Author Archives: John

Job Days Redux

Posted on by John

Assuming I’ve done this correctly, you should be reading this as I’m at work. this is because I’ve decided I’d attempt scheduling a post for the first time. Interesting idea.

Last year at about this time, ok a couple weeks earlier I’ll admit, I’d written a piece about the job I did at my current employer. At that time, I worked to assemble combination locks, getting my hands all greasy from the bodies as I piled them onto a tray with attaching chain. The orders for that dried up at the end of May, and it’s been so long now that I’m not entirely sure I can remember how to do it anymore. I think they’ll get us up and running over there again sometime soon.

One of the reasons I’ve opted to post about my current work is I saw via a Twitter follower that this is National Supported Employment Week. Or maybe that was last week. In any event, it’s a time to think about disability and employment.

According to what I learned from my brief stint in a graduate-level Rehabilitation Counseling program, Supported Employment pairs a person with a disability, usually a condition that’s may require a bit of adjustment to effectively do the job such as Autism, Intellectual Disability, or another developmental disability, with a job coach or trainer. The levels of SE, as it is often abbreviated, can vary based on a person’s needs. It is a good program that helps to bring meaning to the lives of many and engender pride and satisfaction and accomplishment. I have a tremendous amount of respect for those who choose to enter careers that make this option available for those who can use it.

While I and most blind and low vision people don’t really use supported employment, we are still often employed in sheltered settings as I cuttently am. These are workshops that hire people specifically based on their disability status, and they at least provide some basic level of work, often as routine as the job I’ve done before and that which I’m now doing.

I currently am in a section where we make light sticks that soldiers can use in the field, and that don’t require batteries to work. I think they have some sort of chemical that becomes active when the top is broken off. We do the whole thing, from placing them into foil, packing them ten to a labeled box, and putting them onto a conveyor belt to be packed into larger boxes for shipment. I am one of the packers who place the boxes onto the belts. You can hear how that sounds here, if curious.

When the sticks are in high supply, the days sail by. However, I’m already noticing that we seem to be heading toward the typical summer trickle. So I’m more often finding myself with head bouncing off of chest or worse, off of the sharp edge of the pocket that holds the box as I rapidly shove sticks in on a specially made workstation. Fun times.

And on the subject of time, my routine has changed markedly little. I guess if anything, I feel I’ve somehow become more efficient with my use of time. I can shove down a bowl of cereal, make a sandwich, and complete other tasks all while still practically asleep. Then it’s to the bus stop, where I now usually have a couple of other companions waiting with me, come wind, rain, or freezing cold! Thankfully Spring seems finally to be settling into the Southeast.

Am I glad to be employed? Of course, as it’s leading to so many more freedoms. But I still desire to do something more with my existence than this. I admit to finding figuring out just what that should be is proving more of a challenge than I’d thought. Perhaps I can do one of these reviews every year, as a means of gauging my progress or if any has been made.

Booking it! Online?

Posted on by John

I would venture to say that at some point or other, every blind and visually impaired computer user has experienced this difficulty. I’d say that it results from the varying combination of browsers and assistive technology we might use to interact with the sites, as well as the many ways a site can be designed and function when certain actions are taken.

I’m headed to Charlotte to visit my cousin this weekend, yay! We’re gonna watch the NCAA Tournament’s Final Four matchups this Saturday and probably talk a lot about any and everything.

In getting there, I’m taking the Amtrak as usual. I decided I would go ahead and finally create an account there for myself, so that I might get some Guest Rewards points since I’m likely to make at least this trip fairly often in the coming year.

I log on, and after a little of this and that, manage to enter my user information. A number is then generated for me, but I hadn’t known at the time that this wasn’t the end of the acquisition process for guest rewards membership. I sure wish I had realized it!

Next, I proceeded to attempt purchasing my roundtrip ticket between Durham and Charlotte. I like that I could add the two stations as favorites, which in theory would make future scheduling a snap. Once I managed to find the link labeled Passengers with Disabilities, which I needed in order to request assistance and get the small discount for which blind folks qualify, I made the, apparent, mistake of linking my Guest Rewards account to the trip I was attempting to book.

