queerinsect

[queerinsect]

I know I haven’t been active in months, but this is my official goodbye. I've been trying to use social media less this year and now I’m ready to cut it completely. I’m leaving but not deactivating, I plan on returning one day, but right now I need a break. So this is goodbye (for now)!

[queerinsect]

"I will love you as a thief loves a gallery and as a crow loves a murder, as a cloud loves bats and as a range loves braes. I will love you as misfortune loves orphans, as fire loves innocence and as justice loves to sit and watch while everything goes wrong." - Lemony Snicket

[queerinsect]

CALL FOR ART BY TRANS+, NON-BINARY, & GENDERQUEER CHRISTIANS

​Are you a trans+ Christian with artwork (of ANY medium!) expressing your journeys in gender and faith? Would you like the opportunity to share your voice and experience with other trans+ Christians who may be struggling at the intersections of their gender and faith identities, especially amidst current transphobic Christian rhetoric? Look no further! Submissions due Friday 8/18 at 12:00 noon EST.

More information below the cutoff and on the project site! :) Please don't hesitate to reach me at soupdempsey25@gmail.com with any further questions!

The Transient Theology Project is an undergraduate research project focused on examining the intersections between Christianity, process philosophy, queer theory, and the lived experiences of trans+ Christians.

Given the ways in which non-cisgender identities and expressions have been understood as not only ‘abnormal’ but supposedly immoral in many Christian spheres, this research aims to offer a constructive theology which suggests that not only is it not immoral to be trans, but that transness is an actualization of what it means to be made in the image of God.

This project is critical and timely, especially due to the current onslaught of anti-trans legislation which directly impacts the quality of life for transgender individuals. This legislation, in tandem with anti-trans rhetoric, is understood to emerge from a particular fundamentalist notion of religious ethics; thus, this project aims to provide inspiration to trans+ Christians who may be struggling with reconciling their faith lives and gender identities within the current socio-political climate.

The main goal behind this project is to provide trans+ Christians with the affirmation that they don't have to choose between their faith and their gender identity. While many trans people have suffered trauma & abuse at the hands of Christian institutions & individuals, some have found that in embracing their gender identity, their relationship with God has been strengthened, and vice-versa. This project is meant to illustrate that those people aren't alone in that experience & that they don't need to pick between themselves and the God they believe in.

In an effort to be made as accessible as possible, rather than be presented in a formal, academic paper, this research will be compiled into a zine — a small-circulation, self-published magazine — that will feature art by transgender Christians and will aim to serve as a guide for those who are trying to navigate the tensions between their Christian faith and their non-cisgender identities and expressions.

Genderqueer Christians are invited to submit their art (of ANY and EVERY medium) to be shared in the zine by this Friday, August 18th at 12:00 noon EST. The link to the submissions form can be found here.

If you're cisgender and/or not Christian, consider spreading the word! Share us with any genderqueer Christian artists you may know, and stick around for more updates & the final zine release by following us on Tumblr, Instagram, and TikTok.

Thank you for your time and consideration!

[queerinsect]

"I will make up for lost time, and love my trans body for the rest of my life."

"My body has been nothing but loyal and true, even when I was treacherous."

"I was not born in the wrong body, your perception of trans bodies is just outdated."

[queerinsect]

"They say curiosity killed the cat. I killed the cat, curiosity only brought her to me." - In Sound Mind

[queerinsect]

Was tagged in this little challenge by @howiesona! Decided to make a separate post instead of reblogging with my answers because the thread was getting so big, and I don't like that..

Relationship Status: in an open relationship t4t4t

Favorite Color: blue, pink, and red

Song Stuck In My Head: blow my brains put by tikkle me

Last Thing I Listened To: the hand that feeds by the crane wives

Last Thing I Googled: scrunch

Favorite Food: if desserts count, then brownies, but I also really love green beans

Anything I Want Right Now: I'm gonna keep this lighthearted and say that I fucking need Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to come out of it's "indefinite hiatus", and give us a season three!

