13 | August | 2018 | Open Space Practice, (AKA: A Thousand Shades of Gray)

1. I’ve been afraid to share this from Andrea Scher. This is such an important post, and it’s not unlike what has happened to so many of us, both before we ask for help, when we try our best to gut our way through life (a football coach who taught social studies at my high school used to say, “suck it up and get tough”), and then when we finally reach out, we are often met with this sort of nonsense. Andrea fought for what she needed. So many others give up. Please don’t give up. ❤

2. Wild Writing Online starts in September! After close to five years writing with Laurie every week, I’m giving up my spot to start moving towards doing more teaching. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be writing with Laurie. She’s an amazing teacher and this is a life changing practice. Give yourself the best gift ever.

3. What I’m Holding Onto In This Epoch Of Autocratic Fuckery from Chuck Wendig. He’s one of those people who can tell the whole truth of what a mess things are and still somehow manage to make me feel better – that’s the kind of truth, the world view I want.

4. New Moon Tarot Challenge. Reading what Dr. Vickie had to say about her experience doing one of these challenges really made me want to try it. It started on August 11th, but there’s still time to jump in.

5. Marcella, an original Netflix series. I binged Season One in a little over two days. One of my guilty(not) pleasures are murder mystery shows set in London (or Wales, or some other European location where the scenery is beautiful but it rains a lot) that have a lead character who is someone with serious personal problems who also just so happens to be a brilliant detective. They break the rules, but also always catch the killer. Other favorites are Happy Valley, Broadchurch, River, and Hinterland. A twist on the genre is a lighter version set in the Caribbean (but the primary detective is still from London), Death in Paradise.

6. A 10-panel comic explores a subtle kind of racism many people of color experience.

7. Ep. 206 of Raise Your Hand and Say Yes: Camille T. Dungy on Living (and Navigating!) the Dream.

8. Sit Every Day. “Diana Winston on commitment to the practice of sitting, why we should sit regularly, and advice on how to keep yourself on schedule.”

9. What I’ve Learned From Helping Over 200 People Change Careers from Laura Simms.

10. Ten Ways to Fight Hate, a video from The Southern Poverty Law Center.

11. After Charlottesville, Alt-Right Groups Splinter, Distance From White Supremacy. In related news, What Charlottesville Changed, and Before ‘Unite the Right’ Rally, Trump Does Not Condemn Supremacists on The New York Times, and 11 million white Americans think like the alt-right, and The alt-right is debating whether to try to look less like Nazis.

12. Baltimore Cop Suspended After Viral Video Shows Him Brutally Beating Unarmed Man.

13. Judith Simmer-Brown to Distraught Shambhala Members: “Practice More.” (Notes and Transcript).

14. The “Reverse Racism is a Real Thing” Bingo Card.

15. Texas Church Offers ‘Free Mom Hugs’ At Pride Parade To Those Who Need Them.

16. Harvard Will Have Four Amazing Black Women Leading Its Schools, A First For The University. If we truly want diversity and inclusion, then let the Black women lead us.

17. New Pro Football Hall of Famer Randy Moss got hate mail for a tie he wore during his induction. In related news, Miami Dolphins Players Kneel For Anthem During NFL Preseason Opener.

18. Omarosa Confirms What We All Suspected: Trump’s a Racist Who Uses the N-Word. In related news, Trump Calls Omarosa ‘A Lowlife’ After N-Word Claim Surfaces, and Donald Trump’s Tweets About Black People, By the Numbers, and Soledad O’Brien Wants Journalists to Stop Playing Games and Call a Racist a Racist.

19. Florida Cop Handcuffs 11-Year-Old Black Boy Because ‘He Was Being Disrespectful.’ In related news, This police officer followed Demarcus around the neighborhood because he “didn’t belong in his city” (video), and A police officer tased an 11-year-old girl that was running away with a backpack full of items from Kroger (video).

20. Racist Minnesota Couple Accused in Attack on Black Man Allegedly Held Him to the Ground and Threatened to Run Him Over With a Truck.