Things Worth Celebrating

Back in March, I went to Whistler with the Para Nordic Cross Country Skiing is Believing program to do some photography. My friend Andrea had asked me to come do some photography for them to provide to their funders. There was also the possibly some of the photos being published in a BC XC ski magazine. I was more than happy to support this amazing program. (Which, if you missed it, I posted about here.) 

I now have copies of the magazine! This is it:

It's distributed BC wide.

Two of my photographs appear with an article that talks about the program. One is at the top with the header (two sit skiers racing) and the other is the second down on the right. (A group of sit skiers practicing what to do if they should tip over.)

Here's my photo credit! I am really chuffed about this because it's the first time my photos have been published outside of artistic publications. I am still not quite comfortable labelling myself as a photographer-I am not technical about it at all. I shoot and edit with what feels right to my artistic eye, but I can't for the life of me tell you what a f-stop is, nor do I care. All I know is that I enjoy shooting and editing and I really loved the opportunity to have this experience.

Speaking of Andrea, last Tuesday, I went out to UBC with my friend Courtney to support Andrea as she defended her thesis, which was her work on AthletesFirst. Andrea did an fantastic job staying cool under pressure. I think the Doctors who were hearing her defence were very impressed with her as well because in the end, she was granted her Doctor of Philosophy degree! We are all *SO* proud of her!

This was the final slide of Andrea's presentation. Recognize anyone? It was sweet of her to include this photo. (I guest blogged for AthletesFirst at one point, which is why I was included in the presentation.) Another lovely thing about attending Andrea's defence was that I finally got to meet Josh Vander Vies and Meyrick Jones. Both great guys-Josh is super smart and Meyrick is really funny.

Soon Andrea will be off to the UK to do some post-doctorate work. Congratulations Dr. Andrea!!

Catching Up!

Hello! I know I've been scarce around here in the last week or so. Two reasons: 1. my laptop is on its last legs and keeps crashing and 2. volunteering! The laptop issue will be alleviated this weekend, thanks to a sweet friend who has recently upgraded her computer and has offered me her old one. (Thanks Michele!)

I have so many things to share!

Last Sunday, I got up early and headed to the park to volunteer with the annual Terry Fox Run. I finally got to meet Leah Pells and her beautiful Pads service dog Smokey who is a black Lab. You know how I feel about black Labs! Smokey helps Leah serve the students she teaches and connects with them in a way only sweet gentle dogs can do. He is a beautiful boy and so incredibly mellow. Indy desperately wanted to play with him, but he was working.

The Terry Fox Run was lovely. My favourite part was all the message people wrote in chalk on the park sidewalk where the run ended. I took the selfie posted above in that spot. I love that people did that. There was also a banner for people to sign saying who they were running for. I put my husband's name and also added the name of a little boy who was diagnosed 2 weeks ago with a rare brain stem cancer. I only know of this child through a friend, but I wanted his parents to see a photo of his name on Terry's banner and know that they are not alone as they face this terrible thing. This is exactly what Terry was hoping to put a stop to when he began his Marathon of Hope.

  The Vintage Pearl and Curly Girl Design partnered for a giveaway and I was lucky enough to be the winner! The necklace & note cards that were also part of the prize arrived yesterday in the magic mailbox. Had to giggle that they *almost* got my name right! 

Everything came wrapped in this mission statement bag.

Curly Girl sent me a stack of 25 of their greeting cards. When I saw a card set was part of the prize, I figured there would be about a 1/2 dozen, not 25! I think they sent me one of everything they make! The cards are lovely and I predict some very good mail days for friends in the future. 

The Vintage Pearl prize was so prettily wrapped.

Inside the box was this silver necklace which was *so* meant to be mine. I put it on right away and I don't think I want to take it off. I love how the little pearl tinkles against the silver when I move and reminds me its there.

THANK YOU Vintage Pearl & Curly Girl! I feel so spoiled! Now I just have to decide what goodies to treat myself to with the $25 gift certificates from each of them that were also included!

I have begun volunteering with the organizing committee for the 2014 Wheelchair Curling Championships which are being held in my community in late January. So far it's been a challenge with my computer crashing constantly, but the work has been interesting. 

I had dinner with my friend Courtney last Sunday and she asked if I would be willing to work with the Skiing Is Believing program this year. I was very touched that she would invite me because I know how much this program means to her. I was thrilled to accept. (It was a no-brainer!)

