R.K. Belford's Blog, page 2

Why Do Gimps Get All the Best Parking Spots?

Get well never

You would think that being disabled would be the worst part of being disabled, but it’s really not. Being disabled is the most painful part, the most exhausting part, the most depressing part and the most tedious… but it’s not the worst. The worst is other people and how they treat you (or refuse to treat you, as the circumstance may be).

It is virtually impossible to go through a single day without being negatively impacted by the attitudes that society holds towa...

Book Giveaways!

I’m giving away one copy of each of my latest books through Goodreads!

Here’s how it works: You must have a Goodreads account to enter (a complete list of rules and regulations is listed at goodreads.com). You also need to be at least 18 years old and a resident of Canada or the U.S. Both contests (one for each book) run from today, November 3, 2015 to November 27, 2015. Goodreads will randomly select a winner in each contest (they pick, not me), and inform me of their addresses to send the r...

What’s You is Mine

I used to steal things.

It was wrong, certainly, and I felt a tremendous guilt over it at the time, but largely because I didn’t understand why it was only directed towards the people I cared about. I think people take things for a lot of different reasons, and while kleptomania is the clinical label we put on it when people do it compulsively, trying to paint every person who has this compulsion with the same brush ends up dismissing the very real dysfunctional thought processes which underl...

If a Crazy Person Falls in the Woods and No-One’s Around, Do They Make A Sound?

The other day in the car with a family member, we were having a discussion about how hard it is to access adequate healthcare (specifically pain treatment) when you are mentally ill.

“Is it?” they said.

“I’ve seen it happen countless times with other people I know, and it certainly has beenfor me,” I said.

They looked at me with confusion. “But you’re not mentally ill?”

I was gobsmacked.

I asked them what they meant, since they knew I was being treated for bipolar, and they said, “But you’re...

New Book!

I’m pleased to announce the soft launch of my latest book, “I’Mmoral: Poems for Unrepentant Sinners and Free Thinkers.” For the time being, the eBook is available only on lulu.com, but is being rolled out for distribution through Amazon, Kobo, NOOK, and more.Once I have approved the proofs of the paperback version, I will advise where those can be purchased as well.

Summary: What would the war cry of a mostly introverted, mentally ill, autistic, genderqueer, physically disabled, feminist, ath...

New Digs, New Work

Last year was supremely difficult, creatively speaking. My ongoing health issues got even more complicated, with new symptoms requiring new medications, and overall I felt really defeated. It took a toll on me physically, and ended up triggering a lot of mental fallout as well. Writing under those circumstances was almost impossible.

As we go into the fall this year, though, I’m finally feeling a sense of renewed creative energy. Some of this is down to some changes in medications and learnin...

New digs, new work

Last year was supremely difficult, creatively speaking. My ongoing health issues got even more complicated, with new symptoms requiring new medications, and overall I felt really defeated. It took a toll on me physically, and ended up triggering a lot of mental fallout as well. Writing under those circumstances was almost impossible.

As we go into the fall this year, though, I’m finally feeling a sense of renewed creative energy. Some of this is down to some changes in medications and learnin...

Relationship Mono/Poly

Broadly speaking, there seem to be two paths that lead people to polyamory. Some people come at it either right off the bat or early on in their romantic escapades, whereas others seem to arrive at it after a change in trajectory. I envy those who are part of the former group. Like anything that falls into the category of non-normative; a supportive community of family or friends and/or early exposure ends up exacting a huge influence on whether or not we have the confidence to explore certai...

I Dub Thee XYZ

To say I have never felt the need to define my identity would not be fair or accurate. It has simply never seemed to me to be a thing that is static or definable. At any point in time I may present a certain way, or think of myself in certain terms, but these labels always feel transient and insufficient. I resist being pinned down. I fear being labeled one thing forever.

It might be an easier prospect if any one label had ever possessed any sense of ‘rightness’. Instead I’ve spent a lifetime...

You Probably Think This Memoir’s About You

Writing memoir doesn’t come without fallout of one kind or another. I write about myself and my feelings and experiences. And I get a lot of good feedback from objective sources for doing so. People relate to it and thank me for putting into words the things they’ve held back or buried over time. Because it’s easier, sometimes, recognizing yourself in someone else’s story when giving voice to your own can be so painful and feel so risky.

Why risky? Because when you write about your life, othe...