It's the Sunglasses

Hello Internet Friends.

Rather a serious post for my goofy blog. I know I don’t have to justify my absence to anyone, but I want to put this out there. My husband, who appears in the bio of my blog, in my icon, and in many of my most popular posts, is currently in the hospital.

We have spent about sixteen scary hours between two hospitals today, and his doctors have concluded he has a lemon-sized tumor in his brain and are planning to operate this Friday. We will not have more information until then but are trying to remain optimistic.

My queue is still full and you may see sporadic posting from me in the next few days, but expect a halt on message replies and asks for the time being.

Much love to my internetters.

Hey guys, that was August 7th. A few weeks later we found out it’s cancer.

It’s October 11th. I have not posted about it until now. There are still people in our real life who we have to tell.

We’re cheerful. We’re in love. We’re also very scared, but his care team has been beyond excellent and we are now in contact with professionals at a university medical center a couple cities away.

This is my husband who so many people have loved just via my silly posts about him, and I promise if you could meet him in person you’d love him even more.

Just continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers. My queue is still full and I still have things to say sometimes.

It’s November 27th. Husband is in radiation and chemotherapy until Christmas Eve. He’s having some fatigue and hair loss but otherwise trucking along. I will update again after the holiday season.

I continue to be so grateful for everybody thinking of us and also happy that I’ve had the chance to share a tiny bit of knowledge about brain cancers, which are relatively rare and therefore aren’t usually privy to the awareness campaigns that find research for more common cancers, like Breast Cancer.

It’s December 23rd. Today is husband’s LAST DAY of radiation! He continues oral medication and monitoring into the new year, but his most recent MRI looks GOOD and a more specialized MRI next month will give us more info. Thank you all again for your support and curiosity 💖

It’s January 20th. Husband starts a new round of chemotherapy soon but he had another MRI today and there has been no new growth during or after his radiation. He’s not looking forward to the side effects of his new medication but it’s better than more surgery. Love you guys!

Hey guys. It’s August again.

Today my family and friends are throwing a “cranniversary” to celebrate the anniversary of my husband’s (first) craniotomy and a year of battling cancer. I hope to add some pictures later today.

I’ve had so many kind people in my inbox asking for an update and while I don’t always have the bandwidth to reply I want you all to know he’s out here fighting the good fight! He’s experienced complications of infection, regrowth, and blood clots that unfortunately are risks of cancer and its treatment, but he is currently in “good” health minus the side effects of chemotherapy.

His tumor is unique and his case has been shared with the NIH as well as many of the top brain oncologists in the US, but so far his three surgeries, six hospital stays, chemotherapy, and radiation have kept the cancer at bay and he has a chance to be declared in remission in the next six months. His treatment team is considered one of the best in the nation.

I have also had the opportunity to meet a lot of people whose lives and families have been impacted by brain cancer, including people who have passed, people who are still fighting alongside my husband, and people who have been in remission for years or decades. I’ve also learned a lot about cancer, medicine, disability, and the brain from my own experiences and their shared ones.

Thank you for your kindness, internetters, here’s to another year fighting!

August 2024 — August 2025

ludmila ryczanek

It really helps to not be picky about what art you engage with actually. Gotta mix up your diet a bit from time to time

If you find you're bored of the folk punk you always listen to, try out a rap album. If you only ever watch classic cinema or more grounded art films, check out a fast and furious movie or something. Or try reading a book if you only ever consume film or tv. Or comics. Or go to an art museum. You may not like whatever it is you try out, and I promise you don't have to like it, but I can guarantee that you can't subsist on a monoculture. Be open to experiencing new art. Even if it's bad. Especially if it's bad, actually.

Wealwell's psyche is everything to me

i'm not a fan of drinks culture because a lot of drinks lovers look down on water... like oh, you only have water? and i think that's a crime. water is so good... i love water. but also, a little tasty drinky? delicious, you know?

but i see it as a sort of fun break from water, when really... water is that girl. she's my wife that i'm in an open marriage with, to where sometimes i need a little silly fling with a different beverage, but we all know that the true heart and soul of the human experience is in water, my wife.

holy shit I just discovered this crazy technique for being right almost all of the time it's called "double checking something before boldly stating it as if it were fact" this could be the next big thing. this could be the song of the summer

I'd truly be the worst person to stick into a timeloop because I'd really just spend the first 5 years catching up on my book tbr, the next 7 on all the movies and shows that've Been On My List for ages, and then another decade on ao3. like sure nothing may stick but my memories will and i can just go into a supermarket to get snacks and wine each day, and i have art to indulge in. like thanks for the hints on how to get out but respectfully, I am busy

Can I offer a reframe of the common "write the shitty first draft" advice? I like that advice a lot but I think the way it's often presented bounces off a lot of people and activates shit that does not help writing happen.

I think of the first draft as an armature.

If I was making a beautiful bronze statue, I would need to make a clay model first. And, depending on the shape, before I even got out my clay I would need to get some good thick wire and create a basic shape for the clay to adhere to, so it doesn't all fall down. Once I have this essential 3D wire frame, I can start building and subtracting and refining.

But if I try to refine on just clay, it won't have enough of a core to hold it up. I'll sculpt a beautiful hand only to have the whole arm fall off and go smush.

The armature isn't the sculpture. It is the frame you build the sculpture around.

The first draft isn't the novel, it's a sort-of-novel-shaped thing that will hold up everything you build and beautify later.

Write the armature draft. Try to make it a good armature, instead of trying to make it a good novel before it's ready.

Found this old drawing of Gandalf and Frodo

How it feels being a little hater with your friends in private spaces and never actually going out of your way to harass or bully anyone

Love the PCs of Cloudward, Ho! so much they’re all so cool and the designs are gorgeous!!! Wish I had the energy for a full piece but here are some sketches of the amazing women in the party

changing my mindset from “if I don’t keep my home clean i’m a useless horrible failure” to “i deserve to live in a comfortable, clean environment, so i will do my best to provide myself with that” has been fairly life changing

and it applies to so much!!!! i try to take whatever i’m beating myself up over, like “i haven’t been eating enough veggies lately so i suck as a human,” and instead reframe it as “my body deserves all the important nutrients found in vegetables” and suddenly i’m ten billion times more inclined to actually prioritize eating more veggies

shame is a paralytic!!!!! self compassion is an actual motivator!!!!!

i love you mr. meat grinder

(close-ups below)

Text taken from this post by @idontmindifuforgetme :)

Starting some silly autistic comics because they vibe (his name is Apple Sauce)

"casual" as an insult is really funny tbh. hey everybody this guy plays games for fun. they like to relax and have a good time

become the protector