Category Archive

If, like me, you use a wheelchair on a regular basis, then you know that one of the hardest things to do is upgrade to a new chair. I’ve had my current chair since my sophomore year in high school, eight years ago. I’ve also had a brand new chair …

Let’s talk life and death. Most specifically, the life and impending death of Terri Schiavo. Here are the facts, as I know them, and what I think about them. Fifteen years ago, Terri Schiavo collapsed and her heart stopped, shutting off oxygen to her brain, leaving her severely and permanently …

I recently came across a news story about the U.N. diplomats writing a treaty regarding the rights of the disable ach department phone d. The focus of this particular story was the debate between diplomats about whether to ban the abortions of fetuses known to have some sort of disability. …

If you haven’t read Wendy Shanker’s “The Fat Girl’s Guide to Life” yet, then get thee to a Barnes and Noble. I don’t care if you’re not a girl. It doesn’t matter if you’re not “fat”. This book holds some serious truths for everyone, whatever your size, shape or gender. …

Recently, a woman emailed me seeking advice for her cousin. She had seen my articles in our local newspaper and thought I might be able to offer some assistance in his job search. He is in his early thirties and has a law degree, but he works part-time bagging groceries. …

Something to ponder: Is a disability a weakness or strength? Interesting question, isn’t it? One that, if you’re like me, you’ve never really considered. But, somewhere in that warm abyss between wakefulness and sleep, that question came to me. There was no provocation for it; it was simply there. The …

In another life, another situation, under different circumstances, I could have been a beach person. If I do some extremely deep soul-searching, I find that I am a beach person. I’m a beach person who can’t enjoy the beach because of physical limitations of the world around her. I love …

For, well, 23 years, I’ve been pretty sure that the reason I can’t meet a guy or get a guy I do meet to date me has had to do with my chair. Now, I’m second-guessing that theory. I’ve jumped back into the fray of online dating. I’ve signed up …

I’m not interested in being Laura Stinson, disabled writer. No, I just want to be Laura Stinson, writer. I hate the idea of being identified by my disability, with my chosen career being just happenstance. I don’t want to be Laura with the disability who just happens to write; I …