Searching for Larry King

I got an email the other day from a mom on behalf of her disabled daughter, Michelle. Her daughter attended Holladay Center in Portland, OR, from 1971-1981.

Holladay Center is a school for the disabled. Currently I believe it is a preschool, but years ago it went through 4th grade. It was a Montessori style of learning, with a heavy dose of therapy.

Jodie and I went there from the mid-60's to the early 70's.

This mom is looking for a classmate of her daughter's named Larry King.

If you know anything about the Larry King who attended Holladay Center in Portland, Oregon, during the 1970's, please contact me.

Also, if anyone who is a Holladay Center alumni would like to, please contact me. I was thinking it might be a good idea for us to share stories and have a place to make contact with each other.

Coffee Shop Aims To Empower Disabled - Portland News Story - KPTV Portland

A great story:

Coffee Shop Aims To Empower Disabled - Portland News Story - KPTV Portland: "Northeast Portland is the new home to a coffee shop that offers a lot more than lattes and mochas. The Full Life coffee shop is enriching the lives of some very special clientele.

Independent contractor Suzanne Foster helped set up the coffee house along Sandy Boulevard that opened two weeks ago to complement the existing Full Life headquarters next door."

The price of freedom

Another fine one by Pitts:

Freedom is worth security risks - Leonard Pitts Jr. - MiamiHerald.com: "No one denies a need to take every reasonable precaution for security. But we need to get over the idea we can guarantee we are never hit again. You simply cannot make that promise and have left a country worth living in. Or as President Eisenhower reputedly said, ``If you want total security, go to prison.''

Some of us would prefer not to. Some of us realize that a degree of risk is inextricable from any degree of freedom."

Quiet long weekend at home

Eric mowed and edged the grass. I weeded the flower beds. Jodie worked on further decluttering our garaged turned storage room.

I took Eric to see Star Trek. We were joined by a couple of his school buddies. I really enjoyed it! It is a prequel to the 60's tv series.

Eric and I went and bought a gas trimmer. Our back garden area is overgrown grass and weeds. Eric had them down in no time!

We watched the NBA semi-finals. Denver should have gotten game 3; at least they got game 4. King Jame's way-out game winning three-shot was magical in game 2...game 3, he was not too impressive.

We waited to hear if Eric had a make-up game on Memorial Day. We never heard, so we barbecued steak instead.

A quiet weekend at home...

Tot has Ebay thing all figured out...

BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | Toddler buys real digger online: "The child, Pipi Quinlan, was trying out her online skills while her parents were asleep in bed.

They only unearthed the truth when they received an email demand for NZ$20,000 (£8,000) from the seller.

Pipi's mother, Sarah, had left the computer logged on. The owner of the digger is not insisting on the sale."

Only in the movies...

...Or on CNN:

Sis finds long-lost brother living across the street - CNN.com

Let Vick play?

I have not decided myself. I like Martin's commentaries, and this is a good one:

Commentary: Let Michael Vick play football - CNN.com: "Enough with the public bullying. Vick was sentenced and served his time. And now he's gotten out. If you want to be angry with him, fine. But please, cut the sanctimonious crap. He deserves to make amends and get on with his life. If you were in his shoes, you would want to do the same."

Jodie's turn to see Dr. Molly

Jodie has been dealing with swollen ankles and poor circulation in her legs.

I had an annual checkup scheduled with Dr. Molly today, but with no pressing issues myself right now, I called and canceled my appointment and they let us move Jodie to that slot. I know that my time is coming when I will need the appointments, but not at the moment.

With Jodie's spastic cerebral palsy, poor leg circulation is nothing new. Last week they did an ultrasound to make sure there was now blood clots.

We have both expressed surprise that our doctors we have now know less about our disabilities than the doctors we had when we were young.

Dr. Molly is no slouch. She heads therapy over at Providence Hospital, which makes what she told Jodie today all the more interesting. She said that most people with the amount of spasticity that Jodie has in her legs are not still walking at our age.

