Books

so about three months ago i finally reached a tipping point in being sick of the "omg we're so cooked" "we're living in the hell times" "the world is burning" "we need a class war" narrative and decided i was going to unlearn doomerism. i've truly come to believe doomerism is the most powerful tool of the powers that be (capitalists, the current US govt, etc etc), because it keeps us meddling kids doomscrolling and not spoiling their dastardly plans.

here are some of the things i used/am using to build my emotional resilience and therefore capacity to contribute to change. this is not an ad and i am not being paid (feel free to change this) nor did i pay for any of this because we đŸ«¶ public libraries.

books

Cover of Hope in the Dark
Cover of Not Too Late
Cover of From Dictatorship to Democracy

Hope in the Dark by Rebecca Solnit: we hear a new dogshit headline every five minutes, but we've had some incredible victories. sometimes, a victory can look like nothing because the horrible thing that was supposed to be a thing is no longer a thing. updated foreword/afterword addressed the first round of trump.

Not Too Late by var. authors, ed. Rebecca Solnit & Thelma Young Lutunatabua: while there's a long road ahead, we have already avoided the worst possible outcome of climate change and picked up extraordinary wins along the way. includes voices from the global south and atoll nations most affected by climate change.

From Dictatorship to Democracy by Gene Sharp: a manual for resistance used in the arab spring and by other freedom fighters in recent decades. includes a list of 198 things you can do that are not doomscrolling. free at the link and on various other sites in a number of languages.

US people might be able to find the first two from public libraries physically or virtually with the libby app, or buy them from an independent bookstore. non-US people, idk but a sample size of one friend from aotearoa NZ found them at the library.

if you have recs for other hope-centric or practical activist books, please send them my way!

blogs

regularly post hopeful news from reputable sources. i don't follow all of these personally, but blogs and sites like these were my guiding light out of the doomer mindset.

Reasons for Hope @reasonsforhope (personal favorite)

Hope for the Planet @hope-for-the-planet

Dandelion News @dandelionsresilience

@crafting-and-tea under #good news

Wachinyeya @wachinyeya

more in the Good News tumblr community, though i haven't checked it out thoroughly

things to do

this list is admittedly shorter as i live with debilitating long covid and also US-centric bc. i live here. i'm actively seeking out more ways to get involved, so please send me suggestions!

distributing free-to-print tarjetas rojas (red cards) about your rights and what to do if approached by an immigration agent

using 5calls.org's scripts and calling tool to contact my representatives

attending community events when possible (idk where you live, you're gonna have to look these up yourself)

i'll try to update this post as i read more/find more resources/do more things!

More Posts from Charm-writes and Others

1 month ago

Full offense but your writing style is for you and nobody else. Use the words you want to use; play with language, experiment, use said, use adverbs, use “unrealistic” writing patterns, slap words you don’t even know are words on the page. Language is a sandbox and you, as the author, are at liberty to shape it however you wish. Build castles. Build a hovel. Build a mountain on a mountain or make a tiny cottage on a hill. Whatever it is you want to do. Write.

1 year ago

Let's talk mobility aids!

Canes

a photo of a variety of colored canes standing in a line

Canes are for when you need to take a little bit of weight off of one side of your body, need a little help with balance, or need a little extra stability when you walk. It's an easy mobility aid to find and get, and it's pretty easy to figure out how to use. Have the cane sized so the handle sits at wrist level, then hold it on the opposite side to the one that hurts. Match your cane strikes to the steps on the hurt side. It will hurt your arm, elbow, and shoulder sometimes, but having a properly sized cane will help.

Rollators

a euro style rollator with large wheels, a sling style seat, and a folding mechanism that folds it in half width wise
a classic style rollator with a cushioned seat that folds in half lengthwise

Rollators are kind of the "next step up" in support. They come with more restrictions, you get limited to ramps and stuff, but they're also the least restrictive wheeled mobility aid because they're light and easy to pick up and toss around. They also have a seat a lot of times and a basket so you don't need to carry stuff. They're for when you need a place to rest, something to lean on when you walk, better balance assistance than a cane, and less weight bearing than a cane. I also found that it helped me with fatigue quite a bit. There's two main kinds, euro style like the first, and regular like the second. There are other fancier ones but I'm covering the basics here.

Rollators are my favorite mobility aid and I've used everything from canes to a fancy high grade power chair. They're just the perfect balance of help and freedom. They provide so much support for how far they go.

