#for the record i made this magazine cover in mid-november and it's been sitting in my drafts since them lmao

[armoricaroyalty]

Vivienne Meijer: The Duchess of Laye opens up about her transformation from emo teen to style icon

Before she was the Duchess of Laye, she was just Vivi Meijer, a fourteen-year-old scholarship student at Amorica’s elite Elton Academy. “I never really fit in there,” Meijer says. Armorica’s favorite royal duchess, who turned 22 at the end of February, arrived to our interview right on time, looking stylish and unbothered in crisp white button-down and distressed boyfriend jeans. The classic look is a departure for Meijer, who was most famous for her emotrash mall fashion and purple lipstick until her 2014 engagement to Prince Jacques, third-in-line to the Armorican throne. “Thank god for my stylist,” she says, laughing.

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[blackkudos]

Millie Jackson

Mildred Virginia (Millie) Jackson (born July 15, 1944) is an American singer-songwriter. Six of her albums have been certified gold by the RIAA for over 500,000 copies.

Her vocal performances are often distinguished by long, humorous, and explicit spoken sections in her music, which she started doing on stage to get the attention of the audience. She has also recorded songs in a disco or dance music style and even some country styled songs. She is the mother of Keisha Jackson.

Early life

Born in Thomson, Georgia, Jackson is the daughter of a sharecropper. Her mother died when she was a child and subsequently, she and her father moved to Newark, New Jersey. By the time Jackson was in her mid-teens, she had moved to Brooklyn to live with an aunt. She occasionally worked as a model for magazines like JIVE and Sepia.

Career

Jackson's singing career reportedly began on a dare to enter a 1964 talent contest at Harlem nightclub Smalls Paradise, which she won. Although she first recorded for MGM Records in 1970, she soon left and began a long association with New York-based Spring Records. Working with the label's in-house producer, Raeford Gerald, her first single to chart was 1971's deceptively titled "A Child of God (It's Hard to Believe)," which reached number 22 on the R&B charts. In 1972, Jackson had her first R&B Top Ten single with the follow-up, "Ask Me What You Want", which also reached the pop Top 30, then "My Man, A Sweet Man" reached #7 R&B; all three hits were co-written by Jackson. "My Man, A Sweet Man" retains its popularity today for northern soul enthusiasts and is played on the radio in the UK and quoted as an example from this musical genre as is her 1976 recording, "A House for Sale". The following year brought her biggest single success and her third Top Ten hit, "It Hurts So Good," which made #3 on the R&B charts and #24 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart. The single was featured on the album of the same name and in the blaxploitation film Cleopatra Jones, also appearing on that film's soundtrack along with the song "Love Doctor".

In 1974, she released the album Caught Up, which introduced her innovative style of raunchy rap. The featured release was her version of Luther Ingram's million-seller, "(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right", for which she received two Grammy nominations. By now, she had switched producers to work only with Brad Shapiro, recording at Muscle Shoals Studio in Alabama with the renowned Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section. She continued to record most of her material for Spring there, including the follow-up album, Still Caught Up.

Over the next ten years, Jackson had a string of successful albums and numerous R&B chart entries, the biggest being her 1977 version of Merle Haggard's country hit "If You're Not Back In Love By Monday". That hit single was followed by many more, including her version of the Boney M. song, the disco single, "Never Change Lovers In The Middle of The Night." This single peaked at #33 on the Black Singles chart in 1979.

Jackson recorded an album in 1979 with Isaac Hayes called "Royal Rappin's" and the same year saw her release a double album, "Live And Uncensored", recorded in concert at Los Angeles venue, The Roxy. Jackson also formed and produced the group Facts of Life. They had a major hit in 1976 with "Sometimes" (#3 R&B, #31 Pop).

Jackson found herself without a label when Spring closed down in 1984, but in 1986, she signed with Jive Records in a deal that produced four albums and resulted in further R&B Top Ten hits with "Hot! Wild! Unrestricted! Crazy Love" and "Love Is a Dangerous Game". She appeared on an Elton John track in 1985, "Act Of War", which was a Top 40 hit in the UK, but failed to chart in the USA. In 1991, she wrote, produced and starred in the successful touring play Young Man, Older Woman, based on her album of the same title for Jive.

On November 24, 1994, Jackson appeared in the Thanksgiving episode Feast or Famine of Martin as Florine.

