CRUZ VIEWZ

Real Cold!!!

2011-01-17T14:27:00.002-05:00

Today I heard on the radio that early this morning a sixty-something-year-old woman with dementia was taken to hospital and died there shortly after, from exposure to the extremely cold weather. She’d been out all night in the cold, and although she’d screamed for help and tried to get into a warm place no one would help her. I think they said she’d been knocking on doors and scratching on screens, but no one would even call 911. I’m not sure whether she was dressed for the weather or not, but even if she had been I’m sure she still couldn’t have lasted all night in that temperature and windchill.

What I really don’t understand is, if people could see her out there and hear her screaming for help, knowing how cold it was out there, why the hell didn’t they at least have the decency to pick up the phone and call 911? I think the only reason the police found her this morning was that someone she knew had gotten them to search for her, no one in that area had called them to report that a mentally-unstable woman was out in the cold screaming for help. Now, I know firsthand how cold, uncaring and lazy people can be, but it would have taken nothing at all for a resident or passer-by to call 911 and make sure someone brought her out of the cold.

Yeah, I’ve heard of the Kitty Genovese case in the 1960s, where a woman was killed and no one called the cops even though they heard her screams, and I think that later on some people reported thinking someone else had called 911. I think others had reported thinking the screaming woman wasn’t really being hurt but was just drunk or causing mischief or something. Maybe I’m totally wrong here, but I think the typee of scream you hear from someone who’s just playing games is far different from the scream of someone who's really being hurt. And even if you’re not 100% sure what’s really happening, you should still call 911 if you think there’s a chance someone is hurt.

Yeah, I know no one wants to call 911 only to find out that nothing bad was really going on, but I think it’s better to have your pride dented and risk a reprimand than to just ignore the fact that someone might need assistance. And please, don't assume that someone else has already called 911, or helped the person in some other way, because lots of times nobody has. As an example, a few years ago I woke up one night and heard what I thought was a series of gunshots. Since I’m blind I can’t look out the window and see what’s happening, and at first I debated with myself whether to call 911 or not. I did, and the next day I found out that there really had been a shooting in my neighborhood.

Anyway, I really hope that if people are reading this it’ll make them think better the next time they see, or think they see, someone who needs help. Even if you can’t do anything for the person yourself, or you just don’t want to get involved, at least call 911 or someone else who can help.

Same Old Me, Brand New Braces

2011-01-17T14:14:00.003-05:00

Over the holidays I was given a couple generous financial gifts, and so I was able to get myself some new, wider shoes. While I was on the New Balance website trying to find the shoe style I currently wear, I also found that New Balance had knee supports and ankle supports too. I immediately thought, “Hmm, I wonder if these would help me”, and bought a pair of the cheapest ankle supports to try out. It turned out that they did help a little, so I went back and bought a pair of the heavier ankle supports and a pair of heavier knee supports that have stabilizers in them. These help a lot more, especially using the knee and ankle supports together. I also managed to find myself an upper body support to keep myself from slumping and leaning to the side so much, and this also helps a lot.

So now that I have these braces I don’t get tired as quickly and I don’t hurt as much or as quickly. The braces even help me when I’m just sitting, since they keep my legs in better alignment and keep my upper body from slumping and leaning so much. And they seem to give me better balance too. Whoo-hoo!!! Because of this I’ve been doing more exercises and walking. Yeah, I still get tired easily, but it’s such a big change for me to be tired and still be able to do stuff, rather than being so tired I can’t do anything but go lay down on the couch. And it’s so great to be able to exercise more, without being too tired to do anything else afterward.

One person I told this to said, “It’s like it’s a whole new you”. Well, not actually, it’s the same old me with some new equipment that makes me able to do more. I get the feeling that all my life people (not including the person I just mentioned) have assumed I was just lazy and didn’t want to exercise, even though they should have been able to see that I had trouble sitting up straight and my legs and feet were turned out. Just like people assumed I had a lot more sight than I really had. I’ve really always wanted to be able to exercise and walk, and yes, even run. So I’m the same old Maria I always was, but now I have some equipment that helps me do more. I think these braces are the best things to happen to me since I got my wheelchair in 2005. (Speaking of which, I even got a new wheelchair cushion - a bunch of them were generously donated to BBNC, the community center I use.)

