Aging and Dating

The holiday decorations are coming down and the snow is slowly lightening; fancy chocolates and heart-shaped lollipops now line the grocery store shelves. With Valentine's Day fast approaching, the IU News Room featured tips for romance from researchers in various departments. Phil Stafford of the CAC put in his two cents with tips for dating as you age:

There is no existing expiration date for having romantic relationships. "Relationships do not fade in importance as we age," says Phillip Stafford, director of the Center on Aging and Community at the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community at Indiana University. In fact, "relationships can loom more important if someone experiences the loss of a partner," Stafford adds," which can be an unfortunate consequence of long life."

Stafford lists a few places where older adults are known to seek and find newfound relationships:

•Church and church events. Social activities in local religious settings are non-forced opportunities to meet people without preconditions or commitments.

•Singles groups. In many towns and cities one finds "dating over 50" and singles groups advertised in the local news, including the traditional "wanted, SWF," Classified ads.

•Social media Web sites. www.eons.com is successful and rapidly growing online community for Baby Boomers interested in new relationships of all kinds, whether intellectual or romantic.

Just as with young people, personal finances play a role in dating. Seniors on limited budgets may not have the discretionary money to support an active social life. Seniors with money may, legitimately, be concerned that this new person interested in them is a "gold digger," a concern sometimes shared by their adult children, according to Stafford. For widowed men, it's a "buyer's market," given disparities in longevity by gender. "In my experience," says Stafford, "I have known older widowers who have a lot of delicious home-cooked meals provided to them. "On the other hand," he adds, "I have heard a lot of older widows remark that they'd just like to find an old guy who is not so helpless around the house."

The Center on Aging provides self-determination and social integration of aging adults with disabilities through participatory research, planning and advocacy. For more information visit http://www.iidc.indiana.edu/cac/.

Gluten-Free Blogs

Having a condition like Celiac disease can feel incredibly isolating. While your peers chow down on Twinkies, you're stuck with faux Nutrigrain bars made from tapioca flour and chicory root. But you're not alone; the recent popularization of the internet has allowed people with celiac disease to connect with one another and easily find better recipes, new ingredients, and a host of other information easily. Here are some gluten-free blogs by writers with celiac disease who have found creative new ways to feed themselves and their families:

-Celiac Teen
Lauren is a Canadian teenager with celiac disease who is determined to "not let her health get in the way of life." In addition to typical teen topics like family and fashion, she blogs about her health, gluten-free product reviews, and her adventures in the kitchen.

-Gluten-Free Goddess
Formerly known as Karina's Kitchen, this personal blog has exploded into a full-service recipe site. Karina doesn't limit her options to substitutes for typical American fare--her dishes range from drinks like Banana-Apricot Hemp Smoothies to main courses like Curried Apple Chicken Stir-Fry to desserts like Pumpkin Chai Bread.

-Gluten-Free Girl and the Chef
Husband-and-wife team Shauna and "The Chef" share tidbits of their gluten-free life on an island off the coast of Washington state. Shauna has also written a successful memoir: Gluten-free girl: How I found the food that loves me back & how you can, too about her diagnosis and subsequent transformation of her attitude towards food. Make sure to find even more sites through her extensive blogroll (under "Links").

Art of Chocolate

Prime your taste buds and bring a healthy appetite for the upcoming Week of Chocolate in Bloomington! The Week of Chocolate is a series of fundraising and sweet-sampling events to benefit the host organizations. In addition to the Death by Chocolate event for CASCI, Inc. already highlighted on this blog, Options will host an Art of Chocolate evening at the IU Art Museum this Sunday, January 31st.

Sweets for the evening will be furnished by local bakeries Angel B's and the Scholar's Inn, Bloomingfoods, the Indiana Memorial Union and others. Entertainment will be provided by the Andy Cobine Trio. Tickets are $45 per person; buy them here at eFolio.

When Actions Speak Louder Than Words

The much awaited publication from the IIDC's own Kim Davis and Susan Dixon, When actions speak louder than words: understanding the challenging behaviors of young children and students with disabilities has finally entered circulation! The book is a good introduction for new teachers and a refresher for veterans to understand students' behavior. Davis and Dixon explain how both positive and negative behaviors are forms of communication, and use case-based scenarios to illustrate how to develop more functional communication systems.

