Season 2 The Coronapocalypse: Blog 2: Noah

Noah

My friends have always been the best part of me. Samantha McCarthy (S.M.) and Elizabeth Buckley taught me how to love and how to remain positive no matter what happens in life. My former teachers (now co-workers) at Haugland Learning Center, along with my “sisters”, taught me to embrace my autism, and become the confident person I am today. I need friends because they make me better than I would be without them… Little did I know that I was about to make a great one.

A few months ago I was bagging at Kroger. I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around, and it was one of my bosses. “Mitchell,” he said pointing, “Could you help that gentleman around the store.” I look where he was pointing and saw that standing at the customer service desk was a blind man. I walked up to him, introduced myself, helped him get a cart, and started shopping with him.

The blind man was named Noah, and over the course of the shopping trip, I got to know him quite well. He's 27 years old, he’s a musician (a very talented one, I would learn later), and he has dreams of playing on the paralympic soccer team in 2028!

At the end of the shopping trip, Noah asked me if he could have my social media information. He DM’d me about a week later, and we had coffee. We talked about our lives and our respective disabilities and bonded over similar struggles that we have both had. After having coffee a few more times, I texted him on Christmas Day and I asked him if he wanted to hang out again in January.

On Martin Luther King Day, because we both had the day off, I went to Noah’s apartment to listen to music and just hang out. When I got to the apartment building he let me in and lead me to his apartment. It was incredible to watch. He was able to do it with such ease. It was as if he was not blind!

When we got into his apartment we sat down and started to catch up. After a little bit of small talk, I asked him a question. “Hey Noah, I have a proposal for you.”

“Ok, what is it?”

“So you know how I told you my ‘sisters’ have all moved?”

“Yes.”

“Well, we made this friend Marshall, a couple years back and brought him into our friend group. So now that the girls are gone, it's just him and me… We were kind of wondering if you wanted to join our little friend group?”

“Of course” He exclaimed, “I would be happy too!”

As soon as he said that I smiled. I was really happy because I am excited for the new adventures that Marshall Noah and I will go on, and all the things I will learn from the two of them along the way.

Have a Greattastic Day!

J. Mitchie Ulibarri

Season 2 The Coronapocalypse: Blog 1: Blind Man's Bluff

Blind Man's Bluff

I have never really liked sports. They always end the same way, one team is gonna win, one team is gonna lose. As many of you know I'm the oldest of four boys, and unlike me, the other three have always liked/been involved with sports.

There is a middle school close to my house called Ridgeview. Now Ridgeview has a ton of baseball fields. One of the back fields is located right next to a bridge that goes over a train track. Whenever the boys would have a game at Ridgeview I would just walk around, and not really watch the game. But one day when I was about 13, my brother Luke, had a game at that back most field and mom asked me to come and watch the game.

We had run out of chairs so mom gave me the keys to the car and told me that there was a blanket in the trunk. This would be a decision that mom would soon learn to regret. I walked all the way back to the parking lot, got to mom's honda odyssey, opened the trunk, grabbed the blanket, and started to return. I wasn't looking at where I was going when suddenly a baseball fence just appeared out of nowhere and I ran into it. I stepped backward and tripped over myself and fell on my back.

I laid there, contemplating all the bad decisions that led me to this moment. This is when three beautiful girls stood around me in a circle and looked down. The leader of this group of girls asked me if I was okay, and I blushed. There are so many things I could have said, “Yeah I’m ok… I wasn't looking where I was going.” Or “Yeah I'm fine- I'm just kind of a klutz.” But no, I had to be weird. I don't even know where I came up with the idea to say this, but the words that tumbled out of my mouth were, “Umm… Umm…. Umm… I’m blind.” and they believed me!

So these girls picked me up and started leading me around the ball fields trying to help me find my parents. All the while I’m trying to lead them anywhere, but to the bridge where my parents actually are. At the same time my brother Ryan, and the now lead singer in his band, Will were in the batting cages. Will who was about to throw a ball to Ryan, saw me out of the corner of his eye, turned to look at me, and mouthed “What the heck?!” In response, I winked at him and went on my merry way.

