beesmakesthings

[beesmakesthings]

I have other things I want to say. But this is beautiful and will do for a start.

trans women, i love you.

you were a woman yesterday. you're a woman today. you're a woman tomorrow. you're a woman forever.

trans women have existed long before those stuffy bigots sitting in a court room have. trans women will continue to exist long after they're dead and rotting in the earth.

[beesmakesthings]

Important sea news

EVERYONE SHUT THE FUCK UP SCIENTISTS AT THE SCHMIDT OCEAN INSTITUTE HAVE FOOTAGE OF A LIVE COLOSSAL SQUID FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

🦑‼️🦑‼️🦑‼️🦑‼️🦑‼️🦑

[beesmakesthings]

Reblogging myself because it has come to me rereading this a couple of minutes ago that this means a lot of things weren’t my fault. I couldn’t account for him any more than he could account for me.

I did some things that warranted telling off. For sure. But all the other stuff I felt like - that wasn’t my fault. That was him. If he had expectations or ideas in his head of how things were supposed to be, I can’t be held responsible for not meeting them.

Dear Dad,

It’s been two years since you left. I’m lying awake in the dark, digesting information about you when I was small.

It wasn’t good ever, was it really? Children were not your strong point. Given that you were a teacher, this does and doesn’t make sense.

It’s only being a parent that makes me understand- you thought it would get better as we got older. But I don’t know what you were expecting. I think I always knew we didn’t make sense to you. Or at least I didn’t.

I think you were free to love your granddaughter as you pleased because you didn’t have the worries. And I think I’m glad of that. But I’m sunk in the fact that parenting probably wasn’t easy for you.

Thing is Dad, it’s not easy for anyone. Even the people it looks easy with. You have no idea what is happening and the whole thing is an ice rink all the time - things move and change. Things aren’t comprehensible, there is little order. I suspect that was part of the problem. The unpredictability. You stood up for things you felt were wrong- but it was always the principle, not whether we would actually benefit or be affected by it.

And yet. Here we are, marking time. We loved you. In your awkward way, you loved us. You did what you knew - sometimes that all you’ve got. I’m not mad about it now. It’s what I’ve always known - even despite the pictures. And perhaps that’s something I can lay down now.

I’ve had this sense of getting it right in the end. You wanted more time in the days with us - but that was you too. Always more important and not really thinking about anything else - someone else can take care of that. But that’s not how it works.

None of this means I don’t miss you. It just means things are more honest. And maybe that’s all we can do.

B

[beesmakesthings]

ITS NAPOWRIMO! CAN YOU TELL?!

CREATE BAD ART

[beesmakesthings]

Given that one of my favourite episodes was the one where they blew up a cement lorry in a disused quarry (the myth being that you could clean it out that way. The noise was incredibly satisfying!!) then absolutely I would go for this!!!

I wish Mythbusters was still around so we could see them fuck up a Cybertruck

[beesmakesthings]

I constantly need more naptime

im just not convinced humans were ever meant to be this busy

[beesmakesthings]

If your friends make podcasts (or even just super long voice notes tbh), it can be both *lol*

podcasts are great because it's like having a friend tell you about their day while you're doing the dishes but instead it's a bunch of guys running around and experiencing the horrors

[beesmakesthings]

I made these as a way to compile all the geographical vocabulary that I thought was useful and interesting for writers. Some descriptors share categories, and some are simplified, but for the most part everything is in its proper place. Not all the words are as useable as others, and some might take tricky wording to pull off, but I hope these prove useful to all you writers out there!

(save the images to zoom in on the pics)

[beesmakesthings]

some of my favorite woven tapestries, by Cecilia Blomberg:

Point Defiance Steps

Mates

Rising Tides

Vashon Steps

[beesmakesthings]

hey so it’s march now aka the beginning of endometriosis awareness month and i feel obligated to remind you that debilitatingly painful periods are not normal. if you or someone you know is ending up sick or bedridden every month, you are not crazy and deserve medical attention from someone who will take you seriously

[beesmakesthings]

Dear Dad,

It’s been two years since you left. I’m lying awake in the dark, digesting information about you when I was small.

It wasn’t good ever, was it really? Children were not your strong point. Given that you were a teacher, this does and doesn’t make sense.

It’s only being a parent that makes me understand- you thought it would get better as we got older. But I don’t know what you were expecting. I think I always knew we didn’t make sense to you. Or at least I didn’t.

I think you were free to love your granddaughter as you pleased because you didn’t have the worries. And I think I’m glad of that. But I’m sunk in the fact that parenting probably wasn’t easy for you.

Thing is Dad, it’s not easy for anyone. Even the people it looks easy with. You have no idea what is happening and the whole thing is an ice rink all the time - things move and change. Things aren’t comprehensible, there is little order. I suspect that was part of the problem. The unpredictability. You stood up for things you felt were wrong- but it was always the principle, not whether we would actually benefit or be affected by it.

