Outside In Song of the Week

Last night, I went to the Pavilion in Boston and had the happiest time of my life.  DEVO performed in concert for the first time in Boston for almost 20 years.  The crowd was thrilled to see them just like I was.  I never had the chance to see them in the 1980s so this was special night for me.  I had the biggest smile on my face the whole time.

"Beautiful World" by DEVO

John Lennon's Artwork on Display in Newton This Weekend!

Come down to the Hotel Indigo in Newton and see John Lennon's artwork.  The exhibit is called "Power to the People."

Some of the artwork will be on sale.  Too expensive for me!  But I love to look at it.  The exhibit started on Friday and will end on Sunday.  Check it out!

Hotel Indigo is just off of Route 128 at Exit 22.  T riders can use the D green line train to Riverside.

Townsend Officer on His Day Off Calms Boy with Asperger's

A police officer in Townsend, Massachusetts, named Jim Marchand soothed the fears of a 13-year-old boy with Asperger's Syndrome.  He did it on his day off to put the boy's worries at ease after the boy received a death threat from a classmate who said that he was going to kill him and his parents on Saturday.  The threat frightened the boy with Asperger's Syndrome so much that he called 911 about it.

His parents contacted Officer Marchand, who is a neighbor, and asked him to talk to their son.  The officer was kind enough to spend his day off reassuring the boy that he and his family will be safe because he would be patrolling the neighborhood on Saturday.  His talk put the boy at ease.

I wonder if Officer Marchand is going to arrest the punk who made that threat in the first place.  Bullying should be outlawed in school.

Montana Gets its First Autism Treatment House

Kudos to Governor Brian Schweitzer of Montana for helping the funding of the building of the first autism treatment house in his state.  His office requested a waiver that allowed Medicaid to fund the project.

The Candlelight Community Living Initiative will house at least four individuals with autism ranging from the ages of 10 to 16 years old.  The building cost $300,000 and another $200,000 was spent to train 14 staffers.

The most important reason for Schweitzer to help out was a theme in his administration to help others with mental illness.  Second reason was that he has a 21-year-old son named Ben who has Asperger's Syndrome.

Thanks, Governor Schweitzer!

A Message from My Cat, Storm, Again!

Hi, Everybody!  I'm Storm, one of Yvonne's cats! 

I'm back to tell you something important: Dr. Doom is really a cat hater! 

It's true!  I have proof this time!  I saw him pull a big huge candle at Catwoman!  He was going to hit her with it!

See?  He's dangerous!

Don't say I didn't warn you!

aoljpictureUpload, aoljpictureUpload_1

"Days of Our Lives" Does an Autism Story This Summer

Dina Higley, the head writer of the NBC soap Days of Our Lives, has written a storyline for the soap that is personal to her.  Abe and Lexie discover that their son Theo has autism.  Higley and her staff have teamed up with Autism Speaks to make certain that storyline has realism and sensitivity.

Higley's son, Connor, was diagnosed with autism when he was a child.  He is now heading to college in the fall.

Read all about it:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25348266/

Gotham Gazette Goes into The Autism Gap

The Gotham Gazette has a huge story about educating children with autism and Asperger's Syndrome in the New York City area.  The article mentions a school called the New York Association for Autism Charter School which was founded in 2005 by mothers who have children with autism.  The school addresses the needs of the students and gives them an environment to play in.  The Nest Program is about helping children with higher functioning autism and Asperger's Syndrome in public schools.

A very in depth article called "The Autism Gap."  Please, check it out.

http://gothamgazette.com/article/education/20080611/6/2553

Update on Top Model's Heather

What is America's Next Top Model's Heather Kuzmich up to these days?  The answer's obvious.  She's modeling.  Heather was the model who gave people with Asperger's Syndrome a face.

Although she didn't win the competition, she has been modeling steady ever since.

Have Fun, Heather!

Check out the latest pictures of Heather:

http://blogs.nypost.com/popwrap/archives/2008/06/top_models_heat.html

Good-Bye, George!

Legendary comedian George Carlin died of heart failure last night.  He was an icon amongst comedians.  He was the one who uttered the infamous seven words that you can't say on Television and Radio.  He also did the comparison and contrast between football and baseball.

He'll be missed greatly. 

