I am a monkey that draws ninja cats

So from then on whenever one of us called something problematic, he would make us talk it out until we could name the “bad” thing we were hinting at. In this particular class, 7/10 it was some type of oppression, and the remainder was like, “I’m uncomfortable because this is very new/confusing/pushing boundaries that made me feel safe.”

Once we stopped calling things “problematic” and stopping at that, class got way more interesting and... we all had to say, like, “that’s racist” or “that’s misogynistic” or “ew capitalism gross” out loud, which a lot of us had never done in a classroom before. Or we had to be like, “Uhhh... I’m not sure what’s so bad?” and confront our own beliefs and that was maybe even more useful.

thank you for asking anon! i’ve kept this one close to the chest for a while, but the answer is YES! if all goes according to plan, i will be publishing the final version of YMHW (no longer called YMHW) this fall, as the first of what will hopefully be a number of non-fannish novels! it’s all a little terrifying, because going the self-pub route means i am 1. figuring things out as i go, and 2. taking the version you’re familiar with down from ao3.

That last one KILLS me. YMHW in its current form means an almost ridiculous lot to me and—trusting your many very lovely comments—it does to some of you, too. that is the reason i want to take this next step, though: i think this story can carry a similar comfort & joy beyond fandom spaces, and i want to give it a chance to be found by & shared with anyone who may be in need of a chunky, feel-good, sapphic romantic comedy this year.

if you loved YMHW, i’m not expecting anything beyond the support you’ve already so kindly & generously given me. i would obviously be thrilled if you were interested in buying the book! but i understand if you prefer to remember the story as is, and don’t want to see it outside of its original context. that’s why i’m leaving YMHW up for another week: you’re welcome to (re)read it or to download it for private use, but i do ask that you don’t share the file with others, especially after i take YMHW offline. the platform i’m publishing on (yes that one) requires exclusivity; digital copies circulating after i publish put me in direct danger of getting banned, which will destroy my chances of putting out the next novels i’m working on. in light of several past experiences, i’ve also officially established my copyright, which means i now have a way to fight back properly if my work gets stolen or plagiarized again.

until June 13th, You & Me & Holiday Wine can be found here. and if you’d like to be among the first to see the cover, receive updates & other insights & previews, or are interested in reviewing an ARC, you can subscribe to my newsletter here!

i’m saving every single comment you’ve ever left me. writing YMHW, sharing it with you, and hearing what it meant to you was a blindingly bright spot during a very dark time, and i will be grateful to it and to you for that, forever.

Over fifty years of data show a peak in PFAS (also known as "forever chemicals") content in seabird eggs in the 90s, followed by a decrease as regulations went into effect. The most recent findings show a 70% decrease of most common PFAS.

We are making genuine progress! Producers are dramatically altering how much they use PFAS and how much gets released in effluent, but also there's a lot better understanding of how to remove PFAS from the environment!

-Unclench your jaw, drink some water, take your meds.

-Perfect is the enemy of done. You know that, I know that, so let’s all try and believe it.

-All the tiny cryptids have declared today as “NO”. I agree with them.

anyway i wanted a memento of my first pride, you know, and this one vendor was selling keyrings, and i liked it, so i bought one. do you remember those italian charm bracelets that were all the rage like 10-15 years ago? it was a keychain like that, and it had a rainbow rooster, a rainbow cat, and then just a rainbow, and so I bought it.

i run into my mom a couple of vendors over and she goes oh you bought something? what’d you get? so i showed her, and i was like, “I’m not sure why it’s a rooster and a cat. Seems kind of random. But I liked the rainbows.”

and my mom, who was some form of minister’s wife for most of my childhood and teenagerhood, stares at me like she thinks i’m joking.

“What?” i say.

…relic…

Thousands and thousands of animated shows, subbed anime and dubbed anime. All for free. I've never gotten a pop-up ad. Think of any animated show you want to watch and it'll probably be one there.