MAKE YOUR RESERVATION NOW: Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless 8th Annual Fundraiser Slated For Friday May 1st

Fund-raising dinner & silent auction benefits advocacy; essential links to services for the homeless of Greater Cleveland

NEOCH is the only non-profit organization in the Greater Cleveland area that assists the homeless by providing civil rights advocacy, a voice for the homeless population and links to essential services through its numerous programs.

"Hope Blossoms", the theme of this year's annual fundraiser will be held at Massimo Da Milano Italian restaurant located at the corner of Detroit Avenue and W. 25th Street in the Ohio City neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio. David Bernatowicz of Cuyahoga Community College will be the Keynote Speaker at this year's event on May 1, 2009 from 6:30 p.m. till 10 p.m.

Ticket information follows:
GOLD CORPORATE SPONSOR - $750: Includes reserved seating for 8, buffet dinner with open bar, full page ad in the program book and a link on NEOCH'S website. $638 is tax deductible!

SILVER CORPORATE SPONSOR - $500: Includes reserved seating for 8, buffet dinner with open bar and half page ad in the program book. $388 is tax deductible!

TABLE OF FRIENDS - $400: Includes reserved seating for 8, buffet dinner with open bar. $288 is tax deductible!

INDIVIDUAL TICKETS - $50: Includes open seating and buffet dinner with open bar. $36 is tax deductible!

RSVP by APRIL 17, 2009. You can also RSVP by credit card on NEOCH's website (www.neoch.org) through NETWORK FOR GOOD!

Donations to the NORTHEAST OHIO COALITION FOR THE HOMELESS are ALWAYS WELCOME and can be made through NEOCH'S WEBSITE and the NETWORK FOR GOOD! Many volunteer opportunities are also available at the coalition.

For more information, please contact Teri Horne by phone at 216-432-0540 or e-mail at neoch@neoch.org.

My CFIDS/Fibromyalgia weekend

Living with the pain & fatigue

Damn I'm exhausted; sore (burning and throbbing sore) and those ETs must have visited me while I was asleep in the recliner for 6 hours - the mind is mush. So here I am slumped over my desk - staring vacantly at the monitor, the key board, the wall, my cigarettes. hand eye coordination is awful.

Thoughts coming to mind - click, change the channel; another thought-click change the channel. Staying focused is problematic but I've had more severe bouts with Fibrofog like the year or so when I couldn't read.

Plenty about that in another post - later.

Another thought just came to mind - whatever mind I still have left. I forgot to eat supper Saturday. I guess I'll fix peanut butter toast and a tall glass of chocolate milk - sounds real good!

I feel bruised; beaten. I have a certificate for a free 40 minute massage from a local massotherapist. Finally I found someone to go to here. I haven't had a deep tissue massage in a year since I moved and I miss going to my massotherapist in North Royalton . Massage did far more for pain relief than the drugs.

This week and all the stressors have taken a toll on my anxiety level leading to all the pain.

Did anyone get the number of the bus that hit me? Oops, forgot; not in Cleveland anymore. Back in my hometown of Toronto, Ohio - there has been no public transportation here since 1972.

I have a truck tho'. Gary bought it when we were living in East Cleveland - got it for $500.00. We got more than our very limited money's spent worth out of it so...

Need $600 + to fix it - Transmission! The walking is killing me. I can't believe - dare I say it? - I miss RTA (urine stained cloth seats, having to stand because of kids sitting in the disability seats, etc).

Despite having a disability RTA ID and bus pass, I'm surprised I was able to get a disability seat.
Heading eastbound on the #6 Euclid. Photo by Cindy Miller - 2007

It's been a rough two days - 2 hours of rest for every 15 minutes of housework. I managed to change the bed linen tho'; took me an hour because I stuck with it! I also had to go upstairs to the apartment and get it ready for the new tenant. The timing - despite that I feel like crap - couldn't have been better. We need the cash!

Just standing to wash the dishes is nearly impossible. My feet are a mess from all the walking I had to do just to get around downtown Cleveland before the state approved my disability cash assistance. I have nerve damage too in my legs.

Once my Medicare is straightened out and I am able to find a competent doctor here, I'm requesting assistance to help with the housework - at least three days a week.

I've managed to keep the house in relative good order. I kicked Gary out of the living room and he is spending most of his time in bed. He was trashing the living room and really breaking down my new couch. He can barely walk and besides, the bedroom is closer to the bathroom for him. I don't care if the bedroom gets trashed from all of his meds all over the place.

People ask me how I managed dealing with my illness while homeless.

I had my safe places to go when I left the shelter every morning. Voinovich Park behind the Rock Hall was one place - no one questioned anyone laying down there. Since I had a food stamp card, I could belly up to the salad bar at the market inside of Reserve Square for one salad, pasta, fruit platter to go. I spent the entire day resting along the shore of Lake Erie.

Voinovich Park, Cleveland. This guy is relaxing in my old spot.
Yep, I took this photo and the one below it - 2007

Another safe place that I spent a great deal of my time was at the Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless where I volunteered.

I researched, wrote for "The Homeless Grapevine Newspaper" -when my mind worked but they had a couch and there were certainly plenty of times when I had to nap during the day.

Usually I was beat when I got there. The walk wasn't far from Community Women's Shelter on Payne but sometimes that short walk from E. 22nd Street to 3631 Payne Avenue could take me an hour on a bad fatigue day.

I met Gary while homeless. He and four other guys and one of the guy's girlfriend were all living in a camp near I-90. Another place for me to lie down if needed.

For obvious reasons, thank God those days are behind me now. Despite having a big house and property to maintain, at least I don't have a schedule to deal with. It's nice to be able to lie down whenever I please.

And I most definitely will be making an appointment for my free 40 minute massage Monday morning - even if I have to pay for a cab ride to get there.

In the meantime, I am going to drag myself back (with a heating pad and Tylenol) to my recliner. Time to go back to sleep.

I'll just post this and edit it later when I have more energy and far less pain.

I'll tell two friends and they'll tell two friends and so on.....

If you remember the Faberge shampoo commercials from the 1970's, you probably remember this slogan from an ad campaign that they used for many years.

If you are anything like me, I'm sure you recommend products and services to your friends and even strangers. And I bet you even tell people about your bad experiences too.

Years ago, I got involved with Mary Kay Cosmetics. I was living in Michigan at the time and didn't know anyone other than my coworkers and a few associates there that had previously worked with me in Medina, Ohio.

The opportunity (yes, being a beauty consultant with Mary Kay Cosmetics is an awesome home business opportunity) was offered to me and through it I made many friends; consultants and customers alike.

Anyway, I learned a lot of skills during the weekly Monday night meetings especially about goal setting and building a customer base.

One interesting fact presented at meeting was that, on average, each and every person knows 250 people. I thought that this figure was staggering but the director who presented this fact said that that figure pertains to the number of people we associate with in any given day, week or month and she was quick to point out who was on that list.

The people on that list includes, but is not limited to, the following: the cashier at the grocery store, hair stylist, bank teller, pharmacist, mail carrier, bartender, favorite server at a restaurant, co-workers, parents of children's friends, our friends, our classmates, the people who help us at our favorite clothing store and so on. Some of the people on this list helped me build my customer base and they told people.....

The advertising agency that created this advertising campaign for Faberge obviously was privy to this fact too.

The Homeless Task Force in Atlanta has produced a video with the Faberge 'and they'll tell two friends' ad campaign in mind.

Please WATCH and think about how you can organize the 250 people you know plus the 250 people that your friends know, and the 250 friends they know and so on to help any non-profit service organization in your community that needs donations.

This would also work for a clothing or food drive as well.