Posts Tagged ‘community’
Meet Your Neighbor: Ladder Up & Get My Payment Illinois Coalition
Despite reports of a possible second round of Economic Impact Payments, many Illinois residents have not even received their first payment. Although $266 billion has been paid out to 158 million households, many individuals who need financial help in the wake of COVID-19 have been unable to access stimulus payments. Recently, we spoke with Christine Cheng of Ladder Up about their involvement with the Get My Payment Illinois coalition.
Can you tell us a little bit about Ladder Up and the Get My Payment Illinois coalition?
At Ladder Up, we give hardworking people access to the tools they need to move up the economic ladder by providing free tax preparation, legal counsel, college financial aid assistance, and financial education.
The Get My Payment Illinois Coalition was formed as a way to help ensure that as many Illinois residents as possible can access accurate and relevant information to secure the federal economic impact payments included as part of the CARES Act that passed in late March. These one-time stimulus payments are worth up to $1,200 for eligible individuals but many of the individuals who need these payments the most are those least likely to receive them. This includes individuals who make less than $12,200 and are not required to file taxes, people experiencing homelessness, people who do not have a bank account, and people who lack access to the internet.
The Get My Payment Illinois Coalition comprises several nonprofit organizations – the Economic Awareness Council, New America Chicago, Heartland Alliance, Heartland Human Care Services, Woodstock Institute, and Ladder Up.
It is estimated that approximately 392,000 Illinoisans did not receive their stimulus payment through the IRS. Can you explain some of the logistical issues and reasons for this delay in payment?
The estimate cited here is the number of Illinoisans who will not receive the stimulus payment automatically (i.e. because they do not have a 2018 or 2019 tax return on file or they are not Social Security, Railroad Retirement, or VA benefits recipients). See this report for more information.
This population of Illinoisans who will not receive an automatic stimulus payment will need to submit their information to the IRS using the IRS non-filer website, which is found at https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/non-filers-enter-payment-info-here. Individuals in this population include those who are below the tax-filing threshold and thus do not have a 2018 or 2019 return on file.
Some individuals within this population have submitted their information through the IRS non-filer site and successfully received their stimulus payments. However, there remain a significant number of individuals who have yet to do so, in part because of barriers including:
- Lack of awareness that they are eligible for the payment and/or knowledge of how to secure it
- Lack of access to the internet to be able to submit the information online
- Lack of a stable mailing address at which to receive the payment (i.e. for those experiencing homelessness)
How has this negatively impacted Illinois residents?
Many Illinois residents were experiencing poverty before the pandemic hit, and many more residents are now experiencing economic hardship due to the economic impacts of COVID-19. These stimulus payments serve to meet basic needs in many cases, and delays in receiving the payment negatively impact people’s ability to provide for themselves and their families.
How is the Get My Payment Illinois Coalition working to resolve this situation for residents?
The Coalition operates an informational website (www.GetMyPaymentIL.org) and staffs an email help desk (help@getmypaymentil.org) as well as a telephone hotline (888-553-9777) to address questions. The website highlights payment eligibility and provides answers to many frequently asked questions. It also provides information about safe, low-cost banking options available through the Bank On program and tax help.
The Coalition also provides training for nonprofit organizations seeking to increase access to the stimulus payments for the clients they serve.
We are also sharing our experiences with decision-makers and other stakeholders – highlighting barriers to getting the payment, lifting up potential solutions to these issues, and featuring the stories of people who have had difficulty accessing their payment that we all can learn from.
What steps can people who have not received their stimulus payments take to reconcile this situation?
It will be important for them to first establish if they need to take any action to receive the payment, and if so, which specific action they need to take.
For instance, if someone is not set to receive the payment automatically, they should then determine if they have a tax-filing requirement – if so, they should seek to file their 2019 return as soon as possible, electing to e-file their return if possible as the IRS is experiencing significant delays in processing mailed paper returns.
If they do not have a tax-filing requirement and would not stand to receive a refund if they did file a return, then they should submit their information to the IRS using the IRS non-filer site as soon as they can to register for payment.
There are many unique situations, and we will continue helping Illinoisans overcome the various obstacles between them and the payments they deserve. More information is available at getmypaymentil.org/ or by contacting the Coalition at help@getmypaymentil.org or (888) 553-9777.