In 2000, her voice featured in "Am I Wrong" by Etienne de Crécy, sampled from her performance in "(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right".

Jackson may be most famous in the internet age for her album covers, which frequently appear on "worst ever" lists. E.S.P. (Extra Sexual Persuasion) features Jackson peering into a crystal ball that accentuates her cleavage; Back to the S t! depicts Jackson sitting on a toilet.

Jackson now runs her own record label, Weird Wreckuds. After a lengthy hiatus from recording, she released her 2001 album, Not For Church Folk, which marked a return to her "tell-it-like-it-is" lyrical style with an Urban contemporary sound. The album features the singles "Butt-A-Cize" (a dance song) and "Leave Me Alone" (a ballad). The album also features a collaboration with rapper Da Brat on the song "In My Life."

Jackson had her own radio show in Dallas, Texas for 13 years. Broadcasting via remote from her home in Atlanta, Jackson worked in afternoon drive-time from 3-6 pm on KKDA 730 AM, until January 6, 2012.

In 2006, five of Jackson's best-selling albums – Millie Jackson (1972), It Hurts So Good (1973), Caught Up (1974), Still Caught Up(1975), and Feelin' Bitchy (1977) – were digitally remastered and released on CD with bonus tracks. All of Jackson's Spring Records-era albums are available from Ace Records in the UK.

An Imitation of Love was re-issued on CD in 2013 by the Funkytowngrooves label in a remastered, expanded edition. Other albums released on the Jive and Ichiban labels remain out of print, though some of those songs appear on compilation CDs.

On February 6, 2012, the documentary, Unsung - The Story of Mildred 'Millie' Jackson aired on the TV One network.

Jackson performed at Washington, D.C.'s historic Howard Theatre on August 3, 2012, and at B.B. King's Blues Club in New York on August 4, 2012. On June 6, 2015 Jackson was inducted into the Official Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame in Clarksdale, MS.

Personal life

She has two children: Keisha Jackson, born in the 1960s before she was married, and son Jerroll born in the late 1970s. She is not related to the Jackson family of singers and musicians from Gary, Indiana.

Discography

AlbumsSingles

"A Little Bit of Something"

"A Child of God (It's Hard to Believe)" (US: #102)

"Ask Me What You Want" (US: #27)

"My Man, A Sweet Man" (US: #42), (US R&B: #7) (UK: #50)

"Breakaway" (US: #110)

"It Hurts So Good" (US: #24), (US R&B: #3)

"I Miss You Baby"

"How Do You Feel the Morning After" (US: #77)

"I'm Through Trying To Prove My Love To You"

"I Got to Try It One Time"

"(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right" (US: #42)

"Leftovers" (US: #87)

"Loving Arms"

"The Rap"

"A House for Sale"

"Bad Risk"

"Feel Like Making Love"

"There You Are"

"I Can't Say Goodbye"

"If You're Not Back in Love By Monday" (US: #43)

"A Love of Your Own"

"All The Way Lover" (US: #102)

"Sweet Music Man" (US R&B #33)

"Keep The Home Fire Burnin'" (US R&B #83)

"Never Change Lovers In The Middle of The Night" (US R&B: #33)

"We Got To Hit It Off" (US R&B #56)

"A Moment's Pleasure" (US R&B #70)

"Kiss You All Over"

"Despair"

"Do You Wanna Make Love" feat. Isaac Hayes (US R&B #30)

"This Is It (Part I) (US R&B #88)

"You Never Cross My Mind"

"I Can't Stop Loving You" (US R&B #62)

"Anybody That Don't Like Millie Jackson"

"I Had to Say It"

"It's Gonna Take Some Time This Time"

"Special Occasion" (US R&B #51)

"Passion"

"E.S.P."

