Usually when Donna and I go to ATS, it's strictly a working trip. We're so seldom in the same location to work together that we work the show by day, and work on grants and other such HPS projects by night. This year, however, with Ashley and Karen along, Donna decided we needed to live a little. So, we did some limited sightseeing when time would allow.
One evening we caught a cable car to the top of Lombard Street, a famous street in San Francisco know for being "the most crooked street in America." The street has been featured in a number of movies, video games and TV shows. Among them: The Love Bug (1969), and the video game Grand Theft Auto (not that I've ever played that game.) Apparently there's a yearly big wheel race down the hill.
But on this day I think Karen, Ashley and I were the main attraction. The street has stairs for walkers, however the stairs are very uneven and Ashley and Karen are relatively new cane users. Not to mention none of us, especially Ashley and Karen, have any business falling. (Long term steroid use can affect your bones.) So we took our time going down the hill, carefully paying attention to each step. Then, we looked up to realize the gaggle of tourists were all taking pictures of us! The cane weilding trio had become the main attraction. I'm not sure how I feel about that.
While it's maybe a good thing for tourists to see blind people out doing what everyone else does in less than favorable conditions, what does it say about society's expectations of blind people that they found the event worthy of snapping pictures? I can hear it now. Someone somewhere today is at a Memorial Day picnic showing off their San Francisco pictures and saying, "These three blind women were walking down Lombard Street - isn't that amazing!" Groan. Having been rock climbing and repelling with an all blind crew, walking down Lombard Street, while requiring some care to footing, is hardly amazing or photo worthy - except for us.
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