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Motivational

What will you do with a fresh start?

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Being in a wheelchair isn't easy but I ride a wheelie as often as I can
Being in a wheelchair isn’t easy but I ride a wheelie as often as I can

It’s the first day of 2016. That means as of 12 AM, last night we all get to start fresh. Whatever happened last year can be left in the past and you can look forward to the future. 2016 can be whatever you want it to be.

Make the best of it.  Feel free to share your plans for the year with the rest of us in the comments below

This is the first comic of the year from Evie. I can’t wait to see what’s next. We both wish everyone the best of everything this year. I’m wondering if she’s supposed to be the cat peeking from behind my chair?

 

Life in a wheelchair, Motivational

In case you aren’t aware Christmas is here

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Let’s get this out-of-the-way right now. I’m an adult and I believe in Santa Claus. Christmas may be my favorite holiday.I’ve never thought to ask Santa for a body upgrade, but after seeing the comic a couple of days early I added it to my list. (I’ll let you know how it’s working out in a future post).

I love to give and there is just something special about this day. Most important to me is what this day means to me as a Christian. I believe that God has blessed me in more ways than I can even describe, and I I am so thankful.

Know that you are special. blessed with gifts and talents you might not even be aware of. You may not feel it, but trust me there are there.

I am blessed by the people around me. My family, Evie, Natalie and more friends than I can name, Evie doesn’t like for me to talk about her much. The truth is this blog would be nothing without her. She keeps me on my toes, and  is constantly pushing me to create better content.  I’ve always wanted a business partner. It’s no fun taking over the world by yourself. If I am successful at all, it will be because we did it together. Thank you for all your work and all that you do.

If you’re reading this I hope you have support in your life similar to what I have been blessed with. If not, the new year starts in just a few days, and we all get to start fresh. We are going to take a small break, but we will be back January 1 with fresh new content. In the meantime, we have lots of content that you may not have gotten around to reading. Most of it makes sense I promise.

I don’t talk about often, but we do have a donate button on the side of the page if you’d like to give us a Christmas present, and support what we do. No obligation of course. Our content is free and will continue to be for the foreseeable future. If you have ever wondered what the money goes for. It helps me to pay for all the fabulous work that goes on around here. (Points to the comic above).

Merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah, happy Kwanzaa and whatever else I forgot. (I guess that’s why people say happy holidays) we will see you in about a week. Thanks for reading, if you weren’t reading, there would be no reason for me to write. You make it all worth it.

Life in a wheelchair

There is never enough handicap parking

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jj-wcenvy

I have a small confession to make. People who can walk stealing a parking place from someone like me doesn’t bother me that much. Think about it, what’s the worst that could happen if I have to roll a mile and the half in Walmart parking lot? At worst I might strain a joystick finger. I’ve watched people walk all my life, I have to be honest, that looks like it hurts. I have very limited experience in walking, but honestly, watching people walk, I am genuinely surprised that they don’t keel over from the effort more often. I think I probably would,

With that in mind, I think this handicap parking thing might be backwards. I think you people stealing my spots, might actually deserve them because you have to walk. However, we must also keep in mind that there are older people who are still walking who genuinely needs those spots. The next time you steal a parking place, Think twice. Someone in a motorized chair like me may not need the spot, but you might be taking it from a 90-year-old grandmother, who definitely doesn’t need to walk that far. When an older person like that falls, not only is it really hard to get up, but It can be deadly. Just a little food for thought

This has been Wheelchair Wednesday,

Thanks to Evie for the comic. She is available for hire folks. If you’re interested, let us know in the comments.

 

Motivational

I don’t get stressed in my pajama pants

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I don’t watch the news a lot, mainly because most of it is bad. This time of year it doesn’t matter where you go, most people seem to be in a bad mood, not in the holiday spirit. I guess I can’t them. Combine all of the bad news we see with every day stress, and then add in the extra stress that comes with a special times of the year, and it’s easy to see how someone could lose track of what’s good in their lives.

I’m not just being funny with today’s comic. I LOVE my pajama pants. I’m wearing them right now. If I don’t have an appointment or somewhere to be, I wear them everyday. I refuse to wear them in public but that’s a whole other thing. I don’t get people who wear them in Walmart or other very public places. I know you want to be comfortable but come on.

That  said, if I’m home they are my favorite things to wear. They just make me feel better. When you’re stressed i,f you can find a small way to improve your outlook even if it’s wearing pajama pants, it makes all the difference in the world. if you don’t believe me give it a try. (wearing PJs to work is not endorsed by this blog, unless you have a day for that that’s totally cool). For you it may not be pJs that makes you feel good. Find something small that gives you comfort, and use it liberally to get through the stressful times. A nice hot shower is another great example.

On a sidenote, the new Star Wars gave me comfort and drastically improved my attitude. (it’s really good that’s all I’m saying). More on that in a future post.

I’ve heard athletes say’ look good feel good Play good” I think there’s a lot of truth to that. If you feel good because of something you’re doing, I think it makes every day life much easier. So go put on some PJs, watch a good movie or listen to some music. Your stress may not go away, but doing something that makes you feel good either physically or emotionally helps keep it at bay.

Thanks to Evie for another fabulous comic

This has been a Motivational Monday

Comedy, Life in a wheelchair

Do you trust the bladders of those around you?

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I truly enjoyed being in the pool when I was little. Up until the age of 16 or so. I had to have a lot of help. I mean a lot. When I was in the pool, someone had to hold me, or at least give some support. most of the time that was my mom. It was good exercise, my arms and legs got a great workout. At some point mom stopped wanting to get in the pool. I never had a hot girlfriend that wanted to take me into the pool, so my options for partners were limited.

