OK, so. Who else is a little tired of having to point out that disabled people are regular people? That ‘special needs’ is outdated, and everyone has needs that are unique to them? That person-first language is wrong? That disabled people’s stories should be written by disabled writers themselves, and that disabled characters should be played by disabled actors? That the access inclusion seeker deal sounds like some video game quest? That disabled isn’t a bad word, and it’s OK…
Before I moved to Edinburgh for love, I lived and worked and did everything else in Glasgow for five years. About a month after I signed a two year deal on a flat, Neil asked me to move to Edinburgh. After I figured out that this move was A BIG DEAL, I asked him to move to Glasgow. Apart from the music scene and me at the time, there wasn’t much that he liked in my adopted city, so I…
When Isla started nursery school, I stuck around for a while on her first day. She held my hand for a beat longer than usual, looked at me, and then went to play. From my wheelchair in the corner, I watched her play and tried not to mess with her moment. That day, she did things that made sense to people who were three. Playing alone together with other kids. After a while, a boy not unkindly asks my daughter,…
First, thank you to those of you who have emailed asking about the writing prompt that I was supposed to introduce on the first of the month. This is not a test, but I sometimes forget that people care what I have to say. What I don’t forget is that I should deliver on my promises to you groovy people. In related blogging news, I’ve been hanging out on Twitter more and I answered this thread from Jon Sennett (not…
Delete ‘I can’t’ from your vocabulary. ‘I can’t’ gets five pushups. ‘I can’t’ means ‘I won’t’ No, it doesn’t. Sometimes, I can’t means I can’t. Or I’d really like to, or I’m trying. But I can’t. I can’t means don’t ask me, or ask me something else, or mind your own business. Sometimes, I can’t means I’ll do it later, because I’m hurting right now, and I’m trying. Sometimes, I can’t means I’m sorry, but I don’t want to. And…
