Hey! Wise Advice for My Butthead Neighbour

I am so irritated I could spit. I wish I was the kinda gal who could chill when people are behaving like total a-holes. It’s one thing if smokers want to kill themselves, go around smelling like ashtrays, become a burden on the health care system which our tax dollars are paying for, make their children sick, loose productivity at work because they are outside caging a smoke…wait, that’s more than one thing…the point is, I only believe minimally in smokers rights, because when their addiction impacts ME and invades my personal space, I have to draw the line! The butthead who recently moved in next door (anorexic-looking twit with a 8-4 job, a stupid boyfriend who makes her squeak when they’re having sex, and a cat that I feel VERY sorry for), might be very quiet tenant (except maybe for all the knocking on her door by people using a ’secret code’ on the door seven thousand times a night, golly gee, is she selling drugs too?!), but it turns out the common wall we share, transmits her cigarette smoke. Great. I pay an obscene amount of rent money for my haven, my oasis, my mecca of personal space…and I am forced to suck up the result of HER addiction. Hey Butthead! Capital District Health Authority is giving FREE smoking cessation aids if you join their program. Com’n babe. You can do it! Quit killing yourself and that stupid cat of yours, and most of all, stop irritating ME...and then maybe I won’t be so inclined to use all of the 200 watts of speaker power (‘Van Morrison Live’ tonight) to blast out my frustration. The fact that my window must be open during a wacky March blizzard, just so that I don’t croak, seems a little silly. Sigh. Maybe I wouldn’t have felt so touchy about the smoking thing tonight, but this morning, I walked by a Metro Transit bus shelter (ironically, it was outside the hospital), and a bunch of QEII hospital employees were using it as a smoking hut. Very nice. Where are you HRM by law enforcement officers?! You guys just blew a $350.00 fine TIMES at least three or four buttheads! If you added up all the potential butthead infractions and collected the fines, maybe we could afford to run this city efficiently. OK, Now I need to put on some music again…let’s see…I really like that John Mayer CD…

Suspicious Minds

You know that the world’s going to Hades in a hand basket when a sad story, such as the one broadcast all over mainstream media today, leaves people feeling so mixed up. Or is it just me? A woman in Nova Scotia drowned a couple of kittens last summer and got fined $5.00 for it in court today. Yeah, yeah…this initial ‘teaser’ lead bit on the radio leaves you thinking…”You crazy, sadistic b..tch! They should drown YOU”. Then, you hear the sad flip-side of the story; she fed a stray cat, fed it some more (The Cat Came Back is the song that comes to mind- Harry S. Miller 1893), and bing, bang…she’s got one cat+2 kittens… She’s poor, can’t get help from her town’s officials, and decides to euthanize the kitties in a bucket. Groan. Of course, Suspicious Minds (written by Memphis songwriter, Mark James and the last #1 hit for Elvis Presley in 1969- his last) like mine ask, ‘What cat has only two kittens’!? Maybe she lied about THAT too…and actually drowned a litter of 14. Not that it matters much, they’re all dead, regardless. But NOW, the SPCA is crying foul. They want “BIG FINES AND JAIL TIME”! said their head mouthpiece with emotion. My question? Where were you guys when this nutty, albeit well intentioned stray-cat-feeding woman was busy phoning around, trying to find someone to off the felines? Sure, “dangerous precedents are being set”, yada, yada, but NOW you’re worried that everyone is going to think it’s OK to euthanize Fluffo ’cause it’ll only cost five bucks instead of the usual $179.00 at the vet? Sigh. Then, the legal beagle for this woman (gotta be legal aid lawyer) said a bunch of really stupid things (he compared his client’s action against that of the person “who hanged that dog in Point Pleasant Park” …I can do without hearing that sort of thing). It did not endear me to the situation or to this woman…still…she’s poor…she loves the animals…a regular Doctor Doolittle ….who simply done too much. “We’re caught in a trap….”

Voting Day Blues

I have been very hyped about this election. Why?  I have chomped at the bit in anticipation of dramatically and meaningfully casting my inaccessible ballot at the polling station. Let me remind you about the core elements of a democratic vote; secret, independent and verifiable. I have gone on and on, to EVERYONE who will listen and to some who won’t, about the importance of these elements, the sanctity of the electoral process, and how I am denied this right by virtue of inaction on the part of Elections Canada. I am blind, as are hundreds of thousands of other voters. We do not have electronic voting in Canada. We do not have telephone voting. We do not have voting machines at the polls. We do not have Braille ballots. I thought that today I would be pumped and ready to let loose my schpeel at the Presbyterian church where I would be voting. I ran through my dialogue, my diatribe, my kvetching complaint, like a Shakespearean actor preparing for Stratford.

Here’s what really happened. I made it to the church, and found myself outside with a woman in a wheelchair attempting to open a monstrously large door (no automatic opener). I opened it for her, but it was not wide enough. A worker from the poll came and helped to open another door. I commented wryly about Elections Canada and their accessible voting sites. She commiserated. By this point, I had, for some reason, already lost my oomph.  Maybe it’s the time of year, or ‘my time of the month’.  Some one came over as Opal and I walked into the large church basement. The usual useless pointing and “over there” was followed by an arm-grab which I yanked away.  Someone else gave sensible directions to the table I needed.  My ID was requested and checked.  I did NOT give a long-winded lecture on the difficulty blind people have in meeting ID requirements, given that we don’t have driver’s license and many of us have no passport. Some of us choose not to have or use a charitable ID (CNIB) for reasons which are too numerous and complicated for this blog.  I provided my stunning photo ID cards which have a photo of Opal and me posing together (CGDB and the Attorney General of Ontario), but my Guide dog ID cards do not have my address on them, so I added a phone bill. I had considered bringing a Braille bill, but I did not want to be turned away. At this point, the DRO asked if I wanted a Braille template. My interest peaked, as I thought I had discussed this ad nauseum with Silvestre from elections Canada and had confirmed there would be no Braille on the ballot, and to expect the usual flaky template. Now I had no idea what they were offering me.  I asked (just to confuse them) if it was contracted or uncontracted Braille. The had no clue, so I let them off the hook and told them that I knew both, so it did’nt matter.  The DRO put the ballot into the ‘Braille template’ and then came the offer to “come into the voting area with you”. I said I would pass, given that I had this allegedly accessible Braille template in my hand.  Opal and I parked ourselves behind the privacy screen at a little table. I started to read the template. Numbers. Just numbers! I called out, “um, there’s no names here, just numbers”.  The old lady who had grabbed me when I came in, offered to read the names to me. I said that would not do. The DRO guy came over and offered to read them “as they appear in sequence. then you pick the braille number”, he said with full expectation that somehow this would be acceptable to me. I had PLANNED to make a big ‘to-do’, maybe proclaim myself the Rosa Parks of the voting blind, given that I am repeatedly told that blind people ‘have found this acceptable for years’. Instead, I told him “no thanks”, and ” if I can’t read it for myself”…( in a country where government material must be provided in alternate formats by law),  “I’ll have to  spoil my ballot”. He apologised (as everyone always does). I scrawled multiple X’s in allthe holes in my template and ballot and handed it to the old lady. She wisely did not attempt to go into the  insufferably patronizing routine of allowing me to put it in the box, but quickly disposed of it, stuffing it into the ballot box herself.   I walked out, declining someone’s eager offer for me to use the elevator, saying, “my legs are fine, we’ll use the stairs”. I left deflated.   I did not call the media, or my party delegate, or the PM (who doesn’t give a flying f…k anyway), or the queen, or Silvestre at Elections Canada (who I’m guessing was pretty busy today). Instead, I went for my routine blood work and called it a day. I wish I was one of those clever musicians, ’cause I’d be writing a tune tonight…’Voting Day Blues’.

STOP PRESS!!! Megan Leslie, newbie NDP canditate and personal acquaiantance declared winner of Halifax riding! Go get em in Ottawa, kid…and remember your roots…and your blind friends…

Big Al To The Rescue!!!!

Big Al  (AKA ‘Aluion’) is reportedly heading for Canada today. Upon learning about the plight of Blend (Blind) Canadians as they face an inaccessible voting non-machine on Tuesday, Big Al, a resident of Alabama,  boarded a Greyhound bus bound for Nova Scotia at 4 am this morning.  There was some confusion at the bus depot in Mobile, as Big Al dumped a 63- pound  sackful of Canadian coins onto the ticket agent’s counter to pay for his fare. Further disruption  occurred when bus terminal Security spotted him donning an outfit that included hockey equipment and pieces of a 17th century suit of armour.  He claimed that he needed to feel safe and to protect himself while riding the Greyhound, saying, “I can’t be losing my head on this trip”.

Wise Advice summoned Big Al to the Great White North, upon learning that his expertise might bolster the cause of the blind (blend) {See recent comments from Aluion} and lend support to her plan to ‘make a point’ when casting her ballot tomorrow. Big Al has been known to write clever comments and insults on doors in public spaces…in Braille. “He kinda scares me”, said Wise Advice of the southern guru, “Definitely a smart guy, but he must be crazy from listening to several synthesised speech voices on various computers simultaneously”. When asked about her plan to bring public  attention to the inaccessibility of the Canadian Election, WIse Advice said, “Look, I can’t do this alone. If Big Al can fake a Canadian accent, we’ll get him one of those spare ballots floating around to do whatever he chooses with”.

A Blog is a Blog is a Blog…

This is the 173 rd blog I have written. The bean (stats) counter on this page reveals that 13,479 + hits have occurred…and still counting  like Micky D’s keeps track ….”139,000,000,000,001 (bad burgers) served”. Traffic has been low for some blogs and through the roof for others. I am grateful for the interesting assortment of loyal readers and occasional visitors.  I know that some readers occasionally find my opinions harsh, my tone insolent, my satiric wit inappropriate….but I would say this in all seriousness…actually, I think it was Voltaire who said, ” I may not believe in what you say, but I will fight to my death for your right to say it”….

What I do NOT appreciate are misguided comments regarding the content of this blog.  Allow me to explain. It seems an individual is on the receiving end of reading (er, listening to someone read  TO them) SELECT blogs and  select ‘comments’ which I have written in response to  reader comments. That person is ‘disturbed’ by my words. My first thoughts are, (now get this straight ‘reader’/paraphrasing guy!!) you are not reading this yourself. Neither of us knows if you are getting an accurate rendition (verbatim and complete) of what I have written.  Reading is very subjective and interpretive.  Tone, inflection, reading speed, response to punctuation etc are all factors in the process that impact our perception of the text.  You, sadly have no control over that because someone else is reading to you and we don’t know how well they are doing that.  You have apparently not listened to someone read those numerous  blogs I wrote which I know you would find astoundingly interesting, informative, and sympathetic to the human condition.  Assuming that you are getting  an accurate reading of the controversial ones,   my second thought is, GET A GRIP!   Yes, I do have strong opinions about many things…the CNIB for example. That is my right. I have not slandered them. They do a fine job of screwing themselves up.  As for the mayor and my comment about “short guy with a whiny voice”? I talked to him last night. We kibutzed and laughed. He’s OK with me and my blog. He also is grateful that I work so hard for his city without payment…and he IS short and does have a whiny voice. it seems you are the one with a problem. The problem? You are in that horrible, dependant situation of passively receiving bits of my blog via a  third party  because you can not access it independently. Frankly, I think THAT  is more of an issue than the contents of this blog. That aside, I would say that the essence of any communication and voicing of opinion,  lends itself to a contrary or different opinion on the topic by anyone and everyone who hears or reads it.  The minute we open our mouths in the morning and begin saying stuff … ” I don’t like big cities, or Republicans, or Liberals, or the taste of chicken, or the movie last night”, someone else is going to have another opinion. That’s life. You would have enjoyed the blogs I wrote that support your like-minded position….on gay rights, homophobia (see ‘God loves Everyone’)  tips on independent living, fairness to animals and more. Trouble is, nobody’s reading those to you. Hmm. Maybe you should get over to that charitable organization you feel I trash too much and see if they will find you some computer gear so that you can check my blog yourself. If you do not wish to do so, (or they won’t/can’t give you what you need–a more likely scenario), then realize that I usually voice my opinion and temper it by adding something to the effect that others may not share it.  While I may talk ABOUT  the organizations or groups that I am involved with, I do not speak FOR them.  It seems that your ‘reader’ is doing you a selective disservice. I can not write something that will interest or please every reader all of the time, or even half of them. What I do know is, that many people including: guide dog handlers and  puppy-raisers, animal lovers, a jeweler in Australia, an urban planner in the UK, guide dog trainers, a blind guy who applauded my blog on who is suited to having a guide dog,  several authors,  Unitarians, environmentalists, a micro publisher in California, a gay guy somewhere in the world,  a woman in Italy who has a blind friend, a budding film maker, a vacuum cleaner rep, many people who want their bus stops announced, friends, a centre for the blind in the Eastern USA, a small initiative to publish audio books in Africa….all of these people and many more have found something useful in my writing. Others? Some are not happy, but they tend not to comment directly on the blog or to me very much….they just bitch behind my back. The wonderful thing about freedom of speech and the information age, is how the inter-connectedness of the world becomes so evident. This is the end of this discussion my friend…unless your selective ‘reader’ does not pass THIS blog on too.

