Big congratulations on your DIVA award Megan! And my fingers are crossed for more in real life events for you to enjoy and brighten up with your energy adn fierceness :) I love that you are so happy in your relationship and wishing more of that for you.
For me, April was the last month of my current job, I'm preparing to (hopefully) go back to college as a mature student so I'm nervous and excited. Aiming to keep in mind that no matter what I achieve or don't I am still enough for me <3 Would love to hear if anyone else is in education rn and how it's going? (btw have done my fair share of saying awkward things to strangers recently Megan, you're not alone 😆)
What an exciting time Gemma! Can I ask what you're going to study? Massive respect to anyone who's passionate enough to go back to school and pursue something new! 💜
Thank you Megan! I'm going to study an 'access to higher education' course in humanities, covering subjects like english, sociology, politics and history. It's aim is to give me enough skills to go on to uni hopefully 🤞 I'm so much more interested in learning and ready to learn now than when I was at school so it's a great fit for me <3
I am also going back to education after some time away! It is nerve wracking and there’s worries of being ‘behind’ but everyone’s on their own path! I also need to remind myself I am enough no matter my academic record :)
How cool to discover someone else is on a similar path! Totally agree about it being nerve wracking. Absolutely, you are more than your academic record, and always will be. <3 Can I ask what you're going to study?
I can't even tell you how happy my heart was when I saw that picture of Char reacting to you winning that much-deserved award. UltimateHypeBae FTW! I love y'all's love!
ULTIMATE hype bae!! Truly never had a bigger cheerleader in my life, it's very wonderful and also I have to keep my brain in line so that she doesn't find reasons to reject it 😅💜
HUGE congratulations on your much-deserved DIVA award and a month of fabulousness, Megan!
A lot to be grateful for.
My Etsy shop has been busy this month as we approach Mother's Day in the U.S. But the highlight of April was meeting IRL a fellow Etsy shop owner who I've known for over 10 years! A lot of us have connected and become friends through the platform. But she and I had never physically met. She was in the area for an art show, so we got together with another shop owner friend who has met us each separately. It was so exciting to finally meet in person!
Oooh I love this Michele! And so wonderful when internet friends are just as great IRL 🥰 I hope you're taking lots of joy in the creating during the busy season. Also I meant to reply to your last comment - I do have the ornaments you made! Well, my sister does - they're in her room! She absolutely loves them. I can't believe I never pieced together where they came from before 🤦🏽♀️ when I picked them up from my management's office I think they'd been moved from the original packaging so I didn't know who'd sent them or who to thank and now I do: THANK YOU. Such a sweet and generous thing 💜💜
Always a delight to read your newsletter. I love all the queer joy, the highs, the lows, and your thoughts on life. Thank you <3 April was a tough month for me, as it was still full winter here for almost the whole month and I was SO ready to be done with it! But spring is finally creeping in, and life is feeling a little more possible. Hope May treats you beautifully.
Your April sounds like it was just lovely! As for me, I’ve been taking it one day at a time. Special attention has been paid to me going easy on myself and not expecting everything to be perfect all the time. This month I really leaned into some tough feelings but that’s the thing with mental health ... You have to FEEL stuff before you can learn to manage it, and I’m taking the time I need to feel, manage, and get back on my feet.
I am proud of myself for doing something low-key scary: I set up a Mother’s Day popup / fundraiser at my friend’s cafe and sold bouquets of handmade paper flowers as well as specialty daffodils from my garden. I raised about $100 for a local shelter too! It was a lot of work and stressful since I am introverted but I was able to relax and enjoy the day. Will definitely do it again!
Your work is incredibly powerful, and I appreciate your voice! It's wonderful watching you live your best life, and it would go a long way if you would be more intentional about including public health and safety measures in your messages. Many immunocompromised/disabled folks (myself included) relate very much to your content about bodies and rest, but it's discouraging to not see you acknowledge that it's not safe for us to be in most public spaces while we're still in a pandemic and government organizations are ending all mitigation efforts. There are still nearly 100 people dying per day from COVID in the UK, and more in other places.
Big congratulations on your DIVA award Megan! And my fingers are crossed for more in real life events for you to enjoy and brighten up with your energy adn fierceness :) I love that you are so happy in your relationship and wishing more of that for you.
For me, April was the last month of my current job, I'm preparing to (hopefully) go back to college as a mature student so I'm nervous and excited. Aiming to keep in mind that no matter what I achieve or don't I am still enough for me <3 Would love to hear if anyone else is in education rn and how it's going? (btw have done my fair share of saying awkward things to strangers recently Megan, you're not alone 😆)
What an exciting time Gemma! Can I ask what you're going to study? Massive respect to anyone who's passionate enough to go back to school and pursue something new! 💜
Thank you Megan! I'm going to study an 'access to higher education' course in humanities, covering subjects like english, sociology, politics and history. It's aim is to give me enough skills to go on to uni hopefully 🤞 I'm so much more interested in learning and ready to learn now than when I was at school so it's a great fit for me <3
Good luck Gemma!
