Going to the Fair

Kaitlin Lange

September 28, 2013

HS 3300- Professor Overstreet

Accessible Date Assignment- The Fair

            For my accessible date, I went to the fair and then back home to watch TV with my boyfriend. At the fair, we rode rides and ate a funnel cake. I found the fair to be accessible to be able to move around but it would be kind of hard. For instance, there were no stairs or anything to get around the fair but because it was so crowded, it would be hard to get through everyone to get from one place to another. The fair was not a very adaptable place for a person with disability to attend. If the person could not get to a table to eat, or get to a place in the park, it would be near impossible to reorganize anything to accommodate them. The fair would not be a comfortable place for a person with a disability most likely. The fair is very loud and has a lot going on all at once. For me, the fair held little to no meaning but for other people it could hold some meaning. It could be a place where they grew up and went to every year with their family. At the fair, there is no privacy. The most privacy you could get would be to go into a bathroom stall by yourself. The fair has a lot of sensory stimulation. Most of the rides have blinking lights flashing constantly, there is usually a concert or music playing, and there are people yelling for people to come play their games. All of this happening could cause someone with a disability to become overwhelmed, have a seizure, or more. The fair allows for a lot of sociality. There are so many people and while you wait in line for a ride or drink you usually end up talking to someone new.

            Once we left the fair and were at my boyfriends I realized how hard it would be to access my boyfriend’s house. All of the entrances have stairs and would not be wheel chair accessible. Also, once inside to get to a bathroom, you would have to walk up stairs. This was a good place for privacy because it was just us and his grandparents there. His house was a comfortable place because it did not have all of the people or noise and I could just relax. We had control over our environment at his house and it was more adaptable. For example, we could have taken ply board he had to make a ramp over the stairs for someone with a disability. 

            Overall this date probably would have been hard for someone that would have been in a wheelchair. At the fair, they may have been able to get around and see the fair, but they would not have been able to ride the rides or play the games unless they were at sitting level. Also, the loud noises and blinking lights might have been a little too overwhelming. Going back to my boyfriend’s house would have been more comfortable for someone in a wheel chair because it is quiet and somewhere to relax. The only problem would have been getting into the house and getting them to the restroom if they needed to go. Overall my date would not have been the best choice for someone with a disability.