EEDA Newsletter Vol 6, Res 4: Deleted Guidelines, Mutual Aid How-To, Helping Trans Folks, and More
This is a public issue of Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice. Feel free to share it!
Hi friends! Last weekend I took the vintage typewriter I scored at the rummage sale to the typewriter repair shop and the guy there told me that I “got a really nice machine.”
Also, if you’re new here, hi! The resource issues are always free and occasionally there will be an essay for paid subscribers only. They used to switch back and forth each week but gosh, there are a lot of resources I want people to know about lately. One I’ve shared in the past that you may have missed is 5calls.org, which I wrote about back in 2023 in this issue (here’s a recent Instagram video in case it helps motivate you with how easy it is).
New EEDA Pod episode this week: “Survival, Solidarity, and Simple Pleasures”
In this heartfelt episode of "Enthusiastic Encouragement and Dubious Advice," Patricia and Nicole discuss recent events, including their experiences at the Oakland Museum of California White Elephant Sale, and emphasize the importance of caring for ourselves during troubling times. They share their anger and grief over the current socio-political climate while encouraging listeners to find joy and community. The hosts also highlight ways to remain resilient, stay informed, and support one another through collective action and personal creativity.
You can find our show, Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, and wherever else you get your podcasts. You can also support the show on Patreon, where we have some perks for paid subscribers with even more coming this year.
This newsletter has 37 paid subscribers and goes to 540 inboxes every week. I appreciate every reader, every share, and every upgraded subscription that has kept this newsletter going for over 6 years.
Resource 1: Libraries can help you feel good and here’s the paper to prove it
Libraries & Well-Being: A Case Study from The New York Public Library is a fantastic paper about how going to the library can improve your well-being and yes I am biased because I am a librarian. Highly recommend reading the paper to learn more and also the best thing is that the library is free for all of us. If this paper doesn’t convince you and you need more encouragement to go to your library, I suggest the EEDA Pod Library Love Letter Part One and Part Two episodes.
Resource 2: The List of [the current administration’s] Forbidden Words That Will Get Your Paper Flagged at NSF
Not only am I angry at this list but I am also angry that it took me longer than it should have to find this list in an accessible and shareable form e.g., 1) not behind a paywall and 2) not just screenshotted and posted on social media. Come on, folks. Putting vital information like this behind a paywall doesn’t help the situation. Yes, I know you need to make money but don’t make it at the expense of the rest of us. Damn. It’s the whole reason we’re in this mess in the first place.
Resource 3: Studies on the safety of expired N95s (compared to new N95s and new surgical masks): A summary by Mask Bloc East Bay
Resource 4: Find Removed CDC Guidelines
I appreciate that there are so many folks working on preserving important data and information; however, it seems to be coming at me from many different angles and while I may learn how to access things ten different ways from ten different sources, others are not seeing them at all. Case in point: the removed CDC Guidelines. So, here are some links, all in one place:
CDC datasets uploaded before January 28th, 2025 via Internet Archive
Documents endorsed by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
US Medical Eligibility Criteria and Selected Practice Recommendations via Birth Control Pharmacist
US CDC Guidelines on Contraception, STIs, and Vaccines via Pegasus Health Justice
CDCGuidelines.com via AED
Environmental Data and Screening tools thanks to the Public Environmental Data Project
Resource 5: Sorry, Your Bootstraps Won't Save You: A Guide to Mutual Aid in the Age of Bullshit
I am definitely guilty of saying (and sharing resources saying) to “plug in to your local mutual aid groups” without recognizing that this is new for a lot of people and many of us saying this aren’t telling people how. This post is incredibly helpful in filling that gap.
Resource 6: Every Way Cis People Can Help Trans People Right Now (Ordered by Level of Engagement) via Anna Marie, Ph.D.
Resource 7: 8 Things We Need Trans Allies to do Right Now via mood.kandi
Instagram carousel and (hooray) an accessible text version!
Resource 8: What's At Stake for Trans People in 2025: A Primer for Allies & Comrades via Kai Cheng Thom
Resource 9: What you can do, right now, for your trans and nonbinary friends, family, students and colleagues by S. Bear Bergman
Resource 10: On Strategic Disobedience by Megan Mayhew-Bergman
One of the most moving pieces I’ve read this year so far. Even if you don’t think it’s for you, it’s for you. It reminds me of an Instagram post that said, “Everyone wants to save the world but no one wants to help Mom do the dishes.”
Resource 11: What is "media"? A primer for Americans. via The Hypothesis by Annalee Newitz
This is the first in a series of letters based on an introductory media studies course Newitz taught in the spring of 2024 at the University of San Francisco. I highly recommend subscribing and learning.
Resource 12: How to Critically Read a Press Release From the Federal Government via Kelly Jensen for Book Riot
I’ve shared more than a few resources on information literacy in previous EEDA newsletter issues and I am really excited to add this article to the mix. Kelly Jensen does phenomenal work and this article is such a huge gift. Please read it and learn.
Resource 13: Why do I feel itchy when I’m stressed? Short video via Zachary Rubin, MD
You can find it on TikTok and Instagram.
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New Project: Optimistic Hoarder
My mother was aggressively happy and extremely sad. She bought, collected, scavenged, and hoarded when she was joyful and when she was depressed. She passed suddenly in March 2023, leaving a lifetime of belongings in multiple caches.
This newsletter is my attempt to make sense of things as I, her only child, sort through them one box at a time.
Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice is not the right place for these essays so you can find & subscribe to Optimistic Hoarder here: https://buttondown.com/optimistic-hoarder. I do not know how frequently I will write nor do I know if I will ever paywall it (currently, sign-ups are free).
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. Links are affiliate links.
Recently Read:
The City We Became by N. K. Jemisin (reread)
Currently Reading:
The World We Make by N. K. Jemisin
On Her Terms by Amy Spalding (out 2/25)
Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds by Adrienne Maree Brown
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.