Also wtf is normal? Who is normal? I met one normal person way back in 1974. Noone is normal everyone has trauma although I still search to be normal as well. Besides, doesn't everyone want to be special? Look at me in my special messedupness?
I am doing "Stand up for mental health" out here in Vancouver. Maybe you have heard of it or you can Google. Leader David Granirer has been training comics with mental health and/or addiction issues for 20 years. I am about halfway through with our debut show next week and one more show in June I am learning a lot, the foremost thing being that stand up is an art. It is one hundred percent an art. It is super creative to craft a joke so that every word needs to be there and you discard the rest. David is taking folks who could only write rants in the first class and turning them into people who write and perform deeply funny jokes about life and about our situations. He is a bit of a miracle worker that way.
I know what you mean about "being normal", but you know what I mean about "being normal". I'm extremely atypical. I haven't left my place in years but to walk my dog or pop into a store if I absolutely have to. No one's been in here since a doc crew at the begining of February- and no one comes here ever. I can't. That's just the tip of the penis!
I've heard of "stand up for mental health", assuming it's the same one they do at (through?) CAMH? It's a great idea. I'm glad you're finding it helpful. It's a terrible thing to live (or die) with, and laughing about it when we can makes a tremendous difference. Isn't it great to find out how funny you are?!
I don't believe it is associated with CAMH. David Granirer I believe does it independently with a board and some wealthy donors (for whom I am grateful). Yes fun to be funny. I've always used humour as a coping mechanism and learning how to do it in stand up is amazing. I may continue with his alumni as they get to go on corporate gigs. Otherwise stand-up is late night open mics and drunk 30 year old guys ha. David has done this for 20 years and there is a documentary from the first year he did it. There are recovering addicts in the group and/or mentally ill folks. Some really get transformed through this so it is amazing to me. Yes you may be atypical although again and I don't mean to harp on this, don't we all think this? I mean some folks out there haven't left their home in years. I have cousins like that as anxiety runs on both sides of my family, depression too. One of them never leaves the basement of her parent's apartment. Well that would be a cousin's daughter actually as I am old. Cousin once removed! Have you mentioned/can I ask how you afford to not work? I know disability isn't much. I mean there are deeply depressed filks who have to work. As I say I have a horrifyingly dull at home job on the computer and the lack pf social interaction is really difficult. Anyway, I think we all want to believe our mental illness is unique, terminally unique. A kind of weird magical thinking upside down. Finally, making jokes about mental illness and addiction is empowering kinda I think.
What an amazing writing your are Clairey! Love always and know that I think of you lots. xo
Also wtf is normal? Who is normal? I met one normal person way back in 1974. Noone is normal everyone has trauma although I still search to be normal as well. Besides, doesn't everyone want to be special? Look at me in my special messedupness?
I am doing "Stand up for mental health" out here in Vancouver. Maybe you have heard of it or you can Google. Leader David Granirer has been training comics with mental health and/or addiction issues for 20 years. I am about halfway through with our debut show next week and one more show in June I am learning a lot, the foremost thing being that stand up is an art. It is one hundred percent an art. It is super creative to craft a joke so that every word needs to be there and you discard the rest. David is taking folks who could only write rants in the first class and turning them into people who write and perform deeply funny jokes about life and about our situations. He is a bit of a miracle worker that way.
I know what you mean about "being normal", but you know what I mean about "being normal". I'm extremely atypical. I haven't left my place in years but to walk my dog or pop into a store if I absolutely have to. No one's been in here since a doc crew at the begining of February- and no one comes here ever. I can't. That's just the tip of the penis!
I've heard of "stand up for mental health", assuming it's the same one they do at (through?) CAMH? It's a great idea. I'm glad you're finding it helpful. It's a terrible thing to live (or die) with, and laughing about it when we can makes a tremendous difference. Isn't it great to find out how funny you are?!
I don't believe it is associated with CAMH. David Granirer I believe does it independently with a board and some wealthy donors (for whom I am grateful). Yes fun to be funny. I've always used humour as a coping mechanism and learning how to do it in stand up is amazing. I may continue with his alumni as they get to go on corporate gigs. Otherwise stand-up is late night open mics and drunk 30 year old guys ha. David has done this for 20 years and there is a documentary from the first year he did it. There are recovering addicts in the group and/or mentally ill folks. Some really get transformed through this so it is amazing to me. Yes you may be atypical although again and I don't mean to harp on this, don't we all think this? I mean some folks out there haven't left their home in years. I have cousins like that as anxiety runs on both sides of my family, depression too. One of them never leaves the basement of her parent's apartment. Well that would be a cousin's daughter actually as I am old. Cousin once removed! Have you mentioned/can I ask how you afford to not work? I know disability isn't much. I mean there are deeply depressed filks who have to work. As I say I have a horrifyingly dull at home job on the computer and the lack pf social interaction is really difficult. Anyway, I think we all want to believe our mental illness is unique, terminally unique. A kind of weird magical thinking upside down. Finally, making jokes about mental illness and addiction is empowering kinda I think.