[nabs-l] problem with college cafe

Fri Sep 20 17:47:29 UTC 2013

In high school, I use to buy my lunch and so whenever I came out of
the cafeteria line the tables were like 10 feet in front of me and so
I would just sit there. I usually was able to get in line early enough
that their was not much of a crowd in the lunch room by the time I was
sitting down.
Luckily, in college I go to a community college so I am able to bring
my lunch to school so all I am doing is walking into the café from my
last class.
Sincerely,
Nathan

On 9/20/13, Wasif, Zunaira <Zunaira.Wasif at dbs.fldoe.org> wrote:
> Just wondering how you have handled this type of situation in the past, in
> high school for example?
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nabs-l [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Nathan Clark
> Sent: Friday, September 20, 2013 12:40 PM
> To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] problem with college cafe
>
> Dear Jamie,
> I really like your idea Jamie about reorganizing the tables to make a more
> clear path and I will suggest this to my school when I meet with them on
> Tuesday.
> Sincerely,
> Nathan
>
> On 9/20/13, Kirt <kirt.crazydude at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Karlee,
>> I think having a friend help is fine. hell, I do the very same thing
>> you are suggesting every now and again. Still, and I say this from
>> personal experience, I found the putting myself in situations where
>> I'm forced to rely on other people, and keep in mind that I making the
>> distinction between being forced and choosing to do it of your own
>> free will every now and again, is inconvenient, inefficient and
>> counterproductive. I used to always get around the way you are
>> suggesting. And it worked probably about 80% of the time just fine.
>> However, those times my friends were sick, or busy with other things,
>> or went somewhere else for the day, or those times when I just wanted
>> privacy and my own personal space and couldn't have it because I needed to
>> rely on other people were absolutely unbearable for me.
>>
>> Sent from my iPhone
>>
>>> On Sep 20, 2013, at 6:34 AM, Carly Mihalakis <carlymih at comcast.net>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>> Good morning, Nathan,
>>>
>>>        Find yourself a hot chick, maybe and grab her arm or shoulder.
>>> Get help! No man is an island...
>>> for today, CarAt 11:39 PM 9/19/2013, Kaiti Shelton wrote:
>>>> Hi,
>>>>
>>>> I don't know your entire situation, but here are a few suggestions.
>>>> I agree with the views expressed by Kirt, Arielle, Justin, and others.
>>>> I also like the idea of making the cafeteria more accessible to all,
>>>> but realistically if the school has too many tables in a room that
>>>> is really not big enough for them and extra space, it might not be
>>>> possible.
>>>> Getting your food in a bag or to-go box does wonders.  I do this all
>>>> the time and it makes everything a lot easier for me.  Or, since you
>>>> bring your lunch to school, you can skip the cafe if you really
>>>> don't like dealing with it that day.  If you usually get a drink
>>>> from the cafe before sitting down to eat, try bringing something
>>>> from home along with your food.  Or, there is nothing wrong with
>>>> eating outside in a courtyard or at a table in an academic building;
>>>> other students do it all the time.
>>>> If you really want to eat in the cafe though, I would suggest a few
>>>> things if you have not done so already.  Check that you're confident
>>>> in using your cane skills, as that can be a huge factor in this.  If
>>>> you can find an aisle that is more open than others to get from
>>>> point A to point B, figure out a route that works for you.  This
>>>> might require practice on your own time, but can be worth it.  I
>>>> would also try asking cafe staff if they could recommend a way for
>>>> you to go that might get you through the cafeteria a little more
>>>> efficiently than the way you're using now.  .
>>>> As was said, I don't think that this is going to change.  I don't
>>>> really see what security can do, and also think that web
>>>> accessibility and other matters that can't easily be remedied by
>>>> individual students are of more importance to faculty.  Yes, left
>>>> out chairs is a hassle and it is a tripping hazard, but it is that
>>>> way for all students, not just those who are blind.  They have to
>>>> push in the chairs to clear a path too, so the best thing you can do
>>>> is figure out a way to work through it to show that you are just as
>>>> capable a navigator as a sighted student.
