lonita

[lonita]

In your pocket

You will need:

a pocket sketchbook

drawing, writing, and colouring media of choice

scissors

adhesives of choice

a substrate

Do:

Add one of the following to a new page every day: a drawing, a doodle, a colour swatch, a cut out from a magazine, newspaper, or junk mail, a texture, a stamped pattern, other ephemera, whatever you like, so long as it's something that highlights or symbolises your day.

At the end of the month, cut all the pieces out and arrange them onto a substrate that you can frame/hang.

Notes:

You could do this around your birthday, or the month of a special event like a wedding.

You could also do this with things from/about another person, and gift them your finished piece.

[lonita]

Haiku, of a sort

I wrote these back on November 4th, 2007. Just found them in an old text file.

crisp chill in the air leaves fall tumbling here and there I'm dancing in them

frosty days give way I'm touched by delicious chill dark trunks rise leafless

nights of clarity I read by this shining moon etched stone nature's words

winter cometh soon boughs of trees are glazed by freeze like gemstones priceless

smokey fires scent here pristine are the darkened woods with snow cuddling close

melt away like dreams snows slip off comes the green'ry time renews anew

unbending I breath sleeping with the window wide Finally feel free

[lonita]

Social Solutions

I started this over on my Bluesky account on Feb 1st, but wanted to put it here to keep better track of it and add to it/edit it more easily.

01 - Another social solution would be to expropriate abandoned towns to be refit for human use. Though the industries they were built for may be gone, there are other industries and job types (like remote work) that people could do there.

01 - A social solution is creating a social media network that is not dependent on anything in the US, that could start by providing access via your library membership.

01 - A social solution could include the alteration of the average school day, lengthening it so that parents aren't required to pay for before/after care because of work. You could do this by providing homework space, access to activities such as sports/music/etc., all included in the cost of schooling.

01 - Another social solution is the creation of a nationalised grocery chain that is not capitalistically profit-driven. My inner creature wishes we could take the Loblaw corporation away from Galen and his ilk and turn it into a crown corporation, since they have all the infrastructure set up already.

01 - Several side social solutions could be done here that include the preparation of free take-away meals (a la Sikh langar), or sit-in meals if there's a space to do so, donations to school lunch programs, donations to community fridges and food banks, and farmer-oriented/led community projects.

02 - A social solution would be to expropriate empty/abandoned big box stores and malls to use as temporary shelter for the homeless until permanent solutions are found, such as tiny home parks and shipping container buildings.

02 - A social solution would include the alteration of how work is done to make jobs that can be changed into more task-based ones than 40-hours-a-week ones. Task-based and gig based, while currently problematic, would allow for greater flexibility for all, including the disabled and chronically ill.

02 - A social solution would be increased availability of mending and repair group events where you can take things to be fixed by volunteers donating their time to either do the work or show you how to do it yourself. This cuts across both repair of mechanical items as much as it does the mending of clothes.

05 - A social solution could involve converting office buildings into housing, particularly housing with more focus on community and third places given the room types and amenities.

05 - A side project to this could be the inclusion of a tool / equipment library where residents and others can borrow tools or use them on site. This reduces spending, waste, and promotes sharing and mutual aid.

05 - Other projects in such a hub could include urban farms, community gardens, and community kitchens to foster community, reduce waste, and help care for those who might need more assistance. Large rural farms could be plot split to allow for smaller growers to rent land they couldn’t afford otherwise.

06 - A social solution could involve free eco-conscious public transit to reduce car dependency and emissions, and improve access to jobs, education, and services. This could include more than just buses, like mini neighbourhood-centric transit as well, car pooling, and covered mobility scooters.

06 - A social solution could involve expanding K-12 schooling to something year-round, reducing childcare and scheduling burdens on parents. This does not need to be in the form of classroom schooling only, but be expanded to something activity-based to include life skills, volunteering, practical skills.

