Document text
http://www.omniture.com --> Sections Home Page Local News AP News Archives Business Classifieds Event Calendar Forums Life Opinion Obituaries Photo Gallery Readers Photo Gallery Sports Tempo Weather Special Coverage 2006 Britt Festivals --> Shop Our Valley AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Search Our Valley Special Sections Distinctly Northwest Readers' Choice Homelife Magazine Joy Magazine Holiday Guide Oregon Golf Info Oregon Wine Info Other Publications Local Links Ashland News eSouthernOregon Newspapers In Education Personals Moving Here Movie Listings TV Listings Volunteer Customer Service Advertise With Us Media Kit Place Classified Ad Contact Us FAQ's Home Delivery Site Map --> Email Story to a Friend December 10, 2006 Here's a story with legs as well as a heart By PAUL FATTIG Mail Tribune There are few things John Dickinson likes better than a joke, even those that are most definitely not PC. "What do you call a double amputee in a swimming pool?" he asks, then answers, "Bob." Wait, there's more. Advertisement "What do you say when you pick up a single amputee who is hitchhiking?" he asks, answering, "Hop in." Stop right there. Before you grab a baseball bat to work the two of us over, you should know that Dickinson is a double amputee. He lost his first leg to infection half a dozen years ago, the second one a year ago this month. Gallows humor, he figures, is a healthy way to deal with physical challenges. "I'm always looking for jokes," says the Seattle resident, then adds, "This story I'm working on, it's starting to get legs." The double entendre alludes to the fact that journalists consider an ongoing story as one that has legs. Dickinson, 58, is a journalist in that he is working on a series of documentary films about folks with mobility issues. His wife, Jodi Rothfield, is a casting director whose resumé includes "Sleepless in Seattle." As a former quadriplegic who now lurches with a frightful gait that makes Frankenstein's lumbering monster look like Fred Astaire, I get a kick out of Dickinson's black humor. Pun intended. Hey, it's not just me. The fellows I spent some nine months with in the spinal ward of the VA hospital in Portland guffawed over each other's gallows humor. True, they would have strung up a non-quad who had the audacity to utter such God-awful gags. Then there is a now good friend of mine with no hands who told me when we first met him that he played tennis in college but lost his back hand. The laughter broke the ice. Finally, my dad, having lost his right leg in a logging accident, used to laugh about the confused dog who ran up and bit his wooden leg, then whimpered off with its tail between its legs. The point is humor helps us pick ourselves up and move on with our lives. Before the year is out, Dickinson, who has a master's degree in public administration, plans to meet with members of the Handicap Awareness and Support League Inc. (HASL) in Grants Pass, as well as veterans with mobility issues at the VA's domiciliary in White City as part of his research for the series. He envisions the series exploring the needs of people with mobility issues. "Moving On With Equal Access" is the working title. More information is available at [email protected] or by contacting Dickinson at [email protected]. "After hearing just a few of these stories, you think twice or three times before ever complaining about a bruised apple again," he says. But he isn't trying to drum up sympathy for fellow amputees. Rather, he is in awe of what they are accomplishing in today's world. "During the Vietnam war, they shunted amputees away," he recalls. "Now just about every week there is a report about an amputee coming back from Iraq working to get back to join his unit or doing something else that's just as incredible. Amputees climb mountains and run races now. The things these people do are amazing." With more than 500 Americans having returned from the duo wars in Iraq and Afghanistan with missing limbs, the nation needs to be able to embrace them, says Dickinson who describes himself as a "lifelong peacenik." The series won't be anti- or pro-war, he stresses. "This will be about the people who have mobility needs," he reiterates. "It will be their stories, and they are all different." Amputees are sometimes reluctant to talk to him until he shows them his artificial legs, which have a unique flame design. "When they know I have no feet, that I'm foot-loose and fancy-free, they usually open up," he quips. Make no mistake: he would much rather have his legs back. "I was walking once when one of my prosthetics shot out ahead of me — I landed on my stump," he says. "There is no pain in the world more hurtful. God, I can't even talk about it." He'll tell you that most people don't focus on his artificial limbs. Consider the time he attended a fancy black tie event in Seattle wearing a Scottish kilt. "Nobody even noticed," he laments. Nor are they likely to notice at the end of next August when he attends the annual Burning Man art festival in the desert of northwest Nevada. "I want to show up with my burning legs," he says, then adds, "Now that could be interesting." He's right. His story definitely has legs. Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or at [email protected] Would you like to respond to this story? If so Click Here to visit our forums. Advertisement Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback online casinos news Home Security Systems Online Casino Reviews Men's Clothing Fundraisers UK Homeowner Loans Discount Hotel Reservations Send Flowers Casinos Canada Texas Electric Choice Compare Electric rates in Texas Windermere Van Vleet Trunks, Footlocker Online poker at AbsolutePoker.com