Maya C. Popa, “Dear Life”, Wound Is The Origin Of Wonder

Contrast

"Can I Please Eat In The Computer Room Tonight?" by Nicole Nikolich (2025)

Nothing is quite as tragically funny to me as how finds are treated on site vs in a museum setting.

In a trench on a dig site: oh look another undecorated pottery sherd. The hundredth from this trench today! *holds with bare hands, covered in mud* nice, where’s the cassetto? YEET! I’ll clean that with a worn out plastic toothbrush in a bucket of water later. Another sherd? Oh damn, it’s from the wrong SO layer - into the spoils heap you go :(

The same pottery sherd, in a museum: so we need to sign this sherd out to examine it in a temperature controlled room. I’m going to wear powder free gloves and hold it with two hands no more than an inch above the padded surface of this table because I’d rather die than have any harm befall this sherd.

Or, in other words:

No hate to either museum-based archaeologists or field archaeologists. I have done both.

Also this is not to say I condone this. This is just a representation of the absolute whiplash my mostly-museum based arse got upon seeing how things were done on my first dig.

Victoria Chang, Obit

i love you visible brushstrokes. i love you glue warped scrapbook pages. i love you awkward poems. i love you junk journal with faded receipts. i love you poorly composed journal layout. I love you unintentionally blurry photographs. i love you asymmetrical beading. i love you curling freeform crochet. i love you fingerprints on pottery. i love you reused materials. i love you improvised instruments. i love you mistakes. i love you bravery to make it anyway. i love you creativity that hasn't been wiped clean of every drop of humanity and sanitized and commodified.

I’m sick of just trying to get through things.

I want to enjoy things. I want to look forward to things instead of just dreading being tired and in pain.

Water Lilies painted by Claude Monet (1840 - 1926)

Saw this on Facebook and if I see one more post like this that weaponizes the Paralympics I am going to punch my own face :)

The Paralympic athletes are INCREDIBLE, there is absolutely no doubt about that.

AND- do you know how many disabled people grieve and cry over all of the things that are no longer possible because of their disability? It’s not a matter of positive thinking or making excuses. Leave disabled people alone and stop pretending anything is possible if you just have ✨the indomitable human spirit✨

And PLEASE for the love of gods, stop putting pressure on disabled people to be your inspiration porn. ESPECIALLY when the pressure is in order to make our suffering more palatable for you.

I promise if I could positive think my legs into working I would not be struggling so much :)

[ID: black and White Photo of a left shoulder & left knee amputee biking with sports suit and helmet on a stadium track. It's captioned "if it's important to you, you'll find a way!! if not, you'll find an excuse!! ... See more /END ID]