A learning experience: Changing the light bulb in my bathroom

I can honestly tell you that this was probably one of the funniest experiences for me.  Now that I can no longer see light, and I am not sure why I do this, I still turn on lights and then turn them off at night or when I am finished in my bathroom.

Whenever I remember, I check the light bulbs in my bathroom to make sure that they are still working and this is exactly what I did a few months ago.

I carefully stood on my step stool and placed my hand gingerly on each of the five bulbs.  Alas!  One of the bulbs was cold to the touch so I knew that it was not lighting up.  So, I retrieved a new bulb, removed the offending one, and then proceeded to screw in the new bulb.

It took me a bit of time to fix things because I had to be very careful when inserting the new bulb so as not to get a current shock.  When I inserted the new bulb and screwed it in, I had to place my hand gingerly on the top of the bulb to make sure that it was lighting.

Eventually, I got it done.  All in a day's work.

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
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No lights in my office

Here is another funny story for your reading.  This one also had me chuckling to myself, and my friend and technician was equally amused.

Imran had come over to visit and do some work for me.  I brought him into my office but before he arrived I had turned on the lights in my office, or so I had thought.  I was in for a very rude awakening.

When he asked me to turn on the lights I told him that I had already done so but in his quiet way he told me that I had not.  Then we both figured it out at the same time!  Both of the bulbs had blown so there were no lights in my office.

Imran quickly changed my bulbs, chuckling as he worked and never making me feel stupid!  That's my friend, Imran!

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

Why I touch light switches

There used to be a time when I could see lights; I used light switches to their fullest but now that I am unable to see lights, I have to be more careful with my light switches. I still turn them on; I am not sure why but despite not being able to see them I get a sense of security whenever I perceive them to be on.

The trick comes at night when I have to go around checking all of my light switches to ensure that they are in the off position. Now and then, I have left on a light and only found out when I went to turn it on or off later on and realized my mistake. Or someone with sight came to visit me and told me that my light was on.

Another situation arises when I discover that a bulb has blown. This circumstance is a bit more difficult for me to detect but it is a part of my life’s challenge. In short, light switches are an important part of my life. No I am not able to see lights, but yes they sure help me to feel comfortable and I really do not mind checking them every night.

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.afb.org to learn more about how blind persons interact with lights in their homes.

Why I Touch Light Bulbs

As a rule of thumb, the mainstream person with enough vision can usually tell when a light bulb has had it; they can usually do this after turning on the light switch and noticing that the bulb is not lighting. For me, it is very different. When I had enough vision, it was no problem for me to tell whether or not a light bulb was lighting, but ever since losing my vision over five years ago, it is a different story.

I now have to use a different method to tell me if the good old light bulb is lighting up. Often times if a light bulb is ready to quit lighting, you would usually hear a "pop" sound when you turn on the switch but you can't always depend on this indicator. So, I have to use another technique. Yes, you got it! I have to touch the light bulb to see what's going on or, if the light bulb is close enough to me, I can just bring my hand close enough to feel if there is any heat coming from it.

The other day, I went to turn on a switch in my office and as I did so I heard something go "pop." I immediately realized that one of the light bulbs had blown; but which one of the two was it? I took my step ladder and climbed towards the light bulbs. First I had to locate them by feeling along the ceiling for the chandelier. Next I had to stretch all the way to see which one was hot and which was cold. After a minute or so, I found the culprit and then had to climb back down, turn off the switch, and then climb back up and repeat the process of finding the chandelier. Upon locating the blown light bulb, the cold one, I removed it and then returned with a new light bulb. But there was more to come!

After screwing in the new light bulb, I climbed back down, switched on the light, and returned to make sure that the new light bulb was lighting. I tested both light bulbs with my hand and, lo and behold, the new light bulb was not lighting. It was cold. So down I went to repeat the process all over again. After a few minutes, I had things working again.

Last year, I discovered a little gadget that I can use to tell if lights are on in a room. If you turn it on and it buzzes, then there is light but if it does not buzz then there is no light. A very handy little thing for telling if my computer screen is on or off but be careful now! It will only work if there is no residual light close at hand. For example, daylight. I will hasten to add that I could not have used it in the incident described above because there were two light bulbs for me to deal with.

You may be asking yourself if I am unable to see the light, then why do I bother to turn on lights? Very simple! It is for the sighted world, in case I should have visitors. And, somehow it makes me feel as if I am still part of the sighted world.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan your accessibility and special needs business consultant wishing you a terrific day and reminding you to go out there and tell others what blind and visually-impaired persons do in order to tell if light bulbs are working.

To learn more, Visit Independent living aids (ILA) at http://www.independentlivingaids.org.
Tel: 1-800-537-2118
Or Maxi Aids at: http://www.maxiaids.com
Tel: 1-800-522-6294