I did not have anyone with a physical disability to take with me on my outing; however, I was able to go out to a restaurant with my sister. We went to a very nice Mexican restaurant. I think by trying to make observations from a different point of view, I was able to make some very real interpretations about the physical environment. I tried to imagine my sister with a disability that would require the use of a motorized wheelchair and a van to get us around.
My sister and I went to dinner on a Friday night, which was probably the busiest night for the restaurant. We noticed that the parking lot was full, but that should not have been a problem for us. We were in her van and authorized to park in the available handicap spot. This was easier said than done. The parking lot was so small and overcrowded that we had trouble negotiating the large van into the parking spot. This made accessibility to the restaurant a challenge, and we had not even gotten out of the van yet. I believe that I would have had trouble maneuvering my Mini Cooper into that spot.
I had hoped that things would improve for us once we entered the establishment. With it being such a busy night, we knew we would have to wait. However, what we did not expect was to have a waiting area that would not accommodate my sister’s wheelchair. I cannot imagine that it was a very comfortable for those who do not have a disability. My sister had to face the added humiliation of backing into another customer. It was terrible for her. I know that the restaurant does meet the proper regulations for the walkways and accessibility, but it seems that they have only done the “bare minimum”. We are finding this to be the norm for most of the places we try to go.
The crowding got worse as we made our way to our table. The tables were so close together that we could not easily make our way to the table. My sister had trouble maneuvering her chair between our table and the one behind us. The over crowding was so bad that we had no sense of privacy. I could hear every word that our neighbors were saying.
One thing the crowding did do was make us feel like we were more involved in the entertainment that was available. There was a live band playing a lot of our favorite songs. We really had a lot of fun listening to the music. The closeness seemed to increase the activity throughout the restaurant. It was very lively, but the noise made it a little difficult to be social and carry on a conversation at the same time.
I had hoped we could hang out at my house after dinner, but we forgot about the stairs that are in front of my house. My sister’s has very recently become disabled, and we are still running into problems like this. We decided to go back to her apartment instead. She has a roommate that is always in the living room, which makes it hard to have any kind of privacy. This left us feeling like we had no control over our evening. I worry that she may have problems with privacy in the future. If she wants to bring a date home, it will be difficult for her to have any privacy. Unfortunately, there is not a lot of adaptability on my sister’s part. Her financial situation requires that she live with a roommate. We are looking at the cost of making my house more compatible to her situation. The cost is proving to be more than either one of us has.
After my outing I realized, I found the physical environment to be difficult with out having a physical disability. That being said, I believe the “bare minimum” has to be more.
No comments:
Post a Comment