06 - Along with shifting to a more task-based work style, a social solution could include the implementation of a shorter work week to improve work-life balance, reduce burnout, and provide more work options if the other days still need gaps filled. Hire more people. This has the added advantage of making more work options available to those who are disabled, chronically ill, or caregiving other family members.

06 - A social solution could involve switching to universal design in all constructions, including the retrofit of present ones, so that buildings, transportation, and public spaces are accessible to everyone. This could include ramps, elevators, and tactile surfaces. Accessibility benefits everyone.

[lonita]

New Year's Day

Every day is a New Year's Day for someone somewhere. Even though they mean nothing in actuality, they are just arbitrary numbers on a calendar, they do have an enormous impact on our psyche as points for new beginnings. Our human minds, at least those of us in the West anyhow, like the opportunity for fresh starts. Somehow they offer a little more impetus to get to it than any other days provide. It could be today, your birthday, any day. I like new beginnings as much as the next person, blank notebooks too, and the chance to start again.

[lonita]

Per diem - February 2025

Cut and paste this list to your own journal and respond to each with the first thing that comes to mind, or use them as inspiration for something else - photographs, drawings, fiction, poetry - whatever you like, or even don't. A new list will be shared the first day of each month with a prompt for each day. There’s no order to when, how, or if you use the prompts.

Immigrate - Thinking - Charger - Want - Sensational - Better - Completely - Academics - Startle - Weight - Passenger - Era - Sneer - Troubling - Friday - Mirage - Black - Rocket - Express - Coat - Inception - Stuck up - Instinctive - Abundance - Pledge - Waste - Highlight - Transparent -

[lonita]

Creative Idea of the Day - January 2025

Every day on my Idealog account on Bluesky, I share a quick creative idea - unlike the more lengthy ones I share here. And because I like to archive things all in one place, here's January 2025's collection.

01 - Transform book pages into wearable art by turning them into pendants, earrings, bracelets, or make beads of the paper and string them.

02 - Make a list of things to know.

03 - Spend a day taking photos of a particular theme (e.g., doors, colours, reflections) and share your best shots, with or without commentary.

04 - Make a list of food combinations you'd like to try.

05 - Create a playlist that tells a story.

06 - Write a poem using only words that start with the same letter.

07 - (missed)

08 - Make a list of things that are on your manifesto - or make a manifesto.

09 - Draw or doodle something that represents your day.

10 - Make a more of / less of list for the year ahead, or month, or just overall. Let's see: more reading, more making art, more community involvement, less sedentaryness.

11 - Cut out shapes or words from book pages and attach them to a mobile structure, creating a kinetic art piece.

12 - Create a landscape using only shades of one particular colour.

13 - Using a randomly generated group of words, pair two of the words together and pretend it's a new product. What is it? What does it do?

14 - Create a 15 or 30-second silent film - animated, drawn, live action, or whatever other form you like.

15 - Something you're looking forward to.

16 - Design and print a small 3D object. If you don't have a 3D printer, many public libraries have makerspaces that have them.

17 - Create a still life, digital or otherwise, of mechanical things.

18 - DIY something around the house without spending money.

19 - Pick your favourite books, or ones that have impacted you the most, and create a poem out of their first lines.

20 - Design a piece of jewellery or an accessory.

21 - Create a list of your all-time favourite books, movies, or songs. Share it.

22 - Draw a favourite animal or insect and exaggerate one feature.

23 - Write about something you're proud of.

24 - 5 things you love, hate, want, need, hope, and are.

25 - Make a list of things to do for a solo or couple date night/day, cut the list into strips, put them in a jar, and draw one randomly to do.

26 - Make a list of things that challenge your comfort zone. Do one.

27 - Write a short poem or story inspired by something you read.

28 - Something beautiful you saw today.

29 - Collect discarded items and turn them into something useful or beautiful.

30 - Create stickers or cards with positive messages and leave them in public places.

31 - Create a collage piece where each element represents a different memory.

