Coal Power Plants - A Link to Autism?

A recent study from the University of Texas says that coal power plants are emitting environmental mercury and causing the rise of autism in children.  One professor at a rally in Dallas, Texas, today has declared that the closer a child lives to a coal power plant, the greater the risk of developing autism than a child living father away from that plant.

In a related story, the parents of one autistic child have been taking the child's urine for tests four times a month and each time the findings show a high level of mercury.  The child hasn't been vaccinated in the last four years.  The family lives near a coal power plant.

Barry Allen, The Flash, is Back!

Not a hoax!  Not a dream!  Not an imaginary story!  Barry Allen a.k.a. The Flash is back from dead!

I've waited 23 years for this.  I hated it when they killed him off in The Crisis on Infinite Earths back in 1985.  I am so happy that he's back and running.

His first appearance is in the last panel of the upcoming DC Universe -- 0!

Welcome Back, Barry!

Burroughs and the Wolf

Augusten Burroughs' new memoir, AWolf at the Table, is a more serious work than his previous memoirs: Running with Scissors and Dry.  This one is regarding his late father who was a dangerous alcoholic.  Although he was a respected college professor, his father was different at home.  Abusiveness and violent rages emerged at night.

His older brother, John Robison, who has Asperger's Syndrome, confirmed in his memoir called Look Me in the Eye that their father was an alcoholic.

I'm interested in getting this book.

Aaron is Prevailing

At the University of New Mexico, junior Aaron Anderson is "Prevailing over Asperger's" after three years of working with Nicole Hudson of Accessibility Services.  He was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome when he was five years old.  College life has been good for him because of his volunteer work with Community Experience.  He is head volunteer and helps organize his fellow volunteers.

Aaron is also a member of Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society.  Next year, he plans on getting his PH. D. from Sanford University.

Good luck, Aaron!

75 LOL's for Carol

Happy Belated Birthday,
Carol Burnett
(it was yesterday)

She did the best comedy variety show of the 1970s.  Every skit was LOL funny!  It's hard for me to pick a favorite skit.

Altercation skit from  Carol Burnett Show (featuring Harvey Korman, Tim Conway, and Vicki Lawrence).

I'm in the AANE Brochure

I'm in the inside part of the brochure.  I have a hat on.  I remember the day it was taken.  It was just after we went the bowling center right next to Alewife T Station in Cambridge.  The next day I was in a terrible car accident.

aoljpictureUpload, aoljpictureUpload_2

Outside In Song of the Week

More sad news: Singer and songwriter Al Wilson died of kidney failure on Monday (Paul Davis's Birthday).  He was 68 years old. 

This is very depressing for the music business.  Losing two music legends this week.

Al started out in the 1960s and scored big in the 1970s.

RIP

"Show & Tell" by Al Wilson

Paul Davis RIP

Sad news this week.  Singer Paul Davis died of a heart attack on Tuesday, the day after his 60th birthday.  He had just moved back to his hometown of Meridian, Mississippi, when it happened.

Paul had numerous hit songs in the late 1970s and 1980s.  He will be missed.

"I Go Crazy" by Paul Davis



"65 Love Affair" by Paul Davis

Marnie Wins The Gold!

Congratulations to Marnie Winston-Macauley!

Her "A Little Joy, A Little Oy" 2008 calendar has won the Gold Award for Best Subject from the Calendar Marketing Association.  Marnie is the author of Yiddshe Mamas: The Truth about the Jewish Mother.  With Mother's Day coming up, why not get her book as an ideal gift?  Her book contains a collection of stories, facts, and interviews about Jewish mothers.

Also, the 2009 edition of her calendar will be available this summer.  Go to amazon.com to pre-order.

Charles Laquidara's Visit to WBCN on 4/18/08

Last Friday, veteran morning DJ Charles Laquidara visited the new on-air studios of WBCN-FM, the Rock of Boston.  He sat in on the Adam 12 show during the lunch hour.

