AVENues 50th Issue Newsletter: Winter 2021 by AVENues

AVENUES

OCTOBER - DECEMBER 2021

50 ISSUE

WINTER 2021

FEATURED IN THIS ISSUE LETTER FROM THE EDITORS QUESTIONS OF THE MONTH 24 ISSUES LATER

-BY SCARLETLATITUDE

INTERVIEW WITH COSINE -BY SCARLETLATITUDE I THINK I LOVE YOU? -BY ANONYMOUS PHYSICAL & MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES ASEXY PUZZLE - WORD SEARCH

F eatured

in this issue

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

Hello aces! Welcome again, for my second issue. This time, it is a special milestone issue for we have reached 50 issues since AVENues began! We are in this issue, looking at the whole history started in 2006, who was chief editors or staff throughout its history, what we covered back then, the differences on formatting and styles and so on. As usual, we explore with Questions with who has been reading the issues the longest and favorite issues read in the past. I look forward to seeing how AVENues changes in the future. Keep sending in your artwork, creatives, articles, and other items! I know you are in good hands. A welcome to all that continue to read AVENues,

Janus the DarkFox Chief Editor

EDITING TEAM Editor in Chief: Janus the DarkFox Layout: kelico Co-editors: kikuka, scarletlatitude

CREATIVE TEAM kelico, NickyTannock, ben8884 CONTRIBUTING WRITERS/ARTISTS scarletlatitude SPECIAL THANKS TO: Interview: Cosine

Follow AVENues on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/AVENuesAVEN/ Follow AVEN on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/AVENOfficial/

QUESTIONS OF THE MONTH

THIS ISSUE IS A SPECIAL 50TH ISSUE SPECIAL. HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN READING AVENUES? I think a year after i joined AVEN -Kimmie Basically since I joined AVEN, about December of 2020. -M Two weeks ago -Anonymous When I joined AVEN back in 2019 -Christa Google -Anonymous Today! -Hasel I’ve known for a while but I’m not very community oriented so I didn’t bother making an account. But recently with the pandemic I’m at a greater distance (mentally and emotionally) than ever from most of my friends I guess so I sort of stumbled upon here searching for answers and ended up staying :> -Astra I first learned about AVENues sometime in spring/summer of

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2019 from the header of the AVAN forums. -Anonymous

WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST AVENUES ISSUE YOU READ? I am not sure probably the one I got a drawing published in. I don’t know which one that was. -Kimmie I wouldn’t remember, lmao. I don’t keep track of things like that, but I can say that it was probably Dec 2020, I’m not sure, like, at all XD. -M The last one -Anonymous Oh man I don’t think I remember the first... It might have been one about split orientations/identities? -Christa I don’t remember. -Anonymous The Holiday 2019 issue looking at the split attraction model which was a great issue to start with as someone who had recently discovered asexuality. It was good to read about different people’s thoughts on this and why people found it helpful. -Alison Winter 2020 -Hasel The 50th one. Very interesting read too! Wish I knew of it earlier and could’ve shared my bits in it too but I’m looking forward to the next issue as well so here I am to erase all my regrets! -Astra The first issue I read was either the Summer or Holiday 2019 version!!

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-Anonymous

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE AVENUES ISSUE? Probably the first one i had a text in and it was the one with the Utrecht world meetup article in by Snao -Kimmie I don’t have a favorite, considering my lack of attention towards each seperate article -M I have only seen 1 -Anonymous Strange as it is, I liked the one about COVID lockdown and seeing how this gave an outlet for people in hard times. -Christa Acesexual analogies -Anonymous Winter 2021 because it was celebrating asexual visibility and why awareness of asexuality was important. It has been the issue that I felt most able to relate to as someone who had recently discovered asexuality as an older person. -Alison The only one I read, Winter2020 ;) -Hasel First time here. I think I still have time to choose haha -Astra I don’t have a proper favourite persay, but the Holiday 2019 issue holds a special place for me as it was the first one I ever got to participate in. -Anonymous

HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN READING

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AVENUES? 2 years maybe? -Kimmie I get really impatient having to wait three months for one issue to come out, but I started reading it some -M I have only seen 1 -Anonymous since 2019 -Christa 4 months -Anonymous I have been reading them for nearly two years and look forward to the next issue coming out -Alison Since today -Hasel First time here~ -Astra I’ve been reading the issues on and off for the last year or two. I started reading them when I first came across the community when researching for an oc and now read them from my own aroace perspective. -Anonymous

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE PART OF AVENUES? Reading the whole thing when it comes out. It’s either the design, or just me wanting another issue that gets me through 23 pages. -M The question of the month!

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-Christa The Questions of the Month. I enjoy reading about other peoples experiences and this has enabled me to make contributions and explore talking/ writing about asexuality in a safe space. -Alison I don’t know -Hasel I’m still new to this so I’m still looking around what we all talk about. Honestly coming here most of the things that people are talking about are taking me by pleasant surprise since theres much more congruence in out thoughts than I experience with my other sexually oriented friends . I think as long as we’re inclusive of our identities we’re doing a pretty good job. -Astra As a neurodivergent aroace person who primarily ids as aromantic, I’d like to see more about the intersectionalty of asexual and other orientations and communities. Also an issue about “Asexual Culture” would be very cool, as it could be more lighthearted and positive but still have room to talk about more serious things and such. -Anonymous

WHAT TOPICS WOULD YOU LIKE AVENUES TO COVER IN THE FUTURE? I’m not sure, you decide. -M Accepting your asexuality -Anonymous I would like AVENues to look at the ways people find out about asexuality, faith and asexuality, making places/ workplaces ace friendly -Alison I’m still new to this so I’m still looking around what we all talk about. Honestly coming here most of the things that people are

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talking about are taking me by pleasant surprise since theres much more congruence in out thoughts than I experience with my other sexually oriented friends . I think as long as we’re inclusive of our identities we’re doing a pretty good job. -Astra As a neurodivergent aroace person who primarily ids as aromantic, I’d like to see more about the intersectionalty of asexual and other orientations and communities. Also an issue about “Asexual Culture” would be very cool, as it could be more lighthearted and positive but still have room to talk about more serious things and such. -Anonymous

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24 ISSUES LATER

BY SCARLETLATITUDE

I couldn’t really remember which issue I had started on, so I had a look at the AVENues archives. The first issue I worked on was #26 from January/February 2016. Hence the name of this article. I’ve been with AVENues for 24 issues in a row. I was the layout editor back then. We just used Word and some fancy banners. It wasn’t as nice as what we have today, but it came out looking okay. I didn’t really write articles. I think my favorite from that first year was the April Fools issue. That was a lot of fun! I started taking over as Editor in Chief during the July/August/ September 2017 issue. That was also the first issue we made using software other than Word. We can thank ThinkNotVanilla for moving us over to InDesign and Issuu. The layouts look so professional now! I stepped down as EiC this year, but I’m still here and still involved. According to that very first issue I worked on, there is one other AVENues staff member who has been here the whole time along with me --- kelico! I think we are officially the “old-bies” of AVENues now. To everyone who has been (or will be) with us in the past, present, or future, thank you for making AVENues what it is. We couldn’t do this without you!

