talkin' to my man mr. R

cuckoo log:
meds: minimal
physical activity: minimal

thoughts of the day

1. mr. R, is here, we are here in one of my favorite places, and let me tell you... there is this guy... he had a catastrophic brain injury because of a car accident. he was in a coma for 35 days. he is now 53 years old, and really one of the most forthright/honest/straightforward people that i have met in a long time. this entire entry can be about mr. R... his biggest achievement was union negotiations. he was married for 3 years... his former wife came down with multiple sclerosis... and she left him... this ex wife is lost and gone... moved to pittsburgh, back to her mother and family... from nyc... oh boy, this guy roy is a piece of work... he's a character...
the first time he want over to his ex wife's place, their family made them a pork dinner. he was an honorary dinner... but a ham is totally against mr. R's religious beliefs. he is a jew...

hold on, let's talk about how they met... mr. R was a field engineer for some uk lighting company. he was flown all over the world, and he would fix computer lighting and stage lighting systems. he was in newark airport, and both he and she were going through the food line, and he was accustomed to going through the food line backwards... he usually carried a 70 lbs. tool box, and when he and she came face to face, he clearly stated, "i'm not going to fight you"... a jew meets a german... classically ironic... classic to see that a person like mr. R would be hooked up like that.

he is a brain injury advocate, and part of the state traumatic brain injury advisory, (tbia). so his volunteering is his 'work'... works with the brain injury association of america... here we go, we are going to ask 20 random ass questions:

1. so what do you do for fun?
A. sail on other people's boats, scuba diving, just hang out and do support groups. talking politics

2. where were you born?
A. Brooklyn, NY, grew up in Tenafly and moved to Fort Lee when I was in high school

3. best lesson for young people?
A. To believe to be in yourself and find the right mentor

4. what's a typical day like?
A. going to Starbucks, going to meetings, going to the advisory boards

5. what languages do you speak?
A. English, English, English

6. what's your favorite place on earth?
A. any nude resort aka Hedonism in Jamaica

7. your first car was?
A. i don't even remember, i think it was a buick that i bought for $50.00

8. how many brothers and sisters do you have?
A. one of each. both younger

9. what's your favorite movie?
A. something with van dam or schwartzenegger

10. are your parent's still alive?
A. Yes, i have one father and 2 mothers, they are all alive

11. what is your claim to fame?
A. i had an open ticket to the electricians union hall, local 3. to keep world financial center moving.

12. i heard something that we have in common... are you paid to stay alive?
A. Yes

13. if you could be anywhere but here, where would you be?
A. no where but home, near my family

14. when you were little you wanted to be?
A. a fighter pilot... what i would have liked to be was an air force pilot, and because of my vision, and i went to military school.... then i wanted to be a nuclear sub commander, but because of the anti-semitism, i could not

15. what do you think about the 'centuria project'?
A. i cry for all the politicians that really want to make something happen, and get so dragged down by individual interest. the aura is marvelous the details (of politics) destroy it every single time.

16. i heard you love your mac... why?
A. i used to build large scale networks for merrill lynch, we rolled out a 50K router network. my mac is so simple that no matter what i do to it, i can restore it back to a working state.

17. so if you could change one thing in the world what would it be?
A. making people speak the truth, an honesty detector on everyone's forehead

18. what question would you like to ask me?
A. what made you respond to me? my answer is: a challenge, and you are unique...

19. i heard that while you were in rehab, they discharged you early for being annoying... is there truth to that?
A. my first rehab facility kicked me out because they told me that i wouldn't ever make it into a wheel chair.

20. your life is one of advocacy, joy and education... how did your fight for mobility change your perspective on the world around you?
A. it didn't, and i will tell you why... ever since i was little, i always had issues. when i was 6 years old, i got my first pair of glasses, when i put them on, the first thing i said, was that is what the world looks like. so growing up with less than wonderful vision, it was the first time to see the "real world". compared to being blind, being a quadriplegic was easy. in addition, i always had dyslexia so there was always some obstacle to overcome... being a quadriplegic was just a situation and a momentary setback.

to be continued...