Crutches

a set of forearm crutches and a man using them

Arm crutches are pretty neat! They're a lot more ergonomic than a cane. In fact, some people use a single arm crutch as a cane. They distribute the weight a little better, so it's not all on your wrists, and they support you better than a rollator can. The major cons I found are that they take two hands to use so you can't carry much and I had a really hard time trying to learn to walk with them. A lot of people who use forearm crutches have other mobility aids and use the forearm crutches when they want to or need to walk.

Manual Wheelchairs

a standard black hospital wheelchair
a red custom rigid wheelchair

These are for when walking becomes more difficult than pushing a wheelchair. There's no weight being put on your legs and feet and depending on your needs, you can get really specific with your adaptations if you have a custom wheelchair verses a standard wheelchair. My first custom chair looked like a monster truck because i took in the woods and gravel, my second custom chair after I got sicker has a head rest, a backrest that holds me up, and a little electric box that I can attach that helps me push. The difference between getting a standard and custom wheelchair is dependent on how much money the user has, what kind of needs they have, and what kind of medical access they have. (One is not more "real" than the other.) I highly recommend getting a cushion for under your butt if you have a standard chair without a cushion, I used a standard full time for 6 months and a cushion made a huge difference.

Mobility scooters

a red mobility scooter

Mobility scooters are for people who can't walk long distances, but can still walk with the help of a cane or unassisted. If you can walk around your house, but not really much else, a mobility scooter might be the aid for you! There's a lot of different styles and battery life lengths and handling abilities so try a few different scooters out if you can.

Powerchairs

a red powerchair that has no headrest and a 4 wheels

Powerchairs come in a couple different types or "groups" depending on your needs. Group 1 is the kind of chair you're probably most familiar with. It's basically for someone who needs a powerchair to get around their house, the doctors, office, and grocery store. You can't do any custom seat cushions or anything, but it's for people who don't need it. Think of like... someone who can walk pretty okay still, it just hurts to walk or they're off balance or a little weak feeling. A lot of times more elderly people will use these, if you're more active look into group 2

a power wheelchair with a headrest and 6 wheels

Group two chairs are little more durable, a little more stable, sometimes you can switch the captains seats out for custom seating... They're what a full time powerchair user would use if they don't need specialty functions like tilt or recline. They also often have 6 wheels rather than 4 like the group 1 chairs have.

a power wheelchair with a fully adjustable headrest, 6 large wheels, and has the seat tilted at a 45 degree angle showing the additional functions

Group 3 powerchairs are reserved for specific diagnoses like muscular dystrophy, ALS, and other severe neurological and neuromuscular illnesses. These are also called "rehab" chairs because they're for making sure severely disabled people have quality of life. The tilt function is for pressure relief, though you can also get things like elevation so you can raise and lower your chair, and some of them can recline flat. There are other avenues of moving grade 3 power chairs beyond the joystick as well in case someone can't use their hands or doesn't have them. (Head controls, torso controls, and straw controls called sip and puff are alternatives.) They can go on a little worse terrain than group 1 and two chairs and go a little farther, but if they get stuck they weigh 350 lbs and it's awful.

There's a few other types of mobility aid that I don't know enough about, like ankle foot orthotics and gait trainers, but these are the basic "mobility aid" most people will come across.

If you use another type of mobility aid and want to educate people, add it on!!


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1 year ago

Sol-kha-ne-Lubri

Sol-kha-ne-Lubri

Rational is to Irrational as Irrational is to Rational. Then again, in this land, Rational is to Rational as Irrational is to Irrational, and Positives are to Negative as Negative is to Compromise; This ways are that ways, one ways are other ways. This way, that, here, over there, which way is true and what way leads fair?

Your home land is odd– a rarity, that much is a given, but even in a land of all that is odd and irregular, that doesn’t stop unhidden exclusivity in the form of a certain acceptance letter for which you had been ridden.

Welcome to Sol Kha-ne Lubris, even the richest royal families couldn’t pay their way into these academy walls.

There are two sides to every coin, parallel lines that are never meant to meet. But since when have the dreamscapes every been one to abide by those rules?

You play as
 You, or– well, more accurately, you play as the ever-fantastic you, a regular in a realm of oddity and circumstance, a wonderful, enigmatic you who has just been offered acceptance into the most prestigious magical academy in the dreamscape.