So here’s where I really became frustrated. I got my card info in, clicked the Purchase button, and it just sat there saying it was “Processing payment”. Paranoid about the idea that if I clicked it again I’d be charged twice, I allowed the machine to sit there for about 20 minutes before conceding and calling it a night, for it was already late.

Fortunately everything had been saved, so I relaunched the same search the next day and got the same hanging Now Processing result. I was wishing for at least an error of some kind, so that I’d know that something was wrong and perhaps what that something was.

I opted to give it a try with the iPhone app, but with that I couldn’t even get the date to enter correctly. So, I threw up my proverbial hands and called in to order the ticket as I had done on all previous occasions. I told the call center representative with whom I spoke I was doing that, throwing up my hands, and she laughed. She was nice though, and demonstrated to me that the problem was that I had not completed my enrollment in that Guest Rewards program.

I could go off on a tangent regarding my usefulness of loyalty programs, which often require you to have amassed piles of points to redeem one flight/trainride/pizza/what have you. I of course understand this logic, as the hope is that one will continue spending with said company in order to obtain the benefits, and that so doing will result in greater profit for the company. But I usually don’t see the need, and just buy the thing I want outright. I know there are some things to be gained from these associations though, which is why I was going to give it a go. Do you engage in any loyalty programs?

I do think I might sign up for Southwest Airlines’ Rapid Rewards, as I’m slowly starting to use them more. They actually have done a good job lately of making their site a lot more accessible with a screen-reader, ad they offer great prices on nonstop flights from my local airport.

So that was a little of my trip booking fun. I guess for now I won’t actually become a Guest Rewards member, but I might feel like signing up eventually. I do have to say that the Amtrak site was usable for the most part, but just wish it could have been a bit more explanatory and that things could be more easily located.

Especially for those with visual disabilities, what have been some of your trip booking challenges and/or successes lately. I’ve also heard that Expedia isn’t exactly wrking well for screen-reader users lately either, but cannot personally attest to this as it’s been a while since I’ve completed a booking there. Weigh in.

Jeopardy At 50

Posted on by John

Today, I heard an NPR story that noted that Jeopardy began on this day 50 years ago. Wow, way back in 1964. And that the current host, Alex Trebak, has been there for 30 of those years. He’ll retire after this season.

I’m not entirely certain why I became so addicted to Jeopardy. I used to watch it somewhat even as a kid, though I would mostly get angry because I knew not what any of the answers were referring to. I often asked my precosious cousin to give me some of that information, as well as everything else he knew, and would yell and act like a toddler when he tried to get me to narrow it to specific topics. Looking back, I was a very strange child. I wonder how people put up with me.

Anyway, I eventually moved to Southern Pines in 1994, and my mom met her husband a year or so later. This happened as I entered high school, and he and I began watching Jeopardy religiously. It came on at 7, and if we were in the grocery store line at 6:30 I’d become antsy. I really hated to miss the beginning, feeling I guess as I might about watching my sports teams. I had to see the whole thing.

Through readings particularly of National Geographic Magazine, I soon found that I became sharp enough to get many of the Jeopardy questions right.

I did make some hilariously incorrect responses that I’m embarrassed to admit, but whatever. I can’t exactly remember what the answer, for that is the actual Jeopardy format that prompts the respondant to say “What is…” was, but it had to do with some rare animal found in the wild. I said “What is a warewolf!” My dad still amusedly gives me grief over that to this day.

I enjoyed competing on Jeopardy teams at school too, often created as a way to get extra credit on tests and such. People wanted me on their teams, because they knew I would usually be thorough in my information gathering.

One time though, I made a big mistake that cost my team dearly. I use the word HOMES to remember the five Great Lakes. My instructor told me to name them, of course within a time limit, and I shouted “Hurron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, and Wisconsin!” I knew it was Superior, but the state name got in the way of my proper response.

I have considered trying to get onto the real show, but many of the ways of so doing don’t seem to be too accessible. I did manage to take a sample test somewhere, and I came out of that feeling like I knew practically nothing. Hard stuff!

