Stevie Converse

Age does not define you but what does is the way you keep choosing yourself even on the days you barely can. It’s the small violences you refuse now the soft no, the boundary drawn in tired breath, the slow reclamation of a body that spent too long apologizing. It’s the quiet courage of waking up still willing to try again, to sift through the ache, to name what hurts without letting it own you. What defines you is not the years of quiet but the spine you grew in the darkness the one that holds you upright when no one is watching, when no one would blame you for collapsing. What defines you is the persistence of you barely visible some mornings, feral others still choosing yourself, again and again.

Age does not define you
but what does is
the way you keep choosing yourself
even on the days you barely can.
#poetry

Ranked choice voting outperforms the winner-take-all system used to elect nearly every US politician Ranked choice voting largely avoids the pitfalls of plurality voting, giving voters the power to express their true candidate preferences rather than being strategic.

I would prefer this: Ranked choice voting outperforms the winner-take-all system used to elect nearly every US politician theconversation.com/ranked-choic...

We are hardwired to sing − and it’s good for us, too Modern science is increasingly validating what many traditions have long held: Singing and chanting can have profound health benefits.

Couldn't agree more: We are hardwired to sing − and it’s good for us, too theconversation.com/we-are-hardw...

Opinion | Paper-and-Pen Diaries Are Forever

Lily Koppel on the revolutionary return of the paper diary. I so agree. You can read it for free without a NYTimes subscription. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/29/o...

Many Fighting Climate Change Worry They Are Losing the Information War

Stuff we need to know: a good article from the NYT on the way fossil fuel companies are continuing to crank out disinformation with big money and running roughshod on the smaller countries most affected by the changes. You can read it for free without a subscription. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/30/c...

Resistance!

YouTube video by Heather Cox Richardson What the Heck Just Happened?

I know you're already stuffed with Thanksgiving but here's some interesting history about our Thanksgiving holiday.
youtu.be/mio-nvDD9Dk?...

‘This piggy won’t be quiet’: They spent two nights on a bus to protest the president Days after President Trump called a reporter “piggy,” dozens of fellow women boarded a bus in Ohio for a 36-hour “turn and burn” trip to Washington to fight for regime change.

In case you didn't see this pocket of resistance in the news (because it probably wasn't there). Thank you @19thnews.org for so many important articles: ‘This piggy won’t be quiet’: They spent two nights on a bus to protest the president 19thnews.org/2025/11/ohio... via @19thnews.org

President Piggy This is what consequence-free misogyny looks like.

This. www.theatlantic.com/culture/2025...

Cis cyclists decline award because trans women were excluded: We "ride with all women" - LGBTQ Nation “If they don’t want to ride with all women, then it’s not the kind of ride I want to be part of.”

Resistance: Cis cyclists decline award because trans women were excluded: We “ride with all women” www.lgbtqnation.com/2025/11/cis-...

Has The U.S. Become A Surveillance State?

Becoming or already? Their thoughts on surveillance. www.wired.com/video/watch/...

Mic drop.

Resistance is powerful.

The military’s diversity rises out of recruitment targets, not any ‘woke’ goals On Veterans Day, a look at how the Trump administration views diversity as a symptom of ‘woke’ culture rather than as a long-standing practice driven by the nature of the all-volunteer force.

The military’s diversity rises out of recruitment targets, not any ‘woke’ goals
theconversation.com/the-military...

For the first time, Catholic sisters return land to a Tribal nation "This return represents more than the restoration of land — it is the restoration of balance, dignity, and our sacred connection to the places our ancestors once walked."

Some beautiful news. It takes strong women to do this kind of action: For the first time, Catholic sisters return land to a Tribal nation via @19thnews.org

The Anomalies: The Acorn Woodpecker - bioGraphic These highly social birds defy the typical two-parent family structure, proving that cooperation can make good evolutionary sense.