RIP George!

George Carlin Talks about Football and Baseball

Outside In Song of the Week

It's Summertime!  I'm heading to a barbecue today in Watertown.  It'll be fun and cool.  This is best summer song ever.

"Summertime" by DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince (Will Smith)

Mission:Birthday

Happy Birthday,
Martin Landau

Martin was born at the beginning of Summer on June 20.   Very talented actor.  Won an Oscar back in 1995 for playing Bela Lugosi (the best actor to play Dracula) in Tim Burton's Ed Wood.  Martin's TV work on Mission:Impossible and Space:1999 were great as well.  He was also on "Without a Trace" playing Jack Malone's father for a couple of seasons.

Ed Wood Trailer



Opening Montage Tribute to Mission:Impossible from YouTube.com (opening montages from six episodes edited together)

Autism Building Named after the Duke of Mass

The New England Center for Children in Southborough, Massachusetts, held a ceremony today naming a building after former Governor Michael S. Dukakis.  The school for children with autism, Asperger's Syndrome, and Pervasive Development Disorder dedicated the building as "The Michael S. Dukakis Aquatic Center."  As part of the center's steering committee, the former governor and 1988 presidential candidate helped with raising money for building the facility.

Thanks, Duke of Mass!

Graduating with Veterans

Quin Kelly, a 19 year-old with Aspeger's Sydrome, received his high school diploma during a small graduation ceremony that included veterans of World War II and Korea.  It all happened because of a miscommunication that made him miss his own high school's graduation at the Comcast Arena in Everett, Washington. 

Last year, Quin could have received a Special Needs Diploma at Marysville - Pilchuck High school, but he wanted to get the traditional diploma and decided to attend a fifth year.  He also attended classes with a tutor at Heritage High, a school that focuses on American Indian culture.

When he missed his opportunity to join his fellow classmates for graduation, he tried to be part of the graduation at Heritage High.  However, he was never enrolled.

The school board decided to let him attend a graduation ceremony for veterans of World War II and Korea who missed their change to graduate when they entered the military service.  Quin was happy when he finally had his diploma in his hand.

Paul is 66

Happy Birthday,
Paul McCartney

My favorite Beatle  is celebrating a birthday today.  Many Happy Returns!

Recently, Paul did a concert in Kiev, Ukraine, at Independence Square.

"Back in The USSR" By Paul McCartney



"Penny Lane" by The Beatles

I Wish The Diamond Elementary School Existed When I was a Kid

Great story in The Washington Post regarding the Diamond Elementary School in Gaithersburg, Maryland.  The school is tailored to the needs of children with developmental disabilities.  Children with Asperger's Syndrome are able to cope with their anxieties and focus on their education.  They thrive.

I wish there was a school like this when I was young.  However, Asperger's Syndrome was unknown back then.  I was simply viewed as a very sensitive child with behavior problems.  Public school traumatized me for years afterward.

Check out "Gaithersburg School Tailors Teaching to Help Students Cope with Disorder"

Aaron the Valedictorian

Congratulations to Aaron Snook of Turpin High School in Anderson Township, Ohio!

The senior with Asperger's Syndrome excelled in his grades and landed the position of valedictorian of his senior class.   His favorite subjects are math, science, and computer science.  He even took Advanced Placement courses that were available online.  He even received a Presidential Scholarship.  He plans on attending Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.

Check out his story in "Fitting In was Hardest Lesson."

Joe's Day

Happy Birthday,
Joe Martelle

My DJ mentor is having a birthday today.  He's a year older.  Joe's been busy writing his how-to book about being a radio pro.  It will be out soon.  Stay tuned for that info as soon as it becomes available.

Next month, Joe will be on the Jordan Rich show on WBZ radio in Boston to reminisce about his days as a morning disc jockey in Boston, "The Joe & Andy Show," and "Saturday Night Live at the Oldies."  He'll also tell about his years in radio after he left Boston in 1998.

Recently, Joe wrote a letter to the VisitingNewEngland.com website regarding their "Greatest Boston MA DJs of the 1960s and 1970s" article where they named Joe as one of those Greatest DJs.   They posted it on their site:

http://www.visitingnewengland.com/top40radio-newengland.html
(Scroll down to "Joe Martelle" paragraph)



Joe Martelle - Radio Pro

Dad Day

Happy
Father's
Day!

