Archive for the ‘Just Stuff’ Category

Sailing through rough times

Monday, August 23rd, 2010

Quite a bit has been going on! I returned home from the NCIL Annual Conference to an ugly situation. Monroe County had terminated it’s contract with the Center for Disability Rights (CDR) to administer the Consumer Directed Personal Attendant Services (CDPAS) program. That action resulted in a week-long vigil outside the County building. Today is the day that we will know how things pan out.

There are numerous articles about what happened on the CDR website, as well as articles I’ve written for Associated Content that will outline the full story. Needless to say, it was quite nasty (and possibly illegal) on the County’s part!

Thank you to ADAPT folks from Binghamton, NY, Philadelphia, and Georgia who came to Maggieville to support us!

UPDATE

It looks like the judge reserved his decision, so it could take up to another two weeks before we hear what the final decision will be.

Just as I was getting back into the swing of regular workdays, I was rushed to the hospital with horrible pain in my legs, from my hips to my ankles. At first, it was thought that there were blood clots in my legs, but thank goodness, that’s not the case. My doctor says that there are a number if things going on simultaneously, but he has to figure out what they are. I do have arthritis in my hips and knees, but that doesn’t account for all the pain that I’m in. The doc thinks that something neurological is going on, and wants me to get a nerve conduction test, or EMG in my legs as well as an MRI of my brain, as he thinks that there could be lesions on the brain due to Multiple Sclerosis.

I am at home for now. The doctor will not release me to return to work until he sees me again in early September. It’s just as well, since I can neither sit nor stand for any length of time. Hopefully, the three new pain meds that I’m now on will kick in and start to work. I’ll keep you updated on what is going on.

I’m running for Region 2 Representative at NCIL!

Saturday, June 5th, 2010

Once again, I am running for Region 2 Representative for the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL). In 2008, I lost my bid for Region 2 Representative by a few votes, but I am determined to run again, and win!

What is a Regional rep, and what do they do? Here it is straight from NCIL:

“The Regional Representative is the pivotal position in NCIL’s communication system with its membership. The Regional Representative is responsible for communicating at least quarterly with NCIL members regarding IL issues and working with any other group interested in pursuing NCIL’s goals within his or her respective region. The Regional Reps will assist the NCIL board and committees in building and coordinating grassroots coalition to advance NCIL’s advocacy activities. The NCIL Regional Representatives will also assist in the recruitment and retention of NCIL members. The regional representatives will disseminate information related to regional or state advocacy efforts to their regional members.”

NCIL is divided into 10 regions across the nation. Region 2 includes New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. I am excited and honored to run for this position, and honored that Diane, our Director of Advocacy, and my boss, nominated me for this. Here is the text of the nomination:

2010 Nomination

National Council on Independent Living

Region II Representative

Anita Cameron has been an activist for the rights of people with disabilities for over 20 years.  Ms. Cameron is a member of ADAPT, National Council on Independent Living (NCIL), American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), and Not Dead Yet. Over her many years as a leader in the disability community, Ms. Cameron has demonstrated a commitment to grassroots organizing, direct action, civil rights, communication, and diversity.  Ms. Cameron embodies many of the values which NCIL embraces.

Ms. Cameron currently lives in Rochester, NY, and works for the Center for Disability Rights.  She has lived in Chicago, Denver, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC, among others.  Ms. Cameron’s father is of Cuban decent and she has family in Puerto Rico.  In her work and volunteer activities over the years, Ms. Cameron has:

•    Served on and chaired ADA transit advisory committees in major cities;
•    Written numerous disability rights articles published in both disability and mainstream publications, including the Greeley (CO) Tribune, and Associated Content;
•    Maintained her own disability rights and social justice blog entitled The Roving Activist;
•    Served as a strategy team leader in national ADAPT actions pushing for disability civil rights regarding transportation and long term services and supports;
•    Composed email action alerts on disability issues that generated over 22,000 advocate communications to policy makers in 2009 alone

In our discussions about possibly becoming the representative for Region II, Ms. Cameron expressed sincere excitement about being able to communicate with the NCIL members across New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.  She also expressed a desire to work toward greater involvement of the NCIL grassroots in working for the systems changes that will improve the lives of people with disabilities across our nation.

