Remember when I said it takes me forever to learn anything new? I wasn’t just “whistling dixie” (as my mom used to say, whatever that means).

I’m on a warp-speed learning curve at the moment, and given how fast we put this webinar thing together, I’m actually pretty happy with it (and yes, kind of proud. At least you could hear both me and Melissa Orlov, my special guest, and that’s the main thing. That, and the info is gold!).

I also admit that I’m pretty proud that last night’s ADHD, Anger, and Marriage was not only mine, but Psych Central’s 1st-ever webinar. How cool is that?!

My guest, Melissa Orlov, was superb. I admire her calm, cool, and collected manner; her depth of knowledge and her warmth; she was the perfect choice as my first guest. (she even laughed at my jokes, bonus!)

Melissa and I will be presenting again on Thursday, May 24 @ 8 p.m. EST, details coming soon.

For those of you who missed last night’s webinar, ADHD, Anger, and Marriage,
here’s a link to the audio
I’m sorry there aren’t any spiffy visuals, but hey, I’m new at this! It was my maiden voyage, so please cut me some slack.

Webinar Thurs., May 10 w/Zoë Kessler and Melissa Orlov

I’m super-excited to be presenting a webinar this Thursday (May 10th) with author Melissa Orlov, whom I recently interviewed. When I spoke with Melissa, it was abundantly clear that she’s a wonderful resource, so I asked if she’d be interested in co-presenting with me.

Much to my delight, she said yes!

In classic be-careful-what-you-ask-for style, instead of working on my book tonight, I’ve spent 6 hours setting up the webinar (one of two we’ll be doing this month, unless I turn out to be so incompetent she dumps me!) using a platform I’ve never used before; writing the webinar description, e-mail notices and Tweets to let everyone know about it; re-sizing and cropping photos for same; updating my website pages; talking to Melissa; e-mailing Dr. Grohol here at Psych Central (we’re hosting it); and so on.

Today is May 1st, Beltane. What better time to review the status of my balcony garden?

As some of you know, I’ve blogged about my balcony garden since I first conceived of it. I’ve been looking at its progress (or lack thereof) as a metaphor for my life and in particular, for my ADHD symptoms.

Last year, the balcony was in dire need of repair. After having received numerous assurances from my former landlady that she would make the necessary repairs, she instead sold the property, as is, out from under my feet.

I just got home from a visit with my friend Dave. Even though I’d spent (three times) longer with Dave than I’d planned, it was well worth it. I walked home with a bounce in my step, feeling refreshed and relieved.

I’d been able to express things to Dave that I’d been only half-aware of; things that have been burbling around in the background, waiting to be shared with someone who spoke my language.

Talking to Dave is always a voyage of discovery, unlike speaking with anyone else except – another person with ADHD.

I was having a great day. Then, I sat down to fill out a form. It was a week overdue, but I called the company that was waiting for it, and bought myself more time.

Things were humming along grandly, then Whammo! I hit page two. Page two contained a line of legalese which meant nothing to me, yet I was supposed to check yes or no. Yes or no to a statement I understood about as well as I understood William Shatner in Incubus (shot entirely in Esperanto). It took three phone calls to find out that no one at the company wanting me to answer this question had any clue what it meant either.

I’ve written before about the work of Dr. Timothy Bilkey, a leading Canadian authority on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Bilkey has assessed over 3,400 patients for ADHD at his clinics.

This month, Bilkey has released his second full length documentary, Her Fast Mind. This film, useful to educators, families and physicians, as well as women with ADHD themselves, explores ADHD across the lifespan as it specifically presents in women. Bilkey debunks the myth of ADHD being a medical condition predominantly affecting males, and shows the important differences in ADHD in women and how these have led to women’s under-diagnosis.

The film includes interviews with special guests yours truly, and filmmaker Karen O’Donnell (A Mind Like Mine). It was produced by Six of One Productions.

The Möbius strip has the mathematical property of being non-orientable. So does my ADHD life... Photo by David Benbennick; licenced under the Creative Commons

I don’t know about you, but before my ADHD diagnosis, my life was kind of like an Escher painting: lots of elements looked normal, but the big picture was definitely screwed up.

I particularly relate to the drawing where you’re not sure if the figures are walking down the stairs, or up the stairs, or both. It’s disorienting; it’s anxiety-provoking; the perspective leaves you feeling slightly off-kilter.

If you have undiagnosed ADHD and you see these works, something inside you screams: Hey! That’s me! Continuously moving, but never getting anywhere!

Fire’s burning, fire’s burning
Draw nearer, draw nearer…

A while ago, I reminisced about good times as a Girl Guide. I have very few childhood memories, but incredibly, 40 years later, I can still tie a clove hitch, and I’m a mean fire pit architect: I can build it teepee-style or log cabin.

I’m amazed that I can still remember these things, not to mention the indelible memory of the night we had a séance to channel Lord Baden Powell (the Guiding Founder).

My friend Keri went into a trance and channeled Baden Powell, and we all peppered him/her with questions, only stopping when she went white as a ghost and nearly passed out, scaring the beejeezus out of all of us. What I don’t remember is how we got away with that, right in the Trillium Hall. No doubt about it: Girl Guides was cool.

It was also the perfect place for a hyperactive Chick A-D-D like me.

Happy 2012 from Zoë & Samantha (Photo: ©Jake Chegahno, 2011)

I’ve been enjoying the “Top 10″ lists of my fellow bloggers, so I decided to take stock of what rocked ADHD from A to Zoë visitors in 2011.

Judging from the top 3 titles, we’re a touchy-feely bunch with a practical side, and we love to laugh. The top 3 spots are funny, pragmatic, and sexy, in that order.

The remainder of the list follows suit. We’re also philosophical and reflective (Posts #6 and #7). A pretty well-rounded bunch, if you ask me!

Try as I might, I just can’t find my funny bone. God knows, I’ve tried. There have been a couple of funny moments, though. Like the time I found myself absently staring into a snow globe trying to predict the future. I’d had a terrible cold for several days, and finally tried to suppress my cough with evil cough syrup (something I never, ever use). Giving in to my ADHD traits of addictive personality and inability to think things through, I took not one – but three – teaspoons at once (it was a bad cough, I irrationally reasoned).