A typical reaction: No survey at the liquor store

 

Nothing should surprise me these days.  A few weeks ago I went with Stephanie to the liquor store to buy some wine for the long weekend.  There was a staff member there asking purchasers to take a survey but, lo and behold, I was not asked!  I was in the line and this staff member deliberately passed me over.

No, I was not annoyed nor was I surprised!  I was simply amused, and why? Because I somehow surmised that this well-meaning staff member chose to think that a vision- impaired person was either unable to take a survey or they could not be bothered to interact with me!  What more could I think?

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly sight-loss coach and 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 refreshing experience: My new dentist

For me, personally, and I suspect that there are many others out
there who feel the same, it is always a challenge whenever we
change doctors and dentists. Oh, yes! A challenge it is, indeed,
but my new dentist is very cool, as they say.

When my long time dentist, Doctor Yaser, retired I was really sad but I
understood that he had to leave because of having broken his arm in three
places. As he told me, it was time to retire and hang up his drill.

The good thing is that he personally chose his successor and I have not been
disappointed.  Doctor Corey Worman would or could never replace my dear
Doctor Yaser but he is very good and is unique in his own way.

He is friendly and puts me at ease.  He does not seem to have any problems
interacting with a vision-impaired patient and this is key for me.  So, a
great stroke of luck for me.

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.


And now my weekly podcast!
From recipes to apps, and 5 minute mysteries to tips for entrepreneurs and scam alerts! www.donnajodhan.com/takeanother5.html


Subscribe to my monthly newsletter!
'Let's Talk Tips' is my monthly resource for the most current and reliable informational tips available in the areas of Technology, Nutrition, Media, Business, and Advocacy.  http://bit.ly/ADJSubscribe


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

Enjoying my time: Megan's description of onstage action

I am always so delighted whenever I can sit next to someone who is only too willing to explain what is happening on stage to me.  And this was the case at a conference in late September 2017.

My table companion, Megan, did a superb job of describing everything to me. The scene was one of teens depicting several different scenes of their peers in various situations.

These situations included peers rejecting each other, turning their backs on each other, asking their fellow peers to include them in social activities, and so on.  I truly enjoyed Megan's descriptions and at the end of it all this particular session was much more valuable to me.

Now that I can no longer see what's happening on stage it is always a luxury for me to be able to know. 

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 
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.donnajodhan.com/takeanother5.html

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

Is anyone there?

One of the surest ways for me to know if someone is there is to ask, “Is someone there?” More often than not if someone is there they would respond, but sometimes they do not.

As for me, I am always on the lookout. I listen carefully. I use my sense of smell to help me determine if someone is close by and I use my intuition to guide me. I often feel vulnerable whenever I am not sure if someone is there. Sometimes my imagination tends to run away from me and I start to think that someone is lurking close by, just waiting to pounce.

Whenever I get into an elevator, I almost always say good morning or good afternoon or good evening so that I can give anyone in the elevator the opportunity to respond. When I had enough vision to see, it was not a problem but it is different now. I need to concentrate much more now on my immediate surroundings.

I’m Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day and urging you to go out there and share my words with others. Visit www.afb.org to learn more about how blind persons interact with their surroundings.

Are Blind Persons Spoken to Differently?

I am going to let you be the judge with regard to this matter but I'll also give you some examples to chew on.

 

In so many cases, when there is interaction between a sales person and a blind person, it is often reported that the sales person finds it necessary to speak more loudly to the blind person. 

Some sighted persons feel more comfortable addressing a blind person using such prefixes as:  Dear, Honey, and so on.  I often wonder if they would use the same words when talking to a sighted person.  In addition, they alter their tones to sound as if they are talking to a kid. 

 

I guess that you can't win them all!  If they speak to us too loudly then we find it offensive; as if they believe that we are also hard of hearing and if they speak to us using tones and words that they would normally use when addressing kids then we are also offended.  I'll let you be the judge.

 

I'm Donna J. Jodhan your friendly accessibility advocate wishing you a terrific day and urging you to go out there and visit the www.nfb.org website to learn more.

Through the Eyes

This is my opinion for what it is worth.  It is a well known fact that much of society communicates through the eyes and for those without sufficient eye sight to do this, it is a definite drawback.  For blind persons who are unable to make eye contact, it is a definite barrier to the sighted world.  Remember the famous saying that says "The soul is through the eyes?"  Well, for blind persons, they are unable to see one's soul and in turn it is often extremely difficult for the sighted world to see their soul.  Not very difficult to comprehend if you think about it.

 

Blind persons do not and are unable to communicate through the eyes because they are unable to make eye contact but for those who were born with vision and then lose it later on; they have already had the ability to make eye contact and after losing vision they are still able to use their eyes to somehow communicate with sighted persons.  That's because they have learned to do this and can still visualize enough to keep on using it.  So, let me just summarize below.

 

If a person is born blind, they are almost always unable to make eye contact.  If they have been born fully sighted and lose their vision later on, then they have already developed the technique of eye contact and so are able to visualize enough to simulate eye contact.  As for me, I was born blind so I have had to work very hard to develop a way to make eye contact using creativity on my part and tutoring from my mom.  Clear as mud?

 

If you would like to learn more about how blind persons communicate with the sighted world then visit www.nfb.org or www.rnib.org.

 

I'm Donna J. Jodhan your friendly accessibility advocate wishing you a terrific day and inviting you to go out there and tell the rest of the world about how blind persons

 

Please Don't Shout At Me!

Sometimes I get so tired of people shouting at me! No, not because I did something wrong or inappropriate, not because they were frustrated with me, not because I was not listening to them. None of the above!

They keep shouting at me because they feel that I am unable to hear. For some strange reason, much of the rest of the world has this odd notion that persons who are blind or visually impaired are also deaf or hard of hearing, and it is not just one type of person, a particular race or culture, or a particular profession of person. I and many of my blind and visually-impaired friends can tell you that at the supermarket they do it. At the pharmacy, in the doctor's office, at the bank, on the sidewalk, or lining up to wait for a vacant bathroom people do it. So many times I have come home with my ear drums practically hanging out of my ears because someone shouted at me in their attempt to have a normal conversation with me.

I have had days of returning home with ringing ears after someone shouted at the top of their voice at me while I was walking on the sidewalk. They did so because they were trying to give me directions. Or I have had to endure headaches after someone tried to help me out at the supermarket. I have also had to deal with roaring frustration on several occasions after someone shouted at me while answering my question. The thing to remember is this: Blind and visually -mpaired persons are afflicted with the inability to see. However, they can hear; they are not deaf. There is absolutely no reason for you to shout at them in order to be heard. Just speak to them in a normal tone. The same tone that you would use for anyone else except for someone who is hard of hearing.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan your accessibility and special needs consultant wishing you a terrific day and reminding you to go out there and tell others that blind persons can hear as well as you can. They just do not see as well as you.