WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.280 --> 00:00:03.280 (soft upbeat music) 2 00:00:04.170 --> 00:00:06.330 Welcome to "Hadley Presents." 3 00:00:06.330 --> 00:00:11.130 I'm your host, Ricky Enger, inviting you to sit back, relax, 4 00:00:11.130 --> 00:00:14.250 and enjoy a conversation with the experts. 5 00:00:14.250 --> 00:00:17.100 In this episode, Hadley staff join us 6 00:00:17.100 --> 00:00:20.130 to share the funnier side of vision loss. 7 00:00:20.130 --> 00:00:22.470 Our guests are Doug Walker, 8 00:00:22.470 --> 00:00:25.410 Tiffany Mpofu, and Lisa Salinger. 9 00:00:25.410 --> 00:00:27.120 Welcome to the show, everybody. 10 00:00:27.120 --> 00:00:28.320 Yeah, it's great to be here. 11 00:00:28.320 --> 00:00:29.460 Yes, thank you. 12 00:00:29.460 --> 00:00:32.130 So elated to be here. Thanks. 13 00:00:32.130 --> 00:00:34.080 So glad to have you all. 14 00:00:34.080 --> 00:00:37.890 It is always a good time when Hadley staff can get together 15 00:00:37.890 --> 00:00:40.800 and share with each other and with you, 16 00:00:40.800 --> 00:00:43.470 and this promises to be no exception. 17 00:00:43.470 --> 00:00:46.590 We're gonna have a fabulous time today 18 00:00:46.590 --> 00:00:47.880 and hope you do as well. 19 00:00:47.880 --> 00:00:50.880 So, before we get into our stories, 20 00:00:50.880 --> 00:00:53.100 let's just take a quick minute 21 00:00:53.100 --> 00:00:55.410 to get everyone to say hello. 22 00:00:55.410 --> 00:00:59.160 So first off, we have Chief Innovation Officer, Doug Walker. 23 00:00:59.160 --> 00:01:00.780 Give us a shout out. 24 00:01:00.780 --> 00:01:02.310 Hey, it's great to be here, Ricky. 25 00:01:02.310 --> 00:01:04.170 It's always fun doing these. 26 00:01:04.170 --> 00:01:08.910 Awesome, and we have the one, the only, 27 00:01:08.910 --> 00:01:10.770 Assistive Technology Learning Expert, 28 00:01:10.770 --> 00:01:12.540 Tiffany Mpofu, welcome. 29 00:01:12.540 --> 00:01:15.240 Hello, hello. Thanks, Ricky, for having me. 30 00:01:15.240 --> 00:01:16.350 Glad to have you. 31 00:01:16.350 --> 00:01:20.310 And also we have a hybrid, for lack of a better term, 32 00:01:20.310 --> 00:01:22.080 Access Technology Specialist 33 00:01:22.080 --> 00:01:25.560 and also sort of Assistive Technology Learning Expert. 34 00:01:25.560 --> 00:01:29.160 So, wearing multiple hats, Lisa Salinger, welcome. 35 00:01:29.160 --> 00:01:29.993 Thank you. 36 00:01:29.993 --> 00:01:31.770 I'm still deciding exactly what I want to be 37 00:01:31.770 --> 00:01:33.153 when I grow up, I guess. 38 00:01:35.160 --> 00:01:37.290 Well, if you're anything like me, 39 00:01:37.290 --> 00:01:38.640 you have a while to decide. 40 00:01:38.640 --> 00:01:39.990 I'm not sure the growing up thing 41 00:01:39.990 --> 00:01:42.960 has quite happened yet, but maybe someday. 42 00:01:42.960 --> 00:01:46.860 So all of us here are blind or low vision, 43 00:01:46.860 --> 00:01:48.600 and just like everyone else, 44 00:01:48.600 --> 00:01:51.780 our lives have moments of mundane things 45 00:01:51.780 --> 00:01:54.150 and then we have those really proud moments, 46 00:01:54.150 --> 00:01:56.040 those triumphant things. 47 00:01:56.040 --> 00:01:58.140 And then we have the ones 48 00:01:58.140 --> 00:02:01.410 that should probably end up on the blooper reel. 49 00:02:01.410 --> 00:02:03.900 We never want them to see the light of day, 50 00:02:03.900 --> 00:02:06.210 except we thought it would be fun 51 00:02:06.210 --> 00:02:08.730 to talk about those moments 52 00:02:08.730 --> 00:02:11.190 'cause I think that they deserve some attention, 53 00:02:11.190 --> 00:02:15.930 just as much as when things really go right. 54 00:02:15.930 --> 00:02:19.560 So, we thought we would all share some stories, 55 00:02:19.560 --> 00:02:22.170 where vision, or lack thereof, 56 00:02:22.170 --> 00:02:27.170 has played some sort of role in making something happen. 57 00:02:27.810 --> 00:02:31.500 So I think we're going to have a lot of fun with this, 58 00:02:31.500 --> 00:02:35.100 and I'm looking forward to hearing everyone's stories. 59 00:02:35.100 --> 00:02:37.980 So Doug, something tells me 60 00:02:37.980 --> 00:02:42.980 that you have at least one awkward or funny story to share 61 00:02:43.200 --> 00:02:45.930 about something that happened in public, 62 00:02:45.930 --> 00:02:47.880 'cause naturally, a lot of these things, 63 00:02:47.880 --> 00:02:51.540 they're never just you and so you can forget it and move on. 64 00:02:51.540 --> 00:02:53.940 It's always in front of somebody else, right? 65 00:02:53.940 --> 00:02:55.710 Oh yeah, absolutely. 66 00:02:55.710 --> 00:02:59.820 And this one is, my family actually knows this one 67 00:02:59.820 --> 00:03:03.840 as the elevator story, right, so it has its own name there. 68 00:03:03.840 --> 00:03:08.670 But this blooper happened just before COVID hit. 69 00:03:08.670 --> 00:03:12.240 And my wife and I were, like, on vacation 70 00:03:12.240 --> 00:03:14.010 at a hotel in New York City. 71 00:03:14.010 --> 00:03:16.890 And this is kind of key to the story here, 72 00:03:16.890 --> 00:03:19.470 but there was no braille in the elevator 73 00:03:19.470 --> 00:03:20.580 that we were staying. 