Real RA: Thinking Makes It So
Some time ago, I saw an image on Facebook about RA. Thanks to my fibro fog, I no longer remember who shared it in which group, but even if I did, I wouldn’t disclose it. Because I am about to vehemently disagree and there’s no need to get flame-y. This is the image And I…
Customer Service. What a Concept.
Case #1: let’s imagine a purely hypothetical situation in which I receive housekeeping services from a particular organization. Let’s further imagine them hypothetically calling me to inform me that my regular housekeeper will be away for five weeks and that they will be contracting out housekeeping services to a temp agency. We could also imagine…
Presumption
Every now and again the universe conspires and lets me know without prevarication that I’m supposed to write about something. It started when I (somewhat belatedly) read Dave’s post about World Down Syndrome Day, which had a lively and at times disturbing conversation in the comment section. A discussion which included responses to a comment…
Respecting the Crash
By noon last Tuesday, I was exhausted. This is not a good sign two days into the work week. I kept going, pushing through the haze of tired and somehow made it to the weekend. Saturday was spent moving in glue and looking with dread at a week filled with entirely too much, but not…
The Unexceptional
I have become a wuss. There have been signs that I have deteriorated into a state of perpetual whining, what with the repeated mentions about having no energy. It was starting to bug me, so the other day I asked The Boy for more objective assessment of my health status. And he said something interesting….
Resolved
It’s commonplace to make promises to yourself around this time of year and normally, my primary promises to not get caught up in the resolution obsession. Too often, it leads to a severe case of self-loathing as you take stock of your life and find it wanting, making promises to yourself that you don’t keep….
Out Among the English: Body Language & Disability
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about physical barriers tosocial interaction, mostly in terms of design issues and aspects that can be corrected by having some chairs in the place. Today, Part II. Namely physical barriers to interpersonal communication. Say that you’re At a formal occasion – a wedding, formal business event and the…
In Praise of Sloth
It’s been 10 days of not doing very much at all aside from reading good books, watching good TV and lollygagging and it has been bliss. Just bliss. It took me more days than I care to admit to stop with the “shoulds.” Every time my internal voice said “you should be (insert work-related or…
Pros and Cons: An Internal Argument
I’ve been coveting lately. More specifically, I have been lusting after an iPhone. I don’t know why this has suddenly come over me – they’ve been around for what, 4 years? and I’ve never had the urge to have one before, but now, it’s preying on my mind. I want one, in much the same…
My Best Friend
Jenni over at ChronicBabe chose “My Best Friend” as the theme for this week’s Blog Carnival. At first, I was going to skip this one – I am in the extremely lucky position of having several people in my life who qualify as best friends. Choosing only one didn’t feel right and writing a post…
Me & My Shadow
I don’t remember a time when I didn’t have Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. Well, now they call it Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis, but a rose by any other name is still a pain in the arse. I have lived with RA for over four decades and there are times when I’ve thought about how even really bad…
Identity Crisis
When I write for HealthCentral, I am called an Expert. I like the title – who wouldn’t? It’s nice being an expert, especially if it’s with a capital E. It appeals to my latent megalomania and that’s never a bad thing. Well, some people might think I’m enough of a know-it-all already, but they clearly…