"I Feel Like Walkin' In The Rain" (UK: #55)

"Sister in the System"

"Hot! Wild! Unrestricted! Crazy Love" (US R&B #9) (UK: #99)

"Act of War" feat. Elton John (UK: #32)

"It's A Thang" (US R&B #79)

"Love Is A Dangerous Game" (US R&B #6) (UK: #81)

"An Imitation of Love" (US R&B #58)

"Something You Can Feel" (US R&B #45)

"You Knocked the Love (Right Outta My Heart)"

"Will You Love Me Tomorrow"

"Young Man, Older Woman"

"Living With A Stranger"

"Taking My Life Back"

"Love Quake"

"Check in the Mail"

"Chocolate Brown Eyes"

"Breaking Up Somebody's Home"

"The Lies That We Live"

"Did You Think I Wouldn't Cry"

"Butt-A-Cize"

"Leave Me Alone"

"Black Bitch Crazy"

Wikipedia

[todaynewsstories]

‘Queen of Soul’ Aretha Franklin, 76, dies at home in Detroit

(Reuters) – Aretha Franklin, the preacher’s daughter whose powerful voice made her the long-reigning “Queen of Soul” with such hit songs as “Respect” and “Chain of Fools,” died on Thursday at the age of 76, officials said.

Franklin, who won 18 Grammy Awards and had some 25 gold records, died at her home in Detroit surrounded by family and loved ones, her publicist said. She had been battling advanced pancreatic cancer.

Calling it one of the darkest moments of their lives, Franklin’s family said they were unable to find the appropriate words to express the pain in their hearts.

“We have lost the matriarch and rock of our family. The love she had for her children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews and cousins knew no bounds,” her family said in a statement.

Franklin’s father was a Baptist preacher in Detroit, and the gospel singing she heard in his church was her musical foundation. Her uniquely emotional and powerful voice would put her at the forefront of 1960s soul music along with Otis Redding, Sam Cooke and Wilson Pickett.

Franklin was active in the U.S. civil rights movement and sang at the funeral of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr in 1968.

She also performed at the presidential inaugurations of Barack Obama and Bill Clinton. In 1987, she became the first woman voted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and Rolling Stone magazine in 2010 named her the No. 1 singer of the rock era.

After recording and touring as a young gospel singer, Franklin’s career took a secular turn in 1961 when she signed with Columbia Records. She had only modest success with Columbia, which had trouble classifying her style and tried to steer her toward pop.

She switched to Atlantic Records in the mid-1960s, where producer Jerry Wexler put her powerful voice in a setting that combined gospel, soul and rock, and made her a superstar by letting “the lady wail.” As Franklin put it in her autobiography, she “Aretha-ized” the music.

Singer John Legend called her the greatest vocalist he had ever known. “Salute to the Queen,” he wrote on Twitter.

Fellow singer Diana Ross tweeted: “I’m sitting in prayer for the wonderful golden spirit Aretha Franklin.”

U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on Twitter: “She was a great woman, with a wonderful gift from God, her voice. She will be missed!”

Former President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, issued a statement saying Franklin “helped us feel more connected to each other, more hopeful, more human. And sometimes she helped us just forget about everything else and dance.”

STRING OF HITS

Franklin’s heyday extended into the early 1970s as she dominated the music charts with “I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You),” “Baby, I Love You,” “Chain of Fools,” “Think,” “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” “Do-Right Woman” and “Respect,” a cover of a Redding tune that became a song of empowerment during the civil rights era.

Franklin’s popularity faded, then revived in the mid-1980s with songs such as “Freeway of Love,” a duet with George Michael named “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me),” “Sisters Are Doin’ It for Themselves,” “Who’s Zoomin’ Who?” and a cover of the Rolling Stones’ “Jumpin’ Jack Flash.”

Franklin also inspired a generation of singers.

“Pop music today is rich with glorious gospel voices and women singers in the mold cast by Aretha,” the late Wexler said in his autobiography. “Aretha became a model for people like Chaka Khan, Natalie Cole, Donna Summer, Whitney Houston … The list of her disciples is long.”

Franklin was privately known to be shy, moody, imperious and difficult. She often did not get along with other women singers, including her sisters, could be quick to fire underlings and was erratic when it came to showing up for concerts and appointments.

Aretha Franklin performs during the commemoration of the Elton John AIDS Foundation 25th year fall gala at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City, in New York, November 7, 2017. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton

Franklin often demanded she be paid in cash before performing and took her status as musical royalty seriously. In 2008, Beyonce introduced Tina Turner as “the queen” at the Grammy Awards ceremony, which Franklin decried as “a cheap shot” at her.

PREACHER’S DAUGHTER

Franklin was born March 25, 1942, in Memphis, Tennessee, and raised in Detroit. Her father, the Reverend C.L. Franklin, was respected as a civil rights leader, an early advocate of “black pride” and a friend of King.

