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Effort Is the Secret to Success
By Daniel Blanchard The Strenuous Life is the name of a speech given by Theodore Roosevelt in Chicago, Illinois on April 10, 1899. Based upon personal experiences, he argued that the strenuous effort and overcoming hardship were ideals to be embraced by Americans for the betterment of the nation and the world in the 20th century. Well, here we are now just beginning the 21st century and I think Teddy Roosevelt’s preaching about effort, both on the personal level and a national level are as valuable today as they were over a century ago. The more things change, the more they stay the same, right? It’s just a fact. Things don’t get…
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Because I love Alex
It is my hope that Alex will remember the countless hours spent sitting on the sidelines watching him play baseball. Little League (7 years), travel ball ( 4+ years), and finally 2 years of high school baseball so far. A baseball game can be long, sometimes exciting, sometimes excruciatingly boring, especially if Alex is on the bench. At those times, I really do not care about the game nearly as much as Greg does, especially if it is hot. He’ll just play on his phone while I’ll look for a cooler spot. I’m probably the only mom with MS at these games, but I won’t get a trophy for my…
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Last day of school!
Alex’s sophomore year ends today. No more pencils, no more Chromebooks, No more teachers dirty looks… He’s an upperclassman now.
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Pardon me?
President Trump pardoned him yesterday, which I think was the right thing to do. He broke the law, but his conviction seems politically motivated. When Greg and I saw 2016: Obama’s America, I remember people at the theater stood up and clapped at the end. A few years ago, I dragged Alex (who was 14 at the time) to his second movie, which was very informative and patriotic. He probably blocked it out, but I wanted to see it and I figured he might get a little bit of knowledge in between his eye rolling. Congratulations Dinesh. Fight on.
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Apostrophe abuse, cell phone zombies, and other pet peeves…
Apostrophe abuse-plural names are not possessive just because there’s an “s” at the end! The Zolotar’s-really? No! The Zolotars are adamant about this. Even the Zolotars’ cats, Fletch and Tyrone, probably know this and they don’t even have thumbs. ************* Also, spell check will not pick up on mistakes like this beauty, which I found in an elementary school newsletter. “Principle’s Bulletin” -a wonderful letter written by the school’s leader. I also loved seeing this letter written to parents at a local school about a holiday project undertaken by the second, third and forth grade teachers. School-related errors make me the saddest. I’ve been known to correct errors an small signs with a…
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May 26, 1995
I remember almost every detail about the day I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. It was the day after my 23rd birthday and the Friday before the Memorial Day holiday weekend. My younger brother, Ryan, would be graduating from high school the following day, so I would be heading up to my parent’s house in Los Angeles from my apartment in San Diego later that day, after my appointment with the neurologist. Dr. Silver was still fairly unfamiliar to me as I had only met him a few months before, when my primary care doctor referred me to him to figure out why my pinky finger, then the rest of…
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Studies Show Handwriting Improves Memory
According to a recent study at Kent State University, the Association for Psychological Science (APS) and others, using pen and paper instead of laptops to take notes boosts memory and increases the ability to retain and understand concepts. Of course, in the past, handwriting was the only option for capturing key information. But if a pencil broke or the pen stopped working, important details could be lost. Then, along came the laptop and tablet, and taking notes seemed so much easier.But it turns out that taking notes by hand helps improve listening and cognition skills, and boosts the ability humans need to summarize information. The Journal of Psychological Science cites…
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Asking me to hurry up will not make me go faster, it will just piss me off…
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My leg does not work, so my car needs to!
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Moms with MS
Alex sported a new haircut on his first day of kindergarten and, as I recall, was both nervous and excited on that warm August morning a decade ago. His first day of high school last year was definitely less warm and fuzzy. Note the contrast in both photos between the innocent five-year-old and the grumpy teen. However, despite Alex’s eye rolling, I would not be deterred from capturing his “first day of high school” image for all eternity. Alex turned 16 a few weeks ago, and the months until he goes to college seem to be accelerating. I would love to press the rewind button for a…