I don’t remember exactly how I got out of this specific situation. I would eventually try to pull off the same thing at a later game, where I totally learned my lesson not to pretend I’m something I’m not. The second time I tried this, hoping that some cute girls might come to my aid, an old concerned lady took me to the first aid station insisting that I must be dehydrated!

A few months ago I was bagging at Kroger. I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around, and it was one of my bosses. “Mitchell,” he said pointing, “Could you help that gentleman around the store.” I look where he was pointing and saw that standing at the customer service desk was a blind man…

To be continued

J. Mitchie Ulibarri

New Years Blog 1: I Won A Bet With A CIA Agent

New Years Blog 1:I Won A Bet With A CIA Agent 

Before I actually this blog post I just wanted to update my previous blog, in case you didn’t see my Instagram/Facebook post. Kiera, a 13-year-old who went missing in my community, has been found! Thank you for all the support and please continue to send love and prayers to her family. Without further ado, let's get started.

My family decided that for the week between Christmas and New Years, we would drive down to Florida to see dad's side of the family. This worked ridiculously well for me, for a few reasons. Obviously, I got to see family and a few friends. We went to Epcot which was really fun, and I got to see my friends the Buckleys. An unintended side-effect of going to Florida was I was about to win a blizzard bet!

The girls I grew up with, who I call my “sisters” have had an incredible impact on my life, as you all know. But they're not the only ones in that family who have had such an impact. Their father let's call him Richard, has had a similar impact.

For one thing, Richard is the most sarcastic human being I've ever met. On top of this, he has what he would call in his own words a “sophomoric sense of humor”. If something funny comes into his head, he just says it. The resulting mixture causes some of the most epic dad jokes I've ever heard in my entire life. Being around him so much some of that humor has rubbed off on me.

While Richard’s sense of humor is a huge part of our friendship, we bond over something far bigger. He is an amazing person. Very kind, very understanding, and very humble. He was voted most outstanding Churchman of the year a few years back, and does a lot of charity work, through the Knights of Columbus, and other organizations. I view him as a mentor and someone I can talk to when I make really big mistakes (especially with his daughters, but that's a story for another time).

Richard works at a local bank… At least he claims to work at a local bank. I don't buy that story… I personally believe that he works for the CIA. My reasoning is as follows:

1. He worked as a park ranger when he was younger. I know for a fact he saw a lot of weird stuff, maybe he accidentally solved a case and the CIA was like, “Hey that kids pretty good!”

2. He literally knows everyone- Like if he needs a job done he knows the guy for it. And he's always getting used cars for his kids, from random friends. I feel like all these people he knows, are either people he works with, or people whose lives he has saved, and he is just calling in favors.

I know I have explained the concept of Blizzard bets before, but here's a little refresher. Basically, it's exactly what it sounds like. You make a bet on a Dairy Queen Blizzard.

About 4 years ago I was over at my “sisters” house and I was singing “Here Comes the Sun”. Richard asked me “Who sings that?” I energetically answered the Beatles, and without a second of hesitation Richard responded with, “well why don’t you let them!”

Over the next three years, the same situation happened over and over. By the time 2019 came around, I was starting to build up an immunity to it and in March I started getting really cocky.

“You’re never going to get me, old man!” I said dramatically after he failed in getting me to say it.

“I’ll tell you what Mitchell,” Richard said, “I don’t catch you for by January first I owe you a blizzard. But if I or one of my CIA operatives get you to say who wrote a song then you owe me a blizzard!”

It was 11:58 and I called Richard mostly to gloat. When the clock struck midnight, my family started wishing everyone a happy new year. While all this is going on Richard said over the phone, “see what you can do when you put your mind to it, you beat a CIA agent in a bet!” I chuckled to myself not only because I now have bragging rights, but also because I have an amazing friend and mentor in Richard Anderson. 

Have a Greattastic new year! 

J. Mitchie Ulibarri