The sad part is I know I have the data but cannot verify it with date, time, age of child and what thee conversation was about. Working a call is fairly simple, you either know the information the caller needs or wants and can pass that information along or you cannot. It’s the ancillary data collection where I fall down. We have software which is OK a point if you write the information in the right space—I get lazy and rarely enter the referral point from or to the same way twice—I often forget a lot of the referral pointes are already programmed in to the software and al I would need to do is drop down the options and choose this way. I can’t do it…I try and I try and I try but pretty soon I am entering all kinds names for example University Hospital, might me UOFU medical center, University of Utah medical center, university med center or just U-medical center , and so on. Then when the time comes to dump the data I get a kazillion different entries University of Utah Medical Center making have to go through the raw data dump identify and isolate all of the entries one by one totally defeating the whole reason behind having information tracking software.

I have been doing this job for ten years and the data collection has been my bane—the first couple of years I was on board logged every call on call sheets I made up which basically kept tract of such information and actually that system was really not too bad; specially since we are such a small call center. Such data collection would not work if we had thousands of call an day like some of the I&Rs do. Even when we were really busy I don’t think we ever got more then five or six thousand calls a year which breaks down to roughly 2,8 calls an hour for a forty hour week for a 52 week year, of course enter the random nature of the human animal some hours will be 4 or five calls, and some days like holiday weeks and summer vacation and the numbers will vary but 6000 calls a year would be a pretty good year and the report I ran last week was about 1200 calls for the year. I get a little sick just writing this. It’s not like I am not here. I am here almost every day—I want to answer the phone and give out great information but the phones first have to ring and they don’t. It looks as if we will get funded for another year—that gives me breathing room—I can work another year, one year closer to retirement, like I am ever going to retire but I can dream. My boss is great she is working her butt off trying to find more funding streams for my program but it is slow going, the economy is still pretty week.

So now I have to figure a way to make my data show how well I have served my funders. Excuse me while go I throw up…

Once a Week

You all might remember a couple of years ago I started writing my mother once a week besides my weekly call on late Sunday afternoons—as I had hoped the letters seemed to mean a lot to her and I think the letter writing was one of the better things I have done with my life. Mom was in a long term care facility at the time, a nursing home which I think totally shocked and frustrated her and again I think the letters helped he survive her confinement. I think besides this blog, the letter writing campaign was the most constant writing I have ever done. So in that vein I have taken to writing one of my best friends, who is also confined to a long term care facility in Charleston North Carolina.

Dr. Mac, I have written about him before, briefly in this blog, is my friend who, I write weekly. We shared a brief months together, a little over a year, bringing medical services to the migrant farm workers of South West Idaho. A brief time but a time which has forever changed in how I see and measure people. I have written a manuscript and lost this script covering some of my more memorable moments with the clinic program. I have never had the drive to go back and rewrite those lost chapters. I plan to someday but not now. Now, I am writing Mac, letting him know that I am out here and have not forgotten him or the time we spent together. Like my mom’s letters each letter is about 500 words long, touching on key events of my life during the past week especially my bouts with the medical profession which seems to interest him the most and it is good for me to have some sort of parent figure to relate my fears and exasperations of the medical profession to. Mac understand as no one else seems to—since he was part of that profession for a long time and a lot of that as an administrator as well as a health care provider Mac was director of medical services at a large state hospital in Nampa Idaaho when I first met the doctor and later he was the physician for the Clinic mentioned earlier. I was only with Mac for about 18 months.

But Mac aged and so did .We went our separate ways but we sort of stayed in contact, Calling him when I could during the holidays, until a couple of years a go when I learned the Alice, Mac’s wife had died of cancer. Something weird had happened to the doctor causing the family to step in and rescue the man from himself; they moved him from his home in Nampa and relocated him in North Carolina.!

So now I write once a week and try calling off and on but with the time difference and Mac being busy guy seems never to be in his room seeming to enjoy the people at the facility where he lives. He experiences a brain bleed a couple of weeks ago but seems to have fully recovered now. But, I fear the time is short for the good doctor. He is going to have a major bleed or something that will be all she wrote but until then I’ll write him once a week come rain or come shine and when Mac goes, like mom I’ll pick some one new—maybe a granddaughter—that might be fun, write someone who will outlast me.

