Friday, June 22, 2012

Quilter BOB's BFF


Most of you already know that -
BOB is my alter-ego -
B!tchy Old Broad -

And that since BOB doesn't want to scare her nicey-nice quilty readers -
She usually rants on her very own blog -
Quilter BOB - here -

BUT -

Some rants need to be posted on THIS blog -

I call those rants -

Quilter BOB's BFF -

Quilter BOB's B!tch Fest Friday -
Or any other day that ends in “Y” - ;))

BOB’s version of “B!tch and Stitch” -
Or is it “Stitch and B!tch” -
BOB can never remember - ;))

Anyway -

Today’s rant is about HANDICAP -

If you would rather not read this rant -

You might be just the person who should read it -

I might be talking to you - ;))

So - let me ask you -

When you see a fat, old woman on a scooter -

What do you see?

Do you see a fat, old woman on a scooter -
Who - if she would just get off that scooter -
And walk instead of ride -
Would get some much-needed exercise -
And maybe not be so fat?

Do you?

Well - I don’t -

I see my friend -
Who cringes when someone says -
“That looks like fun!” -
Would they say that to her-
If she were in a wheelchair?

I see my friend -
Who WOULD walk -
If she COULD walk

I see my friend -
Who has a degenerative nerve disease -
And wears a leg brace -
And a diaper

I see my friend -
Who tries to hide her leg brace -
Under her long pants

I see my friend -
Who wears a leg brace -
Because the disease has made her leg virtually useless

I see my friend -
Who wears a diaper -
Because the disease has made her totally incontinent

I see my friend -
Who has been able to say “no” to a wheelchair -
So far

I see my friend -
Who sits patiently waiting for a handicap bathroom stall -
And wetting her pants -
While an able-bodied woman changes her clothes

I see my friend -
Who sits patiently waiting for a handicap bathroom stall -
And wetting her pants -
While an able-bodied woman corrals her children -
So that she can “use the facilities”

I see my friend -
Who sits patiently waiting for a handicap bathroom stall -
And wetting her pants -
While an able-bodied woman uses the stall -
Simply because it has more room -
Or because it was simply "available"

I see my friend -
Trapped in the bathroom -
Because the door opens “in” -
And she needs someone else -
To open the door for her

I see my friend -
Who no longer goes to quilt shows -
Because getting close enough to a booth -
To actually see anything -
Is like trying to “parallel park” a tank -
In quicksand (the crowd)

I see my friend -
Who occasionally runs into someone -
Who stops short in front of her -
Because the scooter has no brakes -
Think about it -
It’s like stopping a car -
By taking your foot off the gas -
You coast to a stop -
And hope you don’t hit anything

I see my friend -
Who no longer goes to quilt shows -
Because trying to get into a booth -
Is virtually impossible -
Even the larger booths -
Have narrow aisles

I see my friend -
Who knows that “wheelchair accessible” -
And “scooter accessible” -
Are two entirely different things

I see my friend -
Who no longer travels -
Because most motels and hotels -
Only have a few handicap rooms -
And she has trouble reserving one -
Because some knucklehead posted a “tip” -
That - if you want a room with “more room” -
To reserve a handicap room -
And another knucklehead likes handicap rooms -
Because they have bigger bathrooms

I see my friend -
Who sits patiently waiting for the knuckleheads -
Of this world -
To need a scooter -

That’s what I see -
My friend



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -



8 comments:

Katie M. said...

Very well said! Looks can be deceiving.... I've never understood why some people think there are always 'outward' signs of disability / challenges. If someone is in a scooter or wheelchair, there IS a reason. I had to 'do' Disney one year in a wheelchair (had knee surgery the following month) it's amazing how many dirty looks I got when I'd say "excuse me".....

A Left-Handed Quilter said...

Thanks, Katie! I think that the scooter/wheelchair itself would be a pretty large "outward" sign of disability/challenge - ;))

Mallorie Anderson said...

I know to many people who need scooters or wheelchairs that don't look like they should. Yes, there are times when I see a person on a scooter that I think needs to grow up and walk. Thought that includes teenagers that are obviously messing around just to cause a scene. If more people used common curtosy, which is not longer common, there would be so many less problems with how your friend is treated. As my mamma says "you can't fix stupid, and the mean breed to quick!" ;)

A Left-Handed Quilter said...

Thanks, Mallorie! I agree with your mama - ;))

Cindy Quilts said...

Thanks for posting this! And, you are right, the ones who don't want to read are the ones who SHOULD!
My son made the decision in 6th grade to give up walking with leg braces and crutches to become a full-time wheeler (spina bifida). And, the kids do say to him 'that looks like fun' and 'I wish I could use a wheelchair to get around'. They have no idea what it really is like. But he lets them know that having to use a wheelchair isn't as fun as it looks. He is also bladder and bowel incontinent. I don't think a lot of his friends are aware of this. His basketball team travels to tournaments. We have to stay in hotels. We never get a handicapped room. There are too many of us to request one! You should see the looks we get when 6 or 7 wheelchair basketball teams invade a city! the bathrooms are usually too small to get his chair into. That means he has to get out of it and crawl around on the floor. We have run into this problem in other places as well. Most homes are not handicap accessible. He can't visit a lot of his friends.
His other disability is that he is legally blind. He wears glasses but people assume he can see as well as they can. They ask when he will start driving. We tell them he can't. They tell us we can adapt our vehicles. We tell them it isn't they physical handicap that keeps him from driving. "Oh", they say.
So, yes, people need to stop assuming that just because a disability isn't immediately apparent doesn't mean there isn't one.

Cindy Quilts said...

Another thought, some quilt shows have special hours to allow handicapped persons to see the show. Might be worth asking about next time.

Katie said...

You know, I do often see people on scooters in stores, but never gave it much thought, figuring if they were in them, they had a reason. But this gives me a different perspective towards those who don't have an obvious reason they're using one. Thank you.

A Left-Handed Quilter said...

You're welcome! - ;))

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