Fabric Painting Tests

Mari Lwyd mini-project teaser trailer! / Trelar 'teaser' i prosiect-bach Mari Lwyd

20th December / 20 Rhagfyr

Music/Cerddoriaeth: 'Fire' by/gan Vox Poetica

#marilwyd#yfarilwyd#wassail#wassailing#hobbyhorse#foryou#Welsh#Nadolig#nadoligllawen#Cymraeg

(last upload of this went a bit wrong. Thanks tumblr. But here it is again. Hopefully there'll be less issues this time)

[If you enjoyed this please consider leaving a like or sharing this to help a guy out. It will be much appreciated and helps support my project. Diolch!]

Translation of text:

/NEW DISCOVERY IN THE CAMBRIAN MOUNTAINS

/ LOCALS ARE UNSURE... PERHAPS IT IS A WILD MARI LWYD?

/ PEOPLE HAVE BEEN WARNED TO KEEP AWAY... HAVE *YOU* SEEN THE CREATURE YET?

better pictures of my papier mache cat i made when i was 17 (its cat-sized)

Mari Lliwgar! (Mari Lwyd but colourful - and gay!)

Some more stills from my video of the Mari Lliwgar in all their glory! Technically this is a male horse's skull (so more of a March than a Mari) but I had a lot of fun putting them together!

Once I have more materials I'll make their getup a little more elaborate than it is now. Hope you enjoy and Nadolig Llawen

Thank you all for another year of Llyfr Enfys (a project to create an LGBT+ Welsh Dictionary). See you in 2024!

EMERGENCY COST OF LIVING FUND

Prynhawn da - I hate to have to do this again, but as I mentioned in my last post, I'm at serious risk of going into debt because of the cost of living crisis.

I have £35 in combined overdraft and upcoming bills to pay before the 7th of March or I will get into debt with my bank. Which is something I want to avoid at all costs.

If you see something on my gumroad (link in bio) you'd like, please email me at llyfrenfys@gmail.com and we can sort out payment through PayPal (same email).

I wouldn't ask unless it was a crisis - if you cannot buy something, please share. I currently have no money for food - I'm having to prioritise my bills so I don't get into debt. So anything you can spare will make a world of difference to me.

I wish it wasn't this way - that artists and writers like me weren't constantly stifled by living costs. But if you don't support small artists - we will go under. Queer art and writing is needed in the world and I hate that those of us who are most marginalised are the most vulnerable to these problems.

Please share and donate if you are able. Thank you

£0/35 raised

Bore da Cymblr! Do you know how to describe your sexuality in Welsh?

/

Bore da Cymblr! Ydych chi'n gwybod sut i ddisgrifio eich rhywioldeb yn Gymraeg?

Or write in the tags!

/

Neu sgwennu yn y tagiau!

Noswaith dda! I'm still taking a break from most work on Llyfr Enfys for the remainder of the month due to health issues - but I've teamed up with The GNC Network to publish another chapter from my dissertation on their carrd (link in their Instagram bio @transgnc_network_official). Big diolch to The GNC Network for publishing this next chapter. I hope you all enjoy it.

If you haven't seen, I'm offering a $1 tier on my Patreon (link in my bio) to help support me with dental care costs (see last post). So if you enjoy my work, please consider donating so I can afford to keep my teeth!

Happy reading pawb!

Do you know any free and/or online resources to learn Welsh?

Hello @runin-reads Just getting round to this ask now but there's a few things I know of which might help. Followers feel free to add on any more as well!

Resources:

Free Welsh coursebooks from DysguCymraeg available to download on their website

Free collection of Welsh dictionaries available to view on The Internet Archive

Cysill and Cysgeir are free to download here. Cysill is a Welsh grammar checker that checks for correct spelling, mutations etc. Cysgeir is a Welsh dictionary app. Both were developed by Bangor University and are free to download on Windows.

Gweiadur is a free online Welsh dictionary which not only has a comprehensive guide to Welsh words, but also provides example sentences, idioms and conjugation tables.

Followers add on any more if you can think of any!

Thank you so much for all of this! I think being tested to see if I have developed allergies is a good idea. I live in rural Wales so there aren't any dermatologists around, but I could try asking my GP - hopefully I'll luck out and they'll listen!

Hello there - I had a question which I think(?) you might be able to help with. Or at least point me in the direction of more information.

I have a few chronic illnesses and disabilities and as such there's many gremlins I deal with. One thing that crops up a lot are comorbidities between my conditions.

I'm trying to be more vigilant with regards to my health - as a child there were many, many missed opportunities to get my symptoms seen to by a doctor (all squandered due to my parents nor believing me about my symptoms).

Anyway, I wanted to ask about MCAS and if you know it's possible to have it but not realise it?

I've had a few incidents like this, but mostly forgot them or ignored them. But yesterday I ate some basil from my windowsill plant and I had what can only be described as an allergic reaction. I'm not allergic to any foods (as far as I know) but I've eaten from this exact plant before and been fine. I have mint growing next to it which I also ate and it caused the same reaction. Again, I've eaten from this exact plant before. It was like my mouth was burning or stinging and the leaves felt, spicy? In my mouth. I'm not sure how to describe it but I hope you know what I mean. Today I ate from the exact same plants and had no reaction whatsoever.

I've definitely had similar things happen before- but events like yesterday are few and far between. But utterly confounding when they do happen. I have urticaria (diagnosed since age 18) which I suspect is relevant, somehow.