Opal Goes to a Luncheon at City Hall

Mum says we’re going to a boring luncheon at city hall today. I don’t get it. I LOVE luncheons, especially at city hall where there is always lots of food, even though mum says the food is overpriced plastic crap payed for at the taxpayers expense.  She says we have to go so we can bug the mayor and some city councillors while the going is good…something about a municipal election coming up and they’re falling all over themselves trying to get some votes.  They don’t usually hold this event until springtime, but the mayor (you know, the little guy with a whiny voice?) wants to score political points NOW.  She says we must shmooze with them…work the room before they know what’s hit them.  I don’t get it. Why would HRM council not want to do the right thing in the first place?   She says they could  build me a service dog run (yeah!!!) and improve transit (maybe pay for a voice enunciator on buses to announce stops), and hire some bylaw enforcement officers, and FIRE some dead-weight HRM staff whose salaries suck up the city’s budget which could be better applied elsewhere, and get some funding to provide recreational programs for kids with disabilities, and spend more money on removing physical barriers instead of making ridiculous expenditures like the Chebucto road widening project which destroyed property and trees to allow a few more gas-guzzling SUV’s to squeeze into town, and make the public library services more equitable for the blind who don’t care to use the ‘charitable’ library, and find some balls ( not the kind I like) so they stop caving to the interests of developers who are destroying the city with condo and commercial development in all the wrong places, and….why don’t they just listen to mum in the first place? I think SHE should run for council in the next election. I’d love to run around my new service dog run.

CNIB AGM and ‘Community Meetings’…be there and be heard

The CNIB is having their Annual General Meeting in Toronto on September 27 th, at least that’s what I was told. I could not confirm this on their website…guess they don’t want anyone to know.  The local Nova Scotia/PEI Division is having its ACM (“Annual Community Meeting”) on Wednesday, September 24th. A community meeting is the spin that the local deadheads have put on an AGM which does not present an annual financial report. I can’t seem to get any accurate accounting for what this organization does with its money…er, that would be the money they suck out of innocent people who donate to their financial campaigns…like the horribly tasteless and demeaning e-mail campaign which caused such an uproar recently. No matter.  I have resigned myself to the fact that accountability, consultation  and transparency are not words in the CNIB vocabulary or philosophy. Imagine my delight when the local whiz kid who just won the NDP nomination in Halifax (Megan Leslie) invited me to attend this community meeting with her. I guess she needs an entourage in the guise of a friendly blind friend who can create a potentially good reason to leave (“Opal has a play date in Chicago! Let’s go, Megan!”).  It will be fun, I’m sure to go to this thing and have a sensible ally. The Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians was calling for a cross-Canada series of protests at the CNIB offices on the day that CNIB has their AGM (September 27th, I think). Why? Let me count the ways CNIB merits a slap on the wrists;

1- They must be publicly accountable for the tasteless and demeaning e-mail campaign which was the icing on the nutty CNIB cupcake for many blind people this year.

2- The CNIB plans to change their constitution to allow for a sighted CEO/president. I guess little Jim Sanders is going to be going quietly into that good night. I think there must be a stipulation about employing a percentage of staff within CNIB who are blind.

3- The CNIB services across the country have taken a gigantic nosedive.

4- The current philosophy  of this merry band is a little skewed for many of us (not client centered, not service centered, not democratic), and

5- The monopolistic status of this organization that purports to speak on behalf of the blind.

So, if you are remotely interested in the rights of the blind, the nasty decline of services that the CNIB has taken, or the REALLY BAD IDEA of having a non-client as president of the CNIB (or at least a quota that ensures blind staff, and if you are tired about the dismal road that CNIB is travelling,  then get to a CNIB near you and voice your thoughts on it. Call the media! Call you friends and family and ask for their support in protesting on September 27th in Toronto, or at the numerous protests across Canada at CNIB offices planned that day…or you might go to a fake AGM, like the one here in Halifax which they are calling an Annual Community Meeting.

Hey! Wise Advice For My Goofy ‘Neighbours’

Now I’ve had it with you boorish bunch of anal retentive rejects.  What’s wrong with you people?!!!  The next time one of you ‘neighbours’ in this multi-unit building cannot be decent enough to emit a sound when you are ‘in my space’ as I greet you, I will not be held responsible for what may come out of my mouth. Sheesh! How rude can  you be?  Please tell me if you have some good reason (besides being assholes) for standing by the elevator, or at the laundry machines, or in the hallway, or at the mailboxes and totally ignoring my greeting?  I didn’t think so. You’re as stunned as a sac of hammers! You seem to find your voice when other residents are around and they greet you. You there, big guy with work boot footsteps and smelly clothes…yeah you…do you know how creepy and scary it was to feel the presence of a huge man nearby, and not know that you were NOT an ax murderer or something because you couldn’t even seem to muster a grunt or fart to acknowledge my cautious  “hi” when we met in the hall at 5am as I was going to relieve my dog?  You know I’m blind, you ditz!   And the fat lady with chunky heels who smells like a floral arrangement at a funeral home?  What’s up with you?   I was coming up the stairs to the lobby to get my mail when you were parked/docked/berthed by the elevator door and blocking my path. Do ya think you could move your sweet smelling butt over a bit or say something when you see a lady with a white cane (Opal was on a break) coming straight at you? Nah. You didn’t even say “hey, don’t whack me with that cane” when I ran into you. You stood there like a lummox after I muttered, “excuse me and hello”.  I had just stepped  out of the shower, so I know it wasn’t  my body odour. Then there are the old biddies (yeah, the ones who “don’t like the disgusting sight of that dog on the lawn”) who seem to think that I have no ability to HEAR anything. Hey! It’s really not polite to dish someone WHEN THEY’RE STANDING  FIVE FEET AWAY! …”She’s got a lot of laundry again. Bet there’s dog hair in it” .  Sheesh! You geeks really need to get yourselves a crash course in social interaction 101, or read a Helen Keller bio or something! Anything would help your ability to interact  with blind people at this point.

Let the ‘Other’ Games Begin!

The hoopla is over in Beijing. Or is it? Sure,  thousands of athletes and visitors have streamed onto airplanes and returned to their home countries.  They tote medals and for some, sponsorship deals. The media assault on the world has abated. Disinterested people around the globe give a collective sigh of relief as their TV and radio programming returns to normal. However, on September 6th, the Para Olympics get underway. These are, in my opinion, the REAL games. You won’t find flaky sub “sports” such as BMX bike racing, syncro-swimming (plenty of gel and nose plugs here!) or trampoline in the Para Olympic lineup.  No, instead, count on things like equestrian, swimming and goalball.

The Para Olympics began in 1948, when British war veterans  with spinal cord injuries decided to participate in a sporting ‘olympics’. Since then, the Para Olympic Games has grown into a huge ‘after’ event with thousands of ‘disabled’ athletes (the lucky ones who are have the resources and facilities at home to participate in para sport). These Games come on the heels of the ‘real’ Olympics.  Frankly, I would love to see the day, when there is no separation of the games. It would be a logistical nightmare to facilitate all this ‘inclusion’  and access to venues etc, but how wonderful it would be for Olympic fans (able bodied and not) to be able to wander from ‘Olympic Girls Gymnastics’ in one part of a stadium, to the ‘Para Olympic Fencing’ competition in another part of the same stadium.

‘They’ (and I mean the government funders and planners and other  do-gooders who spout ‘inclusion’ and ‘accessibility’ in all things) often do not really walk the para-walk, so to speak.   It’s one thing to provide an automatic door opener and modified washroom in a sports arena or community centre and announce with great fanfare that the complex is “ACCESSIBLE”, but it’s another thing to provide accessible PROGRAMS for the kids with disabilities who want to use them.  These facilities are erected at great cost and are intended for EVERYONE’S use. However, they often have physical barriers to PWD (persons with disabilities)  or, there simply is no provission for PWD (kids and adults) to access programs. What is the point if someone in a wheelchair can get INTO the building, onto the pool deck and maybe, even into the pool,  but there are no programs for them?  The big bucks and support go to mainstream (able-bodied) sports.  I think there is really little genuine interest on the part of government and society in true ‘accessibility’, ‘inclusion’, ‘full participation’, ‘diversity’…yada, yada, yada.  For many ‘Planners’ (the able-bodied guys and gals in suits) who tweak design and convince the tax payers that they have done an admirable job with their ‘accessible’ design, it’s ‘all about the money’ and creating a building that minimizes  spending on the project and provides what is mandatory by law in the way of accessibility features. There is much time and effort (ergo money) spent (ie. wasted) on legal consultation by city planners to avoid the risk of not meeting the minimum accessibility requirements and, god forbid, a Human Rights or other legal (ie costly and embarrassing) challenge by some ‘minority’ group (persons with disabilities or cultural, ethnic or other). Sigh. Do you need to live the experience of seeing YOUR kid in a wheel chair before you start thinking, “Hey! there are hardly any programs for my little Johny!” ?  Sadly, that’s the way it seems to work. A physiotherapist and advocate for kids with disabilities recently told me that she has spent 3 years trying to hammer home the need for programs, not just physical accessibility to a proposed Halifax sports venue  to some of our city ’suits’. She described ‘vacant stares’ by some of these dudes and dudettes. Her frustration was evident but her conviction?…unwavering.

Still Not Announcing Bus Stops in Halifax

Hmm. Yesterday was hot and humid. According to those who saw the interview on TV, Opal looked bored. I can tell you now, she was hot and bothered. So was I.  A CBC ‘Nova Scotia News at 6′ reporter phoned to ask me for a follow-up interview about Metro Transit’s policy/lack of policy/inability to comply with a policy to ANNOUNCE BUS STOPS.  You would think that this is a no-brainer. Apparently not. Metro Transit’s acting general manager was asked to comment on the elusive plan to install a ‘voice enunciator system’ (automaticaly announces stops as buses cruise along the route).  Money. Yes, it’s all about the underfunding, the high cost of such a system…. but one day…

Sorry, that’s not good enough.  Halifax must come to its senses and get in line with major cities across this country (including Vancouver, Toronto, Winnipeg, and Ottawa) and the dozens of small town transit companies who have adopted a policy to announce stops on buses and on other forms of transit.  Some have seen the light all on their own,  while other cities (like Toronto and Ottawa) have been mandated  to do so through Human Rights Tribunals and other legislating bodies.

