ashley (should be writing)
LightNews LightNews
existentialhope.bsky.social
ashley (should be writing)
@existentialhope.bsky.social
330 followers 1.3K following 540 posts
Posts Replies Media Videos
existentialhope.bsky.social
Alt text for the reply's screenshot:
The other side of this pain, though, was an amazing sense of solidarity that nurtured the children of these victims of the red purges, as well as their parents. The children had teenage clubs (ours was led by Alan Arkin) and summer camps (often run by fired teachers). The adults belonged to a community that maintained networks of connection for years, helping the unemployed find jobs, supporting their legal challenges attending celebrations of political wins, visiting the sick, offering eulogies at funerals. My father benefited from this network, which found him a series of jobs, none so rewarding as working with developmentally disabled children and advocating for group homes for them as part of the movement for deinstitutionalization in 1972. But when my mother died, Sam had their tombstone inscribed to capture the sense of vocation that never left him. “Ever teachers” is their epitaph. This was, in a sense, his final riposte to those who may have denied him a job but could never take away his calling. Tucked away in a rural cemetery in Western Massachusetts, this monument to the family story is foundational to my very being: one in which, no matter the costs, principled integrity is a priority, taking a stand means standing fast, and contesting the predations of the powerful gives meaning to the lives we lead.
September 14, 2025 at 2:33 AM
existentialhope.bsky.social
"In the 1950s, the targets were individual teachers—communists, progressives, liberals—and their left-wing unions. Now the target is the system itself."
We are again confronting a massive attack on the very foundations of democratic education and, this time around, the stakes feel even higher. In the 1950s, the targets were individual teachers—communists, progressives, liberals—and their left-wing unions. Now the target is the system itself. Its value as a public good is being redefined as a matter of parental choice (vouchers, charter schools, home-schooling, all paid for by public funds), and its commitments to principles of equality and justice—to say nothing of truthful accounts of history—are being trashed. In their place, stories of violence and greed are forcibly imposed to glorify our nationalist destiny. I am reminded—for a second time in my life—that the stakes we have in a democratic system of education are always under threat and that, for those of us who value it, the fight for its preservation is an urgent, if never-ending, challenge.
September 14, 2025 at 1:47 AM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Fan Appreciation night off to a strong start with free tequila!

#DucksHockey
Last few Ducks players on the ice for warmups.
April 14, 2025 at 1:47 AM
existentialhope.bsky.social
See, mixed in on this corner and trying to start shit.
Hands Off protestors intermixed with pro-Trump counterprotestors while the cops watch.
April 5, 2025 at 9:30 PM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Hello Kitty plush in a Ducks jersey.
March 27, 2025 at 1:34 AM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Anime night at the Ducks v Bruins game!

#FlyTogether
Picture of warmups for the Ducks vs Bruins game.
March 27, 2025 at 1:32 AM
existentialhope.bsky.social
A finishers medal that says "Fly Together - Run Together" for the Anaheim Ducks 5k with a beautiful sunny morning in the background.
February 23, 2025 at 4:55 PM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Warmups!

#FlyTogether
Anaheim Ducks players warming up on ice.
February 9, 2025 at 3:18 AM
existentialhope.bsky.social
In enemy territory tonight!

Honestly I'm sure it'll feel like a freely face-off at Honda Center. Kings fans outnumber/outshout us there anyway lol

#FlyTogether
A picture of a sign reading: Freeway Face-Off Los Angeles Kings VS Anaheim Ducks
February 9, 2025 at 2:56 AM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Tom Morello was fantastic tonight.
Tom Morello at the House of Blues.
February 7, 2025 at 6:52 AM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Seven Hours After Violet on stage at House of Blues.
February 7, 2025 at 4:04 AM
existentialhope.bsky.social
They got a FIRIS map of the #HughesFire.

share.watchduty.org/i/41039?ts=1...
A picture of the mapped fire hitting Castaic Lake. Fire is currently mapped at 3,407 acres at approximately 12:30pm.
January 22, 2025 at 8:44 PM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Let's go Ducks! #FlyTogether
A picture of the ice at the Honda Center
January 22, 2025 at 3:03 AM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Just started Survive and Thrive by @dzbillfulton.bsky.social and Jeanne Chilton Devon.

First impression:

Genuinely uplifting for a disaster prep book. I really needed that.
Survive and Thrive by Bill Fulton and Jeanne Chilton Devon. How to prepare for any disaster without ammo, camo, or eating your neighbor.
January 18, 2025 at 1:19 AM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Pic from the Aliso Laguna 1 camera. #ClubFire #CAwx
Smoke and flames behind a hilltop covered in trees and houses.
January 11, 2025 at 1:28 AM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Holy shit, this is a wild warning from NWS Los Angeles.
A life-threatening, destructive, widespread windstorm is expected Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday morning. Widespread damaging winds are expected across most of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties, and the areas encircled are the locations of greatest concern and most destructive winds. Please stay indoors and away from windows during this time, and expect power outages. Along with the winds, there is a high risk for dangerous fire weather conditions. Gusty winds will continue through the week, though not as strong as Tuesday-Wednesday.
January 6, 2025 at 7:19 PM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Let's see how this turns out. (It's Saturday night, what could go wrong?)
A can of Reign sitting on a 2024 planner.
December 29, 2024 at 3:21 AM
existentialhope.bsky.social
A fancier rest stop off the 99.
A picture of a rest stop on the 99S, somewhere between Visalia and Bakersfield.
December 23, 2024 at 10:17 PM
existentialhope.bsky.social
This rest stop is somehow creepier than the opposite one I hit on the drive up.

And it's daytime so that's extra weird.
A rest stop off the 5 with the sun peeking through the clouds and mist.
December 23, 2024 at 5:17 PM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Breakfast of champions
A Reign energy drink on the dashboard at the start of a road trip.
December 23, 2024 at 3:41 PM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Oh, and here's a shot from earlier as I went though Angeles National Forest / Tejon Pass
The view of the sunlit hills from the 5 through Angeles National Forest / Tejon Pass.
December 20, 2024 at 4:33 PM
existentialhope.bsky.social
I love seeing pay phones in the wild.
A trio of pay phones at a foggy rest stop.
December 20, 2024 at 4:29 PM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Gotta love a creepy rest stop!
A picture of a foggy rest stop with some spooky trees.
December 20, 2024 at 4:25 PM
existentialhope.bsky.social
It's almost as foggy in the arena as it's been outside the past few days lol
Picture of the Ducks game where I'm trying to show the level of fog in the Honda Center right now
December 7, 2024 at 3:15 AM
existentialhope.bsky.social
Went to the Women in Sports panel event before the game, it was lovely!
In no particular order these are the Women is Sports panelists: Sarah Bettencourt, Aisha Chaney, Caroline Marks, Jessi Miley-Dyer, Christine Monjer, Angela Ruggiero, Natasha Wiley. Also pictured: Ally Kay and Alexis Downie
December 7, 2024 at 3:10 AM