I remember a few years ago that a blind guy appeared on there and absolutely pounded everyone over a five-day period. He did have a bit of a challenge remembering which categories and dollar values were still in play, which I imagine I would struggle with as well. Still, it was cool watching him blaze that trail and perhaps in some small way improve public perception of those with disabilities, and persons who are blind in particular.

I don’t watch Jeopardy as much as I did in my high school days, but I do sometimes catch it through various portals. It makes me nervous that I’m already over the hill or something, as I no longer seem as able to get the answers as regularly as I once could. I wonder though if they now place a greater emphasis on pop culture, a subject area that I’m naturally not going to be as strong in. I’m not a movie person, and while I love music I tend to follow newer acts a lot less because I can’t hear the same anymore. I suppose I should know a lot about books and authors, though.

My sister told me recently that my dad misses the days of watching that show in our way, and regularly reminisces on it. I do too, and can’t help but to wonder how it will change when Alex exits. It’s funny, but even his name and the answer structure have become cultural icons, as I sometimes hear people say “I’ll take … for 500, Alex”.

I think I will always enjoy things that ask me to stretch my knowledge beyond its limits and keep learning. Here’s to 50 more years!

Travel By Leg: on my mobility abilities

Posted on by John

This post inspired by Adventures in Low Vision, a blog about the different challenges and happenings its author encounters as she adjusts to low vision life. She writes snippets that I always enjoy, as they turn visual images into words.

In her most recent post, she asked the question “What do we as blind or low vision people do to ensure safe travel.”

In my now defunct blog, I had written about a series of techniques lumped into the general category called Orientation and Mobility that are designed to help blind people learn to navigate their environment. These most commonly include crossing the street safely moving around in large spaces such as malls and department stores, and using public transportation.

When many think of Orientation and Mobility, (O&M) they think of learning routes to specific places. Yes this happens, but if one only knew how to get from one particular place to another I don’t think one would be able to adapt well to new settings. I am happy to say that my instructors, probably some of the best there ever have been taught me methods that allow me to figure out where I am even when I locate to another area.

I never heard them use this exact term, but I believe the ability to put together bits of information to figure out different surroundings is called Structured Discovery. I sometimes do this by walking with a sighted person a couple of times and paying really close attention to turns, cracks in the sidewalk, street gutters, the sound of ventelation units, etc that help me memorize the layout. I would venture to say that suddenly I’ve gotten pretty good at this, and especially living in my sprawling Durham neighborhood with its restaurants, convenience stores, and leasing office a quarter mile away. I’ve also had to use this in the place where I work, as they often rope off familiar hallways without warning and I am forced to readjust.

The only thing that does concern me is the degree to which I rely on my rather shaky hearing in order to safely move about. I had lost this ability near totally with the lower quality hearing aids I’d had from January of 2006 till February of 2011, as they didn’t provide a high enough degree of stereophonic sound. By this, I mean the ability for both of my ears to work together to create a unified soundscape that makes it clearer when, say, cars are passing in front of me as opposed to going by on a parallel. This is vitally important when crossing streets.

Not that I’m entirely perfect even at that yet, unfortunately, but I think I do well enough to stay in one piece. I always press the button, waiting until I’ve heard an automobile pass in front of me before so doing to try and get myself as close to the beginning of the next light cycle as possible. It’s fun being me sometimes.

You might think it odd, but I believe the most dangerous part of the travel I do is actually crossing open parking lots. Here, if a car is moving it is usually doing so slowly. While I wouldn’t be hit particularly hard, hopefully, I also can barely hear the engine when there is little speed involved. I have lost a couple of canes this way, though as others point out in those situations, at least said canes did their job and kept my toes in tact.

To try and head that off, I’ll usually stand on the curb and, in a technique taught to me by my O&M instructors, wave my cane three times across my body to hopefully let anyone know that I’m about to step off. Then it’s just a matter of holding head high, trying to make sure I can be seen, and crossing fingers!

And on pressing buttons, or pulling cords, riding the bus is also usually an adventure. I’ve very much improved that over the year plus that I’ve been here as well, finally actually learning where the cords even are and thus how to properly use them.

