Road to Nowhere

I paused a moment and said, “We do have concerts coming up, yes.”

She asked, “When are they?”

And I said, “We have several options.  Is there a certain kind of concert you’re looking for?”

And she said, “what’s the difference?”

the last time I reblogged this post right before I got a great job, in a permanent work-from-home position, with benefits, retirement, and a salary literally 3x what I was making before, doing something I really like. 

So you know. 

INGREDIENTS:

4 hamburger buns, split

1 head green leaf lettuce, leaves separated

1 beefsteak tomato, sliced

20 dill pickle slices

FOR THE CHICKEN

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 cup dill pickle juice

1 ½ cups milk, divided

1 cup peanut oil

1 large egg

½ cup all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Place a chicken breast on a cutting board. With your hand flat on top of it, carefully slice the chicken in half horizontally. Trim excess fat as needed.

In a large shallow baking dish, combine chicken, pickle juice and ½ cup milk; marinate for at least 30 minutes. Drain well.

Heat peanut oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.

In another large shallow baking dish, whisk together remaining 1 cup milk and egg. Stir in chicken to coat and drain excess milk mixture.

In a gallon size Ziploc bag or large bowl, combine chicken, flour and confectioners’ sugar; season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Working in batches, add chicken to the skillet and cook until evenly golden and crispy, about 4-5 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.

https://www.tablespoon.com/recipes/copycat-chick-fil-a-nuggets/2b483ee0-a13e-4a3f-bf0b-9b26099c6e24

Look, I know a good number of you are from the US and things aren't amazing there either, but my country is literally on the brink of collapse. So I'd love it if we could talk about that for a minute.

If you can't do anything else, please just read and reblog.

1 USD = 75.22 Indian rupees

1 euro = 90.99 Indian rupees

1 pound = 104.40 Indian rupees

Even a small amount of 5 or 7 or 10 of foreign currency will help a lot. Our government has essentially abandoned us. People have turned to social media for help. WhatsApp groups and DMs on twitter/insta is where we find help. Our helpline is a Google doc. Situation is so dire that hospitals are discharging patients due to lack of oxygen. Every night the same story, oxygen running out in hospitals, citizens running around to somehow arrange for oxygen with minutes to spare. Last night, we had manged to get oxygen to a hospital with 14min to spare.

Some of you in the US have asked what else you can do. I'm not the best person to answer this since I'm not from there, but I do know that Biden is being urged to ship supplies to India. Maybe a more informed person can chime in with how best you can help but calling your representative and registering your concern sounds like a good starting point.

EDIT: Reblogging with donation and resource links all in one place: Here's a great post with links to petitions in the US and UK and a list of active charities and donation centres in India

And some more donation links from @spacegirlstuff

Here and Here

Some more posts with links, resources, and ways to help collected by @groundzero-and-deku who is doing the absolute most:

Here and Here

A few more NGOs that are helping:

Habitat for Humanity India

Oxfam India

Give India

Uday Foundation

Goonj

Not every listed charity has the infrastructure to accept international donations, so please be sure to check this list which has specific information about charities that can and are accepting international donations.

Also re-adding the link to the give2asia charitable foundation for those who don't want to go through the whole post.

One more comprehensive resource link here

And another one with many more NGOs, resources for oxygen and plasma, and other info

Y'all, this is a good time to mention that I am not affiliated with any charity or donation center and am not receiving donations on behalf of anyone.

This is a list of resources compiled partly by me and more importantly, by other people who have a better grasp on the situation than myself.

They are to the best of our knowledge great resources but I still encourage you to do your research and put your money where you believe it will be used best.

If you find more ways to help or donate, add them in a reblog - let's get as much information out there as possible.

Much love and please stay safe

mormons 18-24 after they go through their endowment ceremony and receive their new name and secret clothing and learn the secret handshakes and passwords and realize everyone around them has been secretly doing this the whole time and now theyre going to be sent away from their family for 2 years where they will literally not be allowed to be alone for 1 second of the day except to go to the bathroom and they have no idea how to get out of what they just got into

then if youre a boy and u turn 18 they’re like wow amazing!!! you get to go on a mission and be like all the great men around you!! and now you get to go through the temple! so #blessed!

and then you go through the temple and all the above mentioned SECRET CULTY SHIT happens (EXPLANATION HERE http://mormoncurtain.infymus.com/topic_templeceremonies.html) and youre shipped off to a strange place where everything you eat, wear, go, listen to and do is controlled, and you’re not allowed to talk to your family or friends (except through a once-a-week email) and you literally are being watched by your companion at all. times. 

