[nabs-l] Serving Yourself Food

Beth thebluesisloose at gmail.com
Thu Nov 13 23:49:24 UTC 2008 

The reason the staff doesn't want to help at peak hours is because
there are less of them doing more work.  The manager e-mailed me today
when I sent him an e-mail.  I e-mailed the location manager saying
what was up, and he said why not sit down and let somene just bring it
to me.  Well, not a bad idea.  But I'll have to let him know if it
appens again.  Honestly, I'm more worried about obtaining my basic
needs right about now.  But I could get my own tray, but then I'd have
to carry it around all day.  But then there's this one lady who said
the staff isn't paid to serve a blind customer.  I mean, not in that
manner we're talking about.  I didn't appreciate the woman's comments
as much as I don't appreciate bad service or help forthousands of
dollars in a meal plan contract, even though Florida's Division of
Blind Services sponsors it.  It's still thousands of taxpayer dollars
going into MY meal plan.
Beth

On 11/13/08, Serena <serenacucco at verizon.net> wrote:
> Honestly, I don't see why the staff doesn't wanna help you.  I don't mean to
> say they owe you anything, but I even got help carrying my food in college.
> The trays they had there were simply too big for my really small hands.  I
> think some of the staff weren't too into the idea at first, but then, the
> managers got everybody on board.  I realize now, I could've bought my own
> tray before going to college, but I guess I felt orienting to campus and
> dealing with hiring and firing readers was more important than trying to
> deal with the cafeteria scene.
>
> Serena
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Beth" <thebluesisloose at gmail.com>
> To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list"
> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Thursday, November 13, 2008 7:43 AM
> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Serving Yourself Food
>
>
>> Good idea.  I'll have to go sometime, but how do I deal with the staff
>> problem now whle I don't have a tray?
>> Beth
>>
>> On 11/13/08, Ashley  Bramlett <bookwormahb at earthlink.net> wrote:
>>> Beth,
>>>
>>> If you want to shop at Walmart or somewhere paratransit is not a good
>>> idea
>>> since they can be unreliable keeping you waiting or come before your are
>>> finished shopping.
>>>
>>> I'd suggest getting a ride.  Much easier said than done.  I had that
>>> problem
>>> too.  But ask around.  Ask your hall mates.  Ask your roommate if she
>>> drives.  Any friendly faculty or staff?  Once or twice a nice nursing
>>> faculty member gave me a ride to the mall.  If you do get a ride offer to
>>> pay gas or something for it.
>>>
>>> Ashley
>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>> From: "Beth" <thebluesisloose at gmail.com>
>>> To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list"
>>> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
>>> Sent: Wednesday, November 12, 2008 10:34 PM
>>> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Serving Yourself Food
>>>
>>>
>>>> Good idea.  However, I have a problem with the paratransit bus
>>>> service.  Since I live in a dorm, I can't necessarily designate a
>>>> place for the paratransit driver to pick me up.  Worse, I have to wait
>>>> an hour more than necessary for them to pick me back up.  Hence, my
>>>> friend and I have nicknamed it "dial-a-wait."
>>>> Beth
>>>>
>>>> On 11/12/08, Linda Stover <liamskitten at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>> Beth,
>>>>>
>>>>> What about paratransite?  I have a friend who schedules them to take
>>>>> him to a particular place, and then pick him up in their next window
>>>>> of opportunity.
>>>>> Courtney
>>>>>
>>>>> On 11/12/08, Beth <thebluesisloose at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>> Good thinking, Heather.  Trick is to get someone with a car to bring
>>>>>> me down there.
>>>>>> Beth
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On 11/12/08, H. Field <missheather at comcast.net> wrote:
>>>>>>> Hi Beth,
>>>>>>> Take your own tray to the dining hall with you.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Places like Walmart have a huge array of tray choices, many of them
>>>>>>> value for money. Spend half an hour choosing the inexpensive tray
>>>>>>> that
>>>>>>> would most fit your needs. Then, simply take your own tray with you
>>>>>>> to
>>>>>>> all of your meals in the dining-hall. This will improve your ability
>>>>>>> to be independent and will lessen the ability of others to impact
>>>>>>> your
>>>>>>> day.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Regards,
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Heather Field
>>>>>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>>>>>> From: "Beth" <thebluesisloose at gmail.com>
>>>>>>> To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list"
>>>>>>> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
>>>>>>> Sent: Wednesday, November 12, 2008 4:02 PM
>>>>>>> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Serving Yourself Food
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Thank God I found this e-mail, Arielle.  I'm having a huge problem
>>>>>>> with staff at my dining hall who are not willing to help me get my
>>>>>>> food or serve myself.  Since I have to hold a cane in my right hand
>>>>>>> and since they don't have trays and since the stations are mre than
>>>>>>> one and helter-skelter and since nobody taught me how to maneuver
>>>>>>> around that big cafeteria, I'm blown away by how rude the staff has
>>>>>>> behaved lately.  During peak hours, I'd walk in and say that I needed
>>>>>>> some help, and nobody helps out.  Their excuse?  Short staff.  I
>>>>>>> spoke
>>>>>>> to a few people on the matter, and since the cafeteria people aren't
>>>>>>> willing to help, they say I should talk to a manager about this.  I
>>>>>>> wish I could see now so that I could serve myself and not have to
>>>>>>> hold
>>>>>>> a cane in my right hand and not have to be so precise with holding
>>>>>>> stand-alone bowls and stuff.
