My dog wants to say...
I hope you all have a safe and fun night. :)
Monday, October 31, 2011
Friday, October 28, 2011
The Road Gets Easier.
Yesterday was a trip.
Every so often, one of you sends me a totally heartfelt email full of warm fuzzies. These notes tell me that something I did made a difference for you, or that you found a network of support through me. It makes my day to see a comment or a tweet of encouragement, but for someone to take the time (and emotional energy) to write such kind feedback in long form really gets me.
I read those emails over and over. I cherish the ever-living gusto out of those words. They lift my spirit and rejuvenate my creative juices. Those emails remind me that all of us sharing our stories with each other can do some real good in the world. They give me hope.
Yesterday, I got five of those emails.
Five.
I'm just... I don't... what?
Couple that with also receiving "real mail" from one of my favorite people (who also happens to have diabetes), and things just got ridiculous up in here.
Anyway, I'm a bit of an emotional mess over here as a result of this onslaught of positive feedback, and what follows below is a little of how I'm feeling. (Also, thanks for reading this stuff I write/draw. You all have helped me in ways I can never really explain.)
Ahem.
The Road Gets Easier. (A sort-of poem.)
What you do and what you say
I read those emails over and over. I cherish the ever-living gusto out of those words. They lift my spirit and rejuvenate my creative juices. Those emails remind me that all of us sharing our stories with each other can do some real good in the world. They give me hope.
Yesterday, I got five of those emails.
Five.
I'm just... I don't... what?
Couple that with also receiving "real mail" from one of my favorite people (who also happens to have diabetes), and things just got ridiculous up in here.
Anyway, I'm a bit of an emotional mess over here as a result of this onslaught of positive feedback, and what follows below is a little of how I'm feeling. (Also, thanks for reading this stuff I write/draw. You all have helped me in ways I can never really explain.)
Ahem.
The Road Gets Easier. (A sort-of poem.)
What you do and what you say
Makes a difference. Every day.
We can lift others up; shine a light.
We encourage each other to keep up this fight.
We share what we know, and search out answers.
We give air hugs and make jokes about lancers.
We don't know if we'll live with this forever
But the road gets much easier when traveled together.
So thank you, for being that difference for me.
For shining that light; for helping me see
That while life with this condition can be so very tough
It brought all of you into my life, and for that, I can never be thankful enough.
But the road gets much easier when traveled together.
So thank you, for being that difference for me.
For shining that light; for helping me see
That while life with this condition can be so very tough
It brought all of you into my life, and for that, I can never be thankful enough.
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Something's Missing.
Notice anything different about my CGM graph?
I made the executive decision (which makes me the CEO of my diabetes, I guess? Related question: do I have to wear a suit?) over the weekend. I'm tired of Jim yelling at me when he's teeter-tottering over that line. (181! 178! 184! 182! 179! 180! And again with the alarms!) I'm annoyed that my keyboard tray goes VRRR! VRRR! like clockwork each morning after breakfast. I'm so over hearing those alarms at the precise moment I'm falling asleep at night.
I'm tired of hearing that stupid high alarm, so I disabled it.
This doesn't mean I've stopped trying, or caring, or checking. This means that I'm exercising my right to use the technology that's working for me, and silence the parts that aren't. Life, and enjoying that life (which is hard to do when I'm being frequently reminded that I screwed up somehow), comes first.
It's not a permanent change, but it's one I'm trying out for a little bit. Because I like keeping some amount of my sanity - and those around me appreciate that, too.
I made the executive decision (which makes me the CEO of my diabetes, I guess? Related question: do I have to wear a suit?) over the weekend. I'm tired of Jim yelling at me when he's teeter-tottering over that line. (181! 178! 184! 182! 179! 180! And again with the alarms!) I'm annoyed that my keyboard tray goes VRRR! VRRR! like clockwork each morning after breakfast. I'm so over hearing those alarms at the precise moment I'm falling asleep at night.
I'm tired of hearing that stupid high alarm, so I disabled it.
This doesn't mean I've stopped trying, or caring, or checking. This means that I'm exercising my right to use the technology that's working for me, and silence the parts that aren't. Life, and enjoying that life (which is hard to do when I'm being frequently reminded that I screwed up somehow), comes first.