I'm starting to wonder if a lot of my symptoms I've written off have actually been MCAS. But I'm not sure. Do you have any advice around talking to a doctor about this or if I have a leg to stand on so to speak?

Sending my best wishes!

Hey friend, sorry to hear you've been dealing with some neglect.

And considering MCAS was only really recognized as a condition in the last 15 years, it's absolutely possible to have it and not know until symptoms get worse. I was experiencing anaphylactoid reactions my whole childhood, but because I tested negative on IgE tests (I still do), it was dismissed as anxiety right up until I hit my 30s and I experienced my first episode of full-blown idiopathic anaphylaxis.

(Note: anaphylaxis is not a requirement for diagnosis, and not everyone experiences it.)

You should discuss your inconsistent allergies with your doctor or allergist. I would also advise pursuing allergen testing, as new allergens can develop at any time, even if you don't have mast cell instability.

If you suspect some form of mast cell instability may be the root cause of your issues, I'd suggest checking out The Mast Cell Disease Society. (Their website is in the process of being updated, still. But they have good resources there.)

Their signs and symptoms (and triggers) page has recently been updated and is fairly concise:

If any of that rings a bell, it might be worth bringing up with your allergist, but fair warning, not everyone is receptive to the idea of mast cell disorders outside of mastocytosis. (And even then some doctors gaslight their patients to hell and back.)

If you do find yourself in this situation, try joining a couple of support groups to see if there are any MCAS aware doctors in your area, or alternatively, try the TMS physician finder tool:

TMS - The Mast Cell Disease Society, Inc

Find a Physician - TMS - The Mast Cell Disease Society, Inc

Find a Physician Loading store locator from Stockist store locator…

Sorry if it seems like I'm just throwing a lot of links at you, but they are very useful links and I'm not at my best right now to explain things.

I hope this is helpful and if I missed something, please let me know.

I wish you luck in remedying your chronic health issues <3

Disabled trans author (me) in financial worry zone

Prynhawn da pawb

I'm making this post to keep you all updated with what is happening in my life and where I'm at currently. There's no need for panic just yet, but things are more tenuous than they were before and I hope by explaining what has happened I can keep you all in the loop regarding everything.

So, first things first - I was in A&E last month due to suffering a shock (which I would prefer not to talk about at this time). Suffice to say, this shock was so intense that it caused the knock-on effect of my body entering a state of ketoacidosis caused by involuntary starvation. You can read more about what happened to me in this reblog which I posted earlier.

The ordeal caused me to need to take anti-nausea medication for a while before I ate in order to be able to stomach anything. Thankfully I am able to eat normally again now.

However, I didn't have long to recover from this ordeal before some more bad news came my way. Due to a change in circumstances, I will need to move house at some point this year (ideally as soon as is humanly achievable, which could still be several months) into a smaller flat than the one I'm currently living in. House moves are costly and to make matters worse, more bad news this week.

It looks like I will become unemployed by the end of the month. I'm already looking for some more part-time work, with a few options lined up. But none are guaranteed unless I am successful as a candidate for these jobs.

Which means I'm going to be living on remaining student loan funds in order to pay rent (hence the need to move to a cheaper flat as soon as humanly possible - which could be several months from now. My remaining student loan is *only just* enough to be able to cover this. I'm hopeful I will be able to find part-time employment somewhere - however, the jobs I am applying for don't quite offer enough hours to fully pay for rent as it stands, therefore I'm going to be promoting my patreon for creator support purposes a bit more in order to help me get through this difficult time.

I already can't thank patrons enough for helping me afford a dental mouthguard earlier this year to protect my teeth from my bruxism. If anyone has anything to spare - even in the short term, this will go directly to keeping a roof over my head and food in my fridge. Once I'm able to move house, costs should come right down and hopefully things will be much smoother sailing. But until then, please share this post or donate to my patreon or tip me on tumblr if you are able.

Diolch yn fawr iawn i chi gyd

Luke

Patreon

Get more from Prosiect Llyfr Enfys on Patreon

Croeso! Welcome!

Photo of the beach at Aberystwyth I took yesterday for tax:

LGBTQIA+ Russians are facing tighter restrictions than ever before

I don't usually make posts like this- but in case people are unaware, recently the Russian government passed laws which ban gender transition outright and have already passed laws which target LGBTQIA+ expression and existence. LGBTQIA+ Russians who want to flee are also facing difficulty leaving because many countries have shut their borders to Russians following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

Below are a few links to LGBTQIA+ orgs in Russia which support LGBTQIA+ people living there. If you can, please donate (bearing in mind that because of conversion rates, GBP or USD goes much further there and will really help out the orgs and LGBTQIA+ Russians).

Amnesty International

Russia: Adoption of transphobic legislation a horrendous blow to human rights

The proposed amendments not only prevent people from changing gender markers in official documents but also include provisions that prohibit

центр-т / Centre-T (Gathers resources and information for trans people, organises private group chats for trans people, educates doctors, hosts meetings for trans people)

выход / Coming Out (Free psychological and judical consultations, monitors discrimination, hosts seminars and discussions)

Delo LGBT / LGBT Case (Provides analysis of the law and its affect on Russian LGBTQIA+ people, provides attorneys to LGBTQIA+ people in court)

Pictured below is an image of the Duma during the 3rd reading of the new law. The screen top left says:

For: 386 members

Against: 0 members

Abstained: 0 members