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.

Those colorful stones and pebbles

Memories of my favorite colored stones and pebbles are forever etched in my mind. Yes, and it is these types of memories that keep me on track. Oh how much I remember them and can practically see them in front of my almost sightless eyes.

I used to spend hours playing with them, either on the beach or on our porch. I would go out there and gather them while walking on the beach with my family and I would choose them based on my favorite colors. Yellow, blue, green, orange, and oh yes! The multicolored ones as well. I liked the smooth ones, the small ones, and the round or oblong ones. I would carefully place them in my bucket and then wait for a chance to play with them.

I arranged them by size. I made imaginative constructions with them and sometimes I would throw them into the water just to hear them splash. If anything, they allowed and enabled me to use my imagination to think and do all kinds of things.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day and encouraging you to learn more about the world of blind persons by visiting www.aph.org.
Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan.
Or you can chat with me on Skype at habsfan0526

Handling the mail with no one around

Here is yet another challenge that I as a blind person face on a daily basis: having to handle the mail when no one is around. For the most part, it is difficult for me to find someone to sort and handle my mail on a daily basis and for the most part I need to find someone to help me do it and at their convenience.

This could be frustrating for me only if I let it be so and I have had to strategize in order to help myself. I use my portable scanner to help read the envelopes and this cuts down tremendously on time spent on this daily task. Nine out of ten times the scanner can decipher the text on the envelope and from there it is easy to sort the junk mail from the real mail.

I know what flyers and brochures feel like so those are usually tossed in the garbage first. After this the junk mail that is in envelopes follow suit and then it is time to read the bills and other letters.

Handwritten mail is usually the most difficult for me to deal with and here is where I need to find sighted assistance. With regard to bills and other mail that is typewritten, I need to take my time and read it thoroughly. All in a day's work I say to myself as it needs to be done.

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 my memories. Visit me anytime at www.sterlingcreations.ca.
Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan.
Or you can chat with me on Skype at habsfan0526.

Dealing with dust

As a blind person it is often difficult for me to deal with dust. Dust on my counters, dust on my dressers, dust on my clothes and shoes, dust everywhere.

So how do I deal with this natural challenge of life? Well, I have a recipe which works most of the time and here are the ingredients: patience, more patience, and taking time to find it and remove it. No, it may not be the perfect recipe but it sure works for me.

I let my hands and fingers do the walking and finding, so to speak. I use my fingers and hands to find the dust, and to remove it. I really do not like the feel of dust under my hands and fingers but I put up with it. I methodically remove the dust so as not to knock over objects on my counters and dressers. With regard to my clothes, I am extra careful to brush outwards and away from the affected piece of clothes or garment so as not to allow the dust to blow back on to them.

Sometimes, of course, I may knock over something that is in my way and this can't be helped but I say to myself that it is all in a day's work. I dust regularly so as to avoid having to deal with too much dust. I am constantly checking for dust but you know what? I do it once weekly so as not to drive myself crazy.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day and inviting you to expand your easy listening by visiting my audio mysteries at www.donnajodhan.com.
Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan.
Or you can chat with me on Skype at habsfan0526.

My memories of the moon

O! That big round face that always seemed to smile down on me each time I looked up at her! For as long as I can remember until January of 2004, I was able to see her. No matter how small she was and how brightly she shone! I could see her.

After the demise of my vision in January 2004, I used my memory to conjure up images of her and it sure as anything works for me. Ah yes! My beloved moon! I could find her on any given night when I had enough vision to do so and when I was studying in England my dad had said to me before I left home: "Whenever you're feeling homesick just go out there and look up at the moon and I'll do the same and all will be well."

This magic formula sure worked for me because believe it or not I believed it and I knew that my dad would never let me down. Just like me, he would go out there and look up at the moon. He taught me so much about my beloved moon!

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day and encouraging you to learn more about the world of blind persons by visiting www.acb.org.
Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan.
Or you can chat with me on Skype at habsfan0526.

My first memories of flames

I can still remember when I first discovered what flames looked like. I had very limited vision then so I could not really appreciate their beauty at that time. This memory is still as clear as day in my mind.

I was no more than six years old then and it was a really lovely evening in August. We kids were outside roasting cashew nuts on an outdoor fire and my cousin, Susan, brought me as close as she could to the fire and there I stood, gazing in wonder at it. I loved what I saw given my very limited vision and I think that in her child's mind Susan also seemed to appreciate my smile because she proceeded to describe the fire and the cashew nuts to me. I think that she did a really good job doing it.

When I obtained a great deal of functional vision as a teen, I grew to appreciate the beauty of flames even more. The flames of a candle, of a warm fire on a cold winter's day, and a fireside in a restaurant. Memories for me to cherish forever.

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 my memories. Visit me anytime at www.sterlingcreations.ca.
Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan.
Or you can chat with me on Skype at habsfan0526.

When the radio suits me best

There are some who prefer the TV, others who prefer the Internet, and then there are some like me who prefer the radio. It all has to do with our preferences and how we like to receive our information.

I sure recognize the importance of both TV and Internet but here are the times when radio suits me best. When I am at work in my office and I can keep up to date while I work. I find that when I am working the TV is often a distraction and in the opposite way the radio seems to soothe me best.

When I am in the car on my way somewhere, the Internet and TV are off limits to me. When I am elsewhere, TV and Internet are not available. Example, on the beach, while walking, in a restaurant, and so on. I really find that the radio is more of a friend or companion to me while I am outdoors. I find that I need to concentrate more when I listen to information on the Internet. I use the radio to keep up to date with breaking news, to listen to easygoing music, and of course, sporting events!

I often find that radio announcers are much more descriptive than their TV and Internet counterparts, but alas! Those watching TV and Internet programs can see what's going on and I am unable to do so. So here is where the radio fills the gap for me because everyone is on the same playing field; no one can see what's happening on the radio.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day and inviting you to expand your easy listening by visiting my audio mysteries at www.donnajodhan.com.
Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan.
Or you can chat with me on Skype at habsfan0526.