Since it's Disability Pride Month, I thought I'd make a post about the party and their associated disabilities. The character art for this post was commissioned from the wonderful @goldiation <3
(See below the cut for a lil' ramble and a disclaimer on the language use in this post)
WARNING - this post contains potential spoilers! Proceed with caution☠️
DOCTOR DAISY GRAY: Autism, ADHD/ADHD-traits, Severe Alexithymia
Growing up, Daisy was regarded as 'uncannily gifted', and often found other children insufferable and tedious. Social cues, etiquette, and emotions are concepts that consistently elude her, and though she enjoys being somewhat of an iconoclast, she still masks and has anxieties regarding the people she cares about.
Daisy also possesses ADHD traits, which causes her to seek out dopamine-inducing activities. This includes seeking out novel experiences, (dangerous) knowledge, and throwing herself into perilous situations. (This predilection for danger may or may not have put her in the path of a certain eldritch entity.)
LILA SASSOON: CPTSD, Anxiety, Depression
Lila has nightmares & extremely vivid dreams of 'unknowable things' that causes her to sleepwalk. These dreams can linger well into her waking hours, which has her questioning the state of her reality and memories.
Fluctuating bouts of anxiety and depression has persisted into her adulthood, and even now she slips into episodes when going through difficult events. And in her social interactions (of which there are many), our lovely librarian has a tendency to mask and script for Reasons™. While she does enjoy talking to people and socializing in general, it takes a mental & physical toll on her.
Lila also suffers from mild chronic pain that is seemingly random and without explanation. While long hot baths and rest are ideal, she finds the most comfort in her books, writing, and of course, Daisy.
LORD PAXTON CROSS: PTSD, BPD/BPD-traits, Depression, Chronic Pain (TBI/CRPS), Cane & Wheelchair User
Paxton was wounded in action during the Civil War which left him with chronic pain and reduced mobility - predominantly in his left leg. And upon his return from the war, he experienced acute PTSD and severe depression that took years to recover from.
Paxton's internalized ableism gives him a complex about using his wheelchair in public: while his cane could be mistaken as a fashion accessory or a clever disguise for his blade, a wheelchair makes his disability undeniably visible.
Fear of abandonment, emotional dysregulation, and intense emotional attachments has caused him to become the black sheep in every facet of his life. Past romantic entanglements have always been intensely passionate and all-consuming - and painfully, distressingly brief.
WAYNE SAWYER: PTSD, ADHD, Dyslexia, Dyscalculia
Wayne never enjoyed school, since he was constantly punished and mocked for his difficulty with letters & numbers, absentmindedness & poor emotional regulation.
Despite having a natural intelligence and giftedness in subjects such as creative arts (drawing and music), trade work, engineering/mechanics, agriculture, etc. he was always made to feel impotent in a household that valued a specific type of intelligence.
Wayne also struggles with PTSD-induced anxiety and panic attacks, as well as bouts of derealization & depersonalization that can persist for weeks and months at a time.
[Ramble under the cut]
MERCY came about at a time when I was diagnosed as ADHD (w/ suspected dyscalculia and CPTSD). More recently in June, I was additionally diagnosed with autism, which has been extremely validating and debilitating. During this intensely destabilizing period, being able to write about these experiences through these characters has proven to be an valuable source of comfort and connection that comes rarely - and one I don't take for granted.
Of course, our characters aren't great. They are problematic, ableist, and hold a lot of internalized ableism that severely impacts their relationships and self-worth. But as they find compassion and accommodations for each other, they too might develop compassion and accommodations for themselves. As it is in real life, where we must dismantle our preconceptions & prejudices and rebuild anew.
Though disabilities are as diverse as the folk who have them, I think there is an overall shared experience of existing in a society that is both visibly and intangibly inhospitable to us. Always cast as the other, the unwelcome, the invisible, the afterthought, the broken and wrong. Something to be amended rather than considered.
Our shows are by and for and about the other. It's why we chose the name we did, and why we will continue to tell the stories we do. I know I can speak for the team when I say that our hope is for people to find comfort, catharsis, and community in MERCY - as much as we did, and continue to, in the process of making the show.
Disclaimer on the language: I know some folk are of the stance that using the term 'disability' is ableist or not neuro-affirming. While I do agree, until the reigning paradigm undergoes drastic change where ability is not measured against capitalistic worth, the reality is we will continue to be 'disabled' by society, our environment, and the imposed systems we exist within.
First of all: Lay your peepers on this gorgeous tarot card artwork from our very own @sizzypheanloop! Izzy kindly allowed me to share it for this announcement post (and just LOOK AT THE COLOURS Y'ALL SDLJFBSDJHK)
Thank you for blessing us with the such breath-taking art of the most disastrous disaster gays to every disaster <3
2. BONUS EPISODE RELEASE
The first A Day in the Life bonus episode, 'GOSSIP', is available to listen now on the MERCY feed! Prompted by @sizzypheanloop (sans Mrs. Herrera, but d/w her time will come).
In this episode, Lila & Paxton enjoy tea and gossip and all the womanly-doily things, much to Sawyer's chagrin.
It's short, but it was super fun to record, and we aim to get the next ADITL on the feed next week if stars align.
[See below the cut for future release schedule & context on what's happening behind the scenes]
3. FUTURE RELEASE SCHEDULE & A BIG THANK YOU!
Finally, we'd like to thank you for your ongoing patience during this break. While initially we intended to return in June/July with Episode 11, it's looking more like end of September or early October instead.
