Smother Movie on TV

The movie Smother, a comedy & drama starring Diane Keaton and Liv Tyler, is on TV nationwide in the U.S. five times in the next week. Why am I mentioning it on my blog?

Our IKAN Bowler was selected as a product to be used in the movie. It has a brief appearance, and a slightly odd one at that. I don't want to give anything away (to spoil the scene) but I will say the IKAN Bowler is attached to a three-wheeled scooter. That was a shock to us, since it's designed for wheelchairs. However, we were impressed that the Hollywood people were able to attach it to a scooter, and we are looking into the possibility of adapting our IKAN Bowler for use with common three-wheeled scooters that people with limited mobility use.

So, if you're interested in watching Smother, here's the upcoming schedule:

Sat. Jan. 3 9:00 PM Eastern on Lifetime
Sun. Jan. 4 12:00 AM Eastern on Lifetime
Sun. Jan. 4 9:00 PM Eastern on Lifetime
Mon. Jan. 5 12:00 AM Eastern on Lifetime
Tue. Jan. 6 9:00 PM Eastern on Lifetime

Here's the link where I got the above TV info:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0867591/tvschedule

Here's the link for more on Smother:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0867591/

AND, here's the link if you want to see video of how the IKAN Bowler works with wheelchairs:

http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com/2007/06/two-videos-and-slideshow-on-power.html

May all who read this have a Happy New Year and BLESSED 2009!

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

Belated Thanksgiving Thoughts...

Hello Everyone! :-)

In the spirit of empowering people and wheelchair users, I want to quickly share my philosophy on "worrying" and also share a few simple things that anyone with a computer & Internet connection can do to make the world a little bit better.

Philosophy on Worrying

You may have noticed I sometimes write "no worries" which may seem odd since I happen to be ventilator-dependent and paralyzed from the neck down. What "no worries" means is that it makes absolutely no sense to "worry" about things that we cannot control. Worrying doesn't help anything, but it can make a person physically ill. Personally, I pray and turn all major concerns over to God and let Him worry about them. That unburdens my mind so that I can focus on today and what I can do. We all have concerns, but I believe we can all have "no worries" too.

Make the World a Little Better

On Thanksgiving, most of us had an abundance of food. But there are people who did not, and the below website is called "free rice" and it is a way we can play some simple "intellectual games" (vocabulary, geography, math, and more) and each correct answer results in 20 grains of rice being donated through the UN World Food Program to help end hunger. They have multiple choice questions of varying degrees of difficulty, and I find it to be a fun way to both learn something and help the hungry.

http://www.freerice.com

You can also make a difference--in less than one minute--for SIX different charities! By simply visiting the below websites and clicking their free "donate button" you make a sponsor-paid donation for each cause.

http://www.thehungersite.com - the hunger site
http://www.thebreastcancersite.com - the breast cancer site
http://www.thechildhealthsite.com - the child health site
http://www.theliteracysite.com - the literacy site
http://www.therainforestsite.com - the rain forest site
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com - the animal rescue site

This Thanksgiving, with our world in seemingly uncertain times, I felt it appropriate to share these thoughts. Thank you for indulging me.

Happy (belated) Thanksgiving and may God bless you & yours! :-)

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net

Quadriplegic Graduates with 4.0

The purpose of my blog is to show how wheelchair users, especially power wheelchair users, can be and are being empowered -- mostly through sport (bowling and power soccer). But perhaps the MOST empowering activity one can do is to increase his/her education. Increasing one's education is arguably more important for someone with a significant physical disability, since it isn't possible to earn a living doing manual labor. Apparently, education level can impact happiness too.

With regard to quadriplegics, I read that quads who continue or "complete" their education (and perhaps those who achieved higher education before becoming quadriplegic) are often happier than quads with less education. I believe being happy is a choice that essentially anyone can make, regardless of education level or even disability, but I do see how achieving higher education can help someone feel happy. Thinking about my long educational journey and the challenges I conquered... it is something I will always appreciate and can feel good about. Here are some details...

I became a quadriplegic literally 11 years ago today -- August 23rd, 1997. I was injured just before I was to begin my senior year at THE University of Florida as a math major. I spent three months in hospitals and was discharged from Shepherd Center in Atlanta as a C1-2 ventilator-dependent quadriplegic (much like Christopher Reeve). I had to move home with my parents and team of family caregivers who cover all times when we don't have a nurse (I currently have 40 hours of nursing coverage a week). I've been as busy and productive as possible since returning home (I haven't spent one full day in bed, ever since I've been home). With good caregivers & caregiver routines, I have been quite healthy, despite my paralysis (knock on wood and thank you God:).