Thank you for your time!
We would like to thank Christine Cheng of Ladder Up for her time and input. If you have comments or know an organization we should feature, please suggest them in the comments section below or via our Facebook page. (You can email us via this contact form)
And as always, thanks for reading!
EVENT: Raks Inferno 6/26 Fundraiser for Lighthouse Foundation
(Special thanks to Dawn Xiana Moon of Raks Geek for her efforts and her contribution to this post).
This past week, I posted my interview with Karlyn Meyer of Lighthouse Foundation focusing on their work with the black LGTBQ+ community in Chicago. Although I briefly mentioned an upcoming fundraiser, I wanted to provide more information.
This Friday, June 26th, at 8 pm, Raks Inferno (a production of Raks Geek) is holding an online fundraiser on Facebook. The Raks Inferno: BLM & Pride Solidarity event will be live-streamed via Facebook, and will feature belly dance, fire spinning, and other performance arts. Recently, I asked Dawn Xiana Moon (director of Raks Geek) about their event, and she graciously provided the following:
Raks Geek (and thus Raks Inferno, which is a Raks Geek project) has never been quiet about racial injustice, LGBTQ+ equality, or the fact that trans rights are human rights. It’s personal: Most of us are LGBTQ+, and most of us are POC (specifically, Asian American). Our very bodies are politicized, whether we want them to be or not.
One of our missions is to give back to our community; we regularly partner with local non-profits to raise awareness of the work they’re doing and help them raise funds. Karlyn from Lighthouse Foundation is a good friend of ours, and we’ve been wanting to partner with them; given that this month is Pride and we also wanted to tangibly support the Black Lives Matter movement, it seemed natural to center this show around an organization that advances justice for Black LGBTQ+ people.
Personally, I’m also really excited about our guest performers this month, whom I’ve been hoping to get into a show for a while: Firespinner BK Ellison is one of the organizers of the Chicago Full Moon Jams, and Alseny Sylla has performed with Cirque du Soleil and can jump higher and further than most human beings on the planet. We’re lucky to have them on board!
Please make a point of attending – and donating – this Friday evening.
And as always, thanks for reading!
Meet Your Neighbor: Lighthouse Foundation
(Special thanks to Karlyn Meyer for her time and insights)
In its first year of existence, the Lighthouse Foundation has driven several successful initiatives ranging from assertive advocacy to developing a mutual aid fund to benefit the black LGTBQ+ community. Recently, I spoke with Board President Karlyn Meyer (my old colleague from the Chicago Nerd Social Club) about the Foundation’s origins, its philosophy, and this Friday’s Raks Inferno (a project of Raks Geek) online fundraiser on Facebook.
Can you provide some background on the Lighthouse Foundation?
Lighthouse Foundation (LF) grew out of a community need observed by members of a church. The organizers who have gone on to form the Foundation met through Lighthouse Church UCC, which is a predominately Black, predominately queer and LGBTQIA-affirming faith community led by LF’s Executive Director, Jamie Frazier. So one year ago, there were a number of racist incidents involving Boystown businesses, and they all came to light in relatively quick succession. This hit some major intersections for us as a church, so we did some organizing in response; but at the same time, we did a lot of listening. In the process, we learned two things. One was the sheer depth of macro- and microaggressions, threats to safety, and deep unwelcome experienced by Black queer Chicagoans in Boystown (and beyond). The other was how many people outside the church community supported our work and wanted to join us in this movement. So we launched a nonsectarian nonprofit to move our social-justice work forward.
What motivated you to get involved with the Lighthouse Foundation? What keeps you going?
I’d been a member of Lighthouse Church for almost as long as it’s been around; I love its unapologetic focus on justice and celebration of diversity. So the formation of the Lighthouse Foundation has been a clear and logical application of the values that brought us all together in the first place.