74 00:03:20.580 --> 00:03:25.580 And the print on the elevator buttons was super tiny. 75 00:03:25.860 --> 00:03:30.320 And so I memorized where the lobby button was. 76 00:03:30.320 --> 00:03:31.800 My wife was like, "The lobby button's right there 77 00:03:31.800 --> 00:03:33.450 and there's the fourth floor button there." 78 00:03:33.450 --> 00:03:35.490 So I kind of got 'em where they were, right, 79 00:03:35.490 --> 00:03:38.640 so I could at least get to my room and then to the lobby. 80 00:03:38.640 --> 00:03:40.950 Anyway, they have a continental breakfast here. 81 00:03:40.950 --> 00:03:43.417 So the next morning I tell my wife, you know, 82 00:03:43.417 --> 00:03:45.600 "I'll run down and get us something." 83 00:03:45.600 --> 00:03:49.200 And now I do have some remaining vision, 84 00:03:49.200 --> 00:03:52.020 you know, enough to go down to the lobby and back. 85 00:03:52.020 --> 00:03:55.470 So I decided to leave my cane in the room 86 00:03:55.470 --> 00:03:58.500 so I could carry more stuff, you know, 87 00:03:58.500 --> 00:04:00.180 gotta get more stuff in my hands. 88 00:04:00.180 --> 00:04:02.490 And I didn't think to grab my phone either. 89 00:04:02.490 --> 00:04:04.830 So I went on down to the lobby 90 00:04:04.830 --> 00:04:08.370 and I got my hands full with a couple of muffins 91 00:04:08.370 --> 00:04:09.930 and, like, a coffee and a coke. 92 00:04:09.930 --> 00:04:12.630 And so I get back in the elevator 93 00:04:12.630 --> 00:04:15.300 and there's already this woman in the elevator 94 00:04:15.300 --> 00:04:17.880 and she has her hands, like, packed full, 95 00:04:17.880 --> 00:04:19.350 fuller than me, of breakfast stuff. 96 00:04:19.350 --> 00:04:21.510 And so with my little finger, 97 00:04:21.510 --> 00:04:23.700 I, like, push the fourth floor button, 98 00:04:23.700 --> 00:04:28.700 which was the button for my floor, and she says 14. 99 00:04:28.890 --> 00:04:31.260 So I tell her, you know, "I'm visually impaired." 100 00:04:31.260 --> 00:04:32.910 And I can't see the 14 button, 101 00:04:32.910 --> 00:04:35.207 so I'm expecting her to sort of direct me, like, to up 102 00:04:35.207 --> 00:04:36.690 and to the right or whatever. 103 00:04:36.690 --> 00:04:40.590 Well, it turns out that she doesn't speak English. 104 00:04:40.590 --> 00:04:45.420 And so she doesn't understand a word I'm saying. 105 00:04:45.420 --> 00:04:46.920 And her hands are, like, stacked full 106 00:04:46.920 --> 00:04:47.850 of this breakfast stuff, 107 00:04:47.850 --> 00:04:49.860 like, awkward to even try to put down. 108 00:04:49.860 --> 00:04:52.830 And remember, I left my phone back in the room 109 00:04:52.830 --> 00:04:56.670 so I don't have my magnifier app with me, so I can't look. 110 00:04:56.670 --> 00:04:58.530 So I'm getting down. 111 00:04:58.530 --> 00:05:00.240 It looks like I'm sniffing the wall. 112 00:05:00.240 --> 00:05:02.910 I know she didn't understand that I couldn't see it. 113 00:05:02.910 --> 00:05:04.745 So I don't know, she's trying to figure out 114 00:05:04.745 --> 00:05:06.087 what I'm doing, you know? 115 00:05:06.087 --> 00:05:08.160 They were just too small to see. I couldn't see 'em. 116 00:05:08.160 --> 00:05:12.300 So anyway, the elevator door opens up on the fourth floor, 117 00:05:12.300 --> 00:05:13.680 which again is my floor. 118 00:05:13.680 --> 00:05:15.937 And so all I can say is, 119 00:05:15.937 --> 00:05:17.850 "I'm so sorry, you know, I'm sorry." 120 00:05:17.850 --> 00:05:20.573 And I just got off the elevator 121 00:05:20.573 --> 00:05:23.670 and the elevator door closed. 122 00:05:23.670 --> 00:05:26.730 And then that's the last time I've seen that lady, right? 123 00:05:26.730 --> 00:05:29.700 But I felt so bad about that. 124 00:05:29.700 --> 00:05:31.080 I tell you, Ricky, you better believe 125 00:05:31.080 --> 00:05:32.967 that I always take my cane 126 00:05:32.967 --> 00:05:35.940 and my phone with me now, no matter what, so. 127 00:05:35.940 --> 00:05:39.270 Yep, now you know, lesson learned. 128 00:05:39.270 --> 00:05:41.160 You know, I bet somewhere 129 00:05:41.160 --> 00:05:43.470 there is a lady right now sitting 130 00:05:43.470 --> 00:05:46.740 and talking on a podcast about the rude American 131 00:05:46.740 --> 00:05:50.465 who couldn't even be bothered to press the button for her. 132 00:05:50.465 --> 00:05:53.620 Probably so. I think she was French or something. 133 00:05:53.620 --> 00:05:56.887 Anyway, she knew how to say numbers, but that was it. 134 00:05:56.887 --> 00:05:59.860 So anyway, probably so, Lisa, probably so. 135 00:05:59.860 --> 00:06:01.950 Oh my gosh, I love it. 136 00:06:01.950 --> 00:06:03.390 Lisa, something tells me 137 00:06:03.390 --> 00:06:06.330 you have at least one or two funny things to share. 138 00:06:06.330 --> 00:06:09.003 So you're up next. What do you got? 139 00:06:09.953 --> 00:06:13.086 I have a story about attending the end of a 140 00:06:13.086 --> 00:06:13.919 silent movie. 141 00:06:14.936 --> 00:06:19.680 I was in junior high, and for whatever reason, 142 00:06:19.680 --> 00:06:24.300 my classmates were going to see a silent movie. 