JKR Updates

It was a difficult week for me.  First there was news of the death of a UD student, and while I do not know his family personally, I feel a certain kind of solidarity with all moms who send their kids off to school with a goodbye and a prayer and a hope that you never get a call in the middle of the night with bad news.  How we wish we could protect them from, well, everything.... Then Kevin and I learned of the death of Tyson, a member of our ALS Association support group.  Tyson and his wife Kristen were regular attendees at our meetings.  We struck up a sort-of texting friendship, limited as we were by the nature of ALS and then Coronavirus, which kept us all in our houses.  Usually our texts consisted of me asking for advice on something--hospital beds or toothbrushes, and then Kristen answering with links and support and cheerfulness. Tyson was 36.  They have two young children.  Oh, my heart....  And yet, death is a tragedy no matter the age...

From Jane's brother Andy:  As many of you know, Jane and Kevin are involved with the Central and Southern Ohio ALS Association.  Their mission is "to discover treatments and a cure for ALS, and to serve, advocate for, and empower people affected by ALS to live their lives to the fullest."  No doubt a good group of people doing good works.  The Association is having its annual Walk for a Cure on Sunday, September 20th.  This a chance for us to give back to this organization.   Here's how it works.  Usually, they have a physical walk.  Typically in Winton Woods.  With COVID, this year's event will be 100% virtual.  People are still encouraged to get off that couch and GO FOR A WALK, but participants are doing it individually, wherever they want.  (For example, I've decided to take my walk in New Jersey.)  I've registered and set up a team called "The Walkie Talkies."  If you are interested, please join our team, spread ...

Hey everyone!  I'm going to brag about Kevin's new project!  I understand that I'm writing to a varied audience here; some of you are very tech-y and some of you are more like me and just need the picture painted in broad strokes.  I think you know who you are, but if you need some help deciding, I offer this: When I say "Raspberry Pi, " do you think dessert?  If so, then you're with me.  Go ahead and cut yourself a nice big wedge of pie and read my scoop, the "tech lite" version.  And those of you already drooling for some details can just skip below to Kevin's own words!   The "tech-lite" scoop... Kevin had discovered, through his visits to the Perlman Center, that when people with motor disabilities need to be able to use their computers without using their hands (in other words, by using a head-mouse or an eye-gaze tracker), they are often limited in very specific ways.  Products are designed to work with one type of machine (for ex...

A quick thanks to all who offered to help with the grass!  We feel very blessed to be surrounded by such love and support.  Last night, I was feeling a little stressed by some of the household tasks for which I am under-prepared.  Kevin has always been the resident handy-man, groundskeeper, jar-opener, and spider killer.  I clean things, manage appointments, drive places, and make sure we eat everyday.  It has been a comfy division of responsibility that has worked well for us.  So as Kevin's disease progresses and I imagine myself having to wield a power tool or update software, I break into a cold sweat.  Last night was one of those moments, but Kevin reminded me that sometimes, God "speaks"... by sending people.  And then as if to drive home the point, I awoke this morning to a shower of texts and emails from you all.  💗

Well, it seems that I have successfully procrastinated in finding a lawn-care company long enough that now Zach is back at school and our yard is beginning to look rather wild.  I do have someone coming to give me a quote soon, but in the meantime the lawn needs some attention now.  If any of you has a teenager who knows how to drive a rider mower and is looking to earn a little extra cash, let me know!  We do not have a push mower, unfortunately.  Thanks in advance!

 Friendship, laughter, boat rides, sunshine, and delicious eats!  That's what we did last week in Michigan!  Thanks to Paul and Deirdre for going out of their way to make sure that we were comfortable.   It was such a joy to see friends, re-visit memories and make new ones.   An Evening Boatride

So today, we bought a van!  Kevin wanted to take a picture to send to a friend, and that turned into a video.  So I casually suggested that he use his fancy head-mouse to set the video to music and then, well, this happened: