Sunday, February 10, 2008

never really thought much about the subject of lobotomies...

i spend an hour traveling to work and back home Monday through Friday and enjoy listening to audio books rather than the radio or cds. i listen to all kinds of stuff - usually fiction romance, sci-fi or whatever else gets my attention at the library. i just finished listening to what i thought was fiction, but turned out to be a biography by Howard Dully called My Lobotomy. i don't think i'll ever use the term lobotomy to be funny again. i have been totally blown away by this book. this man describes his life from childhood to adulthood. he was given a lobotomy at the age of 12, because his step mother could not control him and his father was too complacent to object. the lobotomy did not "work" to the step mother's satisfaction so she talked his father in to giving him up as a ward of the state. it's amazing that this man turned out so well. he is in his 50s now and is doing well. i would love to meet him personally and just give him a hug. he worked with Sound Portraits on a documentary of his life which aired on NPR in Novemeber 2005. take a listen - it will take you out of your comfort zone and make you think a little.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5014080

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