#dang pandemic :(((

[yeoldenews]

"An honest-to-goodness dollbaby."

(source: The Miami Daily Record-Herald, December 20, 1918.)

[flyingcatstiel]

live reaction reading this post

People who try to analyze what happened on Tumblr on November 5th, 2020, often really overstate how much it was actually “about” Supernatural. As someone who has never been in the supernatural fandom ever but dID join in on the hysterical destielposting—it was really more about the stress of the pandemic and the 2020 presidential election.

The two biggest Youtubers I’ve seen try to dissect “what happened that November 5th” in video essays both weren’t American—- and I think that explains why they both tried to explain the hysteria primarily via analyzing the Supernatural fandom/the original show, rather than through the lens of the election. And while those videos are cool, valid, informational, and make lots of really well-considered interesting points— I can tell you that me and almost all my mutuals had literally no knowledge or interest in the fact that “oh supernatural had made nods at the ship in the past but the creators were adamant that I wouldn’t be canon” or etc etc etc etc. the first time I learned about any of that context was way later, watching videos where people claimed that fandom history context (that I did not know anything about) was the actual reason for the hysteria.

But the reality is that people latched on to the Destiel stuff because it was a piece of big useless inane zero-stakes fandom news in a time when we were desperately waiting for serious high stakes election news. We were latching onto a “positive “ piece of inane stupid fandom news in a time of great stress, with all the desperation of a drowning man who latches onto whatever piece of wood will keep him afloat.

The core of the hysteria was that Americans (who make up a huge chunk of tumblr’s userbase) were currently glued to their laptops watching the live presidential election vote counts come in. These vote counts were taking an extended amount of time due to the pandemic causing high numbers of mail-in ballots, resulting in a constant state of Election Day Stress for multiple days straight.

This was also during the height of the Pandemic. People had predicted Trump’s presidency would be bad; no one had predicted it would be this apocalyptically bad. No one had predicted pandemics and lockdowns and hospitals overflowing with bodybags. remember Trump spreading Covid lies and conspiracies?? There were so many Qanon conspiracies about democrats being Satanic child traffickers who had to be put to death, and coup threats were mounting from the right wing side. It seemed like this election was a choice between ‘centrist democrat’ and “apocalyptic right wing conspiracy theory authoritarianism,” in the midst of pandemic conditions that people feared would never ever improve— and it seemed like a close election.

Another major point was that Trump voters were more likely to be antimaskers/Covid deniers, while Biden voters were more likely to take the pandemic seriously— so Biden voters were more likely to send in mail-in ballots instead of risking the in-person voting crowds, which meant their ballots would take much longer to count. And so, in many state electoral vote counts, it would initially seem like Trump was very far in the lead— only for Biden to slooooowly build up an agonizingly small lead as the mail in ballots came in, and then defeat Trump at the very end.

So you’re just watching these news sites giving live election updates, refreshing the page every 2 minutes to see if you’re going to live under a spineless centrist democrat or a literal Qanon Dictatorship. And then you go on tumblr to distract yourself, and there’s more election posting, and more agonizing over the votes, and more stress and despair—-

And then it’s been days and we’re right at the crucial tipping point where it’s anyone’s game and the next few hours will determine whether Trump will win, so you need to keep your eye on the vote count, because the next hours will determine the future of the pandemic and your country and your plans for your entire life—

And then stupid Destiel becomes canon! And it becomes canon in the silliest way possible!

If Destiel had become canon at any other time, it would have been a big goofy tumblr celebration? But we wouldn’t have gotten the insane explosion of hysterical interaction.

The entire core of it was the contrast between the inane meaningless stupidity of fandom news vs the actual stressful election news you wanted to hear! It really is best conveyed in that meme where Castiel says “I love you” and Dean indifferently responds with a piece of important election news.

It’s about the contrast between the low-stakes inanity of fandom and the massive life-destroying stakes of a terrifying election. There really was no reason it had be Supernatural specifically, except that Supernatural was a thing everyone knew basic things about from dashboard osmosis— it could’ve been any other equally huge silly fandom ship news about a ship everyone *knew of* but might not necessarily be invested in (ex. Stucky becoming canon, Johnlock becoming canon, Kirk/Spock becoming more canon somehow, etc etc etc.)

I think it’s true that people who weren’t paying agonizingly close attention to the American election news got swept up in it, and that non American Supernatural fans also were extremely excited for purely fandom reasons — but the entire reason it blew up to an unprecedented degree was because of that core of stressed out terrified Americans glued to their computers watching election results and suddenly receiving stupid fandom news instead, and deciding to just hysterically parodically hyper-celebrate this absurd useless zero-stakes news.