[lonita]

Debate

I never want to see the word debate ever again. Let us instead choose conversation, The word debate has taken on an unnecessary negative taint with an adversarial slant that stains both understanding and intent, aggravated by its abuse from online bullies and bros with no educative interest or intent. Not everyone is out to beat their compatriots to a pulp with word slurry and an audacious sense of being owed someone else’s opinion or time. Some folks are just out to have a conversation, share information, and hear opinion. Let’s do that, and take the combative overtone away from the get-go.

[lonita]

Visual journal ideas

Colours:

Use different shades of one colour to paint, colour, collage, or otherwise create your image.

Choose a contrasting colour to highlight certain elements of the image.

Content:

Create a page around a meaningful quotation, poem, or song lyric.

Use pages from old books as a base or for collage pieces.

Idea:

Section a page into four equal parts.

Choose an item or idea- something physical like a tree, an activity that's important to you, etc.

Interpret that item four different ways based on how you approach it for each season of the year.

Tips:

If you feel too constrained, think of the theme as a starting point and not a rigid framework.

Combine two or more simpler themes to build something more complex.

Look for a prompt to help inspire or guide you.

[lonita]

Voting in Ontario

Friends:

Election day is not the only way to vote.

Mail-in ballots

Advanced polls

Voting at an Elections Ontario office during the election period

I know so many of us feel completely disenfranchised for various reasons, but there are options - both in terms of who and how.

The usual advice people give leads to something I don't believe in so I won't give it. I'll just say this: Look at the involvement track record of your candidates in your riding, and if you can't pick for yourself, pick who's going to do the best for the most vulnerable.

And don't forget that many parties offer rides to and from the polls, as well as other volunteers. Find out what's available in your area.

[lonita]

Per diem - January 2025

Cut and paste this list to your own journal and respond to each with the first thing that comes to mind, or use them as inspiration for something else - photographs, drawings, fiction, poetry - whatever you like, or even don't. A new list will be shared the first day of each month with a prompt for each day. There’s no order to when, how, or if you use the prompts.

Resist - Privilege - Evil - Crush - Breathe - Onion - Unique - Rush - Green - Agree - Confined - Despair - Reflection - Support - Lead - Monkey - See - Proportion - Assumption - Clue - Lamb - Reconciliation - September - Noise - Collective - Chocolate - Saturday - Find time - I came - I saw - I conquered -

[lonita]

Creative Idea of the Day - December 2024

Every day on my Idealog account on Bluesky, I share a quick creative idea - unlike the more lengthy ones I share here. And because I like to archive things all in one place, here's December 2024's collection.

01 - Make something you love to give away to a stranger.

02 - Create a new hand-lettering style and use it to make a piece of wall art of your favourite quotation or lyric.

03 - Make a list of favourite things you like that no one else seems to.

04 - Use old photographs to create a stop-motion film.

05 - Make a list of boredom busters to bust your boredom with.

06 - Go to the farmer's market and find something new to try.

07 - Make a list of things that are most important to you.

08 - Have a cook-off with family members or friends. Enjoy your resulting potluck!

09 - Read a short story by an author you've never read before.

10 - Explore your local library's resources.

11 - Start a book with a one-word title.

12 - Create a photo essay about something that's important to you.

13 - Cover found objects with paint and use them as stamps.

14 - Make a list of favourite holiday activities.

15 - Create a still life of your favourite snack or drink.

16 - Make a list of favourite life lessons.

17 - Choose pictures and words that inspire you and create a mood board.

18 - Walk with a friend or family member and catch up while strolling.

19 - Create a self-portrait using only the shapes of the letters of your name.

20 - Create an unconventional bouquet using twigs, leaves, and any bits of nature you find. Give it away.

21 - Create a poster for a fictional event.

22 - Make a seasonal wreath using recycled materials, broken items, or found objects.

23 - Create a typography-based piece using quotes or lyrics.

24 - Create something about a place you've never been but want to go.

25 - Collage your cards and holiday wrapping paper.

26 - Using stone, or wood stump with exposed rings, as a printing surface, apply paint/ink, place paper on it, and rub it gently with your hands, back of a spoon, or roller.

27 - Create a hand-stamped or embroidered fabric design.