This is the city that is trying to sell its HRM (Halifax) By Design strategy. If this town wants to become an urban mecca, then it needs to get serious about transit. That’s right. Get the money from the feds, the province or maybe the money can be secured by taxing the gas-guzzling  (usually single-driver) vehicles entering the downtown core (like London).  I don’t really care. Neither does the rest of the blind population AND the other citizens in this city who would like to know where they are on the bus route. We have several universities here with a huge student population arriving “FROM AWAY” each year.  We have a small invasion each summer of cruise ship passengers and other tourists.  We have numerous  people immigrating to Canada  who land on our shore and into our city each year as well as  other newcomers to town.  NONE OF THEM KNOW WHERE THEY ARE GOING!!  Surprise!  You must realize that not all residents know where each street, transfer point, major intersection or significant public building is located on every bus route. So, find the money for the automated system. Pick a date for the project to be finalized by. In the meanwhile, make the drivers announce major stops!!! They can do it the old fashioned way and shout out the stops! Give them a trip sheet to figure out what those major stops are. If they don’t like it, TOO BAD!  Maybe the pressure Metro Transit management gets  from their union (you KNOW they will go cry foul to the union. Winnipeg drivers did) will be motivation to find the money for the automated system lickety split! Sheesh!

HEY!!! Wise Advice For the IDIOT with the Crazy Sausage Dog!

Hey! Yeah, I’m talking to you, babe… the idiot with the yappy wiener dog that jumped Opal today. I’ve had it with you. If you can’t control that nutty knackwurst, you had better stop walking the same sidewalks that  I’M  walking on with Opal. Maybe you think that you have some kind of god-given right to allow your fat, whiny bratwurst to do whatever the hell it pleases, but I’ve got news for you lady: Next time?, I’m tracking you and that jumbo sausage- on- legs down, and I PROMISE that I will report you to animal control. You are very lucky that I was too concerned about MY dog today, or else I would have whacked you upside-the-head on the spot! What were you thinking, allowing that horrible hot dog to attack Opal?????!!!!! You had to see us coming.  You’re the same pinhead who was at the Tim’s coffee shop last week, aren’t you? You left that little lump of liverwurst in the entry way, between the doors! … where it barked, frightened old ladies and would not allow ME AND MY REGISTERED GUIDE DOG to enter!! My wise advice? Keep that annoying and hazardous poor excuse for a pet dog out of our way!

Congratulations from Canada

Congratulations to the happy couples in California who married yesterday.  Special wishes of good luck to Del Martin (age 87 ) and Phyllis Lyon (age 83 ), her partner of FIFTY YEARS who finally were allowed to make it all legal. Sheesh! Good going California. It’s about time. 

Sorry, Nothing Personal, But keep your hands off my dog!

There are times when one is forced to make decisions which might  not please one’s friends. I’ll be more specific. I have rapidly developed a good, friendly relationship with a number of people at my church. A recent article in the UU (Universalist Unitarian) newsletter generated many enthusiastic responses. It was a profile about me (and Opal).  As a result, people are talking to me, realizing that I am approachable, fetching coffee during fellowship time, AND PATTING MY GUIDE DOG!!!!  Worse, I am was allowing them to get away with it! Sorry, nothing personal, but keep your hands off my dog, please!!! Here’s the thing. Guide dogs are off limits when they are wearing their harness.  When Opal and I are not in motion, it does not mean that it’s OK to pat her. Just because you know me a little better (some of you actually becoming my friends), this does not mean that you have suddenly been granted an exemption from this rule. You may think it is harmless to come over and cosy up to Opal for a minute with or without my permission. It is not. Here’s why. Opal MUST know that when she is in harness, she is working. Socializing is out of the question. Consider that she is very fond of you (Opal is fond of EVERYONE) and you give her a little pat every now and again when we are at church when she is not actively guiding me.  Then, one day,  you meet us as we are crossing an intersection and she wants to greet you (because, hey, it was OK when I greeted you while wearing my harness last Sunday at church, she thinks)… get the picture? It’s not fair to bend the rules. Guide dogs need consistency in their lives. My error was not nipping this in the bud immediately. Mea culpa. Now hear this! Please do not pat my Guide dog when she is working (WEARING HER HARNESS) any more. Do not ask me if you can. I will refuse… and I don’t care if you are offended. If you ‘don’t get it’, too bad. You should. 

Equitable Library Service in Canada—We’re Still Waiting

I recently attended the Annual General Meeting of the Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians in Toronto. A lively debate ensued when a  Library and Archives Canada representative updated us on the Initiative for Equitable Library Service (IELA). The IELA web site claims that their mandate is to “create the conditions for sustainable and equitable library access for Canadians with print disabilities” .  There are over three million Canadians (10%)  who can not read print because of visual, perceptual or physical disability. We require publications in alternate formats, such as Braille, Large print, audio and electronic text. IELA’s stats indicate that only 5% (five) of all  published Canadian material is available in multiple formats. We provided our opinion on what we would like to see in the Canadian public library system (again).  It seems that we are often consulted, but I have to wonder why we are still waiting for change. The endless rhetoric about ’stakeholders’ is getting stale. Robin East, Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians president, echoed my sentiments when he stated that “we are not stakeholders…we are rights holders”. The difference?:  The erroneous  mindset that blind people deserve consultation in the process of achieving equitable library service in Canada instead of the more accurate belief that blind people have the RIGHT to equitable library service. What do I personally feel I have a right to find when I walk into a public library in Canada? Here’s my list.  I suggest that the rights of the blind to equitable library service be honoured very quickly…before we become an ultra-organized force with a common judicial application forcing the change we have RIGHTS to.

• I want books made available to me in any format I choose: audio, Braille, electronic and large print.
• I like audio books. The publishing industry needs to realize that the audio version of ANY BOOK PUBLISHED must be released simultaneously in audio format. If that means forcing the Canadian government to amend copyright and publishing legislation, that is what we must all support. 
• Audio books must be unabridged….I don’t like half a book.
• Release the stranglehold you have on independent  multiple format information producers in Canada. They are the answer to filling the gap by providing multiple format information; Braille transcription, audio books, etc.
• Provide accessible technology within the library; computers with screen-reading software, scanners, braille printers, CCTV’s, etc.
• Someone needs to know how to use, troubleshoot, and teach the use of all of the above equipment. 
• Make your catalogue accessible within the library. IE. I can use your website at home to search for something, but once I’m in your library, I am unfortunately forced to rely on your staff.
• Update your large print collections. People across the country are complaining about small, outdated, and dog-eared LP books collections. Put your large print collection in an area with good lighting.
• Your audio books must have Braille and large print labeling.  I want to  ’browse’ the books like other patrons. As it is now, I must rely on a staff person to be available to read the titles and descriptions for me.
• Libraries are big on displaying community information. the bulletin boards, notices, guides, pamphlets must be made available to everyone. How about an information line linked into your phone system? Tweak a grant or student placement to provide for  conversion of  information pamphlets and guides into audio, Braille and large print.
• Sometimes, your accessible computer is nowhere near the reference materials. Ensure easier physical access to this technology.
• Train your staff and employees to be ’sensitive’ (I hate that term) to the needs of blind and partially sighted patrons.
• Blind students have a hard time finding accessible  research materials in a timely manner. It is not up to the ‘charitable library’ (AKA CNIB)  to provide everything. (they do a poor job anyway). Publishers, particularly of textbooks must realize that audio/electronically-generated information often ignores describing or interpreting  graphs, scales diagrams, photographs and tables. This information is critical if education is to fair and equitable. 

I’ve just started a list. I hope to hear from others. 

 

You’re offended/disgusted about Opal doing WHAT?!!!!

Now I’m really steamed! It’s one of those ‘I coulda, woulda, shoulda said…’ moments. I live in a large apartment building. I have been relieving Opal (she’s a guide dog, remember?) on the grassy area by the side of the building. I ‘pick up’ ALL THE TIME. It seems that a couple of old farts with nothing but time on their hands, combined with spitefulness and…insanity? … asked the nice superintendent to “do something about that disgusting sight we see out our window”. That would be the sight of my DOG, Opal relieving herself. My response when Donny meekly came to talk to me? My blood pressure rose and I burst into tears as I fell into his arms (did I mention I am hormonal as all get out?).  So now, hours later, I am doing the ‘why didn’t I say that…’ thing.  Here’s what you two old, cranky biddies need to know:

1. My dog is a registered Guide dog. You don’t ‘walk’ a guide dog. She needs to relieve near the building.
2. I pick up her poop. I pick up other pet dog’s poop. I’m not even REQUIRED BY LAW to pick up her poop (guide dogs are exempt from the bylaw, even though I have asked to have the bylaw stricken).
3. If you don’t like to watch my dog poop, LOOK AWAY, you nutty dingbats! You should be ecstatic that you have VISION with which to watch her take a dump!
4. There is nothing in the tenancy act about controlling what you view from your apartment window. Do you freak out on the street if you see a dog relieve? And where exactly would you have dogs relieve? They have no doggy toilets yet…thank god, for that.
5. Now, if  I  was the one pooping on the lawn, you might have something to complain about…but she’s a DOG for goodness sake!
6. I’m a little miffed when I hear people spit on the walkway by the building. Ditto the blaring radios and noxious odours from the cars in the parking lot that crap up my air. I don’t like smelling your cheap Avon perfume in the elevator or laundry room either. Do you see me harping about that?
7. What’s next?  You don’t like the Asian family’s language?  Maybe the fat guy on the third floor is not pleasant to look at?  The woman in the wheel chair takes up too much space in the elevator? You’ve already bitched about the poor gay superintendent couple who work like dogs to keep this place clean and YOU pacified. And hey! I tip them at Christmas. Do you? 
8. Get a life! Get a grip! She’s a DOG. She’s MY Guide dog…and if you think THAT bitch is giving you trouble…

Blind ‘Simulation’ Is a Bad Idea—and here’s why

You hear about ‘awareness’ or fund-raising events that involve blind simulation. Things like ‘Blind walks’ where sighted people are blindfolded and given a cane with which they stumble around with for 10 or so minutes or ‘dinners in the dark’ where people eat a meal blindfolded, are examples of blind simulations.  While these exercises have some shock and awe results….”Oh my gosh! How difficult and frightening it is to be blind!”…they are, in my opinion, the greatest disservice to the blind community.  Oddly enough, it is most often groups or organizations of the blind who organize them.  Why is blind simulation a bad idea?  The people with the blindfold have zero experience and training.  They have not been through proper Orientation and Mobility instruction. They do not have years of tempered and consistent expereince to develop skills. Of course it’s scarey! and totally unrealistic! Even people who lose their vision in an instant (accident victims, for example), are provide with coaching and training over time. They learn to use their remaining senses more effectively. Bit by bit, their confidence increases and they can allow themselves to be exposed to more challenging situations, like walking on a busy sidewalk. It is detrimental to have a bunch of sighted people thinking that my life is a frightening and horrible existence! That is what happens as a result of these ‘blind simulated events’. It focuses on the difficulty of life as a blind person,  and negatively impacts the public perception about blindness and people who are blind. I have a life! A good one at that! I don’t want sighted people erroneously believing that my life is miserable just because I happen to be blind. 

“Have You Got Your Mind Right Yet, Opal?”

