Save Peter and Erika's Accessible House

Once in awhile, I find something that's worth copying over from someone else's blog... especially if it's helpful to someone. I found the info on these folks who are about to lose their accessible home. It looks like it's getting better, so I decided that, knowing "near okay" isn't as good as "out of the woods".

They're on the way out of the woods, but it ain't over yet for Peter and Erika

You can still bid on an item to help someone out. Emma Bull's new book, signed items from Neil Gaiman, pretties. This round of auctions end on the 25th.

The following is pasted from the moderator's profile page on LiveJournal:

Here's the story in Peter's own words:

I was let go from my job in July of 2008. I've had no work outside the home since then. I say "outside the home" because I am getting some money coming in from acting as a Personal Care Attendant (PCA) for Ericka, my partner of 20+ years. This has been enough to pay the utilities and phone, put food in the refrigerator, keep gas in the van and like that. It hasn't been enough, sadly, to pay the mortgage on top of that.

I received a letter from my mortgage company saying that they're referring my mortgage to their lawyers to begin foreclosure proceedings. Like so many others out there, I'm without a job and in danger of losing my home. I'm lucky that I'm able to keep the lights on, but it is looking grim all the same.

Ericka has multiple, chronic, life-altering diseases and I am her primary caregiver. Her Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) makes it impossible to breathe without taking steroids every day. Her MS keeps her muscles weak and plagues her with nerve pain frequently. The steroids have caused diabetes that requires her to have an insulin pump. She is basically bed-ridden.

Despite her challenges, Ericka leads a full life and anyone who takes the time to get to know her can't help but love her. We have modified our home over the years we have lived here to make it as comfortable as possible for her to continue to live here.

You can see why losing this home would be a devastating blow for both of us. That's why I need your help.

And from Ericka:

jbru and i are in danger of losing our home.

there. it's out. shame, pride, anger, fear, worry, terror- it's all there. so, i am asking for help- ideas, prayer, cheerful notes, and yes, cash.

as many of you know, i have been disabled for over 15 yrs, and bedridden for the last 2 yrs. we have modified our home to handle my medical equipment and power wheelchair, etc. things like the added and increased voltage electrical system, the ramp, the bathroom, the enlarged doors and added bedroom door (so the wheelchair and ambulance gurneys can get thru) are just some of the things that have been adapted so that i can continue to live in my home with my dearest jbru and our family. now due to my lengthy inability to work and jbru's continued unemployment, we are getting desperate.

These are good people. They are loving, kind, and generous friends.

You all know the starfish story. There's a lot going wrong out there in the world, and there's no way, you, I, any of us can save the world. But we can make a difference in this one case.

From the moderator of the Accessible House community on lj.

Spinster to Goddess

If you could chase your dream, at any age, what would it be?

She walked on a little funny spinster, and walked off with the wave of a Goddess:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY

Embedding is locked out, but do go listen to her. I hear Simon is already speaking w/ her for signing onto Sony.
Even at 47, sometimes your lifelong dream can come true.

Awwwwww.
What's your dream, luvvies?

Thoughts on a day in the life of a lazy artist

since I felt poorly and didn't get too far away from the bathroom, couch and water jug, almost in that order, I've been thinking about my artsy friends who post things on their studio spaces. I thought I'd throw down a couple of links for those of you interested, maybe some of you will like each other's spaces and work.

This belongs to Trace Bunker, and you really need to see the outside, ti's a lovely great orangey barn shed Art House.
Her etsy shop is Here I got this gorgeous choker/headband/fiber necklace from her:







arianadii has a fabulous space too, and her shop can be found here

Gals, meet each other! I think you have some edges in common as artists.

anyone, feel free to point to yourselves in the comments...!
M'chelle? (You have got to see her handmade bindis and jewelry bits!

purrrrrr, and dammits

Lie has been pretty good chez RnJ ranch house. Other than the occasional decision to move things around. You know where this is going.

HE decided to move the old 60's Secretary of Hers to the other side of the Lounge. All went well, but then there was a large wall hole to be filled. SHE decided to fill it with the old Aztec calendar in her communal bathroom. SHE also dropped it prior to filling the wall apace, and of course, it was HIS piece that broke. So now we have a large empty wall space, but with all the lovely artisans we know, we're sure we'll have it filled soon. Really, it helps to keep the shouting to a minimum to remind ourselves of this.

HE also had HER in tears of laughter this week. We have a neighbor with a most annoying birddog that barks every ten minutes or when someone walks past. HE went out to the back yard with a tape measure and just happened to notice the next neighbor, wife of said dog owner, out there. Upon her inevitable question, he told her that we were buying chickens and putting up a coop out there.
*snort* *snicker*
She thought it a Fun idea (damned 'burban folks, anyway) and helped him to decide what to link where. Meanwhile, Wifey me is hiding in the kitchen and trying not to laugh my ass off... no really, why not have peacocks in the back yard too?

Cannot help selves..... the idea of chickies in our back yard is enough to make us cry with laughter. Who will feed the half-feral cat? Never mind.

Hopefully, this will lead the nest dcoor guy to realize that his dog is still a nuisance to his neighbors.

I thnk about space, and not in my head

I have vague and fascinating memories of NASA.. my mum worked there in the late 60s while Dad was part of the Presidential Wing at Andrews AFB in DC in the Air Force. Most of all, I remember of those times, going to the Smithsonians for weekend family trips and then later in grade school, the only science subject that caught my interest was physics of aeronautics.

I watched the ISS move across the Kansas sky tonight, a bright starry sky that we've missed so much lately. I felt the wonder once more of space and light and how man can possibly match the wonder of that vastness of space. We are out there, and we belong there.

I am agnostic.
I have no gods to worship, nor mysteries to ponder based upon books and writings of man, mostly politically motivated. But I do have the wonder of the cosmos, and of how we make ourselves a part of that, and go venture forth into that small part of the cosmos. I have the wonder of the majesty of getting huge parts of our technology into the upper atmosphere, and how people of different nations make it work.

Basically, what I explored tonight, and what I hope you'll check out also, is how we explore that space. Please go look at the videos of the ISS and how it works, how the people live on it. There are some very cool video links to the right of your screen there.

If you have the chance Friday night in Kansas, check out the ISS almost over us. check out what's over us and where it goes, because tonight the ISS will be visible (cloud cover permitting) over our heads here.
If you're not living here, figure out from that website exactly where it will be and what else moves around the sky over you.