ASL Introduction

English introduction

This is my official personal Web site. It is a collection of information about and by me. It also serves as a digital/online/Web CV of sorts. All original content in English and signs is by me unless otherwise cited.

If you’ve found an opinion, written or signed, that you have a question about, please contact me.

Highlighted Tweet

If you find an opinion (written or signed) I’ve published somewhere years ago, and then find something more recent that contradicts my previous opinion, I may have come into new data to change my opinion. Or I may be a hypocrite. Reach out for comment!— Thomas Muething (@tmueth1) September 28, 2023

Current Research Projects

This list is ongoing.

Acknowledgments, My Life In Seattle, and Plans for the Future

Few people come from nothing. I am the son of the late Angelina (1958-2009) and Thaddeus (1955-2025) Muething. Academically, I was created by Gallaudet University professors of English and Religion Dr. Jennifer L. Nelson and The Rev. Dr. Kirk A. VanGilder. I studied under them under a full, four-year merit scholarship that required participating in the Honors program in various capacities. I took dedicated Honors courses at GU (although as of this writing they are not noted as such on my transcript, nor do I have copies of the syllabi documenting the extra work these required). I even had several presentation ideas thought up, but not outlined or submitted to then-Honors Director Shirley Shultz Myers for her consideration, for the 2012 Northeast Regional Honors Conference. With The Rev. Dr. VanGilder‘s professional recommendation, I took a postgraduate-level course in women and public policy at American University in Spring 2012. But I had to drop the course, and withdraw medically from school, halfway through the spring term–I was on the verge of lunacy, almost! and my nerves broke (just as Blanche DuBois‘s did in Tennessee Williams‘s A Streetcar Named Desire). I plan to finish my bachelor’s degree in statistics (and premedical studies).

At the present moment, I am an AS candidate at Seattle Central College, but I have taken courses at the North campus, and at Highline College when a particular course was not offered, or due to scheduling conflicts. Before I leave Seattle, I would like to take a summer intensive foreign language course at the UDub, although I frequently refer to it as The University of Worthless Washington in Seattle, reasons for which I only share in privileged relationships (but, if you’re my friend–a genuine friend–I may tell you if you wish). I am a Professional Patient at Department of Rehabilitation Medicine. The Department is staffed with many fine clinicians, many of whom took a decade or longer to become experts in treating cerebral palsy, a condition I personally have had for over 34 years, and other conditions that require specialized care.

I am strongly influenced by the work of Drs. Marsha M. Linehan and Judith L. Herman. Dr. Linehan developed Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT™) and wrote Cognitive Behavioral Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorder, published in 1993. Dr. Herman developed the diagnosis of complex PTSD and is the author of Trauma and Recovery as well as Truth and Repair. (Both are available in Kindle®/NOOK® formats as well as audiobooks).

How You Pronounce My Name in Spoken American English

[ˈtʰɒ.mə̃s] [ˈmjuːθɪ̃ŋ]. (Here is how to read the phonetic transcript of my name in the International Phonetic Alphabet). Feel free to pronounce it with any pronunciation that is common for your mother tongue that may be considered incorrect in spoken American English (I frequently lisp my first name’s /s/ phoneme or nasalise the initial /t/ phoneme because I was born Deaf/hard-of-hearing); however, my surname/family name is always spelled M-U-E-T-H-I-N-G. I have never run for public office, although the mayor of Amberley Village and I almost have the same name (different middle initial), and I never intend to. If nominated, I will not run; if elected, I will not serve.

Notes on The Internet

I used del.icio.us and Pinboard as my Web rollodex. As my late mother said of the web in June 1999 in an article for the Cincinnati Enquirer, “it’s a totally equalizing media”.

LinkedIn “Badge”

I only have one LinkedIn I active manage. Here’s the badge.

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Contact Information

In addition to the e-mail associated with this domain, I can be reached via telephone: 1-866-FAST-VRS. You’ll need my direct Sorenson videophone number; please e-mail me for that. You can also send a secure FAX to 206-420-6165. You can leave me a secure voicemail on 206-420-4099. I am the only person with access to these lines. Thank you!

If you are experiencing a medical emergency, please dial 9-1-1 from your telephone, directly from your TTY, or through a text/IP relay or VRS provider of your choice.

If you are experiencing an emotional or mental health crisis, please call or text the National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 9-8-8 from the telephony equipment of your choice. Fellow Deaf people, 9-8-8 is available directly in signs on your videophone. If you reside in King County, Washington, you can call the Seattle Crisis Clinic at 1-866-427-4747. If you are in another county in Washington, here is the comprehensive list of all crisis lines in Washington state. If you are struggling with symptoms of a substance use disorder or behavioral disorder such as problem-gambling, please instead dial the Washington Recovery Helpline at 1-866-789-1511.

Legal Notices

I, Thomas A. Muething, assume full responsibility for all original content on this Web site. Citations/attributions are given wherever possible. No content should be interpreted as any sort of professional advice, and use of this Web site does not create a professional or personal relationship between me and you, the individual visitor or Web-archiving robot (such as the Wayback Machine, Archive.ph, or Google Cache service). Interacting with me on social media, such as Facebook/Threads/Instagram, zirk.us Mastodon/sdf.org Mastodon, LinkedIn, or X (formerly Twitter), may create a parasocial relationship. You can also find me @tmueth1 on bluesky.social media network. If we are currently in a professional relationship, please do not contact me via social-media channels unless you have received permission from me and from your supervisor/institution/agency’s “official policies”. Once the professional relationship with a power imbalance is over (such as teacher-student, employer-employee, supervisor-supervisee, or clinician/administrative staffer-patient), feel free to add me on any social-media network if you want. This will avoid the appearance of an inappropriate violation of professional boundaries. There are some people with whom I’ve had a professional relationship that I will never “add”/”follow” back under any circumstances. There are billions of people in the world; there is more than one Thomas Muething in the world. Please get over it.

Please remember that e-mail is not a secure or a confidential means of communication. For substantive matters, please make an appointment to discuss via secure telephone/teletypewriter, videophone/video-relay service, video technologies such as Zoom or Skype, or in person.

The original content on this Web site is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0

Last Updated: 19. May 2025.