Most of us don’t appreciate the extent to which we talk with our hands. It’s an unconscious thing. I’ve noticed a couple of instances lately,
I have so many photos, I wanted to do something fun with them for the blog. I made this slideshow to demonstrate, in just over
I may have a problem. It started innocently enough with my first cell phone. Back then we called it a bag phone or a car phone.
Kim holds down two full-time jobs: guidance counselor and caregiver. It would be nice to have somebody come in and take care of me one
A couple of years ago my eye doctor diagnosed me with chronic dry eye syndrome. “No problem,” he said. “Just use these eye drops every
People with MS often lament, “I just want my old life back,” but I’m pretty sure I’ve never uttered those words. As disheartening as it
My friend and fellow blogger, Stephen, recently posted Disability Etiquette Tips. Number three on that list read: “Don’t assume that because a person has a
I’m doing everything I can to learn the craft of memoir writing, short of going back to college. I may have only one book in
I know I can become a better person. I think I’m on the right track. I know I can lead a contented life, given my
How many times have you wished for a crystal ball? It’s human nature. We long to know what the future holds. But what if you
According to Financial Times, Apple is the largest company in the world. They’re not some nebulous conglomerate like Berkshire Hathaway, the fourth largest company. Everyone
Genentech’s Ocrelizumab First Investigational Medicine to Show Efficacy in People with Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis in Large Phase III Study. Click here to read
I’ve written here before about how good it feels when somebody tells me that my blog has helped, that I’ve made a difference. Recently, I
I teased you a few of months ago when I wrote that I had a working title and cover idea for my book. I actually
note: for those of you receiving this blog post as an email, click here to go to the original post to view the embedded videos.
Readers of this blog know I have a wheelchair that does things other chairs won’t. It can raise me up on two wheels to the
In the United States, for your 50th birthday present they give you a dose of happy drugs, roll you on your side, and slide a
During the initial planning for the wedding on Sunday night, Dave said, “I only want the ten people or so who are here tonight to
I thought I had the rest of our summer all planned out. Normal stuff – Red Sox baseball game, class reunion, art show in the
I’m referring to what you feel when your routine tasks don’t go smoothly – hitting your thumb with a hammer, dropping something on the floor,
MS Connection Blog is administered by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. They liked the guest blog post I did a few weeks ago at MyCounterpane
I’ve been asked how it is that I maintain my identity – how it is I keep MS from defining who I am. To a
It’s great campground entertainment to watch people crawl out of their tents or cabins in the morning. I call it the March of the Full
At 4 o’clock on Friday, we piled into our minivan and drove the fifteen minutes to Hampton Beach, one of those classic, east coast towns
Kim and I arrived at Wakeda Campground in Hampton Falls, New Hampshire, around two o’clock on Thursday and started making ourselves at home in cabin
You heard me. For many years, this was our favorite summer activity, but Kim and I have not been camping since 2008. My brother and
Some folks insist that if they could live their life over again they wouldn’t change a thing. That’s a sweet sentiment, but I don’t feel
There are so many celebrations and festivals in greater Portland, but the one we never miss is the Old Port Festival, the second Sunday in
Click here to see my post, and please consider adding Kate’s blog to your regular online reading.
Apple Watch Update Last week I wrote about my Apple Watch. The only complaint I had was that I couldn’t use Siri, hands-free, to call
I am an early adopter, even more so when technology can help me with some of my MS related challenges. On April 25, soon after
Unless you’re new to my blog, or you skip over the self-aggrandizing posts like this one, you’ve already read several times about my successful efforts
I have to thank Kim for this opportunity. A few weeks ago she told me that her school, Cape Elizabeth Middle School, would be observing
Jeff (my insurance agent), please forgive me for what I write below. If you have MS or any other nasty disease, I hope you bought
In February I announced that I’m writing a memoir. I spent most of 2014 pulling together the first draft. In January of this year I
This post isn’t about sex; that’s a separate topic that I could address here someday, but I probably won’t. Also, this isn’t about physical therapy,
Thank you in advance for indulging me on this off-topic post. I thought some you might enjoy it. In the summer of 2000, Kim and
As I’ve become more disabled, we’ve had to invent new ways to accomplish even the simplest tasks. Kim and I have developed processes for me
I was interviewed earlier today by a health marketing company. Don’t look for a magazine article about me, though. These folks are conducting research on
Kim and I attended a wedding in Massachusetts last summer. Throughout the ceremony and at the reception, I noticed a lady in her thirties using
I’ve always said I couldn’t own a restaurant, because if people didn’t show up in droves for every meal I would take it personally. It
I don’t give a damn about other people’s weather, and here I am writing about mine. At least I have an angle – the wheelchair
When I set out to write this book about my mother and me, I interviewed a lot of people who knew her back in the
In February I had annual checkups with my primary care physician and my neurologist, two doctors I’ve seen for almost fifteen years now. Both are
It’s the secret project I referred to in a previous blog post. In fact, I’ve been writing this book for over a year now, and
…what would I do with it? Imagine somebody invented a pill which restores the health of a person with MS to the point just before
There are a number of ways that life is more tolerable for people with MS today than twenty or more years ago. One of the
I can’t just say to Kim, “Pass me the remote.” That could be any of almost twenty devices that I work with. Everyone has a
Because the flight to Vegas had been so uncomfortable, I dreaded the trip home. But the things I was worried about went fine, and something
Just before midnight on New Year’s Eve, we walked outside onto the Vegas strip to take in the fireworks show. I braced myself for the
By the time we checked in at the hotel it was about 5:00 PM local time, which felt like 8:00 to us, after a night
On Kim’s fiftieth birthday, which would be twenty-seven hours long this year, we got up at 3:45 AM and traveled westward most of the day.
When a group of people invokes the “Let’s go to Vegas!” toast at a bar, 99% of the time the idea crumbles under its own
It’s that time again, when I take a moment to assess what I’ve gained and lost in the past year, and what changes may await
Kim and I would like to to thank everyone for sharing in our journey again this year. Those of you who actively participate at this
I have decided to give medical marijuana a go. Why the hell not? Even if it doesn’t help, I’m confident that experimenting with it won’t
I had previously known Trevis Gleason only as the popular blogger at Life With Multiple Sclerosis. Within the constraints of this platform, he dispenses his
I’m not the same person I used to be. At least I don’t think I am. For example, before I was diagnosed with MS and
Introducing…iConquerMS™. This is a new and different kind of research initiative for MS, launched by the Accelerated Cure Project in Boston, MA. It’s dedicated to
Yeah, you read that right. This subject is better suited for a PhD dissertation, but instead I’ll tackle it in a single blog post. On
Sometimes things go smoothly with auto repairs. Other times, things just get weird. In Maine, automobiles must pass an annual safety inspection. Our two-year-old wheelchair
As I mentioned in my September post entitled Our Love Affair with Cobblestone Streets and Brick Sidewalks, for years there has been a cobblestone street
“I can feel it building…oh yes…please don’t stop…this is going to be so good…here it comes…hold on baby…OH MY GOD,” I thought to myself. Then
I know this blog is supposed to be about leading a contented life as a disabled person. But there is something else I’d like to