Obligatory Introduction Post

Hello and welcome to my newsletter! Let’s run through what you need to know.

Who are you?

My pen name is Jasper.

I am proud to live in Minnesota’s Twin Cities. I love the easy access to parks and lakes, the weather (yes, even when it’s cold), and the variety of things there are to do. I’ve been here for a little over ten years. Before that, I grew up in rural southern Missouri. My relationship with Missouri is complicated – I am very glad I left, and I also miss it terribly.

I live with my spouse Kimberlite and two cats, who shall be known as Thing 1 and Thing 2. Thing 1 is shy, sneaky, and long; Thing 2 is lovable, goofy, and round.

When I’m not working or begging Thing 1 to stop jumping on top of the refrigerator, I have a lot of hobbies. To name a few, I play in a community concert band, bake, geocache, and cross stitch.

Finally, I wanted to share some more context about who I am since I write a lot about my own experiences and background: I’m a white trans man/transmasc person who uses he/him and they/them pronouns, I am neurodivergent, I have struggled with various mental health conditions for a very long time and am navigating physical health problems resulting from hypermobility, and I was raised Christian but now identify as "ahhhhhh I don't know please don't make me enumerate my beliefs or I will burst into tears" (so... agnostic, I guess?).

What is this newsletter?

Good question; let’s figure it out together! My ideas for what to write about are all over the place. Some planned posts include in-depth essays analyzing a particular topic, little "day in the life" stories, and everything in between. Here are just a few of my favorite topics as of late:

• reckoning with the positive and negative impacts of mental health treatment
• movie analysis and review
• the concept of home and struggling with what it means
• religious deconstruction and reconstruction

My URL is from the video game Stardew Valley. “Land of Green and Gold” is the theme song for the character Leah (listen on YouTube).

When will I get this newsletter?

I’m still experimenting with what feels sustainable to me and a good value for readers. I plan to send more casual pieces somewhere between two to four times a month. My complex and/or thoroughly researched and edited posts will come less frequently. I'm aiming for once a month, but I'd rather focus on publishing good work than following a self-imposed schedule.

Why a newsletter?

I’ve been a writer ever since I could pick up a pencil and string words together. (Or at least I aspire to be. I hesitate to describe myself this way due to my high ratio of unfinished projects to completed ones.)

Anyway, I’ve been looking for an outlet for the essays and articles and poems that are piling up on my computer, and I admire the way newsletters let you directly communicate to an audience on your own terms. I’ve thought about starting my own for years, and I’ve decided now’s the time!

Thanks for reading! Hope to see you next time.