I think it was also all elevated by the fact that, as I said before, this happened at the crucial “tipping point” of the election where the next few hours would determine the winner. The fact that Biden began to slowly develop a lead in the hours after made it feel, hysterically, as if the hours after Destiel became canon was somehow the turning point where he began to win; so celebrating Destiel felt like celebrating that slow turn towards victory.

The tl,dr is that it’s so important to Remember the Fifth of November …..in preparation the inevitable hysteria that will happen in the presidential election on November 5th of next year. XD. Personally I’m rooting for Johnlock or Frodo/Sam to somehow become canon in the eleventh hour right before the democrats win

[macgyvermedical]

As a trans guy I'm really worried about maintaining access to T. I live in a safe state but I know how quickly things can change in a matter of months to years, so.. I'm worried. That being said, what do you know of DIY HRT? I know that cis guys sometimes use T and I doubt they always go through their doctor, so I'm curious how that works.

I don't want to have to do this, but I figured I should at least know the gist of it should I ever need to or if someone I know is in the same situation.

P.S thank you for being here for everyone who has questions. It means a lot 🩵

As a fellow trans guy, I feel you. Note that while the following looks like advice, it is for educational purposes only, and you are using this information at your own risk.

The following is listed from least to most illegal:

Probably your absolute best bet (especially if you pass) is to get a doctor that can prescribe T for male hypogonadism (low T). Now, this is probably not going to be an in-person doctor for two reasons. One is that they will probably do a testicular exam, which will give things away. Second, most electronic medical records link up these days, so any doctor treating you will be able to pull your medical records and find out you're trans.

One possible way around this is telehealth, which has boomed since the pandemic. Try googling "male hypogonadism telehealth" to check around for options. This will probably need to be paid out of pocket under a fake name if you want to ensure your account isn't linked. Make sure you know the symptoms of male hypogonadism, or come up with a story about how you're already diagnosed because you had mumps as a kid or something. Note that if they ask for a blood test, which they probably will, and you're not already out of T, skip your dose and take the test a few days later, so you test low. The nice thing about this is it gets you a diagnosis that can only be gotten if you're AMAB, so it lends credibility to your situation.

The next option is to stockpile some T while you still have access to it. Because T is controlled, the most T you can have in your possession is a 6-month prescription (otherwise you risk a 4th degree felony). However, if the prescription is written for 1-ml vials and your dose is 0.5ml/week and the prescription says to "discard vial after 1 dose" you can technically have up to a year (because in theory, you're throwing away 0.5ml of T each time you inject- but you could also, in theory, keep it and use it as long as you were careful to clean the top with alcohol before you puncture it). Keep in mind that even if you happen to get more T than a year's worth, it's only good for about 3 years before it starts losing potency or may become contaminated.

The (far) next option is to find someone in the bodybuilding community and start asking around. Making it clear that you know how to do injections will get you to people who have T that they don't want to self-inject but may trade you (or at least sell to you) for doing their injections. This is your best bet for finding illegal T. Note that T is a (pretty dang) controlled substance. You and everyone involved in getting T to you is at significant legal risk (that 4th degree felony again).

Unfortunately even looking in the dark recesses of reddit I was not able to find a safe "recipe" for testosterone. Most of what is suggested is to buy T powder from overseas and compound it yourself into a cream. This is very very illegal and could be very dangerous if you don't do it correctly. I'm not going to talk about it here because I don't understand it enough. Also it's really freaking illegal.

Note: If you haven't yet had a hysterectomy, I suggest you do everything in your power to keep a functioning ovary. That way if you do lose access to T, you won't lose bone density. If you have already gotten your ovaries removed, talk to a doctor about low-dose hormones to maintain bone density.

[counterintuitivecomics]

Some colorized bits from my recent free printable zine WHY WE MASK: It's Not "Just A Cold"! I purposefully made the whole thing b&w to make printing as cheap as possible, but it's fun to add color especially to the snot-splosions.

HEY COMICS FRIENDS going to SPX or other cons this weekend - MASK UP, EAT OUTDOORS, and REST if you start feeling run down. COVID-19 levels are BAD bad right now (it's currently the worst September out of the whole pandemic) and the government does not have our backs. This virus causes YEARS worth of horrible vascular, neurological, and immune system damage, and each infection raises your chances of gaining fun new disabilities that could prevent you ever making comics again.

I strongly advice cancelling festivals, cons, indoor dining, anything involving crowds indoors OR outdoors, etc. But I know people depend on income from cons, so: PACK MASKS, NASAL SPRAY, and CPC MOUTHWASH and actually use them! If you develop any COVID-19 symptoms (headaches, dizziness, nausea, stomach pain, diarrhea, sore throat, sore joints, etc) don't assume it's "just a cold". Stay in your dang hotel room and REST! You can TRY to "push through" to keep tabling but you are NOT gonna like the long-term results (aka Long COVID).