Anyway, I’m hoping that gradually I’ll be able to walk more (without hurting and getting exhausted so quickly), and do other exercise too. So I’m still not making any New Year’s resolution, but I’ll just keep pushing myself like I always have.

Great event this Saturday

2009-12-03T22:49:00.004-05:00

Hi, I know I haven't checked in for a long time, but I wanted to let everyone know about a great event happening in Toronto.

On Saturday, Dec. 5 from 10am to 4pm the 1st Forum For Hispanic People with Disabilities is happening at the North York Civic Center, 5100 Yonge Street. The venue is wheelchair accessible, and the opening ceremony will have the Honorable David C. Onley (Ontario's Lieutenant-Governor) as a keynote speaker.

This forum will address the reality, needs and contributions of people with disabilities, and everyone is welcome. It will be conducted in both Spanish and English, and it's the first event of its kind in Toronto's Latino community. Disability is definitely part of diversity, and I'm really happy that this event is happening. I'll try to be there, and I hope some of you will be too. Peace.

P.S. The forum is put on by San Lorenzo, a community center dedicated to the empowerment and development of the Hispanic community, supporting newcomers from all over Latin America and helping them transition to life in Toronto. San Lorenzo is also dedicated to working towards creating harmonious relationships with diverse communities. Albeit Latino in flavor, San Lorenzo also welcomes many non-Latinos into its heart.

San Lorenzo also has its own Spanish-language radio station, Radio Voces Latinas on 1610AM. ¡Qué bueno!

The State of Assistive Technology – The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

2009-08-12T01:39:00.001-04:00

If you read my last blog post you know that in June the Tetra Society of North America held a forum to address the issues surrounding assistive technology, especially in the province of Ontario. For everyone who’s unfamiliar with this term, "assistive technology" or AT refers to any device including software or hardware – high-tech or low-tech – that helps people with disabilities to live life as fully as possible. Assistive technology can include mobility aids, devices to help with other basic daily activities, or software and hardware that helps people to access their computer.

At the forum Tetra heard from a variety of people who use assistive technology, as well as family members of AT users, people working in the disability field, and AT manufacturers. After the forum, Tetra put together a report on the major issues that were discussed that day, and it’s been sent to a wide range of people, including journalists and government officials. If you’re interested in reading this report here are two links where you can check it out.
http://tr.im/uCi4 – this is the original report in PDF format.
http://tr.im/uCiA – this is a large-print, sans-serif version the same report in PDF format.
Enjoy!

2 Great Upcoming Events In Toronto

2009-05-27T16:35:00.002-04:00

If you live in the Greater Toronto Area and you have a disability or know someone with a disability, here are 2 great events you’ll want to mark on your calendar.

People In Motion - June 5 and June 6, 10am-5pm:
People In Motion is Canada's premier exhibit for people with disabilities, seniors with special needs, and professionals working in related fields. People in Motion features 63,000 square feet of exhibits including adapted vehicles, mobility aids, barrier-free design, rehabilitation services, home health care products, accessible travel, leisure activities, technical aids, employment info, corporate services and government programs. Everything for a wide range of needs is displayed under one roof, making it easy for consumers and professionals to see and compare products and services. People in Motion is for you!

Date: Friday, June 5 and Saturday June 6, 2009
Time: 10:00am to 5:00pm (both days)
Location: Queen Elizabeth Building, Canadian Exhibition Place
Admission: Free
For more info please visit www.people-in-motion.com.

Tetra Society’s Assistive Technology Forum - June 18, 9am-1:30pm:
The Tetra Society of North America is a volunteer organization dedicated to designing and building assistive devices and adaptations for people with disabilities. As a Tetra volunteer I’m really happy to tell you that on June 18 we’re holding an Assistive Technology Forum that will bring together Tetra volunteers, people with disabilities, clinicians and others working in the disability field to discuss issues, gaps and challenges with assistive technology, and share ideas on how we can collaborate to make a difference. At this forum:
• there will be an opening presentation by Rick Ball, who just set the world record for single-leg amputee runners at the Boston Marathon
• I’ll be one of the 4 members on an interactive panel discussing gaps and other issues with assistive technology
• we’ll have talks and small-group discussions where people can discuss their experiences with assistive devices, and where we can hopefully brainstorm about possible solutions to existing problems
• during lunch we'll hear from the Honorable David C. Onley, Ontario's first Lieutenant-Governor with a disability.