Also, this comic is pretty much true. I’ll admit I peed in the pool. I could make lots of excuses, but I’m pretty sure all of you have done it at one point or another even if you don’t remember. If you were ever  in the pool as a small child, I guarantee you did. Go ask your mom, she’s probably got a few good stories, and maybe even some pictures. (yes it shows up in some pools) Once I realized that others had probably done it as well, I stopped missing being in the pool quite so much.

This has been Funny Friday

Thanks again to Evie for making us all laugh

Life in a wheelchair, Motivational

Rocky ain’t got nothin on me

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I’ll admit I probably missed out on a few things in my life, I would have loved to have been able to play sports, but to be honest, the chair is all I know.

When I think about playing sports I can’t really imagine what it would feel like to be graceful enough to do something like that. It would be fun I’m sure but I can’t really imagine having that much ability, and control over my body. I think there is something to the saying “you don’t really miss what you never had”

The only reason I wanted to run up the steps in Philadelphia is because the image of Rocky doing it was etched in my brain at very early age.

Truthfully, the only time I really ever think about not being able to walk or run is when there is an accessibility issue, or I want to dance with a girl. (I have been known to take a girl out onto the dance floor in my lap for a spin). So the chair doesn’t really stop me from dancing,  finding a woman who is open-minded enough to do that           Is rare, but they do exist. I also dance in the virtual world of Second Life from time to time, but I’m kind of picky when choosing my dance partner, and they don’t always say yes. If you want to dance it can be done.

I suppose the same could be said for wheelchair sports, although I’ve never really been interested in trying them. so I can’t speak to that. The moral of the story is, whether it’s a wheelchair, or a loss of a limb, or any other number of things that might seem like a limitation. The only real limitation is whether or not you’re willing to try and find a way around it. If there is no way around it, then find the benefit in it. Are half full or half empty?

 

This has been Wheelchair Wednesday

Thanks again to Evie for the fabulous comic. Comments are welcome.

Comedy, Life in a wheelchair

The cerebral palsy weight-loss plan

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Today’s comic is funny but it’s also very true. I can open a piece of candy or get a piece of cake for myself, but only if it is placed at a level where I can reach it. Even then, it takes a lot more effort to get the job done then it does for most people.The upside to this is that I rarely overdo it. I’ve never struggled with my weight or had to worry about what I was eating. Nothing like a built-in obstacle to keep you healthy. This holiday season I know it can be a extremely tempting to overindulge in all the good things that are around. You know as well as I do, you’ll feel better if you don’t. If you are having trouble with the self-restraint. Put some oven mitts on your hands while you’re trying to open candy. Better yet, put that cake or pie where you can’t reach it. When you do decide to indulge only allow yourself a little bit.

I have a massive sweet tooth. I know it’s hard. It’s hard for me I have some Candy sitting on the table next to me, and I’d really like a piece. I’ll probably have one before the afternoon is over, but I’ll make myself open it so I will use a little restraint.

 

This has been Motivational Monday

Today’s comic was done by Evie Marie I couldn’t do any of this without her.

Life in a wheelchair

I STILL want to be like Mike

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Greatest ever
Greatest ever

I love sports, always have. I’ve never been able play them, but they have always captivated me. I think it all started with Michael Jordan. When I was a kid, he was the closest thing to a real life superhero that I knew. I couldn’t walk but he could fly. At that time you could catch all the Bulls home games on WGN. For about seven years I’m pretty sure I saw every single one. He made me feel like anything was possible. He is the greatest to ever play no discussion,

When I was 18 years old, my mother asked me what I wanted for my birthday. By this time Michael was in his last year with the bulls and I knew I had witnessed greatness. I told her I wanted a pair of Air Jordans. This was a big deal back then because even in 98 we didn’t have a lot of money.

I’ll never forget going to the store and rolling in to find the perfect pair. One of the sales guys asked me what I wanted, I told them I needed Jordans. The next part of the story is absolute truth, he went to the back, and when he came out he had the shoes and a massive smile on his face. I asked him what the smile was for and he said “you are going to love these shoes. They’re going to make you run faster and jump higher.” Those shoes are displayed  prominently in my room and I still put them on occasionally, to see if they’ll do something for me. I don’t expect to jump like Mike but even at 18 I had hoped that they had some magical powers. I’m starting to wonder if that might be defective because I put them on and I’ve still got nothing. I don’t need to jump, but if they made it easier for me to walk I’d buy at least two pair every year for the rest of my life.

This has been wheelchair Wednesday (and yes I know air Jordans don’t have magical powers, or maybe you just don’t believe enough 😉 )

Update 6-29-16

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One of the coolest things about running a blog is you have a space to tell people about your life. Evie drew this comic based on one of my jokes, and I just had to update the post. The comic is even funnier because it actually happened to me. I’m curious has anyone else out there ever hoped the new parish shoes Will give you superpowers? I certainly did.

 

Comedy, Life in a wheelchair

A wheelchair does not stop a kid on Halloween

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I do not want to race this kid
I do not want to race this kid

I struggled with what to post today and then I remember tomorrow is Halloween.  I had two costumes when I was a kid that I still remember as an adult. The first, and the best one, was at the age of about five. I went as Pac-Man . My mom drew the little guy on each side of a cardboard box and put it over my chair. The effect was that no matter which way I turned, I was coming at people as Pac-Man. The box had two holes cut into it so I can see where I was going. It was awesome.

The second costume I remember what is going as a ninja. This is funny because it is very hard to be ninja like in a wheelchair. It’s virtually impossible to sneak up on somebody. I was dressed in all black and matched my best friend at that time. I think even he knew he wasn’t sneaking in anywhere with me.

For those that don’t know the kid above it Is dressed as Mario in his cart from the Mario kart video games. That’s really cool and the parent who came up with that, should be applauded.

This has been Funny Friday. I will steal your candy.

Image can be found here