30 in 30

A few weeks ago, I wrote about a new goal for September, getting a video out every day on my YouTube channel. Yesterday, I finished editing and uploading the 30th and final video for the month. If I assume they all get released as scheduled, I will have made my goal.

Getting them made was somewhat fun, but a challenge as well. I like educating about the life I have been given and trying to help others. However, I didn't like the constant feeling of being pushed to get more content out.

At night, I had ideas for script running through my head while also trying to plan time to record. I did about half the videos while in bed. I prefer recording while in my chair, but I knew that it wouldn't be possible to finish everything. Therefore, I tried to prepare messages that included a lot of data for bed recording. It was easier to show statistics and other information on screen while talking about it and not needing to remember it and then add screen shots in editing.

I have watched some YouTube channels that regularly release daily videos, but I don't envy them. Constantly planning and editing is probably a routine you can get used to, but not something I want to do. For me, it would quickly get boring as most days are nearly the same. The channels I watch that do frequent videos are usually families with several kids. Children are usually active in various items and therefore more interest for videos.

While it was a fun experiment, I do not want to continue with the routine. Also this month, I had a doctor's appointment that found I have an infection around my trach. I started an antibiotic about a week ago, but I have to take extra precaution in order to keep my gut working correctly.

The quad life is one I know well and I'm thankful God has given me the ability to do this. I hope to do more videos soon, but only after a few week's break.

Falling Apart or in Control?

Since early 2020, I have not watched mainstream news channels, such as ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, etc. I may go to my local CBS website for weather updates on occasion, but that's about it. I haven't missed their reports and generally have been fine without it.

Sometimes, I do watch short segments online from Fox news to stay aware of what is going on in the world. The items I watched this week reported on the large increase in violence around the country as some states basically do away with punishment. Another report was somewhat sarcastic as illegal immigrants were brought to areas that say they welcome migrants, but actually don't want any.

Whether you watch the news or not, it isn't hard to see the world is increasing in chaos. Much blame is put on a certain political party, but this isn't the sole source of problems. Looking through history, before it's erased, you can see it building over the last several decades. It has increased as trust in the Bible has decreased.

Starting around 1800, evolutionary theories began to grow in the church. Many theories were proposed that basically said we could reinterpret the clear teaching of Genesis and make it say what we wanted. If you can't trust the opening pages of a book, the foundation it is built upon, why believe the rest? As generations were taught this understanding, less of the Bible was believed.

In the 1970's, children went from being precious gifts from God to a blob of cells that can be killed. More recently, marriage being for one man and woman for life (Genesis 1-2) has become almost anything but this definition. Finally, a person doesn't even need to be the gender they were born as and can pick from over 100 options.

Reading Romans 1, this type of situation is described when a nation is under God's judgment. I continue to pray for a return to Christianity, but am afraid the trend toward more trouble will grow worse. No matter what is going on though, I remember God is in control and is the King of kings and Lord of lords.

For the next several weeks, as another election cycle looms in the United States, I expect to see more outrageous claims and actions. However, I look to the fully reliable history in God's Word and remember that nations come and go, but the Lord's will carries on.

Olmstead Term

In 1999, the US Supreme Court made what's called the Olmstead Decision. The main point was that people with disabilities have the right to live independently, even when using state-funded resources. However, each state is responsible for monitoring its own compliance of this law.

Iowa supports an organization called the Olmstead Consumer Task Force to monitor the state's adherence to this decision and recommend changes. I joined the task force in late 2019 for a three-year term to see where I could help.

Full group meetings were held every-other month at a library near Des Moines. I wasn't sure about attending the four-hour long meetings in winter, but an option was available to join by phone. I think we had three meetings before the pandemic started and every one since then has been completely virtual.

For the first two years, I didn't really know how to help. I commented on occasion about issues I experienced, but not much else. Sitting here on my computer watching people give lengthy reports on Iowa government issues became a test of paying attention and awake. A year ago, I was able to join one of the sub-committees to help with more specific items.

Now, I was able to contribute more to the monthly meetings and feel like I was actually helping. This summer, I initiated a project to address accessibility concerns at a large event held in the state annually. Finally, for the first time in nearly three years, I felt like I was helping and making a difference.

Friday was the last meeting of my term. Several other members voiced opinion with wanting to do more, just as I wanted to do. I felt bad leaving at a time that I could possibly help more Iowans with disabilities. Therefore, I agreed to serve another term.

I have no idea what will happen in three more years, or if I'll be able to complete the term. I also don't need more things to do, but such is the quad life. I pray that I can be a productive member and help others through my participation, however long that is.

Self-Imposed Labor

We have reached September and Labor Day weekend in the U.S. Throughout August, I was looking forward to having a calm month ahead. However, my head wouldn't shut off one night and now I have another full month, even though my calendar is quite sparse.

September is National Spinal Cord Injury awareness month. In 2019, following the example of a friend, I posted something SCI related on Facebook every day of the month. With 30 items, I covered a lot of the aspects of living the quad life and I received several compliments on the project. At some hour of the night around August 20, I got the idea to do the same this year on my YouTube channel.

The next day, I found the list of items I covered in 2019 and adjusted a few to better fit video format. This was all great, but I now committed myself to recording, editing, and uploading 30 videos. I have been struggling to get two out per week the past few months and this would be a lot more work.

Unlike Facebook, I can at least make videos ahead of time and schedule them to be released on certain days and times with YouTube. If I was going to make it happen, I determined I needed to have at least one week's worth of videos finished before September 1. By August 30, I had completed and uploaded eight videos. They weren't all sequential, but I had the first few days covered at least.

