Fragment of Crystal

(everyone else: gearing up to play / already playing crystal)

With the day drawing to a close, Kris spends the evening reflecting. Thinking back to when her birthday meant something. Or, more appropriately, back when she could celebrate it with the people she knew for years.

Whatever alternate versions may exist, she’ll probably never see her Silver again. Or her Gold. Or her Professor Elm, or her Whitney, or her... or her mom.

...Maybe she shouldn’t be thinking so much on this. It’s been just over a year already, it’s all behind her, she’s made new friends... there’s not a whole lot she can do, is there.

“‘Ey, you don’t gotta have a huge party t’have a nice cake! C’mon, let’s go!” In an instant, Scolipede was out of her ball, and Roxie had climbed onto the bug.

Well, there was a big Bug-type.

“…dat’s a pretty depressing-lookin’ birthday cake.” Wrapping an arm around the other girl’s neck, Roxie offered another option. “How ‘bout we go get a real fuckin’ cake, ah? Lou an’ Revy’ll help us finish it fer sure.”

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“...It’s a birthday cake I got for myself.”

(Hi yes I still exist)

(Sorry about the long absense! It’s been about a month without anything here (or on the Rosa blog), and... well, there’s multiple reasons for that.)

(The biggest thing, of course, has been my new job - which doesn’t have entirely consistent hours week-to-week, so it’s difficult to find reliable times to be here aside from eeeearly morning and evenings.)

(...The other thing, though? There’s... really barely anything that happens on this blog. Ever. And, like, part of that’s my own fault for always being too nervous to get out there and talk to people, but... I dunno. It doesn’t feel fun. I’ve been considering putting this blog on actual semi-hiatus, even.)

(Also since I haven’t promo’d myself in a long while and my activity’s been dead for a while)

So let’s talk stimming!

First off, to define the term, the first paragraph on Wikipedia honestly does a pretty good job at it:

Self-stimulatory behavior, also known as stimming[1] and self-stimulation,[2] is the repetition of physical movements, sounds, or repetitive movement of objects common in individuals with developmental disabilities, but most prevalent in people with autistic spectrum disorders.[2][3] It is considered a way in which autistic people calm and stimulate themselves.[2] Therapists view this behavior as a protective response to being overly sensitive to stimuli, with which the individual blocks less predictable environmental stimuli.[4]Sensory processing disorder is also given as a reason by some therapists for the condition.[4] Another theory is that stimming is a way to relieve anxiety, and other emotions.[5]

Now, as far as Kris is concerned, her primary method of stimming is pacing. If she reasonably can, she’ll typically pace around to feel more comfortable. Sure, she has gotten the occasional complaint about it or been told that it makes her seem nervous, but really it’s just her keeping calm. Sitting still just... doesn’t quite do it.