Charles Laquidara Part 1



Charles Laquidara Part 2



Charles Laquidara Part 3

Boston Globe's Autism Q & A

Today's Boston Globe newspaper did a Q & A session with author Jane Lytel who has a younger son named Leo who was diagnosed with autism.  Lytel recently wrote a book called Act Early Against Autism.

She encourages how soon to have your child checked for autism and what steps to take.

Check out her website: http://www.jaynelytel.com/

How a Fellow Writer Discovered That He has AS

Interesting first person article by a staff writer for an Arizona newspaper called Tri-Valley Dispatch.  His name is Scott Verbout and this is his story.  He talks about how he lost his job of 15 years shortly before he was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome.

I can easily relate to him about his work problems.

Lefty Wilbury Would Have Been 72 Today

Happy Birthday,
Roy Orbison
(April 23, 1936 - December 6, 1988)

One of the greatest artists of rock and one of the Traveling Wilburys.  Roy toured the UK with the Beatles in the early 1960s before they became famous.  He is greatly missed.

"You Got It" by Roy Orbison

71 Easy Pieces of Cake for Jack

Happy Birthday,
Jack Nicholson

One of my favorite actors is having a birthday today.  He's done so many great movies that it's hard to pick a favorite movie from his body of work.

Classic scene from "Five Easy Pieces"

S.O.S. from North Carolina!

Eileen Stevie, President of Stevie Organizing Services, recently held a teleclass about working with adults with Asperger's Syndrome in Cary, North Carolina.  It was all part of National Autism Awareness month and a program called the National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization (NSGCD) Teleconference.  The teleclass was aimed at teaching professional organizers strategies on how to work with adults with Asperger's who have trouble being organized.

Stevie stated that people who have different levels of autism have a difficult time coping when they are surrounded by clutter.  That's why she developed processes to combat chronic disorganization, which what people with Asperger's Syndrome need to fight clutter.

I only wish this organization was located in Massachusetts.

To contact S.O.S. to get information about helping adults with Asperger's Syndrome get more organized, e-mail info@organizeclutter.com or call (919) 345-2846.

Websites:
www.organizeclutter.com
www.nsgcd.org

Wolfberg's Project Mosiac in SF

Over at San Francisco State University, Associate Professor of Special Education Pamela Wolfberg created Project Mosiac in 2006 to teach educators and professionals on how to work with autistic children on the spectrum.  Wolfberg got funding from a grant of $800,000 from the US Department of Education.  20 students are selected each year on the condition that they will work with autistic children at least two years after graduation.

Thanks for the help, Pamela!

I'm in the News Dissector's Blog Today.

Last Thursday, I attended the Ford Hall Forum lecture at the Old South Church in Boston where Danny Schechter, the News Dissector (and former WBCN news director), spoke about the media.  It was a thrill to meet him, and also I had an unexpected reunion with former WBZ Sara Ann Shaw whom I met several years back at one of those Black Business Womens Coalition meetings.

I sent a thank you e-mail to Danny with links to my two blogs, and Danny posted an excerpt of my e-mail and links to my blogs.

Thanks, Danny!

Outside In Song of the Week

A favorite childhood memory of mine was playing this 45 record by the rock band, America.  I loved the lyrics and imagery the song invoked every time I played it on my father's stereo in the basement of our house.

America is part of this summer's Free Concert Series hosted by radio station WODS.  In fact, they are starting the series on June 14.  I've seen them in concert before and look forward to seeing them again.

"Horse with No Name" by America

2008 WODS Free Summer Concert Series!

Yesterday morning, WODS-FM announced their 2008 Free Summer Concert Series.  It's a great lineup this summer.  I plan on going.

Here's the lineup:

June 14: America with Marty Balin (of Jefferson Airplane/Starship)

June 21: David Cassidy with 5th Dimension

July 12: The Guess Who with John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band

July 26: Felix Cavaliere's Rascals with The Cowsills

August 16: KC & The Sunshine Band

I Exist in The Comet

An online website called The Comet has an article called "Mother Calls for More to Be Done for Adults with Autism."  Susan Dungey of Stevenage has a grown son named Peter who has Asperger's Syndrome.  She is supporting the National Autistic Society's campaign in England called "I Exist."

