Hola Darling Ones, When I turned 26 during my AOL days (geminmat@aol.com, y’all) in June of 1998 a guy I was IMing with on the reg wrote me a song. The only thing I remember is it ended with “you’re twenty-six years old.” It was a sweet gesture and I treated it like the cherished artifact it was. I downloaded that WAV file (did we have MP3s in 98?) and saved it to a 3.5″ floppy disk, which I probably…
My First Wheelchair Concert: Johnny Cougs & Entitled White Ladies
Well, Darling Ones, I did it. I popped my post-stroke wheelchair user (PSWU) concert cherry last night. It was John Cougar Mellencamp, and I’m glad I saved myself for him and the Mystic Lake Amphitheater. Last night was many PSWU firsts. I ate inside a restaurant with friends. I met my social media friends Carrie & Kyle in actual life. I accidentally hit a very angry man with my foot because Jonas, my motorized wheelchair, didn’t stop as quickly as…
Goodbye, Ruby Tuesday
Hi Darling Ones, It’s been a hot minute since I’ve written. I turned 54 a few weeks ago; got a motorized wheelchair named Jonas; planted a salsa verde garden; Sister #2 & Ben put laminate flooring in Supergenius HQ; and yesterday I ripped out my own beating heart and donated it to MPR. Getting rid of Ruby was rough, and not just because Capital One was a pain in the ass about getting me a notarized letter saying that I…
Two Thumbs Way Down
Hello Darling Ones, It’s been a long time since I took to the web to complain about a book, but I read one yesterday that infuriated me more than any book has in a long time. For the most part I quit a book the moment it starts to annoy me. Doesn’t matter how far I get into it. I’ve DNFed (did not finish) at 75% though. Life is too short and all that. Another thing I tend to avoid…
The Days of Kinkos & Resume Paper
Hello Darling Ones, Now that the government has deemed me unable to work enough to support myself due to my disability I’ve been thinking about my career as a cog in the capitalist machine. Really I’ve been thinking about Kinkos and, more specifically, resume paper. You young’uns might not know that resume paper was a thing. According to a quick Google search it might still be a thing, but I suspect not quite as big a thing as it was…
Getting on the Dole
Well, Darling Ones, The day I was anxiously anticipating has come & gone. Yesterday was my Social Security disability hearing. Three years after my stroke, two(ish) years after applying, two rejections, and roughly 15 minutes of a hearing, the judge granted my claim for Social Security disability. Ya girl is getting on the dole! I’m relieved and overwhelmed. My friends and fam are over the moon for me. My mom even cried when Sister #4 told her. I love the…