May 21 - GPS

GPS or Global Positioning System is a location and navigational device. As a pedestrian I often use a hand held GPS to figure out where I am and where I need to be going. In our vehicle, Lyle nearly always sets the GPS for our next destination. I wonder what we did in the old days without a GPS to lead the way.

Well, I do know what we did in our vehicle. In the very early days before we set out on a trip, we both looked at paper maps. Then came the time when my eyes couldn’t see to read the print on the map and I couldn’t help Lyle with directions while we were in motion. That is when we became more creative. Before a drive into unfamiliar territory, Lyle would study the paper map and then use a black felt marker to print out abbreviated directions on pieces of paper. He would place these in order and with each new turn of direction I would hold up the next instruction. This was okay as long as I kept the pieces of paper in order and Lyle was still able to read them in spite of any surrounding traffic or other distractions. An audible GPS has been a much better solution than this large print paper version.

As a partially sighted passenger I also find a GPS beneficial. Primarily the system relieves me of the responsibility of being the navigator. Secondly, I like to know where I am. I can’t see to read road signs or see even large landmarks, but the GPS audibly gives me location information. I can assist Lyle as a second set of ears to the navigation directions. I suppose that with years of relying on audio cues rather than the visual, my listening skills are more highly attuned. It’s one way of looking on the positive and I don’t need to keep nagging Lyle as to where we are and how long it will be before we get to our destination.

On another note, I would venture to say that a GPS can either break or save a relationship. It is quite lovely not to have to concentrate on location and direction when the GPS knows the way. Lyle and I can indulge in the pleasure of the drive. On the other hand, when the GPS loses the satellite signal in the midst of high buildings, mountains, or as in our most recent trip through rural Saskatchewan, the driver, Lyle, and the passenger, me, might also lose something called patience.

I suppose a GPS is like many other technologies. When the device is working as it should, it is great. When things go wrong, it is just frustrating.

May 4 - Sight, Sound and Speed

When I am out walking alone, I rely fairly heavily on the sounds around me. When I can’t see what is coming towards me, I hope that at least I will hear the sound indicating the approach. I am usually quite startled when the first sound I hear is when the person or bike is right beside me.

Now I have complained in the past about bicycle riders who don’t sound their bike bell but now I want to add the danger I feel at the silent approach of electric bikes and scooters. The trail where I often walk is open to both pedestrians and bicycles. I’m not opposed to this. What does scare me out of my wits is when a bike – pedal or electric – is suddenly upon me. The regular bikes are scary enough but at least I can sometimes hear the motion of the pedals as they get closer. Anyway, they aren’t quite as speedy as the electric bikes. My heart really does start to beat faster when suddenly out of the quiet there is an electric bike and rider beside me. Do they even have bells to ring? I’m not sure but I do know that I haven’t ever heard one.

Now, as for electric cars – well, just don’t let me get started! Electric cars are just as silent as the bikes and travel even more speedily. I always cross roads at intersections or at a pedestrian crosswalk if there is one, and although I know that legally I might have the right of way, I’m not sure that all motorists abide by this. If a vehicle or bike is traveling too quickly and silently for me to hear the sound, I doubt that my white cane would make any difference.

So, I’m not sure that this post will make any dent in the advent of electric vehicles and the hazard they might pose for those of us who rely more on sound than sight, but my little rant has helped me to unwind. Thank you for listening.

April 19 - What Can I See?

It’s hard to describe what it is that I see. For one thing, I see differently at different times and in different places. This all depends on ...well, I’m not sure what exactly it depends on. Let me try to explain.

When I go for an eye exam, my optometrist tells me that she measures my sight by my ability to count fingers. This usually occurs in the dimly lit exam room after she has already shone a super bright light towards my retinas. Truthfully, I am lucky if I see well enough to actually be able to count the fingers she is holding in front of me.

However, this sight measurement is totally inaccurate as to what I am able to see after I leave her office and enter the more brightly lit reception area. The change from dark to light or vice versa has an instant effect on what I am able to see. I am unable to see in the dark but good light makes a difference.

Changes in light happen in more subtle ways in the real world too. Last week, when I was walking along my regular path by the river, I could see almost nothing in front of me. The sun was shining and the shadows from the trees disguised the edges of the path. The snow had disappeared and the gray path blended into the dull brown grass along the edges. I walked slowly trusting my walking sticks to find the more solid asphalt of the trail.

