brave the monsters and come home to me

When you're living with a disability, chronic illness, or chronic pain, everything takes energy, and on some days, it's energy that you simply don't have, because your body constantly has to work overtime for your survival.

From a reverse image search, I found the website Show Your Stripes, run by the University of Reading in the UK, which is likely where the above graph originated. It provides temperature data for various regions of the world from approximately 1900-2025. For example, here are graphs for Canada, India, and Papua New Guinea:

Go to Ballotpedia for information on upcoming elections, including the midterms, state and local elections, who the candidates are, where they stand, and when and where to vote. You can also check your registration status, make sure you’re registered to vote, and explore options for mail-in ballots if you need them.

Here's how things are shaping up ahead of the 2026 midterms:

In the 119th Congress, the current party alignments as of August 4, 2025, are as follows: (Congress.gov)

House of Representatives: 219 Republicans (plus 3 Delegates) 212 Democrats (plus 2 Delegates and the Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico) 4 vacant seats

Senate: 53 Republicans 45 Democrats 2 Independents (both caucus with the Democrats)

Elections to the U.S. Congress will take place on November 3, 2026. All 435 districts in the U.S. House of Representatives and 33 seats in the U.S. Senate are up for election. Five of the Senate's six non-voting members are also up for election.

Looking ahead to the 2026 general elections, Democrats need to gain a net of four seats to win a majority in the Senate. Meanwhile, Republicans can lose no more than two seats to retain a majority in the chamber. (Ballotpedia)

In the November 2025 elections, voters flipped the governorships of several states blue, as well as electing dozens of Democratic delegates and mayors in key local elections, dislodging many GOP incumbents. There was a record turnout of young voters and younger candidates for political office.

If we can do this again in 2026, we stand a SIGNIFICANT chance of not only mitigating the damage done by the current administration, but perhaps even steering things back toward recovery. It will still take a long time. A lot can happen by next November, nothing is immediate or guaranteed, and NO ONE running for office is perfect. But it's clear to see that letting things continue to slide toward the right is not an acceptable path forward if we want to retain our rights and secure a better future for those who will come after us.

So make sure you educate yourself on your state and local elections, check on your polling place and voter registration, help out with a campaign, or try running for something yourself if you're so inclined. Vote whenever and wherever you can, because every election MATTERS.

Ballotpedia | Run For Something

In a battle of inches, never let your opponent think they’re a ruler.

Look into your state and local judges as well via the state court system or sites like JudgeWatch and the Federal Judicial Center. Find out what their stances are, what their court records look like, where their money comes from, and whether they might be using their position to enable crooked business practices, ignore or abuse the law in their rulings, or support for-profit prisons.

Check Ballotpedia for additional state ballot measures up for decision before November! There are quite a few budgeting, revisional, constitutional, and redistricting measures going around as early as this spring, so don't miss the opportunity to make your voice heard!

Also, look for local municipal elections, special elections, and primaries. Everything from district congressional reps to the sheriff to the school board are voted on by the local community, along with and every one of them MATTERS.

Ballotpedia - Local Election Coverage By State

And in between votes, don't forget to call, email, and write to your representatives. Remember - they work for US!