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excellent addition thank you!

Book Review

Book: The Art of Being Normal, Lisa Williamson

Genre: YA, LGBTQ

Synopsis: David Piper has always been an outsider. His parents think he’s gay. The school bully thinks he’s a freak. Only his two best friends know the real truth – David wants to be a girl. On the first day at his new school Leo Denton has one goal – to be invisible. Attracting the attention of the most beautiful girl in year eleven is definitely not part of that plan. When Leo stands up for David in a fight, an unlikely friendship forms. But things are about to get messy. Because at Eden Park School secrets have a funny habit of not staying secret for long…

Warnings: Transphobia, underage drinking.

Review: 

I really enjoyed this book. I’m very picky when it comes to LGBT literature on most days of the week, so I have some small gripes here and there but to be honest I’m not going to talk about them because this book is very much worth a read, especially for teens and young adults whether they’re transgender or not. To be honest, I actually think cisgender people could very much benefit from reading this book because it does talk a lot about what it’s like to be a trans teenager. It can be easy and hard and yes, terrifying too. 

The characters are good, a little basic, but for a YA novel they’re certainly three-dimensional enough. I liked the plot, I liked the plot twist, and even though there were fear inducing parts, I like how the main premise was about overcoming the anxiety and stepping out into the world wholly and completely yourself. 

I also loved Leo, he is such a mood, I very much related to his character and I wish I’d read this book when I was in high school because I think I would’ve been like “ah, that’s me.” 

4.5/5 and I recommend others read this too!

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...and I want to throw up because we're supposed to quietly and politely make house in this killing machine called America and pay taxes to support our own slow murder and I'm amazed that we're not running amok in the streets, and that we can still be capable of gestures of loving after lifetimes of this.

Close to the Knives, David Wojnarowicz

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Book Review

Book: The Art of Being Normal, Lisa Williamson

Genre: YA, LGBTQ

Synopsis: David Piper has always been an outsider. His parents think he’s gay. The school bully thinks he’s a freak. Only his two best friends know the real truth – David wants to be a girl. On the first day at his new school Leo Denton has one goal – to be invisible. Attracting the attention of the most beautiful girl in year eleven is definitely not part of that plan. When Leo stands up for David in a fight, an unlikely friendship forms. But things are about to get messy. Because at Eden Park School secrets have a funny habit of not staying secret for long…

Warnings: Transphobia, underage drinking.

Review: 

I really enjoyed this book. I’m very picky when it comes to LGBT literature on most days of the week, so I have some small gripes here and there but to be honest I’m not going to talk about them because this book is very much worth a read, especially for teens and young adults whether they’re transgender or not. To be honest, I actually think cisgender people could very much benefit from reading this book because it does talk a lot about what it’s like to be a trans teenager. It can be easy and hard and yes, terrifying too. 

The characters are good, a little basic, but for a YA novel they’re certainly three-dimensional enough. I liked the plot, I liked the plot twist, and even though there were fear inducing parts, I like how the main premise was about overcoming the anxiety and stepping out into the world wholly and completely yourself. 

I also loved Leo, he is such a mood, I very much related to his character and I wish I’d read this book when I was in high school because I think I would’ve been like “ah, that’s me.” 

4.5/5 and I recommend others read this too!

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he way the mucisians lurch out of the way....I wanna know the outtakes

One of the best dance routines I’ve ever watched.

The Nicholas Brothers

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So imagine you’re a gay top, right, and you’re out on a date with your partner, just having a fun time, and you’re about to head home, when you spot this kid passed out on the streets, your partner wants to help him, but you’re obviously a little worried that you could face severe repercussions if you help this random kid, then you realize that he could be a potential ally, so the two of you drag him out of the streets and into a safe space, and when he wakes up, he confesses that he’s homeless, so you and your partner go through the process of adopting him, you two take him home, you two give him a good meal, you two start to teach him some philosophies in life, he slowly grows up, you two help him through his bad dreams, you two help him through his bad memories, you two play games with him, he completely roasts you at an eating contest, he’s extremely active, you’re always on the move, you’re walking everywhere, like literally walking all the time, like so much walking, and you’re there for him and then all of a sudden, his childhood friend shows up on your doorstep and is like, “Your adopted son is really the king.” and then he falls in love with a woman in like 2.55 minutes which is definitely not something you two taught him how to do, so you’re confused, and the weather gets really weird, and you’re even more confused and in the end, all you really want to know is WHO’S THE MONKEY and by the time you’re dressing in drag and doing the hula, you’ve realized that maybe it’s better if you just don’t worry about it…

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American Girl stories were the best tbh

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Very good advice for both the writer and the critiquer.

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It won’t let me send u a friend request or send u a message but mine is cecil8555

Looking for Interviewees!

If you’re not interested, please consider reblogging! 

I need two sets of people for two separate interviews, and you probably fall into one or the other: transgender (included non binary people), or cisgender.

The questions shouldn’t take more than fifteen minutes to answer for each and are pretty standard questions. 

The brief I have is building a website, and app, that catalogues information to do with transgender people so that cisgender people and transgender people who are looking for information, can access it easily and quickly. 

Why? Mostly because I always get asked so many questions about being transgender but I can’t reach everybody!