Interested in this book? Indiana resident? Email us!

Not an Indiana resident? Find this book at your local library through WorldCat.

Death by Chocolate: Cruising for Murder

Experience an interactive murder mystery evening presented by Citizen Advocacy of South-Central Indiana, Inc. and Bloomington Playwrights Project. Enjoy a delicious Lennie’s decadent Death by Chocolate dessert with tea or coffee on Thursday, February 4, 2010 starting at 7:00 p.m. at St. Mark’s United Methodist Church in Bloomington.

Board the Mystery of the Seas Cruise Liner and be ready for a night of intrigue and danger at the Captain’s Chocolate Extravaganza! Trapped at sea, no one is safe; all are suspect!! Proceeds will benefit Citizen Advocacy of South-Central Indiana, Inc. (CASCI, Inc.), a not-for-profit organization that is committed to helping people with disabilities become a more active and viable part of their community.

Ticket price: $17 per person or two for $30 (recommended for teens and adults, ages 13 and older). Tickets may be purchased in advance from: St. Mark’s United Methodist Church, (812) 332-5788 or call Jo Gilbertson, (812) 219-5566.

Down Syndrome Family Connection: March Fair

In honor of Disability Awareness Month, Down Syndrome Family Connection in Bloomington will host its second annual fair and concert at Sherwood Oaks Christian Church on Saturday, March 6, from 9:30am-12:00pm.

The Family Connection hosts the annual Buddy Walk to raise awareness of, and provide and support to families and individuals with, Down Syndrome. To support the organization, you can also purchase one of their beautiful 2010 calendars featuring children and adults with Down Syndrome in the Bloomington area (http://www.downsyndromefamilyconnection.org/merchandise.html).

To learn more about the fair and inquire about setting up an exhibit, contact Nola Bloemendaal at 812-272-9261 or email nolabloemendaal@yahoo.com.

Something To Hang On To

Something to hang on to is a work of young adult fiction by Beverly Brenna. The short stories feature adolescents with various disabilities (Down Syndrome, autism, and muscular dystrophy) dealing with issues such as common fears, family violence, fitting in, and forming their identities as individuals apart from the stigma of their conditions. The book jumps between time periods and locales, but retains an overarching theme of positivity in the face of adversity.

Interested in this book? Indiana resident? Email us!

Not an Indiana resident? Find this book at your local library through WorldCat.

Art and Disability

Art and disability: The social and political struggles facing education is a small hardcover by Alice J. Wexler that stresses the importance of art in special education curricula. The arts are often unappreciated and underfunded by schools, but, Wexler argues, they are essential for the formation of children's identities. Art serves as an outlet for the frustrations and isolation that come with belonging to a marginalized, stigmatized group. Wexler devotes her chapters to examining how art benefits children with specific disabilities (autism, traumatic brain injury, visual impairments etc.) as well as to community outreach and lesson plans.

Interested in this book? Indiana resident? Email us!

Not an Indiana resident? Find this book at your local library through WorldCat.

Saving Sammy

Saving Sammy: curing the boy who caught OCD is a personal account by Beth Maloney, the mother of a middle schooler with OCD. Beth details her journey from diagnoses through the quagmire of medical debate and finally to a solution for Sammy's illness. Sammy suffered from PANDAS, or a complication from a strep throat infection that could lead to OCD and Tourette-type symptoms.

Interested in this book? Indiana resident? Email us!

Not an Indiana resident? Find this book at your local library through WorldCat.

Connecting the Dots

Connecting the dots: breakthroughs in communication as Alzheimer's advances is a recent book by Judith L London. London combines the latest research, personal experience, and easy-to-read advice for communicating with people with Alzheimer's disease. She explains the medical condition and its stages, how to connect emotionally, and how to make sure your charge or loved one's basic needs are met. Caregivers and relatives will especially benefit from the suggested "tools" for basics like jogging memory, reading between the lines, and promoting cooperation.

Interested in this book? Indiana resident? Email us!

Not an Indiana resident? Find this book at your local library through WorldCat.

Welcoming and Supporiting Students with TBI at IUB

Next Wednesday, January 20th, Rebecca Eberle from the IU Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences will present at an Accessible University session create awareness of how our campus can be as welcoming and supportive as possible to students with traumatic brain injury.