Can you provide some insight into the inner workings of the Foundation – how does it interface with the community? (Both the Lakeview/Boys Town neighborhood as well as specifically the Black LGTBQ+ community)
Lighthouse Foundation has a bifurcated structure. Part one is our caucuses: groups that represent a cross-section of identities within the Chicagoland Black LGBTQ+ community. For example, we have a trans caucus and a 50+ caucus, each led and facilitated by a member of that group. The caucuses raise issues to our leadership–they let us know what they need and what they’re interested in, and provide programming as well. The second part is our direct-action organizing arm, CARE: the Coalition of Allies for Racial Equity. CARE is open to both individuals and organizations–anyone committed to the pursuit of justice for Black LGBTQ+ people. The caucuses are more behind the scenes, with CARE doing the public work.
Our leadership consists of a nine-member strategy team that is primarily Black and queer and includes white “accomplices” (a more active term used in favor of “allies”). Our team includes organizers, clergy, and professionals of many kinds, all sharing a passion for Black queer justice, with Jamie as our Executive Director.
The Foundation has taken a very active stance in advocating for the Black LGTBQ community in Chicago, from security issues at Center on Halsted to creating a Black Queer Mutual Aid Fund in the wake of COVID-19. What are the key issues that Black LGTBQ individuals in Chicago, and what are the challenges in organizing around those issues?
With Black Chicagoans disproportionately affected by COVID-19, disproportionately serving as frontline workers, and many out of work and facing housing insecurity, an immediate need in the pandemic was for financial assistance. With our roots in the Black queer community and our familiarity with the high barrier and inaccessibility of many aid programs, we decided to create the Black Queer Mutual Aid Fund of Chicagoland. Our initial plan was to distribute $100 microgrants, but support of the fund has allowed us to increase this amount. This is completely digital, which is especially helpful because a major challenge in organizing during the pandemic is our inability to gather. We’re thankful that we’ve been able to launch this and other initiatives since going virtual, and that we’ve been able to extend our reach and participation in CARE.
Recently, the Foundation released a guide for white individuals and institutions to assertively help the Foundation. What can we do on a day-to-day basis that moves beyond simply posting hashtags and graphics? How can we make an impact on a smaller scale?
One of the items in that email is a live webinar we just hosted, called Antiracism for White Folks. You’ll find the recording on our Facebook page, and I encourage anyone who is asking this question to watch it. This webinar was run by white members of our strategy team–and I think that’s significant, for two reasons. One is that it’s important for white folks to talk to each other when it comes to the work of antiracism; that education is labor that’s often requested of people of color. But on the flip side, it’s incredibly important to defer to people of color and follow their lead when it comes to working with them for their liberation. I love that Lighthouse Foundation addresses both of these things: It provides spaces where non-Black/non-queer folks can receive that education, clarity, and instruction; and it does so under the direction and agency of Black queer people.
Another very concrete thing people can do is financially support our organization, so we can continue providing trainings like it, mutual aid, programming, and organizing wins. You can donate through the website of our fiscal sponsor, PHIMC, at https://www.phimc.org/donate.
Raks Geek is holding a June 26th online fundraiser to benefit the Lighthouse Foundation. Can you describe some of your other partnerships/collaborations with community organizations?
We’re excited about Raks Geek and grateful that they are providing entertainment that can be experienced at home during the pandemic. Our other partnerships and collaborations have been rich and varied. For example, we’ve worked with public health organizations like Howard Brown for our campaigns; and we’re partnering with the Census for part of our upcoming Black Queer Pride (online) celebration over the 4th of July weekend. But another thing our partnerships look like is our organizational members within CARE. One thing I appreciate about LF is that it’s both nonsectarian and, due to its origins, works with a number of faith communities. Churches have a great deal of power that we’ve all seen used to actively harm LGBTQIA people and maintain racist structures. As progressive churches seek to redress these harms, Lighthouse Foundation serves as a partner to help them take aim at those structures where they continue to be erected; and it provides tools for individuals and nonprofits to deepen their commitment to dismantling them as well.
Finally, do you have anything to tell us that we didn’t think to ask?
We had to adjust our 2020 strategy pretty profoundly in light of the pandemic, and we’re now going strong on digital organizing, programming, and education. If you’d like to be involved with Lighthouse Foundation, your involvement can happen from your laptop, wherever you are. You can join as an individual, on behalf of your faith community, or as the representative of a nonprofit. And if that’s not for you, but you’ve still read this far, we appreciate your time and welcome your support through phimc.org/donate.
