I've Been Blocked For Making An Annoying Comment Before, And, Like - That Is Always A Fundamental Issue

Chimera

Acrylic on canvas, August 2024

whatever man, you're a fake creator. you're not playing spore, you're playing something else entirely

i made this anon in spore [2008]

next time show your face

Predominantly found in Australia, the Letter-winged kite (Elanus scriptus) is a rare raptor. They are the only fully nocturnal raptor, and their soft almost owl-like feathers ensure they can fly quietly and without disturbance.

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Legend has it if you put any good tag in the title of your favorite car movie, it sounds canon. The #ides of march and the Furious.

PSA: Please don’t ask participants to do grounding/mindful/somatic/etc practices at your events

Grounding exercises should not be an activity in large group settings, especially unsolicited and without warning, especially if you’re not aware of every single person in the space’s mental health conditions, physical health conditions, and personal relationship to their body.

Practices such as mindfulness, grounding, somatic exercises, breathing techniques, body scans, etc. are very helpful therapeutic tools to help manage stress. They can (and do!) help plenty of people– when taught safely and used effectively!

HOWEVER for people with conditions that cause psychosis and/or dissociative conditions such as depersonalization/derealization, these techniques are contraindicated and can make their symptoms significantly worse. They should only be used with guidance from their mental health team and adapted to their needs. For people with conditions like anxiety and PTSD, being aware of breathing can trigger a trauma response or anxiety attacks.

And for people with conditions that cause chronic pain or other uncomfortable bodily sensations, becoming re-centered with their bodies can cause more awareness of the pain they are in, which a level of (ideally functional) dissociation is actually helpful. For people in wheelchairs and powerchairs, touching the ground beneath their feet isn’t always an option. For people with cardiac and pulmonary conditions, deep breathing can be impossible or can trigger asthma attacks. For disabled people in general, doing body scans can be impossible due to paralysis or limb differences. They can bring awareness to things the person wasn’t aware were wrong to begin with (which is helpful in certain spaces, but not a great ice breaker at a retreat!)

And for trans people, binders and other garments can restrict breathing, and taking repeated deep breaths while binding can cause rib damage (which is why you shouldn't bind at night, while coughing from sickness, while exercising, etc). Becoming centered in a body that makes you dysphoric can be deeply distressing, again, a level of functional dissociation helps.

This also goes for plenty of other people in marginalized bodies, such as people of color, people who use substances, queer people, and more. Becoming grounded in your own marginalized body can be a heavy weight to carry, and needs appropriate and individualized care to be a beneficial experience.

As an alternative, I suggest doing a round of gratitudes instead, it allows for people to choose their level of vulnerability in spaces, while not being generally contraindicated for many people. Doing fun (and appropriate to the setting) icebreakers are great. Ask what brings someone to the space. Check-ins about basic needs such as if people need to use the restroom, eat, drink water, are rested, etc. can be more appropriate body check-ins for folks to do.

I don’t recommend doing these exercises even with a warning beforehand. If I'm in the room while someone is leading a breathing exercise, even if I try to ignore it, I (and most people) would automatically become aware of my breathing. The same goes for any other techniques. These techniques can cause real, life-threatening levels of harm for some people, and can even just be deeply uncomfortable or distressing for others. Dissociation is not inherently evil or bad or harmful. It is the way the body and mind naturally respond to adverse experiences (note: it can also cause distress and at higher levels, can be disordered) it is best to allow people to exist as they are in communal spaces. Let people show up as they are.

Most spaces are not equipped or appropriate to respond to emergencies, difficult feelings, and all the varied responses that can come from folks doing mindfulness in group settings.

I personally do some things before large gatherings and events to feel centered on the activity I’ll be doing, and afterward, I decompress. Encourage participants to lean on their natural supports and offer suggestions for it! Be creative in your caring!

This also doesn’t mean to discourage these practices! If you see someone doing deep breathing, check in with them, offer a space for them to decompress, care for them! Worksheets or posters on techniques like square breathing and 5 senses check-ins are great for a quiet room or spaces where participants can decide if they want/are able to engage with those tools. It should be a fully consensual opt-in, rather than being forced to opt-out. Having to leave a room when a group leader says “We’re going to start a mindful breathing meditation, please feel free to leave if you have psychosis, chronic pain, or are trans” is obviously othering and outs people.

Sincerely, someone who has psychotic symptoms, dissociation, chronic pain, is trans and whose body is marginalized in many ways and is really tired from trying to explain this at every event I go to

reblog to teleport your mutuals to a massive party when jkr dies

Having of seen the comment about 52% from more neutral sources, that sounds unreasonable based on the light pollution in Pyongyang, assuming that 100% of China's people have electricity.

Although it is to my awareness that at the least, environmentalism is a historical socialist secondary goal, so it would make sense that the socialist/communist countries would have less light pollution, so a light pollution comparison of NK vs SK is simply going to be wrong.

However, it is fair to compare NK and China. Obviously Wikipedia's main 2020 Dandong stats don't directly compare to Pyongyang's 2008 stats. However, a 2005 Dandong stat is seen on Wikipedia too; from this, I find it reasonable to conclude that Pyongyang is thrice as large as Dandong. Now, if I read the Wikipedia page right, Dandong is Both of those slightly larger than Pyongyang lights near the coast on North Korea's north-west border.

Therefore, I conclude that, if anything, the CIA's 26% statement is likely an overestimate; it's more likely something just under 16%, instead. Assuming China's population all has electricity, of course.

thank you wikipedia that seems like a very unbiased and reliable source