Write more. Longer form blog posts that I actually edit, save drafts of and put some research into. As well as my preferred something got me ranting so I turned it into a blog post *hit send* posts.
Get more people subscribed to my blog. You can subscribe to new posts here. You can also sign up to make a monthly contribution here or once off or see my wishlists and buy me something useful or fun or both. Perhaps I could do some exclusive content for sponsors, but I’m not up to that yet.
Save up and start the Autism and ADHD assessment process. I’m 42 and probably have about that long left, so want to try to go into it understanding myself and doing the best for me.
Thank you for a good 2024. Yes, you. If you’ve been in my life this year, I’ve been better for it. Maybe you’ve helped me out with something tricky, maybe I’ve helped you. Maybe you’re a pain but I’ve grown in some way through our interactions. Maybe you subscribe to this blog. Maybe you’ve sent me money or gifts in appreciation of my blogging or social media. Maybe you’re family. Maybe you’re the family I’ve made.
18 months ago, Victoria got a pretty sweet statue, helping to balance out the ones of male sporting heroes and genocidaires. There may be some irony here – Zelda D’Aprano was born in a Jewish family (mum became a communist, and I’d be certain Zelda and her mum would be out at the current anti-genocide rallies), but her chains are being banned from use in protest in that state, while I haven’t seen unionists locking on for pay and conditions for awhile, they, and glue, are quite popular for “disruptive” protests, such as blocking coal trains here in the Hunter, or blocking main roads. All very naughty in the pursuit of capitalism. But Australian police are already pretty good at arresting people for their inconveniencing of others –top of the world actually.
It’s the social cohesion “pledge” that really gets me. I’m sure there will be “clarification” about the masks not meaning for health reasons and that they aren’t really wanting to make it easier to pepper spray people who are merely protecting themselves against covid (lol). But the pledge. Keen to see the wording and how it’ll mean you can’t get government funding if you’re against genocide but somehow Zionist organisations will still qualify. Just like how the AJA still gets to stay a charity somehow.
But, Labor isn’t the party of unions and the common worker. They’re loving their role of law maker and punisher. I watched Silent Night Deadly Night this week, and it’s very Mother Superior of them. Reminding us who’s in charge and that punishment is absolute for us naughty little children.
We do of course hope that some of those naughty white boys playing Nazi will be unmasked and revealed to be cops and co we believe they are in their days jobs, but that will come with the pepper spraying of more activists, and the further destruction of the planet and the people of Palestine.
You’re not going to get more social cohesion by taking away rights and exeptionalising one group over another. You need to support and nurture your people. You can’t deprive them by leaving them in poverty or denying them healthcare and expect them to fall into line. Kids in cars at Christmas, in tents all year around, you can’t run a surplus and leave kids unhoused and not expect backlash. Even if we’re banned from masks and chains.
Time for some good old ghosts of Xmas or their earthly brothers, to scare the rich into line.
Second last morning for my regular food bank this morning. After Wednesday 11/12 they reopen on January 6. Knowing them, they’ll be delivering emergency hampers this whole time. Emergency hampers not funded by the government, but from funds they’re raised through the year from community members and local businesses.
They’re frantically prepping for their Xmas party Sunday. They have gifts for 2000 kids and hundreds of hampers. They’re even doing gift cards for teens, getting donations for them from local businesses.
Another local foodbank closes Wed 18th at lunchtime, reopens January 13. Another weekly one does their last $15 hampers on the 19th and then comes back Jan 16.
Obviously, all these volunteers well and truly deserve a break, and school holidays and Christmas means less people available to help out. A few more just generally close for school holidays (so not back until February). So then, people are left to their own devices, a time when schools are closed, work schedules are thrown out (sometimes way more work sometimes way less), Centrelink reporting is earlier and people either get paid earlier with the public holidays or they miss the early reporting date and have to stretch til the payment comes through.
With Xmas approaching, a reminder that Centrelink reporting and payment dates are often earlier due to public holidays:
We also all know the chaos of holiday grocery shopping, even on more generous budgets.
So, on this day where Youth Payment indexation has been advertised – up to $24.30 extra a fortnight from Jan 1 – and organisations are asking the government to raise the rate of welfare payments, let’s aim for better and ask for ALL payments to be raised above the poverty line – at last $88 a day if we go with the Henderson Poverty Line. People need money to survive, they can’t actually access safety nets like food banks all year around, give them the dignity of choosing and buying their own food – for Christmas and for every day.
The term poverati was used derogatively towards antipoverty activists on Twitter a couple of years back. It’s meant to deride – to poke fun at a group of people doing their best to find community through shared experience of poverty. I first heard it from a think tank member claiming to be working in the interests of poor people in this country. So, we reclaim it, and use it for a little fun ourselves.
The #PoveratiXmas will be observed on Twitter and Blue Sky this year with a thread being posted on today on each site for community members to post their wishlists and pay links so that hopefully some benevolent fairies will come through and fund some wishes.
It’s up to the individual whether they participate. You can be on welfare or not, there’s plenty of people struggling on low incomes, with disabilities or as carers and many reasons out there so don’t be judgy of others xoxo
Please, if you have the means, try to fund a wish and share with your communities so that more people can have their wishes funded.
Wishes can be anything from groceries to fun things like computer games. Anything to make this life and season more bearable to the #Poverati
I had a request to post a different kind of wishlist here:
If you can help this person, comment below or email me phonakins@gmail.com and I’ll forward it onto him!
