SOARing

Today I completed the first of two full days of SOAR training.  Nobody seems to remember what SOAR is an acronym for, but basically it’s a new way of helping people apply for SSI (Supplemental Security Income) or SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance), requiring more work on the “coach’s” part but, properly accomplished, getting them approved within 40 days, not two or three years.  There were a lot of good people there, but I was the only one (a) receiving SSDI and (b) technically homeless.  Again, my expertise in both areas and my glorious amount of knowledge from the inside (patting myself on the back, not really going there) has been of a great amount of value.  (I also found that I got stiffed for about 5 months of SSDI, unless the rules changed between then and now.)

All these people were interested in helping others.  And all of them were very busy people.  And nearly all of them worked for an organization with more than a few million dollars per year of income.  I might be able to talk myself into a part-time job actually helping people…  I’ll keep it on the down-low until later in tomorrow’s training.

This has been hard on me.  I have had to stay awake over 24 hours, and just got up from a nearly 6-hour nap.  I hope to get a few more hours in before I have to catch the (ugh) MORNING bus to get back to the second day’s training session.  I sort of did OK today.. might have talked a bit much, but nobody SEEMED to mind.  Hope my perception is accurate.  I also missed my weekly Asheville Homeless Network meeting, but since AHN was paying for me to go to this training they were expecting that.

I managed to wake up early enough tonight to catch Frankie awake still, and we got through a few more chapters of the book we are reading (I am reading to her, over the phone).  We have gotten through 10 of the 11 books in this series, and are up to Chapter 7 of the last book.  We’re going to have to move to a different series when we get done here.  I must say, having Frankie to talk to every day helps me as much as it does her.  She’s pretty close to homebound, and I’m pretty close to isolated, and she’s a wonderful friend.  Had to say something, she’s been saying too many nice things about me on her blog lately, LOL.

Hugs,
Me