See how funny special needs can be, America?

After hearing about that guy Zach Anner who is creaming the competition in Oprah's "Your Own Show" contest, I finally remembered to actually check out his audition video when alert reader Trish reminded me about it. Thanks, Trish! I was vote # 2,681,487.


I found out tonight that it is humanly possibly to laugh and cry at the same time, because that's what I did when I watched this.

First impression: Wow, that guy is handsome.
Second: Wheelchair? What wheelchair? All you can see is Zach's charisma radiating from the screen.
Third: I hope Max turns out to be like him someday—that mind! That sense of humor! (Zach described his cerebral palsy as being "The sexiest of the palsies.")

Besides the fact that Zach has a really good idea for a TV show and is genuinely funny, I adored how self-depracating he is. It feels so, so good to be able to laugh at cerebral palsy (and you know I try). It's also amazing that America could see a guy with disabilities making light of his situation. Message being, people with special needs aren't just people you cock your head at and think "Awwwww." They are not people to pity. They're people with talents, they're people to be admired, they're people who can kick other people's butts in contests, they're people
who have, hel-lo, the same variety of personalities "typical" people do. It's what I say about Max all the time: Look past his physical challenges and you'll see, HIS PERSONALITY IS NOT DISABLED.

Here is Zach's thank-you-world video on YouTube; stop by his channel to see other amusing videos. Dave, honey, I'm sorry, but I think I have a little crush going on here.