We would like to thank Karlyn Meyer for her time and insight, and invite you to leave your comments below or join us via Facebook page. And as always, thanks for reading!
Meet Your Neighbor: ChicagoMutualAid.net
After several months of lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic, many Chicagoans are still facing great financial stresses. Services ranging from the Chicago Public Schools’ meal program to the CTA have been shut down or closed, and many coronavirus relief funds and mutual aid resources are either empty or require updates. With many Chicago residents requiring further services, two tech professionals – a user experience designer and a software developer – built a new online resource…and it all started with a conversation over Slack.
Dawn Xiana Moon (who works as a UX designer and front-end developer) and Leah Neustadt (a software programmer) created ChicagoMutualAid.net, a peer-to-peer site where people can donate funds for other Chicago residents who require assistance. (Chicago residents who are in dire financial need can apply for up to $200 and receive the funds through PayPal, Venmo, CashApp and other services). The site connects donors and recipients randomly and directly, so the organizers do not touch donated funds in any way. Since its launch on June 6th, ChicagoMutualAid.net has already raised almost $1000 for Chicagoans who need emergency financial assistance.
With Dawn building the website and writing copy and Leah handling backend functions, the eventual goal for the site is developing it into an application with a more robust software framework. However, ChicagoMutualAid.net arrives at a very critical time as the city begins reopening. With high unemployment numbers and dwindling and reduced resources, many Chicago residents need help now more than ever. This is an excellent opportunity for Chicago residents to jumpstart recovery as Chicago enters Phase Three of its Coronavirus Reopening Program.
Ways that you can support ChicagoMutualAid.net include both making a direct donation to http://www.chicagomutualaid.net (donations and distributions are run on the honor system) as well as spreading the word via social media (you can even share this post via the sharing links on top). If you have questions, you can contact ChicagoMutualAid.net via email.
As Chicago comes out of both the pandemic and recent protests, many Chicago residents need further help. If charity begins at home, here is a very necessary – and needed – first step for Chicago-area city and suburban residents to kickstart economic and social recovery for those Chicago residents who are feeling especially stressed in the aftermath.
Please leave your comments below or join the conversation on our Facebook page.
And as always, thanks for reading!
Caregivers, COVID-19, and Rethinking “Normal”
Nothing could have prepared me for what my mother said that Thursday afternoon. As her caregiver, I had grown accustomed to unexpected health issues. She had been experiencing some severe issues which included a sore arm and back pain; she and I had both agreed that she might have had a small heart attack. So Mom did what any other person would do: she contacted her primary care physician for a check-up. After all, she was heading that Friday for an echocardiogram anyway…but Mom surprised me with a statement after she got off the phone.
“My doctor wants me to go in for a COVID-19 test,” she casually announced.
She changed her schedule, and on Friday morning, underwent a nasal-pharyngeal test for CVOD-19. She was told that if she was positive, she would receive a call from the Department of Health; if she was negative, she would get an email to consult her online chart.
She received the email late Saturday morning; she was negative.
Caregiving for Mom has been a challenge, working through issues around compassion fatigue and caregiver burnout as well as other life issues. Although I was relatively confident she would test negative (Mom’s only outings were for specific medical tests, since she relies on telemedicine for her regular “visits”), this experience left me a bit disconcerted. My mother had a liver transplant ten years ago and takes immunosuppressing drugs; her other health issues make her particularly vulnerable to potential infections. So that Saturday, I went out for a walk to clear my head and (potentially) pick up some needed items. Soon I put on my mask and headed out…and I regretted the decision.
People in my particular neighborhood congregated in front of the local Starbucks maskless and not conforming to social distancing standards. Worse, I was given strange looks as if I were somehow “violating” some unspoken social norm. Only one couple, as I approached one of my potential errands, cared enough to wear masks, and shared a casual hello. Luckily, one of the businesses I needed to engage in had a sign that declared “NO MASK NO SERVICE.”
