Incoming!

So, I decided, Gentle Reader, that I have kept you in the dark too long. And the truth of the matter is sad, indeed: I keep hitting fibro/lupus fogs that have been eating away at my ability to think things through. Instead of waiting for my brain to come back, which I have been doing off and on for months, I am going to say "fuck it" and forge ahead.


But this diminishment has kept me from writing my review of the terrific How To Be Black. It has delayed my playing and review of Leela. Never mind what it has done to my personal life. Arg! I have drafts going about gun culture, about Civil Rights (TM) & civil rights. And I did actually tally up your answers to my question earlier, about what you are interesting in reading - and have started working on some of those subjects! Most of these are actual drafts that I just need to be satisfied with and publish - not pipe dream promises.


Thank you for your understanding and for sticking with me. I am sorry that the mess I am dealing with has the ability to mess up pretty much everything I am involved with or am trying to do.

Gimpy Gamer

Hallo! I have several drafts I am working on, some of them thanks to you all chiming in on my Ask the Readers post. I want to take a moment to thank you folks that chimed in, I appreciate it and I am working on what you indicated that you wanted to read!


Today I want to talk about gaming. I am a Gimpy Gamer. I am a Mom Gamer. I am a Girl Gamer raising two more Girl Gamers, living with two additional guy gamers. I am sometimes a hardcore gamer, but usually a medium core gamer. I play Xbox games, I play social games. I have played tabletop RPGs, I have played LARPs. I live in Indiana, so you know I play euchre. I can play some other card games. I have played blended games like Zombies!!! I have enjoyed some really terrific ARGs. I have a set of Pirate Farkle which saw some great use during a power outage.


I have some great satisfactions and concerns about the state of gaming today, particularly as it involves politics. Gaming does not have to be political, but it often is and that is not necessarily a bad thing. I do not see any serious political message in, say, Bejeweled. (And I have played the hell out of some Bejeweled, to be sure.) But gaming can be highly political. Some political games off the top of my head: Star Wars: The Old Republic (franchise, two RPGs and an MMO), the whole Fable series, the Mass Effect franchise, and the Bioshock series.


You can play any of the games I have listed and not notice the politics, or not care - but it is in there, and goes to the very heart of some issues that sometimes games can best address. The first Fable questions the nature of heroes. The third Fable address the right to rule. The Old Republic's handling of the truly murky nature of morality shines best in the second game, and this is why it has earned a place on my imaginary shelf of Best Games Ever. Mass Effect forces the player to wrestle with the concept of "the greater good," how to serve it, and what personal sacrifices it may require.


Last night I was playing Star Wars: The Old Republic with my Menfolk and got a face full of politics written so well that it warranted repeated mentions by us. We, as our characters, had to decide what to do about a person illegally imprisoned and tortured for the crime of attending rallies and reading materials produced by a group disagreeing with the local government. We had to face a squad of soldiers that had been abandoned to die by the intergalactic government and the price they wanted that administration to pay for it's crime. Our quest line felt like a Law and Order script (ie: "torn from the day's headlines," and I mean that in a good way. It lead to a lot of discussion about those issues as they pertain to our current and most recent Presidential administration and how they handle these sorts of issues.


What I want to do with this post is start to establish not just my own interest in gaming, but to establish games themselves as worthy of further focus. My life does change how I few games: as a woman, and a person with disabilities, as a bisexual - all of these things and more are part of how I view games and influence my opinion. Lucky you, I will be sharing my opinions with you and asking you for your opinions. But while we dissect them for meaning and influence, I want us to not forget that the point is to have fun! Speaking of, I have a bit of housekeeping (both personal and literal) to do before I finally get to try out Deepak Chopra's Leela. Once I do I will share what I find here!


Have fun!

Now Playing at SexGenderBody!

Great news, I have been invited to blog at SexGenderBody.com. You can see my introductory post there, and I invite all of you to take a good gander at the content over there. I am greatly pleased to be among the number of amazing bloggers under the name SexGenderBody.

Most often, I will post here and reblog there, but when I write things more explicitly about sexuality, it may get posted there with an announcement here.

As I see it, you own me no favors – you do me a great service just by reading me, an even further one when you respond via comments or whatnot. It is with this in mind that I ask you to take some of your valuable time to check out SexGenderBody.com – it is well worth it.

Edit: feel free to see my intro here!

