Here’s a list of terms & subjects Republican lawmakers would like to ban in all Wisconsin classrooms: And a few more:

Okay so I just stumbled across this game called “Bird Alone” that’s supposed to be this cute story about befriending a bird, but....... ***[spoiler alert]***

....then I checked the reviews and they are WILD

Well, it seems the existential depression is kicking in. That would be the exhaustion, the heaviness, the inner voice muttering “who cares, what’s the point” to every thought you have. If you’re new to it, I’m sorry: it sucks a lot! But I do have a few suggestions to fight it. 1) Keep things clean. Your house, your car, your body. My dad’s theory is that your inner voice tends to believe that if your surroundings are dirty, it’s because you don’t deserve better, and it becomes a vicious cycle of reinforcing belief.

I just gave an after class pop-up advice session to some of my creative writing students; allow me to share. Stop asking whether you're good enough to be a writer. The question isn't whether or not you're good enough, the question is whether or not you're willing to put in the work.

Guess what came in the mail today! Thanks, Auntie @KateHarding! HALLO
I IS MODEL

Look, I love Rent with the intensity of a small town queer teen in the 90s, but it is the pinnacle of self-righteous white person 90s multiculturalism & therefore problematic as hell. 90s white person multiculturalism: "I don't see race!" Through the lens of 2019, it is clear that a) only a white person can claim not to see race, & b) not seeing race means demanding that everyone conform to your standards of whiteness, which c) is a gross form of erasure

This lady on Windy City Rehab claims to be a Chicago native but just pronounced Wabansia as “wuh-bahn-zia.” Ma’am no. The correct pronunciation sounds like a punch in the face, not a cheap red wine. Probably says Paulina like it’s a woman’s name.

I really hate the expression "be your best self." It promotes an external, competitive, airbrushy selfhood that makes me feel anxious (which, I suspect, is the point) & rebellious (probably not the point). "Be your best self" says "because you sure as hell ain't her right now." Who is this person? Your Best Self? Because she seems like your very worst friend, raising an eyebrow when you skip the gym, judging you for eating a cookie: "Is that what your best self would do?" Fuck you, I want to say, my best self loves cookies.

Alfie had to play in the little park alone because too many people brought their bunny-sized dogs to the big dog park ☹️ It's probably a good thing I don't have human children, because injustices to my dog make me want to throw bricks through windows.

The primary argument against Bill Pullman in Sleepless in Seattle is that he has allergies, right? Guys I was going to say that the judgments against this poor alllergic man seem harsh & then you’re like “yeah, dump that sneezy bastard!”

Watching Prancer for the first time in about 30 years and it’s not so much filling me with the Christmas spirit as it is reminding me that childhood is terrible. Why in god’s name would you want to leave that open to interpretation, you literal monster

When I first told my best friend that I was planning to adopt a dog named Alfred, her kids were like IS HE GOING TO BE HER DOG BUTLER??? (They really like Batman.)

Whose brilliant idea was it to spend December in Wisconsin 😠 The snow outside is like perfect snowglobe flakes, fat and slow, and it fills me with rage.

My mom: That just confirms my theory that in twenty years I’ll be sitting in a nursing home with a bunch of droolers, and no one will be able to remember our names or what we had for lunch, but we’ll still be arguing about music. “That’s definitely Ginger Baker on the drums!” (We’re on a road trip together, currently listening to Joni Mitchell.)

Some barred owls outside my window are hollering up a storm. Listen. We’re deep in the Driftless Region of Wisconsin, far away from anything, and the night is completely silent except for these fools yelling their heads off.

I started telling @Wendy_Mc about this and now I'm mad all over again.

https://twitter.com/mollybackes/status/1062930395438764032

So basically this dude was like "LOL look I can speed my voice up and it sounds funny haha I guess it's chipmunks??" and America was like WE ARE 100% ON BOARD

German shorthaired pointers are the cutest puppies because they have chubby baby bodies and old man faces It’s just science

“Privilege lets you opt out of caring.” This is a must-read.

https://twitter.com/bittersouth/status/1055479029153832960

YES. This is such a good example of @rtraister’s assertion that to be a powerful white woman is often to be a kind of “cool girl” who molds herself according to what men most value.

Okay it's four hours later & I'm still furious about this. Let's talk about why. 1) This large university claims it cannot make a physical accommodation for a guest speaker, even though she requested it well in advance (& they're the ones who invited her, for heavens sake).

https://twitter.com/mollybackes/status/1042556147964633088

Their offer, instead of providing a wheelchair, is to chauffeur the speaker around campus so she doesn't have to walk as much. Unless they plan to drive her into the building & onto the stage where she'll be speaking, this is a laughable solution.

I have a cute story about this. Last year, some writer friends & I rented a house in rural WI, & took lots of long walks on country highways. In this situation, the country wave is imperative; otherwise people will stop & ask if your car has broken down.

https://twitter.com/BillPotterNYC/status/1037927982508204032

(If you're walking, the country wave is a raised hand, two or four fingers up, no wiggles, no actual waving motion... so basically you wave like an embarrassed teen. In most contexts this would seem rude; in the rural Midwest it is about as friendly as we get.)

Me: Mom, you can’t just leave a peanut butter jar out there. The groundhog is going to get his head stuck in it.
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