Okay, I'm back.
I'm a little stuffed bull and sometimes I get scared. I hope that if you needed it, you had a dresser drawer to crawl into and close behind you. It's nice and soft and quiet and you can be locked away from the world for quite a bit to take care of yourself.
But you can't stay there forever. (Aside from needing to eventually face the world, I wish I'd gone to the toilet before I crawled in the dresser.)
Okay: things not only look bad; they are bad. Warning: the below is tough stuff. If you want to skim past it, scroll down until you see the picture of Captain America. But I'm afraid you've probably already seen a lot of this stuff over the past week and a half.
I have been exceptionally depressed the last week. Many other people have been even harder off.
And here, following The Guardian's report on rising rate of calls to suicide centers, are the hateful, terrible mocking responses of some very inhuman humans:
A friend of mine said this online, and I want to repeat it, in big letters:
We need you. Hold on.
Here are other hotlines you can call. Save the following image on your phone! Don't forget that you are loved and you are wanted!
So, what can we do?
- Stay aware of the news but beware and avoid fake news. Read, and support if you can, legitimate news organizations and newspapers. Learn how to tell false news and which outlets distribute it in this article "How to stop the spread of fake news on Facebook and Twitter." Don't get your news only or primarily from Twitter and Facebook.
- Educate yourself on hate crimes. Read Rae Paoletta's Twitter thread on post-election hate crimes; the list is currently at #109 and counting. (Scroll up to see the full list.) Do research to find out what's happening in your community.
- Donate energy, time, and money to organizations that fight racism, sexism, and hate both in your local community and throughout the country. Here's a starting list; research will help you find local organizations and projects within your area or community.
• Planned Parenthood
• Center for Reproductive Rights
• Natural Resources Defense Council
• International Refugee Assistance Project
• NAACP Legal Defense Fund
• The Trevor Project
• Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund
• American Civil Liberties Union - Get informed on elections and vote in your 2017 local and 2018 midterm elections. Find out what candidates and platforms stand for and support your conscience.
And remember to fight for your rights...else who will?
Here's another of my favorite songs, one that's unfortunately timely than ever, by my very loved, very missed Kirsty MacColl:
I was born and I was bred
I was reared and I was fed
Moved into the neighbourhood
Where I was bad and I was good
I fixed things for people there
I took them out I don't know where
I coloured in their lives to give them outlines
I walked before I'll walk again
I'll walk along a line of men
And walk into the lion's den
I think you know but you won't say
Just what it is makes life this way
But I'm not going to take this lying down
Reach for the stars, retch for the earth
We took the earth and made it worse
And there was never any doubt
We ate it up, we spat it out
And still we love to say we did it our way
On this voyage of discovery
I'm blinded by the things I see
I've seen before I'll see again
I'll look along a line of men
And fall into the lion's den
Now you can pray your head is bared
And I'm not saying I'm not scared
But I'm not going to take this lying down
I think you know but you won't say
Just what it is makes life this way
But I'm not going to take this lying down
Finally, take time to self-care. Have a snack. Watch a funny movie. Take a brisk walk. Breathe in deep, breathe out, and repeat. Sing out loud. Hug a family member, hug a friend, hug a little stuffed animal. The people who love you — and you have some — will help you get through the hard days.
Be good and be good to each other. These are hard times. Many of you who follow my blog have noticed that I don't post every day for long stretches, and that's when I'm under the covers sad and hiding. I've had a very hard year since January, but I couldn't e making the sprint through December without all of you lovely readers and fans. Special thanks to Mike Sterling, who reminded people — and me — that I have a posse. Know what? so do you. And I'm in it for you.
And you can always, always have some of my cookies.
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