It's not a permanent change, but it's one I'm trying out for a little bit. Because I like keeping some amount of my sanity - and those around me appreciate that, too.
Monday, October 24, 2011
Research Update Event.
I received this in my inbox last week, and I'm very much planning to attend this event. It's not often that JDRF does a research update in the Midwest (actually, I'm not aware that they've ever done one around here before), so this is a pretty rare opportunity. I'm totally geeking out about it.
If you're in the area and plan to attend, let me know! I'm always down for a meet-up. :) (Also, let's jam-pack this place with people so that JDRF will be encouraged to bring people like Dr. Dutta to this part of the country again!)
If you're in the area and plan to attend, let me know! I'm always down for a meet-up. :) (Also, let's jam-pack this place with people so that JDRF will be encouraged to bring people like Dr. Dutta to this part of the country again!)
Friday, October 21, 2011
DxONE.
Back in March of this year, I got an email from a guy named Dan. He reached out to me as a stay-at-home dad with a teenage son with type 1 who was finding a lot of support online through the blogs (like this one) and Facebook communities he was finding.
He also mentioned that he's a filmmaker and was in the beginning stages of creating a "narrative about type 1". Being a person who is not all that familiar with the movie world, I honestly wasn't quite sure what that meant. He was making a documentary? A short movie? An audio book? Well, okay.
Since that time we've exchanged some emails and I've more fully understood what he's doing, and guys? It's freaking awesome.
The narrative (short film) is called DxONE, and it's an approximately 18-minute peek into the world of a family dealing with a child with type 1, as told through the voices of a father and son. I know that the most cliché reaction to a movie is, "I laughed! I cried!"... but for real, I did. A film made by people who are personally living with the hardships and worries of the story they are telling are bound to hit the right chords.
Dan Masucci is hoping to get, in his words, a "grassroots effort" behind the film so that it can gain as much exposure (and do as much good) as possible. He let me take a sneak peek at an unfinished version of the film earlier this month, and answered some of my questions about the film this week. Here's what he had to say!
Kim: Hi Dan! Thanks for agreeing to answer some questions about your film. What is DxONE about, and what inspired you to tell this story?
Dan: My son Nicholas was diagnosed two and a half years ago with Type 1 Diabetes. Like most of us who have a loved one diagnosed, it came out of nowhere and was really shocking. As a storyteller, I knew almost immediately that I wanted to make a film about it, my first thought was that it would be cathartic. However, I was derailed by the event for nearly two years and even though I attempted to write about the experience, nothing solid came to me.
I don't think I've come to terms with it even now but earlier this year, the time was right to start working on the film in earnest. I believe what really helped me become ready was spending the last two years realizing how little people who don't have Type 1 in their lives know about this terrible disease and how dangerous it can be. I've had people suggest dietary changes for my son and others who told me how holistic remedies could cure it. People have heard of Type 2 Diabetes and think it's the same. I wanted to make a film that would help clear that up.
I know there are a number of books on the topic of Type 1 Diabetes but with a film, a group of viewers can sit down and digest it at the same time. Rather than make a film that was a documentary, I wanted to make a dramatic narrative, and tell a story so it would feel more personal. This film could be about any of us who have Type 1 Diabetes or have a loved one with Type 1.
Dan: It is my hope that DxONE can be used as a tool to raise awareness, help with fund raising (for appropriate organizations) and most importantly touch viewers. The films that I make tend to be family-themed dramas and my goal is always to get a strong emotional response. I believe that DxONE can do that whether the viewer has T1 in their lives or not. At its heart, the film is about the love that a family shares and that is something everyone can identify with.
I had someone in my own family who told me after Nicholas was diagnosed that "at least it isn't fatal" and I was thunderstruck by that comment. I wanted to be angry. I wanted to yell and tell them that they didn't know what they were talking about. I think there are a lot of people like that, people who don't know how threatening Type 1 Diabetes is. But, I didn't want to focus on the doom and gloom that you can easily fall into. I wanted the message of the film to be about hope.
I'm hoping to have the film completed by the end of 2011 or early 2012. In the past I've taken my films on the film festival circuit where they have screened collectively at more than 140 film festivals worldwide. I'd like to do the same with DxONE but I'm not yet sure about what other venues the film will find.
