Priceless and wonderful memories: At Metro with Mom

 

When Mom visited me in the late winter and early spring of 2023, she really enjoyed going to the Metro supermarket and just spending time browsing and buying.  We would walk leisurely up and down the aisles and she would just enjoy looking at all of the merchandise on the packed shelves.

Mom especially enjoyed roaming around in the meat section, the produce section, and then the deli section.  She described everything that she saw to me and together we would choose.  But I always allowed her to make the final decision.

These are such priceless memories and will be forever burned in my mind and carefully stored in my memory bank.  I was never sure when she would return to Toronto after the Covid shutdown but we have been given another glorious chance to enjoy our visits to the Metro supermarket.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly award-winning, sight-loss coach and accessibility advisor wishing you a terrific day.

If you would like to learn more about me as a sight-loss coach and author then I invite you now to visit http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as a sight-loss coach and author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids with their wide-eyed smiles and infectious laughter is secured forever.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and  @author_jodhan
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What would I do without my Metro? Metro the familiar

After all of these years, the Metro Supermarket remains such familiar grounds for Mom and me.  Metro is the fall back for me with all of its friendly staff and easy to find goods on the shelves.  The produce and meat sections are still very easy to navigate and the same for the freezer section.

I will respectfully submit that as someone with a vision impairment, it is so important for me to be able to navigate the aisles easily.  To find what I seek and to have staff who are always there to help and assist.  

For Mom as a senior it is so important that she, too, can obtain friendly help and assistance.

Hats off to Metro for remaining accessible!

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly award-winning sight-loss coach and accessibility advisor, wishing you a terrific day.
 
If you would like to learn more about me as a sight-loss coach and author then I invite you now to visit http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as a sight-loss coach and author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids with their wide eyed smiles and infectious laughter is secured forever.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and at author_jodhan
And like me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/donnajodhan and at www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan

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Not my favourite task: Packing away the groceries

I am still trying to find someone who will tell me that they enjoy packing away their groceries.  Sure!  It is a lot of fun to buy them but after a long jaunt at the supermarket it is time to saunter home to unpack them and then to put them away in their right places.

For me, as a vision-impaired person, I must be more careful when unpacking and putting away my groceries.  So, here are my tips for what they are worth.
Upon entering my home, I take great care to unpack my bags.
First, I sort my groceries by tins, boxes, fruits, vegetables, frozen foods, and then meat, milk, and juice.
Anything else is put into a separate pile.
Next I proceed to put away each pile into its proper place.
Finally, I check to ensure that everything is correct.

One slip on my part and it is a big challenge for me to go back and redo it.  So, I need to make sure that I can tell the difference between a box of cookies and a box of stuffed chicken breasts without having to open the box. All in a days work for me.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly award-winning sight-loss coach and accessibility advisor, wishing you a terrific day.

If you would like to learn more about me as a sight-loss coach and author then I invite you now to visit http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as a sight-loss coach and author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids, with their wide eyed smiles and infectious laughter, is secured forever.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan
And like me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/donnajodhan and at www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan

 

A funny experience: The mystery bag

Just imagine my curiosity and surprise when I returned home the other day from a visit to WalMart, where I do my grocery shopping every two weeks. At the best of times, unpacking my groceries is a necessary chore, an irritant, and just something that I do my best to get over with whenever I have to do it.  I painstakingly take my time to unpack the bags and for the most part I do not have much problem identifying the contents of the bags.

However, on this day I found a mystery bag, as I call it.  I was able to identify the contents of this bag but could not reconcile my grocery list to the contents of this bag.  Thank goodness that it did not take me  very long to figure out the reason why.

Of course, it belonged to Stephanie who had also bought groceries.  Matter solved and she confirmed it for me.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly sight-loss coach and accessibility advisor, wishing you a terrific day.

If you would like to learn more about me as a sight-loss coach and author then I invite you now to visit http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as a sight loss coach and author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids with their wide eyed smiles and infectious laughter is secured forever.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan
And like me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/donnajodhan
and at www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan

An attention lapse: The wrong chicken broth

Blame this one on me. A few weeks ago when I went grocery shopping I had listed chicken broth as one of my items and at the grocery store I forgot to check to ensure that the broth was a can and not a cartoon.

