Heather Blanchard

Thank you 💜

My beloved dog Billy passed today. I’m utterly devastated.

“I’ll give you a program to follow every night. For the next thousand nights, before you go to bed, read one short story. That’ll take you ten minutes, fifteen minutes. Then read one poem a night from the vast history of poetry … Read the great poets, go back and read Shakespeare, read Alexander Pope, read Robert Frost. One poem a night, one short story a night, one essay a night, for the next 1,000 nights. From various fields: archaeology, zoology, biology, all the great philosophers of time … I want you to read essays in every field. Every night, before you go to bed, you’re stuffing your head with one poem, one short story, one essay—at the end of a thousand nights, you’ll be full of stuff, won’t you?”

Ray Bradbury; reading for just a few minutes a night can save your life

Yes!

When I was a wee child, I genuinely thought that the only thing I had be concerned about was human combustion, the Loch Ness Monster, and the Bermuda Triangle. #nostalgia #supernatural

I know 😢

I'm sorry but Paddington Bear is a better role model than Andrew Tate. Paddington is kind and polite. he spends an entire summer working in the hopes of buying a book for his great-aunt. and he has not been credibly accused of sex trafficking.

You may not believe in yourself, but you absolutely have the dark temperament, mossy aura, crooked fangs, and terrifying appetites to be a very good forest horror, swamp creature, or castle haunt if you want.
I believe in you.

I have two reading moods:

1. I’ll devour anything in sight.
2. None of the 2,000 books on my shelf feel right.

And there is no in between. #Booksky

Thanks. Yes it always starts with a sort throat!

Establishing the President's Make America Healthy Again Commission By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered: Section 1.

This commission statement refers to people with Autism, ADHD, asthma, auto-immune disease, and chronic illness as a “dire threat to the American people and our way of life”.

This is a manifesto against disability.

This is the language of eugenics.

#AuDHD

😵‍💫

An orange and yelllow infographic titled “Signs of autistic burnout, (a) checklist” with the following bullet-points: * chronic exhaustion * loss of skills e.g. ability to speak * greater sensitivity to sensory input e.g. light, noise * finding it harder to mask * emotional dysregulation * increased executive dysfunction e.g. planning, making decisions * struggles with ordinary activities e.g. eating, showering * more shutdowns and meltdowns * social withdrawal * memory issues * increased sleep problems There is an illustration of a person in the bottom right corner, looking exhausted and overwhelmed.

Autistic people live in a world that isn’t designed for us. This can lead to burnout, especially for those who mask a lot or are undergoing big life transitions.

Recognising the signs of #autistic burnout can help you understand what’s happening and how to manage it.

#autism #AuDHD

The #AuDHD experience of

Did you get what you needed done today?

No.

Did you have fun or relax instead?

Also no.

(Instead, I spent the entire time stressing and unable to get my brain functioning, so now I’m consumed by shame and anxiety)

#ADHD #autism

I’m ill. I don’t just seem to catch colds like regular folk. I feel like death and I’m stuck in a sensory nightmare. Plus I’m craving Pop Tarts. #audhd #neurodivergent

Ah I forgot I posted this and it’s cheered me right up! 🐭

Daryl Hannah as a decaying corpse in the 1988 Neil Jordan film, High Spirits.

Current mode:

I can’t stress enough how much AI is ruining the internet. Pinterest is un-usable, Google image searches are overrun with misleading slop. It’s estimated that there are now more bots on the web than there are people. We have seen a wonderful thing destroyed in our lifetimes.

sometimes I'm late because i sit like this for a long time [Image of the prop "old lady" whose ring gets stolen in Black Sabbath, sitting up in bed]

Happy Saturday aka The Best Day to Buy Chocolate

Finally getting to see some live music tonight for the first time this year. Saw all my faves last year so it’s going to be difficult to top this year. 🤘🎸#livemusic #music #rock

Mmm interesting!

It’s probably the only thing I do do consistently!

Me too ✨

Does anyone else tally up the most frequent tarot cards that appeared in their personal readings the previous month? My stalkers for January were the temperance card and the three of cups #tarotsky #tarot

Three snowdrop flowers that look like white buds surrounded by grass

Blessed Imbolc. These snowdrops arrive every Feb 1st in my garden. There’s usually more though 😢 #witchsky #pagan

Photo of Marianne Faithfull as a young woman with blonde hair, a fringe and a wistful expression.

I always found the 60s fascinating, and Marianne Faithfull was a huge part of the magic of that era. RIP. Photo by David Redfern. #mariannefaithfull #60s

I definitely relate, but glad there’s hope!

I hope you aren’t too hard on yourself.

Being neurodivergent is like being a bad cake. Add executive dysfunction to anxiety and RSD. Mix in sensory issues, overstimulation, and the inability to keep up with daily tasks. Burn with self-criticism, and frost by intensely masking, which exhausts you. #audhd #adhd #neurodivergent