We do have a special Prologue episode that will be released before then, however, and other bonus episode and content as well.
I'd like to explain the reason for the new schedule - not to make excuses or to justify our decision, but rather to contextualise why we need the extra time. I know I don't owe anyone an explanation, but I do value our lil' flock/community, and I think it would be the right thing to let y'all know what's going on. This will probably be the last time I make a post like this however, as I'm sure many of you already have a good idea on our workload & process by now :)
If you're not already aware, each episode of MERCY takes around a month to record and a month or two to edit (editing at first took a couple of weeks, but that got longer with the increasing complexities in the sound design & lengths of the episodes).
We are a very small team with jobs, other daily responsibilities (eurgh), and disabilities/illnesses with a limited number of spoons. This unfortunately means there are only so many hours we can dedicate to MERCY on a daily/weekly/monthly basis.
The latter half of Season 1 is also a larger story in scale, scope, cast, and...well, everything. And we pride ourselves on producing the highest quality episodes - at least, to the best of our abilities - with every release.
It is possible for us to speed things along, yes, but we are reluctant to do so if that means having to cut corners or not pour as much care into every episode we put out. This also means our listeners all possess the grace & patience of a bodhisattva (and y'all actually do fr 😭🙏).
Anyway, I hope that explains what's happening behind the scenes a bit, and I sincerely mean it when I reiterate how grateful the team and I are to have your ongoing understanding & support.
We aren't the best at keeping up with social media things, but we do see your beautiful posts and artwork and writing, and every single one of them is so so special and dear to us💕
In the meantime, keep an eye on our Tumblr and the MERCY feed for more content to come. If you have any concerns, comments, or questions, feel free to leave us an Ask or shoot us an email at [email protected]
If you made it this far, thank you for reading this novel (egad)! And take care of yourselves & each other, friends 🐦⬛💕💕
Also, please do not listen to how people talk about cover letters on this site. Cover letters are important, and in many industries you can be damn sure they'll be read. And no, they're not 'fanfic about working in your office', or just re-stating the resume contents in a fancier guise. If you treat them like that, then of course they're not doing much for you. That makes you sound like a syncophantic windbag, and it's not doing anything else to help.
I was trained in the dark arts of the cover letter by my mother, who is a hiring manager. And her training has paid off: I've been consistently told my cover letters are excellent. Let me pass on the wisdom.
The job of a cover letter is to give a prospective employer strictly more information than is on the resume. This is where you take the resume contents and put them into context. You look at the job requirements (you are looking at the job requirements before applying, right?) and look at your resume and ask the question (in your head) "why would a person think this candidate would be good for this job?" and your cover letter is the answer to that question. If you don't answer that question, the hiring manager is going to have to do it themselves, and you have way more information to work with than they do.
This is especially important if you're moving from one industry to another, because then the relevant connections aren't obvious. It's also very important if you're overqualified, because then you can use the letter to say "I know it looks like this job would be too entry-level for me, but I'm interested to pursue it for reasons x, y, and z". You can also use this space to explain away something that might otherwise be disqualifying, like job-hopping or a long break in employment. The tone to strike here is always matter-of-fact and constrained to topic - don't go into detail about health stuff or personal tragedy, just tell them what they need to hear: that this period of your resume was affected by [bad thing] but that it's now in the past and you're looking forward to the next chapter. Remember, one of the things they're trying to learn is whether you'd be content in this role, or whether you'd be miserable and leave after 2 months, which would force them to do all the work of hiring again. You're trying to establish that you will fit right in and not cause problems. Knowing what drew you to this job in particular (and don't just say 'money', that's true for everyone) helps with that.
And the other mistake? Everyone writes cover letters that are too long. One page is fine. Two is the absolute maximum, and that's if you have a lot of specific things to say. It's a waste of your time and theirs to pad it out with fluff. Of my two most recent successful cover letters (i.e. jobs for which I was interviewed) one was 390 words and the other was 550. That's the length of this post. How long did it take me to write this post? About 15 minutes to write, 5 to proof and edit. That's how long you should be spending on a cover letter, maximum.
broooo I feel so dumb for not having realised this before but like.... in v5 ep10, when that guard is like "You're just gonna forgive her? After everything she's done?" and Blake goes "I am." she's not just forgiving Ilia she's forgiving HERSELF. That whole fight she was probably looking at Ilia and seeing a damn mirror because that's EXACTLY how she was in the Fang. Scared, alone, unsure of anything or anyone, just wanting justice for the faunus but making so many mistakes along the way. So when Blake says she'll forgive Ilia, she also says she'll forgive herself. And let me tell you, looking at it from this perspective makes Ghira's pride in her ("She's learned a lesson that evaded me until I was much older. That there is strength in forgiveness.") SO much more personal and beautiful because his daughter fucked up but she's forgiving herself!!!! After all the self-loathing and hatred and depression she's finally forgiving herself!!!! UGH SHE MAKES ME SO EMOTIONAL MAN!!!
happy 10 years to witch hat atelier!!! here's a repost of some art i made this year for it ◡̈
i only started reading this series in late 2021. ever since i remember trying to peddle it to any friend who'd ask me 'what manga should i start reading' LOL and now there's an anime to make my recommending a lot easier
2087
origamiaround
prguitarman