I also got the official word that I will be working with a new group of students for the Interprofessional Health Mentors Program for 2013-2014. I'll be finishing up with my current group at the end of the year, so they will overlap briefly. I met with my current group last week and we were all kind of stunned to realize we will only meet one more time before their program wraps up. The time flew by so quickly! Our last meeting is going to be over dinner somewhere nice. I am pretty sure they will remain in touch-they are such lovely women. I am excited to meet my new group at the end of this month and see which disciplines they are from.

I'm meeting up with my art partner in crime, Penn tomorrow and we're going to spend the day Gelli Printing. She is heading off to England shortly to visit family, so it will be nice to hang out and have an art day before she goes.

Autumn officially arrives tomorrow. I am already enjoying hearing Indy crunching through the fallen leaves in our backyard. I wait all year for this season-it's my most favourite. I think this says it best:

From my heart to yours, HAPPY AUTUMN!

What's Been Going On

Last Saturday night my husband and I went to the PNE (Pacific National Exhibition) which is the big annual fair. They always have a summer concert series and last night, the fabulous Melissa Etheridge was playing. I've loved her for a long, long time and years when my husband and I were first married, we got tickets to see her at the Orpheum. He didn't know who she was, but he was so impressed by her, he fell in love with her too.

The beauty of the concert space at the PNE is that the view is so spectacular. You can see the north shore mountains, as well as several of the big attractions at the fair all lit up. Add to that a world class artist who knows how to throw a party and it's magic.

At one point in the concert, Melissa brought out a gorgeous electric guitar in vintage aqua, the same colour as my studio. I have no idea why, but this made me insanely happy and I sat there with this big stupid grin on my face the whole time she was playing it. I WANTED that guitar. The crazy thing is, I don't play but I seriously wanted that guitar. If I had that aqua guitar, I would learn to play, even with numb hands.

At one point in the evening, she talked about being cancer free for 9 years and not just being a survivor, but a thriver and then she sang "I Run for Life", her breast cancer awareness song. Saturday night she added lyrics to include male cancer survivors too. Listening, I was trying hard not to cry. It's become so personal for me, especially right at this moment when we're almost at the 1 year anniversary of my husband's diagnosis of kidney cancer. My heart's a little tender about that right now. This year has been one of the hardest of our lives on so many levels. It's our deepest hope that at some point we'll be able to say he's 9 years cancer free too.

It was a fabulous concert and it cheered my up greatly. The only downside was the yahoos sitting around us. There were three separate couples who decided to have loud arguments while Melissa was playing. Who does that?!? They were so obnoxious I was having trouble hearing the music. (And if you know anything about Melissa Etheridge, it's that she rocks the h*ll out of her concerts, so that tells you how disruptive they were being.) One couple was actually arguing about how many strings were on the guitar she was playing, if you can believe it. I'd have liked to El Kabong them with it just to shut them up!

I know things have been kind of quiet here lately. I've been struggling with my health again. I've spent alot of time in bed and it feels like my left leg is going to stop working any second now. My immune system just refuses to stand down, so they've upped my immuno supressants again and we'll see how it goes. At this point, I am just tired of the whole thing. Nothing seems to work.

Yesterday I finally met with the hand surgeon about my broken wrist. After a very painful exam which left me dizzy and about to toss my cookies, he did two diagnostic injections of steroids and freezing into the two parts of my wrist that are the problem. Let's just say when a needle hits bone over and over, it's torture. The pain from that is excruciating and it's going to be days till it settles down. In the meantime, am gobbling pain pills and icing it as much as possible. I was extremely grateful my best friend was there to hold my good hand while all this was done and to make sure I got home safely. She was a huge help and comfort to me. 

I see the surgeon again in six weeks and then we decide which of two surgeries is going to happen. One involves removing a bone and the other involves shortening a bone. I'm pretty freaked out about the whole thing, especially the bone shortening prospect. That's got to be painful. Clearly something has to be done and I am hoping it will be taken care of before 2013 is over. This is dragged on for almost 6 month now as it is and I'd really like to have my right hand functional and pain free again.

When I got home from the hospital yesterday, there was a message from my husband saying he'd been injured on the job and he was at the ER. He tripped over a metal bar that the carpenters left sitting on the deck at his job site and fell between some columns, landing on the shoulder on the same side he had his arm surgery on a few months ago. He is okay, thankfully-nothing broken or torn-he's just understandably sore. Yesterday was about all the trauma I could handle in a single day.

On a positive note, I was asked to be a guest speaker at the 2nd annual NMO Information Day. I will be presenting on the Interprofessional Health Mentors Program that I've been involved with. I am so pleased to have this opportunity and look forward to sharing with other NMO patients how our stories matter to the medical community. My friend Nancy will also be presenting on the first ever (anywhere in the world!) NMO walk/run that she organized this past May.