Date: Thursday, June 18, 2009
Time: 9:00am to 1:30pm
Location: CNIB at 1929 Bayview Avenue, Room 124/126
Admission is free but you must register.
To register or to get more info please visit www.tetragta.org/index.php/Events/ATForum2009.

New Year’s Resolutions? Bah Humbug!

2009-01-08T14:20:00.002-05:00

Well, it’s the start of a new year, and let’s hope that in 2009 we’ll see some positive stuff happening – in our own lives, our communities, or in the world at large. Yeah, I know this last one sounds pretty grandiose and naive, but a girl can dream, can’t she?

Every year we all hope for the same stuff, and a lot of us make resolutions to improve ourselves. This is great – there’s absolutely nothing wrong with trying to be the best person you can be. The problem is that some of us, or maybe a lot of us, fall off the wagon within a couple of months after making our New Year’s Resolutions. If this is you, don’t guilt-trip yourself yet.

I think part of the problem is that some of us make resolutions we can’t possibly stick to. If you’re a couch potato don’t resolve to lose 50 pounds or get yourself fit for the next marathon, and don’t fork over big bucks for a fitness club membership you may only use for a few months. Start small, maybe try to walk a little every day and then work your way up from there. I’m no fitness expert by any means, but why give yourself a heart attack or a financial headache when you don’t need to?

I’m not saying we should be lazy and quit trying to better ourselves, just that people should know their limits. And maybe once we reach our limits we can try to push them a little further. I’m sure we all have stuff we can improve, like our physical and mental fitness, the way we treat each other, or even our level of happiness. But no one has to make a New Year’s Resolution to do this. Why do we need the start of a new year to improve ourselves? Wouldn’t it be better if we all tried to do this every day? Anyway, enough of Maria’s Bitch Session – I resolve to keep my bitching more compact (or at least try to).

Yes We Can!

2008-11-05T14:31:00.002-05:00

Well, I can’t believe it! I’m so happy we finally did it! Not only did America indisputably elect Barack Obama, a Black man, as its 44th president, but there was a record high turnout at the polls.

But I have to admit, I’m a conspiracy theorist. Especially after the sham election of 2000, where the Electoral College and the ballot machines conspired to give us Dubya as president #43 instead of the more popular Al Gore, I didn’t think there was a whole lot of hope for Obama. But I was very pleasantly proved wrong! I’m still a bit of a skeptic though. I find myself wondering if Obama really will change America for the better, or if he’ll go along with the party line instead of listening to the people and also thinking for himself. I don’t mean any disrespect to the brother, but it seems to me like a lot of times when we finally do get the person we want in office, that person changes direction and just goes along with the status quo instead of representing the people who elected him/her. Or even worse, the person elected gets corrupted or assassinated.

Now I know you’re probably thinking, "Come on Maria, you’re jinxing the guy!", and I definitely don’t mean to jinx him! I want him to stay safe, and I really hope Barack and his administration will help make a better life for the American people. I also hope he’ll change the way America interacts with and is seen by the rest of the world. If the outcome of this election and the extra-high voter turnout are anything to go by, I think he’ll be able to pull it off.

And speaking of the high voter turnout, if this is what a large number of people can do when they take interest in the electoral process and the government in general, what would happen if this many people kept coming out to vote at every election and kept pushing for change after elections? Even though I always vote I have to admit I’ve often thought my vote can’t really change anything. But after this election I’m starting to think we really can make a change.

New Chair!

2008-10-30T00:45:00.002-04:00

OK, I know I haven’t posted anything since way back in August, when I told you about my problems with getting my wheelchair repaired and about the loaner chair that kept stopping on me. Well, that situation went on until the beginning of October, so my energy level’s been really low. But I thought I’d update you with the good news and the bad news.

I’ll start with the good news first. The good news is that I now have a brand new, squeaky clean Pronto M91 power wheelchair. It was just delivered today and the service technician made most of the adjustments I needed. There are still a couple mor tweaks needed, but those will be done this Friday. This chair is pretty much like my original Pronto M91, but with a couple of great upgrades. So I’m really happy about that.