On the way home, I stopped by a local restaurant offering to-go only service, and thankfully the staff and fellow customers were all wearing masks. But the experience started me thinking about my past experiences as a caregiver during the current COVID-19 crisis…
As the state slowly begins transitioning to Phase Three of the Restore Illinois plan, many people have engaged in questionable behavior. Memorial Day video showing people congregating in public without any regard for public safety. State legislators filing lawsuits and even suggesting removing Governor Pritzker because the state is “not moving fast enough.” Conspiracy theories about how COVID-19 spread and how it is being used for perceived political advantage. All of these things remind me of how some people when they hear that I am a caregiver, make remarks that are inappropriate like “There’s one caregiver in every family” or “You’re a saint.” (Many of them are outlined in this AARP article on caregiving). These behaviors and attitudes, like many recent behaviors around COVID-19, suggest a particular attitude towards those who are more vulnerable in this pandemic:
“Better you than me; you’re more expendable than I am”
No matter how they excuse or rationalize these statements and actions, the truth remains that they sting. “Essential workers” and health care professionals, like caregivers, are neither saints nor heroes; they are doing their jobs and trying to survive a difficult time. For every statement of empathy, people who avoid responsible behavior during COVID-19 are showing a lack of compassion. With almost 100,000 dead in the United States and nearly 5,000 in Illinois, those wanting things to rush into “normal” are missing the point. For those of us trying to remain relatively “normal”, that goal may not be realistic.
So a humble suggestion: we might wish to consider rethinking what “normal” means, and that “normal” springs from the premise that we are caregivers for each other. Perhaps it is overly idealistic, and there are legitimate economic concerns that are driving reopening the state earlier. However, for those who believe that their “freedom” is being compromised, consider that freedom always balances personal responsibility with the greater good. Not wearing masks through a pandemic is like arguing that wearing seat belts is a personal choice: safety measures protect the greater community as well as the individual. Adopting physical and social distancing practices may be inconvenient, but given Wisconsin’s “second spike” of COVID-19, it may be the wisest strategy for our state’s citizens.
Getting back to “normal” has been at the top of my mind since becoming my mother’s caregiver, and I have had to accept a different sense of “normal.” The week after my March birthday, I was surprised to receive a coffee mug at the last public event I attended. It was unexpected and not given as a birthday gift, but that mug now has special resonance for me as a reminder of what I consider “normal”: the gentle realization that kindness, compassion, and honesty may come in small moments, but are always significant in practice.
Because in this pandemic, nobody is expendable.
What are your thoughts? Please leave your comments down below or join the conversation on our Facebook page. Please note that all comments are moderated.
As always, thanks for reading!
Meet Your Neighbor: Illinois Legal Aid Online
(<Special thanks to Terri Ross and Marcin Gulik of Illinois Legal Aid Online for their time and insights)
One of the consequences of COVID-19 has been an increased reliance on legal assistance around issues like unemployment, immigration, and landlord/tenant issues. Engaging the legal system can be intimidating, and language barriers can make the process even more difficult. After creating a Spanish-language version of their site, Illinois Legal Aid Online recently launched Pomoc Prawna IL, a legal information site geared for Polish-speaking individuals in Chicago. We were fortunate enough to speak to Terri Ross, ILAO’s Executive Director, and Marcin Gulik, their Digital Media Director, about the site.
Teri Ross, Executive Director, Illinois Legal Aid Online
Founded in 2001, Illinois Legal Aid Online provides a library of forms and resources to help people navigate the legal system and make the process less daunting. Many people rarely engage in the legal system directly for a variety of reasons. Some people may be unaware of their rights, and others may find the legal system intimidating with its own unique culture and language. ILAO handles a wide variety of legal issues, including family law, unemployment policy, divorce, landlord/tenant issues (ILAO is one of the agencies behind Rentervention), and immigration concerns. In 2012, ILAO developed a Spanish-language version of their site to better meet the needs of the Latinx community in Chicago. Polish Americans are the second largest population in the area, spread out across key Chicago neighborhoods (like Garfield Ridge and Durning) as well as major suburbs (like Naperville, Tinley Park, Oak Lawn, Schaumburg, and Desplaines). Like Spanish-speaking individuals, Polish-speaking individuals in Chicago have a unique set of specific legal issues that Pomoc Prawna works to address.
Launched in June 2019, Pomoc Prawna IL took an assertive approach in engaging the greater community to guide the site’s development. Initially starting with community interviews and observation, ILAO determined what the community needed and what specific barriers/issues Polish-speaking Chicagoans faced on a regular basis. (One great example is that initially, Polish-Americans were concerned with immigration issues, but are facing more employment-based legal issues in the wake of COVID-19).