Eberle will discuss TBI, its impact on learning and brain organization, and social adjustment issues students with TBI face in university settings. The meeting will take place at noon in the Indiana Memorial Union Oak room.

The Accessible University series is a collaborative activity of IUB’s Disability Roundtable, coordinated by Vicki Pappas of the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community and Alice Voigt of the National Center on Accessibility. For further information about the Accessible University series or the Disability Roundtable, please feel free to contact Vicki or Alice.

Differentiation for Real Classrooms

Differentiation for real classrooms: Making it simple, making it work is a collection of ideas edited by Kathleen Kryza, Alicia Duncan, and S Joy Stephens. The book focuses on teaching specific objectives, rather than allowing a particular lesson plan or text constrict learning for students of varying abilities. With only 90 pages of text and an additional 40 of resources (worksheet templates, quizzes etc.) the book is very concise, but is dense with creative activities and effective teaching strategies.

Interested in this book? Indiana resident? Email us!

Not an Indiana resident? Find this book at your local library through WorldCat.

Georgetown Conference Call Series

The National Technical Assistance Center for Children's Mental Health, under Georgetown University's Center for Child and Human Development, will host a series of teleconferences this year on "cover important and emerging trends in the mental health field." Each month's conference will cover a unique topic.

The first, scheduled for 1pm EST on January 20th, will center on "The status of children's mental health policy in the US." It will be facilitated by Jim Wotring, with presenters Gary Blau and Larke Huang of SAMHSA.

To register and see the full year's calendar of calls, visit http://gucchdtacenter.georgetown.edu/resources/2010calls.html.

Webinar: The Power of Social Networking for People with Disabilities

This Wednesday, January 13th, the ADA will host a webinar from 2:00 to 3:00 pm.

The focus will be on the explosion of the use of social media websites (like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn), which can be powerful tools for people with disabilities who may not have had the opportunity to connect so freely through more traditional or in-person means. The webinar will examine what social networking is all about and how it can be leveraged successfully to enhance communication and to break down barriers to full participation by everyone in the digital age.

The speaker will be Mike Paciello, founder and president of The Paciello Group, LLC, a software accessibility consultancy. For more than 25 years, Mr. Paciello has served as an international leader, technologist and lecturer in the areas of emerging technology, usability, technical & legal standards, and accessibility.

CPPS will be hosting the webinar in the Collaborative Work Lab (IIDC Building L). Alternatively, you may participate in the webinar on your own. There is no cost, but you must register at http://www.ada-audio.org/Webinar/AccessibleTechnology/.

Snow Day

CeDIR will close early today due to the snow.


Bundle up and drive safe!

Alliance for Full Participation

Indiana's Alliance for Full Participation State Team has put together a new website with an overview of its goals. The AFP is a coming together of eleven national organizations serving people with developmental disabilities, including the national ARC, Association of University Centers on Disabilities, Autism Society of America, National Alliance for Director Support Professionals, NISH, TASH, United Cerebral Palsy and more.

The new site contains a bullet-point plan of what needs to be done in Indiana, as well as videos by Dr. David Braddock explaining how Indiana compares to other states in its treatment of individuals with disabilities.

Also check out the State Team's Facebook page!

TDI Vlogs

TDI, formerly known as Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Inc, has begun a series of video weblogs, or "vlogs," posted on YouTube.


In the last vlog of 2009, or #2 in the series, Executive Director Claude Stout reviews the accomplishments towards securing services for persons with hearing impairments in 2009. In speech and sign, he and TDI staff members commend new laws, the efforts of sister groups and individuals, and cheer significant gains like Google/YouTube adding autocaptioning to their videos.

You can watch this video here.

National Braille Literacy Month and the TBBL

For resources in braille, visit Indiana's Talking Book & Braille Library in Indianapolis. The TBBL is part of a national network funded by the National Library of Congress with hundreds of materials in braille or on CD/tape. TBBL also has subregional branches at the public libraries in Evansville, Merrillville, and Columbus, as well as "Talking Book Service Centers" in Allen County, Anderson, Kokomo/Howard County, Morrison Reeves (Richmond), St. Joseph County, Tippecanoe County, Vigo County, and our own Monroe County Public Library.