“Your life is not an episode of Skins. Things will never look quite as good as they do in a faded, sun-drenched Polaroid; your days are not an editorial from Lula. Your life is not a Sofia Coppola movie, or a Chuck Palahniuk novel, or a Charles Bukowski poem. Grace Coddington isn’t your creative director. Bon Iver and Joy Division don’t play softly in the background at appropriate moments. Your hysterical teenage diary isn’t a work of art. Your room probably isn’t Selby material. Your life isn’t a Tumblr screencap. Every word that comes out of your mouth will not be beautiful and poignant, infinitely quotable. Your pain will not be pretty. Crying till you vomit is always shit. You cannot romanticize hurt. Or sadness. Or loneliness. You will have homework, and hangovers and bad hair days. The train being late won’t lead to any fateful encounters, it will make you late. Sometimes your work will suck. Sometimes you will suck. Far too often, everything will suck - and not in a Wes Anderson kind of way. And there is no divine consolation - only the knowledge that we will hopefully experience the full spectrum - and that sometimes, just sometimes, life will feel like a Coppola film.”
—Letters From Nowhere (via deadvibe)
June 2013
9 posts
Lovely people of tumblr,
I am fundraising for my Uncle Dean to get a new prosthetic limb. He has been living with crutches for the last 5 years and is experiencing chronic pain as a result. We are trying to raise funds to help alleviate the astronomical cost of the prosthetic and the costs of physiotherapy. My family is from Fort St. John, a small town in northern BC, and due to the specialized nature of Uncle Dean’s prosthetic he will need to fly down to Vancouver and pay for the (very high) cost of living as he begins rehabilitation to learn how to walk again. Anything you can do - like, share, donate, spread the word, send positive energy/vibes/prayers his way - is so greatly appreciated.
You can donate here.
Much gratitude,
Brandy
This is urgent
Does anyone in the NC area have a place where an Iranian trans* person can stay I need a safe space NOW PLEASE SIGNAL BOOST PLEASE
if your feminism isn’t anti-racism it’s white supremacy
The Dean West Prosthetic Fund →
gofundme.com
This is my uncle Dean (you’ll see him when you click through)
Six years ago, he was diagnosed with fibrous histio-cytoma. He underwent radiation treatment and once the tumor was small enough, doctors removed the tumor along with uncle Dean’s entire ham string muscle.
After a year of fighting off infections, the cancer came back and uncle Dean was scheduled for surgery to remove his leg mid-thigh. However, when the surgeons went in, they realized that the progression and growth of the tumor would require a total hip dis-articulation, which means that they had to take the entire leg right from the hip socket.
Uncle Dean hasn’t been able to get a prosthetic due to their high cost and has been using crutches for the last 5 years. The side effects of not using a prosthetic has been formation of spine curvature, and a tilted pelvis, which causes a great amount of pain each day. He experiences a lot of pain in his shoulders due to the crutches and is hoping that eventually he can stop using them!
After 6 years of reduced quality of life, it’s time for uncle Dean to finally be fitted with a prosthetic, but the cost is high: $54,856.07, plus living expenses and physio-therapy while he’s in Vancouver learning to walk again.
However, with your help, hopefully we can reach that goal! We greatly appreciate all of your help, and even if you can’t donate, please spread the word and send a few kind thoughts his way.
Cheers,
Brandy
“when your little girl
asks you if she’s pretty
your heart will drop like a wineglass
on the hardwood floor
part of you will want to say
of course you are, don’t ever question it
and the other part
the part that is clawing at
you
will want to grab her by her shoulders
look straight into the wells of
her eyes until they echo back to you
and say
you do not have to be if you don’t want to
it is not your job
both will feel right
one will feel better
she will only understand the first
when she wants to cut her hair off
or wear her brother’s clothes
you will feel the words in your
mouth like marbles
you do not have to be pretty if you don’t want to
it is not your job” —it is not your job | Caitlyn Siehl (via faintestglance)
asks you if she’s pretty
your heart will drop like a wineglass
on the hardwood floor
part of you will want to say
of course you are, don’t ever question it
and the other part
the part that is clawing at
you
will want to grab her by her shoulders
look straight into the wells of
her eyes until they echo back to you
and say
you do not have to be if you don’t want to
it is not your job
both will feel right
one will feel better
she will only understand the first
when she wants to cut her hair off
or wear her brother’s clothes
you will feel the words in your
mouth like marbles
you do not have to be pretty if you don’t want to
it is not your job” —it is not your job | Caitlyn Siehl (via faintestglance)
May 2013
11 posts
Why aren't more people freaking out about the new Venezuelan labor law?
You know, the one that gives housewives/full-time mothers a pension— wages for housework?
It’s ONLY A HUGE VICTORY FOR FEMINISM, SOCIALISM, AND WOMEN OF COLOR. Not a big deal or anything. Tumblr is mysteriously silent about this.
http://rabble.ca/columnists/2013/05/venezuelas-new-labour-law-best-mothers-day-gift
“
And where are the sober spaces? We often talk about “building safer spaces”, and yet our fundraisers are not safe for people that have a current or past history with addiction. They are not safe for people that have experienced abuse because of alcohol/drug dependent partners or family members. And they are definitely not safe for everyone if there is a possibility of police interference. Consent violations also occur more often in non-sober spaces. Don’t we want to ensure the safety of event participants after the event has ended? Including alcohol limits who can attend, what conversations can occur, and who wants to organize. These events usually end with no advancement of our movements, and do not build long lasting, genuine connections.
I am interested in building and sustaining more sober spaces, bridging intergenerational gaps (especially in the queer community), and being accessible to ALL peoples, not just college kids. I am tired of people throwing around the word “community”, when what we really mean is our close group of (amazing and supportive) friends and acquaintances.
” —- An Open Letter to Young Organizers by Yucca (via ok4rj)
Really good freaking point, and well worth mulling over.
(via hwaaa)
Yes! This is a conversation I’ve had many times with friends who are organizers/are recovering from addiction/who can’t be around alcohol or drugs because of PTSD/triggers/etc.
(via shallowxgraves)
Welcome to my world of never wanting to hang out with punx/metalheads/general queer community. Safe spaces that are not sober aren’t really safe spaces for anyone with addiction issues. If I can stop smoking for an event for the comfort of others, you can not drink.
(via treebeardoffangorn)
I seriously wish that there were more. I’m at a point where I personally am okay with being around folks who are drinking/smoking, but as for “hard drugs” and folks who get loud or angry when drinking—I can’t be around that. And it limits a lot of my social interactions with other queers, unfortunately.
(via asystoles)
After me expressing frustration at how one-dimensional and limiting it is that the queer scene exists mostly in spaces that have alcohol, a man on okc told me the reason queer spaces are so booze-orientated is because people want to get drunk to find people to sleep with.
WAY TO MAKE ME NOT WANT TO HOOK UP WITH YOU, OKC MAN.
(via juniordrumkit)
