Day: November 17, 2017

Why do we say “Masculinity So Fragile?” Well, for starters, it is extremely rigid, like the oak.  

You can only wear certain colors, or you’ll be feminine. 

You can only show anger or lust, or you’ll be feminine.  

You can only be emotional for certain things (like sports), if at all, or you’ll be feminine. 

You can only like certain activities, or you’ll be feminine.  

It seems to me that masculinity follows an extremely rigid set of rules. It is so rigid, that it is like a tiny island of dry land, surrounded by the oceanic waters of dreaded femininity. It is also reminiscent of an Aesop’s fable, The Oak and the Reeds. Masculinity is the rigid oak, while femininity is the seemingly weak reeds. Sure, you can be proud, rigid and inflexible, but a sad fact is, men die sooner. Life expectancies for men are…

An estimated thirty-six million middle-class families face a tax hike under the GOP tax bill. Not so for corporations. Families get a hike while huge corporations get a massive giveaway.

The end of the SALT (State and Local Tax) deduction means we families will be paying taxes on the money we’re paying in taxes. Further, there will be cuts to firefighters, schools, roads, and libraries in our towns and states, especially in states that have higher SALT taxes in order to pay for these necessary services.

One-third of the corporate tax break goes to foreign investors. That break plus the end of SALT is a transfer from blue states, in particular, to the transnational economic elite. A permanently lower tax rate on overseas operations & profits than on U.S. operations & profits plus new loopholes will encourage even more offshoring.

So, families are punished and blue states are punished. Who…

Hello WordPress. Coming to you in my (very awesome) Fall Out Boy Bomber Jacket (I’m not walking around with this on, it was just for this pic), I’ve been more or less tired as of late. Mentally more than physically.. the days have really started to become blurs. Maybe it’s just the season, just the cold, but it’s a mildly oppressing moshpit of activities. Thanksgiving Week will be weird since Mary’s Gourmet be open Tuesday and Wednesday, which are days I usually spend reading and writing at home or at a park/coffee shop somewhere. Anyway. I’m an aspie holding a customer service job for nine months. Kinda crazy, but it’s humbling and a reminder of how far I’ve come. Customers are always telling me I’m such a wonderful presence, and that I’m always fast of my feet and finding solutions. Heh. Guess I blend in better than I thought I could. Or the gluten free diet…

In September, I made the most significant choice of my life so far – I began college. For my international readers, this is an alternative choice for the two years at school, where different courses are offered to the exam-based ones found at school. I’d found a course that I was so excited to begin, a BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma in Applied Science (Forensics), with the Level 2 version as a back up if my GCSEs didn’t go to well. Fortunately, they did! I finished school with all As and Bs, which, considering I wasn’t in school much but put a lot of work in, isn’t too bad.

So, I was ready to begin. I’d had a support worker already in place – something that my diagnosis allowed me easy access to – and had toured around the college a few times, to get a feel of it. I…