143 00:06:24.300 --> 00:06:26.430 And my itinerant teacher, 144 00:06:26.430 --> 00:06:28.170 between her and the mobility teacher, 145 00:06:28.170 --> 00:06:33.170 they were always looking for extra time to work with me. 146 00:06:33.570 --> 00:06:36.780 And so I went and I worked with her 147 00:06:36.780 --> 00:06:38.490 and we came to a stopping place, 148 00:06:38.490 --> 00:06:40.290 and it was about five minutes 149 00:06:40.290 --> 00:06:42.750 before the movie was supposed to end 150 00:06:42.750 --> 00:06:44.820 and the next class was going to begin. 151 00:06:44.820 --> 00:06:47.497 And, you know, she felt it important to say to me, 152 00:06:47.497 --> 00:06:50.490 "Don't forget, they're gonna be watching this movie. 153 00:06:50.490 --> 00:06:53.790 Go in quietly, try not to disturb anybody." 154 00:06:53.790 --> 00:06:58.790 And some teachers organized everyone alphabetically 155 00:06:59.220 --> 00:07:01.740 by seats, except for the blind kid. 156 00:07:01.740 --> 00:07:03.600 And I was in the front right by the door. 157 00:07:03.600 --> 00:07:06.930 But unfortunately that was not the case this time. 158 00:07:06.930 --> 00:07:09.330 If they organized everybody alphabetically, 159 00:07:09.330 --> 00:07:12.720 I was the third seat across in the third seat back. 160 00:07:12.720 --> 00:07:15.450 So anyway, I walk into the room 161 00:07:15.450 --> 00:07:19.050 and it is quiet, quiet, quiet. 162 00:07:19.050 --> 00:07:20.640 And I have my cane. 163 00:07:20.640 --> 00:07:24.930 And I'm trying to not make beautiful music off the legs 164 00:07:24.930 --> 00:07:26.880 of the desks and chairs. 165 00:07:26.880 --> 00:07:30.360 And I very quietly, and I was rather proud of myself. 166 00:07:30.360 --> 00:07:31.830 I think I did pretty well, 167 00:07:31.830 --> 00:07:34.290 moved hopefully quietly and quickly 168 00:07:34.290 --> 00:07:36.510 'cause I didn't wanna block anyone's view. 169 00:07:36.510 --> 00:07:39.930 And I found my seat and I sat down, 170 00:07:39.930 --> 00:07:42.067 and I'm sitting there and thinking, 171 00:07:42.067 --> 00:07:47.067 "This is the most silent of silent movies. 172 00:07:48.210 --> 00:07:53.210 No one is coughing, no one is rustling, no one is anything." 173 00:07:54.720 --> 00:07:56.520 I would think that silent movies 174 00:07:56.520 --> 00:07:59.070 would even just have a music soundtrack. 175 00:07:59.070 --> 00:08:00.990 There was nothing. 176 00:08:00.990 --> 00:08:04.020 All of a sudden I heard this sound in the hall. 177 00:08:04.020 --> 00:08:08.340 It was my classmates returning from the location 178 00:08:08.340 --> 00:08:12.000 where they had been to watch the silent movie. 179 00:08:12.000 --> 00:08:16.830 So all my caution and care was for nothing. 180 00:08:16.830 --> 00:08:20.910 The really nice thing was that I was the only one 181 00:08:20.910 --> 00:08:24.720 who knew of my little faux pas. 182 00:08:24.720 --> 00:08:28.140 So every time someone mentions silent movies, 183 00:08:28.140 --> 00:08:30.180 it kind of makes me laugh. 184 00:08:30.180 --> 00:08:31.980 That's great. It's always good 185 00:08:31.980 --> 00:08:36.980 when you are the only one who realizes what happens. 186 00:08:37.140 --> 00:08:37.973 Oh my goodness. Yes. Those are few 187 00:08:37.973 --> 00:08:40.170 and far between those, sadly. 188 00:08:40.170 --> 00:08:45.150 Usually, it's, again, some kind of public spectacle. 189 00:08:45.150 --> 00:08:46.560 Tiffany, do you have one 190 00:08:46.560 --> 00:08:49.950 where it was definitely not just you 191 00:08:49.950 --> 00:08:53.580 that was kind of in on whatever happened? 192 00:08:53.580 --> 00:08:55.623 Oh my goodness, yes. 193 00:08:57.330 --> 00:09:01.560 So this blooper happened at a grocery store. 194 00:09:01.560 --> 00:09:04.410 I have a little bit of a backstory. 195 00:09:04.410 --> 00:09:06.780 There was a particular teacher 196 00:09:06.780 --> 00:09:11.190 that I had developed a bond with in junior high. 197 00:09:11.190 --> 00:09:14.310 And so after going through junior high 198 00:09:14.310 --> 00:09:18.600 and making it to high school, at that point she had retired, 199 00:09:18.600 --> 00:09:21.810 but sometimes we still would run into each other, 200 00:09:21.810 --> 00:09:23.130 like within the community, 201 00:09:23.130 --> 00:09:26.640 but on this particular day at the grocery store, 202 00:09:26.640 --> 00:09:30.960 it had been some time before I had saw her. 203 00:09:30.960 --> 00:09:33.780 So I am doing some shopping 204 00:09:33.780 --> 00:09:37.410 and I'm making my way up towards the front of the store 205 00:09:37.410 --> 00:09:42.410 to go pay for my things, and then, so I see this person, 206 00:09:43.350 --> 00:09:47.640 I'm at the front of the store and I'm like, "Oh, that's her. 207 00:09:47.640 --> 00:09:49.680 It's been so long since I've seen her." 208 00:09:49.680 --> 00:09:53.010 So I push my things to the side 209 00:09:53.010 --> 00:09:55.710 and I am, like, going full speed 210 00:09:55.710 --> 00:09:58.020 up towards the front of the store, 211 00:09:58.020 --> 00:10:02.133 and I grab this person and give them this big huge hug. 212 00:10:03.785 --> 00:10:06.987 And I'm like, "Wait a minute, this is not her." 213 00:10:10.562 --> 