The Freedom Song of the Jigsaw Girl

New Poem: In the Golden Afternoon

Sun, 10 Aug 2025 23:34:52 GMT

Got caught up in memories and felt the urge to write poetry. So here's a new poem. I also shared this on my tumbler, vmures.tumblr.com (so if you see it there, that's also me)

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Poems on empty stomach hunger

Wed, 24 Apr 2024 17:30:34 GMT

This month's workshop focus was on Hunger and poetry, more specifically poetry as activism and how it can be used to fight empty stomach hunger. I really appreciated that they distinguished empty stomach hunger from other forms as there are a lot of poems on metaphorical hunger, on emotional hunger, etc. Apparently there aren't as many on the topic of empty stomach hunger. The poet running the workshop also helped organize this website: Poetry X Hunger, which focuses on using poetry to raise awareness and funds to fight hunger worldwide. He encouraged us to submit our poems and I am considering doing so.

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Merry Go Round

Wed, 24 Apr 2024 17:08:47 GMT

The second pride workshop was on spoken word poetry. This poem is one that I feel could be enjoyed both on page and performed, though it probably leans more towards traditional on page format than it does spoken word format.

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Ode to Lilacs

Wed, 24 Apr 2024 17:05:14 GMT

The first Pride Poetry workshop I attended focused on Odes, and one of the poems we read was Ode to Smoked Salmon Jerky by Irène P. Mathieu At the end of the workshop we were given about 20 minutes or so to write our own Odes, or at least the start of one and a list of words to help prompt us. I ended up choosing the word lilacs and going from there. One of the things I loved about the poem above was the interweaving of present sensory moments with past memories and historical elements. I tried to do a similar thing with my poem, though I did not follow the exact format of the inspiring poem.

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Don't need fixin' cause I ain't broken/don't need saving, just someone to hold

Wed, 24 Apr 2024 16:12:28 GMT

Sorry to have been so quiet. Life keeps marching on and I just haven't had a whole lot to say. Still trying to sort out varying fatigue issues and trying to stay a bit more active to help with my knees and other arthritic joins. Still working freelance as a paralegal and professional services consultant (with editing and other creative consulting done as well). I have one steady gig that provides me with 20 hours a week, and a few other clients who have short projects for me from time to time.

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The Profound Beauty of Being Able to Visualize Your Older Self

Sun, 17 Dec 2023 17:04:07 GMT

(This is copy/pasted from my Tumblr)

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Oh wow, it's been a while

Sun, 17 Dec 2023 17:00:25 GMT

Hi, y'all. Sorry for the long silence. Life has been crazy this year. One of my heart-sisters had a heart attack in August and a second one a few weeks later. She is thankfully fine and recovering well, but it was terrifying for everyone. Job hunting was exhausting and demoralizing, but ultimately I decided to go freelance and focus more on part-time work for now so I could also work on fixing some of the health issues I was having. This gave me time to devote to therapy, both physical and mental, which has been very needed. I'm thankful that I could move back in with chosen family and also thankful for the available government aid (it isn't much, but every little bit helps--particularly having insurance through Medicaid). Part of me feels guilty for even applying for those benefits because there are days I don't feel particularly disabled. But then I realize that disability is disability. Even though I wouldn't qualify for social security disability because I can still work, just not 40 hours a week, doesn't mean I'm not disabled at all.

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A brief update on the state of me

Sun, 14 May 2023 17:30:12 GMT

The past month and a bit has been super stressful. Allergies turned into a nasty case of bronchitis and then I lost my job. I'm recovered from bronchitis and looking for work while applying for weekly unemployment benefits that I've yet to receive (there is a delay for the first week plus an extra delay because I was paid for the remainder of my last week even if I was let go late in the day on a Wednesday). I've filed for SNAP benefits (which is basically what they call food stamps these days) and Medicaid as well. I will likely not get the SNAP benefits because my former employer is ghosting me on my requests for a termination letter. I let the social worker know this, but who the fuck knows if it will help anything.

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Safely arrived in Virginia

Sun, 16 Oct 2022 15:34:33 GMT

Just wanted to let folks know that my move was safely managed. Not sure if some of my stuff was damaged or not, as when I got something out of the truck last night the load had definitely shifted pretty badly. But hopefully it was all packed well enough that nothing is seriously harmed.