But Rev. Franklin had also been arrested for drug possession and, under unexplained circumstances, his wife left him and their five children when Aretha was six. Four years later, Franklin’s mother died and Aretha avoided discussing her parents publicly.

Franklin started touring as a teenager in her father’s gospel show. She got a musical education from gospel greats: the Staple Singers, the Soul Stirrers, James Cleveland and The Mighty Clouds of Joy.

She also came to know jazz and R&B greats invited to the family home, including Cooke, Art Tatum, Dinah Washington, Fats Domino and Bobby Bland.

By 17, she had given birth to two children and later had two other sons. First married to Ted White, who became her manager and publicly abused her, Franklin later married actor Glynn Turman in 1978, but they divorced in 1984.

Franklin, who received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005, was the subject of a singing tribute at the February 2011 Grammy Awards ceremony and a Carnegie Hall tribute concert in early 2017. She did not attend either.

Franklin did not perform regularly for many years, partly because of an aversion to flying after a rough trip in 1982. Instead, she traveled in a customized bus. She often had to cancel shows for health reasons.

In February 2017, she said she would keep recording but retire from touring after a limited run of concerts marking a new album that year, “A Brand New Me,” which featured her doing some of her biggest hits with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

Slideshow (29 Images)

She performed “Natural Woman” at the Kennedy Center Honors in December 2015 in a tribute to songwriter Carole King. Her last live performance was Nov. 7, 2017, for the Elton John AIDS Foundation gala in New York.

Editing by Daniel Wallis, David Gregorio and G Crosse

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Source link

The post ‘Queen of Soul’ Aretha Franklin, 76, dies at home in Detroit appeared first on Today News Stories.

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[newsintodays-blog]

'Queen of Soul' Aretha Franklin, 76, dies at home in Detroit

New Post has been published on http://newsintoday.info/2018/08/16/queen-of-soul-aretha-franklin-76-dies-at-home-in-detroit-2/

'Queen of Soul' Aretha Franklin, 76, dies at home in Detroit

(Reuters) – Aretha Franklin, the preacher’s daughter whose powerful voice made her the long-reigning “Queen of Soul” with such hit songs as “Respect” and “Chain of Fools,” died on Thursday at the age of 76, officials said.

Franklin, who won 18 Grammy Awards and had some 25 gold records, died at her home in Detroit surrounded by family and loved ones, her publicist said. She had been battling advanced pancreatic cancer.

Calling it one of the darkest moments of their lives, Franklin’s family said they were unable to find the appropriate words to express the pain in their hearts.

“We have lost the matriarch and rock of our family. The love she had for her children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews and cousins knew no bounds,” her family said in a statement.

Franklin’s father was a Baptist preacher in Detroit, and the gospel singing she heard in his church was her musical foundation. Her uniquely emotional and powerful voice would put her at the forefront of 1960s soul music along with Otis Redding, Sam Cooke and Wilson Pickett.

Franklin was active in the U.S. civil rights movement and sang at the funeral of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr in 1968.

She also performed at the presidential inaugurations of Barack Obama and Bill Clinton. In 1987, she became the first woman voted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and Rolling Stone magazine in 2010 named her the No. 1 singer of the rock era.

After recording and touring as a young gospel singer, Franklin’s career took a secular turn in 1961 when she signed with Columbia Records. She had only modest success with Columbia, which had trouble classifying her style and tried to steer her toward pop.

She switched to Atlantic Records in the mid-1960s, where producer Jerry Wexler put her powerful voice in a setting that combined gospel, soul and rock, and made her a superstar by letting “the lady wail.” As Franklin put it in her autobiography, she “Aretha-ized” the music.

Singer John Legend called her the greatest vocalist he had ever known. “Salute to the Queen,” he wrote on Twitter.

Fellow singer Diana Ross tweeted: “I’m sitting in prayer for the wonderful golden spirit Aretha Franklin.”

U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on Twitter: “She was a great woman, with a wonderful gift from God, her voice. She will be missed!”

Former President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, issued a statement saying Franklin “helped us feel more connected to each other, more hopeful, more human. And sometimes she helped us just forget about everything else and dance.”