One of my favourite movie lines is from the 1967 classic, ‘Cool Hand Luke’.  Boss Paul (played by Luke Askew) grinds away at Luke (Paul Newman) in the rural Southern USA prison, trying to break Luke by forcing him to dig a hole and fill it back up with dirt, over and over. Periodically, he snarls, “Have you got your mind right yet, Luke?”  Yes, I know. My pop culture references are a bit stale. Regardless, this one is useful today. Do not be alarmed. I am not culpable of forcing my dog to dig holes and fill them in, though I think she might enjoy the task.  I DO, however, perform obedience exercises on a semi-regular basis with Opal. We live in an apartment building which has long hallways and staircases galore. On quiet days and at quiet times, I take Opal on leash out in the halls and commence a rapid drill of  ”heel”, “sit”, “stay” and “come”.  She LOVES it. Opal is particularly fond when I ask her to  ”sit and stay”  and then I walk away slowly and summon her to the end of the hallway (75 feet away).   It thrills her to  ”come” when she is finally allowed to bolt to me. The ceramic tile does not offer much traction, so she skids several feet before she comes to a stop.  There are no objects to cause injury, so it’s a safe and exciting blast.  Why do I do this sort of obedience drill?  It ‘gets her mind right’, in a good sort of way. Dogs (especially Guide dogs) love to know who is in charge. They develop a sense of security and self-confidence by performing obedience exercise drills. It is important to keep the drills interesting, rapid, and occasional. If you do them too often, your dog will be bored and the drill ineffective. These dogs love to please their handlers.  I find that Opal becomes very focused with her guiding job  in the days following an obedience drill. We are going to Toronto next week. I want and need her to be sharp as well as relaxed in the knowledge that ‘mum knows what she’s doing, and where we’re going’, even if I don’t have a clue. Air travel, airports and the frenzy that comes with it, might be a breeze for the seasoned  Guide dog team who travel frequently, but we don’t have much experience with this. So, preparation is key, and that includes an obedience drill today….to ‘get her mind right’.  

I Love…Like…Tolerate a Parade

Actually, traditional parades do not appeal to me. They are loud and crowded and frighten Opal. (We accidentally wandered into the Pride parade last year and she was blasted with silly string and streamers. The whistles and loud music didn’t help either.)  A parade we do enjoy, or at least tolerate, is the monthly shopping expedition at our local grocery store. Shopping for groceries when you unable to read labels or locate items, can be hard. It is even more complicated, when you have a guide dog.  I like to rest Opal after 40 minutes in harness. It’s only fair.  Here’s how food shopping works for us. I call ahead and ask the manager if someone will be available to help us shop. I always chose a quiet weekday morning. We arrive on time and present ourselves to customer service. The manager normally has booked Dewayne, the produce manager to help us through the bulk of the shopping. Dewayne pulls the shopping cart from the front. I hold the cart handle and follow. Opal is in harness, and I have only her leash in hand, with the handle down. She is on my left side as we meander around, looking very much like a little parade.  Opal obediently keeps up, and I am cognizant of any attempts to dive for food items on the floor. Dewayne tries to use the wider spaces in the Quinpool Road Superstore and tells me if we are going left or right. We wait in place in quiet spots while he goes off to collect a few items. I thwart off the customers who want to impede the flow of the parade (looking to pat Opal or run over her).  Fortunately, most of my shopping is done within the perimeter of the store. That’s where the produce, bakery, and dairy are located in all grocery stores. (We bypass the meat department aka. ‘dead animals’ also located in the perimeter.) In the interior aisles, we avoid the crap over- packaged and processed food, and find our tea, and the odd package of pasta or rice. When efficient Dewayne is unavailable to lead the parade,  grocery shopping can become a long and arduous ordeal.  If the clerk does not know where items are located, we are in for a rough ride. I have been known to abandon a clerk and cart, when I feel that the Odyssey has been too much for Opal. “Sorry, but we’re not wandering around like Bedouins anymore. It’s not fair to my dog…we’ll be back when she’s rested, and you find someone who can get us out of here in a timely manner”. Here’s the way to re-enforce good service for customers who are blind or have similar shopping needs: If the clerk does a good job, make a point of speaking to the manager of the store, preferably at the cash, in front of him or her and praise them up. I point out, that if I am dropping $150.00 in their store, I enjoy and appreciate doing it quickly. I also point out shortcomings; poor choice of produce, too much time spent wandering around, etc.  I make use of the customer service 1-800 number that most food chains have and report good and bad service. I make suggestions about accessible on line flyers, and anything else I think they should be aware of.  I  do my bit, by being prepared when I go to shop, knowing what I want to buy, and the sequence it will be picked up…natural food sections, produce, bread, sundries, groceries, dairy, frozen food. Get familiar with a store and the manager and staff. It is the only way you can hope to have consistent and reasonably acceptable service when shopping if you are blind.  If you are fortunate enough to have a friend or family member help you shop instead of requiring assistance by store employees, be sure to respect their time and effort by being prepared. 

Sort Your Dog Out!

One of the most valuable pieces of advice that I learned from our instructor while training with Opal at Canadian Guide Dogs for the Blind in Manotick, Ontario, was: ‘Always sort your dog out’. Let me explain. Guide dogs are, in the end, just dogs with special training. They are vulnerable to the same desire for mischief as other dogs. Their curiousity (my Opal is a busybody extraordinaire) sometimes gets the better of them, even when they are in harness. Variables like their level of stress, the ‘newness’ of a situation, the scent in the environment, and their relationship with you at any given moment, contribute to  potential distraction and unwanted behaviour. It takes a long time to get into sync with a new guide dog. It was a year before Opal and I were truly in tune. She is my first guide dog, so perhaps it was a longer process for us. I had been cautioned that I would be ‘tested’ by her, when we returned to Halifax and started out on our journeys together. How true! Dogs are capable of all sorts of mind games. It is their way of determining who is ‘in charge’. For example, Opal would insist on an opportunity to relieve numerous times on our way to the bus stop near our home. I gave her the benefit of the doubt for a while, but called her bluff when I realized that this was just a gigantic ploy to sniff around. More significantly, she wanted to see if I would let her be the boss. Our instructor’s words echoed in my head on Opal’s first visit to my bank. I was trying to do some business with the sit-down teller and the bank manager with Opal at my feet. Opal was getting up and trying to check out the litter basket when I said to the bank manager and teller, “excuse me” and promptly ignored them and ’sorted my dog out’.  I did not return my attention to them until I was satisfied that Opal was back in place and not doing anything goofy. I continue to do this when the need arrises, regardless of who I am with, or where I am… I could care less if I am with a head of state, or an journalist doing a TV interview with me (as was the case last week) or anyone else who is expecting my undivided attention; my priority is to ensure that my dog is safe, comfortable and not bugging anyone. When the day came that Opal realized that this is my consistent response to any silliness or distraction on her part, she started behaving nicely most of the time. She understood (with great relief), that I am ‘top dog’.  This applies to all dogs, pets and service dogs alike. There is nothing more annoying than an uncontrolled dog (or child) misbehaving in public. Sort them out!–they will love you for it because they feel the ‘leader of the pack’ is handling it and is in charge. 

A Sad Reality About Guide Dog vs White Cane

 I first noticed something extraordinary when I  started appearing in shops and on buses with Opal, my Guide dog; people had a totally different response to me….they were friendlier, more helpful, more apt to interact,  and more cognizant of my blindness.  This sad reality left me with mixed feelings. I was conflicted; I loved my new independence and confidence with Opal by my side, yet I felt awkward (guilty)  that my friends who continue to navigate with white canes, were experiencing what I had left behind. This all became crystal clear on the first day I went into my community with Opal.  We went into the local pharmacy at the shopping centre, where I had been shopping for several years. In the past, the experience was, ah…less than pleasant. I would stand around near the counter, and try to get the clerk’s attention so that customer service could be summoned to help me find things in the store. Sometimes I would wait upwards of 15 minutes.  I was left with the feeling that I was imposing on their time.  The very SECOND I entered the store that day with Opal, before I could even open my mouth to request assistance, I heard a clerk exclaim, “Hi, how are you today? I’ll get someone to help you right away. What a beautiful dog you have!”.  I thought that this might be some aberrant experience. Not so. I soon learned that the world is much kinder to me with Opal by my side. Sure, some people remain eternal a-holes, but overall,  I am treated (by default, because of the interest in Opal) so much better than when I travelled with a white cane.  I would like to create a greater awareness of this in the public mind. Do they realize that the person using a white cane is entitled to the same interest, assistance and  interaction as the person with a Guide dog?  I hope to get some comments on this. 

A Guide Dog Retires

Opal has been my Guide dog for two years. It has suddenly hit me that we are 1/4 through her working life. This realization both shocks and frightens me. It seems like “we’ve only just begun”.. as the Carpenters crooned long ago. The frightening part is that I can not imagine my life without her, or with a different  Guide. I’m sure I will wrap my head around this reality one day.  A friend who lives in my apartment building, also has a guide dog. Actually he has an authentic Seeing Eye dog. I have explained the difference between a Guide dog and a Seeing eye dog in a past blog.  Next week, he retires his dog, Russo,  and he will leave for Morristown, New Jersey to train with another guide dog. He summed up his emotions very well in an e-mail to me…. “I am very happy, and I am very sad”. Russo is now 10 years old. This is the typical age when guide dogs retire.  Some dogs work longer. Others retire early due to health reasons, or other factors (change in handlers circumstances or for whatever reason, the dog no longer works efficiently). Many people ask me, “what happens to guide dogs when they retire?”  The answer?   It depends. The Guide dog schools have various policies for retiring dogs. Sometimes, the dog is allowed to remain with the handler as a pet. This does not happen too often. If the blind person goes to re-train with another guide dog, there would be two dogs in the household. One working, one pet. The pet (retired dog) must still be fed, exercised, played with, groomed and provided with veterinary care. That dog no longer has ’service dog’ status. No more vet discounts, no more provisions under the access laws if living in a no-pets allowed building. It would be impossible to have a retired dog AND an active guide dog, without a sighted person in residence.  The Guide dog’s harness is returned to or collected by the Guide dog school. It would be impossible for the lone Blind person to ‘walk’ the retired dog (without a harness) multiple times per day, AND to provide both dogs with adequate attention.  Such a situation, would be unfair to both dogs.  Imagine too, when ‘mum’ or ‘dad’ come home with the ‘new’ guide dog,  the difficult transition for the retired dog as it observes a strange dog taking over the guiding job. Most often, the retiring guide dog goes to another home. Sometimes, the dog will go to live with a family member. Other times, the original puppy raiser is given the opportunity to take the dog if their situation is suitable.  Very often, a friend of the handler who lives in the retired dog’s area, will be approved by the Guide dog school to take the dog. If the dog is ‘locally’ retired, then the ex-handler might have the opportunity to visit. I don’t know if that is a good idea or not, given the potential emotional difficulties involved for the dog (and handler). Russo, is going to a rural town one-hour’s drive away to live with his handler’s friend.  They have been visiting, and attempting to familiarize Russo with the new home and location.  I think a solo weekend visit for Russo was undertaken recently. To tell you the truth, I don’t particularly like Russo’s handler much, but I feel for him this week. His church is planning a final ‘goodbye’ service for the dog that has been attending for eight years. When I heard this, I felt a lump form in my throat. The day after the next church service, Russo will travel to his new home without his handler. Opal will no longer be smelling “the big boy” on Sunday afternoons (after Russo has run around off leash in Opal’s relief area, as he has every Sunday since we have lived here). The following day, ‘A’ will leave for Morristown and train with a new Seeing Eye dog.  He will return several weeks later with ‘dog’ (specific information about the dog is not given to the client until they arrive).  I think I will go say goodbye to Russo and wish ‘A’ good luck.