Warren Beatty Gets The AFI Life Achievement Award

Special congratulations to actor Warren Beatty who received the American Film Institute's Life Achievement Award last Thursday night at the Kodak Theater in Los Angeles.  Guests who attended were his wife of 16 years Annette Bening, Robert Downey Jr., Dustin Hoffman, and former President Bill Clinton who got a long standing ovation.  Jack Nicholson, who was at the NBA basketball finals game, showed up after the Lakers lost to the Celtics.

Warren was delighted that he was given this honor.  His career spans five decades.  He is also a director, producer, and writer.  The awards show even showed clips of the 1987 movie bomb Ishtar.

An edited version of the show will appear on the USA Network on June 25.

The Trailer for Bugsy



The Trailer for Bonnie and Clyde

Outside In Song of the Week

Happy Birthday,
Boy George

The Boy is 47 years old today.  Whenever he's not in trouble with the law, he's on tour singing or being a club DJ somewhere.  I've heard that he's coming to Boston for a concert in August. 

Back in the 1980s, Boy George was the lead singer of Culture Club.  I played their songs when I was a disc jockey.  In 1998, I got to see the band on their reunion tour when they stopped in Boston.  It was a great show that night.

"Miss Me Blind" by Culture Club

Tim Russert RIP

Shocking news came last night when I got home from work and turned on the TV news.  Veteran newsman and host of NBC's "Meet the Press" Tim Russert had died of a massive heart attack.  I cried because he was excellent at what he did.  A very intelligent man has been lost.  He was good at analyzing political stories and hitting his guests with the right questions.

He'll be missed greatly by his peers and viewers.

RIP Tim

Good Luck with College, Jeremy!

I just read an enjoyable personal essay called "Moving on From High School, Out of Asperger's 'Box'" by Jeremy Ernstoff.  He plans to go to college so that he can expand on his limitations and raise his level of comfort to new heights.  He just graduated from his high school in Pennsylvania and is heading to the University of Hartford in Connecticut.  At the university they have other adults with Asperger's and a mentor program.  His social worker said that their supports with help him with his needs.

Good Luck, Jeremy!

Faulty Brain Connections = Social Impairments

A recent study has proof that faulty connections in the right side of the brain are the causes for social impairments in individuals with autism.  A team of researchers at the University of Washington's Autism Center used functional magnetic resonance imaging to also find the most abnormal pattern of connectivity among a network of brain regions involved in face processing.

The article mentions that the problem area is in the right region of the brain.  The researchers used two control groups: one with people with autism, Asperger's Syndrome, and  Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified; and one group with any autism spectrum disorders.  Each group member's had their brains scanned while looking at photographs of faces and houses.  One finding is that the social processing in the autistic individuals is weaker than the ones that didn't have autism.

Love That 100th B-Day!

Happy 100th Birthday,
Bob Cummings!

A very famous actor who starred in the sitcom "The Bob Cummings Show" aka "Love That Bob" which featured Ann B. Davis before she became Alice,  the maid of "The Brady Bunch."  Nancy Kulp also appeared on this show as well.  He also did a sitcom with Julie Newmar (Catwoman of "Batman") called "The Living Doll."

Bob Cummings was a movie star before he was a TV star.  He guest-starred in a lot of TV shows from the 1960s to the 1990s.  He passed away on December 2, 1990, due to kidney failure.

Bob Cummings introduces the CBS 1961 Fall TV Preview for Thursday Nights (which features "The New Bob Cummings Show").

Marie J. Parente Still Moons Over Andy Moes

Local columnist Marie J. Parente of The Milford Daily News mentioned the late radio personality Andy Moes in her recent column.  She was reminiscing about the time she was a state representative trying to put the word "buttocks" in the law describing lewd behavior.  Everyone locally, nationally, and internationally referred to her bill as the "mooning ban."

One day, Joe and Andy called her up regarding this back in August 1986.  Check out her reaction in "Eclipsing the Moon."

Saved by the Sea Breeze

It's been a heatwave for the past couple of days here in Boston.  Fortunately, a sea breeze has cooled things down in the Boston area this afternoon.  Right now, it's 67 degrees outside.