I care about all you comics people and I want you to enjoy many more decades of making and sharing and reading comics with each other. If you're feeling sick at a show this weekend and don't know what to do, drop me a line! No judgements. Take care of yourself and each other out there and remember, no one can rest your body for you but you.

(Image Descriptions are in the Alt Text. Also please feel free to print my zine and hand it out if you do go)co

[windvexer]

Do you know any simple purification anti negative repellants to place periodically around the home? When I was a teenager, for example, I used to visit my friend's grandma's house in Florida and I saw that she had small bowls of salt in each of the rooms and my friend at the time had told me it was to ward off negativity and bad spirits. Have you heard of any of that yourself and while using salt?

Thank you!

Yes, these kinds of "ambient" spells (thanks again to @aesethewitch for the term) are common. Exactly what is prescribed is very cultural and really depends on your beliefs.

It is my belief that most anything you place out, including something as mundane as a dish of salt, should be worked over in some manner. Reading Psalms, prayers, enchantments, or energy work are examples of how to "activate" these charms.

Salt in dishes is a fine way to get it done. An onion, quartered and placed in the corners of the room, is also said to be purifying. (During the pandemic lockdown era, my coworkers apparently thought quartered onions in a room was a scientifically proven way to purify the air and limit infection... I imagine they also would have thought highly of four thieves vinegar).

A white candle burned by the front door can cleanse energies that come into the house. Or, a living rosemary bush (or I imagine, any plant able to protect and cleanse) by the entryway can be assigned to purify energies going into the house.

A wide variety of constructed talismans and charms can also serve this purpose, and they can be very simple. Especially look into religious or spiritual symbols. A solar cross, pentacle, Jesus t, crucifix, triskelion, etc, can all be used to protect a space from unwanted energies.

Purifying powers can be combined with normal cleaning routines for an especially potent outcome.

Although protecting from unwanted energies isn't the same as purification, I find it's pretty danged helpful.

Other folk charms, like horseshoes and brooms hung over doorways, are said to limit intrusion.

For animists or monster lovers, figures of protective animals or monsters (including beings of myth, such as Medusa) can be placed near entryways and asked to guard against unwanted energies.

[theemperorsnewfanblog]

I still can't believe during the pandemic Disney was trying to do another project with Kuzco, possibly another movie. 

TENS Kuzco's voice actor said that he was informed by Disney that he would not be voicing Kuzco for a project and then later Disney ended up asking Guaka's VA to voice Kuzco. But then they never heard back. 

What were they planning?? It drives me crazy that we could have gotten another franchise installment. But that dang pandemic probably ruined the process and they gave up.😭😭💔

[tragicallyuncreative]

Excerpt From WIP

I know I'm new to Tumblr and ao3 and hardly anyone's reading this, but I'm having so much fun with this little one shot WIP that I had to post a snippet for my own entertainment. Chapter 2 of Before The Fall dropping tomorrow!

A Hectic Morning

Darrel

“Dallas, get down and stay down. Sodapop, you n’ Steve try to jumpstart the Ford. Two-Bit, grab Johnny an ice pack. And Ponyboy, for God’s sake, get off the couch; go to bed and stop spreadin’ your germs ‘round the whole dang house, we don’t need a pandemic on our hands.”

“Paramedic?” said Two-Bit, confused. “I don’t reckon you need one, he’s got the stomach flu. There’s probably one in the ambulance if ya need him though, but you better hurry, they ‘bout to leave.” He craned his neck to look outside, where they were finally loading Mr. Johnson onto the stretcher. “Jesus Christmas, that ol’ geyser’s not lookin’ so hot, ain’t he?.”

“It’s pandemic, you moron!” Dally yelled, voice muffled from behind the door.

[steph-anie723]

I keep on asking you on info abt horror films knowing DANG well I'm scared of them

OH WELL

I'm interested in watching the movie Pearl. could you tell me more abt it, the plot, trigger warnings etc etc

I LOVE PEARL,,.,,,,,

so it’s about a young woman from the 1918s who lives on a farm during the height of the influenza pandemic. she dreams about Hollywood stardom and dancing on the big screens “like the pretty girls in the pictures”

however it is difficult for her to achieve this, as she has responsibilities on the farm. she has high expectations set by her strict mother, she has to take care of her paralyzed father, and her husband is fighting in World War I

she has violent ourbursts, which do lead to a few people getting killed— one person lights on fire, people get stabbed and slashed, and she gets a bit freaky and rides a scarecrow

it’s every emotionally driven (like hereditary) and yes there’s mommy issues in this film too 😢

I love love love this film and I would highly suggest it ^_^ you can watch it on Netflix!! however they’re removing it February 15th so heads up for that 💔💔

[jmdbjk]

Are they or aren't they?

