#libraries for freedom

[union-catalog]

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[pop-cynic]

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[autovive-industries]

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[gravityr00m]

INTIMACY IS NEAR

Well. It's a strange time to be alive.

I have no big ideas about how to solve the multi-layered, multidisciplinary, multitudinous issues that humanity is facing.

What I do know is that when things are spinning chaotically, it is easy to forget where our life rafts are. Not impossible to remember, just easy to forget.

As a result, I'm trying to keep my self-care routine very simple, easy to remember.

It basically is this: when I need to go to the bathroom, I go to the bathroom.

I resist holding it in when writing the email / washing the dishes / making dinner. I don't wait until there's a more convenient moment (what does that even mean?!). If I'm with someone, I speak up that I need to go to the bathroom (AND IT'S A STATEMENT).

And when I'm in there enjoying the plumbing and privacy, I take my time.

Sounds simple, right? But it takes some effort. And in the chaos, attending to my needs lets the body settle.

It seems like almost all of us have had some experience where we've been told, "Your needs aren't important. Put yourself aside." Sometimes we react to this by getting louder and taking up more resources. Sometimes we react to this by shrinking and making do with what we've got.

In this moment, would it be possible to make yourself slightly more comfortable? What small action might it be? It could be taking a slow breath. It could be unclenching your cheeks (facial and otherwise). It could be texting your friend to say hi, instead of waiting for them to text you. How can you expand, without succumbing to overcompensation?

With a small action, we might think: who cares, why bother?

With a small action, we might think: it doesn't take much effort - so why not try something?

The concept of intimacy is often limited to a romantic context, but it's so much more: it's about getting close to what is, right here in front of us. It's coziness, familiarity, a deep knowing.

I'll leave you with a quote by one of my teachers, Michael Stone, which inspired the name of February's livestream session (more details below):

“Reawakening love and intimacy for one’s self and beyond requires practice. This is not because love is something far away from us but because we forget. We forget that intimacy is near. We forget how to relax with others. We forget we are whole. Realization is a kind of remembering rather than an achievement or virtuosic accomplishment. Practice awakens the dormant and often invisible interiors of mind, body, and heart in order to establish a more tender, responsive, creative, and active self.”

More than ever, we need to remember what’s important. Practice helps us realign to what’s meaningful for us, here. May you receive what supports you.

Going to the bathroom now,

Adrienne

Copyright © 2025 Adrienne Shum, All rights reserved.

[libraries-for-freedom]

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[gravityrooom]

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[chan008-mind-your-beezwax]

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[dailyanarchistposts]

Direct action, simply put, means cutting out the middleman: solving problems yourself rather than petitioning the authorities or relying on external institutions. Any action that sidesteps regulations and representation to accomplish goals directly is direct action—it includes everything from blockading airports to helping refugees escape to safety and organizing programs to liberate your community from reliance on capitalism. Here we present a step-by-step guide to organizing and carrying out direct action, from the first planning stages to the debrief at the end, including legal support, media strategy, and proper security.

There are countless scenarios in which you might want to employ direct action. Perhaps representatives of despicable multinational corporations are invading your town to hold a meeting, and you want to do more than simply hold a sign; perhaps they’ve been there a long time, operating franchises that exploit workers and ravage the environment, and you want to hinder their misdeeds; perhaps you want to organize a festive, community-oriented event such as a street party. Direct action can plant a public garden in an abandoned lot or defend it by paralyzing bulldozers; it can occupy empty buildings to house the homeless or shut down government offices. Whether you’re acting in secret with a trusted friend or in a mass action with thousands of people, the basic elements are the same.

[thebanishedreader]

Oh, what the hell, Florida.

Heyyy so I just looked at my spreadsheet of banned books and...

There are 1,402 BANNED BOOKS in the state of Florida ALONE.

To put that in perspective, on that very same spreadsheet, the number of banned books in California is: one (1).

If you guys have been following this (very new) blog and my posts, then you will know that the number of banned books in Colorado is: eight (8).

In Arkansas, it's four (4).

So. Just to reiterate, to repeat.

As of June 2023,

THE STATE OF FLORIDA HAS BANNED 1,402 BOOKS.

NEARLY HALF OF ALL BANNED BOOKS THIS YEAR, AND NEARLY THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF BANNED BOOKS IN 2022 IN TOTAL.

FLORIDA. HAS. BANNED. 1,402. BOOKS.

Please read banned books. Support libraries. Support authors. And please, please please please please, for the love of everything, stay safe. I love each and every one of you. Stay safe.

Support the American Library Association here.

[pengipie]

Every elder in Palestine have their old homes keys because they believe that one day they'll be back again ..

[union-catalog]

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[pop-cynic]

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[autovive-industries]

[gravityr00m]

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[libraries-for-freedom]

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[gravityrooom]

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