I don't like being at the computer when it's steaming hot like this, even though it has cooled down outside.  Inside my condo, a lot of heat is trapped in here and the fans and air conditioner can only do so much.

Tomorrow it gets hot again.  Luckily, it's the first day of the Jimmy Fund's Scooper Bowl.  Love that "all you can eat" ice cream!

Outside In Song of the Week

Happy
50th
Birthday,
Prince!

Hard to believe he's 50!  It's true!  I love his music.  I played a lot of his songs when I was a disc jockey.

"Let's Go Crazy" by Prince from Purple Rain

Happy Birthday, King of Cool

Happy Birthday,
Dean Martin
(June 7, 1917 - December 25, 1995)

The King of Cool is having a birthday today!  We all love him and miss him.

Medley of "Volare/On a Evening in Roma" by Dean Martin



"Everybody Loves Somebody Sometime" by Dean Martin

The 'Sibshops' are Open

In Central Massachusetts, the Autism Resource Center has workshops for the siblings of children who have autism and Asperger's in order to help them express their concerns.  Dubbed the "Sibshops," the workshops give the brothers and sisters a place to go and learn how to cope with living with siblings with developmental disabilities.  There, they meet adults who also have siblings that have autism and Asperger's and learn strategies on how to help, cope, and support.

I wish my two of my three older siblings who live in Maryland would go to workshops like these.  They still expect me to turn into a very independent normal person overnight.

Doctor Dan Says We're Different

Doctor Dan Opdyke in Ohio wrote an article about the differences seen in Asperger's Syndrome from autism.  Very informative and detailed.  He does emphasize that it is not an easy thing when it comes to interacting with other children and adults.  The social cues and rules are not there for us to interpret.  We don't know what kind of situation we're in so we don't know how to respond correctly to others.

Thanks for understanding, Doctor Dan.

Hillary Ends Her Run for President

I regret that Hillary didn't win the nomination, but I will support Barack Obama.  I'm not the revengeful type. 

My comments about Hillary and Barack are over at my other blog, Uncommon Bostonian.

http://journals.aol.com/yechristian/uncommon-bostonian/entries/2008/06/07/hillary-endorses-barack/2330

New Play, Body Awareness, Features Boy with AS

Debuting last night in New York City was a comedy called Body Awareness.  It stars actress JoBeth Williams who is part of a lesbian couple living in Vermont.  Her son faces social challenges but refuses to be diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome.  He is friends with his electric toothbrush which massages his gums whenever he's stressed.  Mary McCann plays Williams' gay lover who is a psychology professor who has a Body Awareness program running that week at Shirley State College.  All fun and games in Vermont.

The play is at the Atlantic Theatre Stage 2 and runs until June 22.

Remembering Sidney Pollack

I'm a little late with this tribute, but the passing of Harvey Korman distracted me last week.  Tootsie was one of my favorite movies during my college years.  Sidney Pollack who directed the movie also starred as Michael's agent, George.  Dustin Hoffman played Michael, an frustrated actor, who transforms himself into Dorothy and becomes a soap opera star.

Sidney Pollack passed away last week due to cancer.  He directed a lot of great movies over the years. 

Michael argues with his agent, George, in his office from Tootsie



George the agent runs into Dorothy at the Russian Tea Room

Premature Baby Girls with Low Weight at Higher Risk for Autism

A new study claims that baby girls born prematurely with low weight have a higher risk in developing autism than premature baby boys with low weight.  Having a weight of less than 5.5 pounds puts a premature baby girl at a 2.3-fold increased risk for developing an autism spectrum disorder.

The researchers at Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta did the study with children born between 1986 - 1993.

Asperger's for Girls Too

More and more females are being diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome in recent years.  I am living proof of that.  In the article called "It's Not Just Boys Who Are Autistic" are stories about the daughter of Lorna Wing, the psychiatrist who wrote the paper that first coined the term Asperger's Syndrome, and other women who are on the spectrum.

Very eye opening article.

Bo Diddley RIP

We lost an icon.  Today, Bo Diddley passed away due to heart failure in Florida where he had been recovering from recent health problems.  He was one of the pioneers of rock and roll.  He was 79 years old.

RIP Bo!

"Bo Diddley" by Bo Diddley