And as you
 You guide yourself, both physically and mentally, though the halls of this new school, making allies and (possibly) starring in a very casual(?) school romance with the next generation’s elite.

Sol-kha-ne-Lubri

۞ Play as a being of your choice, whether male, female, neither and all, no one would dare step on your shoes without being respectful of how you are called.

۞ Have your ancestry come from a land of riches, or a land of the cymbal waeves? the Victorian ages or the age of industrialism? Whether you live in a forest, a mountain, the skies or the oceans, the academy’s exclusivity is not limited to where your birth is.

۞ Care you for dolls? For stars? For royal romances? a group of 6 students are susceptible no matter how you play your advances. 

۞ Do you excel in history and language, or the art of alchemy, or physical prowess. The academy accommodates all sorts of knowledge, so no need to fret. Should you excel in none of them, then how strange that your acceptance had been granted without need for background process
 

۞ Dreamers are those who walk through your lands and think of it all as fantastical. However, one familiar dreamer in particular seems quite lost. Do you truly care for them as an equal despite your otherworldly hailing, or will you show that keeping them alive comes at a hefty cost?

Sol-kha-ne-Lubri

჊ Dottie Hendrix, The Almighty: Entitled, egotistical, and ethereal, Dottie is the top dog at this school with the intelligence to back it up. For your sake, you best hope she finds you fun to keep her company. 

ჩ Ambrose Hendrix, The Lapdog: Loyal to one and only one. He isn’t afraid to use whatever means possible to ensure the safety of his allegiance, even if it means using his siblings and cousins.

჊ Loriette Kei, The Cheshire Cat: A mercenary in their own right, they work from the shadows that share the same color as their primary source power, eyes always watching, smile never waning.

჊ Lorelei Kei, The Plague Doctor: Keeping her eyes downcast but ears sharp and senses keen, they seem to have the answer for any ail that may befall you, but do you dare keep your eyes open during her procedure?

ჩ Nadia, Half a whole kingdom: Birds of a feather flock together, one half of a whole. The supposed “naughty” to the “nice”, be as kind to him as you want, she has their own standards on who keeps her graces.

჊ NorĂ©, Half a whole government: Birds of a feather flock together, one half of a whole. The supposed “nice” to the “naughty”, but is he good enough to keep in your circle of trustees?

⚜⚜ ☟ ⚜⚜ ☟ ⚜⚜ ♔ ⚜⚜ ☜ ⚜⚜ ☜ ⚜⚜

DEMO (TBA)


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1 week ago

Hey 💌 I’m Saja — a mother trying to hold onto hope through days that feel impossibly heavy.

I know you probably see a lot online, but if you could take just a moment
 I’d be so grateful.

đŸ’« A reblog of my pinned post could help our story reach someone who cares.

🌿 And if you’re in a place to give, even a small donation could bring comfort to my daughter and help us feel safe again.

@sajagz, thank you for listening.

Even gentle support creates strength.

From one heart to another — thank you đŸ€

pls help

1 year ago

Can we stop with the whole “AI is plagiarism” narrative? AI is not doing anything different from any human that gets inspired by other art. If sampling is inherently theft then so is the vast majority of modern music. If copying other works’ style and techniques is plagiarism then every renaissance artist was stealing from Michelangelo. Art is, as a medium, taking inspiration from other sources, be that the world, other people, or other art, and combining those inspirations into something unique. And AI works are unique by literally any standard you decide to use.

There are plenty of actually good reasons to hate AI. Can we please stop parroting the stupidest and most easily dismissible one, all we’re doing is making it easier for them to defend themselves.

You may do whatever you want but I will not stop calling logicials that scraps works of people on the Internet for parts only to blindly regurgitate stuff of subpar quality "plagiarism programs" or any variant.

Sorry for not being able to abide by your request.

I would also suggest you to look up the difference between inspiration and plagiarism. There is a reason why we're not using the same word for both.

With all due respect,

Me


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psa
1 month ago

I could call what I wrote "commentary on the historical tension between male and female socialists" but sometimes u just gotta slap an "ENEMIES WITH BENEFITS!!" tag on ur book to get people interested đŸ˜©

1 year ago

Would Evander show mc photos of Jiji if they asked nicely? How about playing the piano for mc?

Would Evander Show Mc Photos Of Jiji If They Asked Nicely? How About Playing The Piano For Mc?

heh Evander doesn't need to be asked to talk about Jiji (or anything, for that matter); the whole cast of Magici has prolly already seen him a thousand times.

