Laura Flanders is a woman after my own heart.  In the past two months I've worked five days, and now that I've finished reading her recent column in The Nation (http://www.thenation.com/blog/175870/americans-are-working-too-damn-hard) I, too, would like to know where to line up for the march for leisure.

As we begin a new school year, I am sharing a lesson I've learned from the Labs in my life.  http://www.youtube.com/embed/AA56LgpFbSw?rel=0

Play more, work less.  Here's to recess!

Ocho reminded me on Friday morning that we follow two routines in this house - one we observe during the summer, and the other applies throughout the school year. 

There is really nothing routine about our summer days and nights.  We get up and eat breakfast.  After that, anything goes.  Maybe I take a shower and then sit on the front porch and read.  Or maybe I sit on the front porch and read and then take a shower.  We might go out back and play fetch for 30 minutes.  Or maybe Beth comes over to take Ocho for a walk.  I might go to the grocery store after breakfast, or I might turn on the computer and check email and surf the internet.  Our time is completely unstructured, and I love the day-to-day variation and the freedom FROM the routine that comes with summer.

When school is in session, though, our mornings run with military precision.  I wake up to the sound of an alarm clock at 4:20 a.m.  While Ocho continues to sleep in bed, I take a shower and get dressed.  This is followed by Ocho getting out of bed and being sent out back to pee.  When he comes inside we eat breakfast, and then he goes back outside for the last time before I leave for school. 

As I finish my breakfast and listen to the morning news, Ocho - who is now back inside the house - returns to the bedroom where we slept, grabs a pillow off of the bed, and charges through the living room and kitchen with the pillow dangling from his mouth.  He does this without fail, Monday through Friday, from Labor Day until the end of June.

I'd forgotten about Ocho's antics over the summer, but when I got up on Friday morning and went through the whole school year morning routine, as I sat in the kitchen finishing my breakfast I heard the pitter patter of paws running across the floor in the hallway.  I knew what was coming.  A yellow blur shot past me.  I swallowed the last bite of my bagel and rolled into the family room to see Ocho in his crate, his prized possession partially hidden behind him.  I guess it's time for me to go back to school.

On Monday afternoon I was asked to write as a guest author for the HERO blog at Make A Hero.  A link to the blog is attached here (it can be found on their web site, www.makeahero.org), and it will be posted later this morning on Make A Hero's facebook page and other social media outlets.

I know that Lou Gehrig considered himself the luckiest man on the face of the earth.  I think I am the luckiest woman on the face of the earth, and I know that I would be nothing without the love and support I get from my friends and family every single day. 

Please know that I am eternally grateful for the many things- both large and small - you have done over the years that have allowed me to continue living this remarkable life.

http://www.makeahero.org/blog/adaptive-water-sports/kris-gulden-paradives-net-hero-gallery-guest-authored-blog-post/

For immediate release...

Fairfax, Virginia - Kris Gulden is claiming victory in round one of The War On Low Toilet Seats after receiving an email response to her July 31 complaint to the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Forest Service regarding an ADA non-compliance issue at El Yunque National Forest.

Gulden's complaint was lodged after she discovered a toilet with a 14" floor-to-seat height - well below the 17"-19" required by the Americans with Disabilities Act - in the accessible women's restroom at the tropical rainforest in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico while vacationing there last month.

This afternoon Gulden said she received the email from a Public Service Staff Officer with the U.S. Forest Service. The email acknowledged that the Forest Service takes the issue "very seriously".  It further indicated they were "disappointed to discover that the toilet in the women's restroom did not meet accessibility requirements."  The email disclosed that the problem was "immediately corrected" and included a photograph to verify the completed work.  In addition to thanking Gulden for "taking the time to share your concern so that others may have a more enjoyable experience on our national forests", the Forest Service is considering honoring Gulden by naming the wheelchair accessible restroom stall after her.

Kurt Miller, son of the legendary filmmaker Warren Miller, is working on a documentary about the accessibility of the ocean.  The Current features - among others -  Olympic gold medalist Missy Franklin, Bethany Hamilton (a pro surfer who lost her arm during a shark attack), Mallory Weggemann (gold medalist at the 2013 London Paralympics), Anthony Robles (NCAA champion wrestler who was born with one leg), and is narrated by Jean-Michel Cousteau, son of Jacques Cousteau. 

The 40-minute documentary was shot in Bimini, Cozumel, and the Kingdom of Tonga, and shows people participating in adaptive water sports like scuba diving, kayaking, surfing, and free-diving.  In addition to its messages about the resilience of the human spirit and the healing power of water, The Current seeks to remind us all of the importance of protecting our oceans.

To see a trailer of the film and/or make a donation to support the production of this independent film, please visit the web site http://www.makeahero.org/films-heroes/the-current/.

While I wait for a response to my letter to the Department of Justice and the U.S. Forest Service about the toilet seat height at El Yunque, I just wrote this one to the manager of Villa del Palmar, the resort my mom and I stayed at in Mexico.  Who would have ever thought that going to the bathroom would be such an issue?

Good morning, 

I am writing to express my thoughts regarding a recent stay at your property in Cancun.  Due to a spinal cord injury, I use a wheelchair.  I have no leg function and am unable to walk.  I am completely reliant on my wheelchair.

I knew when I reserved a room at Villa del Palmar that it would probably not conform to the standards required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) since that Act does not apply to facilities in Mexico.  But I was very pleasantly surprised when we arrived at the resort and I found a street-level entrance to the lobby and gently sloping ramps throughout the grounds.  It was easy for me to maneuver my wheelchair around the swimming pools, into and out of the restaurants, and through the corridors leading to guestrooms. 

The room my mom and I stayed in (3004A) from August 2 - 8 had an enormous bathroom with grab bars around the toilet and in the bathtub.  It was a real disappointment, though, to see that the toilet seat in our "accessible" room was several inches lower than the seat on my wheelchair.  The ADA requires toilet seats be 17" - 19" off the floor.  The lower seat height in room 3004A made it very difficult for me to transfer from the toilet into my wheelchair.  I am particularly bothered by this situation because the bidet in the women's restroom in the hotel lobby has a seat height that is level with my wheelchair seat.  So the lobby restroom is better equipped than the guestrooms designated as wheelchair accessible.

In spite of the grab bars in the bathtub, the fact that the resort does not have shower benches available for disabled guests made it impossible for me to shower while I was on vacation.  And the roll-under sink in the bathroom - a terrific feature - has a decorative wooden faceplate that hangs down so low I scraped my thighs on it while rolling under the sink to brush my teeth.

During my stay at your facility, I learned that Villa del Palmar Cancun Resort and Spa is undergoing a massive expansion.  It would be nice if this multi-million dollar project included a few thousand dollars for upgrading and improving accessibility features for disabled guests.  Toilets and shower benches are not that expensive to buy, and removing the decorative wooden trim on the bathroom sinks would allow these sinks to be safely and comfortably used as they are intended. 

I would also like to suggest that purchasing a few beach wheelchairs be considered.  I saw three other guests in wheelchairs while I was at Villa del Palmar, and although I greatly appreciate your staff members carrying me down the steps from the pool deck to the beach so that I could lie on a lounge chair, a wheelchair that rolls through the sand would allow me and other disabled guests the opportunity to enjoy the ocean water.

Villa del Palmar is a beautiful resort with exceptional employees.  My mom and I had a wonderful vacation in Playa Mujeres, and our return is not out of the question.  You are welcome to contact me if you have questions regarding how to implement my suggestions.

Sincerely,

Kris Gulden