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I love PGE. Last week I was wondering if I should create flyers and put them into all the paper boxes of my neighbors on the hill I live on, asking them to think about us getting together to put a wind generator at the top of the hill. Then I wrote to PGE and asked how do this. They were quick about calling back, very patient, informed and helpful. They gave me leads on how to continue with this project. They want to help. My only problem now is to work past my shyness to contact my neighbors.

If PGE need more money, I can't resent them for it. They're honestly trying to help us.

posted 4 years, 2 months ago
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cuhlman1, thank you for pointing that out. I couldn't listen to the whole show. The schools are failing a lot of people because of old policies. If we had followed their recommendations, my son would have given up. We can't blame the teachers. They became teachers because the love teaching. It's all those hoops they have to jump through that go against common sense.

My son's high school teachers enjoyed teaching him because he loves learning on his own terms and they were free to follow their hearts and see what could work best with him.

One day he had a strong feeling of panic shoot through him in class. He abruptly got up and went to the door. The teacher, knowing his temperament, asked where he was going. He looked pale and just said "out." She said, "okay!" He ran on the track, called me on the phone, did whatever it took to calm down. Nobody made him feel awkward. They let him work on understanding what he needed to do.

If he had been forced to stay a prisoner in that class while those panic chemicals were demanding that his body should fight or flight, he would have developed a phobia for that class which would have blossomed to a phobia for school, in general.

Phobias ruin the enjoyment of learning. If the policies in school don't work we need to stop being so passive. A drug for every learning problem don't fix the bigger problem.

posted 4 years, 2 months ago
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Somebody tell me why a modified diploma is worth anything. Isn't the only good it does is that the schools don't have to have another dropout in their records which looks bad for them?

We told my son's high school that we could teach him academically all he needs to know. What he needed was to learn how to successfully navigate through places like school to learn about common sense things. We didn't care about grades and weren't impressed with modified diplomas. So the teachers helped him succeed at what he needed. The teachers enjoyed him. He had almost all A's, but just not enough credits for a diploma. He didn't care. He was happy about the valuable life lessons the school gave him. The school held an "ungraduation party" for him where other special ed kids and teachers attended. They said my son's success gave them hope. Too bad we all had to break the conventional rules to give anyone hope.

He's in college still learning about himself. He's still getting A's and the teachers are comfortable letting him get his good grades as an aside to getting the degree he really needs, a degree about how to understand life.

He's still unable to do a lot of things because of his delicate temperament but he uses his meltdowns to step outside of himself and think about what triggered the meltdown and what steps will it take to move on. This is his hardest job but he's making baby steps toward success everyday.

posted 4 years, 2 months ago
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