STRING OF HITS

Franklin’s heyday extended into the early 1970s as she dominated the music charts with “I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You),” “Baby, I Love You,” “Chain of Fools,” “Think,” “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” “Do-Right Woman” and “Respect,” a cover of a Redding tune that became a song of empowerment during the civil rights era.

Franklin’s popularity faded, then revived in the mid-1980s with songs such as “Freeway of Love,” a duet with George Michael named “I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me),” “Sisters Are Doin’ It for Themselves,” “Who’s Zoomin’ Who?” and a cover of the Rolling Stones’ “Jumpin’ Jack Flash.”

Franklin also inspired a generation of singers.

“Pop music today is rich with glorious gospel voices and women singers in the mold cast by Aretha,” the late Wexler said in his autobiography. “Aretha became a model for people like Chaka Khan, Natalie Cole, Donna Summer, Whitney Houston … The list of her disciples is long.”

Franklin was privately known to be shy, moody, imperious and difficult. She often did not get along with other women singers, including her sisters, could be quick to fire underlings and was erratic when it came to showing up for concerts and appointments.

Aretha Franklin performs during the commemoration of the Elton John AIDS Foundation 25th year fall gala at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City, in New York, November 7, 2017. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton

Franklin often demanded she be paid in cash before performing and took her status as musical royalty seriously. In 2008, Beyonce introduced Tina Turner as “the queen” at the Grammy Awards ceremony, which Franklin decried as “a cheap shot” at her.

PREACHER’S DAUGHTER

Franklin was born March 25, 1942, in Memphis, Tennessee, and raised in Detroit. Her father, the Reverend C.L. Franklin, was respected as a civil rights leader, an early advocate of “black pride” and a friend of King.

But Rev. Franklin had also been arrested for drug possession and, under unexplained circumstances, his wife left him and their five children when Aretha was six. Four years later, Franklin’s mother died and Aretha avoided discussing her parents publicly.

Franklin started touring as a teenager in her father’s gospel show. She got a musical education from gospel greats: the Staple Singers, the Soul Stirrers, James Cleveland and The Mighty Clouds of Joy.

She also came to know jazz and R&B greats invited to the family home, including Cooke, Art Tatum, Dinah Washington, Fats Domino and Bobby Bland.

By 17, she had given birth to two children and later had two other sons. First married to Ted White, who became her manager and publicly abused her, Franklin later married actor Glynn Turman in 1978, but they divorced in 1984.

Franklin, who received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005, was the subject of a singing tribute at the February 2011 Grammy Awards ceremony and a Carnegie Hall tribute concert in early 2017. She did not attend either.

Franklin did not perform regularly for many years, partly because of an aversion to flying after a rough trip in 1982. Instead, she traveled in a customized bus. She often had to cancel shows for health reasons.

In February 2017, she said she would keep recording but retire from touring after a limited run of concerts marking a new album that year, “A Brand New Me,” which featured her doing some of her biggest hits with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

Slideshow (29 Images)

She performed “Natural Woman” at the Kennedy Center Honors in December 2015 in a tribute to songwriter Carole King. Her last live performance was Nov. 7, 2017, for the Elton John AIDS Foundation gala in New York.

Editing by Daniel Wallis, David Gregorio and G Crosse

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Source link

[type2diabetestreatments-blog]

Diabetes Polar Flight, Take-Off Today!

New Post has been published on http://type2diabetestreatment.net/diabetes-mellitus/diabetes-polar-flight-take-off-today/

Diabetes Polar Flight, Take-Off Today!

I first "met" Douglas Cairns (via phone) when I interviewed him in college for a teen diabetes website. Douglas has an incredible story and I'm excited to hear he's off on another adventure!

After getting kicked out of the Royal Air Force when he was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age 25, Douglas didn't give up on his passion for flying. Living in Taiwan, he began flying with the Thai Flying Club, and later learned that it was legal to privately fly in the United States with diabetes. In 2003, Douglas launched the Diabetes World Flight (DWF), the first round-the-world flight by a licensed pilot with type 1 diabetes. The journey covered 26,300 nautical miles through 22 countries over five months in a twin-engine aircraft, and raised $26,000 for JDRF.

Today, Douglas is launching a new attempt to set a speed record to the North Pole. When we spoke recently, Douglas shared how he'll do it and why he does it. To follow his trip at home, you can visit Diabetes Polar Flight.

