It is so weird to be off work with the sole purpose of just surviving and healing. Like, what do you mean success looks like just eating and then taking a nap???

I love living in Chicago. I'm supposed to go for a little walk every couple of hours. What am I doing for today's walk? Taking a little jaunt to a stationary store and then a family owned coffee shop.

Just realized I forgot to set out a half eaten cookie and a drained glass of milk, so it would look like Santa came for my little brother (31). I've been doing this for him for (5) years. He's not amused but it makes me smile.

I've been sleeping almost nonstop since yesterday. It feels like my body has been catching up on YEARS of missed sleep.

The compression bandage slid down a bit and I got freaked out because I saw something I didn't recognize. It was my (healthy but changed) post-op nipple. I was jump-scared by my own nipple y'all.

Draw Steel implies the existence of Paint Steel and Photograph Steel.

My former HOA Manager (who I haven't talked to in a year) reached out to wish me well on my surgery. Like, she only heard about it through the grapevine. I didn't tell her about it. All that to say, I've been having complicated feelings about what love and community actually mean.

What do y'all think of my surgery core 'fit? It's also shot day, so of course I had to take a video of me taking my bra off for the last time (available on my Theytreon)

I love coming home to a bill from UPS. All because I had the audacity to support a Canadian indie TTRPG company. (Would do it again. Just another way the US government sucks)

The game you want to make and the game that’s fun to make aren’t always the same.

Just realized that the first Halloween after top surgery will be on a Saturday. Obviously I need to celebrate gay Halloween in 2026.

I just made a map of Chicagoland indie bookstores to go along with the main Nerdy Chicago map. Check it out at books.nerdychicago.com

Just found out Ned Fulmer got divorced. That's going to make my "if Ned Fulmer was a chaser" joke even funnier in 3-5 years.

Gay marriage was legalized in Illinois while I was in college. Gay marriage was legalised nationally in the US AFTER I graduated college. I know everything going on is exhausting, but it's good to remember that we have a long fight ahead of us. So please take care of yourselves and your community

This is how my dog wants to sleep tonight

Possibly my favorite interaction from today's #GIGL session: “I know there’s a lot of hole on the internet, but there’s other stuff out there.” “Yeah, like car!” “That’s all that’s on the internet: hole and car.” “New genders just dropped - car and hole.”

Weirdly specific fae: "Pocket thief" You only realize you've run into one when your pair of men's pants turn into women's pants.

I remember being one of the few blessed enough to catch the one "dog bath spa day" they did on Instagram live. It was such a magical experience.

Not to be parasocial, but yesterday I found out Mr. Marbles was entering end of life care. He just passed. He's been such a good example of a well-loved dog.

Just got off the phone with the friend who will be giving me a ride home from surgery. I'm so nervous.

Are you getting your Zine Quest/Month project ready? Do you want some help? I offer game design consulting and commissioned writing services! Read about them here. Let's make something cool together. gilarpgs.com#hireme

Just had my last meeting with my boss before surgery. Still have a lot of work to do over the weekend, but I am READY for this.

Me: why does my back hurt when sitting at my desk? My dog: does this shit.

For real though, this topic had me so incensed that I actually posted on tiktok for the first time. It's a topic that requires more nuance than Bluesky allows.

I've been engaging in a ton of nesting behaviors as I prep for surgery. I've found some old technology that's been laying around for years. It's a blast, TBH.

24 meals worth of carbs prepped for my post-op recovery. A bunch of frozen veggies in the freezer. Proteins are easy to acquire. I'm so ready to eat healthy during the post-op period.

This guy's response to me sharing the "tolerance paradox" is "...I think “Chicago” doesn’t see us in action, they just judge us from virtual conversations rather than the faces that stay..." (4 paragraphs cut out) Like, I'm sorry nobody wants to leave the city to visit your suburban nazi bar dude.

"How's your transition going Courtney?' Well... last night I spent an hour looking at EDC knives.

sheesh, the only thing worse than getting kicked out of the polycule is finding out via jira ticket 😣

I spend a lot of time thinking about the overlap of the TTRPG and kink communities - not just in membership, but in principles as well. Like how safety tools are basically a framework for negotiating consent and limits - and how it's a red flag if you don't want to engage with that framework.

You know what's not a good idea? Sliding into the DMs of a trans & queer person and trying to debate the use of safety tools with them. Especially if your previous conversations have involved you asking this person for a lot of other favors.

Okay... maybe youtube shorts *is good* (sometimes) youtube.com/shorts/WP5_X...

All this talk of "running out ideas" and AI being able to "fix" that "problem" tends to forget one big factor - AI can ONLY generate content/ideas by referencing EXISTING information. If we use AI to "get new ideas" there will literally be no new ideas - just poor amalgamations of current ones.

The funniest unexpected outcome of last week's CTGA event is that my MAGA ex-fiance will probably find out through the grapevine that I'm trans. (He was not MAGA when we started dating.)

If you are a game designer of any kind in the Chicago area, hit me up! We have biweekly playtests going!

We live in a time where we're sharing more personal info on social media than ever before and algorithms are pushing it out to more strangers than we'll ever meet in real life. We've come a long way from the "internet safety" talks that were a staple of the millennial childhood.

Cis gay men: while it is ✨️incredibly affirming✨️ for some trans men that you're into them, don't (under any circumstances) tell them about how much porn you watch with trans men who haven't had bottom surgery. It turns you from an ally to a creep really quickly.

Sometimes I get annoyed when a self-centered person suddenly brings awareness to a political cause because it impacts them or someone they want to sleep with. My next thought is "whatever gives you empathy man."

They changed the shape of my dog's kibble. It made me deeply uncomfortable. I am not okay.

Final work week before surgery. Part of me is regretting going on FMLA because I'll be so much further behind when I get back.

At the start of yesterday's game, the GM told me that I had a "wonderful voice." Way to make a guy blush.

Bad news y'all - I think my dog is a capitalist.

I'm sorry y'all. This weather is my fault. I was joking about wanting to tell people I "froze my tits off" when I came back from top surgery.

#TTRPG Bluesky: would you be more or less likely to buy a game if it was packaged like this? I'm thinking of selling a few physical copies of Herp Replacement Therapy packaged in this way.

Someone in my chronic illness-specific discord is going through a very messy divorce from her abusive husband. We're all supporting her, but I keep thinking of how I would have been in the same place with my ex fiance if I had gone through with the wedding

Someone once told me that they believed our current selves are a product of those we loved before.

If you’re an LGBTQIA+ artist and want to help, bring the next Seasons of Pride calendar to life. Please fill out this form (forms.office.com/r/9...) by January 1, 2026. We want to help promote more talent in our community. If you're not an artist but know one, please share the link.

Spoilers for my @conofthenorth.bsky.social attendees. I've run the same one shot of @laurieoc.bsky.social Lichcraft twice. Both times the trans player asked if they could curb stomp zombie Margaret Thatcher before fleeing the scene. Both times the dice decided that they could (with great success)

Met some really amazing people and won some pre sweet games in tonight's #CTGA event raffle.

Wow thank you i humbly accept the award for gamer with the best and most correct opinions 2025