How I Felt There are many misconceptions about blindness and blind people with which I’ve been successfully coping for over three decades. I’m often told, “We’re going to <fill in the blank> for your own good.” When flying the things with which the blank can be filled in range from “Move you to the bulkhead…
An Open Letter to American Airlines: I’ve always enjoyed adventure and new experiences and have, thus, flown many times with my five Seeing Eye dogs. Over more than thirty years I’ve developed a system that works quite well in terms of ensuring both I and my dog are safe, comfortable, and out of the way…
Sounds strange, doesn’t it? But it’s true. My blindness was unexpected and I lost all of it at once. And, if I had to do it all over again, I’d opt for becoming blind exactly the same way. All that was over thirty years ago. So why am I bringing it up now? Regardless…
My life with blindness began in my mid-twenties. I had to learn how to do almost everything all over again. I had great teachers. Less than a year after I became blind my orientation and mobility, O&M, instructor suggested I work as a volunteer. His day job was with the Southeastern Blind Rehab Center, SBRC,…
I start a new email message. I agonize over the addressees. Should I include my boss? Should the lead developer and the contractual developer both receive it? Come to think of it am I even supposed to communicate directly with a contractor? Subject field. Thinking carefully I make several typos just getting a five word…
I rested my left hand on the trolley which, in turn, rested on the steel cable above my head. Making sure the thick leather padding in the glove of my right hand was straight; I rested it on top of my left hand. At George’s say so, I let my weight rest…
Lights, camera, action! My part on a Stephen King film Sue Wiygul Martin It’s a month into the filming of the movie The Langoliers. Today, we’re filming in the baggage claim area of the Bangor International Airport. I quietly encourage my Seeing Eye dog, Quoddy, to move forward to the place where the activity seems…
When we go hiking, we usually get away from it all. In this recording, done as we descended Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park, we encountered a whole bunch of chatty folks! Since it takes us more time to negotiate these rough places we always let other hikers past so that we can take our…
In March, the guide dog affiliate of the American Council of the Blind, asked me to speak at their convention in Columbus, Ohio on July 9th. They wanted to hear about my life and my book. How cool was this? As soon as I realized that my hobby of writing might actually produce a book,…
Today’s post is a guest blog post on Beth Finke’s Safe and Sound blog. Beth had the winning bid on a JAWS training package that I placed in The Seeing Eye fund raising auction earlier this year. It’s been wonderful working with Beth. I’ve really enjoyed our lessons together. Thanks, Beth, both for the opportunity…