Also they definitely have a Powerpoint presentation ready that they just whip out at random times and force people to listen to.

it's prolly named sum like

"Jiji the Great, The First: Discovering the Enigmatic Charms of My Feline Companion" (he thinks it's hilarious)

And if MC asks really really nicely, he'll play for them. Also if you catch them while they're playing that's a cheat code, 'cause he doesn't really enjoy playing in front of people; he prefers MC listening to him without him knowing so he doesn't mess up.


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5 months ago
Here Are Some Fiction Books By Palestinian Authors About Palestinian Characters That I've Read And Enjoyed!
Here Are Some Fiction Books By Palestinian Authors About Palestinian Characters That I've Read And Enjoyed!
Here Are Some Fiction Books By Palestinian Authors About Palestinian Characters That I've Read And Enjoyed!
Here Are Some Fiction Books By Palestinian Authors About Palestinian Characters That I've Read And Enjoyed!
Here Are Some Fiction Books By Palestinian Authors About Palestinian Characters That I've Read And Enjoyed!
Here Are Some Fiction Books By Palestinian Authors About Palestinian Characters That I've Read And Enjoyed!
Here Are Some Fiction Books By Palestinian Authors About Palestinian Characters That I've Read And Enjoyed!

Here are some fiction books by Palestinian authors about Palestinian characters that I've read and enjoyed! Whether it's about living under the occupation or teenage diaspora falling in love, it's important to support Palestinian authors and read their stories, especially as attempts at censorship increase Let me know if you have any recs for me to add to my tbr!

1 year ago
“You Can Either Let This Journey Crush You, Or Let It Transform You Into Someone Stronger.”

“You can either let this journey crush you, or let it transform you into someone stronger.”

A scene from the newly-released, New-York-Times-bestselling (?!) book Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor, art by æœ€ćŽçš„L and water effects by me! đŸ€—

Honestly, Zachary Ying is a book I didn’t think I’d have the strength to write. The concept is very wild and wacky, yes—the First Emperor of China possessing a young Chinese American boy’s AR gaming headset and compelling him on a journey across China to heist magical artifacts—but writing the story required me to dig deep into my complicated relationship with my heritage.

When I immigrated to Canada in 6th grade, I spent a year as the only Asian kid in the school of a small town. In that one year, I became self-conscious of all sorts of things that didn’t seem to matter before: the way I looked, the way I spoke, the clothes I wore, the media I liked. The white kids wouldn’t insult me outright, but they’d ask me questions that made me embarrassed of my differences from them. I felt backward, alien. The feelings of isolation and rejection I experienced took me many, many years to unpack. It’s been a long journey, learning to love myself again, and I drew much strength from stories in Chinese history to do so.

However, as the years passed, I’ve also watched in horror as the government of China became increasingly authoritarian, cracking down on dissent and committing genocidal atrocities against minority ethnic groups, of which I belong to one myself. Being Chinese has become so painfully political. Pride in Chinese culture is no longer as simple as that, but could accidentally play into the Chinese government’s use of traditional culture as propaganda. Yet on another hand, there’s the necessity of demystifying and defending Chinese culture to combat anti-Chinese racism. Many diaspora like myself are caught in the crosshairs, struggling to find the balance. But what I firmly believe is that traditional Chinese culture and history don’t belong to the Chinese government. It belongs to the Chinese people, both native and diaspora. If we distance ourselves from our heritage specifically because of the Chinese government, that’s letting them win, validating their claim to be the one true representative of Chinese culture when that is absolutely not the case.

Through Zack’s journey in this book, I wanted to engage with the complexities of Chinese identity, but I also want to have fun. This book remains a love letter to my 12-year-old self, taking inspiration from everything I love—anime, video games, sci-fi, and of course, Chinese history and myths. You’ll find appearances by real figures from said history and myths, wielding magic inspired by their legends, along with many famous Chinese artifacts.

If any of that sounds fun to you too, especially if you like Percy Jackson or Yugioh, I really think you’d like this book as well đŸ˜©âœŒđŸŒ You can find out where to get it at ZacharyYing.com!


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charm-writes - Charmy's Writeblr
Charmy's Writeblr

21 | Chinese | Autistic | Aspiring Fantasy Writer and Narrative Designer | Fae and Chinese Mythology Enjoyer | @charmycharmcharms' writeblr!

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