“Stage 1.5 Knickers”

I’m taking a bit of a step back in time for this post as I wasn’t quick enough to type it up at the time and have been a bit lazy in regards to my blog posts. So this post is about my most recent trip back down south in February this year. I want to continue to write these posts because I’ve found them quite useful when remembering events from years ago to quickly look through a post and confirm in my memory what happened. Plus, i figure why not.

 

So, on the 14th of February, Lesley picked Kieran and I up and took us to the airport. This time our special assistance was good and the flight was on time.  When we landed, Dad and Michelle met us in arrivals. We decided to pop in and see Nan. While we were there, I gave Nan her pillow made out of Grandad’s clothes, which predictably made her a bit teary. After she’d put together a bundle of his clothes in December, I’d sent them off to a small business who make handmade items out of loved ones clothing. I got a special blanket made for myself using lots of different pieces of his clothes plus the fluffy fleece blanket I’d bought for his last birthday, which was on his bed. The blanket turned out perfect, more like a patchwork quilt than just a blanket. When Nan saw it over FaceTime, she was able to recognise every single patch. Since then, Dad has also said he’d like a cushion made, which I’m going to get sorted very soon. After big hugs all round and saying we’d see Nan soon, Dad drove us down to Mum’s, where she had and chili out of the slow cooker and cheesy nachos waiting for us.

 

On Thursday, Mum made pancakes for lunch as it’d been pancake day on Tuesday. Pancakes are a proper treat for me because I wouldn’t attempt making them myself and don’t like eating them when I’m out. Mum’s were lovely. Afterwards, Harley and I went into town to do Mother’s Day and early birthday shopping for our May birthday relatives: Mum, Dad and Imi. Later on, Mum, Simon and Kieran met us in town so Kieran and I could spend the voucher Kieran had bought for my birthday the year before at Zizi’s. I had aranccini, mushroom risotto and a honeycomb cheesecake. Kieran had calamari, sausage lasagne and trillionaires fudge cake. We both very much enjoyed the food. I was especially happy to have arancini again. It was made even nicer because the staff were so helpful, even guiding Kieran to the loo. Meanwhile, Mum, Simon and Harley decided to have Pizza Hut, where they shared a two pizzas, two sides and two desserts deal. They all said it was very nice and were very full. I was glad that they’d enjoyed theirs but even more that Kieran and I had finally been able to spend my voucher and have a date night. These days, if we have a date night it’s usually a takeaway in front of the telly, which is still nice but not as good as physically going to a restaurant.

 

The next day, Dad picked us up around half past 3 and took us to Nan’s where Nan, Auntie Clare, Sam and Michelle were. At just after 5, Auntie Clare rang through our order to the fish and chips shop: large battered sausage for Michelle; fish for Kieran, Auntie Clare herself and Nan; an egg and bacon burger for Dad; a chicken burger for Harley; a cheese burger for Sam; two pineapple fritters for me; two large chips and two curry sauces to share. Auntie Clare and I collected the food and everyone seemed to enjoy what they had. After Auntie Clare and Teddy went home. we watched West Brom vs Saints, which ended in a 2-0 win for Saints.

The next day, it was Mum’s time to be in the spotlight as we took her wedding dress shopping. In the morning, Simon drove Mum, Harley and I into town before going to pick up his youngest to join us. Then, the four of us met up with Mum’s maid of honour and headed for the bridal shop. Kieran had already decided to spend the day listening to as many football matches as he could. In the end, the dress Mum chose as the one was the fifth one she tried on. Thankfully, she loved the whole experience of trying on different styles of dress and showing them off to us. Mum can be funny about what she wears and has always been self-conscious, even more so since cancer has changed her body. But she was really confident and pleased with how she looked. Afterwards, we went to TGI Fridays to celebrate the success. Mum and her maid of honour shared nachos, potato skins and cocktails; Simon’s youngest enjoyed chicken tenders and fries; Harley had Jack Daniels chicken strips and potato skins; I had Jack Daniels chicken strips, fries and mozzarella dippers. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the treat. I felt a bit guilty that Kieran wasn’t there because I know he likes TGIs a lot too. However, when we got home he seemed to have had a good enough day listening to lots of football as he’d planned. As well as that, in the evening he and Simon ordered curry and we watched Pointless Celebrities, Casualty and the Jonathan Ross show.

