Posts

Punishing the Victims

I am absolutely appalled at the anti-abortion laws being written that refuse to make exceptions in the case of rape or incest. The monsters who write and support such legislation make it clear that they care nothing about the trauma these victims have already endured. In fact they intend to heap on extra burdens, no matter how horribly these poor women and girls may suffer physically and mentally, or how dangerously that would impact their ability to raise or nurture a baby conceived in violence and horror. It is callous and cruel to mandate that trauma victims carry a fetus sired by their attacker to term. The physical, emotional, and financial toll of an unplanned and unwanted pregnancy should not be forced on anyone, especially when it is a constant reminder of an excruciatingly painful experience. And I have not heard that these heinous laws include funding for pregnant women to receive the prenatal care that might help them deliver “adoptable” babies. And what of the babies who ar
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Hypocrisy of the “Pro-Birth” Zealots

First, I refuse to refer to these hypocrites as “Pro-Life.” Contrary to their claims, they care nothing about life—only birth. They don’t care about the quality of life of the pregnant women they want to force to give birth or of the babies they decree must be born. If they did, these same rightwing extremists would be earmarking funds to support prenatal & postnatal care, community mental health services, public education, child protection, free and mandatory DNA testing to identify the fathers of these unwanted infants they want to legislate into being. Heck, they should be supporting gun control, so every child can attend school, go to the store or a place of worship without risking being gunned down by a mad man with an automatic weapon! At a time when parents everywhere are scrambling to find formula for their infants who are already here, these anti-abortionists want to flood the population with many more babies who may go hungry. They don’t care if they are condemning th
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Blogging After Spark People

Back when I was a member of Spark People, before they closed down their free fitness and social media site, I would blog periodically and those posts could potentially be seen by hundreds or even thousands of Sparkers, though I typically would get just a small handful of responses. I reposted many of the hundred-plus blogs I posted there over 10 years or so on this site, but those have not been seen by more than a few former Spark Friends. My PTSD has been triggered quite a bit over the past months, and my therapist has encouraged me to use my voice to speak about some of the events that have so deeply affected me. The abortion rights debate and the recent mass shootings have elicited especially strong emotions, so I have committed to speaking out. My first substantive blog in almost 10 months, which I will post next, is " Hypocrisy of the 'Pro Birth' Zealots. " 
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Thank you, Spark People and Friends

(Originally published 16 August 2021)  I had to write one last blog. It's bittersweet to be saying good-bye. This site has been a huge part of my life for 11 years, and the very best part of that has been the community of support and encouragement. Checking in daily with the teams I led, the mutual support and celebrating with Spark Friends, sending and receiving goodies—that's what I knew I would miss the most. So soon after we got the news back in June, my GG co-leader and I decided Discord would be the best place to move A Gathering of Goddesses and my beloved Babysteps Brigade. Our new home doesn't have all the bells and whistles SP did, but we post on different threads, check in, and get to play with a large number of emojis and GIFs! If you want to check it out, set up a free account on  discord.com/  and send me a message: Blessed Being#5304, And I am so thankful that SP gave us more than two months' notice before closing down. It gave us a chance to save wh
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My three things—in my own style!

(Originally published 25 January 2011)  I read a Spark Friend's list on her blog, and couldn't help wondering how I would answer — though knowing (as usual) that I wouldn't just answer straight out or simply. As is my habit, I'll be revising and tweaking, just like in school when I would propose alternate or modified assignments to make it something that interested me, and generally doing far more than requested, or required. (I so "get" Hermione!) But I will challenge myself to keep to 3 responses per category — which for someone who loves to embellish, and revels in details and abundance, this will be a challenge! Three names I go by: * BLESSEDBEING (here on Spark People) * Amanda (the predominant one since I legally changed my name in my thirties from my given one, which was Lois) * spocksmom (a user name I'm fond of, for reason clear to TOS Trekkers) Three places I've lived in the past (amongst others): * Idaho Falls, Idaho * Oakland, Cali
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The Last Book on Decluttering You'll Ever Need

(Originally published 27 February 2021)  That's the bold subtitle of Tracy McCubbin's 2019 organizing book Making Space, Clutter Free . Big thanks to my sister for finding and sharing it. I just picked it up from the library this morning, and loved what she has to say in the introductory chapter "What's Under the Clutter? A New Approach." She says she wants to liberate us from the shame and emotional weight of our clutter. "I want your home to be a place that you enjoy being in, that helps you quickly and efficiently get out into the world, and that you can share with others as often as you feel like. If your home isn't all three things — restful, helpful, and shareable — then on some level, your home is taking energy from you instead of supporting you to live your best life." Wow, if page 5 is that profound, I can't wait to dive in to better understanding the 7 emotional clutter blocks she identifies, and how to address them. She breaks her
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Pre-sorting Pep Talk

(Originally published 21 February 2021)   I have struggled with clutter and organization for decades. I know there is a strong link to the childhood abuse, where I had no control over my environment. I'm learning how trauma affects brain function, which can make the process especially challenging. This is currently a primary focus of my work with a wonderful new therapist, and this document grew out of our discussions. I do a lot of internal parts work, so "we" refers to my parts collectively. Bossy happens to be one of my strongly opinionated parts. I created this document and read it before each sorting session. Pre-sorting Pep Talk Bossy’s plea (paraphrased from 2/11/21 journal entry): We’ll never create the space and environment we want and deserve if we don’t put in consistent effort. We don’t have to be perfect and we don’t have to push ourselves, but it won’t ever get done if WE don’t do it ! Please. I want this for all of us. We deserve space to breathe an
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