You may have noticed for a while now I've had a quote at the end of my posts...

"One finds limits by pushing them." ~ Herbert Simon

Why did I pick this quote? Well growing up Deaf and legally blind I've heard countless times from Doctors, Teachers or the Public (Thankfully very little from my family) that "You can't". I'm sure countless other people with various disabilities have heard this throughout their lives too.

"You can't..."
"you won't be able to...."
 "You're crazy to try"

My response is:

""Why?"
"Why not?"
"Watch me!"

If we all tested and pushed our limits, we actually find out what we really can and can't do! Then we'll be able to say alright so I can't do that but dammit I tried. Or what if we really could do it? 

There were a group of guys who wanted to be in a Band. Nooo you're Deaf you can't be a Rock Band! Hello?? Haven't y'all heard of Beethoven's Nightmare?

There was a guy who wanted to climb Mount Everest. Nooo you're Blind, you can't do that!! Hello, meet Erik Weihenmayer.

A lot of people when they're old, grey and in their rocking chairs, many regret what? Not the things they did, but but the things they didn't try.

So keep on dreaming, and keep on trying!

Tracy,
"One finds limits by pushing them" ~ Herbert Simon 

More stories of Jetta:
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One night I put some leftovers in the Microwave to heat up for a snack during TV.. While watching TV, Jetta alerted me & went to the kitchen, then stood there because the sound had stopped. A few seconds later he alerted me, led me to the kitchen and again stopped. I asked Randy if he could hear anything, we soon figured it out that it was the microwave beeping! Jetta was trained to a kitchen timer, but never figured he needed training to the microwave 'cuz when it goes off, it stops cooking, no loss there. The dog trained himself to the microwave beeper

My favorite story was when I was 9 months pregnant and I told Randy I wanted a lottery ticket. He pulled into a convenience store and I waddle in with Jetta. We were met with angry protests from the Asian clerk "No dog, out! Out!" "But he's allowed by law to be here" "No! Out! Get out!" Waving his arms furiously. Randy saw the commotion and walks in. He's wearing sweatshorts, a Harley T-shirt, bandana & mirrored sunglasses (not to mention he's a big guy). "What's going on?" He asks me. "He wants us out", I reply. He turned to the cashier and in a gruff voice "the lady wants a lottery ticket" "Okokok" the cashier quickly rings some up for me.

Of course there were the ignorant (I'm being polite here) people. There's been people who've asked why I was bringing a deaf dog in "No, I'm the Deaf one"; been asked if the dog was gonna interpret for me; been talked at when the dog was obviously present & when I notice "were you talking to me? I'm Deaf, that's why the dog....". 

Years pass, my kids were 4 and 2, I decided to take them to the Mall. Two kids, a large stroller & a dog in uniform (I was not using a cane back then). We were strolling along when suddenly the leash jerked, Jetta had stopped following. I look back and see he's taking a dump right there in the Mall! I search frantically through my purse and the stroller for a bag, to no avail. I told my son, "run into that store there and ask for a bag please". I now was dividing my attention between watching my son, guarding the "pile", entertaining a cranky girl & keeping the dog in check (who was trying to crawl off under a bench, as far as his leash would let him). Soon comes along a group of giggly teen girls who are oblivious to my arms waving. "Hey!" I finally yell, pointing down. They shriek in horror and veer off. Then my son comes bounding along toting a bag that was as big as he was. I quickly clean up the mess and scurry off with the clan in tow.

Several months later we're attending Church. Our routine was that Randy takes our son to his class while I take our girl to the nursery and we meet in our seats. This particular Sunday we were running a bit late and the crowd had already gone in to be seated. I was alone walking down to "our" door, when the leash jerked me back. "Nonono not here!" I whispered horrified. I look up to see an acquaintance coming down the hall, she slipped into the kitchen area in one door, soon popped out the next door, handed me a bag "Good morning", she said without batting an eyelash or breaking pace. I cleaned up and quietly walked to my seat. Randy nudged me "What took so long?" "Jetta took a dump in the hall". After a long pause, "did you clean it up?" "Yes! I'm the only one with a dog, they'd know who it was" I glared.

It was determined by the trainers and the vet that Jetta had developed anxiety while out, so he was retired from working in public, but continued working at home.

He slowly went deaf himself & we ended up signing to him. The joke was "we need a hearing-ear cat for the hearing-ear dog". One night after putting the kids to bed I was walking back to the living room when I heard all this commotion. I walk in to see Randy & Jetta rolling around on the floor and both of them growling and snapping at each other. "What the Hell's going on!" I yell. Finally Randy wrestles a chicken drumstick out of the dog's mouth and growls "that's MINE!" I looked at Randy and said in my best sarcastic voice "You know if you're hungry...I could go make you something...." He glared at me "that's not the point! The point is I'm walking along and the damn dog snatches it out of my hand"

After months of developing dementia, having cancer "somewhere in his system", and seizures we had Jetta put to sleep at 14 years old.