 

The following afternoon, Kieran and I caught the bus into town and went to The Giddy Bridge Wetherspoons with Sam. She chose a burger and chips, Kieran had sausage and mash and I went for a bbq chicken and bacon panini with chips and a side of haloumi fries. We stayed in the pub for a few hours, having more drinks and a cookie dough sandwich pudding for me. Later on, we went to The Mayflower Theatre to see Romesh Rangernathan perform his Hussle tour. Romesh was very funny and it was quite a different atmosphere to our usual stand up shows because he was supported by DJ Martin Too Smooth who played at the start and during the interval.  They were both very good. Some potential quotes for blog post titles included “I’ll bag you off” and “I’m cooking mushrooms”.

 

On Monday, Dad picked us up around half 12, after picking Nan up on his way, and we went to The Malvern green king pub. It’s only a short walk from their flat so Sam and Michelle were waiting when we arrived. For dinner, I had scampi, chips and mushy peas with a side of haloumi fries; Harley had lasagne with garlic bread; Nan had macaroni cheese; Dad had a big brunch; Michelle had a steak and cheese ciabatta; Sam had a chicken and bacon ciabatta. Sadly, the food wasn’t very nice and most of us came away a bit disappointed. Afterwards, we spent the rest of the day at Dad’s, chatting, with Sam’s music playlist in the background, which provided many conversation topics. A possible blog title quote came when Dad quite casually asked “does anyone want my nuts?” which, because we’re all very childish, we found funny. Later on, back at Mum’s, we watched some Catch Phrase and Limitless Win before putting on the film Whitney: I Want To Dance With Somebody.

 

The next day, we went into town around 9:30 and had a McDonalds breakfast: breakfast wraps for Kieran and I, McMuffins for Mum and Harley. Afterwards, we went into a few shops. Back at Mum’s, we spent the afternoon and evening watching quiz shows including Lingo, Catch Phrase, Tipping Point, The Chase, Bridge Of Lies, Beat The Chasers and Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. Mum is very good at quiz shows. For dinner, Mum cooked roast gammon, which was very tasty.

 

