Nobody knew that when Fizz retired in November 2021 that I would be without a guide dog for so long. However, at the end of April I got to meet a very handsome young man.
He is a full golden retriever and all being well, he will be my third guide dog.
His name ins Ben and he was not even born when Fizz retired. He is a very clever pup and as such is only just 18 months old.
We are off on class in early June.
watch this space for many ‘snap shot blogs’ of our training and new chapter together.
After filming with guide dogs about my eye condition project in 2021; which sadly didn’t go anywhere as such.
I was invited to help them further with this and become a cartoon.
The above video is the final edit and published on Guide Dogs Uk.
And here is the accessible audio described version for my readers who are visually impaired.
When Fizz retired in November 2021, I didn’t expect to facing the summer still being reliant on a cane.
But here we are heading into July and the bruises on my stomach and side from multiple cane jabs are beginning to take its toll.
I had previously increased my cane tip from a marshmallow (size and shape not texture!) to a ball. Which as the name suggests is like having a white tennis ball on the end of my cane. The larger tip meant that the jabs were fewer; but the larger the tip the less sensation and feedback.
To give an example of this, beside my house is an older crossing where the tactile paving is under a tree, so throughout the winter the leaves would cover the tactile paving and as such make it difficult to feel that I was approaching the crossing as the larger ball tip didn’t pick up the bumps beneath the leaves.
So, as I am about to head away for a break in Cornwall; I undecided an upgrade was on the cards. Through Facebook connections and groups I had seen a few friends using the ‘no jab cane’. It looked amazing.
So, what is a no jab cane? I hear you ask.
Its actually quite clever: it is where the handle and first section of the cane is hollow, with a spring inside, so that when the cane tip gets caught or jars on an object or cracked paving stone the cane has a shock absorber, that by going into the handle softens the blow and saves my stomach or sides from a blunt force jab.
Because I need as much feedback as possible from my cane I also ordered it with reverting back to the marshmallow tip.
It’s been amazing! The feedback from the smaller tip is much preferred and although there is the occasional jab; I certainly feel the shock absorber taking the force more often instead of me.
The handle on the cane is also much more comfortable; instead of being a black sponge like coating, it is a padded red leather with both a rounded edge and a flat edge to be more comfortable in my hand. As usual the cane also comes with a black elastic strap to secure around my wrist and to secure the cane when folded.
My cane still has the red and white reflectors, so is still my ‘candy cane’ … But a much appreciated upgrade.
Recently Open Sight hosted an afternoon tea in my town. This saw many people visiting from outside the area. I was asked to help give directions for those coming in on both the train and the bus; because they are at opposite ends of town in relation to the venue.
Fareham has a funny one-way system that was put in place to elongate the traffic entering the town.
It was when explaining this to the visitors that I realise I know a little too much about light controlled crossings, which I just assumed was ‘common knowledge’ to all.
So, thought it was time I shared some of my geeky knowledge with the rest of you
Firstly, many people assume that the button controls for pedestrian lights are always on the right hand side; that’s not actually the case. The button control is always on the side of the oncoming traffic; it is just that on an ordinary road this places it on the right hand side. However, when you are on a one-way street the button control may well be on the left to indicate the direction of traffic.
In Hampshire (thanks to Hampshire highways only using Siemens traffic lights) all button controlled lights also have a cone under the yellow box; this cone spins when the green man comes on to indicate it is safe for visually impaired and blind people to cross.
Not all button controlled traffic lights have a beep; this isn’t because the sound is broken rather it is another tactic to support those who are visually impaired or even hard of hearing. If there are multiple sets of button controlled lights close to each other then the sound will be removed from them all. Especially if different lights run on different sequences. This is to make it safer for pedestrians; to save someone stepping out in front of moving traffic because they mishear the beep from a near by button controlled crossing.
So, here it is just some of the more interesting parts of my ‘geek knowledge’ when it comes to traffic lights and pedestrian crossings.
And don’t even ask me to start to explain the different types and styles of tactile paving !!!
