Digressions

Dedicated to art, acting, theatre, costumes, and doing all of this while paying off debt.

[wilwheaton]

Eat shit and die, Cheeto Hitler. (at Vancouver, British Columbia) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bo2CqO5nEp8/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=11crcof7hsbsq

[juliambrose]

Last summer I worked on the Chicago Riverwalk almost directly across from Trump Tower. One of the best parts of this was watching locals stage regular protests near or directly in front of it, as well as watching tourists take middle finger photos of it.

[juliambrose]

So today I have thoughts. So many that I found it fitting to re-install tumblr after ghosting on this part of my life two years ago. I still don’t really know why I did, except that I simply did. But this one thought I had was the sort of thing that would turn into a definite tl;dr on Facebook, and it seemed too noisy a forum. So here I am, back again.

My thought is this: I had a supremely difficult day. It started off well enough: I woke from the first decent sleep I’ve had in a week, and my cat was cuddly, and it was raining. I opened Facebook and read about Banksy’s magnificent self-destructing art, and had I known that this would be the peak of my day, damn I would have found a way to fake sick.

I work at a tailor shop—one that has had a rough few months, and is heading into a much needed slow season. I’m the only non-immigrant in the shop, and one of only two fluent English speakers, which means that when I went upstairs after breakfast to change before work and found some very fresh, very expansive cat pee on the floor it meant that my being late would suck. Despite my best efforts to clean everything quickly, get a laundry load started, deodorize the floor and finally get the pee smell off of myself, I was half an hour late. Although I had texted my boss as soon as I was able, she ripped me a new one for a thousand things that were beyond my control. In the past when someone has pulled shit like this, I’ve generally shrugged it off, knowing that anything I said would come off as an excuse, however true it was. But after 34 years, that sort of patience wears thin, and today I argued. I’ve been arguing more lately, which in my life translates to: I’ve been arguing, period. It’s not something I’m skilled at. It frustrates me. I get tongue tied and flustered and angry, and when I get angry, I cry. It’s not a great look.

If this were the only thing about today, or about this week, that was frustrating, it would have been a day to forget. But today, the senate voted to proceed with Kavanaugh’s confirmation. I was not surprised. Although it saddens me, I never expected it to go otherwise, and I know I’m not alone in this.

My current boss is now my (officially) third overtly bigoted, racist boss. She of course, does not realize she is and believes she is not, which means that she will never change. She also supports Trump, as well as Putin, and has celebrated every moment that Dr. Ford was mocked, ridiculed, or dismissed throughout this entire trial. I live in Chicago, where this week was also the end of the Laquan MacDonald trial. It’s been tense.

Knowing this about her, and receiving the brunt of her illogical blame caused me to feel more defeated today than I’ve felt in a long time. And it was only 10:30 in the morning.

There were several other upsets today, caused mostly by customers and normal Saturday chaos. In the spare moments when I could have eaten, I found myself without an appetite.

By the time I got home I was ready to pack it all in. I’m still worried about my cat. I have a job interview tomorrow, and a lot of other commitments I will have to choose between. I haven’t had a day off in over two months, and this week I also won’t get one.

I was lounging on the couch with my roommate, re-watching the Milk Bar episode of Chef’s Table for comfort and inspiration, when I came across a Facebook post that I should have bookmarked and now can’t find, and which I will now paraphrase as best I can:

Christine Blassey Ford is white, straight, cis, educated, and well-spoken, and she is fighting to be believed. This should make us consider what anyone who is not all or any of these things has to go through.

And it made me think of this morning, how frustrated and angry I was at having to detail every moment of my morning to my boss in order to prove that I had done my best, only to have her dismiss all of my true, legitimate reasons as excuses. Realizing that it will always be like this with my boss, that she will never trust me because she has already made up her mind. Realizing that this very small thing that happened to me today is echoed and magnified throughout our country and the world, and most specifically now in all three branches of our government.

I am white, straight, cis, educated, and most of the time, I can speak well, and today I wanted to quit everything. Today, in a very tiny microcosm of the world, with a problem that won’t ripple through the world in a life changing way, I struggled to be believed.

So, a month from today, I will do what my boss did not do in the 2016 election: I will vote. I will look again and again at what I believe makes me a good person, and I will question, and revise, and pay goddamn attention.

And so should you.

[juliambrose]

That time Tumblr got cheeky in its update.

[juliambrose]

Sometimes when I'm too busy to check my phone my mom gets nervous.

[juliambrose]

1. Sure, do it. 2. Ditto. 3. GOD NO NOT IF YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT. If anyone can tell you whether to cut your hair, it's a Google search.

[juliambrose]

Yup, really hated it. Mind you, this was before the series finale.

[juliambrose]

At one point I really hated "Parenthood."

[juliambrose]

My phone told me its memory was almost full so I have to delete things. At one point my Mom (oh HEY! Palindrome) was fixated on palindromes.

[thedailyshow]

Hasan Minhaj on people who support Donald Trump despite his bigotry.

[juliambrose]

I just had an argument about this on Facebook with people I haven't personally interacted with in at least six years. If you voted for Trump for purely economic reasons, then...fine I suppose. I'm having a very hard time understanding how he has expertise to make change on any front whatsoever. If, however, something he said spoke to you but you do NOT support his social stances--immigration, LGBTQ, healthcare, women's rights, Black Lives Matter--make it known. Please. There are people whose lives depend on knowing they are supported. Do something to show your support for these people. Speak out. Donate. Show up for them, and please understand that this is something that is needed because people are scared. It's not a sniveling, whiny thing, it's not "I didn't get my toy and I'm sad." It is comfort. Reassurance. Let your actions show your support--words aren't enough.