>>>>
>>>> On 9/19/13, Arielle Silverman <arielle71 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>> > Hi Nathan and all,
>>>> >
>>>> > I think there's something to say for only getting your disability
>>>> > office involved in matters that are serious and those that
>>>> > directly involve blindness. We all agree that chairs being left
>>>> > out are a nuisance, and they make orientation a little tougher,
>>>> > but they don't pose a safety hazard to blind folks who are using
>>>> > canes or dogs. I don't think the problem is serious enough to involve
>>>> > campus security.
>>>> > Jamie's redesign idea does sound nice for people with all kinds of
>>>> > disabilities, but I don't think the issue is as important as those
>>>> > involving campus website accessibility, for example.
>>>> > Nathan, I think you are a cane user, but if you're not I would
>>>> > encourage you to use a cane at least while you are in the café. It
>>>> > might help to get a little orientation through the café and, in
>>>> > particular, pay attention to sound cues that will help you find
>>>> > your way to the room you're trying to find even if the messy
>>>> > chairs cause you to lose your bearings.
>>>> >
>>>> > Best,
>>>> > Arielle
>>>> >
>>>> > On 9/19/13, minh ha <minh.ha927 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>> >> Nathan,
>>>> >>
>>>> >> There's a big difference between educating the sighted public
>>>> >> about what we need as blind individuals and changing bad habits.
>>>> >> Yes, you can talk to your DS office and security and have them
>>>> >> post reminders, but I would be willing to bet that the issue of
>>>> >> chairs sticking out in your way is not going to be resolved any
>>>> >> time soon. I have a guide dog now so she just takes me around the
>>>> >> chairs or stop so I can nudge the chair out of our path, but when
>>>> >> I was using a cane, all I had to do was nudge the chair in a
>>>> >> little bit and I would have room to go on my merry way. You could
>>>> >> try this simple solution to see if it fixes your problem before
>>>> >> tackling other people's lack of courtesy. I also want to remind
>>>> >> you that you're not going to have a DS office or a chief of
>>>> >> security that you could run to in the real world when people don't
>>>> >> have chairs pushed in.
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Cheers,
>>>> >> Minh
>>>> >>
>>>> >>
>>>> >> On 9/19/13, Nathan Clark <troubleclark at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>> >>> Dear Tyler,
>>>> >>> As blind people don't we want to educate others around us about
>>>> >>> what we need and makes us the most successful and independent? I
>>>> >>> don't want to rely on a sighted person who walks with me and
>>>> >>> pushes chairs for me for obvious reasons that we all know about.
>>>> >>> I understand where you are coming from and I respect your
>>>> >>> opinion.
>>>> >>> Sincerely,
>>>> >>> Nathan Clark
>>>> >>>
>>>> >>> On 9/19/13, Nathan Clark <troubleclark at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>> >>>> Dear Tyler,
>>>> >>>> My school's café is not exactly layid out in a way where you
>>>> >>>> can travel around the outside by the walls and find the opening
>>>> >>>> to the door. Our café has tables that are both pushed up
>>>> >>>> against the wall and in the middle of the café so it isn't
>>>> >>>> exactly a easy navigation like you thought it was.
>>>> >>>>
>>>> >>>> Sincerely,
>>>> >>>> Nathan
>>>> >>>>
>>>> >>>> On 9/19/13, Littlefield, Tyler <tyler at tysdomain.com> wrote:
>>>> >>>>> first, I'm not really sure what chairs being stuck out has to
>>>> >>>>> do with security.
>>>> >>>>> Second, I really do think there are much bigger battles to
>>>> >>>>> deal with.
