Accessible - Tumblr Posts
I really really wish New York City was more accessible
I’m currently in NYC and because of the repurposing of buildings rather than building new ones in many parts of the city they end up being inaccessible.
I understand wanting to save and repurpose buildings rather than tearing them down and rebuilding but there has to be a better way to repurpose that can include being accessible.
Yesterday I went to a CVS that was in an old bank building and guess what no automatic doors and the only way in was a flight of stairs.
Today I went to the Chelsea market and sure getting in was fine enough except the lack of automatic doors and cobbled crosswalks/streets (my enemy) outside but even inside the floor is so bumpy and uneven that I constantly feel like I’m going to fall and have to be hyper aware of where I’m putting my feet and cane.
There has to be a way we can do better as a society and as people.
Also the amount of doors people have let shut in my face when they see me coming on my crutches is ridiculous when they were just holding it open for someone else like sure I can do it and I will but it would be nice if you’d at least keep it open long enough for me to grab it with my foot or crutch or something
On the good side though I have seen a ton of wheelchair accessible taxis and that makes me really really happy. I’ve seen more of those than of regular taxis actually.
Edit: in the comments on this post I have been let know that the taxis that I mentioned are not in fact as accessible as they appear and are rather unsafe for those who are in wheel chairs so I guess that’s just one more shit thing. Go look at the comments to find more explanation/lived experience with this
At LGA (LaGuardia airport) and sure it sucks being on crutches in such a huge airport (or any airport really) BUT they let me go through the priority lane which was super nice.
Also saw some sunflower signs regarding invisible disability which was cool too
Why the fuck does this dmv not have chairs (i know some dmvs do but in my experience they only gave them to seniors and people with children and those with visible disabilities and I don’t bring my mobility aids cause I’m worried probably for no reason of being some kind of denied or poorly treated or something idk ). I have been standing for an hour and I am in pain but I know if I sit on the ground I probably won’t be able to get up. gahhhh. also the accessible entrance is literally so far from the main entrance like wtf. Also also it’s hot in here cause if so many goddamn people
Why are spaces that are meant to accommodate so many different types of people so damn inaccessible
Long ass post incoming:
Okay so generally speaking my university’s campus is relatively accessible on first glance and new buildings are in theory ADA compliant and they’re working on the older buildings which is more than can be said for a lot of campuses or even places in general. A lot (but not all) of the professors are respectful of accommodations and do their best to accommodate all students as best as they can however there is still a lot they could do but either don’t know they can or outright refuse to do.
However, it is still very inaccessible!
Elevators frequently break and can take days or weeks to be fixed they’re also really annoying and often hard to find because they’re not labeled very well not to mention they’re slow as fuck, ramps are slightly too steep (super hilly campus too), shuttles are available but frequently run late or are excessively full and only run to a certain time so if you need to get somewhere on our giant campus past a certain time you’re fucked, sure there’s mobility services you can access but you need to schedule pickups ahead of time so you can’t really do anything spontaneously and there’s not many of them so if you need it the same time as someone else you’re fucked, so many doors that are supposedly automatic are broken, a building may have an automatic entrance but if you need to get into a classroom or lecture hall the doors are wickedly heavy, some lecture halls have auto doors at the top of the hall but not at the bottom where someone with a wheelchair could actually get into the room, and that’s just to name some of the accommodations for physical mobility impacting disabilities.
When it comes to other disabilities the campus and specifically lectures can be inaccessible too. For example some professors refuse to use their microphones in large lecture halls because they feel their voice is “loud enough” but that makes it even harder for students who have hearing impairments or auditory processing issues, often times professors use many colors on their lecture slideshows and that can make it difficult for students with colorblind ness or students with other visual impairments or for students with visual processing problems, when COVID-19 was still deemed to be a thing worth worrying about lectures were “podcasted” or recorded in classroom or on zoom so that they could be accessed remotely but now many professors refuse to record their lectures because they cannot be bothered to just push a simple button which leaves students who can’t safely come to campus unable to access their education or students who are sick without that same access and students who even if they can make it to lecture cannot process everything in it for a whole lot of other reasons unable to access their education the ability to do this when Covid was still of public concern (1) just shows that we can still do it and honestly still should(2), additionally many lecture halls are full of distractions and noises and so much else that make them inaccessible to people with cognitive/mental disabilities and mental illnesses, and that’s not just the case lecture halls but also in dining halls and gyms and even just outside can be extremely overwhelming and overstimulating for many many people.
(1) which mind you it still should be we are still suffering as a society from a virus that is incredibly deadly and saying that it only kills those with underlying conditions and what not is ableist as fuck
(2)For example we don’t really turn in printed out copies of essays or assignments for hand grading anymore we turn them in online because that’s easier and with technology the way classes are run has changed so why hasn’t it changed with COVID??
In general I am thankful that the campus is relatively “accessible” but it still needs hella work. Sure not everyone can be accommodated completely by an institution or even by other people but there certainly are things that are very easy changes that can be made and there is stuff that we can do to accommodate ourselves and we cannot put the burden of accommodation solely on others we know ourselves the best and thus can figure out what accommodations we need from ourselves and others.