As Pomoc Prawna IL was developed, volunteers provided testing and feedback which guided how the site was developed. Usability drives site development in terms of ease of finding information as well as the friendliness and intuitive nature of the site. Given ILAO’s extensive library of information and resources, Pomoc Prawna IL wishes to be more than just a simple translation of materials but a more organic resource for an underserved community. As part of maintaining the site, ILAO continues to solicit feedback from Polish-speaking communities throughout Illinois around the site’s usefulness and identifying service gaps.
As a third-generation Polish-American, I grew up with an awareness that there were some huge differences between me and my grandparents in terms of the larger culture. (It also helps that my father was an attorney). Although Chicago has a rich history involving its Polish community (including the Polish Military Medical Team working with the Illinois National Guard during the current COVID-19 crisis), many cultural issues around engaging legal services still exist. With Pomoc Prawna IL, Illinois Legal Aid Online has made a strong effort to address these issues, as well as provide a well-needed resource during these turbulent times.
Have comments or questions? Please leave them in the space below or join us on our Facebook page.
And as always, thanks for reading!
Telehealth: A Critical Tool in the Wake of Coronavirus
This photo, “2016.04.06 Digital Health Howcove – Telehealth 00108” is copyright (c) 2016 Ted Eytan via Flickr and made available under an Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 license
In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, telehealth has allowed people to engage their primary care physicians remotely while practicing social distancing. With recent changes to FCC and Federal Medicaid/Medicare policy, telehealth is now gaining greater traction and attention. With a recent West Monroe Partners study finding that although 80% of hospitals in the U.S. have some sort of telehealth service, only 18% of 1,000 Chicago residents surveyed used telemedicine services in the past year (and that 73% are open to using telemedicine as an alternative to in-person visits), we talked to Nathan Ray, director in West Monroe Partners’ Healthcare & Life Sciences practice, about the background of their study and why telehealth services are a critical tool.
Photo by Gordon Dymowski
Telehealth services provide physicians the opportunity to more effectively engage and maintain patient relationships as well as provide preventative and treatment options. For example, someone who has initial symptoms of a cold can contact their physician remotely rather than wait until there is a need for in-person intervention. (Triage for coronavirus is one service that can be performed via telehealth services. ) Certain specialized fields like dentistry are great opportunities for telehealth services; fourteen to fifteen (14 – 15) percent of emergency room visits are based on dental emergencies and would be easily preventable through early telehealth intervention. Preventative measures and interventions (like a remote session with a dermatologist about skin issues) become easier for patients through telehealth, and behavioral and mental health issues can be more easily addressed through telehealth services. (One great example are telepsychiatry services recently implemented by the Chicago Department of Public Health).
According to Nathan Ray, Medicaid and Medicare will allow providers to bill and be reimbursed for any type of encounter with patients where health issues can be monitored without the need for an inpatient visit, including physical and behavioral health encounters. Prior to the current coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic, only a few providers were early adopters of telehealth, with many physicians considering it a potential future strategy. There are currently no standard tools or platforms for telehealth as many providers are using readily available online communication tools to provide services, and this can potentially remove barriers to people engaging specific health services (Dental hygienists in rural areas could share charts with remote dentists to provide greater access to patients and lower costs). As more people are stuck in their homes due to coronavirus/COVID-19, telehealth services “reduces the friction” of seeing their physician (as Nathan explained) and lowers the overall cost of primary care visits.
From March 4 to March 16, West Monroe Partners surveyed 1,000 residents in the metropolitan Chicago area (as well as residents in Seattle and Minneapolis) around their use of telehealth services. (Links to infographics are provided) All three cities showed similar results: approximately one out of five residents had used telehealth services, and four out of five would consider using telehealth services. As Nathan Ray explained, physicians who provide telehealth services can not only engage in more preventative measures but also facilitate greater engagement by reducing overall resistance and removing key barriers such as taking time from work and travel expenses. With federal legislation empowering Medicaid/Medicare reimbursement for telehealth services, private and employer-based insurance providers may follow as they observe how Medicaid providers adopt and develop policies around telehealth reimbursement.