I know I'm not the most jikook-centric blog around here and I don't go on and on about them every time content drops. (Or do I? 🤔)

I am not here to convince anyone of anything. I just say what I think about what I see and that's pretty much all there is to it.

I guess I take it for granted that most see what I see and it’s not necessary for me to point out the obvious all the time.

But for some reason today, I started thinking about Jimin and Jungkook and what they are to each other and how that has manifested itself to us this past year. Even though we see very little of it all, speaking for myself, I still see what I see and its all fine.

A super-long ramble:

The past year's solo era has definitely been an eye-opener for me as far as learning more about ALL the member's individual personalities, of how they work and how they view each other.

As far as Jimin and Jungkook, as time goes on, I don't sense anything that makes me feel whatever they are to each other has diminished at all. If anything, I feel like it is even more intense.

It is not so much what I see between Jimin and Jungkook because dang, there has not been very much to see with them in the same room has there?

But if we aren't seeing them together, I just sound delulu right? I just said I say what think from what I SEE... how can I see anything, you ask?... well...

Hear me out...

I see Jungkook figuring out this new phase himself... he has said in the past he still had some maturing left to do. I think he has shown us plenty of his true self and maturity this past year.

We know all this because he's shared a lot with us via his lives. He's been living his introverted life his way until its his time to get to work.

He likes to cook. He likes to watch TV. He loves to sing. He's keeping up with his boxing training. He has a goofy sense of humor. He's trying to be a normal person and go out in the world and eat at restaurants and attend concerts and hang out with friends. We've seen him being his "rebellious" 25 year old self. We know he has serious stalkers and he is very direct about it. He shows no fear to us.

We know he's most comfortable when he knows we are there with him. Unfortunately we've also seen him suffer through loss and we've seen him working through some feelings that have made him emotional. We've seen quite a bit from JK.

He has spoken to us about serious things and not so serious things. He is very good at phrasing things and expressing things clearly.

Jungkook is figuring it all out.

Kookie has spent a lot of time showing us himself and where he lives. He has had a lot of time to do so.

I see Jimin, on the other hand, has returned to being somewhat more like the Jimin we knew before the pandemic. The perfectionist workaholic. Also a new (to me) layer of sweetness and gratitude that exudes from him no matter where he is, interacting with fans at a radio station, in the audience of a performance, interacting with others in general and during his lives or just walking through the airport, Jimin is thankful for it all. This extra-strength gratitude manifests itself in the way he takes his time to thank just about EVERYONE and how he always seems genuinely surprised to see the outpouring of love.

Earlier last year it was obvious to me (me who pays very close attention to Jimin) that he was not himself. During photoshoots and promotion recordings he was not engaged. His mind was elsewhere. They all looked less than thrilled don't you think?

But since about last October, Jimin has been the happiest I've seen him in AGES during his lives. His music is making him happy. Working is making him happy. He says it at least once during every live: "I am happy."

And the sassy has returned. Jimin is SO HAPPY that we are seeing the re-emergence of a more assertive Jimin during a live broadcast! We haven't really seen this Jimin since... a long time.

This most recent live, I see a Jimin who is doing well and taking control of his life again. A Jimin who knows what is coming and is going to meet it head on.

From what I've seen, I can say that Jimin and Jungkook's time together was most probably curtailed this past year. I think a lot of people agree with that assessment. We infer this because Jimin was working his ass off and therefore he was elsewhere busy with schedules. I think the bulk of this was for his Face album but he was also busy with his new brand ambassador responsibilities. Side note: I saw that Robert Pattinson was getting $12 million dollars for his deal with Dior so I think its safe to say Jimin is getting at least that if not more for his deal. And he also has the Tiffany deal... Jimin is doing very well...

So where does this leave any sort of relationship (whatever it may be) between Jimin and Jungkook? How can they be "together" if that is what they are? Or how can they even be "close"?

JK has made it clear and obvious that he is very thrilled to see Jimin commenting during his lives. We've all seen it. He spontaneously combusts when he would see Jimin commenting.

[When someone commented that Jimin did not come live to tell us the Rainy Day Fight story so Kookie proceeded to spill the tea.]

My opinion from what I see: I think JK started looking for Jimin in the comments after a few times of having him show up there. I think he craved the interaction with Jimin. The knowing that Jimin was aware of him and took the time to acknowledge means something to JK.

And finally it clicked and Kookie realized "wow, turn on notifs and I too can know when JM goes live!" And so he did when Jimin was in the car and JK proceeded to have a full blown conversation while Jimin was on his way home from work.

When Jimin's album release date got closer Jungkook was giving us spoilers of some of Jimin's work via some of the songs on the playlist while doing a live broadcast. We weren't aware those were spoilers until Jimin's album and other songs came out: Muni Long, JVKE, the butterfly hair twisty thingy, playing Letter on the guitar... and then just outright telling us something amazing was coming out at midnight when Set Me Free Pt. 2 dropped.

