Disability advocate
I was in school during 1960 - 1970. Being disabled back then was like being sentenced to a life of isolation. There were almost no programs to help disabled children fit into mainstream society. Many of us were not able to attend school at all. When we were able to attend school we were put in “special” classes where very little education was taught. It was a different time. Schools were not required to provide any sort of access for the disabled so most did not.
We are so extremely fortunate today. Nearly everything is accessible. Disabled children have a lot more opportunity for education and physical therapy. I am so proud of what we have accomplished since the ADA bill was passed in 1990. It has not all been good though. There has been a astronomical increase of people applying for and getting disability status. A lot of this is due to greedy attorneys who take advantage of people just to make a buck. Some people are just too lazy to work and see disability as the easy way out. This practice needs to stop now. It contributes to the national debt and puts the people who really need and deserve to be on disability in jeopardy of loosing the only means of income they will every have.
Please join me in fighting for the rights of the disabled and against the practice of claming disability falsely.
Family history
A special Thanks to my cousin Ralph Ganis and his wife Julie for all the research, hard work, and dedication. They have done a wonderful job of bringing our family history to life. Please visit their Web site and read about the our family history that dates back before the civil war. Ralph has evidence linking one of my family members to the Jesse James gang, very interesting. Check out his Web site at: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~jganis/tarheelswithjessejames.html
Music
I enjoy listening to music as well as playing music. I really like Homespun. In my opinion they provide some of the best music lessons on DVD's and CD's available today. Please visit this site and support music education. If you want to learn guitar, mandolin, banjo, lap steel, etc. check out Homespun. Teach a child music it can lead them to wonderful places. Homespun is a great company! Check out their website at: http://www.homespun.
Jewelry making
One of my hobbies is making wire wrapped jewelry Most of my pieces are done in sterling silver and made of various shapped objects from fossils to sea shells. You can see some of my work here.
A little wire wrapped jewelry history
Examples of wire wrapped jewelry techniques date back to before the time of Christ. Examples exist from the Sumerian Dynasty, containing spiraled wire components. The Phoenicians hammered gold or silver into thin sheets, cut them into narrow strips, and sanded the edges, producing a thin wire-like strip. The wire was woven into decorations for breastplates. Other specimens from Rome show wire wrapped loops. Soldering techniques developed later, yet wire wrapping continued to be popular, since it was easy and economical to produce.
The first reference to drawn wire is found in 8th century France. Around 1270 A.D. Gold and silver wire was made in France and taken to England by the knights, to make chain maille, the linking of round jump rings to make a strong protective mesh. In the 1400’s, wire was produced in England, where it was used to fix crucifixes and other religious symbols to chains.
In the 1800’s, the Bohemians used wire to connect stones and beads to create necklaces and bracelets. Such designs were popular with aristocracy.
Today, machines can quickly stamp out designs that are cheap and fast to produce. Because it involves hand-crafted work, wire wrapping is not suitable for mass production. Wire-wrapped jewelry has withstood the test of time and changing fashions.
Apple
I use and indorse Apple products. Apple products are well thought out and engineered. Using Apple products helps me to be more productive which leaves me more time to work on my projects not on the tools I use. What more can I say!