As always, the final day of our visit had come around too fast. We spent the daytime watching Judge Judy, Come Dine With Me, Lingo and Pointless. Mum cooked us belly pork with cheesy mash and carrots so that we’d had a proper meal before our flight. Around 3:30, I started to see news on Facebook that there had been a big crash on the motorway that was causing a lot of disruption and delays. For a while, we didn’t think much of it, thinking it’d be cleared by the time Dad picked us up around 6:15. But as time went on the news reports only seemed to get worse. Dad and Michelle headed out anyway, hoping they’d be able to make it through to get us so we could all head for the airport as planned. Sam was flying up with us to stay for a few nights so we could all go and see Sarah Millican live that weekend. But the time kept dragging on and we received more panicked messages from Sam. Eventually, I called Auntie Clare and asked if Uncle Dave was available to try and get us to the airport, the idea being that Dad and Michelle met us there with Sam rather than trying to get all the way to pick us up. Thankfully, Uncle Dave was available and set off straight away to get us. Although we didn’t think we were going to make the flight, we knew we had to try. Kieran checked us in online and I emptied the essentials out of our suitcase into our hand luggage. We’d already agreed we’d leave the suitcase behind because there was no way we were going to be there by the cut off point of baggage being checked in. As soon as Uncle Dave arrived, we rushed to get in his car, not really having time to say goodbye to Mum and Harley. To be honest, we were all expecting to see each other again that night. Uncle Dave drove as fast as the heavy and at times stand-still traffic would allow. We kept checking Google Maps ETA and willing the cars to somehow go faster. At the same time, I could see Dad just wasn’t moving. We had a rather big decision to make. Of course, the plan was for the three of us to travel to Newcastle that night. But as we approached the airport, it was clear Sam was nowhere near being close to joining us. Uncle Dave dashed us into the terminal building and up to the check in desk. Kieran rushed to explain what was happening and before we’d really had time to thank Uncle Dave, we were being hurried away. Somehow, we got through security in super quick time and although we’d held it up, we were boarding the plane, in our seats, taking off! When I think back to that evening, even now I don’t know how we made that flight. But the biggest thing was that we’d gone without Sam. We both felt very conflicted about it. Of course, never did we want to leave without her and it was a really awkward situation to be in. But we needed to go home. I was scheduled to work the following day and didn’t have my manager’s contact details on me to tell her what was happening. Even more importantly, I didn’t have any more Epilepsy medication. As we flew away, we felt absolutely awful for Sam and guilty that we’d left without her. Friendship and loyalty should have meant if one didn’t make the plane none of us should have gone. But reality doesn’t work like that. If we had the chance, however tight it was in the end, to be on that plane and flying home as planned then we had to take it. Sam was understandably very upset and angry with us, which I totally expected. But ultimately there was nothing we could have done about the situation and in the grand scheme of things our situation was nothing to that of the man who lost his life in that crash or the ripple effects for his friends and family.

 

Although the end of our trip had been pretty horrific, the visit overall was great and it was lovely to spend time with everyone as always. Plus, it all worked out in the end for us. Unfortunately, this meant Sam spent the Thursday on a train rather than already being with us as per the original plan. But she arrived with us around 5 o’clock and Kieran cooked meatballs with pasta and garlic bread and mac n cheese bites on the side for dinner. We spent the evening watching Kevin Bridges new DVD The Overdue Catch Up. This provoked some rather rude quote suggestions of blog post titles from Sam and Kieran, such as “your dog’s a c**t” or “remember the night we googled cats dicks”.

 

After I’d finished work early on Friday, we caught the bus into Newcastle and went to The Five Swans Wetherspoons. After being badgered by Kieran and I to try something different, Sam went for the chicken bites basket, which she said she enjoyed. Kieran had a mixed grill and I had fish and chips with a cookie dough sandwich for dessert. Later, we went to the O2 City Hall and watched Sarah Millican perform her Late Bloomer show. She was very funny and definitely one of my favourites we’ve seen live. One of the best parts was when she had a lady, who was sat in the front row with us, removed because she had talked through the first 20 minutes of the show. The cheer after she did it was quite something. There were so many quotes from the show that I could have chosen for this post’s title but I settled on “stage 1.5 knickers” because it made us laugh a lot and was one of the tamer options. Sarah’s comedy has definitely become more filthy over the years. Other offerings included: “snap flaps”, “your pubes are the bouncers to your fanny” and “if your fanny was clean and tidy it would be on your forehead”.

 

The next morning, Kieran cooked sausage, bacon and hash browns for breakfast. We spent the day watching football: Eastleigh vs Bromley 2-0; Arsenal vs Newcastle 4-1. Later, we watched Sean Lock’s DVD Lockipedia while enjoying a Dominoes takeaway.

 

We walked to Sambuca’s for lunch on Sunday. Sam had potato skins, roast chicken and ice cream; Kieran chose mushroom soup, roast lamb and ice cream; I had cheesy garlic bread with chicken and mushroom risotto. As always, we all thoroughly enjoyed the food. Back at the flat, we listened to Liverpool vs Chelsea in the Carabao cup final; Liverpool won 1-0 in the 118th minute.