... something amazing... I'm pretty sure JK knew how much work Jimin put into this first album and what it meant to Jimin to purge some emotional demons that had been plaguing him for some time. I would even say that JK was proud of Jimin and therefore, made sure to hype it up even though we saw that JK had some sort of emotional moment by himself on White Day back in March.

The lives progressed into Jungkook just outright spending either the entire live or big chunks of time totally ignoring Armys and focused solely on Jimin content.

He turns on a live because there is some sort of comfort to him knowing Army is present and then he turns his attention to Jimin...

He does all of that on purpose. Without just saying the words: "I adore Jimin and support him wholeheartedly" he has proven that he feels that way with his actions. He figured out a way to express this even when Jimin was who knows where.

If he didn't want us to think that, he wouldn't have done what he did, would he? Why would he spend so much time focused on Jimin?

We know JK's stopped having a presence on social media except for Weverse. And using just Weverse Live, he's been able to accomplish more visible support for Jimin than any other member has shown for any other member during this solo era.

And if he's doing all of this on Weverse, what else is he doing behind the scenes, in person, with Jimin?

We know they spent time recording Run BTS episodes last year.

We know of at least one instance of JK visiting Jimin while he was working hard.

Having Jungkook's support is probably one of the best feelings for Jimin.

"But Jimin asked JK to visit again and JK said 'no'." And yet JK contradicted himself telling Jimin he'd come to a music show recording but Jimin said it was too late, and that it was ok because JK had already visited him during this dance practice above.

"Jimin said that JK has not cooked ramyeon for him yet." Jimin also said it is off limits, he's eating a high protein diet. JK has also mentioned in the last year that he should be eating less gluten so sounds like they both avoid the type of noodles that are high in carbs and gluten. FYI: "ramen" is technically the Japanese style noodles with a milder flavor and "ramyeon" is the Korean version which is spicier. I have a habit of calling it "ramen" when I mean "ramyeon".

"Jimin doesn't hug JK like he does Hobi." Uh... yeah he does:

And then we have started seeing this pattern... coincidence? Not anymore... of Jungkook coming on live right after Jimin has left the country. And then we get the same thing from Jimin the other day after Jungkook leaves.

My opinion from what I've seen:

These two are very close and have worked out how they deal with separation. They spend time together when they can. When they can't they share things like everyone else does, by texting and phone calling and face timing and all that.

From what I've seen them say during their own lives, I think they spend time together talking about work. I especially think JK has participated in helping Jimin rehearse, practice and just generally hanging out. I think they spend time eating together and watching tv or youtube together.

I think they are fine and are navigating their relationship (whatever it is) very well, regardless of their careers and impending military service, existing as global superstars as well as being normal day-to-day Jeon Jungkook and Park Jimin. They are making it work because they've been doing this for at least ten years already.

So, long ramble to say, I will continue to not state the obvious every time we see something, because to me, its obvious everything is going well for them.

[skuttlesstrawberry]

NSBU Adventuring Party thoughts:

STRONG pandemic Zoom AP energy happening! See: the extended discussion of Cold Stone Creamery.

Jacob Wysocki is again a delight! So grateful and also so grounded. I can’t wait to see more of what he does this season; I think he’s going to be a key part of keeping things vaguely on the rails, which is going to have INSANE consequences in play since Dang is already so out of this world…!

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved on our archive

By Sabra Gibbens, MD

It wasn’t always lonely out here. I have been the only permanent doctor in my little country clinic north of Kingston for eight years now, and I previously felt tremendous camaraderie and connection with my hospital-based specialist colleagues and other family physicians in the area. But in the past two years, I have begun to feel alone.

My diagnosis of long COVID came in 2022, after months of investigations. The results of the bloodwork, pulmonary function tests, sleep study, head CT, Holter, and exercise stress tests all came back normal. When I met with a cardiologist to review my symptoms and the abnormal echocardiogram, she confirmed that the persistent shortness of breath, postexertion malaise, insomnia, headaches, and brain fog were caused by long COVID. She never attributed them to anxiety. I was grateful for the validation.

Thankfully, my symptoms have largely improved over the past two years, but because of this experience, I take prevention seriously. I am the weirdo who still requires masks or respirators for all staff and patients in the clinic. I am the outlier who has HEPA filters in the waiting room and exam rooms, who monitors CO2 with my air quality monitor, who cracks the windows, and who asks patients with respiratory symptoms to do rapid SARS-CoV-2 tests at home before they come in.

The primary focus of public health throughout the pandemic has been to prevent severe acute disease and to preserve hospital capacity. Prevention of long COVID, or post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC), has always seemed like an afterthought, if it gets mentioned at all.