Leaving is such an isolating experience. No one inside wants anything to do with you anymore and no one outside understands the scale of messed up that Mormonism is. Like it’s easy to point and laugh at the ridiculousness, but it’s literally a cult. There’s so much trauma involved and there’s trauma in leaving.

People on the outside don’t understand how hard it is to leave. I grew up where all my friends were catholic and are no longer religious and they’re like “well everyone hates church, you just stop going” but Mormonism isn’t like that at all. For starters I had to get a lawyer involved to leave and then the ostracization from the entire community that nurtured me growing up was just the cherry on top. It’s effectively being shunned. Everyone you were forced to call sister and brother growing up no longer wants anything to do with you. And you deserve it, because you shouldn’t have fallen for the anti-Mormon lies.

If you know you’re ready to leave, use quitmormon.com. It’s run by the guy from reddit who is now famous in exmormon circles for offering absolutely free legal services to anybody who needs help leaving. You can give your church id number if you know it, but it’s not required (I never memorized mine, and I sure wasn’t going to ask for it). He takes care of everything. This keeps TSCC (the so-called church) from getting all your latest info and keeps them from hassling you or harassing you. They have to talk to your lawyer instead. Pre 2015, it felt almost impossible to try to leave, but it’s a lot easier now! The years of picketing General Conference to force an excommunication trial are over!

Find a support system. Lean on your friends that have never been mormon, any family members who left, anyone you know who left. I’m an exmormon happy to answer any questions, and I’m sure there are plenty others in the notes who would be super willing to be supportive too. Exmormon groups are many and varied now, and it’s best to find the one that vibes for you. There’s a subreddit that’s popular, but I personally used - and I know this sounds weird, since I don’t have kids - a forum called Mormonism & More on the site babycenter.com. It was started several years ago by some mormons who had questions they weren’t allowed to ask on the normal mormon board (because that board required uplifting, mormon-approved answers at all times). It’s since shifted to ex-mormons or people who want to leave but can’t right now because of family situations. Even though the threads were years old, I spent weeks on that forum, reading about what other people had gone through and how they got through it, and to me, that was super helpful.

Research the culty stuff at your own peril. I liked learning about that stuff for a really long time, because I felt learning about all those secrets (I especially liked learning about the truth of the Book of Abraham) … it helped me feel valid in my choice. It helped me keep in mind that this was something that I had escaped, something that had wanted to hurt me. Missing your abuser doesn’t mean you should go back, it means you should keep moving forward. Missing your cult has the same solution. Lots of people fell for the “we’re totally not a cult!” line by TSCC. Some of them will not offer sympathy. If you want to watch the hidden camera videos of endowments and other temple stuff, I would super super recommend you have a trusted friend watch them with you. And bring comfort food. You’ll probably need it.

TSCC put out a series of essays on controversial (read: faith-killing, eye-opening, omg how could I have ever supported the people who did this) issues in mormon history. They are the Orthodox LDS pre-approved responses to a lot of the more incriminating accusations that have been leveled at TSCC over the years. They should be hosted on TSCC website somewhere, and would have been posted around or after 2015. They may reaffirm your faith now that you know TSCC’s defense, but they may push you right out the door. (Or break the shelf? Do Mormons still use the shelf analogy, or is that retired now?)

Lots of mormons become atheists after leaving. Many join mainstream xian churches. Some become witches, some study every religion they can get their hands on, some try to go back and realize all the magic (or holy spirit, if you prefer) is gone. Don’t think you have to know right away. Some people throw away or burn all their mormon stuff, some people keep it to show their kids, but again, you don’t have to make that decision right away. Some people call TSCC a cult after they leave, myself included, but you don’t have to if it makes you uncomfortable or it it doesn’t feel true to your experience.

Look up religious trauma syndrome. It’s real. The pain you will probably feel is real, the grief you will probably feel is real, and in many ways, you may have to mourn the death of what you were always told Life Will Be For You.

