[Blindtlk] Hiring a Driver

Wed Dec 11 12:48:57 UTC 2013

That's terrible; as soon as someone starts telling me stuff like that, I
tune them out.  

-----Original Message-----
From: blindtlk [mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Arielle
Silverman
Sent: Tuesday, December 10, 2013 10:37 PM
To: Blind Talk Mailing List
Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Hiring a Driver

I'm wondering if what they are opposed to is having a social life at all, or
having a social life with other blind people? I'm guessing maybe the friends
you want to visit, who live far away, are blind?
I mention this because I too have had difficulties in the past with members
of my family not accepting my blind-friend network as a real social network.
It's much better now, but when I was in college, they would constantly
encourage me to "get out there and make friends" and not to hang out with my
blind friends too much. I think on some level they thought my friendships
with other blind people weren't mature, real friendships.
Arielle

On 12/10/13, Linda <waterinmyroom at gmail.com> wrote:
> I do not understand this.  If adults are not supposed to have a social 
> life, how would one meet a potential mate?  The only men who asked me 
> to lunch were the ones I met when I was out of the house living my 
> life.  Unless a marriage is arranged by the parents, how else would a 
> person get married and have a family?
>
>> On Dec 10, 2013, at 8:14 PM, Desiree Oudinot 
>> <turtlepower17 at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>> Hi,
>> The reason I asked that particular question is because my parents 
>> seem to think that, once you become an adult, having a social life is 
>> unnecessary and counterproductive. I don't want to go too far into 
>> it, because I know that personal anecdotes are usually met with a lot 
>> of criticism on this listserv, so let's leave it at that.
>> Thanks for your response.
>>
>>> On 12/10/2013 7:47 PM, justin williams wrote:
>>> It's actually not juvenile to desire a social life; you deserve a 
>>> social life too.  That is a very normal thing and everyone performs 
>>> better in school and in life when they have one.  A church would 
>>> expect a certain level of involvement; probably attendance in Sunday
service.
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: blindtlk [mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of 
>>> Desiree Oudinot
>>> Sent: Tuesday, December 10, 2013 6:39 PM
>>> To: Blind Talk Mailing List
>>> Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Hiring a Driver
>>>
>>> Hi,
>>> I, too, live in a rural area of PA, so your message really resonated 
>>> with me. I have some questions and concerns that perhaps you can 
>>> shed some light on.
>>> I also don't get out of my house very often. There is no Paratransit 
>>> service. My family is either working or, let's just say, not being 
>>> supportive of me. If I wanted to go somewhere, I would have to call 
>>> a cab, and we all know how expensive that can be, particularly when 
>>> we're not just talking about riding down a few city blocks, but for 
>>> several miles to get to the grocery store or what have you.
>>> As for hiring a driver, I'll admit that I've never actually tried 
>>> it, but because of the fact that things aren't exactly close at 
>>> hand, I would think I would have to pay an arm and a leg to get any 
>>> kind of services.
>>> I disagree that taking a class at a community college is as easy as 
>>> you're making it sound. When I was considering taking that route, my 
>>> VR counselor told me flat out that transportation could not be 
>>> provided to and from the college because it was too far away. they 
>>> also wouldn't pay for the classes because you have to take at least 
>>> 12 credits in order for the state to fund it. Community college 
>>> courses may not be terribly expensive, but for folks like Michelle 
>>> and myself who live on SSI, providing our own transportation, plus 
>>> paying for the class would simply not be feasible.
>>> I also have to ask this, and I'm not trying to start an argument, so 
>>> please take it as a general query only. If I started calling around 
>>> to local churches, wouldn't I have to be a member of their 
>>> congregation before they would even think about providing rides? I 
>>> consider myself to be a non-denominational Christian. I believe, but 
>>> I do not want to be a part of an organized religion. I feel that I 
>>> am entitled to this opinion, and that just because I'm blind, I 
>>> shouldn't have to join an organization that I'll most likely be 
>>> uncomfortable with just to be able to go places. I feel that's 
>>> unfair both to myself and to the people who might provide 
>>> transportation. They would expect a certain level of faith and 
>>> involvement from me that I can't give, and I would expect them not 
>>> to badger me about it. Either way you slice it, it doesn't seem 
>>> right.
>>> It seems like it would cause a lot of strife and ill will.