Then the following day, I walked the same route again. Lyle was surprised that I had picked up my walking pace. This was because I could see so much better. The day was cloudy. There weren’t any shadows dancing around and there wasn’t any glare. The change in light had made a huge difference.

While changes in light make a difference to the way I see, changes in me also make a difference. If I am feeling unwell, I know that I don’t see as well. Perhaps this has something to do with my concentration. I know that if I am overtired, the same thing happens. I think that it does take more effort for a visually challenged person to get through the day than it does for a fully sighted person.

Then there is brain memory. In familiar surroundings, if I concentrate, I think that I can sort of see things that I know are there. Does this sound confusing? I know that I don’t quite understand the phenomenon. When I sit in my living room, I know that I can’t see the couch on the other side of the room or the picture on the wall. Yet, my brain tells me exactly what I know to be there and in a kind of weird way, I believe that I can actually see or perhaps visualize them.

So, what do I see? I suppose the answer depends on where I am and how I am feeling.

 

 

 

April 9 - White Cane Tips

If you read the title of this post, you might think that I am going to write about suggestions of how to use a white cane. Although I am sure that there are a number of such hints, this is not the case for today’s writing. Instead I want to talk about the tips, or ends, of white canes themselves.

My first white cane had a long pencil shaped tip. I would sweep the cane out to one side, and then as I stepped forward I would give it a slight lift and tap it on the other side of my path. I could feel through the handle of the cane if there were any obstacles in front of me. I would keep repeating this side-to-side tap tapping motion as I walked forward.

I didn’t especially like this cane. I found the constant slight lift awkward and tiring. I was glad when I was introduced to a different cane tip. This one was shaped and sized much like a marshmallow. The tip rolled fairly easily on the ground and I found it less tiring to use. Since that initial marshmallow tip I have seen others of a similar type. Once I saw a red tip the size of a tennis ball. I haven’t used that particular tip but thought that it looked heavier than I would like.

Then I met Steve. Lyle and I were wandering around Circular Quay in Sydney when Lyle noticed a man using a white cane with a curved tip. This was something new and of course I struck up a conversation with him.

It turned out that Steve Holyer was actually the blind engineer and inventor of this cane tip. The tip was shaped much like the end of a hockey stick but much slimmer. Steve wanted a cane tip that would travel more easily over different surfaces. He said that his invention did just that. It was also quieter than the ball tip. Steve said that the lessened noise of his curved cane tip made it easier to listen for other noises around him. He called his invention the HuJu, a combination of names of his grandsons.

Steve offered to let me hold and use his cane. He said that the HuJu tip was designed to fit on the end of a graphite Ambutech cane. These canes are already lighter to handle and I found that with the curve end it moved very smoothly over the concrete surface where we were standing. The HuJu tip is made of acetyl and is low friction, durable and strong. It does not dig into pavement cracks and potholes.

Since then, I have looked up Steve’s invention on the RNIB website. Steve lived in England and this was where the HuJu tip was introduced to white cane users. Comments on the web site indicated that the HuJu tip seemed to be more versatile than other cane tips. The one downside was that it was too easy to get it stuck in a drain or grate on the ground. To date, I haven’t seen the curved cane tip used in Canada. I wonder how it would fare over snow, although I imagine that it would move easily enough over ice.

Next time you see a person using a white cane, I encourage you to check out the tip, or end, of the cane.  Just as we who are blind aren’t all the same, neither are the white canes that we use.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

March 30 - At the Beach

Lyle and I often go to Australia. It is where I was born and I still have family living there. Mostly we like to go to Terrigal, a small beach town about an hour and a half north of Sydney. With our frequent trips to visit family, Terrigal has become much like a second home for us.

Originally we used to stay with my parents on these visits, but nowadays we stay in rented accommodation. We have tried out several rentals in the area but I like our most recent discovery the best. The building is only 1½ blocks from the beach. The very best part of this is that if I choose to do so, I am able to walk the distance without a sighted guide.