Broadcast Blues

Is it my imagination or was yesterday’s broadcast just plain weird? I still think the broadcast over all is OK, I was able to get the information out about the Coalition and the works they strive to do. I don’t know what went wrong, we looked like we were sitting at strange angles and there just was not much eye contact—but I tried, I really, really did. My person looked angry though, but I did not perceive anger as I did the interview. There was also the criticisms about me looking at the clock—which granted I did, but I really thought I was being more covert, I guess I wasn’t.

I was aware there that there was some stress between my parent company and this organization to the point I went out of my way to make sure I had my bosses blessings on the interview and of course the interview was fine with her. But there was a tension and I really don’t know quite what to do. Take a look…

http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/5704441

Weather Flux

It’s Friday and I am home and we are caught right in the middle of the Equinoctial Flux—every day exhibit weather from, seemingly all four seasons. This morning I woke to snow, then rain then a break then just now it was hailing outside.. At least the temperature is fairly warm so it’s just mostly wet but the kind of weather to stay in side .

Anakah is with us today as she started Spring break today and both her parents are working so we h have been having Anakah fun. She made pancakes which were some of the best pancakes we have had in months. So today is laid back and everyone is cleaning and sprucing up a bit and listening to the radio. Oh and there is thunder—what a perfect day.

Something I Said?

I hate doing the numbers--the numbers drive me crazy it's all about the numbers and accountability. Seriously, I spoke with the guy who used to have this job (JT) who now lives in another state and is developing his own information tech company because he got laid off few months ago. we were trying to figure outmjust what went wrong with this operation. I can blame alot of things,economic down turn, state down turn, poor community saturation etc, etc and always the cause sort of comes back to me. JT says that is absurd and I rally appreciate that but all I know is that the numbers went South after I took over operation. So tomorrow, my boss will be meeting with some of my funders to see if we will have an operation after the fiscal year ending in July.

I have this specialized software which kind of keeps track of my number or is supposed to. I think mit is OK software and it DOES report exactly what it is asked...I just need more calls. I want to blame the INTERNET but really, I think it's me.

Spring Thoughts and More

Spring finally came and even though it coolish outside and there is snow caked to the mountains I can feel the seasonal change and the change is good—maybe it’s the longer days of sunlight now or looking at my Chinese cherry plumb getting ready to bloom: I feel like spring. I have made it through to another Spring.

Change is good so they say and I am feeling this Spring will brings lots of change as we head into Summer. I am really going to try to keep my ramblings about the possible job end thing to a minimum but I have to admit the employment thing is my primary focus and what I do about being without work should that happen, I think I could handle being out of work. Of course the big question is how would we pay the mortgage eat and get round. I need to spend some time with the Social /security Administration and find out how long it will the SSI or regular social se3curity to keep in. I think if everything would start up immediately We would be OK, probably poor as church mice but think we could cover everything. If I have to wait a couple of years before the award would start then that would be something else and we would be faced with some real challenges. I should be OK because my sick live would cove me for insurance for at least one year and maybe longer. Should I look for other work? Should I continue to earn as much as I can through labor—try something new, something fun, maybe try to return to Independent Living or find something with some other private on profit. Maybe I could do some contract work, working only as much as SSI will allow and then enjoying the rest of my time till the next month when I would do it ll again. How bout volunteer? I rally cannot see me doing that for any length of time—even if I could and be sure we would be OK financially. How bout writing? I would love to do that have a column or an e-blog I could be paid for this would be sweet but I doubt I am that good but it might be exhilarating to try and along those same line what about doing more interview shows with the skills I have picked up with Access Utah Now I could really get in to Meadowlarks World. Sustainability is the by word I would need to live by. Perhaps I could do a little of each and really keep myself busy and have an enjoyable lifestyle.

Up until now these questions have been academic , ‘what if, I am afraid that it is soon becoming real and I am going to have to start translating what if’s into gold—and what better time then spring to begin this transition into a new stage of life? But even if I have to deal with the worse case scenario I have until June 30^th when the States fiscal new year ends. Fore the time being I think I’ll just enjoy my Spring.

