Top Stories
New stories you’ll love, handpicked for you by our team and updated daily.
The Healing Power of Ugly
Once upon a time, a while back, I saw a post on Tumblr that to my irritation I can't find again - it said something to the effect of "a woman is a mammal that sweats and grunts" and it seemed to open a pathway in my brain that hasn't closed since. Maybe its the fact that I am down with glandular fever (or 'mono' as my American friends may know it), but that post has been front and centre for the past few days. You see, friends and neighbours, it is hard to feel pretty when you are sick like this. Impossible to feel sexy... And according to media and romantasy we are (woman more so than men, but lets be real all of us) are required to somehow be alluring in one way or another at all times in order to be... well, what exactly? Worthy?
By S. A. Crawford12 months ago in Humans
How Many Spoons Do You Have
My chronic disability has made me familiar with the spoon theory. According to Christine Miserandino in her blog titled The Spoon Theory, spoons symbolize our energy and how we manage it. People with Chronic Illness or Disability are given a limited number of spoons, and when those spoons run out, they have little energy to do anything else. Showering can take one third of the day’s energy, and on a bad day it can take even more.
By Michelle Renee Kidwell12 months ago in Journal
Lady Blackbird in Concert
Going to see Lady Blackbird I realised that, maybe, I don’t have the vocabulary to describe music. I understand genre, tone and the way a bass note can hit in the chest, or a sustained high note takes you floating. But music, it seems, is a language of its own that gets lost in translation. Something gets misshapen when words do their clunky business.
By Rachel Robbins12 months ago in Beat
The Princess & The Peabrain
The Politician had always wanted a wife who’d listen. A beauty that would wait on hand and foot and always agree with his opinions. He had many opinions. And he needed someone who would support him unconditionally. Otherwise, what was even the point of a wife? He had preferred other men in his company anyhow; they were by far stronger and superior.
By Oneg In The Arctic12 months ago in Fiction
Retired Colors
I just ran across this news article about how Crayola was officially bringing back some "retired" crayons? Some thoughts immediately crossed my mind, like, "Really? Can crayons actually become retired?" "Did kids not like these colors?" "How did Crayola know this? Had pre-K teachers across the globe been consulted?" "Did being retired mean that nobody liked them anymore and they were no longer useful?"
By Shirley Belk12 months ago in Art
Misaligned Expectations
Post-COVID there feels as though there is a level of expectation that sits at the heart of the nation (England). Every time I walk down the road I need to move out of the way of other human beings as they are more important than me. Many of my 10,000 steps a day are now spent weaving in and out of crowds, whereas before COVID there was courtesy.
By Ben Shelley12 months ago in Humans
An Odyssey. Honorable Mention in Legends Rewritten Challenge.
Ulysses was tired, and it was only 3pm, local time. He was very far from home and he was jet-lagged. It was already the third day of his business trip but his body and mind still hadn't caught up to him. Despite that, with the powers of coffee and confidence combined, work was going well. He'd already given his presentation twice, and by his count he'd only made a handful of minor mistakes.
By Rebekah Conard12 months ago in Fiction