00:10:13.590 But the lady, she also embraced me too, 214 00:10:13.590 --> 00:10:17.130 and she was like, "Oh, my name is such and such." 215 00:10:17.130 --> 00:10:19.740 And she was like, "Thank you so much for the hug. 216 00:10:19.740 --> 00:10:22.260 I'm sorry I'm not the person that you're looking for, 217 00:10:22.260 --> 00:10:25.020 but I was having a really bad day, 218 00:10:25.020 --> 00:10:28.020 so thank you for the hug." 219 00:10:28.020 --> 00:10:31.380 And at the end of it, I guess it was still a plus, 220 00:10:31.380 --> 00:10:33.000 but I'm like, "Oh my gosh." 221 00:10:33.000 --> 00:10:36.960 So next time I told myself, "I'm just going to wait 222 00:10:36.960 --> 00:10:38.979 and make sure that it's the person 223 00:10:38.979 --> 00:10:43.979 instead of just going and just giving hugs out, I guess." 224 00:10:45.330 --> 00:10:46.983 Hugging random strangers. 225 00:10:50.250 --> 00:10:51.630 It turned out well though. 226 00:10:51.630 --> 00:10:53.403 You really made somebody's day. 227 00:10:57.360 --> 00:10:59.550 You probably wish the floor would open up 228 00:10:59.550 --> 00:11:01.170 and swallow whole though. 229 00:11:01.170 --> 00:11:02.850 Yes, it's like one of those moments 230 00:11:02.850 --> 00:11:04.560 where you just wish you could just melt 231 00:11:04.560 --> 00:11:07.915 right into the floor, like, "Oh my gosh." 232 00:11:07.915 --> 00:11:08.748 Oh wow. 233 00:11:08.748 --> 00:11:10.650 Aren't these always so much funnier though 234 00:11:10.650 --> 00:11:13.377 when they happen to somebody else and not to you? 235 00:11:13.377 --> 00:11:16.020 I'm like, part of me is going, "Ooh," 236 00:11:16.020 --> 00:11:16.987 and part of me is going, 237 00:11:16.987 --> 00:11:19.047 "Oh, thank you, God, that wasn't me." 238 00:11:20.820 --> 00:11:23.280 So I have one, and this happened, 239 00:11:23.280 --> 00:11:25.800 I was dating someone at the time 240 00:11:25.800 --> 00:11:30.300 and we were going to go out and do a few things, 241 00:11:30.300 --> 00:11:33.300 but before we could run our errands, 242 00:11:33.300 --> 00:11:36.420 he had a martial arts class that he was taking. 243 00:11:36.420 --> 00:11:39.720 And so I was sitting in the waiting room 244 00:11:39.720 --> 00:11:44.720 while he took his class, and I hear the voice, 245 00:11:46.560 --> 00:11:50.340 and the voice is a thing that you might be familiar with 246 00:11:50.340 --> 00:11:53.310 if you are visibly, 247 00:11:53.310 --> 00:11:57.240 like your vision is not perfect and it's evident. 248 00:11:57.240 --> 00:12:01.380 And the voice is this weird combination 249 00:12:01.380 --> 00:12:05.640 of a little bit condescending and annoyance, right? 250 00:12:05.640 --> 00:12:08.220 So, like, you're a problem to be solved. 251 00:12:08.220 --> 00:12:12.667 So I hear the voice, and she's like, 252 00:12:12.667 --> 00:12:15.627 "Are you planning on joining us today?" 253 00:12:16.747 --> 00:12:21.747 "Well, no, I have some logistics to work out. 254 00:12:22.470 --> 00:12:27.090 I really want to learn this martial art, 255 00:12:27.090 --> 00:12:29.520 but I don't wanna take up too much attention 256 00:12:29.520 --> 00:12:30.960 from the rest of the class. 257 00:12:30.960 --> 00:12:34.050 So I just have a few things to get figured out 258 00:12:34.050 --> 00:12:36.667 and I'm really hoping I can do this." 259 00:12:36.667 --> 00:12:37.713 "Okay. 260 00:12:38.580 --> 00:12:40.320 Now, young man, if you come in 261 00:12:40.320 --> 00:12:42.000 and join your sister this time, 262 00:12:42.000 --> 00:12:45.690 you had better not pull what she pulled last week." 263 00:12:45.690 --> 00:12:48.033 She was talking to her kid. 264 00:12:50.640 --> 00:12:54.697 And here I am responding to this conversation thinking like, 265 00:12:54.697 --> 00:12:56.700 "Oh, well, she's talking to me." 266 00:12:56.700 --> 00:13:01.198 And no, not so much. She was annoyed with her child. 267 00:13:01.198 --> 00:13:04.072 Oh, the whole thing. Oh. 268 00:13:04.072 --> 00:13:04.905 Oh. 269 00:13:05.850 --> 00:13:10.140 But now with the advent of Bluetooth in people's ears, 270 00:13:10.140 --> 00:13:11.670 we have lots of company. 271 00:13:11.670 --> 00:13:13.710 That is true. That's true. 272 00:13:13.710 --> 00:13:15.480 Because people don't know 273 00:13:15.480 --> 00:13:17.760 that other people are on the phone 274 00:13:17.760 --> 00:13:19.500 or whether they're talking to them. 275 00:13:19.500 --> 00:13:20.460 That's so true. 276 00:13:20.460 --> 00:13:22.590 Yeah, I guess everybody does that. 277 00:13:22.590 --> 00:13:24.060 They respond to something 278 00:13:24.060 --> 00:13:26.460 and think maybe that was meant for me, 279 00:13:26.460 --> 00:13:28.023 but I can't really tell. 280 00:13:29.578 --> 00:13:33.433 So it's not all about me, apparently. 