I am also going back to education after some time away! It is nerve wracking and there’s worries of being ‘behind’ but everyone’s on their own path! I also need to remind myself I am enough no matter my academic record :)
Excited for us both 💗
How cool to discover someone else is on a similar path! Totally agree about it being nerve wracking. Absolutely, you are more than your academic record, and always will be. <3 Can I ask what you're going to study?
I’m studying biology :)
I do like humanities too though, they will be interesting to learn about for sure xx
Awesome, I'm sending my best wishes for you and your biology studies :)
Congrats Gemma! That’s so exciting!
Thank you, fingers crossed <3
The one minute reminder was so appreciated :)
I don’t think I give myself enough credit for how far I have come in a year and how proud of myself I should be! ♥️
I hope you allow yourself plenty of time to soak in that pride Tamsin, you've come a long way 😘💜
I can't even tell you how happy my heart was when I saw that picture of Char reacting to you winning that much-deserved award. UltimateHypeBae FTW! I love y'all's love!
ULTIMATE hype bae!! Truly never had a bigger cheerleader in my life, it's very wonderful and also I have to keep my brain in line so that she doesn't find reasons to reject it 😅💜
HUGE congratulations on your much-deserved DIVA award and a month of fabulousness, Megan!
A lot to be grateful for.
My Etsy shop has been busy this month as we approach Mother's Day in the U.S. But the highlight of April was meeting IRL a fellow Etsy shop owner who I've known for over 10 years! A lot of us have connected and become friends through the platform. But she and I had never physically met. She was in the area for an art show, so we got together with another shop owner friend who has met us each separately. It was so exciting to finally meet in person!
Oooh I love this Michele! And so wonderful when internet friends are just as great IRL 🥰 I hope you're taking lots of joy in the creating during the busy season. Also I meant to reply to your last comment - I do have the ornaments you made! Well, my sister does - they're in her room! She absolutely loves them. I can't believe I never pieced together where they came from before 🤦🏽♀️ when I picked them up from my management's office I think they'd been moved from the original packaging so I didn't know who'd sent them or who to thank and now I do: THANK YOU. Such a sweet and generous thing 💜💜
Yay! I'm so happy to hear that you received them. With the pandemic and international mail, I had no idea where they may have ended up!
Always a delight to read your newsletter. I love all the queer joy, the highs, the lows, and your thoughts on life. Thank you <3 April was a tough month for me, as it was still full winter here for almost the whole month and I was SO ready to be done with it! But spring is finally creeping in, and life is feeling a little more possible. Hope May treats you beautifully.
Wishing some warmth your way as soon as possible Sophie, everything will feel a bit more human soon 🌸🌞
I hope you are getting some warmth and sun this weekend! Or if not in the weeks ahead <3
Life sure has been a lot! Sending all the love to all of you lovelies!
Thank you for the compassionate reminder that life is a lot 💜🧡💗
That also stuck out to me immediately... such a good reminder ❤
Thank you so much for this 💗
lots of love to your corner and those in it! xx
The one minute reminder and the Is It Just Me section boosted me up today! Love seeing you glammed up and dressed down and everything in between!
So glad it gave you a boost Natalie! I hope this week is gentle with you, sending warmth 💜
Your April sounds like it was just lovely! As for me, I’ve been taking it one day at a time. Special attention has been paid to me going easy on myself and not expecting everything to be perfect all the time. This month I really leaned into some tough feelings but that’s the thing with mental health ... You have to FEEL stuff before you can learn to manage it, and I’m taking the time I need to feel, manage, and get back on my feet.
Feeling proud of you for doing this and carving out that space!! Your future self is gonna be so thankful for you 💜💜
Another wholeheartedly delightful message which lightens my email, thank you thank you thank you 😘😘😘
I found your one minute reminder so useful… how rarely we take stock, and how mean that is to ourselves
I LOVE YOU XXXXXXXX
I love YOU 💜💜💜
I am proud of myself for doing something low-key scary: I set up a Mother’s Day popup / fundraiser at my friend’s cafe and sold bouquets of handmade paper flowers as well as specialty daffodils from my garden. I raised about $100 for a local shelter too! It was a lot of work and stressful since I am introverted but I was able to relax and enjoy the day. Will definitely do it again!
Your work is incredibly powerful, and I appreciate your voice! It's wonderful watching you live your best life, and it would go a long way if you would be more intentional about including public health and safety measures in your messages. Many immunocompromised/disabled folks (myself included) relate very much to your content about bodies and rest, but it's discouraging to not see you acknowledge that it's not safe for us to be in most public spaces while we're still in a pandemic and government organizations are ending all mitigation efforts. There are still nearly 100 people dying per day from COVID in the UK, and more in other places.