Mastodawn

NON-USians:
U-Haul is a co in the US that lets you rent trucks. There's a family of running jokes about "U-Haul lesbians" or lesbians renting U-hauls because - apparently - we have a tendency to move in together pretty quickly after we start dating.

Is there an equivalent in your country? If so, what is it?

(Please boost for visibility and curiosity)

Lisa McLennan (she/her/ne/nem)Sep 25

Anon Opin Sep 24

Fuck sake. I'm literally just writing a Word document and saving it to my hard drive. STOP ASKING ME TO USE YOUR SHITTY AI AND YOUR SHITTY CLOUD SERVICE. Why is this decades old basic task such a fucking chore now? It's broiling my shit.

Lisa McLennan (she/her/ne/nem)Aug 28, 2025

dillyd Aug 27, 2025

A first for me: tricolored bumblebee! Also known as orange belted bumblebee. This gentle creature let me take about 300 photos of him.
#bumblebee #TriColoredBumblebee

Lisa McLennan (she/her/ne/nem)Aug 28, 2025

Max Leibman Aug 28, 2025

When your photos get less engagement because you didn't make them accessible, you're paying the alt tax.

#AltText #Accessibility

Lisa McLennan (she/her/ne/nem)Aug 28, 2025

Gender Census Aug 28, 2025

There are only 2 days left to do this year's Gender Census survey:

https://survey.gendercensus.com

If your gender is neither here nor there, give it a look. It's open to anyone anywhere, it doesn't ask any intrusive questions, and it takes most people 5-6 minutes.

There have now been over 42,000 responses!

#LGBT #LGBTQ #LGBTQIA #gender #survey #pride #GSM

Lisa McLennan (she/her/ne/nem)Aug 28, 2025

Droppie Aug 27, 2025

https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/9049101/governments-ndis-overhaul-affects-autism-support-for-kids-adults/

Quote

In the last week, participants of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) were dealt a terrifying blow: the government is gearing up to "redirect" people with "mild" and "moderate" autism away from the scheme toward a new program called "Thriving Kids".

According to Disability and NDIS Minister Mark Butler, "diverting kids" away from the NDIS is an "important element of making the scheme sustainable and returning it to its original intent".

As an autistic adult, I can't help but notice some obvious problems with this ill-defined plan.

Firstly, there's the focus on "kids" and "early intervention". The government seems to be forgetting that autism is defined as a permanent and therefore lifelong neurological condition: that is, that autistic children grow up into autistic adults.

Though it's true that around 56 per cent of NDIS participants are aged 18 or under, and many of these have a primary diagnosis of autism, it's just as important to remember the rest of the people on the scheme are adults.

On a related note, the government seems to be framing so-called "mild" and "moderate" autism as something that can be "treated".

The questions this raises are many: what is defined as "mild" or "moderate" autism, and who makes that decision? What happens to autistic kids when "early intervention" runs out? And what happens to autistic adults?

My fear is that there's a short-sighted and almost cruel logic that the government seems to be applying: support (some) autistic children for a while, then leave them and autistic adults to fend for themselves.

Of course, many of us already know what it's like to be left to fend for ourselves, and that's why our anger is so visceral.

Personally, I know the suffering caused by not getting the support I need.

I was 28 when I was diagnosed as autistic. The diagnosis was a revelation that explained so much of my lived experience, including my lifetime of suffering: my physical illnesses I now recognise as comorbid to autism, as well as my social struggles, anxiety, insomnia, and suicidal depression.

Though my diagnosis came with its share of grief, it also came with hope: with a diagnosis, maybe I could get some support?

My hopes were torn to pieces by the NDIS.

Though I was eventually accepted onto the scheme, as a so-called "high-functioning" autistic, my support needs were considered minimal, and I've been left with a plan I can't use.

The supports I need, including mental health therapy, are simply not covered by my NDIS plan.

Ironically, my plan does fund supports I don't need, like speech therapy and a support worker.

Like me, many people have NDIS plans they can't use, and many more simply don't even bother applying.

The punishing, difficult process of accessing the NDIS goes some way to explaining why, despite the fact that around 4.4 million Australians have a disability, only around 740,000 of us currently access the NDIS.

So what happens to those of us who aren't supported by the NDIS? And by extension, what's the threat to autistic kids and adults being "diverted" away from the NDIS?

"Luckily", we don't have to guess. The outcomes of not providing autistic people with suitable supports has been thoroughly reported in medical literature.

Autism researchers routinely report that it is "support throughout the lifespan that can alter the rather negative outcomes of autistic people in adulthood" and improve quality of life for people with autism.

Without this support, we suffer greatly. In adulthood, a lack of support has been linked to poor physical and mental health outcomes, including suicide, which is one of the leading causes of death among autistic people.

Another Australian study of autistic people without intellectual disability found that 66 per cent of respondents reported suicidal ideation, with 35 per cent reporting suicide plans or attempts - about five times higher than the general population.

I'm one of these statistics, and so is my twin sister.

Despite having autism and multiple other disabilities, my sister has been rejected from the NDIS twice, and is now fighting for access at the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART).

During this time, in the last year alone, my sister has been admitted to hospital for suicidality twice.

Over and over, people in the disabled community have seen how problems within the NDIS can lead to a worsening in our physical and mental health.

But, importantly, we've also seen how the NDIS has changed and saved lives.

So where do we go from here?

Though I'm hopeful the Thriving Kids program will be able to further support autistic children, the program's rollout should not be a replacement for the NDIS.

Further, the government needs to realise that all people with autism - children and adults - require individualised supports suitable for each stage of life. That goes for so-called "high-functioning" autistic people like me, too.

- Elena Filipczyk is a freelance writer and a PhD candidate at Monash University.
- Support is available for those who may be distressed. Phone Lifeline 13 11 14; beyondblue 1300 224 636. Suicide call back service: 1300 659 467.

Unquote

#ndis #autism

The government thinks it can 'fix' me. It can't, nor the hundreds of thousands of Aussies like me

A new NDIS plan for autism has a fatal flaw: It forgets kids become adults.

Lisa McLennan (she/her/ne/nem)Aug 28, 2025

Gender Census Aug 28, 2025

Just quickly dropping in to mention that I have an online shop, which has trans-themed zines, LGBTQ+ handwarmers, and the beginnings of a range of pride flag fidgets:

https://shop.gendercensus.com

#trans #LGBTQ #pride #fidgets #zines

Lisa McLennan (she/her/ne/nem)Aug 28, 2025

My Happily Made monkeys are helping me celebrate Wear It Purple Day 2025 💜 This year's theme is Bold Voices, Bright Futures. Our LGBTQIA+ young people have so much ahead of them if we create a society that includes and supports them.

#wearitpurple
#lgbtqiap
#queer
#minus18
#happilymade
#knit

Lisa McLennan (she/her/ne/nem)Aug 6, 2025

Broadwaybabyto Aug 6, 2025

RFK Jr just cancelled $500 million in mRNA vaccine development.

There were many promising cancer vaccines and treatments under the mRNA programs… including a pancreatic cancer vaccine.

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most lethal because it’s almost always found too late.

I lost my Mom to the disease when she was just 47 years old.

This decision will cost lives.

Lisa McLennan (she/her/ne/nem)Jul 17, 2025

Bryan Alexander Jul 16, 2025

"I was explaining to my Ukrainian colleague the phrase ‘There’s no such thing as a free lunch’. She told me the equivalent in Ukrainian is ‘The only free cheese is in the mousetrap’ - which is so much better"

-found on Bluesky