281 00:13:34.650 --> 00:13:37.620 Lisa, do you have one where you were involved 282 00:13:37.620 --> 00:13:42.620 in a conversation of any kind? 283 00:13:43.470 --> 00:13:47.286 Long ago and far away when dinosaurs roamed 284 00:13:47.286 --> 00:13:49.410 the Earth 285 00:13:49.410 --> 00:13:53.970 and there were actual things called bookstores, 286 00:13:53.970 --> 00:13:57.420 and you could go in, you could buy paperback books, 287 00:13:57.420 --> 00:13:59.670 and they maybe had a tiny little shelf 288 00:13:59.670 --> 00:14:02.160 where you had a small collection of audios too. 289 00:14:02.160 --> 00:14:03.780 It was pretty cool. 290 00:14:03.780 --> 00:14:07.530 But I went in to buy a gift, 291 00:14:07.530 --> 00:14:12.240 and I went in with my guide dog, 292 00:14:12.240 --> 00:14:15.510 who the dog at the time was a large black lab. 293 00:14:15.510 --> 00:14:17.670 And I was waiting in line. 294 00:14:17.670 --> 00:14:19.650 And these teenagers off to my left 295 00:14:19.650 --> 00:14:21.570 were having a conversation. 296 00:14:21.570 --> 00:14:25.800 And one of them said to the other, "Good dog or bad dog?" 297 00:14:25.800 --> 00:14:30.090 And I'm thinking, "That's rude. That's just rude." 298 00:14:30.090 --> 00:14:32.670 And I thought, "But I'm gonna be a decent human being 299 00:14:32.670 --> 00:14:34.500 and I'm going to educate." 300 00:14:34.500 --> 00:14:36.457 And at the same time I'm thinking, 301 00:14:36.457 --> 00:14:38.610 "Okay, did my dog just sniff them 302 00:14:38.610 --> 00:14:42.360 or did he grab an entire soft pretzel 303 00:14:42.360 --> 00:14:43.650 out of someone's hand? 304 00:14:43.650 --> 00:14:45.567 You know, why are they saying this?" 305 00:14:46.860 --> 00:14:49.110 And he had been kind of distracted that day. 306 00:14:49.110 --> 00:14:51.187 And so I looked at them and I said, 307 00:14:51.187 --> 00:14:54.000 "Oh no, good dog, bad day." 308 00:14:54.000 --> 00:14:57.453 And they looked at me and burst out laughing. 309 00:14:58.350 --> 00:15:00.990 And then I was really confused. 310 00:15:00.990 --> 00:15:05.160 Here they were looking at a display of books. 311 00:15:05.160 --> 00:15:08.100 If you are familiar with the "Harry Potter" series, 312 00:15:08.100 --> 00:15:10.110 that's what they were looking at. 313 00:15:10.110 --> 00:15:12.630 Oh, it has like that three-headed dog. 314 00:15:12.630 --> 00:15:15.396 Yes, one is Fluffy, the three-headed dog who 315 00:15:15.396 --> 00:15:16.246 is bad, 316 00:15:16.246 --> 00:15:19.350 but the other is Sirius Black 317 00:15:19.350 --> 00:15:23.910 who took the form of a large black dog. 318 00:15:23.910 --> 00:15:25.297 And they looked and they went, 319 00:15:25.297 --> 00:15:27.783 "Oh no, Sirius Black, he's good. 320 00:15:28.710 --> 00:15:30.510 You just don't know it right away." 321 00:15:30.510 --> 00:15:33.900 And I'm like, "Yeah, that's about how it is with him." 322 00:15:33.900 --> 00:15:37.020 So that was my little misperception. 323 00:15:37.020 --> 00:15:38.880 Again, back to Ricky's thing, 324 00:15:38.880 --> 00:15:41.973 I guess it's not all about me or, in this case, my dog. 325 00:15:45.890 --> 00:15:50.250 Oh, you just never know what is going to happen 326 00:15:50.250 --> 00:15:53.340 when you venture forth from your house 327 00:15:53.340 --> 00:15:54.390 and you're out and about. 328 00:15:54.390 --> 00:15:57.150 Every errand is an adventure, right, Doug? 329 00:15:57.150 --> 00:15:59.010 Absolutely. Absolutely. 330 00:15:59.010 --> 00:16:00.750 And I have a feeling 331 00:16:00.750 --> 00:16:03.720 more than just me has experienced this one. 332 00:16:03.720 --> 00:16:07.320 And so my previous job, 333 00:16:07.320 --> 00:16:09.120 I was a teacher of the visually impaired, 334 00:16:09.120 --> 00:16:12.720 and I traveled from school to school 335 00:16:12.720 --> 00:16:14.940 and saw the different kids all around the county. 336 00:16:14.940 --> 00:16:19.080 Well, the school system there provided a driver for me. 337 00:16:19.080 --> 00:16:21.270 And so I was waiting for the driver. 338 00:16:21.270 --> 00:16:24.360 I just finished working with a first grader. 339 00:16:24.360 --> 00:16:26.340 So I was waiting for a driver 340 00:16:26.340 --> 00:16:27.930 outside of the elementary school there. 341 00:16:27.930 --> 00:16:31.440 And I couldn't see the people inside the cars. 342 00:16:31.440 --> 00:16:33.210 Now, this was when my vision 343 00:16:33.210 --> 00:16:34.410 was up a little better than it is, 344 00:16:34.410 --> 00:16:38.370 and I didn't use a cane yet, an identifier cane. 345 00:16:38.370 --> 00:16:42.660 So I'm waiting for this dark SUV to show up 346 00:16:42.660 --> 00:16:46.290 and pulls up right in front of me like it always does. 347 00:16:46.290 --> 00:16:50.340 And I quickly jump in the car and I buckle my seatbelt. 348 00:16:50.340 --> 00:16:54.487 And this female voice that I do not recognize says, 349 00:16:54.487 --> 00:16:56.520 "Eh, can I help you?" 350 00:16:56.520 --> 00:17:00.540 And I just froze. And I was just shocked. 351 00:17:00.540 --> 00:17:01.860 And it's a lot like the elevator. 352 00:17:01.860 --> 00:17:03.460 All I could say is, "I'm sorry." 353 00:17:04.890 --> 00:17:07.320 And I just didn't say anything. 354 00:17:07.320 --> 00:17:09.300 I just jumped out of the car, you know? 355 00:17:09.300 --> 00:17:12.630 And the SUV, it just drove away. 356 00:17:12.630 --> 00:17:15.000 And looking back, I'm like, "She was there for a reason 357 00:17:15.000 --> 00:17:17.130 and apparently, I creeped her out so much 358 00:17:17.130 --> 00:17:18.240 she just left, right?" 