For cisgender people: The questions pertain to how you currently access education on transgender people, such as answering questions you may have, or maybe you’re educating a child or family member, or just looking for a general education. 

For transgender people: I’m interested in knowing what sort of information should go into the site, so it’s not just my vision of it. 

So please, reblog this if you see it, and if you wouldn’t mind being interviewed let me know!

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Day 20: JOMPBPC: Kickass Characters

This series is filled with kickass characters! 💕

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I love the Dutch language but you just know somewhere along the line, someone in your ancestry was such a tiny person they decided to make it part of his name

Today, my students (who are non-native to the Dutch language) figured out that the second part of my name is used to make things small (’tje’ is added at the end of words to signify their small size) I am a brutish 185 cm or 6′1. Some find this very funny. One refuses to call me Noortje and has now decided that I shall be called Noort, Miss Noort to be exact. Which is all types of wrong

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not so gentle reminder that academia belongs to the queer, the weary, the women, the people of color, the poor, the ill just as much as it does the rich, the white, the privileged. if your academia isn't accessible, i don't want it.

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i’m 14 and kinda want to convert, but i’m a bit scared. am i too young? also, i live in alabama so there (probably) aren’t many jewish resources near me, do you have any advice? should i even try to convert at all at the moment?

Hello, Anon!

It’s fantastic that you’re interested in Judaism, but you’re also in such a transitional period in your life (adolescence). What you want now may be completely different than what you want in four or even eight years. How long have you been considering Judaism? Give yourself a year or two to deeply contemplate this change, possibly longer, because Judaism will always be there for you. Start off by reading (I suggest To Life by Harold Kushner), and then start attending Shabbat services to see how they feel. Study the different denominations. Most importantly, give yourself time. Don’t rush.

To answer your question, you’d need a parent’s permission to begin any conversion classes. Conversion is an intensive (and individual) process that demands a large sum of time, dedication, even money. Here are some factors to consider for anyone who wants to convert:

Mobility–do you have reliable transportation?

(With school), will you have enough time to complete required reading, attend events, go to synagogue, etc?

You will often need to spend some amount of money during the conversion process, be it synagogue dues, book fees, etc, but you can absolutely talk to your Rabbi about this if you aren’t in a position to spend this money.

Are you in a safe environment, physically and emotionally, to pursue conversion? 

Here are some resources I personally used when I first started learning about Judaism:

BOOKS // nonfiction

Choosing a Jewish Life - Anita Diamant

Living a Jewish Life - Anita Diamant

To Life: A Celebration of Jewish Being and Thinking - Harold Kushner

Essential Judaism: A Complete Guide to Beliefs, Customs & Rituals- George Robinson

To Be a Jewish Woman - Lisa Aiken

What is Kosher?: An Introduction to the Laws of Kashrut - Dr. Juan Marcos Benjarno-Gutierrez

Is It Kosher? - Rabbi Eliezer Eidlitz

How to Keep Kosher - Lise Stern

The Sabbath - Abraham Joshua Heschel

The Jewish Holidays - Michael Strassfeld

Finding God: Selected Responses - Rifat Sonsino

The Shabbat Table Companion - Rabbi Zalman Goldstein

The Jewish Study Bible - Adele Berlin

BOOKS // fiction

The Chosen - Chaim Potok

My Name is Asher Lev - Chaim Potok

Davita’s Harp - Chaim Potok

The Red Tent - Anita Diamant

PODCASTS

Stuff Jews Should Know

Judaism Unbound

The Jewish History Podcast

Jewish History Podcast by Mottle Wolfe

On the Other Hand: Ten Minutes of Torah 

WEBSITES**

http://www.chabad.org/

https://reformjudaism.org/

https://www.myjewishlearning.com/

http://www.jewfaq.org/ 

**The information on these websites may differ with denomination

I hope this helps!

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oh what

PETITION HERE

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Looking for Interviewees!

If you’re not interested, please consider reblogging! 

I need two sets of people for two separate interviews, and you probably fall into one or the other: transgender (included non binary people), or cisgender.

The questions shouldn’t take more than fifteen minutes to answer for each and are pretty standard questions. 

The brief I have is building a website, and app, that catalogues information to do with transgender people so that cisgender people and transgender people who are looking for information, can access it easily and quickly. 

Why? Mostly because I always get asked so many questions about being transgender but I can’t reach everybody!

For cisgender people: The questions pertain to how you currently access education on transgender people, such as answering questions you may have, or maybe you’re educating a child or family member, or just looking for a general education. 

For transgender people: I’m interested in knowing what sort of information should go into the site, so it’s not just my vision of it. 

So please, reblog this if you see it, and if you wouldn’t mind being interviewed let me know!

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Just as a small reminder for people doing nano:

As the half of the month draws nearer, so does the time where many tend to get stuck and troubled to continue writing.

This is normal.

Nano is a challenge, it is totally fine if you struggle. That’s basically what’s supposed to happen.

Just keep writing.

Fight for those words! Write!

BUT

Do not push yourself over your own well-being.

Take a break if you feel like it.

You can still catch up later.

You can just stop. Seriously, just quit if you want to? There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that.

People who draft a novel in one month and people who draft a novel in ten years are equally beautiful.

You come first, not the words.

Take care <3

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