Why do emergency department reports and hospital discharge summaries not mention that my patient tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 (or had “a really bad cold” or “the worst flu ever”) 1 month before they presented to hospital with weakness, falls, confusion, dyspnea, heart failure, acute kidney injury, or non–ST-elevation myocardial infarction? Doesn’t that seem relevant? It does to me.

With the blessing of provincial medical officers of health and regional public health units, most institutions and the general public have adopted the “vax and relax” strategy, When it comes to COVID-19, most public health officials seem more concerned with meeting people where they are and with keeping people calm than with informing and guiding people about risks to their health. I wish I didn’t, but I now have doubts about the willingness of these officials to inform and guide physicians and the public about the next epidemic or pandemic.

The department of family medicine where I trained, as well as most family medicine clinics in my area, made masking and other precautions optional long ago. How quickly optional became rare, then peculiar.

In February 2023, I attended a recruiting event with dozens of local family physicians and residents. Rates of SARS-CoV-2 infections and wastewater levels were very high in our region at that time, so I wore a KN95 respirator. I did not expect to be the only one, but I was. Dang. Awkward.

Social media constantly reminds me that most of the medical community has moved on. It’s a steady stream of pictures of parties and crowded conferences and medical school classes with no one masking. My feed is occasionally interrupted by posts from similarly COVID-conscious physicians who are trying their best not to get COVID-19 or transmit it to patients under their care. Scattered across the Twitterverse, each one of us is a little island of perseverance.

I stopped attending in-person medical events because it is psychologically too difficult. I expect to be the only one masking in the movie theatre or grocery store, but among physician peers? Did they not get the memo? Did I not get the memo?

It wasn’t just one memo; 24 000 papers on the sequalae of COVID-19 have been published since the pandemic started.1 The British Medical Journal published an update on long COVID for primary care in September 2022, and guidance includes a time- and resource-intensive protocol for bloodwork, stress tests, pulmonary function tests, CT scans, and specialist consultations.2 Ontario Health published summary guidance for primary care regarding PASC in December 2022, but it has not been updated.3 The absence of any newer guidance suggests that interest in or funding for this topic has dwindled.

Anyway, I’m headed to a conference in a sunny place next week. It’s mostly an excuse to get away with my family while I brush up on some topics of interest. Of course, I am packing respirators, a CO2 monitor, and a portable HEPA filter. Weirdo? Outlier? Yep. Don’t care. Maybe I feel comfortable doing that for this conference because I’m unlikely to have any ongoing relationship with the other conference attendees. I care more about preserving my health so that I can continue practising medicine, taking care of my community, and enjoying my family than what others might think of me.

I do miss the camaraderie. What would it take to get that back? I had been hoping that the whole medical community would come together to advocate for clean-air standards, masking to protect against airborne pathogens, better vaccines, diagnostics, and therapeutics for PASC. I now realize this is unlikely to happen. I cannot wait for the world to change. I’ve got to find something in me, a mindset that will enable the reconnection, the old sense of belonging and shared purpose. I’m looking. I’ll keep looking.

References ↵Al-Aly Z. Long COVID puzzle pieces are falling into place — the picture is unsettling. The Conversation 2024 July 18. Available: theconversation.com/long-covid-puzzle-pieces-are-falling-into-place-the-picture-is-unsettling-233759 (accessed 2024 July 25).

↵Greenhalgh T, Sivan M, Delaney B, et al. Long covid: an update for primary care. BMJ 2022;378:e072117. doi:10.1136/bmj-2022-072117.

↵Post-COVID-19 condition: guidance for primary care. Toronto: Ontario Health; 2022. Available: www.ontariohealth.ca/sites/ontariohealth/files/2021-12/PostCovidConditionsClinicalGuidance_EN.pdf (accessed 2024 Aug. 5).

[seasurfacefullofclouds1]

Lol at movie director fucked 🤣 anyone who calls that a publicity stunt is a moron - HS is piece of work (and that's being polite) and nothing could've shown his truer colours than how he treated Olivia.

The only person I felt bad was for Jason Sudekis - poor Ted.

I think maybe a few months before Jeff’s wedding (Olivia and Harry debut), I had watched a video of Jason, Olivia, and their kids in bed, laughing, playing, and talking about the pandemic and their creative projects.

Nothing is forever but dang, that picture of a happy family sure was short-lived. I only feel sorry for the kids.

(Incidentally, if anyone watched Ted Lasso S2, the shade was hilarious. That kind of shade comes from personal hurt, not a corporate contract lmao.)

Harry was so smug the entire time (he even pretended to care about feminism) until the DWD reviews came out. It wasn’t even the professional critics but the movie-watching public who destroyed him. Every scene he was in, the internal cringe of the fellow actors was as palpable as a set prop. I hadn’t noticed how terrible Harry’s acting was in Dunkirk, but DWD was too much.

