Hope Is Real!

Every labor day weekend, Atlanta is busy, busy, busy!  There’s the Decatur Book Festival , Black GayPride , and DragonCon -a huge science fiction and fantasy convention.  One thing that I don’t talk about often is that I am a nerd and I attend DragonCon every year.  This will be my eleventh year!  D*Con is held in five hotels: the Westin, Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt, and Sheridan and features many panels, costume contests, parties, dances, musical and comedy shows, film screenings, venders, games, a parade, and much more.  It’s always a great time!  This year I am presenting the Feminist Guide to DragonCon, which is a list I have compiled of all the panels that address feminism in some way.  I have included  a lot of different topics and not just topics that deal with sexism or women directly, because “my feminism will be intersectional or it will be bullshit” (one of my favorite quotes).  I have the category (track), the title, the description, time, and where the panel can be found.  

Here is another picture from my Color Me Calm coloring book: It states, Serenity is Life's true brass ring. It's yours for the taking. It's true too. Serenity can be yours and is a very valuable thing. However, there was a time when I would have disagreed with that statement! I used to think serenity was overrated-I only wanted to have wild times. Wild times are great, but they are exhausting and a lifetime of only wildness would definitely end up in burn out. For the majority of my life, my emotions were always super intense and wildly out of control. I pushed people away and I often regretted what I said or did. I wore myself and other people out. I consider it a great marker in my recovery when I was able to choose serenity at a time when ordinarily I would not thanks to my new DBT skills. I was with a group of friends and one of them was pushing my buttons. I was just about to give her a colorful retort when I noticed how high my energy was. In DBT, w

I talked a little bit about my trip to Asheville almost a year ago when I blogged about the awesome spice store called, "Spice It Up," in Black Mountain, North Carolina.  Well, I got bogged down by life and I never finished blogging about my fantastic food finds in that area.  I'm going to finish what I started by talking about the best restaurant I ate at while on my vacation in Asheville: Tupelo Honey Cafe . First, here is a picture of me that I took in a different cafe's restroom during the vacation: *** Trigger Warning-I talk about my weight.  If numbers trigger you, skip this paragraph!*** I am now approximately thirty pounds heavier than I was in this picture.  I can't fit into those shorts anymore.  I am not saying this to make you feel sorry for me-gaining weight is not the tragedy I used to think it was.  It just is what it is.  The reason for my gained weight is that I no longer have an extremely active job, where I am on my feet most of the day.  T

Every piece of writing is ripe for analysis, even religious texts. Excuse me, but it’s more like especially religious texts! Months ago, when I was reading the Bible’s book of Joshua, I noticed something that really irritated me-the book is absolutely filled with the descriptor, “able-bodied.” I underlined the word every time I saw it and by the time I was finished reading that book, there was at least one underlined word on every page. It made me angry! The writers of the book of Joshua obviously valued those who are able-bodied; men; strong warriors-it is a book about war, after all. And who is not valued? People like me-female, weak-bodied. Back then, there were no psychotropic or antidepressant medications, so I would be insane too. I absolutely would not be a valued person in that time period. In fact, by society’s measures I’m really not that valued in our day and time either. I am female, fat, disabled, poor and queer. I do have the privileges of being White, Americ

About a month ago, I went to a Fourth of July party at one of my friends' house. Every July she throws a big party and most of the people that attend are in recovery. We always manage to have a good time, eating great food and setting off fireworks! I know that the Fourth of July is when most Americans celebrate the United States' independence, but I celebrated my independence from my eating disorder. I did this first by being proud of the way I looked and feeling comfortable in my clothes, even though I was wearing tight leggings. The necklace was a birthday present.  I have no idea where the leggings came from and the shirt is from Marshall's.  I sort of look like I'm in camoflage! The party that I went to was a potluck and no longer feeling constrained by my eating disorder, I made cupcakes.  The recipe I used is incredibly simple, but it's still fun, because I cooked the cakes in little mason jars and I colored the batter red, white, and blue! I must adm

When I vacationed on Amelia Island, I bought a coloring book, called "Color Me Calm."  I thought coloring would be a great activity to use to self-soothe myself and to keep me present and mindful in the moment. Both of which are DBT skills.  I love to color. I colored my way even into college as a way to self-soothe, even before I knew that I was using a certain therapeutic skill. Then for some reason, I stopped coloring, but last night I colored for the first time in a while and I had a great time! I felt calmer, peaceful, and happy when I was done. I had forgotten how good it feels to get lost in choosing the next perfect color. Color Me Calm is part of a series of coloring books by Tami Newcomb called "Color Your Way." I like the mix of positive statements followed by corresponding, slightly whimsical pictures. Here is my first picture: It states, "The present: where once upon a time and happily ever after hook-up to make now."  I love it!  I

Time for another book review.  I'm doing another one so soon, because I have to have the book reviewed within thirty days of getting it.  I got the book for free to review from the organization, The Speakeasy . A Twist of Faith: An American Christian's Quest to Help Orphans in Africa by John Donnelly Here is the book's trailer: There have been missionaries in Africa for several centuries now, but when the AIDS crisis exploded, then many more Christians came to Africa to try to help, with the majority of them focusing on building orphanages.  John Donnelly, a reporter working on the AIDS epidemic wanted to know if these Christians and their charities were doing any good.  In this book, he examines secular celebrity projects, like the schools started by Madonna and Oprah, and he follows the story of one deeply religious man, David Nixon. I am surprised at how the celebrities seem way out of touch with reality, though I guess I shouldn't be.  They spend

I almost forgot to talk about one of the things that inspired me to write my last post -last Saturday I attended an Indigo Girls concert in Chattanooga, Tennessee!   The concert was great! The Indigo Girls played with the Chattanooga Symphony and the symphonic sound was really beautiful with their song choices. Probably my favorite song of the night was "Kid Fears," a song from their first album. I got goosebumps when the audience sang along. Here's the song: It was their first time doing a concert with a symphony orchestra, so there's no symphonic video yet. Believe it or not, but seeing The Indigo Girls was actually a DBT skill! I was building positive experiences , which helps keep one emotionally regulated by keeping them in a positive space. I've talked about this skill before -it's probably my favorite skill. I just love going to Indigo Girl concerts-I know this may sound cheesy, but there's a closeness in the air at their concerts unlik

A few months ago, I bought Florence and The Machine 's new album, Ceremonials.   I like Florence's energetic anthems, but one song has me concerned.  Her song, What the Water Gave Us, with its big chorus and vague lyrics are obviously meant to make it a popular piece and I must admit its catchy-ness has me hooked too.  But even though I like the song's sound, I am always uneasy when I listen to it, because I am afraid that Florence Welch may be glamorizing suicide.  If she is, I don't think it's intentional, but that still doesn't mean that it's not a problem.  Here are the lyrics to the song: What the Water Gave Us Time it took us To where the water was That’s what the water gave me And time goes quicker Between the two of us Oh, my love, don’t forsake me Take what the water gave me Lay me down Let the only sound Be the overflow Pockets full of stones And oh, poor Atlas The world’s a beast of a burden You’ve been holding on a long time And all th