I know that I want to make DxONE accessible to the T1 community but to do that, the film really needs a grassroots movement behind it to help in that effort, so the more fans it gains, the better chance of it getting exposure. I'm hoping that this film is something that can help the T1 community use to get attention for government support as well. Below are some links where fans can follow the film and view video samples, behind the scenes clips and the trailer.
Facebook Fan Page:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/DxONE/170240229692963
And lastly, here's a little bit more about Dan:
He also mentioned that he's a filmmaker and was in the beginning stages of creating a "narrative about type 1". Being a person who is not all that familiar with the movie world, I honestly wasn't quite sure what that meant. He was making a documentary? A short movie? An audio book? Well, okay.
Since that time we've exchanged some emails and I've more fully understood what he's doing, and guys? It's freaking awesome.
The narrative (short film) is called DxONE, and it's an approximately 18-minute peek into the world of a family dealing with a child with type 1, as told through the voices of a father and son. I know that the most cliché reaction to a movie is, "I laughed! I cried!"... but for real, I did. A film made by people who are personally living with the hardships and worries of the story they are telling are bound to hit the right chords.
Dan Masucci is hoping to get, in his words, a "grassroots effort" behind the film so that it can gain as much exposure (and do as much good) as possible. He let me take a sneak peek at an unfinished version of the film earlier this month, and answered some of my questions about the film this week. Here's what he had to say!Kim: Hi Dan! Thanks for agreeing to answer some questions about your film. What is DxONE about, and what inspired you to tell this story?
Dan: My son Nicholas was diagnosed two and a half years ago with Type 1 Diabetes. Like most of us who have a loved one diagnosed, it came out of nowhere and was really shocking. As a storyteller, I knew almost immediately that I wanted to make a film about it, my first thought was that it would be cathartic. However, I was derailed by the event for nearly two years and even though I attempted to write about the experience, nothing solid came to me.
I don't think I've come to terms with it even now but earlier this year, the time was right to start working on the film in earnest. I believe what really helped me become ready was spending the last two years realizing how little people who don't have Type 1 in their lives know about this terrible disease and how dangerous it can be. I've had people suggest dietary changes for my son and others who told me how holistic remedies could cure it. People have heard of Type 2 Diabetes and think it's the same. I wanted to make a film that would help clear that up.
I know there are a number of books on the topic of Type 1 Diabetes but with a film, a group of viewers can sit down and digest it at the same time. Rather than make a film that was a documentary, I wanted to make a dramatic narrative, and tell a story so it would feel more personal. This film could be about any of us who have Type 1 Diabetes or have a loved one with Type 1.
Kim: I think that is part of why DxONE resonated for me - there were definitely lines in the film that I've either thought myself, or heard from others who care for people with diabetes. How much did your own experience helped you write this film?
Dan: I definitely wrote the script based on my own experiences with having a T1 son. I know that the experience isn't the same for every person so I wanted to touch on as many of the things that I believe are universal to the day to day experiences of families dealing with this. I could quite literally have made a mini-series about the topic but as a no budget indie filmmaker, I knew that I had the cherry pick what I believed was most important to help bring understanding and to make a film that other T1 families could relate to.
Kim: I know you've mentioned that you'd like to see a "grassroots effort" behind the film. What do you hope that DxONE can do for others - with diabetes and without?
I had someone in my own family who told me after Nicholas was diagnosed that "at least it isn't fatal" and I was thunderstruck by that comment. I wanted to be angry. I wanted to yell and tell them that they didn't know what they were talking about. I think there are a lot of people like that, people who don't know how threatening Type 1 Diabetes is. But, I didn't want to focus on the doom and gloom that you can easily fall into. I wanted the message of the film to be about hope.
Kim: I think you accomplished just that. How can people keep up with the film's progress, and what is the expected release date?
Dan: I'm currently in post-production for the film, finishing the edit. People can keep up with the film's progress by staying tuned to the Facebook fan page or at my personal website, http://www.fountainheadpictures.com/.
I know that I want to make DxONE accessible to the T1 community but to do that, the film really needs a grassroots movement behind it to help in that effort, so the more fans it gains, the better chance of it getting exposure. I'm hoping that this film is something that can help the T1 community use to get attention for government support as well. Below are some links where fans can follow the film and view video samples, behind the scenes clips and the trailer.
