u/ToxxyRayne

So I’m disabled, so I can’t always be super active, but I’d really love to find some people who are into the same things I am. I’m a huge nerd for anime, music, gaming, movies, etc. I’ve tried to do D&D, but tabletop stuff has always been hard for me to get into even though I've tried A LOT to be.

I’d also love to find a group that doesn’t revolve around drinking though I don't mind if we do. I keep finding groups geared toward kids or seniors, but not much for people in between. I’m totally open to making friends with anyone 18+.

I’ve been feeling pretty isolated lately between running my own business, living more out in the country, and dealing with medical stuff. Is there anywhere I could connect with other local nerds? 😭

I hope this is allowed.

But I've been trying over the years to connect and make friends with other artist alley people. but contact usually gets lost shortly after awhile.

Being a small biz owner it gets really hard to connect with people like me especially in such a nerdy subculture. I work in my home all the time, I don't have ways to make friends, and I'd love to befriend someone who GETS IT.

What strategies, places, groups, can I try to find people to make this happen?

X.x it gets lonely out here. You know discord and craft together time would go so hard.

Curious what the best ones are anymore. So many new ones are popping up over the years.

Side note I still miss charcoal inn 😭

This was around 2012 or 2013 when I was in high school. After school ended, I was sitting at the public bus transfer station waiting for my bus home. A few other students from my school came in, including a young black lowerclassmen who seemed like he had something on his mind.

After walking around for a while, he eventually sat near me. After a little silence, he looked at me and said, in a defeated tone, “You’re lucky you’re white.”

I just sat there quietly for a moment.

I knew racism existed and that racial issues happened in the world, but I was honestly confused about why he would say that to me. I was someone he had only ever seen in passing at school. So I asked him, “Why do you say that?”

I remember feeling nervous, confused, and unsure of what was happening. But then he started telling me about what had been going on in his life, and that conversation completely changed my perspective.

I think his feelings had just finally bubbled over and he needed someone to listen.

He told me that his neighbors were racist and constantly called the police on his family over every little thing. It had gotten so bad that he was afraid that he and his little sister would be taken away by CPS. He seemed genuinely scared to go home because he never knew what might happen next but he knew he had to return to help his family.

He wanted to protect his little sister and his mom if he could. From the way he talked about her, his mom was a hardworking single mother doing everything she could for her kids.

I told him I was sorry he was going through that and that none of it was right. I remember feeling disgusted that he and his family were being judged and targeted for no good reason.

What really stayed with me was that, as a white teenager, I had never personally seen or heard much about racism happening in the present day in my own community. Learning that it was happening in my hometown genuinely broke something in me.

Growing up in Sheboygan, I was surrounded by different cultures, especially the Hmong community. I had been taught about racism in history and about how horribly people treated each other in the past. To me, as a teenager at the time, racism felt like something we had moved past. I thought Wisconsin had progressed beyond that.

Looking back, that was incredibly naive, but that conversation opened my eyes.

I was raised to appreciate where people come from and to see the world as a melting pot. I was taught that skin color should not matter and that we should appreciate each other's cultures and backgrounds. So hearing what he was going through completely shattered the bubble I had been living in.

To this day, I still think about that moment.

I remember being so upset for him and thinking about how unfair and messed up his situation was. Part of me wishes I had given him a huge hug because he looked like he really needed one. I regret not doing that when I think back on it.

At the same time, my entire view of the world was being challenged. When you're a kid, you want to believe the world is better than it actually is. That conversation shattered some of that innocence for me.

When I went home I talked to my mom about it and really let things sink in. I saw him around school after that, though I don't remember his name (even if I did I wouldn't dox him) and we were never really friends. He could be a little aggressive sometimes, but after hearing what was happening in his home life, I understood that stress and fear can affect a kid deeply and follow them into school.

As an adult, I try to be much more aware of these things. I understand now that people can still hold racist beliefs and treat others unfairly because of them, even when we would like to believe that kind of thinking is gone.

I do feel like Sheboygan has progressed since then, and there have been many social movements and conversations surrounding these issues. But I also know there is always more work to do.

Sometimes we have no idea what someone else is going through. It's important to listen, learn about the world around us, and do what we can to make things better.

I'm glad that, for whatever reason, he felt safe enough to talk to me, a stranger. He changed me permanently, and I don't think he ever knew that.

I truly believe in ending the divide between people. Black, white, Hmong, Mexican, whatever you are, no one deserves to be judged for something they were born as.

These are our neighbors. Our friends. Sometimes even our own family.

And people are being hurt on so many levels for absolutely no good reason.

If you're out there, reading this, that boy from the bus transfer station, I hope you and your family are doing better now. I hope you know how much you impacted my life from that little moment. You were so strong back then for your family and you were only a child. That was a lot for you. I wish at the time I could have helped you more. But I was also just a kid going through a lot. Sending positive thoughts, kindness, strength, and love to you and your family.

Idk if this story is weird, I felt stupid not knowing better. But yeah....

It's replaced with nana or lala for some. The voice is pitched up like nightcore. Guessing it's from the 2000s. Driving me insane.

Lyrics "Looking at the night sky"

My husband got 6lbs of butter from work for free and I'm trying to figure out what to do with it. Like butter cake, butter cookies and shortbread cookies are some I thought of. Also maybe some sort of puff pastry but I am a tad of a cripple 😅 so I couldn't use my hands effectively for that. I have a stand mixer (thank God) that helps my disabled self with these things. Any ideas for something I could do? Making massive batches of cookies wouldn't be bad.

I'm talking about how the songs play with sound heavily, have a lot of depth, and really give you an immersive experience. As if you really wanted to give yourself a full experience with your headphones.

Personally I love testing headphones with the following:

Another World- Chemical Brothers

Here to Go-Go mix- DEVO ✨ this one is just nuts shifting all over the place. Trust me.

Aerodynamic - Daft Punk

Bonus song:

Everything in its right place- Radiohead