Faking?

I’ve just read this blogpost

https://diaryofadisabledperson.blog/2022/05/29/fake-it-til-you-make-it/

Dax writes a very good post about how disabled people are perceived. If I glance at my Apple Watch in public I’m perceived as sighted despite the time being the size of my wrist and voiceover announcing the time out loud.

Yes this is my preferred watchface.

My Apple Watch face is the 45mm (1.77 inches) and so the time is written in numbers approximately 15mm high (0.59 inches) yes I measured them. So yes even blurred I can read the number and sometimes my CBS (Charles Bonnet Syndrome) can smooth the edges to make the numbers appear in focus and other times “melt” the numbers like the famous painting by Salvador Dali The Persistence of Memory does with pocket watches. I’ve added a link to the Museum of Modern Art website in which there’s a photo with text description of this work plus a couple of audio clips (one is a a description of the painting’s place in history, while the other is an audio description of the work. The audio description can help people with formulating AltText for their media. It’s so well described.

https://www.moma.org/collection/works/79018

I’ve shared photos of how I see the world as a colourful blur. Just because I can seem to be watching my grandson playing football doesn’t mean I can see him. What I see is a blurry shape and movement. Often it’s only hearing his voice from a different area of the pitch that let’s me know I’ve “followed the wrong moving blur” yet again.

Top may be what a person with decent eyesight can see , however I see more like the bottom photo.

With regards to the bottom photo if my grandson was standing still on a grass verge by a road I could easily mistake him for a post box at a distance…

Think about that for a moment.

Reasons I’ve been told to my face, or heard behind my back, why I’m faking.

• I’m too confident when walking in town
• I walk solo in the countryside
• I travel solo on buses and trains
• I obviously can see because I stopped before walking into a person
• I use a touchscreen phone
• If I’m not using headphones and my phone talks
• If I’m using my headphones and people can’t hear my phone talk
• I know where I am and can give lost sighted people directions
• I don’t answer the door to my home using my long white cane
• I’m obviously reading the letter I was given (holding it right by my face)
• I’m obviously choosing not to try reading the letter I’ve just been given
• I don’t ask for help when shopping
• I do ask for help when shopping

So am I faking when walking in town?

No. If I look confident when walking it’s because I trust my cane skills, my ability to think on my feet to solve problems should they arise, and the kindness of strangers should I need to ask for help. On new routes I’ve often prepared ahead of time by planning using maps and apps at home before opening my front door. I also make alternative plans, maybe not a whole alphabets worth but certainly cover plan A, and several alternatives.

So am I faking when I walk in the countryside? See my previous answer and add the fact that if I walk in any direction far enough I’ll be out of the countryside. It would take real talent to become irretrievably lost where I walk.

I won’t go through every point I just ask you to realise that phones (tablets, computers) have accessibility settings so a blind person can use them. When a sighted person uses an app on their phone to navigate whilst driving it talks to them and they still don’t realise that as blind people we can take advantage of that sort of technology.

A sighted person will use technology where they speak to their phone, or a smart speaker in their home, and think it’s normal for that bit of technology to reply, or do the task set.

Anyway disabled people don’t fake their disability just because it’s not how you expect it to be. Blind people may be able to see (most of us can see something) but what we see is extremely restricted in comparison to a sighted person, even a sighted person who needs specs.

Oh and don’t forget blind people may wear specs but if they are blind the benefits of the specs may be seeing 6 inches from their nose rather than 4 inches.

Until next time.