So, just imagine my surprise when I returned home and was packing my groceries away. I came across a large cartoon and it took me a few minutes to figure out what it was. It was my chicken broth in a cartoon and not in a can.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advisor, wishing you a terrific day.

If you would like to learn more about me as an author then I invite you now to visit http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as an author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids, with their wide eyed smiles and infectious laughter, is secured forever.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan

And like me on Facebook at

www.facebook.com/donnajodhan and at www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan

My reflection: Mom's favorite supermarket

Oh, how I love going to Mom’s favorite supermarket!  It is always a treat whenever I go grocery shopping with this very special lady.

We set out early in the morning and soon we are there!  The many smells of food cooking, fresh produce, baked goods, and so much more simply tantalize my nostrils.

On most occasions Mom’s favorite supermarket is crowded with shoppers pushing shopping carts loaded with all kinds of goods, standing around in the aisles chatting and laughing among themselves, and shoppers conversing in various languages other than English.

Some are carrying on conversations in English.  Others are greeting each other in Spanish while others are exchanging information in a Chinese dialect.  I stop, I listen, and I take it all in and I thoroughly enjoy the entire scene.

Mom would often stop to greet a friend and then she would introduce me to them.  Then we would move on to continue filling our own shopping cart.

Christmastime is probably my favorite time to visit Mom’s favorite supermarket as it is overflowing with goodies of all kinds and the crowds are thick and noisy.  It is the time when smells simply outdo themselves as they compete for my attention.

Ah, yes!  This is Mom’s favorite supermarket!

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day. 

If you would like to learn more about me as an author then I invite you now to visit
http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as an author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids with their wide-eyed smiles and infectious laughter is secured forever.

And now my weekly podcast!
From recipes to apps, and 5 minute mysteries to tips for entrepreneurs and scam alerts!
www.takeanother5.com
And available for download from iTunes and Google music play

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and at author_jodhan
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Going shopping at Price Mart

This is always a very pleasant adventure for me, going shopping at the Price Mart Complex with Mom.

Price Mart is huge, almost always crowded whenever we go, and filled with the sounds of shoppers scurrying around with their shopping carts.

I simply love to take in the many different smells, ranging from chicken baking at the deli to the fragrance of flowers.  I love to inspect the many fruits and vegetables, huge boxes of cookies and chocolates, and gigantic packages of so many other things.

Then there are the over-sized tins of nuts, the larger than large bottles of all kinds of fruit juice, and oh yes!  The bulky packages of meat of all kinds.

I always stick very close to Mom, hanging on to the handle of the cart as we cruise from aisle to aisle.  She describes the scene to me as we move along and then she often places packages in my hand to show me how huge they are.

Mom and I have so much fun on these special days.  She is my eyes and I am her ears.  Yes!  Those special shopping days at Price Mart!

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day.

If you would like to learn more about me as an author then I invite you now to visit  jodhanmysterybook.club/about-the-author
There you will not only learn about me as an author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids with their wide-eyed smiles and infectious laughter is secured forever.
Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and at author_jodhan
And like me on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/donnajodhan and at www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan

When the shopping cart went haywire

I still smile to myself each time I remember this particular incident. One moment I was hanging on to my shopping cart and the next the wind had taken it away from me and I was left without my cart.

It was a cold winter's day when this took place. I had just finished my grocery shopping and there I was, standing outside waiting on the cab to arrive. I thought that I was hanging on tightly enough, but alas! No! An unexpected gust of cold wind rose up and before I could react my shopping cart was wrenched from my hands.

I simply felt the cart leaving my hands while at the same time I heard it moving away. No time to stand still! I began to reach frantically for it using my cane to help me out. I began to panic!

I moved forward and then backward and then left and then right! I swept my cane in all directions! No one to help me! The wind continued to blow strong and hard!

Then help came! A kind passer-by came to my rescue when he saw what was happening. He rescued my shopping cart and brought it safely back to me! My shopping cart had drifted several feet away from me! All ended well!

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day.

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan
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Visit my online store to either purchase or subscribe for unlimited access to our library at www.donnajodhan.com/store.html and you can even take advantage of my free downloads!
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Dear Readers:
This is a personal request from me for you to join my campaign against bullying (CAB).