And even though the ADA mandates it, not all stops are called out on most of the routes with which I interact on a regular basis. This is less of a concern for me lately though, as I can use my iPhone’s GPS apps to help me get a sense of where my exact stop is. I do this for the first several times I need to get to a different destination, until I get all of the turns, speed bumps, traffic lights and the like down so that I can ride without that assistance. I of course also tell the drivers where I wish to get off, but being human they are prone to forget and sail right on by if I don’t ring that ell in time.

As I stated earlier, I’m kind of afraid that my travel abilities may continue to deteriorate. I’ll probably never be able to really move around malls and such, unless perhaps I go ahead and get a guide dog. As far as that goes, I do feel I might be better with a dog than I’d thought as my basic mobility principles are solid. But if I have to get a cochlear implant, I’m raeding that others who are blind have lost some of that ability to track themselves in relation to other objects. That might render me unable to function, but I guess I have to hope not. Maybe it can be reacquired with time.

Thanks again to Adventurous in Low Vision for this post idea.

Let The Games Begin

Posted on by John

Recently, I wrote an article about the various ways in which I enjoy watching (listening to?, although you can always say watching to me I promise) sports. It is a national pastime for so many of us, and yet ironically, it probably contributes to our sedentarism. So few of us actually get off of our rumps and play ! sports, especially those of us with disabilities.

With yesterday’s launch of the winter Paralympics, a series of adapted sports for persons with disabilities that began in the 40s, I thought I would attempt to highlight some of the sports and leagues that have been created to try and address the affore mentioned shortcoming. I heard via NPR that there are five sports currently played in the Paralympics: skiing, sledge hockey, the biathalon, which involves cross-country skiing and shooting at a target, and I am unable to recall the final two. I am not sure to what degree blind individuals participate in these games, but I do know some who enjoy skiing. I’ve never tried it, and am not entirely convinced I have the guts to do so.

I think for the most part, blind folks tend to partake in summer-type activities to a much greater extent. These range from nearly full-body contact sports to rather more laid back pursuits that at least allow for some display of ability.

The one I most enjoyed while growing up was beep baseball. Many of us refer to it as more a combination of baseball and football, as you have to corral the heavy softball as it rolls along the ground, and you’re just about as likely to lose an arm in the process. Ah, but it was great fun. My hearing, and perhaps my body, has deteriorated too much for me to safely play now, sadly. For more details on that sport, read the linked article above.

Another sport I tried but didn’t like as much was goal ball. Here, you lie on the floor inside of a taped line, and smash a ball with bells to the other side where the other team is. Your objective is to get it by the other team and across the line, which would result in a score. The other team must attempt to stop it with their bodies, quite often by having the ball slam into a belly. Ah ok, this was kinda fun I suppose. But it’s usually played in hot, sweaty gyms. I was never all that good at it.

And of course, there are always track and field-type events. Of these, I most enjoyed the longjump, where you have to gather up momentum and launch yourself across a sandy pit as far as you could go. I was also a decent runner in my day, often tiring my guides out when in high school.

The only other “sport,” if it can indeed be called that, in which I participated is bowling. Specifically, my area had created a team that was a part of the American Blind Bowling Association (ABBA). They connect with several local teams who host area and regional tournaments, and send participants to the National Tournament held once a year.

I only ever competed in one tournament in Winston-Salem, NC. I enjoyed it, though my scores were laughable and it can get pricy to bowl every week. We had practices, and so we went to the alley on Fridays at $8 a pop.

There are other sports about which I know less, such as blind golf. My cousin says he has done this, and if I remember correctly you have a sighted person behind you who lets you know where abouts to swing the club. I wouldn’t be surprised if there is some sort of blind table tennis league also.

For those of you who are curious, especially parents raising blind or low vision children, I’d suggest googling a lot of these sports. There is a lot that one can do to be and remain active, and of course the benefits of so doing cannot be overstated. While I may not engage in athletics as much as I once did or should, I definitely do walk for at least 20 minutes a day. Going to and from the bus stop is good for that.

I am aware that this is a blind-centric post, since that is what I most know. I invite persons with other sorts of disabilities or those who have learned about what may be available for wheelchair users and the like to guest post here. Just contact me if you are willing to do it. Thanks.

