EEDA Newsletter Vol 5, Res 11: A Resource Medley for Gaza, ADHD, & Covid
This is a public issue of Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice. Feel free to share it!
Hi friends! I finally read Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler for the first time. It begins on July 20, 2024 so it felt like now was right. Holy shit. I feel simultaneously terrible and hopeful after reading it and I’m already well into Parable of the Talents which is absolutely wild to be reading during an election year.
Over on the EEDA Pod Patreon I’ve started posting weekly accountability posts, inviting people to post what The Thing™ is that they want to do during the week. This week, I plan on eating the fruit in the fridge and not letting it go to waste. So far, I’ve made blueberry waffles, a blueberry German pancake (aka a Dutch baby, a term that feels icky for me to say), and ate three nectarines. There is still a lot of fruit in the fridge and oh my god why do I buy so much fruit???
Anyway, here is the German pancake using this recipe, which is my go-to:
It’s resource week! Let’s get to it.
Resource 1: eSims for Gaza
If you’re feeling angry and helpless about the genocide in Gaza, here is something that you can do: purchase and donate eSims for the people in Gaza. Israel has destroyed the infrastructure needed for people to access the internet and what access there was has been blocked by the Israeli government. Go to https://gazaesims.com/ and follow the instructions so that you can get some internet access for people. This is how they are accessing necessary information, like how to receive aid, as well as how they can escape to safety and continue to share with the world the reality that is happening in Gaza. It does not have to be an exorbitant amount. Anything helps.
Resource 2: Operation Olive Branch (OOB)
From their FAQ: Operation Olive Branch is a volunteer-powered grassroots collective effort to connect with and amplify Palestinian voices in an effort to support their critical needs, which include but are not limited to their mutual aid requests. This global solidarity initiative is steered by a diverse core council of advocates from occupied Turtle Island which include Palestinian activists, the Jewish grandchild of a holocaust survivor, and everyone else in between.
They have a giant spreadsheet of hundreds of families in Gaza seeking donations and more resources. The spreadsheet has many tabs with links to the individual fundraisers. Every little bit helps. The eSims in the above resource help these families be able to access aid.
Resource 3: What You Can Do if You Think You Have ADHD via EEDA Pod
Am I promoting our own podcast as a resource? Yes, I am because it’s a really good free resource! There is so much content out there about “Here are the top 6 signs you have ADHD” or “Do you do these things? It might be ADHD” and so on but that content isn’t actually helpful. It doesn’t tell people what they can do if they suspect they have ADHD, especially if it is getting in the way of their functioning.
In this week's EEDA Pod episode, we help demystify seeking an ADHD diagnosis, provide information to help you decide if seeking an ADHD diagnosis is right for you, and discuss how to seek an ADHD diagnosis. We talk about what may happen during ADHD testing, the validity of online ADHD testing, and what the different steps may be to seeking an ADHD diagnosis. We also chat about potential ADHD treatments and of course, some of the problems with the DSM-5-TR, why a person might not want to seek a diagnosis, barriers and privilege around diagnosis, and more.
You can find our show, Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, and wherever else you get your podcasts.
Resource 4: The Covid Sanity Handbook by Violet Blue via Kickstarter
Friend and journalist Violet Blue has been reporting on Covid since the beginning. Like, before March 2020. Every Thursday she publishes an extensive Pandemic Roundup on her Patreon. If you read her Patreon, then you’ll know that she is also currently in Aotearoa working on a book about Covid. The pandemic isn’t over just because people are tired of it. I jumped at the chance to support The Covid Sanity Handbook Kickstarter and I wanted to be sure you knew about it as well.
Recent & Current Reads
Inclusion of a book in this section is not necessarily a recommendation and these books won’t necessarily be added to my Bookshop.
Recently Read:
Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne
Ninetails: Nine Tales by Sally Wen Mao
The Out Side: Trans & Nonbinary Comics compiled by The Kao, Min Christensen, and David Daneman
A Few Rules for Predicting the Future: An Essay by Octavia E. Butler, illustrated by Manzel Bowman
The Worst Ronin by Maggie Tokuda-Hall, illustrated by Faith Schaffer
Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler
Currently Reading:
Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler
Unexploded Remnants by Elaine Gallagher (out 6/25)
Start Here: Instructions for Becoming a Better Cook: A Cookbook by Sohla El-Waylly and a forward by Samin Nosrat
Out There Screaming: An Anthology of New Black Horror edited by Jordan Peele & John Joseph Adams (Yes, I am still working on this. I got through one particular story and it thoroughly creeped me out so I’ve set it aside)
That’s it for this week! You can shop many books I’ve mentioned in this newsletter at my affiliate shop, The Infophile’s Bookshop, and support independent bookstores. In fact, any Bookshop, Amazon, or Etsy links in this newsletter are affiliate links so if you shop through those, it helps support my work. Or you can leave me a tip on Ko-fi, Paypal, or Venmo.
If you want to send me some snail mail, you can find me at P.O. Box 21481, Oakland, CA 94620-1481.
You can find our podcast, Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, and wherever else you get your podcasts.