Paul Watson–Eco-terrorist goes too far…again

 Canadian Green Party leader, Elizabeth May announced her resignation from the advisory committee of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society after Paul Watson is quoted as saying,  ”the death of seals is an even greater tragedy than the death of four sealers”.  Mr. Watson, a self described Eco-terrorist, repeated this comment today. Conservationists and Environmentalists are dropping their support of Watson.  He made these comments as the funeral of three sealers in Cap-aux-Meulles, a small community in the Madlelaine Islands was taking place. A fourth sealer’s body is missing.  Mr. Watson has rammed, skuttled and sunk fishing vessels all over the world. The names of the ships he has sunk are painted onto the side of one the cement-hulled boats he uses to ram them.  His ships are also armed with high-powered water cannons and protected with barbed wire. He has used acid, explosives and other means to sink or disable “enemy” ships.  His goal to bring an end to the fishing industry has found him brandishing an AK 47.   a Watson was a co-founder of Greenpeace, but splintered off because of the groups ‘impassivity’.  While the world still grieved in the aftermath of 9/11, Watson announced “there is nothing wrong with terrorism, as long as you win”. The eco-terrorist goal is to return the earth to it’s pre-human condition by any means. Watson’s dogmatic and authoritarian ‘love’ of animals coupled with his hatred of humanity has led him to absurdly remark, “earthworms are far more valuable than people”.  His distorted stance of ‘animals first/humans last’ is bizarre and frightening. His claim that he owes no allegiance to humanity is incongruous with the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society’s  (the group he founded) claim that they “are a vehicle to empower people”. I am disgusted and enraged by the words and actions of Paul Watson. I encourage all Canadians to withdraw support from the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and any groups Mr. Watson is associated with, including the Sierra Club, until those organizations remove themselves from any association with Mr. Watson.   I think that Farley Mowat, the great Canadian writer and naturalist, should step forward and comment on this, given that Watson’s premiere ship is named the ‘Farley Mowat’.  For the record, the names of the three victims from the fishing vessel,  l’ Acadian II are: Gilles Leblanc, Bruno Bourque, and Marc-Andre Deraspe.  A fourth man is missing and presumed dead. His name is Carl Aucoin. 

Opal Goes To The Movies

I  plan to go to a movie this afternoon.  My Guide dog Opal is coming with me.  Some Guide dog training schools suggest leaving the dog at home when one goes to the movies because the sound level is too high. I agree. Cinemas tend to crank out the sound beyond a comfortable level. I don’t enjoy it, so I can just imagine what a dog is experiencing.  Dogs have very  sensitive hearing.  There’s also the problem of popcorn all over the floor area that even a well trained Guide dog would find hard to resist.  I have solved both problems, thereby allowing me to have Opal with me.  The major issue of intolerable sound was dealt with by speaking to the cinema manager.  It is important to restrict movie-going to weekday matinees. That is when they are fewest people going to the cineplex. Often, there are only a half dozen people going to any one movie, especially the non-Hollywood blockbuster films which I prefer to avoid.  The manager is always willing to speak to the projectionist (more of a programmer these days) and have them set the sound down.  I also make sure that I enter AFTER all the promotional claptrap that appears before the feature which is always louder.  The popcorn problem is less of an obstacle.  By going to the first show of the day, chances are that the cinemas are quite clear of food on the floor.  I remain vigilant  none the less, with my harness arm ready to sense Opal attempting to snag a snack on the floor, so that I can tug her head up. My free hand is ready to shove into her mouth and yank out the scavenged food if she has moved too quickly. I’m sure some people are grossed out by the idea of probing a dog’s mouth, but if you are committed to your dog’s health and safety, you must learn to ‘get over it’. Your town’s cinemas may have matinees and hospitable management that would allow you to feel comfortable in bringing your Guide dog with you when you go to the movies. Some movie houses also offer free admission to a companion for disabled people.  This is sometimes an available courtesy provision at theatres and other entertainment venues. Some cinemas and theatres offer ‘descriptive’ options for the blind. This involves wearing a head set to hear a description of non-audible action and sets of the film or play you are attending.  Call first to inquire. 

My Guide Dog’s Name is Lucy, Mindy, Rex, Georgie…

Here’s your tip for the day: Do not ask that blind person on the bus or in the supermarket this question: “What’s your Guide dog’s name?”.  Why not?  Chances are, you will be getting an alias.  One of the bits of information I gleaned in Guide dog training, is to answer this question with a phony name.  The rationale behind it is, many people will parrot the name back….”Ooo you’re a pretty dog Mindy!!! Mindy, you are such a smart dog! Hey Mindy!!!”…This can be a huge distraction for the dog. I think the pat fake name given to me at the guide dog school one day in training was, ‘Georgie’.   When I returned home with Opal, and hit MY streets, I soon understood how important it was to have a ’stage name’ for my dog. Trouble was, I had forgotten the pat answer (‘Georgie’) by the time I took that first solo walk with Opal.  We were on a bus going to the ferry terminal, when I  was suddenly faced with this question for the first time.  When a  woman asked,  my brain went numb. What was that name they told us to use, I asked myself.  I drew a blank.  She sounds like a nice person,  I thought.  What difference does it make, I  reasoned.  So, I  proudly announced, “Opal”. The nice lady promptly went ultrasonic in pitch, saying, “Opal, Opal, Opal” over and over using maximum voice output. Opal sprang up like a jack-in-the-box. Needless to say, I decided to come up with an alias for Opal that I would remember for all time.  What easier name to remember than, ‘Lucy’?  Lucy is our cat.  I am certain that Opal wonders why on earth I am always talking about the cat when we are out and about. It may seem unusual, but it is for our own safety.  People we see regularly (neighbours, friends, relatives, committee members) all know her real name.    I  consider that I am entitled to a certain amount of privacy. Therefore, please do not be offended if you later learn that you have been deceived by me or anyone who gives you a fake name when you ask the Guide dog’s name.  Remember, that in public places, there might be others taking notice,  (like kids) who will remember the Guide dog’s name  and one day, start shouting it when they spot the dog working across an intersection where total concentration is required by both dog and handler. 

Forgive me, Opal

There are times when I lose my mind for a moment. The consequences?  Usually, I say something, born straight out of anger or frustration, that I regret.  The ‘right thing to do’, would  be to pause, breathe, count, essentially anything… except yell at my girl, Opal.  Sure, dogs can frustrate you just as much as kids can. Similarly, it is not acceptable to yell at  (or god forbid, strike) them either. I’m not sure when ‘uman beans’ started running the Big Power Trip on every living creature other than their own species.  Maybe it all began with the post cave guys who had too much time on their hands and started domesticating animals.  In recent decades, our relationship with animals has gone OTT (over the top). Our children have no idea how that chicken nugget from mickey d’s came to be. They may see it move from a huge  box of similar frozen bits, and into the deep fryer (I feel sick already), where it remains until a ‘ding’ or ‘beep’ signals the pimply-faced teenage fry cook to dump them out into the warming table.  The portion controlled amount is scooped into a styro container and handed over to your kid with ample packets of ketchup to disguise the taste of this ‘treat’ you have just paid an obscene amount of money for.  Does your kid know how that ‘chiken’ got into the Mickey D’s food chain?  Do they have any idea how the original bird was kept confined en masse in a miniscule cage until it met its demise?  Do you?  Not likely.  This is a ‘clean blog’, so it suffices to say that it is not a pretty picture.  I believe that the western world’s love affair with meat (and the animals killed in acquiring it), has created a monster industry.  Of course, there are many who have pet animals and claim to love them immensely.  Maybe so, but some people are delusional in their thinking and rationalization of their treatment of pets.  Buying jeweled collars, funny outfits, paying for spa days, silver plated water bowls etc. is an extension of their collection of status accessories.  The urban dweller seems to have lost touch with nature and the respect and care of it.  We encroach on the habitat of many species and  turn their space into ours on our terms. We create fake forests (better known as parks) and justify killing the lost critter who wanders into the city limits, an area which was once their home.  Our relationship with nature is all out of whack.  Sure, we donate to ’save’ whatever a marketing executive convinces us we should pay our guilt money for.   We listen to the news:  In the 70’s we learned that we experienced the collapse of the cod fishery in Atlantic Canada because of over fishing and bad management. We learn of global warming and climate change now,   but did not  pay attention to the scientists like David Suzuki who has been active in environmental action for decades.  We elect governments who cater to lobbyists with oil interests that do not want to ratify the Kyoto Protocol.  Then, we watch Paul McCartney and his estranged airhead wife, play with seal pups on an ice flow, as they pause for a photo op in their protest about the seal hunt.  The McCartney’s leave and so does the camera crew, but  the baby pup that Linda fondled is left to die by its mother, because now, it has  human stink on it.   While I do not endorse clubbing baby seals, I  am concerned that some Inuit Canadians should be included in the debate over banning the hunt entirely.  I’m sure that the McCartneys and even people like Al Gore pay for ‘carbon credits’ when the jet around the world in their busy schedules saving this or that. I’d rather they stop crapping up the planet with jet fuel, which no amount of trees planted with ‘carbon credit’ money will fix.  The only fix here, is their public image and personal guilt trip.   But I digress.   Back to Opal and why I need to be forgiven.  I often feel conflicted with Opal as my ‘guide’.  I know she loves her life, and her job. But is it fair? She has no say in it.  She was bred, raised, and trained with the ultimate aim of turning her into a Guide dog.   All I can do, is treat her with respect and kindness.  Therefore, yesterday as she was dawdled and sniffed when I gave her an opportunity to relieve before church, and I yelled, “GET BUSY NOW!!!”, out of frustration and fear that I might need to leave Easter service later if she decided that it was the time to relieve, I checked myself.  As always, when I insist too loudly, my sensitive girl simply sat down and stared at me.  I got down on my knees in the snow and apologized to her. I told her it was ok, that we could “try later” and I was sorry I had yelled.  I explained that her mum is a goof sometimes and we went to church where she had a long nap and did not ask to leave.  

