Blind and Visually Impaired Community
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Interview VisAbility (Association for the Blind in Aus) asked me to do about experiencing vision loss in my twenties. (visability.com.au)
submitted 5.330612975823045y ago by SunnyLego
Terry_Pie 3 points 5y ago
Thanks for sharing. It sucks you've had those negative experiences. Thankfully I've only had a couple of negative experiences myself, and they were only minor. Thankfully most people are very friendly and helpful - I absolutely know what you mean about people not paying attention though! The number of people that cut me off and then apologise when I whack them with my cane because they came out of no where!
With regard to your experiences with over-indulgers, don't let your sight hold you back from going to gigs etc. Unfortunately in those instances so described, my assessment would be that would be a familiar experience for many women, irrespective of whether they can see or not. It's behaviour we need to work together to stop, but drunken dickheads are drunken dickheads to all. I went and saw Anti-Flag when they were here in 2016 and I had an inebriated bloke across from me flicking beer he'd spilled at me and others. Thankfully his mate was very apologetic, but it's still rubbish behaviour.
Finally, I know it's not for everyone, but if you've any interest in cricket, I'd encourage you to get involved with blind cricket. I've certainly enjoyed getting involved and those I've met from WA have been good guys and they're really keen to get a WA team together (historically SA and WA have run a combined team due to lack of numbers). There are also other blind sports you can get involved in. I know here in SA the City of Marion (which happens to be my council area) has been running a blind soccer league (unfortunately aimed at a younger demographic as it runs after-school/before-tea hours) encouraging mixed (i.e. sighted and vision impaired) participation.
Oh, and an addendum: you make me want to get my stuff together and work on learning the banjo that's sitting in the corner of my living room.
With regard to your experiences with over-indulgers, don't let your sight hold you back from going to gigs etc. Unfortunately in those instances so described, my assessment would be that would be a familiar experience for many women, irrespective of whether they can see or not. It's behaviour we need to work together to stop, but drunken dickheads are drunken dickheads to all. I went and saw Anti-Flag when they were here in 2016 and I had an inebriated bloke across from me flicking beer he'd spilled at me and others. Thankfully his mate was very apologetic, but it's still rubbish behaviour.
Finally, I know it's not for everyone, but if you've any interest in cricket, I'd encourage you to get involved with blind cricket. I've certainly enjoyed getting involved and those I've met from WA have been good guys and they're really keen to get a WA team together (historically SA and WA have run a combined team due to lack of numbers). There are also other blind sports you can get involved in. I know here in SA the City of Marion (which happens to be my council area) has been running a blind soccer league (unfortunately aimed at a younger demographic as it runs after-school/before-tea hours) encouraging mixed (i.e. sighted and vision impaired) participation.
Oh, and an addendum: you make me want to get my stuff together and work on learning the banjo that's sitting in the corner of my living room.
SunnyLego [OP] 1 points 5y ago
Nice to meet you.
I've actually joined Chicks in Bowls, which is a roller skate/quad group who skate at skate parks. Turns out skating in bowls and half pipes are awesome when you can't see well, once you figure out where the walls/ramps are, and repeatedly going back and forth!
I was telling my eye dr about old people questioning if I really need the cane, and Dr said "Next time just hold up your middle finger and ask them if they can see how many fingers you're holding." Hah!
Before I started using a cane, but was in sunnies all the time because eyes can't handle light, the amount of dickheads who have to come up and give me shit because I'm wearing sunglasses, is extremely high. I used to explain about eye disease and light, now I just say "I'm blind." and they all start stuttering out apologies. Since using a cane, that happens far less though!
Agree that drunks are dickheads to most people, I just think when you're the only person in a gig venue in sunglasses and holding a cane, you stand out more to said dickheads!
Good luck with the banjo, have fun! I started learning guitar in 2014 when Chris Cheney from The Living End said "You know, you don't need eyesight to play guitar...."
I've actually joined Chicks in Bowls, which is a roller skate/quad group who skate at skate parks. Turns out skating in bowls and half pipes are awesome when you can't see well, once you figure out where the walls/ramps are, and repeatedly going back and forth!
I was telling my eye dr about old people questioning if I really need the cane, and Dr said "Next time just hold up your middle finger and ask them if they can see how many fingers you're holding." Hah!
Before I started using a cane, but was in sunnies all the time because eyes can't handle light, the amount of dickheads who have to come up and give me shit because I'm wearing sunglasses, is extremely high. I used to explain about eye disease and light, now I just say "I'm blind." and they all start stuttering out apologies. Since using a cane, that happens far less though!
Agree that drunks are dickheads to most people, I just think when you're the only person in a gig venue in sunglasses and holding a cane, you stand out more to said dickheads!
Good luck with the banjo, have fun! I started learning guitar in 2014 when Chris Cheney from The Living End said "You know, you don't need eyesight to play guitar...."
Terry_Pie 1 points 5y ago
We have spoken before, actually :)
Good you can still enjoy skating even if it isn't roller derby. It's keeping active, it's the community, and I think Australia is very good for sommunity sport so we're lucky to have that opportunity.
I think music will be something I do more of when I lose more of my sight. For now, I've still enough sight to read and do a lot of sighted activities (chief among them being painting - I'm into tabletop wargames). As my central vision goes I know I'll shift that energy to music (and writing probably too). It's good to read you picked up those skills later in life though. Until the start of last year when I bought my banjo, I'd not touched a musical instrument since I was in primary school and would occasionally play piano from my brothers' keyboard practice books (both my brothers learnt for a year or two in primary school, but I never did. I turn 30 this year).
Good you can still enjoy skating even if it isn't roller derby. It's keeping active, it's the community, and I think Australia is very good for sommunity sport so we're lucky to have that opportunity.
I think music will be something I do more of when I lose more of my sight. For now, I've still enough sight to read and do a lot of sighted activities (chief among them being painting - I'm into tabletop wargames). As my central vision goes I know I'll shift that energy to music (and writing probably too). It's good to read you picked up those skills later in life though. Until the start of last year when I bought my banjo, I'd not touched a musical instrument since I was in primary school and would occasionally play piano from my brothers' keyboard practice books (both my brothers learnt for a year or two in primary school, but I never did. I turn 30 this year).
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