Nothing is simple for the disabled

One of the reasons I started this blog was for people to know what it's like to be an independent living disabled person living in the real world. I'm not bitching because I know plenty of people a lot worse off than me but if someone is going to want to do what I'm doing, you had better be prepared to physically, mentally & emotionally jump hurdles every step of the way. A lot of folks can't do that so they don't get the equipment they need or other things required to improve their quality of life. Certainly a lot of this is due to government bureaucracy & stupid insurance companies but some people just give up. You can't do that. You have to be persistent and be a pest. Be prepared for people to call you difficult. I ought to know not that I care. They can't hurt my feelings. I have too much to accomplish.


Yesterday I met a guy on Wheeltrans named Joe. We picked him up at Weston & Eglinton and we were both going to Lyndhurst. He's been in a manual chair for four years. It was obvious to me that he would benefit from a power chair as he has trouble with his hands. I asked him why he hasn't applied to get one and he admitted that he probably hasn't been persistent enough with social workers etc. and he's let it slide. There comes a point where if you want and need something to improve your quality of life, you have to stop being a nice guy. That's what Joe has to do. He needs to be organized and he needs to get pissed off and rattle some cages.


Just to illustrate how nothing is simple for the disabled no matter how simple it seems, here's something I had to do this week. I like to go out for breakfast mainly to get out of the apartment. I don't want to be housebound. Since I moved here in September I've eaten breakfast at the Olympia at Lakeshore & 10th. It was two minutes from the apartment, very convenient. Well, the restaurant closed on Monday after 30 years in business. I had to find someplace new. This is no problem for an able bodied person. You just walk to a new place. I have to be sure I can get in the new place. So on Tuesday I went to Di & Gabby's at Lakeshore & 6th St. It was OK but they open at 9AM, a little late for me. The Lucky Dice is one block over. It has a step. I can't get in.

On the way home, I stopped at my favourite dollar store Golden Toonie and the owner suggested The Greek Texan near Humber College so I checked it out on Wednesday. No luck. I can't get in there either. And across the street is Oliver's. They open at 10AM. Forget it. I tried Subway. I didn't like it. Thursday I went a little farther west. Other than Tim Horton's there was nothing. I ate a bagel there but it's too far and I'm not a big Tim fan anyway.

There's a McDonalds near 3rd St. I was going to go there Saturday anyway as I have to stop somewhere else. But I have a couple of coupons so I went there today. It took ten minutes to get there. That's where I will go. I'd like to go someplace closer but McDonalds breakfast is pretty good and they have automatic doors and lots of room. There's a Coffee Time near McDonalds that has automatic doors too but I prefer McDonalds.

In my previous life, this decision would have been made in five minutes. Now everything is a big production mostly because of hurdles placed in front of the disabled especially if one wants independence. There is no excuse for stores to not be wheelchair accessible anymore. The city will pay for modifications. It's not just small stores either. There's a Pizza Pizza on Lakeshore that has two big steps at the entrance. They're not thinking. Greater accessibility equals more business. This is just an example of what I have to go through to do anything but I do it. I guess I'm going to have to continue to be a pest to get things for myself and other disabled people.