Introduction Post

So, I heard about steemit on YouTube and I've decided to give it a shot.

Who am I?

Who are any of us? It's the internet. One minute, you could be typing to a politician, then a dentist from Dubai, followed by two cats stacked on top of each other in a trenchcoat. Okay, maybe not the cats... but they are pretty sneaky, so who knows.

Whoever or whatever we are in real life, in the land of cyberspace labels can be useful for finding like-minded individuals. Here is a list of labels and adjectives that sometimes describe me: sceptical, animal-loving, curious, autistic, gendervague, desert-dwelling.

Of course, life isn't all electrical pulses sent through wires from one computer to another. We also have these weird flesh cases we drag around with us. One of the things that's great about having a body is being able to define it a bit oneself. Something I very much respect about the prospective future we are all heading into is that it seems that people are questioning binaries. Binaries tend to have the effect of polarising people into opposing camps. One such binary is the gender binary and one way of dismantling the binaries of gender is asking other people's pronouns. So, without any further ado, I will participate in that new and controversial cultural experience. My pronouns are she/her, they/them, or if you really want to be wild with it, ze/hir. I know some people may be cringing about this already, but I know that even those who are cringing at the idea of nonbinary pronouns have it in them to push through and get to the proverbial meat of the subject, personal freedom and expression, because if everyone can't express themselves freely (as long as that expression isn't impeding on the rights of anyone else) what exactly are you fighting for anyway?

My Interests

I tend to dabble in a lot of things. I write, play music, make artwork, create Android applications, and I'm even making a board game for TTS (Table Top Simulator). I love to read and research new topics. Some favourite topics are technology, cosmology, history, disability, gender, and conspiracy.

My Background

I feel like I've had a lot of interesting experiences in my life (well, of course I do, it's my life). I've worked in economics, psycholinguistics, music, publishing, graphic design, fashion, mental health, healthcare, disability advocacy, and "special education" (which I know is not a great term, feel free to suggest alternatives in the comments). I've met people from so many different perspectives that it kind of blows my mind. Sometimes it's difficult hearing opposing viewpoints or being exposed to ideas and paradigms I have not been exposed to before. Sometimes it's even a little scary. But one thing I've learned is that empathy and an open mind go a long way.

As an amateur writer, I feel I've been fairly successful. I've been published a few times - I wrote the title story in a collection of short stories available here. I have been published at Autostraddle, a fairly popular lesbian entertainment/news website. I have worked with the Autistic Self Advocacy Network communications team to provide autism-related resources to the autistic community (here are some examples that I helped with: Welcome to the Autistic Community, Roadmap to Transition, HCBS Toolkit, and Accessing Home and Community-Based Services.

I've also worked on several online magazines, creating content, artwork, and doing basic graphic design work.

What To Expect

I plan to use steemit as a platform for sharing my writing and for (less frequently) promoting artwork and music. I look forward to experiencing this new way of blogging with you all!