Now, I am trying to make at least one video per day and have done two a few times. As of this writing, I have now uploaded 12 videos and hope to get another one finished before this blog goes live. I enjoy helping people learn and it has been fun getting to teach about the life I've been given. The few videos that have gone out to the public have already received good comments and more views than I normally get.

Hopefully, I can finish this project without getting overwhelmed. Maybe by the time the middle of the month arrives I will be able to slow down. However, I wouldn't count on it knowing me.

Grilled Joel

The problems with my trach button have been continuing. This past week was another appointment to try to fix the issue. However, I wondered if I was actually participating in an experiment instead.

Due to my caregiver schedule, I have very limited days that I can go out to appointments. My ENT doesn't normally do procedures on the days I have this freedom, but he very graciously rearranged his appointments to make a time that worked for me. This part was relatively simple, but the procedure was delayed for several weeks due to maintenance issues.

Since previous attempts haven't stopped the drainage, my doctor wanted to go more drastic. This time, he would take a laser and burn off excess skin around my button. However, this process produces smoke that could contain viruses and it needed contained. Unfortunately, the smoke vacuum was broken and we had to wait for parts.

Tuesday morning, I got up quite early to get to my 8:00 procedure, but still ended up arriving 20 minutes late. After numbing my button area and putting on special glasses, the ENT started to laser around my trach. As he did, I noticed a nearly constant stream of smoke floating past my face and up my nose, with an unpleasant smell. I joked that I was being grilled while my thoughts wondered why we waited for a vacuum to be fixed that apparently wasn't doing its job.

After about 15 minutes of grilling around my neck, and adjusting the suction to collect smoke, the procedure was complete. With the early start, I considered doing other activities in the city, but ended up returning home. It felt somewhat odd to get home from a doctor's appointment around the time I'm usually leaving.

It has been a few days since my grilling and I'm not sure if it has helped or not. I will give it more time to heal, but it's part of living the quad life. Medical procedures are not like mechanics where one change solves the issue. Taking multiple tries, and then more, are sometimes required to find the solution. I pray we will soon fix it though and I can have less discomfort and not go through 2-3 shirts a day due to neck junk.

Unworthy expert?

Friday was my second day at the Iowa State Fair, volunteering at the Ark Encounter booth. I didn't notice as many people passing me while looking at their phone, but I was run into by someone on his phone later in the day. This week's takeaway was something that has been building for a few weeks.

Both days, I was able to speak with several people and was again thankful for my personal microphone system. Near the end of my shift, a nearby volunteer started talking with a man who approached her. Shortly after, she pointed him to me saying, "He is much smarter than me." The man and I then chatted for several minutes about dinosaurs in the Bible and his recent realization they would have been on Noah's Ark.

No matter how many letters are behind your name, someone else will always be more knowledgeable in a different area.  I'm very happy to help in areas I have had more opportunity to study than someone else, but I would not say I am smarter than anyone. After posting pictures of last week's visit on Facebook, I also received a comment saying I inspired someone to do more. To me, this also isn't a good analogy.

In Luke 17:7-10 (it took me 3 days to find the passage), Jesus talks about a servant (slave in Greek) that simply did as he was told. He rightly didn't receive any special treatment or recommendation, he just did his job. This is exactly what I feel, but not even filling my assignments.

After creation week, God made Adam to have dominion over creation (Genesis 1:26). Therefore, we are supposed to study His work, understand it, and teach others. Jesus also said to preach the gospel to all people (Matthew 28:18-20). Therefore, as a Christian, I am to know about God's creation (the universe), teach others the gospel, while not sinning against Him, and loving others as ourselves.

I do not fulfill my tasks by any means. As the slave in Luke 17, I am not worthy of anything special for not even doing my assignments. Yes I have extra physical challenges, but God has abundantly blessed me with a loving family, funding for caregivers, people that are willing to help me in such a situation, reliable transportation, and the list goes on.

It can be easy to get a proud and arrogant spirit as well, but God said He gives grace to the humble. I'm glad God has allowed the quad life I've been given to help others. However, I'm not doing anything extra that all Christians are required. This is a busy week ahead, but I will continue to try and do as commanded.

Cell phone trip?

Friday was my first of two mornings volunteering at the Iowa State Fair in the Ark Encounter booth. I have been at the booth for several years, but I noticed something more this time than any time before.

At 9:00, a plethora of volunteers were at the booth and we all took different locations to park. As everyone moved around during conversations and leaving for breaks, I eventually migrated to my favorite corner and continued watching people stream by and who I could reach out to. Watching a sea of faces, I saw a very high number only looking down at their cell phone and texting.

Granted, the building I am in primarily has sales persons pedaling anything under the sun. After so many hot tubs, cookware, and other items you can't live without, it's easy to zone out and just walk along. However, you can at least look up and see where you're walking and enjoy being out of your regular environment.

Last year, I'm sure some of the same was happening, but I don't remember it as much. After missing the fair in 2020, I think everybody was glad to be out and wanted to fully experience the fair fun again. Unfortunately, society quickly forgets the past and to not take anything for granted.

After my shift, I found an easy place for lunch and saw more heads pointed down at phones while sitting and eating fair food. It was then my time to explore the fair, but I only had about an hour to do so before I needed to leave. Sara was also having trouble walking, so we didn't look around very much. For the time I had, I did not look at any electronic device while I did meander.

Whatever you have going on this week, make sure to take the time and enjoy what you get to do. No matter if it's in the quad life or not, it can quickly be taken away and we can seriously miss what we chose not to see.