At the time, I remember reading about roles for Harry in Marvel (a three-movie contract?), Nosferatu, Elvis biopic, Wicked. Chloe Zhao (Eternals) kissed his ass and wore his TPWK merch. I remember Olivia Wilde getting ready to direct a female Spider-Man flick and some other things. Sure is quiet now.

I’m really old, so I remember Madonna getting lambasted for Dick Tracy and finally semi-redeeming her acting in Evita. She wanted to be a movie star so much. Warren Beaty, who was smitten, wanted it too; he was hoping to be with Madonna the Actress. But talent is not always symmetrical; Madonna will always be known more for sugary pop and scandal. That’s how I see Harry— rich, famous, universally recognized. But still frustrated. Music videos, alas, are not movies. Posing isn’t acting.

Harry will be fine. Hollywood doesn’t seem to have forgiven Olivia.

[skyloftian-nutcase]

Have you heard of the 2020 effect? It’s actually really interesting, essentially our perception of time was really messed up by Covid and quarantine and hadn’t recovered, and from I’ve heard, probably never will.

It’s why 2015 feels like 5 years ago, not 9

I can believe it. 2020 was a wild year. 2019 was worse for me, but dang that pandemic sure was something. It didn’t get truly awful in my area until 2021, though.

Though I did find that 2023 was so bad that I wished I was back in 2020, so that was entertaining 🤣

[hoursofreading]

This is where I take offense to JD Vance and “Hillbilly Elegy.” Those are my people. I come from a town of 400 — 24 kids in a class, 12 cousins, farming, those types of things. And I know they’re not weird. I know they’re not Donald Trump. The thing is, we have to get them away from what he’s trying to sell because that’s not who they are. Just picture in your mind Donald Trump coming home after a day of work and picking up a Frisbee and throwing it. And his dog catches it, and the dog runs over, and he gives him a good belly rub because he’s a good boy. That’s what I do. And that’s what those rallygoers do. That is exactly who they are, and they’re going through the same things all of our families are. He’s captured some of this. And fear is scary. I mean, the world is changing. We’re seeing, you know, conflict in the Middle East. We saw a global pandemic, which he did nothing to fix but seized upon. And I think it’s kind of breaking that spell again of saying, “Look, he’s not offering you anything.” And then we dang sure better be ready to offer something.

Opinion | Is Tim Walz the Midwestern Dad Democrats Need? - The New York Times

[innka]

my children i am not dead

I did get doxxed tho LMAO, so I will delete this tumblr and make a new one to start over. Will not be as active as before though, as I am limiting my social media use.

Unfortunately, the pandemic fucked me up worse than I thought and I went through shit this 2022, trying to re-adjust and do well in school and life in general. I'm doing better now though, and I'm finally getting the hang of my studies and have room for my other interests.

A hugehugeHUGE thanks to all those who've been trying to reach out to me! I appreciate it so much and I'm so sorry I haven't been around. Life and school and scholarships and work just caught up to me.

Also dang I did not expect college to be THIS hard.

I guess this is because I graduated high school top of my class with minimal effort. And now I am barely keeping that spot with HOURS of studying every day. It's truly a miracle I haven't failed a class or gone insane yet. I did, however, go through a hoe-phase-alcoholic-hot-mess era, which I now have under control.

Me: 1 Teenage Pregnancy: 0

Good news is, I started writing again at the start of 2023, attending workshops and everything. Now my old writing makes me wanna 🤮 and I will most likely work on my style, plus I have access to a good library and more books to read and emulate. I am taking things slow, so no promised schedule of updates for now.

My current agenda is:

Rewriting TMD. The plot for this fic was actually finished and mapped out before I started posting, so, little will change except for minor plot adjustments and generally just a more organized output.

Working on my Actual Serious Writing, which I will not share here but is relevant because I will focus on it more than my fanfiction.

Writing stupid lil fics to get the stupid out of my writing pipes. Idk when I'll be posting but i'm🥺working🥺on🥺it🥺please🥺be🥺patient🥺

Thanks everyone! Will share my new tumblr account on my AO3 before I delete this one.

[murfpersonalblog]

IWTV S2 Ep8 Musings - Loustat (SPOILERS) Pt2: Reunion

You don't know the HALF of what Lestat feels for Louis, to let YOUR grimy arse steal his man, just for LOUIS's happiness. ANYTHING for Louis.

Am I the only one who felt left hanging? We BEEN knew it didn't make sense, but what's your POINT, exactly? If Louis misremembered Lestat whispering, it's just par for the course about the odyssey of recollection. But if Lestat DID do telepathy, is that evidence of...what? That the vampire bond works differently than what's been explained? That he COULD read Lou's mind? AMC, this is AGGRAVATING.

