Recent Posts

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Voicelessness and Emotional Survival Message Board / Re: Anything again

« Last post by Hopalong on Today at 01:01:44 PM »

I fell asleep with my laptop on and woke hours later to find myself halfway through Dances With Wolves.

No rhyme or reason why I share that, except it felt good to ponder the prairie. The Big Awful going on in our country marches on, and a friend just sent me another friend's Substack article on why the "gospel of love" does not include agitating for Armageddon. Apparently there are military leaders now who are presenting "end times" to their troops as the goal of their missions. Scary stuff.

I've been writing some fairly dark poetry that shocks a few folks. I try to explain that whatever fear or tragedy is ailing me lifts out of my chest when I write about it, and then is safely ensconced on a page. I literally feel the shift when I'm done.

But I like absurdity, too. Sometimes a poem will pop up, take a look around and then run for the hills on its little paper legs.

Glad you're ensconced in the hills, Amber, and Meh, here's to us all finding our own safe retreats.

hugs,
Hops

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Voicelessness and Emotional Survival Message Board / Re: Anything again

« Last post by sKePTiKal on Today at 09:13:18 AM »

Not responding to interruptions while in a face to face conversation is something we practice a LOT around here. There are times - given how much land we have - that communication at a distance IS allowed. If B is out cutting down trees, I always look to see if he's OK or it's an SOS. During bad storms, we even resort to radios. One at Hol's in case our phones go out.

The communication isn't abused. People take care of themselves around here and we have regular face to face sessions for planning, schedules, catch-ups and just dream-casting ideas.

Slightly different situation, I know.

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Voicelessness and Emotional Survival Message Board / Re: Anything again

« Last post by Hopalong on March 03, 2026, 06:53:37 PM »

I just thought it was amazing that whatever the demand (a human knock or an old-school device ringing for her attention), she was completely confident in noting her own preferences (not to be interrupted) and acting accordingly. I didn't know that was "allowed"!

We all get brainwashed in one way or another. It's just really cool when we begin to think our ways past external cues.

hugs
Hops

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Voicelessness and Emotional Survival Message Board / Re: Anything again

« Last post by Meh on March 03, 2026, 02:29:29 PM »

I was visiting a writer friend in her apt in grad school once and she showed me something I'd never learned. Somebody knocked at her door and she didn't answer -- we were having a great conversation. Later, her phone rang and she ignored it.

What a gift.

hugs
Hops

Yeah anticipating other people's needs to a fault is a care-taker role.

I fall into the trap sometimes and then I get out of the trap and I see it.

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Voicelessness and Emotional Survival Message Board / Re: Anything again

« Last post by Meh on March 03, 2026, 02:24:46 PM »

Sometimes I have to explicitly ask AI to provide a reference but I wonder if I do that is it changing the AI output. In the future perhaps I should type the input dumped from journal entry, the output from AI, and also I will explicitly ask for references and cut and paste them.

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Voicelessness and Emotional Survival Message Board / Re: Anything again

« Last post by Meh on March 03, 2026, 02:06:53 PM »

The above excerpts were a result of my journal entries into AI. I had written a longer better response here on the forum to you about 30 minutes ago but it didn't save.

I journal a lot. I am a critical person and even though gray-rock IS A TOOL there is a downside to it.

Sadly I get stuck in OCD type reflection into the dynamic. Sometimes I dump my journaling into AI to get some more research added onto the vague thoughts of vague frustrations I have.

Sometimes AI gives 4-8 references X 10 (times ten). Sometimes AI does not give any references. And yes AI is stealing every person's intellectual contribution to the internet.

Hops, I think in this case for the time being sharing the info with your friend has a potential benefit that outweighs the big existential issue of AI extraction. There is basically no author and since I also go to more than one AI place sometimes I do not remember which AI it even came from.

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Voicelessness and Emotional Survival Message Board / Re: Anything again

« Last post by Meh on March 03, 2026, 01:58:37 PM »

Hi Hops,

I'm trying to respond to your msg above it will take me a moment between the website delay and my laptop cord is wobbly brb.

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Voicelessness and Emotional Survival Message Board / Re: Anything again

« Last post by Meh on March 03, 2026, 01:02:12 PM »

They use the theatricality of the effort to bypass the reality of their laziness.

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Voicelessness and Emotional Survival Message Board / Re: facing the world

« Last post by lighter on March 03, 2026, 12:28:23 PM »

Qanon.

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Voicelessness and Emotional Survival Message Board / Re: Friendship Moments: good or bad

« Last post by Hopalong on March 02, 2026, 12:13:52 PM »

So. No big drama but did a Zoom with Poet yesterday, which was strange and frustrating. She slept through our appointment time and was still groggy when we reset for an hour later. No problem. She was just out of it. It would have been better to reschedule but she didn't want to. I was hopeful (stupidly) because she had written that she "would address" the conflict we'd had. So when I gently asked if she wanted to talk about it, she said "I do not", vehemently. So we talked about her poetry, etc. She avoided eye contact and turned away a lot.
I think the old connection is broken, likely for good. At one point she started telling me "you feel...you think...." and nearly working herself up again. I interrupted her saying "I'm not feeling that! I'm not thinking that!" and she finally gave up. But appeared to resent me stopping her momentum. I sensed it was a buildup to another fury-burst so I'm glad I spoke up.

Not grieving about it now. I understand I can't fix it and am focusing on present friendships here and the oncoming joys of spring. She's going to another state in May to stay in a "lovely inn" near another friend who lives in the Smokies. I'm glad for her. She might be here in July with her daughter and I might see her then.

She kept wanting to talk about the poetry group and justifying all her reasons for it being an "unpleasant experience" for her. She didn't criticize the female leader but made digs about a male poet there that the whole group seems to admire a lot. I'm indifferent about him, he's rarely there. I just don't care about all that because I'm having an autonomous experience with the group that's positive. It's strange but I'm beginning to think she's just jealous of another poet who's popular.

I even suggested to her that there's nothing wrong with resigning from a writing group. She won't quite, but says she won't be attending the next meeting. Jesus. I wish she'd shit or get off the pot.

hugs
Hops