DM) The last time we spoke was in the mid or early 2000s, and I hear you've been breaking records since then?

I think we spoke after the around the world tour, [so around 2005 or 2006]. Since then I came back to the UK from the US in November 2007, back to London, and back to the asset management industry... I've decided to make the flying with diabetes my focus in my spare time. I've ended up doing some really exciting projects because of this. I think when we last spoke, I had probably set 5 speed records in the US and two transcontinental records.

I've broken two very, very interesting records in the US using a twin engine Beech Baron. I broke an existing record to land in all 48 continuous states in the US which, was a race against time. The last record was five and half days and we managed to break it in 4.5 days. I was really delighted with that. I had two pilots with diabetes, myself and a friend with type 2 but he's on insulin, so he has the same protocol to meet when flying.

Last year, I also broke the old record to land in all 50 states. The last record was over 15 days, and I did it in 5 days and 15 hours, so I really smashed that. I had to install extra fuel intakes to allow for a 14.5 hour flight between Hawaii and Los Angeles. I also had an official observer to record all the landings, and a technical crew member to look over all the systems.

I bet the Air Force is regretting losing you, now that you're a celebrated pilot.

I was delighted last month to receive an award for that flight from the National Aeronautic Association. They basically recognized it as one of the most memorable aviation records of 2010. It was a real honor and a pleasure. It was great to stand up for about 5 minutes and explain why I'm doing all these record flights... showing what you can do with diabetes, rather than be told what you cannot do when it comes to flying. Only five countries will allow private flying for pilots with type 1, and the US is the only country that has unrestricted pilots privileges for people with type 1 diabetes.

I'm really trying to get out positive messages. Showing what you can do and also really highlighting a key message that diabetes need not limit the scope of people's dreams and ambitions.

Tell us about the flight you're launching on April 18 (today!) to the North Pole.

I've been planning a flight to the North Pole in the Beech Baron in 2005, and nearly did it in 2006 but funding fell through. One of the benefits of going back to work was that I can help finance these trips myself now. I do have some sponsorship, but the aim is to have all the flying costs funded by private funds and sponsorships, so any donations made go directly to JDRF.

This particular project has two aims. First, to set a world speed record from Barrow, Alaska and the North Pole, and the second is to make the first-ever landing at the North Pole in a light twin engine piston parrot aircraft. We cannot find anyone who's done it before, so we're trying to register this as another unique aspect of this record flight.

But really the key aim that it comes back to is flying solo with diabetes. It'll be an endurance flight, taking 16 hours to complete. The aircraft has extra fuel tanks to allow me 20 hours of cruising time. There's also the added challenge that you're in an extremely cold, isolated environment. So we're really highlighting what you can do with diabetes when it comes to flying.

Sounds pretty dangerous / crazy...?

It's a pretty extreme project, but we've made a huge amount of preparation going into this. And I'm working very closely with an arctic aviator called Ron Sheardon. I'm hoping very much that he will have a single engine plane to fly up to the North Pole. If he does, he'll fly up ahead of me [with another person] in a single engine plane with skis on and he'll find a suitable piece of ice. That will allow me to land on a 2,000 foot strip of ice and it will be cold enough to use the breaks effectively. I've done the training in Alaska and I'm feeling comfortable enough to do it with two people on the ice, having prepared a strip beforehand. And after the training, because there are no trees getting in the way (it's the North Pole!), it should be a relatively straightforward experience. But if Ron cannot get a hold of an aircraft and prepare the ice, I'm going to do this flight solo, flying over magnetic north pole and the geographic north pole, but I won't land because the risk is just too great not having a strip prepared for me.

So how do you manage diabetes while flying for 16 hours straight, with no stops?

In fact, it's very straightforward. I'll have a supply of water, sweet drinks if my sugar's trending a bit lower, sandwiches and snack bars. The protocol is to test 15 minutes before take off, every hour while flying and 30 minutes before landing. Your blood sugar range needs to fall between 100 to 300 mg/dl. It's a very wide, workable range. If you're above 300, you need to land as soon as practical. In over 10 years of flying, not once have I gone above 300 and I have no intention of doing so. If you're under 100, you don't need to land, but you do need to ingest 20 grams of carbs.