Facebook Fan Page:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/DxONE/170240229692963
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Speaking of video samples, here's a sample scene from the movie:
And lastly, here's a little bit more about Dan:
Dan Masucci lives in New York where he has been a stay-at-home father since his first child’s birth. In 2007, he made it into the top 1% of more than 12,000 directors competing for a place on the Steven Spielberg/FOX Reality show, "On The Lot".
The films Dan has written and directed have collectively had more than 140 film festival screenings worldwide and garnered more than 25 awards. For his short film "Letting Go", Dan was awarded the Idaho Film & Television Institute's IFTI Visionary Award.
Dan has been a "visiting expert" and panel speaker at national film festivals and other media related events. He is currently working on his first novel, a Young Adult thriller titled "Hollowville."
Edit: you may now also find Dan on Twitter (@DanMasucci).
The films Dan has written and directed have collectively had more than 140 film festival screenings worldwide and garnered more than 25 awards. For his short film "Letting Go", Dan was awarded the Idaho Film & Television Institute's IFTI Visionary Award.
Dan has been a "visiting expert" and panel speaker at national film festivals and other media related events. He is currently working on his first novel, a Young Adult thriller titled "Hollowville."
Edit: you may now also find Dan on Twitter (@DanMasucci).
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Pinwheel, Pinwheel, Spinning Around.
What's that saying? You don't know what you've got 'til it makes you run for hibernation and a fistful of Aleve?
I'm new to these "migraine" things. So new, in fact, that I've only ever had one before today and didn't quite have the warning signals down yet.
It started after I had gone for a brief walk outside my office building. My CGM showed a down arrow, which I managed to reroute thanks to a banana and some coffee. I was trying to catch up on some blog reading (specifically, I was trying to read this one) before my break was over, but I was experiencing a very noticeable distortion in my vision. It had a bunch of colors, and it was almost like the way colors "wave" around in a mirage. Except this one was moving in a pinwheel-like manner, and only on one side.
I looked through my pinwheel, and found that I couldn't see my right side worth a darn. For instance, if I was trying to read the page you're reading now, those glimmers of color would have been all over the "Blog Archive" list and anything east of it. But if I moved my eyes right to look directly at that list, I'd be able to see it and not what's to the right. And so on.
I was a little freaked out by it, but since I had been (and might still have been) dropping, I thought maybe it was my body's reaction to a low. A new symptom, but it could be related. Right?
WRONG.
Shortly after, the headache started creeping in like a painful fog, and I got a hint of Eau de Nauseous as well - the two things that had happened the last time I experienced what I could only assume was a migraine. The light sensitivity wasn't as pronounced this time, but I did have to leave work for the day and go crash for a few hours with the blinds shut.
Is this a new thing I'm going to keep having? Am I doing something to cause these? I may not have answers yet, but at least I'm now feeling well enough to start pursuing them.
Do any of you guys get migraines, too? Can you provide any insight for me, other than what I'm finding on the Mayo Clinic website?
I'm new to these "migraine" things. So new, in fact, that I've only ever had one before today and didn't quite have the warning signals down yet.
It started after I had gone for a brief walk outside my office building. My CGM showed a down arrow, which I managed to reroute thanks to a banana and some coffee. I was trying to catch up on some blog reading (specifically, I was trying to read this one) before my break was over, but I was experiencing a very noticeable distortion in my vision. It had a bunch of colors, and it was almost like the way colors "wave" around in a mirage. Except this one was moving in a pinwheel-like manner, and only on one side.
I was a little freaked out by it, but since I had been (and might still have been) dropping, I thought maybe it was my body's reaction to a low. A new symptom, but it could be related. Right?
WRONG.
Shortly after, the headache started creeping in like a painful fog, and I got a hint of Eau de Nauseous as well - the two things that had happened the last time I experienced what I could only assume was a migraine. The light sensitivity wasn't as pronounced this time, but I did have to leave work for the day and go crash for a few hours with the blinds shut.
Is this a new thing I'm going to keep having? Am I doing something to cause these? I may not have answers yet, but at least I'm now feeling well enough to start pursuing them.
Do any of you guys get migraines, too? Can you provide any insight for me, other than what I'm finding on the Mayo Clinic website?
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