INTERVIEW WITH COSINE BY SCARLETLATITUDE

Cosine was the first editor in chief when AVENues was restarted in 2015. 1. Why did you decide to restart AVENues? Around the time I thought about restarting AVENues, I was the moderator to the World Watch forum section. One of the major aspects of World Watch moderator is that they catalog all mentions of asexuality in media, research, books, etc. I had noticed that there was a fairly large uptic in new, creative people interested in working on a common project. I was toying with the idea to pitch restarting AVENues around the time that a group of us finished cataloging “The New Asexual Bookshelf ” (it’s named “ Asexuality and Asexual Characters in Books & Comics - a Collection” now). We had a lot of folks interested in types of volunteer work that didn’t involve becoming an admod or PT and AVENues seemed to be a fun project that filled that niche. At the time, AVEN didn’t have a lot of collaborative community projects besides official Project Team or AVENites Sing. Shout out to SkyWorld, Mikasa, ThaHoward, rigaria, The Vacuum Killer, ArkansasCowboy, ThatNerdOverThere for the help to catalog The New Asexual Bookshelf! 2. What did you enjoy working on in your time with AVENues? While I worked on AVENues, I did the majority of the interviews with people. I wrote out the questions and went searching for people. It was fun and a great way to highlight some of the active AVEN members. During the time that I did AVENues, we actually had a long term AVENite from OG AVEN pass away, and with permission from his partner, we republished his interview from the original AVENues. I’ve enjoyed working on the interviews because they highlighted names, humanized people, and brought the community together. 3. What is your favorite issue you worked on? My absolute favourite issue I worked on was Asexual Research issues #29. I remember spending months preparing for this issue because it was on one of my favourite topics: asexuality and research. Although I was in my undergrad, I spent a lot of time writing papers and researching asexuality, I kept up to date on research and loved learning what was being questioned.

Around the same time, I had helped complete the Asexual Research list in 6th edition APA, I don’t know if it is still updated as regularly since I am no longer active on AVEN, but I am still proud of that list. This issue was special though because we actively searched for information both inside and outside the community. We ended up getting an interview with Morag Yule, an asexual research and she was just completing her PhD dissertation. I think back very fondly on the Asexual Research issue, that is for sure.

I THINK I LOVE YOU? BY ANONYMOUS Many know the famous Partridge family song “I think I love you” where the singer screams the words into his pillow. Of course, he knew that he loved this person and when asked if they felt the same way, the situation was resolved. For me however it is not so easy. When I first came to AVEN, I was madly in love with someone who did not feel the same way, because of this I knew I was not aromantic however my romantic orientation was still unknown. Was I lithromantic? Well, I am a little uncomfortable when people “like” me but no, because I wanted this person to reciprocate. Was I greyromantic? Maybe, although I do get small crushes pretty easily. Finally I settled on demi romantic because I can develop romantic feelings and want them to be reciprocated but only after I know someone well enough and long enough. So now you all know my orientation, here is my predicament. A few years ago I made a friend. She is nice, smart and we got along well. We mostly met among our group of friends. Then, I moved far away but we stayed in touch. We would Skype and I would come back home and visit her. Something happened though, her Skype calls became the highlight of my month. I start thinking of her...differently. I started day dreaming about us together romantically. Whenever I was with her I wanted to hug her and be with her longer. This feels different from the time I was in love. Its not as nerve wracking its more comfortable. I like the things we have in common but I also find joy in the things we do not. It leads to discussion and the opportunity to tease her, which I admit, I also find joy in doing. So, what are these feelings? Friendship, a crush? More? I am not sure because they are completely new. Maybe one day I will write another article for AVENues when and if I have worked all of this out. Until then I am going to take the advice someone else gave me and just enjoy whatever this is.

