The Corner Booth

Happy Halloween 2010! Overall, it's been a relatively un-eventful but very relaxing and fun Halloween in the Hoskins' Hoosier Household. We didn't dress up this year, though that's almost not even something to consider nowadays since there's no question I can compete with the cool crayon costume that I sported as a 5-year-old back in 1984, marking my first post-diagnosis Halloween. But it was great seeing all the little kids come to the doors, and it's always fun to see some of the cute outfits and see some neighbors so excited about the fun for their families. We did pass out candy, and of course, I decided to test it and enjoy some myself - just to be safe! It didn't throw my sugars off ( too much ). That was the end of a fun weekend with a few D-related adventures and surprises. On Saturday, Mike Durbin from MyDiabeticHeart and his girlfriend were passing through the area and stopped by the house for a quick, impromptu D-Meetup! It was a great ...

 This here is kind of a re-run, or at least a largely recycled one from Halloween 2009 . Sorry for not being original, but we just ran out of time on this end and we don't yet have any D-Decorated Pumpkins or the Wilford Brimley getup ready. So, here's a theme that some others in the DOC have echoed for the Halloween holiday. Whatever dressup you may be doing or whether candy's on tap or not, make sure to be safe and have some fun! Oh, and if you haven't yet found the time, head over to the JDRF Walk Page for the Sparling's Six Until Me team page because they're walking on Oct. 31 in Rhode Island! Anyhow, Happy Halloween! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Every Halloween, it always strikes me as amusing how much you can find online discussing the perfect balancing act for Halloween candy-eating and diabetes management. Personally, I grew up not caring ...

No, I'm not talking about my rival college fraternity of Sigma Alpha Epsilon. ( Sigma Pi is the best, of course!) Actually, we're talking something else here. It's SAE (pronounced “say”) and it stands for Support, Advocate and Educate. This year, Sarah over at Sugabetic is announcing November 1st as SAE day. You may be thinking, “What’s going to be so different about this day than the rest of the month?”. Well, here’s the plan: November 1st is the first day of Diabetes Awareness Month. What better way to kick it off than to have the first day be the day we really push for awareness? The idea is to do something in relation to each letter on November 1st to “SAE” diabetes and raise awareness in a big way. So, here's the game plan: •Support• This month, lots of people are doing JDRF walks. If you can, support them by donating towards their walk. If you can’t, don’t feel bad! As a community, we can support each other by doing what we do everyday, just a...

I know a little something about Living With Diabetes. Twenty-six years after my diagnosis, I'd certainly hope that's the case. Particularly since it came at the age of 5 and I don't remember much about life before that. But even with all of those years, I've got nothing on what it's like to be the parent of a Child With Diabetes. No frame of reference for what it's like trying to function as my child's pancreas and keep them safe in order to not only get through childhood, but to grow up to have a long, productive, successful life. This past weekend's first-ever DYFI Teen D-Camp Weekend gave me the chance to see some of that first-hand, to get a glimpse at what these incredible superheros will do for their CWD. They'll do anything to help their children Live With Diabetes. Even if that means stepping aside and letting them talk about important, life-shaping experiences with others just like them. You read the story last week about how this ca...

I ate chili out of a pumpkin. Decorated pumpkins with pump and blood testing supplies. Sat underneath a taradactyl, and zipped on a rope as my pump clung to my waist for dear life. Met an incredible group of kindred souls who also happened to be Living With Diabetes, just like me! The Diabetes Youth Foundation of Indiana (@dyfofindiana) hosted its first-ever weekend Oct. 23-24, where Teens With Diabetes were the focus. The director, a D-Mom to an 18-year old Type 1 son, reached out earlier in the year to see if I'd be interested in being a part of that in some capacity - as a guest, speaker, volunteer, whatever might be needed. I'd agreed. Yes, I was excited. This from a guy who must now confess that he didn't have much of a chance to experience D-Camp himself in those younger years. I'd attended Camp Midicha in Fenton, Michigan back in the first summer after my diagnosis at age 5... but, thanks to a greedy group of mosquitos that targeted th...