>>> I could be wrong about this, but I wish there were other places one 
>>> could reach out to that didn't have that kind of burden attached to 
>>> it.
>>> Furthermore, how would payment be handled if you needed to travel a 
>>> long distance? For example, many of my friends live at least an hour 
>>> away. I haven't seen them in years. I wouldn't really expect someone 
>>> to drive that far just to fulfill such a personal need. If I did, I 
>>> would probably feel obligated to pay them as much money as a cab 
>>> company would charge to go such a long distance. It's one thing if I 
>>> need to go to the doctor or the store; things that adults do, in 
>>> other words. But I would feel highly uncomfortable with expecting 
>>> someone to chauffeur me for long distances just because I would like 
>>> a social life. Is that really as juvenile as I think it is?
>>> Again, I'm asking this in all seriousness, because I don't know.
>>>
>>>
>>>> On 12/9/2013 3:19 PM, Ericka Short wrote:
>>>> I usually refrain from taking sides but as a trained social worker 
>>>> I have to agree with Dave.  The rest of the world doesn't know you 
>>>> exist and they won't come to you so you have to make an effort.  I 
>>>> was raised in a town of just over 10,000 which was the county seat.  
>>>> There was no transit available at all.  You either waked, rode with  
>>>> family or a friend, neighbor etc. Call any faith-based 
>>>> organization, share your situation and they will help you.  Perhaps 
>>>> the county social services needs to hear your story so they can 
>>>> help.  I hope the fact you could be the instigator of change in you 
>>>> community for the better motivates you to look into things more.  
>>>> This is coming from someone so shy nobody  heard me speak in public
until I was in 7th grade.
>>>> College was very liberating and I dropped the shy person I was for 
>>>> the most part and found my voice.
>>>>
>>>> If it is a college class you want to take, contact the disability 
>>>> services program for ideas before signing up.  This is part of 
>>>> their job.  They are there to help with more than just get your 
>>>> books in a special format or help you find your way around. Contact 
>>>> the state services for the blind or office of the  blind. In WI the 
>>>> office for the blind works strictly with adults who are either not 
>>>> working or are in retirement and need help doing daily living 
>>>> tasks.  No matter what state, you are not alone Michelle. There are 
>>>> a lots of people in WI stuck in rural areas with nothing but 300 
>>>> residents, a bar, a church and perhaps a convenience store.  
>>>> Neighbors are miles away, not just down the street.  Just keep looking.
>>>>
>>>> Ericka J. Short
>>>> 262-697-0510
>>>>
>>>> "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me". 
>>>> Philippians
>>>> 4:13
>>>>
>>>> "No hand is too small or too big to do good in this world." EJ. 
>>>> Short
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> blindtlk mailing list
>>>> blindtlk at nfbnet.org
>>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blindtlk_nfbnet.org
>>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info 
>>>> for
>>>> blindtlk:
>>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blindtlk_nfbnet.org/turtlepower17
>>>> %40
>>>> gmail.com
>>>>
>>>> .
>>> --
>>> Desiree
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> blindtlk mailing list
>>> blindtlk at nfbnet.org
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blindtlk_nfbnet.org
>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info 
>>> for
>>> blindtlk:
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blindtlk_nfbnet.org/justin.william
>>> s2%40gma
>>> il.com
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> blindtlk mailing list
>>> blindtlk at nfbnet.org
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blindtlk_nfbnet.org
>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info 
>>> for
>>> blindtlk:
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blindtlk_nfbnet.org/turtlepower17%
>>> 40gmail.com
>>
>> --
>> Desiree
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> blindtlk mailing list
>> blindtlk at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blindtlk_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> blindtlk:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blindtlk_nfbnet.org/waterinmyroom%4
>> 0gmail.com
>
> _______________________________________________
> blindtlk mailing list
> blindtlk at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blindtlk_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> blindtlk:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blindtlk_nfbnet.org/arielle71%40gmai
> l.com
>

_______________________________________________
blindtlk mailing list
blindtlk at nfbnet.org
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blindtlk_nfbnet.org
To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
blindtlk:
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blindtlk_nfbnet.org/justin.williams2%40gma
il.com