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I see my light come shining

Fri, 07 Oct 2022 00:31:10 GMT

It's been nearly a week since my last day at my old firm and it is truly remarkable how light I feel, even with the stress of moving looming large. Somehow I feel more settled in my skin and more sure of my abilities. I've had some brain weasels as I pack (mostly that I'm not moving fast enough, which is ridiculous because I'm absolutely on the path to being fully packed well before next Thursday which is when the movers will be here to load the Uhaul I've reserved). But mostly what I've been feeling is contentment and joy. I'm a little sad to say goodbye to this apartment as I've truly loved living here. It's a warm and comfortable space with great energy. But I'm passing that on to the next tenant, which is a happy-making feeling as well.

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To endings and new beginnings

Sat, 01 Oct 2022 01:32:35 GMT

Today was my last day at the firm I've worked with for the past five years, and mostly I just feel a stunning amount of relief to be done with it. Talking with my heart-mom this evening made me realize how much I hadn't even acknowledged to myself the issues and frustrations I had with this particular workplace or how toxic it was. Unlike the last really shitty job I had, the red flags were way more subtle and took a long time to really notice. I do think my boss, his wife, and the other senior attorney at the firm are not bad people necessarily, just deeply self-involved and out of touch with the reality that most of us deal with on a day-to-day basis.

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Come home in the morning light

Fri, 26 Aug 2022 00:33:37 GMT

So I posted this over on my tumblr, but it's a good post for here too.

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New fandom journal

Tue, 15 Feb 2022 01:56:24 GMT

I finally decided to create a fandom specific dreamwidth. I'll still share links here as well, but things like Evil Author day snippets will only be posted there.

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Home from the Holidays - plus a newish fic

Sat, 01 Jan 2022 01:44:26 GMT

Yes, that is a deliberate misquote in the title. 😄

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42 and Mostly Harmless

Fri, 19 Nov 2021 00:05:49 GMT

So upon waking on my 42nd birthday I did not miraculously have some greater understanding of life, the universe, and everything. But I have had a lovely day filled with self-made Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy references and a great deal of love from friends and family.

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Poem: Autumn Mist

Wed, 06 Oct 2021 17:29:21 GMT

My firm does a newsletter 3 times a year and I have been supplying a poem for said newsletter for a couple of years now. I've used most of the ones I had written that were not too deeply personal or too sad, so I am finding myself having to craft new ones. This isn't a bad thing, sometimes I need the prompt to sit down and write poetry. Our fall newsletter theme is renewal, and I have been inspired by the beauty of changing leaves against fog on my way into work several times this week. So I sat down and wrote this. It's another etheree, as I find that form to be really inspiring and easy to work with and it fits this sort of piece so well.

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A Merry War

Sun, 08 Aug 2021 21:35:28 GMT

I went through and polished up my Rough Trade project from July. The final version is now on ao3.

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Celebrating completion of Rough Trade

Sat, 31 Jul 2021 22:51:25 GMT

I'm beyond ecstatic to announce that I completed my first Rough Trade challenge. This month's challenge to complete a paranormal romance novella. I decided to sign up to write a Teen Wolf romance and had a blast doing so.

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May you be looking in on us and smiling

Mon, 12 Jul 2021 23:46:12 GMT

Well, today would have been my dad's 69th birthday and it hit me kind of hard. Mostly because I can imagine just how many terrible jokes he would have made about being 69. It also hit me that he won't be around to make Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy references when I turn 42 in November. So I shall have to remember to do so in his honor.

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New short fic: Kismet

Mon, 22 Feb 2021 14:41:27 GMT

The Just Write Discord held a weekend write-in this weekend, and I wrote a cute little fluffy story for it.

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Happy Birthday, amejisuto!

Wed, 17 Feb 2021 13:20:58 GMT

It's my friend, amejisuto's birthday today, so I thought I'd take a moment and wish her a happy birthday here.

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Happy Valentine's Day

Sun, 14 Feb 2021 15:53:48 GMT

While Valentine's is a holiday that I largely ignore (save for maybe buying discounted chocolate on the 15th), I ended up participating in a small fic exchange for the holiday this year. And let me tell you, that is a very nice way to celebrate the holiday.

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Winter Cocoon (new poem)

Wed, 03 Feb 2021 22:15:05 GMT

Belated Imbolc/Lughnasa blessings all. This week has been busy at work and a bit draining on my spoon level, so I've mostly been quiet. I did however write a new poem on Monday, which a lovely Imbolc feel to it.

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A Hallowed Pack - my every fandom reverse bang fic

Fri, 15 Jan 2021 17:19:43 GMT

So I managed to snag the very first posting day for the 2020 Every Fandom Reverse Bang and my story is now live.

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Solstice blessing and new fic

Mon, 21 Dec 2020 23:18:12 GMT

Sorry I've been quiet for a while. November and December are often very difficult months for me mental health wise and this year has not bucked that trend. But I'm hanging in there and hope you are all doing well.

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