7 August 2020: Daily

Friends, I’m starting to update all things Resistance here, so please do check the Event Calendar to learn more about three exciting opportunities, one in person, two virtual, this month and next., as well as the expanded Political Candidates info page. I will continue to apprise you of Get Out the Vote (GOTV) opportunities and other ways to make the most of the 87 days (86 if you read this in your email) until November 3. Please feel free to send me any events of interest, and I will happily add them to the calendar.

writing GOTV postcards for NOPE

Good news:

Let’s give a shout-out to New York Attorney General Letitia James for suing the NRA and Wayne LaPierre himself (+ three others) for rampant corruption and misuse of charitable donations over many years. As the NRA’s original charter was granted in New York nearly 150 years ago, Ms. James does have jurisdiction over it and is seeking to disband the organization. Excellent!

Meanwhile, slimy Jerry Falwell, Jr, Chancellor and President of Liberty University thought this was an appropriate photograph to share on social media:

and has just been asked to take an indefinite leave of absence from Liberty. Thoughts and prayers, motherfucker.

A giant cheer for these women:

Not good news:

No words needed.

A bit of zen:

Take care of and be kind to yourselves. Channel this cat’s zen.

28 July 2020: Cat Laughs

Apparently, the combination of fire heat, parenting + working, lack of sleep, Barr’s smug, sanctimonious, selective “remembering” today, and a profound aversion to the bandage on my chest has led me to need and immerse myself in a vat of cat footage. I am delighted.

Observe.

This cat tries ice cream for the first time. I have watched this no less than 92 times today, and even Tom laughed when I forced him to watch. I have a cat, Nutmeg, who LOVES all dairy, even the vaguest hint of it— cheddar, ricotta, milk, cream cheese, cupcake frosting—so this video is infinitely plausible. And yet, what happens? Does the cat get a brain freeze? I’m dying.

Meanwhile, this cat, bless its heart, has no grace. I forced Tom to watch this one too, and he did chuckle. Cats are Majestic Creatures. You really cannot tell which cats will and won’t be graceful and next-level feline. Nutmeg, for example, weighs 15 pounds and I swear he walks like a ghost. There is NO sound. Not a whisper. Ruthie, meanwhile, all 8 or 9 pounds of her walks like a plodding, lumbering goat on stilts. She is loud. Really loud. Like clunky loud. It’s phenomenal, really.

Lastly, I leave you with this. It is in this share that I feel I’m fully becoming middle-aged. Or I’m just desperate because 150,000+ Americans are dead, my oldest may spend his entire freshman year of high school learning from our kitchen, and we’ve been at home for 20 weeks come Friday. Also, the “president” today retweeted “a voice that seemed very important” despite the fact the he doesn’t know anything about her. The her and voice in question belong to Stella Immanuel, a “doctor” who believes that women’s gynecological issues are caused by having sex with demons while they sleep. Demon sperm is a thing the American press had to ask our “president” about during his presser today.

So, I’ll take cat videos and catmouflage with raccoons.

26 July 2020: Sobering shit + a bit more humor

Sobering shit.

Man, y’all. The world is just broken beyond belief. A friend sent me this article today, and it’s not wrong: America is Having the Mother of All Social Collapses. It’s hard to even know where to start. We’re 100 days out from the most consequential election in my lifetime, perhaps yours too, and while I feel paralyzed many days, today I registered to work at the polls in November and also reached out to several organizations re: writing postcards to and texting voters.

If you want to volunteer to staff the polls, PLEASE register here. I have heard that especially in light of Covid, we’re in desperate need of poll workers. If you’re healthy, please help.

If you want to get involved with voter registration, postcard writing, texting, or other politically-oriented work, consider these organizations, all of which offer virtual activism opportunities:

NOPE Neighbors

When We All Vote

Fair Fight

Resistance Labs

Postcards to Swing States

Swing Left

Otherwise, pick a race and volunteer directly for the campaign. Go big with Biden, or support the great down-ballot candidates who can send cowardly, trump-enabling GOPers packing. Click on my Political Resources tab and then click on Candidates to Support for some ideas of who to throw your energy behind and why.

By the time you receive this blog in your email tomorrow, America will have lost more than 150,000 citizens to Covid-19. trump still has no national plan besides letting people die. If that’s not reason enough to get busy, I don’t know what is.

(Admittedly slim) Laugh track.

Thank you, Anne. I will soon be joining this cat.

Thank you, Liz.