Tagging @amazinglissawho and whoever sees this and wants to do it

[queerinsect]

A general cane guide for writers and artists (from a cane user, writer, and artist!)

Disclaimer: Though I have been using a cane for 6 years, I am not a doctor, nor am I by any means an expert. This guide is true to my experience, but there are as many ways to use a cane as there are cane users!

This guide will not include: White canes for blindness, crutches, walkers, or wheelchairs as I have no personal experience with these.

This is meant to be a general guide to get you started and avoid some common mishaps/misconceptions, but you absolutely should continue to do your own research outside of this guide!

The biggest recurring problem I've seen is using the cane on the wrong side. The cane goes on the opposite side of the pain! If your character has even-sided pain or needs it for balance/weakness, then use the cane in the non-dominant hand to keep the dominant hand free. Some cane users also switch sides to give their arm a rest!

A cane takes about 20% of your weight off the opposite leg. It should fit within your natural gait and become something of an extension of your body. If you need more weight off than 20%, then crutches, a walker, or a wheelchair is needed.

Putting more pressure on the cane, using it on the wrong side, or having it at the wrong height will make it less effective, and can cause long term damage to your body from improper pressure and posture. (Hugh Laurie genuinely hurt his body from years of using a cane wrong on House!)

(an animated GIF of a cane matching the natural walking gait. It turns red when pressure is placed on it.)

When going up and down stairs, there is an ideal standard: You want to use the handrail and the cane at the same time, or prioritize the handrail if it's only on one side. When going up stairs you lead with your good leg and follow with the cane and hurt leg together. When going down stairs you lead with the cane, then the good leg, and THEN the leg that needs help.

Realistically though, many people don't move out of the way for cane users to access the railing, many stairs don't have railings, and many are wet, rusty, or generally not ideal to grip.

In these cases, if you have a friend nearby, holding on to them is a good idea. Or, take it one step at a time carefully if you're alone.

Now we come to a very common mistake I see... Using fashion canes for medical use!

(These are 4 broad shapes, but there is INCREDIBLE variation in cane handles. Research heavily what will be best for your character's specific needs!)

The handle is the contact point for all the weight you're putting on your cane, and that pressure is being put onto your hand, wrist, and shoulder. So the shape is very important for long term use!

Knob handles (and very decorative handles) are not used for medical use for this reason. It adds extra stress to the body and can damage your hand to put constant pressure onto these painful shapes.

The weight of a cane is also incredibly important, as a heavier cane will cause wear on your body much faster. When you're using it all day, it gets heavy fast! If your character struggles with weakness, then they won't want a heavy cane if they can help it!

This is also part of why sword canes aren't usually very viable for medical use (along with them usually being knob handles) is that swords are extra weight!

However, a small knife or perhaps a retractable blade hidden within the base might be viable even for weak characters.

Bases have a lot of variability as well, and the modern standard is generally adjustable bases. Adjustable canes are very handy if your character regularly changes shoe height, for instance (gotta keep the height at your hip!)

Canes help on most terrain with their standard base and structure. But for some terrain, you might want a different base, or to forego the cane entirely! This article covers it pretty well.

Many cane users decorate their canes! Stickers are incredibly common, and painting canes is relatively common as well! You'll also see people replacing the standard wrist strap with a personalized one, or even adding a small charm to the ring the strap connects to. (nothing too large, or it gets annoying as the cane is swinging around everywhere)

(my canes, for reference)

If your character uses a cane full time, then they might also have multiple canes that look different aesthetically to match their outfits!

When it comes to practical things outside of the cane, you reasonably only have one hand available while it's being used. Many people will hook their cane onto their arm or let it dangle on the strap (if they have one) while using their cane arm, but it's often significantly less convenient than 2 hands. But, if you need 2 hands, then it's either setting the cane down or letting it hang!

For this reason, optimizing one handed use is ideal! Keeping bags/items on the side of your free hand helps keep your items accessible.