In 2012 I launched my own campaign against bullying in response to appeals from friends and associates. I decided to try something new and here it is.

You can support my campaign against bullying (CAB) and in return for your valuable contribution I will send you a thank you gift. Visit www.jodhanmysterybook.club to learn more. I will use all contributions to promote workshops to help others protect themselves from bullying and teach them how to launch their own anti bullying campaigns.

In addition, I will produce blogs and podcasts to help me spread my campaign and to convince others to do the same.

You may also visit my online store at www.donnajodhan.com/store.html and browse through my selections.

Help me to stop the spread of bullying and to show others how to combat bullies.

About my audio mysteries: Patterned after the "Murder, She Wrote" and "Murdoch Mysteries," where mystery is the order of the day. Meet Detective DJ and the Crime Crushers. You won’t want to miss out on any of her audio mysteries! Filled with gripping drama and unbelievable plots, you won’t be able to stop listening until the very end and then you’ll be craving for more – there is mystery behind every mystery!

Detective DJ writes and records her own audio mysteries. She uses the power of words to create and solve her crimes, and then she draws you in and before you know it – you’re all caught up in the plot! But alas, at the end of it all, when you think you’ve identified the perpetrator, she surprises you once more and you’re left absolutely stunned and amazed!

In an unfamiliar supermarket

No, I would never go to an unfamiliar supermarket on my own. I would definitely be looking for trouble that I do not need. However, there are times when I do need to go to one and now I do this with my friend Sue. It could be a daunting experience but at the same time it could be lots of fun.

With a pair of eyes to guide me, we go to a different Metro supermarket at the present time. It is bigger and there are many more aisles for us to travel up and down and more choices of products and produce for me to discover. Sue is simply super! She explains everything to me and she makes it look so easy! There is not anything that she cannot find. I can even expand my choices and look for new things. It is only as intimidating as I allow it to be.

All it means is that I now need to condition my mind to develop new images and new pictures for me in my mind. I have to get used to the new layout and where things are but it is all in a day's journey.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan your friendly accessibility advocate wishing you a terrific day.

Follow me on twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan
Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan.
Visit our online store to either purchase or subscribe for unlimited access to our library at www.donnajodhan.com/store.html
and you can even take advantage of our free downloads!
Or subscribe to our free monthly newsletter at www.donnajodhan.com

This is a personal message from author Donna Jodhan
"Each time we raise our voice at someone else we are engaging in bullying! Each time we raise our hands to slap or punch someone else we are also engaging in bullying and each time we engage in actions to either manipulate or force someone else to do what we want we are also engaging in bullying!

There is no room in this world for bullying and each day we fail to take action against bullying it is another day that we allow others to bully us and our kids. Our heroes and role models are the ones who have made us proud; those brave young men and women who gave their lives for us in past wars and those who continue to do so. They are not the ones who choose to be racists and those who believe that their bad behaviour in public is acceptable.

I write and record audio mysteries that are being used at such events as murder mystery evenings as well as at public awareness and team building events. I promote understanding, tolerance, and problem solving and my audio mysteries continue to be broadcasted around the world and you can listen to them anywhere! On the plane or train! In the car or right there in your home! On your i device or computer!

Please join my campaign against bullying (CAB) by supporting my efforts to keep on writing and recording!
If you truly care then you will certainly dare!"

Remembering to check the tins

Yes, I constantly need to keep reminding myself of this each time I go grocery shopping. As they come, most tins feel alike and it is only with constant practice that I am able to keep tabs on them whenever I buy them and whenever I pack them away in my pantry.

Of course, you will always find that some tins are smaller than others and are shaped a bit differently to others but on the whole and in general, many tins feel alike to the touch. As a blind person, I need to keep these points in mind on a daily basis.

Tins of tuna are different in shape to tins of beans and tins of soup are also a bit different as well. When you shake a tin of soup it sounds a bit different to a tin of beans but the challenge comes when I have to distinguish between different types of soup, different types of beans, and so on.

So how do I deal with this? I take my roll of masking tape with me to the supermarket and use it to help mark the tins. Sometimes I use my house key to make slight rips in the labels on tins to help me to decipher differences.

