work Archives - Page 2 of 36 - So About What I Said

Monday, April 30, 2018

My Essay on CNN Opinion: “How Could Trump Be So Clueless About Community Colleges?”

I’m not sure what it is with me and writing hot-takes lately, but I’m just going to go with it!! My latest for CNN is about the lifelong benefits of community colleges and how attending one shaped my life. My time there, both as a student and then as adviser to the student newspaper (talk about getting to go home again!), has given me so many fond memories!!

And to think, I got the inspiration for the piece from the guy who lives in the White House! That, umm, seems to be a pattern lately, doesn’t it? Anyway, when I heard that he didn’t understand the value of community colleges, I was floored, to say the least. I know so many people who have gone to community colleges and my formative years were spent in those hallowed halls. I still live close to my alma mater and still love going there every once and awhile. These places of higher learning are so much more than just classrooms and teachers and students — they’re life-changers, the place where you form your path or build the foundation of a new one.

Here’s an excerpt of the piece, because, obviously, I could rave about the wonderfulness of community colleges all day long. You know I can’t say enough good things about them…

So what exactly does “community college” mean? Many things to many people. Different things to different people. It means a chance for a single parent who works full-time to take night classes and work toward a degree. It means someone who’s retired can experience the excitement of continuing education classes. It means someone fresh out of high school can save money on tuition and explore their options while taking general education classes at a two-year college.
And I doubt I’d be the writer I am today if it weren’t for the time I spent as a staff writer (and later, editor-in-chief) of my college’s student newspaper. I was able to get hands-on experience in all facets of newspaper production, from writing to interviewing sources to editing to design, as well as learning leadership skills that extended far beyond the classroom.

You can read the full piece here and I’d love to hear your thoughts. Feel free to email me anytime at mellow1422@aol.com and let’s chat! And of course, feel free to share my essay on Facebook, Twitter or even your local refrigerator. If you share on Twitter, be sure to tag me @melissablake so we can connect! I can’t wait to hear from you! Love you all… xoxo

[Photo via We Heart It]

Wednesday, April 18, 2018

Thoughts on Being a Disability Advocate

Earlier today, I sat in the cafeteria for my usual noon lunch. Between sips of Mountain Dew, I began scrolling through social media and noticed someone had tagged me in one of their posts. She was sharing one of my CNN pieces and in her post, she called me a “disability advocate.”

Me? A disability advocate?

I know no one ever believes celebrities when they get all humble-braggy (and, YES, I’m admittedly cringing as I type this!), but I’m being 100 percent honest when I say that I’ve never thought of myself as a disability advocate. I mean, I’m disabled (obviously!), but to be called an advocate is pretty massive. I’m not so sure I’m deserving of that title in the grand scheme of things because there are SO many amazing people in the disability community who are making a positive impact every day.

A fellow writer interviewed me recently for an article she was writing on incorporating your disability into your personal brand. Such an interesting subject, don’t you think? Honestly, I’m not really sure that I ever made a conscious choice to have my disability be part of my personal brand. My disability is such a part of who I am, so I think it’s only natural that it would be a part of my writing and brand too. My life with a disability and disability issues are two of the main things I write about, in addition to relationships and pop culture. But at the same time, the those three areas (relationships, disabilities and pop culture) are all intertwined because I’ve written relationship pieces that looked at the disability angle and pop culture pieces that looked at disability issues within pop culture. So basically, my disability does permeate many aspects of my life, so the fact that it’s a huge part of my brand isn’t surprising at all.

From the beginning, it was really important for me to find my niche as a writer. I’ve also blogged for almost 10 years and I’ve blogged extensively about my life with a disability. Being so open and vulnerable in sharing my story has helped me grow an audience. I’ve gotten emails from readers who told me that I helped them see things in a different way or let them know they’re not alone. And I’ve even connected with companies who are doing great things for the disability community and it was an honor to be able to write about those companies on my blog and raise awareness when it comes to disability issues that are often overlooked.

My disability is a part of my identity — there’s no denying that or getting around it. I can’t pretend that it doesn’t exist — for one thing, my red wheelchair gives me away right away! So if I can represent the disability community, it’s really important to me that I be a positive voice. There are so many negative stereotypes about people with disabilities and I hope I can shatter even just some of those stereotypes through my writing.

It’s actually incredibly cathartic to write so much about my disability. As much as I write for other people, writing about my disability has also helped me process so much and come to terms with my disability and the role it plays in my life. I also hope people with disabilities see my story and think “if she can do it, I can do it!”

My advice? Everyone has to do what they feel comfortable doing. The important thing is to be yourself; that’s really what branding is all about, so I think it’s important to inject some part of your identity into your brand. Don’t try to pretend to be someone you’re not because people will pick up on that right away. Be authentic and genuine — that’s really what people are drawn to at the end of the day. I think that’s part of the reason people identify and relate to my blog so much. You can’t go wrong when you’re just being yourself!

There’s power in sharing a piece of yourself, and that’s been one of the most rewarding parts of my writing journey over the years! xoxo

[Photos via Unsplash]

Monday, April 16, 2018

How to Follow So About What I Said (Because I Love Celebrating Blog Milestones!)

I haven’t done a blog housekeeping post in almost a year, but today, friends, there is definitely reason to celebrate! And celebrate BIG (or bigly, as a certain someone would say…). That reason? Well, it has everything to do with how you follow So About What I Said…

Two words. That’s the only hint you get.

Ready?

Are you sure?

OK. Here we go.

TRIPLE DIGITS…

After I switched to self-hosted WordPress, I also had to switch some of the ways readers followed my blog. One of the cool new ways was the Subscribe By Email feature, which delivers every blog post directly to your inbox. How easy and convenient is that?

