Introducing "Look At Me"

Dear readers! 

I am finishing up my book and I found a way to publish it on my own without any price. So I am publishing it on another blog that I made last week, and it's called "Look At Me" (you can find at http://lookatmetalktome.blogspot.ca). I am putting out 2 blogs (or chapters) every week. I hope you guys enjoy my life story!

The next chapter in my life...

It's a new day.  I am at Starbucks watching people coming and going. They are getting their coffee to start the day. I am trying to write but it is hard, so I sit here thinking about life in general and wonder about what I want to do next.  Tomorrow I will be starting another writing course.  It runs for six weeks.  The last writing course that I took will also apply to this one and will help me to finish my book. Hopefully I will be able to get into speech therapy and physiotherapy.  This will help me a lot with talking better and also building my muscles.  Next year will be a big year for me.  I am going on two holidays. The first holiday that my best friend and I are going on is Hawaii in February and then New Zealand in April.  New Zealand is the first holiday in another country without my family. I am so excited to see another part of the world and how well I am able to get around in my power wheelchair. We are going to New Zealand for two days before getting on a cruise for 36 days from New Zealand to Vancouver Canada. When we are on the cruise I will blog about my trip to tell you guys how the accessibility is for me. Stay tuned!

Hi everyone

This is my second blog of the year. Sorry for not blogging sooner. I am doing my writing course and it is taking up most of my time. It is going really well and I am learning a lot. I want to keep up with writing so I can improve. Remember I did a blog called " my thoughts and feelings about being handicapped." It was on having Cerebral Palsy and if I have a chance to improve my physical abilities, what will that mean to me. Well there are two procedures that I want to see if I will be a good candidate for. They are Stem Cells and Deep Brain Stimulation. I need to do some research on them to see which one of these would be a good match for me. I will keep you up to date on which way I want to go. If I choose one of these procedures I know it will be a long process. I will blog about my journey.

Hi blog reader!!!

Happy New Year everybody! I hope that you all had a wonderful time with family and friends over the Christmas holidays.  Every ending has a new beginning! Let 2014 be an exciting beginning for all of you.
I started a writing course on January 7th.  It will improve my writing for blogging by teaching me how to manipulate words and get my point across.  Also, when I complete a piece of work, it is important for me to have the knowledge and skill to proof read.  I hope it will make me a better writer.
For the past 14 years I have been working on my life story by talking to a friend of mine. She told me that I have a story to share. So she helped me to get started with the first couple of paragraphs. It was up to me to listen to my friend and I started to write my life story living with Cerebral Palsy and what I have overcome in my life.  It is taking a long time and my writing is getting better.  I want to improve and be happy with my writing. Meanwhile, I practice with my blog.
This is a big goal for me, so I need to take it one step at a time.  The plan I have is to self-publish my book through my blog this year.  It is certainly a new beginning for me.  Have a great year and stay tuned.

Obstacles to learning new skills – tips and supports to overcome my writing obstacles

Living with Cerebral Palsy all my life is not holding me back.  I am always learning new skills but it takes me more time than other people.   Writing blogs can help me in a couple of ways with my writing skills. I do research on the topics that I choose to write about when I’m blogging in order to stimulate my ideas.  I think knowledge about a topic is always helpful when you write.  Also, when I go online and do research on the topic, I can learn more about what the person is talking about in their writing and how they use their words to explain it.
When I get stuck I can also leave it alone and come back to it later when I am more motivated.  I have learned that taking a break can help me to focus better.
Building my confidence is important with my level of comfort with writing.  In order to brush up on technical abilities with words and grammar, I have decided to take a writing fundamentals course.  I would like to be able to edit and proof read my own work and feel confident with the end results.

I need to remember to read each word out loud to see if it makes sense when I am writing. I don't read every word out loud and sometime I don't read my work over. This means my work does not make sense to me when I do.  And so it isn’t going to make sense to the other people reading it.  I know now that I need to practice reading out loud.  This will help me do better with assignments.  It allows me to hear what I have said and fix my errors.
I want and need to keep working on my writing because I have a story to tell. The people I want to reach through my story are the people who have kids with life challenges.  And also, I want my story to help kids that have no idea about people who have life challenges.

I am motivated to push myself beyond obstacles in life because I know I will be more confident in myself and my work.  Becoming a better writer means that what I learn I can apply to my stories and to publishing works that I am proud of.

Supports in our society for people in Canada with life challenges....

In Canada there are numerous provincial governments. Each of these provinces has different kinds of programs for people who have a disability. In Alberta, where I live, one program is called AISH.  AISH is a low monthly income for people who have a disability. It stands for Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH).

Right now (2014) we are able to make 800 per month as additional income.   If this increases, the government reduces our base amount from AISH.  In the past, people were able to make up to 400 for every month but having the option of making an extra 400 can open more opportunities.
Some Albertans with life challenges due to a disability may be unable to work or to find suitable employment and must rely on AISH alone.  It isn’t a great deal of money but it can make a difference.  

PDD funds programs and services to help adults with developmental disabilities all over Alberta.  It stands for Persons with Developmental Disabilities (PDD). There are different programs out there that people use for supports.  It all depends on the person who has the challenge and what he or she wants/needs for their life. These programs can vary from province to province.  If the person doesn’t know what they want or need, it is important to find a program that will help them figure this out.

For example, I work with PASC.   This stands for Progressive Alternatives Society of Calgary.  I have support three days every week which help with my writing skills and enables me to discover ways to improve on a book about my life and getting it publish. PASC encourages me with everything that I want to do.  This includes getting out in the community and spending time exercising at the Recreation Center.  The people there also helped me with going back to school to get a diploma in Web Graphics Design. I finished the school program and was able to work for two years.  I have since decided to start my own business doing freelance websites and I also plan to take some writing courses.  Support can help anyone sort through what is available in their area of Canada. For me, I am focused on greater independence as I learn and grow in my life.

Speaking is different than writing!

Speaking is much different than writing because when someone has to speak to a group of people they might prefer death. Some others love talking and they do it for a living.

People who are pubic speakers can show us that they love talking to a group of people by the sounds in their voice. We can hear lots of different tones in a person’s voice. Some people are better at pubic speaking than others but we can learn to become more skilled at vocal communication. Talking about a subject that you are passionate about is fulfilling for people.

Writing is a tool that most of us have used from a young age to adulthood. People use this tool for their work in a variety of ways. They might have to write letters and create contact lists or take on bigger tasks, like proofreading and editing.

People can tell a story in their writing and show us how much they enjoy it by the words they use to explain things when they write a novel or a biography.

There are some people that can't handle sitting down to write because they find it a challenge to get started and to figure out what to say. Some writers get great ideas in the middle of the night and get up and start writing.

Writing can be a wonderful tool if you use a journal. It can help you sort out your thoughts and feelings and is one way to get out your frustrations.

If you are an excellent at writing and suck at pubic speaking, you can be a writer for someone else who is an excellent public speaker. If you are good at both and you enjoy writing and speaking, this is a bonus.

The ability to write well does not make someone a good speaker and a good speaker doesn’t have to be a great writer, but it helps.