Special Exposure Wednesday and Contest

Have you ever been taking a lot of digital pictures and get shots that were unexpected? That happened during the Orioles/Nationals game to Chip. He was taking pictures of Ronnie's favorite player, Number 44 Adam Dunn, and because of the momentary delay on the camera, got the picture below. It has been the source of endless paroxysms of roll-on-the-floor laughing. Just think how boring the world would be without teenage boys!

Now, here's the contest part. The person who comes up with the best caption for this picture will win a $25 Target gift card! Submit your captions via comments no later than next Wednesday. My raucous teenage sons and I will pick the winner!



Be sure to check out all the other Special Exposure Wednesday shots at 5 Minutes For Special Needs!

Baltimore - Day 1

When we set off for Baltimore last week, I was curious to see what our travel experience was going to be like. Though we have traveled with Ashley and her wheelchair in the past, Ashley is capable of walking short distances. If we couldn’t find a curb cut, it wasn’t a big deal – Ashley could just stand up, step down the curb and then get back in her chair. But with Ronnie, there is no standing – it’s the chair all the time.

The first area we visited was Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. The boys had their hearts set on having lunch at ESPN Zone, so you can imagine the disappointment when we arrived and discovered the restaurant was no longer there. We settled for Hard Rock Café.

The Hard Rock Café had little to offer a deaf teenager, but I think Ronnie was quite happy when he realized I was going to let him order an ice cream sundae for lunch! We finished lunch – I took the requisite tourist picture – and we headed out to the Inner Harbor.



The line at the aquarium was much too long to wait in considering the temperature was pushing 100 degrees, so we explored some shops and watched some high school dancers in the plaza. Locating the handicapped entrances to the buildings was a bit of a challenge, but once inside, we were always able to find an elevator.

We were even able to find Ronnie a pair of Converse shoes to use as pool shoes. Since he has no feeling in his legs, it’s very important to protect his feet when he swims. Otherwise they could get all scraped and cut without him even knowing it.



After lunch and a little exploring, we headed to our hotel to check in. It was a lovely Hilton right in the heart of Baltimore. It was contemporary and quite impressive, and the rooms that Chip had booked for us overlooked Camden Yards. But the most important thing about the rooms? The delicious air conditioning!!

After getting settled into the room, Corey and Ronnie decided to check out the pool. Imagine my surprise when I saw the lift at the end of the pool. Although we didn’t need it, I was impressed that the hotel folks had been aware and considerate enough to realize the need.



Here are a few pictures from the swimming experience:







After a good dinner in what we thought was a restaurant but what turned out to be more of a bar, we settled into the hotel rooms to await the start of the Baltimore Orioles/Washington Nationals baseball game. While we couldn’t see the whole field, we were able to watch the game simultaneously on TV.



I think the boys had a great time in their own room, and everyone was looking forward to actually going to the game the next day. More later…..

Long Weekend of Fun

The boys and I took a mini-vacation this past weekend. We left early Friday morning, and returned Sunday afternoon. In between those times were baseball, swimming, driving, eating, and lots and lots of fun.

I plan on making most of my posts this week about the trip. Since this was the first time traveling with Ronnie, we had quite a few interesting experiences. I will share what worked and what didn't work. But most importantly, I have some great photos to share.

Here is the first of those. Friday night, we stayed in a hotel overlooking Camden Yards, home of the Baltimore Orioles baseball team. My son, Chip, was so very generous in getting both baseball tickets and great lodging for our trip. The hotel rooms in Baltimore couldn't have had a better view.

After the Orioles/Washington Nationals game Friday night, there was a fireworks show. Ronnie was able to 'hear' the fireworks by pressing the palms of his hands to the hotel room window!

Technology Tidbits

Because I believe the appropriate application of technology could hold a key piece of the future’s puzzle for our children with significant disabilities, I love to peruse technology websites. Probably also contributing to that interest is the fact that I am a computer engineer, but the things that catch my eye always are products that could benefit people with disabilities.

Here are a few interesting things I have found over the last couple of weeks.

For the red/green color blind, traffic signals pose a significant problem. Sometimes, however, the simplest solutions are the best. Check out the Uni-light which uses different shapes rather than different colors for traffic lights.

While the technology below is not new, its application is. Police officers and the Deaf have always faced a large communication gap. Now, using video phone technology, some police departments are working to reduce that gap.

Helping the Deaf and Police Officers Communicate


I’ve written before about the hazards of very quiet electric cars to the blind. Well, it seems those cars are about to get a little louder to protect blind pedestrians. While this change is not being embraced by everyone, those of us who are either blind or have a blind family member, welcome the change.

A noisy car is not going to help the Deaf pedestrian though. Here is a story about a Deaf man who was struck by a car. Is there technology that can help with this issue, or is it just a problem of the person not paying attention to traffic? I’m not sure of the answer to that question….

What about you? Have you run across any interested technology recently?

Special Exposure Wednesday

You know Summer has arrived when your wheelchair ramp is used for drying towels and swimsuits....



Be sure to check out all the other Special Exposure Wednesday shots at 5 Minutes For Special Needs!

How To Speak Deaf

Since Ronnie joined our family, we have had lots of situations, mostly medical, in which an interpreter is present. It's always interesting to notice the reactions of the hearing people in the group, especially people who are there to relay and solicit information from Ronnie. What I have learned is that a lot of people don't quite understand how to have a conversation with a Deaf person and that person's interpreter.

So here are some tips that I found at Deaf News Today for communicating with people who are Deaf or hearing-impaired. If any of you have other tips, I would love to hear them.

• Make sure you have eye contact with the person before speaking


• If there is an interpreter, speak to and look at the deaf person not the interpreter


• Face the person to whom you are speaking (that helps with lip-reading)


• Stand in good lighting and avoid standing so that light is on the face of the Hearing-impaired person


• Avoid background noise whenever possible


• Move your mouth to articulate but don’t exaggerate


• Speak a little louder and slower than normal but don’t shout or drag


• Keep your hands away from your face and particularly your mouth


• Use lots of facial expressions and body movements


• If something is unclear, rather than just repeating the same thing, rephrase thoughts in shorter and simple sentences

Love My Smile

When my family is out in the community, I know we can be quite the spectacle sometimes. The two in wheelchairs often race through the store aisles - Chip plays 'reckless driving' with Ashley while she giggles loudly - Ronnie burps loudly and we all pause for just a second and then burst out laughing - we put funny hats or clothes on one another - in short, we have a blast while getting our errands accomplished.

During an outing this past Saturday, we were heading to Target. Just as we pulled into the parking lot and began unloading all our paraphenalia, a van and a car loaded with adult group home residents and their 'staff' also pulled in. The residents were happy and excited, some skipping, some laughing, some chatting loudly about what they wanted to buy. The staff, however, did not appear the least bit happy.

The staff began shouting orders to the residents, "quiet down!", "get over here", "go in the bathroom right now", and "get away from the water fountain." It didn't take long for the smiles and eye twinkles to disappear from the residents. They fell into line and continued to follow whatever orders they were given.

This observation is typical of what has always bothered my about groups homes and the staff hired to support the residents. It's a job to the staff, and a job that many don't seem to like or enjoy. And their lack of enjoyment with their jobs has a direct effect on the folks they are hired to support.

It saddens me that people have their joy tamped down. Joy is often difficult for group home residents, or others with disabilities, to find. Let's do everything we can to support people when they are happy and joyful...even if it's a job.