Since we are making our chaotic way to the age of cooperative communities, here's an example of one already happening. The Anomalies: The Acorn Woodpecker www.biographic.com/the-anomalie...

This mom had no resources when her trans son came out. So she launched a global support network. - LGBTQ Nation "We know that if we educate and support the caregivers, the loved ones, the parents, that the young people are going to do better."

This mom had no resources when her trans son came out. So she launched a global support network. This woman is embodying what we all need to do: take things into our own hands to create the world we want.

An Indigenous approach shows how changing the clocks for daylight saving time runs counter to human nature – and nature itself While the rest of nature rises and slumbers to lunar and solar cycles, humans work and sleep to the resetting of their artificial clocks.

I agree with many points the author makes. I disagree with her trashing DST. I live in New England, and I would prefer to stay with it throughout the year. A good article.

Check out this ancient Babylonian clay tablet in the British Museum presents a curious image of a ghost being led back to the afterlife.

Say what you want about Gavin Newsom. What I say is that he is speaking truth to power.

YouTube video by Elex Michaelson Pete Buttigieg on Mandmani, Newsom, Trump & Democrats "Looking Backwards"

Pete Buttigieg doesn't take the bait and speaks not about going back and picking up the pieces but moving forward.
youtu.be/eoVG3qqRAfo?...

Live Music Saves Lives There's something about a piano...

My latest post from Within the Between:

open.substack.com/pub/stevieco...

Trump's DOJ deletes study confirming the right commits more violence than the left - LGBTQ Nation Donald Trump has used Charlie Kirk's death to claim the left has a violence problem.

Deleting studies that disagree with the administration narrative is despicable. It's something we all know, but still: Trump’s DOJ deletes study confirming the right commits more violence than the left www.lgbtqnation.com/2025/09/trum...

YouTube video by LastWeekTonight Jimmy Kimmel & the FCC: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)

John Oliver at his best. I know this story has been getting a lot of ink and pixels, but his explanation is right on the money as he lays out the corporate media landscape. Humorous truth telling is the best kind. Even though Kimmel is back, this is important stuff to share.
youtu.be/ohPToBog_-g?...

The right laughs at trans people's deaths but demands people be sad over Charlie Kirk - LGBTQ Nation A hierarchy of the value of people's lives is inherent to the authoritarian project, and the GOP is using its power to make everyone comply.

The right laughs at trans people’s deaths but demands people be sad over Charlie Kirk www.lgbtqnation.com/2025/09/the-...

State Supreme Court says Christian education head can't force schools to teach the Bible - LGBTQ Nation One religious freedom organization hailed the ruling as a victory for the separation of church and state.

State Supreme Court says Christian education head can’t force schools to teach the Bible www.lgbtqnation.com/2025/09/stat...

Restaurant owner defies Ron DeSantis' rainbow crosswalk crackdown with a creative idea - LGBTQ Nation “If they want to erase symbols of pride and acceptance, then we’ll create even more of them.”

Restaurant owner defies Ron DeSantis’ rainbow crosswalk crackdown with a creative idea www.lgbtqnation.com/2025/09/rest...

Amy Sherald’s Black trans Statue of Liberty is making an unscheduled stop in Baltimore www.lgbtqnation.com/2025/09/amy-...

Adding more green space to a campus is a simple, cheap and healthy way to help millions of stressed and depressed college students Multiple studies show that grass, trees, shade and sidewalks on a campus reduce student anxiety.

Researchers find more green space on a campus helps millions of stressed and depressed college students but they don't know why. Read Robin Wall Kimmerer's beautiful Braiding Sweetgrass to find out. theconversation.com/adding-more-...

How Europe’s deforestation law could change the global coffee trade Small farms will have the hardest time meeting the rules, giving big producers an edge. One potential solution: agroforestry, growing coffee plants among the trees.

The EU is acting in the right direction, but once again many of the small growers will suffer and go under unless the regulations are modified and aid is given to help them comply. theconversation.com/how-europes-...