Seven years later I still miss him....

Tracy,
"One finds limits by pushing them" ~ Herbert Simon

Just got off after another long Relay Service call filled with the usual "irks" and misunderstandings...

First, what is a Relay Service? It's an operator service that allows Deaf, Hard of Hearing, Deafblind, or Speech Impaired to make telephone calls to hearing users. 

It's basically Deaf caller calls Relay Service - Operator calls Hearing Phone - Operator relays verbally what Deaf person says and then relays what the Hearing Person answers. It's done either by TTY (teletype), Internet Relay (IP-Relay), Mobile phone, or by Videophone where it's hooked to TV and camera shows operator and Deaf signing to each other.

Now back to the irks....

* Person addresses you in the 3rd person - "Tell her I said..." I've tried over and over to correct them "Please address me directly in first person" "Okay...tell her that..." *sigh*

* Make a call, Relay says "This is Operator #____ you have a relay call from" *CLICK* the other line hangs up. Call back and explain again "Oh I thought it was a telemarketer". Grrr...

* Gender mixups - Being addressed as Sir/Madam when you're not but the relay operator is. "We'll do that for you Sir" "It's Ma'am" *stammering* "Uh okay". Doesn't help when I have a "unisex" name either!

* Hearing Caller is uncomfortable with "same sex" operator calls. Back when I was dating my now hubby, we had a male operator, and I typed "I love you" and he's hearing a man say that..."UGH" *Cringe*

* Try calling someone numerous times to no answer. Then see that person and say "I tried calling several times" "Your number never showed on my Caller I.D." "It's going to be a Relay Service number!!" "Oh that who it was??" *facepalm*

* Calling a place of business such as a Bank, Hospital, etc and inquiring about your account or test results etc. "Sorry I cannot tell you that information because I'm not speaking directly to that person" "But you ARE!" "Well we can't go through third parties so if you would come in and fill out some paperwork (in triplicate) that will give us permission to share information with a third party...." ARGH!!!!!

* The Relay Operator will relay everything that is said or heard, so don't yawn, burp or fart, I do not wanna see it on my screen! Also you cannot ask the operator to emote for you "So did she sound/look mad?" that will just be relayed to me. I also get a lot of "(side conversation going on)" so don't have a second conversation with someone else in your house!

So here's how to make a Relay call:

1. Call 711 to get the access number for your State

2. Give the operator the Deaf person's phone number

3. Speak more slowly - remember everything's being typed

4. Speak directly to the other person not to the operator.

5. Say "Go Ahead" (GA) when you're done and it's the other person's turn to talk.

6. Say "Stop Keying" (SK) when you're done and ready to hang up.

7. In the case of a Videophone you don't need to say GA or SK

It's that simple! Now go reach out and touch someone Heh!


Tracy,
"One finds limits by pushing them" ~ Herbert Simon 

In 1994 I was living alone & noticed I was losing a bit of confidence going out on my own, I was attending less and less events and only went if there was a ride available, I was also missing phone calls because I didn't see the flash alert, and when I finally burned a kettle dry because I forgot about it & didn't hear the whistling I decided to get on the waiting list for a Hearing Ear Dog.

I applied to Hearing Ear Dogs of Canada, I soon got approved, but since most HEDs were small breeds like Shelties and Miniature Poodles, I requested a larger size due to my limited vision.

The day finally arrived! In October 1996 I was heading to the Center for 2 weeks training. It was a small class of 5 Deaf students, we each had our own "dorm room" and had individual & class training. When it was time to meet our "partner" we were told to stay in our rooms and the dogs will be brought in to us. We never got pictures or information except a packet with the dog's name & breed. Well I sat there waiting anxiously and soon saw the door open and in bounded this huge 60lb. Border Collie/Golden Retriever mix! Jetta was 3 yrs old at the time, he'd been rescued from a Shelter, trained as a HED, placed with another woman, but on followup checks the School found out she wasn't keeping up with training & Jetta was nothing more than a pet. They seized him back, retrained him and placed him with me.

He had high energy, loved doing his job & the smarts to match! When there was a sound to alert me to, he'd pounce on me like a cross-checking hockey player and bolt towards the source of the sound. I'd need a second to gather myself and look to see his head peek around the corner quizzically "Well? Aren't you coming?". 

In late November, I flew down to Wichita to visit my then boyfriend (who now is Hubby of 15 years) for my first American Thanksgiving. My connecting flight was delayed for several hours and I had nowhere to go to relieve Jetta. When we finally arrived in Wichita, I met Randy at the gate and Jetta insist we go outside NOW, by firmly pulling on the leash, he'd behave when we had to stop for my baggage, that was the first time I've seen a dog do the "pee pee dance". The next morning was when I learned that Jetta's a "Counter Cruiser" as a 12" Pumpkin Pie was missing & Jetta had a stomachache. "I hope you're happy", Randy glared at him as we took him outside.

