FDR, famous wheelchair user.
The book that inspired this diary is a book with a chapter written by my first wife, Pam.
The book is:
“With the Power of Each Breath: A Disabled Women’s Anthology.”
It was published in 1985.
Pam’s chapter is called “Letter to Nancy”
(Nancy was one of the editors.)
Pam typed it using a computer that had a scan/select process.
It scanned across letters, and Pam selected the letter she wanted using her tongue, to tap a switch.
At the top of this chapter’s title page, is this notation:
“Sept 1983 — July, 1984”
Even if you think she started late in September, and got done early in July, that is nine months!
I have no clear recollection of her spending that much time working on it.
The little dog is named Itzl.
As you can see by Itzl's concerned look, this group is for us to check in at, to let people know we are alive, doing OK, and not affected by such things as heat, blizzards, floods, wildfires, hurricanes, tornadoes, power outages, or other such things that could keep us off Daily Kos. If you're not here, or anywhere else on Daily Kos, and there are adverse conditions in your area (floods, heatwaves, hurricanes, etc.), we are going to check up on you. If you are going to be away from your computer for a day or a week, let us know here. We care!
IAN is a great group to join, and a good place to learn to write diaries. Drop one of us a PM to be added to the Itzl Alert Network anytime! We all share the publishing duties, and we welcome everyone who reads IAN to write diaries for the group! Every member is an editor, so anyone can take a turn when they have something to say, photos and music to share, a cause to promote or news!
This is our current schedule of regular IAN diary writers:
Monday: Youffraita
Tuesday: bigjacbigjacbigjac
Wednesday: Pam from Calif
Thursday: art ah zen
Friday: FloridaSNMOM
Saturday: FloridaSNDad
Sunday: loggersbrat
Here is a video showing some pictures of Pam:
You can see 3 pictures of her in the middle row.
I was born in 1955; Pam was born in 1956.
We met in 1972, when I was 17 and she was 16.
We got married in 1977, when I was 22 and she was 21.
She died in early 2008, when I was 52 and she was 51.
So, when she started writing that chapter, in 1983, we had been married for about 6 years.
I will now quote just a little bit of what she wrote:
Dear Nanci,
There are so many things I want to share with you. I don’t know where to start. I hope you won’t mind too much, me running on about the things I have experienced in my life, but I have never really had anyone I could talk to.
Pam’s disability affected her lips and her jaw, so she could not speak clearly.
Her tongue was not affected.
So, clicking on that computer switch was easy for her.
Not so easy to simply speak clearly.
That is why she never had anyone she could talk to, in a long-winded fashion.
Here is her account of the day we first met, in 1972:
It was two days after my birthday that I met the man of my dreams.
I am skipping over some lines.
Anyway, they all came in the door that night, and all I could do was stare at Mark. He was so good looking.
Skipping a line.
You see, this was about the first time I had had contact with a guy, other than a few friends, so I was a little nervous, but happy.
Okay, I do not think I ever stopped to read this whole thing.
I just now skipped ahead and read Pam’s description of our wedding night: two virgins, struggling to find a position that would actually work!
Ha!
If you want to buy yourself a copy, here you go:
www.thriftbooks.com/…
Lately, I have been sorting through hundreds of Mark and Pam pictures.
I have thrown away a lot of them, and I need to sort through them again, and throw away a lot more.
Then I can build back new photo albums, with words to explain: who, where, and when.
Photo albums without those words would be confusing to my in-laws, and anyone else who looks at them after I am deceased.
When I get some of that done, I plan to record some videos, so the whole world can look at the Mark and Pam pictures.
Anyway.
Take care of yourselves and each other, including special needs, of course.
Hugs!