Adorable

]

I posted yesterday, the post was not a long one but I did post and some were along the line Blogspot lost the post; granted the post was a short one but still I wrote it and went through the motions—I hate it when that happens.

Well, today my boss and I finally started acknowledging the “elephant in the room”: what will happen to me if in fact I loose my funding come July.

It was weird talking about this lie talking to someone with terminal cancer about what kind of casket they want. We briefly talked possible options in the “worse case scenario” would I consider working here or there? I am realluy amazing myself to see that am sort of choosey about where I might work. I am actually considering only places where the building is served by public transit, that I have faith in the organization, and that continue to be able to work ”tens” I really love my three day weekends.

I have to admit my boss is going to bat for me or my office speaking to the directors of the funders who support my program to get them top commit to funding me for another year. Claire is good at this kind of stuff it is Claire and if anyone can find funding it will be Claire. I currently funded to the end of June so I have some time, less the 90 days, but lot can happen in that amount of time. I have started putting out feelers, testing the waters seeing if there is any interest in an adorable, bald fat guy.

Typical

It's beautiful today, sunshine and 60 degrees, first time this year--tomorrow will be the same except warmer and guess what a storm is set tom roll in on Thursday--typical !!

Give Me A Break

My first day at work since te time change already I feel tons better and again the feeling might ust be from te fact the skies are blue and the sun actually feels warm at mid-day and better days are forcast for the rest of the week.But any dry weather feels better after the weekend of snow and rain.

Oh and my phone just rang and it was one of those recorded calls, you know, you pick up the phone expecting a person and you get a recording--Grrrrr--this really grinds my teeth but get this, it was a call from the U.S. Census Bureau! Hey,I know the Census is important, they probably think they are vital, but to use robot dialers and a canned message come on--I cannot rhink of a way for a Federal office to loose credibility with heir constituents. Pssst

Another Broadcast

I am a little nervous about today's broadcast since I did so poorly on the last one. But I think it will be OK, and i just want to have fun on my Thursday/Friday. I rescheduled my colonoscopy which was supposed to,be tomorrow--now it is the day after Tax Day, April 16th--I'll try to write more on rescheduling of the tests.

The next Live broadcast of Access Utah Now will be today,Thursday, at 11:30 A.M. This broadcast will highlight Dr Lauren Clark of the Yes We Can!": A Healthy Lifestyle Program for Young Adults with Intellectual Disabilities

Please join us online at the following website:

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/access-utah--now .

Please feel free to forward this email to any consumers or staff who you feel might be enjoy this broadcast. Thank you.

Mark L. Smith
Access Utah Network
155 South 300 West Ste 100
Salt Lake City, Utah 84101
(801)533-4636
(800)333-8824

Something to Think About

I had to get up at 3:00 a.m. and drain my bladder—this is a real process me. but I have to drain because when the bladder is full I cannot get to sleep it drains. The problem is at 3:00 once I get up, I just about have to stay up but today I did the deed and came back to bed. I got back about 3:30 a..m. and just dozed till 4:30 the time I usually get going—the scary part was that when I transferred back into bed I was just laying on the edge—just barely on but safely on. Getting up at 4:30 was the challenge since I was only partly on the bed I could not get enough stability to make the lift into my wheelchair! I nearly biffed it!! But I eventually drug my sorry butt onto my wheelchair and got on with my morning.

This morning was a close one but I prevailed I don’t know what will happen when I don’t prevail and slide or crash down to the floor. Its going to happen, I am going to fall it is just a matter of time. Until recently, falling was not that big a deal between Dianne and myself we could manage to drag me back onto the bed or wheelchair or some thing. Since Dianne’s back has gone bad she will no longer be able to really help me get back up—so we would have to call Gabe or Mark or one of the neighbor, probably Dan or worse case scenario call the fire or police department which would be really weird but that kind of fall has not happened yet. I spend a large part of my time talking to people who have seniors in their lives who are having these exact kind of issues. It’s just weird when I have to start thinking of these same issues but pertaining to me. I have some ideas but would mean purchasing some more assistive technology and then finding a place to store the equipment until the equipment is needed. Sometimes there is just too much to think about…

PAS=POINT AND SHOOT

I did it! I purchased another camera--this camera is another NIKON, same model as I had before just newer, more mega pixels and this camera works. I especially like the fact that the camera is red. The camera is a point and shoot-- and I am not too sure how much I like that but the larger camera I got Dianne a while back is just complicated for me to use , carry in my back pack and use at a moments notice. The screen on the back of the camers is huge, three inches. I doubt the little machine will last more the year if that long. The ride in my back pack is a rough ride and eventually everything cracks.

