tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28439599650242131292024-02-06T19:07:15.504-08:00An Impossibility in an Impossible UniverseThoughts on health research and the representation of disability in popular cultureSarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-78044927077753377342011-06-30T16:21:00.000-07:002011-06-30T16:21:12.313-07:00I'm Diversifying My Reading!Over at Diversity In YA (an awesome site devoted to young adult and middle grade novels that celebrate diversity), they have a summer reading challenge on the go.
It's the Diversify Your Reading Summer Challenge, and I am totally going to play! The mission is: "to read diverse MG and YA books throughout the summer (you choose the books!) and write an essay (at least 500 words) about your Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-63034326406506805542011-04-09T09:41:00.000-07:002011-04-09T09:43:39.423-07:00I Can Haz Guest Post?I was asked by one of the writers of a supa sweet blog, YA Highway, to write a guest post on Great Characters With Disabilities in YA and MG (young adult and middle grade) novels. I'm rawther pleased with how it came out. Go! Read!
Also, for no specific reason, here are two super rad photos from 2010's Peak-to-Peak Pedal. In both shots I am the one in the red helmet, fourth in the line.
Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-44685780027274000122011-04-06T13:33:00.000-07:002011-04-06T13:38:38.094-07:00Hello from my never-updated blog!Dear Universe,I will try to update my blog more.Sincerely,SarahI just got some great pictures back from the 2010 Peak To Peak Pedal and I will try to post them soon!My current stats, for the curious: 14 query letters, 3 rejections thus far.Querying: Micah On Mumbly Peak, MG fantasyRevising: Snow Big Deal, MG contempFinishing sometime soon: The Third Arjuna, YA fantasySarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-47638533677424630442009-07-20T13:21:00.000-07:002009-08-23T16:46:52.003-07:00Help me support the US Adaptive Recreation Center!Hello!My name is Sarah Heacox and I've been a volunteer ski instructor at the U.S. Adaptive Recreation Center for several years, teaching downhill skiing to individuals with disabilities. I'm participating in a USARC fundraiser called the Peak-to-Peak Pedal, riding a bicycle 335 miles from Mammoth Mountain to Big Bear this fall. The money we raise supports outdoor recreation for children and Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-42965840690928054322009-07-19T15:18:00.000-07:002009-08-23T15:49:58.916-07:00Pics from 2008 Peak-to-Peak Pedal 14Some pictures from the 2008 Peak-to-Peak Pedal, riding between Big Bear and Mammoth!Ahhh, going downhill...Taking a quick rest at the top of a hill.Layered up against the below-freezing weather, the hill I just climbed in the background.I'm smiling because I'm at 6000 feet approaching Mammoth Mountain, there's no oxygen, and Tom is pushing me up the hill.Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-71182206818714219072009-07-02T14:50:00.000-07:002009-07-02T16:16:46.524-07:00So I let the blog die because I was so caught up in writing other stuff. Namely, mad revising of a middle-grade story about adaptive skiing, and writing a completely unrelated adult fantasy novel. The MG story is done and polished and I'm actually writing an actual query letter for it (meep!), and the fantasy novel second draft is done and in the hands of beta readers as we speak! And a new YA Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-10873385786408360672009-06-29T14:55:00.000-07:002009-06-29T14:58:38.722-07:00Zombie Blog Arises From DeadI'm just raising this blog from the dead, zombie style. Hi. Stay tuned.Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-16661684889592957012008-08-12T08:00:00.000-07:002008-08-12T09:27:00.547-07:00Check out Comedian Kathy Griffin's Visit to Walter Reed Army Medical Center this ThursdayThis week on Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List, Kathy performs at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. From the previews, it looks like she visits the disabled soldiers in rehab. It looked like an interesting pop culture take on the subject, so I thought I'd put it out there. It is supposedly one of the only times that a camera crew has been inside the rehab facility at Walter Reed. This Thursday Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-15234404556140589382008-08-06T18:37:00.000-07:002008-08-06T18:47:54.069-07:00Happy Wednesday!The song is "Blessed," by Brett Dennen.Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-41951697126370738312008-07-29T16:20:00.000-07:002008-07-30T12:09:45.703-07:00Cool Bits of News About 2008 Beijing Paralympics and Olympians With DisabilitiesThe Paralympic Games in Beijing will start on September 6th. Learn about the twenty Summer Paralympic Sports at this website! Did you know that this year Rowing is a new event at the Paralympic Games? Do you know how to play goalball? Brush up there. Do you know about the different classifications for different events? Lots of great info on that site. Did you know the Summer Paralympic mascot is Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-22939075717811700692008-07-17T00:06:00.000-07:002008-08-01T16:26:15.285-07:00Great NY Times Article on Restraining Kids at SchoolThis week the New York Times had a very interesting article on restraining in school, called "Calm Down Or Else." Before reading this story, I actually thought that the use of restraint on children in school was reserved for situations in which someone's safety was at risk (i.e. a student attempting to injure himself or another student). In fact, schools use restraining as a disciplinary measureSarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-24860950108122778202008-07-14T09:20:00.000-07:002008-07-14T10:32:57.253-07:00Bluetooth Headset Thieves Swiping Cochlear Implants from ToddlersThis morning I read this shameful story on the LA Times. It's about a deaf three year old boy who is learning to speak with the use of a cochlear implant. This sweet little pumpkin had the external portion of his cochlear implant stolen, not once, but twice! Teenage thieves swiped it right off of his ear while he was running errands with his mother. The first time, his mother chased the thieves Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-41725846884450181192008-07-02T12:40:00.000-07:002008-07-02T12:40:36.303-07:00Newly Approved Device To Help Paralyzed People Breath Without A VentilatorI thought this was very cool. The FDA has just approved a new device, called the NeuRx DPS RA/4 (OK, the name's not too catchy). It is intended to help people with high-level spinal cord injuries with paralysis of the muscles used for breathing. People with paralyzed breathing muscles have to live attached to a bulky ventilator that breathes for them (think Christopher Reeve).This device is an Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-24612777112383254982008-07-01T12:26:00.000-07:002008-07-01T20:56:31.042-07:00Excessive Busy-nessI've kept very busy over the past week, what with a new long commute to the job and trips out of town and generally hustling and bustling. I will try to post some pics soon. In the meantime, here are some great links I have seen this week:A post at Disability Studies, Temple U about when independence may not be the ultimate and desirable goal of everyone with disabilities. This one really got me Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-48427130557744701932008-06-25T08:41:00.000-07:002008-06-25T08:56:44.649-07:00Warning: Your Head May Explode From CutenessFrom The Daily Mail comes a story (with pictures!) of Hope, a very tiny and adorable dog born without her front legs. An orthotist made a mold of her torso and fitted it with two prosthetic wheeled limbs. When she grows, she will need a new prosthesis made. The story has some great photos of Hope, her custom prosthetic, and the molding process. As I said, you have been warned that your head may Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-60774209990703292352008-06-23T20:54:00.001-07:002008-06-25T08:41:06.507-07:00Punk Band With Members With Developmental Disabilities: Heavy LoadDefinitely click here to check out 'Heavy Load,' a punk band from the UK. From boingboing.net, we learn that the band's mission is "to demonstrate that disability rocks"! They also have a campaign (in the UK) called Stay Up Late, to help people with developmental disabilities advocate for themselves to be able to stay out late enough to go to a show. Most punk/rock/pop shows last until 11 or 12, Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-5459150754730113562008-06-19T08:14:00.000-07:002008-06-19T09:09:18.402-07:00More Paralympians in the News: swimmer Kendall BaileyA great story appeared in the NY Times this week about a swimmer with multiple disabilities and his journey to qualify for the 2008 Beijing Paralympics.Kendall Bailey qualified for the Paralympics in the 100 meter breaststroke. As an athlete with cerebral palsy, he qualified within a classification of athletes with similar disabilities. He also has Klinefelter's Syndrome, autism, and mental Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-48135399122402911022008-06-17T10:16:00.000-07:002008-06-17T11:36:01.117-07:00Actors and