I’d meant to have a recap today on the wonderful Teen D-Camp experience this past weekend. You know, the one previewed late last week by the Diabetes Youth Foundation of Indiana D-mom who'd dreamed up the idea. That was the plan. But plans have changed. You might think that all the fellow diabetics, Ammo Cans of D-Supplies, Chili-In-Pumpkins, D-Supply Decoration of Pumpkins, Deep and Reflective Talk on Teen Topics, and talk of candy corn and cider for treating Lows has just zapped whatever energy I might have had to blog about the weekend. Or zipped, based on the Zip-Line and paintball that ensued. Nope. That’s not the case. Rather, it’s a darned tooth ache. A darn painful one. (And “ darned ” is the censored choice of my censored censoring.) It also comes as I try to hold a makeshift-office icepack to the right side of my mouth, while juggling work duties and trying to not make eye contact with the aspirin bottle that’s already rattled in my hand a f...

This is a guest-post from Julie Shutt. who heads up the Diabetes Youth Foundation of Indiana's local Camp Until a Cure . She's the mom of a Type 1 teen herself, and has long envisioned a place where teens can have both the camping experience with those "teen-adult" topics weaved in. Where they can talk about sex, drugs, drinking, college, and all of those young adult issues in the presence of those just like them. Her dream becomes a reality here this weeked, with the first-ever Time for Teens Weekend at D-Camp. Twenty-five teens are expected to attend - 18 girls and 7 guys. I'm thrilled  to have the chance to attend and talk a little about my own experiences in these areas, and look forward early next week to sharing my recap of balancing that line between being 'an adult' and 'one of them' while there. In the meantime, please welcome Julie! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - My story begins with my s...

We've lost one of our own. Thirteen-year-old Eilish died earlier this week as a result of Type 1 diabetes. Her family has been an active force in the Children With Diabetes forums, and the tragic news of young Eilish dying while she slept took everyone and all of us in the DOC by surprise. Apparently another example of what's called  "dead-in-bed" syndrome . I awoke to this shocking news Wednesday. Like many in the DOC, I lost sleep over this last night. My mind kept returning to this tragedy. Replaying it over and over, until it consumed my thoughts. I'd planned to finish some work from the office home, but couldn't find that focus. Too much tragedy was in my heart, for a girl and a family I've never met and probably never will. Last night, I cried. Then, I updated my Facebook status as so many others have done, honoring Eilish and her family and lighting a virtual candle in tribute. My heart hurts. I'm mad, sad, and scared...

As most likely know by now, World Diabetes Day is Nov. 14. This one day comes in what's known as Diabetes Awareness Month, at least here in America. Many activities are being planned nationally and worldwide, and it seems new ideas keep materializing from within the D-Community. Cherise has thought of Blue Fridays for the month of November. For WDD, monuments are being lit up in blue . People With Diabetes are encouraged to participate in what's called the Big Blue Test . The JDRF has created Type 1 Talk with events popping up throughout the U.S. And others such as Mike Durbin at MyDiabeticHeart has asked those of us in the DOC to "Go Blue" in recognition of the month ( something I've already done, as you can see from the blog blueness bordering this post!) Not to mention other items on tap, like some exciting things from the Diabetes Hands Foundation and Diabetes Research Institute. Some of us are even trying to pursuade Google to create a doodle for WDD, ...

Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler had a bad game recently. You may not watch football or even know who this NFL quarterback is, but what's a necessary piece of information for this particular story is that Jay is a Type 1 diabetic. The 27-year old from Indiana has been playing pro football since 2006 and in early 2008 he announced his Type 1 diagnosis. Since he's been playing with Chicago, there's only been one time he's mentioned diabetes has interfered, but he treated that Low without much issue. Most recently, Jay took a beating in the Oct. 3 game against the New York Giants with a 17-3 loss that included nine sacks in the first half alone. He was making wrong moves. Holding on to the ball too long. Throwing wildly. Looking dazed and confused, at one taking a few steps toward the wrong side before realizing his mistake. Just before the half, he was knocked out of the game with a concussion that would then keep him out the next game. Th...

This post may seem like more of a public service announcement for the American Diabetes Association. So be it. On one hand ( HA !), that's a worthy PSA to be made. Leading up to American Diabetes Awareness Month in November (which includes World Diabetes Day on Nov. 14), the ADA is following up to its new 2009-created campaign called Stop Diabetes - which has the "audacious goal of gathering the support of millions of Americans to help confront, fight and most importantly, stop diabetes." Starting Oct. 15, the ADA is asking: "How will you Stop Diabetes? The future is in your hands." We are asked to make a video to answer that question. People can answer that question through a video submission, in a contest that the ADA is promoting online. You are encouraged to "share your vision to stop diabetes" by posting a video on stopdiabetes.com, incorporating the hand as a symbol of the movement in a 30-second video online to show your passion and c...