Last week, I hit 100 email subscribers!! Thank you all for reading!!! As I’ve said countless times, it means so much to me! I’m grateful that, after nearly a DECADE, I still have things to say and stories (usually funny, awkward ones!) to share. I sort of live in constant fear that my creative well is going to just dry up one day, but it hasn’t yet! Whew!

Over the last few months, we’ve had an influx of new readers, thanks in part to all those op-eds I’ve been writing for CNN Opinion. If you’re new, I’m so glad you’re here, and I look forward to getting to know you! Be warned, though, because you’re in for quite the shenanigan-filled rollercoaster ride!

And, of course, there are those readers who have been here for years. Honestly, I’m never not humbled by this. Sometimes I wonder why you’d want to stick around, but I’m SO glad you do! I got an email from reader Alexis a couple weeks ago, and I was incredibly touched by her words. She writes…

“I find your writing style to be captivating, your outlook on life refreshing, and you to be an absolute beautiful inspiration. We all could learn so much from you and your infectious spirit! While reading your blog I have laughed, smiled, happy-cried, sad-cried, ugly-cried, and felt a multitude of emotions, lol. It’s been a really crazy past few years for me between break ups and health issues so thank you for providing a nice, positive place to focus on something other than myself, my woes, etc.”

Thank you, Alexis! On those down days, when the words just aren’t coming together right, these are the words I’ll look to for a heaping dose of inspiration! You know, I sure do wish I could show this to a few people who said my blog and my writing is “too much” and didn’t mean it as a compliment.

So the moral of the story today? I *love* this community so much. Thank you! And don’t forget to subscribe by email for more of my confessions and shenanigans!! Because if we can’t ugly-cry today and every day, what’s the point of it all?? Here’s to not being afraid to ugly-cry for the whole world to see!! Love you all… xoxo

Thursday, April 12, 2018

My Essay on CNN Opinion: “What Walmart Doesn’t Get About #MeToo”

I’m continually amazed at the wild ride that is freelance writing! Picture it: I was supposed to be on spring break a couple weeks ago. But when I heard that Walmart was pulling Cosmopolitan magazine from checkout lines, I knew I had to write about it. Grateful that CNN Opinion accepted it!! Guess I just can’t quit this writing thing!

Seriously, though, the idea that Cosmo belongs in the back of the store was just alarming to me. And sexist. And misogynistic. And, basically, it sends the message that women shouldn’t be seen or heard and “need to be put in their place,” which is incredibly scary to think of in 2018. So, I suppose, leave it to me to speak out — did you really expect I’d do anything else?

Here’s an excerpt of the piece, in which I take both Walmart AND the National Center on Sexual Exploitation for their insensitive and misguided co-opting of the #MeToo movement…

In other words, Cosmo is much more than the supposedly smutty sex bible this move by Walmart implies. It’s a teaching tool and fully embraces the needs of its readers. And it asks and swiftly answers the question: What does it mean to be a woman in 2018? The 2018 woman is empowered. She’s emboldened to go for what she wants — both in her work and in her relationships — so why can’t that be celebrated instead of demonized?
Meanwhile, magazines geared toward men, such as Esquire and Sports Illustrated, remain in full view, oftentimes, in those very same checkout lines. What are young women supposed to think when they see magazine covers of women in bikinis front and center and see Cosmo secluded to the back of the store? That women’s bodies should be regarded as shameful instead of celebrated?

Thursday, March 22, 2018

My Essay In The Wall Street Journal: “Stephen Hawking Is Dead, Not ‘Free’”

I was saddened to hear of Stephen Hawking’s death last week. Such a brilliant scientist who made so many strides in advancing our understanding of the universe — and also inspired so many conversations on The Big Bang Theory that I’ll never understand!

But what made me even sadder, and, quite frankly, angry to my core? The response to his death. I’ve seen this meme making the rounds and can’t get over just how insulting it is. Implying that Stephen Hawking is “free” now is incredibly ableist and insulting to people with disabilities!! Guess what?? You can be in a wheelchair AND live a productive, fulfilling, free life.

So I’m sure you can probably guess what I did. Yes, I wrote about it. For THE WALL STREET JOURNAL. I couldn’t quite believe it myself when the editor accepted my essay, but, needless to say, it’s been a dream come true. Never in a million years did I ever think I’d have a byline in such a huge-circulation newspaper!

Here’s an excerpt of the piece, which also appeared in the March 21st print edition of the newspaper…

My wheelchair has carried me—literally—through high school, college and work as a freelance writer. I wouldn’t have been able to do any of this without it. After all, it gives me the ability to travel, go shopping and live independently—activities that might seem routine but can be extremely challenging for people with disabilities.
Maybe that’s why it’s so frustrating to see Hawking’s wheelchair viewed as a prison he has finally escaped. The idea that wheelchairs hold people back is such an outdated misconception; in fact, they do just the opposite. They’re not a hindrance. They’re incredible tools that give people with disabilities new freedom and power—a chance to thrive in an able-bodied world. To see them as anything less is insulting to those who depend on them every day.

After writing this essay and my recent CNN Opinion pieces, I’m remembering just why I love op-ed writing so much. In college, I took a class on editorial and opinion writing. The year was 2004, and, honestly, part of me just took the class because it fulfilled the requirements for my journalism degree. I didn’t think I’d actually come away with a deep love for the writing genre, but that’s exactly what happened. Maybe I should do more of these? It also reminds me of my days as a newspaper columnist, which was a pretty exciting gig!

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