But I plan to be financially independent one day -- whether still paralyzed or not. That meant going back to school, and there is only one school from which I ever wanted to graduate -- UF. To go back required an online option, and boy was I THRILLED to learn they have an Online BSBA Program (Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration). I needed some prerequisites, which UF advisor Jill Lingard told me I could acquire online via St. Petersburg College (one can earn an entire AA degree online via their eCampus). I actually started back to school four years ago today -- on the 7th anniversary of my injury.

I completed the Online BSBA Program with a 4.0 GPA (straight A average) and graduated with honors from the University of Florida two weeks ago -- August 9, 2008. It was important to me to "ace" the Program because I wanted to demonstrate that I can be highly successful despite being vent-dependent and paralyzed from the neck down. And I actually rolled across the stage in Gainesville, too.

I almost did not get to roll across the graduation stage. My wheelchair is extra long, largely due to the ventilator on back. UF has a hydraulic lift to raise wheelchair users to the stage, except it wasn't designed with chairs like mine in mind. I was barely in what was like a metal box, and my feet were pushing the door forward. As they tried to raise me the door caught the stage -- and the STAGE WAS COMING UP! That happened twice! Finally, on the third attempt, some people pushed the door back away from the stage and the lift cleared.

You can see me roll across the stage on UF's webcast of the graduation ceremony (commencement) at the below link (on that page, scroll down to "Previous Commencement Webcasts" then choose morning ceremony and your desired player). I roll across at about one hour, 25 minutes, and 30 seconds. Start about 1:24:30 and you'll see the UF official in the Orange & Blue robe who is ushering students through. You'll see him stop the line and take a couple steps forward. That's when the stage was coming up; he was telling them to stop and go back down. Then you'll see me roll across the stage. Click HERE for the commencement page!

Also, if you go to the Online BSBA web page, you'll see a picture of the summer graduates and I'm on the right side of the picture -- click HERE (ok they apparently already removed the picture, but I did a "print screen" command and captured it; click HERE for the picture!).

I shared my "full" educational journey on my website before writing this blog entry. I shared some different things above, and if you want additional details on my educational journey and where I'm planning to "go" from here... click HERE! Thanks...

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com/
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com/
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net/

Quadriplegic Student Bill Miller Is Graduating!

Please see my next entry titled "Quadriplegic Graduates with 4.0" -- thanks!

Bill Miller :-)

IKAN User Profile: Vicki Price, Minnesota

Vicki Price is an active high school student in Minnesota, and happens to have Cerebral Palsy (the type of CP that necessitates wheelchair use, similar to what Melissa Sino has, who I profiled with my previous blog entry). According to her father Scott, Vicki LOVES to bowl. She also loves horses, computer and board games, shopping, baking, FISHING and many other activities.

Regarding bowling, Scott wrote, "in the state of MN, bowling is one of 4 adapted sports that is sanctioned by the Minnesota State High School League. As such, the kids can earn varsity letters. They can also participate in the state tournament (if they qualify) and earn medals. It is a very wonderful program for all participants. We approached the coach of our bowling team and made a request for the bowling arm (IKAN Bowler) after I had done some research on the Internet. We were successful in getting approval to have the bowling arm purchased for use by my daughter. We have used the IKAN Bowler for about a year now and really, really love it!"

Thanks Scott and Vicki! Here's Vicki's profile info...

Name: Vicki Price
Age: 16
Location: Andover, MN (outside of Minneapolis)
Reason for Wheelchair Use: Spastic Quadreparesis Cerebral Palsy
Onset or Injury Date: Birth
Wheelchair Operation Method: Head array
High Bowling Score: 127
Approximate Bowling Average: 73
Typical Range of Scores: 50-90
Bowling Frequency: Once a week for a recreational adapted bowling league during the winter months. Twice a week during the adapted bowling season for high school.
Bowling Ball(s): A 14 pound alley ball (can you say "free"?:)
Quote from Vicki: "Let's go fishing!" (Vicki fishes with adapted equipment; it's setup so that when a bobber disappears, Vicki can hit a switch with her head, and it reels in her fish -- Scott says Vicki routinely out-fishes him -- keep up the good work Vicki!:)

Here's an article about Vicki and her activities:

http://www.easystand.com/standing-room-only/details.cfm?genericID=16

Here's a video about Vicki, as a success story for EasyStand, and they even show her bowling:



Scott Price has a blog titled "Raising Prices" which sheds light on raising six adopted children (including Vicki) who all have special needs of some sort: http://raisingprices.blogspot.com/

Keep up the good work, Scott and family, and God bless!