My favourite part of the day is early morning. There is a small coffee shop just across the road from the beach. I like to buy my coffee there and then cross the road to a bench overlooking the waves. Because I do this nearly every morning, the staff at the coffee shop know me by name and quickly fill my order, often jumping the line of other customers ahead of me. I wear my low vision badge and use my cane. Knowing my vision challenge, the staff will usually be quite careful in placing the take out coffee cup in my waiting hands.

There is a pedestrian crosswalk on the corner of the block and I am able to cross the street without problems. Pedestrians have the right of way in the crosswalk but I still tend to listen for approaching traffic.  From there I head to my usual spot by the sand.

The beach is always a busy place in the early morning. There is a promenade that leads from the surf club around the base of the rocks to the neighbouring beach. Weekends are especially crowded with people walking, jogging and exercising their canine companions.

On this last trip, our daughter and granddaughter were with us. While I drank my coffee, these two would clamber on the rocks, check out the height of the waves in the flagged beach area and then usually come back to me so that we could walk a bit together. My sister would often come to join us for these little excursions. It was all a lovely way to spend the morning.

There is a picture with this post. In it, I am sitting on the bench with Lexi. We have turned to look at the camera and the ocean is behind us. 

 

Sue and Lexi at the Beach

 

 

March 26 - Follow Up

This post is a follow up to the last one I wrote about accessibility and air travel. Our flight to Australia was good. I was given the appropriate safety briefings and I felt that the crew were aware of my vision challenges. Apparently though, I must have been miraculously cured while we were away and before our flight back to Canada. I say this facetiously of course as on our return, even though I was not recognized as having a sight impairment, my sight has remained the same.

On our return flight, for my part, I did everything I could to show that I was a visually impaired passenger. I registered on booking. I used my white cane and wore my low vision identity badge. I preboarded with other passengers who needed assistance. However, not once on the three legs of the return flight was I given the promised personal safety briefing.

I feel very strongly that all passengers on board a flight should know the location of emergency exits. I know that the airlines feel the same way and cabin crew are required to make sure that all passengers receive the appropriate safety briefings. For sighted passengers, this is usually done by showing a short video prior to take off. This doesn’t work for passengers who are blind and a personal verbal briefing is necessary.

Now you may think that I am making a bit of a fuss about all this but I feel it is a point worth making. On this trip I was travelling with family, so not alone. I have also travelled by air many times before so know generally what to expect. In addition, I know that I am capable of speaking up when I need to do so. I make the point for other blind or visually challenged passengers who might not be as comfortable in speaking up to request the promised and necessary assistance.

Lyle and I will be flying again in the summer. Once again I will be hoping for the cabin crew to fulfill the safety requirements for a blind or visually impaired passenger.

March 5 - Accessibility and Air Travel

When Lyle and I travel by air, we always register me as being visually impaired or legally blind. We feel that this is a safety issue. If ever anything was to go amiss, we would want the cabin crew to be aware of my sight challenges and be able to offer whatever assistance was appropriate.

Now while I have registered as a passenger with vision loss ever since my initial sight challenges, airlines have not been quite so consistent in their recognition of my disability. Although there have been some amazing times where flight crew have been super helpful, there have been other times where help is almost non existent.

I always make sure that I am registered correctly at the beginning of the flight, but I wonder what happens to the note when I actually board the aircraft. When a second leg of a flight occurs, Lyle and I sometimes joke that I must be miraculously cured. The designation of being visually impaired mysteriously vanishes.

This month, Lyle and I will be flying again. I was quite surprised when this past week I had an email from Air Canada. The email outlined what accessibility services I could expect during my flight. For instance, if I was travelling alone, I could request curbside assistance right when I arrived at the terminal. I could expect that help would be there to guide me to my boarding gate and onto the plane to find my seat. I could expect that I would receive directions to the washrooms and exits and how to operate any knobs and dials relevant to the seat itself. If there was to be a meal, flight attendants would be happy to explain what was on the meal tray.  As some airline food is almost unidentifiable even if a person can see, this latter assistance could prove very helpful. Most importantly, crew was required to give me personal directions about what to do in case of an emergency. Surprisingly, in my experience this safety briefing hasn’t always happened.

I am looking forward to our next flight and wondering if the flight crew and cabin attendants will adhere to the same accessibility list as was in my recent email from Air Canada. It would certainly make for a more positive travel experience for me.