Now for the bad news. Why do I have a brand new chair instead of my original 3-year-old chair?

Well, at the end of September I got a call saying my chair had finally been fixed and they’d bring it out the next day. So the next day I got a nasty shock when the service technician brought me an old chair that was really, really short. Now, I’m pretty short myself, but this chair was so short I knew right away it had to be someone else’s. When I got up close to feel the chair I knew for sure it wasn’t mine. The service technician called his boss to tell him it was the wrong chair, and his boss told him that was the chair they had on file for me. Later that afternoon the boss’s boss called me and said the same thing. Since back in March when my own chair was brought in for repairs, they’d been thinking my chair was a Quantum 6000 instead of my Pronto M91. (And if you’ve read my previous post you probably saw this coming just like I did.)

In the meantime I was still stuck with a loaner chair that kept stalling on me. Although my service provider had tried to fix this loaner chair in August they couldn’t find the problem, so they replaced the batteries, cleaned out the terminals, made a couple of minor adjustments and gave it back to me. But the chair still kept stalling. So at the end of September, with my mobility restricted and my energy level still really low, I wasn’t happy to hear that they couldn’t find my own chair at all. Yeah, that’s right, they lost my wheelchair, and after the 6 and a half months my chair was in limbo that’s not much of a surprise. I asked them again for a reliable loaner chair that wouldn’t stop dead on me in the middle of the road, and at this time a staff member at my community center also started calling them on my behalf. At the beginning of October I finally got a reliable loaner chair, which wasn’t too comfortable but did the job. It was such a relief to have a working chair again.

Earlier this month I wrote a letter to the CEO and vice-president of the company I’ve been dealing with. In this letter I gave a detailed chronological account of pretty much everything that had happened with my chair since March, as well as the impact this has had on me. I also requested that this company get me a brand new Pronto M91 chair from the manufacturer, not only because they lost or misplaced my own chair but also because of the excessive amount of time it took them to repair the wheelchair they thought was mine. I c.c.ed this letter to a journalist who’s known for her column on disability issues, and also said in the letter that I had the purchase invoice as well as a photo of me in my chair as evidence that the Pronto M91 was really my chair.

Unbelievably, within 2 days of sending the letter I got a call from the company. The person I spoke to was very nice, apologizing for the trouble I went through, and she said that the next day she’d work on getting me a brand new chair. She was true to her word, and the next day she went through the manufacturer’s order form with me over the phone. She said it would take about 2 weeks for the chair to come in, and now, after less than 2 weeks, I have my new chair. Whoo-hoo!

So, I guess I’ve learned something from my experience that I can pass on to other people. This is, if you have problems with a particular company it can help to go to the top. Not only go to the top, but make sure you have documentation like e-mails, invoices etc. If you don’t have concrete documentation, at least make detailed notes about what you’ve experienced, who you spoke to, when you spoke to them, what you told them and what they said. It helps to have a good, coherent chronological account of your issue, otherwise the company won’t have enough information to go on and may not take you seriously. If you write a letter to the bigwigs, it also helps to carbon copy the letter to a journalist you think might be interested in your issue, especially if you know other people have had similar problems.

Anyway, now that I have a comfortable, working set of wheels again, maybe I can start posting more stuff.

What If This Was Your Car?

2008-08-17T00:48:00.002-04:00

OK, I know it’s been a couple months since I wrote something in here, but I’m finally back. My energy level’s been really low, especially since my wheelchair’s been out of commission.

Maybe I should tell you a little about my chair. I got an Invacare Pronto M91 power wheelchair in the beginning of 2005, and it was one of the best things that ever happened to me. Although I was born with my disabilities I’d never had a chair until then. Once I started using this chair I had a lot less pain and didn’t get tired so easily, and this allowed me to do a lot more than I could ever do before. The lateral supports on my chair gave me much better posture than I’d ever had, and this was a big positive in itself. I had a rocky start though, since bolts started falling off my new chair soon after I got it. But once that problem was fixed it was pretty smooth sailing for the next 3 years.