I am still working on a bar code reader to help make my life simpler and easier but this will come later. Meanwhile, all in a day's work for me.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day and inviting you to go out there and share my blogs with others. Come by anytime and visit me at www.donnajodhan.com and there you can listen to some of my audio mysteries.
Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan.
Or you can chat with me on Skype at habsfan0526.

Mom’s guiding hands

Her hands are almost always there. To help me find things in the fridge, on my counter top, and around the home. They are there when we go shopping. To help me discover and explore clothes on the rack, shoes on stands, products on the shelves in the pharmacy. They are there as well in the supermarket to help me gently touch the produce and meats. They are there whenever we are walking along and moving around in the malls.

They are there when we walk along the beach, when we are at buffets and when we sit at tables in restaurants. They are there whenever we need to go grocery shopping to bring home the groceries. They are there whenever I need to sign documents and there again whenever I have problems with my remote. In short, they are everywhere and I thank God for them every day.

I’m Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day and inviting you to go out there and share my blogs with others. Visit www.acb.org to learn more about the world of blind persons.

Making sure to check my groceries

By now, those of you who read my blogs are probably very aware that grocery shopping for me is my least favorite activity. At the best of times, it is very nerve racking and extremely stressful on me. Please do not get me wrong! The staff at the Metro supermarket are extremely helpful to me but at the end of the day I need to make sure that what I ask for is what I receive.

As a result, I am constantly having to check each item as the good folks at Metro help me out on my shopping trips. I go armed with my shopping list and they take it from there. As they find each desired item, I ask for it to be placed in my hand so that I can inspect and check it out. The Metro staff is used to this and most times I do not even have to ask for them to show me; they do this automatically. It is the only way for me to ensure that I am getting what I ask for.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day and inviting you to go out there and share my blogs with others. Visit me any time at www.sterlingcreations.ca.

Identification at the supermarket

Now that I no longer have nearly enough vision to identify products in the supermarket through color or by other visual cues, I have quickly learned to develop other ways to do what I need to do in order to identify my food stuffs.

I use the sense of smell to help me identify such things as various types of flowers, breads, pastries, and other types of baking goods. I use my sense of hearing to help me identify what is in certain packages, tins, cans, and boxes. I often shake these to help me identify.

For example: the sound of packages within a box is different to the sound of loose stuff within that box. The sound of packages of tea is different to the sound of loose tea leaves when shaken. The same goes for soup and so on. The sound of beans in a tin sounds a bit different to the sound of peas or peas and carrots in a tin. The sound of fruits in a tin sounds different to tomato sauce in a tin when these are shaken.

I also use the sense of touch to help me identify food stuffs. Some boxes are bigger than others and the same goes for packages. So once I know what to expect from sizes, I am halfway home free so to speak. As long as I know what I am buying then I can use my senses of smell and touch to help. One other thing, I use my sense of touch to help identify the shapes of things. Bottles, tins, cans, and even some packages. Spray bottles are shaped differently to those bottles with pull-up tops, dish soap versus Mr Clean spray bottles for example.

I think that by now you are getting the picture so I'll leave you to figure out other examples. I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day and urging you to go out there and share my blogs with others. Visit www.shop.aph.org to learn more.

Helping mom to find

Mom and I almost always have lots of fun whenever we go shopping at the supermarket. My way of helping her is to use my sense of touch to help find such things as tins, cans, bottles, boxes, and the various meats and similar things. I use such methods as shapes, sizes, widths, and lengths. I also shake tins, cans, and boxes to help the cause.

In the case of meats, my sense of touch is called upon to help identify shapes of such things as drumsticks, thighs, breasts, sausages, bacon, and so on. It helps that I have an idea as to what to look for on which shelves.

How do I know which shelves have which things? Ah, my memory from when I used to see things. Lots of things for Mom and me to have fun over. I am sure that other blind persons either have similar methods or some new ones for me to learn about.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day and inviting you to go out there and tell others about Mom and me. Visit www.afb.org to learn more.

Trusting the One Who Helps Me

This circumstance applies most of all whenever I go grocery shopping; I have to place my trust totally in the one who helps me.  Yes, I usually take my shopping list with me.  I type it up on the computer, print it, and take it to the grocery with me.  However, when I give it to the customer service attendant who walks around with me, here is where I have to trust in them.

