Note: Mandy lives at the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome in Boulder, and is using some of the technology in the SmartHome and in CORE/Labor Source classes to write articles for the Imagine! employee newsletter. Below is her latest contribution. The Magical Christmas Holiday
There was a big rocking chair. It was painted red and green and it was very comfortable. This man sat in it and then put on his red velvety outfit with white furry trim and a big black belt with a shiny buckle. He had four gold buttons going down the front of the red velvet jacket with white furry trim on the cuffs of his sleeves and on the bottom of his pant legs. He had big black shiny boots with a buckle. Every once in a while he would put extra polish on his boots. The polish made them bright and beautiful. His nose was as red as a cherry. He had a long white beard and a red stocking hat with furry white trim. He had a white tassel on the top of his hat. He had a black sack over his shoulder with lots of toys in it for all the good girls and boys. His stomach jiggled and shook as he walked.
There was a little girl walking by. She looked very excited for Christmas day. The little girl walked up with a big smile on her face and said "Hi." Santa patted his knee and asked the little girl to come and sit with him. The girl said, "Sure, I would love to." Santa read "The Night Before Christmas." Then Santa started talking to the little girl about what she wanted for Christmas. The little girl said, "I don't care." Right before the little girl left, Santa asked the little girl if she was interested in helping him put up the Christmas tree. The little girl’s eyes lit up with happiness. The little girl said "I would be delighted to." Santa and the little girl started to put up the tree together.
They put all kind of neat ornaments, garlands, lights, and something that can make the Christmas lights on the Christmas tree blink to the rhythm of the Christmas music that was playing. The girl’s mom had handmade a Christmas carpet to put under the Christmas tree. The carpet had a whole bunch of different Christmas scenes on it. The mom gave the carpet to the little girl and the little girl carried the carpet over to where Santa was sitting. Santa and the little girl helped each other put the carpet under the Christmas tree.
They had one last step they needed to do to help the Christmas tree look complete. They finished by putting the Candy-Canes on the Christmas tree. They were very happy with way it all turned out. They put lots of work into it and made it really nice. The Christmas tree lit up the whole town. The lights were bright as the people walked up and down the street. The children were waiting for Santa to greet them. The little girl had her picture taken with Santa. Then she said, to Santa, "I need to say goodbye." Santa said, "Wait, I have a copy of the book I was reading you, The Night Before Christmas." The little girl said, “Oh thank you" and handed Santa her own Christmas list. She wanted a toy computer and games.
Santa started to practice and prepare for his one special night. He is a star. He only comes once a year. The little ones can see him from afar. He can see up close. Where, nobody knows. He comes around when everyone is asleep and doesn't peep. He brings lots of toys to all the good girls and boys. He drives a car made of candy.
Artist/consumers in Imagine!'s CORE/Labor Source art classes, including SmartHome resident Lana, have completed another project that provided a great community connection. Whole Foods Market, located at 2905 Pearl Street in Boulder, will be displaying tree ornaments created by the artist/consumers. “It was a beautiful simple project that consisted of clear glass ornaments that the students cut up small pieces of tissue paper and glued on with watered down Elmer’s glue,” said Alethea Chorey, Art Instructor for the class. The end result is an ornament that looks like stained glass. 
Imagine!’s latest SmartHome newsletter is online. Check it out by clicking here.
Another VIP has scheduled a tour of Imagine!’s Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome. 
We’ve got a VIP scheduled to tour the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome at the end of the month. Marguerite Salazar, Region VIII Regional Director for the US Department of Health and Human Services is planning on touring to see first hand how technology is changing the lives of some of our most vulnerable citizens. Another example of how interest in what we’re doing continues to grow!
The Circle of Life
A circle is round. You can make many different kinds of things out of a circle. Circles can be made in many different colors and sizes. You can form a circle out of clay with your hands. After you are done you can put it in the oven and then watch it expand and turn it into a cooking pan. You can put the ingredients in the pan and then wait for it to bake and then it will turn into a chocolate cake. Then you have to let it stand and cool and then we put the frosting on it and decorate it. You can decorate the cake with anything you want.
After the cake is done the kids toss it
in their tummies and they say yum,yum,yum
now we have to run. You can make a ball out of a shape of a circle. You can toss the ball in the air and watch it come back. We hope the ball doesn't hit the wall and make something fall. If the ball bounces, I don't know what it counts as. When the ball hits the ground . It doesn't make a sound and it doesn't weigh a pound. you can make a friendship circle. They can be the hardest ones to deal with at times. Because friends can get pretty close and then in the end you may have to close the door and open a new one.
In our efforts to improve our location tracking system in our SmartHomes (which we hope will allow us to better document resident activities based upon data collection) we have been meeting with several companies to determine which system will best meet our needs. Late last week, we met with the good folks from Q-Track and Ubisense to learn about their location systems.
The November issue of ANCOR LINKS features a story submitted by SmartHomes project manager Sterling Wind about how, and more importantly, why, Imagine! incorporated green technologies into its SmartHomes – along with data showing that the decision to go green is already paying dividends! Read the story by clicking the link here (p.13). 
Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome resident Donna just made another blog post. It discusses music, art, poetry, and computers. A true renaissance gal!
Imagine!’s two SmartHomes continue to garner national and even international attention. As the first two homes in the nation to use technology in a comprehensive way to enhance the lives of individuals with developmental disabilities, more and more organizations and thought leaders in the field are recognizing that Imagine!’s innovative and forward-thinking SmartHomes can serve as a model for the future of residential care.
