The Wordsmith's Forge

A friend tipped me to this excellent discussion about gossip in Judaism, when it is or is not permissible and why.  While gentiles are not bound by Jewish law as Jews are, it remains a very useful set of guidelines, and following them -- even if you cherrypick your favorites -- would prevent a lot of headaches.

This article mentions some coping methods for people who wear binders. People have used Tumblr and other social media to remind wearers to check their breathing once an hour. If you wear binders but don't use those venues, you can substitute any other reminder service or app that you like, to remind you to check your breathing or do a breath meditation at your preferred frequency. (Yes, binders have risks like asphyxiation, overheating, and rib injuries. O_O) Practice safe binding and take care of the body you have.

Setting Up Instagram Reminders Via Buffer

Set Reminders on Facebook

10 Best Reminder Apps for iPhone, Android, and Windows

You may need to hunt around to find a level of body awareness and breath work that feels comfortable for you, which is often a challenge with body dysphoria, so I included some abstract instructions that don't point to your body. Other folks need the guidance to check in that they are safe, because it is hard for them to connect with their body.

30-second Calm Breathe Bubble

1-minute Triangle Breathing

1-minute Basic Breath Meditation

3-minute Breathing Space

EDIT 2/7/19: eseme recommends The Breathing App.

When you take your binder off, it helps to focus on your breathing for a longer time if you can.

10-minute Triangle Breathing

10 Minute Awareness of Breath Mindfulness Meditation

It also helps to do some gentle stretches to open your chest after compression. Choose from Yoga, Tai Chi, and various other styles. Do what works for you.

6-minute Side Body Stretches for Deeper Breath

7-minute Upper Back and Chest Stretches

8-minute Tai Chi Breathing Exercises

18-minute Coordinate Movement + Breathing Tai Chi

30-minute Breathe & Flow Yoga

For that matter, if you wear a bra, corset, necktie, button collar, choker, or anything else that can restrict your breathing then these precautions may prove useful. Binders are just one of the most notorious garments for causing problems, not the only risk.

A friend tipped me to this fascinating article about fruit walls, which can be bare or assisted with glass.  It is an excellent way of growing food in places with cold or windy weather.

I made this tonight as my January new recipe. It occurred to me that I could use the George Foreman grill to cook fruits or vegetables, not just meats. :D Success!

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Here's a brilliant article about why so many modern buildings are hideous and why that's a serious problem we need to fix. 

Our environment affects our mood.  Beautiful surroundings make people happier.  Ugly surroundings make people unhappy.  While many factors influence mood, it is easier to be happy in a beautiful place than in an ugly place.  Here are some ways to improve your mood by beautifying your home.

Identifying animal tracks is fun.  I still have the habit, despite not being a hunter in this life.  I always step around them, not on them.  Over the last week or so I have observed the following tracks in our yard:

* cottontail rabbit
* fox squirrel (tracks are similar to these gray squirrel tracks)
* birds (likely including mourning dove, sparrow, dark-eyed junco, and cardinal)
* cat
* canine (dog, fox, or coyote; probably coyote from the size) 
* human

Welcome to those of you coming to Dreamwidth from Tumblr. I have found a few communities that may help you connect with people here.

the_great_tumblr_purge is especially for people moving to Dreamwidth so you can find folks you knew on Tumblr.

tumblrmigration has some resources on how to make the move effectively and get the hang of DW.


Friending communities help you find new people:

addme covers everything.

addme_fandom is for all fandoms.

startrek_add_me is for fans of the Star Trek mythos.

add_a_writer connects writers with other writers, and gives readers a place to find new writers to follow.


If you were using Tumblr for inspiration and need a replacement muse, consider:

allbingo supports any kind of creative bingo. A new thematic fest appears each month. You can play a public card, make your own, or use one from an outside event.

crowdfunding is for creators and consumers of cyberfunded creativity. Watch for the mid-month Creative Jam where you can leave or claim prompts.


If you miss the pretty pictures, try:

shutterspeed offers photography prompts.

picture_prompt_fun invites people to write stories from pictures.

photocons posts icons made from photographs. Get some 100x100 user icons here!

solitude_in_sight has photos without people.

drawesome is a fanart community.

artists is a community for art creators and lovers.

graphics is an all-purpose visual art community.


If you wish to copy this list, or use it as inspiration to make you own, by all means do so. Helping Tumblr refugees feel more welcome, and making communities more active, will benefit everyone.

Day 12

In your own space, create your own challenge. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.


Storytelling can change the world. Sometimes it's little stuff, other times big stuff. I credit fanfic with changing the public perception of homosexuality from something unspeakable to something cute.

Judaism has a tradition called tikkun olam, or world repair. It's all about making the world a better place. Everyone is responsible not just for keeping it good shape and avoiding actions that would harm it, but for adding to the beauty and functionality in some meaningful way. You don't have to be Jewish -- I'm not -- to grasp the usefulness of this phrase. It's very popular among my fans. So I'm making this my challenge for today...

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Day 11

In your own space, talk about your creative process(es) — anything from the initial inspiration to how you feel after something’s done. Do you struggle with motivation or is it a smooth process? Do you have any tricks up your sleeve to pull out when a fanwork isn’t cooperating? What is your level of planning to pantsing/winging it? Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

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Another snowflake_challenge wish was for ways to reduce feeling shame over liking things.

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