 

Since Sam’s stay in February, the three of us plus Harley spent the first weekend of this month in London so that we could see Michael MacIntyre live at the O2. Apart from Harley really not liking the height of our seats, it was a great show and a really lovely weekend overall. We enjoyed a lot of nice food, including yet another Wetherspoons at the O2, a meal at Pizza Express and a Premier Inn buffet breakfast. We spent the Saturday at Westfields and laughed at the fact that the only shopping we did was in Primark. We even had 100% success transport-wise, using the trains to their full advantage. So the last few months have been packed full of comedy shows, nice food and good times with family. I already have 5 more trips home scheduled and so many comedy shows I’ve lost count. I’m very lucky that I’m able to spend so much time with everyone and go to so many good shows. Next up, a concert at the Royal Albert Hall with Mum to see Train for the second time.

Guide Dogs Client Day & Mobility Update May 2023

Recently, my route practice and general updates on mobility and all things Guide Dogs related has been pretty quiet and uneventful due to the fact that I started work in mid February and my mobility officer has been busy as there’s currently a lot of illness in the team. However, things haven’t quite gone to plan with my new job and I’ve been signed off on special leave while things are being sorted out. In the meantime, as I now have more free time than I expected to, I told my mobility officer I’m available for mobility lessons anytime if she has a free slot. Unfortunately, due to her being very busy covering the poorly staffs’ clients as well as her own, she hasn’t had many free slots to offer me. But on the 3^rd of April, I got a phone call from her mid morning to say she was free that afternoon if I wanted to do a session at short notice. Well, of course I did! So, an hour and a half later she arrived at my door and we headed out to walk both my main block routes; these are the route that takes me to Kieran’s parents house & Tesco’s and then the hairdressers & the beach. As we walked passed the hairdressers on the way to the beach, my mobility officer noticed a sign on the door saying the hairdressers is moving to a new location as part of the new development happening on the beach. Sadly, this means the block route we’ve created doesn’t quite have the destinations we aimed for but it does mean I can still get to the hairdressers and have more options of places to go to once on the beach. The block route is still fine to use as it would give my future Guide Dog variation. That route went absolutely fine. There was only one hiccup with the Tesco’s block route, which happened on the return half when I couldn’t remember which direction to go. However, we think it has been several months since I walked that route and I admitted I haven’t been reading my route instructions as regularly as I should have. It’s easier to ignore the reminder on my phone screen than I first thought. I’m getting better now though.

 