Time to Plan Summer Travel

Posted on by John

Welcome to March, 5 days late. Did you know that in many countries, they consider the season to have changed once we reach the first of the month in which equinox or solstice is reached? Well, I’ll boldly take up that idea and say hello Spring! Now if only all this freezing rain, single-digit temperatures, snow, and the like will agree and make haste back to Alaska where they are, if not entirely enjoyed, certainly more expected.

And yes, I am of course aware that Northern winter put our comparatively puny Southern winter to shame. But looking at it from a relativist perspective, we’ve been hit about the same.

So where warm can I go. I know? I’ll go to Chicago! Um, quiet about that, it is so warm.

In any event, I’m still not sure if that will happen anytime soon. I reported winning that contest to attend a live taping of Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me there. However, I haven’t really been able to confirm all of the details, and so I can’t actually book the trip. With all I’d have to do other than that, such as visit a special, blind-friendly exhibit at the Chicago Art Institute, maybe go and at least hear Lake Michigan (because I can’t imagine a lake with waves!), and have lunch/dinner with countless friends; I’m likely to just go anyway. Maybe I’ll be better served to just hold off until at least May though, when perhaps the temperature will at least remain at or above 50 degrees. We shall see what happens with that.

I’m trying to decide something quickly though, because I haven’t exactly ruled out a jaunt to Vegas in July to attend some of the Convention of the American Council of the Blind, (ACB). I’ve never been to Vegas, and would have lots to do there and many people to meet also. I think it would be considerably more expensive though, and I’d have to ask myself am I getting the most bang for my buck. I wish I had an unlimited travel budget sometimes.

I’m hoping these stubborn days that forced me to take off work by icing and snowing everything in won’t significantly cut into the meager vacation time I am given. I think we weren’t charged at all for taking Valentine’s Day, since almost everyone found the sidewalks impassable. I had to take yesterday off too, well ok maybe I could’ve made it in but I wasn’t certain of that and didn’t want to get way far from my door only to realize the path was too treacherous. I saw another person who stays in this neighborhood, and she told me the bus was sliding back down the hill as they tried to pull up out of here anyway. I guess I would’ve been ok through all of that, but it sounds kinda scary nonetheless.

I think y full 40 hours of paid vacation doesn’t kick in till July, but I do get five unpaid days. I probably have 2 of them left, so wherever I go during this part of the year will likely be a Wednesday night/Thursday morning departure. Man, could I ever use something to look forward to!

Have you started planning your trips yet? Ideally, where would you like to go? To a big city? Up in the mountains? Down by the ocean? Does it matter? Do you know to which song I’m referring. I’m sure something will happen soon.

On Disability and Connection

Posted on by John

I’ve been pondering this topic for a while, as I seem to have unending challenges in maximizing or at least maintaining my links to others. At its root, connection is the basis of our humanity. We all want to belong to an organization, form solid romantic and/or friendship relationships, and ensure that our family bonds are strong.

I guess whether we like it or not, we tend often to be defined by what we do. What kind of job/occupation/career do we have?

I suppose not only persons with disabilities but many have a hard time associating with the individuals who might help them get to the place where they would like to be. However, I can say from my own experience and that of some of my friends that those of us with disabilities may grow up never really learning how to accentuate networks, and thus we find it harder to obtain meaningful employment, if any at all.

Fortunately, I think that modern technology is leveling that playing field for kids of this generation. I can’t imagine how different my trajectory would have been if I had Facebook, an iPhone and the like during my formative years.

What this tech is doing for career possibilities, I’m not sure it can do for interpersonal connections. In my experience, there is a bit of a rock-in-a-hard-place thing that happens, and particularly for individuals with clearly visible disabilities.

I have learned my way around almost my entire half-mile neighborhood area, from the leasing office on one end to the restaurant strip containing Dunkin Donuts, Noodles and Company, and other establishments called, I think Pavillion East. It’s a very pleasant spot, especially when the sun is shining and I can grab a coffee and a sandwich and take a seat on the patio.

Anyway, so I might be cruising along thinking to myself and mapping where I am and wish to be.

“Hi sir,” I hear someone say. “May I help you?”

Often, I say no as I don’t actually need assistance at that moment. “But hey, I would like to chat if you’re interested.”