If you are local and are interested in attending NMO Information Day, you can register here. If you're coming, be sure to find me and say hello!

Also in the good news department, my friend Andrea informed me the other day that it looks like two of the photographs I took for the Para XC Ski Program, Skiing is Believing are going to be published in a magazine! It won't be official till we see it in print, (with magazines, things are always subject to change) but we're pretty confident this is going to happen. Andrea's going to make sure I get some copies, so I'll share them with you when I have them in hand. I'm really excited about the prospect of having my photography appear in a sports magazine-that will be a first for me! If you're interested in seeing all the photos from that day, the entire set is here on my Flickr. It was such an amazing day and I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Last, but not least, today is A&W's Crusin' For A Cause Annual MS fundraiser. If you're Canadian, please try and stop by any A&W location and purchase a teen burger-$1 from every burger goes to MS. If hamburgers are not your thing, but you still want to help, all locations are happy to receive donations to the Canadian MS Society. You can also use the hashtag #crusinforacause on Twitter on any of your tweets today and $1 for each tweet will also be donated. It's a very simple way to help fund the important research and support programs the MS Society provides to both people living with MS and also those of us rare birds living with NMO. (The CDN MS Society has very generously taken Canadians with NMO under their wing and are offering us the same services as those with MS.)

Skiing Is Believing: Redefining What's Possible

Saturday, I spent the entire day at Whistler Olympic Park, which was home to the Olympic and Paralympic Cross Country Skiing and Biathalon events. My friend Andrea asked me to come and be the photographer for the Skiing is Believing program and I jumped at the chance. I adore Whistler and I was more than happy to support the important work she and Paralympian Courtney Knight are doing.

The Skiing Is Believing program introduces people with disability to cross country skiing. Paralympians, their coaches and team of dedicated volunteers teach people with a variety of physical and sensory disabilities, (wheelchair users, amputees, people who are blind or visually impaired, people with cerebral palsy) as well as their friends and family to ski. 

Here's a quick peek:

(That was Andrea talking about the program!)

I spent the morning capturing various aspects of the program. It was a bit of a challenge because the weather was absolutely not cooperating-we had a combination of rain, rain mixed with slushy snow and then outright snow. I'd planned ahead though and brought an umbrella, as well as a Ziploc bag, some duct tape and scissors so I could McGyver a way to keep my camera dry. It was a good thing I did because by the end of the day, pretty much everything I owned was soaked. It pays to be prepared!

 

No one seemed to mind the less than ideal weather conditions-they geared up and got out there. What I really enjoyed was the opportunity to observe and learn. The coaches and volunteer guides were incredible. In no time they had their skiers geared up and ready to go. Everyone was assigned a volunteer so they had one-on-one support and instruction for the day. It was wonderful to see someone go from being tentative as they were learning, to gaining confidence as the day wore on. The transformation was amazing to witness.

Late in the morning, I went inside to warm up and see what I had shot so far. While I was sitting there, a skier and guide came in. The guide got her skier situated and then left to grab some lunch. We were the only two people in the room, so we chatted with one another, sharing our stories. It turns out I was familiar with her story because it had been in the news. We had a long conversation about processing and coping with difficult things and how we move forward in our lives. It was one of those moments when I realized the universe had conspired to put us in each other's path for a reason. That conversation was meant to happen. Her courage in the face of terrible adversity is remarkable. I am continually in awe of the resiliency of the human spirit.

After lunch, while everyone who'd spent the morning in lessons went off to ski the trails, I geared up and Andrea gave me my own lesson. I cross country skied as a kid, but that was some time ago and long before damage to my spinal cord made me to lose my proprioception. (The ability to know where your body is in space, which is absolutely necessary for balance.) I was very scared, but I was also determined to ski. I never allow fear to keep me from doing anything.

Andrea was super supportive and patient while I got used to moving on the skis. Even though we were working in what appeared to be a fairly flat area, there were still times when the skis would pick up speed on slight inclines and I would struggle to stay on my feet. Andrea told me to crouch down and put my hands on my knees to maintain balance. Most of the time that worked, but I fell a few times. I slipped and fell backwards once and whacked the back of my head, but I was okay though I think I might have scared Andrea. We got my feet out of the bindings and in less than a minute, I was up and laughing and went right back at it. It never occurred to me to give up.