After that, the next big event was the client day at the new Newcastle office. A client day is where people on the ready to train (waiting list) go into the office and walk with a dog in harness and experience some of the other training you’ll do when you’re matched with your dog. I’ve attended two of these before, in Southampton, but they weren’t very successful for me. The Southampton team used them before you were on the waiting list to assess your suitability for a dog. I was always too nervous to pass. Happily, the client day with the Newcastle team on 2^nd May was much more successful. It wasn’t used as an assessment tool at all, more a way for the GDMS (Guide Dog Mobility Specialist) staff to witness you walking with a dog to add any updates to your criteria or needs to use when assessing potential matches for you. This client day was better than those I attended in Southampton because the atmosphere was much more relaxed, all members of staff were lovely and we were able to walk with two dogs each. They’d roughly chosen the dogs to match each client based on size and speed of the dogs. I worked with two gorgeous dogs, yellow Labrador retriever cross Bree and black Labrador retriever cross Gina. We were driven to a quiet area where we could walk short block routes with the dogs, experiencing side road crossings and left & right turns. Firstly, I walked with Bree. To begin with, her pace seemed a little fast for me but as I got used to walking with her we seemed quite well suited. I was shown the positions, gestures and commands for turns, to slow her speed down, praise and correct her. Of course, I already knew some of this from my previous Guide Dog Assessments but quite a lot has changed since. After a little while, the GDMS said we were looking good together and I was reacting instinctively with her. Obviously, they don’t expect you to be anywhere near perfect but positive signs for the future are beneficial. Bree was a little superstar. Although sometimes distracted by the other clients with their dogs and trainers nearby, she quickly focused back on her guiding and was pretty much paw perfect; she even ignored some food on the pavement. The only slight issue was with me. The pavements were quite uneven so on top of adjusting to Bree’s speed I found I was stumbling and tripping quite a bit. The GDMS didn’t seem to mind that much and I feel that it was partly due to my inexperience walking with a Guide Dog, quite a lot to do with the uneven ground and a bit because I didn’t know the route we were walking along. To be honest, because the atmosphere was quite relaxed and Bree made me feel quite comfortable, I don’t think nerves played much of a part in it. Overall, I was pretty pleased with how the walk went. Next, I walked with Gina. The staff call her a little pocket rocket and she most certainly is. She zoomed off with me in pursuit trying to keep up. The GDMS slowed her down a bit a few times and I felt a bit more in control. She didn’t seem to react quite as well to me as Bree had seemed to. Of course, they’re all very different dogs with different personalities and quirks. Gina is absolutely gorgeous and super affectionate, very eager to please. Again, I stumbled and tripped quite a bit, worsened by Gina’s quicker speed. I still very much enjoyed the walk and the GDMS who walked with me also seemed happy with how it had gone. Big cuddles were given to both girls afterwards. During our walks, another member of staff followed behind filming us, with our permission, so that the footage could be reviewed and anything they thought would be useful when looking at potential matches for us added to our assessment notes. It felt a bit odd being filmed and it made me a bit nervous having someone extra watching me trying to walk with the dogs but if it helps them find me a match it doesn’t matter.

 

After our walks, we were taken back to the office to have our lunch. Then, we were split into three groups of two where we took turns doing some other training techniques with the dog. I worked with Bree, which was lovely because I was falling a little in love. First, we did some food manners with her. You put a few treats on a table and stand with the dog to your left; take one treat at a time and hold it with palm upwards a few inches away from the dog’s mouth; after a few seconds, either give the dog the treat or put it back on the table. This teaches them that you’re someone they can take treats from but that they have to wait and don’t always get a treat every time they respond with the right behaviour. Another food manners method we tried was getting the dog to sit at your side, dropping some treats on the floor in front of them whilst loosely holding onto their collar and seeing whether they pull forward to get the treats. If they do, all the treats return to your treat pouch. If they don’t, they’re allowed a couple of the treats. Also, we were taught the command “head in”, where you hold the harness open and ask the dog to put their head in. This gives them the opportunity to have their harness on and makes a more positive association with it rather than just forcing it on. Of course, if they put their head in they’re rewarded with a treat. Another thing we tried was targeting objects. This is particularly useful if you want to find a certain landmark along a route, like a push button at a crossing or a chair in a café. You just tell the dog the item you want it to find and it goes. For example, for a chair you just say “chair”, the dog walks forward to the chair, rests its chin on the seat and you reward with a treat. Once we’d targeted the chair, we learnt how to settle the dog under the chair out of the way. You do this on public transport and in places like cafes so that the dog knows just to lay down and is out of the way of someone stepping on them. The last thing we learnt was the new chin rest command. This is where you use a towel or blanket on a flat surface, like a chair, and the dog goes and rests its head on the towel. Once the dog’s head is on the towel, you give them a treat. They’re only allowed a treat if they don’t lift their head. This is used for grooming and health checks. It gives the dog the choice of whether it wants you to do things. For example, if you’re trying to clean their ears and they don’t like it, they lift their head and you stop. When they lower their head back to the towel, you reward with a treat and try again or do a different part of the check/grooming. I think this is a much nicer method than how it used to be done, just doing what you needed to whether the dog liked it or not. I think it makes grooming more enjoyable for the dog and must build a better bond for the partnership. Of course, Bree was a star again. By the time the second person tried each behaviour, she already knew what to do and was acting before we’d spoken the command or done the gesture.

