Update from last post.

[numb3r_5ev3n]

I was able to take a few days off from work, but it's not nearly enough. I got to the Scarborough Faire renfaire again and some craft stores. But I'm really mourning the loss of Joann Fabric. It, like Toys R Us, is a victim of Vulture Capitalists stripping it for parts.

It was the last "fabric store" out there, since Hancock Fabric closed down in the 2010s. Michaels has fabric and some sewing supplies, but it's not geared towards sewing and the selection is kind of sparse. Same with Wal Mart - but it's Wal Mart. Snobby Lobby is not even worth mentioning, and those bigoted rightwing antiquities thieves can go get bent.

I really don't want to have to order stuff from Etsy every time I want to take on a sewing project that I can't find supplies for locally. This really sucks.

The owner/founder of Texas Renaissance Festival was found dead. That's all I'm saying here without a cut, but here's an article on the subject. Warning for Unpleasant Stuff. I guess we'll see what all of this means for Texas Renaissance Festival this year.

But, changing the subject, one thing that I've noticed that bothers me is that it seems like my ADHD is worse than ever. It's nearly gotten me into a few wrecks that only reflexes saved me from, and it's led me to make a few impulsive decisions that I've regretted later. I know I have to go back to therapy and get back on meds, but I don't want anyone to try and strongarm me into taking SSRIs again. And yes, the loss of Joann's is a blow because crafting is kind of how I blow off steam when I need a mental health break.

I feel like our Capitalist Overlords really want to make a world where all we can afford to do outside of work is Sleep, Stream Media from Streaming Services, Doomscroll Social Media, and Play Video Games. Which is an eventuality that none of us should tolerate.

Trust me, I am not trying to stir up nostalgia for the recent global pandemic, in which a lot of people died or were maimed. But there was this aspect of quarantine life, and I feel like it's the part that the so-called "Captains Of Industry" want us to forget the most:


[tweet from c0wbitch, reading "remember quarantine when everyone was making bread and dancing and making art and taking care of plants and just learning new useful skills and we got a small glimpse into what life is supposed to be like"]

Comments

[sabotabby]

There was a part of me that kinda liked quarantine. I mean I grieved a lot of parts of my life (which never recovered) but also I learned new skills and got to know my neighbours really well.

The Downward Spiral

[nyyki]

There are some fabric stores still around, but no fabric chains anymore. I miss the days of picking up stuff for costumes at Miracle over on Irving boulevard right near Loop 12.

The pandemic period was strange for me, because it was like having everyone come over to where I've been existing for a long time -- I don't get chances to get out and go anywhere anymore thanks to health risks, and it's been a big hill to overcome all the way back to when my sight walked out on me in the summer of 2003. Interesting side note -- a lot of music instrument stores did a lot of business because people were working on their playing while sheltering in place.

Megabummer about your ADHD causing problems. I keep hearing more negative stuff about SSRI's, and they were the magic answer (not) for so many doctors for a while, but now they're showing poor results. I hope things clear up so you can get through this.

The world you describe is reminiscent of that portrayed in a pair of books, The Circle and The Every, by Dave Eggers, which portray the development of a techno-dystopia of no privacy and life with a digital panopticon, and that pretty much creeped me all the way out.

I hope things get easier for you, you're in my thoughts.

[lb_lee]

Man, I remember quarantine as everyone being forced online like a cage of overstuffed rats, clawing each other’s eyes out and treating each other like disease vectors while micromanaging fiction, smoking shitloads of weed, and having psychotic breaks when their coping mechanisms no longer worked. I can do gardening and Marie Kondo happily in better circumstances, and if the landlord decides to paint my apartment all of a sudden, it’s no longer a “shit where do I sleep without violating isolation protocols?”

At least TRUMP II is a disaster I’m somewhat equipped to handle!

[flamingsword]

Did your docs try you on the non-stimulant meds first? I forget. Bc we have a mutual friend who takes guanfacine and it helps them with the mental and emotional symptoms more than the attentional ones, and might help you more than anything that might increase anxiety and racing or perseverative thoughts.

https://www.additudemag.com/audhd-medication-side-effects/?amp=1

I wish I could take you to the fabric stores off of Royal and Harry Hines in Dallas. They have So Much if you know how to ask for it.