359 00:17:18.240 --> 00:17:21.480 But she drove away and it was horrible. 360 00:17:21.480 --> 00:17:23.580 But it does get worse 361 00:17:23.580 --> 00:17:27.499 because my driver was right behind this vehicle. 362 00:17:27.499 --> 00:17:28.340 Oh no. 363 00:17:28.340 --> 00:17:32.539 And she saw everything. 364 00:17:32.539 --> 00:17:34.920 And so she pulls up and she is just laughing out loud. 365 00:17:34.920 --> 00:17:36.093 She is cracking up. 366 00:17:37.099 --> 00:17:38.340 And she said, "You got in the wrong car. 367 00:17:38.340 --> 00:17:39.640 You got in the wrong car." 368 00:17:40.740 --> 00:17:44.970 Of course, it was all over the school system the next day. 369 00:17:44.970 --> 00:17:47.520 And so yeah, it took a long time to live that one down. 370 00:17:47.520 --> 00:17:50.610 But hey, one good thing happened. 371 00:17:50.610 --> 00:17:52.950 I started using identifier cane after that happened. 372 00:17:52.950 --> 00:17:56.010 So I guess some good did come after that, 373 00:17:56.010 --> 00:17:57.210 right, or out of it. 374 00:17:57.210 --> 00:18:00.030 Well, there you go, and again, somewhere, 375 00:18:00.030 --> 00:18:04.177 somehow there's a woman telling this story to her family, 376 00:18:04.177 --> 00:18:07.170 "This creepy man got in my car." 377 00:18:08.067 --> 00:18:09.450 But I wanna tell you, yeah, 378 00:18:09.450 --> 00:18:12.060 later on she did show back up at the elementary school 379 00:18:12.060 --> 00:18:14.940 'cause I went back to the elementary school the next day 380 00:18:14.940 --> 00:18:16.583 and they were like, "This woman came in 381 00:18:16.583 --> 00:18:18.987 and did you get in the car with this woman?" 382 00:18:20.970 --> 00:18:23.977 You know, and so they told her to kind of filled her in 383 00:18:23.977 --> 00:18:25.560 on who I was and what was going on. 384 00:18:25.560 --> 00:18:28.470 So anyway, there's not a lady, I hope, 385 00:18:28.470 --> 00:18:30.780 like the elevator lady, that is talking about me 386 00:18:30.780 --> 00:18:33.210 on a podcast right now, I guess, so. 387 00:18:33.210 --> 00:18:35.010 At least your driver laughed 388 00:18:35.010 --> 00:18:36.870 and she didn't say the one word 389 00:18:36.870 --> 00:18:39.323 that everyone with low vision dreads here. 390 00:18:39.323 --> 00:18:40.873 Oh no, that's the worst. 391 00:18:40.873 --> 00:18:41.706 Aw. 392 00:18:43.500 --> 00:18:45.150 It's like, "No, make fun of me. 393 00:18:45.150 --> 00:18:47.097 I'd rather that than your pity. Thank you." 394 00:18:47.097 --> 00:18:48.180 Yeah, she was way beyond that. 395 00:18:48.180 --> 00:18:51.018 Yeah, I didn't hear the end of it a long time. 396 00:18:51.018 --> 00:18:53.609 I feel like we've talked about cars and 397 00:18:53.609 --> 00:18:54.450 bookstores. 398 00:18:54.450 --> 00:18:58.020 I feel like meals probably have the potential 399 00:18:58.020 --> 00:19:02.040 for some real embarrassment/things 400 00:19:02.040 --> 00:19:03.690 that we can chuckle about later. 401 00:19:03.690 --> 00:19:05.850 Tiffany, do you have a story about a meal? 402 00:19:05.850 --> 00:19:06.993 I sure do. 403 00:19:09.274 --> 00:19:13.800 So one day, and this was in high school as well, 404 00:19:13.800 --> 00:19:16.740 so we're in the cafeteria line. 405 00:19:16.740 --> 00:19:21.660 I get fries and it's Taco Tuesday or something like that. 406 00:19:21.660 --> 00:19:23.880 And so I get fries, I'm in the line, 407 00:19:23.880 --> 00:19:26.970 and they have the taco sauce 408 00:19:26.970 --> 00:19:31.110 and the ketchup bottles right next to each other. 409 00:19:31.110 --> 00:19:35.520 They are labeled, but I wasn't able to see the labels 410 00:19:35.520 --> 00:19:39.120 and the containers were similar 411 00:19:39.120 --> 00:19:40.230 and I really couldn't tell. 412 00:19:40.230 --> 00:19:43.833 So it's kind of like a eeny, meeny, miny, moe type of thing. 413 00:19:46.410 --> 00:19:48.690 So I grab a container 414 00:19:48.690 --> 00:19:52.020 and I'm pouring sauce all over my fries 415 00:19:52.020 --> 00:19:56.100 and it ends up being the taco sauce. 416 00:19:56.100 --> 00:20:00.037 So one of my friends walk up, she sees it, she's like, 417 00:20:00.037 --> 00:20:02.100 "You like taco sauce on your fries?" 418 00:20:02.100 --> 00:20:03.390 I'm like, "Yeah, don't you?" 419 00:20:03.390 --> 00:20:05.550 And I was like, "Try it." 420 00:20:05.550 --> 00:20:08.035 And she was like, she tried it, 421 00:20:08.035 --> 00:20:10.800 she was like, "No, no, no thanks, no." 422 00:20:10.800 --> 00:20:12.720 And I was just like, "Okay." 423 00:20:12.720 --> 00:20:15.330 So in this moment I'm thinking, "What do you do now?" 424 00:20:15.330 --> 00:20:18.840 So I'm just like, yeah, I'm not really feeling this myself, 425 00:20:18.840 --> 00:20:20.070 so I'm just gonna go 426 00:20:20.070 --> 00:20:23.520 and get something from the school store or whatever. 427 00:20:23.520 --> 00:20:28.503 But yeah, that was a blooper for me for meals. 428 00:20:29.370 --> 00:20:31.020 Gosh, I think I actually would like 429 00:20:31.020 --> 00:20:33.123 to try taco sauce on fries. 