>>>>>>> Beth
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On 11/12/08, Arielle Silverman <arielle71 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>>>> Hi all,
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> With serving food as a blind person there are two issues. The  first
>>>>>>>> is knowing what you're dishing out without seeing it, and the second
>>>>>>>> is properly maneuvering the food with the utensils from the serving
>>>>>>>> container to your  plate and ensuring that you are dishing up an
>>>>>>>> appropriate  amount.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> To resolve the first issue, since touching is not really an option,
>>>>>>>> the best thing is to get information--either from people ahead of
>>>>>>>> you
>>>>>>>> in the buffet line  or  from whomever is serving the food/setting up
>>>>>>>> the buffet. Obviously once you've learned the  order of the buffet
>>>>>>>> once,  it'll be easier to go back and serve  oneself independently
>>>>>>>> the
>>>>>>>>  second time  around. When serving "family-style"  and passing
>>>>>>>> dishes
>>>>>>>> around the table,  this problem is virtually nonexistent since it's
>>>>>>>> easy to find  out  what someone has passed  you before serving
>>>>>>>> yourself from it.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> The second issue, though, is one that does take practice to overcome
>>>>>>>> especially for those of us who  were not expected to serve ourselves
>>>>>>>> growing  up. I wasn't really expected to do it at all until I was a
>>>>>>>> teenager, which  caused  me to struggle a bit with the mechanics of
>>>>>>>> maneuvering  the food and  gauging the portion size. I improved at
>>>>>>>> this  a lot when I was in training at  the Louisiana  Center where
>>>>>>>> we
>>>>>>>> had to serve ourselves in a buffet line (with sleepshades  on)
>>>>>>>> whenever someone prepared their final cooking project (a meal for
>>>>>>>> forty). Like others  have said, operating the utensils correctly
>>>>>>>> does
>>>>>>>> take practice and trial and error. A training center is a great
>>>>>>>> place
>>>>>>>> to develop this skill because everyone else is practicing, too, and
>>>>>>>> so
>>>>>>>> there's  not  as much pressure to do it exactly right or move
>>>>>>>> quickly
>>>>>>>> through the line. You can also  practice by  cooking yourself
>>>>>>>> something and transferring some of it from one  container to
>>>>>>>> another
>>>>>>>> (even if  it's just Ramen or  Easy Mac).
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> To gauge portion sizes  I've used two techniques.  One is  to feel
>>>>>>>> how
>>>>>>>> much weight I've added to  my  plate  or  bowl and how the weight is
>>>>>>>> distributed. The other,  if it's  hot or steaming food that  I'm
>>>>>>>> serving, is to hold my hand a little above the  plate/bowl and  feel
>>>>>>>> how much heat is rising from the food  and how far  it is spreading.
>>>>>>>> If I don't have enough food, there won't be much heat and it'll be
>>>>>>>> confined to one little spot instead of spreading across a wide area.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> One more thing that hasn't come  up yet is the  proper way to serve
>>>>>>>> soup, stew, etc. with a ladel. I used to have the toughest time with
>>>>>>>> this  until I went to the center and figured  out what my problem
>>>>>>>> was.
