And so it goes...

I am sorry again for the lack of blog posts. Things have been really busy lately with midterms, assignments and work.

I will say that I have very exciting opportunities arising! Over the summer, I have two practicums to complete: an AT practicum and a counseling practicum. I will complete the AT practicum here at work, but I am extremely excited about my counseling practicum.

I am going to be doing this at a local non-profit agency in Pittsburgh, working with the president of the agency. She already has a project for me and several other plans. This particular practicum is only 100 hours, but I am going to be there two days a week from 8-4:30, to soak up a wealth of information. I am particularly excited because I am extremely interested in advocacy and policymaking. The president has a lot of connections with politicians and within the disability community, so this is going to be a really great experience. I am hoping to may be even complete my 600 hour practicum next summer with the same agency.

I also wanted to share this article, which I think serves a great purpose in helping children understand disability being apart of life. I have seen the Easter Seals' curriculum and I really feel it is great! Check it out here - it's called Friends Who Care.

In A World Where People Say We Can't...

we are showing that we can and we do! Life should not be about what we cannot do, but what everyone brings to the table. Everyone has potential and this should not be stifled!

I don't know if you have heard of Aimee Mullins, but here is a story and presentation covered by CNN. It is about 20 minutes long, but is completely and totally worth watching if you are at all interested in disabilities.

The R-Word

I am sorry that I have been MIA for a little while. There's been a lot going on. Okay, on to the entry! :)

So, if you know me at all, you know that I absolutely hate the R-word. I tell people all the time to choose another word. It just grates on your nerves after a while. I know some individuals who throw the R-word around just because they know it bothers me. I just don't understand how people just don't get the message. And then, I thought about it. The people that are throwing around the R-word, are probably the same people throwing around any other racial slur. They are saying those things because they get a rise out of people and they just really don't care. They don't care about the efforts of you and me, who try to alert people to the effects their words have on others.

Yesterday, I posted this to facebook. And one of my friends left this in response. Please take a minute to look at both.

Now, I agree that John McGinley should have probably chosen his words better for the PSA (or at least whoever created it). I can see why feminists are upset. I, too, am not exactly thrilled that a PSA was made to alert people of the power their words that insult people with intellectual disabilities, by insulting women at the same time. Hypocrisy at it's finest, right? I don't; however, think that this should take a way from the full meaning of the main message of spread the word to end the word, which is for people to stop using the R-word in a derogatory manner.

I just don't understand what's so hard about not using the word.