The flying issue is really interesting, because when you're flying you can fly straight and level for quite a number of seconds with your hands off the controls. Similar to sailing, you can "trim" the controls so the plane can carry on flying straight and level. It might begin to gradually wander off, and if you're in turbulent air, that will happen. I also have an auto-pilot on the aircraft, so you can sit back and relax and just monitor your settings. It's like sitting at a kitchen table and testing your blood sugar then.

What diabetes tools do you use?

I'm delighted to have support from Roche's Accu-chek Mobile meter. It's all self-contained. A little test strip is rolled out, and the finger pricker is attached to the meter. But even if you're using a more old-fashioned meter, where you have to insert strip and have a separate finger stick, you can do it step by step. You can take your hands off the controls and do one step, and then put your hands back on the wheel.

Although it's not required, I also use a continuous glucose monitor. I'm very happy to work with DexCom and use one of their Seven Plus CGMs. The beauty of that is that I have a velcro strip on the back of that monitor and I attach it to the instrument panel so I can just press a button as often as I like to see my blood sugar levels and trends. By combining CGM and blood testing every hour, I can absolutely guarantee that I will not go low. It really works terrifically well.

Isn't the BG testing distracting?

When you're flying for a long period of time, there are certain cockpit checks and procedures you need to go through to monitor everything. The diabetes management and testing just becomes part of your cockpit test regime.

What kind of advocacy have you done on behalf of other pilots? Have any other countries begun allowing pilots with diabetes to fly?

In terms of advocacy, my main aims are to get awareness out and show what we do with diabetes, through the aviation magazines and other channels.

We have a group in the UK called Pilots with Diabetes. The aim is to really help open doors for the British Aviation Authority to become more flexible. We have been proposing ideas for commercial flying. We've attended meetings to highlight what we're doing and how we can do this. So we're quietly working away here, and anyone anywhere else can get in touch with us.

I did act as a witness for a gentleman in Australia, who was getting a consideration to fly solo in Australia. This was a number of years ago, about 2005. Funny enough, I phoned up the tribunal hearing in Melbourne or Canberra, Australia. I was just standing by my aircraft, about to hop in it, at night time by myself, over the Rocky mountains flying back to Denver. I was able to relay all this and I was delighted that the review panel decreed that that gentleman could then also fly solo.

Australia has since then amended their policies, though I don't know the exact details, but I understand they are a bit more flexible now.

In which countries are PWDs allowed to fly solo?

Now it is the US, Canada, the UK, Australia and we understand Israel as well. All the other countries outside the US have some restrictions we're aware of. In the UK, you can only fly alone in a single engine plane below a certain weight and it needs to be during daylight. Canada has similar restrictions, although you may be allowed to have one passenger. In America, there are no restrictions. You can fly what you like, where you like, whatever you like, and in whatever conditions you like as long as they're safe. In Australia, we understand that you're only allowed to fly with a safety pilot, which of course takes the freedom away to fly, and they're telling you that you're not safe unless you have a chaperone. Of course, we know this is not the case because in America, we have over 1,000 pilots flying on the system with Pilots with Diabetes, and they've been doing this safely and effectively since 1997.

Once you're done with the trip to the North Pole - which I just think is really cool, say hi to Santa for me - what are you planning on doing after that? What's the next big thing?

The next big thing is: I would like to break a record here in the UK, specifically the existing record to fly around the coast of the UK. So that's 3,500 km. I'd like to do that this summer, in a single engine aircraft. I do have other goals in mind, but I'm going to keep them quiet because I don't want anyone to get the same idea. There are more endurance records I would like to break in the US. The North Pole flight I'm doing now is setting a brand new record, since that one doesn't exist yet!

What is it about setting about world records that changes the game for people with diabetes?

For all those aviation authorities that prevent people like me from flying, setting and breaking world speed records is kind of an official way to showcase what we can do — because in their countries they wouldn't even allow a person with diabetes to sit in the plane and fly it. Setting and breaking records is a very nice way of getting recognition. It's a nice challenging project that has a nice achievement attached to it.

That's putting it mildly, Douglas! You rock. Readers: don't forget to follow Douglas at Diabetes Polar Flight.

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Disclaimer

This content is created for Diabetes Mine, a consumer health blog focused on the diabetes community. The content is not medically reviewed and doesn't adhere to Healthline's editorial guidelines. For more information about Healthline's partnership with Diabetes Mine, please click here.

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