[juliambrose]

Here at the apparent end of my unintentional months-long Tumblr hiatus, I cannot fucking believe that I'm watching what I'm watching. I Can't. None of this is fun.

[thefederalistfreestyle]

c’mon, babe, why don’t we build the town [x x]

[juliambrose]

TALK TO ME BABY

[meighanisme]

Dear America,

Do yourselves, and the rest of us, a favour – put on your big kid pants and vote for Hillary. No clever write-in votes for someone who has zero chance of actually winning. No self-righteous refusals to vote. Swallow your pride and your moral outrage, go to wherever it is you have to go to vote, and vote for Clinton. Then, if you feel that you must (and maybe you must), spend the next four years doing actual work to make an actual difference to provide America with an actual better option in 2020.

Sincerely,

Someone who really can’t do anything about it

[juliambrose]

My parents were at a party recently where someone said that she was not going to vote now that Bernie is out. My dad apparently yelled at her pretty intensely. When my mom told me this I was torn--having been on the receiving end of his anger on many occasions I had long ago decided that I wouldn't wish this experience on anyone, and normally when I hear of an instance like this I feel mortified for him and even a bit for myself, although I'm never there when these things happen. This time, though, I found myself cheering for him. What do people think they can help by not voting? That perhaps if no one votes then there will be no leader, none being better a option than either candidate? This same woman who had proclaimed she wouldn't be voting has also been stocking up for the end of days. Stop throwing the temper tantrums. This is the equivalent of holding your breath until you get what you want--it lasts for a finite maximum amount of time, and if you succeed you just end up scaring people and hurting yourself. VOTE. Vote, vote, vote, vote, vote and for God's sake vote for Clinton.

[arthistorycq]

[juliambrose]

Oui.

[thefederalistfreestyle]

Renee Elise Goldsberry to Exit ‘Hamilton’ for Netflix’s 'Altered Carbon’ (Exclusive) (Hollywood Reporter) [x x]:

The Tony winner who originated the role of Angelica Schuyler is exiting the hit Broadway musical this fall, The Hollywood Reporter has learned exclusively.

Goldsberry — known for her TV roles on The Good Wife and One Life to Live, the latter earning her two Daytime Emmy nominations — will move on to Altered Carbon, Netflix’s 10-episode sci-fi drama from Skydance Television starring Joel Kinnaman.

Set in the 25th century and based on Richard Morgan’s 2002 novel of the same name, the series explores what happens when the human mind becomes digitized and the soul is transferable from one body to another. Kinnaman plays Takeshi Kovacs, an ex-elite interstellar warrior known as an Envoy who has been imprisoned for 500 years and is downloaded into a future he had tried to stop. If he can solve a single murder in a world where technology has made death nearly obsolete, he will get a chance at a new life on Earth.

Goldsberry will play the role of Quellcrist Falconer, a revolutionary and leader of the rebellion against the Protectorate. She is a master strategist, as well as the love of Kovacs’ life.

[juliambrose]

This is so exciting! (I wanted to post in all caps but I've been over-using them lately.)

[turquoisemagpie]

“You do know who we are, dear?” she asked. “It would be a shame if you didn’t.”

“The Kin,” said the Doctor. “A population that only consists of one creature, but able to move through time as easily and instinctively as a human can cross the road.”… 

Sketch 153: Nothing O’Clock. A sketch from Neil Gaiman’s short story for the Time Lord in the book Trigger Warning. 

[juliambrose]

WHY HAS NO ONE TOLD ME THERE IS A TIME LORD STORY IN THIS BOOK????????

[meighanisme]

I wanna buy you a book.

I suppose if more than one person takes me up on this offer, I’ll do some kind of random selection process involving fancy technology such as pieces of paper in a hat.

Anyhoo, I’d like to buy someone a book they’ve been wanting, but, for whatever reason, haven’t been able to get their paws on. You don’t have to tell me why you need/want me to pay for your book, but you can if you wanna. Or, like, if your kid or your dad or your cousin wants a book. I haven’t given any thought to rules or…. parameters.

Let’s set a price limit of $30. (So maybe if there are a couple of books that add up to $30, that’d be cool.)

You’ll have to give me your mailing address (or a mailing address – it doesn’t have to be your home address, obviously. Whichever physical address you’re comfortable providing.)

To sum up:

Do you want or need a book?

Is the book $30 or less?

Are you okay with giving me your mailing address?

If you’ve answered yes to all three questions, send me an ask saying you’d like a book, and then we’ll figure it out from there.

I think I’m quite all right to ship anywhere in the world. And if it’s super fucking expensive, I’ll know better for next time. (And you’ll still get your book.)

Feel free to share this even if you’re not wanting a book.

[meighanisme]

For the afternoon crowd.

I think I’ll pick a name out of a hat on Saturday, so about three more days to let me know if you’d like a book.

[juliambrose]

Me I would like a book please!

[meighanisme]

Does anyone else intentionally get to work ten to fifteen minutes early just so you can sit in your car and enjoy a final few minutes of being quietly alone before spending the next nine to ten hours having to interact or at least be available for interaction?

So here I am. Just sitting my car. There’s a pleasant enough cross breeze and the unobtrusive sounds of a morning in a populated-but-not area. You know, voices that sort of float your way, leaves rustling, distant traffic on the highway, businesses and their machines coming to life, gravel crunching under foot and tire.

It reminds me of sitting on a dock looking out across the water.

[juliambrose]

That sounds very nice. I tried this for awhile but I have been dealt a bizarrely competitive cubicle neighbor who kept showing up earlier and earlier and eventually I gave up. It's possible, I suppose, that we were each trying to get quiet time, but given her proclivity for monologuing to whomever is nearby, and considering that many of her favorite subjects include her hair and her calorie count, I feel comfortable throwing in a hefty amount of doubt.