And learn that the world is not half as evil as TSCC told you. Your coworkers who drink a beer at the end of the day are not evil or abusive. Your friends who wear sleeveless shirts are not evil or promiscuous. You’re allowed to wear short shorts! You’re allowed to drink coffee! You’re allowed to ask questions in a faith community without being silenced or condemned! You’re allowed to not want kids! There’s a lot of unlearning here.

I had a high school friend turned college roommate who left, moved 4 hrs away, and I had to lie to people who showed up repeatedly that he wasn’t home. That’s just the smallest outside perspective of this. They kept coming.

Remember: You do not have to let the police in the house unless they have a warrant — or probable cause. If you’re having a party, turn off the music, ask your guests to chill, and ask that anyone who’s too intoxicated carry on in another room.

Go outside to speak with the cops. Close the door behind you. Although some scary precedents are being set these days, police cannot enter your home without a warrant or probable cause. By closing the door, you’re cutting off a visual — or olfactory — line to potential probable cause.

Be polite. Ask why they are there. “Good evening, Officer. What can I help you with?”

Where possible, assure them you will take care of the problem. If the police ask to enter, inform them, “I do not consent to any searches.” If a police officer gives you an order and you are confused about your position, ask, “Do I have to comply?” If they continue with questioning, tell them you’ll need to call your lawyer and that you will not answer any questions.

Yes, that person COULD have been born in 1988.

Yes, that person COULD be saying that it was specifically corrupt “religious people” who crucified Jesus.

Yes, that person COULD be honestly confused about how dual citizenship works.

Yes, that person COULD think that (((these brackets))) are just another silly internet joke.

H is the 8th letter of the alphabet, so “88″ signals “heil hitler.” It’s not actually used as a proper abbreviation like people use FYI or ASAP, but it signals to other neonazis that they’re “in on the joke” (the joke is xenophobia). Think of it like how terfs sometimes choose usernames like “radical-womb-lesbian”

“Jesus was killed by religious people,” and it’s more obvious sibling, “Jews put Jesus on the cross,” stirs up antisemitic thoughts - Jews are bad because Jews killed Jesus. This is most common in evangelical Christians. It’s inaccurate and wouldn’t be good logic besides, but the important thing is to signal to your fellow Christian antisemites that you think “those Jewish fellows are Evil and Jealous of our Perfect Ideology.”

Israel offers citizenship to Jews. This is intended to be so that, if a country decides to restrict Jewish rights or revoke our citizenship, we have somewhere to go and be citizens. Antisemites see Jews have dual citizenship and think “ah, now I can claim that they’re acting in the interests of a foreign power!” This leads into “Jews with political power are traitorous Israeli agents who don’t have Real [nationality] Interests in mind!!”

Yes, that person COULD have been born in 1988.

Yes, that person COULD be saying that it was specifically corrupt “religious people” who crucified Jesus.

Yes, that person COULD be honestly confused about how dual citizenship works.

Yes, that person COULD think that (((these brackets))) are just another silly internet joke.

H is the 8th letter of the alphabet, so “88″ signals “heil hitler.” It’s not actually used as a proper abbreviation like people use FYI or ASAP, but it signals to other neonazis that they’re “in on the joke” (the joke is xenophobia). Think of it like how terfs sometimes choose usernames like “radical-womb-lesbian”

“Jesus was killed by religious people,” and it’s more obvious sibling, “Jews put Jesus on the cross,” stirs up antisemitic thoughts - Jews are bad because Jews killed Jesus. This is most common in evangelical Christians. It’s inaccurate and wouldn’t be good logic besides, but the important thing is to signal to your fellow Christian antisemites that you think “those Jewish fellows are Evil and Jealous of our Perfect Ideology.”

Israel offers citizenship to Jews. This is intended to be so that, if a country decides to restrict Jewish rights or revoke our citizenship, we have somewhere to go and be citizens. Antisemites see Jews have dual citizenship and think “ah, now I can claim that they’re acting in the interests of a foreign power!” This leads into “Jews with political power are traitorous Israeli agents who don’t have Real [nationality] Interests in mind!!”

