Vanessa Smith

@normalness.bsky.social

2350 Followers 6990 Following

We're all normal to ourselves. I write. I hate hustle. I love shiny objects. Can't even influence an ant. Anthropology & sociology graduate. Author of books. Spoonie. And much more. www.normalness.com

Mutual Aid: This week I'd like to highlight River Wintergreen, who is an artist seeking support while they wait to be granted NDIS funding. If you have the ability to share or donate, all actions are appreciated to ensure this member of the disability community has their support needs met. Full details can be found in their Go Fund Me.
(The coach) decided my need to work from home is something that is ten years away, and therefore I suppose I am at fault for being ... in the future? If my needs are only going to be met 10 years in the future, then who is paying for me to live for the next 10 years? Will all the employers who won't hire me put some money into a discrimination pot and pay me to be unemployed?
My barriers to work are systemic, and coaches want you to change things about yourself. I can't change being disabled. The (coaching) session was par for the course in talking about a disability issue with a non-disabled person, they just don't believe you that the situation is what it is.
I cannot tell you how fucking infuriating it is that disability programs default to "no skills, no experience, entry level". Disabled people need opportunities at ALL LEVELS. Defaulting us to only the lowest pay grade is downright offensive.
In public, disability and employment is often talked about in terms of entry level employment only. Within a report published by WWDA there was an interesting comment: “Employment supports tended to be catered to entry level jobs and were not tailored to people's capabilities. Those with physical disabilities or chronic conditions reported the only available jobs involving manual labour or lifting which was not possible due to their disabilities. Other people mentioned that support with their employment would be valuable for roles above entry level."
More flawed job ads: Onsite for onboarding and initial delivery; hybrid considered under agency flexibility guidelines: If the employer lacks the skillset to train remotely, this is not the responsibility of the prospective employee. The employer should consider up-skilling in remote training. The barriers I am facing to gaining employment are barriers which are a) artificial and b) actively created by the employer.
A few flawed sections from job ads. Canberra, Brisbane or Albury (Hybrid): If the job can be done in any of those cities, as well as at least part of the week from home, it's actually highly likely that the ENTIRE job can be done from home. Flexible working with 1-day WFH per week: Flexible work where you dictate or predetermine the flexibility is not actually flexible.
It is incredibly hard to convince yourself to spend all week doing tasks which have a very low percentage chance of having any actual value or outcome. It's illogical to expect someone to feel good about this situation. The problem with expressing frustration at this situation is that people will suggest I take a day off. And I know this is done in a caring way. But a day off solves nothing. It doesn't remove systemic discrimination. It just makes me feel like I've done less work than I could have and therefore I feel crappier.
Ok so lessons learned from going to 3 food banks to do my food shopping this week: 1) If it opens at 3pm, get there at 2.30pm 2) Most of the fresh stuff isn't so fresh and needs to be made into something else: tomatoes into chilli, banana into banana bread, general fruits dehydrated (so you can chop the rotten parts off) 3) Sometimes they just try and sell you prepackaged other crap that you don't need that brands have clearly thrown out.
The ableism in recruitment and employment desperately needs to be addressed. I mean, employers are so emboldened in this area that in March this year, they openly admitted to discrimination in a major news article. It's not me that needs fixing. It's employers and the enforcement of anti-discrimination laws who need to do better.
The problem is, none of these tasks NEED to be done in person. The employer WANTS them done in person, and an employers wants are being prioritised over my needs. This is the barrier I face in finding work. The barrier is not me, the barrier is the whims of prospective employers.
"I checked the client brief and the expectation is full-time in-office attendance ... this is due to the need to engage with various stakeholders in the office setting, attend team meetings and liaise with management on workload, progress and feedback." If I'm going to be blunt, it's an absolute fucking load of bullshit when people use MEETINGS as the excuse for "needing" to be in an office.
As someone who has the broad view that charity is a failure of government, it's my opinion that charities should have not only a business plan, but a plan to put themselves out of business.
Getting Three out of Three is hard work, and hidden work when job hunting. The THREE for me are: the right work, the right pay, the right location. There are often jobs that are the right work and the right pay for me, but they won't permit me to be remote. Or there are remote jobs I can apply for, but they're very junior and average in pay. I need three out of three for a job to truly be sustainable for me. The Second Time Podcast www.normalness.com/second-time
I don’t ask about accommodations, they are listed as a requirement on my resume. My needs are not a negotiation. They are clear and straightforward needs. The Second Time Podcast www.normalness.com/second-time
There are tons of jobs I’d be a competitive candidate for. I can’t write applications for all of them. I need to write applications for the ones that appear flexible and inclusive. The problem is, everyone has anti discrimination policies, but they don’t apply them in reality. As a disabled job seeker, this makes it practically impossible to identify which jobs to apply for/where to spend my energy. The Second Time Podcast www.normalness.com/second-time
I am not ashamed to be unemployed, disabled, and looking for work. This situation is merely facts to me. Exhausting facts, most certainly, but merely facts. The Second Time Podcast www.normalness.com/second-time
I want to share with you WHY I am open to talking about things like job hunting as a disabled person. It’s because the fault does not sit with me, the fault sits with inaccessible employment and lack of appropriate disability supports. The Second Time Podcast www.normalness.com/second-time
a Rode microphone on a boom arm, with a computer and other general desk mess like notebooks and a tissue box in the background.
Eight full weeks of job hunting and squat in the pipeline. Are my eyes as dead as my soul? (Heaps of jobs to apply for but people hate me for being housebound.)
A whiteboard with Mon: Qld jobs. Tues: APS jobs/agencies. Wed: seek jobs. Thursday: Qld job / ethical jobs. Fri: uni jobs, LinkedIn job.
Raisin toast (“buttered” with Nuttlex) on a purple plate
a screenshot from submission 508 “States and territories are not in a position, and have made no agreement, to deliver like-for-like services to people who are exited from the NDIS.“
I've been in some of the "design" sessions for foundational supports. It left me with the feeling that all non NDIS supports are going to be generic, in person, synchronous sessions where a non disabled person stands up and asks disabled people (or parents of disabled kids) if they've tried, like really tried, to not "let" their disability disable them. And can you try again, for me?
A small block blue cheese next to a packet of Parmesan potato chips on a benchtop.
A black and white magpie on a railing
A screenshot from my Instagram account saying “you can’t craft your way out of systemic discrimination”.
A shelf at Aldi which should have electrolyte drinks on it, but it’s empty.
a loaf of bread and some fake butter spread on a bench next to a white toaster.
Please note the following issues with this legislation: There has been insufficient consultation time to prepare a quality response. The legislation should not: Allow hate speech from religious groups, no matter if it's quoting from a text or not. Lower the threshold of harm to exclude the need for proof of hate. Be focused on specific areas of hate, it should be broad and include groups long marginalised who frequently receive hate speech in the course of their lives, for example, people with a disability.
Anytime I hear someone say "it's a defibrillator" | hear Dom DeLuise's voice saying "Ah, interesting. Thank you. Is it defibrillating now?"
But here’s the thing that anyone selling you January life changes won’t tell you. • Goals can be made any time of year. • Goals can change. • Goals can be tweaked to suit you. • Goals can be abandoned because they don’t suit you anymore. • Goals do NOT have to be “SMART”.
a giant yellow dumpling being held aloft by a fork.
A screenshot of the chuffed fundraiser for Anna.