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Feb 22, 2022Liked by Monica Hughes PhD

The Good Citizen also writes fantastic essays that are very thought provoking. His allegory explaining the crisis in Ukraine/Russia really helped me understand what has been happening there without knowing any details - because the details actually aren’t important, it’s the relationships. https://thegoodcitizen.substack.com/p/the-bear-the-park-ranger-and-the?utm_source=url

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Wow, that’s so creative that I couldn’t resist. I am worried now! After this post, I am going to have to set aside an hour a day to read my substack subscriptions alone! (I wish I could pay for all but it’s getting kind of crazy.) Substack is awesome! It reminds me when the best part of the day/night was meeting new people in parks, cafes, bars, after hours joints, and having interesting conversations. Back in the day- the golden years- ah…who knew I’d become an old fogey so fast?

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I'm only four years behind ya! ;)

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Thank you for the tip!

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Just read it. OMG... funny!

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Feb 22, 2022·edited Feb 22, 2022Liked by Monica Hughes PhD

Thanks for the tips. Excellent reframe of the Great Reset. What is being reset is most certainly the relationship between the self and the state. Its very sad. I had hoped to have died before any of this came to pass. The latter keeps me from having sympathy for the people in denial. I am 52 so a GenXer through and through. I voraciously read as a youth, and through an understanding of history, contemporary dynamics, art/music/film, which was truly mind expanding at the time, concluded by not even 20, that if voting accomplished anything, it would be illegal. I wasn’t particularly special. If I knew, and have seen it unfolding, anyone can. Emotionally immature, traumatized, lived on the outskirts of society, in the east/west village of NYC back in the day of the Tompkins outlaw lifestyle, the riots, and the refusal to belong to a society that had nothing of value to offer. So I didn’t have any credentials, just “deep thinking” after midnight movies, Nietzsche, Robert Anton Wilson and like seminars, mind bending music etc led me to conclude what’s born out now. No one can possibly believe this was just hatched. Its been decades in the making. Here I stand now, 1 foot in normalcy (I moved to South Dakota, providentially, in 2015, long enough to have established myself in private practice so I don’t even have to worry about employer mandates, in a state that hasn’t reacted to anything over the past 2 years. Here I am watching the rest of the world go down in flames. Its surreal. I appreciate Stacks and commentators for a sense of community. Thanks for sharing this with me.

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When I drove across the country last, I spent one week in South Dakota (the Black Hills) in September. Absolutely beautiful! I had not been there in 20 years. Life in much of the US is largely normal. I drove all over the US last summer. Only blue cities are insane. The rest of the country is normal, even rural areas in blue states.

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Glad to hear normalcy is more prevalent than not. I am in the Black Hills! Its really a jewel. I am fortunate that I was guided here. I wish I would’ve come when I was younger. I’d love to have a homestead, with goats, cows, chickens, etc. I do have a pig- an inside pig. He’s technically a mini (a Juliana) but he missed the memo. He grew past 300 lbs when he hit 4. He’s 5 and a half now. I love the buffalo out here. Its amazing. Marlboro Country still lives!

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"The latter keeps me from having sympathy for the people in denial." This, right here!

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Thinking of moving in that direction. What can you tell me of that area?

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Shoot- I just lost my full reply. Its awesome here. I am in the Black Hills. I love it. Its like living in the 80s again but with all the conveniences too. I haven’t missed anything since I moved here. This is a great place for entrepreneurs. There’s enough demand to keep existing service providers busy, so that you have to wait long periods sometimes to get services. From plumbing to landscape to anything house, to massage, psychotherapy, hair, etc. Most services fill up fast. Winter is much better than people think. The Black Hills are buffered. Its weird. In winter you can have 50-60 degrees, then zero. Blue skies all year. But it can snow all year almost. Haven’t seen it in July or August yet but all the other months are open. Wildlife rocks. We are the 3rd least densely populated state in the country. However, there was a rush in 2020 that changed the housing market permanently. Its still hopping. Even though we are forgotten in the national discourse, its still getting action.

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Yes!! I definitely felt all of that when I visited this autumn. I know what you mean about the lack of humidity in winter making the cold more tolerable!

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Yes! Its semiarid. I hadn’t expected that. When I first landed, it reminded me of California, in terms of climate. Like going out to Idyllwild and then Palm Desert. Motorcycle riding is amazing! This is Sturgis country!

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Are there areas to build off grid?

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Oh yes- plenty of open land. Its more expensive than before 2020 but still doable. And probably more economical than most places, comparably. It was cheap when I first got here. Now its not as cheap but still fair, imo.

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Feb 22, 2022·edited Feb 22, 2022Liked by Monica Hughes PhD

I love Unbekoming's line you quoted https://unbekoming.substack.com/p/is-this-a-war?utm_source=url "If you were not prepared to stand up for your bodily sovereignty, what would you ever stand up for?" This was the soul-wrenching question that propelled me away from a successful career in nursing (despite being two-thirds of the way through grad school to a nurse practitioner license). And propelled me toward using my position and experience as a nurse to contribute to the matrix-unraveling by writing on Substack. (Despite threatening letters to nurses from our State Board of Nursing that opposing the orthodoxy of the CDC could be grounds for de-licensure). I hope that all of us keep asking ourselves the tough questions of "What is worth standing up for?" and "What would you sacrifice to be free?"

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👏👏👏

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Feb 22, 2022Liked by Monica Hughes PhD

Thanks so much for this round up. I followed a few of them and have discovered gold!

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Excellent roundup, Monica, and I’m honored to be included! 🙏

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Have now looked at everyone on your list and I have the most delicious problem of carving out the required time to read them all. Thank you.

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Greatly moved to be on your list. And even more so to be considered a pal. And thanks for the great Substack suggestions. I subscribe to almost 40 stacks, I can’t imagine I hadn’t come across any of the ones you mention yet.

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Wow, Monica I'm honored!

Thanks so much for the mention. Great recommendations, I followed those who I wasn't already.

- Etana

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So helpful, didn't know some of these writers. Appreciate the list!

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Excellent tips. Thank you. I'm very much looking forward to future post to learn more about your experiences in the 'pharma' industry. It was the first time of heard about coley's toxins.

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Thank you Monica. Humbling and very much appreciated.

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Thanks for the "shout out" :-)

Had no idea what was going when I saw all these new subscribers. LoL. One of them mentioned your name in the comments... So, thank you Monica!

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Thank you for your incredibly kind endorsement.

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