brendathewriter

[brendathewriter]

The progression of my taste in music to deal with stress changed over time....from blues to jazz to rock to rap to country to techno to viking folk to heavy to metal to, of course, dark wave was a direct reflection of the crumbling of the society of end stage American capitalism....

#music #spoonielife #philosophy #prose #just an observation

[brendathewriter]

Out Of Spoons

Spoon Depletion

https://www.tumblr.com/fibro-memes/741144825549701120?source=share You know you are tired when you don’t even have the energy to screenshot the cute graphic to link it to the tumbler you found it at. Can I mention how great it is that Tumblr survived the pandemic and is just as bizarre as it’s ever been?

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#humor #SpoonieLife #tumblr

[brendathewriter]

Yeah one of the ways you can keep an eye on the more dysfunctional parts of America without completely dipping into the cesspool that is Trump's truth Channel is by staying on Twitter.

Granted, it's another cesspool thanks to Elon, but it does provide me with massive amounts of hysterically funny things to write about. Of course trolls and thoughts abound and this one had a single tweet tagging a bunch of us with the single word "engage".

It's been a long painful couple of weeks, and my ...shall we say unusual sense of warped humor erupted...

Yup, I projectile tumblr'd all over Elon's sandbox.

And it felt awesome!

#spoonielife #mental health #tumblr #elon musk #humor #no im not passive aggressive #anti troll #i need to stop procrastinating #quiet quitting #i dont want to adult today

[brendathewriter]

The Bipartisan Misstep

ABC News: House passes bipartisan tax bill that would expand child tax credit “It includes new low-income housing tax credits..” Hello?! Sorry, but somehow I feel this is going to be far short of what is needed in the US housing crisis. The section 8 wait-list in New Hampshire is 7 to 10 years, and in Strafford County in 2023 only 1 new development (Easter Seals in Rochester) had any new…

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#Democrats #disabled #elderly #human rights #Patriotism #Republicans #section 8 #Socialists #Subsidized Housing #Tax Credits

[brendathewriter]

I experience a big difference between fatigue tiredness and lassitude.

Tiredness is that mild sensation that your batteries are running low, that yawn interrupts your afternoon on a busy day, or that feeling of being semi asleep when you first wake up if you haven't been able to get enough rest.

Fatigue is deeper and stronger. When you're tired you may yawn, or feel a need to stretch, or feel a little bit laggy like you are walking a little bit in slow motion. Fatigue on the other hand is feeling like you are expending a huge amount of effort keep doing whatever you're doing, to be yawning and to have eyes drooping and to have that headache that tells you you are beyond tired. When I experience fatigue, I'll frequently say out loud that all I want is to lay down and take a short nap.

The unique kind of fatigue from fibromyalgia is usually easiest to describe to able-bodied people by having them call the last time they were coming down with the flu and how no matter how much sleep you got you just kept getting sicker. Fibromyalgia fatigue to me comes in waves and it can be so distracting to fight against it, and keep doing the things that I want or need to do. It is possible to push through fibromyalgia fatigue, but no one who has lived with that disease would ever recommend it because it saps as much of your mental energy, your cognitive abilities, and your mental health abilities t as does your body physically.

Lassitude, especially as I define it in regards to multiple sclerosis, is truly evil and heartbreaking. When lassitude hits, it is like a wall of a fatigue so profound that your knees begin to buckle, your eyes start closing, and it literally takes every ounce of energy you have left in your body to force yourself to stay awake even for a few more seconds. When lassitude hits, I usually must rely on my wheelchair or whatever surface I'm resting on to support me because it almost always makes me weak as well as exhausted.

#disability #spoonielife #multiple sclerosis #fibromyalgia #chronic fatigue

[brendathewriter]

Sometimes this complex spoonie runs out of 🥄spoons to do cognitive tasks like "use a 🎮 controller to play a complicated video game"... But I still want to relax and play something.

Back in 2020 I discovered Gems Of War - a kind of tongue in cheek, humorous mashup of Android's JewelQuest match 3 game and the classic card game Magic The Gathering.

The first thing I like is that (if I have to) I can play it with only one hand ( but that works best if you velcro the controller to a flat surface ). This is especially handy but I am ignoring all my gastroparesis diet rules and eating the greasy forbidden Margarita popcorn.

The second thing I like is that it has multiple levels of complexity I can enjoy on my good days, but on the days that TBI brain fog or MS cognitive issues are really bad? I can just wait for the game to prompt me with where to move a jewel instead of trying to figure it out on my own. There is even a mini game called treasure hunt that instead of being a strategy battle between teams you just compete against yourself to see how much treasure you can accumulate.

The third thing that I like about this game is that it doesn't take itself all that seriously. There are all sorts of humorous puns and jokes in the descriptions, comic strip type dialogue, and even in the way things are drawn.