We are in uncharted territory. People with our sort of disabilities in previous times did not work full time and were not as active as we are. By no means their fault. The opportunities we have had were not there for them. Dr. Molly said most of them were in wheelchairs and in institutions.

Jodie still walks and Dr. Molly is amazed. If Jodie did not fight to walk every day and did not press on the way she does, she would quickly lose her ability to walk.

Dr. Molly asked how old Jodie will be when she can retire. Well, she told Jodie, "you won't be walking then."

We can live with that. With God's grace, we can live with what comes today and with what comes tomorrow.

Prayers for Brian Grant

I always liked Brian's positive attitude...it continues with added challenge:

Former Blazer Grant reveals big secret | KATU.com - Portland, Oregon | News: "PORTLAND, Ore. - Former NBA forward and Portland resident Brian Grant revealed Monday that he has Parkinson's disease and is starting a Web site devoted to his fight with the neurological disorder.

The 37-year-old Grant told ESPN.com that he was diagnosed in January with 'young onset Parkinson's' and began having tremors in his left hand last summer. He consulted two other well-known Parkinson's suffers, Michael J. Fox and Muhammad Ali, and quickly implemented several lifestyle changes"

There We Go Again. No, Micropayments Won’t “Save Journalism”

There We Go Again. No, Micropayments Won’t “Save Journalism”: "For more perspective on micropayments, you should read “What Would Micropayments Do for Journalism? A Freakonomics Quorum”, in case you haven’t already. I’m lifting this part from the piece, a quote by Marshall W. Van Alstyne (associate professor in the Information Systems department at Boston University and a research scholar at M.I.T) because I think there’s no better way to conclude this post:

Putting micropayments on news is like putting tollbooths on an open ocean. Internet users, awash in a sea of information, will avoid new barriers by navigating around them. And frankly, the interests of a free society are rarely served by building barriers between the people and their news."

Yusuf, formerly Cat Stevens, brings good vibes - CNN.com

His new album, "Roadsinger" is wonderful!

Yusuf, formerly Cat Stevens, brings good vibes - CNN.com

Pay per view for NYT?

I'd go broke fast if I had to pay for all the news I look at on the web. I just move on to free stuff. We need a new broker model...quality news from various sources that I choose. Content that is new and not available for free, with a content clipper I can use on my blog. Give me a fair price for this and I will pay.

New York Times Considers Two Plans to Charge for Content on the Web | The New York Observer: "One includes a 'meter system,' in which the reader can roam freely on the Web site until hitting a predetermined limit of word-count or pageviews, after which a meter will start running and the reader is charged for movement on the site thereafter. He warned staff at the meeting that this pay model would be 'tricky.'"

My time...

Yesterday at work, a caseworker came to my cube mate needing some work done. I remember that I needed something from her.

I review Title IV-E on eligibly kids once a year. I need to have caseworkers sign the reviews. I normally do the review, then I put it in the case worker's box for them to review, sign and get back to me.

For this caseworker I had two reviews from last December, and one from October, that I had not received back. I have emailed her reminders, and given her copies to sign to no avail.

When I hit her up yesterday she said that I need to bring them to her when she is at her desk and wait for her to sign.

So I did that.

Her time is more valuable than mine...I get that.

Next time she needs a Guardianship Assistance IV-E or Adoption Assistance IV-E form from me...I might just wait...

Happy birthday FB founder

25? He's only 25?

Happy 25th Birthday, Mark Zuckerberg

Immigration control - crash the economy...

America's Quiet Border - The Daily Beast

Intoxicated Alaskan woman puts 7-year-old son at the wheel, cops say - Northwest Headlines

Intoxicated Alaskan woman puts 7-year-old son at the wheel, cops say - Northwest Headlines: "A concerned neighbor at the Lakeview Terrace mobile home park called troopers Monday evening after seeing a young boy driving a silver Mazda Protege with a passed-out adult passenger. The neighbor told troopers the young driver came within feet of striking her own parked vehicle."