My experience is that people rarely are interested, unless they feel they can fulfill that apparent need. Because of this, I have had relatively few friends without disabilities. More than that even, I’m finding that increasing independence can often lead to increases in isolation, as people have fewer obvious reasons to interact with me. It kind of makes me think of what others have said to me, that we are so often seen only as our disability, and not as a whole person potentially full of interesting traits and yes even character flaws.

I guess the people who are most likely to see us as whole are of course our families. Even as much as they do know though, I have found that many even in my own family are surprised by some of the crazy stuff I enjoy doing.

Actually, I feel fortunate to have the folks around that I do. One problem that is common among folks with disabilities, causing us to sometimes feel a strong urge to act recklessly just to establish our own identity, is that our well-meaning families can be a bit overprotective. I know some, for instance, who have been practically forced to live at home into their 30s, because their parents feared imminent harm if they were unable to track their every move. This sort of thing makes me sad, and I guess I’m just hoping that things continue to improve for all of us as time marches on.

So those are some of my thoughts regarding how persons with disability connect and fit in among society. I suppose things aren’t actually as tough as they could be and have been in the past. I will continue to do my part in helping us all to make gains and understand each other just that little bit more.

Book Review: Americanah, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Posted on by John

So as I hope is readily apparent, I’ve learned more about how and where to enter posts on my new site. I feel kind of silly too, because I could have been doing this all along. It’s definitely a lot more convenient than the mad dash I’d done before of composing it in notepad, pasting into an email, sending it to my iPhone, yadda, yadda, yadda.

I guess I really am investing in this thing now, as I pour a bit into it financially to get this stuff going. Doubtless, that will get me into writing more and hopefully better entries whenever interesting things happen. Now onto your regularly scheduled post, already in progress.

I’ve just completed an excellent novel entitled Americanah, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Spanning about 15 years, the story largely centers on the interactions between a Nigerian couple, and specifically what the female of that couple encounters when she chooses to venture to the US to pursue education.

This book actually starts near the end, as she has begun contemplating a return to her homeland from Princeton New Jersey, where she has completed a fellowship. She makes a trip to a Trenton hair salon, marveling at the difference between those two cities in terms of racial and class composition. In this salon, she meets other Nigerians, an individual from the Caribbean, and a diverse group of people from different backgrounds.

In fact, one of my favorite things about this book is that she creates a blog chronicling her thoughts about interactions of race and society in this country. This blog goes viral, landing her speaking engagements and causing some rankling of nerves among black Americans, who feel that they couldn’t get away with pointing out some of the same things she does. It is interesting watching her build a following and even reading some of the entries that had been posted therein, and perhaps it might give me some ideas about ways I can create more engagement here. I should probably read it again.

Adichie does some interesting things with reflection within this story, revealing that things have happened, then going onto another time and subject, and finally coming back to explain how that thing had happened. It sometimes creates the feeling that one has missed something, but I think it also causes the reader to focus and pay more attention to what’s going on.

I’ve heard Adichie speak on this book, and recall her saying that one of its aims was to show us that many in Africa actually live in the middle class, a fact that seems obvious to me but I guess isn’t very widely realized in the West. It also seems that she wanted to show Americans what our culture looks like to people not born into it, which I found fascinating. The main female character becomes interested in and works during the election of president Obama, noting the effect that had on people from Africa as well.

My final observation would be that the character’s adjustment to American life, frought with difficulty, was so real that I almost had to put it down for a bit. I’ve never adjusted to life in another country of course, but her challenges reminded me too much of my own adjustments to graduate school in 2009/10. That part was very well written, though.

So overall, I would say that this was a good, inspirational read. You might enjoy it more if you read the audio version, as there are parts written in Ibo, which I think is one of the main languages in Nigeria. The narrator does a pretty good job at demonstrating the accents, though amusingly she still inserts the R sound between words that start with vowels, as the British do. I imagine that’s hard to avoid. If you can though, grab a copy and be ready to be transported all over time and space.

Explaining The Sports Thing: or, why do I get so into something that doesn’t really matter?