But this year, at the beginning of March, things started getting pretty weird. I was driving my chair one day and it started jumping. (Yeah, you’re probably thinking wheelchairs don’t jump, but it sure felt like that’s what mine was doing.) A few days after I called my service provider my chair died on me completely, and it was a week in total before they came out to my place with a loaner chair for me. The loaner chair they put together for me wasn’t the best fit for my needs, but I was still very happy to have a wheelchair again. Also, I figured I could handle the chair’s drawbacks for the few weeks it would take for my own chair to get fixed.

A few weeks??? Nah, try 4 months and counting! And I found out from my service provider that for at least 3 of these months my Pronto M91 hadn’t even been touched because of a backlog. Meanwhile, I was having more problems with my loaner chair. For the first 2-and-a-half weeks in June I had no wheelchair while the loaner was being repaired. At the end of July the chair started having more problems with the electronics, and it stopped dead on me in the street a couple of times. So it’s been in the repair shop for about a week, and I’m without a chair again. A few times I called to check on the status of my own chair, and was told a part was on backorder. I would have called them a lot more often than a few times, but I just didn’t have the energy.

For the past week I’ve been trying to find out the status of both chairs, and all the higher-ups I tried to contact were either out of the office or on vacation. Finally someone got back to me on Friday and said they’d try to have the chair back to me by Tuesday or Wednesday. When I asked whether he was talking about my own wheelchair or the loaner, the guy quoted me the model of the loaner and said this was my original chair. I corrected him and gave him the model of my Pronto M91 chair, letting him know it had been in their shop for 4 months. I waited while he checked for it in the system, only to hear that he couldn’t find it. After that I lost it. I was in tears when I told him how I’d been without a chair for a week, with no way to get groceries and do what I needed to do. He seemed sympathetic, saying he’d try to get the loaner back to me on Monday and that he’d check further into what happened to my own chair.

So I’m still in limbo with no idea when I’ll get a wheelchair, or where my own chair is. Now tell me, when you take your car to a mechanic does it take them 4 months to fix it? I’m guessing it doesn’t take that long, since most car owners have the physical energy to keep on the mechanic’s butt if the repair takes too long. What many people out there might not know is that the average power wheelchair costs as much as a car. So what would you do if your mechanic kept your $8,000+ car for 4 months or more? What would you do if you couldn’t get anywhere without that car and didn’t have supportive friends or family to help you out? What would you do in my shoes?

P.S.: a few days after I wrote this post I was told my Pronto M91 hasn't disappeared into the ether, but a part is still on backorder and I should have it back in another week.

People In Motion

2008-06-08T13:51:00.002-04:00

Every June the People In Motion exhibit comes to Toronto, and over 100 companies and service providers show us what they have to offer people with disabilities and special needs. This year was the 19th annual show, and I was able to talk to more exhibitors this time than I did in previous years. Since I’m blind I needed someone to go through the show with me and describe all the exhibits. In previous years I had a helper for only a short time, and some years I had no help at all. But yesterday I went with a fellow volunteer from the Tetra Society, and he described all the exhibits around us.

So while we were giving the exhibitors information about Tetra, I also got to ask for more info about their companies or organizations. It was great to hear about the new technology being developed for people with various disabilities, as well as some of the services out there. It was also great to hear my associate giving a couple of the manufacturers tips on how they could make their products even better. My only regret was that I didn’t have time to get to the wheelchair manufacturers. I would have loved to talk to those guys and give them some friendly suggestions for their power chairs.

And I have to give the PIM organizers credit, not only for putting on the show and having the list of exhibitors in braille, but also for providing manual wheelchairs for people who needed them. I think the loaner chairs are a new feature, and I’ll bet they got a lot of grateful users. My power chair broke down last Monday, and although I can walk my bod gets sore and tired very easily. So on the ride to People In Motion I really wondered how the hell I was going to get through the show. When I asked at the info table if they had any chairs to loan people, I was VERY relieved and pleasantly surprised when the lady got one for me.

So as my co-volunteer pushed me in the chair I handed out Tetra brochures to people, and we both picked up some really good info and contacts. By the way, in case you’re wondering what Tetra is, the Tetra Society of North America is a volunteer organization that designs and builds assistive devices or adaptations for people with disabilities. If you want to learn more just visit http://www.tetrasociety.org/.