430 00:20:35.070 --> 00:20:37.560 I know some people have had mayo on fries 431 00:20:37.560 --> 00:20:39.810 and that seems not good. 432 00:20:39.810 --> 00:20:42.210 But yeah, I think I'd eat fries with taco sauce. 433 00:20:45.000 --> 00:20:47.280 But it is so embarrassing when you think 434 00:20:47.280 --> 00:20:50.100 that you have done what you intended 435 00:20:50.100 --> 00:20:53.970 and it turns out maybe not so much. 436 00:20:53.970 --> 00:20:58.970 So I had one where I used to work with a consulting firm 437 00:21:01.245 --> 00:21:04.350 and we worked with businesses 438 00:21:04.350 --> 00:21:09.350 to help them make their websites and apps more usable 439 00:21:10.440 --> 00:21:13.410 and accessible for people with blindness 440 00:21:13.410 --> 00:21:15.570 or low vision or other disabilities. 441 00:21:15.570 --> 00:21:20.570 And so once I was on a week long travel 442 00:21:22.620 --> 00:21:27.620 and we were consulting with like a Fortune 500 company, 443 00:21:27.780 --> 00:21:31.290 and so the dress code is pure corporate, 444 00:21:31.290 --> 00:21:34.080 you know, suit and heels and all that, 445 00:21:34.080 --> 00:21:38.430 and, you know, you're not there to stand out per se. 446 00:21:38.430 --> 00:21:42.600 It's kind of conservative. Everyone is dressed similarly. 447 00:21:42.600 --> 00:21:47.370 So I'm there for a week, and after the training each day, 448 00:21:47.370 --> 00:21:49.560 my colleague and I go back to the hotel. 449 00:21:49.560 --> 00:21:52.770 So we're pretty much on a first name basis 450 00:21:52.770 --> 00:21:54.600 with the hotel staff by now. 451 00:21:54.600 --> 00:21:57.270 And everything is really friendly and great. 452 00:21:57.270 --> 00:22:00.690 So I have a full day of presenting 453 00:22:00.690 --> 00:22:05.310 to this group of Fortune 500 employees, 454 00:22:05.310 --> 00:22:07.860 and they're learning a lot and all of that, 455 00:22:07.860 --> 00:22:12.860 and get back to the hotel, and my colleague and I walk in, 456 00:22:12.870 --> 00:22:17.017 and our friend at the hotel now says, 457 00:22:17.017 --> 00:22:18.630 "Oh, hey, such and such. 458 00:22:18.630 --> 00:22:21.810 And hey, Ricky, I love your outfit, 459 00:22:21.810 --> 00:22:24.147 the burgundy and the green." 460 00:22:24.997 --> 00:22:27.147 "Oh, thank you. Wait, what?" 461 00:22:28.035 --> 00:22:30.600 I just had this moment 462 00:22:30.600 --> 00:22:35.600 of that is very likely a horrible combination. 463 00:22:36.300 --> 00:22:39.360 And regardless, it was not at all 464 00:22:39.360 --> 00:22:40.950 what I had intended to wear. 465 00:22:40.950 --> 00:22:43.950 So all day I've been confidently 466 00:22:43.950 --> 00:22:46.950 making this fashion statement 467 00:22:46.950 --> 00:22:51.091 and being all edgy or whatever, and I had no idea. 468 00:22:51.091 --> 00:22:55.620 So I was like- 469 00:22:55.620 --> 00:22:57.360 Your own fashion trend. You're a trend setter. 470 00:22:57.360 --> 00:22:59.330 There you go. Yes, absolutely. 471 00:23:01.350 --> 00:23:04.350 At least you found out at the end of the day. 472 00:23:04.350 --> 00:23:06.690 If I found out at the beginning of the day, 473 00:23:06.690 --> 00:23:08.430 I would feel like I needed to stand up 474 00:23:08.430 --> 00:23:10.590 in front of the group and- Explain. 475 00:23:10.590 --> 00:23:13.650 apologize for my insanity or something, yeah. 476 00:23:13.650 --> 00:23:15.960 And I'll still never understand 477 00:23:15.960 --> 00:23:19.110 why the person at the hotel complimented me. 478 00:23:19.110 --> 00:23:22.847 Maybe like, "You're really out on a limb. That's brave." 479 00:23:24.675 --> 00:23:26.532 That is a brave look. 480 00:23:26.532 --> 00:23:28.980 May have been what every the Fortune 500 company 481 00:23:28.980 --> 00:23:31.507 was saying too, right? 482 00:23:31.507 --> 00:23:34.140 "How brave she's and how confident." 483 00:23:34.140 --> 00:23:36.720 Yes. And maybe that's it. 484 00:23:36.720 --> 00:23:41.720 Maybe if we just approach things with enough confidence, 485 00:23:42.150 --> 00:23:47.150 then whatever we do is not so embarrassing after all. 486 00:23:49.020 --> 00:23:51.520 Absolutely, I agree. And I'm right there with 487 00:23:51.520 --> 00:23:52.361 you. 488 00:23:52.361 --> 00:23:55.620 I wore a navy blue heel and a black one. 489 00:23:55.620 --> 00:23:58.230 They're like the same shoe but different colors. 490 00:23:58.230 --> 00:24:01.563 I had those on the same day all day long. 491 00:24:03.057 --> 00:24:05.882 And you can have all the marking and 492 00:24:05.882 --> 00:24:07.020 labeling systems. 493 00:24:07.020 --> 00:24:10.500 There's no fix for I'm in a frantic hurry. 494 00:24:10.500 --> 00:24:12.210 Yeah, and I walked around for most of the day 495 00:24:12.210 --> 00:24:13.857 with a leather Birkenstock on 496 00:24:13.857 --> 00:24:16.080 and a plastic one on the leather foot, you know, 497 00:24:16.080 --> 00:24:18.450 and I thought they were the same shoes, so. 498 00:24:18.450 --> 00:24:20.760 Well, it's like we said earlier, 499 00:24:20.760 --> 00:24:25.020 it's not always just us that this happens to though. 