This campaign is to get more support and services for adults with autism who have a hard time on their own.   They don't have enough to support their needs.

Once again, the UK is raising more awareness about adults with autism than the US.

Karen Gives Us The "Why"

Another reason why the United Kingdom is ahead of the United States when it comes to awareness about adults with autism/Asperger's.  This great article by Karen Robson explains why more must be done to help adults with this condition in order for them to live independently.  She is the disability service manager at The University of Wales Institute, Cardiff. 

In her article, "Why Living with Autism is a Daily Challenge," she tells all about the struggles an adult faces.

It is tough to live independently with autism.  I have a tough time socializing and finding better paying work to handle the high cost of living.  I have to rely on others for help.

The New Uncommon Bostonian Blog is Up!

Okay, I started a new Uncommon Bostonian Blog on AOL Journals.

http://journals.aol.com/yechristian/uncommon-bostonian/

Check it out!

Boston Now Folds

Well, I got some bad news tonight (yesterday, actually, because it's now April 15).  My contact at Boston Now told me that the daily newspaper has folded.  At least, I know why I was having entry problems with my other blog, Uncommon Bostonian, Sunday night.  Today's edition of Boston Now was the final issue.

Sigh!  I had a lot of fun with the second blog, Uncommon Bostonian.  The powers that be a few weeks ago made me one of their featured bloggers on their home web page.  That web page is shut down now.

What should I do with my second blog now since I can't make any new entries in it?  Well, I plan to start a new Uncommon Bostonian blog because I love to write.  The point of the second blog was show off more of my writing talents, especially on the journalistic/social commentary side.  I was also planning to write more about comic books on that blog.  Outside In is primarily about Asperger's/autism awareness plus my special interests with music, the Beatles, and other things very close to my heart.

As of right now, the Uncommon Bostonian blog is still there (http://www.bostonnow.com/blogs/uncommonbostonian).  I managed to save all the old entries tonight into Word, just in case they delete it.  No one knows what's going to happen to the blogs that were connected to the newspaper's website.

The full story about Boston Now's demise can be found here at this site:
http://bostonist.com/2008/04/14/boston-now-fold.php#comments

Yesterday was Dave's Day

Happy Birthday,
David Letterman!

Dave celebrated his day on Saturday, April 12.  I love watching his show (Sorry, Fellow Emersonian Jay Leno!).  He cracks me up every time I catch The Late Show.  He was good friends with the late Johnny Carson.

Excerpt from Dave's interview with Steve Martin earlier this year

Would You Believe It's His Birthday?

Happy Birthday,
Don Adams
(Maxwell Smart)

Loved watching Get Smart when I was a kid.  I was addicted to it during the 1970s while it ran in syndication.  They sometimes would air two episodes a night during that time.  When Nick at Nite showed that "Maximum Smart" TV marathon back in the 1990s, I watched it every night.  What joy!

Get Smart Episode Ending with Barbara Bain as an undercover Kaos agent.

Remembering Smokey

My first cat Smokey was my best friend while I was growing up in the suburbs of Washington, DC.  He loved my company.  It was on this day in 1993 when he was put to sleep.  He was in such poor health.  He was more than 21 years old at the time.  A very long life for a cat.

His box of ashes sits on one of the speakers of my stereo in my living room today.  I went to a comic book and record/CD convention today in Boston.  I bought a bunch of old comics real cheap from the 1970s.  I also bought three vinyl 45s.  Great stuff.  I remember hearing these songs in the basement at home with Smokey while reading my comic books.