 

Most of the time I come home with what I have asked for but every now and then something falls through the cracks.  That's to be expected; I can't always expect the helpful customer service attendant to get me exactly what I have asked for.  It may be that sometimes they have either misread my request or that they are in such a hurry to get it done that they choose the incorrect item.  Sometimes like everything else they fail to find it and with a good heart they substitute something else which they feel may be sufficient for me or something that I would not mind having. 

 

I may for example ask for a certain brand of grape juice and if they do not find the specific brand then they would substitute another brand without telling me.  Or, I may ask for a beef pie and when they don't find it then they would substitute a chicken pie.  As long as they tell me what they have done then I am fine but the problem comes when they do not tell me and then I only discover it when I get home and days later I go to use the item in question and realize to my chagrin that I did not come home with my preferred item.

 

I have to place my total trust in anyone who helps me in the grocery, the pharmacy, the chain store, and in the electronic store.  There is no getting around this so I have to deal with it as best as I can. 

 

I'm Donna J. Jodhan your friendly accessibility advocate wishing you a terrific day and encouraging you to go out there and tell others why blind persons need to trust the ones who help them.  Visit www.afb.org to learn more.

How I Identify Fruits

Not too difficult for a blind person if you take a moment to think about it.  I use my senses of smell, touch, and taste. 

 The first thing in the identification process for me is to touch the fruit.  Bananas are different in touch from apples and in turn, apples feel differently to oranges, pears, peaches, and so on.  Grapes, strawberries, berries, and cherries are smaller so there is no problem here.  Grapes are shaped differently to strawberries, and cherries are somewhat similar to berries in shape so here is where I need to use my sense of taste if I am not sure.  Blue berries and black berries may become a problem for me but my sense of taste often wins out.

 

What I am trying to say is this:  For blind persons, the identification of fruits is not a problem.  Every fruit has its own unique smell and feel and believe it or not, many sighted persons often use their senses to help them along without even being aware of it. 

 

I'm Donna J. Jodhan your friendly accessibility advocate wishing you a terrific day.  To learn more about how blind persons go about identifying fruits plus more, visit www.acb.org.

Inaccessible Point of Sale Devices

Here is another challenge for many blind persons to grapple with; inaccessible point of sale devices.  Why?  Because a blind person is unable to use them independently.  They need to depend on sighted assistance to help them complete their transactions.  They are unable to see the screens.  When they press a button, they do not receive any audio feedback to let them know that they are pressing the correct buttons.  If the device is of the touch screen variety, then they are unable to know where on the screen they need to touch.

 

Inaccessible point of sale devices are an infringement to the privacy and independence of blind persons and maybe it is time for manufacturers to start developing accessible devices.  Maybe, it is time for them to dialogue with some of the larger blind consumer groups.  If I go into a store to purchase a product, I need to be able to complete the transaction by myself without having to ask for assistance at the checkout counter.

 

I'm Donna J. Jodhan your friendly accessibility advocate wishing you a terrific day and urging you to go out there and lobby manufacturers of point of sale devices to develop ways to make their devices more accessible to blind persons.

Visit www.afb.org to learn more.

Missing Out on Bargains

Missing out on bargains is one of the most difficult things that I have to deal with on a daily basis.  For the sighted

world, it is easy for them to read about bargains in flyers, the newspapers, and see it on TV or on the Internet.  For

me, I am unable to read newspapers or flyers, and although I may hear it on TV, many ads do not repeat phone

numbers at the end of their infomercial instead choosing to display it on screen.  In the case of the Internet, so many

websites are not user friendly to those with vision problems making it almost impossible for us to access. 

 

When I go grocery shopping, I am unable to read the flyers that are stacked on the counters.  These flyers gaily

display all of the bargains in the supermarket but I do not have a clue as to what they are.  The same applies for

when I enter a store or pharmacy and as a result I am shut out of being able to reduce my shopping bills. 

 

This is something that I'd like to see addressed by the sighted world; ways to make it possible for blind persons to

know about bargains.  One possible solution that comes to mind is this:  Maybe, the larger store and supermarket

chains could have a phone line whereby we could call in and hear the bargains on a weekly basis?  Food for thought.

 

I'm Donna J. Jodhan your friendly accessibility advocate wishing you a terrific day and urging you to go out and help make it easier for blind persons to learn more about bargains.