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Month: April 2024

Self-Care Requires Care

(Content warning, talking about weight loss and diet.) A few years ago, I lost…I think it was eighty-eight pounds? I saw Onederland for one brief shining moment. Then everything went kablooey, but anyway. That took me about a year, and it wasn’t all that hard. I just followed the routine. Every(ish) Sunday I would prep five breakfasts of overnight oatmeal, and five salads for work lunches. Dinner would be a chicken breast prepared some way, and vegetables. Easy, no thinking, but as variable as I want–you can cook chicken so many ways, and vegetables…yeah. And I’d generally come in well under on the calorie goal, so if I decided to have that donut someone offered me at work, it didn’t set me back far. I’d go for walks. I had a gym membership, and I went to the gym! What’s the point of all this? What the title says. Self-care requires care. It takes time, and it takes energy. Everything went kablooey last time because I suddenly didn’t have the time or the energy to devote to the meal prep and the long walks or even the shopping. I’ve been trying for years to get my mojo back, but Stuff Kept Happening. And I’ve figured out (I’m a bit slow) that Stuff and brain chemicals had pushed me into an actual real depression. But finally I got help. Will it take this time? I don’t know. But I know that I’m trying. I’ve lost a few pounds already. I’ll take…

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A Dream Come True

This past Saturday, something very cool happened. 🙂 I got to see my favorite band, Queensryche, up close and personal, from THE FRONT ROW. But let me back up just a bit. Anyone who’s spent any time with me knows that these guys are my passion, my life, my happy. I’ve been a fan since the 90s (as a teenager — I’m totally dating myself here, oops!) and I’ve hung in there, mostly, through their “dark ages” album phase and their lead singer change (for the better!) — I mean, Todd La Torre saved them from oblivion in 2012, but that’s another story. They respect and love their fans, and make a point of connecting with them on social media. They care. Not just because we’re paying for albums, merch, or to see them live, but because we are real people and we matter to them. How often do you find a band like that? Or a lead singer who randomly tweets you (and he isn’t following you) on Twitter/X three minutes after you tweet that you are devastated about having to (TW: pet death) euthanize your elderly cat in an hour and he’s giving you his condolences? Yeah. Okay, so I love these guys, and every time they tour and come to my state, I literally drop everything and move heaven and Earth to go. Seriously. I missed a few of Todd’s first tours with the band, due to some unavoidable circumstances, and I will forever never forgive myself…

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Deep and Blue Coming May 1!

Good evening, friends! I’ve been hard at work getting my former serial Deep and Blue ready to be released into the world! The book has been edited, streamlined, and made pretty (with fish, because yay fish), and we’ll be releasing it in ebook form come May 1. Here’s the cover: And here’s the description: When the surface became unlivable, humanity retreated under the waves.  In the underwater city of Haven, oceanographer Kaeri has been given her first assignment: a coveted spot on the team working to return the people of Haven to the surface.  No friends. No family. An opportunity to earn her place.  Not quite ostracized but never welcomed, Kaeri has never belonged. Something about her parents, though no one has ever explained what. And though she has become a respected scientist, people still shy away from her in the corridors, their conversations dying away.  The new job is a chance to change all that. But before she can begin, strange things start happening. Shadows flit across the security cameras. Doors to airlocks and power generators unlock themselves. And people, across the city, are being attacked by something invisible.  If Kaeri can save Haven from these mysteries, people will have to accept her. But digging into Haven’s secrets may bring answers that were better left alone. ~*~*~*~ I hope you guys enjoy the new and improved version of Deep and Blue! It’s been a lot of fun revisiting the story.

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TV Shows That Are Giving Me Life

I’ve blogged before about how my spouse and I are having trouble enjoying film and TV these days — we’ve just seen too many stories, or something. But once in a while, something makes it past the analytical parts of our minds and hits us right in the feels, as they say. Right in the uncritical part of our hearts that is still 10 years old. (My inner 10-year-old loves a story about girls coming into their power, like Moana and Encanto. His loves an action story about girls who kick butt.) So it’s not surprising that our shared viewing right now is She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, the reboot series developed by ND Stevenson (Nimona, Lumberjanes). It hits many of the same things we liked about Trollhunters (him) and Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts (me). The writing is sharp, the dialogue on point. When any new trope is introduced, it’s not belaboured, because the show knows its viewers are genre-savvy, so the story can move on quickly — making it feel fresh. The characters and their struggles are relatable, at least one is neurodivergent (I love Entrapta so much), AND THEY’RE ALL QUEER. The worldbuilding is kinda thin if you look at too hard, but that’s not what the story focuses on, so it’s fairly easy to ignore. We’re about halfway through and looking forward to the rest. I also like a very specific type of comedy — whatever it is that The Good Place and Schitt’s…

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