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com/
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com/
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net/

IKAN User Profile: Melissa Sino, Florida

My friend Melissa Sino is currently setting the bowling-pace for power wheelchair users with Cerebral Palsy. Her high score (see below) is tops in both the Cerebral Palsy category and the "head control" driving method category. I have to explain Melissa's comment after stating her high score below... since technically I'm the co-inventor of the IKAN Bowler, I've bowled with it quite a bit; so I should be good with it, plus I'm naturally competitive (I was the first IKAN User to break 200 in bowling). My Dad knows all of these things, so he offered a standing $20 reward to any IKAN User who can beat my top score of the afternoon (not my current high game of 206, just the best of the usual 3, 4, or 5 games I bowl with the Quad Squad). My Dad calls it "ego control" and, I admit, it does make bowling even more fun and challenging with the friendly competition. And yes, as Melissa says below, she did indeed beat me one afternoon and collected the $20 reward! :-)

Name: Melissa Sino
Age: 21 (22 soon!:)
Location: Central Florida (Celebration)
Reason for Wheelchair Use: Cerebral Palsy (quadriplegic, augmented communicator)
Onset or Injury Date: Birth
Wheelchair Operation Method: Proximity head array
High Bowling Score: 169 and BEAT Bill one time & won $20! :-)
Approx Bowling Average: 125
Typical Range of Scores: 90-140
Bowling Frequency: One to two times per month usually with the Central Florida Quad Squad
Bowling Ball(s): 16 lb Brunswick Zone, non-drilled (fluorescent colors swirl = Christmas gift from cousins) [Bill, here, I have to add that I think bowling with an undrilled ball is MORE difficult than a drilled ball; it works for Melissa, but I bowled terribly with an undrilled ball, so to me, that makes Melissa's bowling more impressive!]
Quote from Melissa: "Happiness is a Choice -- Life is Supposed to be FUN!!!"

I absolutely love your quote, thank you Melissa!

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com/
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com/
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net/

Working 2 Walk -- How To Help

This blog is aimed at spreading awareness about how people with high level paralysis can experience -- and are experiencing -- a better quality of life, primarily through the fun, social, and competitive aspects that participating in a sport can provide. Bowling and/or playing power soccer can improve life now -- but, longterm... we still need science, medicine, and the Good Lord's blessing (which I believe we have) to develop therapies that restore significant function and "cure" paralysis.

With the passing of Christopher Reeve in 2004, we lost the "face" and most ardent advocate for paralysis and spinal cord injury (SCI) research. Instead of just one person trying to fill his mammoth shoes, those of us in the paralysis community who wish to see a cure sooner rather than later, we all need to do our part to help bring truly beneficial therapies to fruition ASAP. That's the vision that led to the formation of Unite 2 Fight Paralysis (U2FP), a group with whom I'm proud to associate. U2FP, working with the Christopher Reeve Foundation, held the inaugural Working 2 Walk (W2W) Science and Advocacy Symposium in 2006 and another successful event in 2007.

The 3rd annual Working 2 Walk, 2008, is being held in Washington DC April 13-15 and is "... a 3-day event for leaders in the paralysis community who want to advocate for a cure, including family members, supporters, scientists, therapists, and anyone interested in joining this critical effort. The event focuses on education and empowerment to become effective advocates."

Really, anyone can help. If you have a SCI, and can go to Washington DC for the three days, please consider doing so (see links to more info below). Anyone else who is reading this can let their elected officials (the ones in Washington DC) know that you support passing the Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis Act (CDRPA), which will provide much-needed infrastructure for bringing about legitimate therapies AND help improve quality of life for people currently living with paralysis. It does NOT have anything to do with using "controversial" embryonic stem cells.

For more information, checkout the below links.
http://www.working2walk.org/
http://www.unite2fightparalysis.org/

THANKS -- and God bless!

Bill Miller :-)
C1-2 Quadriplegic with a 206 High Bowling Game
Co-founder of Manufacturing Genuine Thrills Inc. d/b/a MGT
My blog: http://powerwheelchairusers.blogspot.com/
Business website: http://www.ikanbowler.com/
Personal website: http://www.lookmomnohands.net/