And to your left...

Happy Chinese New Year/Valentine's Day!
Got back in Bangkok last night, here for a few more days. Woke early so my mind's still fuzzy and I can't think of much else to say at the moment, just hope everyone's day (week/month/year/life) is fantastic!

Airline changing the flight times at the last minute = not cool. Oh well, I'm off to Thailand and Cambodia! Be back, in Guangzhou at least, on the 17th!

In the meantime, whatever digital stuff I have on me(which isn't much new since I left my computer/tablet/external at home) and haven't posted over here yet...
( Stuffs )

Unless something worth posting on comes up in the next few days or so I'll probably only be posting over to s_d(I have a post or two I've been working on though if they don't get done, oh well...) and doing a quick art post(edit: or not... later) here before grabbing a plane to Hong Kong. From there the next few months, and even when I get back, are going to be nuts so I'm not sure how much I'll be on.

In that regard and it being the day it is, hope everyone has a smashing New Year and does well in 2010!

Three guesses which nickname I came up with and the first two don't count. ;p

So, the puppy's here and I'm watching him right now(he's wrapped up in a towel on my lap since I just took him out and it's raining, ugh. My cat is in the corner shooting jealous and annoyed glares over here.). Apparently I'm going to be puppy sitting quite a bit until he's good enough to be left alone since everyone else's schedule is the reverse of mine making me home when they're out and vice versa.

It's a little annoying and certainly distracting but he is pretty damn cute when he's not trying to eat my toes or anything else that he can fit in his mouth. :)

LJ ate this and I've been lazy about the repost, though added some more stuff.

Been bad about getting around to scanning the 24hr comic(doesn't help when I leave it at someone else's house XP). In trade...
( Various comics-related things )

Especially since I always seem to think of how I could have better phrased things once I've had some sleep. Oh well.

I did the 24 hour comic(24 pages in 24 hours) this past weekend, will try to scan it by Friday. Not sure that it is too good and it did go a little weird around page 16 or so when my brain was very much 'screw this' but hopefully it's not too horrible. I think I like it.

...with the aide of doctoreon providing for easier copypasta.

The Dos and Don'ts of Being A Good Ally

1. Don't derail a discussion. Even if it makes you personally uncomfortable to discuss X issue...it's really not about you or your comfort. It's about X issue, and you are absolutely free to not engage rather than try to keep other people from continuing their conversation.

2. Do read links/books referenced in discussions. Again, even if the things being said make you uncomfortable, part of being a good ally is not looking for someone to provide a 101 class midstream. Do your own heavy lifting.

3. Don't expect your feelings to be a priority in a discussion about X issue. Oftentimes people get off onto the tone argument because their feelings are hurt by the way a message was delivered. If you stand on someone's foot and they tell you to get off? The correct response is not "Ask nicely" when you were in the wrong in the first place.

4. Do shut up and listen. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of listening to the people actually living X experience. There is nothing more obnoxious than someone (however well intentioned) coming into the spaces of a marginalized group and insisting that they absolutely have the solution even though they've never had X experience. You can certainly make suggestions, but don't be surprised if those ideas aren't well received because you've got the wrong end of the stick somewhere.

5. Don't play Oppresion Olympics. Really, if you're in the middle of a conversation about racism? Now is not the time to talk about how hard it is to be a white woman and deal with sexism. Being oppressed in one area does not mean you have no privilege in another area. Terms like intersectionality and kyriarchy exist for a reason. Also...that's derailing. Stop it.

6. Do check your privilege. It's hard and often unpleasant, but it's really necessary. And you're going to get things wrong. Because no one is perfect. But part of being an ally is being willing to hear that you're doing it wrong.

7. Don't expect a pass into safe spaces because you call yourself an ally. You're not entitled to access as a result of not being an asshole. Sometimes it just isn't going to be about you or what you think you should happen. Your privilege didn't fall away when you became an ally, and there are intra-community conversations that need to take place away from the gaze of the privileged.

8. Do be willing to stand up to bigots. Even if all you do is tell a friend that the thing they just said about X marginalized group is unacceptable, you're doing some of the actual work of being an ally.

9. Don't treat people like accessories or game tokens. Really, you get no cool points for having a diverse group of friends. Especially when you try to use that as license to act like an asshole.

10. Do keep trying. Fighting bigotry is a war, not a battle and it's generational. So, keep your goals realistic, your spirits up (taking a break to recoup emotional, financial, physical reserves is a-okay), and your heart in the right place. Eventually we'll get it right.

1. <b>Don't</b> <a href="http://www.derailingfordummies.com/" target="blank">derail</a> a discussion. Even if it makes you personally uncomfortable to discuss X issue...it's really not about you or your comfort. It's about X issue, and you are absolutely free to not engage rather than try to keep other people from continuing their conversation.<br><br>2. <b>Do</b> read links/books referenced in discussions. Again, even if the things being said make you uncomfortable, part of being a good ally is not looking for someone to provide a 101 class midstream. Do your own heavy lifting.<br><br>3. <b>Don't</b> expect your feelings to be a priority in a discussion about X issue. Oftentimes people get off onto the <a href="http://inalasahl.livejournal.com/149900.html" target="blank">tone argument</a> because their feelings are hurt by the way a message was delivered. If you stand on someone's foot and they tell you to get off? The correct response is not "Ask nicely" when you were in the wrong in the first place.<br><br>4. <b>Do</b> shut up and listen. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of listening to the people actually living X experience. There is nothing more obnoxious than someone (however well intentioned) coming into the spaces of a marginalized group and insisting that they absolutely have the solution even though they've never had X experience. You can certainly make suggestions, but don't be surprised if those ideas aren't well received because you've got the wrong end of the stick somewhere.<br><br>5. <b>Don't</b> play <a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&safe=off&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&hs=eb2&q=%22oppression+olympics%22&aq=f&oq=&aqi=" target="blank">Oppresion Olympics</a>. Really, if you're in the middle of a conversation about racism? Now is not the time to talk about how hard it is to be a white woman and deal with sexism. Being oppressed in one area does not mean you have no privilege in another area. Terms like intersectionality and kyriarchy exist for a reason. Also...that's derailing. Stop it.<br><br>6. <b>Do</b> check your privilege. It's hard and often unpleasant, but it's really necessary. And you're going to get things wrong. Because no one is perfect. But part of being an ally is being willing to hear that you're doing it wrong.<br><br>7. <b>Don't</b> expect a pass into safe spaces because you call yourself an ally. You're not entitled to access as a result of not being an asshole. Sometimes it just isn't going to be about you or what you think you should happen. Your privilege didn't fall away when you became an ally, and there are intra-community conversations that need to take place away from the gaze of the privileged.<br><br>8. <b>Do</b> be willing to stand up to bigots. Even if all you do is tell a friend that the thing they just said about X marginalized group is unacceptable, you're doing some of the actual work of being an ally.<br><br>9. <b>Don't</b> treat people like accessories or game tokens. Really, you get no cool points for having a diverse group of friends. Especially when you try to use that as license to act like an asshole.<br><br>10. <b>Do</b> keep trying. Fighting bigotry is a war, not a battle and it's generational. So, keep your goals realistic, your spirits up (taking a break to recoup emotional, financial, physical reserves is a-okay), and your heart in the right place. Eventually we'll get it right.

Derp. I haven't posted in a bit so have some random junk.
( Trinity, Death, and casual nudity )

The cubs made their first public appearance yesterday. News site's got a video up of them. :)


On another note, I'm a little sad because Ms. Clima's heading out on Saturday and I might not see her for awhile(months to years) once she's gone. :(