Why I Make Blind Jokes
I had an interesting conversation with my aunt the other day. She noticed how many people with disabilities often make jokes about their disabilities to themselves or their friends. She didn’t understand why they would do that, since she interpreted them as being mean to themselves, and asked if that was something that I did often in regards to my blindness.
Normalizing the "B" Word
Growing up partially sighted, the word "blind" was never a part of my vocabulary, mostly because many people who met me didn’t consider me to be blind. To them (and myself), blindness meant having no vision whatsoever. I grew up with the idea that blindness was an all or nothing concept, and although I only have roughly half of my visual field, I still had remaining vision and ergo wasn’t considered as being a blind person.
Reevaluating Physical Education
If you ask anyone from my school days—elementary or secondary— I am sure they would all tell you how much I enjoy running. I am not sure where this started, but it is something I love to do and miss now that I am older. I have thought about joining a Track and Field team, but that has its own challenges and is a blog for another time.
Beyond the Pencil Part 3
I still remember my elementary school days where braille was a big part and perhaps the only medium in which I accessed and produced information. I remember my hands taking in the words and the way they were spelt, the way everything was laid out on the page which included the way in which paragraphs were split, what was bolded, what was italicized, or where a comma or semicolon was placed.
The White Cane Chronicles Part 2
It has been about nine months since I have transitioned to having a Guide Dog in my life. Though this means that I am usually with my furry companion when I am out and about, there are still times when I need to use my white cane, or times when I use it to ensure that I keep up my skills.