And yet. Here we are, marking time. We loved you. In your awkward way, you loved us. You did what you knew - sometimes that all you’ve got. I’m not mad about it now. It’s what I’ve always known - even despite the pictures. And perhaps that’s something I can lay down now.

I’ve had this sense of getting it right in the end. You wanted more time in the days with us - but that was you too. Always more important and not really thinking about anything else - someone else can take care of that. But that’s not how it works.

None of this means I don’t miss you. It just means things are more honest. And maybe that’s all we can do.

B

[beesmakesthings]

Added fact:

I do this. I can’t tolerate onions really but discovered by accident that if I cook them, freeze them and then recook them I can have some, and their flavour bomb as well.

YMMV of course, but if you struggle with onions this might help you too.

i need you to be aware that you can make a giant batch of caramelized onions to keep in the freezer and defrost at will. that is legal and they can't stop you. they can't take this from you

[beesmakesthings]

all the “peer pressure is bad” education we give kids is practically useless because all it cares about is telling them that Drugs Are Evil rather than the much more useful lesson of ‘the person who responds to you saying you don’t drink by telling you they’ll find a way to get you to is also going to be shitty about all your other boundaries’.

[beesmakesthings]

Too real @onceandfuturequeer …… too real 🤣🤣🤣

Everyone I give my knitting to carries a piece of me around with them

[beesmakesthings]

Honestly this?

Have the marriage you want to make. If you want the one we think we all know - sure.

But I’m not gonna force you just cos I follow a particular path myself.

Also the comments about platonic relationships are really important. I’ve often thought I would have that kind of relationship with someone if it was needed - or for someone’s protection. I’ve definitely seen posts from people who have a platonic marriage because it means they can create the life they want. I love that!

we need to step away from viewing marriage as inherently romantic, or the primary goal of romance. marriage is a legal contract we use to create important ties--financial, medical, next-of-kin, mediating shared property and parental rights. the details vary a lot based on where you are and what paperwork you sign. which is not very romantic! but it does have many real-world effects on our ability to share our lives with our partners.

first and foremost, marriage is a legal right we use to build and protect our families, whatever that family may look like

[beesmakesthings]

I love this. Bless these humans.

So… I got a notification from the State Department at like 8 PM Pacific that my passport was approved, and I was quietly thankful and stunned bc my legal gender in Oregon is listed as X, or undeclared, and that's what's on my passport. I'm pretty sure someone(s) worked late to get the X passports done today.

I was already really grateful to whoever in the Seattle Passport Office worked late to get these things processed on the last Friday before That Man gets back into office... and then I got a notification that my passport shipped at fucking midnight Pacific and whoever got that shit out the door so it couldn't be picked up on Monday and like, denied and shredded?

They're my fucking hero.

[beesmakesthings]

Giving Eye....

I want to say something about how community works and how this is something I've been thinking about for a long time. This afternoon something happened that made me come back to those thoughts. (I'm supposed to be writing letters right now but this is in my head) Today my kid had to do a hard thing, and she was upset about it. Had to be done, no way to hide, necessary business. She messaged to tell me she was on the train as per usual. Around the same time I got a message from someone I haven't heard from in the best part of a year, letting me know they'd seen her on the train and that she looked upset. That she wasn't on her own (described another kid I recognised from the description) but they thought I'd like to know. They didn't want to be a snitch or look weird, but wanted me to know And I do. I knew today was hard and I was already ready - but community showed up in the best way possible. Someone saw my kid in distress and let me know. And I am unbelievably grateful - and told them so. No, this is exactly what I want people to tell me.

I've thought about this kind of thing a lot - i get occasional messages from people who say "Oh I saw your child on the train/in the shops/going somewhere! Aren't they grown up now! Goodness me!" and although I know you don't like that as a kid, it's wonderful to me. People message the lady I work with to say they've seen her child (now a young adult) working, doing their first job. How cheerful they seem, all that. And my client lady loves to know that stuff. It's a bit of the world coming to her.

I've had a stab at writing a poem about this before but I don't feel like I get it right. I'm not sure how to word what I mean without sounding like a stalker. But when you do the same things each day, you notice stuff. You see the same people who also need to do the same things at the same time each day - doing those things. You live in a neighbourhood and you recognise all the local kids ........because there they are, every day. You see one of them with a boot because they hurt their foot, or they walk with their sibling or a friend now. You see all the kids head one way and some of them come back. Sometimes your kid is with them, sometimes they aren't. But you notice. You just do. You see the parent dropping off the kid for the first time or the kid who is now walking alone. I used to see a friends kid on the regular - I'd notice when they were missing or if they looked not ok. And I'd tell my friend.

To me, this is part of being the village. The noticing and the watching. Not because of prurient interest, just because it's there. So today someone unexpected was my village and it is giving me feelings. Because it's kind. Partly because it was unexpected. Because someone sees my kid.

I don't know if this is a mum thing or a general thing. But we see each others kids and keep an eye to see if they are ok. We notice.