People In Motion has a website at http://www.people-in-motion.com/ where you can find out more about the show. They post a list of links to their exhibitors every year, and the new list for 2008's show should be posted within a couple of weeks. To go directly to the list of exhibitors visit http://www.people-in-motion.com/related.html.

The BlackBerry Blues

2008-05-26T03:45:00.003-04:00

I’ve always wanted a BlackBerry, a PDA or a smart phone. The idea of being able to e-mail, use the internet and create documents from anywhere just sends shivers down my spine. So, what’s stopping me? Well, besides the fact that I can’t afford to buy one of these handy gadgets, I also can’t use one. You see, since I’m almost totally blind I can’t read the screen, and these devices aren’t equipped with an on-board software program that would read the screen in voice output. Screen readers are available for some phones but they’re very expensive, especially considering they’re completely separate from the cost of the phone or PDA itself. There’s another problem too. I’m also physically disabled, and the keys on most of the mobile devices out there are too small for me to operate properly.

I do have a cell phone, but because of these accessibility issues I only use it for infrequent phone calls. Now, I’m a tech-head (or at least I would be if I could use all this great stuff), and I totally appreciate everyone’s desire for a powerful productivity tool that fits right in your pocket or palm. But I also think we can achieve portability and accessibility at the same time. If the keys on all these gadgets were slightly bigger they’d be a lot easier to use for everyone. Sure, your PDA or phone might be a little larger then, but it would still fit easily in your fanny-pack, purse, bag or briefcase. The screen and print size could also be made larger without decreasing the PDA or phone’s overall functionality. An on-board screen reader and trainable voice-recognition software would also help increase usability for everyone.

By now some of you are probably thinking, "Most of us don’t have trouble using these things, so why should we change them for a few people?". Well, as you get older your vision tends to decrease and arthritis or other ailments can set in. That’s not even taking into account unexpected problems like strokes or injuries. So you may be sharp-eyed and nimble-fingered right now, but later on you might get the BlackBerry Blues like me. Also, the same features that make products more accessible to people with disabilities are also features that make things easier to use for people without disabilities.

So, how can we make things like PDAs, cell phones and smart phones more user-friendly for everyone? People need to start hounding the manufacturers, giving them friendly recommendations for improvement. The more people they hear from, the more likely they’ll be to make changes. Or, if you have the money and resources, design a gadget of your own that’s more user-friendly than what’s out there right now. I know changes like this take a long time, but a PDA or smart phone that’s easy for everyone to use will be worth the wait.

Hope for Hip-hop

2008-05-25T02:19:00.004-04:00

Along with calypso, latin jazz and salsa, hip-hop is right up there as one of my favorite music genres. Mos Def, A Tribe Called Quest, Queen Latifah, Salt & Peppa, Eve, Dela Soul and Talib Kwali are just a few of the hip-hop artists I love to hear. But I have to say hip-hop’s been at a low point for years now, and I really feel like giving a lot of today’s artists a smack in the head.

Yeah, I know I sound like some stuffy old curmudgeon who just doesn’t want to get with the program. But I know I’m not the only one out there thinking that hip-hop would be so much better without all the bling! Who cares if you’re wearing enough diamonds to blind anyone who looks at you too long? And I couldn’t give a damn if you have a Rolex or some other grossly-expensive watch, I just want to know if you can actually tell time with that thing.

Materialism is just one of our problems though. The sexual content and sexism in music are pretty depressing too. Guys, there’s nothing wrong with admiring a woman, but I’d really love to hear you talk about her mind, spirit, and other attributes besides her booty and lady lumps. Yes, sisters do have minds, and we’re good for a lot more than sex, dancing in clubs, or holding the keys to your Lexus. And I know none of us is perfect, but in general no man has any right to call a woman a bitch, slut or ‘ho’. Sisters, please, we need to hear more hip-hop from strong, intelligent, positive women, so show them your stuff!

Violence is another blight on the hip-hop scene. Could we pleeeease stop acting like it’s cool to be a thug or a gangsta? Kids need smart, sober, constructive role models to look up to, not people who are gun-obsessed, greedy, or in and out of rehab all the time. I know there are some really positive, socially conscious artists out there, but a lot of the conscious rappers get pushed underground and get very little air-play on the radio or TV. I’d love to hear more kids come out with their own hip-hop, because I think some of them could really help change the direction of the mainstream. What do you think?