Ms. Cameron would happily seek and communicate input from the disability community in Region II regarding NCIL issues, effective immediately, at her email acameron@cdrnys.org. She has stated that she looks forward to being able to proudly represent the people of Region II.

Pre-Action Blogarrhea

Friday, April 23rd, 2010

Of course, I’ve been a busy sister! Lots have been going on at work. Last week, we did a protest against RGRTA. This week, we’re preparing for the upcoming ADAPT action in Washington, DC. I’ve been practicing using a scooter for this trip, and for those who know me, you know that me and anything motorized  does NOT mix well. :(

I’ll survive, though…

Urge CNN to tell the truth about CCA!

Thursday, April 1st, 2010

Last August, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Chief Medical Correspondent for CNN stated that the Community Choice Act (CCA) would make hospitals wheelchair accessible. In October, ADAPT met with CNN’s David Vigilante, who agreed to ask Dr. Gupta to make an on-air correction of this misinformation. To date, there has been no correction of Dr. Gupta’s mistake.

See ADAPT video about CNN and Dr. Gupta at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5uTKatvkDk

Then, contact CNN and tell them to stop fooling around! They know the Community Choice Act is about our freedom to live in our own homes NOT about hospital accessibility. It’s time for them to tell it to the world just like they promised us they would!

 
Click here, which will take you to a sample letter that you can send to David Vigilante. Please feel free to personalize it, if you wish. Then, enter your contact information and click once on the Send button. It’s that easy! Please tell your friends about this alert so that they may participate, as well.

Happy Pi Day!

Sunday, March 14th, 2010

Happy Pi Day! Today is Pi Day. You know, Pi — the circumference of a circle — 3.14 something something something all the way to infinity? Sorry folks, though my head is filled with facts and factoids of every description, it does not include the value of Pi greater than the first two numbers beyond the decimal point. I leave that to the true numbers enthusiasts.

Anyway, Happy Pi Day!!

This is my blog

Tuesday, January 19th, 2010

Don’t worry, I’m just doing this for Technorati so that I can spread my influence far and wide! j/k :) K5MP83W6URAS

Technorati is a good way that more people will find out about us.

Happy Martin Luther King Day!

Monday, January 18th, 2010

Happy Martin Luther King Day to all of my Gentle Readers! Today is the federal holiday commemorating the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. ( January 15, 1929-April 4, 1968).

I plan to watch all of the MLK specials and reflect on the life of Dr. King. I’m also going to respond to this Action Alert:

Make Freedom a Reality for ALL Americans Tell the Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights that they need to enforce the Olmstead Decision! Click here for the link.

Happy New Year!

Friday, January 1st, 2010

Happy New Year everyone! May you all have a wonderful, prosperous, joyful, and blessed 2010!

It’s snowing here in Rochester today. I’m resting in bed mostly because I’ve still got that sick thing going on. Sometimes I feel better, while other times, my body is clearly trying to stave off something. I still get out of breath if I talk too long or move around too much.

My main goal for 2010 is to keep writing and get better at it. I’m writing at Associated Content, but hope that I can branch out to some other sites, too. I really want to make some money off of my writing!

I’ve written a few more articles, so go check them out.

http://www.associatedcontent.com/user/691438/anita_cameron.html

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays!

Friday, December 25th, 2009

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone! It’s 6:15 am, or thereabouts. I haven’t gotten up yet, and really don’t intend to for another couple of hours. The whole famn damily is in bed – me, Lisa, Sammy, and JoJo. Lisa is snoring softly with visions of sugar plums and other holiday stuff in her head. She’s excited about Christmas, so I imagine she’ll be up soon. She’s a large kid like that; its one of the reasons I love her so. Little things make her happy.

Sammy is at my head purring contentedly, and JoJo is at my feet under the covers. It’s cold out, but warm inside. The Christmas tree is up, with presents beneath it, the lights are on, and the stockings are hanging. Lisa and I will make Christmas dinner, and friends will come over to enjoy the day with us. I’m happy that I was able to get Lisa a couple of presents though I’ve not been to work in almost two months. I know that things will work out fine in the end.