My family has an annual tradition of telling the story in a creative way so here it is, told through memes:

Lower

Boom Your Voice

How to deepen your voice naturally

How to talk with a deeper voice 

How to deepen your voice (pre-t) Voice masculinization

Vocal androgyny in speech and singing

This Phone App Helps Transgender Users Change The Pitch And Tone Of Their Voices (buzzfeed article) 

Higher

Voice Feminization

Pitch, range, resonance, depth

How to develop a female voice

please add links if you got other useful stuff too !

Lower :

Voice Deepening Stretches. a tumblr post with pictures to show how.

How To Deepen Your Voice FTM. Alexander Jasper-Jay on Youtube. Pretty much a tutorial for the stretches from the previous post.

How to Make Your Voice Sound Deeper. Howcast on Youtube. Not FtM related or focused, I think this is mostly for acting ? ? ? 

Higher :

How to make your voice feminine. No head voice. No falsetto. Ada Han on Youtube.

How to Completely Feminize Your Voice. An article by Michela, a trans woman.

Vocal Feminization Guide for any voice type. Impulse Collective DID on Youtube.

See below for a chart on what household cleaners to NEVER EVER MIX EVER OR YOU CAN (AND WILL PROBABLY) DIE OR OTHERWISE BECOME EXTREMELY FUCKED UP AND NOT IN A FUN WAY BUT IN THE HOSPITAL AND/OR GRAVEYARD WAY:

The above is not a complete list, but these are extremely common in most households and therefore are the most likely chemical fuck-ups to occur. 

DO NOT MIX HOUSEHOLD CHEMICALS. 

DO NOT MIX CLEANING AGENTS.

DO NOT MIX CERTAIN ASTRINGENTS. (HYDROGEN PEROXIDE IS OFTEN IN FIRST AID KITS OR WOUND SPRAYS AND CAN CAUSE A REACTION IN SMALL AMOUNTS IF MIXED WITH THINGS IT SHOULD NOT BE MIXED WITH EVEN ACCIDENTALLY ON A SURFACE ETC.) 

DO NOT MIX ANY CHEMICALS THAT YOU ARE NOT 100% SURE ARE SAFE TO MIX. (SPOILER: MOST THINGS ARE NOT REALLY SAFE TO MIX AND SOMETIMES COMBINING SAFE ONES ACTUALLY MAKES THEM LESS EFFECTIVE ANYWAY, SO JUST DON’T COMBINE THIS KIND OF SHIT!) 

YOU ARE PROBABLY NOT A CHEMIST. PLEASE DO NOT TURN YOUR KITCHEN/BATHROOM/HOME INTO A LAB ACCIDENT. 

IF YOU ARE A CHEMIST, YOU SHOULD STILL NOT FUCK AROUND. MANY OF YOU DO NOT RELIABLY USE YOUR SAFETY GOGGLES OR THE CORRECT TYPE OF SAFETY GOGGLES. (IF YOU’RE THE TYPE OF CHEMIST WHO DOESN’T ENSURE ADEQUATE VENTILATION IN YOUR WORK AREA, I WILL NOT TRUST YOU WITH BLEACH. COMPLACENCY KILLS.) 

CONCLUSION: STOP MIXING CHEMICALS! 

YOU ARE NOT PROFESSOR X, AND YOU WILL NOT END UP CREATING THE POWERPUFF GIRLS. 

YOU WILL ONLY CREATE A NEW INVOICE FOR YOUR LOCAL FUNERAL HOME. 

I AM YELLING AT YOU BECAUSE I LOVE YOU AND WANT YOU TO BE SAFE.

TO ANY DUMBASS TEENAGERS OUT THERE, I WANT YOU TO SURVIVE LONG ENOUGH TO BECOME DUMBASS ADULTS. 

Website I Twitter I Patreon

Over the years I have faced many ups and downs, just like everyone else. Sometimes it really gets to me how mean people can be to each other. How mean I can be to myself. But for all the Level 1 Trans Fighters out there please know with acceptance, mindfulness, and self compassion I did in fact find my balance. Not a fast process. Basically a complete lifestyle change. Sometimes I lose that balance, sure. But when I choose to present my authentic identity? I’m objectively drop dead gorgeous. Here are a hand full of my looks. You’ll notice none of them are 100% masculine or feminine. Peace be with you. Thank you for reading. Thank you for being you. -J