>>>>>>>> Because ladels have a sharp curve in the middle, when I was holding
>>>>>>>> the  handle straight, the bowl part of the ladel was actually
>>>>>>>> tipped
>>>>>>>> and I was spilling stuff before I could get it in the bowl. I had to
>>>>>>>> figure out how to angle the handle (so it felt crooked) but the bowl
>>>>>>>> was actually facing straight up. I think other  blind  people have
>>>>>>>> been fooled by this deceptive handle as well which is why I bring it
>>>>>>>> up. You can practice this by playing  with an  empty ladel (like
>>>>>>>> while
>>>>>>>> you are doing dishes) and hold  the bowl in your non-dominant hand
>>>>>>>> while  you  angle the handle with your dominant one. Bend the handle
>>>>>>>> until you can feel that the  bowl is  facing straight up (even
>>>>>>>> though
>>>>>>>> the handle will feel crooked) and then try to remember the angle
>>>>>>>> when
>>>>>>>> you are serving things with the ladel.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> HTH,
>>>>>>>> Arielle
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> On 11/12/08, Serena <serenacucco at verizon.net> wrote:
>>>>>>>>> I pretty much use the same type of bowl, what we Italians call a
>>>>>>>>> maccaroni
>>>>>>>>> bowl, so i usually just put as much maccaroni in there as will fit.
>>>>>>>>> I
>>>>>>>>> love
>>>>>>>>> to eat! lol  Meat is trickier, but I usually have only one piece of
>>>>>>>>> that,
>>>>>>>>> anyhow.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>>>>>>>> From: "Harry Hogue" <harryhogue at yahoo.com>
>>>>>>>>> To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list"
>>>>>>>>> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
>>>>>>>>> Sent: Monday, November 10, 2008 9:53 PM
>>>>>>>>> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Serving Yourself Food
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Serena, this may sound like a slightly silly question, but do you
>>>>>>>>> learn
>>>>>>>>> what
>>>>>>>>> an appropriate portion size is by weight, etc, or by how many
>>>>>>>>> ladle-fulls,
>>>>>>>>> spoon-fulls, etc? I have never really wanted to do that because I
>>>>>>>>> didn't
>>>>>>>>> want to slowly anybody down or look awkward, etc. But I agree it is
>>>>>>>>> important...
>>>>>>>>> Harry
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> --- On Sun, 11/9/08, Serena <serenacucco at verizon.net> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> From: Serena <serenacucco at verizon.net>
>>>>>>>>> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Serving Yourself Food
>>>>>>>>> To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list"
>>>>>>>>> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
>>>>>>>>> Date: Sunday, November 9, 2008, 6:47 PM
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Hi Harry
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> I always serve my own food at home with immidate family.  I think
>>>>>>>>> it's
>>>>>>>>> important to learn that skill.  At family gatherings and on buffet
>>>>>>>>> lines,
>>>>>>>>> however, others do it for me cause we're all having pretty much the
>>>>>>>>> same
>>>>>>>>> things.  Even at State Convention this weekend, there was a survor
>>>>>>>>> serving
>>>>>>>>> the
>>>>>>>>> breakfast buffet to everyone.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Harry Hogue"
>>>>>>>>> <harryhogue at yahoo.com>
>>>>>>>>> To: <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
>>>>>>>>> Sent: Sunday, November 09, 2008 5:39 PM
>>>>>>>>> Subject: [nabs-l] Serving Yourself Food
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Hello everyone,
>>>>>>>>> With the holidays coming up, here's an interesting point for
>>>>>>>>> discussion.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> At family gatherings, or perhaps even at home with immediate
>>>>>>>>> family, do
>>>>>>>>> you
>>>>>>>>> serve your own plate or do you have someone else serve the plate
>>>>>>>>> for you?
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> As for me, I have always had someone else always serve my plate at
>>>>>>>>> family
>>>>>>>>> gatherings and at home with my family, for that matter, simply
>>>>>>>>> because it
>>>>>>>>> is
>>>>>>>>> quicker and there is less risk of spilling, etc. I am, however,
>>>>>>>>> reminded
>>>>>>>>> of
>>>>>>>>> the
>>>>>>>>> importance of being comfortable with this task by my Costa Rica
>>>>>>>>> experience.
>>>>>>>>> My
>>>>>>>>> host mother told me what was where and even made sure I knew where
>>>>>>>>> the
>>>>>>>>> serving
>>>>>>>>> spoon was--but I was not comfortable at 20 years old to serve my
>>>>>>>>> own plate
>>>>>>>>> and
>>>>>>>>> had to ask her to serve the plate for me. This, then, set up a
>>>>>>>>> precedent
>>>>>>>>> that as
>>>>>>>>> a blind person I needed help with getting food.
>>>>>>>>> 'm interested in hearing ohter thoughts. And if we serve ourselves
>>>>>>>>> at
>>>>>>>>> home/at family gatherings, I then have to ask what is so diferent
>>>>>>>>> about
>>>>>>>>> buffets,
>>>>>>>>> especially if you're with someone else and they're getting rice,
>>>>>>>>> chicken, potatoes, etc. and it's likely you would want some of the
>>>>>>>>> same
>>>>>>>>> things.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Just some thoughts to consider.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Harry
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> _______________________________________________
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>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
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