28 - Doodle a repeating pattern using different textures.

29 - Create a collage that illustrates a dream you had.

30 - Transform old jars into decorative (or functional) vases, pen holders, or something else, by gluing found objects or broken items to the outside.

31 - Make a list of things to start.

[lonita]

If you build it

It seems that no matter how many times I try to impress upon people the idea that building a society that benefits the disabled also benefits those who aren't (yet), people cannot get it out of their heads that anything related to the disabled is a separate issue.

Think about how these things not only benefit the disabled, but could also benefit others now and in the future.

15-minute cities

wide aisles in stores, libraries, and other places

ramping (curb cuts, etc.)

quiet shopping hours in all retail facilities

wider sidewalks that are kept clear of debris and obstructions

bike lanes

lower sinks in washrooms that include water and soap access at the front of the sink where it's actually reachable (which means reachable facilities for small children)

wide-platform escalators

eradication of hostile architecture that is currently used to make sure the poors/homeless don't sit anywhere, but which also means there's nowhere to sit for the disabled and elderly

increased eco-friendly lighting at night time

public transit with wider aisles and more space for mobility aids (which means more space for grocery buggies, baby strollers, etc.)

And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

I'm sure that even as a non-disabled person, you can see how at least some of these things would be useful to you as well even now, nevermind how useful they'll be when you're 80. These are the sorts of things that advocates mean when they talk about building a society with the disabled in mind - things that benefit them will benefit all.

[lonita]

Book recs no

Types of people I don't want to take book recommendations from include:

People who put the toilet paper roll under instead of over.

People that know you drink tea with milk in, but never have even a tiny carton of milk when they invite you over, so you always have to bring your own.

People who put frozen food packages on a random shelf in the grocery that has no abiding relationship with the frozen foods section.

People who don't warn you they put cilantro in it.

People who don't use headphones when they're listening to anything on the bus.

People who use lawnmowers or construction equipment before 9 AM.

People who try to push onto the elevator before they let everyone else off.

People who leave used tissues on the table after they blow their noses.

People who don't push the chairs back in after they're done.

[lonita]

Do you think you can tell

I bet you can't tell me what's wrong with this shirt.

Looks good, right? Looks considerate, communally-minded, inclusive? It isn't.

Those sorts of things - that t-shirt - never mention the disabled, even though disability is part and parcel of so many of the things on it. That's a bigger picture that gets forgotten a lot. So many of you might have just realised you didn't think of it either. That's the needs of about 20% (and growing) of the population (in Canada, at least) that are continuously not merely dismissed, but overlooked as valueless, as unimportant.

People are not wrong when they talk of community building as being vital - but until disability is addressed and included as a matter of course and not just an afterthought, cohesion will not, and cannot, occur. Disabled people, their advocates, and others have spoken about approaching world/community-building with the disabled always in mind, because it makes the world better for all, and for everyone's futures.

Sadly, so many people still seem to think that if they pretend disability doesn't exist, it won't happen to them. But disability is the least discriminatory situation you can ever experience. It doesn't care about gender, economic status, religion, skin colour, sexuality, nor anything else. If it wants you, it'll come for you.

[lonita]

Play With Clay '25

I went to Play With Clay with my aunt and cousin a couple of weeks back. Here is my masterpiece. No, I did not make it, just painted it.

[lonita]

To sleep, perchance to sleep

Having finally tired of my sleep issues - no pun intended - my doctor gave me some samples of these to try out. I do not believe that sleeping pills should have the word DAY in their name.

[lonita]

Evil

Sometimes you look at the pictures coming out of there and you wonder why they're black and white. Then you realise they aren't. It's just rubble. The utter destruction of every piece of life and colour to the point where even colour photographs have none. Sometimes there is a hint of blue sky, or a blood-coloured stain where a human used to be. Sometimes the last pink blush of a little girl's toys. The endless sea of pulverised life obliterated beyond recognition. If you did this, you're evil. If you condone it, you're evil. If you dismiss it, you're evil.