 

It was an all-round great day and it’s so nice to have a positive experience of a client day to remember. Another plus was that I was able to get to and from the office independently by catching the bus and my mobility officer meeting me at the stop by the office. It felt good to do it by myself instead of getting a lift or taxi. I don’t know if the client day will result in anything drastic happening for me. We were told the dogs we met still have some training to do and won’t be ready for a while so there won’t be any immediate matching visits. But I hope that seeing me interact and walk with trainee Guide Dogs might help them find me a suitable match in the next few months. I’ve been on the Newcastle list 7 and a half months now and it’d be great if a dog came along before I reach a year. I was told I am pretty much the northeast’s longest person on the ready to train list so add that to the fact that the new Newcastle office has capacity for many more dogs now and the fact that I, and the trainers I spoke to, thought the client day went well for me and hopefully it won’t be long before I have good news.

 

On Monday 15^th May, as arranged just after the client day, I caught the bus to the HMRC bus stop I’ve been learning how to get to and my mobility officer met me there. This time, it wasn’t quite our usual mobility session. One of the GDMS staff, who I met on the client day, had come along to observe me doing one of my routes with a cane. I was a little more nervous than usual about this but also because it’s been quite a long time since I practised that route. However, I think the little addition to our group in the form of the lovely Bree helped me focus and walk well. The GDMS had brought Bree along because she was looking after her for her proper GDMS while she was busy with other work. Of course, I definitely wasn’t complaining. The GDMS only had Bree on her lead but she followed along happily, stopping at the up and down curbs correctly and even targeting the bus stop at the end of the route. Best of all, I got a little cuddle before catching my bus home. According to my mobility officer, the GDMS was very impressed with how I’d walked the route and said it was a great route for my future guide dog. I was pretty chuffed with how it had gone, too, but the icing on the cake was definitely getting another cuddle with the lovely Bree. My mobility officer said she’s hoping to book me in for a couple more refresher sessions on my current routes. I’ve said I’d like that to happen when a potential match is found, just so I feel more confident doing the routes on a matching visit and during training. But I’ll take any practice if offered. So fingers crossed June brings more good things.

Mobility Update February 2023

My February update is a much shorter post than usual due to the fact that I started my first job on the 13th. Before that, though, I had a mobility session on the 8^th. It was the first proper challenge my mobility officer has asked me to try. We agreed to do the route from the bus stop to my new office. However, instead of my mobility officer meeting me at my flat and catching the bus there with me, she set me the task of catching the bus myself and meeting her at the work bus stop. Originally, when I got up and got myself ready on the 7^th, I felt really nervous about doing it. I’m not very confident going out on my own with my cane and apart from meeting some friends at the Newcastle bus station, I hadn’t tried going out by myself. Then, as I went to send my mobility officer a message to say I was just leaving, I happened to tap on her message above confirming the date and time for our session. That’s when I realised I’d got ready on the wrong day. I’d got up early, had a quick shower and breakfast and put my shoes on ready to leave the flat at 9:30, 24 hours earlier than I needed to! It was lucky that I decided to message my mobility officer before I left the flat otherwise I’d have been on the bus with nobody to meet me the other end. I don’t yet know the route well enough to get myself to the return bus stop to go home and my mobility officer was working away for the day and wouldn’t have been able to come and rescue me. But when it came to actually doing the route on the 8^th, I felt absolutely fine. I didn’t call Mum or Harley to have them in earphones to calm my nerves and didn’t really feel nervous at all. I made it to the bus stop and there was a lovely man there who asked what bus I wanted. He was catching the same one as me and told me as it arrived. It was 10 minutes early so I probably wouldn’t have stopped it if I’d been by myself. He helped me get on the bus and then the driver guided me to a free seat. After I’d sat down, the man came passed me and asked where I wanted to get off. He said he wasn’t going that far but when he passed me again on his way off the bus he told me whereabouts on the route we were at. Although it was lovely of him, it turned out I wouldn’t have been stuck if he wasn’t there. By a combination of my Stellar Trek device and the Apple maps and Moovit apps, I knew exactly where I was and the right stop to get off at, where my mobility officer was waiting as promised. Stupidly, I felt so proud of myself for managing it and so pleased I’d tested Moovit and found it so accurate and helpful for tracking the route and telling me exactly where to exit the bus. As for the actual route, we practised it twice, the first time with me using my cane and my mobility officer following and the second with her sighted guiding me, mimicking how a guide dog would work along the route. When I used my cane, I remembered a few parts of the route. But once I’d refreshed my memory and walked it for the second time, I remembered much more and was able to direct my mobility officer. I was pleased to find that my Stellar Trek correctly announced many of my pre-recorded landmarks along the route too. Last time, it hadn’t spoken many of them at all and I was a little disappointed. For some reason, it was much better this time. Once we’d finished practising, we walked back to the return bus stop for the last time and my mobility officer helped me get on the right bus home. Again, using a combination of technology, I was able to find my stop, get off and then walk home successfully. Kieran was waiting on the other side of the door to give me a big congratulatory hug.

