City living: good or evil?

September 11, 2011

Now don’t get me wrong, I generally love living in the city.  It has so much to offer.  But that doesn’t mean there aren’t days that are incredibly difficult.  And in all fairness, if I lived in the city but had a driveway, this wouldn’t be an issue.  Sadly, I don’t have a driveway, so the next few weeks are going to be very difficult.

 

Last year I got rid of my relatively-young-but-laden-with-problems car.  I thought about not getting a new car.  For the first time, I was using public transportation to get to work.  I could walk to the grocery store.  I could use Zipcar for trips outside of the city.  But now matter how many work-arounds I considered, I always got stuck on what I’d do on the days I couldn’t walk even the two blocks to the closest Zipcar spots.  What then?  I’d be stuck.  So I got a car.  3 weeks later, someone crashed into it while it was parked.  It was totaled and I couldn’t drive it for 3 weeks while it was getting fixed.  Just a couple weeks after it came back from the shop, it got stuck in the ice that had formed where I’d parked, so I couldn’t drive it for about a week.

 

Now, the city is doing construction in my neighborhood, so from 7am-7pm I can’t park anywhere near my apartment.  Depending on which notices are correct, this will be for 2 or 3 weeks.  I’ve been asking friends if they might have an extra space in their driveway that I can use.  If not, I’ll park in another neighborhood, then walk or take the bus home, and go back every few days to move my car (they ticket if you stay in the same space for too long, even when it’s a legal space!)  I just have to hope that I don’t need the car for the next few weeks.  Lately, I’ve been driving to work more than taking the T (our subway) because I’ve been having fatigue and/or pain.  I really hope that stays at bay for a while.

 

I love living in the city overall.  I really do.  But I have to ask myself: why did I buy a car if I keep having weeks at a time that I can’t even get to it?

 

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1 Comment | Frustration, Intrusions, Limitations, Parking, Rants, Symptoms, Unpredictable | Permalink
Posted by chronicrants

Planning for the unpredictable

September 10, 2011

The air is cool and clear, the sun is shining… it’s a gorgeous day here in Boston.  It’s a day to be outdoors!

So I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised when my friend called me up and asked if we could switch our plans from being indoors this afternoon to taking a walk around a pond.  It’s a great idea, actually.  I bet it’ll be beautiful, and I’ll love watching her little girls run and play.

I give a lot of credit to my friend.  She was very careful to make it clear that we could stay closer to home or do something else if I didn’t feel up to this.  She’s really great that way.  We’ve been friends a long time, and she “gets it.”  The problem is, I want to do this.  And I do feel up to it right now.  I just don’t know how I’ll feel afterwards.  I might be completely exhausted.  And I have plans to celebrate a friend’s birthday tonight, something I’ve been looking forward to for a long time.  So if I walk around the pond, will I be too tired later for anything else?  I won’t have much time to rest in between, unfortunately, because of how things time out.

I’ll just have to take a chance, and try to do both, and hope I don’t regret it later or tomorrow.  I hope this works out!  It would be so nice to be able to predict these things, but that’s just not possible.

 

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Leave a Comment » | Decisions, Expectations, Frustration, Limitations, Rants, Raves, Support, Symptoms, Thoughtfulness, Unpredictable | Permalink
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No, we’re not all the same

September 8, 2011

I saw a story on the news the other night about a woman who went to McDonald’s with her two autistic sons and their service dog.  The store manager was there (though not working at the time) and told the woman that the dog was not allowed because they weren’t blind.  The mother offered to provide documentation, but the manager insisted that they leave.

There’s more to this story, but I want to focus on the common misconception that only people who are visibly disabled would need a service dog.  Invisible disabilities can make life easier in some ways, because you can “pass” for healthy.  On the other hand, invisible disabilities mean that people often don’t believe you have a problem.  And visible disabilities that are misunderstood?  You’re out of luck there too.  We need more education.  We need people to understand that service dogs are for people who are blind, and also for those who are autistic or suffering from PTSD or who have epilepsy.  There are many many more reasons why someone would have a service dog.  People need ways to learn this.

When I was in elementary school, maybe around 4th grade, we had a program on disabilities.  Someone came in and spoke to us.  They taught us how to sign the alphabet, and we had to communicate with each other that way.  We were blindfolded and led through the hallways by a classmate, trusting them to guide us safely.  We had our dominant hand tied behind our back, then were told to write with the other hand.  We learned what to do if someone has an epileptic seizure in front of us and what to do if a diabetic needs insulin.  This was long before I had any health problems of my own, and as far as I knew, none of my friends or family had any problems either (I was wrong, but hey, I was a kid – what did I know?)  Still, I paid attention.  Obviously this program had a real affect on me, because I remember it all these years later.  Imagine what would happen if we offered programs like these in each grade, adjusting the material for each age group.  Imagine how much more understanding the next generation would be!

People make a lot of incorrect assumptions.  Sometimes the person is at fault, but very often they just lack the knowledge needed to make informed decisions.  Let’s help them by giving them the knowledge they need.  Let’s educate them!

 

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Leave a Comment » | Educating, Expectations, Frustration, Insensitive, Politics, Rants, Unpredictable | Permalink
Posted by chronicrants

Wanting solid info from the RMV

September 7, 2011

It’s not like I want to have a handicapped placard.  I would like nothing better than to be healthy enough to not need one.  Since I do need the placard, I use it.  I just wish I knew more about the laws around it.

After a lot of searching, I finally found some info here and here on the MA RMV web site.  After all that searching, the site doesn’t inspire confidence.  For example, it provides information on handicapped plates, but when I tried to get one years ago, I was told they aren’t offered anymore, only placards are offered.  Either I was given wrong information, or the site is very out of date.  Both seem very possible.

Now, try finding info on where you can use it!  #7 in the FAQ seems to be the place, but it’s incredibly vague (and wrong.)  Can I use it in HP Van spaces if I don’t have a van?  It doesn’t mention that.  I can disregard some parking meters but not all – that’s NOT HELPFUL!  Why can the MA Port Authority manage to not exempt placards?  Do others do it too, or is it just them?  Please be specific!  And about all U.S. States recognizing the MA placard, well, maybe that should be more specific too.  Parts of Washington D.C. didn’t, the last time I was there.  I also stumbled upon a city in Connecticut this summer that didn’t recognize them.  Why is this?  And why doesn’t the web site mention it?  And according to the FAQ some parking rules must be followed but not others.  What if there’s a 2 hour parking limit?  Do I need to obey that?  If so, doesn’t that run counter-intuitive to the exempt meter rule?  If not, then say so!

I know many people who have had the same frustrations.  When I call to ask questions, I can’t seem to get someone on the phone who knows what they’re talking about.

These placards are provided by the state RMV.  Many rules apply to them.  Would it be so horrible to let us know what those rules are?

 

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Leave a Comment » | Educating, Expectations, Frustration, Limitations, Pain, Parking, Politics, Rants, Unpredictable | Permalink
Posted by chronicrants

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