I now share a name with a BMW. Google it.
I can't wait until November 5th when I can use the phrase "President-elect Obama."
Another monthiversary today. Smaller and smaller fractions of a year. He is wonderful.
It's Breast Cancer Awareness Month. They lit up the State House pink. Awesome. I wonder how much that cost? And I wonder how many mammograms that amount of money could have paid for for women who can't afford them? And how many lives that could have saved?
RA job is relentless. I have indeed sold my soul to ResLife. My boss says this job should be 80-20: 80% pure joy, and 20% tedious stuff that you just kind of have to do. I don't know if I feel that way just yet. Some days it's close, others it's as low as 40-60. I probably shouldn't have opted to have my paycheck directly deposited; I knew I'd hate that. Granted, a regular trip to the bank is not something I want to have to work into my schedule, but it would be nice to have a tangible biweekly reward. And something in my mailbox! I never get snail mail anymore :(
My mom sent me an interesting e-mail a few days ago (edited for length and content)...
Hello Gina,
How’s my girl child?
Here’s that article I wrote for the national CPSA magazine, attached. It has supporting pictures of the classroom and my elderly students. Every one of them has something very special. I cried when I looked at them, because I miss them so much. You’ll see Patty Nelson in one. I’m having trouble deciding which pics to use. I thought as was doing the outline that I might as well just write, write, write the whole story. So, let me know what you think. I know it’s choppy and needs some tweeking. I’ll pay you for your editing skills. The final is due 10/15. If you don’t have time because you’re busy with your college work, let me know. That’s fine.
Hey, next week I’m teaching an art class to forty special-needs children at a retreat on a ranch in the Heart of Colorado region. The reason they are “special-needs” is because they are children. Well, that’s the first reason. The other reason they have special needs is because one of their parents is deployed in a stupid, costly war in Iraq. With all the money we’re spending out of control over there for the special people in Iraq who have tons of money of their own, we could provide a hell of a lot of wheelchairs and art supplies for our special-needs children and elderly.
ALL children have special needs. Mine do, my mother’s do, my next door neighbor’s do.... all are special.
If I asked Lourdes next door if she thought Phillipe was anymore special than her two other children, she'd shout a resounding NO. Her other kids are perfectly “normal”? They are special too. With their own unique specialness. When you were home in a special breathing tent because you couldn’t breathe, were you special? Yes. You still are. All my students are. Lil rides around in her hover-round. She’s cute and special. Hank can’t draw a straight line cuz he had a stroke. Pretty special guy, Hank is. I can tell you, Dave, my student who is a registered child molester, is very special. But he has problems. Major problems. Special problems. Garylou doesn’t want to be treated differently than my other students just because she knows she’s going to die from her special disease in “less than two months”. She wants to be treated equally. I have to give her kleenex because she drools. I have to give Barbara, my bi-polar student kleenex because she cries during at least half of each workshop. But her paintings aren’t anymore special than Garylou’s.
I believe Sarah Palin’s announcement that she is going to focus on special-needs children was just another ego-driven “look at me!” statement. What’s she going to do with all the other special children who aren’t special?
You and Tony are special-needs children. All of your cousins were special-needs children. And when they grow up, if they haven’t already, they STILL have special needs. You might not be retarded or drooling, but that’s not what it takes to be considered special. What is it about that word “special” that grates?
I am a special-needs person. Everyone is.
Tony was pretty special when he was in the emergency room time after time because he couldn’t breathe. My sister Kate was really special as a baby strapped to a chair for hours and to her crib all night because she had such a bad rash, and belting her hands kept her from scratching and bleeding all over mom’s sheets.
Bobbi had some pretty special needs when no one protected her from her child-molester brother-in-law. Amanda had special needs when Bobbi died.
Young girls have special needs when they need a rape kit and can’t afford to pay for them and don’t have any insurance. What the hell? Sarah Palin thinks rape victims should pay for the forensic rape kit???!!! They shouldn’t have to pay for the pregnancy or the abortion either. Rape is a community problem, not the victim’s fault.
I wonder if Sarah would require that a certain percentage of employees have to be in the special-needs category. So Boeing can refer to them as “tokens” just as they do Asians, African Americans, Women, etc.? As in: “Here’s the photo the Ethics Committee asked me for. They need to have it included in their presentation to Corporate in Chicago. Does it have enough tokens in it? If not, we can use Jenifer. She’s a woman AND Asian.” My friend Jenifer is called that all the time, but she just puts up with it and keeps making signs for Boeing because she knows nothing ever really changes around there. She'll always just be a Token Asian Woman with her very own stepladder.
There’s a sign in Colorado Springs that I made in 1985. It shows a whole bunch of kids running up to school. One of them is riding in a wheelchair, but they all seem happy. They all are special-needs children. And the school is for all of them. It’s a special school. Hey! didn’t you go to a special school? Oh, that’s right. Your school was just something special because its curriculum was centered around some insignificant environmental stewardship stuff.
ALL children are special-needs children.
I love you! You rock.
Joan :D
My own addition: Did anyone watch the final debate? How WOULD you fund anything for special-needs children if you implement an across-the-board spending freeze? OH SNAP. That was my favorite zinger of the night. At least, that's the one that comes to mind right now.