ACCESSIBILITY 101

The last thing I had on my mind yesterday, as I went to the mall to help sell tickets for a fund raising initiative for the local CCB (Canadian Council for the Blind), was that I would find myself donning  my ‘Accessibility’ advocacy hat (the one that puts my mouth in gear and finds me writing, phoning… and blogging).  The Halifax Shopping Centre is managed by a group called Vic 20 retail. The head of this little empire, Blaize Morrison  is the elusive fella who I have left messages for in the past, but never spoken to directly.  I have tried unsuccessfully to reach him to complain about the mall renovations which lasted eight months and created great hardship for people with disabilities.  Opal and I  entered the mall at 8:45 and the place was very quiet, as stores do not open until 9:30.  My plan was to get a snack in the upper level food court and then go to the community booth to help my friend set up.  Opal’s feet were caked with salt, so that necessitated a trip to the washroom before going up to buy my snack.  We were  just 7 meters inside the mall, when she stopped. Hmm, I wondered.  I slid my foot forward and encountered some sort of obstacle.  It was a fixed beam-like thing, almost two inches high and six inches wide. I slid my foot between the floor and this obstacle, and found that it ran quite a width.  I praised Opal for finding it and asked her “forward”, and we gracefully stepped over it and moved on down the hall in search of the washroom.  Eventually, we navigated up to the food court.  These places aren’t my idea of dining options, but I had a Tim’s card in my pocket, with a credit balance that would pay for a bagel and a cup of tea. Opal dazzled all the sleepyheads at Tim Horton’s with her clever ability to “find the queue” and “counter”… Snack items in hand, we swung around and headed for the area of the elevator. When we reached the end of the food court area, a woman said, “Watch out for that thing on the floor, dear”.   I thanked her even though I know Opal would find it.  She did and we safely wandered off.   By the time we found the lift, I was thinking about these obstacles, and that a trip to customer service might be in order. We greeted Alice who had set up the display in the ‘community box’. Opal lay dutifully, hopefully attracting some ticket sales with her stunning looks (or so Alice hoped).  Along came Mary. She was being guided by a stranger that had been drafted into assistance near the entrance of the mall.   Mary said that  she was lucky her white cane found this “big board” on the floor.  That was it. I  went to customer service and asked why there are dangerous obstacles on the floor, on this busy Easter Saturday?  I was told that it probably has something to do with “Easter events…wires or something… just temporary”.  I asked  to speak to a management person.  I was told that there no management employees worked on weekends. I told the customer service woman that the mall is liable for injuries to shoppers. I ranted a bit about accessibility, barriers, public safety, lack of consideration for people who are blind or partially sighted… I heard her snap her gum and offer a kid a paper bunny hat.  Once back in the booth,  I learned that Susan had arrived. She told me that she “just tripped over this obstacle and hurt my knee and hand. The security guard was nice and all that, but what are those dangerous things doing there?”.  I hauled Susan back to customer service with me. Opal sighs. I hear her thinking, ‘mum is on another mission’.  We lodged a complaint, and demanded that sufficient security be posted to warn people (even though it will be too crowded to effectively warn everyone with all the frenzy and the Easter shoppers).  The security guard was summoned.  I gave him the accessibility schpeel.  He called the manager of security.  Lovely B.J. arrived and informed me that there are six locations in the mall with these strips covering a floor joint renovation project.  She was obviously feeling a bit embarrassed about this whole mess.  I ran with it:  pointing out the issue of public safety. I  told her that while the mall may find it economically advantageous to start this work in six areas, they have a responsibility to maintain accessibility standards.  Doing construction projects in one secure area at a time, would have been preferable. Now that it is Easter Saturday, and there is no management staff, and the crowds are streaming in, I suggested to her that it will be a miracle if no one is seriously injured by day’s end.  She agreed that even sighted people would be in danger, as most would not notice the obstacles despite markings with yellow tape.   I also pointed out liability to the public, and that I had advised my friend to see her physician on Monday. I told her, that as president of the Halifax chapter of the Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians, one of my roles is to address issues of accessibility.  I remarked how inconvenient it had been for people in wheelchairs, seniors, people with strollers,  and guide dog handlers, when the lower floor washrooms were closed for six months due to renovation delays and everyone was forced to travel to the upper level.  ”Yes, but look how accessible the new ones are” she said.  I laughed at B. J.’s remark.  I explain that while they (the mall designers and management) may have run around measuring and meeting wheelchair standards and codes, they did not really have an interest in creating an ACCESSIBLE  environment.  Mary told her that by using one (off white) colour tile design from floor to ceiling in the long tube-like hall to the washrooms AND low incandescent spot lighting, they turned it into a partially sighted persons nightmare. They had not made any attempt to consider vital factors such as contrast, lighting, and texture.  I added that the automatic flushing toilets, auto-start one-temperature sinks, and auto dispense paper towel were a gimmick that no one needed and that money and effort should have been spent on designing an accessible space.  They used an open door concept, which makes it very hard to determine where the ‘men’s’ and ‘women’s’ begin and end.  The signage is not tactile, large print, or Braille.   I pointed out that there is no shortage of guidelines, checklists, design notes, accessibility resources and studies available to ‘professionals’ who design these public spaces.  B.J. and I exchanged contact information and she told me that she would be calling Mr. Morrison immediately.   Later, on my way out of the mall,  B.J. was at the obstacle with a team of security guards, trying to prevent sighted and able bodied people from tripping.  She yelled at me, “there’s an obstacle ahead…..and I’m on the phone to the construction company manager…”  I smiled as Opal stopped long enough to allow me to find the beam. We moved out and headed home.

Guide Dogs: Good Idea For Some, but Not For Everyone

Three years ago, when I started to talk about my plans to ‘get a Guide dog’, with my friends who are Blind or partially sighted (without Guide dogs), something very interesting happened.  A collective movement spontaneously occurred that had them all idly talking or thinking about having a Guide dog in their lives too.  Their family members and friends also started to make statements to them too…”Mom, you should get a Guide dog too”.   While I believe everyone should have the option, I KNOW that some people are NOT good candidates to have a Guide dog.   Now that I have had Opal for almost two years, I feel somewhat qualified to voice my thoughts on this  with more conviction.  Fortunately, there is an intense candidate screening process to go through when one applies for their Guide dog, particularly if it is their first.  Guide dog schools differ somewhat, but all of them screen carefully.  The cost of matching a Guide dog to a blind handler, is in excess of $30,000.00 in most cases.  This sum takes into account: costs for breeding dogs, supporting puppy raiser programs, training by qualified people and the cost of maintaining the dogs in training at the Guide dog school.  The school must cover its overhead, pay a staff made up of trainers, instructors, kennel staff, support and administrative people. The travel costs of the the staff who travel for ‘after care’ (checking on the dogs and handlers), and, sometimes the travel costs of the clients,  must be budgeted too.  Canadian Guide Dogs for the Blind, (where I trained with Opal), receives no government funding.  The school operates as a charitable non profit organization, totally funded by money received through donations and fundraising activities. Clearly, it is in everyone’s interest (including the dogs) to be selective in determining who should have a Guide dog.   Some of my friends who were tinkering with the idea, would not  be good candidates. Why?  For some, it is absurdly obvious… they don’t like dogs much!  Other reasons include:  

• They have poor mobility skills and no initiative to learn any.  If they can not find their way to a destination with a white cane, it is unlikely that a Guide dog is a solution to ‘getting out of the house’, at least, until they learn to travel independently.
• Their state of general health (poor) would make it unlikely that they could be active on a regular basis. Some require frequent hospitalization.
• They do not have the financial means to support a Guide dog with even basics, like food and veterinary care. (Routine Veterinary care, can sometimes be supported by a school’s program. Emergency Veterinary care is usually the responsibility of the client.)
• They have a ‘free spirit’, hedonistic attitude about life.  This is not compatable with  having ANY dog in your life, including  a pet. If you can not get out of bed in the morning, or think that going outdoors in ALL WEATHER, several times a day, is  NOT for you…having a Guide dog  is probably not a good idea!  

There are sound reasons why the application process to a Guide dog school involves a great deal of paperwork.  I was required to have a family doctor detail my general health, my eye specialist detail my eye condition, and my ex-O &M (Orientation and Mobility) instructor describe my mobility skills.  I provided details about myself.  When the CGDB school received my application package, they determined  that I could move to the next step: A home visit by an instructor. We went for a ‘handle walk’, (called a Juno walk by some schools) which found me leaving my cane behind  and holding, a harness handle, with the instructor leading as the ‘dog’.  This gave the instructor a picture of my walking speed and gait. I learned (to my surprise) that I would be expected to use my arms, voice and learn specific ways to position my feet, when navigating with a Guide dog.  My height was noted (so that I could be matched with an appropriate sized dog). We talked about my everyday life.  What places did I go to?  I explained my busy life, with meetings, church, shopping, groups etc.  My concern about Lucy (my cat) and how her life would change if I was to have a Guide dog, was also considered. We talked about my age (49 then), my income, my family and community connections (I live alone).  I asked plenty of questions and they were all answered.  The instructor left me, and advised that CGDB’s committee would  meet and discuss all this information, and decide if I would be a good candidate for Guide dog training.  She also gave me hope by telling me that, while the decision was made by a panel that take into consideration all of the information,  she ‘felt good about it’.  It was a month or two later that I heard the happy news that I was accepted for training.  I waited to be ‘matched’ with a dog for several months, before being called to class in Ontario for a one month residential program. The Hadley School for the Blind offers a course called “Is a Guide Dog For Me?”. Hadley offers free distance education to blind people around the world (see http://www.hadley.edu). I suggest that anyone considering having a Guide dog in their life, should talk to other handlers about their experiences.  I know some people who have had a Guide dog or two, and then wisely decided that they preferred not to reapply for another guide dog. Their lifestyles had changed, or they relaized that they liked to go home and ‘put the cane in the closet’… something to consider. Dogs need routine and consistent care (feeding, grooming, relieving), love and attention (work, play, health care). Opal is the best thing that could have happened in my life.  It could be that a Guide dog would be equally important to you or your loved one. Do your homework and consider the reality of your lifestyle before you take the plunge. 

Advocacy is NOT a scary word!

I don’t ‘get it’.  Why are some people so upset when you tell them that you belong to an advocacy group?  When I think back (way back) to my childhood, I realize that even at the tender age of eight, I found myself defending any individual or group who seemed to be getting the short end of the stick.  I remember sitting in Mr. H’s living room next door, trying to explain why he should sign the petition I was holding. It concerned a local agency for the then-named “…Association for the Mentally Retarded” (we were not terribly PC back then, but still concerned). Mr. H. asked seemingly inane questions(but at least he asked) about why ‘they’ should have any kind of support, and did his taxes not cover their sheltered workshop?  He hemmed and hawed for thirty minutes, and in the end, Mr. H. said he had to “think on it”. Maybe more of us cared a little more forty or fifty years ago. Life was not as complicated (or so it seemed). We were not living in the state of hyper awareness we live in today. Thanks to the media and the Internet, we all became armchair voyeurs to the political injustices, atrocities, discrimination,  inequities, disasters, and general mayhem that goes on in the world.  Our choice of battles to fight has become vast and the pressure to join in everyone’s pet cause, immense.  Miss Mimmosa tells me that she often has ‘the vapours’ just getting through the day. “It starts with my problem trying to decide what goes into the recycle box, and ends when I listen to the six o’clock news report and that nice young man who introduces all those people who want me to: call my MP, or to stop buying imported produce, or to send money to support the famine relief, or to sign a petition in support of banning the seal hunt…” I agree with Miss Mimmosa. It’s not easy to ‘get on the bandwagon’ with one or two or even ten ’causes’ when your faced with the realization that there are thousands more, just as worthy, that you must say no to. My theory is: Supersaturation of choices of issues and causes to support, has paralyzed some people. Others (from the good old activist-heavy ’60’s and ’70s) are too old to “take up the struggle”.   Still others are feeling that the personal ‘payoff’ in supporting an advocacy initiative is not sufficient. Sigh.  Here’s my solution. This works for ME. I have no idea if it would work for YOU. I vigourously support and work on issues that I KNOW SOMETHING ABOUT.  It makes a difference, when you speak from personal experience. I ALWAYS do a small analysis to determine priorities: 

•  Is this something I am passionate about? Or is this interesting as an observer?
•  Do I have, or can I make the time necessary to be involved with this at the level I choose?
• What skills can I provide?
• What do I know about this issue or group? Where or how can I find out more?
• Can I deal with any ‘fallout’ that results in my activity as an advocate of this group or cause? (work, friends, services, notoriety?)
• Will I establish a personal time-line for my level of involvement and stick to it? (you may care, be passionate, but you can’t do it all alone)

What are my advocacy concerns these days? Most deal with disability groups, and the issues of equity, inclusion, and quality of life. My other interests are Environmental.  I am president of the Halifax Chapter of Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians, Chair of Halifax Regional Municipality Advisory Committee for Persons with Disabilities, ‘telephone tree’ for my church’s (Universalist Unitarian or UU) Planetary Concerns committee, planning person on the ‘Mosaic for Mental Health’ project and member of the VISTA (Visually Impaired Safe Travel Advisory) committee. That’s my quota. I lend my name in support of others that I can not be active in for the obvious reason; time.  It’s not fair to take something on that will result in meeting being missed, phone calls and e-mails not being returned, or worse, BURNOUT. Watch for that, but for goodness sake, be active. Advocacy is not a scary word. It makes the world accountable. 