PHYSICAL & MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES BY SCARLETLATITUDE When I am writing this, it has been exactly one year since the covid pandemic started in my area. It has been a rough year for us all – physically, mentally, and emotionally. Here are some resources you may want to use. All links are property of their respective owners. Physical health resources: • PopSugar Fitness: https://www.youtube.com/user/ popsugartvfit “POPSUGAR Fitness offers fresh fitness tutorials, workouts, and exercises that will help you on your road to healthy living, weight loss, and stress relief. Check out Class FitSugar, our do-it-along-with-us real-time workout show to sweat alongside fitness experts and Hollywood’s hottest celebrity trainers. Class FitSugar regularly covers the most buzzed-about workout classes and trends, including the Victoria’s Secret workout, Tabata, P90X, Bar Method, and more.” • Yoga with Adriene: https://www.youtube.com/user/ yogawithadriene “Our mission is to connect as many people as possible through high-quality free yoga videos. We welcome all levels, all bodies, all genders, all souls! Browse our library of free yoga videos to find a practice that suits your mood or start a journey toward healing.” • Body Project: https://www.youtube.com/c/ BodyProjectchallenge “High energy, motivating workouts to do from home. We created Team Body Project to share our passion for exercise and excellent movement with others who want to feel good about their body and experience great health.”

Mental health resources: *If you or someone you know is currently experiencing a mental health emergency, please call your local emergency services (911, 999, 000, etc.).

In 2018, AVENues did a mental health issue. You can find it here: https://issuu.com/avenues1/docs/avenues-magazinesummer-2018 International: • Check Point: https://checkpointorg.com/global/ Websites and emergency contact numbers listed by country. • 7 Cups: https://www.7cups.com/ Call or chat with a therapist for emotional support. USA: • SAMHSA:https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/nationalhelpline “SAMHSA’s National Helpline is a free, confidential, 24/7, 365-day-a-year treatment referral and information service (in English and Spanish) for individuals and families facing mental and/or substance use disorders.”

• IMAlive: https://www.imalive.org/ Online crisis help chat UK: • Mental Health Foundation: https://www.mentalhealth.org. uk/ Information and resources for mental health. • Together UK: https://www.together-uk.org/ Online and in person help Canada: • Crisis Services Canada: https://www.crisisservicescanada.ca/ en/ Call and text services in English and French. • Canadian Mental Health Association: https://cmha.ca/ Information and resources. You can look up information based on your location. Australia: • Lifeline Australia: https://www.lifeline.org.au/ 24/7 crisis support through phone, text, and online chat. • Kids Helpline Australia: https://kidshelpline.com.au/ Resources for kids and adults. • Q-life: 1800-184-527 & https://qlife.org.au/ A national LGBT counseling service.They have resources specifically on asexuality, too.

ASEXY PUZZLE – WORD SEARCH

ACE SPOTLIGHT AVEN is not affiliated with or responsible for other websites listed here

“SIP, SOY ASEXUAL” (YUP, I’M ASEXUAL) A tumblr for all Spanish speaking aces to feel welcomed and loved! https://adivinaquienesasexual.tumblr.com/

KITTEN KOMFORTS - LGBTQIA+ SOAPS For every ace flag bar of soap sold, we’re donating $1 to ace organizations! This includes AVEN, Asexual Outreach, and local groups. On top of that, for every aro themed bar of of sold, we’re donating $1 to an aro organization called AUREA. I can ship to North America and Europe right now. If you want to order soap and don’t see your country listed as an option, get in touch with Heart via PM on AVEN or use the “Contact Us” page on the website and I’ll figure it out! https://kittenforts.square.site/shop/lgbtqia-/6

For our 51st issue, we will be looking at the Aromantic Intersection. Exploring aromanticism and how it relates to Asexuality! Fill out our questions of the month form here: tinyurl.com/j94bdkp3

REMEMBER,WE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR ARTICLES AND ARTWORK TO ADD TO AVENUES! • To submit creative works, please go here: https://goo.gl/forms/QQqfdfOR69niJFoP2 • All creative works also need to be submitted through our copyrights form: https://goo.gl/forms/ciEyCwNew5wjuzVg1 • Send us your asexy jokes and puns here: https://goo.gl/forms/Rg4vlY6XZ7c17bNJ3 • You may also send a private message to any of the AVENues staff on AVEN

REMEMBER THAT WE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR MORE PEOPLE TO JOIN OUR TEAM! SEND ONE OF US A MESSAGE ON AVEN FOR MORE INFO!