Even outside of the current coronavirus/COVID-19 panic, telehealth provides a great opportunity to foster greater engagement and interaction between patients and their primary care providers. With Chicago’s current stay-at-home policy in place, many people rely on telehealth providers as a way to maintain their relationship with their physician, but also as a critical self-care strategy. As my recent conversation with Nathan Ray of West Monroe Partners reveals, telehealth is not only just a critical tool; it also has the potential to shape how health care resources are used. With its potential to reduce resistance towards engaging primary care providers, telehealth has the potential to facilitate a deeper, more productive relationship between patients and their physicians.
Especially after the current crisis ends.
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As always, thanks for writing!
One Cause At a Time - Archive 
Resuming the Linux Laptop Lifestyle
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Earlier this year, I was looking forward to working with my Linux-powered writing laptop. After discussing how I revived several laptops with Linux distros, I managed to be highly productive with thirteen-year-old hardware. Even taking on paid work wasn’t an issue; my Windows laptop focused on work product (some software I use is proprietary to Windows), while my Linux laptop focused on creative endeavors…at least, until June.
My Linux laptop began overheating (it was an older model) and one of the screen/cover hinges fell apart, making it unusable. So my mission because finding – and converting – a new laptop for both writing and creative efforts. My overall goal was still the same: a writing/self-publishing machine that would allow me to craft articles and fiction as well as regular blog posts. Thanks to COVID-19, my normal backup plan of purchasing a machine through Free Geek Chicago was out of the question. (They were closed at the time; they have reopened since then). So I did what anyone else would do: purchase a refurbished laptop.
(You may be wondering why I did not just use my Windows laptop for writing and work. Since I am often working with client materials that are not for public consumption, distinguishing between the two helps me stay focused and productive. Plus, my work laptop, a low budget model purchased at Walmart, has a keyboard that doesn’t quite respond to my fast typing speed – I have to wait about forty-five seconds before I see typed text appear on my keyboard).
My laptop of choice, after considering various models, was a refurbished Lenovo Thinkpad T530. It helped that I was already looking for a Linux-friendly model, but found a great deal via eBay. With a quad-core processor and 12 gigabytes of RAM, this machine was more powerful than I expected. (My last Linux laptop was a dual-core with 4 gigabytes of RAM). Although it has been upgraded to version 20, I chose to reinstall Linux Mint 19.3 – it hasn’t given me any problems and runs very smoothly. Although there are some deficiencies in my Thinkpad (which lacks a Bluetooth card and requires a dongle for connectivity), it works well…especially the keyboard. Many laptop users claim that typing on a Thinkpad is like driving a race car.
I’m writing this blog post on my Thinkpad, and the hype is true. It’s refreshing to see my words appear as I type…but I digress.
Photo by Gordon Dymowski
Having used my Linux laptop regularly for writing in the past two months, I’m finding Linux to be an extremely reliable daily driver. Working with Windows can be frustrating even after “debloating” the operating system. (Many of the privacy concerns around Windows 10 do not make it easier.) However, I have to acknowledge that several software packages that I rely on are Windows-only and do not have any open source equivalents. However. using a separate laptop for work may seem like a luxury (especially in current time), but there is comfort in moving from one laptop to another as a way of indicating that “work” is over. Plus, the Lenovo Thinkpad is a business laptop designed to be sturdier and more customizable, making it ideal for writing and self-publishing.
It would be impractical for everyone to switch over to Linux-based operating systems, but it makes a great way to revive older hardware and extend the life of a given machine. My previous Linux laptop had been initially released in 2008, purchased (refurbished) in 2013, converted to Linux in 2016, and fell apart (to be recycled) in 2020. My Linux-powered Thinkpad model was initially released in 2013 and purchased refurbished in 2020. At a time when recycling and repurposing older hardware is becoming more economically feasible, Linux provides a great opportunity to not only save money but also stay productive and learn about hardware functions.
Please leave your comments below or join the conversation via our Facebook page. Email me directly via this contact page.
And as always, thanks for reading!
Written by gordondym
September 8, 2020 at 4:13 am
Posted in Commentary, Digital Excellence & Literacy, Software, Web-Based Tools
Tagged with community, linux, open source, software, technology