 

Since then, my mobility officer has typed up the instructions for step by step directions along the route so I can read them as often as possible to hopefully get the route memorised. When I know my proper working hours, my mobility officer and I might find a way for us to practice the route around both our working schedules. I’m really looking forward to hopefully sometime in the near future having a guide dog and being able to get us to and from work via public transport and working. Yes, getting taxis to and from work halves the travel time but getting the bus and walking is free and would also give the dog and I some much needed exercise before a long day sat at/under a desk.

 

After being frustrated by the quality of the audio recording through the microphone on my Stellar Trek, I spoke to an adviser from HumanWare who arranged a collection, repair and return for me. Sadly, it was found that there wasn’t anything to repair because that’s just how the microphone sounds. Apparently, a higher quality one, such as the one in my previous Victor Reader Trek, wasn’t used because the Stellar Trek is for orientation only, whereas the Victor Reader has a voice note recording function. I’m pretty disappointed that they decided the quality of the route and landmark recordings wasn’t important enough to provide a decent microphone, especially as the Stellar Trek is £500 more than the Victor Reader Trek. The adviser told me that it’s unlikely to be upgraded in a software update. I’m just glad it has the much improved battery life and GPS otherwise it wouldn’t have been worth the purchase.

Mobility Update October 2022

This month’s update is going to be a much shorter one due to the fact that I only returned from Southampton 2 days ago and today, 19^th October, was my first mobility session of this month. But it was a really good one and October’s update definitely starts on a positive note. First, we practised my block route which takes me to Kieran’s parents house and a Tesco. I was a little worried about doing it as I haven’t practised it in about 6 weeks. But I did it spot on. It was quite windy today so my hearing was a bit off. This just made me veer into someone’s driveway but I was able to correct myself almost at once. I was really pleased with how the route went and don’t think I’ll need to practice it again for a while. Afterwards, we agreed to walk the new route. Since ironing out the details of exactly how we’re going to walk it with the other mobility officer last time, we decided to walk the whole thing with my mobility officer guiding me. This would give me a general feel for the route. On Friday, we’re going to practice it again but with me using my cane. My mobility officer has the written route instructions ready and is going to email me them this afternoon. I’ll get reading them straight away. I’d love to get this route under my belt too. Then, I’d have the minimum three routes you’re meant to have to be on the waiting list. Although the team are happy with the two I have enough to put me back on the list, I almost feel like I don’t have enough for a dog. Having this third one will settle my mind that I have enough. In addition, we’re also considering starting a fourth route, this one to somewhere that’s hopefully going to become my workplace. Early last month, I had a remote interview for a customer service role working for HMRC. At the time, I didn’t feel the interview went very well. But the following morning I received an email to say I’d been successful at interview. I looked at my results online and although the points I’d scored didn’t seem very high, it had obviously been enough to put me forward. I received another email saying they’d made me an informal job offer. I immediately accepted. I started the pre-employment checks straight away and have been doing them ever since. There was a lot of sending official documents back and forth. I had problems with them accepting my passport because it isn’t signed. Obviously, I explained that as a registered blind person with no sight I don’t sign my passports. Eventually, they accepted it. I completed the DBS check and I am officially not a criminal! I knew this already of course. On my account page it now has no more checks to complete. Last week, I completed a health assessment over the phone with a doctor from the occupational health team. She wrote a report recommending all the reasonable adjustments I’ll need in order for me to complete the tasks of my role. I confirmed I was happy with what she’d written and then pressed the button that sent the report to HMRC. I’m now waiting for them to respond. It is all pretty exciting, especially now I can see I’ve passed all the other checks. My mobility officer has started looking into a route to get me to and from the office if I definitely get the job. By the sounds of it, it isn’t that complicated. There’s a bus from my nearest bus stop that takes me pretty near the office. The little walk from the bus stop to the office will be good for me. I don’t want to get ahead of myself as I’ve always been disappointed with potential jobs before. But this one is looking very promising. I’m looking forward to hopefully starting work at some point in the near future and having a route I’m  going to constantly use. It’ll be good to get out on public transport again as I was quite good at it down south.

