian towards the current US too. Though I wasn’t as enamoured as IFLA, I totally get the sentiment: substack.com/@ifloz/note/...

Today’s coffee with a people watching view in Lambton NSW. Double espresso. No sugar or milk was thought of during this delicious well made Australian coffee 👋☕️🇦🇺

How wonderful and deeply thoughtful was the opening of Eurovision 2026 Semi-Final 1? 🥰🥹 I’ll be up at 5am for Semi-Final 2 to see our Delta give her best 🇪🇺👋🇦🇺

Today, May the Fourth, Star Wars Day, is my birthday… and my friends took me out for a coffee so early this morning that I actually got a Vegemite and cheese pastry! Day made 🇦🇺 How freaking awesome is all that! 👋☕️

Major happies here… My Helen has a motor. As amazing as The Fellow is, it’s a matter of Stoic justice that I don’t make him give up his life to push Helen and me up hills I never thought I would buy a junk car, but I have bought a good wheelchair power assist Go Helen Wheels! 👋☕️🇦🇺

ICE has detained the only Texas licenced court interpreter for Hindi, Urdu and Punjabi languages despite all her correct paperwork. Doug Sharpe below states it plainly, but there are other reliable sources as well This is so ridiculous it hurts me as a Linguist: youtube.com/shorts/esPMp...

Too much admin and adulting done before 10am… So this is what you get from me right now… It’s AI, I can’t draw, but the double espresso and little cake were delicious 👋☕️🇦🇺

On a train station concourse with Helen Wheels and this very cool little kid launches into this incredible spinning rave dance right in front of me He was burning off energy before what I assumed was a long train trip But he was a great dancer and I was glad I wasn’t on the train with him!

Feeling a bit happy emotional… Paid off the wheelchair in full yesterday (Helen Wheels) and she’s been keeping me wound free for over two months now Yesterday was also coincidently my late mother’s birthday, she didn’t care for herself or me so it’s good to remember 14 Apr in a better care way 🧑‍🦽‍➡️🎉

Watching the Artemis ll splash down from Sydney, Saturday morning 🧑‍🚀👋🇦🇺

If I get a Segway scooter for under my manual wheelchair how many laws will I be breaking where you live? 🧑‍🦽‍➡️🇦🇺😎

After he goes, people aren’t going to take drugs anymore. They will visit his library to trip balls.

John Lyon’s (on the ABC) analysis of the Orange Turd’s address is like a palate cleanser. He’s pretty much calling out all the lies & BS. Thank you John!!! #AusPol

Shhh… Orange fart man is spluttering on camera.

So welcome to my wheelchair’s official naming ceremony… I haven’t had any wounds for two months now! 🎉 So my chair’s name is… Helen… Helen Wheels Helen, The Fellow and I are celebrating with a coffee and bakery treats, come and join us - thanks for all your support 🎉👋☕️🇦🇺🧑‍🦽‍➡️❤️

You have no idea how much I’m getting from a daily Stoic practice - deliberately sitting, reading and thinking about values Doing something about the things I can control versus the things I can’t, has really uncluttered my head And there’s no threat of eternal punishment if I slightly disagree

For a timeline cleanse I thought I’d share a picture from Threads. And I’m going to tell you that a lot of us are waiting for the ‘Raptor’ on the 22 March It’s Threads. It was a typo. It’s now a Threads wide joke This is my new friend Rory who I hope will visit again during the Second Coming👋☕️🇦🇺🦖

One month anniversary of my wheelchair - and still no foot wounds. This means no more early morning nursing visits, a lot fewer medical appointments, no trips to hospital. More coffee with friends without serious foot consequences and I can walk around the house comfortably… Great investment 🎉🧑‍🦽‍➡️

For an economy that works for all, we also need universal basic income. That is the only way to share 50 years of productivity increases with EVERYONE. scottsantens.substack.com/p/universal-...

Wow. Absolutely stellar presentation.

Sometimes I have coffee near a big railway station. Just to watch the bags people choose to travel with. While I can’t photograph them, I also think some of these bags are being used to within an inch of their last breath. Imagine a bag holding a roll of heavy duty tape together.

Currently happening in a cafe I’m in, in a fortunate place, writing a 5 minute comedy set that’s going to be awesome one day 👋☕️🇦🇺