Waiting for early train. Damp,cold-gray clouds threaten big rain.

OK Go - This Too Shall Pass - RGM version

Entertaining if nothing else

I took a moment to snap this image with my cellphone at the third lunch meeting I attended this week. The meeting was fairly entertaining and I feel some folks will be surprised this year when they do not get an invitation submit a full grant. Lots of discussion but no yelling or tears yet. Lunch was box lunch--I had the "Club Deluxe" the sandwhich was not as good s the name implied but I was happy to get, alongh with the picvkle and CC cookie.

The rain held off till I got back into the office and seems to be petering out. But I withhold final judgment until I get home tonght. I am glad tomorrow is the weekend.

Mingling

This is one of my favorite LDS hymns—this always woke me up and got my blood flowing. The words are mysterious but the tune is just great—in some ways Praise To The Man reminds me of the US National Anthem and one of the reasons The Star Spangled B has done so well over the years is the tune was originally a “tavern song” a drinking song. When I was a little kid the “mingling” intrigued me because of the rhyming but from the multiple god concept—just interesting.
#27 Praise To The Man
2009 June 15
by Jack
Praise To The Man Lyrics
1. Praise to the man who communed with Jehovah!
Jesus annointed that Prophet and Seer.
Blessed to open the last dispensation,
Kings shall extol him, and nations revere.
Hail to the Prophet, ascended to heaven!
Traitors and tyrants now fight him in vain.
Mingling with Gods, he can plan for his brethren;
Death cannot conquer the hero again.
2. Praise to his mem’ry, he died as a martyr;
Honored and blest be his ever great name!
Long shall his blood, which was shed by assasins,
Plead unto heav’n while the earth lauds his fame.
Hail to the Prophet, ascended to heaven!
Traitors and tyrants now fight him in vain.
Mingling with Gods, he can plan for his brethren;
Death cannot conquer the hero again.
3. Great is his glory and endless his priesthood.
Ever and ever the keys he will hold.
Faithful and true he will enter his kingdom,
Crowned in the midst of the prophets of old.
Hail to the Prophet, ascended to heaven!
Traitors and tyrants now fight him in vain.
Mingling with Gods, he can plan for his brethren;
Death cannot conquer the hero again.
4. Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of heaven;
Earth must atone for the blood of that man.
Wake up the world for the conflict of justice.
Millions shall know ‘Brother Joseph’ again.
Hail to the Prophet, ascended to heaven!
Traitors and tyrants now fight him in vain.
Mingling with Gods, he can plan for his brethren;
Death cannot conquer the hero again.

Hey Something New

This morning I am trying to figure out how to post to my blog from my cell. I mean other folk do it—mobile posting cannot be that challenging but it seems to me, pretty difficult. I am going to figure this out just maybe not to day. I have a meeting in an hour or so which I have to get ready for maybe this afternoon—to if you start seeing a lot of “test” messages just know that I am learning something new. Hey!!! When I brought up the blog to enter this post there it was "Test" my first blog post from my cell phone. Cool...not to post images. :-)

Testing

SyFy in Blue

Yesterday my grand daughter, Anakah drug us out Avatar. I have been wanting to go but never had the will but with the drive of a nine year old the decision was made. So we sat through the movie, almost three hours of noise and wonder but I was a little disappointed . I don't know if it was the storyline , the fact the guy in the wheelchair want not a real gimp or the financial outlay, which was not that much since Ani's parents contributed a twenty dollar bill to the project.

I love science fiction, I love science fiction and Avatar definitely is science fiction but maybe a little fantasy and a whole lot of special effects--but it seemd there was just too much for this movie or maybe it had too much reference to the old cowboy and Indian motif. I am glad I went, especially with Dianne and Anakah--it was fun to get out and mix-it up with real people on a almost Spring Sunday afternoon. I just hope I am not loosing my need for SyFy.