Timelies all!

Mr. S had his first COVID-19 shot today, and so far has no side effects.

Oh, that must be a relief, Sheryl. I'm so glad to hear it.

Yay for protected kiddos!

Lovely to come on here and catch up with nice people not being horrible on the internet. Thanks, everyone!

Texas is still Texas-ing. Austin isn't hosting the annual Veteran's Day Parade due to Covid concerns and Governor Abbott is screaming about how Austin hates veterans. He's also mad that we shot down a city proposition that would mandate a certain number of police officers per capita. I voted down all state propositions just on principle.

I was in Boston for work last week and I just really miss it there. Though this particular trip was not great, because I forgot one of my brain medications and went into a hardcore withdrawal of anxiety on the third day of a 6 day trip.

A beer writing conference I went to a few times in the heyday of my beer writing career is happening in Austin this weekend, so I'm going. I'm dreading it but also am a little intrigued to see what's going on in that world.

Tom, I fired a psychiatrist who I didn't feel listened to me and insisted on weighing me at every session and he lost his goddamn mind about it. He left voicemails, sent a letter, called my therapist to explain the reasoning behind his decisions... all of which did not, oddly enough, inspire me to go running back to him.

Steph, I am incensed on your family's behalf. That is totally and disgustingly negligent. WTAF?!?!

I fired a psychiatrist who I didn't feel listened to me and insisted on weighing me at every session

SWEET FUCKING CHRIST, what?!?!?!?!? I hope by "fired" you mean "fired the whole man out of a goddamn cannon into a pool of hungry sharks."

(I also had a breathtakingly bad psychiatrist who I had to see in order to get my antidepressants prescribed, and she badgered me until I told her my weight and height and she calculated my BMI for me right there [even though I DIDN'T ASK] [and even though YES I KNOW I'M FAT] and then spent the rest of my 50 minutes telling me I should try Pilates and she would be happy to prescribe weight-loss drugs for me [again, even though I DIDN'T ASK]. We didn't discuss my mental health once. So I asked my primary care doctor [Awesome Doctor] if he could prescribe my antidepressants, told him what fuckery the psychiatrist pulled on me, and he said "Oh hell no, you're not going back to her. I'll prescribe your antidepressants." Bless Awesome Doctor forever.)

Fuck both of those doctors.

Yikes, so many things!

Teppy, I am LIVID about what happened with Tim's dad. WTAF.

~ma for askye and your family — that's a lot.

YAY to Buffista sprig getting vaccinated!

FUUUCK crappy doctors.

I made the mistake of listening to today's NPR Politics Podcast, where veteran journalists I trust a lot basically said if the Dems don't pull their heads out of their asses and do something about voting rights (and especially people running for Secretary of State in multiple states who say they would not have certified the 2020 election), we are in serious danger of facing the end of democracy in this country. Scared the shit out of me. Between that, the fact 26 states are passing laws to restrict teaching "controversial" topics, and the near-constant dread I feel about the climate crisis and powerful people who are doing fuckall to stop it, I've been having a bit of an existential crisis lately.

He really was the worst. He also thought I was drug seeking because I begged him for help when I couldn't sleep due to the very high amounts of Buproprion (Wellbutrin) he put me on. I just remember being so tired and so frustrated, and he's all, "well, take more walks" while I was sobbing in his office. I just wanted to be able to sleep.

Between that, the fact 26 states are passing laws to restrict teaching "controversial" topics, and the near-constant dread I feel about the climate crisis and powerful people who are doing fuckall to stop it, I've been having a bit of an existential crisis lately.

Yes, all the time, every day.