Posted on by John

My cousin and I are the only ones sitting at the table, our plates piled high with sloppy joe, mashed potatoes and baked beans. The headphones connected to our walkmen are plastered to our ears as we eat nervously.

The rest of the apartment’s occupants, my sisters and parents, are watching a movie in the adjoining living room. It has reached a particularly quiet, I think sad, scene, and everyone seems to be sitting wrapped in his or her own thoughts about whatever is happening onscreen.

Meanwhile, the game we’re listening to, the Charlotte Hornets vs. the Miami Heat, is winding down in the old Charlotte Coliseum. The bees trail by 3, and Glen Rice prepares to take the hopefully game-tying shot. This act itself comes with its own weight, as Rice had recently defected from the Heat team he is now trying to defeat, having departed on somewhat unhappy terms.

Rice receives the pass. The clock ticks through final seconds: 3, 2, 1.

Glen Rice for three!” our favorite announcer Steve Martin says. The buzzer sounds, crowd noise increases significantly, and Martin says “good!”

My cousin and I erupt simultaneously into hoops of joy and clapping. Once we calm down, we discover that we’ve upset the silence and everyone is a little concerned about what might be wrong with us. I’ve also lost my Walkman, as it’s been flung to the floor and the batteries dislodged, but at this moment I don’t care. He hit the shot!

I wonder why so many people get attached to team sports in this way? We sit on the clichéd edge of our seats, as if the outcome will cause us real harm of joy. And when did this sort of attachment really begin. Could it have existed before the presence of electronic media?

Certainly if you follow me on Twitter, you’ve probably noticed, and perhaps been a bit annoyed by, my live tweeting during sporting events. I always work not to take it too far overboard, but for me having this form of interaction definitely enhances the experience. As a blind person, I enjoy the feeling that I’m in a sort of virtual bar with people all around who somewhat unwittingly describe exactly what’s going on to me, in addition to what the radio analysts detail.

When I first began getting into sports, my favorite was professional basketball. Specifically, I loved our Charlotte Hornets until they ripped my heart out!

Ever since, though, my and seemingly much of the country’s (US of course) favorite sport seems to be American football. Go Carolina Panthers! I’ve often wondered why this is, given its violent nature and the too-high likelihood that someone will sustain a significant injury on a fairly regular basis. In the last few years though, even my mostly non-sports-watching family will allow the TV to be dominated by this pastime on major holidays like Thanksgiving, and we can all sit around and talk strategy, wins and losses, etc.

I guess that longtime junkies like myself and more recent suplicants who have folded themselves into the sports-watching universe have realized is that cheering on this sort of athletic competition allows us to get at some primal pleasure that is deeply embedded in being human. We can get a pure rush of adrenaline, have reason to swear, throw things, and otherwise blow off steam as a game reaches either a favorable or unfavorable conclusion.

Whatever the reason, I think sports represent one of the best forms of escape we have available. So if I rib you about your team, remember that it’s all in fun. And please note my law that requires that you pull for the team in the city/state/region in which you were born. No Cowboys or Skins fans allowed in North Carolina!

I think the most fun I’ve ever had at a sporting event was when I attended a Bobcats/Celtics game in Boston. This was 2005, so the Celtics hadn’t yet gotten into championship form. I was so dismayed when Paul Pierce hit the winning layup that I yelled at passing fans as we made our way out of the arena. Catching our team on the road definitely gave me a stronger sense of pride in my hometown, though.

Do you enjoy sports? Have you ever been to a game. One where your team was playing away?

This topic inspired by one of my favorite writer friends on Twitter. Feel free to suggest other stuff you’d like to see me talk about, as I work to produce regular posts. Thanks.

GPS? Oh Yes!

Posted on by John

So tell me, am I the only oddball with like eight different GPS apps on my iPhone? Well, there’s a lot of practical reason for this. They all do slightly different things, and I can usually benefit from each at its own time.

Google Maps: This one suddenly got a lot better than it had been when I first looked. Now, it’s about on the level of Google’s map on the computer. I love the ease with which I can plug in restaurants and actually view their menus. Also being able to see a comprehensive list of places nearby finally breaks me out of the difficulty I’ve so often had in deciding where we should eat when out with a friend, an issue that has often irked said friends!