I figured out that as long as I could keep my center of gravity over the tops of my boots, I wouldn't fall down. I found skiing uphill much easier than downhill. When I was going uphill, my balance was in the exact right place and I felt like I had control over my skis. It was much harder going downhill, but I attempted skiing down an incline (across and down a bridge) just to have the experience. (I'll try anything once!)

I got about 3/4's of the way down the bridge before I
 wiped out. *laughs* I knew falling would be part of the deal and I was okay with that. It's part of the learning process. The best way to describe what being on skis felt like for me is to liken it to when you see someone in the circus balancing on a piece of 2x4 , which is balanced on top of a ball. It took every ounce of my concentration to stay on my feet.

At one point, we were skiing in front of the Olympic rings and Andrea asked me if I realized I was skiing where the Olympic and Paralympic XC skiers had all crossed the finish line. I hadn't till she said it and I loved her for pointing that out to me. She knows how much I adore the Games. She took the photo of me standing in front of the rings at the top of this post. I felt the way I look in that picture-happy and grateful for the experience and personally triumphant that with Andrea's help, I DID IT.

 Skiing Is Believing beautifully illustrated for me how important Para sport programs are. It gives those who live with disability the opportunity to reclaim their physicality, to redefine what they believe is possible for themselves, to connect with others and if they so desire, to train to become competitive.

My experience on Saturday reaffirmed for me that anything is possible and that when life offers you an opportunity, you have to grab it with both hands. 

Lately

Last night I spent some time cannibalizing some old magazines for letters for a new project I am working on to submit to Uppercase Magazine. I think I cut about a gazillion letters by the time I was done. Then I spent about half an hour sorting them into piles, which is no mean feat when you're working with hands you can't feel. I couldn't resist taking some photos-they made such pleasing little piles. I am now in the process of creating a message. I think I'm going to colour copy the original before I send it off. I may end up framing it, I like it so much.

I also spent part of yesterday creating a gift for a friend whose birthday is tomorrow. Of course it's not going to arrive in time (it's being sent to eastern Canada) but she knows it's on its way. I was very pleased with how it came out and I hope she likes it. I will show you what it is once she's received it-I don't want to spoil the surprise.

I need to tie up a few projects I am in the middle of. I find when I feel stuck, the best thing to do is move on to something else for a bit and revisit it later. It helps me shift perspective and usually I get unstuck. Fortunately the things I am stuck on right now don't have deadlines, so there's plenty of time to circle back.

11 days till Whistler for Skiing is Believing! I am so excited! I need to tune my camera up-clean the lenses, adjust the settings, etc. before I go. I am so grateful for this opportunity to help my friend Andrea and this great program through photography, to have the chance to cross country ski in one of the most beautiful places on earth and to meet some new people. I know it's going to be an amazing experience.

As someone wise once put it, 

"If you work really hard and are kind, amazing things will happen." 

This is a universal truth. You get what you give.

Be Open to Whatever Comes Next

A message of accessibility in Whistler Village.

Yesterday I got the most wonderful opportunity offered to me. My friend Andrea Bundon. emailed to ask if I would be interested in joining her for the Skiing Is Believing clinic at Whistler Olympic Park in March. The clinic teaches people with disabilities and a friend or family member to ski. Because the March event is the final one of the season, they have also invited the junior ski team and the Para-nordic race team to join them. 

 They're running a shuttle bus up to Whistler and back, so it will be a relaxing trip and after a brief orientation, everyone ski till 1 pm, have a lunch break and then casual group skiing or games till the bus leaves for home at 4 pm. Sounds like alot of fun! My job is to take photos of the event that can be submitted to their funders-the Canadian Paralympic Committee and Cross Country BC, which is circulated to a few thousand skiers in the province. (WOW!)

 Andrea also said that if I wanted to try skiing they would happily provide me with equipment and a coach. Or I could spend some time taking photos on my own-whatever I like! It would be a great opportunity to strap on some skis see if I can still do it. I haven't cross country skied since I moved to BC from Manitoba 27 years ago. I used to cross country ski alot in the winter. I loved listening to the rhythm of my breath, the swish of my skies and the deafening silence of the countryside. Cross country skiing is like a zen meditation.

I of course have jumped at the chance to help Andrea and support Para sport! I can't think of anything that would make me happier! I love the Paralympics, I adore Whistler, the sneaux and I love to volunteer. It's a win-win, any way you slice it! I've got March 16th circled on my calendar in big red pen and am counting the days! I just need to purchase a new pair of sneaux boots and beg or borrow a long lens for my Rebel and I'm all set!

The mountains are calling and I must go!