March 24 - In Australia

We have had a very good week in Australia.  The weather, usually stable in March, has been a mixed bag of some rain showers, much sunshine, and one brief but terrifying electrical storm.  Fortunately, we did not experience the damaging wind and rain of Cyclone Trevor which created havoc in the far north of the country, or Cyclone Veronica which is due to hit the coastline of Western Australia.  We have simply enjoyed mild temperatures, and we have spent a lot of time on the beach.

I don’t enjoy the surf as much as I used to when I could see. These days I can’t see the waves when they come rolling towards me and I find it difficult to locate my towel on the sand when I come out of the water. Instead I like to swim in the various rock pools around this area. We stay at a place which is about an hour north of Sydney as the crow flies, and nearly twice that time if coming by public transport. It is a great place for beaches.

I like to swim in the rock pools and we have discovered quite a few over the various times we have visited here. Last week I swam – or rather walked – in the water at MacMasters Beach. The wall of the pool has been built up with rock and the pool has a sandy bottom. Of course, it is outside. It was high tide when we were there and the waves came crashing over the exterior wall. The water was incredibly warm and I had great fun.

I also like to swim at a place called Spoon Bay. This is a natural cove at the far end of Terrigal Beach. A person can walk there along the beach but it is quite a hike and we usually choose to drive. The cove is fairly isolated, the water is shallow and we find it a great place just to relax.

Yesterday we went to a place called The Entrance. I love the pools there. There are three of them – a deep Olympic sized pool which is perfect for swimming laps, a shallow knee deep kids’ pool and a waist deep pool which is about fifty steps in length. The water level doesn’t really change much with the tides but at high tide the waves will lap over the exterior wall. These pools have been built up with cement bases but they are outside and open to the elements.

Our days in Australia are drawing to a close again. We have another week of visiting with family and friends but we also hope to do a little sightseeing. There are still places we have yet to see and experience.  I am already scheming about the possibility of another trip. The picture below was taken on the day we were at MacMasters Beach.  I am standing in the foreground with the rock pool behind me and in the background is the Pacific Ocean. 

Sue standing in front of the MacMasters Beach rock pool

March 17 - Speaking With Strangers

When our children were small we tried to instill in them the general rule that they should not speak with strangers.  Now that I am a visually impaired adult, I find that I frequently break this rule. 

Often as I walk along the street in our town I will hear a friendly greeting of, “Hello” or “How is it going?”  I hear the voice and make an appropriate response.  It is only when the conversation is carried no further that I realize that the voice is addressing someone else on their cell phone. I sometimes wonder if the other person is looking at me with some bewilderment and I know that I am definitely confused by the exchange.

The other day there was another incident of speaking with a stranger.  Lyle and I had gone into a coffee shop where I approached the counter to order a take away coffee.  I had thought Lyle was right behind me.  The cost of the coffee came to a little more than I had in my hand. I turned to the person behind me, thinking it was Lyle, and said, “I’m a little short, do you have twenty cents?”

The person said nothing. I peered more closely at him and likely in the process, increased his surprise at my request.  This person was not Lyle.  Lyle had retreated to the other side of the coffee shop to look at the newspaper.  I am hoping that the person I accosted could see the badge I wear, stating that I have low vision.  It would perhaps explain my unusual behavior and request for money.

Yes, I do speak with strangers, although not always intentionally.

Currently Lyle and I are visiting family in Australia. This might explain why I asked for twenty cents as opposed to a Canadian quarter.  Australians use a twenty-cent coin, which is approximately the same size as a Canadian toonie, but definitely heavier.  Their fifty-cent coin is bigger and heavier yet again.  Lyle often complains of sagging pockets while we are here.

March 8 - A Matter of Perspective

A friend told me today that she thought I had made a mistake when in my last post I wrote that March had come in like a lamb. I suppose it is all a matter of perspective. I thought that when the sun was shining and there was no wind, it was a nice day in spite of the below zero temperature. My friend was in Florida enjoying the balmy weather of the southern state and to her a March 1 day of thirty degrees below zero was more like the month coming in like a lion. As I say, it was a matter of perspective.

I think that the same holds true for sight. I am often asked how much I can see and what it feels like to be visually impaired. There are some days when I honestly forget about my low vision, and then there are other days when I feel on the brink of frustration.

As a general rule I don’t compare myself to other people who have vision loss, but if I did, my perspective might be altered with each comparison. If I am standing beside someone with no sight, I would venture to say that my sight is really quite good. If I am standing beside someone who is fully sighted, then I would have to say that I am quite visually impaired. Mostly I try to be just me. There is no changing things anyway! We all need to play with the cards we have been dealt. The rest is just a matter of perspective.

March 1 - Like A Lamb

March has come in like a lamb and I hope that the month will stay that way. I don’t like the other end of the saying which implies that March could go out like a lion! I am quite ready for the snow to melt and spring to be here. At least the sun now has some warmth in it.

This morning I went for a walk with my friend Lois. In spite of the sunshine, the temperature is still around minus twenty so we chose to walk inside. We are fortunate to have a complex in town where this is possible. I like walking there because it is usually not crowded and I can see well enough down the hallways to be able to walk without my cane. It is a freeing experience.

Last month I tried using walking sticks. I was a little resistant at first, thinking that they would be so similar to my cane. They are not. With my cane, I tend to lean slightly forward as I sweep the ground in front of me. I know that my posture isn’t the best. With the walking sticks, I stand noticeably straighter and feel much better.

I have heard about this change in posture from people who change from using a cane to using the services of a guide dog. They have said to me that they feel more confident with the dog in that it is the dog who is leading the way and they themselves don’t need to strain forward trying  to see what is ahead. As for me, although my sight is poor, I still have too much vision to transition to using the services of a guide dog.

Guide dogs are probably the topic for another post and I have titled this one, Like A Lamb so I will finish writing and  again go outside to enjoy some of today’s March weather.