So I got a sewing machine not too long ago, because I am a huge crafting nerd. It’s a Pfaff Expressions 3.5 (in case you’re curious, and ALSO a nerd), and I pretty much love it to pieces. It’s easy to use, clear when something is wrong, and has done everything I’ve asked it to do. I’ve been learning a lot - my friend recommended a great beginning sewist book from Colette which I’ve devoured, and google and youtube have held my hands all along the way, as well.

How I’m addressed has always kind of been a thing, for me. When I was little, I had a friend who, in the span of a week, went from calling me Rachael, to Rachie, to Ray-cheese, to Stinky Cheese, to Limburger. So, there’s that. For most of my life I’ve insisted on using my full name. I even insist on my full complement of vowels, which is challenging, since the biblical spelling was much more popular.

Hi, I am doing better this week, in case you were concerned! Shit is hard, and it sucks sometimes, but it ends. In other words, fuck depression. In other news, my weeks (months?) long yak-shaving adventure has finally come to fruition! In case you’re curious, yak-shaving is a story about how little problems can lead to big ones if you’re not careful. It goes like this: moo. Once upon a time, there was a coder diligently working in their office.

I’ve always had sleep issues, I just didn’t understand that they weren’t normal. It would regularly take me hours to fall asleep even long before homework kept me up till the small hours of the morning. It wasn’t rare to “pass” my dad getting up for work - in my defense, the man got up at 4:30 AM for YEARS - when I was finally sacking out for the night. But no teenager sleeps well, right?

(cw: discussion of suicide) I’ve been thinking lately about chronic illnesses and the “Spoon Theory”. Basically, the idea is that activities that healthy people factor into their days automatically - getting dressed, showering, going about their normal daily routines - can be costly enough to people with chronic illnesses that they may not have enough energy to do them all, or have very little left over - they have a much tighter “energy-budget” to work within.

I’m feeling really upbeat and thankful right now which is strange, because the end of this week was really a struggle. I can’t yet decide if there is comfort or horror in the knowledge that the bad days will end, and that if I can keep everything well balanced they pass in days and not weeks or months. The thing is, if bad times always end, and they do, then so do the good times.

My friend who started #500WordsAbout asked folks to write a post on empathy, kindness, and respect to go along with her t-shirt release (proceeds go to local Seattle charities, and there’s kids sizes!). At the same time, another friend asked an interesting question with his 500 words, and I’ve had a third issue on my mind lately, which I think are all going to neatly tie together so here we go!

Today I think I’m going to do a bit of show and tell, about a project I’ve been working on. A couple buddies of mine are really really excited about the Nintendo Switch that released last Friday. This means it was Wednesday when their Switch carrying cases arrived at the office, and neither gentleman was particularly enthralled. At this point Tim looked over at me, knowing I was a knitter, and asked if I took commissions.

During the very first Sounders game I ever watched, the keeper at the time (Casey Keller) got a red card. The game did not go well to say the least, but I was watching at a friends house with friends and I had a good time. Between then and now, I’ve tried on a lot of different kinds of Sounders-fan hats. I’ve held season tickets for multiple years, spent a year fully in supporters section and a couple before that in the seats just above it.

I went to my first Emerald City ComiCon, yesterday. This doesn’t sound like such an achievement but since I pretty much stopped going to soccer games last season because of the crowds and the chaos I was unsure about whether ECCC was something I was up for. I’ve been to PAX a couple times, and expected it to be very similar. I was completely wrong, much to my joy. The age range felt much more diverse, rather than being pegged firmly towards the low end, and there were so many other women around!