.
Etext Books
This is to announce the available of a new service, "A
Catalogue of Electronic Texts on the Internet." Alex can be found at
gopher://rsl.ox.ac.uk:70/11/lib-corn/hunter, or by pointing your gopher client
at rsl.ox.ac.uk, choosing "Librarian's Corner", and then
"Alex".
Alex allows users to find and retrieve the full-text of documents on the
Internet. It currently indexes over 700 books and shorter texts by author and
title, incorporating texts from Project Gutenberg, Wiretap, the On-line Book
Initiative, the Eris system at Virginia Tech, the English Server at Carnegie
Mellon University, and the on-line portion of the Oxford Text Archive. For now
it includes no serials. Alex does include an entry for itself.
New publications at the sites above will be detected automatically. However,
pointers to other sites, specific suggestions for additions to the catalogue,
and notifications of errors are welcome, particularly those with full
bibliographic information and URLs. The email address for Alex is alex@rsl.ox.ac.uk.
The following was originally written by an epileptic, but it means exactly
what we all mean and want, so, with your permission, I've included it here; just
make the small change to let it read for you, and make it your own
I was looking through a prayer book and realized that people with epilepsy
need a Special Prayer all their own. Since one hadn't been written, I thought
I'd write one. I figure we need all the help we can get and it wouldn't hurt to
have the Man Upstairs on our side. Even though it is the LONGEST prayer I've
seen to date, it only takes a few minutes to say and makes me feel better
somehow. I hope this gives you the same kind of consolation it gives me.
A PRAYER
Substitute "epilectic" with whatever and you have
it
Dear God,
Thank you for the promise of this day. My day is young and new as a child full
of wonder. My past has been "thrown to sea" but with Your Help the
pleasant memories will be waiting safely, on the shore for me. Let only the Best
of Myself, of Who I Am, live on. My future consists only of the choices I make
today. Wipe any worries or fears from my mind. Give me a "clean slate"
to work with, to accomplish things, a day that has never been Lived Before.
Let me embrace myself with open arms, treating myself as my own Best Friend.
Let me not be unnecessarily hard on myself but let me constantly push myself to
Achieve New Goals.
Give the Strength to not only cope but give me Super Human Strength so I May
Be Stronger Than This Thing I'm Fighting. Give me the Power to not fight But To
Win.
Victim is not in my vocabulary; I don't know what the word means. Let me
always remember that even though I may not be perfect, and I may have boundaries
others may not, the remaining "Normal" Part of Me is Exceptional. It
has become stronger over time to compensate for what is weak. The brain waves
which seem to "have a mind of their own", only make me Different-In A
Very Good Way. I'll see the entire spectrum of colors in a sunset, instead of a
few; I'll never take anything for granted, no matter how seemingly small; I'll
always be content just to gaze at songbirds in a tree; I'll somehow be able to
"understand" when others can't find the words; I'll be happy to be
"wherever I'm at", because it probably took more work than average to
get there; and My Hands will always reach out quicker to Help Someone In Need.
Each year, when my health was unstable, let me Never Forget that those qualities
I possessed of Strength and Courage can now be given back to someone else. As
the saying goes, "The Only Thing We Take To The Next Life From This One is
What We Gave Away."
My Life Quality, as well as all others who share my plight, is Top Priority.
Let me find ways of Raising the Standards, Changing Laws, Enlightening and
Educating, so that All People Are Treated Equally. Let me make my life a Mission
to change the things I am able, and to Empower Myself In Any Way I Can. Make My
Pills be "Magic Pills" That Help Me Live The Life I Desire, Obtain My
Goals, and know what Peace Of Mind Means. Let me donate funds for medical
research to aid in the discovery of New Drugs which could be the "Magic
Pills" of tomorrow. Lord, walk with me throughout the day and Never Leave
My Side. With Each Step I Take, While Others Ride-Walk With Me. If I Wait While
Others Go About Their Lives-Be There With Me. Take away the loneliness that
harbors itself by helping me Find Friends That I may Share A Common Bond. Let Me
Seek Others For Support as well as Strength. Let All People With Epilepsy Take
Their Health Into Their Own Hands. Let Us Form A Wall Of Steel, Each One Helping
To Reinforce the Strength of the Other; the Whole being Stronger than the Parts.
Let me realize that no matter what happens today I Always Have My Soul.
Minutes or hours may be taken from me, I may be pushed to the limit-but I Won't
Fall. Let me do something Wonderful Every Day...No Matter What That May Be: Sing
A Song Off-Key; Savor A Minute or Two; Write In A Journal; Take A Walk With
Somebody Special; or Create A Masterpiece. Don't ever let me forget what
"Rewarding" Means. Don't let me forget the Joy of Simple Things. Don't
let me get wrapped up in "Just Being", for I wasn't put on this earth
to Merely Exist.
Let me keep a Child-Like Anticipation For The Day And What It Holds. Don't
Let My Sense Of Humor Dwindle Away. Let This Day, Especially, Be A
"Package" I can Unwrap. Let me "Go Outside Of Myself",
Trying to Help Others and Affect Lives. Let me be more concerned with Others
Than Myself.
Let People Remember Me For What I've Done, Not Who I Am. If I feel
susceptible, let me say:
Make Me Strong, Hold Me Up, Give Me Power
Ease My Mind, Give Me Peace, Send An Angel To Hold My Hand.
Amen.
If this meant something strong and positive to you, email the author, Paulette
on:
motzko@ix.netcom.com. She's waiting to hear from you and would love
a post.
Vocational Rehabilitation
Vocational Rehabilitation is the
provision of services to enable individuals with disabilities, including
individuals with the most severe disabilities, to pursue meaningful careers by
securing gainful employment commensurate with their abilities and capabilities.
One or more Vocational Rehabilitation programs are funded in every state in
the United States by the Rehabilitation Services Administration under the U.S.
Department of Education. The West Virginia Division of Rehabilitation Services
serves the state of West Virginia.
A NARIC Spinal Cord Injury FAQ File,
TBI FAQ File,
and
NARIC Home Page
Each year in the United States an estimated 6,000-8,000 people become spinal
cord injured. People who recently have sustained a spinal cord injury (SCI)
often have many questions about what happens when a spinal cord injury occurs
and where to get the information needed to live with a spinal cord injury. After
an injury occurs, the person with SCI must relearn many everyday activities,
depending upon the level and extent of the injury.
WebABLE!
doesn't seem to be available at the moment... follow the "webABLE"
link for details. Dickibus
....is the World Wide Web information repository for people with
disabilities and accessibility solution providers. WebABLE! is dedicated to
promoting the interests of adaptive, assistive, and access technology
researchers, users, and manufacturers.
National Rehabilitation Centre for the Paralysed
This is a British Centre for those who
have lost muscle tone severely, from (it seems) whatever cause - spinal chord
injury, brain injury, etc.... the list is endless,
If anyone out there knows of somewhere that really ought to be here, or
of facts or get-arounds they want to share, mail me at dickibus@dickibus.co.uk
Cheers all!