When Someone You Know “Goes Blind”

Vision loss is no picnic for the person who is experiencing it.  Rarely do people “go blind” over night.  Most experience a gradual decline and have up and down periods. Some people retain useful  RV (residual vision).  Eye conditions create many types of abilities and restrictions. Macular Degeneration causes loss of central vision needed to see detail.  Glaucoma can cause tunnel vision,and  reduced night vision.  Diabetic Retinopathy causes reduced vision, especially at night, and sensitivity to glare.   It’s a bleak day at the opthamologist’s office, when a declaration of ‘Legal Blindness’ is made.  A journey of change  and adjustment begins.   Feelings of depression and anger are common. New skills must be learned.  Everything seems difficult.  Me?  I thought my head would explode trying to remember everything.  I learned that multi tasking is best left to sighted people.  Patience with yourself is critical. It takes more time to do everything, it seems, when you are doing it with less sight. It frustrated me to ‘think’ about everything I was doing. I resented spending 20 minutes on a task that I once performed in 5 minutes.  Emotional support is very important for people experience vision loss.  Peer support groups can make all the difference.  Being able to share the daily frustrations with others ‘in the same boat’,  is very helpful.  I joined such a group many years ago. I continue to ‘chair’ this motley crew today.  People come together every second friday of the month. For some, it is one of the few social outings they will have that month.  Everyone relaxes and has a chance to share whatever is on their minds.  It’s a lot easier to laugh about an experience related to blindness outside of the ’sighted’ circle of support.  For example, people roared when I admitted that I had accidentally washed my hair with Vim (tub cleaner) instead of shampoo that morning.  OK, it was a few years ago and I tend not to do that kind of thing anymore, but it is the type of thing that is best shared with people who ‘understand’.  The most commonly voiced sadness and frustration with new group members, comes as a result of loss of a drivers license or car.  The family members and friends of the person who has lost most of their vision,  must also go through a period of adjustment.  I often hear people who are new to vision loss, particularly older individuals,  expressing that they “feel like a burden” to their family members.  Sometimes, an entire circle of friends seem to drift away out of the life of a man or woman who is experiencing significant vision loss.  There are professionals etc. who can elaborate on the whole ‘psychosocial dynamics of blindness’, but here’s my wise advice:  Do not smother your loved one who has lost their vision.  It is far more helpful to facilitate good skills and O & M (orientation and mobility) training with a service providing agency (like CNIB in Canada) than to adopt a “let me do that for you” attitude.  However, realize that this is a difficult time. Some people learn faster than others.  Some skills are just too difficult for some to master. There is the element of safety to consider.  It’s nice to believe that your brother or mother who has lost their vision, can ‘do it just like anyone’, but things like using a stove, chopping, navigating through a noisy, busy mall with a cane, are not safe to attempt, without good skills.  Every human being has a comfort zone and it is not fair to force someone into a situation where they are thrown out of it. I think there are unrealistic expectations for many people who lose their vision, made unknowingly by friends and family members.  I learned Braille. But only 15 to 20% of all blind adults ever learn it.  I have a Guide dog (Opal) who has changed my life.  Back in the ‘planning stage’ when I was applying to go to Guide dog school,  one of my peer group members reported that a family member had commented to them, “you should get one too, mom”.  The mom in question, did not know how to walk down the road with a white cane, did not go to any location without assistance, did not particularly like dogs, did not like going out on rainy or snowy days… My point? it made no sense.  It can be helpful to someone who is experiencing vision loss, for family members to help reorganize the home environment.  A big factor in feeling comfortable is the accessibilility of the home.  Whether the person with vision loss is living alone, or with others, reorganizing the environment is necessary. Simple things, like specific placement of household items (so they can be found), using colour contrast schemes (paint or non-skid tape on stair risers, coloured handrails, floor material),  installing good lighting (mostly incandescent) and  ’attach’ lights on underside of cabinets. Get rid of dangerous scatter rugs and keeping cupboard and closet doors closed, and keep shoes etc. out of the footpath.  It’s easier and more pleasant to get on with life, when your home is safe and comfortable.  I have friends in my peer group who have told me that their friends or family members are often more ‘distressed’ than they are about their vision loss.  This is an unfortunate and common occurrence. I’m not sure if it involves fear (of their own potential vision loss), misconceptions of blindness, social stigma of blindness, or feelings of inadequacy (“I don’t know how to help”).  All of this stems from lack of general public awareness, and total absence of knowledge of the facts.  If you have a family member or friend who is “going blind”, express your feelings (of inadequacy  or whatever),  get your supports in place (books, internet, organizations, service providers), but  for goodness sake, GET OVER YOURSELF!  The world has not ended for you, or your loved one. 

Alternate Format Billing

I had time on my hands yesterday, so I phoned up my power company (Nova Scotia Power) and asked them if they could start sending me my statement in Braille.  I also asked them if they provided other options to customers who are Blind or partially sighted, such as Large Print, audio cassette or disc.  I mentioned that I was not certain, but I thought they might have a legal obligation to do so.  The clerk seemed confused.  She said she would call back after she checked with her supervisors.  Seven hours later, She did call back to tell me, “we don’t have the technical means to provide Braille or large print bills and statements”.  I then asked her to send that statement to me in writing.   I have no idea what our laws say about utility company requirements to provide alternate format billing, though I would bet that it’s in the books.  If it is not, it will be eventually  (grin). I will be a thorn in Nova Scotia Power’s side, until they ensure that alternate format billing options are available. The CRTC (Canadian Radio Telecommunications Commission) has issued all sorts of rulings for telephone, cell phone and cable companies, directing them to provide alternate format billing to customers who request it.  If you don’t know what your local telephone, mobile phone, and utility companies provide in the way of alternate format billing, ask.  Be specific. Ask if they provide Braille, Large Print, audio cassette, or computer disc.  while you’re at it, ask them if their web site is ‘accessible’.  They might not know what you’re talking about.  Their web site designers should. I don’t think people who are Blind or partially sighted should be expected to pay a utility bill they can not read themselves. 

Dogs: Life ‘In the Moment’

I am not a professional dog trainer. Nor am I an expert on dog behaviour. I am, however, EXTREMELY knowledgeable about MY dog’s personality. I know what makes Opal tick….at long last.  By the time my pre-Opal period had moved to the training phase at the Canadian Guide Dogs for the Blind training Centre, I had a headful of half-baked ideas about dogs.  You might describe my eager desire to learn-it-all and stick-to-it as mild obsession with a touch of naievity.  There’s nothing like experience to drive it home.  Opal and I have had our ups and downs. She has ‘tested’ me as only a clever dog can.  Now that we have survived almost two years together, I can reflect on what I learned.  One thing is certain; dogs live ‘in the moment’.  It is futile to attempt to relate to your dog as though it were otherwise. To put it in perspective, I will cautiously use the ananalogy that dogs are much like two year old children in that their mental ability and attention span is similar.  Of course some dogs are much brighter than others.  As with humans, their abilities and ‘brain power’ must be developed and utilized through proper training in order to reach their potential.  It is pointless to correct your dog for something that happened five minutes ago.  (NOTE: I say  ’correction’, not punishment) It’s not fair to your dog to address the situation or behaviour after the fact.  They have no idea what you’re going on about.  Also, don’t  take it personally when your dog looks at you with that bored and vacant look when you say (with much wistful nostalgia) to him/her…”remember our trip to Bonavista Beach, Fluffo?”  Chances are good though, that Fluffo will go nutty the minute he finds himself back on that same beach and ‘it all comes back to him’.  Of course, the minute you leave?….out of mind until the next time.  Dog behaviour experts tend to agree that dogs ‘think in pictures’, rather than in the kind of abstract concepts that humans develop. Opal, for example, often displays ‘anticipation’ when we go to the mall and she sees the escalator.  It’s a visual cue that reminds her that something good happens when we go up that thing called “Escalator Up” on the way to the Rocky Mountain Candy shop (a piece of kibble).  Similarly, she is not impressed when we try a new route on a busy street. She has no picture history in her mind of this strange place. She is concerned that I am making a ‘mistake’ and that I don’t know where we are.  Maybe I don’t, but it is my job to convince her through my confident voice and body language, that it’s OK because mom knows best.  Remember, that your dog can only learn from your ‘correction’, when you initiate it IMMEDIATELY.  There are some situations when this is overidden when it involves the safety of the dog. For example, if your dog runs into a busy street,  your priority is to ensure his safety, rather than to stand around correcting him for not coming. (It’s YOUR fault that he’s off leash in the first place!) Don’t blame the dog for your errors in judgement. If you leave a dinner plate with a slab of steak on within his easy  reach, you have just created a situation where temptation and opportunism can take over. Avoid the whole ugly scene (dog with a bellyful of steak, you with no steak)  by being consistently proactive about removing anything you do not want your dog to get into. 

Why Blind People Get ‘Freebies’…Rights or Charity?

People who are legally Blind (20/200 vision or worse with best correction), get a lot of free stuff, or perks ( or so it appears). This has led to great misconception by the general public. Other groups of persons with disabilities have expressed discontent with particular ‘advantages’ given to the Blind community. In addition, I sense  that a pervasive guilt trip is going on with many blind people.  Let me explain the kind of freebies that are at the root of  the whole issue.  While some countries have very similar policies, I will only speak to the situation as it affects most Canadians who are ‘registered’ with the CNIB (Canadian National Institute for the Blind). What sorts of ‘advantages’ or freebies do blind people have, and why do they have them? Books. Talking books and Braille books are available (usually with a free device to play the audio material on) from the central CNIB library.  Books, major magazines, and newspapers in audio or Braille format, travel back and forth, POST-FREE to people in Canada. In fact, ‘free matter for the blind’ is stamped on many items, including all BRAILLE matter, including personal letters, bank statements,  utility bills, government documents, and Braille paper stock. Other audio correspondence material travels post-free as well. These might include course tapes to a school such as Hadley  School for the Blind,  tax assessments on cassette from Revenue Canada, or the like.  All items mailed ‘free matter for the Blind’ must be mailed in unsealed envelopes or containers.  Blind students requiring textbooks, or anyone doing research or wanting specific information can request it of the national library for the blind, and they will eventually receive their information in audio, Braille, or computer disc format.  The process takes time and students often end up paying people in their community to do the job because of school project deadlines.  Why do blind people get free books and postage of same? This has to do with the right that recognizes that everyone must  have ACCESS TO INFORMATION.  The core of this right centers around other human rights, including the right to equitable  education, employment, and fair and responsible participation in the democratic process.   The reality is, that the number of people who are blind, remain disproportionate in university enrolment,  and employment.  Interestingly enough, the internet may be changing all that. Technology has given everyone more information. It is making life much easier, in some respects, and much more complicated in others, for all of us.   The Right to Information Access,  is extending into the area of web accessibility. The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) is suing retail giant, Target, because their web site is not accessible to people who use screen reading soft ware.  This case is drawing a lot of attention because the issue of web accessibility for the blind, in a world that has created a “digital divide” in its rapid growth, could prove to be pivotal. It might  ensure that there is universal access to services, commerce and entertainment on the web, in the same way that physical access is mandated in the ‘real world’.  The second area that gives alleged ‘perks’ to the blind, is transportation. In most urban centers where public transit exists,  registered blind people normally receive a pass for free transit. Why? For some of the same reasons the blind have Access to Information. In order to get to work, school, health care, government offices,  or to go shopping, voting, or anywhere else, blind people must rely on transit. Blind people are not permitted to drive, therefore the free transit pass was introduced as a means of protecting the right to access employment, education etc.  This is a very sensitive issue.  Other groups representing people with disabilities argue that they should have free transit too.  Indeed, in some European cities, they do. However, the argument that supports limitation of free transit to the blind, is that people who  are deaf, and some wheel chair users, are permitted to drive modified vehicles and theorectically have access.  The reality is that a large number of ALL people with disabilities,  live in poverty and will never be able to afford a vehicle of any kind, let alone one that requires expensive modifications. Many blind people never exercise the availability of this free pass, because they do not travel independantly and choose to use a form of para transit which they must pay for. Others travel with friends and family members, or they simply don’t travel at all. In the city of Halifax, the free transit pass is negotiated between the CNIB and Metro Transit. The current pass was re-issued in 2005 after a two year period when blind people were caught in a ‘negotiating’ period and were told to just carry their expired passes.  The pass issued in 2005 expires this year (2008). The air is now rank with apprehension  again, as new negotiations continue for renewal. I am disgusted by the tactics employed. Many blind people express feelings of  intimidation when they encounter unacceptable service from a Metro Transit driver. They choose not to formally complain or report drivers because they are afraid of ‘losing the pass’. There is a prevalant sense that they should feel ‘grateful’ that they have a free transit pass and should ‘just suck it up’. This is partly because they do not know their rights,  do not understand that there is recourse available to protect their rights (Human Rights complaints),  or they do not possess a sense of  full ‘entitlement’.  In the area of air and train travel,  passengers with disabilities are sometimes permitted to have an ‘attendant’ travelling with them at a free or reduced rate.  Some movie theatres provide  free admission  for ‘attendants’ accompanying a disabled person.  