Overall the world is super inaccessible and we NEED to do better than we are doing now both abled and disabled people alike need to work together to make everything a better more accessible for as many people as possible
TL:DR
University campuses are super inaccessible to all disabilities and there is so much that needs to change and that can easily be done and it’s absurd that we aren’t doing it. Colleges and universities and professors and even students need to do better so that everyone can feel welcome and accommodated and safe to learn
Fountain Landscape in Miami An example of a small contemporary partial sun courtyard stone water fountain landscape.
(“peach time” voice) …fall time
[ID: an image of a wooded location with an early fall setting. Très horny boys are gathered around a map and dressed appropriately for the cooling weather. Magnus is sitting on a log, Merle perched behind him, and taako standing next to him on the opposite side. Taako and Merle are pointing at the map, the former looking confused or even questioning towards where Merle is pointing. Magnus is holding onto a leash that carefully holds steven on the other end, whose ball is being approached by a squirrel with an acorn in offering. railsplitter rests against the log magnus is sitting on, decorated in charms given to him by taako. Merle and the umbrastaff, which is propped up against a tree in the midground, also have similar charms. All three of them are illuminated by a gentle light from the sparks of magic from taako’s hand to make reading the map easier.
Merle is a fat older dwarf with medium complexion and greyish hair tied back in a bun. His beard is long and braided loosely, laying over magnus’ shoulder. He is wearing a trenchcoat, pants, and cranberry velvet shoes. Magnus sports a more lumberjack look, in a deep red flannel, patched dark wash jeans, and steel toed boots. His complexion is light and his hair is a light auburn with streaks of grey. Taako is a thin elf with a tail, a medium complexion, and dark shoulder length hair that ombres to a vivid orange. He is covered in freckles and dons a hat that doubles as a cornucopia. He is wearing an oversized plum scarf, an oversized sweater in a rustic orange, a striped scarf/sarong on his waist, leggings, leg warmers, and white boots. His tail also has a bow and the fur at the end of it is braided. End id]
Goddess of Fate
I’ve been gone a bit, thought i’d try drawing someone i haven’t before
[Image description: A collection of multiple events drawn on one page. First one of Duck newton stuck in a tree with a bald cat atop his head, with Minerva shouting from the root of the tree “Duck, what the f*ck.” The second image is a short three panel comic. In the first panel Minerva, with a cat stock to her arm by it’s teeth, says “Duck, your animal companion’s bites are pathetic.” In the second panel we see Duck Newton reading a newspaper, and he says to Minerva “That’s because she’s playing. It means she likes you.” And in the final panel we see Minerva looking surprised, with hearts in her eyes. The final image of the page is Aubrey, Duck and Ned hugging Billy the goatman defensively, as Minerva looks at the whole group while clearly baffled.]
Local dorks doing their thing
I like to add visual effects to my writing, but I know that some details can be difficult for people with disabilities like dyslexia or visual impairment. I want to keep my blog accessible to everyone, so I was wondering; how does glitchy text like T̵͇́h̵̤̏i̷̭͘s̴̠̔ (this) work with a screen reader? If it interferes too much, I want to find a work around, but I'm not opposed to not using them at all if need be.
Sometimes accessibility is using an electric toothbrush
One of the best things I did for my chronic pain and ADHD was buy an electric toothbrush with a timer and an app.
This is gonna sound nuts but hear me out.
I've been repeatedly cracking jokes to my dentist, physio and therapist that that my life would be so much easier if I didn't have to stand up for two minutes while brushing twice a day (and end up skipping it because my body hurts too much - followed by getting anxious about not brushing), and my therapist had a stroke of genius (I wish I'd thought of this) and said "well, why don't you try an electric toothbrush?"
I have a crippling fear of the dentist (something about having vampire fangs and various impactions from 9-14 years, braces for 4 years, having eight might be more teeth pulled and ongoing jaw pain from early teens will do that to a bitch - also seriously? does anyone like the dentist? shout out if you do but I cannot relate) and he knows that I get overly anxious and obsessive about brushing my teeth well to avoid the dentist and fillings as much as possible. So, I listened and used my disability funding. It took a lot of back and forth to justify spending that much on a toothbrush, and I wouldn't had I not had the funding
But wowow, has it changed sm. It's easier to sit down to brush my teeth when I'm not having to put so much effort into it and my teeth feel cleaner. I'm doing a better job for the same amount of time and effort - anyone with chronic pain and fatigue understands how precious those things are... and the best bit? The app it turns the whole fiasco into a game (as long as sending notifications to remind to replace my toothbrush head and to brush). I look forward to cleaning my teeth to see if I can do better than I did yesterday. It's insane that something so simple as having a "brushing score" can hack the ADHD braincell into wanting to do it.
I dissed the app so much "why does a toothbrush ever need to be Bluetooth" I said, and now I laugh and smile to myself knowing it seriously helps.
...plus, my teeth got whiter? maybe that's the consistency from wanting to, or maybe it's the brushing, or some combination there of, but I'm not complaining!
I'm using the same amount of time and less effort, and getting a better outcome.
Sometimes accessibility doesn't look like ramps and mobility aids (though that's SO important too!), sometimes it's making things easier by finding routes that streamline your everyday routine, and being kind to yourself and allowing yourself the grace to let change, remembering that yesterday or last year's 100% may not be today's :)
Love you all 💕