The Days of Media Work and Earnest Appeals are Here

Dear Beloved Blog Readers,

Last week was a big week for me. I presented a speech at Autism Awareness Day in Montpelier on Wednesday and I was on VPR on Thursday and Friday.

Oh, life is getting fun because the previous week I was hired to conduct an interactive workshop with the staff at the agency where I receive services; Champlain Community Services. I had a blast with that and will share some of the highlights of that next week.

What I want to do now is share what I said at the Statehouse:

“It’s great to be back here at the Statehouse again. I was here in February testifying to get an increase in pay for the people who work directly with those of us who receive developmental services. It’s great to be here on Autism Awareness Day.

I am Mark Utter. I am a man who has autism and I type to communicate what I am thinking. This issue is key to everything I do.

I am happy about how the first half of my life has gone but the real support that is crucial in my life has been having access to Supported Typing.  This came later in my life so a lot of things and habits got established while I was coasting along without a way to communicate.
Really totally happy that people trust the real room Supported Typing gives people with autism to say to those around us that we are aware of everything going on and have much more intelligence than they easily think.

I will say a few things to give you a picture of my life and then I will return to my current urgent need around my communication supports.
I live with my family in Colchester, Vermont. I am happy to have a friendly, loving home but it’s time for me to start getting other plans in place. I learn routines well and the moving would allow new learning to happen for me.

I am an employee of Sodexo and have been washing dishes for them for 17 years, twice a week for 3 hours a day. I love being part of the workforce and I do love the activity of it. I have benefited from having someone taking care that I log in correctly, get my apron and gloves on and have a break midway through my shift to have a drink of something. I am hopefully working myself out of this job.

I also am someone who likes to get out of the house so in the past I looked for any community activity that the agency I received services from was offering to get out. I am more selective about my time now and try to do things that will support joyfully becoming the man I am supposed to become now that I have access to typing.

I moved my services to Champlain Community Services about five months ago.  The reason is because I want to start a business that is an offshoot from the great knowledge and experience I gained making a movie about my life.

My movie is called “I am in here; a view of my daily life with good suggestions for improvement from my intelligent mind.”I am ready to meet the world. The wish to make a movie that told the story I needed to share was also a huge lesson in communication for me.

My company is named “Utter Communication Strategies” and with it I hope to do wonderful things. One thing is to share the story of my obviously difficult time with verbal communication.

I am in an exciting new chapter in my life and very eager to succeed yet there are some very big hurdles ahead.

I am aware some of these issues are connected with how people find it hard to get past my wonderful affable character to get to the real me. I am in a body that does not easily connect with my mind and most of what you are seeing is a series of habits I have developed over years when people were unable to access my mind. I am totally into the persona I have fashioned for the first part of my life. I needed a way to share my super positive way of being. My super very Charlie Chaplin-like character has worked so well for me.

How connected to my true thinking, wishes and desires is this character?

Totally unreliable.

I share my life experience through my words. Not the ones I say but the ones I write. I am needing to expand the pool of communication supporters in my life.  I need a wider base of support to hold the understanding that I am a highly intelligent man. The best way this can happen is by people reading my blog. I am hopeful you will share this writing with others and inspire them to sign up to receive my blog posting notices at www.utterenergy.org.”

Now here is the piece that was on VPR as part of Erica Heilman’s Rumble Strip podcast.

Have wonderful sunny days, my friends.

Life is good.

Fondly,

Mark                                                                                           The Wild Word Guy

You Know You’re Famous When You Share Anything with Shakespeare

Dear Beloved Blog Readers,

I am delighted to let you know that Bernie Sanders wasn’t the only Vermonter on the minds of folks in Michigan last week.

My movie “I am in here.” was shown by VSA Michigan in the Cinema Detroit.

Here are the words I wrote to precede the screening:

I am so excited you are about to see a movie I brought to life 3 years ago on March 13th. I am a big Shakespeare fan so I steered my premiere away from the “Ides of March” which is today, the 15th.  It was an auspicious day; especially for Caesar.

On this day, I hope, for you, that your eyes and/or ears will be opened to the idea that a person may have a lot more going on in his head than you think. I was walking around for years having people talk to me like I was a child. This truly drove me mad. It’s not anger that lives in me, but a desire to bring people together to communicate.

You come from so many backgrounds. People with autism and their families. People who make cider like we do in Vermont. People who are blind and visually impaired. And people who just took a chance to check out this Indie movie.

Thank you for being here. I really hope you’ll enjoy it.

Then they saw the movie and heard more of my thoughts:

I am so thankful you saw my movie.

There are copies available here to benefit VSA Michigan and more at my web site to benefit my business.

Please go there and learn more about me and sign up for my blog. Heads up - I’ll be writing about this gig in my next posting and would love to share comments you send me about your experience tonight.

Thank you and have a wonderful night.

Here are a few of the comments I received:

• A person on a board of an Agency for Developmental Services said her “eyes had been opened.” she said “We need to rethink some of our policies.”
• A woman who is blind said “I connect with your movie’s message that people get stuck looking at what’s on the outside instead of really finding out who a person is on the inside. Often, I feel people treat me like I’m stupid.”
• I love that several people commented that the actor playing my “Intelligent Mind” was costumed as I’d really like to look.  That’s true. 
• Susan Fitzmaurice, our host at VSA Michigan and organizer of the event, said "We consider this screening to be very successful. Change will happen on account of it. Bravo!: 

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Long projects are growing. I have registered my business, Utter Communication Strategies, with the state and my business account at Opportunities Credit Union has been opened.

Oh, in the hopes of the growing light I wish you the best luck for all endeavors.

Fondly,

Mark

Working for Change, Like Bernie

The Water of Change is Flowing

Dear Beloved Blog Readers,

I am so happy to be writing you and I have so much to tell you.

I was one of the people who testified at the Vermont State Budget Hearings on February 15th and then again as part of the Vermont Care Partners on the 25th for their press conference at the Vermont Statehouse in the hectic Cedar Creek Room.

What we are interested in, is fixing an agreement that has been broken. The state is not funding things that it’s obligated to run. I know there was an agreement made when the state closed down the Brandon Training School and committed itself to the task of creating centers that support people with disabilities to access their communities.

I have grown up in this era as someone who relies on the services these centers provide. I am therefore an imbedded reporter.

Now that I attend the State Standing Program Committee on Developmental Services I see how hard people work to make things happen with not very much money. And those people have to make tough decisions that result in the people who work with me, a highly intelligent but difficult to access man, getting paid low wages.

I was astounded at the Vermont State Budget Hearings to hear how many other state programs had to get down on their knees and beg for money to adequately fund their work to make life possible and fruitful.

I have two really easy requests.

Please read my speech.

Please go see Michael Moore’s movie “Where to Invade Next?” I’m so glad I saw it. In it you see life in other countries where hot topic items like “Prison”, “Sex Education”, “Paid Vacation” and “Hitler” get handled with less focus on the money spent than the outcomes of good learning experiences and happy, well-adjusted people. But, you know what?  In the end, that costs less too.

I hope some of you are happily returned from vacation.

I trust others of you are planning yours.

Hope your dreams are moving you upward.

Fondly,

Mark

The Utter Advocate for a Good Life for All