 

Due to circumstances beyond my control, This post really is going to be the shortest update so far. My scheduled mobility session on the 21^st was cancelled by my mobility officer as her car had broken down and the repairs weren’t complete in time. Thankfully, our session on the 26^th did go ahead. Obviously, more time than we’d planned had passed between me walking the route whilst being guided by my mobility officer and actually trying it out using my cane. In the meantime, my mobility officer had sent me the route instructions and I’ve been doing my best to read them every day. They are helping a bit so far. The walk wasn’t awful. I forgot plenty of it, but hadn’t really expected anything different. Before moving up here, I was always pretty rubbish at learning new routes so memorising the block route and beach route the way I have is still a total shock. This one feels a bit more complicated. Maybe the block one felt like that to begin with, I can’t remember. Walking it certainly felt tricky. It just seemed like there was so many things to remember. I’ve been reading the route instructions since and I think it’s becoming clearer in my head and uncomplicating itself a bit. When a route is new it always seems harder than it really is. Of course, the beach one is so straightforward it never seemed difficult at all. But as soon as you add a few more crossings, indents and turns into a route, it soon starts to become a jumble in my head. Luckily, walking it a couple of times and adding in the route instructions allows me to start making a picture of it in my head. Bearing this in mind helps me remember how to walk it. My next session is tomorrow, 1 November. We’re going to practice the new route again. My mobility officer is keen to start the route to HMRC for my potential employment location but I still haven’t had any updates from them on the progress of my application. Really hoping I’ll hear something this week. In the meantime, I’m going to work hard on this third route. Sometime next month I’m hopefully going to be able to try out a new piece of tech released by HumanWare, the company who make my GPS device the Victor Reader Trek. They’ve released a new GPS device, the Stellar Trek, which has all the navigation and orientation functions my Victor Reader Trek has plus cameras to use to recognise door numbers and read other things around you. My Victor Reader Trek has lots of book reading features plus online radio and book download. I only use the GPS side of it and think the new text recognition features could be really useful when out and about. Apparently, the GPS side of things is much more accurate and generally works better now too. It’ll be interesting to have a play around with it and see whether it’d be more beneficial to me than my current device. Although, if it is I’ll have to get saving because, just like every other piece of tech specifically made for disabled people, it’s pretty pricy. I’m looking forward to seeing how much progress I’ve made by this time next month. Maybe, I’ll have received an update from HMRC and my mobility officer and I will be working on the route to their office with me starting work on the horizon. If not, I really hope I’ll have cracked the new route and have it fully memorised.