On Social Justice Blogging - Jumping in the Pool Head First - Advice

I have thought long and hard about trying to become part of the social justice blogging community. As a reader/lurker over the past handful of years or so, I have watched the public side of some very ugly shit (ableism, racism, fat hatred, identity policing…) going down on various sites. I assume that what went on behind the scenes was much, much worse. I also figure that any community is made up of people, and sometimes people are like that. 

Yet, I still have things to say and a desire to say them – even if they are only ever seen by some family and friends. And you!

I think that it is inadvisable to trust someone just because they share a common interest, even when that interest is supposed to be the “tide that lifts all boats.” So I will make what connections I can based on personal observation rather than assuming that someone with an SJ cause is going to know, understand, or care about what I hold dear. I expect to be treated the same.

I know that I will be distrusted by a lot of folks because I am white, and I get that as much as I can. I am also bisexual, disabled (although I pass occasionally), born and raised lower class (not so much now, but that stays with you in ways that are surprising and disturbing), pervy, nontheistic, and poly. This is not an Oppression Olympics entry; I just want to lay it out there here and now. Where I am privileged I will endeavor to be the best ally I can be and promise to improve at each opportunity.

At home, I have a saying, "The reason we do not argue when I am wrong is because I think before I flap my jaw and when I am wrong I apologize and shut the hell up!"

What is your advice for speaking your piece with strength, compassion, and integrity while weathering whatever storm may blow?

I may be late getting to comments today. I have a physical issue that is kicking my metaphorical ass and I am going to go look at a car today. Cross your tentacles if you care to do so - I could really use a car! This is the reason for the super early post and my anticipated absence.

Here is a sneak peak at what I have cooking for you, Dear Reader: a vitriolic crip rant I wrote one lonely night, a review of a product called Pill Glide, some thoughts on blogging while avoidant, some more Things That Make My Life Easier (with something catchier to call it, perhaps!), my experiences with Moore and Me, some neato links, and a small series of articles detailing my politics and why I think they are the correct choices for me.

Wow, Folks!

Well, people, I want to thank you for getting the word out on my wheelchair etiquette piece. The response was amazing! (Also, a little scary, but I am avoidant, and we can talk about that some other time.) I am very gratified by the traffic, and by your comments, I do not know what to do or say other than to thank you.

So, thank you.

I have been alternately busy, sick, or both busy and sick lately. Okay, and a little bit of Halo: Reach in there too. Blame SLE/lupus, the Democratic party, my birthday (woot!), maybe Bungie, and definitely me. I have a bunch of stuff in the works for Patient C, but I have some juggling of priorities to do, too. Yes, a round of sighs all around. 

I promise I have some good stuff going, but some of it it is also tough -- recounting atrocious stories in order to get to the meat of various matters takes more courage than I can sometimes muster all at once.

Cat Gargoyle Redux

Wow, people, thank you for getting the word out about PatientC. I am very excited, and very thankful! I have one more SmartAss Guide to polish up, and will get to working on some more. I also have a terrible, no good, very bad day write up that is turning into a post on identity, and I think I will work on getting it ready for the next Disability Carnival!

So, for a little treat, here is Umbra, helping out with the blog again!

When my cat, Umbra, is not perched on my back or shoulders, she sometimes seeks comfort on the arm of the couch, which is not coincidentally where I rest my arm and trackball. *sigh* This arrangement always starts out okay, but through the course of an hour or so will move towards my hand, and eventually rest her chin on my wrist or the back of my hand. As you can probably guess, this makes mousing difficult and switching to the keyboard to type nearly impossible (without upsetting one or both of us!).

My grey cat, Umbra, on the arm of the couch, sharing space with my arm and my trackball!

Watch This Space!

Heya! This is just an update post to let you know I have been back in town for a couple of days, and things are okay. I am still really fatigued, but I expected and planned for that, no worries there.

Here is a taste of the next several upcoming posts:

• I Have Politics, Get to Know Them (Me),
• The SmartAss Guide to Puking for Pros,
• An Awkward Moments post, and
• The SmartAss Guide to Wheelchair Etiquette (in which I am decidedly not a good cripple!).

And since you have been nice enough to come here and read a maintenance post, I will treat you to even more of my crip-brilliant ideas:

• Thoughts on House, MD and responsible portrayal of opiate use,
• Hospital Visits, and why people should damn-well go,
• Advanced Directives,
• More Awkward Moments,
• Disability and Sexuality,
• Caregiver Stress and ideas of what to do about it,
• My story (yeah, this one may take a while),
• Emergency Bag -- why you should have one, what should be in it, and
• The Office Visit and the Social Contract (and why you should break it!)

So, there's a little peak into my brain and my notes. Thanks for stopping by, and watch this space!