Blind Etiquette 101 for…Retail Businesses

Do you own a small retail business? Are you a manager or employee in a shop, grocery store or other retail outlet? Here are some basic suggestions to help you or your staff in responding to the needs of your customers who may be blind, or partially sighted. First, think about the physical space in you store. Make it a firm policy to keep floor space clear of boxes and other obstacles. If you have any say in design features, such as lighting and signs, consider inquiring about what can optimize your site. Local organizations for the Blind, may be able to provide you with suggestions of specific types of lighting and how to use them, as well as other ways to create contrast (strips on steps etc.) Signs on bathroom doors should be a combination of large print, tactile symbols and Braille. Building standards and codes vary from place to place, however there are all sorts of Accessibility guidelines and checklists available from many sources, which can help you make your store or business accessible to EVERYONE. It can be daunting, with measurements of counter height and doors for wheelchair accessibility, automatic door openers, ramps, TTY access, etc. but try and think of the overall picture: If someone in a wheelchair, or someone who is Blind or Deaf, were to visit your store, what barriers would they face? ‘People skills’ is usually the aspect of accessibility, which creates the biggest barrier for people with disabilities. For people who are Blind or have limited vision? Here’s what you need to know: Identify yourself as a store employee, before asking a blind or partially sighted customer if they want help. OFFER assistance first (No grabbing of the arm etc.). It could be that the person does not want or need help, so don’t take a refusal personally. If they do want assistance, ask what they require. They will tell you what they need, or how they want to be guided (take your left arm etc.) If you are giving directions, be SPECIFIC. For example, “The washroom door is ten meters away at ten o’clock”, and not “Over there”. If I had a buck for every time I was told something was in that mysterious place called, “over there”, I’d have enough to buy a small condo. If the person has a Guide dog with them? know the do’s and don’ts that pertain to them (no petting, no talking to the dog, no eye contact…) and abide by them.  Also be aware of Access laws that protect Guide dogs and their handlers and allow them entry into your business (this extends to other properly qualified service dogs). The dog does not know where to find Ladies lingerie, so the handler might want to take your left arm and go ’sighted guide’, or have the dog “follow”. It’s up to the handler in the specific situation. In a grocery store, Blind people have some unique, preferred methods for shopping. Realize that they can not read labels, or aisle markings. Whoever is available to be a ’shopper’ (clerk who is helping), should have a good knowledge of the store and where everything is located. My biggest frustration in grocery stores stem from ’shoppers’ who can’t find anything, and take me and Opal through a 2 hour odyssey. That’s not fair to the dog. It’s also frustrating to have a ’shopper’ who has little knowledge of what constitutes a ‘good buy’ in produce. I may have access to the online ‘flyer’, but I have no idea what is actually available in the way of produce in the store when I get there, how much it costs, or if it is any good. Packaging makes it impossible for me to smell or feel the trussed-up package of green beans or asparagus, so I am counting on the ’shopper’ to tell me what’s available, how it looks and how much it costs…in a timely fashion. No two ways about it, the art of description requires some thought and practice on the part of store clerks. If the blind customer has a large number of items on the shopping list, the challenge is even greater. Many people who are blind, (with or without a guide dog) will take hold of the shopping cart while the ’shopper’ pulls the cart from the front. That way, a five foot-wide berth is not required to accommodate the cart, customer, ’shopper’ and Guide dog. A good ’shopper’ will advise of tight spots and turns. They will think ahead to where things are located in the store, so that there is no need to wander back and forth in the store. I try to plan for a maximum shopping time of forty minutes, for Opal’s sake. People don’t realize that a grocery store trek is one of the most challenging parts of her job. Smells, food spilled over on the floor, people trying to pet her, and the stop-and -go of the whole adventure is most difficult. She prefers working; being able to “find the bakery counter” at my direction, in a local store (actively working) over a situation where she is in harness, yet not guiding me in the store (when we go for a large number of items that require the help of a ’shopper’ to locate them). Paying for items? Cashiers should (for everyone) say aloud, “out of twenty” when handed a bill. They should put the change in the customers hand, and then give the receipt. If a signature is required for a credit card payment by a blind person, the easiest way to accomplish this, is for you to place the card directly beneath the ‘line’ where they must sign (as a straight edge guide). If your customer with vision loss is taking a cab from your store, try and have someone watch for the taxi, so that they actually know it has arrived (cabbies should know to get out of their car, or at least announce themselves, instead of pulling up in an area where other cars are coming and going when the person waiting can’t distinguish one car from another…but they don’t necessarily). I tend to avoid shops that are so packed with stuff that I can’t navigate. Special displays everywhere create an obstacle course for someone using a white cane. With a Guide dog, a person may be able to work around stuff, but still require adequate manouvering room. If the aisles are too narrow because of bins and displays, Opal can not take me through it, if the space is not there. One thing I emphasize with my blind friends; when someone does an exceptional or even adequate job of assisting you, fuss it up a bit, maybe even tell the manager. When service or access is not adequate, point out the shortcomings. I would love to see all businesses, big and small think about Acessibility issues. I don’t like to refer to my right to shop where I choose, as ACCOMMODATION, but rather, as EVERYDAY INCLUSION. Ask your local service organization for the Blind to give your employees a little ‘blind people relations’ skills talk. Check for pamphlets that they might have for distribution. Create a space where everyone feel welcome and people will come back to spend more money in your place of business. Remember, that they will probably tell other people about their experiences too (good or bad), and THAT has even broader implications.

Access For the Blind: Top Resources

Would you like to read some terrific articles online?  Discover Blind World Magazine. www.earthlink.net/~blindworld  Also, learn about Web Accessibility at: www.web-4-all.ca 

Guide Dog Access Laws: Where Guide dogs are allowed to go, and why

Please go to the following site to learn about the laws in various countries that protect Blind people and their Guide Dogs.

• http://www.nfb-nagdu.org/laws/laws.html 

It’s also on my blogroll to the right. 

Take Time To Smell the Roses

It is a lovely day in Halifax. I have been stressed out and busy these days. Today, I will take time to stop and smell the proverbial roses. My dog insists. When I am stressed and distracted, Opal is too. She deserves better. My Guide dog (like most dogs) mirrors  my mood and anxiety level.  Yesterday, I was not as patient or focused as usual while we worked down a busy downtown area. Neither was she.  Dogs are a lot like small children, in that they need to feel that the ‘top dog’ (that’s me, in opal’s case) is in charge,  and that top dog will consistently provide calm leadership. It is reassuring for dogs (and children) to have rules. They do so much better with routine and consistency in their lives.  Don’t think for a second, that dogs don’t have an emotional response to an angry, impatient voice.  Of course, humans will be humans.  We carry a lot of ridiculous worries around in our head and use our interaction with our dogs as a means of expression.  Opal, like any child, does not understand or care that I am unprepared for next week’s meeting, or that I don’t have enough money to buy some items I think I need, or that I feel guilty about not doing my Spanish assignment, and that these things are stuck in my head.  She DOES know when I am ill, fearful, stressed, angry etc.  She shows her concern if I am sick by being quiet and staying close.  She expects little from me, other than food, shelter, love and kindness.  I do the best I can. When we’ve had a bit of a bad day, I try to give her (and myself) a chance to regroup the following day.  So, on that note, I am going to shut down this blog for today, and take my dog out for a romp in the snow…my version of taking time to smell the roses. 

High Cost of Assistive Devices for Blind People is Onerous

Just some observations…and a bit of a rant.  One of the problems that face people who are Blind or partially sighted, is the high cost of assistive devices and technology.  Let me explain;  What are assistive devices for the Blind?  They include necessary items for everyday life, such as:

•  talking clocks and watches
• talking calculators 
• magnifyers
• Braille paper 
• tactile measuring cups
• audible water level indicators
• large print keyboard inlays
• talking thermometers
• low vision lamps
• talking glucometers
• recording devices
• large print calendars etc.
• Braille watches
• tactile games
• bump dots
• Braille rulers
• talking pedometers
• talking scales
• talking thermostats
• bold lined paper
• etc.

Some items are ‘gadgets’ and  though I would not find them essential for my life,  other people find them useful,  and therefore,  they should have them. Then we get to the big ticket items: 

•  computer screenreading software ($800.00-$1200.00)
• talking pedestrian GPS (Treker) ($1200.00+)
• CCTV (closed circuit TV magnifier) ($2000.00-4000.00)
• Perkins Braille Writer (&700-1100.00)
• ‘DAISY’ (book) player ($500.00)
• Braille computer keyboard ($1800.00+)
• ‘Scan and speech’ machines ($2500+)
• etc.

YES I KNOW that some of these prices seem odd. Some are Canadian, some are U.S.  I ALSO KNOW that charitable organizations sometimes ‘loan’ equipment to clients at no cost. I also know that free software downloads are available (limited time trials).  I also know that some (very few) provinces provide funding programs for assistive devices.  Most people with disabilities, including people who are blind, live in poverty. That is the reality. There are some wonderful (but rare) opportunities for employment, but this is not the norm, at least not here in Nova Scotia.  The percentage of people who are blind and employed, is very small.  Here’s the thing. Not only is it out of reach for many blind people to afford these things, but they are also inaccessible. For a Haliganioan (Halifax resident) who can afford to buy any of these items, we must (with some exceptions) order over the telephone, or online through a catalogue service, halfway across the country or in the U.S.A.  (see MaxiAids or CNIB catalogue links).  While it might be acceptable to order a large print calandar ‘unseen’ , prepay the thing, and wait a while for it to arrive in your mailbox, it is difficult and frustrating to choose a talking or Braille watch, without ‘checking it out’. You might not want to wait a week or two for a Braille watch to arrive because everyone needs to know the time. Again, I know that there may be one or two talking watches available at a Radio Shack-type store, but there is no variety.  Braille watches are not available locally. Many other items are also catalogue only.  My friends (and anyone who will listen) always hear me going on about ‘Quality of Life’. QL has several aspects, including financial security, physical, mental and emotional health, social inclusion,  opportunity and choice of employment,  appropriate housing, community and cultural supports, and affordable education.  There’s more, but you get the picture.  If we are to have an inclusive society which embraces people with disabilities, (as some politicians and charitable service organizations claim they believe in and should advocate for), we then, must stop TALKING about: equity, inclusion, fairness, diversity, advocacy, accessibility, accountability (and every other en vogue buzz word we use), and start DOING SOMETHING about it. Comment?