Randy moved up to Canada to be with me in 1997 and we married the following year. Jetta was a part of the Bridal Party and even had his own tailored Vest to match the Groomsmen. Our Ringbearer held his leash as they walked down the aisle. We were worried that Jetta would be too excited and drag the 4yr old down instead, but he was well behaved.

He soon became protective as each baby arrived in the household. Letting them crawl all over him and tug at his fur. He'd just lay there and groan like an old man. "If you don't like it, MOVE", we'd scold him. He was very protective of them. Once at a Doctor's office, the nurse was coming to get our baby son and was going to pick him up out of the car seat. In a flash Jetta was there between the car seat and the nurse, he didn't make a sound but made it known that he's watching.

To Be Continued.....

Tracy,
"One finds limits by pushing them" ~ Herbert Simon  

Having Low Vision I sometimes struggle to find a good game to play. I have tried playing with my son on his XBox, but it was so bad to the point where my son actually had to make his character jump up and down in front of me before I could find him and shoot him, Heh. The other part is just trying to handle the controller & all it's buttons! I came from the generation where it was just a joystick & maybe 2 fire buttons. 

I used to play a variety of online games, but as my sight worsens, I'm finding myself frustrated with them. I no longer play platform games, shooter games, Timed games, and the like. I've changed to point & clicks, a few hidden object games (if their "hint" is obvious to see), escape the room, and adventure type games. The three websites I frequent regularly are:
(Note: The Desktop & Mobile versions are completely different. I play these on the Desktop.)

Abroy.com
MouseCity.com
InkaGames.com

I've gone ahead and listed some more:

Websites for Blind Gamers:
GMA Games
AudioGames.net
Azabat

Websites for Low Vision Gamers:
NanoGames
iFiction
TextAdventures

iPhone & iPad Audio Only Games

Another option to do is go to a reseller shop like GameStop and browse games there, and test them out before buying.

Happy Gaming!

Tracy,
"One finds limits by pushing them" ~ Herbert Simon 

UPDATE:
I was given two more sites to check out. Thanks to Ian Hamilton for the info!
AppleVis
BrandonCole.Net

I've had Hearing Aids ever since I was two years old. I eventually married a Hearing man & had 2 Hearing children. I remained Oral with them & my extended family while still maintaining ASL and Deaf Culture.

Part of my oralism is depending on lipreading and what little hearing I had from my hearing aid combined to understand what's being said.

When I was in my early thirties, I started losing more hearing, to the point where I no longer could hear my name being called across the dinner table. Could I have accepted this if I wasn't so Blind, probably. But because I depended on environmental sounds such as cars coming, my kids screaming for help, etc. to help me "see" a bit better. Yeah it's hard to explain, just go along with it. I decided to go ahead and get a Cochlear Implant.

I had my surgery in May 2004, with "activation" due in June. I had one month of complete silence, which wasn't bad except for periods of annoying tinnitus. Sometimes the tinnitus sounded like a "vacuum running in the next room" annoying, sometimes it sounded like a freight train speeding by inches from my head. The only cure I had for that were lots of naps to silence it.

Activation day finally arrived, I know there's a lot of videos on YouTube of other people's activation and they're full of joy and tears, yada yada. Mine was pretty quiet, "It worked, great!" was all it amounted to. Then the new "hearing" adventures began! At first hearing was all "electronic" noises. Yeah, picture hearing "Momma!" in a computerized Donald Duck voice, very weird. Then it started to mellow out into the sounds I was used to, but still different. To put it simply, Hearing Aids only have a range of 6 - 8 feet & they only amplify things, they do not "correct" or "cure" whatever's damaged in your ears. Cochlear Implants have a much farther range and they bypass the damaged parts. So I was hearing higher pitches for the first time and I could hear what was going on in the next room.

My favorite C.I. story is about my kids and bedtime. Before implant, they were sneaking out of their rooms and playing on the floor in the hallway, til hubby or I came along and caught them. After implant, I heard their doors squeak open from where I was in the living room and I yelled "Git back in bed!". My son came in all shocked, "How did you know!"

Other weird experiences have been:
* Hearing Rice Krispies for the first time. "Geez, I'm 35 and I'm now just hearing Snap, Crackle & Pop talk to me"
* Pop fizzing in a cup after I've poured it.
* Hands rubbing together. Did you KNOW THAT!!?? I was amazed that it makes a sound!
* Bacon cooking in the Microwave. Before it was just a quiet hum of the microwave. But afterwards it was snapping, banging, fizzing. Scared the crap out of me and I ran to my husband, "There's something wrong with the Microwave!" He sniffs and says "You cooking bacon?" "Yes" "That's normal" "Yer kidding".
* Crickets - I finally heard crickets.

Now even though it's been a positive experience for me, I'm not endorsing anything and this was purely my own decision.  Everyone's got to think for themselves, gather all the information out there, ask a bunch of questions & pray over it. All I can do is share my experience.

Tracy,
"One finds limits by pushing them" ~ Herbert Simon