"Sweetheart" by Franke and the Knockouts

Outside In Song of the Week

A year ago today, my favorite author Kurt Vonnegut passed away due to the head injuries he suffered from a fall two weeks before.  I cried when I heard the news.  I loved reading his books.  I even once met him back in 1995 at a writer's festival.  Just last week, I met his son, Dr. Mark Vonnegut, who is also an author himself.  He wrote The Eden Express.  Mark wrote the intro to Kurt's new book collection, Armageddon in Retrospect.

In honor of Kurt, here's a song to sum up what he was in life.

"Paperback Writer" by The Beatles (Live in Japan 1966)

6 Years Ago Today

Six years have passed when I first learned about Asperger's Syndrome from Dr. Jolene Ross.  She started treating me in February 2002 with her biofeedback treatments (also known as Neurotherapy).  It was a surprise and a relief to know why I wasn't able to socialize with people and had so many misunderstandings with them.  I had no idea I was on the autism spectrum.

Did my life change?  Yes, it did.  I finally know who I am.  That was the best thing that happened to me that day.  My being different wasn't my choice at all.  A neurological condition did this to me.

3 to Leave WBZ-TV

I'm shocked to learn that Bob Lobel, Joyce Kulhawik, and Scott Wahle are leaving WBZ-TV Channel 4 in Boston at the end of this month.  It's because of all the cut backs they have been doing lately at all the CBS owned TV stations across the country.  Recently, there was a major layoff at WBZ and other CBS stations.

Bob's been with WBZ since 1976 when he was working at their AM station before moving over to TV in 1979.  Joyce has been there since 1981.  I can't remember which year Scott started at WBZ (late 1980s).  I'll miss seeing him too.

So long, guys!

The News Dissector to Lecture Next Thursday

Former WBCN-FM newsman, Danny Schechter (The News Dissector) will be in Boston next Thursday to do a lecture at the Old South Meeting House about media reform.  Schechter worked at the radio station with Charles Laquidara, the morning DJ, back in the 1970s.  These days he is a New York-based filmmaker, author, and blogger (http://www.newsdissector.org/blog/).  The lecture is from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

The title of his lecture is "News Dissecting from Boston to a Global Stage: A Multimedia Pioneer Challenges His Profession and Calls for Media Reform."

For more information: go to http://fordhallforum.org/programs.html

Autism Awareness in the Keys

Jill Campbell, whose son Craigee was diagnosed with Autism last year, is raising awareness with her new foundation called The Florida Keys Chapter of the Autism Society of America.  She supports other families with autistic children and they share information about autism and promote awareness.

She spends two hours driving Craigee to the University of Miami's Center for Autism and Related Disabilities six days a week.  She also drives him to an autism specialist who works 230 miles away from where they live once a month.  She even has him on a special diet.

I like what she's doing for her son.  She's a hero in my book.

Good job, Jill.

Love Asperger's Style

A very interesting article about a couple in England called "Love and Asperger's Syndrome."  Their names are Sarah and Keith.  They don't live together.  In fact, they live about 50 miles from each other.  They don't plan on moving in together or getting married.  Keith has Asperger's Syndrome.  Despite their differences, they managed to work things out because Sarah works with people with Asperger's Syndrome.

So, there is hope out there for romance for us with Asperger's.  For me personally, I like to get married and have kids and live under one roof with a two-car garage.  I"m not being materialistic, but that's what I always envisioned for myself.

Too Late for Birthdays

Happy Belated Birthday,
Julian Lennon
(His birthday was yesterday)

First born son of Beatle John Lennon.  I once saw him in concert in Boston in the mid 1990s.  It was a joy seeing him live.

"Too Late for Good-Byes" by Julian Lennon

Be True to Your School in Randolph

In the article, "Getting in Touch with the Autistic," the Boston Higashi School in Randolph, Massachusetts, has helped students with autism with a lot of their issues.  They create a useful learning environment for them that's comfortable.  Some students move on to college after they are done with school.

135 students attend the school.  Parents are very grateful for the services the school provides.