Yesterday, in fact, I’d taken a look at a lot of our local eateries as I attempted to decide where I and one of my former grad school classmates would go. I wanted to eat at Piedmont Restaurant, but some of their entrees went for $27! Also, they seemed not to have a whole lot of options. So, I ended up going with Texas Roadhouse. I wanted more of that delicious Country-fried Chicken. She had chosen pulled pork at first, but they’d run out of it. How often does a restaurant run out of one of its main menu items? So she had to settle for barbecue chicken.

And man was it loud in there, and it seemed the servers were celebrating birthdays every 3 minutes. There was also some kind of odd musical performance of which my friend was audibly relieved when it ended.

To get to that restaurant, I opted to use MapQuest. This is because while I like Google Maps for many things, I’m not yet sure how well I trust its directions yet. As I noted when I’d had someone take me to the Greyhound station to begin my Christmas vacation, Google Maps didn’t always tell me whether we were to turn left or right onto major thoroughfares. I figured the less frustration, the better.

Well, sort of. In returning home, I decided to try Seeing Eye GPS, the blindness-specific app about which I wrote back in July. I have to say that it performs a lot better now, I’m guessing due both to the fact that I now have a 4S which is better than a 4, and that they’ve probably made quite a few modifications.

The main reason I’d chosen to use it was that you can just press the button labeled “Go Home,” and it’ll take you to the place you’ve saved in that slot. Figuring out how to tell people this apartment’s address has always vexed me, since half of the people over here aren’t even sure just what it is. I can say just enter at 311 South LaSalle St, which is near the leasing office, and come on back; but sometimes that can throw people not particularly familiar with my neighborhood.

Things went well with that app, for the most part. VoiceOver tends to read most of the information though, and can sometimes oververbalize the street names. Plus I’m not sure it told us which direction we needed to go when getting on 15-501, meaning that we ended up taking one exit up to North Gate Mall, then riding back to my place on street level like the bus does. It was interesting though, because Seeing Eye called out a lot of the area businesses and every street we crossed. She also laughed at the silly sounds it makes: a turn signal when you should turn, and a three-part ascending chime when the next set of directions are to be followed.

I’ve also found out that another app, a free one no less, does a pretty good job at describing street layouts and will even point out local businesses as we pass. This one deals with transit specifically and is called Rider. It comes from a company called Transloc, and it works by connecting with your local transit agency and telling you which buses can be caught in your area. It can even give alerts for up to five minutes before a bus is to arrive at your stop.

I’m not sure with how many agencies this works currently, but they said on Twitter that they’re constantly trying to expand their presence and so if it doesn’t yet work where you are and you want it to, call your agency and ask. I liked the app well enough, though it seemed to be an even bigger battery drain than GPS units usually are. So I’d just have to be juiced up well before boarding if I wanted to use it.

And speaking of battery drain, I’ll talk about my favorite activity to do of probably anything I do with the phone, play with the maps feature on Ariadne GPS. I believe this one is a blindness-specific program too, but I’m not entirely sure on that. In any event, it does work well with VoiceOver. I love putting in cities nearby and farflung and moving my finger around the screen to discover things. It has special sounds that indicate water, very relaxing, a park or more naturalistic setting, also very relaxing, train tracks I think?, and a couple of other sounds indicating things of which I’m not entirely certain. It also, if you move your finger slowly enough, makes the sound of the character walking in what sounds like high heels. I find that amusing.

Because of this app, I finally know the answers to some questions that have always confounded me.

How is the UK laid out? Scotland is to the north of England, Wales to the west, and Ireland across the Irish sea farther to the west. There is also a body of water called the Celtic sea, I think a bit to the south of the Irish sea. Then going east from London is Esses, and to the southeast Dover and the English Channel.

I explored Egypt and its relation to the Red Sea, which lies to the East, and the Mediterranean, which is north of the country. Looking at Japan was interesting, because only the universities were labeled in English. This activity is so fascinating to me though, and when I get wrapped up in it I can go for hours.

A little of my weirdness, but perhaps one of life’s simple pleasures too. I actually hope that some of this information is helpful to other individuals who are blind, or anyone else for that matter. More later.