Good Trouble and the Gerrymandered Map:
Sleeping, Slicing, and the Sin of Fake Democracy Last week, Representative Nicole Collier slept on the floor of the Texas State Capitol. Not because she misplaced her hotel key—but because she refused to sign a police-escort permission slip. She called it a “slumber party for democracy.”I call it a spiritual nap strike. Her crime? Refusing […]
The Missing Trump Flag
A Whisper of Dissent in MAGA Country Crook County bleeds red. In the blood-type-for-fascism sense, not the rustic patriotism sense. We’re talking one of the reddest counties in the reddest state in America. MAGA hats are practically part of the school uniform, and Trump flags flutter like sanctified relics in front yards year-round. So when […]
Clearing the Streets
The Bubble Problem Have you ever tried to put down contact paper on a shelf, or in a drawer? Maybe I’m dating myself. Have you ever tried to stick a decal on a window? You smooth it down, doing your darndest to get it perfectly flat… but lo, there’s a bubble. Dang it. You push […]
The Red State Job Hunt: A Survival Guide for the Soul-Adjacent
Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Corporate Feudalism The Five Tools to Manage Red State Employment Grief Welcome, fellow travelers of the late-stage capitalist wasteland. If you’ve ever tried finding a job in Red State America without surrendering your conscience, congratulations: you’ve already failed successfully. This guide is for anyone trying to […]
The Cult of Brighter Days On Forgiveness
or: How to Stop Drinking Poison Just to Spite the Other Guy To err is human. In fact, around here we call that Tenet Zero: Failure is Mandatory. You will screw up. You have screwed up. And if you’re still waiting to fail, I regret to inform you: the clock’s ticking. Last time, we talked […]
☀️ The Cult of Brighter Days Presents: My Apologies
– A Practical Guide to Owning It When You Screw Up So. You messed up. You weren’t kind. You weren’t nice. You weren’t even funny. You just… said the thing. The wrong thing. The too-sharp, too-loud, definitely-regret-it thing. Now what? Let’s be clear: Failure is Mandatory. That’s not just a slogan—it’s a cornerstone. We expect […]
Enlightenment for Dummies
In Southeast Austin, TX, there stands a quiet, unassuming building—a non-descript block with no sign announcing its occupants, adorned only with a black all-seeing pyramid facing the parking lot. I used to be affiliated with this organization. I was MIB 8096.MIB stood for “Man in Black” (though, to be clear, some of us were women).I […]
🗽 No Kings (But Millions of Mini-Uprisings)
A collaboration of Dr. Jess and Pope Richard This weekend, the streets erupted—not for MAGA hats or MAGA boards, but against them. Americans didn’t just want to cancel a king; they showed up in hoodies and with hand-painted fury. Across car caravans and street corners, the message was clear: “We don’t want a crown—or the […]
A Complicated Oath
I’ve got a complicated relationship with my military service—like trying to explain your first marriage to a room full of therapists with clipboards. I was in the South Dakota Army National Guard for seven years, back when the Cold War was still giving everyone anxiety hives and nuclear winter was a trending fear. I didn’t […]
The Liberal Wing of the Wyoming Democratic Party
…Yes, Apparently There Is One Let’s not kid ourselves—Wyoming is deeply conservative and proudly Republican. It has been since before statehood. But here’s the twist: that same frontier heritage that bred “rugged individualism” also fostered a culture of mutual aid and collective survival. It’s the paradox baked into our two nicknames—The Cowboy State and The […]