"Opie!"

Ron Howard Does Letterman Top Ten (VIDEO)

"Find someone to be succesful for..."

Obama ASU Speech: FULL TEXT: "I think one student said it best when she spoke about her senior engineering project building medical devices for people with disabilities in a village in Africa. Her professor showed a video of the folks they'd be helping, and she said, 'When we saw the people on the videos, we began to feel a connection to them. It made us want to be successful for them.'"

This coulda been my office...

Office refrigerator stench packs punch, sends seven to hospital - CNN.com

What's up with Cheney?

Is he running, or is he worried?

Turning down invite from the Prez

Susan Boyle, a lesson in humility:

No Thanks, Mr. President - The Daily Beast

Video: The Comedian-in-Chief -- Politics Daily

10 minute humor boost:

Video: The Comedian-in-Chief -- Politics Daily

The Day Jack Kemp Helped Get MLK His Holiday -- Politics Daily

The Day Jack Kemp Helped Get MLK His Holiday -- Politics Daily: "And so, on that August day, Jack Kemp strode to the lectern in the well of the House and made a blunt and fiery statement. 'I have changed my position on this vote,' he told his colleagues and the world, 'because I really think that the American Revolution will not be complete until we commemorate the civil rights revolution and guarantee those basic declaration of human rights for all Americans and remove those barriers that stand in the way of people being what they were meant to be.'"

I'm not her fan...but I like that she stood up...

...even if it was "Joe the plumber."

Elisabeth Hasselbeck Uninvites Joe the Plumber From Around Her -- Politics Daily

I am a fan of Karl the plumber myself.

Bend woman helps climber with MS scale Mount Everest - Northwest Headlines

Bend woman helps climber with MS scale Mount Everest - Northwest Headlines: "A Bend climber is helping a Boston woman with multiple sclerosis accomplish her dream: summit Mount Everest. This morning's Bend Bulletin reports on the progress of Wendy Booker, 54, the first person with MS to climb the Seven Summits. Booker is accompanied by Brooke Barnes, a guide for Mountain Link Guide Service in Bend, the paper reports."

Out of India: First the $2,000 Nano Car, Now the $7,800 Nano Home - TIME

Out of India: First the $2,000 Nano Car, Now the $7,800 Nano Home - TIME: "Tata Housing Development, the real estate arm of the giant Tata group, is poised to start building apartment-style homes priced from $7,800 to $13,400 in a township being planned at Bhoisar, an industrial suburb located 31 miles (50 km) north of Mumbai. Like the Nano, which was designed to bring some middle-class comforts to the masses, the homes are geared for the hundreds of millions of Indians making less than $5,000 a year who are unable to afford decent dwellings. 'We have realized that there is an opportunity at the bottom of the pyramid,' says Brotin Banerjee, CEO of Tata Housing Development. (Read 'India's Top Automaker, Tata Motors, Hits a Rough Patch.')"

Obama supports...

...my SEIU brethren:

Obama Vs. Schwarzenegger: White House Threatens To Rescind Stimulus Funds

Cerebral Palsy: Step of Mind

Thank you Annette for finding this gem. A young cp'er from Palestine learning to walk with a special boot.

Makes me wonder how many problems we could solve in a world focused on solutions....

YouTube - Learning to Walk with Cerebral Palsy: Step of Mind

I want to move to France

Nine hours sleeping...two hours eating...


Quiet, the French Are Sleeping - The Daily Beast

An e-newspaper

This sounds like a great idea. Make the service affordable...


Big-Screen e-Readers May Help Save Newspapers - NYTimes.com

Disability dress up day

Be sure to follow the link from Terrible Palsy...just amazing!

I think I will dress up like an abled bodied...

What??? (Edited) « Terrible Palsy

Just like our house ;)

Sasha and Malia Shirk Dog Duty - The Daily Beast

Leave it to California...

I can make fun of my birth state....

Miss California's Breast Implants Funded By Pageant: CONFIRMED