I’m still dealing with the effects of the pneumonia – my chest still hurts, and I’m easily winded, so I’ll probably nap and rest a lot today.

I got an early Christmas present on December 18th. Washington, DC mayor Adrian Fenty signed the same-sex marriage bill that passed the city council 11-2. Sure, it’s controversial, but so what! I believe that every loving, consenting adult should have the right to get married if they choose. Check out the story:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/12/18/same.sex.marriage/

Now, it’s up for the 30 day review by Congress, but it is highly unlikely that Congress will overturn this.

What else will I do today? I’ll most likely call my sister and talk with her and my nieces. I’ll also call my mum, my nephew, and a couple of friends.

What do I want for Christmas? World peace. Justice and equal rights. The earth to be taken care of. The Community Choice Act passed, and real, effective implementation and enforcement of the Americans with Disabilities Act along with an Olmstead plan for every state. Good health and a good life for myself, my family, and friends. Oh, and one more thing – check out my articles at Associated Content. Just in case you forgot, here’s the link:

http://www.associatedcontent.com/user/691438/anita_cameron.html

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and have a joyful, blessed day!

So frustrated!

Sunday, December 13th, 2009

Arrrgghh! It seems that every time I make a comeback, doggone it if right after, I don’t disappear again! I have been dealing with illness since October. Let me tell you all about it.

It all started during the ADAPT action in Atlanta back in October. That Monday, the 12th, had rains of epic, biblical proportions, but we are ADAPT. As I told one newcomer, paraphrasing the Postman’s Motto, “Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor dark of night will keep ADAPT from doing our duty”. So, of course, we went forth. While some of my ADAPT sisters and brothers suffered the demise of their power wheelchairs due to the effects of the rain, I was hit with the ADAPT Crud, a singularly nasty bug that invades the bodies of ADAPT members either during, or just after an action. I was quite familiar with the Crud from my early days in ADAPT, but hadn’t been visited in almost a decade, so I guess it was my time. It put me down HARD for over a week!

I finally went back to work, but got sick again with a viral upper respiratory infection. This time, I sucked it up and pushed on through because we had really important stuff going on with Governor Paterson’s proposed budget cuts. During this time, I learned that at least two folks had H1N1 (swine flu), and I had been in close contact with them for several hours on more than one occasion. The Albany trip was intense, and I literally wore myself out. I couldn’t even get up the next morning to go to work! When Day 2 arrived, and I was feeling beyond horrible, with fever, vomiting, chills, diarrhea, and mass body aches, I knew it was time to see the doctor. He told me what I didn’t want to hear – that Miss Piggy had come to visit.

Despite taking the Tamiflu, the swine flu persisted, and I wound up in the emergency room suffering from dehydration. Needless to say, during this time, I did not go to work. I was back and forth to the doctor, who told me that the diabetes was why this flu was hanging on. He was worried that I would wind up with pneumonia, but I’d taken a chest x-ray at the hospital, and everything was fine. Yet, I was still sick…

By this time, I hadn’t been to work in a month. Financial pressures sent me back on December 1st, but I didn’t last past three hours. My chest was hurting, and I was finding it difficult to breathe. I still had a fever, even after a month. I went back to the doctor, who told me to be patient, that I was slowly getting better, though he didn’t want me back at work, just yet.

It seemed, however, that I wasn’t getting better, and in some ways, I was getting worse. I went back to the doctor, who listened to my chest, and ordered another chest x-ray. Later that afternoon, I received a called. I had pneumonia.

The doc started me on antibiotics, but they weren’t working, so they started me on another one that covers a broader range of bugs to kill. To be honest, I haven’t seen much change and I am sick as a dog! I have another doctor’s appointment tomorrow, so we’ll see how that goes. I must say that I have never been continuously sick like this in my life, and it is extremely frustrating. Hopefully, I’ll get back to work soon, and in the meantime come around here more often. I miss you all!