Your goose is COOKED, my guy.

The copium & denial pack Louis was smoking as he laughed was 🤌

That's right, start sweating!

Master manipulation; cuz he certainly would NOT have, as we soon find out. ANYTHING for Louis. (Dang, Imma have to take back some of what I said about Lestat's character development not having started yet.)

I was shocked. I was NOT expecting this plot twist. I was ready to throw Lestat out with the rest of the TRASH, in the DUMP. Well dang. Guess I'll only leave him rotting in a TINY landfill.

I nearly SCREAMED--@nashvillethotchicken and I were talking about Loustat as Bobby and Whitney ages ago! I cannot BELIEVE AMC threw in a New Edition reference in the year of our lord 2024; y'all are diabolical AF, Rolin, STOP IT.

I wonder if AMC used Hurricane Odette cuz the OG script was set in pandemic!2020, so it would make sense that a year later Louis would head back to NOLA during 2021 when Hurricane Odette last hit.

That looks like NOLA's Pontchartrain Hotel--lemme find out he bumped into the Mayfairs when Rowan & them were in town, LOL.

Lestat got more aliases than the KGB; meanwhile Louis just sprinkles his long AF unique AF name all over the place. 🤦 But I guess it's ok, since the tour guide never mentioned him & Claudia by name. (Not Tom Anderson in another finale, LOL.) Louis so offended the tour guide said he ran a voodoo cult. XD

Fall of the House of Lioncourt-Melmouth.

You're gosh darned right! THEE Louis of Troy is in the building!

You love to see it. "A wearisome fledgling; all the millennials are--" not Lestat making PALE PROXIES of rat-catcher extraordinare LDPDL out of millennials. 😭

Lestat, if you don't get your crazy arse outta here with that bloodstained wooden keyboard Imma ROTFLMFAO.

NO JOKE, I effed up my friend's whole set when I started screaming "Siri, Pause," cuz my friend's Siri started freaking out and effed up the volume! XD

HERE WE EFFING GOOOOOOOO

(Best scene all season, fight me on this)

You know this was TEARING Lestat up, cuz of what happened in 1973--I gave Louis to you so you could do BETTER by him than EYE did, and instead it's NICKI ALL OVER AGAIN.

Imma smack him--this is NOT the time to be self-loathing, Lestat!

NOLA is my home--and the SAINT is not a city--I'm gonna cry.

He did. He just forgot, when reality settled in and the allure/nostalgia/glamour wore off. "I tried to make nights awful for you." Not the whole time, Louis. Y'all actually were happy b4--even Claudia said "the easy times" stopped after Florence died; and esp. after Charlie died. Lou can't be blamed for grieving his mom's death, and he definitely can't be blamed for Lestat & Claudia falling out after Charlie. Everything that happened after that--the 7 years of depression--was ALSO Lestat's fault. "I wanted you to suffer, cuz I was suffering;" I'm glad Les just waved that aside and said they BOTH wronged e/o.

He's not suicidal anymore then! He has nights in front of him to look forward to! So Lou can finally "learn to live honestly" with HIMSELF.

And Lestat dove RIGHT ON IN with that! He's been carrying that with him for DECADES, worried about Louis & what happened.

I LOVE that Les' language changes (the way his voice CRACKS and goes so TINY, oml)--he asked Lou in 1973 if he was "ill," and if something had happened TO him; so as to not spook/trigger or blame him--but he can ask more candidly now in a (relatively) "healthier" 2024 if Lou tried to hurt/kill himself; and get a more candid/honest answer. CLOSURE, y'all, I'm gonna cry.

GOOOOOOD. Don't EVER forget your daughter. Y'all need to have a Claudia Memorial; to KEEP remembering her, as she was in all her vampiric splendour, the good times AND the bad times.

I KNOW this hurt Louis to his effing core. The way Jacob cried FIRE!

I'm so glad Lou hugged him--YES YOU WERE, Uncle Les. And you KNOW it; you FELT that bond b/t y'all, even if she never looked at you. The distance b/t y'all was in name only, cuz a little Black girl couldn't have TWO daddies in 1917 and have one of them be white on top of it. I AM YOUR MAKER, sure, but you were her BLOOD FATHER, and she loved you, which is why she hoped you'd help her.

ANOTHER ROUND IN THE STORMY ROMANCE OF YOU TWO. 😭👏

What are these magical off-mic speeches/pep-talks Louis keeps giving people in Season 2?!? THE PEOPLE WANNA KNOW, gosh darnit!

DRATS.

I get why Jam said they thought the Loustat ending was "satisfying." It was nice, even though I'd've preferred to see Lestat in the Dubai penthouse at the end. :\

I LOVE THIS, AMC, thank you! ❤️