Let’s Talk About Ableism, or, Ableism: What The Fuck Is It?

If your answer is “some woke invention designed to make me feel like a bad person,” this may not be the post for you. Otherwise, let’s try this out: The dictionary says that ableism is discrimination against people on the basis of dis/ability (much like sexism is discrimination against women on the basis of sex),Continue reading “Let’s Talk About Ableism, or, Ableism: What The Fuck Is It?”

truth & reconciliation

I have been reflecting on my childhood experiences for decades, and if there has one thing I have learned, it’s that everyone wants to skip over the truth and get right to the reconciliation. No acknowledgement. No real apology. No genuine forgiveness. Just jump over everything potentially uncomfortable and land where the perpetrator wants toContinue reading “truth & reconciliation”

Review: … and along came Alexis

ARC received from the publisher in exchange for this review: I have learned, over the course of Echo’s life, that I can count on one of two reactions when I talk about our family: pity, or indifference. If I talk about how difficult it can be, emotionally and logistically, we get pity: people feel badlyContinue reading “Review: … and along came Alexis”

Happy Old Year’s End

New Year’s Eve has a whole other flavour this year, doesn’t it? Less “Hurray! Let’s celebrate the start of another year!” and more “Is it dead yet? Are we sure? Should we set the corpse on fire to be on the safe side?” I’m drafting this in November–already looking forward, yes, but also anticipating thatContinue reading “Happy Old Year’s End”

organizational culture is toxic

I know! Months between posts, and then two in one week. This isn’t a new thought, but it’s one that keeps coming to me, and I’m curious to hear what you think: Organizational culture is toxic. It fosters us-vs-them thinking. The loyalty it creates among members makes it hard to, for instance, speak out againstContinue reading “organizational culture is toxic”

(Almost) All We Can Save: Review

To begin with: I can’t claim to be unbiased or a disinterested observer (but, no one can). No one reads 108 books about climate change without deep investment, and most of the contributors in this collection I am already familiar with; if not in books, then in newsletters, articles, scientific papers, youtube series, podcasts, documentaries,Continue reading “(Almost) All We Can Save: Review”

reparative reading, Funny Weather and a very hard year

While chronic illness and complex medical conditions have been indisputably good practice for coping with uncertainty and restrictions during a pandemic, they have also had a significant downside, and that is: with medical offices and services shut down to restrict the spread of covid, our own medical conditions have become harder to manage. My diabetesContinue reading “reparative reading, Funny Weather and a very hard year”