Increasing Autism Diagnoses in Guam

In a place as far away as Guam, there are growing autism diagnoses.  A local parent organization called Autism Community Together (ACT) has been in contact with 100 families since they started in 2004.  One parent has three autistic children.  A 22 year-old student with Asperger's Syndrome talks about how it has been a struggle with him because many don't understand his condition.

It's all here in this article called "Faces of Autism: Diagnoses of Autism increasing in Guam, U.S."

The Adventures of Super Kid!

Congrats to Alistair Penman!

He just won a Super Kid award in England.  He is a fourteen year-old with Asperger's Syndrome and a rare dysfunction in his larynx.  He helps his mother who has multiple sclerosis and last year helped his father who was battling cancer. 

Alistair was surprised when he won the Super Kid award and said he wasn't worthy of it.

Alistair, you're worthy!

Rockford at 80

Happy Birthday,
James Garner!

Big star of movies and TV shows.  Love his work.  Very handsome guy too.

Scene from "Support Your Local Sheriff"

Charlton Heston RIP

Despite the fact that he was the President of NRA for about 5 years before stepping down in 2003 because of Alzheimer's,  Charlton Heston was an actor who starred in many classic movies.  The three I can think of at the head of my head are: Ben Hur, The Ten Commandments, and Planet of the Apes.  Last night, Heston passed away.  He was 84 years old.  Not many Hollywood legends left out there.  Regardless of his politics, everyone loved his movies.

RIP

Charlton Heston in Planet of the Apes

Outside In Song of the Week

The Rolling Stones new documentary Shine a Light, directed by Martin Scorsese,  premiered in the theaters yesterday.  I heard that it's worth a look-see.  I don't usually pay attention to movie reviews, but it's not often that I got see documentaries at the theater.  The last one I saw was Wordplay which came out about two years ago.

The videos that the Stones did back in the 80s were fun to watch.  This is one that made me laugh out loud.  The red-haired woman dancing in the video is Anita Morris who was a very talented actress and dancer.  Sadly, she passed away from cancer in the mid-1990s.

"She was Hot" by The Rolling Stones

Holy #@$%!!!! Clintons Made $109 Million Since 2000

Holy #@$%, Batman!!!!  Bill and Hillary Clinton made at least $109 Million since leaving the White House.  They have recently released their income tax information for those years (2000-2006) and showed highlights of their 2007 return because they have filed an extension.

Bill listed his occupation as "Speaking and Writing" on his tax return.  He's earned money on his speaking gigs and his two books. 

Good going, Bill and Hillary!

God Bless You, Dr. Mark Vonnegut

Tonight, Dr. Mark Vonnegut who is the son of Kurt Vonnegut did a reading of the latest book by his late father, Armageddon in Retrospect.  Mark read the foreword he wrote for the book that is filled with letters, speeches, short stories, and essays.  It was a great insight into his relationship with his father.

Mark is also an accomplished writer.  He wrote The Eden Express, which is his memoir regarding his mental illness and his recovery from that.

40 Years Later after MLK's Death

Forty years have passed since the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on this very night in Memphis.  He certainly has a dream that still continues right now.  The fact that a black man is running for President is one instance (even though I am supporting the female candidate) that it would never happened without Martin Luther King's civil rights movement.  He did so much for all of us out there.

Thanks, Dr. King!

2 New Studies: Very Premature Babies and Financial Toll

Two recent studies regarding autism have resulted in revealing new information about the disorder.  Very premature babies with a very low birth weight around 3.3 pounds or less may be at risk of developing autism.  Researchers did a MRI on 91 babies at birth and then did an autism screening test on them after 22 months.  25 percent of those toddlers tested positive showing a risk that they may develop autism.

The other study was about the financial impact on a family that has a child with autism.  Annual earnings decease by one parent staying home, turning a promotion or a job that requires much traveling from home.  There's also health expenses that are not covered by health insurance that shrinks a family's income.

Bugsy B-Day

Happy Birthday,
Warren Beatty!

A very sexy actor.  Loved him and his movies (even Dick Tracy).

Bugsy Trailer