Characters With Disabilities: RJ Mitte as Walter Junior on 'Breaking Bad"The LA Times says that "although nearly 20% of Americans from the ages of 5 to 64 have some kind of disability, less than 2% of the characters on TV display one, and only one-half of 1% actually have speaking parts."This year a new show on AMC debuted a great kid actor with a disability in a great role. The show is Breaking Bad starring Brian Cranston (who you may recognize as the dad from Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-19925237736805525242008-06-13T12:58:00.000-07:002008-06-13T13:00:03.309-07:00Where do the presidential candidates stand on disability issues?I created this quick guide so that the disability community (including people with disabilities, parents, friends, and allies) can see what the candidates intend to do as relates to people with disabilities. While health care is a hot-button issue in this campaign, services for people with disabilities isn't. I started researching it because I was curious and I figured others would be interested Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-18312989331492614782008-06-11T10:29:00.000-07:002008-06-11T10:52:18.442-07:00Sarah's Peak-to-Peak Pedal Training UpdateI am three weeks into my training for my upcoming 335 mile bike ride to raise money for the US Adaptive Recreation Center, the Peak-To-Peak Pedal. It's going pretty well. I've been hitting the bike at the gym and also the weight room. I haven't lost any weight yet, but I'm hoping it's because I am adding muscle. You know how people always say that exercise gives you loads of energy, but then you Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-38029614534190928422008-06-06T09:44:00.000-07:002008-06-10T09:36:21.114-07:00Resources for Including People With Developmental Disabilities in Religion: Adam's Pew ProjectI wanted to share a site with lots of links to resources for including people with developmental disabilities in religion. Earlier I wrote about Adam Race, an autistic boy whose church obtained a restraining order to prevent him from attending Mass due to his autism-related behavior. Adam's family has created a website called Project Adam's Pew. The website includes this page of great resources. Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-11704983436048023242008-06-06T08:28:00.000-07:002008-06-06T09:25:15.038-07:00People With Disabilities In the Google Graphic Today!Wow! Today Google's Homepage is celebrating the birth of Diego Velasquez with a special Google logo containing his painting "Las Meninas" (The Ladies-in-Waiting). It'll only be there for a day, so I have posted a copy above. Velasquez is one of my favorite painters, so pardon me while I geek out. Here's the painting, so you can see it a little closer:There are all sorts of awesome things about Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-7352685991690279852008-06-04T11:41:00.000-07:002008-06-04T12:24:46.792-07:00Beijing Offends Everyone With Guide for Olympics StaffI just noticed this story about China's extremely backwards attitudes towards people with disabilities. A guide went out to one hundred thousand Olympic Volunteers for this year's Summer Games. In the section titled, "Skills for helping the disabled," China's Olympic Committee brings us such gems as: Some physically disabled are isolated, unsocial, and introspective. They can be stubborn and Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-66213312230073348412008-06-02T12:44:00.000-07:002008-06-03T08:00:40.746-07:00Abilities Expo Anaheim 2008This Sunday, someone invited me to the Abilities Expo in Anaheim. There was lots of interesting stuff. I also went to a presentation by Craig Kennedy, of Access Anything. I took a couple of pictures.The absolute coolest technology I saw while I was there belonged to a little girl, about ten years old, in a wheelchair. She was a double amputee and she had on two racing blade prosthetic legs for Sarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2843959965024213129.post-70184669600332186202008-05-30T08:38:00.000-07:002008-06-10T10:13:25.538-07:00Novel Characters with Disabilities: Postsingular, by Rudy RuckerI love reading novels, particularly fantasy and science fiction. Too often, a character with a disability is either a. tragic, b. inspirational, or c. the narrative is focused on the person's disability to the exclusion of any personality traits, hobbies, feelings, or interests. There are numerous exceptions to this, but they are still quite rare. The interesting, well-developed character who hasSarah Heacoxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14277016857178909494noreply@blogger.com2