I can't show you the HUD (because the only TV we own is broken and doesn't show the top inch and a half on the screen), but it's fairly clear and useful. Gem support is actually a very deep role-playing game with lots of seasonal components so there's a lot more depth to it than just a simple match three game, and there's a lot of the detailed complexity that classic battle card games are famous for. The HUD actually wraps all around the four edges for much of the game which greatly reduces the amount of sub menus someone has to drill through for the more advanced gameplay features.

I'm less happy about the way the most recent update has changed some of the fonts and their sizes, as it may make it a bit difficult on a small screen for those with vision issues, but overall it's an excellent way to spend your free time if you are a casual gamer looking for something different than the usual hack and slash type genres.

I started playing it while taking care of my husband in 2020 and never intended for it to replace my deep abiding love for all things Elder Scrolls related but here I am 4 years later still playing it several times a week!

#game review #spoonielife #girl gamer #gems of war #xbox one

[brendathewriter]

LORD OF THE LOST - Waiting For You To Die (Official Lyric Video) | Napal...

My comment at YouTube...

September will be the 40th anniversary of the first time I was traumatized by a concussion from #DomesticViolence.

October will be the 30th anniversary of the day I escaped from that monster's physical abuse.

Having a TBI has irrevocably altered my life, my relationships, and my abilities - but I survive, at least in some small part by knowing that someday I (or my heirs) will see justice served, even if not in a courtroom.

Thank you, Chris for poetry that so eloquently expresses what us survivors feel - especially those of us who were traumatised before there were laws making domestic violence a crime.

Thank you, LOTL, all of you & your crew for music and film that can speak so powerfully for so many...

Brenda Eckels, aMGC 👩🏼‍🦼

Strafford County, New Hampshire, 🇺🇲USA

#spoonielife #traumatic brain injury #living with ptsd #domestic violence #music #lord of the lost #poetry #music therapy #God Bless Eurovision #Youtube

[brendathewriter]

It's my 8 year anniversary on Tumblr 🥳

Wow, never imagined I'd still be writing ....

#8 year tumblrversary #tumblr milestone

[brendathewriter]

#SpoonieStrong

[brendathewriter]

Me: Daddy, is that wine? Can I have a taste? What kind of wines it?

Daddy: This is Cold Duck. It is made with dark purple grapes.

Me: Like communion wine?

Daddy: No that is made with red grapes.

Me: What are we eating?

Daddy: Cold Duck is best with these sandwiches of vanilla wafers, pepperoni, and good sharp cheddar cheese.

Me: And what are we celebrating?

Daddy: The Red Sox are playing at home AND it is on television AND Louis Tiant is playing!

Me: Wow! Will we do his cheer?

Daddy: You bet! Ok here is your dixie cup and here are your four nilla sandwiches...you remember how to drink wine?

Me: (nodding as solemnly as I did in Sunday School) Uh huh! First, I take a bite & chew, then I take a sip, and then I get the tastes together!

Daddy: Ok, you got it! Here we go... (loudly) Let's Go Red Sox!!

....and for years I couldn't completely enjoy watching a baseball game without nilla pepperoni sandwiches. I have never been able to drink even a non alc dark wine without food, and I can't believe Daddy that it's been 6 months since you died and I miss you and our lost us so much.

#memories #childhood #RedSox #Daddy #greiving #wine

[brendathewriter]

Our 2024 Calendar is ready, and we'd like to giveaway a few of them to you guys! If you would like a chance to receive this calendar and set of prints, simply reblog this post with the tag "giveaway". We will choose a winner in twelve hours.

#giveaway

[brendathewriter]

Wether they were mine for 6 weeks or forever, my kids are always in my heart.

✝️ denotes the angels in heaven

#kids #motherhood #stepmom #fosterparent #emptynester #wordart #graphicdesign

[brendathewriter]

Monday Morning Blues

It’s Monday morning, and the rain is beating against the window as October slowly fades into November. It’s only 9:45 in the morning, but I’ve been up since 6:00 a.m. getting myself ready, making sure that my tablet and my phone are plugged into the (oh so slow!) power adapter on my wheelchair, making sure my hair is done, my clothes are work casual, and…. and so much more. I’ve already wrangled…

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#multiplesclerosis #brain injury #disability #family caregiver #stress

[brendathewriter]

Any human can get breast cancer

Please do repost & share!

#breast cancer

[brendathewriter]

😂 yup, me too...

Confession: I have a crush on J'zargo :]

#skyrim #khajiit #J'zargo

[brendathewriter]

I made up a way to explain fatigue!

[brendathewriter]

I swear to God if one more abled architect designs one more complex spoonie wheelchair bathroom that doesn't have a flip down desk to put the Cath kit, 📱 phone, tablet, hairbrush, depends brief, and the wipes...

I just might start a campaign with my peers to march & shut down a major interstate until Biden agrees to send them all to a CIA dark room!

Who the hell are these idiots?!

For the love of Pete!!😠😤

#rant post #spoonielife #bathroom #ibs #bladder control #Yes I Need My Phone #multiple sclerosis #fibromyalgia #architecture #abledsareweird