When sitting, the cane either leans against a wall or table, goes under the chair, or hooks onto the back of the chair. (It often falls when hanging off of a chair, in my experience)

When getting up, the user will either use their cane to help them balance/support as they stand, or get up and then grab their cane. This depends on what it's being used for (balance vs pain when walking, for instance!)

That's everything I can think of for now. Thank you for reading my long-but-absolutely-not-comprehensive list of things to keep in mind when writing or drawing a cane user!

Happy disability pride month! Go forth and make more characters use canes!!!

[queerinsect]

"Be ugly, be cringe."

"Make bad art."

"Fuck marketability."

[queerinsect]

“But I didn’t consent to see kink” yes you did by coming to pride,

a place you know and have repeatedly said you know kink is at, a place built by kinky people, the mother of pride Brenda Howard was a queer kinky polyamorous sex positive anti war bisexual Jew and to try and remove its history or sanitise it is is spitting on her grave, you are consenting by choosing to go there

[queerinsect]

"Your 'allyship' is performative at best, and exploitative at worst."

"'Love is love' but Harry Potter is more important than trans lives."

"'Love is love' but neo-pronouns are too hard to understand."

"'Love is love' but they/them pronouns aren't proper grammar."

[queerinsect]

"I have kissed thy mouth. There was a bitter taste on thy lips. Was it the taste of blood?... But perchance it is the taste of love... They say that love hath a bitter taste." - Salome by Oscar Wilde

[queerinsect]

Would you mind if I made a patch for my jacket based on one of your pieces? Personal use only, of course. (Specifically "Licking boots will only lead to a bloody mouth and busted teeth.")

Also, do you have a shop?

Oh hell yeah go for it, I'd love to see it when it's done! I have a Redbubble shop but that's it, it's QueerInsect if the link doesn't work. I hope to have a personal shop one day with way cooler and better quality stuff, but it's gonna be a long while before that happens

[queerinsect]

"Doctor I can't tell if I'm not me." - The Mind Electric by Miracle Musical

[queerinsect]

"Art block is destroying me."

"I want to feel like an artist, but I feel like a content creator."

"I have nothing left to say, but I've barely said anything at all."

"I want to delete everything, I want to start over, but it won't fix anything."

[queerinsect]

i hope you start posting again - i really love your art!

I don’t really know what to say honestly, except thank you! To be honest I’ve had some serious art block as of late and haven’t had much motivation. I created a series of edits last night and will be posting them here soon, although they probably aren’t want you’re wanting, it’s just a mini-vent about art block and I reused old edits for it. Sorry to disappoint but I really do appreciate the ask!

[queerinsect]

Kind of a meet the artist sort of thing, but really it just exists because I like to keep track of my interests throughout time. Click here for last years meet the artist thing.

QueerInsect 2023: Wren, He/It, 3/17/2001, T4T Traggot, Queer Artist.

Favorite Movies: Coraline, The Thing, Lord Of The Rings, The Old Guard, X-Men, and Killer Klowns From Outer Space.

Favorite Shows: Leverage, Don't Hug Me I'm Scared, The Toys That Made Us, The Marvelous Misadventures Of Flapjack, Good Omens, and Rise Of The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Favorite Books: I'm Glad My Mom Died, Good Omens, Alice's Adventures In Wonderland, Tomie, Wolverine, and Hawkeye.

Favorite Music: The Amazing Devil, Florence + The Machine, The Backseat Lovers, Rainbow Kitten Surprise, The Crane Wives, and K. Flay.

Favorite Video Games: Hollow Knight, Little Nightmares, Corpse Party, Resident Evil 4, Resident Evil 2, and The Cat Lady.

Favorite YouTube Channels: Izzzyzzz, Scott The Woz, Drew Gooden, Paper Will, Jacob Geller, and Dankpods.

2022 Art: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, and December.

[queerinsect]

[Image ID: a black and white typography edit that reads "have you transsexualized yourself today? there's still time!". in the middle are two vials and two boxes. one reads "testosterone cypionate injection" and the other reads "estradiol cypionate injection". the image is textured to look aged and photocopied. /End ID]

click for quality + do not remove caption (color alts on instagram) (my shop)