Question of the Day:
If you could have a superpower, what would it be?
I would choose teleportation.
Another monthiversary today. Smaller and smaller fractions of a year. He is wonderful.
It's Breast Cancer Awareness Month. They lit up the State House pink. Awesome. I wonder how much that cost? And I wonder how many mammograms that amount of money could have paid for for women who can't afford them? And how many lives that could have saved?
RA job is relentless. I have indeed sold my soul to ResLife. My boss says this job should be 80-20: 80% pure joy, and 20% tedious stuff that you just kind of have to do. I don't know if I feel that way just yet. Some days it's close, others it's as low as 40-60. I probably shouldn't have opted to have my paycheck directly deposited; I knew I'd hate that. Granted, a regular trip to the bank is not something I want to have to work into my schedule, but it would be nice to have a tangible biweekly reward. And something in my mailbox! I never get snail mail anymore :(
My mom sent me an interesting e-mail a few days ago (edited for length and content)...
Hello Gina,
How’s my girl child?
Here’s that article I wrote for the national CPSA magazine, attached. It has supporting pictures of the classroom and my elderly students. Every one of them has something very special. I cried when I looked at them, because I miss them so much. You’ll see Patty Nelson in one. I’m having trouble deciding which pics to use. I thought as was doing the outline that I might as well just write, write, write the whole story. So, let me know what you think. I know it’s choppy and needs some tweeking. I’ll pay you for your editing skills. The final is due 10/15. If you don’t have time because you’re busy with your college work, let me know. That’s fine.
Hey, next week I’m teaching an art class to forty special-needs children at a retreat on a ranch in the Heart of Colorado region. The reason they are “special-needs” is because they are children. Well, that’s the first reason. The other reason they have special needs is because one of their parents is deployed in a stupid, costly war in Iraq. With all the money we’re spending out of control over there for the special people in Iraq who have tons of money of their own, we could provide a hell of a lot of wheelchairs and art supplies for our special-needs children and elderly.
ALL children have special needs. Mine do, my mother’s do, my next door neighbor’s do.... all are special.
If I asked Lourdes next door if she thought Phillipe was anymore special than her two other children, she'd shout a resounding NO. Her other kids are perfectly “normal”? They are special too. With their own unique specialness. When you were home in a special breathing tent because you couldn’t breathe, were you special? Yes. You still are. All my students are. Lil rides around in her hover-round. She’s cute and special. Hank can’t draw a straight line cuz he had a stroke. Pretty special guy, Hank is. I can tell you, Dave, my student who is a registered child molester, is very special. But he has problems. Major problems. Special problems. Garylou doesn’t want to be treated differently than my other students just because she knows she’s going to die from her special disease in “less than two months”. She wants to be treated equally. I have to give her kleenex because she drools. I have to give Barbara, my bi-polar student kleenex because she cries during at least half of each workshop. But her paintings aren’t anymore special than Garylou’s.
I believe Sarah Palin’s announcement that she is going to focus on special-needs children was just another ego-driven “look at me!” statement. What’s she going to do with all the other special children who aren’t special?
You and Tony are special-needs children. All of your cousins were special-needs children. And when they grow up, if they haven’t already, they STILL have special needs. You might not be retarded or drooling, but that’s not what it takes to be considered special. What is it about that word “special” that grates?
I am a special-needs person. Everyone is.
Tony was pretty special when he was in the emergency room time after time because he couldn’t breathe. My sister Kate was really special as a baby strapped to a chair for hours and to her crib all night because she had such a bad rash, and belting her hands kept her from scratching and bleeding all over mom’s sheets.
Bobbi had some pretty special needs when no one protected her from her child-molester brother-in-law. Amanda had special needs when Bobbi died.
Young girls have special needs when they need a rape kit and can’t afford to pay for them and don’t have any insurance. What the hell? Sarah Palin thinks rape victims should pay for the forensic rape kit???!!! They shouldn’t have to pay for the pregnancy or the abortion either. Rape is a community problem, not the victim’s fault.
I wonder if Sarah would require that a certain percentage of employees have to be in the special-needs category. So Boeing can refer to them as “tokens” just as they do Asians, African Americans, Women, etc.? As in: “Here’s the photo the Ethics Committee asked me for. They need to have it included in their presentation to Corporate in Chicago. Does it have enough tokens in it? If not, we can use Jenifer. She’s a woman AND Asian.” My friend Jenifer is called that all the time, but she just puts up with it and keeps making signs for Boeing because she knows nothing ever really changes around there. She'll always just be a Token Asian Woman with her very own stepladder.
There’s a sign in Colorado Springs that I made in 1985. It shows a whole bunch of kids running up to school. One of them is riding in a wheelchair, but they all seem happy. They all are special-needs children. And the school is for all of them. It’s a special school. Hey! didn’t you go to a special school? Oh, that’s right. Your school was just something special because its curriculum was centered around some insignificant environmental stewardship stuff.
ALL children are special-needs children.
I love you! You rock.
Joan :D
My own addition: Did anyone watch the final debate? How WOULD you fund anything for special-needs children if you implement an across-the-board spending freeze? OH SNAP. That was my favorite zinger of the night. At least, that's the one that comes to mind right now.
Question of the Day:
If you could have a superpower, what would it be?
I would choose teleportation.