>>>> >>>>> You could get some person that has to push in chairs after
>>>> >>>>> everyone so you have clear paths, but I've never seen clear
>>>> >>>>> paths through any cafe regardless where the chairs are. My
>>>> >>>>> suggestion is to use your cane, find each individual chair and
>>>> >>>>> push it toward the table with your foot.
>>>> >>>>> I
>>>> >>>>> just balance my tray on one arm and use my cane with the other
>>>> >>>>> hand and it works out pretty well.
>>>> >>>>> You may also be able to walk around the walls of the cafe
>>>> >>>>> (depending on the layout) to get to the room you want to go
>>>> >>>>> to.
>>>> >>>>>
>>>> >>>>> On 9/19/2013 1:16 PM, Nathan Clark wrote:
>>>> >>>>>> Dear Nabs,
>>>> >>>>>> My name is Nathan Clark and I am one of the quieter people on
>>>> >>>>>> this list but I have a situation that I have at my community
>>>> >>>>>> college where I would like to have some opinions fro you all.
>>>> >>>>>> about.
>>>> >>>>>>
>>>> >>>>>> Today as I was walking into my school's café I discovered
>>>> >>>>>> that almost every table that I came upon had chairs that were
>>>> >>>>>> sticking ot where people had been sitting in and forgot to
>>>> >>>>>> push their chairs in. My school had a room off the café where
>>>> >>>>>> students can eat their lunch in a more quieter environment
>>>> >>>>>> which is where I usually eat my lunch and that is where I
>>>> >>>>>> wanted to eat today. However, after struggling with
>>>> >>>>>> navigating through the chairs that were not pushed in I just
>>>> >>>>>> gave up and sat a different bale and had my lunch. After
>>>> >>>>>> eating, I went to my school's Secutrity department and
>>>> >>>>>> expressed my concerns with them.
>>>> >>>>>> The
>>>> >>>>>> lady who I talked to is named Sharon and she is not a
>>>> >>>>>> security guard but the secretary for the department. She
>>>> >>>>>> knows me very well and she knows from previous semesters that
>>>> >>>>>> I have encountered this problem before with the café. She
>>>> >>>>>> helped me schedule an appointment with the Assistant Chieef
>>>> >>>>>> of Security on Tuesday.
>>>> >>>>>>
>>>> >>>>>> My question for you all is should I have scheduled the
>>>> >>>>>> meeting or just dropped the problem. What could be some
>>>> >>>>>> solutions that I could bring up to my meeting with the
>>>> >>>>>> Assistant Chief for Tuesday? If you were wondering I forgot
>>>> >>>>>> to say that I talked to my DSS office and they said that they
>>>> >>>>>> would work with the Secutiry department to solve this
>>>> >>>>>> problem.
>>>> >>>>>>
>>>> >>>>>> I would like to hear what people have to say and wondering if
>>>> >>>>>> this has happened to other people on the list?
>>>> >>>>>> Sincerely,
>>>> >>>>>> Nathan Clark
>>>> >>>>>>
>>>> >>>>>> _______________________________________________
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>>>> >>>>>> ysdomain.com
>>>> >>>>>
>>>> >>>>>
>>>> >>>>> --
>>>> >>>>> Take care,
>>>> >>>>> Ty
>>>> >>>>> http://tds-solutions.net
>>>> >>>>> He that will not reason is a bigot; he that cannot reason is a
>>>> >>>>> fool; he that dares not reason is a slave.
>>>> >>>>>
>>>> >>>>>
>>>> >>>>> _______________________________________________
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>>>> >>>>>
>>>> >>>>
>>>> >>>
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>>>> >>
>>>> >>
>>>> >> --
>>>> >> "All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the
>>>> >> dusty recesses of their minds, wake in the day to find that it was
>>>> >> vanity:
>>>> >> but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act
>>>> >> on their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible." T. E.
>>>> >> Lawrence
>>>> >>
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>>>> >>
>>>> >
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>>>>
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Kaiti
>>>>
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