I have something to say. But more importantly, so do you. That's why the JDRF is moving ahead with what it calls Type 1 Talk, giving us another platform to talk amongst ourselves on any number of important diabetes-related topics. You'll recall that I'd recently written a post about the JDRF's new effort being launched for the entire Diabetes Community on Nov. 14, which is World Diabetes Day . This is somewhat monumental in that it's the first time the 40-year-old organization has acklowledged at the national level that this day even exists, let alone that it has a plan to do something to mark the day. Using the energy around that day, the JDRF appears to be trying to use its national might to start some conversation locally, rather than relying on the efforts of local chapters that can be at best scattered and not-quick-to-action. The needs of the Adult Type 1 Community have long been ignored by the JDRF, and we Children With Diabete...

This is a sequel. A follow-up to Friday's post about my adventures here on the Streets of Indy . A place where glucose tablets bring us diabetics together. Where we mull meetups that involve Singing & Dancing Rollerskating D-Meetups potentially rivaling the likes of #dprom. Where our centralized spot in the nation means we Hoosiers have what can only be dubbed the Diabetic Crossroads of America. You should read that post first. Please. Go ahead. I'll wait. Now that you've read that, you're primed for Round 2. My adventures last week continued on Saturday, with the Central Indiana JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes. More than 3,000 walkers attended, and this happened to be our first-ever walk we've participated in since moving to Indiana about six year ago. I'd been involved for years up in our native Southeast Michigan, starting with my first walk-ride back in 1985 and evolving into volunteering and mass fundraising in my college years. But once we moved to India...

My name isn't Bruce Springsteen and this isn't Philadelphia. Nope. This is my own story about chance encounters and meetups and all the happenings here, on the Streets of Indianapolis. A place where you never know adventures and encounters may come your way. Lunch time Wednesday: I was writing some stories on deadline at work, trying to stretch out the time until a meeting wrapped up and led to some free leftovers. But blurry vision and confusion paved the way for a blood test, revealing a 51 mg/dL. My waiting was done, and I grabbed four orange glucose tablets from the desk drawer as I made my way outside for the walk to a nearby sandwich shop. Stepping outside into the crisp October afternoon, I squinted in the sunlight and turned to my left as I stuffed a second glucose tablet in my mouth and kept walking. Suddenly, a woman with her arms full of files and papers stepped in front of me, blocking my path. "Do you remember me?" she as...

Today is a day when we write about anything NOT related to the chronic conditions we are living with. This idea is the brainchild of  The Great Ninjabetic . This means no blogging, Tweeting, or Facebooking statuses on that subject. George describes it this way: "We are more than a disease, a lot more and tomorrow is a day to share some of that. There are many facets to each one of us and since we do talk so much about our D lives, we maybe miss some other cool stuff about each other. It’s not easy. It is a serious exercise to avoid all D talk but, I think it is a positive step in seeing that life is more than diabetes. We are more than diabetics or People With Diabetes. We give diabetes a lot of attention, let’s spend one day and give the rest of ourselves the spot light." Since I'd neglected to mark this on any calendar and didn't even remember it until sometime later Tuesday, I had little time to get my sass in line for a specific Non-D post. My mind rolls through i...

A recent discussion over at the Children With Diabetes forums got me thinking about whether I'd want to have the option to start insulin pumping at the time of my diagnosis. Granted, I was diagnosed back in 1984 when pumping just wasn't mainstream like it is today. I spent the first 17 years of my D-Life on insulin injections, ranging from one or two a day to four or five, before the carb counting days when MDI became the norm. Personally, I've always appreciated the fact that I spent considerable time on injections before getting the pump. To me, this allowed me to more appreciate the "freedom" and "flexibility" of an insulin pump as I specifically recall what it was like NOT being on the pump. On that note, I have long-felt that newly-diagnosed Ds - whether children or teens or adults - should stay on injections for some decent length of time. Without any rationale for choosing this number, that period in my head has been 1 or 2 years. Why a year...