500 00:24:25.020 --> 00:24:26.850 I've heard so many stories 501 00:24:26.850 --> 00:24:29.370 of people accidentally leaving their houses 502 00:24:29.370 --> 00:24:34.370 with their house slippers still on and going to work 503 00:24:35.070 --> 00:24:37.687 and only realizing it once they got there, 504 00:24:37.687 --> 00:24:40.440 "Oh, I'm still wearing my slippers." 505 00:24:40.440 --> 00:24:45.440 So, you know, as much as we think that it's all about, 506 00:24:45.577 --> 00:24:49.110 "If I didn't have low vision, if I weren't blind, 507 00:24:49.110 --> 00:24:51.180 then everything else would be perfect 508 00:24:51.180 --> 00:24:54.060 and I wouldn't make these kinds of things," no, not at all. 509 00:24:54.060 --> 00:24:57.870 I really think this is just part of the human condition. 510 00:24:57.870 --> 00:24:59.340 And if you're new to sight loss, 511 00:24:59.340 --> 00:25:01.680 you may have something like this happen, 512 00:25:01.680 --> 00:25:03.660 and you may have a good cry, 513 00:25:03.660 --> 00:25:05.310 and you may invite some of your nearest 514 00:25:05.310 --> 00:25:08.850 and dearest friends to a little pity party. 515 00:25:08.850 --> 00:25:10.305 But you know what? 516 00:25:10.305 --> 00:25:12.990 I think time really makes the best seasoning. 517 00:25:12.990 --> 00:25:17.310 And after too long, you'll be able to pull it out 518 00:25:17.310 --> 00:25:19.350 and say, "Oh, do you remember 519 00:25:19.350 --> 00:25:21.300 that really silly thing I did? 520 00:25:21.300 --> 00:25:23.130 I thought I was gonna die of embarrassment, 521 00:25:23.130 --> 00:25:24.980 but I'm still here to tell the tale." 522 00:25:26.235 --> 00:25:27.780 And is that how you get through 523 00:25:27.780 --> 00:25:29.610 those moments yourself now, Lisa? 524 00:25:29.610 --> 00:25:30.668 Absolutely. 525 00:25:30.668 --> 00:25:33.960 It's the what doesn't kill us makes us stronger, 526 00:25:33.960 --> 00:25:36.150 or, you know, I go confidently 527 00:25:36.150 --> 00:25:39.090 in the wrong direction kind of philosophy. 528 00:25:39.090 --> 00:25:40.470 And what about you, Tiffany? 529 00:25:40.470 --> 00:25:42.210 What do you tell yourself 530 00:25:42.210 --> 00:25:45.090 just to kind of get past some of those moments 531 00:25:45.090 --> 00:25:46.740 so that you don't dwell on it, 532 00:25:46.740 --> 00:25:48.813 instead you're able to smile about it? 533 00:25:49.740 --> 00:25:53.990 Yeah, I kind of just chuckle in the moment to 534 00:25:53.990 --> 00:25:54.836 myself 535 00:25:54.836 --> 00:25:57.977 and I'm just like, "Girl, keep swimming. You got this." 536 00:25:57.977 --> 00:26:00.050 Like, just keep swimming. 537 00:26:00.050 --> 00:26:03.210 Just keep swimming. Yeah. 538 00:26:03.210 --> 00:26:04.950 What about you, Doug? 539 00:26:04.950 --> 00:26:05.950 Oh, that's great. 540 00:26:05.950 --> 00:26:09.120 Well, I think you're so right, Ricky, we all make mistakes, 541 00:26:09.120 --> 00:26:12.270 and, you know, whether we have a visual impairment or not. 542 00:26:12.270 --> 00:26:14.340 And, you know, I think it really helps 543 00:26:14.340 --> 00:26:16.680 to have that sense of humor and be able to keep that. 544 00:26:16.680 --> 00:26:17.880 I mean, I grew up in a family 545 00:26:17.880 --> 00:26:21.390 that loved to laugh and to joke around. 546 00:26:21.390 --> 00:26:24.870 So for me it's just keeping things lighthearted 547 00:26:24.870 --> 00:26:28.080 and just living in the moment. 548 00:26:28.080 --> 00:26:30.540 Well, I knew this was going to be fun, 549 00:26:30.540 --> 00:26:32.160 and it certainly was. 550 00:26:32.160 --> 00:26:36.600 I think it helps a lot to understand 551 00:26:36.600 --> 00:26:39.180 that, again, it's not just you 552 00:26:39.180 --> 00:26:41.010 that these things will happen to. 553 00:26:41.010 --> 00:26:43.080 And if you can smile about it 554 00:26:43.080 --> 00:26:47.940 and look back on it with a chuckle, it's so much better 555 00:26:47.940 --> 00:26:51.840 than sort of wallowing in that embarrassment 556 00:26:51.840 --> 00:26:55.200 and thinking, "Oh, everyone is thinking this or that 557 00:26:55.200 --> 00:26:56.760 or the other thing about me." 558 00:26:56.760 --> 00:27:00.810 I feel like smiling really goes a long way. 559 00:27:00.810 --> 00:27:05.160 So I have had such fun with all of you. 560 00:27:05.160 --> 00:27:08.010 Thank you for sharing your stories with each other 561 00:27:08.010 --> 00:27:10.470 and of course with everyone listening. 562 00:27:10.470 --> 00:27:12.403 Yeah, well, thanks for having us, Ricky. 563 00:27:12.403 --> 00:27:13.236 It's been fun. 564 00:27:13.236 --> 00:27:14.250 Yes, thank you. 565 00:27:14.250 --> 00:27:15.603 Yes, thank you. 566 00:27:16.590 --> 00:27:18.120 Got something to say? 567 00:27:18.120 --> 00:27:21.210 Share your thoughts about this episode of "Hadley Presents," 568 00:27:21.210 --> 00:27:23.790 or make suggestions for future episodes. 569 00:27:23.790 --> 00:27:25.410 We'd love to hear from you. 570 00:27:25.410 --> 00:27:29.703 Send us an email at podcast@hadley.edu. 571 00:27:29.703 --> 00:27:34.703 That's podcast@hadley.edu. 572 00:27:34.950 --> 00:27:39.510 Or leave us a message at 847-784-2870. 573 00:27:41.340 --> 00:27:42.694 Thanks for listening. 574 00:27:42.694 --> 00:27:45.194 (light music)