Harmful Perspectives And Various Updates

[chelseajmunoz]

In the last blog entry that I'd written yesterday I forgot to mention that when a friend of mine and I'd visited a lady's condo this past Sunday she'd told us that she's a property manager. She'd then told us that she'd have a room available in June as well as a studio that's available in August. So when I'd sent her the recent text message expressing my thoughts and feelings to her yesterday I also asked if she'd guarantee for me to have either the room of hers that becomes available in June or the studio that becomes available in August. I asked these things of her as a last-ditch effort to find a place for myself because I have very few options to choose from. And while I hate being in this kind of a position I'll do whatever I can to accomplish my goal of finding a place for me to stay while I attend community college. So a little while after I'd posted the last blog entry I'd written yesterday I searched Airbnb for a possible place to stay. I messaged a lady I found on that particular app to explain my situation to her. In the explanation of my situation that I gave to this particular lady I told her that I've looked at getting an apartment for myself, I've looked into sharing housing with someone and I've looked into getting a roommate for myself. None of those options have lead me anywhere positive thus far, hence my reaching out to her for help. In the message I'd sent her I also told her up-front that I'm blind. I used the word "blind" instead of the words "visually impaired" because I don't care about being politically correct. I like to call things exactly what they are and I'm blind. I don't have any sight to impair. A little while after I'd reached out to a lady on Airbnb I played Timecrest. As I checked how much gold I had I figured out that I could create memory remnants of each individual character within that particular game. Once I'd created memory remnants for each character within the game I was able to unlock those characters memories and read new parts of some chapters that I didn't know existed before i'd figured out this new trick. I ended up playing Timecrest for a while because I was really into the new discovery that i'd made. A little while after I'd stopped playing Timecrest a friend of mine looked for more options of places for me to stay. Said friend found one option where the person who rents the houses out to people was a guy. However the guy has a wife and a brand-new baby too. So after my friend had talked to the guy for a bit I agreed to at least take a look at both of the places that he currently has available for rent. When I'd made my decision to at least look at the places he has for rent I texted the guy to ask if he'd be available for my friend and i to check out the places the following evening. He said that would be fine then he called me to tell me about the places that he has available for rent. During his and my conversation with one another he asked me a few questions about how life is for me as a totally blind person. He told me that he'd never met a blind person before which I thought was great. Because if my blind friend and I are the first blind people this guy ever meets then the two of us have a good chance of him having high expectations for other blind people that he'd meet in the future. I'd much rather someone act inquisitive about my disabilities because that shows that those particular people don't want to make assumptions about people who have disabilities. Shortly after I'd gotten a time set up with that particular guy I received a message from the lady from Airbnb that i'd messaged earlier in the day. In the reply that she'd sent me she said "Hey Chelsea, I'm not sure if we are the right fit for each other. I have a baby...and I don't want it to be a liability issue if something happened to you. I don't know if you need special equipment or things you may need around the house. I just don't think my place is the right place for you." Shortly after I'd read what that particular lady had written I wrote the following response "Hi again, thanks for writing me back. I feel you have some misguided assumptions about blind people. I would like to give you an opportunity to have some true understanding about how blindness is just a characteristic that some people have. I've been blind all my life and I'm an active, independent person. You would not be liable for me for any reason. I am also fully functional. I go to the movies, date people, work out and anything else that you probably do. We really are not that much different from one another except that you do things by eyesight and I do them with the other senses I have. You would not have to worry about your baby getting hurt around me or hurting me. I deserve the same opportunities as anyone else." When I chose to respond in this way to that particular lady's message I did so because I wanted to give her a chance to become educated about the fact that blind people are people just like she is. I didn't want to become her friend or continue an ongoing conversation with her. I simply wanted to give her an opportunity to understand how blind people live and function in the world because it was clear to me that she'd never been given such a chance before. The way the lady from the Airbnb app reacted to me when I'd told her I was blind though showed me that she'd rather go off of her assumptions of what it's like to live with blindness than learn what it's like to live with blindness from someone who's actually blind. That kind of harmful attitude really pisses me off. Shortly after I'd messaged that particular lady on the Airbnb app I went through the mail that I'd received. It turned out that I'd received a bill from CPS Energy in San Antonio Texas. However since I'd already paid said bill I didn't worry about that particular piece of mail. I'd also received something from my old Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor (VRC) in San Antonio Texas. In the piece of mail that my old VRC had sent me he informed me in writing that that particular VR agency had officially closed my case. This morning that particular lady messaged me back saying that she was aware of the things I'd told her. I guess that's all she could say, given the fact that I'd called her on her bullshit in a firm but assertive way. I think it's important for us as blind people to educate others where and when we can do so. Of course we sometimes don't feel like educating anyone about our disability and that's fine too. Shortly after I'd read that particular lady's response I texted a friend of mine to ask him to look at the area where the guy's house is that I'm going to check out tonight. I already knew that that particular area is a safe area but I wanted to find out if there were any sex offenders in that particular area. Shortly after I'd texted said friend of mine to find out whether there were sex offenders in the area that I'm going to be looking at later this evening I called CPS Energy in San Antonio Texas. I called that particular company because I wanted to make sure that said company wouldn't bother me anymore, given that I no longer lived in that city or state. The man that I spoke with from CPS Energy told me that the bill I'd paid that particular company within the last couple days had gone through successfully. He then verified for me that that particular account was closed as I'd wanted it to be. While I was on the phone with CPS Energy though I received a couple phone calls from the local VR agency in this state. Shortly after I'd gotten off the phone with the guy from CPS Energy I called the VRC from the agency in this state. Unfortunately though he didn't answer his phone then. So I left him a voicemail letting him know that I was returning his phone call. After I'd finished leaving him a voicemail I received a couple text messages from the friend I'd texted earlier this morning to ask if there were any sex offenders in the area that I'm going to look at later in the evening. Said friend told me that there were 7 sex offenders within a couple blocks of that particular area which definitely was not as bad of a number as I'd seen in worse areas of this particular city. Shortly after I'd received said text messages from a friend, the VRC who's in this particular area called me. During his and my conversation with one another he asked if I could come to his office this coming Monday morning at 10:00. I said that would be fine. After he and I'd hung up with one another though he called me again. During his and my second conversation with one another he asked if I had someone sighted to help me fill out the application for that particular agency. I told him that I didn't know anyone sighted in this particular area. So he then asked me how I was planning on filling out the application that that particular agency requires its clients to fill out. So I told him that I was going to have someone from his office who was sighted help me fill out whatever necessary paperwork I'd need to fill out. He didn't seem to like that particular answer much but oh well. So hopefully I'll receive the proof of income letter that i'd recently requested the SSA send me. Because if I don't receive said letter before this coming Monday then I won't be able to meet with the VRC this coming Monday morning as we'd scheduled. Because the VRC needs to see documentation that I currently receive SSI in this state. So we'll see if I receive the needed documentation before this coming Monday morning's appointment with the VRC who's in this area.